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Mar 22, 2020
Shinchou Yuusha: An isekai that made us "Fall for Innocents"
(Review with spoilers)
After watching the final episode of the anime known as Cautious Hero, I have to admit that I did not expect that blow to the liver I ended up taking.
In fact, after remembering my first impressions and thoughts of Shinchou Yuusha, I can't help but laugh when I feel like the series really teased me; but the curious thing is that it did not do it in a bad way or did it for the bad, on the contrary. The result was much better than it would have been if it had followed its
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initial premise.
Except for those who were up to date or advanced with the light novel, the vast majority of those who watched this series did so to have a few laughs; and that was exactly what this anime provided. Although, little by little it was leaving clues that there was something more.
Little by little, I began to notice that behind all these jokes and ridicule, there was a tragedy; From the moment Aria reacted by dropping the jug when she first saw him, I knew something was wrong, especially since she had just said there was a world she couldn't save.
Even after that, someone released a spoiler that Seiya's past was tragic, which confirmed my suspicions; However, neither the spoiler nor the suspicions could prepare me for episode 11.
I will never get tired of saying that in the end what matters is not the ideas but the execution and boy, everything was executed impeccably here. When we finally got to know Seiya's past, not only did it hit us in the center of the chest like an arrow, but all the loose ends of the plot were tied up.
Why is Seiya cautious at pathological levels? Because before he was a daring hero and that cost him to lose his companions, the woman he loved and his unborn child. Why did Aria reacted like that when she saw him the first time and why did she go out of her way to help him later? Because she was the Goddess in charge of him at the time.
Why does Ristarte gets so horny when she's around him? Because she is the reincarnation as Goddess of Princess Tiana, who was Seiya's wife and future mother of his son. Why didn't Seiya stop finishing his enemies until he was sure they were dead?
Because the Demon King killed everyone at the time thanks to two lives, he was able to revive after being defeated the first time. It is that even the name of the goddess is a slap that ends up finishing us off. "Ristarte" (リ ス タ ル テ) sounds very similar to "Risutaato" the Japanese phonetization of "Restart" (リ ス タ ー ト), which in English means restart.
So the impact of that episode is twofold, not only for all the drama it shows us in presenting how Seiya failed and how all his loved ones died; instead, all the pieces fit together and you end up realizing that you had been laughing at the tragedy of others.
Because now, seeing Cautious Hero again, it's no longer funny to see Seiya destroying the slime or Chaos Machina the way he did; on the contrary, that is a reminder of all the pain the boy had to experience. And yes, it is true that he only remembered things in the end, but his trauma was so great that, along with the message that was left, it altered his personality completely.
In fact, if we start to analyze in depth, even if he had no conscious memory of it, the memories were in his mind; Proof of this was episode 6 when he used the typical phrase he had in his past life, "Gonna be ok". Furthermore, it was later demonstrated that his aggressive and indifferent personality was only a facade to protect those around him.
Not to mention the final episode which was brilliant in every way. Since Seiya's farewell and death, the final battle, Ristarte's reaction after the loss of her beloved, the other gods comforting her, everything was brutal. And the punishment she finally received was the icing on the cake.
However, here is something that leaves me with certain doubts. It is clear that Seiya is going to return and there is logic because he died after the Demon King, so his soul was not destroyed; but if he comes back without the memories I feel that the series is going to lose a lot of its strength.
A Seiya without memory would imply a reset and I do not know if that will be good for the story. Although there are reasons to be optimistic: 1) Ristarte this time will have her memories intact, 2) Some spoilers that I saw, if true, would force Seiya to recover his memory quickly. We will have to wait and see if White Fox announces a second season; If not, it will be necessary to go read the novels to get out of doubt.
In short, Cautious Hero was a series that not only made fun of the cliches of the genre, but dared to play with its audience to the point of catching them off guard. The best part? That the play came out excellent. In the end ... We all fell for innocents.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Jan 5, 2020
A surprisingly fun to watch anime
Filling in part the emptiness that left Danshi Koukousei no Nichijou, Joshikousei no Mudazukai (Wasteful Days of High School Girl) comes to present a slice of life comedy about a group of peculiar friends and how they spend their daily lives doing ridiculous stuff.
One day, out of boredom, Tanaka decided to give her classmates a nickname based on their peculiarities. Her friend Sakuchi became "Ota" given her otaku interests, and her other friend Saginomiya became "Robo” due to her inexpressive personality. In retaliation, her friends decided to nickname her "Baka" for her notorious idiocy. From this event will begin this
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ridiculous story of three friends and their classmates who claim (but do not prove) to live up to the maturity of youth.
Being one of those titles that I really did not expect or know anything before its premiere, Joshikousei no Mudazukai has ended up being, at least for me, one of the surprises of the past summer season, a work that from the outside would seem to be just another anime of cute girls doing cute things, but that already entering into it, proves to be a really competent comedy, being within this genre one of the most entertaining works with which I have had the opportunity to run into during the year of its broadcast.
The anime is simply a school comedy, which leads us to witness the daily life of a picturesque and disparate group of young students from a high school for girls only. The work then has as its main protagonists a triad of friends conformed by Tanaka, an absolute idiot from head to toes full of energy that wants a boyfriend without trying anything to get it, Kikuchi, a future mangaka and fanatic of the yaoi, and Saginomiya, an inexpressive and intelligent young woman with great interest in the world of microorganisms.
The anime then goes on how the relationship between these three friends and the conversations and situations unfolds, in many irrelevant and absurd cases that they end up constantly having, as well as their interactions with their teacher, a declared fan of university girls, and their others classmates, among which we find an innocent and short loli tsundere, a blonde with a serious case of chuunibyou, a mature and smart tomboy girl list somewhat obsessed with Robo, a beautiful student transferred with lesbian tendencies, and an adorable and shy fan of occultism and dark things, which together will give way to diverse and entertaining situations and interactions that will keep more than one entertained.
