Twelfth week of 2018 edition!
This is a Crow’s eye view of the posts that caught my attention this week. Typically, they’ll be posts that celebrate some aspect of anime, in particular strong characters, intricate plots, or amazing worlds.
There are only two rules:
- I have to find the site to read it. So, if you never see your site mentioned, it might be that I don’t know it’s there! Please feel free to mention your site in the comments.
- Your post had to have been published during the last seven days (or so)
You can find a list of the sites I check every week here.
There’re a lot of good posts in the anime space. I hope this post helps you find some of them!
AngryAnimeBitches
Sora yori mo Tooi Basho Episode 12: A Place Further than the Universe
Want to know what happens when an anime brings together all of the elements of story in a powerful and emotionally satisfying way? AngryAnimeBitches describes just that in A Place Further Than the Universe’s 12th episode, where it all came together. If you didn’t watch the series, it’s worth watching the first 11 episodes just to experience the full impact of the 12th — and the first 11 episodes are pretty great, too! I like how the post from AngryAnimeBitches captured the nuances of the episode’s setup and the impact of the final scenes.
Anime Q & A
Akiba’s Trip: The Animation – 20 Question Anime Review
Have you ever come across a title and you think, “Jeesh! I can’t watch that! My < insert significant other’s name > would think I’m a complete perv!” I had that experience with Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon, which I found out later was a lot of fun! And it was even worse for Akiba’s Trip: The Animation, because I had been aware of the game and its risque premise. But you know what? This show, too, was a lot of fun! The post from Anime Q & A may convince you to watch the show if you haven’t already. And if you have, it might reassure you that it wasn’t a bad choice at all.
ATELIER EMILY for me, in full bloom
“Loved ones will always watch over you” — letters in Violet Evergarden and A Place Further than the Universe
If the post from AngryAnimeBitches didn’t convince you of the authenticity in the 12th episode of A Place Further than the Universe, (a low probability, I know!), then maybe this post from ATELIER EMILY, for me in full bloom will! This article starts by wondering if this show and Violet Evergarden are being emotionally manipulative — and I have to say I endorse the answer!
Floating into Bliss
[Script] The Politics of Gatchaman Crowds
If you read any of my reviews of Concrete Revolutio, then you know I appreciate good political commentary and themes. I also appreciate when a post can make me reevaluate my impression of a series, like this post did from Floating into Bliss. When I watched it, I enjoyed Gatchaman Crowds for its unusual and complex characters, but somehow I completely missed the political overtones. Looking back through the lens of Floating into Bliss’ post, I can see that I didn’t take the series seriously enough. Looks like a rewatch might be in my future!
For Great Justice
Darling For You: FranXX, Pinkerton, & “Bad” Media
Truth be told, I’m still struggling with my own thoughts and feelings about Darling in the FranXX. I’m haunted by Mage in a Barrel’s post Your Body is Not Your Own: Darling in the FranXX and Sexual Agency (or the Lack Thereof). Now I read a work from For Great Justice that clearly articulates other concerns I’ve had. The post is really balanced, pointing out things like “art which constructs itself around a dangerous perspective… yet fails to meaningfully comment on that perspective is not inherently unhelpful or without purpose…” And then it goes on to suggest how this anime is being so unhelpful. I keep holding out hope for the series, but even I, as someone who runs a site doggedly focused on celebrating anime, am beginning to wonder…
I Drink and Watch Anime
Shelter is Poetry in Motion (and a project for us)
I enjoy a review that helps me see an episode or movie from a different perspective. This post from I Drink and Watch Anime on one hand resonated with how I reacted to Shelter the first time I watched it, but then it gave me even more reason to like it by placing the work in context of other works like Pixar’s UP. I thought this post had such a lovely take on the show and how we as viewers react to it that I had to share.
Lita Kino Anime Corner
Such Is Simple | Gargantia
It must be nostalgia week here at Crow’s World of Anime! First Gatchaman Crowds, and now Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet! At first, I watched Gargantia for what I still consider one of the best deep space battles I’ve ever seen (episode 1). Then, I stayed because of all the things that Lita Kino Anime Corner’s post talk about. If you haven’t seen the series, I think you might want to after reading this post. If you have seen it, then you might just want to watch it again!
Random Curiosity
Violet Evergarden 11
I continue to be impressed with Violet Evergarden (or I would be if I could legally watch it yet!). It’s not just for the emotional impact, or the strong characters, or the dynamic plotting. It’s a more subtle thing, and I think this post from Random Curiosity clearly articulates what that it.
