Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End Review

Posted on April 28, 2024 by dreager1

Frieren was a show that definitely got a ton of hype when it was coming out. It’s a fantasy adventure that is a bit different from your average title. It takes place after the hero’s party already saved the world so it’s more of an epilogue with different events that are still going on to bring on the danger. All in all, it’s a rather satisfying show that has a good balance of heart warming/emotional moments as well as some really good action scenes. When the show decides to turn up, it really goes all out with the animation.

The show starts by introducing us to Frieren who was a legendary sorcerer who accompanied the hero Himmel on his quest to destroy the Demon King. They succeeded and the world was saved. They all went off on their own way. We pick the series up 50 years later as Frieren decides to redo the journey one more time to see how the world has changed. Along the way she does does Heiter a favor and decides to train a young girl named Fern. The two of them then meet a warrior in training named Stark. It looks like Frieren has assembled another hero’s party of sorts. There may not be a demon king to vanquish this time around but perhaps they can help Frieren learn what it really means to have emotion.

Frieren’s main conflict here is that as an Elf, she will live for hundreds and hundreds of years. Everyone she meets will inevitably die before her such as he hero’s party that she worked with previously. Some races last long like hers but the Elves definitely take the cake on overall longevity. Elves tend to be very logical and lack emotions as a byproduct of their long lives so while Frieren’s party seemed to have an amazing time, she couldn’t fully appreciate the moments at the time. So in the present, Fern and Stark’s constant banter help Frieren to learn these emotions. You can also give credit to the various supporting characters around.

So in a lot of ways this is about Frieren’s transformation from an emotionless leader into someone who has become more human. I’d say that’s the emotional core of the series and it works well. Frieren even sounds emotionless for most of the show but will sometimes show off a bit of humor and other emotions. Her dry wit works rather well as a contrast here. Above all, it’s also nice to have someone as powerful as her in the lineup. She’s easily the strongest hero alive on the planet right now. She may not be quite as heroic as Himmel but his tendencies have really started to rub off on her so she finds herself being more and more heroic with each day.

Her long years of experience have also helped to spread her reputation around. It’s always nice to see everyone treating her with awe and reverence the whole time. As someone who helped defeat the Demon King, that makes a lot of sense. I’d say this show handles that “Post Game” era better than most other titles that I’ve seen. People didn’t just suddenly forget what happened or anything like that. They’re all still hyper aware of the situation and that’s a good thing. She’s a great lead character, no doubt about it.

Then we have Fern who serves as the prodigy of the group. She is way younger than Frieren and yet she has already become a super talented mage. I don’t see her passing Frieren even by the end of the series but even so, she is a force to be reckoned with. She had to grow up quickly in order to take care of Frieren as well since the lead isn’t always the most responsible for day to day chores. In other ways Fern does show how she’s still a kid though like with her constant arguments with Stark. She really gives him a hard time over every little thing. He never takes anything personal and is a good kid. In a way it’s the only time Fern is able to act like a child which is probably part of why she does it. That, and Stark just gets on her nerves more than anyone else.

As for Stark, he’s the close range fighter of the group. With the other two main characters being long range mages, it is definitely super handy to have a close range specialist at the ready. He lets his guard down a bit and for now I don’t consider him to be in the same league as Fern and Frieren but he is a really fun character who does add to the dynamic. Stark provides a lot of the best gags in the show and he’s also just someone that gives you confidence in the group. He’s straight forward and gets along with people really easily. In that way he feels the most heroic out of the group. Actually, I’d say he straight up is the most heroic. Stark will defend anyone that he can.

The show’s foundation is really solid which opens up pathways to quite a lot of things. The show could have gone down a full slice of life route and it would still be pretty good because the main trio has such a good dynamic. The show also isn’t afraid to just slow down and let the main characters have a fun day off. We get one episode that is pretty much all about Stark’s birthday and Fern trying her best to have a good attitude about the whole thing. There are several other episodes in the show that don’t actually have any fighting involved. This is one of those shows where fights aren’t necessarily guaranteed and that’s definitely not a bad thing. Of course you know I love fights but this series can hold its own in any genre.

So the fact that we have a number of good fights is really a great bonus on top. Each half of the show has at least one major fight that looks great. Like I mentioned earlier, the animation is really solid here. You have a lot of strong/vibrant colors that really stand out at all times. The second half especially has a lot of memorable moments but you won’t have complains with any episode. Meanwhile the soundtrack can be more subdued but one big positive is that each opening is excellent. I really liked the first opening in particular which has a very unique sound design to it.

The first big villain in the show is a demon named Qual who was pretty fun. Basically this guy used to be a really huge deal but in this universe it is hard to stay as a top tier threat. The reason for this is due to the way the magic system works. Basically, the more familiar you are with a certain kind of magic, the easier it is to block. So what happens here is since Qual has been sealed for 50 years, everyone had time to study his magic. Because of that, his ultimate attack is now just a basic attack for the modern day mage. I give Qual credit for quickly adapting to this but ultimately that wasn’t enough to turn the tables. It was a fun way to introduce the viewer to some of the world’s rules while also giving us a fun villain.

The first main arc involves Frieren and friends heading into a town that is trying to make peace with some demons. I appreciated how Frieren said this was a bunch of nonsense from the start and would never work. A demon will always be evil after all and she has a super valid point there. The humans looked rather gullible and they should have let Frieren do her thing. Unfortunately they would have been doomed either way without her but with her then they had a chance. Frieren’s attitude towards destroying all of the demons is a nice change of pace. She definitely won’t be falling for any traps.

The demons all had their own character and personalities too. None of them were throwaways. Well, I guess the closest would be Draht who made the mistake of challenging Frieren to a 1 on 1 fight. She made short work out of him and has quite a few raw moments like that during the show. It’s always really impressive. Aura is one of the big shots here as she is incredibly powerful and gets a good fight with Frieren. The actual ending may be a little anti climactic but the show does its best with the animation and sound design to still keep it hype all the way. Ultimately there was just a big difference in skill level which is what was the main factor here. Aura didn’t really make a mistake so much as she just wasn’t strong enough to win.

Lugner was a solid villain who had a ton of confidence the whole time. I liked his smug disposition and it was certainly deserved considering how powerful he was. The average fighter really didn’t stand a chance against him and his battle with Fern was a lot of fun. This direction of the demons all being rather smug but possessing a dignified air about them is really good. It makes them feel classy even if they are evil the whole time. Finally you have Linie who just likes a good fight. Her ability to copy fighting styles is definitely really handy. I didn’t find her to be quite as impressive as some of the other demons but she can still hold her own in a big fight. If she wasn’t so overconfident she would have done even better.

For the most part that’s it for the demons for now. There are other powerful monsters who have appeared but we’ll need to wait until season 2 for the next big threats. The fact that there are still so many powerful demons out there should have the humans really nervous the whole time but I guess the world is so big that most people are still safe. A lot of people are actually rather nonchalant the whole time despite never knowing when a demon will show up. I suppose that’s just how the world is set up though, you can’t just be living your life in fear right?

Now lets talk about the old hero group and some other characters before we jump into the final big saga of the show. As the legendary hero, Himmel is a pretty fun guy. He’s super heroic and a great hero to have around but it’s not like he’s perfect either. His main weakness is that he can be kind of vain. He loves posing and showing off as the hero. Later on it’s explained that he does this in a way to preserve the legacy of a hero and give people something to believe in but it’s hard to say just how serious that was. For now I’d still assume that he just likes to show off a whole lot and there’s nothing really wrong with it. At most I’m just not sold on his power just yet. He doesn’t actually seem all that impressive in the flashbacks so I’m waiting until we finally see a flashback of how the demon king fight went down.

Eisen is a good supporting character. He is actually strong and can endure just about any blow. His durability is really the selling point here as he can stay in the fight until he delivers the decisive blow. At that point then it is all over for his opponent. Heiter is easily the weakest of the group. He’s a priest who is always drunk and messing around. That’s his whole gimmick but it’s not a good one as he is always getting in the way and this does limit his overall potential. Yeah it’s not portrayed that way exactly and he isn’t treated as a liability but you’d think he would be a little more focused with the stakes being this high. I just couldn’t get behind this character.

Then we have Flamme who was Frieren’s mentor but as far as mentors go she can be a little boring. She doesn’t like violence and wants to spread peace which is all well and good but that’s about the extent of her character. We don’t actually know a lot about her beyond that which isn’t much. More flashbacks could certainly help her character though. Then we have Kraft who is another elf like Frieren. This guy is actually all by himself which seems like it would be really lonely. I’m not sure how he handles it but he actually seems rather good natured so I give him a lot of credit there. It has to be lonely after a while but he definitely doesn’t show it.

Finally you have Sein who temporarily joins the group but I can’t say that he added much to the dynamic so I was okay with him being written out later on. He has some magic abilities of his own and is a good healer but he gets distracted easily and is a big flirt. That’s such a big stereotype and not one of the fun ones so keeping him out is good with me. It seems like he’ll probably return at some point but that could be far into the future so nothing to worry about for now.

Now we get to the point of the big magic exam. At least one member of the party needs to reach the next rank in order to proceed so Fern and Frieren enter the test while Stark finally gets some alone time. The exam has several phases involving teamwork which forces a lot of these crazy mages to team up. Only a few people will end up passing the magic exam so the heroes can’t let their guard down for a second. From capturing birds to travelling into a dungeon and then passing a verbal quiz, every test has the potential to be the end of the road. If this were a straight forward fighting tournament then it would be an easy win but as it stands, there are enough different factors where there are no real guarantees here.

The exams is really an opportunity for a ton of fights and lots of cool moments all around so that was definitely a lot of fun. It’s the best arc of the show for now as we’re also introduced to a number of fun characters. It’s probably the biggest jump in actual characters yet in the series as just about every contestant feels like a person who could show up again in the future. I’d definitely be cool with that since they weren’t bad.

The best new character has to be Ubel. She’s a bit of a riddle right now as she is a serial killer and has a tough aura but she does end up sparing quite a few people. She doesn’t appear to be nearly as bloodthirsty as she lets on. So is this all an act or is she just playing nice for now? It’s just really hard to say either way but she is super entertaining. Her magic abilities are also really handy such as her paralysis and ability to copy your moves if she is able to understand you. Not just anyone can pull that off.

I also like Wirbel who is very similar. He’s murdered many people in the past and is widely regarded as another murderer but in the show he ends up being very reasonable. Murder appears to be a last resort for him. His skills are the real deal and while he doesn’t back down from a fight, he isn’t actively looking to take everyone down. I definitely look forward to seeing a lot more of him in the coming days.

Denken is the oldest contestant in the group. He likes doing things by the book and he makes up for a lack of raw power with absolute experience. He has a plan for everything although plans can only go so far. He doesn’t do great against Frieren in part because when the gap in strength is high enough, no amount of tactics are able to bypass that. He learned this the hard way but it was a good lesson. He has his moments and isn’t bad although he gets overshadowed by mot of the other candidates.

Richter is sort of the opposite here. He’s a lot younger and tends to be more impatient. He does have plans of his own but they do revolve around steamrolling his opponents with pure power which doesn’t always go well. He makes for a good antagonist but he’s not someone I would trust. He would absolutely turn against you for the right incentive. Land is more of a cautious fighter. He tries to keep a wall between him and everyone else at all times but will step in to protect his ally when needed. Ubel definitely dominates him in every interaction and a main reason for that is how Land is a bit of a softie. I like the guy though, he may constantly be lying to himself but the fact that he steps up when needed is a good thing. He’s someone you actually can count on to do his best at all times and to prioritize your safety.

Then you have Lawine and Kanne who are best friends even if they fight a lot. Their abilities complement each other well and they learn a lot while under Frieren’s leadership. I expected them to join Frieren again for the second challenge so it was surprising when they stayed back. I guess it can be awkward when the old friend group shows up but that was their big chance. Individually they’re only okay but as a duo they’re a lot of fun. I always enjoy the friendship banter with all of the insults flying around.

The proctor Sense is okay, but I’m not a big fan of her. I do think that allowing her clone into the exam was a little underhanded especially since she isn’t fighting on the hero’s side. For now I’m not too impressed with her in a power sense either. Certainly the opposite of Serie who finally shows up as the actual strongest fighter in the world. I have Frieren as the strongest hero because Serie is no hero but at this point in time you have no doubt that Serie would win in a fight between them. She’s spent her life in the pursuit of magic and has taken the offensive capabilities of it a lot more seriously than Frieren has. Serie can be openly bias when she is being a proctor but you have to love that confidence.

There are a lot of other characters, particularly in the magic arc but those are the main ones. You’ve got a really good assortment of supporting fighters here and there is already a lot of ground work for a ton of future seasons. There are tons of demons out in the world and the journey to get back to the end point of the adventure should take 10 years according to Frieren. That’s an incredibly long time so yeah this series could be around for a very long time and I’m absolutely cool with that.

