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Majo to Yajuu is a dark and eerie watch full of mystery, intrigue and an awesome character dynamic between the two leads. Fans of the recent Undead Girl Murder Farce will see many similarities and come out of this one feeling satisfied.

After hearing hype from manga readers, I went into this one with high expectations. As a fan of dark fantasy/metal style stories I think this one really succeeds in creating an atmospheric setting with a nice adventure plot line. The journey of Ashaf and Guideau to find the original witch who cursed her, leaving her trapped in another body is so fun to ... see unfold. It plays out similar to Tsugaru, Aya and Shizuku’s journey from undead girl murder farce with them helping to solve cases involving witches and other magical beings along the way. All the cases were entertaining and had some genuine twists.

The world feels very dark souls esque which I love. There’s a lot of worldbuilding and hints to a much wider lore that we sadly didn’t get to see a lot of in these 12 episodes, but there’s a lot of cool directions the story could go in in the future. The magic system is pretty standard, but the abilities were executed well. It’s not a ton of action, but the few fights there are are okayish, the animation and storyboarding outside of the first episode aren’t the best, but they’re passable. For me, that doesn’t matter as the biggest draw for this one is the journey aspect to find the original witch, the atmosphere and character interactions.

Speaking of those character interactions, that’s one of the show’s biggest draws. Ashaf and Guideau are so fun to watch on screen. You’ve got the cool, calm and collected Ashaf who won’t let anything phase him, and the shrewd and loud Guideau who due to her body swap situation, basically acts like a guy in a hot girl’s body. Aschaf often acts as the voice of reason, calming Guideau down when she’s about to go wild and keeping her focused on the task at hand. Essentially a brain and brawn type dynamic. Think of something like Inuyasha and Kagome or Tsugaru and Aya from Undead Girl. They share a lot of banter and the seiyuu do such a great job of making them feel alive. Even when there’s no action, the episodes go by in the blink of an eye thanks to them.

It’s a bit cliche, but this show really is just a “vibe”. It’s hard to put into words the feeling this show gives me. It’s gloomy, ominous, poignant and just hits me deep in the soul. Production issues aside, the story is gripping, characters are compelling and the world has a lot to offer. Sadly, like most one cour seasonals it does feel like we only just scratched the surface of this world. Onto the manga we go.

Majo to Yajuu gets 9 out of 10.

P.S Guideau is mommy.

While I don’t think Bokuyaba is the best romance ever, it’s certainly deserving of a lot of the praise it gets and is one of best developed school romances out there. A must watch for any romance fan and the gold standard for romance manga adaptations.

Perhaps no other series has captured the highs and lows of early adolescence quite like Bokuyaba. Middle school is such an interesting time because our bodies and emotions are developing at a very fast rate, often faster than we can comprehend. There’s a whirlwind of emotions hitting all at the same time and it’s easy to get swept up in ... those. This series does such a good job of showing the complex mood swings and feelings than can arise in teenagers as a result and it really feels like we’re proud parents watching our kids grow up in front of us, establishing a level of emotional connectivity not seen often.

Kyo and Anna’s unlikely love story is the core of the story. Two people who on the surface couldn’t be more different, yet in reality are able to bond over shared insecurities and interests. The perfect model Yamada may seem like she’s got it all figured out. Popular, a model and drop dead gorgeous, anyone would be lucky to have her. But few really understand her, at least on the level that Kyo grows to. An introverted stereotypical chuuni who at the start of the show can’t do anything but write down how much he wants to kill people in class, Kyotaro arguably has some of the best character development in the medium. If you’re able to deal with his cringe antics through the first two episodes or so, you’ll really be rewarded, especially in this second season where he continues to come into his own and really takes a leadership role in his class. I couldn’t help grinning from ear to ear with each milestone he completed. Half the fun of this story is seeing two people who could seemingly not be more different defy expectations and find out they have more in common with each other than with anyone else. While we may not all find a Yamada or Kyo, I think that’s a powerful life lesson to be learnt. We can find the best of people in the most unlikely of places.

