TV Shows I've Watched: Rated & Reviewed
All the shows I've watched that I care to review.
What my ratings mean:
9.5-10: Masterpiece
9.0-9.5: Incredible to Near Masterpiece
8.0-8.9: Great to Exceptional
7.5-7.9: Good to Very Good
7.0-7.5: Fine to Good
6.0-6.9: Bad to Meh
5: Bad
4: Terrible
3: Very Terrible
2: Horrible
1: God Awful
What my ratings mean:
9.5-10: Masterpiece
9.0-9.5: Incredible to Near Masterpiece
8.0-8.9: Great to Exceptional
7.5-7.9: Good to Very Good
7.0-7.5: Fine to Good
6.0-6.9: Bad to Meh
5: Bad
4: Terrible
3: Very Terrible
2: Horrible
1: God Awful
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- CreatorMichael Dante DiMartinoBryan KonietzkoStarsDee Bradley BakerZach Tyler EisenMae WhitmanIn a war-torn world of elemental powers, a young boy reawakens to undertake a dangerous mystic quest to fulfill his destiny as the Avatar, and bring peace to the world.Rating: 10.0
Kyoshi Novels Rating: 9.0
Favourite Episode: Sozin's Comet parts 2-4
Most well-written children's animated show to date. The Series deserves the hype despite it starting out "kiddie" until around episode 3 where The genocide is revealed at the air temple.
The Kyoshi novels haven't been adapted yet but it's essentially a TV-14 Avatar. The worldbuilding and callbacks to the main series were meticulously placed you even get hints of the white lotus. All major plot points were well explained, new bending feats were added to lore ex: dust stepping , fire nation culture was deeply expounded upon in Shadow, and everything you need to know about Kyoshi was well written including hints to why she lived to 230 with Lao Ge's immortality training. People get killed in this series and the plot is extremely unpredictable. The only real con is it was never explicitly explained why Jesa and Hark abandoned Kyoshi or if they knew she was the avatar and that the side characters are not at the exceptional level as ATLA's side characters. Otherwise, these books were incredible. - StarsJessie James GrelleBryce PapenbrookTrina NishimuraAfter his hometown is destroyed and get traumatized, young Eren Jaeger vows to cleanse the earth of the giant humanoid Titans that have brought humanity to the brink of extinction.Rating: 10.0
Favorite Episode: Hero, That Day, Perfect Game, Assault...
It's the greatest shonen anime I've seen. The soundtrack, story, animation, art style, and voice actors are all at a masterpiece level. Tons of callbacks, the logic is very tight. It's obvious this took 11 years of writing, the story was meticulously planned from the start. It's the most well-executed media I've consumed
About the ending: Objectively the ending was horrible because it opened up major plotholes summed up here. Also the author said he fumbled the ending. With the manga ending this series is a 7/10. However, the anime adaptation will likely change this execution. Because chapters 134/139 (96% of the story) set the bar for fantasy (not without errors ex chpt 126), I won't be dropping this rating until S4Pt2 airs.
**UPDATE**: AoTNoReqiuem a professional level fan-made re-write of chapters 136-139 is already miles better than the original ending. If this project ends well AOT would be a 9/10 because this isn't the real canon. - CreatorYoshihiro TogashiStarsIssei FutamataMegumi HanCristina ValenzuelaGon Freecss aspires to become a Hunter, an exceptional being capable of greatness. With his friends and his potential, he seeks out his father, who left him when he was younger.Rating: 9.5
Favorite Episode: Anger and Light
A Shonen masterpiece, extremely detailed and meticulously written. The action is very strategic and just as intellectual as it is eye-candy. Some pacing issues in the Chimera ant arc, and greed island was ok, but it still remains one of the best shonens' ever created. - CreatorDavid BenioffD.B. WeissStarsEmilia ClarkePeter DinklageKit HaringtonNine noble families fight for control over the lands of Westeros, while an ancient enemy returns after being dormant for millennia.Rating: 6.9
Favorite Episode: The Winds of Winter
This show checked all the boxes for fantasy television, it was engaging, and well-paced, characters were nuanced, believable, and intriguing. There were complex political plots and little to no plot armor as fatal wounds in this era such as cuts ex Drogo, Robert Baratheon would kill characters. There were 4-5 plotlines running in parallel throughout most seasons and nearly all of them were entertaining and unpredictable as some followed characters that could be killed without major narrative consequences making the viewer genuinely tense during certain events. The production value of nearly 10 million per episode ensured that the presentation from the leitmotifs of the different houses to the actual setpieces always looked premium.
However, this series is severely flawed because it starts a steady decline in writing for nearly half of its run (seasons 5-8). Seasons 5-8 had their peaks of genuinely good writing such as episode Winds of Winter to distract you from the decline but upon rewatch many plotlines and character arcs begin to fall apart aside from those episodes.
There are way too many issues with this series to list them all out however the bigger ones include destroyed and nonsensical character arcs: Jamie becoming an eternal simp and returning to die with Cersei even after she threatened to kill him and after he banged Brienne. Jamie in general gained empathy throughout the series and then continually relapsed back to Cersei for no reason (ex: when he raped Cersei in S4 EP 3). Jon snow also becomes an eternal simp to Daenerys bending the knee in S7 EP7 to her for no reason even after she pledged support for his cause knowing this would cause issues in the north. He even defended Daenerys about her descent into madness until he was forced to kill her after the sack of kings landing. Daenerys omnicide speedrun. Littlefinger going from a machiavellian lord to an idiot who tells everyone his motives (e.g Sansa) and gambles away key allies (e.g selling Sansa to the Boltons). etc..
Illogical war tactics: The entirety of S8 Ep 2, just have the dragons camp the wall and burn everyone outside the encampment. The night king not killing john snow n co when they were surrounded when wights can swim. The night king not going around the wall since the wights can swim. Almost every Euron Greyjoy navy scene like he "ambushed" and killed Daenerys dragons when Daenerys literally has a birds-eye view of everything and knew he was there, etc. Dany going to negotiate with Cersei in S8 in front of multiple scorpions and archers when Cersei can just kill them all right there drogon included etc.
Direct plotholes: S8 EP 1 Theon rescues Yara from an entire fleet with only 8 men. The entire S7 EP 8 Euron Cersei betrayal. S7 EP 7 the night kings spawning chains to pull visery's corpse from the lake. Melisandre removing her necklace during a bath and not aging etc.
An Incoherent magic system that's far too soft when it shouldn't be: The main antagonist (night king) and the origin of the white walkers and children of the forest were never delved into. We don't know why the night king wants an endless night or how getting stabbed with dragon glass gives them OP abilities like raising the dead and being impervious to dragon fire. The actual deities aren't clear whether it's the old gods allowing Bran to deterministically traverse memories, via wierwoods, or this lord of light who does whatever the writers need him to do including resurrecting people or the light of the seven. The purpose of the three-eyed raven in general etc.
And finally, the motif of the worst ones always live leads to hate-watching when viewing when despicable characters like Cersei Lannister, Jeoffery Lannister, and Ramsey Bolton escape death for 4-8 seasons. Even if this is realistic, at some point enough is enough.
As great as the series started if half of a series isn't good the entire series cannot be regarded as a good series.
- CreatorVince GilliganStarsBryan CranstonAaron PaulAnna GunnA chemistry teacher diagnosed with inoperable lung cancer turns to manufacturing and selling methamphetamine with a former student in order to secure his family's future.Rating: 8.3
Favorite Episode: Ozymandias
A super realistic, naturally dramatic depiction of how drug dealing ensnares everyone around you. Every episode is either good or great with a few standouts (Ozymandias, Felina, Full Measure). The only reason it's not a 9 or 10 is because of some purely Hollywood moments that made little sense, a few decent plot points that made no sense, and mundane dialog that greatly extended the runtime (unnecessarily). The best example of this is Episode Fly, nearly all the episodes could have shaved 15 minutes off the runtime without losing any detail.
https://www.reddit.com/r/breakingbad/comments/kt61vw/possible_logic_holes_questions_can_someone/ - StarsNatsuki HanaeRisa TanedaAyane SakuraA piano prodigy who lost his ability to play after suffering a traumatic event in his childhood is forced back into the spotlight by an eccentric girl with a secret of her own.Rating: 8.4
Favorite Episode: Spring Breeze
Exceptional with flaws. The presentation was unbelievable from the animation (they're accurately playing their instruments), color-pallet, art style, soundtrack, and performances; it was an experience. It's well written as side characters' motivations are clearly explained, the themes around music being freedom, conveying emotion through music, the struggles of musicians were consistent and interconnected. Arima's character development was satisfying and the ending made everything come full circle. However, the show is flawed; the slapstick comedy is always jarring characters literally beat on Kousei even though he was physically abused as a child. Miyazono is arguably a manic pixie archetype she doesn't display any nuance until the back half when she nears her death, and how Kousei's trauma is handled is unrealistic. Kousei felt responsible for his mothers death for not playing how she instructed due to his mother manipulating him, and Tsubaki and Miyazono straight-up force him to play the piano again (the source of his trauma). While it's well explained why this worked, it's not how you should ever approach healing someone with severe trauma (granted the main cast are only in middle school). This only worked because he INITIALLY loved what he became trauma bonded to and Miyazono personified what he loved about music. Lastly, the melodrama and foreshadowing specifically the death flags for Miyazono, and overdramatism like Watari crying, because he lost the tournament (when later he easily gains a scholarship to a high school sports program, why cry like it was the end of his career?) etc.. , was heavy-handed. Overall the pros heavily outweigh the cons but I would understand if someone thought otherwise. Great not incredible. - CreatorCraig MazinStarsJessie BuckleyJared HarrisStellan SkarsgårdIn April 1986, the city of Chernobyl in the Soviet Union suffers one of the worst nuclear disasters in the history of mankind. Consequently, many heroes put their lives on the line in the following days, weeks and months.Rating: 7.9
Favorite Episode: Vichnaya Pamyat
A haunted dramatization of Chernobyl. The mood was consistently dark and the cinematography and score were A-tier. This show explained nuclear physics well enough you don't even need any prior knowledge. The themes around the price of lies and propaganda were also well-executed. However, since this is a dramatization there was "Hollywood Moments": In reality there was never a threat of a "thermal explosion", radiation burns aren't as skin meltingly severe as depicted in Ignatenko, the bridge of death is largely a myth, , etc just read this . I found it a little slow in places and wasn't moved by its slow-burn shock value. The more shocking you find it the more you'll enjoy it. Overall it isn't the most entertaining series out there, but it was well crafted. - CreatorGeorge LucasStarsTom KaneDee Bradley BakerMatt LanterJedi Knights lead the Grand Army of the Republic against the droid army of the Separatists.Rating: 8.5 IF YOU FOLLOW THE WATCH ORDER FOR S1-5 8.0 Otherwise.
