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RuriDragon Volume 1 Manga Review
In spite, or perhaps because of how laid-back it is about Ruri’s seemingly bizarre circumstances, RuriDragon really feels like something special.
― Honestly, the fact that I'm even here reviewing RuriDragon at all is something of a minor miracle. While the manga debuted in Shonen Jump to pretty much immediate success, it quickly ran into trouble when its author, Masaoki Shindo, started suffering from...
Blue Exorcist: Beyond the Snow Saga Anime Series Review
This season works fine, as long as you're still invested in Blue Exorcist's world and characters enough to follow them through an action-light season with a sprawling plot.
― This review covers the dozen Blue Exorcist episodes streamed from October to December 2024. For anyone new to Blue Exorcist, this is not where you start. This far into the series, the season's a case of what TV Tropes calls Cont...
Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX -Beginning- Anime Film Review
This film is a fantastic addition to the Gundam franchise—and one you can't even begin to talk about without getting into massive spoilers.
― Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX -Beginning- is a compilation film containing the first four episodes of the upcoming TV anime, Mobile Suit Gundam GQuuuuuuX. The trailers made it look to be something similar to G-Gundam (much like how Gundam 00 shares many elements...
MF Ghost Season 2 Anime Series Review
While it would’ve been nice to see this series pick up some much-needed speed, all it did was put the brakes on.
― Suffice it to say that season 1 of MF Ghost, the newest series by Initial D creator Shuichi Shigeno, didn't exactly drive me wild. In a word, it was underwhelming. So, going into MF Ghost season 2, I was expecting another middle-of-the-road racing anime. And my expectations, as it turns ...
The Healer Who Was Banished From His Party, Is, in Fact, the Strongest Anime Series Review
While I didn't expect much from this anime, there were still enough shortcomings that left me high and dry.
― There are about four or five settings The Healer Who Was Banished From His Party, Is, in Fact, the Strongest has at its disposal: a labyrinth, a guild hall, the city streets surrounding said guild hall, and the fields between said city and labyrinth. The world doesn't feel like a sprawling fa...
Digimon: The Movies - Movies 1-3 - Anime Blu-ray Review
In an era when digital media is getting lost, destroyed, or put on a shelf to collect dust forever, having this collection is nothing short of a miracle
― I never thought we would see the day we would get something like this. In the 2000s, I was a kid taken to see a film called Digimon: The Movie, an original film based on one of my favorite franchises, Digimon. At the time, I thought the film was fu...
Macross Plus Blu-ray Movie + OVA [Ultimate Edition] Review
This isn't just a collection centerpiece for hardcore Macross Plus fans, but an incredible archival release for animation scholars.
― At Anime Expo 2022, Macross license holder BIG WEST announced that they would be partnering with multiple distributors to bring almost every post-1987 entry in the beloved franchise to North American home video for the very first time. One of these distributors is Anim...
How I Attended an All-Guy's Mixer Anime Series Review
How I Attended an All-Guy's Mixer isn't bad, but it hardly feels like it's taking advantage of any of its potential.
― How I Attended an All-Guy's Mixer is not a complex show. The story's premise of its ostensibly straight male leads winding up dating a trio of hot drag kings certainly lends itself to the potential of exploring gender presentation, roles, and sexuality in relationships. But while tho...
Be Forever Yamato: Star Blazers: REBEL 3199 Episodes 1-6 Anime Review
I'm happy to report that Star Blazers REBEL 3199 blasts out of spacedock, immediately firing on all cylinders.
― Space Battleship Yamato is back with a bang in this latest continuation of the
remake series that began in 2012 with Yamato 2199, and continued with Yamato 2202 and
Yamato 2205 over the subsequent decade. While 2199 was top-tier space opera, 2202 wasn't as universally loved, with a muddled...
Let This Grieving Soul Retire! Anime Series Review
There are no deeper themes to be explored or musings of human nature break down. However, there is a cast of silly characters and fun fantasy mysteries.
― Let This Grieving Soul Retire! is far from the first anime about a dummy of a protagonist who lucks their way into victory while still managing to lose on a personal level time and again. The issue with stories like this is that all too often, the ...
KamiErabi GOD.app Season 2 Anime Series Review
This feels like a show that wants so badly to be deep.
― Let me be up front about something: I didn't enjoy the first season of KamiErabi. Its three cardinal sins were poor writing, characters who made no sense, and rigid CGI. So the prospect of a second season—which was confirmed pretty early on into the first season's airing—wasn't exactly something I was thrilled about. A sentiment among viewers w...
Love Live! Superstar!! Season 3 Anime Series Review
More superlative ideas occasionally break through, but overall, this is easily the weakest season of what had been the strongest series of Love Live! yet.
― The second season of Love Live Superstar felt like the kind of miracle the school idols of this franchise so frequently make happen. Classic Love Live series writer Jukki Hanada and director Takahiko Kyogoku built upon the smart foundation of Sup...