Although I could not catalog the series in any way as an original work, since premises and characters of this style can be found in many other titles of the same tonic, that does not take away from the anime that it is a quite entertaining series and fun to follow, whose chemistry and interactions between its characters is its greatest strength, and which is seen inmediatly, being a very light title whose chapters passes quick before you know it.
Visually speaking the series is competent but little else, the anime is not that it looks bad but it does not impress in any way, delivering a correct animation, attractive but not very striking character designs, and a background work that goes quite unnoticed.
Likewise, its soundtrack is not that it attracts a lot of attention, passing under the radar and barely noticing that it is there, but I must comment that its opening song entitled, “Wa! Moon! Dass! Cry!” Turns out to be a song quite lively and visually appealing, in addition to being a total nonsense that has no meaningful lyrics, meanwhile the ending theme entitled "Seishun no Reverb", although much less striking is also quite pleasant to the ear.
A work not too prominent and one could say that even inconsequential, but which definitely turns out to be an entertaining anime, which is perfect to spend a pleasant time without throwing a lot of brain. It is not the best school comedy out there, and it is one of those works that you will most likely forget within a few weeks or days of seeing it, but it is a fun title worth checking out, especially if you like seeing high school girls doing nonsense. It starts a little slow, but it is still a good comedy when it is already strong and introduces all its characters.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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Jan 4, 2020
A cute and sweet series that does not stand out
Released on July 12 during the summer season of 2019, Machikado Mazoku, or as it is also known, "The Demon Girl Next Door", is the anime adaptation of the manga published since 2014 by Izumo Ito, the series is a production of J.C. Staff studios directed by Hiroaki Sakurai, which came to have a total of 12 episodes.
Being one of those titles to which I did not pay much attention during its premiere, to the point of passing it, Machikado Mazoku was a series that I decided to keep an eye on after seeing some screenshots
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of it on Twitter, finding in it a simple and adorable-looking title but at the same time quite fun and enjoyable.
The anime, then, is a slice of life with a comic tone, which largely parodies what would be the typical anime of magical girls, telling us the story of a young girl named Yuko Yoshida, a seemingly normal high school girl, who a day after a peculiar dream wakes up with tail and horns, discovering after this to her surprise and through the words of her mother, that in fact her family is descendant of the clan of darkness apparently eradicated ages ago, and that now Yuko as successor of it, has been chosen to become a demon girl and make war on her enemies, the clan of light, who in the past imposed on the dark clan a horrible curse that forces them to survive with a misery of money a month, so with the order to improve the finances of her family, our heroine, now known as Shadow Mistress Yuko, or simply Shamiko for short, must look for some magical girl from the which get her blood to break the curse, a difficult thing since not only the awakening of Shamiko as a demon girl has not really granted any remarkable physical or magical ability, the girl being a full-fledged weakness, but also because Momo Chiyoda , the first magical girl she meets, and who is a classmate of her school, is not only ridiculously strong, but also does not take Shamiko very seriously even pitying her, dedicating herself more to trying to train the demon girl so that she has some chance against her before confronting her, and constantly looking for ways to help and coax her so that she does not feel like challenging her, being born with this a peculiar friendship, with which Shamiko will not be very happy.
The series then follows the day-to-day life of Shamiko in her otherwise unsuccessful and innocent attempts to defeat Momo, or she, at least, considers her a rival, while the latter one on her part does her best to make crumbs with our protagonist despite her stoic personality, being then the attractiveness of the series precisely seeing the entertaining interactions of these two characters, as well as how they coexist with the other secondary characters, such as their classmates, the family of Shamiko, or some other magical girl who makes an appearance later, and in addition to obviously seeing the different blunders and bad fortune of our protagonist in her daily life.
We have then with this and as I already mentioned, a fairly simple series in premise and execution, but by others pleasant and entertaining, that among its competent comedy, pleasant characters, adorable aesthetics and enjoyable atmosphere, you can see it in nothing.
Visually speaking the series is fine, delivering a competent but not outstanding animation, some beautiful and aesthetic character designs, a palette of colors you could say pleasant and lively, and a fund work for nothing remarkable.
Likewise, there is nothing to say about soundtrack, this being an element not at all outstanding in the work.
In conclusion, a light and pleasant title that comes in handy to pass the time, like many other titles of this style is not that it is a work at all essential, being in fact very surely a work that you will forget shortly after finishing it, but even with all this, it is an entertaining work that comes quite well to kill some hours of boredom.
This is not the kind of series that I recommend as something that you have to see yes or yes, much less. However, even if you do not miss an experience that changes lives by not looking at it, this story of adorable and clumsy girls doing adorable and awkward things is a light and optimistic spectacle perfect for spending time. If you are a fan of the slice of life or the moe, this is a series that cannot be missed. Something adorable and generally innocent does not do bad every so often.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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Jan 4, 2020
A lot of science, little logic
When does an anime really move without its construction outlining a manual melodrama with effective formulas that appeal to the love of schoolboys? Why should we deny the possibility of approaching a series that is entertaining to understand technological evolution and with action on the table and not in fights, just because it is fashionable? Certainly, Dr. Stone and both his fans and his detractors, generated those questions.