Favorite Episode: The last four episodes
This show has a filler, so if you watch all the episodes it isn't consistently great. It's easily the best star wars media since the OT. The animation improves drastically by the final season and the last four episodes are rated so highly for a reason. Although it's not, it ends like a masterpiece. - StarsScott GrimesDamian LewisRon LivingstonThe story of Easy Company of the U.S. Army 101st Airborne Division and their mission in World War II Europe, from Operation Overlord to V-J Day.Rating: 8.0
Favorite Episode: Why We Fight
A no flash very realistic depiction of a group of paratroopers in WW2. It captured the horrors of war, and the spontaneity of being on the front lines well, and the cinematography made it feel like you were in the war yourself. The tactics in this series were nearly 1-1 with reality. Like any dramatization there are inaccuracies Hitler's suicide date was wrong, Lt Dike didn't die in WW2, Sobel wasn't as incompetent as he was depicted, etc., but they don't break the story. Some of the effects are a little dated but this is an atypical war show. Overall it's well done, but didn't blow me away personally. - CreatorSimon KinbergCarrie BeckDave FiloniStarsDave FiloniTaylor GrayFreddie Prinze Jr.The crew of the spaceship Ghost defends those who cannot fight for themselves against the Empire, providing the spark for a rebellion.Rating: 7.1
Favorite Episode: The Twilight of The Apprentice Part 1-2
A big step down from the clone wars in both tone and artstyle. Negating the filler (less filler than clone wars), it's good, with a few exceptional episodes (Twin suns, Twilight Apprentice etc.). - CreatorHiromu ArakawaStarsKent WilliamsIemasa KayumiMatthew LeonhartTwo brothers search for a Philosopher's Stone after an attempt to revive their deceased mother goes awry and leaves them in damaged physical forms.Rating: 8.8
I get why people say it's the greatest Shonen, however to me it lacks that masterpiece factor that makes it memorable. It's exceptional but very traditional in how it ends on a conventional happy note. It has a lot of cliches/generic tropes but is still a solid show all around. - CreatorHideaki AnnoStarsMegumi OgataMegumi HayashibaraKotono MitsuishiA teenage boy finds himself recruited as a member of an elite team of pilots by his father.Rating: 7.5
Favorite Episode: Asuka Strikes
A psychological "mecha" show. It's not really about the mechs/plot, but more about the messages around human interaction. I can see the argument for this being a masterpiece, but it doesn't explain major plot points and leaves too many unanswered questions to be one. I shouldn't have to spend hours on a wiki to get half-explained answers to questions such as where did Adam come from? What was the first impact? Why do angels want adam? What is the dummy plug actually? Seele? Why is Gendo such a terrible father? Lance of longinus? etc. The actual lore, and why things are the way they are is this shows pitfall. They don't get into it enough for everything to align with the audience; hence the "you just didn't understand" argument was born. - DirectorHideaki AnnoKazuya TsurumakiStarsMegumi OgataMegumi HayashibaraYûko MiyamuraConcurrent theatrical ending of the TV series Neon Genesis Evangelion (1995).Rating: 8.0
Unlike anything I've ever seen, I literally can't even begin to process what happened here. It's very psychologically disturbing, to the point of nightmare fuel. A lot of events seemed to just "happen", but this is a creatively bold ending that made anime history for a reason. It's like an abstract painting in an art museum that some people see a deeper meaning to while others roast for its unconventionality. All in all the movie left too much up for interpretation and didn't answer many major questions. It was a surreal experience. - CreatorAaron EhaszJustin RichmondStarsPaula BurrowsJack De SenaSasha RojenTwo human princes forge an unlikely bond with the elfin assassin sent to kill them, embarking on an epic quest to bring peace to their warring lands.Rating: 6.9
Favorite Episode: The Final Battle
Major ATLA vibes since it has the same head writer. It's a great children's show in the FIRST 3 seasons. The show has a very immersive world with serious conflicts characters actually get killed viren, harrow, ibis, avizandum and maimed (Claudia), without it being too edgy. However, after season three it fell off HARD. It wasn't all bad, but the tone was a jarring mess: e.g. Viren having EVA-level psychological trauma from dark magic in one scene, and Claudia and Terry twerking on him in the next. The writing became nonsensical in places: (S5 EP5) Zubeia abandoning Amaya instead of just zapping the corrupted banthers around Amaya or hitting them like she did a scene prior. Characters were semi-assassinated Rayla became a secretive a-hole who doesn't apologize for abandoning Callum and having absolutely nothing to show for it. Callum becomes a doormat for Rayla forgiving and apologizing to Rayla for her misdeeds when he did nothing wrong. And a lot of artificial repetitive drama Bait being left behind twice caused the Amaya corruption drama and Zubeia corruption drama (conveniently resolved via some random mushroom man), Ezran stealing baitlings on principle caused the entire Finnegrin captivity drama (Ez never apologized for this), etc.. Lastly, it lost subtlety becoming preachy with its thematic ideas Cladia literally walking in Viren's footsteps, Ezran's speech during the Claudia ibis fight, etc. Overall a hard fall from grace. - CreatorJon FavreauStarsPedro PascalChris BartlettKatee SackhoffThe travels of a lone bounty hunter in the outer reaches of the galaxy, far from the authority of the New Republic.Rating: 7.4
Favorite Episode: The Rescue
Star wars cameo the show. Super high production quality, actual narrative is just a space western, what makes it so hyped is the cameos we all want to see in modern cinema. Good not exceptional. - CreatorMichael Dante DiMartinoBryan KonietzkoStarsJanet VarneyP.J. ByrneDavid FaustinoAvatar Korra fights to keep Republic City safe from the evil forces of both the physical and spiritual worlds.Rating: 8.0
Favorite Episode: Venom of the Red Lotus
Not as nearly good as ATLA, but still a great watch. - StarsMamoru MiyanoBrad SwaileVincent TongAn intelligent high school student goes on a secret crusade to eliminate criminals from the world after discovering a notebook capable of killing anyone whose name is written into it.Rating: 7.9
Favorite Episode: Overcast
The most intelligent show I've ever seen. Smartest protagonist I've seen. The middle of the show became very mundane since we already knew who Kira was, OP2 is the worst anime OP I've ever seen, and there was a decent amount of edge that felt like a preteens fever dream. Overall it's very good but is also very overhyped (a lot of people's first anime it's an FMAB situation). - CreatorGorô TaniguchiIchirô ÔkouchiStarsJun FukuyamaTakahiro SakuraiJohnny Yong BoschAfter being given a mysterious power to control others, an outcast prince becomes the masked leader of the rebellion against an all-powerful empire.Rating: 8.0
Favorite Episode: Tsuiraku no sutêji
A ton of fun, with a ton of flaws, and a unique ending. Most flaws stemmed from events happening because the plot needed them to, not because they remotely made any sense. This is slightly better than Death note because at its worse (holes and all) it was still entertaining, while I had to force myself to finish Death Note 2nd Half. - CreatorMaurissa TancharoenJed WhedonJoss WhedonStarsClark GreggMing-Na WenBrett DaltonThe missions of the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division.Rating: 7.0
Favorite Episode: Self-Control
Stereotypical sci-fi super-agent stuff. Really fell off after Coulson kept resurrecting - StarsAaron DismukeAoi KogaMakoto FurukawaThe proudly privileged top two students of an elite school each makes it their mission to be the first to extract a confession of love from the other.Rating: 8.0
Favorite Episode: Yu Ishigami Closes His Eyes, Part 3/Miyuki Shirogane and Yu Ishigami/Kyoko Otomo Doesn't Realize
I watched this because of the memes and it's hilarious and has unusually high production quality for a comedy. - StarsMamoru MiyanoAsami ImaiKana HanazawaAfter discovering time travel, a university student and his colleagues must use their knowledge of it to stop an evil organization and their diabolical plans.Rating: 7.8
Favorite Episode: Achievement Point
THE time travel anime. The 2nd half was good, but the first half was slow and strange. It loses a lot of people on that first half. As a whole, it can be confusing but overall it ends well and is a good watch. - StarsYûto UemuraKana IchinoseNanami YamashitaIn a future world where humanity has been driven to endangerment by giant beasts, a strike force is assembled to destroy the monsters and save the world.Rating: 5.0
Favorite Episode: N/A
Terrible illogical rushed ending that somehow hit me in the feels. Over the top sex-metaphors and unnecessary fanservice that made me uncomfortable. People only watched this for Zero-Two don't lie. - StarsJun FukushimaSora AmamiyaRie TakahashiIt was a happy day for Kazuma - right up to the moment he died. A goddess intervenes and offers him a second chance in a magical land.Rating: 7.0
Favorite Episode: God's Blessings on This Wonderful Party!
It's fine for what it is. It makes fun of RPG's so if your into that you'll like it. It's ok. - CreatorTatsuyuki NagaiMari OkadaMasayoshi TanakaStarsMiyu IrinoAi KayanoHaruka TomatsuFive childhood companions reunite when the ghost of their dead friends appears, and demands they grant her final wish.Rating: 4.8
Favorite Episode: N/A
Annoying and average, the whole story could've ended in 2 episodes if the protagonist did you know what to prove to his friends you know who really came back. Full of logic holes and a cringe ending didn't emotionally move me like it did other people. It was tearbait. - CreatorYoshiyuki TominoHajime YatateStarsBill RogersAdin RuddLandon McDonald300 years after the Calamity War, a ragtag group of freedom fighters and an ancient Mobile Suit rise to the call for justice, once and for all.Rating: 6.7
Favorite Episode: Settlment
Edgy for no reason, and main characters with unexplained backstories. Poorly conceived political plots and low production quality. The soundtrack is spotify level, and the ending is dark. Character deaths in this show (particularly outside the mobile suits), are so chilling and well done. Lawfter's death was unbelievably shocking - StarsYûki KajiYui IshikawaMarina InoueAfter his lunch is eaten by a Titan on the first day of junior high, young Eren Jaeger vows to destroy the human food-stealing creatures with the help of his classmates and hilarity ensues.Rating: 6.8
Favorite Episode: Attack! Titan Junior High School
Hit or miss humor but when it hits it's hilarious. The callbacks to the main show carry this, it's an ok parody. - StarsYui IshikawaErika HarlacherRaissa BuenoIn the aftermath of a great war, Violet Evergarden, a young female ex-soldier, gets a job at a writers' agency and goes on assignments to create letters that can connect people.Rating: 7.6
Favorite Episode: Violet Evergarden
You are either very emotionally moved by this series and rate it a 8-10/10 or aren't emotionally moved and give it a 6-7. This series relies very heavily on eliciting an emotional response, it WANTS you to cry, but I just never did. Violets backstory is tragic but not fleshed out: We don't know why she's such a killing machine (the story wouldn't have occurred if she wasn't a human weapon recruited by dietfreid), why exactly she took the Evergarden last name, what happened to her parents ect... The animation is the greatest I've ever seen, and the soundtrack is great. But overall the story itself is just, ok.
Some major questions are answered in the light novel however I am rating the ANIME adaptation. - DirectorHaruka FujitaStarsYui IshikawaMinako KotobukiAoi YûkiViolet Evergarden, a former soldier returned from war, comes to teach at a women's academy and changes a young girl's life.Rating: 6.5
This is a continuation of the Violet Evergarden series not a TV Show. The movie is just ok. - DirectorTaichi IshidateStarsYui IshikawaDaisuke NamikawaTakehito KoyasuAfter the aftermath of a war, a young girl who was used as a 'tool' for war learned to live. With the scars of burns, she goes back to her past to feel the true feelings of the Major's, "I love you."Rating: 7.0
The last installment of the Evergarden series. It's a satisfying ending to Violet's story. It's a fine movie.
Gilbert's resurrections makes little sense considering his wounds but I'm glad violet got a happy ending - StarsRie KugimiyaJunji MajimaYui HorieToradora tells the tale of Ryuji (dragon) and Taiga (tiger) helping each other confess to their crushes.Rating: 8.0
Favorite Episode: Doshitatte
Actually really engaging slice of life. It has a few logical holes and I didn't like the end pairing but it's not far off from how highschoolers really behave. - DirectorShin'ichirô WatanabeMary Elizabeth McGlynnTensai OkamuraStarsBeau BillingsleaMelissa FahnNicholas GuestA terrorist explosion releases a deadly virus on the masses, and it's up to the bounty-hunting Bebop crew to catch the cold-blooded culprit.Rating: 7.7
A continuation of the series that was better than most of the show. It was a typical action flick plot-wise and the main cast was great as usual. The movie also still carried the bebop charm. There were some plot conveniences Rasheed somehow slipping some of the virus into the vase, The Indians being in the very location spike fell off the train to save him, etc. But it's a solid film. - CreatorShin'ichirô WatanabeHajime YatateStarsKôichi YamaderaUnshô IshizukaMegumi HayashibaraThe futuristic misadventures and tragedies of an easygoing bounty hunter and his partners.Rating: 6.9
Favorite Episode: My Funny Valentine
The most overrated anime ever. The soundtrack is great, the animation aged like wine, and the main characters (besides Edward and Ein) were great with how they addressed their pasts. The best episodes were the ones that revolved around the character's pasts (which should have been all of them). I've noticed that the people who call this a masterpiece either haven't seen another anime, watched this when it came out (nostalgia), or are infatuated with episodic style shows. It's not that deep. Most episodes are forgettable with cliche and contrived antagonists; only the episodes dealing with the main cast are good. Honestly, this was just better than the other animes at that time.