Overall, Frieren is a great show and definitely lives up to the hype. It’s a really exciting show during the plot moments and it is a really thought provoking title during the slice of life episodes. The fact that it can succeed so well in two vastly different genres is a testament to the writing in the show. You should definitely watch this if you are looking for a fun adventure title. It doesn’t get much better than this.

Overall 8/10

Shangri-La Frontier Review

Posted on April 27, 2024 by dreager1

Shangri-La Frontier is one of those titles that got a good amount of hype when it was coming out. Not only was it getting the big anime production but there was even a mobile game coming out around that time. Who doesn’t like an action show about a fun VR world right? One thing that did differentiate this one from other titles is how they weren’t stuck in the game this time though. You can actually log out and you don’t die in real life when you die in the game. So it’s more about enjoying the game itself and the series succeeded massively at this. It shows that the writer was able to pull off an engaging story without life or death stakes and that’s very admirable.

The story introduces us to Sunraku (I’m mainly going to use the game names for everyone here to keep things a little more straight forward) who is a “Trash” gamer. Basically that means he intentionally only plays the absolute worst games imaginable so he can have fun mocking them and having a good time. It’s a pretty good strategy the whole time I have to admit. I do the same thing at times, only I still play the high quality stuff too. I can’t imagine limiting myself that hard. Well, one day Shangri-La Frontier comes out and Sunraku decides to give it a try. It’ll be the first “God Tier” game that he’s played so how will this feel?

Well, in a way it feels even better than for the average player. Going from a string of 0/10 games to a 10/10 is just a feeling that’s out of this world. He also happens across one of the legendary bosses in the game, Lycagon. This is such a rare spawn that almost nobody has ever even seen him. Sunraku is destroyed but this causes him to revive with a curse and a unique quest involving a bunny named Emul. Can he clear the quests and solve the mystery of the game or has he finally bit off a challenge that’s simply too big for him? Along the way he meets up with some old associates from other games including Pencilgon and Oikatzo.

One of the key challenges the series would inevitably have here is keeping your interest piqued without the big death stakes. Like I mentioned earlier, the series does well with that and I’d say the main reason is Sunraku as the lead character. He comes off as a fairly overconfident gamer who thinks he can tackle any challenge and it sort of give the show a bit of a sports vibe. Just like you’re engaged in a good game of tennis in Prince of Tennis, you enjoy the boss fights here to see how Sunraku fares. We still get glimpses of the human world from time to time where we actually see him looking at resource guides and browsing online for tips and tricks.

The show is really immersive when we’re inside of the game but I do like these details to show that this is still a video game that exists in a real world. Sunraku won’t always be the first person to discover something, in fact the one exception is the unique quest. So reading up online is something a hardcore player would absolutely be doing. We get to meet his quirky family as well and there’s even a mild romance plot going on in the human world. The absolute best detail though is that Sunraku still occasionally plays some other games. We see him enter a fighting game to practice some moves/unwind and he goes into another game for the occasional meeting.

It all does a lot for the world building. In one episode we even get to meet some of the devs behind Shangri-La which was cool. They haven’t gotten to do a whole lot yet but their banter already makes them likable characters. I have high hopes for their roles in the story coming up soon. There will be balance patches and updates coming into the game soon too so it’ll be fun to see how all of that is handled. Right now Sunraku may have the highest natural talent out of any player in the game but his character’s level isn’t as high as some others so he can still lose fights. In fact we see him lose a decent number of battles which makes sense. Even the best video game player in the world can’t expect to beat very level without dying on his first try.

This isn’t a power fantasy like Sword Art Online (Which is till legendarily hype!) and it’s going for a different vibe. Sunraku is super good at games but it’s for a very realistic reason which is that he stays home and plays video games all day. The guy’s spent his whole life doing this so it makes sense that he would be really good. The same is true for both of his main allies. At most I guess you could say Pencilgon may not make quite as much sense since she is a lot busier with her real life work but hey some people are just really good at games. She’s always a fun character to have around as well.

In terms of production values, I would say the show is very good as well. The soundtrack has a lot of variety to it and is definitely a lot of fun. The themes really help to enhance all of the scenes from slice of life moments to the fights. The Weathermon fight in particular has a lot of fun themes going on there. Both of the opening songs are also exceptional, some of the best I’ve seen in anime. The classic rock really gets you pumped for the action. Meanwhile the animation is also really good. Again, the Weathermon fight has some of the peaks for the series there as it doesn’t give an inch and keeps things moving at a high level. The animation is consistently solid throughout the show though.

Now lets talk about the characters a bit more. Like I said earlier, Sunraku’s a lot of fun and he’s a big reason why the show is so good. I like his overall confidence and how he doesn’t back down from a challenge. Even when he’s outmatched, he just trusts in his overall abilities and reaction times. He reminds me of myself to a large degree I gotta say. It always feels great when he clutches out a great victory and shows why he is still the best. He does a good job of bantering with the rest of the characters and is just a lot of fun the whole time.

He really takes his time about equipping the right items and formulating battle strategies for the fights. We get a lot of insight into his overall personality even outside of the battles. He’s a reasonable guy who has a lot going for him and that makes for an entertaining main character all the way. Then we have Emul who is sort of the sidekick/animal mascot here. She’s okay but a bit bland as far as supporting characters go. Right now I don’t feel like she really adds much to the equation. Yeah she can fight a bit but in terms of comedic potential she doesn’t have a lot yet.

Fortunately Sunraku has two full allies to help carry the load. First up is Pencilgon who definitely likes to think of herself as a leader figure. She has a lot of power and influence within the game thanks to her guild ties. While her circumstances change as the series goes on, she’s always super resourceful so you have no doubt that she will always be near the top. She has a lot of assets and knows how to exploit every rule in the game. Having her on your side is a big deal. While she tends to be a super tough character, she does allow the game to get her a bit emotional at times.

Hey that’s when you know a game is really good after all right? You want to be able to fully immerse yourself in the game and have a good time. I’d like to see her have a real fight with Sunraku at some point. Surprisingly none of the trio have actually fought each other yet and I think that would be a lot of fun. Of course my money is on Sunraku taking them down in the end. Then we have the third member of the team, Oikatzo. The fact that he is a pro gamer is really fun. I don’t remember seeing a character with that job before and it’s nice as a really good reason as to why he can keep up so well. In fact, he still has to play a lot of other games on the side which is probably the only reason why he doesn’t do even better.

Right now it’s fair to say that Sunraku is still better but Oikatzo is a top tier fighter in his own right. I also like that he doesn’t use a weapon and just uses his knuckles to deliver damage to the opponents. I’m more of a sword guy myself but there are definitely some games where I just go weapon-less and enjoy the hand to hand combat. I did that in one of the GBA RPGs a while back because there was some kind of bonus to doing that. While the alliance was temporary you get the feeling that these 3 will constantly be a trio for most of the adventure although inevitably there has to be some kind of tournament where they fight.

Then we have the classmate, Psyger-0. She has a big crush on Sunraku but the guy never notices her. It’s definitely a rather tragic subplot for her and unfortunately she tends to freeze and panic whenever he is around so she is unable to properly confess. Also, the game store they hang out at has a giant poster of Sonic Frontiers so it’s hard to notice anything else when you’re seeing a top quality game like that. Hopefully she will eventually gather her courage but in the meantime at least she gets to see him inside of the game at times. She has a super high leveled character in game which makes her one of the most powerful. It’s definitely a very impressive build even if she can’t get all of the credit for it. I think the account belonged to her sister or something like that, another character who will show up soon.

So I can’t say that I love Psyger-0, I don’t tend to be big fans of the timid characters. I can appreciate that she really takes care of business in-game though. She is actually a really solid player with how she handles the combos and adapts on the fly. The cast actually isn’t that big for the supporting characters beyond that. We do have the various other characters at Rabituza but this is really the only weakness of the series. Right now I don’t really care much about that place. It just feels a little boring and I always want to get back to the main plot. Yeah there are some good gags here occasionally and the place leads to some good fights but I just haven’t had my interest captured yet.

The blacksmith is okay and she’s good at her job but she’s not all that entertaining. Then we have a sword fighter who shows up at the very end of the season and I can’t say that he’s all that good either. The big boss is your average tough guy character but I need to see him fight seriously before I can really appreciate his character. I know this will probably be the area with a big payoff since it’s a super unique quest that only Sunraku has activated so far (Main character hype!!!) but yeah it’s just kind of dull.

The episodes are always more hype when he’s running around the real world. For example the early boss fight with Lycagon was definitely one of the highlights in the show. It was cool to see him struggle for so long against this guy. He may not have been dealing all that much damage but he was fighting hard the whole time regardless. It reminded me of the optional fight against Ganondorf at the very start of Breath of the Wild. It was a good way to introduce us to the skill ceiling in the game.

All of the other boss fights are generally fun as well. We get to see Sunraku take on many different challenges. Then there are also the times where he has to grind up levels against minions or gather collectibles. All things you would expect to see in a game like this. It all leads up to the big Wethermon fight which you could say is the main focus of pretty much the whole season. We get a pretty solid backstory and all but mainly you’re here for the fight and it delivers. It is fair to say that Wethermon is my favorite villain right now.

The guy has a great design and a killer fighting style. I really enjoyed seeing him on screen the whole time and how he just kept on getting up. It’s actually hard to see how this fight will be surpassed any time soon. It felt like an end of series type of boss rather than being so early on. In fact, the devs reference this as he may have even been the strongest out of all the bosses and that’s considering that he was nerfed. So we’ll see how the bosses fare from here.

I have no doubts about the series staying strong though. The character cast has already proven themselves to be strong enough to make any scene entertaining. You don’t even need a top threat to make things exciting. Yeah, I may not care about the lore of the world and all that much so this new professor character could get annoying fast but I have every confidence that the main cast will concentrate more on the gameplay anyway. They’re not the kinds of characters to get distracted all that easily.

At the end of each episode there is a little SLF Mini segment which is kind of retro because I feel like more shows used to do that back in the day. The segment can be hit or miss at times depending on what you enjoy/find funny but all in all I like having it there. In particular I like the ones that show us events we missed or ones that give extra depth to a scene. The comedic ones can be a bit more of a miss but so far there has been a good balance.

Overall, I would definitely recommend checking this show out. Shangri-La Frontier is a great game. The rock music is so good and the show has a great action vibe all the way. It’s sort of like a back to basics kind of show but done with top of the line graphics. I also think it’s a nice change of pace to just have the characters enjoying the virtual world and having a good time. Not every show has to be super traumatic to the main cast at least. I’d say there’s definitely a whole market for more titles like this. Just a fun adventure with great writing and a really solid story. Hopefully they continue the series sooner than later because I am ready for more adventures!

Overall 8/10

Solo Leveling Review

Posted on April 21, 2024 by dreager1

It’s time to dive into one of the titles that really made a lot of waves in the anime world. The original story was a pretty big one thanks to its legendary art and nonstop battles so you figure it would have a very smooth transition to anime so long as the budget was good. Fortunately the anime does have great animation so I would say that it is absolutely keeping up with the greats right now. I figure the series will only continue to get better and better as we jump into the future arcs.

The series starts with introducing us to Jin-Woo who is known as the world’s weakest hunter of all time. What are hunters? Well, in this world there are portals that open up all of the time and hunters are the ones who go in to destroy the boss which causes the portal to close. The boss has to be eliminated quickly or the monsters from inside of the portal will crawl out and destroy everyone. A large portion of the people on the planet are Hunters, you get to be tested once you are of age and then your ranking is determined. You are not able to increase or decrease your rank no matter how much you train. So if you are one of the super rare S ranks then you are in luck. You have fame on the level of a top end celebrity and of course your physical abilities are crazy high. If you’re an E rank…well you might be able to tackle the weakest portals and make enough money to be like a part time job.

Well, Jin-Woo is an E rank hunter and a super weak one at that. He’s weaker than the average person and always gets super injured in every dungeon. He has to rely on his friend to heal him every time. Well, one day the dungeon he goes into ends up being a legendary double dungeon so naturally he is murdered. He ends up being revived somehow though and now he has the ability to level up. It’s as if the world has become a video game so he starts out as a modest level 1 but beating enemies allows him to move up quickly. Does he now have the chance to become an S rank fighter??

Right off the bat I can tell you that I always enjoy a classic level up system. It’s amazing in any video game because if I’m stuck somewhere then it just means that I need to apply myself and get some more level ups. At the same time in a TV show it’s really fun to see because I like to watch the character’s skills improve. I can see immediately why this became such a big hit. It’s the kind of premise that is just a whole lot of fun to watch. The action always remains a pretty big part of the focus as well which is definitely key although I enjoy the talking moments as well. This is what I would call a very well rounded series that excels in just about everything.

