#Shinta reviews

[des-shinta]

Shinta Reviews: Code Geass Part 2: R1 sect

The utterly massive Code Geass Review continues with a discussion of the principle players, and R1's story events.

[whenibecameaparentireadbooks]

Gassy Disgust

The Gas We Pass: The Story of Farts By Shinta Cho Translated by Amanda Mayer Stinchecum Kane/Miller, 1994 In his essay ‘Of Experience’, Montaigne wrote that ‘Both kings and philosophers go to stool, and ladies too’, and that ‘when seated upon the most elevated throne in the world, we are but seated upon our breech’. In other words, no matter who we are, we all sit and we all shit.  The idea…

[allthefujoshiunite]

NINGEN FUSHIN: ADVENTURERS WHO DON'T BELIEVE IN HUMANITY WILL SAVE THE WORLD — FIRST IMPRESSIONS

NINGEN FUSHIN: ADVENTURERS WHO DON’T BELIEVE IN HUMANITY WILL SAVE THE WORLD — FIRST IMPRESSIONS

Hello, and welcome to my very first impression of a series from the Winter 2023 lineup. Today we’ll be looking at Ningen Fushin: Adventurers Who Don’t Believe in Humanity Will Save the World.  This series, I’m guessing to no one’s surprise because of the title, is originally a light novel written by Shinta Fuji, and is released in English by Yen Press. Then, per course, there’s a manga…

[sebbyisland]

This chapter was special because we FINALLY got a glimpse of all the Arakawa school drama from the biggest instigator himself!

Before I dive into the most recent chapter, let's do a quick review of what we know about Issho Arakawa, grumpy old man extraordinaire:

he's an asshole.

He had at least two reasons for expelling Shinta/his cohort: preserving Rakugo tradition, AND personal desire to protect the legacy of Shiguma's Art as the technique of a powerful performer, not the weakness that Shinta showed him

He has two distinct personas as a Shinuchi. A relatively polite and respectful old man, which he presents during public events, and a Demon Rakugo Master, which he presents towards members of the Arakawa school that he has acknowledged.

He is kind, despite always being a bit gruff about it. When he paid the hospital bills of a local bartender, he tried to do so anonymously, and even then, only said that he was doing it because she makes a type of drink he likes. In the end, he not only helped support the livelihood of a single mother, but eventually took on her son as a rakugo student.

He's mentored Kaisei with the intention to have a student who can reach his ideals that "break the mold of seniority," aka someone who has become such a master of their craft that they rise up the ranks quickly, built to reach Ookanban status

To better understand Issho, we also need to consider the minor antagonist of the series, Zensho Arakawa. Zensho's behavior was repeatedly out-of-pocket to everyone's chagrin, often comically so, but eventually it was revealed that he was an asshole to cover up his own insecurities. Interestingly, Zensho also acts like an overenthusiastic lackey to Issho Arakawa's Villain, taking on loud and obnoxious methods in the same of preserving Rakugo tradition and honor. His enthusiasm is a bit of a surprise given they don't have much of a relationship. Issho barely even acknowledges Zensho's presence. We never see them directly interact unlike how Issho does with Ikken and Shiguma. This is because Zensho only knows Issho as the Demon Master of the Arakawa school, and this Demon Master identity is just as shallow as the Welcoming Old Man identity that he uses as a front for his interactions with the public/non-competitors. However, whereas Welcoming Old Man Issho is trying to make rakugo seem down-to earth-and pristine to attract new audiences, Demon Master Issho is trying to uphold the rakugo craft as exclusive, the ultimate pinnacle of entertainment, an ancient and illustrious art.

Through the glimpses of Issho in the story, it's apparent that Issho is a bit nasty and intense by default, but as of late, he's reached some pretty extreme levels in the name of his Demon Master schtick. Again, we see Issho reach for impossible standards by telling Maikeru Arakawa he needed to have made every single person in his audience invested, or he's not a real Shinuchi. This speaks to not only Maikeru's skill that such a petty reason cost him Issho’s vote, but Issho's character. Issho is a bit of an asshole for not trying to correct Zensho when he was sabotaging Maikeru's performance, but his colleague Ikken Arakawa mentions that he likely let it all slide because he wanted to test Maikeru's character. In other worse, even though Issho and Zensho are not close by any means, they overall were aiming for the same thing. Both Zensho and Issho were okay with intentionally testing Maikeru's character by rigging his Shinuchi test against him. Zensho pulled the trigger, but Issho didn’t try to treat the wound when he was the only one with the authority to do so smoothly. And then he’s mad Maikeru couldn’t completely jump over a hurdle that shouldn’t have been there in the first place! That's asshole behavior.

