Anime ATM 56 Black Rock Shooter OVA

This all began with my otaku friend and I talking about Hibike Euphonium and how there aren't many GL anime out there. And then she introduced me to the BRS world. And then I watched the OVA at midnight and couldn't fall asleep.

{Spoilers}

Oh boy. Let me just say that like a lot of OVA's out there there's not a whole lot of explanation of what the heck is going on. Like it didn't even click that the blue fiery stuff coming out of her gun were rocks until I thought about the title and was like "Oh yeah she's the only one with a gun so that means those fiery things are rocks!" *claps for self for being so slow* So there's a lot of confusion to be sure and a lot of go-betweens with the two different worlds. And there's never a clear explanation so I hope you like ambiguity because that's all you're getting if you watch this.

Something that really convinced me to watch the 8 episode anime was well 1. the promise from my friend that there would be a more fleshed out plot in the anime and 2. the animation is so beautiful. It kind of reminds me of RWBY and Madoka Magica if there was a mashup between the two. Because there's a super badass fighting girl aesthetic which reminds me of RWBY and there's a kind of psychedelic thing going on with the different girls fighting each other and a lot of colored flames and whatnot, kind of like when Madoka faced the witches in mini alternate worlds (sorry it's been a while since I've watched Madoka Magica so excuse my inaccuracies). But the fluidity of the animations I could watch all day. It's so beautiful. If you can't stand slightly creepy things then at least watch fight scene GIFs because those are so amazing.

Again there's a lot of creepiness going on. I just watched the first episode of the anime and I'm scared. Also the anime and OVA are pretty different, even Yomi's hair is different. And how Yomi and Mato become friends. And Yuu's dynamic. I think the thing that freaked me out the most was that last clip of Yuu in the OVA. I died. And also what happened to Yomi??? It ended so weirdly. That's why I gotta keep watching.

Overall I'd say if you can tolerate Madoka Magica and that eerie creepy atmosphere you can get through this OVA. Or better yet watch the anime for more GL, because to be honest it wasn't that starkly present in the OVA. It's really pretty from an artistic standpoint though so at least try it out!

This scene made me want to learn how to make GIFs!!

Look at this grungy atmosphere. She's so cool ugh

SO COOOOOOL

I thought she was cute...I feel unfairly betrayed

Anime ATM 55 Children Who Chase Lost Voices

This was one of the things that I've tried over and over to watch, but before I could get into it I'd get busy or something would come up so I never got past the opening sequence of Asuna dashing away to her hillside escape. Until last night when I decided to commit. Wowie this was a wild ride to be on at 1 am let me just tell you that right now. And dude it was the strangest thing because when they did all the scenery pans I was like wow this looks like a Makoto Shinkai work. And lo and behold it is!!! I feel really proud even though I know his work is very distinct, but please just let me feel accomplished this once.

{Spoilers}

This movie reminded me of a Studio Ghibli movie in a way because of the distinct connection to nature that you see with movies like Princess Mononoke or another of Hayao Miyazaki's works. There's just something so beautiful about how the mythology behind the Underworld/Hades/Agartha is reimagined and reinterpreted. Something that really stood out to me was how there were things in Agartha that weren't necessarily beautiful aesthetically, but they had such a great and reverent impact upon the viewer like the Quetzacoatl.

Some may say that this movie is a coming-of-age story for Asuna or that it's a romance. But I think it's much more than that. There's a lot that you can glean from this story depending on who you are and how you're willing to interpret it. It could be conveying a message warning against messing with the balance of nature with the zombie-like shadow dwellers that wanted to hunt down Asuna for not being distinctly light or dark. It could be a message to people grieving that meddling with higher powers doesn't lead to desirable results. It could be a call to arms to preserve what is dear to us and keep it close as long as we can. It could be a thrilling narrative of a little girl who was forced to grow up and how she found herself deep below the world she lived in. It could be any one of those things which is why it's such a beautiful and versatile piece.

