Spring 2016 was ridiculous. It’s been a long time since I’ve watched 10+ shows in a season, but this season made me do it. In addition, the top level of shows this season were ridiculous. We had basically two competing AOTS shows (fortunately, only one actually ended this season). In short, I had a whole bunch of fun—my weekly schedule this season felt like coming home each time I started in on it.
Mayoiga
Aniwords – The Lost Village and the Death of the Genre
The Lost Village wasn’t the best anime that aired this season, nor was it anywhere close to being my favorite, but darn it, it was sure a heckuva a lot of fun to write about. I’ve long since passed by my formalist fan days (I remember telling one of my college professors that I was a formalist LOL), but talking about The Lost Village‘s formal qualities is very nearly the only way I can think to approach the show—as should be clear since this is the third post I’ve written on its formal elements. In any case, I hope you guys enjoy this wild post!
Aniwords – The Lost Village is the Best Comedy of the Season
I didn’t write that title just for the clickbait; I wrote it because I actually believe it’s true.
It takes a lot for a show like The Lost Village (Mayoiga) to succeed as well as it does, and analysis of things that are well-crafted in non-traditional ways is nearly always rewarding. Having a chance to spill out everything I’ve been thinking about why The Lost Village is as consistently funny as it is was almost as fun as watching the show itself, and I’m rather pleased with how my arguments for and analysis of it turned out. It’s not often I try to analyze things purely on a craft level, but Mizushima and Okada made it easy for me. Hope you guys enjoy (and maybe decide to check out the show if you haven’t)!
First Impressions: Spring 2016 Anime (Part 1)
I knew it was coming, but I still feel like this spring season took me by surprise. Maybe it’s because this is the first season that I can remember since I started watching seasonal anime where I didn’t have some kind of major life transition or important obligation concurrent with the start of the season. Maybe it’s because I was so focused in on Macross Delta‘s premiere that I forgot to emotionally prepare for everything else. Whatever the case, it’s here now and it’s time to take a look at what we’ve got!
Aniwords – Uncharacterization in The Lost Village
The Lost Village wasn’t my favorite premiere so far, but it was probably the most interesting first episode to anything that’s aired from the Spring 2016 season so far. My love affair (not literal) with Mari Okada is well-known, and while my feelings on Tsutomu Mizushima (Shirobako) are more ambivalent than you might expect, putting them together on a show was something I was looking forward to. Apparently, rightly. And so, this post on writing and horror and using characters for a very specific purpose was born.
Mage in a Barrel 