There’s so many moments in this show that had me giddy like a high school girl. With each episode, both leads got bolder, coming closer to shattering the thin glass between them. It’s a very satisfying process unlike most romance stories that feature poor communication, over complication and characters who can’t stand next to each other for 10 seconds without running away. While there is definitely some awkwardness between Anna and Kyo, it’s more so normal “I have a crush and am in middle school” type of awkwardness rather than unrealistic shonen manga stuff. A testament to the author’s ability to create realistic characters. Further to that point, the seiyuus do a good job of conveying the sort of youthful naïveté you’d expect at this age without sounding too anime-y. There’s definitely some tropey moments, but they’re not overwhelming.

That leads into the last and perhaps the biggest reason for Bokuyaba’s success. Its production values. I knew of studio Shin-Ei from Takagi san and Kakkou, but man I did not know they were capable of this type of direction and cinematography. This had SHAFT/Kyoani levels of quality and for such a ground level and character driven story, it manages to feel exciting and fluid thanks to the use of on screen text(think Monogatari), camera movement and scene cuts. Not to mention the gorgeous visuals, genius use of lighting, shadows and colours. And we haven’t even talked about my particular favourite, Ushio Kensuke’s OST. Ushio-sensei has worked on many of my favourite OST’s including Koe no Katachi, Tengoku and Liz to Aoi Tori. His pieces add such weight and impact to the big emotional set pieces and this show would not hit the same without it. He knows exactly what literal and figurative notes to hit at exactly the right time.

So, what’s the verdict on Bokuyaba season 2? It’s a massive improvement over season 1 in every way. From story, to romance to character development, it all takes a massive step forward just like our two leads. Progress is gradual, but satisfying and if you at all liked season 1, you’ll love this season too. It’s not the best romance ever, but the hype is largely deserved. It’s a simple, but effective coming of age story that doesn’t rely on fan service or too many tropes to make its point. If there’s one thing we should all take away from this show it’s that we shouldn’t be afraid to open ourselves up and connect with people, even if they are seemingly polar opposites of ourselves.

Bokuyaba season 2 gets a very easy 10, out of 10.

In a year where we got so many interesting dark fantasy stories, Ragna Crimson ended up being my favourite by a decent margin and had one of the most interesting premises and cast of characters of any recent anime.

The best way I can explain Ragna Crimson is that it’s metal as hell. This world is dark and brutal as hell and the show does a good job of showing how no one in this story is safe. Death is always lurking around the corner and due to the strength gap between dragons and humans, human life feels so fragile and fleeting. The author doesn’t ... shy away from killing off characters either. It’s gritty, dark and at times seemingly hopeless. That is, until we get to Ragna’s power up. One of the coolest things about the story is how Ragna’s future self and his present self interact and share knowledge and power. I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything like this before. Yea, we’ve had isekai and reincarnation stories where people bring knowledge from previous lives, but never one quite like this.

An integral part of the story is the relationship between Ragna and Crimson which I loved. They’re polar opposites, but their shared goal of wiping out the dragons unites them and their abilities complement each other so well. The banter, slice of life moments and planning with them is so fun and they gradually influence each other as well. It really feels like a buddy cop dynamic with the good cop and the bad cop. While both are motivated by mutual desire for revenge, the story doesn’t get too edgy which is a testament to good writing. A lot of times stories like this end up being an edgelord’s fantasy.

The abilities of each character in the story are so well thought out and useful in their own way. Definitely one of the more unique power systems I’ve seen. Whether it’s the Argentum corps or the dragons themselves, there’s a wide variety of power ups making the fights interesting. Ragna’s abilities in particular are unique since they involve silverine, to which dragons are weak. Can’t express how much fun I had seeing him wipe the smirk off the dragons’ face. After years of dominating humans and doing whatever they want, finally someone is able to stand up to them and give them a taste of their own medicine.

That leads me into the one big problem I had with this show. The story, worldbuilding, characters and everything else are solid. But God, the production values are really bad in this, which is such a shame. There’s so many interesting fights in the show that just didn’t hit as well as they should’ve because they look like power point slides. I mean it even got to the point where the mangaka had to take to twitter to tweet out what he intended for the fight to look like, so that people don’t judge him for how bad it looks in the anime. I know animation is such a taxing profession and I’m sure they did the best with what they could, but this staff needed more time or better leadership because after the first couple of episodes things were rough. The character designs were solid, though. Some might point to the pacing as another issue, personally I didn’t mind it too much as cliffhangers keep me looking forward to the next episode, so I’ll never complain too much about those.

