Forty-second week of 2019 edition!
This is a Crow’s eye view of the posts that caught my attention this week. I especially look for posts that celebrate amazing moments in anime or otherwise blow me away with their wit and charm. Every week I check hundreds of sites, and I’m humbled by the quality and volume of posts that the ani-blogging community creates! I hope this article helps you find some of those works!
What sites do I check every week? You can see the list of the sites here!
Review Order
This week, I reviewed the sites in reverse alphabetical order (Z to A).
Trust The Gaijin
Gaijin’s List: Top 5 Demons of Anime
There are lots of scary stuff out and about in October. No, I’m not talking about the various political campaigns, though I can completely understand why you might have thought that. I’m talking about demons, and not the cute little things in red tights with pitchforks. And truth be told, it’s the time of the year when I’m in the mood to see scary stuff. So I was intrigued when I found this post of the top 5 demons in anime written by The Gaijin (ニクラス) on Trust the Gaijin. The list starts out very strong — numbers 5 and 4 are well-known, serious contenders. So much so that it got my hopes up the the lower numbers would be even better! I worked my way closer to #1 and was delighted at the quality of the honorable mentions. Then I got to number 1 and found it was a tie — and may I say, wow, what a tie? One old school (well, relatively), one new yet already a legend. Seriously, check out this list — it’s a winner!
Marshmellow Pastel
Does the Azur Lane anime have any interest in its own warships?
I really, really wanted to like Azur Lane. I absolutely adored Arpeggio of Blue Steel to the point where it’ll probably end up in the Caw of Fame at some point. I even liked Kantai Collection: Kan Colle, which gave us an interesting take on fleet organization and intra-fleet drama. And yes, Kongou was a fantastic battleship. I even bought a tee-shirt with her on it, though my wife insists I not wear it in public. Anyway, after watching the first episode of Azur Lane, I didn’t like the vibe. After watching the second episode, I’ve almost decided to drop it. But one angle I hadn’t considered is how the show ignores a major source of dramatic interest — the history of the real ships! Oncasteve just published an article on Marshmellow Pastel that explores this idea. Even better, while anyone can just criticize, this post goes the extra mile and offers suggestions for improvement! I know if my ancestor served on the USS Laffey, I’d want the writers for Azur Lane to read this article. You should, too!
IN SEARCH OF NUMBER NINE — AN ANIME BLOG
Impressions: Why I Like Fairy gone, a Show Everyone Hates
That feeling when another blogger hasn’t read your posts... Okay, in all fairness, there are hundreds of anime blogs out there (I’m tracking 368 active blogs right now, and I’m sure I don’t know about all of them), so it’s completely reasonable that not everyone reads my site. Hard to believe, but true! Regarding Fairy gone, though, Iniksbane from IN SEARCH OF NUMBER NINE – AN ANIME BLOG makes a good point: there’s a lot of negative press about the show. Some of it might be justified, but if you’ve been on the internet more than a few minutes, you know that sometimes peer pressure develops tidal forces. And those forces sweep away contrary opinions. That’s why I liked this article’s take on Fairy gone — it’s fresh and it’s unique. It doesn’t just repeat what others have said. That’s why I think you’ll like it!
I Drink and Watch Anime
Top 5 Reasons I Personally Avoid Gatekeeping
Some things are perennial. Spring glides into summer; summer into fall; fall into winter; and winter (which lasts too long, in my opinion) eventually gives wall to spring. So, too, are some arguments within the anime community. Can you believe we’re still talking about the insanity that is gatekeeping? There are people who think that they can set arbitrary standards to determine who are real anime fans! I mean, don’t these folks understand how power flows from consent? But why buy my argument when you read the far more lucid (and pleasant) opinion from Irina who posted on her site, I Drink and Watch Anime? In fact, let’s just skip the part where I try to convince you reading the post is a good idea. It’s kinda self-evidence in this case, isn’t it?
Beneath the Tangles
Bell’s Heroic Love (in a Dungeon?)
Watching Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? II was fun, if measured from the perspective of mindless entertainment. Great fights, enjoyable characters (especially Mikoto Yamato), and divine political intrigue were all part of it. Another part, probably a more important part, was its theme. What’s it mean to be a hero? Who does a hero protect? What constitutes a proper motivation for a hero? As I watched the series, I realized it gave me a lot to think about. What I didn’t know what just how much it gave me! JESKAIANGEL from Beneath the Tangles cast some light on that topic. If you’ve read authors like C.S. Lewis, you’ve probably encountered the concept of disinterested love. I hadn’t thought to apply it to Bell Cranel, but it fits! See if you agree.
Oh wow – Thank you Crow! And I’m in such great company too
You’re welcome! It was another good week!
Wow, I did not expect a post on such a niche topic to get so much traction!
You ask for “celebrations” of anime and I don’t have much good to say about Azure Lane, so maybe here I’ll drop a recommendation too: High School Fleet (Haifuri). It’s totally mediocre, totally forgettable cute-girls-doing-cute-things fluff, but has solid attention to detail for its warships. It’s not a great show or anything (the plot is sooo stupid), but I do think that the filler captures some of the spirit of the weird things sailors do when out alone at sea (toilet paper crisis). At the very least, I got a good laugh out of promotional materials for the series littering a literal naval port when I visited Yokosuka last year!
“You ask for “celebrations” of anime and I don’t have much good to say about Azure Lane, ”
Thanks for staying with the theme!
I’ve found that knowing what shows not to watch helps me stay positive…
“so maybe here I’ll drop a recommendation too: High School Fleet (Haifuri). ”
I watched it when it first came out, and I think you gave it a great description! I talked about it in one of the recap posts I don’t do anymore:
https://www.crowsworldofanime.com/posts/spring-2016-recap-crunchyroll-edition/
In addition to what you mentioned, I liked how it portrayed naval combat. Animation for the ships in action was a lot of fun to watch!
Thanks for stopping by!