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Jun 26, 2025
Seems like a formula Madhouse has gotten down pat over the last 20 years. Lots of flash, splash and dash, but not so much substance.
The artwork starts off absolutely brilliant, but tails off as the season continues. It never gets bad but the drop off is noticeable, especially with the characters and background work. There is some spectacular animation work, especially early on, then again in ep 11. Chiyuki's skating performance is brilliant. But there's lots of flashy trash, especially sprinkled through the middle episodes.
The character writing didn't impress me a whole lot. The MCs are both wooden, and stiff as flag poles
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until the end. Then they magically are supposed to become these well-rounded characters. I didn't buy it. It felt much too contrived. And who is supposed to be the antagonist? It's left unclear. Secondary characters are all very 2 dimensional. It turned out to be a weakness in the series
The narrative left a lot to be desired as well. Started off as very fromulaic, episodic chapters with zero overarching plot. Then, all of a sudden, it tries to convince you this is supposed to be some deep, meaningful metaphysical bullshit. Sorry, just never clicked for me. The story in the long run turns out to be mid.
The VA work was kind of a mixed bag. The VA for Chiyuki went from bland to boring to pretty good than to completely overacted. The rest of the cast were just bland enough to not be bad, but certainly never impressed me either. I think a lot of that had to do with some serious misdirection. The directors were so worried about pushing flashy-trash animation out the door, that everything thing else gets shortchanged.
This series does some things very well, but takes a total dump in others. It was a parade of poor directorial and production decisions. It's not awful, and watchable enough if you keep expecations in check, and don't think about it too much. Grading this, I can't see giving it more than a boring 72/100, for a C-. It wouldn't be the death of you, but then, like death, most folks should avoid it if at all possible.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Jun 23, 2025
Every now and then, something comes along to renew my deep regard for anime as an artistic medium. This movie is among those pieces.
Beautiful, lush artwork. The background work is magnificient. The character art might not be the best I've ever seen, but it's of high caliber. The animation was well above average, and a couple scenes made me stop and go "whoa!"
The character designs are decidedly average though, and I suspect that was by design. The writers want them to be as common as possible. The characters are less important than the narrative. Still, everyone is nicely done, written with respect, and made easy
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to connect with.
The story was what impressed me the most. As unbelievable as the circumstances might seem, the writers bring them to life. That helps so much to make them believable. Time travel is hard to do, and not muck it up horribly, let alone having our MCs swapping bodies back and forth on random occasion. It might have stretched the Helmet of Disbelief to the breaking point. But it didn't. I was willing to accept the "if" because the writers did an excellent job laying out the results in a believable manner.
I watched part of this as the English dub. My advice is, don't bother. It's not horrible, but the Japanese is so much more expressive. Their VA work is superlative. Although I must admit, Crunchyroll's subtitles sucked in some scenes. The director was keenly on his game, and all the pieces of this title fit together perfectly.
Your Name is Awesome, and I enjoyed it immensely. I wouldn't call it the best movie I've ever seen, but it sure was a masterwork for all it got correct. I'd break out my marker, and write a 96/100 down on my hand, for a full blown A grade. If you miss out on this one, your name will be Mudd.
Reviewer’s Rating: 10
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Jun 22, 2025
I was pleasantly surprised when this season was announced. But sadly the final execution was like having one's head chopped off. The franchise was incinerated with a flamethrower. Spontaneously combusted in an orgy of production malfeasence
The artwork was par from previous seasons. While the animation started out fine, apparently the director burned through the budget much too quickly. The last two eps were complete disasters, with clumsy 3D renderings, crappy manga scans haphazardly inserted as stills, and way too much panning across still shots substituting for real animation. It trainwrecked the entire season for me.
The character writing was vastly improved for the antagonists, but
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certainly little was done with the protagonists. It wasn't bad, but I was expecting a lot more regarding members of the 8th. The writers never delivered.
The narrative was a bit sloggy as the season wore on. Decent pace at first, but seemed to wander off the path in the middle episodes. It's the best season for world building and back stories. Overall, the writing was OK, if not inspired, until the finale. Then things completely jumped the shark the last two episodes. Shinra, our supposed MC, spends most of his frickin' time unconscious. Then there was the constant parade of side characters from previous seasons and episodes, who didn't need to be there, except to eat up time in the episode. We barely got to see any of the members of the 8th. They spent their time watching the climax on TV. WTF was that shit? In the final appraisal, the narrative fell right off a cliff. It was dreadful.