So you’ve already got good world building and an intriguing premise. Then beyond that, the main character is really good. In his weaker form Jin-Woo was only okay. You felt bad for him when he was getting beat up but at least he was trying. In his more confident mode, he’s suddenly ready to take everyone down. I like his enthusiasm and determination. He has a scene near the end where he even gets confronted with his older self. At times you do feel like he gets super lucky and should be absolutely crushed by the villains but he always gets up which is the important thing. I would also say that the confidence doesn’t corrupt him with one exception.

There is one scene where he bullies one of the executives with a lot of veiled threats and tough talk. It’s the one time that I thought he was really out of line the whole time. It’s not like this was a villain who was threatening his family or anything. I get that threatening him will really make sure that the guy stays in line but it seemed extremely excessive. So that was Jin-Woo’s only bad scene and while it was a doozy, he has so many great moments that he is absolutely still on top.

Also, while this is more of a positive to the show as a whole, I enjoy Jin-Woo’s fighting style. An Assassin build can be a lot of fun with how quick it moves and the amount of lethal attacks up his arsenal. I thought it was a pretty fun mix-up from the usual swordsman class. In a lot of ways it might feel very similar but Jin-Woo does use his stealth skills to great effect. So that part is a big bonus to him.

Like I mentioned before, the animation is definitely great all around. There are a ton of great fights here, I would say they all looked great. In particular I want to say the two best fights were the ones against Taeshik and Igris. The movement was just so clean and this looks like a brand new anime the whole time. No corners were cut here and I can definitely appreciate that. There will be a lot of pressure on season 2 to look this solid as well. We definitely don’t want to see a drop in quality.

Then the show also has a great soundtrack. I would say my favorite track is Dark Aria that shows up when Jin is taking care of the dark hunters who are messing around with the heroes. It works perfectly in the scene and shows just how messed up things are. The opening is naturally really catchy as well and there are a number of other good tunes to be found as well. So this is another area where the show excels.

Aside from all the general action which is awesome, I do have to take a minute to talk about how great the fight was between Jin-Woo and the evil hunters led by Dongsuk. Technically it’s not rare to see the MC taking out other humans in a show like this. In fact you would expect it but there’s something about this fight that feels extra special. I think it’s because before now all of the fights were against monsters. The whole world’s setup is built around that as well. You’re never supposed to fight any other humans and so the attacks and spells are all trained to work on monsters.

Seeing Jin-Woo essentially turn into a boss battle for the villains was really intense. Definitely a reminder why you should absolutely not mess with this guy. Dongsuk and the other evil hunters may not be super memorable as characters but the scene definitely ends up being one of the most memorable parts of the series. Perhaps it’s the ease with which Jin-Woo destroys them all or the fact that he did not hesitate in the fight. At the end it was a battle to the death though so the villains got what was coming to them.

In the fight with Taeshik it’s also intense because this time both fighters are going for the kill. Taeshik is strong in his own right and has been doing this for a really long time so he’s not going to go down as easily. The fight has a lot of back and forth with high stakes the whole time. I’d have been cool with seeing Taeshik showing up more often since he was a fun villain. Also, as evil as he was, you were glad he was around to take down the other villains since the justice system failed everybody. Solo Leveling definitely strikes you as the kind of world that really incentivizes vigilante work.

In terms of violence, the series can definitely be on the high side at times. There’s absolutely a ton of blood flying around as the enemies are being shredded. Limbs are being lost left and right. It never gets mean spirited on the level of Attack on Titan or too civilian focused which would hurt more though. For now I would say it’s a bit excessive but not quite at the point where I would really be cautioning folks or lowering the score. It could stand to hold back a little though. The monsters always get me a little worried to be sure but at least we’re focusing on those and not having any animals running around. The wolf type creatures get me nervous when they’re destroyed but for now the series is good about keeping them fairly differentiated. I’m not even sure exactly what makes that difference for me. It’s probably a mix of realism and emotions. Like the more it acts like an animal or seems to be in prolonged pain then that could do the trick.

So the series is okay on that front right now. I’m also proud to report that the series really does a good job of avoiding fanservice so far. I’m not surprised, this is a series that was always really good about not having just about any of that. Tower of God didn’t have much at all either so I wonder if it’s just a lot rarer for Korean series to focus on that. Definitely another big win for this series so we can focus on the action the whole time. The show also has some time for some horror elements like in the first episode. The Double Dungeon is absolutely terrifying and they did a great job with the statues there. The big one that smiles is an iconic villain to be sure and I look forward to seeing more of him.

The series also has a lot of mystery aspects at the ready right now. We still have no ideas why Jin-Woo has this level up system. We don’t know who is talking to him through the messages or anything about it really. We’re as in the dark as the main character and the rest of the heroes which works really well. I definitely enjoy a good mystery like that. Really gives your mind something to sink its teeth into while you wait for the next fight scene. As for the side characters, some like Hae-In and Gun-Hee haven’t gotten a chance to do much yet. Hae is a promising S rank fighter who seems like she will be a lot of fun to watch. Gun-Hee may be one of those corporate figures but so far he’s actually rather reasonable and someone you can count on.

Jin-Ah is the main character’s sister so she’s around but hasn’t done a whole lot yet. She’s mainly around to humanize Jin-Woo a bit and remind us that he does have a life outside of all the fighting. Jin-Ho is a rich kid who really wants to prove himself to the company and his father. He works well as comic relief to an extent while also being deceptively smart. The guy has a good head on his shoulders and isn’t just along for the ride. He’s a fun character and you feel a little bad that he’s still rather scared of Jin-Woo so far. Hopefully soon their friendship will be more genuine where there aren’t power dynamics at play. He gets major points from me for still striking up a partnership even while he was probably shaking on the inside.

Chi-Yui is a wise mentor type figure from the opening episode. He actually returns after that later on and has a good fight. I give the guy more props than most of the other supporting fighters since he actually listened to Jin-Woo from the start and didn’t want to ditch him. The guy may have taken the situation rather hard but he performed better than around 90% of the characters. He should be proud of himself and he’s a character who has good development by the end.

Then you have Joo-Hee who doesn’t look great. She’s a solid healer who even reached B rank but gets scared easily and can be off of her game. This is not good since in a dungeon you need to be able to trust everyone with your life. Any hesitation can cost you big time. Ultimately she knows her limits though and makes the right move. It may not make her super likable but it’s better than freezing up when it counts.

Finally you have the final boss Igris. This guy was definitely great. Not much in the way of character at the moment but he makes up for that with an absolutely elite design and superb fighting skills. Right now he seems to easily be one of the strongest fighters in the series. There’s just no question about his incredible skills. He was a great choice to close out the season as the last big named fighter.

The show ends with quite a few new plot points to explore and a lot of world building that was already around. Throw in the obvious cliffhanger and you can tell that we’re really just starting this big saga. Even in terms of power level, Jin-Woo is clearly still not close to S rank yet despite how powerful he is. That’s definitely something that should get you really hyped because it shows that there is a lot more ground to cover.

I guess if you needed another weakness for the series, right now the supporting cast isn’t super memorable. As you could tell from my write up above, it’s not like I was really a big fan of any of the other heroes. Some of them have a lot of potential but haven’t done much yet. Gradually you would expect the other characters to do much but just keep in mind that the show is called “Solo Leveling”. It’s not your standard party type show with all of the fighters teaming up. I will say that we will definitely see more cool characters eventually but the cast isn’t generally one of Solo Leveling’s strong suits. That’s why it is important that you like Jin-Woo as the main character to carry the series.

Overall, Solo Leveling is definitely a great series. A lot of the best parts from the original story are still coming up so I’m definitely hyped for when that gets animated. This season did a good job of covering a lot of content though and I don’t really have the main events in the series memorized so I’m looking forward to seeing what’s in season 2. Of course the cliffhanger involving the insect island is going to be big and that was an awesome saga in the manwha so I’m really excited for that. If you haven’t seen Solo Leveling yet and are in the mood for a lot of action then you definitely need to check this one out!

Overall 8/10

Toradora! Review

Posted on April 20, 2024 by dreager1

It’s time to jump into one of those big romance-comedy titles from a while back. This one definitely goes all in on the comedy right from the jump as the first episode launches quickly with the main heroine punching the guy’s lights out and then breaking into his house. That really set the show up on a good pace and it’s definitely a really fun title. Usually the weakest part of any romantic comedy tends to be the ending as the comedy part eventually has to give way for the serious romance and this one is no exception. The ending is a bit of a trainwreck at times but that’s less than 10% of the whole show so either way I am able to solidly recommend this title to anyone regardless.

The show starts off by introducing us to Ryuji who is your average teen except for the fact that he was born with a really scary face. So everybody thinks he’s a big delinquent and that makes it tough for him to approach the love of his life, Minori. Well, this school term is his chance to get past that but unfortunately he is in the same class as the Palm-Top Tiger. A legendary delinquent whose short stature doesn’t stop her from beating everyone up. Sure enough, she knocks him out early on and it turns out that she lives right across the street from him. There is one thing that connects them though, Taiga is in love with Ryuji’s best friend Yusaku and Taiga’s best friend is Minori. So they decide that they will help each other obtain true love but what if they end up falling for each other somewhere in the process?

Now I have to admit that if they didn’t fall for each other in the end I may even bump this up to an 8 because that would be completely unheard of for this kind of show. You want to talk about plot twists? This would be the biggest plot twist in the anime industry. Regardless, for a show like this the process is more important than the outcome. After all in a grand sense you know how most stories will end. It’s just all about the execution on just how good the story will be and the execution here is pretty fun.

Right off the bat you see that this show isn’t afraid to have some slapstick in the mix. When Taiga’s not slapping Ryuji, she’s punching, headbutting, or just pushing him around. She’s definitely a really tough character and the show can be super expressive. There’s always some comedic violence going on and the gags work very well. I do tend to enjoy Tsundere type characters in just about all anime but of course it also depends on how the writing goes. This was a very well written character and the rest of them are very different from Taiga so it’s also not like this will get repetitive. She’s actually the only openly violent character.

I would also say that another strength to the show is that each character gets a whole lot of depth. Rather than expanding the cast with the show getting over 20 episodes, it mainly sticks to the main cast from the first part so they all get their own character arcs. Yeah there are a few side characters who don’t do much but they didn’t have a ton of potential anyway. The show’s at its best when Ryuji and Taiga are trying to come up with a lot of plans and just failing miserably the whole time. After the final episode there is a bonus episode involving school bento lunches that takes place early on and it easily clobbered most of the final episodes because of this.

It’s a series where you get so invested into the comedy that you don’t even want the plot to return. Of course, the fact that the plot exists is why the comedy can be good so you can’t really go without it. It’s like a mystery series, you have to allow for an ending even if you feel bad because you wanted more of the intrigue. The ending/reveal is a necessary weak point for these kinds of genres so you just have to get ready and accept it. In the meantime though you get to really enjoy the comedic moments as they come in.

Fortunately the animation is also very high end and is able to complement the humor well. We even get a fight scene that actually looks rather good in one of the classrooms. We’re talking about some real physical blows being thrown around and a lot of movement. There’s also a brief slapping fight later on during a trip and a nice attention to detail was that the stronger fighter got a much more powerful sound effect for each slap. The show was always ready to pay attention to each detail which was good.

As for the soundtrack, this is one area where the show definitely went above expectations. There are a number of really catchy tunes in the show. The first opening is also really solid. I’m not as on board with the second one but it’s okay. Unfortunately my favorite theme in the show seems to be hard to find on Youtube so I suspect it’s a small part of a track so I need to listen to it more carefully to find this one. It’s got some nice randomness to it that fits the moments.

So yeah the writing is really solid and that helps the series be a lot of fun. The main cast is generally really solid as well. As for the romance….well yeah get ready for a lot of rebounds. Naturally the romance will usually be the weak link here. I did smirk a bit as the romance went on because at first the show is at least trying to make you think that this won’t turn into one of those titles where everyone likes the main character but at the end that is also something that’s difficult for the genre to dodge. So I can’t say I was behind the end game pairing here. I wasn’t particularly rooting for any of them but naturally the best girl does lose since that’s always how it goes with these things.

The reason the climax fails a bit for me though isn’t even directly related to the romance. I felt like a few of the story beats weren’t developed enough so you were almost rooting against the main characters. For example towards the end Ryuji gets upset with his Mom for trying too hard to make everything work out without relying on him. So he then decides to run off which doesn’t solve any of the issues and really just makes him look super ungrateful. I wasn’t on board with him at all here. It’s at least a little understandable for Taiga but even then it feels too drastic. You never got the feeling that things were as dire as the main two made it out to be.

