This probably comes as not much of a surprise, but this is going to be the last blog post I write on Ore Monogatari!! I am happy to note that, really honestly, this isn’t directly related to last week’s burst of annoyance—that was simply the symptom of a deeper problem I’ve been having with Ore Monogatari!!, one that helped me realize the solution to the issue is probably to not blog the show anymore. Which isn’t to say I don’t like Ore Monogatari!! I really did enjoy this week’s episode. But there are shows that are good to blog and shows that are not so much, and it seems to me like Ore Monogatari!!—for me, at least—falls into the latter category.
Playing Your Own Way: Kuroko’s Basketball and the Quest for Identity
One of the things that’s fascinated me about the Kuroko’s Basketball franchise (hereafter abbreviated as Kurobas) since even before I saddled up and watched the entirety of the 25-episode first season over the weekend has been the show’s alternate English title,The Basketball Which Kuroko Plays. Besides being hilariously awkward while also technically correct English grammar, the longer title actually contains, I think, a slightly different implication than that of the more commonly accepted translation. The Basketball Which Kuroko Plays externalizes and differentiates “basketball” from the titular protagonist, Kuroko—basketball is something he does. However, Kuroko’s Basketball uses the possessive form of Kuroko’s name, which implies that “basketball” belongs to Kuroko.
Spring 2015, Week 12: Highlights of the Week
Holy cow, is it that time already? Two shows ended this week and the rest of them will be done next week, mostly. I will admit that I like the endings of seasons better than the beginning of them—if only because of the satisfaction that comes from moving shows from the “Currently Watching” section to the “Completed” section of my Hummingbird account. Anyways, with the season winding down, my backlog watching is ramping up, which is fun and cool!
Huh?!? The season’s almost over?!?
Assassination Classroom’s Eternal Schoolhouse
One of the neat things about being an anime fan older than the target demographic most anime is targeted towards (that is, the shounen demographic, which ostensibly covers young males up through the age of 14 or 15) is that many of the productions I watch on a weekly basis for a quarter or half of a year aren’t specifically intended for me. In theory, as a young adult with a full-time job and my own apartment, I ought to be well beyond finding entertainment in media directed at audiences 7 or 8 years my younger. But watching a series like Assassination Classroom reminds me that, really, we never really grow out of learning the lessons of youth.
Ore Monogatari!!, Episode 11
Unlike the last few times I’ve been a been down on Ore Monogatari!! and not quite sure about how I felt about it, this time I’m very much certain in what I felt about the episode and why I felt that way. Hold on tight, folks. This is going to be a rocky ride. If you’ve been with me since my very hot-and-cold posts about last season’s Your Lie in April, you’ll know how much I find myself fascinated by shows that posses the capacity to simultaneously enrage and enthrall me. This episode of Ore Monogatari!! is very much the same—some moments of absolute brilliance, a lot of stuff that really got on my nerves. So. Let’s go to the beach!
Aniwords – Is There a Correct Way to Ship?
Got a good recommendation on Twitter (I think it was kind of tongue-in-cheek, but I ended up running with it) and popped out my longest Aniwords column yet. I’ve kind of been trying to keep them around 750 words, but this one just got away from me…whoops! So, how about a full version of that lovely article thumbnail?
Spring 2015, Week 11: Highlights of the Week
I feel like I’m barely watching anything these days, but post ideas are starting to pop into my head and the reduced “I have to watch this now!!” stress is really helping me actually feel like blogging. Of course, this also means I feel weird saying things like, “This was a good week,” because my anime week this week consisted of watching exactly six episodes, thanks to Blood Blockade Battlefront taking a week off for a recap. That being said, I did think this was a pretty good week, at least for what I saw.
Rose of Versailles: The Changes of Oscar de François de Jarjeyes and the Dignity of Human Life
As I started the final five episodes of Rose of Versailles, a friend warned me that I was in for a “rollercoaster.” Having come off the ride, I think I’d have to say that, as thoughtful as the caution was, it was unfortunately understated, as the conclusion to this magnificent series wrecked emotional havoc on me like it had not in 35 episodes prior. In considering why, I of course ended up at some of the easier conclusions for explaining my emotional wreckage—character investment, Stockholm Syndrome, lack of sleep, an exceptionally doomed ship—but I found myself unsatisfied with those answers. However, in considering the show as a whole, rather than simply a five-episode excerpt, I came to understand that I had, to continue to metaphor, been on a rollercoaster the whole time. On a terrifying and exhilarating ride known as “life.”
Ore Monogatari!!, Episode 10
Is this the week I finally get on the same page as Ore Monogatari!!?? After a couple of weeks of being kind of on-again-off-again with the show, everything clicked this week—and did so in a way that actually felt like my expectations and what the show’s goals were actually lined up for the first time in a long time. And, you know what? I kind of liked that. Oh, and the cute stuff. I liked that, too. Like THIS.
Aniwords – Why Like Idol Anime?
This week’s Aniwords is basically a love letter to idol anime—a favorite anime genre of mine that you’re probably aware of if you’ve been following me for any length of time (especially on Twitter, where my idol-related convulsions are more…unfiltered than they are on here). The column’s really, officially started now, which is both exciting and a little bit scary!
Mage in a Barrel 