Seirei Gensouki - Spirit Chronicles Season 2 Anime Series Review
With this second season, I am beginning to think that Yuri Kitayama’s original light novel series is simply a poor fit for animated adaptation.
― With this second season, I am beginning to think that Yuri Kitayama's original light novel series is simply a poor fit for an animated adaptation. That's not necessarily because the story is a bit hackneyed; it is, but that's hardly the problem here. The gr...
Fate/strange Fake – Episode 1 (Special Airing)
This episode serves as an inversion to the start of Fate/stay night with a Saber that shouldn't have been summoned and a protagonist who outright refuses to become one.
― The 2023 special Fate/strange Fake -Whispers of Dawn- began the story of Fate/strange Fake by introducing us to the various mages and their summoned heroes. It also laid down the ground rules for this story and how it deviated from ...
Tying the Knot With an Amagami Sister Anime Series Review
There's no pretending this harem anime is particularly good, but it's rewarding to see it recover from a disastrous start and rise up to something decent.
― There are anime that blend heart-warming wholesomeness with something more lewd. One case is Your Name, a chastely yearning love story with jokes about boob-groping, and arguably non-consensual boob-groping at that. Then there are shows like Dan ...
Star Blazers: Space Battleship Yamato 2205 Anime Review
More kinetic than Legend of the Galactic Heroes (but sharing its naval theme) and less frenetic than Macross, Yamato strikes a good middle ground for exciting animated space warfare.
― Much like that other pillar of classic anime space sci-fi, Macross, the Space Battleship Yamato franchise experienced a frustrating journey to Western TV screens. The original 1974 series came to the US as Star Blazers...
Crescent Moon Marching Volumes 1-6 Manga Review
Crescent Moon Marching becomes a story of how young Mizuki understands what it means to be passionate about music and how crucial it is to improve yourself while understanding others.
― Originality is a tough thing to come by. The great Salvador Dali once said that those who imitate nothing produce nothing. Considering the infinite artists, musicians, writers, and other types of pen-wielders who have...
Viral Hit K-Comic Review
Viral Hit is very hard to read because of how relatable it is on two major fronts.
― Viral Hit is very hard to read because it is relatable on two major fronts. The first one is its depiction of modern-day bullying and humiliation. The second is that Viral Hit very much leans into seeing life through the perspective of an absolute self-aware loser. Our protagonist, Hobin, is someone who is physically...
Trillion Game Anime Streaming Review
Author Inagaki asks us to find entertainment in the story of a man who wants to be the most viciously successful corporate shark of them all. I say, “No thanks”.
― At any point in history, has a man ever been more wrong than in my recent review of Trillion Game's manga? I rated it four out of five and remarked, “I love it.” I highly anticipated the anime version and quite enjoyed the first few episod...
Kinokoinu - Mushroom Pup Anime Series Review
This isn’t a laugh-a-minute comedy, despite the prominence of its weird mushroom-blob animal-thing. Instead, it starts as an almost uncomfortably frank exploration of grief and loss.
― I wasn't sure what to expect when I first picked up Kinokoinu, but it wasn't the overly somber, almost maudlin first episode likely to alienate viewers looking for the comfy, amusing show its promo images seemed to pro...
Tonbo! Season 2 Anime Series Review
One of the best things about sports anime is the deep insight into the passion of people who play. That passion runs very deep in Tonbo! Season 2.
― One of the things I love best about sports (and games) anime is that you won't really learn how to play the sport or game, but you will get deep insight into the passion of people who play the sport or game. That passion runs very deep in Tonbo! Season 2...
PreCure Max Heart Episodes 26-47 Anime Series Review
It pains me to say this, but at the end of the day, Futari wa Pretty Cure Max Heart just isn’t as good as most of the other seasons of Pretty Cure officially released in English.
― It pains me to say this, but at the end of the day, Futari wa Pretty Cure Max Heart just isn't as good as most of the other seasons of Pretty Cure we've had officially released in English. (For the record, I'm not counting...
Ashita no Joe: Fighting For Tomorrow Volume 1 Manga Review
While it would be a lie to say that Ashita no Joe doesn’t show its age, it’s still a solid story, and one that’s very much worth reading.
― To call Ashita no Joe one of the most culturally significant works to ever exist within the realm of anime and manga would be a bit of an understatement. It served as the inspiration for many a boxing manga, and its anime adaptation is one of the most iconic work...
There's No Freaking Way I'll Be Your Lover! Unless... Volumes 1-6 Manga Review
If you're looking for a GL harem, this is a safe enough bet; just be aware of the dubious consent issues going in.
― Are you looking for a harem? A single, ordinary person surrounded by a bevy of beauties, all of whom want them? Typically, that ordinary person would be an unfortunate young man, dull as a potato, but There's No Freaking Way I'll Be Your Lover! Unless…, based on the light novels of the...