Spike falling out of the window was pure art - CreatorKaiu ShiraiStarsSumire MorohoshiMariya IseShinei UekiWhen three gifted kids at an isolated idyllic orphanage discover the secret and sinister purpose they were raised for, they look for a way to escape from their evil caretaker and lead the other children in a risky escape plan.Rating: 7.7
Favorite Episode: 150146
Only rating season 1. Season 2 is crap, and the manga rips off other animes.
[MANGA SPOILERS]
The entire wall situation with the outside world being their enemy, people within walls getting eaten like cattle (AOT), Norman is a direct Armin ripoff he even states his sole motivation is to "explore the outside world" just like Armin (and is also the genius of the trio). Even in the manga Norman pulls an Eren Yeager, disappears from the main trio, and enacts a plan of genocide to protect his family. Also Death note style character monologues from children who are unrealistically intelligent (Phil a "5 year" old detected morse code in an entire library of novels), the owl an informant outside the walls secretly helping the oppressed inside the walls is a DIRECT ripoff from the owl in AOT. The adults of the society farm the children to do their bidding for alien overlords similar to darling in the franxx except they are just straight up eaten. HxH chimera ant arc genetics rip-off(the demons evolve by absorbing other animals' DNA). AOT great titan war ripoff (demons and humans made a promise now one side of humanity is sequestered to being eaten and the other lives like normal to stop the incessant violence, just like Karl Fritz did in AOT albeit in a different setting. you get the point
The borrowed aren't executed better than their source. It became a happy go lucky power of friendship story.
- StarsBryce PapenbrookErika HarlacherMax MittelmanThe story of the Seven Deadly Sins, a group of warriors who were wrongly accused of a crime they didn't commit and went on a quest to vindicate themselves.Rating 6.9
Favorite Episode: Meliodas vs. The Ten Commandments
Decent at first then devolves in later seasons. It is a very interesting "love story" at its core. It has some very high points (Escanor), and all of the main cast have amazing backstories. This show likes to make up a lot of power-ups on the fly only really explaining the significant ones. Also, the power scaling becomes a joke the longer you watch The demon king was defeated at first by the power of friendship and his son's condensed black magic really? Also, Ban lost his immortality, received multiple mortal wounds yet still didn't die in his fight against the demon king, purgatory or not he's reverted back to a strong human.
The animation goes down with the story as S3-5's animation is terrible. The art style remained good though. - StarsGabriella LewisJun'ichi KanemaruSanae KobayashiA slight malfunction causes Chaos Control, and sends Sonic the Hedgehog to Earth. While there, Sonic meets Chris Thorndyke, who aids at collecting the Chaos Emeralds, so Sonic and friends can go home.Rating 3.0
Favorite Episode: N/A
I grew up on sonic, but this is not good. Cliché and very kiddie. Not to mention Chris almost broke the Sonicverse by almost getting Sonic to stay in his world . I can't believe this is actually an anime. - CreatorEvan BailyDonna FriedmanSandrine NguyenStarsRoger Craig SmithCindy RobinsonColleen O'ShaughnesseyTwenty-three years after the original Sonic the Hedgehog video game, fast, handsome, and arrogant hero Sonic continues to fight his arch nemesis, Dr. Eggman. Along with Tails, Knuckles, Amy, and a new recruit named Sticks.Rating 6.9
Favorite Episode: Eggman: The Video Game: Part 1-2
Funny meta show that makes fun of the Sonic franchise. Not canon, but fun little misadventures with a surprise cameo from Shadow near the end. - CreatorCarlo BernardChris BrancatoDoug MiroStarsPedro PascalWagner MouraBoyd HolbrookA chronicled look at the criminal exploits of Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar, as well as the many other drug kingpins who plagued the country through the years.Rating 7.8
Favorite Episode: The Good, the Bad, and the Dead
Consistently good crime drama. It's at its best when Pablo is at his worst. It's 50/50 between fact and fiction. Cons: there were way too many characters jumping in and out of the plot, and the sex scenes were ridiculous but other than that it was good with a few great episodes. You could tell when the writers deviated from historical events because plot-holes were introduced for the sake of shock-value and added suspense. (e.g Pallomari being a moron and leaving U.S currency out to add more suspense despite this being totally unrealistic) - CreatorUme AokiAtsuhiro IwakamiAkiyuki ShinbôStarsAoi YûkiChiwa SaitôEmiri KatoA creature named Kyubey offers Madoka and Sayaka a wish if they agree to become 'magical girls' and fight abstract beings called 'witches'. However, a magical girl named Homura is, for uncertain reasons, determined to stop this agreement.Rating: 6.8
Favorite Episode: N/A
This is a rare example of something with good writing: (they explain most major lore questions even if the answers are bad Kyubey literally said magical girls defy all explanations when commenting on their origins ) that is completely lacking in the engagement department. It just felt meh. Madoka's character was stale up until the last episode, and I just didn't care about anyone besides Homura and Sayaka. There are also notorious plotholes such as Sayaka saving Madoka despite not knowing where Madoka was, world governments not doing anything about magical girls despite Kyubey stating they literally evolved humanity and have been around since ancient times (so magical girls existence isn't a secret), Madoka's mom letting her "brave the storm" in episode 12, ect..
Tried something new this time, but didn't like it - StarsHiroshi KamiyaEri KitamuraYuka IguchiThird-year high school student Koyomi Araragi is human again. Cured of his vampirism, he seeks to help other supernaturals with their problems. Koyomi becomes involved in their lives, revealing secrets in people he once knew.Rating: 7.8
Favorite Episode: Tsubasa kyatto sono ni
Unique and good overall. It's witty entertaining dialogue with interesting characters. Almost like an anime Twilight Zone. It can be formulaic sometimes, but every arc brought something new to the table and it never got stale. The fanservice in the last openings was strange but didn't detract from anything.
Senjougahara is the highlight of this whole thing - DirectorTatsuya OishiAkiyuki ShinbôStarsHiroshi KamiyaTakahiro SakuraiMaaya SakamotoFollows Araragi's encounter with the vampire Kiss-shot Acerola-orion Heart-under-blade and his journey back into humanity from being a vampire.Rating: 6.9
Continuation of Monogatari series. This could've been condensed. A lot of times there would be nothing happening, not even inner monologues. This made the pacing feel very slow. Overall it was meh and served its purpose in connecting some plot points from Bakemonogatari and setting up the next two parts. - DirectorYukihiro MiyamotoTatsuya OishiAkiyuki ShinbôStarsHiroshi KamiyaTakahiro SakuraiMaaya SakamotoIn the spring of his second year of high school, Koyomi Araragi met the beautiful vampire Kiss-shot Acerola-orion Heart-under-blade. Koyomi saved Kiss-shot, who was on the verge of death with all four of her limbs cut off, but only at the expense of becoming her minion and a vampire. "In order to go back to being a human again, you must take back all of Kiss-shot's limbs." After receiving advice from Meme Oshino, an expert in the supernatural, Koyomi prepares to go into battle. Awaiting him are three powerful vampire hunters-Dramaturgy, a giant vampire hunter who is a vampire himself. Episode, a half-vampire who wields an enormous cross, and Guillotinecutter, a quiet man who specializes in killing vampires. Will Koyomi be able to take back Kiss-shot's limbs from the vampire hunters? Amidst the soft spring rain, the curtain rises on this fateful blood bath.Rating: 7.1
Continuation of Monogatari series. This is stronger than part I. It had a decent amount of unexpected shock value. example Hanekawa getting impaled and it also connected more plot points from Bakemonotagari in regards to Hanekwa and Araragi's relationship. Yeah, the fanservice was a little much at times but not distracting. Overall it was fine. - DirectorYukihiro MiyamotoTatsuya OishiAkiyuki ShinbôStarsHiroshi KamiyaTakahiro SakuraiMaaya SakamotoPart 3 of Kizumonogatari (Wound Tale) trilogy, based on a light novel by Nisio Isin.Rating: 7.2
Continuation of Monogatari series. Filled in the reasoning for Shinobu and Araragi's relationship in Bakemonogatari. The fanservice was distracting this time and really unnecessary. The final fight was also too bizarre given the situation. Other than that it was fine. - StarsHiroshi KamiyaYuka IguchiEri KitamuraSet after the events of Bakemonogatari, one of the men who deceived Hitagi, Kaiki Deishu, returns to town to spread the incantation which cursed Nadeko before. Koyomi's sisters Karen and Tsukihi try to stop him.Rating: 7.3
Favorite Episode: Karen Bee, Part 3
Quicker dialogue than Bakemonogatari but still carrying the sharp commentary. The incestuous fanservice was disgraceful the infamous toothbrush scene, the oddly strong sexual tension between Karen and Araragi, Araragi kissing tsukihi ect... and it boggled my mind how they gave us incest service but not fanservice of the main couple We saw him kiss his sister but not hitagi?!. This show also didn't have the dark undertone that Kizu and Bakemonogatari had, but as a whole, it's mostly fine with a few great episodes. - CreatorAkiyuki ShinbôFuyashi TôStarsHiroshi KamiyaYui HorieMaaya SakamotoA kind of prequel to the final 'Bakemonogatari' arc, that revolves around the oddity that possesses Araragi's class rep Hanekawa Tsubasa...Rating: 7.9
Favorite Episode: Tsubasa Family, Part 4
Here we finally learned the full tragedy of Hanekawa. The soundtrack is spotify-level and this arc filled in the gaps of the Hanekawa arc in Bakemonogatari. Araragi is still a dunce for not even thinking Hanekawa could harbor feelings for him but this is one of the better entries of the Monogatari series. - CreatorAkiyuki ShinbôFuyashi TôStarsMiyuki SawashiroKana AsumiMichiko NeyaAfter Araragi Koyomi graduated from high school, Kanbaru Suruga feels lonely because there's no one to talk about Oddities anymore. One day, she heard a rumor about Mr. Devil, who can realize people's wishes. She comes to meet that person, but it turns out to be Numachi Rouka - an old basketball rival of her. What can Kanbaru do to help Numachi?Rating: 7.6
Favorite Episode: Suruga Devil, Part 4
Good, we finally got to focus on Kanbaru. Numachi finally going to heaven was more touching than I anticipated Really not much to say here, it's also one of the better entries of Monogatari. - CreatorAkiyuki ShinbôFuyashi TôStarsKana HanazawaYôji UedaSaori HayamiOne day, Tsubasa Hanekawa encounters a giant white tiger apparition at an intersection that talks to her. Her house burns down the next day, leaving her homeless.Rating: 8.0
Favorite Episode: Nadeko medûsa sono yon
Most eventful installment of Monogatari. So many pivotal moments for the main characters. Plot points came full circle and also opened new questions to be answered in the final season. The recap episodes were pointless and like all the Monogatari the dialogue is a strength and weakness when it becomes stale and slow, but it made up for it with more plot progression than the other installments. This is the strongest Monogatari. - StarsTakehito KoyasuSaori HayamiHiroshi KamiyaOne day, Araragi Koyomi suddenly realize that he is no longer reflected in the mirror - one characteristic of vampire. That is because he used vampire power too often and now his body is slowly turned into a vampire himself. Koyomi decided to ask Kagenui Yozoru and Ononoki Yotsugi, specialists about immortal oddities.Rating: 6.9
Favorite Episode: Yotsugi Doll, Part 3
It looked exceptional but it was meh and stale in the end. Besides the one revelation with Araragi's powers, this one was not very impactful. Tadatsuru's monologue, in the end, made absolutely little sense and was so difficult to understand that I just wanted to stop watching. This was later explained in Owarimonogatari but it's still unnecessarily convoluted dialogue Yotsugi really carried this one despite not getting enough screentime. This is the second weakest entry in Monogatari. - StarsHiroshi KamiyaChiwa SaitôYui HorieIn each episode, Koyomi is presented with a mystery posed by one of the female characters from the story, which he then investigates on his own or helps them solve.Rating: 6.8
Favorite Episode: Koyomi Dead
Besides the final three episodes, everything else was "fillerly" and really not that good. The best part about this was getting to see all of the main cast again and their respective openings. Other than that this is the weakest Monogatari. - StarsHiroshi KamiyaMarina InoueEmiri KatoThe end of the saga of Araragi Koyomi. What are they fighting against? What will happen to them? And who- or what- is the darkness?Rating: 7.7
Favorite Episode: Sodachi Riddle, Part One
It ended the main Koyomi saga well. Not much to say, it was pretty standard monogatari. The dialogue was cumbersome/unengaging in many places but this is still one of the better monogatari's. Most of the remaining plot points all fit into place by the end. - DirectorAkiyuki ShinbôHajime ÔtaniStarsKana HanazawaSaori HayamiYui HorieOn the morning of March 16, Koyomi washed his face, and then he feels like his shadow in a mirror looks at him. When he touches a mirror without thinking, he falls into the reverse world. Can he go back to the real world?Rating: 7.3
Complete Series Rating: 7.3
This is the "afterword" and final ending of the Koyomi saga. The ending was fine, and it revealed an interesting take on the characters.