Then the final episode plays out a bit too melodramatic in some ways. There was no reason for Taiga’s final decision which just put a lot of heat on Ryuji for no reason. I guess the ending throws you a bone but it just felt unnecessary. So the final 2-3 episodes started to feel a bit off and the plot developments feel random at best but like I said, the rest of the journey was on point so that’s really what counts. There’s also a big difference between an underwhelming ending and a downright bad one. Like it’s not enough to lower the score or anything like that. Now lets talk about the characters.

First up is Ryuji who is super addicted to cleaning. He actually gets excited when he sees that a place is messy since it means that he can get in there and make the place look perfect. This gag doesn’t appear very often but I’d say that it’s a good character gimmick. Meanwhile he’s a nice guy who does his best to look out for everyone and make things work out. He doesn’t always make the right calls and makes a few mistakes particularly when the parental figures are involved but at least he means well.

He has enough courage to try asking out Minori several times which is more than a lot of other main characters. Things tend to not go his way which are usually due to stuff he can’t control. He also does his best to look out for Taiga even when they were just neighbors. I’d say this shines through a lot more on his side than Taiga’s to be honest. For most of the series he is helping her out without much in return for himself and he seems to genuinely care. He is the kind of guy who will really help anyone out.

Then you have his best friend Yusaku who can be a little more on the annoying side. His main character flaw seems to be trying to ignore what is happening in order to avoid conflict. That means acting oblivious whenever it suits him. He looks really bad in his mini arc as well when he starts to act out. I would definitely say that was his worst moment by far and it was hard to recover from that. From the main cast he was definitely the weakest. Still not a bad character I’d say but yeah he mostly worked as an obstacle/antagonist rather than amping up the main cast.

Then on the heroine side we have Taiga as the main heroine and she definitely brings in a lot of the heart for the show. She’s a little out of her depth on how the whole romance thing goes and so Ryuji has to help her a whole lot. Half the time it feels like he set things up pretty well for her but she wouldn’t have the nerve to go along with it and would mess things up for him. So again, you have to give Ryuji a whole lot of points for effort here. Taiga’s toughness is part of what makes her so much fun though. At one point she isn’t sure how she can help emotionally so she takes out her sword and just starts beating someone up.

As the show goes on she gradually learns more though and stars to become more aware of how to act on her emotions. In a way it helps her move on when she sees that she’s not the first choice. Of course that doesn’t work with the rebound that comes in later on but she definitely changes a lot from the start to finish. She tries to go down the noble route of just letting the guy she likes go so that she doesn’t wreck another relationship. Ultimately after a lot of pressure she isn’t able to hang on but it was a good attempt.

Her constant banter with Ryuji is always a lot of fun and she’s an entertaining character. Taiga is very much a bold kind of character who goes and tries her best at everything she tries. Then you have her friend Minori who is also a great character. Minori always believes in trying really hard at everything in life. She joins tons of different clubs and jobs and pushes herself to her very limits. She also believes in always having a great attitude and never gets down about things.

Minori even faces her fears right away in the first episodes without backing down. So she’s really fun and is another selfless character who is willing to throw away her desires to help someone else out. This can sometimes turn into a bit of a Martyr case where these things just start to build up but I can still admire this part of her. Eventually when her buttons are pushed enough she will cut loose but it takes a whole lot to get to that point. It’s never that she’s fake either but she tries to just tune things out that would cause her to lose her focus.

So she’s another really solid heroine here and of course the more solid characters you have, the more tragic the ending is going to inevitably be. The most tragic would have to be Ami though who is also the most mature character. Everyone expects her to be super mature too which is the tough part since she has an image to maintain. If she lets it slip at any point then it starts to turn into trouble. At first she’s a jerk but gradually gets nicer as the series goes on.

I give her the most credit here because she successfully keeps in her feelings at all times. Even by the end it’s not clear if Ryuji ever got what was going on. Ami made some fair attempts but when they didn’t work, she never tried to get in the way of the other relationships or cause trouble. In her own way she even helped out her rivals a whole lot. It’s the tragic kind of romance that is one sided but that’s what makes it fun to root for if you had to pick a pairing to go for. Can she get ahead of the other characters? It’s not always easy though and if someone’s not into you then that’s really where that ends. There’s not much that you can do about that.

So Ami’s a character that was doomed from the jump and you feel bad for her the whole time. She really stuck the landing though and never took things the wrong way. She ended up being the best character in the show easy and that’s saying a lot since the cast is generally pretty good. Then we have a few minor classmates but they tend to be weaker or just don’t get much to do. First is Koji who is just annoying the whole time. I felt like he had no real purpose in the story other than to be annoying. Seriously he doesn’t add anything to the story at all and he’s just not that funny. I guess he serves the role as the hopeless flirt who is out of his league.

Then there is Hisamisu who gets a sudden romance plot with Maya at the end but it comes in way too late. It’s also crazy how late he is to the party as he tries to ship Taiga and Yusaku well after that plot had already ended. Meanwhile Maya was trying to get Ryuji and Taiga together so she could be with Yusaku but nothing really came out of this either. Maya was at least a fun character though and if she had appeared more I think she would have been able to add to the dynamic.

Then we have Ryuji’s mom Yasuko who has a medium sized role here. While the show is mainly good about not having too much fanservice, it does feel like that is her role for the most part. There are other moments for other characters here and there but the camera usually gets dicey when Yasuko is around. I feel like this even fools the writers into forgetting just how tragic of a character she is. Yasuko has to raise Ryuji all by herself and works nights and picks up as many part time jobs as possible to support him. She is really working hard and doing her best at all times yet the show kind of turns against her in the end. I didn’t think anything about the ending was justified against her. They call her immature and everything but that couldn’t have been further from the truth.

She sacrificed a whole lot to help Ryuji and it makes sense that she wanted him to focus on his studies. So this was one plot where I definitely disagreed with the direction that the show went in. We understood why Taiga’s dad was a big villain as he kept on breaking her heart over and over again. The Mom didn’t get enough to do so that’s a bit harder to tell but at least we could reasonably say she wasn’t being very helpful. This just wasn’t the case for Yasuko.

I’m not really sure what their pet bird Inko added to the show though. I think it went a bit too far in trying to make his character design look really ugly though. They could have made him look a little cooler. Then you have the teacher Yuri who is okay. You feel a little bad for her too though since her high school life definitely left her wanting for more and now she feels like she’s too old to really do anything. That’s got to be rough. She is absolutely too harsh on herself though.

Finally there is the student council present Sumire who doesn’t appear for long but she has a pivotal role in one arc. She was a solid character who handled the situation pretty well. I guess making a joke out of the guy’s confession towards her was not very nice but the setting for being asked out was pretty bad. Never ask someone out in front of a huge crowd and put them on the spot like that. Ultimately I can also see why she was a bit disillusioned since Yusaku took the news of her leaving so badly. I think she could have even been a good addition to the main cast as another strong member who could handle anything if she had stuck around.

Overall, Toradora is a pretty fun series. You’ll definitely get a solid amount of laughs out of it and the pacing is on point. The characters all get a ton of development to them and you really feel the progression from each of them. None of them are really the same as they initially started which is the sign of a solid show there. The status quo was definitely changed quite a few times and the show is long enough where it gets to take its time in each one and we can see the characters just interact. You really feel like you know all of the characters very well by the end. A sequel could definitely be fun at some point although the ending is fairly definitive. I also think it’s hard to match the school setting since in College they will all be split up but I suppose then it’s up to the writers to come up with a bunch of fun new characters.

Overall 7/10

Lycoris Recoil Review

Posted on April 20, 2024 by dreager1

I remember this anime being massively popular when it first came out. There were clips of it everywhere and it looked like a pretty fun show all around. Well, I have now gotten to dive into it and it is a fun experience. I’d say the dynamic between the main two heroines is definitely one of the stronger ones and is a big reason as to why the show is fun to watch. It’s also the only time I can think of where you have one character who is a prodigy and then the other is a super prodigy to the point where the first one even looks super weak. The power scaling here gets pretty intense.

In this world, there are a group of girls who fight to protect Japan from behind the scenes. They are the Lycoris. They operate in complete secrecy so nobody even knows that they exist. Because of this, the world believes that Japan is basically crime free because their citizens are just that good. They’re literally built different and it gives people a lot of security. You feel safe while in Japan. The main heroine is Takina and she is the best agent in the group. She completes all missions with ease and while this has stunted her emotional growth, she is effective. Unfortunately on one mission her partner gets captured so Takina rescues her by going in guns blazing but she had to defy orders in the process.

Takina is demoted from the main task force and sent to a little Lycoris cafe in the middle of nowhere. Since Takina has trained all her life to be the best, this is a huge blow for her and she wants to get back into the elite squad at all costs. It won’t be easy though as she will have to work together with Chisato, the problem child of the group. What Takina doesn’t realize is that Chisato is the greatest Lycoris agent to ever live. She has uncanny reflexes that allow her to dodge any attack and she does all this while keeping up a no murder policy. It’s going to be tough getting back to the main squad when working with a troublemaker like this. Takina may be at odds with Chisato for now but will she slowly learn how to just be a normal civilian?

I’d say in a lot of ways that’s the main plot here. Takina put her whole life into being a ruthless killing machine but now she gets to do some normal stuff. Operating a cafe for example may be low key but it does force her to learn some actual conversational skills. Chisato helps her learn how to dress fashionably and take life less seriously as well. It takes a while for Takina to really start dropping her defenses but that’s what makes the dynamic work. I think it wouldn’t have worked nearly as well if Chisato wasn’t so unbelievably strong so it’s good that she was the top fighter.

The concept of the Lycoris group is also pretty interesting. I feel like it probably doesn’t hold up if you think about it too hard though. Like when they’re murdering all of these villains and hiding the evidence, what happens to the families? They’re told some kind of accident happened and they aren’t allowed to see the body? No matter what tricks you go with here, it feels like they wouldn’t be able to work indefinitely. The more that things keep being weird and having unexplainable circumstances, the more that it’s going to raise some flags. There’s also a second secret assassin group made up of the guys but they’re a lot weaker and not much of a threat so you can ignore them.

The animation here is very solid as you would expect. It’s all very smooth and the action scenes always bring out the best in the series. There are a lot of quick movements and the opening is also high budget. Basically any time Chisato is fighting, the series dials things up quite a bit. It helps that this is the best way to show her bullet timing abilities so she gets to dodge a lot of hits all the time. The gun fights and also just the general movement around town tend to be good as well. The colors are striking and so I have no real negatives here.

Meanwhile the soundtrack is good as well although it’s a lot more subdued. The opening for example is great but from the ost within the show, you will likely be forgetting about it fairly quick. None of the tunes there were super memorable but at least they would fit the scene so I still wouldn’t say that the themes are bad or anything like that. Then we get to the characters. The cast isn’t all that large but considering that the show is only 13 episodes that makes sense. First up is Takina who is of course a great main character.

It does feel like her confidence doesn’t always line up with her skill level though. She may have been the best among the active Lycoris but when the going gets tough she does not do well against the main villain Majima and several times seems to be holding Chisato back. Still I like her personality and I tend to enjoy characters with high levels of confidence. Takina is always talking tough to anyone in her way and she does try really hard to learn every lesson that Chisato gives out. So you have to give her a lot of credit there. Like I said before, she is one of the big reasons why the show is good.

Then you have Chisato who definitely steals the show here. She has a lot of confidence and is always upbeat. She’s not the kind of character who will do much bragging but her confidence shines though in subtle ways. If there is a big fight where everyone is sweating and stressing, she’s just casually dominating the fight. She is quick to defend Takina as well and is also the most heroic member of the group. Unlike everyone else who are content to murder as many villains as possible, Chisato takes them all alive. She even loads her gun with pepper spray instead of bullets to further make sure that she doesn’t go too far by mistake.

Chisato definitely has a serious plot ongoing here involving a mystery that she has to solve but where other characters might falter and get frustrated, she just plunges forward. There aren’t many characters that are as mentally strong as she is, that’s for sure. Her character’s ending is satisfying here.

Then we have Kurumi who is really good at hacking. So while she may not be able to fight, that’s fine. Having two expert fighters on the group seems like it should be enough for any circumstance right? Kurumi’s hacking comes in handy many times as it is. I don’t think she adds a ton to the dynamic as far as the characters go but she’s not bad. She’s still a fun character to have around. Finally you have Mizuki who probably has the smallest role from the main group. She helps out as needed but is really here as comic relief so don’t expect her to really contribute in the plot.