Something kind of interesting I thought of as Mr. Morisaki and Asuna journeyed farther to the gateway of life and death was the fact that although there were no stars they still had night and day, they still had wind, and they had what looked to be northern lights. Perhaps it's magic or just an artistic interpretation of a fantasy world, but it's not very scientifically sound. Just my two cents right there.

Throughout the entirety of the movie it was full of different kinds of pacing which added to the overall feel of adventure. There were points in which Mr. Morisaki and Asuna were just traveling and you could watch and enjoy the scenery while and underlying tension developed as more of Morisaki's past was revealed and there was also parts that were incredibly fast-paced like the confrontation between the Archangels and Shin. And we can't forget the times when night would fall and BAM there were the zombies again trying to wipe out Asuna for being a mix of light and dark. Which poses the question if Asuna's dad was actually from Agartha which is why he died so early because he wasn't supposed to live on the surface. This would explain why Asuna was hunted alongside Mana. But that's just a theory. It could also explain why Mimi, a feline creature from Agartha would've had such a strong bond with Asuna in the first place.

Something else that I have to point out is the tone of the whole piece. It was the same kind of feeling you get when you step into a place where a lot of history has taken place or a place of holy meaning, not necessarily a church but a place where you feel part of something much bigger. That feeling was accentuated by the fantastical elements that surrounded the piece like the Quetzacoatl that were beings that used to roam the Earth when humanity was still young. That's a novel idea that the animals that inhabited the Earth before us were really the rulers or it. We just think of them as bones and artifacts to study, but what if they weren't just dumb animals that roamed the Earth? I think visually the muted and cool colors that were used made it that much more somber. That was so random it's just me thinking out loud.

One thing that Agartha didn't have, even though it had clavises which are cool in and of themselves were stars. Did Shun die because he fulfilled his wish of seeing stars? It was obvious that Shin was tied to Agartha out of a debt he owed, but why wasn't Shun similarly tied down with responsibility? Maybe I'm still shook over the fact that Shun died and then when Asuna almost died she was having a fun little tea party with Shun and Mimi and then she was like see ya later when I actually die.

Excuse the poor quality of these screenshots, I watched it in 360p out of convenience.

I thought this was the saddest part, but then I kept watching haha

He told Asuna not to cry but then he starts tearing up. Shin is so pure

This is where I lost it and was about to cry, but then I just thought about how he would wait for her and his wish for her to live a full life and then it was okay, but was it really? Will Asuna go back to Shin and hang out with him sometimes or is she just going to graduate school and then never think about this again? Was this just an Alice in Wonderland type thing where they just pretend like their whole life was not shifted because of moments like these? I need another movie. What happens next??

Anime ATM 54 Hanayaka Nari, Waga Ichizoku: Kinetograph

What the heck did Youtube recommend to me? Admittedly I watched this anime because it was conveniently on Youtube, but also because I was interested in watching an anime with episodes longer than the traditional 24 or so minutes. I should've done my research beforehand from which I would've realized that this is actually an OVA based on a manga. Whoops.

Sorry if this sounds super scatter-brained but I legitimately just finished an 8 hour shift at work and needed to rant.