Complete Series Review:
In its entirety, Monogatari is a tightly written supernatural witty harem. While it excels in its artistic presentation, soundtracks, covering its own plot points, making things come full circle, making S-tier characters; it greatly lacks in engagement. Very frequently the dialogue was just unengaging and bland. This was most notable when we got large info dumps (from Gaen) and they tell us about events rather than show (ex: Shinobu's backstory pertaining to "darkness" was just an artistic slideshow). In an already dialogue-driven show, we should get to see these types of events animated rather than just talked about. This flaw made it tiresome to get through installments like Koyomimonogatari. Lastly, the fanservice can be ridiculous especially since this isn't an "ecchi", and the incest service is beyond stupid, but overall Monogatari was a well-written mixed bag. - CreatorDaisuke SatôStarsJun'ichi SuwabeEri KitamuraNobuyuki HiyamaHigh school students are overwhelmed with the start of the zombie apocalypse.Rating: 6.9
Favorite Episode: ACT5: Streets of the DEAD
Fanservice aside, this started out promising with its shock value and serious undertone, then slowly devolved into absurdity. Dodging bullets, drama for the sake of drama, MC started two-timing, countries just launching nukes for no reason, Hirano flipping his lid cause some guys were using swords and not guns, really? The fanservice was terribly placed in the second half, people would be getting eaten, then 1 scene later blatant fanservice that cheapened everything. Overall it's a popcorn show, but I had a lot fun watching it. - StarsShinnosuke MitsushimaTao TsuchiyaMinami Takayama29-year-old Satoru Fujinuma is sent back in time 18 years to prevent the events leading to his mother's death, which began with a series of kidnappings while he was in 5th grade.Rating: 6.8
Favorite Episode: Getaway
The first half was pretty good, but the second half and the ending were abysmal. This needed to be extended beyond 12 episodes. They left so many unanswered questions in regards to his powers and created so many plot conveniences/holes and muddled character motivations that sunk the show for me. It just wasn't a satisfying conclusion. All issue's listed below:
https://www.reddit.com/user/PchelpOnly/comments/nbqxao/erased_ending_issues/ - StarsTakahiro SakuraiSetsuo ItoChris NiosiA psychic middle school boy tries to live a normal life and keep his growing powers under control, even though he constantly gets into trouble.Rating: 8.0
Favorite Episode: Even Then ~Continue Forward~
Great, it knows what it wants to be and excels at it. Simple story simple themes with animation that was visual eye candy. I didn't like the comedy because it held the show back from carrying more weight, and I didn't like the genericism with the final villain in season 2 and its themes around the power of friendship. Though the final arc of season 3 had some contrivances like Dimple resurrecting, Reigen somehow being able to withstand ???% mob with no powers, etc. It was thematically consistent and closed everyone's character arcs well. Overall it's a solid show with flaws. - StarsTakako HondaKurumi MamiyaTomoko KawakamiA group of school kids and a possessed cat fight ghosts in their neighborhood.Rating: 5.0
Favorite Episode: The Corpse that Roams in the Night - Shirotabi
"Not because you're a rabbit but because you're black".
Seriously the english dub was a masterpiece, when it was funny I couldn't breathe. Five stars for the humor, but -5 for the god awful plot, if the plot was bearable this would be a 9/10. - StarsNoriaki SugiyamaKate HigginsKari WahlgrenAmateur mage Shirou Emiya gets involved in a fight between mages using mythological heroes.VN Route Rating: 8.0
The Fate series consists of three-story routes the watch order can be found here. I am rating the source material (Visual Novel) for this route, not this mediocre anime adaptation. The Fate/stay night Fate route was great, the lore was executed well and nearly all major questions were answered. The dark undertone of the story was well done and the ending was satisfyingly realistic. It was unpredictable and there were little to no plot armors. Cons: it had a slow start, there were large wordy info dumps, there were a little too many flashbacks and it didn't have a good anime adaptation. Other than that solid. - StarsNoriaki SugiyamaKana UedaBryce PapenbrookA group of seven mages gets chosen to become masters of seven classes of heroic spirits, in order to fight and win the Holy Grail.VN Route Rating: 8.1
Anime Rating: 7.8
The Visual Novel was Solid. The Unlimited Blade Works route carried improvements over the fate route like fewer flashbacks and faster pacing. It also had more action than the first route and a serious twist I never saw coming. However, it also had narrative flaws that the first route didn't have. UBW had plot conveniences for Shirou near the end Example: Archer projecting rho aias just as Shirou is about to be hit by Ea when archer was supposed to be dead (something not explained in the VN they didn't tell us he turned into spirit form after fighting Gilgamesh and fed on spirits in the Einzbern Forrest to survive). And of course Shirou always seeming to survive with the power of willpower only being able to fight because saber's sheath is inside him . Shirou's character dev was tiny in this, and Rin isn't a multilayered character like Saber but despite this, it's an improvement over the first route.
The anime though made good and bad changes.The good consisted of things like adding a backstory to Medea's master, showing more Illya backstory, clarifying Kuzuki's backstory, etc. The bad: removing Shirou's monologues which made him look even more stubborn now without reason. Adding plotholes, the biggest one that comes to mind is: archer summoning UBW in his fight with Shirou when he isn't supposed to have the mana available to do this . And removing explanations Ex: the random high jump scene in S2 ep 10 that was not explained in the anime, (it was the first time Rin took notice of Shirou and admired him) . The anime also made rin too "tsunderey". Like any adaptation, they sped-run certain aspects but it was largely 1-1. People's complaints about this are semi-valid because of how it was adapted but many don't understand that UBW is one part of a 3 part franchise. Everything and everybody won't be explained in one route. It is complementary to the other routes. - DirectorTomonori SudôStarsBryce PapenbrookNoriaki SugiyamaNoriko ShitayaMovie adaptation of the third route of Fate/Stay Night.Rating: 7.0
It was a rushed adaptation. The biggest issue was the removal of all of Shirou's monologues consequently making a lot of his actions such as saving saber look random. Despite being 2 hours the pacing felt very fast if you didn't read the source material beforehand you would be completely lost. This is only part 1, and the third installment of the fate franchise so I don't expect it to re-explain everything but by design, it doesn't work as a standalone film. It just omitted too much detail especially Sakura's characterization.
Pros: animation/art style is incredible, and they added anime original scenes like rider sucking Ayako's blood . - DirectorTomonori SudôStarsYu AsakawaMichael DonovanMelissa FahnThe story focuses on the Holy Grail War and explores the relationship between Shirou Emiya and Sakura Matou, two teenagers participating in this conflict. The story continues immediately from Fate/stay night: Heaven's Feel I. presage flower, following Shirou as he continues to participate in the Holy Grail War even after being eliminated as a master.Rating: 8.0
Much better than part I. The pacing felt slower and they hit all the big plot points well. There's still, no Shirou monologues and they removed some direct explanations like Sakura requiring the semen of magi to ward off the crest worm, this was explicitly explained in the VN, but implicitly here so it looked like she just wanted ordinary sex. As well as: Shirou's bandage experiments and explaining the sword of zelretch. They made up for it with incredible fight scenes, and overall top-tier directing. It's a passable adaptation. - DirectorTomonori SudôStarsYu AsakawaMichael DonovanMelissa FahnThe final chapter in the Heaven's Feel trilogy. Angra Mainyu has successfully possessed his vessel Sakura Matou. It's up to Rin, Shirou, and Rider to cleanse the grail or it will be the end of the world and magecraft as we all know it.Rating: 7.9
VN Route Rating: 8.8
The Visual Novel Heavens Feel is the strongest Fate route by far. So many revelations and plot points that were left ambiguous in other routes got explained here. It was fast-paced, unpredictable, horrific, and ended with little to no copouts. although there were some plot armour moments: ex shirou still being able to fight berserker after being clobbered by berserker and Kotomine showing up at the end despite getting his heart crushed by Sakura. Unlike in UBW Shirou's character, dev here was massive. It was a great conclusion to the routes.
Also unlike UBW anime this anime didn't make any bad changes, the only flaw is that they removed a lot of explanations and monologues like the fact that kotomoine has an artificial heart, that shirou at the end is a doll that houses Shirou's soul. They also didn't clearly explain that shirou's mind was being destroyed, and they didn't directly explain that Shirou projected the gem sword, etc. I didn't like the chorus that played in the fights it felt generic, but the fights and animation were incredible. Another passable adaptation. - StarsAyako KawasumiKari WahlgrenSayaka ÔharaSeven chosen mages and their summoned heroic spirits fight against each other to try and win the Holy Grail: a magical device that can grant any wish.Rating: 7.8
Favorite Episode: The End of Honor
It was simultaneously good and underwhelming. It removed too much content from the LN that would've added the necessary characterization/explanations to make the deaths hit harder. There was tons of shock value but since they sped run the characters it didn't matter when they died because I felt nothing. Ex: we met Shirley for one episode then she died, we also met Natalia for 2 episodes then she died etc... There wasn't enough time to flesh them out and get me attached to them. This needed more episodes to give us those inner monologues and backgrounds that make the characters more potent. Good not great.
You're supposed to read the main 3 routes in the VN before watching this so this limits the suprise factor as well. - StarsSumire UesakaDaiki YamashitaKimberley Anne CampbellHigh schooler Hayase Nagatoro loves to spend her free time doing one thing, and that is to bully her Senpai. After Nagatoro and her friends stumble upon the aspiring artist's drawings, they find enjoyment in mercilessly bullying the timid Senpai.Rating: 5.0
Favorite Episode: Has Spring Come Even for You, the Unpopular Loner Louse Senpai?/Did You Hear Her Talk About Love, Senpai?
Read the manga thought it was ok, watched the anime did not like it at all. The 2nd viewing revealed just how repetitive this is. Nagatoro's teasing gets extremely stale, and the side characters are really just watered-down nagatoro clones. It's also very average with its use stock romcom cliches from sexual misunderstandings to nagatoro's tsundere/yandere service. The best part of this is the president, you never know what to expect from her, other than that this show isn't very good.
- CreatorTappei NagatsukiEiji UmeharaStarsAtsumi TanezakiJun FukuyamaCristina ValenzuelaThe female looking and first autonomous AI named Diva is created for one mission to make everyone happy by singing. Shortly Diva is confronted by an unknown "program" from the future with objective to make Diva join him and destroy AIs.Rating: 7.9
Favorite Episode: Refrain - My Mission
Before Vivy rebooted it was a solid 8.5/10, then it faltered a little, got great again then abruptly ended. It had S-tier presentation with great animation, art style, and soundtrack. But it just left a little too much up to interpretation and mishandled a lot of character motivations the closer you got to the ending. Thematically the ending was perfect, but the lingering plotholes and poorly explained plot threads really bothered me for such a serious sci-fi show. 1-2 more episodes could've covered those holes. All in all, it's a great show with an ok ending, so still solid despite its flaws. Probably one of the best anime-original stories I've seen.