However, unlike Issho, who likes to manage a two-faced personality for the sake of his goals, Zensho is honest to a fault. He feels everything intensely and shamelessly, for better or worse. Zensho has some of the most expressive panels in the series! Whether it's grief, anger, annoyance, or self-satisfaction, he does it to the extreme. It's because he has the ability to feel so deeply that he is able to connect with Maikeru's performance despite literally trying to ruin this man's whole career.

Issho is the other side of that same ego. The straight man to Zensho's funny man. He's not concerned with how people respond to him, he's more concerned with how he presents himself to people (remember, this was also his main critique of Shinta)

The problem with Welcoming Old Man Issho is that he hides his true feelings from the public, who are all just wondering when he'll cause another scandal as Demon Master Issho. This actually did the opposite of his intention, which is to increase rakugo appreciation in the modern world. Unlike Shiguma, who has made a reputation by connecting with the locals, Issho formed a reputation by sensationalizing rakugo in a national scandal. He says that he's doing this all for the sake of traditional storytelling, but the consequences of his actions don't line up. This is how the narrative signals to us that the issue with Demon Master Issho is actually much deeper that having giving people the "harsh truth." The biggest problem with Issho's Demon Master persona is that the truly ideal rakugo he clings onto doesn't exist. If it did, it’s dead by now and meant to stay dead. He was warned by Kiroku* himself: This (rakugo) is a graveyard for stories.

I love how the chapter opens up with this glimpse of Kiroku and absolutely no preamble. It's a shock to you, the reader, and no doubt a shock to Issho Arakawa, who is currently being told that within rakugo is a "graveyard" of storytelling art. I choose to interpret his words as referring to rakugo as a whole since we know this exact problem has become Issho's primary anxiety as the Head of the Arakawa school (I want to think we'll get more details behind this conversation in the future but regardless, it's a safe inference that Kiroku's words impact how Issho approaches rakugo). However, as we now know from the current Shiguma Arakawa, there is also a very real grief that weighs on Issho Arakawa to this day: guilt surrounding the death of Kiroku, the former Shiguma Arakawa.

Wow! Imagine being told by your highly esteemed rakugo mentor that you destroyed his legacy while he's on his literal death bed! Cowabummer.

In all seriousness, though, it seems that Kiroku is pointing out that Issho (formerly known as Kisoba Kashiwaya) was not able to honor the kind of rakugo that he held so dear. Does Kiroku hate Issho for this? Issho sure seems to think so, but I wouldn't be so quick to judge. Kiroku's face is obscrued from us, the audience, but also in Issho's memories. This opaqueness implies that there is more to Kiroku's words that maybe Issho was not able to fully grasp, even now.

Regardless of Kiroku's intent, Issho felt incredibly inadequate following Kiroku's passing, to the point that he guards over the legacy of rakugo with an iron first, as if trying to prove something to Kiroku's ghost. In the panels leading up to the scene at Kiroku's death bed, the younger Issho Arakawa is panting with exhaustion, like he just ran a long distance. Kiroku is sick in bed. He's not going anywhere. But Issho ran to him because he values his remaining time with Kiroku immensely, and likely with the urgency of knowing he would pass soon. I wouldn't even be surprised if this was the first time he had spoken to Kiroku in awhile, too, but he was still running when Kiroku called for him. Much like how anyone runs to their love one's sickbed at their call. In other words, even the IMPLICATION that he has failed Kiroku would be utterly devastating.

Issho clings on to his ideals of a "real" rakugoka because as long as he protects those ideals, he can repent for being responsible for killing those ideals by his own hand.

And really, why wouldn't he be his fault?

He was known to have the "eyes of a wild beast baring fangs at it's prey," among previous rakugoka generations. Does that describe someone who can uphold tradition to you? Who is suited to lead an entire rakugo school on his shoulders?

When he had to deal with a stressful reality of his rakugo mentor passing away before his very eyes, he couldn't find it in himself to grin a bear it, care-free, like Shiguma can. He's too caught up in his own grief. He's too selfish, as Urara says. "We can do anything if we work together," Shiguma says, but would he really want to work with someone like Issho? Someone who might as well have killed Shiguma's legacy?

