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I felt like this movie is much much darker than your usual Ghibli, showcasing a considerable amount of horror elements and themes. It's dense with metaphors and symbolism while considerably messy with its abundance of surreal imagery and sound.

Personally I found the departure from his other works and the introspective nature of this film both bold and essential for Miyazaki in his long enduring career. In a lot of ways I kept feeling like Miyazaki was echoing Hideaki Anno and his modus operondi of choosing reality over fantasy/fiction in his works. The Japanese title " How will you live? " is much better ... fitting with the question it poses; will you live for the future or turn away from reality and all its hard truths and ugliness for safety and comfort of the past?

The Key Animator, Takeshi Honda, really has taken my breathe away with this film and in a way leaves more of an impact due to how the influence of his animation shapes the film more than Miyazaki's direction imo. If you're familiar with Honda's previous work as Key or Chief Animation in the Evangelion movies, Inu-ou, FMAB, Tatami Galaxy and Dragon Dentist; his trademark style reskinned with Miyazaki hallmarks is fresh while still evoking a wildly familiar feeling at the same time. At certain points whenever Himi intersected with Mahito in the animations it almost felt like it was Masaaki Yuasa that was directing and less Miyazaki. I felt my little grey cells at least three separate times go "Yuasa is that you!?" This of course is attributed to Honda, and I'm still feeling kind of awestruck at the dynamic between these two on the finished product.

I think this is a work that needs to be rewatched multiple times to grasp everything due to its dense nature. There's a lot to ingest and while I love a good avant-garde, even if I'm not prepared for one, this film will not be as well received as his others. Overall I can see some people expecting to see the usual Ghibli fare finding this one confusing and difficult.

I generally like Makoto Shinkai, he's figured out a formula that works with being relatable to Japanese audiences while including greats visuals, soothing music and playful yet keen cinematography in his work.

This coming of age story is filled with themes of self sacrifice and convey a tragic tale of loss and fear in the backdrop of the 2011 Tohoku Earthquake. It's about accepting your place in the world and fulfilling your duty to society, even if it means sacrificing something important. I can see this ultimately jibing with his central audience as Japan is a collective, rather than individualistic, society, where self-sacrifice for the ... greater good is expected.

The interactions with Suzume and Daijin made me deeply uncomfortable to the point I had to pause the movie around the 1:20 mark. Taking a short break to return right before the dramatic fallout was ill-fated, yet I knew a clash was inevitable between the aunt and Suzume. I guess I wished I had just pushed through till after their fight to take a break because I was just very unhappy for the rest of the film. Personally overall I interpreted the ambiance and atmosphere to carry this movie a lot more than the character development and romance.

Suzume is pretty par the course for its creator however, and while it's good, I am doubtful I would rewatch this ever again. I've seen a fair amount of Shinkai's work up to now and found it kind of fun that one of his other works, Weathering With You is kind of like the antithesis to Suzume. It's the polar opposite in that Weathering With You is about defying fate and choosing love over duty, destiny, and society which ironicly, a lot of Japanese audiences found alienating. If you're interested in his other work I've listed some of the others I've watched below with scores.

Voices of a Distant Star 8
5cm Per Second 8
Your Name 10
Weathering With You 7
Suzume 7

Tackling the reality that people actually die in real life can be an interesting focus, considering that all of this could happen to literally anyone at any time. Stories revolving the realization and process of death should be very moving, at least to those who have never experienced this type of thing and to those who have an affinity for these type of shows which should be cathartic.

I am of the latter persuasion and dealing with grief is definitely my wheelhouse. You might even say I have an unhealthy obsession with it. Unfortunately this 2 hour forced cliché dumster fire is neither cathartic nor pleasant; ... if you're interested in viewing themes of coming to terms with death executed masterfully in an anime I would suggest viewing Grave of the Fireflies, the series Tokyo Magnitude 8.0 or Magical Shopping Arcade Abenoboshi, not this movie.

NGL, 5 minutes into this and my eyes were already rolling out of my head. Predictable generic mediocre overplayed sobstory: The movie. This is literally Jarmush's 1991 Night on Earth, the Helsinki Cab.

I doubt an individual who is aware of how fragile human existence is can find this work enlightening or moving, much less feel a sudden ephiony over such work. I found it callow and unsophisticated as another one of those fantastical self-insert type of "entertainment" pieces of media serving only those who are proficiently unaware of how life works.