Now lets talk about the higher ups in the Lyrocis project who tend to be the worst characters. First you have Mika who owns the bar and is trying to do better but I have to say that he comes across pretty badly by the time all of the twists are accounted for. He takes way too long to come clean about a lot of things and the secrets are actively hurting everybody. He really needed to do better and comes across as wishy washy during a lot of points. There was no real saving him because at the end of the day inaction is almost always a negative action.

Even worse though is Kusonoki. She leads the Lycoris project although she still has to answer to the board of directors and everything. The problem is that she loses fight of the point of the project early on into the show. Benching Takina for a small problem and then ignoring her the whole time is just unprofessional. Even worse is the fact that Takina finds out new clues and evidence that helps them press the case forward on several accounts. It’s clear that they need Takina but a misplaced sense of justice causes Kusonoki to still make the wrong move. Then here is a moment where the government tells her to stand down so they can murder all of the girls, she doesn’t do much about it. Yeah she has her big resistance moment but now that we know this kind of order can happen she should be taking steps to destroy the other groups. Kusonoki ultimately feels like the kind of character who will follow orders and keep the status quo even if everyone ends up dying as a result.

Then we have the other members of Lycoris who are mainly here to help remind us why the group is absolutely doomed without Takina and Chisato. Those two hard carry the group. Fuki is one of the squad leaders and she can’t do much of anything. She talks a big game but can’t back it up. Then you have Sakura who replaced Takina and gets embarrassed at every opportunity. She comes across more annoying than anything else. Like I said I typically enjoy the confident characters but it can’t be 100% empty air. At that point I just can’t take you seriously.

There’s also a detective character running around but I feel like the show wasn’t really sure what to do with him. He just gets written out midway and gets a final scene at the end. I was expecting his plot to continue and maybe we would get something big in season 2. Granted, like I said the whole Lycoris secret project doesn’t always feel very well thought out so him solving it could have been interesting but the whole thing felt a little weak.

Okay now lets talk about the villains here. First up is Shinji who is definitely on the weak/annoying side. So this guy basically has a death wish for a while there and his plans don’t really excite me. I feel like he isn’t even getting closer to his goals with the way he handled things. Chisato looks up to him a whole lot so a direct approach might have at least had a slim shot of succeeding. Instead he’s playing all of these games and being sneaky while talking about his message in the worst way possible. There was no way he was going to win over Chisato the way that he planned it out. It just doesn’t make sense. So yeah this guy was pretty awful the whole time.

Then you have Robota as the evil hacker and he was okay but my main problem was just that he was really weak. You couldn’t take him too seriously because the heroic hacker was so much better than him at all times. So this guy has a lot of confidence issues as a result and that doesn’t really work for a villain. Fortunately the main villain Majima helped to balance things out because he is actually a really good character. Basically he wants to expose the Lycoris group by letting everyone know the truth about them. He goes pretty far in this goal like spreading a ton of weapons among the civilians and making a lot of connections.

Naturally he goes full villain with how he is actually murdering people but otherwise the message makes sense. This fake sense of security by hiding all crimes does feel like it’s not the right thing to do. They’re just hiding things at that point and playing judge, jury, and executioner. They are explicitly acting outside of the law here. That said, the characters still treat him way too kindly to the point where it doesn’t make sense. The biggest example of this is the climax with him fighting Chisato.

At times it feels like Chisato doesn’t care that this guy was ramming other Lycoris agents with cars and generally causing a lot of people to die. She was arguing with him like he was some random dude. Yeah it’s great that she never takes things too hard or gets down in the dumps for long but this was different. This is a fight where she needed to knock him out right away to neutralize the threat. The climax just felt out of character and a bit bizarre. It only would have worked alongside the twist that he never actually ended up hurting anybody. It’s why the whole fireworks scene doesn’t really work.

But hey, getting let off easy by the heroes isn’t a negative for Majima. He’s just responsible for his own actions and on those he did good. Considering how outgunned he was against Chisato, he also did a great job of planning for the fight and using the only way possible to even the playing field. Even with that Chisato was definitely primed for the win but I give the show big props for actually coming up with a way to make it dangerous for her. For a while it seemed like there were not going to be any real threats to Chisato in the series. Nothing wrong with that of course but I do always love when a character can go all out because it’s really close.

The show mainly keeps things high brow the whole time too which is nice. I was pleasantly surprised by the fact that there wasn’t much fanservice. The show even mainly avoids having any rushed romance plots thrown into the mix. So this way we’re able to just have the main characters enjoy life and have fun. The episodes usually would spend half of the runtime having fun and then half with some kind of action scene and the balance works really well. I’d say the show’s biggest strength is that it’s just fun to watch. Each episode is entertaining and so the show manages to be consistent the whole way through. The foundation is strong enough where the show could fully transition into being a slice of life title and it would still be in good shape. Although of course I’m glad we get to keep the action in. One plot that I think we could take a bit further is Chisato’s killer mode. We don’t get to see much of that even in the final battle and it feels like there is some good potential there because she’s still holding it back in a sense. The longer she holds it back, the more credit I give her strength of will though.

Overall, Lycoris Recoil is a pretty fun show. It’s the kind of title with a lot of potential for sequels. You could really keep sending the heroines on more and more missions as needed and the end only has to happen once the writers run out of ideas. If you like the idea of secret agents protecting Japan then this lives up to the premise. It’s bound to keep your attention all the way through and a lot of care was definitely put into this one. I’d be hyped for a season 2.

Overall 7/10

Natsume’s Book of Friends Season 4 Review

Posted on April 14, 2024 by dreager1

The adventures of Natsume and his protector Nyanko continue in this season as they help some more Yokai now. By this point you either vibe with the season or you don’t which is typically how a long running title goes. I would say it keeps pace with the previous seasons. It’s not my favorite one out of the batch since Reiko doesn’t get to do much but it’s still on the same level. It succeeds in being a calming series as always with a good array of different stories to keep you entertained.

We start off with a fairly important episode right off the bat. Natsume gets overwhelmed by some Yokai and so he ends up getting captured by Matoba. Matoba takes the chance to try and recruit Natsume although that doesn’t go well. Both characters mainly get to use this chance to discuss their different ideologies. Natsume wants to protect both humans and Yokai while Matoba wants to exterminate them all. If Matoba ever got the Book of Friends it would be a rather attainable goal since he would immediately have an entire army.

Matoba gets a solid amount of hype here as well since he is quickly able to even take out Nyanko. There’s a decent amount of back and forth here as both characters try to keep their hype but it does feel like Matoba has the edge since he is willing to murder Nyanko while the yokai has to hesitate since Natsume doesn’t like bloodshed. I’m glad to see Matoba because the series could use a serious reoccurring villain like this guy. The only tricky thing is that Natsume himself can’t fight so the series will have to squirm its way around why the guy doesn’t just murder the kid. For now we can believe that since he only wants to murder Yokai, destroying Natsume would go against his creed.

I would say the whole Matoba plot outshines the actual Yokai predicament of the episode. You have Lord Rokka who is being hunted by Matoba and Natsume has to help him out a little bit. It’s not bad or anything but you are really laser focused more on the confrontation of ideals which makes sense. I expect that will always be the case when Matoba or Natori is in the episode since they tend to steal the show.

In fact the next episode had a very tough time matching the opening two. You have this mini Yokai puff ball that threatens Natsume and his house if he doesn’t get some help fast. Ultimately Natsume helps out but these kinds of scenarios do help Matoba’s point quite a bit. There are so many Yokai that are constantly trying to murder humans or at least threaten to do so before they are taken down. At the very least it appears that there are more evil Yokai than good ones and that’s rough. At the end of the day you can’t destroy them all but destroying the evil ones makes sense. They’re practically dead already so I feel like sealing them is worse since you are conscious forever.

After that we go with a more emotional episode. There was once a guy and girl who were very much in love with each other but one day the guy died. A yokai decided to pretend to be the guy so he could talk to the girl for a while and keep her from being lonely. This meant he always had to hide indoors and find an excuse for her not to enter. I have to suspend a ton of disbelief here to be honest but it’s a pretty touching tale. Ultimately he should have been honest from the jump though and is super lucky that she wasn’t bitter about the whole thing. Maybe she suspected the truth early on but it’s hard to say. The ending is solid here and it’s nice to have a story about a good natured Yokai over here. At the end of the day, a romance between a human and a Yokai will never end up working out with how different they are though.

We follow that up with another emotional story. This one deals with Natsume’s past and those tend to be some of the most enjoyable episodes. We see things from the point of view of a girl who used to be around there and saw how strange he was. She sort of wishes she had talked with him a bit more but for the most part she just watched and eventually he left for good to the new school. This got kicked off due to a friend of her friend noticing him on the way back from school or something. There’s some mild danger with the girl almost getting hit by a truck but for the most part this was about the feels.

So after that it makes sense that we dive into a more action packed story segment. Our next 2 part adventure! This time Natsume gets rather sloppy and is stuffed into a bottle. Nyanko is forced to go undercover as Natsume in order to rescue him. This is also Tanuma’s big chance to help. He always wants to contribute but Natsume tends to block him out. Well, Natsume can’t quite do that this time eh? It’s a fun teamup and I also think this is Nyanko at his best. His rude demeanor while in Natsume’s body makes for a lot of great humor. The guy absolutely doesn’t care about keeping up appearances.

It’s certainly rough for Natsume since you know that his reputation will never be the same but I dare say this version of him would be a much more interesting protagonist anyway. I like Natsume but he is way more passive after all. Nyanko just tells it like it is. As for Tanuma, it’s great that he wants to help but I totally get why Natsume keeps him to the side. Without the ability to see Yokai everywhere, he would usually be a liability. It’s only in select circumstances where he can be helpful like when he can temporarily see the monsters.

After that is more of a quiet episode but with an interesting pairing. Nyanko and Nanase are both trapped in a pit which gives them time for some banter and to reflect. Nanase gets some actual character development with a glimpse into her past here. I didn’t talk about her much earlier but she works for Matoba as his main assistant/follower of orts. She is knowledgeable and experienced which makes her a great partner to have. So this was fun, again it’s one of those episodes that isn’t the most action packed with high stakes or anything but it works well.

After that is the next big saga as a 2 part adventure. I’d call it more on the fun side this time though as Natsume has to pretend to be a god and compete in a big competition. It’s going to be difficult to win obviously though because he is up against another god. Really he needs to buy time until they can find the genuine thing but he may have been sealed by an exorcist a while back or worse yet, some yokai think he abandoned them. Natori is also on the case here and while he will watch for now, if the villain wins then Natori will have to exorcise him.

While Natori isn’t quite as intense as Matoba in terms of destroying the Yokai, he’s still more aggressive than Natsume. Natori will destroy any spirit who poses a threat and he makes that clear to Natsume here as well. Humans are ultimately going to be his priority so these episodes have some solid stakes to them. It’s a rare case where there is no danger of the villains winning but innocent Yokai will be destroyed as well if Natsume can’t get to the bottom of this in time. It’s an interesting saga that will keep your attention the whole time.

Finally we have the 3 part finale about Natsume remembering his days as one of his old houses and then having to visit there in the present. Basically his father’s house is going to be torn down and it still has a lot of precious memories to him. He tries to keep a brave face about it but he really wants to visit. This stirs up a bunch of old memories and he also has to meet up with one of his old foster families which is a bit awkward. He left on mainly good terms with them although the kid didn’t like him.

It’s easy to see why since at the time he was unable to hide his ability to see Yokai very well. So to the family it would look like he was yelling at nothing and constantly breaking stuff. He ended up running away from home more than once and a lot of rough stuff happened to him. The Yokai really never let him catch a break and it got extra powerful in the current days as well. It’s too bad that he couldn’t ultimately get along with them a bit better. The actual family really seemed like nice people too. They definitely did the best that they could and ultimately it just wasn’t enough. Hopefully Natsume will visit there again someday and make things better.

It works really well as the finale because it’s a good reminder of how difficult Natsume’s life was back in the day. The episodes mainly take place in the present day where everything is rather calm and happy but that only came after years of struggling. Having Nyanko-sensei there to guard Natsume really makes a world of difference. There are scary Yokai all around every corner and without a bodyguard Natsume would be dead in short order. Yeah he definitely has to keep his guard up at all times but at least now if he makes a mistake there is someone to help him.

It makes Reiko extra impressive in how she stood her ground for so long and even caused Yokai to fear her. I’d still love to see a prequel series about her some day. I’m sure she had her own troubles and we’d probably see those even clearer in a series from her point of view but to everyone else she is someone to be feared and that’s definitely hype. Still the best character in the series by far.

On a technical level the series isn’t too impressive and mainly uses the good writing to get by. The animation is okay. It flows well but it’s not going to be catching your eye or anything like that. The soundtrack is super peaceful which makes sense for the show but I could use some more rock themes. I know the show is about the calm vibes but I don’t think that means the soundtrack and everything has to follow suit. You can absolutely go all out even within those confines.