Scars Volume 1 Manga Review
Between Kyonosuke's past trauma, trouble at school, and zero support at home, Scars is a story about the world's worst coming-of-age.
― Based on the cute character designs, I didn't expect this comic to get so dark so fast. Between Kyonosuke's past trauma, trouble at school, and zero support at home, Scars is a story about the world's worst coming-of-age. The title refers to scars both physical and p...
Macross 7 Episodes 1–26 Anime Streaming Review
This lighter, sillier tone feels like the entire series was made as a prolonged shitpost poking fun at the seriousness of the prior Macross franchise entries, and I am absolutely here for it.
― This is the series I've been waiting thirty years to watch officially in English, and it's finally here (at least if you live in non-U.S. English-speaking territories). I'm more than a little sad that it's me ...
Tasokare Hotel – Episodes 1-3 Review (Press Screening)
This is a series that will live or die based on how interesting the “mysteries of the week” are—and how invested we become in the overarching mysteries of those working at the hotel.
― Without question, the biggest thing Tasokare Hotel has going for it is its fantastic setting. It's full of the outright supernatural—i.e., bedrooms changing shape when no one is looking to help jog the memories of thei...
Vinland Saga Season 2 Blu-ray Anime Series Review
While this Blu-ray release is incredibly lacking, Vinland Saga season 2 is as good as it gets.
― I haven't seen a lot of anime/read a lot of manga that hit me even half as hard as Makoto Yukimura's Vinland Saga. And season 2—often called the farm arc, slave arc, and/or Ketil's Farm arc—is arguably the strongest part of that punch. Or—actually, it doesn't feel thematically right to call it a “punch” i...
Re:Anima Volume 1 Manga Review
Re:Anima tamps down any hope that it'll do much that's new with its familiar-feeling ideas. So far, it seems happy to be one more genre potboiler, to take or to leave.
― The kindest way to describe this science-fiction action manga is as competently average. It's a likable, lightweight read, with lively action scenes, but the first book is also laughably tropey and flimsy. The book has a note from cr...
Ave Mujica - The Die is Cast - Episodes 1-3 Anime Review
Ave Mujica is even more melodramatic than MyGO—and that's probably why you're here.
― Despite what some of its promotion might lead you to believe, Ave Mujica - The Die is Cast - is absolutely not accessible for BanG Dream newcomers. The preceding series It's MyGO!!!!! is required reading for kick-off context on this dark group of distressed theater kids and how they came together to form this bizarr...
Übel Blatt – Episodes 1-2 Review (Premiere Screening)
Übel Blatt feels like an anime from a different era, like a throwback to turn-of-the-millennium dark fantasy stories like Claymore and Berserk.
― These first two episodes of Übel Blatt do very little regarding hand-holding. We're given some brief on-screen text about the mission of the 14 warriors and are shown the brutal murder of Ascheriit—the last of the four who actually completed their mission—a...
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 Film Review
This year was already stacked to the brim with Sonic content but does the film close out the year on a strong note? I would have to say the answer to that question is a resounding yes!
― Sonic 3 was one of the most anticipated movies of the year for me. Not only were the previous films solid in their own right, but I was also curious to see how they would handle the second most, if not the most, popu...
BEASTARS Final Season Part 1 Anime Series Review
BEASTARS' final season is nothing so transformative as Trigun Stampede; even as the same fundamental story as Paru Itagaki's manga, it benefits so much from its clarity of vision and purpose.
― I will admit that I felt more than a little bit of trepidation going into this first run of episodes for BEASTARS' final season. I have been singing the praises of this series for years, and without spoiling ...
What Happened After My Place Got So Humid It Grew Magic Mushrooms And I Ate Them And Got Super Horny! - Volumes 1-2 Manga Review (18+)
Sometimes, it doesn't matter how detailed or long the title is; you shouldn't judge a book by its cover.
― Sometimes, it doesn't matter how detailed or long the title is; you shouldn't judge a book by its cover. A title like What Happened After My Place Got So Humid It Grew Magic Mushrooms And I Ate Them And Got Super Horny! prompts a lot of questions, and the answers are surprising. It sounds like o...
Delico's Nursery Anime Series Review
If other unconventional combinations like chocolate covered potato chips and dungeon crawler rhythm games can find an audience, then why not a vampire parenthood anime?
― Have you ever watched an anime about parenthood and thought, “Golly, you know what this anime needs? Vampires. Vampires would really spice this up.” Or, similarly, have you ever watched a vampire anime and thought, “If only they wou...
The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim Movie Review
WotR probably won't become a must-watch addition to your LotR marathon any time soon, but it's still an enjoyable—if a bit underwhelming—adventure movie.