Senku and Taiju are two teenagers, childhood friends. Senku is characterized by being extremely intelligent in addition to belonging to the chemistry club of his school while Taiju, is not too intelligent like
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him, but he compensates with his great physical strength and that he is in love with a beautiful student named Yuzuriha, who he pretends to confess. When he is about to declare his love to his classmate, a blinding light of unknown origin causes human beings without exceptions and birds to become stone. As a consequence, society as we know it and civilization crumbles. Thousands of years pass and Taiju finally manages to free himself from petrification thanks to his friend Senku who was able to free himself half a year before and thanks to that, he now knows that they are on October 5, 5738. 3700 years after petrification of the human race.
How to catch someone with science
As many comment, it is an anime that reflects the optimism of standing up to adversity. It also praises the evolution of being a human from the primitive gaze and contrasts it with the murky thing that it carries. Dr. Stone's message is clear and remains throughout the story.
TMS Entertainment was the studio in charge and except for certain unforeseen lack of fluidity in scenes, where it is mainly felt that the animation had been done in Microsoft Paint, but the anime is replenished in the next few seconds. On the other hand, the soundtrack mainly stands out for the opening and ending themes that manage to get the viewer into the plot.
The series knows how to enchant its particular style and manages to generate empathy, in some cases tears, with the way of narrating the events, while celebrating technological evolution and how this has allowed humanity to survive and improve the quality of life.
They explain science brilliantly, but ignore logic
On the other hand, a factor that reduces credibility, since in some cases such information is needed, is the fact that there is no luck as to why. That is, the series takes the time to credibly explain each experiment or creation; However, neglect a detail as basic as it would be not to name a person. Throughout the series, it is not explained why Senku, the protagonist, is a genius.
That is, one assumes that he is but if the series appeals to a human context, it is hard to believe that someone has the ability to do everything Senku does. If we go a little further, a character murders a lion with a single blow.
To be a series that focuses on science, it lacks a certain logic that could be justified, arguing that it is a shounen; However, it would be an invalid approach that would take seriousness out of the anime.
While it is true that the toughest sequences at the emotional level are accompanied by comic moments that soften the message, they are still sublime moments. The fight for that sick dear person, blind hope in a child, the love of a father, determination are just some of the issues that this work briefly touches and manages to move. A shounen does not necessarily need epic battles or unexpected script turns, to highlight. Dr. Stone hits hard as the minutes go by, it is an addictive series and highly recommended, which has been one of my favorites of the recent year.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Oct 9, 2019
It is often said that people always look for originality, innovation or freshness in what they consume. But the truth is that even if we normally look for new experiences or ingenious turns in what we already know, we are creatures of habit and every so often we return to what is familiar to us because it is our comfort zone. I mention all this because the series to which I dedicate this review is no wonder that reinvents the genre of romantic comedies to which it belongs, however, it has resulted in one of the series that I have enjoyed watching in this already
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finished spring season 2019 (although it was a slow season, so it's not saying much in its favor).
The work is therefore a romantic comedy, of those that throw comedy more than romance itself, of school atmosphere and harem type, with certain elements of ecchi, which tells us the story of Yuiga, a young man with low resources but very dedicated to his studies, to which the director of his school offers him a deal that is impossible to refuse, and in exchange for the boy to work as the tutor of two students and help them raise their grades in certain subjects, he will be awarded a scholarship that will facilitate his passage to the university, which is great for him due to the economic situation of his family.
A task that would not seem too complicated, especially when the boy learns that his two students will be, Rizu and Fumino, two pretty famous girls inside the school due to his outstanding intelligence, the first being a genius in everything related to Mathematics and exact sciences, and the other an expert in letters, the problem is that despite this talent, the girls due to their future ambitions, they really want to stand out in the opposite field from which they currently shine, Rizu wants to be good in literature to be able to become a psychologist, while Fumino wishes to learn mathematics to fulfill her dream of studying astronomy, the two being completely useless in these areas, costing both of them to learn something no matter how much they study and repeat them, finding this way our protagonist in a very complicated situation that will have to go solving one step at a time, being friends with the girls that, at the beginning somewhat distrustful due to their bad experiences with previous tutors and teachers who surrendered with them very easily. While discovering how to be able to teach them in an effective way, and eventually seeing how his small task initially goes complicating more than it should with the entry into the scene of other females, among which are an athlete with problems to learn English, and a teacher who does not see with great eyes the decision of the girls not to develop in that what they are good.
I would lie if I said that the story in this series is not basic, as it is. However, its charm is how it integrates their characters and clichés in a quite natural way despite the formulations that can result in their way of narrating the events. However, even if from the beginning the characters comply with a usual cliche in the romcoms so that you can easily differentiate them by the tropes they represent, they have enough personality to make them credible since everyone has their own ambitions and dreams. So, not only do they exist for romantic relationships and comic gags, but any trace of these is born during the interactions of the characters and how they begin to know each other more. It is nothing that makes it stand out in the huge list of romantic comedies and it feels the same as many I saw a decade ago, but it gives it enough identity to not feel like a project lacking inspiration, especially with all the editions it does the anime to adapt enough of the manga and thus include all the important characters. It's a simple romcom, but it's well executed to give simple light entertainment that doesn't want to be a drama or touch subjects in too much depth.
When it comes to the technical work of the series, I have to say that even when it's nothing incredible, it does its job well. With some occasional fanservice, we have simple but easy to differentiate characters that usually blend naturally with the scenarios, what they do not have in animation they use it in personality and when it is not a memorable production, even as a joke, it has its specific moments that steal the show. All wrapped in a colorful and vibrant color palette.
For its part, the soundtrack is similar, nothing to complain about but nothing particularly surprising. The work in the voices of the characters is satisfactory and the soundtrack is energetic, such as Go! Go! Atletic or 赤 点 先生 which allows the series to be easy to enjoy even if it is not particularly memorable in this regard. The opening of the series is called "Seishun Seminar" while the ending is "Never Give It Up !!" both being two cheerful melodies interpreted by the group of seiyuus of the series under the name of "Study".