List of plot grievances below:
https://www.reddit.com/user/PchelpOnly/comments/p0lyro/vivy_fluorite_eyes_song_unanswered_questions/. - StarsAya HiranoNobunaga ShimazakiRinka H.B.B.17-year-old Shinichi Izumi is partially infected by a Parasyte, monsters that butcher and consume humans. He must learn to co-exist with the creature if he is to survive both the life of a Parasyte and a human as part monster, part person.Rating: 6.9
Favorite Episode: Heart
Great first half, disappointing second half. So many holes, confusing character motivations, and plot conveniences in the second half of this that I'm not even going to bother listing them out. Ridiculous how the quality can drop that hard. One of the biggest issues is the fact that they never explain the origins of the Parasyte's the just fell from the sky for no reason. The second half was tonally warped to the point where it would be a horror show in the first 12 minutes, then forced sex with no buildup in the second 12 looking at you EP 21, he was still hiding things from her at this point, their relationship should not have progressed to that point that night. The dubstep was obnoxious and the OP was too brazen seriously death metal? for what was going on half the time. Why did they kill all the interesting side characters like Tamiya, Ryouko, and Kana while saving the dull side characters like Murano who was saved at the end via an "asspull", migi is supposed to be permanently sleeping but he just happens to get up and save her from falling. The ED was great, and the first half had great pacing, unpredictability, strategy, and little to no "asspulls", but the sorry second half tanked my rating from an 8 to a 6. There are more issues with the final 12 episodes but it's best to leave it here, any more and this would be a rant. - CreatorYûsei MatsuiStarsJun FukuyamaMai FuchigamiBryce PapenbrookA powerful creature claims that within a year, Earth will be destroyed by him, but he offers mankind a chance by becoming a homeroom teacher where he teaches his students about how to kill him. An assassination classroom begins.Rating: 7.0
Favorite Episode: Secret Identity Time
Didn't like it at first but the final season improved the show. There's a lot of characters; many of them end up being 1 or 2-dimensional Terasaka was the ex-bully stubborn brute, karma the genius edgelord who goes with the flow, Ryunosuke the sniper... with some exceptions like Kaede. This show's biggest pitfalls is its lapses in logic, too many instances to list but direct plotholes: Lovro being killed by the reaper yet showing up alive a couple of episodes later, Koro-sensei blocking the reaper's bullet for Karasuma and somehow procuring fruit juice in prison to mimick Karasuma's blood. Deus ex Machina's: Koro-sensei's "ultimate defense form" pulled out of thin air for that one moment the students almost killed him, the entire cell regeneration sequence near the end to save Kayano (thematically works, plotwise doesn't). , And general absurdities: The clapping technique used by Nagisa to win nearly all his toughest encounters, seriously clapping in trained professional's faces to win? Irina getting a slap on the wrist after tricking and nearly killing the whole class because "that's just part of assassination". Karma throwing his fight with Nagisa because Nagisa beat him in martial arts yet using the knife to win the match would have been a fair way for karma to win. Overall a decent watch with stretches of mediocrity and a ton of flaws. - CreatorKatie KrentzPatrick McHaleStarsElijah WoodCollin DeanMelanie LynskeyTwo brothers find themselves lost in a mysterious land and try to find their way home.Rating: 6.0
Favorite Episode: Chapter 9: Into the Unknown
At its core a show about confronting your problems head-on. The 1900's art style and soundtrack were great, but it was far too juvenile and aimless. I understand it's a children's cartoon but some of the dialogue (i.e Greg's), was painfully annoying. This show is mostly interpretive as many plot points weren't directly addressed what exactly is the unknown, what is the beast really, are all the people over the garden wall dead since they are all in 1800's attire and the world is in the 1990s, if so how was the bell still physically in Greg's frog in ep 10, etc. . The short stories themselves were loosely related and the characters and overarching plot didn't carry much gravity for me to get into this. Not my cup of tea, but not a terrible show either. - StarsMichael SinterniklaasNeil KaplanAdam SietzAn anthology of animated shorts from around the world celebrating the mythology of Star Wars through unique cultural perspectives.Rating: 6.5
Favorite Episode: The Ninth Jedi
A creative take on star wars. Unfortunately, the quality was wildly inconsistent, while it's not supposed to be 1:1 canon, absurdities like: breathing in space and lightsaber noodles in ep 2, robots using the force in ep 6, Ocho somehow not dying in episode 8.. can not be ignored. Most episodes were presented well but too many of them had nonsensical plots, if they were all on the same level as episodes 1, 4, and 5 this would be a good show.
Update: season 2 dropped and the quality was a more consistent. Unfortunately they decided to make just about all the leads female and all nearly all the villain's male. Piss of K.K she had to have put a mandate for all female leads because the prior season was naturally diversified not forcefully female. - StarsTomokazu SugitaDaisuke SakaguchiRie KugimiyaIn an era where aliens have invaded and taken over feudal Tokyo, an unemployed samurai finds work however he can.Rating: 4.9
Favorite Episode: Sworn Enemy
You have to find the comedy style funny otherwise you'll loathe the series. Gintama is mostly parody humor with serious/semi-serious arcs interspersed throughout. Personally, I didn't find most of the episodes funny mainly due to Shinpachi's constant screaming, and whole episodes dedicated to parodying Japanese celebrities, games, or obscure anime I haven't seen. If you don't like the humor then all that's left is the serious arcs, which unfortunately are generic shonen arcs. The serious arcs are formulaic and almost all go like this: A new foe appears, Gin gets hurt by the foe, the foe wreaks havoc while Gin is hurt, Gin miraculously recovers and fights the foe, Gin gives his monologue centered around the themes of the arc, and beats the foe. Finally, the foe's full backstory is revealed and they were never evil just misunderstood. Most arcs are not resolved by strategy or clever writing, but rather plot armor, and incessant plot conveniences. There are too many instances to enumerate but for example in the Yoshiwara flames arc, Gintoki fights Hosen the strongest of the Yato (a superhuman race), ever. Not only does he get beaten, but he also takes a blunt kick to the face from Hosen. Instead of dying as any human would, he just sits there for 2 minutes, steaming like a titan then miraculously revives and beats the crap out of Hosen with his as seen on tv wooden sword to save the day. It's nonsense especially when Kamui another Yato took off the arm of Abuto (also a Yato) in one swing, and Kamui is WEAKER than Hosen. Using that logic a mere human with no powers like Gintoki should be dead in one punch fighting Hosen. It was the plot armor of being the main character that allowed him to even survive the fight. There are so many moments that make your head spin like Gintoki being able to fight against lightsabers with a wooden sword, shinpachi going toe-toe with Utsuro in the silver soul arc, Shinpachi not dying when fighting hordes of yato in the shogun assassination arc, Takasugi not dying after being destroyed by Gintoki and impaled in the shogun assassination arc, Utsuro not immediately blowing up earth via Altana, but waiting for no reason until the odds were stacked against him, etc... There are even thematic issue's like the silver soul arc undoing Gintoki's character by having him run away from the present to save his teacher of the past, when thematically it was established Gintoki has moved on from the past, and has found new meaning in the present unlike his counterparts Takasugi, and Katsura (for a while). There are no stakes in this show since everyone important enough besides the shogun will survive no matter what happens, God forbid the MC gets injured for more than 2 episodes. You would expect decent writing from what some call a "goated" shonen. Besides the Shogun Assassination arc, and the Yagyu arc I thoroughly disliked this series. There are other problems with this series, but this is already my longest review yet. - DirectorYôichi FujitaStarsTomokazu SugitaDaisuke SakaguchiRie KugimiyaGintoki travels into the future and discovers it to be a wasteland with his friends fallen apart. He reunites them to find out what went wrong and how to fix things.Rating: 6.9
A continuation of Gintama, it's best not to think about this as the time travel made little sense Gin travels back in time to kill himself in the final battle yet everyone I mean everyone somehow travel back in time to stop him from killing himself after he successfully killed himself to make the peaceful timeline where he didn't exist; and Tama somehow remembered Gintoki's existence in the timeline where he was erased enough to transport everyone back in time to save him.... As well as other nonsensical moments The virus infecting Gintoki again in the final battle yet it not affecting him because he already has the virus, these are nanobots, the gin from the past was overcome by his, introducing more of them to himself should do the same to the Gintoki of the present. Also Gintoki of the Joi war seeing gintoki of the future and it having no repercussions for the timeline. Many technical flaws can't be overlooked even if this movie is essentially great fanservice for Gintama fans. - CreatorHideaki SorachiStarsTomokazu SugitaDaisuke SakaguchiRie KugimiyaWhen a love potion is unleashed across Edo, hilarity ensues as everyone's romantic affections go out of control.Rating: 6.9
Favorite Episode: Episode #1.1
A continuation of Gintama, the best thing about this was Gin and Tsukuyo, specifically Tsukuyo acknowledging she loves Gintoki, but knows he doesn't belong with anyone. There were plot-contrivances, like the Hotaru somehow procuring boatloads of the anecdote seemingly with no outside help, everyone continually flip-flopping between being infatuated and being normal for no valid reason, etc. but it was enjoyable and the ending was solid. - DirectorChizuru MiyawakiStarsGreg AyresJames BelcherClint BickhamThe concluding movie to the Gintama anime series.Rating: 7.0
The finale of Gintama. Negating all the shonen ridiculousness that comes with all Gintama serious arcs (detailed in my review of the series); it was a touching and fitting ending. The animation, art style, choreography, and sound took a step up from the series for the movie finale. It was faced paced and well-directed. Takasugi should've stayed dead but Gintama never really kills important characters anyways. - CreatorKazuya TsurumakiStarsJun MizukiMayumi ShintaniIzumi KasagiMysterious things start happening when 12-year-old Naota meets a strange woman on a Vespa wielding a big guitar.Rating: 5.9
Favorite Episode: Furikura
A coming of age story about puberty and mechs, guitars, portals, unrequited love, manipulation, etc.. This is akin to Evangelion as the plot and presentation is so sporadic and interpretive it's difficult to get a handle on what's going on. Most of the appeal comes from its unorthodox presentation of its themes and metaphors like Naota hitting the satellite symbolizing him facing his fears and taking an active approach in his life, it's also a sex metaphor as when Naota swings his bat all the girls lose it and Naota also comments "If he rushes he won't be able to get it up". But other than that it was a mess. Plot points like Why some people have portals in there heads, why is Medical Mechanica "omniciding" planets, how a powerful being like Atomsk got captured, why Naota jumping into canti allows him to control it, why guitars are used as weapons etc. Were poorly explained and rushed, a show shouldn't require a dissertation of interpretation to comprehend. At that point, it's convoluted. - CreatorJon FavreauStarsTemuera MorrisonMing-Na WenFrank TriggBounty hunter Boba Fett and mercenary Fennec Shand navigate the underworld when they return to Tatooine to claim Jabba the Hutt's old turf.Rating: 5.8
Favorite Episode: Chapter 6: From the Desert Comes a Stranger
Boba was a background character in his own show! And how Boba's character was executed was a letdown. I get the character theme about defining your own path, and not being who you're "expected" to be shown how Grogu quit his training, boba quit being a bounty hunter, etc. But we were baited into thinking we were getting a gritty crime drama, with ruthless Boba as shown in the Mandalorian but it did a complete 180. You can be mature and not be push over towards everyone around you. There were power inconsistencies: Boba taking down a sand monster after he escaped the Sarlacc (when he's supposedly weaker), but getting his behind kicked in the present day against the no-name assassins ("night wind"), even doing something as stupid as shooting a shield at point-blank (makes no sense he is an expert warrior at this point he knows better). Straight contradictions: Boba who knows his ship can be remote activated and come to his location by the touch of his wrist in Ep 7 decides to summon the Rancour and destroys the city while "saving" the city to stop the scorpion droids. And general oddities The "mods" were too colorful and jarring characters for a place like Tatooine, this would work on Coruscant but here it felt cheesy. The soundtrack is great, and it looked clean for the most part but many including myself were underwhelmed. - StarsTaichi IchikawaHaruka ShiraishiNatsuko HaraA man wakes from suspended animation to find himself in a world where only a million men survived an epidemic. He is selected for breeding as part of a repopulation program.Rating: 4.9
Favorite Episode: Revenge
