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Stardust (2007) - My best friend suggested this from my DVD collection to watch when he last visited earlier this week and I'm glad we picked it cuz it was actually way better than I was expecting - I'd listened to the unabridged audiobook version as read by Neil Gaiman of his book of the same name on which this is based, but that was years ago, and I was unsure what to expect, but I'd def recommend this film, it was delightful, and from what I do remember it's actually a pretty good adaptation of the source material, better than most book to film adaptations :)

Amagami SS (Season 1) (English subbed) - I actually really enjoyed this romance anthology anime - it was oddly comforting, really made me laugh here and there, the mc was a decent guy and the girls were an interesting bunch - I look forward to watching Season 2 :)

I've now started watching Nana (English dubbed) which is a beautiful, engrossing series thus far :)
 
My Tiny Senpai ep 2
The inevitable umbrella scene leading to the inevitable looking after the sick person scene!

Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead ep 1
Seems like it'll be a fun ride! Some excellent transitions and animation from this new studio, although the named staff seem plenty experienced.

Sugar Apple Fairy Tale p2 e1
A new position.

TenPuru ep 1
Been a while since I read the first volume of this. From what I remember the art isn't as nice in the anime as it is in the manga, but that's nothing new with adaptations.

The Duke of Death and His Maid s2 e1
Sweet dreams are made of this.
 
Cyberpunk: Edgerunners
It's no SSSS.Dynazenon but this definitely ranks among my favourite Trigger series. Early promotional trailers put me off initially since it gave the impression it'd be nothing but mindless hyperviolence. Thankfully the series wasn't all that as it's greatest strength lies in its story and characters. This in addition to Imaishi's direction, Yoshinari's designs, CD Projekt Red's guidance and Bihou's background art really sold the world of Cyberpunk. Hope to see more productions where there's clear communication and planning between anime studios and game developers.
 
Classroom for Heroes Episode 1

Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation II Episode 25


The Duke of Death and His Maid Season 2 Episode 13

YOHANE THE PARHELION -SUNSHINE in the MIRROR- Episode 3

Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead Episode 1
 
I've had a chance to do the first episode or two in most of the seasonal shows I was going to watch, I feel like this is a good time to make this post. The beginning of the new season is always such an interesting variety of things.

Mushoku Tensei S2 - episode 0 (special)
This is fantasy done right, I dislike the loli-assassin being quite so naked and sexualised, but as with the whole MT show, it's a package deal and you take the good with the bad.

Jujutsu Kaisen S2 - episode 1
I'm a little disappointed with getting more prequel. It feels like we did Season 1 and then decided to halt the story and go back in time, I wonder when the main story we started with will continue.

Zom 100 - episode 1
A fun beginning to this show, some really good animation, and the joy our MC gets at not having to go to work anymore is truly how I think I'd feel if it happened to me (less the zombies, maybe I could win the lottery instead?!) :)

Liar Liar - episodes 1 - 2
I think this has exceeded my low expectations so far, but the games are the weakest part which gives me cause for concern. I hope the actual games get more interesting.

Reborn as a Vending Machine - episode 1
I wasn't sure how they were going to make the vending machine mechanics work but I quite liked this one. It's looking like it's going to be fairly easy going. I look forward to seeing what other powers our vending machine can get.

Atelier Ryza - episodes 1 - 2
Haruhi assembles her SOS brigade and they go adventuring. Episode 1 was a double length one which spent the first 50% setting up the characters and intros, and the second 50% introducing the Alchemy side of things.
This is definitely going to be slice of life oriented but I'm liking this so far, I can tell the studio has had a lot of fun making this. Ryza herself reminds me a lot of Haruhi with her enthusiasm at persuading her minions to do her bidding.
My only real complaint so far is that the fanservice shots are a little too in your face compared to the tone of the show, though I have not played the games and don't know how fanservicey they are.
I don't mind fan service at all but I don't think it should be in everything, and I think it's possible to do sexy without resorting to ridiculous camera angles.
Lila should be illegal with that body.
Masterful Cat - episode 1
Beautiful intro sequence though I think it outstayed it's welcome a little.
I don't really yet know what to make of this show, I am not sure I will continue it, but I'll give it another episode see where it goes.
This is a comedy centered around misunderstandings and feels like it will be very episodic, two things I am not crazy on hence not sure I will want to continue.
Gohands used absolutely wild camera angles in this show, there are all sorts of shots going on, whether this is good or bad, I don't know.

Undead Girl Murder Farce - episode 1
I'd definitely put this premiere up there as one of the best ones this season, this reminds me a little of Monogatari with the dialogue and the scenario they find themselves in being supernatural in origin.
Keen to see how the story progresses.

Ai no Idenshi - episode 1 (dropped)
On paper this looked interesting but it felt like a budget black mirror episode to me. The animation was inoffensive and vanilla, but also didn't offer anything that exciting.
This reminded me a lot of GITS:SAC which I couldn't get into, this is going the route of episodic "monster of the week".
The sci-fi story we had in this episode is nothing unique and has been done better in other shows, though people new to the genre may find it more interesting.

Awaiting new episodes to land for:

Link Click S2
Bleach Thousand-Year Blood War S2


From the new shows so far (excluding continuations) I'd say Zom 100 and Undead Girl Murder Farce are the most interesting intro episodes. Ryza would probably be good as well if you liked the games/slice of life more.
 
Classroom for Heroes episode 1 Expulsion.

Dark Gathering episode 1 Chills.

Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation II episode 1 Moving on.

The Duke of Death and His Maid 2nd Season episode 13 Tropical.

One Piece episode 1068 Crumble.