{I would say there's spoilers, but wtf is the plot?}

This was a complete and utter mess. From the first ten minutes I thought this would be a political drama with all the women being catty with one another or not being allowed outside of their houses and with all the rich people having their fancy af hanabi. And then from there I thought it was going to be a semi-decent historical reverse harem anime with Haru falling and all the guys getting annoyed with her and having their 'lightbulb moment' where they realize they really like Haru. But she just keeps falling and apologizing for the entire show so I can't even say that it was a true romance anime, it was its own genre starring a ditzy girl and loose ends. There was no plot point followed through except a rushed romance and even the romance seemed more in the line of getting more fans rooting for their respective ships rather than an intentional and well-thought out plan of how each of them would fall in love with her. What happened to who would inherit the family business once the Miyanomori head stepped down? His instructions of "You have ten months to make me happy" were so incredibly vague it made me want to stop watching right then and there if Haru hadn't annoyed me enough. And what was with Tae and Chitori hating her at first and magically starting to support her? Why was the premier shot? What happened to the guy that shot him? He revealed himself to be the seventh son, but so what? Why don't the two eldest sons want to get married and why was it only revealed super late on that Isami was similar to Tadashi in not wanting to get married? (Also Tadashi's glasses just bother me. The round ones are just ugly and the rectangular ones are marginally better but I prefer him to have a consistent pair of eye wear. There's already enough guys to differentiate without him being like this.)Maybe all of this was to make people read the manga to tie up the loose ends, but if this was a standalone piece it would have failed terrifically. If the plot, if you can even call it a plot, weren't enough of a let down full of holes and question marks then surely Haru would've annoyed you enough to the point that you question watching this in the first place. It was so incredibly bad. She drops absolutely everything and says that she'll try her best but she just keeps asking questions when everyone told her to stop and do her job. And they try to play it off as "oh she's just a country girl, she doesn't know any better" when it'd be common sense to be careful with those fragile glasses and keep to yourself so you don't get fired. Is it too much to ask for some common sense? I guess I give her a little nod of approval for staying a maid instead of getting married. No need to be tied down before you're ready and be forced to live someone else's lifestyle if you have a choice otherwise. Also why are all of the boys at least a little tsundere? Like when they're planning to visit Haru during the holidays why are they like "We're definitely going for the hot springs" when everyone's worried. And they're all like "Don't touch me" but a couple days later they're dancing at a ball together in public?! There's so many questions that could be answered with a fabricated answer, but it all seemed just too forced and rushed. I suppose it was because they were trying to fit a whole manga's plot into essentially 100 minutes, but it still seemed raw and unfinished. It was a bit like a slice of life anime where they have a very subtle plot but the genres were historical, josei, and drama not slice of life so it wasn't very successful.

All in all I wouldn't recommend this. If you're looking for a trashy reverse harem I'd say Diabolik Lovers...wait no I think this is better than that. That one the girl was really just a blood sack. But like UtaPri is pretty good, a better reverse harem and actually good songs. This really wasn't that great, but if you'd like to see just how weird it was for yourself it's on Youtube, all two episodes.

Even here you need a vacation arc

One thing that I actually enjoyed about this anime was the depiction of a different period of Japan, the Taisho period, in which you can see the modernization of the world as well as the clash of western and Japanese fashion (aka with the French maid uniform vs Haru's traditional clothing) I don't watch much historical drama or know much about the Japanese timeline of modernization so this might not be accurate, but I found it fascinating nonetheless.

The biggest tsun out of all the brothers smh

If you're in it for the doki-doki eye candy I guess this is pretty good (save for Tadashi because those glasses?!)

Anime ATM 53 Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon

It's official. This is my watch-over-and-over, feel-good anime that I'll love forever and ever. It holds a special place in my heart. It might seem like I'm overreacting, but this is the show that I started with my friend, the last time I saw her before she went away for college. Haha I might've distracted her from packing because I meant to watch it which she was packing, but it's alright. I watched the first 4 episodes with her and continued to go home and absolutely fangirl and gush about Kanna. Ask any of my friends about how many times I've sent Kanna screenshots this past week and you'll know just how passionate I am about this anime.

{There aren't spoilers because this is a cute fluffy anime duh}

I don't even know what I'm supposed to say because this is just so cute and you really have to watch it for yourself to really understand. In a way it's kind of a family anime (not really the fan service is a bit much for kids haha *cough* Lucoa *cough*) because of how domestic the whole thing is. Kobayashi is the provider for the family, Tohru is the caretaker of the family, and Kanna is the baby. And then they have family friends like Takiya, Fafnir, Lucoa, Elma and Saikawa to accompany them. They go throughout their daily life and encounter everyday comedic struggles and quality family time. It's got some of the basic slice of life arcs like Christmas, the New Year shrine visit, Comiket (less common, but sort of depending on the series), the sports festival, the summer beach visit, and a k drama-esque scenario where Tohru almost gets ripped away from her little family by her father. But honestly if she wasn't allowed to be there, why weren't the other dragons taken away as well? You didn't see anyone coming after Fafnir or Elma did you?