Interesting concept poor execution. If it wasn't for Doi-kun, and his chad evolution this show would be terrible. Blatant holes: In episode 1 It's stated the UW hides the existence of the "numbers" but somehow recruits boatloads of women to mate with the numbers meaning women outside the UW HAVE to know that men still exist otherwise they couldn't sign up for mating benefits. UW higher-ups are revealed to hate men but didn't kill the remaining men in stasis who WEREN't resistant to the MK virus, they serve no purpose as a backup for reproduction since they'd die immediately when released from stasis, makes no sense why they weren't killed. Society collapsed after the men died when it was stated autonomous robots run society and people CHOOSE to work for pleasure (they revise this by saying the robots needed operators, but that meant they weren't fully autonomous and even then society shouldn't collapse in five years) etc. The pacing is too fast as characters would be introduced have a set motivation, then get another motivation, then another ex Chloe Mansfield , to the point where it was convoluted following all the inner factions and who's sided with who. This is an ecchi but even the fanservice was laughably placed Karen stretching nude, Mansfield going to meetings nude Mansfield torturing her subordinate nude. It really isn't even good because the anime has a lower production value making it look generic. The manga isn't significantly better for this to be a decent series. - CreatorShinichi FukudaStarsHina SugutaShoya IshigeAmaLeeA quiet loner and the popular girl at school find common ground, making their cosplay dreams come true.Rating: 7.1
Favorite Episode: I Am Currently at a Love Hotel
A realistically wholesome anime rom-com, with no obnoxious 'dere tropes. The protagonists actually have a reason to like each other besides physical appearance. .The presentation was great, the realism with the process of cosplaying and photography was a nice touch. Gojo constantly being flustered by Marin was irritating (though in character), and since the subject matter was very feminine it didn't personally grip me into the narrative. There are some lingering questions to be answered such as: who was that girl who emotionally scarred Gojo as a child, why Marin is so nonchalant with her body (literally went to Gojo's house alone in a swimsuit 1 day after meeting him etc..., but the series isn't complete @ the time of writing (05/2022). - CreatorNegi HarubaStarsYoshitsugu MatsuokaKana HanazawaAyana TaketatsuWith his family deep in debt, Futaro Uesugi accepts a lucrative job tutoring underachieving quintuplet classmates to help them graduate high school.Rating: 7.6
Favorite Episode: Sisters War: Part 1
Solid and entertaining, finally a harem MC who isn't a flustered mess and FMCs who aren't just carbon copies of dere'types. It was never repetitive and never too risque or dramatic. Each quint went through decent character development besides Yotsuba and the presentation was great. Main flaw is the overuse of rom-com cliches like Ichika and Futaro getting locked in the supply room conveniently nobody hearing them banging on the doors right after they just locked them in. Futaro decking Nino in a bath towel to avoid three measly books falling on her head only for this to lead to a stupid trial where Futaro is accused of being a pervert etc... - DirectorMasato JinbôStarsYoshitsugu MatsuokaKana HanazawaAyana TaketatsuTeenage Tutor Fuutaro Uesugi has to finally choose between the 5 Nakano Sisters, who all have feelings for him, at the School's Upcoming Cultural Festival; the event that will lead to his Wedding to one of them in a Flash-Forward.Rating: 4.0
Rating the source material for this movie. It was a step down from the first two seasons and the ending was disjointed from the previous 100 chapters. The rationale for Yotsuba winning wasn't strong enough to nullify the 100 chapters of development from the other quints (besides Itsuki). Arguing that since Yotsuba was Rena, and the most selfless, and foreshadowed from the beginning doesn't excuse her lack of character or development. The final chapters had bloated plot points like the biological father arc which was only present so Itsuki could relate her resolve to become a teacher back to Futaro so she could get her "kiss scene", she should've just stayed neutral in the love pyramid since she was never a major player in the plot or romance. The proof of this is in Yotsuba's and Futaro's awkward first date, there was no chemistry between them even up to their honeymoon where ridiculously all the quints join them. Why even marry her when you guys can't even share one panel kissing each other. It seems the author tried to please everyone and nobody simultaneously, I would've even preferred a polygamy ending over this. - StarsEwan McGregorMoses IngramVivien Lyra BlairJedi Master Obi-Wan Kenobi must save young Leia after she is kidnapped, all the while being pursued by Imperial Inquisitors and his former Padawan now known as Darth Vader.Rating: 5.0
Favorite Episode: Part VI
Being generous with this rating. We had great writing Vader going full Starkiller, Vader setting Obi-wan on fire, the blend of Vader and Anakin both in voice and saber reflection when he was speaking to obi wan in part VI etc.. but a ton of horrible writing: Vader letting Obi-wan go in episode 3 then getting mad at Reva for letting him go. Reva surviving being stabbed by anakin twice, that random Jedi somehow finding Kenobi in episode 1, Obi-Wan becoming more powerful we've ever seen him in canon in the span of 1 day with zero re-training, grown men unable to catch Leah slowly running in episode 2, Reva interrogating Leah for no reason, leah being kidnapped twice in a mini series etc.. The presentation felt cheap: shaky cam, weirdly bright lightsabers, and music that wasn't even Star Wars despite John Williams doing the opening theme of the show. Reva had everything handed to her on a plate making her plight weightless and annoying especially since she took a good amount of screentime. Only after digging did I find the writer of this series didn't even watch Revenge of the Sith before doing the script. It seems both marvel and star wars are doing quantity > quality, they won't stop until more people raise issue with this level of writing. - CreatorKentaro MiuraStarsMarc DiraisonNobutoshi CannaCarrie KeranenGuts, a wandering mercenary, joins the Band of the Hawk after being defeated in a duel by Griffith, the group's leader and founder. Together, they dominate every battle, but something menacing lurks in the shadows.Rating: will watch later
Manga Rating: 7.9
Favorite Episode: N/A
Mostly solid, this manga has the best artwork I've ever seen in a comic. It does most major things right for fantasy, (golden age). At a high level, the story is well connected and the characters around the Guts are nuanced and well written. There were nice metaphors like Casca calling Guts a rabid dog, the berserker armor becoming a rabid dog consuming guts, Gut's being represented as a rabid dog in Casca's dreams, campfire of dreams etc. The biggest flaw of this series is Gut's plot armor which is masked behind fate driven writing (the currents of causality) he survives because he has to. This was implicitly corrected later by having characters acknowledge Gut's is in the interstice and Gut's attaining literal armor berserker armor which lets him get as strong as the plot needs him to. The issue is he has no powers, so when he takes hits from apostles like Wyald pre interstice, and a super sonic Rosine post interstice he should be dead in one blow, not banged up and back to swinging his comically large sword a week later (even with fairy dust). Because he will always "win" most of the battles lack tension. Fate-driven writing is a double-edged sword but you can only have skull knight show up right as when things get tough and mask it will "currents of causality" a couple of times before it seems like a copout. Lastly, the amount of rape is excessive in the first half. Although it's realistic we don't need to see this happen to almost every female character. The fact that Casca reverted to a child post eclipse and was disabled for nearly the whole story felt like a copout so that we could focus on Guts. If she still had the intellect of a woman BUT had severe PTSD this would work. Or if Griffith willfully destroyed her mind out of spite for Guts so he couldn't be with her, would also fix this point, it's just too far-fetched even if the eclipse is a supernatural event. - CreatorAlex HirschStarsJason RitterAlex HirschKristen SchaalTwin siblings Dipper and Mabel Pines spend the summer at their great-uncle's tourist trap in the enigmatic Gravity Falls, Oregon.Rating: 6.9
Favorite Episode: A Tale of Two Stans
There was a well-executed backstory to Gravity falls lore that saves this show: the reveal of Stanford and the portal's origins. However, the show is just irritatingly childish despite being a children's show with dark undertones. Subjectively most of the dialogue from characters like Mabel and Soos is juvenile obnoxious humor. The first half is mostly the Pines children learning life lessons due to supernatural events. The real story doesn't begin until season 2. The amount of irrelevant and cringe plot threads like having to watch 12-year-old girls dating adventures zombie guy, Mermando, several times, Gideon, etc.., and the stupidest man alive (pioneer day episode) detract from the great episodes like the Tale of Two stans; which add nuance and depth to the narrative. Mabel's character is problematic because at the expense of Dipper's wishes she always gets what she wants and it's played off as her being a "bubbly pure person": ex-Dipper's dream of becoming Stanford's apprentice was derailed by Mabel because she didn't want to grow up. Even though Mabel was quick to replace Dipper in her dreamscape during Wierdmaggedon, only for Dipper to throw away his dream to appease Mabel's. It's selfish and one-sided. The ending was mostly solid despite the copout of Stan regaining his memories even though they were completely wiped. There are too many cons to call this a great watch, just because it's a comedy doesn't mean it has to be kiddie. - CreatorDave FiloniStarsCorey BurtonAshley EcksteinDee Bradley BakerAnimated shorts that feature Jedi from the prequel era.Rating: 7.9
Favorite Episode: Practice Makes Perfect
Solid, the presentation was on the same level as clone wars season 7 (mostly), and it meticulously filled in cinematic gaps in lore: what Ashoka thought of Padme's death, why Ashoka rejoined the fight after order 66, Dooku's POV during episode I, why Yaddle disappeared after episode 1. Why Kamino was missing from the archives in episode 2 etc. Flaws: the first two Dooku episodes were repeating the same plotlines: corrupt politician, Jedi used as pawns, Dooku realizes Jedi will not ensure peace and order. The first episode was nearly pointless and the last episode was a speedrun of the Ashoka novels (still solid though). Somehow Yaddle briefly survived being crushed but this is a nitpick because she was killed anyways. I don't know why this wasn't a full series but it is very good for its runtime. - CreatorYomuStarsNene HiedaJunya EnokiSumire UesakaFrom the creator of Miru Tights comes a new anime about three coworkers and their everyday lives.Rating: 4.6
Favorite Episode: N/A
Just three women fighting for the attention of one man who doesn't even have eyes. The characters are defined by how big their breasts are and their age in relation to the MC that's it, they're just there to orbit the MC and try to make him theirs. Every cliché in the book from a dense MC to getting stuck in an elevator, the fanservice is all this has to offer. - StarsNatsuki HanaeStephen FuJohn ChoiDue to the death of her childhood friend, Shinpei returns to her native home, but beneath the surface this island seems to hold some secrets.Rating: 7.0
Favorite Episode: Bloody Night
A borderline convoluted generally well-explained time travel show about beating monsters and living with no regrets. The show's circularly written and was able to make the overarching A-plot make sense. Most of the characters are two-dimensional at best Ushio the bubbly hot-headed walking dues ex Machina, Mio the irrelevant love interest who is a damsel in distress most loops, Sou the "bro" who really didn't do anything besides complain to his dad and sister about their treachery etc.. The main issue with this show is that it turned into a battle shonen in the second half with ridiculous contrivances to the shadows (primarily ushio's) abilities to allow them to survive certain scenarios. Way too many examples to list but things like: Ep 18 hizuru somehow figuring out she could willfully transfer her brothers shadow into shide, ushio being able to make a dummy of herself in 1 second to avoid being burned to death by shide when it was never established she made a copy of herself prior, and it took her minutes to make a copy of herself later in the series to destroy shide with a hacking bullet, shide's remote control shenanigans in the final episodes which is what he should've been doing the entire show to fight shinpei with all his clones at once, hizuru's brother opening shinpeis "nerves" in hiroko's world so he could stand up and fire the hacking bullet without shadow powers why didn't he do this when his sister needed it most before she died? Haine somehow moving ushios copied gun to shinpei so he could fire the hacking bullet etc.. It doesn't help that there are copious amounts of plot conveniences that allow very specific plot points to occur. You can only suspend you're disbelief so far when Haine refuses to kill shinpei due to the "presence" of ushio in the shell after she died when she could've just sent any other shadow to kill shinpei (whom has no powers) and win the series; the exit to hiroko's world conveniently being her origin scene so ushio could kill her and beat the story even though this place was prebuilt for her to spend eternity in after regaining her strength? Why would the exit be at the most vulnerable point in time where everything Hiroko worked for could be erased she didn't always plan for ushio to kill her? Don't say hiroko sent them their either she was 99% dead and shouldn't have the ability to do any time jumps. Also Shide not using all his clones at once to repeatedly kill shinpei in any of the loops. They could barely fight one shide, if he did this the story would've ended quickly... The main villain's motive is the generic I want to destroy the world because I want to motive and everything ended happily ever after cheapening any character death prior. It could've been a potential masterpiece given better characters, fewer contrivances, and less unnecessary complexity but all in all, it's just a disappointment. - CreatorTony GilroyStarsDiego LunaKyle SollerStellan SkarsgårdPrequel series to Star Wars' 'Rogue One'. In an era filled with danger, deception and intrigue, Cassian will embark on the path that is destined to turn him into a Rebel hero.Rating: 7.6