― In 2024, do I even need to explain what The Lord of the Rings (henceforth LotR) is? J. R. R. Tolkien's deeply iconic and highly influential masterpiece is widely considered among the all-time greatest works of fantasy. And even if you haven't read...
Why Does Nobody Remember Me in This World? Anime Series Review
Why Does Nobody Remember Me in This World? is an anime with a captivating story hook and characters hampered by a substandard presentation.
― Why Does Nobody Remember Me in This World? is an anime with an excellent mystery at its core. Kai finds himself in a post-apocalyptic version of his world (at least when it comes to the state of humanity). Yet explanations are hard to come by. Is he in a parall...
Interstella 5555 - The 5tory of the 5ecret 5tar 5ystem 4K "Remaster" Review
Do you remember that story about the fresco that was “restored” by an amateur who clearly had no idea what she was doing? That's exactly what this “remaster” is.
― To say this supposed 4K remaster of one of my favorite movies of all time leaves me with mixed feelings would be an understatement. My initial excitement at hearing this one-of-a-kind collaboration between Daft Punk and their childhood her...
Are You Crazy? Volumes 1-2 Novel Review
Are You Crazy? isn’t the most polished series Editio has published (although the translation quality remains excellent), but it is both one of the shorter ones and a good read.
― If you're feeling worn out from isekai novels, I can't blame you. Nearly every permutation of the genre has graced our reading and watching habits for quite some time now, and even the most steadfast fans could easily feel l...
The Ossan Newbie Adventurer, Trained to Death by the Most Powerful Party, Became Invincible Anime Series Review
This is one of those shows that feels like it's better than it has any right to be. It drags out overused plot contrivances but then uses them perfectly as tools to explore the characters on a deeper level.
― The Ossan Newbie Adventurer is split into two distinct arcs. The first follows Rick as he attempts to get his F-rank adventurer's license. This arc is all about introducing Rick, the world, and ...
Batman Ninja vs. Yakuza League Anime Film Review
Batman Ninja vs. Yakuza League is an insanely fun film. It's got the perfect mix of action and comedy while still providing a story that looks into what makes some of the world's most famous superheroes who they are.
― I was filled with more than a bit of trepidation heading into Batman Ninja vs. Yakuza League's world premiere at Tokyo Comic Con 2024. Simply put, I felt that the first Batman Ninja fi...
Dracula's On the Night Shift Manga Review
Despite ostensibly being a manga about a vampire working a night shift, DotNS isn’t the What We Do in the Shadows-esque comedy/slice-of-life series you might expect at first glance—because it’s not really a comedy/slice-of-life series at all.
― There's plenty of anime and manga about vampires trying to blend into human society out there, but not as many of them are terribly concerned with how their v...
I Raised a Black Dragon K-Comic Review
I Raised a Black Dragon isn't perfect, something that mostly comes down to an ending that simply screams for a sequel. But it's also a nice twist on some of its genre's staler elements and a good read overall.
― Have you ever wondered what happened to the person who used to be the owner of a body taken over by an isekai'd soul? Not many books seem to care, but Sottan's I Raised a Black Dragon isn't o...
Solo Leveling -ReAwakening- Anime Film Review
Solo Leveling: ReAwakening is a film with a very specific shelf life—one measured in weeks.
― As a film, Solo Leveling: ReAwakening is more than a bit of a mess. This is because it's not really built like one. With a runtime of two hours, the first hour and fifteen minutes are a recap of the first season. The remaining 45 minutes? The first two episodes of the upcoming second season. This causes all ...
Pokémon Horizons Episodes 35-45 Anime Series Review
We have come down to the end of the first major arc of the Pokémon: Horizons anime and it certainly does end on a high note.
― We have reached the end of the first major arc of the Pokémon Horizons anime that ends on a high note. It is impressive how far Liko, Roy, and Dot have come as characters, stepping outside their comfort zones to fully embrace a lifestyle that they never originally thought pos...
JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Shining Diamond's Demonic Heartbreak Vol. 1 Manga Review
This manga strives to answer the burning question I'm sure some fans were asking: Whatever happened to Hol Horse?
― The shifting, generation-crossing story setup of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure pretty well lends itself to spin-offs and crossovers with itself. Part 4, Diamond is Unbreakable had a better part of its plot driven by characters returning from Stardust Crusaders (and earlier!) to ostensibly co...
Fantasian: Neo Dimension Video Game Review
Fantasian feels like a game from a different timeline where the Final Fantasy games kept their turn-based roots but still innovated within that framework in creative ways.
― Fantasian: Neo Dimension is the newest (and perhaps final) game to spring from the mind of Hironobu Sakaguchi, the father of Final Fantasy. It is a love letter to the classic 8 and 16-bit games in the series, most notably Final F...
Hajime No Ippo Episodes 51-76 Anime Series Review
If you have not taken the chance to watch this series, then fix that.