I was hooked from the very first episode of Ragna Crimson and maintain that it’s one of the most underrated shows of 2023. Production issues aside, the story is well written, characters are fun and even with the bad animation fights still manage to be hype. As much as I’d love a second season of this, I doubt we’ll get it. Onto the manga it is.

Ragna Crimson gets a 9, out of 10.

The recent trend of Korean manhwa being adapted into Japanese anime has finally brought us to this point. Arguably the biggest manhwa of all time, Solo Leveling has finally got an anime and is a meathead action fan’s biggest dream come true. Delivering some of the best action scenes you’ll see this year, an amazing Sawano OST and a solid power fantasy, this one was a fun watch.

For the last several years, I’ve heard a ton of hype about Solo Leveling and I honestly didn’t think too much of it. Shonen esque battle series are just pretty meh to me at this stage in life, ... so I never picked up the novels or manhwa. But I have to say I was blown away by the anime. A-1 gave us an absolute visual spectacle with some amazing fights, but I also found the concept of hunters, dungeons and portals into other dimensions to be really cool. This type of urban fantasy adventurer setting isn’t really something I’ve seen before so it was quite the experience. Particularly seeing how the Korean government regulates the hunters and how it’s such a big part of the economy.

I think I’ll be in the minority here on this one, but I actually like the story of Solo Leveling? At least as an anime only to this point in the story. That’ll probably come as a surprise to many of you given one of the biggest criticisms against the series is it being a generic power fantasy with no plot and great art. That could be the case later on in the story, but to me, the story so far while simple, is still interesting. Jinwoo getting stronger to provide for and protect his family as well as unravelling the mystery of being a “player” while simple, was still interesting. I also think your mileage may vary entertainment wise depending on the amount of power fantasy dungeon crawling stories you’ve seen. To my understanding, SL’s success made these tropes quite popular in manhwa, but since I haven’t seen or read any others, it’s fresh to me.

Jinwoo as an MC is pretty one dimensional. He wants to get stronger and protect his family, but that’s about it to him so far. It’s hard to really criticise that aspect of the story, though because it’s clear the author just wanted a zero to hero type story with some cool fights and a little escapism. As he levels up and fights stronger opponents, we do see gradual changes in his personality. The cruel and ruthless reality of the world in which hunters operate forces him to morph into a more jaded and brutal person. Going from unable to kill humans to doing it with ease. He’s definitely a bit edgy at times, but again, didn’t mind it too much. In most of the fights in this season, he’s an underdog going up against opponents stronger than him. I like that every big fight gave him a struggle, but I wish they would have been more creative with some of the kills in the fights. It’s like the build up to and climax of the fights were top tier, but the kills were a little meh due to the same technique being used to take down 3 bosses in a row. I will say, even though it’s a meathead series, Jinwoo at least to the point we’ve seen so far, has to outwit some of his opponents since he isn’t straight up stronger yet. Seeing those techniques made the fights even more interesting.

As a massive Sawano stan the joy I felt when I first heard the OST in this one was immeasurable. Absolute masterclass. Made every fight and hype moment so much more intense and Sawano just has a way of transporting you to another world in a way no other artist can. His collab with one of my fave Kpop groups, TxT for the OP was also incredible. A-1 brought the A team out for this one. The fights and direction were top notch and you can only image the painstaking hours that went into this. It paid off and I got to tip my hat to the staff.

Solo Leveling might not be the strongest story or have the most compelling MC out there, but it has an interesting world, awesome fights and is just a nice visual spectacle. Not everything needs to be complex, it just needs to be competent, which this is. The story knows what it is and makes no effort to be anything else. It’s confident in its power fantasy status and excels in it. If you’re looking for something with substantive narrative, this isn’t for you. If you want to turn your brain off and have fun, this is one for you.

Solo Leveling gets 9 out of 10.