The voice acting was OK. Shinra's VA tended to be a lot more noisy than was necessary. The rest of the cast did a decent enough job. The direction certainly didn't live up to the legacy of the first two seasons. Between average VA work and the animation disasters, the direction pretty much sucked.
This season leaves us with ash and cinders. It started out good enough, around a B+, but kept sinking further and further until it hit a brick wall. I can't see fit to give this any better than a D+ at 68/100. And that's being generous, due to the first two seasons. It wasn't a complete failure. But it tried hard to be a bust, before all was said and done. Play with this fire at your own risk.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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Jun 19, 2025
Maybe I've just been unlucky, but I've been on this streak of animes where the first season was decent enough, but the second season was a gigantic pile of dog droppings. I'm glad to say my slump has been ended. I like this season even better than I liked season 1.
The artwork has the same stark, edgy style and the characters are the same. New characters are well done. There definitely was an uptick in the animation, especially in the non-action scenes. There's more 3D renderings. But they are mostly well blended in, not obtrusive at all.
Lots of character development this season. Revy becomes
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more understandable. Rock shows he has some testicles. But the side characters really get much better treatment. I loved what they did with Balalaika and her back story. Dutch, Bennie, the Black Lagoon and Roanapur all get ditched about midway through the season, though, which was slightly disappointing. We see lots of Eda early on, but she gets the ziggy too, which was a shame. Her and Revy must be sisters, and not of a nunnly type.
The narrative shifts from Thailand back to Japan, and we get a Yakuza story midway. The Russian Mafia gets involved in a clan war there, and Balalaika drags Rock along as her interpreter, and Revy tags along as Rock's bodyguard. Of course all hell breaks loose, and in the end, everyone loses. It was a bit of a depressing ending, but give the writers credit, They handled it very well.
Great voice acting again. Balalaika was very well done in both English and Japanese. Rock's VA delivered as his soul hardens through the series. The softer side of Revy is well portrayed, but the psychobitch still is at her core. The direction this season was better all around and deserves kudos.
Black Lagoon is hardly monsterous. It's one of the better action animes I've seen in a good while. This season was even better than the first, so I'm jotting its score up to 92/100 for a solid A-. Don't cut off your pinkie. Check the entire series out now.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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Jun 18, 2025
A witch might die a thousand deaths. A heroine dies but one.
This was the season of the witch, and I mainly gave this a try because I liked some of the artwork. The character designs were a bit cliche but kinda cute, too. There's nice background work applied. The animation is kind of a mixed bag. There's some decent sections, to be sure, but there's some obviously sketchy scenes tossed in as well. It came across to me as there weren't enough resources put into this, as would have been needed to make the animation top notch.
The characters are widely varied as well. Meg
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Raspberry, our MC, is smart, caring, kind and compassionate. She tries her best to always do the right thing. But she's something of a greedy degenerate as well. The other characters call her a middle aged man in a teen girl's body. Still, the flaws round out the character well. It's nice to know she's not perfect by any means. She is apprentice to the master witch Faust. She comes off as grumpy and frumpy at first, but as time goes on she shows a kinder and gentler side as we learn she sees herself as Meg's mother, not just her sensei. There are quite a few other characters in the cast that have varying degrees of depth to them. Overall the character writing is a strength of this production.
The narrative is a bit disjointed though. It starts off with Meg having a quest to gather 1000 tears of joy before she turns 18, or she will die. But after a couple episodes that kind of falls to the wayside and becomes an afterthought. Things turn episodic for a while, then become something of a suspense thriller. The writing isn't terrible, but it certainly could have stuck to one direction or another. So we'll call the writing simply mid.
What helped was a very good VA cast. Three characters I thought were done particularly well were Meg, Faust and Inori. I thought the direction was decent for what resources the producers gave them. This would have been exceptional with more budget to work with.
Not magically magnificent, but certainly entertaining, especially as the season wore on. One might need a couple extra episodes after the 3 eps test to get a real feel for it. I would have started this as a mid level C grade at 74/100, but it climbed into B- territory by the end of the season at 81/100. While it has its quirks, I still could recommend it overall.
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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Jun 17, 2025
It's going, going. gone!! A Home Run!!