I don't have much more to say about this series. It is not innovative or particularly ingenious in its ideas, but it is a simple romcom that does not seek to be much more than that giving light entertainment. For the fans of this kind of works, it is a recommendation that I can easily make, but for those who look for something else or it is tired of these clichés, it is probably better to look for another series to watch, because no matter how well you drive satisfactory these clichés that are already decades old, is not for everyone. For my part I will wait to see how the second season goes, that when I feel nostalgic these series are a good watch.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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May 18, 2019
Tensei Shitara Slime Datta Ken: an anime with monsters, but all of good vibes
What happens when an office worker almost in his forties, of good character and full of common sense, is transported to a fantasy world turned into an almost almighty monster? Well, this anime series from last fall season offers us a version of these events. The result: some very relaxed adventures to pass the time.
In October of last year, another anime was released on Japanese television of a genre that has been in vogue there for a few years now: the Isekai. And what is the Isekai? In short, someone -a teenager,
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a university student, a middle-aged character ... - is transported or reincarnated in another world ("isekai": another world). Normally he does it with some kind of special superpower and with a mission to undertake - the reason why he is in that new world - but it is not an indispensable trope.
What usually happens one hundred percent of the time is that the world is fantastic and contains magical creatures -what would be an epic adventure without monsters to shoot down?-. And since the rise of novels such as Sword Art Online -which, paradoxically, is not strictly speaking of this genre- the way in which the protagonists of these stories explore, interact and experience these fantastic worlds blatantly resembles the mechanics behind a MMORPG.
Well: Tensei Shitara Slime Datta Ken (translated to English as "That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime”) is an isekai of the new ones, with its multiplayer roleplay mechanics , level ups, information interface, and even evolution of monsters. But what story does it really tell us? The synopsis is the following.
One day, Satoru Mikami, 37, an ordinary worker who lives in Tokyo and has no girlfriend or commitment, saves the life of Tamura, his workmate, and dies on the spot. But his story does not end there, because as his last thoughts leave his head, a strange entity is configuring the characteristics of his new body to reincarnate in another world.
So, to his surprise, Satoru will wake up again from the sweet dream, fully aware of his previous life, but as a slime: the classic video game slime monster like Dragon Quest. Full of optimism and ready to live a fuller life, Satoru, renamed Rimuru Tempest by a whole dragon, sets off to explore this new world, in which he will undo wrongs of all kinds thanks to his peculiar set of skills and, on the way, He will make friends with all kinds of monsters.
It is not a very original plot, and having a protagonist with a series of extraordinary skills and abilities that save him from almost any situation can cause you to lose interest by eliminating a source of conflicts. But the truth is that the series does not focus much on the conflicts that Rimuru lives: the problems are almost always solved in a practical or peaceful way, and the battles are usually an excuse for his friends to shine.
Our protagonist is a deus ex machina who sometimes saves the situation at the last moment in a very convenient way, but the story that it is telling us is not really about people fighting with superpowers. It does not matter that Rimuru ends the monster of turn in one or two movements, what really keeps us interested in the series is how these characters get to know each other and establish alliances and friendships.
In general, it is a series of very calm adventures, of slow pace and without compulsion. In fact, the moments of dramatic tension can be resolved quickly and although they are not forgotten, they do not creep beyond the resolution. It is a series designed to invoke pleasant, happy and warm feelings in who is seeing it. It is so relaxed and cheerful that, in fact, it could be considered a weakness.
It is missing more dramatic tension, some conflict that is difficult to resolve or with an unsatisfactory resolution. The series is a little naive: the problems are always resolved, there is no sense of danger at any time and everyone is in the end very friendly. If the characters -which, in all honesty, are very archetypal: the cool guy with bad attitude, the hypercompetent assistant with generous breasts, the short and funny friend, the Yamato Nadeshiko, etc.- were not so nice and sympathetic, the interest of the series in this first season would have been off very soon.
Another weakness of the series has to do with the rhythm of it. The first half has a slow progress: it details the adventures of Rimuru very much, but it is a constant rhythm and although it is slow, it engages. The second half breaks that constant rhythm: it goes to the bone of the story, cutting off superfluous details, but losing the charm that hooked you in the first half and, with it, part of the interest. Sometimes the cuts are such that they liquidate a whole fight or solve a problem with a narrative line.
From a more technical point of view, the series -animated by the 8-Bit studio- is in the average of the anime of 24 episodes for television. There are not many pirouettes in the direction, and the designs are quite generic; but the drawing is regular, consistent, and some battles are pretty fun to watch. The casting of voices is correct and the simple and environmental music helps to give an air of RPG of the Super Nintendo.
In the end, it would not be too crazy to claim that Tensei Shitara Slime Datta Ken is a nice anime to watch. It does not stand out in any section nor is it among the best of the last six months, but it can give us a few afternoons of entertainment and relaxation for those who like adventures. The series has been well received and will have a second season -and who knows if more, seeing that the manga that adapts the same novels, currently in publication, is being a success-. It seems we will have this "good slime" for a while.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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May 15, 2019
Kaze ga Tsuyoku Fuiteiru: How to face the race of life
For some time now, Production I.G. positioned itself in the market as a "specialized" studio in offering the spokons of the season. Known for animating major titles such as Kuroko no Basket, Haikyuu or the first seasons of Diamond no Ace, it has also tried with anime with less traditional sports themes such as Ballroom e Youkoso - entertaining anime about ballroom dancing. For this reason, it was no surprise that between the end of 2018 and the beginning of 2019 they decided to adapt an animated series based on the novel written by Shion
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Miura (Fune wo Amu), which told the story of a newly formed athletics group focused on relay race. From the hand of Kazuya Nomura (Robotics;Note, Joker Game) in the direction, Kohei Kiyasu (seiyuu and first in the script field) in the composition and Takahiro Chiba (Haikyuu, Ballroom e Youkoso) in the design of the characters, Production I.G. embarked on a narrative that ended up surprising people of the genre with an anime that possesses the most emotional and suggestive results of the season.