Chiyu Mahou ended up being one of those pleasant surprises this season. At first glance from the title alone, I was expecting another somewhat generic healer/pharmacy style anime of which we’ve had several lately. However, after the first few episodes I quickly realised this had way more potential than I thought and I ultimately think it lived up to that.

This show’s got a few things going for it that really make it good for me. The first is that we have a group isekai. Not an entire class, but a trio of friends. Usato, Suzune and Kazuki are unexpectedly summoned to another world while ... walking home one day. While Kazuki and Suzune are quickly named heroes, Usato is taken off to join the healing corps, which brings me to my next point. Usato being proficient at healing magic and working to support the wounded in combat as opposed to your traditional overpowered hero MC makes things way more interesting. While he does get some offensive capabilities towards the end, for the most part the story focuses on his training and learning to use his abilities to support others in combat.

While it may seem like that would be slow and boring, they manage to make all of the training arc so fun and engaging with characters like Rose, Usato’s squad leader. In addition to being the mommy dommy waifu of the season, she’s a strict, but loving mentor who wants the best for her subordinates. As the story goes on and we learn about her motivations and backstory, she becomes an even more complex and well rounded character. Every moment with she and Usato is so fun and over the top, but you can feel the love and kindness beneath her rough exterior. Rose isn’t alone though, the other supporting characters are great too. In particular, Suzune stood out to me. She and Kazuki kinda go MIA for a few eps in the story before popping back up, but when they did come back, I like how the author fleshed out their relationship with Usato. They were all made to feel like legit high school aged teens who were transported to another world and given an immense task. In most other shows, that’s kinda glossed over in favour of the MC or his classmates getting harems and overpowered skills, but realistically that would be enough to break most people. I loved seeing that vulnerability and fear from them, and seeing them overcome those obstacles.

It was also refreshing to get an isekai without a ton of romance and girls fawning over the MC. In the later stretches, there’s some hints and signs of a couple ships, but it’s not the primary focus nor does it really distract from the story. The main thing about this show is seeing 3 teenagers get thrust into an unfamiliar world and make the most of a difficult situation, while finding who they truly are. No longer shackled by the chains of Japanese society, they can truly be themselves and grow.

While we really only got one big fight in this at the end, there’s never a dull moment in this show. If it’s not comedy, training antics or some nice slice of life moments, there’s something else that’ll keep you engaged guaranteed. Speaking of fights, the animation isn’t the best, but it’s good enough. The art is really solid, love the bright art style and character models are on point too. Just a really aesthetically pleasing experience.

Chiyu Mahou was a great surprise and ended up being one of my favourite shows of the season. A must watch in my opinion.

Chiyu Mahou gets 9 out of 10.

We’ve done it. We’ve peaked. This is the culmination of 70+ years of Japanese animation. It doesn’t get better than this. Mahoako is the crowning achievement of anime. Combine two of the best things ever made, the Mahou Shoujo genre and BDSM erotica and you’ve got Mahoako. A sensual, but surprisingly wholesome experience that lures you with fan service and keeps you with the loveable cast and slice of life moments.

While it might not have had the motion that Frieren and Kusuriya had, Mahoako was a force to be reckoned with in its own right. Delivering banger after banger episode, solid animation and ... levels of degeneracy that I didn’t even think were possible in a TV anime, this show was simply amazing. I was a fan of the manga coming into it, but they took that and elevated the source material to new heights, adding in anime original scenes and getting a fantastic cast of seiyuus to do this one.

Contrary to popular belief, *cough cough* Anime News Network, this isn’t a “pedobait anime.” For one, they’re not real people. For two, that’s minimising an actually really well written cast. Yes, there’s a lot of erotic content with the girls, but there’s actually a whole lot more to the story than that. Mahoako is as much a story of sexual exploration and liberation and cute girls doing cute things as it is an erotica fan service anime. Utena, the MC starts out as a shy reserved girl with no friends or outlet to express herself emotionally. After becoming Magia Baiser we see her gradually evolve and gain the confidence to be herself around other people. Baiser is very much the personification of Utena’s repressed sexual urges and personality. When transformed, she’s able to be herself and act on her fantasies without fear of being judged. Through the “tortures” that she inflicts on the Tres Magia, we get insight into her deepest desires and fears. The biggest desire of which being control, Utena desires to have some form of control over her life. Up until gaining her powers, she was kind of a passenger in her own life. Now she has the ability to be an active force and take things into her own hands. Without getting into too much detail, we also see the other enormita members who get introduced doing the same things. Their transformed selves represent their deepest desires and their ideal versions of themselves. While we see the erotica content and get excited, and it is good don’t get me wrong, it’s not just about titties and spankings. There is an actual significance to the methods used in the tortures and it usually has the effect of bringing the characters closer. Just like a real BDSM relationship can.

