[Anime] Gin no Saji/ Silver Spoon Ep 1

Welcome to Ezono!

This anime involves lots and lots of farming. Which, I guess is new and different? A bit of a strange concept.

After failing all the entrance exams to school's he'd much rather go to, Yugo Hachiken, runs away from home and enrolls into Ezo Agricultural High School. I don't know if he thought it was going to be an easy ride or what but he quickly finds out that it's not.

 He also immediately gets lost in the woods on school grounds after chasing a calf out of the cattle barn.

After being assigned to a five man team he starts doing chores around the farm and finds out that chickens eggs come from their 'anus', which is clearly wrong. He's super hung up on it, refusing to eat eggs until the end of the episode and then declaring them the tastiest thing to come out of the 'anus'.

He's clearly inept at the country life and needs a bird anatomy lesson.

So, that dish where they mix a raw egg in with rice, they just eat it like that? I had to google it, because raw eggs seems like a poor idea. How much salmonella do they get? It doesn't seem like the rice is warm enough to cook the egg. Yech. I guess they don't even care if the egg is cooked. The less cooked the better. :\

So, anyway. For a slice of life anime, this was actually pretty cute and a somewhat different concept. Pearls of wisdom fall from the most unlikely of mouths and shenanigans are plentiful. I immediately recommended this to a friend who is really into agriculture and she watched all the available episodes. I've been assured that it continues to grow and get better as it goes along. I won't put this high on my watch list, but I will keep it in mind.

RWBY Ep 6: Emerald Forest

FINALLY, longer episode!  Sorry I had to get that out, moving on.  We left poor Weiss facing a back of rather large and angry looking bear type creatures (certainly not like the wolves from the trailers).

Rather than hop back at that point, we instead find Yang wandering the forest looking for Ruby.  This falls right in line with her character so far, she clearly enjoyed her trip down and only then thought to look for her sister without considering she probably was far passed any of the other students.

Even so it shows she was willing to be her partner if found.  Instead she finds a pair of the monsters lurking in the forest.  Once more we see a very relaxed acceptance from her.  It almost seems like nothing can phase her...until a single hair is swiped from her mane.

Like the trailer we see her explode into action and thrash one of the creatures and eagerly look to go after the next.  Of course that is the cue for the entrance of Blake.  This pairing was expected of course but still it happened in a way I did not foresee at all.

Both seem quite accepting and we flash away.  We are back to Pyrrha and Jaune wandering the woods but unlike the other 2 pairs, they seem quite safe.  The seemingly clueless Jaune does what some might consider typical antics following the much more impressive Pyrrha, but she reveals a new layer to this story.

The way the people here use their weapons and fight the monsters of Grim is with not just Dust, but Aura as well.  Actually this makes a nice addition, Aura is the source and Dust a catalyst for more powerful effects or the weapons as well in this case.

I will not even attempt to sum up what happened between them as it is far more fun to watch it, but I think we saw more than just an explanation for the audience that will have repercussions for these two later.

During her talk with Jaune we see the final pair we were introduced to, Ren and Nora, come together as well.  Again I will not spoil that either as it is far more entertaining to watch.

Ruby and Weiss do get to have their moment as well, but they are not having as good a time as the others.  Ruby actually stands up to Weiss this time in the area she is most confident, her battle skills.  Still it is nice that they still have to work on this, it is not just sympatico out the gate for all involved.

The episode is laced with a lot of hints and possible threads that we are just starting to see even for the characters we have the most exposure to.  I will say I have been looking forward to this kind of leap for awhile and it makes me very happy to see it.

Next week will likely not give many answers but I begin to see that while the source material may be Grimm Fairy Tales, the RT crew has something cooking and Monty really has me wondering what all this means.  That is a good thing to cultivate, an audience wanting to know more!

[Anime] Free! Iwatobi Swim Club Ep 1

Starting Block of Reunions!