The characters felt one dimensional, leaving much to be desired. In multiple instances I found myself distanced; unable to immerse myself due to the inability to relate to them. They don't feel like authentic realistic people at all. The exchanges between the two feel more often than not, forced and unnatural.

At least in Your Lie In April they broaden the dialogue to include music, these two only talk about death (rigidly, like beating a dead horse) the entirety of the run time of their relationship and didn't feel like genuine conversations one would have. This is especially the case with the concept of the fear of death that was partially addressed at the hour and a half mark, the potential this movie had was utterly wasted and it doesn't seem to care.

Maybe if this was given a show format there could be time to expand and grow the characters and hopefully their interactions and dialogue could be handled better. As someone who's experienced someone ripped from their life by the clutches of violence, I found myself shaking my head with disdain over the "twist" its ensuing fallout and the process of moving on post credit scene. The movies forceful attempts to hammer home that I should empathize with these 2 cookie cutter protagonists left me empty. I never felt moved, sad, or even angry.

The themes of loss and the pursuit of closure when intermixed with a genre ie. sci-fi, romance, or fantasy when executed correctly; are one of the most powerful and beautiful ways to convey life. So it bothers me terribly when the industry reduces raw heartfelt emotions to cheap ploys and force feed me crying teenagers and cliche death throes.

I think this is why I'm super picky about watching certain things of this nature as well. I still haven't watched Death Parade, A Place Further Than The Universe and a handful of others because I'm banking on them to be bangers. So I save them for a day I know I'll probably need a good cathartic cry or a full free day to reflect on the media I consumed.

Not being faithful to the tragedies that befall the female leads is what infuriates me about these kinds of movies. It makes a mockery of people who have had difficult and tragic things happen to them and they're being used as plot points to tell an unfaithful rendition for the sake of 'entertainment' and its unflattering.

At least if they were truthful and honest in the depictions ( citing again Graveyard of Fireflies or HBOs Chernobyl as perfect examples ) or the character died before the start of the program and the work is just showing the fallout after. I would even buy the use of an improbable element at play like they were eaten by monsters or invisible xyz, I would be absolutely inclined to get behind it. But this...This is absurd misrepresentation and borderline pandering.

Captain Harlock Arcadia of My Youth: SSX Endless Orbit
This review covers my thoughts of my rewatch of a dramatic legendary sci-fi space opera. Interwoven stories of loss, hope, and rebellion set the stage for the Captain Harlock crew. There are battles waged in the name of masculine honor, love, and above all freedom from opression in their search for Arcadia, a planet without war, and also the namesake for their space battleship.

I think this is a good ease into the Harlock franchise due to its much lighter tone and less grounded science-fiction themes. Alternatively, the very same elements hit fast and heavy in the darker ... OG Space Pirate Captain Harlock which is what you would watch after this series if you're following event timeline watch order.

SSX ENDLESS ORBIT revels in character backstories and the fight for a better tomorrow with their rag tag crew shaped by fate to battle against the evil Illumidas and Mr. Zone. The villains in SSX imo are a stepdown; as the main antagonist, Mr. Zone doesn't command the same ominous presence of Queen Rafflesia from the 1978 show but that doesn't make the show any less entertaining.

If you enjoy Gurren Lagann's super manly honor themes, humor, and its crew fight against its oppressors to reach for the sky; the Captain Harlock franchise will be in your wheelhouse. GL pretty much emulates all of the elements of Harlock but with newer animation and less people dying lol


Other reccomendations if you liked SSX ENDLESS ORBIT:
• Captain Harlock 1978
• Queen Emeraldas
• Martain Successor Nadesico
• Gurren Lagann
• Cowboy Bebop
• Macross: Do You Remember Love?
• Prime Rose

On the last day of October I reccomend Demon Prince Enma.

Demons are escaping from the underworld, and causing much havoc on the human population. Possessing both human bodies and artifacts alike, the demons are inconspicuously forcing people to commit grotesque murders. The task of exterminating the offenders lies with Demon Prince Enma, snow wielding Yukihime, an information gathering kappa, Kapaeru, and the talking witch hat Shapoji. This is the darker adult targeted version of the Prince Enma animated series. It hits a lot of the same morbid tones with tinges of lighter banter between the trio much like Requiem from the Darkness and the 1996 ... Black Jack: The Movie. If your familiar with Go Nagai work, you won't be disappointed.

