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What have you been watching / reading this week? (Anime/Manga)
What have you been watching and reading this week? You don't need to give us a whole essay if you don't want to, but please write something! Feel free to talk about something you saw that was cool, something that was bad, ask for recommendations, or anything else you can think of.
If you want to, feel free to find the thing you're talking about and link to its pages on Anilist, MAL, or any other database you use!
As this season is coming to a close, I've caught up with and/or finished the shows I've been following this season, and man did we eat good.
Yomi no Tsugai isn't quite finished yet but it has always been solid in quality and entertainment value throughout, a real reliable shonen show. 7.5/10, would be higher but I'm too used to shonen so my preferences have changed.
Youjo Senki S2 has also been consistently good, more enjoyable if you like the geopolitics and statecraft in it. The writing is good enough to stand on its own without the whole "god punishing the reincarnated mc" plot point, but I guess it makes for more interesting framing. 8/10.
Re Zero S4 covered a really intense arc that's reached its climax and man has it been a trip. It's great to watch so much character growth between multiple characters at the same time but does the mc really need to suffer this much to make that happen? At the very least the payoff for the suffering is worth it, poor guy though. Also surprise Daisuke Ono in the latest episode. 8.5/10.
Iruma-kun S4 covered a couple good arcs, some with great character development, and episode 22 was an absolute treat. Just a real fun time with positive energy the whole way through. 8/10.
Tenmaku no Jaadugar is definitely the most unique show I watched this season, great historical setting, incredibly strong character writing, different but beautiful and excellently animated art style. Really hope we get the rest of this story animated. 9/10.
The Ghost in the Shell was an incredibly fun watch. It's impressive how the original work is actually so playful despite the very philosophical and oftentimes dark themes and events that occur. We get to see a Motoko Kusanagi that seems to actually express herself and have fun, and a Batou that's just living his best life the whole time, and really cute and funny fuchikomas (not to say the tachikomas weren't cute and fun but these take it to another level). I admit some of the philosophical musing was lost on me when they were laying it on extra thick especially in the last arc but it was still gorgeous to look at. Go Ghost by King Gnu might also be the best opening of the season, such a damn catchy track that's got just the right amounts of rock, pop and electronic mixed together. 10/10.
Sayonara Lara was a surprise for me, I didn't start this one til a few episodes were already out but I saw a clip somewhere and then I was hooked. A simple love story about how love isn't so simple, with bits of youthful rebellion, abuse, heartbreak, and friendship paired with an impressive recreation of the 90's shojo art style that makes something both fresh and nostalgic. Love the opening for this one too, Goodbye Lara, it's done by Ikimonogakari, who also did Blue Bird for any Naruto fans out there. 9/10.
Also a bunch of other stuff that I put on hold or haven't started yet and need to finish, not rating those but quick thoughts:
Yani Neko is a dumb fun watch but honestly the writing's pretty good, plus Nannmonee is a banger of an opening.
Hyakkano S3 is a very dumb fun watch, don't normally watch romcoms but the sheer absurdity of this one is amusing.
Sparks of Tomorrow got tiring to watch because the characters and plot feel so very forced. I get that it's an original work but Kyoani can write better than this.
The Elusive Samurai S2 I haven't started yet, but if it's as good and consistent as the first season it'll be a fun one to binge.
Mushoku Tensei S3 I also haven't started yet, but I expect that one to also be a reliably good time.
Looking at next season's lineup, there's significantly fewer shows which I recognize or have interest in following which might be a blessing in disguise so I can finish the stuff from this season, but there's a few notable mentions:
Cyberpunk: Edgerunners S2 is going to be a wild ride from what I've seen in the trailers. I hope it's just as emotionally intense as the first season but in a different way.
Apothecary Diaries S3 is the biggest one but I haven't finished S2 so that'll have to wait.
Psyren finally got an anime adaptation out of nowhere and I hope it's given proper respect because this is a real good shonen story, though a bit dark at times.
The next Made in Abyss movie which is the sequel to season 2 is also next season and it is, surprise, more Made in Abyss. The mangaka really does get a little out of hand with his fetish with some of the characters in the next major story arc so hopefully that's toned down a lot in the anime. I'm all for respecting the original artistic intent but dude, that's definitely rated R and questionably legal...
I really, really liked the first season and maybe a bit beyond it, but the biggest reason I have not watched any further is essentially this question. A long time ago, when I was reading CS Lewis on his Christian view on the problem of suffering, one of his points is that a human person suffering is maxed out at one person one life time: 120 years / infinity . With Subaru, I feel like the author is trying a little too hard to have this fraction approach 1.
Also super psyched for Apothecary Diaries next season .