― The final stretch of episodes for the Hajime no Ippo anime truly feels like we are building up to a climactic event. Throughout the series, Ippo fought other rookies or people in a similar age bracket. But now, we are starting strong with him going up against a seasoned veteran of the boxing world. This is a man who everybody els...
Touhou Spell Carnival Game Review
Touhou Spell Carnival is a unique blend of strategy and shmup gameplay with ample amounts of charm and depth.
― This was my first exposure to the Touhou… franchise? Expanded universe? Mass hysteria? I'm not sure if any of those terms are correct, or perhaps it's all three. In any case, I have never ventured into the Touhou waters before. Other than knowing it was a bullet-hell shmup series featuring ...
The Teen Exorcist Volume 1 Manga Review
This volume is, as happens with introductory books, mostly set up for Masahiro’s eventual understanding of himself.
― Due to the vagaries of English localization, you may not immediately associate this with its parent series: The Teen Exorcist is a manga reworking of the light novel series Shonen Onmyoji, which clocks in at an impressive fifty-six volumes. The light novels have never been officially ...
Dinghai Fusheng Records Volume 1 Manhua Review
Dinghai Fusheng Records is a good break-in point for the danmei-curious.
― Danmei can sometimes feel overwhelming if you've never read it before. Mostly that comes down to the fact that the novels tend to be at least one hundred pages longer than your typical light novel, if not more, and the novels have been the greater part of what's been officially released in English, both digitally and physicall...
Imitation Volumes 1-4 K-Comic Review
The mentions of dieting in this K-pop comic are all so casually done up until this point that I at first thought that I was overreacting by zeroing in on them.
― The idol industry is no joke. It would be easy to forget how vicious it can be, given that a lot of manga, manhwa, and anime try to give us a romanticized portrait, and at first, it looks like Imitation may be doing the same thing. It follow...
Murai in Love Anime Series Review
Murai in Love is a very strange show. Its premise is strange, its characters are strange, and its animation is strange. So strange that it practically begs to be watched.
― Murai in Love is a very strange show. Its premise is strange, its characters are strange, and its animation is strange. So strange that it practically begs to be watched. I admit that I was mildly non-plussed by Murai in Love at f...
Bungo Stray Dogs Another Story: Yukito Ayatsuji vs. Natsuhiko Kyogoku Novel Review
Bungo Stray Dogs: Another Story is one of the strongest novels in the franchise to date, and in many ways an homage to classic mystery fiction.
― Most of the characters in the main Bungo Stray Dogs are dead. Or at least, the authors they're (loosely) based on are, and I have to think that that makes it easier for series author Kafka Asagiri to create their characters. But that's not the case for Bung...
Praise Me When I'm a Good Boy Manga Review
It genuinely makes me happy when I come across a story that treats BDSM dynamics with the reverence they deserve!
― I chose to review a lot of stories dealing with different types of sexual proclivities because I'm always curious about how these types of dynamics are portrayed in media. BDSM (relationship dynamics revolving around bondage, discipline, dominance, submission, sadism, etc.) in particula...
Death Note Killer Within Game Review
From a technical standpoint, this isn't a terribly well-put-together game. It's not tearing at the seams, but its shortcomings are as numerous as they are apparent.
― If there was ever going to be an anime-flavored online social deduction game, Death Note was always the obvious choice for an IP to tie it to. Not only is it super popular, but what is Death Note if not one long social deduction game? ...
My Classmate Ren-kun is Kinda Scary Manga Review
My Classmate Ren-kun is Kinda Scary is, in a word, frothy.
― The narrator of this story isn't the romantic lead. That's probably the most interesting aspect of the book – it's narrated by a mostly nameless girl (we learn her name in the author's afterword, but never in the story proper) as she observes the boys on either side of her in class. It works fairly well as a framing device, particularly sin...
Who Made Me a Princess Volumes 4-6 K-Comics Review
Who Made Me a Princess was good in its first three books, but it's very good in its second. The final three volumes should be excellent if things continue on this trajectory.
― It's practically narrative law that if the villainess character turns out to be good, the heroine must be bad. We've seen that play out over a plethora of series, and while there are exceptions, it happens often enough to feel...
Our Aimless Nights Manga Review
By no means is this a deep, page-turning tale of love and lust, and it's not really meant to be.
― The risk in naming your manga Our Aimless Nights is that the adjective is already giving too much away. This two-volume manga has its narrative meandering around in certain areas, although this serves as a good thing. Teenage romances with all of their awkward tendencies are never exactly straightforwar...
Demons' Crest: Reality Erosion and Otherworld Engage Novels Review
Fans of both author and genre should be pleased, and even those who are neither will probably find something to keep them reading.
― Reki Kawahara is a one-trick pony. That sounds harsher than it ought because there are plenty of authors in all media forms who have one particular narrative that pops up frequently in their work; it's just more noticeable with Kawahara because of the fame surrounding h...