If you've read or talked to me at length about the type of anime that I enjoy most; more often than not they involve: unusual story structure, are visually dense, involve supernatural or Japanese folklore, and require multiple viewings. ( and the ocassional purposely uneven pacing, but that doesn't apply here. ) Heavenly Delusion provides a lot of these things and since I'm fairly sure a lot of people will cover the relationships and narrative, I'm going to write about some of the psychological/ body horror aspects and the mythology.

The mythology is sprinkled throughout, revolving mostly around the cult and the bioengineered children, yet ... providing another fascinating layer of world building and intrigue.

The name Hiruko calls back to the Japanese god, Hiruko/Ebisu. They are the first deformed child of creation deities Izanagi and Izanami, from the historical Shinto texts Kojiki, and Nihon shoki. (the boneless leech description of Hiruko also coincides with the visual similarities of the legless "babies" in the nursery when Tokio and Kuku break into the facility.)

Often cited as the God of 'Otherness' due to his deformity and death+rejection by his divine parents, Hiruko's use as the children's "true" name parallels each child's eventual transformation beyond what is normal and considered natural by societal standards; its both nuanced and cleverly executed here. These two creation dieties are again later referenced in the painting parting the sea in Shino Kaminaka's office. In this setting they can be seen as both creators for divinity (and a new society) as well as harbingers for death (for their unwanted child.) These are just a few examples of small subtle details that are littered through the work. Each give added depth and make me love it that much more with every rewatch.

That being said, the threat of death should go hand in hand in post apocalyptic series and Heavenly Delusion is no exception to this. But what really gets me about this show, is that there are so many things much worse than death that can happen to you there.

Imagine the intense waves of terror as the last moments you remember are of being absorbed by a giant half invisible caterpillar before being forcefully ripped from the rest of your body. But then there's the feeling of waking up from that and not seeing yourself due to an invasive body modification. That elicits a very different yet specific kind of fear from the previous one. Like I didn't even fathom the idea of nonconsentual body swapping until I saw it on-screen. Or being dismembered by gigantic alien steel teeth unceremoniously while you writhe in painful hallucinations? No thanks.

And all of that's not even broaching the desecration of a loved ones body while being trapped within and bombarded with tangled emotions by both parties. It is not only visceral, but frightening beyond words on so many levels.

The complexity and aftermath of all of that plus that last scene had me filled with trepidation about how the rest of the series would go. On my first watch I was so unwilling to accept that Kiruko so easily compartmentalized the trauma. It was in that I went looking for answers and ended up picking up the manga and rewatching the series again. And because of that I grew to appreciate just how strong Kiruko really is throughout this whole story. Their ability to adapt yet still retain that fragile tenderness and want so desperately to retain and protect that innocence in Maru is riveting.

This series is overall a refreshing sci-fi mystery chock full of effective visual storytelling with symbolism and piercing body horror. It also helps that the atmosphere is effortlessly immersable and grounded, making it easy to pick up the ever evolving dual storylines as the show progresses and for rewatches after.

Haven't You Heard? I'm Sakamoto

In remberence of the writer Sano Nami, who passed on August 5th this year at the mere age of 36. She was diagnosed with cancer one month prior to her passing and Sakamoto was her debut series that aired in 2016 by Sentai Filmworks / Studio DEEN.

Series is a mix of gag and swag humor revolving around Sakamoto; an ikemen in HS striving for comprehension of human interaction and social structure in the most stylish way possible. In each story segment, Sakamoto solves some sort of problem, which becomes a lesson his antagonists have to learn. It's very Mundane Made Awesome ... and a good pallette cleanser if you watch a lot of heavier material and need something to break up the cycle.

"Every man wants to be like him and women named their vibrators after him.."

What if Bruce Wayne decided to become a Japanese detective in a buddy cop drama? Would he buy entire buildings before blowing them up? How about dissolving a hostage situation w/ an all male idol LIVE so the hostages over take their captor? Do you like Scooby Doo endings? If any of this sounds entertaining you might enjoy Balance Unlimited: Millionaire Detective.

And as if that were not enough theres a mid-season development where we find out Bruce Wayne's/MCs real motive for becoming a Japanese gumshoe is to find out who killed his mother!! ( my guess is in an alley during Christmas with a gun. ) ... Other plots are involved but you'll have to watch.

Show is fun, but not too heavy. Similar vibes to Kubuchiko Sherlock, Tiger & Bunny, Baccano, The Great Pretender, Durarara! Buddy Daddies

How to start...