This spokon starts telling the story of Kakeru Kurahara, an experienced and talented runner who, by some blows in life, decides to abandon the sport and continue with his recently initiated university life. After several unfortunate events that drive our protagonist to rob a convenience store and run away like a soul that is owned by the devil and tries to not get caught, the life of Kakeru will end up crossing with Haiji Kiyose, a 4th year university student who, after seeing tremendous display of talent in such a strange situation, he will propose to join his athletic club. Although at first our protagonist rejects it without hesitation and murmuring, he will soon discover that Haiji is the landlord of his new student residence - Chikuseisou - and that, in addition, this guy will not leave him alone until he fully involves him in his dream: Forming a team of relay runners who participate in the Hakone Ekiden, one of the most famous marathons aimed for the top university teams in Japan.
Kakeru finds the idea of Haiji even more far-fetched when he reveals to him that the team he has assembled consists of all the residents of Chikuseisou, a diverse group of college kids with no experience in the sport. The anime narrates, in this way, the tortuous but emotional path of all the members of this newly formed team to reach a goal that seems - in the beginning - utopian. In this journey we will see the conformation of a team and the individual evolution of each member of it. In the course of the story each character will face his worst demons and, through this, will answer big questions that will allow them to continue advancing as individuals and as a collective.
From the world of Japanese animation, we met the work of Shion Miura with an adaptation that was made to a work that told the process of making a dictionary (Fune wo Amu). Production I.G. chooses to animate another story of the novelist, centered on a team of relay runners that brought another proposal with overtones of overcoming with more adult airs in ingenious contexts. Run with the Wind takes a slightly different route than the prototypical spokon. First, the most obvious element is the stage of life in which its main characters are: Young university students who go through a stage of self-discovery and transition to adulthood. Far from the schoolgirl burden that gives many spokons a vitality of positivism, drama and eternal freshness, we find in the cast young people who are in a stage of life whose main characteristic is to achieve self-knowledge and self-acceptance of what you are and what you are not, leaving little by little that schizophrenic stage called adolescence. Likewise, it takes subjects more focused on the collectivity and individual development within a sport that is new in the genre.
The anime is structured in two large arcs, each fulfilling a purpose and developing important themes. At first we followed the story of the conformation of this new athletics club. Haiji has been recruiting - albeit without anyone's knowledge - a group of kids that would be the team of his dreams. The anime begins with the revelation of Haiji's dream and his laudable effort to convince each of these newcomers to join his goal. After displaying an unwavering spirit, Haiji - as leader and guide (I would even say spiritual rather than sporting) indisputable of the whole series - starts with the rigorous training whose first major objective is to get each of the boys to achieve a record that allows them to classify to the Hakone Ekiden as a team. In this first part of the process we will not only get to know each of the characters through the small individual dramas that come to light in the recruitment and preparation stage, but also we will delve into our protagonist.
Kakeru is probably the character whose evolution gives him more emphasis in this stage. It is a moment where he manages to connect with a team that gives him the strength to continue with a sport that he no longer understands if it produces happiness or not. Through finally being part (really) of a collective, Kakeru manages to heal his traumas through the constant guidance of Haiji and the strong friendship with his other colleagues, learning that the relay race is much more than a path that one travels alone. After all, there are other people you depend on and who depend on you to move forward and meet your goals. Even though one travels the road alone, one learns from others to see them walk the same path as you with different nuances, perspectives and / or objectives. In this process, a sense of belonging and familiarity is born that is also positioned as a motor of personal growth. Although, due to the personality of Kakeru, to focus so much on him and his drama can become something heavy and slow to see. However, the anime that in a first arc did not appear as promising or even relevant in the season, achieves a closure of its story that saves any complaint.
After the presentation of each of the characters and the narrative of their effort to be one step ahead of reaching their goal, the second arc is the final sprint of an anime that knew how to present its endearing cast, not only in individual way, but also as a collective that the viewer could see conform and solidify from its inception. The Hakone Ekiden arc closes the individual story of this group of runners in a way that was quite tattooed in my heart.
It is therefore the staging of a healing process for each of the characters that involve varied topics such as, for example, the reconciliation with family that you left behind, with oneself for having thought about giving up for not having talent natural in the sport that makes you happy, with the frustrations of a life that seems not to have shone as much as we dreamed, with a team that you learned to love as if it were your family and for what the effort is worth, with the traumas they made practicing this sport come to seem like torture, etc. What this anime did best is to show us the weakness of each of the members of this club and provide a closure for each of their stories in an emotional sequence that had the audience with the heart in the palm of their hands and eyes dampened in each of the final chapters. After all, the race of Hakone Ekiden is a moment in their lives in which they reflect on their main weaknesses, managing to accept them to move forward, being a critical point in their lives that makes them evolve as people.
"Why do you run?” Is the guiding question in this anime. It is the question that Haiji constantly asks to his companions. It is not a question that has a single answer or that he himself can answer. It is a question whose answer depends on oneself and that each character will find along the way, always driven to reflection and self-improvement by the guiding figure of the series: Haiji.
The strength of this series is precisely how each of the characters is self-discovering and accepting their limitations and potentialities. Not all run for the same reason but through this sport they manage to find themselves. In most spokons there is an emphasis on teamwork and the importance of friendship. Although Kaze ga Tsuyoku Fuiteru has an element of conformation of friendships and even the conformation of a family; Much of the proposal takes real weight by the personal battles of each member.