Trigun Stampede Limited Edition Blu-Ray/DVD
Trigun Stampede may well be the jewel in the crown of an anime studio seemingly addicted to producing incredible anime that pushes the entire medium forward.
― The original Trigun anime and manga managed to pass me by in my youth, despite the perfect timing and appeal of the property. I caught a stray episode or two when it aired on Toonami back in the day, but for whatever reason, Trigun never stuck...
Megazone 23 - The Complete Trilogy Anime Blu-ray Review
Megazone 23 is the kind of title that deserves a place on every serious fan's shelf. With all the versions and extras included, there's little doubt this is the definitive release.
― Megazone 23 is a strange thing to review. Although the three installments' stories make up a cohesive whole, they were produced under wildly varying circumstances with different directors and staff, so each has a differe...
Tomo-chan Is a Girl! Limited Edition Blu-ray Review
Tomo-chan Is a Girl! manages to balance its comedy and more poignant bits beautifully.
― It's not always easy to mix comedy with something sterner. Although it's absolutely possible – just look at Terry Pratchett, whose books regularly have messages that belie their comedic style – it takes a special kind of flair to pull it off. Tomo-chan is a Girl could easily have fumbled in trying to combine its ...
Make a Girl Anime Film Review
Make a Girl is, simply put, a film with some interesting ideas but poor execution.
― Three major problems hamper Make a Girl as a film. The first is its very premise. Akira offhandedly makes Zero, a literal living, breathing girl, from nothing. Born a teenager, his lab-grown girl already knows at birth all the information needed to live in human society (like language skills and critical thinking)—ev...
Valis: The Fantasm Soldier Collection Volume 1 Game Review
The first volume of Valis: The Fantasm Soldier Collection arrives on Steam. Is this groundbreaking series the stuff of classics or just a history lesson?
― What place does the Valis series have in the history of video games? Well, it didn't create a new field or become a worldwide phenomenon, but in 1986, the original Valis: The Fantasm Soldier indeed blazed a trail for games that sold themselves chi...
Ghost Cat Anzu Anime Movie Review
Ghost Cat Anzu is a deeply strange but entertaining film that, although it seems to start as a silly comedy, proves to be profoundly emotionally intelligent and interesting.
― On paper, Ghost Cat Anzu would seem to be this year's most family-friendly offering at the annual Scotland Loves Anime Film Festival, now in its 15th year. Compared to most other films, the audience was certainly composed of a ...
Look Back Anime Film Review
The struggle to answer what it means to draw defines Look Back, and despite its short runtime, it manages to encapsulate everything that’s both beautiful and ugly about that struggle.
― “So why is it that you draw?” That's the question that's pondered at the end of the film and ultimately lies at the heart of Tatsuki Fujimoto's original one-shot manga. It's a question that artists across just about a...
Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake Video Game Review
Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake takes an already-seminal title and makes it one of the must-play games of 2024.
― Dragon Quest III: The Seeds of Salvation is already a seminal title among Japanese RPGs: a pillar of the genre whose influences run wide and deep across Japanese pop culture. Countless games have come in its wake, all inspired by that original game and its many creative decisions. The decis...
Birth of Kitaro: The Mystery of GeGeGe Anime Movie Review
While I enjoyed the action aspects of Birth of Kitaro, I can't say it works that well as an entry point for new fans.
― Modern folklore-focused anime and manga owe a huge debt to the work of 1960s manga GeGeGe no Kitaro's artist and writer Shigeru Mizuki. A second world war veteran, the traumatic amputation of his left arm, due to an air raid explosion, never held back his pre-existing artistic ambit...
PreCure Max Heart Episodes 1-25 Anime Series Review
It may be early days for Pretty Cure, but the bones of what has made it such an enduring franchise are there.
― It feels obvious to say this, but Pretty Cure Max Heart, the second series in the franchise and a direct sequel to the first, is still finding its way in the greater scheme of things. While direct sequels aren't unheard of in the franchise (and indeed the fifth season is a direct sequel to ...
Kowloon Generic Romance Volumes 7-8 Manga Review
With both anime and live-action drama adaptations promised for 2025, now is unquestionably the right time to discover your Absolute Self and read the original first.
― Later volumes of After the Rain's Jun Mayuzuki's masterful sci-fi mystery romance are impossible to review without massively spoiling earlier volumes, so if you've not read the first few installments of Kowloon Generic Romance, be warn...
Overlord: The Sacred Kingdom Anime Film Review
Now in U.S. theaters, this film shows why this is one of the series' most popular arcs—even if a bit too much was left on the cutting room floor.
― One of the most interesting choices that came from adapting Overlord IV is that the series skipped an entire arc—two entire light novels worth of story. This left an odd gap between episodes seven and eight of that series—where we go from Ainz dealing wit...