To put it in other terms: Issho's Arakawa’s cut-throat personality, crippling guilt, aloofness, and long-term close relationship with the care-free Shiguma Arakawa who used to happily call him "aniki," all fit him closely into the "shadow/moon themed shonen rival" trope. And what do we all know about shadow rivals (think: Sasuke Uchiha, Katsuki Bakugo, Seto Kaiba)? THEY HAVE PAINFULLY FRAGILE EGOS.

It's become abundantly clear that for as much as Issho talks about how Shinuchi needed to be amazing performers who can prevail under any scenario: Issho Arakawa has the most fragile ego of them all. He is eagerly pushing the next generation to do what he couldn't do for Kiroku. This is what Shiguma Arakawa means when he says Issho Arakawa is "lost in the past."

This isn't to say Issho is 100% doomed. He's a Shinuchi and Head of the Arakawa school for a reason! He didn't just train Kaisei like a showpony, he MENTORED him, he nurtured his fighting spirit in a way other teachers probably wouldn't be able to--because he understands. Furthermore, it's because he wants to honor the name of rakugo that he holds competitions like the "Rookie Cup" in order to bring in fresh new talent and perspectives. As much as I've been calling out Issho, as much as EVERYONE has been dragging on Issho, he is genuinely interested in training a new generation of rakugokas to not just appreciate, but innovate the craft. He's a man who leads because he WANTS to, and not one of his peers would say that he doesn't suit the role. He has just enough ego to make it work.

At the end of the day, it makes complete sense why he would be appointed the head of the Arakawa school instead of the other Shinuchi. Just like how it makes complete sense why Shiguma was the one to carry on the tradition of Shiguma's Art, not Issho. Maybe Issho Arakawa "killed," Kiroku, but he didn’t truly fail him.

I would even go so far as to say that even if Issho "killed" Kiroku, it doesn't mean Kiroku was disappointed in him. We simply don't have enough information to to figure out what, exactly, created tension between Issho and Kiroku. I have a couple of wild guesses, like maybe Issho wanted to refuse becoming the head of the Arakawa school, but Kiroku tried to make sure he would be there as a leader after he passed by telling him "it's okay that you're taking on my title, and it's going to be different. YOU get to lead the Arakawa school. I'm not gonna be there. I'm dead, and you killed me." IDK, that might be a bit too emotional, but I definitely don't think it would make sense to let the student who failed you become the head of the rakugo school YOU founded. It makes more sense if the lesson Issho needs to learn here isn't that he majorly fucked up and needs to spend his whole life atoning, but maybe that the most he can do is carry on Kiroku's memory while also making way for new possibilities. What's done is done. The original Shiguma Arakawa is dead.

Right after we get the flashback of the younger Issho Arakawa getting accused of "killing" Kiroku, we jump back to Issho of the present, muttering the incantation from "Shinigami." Keep in mind, this spell was meant to rescue someone from the brink of death because it "wasn't their time" yet, so to speak. What is linking these two scenes? Death. Specifically, a death that was undeserved (the patients) and/or unfair (the protagonist of the story). I think that Issho mutters the chant while reflecting on Kiroku because he believes the original Shiguma should never have died. Keep in mind, Issho doesn't even know that Shiguma performed "Shinigami" at this point, he hasn't read the news until Ikken shows him in the following page. That means that it was his own rumination that made him think of Shinigami, that made him think of the futility of avoiding death. Something he would only do when he was alone, without anyone else to hear him....

I LOVE the idea of Issho's grief over an unfair death propelling his strict rakugo ideals because it's a direct parallel to the unfair death of Shinta Arakawa, who he explicitly DID single-handedly "kil” in order to protect those same ideals.

If anything, the lesson that the cast has been slowly forced to learn about accepting Shinta’s death is going to be very similar to what Issho eventually must learn in order to resolve the Arakawa school drama. In other words, the original Shiguma is seriously giving Shinta Arakawa some fierce "Haunting the Narrative" competition, and I love that for him.

Issho is truly one of my favorite types of antagonist because his goals are not actually at odds with the protagonist. He's literally just a typical bitter old man like idk what to tell you guys.