Overall, Natsume’s Book of Friend continues to be a consistently solid series. It may not be a great title or anything like that but it’s one where you can tune in every week and expect a good product. The seasons always feel familiar and so you can jump between episodes from any season without any real issue. There is not much of an end goal since we don’t know how many more demon names are in the book so this can go on for as long as the author of the manga wants. In the meantime I will be ready to continue following it for each season. As long as you enjoy fun little stories like this then you should have a good time here as well. We will see if Natsume ever does end up completing the book or if ultimately the series will have one of those “The adventure continues” endings.

Overall 6/10

Demon Slayer Season 3: Swordsmith Village Arc Review

Posted on March 10, 2024 by dreager1

It’s time for the big return of Demon Slayer. The series has been on an upwards track so far but would season 3 be able to sustain this? The Mugen Train arc I consider to be much better than this one after all but at the same time just because that is the case in the manga, doesn’t mean it will track that way in the anime. I preferred the Cell Saga to the Buu saga in the DBZ manga while it’s the opposite in the anime so these things can happen. Either way with only 11 episodes this season goes by extremely fast.

This time it’s the Tanjiro show from start to finish as his two teammates are sidelined the whole time. Tanjiro needs a new sword and heads over to the Swordsmith Village where there are 2 other Hashira hanging around. That’s definitely really handy because Muzan sends his troops over to start murdering everyone. Tanjiro will have to try and stop the demons again but does he really have the ability needed to stop them?

One thing you always have to give Demon Slayer is that there’s not a lot of downtime. We get the intro episodes to set the stage and then from there it’s a nonstop climax. Basically from episode 3 and all the way through to the final episode 11, it’s a bunch of nonstop fights. Ufotable is at the helm so the fights all look spectacular. This is definitely a true spectacle show and I’m always up for that. I think it also helps to mask Demon Slayer’s weaknesses and focus on the strengths.

To me, the series does have one of the weaker casts. Tanjiro is nice and all but he’s not a very entertaining main character. Outside of battle he has no real fire in his soul. He’s a nice guy but that feels like most of his character. There isn’t a ton of fun banter between the characters and so the between arc stuff can feel a bit boring. The first two episodes for example aren’t downright bad or anything but any scene of just hanging around the village can be rather boring. I don’t think the show tends to succeed with its humor or non action shenanigans. Fortunately like I said, this isn’t here for long anyway so it’s not really a big concern.

As to the animation, it’s as great as ever. While it’s fair to say that none of the fights match the highs of season 2, they still look great. It’s not that the animation has dipped at all but just that those fights were even more special. This season has more villains who are using run and gun tactics or long range abilities so there isn’t as much chance to have the kind of brutal close quarters combat that you saw in season 2. So have no fear, this show is still giving maximum effort at all times.

The soundtrack is also great. The opening is another high tier song even if it can’t beat some of the previous ones. It’s definitely catchy all the way through. There are also some great emotional tunes like the one that plays in the final episode and of course you have the usual action ones. The soundtrack is very well balanced all the way through. The technical elements never fail to impress and support the main story.

This is the first season where you start to think that Muzan may not be very smart though. The hints were always there but this one definitely sells it. He’s got all of these powerful demons at the ready and he still hasn’t finished off the Hashira? It’s well established at this point that the demons are way more powerful than the Demon Slayers. If they all rushed in at once then the heroes would be doomed. So why not have the demons attack a town as normal. When the Slayers send a single Hashira as they always do, murder him and wait for the next one. Rinse and repeat a few times since there are only 8-10 Hashira and then you’ve won the war.

At the very end of the season Muzan gets real happy because he’s close to his goal and you just feel like he should have been doing things sooner rather than constantly murdering his own men and hurling threats around. He’s an imposing figure to be sure but definitely not a strategist. I look forward to seeing him finally take the stage even if you feel like the heroes should not even remotely stand a chance. One of the strongest Hashira couldn’t take on one of the top 10 and Muzan should be many leagues stronger than that.

The series has been using each arc to develop the Hashira so lets talk about the ones in this arc. First up we have Mitsuri who even now I would say has one of the smaller roles in the franchise from the group. Still, she does get to take down some giant monsters and helps out in the climax. She may lack some of the raw power that the other members have but her weapon itself is very memorable. Its sheer agility makes it hard to dodge while still being sharp. She’s a good character though so I look forward to seeing more of her.

While the series has always been rather spectacular in terms of avoiding fanservice, the show does indulge a bit for when she appears. It’s a rather quick moment at least so on the whole I would say the show is still really solid in this area. Mitsuri gets an origin story and it’s probably the only one that’s not particularly tragic. Almost everyone has an origin involving a demon murdering their whole family or something like that. I’m glad that she was at least able to avoid that.

Then we have Muichiro who has a big role here. This guy doesn’t really like working with a team and values his life above others since he’s a Hashira. Basically he’s a complete jerk to the point where he beats up anyone who gets in his way. Again this is where Tanjiro loses points for me because he just stands there and takes it. How many times does someone have to beat him up before he fights back in a serious way. A lot of leads wouldn’t put up with half of the stuff that Tanjiro allows and it’s really what holds him back in a significant way.

Back in the day Tanjiro and Deku were compared a lot when talking about how much nicer the modern Shonen leads are but the difference is that I do feel Deku would actually stand up for himself a lot more. Yeah he would put up with a bit extra but he still has a tipping point while it feels like Tanjiro really doesn’t sometimes. Obviously if someone else is in trouble then that is a different story but when it’s just him? Game over man. We see why Muichiro turned out this way from his origin story and by the end he is doing better.

He feels a bit weaker than the average Hashira but the battles had some circumstances including poison. In theory he will look a lot better in the future battles coming up. Then we have Genya, another big jerk. This guy can turn part monster if he eats a part of a demon which is a really handy ability. Unfortunately he’s another slayer who can’t play well with others. Yeah he’s also got a super tragic backstory and everything although if anything he’s the one who ends up looking bad in that one since his brother did the best he could. Genya gets some development here as well but to be honest part of his problem is that I find him weak as well.

That fancy gun of his doesn’t work nearly as well as a classic gun would. It’s fortunate that he has regenerative abilities or he would have been bumped off early. This arc basically has the weakest assortment of Hashira and weaker fighters. While I wasn’t a big fan of Tengen, he was extremely powerful. I’d probably take him in a 2 v 1 fight against the Hashira in this season. His stats were just so far through the roof.

Then we have Kotetsu who does his best to look out for the swords but he gets beat up by Muichiro. He helps train Tanjiro although maybe overdoes it with starving him the whole time. It’s not the most extreme that I’ve seen for training though so it’s not crazy. The kid goes through a lot that’s for sure, you definitely feel bad for him in the season. The guy’s got a ton of determination though because he keeps on trying even after getting stabbed when he’s not even a trained fighter like that.

Hotaru could learn a thing or two from this guy because he’s completely unreliable. He’s mad at Tanjiro the whole time because he blames the lead for his sword breaking. That’s illogical on every level. As the guy who made the sword, it’s obviously on him if the sword breaks. Blaming the guy who used it is incredibly petty to me. He eventually gets over himself and makes the sword but yeah I definitely didn’t like this guy.

Nezuko does well as always here. Her fighting abilities are still really impressive and she is certainly able to hold her own really well even against top level demons. Ultimately they are too much for her but the fact that she can deal damage saves Tanjiro and the others quite a bit. The downside to having regen like this is that she does tend to take the most damage though and always goes through the most violence here. The amount of painful injuries that Nezuko takes is absolutely crazy. She has the most emotional moment in the series near the end for sure. Also the implications from this could be a little worrisome so after finishing the season you wonder how that will go.

Gyokko is the main villain here and he’s definitely one of the more annoying ones. He tends to rely on cheap tricks and running around. His own pride is also what keeps him from murdering the swordsmith when he had the chance. So the guy is not efficient and he’s also not one of the strongest members. That’s just great. He definitely has fun picking on opponents who can’t fight back and for a sleazy villain that’s in character but it does mean that there is no reason to really like him all that much.

The other villain Hantengu is way better. That guy actually can fight a lot and then of course he can split into a lot of other demons. All of the split demons have their own special abilities, names, and personalities. It is definitely one of the more expansive splits I’ve seen in a character. I’m used to characters being able to multiply and everything but becoming unique characters like this? It’s really a lot of fun and is part of why the climax went on so long. He would just keep changing over and over. Then he can also absorb everyone and become super powerful again.

It’s a loop that is super hard to fight against and it’s why it took many fighters to defeat him. His rank is definitely very justified within the demon organization since he should clear most of the fighters in the verse. One on One I dare say that there is likely no member of the Hashira who would be able to defeat him. That’s how impressive this guy is. The heroes really had to rely on sheer numbers and a lot of strategy here. The guy definitely left a lasting impression and I won’t be forgetting him anytime soon.

As in previous seasons I would say the only thing that really holds the show back from being higher is that the violence can still be on the excessive side at times. The origin stories are bleak as always with families being murdered or characters being forced to murder their family because they were turned into demons. The demon system still really feels more like vampires to be honest as it’s practically the same thing. A lot of noncombatants are always thrown into the mix as well which definitely makes you feel bad for them.

Even for the combatants the fighting always gets real intense. I tend to have a bit of a higher threshold there as long as they don’t overdo it, but man does Demon Slayer take this close to the brink. Like in Bleach you always wonder why they aren’t all just dying of blood loss by this point. With the demons having high speed regeneration and everything it’s also why you still can’t picture the humans ever winning. It just seems like an absolutely impossible fight all the way through.

Overall, Demon Slayer continues with its nonstop action here. I really do like how the series just locks in every season with massive fights that span many episodes. In that way it feels like a classic action title like DBZ where the fights would really last a while. I look forward to seeing what comes next even if the next season seems like it could be a little lighter on the action. Until it actually comes out, you never know though. Either way we are slowly getting close to the end here.

Overall 6/10

Mashle Review

Posted on March 10, 2024 by dreager1

It’s time to dive into the world of Mashle. A lot of comparisons were drawn to One Punch Man when this came out because the series is about a guy who is extremely powerful physically to the point of having a lot of absurd feats. I would even say his feats start holding their own against Saitama for a little while there but aside from that general part of the premise, it’s not actually all that similar. The blend of humor and action work really well here.

The story starts by introducing us to a world where just about everyone has some kind of magic. If you somehow don’t get this then you will be in a lot of trouble and unfortunately Mash is one such kid. Fortunately as a baby he is taken in by a kind man who raises him for year, Regro. He has done his best to raise Mash in an isolated cabin since then so they are away from the outside world but one day the cops catch on. Mash will now have to enter magic school and pass the exams to become a Divine Visionary. It’s the only way to keep him and pops safe, but how can he compete with these students who all have crazy magical abilities? Well, that’s where the strength comes in!

So with that part it starts to sound a bit more like Black Clover and that’s probably the best series to use as a comparison. No wonder this series is so good right? A lot of the magical abilities are also very creative and powerful so by extension when Mash is taking them on, it makes him look even stronger as well. One thing I’d note right away though is that Mash is never presented as being unbeatable or anything like that. He is super strong but gets damaged and comes close to losing a few different times. He’s always able to think of something in the end but it does ensure that the stakes are high throughout. Mash can be destroyed if he isn’t careful.

There’s also the social stakes of everyone finding out that he doesn’t actually have magic but that’s more for the comedic element. Mash isn’t the smartest guy around and is a terrible liar so more often than not he is practically giving that secret away anyway. He also makes friends rather easily and so they aren’t about to give the secret up. So many people know the secret as each episode flies by that you figure it may not matter as much as everyone thought it would anyway.

What I like about the humor for Mashle is that it’s quite quick witted. There are a lot of great physical gags with Mash doing things that shouldn’t be humanly possible but then you also have the more out of the blue ones that tend to involve creampuffs. One is that no matter what Mash cooks or what ingredients he uses, it always ends up becoming a creampuff. It’s like a curse, but a beneficial one since that’s his favorite food anyway. The gags tend to be really funny with this one and there is a good variety of jokes to be had here so it never gets repetitive or anything like that either.

The show tends to lean a bit harder on the action than the comedy but it executes both really well which is the important thing. When the show wants to get serious, it definitely nails the tone. The fights are really solid and very creative with the abilities like I mentioned before. Mash may occasionally undercut the tone with a gag but for the most part if it’s a serious fight then it’ll really stay that way.

Fortunately the animation is up to the task. I wouldn’t call this a particularly high budget show for the most part but they knew their priorities. For example the average scene of standing around or moving through different locations won’t look great. The animation tends to be a tad spotty there but all of the important fights quickly dial up the intensity quite a lot. Any plot important fight will generally look great so the show knows how to turn it up when necessary. That’s important because you need to look good to properly convey the serious feats happening here.

