Every week, I visit about 280 anime sites looking for posts that celebrate amazing moments in anime or otherwise blow me away with their wit and charm. These are my five favorite posts for the week. I hope you enjoy them as much as I did!
You can see a list of the sites I check here: Massive List of Sites!
The Afictionado
What Makes Delicious in Dungeon’s Worldbuilding So… Delicious?
If you’ve read more than one or two of my 5 Favorite Anime Blog Posts series, then you know I often (jokingly, mostly) lament the ever-increasing size of my backlog. I used to feel a bit bummed every time I read about a series that I couldn’t watch because I didn’t have time. This season, though, I’ve had to cut back to only reviewing one new show. Reading reviews feels different now.
Instead of feeling bummed, I’m glad these reviews keep in touch with what’s airing. That’s especially true when I come across a blogger who can describe a series or episode in vivid and compelling way. That was the case when I in this post by Alex on the site The Afictionado. For me to really get into a fantasy series, it has to have certain characteristics — which happen to be exactly the characteristics Alex said are present in Delicious in Dungeon. It turns out the food is just the cherry on top (so to speak). Read the post to see if the traits Alex lists are important to you, too!
All the Anime
Shirobako
Shirobako made me feel nostalgic for the time I worked on a high school literary magazine. Well, it was a science fiction/fantasy magazine until a certain teacher got ahold of it and “upgraded” it. Hmmm. So I guess Shirobako made me feel nostalgic for the literary magazine I edited in college. Well, until student council politics reminded me that I new precisely nothing about politics. Hmmm. Let’s just say that Shirobako made me nostalgic for a past I wish I’d had.
That’s not nostalgia, is it?
Honestly, that came out of nowhere. It’s nothing like what I intended to write. Strange how some events in our past just sit in our memories like landmines, just waiting for the unwary thought to step on them!
For all of our sakes, let’s get out of my skull and look at this thoughtful, insightful review of Shirobako that Andrew Osmond wrote on the site All the Anime. The post is a great summary of the series as a whole, as well as the characters and major events. It makes me want to watch the show again — and watching it the first time is something I feel nostalgic about! See if the post evokes a similar feeling for you!
Anime Evo
Banished from the Hero’s Party S2 – 04
I wish I could watch Banished From The Hero’s Party, I Decided To Live A Quiet Life In The Countryside Season 2 this season. Though I’m glad I’m not reviewing it — I got tired typing the title just once! But from the picture FlareKnight’s review on Anime Evo painted, this season has everything I liked about the first season. I could joke and said more Ruti is always better, but FlareKnight talks about other topics the episode brought up that sounded fascinating. See if he mentions anything that you enjoyed about the episode!
ARUM JOURNAL
Hirogaru Sky! Precure Episode 50 Review + Final Thoughts
Look, I don’t buy into conspiracy theories. If I want fiction from Russia, I’ll read Sergei Lukyanenko’s novel Night Watch (which is a freaking blast to read — along with its sequels). But though I don’t do conspiracies, I’m beginning to think there’s a concerted effort to get me to watch Hirogaru Sky! Precure and other series from that world. So many anime bloggers speak glowingly of the series! Take this post by ecargmura on the site ARUM JOURNAL, for example. It’s eloquent. It’s crisp and fun to read. And it positively gushes with praise for this series! Best of all, it’s not part a conspiracy. It’s an honest reaction to a series — a series I hope to watch some day! See if you have a similar reaction!
Phoenix Talks Pop Culture Japan
Josei January: Ooku: The Inner Chambers
I know that it’s impossible to like everything. As far as I know, anyway. And I know that our tastes affect how we view the world. That said, there are times I wish I could remove my own taste filters, if only from time to time, because they make me miss series, or movies, that I might otherwise have enjoyed. Fortunately, I can rely on other anime bloggers to educate me! This week, I learned about Ōoku: The Inner Chambers from RisefromAshes on the site Phoenix Talks Pop Culture Japan. Reading about the story and how RisefromAshes reacted to it made me want to stop everything and go watch it. So onto the back log it goes! But at least I know about it now! That’s a very good thing!
Want to Read More of My Favorite Anime Post Lists?
Want to explore more amazing anime blog posts? Check out the previous editions of My Favorite Anime Community Posts!
Want to Read Favorite Posts from Other Sites?
- Anime Feminist: Weekly Round-Up, 24-30 January 2024: Racial Profiling Lawsuit, KyoAni Arson Trial, and Blogging Burnout
- LESLEY’S ANIME AND MANGA CORNER: Anime Blog Posts That Caught My Eye This Week (February 2, 2024)
- Phoenix Talks Pop Culture Japan: January 2024 Monthly Favorites
I completely forgot to thank you for adding me to this feature, so thank you very much! I always look forward to perusing what you’ve found over the week.
You’re welcome! Thank you for writing the post — I’d never heard of Ooku: The Inner Chambers, and I enjoyed reading your perspective on it.
I’m also terrified about what happened to Rishe this episode ’cause I fear what Arnold’s reaction will be. I could see him murdering everyone involved in cold blood.
You and me both! Rishe has become quite fond of Elsie and even Kamil. I can see the two of them working with Theodore because they want to protect Rishe and think that’s the best way. But like you, I can see Arnold switching to murder mode and wiping out the lot of them.
Not Rishe. But the act would have long-lasting consequences. As in, your discussions of in previous comments about this a tragedy would then become likely!
Arnold saying, “The resolve to be my wife? There’s no need for that.” in Episode 5 probably indicates Arnold’s genuine intention to treat Rishe well. Rishe doesn’t seem to understand that though, but I guess you can’t really blame her when Arnold was talking about her naivete would make it hard for her to survive in the palace.
The dialogue in this series is wonderfully layered and nuanced. The scene you referenced is an excellent example. So was the scene where Rishe negotiated with Kaine is another.
It isn’t a conspiracy just to make you watch, we want everyone!
Just found the Precure section of “Americans Hate Tingle” (shows wildly popular in their home country that aren’t in the US) on tvtropes . org.
“For a time, the entire franchise was this for the West, and still is to an extent (apart from Italy, that is). To most uneducated anime fans, it was considered one of the typical kid shows always making the top 10 anime shows. That started to change when Futari wa Pretty Cure debuted in Canada with a short-lived yet mostly faithful English dub, and people took interest in a show where Magical Girl Warriors duke it out against evil with Good Old Fisticuffs; the series gained a dedicated Western fanbase when Heartcatch made its way through, due to being subbed alongside its fellow Super Hero Time cousins Kamen Rider Decade and Samurai Sentai Shinkenger. The series was praised for its animation and over-the-top fight scenes that made Shōnen anime look rather shy in comparison, and sparked a Newbie Boom as a result.”
Apparently I’m more like a Japanese Precure fan than an American one, which doesn’t surprise me.
It’s been fun reading ecargmura’s Precure Newbie posts and finding someone else who’s watching it through an author’s lens!
Thanks for the reference to the tropes site. I think maybe I’m still influenced by the art style, which is almost too colorful for my tastes. It’s setting unconscious expectations that I need to watch out for.
They’ve betrayed me before! 🙂
It looks like you won’t be starting any more series in the near future if Metallic Rouge is the only one you’ve got time for. Hirogaru Sky’s a great place to start, but we can always zero in on a personal recommendation if you like. At least it isn’t as involved as figuring out what Terry Pratchett book to read first. (I was on a panel for that last year, and it was an interesting discussion.)
Or what order to watch the Monogatari series!
Crunchyroll had Hirogaru Sky, so I’ve added it to my queue. I hope to start soon! thanks for the recommendation.