*I know his final rakugo title was Shiguma Arakawa but I refer to him as Kiroku (as in Kiroku Kashiwaya) because that makes it easier to differentiate than "former Shiguma" and "current Shiguma"

[pluralitypoll]

Welcome to the PLURALITY POLL!!

Starting on 11/2/24, with each round lasting for a day, people are welcome to vote for which plural / system they like best!

All of the characters were chosen by the mod, and peer-reviewed by their partner!! And as a general note: some of these characters are simply coded to be plural, not necessarily canonically. However, there is evidence for a majority of these as to why they're here!!

Please do not start syscourse in the tags or in the comments. That is the one thing I ask.

*Arthur / John and Phosphophyllite / Lapis Lazuli do not have images. The former is on purpose due to lack of official art, but the latter is not. Just ignore it!!

And now, without further ado.... MAY THE BEST PLURAL WIN!!

Matchup list below the cut for easier access:

LEFT SIDE:

Yuji Itadori / Ryomen Sukuna (Jujutsu Kaisen) vs. Princess Luna / Nightmare Moon (My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic)

Yukito Tsukishiro / Yue (Cardcaptor Sakura) vs. Mafuyu Asahina (Project Sekai)

Oz / Jack Vessalius (Pandora Hearts) vs. Shinta Ruri (Ranger Reject)

Shinobu Sensui (YuYu Hakusho) vs. Amu Hinamori (Shugo Chara!)

Unknown Patient (Evillious Chronicles) vs. Near [Nate River] (Death Note)

Nicole / Jessica Sanders (NBC's Heroes) vs. Cloud Strife (Final Fantasy VII)

Arthur Lester / John Doe (Malevolent) vs. Josef / Cartaphilus (Mahoutsukai no Yome)

Nobara / Koyuki Ibaragi (Gakuen Alice) vs. Echo / Noise Baskerville (Pandora Hearts)

Uendo Toneido (Ace Attorney) vs. Yugi Mutou (Yu-Gi-Oh!)

Zetsu (Naruto) vs. Toko Fukawa / Genocider Syo (Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc)

Daisuke Niwa / Dark Mousy (D.N.Angel) vs. Mikoto / John Kayano (MILGRAM)

Alice Baskerville / Intention of the Abyss (Pandora Hearts) vs. Homura Akemi (Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica)

Lucy / Nyu (Elfen Lied) vs. Klein Sieben (RWBY)

Junko Enoshima (Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc) vs. V / Johnny (Cyberpunk 2077)

Satoshi Hiwatari / Krad (D.N.Angel) vs. Phosphophyllite / Lapis Lazuli (Houseki no Kuni)

Letty / Rick (Alicemare) vs. Fraulein Bibliotheca / Chiquita (Irodoru Sekai no Namari Hime)

RIGHT SIDE:

Sora / Roxas / Ventus (Kingdom Hearts) vs. Alfendi Layton (Professor Layton)

Aquamarine Hoshino (Oshi no Ko) vs. Neopolitan / Trivia Vanille (RWBY)

Ayin (Lobotomy Corporation) vs. Momoka Nishizawa (Keroro Gunsou)

Greed / Ling Yao (Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood) vs. Aventurine (Honkai: Star Rail)

Owen / Kizu (Mahoutsukai no Yakusoku) vs. Hitsugi Kurone / NEGI (Ensemble Stars!!)

Charles / Scarlett Eyeler (Hello Charlotte) vs. Iruma Suzuki (Mairimashita! Iruma-kun)

Korekiyo Shinguuji (Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony) vs. Soul Eater Evans (Soul Eater)

Hatsuharu Sohma (Fruits Basket) vs. Alisa Ilinichina Amiella (God Eater)

Tomie Kawakami (Tomie) vs. Chise Hatori (Mahoutsukai no Yome)

Hantengu (Kimetsu no Yaiba) vs. Faust (Limbus Company)

Ken Kaneki / Sasaki Haise (Tokyo Ghoul) vs. Ghost Quartz / Cairngorm (Houseki no Kuni)

Harvey Dent / Two-Face (DC) vs. Furina de Fontaine (Genshin Impact)

Vinegar Doppio / Diavolo (Jojo's Bizarre Adventure: Golden Wind) vs. Jin Bubaigawara [Twice] (My Hero Academia)

Yogi (Karneval) vs. Marc Spector / Steven Grant (Moon Knight)

Charlotte Wiltshire (Hello Charlotte) vs. Layla (Genshin Impact)