Decided to watch this anime, or at least the first episode, because of the awkward pinup style photos of it online. They seriously draw in all the muscles and it makes the characters look a little freakish. When they're wearing clothes, they're shaped like normal anime guys. Take those clothes off, and you've got some crazy definition that looks pretty out of place.

Anyway, it's a slice of life anime about four friends who really like swimming. Life takes them on separate paths and so the story starts with the main character Haruka remembering the past fondly. His other friend from the club, Makoto, picks him up for school where they run into their old swimming buddy Nagisa, who has recently transferred back.

Nagisa is the chibi-face, adorable one of the group. This makes the muscular juxtaposition even weirder, at least for his character. Anyway, Nagisa really wants to swim with his friends like before and also wants to dig up their swimming memory time capsule. The capsule has a trophy they won with the fourth member of their group, Rin, before he moved to Australia (to go to swimming school, I guess, because that's a thing?) and before their beloved swimming club went down the crapper.

So, they wander a bit, and talk about their feels, to their old pool and find, shocker, RIN! Who is really a big jerkface and challenges Haruka to a race. Now, Haruka always wears his swimming pants(?), I'm not really sure what to call them. They're like professional swimmer leggings. His are only shorts, but clearly Rin also always wears his and his are long pants. I'm not going to think about this too hard. Maybe he has extra swim pants like underwear. Perhaps he carries them with him to change once he gets the one pair wet. The implications that he never takes them off ever, even in the tub, just disturbs me. That's a lot of smegma, sir. Also, on putting back on real pants over them, wouldn't that just create wet pants forever? I am really trying hard not to think about it, but it is just too weird.

But, I digress. THE POOL IS EMPTY. So, they don't actually race. But it turns out Rin already dug up their trophy and drops it on the ground as he leaves. Not in a cool, drop the mic way, just in a nonchalant, over the shoulder, 'meh' way. This gives Nagisa feels.

So there's this girl that keeps showing up, she's got a manly name, for manly things. She's Rin's sister, who tells the gang that Rin is attending a different school. Makoto and Nagisa basically convince Haruka to go to the school by telling him he can swim in their pool, to which, upon arrival, he promptly strips to his leggings. They don't invade the pool immediately, but instead creep around until everyone leaves and then trespass. The two who don't constantly wear swimming gear decide to skinny dip and it's a grand time until Rin shows up and orders them to leave.

Haruka then challenges Rin to a race.

And then the end credits start. And really, I laughed my way through the end credits because of boy bands and desert harems.

The anime wasn't as homoerotic as this ending suggests. Does this count as lady fanservice? I'm so used to giant boobs and panty shots.

[Anime] Kami-sama no Inai Nichoiyoubi/Sunday Without God: Ep 3

Valley of Death (3)

Horray, there's a flashback, and it shows Ai's mother. Who, yep, pretty much just looks like an older version of Ai. She seems so happy and functional. It's surprising that she was a grave-keeper, as she is much more vibrant and energetic, even in these flashback stills, than Scar ever could dream of being. Ai's mother expresses her want to make the village a safe haven, or a heaven, here on earth for those that were dead. She just want's them to be happy.

On the normal timeline, it is revealed that Hampnie, although immortal, basically is looking for a way to kill himself. In no way does he want to be the last human being on earth. The thought of it disturbs him so deeply that he starts to shake Ai with a fervor. And just as Ai has decided again that Hampnie sucks, he places a boot in her back and kicks her off the precarious, canyon spanning bridge they were in the midst of crossing.

Ai comes to later on, with Julie, who fished her out of the river and set her clothes to dry. Julie reveals that Hampnie kicked Ai off the bridge in order to save her from the undead ambush that subsequently got him captured. Julie has a picture of the woman that Hampnie refers to periodically, the one he has been wandering around looking for, and he called fat. He calls her Hana, but it is clearly a picture of Ai's mother.

Anyway, they go to rescue Hampnie from the crazies. Scar appears suddenly and accompanies them. Hampnie's captives are pretty wacky. As the entourage comes to save the day, Ai reveals that she is his daughter and that the town she lived in was full of dead people pretending to be alive to keep her happy. And, after murdering everyone, Hampnie dies for real because of wish fulfillment or some other such bogus nonsense.