A sport like relay races allows the correct development of two dimensions. On the one hand, we are in the conformation of a team that will have as maxims the values of friendship and camaraderie. After all, first of all, the team depends on each of its members to reach the goal. If one gets hurt, gets sick or does not finish his route, all the team will be disqualified; and, therefore, trust in the other was maximum. Second, the formation of bonds of friendship and familiarity among all the characters also involved that the triumph of one is the triumph of all. It is a friend that you have seen suffer in each training, improving every day without stopping and you know how much this race can mean. The feeling of happiness shared by seeing his friends finish their race was also comforting and meant a lot in the development of several of the characters who found in the others a family and sense of belonging that drove them to keep going despite having, sometimes , everything against them.
On the other hand, it should be noted that the sport itself forces the characters to develop their individuality as well. While there is a significant team load, one of the most powerful parts of the anime is the development of the individualities of each team member. One runs alone by that path, and like life itself, it is in this journey that one learns lessons, knows oneself and evolves. There are friends, there are mentors, there are different goals or dreams, but finally who runs this race is yourself. The most powerful part of this anime focuses on showing us this self-discovery, this self-acceptance, and with that, seeing how people continue to advance. Each of the characters, therefore, develops its own narrative on how it goes through this process. This makes them close a chapter in their life and with that they keep moving forward, and - finally - those scenes were the best of this anime.
Little by little this proposal is tracing a charming path that leaves the viewer committed to the story of each of these guys and, therefore, at the end of the series, the feeling of empathy and admiration for each of them is real. While it is clear that it is unrealistic for a group of novices to participate in the most famous university relay race in Japan in such a short time (having someone like Ōji, a manga fanatic and a sporting nullity, in the team), it is clear that they knew how to grow their story slowly to present one of the best results of the year.
With a cast of characters that makes you like them: Not only did I feel identified with Ōji and his spokon references, with King and his hard labor search, with Nico-chan and his resolve to do what he likes despite not having the to do it, with Yuki and his reconciliation with his family, with Musa and his extreme warmth as a human being, with Shindo and his tremendous dedication, with the twins and their growth as individuals, with Kakeru and his newly rediscovered love, and of course, Haiji. The productive value of the anime will not be the best of the studio but it is clearly presented with a narrative and a construction of characters that distill humanity and whose chemistry as a cast is enviable. Definitely, a recommendation for those who want a fresh air in this genre.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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May 14, 2019
My Roommate is a Cat and how another living being can save us
Mikazuki Subaru is a young introvert writer and misanthrope who lives alone in a big house. After losing his parents in a terrible traffic accident and becoming an orphan at a young age, his social awkwardness will increase, leading him to shut himself in his home and closing himself to interact with the world. One day, while visiting the grave of his parents, he will meet a street cat who will adopt thanks to a writer's impulse. After all, that meeting will give him the idea he needs to start his next work:
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a thriller that will feature a cat. Little by little, this lovely little intruder will force him to open up to the world, to establish links with other living beings, to feel accompanied and, finally, to rediscover the meaning of family.
This short story of only 12 episodes adapts a 5-volume web manga written by Minatsuki Tsunami and illustrated by As Futatsuya. The narrative format chosen by the anime is that of two narrators. Each chapter is divided into two parts: In the first half we find the narration of a daily life scene narrated by Mikazuki Subaru. Through him we can know his story, his fears and his feelings towards the world. And in a second moment of the chapter we will focus on the narration of the same scene on the part of Haru, his cat. Thus, we will also learn more about Haru's life story, her fears and the feelings that are forming from her new owner, Subaru.
That narrative decision allows us to see a very important point of this story: How this new relationship between two living beings manages to change - for the better - the life of both. Our two protagonists have suffered hard blows in life and this has caused them to have to fend for themselves to survive in the world. Their lucky encounter makes them, little by little, begin to trust and love each other, as they did not do with anyone for a long time. Finally, this relationship is transformed into a family love where both always seek the best for the other and, before them, new experiences are opened that will lead them to reconnect with the world that surrounds them.
The story of these two is simple but no less touching. It is nice to be able to see how the characters are healing each other and how a bond is formed between them. This link, in addition, helps both to get the best out of themselves. On the one hand, there is that young man who has lost so much and who, because of his cat, will leave behind a lot of his social anxiety to help her. Through Haru he will meet other people who care about him and his cat, will face new situations that will make him grow as a person and will learn again to love another living being. On the other hand, we find Haru, who has also lost a lot, who has lived a painful street life, but who will meet a person she wants to protect and who finally makes her feel safe. Both have found a home in the other, and that is very moving to see.
While we are not going to find an anime more melancholic, dramatic and sentimental as Kanojo to Kanojo no Neko - another great anime about a cat and its owner - My Roommate is a Cat gives us a slice of life that will have us smiling and even in tears by how the relationship between both characters evolves. I think that pure love between a person and his pet is portrayed in a simple but entertaining way in this anime, which has positioned itself as an excellent appetizer in the winter season 2019. Far from great suspense, romantic dramas, heroic battles, among other popular topics for the public, the simplicity of a proposal that tells us the life of a first-time pet owner who manages to heal his wounds thanks to this relationship is refreshing.
It probably does not have the best animation or direction that you will see, nor the most tachycardic plot turns of the market, but it will be an adorable story that in some parts will touch the heart of the spectator. After all, there are encounters in life that mark us and sometimes these encounters are not with humans, but with animals that revolutionize our world. While I believe that this anime can touch more deeply to those pet owners who will be identified in several scenes and exposed speeches, I think it is a warm anime that can also touch the hearts of those who have not had the opportunity to still have an animal companion.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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May 13, 2019
The Promised Neverland and how to build a suspense story.
