Comment on Anime Questions, Recommendations, and Discussion Thread [Week 33]
SnowGator@lemm.ee 2 months ago
Finally had some time to catch up.
Completed:
- Cyberpunk Edgerunners - Absolutely phenomenal animation, music, storytelling and production. But also not really my thing. Super downer of a story (fitting the genre) and a world I find horrifyingly possible. It’s good, but I didn’t have a great time haha.
- Was Reincarnated As The 7th Prince… - My silly light hearted watch of the season. This was sooo much better than I expected. I struggled with some certain common tropes, but the rest was so fun that I could overlook it.
- Delicious in Dungeon S1C2 - Brilliant. Tied with Frieren for my anime of the year for this year. Animation, characters, story, humor, world building, everything are just top notch. Loved it.
- Carol and the End of the World - Yea, not really anime. It’s weird and different and evoked a lot of emotion out of me. Not nearly as downer as the premise made me expect. Much more of a metaphorical exploration of the value of life and experiences. The asteroid is coming for all of us, anyway, it’ll just hit at different times for each. How are you spending your remaining time? The show peaks at like episode 6 though, and the last few I think are skippable.
Watched part of:
- Oshi No Ko S2 - Caught up. I loved S1 (just missed my anime of the year because Frieren) so I was very psyched for S2. It’s started slow but really ramped up quick. The last couple episodes have been phenomenal. Really looking forward to where this is going.
- My Deer Friend Nokotan - 3 episodes. Very hit or miss, but I’ve literally lol’d multiple times. Probably keep watching when I’m in the mood for something dumb lol.
- Makeine - Caught up. Surprise hit of the season for me. Absolutely loving it. The animation and production quality are stunning, and I love all the characters. It sorta feels like it’s focusing on the three main female characters in each 4 episode chunk. The last episode had a new ED that suggested a different focus. Definitely finishing.
- Alya Sometimes Hides Her Feelings… - Almost caught up. Enjoying it but not loving it. The conceit feels a little forced and unrealistic, every time it happens. Yuki is my least favorite part, by far. Feels the most over-the-top ridiculous and kinda taking me out of my immersion for the rest. I like the other characters and it’s a fun lighter watch, so I’ll probably keep watching.
- Pseudo Harem - 4 episodes. Super cute main characters and pretty realistic setup. Enjoying a lot. Likely finish.
- Scavenger’s Reign - 9 episodes. Not really anime, but figured it’s worth a mention. I’m loving this. Most of the time, my mouth is slackjawed open in horror at whatever the hell is happening. Body horror, psych horror, great characters, striking animation and sound that feels so realistic I can believe these crazy things are really happening in this bizarre planet. Really loving it.
- Hell’s Paradise - 4 episodes. Incredible animation, but wow it’s gory. It’s a bit much for me. I’ll probably watch a few more at least.
- Dungeon People - 1 episode. Liked the start. Try more when I have time.
- I Parry Everything - 1 episode. Giving me Helck energy, which I liked a lot. Likely try more some time.
- Plus Sized Elf - 1 episode. Nah, not for me. Too much fan service.
wjs018@ani.social 2 months ago
Lots of takes that I agree with here. 7th Prince last season turned out way better than I thought it would be, despite some real sus stuff that goes on. Similarly, Delicious in Dungeon’s second cour was way more engaging to me. Once things started to get higher-stakes and more life and death I paradoxically had a lot more fun because I was invested more. The fight they had at the season midpoint was phenomenal.
As for this season, I agree that Oshi no Ko started out really slow. However, they have really paid off the slow start with some great moments. The episode 6 climax was so great and took the manga to a whole new level. Also, I have had a similar experience with Nokotan. Some jokes land, others don’t. However, they throw so many jokes out there that it manages to keep me watching. It reminds me a bit of Monty Python’s Flying Circus in that way (especially all the vignettes in the most recent episode).
I have mixed feelings about Yuki in Alya. On one hand, I find her easily the most entertaining character in that show. On the other, if I actually knew Yuki in real life, she would be the most annoying person in existence. She isn’t a character as much as an expression of the author’s desire to shake up the world they have created just to see where the pieces land. She flirted with fourth wall breaks early in the show and pretty explicitly broke it in the most recent episode in the bathroom.
Finally, I feel like I should try to check out Makeine at some point. The synopsis didn’t really grab me before the season started, but I have seen lots of praise for it and it has pretty consistently been climbing up the different charts as the season has gone on. The shows that climb consistently like that tend to have the quality to back it up as opposed to series that just jump way up for a single episode before falling back down.