Favorite Episode: One Way Out
A fundamentally premium show with nuanced characters, pristine cinematography, realistic plots, methodical world-building, and a gritty tone. This show has some of the best tension scenes since the clone wars and it treads on the reality of fascism and the not-so-glamourous rebellion well. Andor is like a lightly salted steak, it's a solid meal but it's missing the flash, action, twists, and faster pacing of prior star wars shows making it feel slow and bland in comparison. Those who are more entertained by dialogue would like this show over others like the Mandalorian as Andor is more complex. Andor himself is not an interesting protagonist but surrounding characters like Luthen make up for this. Good with great moments, but not exceptional. - CreatorRafal JakiStarsZach AguilarKagga JaysonKenichiro OhashiA Street Kid trying to survive in a technology and body modification-obsessed city of the future. Having everything to lose, he chooses to stay alive by becoming an Edgerunner, a Mercenary outlaw also known as a Cyberpunk.Rating: 7.5
Favorite Episode: My Moon My Man
Fun and flawed with gratuitous amounts of violence/nudity. The presentation was phenomenal and the ending though expected was decently executed Almost everybody dies when Adam shows up and Lucy gets to see the moon. The themes about living for someone else's dream, never trusting a fellow Edgerunner, Edgerunning always leading to a violent death were consistent. It didn't make sense why Lucy didn't just tell David she's been protecting him post timeskip from netrunners which probably would've slowed his descent into madness to protect her. Also David destroying himself even after seeing Maine get cyber psychosis because "his Mom and Maine had plans for him (Ep 8)" makes no sense; Maine wanted him to live why would he do the exact same thing he just saw his mentor derail his life doing. Also his mom's plans for him were to live a clean life at arasaka he did the opposite? Post timeskip David makes a lot of stupid decisions that seem to be present because it makes the plot more entertaining. That, breakneck pacing and flat characters like Maine just the mentor whose there to die in the heroes journey, hold this show back from being exceptional. - StarsKikunosuke ToyaRyan Colt LevyTomori KusunokiFollowing a betrayal, a young man left for dead is reborn as a powerful devil-human hybrid after merging with his pet devil and is soon enlisted into an organization dedicated to hunting devils.Part 1 Rating: 8.2
Favorite Episode: Gunfire
Favorite Chapter: I, Love Chainsaw
A dark, unpredictable coming-of-age story about servitude. The power system is novel for the most part and the worldbuilding and motifs around dogs, doors and ignorance were seamless. Denji is hilarious, we finally have an MC who isn't concerned about saving the world or being altruistic just a normal guy who wants a normal life. How he changes as a character as he becomes less ignorant mirrors what a real person would do in his situation. The other characters though not as compelling were decently fleshed out. The show has no qualms about showing gore or killing people, and the mystery around Makima and Pochita kept you mentally engaged. There were some plot contrivances like Denji using legsaws to defeat katana man, Himeno's ghost not killing Aki and giving him a cig, Pochita somehow having the ability to erase devils completely, Akane somehow reviving katana man (didn't pull his trigger, give him blood or anything), Makima somehow remembering erased events, Makima having a contract with the prime minister making her near un-killable (this dude was never even on screen yet gave Makima the most OP ability ever, granted she was raised by the government so it's up for interpretation whether or not she manipulated the prime minister for this ability) etc... and some contradictions in the power system: Himeno's ghost becoming tangible to fight katana man, honestly, everything involving the ghost devil post-Himeno. Pochita somehow being able to eviscerate all the hybrids after losing a lot of power due to the world now loving him instead of fearing him when before hybrids like Reze was enough to finish him off etc. Some of the reveals with Makima broke events like the Katana arc is now a convoluted power grab for Makima since the Gun devil didn't orchestrate any of this, but it still doesn't make sense because Makima wouldn't need to do this if all she was actually trying to do was break Denji's contract with Pochita and defeat Pochita to cleanse the world. Literally, what was the point why did she blackmail the yakuza like she doesn't already have eyes and ears everywhere it just starts falling apart. However the narrative isn't completely finished yet so many flaws now may come full circle later. - CreatorSaki HasemiStarsAkeno WatanabeHaruka TomatsuSayuri YahagiWhen an alien from the planet Deviluke runs away and goes into hiding on earth,she meets a human named Yuuki Rito. Watch as she wants to get married to him while he wants no part of itRating: 5.0
Favorite Episode: Maiorita shôjo
It's a rom-com ecchi so the plot usually isn't good but this one really wasn't good. It's just too repetitive almost every episode Rito see's some boobs freaks out like he doesn't see them every other hour, gets slapped, apologizes, conveniently falls on the some boobs again rinse and repeat Lala's gadgets are just dues ex machina's and Rito irritates the viewer with some of the stupid decisions he makes. The earth depended on him being an actual man and this dude spends weeks going on adventures with Lala rather than training for King Devilukes return. Of course he was only saved by the power of friendship for this subplot. Haruna's just a damsell in distress but some of the other characters like Golden Darkness and Kotagawa were interesting to watch. The show also can't decide whether or not people know about aliens or don't flip-flopping and contradicting established logic early on. - StarsAkeno WatanabeHaruka TomatsuSayuri YahagiA year after Lala came to Earth, she is all the more determined to make Rito fall for her. Poor Rito will have to face tough times since Lala's younger twin sisters, Nana and Momo, now live in the same house.Rating: 6.0
Favorite Episode: Mouichido kokokara/Ofuroba daisensou/Chikutaku chikutaku koi no oto
More of the same to love ru but less terrible episodes. New characters were added to the cast and existing ones slowly developed throughout the fanservice centered plots. - StarsAkeno WatanabeMisato FukuenYuka IguchiLala's little sister, Momo Belia Deviluke, has fallen in love with Rito. Momo plots to steal Rito away from her sister, Lala. She hopes that if Rito marries Lala, he can legally marry every girl who is in love of him.Rating: 6.9
Favorite Episode: Bright future
There was an actual plot with this one which continued until the end of the series in the manga. The highlight of this was the completion of Yami's Violet Evergarden Esque character arc and the reveal of Yami's true power via her darkness ability Some things were poorly done like Celine spawning out of nowhere, Tear spawning almost out of nowhere, the continuation of Haruna's inability fo confess via character interjections etc. And the ending was underwhelming as We don't know if Rito decided to submit to the harem or rejected it. We also waited for 100's of chapters and this dude never even shared a proper kiss with any of the main cast? Cmon. This might be the best ecchi due to the decent plot that was darkness but overall there is high entertainment value in this series for the most part. - StarsRie TakahashiKaito IshikawaRina HidakaTomo is a tomboy who has been in love with her childhood friend Junichiro, and strives to make him see her as a romantic candidate.Rating: 6.9
Favorite Episode: The Reason for Her Smile/I Want to Be Playful Like a Girl/Heroes Fall a Lot
Feel good slice of life about childhood friends not wanting to damage the status quo by becoming romantic. The main characters were decently nuanced as they had believable motives and personalities that intertwined with the main duo even though they could be predictable. There was sensible character development from secondary characters and the allegories about fighting masculinity and being true to yourself were well done. The last half did drag on and the ending did feel rushed but nothing really to write home about it's a decent anime/manga. - CreatorSteven KnightStarsCillian MurphyPaul AndersonSophie RundleA gangster family epic set in 1900s England, centering on a gang who sew razor blades in the peaks of their caps, and their fierce boss Tommy Shelby.Rating: 5.9
Favorite Episode: The Noose
It's mediocre at best, it's an example of style over substance. The overall presentation and the character of Thomas Shelby are the best aspects of this show. Everything else from the plotlines, to the characters were haphazardly written, and poorly connected. I get this is the early 1900's but female characters were primarily written to be pumped, dumped and abandoned in the narrative as a whole (i.e jessie edens abandon plotline, May Carleton abandon plotline, etc). Other side characters were either static throughout the show (john shelby, finn shelby), or were annoying and inconsistently written (ex: Polly the cunning matriarch and empath of the Shelby's reduced to an idiot who gives away secrets to her enemies (i.e priest confession which lead to tommy getting his skull cracked; the Changretta deal which she betrayed tommy after literally acknowledging Tommy and Changretta are similar (meaning she knows he gonna kill her when it's all said and done), then not betraying him at the last second etc...). Some characters had cohesive arcs that just exploded in the end: (ex: Major Campbell becoming the very thing he swore to destroy in Birmingham transitioning into a raging incel whose mad he got rejected by a woman half his age he never bothered to even take out on a date). And the finales usually followed the same formula which encapsulates the biggest issue of this series in that it off-screens critical plot points that resolve each season's main conflict (ex: Al Capone's dealings off-screened which was the reason Tommy was able to defeat Changretta, Churchill informants infiltrating Campbells red right hand to save Tommy at the end of season 2 off-screened, how Tommy knew he was going to be betrayed by Jack nelson n co or how jack nelson n co knew Tommy wasn't actually a fascist, etc). I'm not even going to bother with the other issues like that dues ex machina ending, Tommy not killing himself copout, Tommy's plot armor throughout the series, Tommy being blinded by love in season 1, ridiculous Alfie Solomons resurrection, etc. They had 36+ hours to tell this story I am not watching the movie. - CreatorLynn OkamotoStarsSanae KobayashiChihiro SuzukiMamiko NotoTwo university students come across a seemingly harmless girl named Lucy, unaware that she's actually a mutant serial killer with a split personality.Rating: 6.9
Favorite Episode: No return
A violent story about nature vs nurture, eugenics, regret, redemption, and racism. The presentation was great and the OP was incredible. The series evokes a sense of melancholy that hits you like a train when it ends. Plotwise the series is haphazard most of it boils down to bland characters Kohta's just a nice harem protagonist, yuka is an obnoxious (and incestuous) tsundere, etc... Comically villainous characters that ruin the nuance of the conflict: Bandoh is a psychopath who primarily yells and threatens to shoot any and everyone. Those children that found Lucy's dog and decided to beat it to death in front of her, c'mon children aren't that blatantly evil, etc. Excessive nudity that has little purpose: We can't go more than two episodes without seeing a l, and plot points that are either poorly executed or make no sense altogether: kohta "forgetting" his trauma with lucy despite meeting lucy again 8 years later is stupid, anyone with trauma has trouble forgetting their trauma that's literally PTSD. Soldiers throughout the series (even in the ending) shooting Lucy when their whole goal is to recover Lucy because she is needed to start the new human race, Lucy's true origins was never explained why was she orphaned? How did Kurasama and co figure out she's Eve? Why is she Eve anyways? Lucy and nyu flipping places whenever the plot demanded it (they tried to show that strong emotional reaction from lucy’s alter ego (the shell) can trigger a mind flip, or large concussive forces (when she was shot in episode 1, and fell on her head in episode 3) but this isn’t consistent as she was upper cutted into a graveyard in episode 3 by nana and didn’t flip, and also was sedated and flipped because her “alter ego” went to sleep. If this was the case every time she went to sleep as one person she’d wake up as another, doesn’t make sense). The ending is open-ended and threats like Chief Kakuzawa are still going strong. Poignant show with sloppy execution. - StarsHaruka TomatsuKôki UchiyamaSeiichiro YamashitaTwo very different people - an academically successful schoolgirl and a quiet loser schoolboy - meet and develop a friendship.Rating: 6.8
Favorite Episode: I Can't Say It Out Loud
The first half was fun, subversive, and engaging... and then it fell off. Apparently, this rom-com was a speedrun of a more detailed manga and you can feel it as the pacing is extraordinarily fast. The main duo confess and get laid only 7 episodes in leaving the rest of the series to focus on adding dimensions to the side characters who really aren't that interesting. The main theme of living true to who you are and living how you want to be perceived by others was consistently demonstrated through the characters (nice). The comedy wasn't funny, the presentation was average, and a major plotline goes unresolved Yoshikawa and Toru's relationship. This didn't have a strong enough cast to carry the series after the main duo's arc was completed, and there wasn't anything particularly unique or dramatic to keep the storyline engaging either, overall forgettable.