Then for the soundtrack, that part’s a little more forgettable. I wasn’t a big fan of the opening. I feel like it was trying to feel like One Punch Man to encourage discussions and comparisons but it just didn’t work. It wasn’t particularly catchy. Then the show itself had some decent tunes but none that really stood out. I’d like to see the soundtrack improve in season 2 because I do think of it as a bit of a weak point right now. Nothing that would seriously hurt the show of course but it’s certainly not helping it either.

One of Mashle’s strengths is how each character really stands out. Part of what makes them so memorable are the striking colors for each one. While the animation may not always be super sharp, the colors always stand out. The character designs are on point and the show is just very bright. It has an early 2000s vibe to it with everything being so vibrant and the show is really easy to watch. It’s the kind of title you can pick up and play at any time, although it’s not like there are a ton of episodes so it’s not something you can watch too often for now unless you want to really get it played out.

Now let talk about the characters. First I do have to note that a lot of characters get off a bit too easy here Yeah forgive and forget is all nice and good sometimes but these guys go very far. Like Brad, one of the police officers was definitely going to murder Regro and would have murdered Mash if he wasn’t so weak. The guy has clearly been abusing his power for a long time now and so he should be in jail after that. Ultimately the show is more comedic in nature so these things tend to get overlooked but when you really think about it….it just doesn’t work. I can’t say I ever liked Brad much. He sticks around as a supporting character but never gets better if you ask me.

Regro doesn’t get to do much but he gets a lot of points for looking after Mash for so many years. He’s a good guy and really did his best. That’s the whole reason Mash is so motivated in trying to succeed at the magic academy. Meanwhile Mash is a solid lead. He may not be quite as charismatic as some other Shonen leads and isn’t exactly the most fired up character that you will see. However, his gags do tend to be funny and he has a solid amount of rage moments for when it’s time to protect his friends and I can always appreciate that.

Then we have another petty character in Claude. Again, the show could have been harsher with this guy. He was actively blackmailing a student and then kept trying to get in Mash’s way. He’s a straight up villain the whole time and I’m not super convinced that he is suddenly going to be a big hero going forward. I just don’t get those vibes from him but hey I could be wrong.

The main heroine of the show is Lemon but she never actually gets a super big role. She doesn’t look good initially as she makes the wrong calls but ultimately she gets better…at least a little bit. The problem is that her main personality trait is that she’s in love with Mash and that’s about it. So that doesn’t really make for much of a complete character. It just means that she will be really one note for most of the adventure and she also can’t really fight that well which knocks her out of most situations.

The same can be said for Finn who is a support mage at best. He’s always really nervous and can’t keep up with the other characters’ shenanigans. He’s just not my kind of character. I prefer to see characters with a whole lot of unwavering confidence who grin in the face of evil. Characters who aren’t afraid to mix it up with the villains and all of that. You know that they’re building something up for Finn but it’s going to take a while and so right now he’s on the lower end of the cast.

We’ve got another petty bully character in Lloyd. In a way that’s how you can describe all 3 of the first villains. This guy likes picking on the weak and that’s about it so as you can imagine Mash makes short work of him. There’s not much to like about this guy and he’s fairly forgettable. Fortunately the villains get better as the show goes on because that’s definitely a rocky start. Another villain who is more on the annoying side is Lauren. She basically uses her magic to make guys fall for her before Silva goes and knocks them out. It’s definitely not a magic that will work on most of the stronger fighters in the verse so that really knocks her out of the running early on. Nothing particularly interesting about her either.

Okay now we get to the bigger characters. First up we have Lance who is a pretty strong rival type of character. He challenges Lance early on and gives him a really good fight. It’s probably the first time in the series that Mash has a really solid challenge in combat. His character’s gimmick of being obsessed with his sister is definitely overplayed and annoying though. It’s his one bad trait and otherwise he’s one of the most intense characters in the series. You can always count on him dealing serious damage and all of his fights are a blast. Definitely one of the standout characters in the series to be sure.

Then you have Dot who is a lot more talkative and rather loud but unfortunately he is very easy to trick. The guy lowers his guard a whole lot and tends to feel really bad for himself. I’d definitely like to see him man up a bit more often. He does get his big moments of course but they are usually outnumbered by him being humiliating. He is one of the funnier characters which works in his benefit but definitely expect him to eat a lot of Ls. It’s too bad because he’s the character with the fire type magic so you could say that he takes up that lot there.

Another hero is Rayne although he doesn’t show up until later. Also, he’s one of those guys who doesn’t like those without magic to the point where you could argue that it basically makes him a villain as well. He was absolutely ready to take Mash down and would have if he was stronger. He’s the kind of guy that’s great to have around to fight the villains but you can’t trust him at all.

Then there is the headmaster of the school Wahlberg, but I can’t give him too much credit. Part of the problem with this guy is that he’s a nice enough guy but he still has people that he answers to. This means that he will make compromises even if he knows that it’s not the right thing to do. It’s a big issue in any series because in my mind you have to follow justice no matter what. If that means disobeying direct orders and such…well so be it. That’s just how it has to go.

His evil counterpart Innocent Zero gets a lot of hype but doesn’t really do anything in this season. You can definitely see that they’re building up to a big confrontation like an All Might vs All For One kind of deal so that will be fun. Likewise one of his top subordinates is a guy called Cell War who hasn’t had a chance to do a ton but in his brief screentime we see that he is incredibly powerful. Another true threat to Mash so the hero will definitely have to watch out. The season ends with a lot of intrigue for part 2 so you definitely want to stick around.

For the villains who are in this season though, Silva is a pretty solid one. He’s definitely a villain who plays dirty and uses every trick to win but he’s also very powerful. Even without his cheap tricks he would be able to defeat a lot of opponents. That’s part of what helps him stick out. If he was weak then he would come off as more petty than anything but like this the guy is on point. He leaves a real impression on you. Anser is another decently solid villain. The guy is the brainy type although that is also used against him as the guy’s main gag. I enjoyed his fight a good deal he ends up being a villain who can stand out. He’s not one of the most powerful by any means but he can hold his own.

Then we have Abel who is a really big deal. The guy’s ability to use many puppets at once is really impressive and he’s actually someone who did give Mash a run for his money. The guy looks great right from the start and also lasts for a little while which makes him stand out more. He’s got his own reasons for fighting and ultimately while he is a villain from the start, he’s fun to watch. He even plays off of Mash’s gags a bit here and there.

Abyss comes in later and strength wise is easily one of the most impressive. He can use arrows in the air much like Medusa to speed himself up and he can also use them to mess with his opponent’s movements. It’s an incredibly difficult spell to work around because you will be really disoriented the whole time. All it takes is one big mistake and then you are gone. Almost any fighter except for Mash would have lost this battle which just proves that point. Abyss is a very complete villain with a lot of solid development.

For some more minor villains who were pretty hype, next up is Shuen. I ultimately thought he was fun. The guy even made his opponent Dot jealous because of how good he is. That’s a fight he probably should have won too, I had my doubts on Dot really being able to turn things around there. He may not really get to do anything going forward but he made for a good villain. Likewise Jon was solid with his kitchen themed attacks. A good gimmick goes a long way so even though he may not return to do anything, it was a good appearance nonetheless.

Love, Wirth, and Milo fall into this camp as well. Each one appears for a quick fight and looks good. I liked their designs and overall confidence. They may be very minor villains almost by definition but they definitely trounce the average oneshot villain. Mashle really excels when it comes to making enjoyable characters like this. There are other characters but these are the main ones. The show has already done a lot of solid worldbuilding and set things up well for the second season so we’re in good hands.

Overall, Mashle was definitely great. It’s the kind of show that just feels good to watch with a lot of quality humor and good action scenes. You will definitely never be bored watching this one and the action is always a lot of fun. If you were worried about having to compare it to One Punch Man, you should still check it out anyway. Obviously I’m on Team One Punch Man overall but both shows definitely have their place here and I look forward to seeing more of Mash’s adventures soon!

Overall 8/10

Kimi No Todoke: From Me to You Season 2 Review

Posted on February 28, 2024 by dreager1

Yeah we’re back with the next Kimi No Todoke season already! Unfortunately this one isn’t quite as solid as the first season. I do have to deduct a star for the characters taking Ls all over the place in a lot of situations where things should have been easily resolved. The drama feels quite a bit forced in a lot of ways. Ultimately I would say the show still goes back to its more wholesome roots in time but it’s not quite the carefree adventure that season 1 was. Of course it’s not a bad thing to get more serious and dramatic but you really have to earn it and I don’t feel like this season did.

After the events of the fist season, Kazuhaya and Sawako are a couple now. They did spend Christmas and New Year’s together after all so things were going great. Wait…they’re not together? Wait a minuteeeeeeee….and so the drama begins! All right so I know this can actually happen to some people where they don’t clearly assign the labels and don’t know that they’re dating but this is a bit much. Spending the holidays together in an obviously romantic setting should signal some bells. This isn’t even a case of the characters being together and just being embarrassed about their friends knowing. This is both characters actually thinking that the other may not see them romantically. Looks like Ayane and Chizuru are going to have a whole lot of work ahead of them. Particularly when a new guy named Miura shows up to stir the pot.

This season is about half the length of the first so it’s not very long and yet it should have only been 2 episodes based on the events that happen. Lets quickly talk about some of the plot conveniences here. First up, for Valentine’s Sawako makes everyone chocolates instead of Kazuhaya. Her reasoning is that they’re friendship chocolates and so she feels awkward because she’s not sure if it’s really friendship with him. So what does she do? She doesn’t give him anything and goes home. I’m also not giving her any excuses like Kurumi getting in her way because Kurumi just offers up a level 1 mental games remark that works for some reason.

At this point Sawako just needs to do better, particularly since Kurumi said they are rivals now. So she’s not going to go easy on her right? Well, Kazuhaya feels bad after that but he still tries. He says good morning to her the next few days and everything…but Sawako ignores him because she is feeling too flustered. She’s happy that he is talking to her but doesn’t know what to say. The problem is that part of her character has always been talking to explain things so there are no misunderstandings. Now she is suddenly the one being silent. At one point he even walks up to her and straight up asks what is going on and she has no real answer.

Meanwhile he has to watch the new guy Miura talking to her constantly, telling her to smile and all kinds of stuff. She is able to chat with literally everyone normally…except for him. It doesn’t help that he gets advice from lots of characters about how he doesn’t really understand her and everything. So a lot of this is on her for not communicating.

Finally he does make a big flub where he decides to confess but does it in such a roundabout way that it doesn’t work. “I like you” is the worst possible way to confess your feelings because it is probably the only main phrasing that could be misinterpreted. Then he and Sawako both have a parallel conversation where they misunderstand each other. I give Pin all the credit there when he told Kazyhaya that he blew it. Cmon you can do better than that. So then next Kazuhaya tries to be more distant so he doesn’t bother Sawako and everyone gets on his case about that.

In this case I’ll defend him. What else is he supposed to do? From his point of view, Sawako just flat out rejected him so he should give her a little space right? He’s not being mean or anything, that’s just a logical step. Of course meanwhile everyone else knows what is going on but aren’t telling him or Sawako. So yeah a lot of the drama here just doesn’t work. They could have texted each other at any point, actually spoken some words, etc. This season would have worked better in a way if the events were earlier on. Like before Christmas since they were at least slightly more distant before. By this point it’s just too late in the game.

Ironically the main romance was a lot more complete and natural in season 1 when it had to share with Chizuru while this season is all for them and now everything is going wrong. It’s still better than most Shojo romances by far because there are no rebounds for either of them and neither one of them ever even thinks about someone else. Even while their relationship is rocky, both characters want to find a way to make it work. That’s what puts the romance above the average one. The whole drama in this one is still out of left field and makes no mistake but if you think about it as a test, both still pass in loyalty.

The ending also would work as the ending to the series with the plotlines wrapped up. This time they both very clearly admit to dating so there should be no way for season 3 to reverse this. If they do then that would be absolutely crazy. Far as I’m concerned the rest of the series should just be about the two of them hanging out and making lots of fun memories. That’s the kind of wholesome series I signed up for after all. The show can feel free to dodge the usual story beat of having everyone find a partner as well. Just let them all hang out solo and focus on the main duo.

So even with the drama, Kazuhaya is still a good main character. He may have run into some issues but I do think he still fought for Sawako fairly hard. He still shuts down anyone trying to give her a hard time and does his best to be a good role model. The guy has a quick fuse and gets jealous easily so the fact that he’s always so nice and pleasant around Sawako is good. As you can guess from the earlier summary I’m a bit harsher on Sawako here. I feel like she did a lot of backsliding in terms of development.