I must admit I wasn't expecting much from this series, I was deathly afraid it was going to be a typical tropey anime sports title. I was so pleasantly surprised when this turned out to be more a Slice of Life situational comedy in a ballpark. I've spent more than my share of time hanging around major and minor league stadiums all over the US and Canada, and I'll testify the producers nailed the vibe perfectly.
This is not a high budget project. The art is kind of mid, although the character designs are decent enough. Some of the
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background work is really good. Animation is a bit of an issue, as it is less than average. But they pinched the pennies in areas that don't hurt the overall feel of being at a game. It's adequate to get it's points across.
The writing for this is exceptional, even though there is no overarching plot, other than "What is a season at the ballpark like?" Each episode consists of three short skits. The writers succeed because they nail the myriad of characters they present to us, and how they react to the situations they find themselves in. Everyone from the cute little girl with momma and daddy at her first game, to the grizzled old veteran who's been haunting the bleachers for decades, to the food stand girl, to the security guards and stadium announcer. The ball players get some play and good background work, but they aren't really central to what's going on, except peripherially. Like a real ball game, folks are paying some attention, but there's lots of socializing going on, too.
The central character is Ruriko the beer vending gyaru. She's such a pip. She's at her best when she's teasing the downtrodden salaryman Murata, who's escaping his drab everyday life by going to see as many games as he can. Her positive upbeat personality uplifts everyone she comes in contact with. But she manages to display a range of emotion as the season plays out. The interaction between these two characters starts out pretty goofy, but over the season they come to know and understand one another. It's not cliche romcom nonsense. It's nice to see these two just being comfortably friendly together,
Because this is so character driven, everything hinges on the cast. I'm here to tell you, they hit a grand slam. It helps the direction did a pretty good job with the resources they were given. There's even a notable quality to the sound and it replicating that exciting, noisy fun feeling one gets while at the park. The ED is a lot of fun too.
This is my Rookie of the Year. Comes out of nowhere to become an All-Star. It's not perfect, but just for sheer enjoyment, I'm putting it into my line up card as a 91/100 for an A-. I seriously doubt this would see a second season, as it probably didn't have much mass appeal. But if Season 2 comes around, I'll lace up the ol' spikes and run the bases with it. I'd love to see the MotorSuns make the playoffs.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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Jun 10, 2025
Did you miss anime back in the 1980s? Well here's your chance to experience the vibe. So get out your parachute pants and Doc Martins. Lace 'em up tight,and mousse up your mohawk, because you're in for a wild ride!
The artwork really nails the late 80s/early 90s style. The characters are drawn kind of stark and edgy. The background work is OK but seems a bit of an afterthought. They do nail the animation, and add some modern improvements to the OG style. Revy's gunslinging is kick-ass. There's some 3D tossed in here or there, especially in chase scenes. But It's blended in nicely and
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doesn't detract at all from the experience.
I thought the character designs were well thought out, but maybe a little underdeveloped. Revy is a Human Cyclone of Hot Lead. There's a touch revealed about her, but she remains mostly mysterious. And you got to love she's fanservice personified. Rock starts out as a spineless salaryman, but after being sold out by the company, starts to show a little backbone. He's got half a brain in his head. There's some great supporting characters that might have been fleshed out a little better, but aren't entirely 2D either. Dutch in particular reminded me a lot of a guy named Jet.
Speaking of which, there is the narrative. I don't think it's a coincidence this has a serious Cowboy Bebop feel to it. Just about a bunch of outlaws and ne'er-do-wells taking on sketchy odd jobs as long as they pay well. On a torpedo boat instead of a spaceship. While Rock is no Spike, Revy is Psycho-Faye strung out on way too much meth. Dutch is the steadying influence that keeps things from flying off into the weeds. Like Bebop, this is mainly episodic with some short arcs. There's no real overarching plot, except create as much mayhem as possible. It might bore some, but I loved the old style action packed thriller take on the material.
The VA work for the mains is pretty darn good. Some of the antagonists were a bit cliche but not horribly distracting. Overall I thought the direction was adequate enough.
Those of gentler nature need to be forewarned though. Besides the fanservice, this is chockful of violence, gore, substance abuse, cussing and other unsavory escapades, Some folks are going to want to give this a hard pass. But if you don't fit that criteria, this is one hell of a series.