So, he wakes back up, undead and he and Ai have a day of father daughter bonding which ends with her burying him and essentially killing him and sobbing into a dirt pile. And so she vows to save the world from whatever it is that's going on with it and goes off with Julie and Scar.

This three episode arc was awesome. I would gladly have had the anime end here. It showed heart and insight and interesting characters. It embraced its tropes but crashed through others. I loved every minute watching it. It would have made a great OVA, but the fact that there are more episodes is also intriguing. Though, why there is a VW bus, I have no idea. Everything looks so plebeian otherwise. I'm going to keep going. But, had this been how it ended, perfection.

[Anime] Kami-sama no Inai Nichiyoubi/Sunday Without God: Ep 2

Valley of Death (2)

The name of the new, monochrome grave-keeper is Scar. After asking her a few questions, Hampnie tasks her with burying the townsfolk for realsies, as if all Ai did was pretend to bury them. Scar, in her awesomely chipper yet horrifically vapid voice informs Hampnie that the townsfolk were buried properly. See, jerk? Ai is actually a grave-keeper. Sheesh.

Hampnie, although surprised, simply starts interrogating Ai on her plans for the future. He pulls out a gun and threatens to blow her head off, but a shot from out of nowhere interrupts his murderous rampage. The man with the awesome sniper shot is Julie, Hampnie's childhood friend.

Julie and Hampnie had a falling out over Julie's dead wife. Julie had hidden her and his daughter away from the rest of the world after she died, living for over a year in solitude until Hampnie came along and finished the job.  Hampnie deduces that Julie's daughter also died and instead of committing suicide, has come to seek revenge or to die trying.

Hampnie, having just survived a shot through the lung, claims to be immortal and accepts a duel between himself and Julie. Though, he never shows up for it. Instead, he leaves and Ai follows. Hampnie decided, that due to Ai's age, she must be a grave-keeper/human hybrid.

Hampnie has a lot of theories it seems, especially about God. God had apparently grown weary with dealing with the human race and started just granting wishes whimsically. This was how the humans gained eternal life and how Hampnie himself gained immortality. Hampnie also noticed that if a person was dead long enough, they would degrade to monstrous state, and so he vowed to bring them down. This was his reason for rekilling Julie's wife.

Ai still doesn't understand about her town and why he killed all of them and he pretty much just blows her off and tells her she'll find out eventually. His hair holds so many secrets! It's not even that big!

Anyway, obvious plot points are obvious, but I'll let the story tell itself.

Anime: Railgun S: Ep 18: Moving

We start this episode off with a bang, literally.  ITEM seems to be in the middle of a robot brawl stating they had "orders" to go there, yet we see some lab/tech types observing it all.  Surprisingly they are satisfied with a scratch on Meltdowner.

Just when we seemed to have all the answers from the Sisters, it would seem something else is brewing.

Now we hop to the more mundane, but welcome respite of Misaka and Co, pictured above, getting ready to welcome the rescued child Banri from her long stay at the hospital.  As one of the children that was the main focus of the first season, this actually makes a nice thread that resolves the side characters focus quite nicely for us.

We see Uriharu, normally so quiet and going with the flow of events, has quietly helped her current friend Erii, and the long time friend of Banri, of moving in together after the release.  She did not even tell Saten what she was doing until Erii herself brought it up.

Most of the episode is like that, a very sweet bow on the long road for Banri to reach the end of her trials.  Unfortunately it is not all smiles and smooth sailing for Uriharu and Kuroko.

Something messed with the traffic signal system and they had to cut out most of the fun part of the day to do Judgment duties, of which Uriharu insisted on helping when the others were willing to let her stay for the celebrations they had planned.

Erii points out, as does Banri, that this is part of why they like Uriharu so much, that she never stops being a good friend and does her duty all at once.  There are quite a few touching moments and for long time followers a bit of emotional payoff with Uriharu, Erii, and even Saten's part in the story.  