Ditto on the cute and silly Fuchikoma -- consciousness is a very serious topic, but not enough sci-fi explore the ethics of child like potential consciousness being used essentially for warfare.
About the Ghost in the Shell, I find that only Oshii's incarnation of Kusanagi can't actually express herself and have fun. Other entries may have a more serious tone when you're into the police procedure, but the characters have lives we see outside of it where they are less serious and do what they want. Motoko in SAC isn't even that serious.
Nice overview! Seems you've watched a lot, I was planning to check out Sparks of Tomorrow as well, let's see if our thoughts differ :)
Maybe an Anime of the Season thread could be fun, see how everyone compares. Can try at the end of the month
I find it very unnecessary to force romaji versions of these shows when they all have official English titles. Feels like saying I’m in the know without actually using Japanese.
What’s the age range for these shows? The first few seem aimed at teens.
I think the other user just used whichever version of the names they remembered, since there's a mix of both english and romanized versions.
Yeah but Sayonara Lara is so much better than Goodbye Lara. Kidding aside, it's honestly a toss up and I don't think it matters much. I'd write Hyakkano before 100 Girlfriends, but would probably say Daemons of the Shadowrealm over Yomi no Tsugai.
The new Ghost in the Shell is better than expected but the goofy moments are that funny to be. I do love when something funny happens to a character and then you just seem them suffering in the background as others talk, that’s a funny touch.
As a few anime has ended, I'm now in the process of catching up on their source materials, because I lack patience lol. In the meanwhile,
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~ Manga corner ~
Mizunoke: A modern tale of mysterious water dwellers | Chapter 20
https://mangaplus.shueisha.co.jp/viewer/1030154
An emergency response team for disasters of the supernatural kind. What started out as a search and rescue mission soon turned catastrophic.
It's pretty fun seeing them discussing supernatural phenomena in a matter-of-fact manner as if conducting a field research.
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The tower of Eden: Luluchika, Kunya and the tower's labyrinth | Chapter 2
https://mangadex.org/chapter/d210bf07-4403-45b7-ac05-f7df7b1f242d
After humanity perished, the daughter of the hero and that of the demon lord ventured into a labyrinth in order to find god and wish for humanity back. Pretty light-hearted adventure so far, with hints of darker stuff await.
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Abysmal | Chapter 6
https://mangadex.org/chapter/95873fb8-b353-4236-94b9-a4f67489d81a
Zany and chaotic monster battles, from warewolf and zombies to wacky and nefarious organizations. Silly fun all around.
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Evangeline puts on shoes | Chapter 1
https://mangaplus.shueisha.co.jp/viewer/1030558
She's the most beautiful girl in class, he's a plain boring guy. He's a part-time shoemaker, she has feet problem. You know where this is going.
Mushoku Tensei (Jobless Reincarnation) fans ?
Click to expand spoiler.
How's that turning point doing it for ya?One of the funniest comments I read was Oldeus going back in time to tell Rudeus to collect the third starter before attempting the boss. Secretly I hope Eris beats him to within an inch of his life for, from her perspective, not only cheating on her but reducing her to third wife status, before consenting to be part of the team. From her feral animalistic point of view, she claimed him already. It's definitely not the intent of the author, but if I were an alternative universe fanfiction kind of person, I would write Eris in as First Spouse, Rudeus is married to her as middle partner with other playmates. Fully acknowledging the poor communication was her fault too: girl is main character of her world and just assumes too much.
I haven't watched it yet, what is the show about? At first I thought it's an isekai but your spoiler has some complicated domestic affairs going on which I didn't expect.
Oops you read a major spoiler lol. It's the OG osekai that started everything else in the trend. The full name of the title expands into "Someone who does have a full time job ( and thus not a socially acceptable stakeholder), reincarnated into another world and this time, taking it seriously". It's mostly about healing from one's trauma and moving on, with the help of people who love you. It's about giving yourself another chance, and about accepting that others find you worthy and love you. Eg, the protagonist had terrible home life originally, and finds himself a baby much beloved by ex-adventurer parents.
since you already read the big huge spoiler:
The main character had this big huge adventure with Eris, they sleep together for the first time, and then she leaves him while he's sleeping to go on her own epic journey because she loves him and she wants to be someone who can confidently stand on her own firmly by his side. Meanwhile, the protagonist thinks he's been thrown away because he has such severely poor self esteem, and much (self inflicted) suffering ensues.
@uaeaaie
Continuing Re:Zero Season 4. I'm kind of surprised they didn't change the theme for the second cour...but it's a Giga song, so that's probably reason enough lol.
Working on the final cour of Doctor Stone, and anticipating Apothecary Diaries and Black Clover returning next month.