I could really go into way more detail about the psychological aspects of this series and how much deeper it is, but the gist I want to get across is that this is not just a erotica and horny show. There’s actual reasoning for why the characters engage in the behaviour, so don’t just let the tags put you off.

Speaking of characters, the cast in this is amazing. It’s got so many diverse personalities and motivations. What the story really excels at is the normal slice of life moments between them all. Honestly, as the season went on, I was more excited to just see Utena, Kiwi and Korisu hang out and do stupid stuff together. Likewise for the Tres Magia trio. During these moments we get nice glimpses into the insecurities of the characters and learn just what it is they want out of life. The series balances the fanservice with those moments so well, not overwhelming with one or the other.

The animation ranges from solid to really good in the show. Fight scenes are well done and of course the erotica moments are incredible, especially in the uncensored version. I actually like the anime art better than the manga art as the manga is censored, so rare case when an erotica anime is better than the source.

This being one of the best anime ever made isn’t a joke. It genuinely is. It’s equal parts arousing as it is wholesome and calming. It knows what it is, doesn’t shy away from it and fully embraces it. Something that’s become a lost art in these days. One of the best female casts and probably my 2nd fave Mahou Shoujo story.

Mahoako gets a very easy 10, out of 10

By this point you know what you’re going to get with these You Zitsu seasons. Good to great experience for anime onlies and an awful experience for fans of the source material. YZ season 3 is more of the same. If you’ve enjoyed the series to this point and are presumably anime only, you’ll love season 3. It covers the climax and conclusion of the first school year and has some of the hypest moments in the story. If you’re like me, a LN reader you’ll find this to be another abomination from Lerche and at this point are probably just watching to see ... how bad it gets.

As an anime only viewer this season will probably come off as really thrilling and engaging. There’s a lot of twists and turns and the exam stakes are upped tremendously. In particular, Suzune’s development as a leader and the external forces getting involved at the school are the big highlights. The students are placed in one perilous situation after another and as usual Ayanokouji pulls strings behind the scenes to get the result he wants.

But sadly, as a massive fan of YZ, I just can’t believe how awful a season this was. There were massive cuts to key story moments, emotional climaxes that didn’t hit because they weren’t properly built up to, exams being basically power point slides, rushing through entire volumes in an episode.. it was bad. And it’s hard to separate the anime only experience from the source reader/viewer experience because of how invested I am into this story. I really do love the characters and the exams and all the behind the scenes tactics Kiyo pulls, but the anime just doesn’t capture that. It makes Ayanokouji out to be so one dimensional and edgy. It makes the exams look like side points when they are the whole focus of entire volumes. There’s so much planning the students put into these to succeed and it just gets cut out. I do fully understand that in a dialogue heavy story you’re going to have omissions, but there’s still series like Oregairu(even though I hate it for other reasons) that do this very well. This just feels like a soulless cash grab that’s only YZ in name, but retains none of the heart and spirit that’s in the source material.

And we haven’t even touched on the production values. I think the only thing Lerche care about in this show is making sure the thighs look good, which is a plus, and making sure Suzune shots look beautiful. Other than that, the animation is pretty bad, character models can be quite off and the production in general is decent to subpar. One thing I will definitely compliment them on is the use of shadows and lighting in certain scenes. For some reason, Lerche like to change the background of certain LN scenes, maybe because it’s easier to animate, or less stress on the staff, but some of them are nice. Others not so much. The OST they use during hype moments is as usual on point. I will definitely compliment Lerche on their use of music throughout the YZ adaptation.