Understandably while this episode does wrap up that thread for now, it opens whole new vistas and states literally for the audience an experience Misaka already has gone through several times.

Early in the episode we see the ever so arrogant, but still good intentioned, Kongo.  Something we have seen happen many times, a small time crook crosses the path of an esper...some hilarity ensues and day saved right?  Yes and no.  One of the sinister lab monkies (they really rubbed me the wrong way as characters) confronts Kongo about her faith in her ability to solve problems.

It is clearly stated how she did not think through all the consequences of her actions, even though it all turned out fine this time, it is not a cure-all solution.  Despite his horrible vibe, he DOES have a point.  The entirety of Academy City hinges on one thing, the espers can solve the problems completely and as safely as possible for all involved.  Tree Diagram is gone for now so that leave Judgment and Antiskill to keep things going smoothly to the best of their ability.

Kongo is left with clear doubt in her mind about the confidence in her ability and its use, but the mysterious minion of arrogant lab flunky disappears when Antiskill is on the way.

At the end we see a character we got a glimpse of but only now get to see napping in a flower bed of all things!  She is found, of course, but the quartet of Academy City.  The young blonde child is very quiet once she wakes up, and only Saten gets her name after going down to her level.

Febri answers the request to tell of anything she knows with just a single name....Misaka Mikoto.  And while that would be enough to bring any of us back even without a preview, the show is not done yet.

Instead of a preview of the next episode, we get an epilogue.  The lab is back with 6 flunkies in all.  They are discussing the next stage of their plans and clearly have a great chip on their soldiers about espers.  We are left with a unanimous vote to move forward.

I loved the sweet ending of the Uriharu threads for while she was losing her roommate it was clear that things would not be terrible for her.  It all had the nice ring of rightness and reality for the character we have come to know.

Now all I want, and I really need to see if Magical covers this cause I would prefer to see it sooner than later, is to have that entire room of evil minions exposed to say...a Railgun....about 6 times.  We can only hope.

[Anime] Kami-sama no Inai Nichiyoubi/Sunday Without God: Ep 1

Valley of Death (1)

Ai, the little girl protagonist doesn't follow the usual magical girl tropes despite having what appears to be a magic shovel. She doesn't simper or whine or burst into comical tears. She does her duty and deals with the hand dealt her. It's pretty refreshing in that aspect.

Anyway, there's this super mysterious stranger in town and he kicks her in the face, because, you know, that's totally legit to do to small children. Especially after murdering the whole town. Yep.

Except, in a flashback, we find out that the world doesn't work that way. Instead of actually dying, people still roam around with hideous wounds (think the last season of Torchwood). God has abandoned the world, no one can die or have children. For fifteen years, the only solace and escape from the world was through burial by a grave-keeper. They alone have the magic to send the soul on.

Ai, who's mother was a grave-keeper, takes up the mantel after she passes. She was told that her father was the mysterious Hampnie Hambart (seriously, what sort of name is this?) and that he would come visit some day.

The mysterious stranger, of course, after this revelation, reveals that his name is, in fact, Hampnie Hambart. Ai's claim that he is her father is met with opposition after which, Hampnie asks her to accompany him in order to dig some graves and bury some people.

Some people happens to be the whole town, as mentioned above. She has an encounter with one villager who, despite missing half his face, is still mobile and carrying on a decent, albeit creepy, conversation.

This leads to the encounter from earlier in the episode, in which Ai is kicked in the face and knocked unconscious. Upon waking, she decides that Hampnie is a big douchebag and not her dad. She does her job, and buries the entire village as he watches. Afterwards, she follows him, having really no other course of action left to her. He tells her that she can't be a true grave-keeper. Ai has feelings and parents, both things which grave-keepers lack. Hampnie then introduces her to a real grave keeper who holds a monochrome scheme and none of Ai's vibrancy.

This anime is really good, you guys. If you haven't started watching it, I urge you to at least attempt it. There are only seven episodes so far, but you won't regret it.