So not entirely perfect, but it sure took me back to the Good Old Days. I'd break out the gradebook. and put it down as a B+ 88/100 for it's shear audacity and my enjoyment of what it's doing. Take a dip in this lagoon when you get a chance, as long as you're not the sensitive type. .
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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May 24, 2025
Yes, it seems the level of this series maxed out in Season 1. Not that this season is horrible. It's just kinda 'meh.' The expecation going in was, it was going to keep getting better.
The artwork is about the same as season 1. Cute, but nothing spectacular, only average. I'd say the background work has dropped off noticeably. Animation definitely took a hit. It was never spectacular, but so far this season, I would call it a bit less than average. Especially since ep 3, there's been a lot of cost cutting showing up.
The first season succeeded because of the characters, but there's
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not really much going on with them this season. Adding more characters to the mix has only thinned out the soup, and they are little more than cardboard cutouts. Even characters from the first season have become very 2D.
Points to a deep tail off in the writing. The blue dragon ep was interesting. But other than that, things have been kinda blah, and unmemorable. The 'wedding' episode was just dumb. And a beach ep? Never thought this title would drag out such a lame, tired old trope. A present for the fan service crowd, I guess. But even at that level, it wasn't much.
The VAs are still doing a decent job. But it's not been to the level of season one; an indication of subpar work by the direction.
I wouldn't burn this one at the stake, as it still is mildly amusing. But while the grade for this started out as a B, it's been slowly and inexorably sliding downwards. I would give it no more than a C at 74/100 now. I'll keep watching until the season ends, but more to see if it can keep from slipping into D territory than anything else.
Sadly, couldn't keep out of D territory. I'll avoid the spoilers, but ep 11 was wrecked by a gigantic plot hole, big enough to drive a Peter-bilt semi through. It was the singularly dumbest piece of writing I have seen all year. Drop the score 68/100. It earned that D.
Last ep was just a trope strewn, anticlimatic, poorly animated mess. The grade takes another hit, and barely avoids failing. Drop it to 60/100 for a D-. Sadly, I hope this jumps on a broom and flies far, far away.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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May 21, 2025
I usually look sideways at side projects like this. They tend to be less than mid, hastily slapped together pig shit. But here we have the exception to the rule. 6 mini eps that slather on more Lycoris goodness for us all.
The artwork was typical, which is good. Surprising they put this much effort into it; characters, backgrounds and the animation. It was very much appreciated.
There isn't much in the way of character development. It's pretty much CGDCT with guns. Big guns. But there's really not a whole lot of action. I didn't mind that much. Chisano and Takina, and the rest of the
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clan, pretty much doing their thing. It was some pleasant insight into their characters.
The VA work was really good, Sounded like they had a lot of fun doing this. The direction was above average too. I'm imagining they had a little free rein here, to test out stuff that is going to be coming up in the new series.
I certaInly didn't recoil from this. I embrace it with open arms. If I was grading it, it's A- material at 92/100, a fine score indeed. Might have rated it even higher if we'd only gotten a few more of these vignettes.
Reviewer’s Rating: 9
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May 2, 2025
Are you a cat person? No? Then get the fuck out of here. NOW!
Now that we have the losers out of the way, I really can't recommend this highly enough. These are only (4) 7 minute episodes, but they pack more story and emotion than series that are hundreds of episodes long.
The artwork is soft and comforting. Good backgrounds and the animation shows some love was put into this. Lots better than I anticipated.
The characters are very simple. A girl and her cat. Her mom and her roomie. There's not enough time to develop them greatly, but by the end, especially if you've
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ever owned a cat for a long time, you'll recognize them all.
The narrative, too, is simple. Basically it is "What is it like to have a cat own you?" I could so relate it nearly brought tears to my eyes. And any media almost never brings me much in the way of emotions. Make sure you watch all the way to the end for a special surprise.
The VAs were splendid, and Daru the cat narrates much of this. There was something special in how the director caught the essense of the bond between a fur baby and parent. Bravo!
This is about as cuddly as the kitten you just adopted. For something this compact, I found it marvelous and a complete masterpiece. The only reason I am not going to give it 100/100 is because I could have watched hours of this rather than minutes. Still going to give it an A+ at 98/100 just for the shear enjoyment I got from it. If you love cats, and fancy laid back SoL,this is must see. Queue it up and have a short binge fest.
Reviewer’s Rating: 10
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