Combattler V episodes 51-54 (Complete. The first of Tadao Nagahama’s Romance Super Robot Trilogy, this was about what I expected from the premise and was fun, though not as enjoyable as Voltes V, especially with two annoying kid characters popping up around a third of the way through.) 3/5

Cosmo Warrior Zero
episodes 1-13 & Specials (Complete. Another series from the late Matsumoto Leiji’s shared universe that originated as a video game. It was cool seeing some characters from the captain Harlock franchise here.) 3/5
 
The Girl I Like Forgot Her Glasses ep1: I wonder how this mundane-sounding premise can last for an entire season, thought Rui, expecting yet another boring, forgettable 'So-and-so-san is useless in some cute way' series. Somehow, it was worse. The animation veered wildly between acceptable and peak GoHands visual nonsense, together with bizarre directional choices like having the (effectively clinically blind) love interest look away from something she already said didn't bother her, in denial of her agency, only for the lead to relocate the thing he was trying to keep hidden right in front of her (and then do something logic-defying with it on top of that). It felt as though my intelligence was insulted so many times during the course of this one episode, and that's without touching on the extreme creepiness of the lead yearning for the functionally blind girl he fancies to keep on endangering herself by forgetting her glasses again so that he can infantilise her more often, as well as treating her as though she's deaf and dumb just because her vision sucks. Needless to say, its dropped.

Sugar Apple Fairy Tale s2 ep1: The cliffhanger at the end of season one really annoyed me so I'm glad to have this back! Glad that we got straight back into the action instead of having Anne moping around for too long. The show stands out a lot for doing things so differently to all of the mindless isekai clones and I honestly enjoy the melodrama. I want to shout at a lot of the supporting characters, though.

R
 

Machine Robo: Revenge of Cronos - Episodes 25 - 33

There has been some really good episodes in this run, especially 33 which had good tension and some fantastic and imaginative animation.

Break-Age

A l
ate 90's one shot OVA that had a simple and self contained story that made it an easy and enjoyable watch.

Hell Target
Roots Search

Second re-watches ahead of reviews on the podcast.

No Guns Life S2

Being honest, it's a bit boring. Too much talking and no Pepper until 20.

I thought the same, I had high expectations for No Guns Life but found it quite tedious.
 
Ranma 1/2 episodes 47-69: It seems that most episodes of this show rely on Ranma being stubborn to the point of imbecility about something or refusing to listen to the advice of a female character. Also, the US VA who voiced Ranma up to episode 65 was suddenly changed to a very different character. Not sure I approve yet.
 
No Guns Life S2
Episodes 21+22
Nearly there.

Cyber City Oedo 808
Episode 2
Fanservice alert. Enjoyed as much as the first.

Columbo Murder by the Book S1 Ep1
Directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Jack Cassidy (father of David Cassidy). He's an utter swine. Marvelous.
Sorry, I just love any episode with Jack.
 
The Gene of AI ep 1
Seems OK, although the first episode left me questioning the reaction of some of the characters (the mother worrying about losing just a week (would have been more understandable if it was a year say) and the daughter crying over the scrabbled eggs! She seemed a pretty smart kid earlier and would understand what was going to happen. Maybe her mum "dying" and then coming back to life was more upsetting to her than I would feel). Also why was one of the characters in the situation she was? She didn't make the backup herself, but it seems to be part of the overall plot so we might get some answers later.

Liar, Liar eps 1 & 2
Wasn't quite what I imagined from reading the synopsis. Sounded like No Game, No Life, but the "games" are really more like challenges than the type of actual games featured in NGNL and instead of using his wit in them he got lucky in the first one and has to cheat in the others, but keep up the pretence he's a genius, hence the title. Fun in a way, but definitely not as interesting as NGNL.

Blue Orchestra ep 14
Other instruments sounds.

Dark Gathering ep 1
A supernatural show that was actually creepy. Anime tends to struggle to get that right. Also a fairly interesting plot so far.

Malevolent Spirits: Mononogatari s2 e2
Check up.
 
The Gene of AI ep 1
Seems OK, although the first episode left me questioning the reaction of some of the characters

Yes this was one reason I decided not to carry on with it.

I think though that the following sort of applies to at least one of those spoiler scenarios you mentioned:

The week itself wasn't important, more so the fact that the current version has to die to restore the backup.

Dark Gathering ep 1
A supernatural show that was actually creepy.

Really? this is indeed very hard to get right. If it's good I may need to check it out. I dislike scary films (but don't mind the odd thriller although I can't watch them that often). Anime has never been scary though really!
 
I Got a Cheat Skill in Another World and Became Unrivaled in The Real World, Too (English Dub) Episode 12

Level 1 Demon Lord and One Room Hero Episode 2

Malevolent Spirits: Monogatari Season 2 Episode 14

Sweet Reincarnation Episode 3

The Dreaming Boy is a Realist Episode 2
 
8-13 + OVA of Mob Psycho 100 Season 2 (English subbed, COMPLETE) - Glad I finally finished this season, it's absolutely stunning visually and I love Mob's gentle nature :)

Tokyo Marble Chocolate (English subbed) - Charming set of 2 OVAs about a couple trying to say "I love you" to each other, one is told from the guy's perspective and the other from the girl's and it's well thought out and very sweet :)

Still watching Nana (have finished the first disc containing episodes 1-9) :)
 
Soul Land (Douluo) Season 1 (Complete) - Episodes 1 - 26

Soulmate Adventure (Feng Ling Yu Xiu) - Episode 1 Rewatch

Horimiya S2 - Episode 1

Rent a Girlfriend S2 - Episode 1

Vending Machine - Episode 1
 
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