EDIT: horimiya missing pieces anime is coming out which is going to fill in a lot of the skipped content from the manga in season one. This may make the characters more nuanced but this review is for this horimiya not this horimiya plus that added content. - StarsNatsuki HanaeZach AguilarAbby TrottA family is attacked by demons and only two members survive - Tanjiro and his sister Nezuko, who is turning into a demon slowly. Tanjiro sets out to become a demon slayer to avenge his family and cure his sister.Rating: 6.6
Manga Rating: 6.4
Favorite Episode: Transformation
Presentation wise one of the best-looking shonens ever. Story-wise, no better than a mid-tier shonen. If it wasn't for the ufotable adaptation it would be forgotten like it was before the anime started. There are a lot of factors that contribute to this being "mid", from the cardboard two-dimensional characters: Zenitsu a screaming coward, inosuke a screaming battle-nut, an MC whose perfect in every way and reminds you of his perfect morals at the start of every fight he literally led an assassin to his own spirit core to kill him because he's so nice. A ridiculous power system that started out sensical where controlling your breathing enhanced your physical prowess. Then devolved into controlling your breathing allows you to consciously heal the cells in your body, spawn flames, bugs, water, mist, snakes, love, lightning, and use toph level seismic sense (Inosuke). It also allows you to see through people and if you get mad enough attain a mark that can give you a power-up.A prominent plot device and mary sue: Nezuko was so strong despite not receiving a lot of Muzan's blood, she could defy the sun, use blood demon arts, survive being decapitated, and curb-stomp an upper-rank 6th all while not having to eat humans even though humans are the sustenance of demons. Nah she can just sleep it off and wake up when the plot needs her to. And repetitive narrative elements that cheapen the impact of everything: nearly all the fights are resolved by a little strategy with a lot of convenient new mechanics: i.e Zenitsu defeating an upper rank by making his own form (despite being a one trick pony) and then it's never used again, Inosuke moving his heart around to avoid death fighting Daki, battle spirit mechanic in chapter 154, Yushiro's mind wipe ability in chapter 153, etc. Every antagonist doesn't need a sad backstory to give them more depth, the only villain who was straight-up terrible was Muzan and his backstory was underwhelming because it was just some no-name doctor gave him an elixir that made him a demon, and he just wanted to live forever. I was hoping this would be phenomenal but it seems the haters are right this time. - StarsMakoto FurukawaKaito IshikawaMax MittelmanThe story of Saitama, a hero that does it just for fun & can defeat his enemies with a single punch.Rating: 7.1
Manga Rating: 7.0
Favorite Episode: The Strongest Hero
A parody of seinen/shonen with interesting and believable characters. Season 1 was a visual spectacle, though season 2's presentation was noticeably cheapened. The comedy was usually moderately funny but could be absolutely hilarious in places, especially the manga. Fights in this series were pretty standard as characters would finish off opponents with a new move/powerup, in combination with a strategy off of their existing move-set. This applies to everyone except Saitama who literally inverts the trope by throwing "normal consecutive punches." The only large con is that the overarching conflict aside from a few moments like Tatsumaki V Psykos, Tatsumaki V Saitama, Blizzard character development, and Garo V Silver Fang. Aren't all that interesting because it's just a throwdown between the hero association and the monster association with a ridiculously OP monster sympathizer (garo) thrown into the mix (they lost me with the God-given create anything in the universe ability it became ridiculous). Nobody important is killed off or permanently injured so the stakes felt like they reset themselves especially when Saitama wen't back in time. It's not about the fights though, the true value is in the characters. Overall a mostly fine series. Will update this review when it ends. - StarsRie TakahashiAki ToyosakiHitomi NabatameIn this prequel spin-off series, Megumin from the Crimson Demon Clan devotes all of her energy into perfecting Explosion Magic - and nothing else.Rating: 5.0
Favorite Episode: Prelude to an Explosion of Madness
Megumin as a character doesn't work as a series protagonist. Her character just isn't interesting or funny enough to make the series worthwhile. Her character boils down to "I'm not like the other wizards". Also, the show repeats plot points we already knew from konosuba (we already knew why Megumin uses explosion magic, and the crimson demon's origins, and why yunyun is attached to megumin, and that the axis cult is insane etc). The best part of this series was when Kazuma and Aqua showed up. The main trio of konosuba complements each other and their dynamics are what make konosuba worth while. Isolating one doesn't make for an entertaining watch. - CreatorPendleton WardStarsJohn DiMaggioJeremy ShadaTom KennyA 12-year-old boy and his best friend, a wise 28-year-old dog with magical powers, go on a series of surreal adventures in a remote future.Rating: 5.8
Favorite Episode: Islands Part 8: The Light Cloud
The definition of a mixed bag. The quality of this series is wildly inconsistent. There are great arcs that seamlessly blend mature topics into a vibrant package like the Marceline Mortality arc where you question the philosophy of immortality and self-fulfillment in conjunction with accepting yourself for who you are. The human islands arc which delves into matrix-esque messages around balancing freedom and life satisfaction, while also answering lore questions about the disappearance of the humans and Finn's mother. In addition, most of the characters are interesting and layered: e.g. the Ice King, a weirdo who abducts princesses later revealed to be a tormented shell of a scientist who lost his way protecting those he loved. PB a perfectionist scientist who later accepts the flaws in her character becoming a more down-to-earth and ethical leader etc... In the same vein, Finn's maturity change throughout the series was a highlight as he was a real idiot in the first couple of seasons. However, for episodes like these there are equally as many garbage or pointless episodes to match: e.g. any episode about tree trunks, the disgusting snail girlfriend episode, the silent king episode about a throwaway character who claps the cheeks of his subjects for no reason, any episode following LSP's repetitive teenage antics etc. It becomes mind-numbing since the series is almost 300 episodes long. This series is also a comedy, though I personally found it more pointless than funny (granted I'm outside the target audience). Lastly, the ending was a bit rushed the gum war was resolved in 3 minutes, Glorb an antagonist with no abilities any different from the lich defeated in 5 minutes, etc.. But a lot of the villains in this series are defeated in whimsical ways so this is par for the course. Overall a long series with interesting lore and some worthwhile arcs. - CreatorDave FiloniStarsRosario DawsonDavid TennantNatasha Liu BordizzoAfter the fall of the Galactic Empire, former Jedi Ahsoka Tano investigates an emerging threat to a vulnerable galaxy.Rating: 5.9
Part Five: Shadow Warrior
This show needed to be incredible to revive us jaded Star Wars fans but it was just mediocre. From the wooden acting by from Rosario yes this was done on purpose in the beginning but it persisted even after she became Ahsoka "who wants to live" the white. Heavy-handed foreshadowing Huyang dramatically telling Sabine and Ahsoka to stick together then they predictably get separated.Slow cumbersome choreography despite the Jedi in this show being prequel-era fighters. Off-screened conflicts: We didn't see Ezra's reaction to Sabine nullifying his sacrifice to reunite with him, not to mention the entire Sabine Ahsoka training drama was completely off-screened. Stake-less drama: Sabine gets impaled in the side only to be perfectly fine a scene later in the next episode, (they should've just cut her hand off to give a serious consequence to her not continuing her training). Corny dialogue: **Shin stops, stares for 5 seconds, and replies "Going somewhere?"** Unexplainable plot points: How Ahsoka even teleported to the world between worlds, did Anakin pull her in? Is it because she's the daughter? In Rebels you needed to intend to get there via a portal. Plot-holes: In a decade of searching Ahsoka and Sabine never thought to look for Purgill to take them to Ezra despite knowing that's how Ezra disappeared in the first place. Also Shin Hati not just choking Sabine in all her confrontations when she realized she had no powers despite doing this to Sabine after Sabine "bested" her on Peridea. Character themes that don't correlate to the plot: the Ahsoka choosing not to fight but to live theme? What? Sure she was a bit jaded in the beginning but she wasn't mentally ill or on her last straw or anything before Anakin's lesson. This also has nothing to do with her search for Ezra or fight to keep Thrawn at bay. Lastly, the fatal flaw of this show, how the force and force users were handled: George Lucas said anyone can "use" the force but everyone's baseline potential is different so some people could train a lifetime to only move a rock while others are the chosen one by default. Sabine has the worst force affinity (stated by 25,000-year-old Huyang who has seen nearly all the Jedi's force progressions), and by Shin. Yet not only did Ahsoka decide to train her but by the series' end she is able to do a powerful force push, and force pull despite not even being able to move a cup two episodes prior. I understand she's been training on and off for years but this revelation devalues force users because If everyone's super nobody is. Also, her character was unique because not only was she a Mandalorian but also a technical genius. Now she's a Mandalorian Jedi who can do everything Ezra can and devaluing Ezra's role in the narrative. Her force potential should've capped out at the level of someone like Chirrut from Rogue One, where the force augments their physical abilities but does not allow them to use powerful techniques like force push and pull. That should be reserved for force users with natural affinity, which would keep the power system balanced. Unfortunately the show doubles down on this by having Hera with NO POWERS be able to tap into the force and hear Ashoka's world-between-worlds duel like her son who's an actual force user. This theme destroys the power system and makes Star Wars less mystical. I didn't expect this from Dave Filoni who's usually lockstep with lore. This show isn't over yet but a lot of damage has been done. - CreatorAlbert KimStarsGordon CormierKiawentiioIan OusleyA young boy known as the Avatar must master the four elemental powers to save the world, and fight against an enemy bent on stopping him.Rating: 1.0
Writing this review evoked more emotion than watching this destruction of an animated masterwork. Pragmatically this is a 4/10, but it pisses me off so much I'm dropping a 1. It doesn't have to be a 1-1 copy but most changes were complete garbage. Way too many to list but: Reversed sibling dynamics: (Azula inferiority arc, Sokka becomes the father figure Katara becomes the insolent child). An accelerated Katara power crawl (Aang told her one thing and she's now a water bending pro), amalgamations of unrelated arcs (ex: Jet in Omashu combined with the Mechanist air temple arc). Kyoshi character bastardization (she became a gung-ho "forget your friends and FIGHT" character losing all nuance from the novels). Weird Gyatso power of friendship themes (Aang calms himself down at his grave by remembering their friendship not acknowledging his new support system in Sokka and Katara). Roku character bastardization: (his first lines are jokes, Roku is supposed stoic, refined, and compassionate). Sokka's no longer sexist removing a core part of his character development. Idiotic plot points: (Aang going to Roku's temple alone to find a MacGuffin to free his friends, Ozai not knowing about Sozin's comet at the start of the series, Yue breaking off her engagement because she talked to Sokka once. Aang not trying to learn water bending, Kyoshi breaking the power system by showing Aang the future, etc. The show violates the fundamentals of storytelling by telling and not showing (characters go on preachy monologues by either explaining their own character traits, or other characters' traits or repeating the themes of the arc). The only good in this thing is that it looks incredible (for the most part), and made great changes such as removing Aang and Katara's romance, characterizing Ozai, showing the agni kai between Zuko and Ozai, showing the genocide, showing death and blood, introducing more previous avatars, making Zhao a more calculating threat, the 41st division addition to display Zuko's compassion, and making the spirit world disturbing. I don't care to see the remaining seasons so this is a review of season 1 only. They literally had a winning lotto ticket and decided to change the numbers. This could've been another masterwork.