Forty-third 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, like strong characters, intricate plots, or amazing worlds.
There are only two rules:
- I have to find the site to read it. I publish a list of the sites I review every week, so please do look for your site! If you don’t see it, I’d love for you to mention your site in the comments.
- Your post had to have been published during the last seven days (or so)
Remember, 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 article helps you find some of them!
The Afictionado
Warrior Women in the Workplace: Mythic Motifs in Dragon Pilot
Have you studied ancient mythology? Characters like Artemis, the Greek goddess of the hunt, could only maintain her power if she maintained her “purity.” The same was true for her followers. Did that strike you as odd? Why is falling in love viewed as something that destroys a woman’s power? Of course, I’m paraphrasing a complex mythology because I have a single paragraph to explain an idea, so my presentation lacks clarity! Fortunately, this post from The Afictionado takes its time to develop the ideas. It talks about those historical concepts as presented in the anime series Dragon Pilot: Hisone and Masotan, which is just another example of how anime tackles topics that other media avoids!
Anime Q and A
Elf-Care – ‘That Time I Got Reincarnated As A Slime’ Episode 4 Review
Is it just me, or has this season felt a little more serious than previous seasons? Maybe it’s because I’m reviewing Goblin Slayer, because light and frothy it ain’t! But the season is not all horribly realistic combat — we have shows like That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime to remind us what humor and fanservice can do for a show. This review from Anime Q and A not only understands what those traits can do — it celebrates them! Sometimes, it’s fun to just sit back and enjoy a hilarious and sexy show, and if the protagonist is an intelligent literal ball of slime, so much the better!
Beneath the Tangles
The Spiritual Inspiration for “Life is Like a Boat” (Bleach’s First ED)
Confession time: I only made it 8 seasons into Bleach. The Bount arc just sapped my enthusiasm! But there were some great moments in the episodes I did make it through. What stuck with me, though, was how much I loved Bleach’s OPs and EDs. My favorite just might have been the ED “Life is Like a Boat,” so when I saw that this post from Beneath the Tangles was all about that song, it had my attention! Then I found that not only did it have some fascinating opinions, it actually had quotes from the artist, Rie fu! Now I want to listen to the Bleach soundtrack again…
RABUJOI
Goblin Slayer – 04 – He’s Always Like That
If you follow this site, you know I’m reviewing Goblin Slayer this season. You can catch my review of episode 3 here. Like a lot of bloggers, I have independent opinions about the shows I watch. The views of others don’t really influence what I like. I mean, if I let others dictate what I enjoyed, I wouldn’t be much of an individual, would I? On the other hand, I can’t deny that there are times when I’m glad to see another site talk about some of the points that appealed to me about a given episode. That’s why I was happy to read this post from RABUJOI that covers the fourth episode of Goblin Slayer. RABUJOI picked up on some of the character revelations about Yousei Yunde that I really enjoyed. It also has some great psychological insights into the title character, Goblin Slayer.
Rai’s Anime Blog
Why Are Anime Girls Always Dieting? Female Body Image and Weight in Japan
Anime, like any other art form, often holds a mirror up to society. What it shows is not necessarily positive, and sometimes, that’s healthy because it can drive discussions that could lead to more healthy attitudes or perspectives. This post from Rai’s Anime Blog starts with the reflection of dieting and weight loss in many anime series and discusses, in wonderful detail, what it says about Japanese society — and the society of the world at large. The post has a conclusion that I found surprising — and hopeful!
Thanks for the mention! I appreciate it! 🙂
Glad to do it! Your post was a lot of fun to read!