The thing that really made this anime stand out besides Kanna (I'm obsessed with Kanna so bear with me) were the little details. When they would announce the title of the episode with the little dancing Tohru who spits fire to reveal the title, not necessarily at the beginning of the episode or after the OP, it made me smile because Tohru is precious and also the episode names are so candidly funny. If I were ever to name episodes I think I would do something similar. And the transitions between the scenes and how they'd be like "o + o = 8" or something was a nice touch. Another thing that was so great about the anime was how unexpectedly edgy it was. It was decidedly fluffy and light because of the little family and all their friends, but the fact that when Tohru, Kanna, Elma, and Fafnir were in their dragon forms they weren't cute dragons, they were the fierce ones, showed an interesting artistic contrast between the human and fantasy worlds. Another fascinating thing was Takiya. He seems like an ordinary hardworking guy, but when he gets home or hangs out with Kobayashi his true nature comes out, his swirly nerdy glasses appear, and he's transformed into a completely different guy. The same goes for Kobayashi. She seems like a regular hardworking employee at an engineering firm but in actuality she's a maid-fanatic, a vibrant drunkard, and she's very empathetic unlike how her outer demeanor suggests. That's the beauty of this show, or at least part of it. It's a great slice of life because it really seems like it could be a window into a real person's, discounting the existence or not of dragons, life.

I don't have that much to say because it wasn't super plot heavy. It just made my heart really happy. The OP and ED are really cheerful. The whole family with Kobayashi x Tohru made me happy with their lil child Kanna. And Elma's food cravings were so relatable. Overall, just watch this. Anyone and everyone should watch this because it's irresistibly adorable. There's no question about its entertainment value. Don't knock it and say it's just an ecchi anime trying to pass for real anime. No. This is quality slice of life, heartwarming content.

{If you're new here, doubtful, I take all these screenshots myself because I'm a fanatic}

There's just something about their dynamic that just really gets me. It's like a puppy and a cat that's just putting up with their antics. It's such a fond and pure romance. And I love how Kobayashi just knew Tohru was there even with her magic cloaking.

Their little family dynamic is so cute. When Tohru went away I almost cried because their family needs to be protected. Without Tohru it was like seeing a single parent try to raise a child by themselves and it was actually distressing and together they're just a beautiful sight to behold. Also I'm glad they got that kotatsu.

Yeah, the kotatsu was the best. I want one.

Just dropping this in here because Tohru's dancing is cute and lookit her lil flame

These are just so picturesque and beautiful. When regular fireworks aren't enough you've gotta get yourself a Tohru

This made me really teary eyed I've gotta admit

Elma is so relatable with her food dilemmas

This was one of my favorite episodes because of how extra it was. They changed the story so much. They built a stage in the park just to practice. I feel bad for whoever maintains the park because first there was the dodge ball game and then a whole stage.

The question still remains: Did Santa find Kanna's house?

T^T hearing the story of how they met was so touching

Okay, but have you seen the 10 hour loop of Kanna just saying rain and stomping in her little rain boots?

So on Youtube there's a montage of Kanna eating everything and I highly recommend that video, especially watching it with someone not expecting her to eat actually everything

:( Kanna being a big girl while waiting for Mom to come back home

Agh I love her so much. Just look at those eyes

The sports festival episode was so cute. Kanna's still such a kid and wants her parents to pay attention to her. It's really tragic because her biological parents wouldn't pay attention to her. But it's great because now she has Kobayashi to care for her and give her lots of love and Kanna deserves that.

Look at her with her oranges she's adorable

Omg when she wanted a charm and Kobayashi bought her the academics one. Me too

When the magic of the human world leaves you shook. It's kind of funny how Tohru and Kanna can do all sorts of magic but are astonished at bending spoons.

And I leave you with this cute picture of Kanna charging up. You can't see it but she put one of the school labels with her name on it on the side of the outlet. So precious!!!