Space Bros 10 — Breaking the Rules

Space Brothers,

In a brief moment, Mutta has squandered much of my goodwill. So much is wrong with this picture. They have broken both the “every other urinal” rule and the “no talking rule.” For my uninitiated female readers (and no, I don’t want to know about what you do in there) these are the two unbreakable rooms of the restroom. No talking, and don’t get any closer than you have to. Standing next to someone at the urinal and chatting it up is akin to taking a baby and boiling it in a pot of lard. Not cool. Continue reading Space Bros 10 — Breaking the Rules →

Fate / Zero 22 — Triggering Death Flags

Fate / Zero,

So many death flags. The only question left, is will it be just Rider, or Waver and the grandfather as well? I’m guessing Waver will die, since otherwise this story would have a happy ending from my perspective.

The scene with the grandfather was clearly a death flag, but it was still nice for Waver to be accepted despite tricking the old man and his wife. I think it could have been more powerful if they’d made more than the most cursory nod to these two old people earlier though. Continue reading Fate / Zero 22 — Triggering Death Flags →

The Aniblog Tourney Round 3: The Fearsome Foursome

Discussion

Finally, the time everyone has been eagerly anticipating has arrived: round three in the aniblog tourney! Go vote for your favorite blog (mine) here!

If you’ve never been here before, then welcome! Check out some of my favorite posts, including various other bloggers singing about Guilty Crown (ok, one of those is me), and my commentaries on Mawaru Penguindrum. Continue reading The Aniblog Tourney Round 3: The Fearsome Foursome →

Tsuritama 08 — Let’s Invade!

Tsuritama,

Great plan, Duck. Let’s send all our forces right over to the enemy who can brainwash them.

And of course, that’s what happens. A more terrible fate for humanity can hardly be imagined: doomed to a life of eternal dancing.

Aliens

Akira learns everything about Haru and Coco by… surprise, surprise… asking them! I like how they built up all this mystery around Haru and Coco’s origins as if it were some big secret. But the only reason no one knows about their origins is that no one bothered to ask them. (also, Coco has the best poses)

In another wonderful anticlimax, the reason Yuki is needed to capture the alien is revealed to be simply that Haru and Coco don’t know how to fish. I love this show’s logic.

In addition, it turns out that Haru and Coco communicate through water. That means Haru wasn’t trying to control people, he was only trying to communicate. From the small snippets of flashbacks we saw, it looked like he only squirted the others because he was overwhelmed and panicked. Then he regained control and didn’t shoot Akira.

This appears to put the Bermuda syndrome in a different light as well. It isn’t actively evil, but is simply trying to communicate. I guess it wants to communicate the joy of dance?

Coco looks jealous that she doesn’t get to go fishing.

How does she swim underwater with her glasses on? They must be some highly advanced alien technology.

Administrative Note: I’m moving across the country tomorrow. I have a tournament post scheduled, but Fate / Zero and Space Brothers will be delayed until I acquire an internet connection for my new home and settle in. Probably Tuesday or Wednesday, but possibly earlier or later.

Sakamichi no Apollon 08 — The Times They are A-Changin’

Sakamichi no Apollon,

In my opinion this was the best episode yet. This was an episode of transformation. No one remains the same, except for possibly Kaoru.

Brother Jun left college after leading student protests (likely during the leftist strikes against ANPO, he was leading a student group of communists) and was disowned by his father in response. He’s a changed man, moping around his house and taking drugs in a depressed haze.

Since Jun tells Yurika that he’s changed, she decides to change as well and symbolically cuts her hair. I came to appreciate Yurika much more in this episode. She started out as a perfect, beautiful rich girl, but here she shows she’s not just about appearances. She’s both smart and forceful. Continue reading Sakamichi no Apollon 08 — The Times They are A-Changin’ →