When we talk about the genre of suspense or mystery in the industry it always comes to mind that it is a space that opens the possibility to have great exponents. After all, there are titles like Monster, Steins;Gate, Death Note or Madoka Magica that are positioned as great classics of the industry. Also, a contemporary release that managed to achieve also fame was known to all as Shingeki no Kyojin. With an interesting creation of the world, conflict and cliffhanger management, this anime managed to be a world boom that charmed its own and strangers.
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Among other topics, I could mention that my favorite contemporary anime, for example, also belongs to this genre: Shin Sekai Yori. And in even more contemporary nominations I could mention animes like Boku dake ga Inai Machi or Made in Abyss that managed to capture the audience and, with that, be premieres highly appreciated by fans of Japanese animation.
This 2019, the new release of suspense that was positioned as one of the most popular and appreciated was "Yakusoku no Neverland", or in English, "The Promised Neverland". Based on the popular manga of the same name, written by Kaiu Shirai and illustrated by Posuka Demizu, CloverWorks decided to animate this story that tells us the tricks of three orphaned children to escape from an orphanage. Why this need to achieve this escape? Because after being front row spectators of one of their adopted brothers being taken away, the children will discover the terrible secret of this world: Humans are raised as cattle in these centers to feed demons with their brains. Hell yeah.
The formulation of an interesting world, the use of plot twists that always leave you wanting more, the approach of thousands of questions that hook the viewer to the plot, the construction of a memorable trio protagonist and a well structured antagonist, among others, are some of the elements that make this anime more than correct. It is no surprise, therefore, that you have provided an entertaining product for more than one, or that you have positioned yourself so quickly as the favorite of many. Next, I just want to mention some positive elements in this story.
First, as did Shin Sekai Yori and Made in Abyss, I think it is interesting to mention that Yakusoku no Neverland is a story that offers us a suggestive choice: The story opens showing us a cast composed of infants. Who rediscovered that the thriller starring children was so appealing? I do not know, but it is undeniable that they are elements that fit like two pieces of a puzzle. From the medieval fables of terror, childish innocence intermingled with shady contexts and shocking situations has always been a formula that, if well told, has no loses. After all, the impression of having children going through tremendous regrets generates in a person an almost instinctive anguish. They also provide an innate element of discovery (or re-discovery) of the world, which comes to us always with the doubts and concerns that the characters also have.
In this context, a second element that seems to me Yakusoku no Neverland manages to do well, and that is similar to what did animes like Shingeki no Kyojin at the time was:
1. Put on the table quickly a goal that guides the story. In this case, from the beginning we know that the objective of the children is to escape from the orphanage because of the dark secret it keeps. The spectator can feel with the objective, despite it seems impossible, and wants to know if the protagonists will manage to escape despite all the obstacles they will find on the road.
2. Also, the story provides more than just one objective and is responsible for creating doubts and questions to the viewer about the real dynamics of the world that is outside those walls. Why is the world ruled by demons? What role do humans play in this new social system? Is there a human resistance outside the orphanages that fights this new order? Why are the demons behind the brains of children? What makes some of them eligible to continue their adult life and serve the system? Among several other doubts. In this way, there is a great potential for the development of the universe in which story is consolidated, as well as the veil of the mystery, the opportunities to impress the public with the discovery of the elements that can change the course of the whole story (The famous cliffhangers)
3. The staging of the famous trinity: The consolidation of three protagonists with marked and opposed personalities that carry forward the story. The leading trio is made up of the children with the best intellectual qualifications of the orphanage: Emma, Norman and Ray, each with different motivations to escape. On the one hand, Emma, the protagonist in the trio, is a little redhead full of energy and positivism. Likewise, that personality will become the engine of the group and a core of unconditional affection on the part of the other two children. On the other hand, this personality also has a selfish request that is complicated to achieve the goal: To hope that ALL children in the orphanage manage to escape with them despite this requirement complicate the escape. How to achieve Emma's wish becomes an important element in the plot.
Norman and Ray have different motivations, which will be revealed throughout the series. Norman, on the one hand, is an undoubted leader; having at his disposal an enviable analytical capacity that combined with his always composed and relaxed personality makes him a reliable character. Although his feet are well placed on the ground, his great motivation is Emma and achieve her dream at all costs (although he would have preferred a less complicated escape that only involved his other two friends). On the other hand, Ray - more taciturn and pessimistic - is a character that also has great mysteries that will be revealed throughout the series. While his great motivation is to save the two most important people in his life - Emma and Norman - there are also many elements that make him central character for several revelations in the series. The three form a trio that complements each other and slowly becomes endearing, an element that links us with its story more and more each chapter.
To the protagonists, there will be added several other secondary characters as Don and Hilda, another children of the orphanage, who will also take important roles for the plot. However, just as a series must build good main characters, it must be able to build antagonists that measure up. Isabella, the "mother" in charge of raising these children manages to consolidate herself as a character with great potential, which not only constitutes an impressive challenge for children, but also gives us with her story clues of the world behind those walls that also explains her motivations. Yes, this woman raises children for the demons to eat their brains, but she is not evil because that's what destiny wanted. There is a story and a desire to survive that are behind what is and that also links with the viewer, and makes her a respectable character within this story.
I think that on the production side there are successes in the exaggeration of facial expressions and the use of the soundtrack to bring drama to several scenes. Also, a good direction is achieved - although I must admit that sometimes moves in the thin line of excess and there are some scenes that get out of hand - to get intense scenes that move the plot with its great revelations and that create suspense about who could betray the group, how Isabella could checkmate the trio, or how they can overcome it with unexpected turns.