Otaku no Video Anime Blu-ray Review
Otaku no Video is an interesting cross-section of what otaku was into at that time.In a sense, that captures the essence of Otaku no Video: a product of its time that remains timeless.
― Otaku no Video is a work full of contrasts that remains an endearingly absurd classic. For the modern viewer, Otaku no Video must seem like the consummate product of its time. It is an original video animation or OVA...
Sonic X Shadow Generations Video Game Review
Sonic X Shadow Generations is a strong contender for one of the best 3D Sonic experiences
― Shadow is so damn cool, guys. There are a lot of positive things I'm going to say about this game, from the narrative to the replay value to the level design. But if there's one major thing I took away from this game, it's that Shadow The Hedgehog is one of the coolest characters ever to come out, and it's bee...
Yokai: The Art of Shigeru Mizuki Artbook Review
Although nominally an artbook, this might be just as easily described as a collection of folklore.
― “Shigeru Mizuki,” translator and scholar Zack Davisson says in his introductory essay, “lived in a vibrant fantasy world where every tree, every blade of grass was infused with spiritual energy.” If any one thing comes through in this collection of Mizuki's artwork, it is this – there's a deeply roote...
Punch Drunk Love Volumes 1-2 K-Comic Review
Seon-woo and Tae-moon’s relationship is almost entirely based on sex for most of these two volumes, so if you’re looking for something that puts the “without” in PWP, this is the series for you.
― Readers of BL manhwa and novels may recognize the name of the author of Punch Drunk Love: Moscareto is also the author of The New Recruit, another office romance. But the setting is the only thing these two...
Give It All Anime Film Review
Within its sports narrative, Give It All is a fantastically realistic depiction of how mental hang-ups stay with a person.
― At first glance, this seems like a story told in a billion anime before. A peppy transfer student arrives, joins a dead or dying club, and revitalizes it into a top-tier competitor with a real chance to win “the big competition.” What's different about Give It All is that the a...
Yakuza Kiwami - Switch Version Game Review
The Yakuza brand of stylish combat and badass special movies is just as fun today as it was nearly a decade ago.
― This review of the brand new Yakuza Kiwami port for the Nintendo Switch is going to basically be split in half to serve two different audiences. The first group that I'll be talking to are the folks who have never had the chance to dig into Sega's venerated crime-drama beat'-em'-up saga ...
Plus-Sized Elf Anime Series and OVA Review
It's good that the show isn't terribly toxic, but simultaneously, as a fan of tasteless comedy, it's disappointing to have nothing that makes me chuckle even slightly.
― I am in the fourth month of a complete relapse of my diet and exercise plan. Meaning that I've been off exercise for as long as I've been on it. And ladies and gents, you best believe it's been a glorious foodie renaissance. I'm talk...
Romance of the Three Kingdoms 8 Remake Video Game Review
You can always find a new avenue to explore, new storyline to uncover, or new battle to be waged across the campaigns included, and the breadth of options makes summarizing the game somewhat challenging.
― Romance of the Three Kingdoms 8 Remake is a grand strategy game of overwhelming scope and possibility that makes a lasting impression. I have never played the original Romance of the Three Kingdoms...
SINce Memories: Off the Starry Sky Game Review
If you enjoy a slow-burn visual novel, this is going to be right up your alley.
― The Memories Off series of visual novels first debuted in 1999, and it's only now in 2024 that we're finally getting one of them in English. In fact, SINce Memories: Off the Starry Sky is the first new entry in the franchise since 2015, and while one or two characters from the earlier games pop in as bit players, this i...
One Piece Fan Letter Anime Special Review
We see major battles through their eyes – distant laser beams visible only from the sparks of light and titanic punches that can be felt miles away as they shake the earth – and realize what it means to be an average person in these times.
― One Piece Fan Letter is precisely what its title describes in the best possible way. What a breath of fresh air this was. It's hard to encapsulate all my feeling...
The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom Game Review
Like any great game with immersive sim elements, Echoes of Wisdom feels like you're getting away with something anytime you solve a problem with anything other than the most obvious solution.
― How do you even review a Zelda game? They're some of the most overtly influential video games in the medium's history and are directly responsible for the art form's growth several times over. It's impossible ...
My Sister Took My Fiance and Now I'm Being Courted by a Beastly Prince Volumes 1 & 2 Manga Review
My Sister Took My Fiancé and Now I'm Being Courted by a Beastly Prince is off to a solid start. It may not be wholly innovative, but Cordelia is a good heroine and nobody's fool, except when it comes to herself, and she's wholly cognizant of that.
― Life is not easy for Cordelia. The daughter of a noble in the kingdom of Liobern, Cordelia isn't so much unremarkable as she is less outwardly beautiful ...
