Finger Fantasy
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Kakeugurui is back and in a manner that makes sense, but at the same time, is something that is expected. You can already tell for the most part what is going to happen and honestly, it allow me to predict what is going to happen at the end of this season, however, let’s go and just tackle what we were given. So the series opens with Yumeko and Midari in a bet against a new character where they cut strings to cut a blade and basically the first person to pull their finger out, loses. It’s chicken with very high stakes. Meanwhile, be that what it is, the series is trying it’s hardest to have fans jump right back in and honestly, I’m quite willing. The banter of Yumeko and Midari is adorable and funny. I love watching Yumeko switch from adorable to tsundere and just being hilarious while doing so. So as she jumps back and forth between the two character traits, their opponent gets psyched out and loses for fear that she will lose a finger. Then the curtain is pulled back to reveal that Kirari has brought in members of her family to compete against Yumeko and she is leaving for the time being. This is season two. Forget the student council, you have the whole family to defeat now. This season is either going to be Yumeko defeating the student council and then a cliffhanger ending with her getting ready to battle her and we get a movie as the sequel OR a third season. Mark my words. With the sheer number of Kirari’s family members, this season is going to be all about them.
What is going on?
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Pastel Memories presents itself as an intriguing anime about an Akiba that does not have anything otaku related. It seems that everyone but the girls at a cosplay cafe have forgotten that Akiba used to be a place where otaku could indulge in life and get out to have fun. Manga is harder to find. There are no more maid cafes. There is nothing anime related at all, but the girls at a particular cosplay cafe want to fix things. Well, I said “intriguing,” but really, it’s only different from your usual anime plotline. As for if it really is intriguing, well...it’s pretty terrible right from the start. The girls go on a mission to find every manga for a specific series and that seems to be where all of their hopes lie. Then, just as you are thinking that the anime is going to be really stupid, girls teleport back from a mission in another dimension. What. Just. Happened. I cannot even tell you exactly what goes on in this anime because when the other girls teleported in, I was lost completely. This anime seems to be all over the place right from episode 1. The animation is really terrible, and none of the characters have any….personality. I’m not even quite sure I realized any of them were different from anyone else. Like the headline says: “What is going on?”
Crimson Flames and Reunited Heroes
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As dark and mysterious as it is, Dororo is shaping up as one of the best anime of the Winter season. To be fair, you could have imagined that just by looking at its main character, a man with swords where his arms should be and who can’t properly feel or communicate with others. If the first episode was impactful then the second one is just as good, giving us a little more info regarding the story and the protagonists themselves. By far, the highlight of the story is the fight against Bandai, a man-eating demon hidden behind a beautiful woman’s face. Posing as the village chief, it fed of poor passersby and soon-to-be-dead heroes, lured by the townspeople in order to save their own skin. We all know appearances can be deceiving, right? Oh, but you can’t fool a man who can’t see your appearance but the color of your soul. And even harder is to fool two of them! And why is this a hot moment? You see, there’s an older anime by the name of Dororo to Hyakkimaru (based on the same Osamu Tezuka’s manga), but this new version looks and feels way better. Even if we still remain in the shadows, this episode was very revealing in a lot of aspects, from presenting us with the old man who saved the doomed baby, to learning the hero’s name, to understanding more about how Hyakkimaru interacts with the environment and the demons… and let’s not forget a reference to Dororo’s mother. Even if you don’t know, the cogs are already in motion for an awesome story, and we can’t but hope for an unforgettable adventure!
The fight of the season?
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After receiving their exam results, and Bakugo finding out he failed, he calls out Izuku for a private conversation and confronts him about having received All Might’s powers. All Bakugo wants is for Izuku to prove to him that he is worth the power of the hero they both admired as children. And so, Izuku is begrudgingly pulled into a shounen rival battle that will surely grace at least one of our future lists. During the fight, Bakugo keeps thinking of Izuku chasing him and always being weaker than him, he remembers how All Might told Bakugo he has what it takes to be a hero, and he remembers when All Might hit the nail on the head when he said “I know you’re angry because of Midoriya’s improvement”. He remembers that All Might encouraged him and told him Level 50 (meaning Bakugo) and Level 1 (Izuku) can’t improve at the same rate, thus reassuring Bakugo that he is indeed strong enough and All Might recognizes his talents. And yet.. He’s still so angry. But why? From the beginning, we’ve been wondering exactly why Kacchan hates poor little Deku so much… And after an all-out attack from his childhood friend, Deku decides to use his strength and push Kacchan away with a strong yet gentle block/shove. Deku can stand on his own now and that just pisses Kacchan more… (why are you so angry, kid!?) Izuku sees his friend on the ground after his defensive attack and reaches out to help Kacchan up. Of course, Kacchan swats his hand away wondering why he’s helping him and not fighting… why? And it finally happens, Bakugo spills his guts and faces all his issues as they come out like uncontrollable tears on a shoujo heroine’s face. “Why did I end up chasing someone who was always behind me? Why did you get strong and become acknowledged by All Might while I… ended All Might!?”. There it is! The angsty teen finally voices his emotions and we all get to understand. He feels responsible for All Might losing his powers because he was weak and got captured by the villains, thus leading to All Might losing his power and retiring. Bakugo cries and cries and all you want is to hug the poor boy. He admits to his feelings and not knowing what to do and his overall feeling of helplessness. And then, once the boys have said and heard enough, they decide to continue the fight, but it’s different this time. It’s a proper shounen rival battle! It’s exciting to see Bakugo grow out of his immature anger issues and (hopefully) backing off of Izuku. Things can only get better if these two finally become the friends they should be!
Finale
Now that winter anime has started, what are you liking so far? Let us know!
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