I must admit that there are some revelations that failed to make sense to me completely and left me with an "Oh, are you really going to come out with that explanation? ..." because they have been exaggerated and forced. Also, I feel that a use of introspection was missing to know more about the machinations and thoughts of the characters at key moments, letting everything be explained in the last chapters. I add that CloverWorks had some technical lapses, understandable from a small studio. All this I think has made the premiere did not impact me as much, or at least not as many people, comparing the construction of a suspense with other major series within the genre that did have me - even - feeling anguish for situations in where the characters were.
The above reasons are some small explanations of why I feel that the anime does not manage to be among my favorites of the genre. However, I do consider it a correct anime that has given us quality entertainment last season. I enjoyed it and I am excited to know that we will have a sequel, given that this story has great potential for world development. So, in conclusion, it is an anime that I would recommend to several people.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Jan 31, 2019
Released in the fall season of 2018, Goblin slayer, is the animated adaptation of the series of the homonymous light novels written by Kumo Kagyuu and illustrated by Noboru Kannatsuki, which have been published since 2016, and which additional to the anime it also has an adaptation to the manga format also published since 2016. The anime then, released on October 7, 2018, is a production of the White Fox studios, directed by Takaharu Ozaki, which came to have a total of 12 episodes.
Goblin Slayer was an anime that made quite a noise during the premiere of its first episode, not precisely for the best
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reasons, to be involved in a controversy, caused by a couple of scenes that occurred during the episode in question, among which you can find a certain scene of rape, which led to more than one being scandalized and scream to heaven, soon cataloging the title as an abomination, and attributing it a lot of nonsense.
Quite a foolish behavior to tell the truth, since not only the scenes in question is not that they were precisely strong (at least in comparison to what this world has been able to offer in the past), but also because many of the criticisms that were made against the anime for this whole situation, did not even take into consideration the context within which these scenes were happening, or the purpose of the series for them, which obviously was to establish the goblins as these horrible creatures and dangerous, as well as make clear the tone for the title, not taking notice also the classification and theme of the work in question.
Now, with all this I mean that Goblin Slayer is some masterpiece of the anime, misunderstood by viewers because of its adult content ?, Not close, but it is definitely not a title nor as sordid or shocking as the chapter in question and so many of what they shouted against or even in favor of it have wanted us to see, being in fact Goblin Slayer a fairly quiet series at times, leaving their "strong" scenes restricted to very specific moments of the title.
Finally, leaving aside all this controversial issue, talk about the series as such, Goblin Slayer is an anime fantasy and adventure, specifically classified as a work of dark fantasy, which takes as a basis a typical world of magic and sword without anything particularly remarkable, inspired as the series itself lets us see more than once, in the classic board game of dungeons and dragons, which tells the adventures of an adventurer known as the Goblin Slayer, which, as the name suggests, is specifically dedicated to ending up with whatever Goblin crosses in the middle, this as a consequence of a traumatic event of his past.
Although in the beginning our protagonist is presented to us as a lonely and somewhat surly adventurer, who does not stand out for his strength or abilities but for his wit, and who only seems to be able to think of goblins, it will not be long before he is around a small and picturesque party to accompany him in his walks, and for those who will eventually begin to feel some appreciation. That said do not expect to find in this series a great adventure story or anything like that, this is not the epic tale of the hero who has to kill the demon king of the day, these are only the stories of an adventurer, although somewhat particular and strange, and how he earns his living doing what he enjoys the most, killing goblins, so at the plot level you do not expect to find anything especially elaborated, being in this sense a very simple title.
The anime then develops under a format typical of these adaptations of light novel, being the same composed of small miniarcs plot between 3 and 4 chapters each, each focused on a mission in which our heroes are involved, which have their appeal both to see how our protagonist manages to eliminate his prey in different ways, bringing with it some moments of good climax, as in what is the interaction between this and his party, resulting in general with this Goblin Slayer a fun and entertaining but at the same time not particularly remarkable or engaging, and I must say that at first the anime is not that it would have called my attention a lot, let's say, finding its first couple of chapters not boring but not with much hook, this largely because both the Goblin Slayer and his first travel companion, the priestess, is not that they are characters especially charismatic, it was not until chapter three with the entry on the scene of the rest of the party, consisting of the elf, the dwarf and the lizardman, that the thing became more entertaining.
Notice that with this I do not mean that the Goblin Slayer and the priestess look like bad characters, correctly fulfilling their role in the series, it's just that they are not enough alone to hold a title that is not particularly striking at first. or catching, being in my opinion what sustains the work most of the time precisely what is the on-screen chemistry of its protagonist quintet.
Visually speaking we are facing a competent but not particularly striking work, and that although the title outlines some attractive character designs, and a well done general animation, of course, except for the use of a CGI not entirely convincing to animate many of the movements of our main character, what was the selection of the color palette did not seem the most successful, occupying the anime a selection of dark and brown tones, which although I understand were chosen to accentuate the dark and dirty environment that adopts the title in some moments, this one is not that it attracts too much nor does it make the series stand out any sense, feeling it on my part something monotonous to see, so that this is not an anime that enters precisely through the eyes.
Finally on the music, there is not much to say, just to mention that the soundtrack really goes unnoticed, plus the title opening "Rightfully" is not bad, finding it personally very attractive, likewise the ending theme, "Gin no Kisei " it also has his thing.
In conclusion, while for the noise that was in the beginning I expected something more, at the end of the day Goblin Slayer is a magic and sword series of traditional ambience quite competent, it is nothing special and for those looking for a story or characters something more elaborated will surely be short, but it is an entertaining job as long as you do not expect much of it.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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