So, what’s the verdict on YZ season 3? Is it worth watching? Well, simple. If you’ve liked it up until this point you’ll love this. It’s the best arc so far, biggest stakes and the most interesting exams, not to mention the world opening up and exterior forces coming to challenge Ayanokouji. Up until now, he hasn’t had much competition, but that looks like it’s about to change. If you’re a LN reader, it’s probably worth just watching in the background while doing something else to just to laugh at how some of our favourite moments have been butchered. It’s definitely not going to make any new fans of the series. I’d encourage anyone at least remotely interested in this franchise to get the books.

YZ season 3, gets 6 out of 10

Tomozaki-Kun continues to be one of the most criminally underrated series of this generation, which is crazy to me since it’s everything Oregairu is hyped up to be and better. Season 2 is a vast improvement in every way on season 1, which was already great. Tomozaki’s character development is apparent and you can’t help but root for the guy as he takes steps to become his own person in this season.

I am admittedly biased about Tomozaki-Kun as it’s my second favourite light novel series however, even putting that aside, this season is amazing. When you realise that our boy has gone from not ... even being able to talk to people, to solving classroom disputes and leading cultural festival planning activities, you can’t help but feel like a proud parents. What’s cool about Tomozaki-kun is that it doesn’t skip straight to this either. We’ve been on this journey with him, watching him as he stumbled but made gradual progress towards his goal. Even though I don’t agree with some of his actions in this season, I can’t help but respect that he chose his own path for once.

For me, Tomozaki is a better Hachiman. The reason I think that is because of how relatable he is. Yes, Tomozaki isn’t perfect and he does dumb stuff. But the stuff he does is typical of a young teenager who’s in this position for the first time. All kids that age make mistakes and do dumb things, it’s part of growing up. There’s a level of realism that his character emanates that most other MCs in this genre don’t.

This season is very much about him breaking free of Aoi’s directions and doing what he thinks is best. While Aoi helped him get to this point, he’s started to realise she’s not infallible and can be quite hypocritical. Instead of continuing to be a puppet, he finally pushes back and wants to handle things his way. This coming from a guy who could barely make eye contact at the start of season 1 just felt great. Really had a nice time seeing him grow closer with the other characters, particularly Mimimi, Tama and Fuuka over the course of the season and we even get some romantic developments! Again, while I’m not a fan of the choice he makes, I respect it. This season is all about Tomozaki being who he wants to be, not who Aoi or society wants him to be. He wants to be better and for himself, something we can all learn from.

I didn’t like the first half’s arc too much. I thought the drama with Tama and Erika dragged on a lot even in the light novel, but after that this season really got going and never looked back. The festival and play are some of my favourite moments in the story and Project No.9 nailed them. Couldn’t have asked for a better job. This is one of the first anime I’ve seen that has pretty much 1:1 nailed the big scenes from LN illustrations. FLY sensei’s art is stunning, but Project No. 9 got as close as possible to recreating those moments in the anime, capturing that same magic. Hats off to them.

Simply put, if you at all like Tomozaki season 1, you’ll really like this season too. You’ll probably find the first arc to be a little dragged out, but I hope you’ll see the significance of it and the impact it has on Tomozaki and those around him. The second half will no doubt be a joy for you, though. People who weren’t fans already probably won’t become fans now. This is more of the same, but even better. For which I’m grateful. Here’s to a season 3.

Tomozaki S2 gets a very easy 8 out of 10

Gekai Elise is one of the more original isekai, or should I say, “reverse isekai”, in recent years. What makes this one cool is that Elise is given another shot at life in her original world AFTER being isekai’d to Earth. This allows her the unique experience of combining both her original life’s knowledge and the medicinal skills she gained on Earth making for a really fun watch.

Now, there’s going to be some party poopers who say the show isn’t accurate or realistic in its portrayal of some medical stuff and to that I’ll agree, but it’s ultimately anime not grey’s anatomy. I’m not watching ... this for 100 percent accuracy. The fact we’re getting a show that handles medicine and doctors in a somewhat realistic manner in a fantasy world is so cool. I’m so used to healing magic or fantastical herbs being used in the treatment of patients, but to get a story that relies on legitimate surgery and medical analysis to treat people is a treat. While not a doctor myself, my sister and several other family members are and we had a blast watching this together.