Shin chan: Shiro and the Coal Town Game Review
More anime should have cozy tie-in games. We need more un-serious, Animal Crossing-esque fun. And that’s where Shin chan: Shiro and the Coal Town comes into the picture.
― More anime should have cozy tie-in games. If we could convert gachas and musou games into an energy source, they could single-handedly take care of the energy needs of the entire globe for years to come. What we need is more un-ser...
My Journey to Her Manga Review
Unlike a lot of similar narratives, this isn't about the anguish, coming out, or transphobia. That's not to say those things aren't present, but they aren't the point.
― There are so many falsehoods perpetrated about what it means to be transgender, so many scare tactics employed by people who fear those who are different, that it's important to highlight any authentic own-voices narratives that are ...
The Fragrant Flower Blooms With Dignity Volumes 1-3 Manga Review
Author Saka Mikami 's main theme is the exploration of how uninformed judgments of others, especially when fuelled by humanity's innate tribalism, lead to unfair treatment and social ostracization.
― The Fragrant Flower Blooms With Dignityis one of those heart-warming romance manga where if you're not grinning with delight by the end of the first volume, there's probably something broken in your soul...
Gridman Universe Anime Film Review
Widely available in North America for the first time, Gridman Universe successfully ties up the loose ends of SSSS.Gridman and SSSS.Dynazenon, while fan-favorite character Akane looms heavy over the film.
― Gridman Universe is a direct sequel to both SSSS.Gridman. and SSSS.Dynazenon. It continues the plotlines and character arcs of both series, tying up loose ends for some and giving epilogues to oth...
Fist of the North Star Volume 14 Manga Review
Can you recreate the magic of the relationship between Kenshiro, Raoh, Toki, and Jagi?
― Fist of the North Star Volume 14 provides Kenshiro with the most interesting set of villains of the post-Raoh era by digging into a familiar bag of tricks. This volume, almost more than any other, has me split on how to feel about the events. It is equal parts novel ideas and the same old, familiar, and unique. T...
Macross Delta Anime Streaming Review
While the central couple of Hayate and Freyja are easy to root for, Macross Delta's muddled, unfocused story hampers the overall viewing experience.
― At last, the frayed, exhausted patience of (non-US) English-speaking Macross franchise fans has been rewarded. Apart from the 1982 original Super Dimension Fortress Macross and 1984 movie Do You Remember Love (both still held to ransom by Harmony Gold ...
Magical Girl and The Evil Lieutenant Used to Be Archenemies Manga Review
The late Cocoa Fujiwara never got to finish this story. Even if you don’t love the series, that’s a tragedy, and for readers, it means knowing that you’re embarking on a journey without a finish.
― The late Cocoa Fujiwara never got to finish this story. Even if you don't love the series, that's a tragedy, and for readers, it means knowing that you're embarking on a journey without a finish – when the...
Wonderful Precure! Episodes 25-36 Anime Series Review
The Cures need Niko and their transformations to fight, but their true strength comes from themselves and their relationships.
― While this season of Pretty Cure is unique in several ways, there are two that stand out, at least among legally available series in the west. The first is the overt romantic subplot that truly gets off the ground in episode thirty-six; while Delicious Party Pretty Cure did...
Fist of the North Star Volume 13 Manga Review
Fist of the North Star Volume 13 is a strong package, but at the same time I wouldn't blame someone for feeling like there are diminishing returns in this latter era of the run.
― Volume 13 is an odd mixture of elements and novel concepts that dazzle visually while being all right otherwise. I hate to sound like a broken record, but many of the same strengths and weaknesses seen here have been with t...
See You in My 19th Life Volumes 1-3 K-Comic Review
The K-Comic series See You in My 19th Life is a love story that is as much about the tragic past as the hopeful present.
― Tragedy and romance have been linked almost since the dawn of literature. Why else would stories of doomed lovers like Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet or historical tales of Cleopatra and her lovers be so lionized? For many readers, the fine line between the potential for a happy ...
BLUE LOCK THE MOVIE -EPISODE NAGI- Anime Film Review
Now streaming on Crunchyroll, the BLUE LOCK movie makes Nagi an even more interesting and nuanced character, but the last 10 minutes almost upends the film's otherwise interesting plot.
― BLUE LOCK THE MOVIE -EPISODE NAGI- is a retelling of the early events of BLUE LOCK through the eyes of Nagi and Mikage. However, that's not to say this is a recap or compilation film. Rather, a good 70% of the film ...
Silent Hill 2 (2024) Video Game Review
The Silent Hill 2 remake introduces a fun gameplay experience that pays proper respect to its iconic predecessor.
― The original Silent Hill 2 is a horror classic. In terms of aesthetic and psychological intrigue, not only was it groundbreaking when it came out, but you could argue that it inspired an entire generation of horror games. There's just one problem: it is tough to play the 2001 version at...
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