Her season 1 character felt a little more self assured and confident. I feel like she would have spoken up in a lot of these circumstances and not let things go quite so far. She could have easily stopped the drama in the first place and then it would not have been an issue. By the end of the season she has regained her composure so that puts her in a good spot at least. Hopefully in the next one she can be solid from start to finish and then we will really be in business.

Meanwhile Ayane is still solid as always. With all of the drama in place she really has to work overtime to make sure that things don’t go wrong. In some cases she doesn’t find out the info right away so she isn’t always there to help but I don’t think it’s possible for anyone to be 100% tapped into all of the drama at all times. There’s just too much information but she is a caring person and has the confidence that Sawako needs. So at least that’s someone she can always count on.

Then there’s Chizuru who gets less to do in this season since her plot is done with. Right now with her and Ryu nothing’s really developing so they aren’t taking up the screentime there. She does her best to help Sawako out as well even though she doesn’t always understand the situation. She means well. Then Ryuu gets to help out a bit with Kazehaya. He’s really the only person that the main guy can turn to and it is important to have at least one friend. Ryuu doesn’t tend to talk much but even just having him around to listen is good.

Quick shoutout to say that Joe is still the worst character. Even Kazehaya has to tell him off at one point. Kurumi doesn’t get as much to do here but she is a solid rival. She tells Sawako the tough truths when necessary and always does it in a way where it sounds like an attack even though she is helping out. Now those are some serious skills. I can definitely appreciate that. She even slaps the new guy Miura in what was a pretty impressive animation moment with how fast she went. She’s like Ayane, but even tougher. Kurumi definitely turned out to be one of the best characters and in this season at least, she is second only to Pin.

Pin still gets the top spot of course. Do I even need to go into why that is? The guy is always ready for a lot of advice. Like Kurumi he tends to put on an act (It’s a different act though) but sneaks in some good nuggets of wisdom into his speeches. The characters rarely ever give him any props but he does look out for his students. I’d even say he does a very good job of it, the main characters would have taken longer to get back together if not for him.

Finally there is the new character Miura. So his gimmick is that he’s a nice guy and that’s a pretty good one but of course the characters don’t trust him. There’s a reason why the term “Nice Guy” is pretty much a meme at this point. Someone who acts super nice usually has something that he is hiding and doesn’t end up being all that pleasant at all. I would even say he already starts to break character here as he asks Sawako out like 3 different times. It’s my main problem with him. For the most part he’s a fun character and I do like that he’s trying to help but it goes too far when he actually tries to insert himself like that.

It makes you doubt all of the previous advice and if he was actually trying to help her or just intentionally trying to cause misunderstandings. So like 95% of his scenes are good for the character but the remaining ones hurt. I think he’s an interesting figure that does add a lot to the mix though. I like the idea of a character who wants to play cupid for everyone while avoiding a relationship of his own but you know that this can’t last. Inevitably he will be paired up with someone and then that will be the end of his big character arc. He’s a meddler right now but at least one you could make a decent case for. The guy does lose objectivity when it comes to Sawako though. Pretty crazy that the series only really had one big new character right? Just goes to show that this series doesn’t need to inflate the cast.

As for the technical aspects, the soundtrack is good. There’s one theme that I always tend to enjoy and while the soundtrack isn’t large, it tends to fit the scene well enough. The opening never really caught on for me though. Even romantic shows can afford to have a more fast paced beat if you ask me. Throw in some fun instruments and a lot of energy. Then I will be game 100%. The animation is a noticeable step up from the first season though. The first season had so many scenes where all the details were missing while this one is fairly consistent. It’s still not a top tier show or anything like that but when the improvement is noticeable like this it does jump another level. Particularly after seeing both seasons almost back to back it stands out.

Overall, This second season may not have been quite as pleasant as the first but it’s still a good show. I had a good time either way and compared to other titles it is still rather tame with the drama. One thing I can always be grateful about is that none of the characters did anything irredeemable or major while they were upset. They didn’t say anything hurtful that would need apologizing for later on. The characters are always very mature here even when things are going badly and that’s why the writing in this show is really good. I would definitely say to check this one out and now we just gotta wait for that third season.

Overall 6/10

Seinfeld Review

Posted on February 28, 2024 by dreager1

It’s time to talk about a comedy series from quite a while ago. This one definitely got a whole lot of seasons to it and to this day is considered to be one of the all time best. I had a good time with it, I would still say that The Office is better and will always be the definitive comedy series but I’d say it’s fair to put this as #2 for now. I know Friends is considered to typically be the third show of the big 3 but I can’t say I have any plans to check that one out for now. Also like most long running shows like this, you can tell that Seinfeld starts to drop off near the end but I would say it’s significantly less of a drop off than the Office since at least this show kept the main character all the way to the end.

The show mainly follows 4 characters on their journey through life although of course there are a bunch of supporting characters. First up is Jerry Seinfeld. He’s a comedian who does pretty well for himself with how he throws money around during the series. It’s well regarded that he’s not rich but he has enough to live well. Jerry is good at his job and his apartment is the usual meetup spot. His neighbor Kramer is the opposite, he’s typically never working, can’t hold a job, and doesn’t tend to be that smart. He’s got street smarts though which helps him out a lot. Then there is George who tends to have a ton of bad luck. He always starts off strong in his endeavors and then something goes wrong. Finally there is Elaine who tends to have highs and lows in her journey. One day she will be the chief executive and the next she is desperately trying to find a man so she doesn’t have to work anymore. With these 4 fighters running around, every day is an adventure!

In a way this show is easier for me to review than most that would be around this length because it’s a comedic title. If it was a long battle Shonen or something I would want to talk about the various arcs, the fights, and different story elements in detail. Since this is more on the episodic side I don’t really have to go that far. I’ll break down the characters but for the most part I can talk about the series at large in general.

One thing that’s pretty interesting to see when going through the show all at once like this are the subtle changes. For example, the first seasons were extremely tame. It seems like you couldn’t show a kiss or get too specific with certain things so they would always have to have a cutaway so you are left with the implication. In the latter seasons they were allowed to actually show all that stuff and go much farther. Naturally that is a downgrade which is part of what made the latter seasons decline a bit. Don’t get me wrong, the series never goes crazy to be sure but it definitely does get more suggestive in the later seasons. The characters all start getting really desperate.

In general the series can be divided into 4 kinds of segments. 1: The characters are really bored and wander into an adventure. 2: The characters are all horny and get themselves into trouble. 3: The characters are overconfident and bite off more than they can chew. 4: The characters decide to all compete with each other. Typically episodes in 1, 3, and 4 tend to be really fun while the ones in the second section can be a bit more hit or miss. Put it this way, the series leans pretty hard into the stereotype that all guys are super desperate for a girl. As the only girl in the party, Elaine has to deal with all 3 of the other guys making passes at her from time to time.

That’s gotta be super tiring, like why even hang out with these guys after a while right? Well, the problem is that it’s the same wherever she goes so at least these guys make her laugh. Her body count by the end of the series is also pretty massive. It’s almost a running gag later on that she goes with pretty much any guy she can get which I didn’t see coming because initially she was very choosy but I guess with age she got more desperate. So none of the characters are pretty heroic.

Put it this way, in the Office, there are a number of characters who are pretty solid. Characters who have their antics and such but seem like good people deep down. None of the main 4 here are actually good people. Elaine doesn’t like pets and even assists with kidnapping one, George is always up to scam someone, Jerry actively behaves like a jerk to anyone who won’t be able to beat him up, and Kramer is the kind of guy who tells everyone’s secrets to everyone and gives bad advice that will destroy your business.

It’s part of what makes the final episode work really well. That was one of the most ambitious 1 hour specials I’ve seen for anything live action. It’s like the Avengers: End Game of comedy show. They manage to bring together characters from all of the past seasons and reference a ton of old episodes. That was super impressive and the perfect way to end the series. The fact that you can watch the final episode and immediately loop back to the first episode is brilliant. You could effectively watch the show on a closed loop that way. Not literally of course with the age differences for all the actors but the show makes it a point to say that none of the 4 character have absorbed any lessons from a previous episode. They are completely unchanged since the beginning.

That’s very rare since even in a comedic show the characters will usually be way different by the end. There will be some kind of a time skip where they were always good people deep down or something like that. Not in this one! Even the way the final episode starts is because the main characters were being jerks and overly aggressive again but this time the cops were around to haul them in. Yeah I could talk about the final episode for ages, it was brilliant.

Back to the humor though, I would say it works more often than it doesn’t. The weekly experience for the show might feel different because then a weaker episode will stay in your mind more. When going through them quickly though, there’s no time to really dwell on a weaker one. You’re always ready for the stronger episodes to come in and take their place. It’s also what I’d call an advantage of sheer numbers. Lets say the show was only 12 episodes long. A bad episode would hurt a lot more than a 100 episode show with 8 bad episodes. The ratio is roughly the same and yet you now have 92 episodes that were really solid and make the others a faint memory.

It does depend on just how bad the worst episodes were of course but in this case lets say the worst episode is like a 4 and the best episode is like an 8. The more important number is the average episode where I would say a 6 is fair. I was close to giving this one a 7 though, it’s right on the cuff. Ultimately what keeps me from putting it higher is I feel like a 7 is the kind of show I would search up on Youtube occasionally. Looking up a best gags video or something like that. I’ve done that for the Office several times and for a bunch of animated shows where I’ve given them a 7, but for Seinfeld I haven’t been tempted to do that and am not sure that I will.

Part of the reason is that Seinfeld’s jokes all tend to need some context to them. You find the episodes funny as you’re watching them but a random clip out of context is not going to do it. This is a show where you at least need to watch the episode as opposed to the Office’s more quick punch type of gag. I will say that you are more likely to get hungry watching Seinfeld than the Office because the main characters are always eating. Seriously you can’t go one episode without them going to the cafe or eating something at home.

Okay now for the main characters themselves. First up is Jerry and I would say that he’s the most entertaining of the 4. The main reason is that he’s the only one who can really succeed on his own. You can have an episode where he is the only primary character and you’ll get some good gags out of him. He’s always got some good lines and I think he has the best facial expressions out of the bunch as well.

The last entertaining out of the 4 would probably be George. He’s more of a support character who needs the lead in order to succeed. On his own the main gags that you can pull out is him being desperate for girls and being super lazy. You don’t get quite as much headway out of that especially in a long running title. In third place would probably be Kramer. He has a lot of fun moments and you also don’t know what to predict with his segments. One moment he will be thinking up a crazy scheme like installing a hot tub in his room and the next he will be organizing a strike of the local bagel shop. Because of how unpredictable he is, there can be a good amount of gags.

Finally for Elaine, it depends which version of her it is. If it’s Elaine the successful entrepreneur then it’ll typically be a good segment. She shows everyone how to run the show or shuts down the soup kitchen when the owner tried denying her service. It’s always fun when she’s on top of her game. If it’s Elaine the man slayer, then the segment’s going to be on the annoying side as she’s either trying to seduce some guy who’s just trying to have a normal day or she’s dominating the guy so hard that she gets bored and has to try and change him. So it’s a flip of the coin here.

From the side characters, the best was the owner of the Mets. (Or Yankees, it was one of those) He’s always talking real fast and making threats everywhere. The guy knows he is good and I love the confidence. There’s also the lawyer who is pretty funny. My only problem with him is that his episodes always end the same way. He comes up with a great lawsuit and then Kramer gives away the win by mistake. Rinse and repeat with no twists.

Newman can be fun. He’s that slimy upstairs neighbor who loves getting freestuff but never helps you when the tables are reversed. Definitely not somebody that you can trust. Most of the long term boyfriends and girlfriends for the characters tend to be on the obnoxious side. They’re just here to mess with the dynamic and cause some friction. You always know that they’re doomed from the start. Also that’s a very high pressure position because the other 3 are constantly judging you the whole time. That can’t really be fun. Also the main 4 are the biggest gossips that I’ve ever seen so then you’re basically on the mainstream news the whole time.

Overall, Seinfeld is a pretty fun show. As with any comedy you sort of have to be in the mood to get into it but from there it’s easy to just binge a lot of episodes. Particularly since a lot of them are stand alones it is easy to do that at any point. The later seasons start to have callbacks and some multi parters but for the most part even those are easy to watch at random. Every episode tend to have some funny moments and some are pretty funny the whole time. I think a lot of the humor works because it tends to be relatable stuff that just gets played up a bit. The latter seasons may get weaker but they’re still good. Ultimately if you’re looking for a good comedy show then I can definitely recommend this one. It has aged well with the jokes and characters and I believe it always will. It’s fairly timeless.

Overall 6/10

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