Elise faces a lot of challenges in her original world due to her awful personality before her reincarnation as well as the sexist nature of the medical field. Like in the real world in the 18-19th centuries, medicine is a male dominated field and she struggles to gain acceptance of her peers, even having to disguise her noble background for a time. She also has to convince the king that she’s better suited to be a doctor than his son’s fiancé. This plot point I thought was a little dumb because these surely aren’t mutually exclusive.. but I enjoyed seeing her prove both he and the kingdom as a whole wrong, earning the respect of royalty and established doctors alike.

It’s a small cast, mainly focusing on Elise, her fiancé, his brother and her mentor, but I did enjoy them for the most part. I actually think the little brother, Mikhail got fleshed out a lot better than the fiancé. If I had to pick a criticism, it’s that Linden needed more screen time. I understand it’s a long running Manwha, so for these 12 episodes he probably just wasn’t a big character in the source. But it does feel a little odd because you can tell the story wants him to be important, and you just can’t quite care that deeply about him yet.

Speaking of Manwha, Gekai Elise is part of a great trend of Manwha adaptations. It seems surreal to be getting this many lately and I love the diversity that they bring to the medium. Different types of writing and settings are really what we need. There’s so much cool stuff coming out of Korea lately.

The art in the show looks really good. You can tell the author was heavily influenced by traditional shoujo art. The animation isn’t the best, but it rarely is in these villainess shows so that’s no shock. Overall, the production is solid from top to bottom.

Gekai Elise is just really fun to watch. Yea, the story isn’t too developed right now, but just seeing Elise save lives and break through social barriers, with a tinge of romance was more than enough for me. I can’t get enough of strong independent female characters who are determined to make their dreams a reality and this is one of the best of the bunch.

Gekai Elise gets a very strong 8, out of 10.

With villainess adaptations becoming increasingly common in recent years, they can start feel a bit repetitive at times. Luckily, Akuyaku99 does just enough differently to deliver a fun experience. Featuring one of the best girls of the season as an mc, some well done comedy and an interesting story. If you’re at all a fan of the genre, you’ll find this one entertaining.

The biggest thing separating Akuyaku99 stand out from its competitors is the MC, Yumiella. Whereas most protagonists in this genre are based on the main character of a video game, she’s based on a secret boss and wants to stay that way. She ... wants nothing to do with the spotlight and just wants to live out her days in peace. Sadly, due to her being extremely OP she’s not really able to. Seeing her try to stay lowkey and not bother anyone, while getting harassed by royalty, nobles and the general populace literally for just existing was definitely an experience. Her deadpan comedy and bland facial expressions make everything 100x funnier too. Imagine the entire world overreacting to the most basic of things while a character is just sitting there with a straight face wondering what’s going on.

It’s so enjoyable seeing Yumiella try to get the spotlight on the actual protagonist of the game. The relationship that develops between the two is quite wholesome and I also liked seeing Yumiella make everyone who assumed she was evil, based on preconceptions of her power level and hair, feel really dumb.

That leads me into my one big issue with this series, the supporting characters can be quite stupid. Everyone besides Patrick and Yumiella are cognitively challenged, I swear. If you know someone is the strongest person on the face of the earth, why are you provoking them, harassing them and just being a general ass to them? Yumiella receives so much hate purely for existing due to the insecurity, jealousy and fear of most of the supporting characters. It was mind boggling at times.

The other issue I have is the animation. The CGI in particular is not great, and it shows. The series can get away with it because it’s not really action oriented, but in scenes with Yumiella’s dragon, it definitely shows. The animation in general is also pretty bad, but the comedy and Yumiella as an MC makes up for it for the most part.

While not Konosuba levels of hilarious, seeing Yumiella deal with all the stupid people around her and just trying to lay low is very funny. If you’re looking for a good laugh and want a villainess show that doesn’t just focus on romance and traditional Shoujosei tropes, this is one for you.

Akuyaku99 gets 8/10