First and foremost, what are the Japanese yokai known as Kappa? They are typically depicted as green human shaped turtles with webbed hands and feet with a turtle like shell. They have a bowl of river water on top of their heads and are generally very polite. One would even say they are obsessive about politeness. Another thing these yokai love is sumo wrestling, cucumbers, and shogi, which is like Japanese chess. If you are ever challenged by a kappa you have a high probability of defeating it if you're addicted to chess.com, WWF or have cucumbers. So what's so scary about these ... guys?

( To be Continued....
Well when they're not being polite; they drown children or animals playing near their rivers, sexually assault women who dare cross the river alone, and drink your blood or eat human limbs as most other yokai do. And before I forget, there is another weird thing Kappa are obsessed with; Shirikodama
[尻子玉 ].

Shirikodama, is said to be the human soul that exists as a small magical jewel within the anus. So how do Kappa obtain these sacred jewels? They literally pull them out of peoples asses. I shit you not, Kappa collect ass jewels. It's fucking weird.
So if a cucumber eating, sumo wrestling, lizard that likes to steal jewels from your asshole isn't bizarre enough; imagine a story about three boys who have difficulty connecting with someone important to them while learning what it truly means to do so.... who also anally defeat monsters as a singing turtle gang with mahou shojo transformation type musical sequences. Sounds wild, right?

Sarazanmai is peppered with symbolism and metaphors underneath a layer of simplicity, making it a pleasure to watch for both types of viewers: those who want to be challenged and folks who only care for the surface level details and visuals.
Detractors would be the repetition level for some scenes which are akin to Revolutionary Girl Utena, especially during the first 4eps of the show. This is said to such an extent that I can see some folks wanting to partially skip the sequences. (I found it kinda meh at first, but by episode 9 they had grown on me so much that I found myself upset if any of them were omitted from an ep.)

However, series has some fantastic animation by MAPPA and A+++ music. I haven't laughed this hard after a first episode in a long time. Sarazanmai really hits its stride at the episode 5 mark and exponentially gets better with each passing ep after. THE KAWAUSO COP DESIRE SEQUENCE IS PEAK. [ <-- Utena vibin' that goes hard af ]

Real talk: this a lot more enjoyable if you are knowledgeable about Japanese folklore and yōkai; which includes ghosts, gods, transformed humans and animals, spirit possession, urban legends, and other strange phenomena. ( Que to why my description started the way it did. )

One other observation would be if you know Japanese words and wordplay; ( this makes the elements more impactful, but is not essential to enjoy the show: ) like 'soba' means the noodle and 'a place beside you/to be by your side' or 'kisu' means the fish and 'kiss' or Toi とい (the younger brother) name meaning far away/distant and Chikai 近い (the older brother) name meaning close to/promise.

.There are both adult sexual themes and gay themes in the work; but you don't need to be gay to be able to relate to the difficulty in connecting with others, which is at the core of the show. It's hilarious, intelligent, complex, and interesting in a very bizarre way. These lend itself to a concept that's challenging but also straightforward and worth a watch if you're looking for something unique.

P.S: There are important after credit scenes after the ED each episode that the opening of the next episode won't show.

See you, ByeBye!! ~~dish!

This is also a Ikuhara Kunihiko joint. Other works include Revolutionary Girl Utena and Mawaru Penguindrum.

His stories generally have a gay/lesbian or incestuous coupling, metaphors and abstract concepts, early subtle foreshadowing and magical girl sequences. There is not a lot of stuff that is similar to the artist so you'll know when you've seen one.

Since this series is technically 13 episodes, I can't suggest it for the club wide anime review so I'll just post it here. What's more Halloween related than Hell, right?

Series is a dark comedy and treats Hell as if it were an office workspace. It also explores Japanese folklore as well as many other religions and their hells. There are even some demon idols and womanizing heavenly beings going for after work beers at the izakaya. If I haven't mentioned already there are also singing goldfish plants, murderous rabbits, and even an excrement hell!

The series is from Sentai Filmworks and WIT Studio so animation ... is good, but it definitely isn't S tier ufotable quality. Music used is relatively upbeat and catchy, reminiscent of a drunk sing along.
Show overall is pretty easy-going and easy to pick up and put down since the main arc of the first season just shows how Hell is run. If this show ends up being your cup of tea there is another season, 2 ovas and a lot of specials, so there's more than enough to watch if you're into it.

I think it's a great underrated dark comedy a breath of fresh air in the genre. I like the series so much Hozuki is in my top 10 so..yeah 10/10