Shu Itsuki / Mademoiselle (Ensemble Stars!) vs. Seele Vollerei (Honkai: Impact 3rd)

[fostersffff]

The Big Gundam Watch, Part 12: Mobile Suit Gundam F91

Back when I started doing these write-ups, I was pretty certain I was just going to ignore F91. Reading up on it at the time, it was clearly an odd duck: it’s a standalone movie in the Universal Century timeline that takes place 30 years after Char’s Counterattack and 30 years before Victory Gundam, so outside of the manga-only continuation Crossbone Gundam, it didn’t seem worth checking out. But as I and found myself enjoying more and more of the Gundam franchise, I figured I should check it out anyway, especially since the F91 and the Crossbone Gundam are really cool designs.

As it turns out, I really like F91! Unfortunately, this is in spite of some major flaws, mostly stemming from the fact that it feels like a TV series they had to condense into a two hour movie... which it turns out is literally what happened:

So with that put out right at the start, let's get into it:

THE STUFF I LIKED:

I promise I won't start every entry like this, but with the knowledge that this was originally going to be a TV series, I think "the gang" they introduce is perfect. Seabook, Cecily, Seabook's Little Sister, Grumpy Techie, Normal Kid, Team Mom Punk Girl, Seabook's Cowardly Rival, a bunch of kids like the White Base Babies/Shinta and Qum, a literal actual baby- that's a Burger King Kids Club right there, perfectly suited to TV hijinks. Of course, you can't do a lot of goofy, ZZ-esque hijinks in a two hour movie, but they manage to slip some stuff in, and in isolation I thought they were mostly pretty fun.

I'm also really fond of the actual crew of the Space Ark, because they collectively remind me of my favorite version of Bright Noa; people way out of their depth and doing their best with way too much responsibility while being relentless dogged by Federation war hawks who- in a pleasant contrast to War in the Pocket- are maybe the scummiest bastards they've ever been.

With those two things mentioned; I don’t think it’s much of a secret that F91 was almost certainly an attempt at soft-rebooting Gundam. I think it was a noble attempt; unlike Wing, which I regularly derided as “the Universal Century again, but with arbitrary differences”, the differences here feel more considered. For example: Seabook is an amalgamation of Amuro, Kamille, and Judau, Cecily Fairchild is F91’s equivalent of Sayla Mass, but also, she also fulfills the role of a grown-up Mineva Zabi, and the F91 itself is actually pretty special compared to all of its contemporary mobile suits because of Seabook's mom's quirked-up design.

Visually, I really love this movie. I'm not very good at describing visual stuff, so I tend to avoid saying much more than "it's good" or "it's bad", but this movie uses a lot of unusual colors and lighting compared to what came before. Like, I would describe the most commonly reoccurring color in this movie's palette as "periwinkle", and this shot from the first conversation between Cecily and Iron Mask really highlights how important lighting is in this animated feature, which is not something I typically think about when watching animation.

Speaking of: it's crazy to think Unicorn's Riddhe Marcenas was never The Biggest Cuck in Gundam, because Iron Mask has been occupying that position since 1991. Not just literally, but every single word he says and action he takes is just barely not seething. Explicitly mentioning he came to terms with the guy his wife ran off with right before murdering him with psychic powers just to make her sad is peak Cuck Behavior.

Way back in my Hathaway review, I talked about how much I liked the scene of Hathaway and Gigi having to navigate a mobile suit firefight on foot, and for how good that was, F91 actually outdoes that movie. Like, not even 10 minutes in do we get the scene of the baby's mother getting instantly killed by a shell casing, and this is before the fighting starts in earnest.

I pointed this out in a separate post but man do I love the space rescue from Final Fantasy VIII, so finding out that (barring this movie having taken it from something else itself) F91 was the origin of this was a genuinely delightful way to end the movie. Also, even without that comparison, there's is something powerfully romantic about the visual of clinging to your loved one in the endless, uncaring vacuum of space.

THE STUFF I LIKED LESS:

For all the things this movie must have cut, there's an equal number of things it didn't and just rammed in there anyway, like the subplot with Annamarie and Zabine. In a ~50 episode TV series, they could have stretched her growing resentment towards Cecily, defection from the Vanguard, and ultimate clash with Zabine over like 10 episodes, and her death at his hands and his cold dismissal would've had way more impact than it did over the course of 10 minutes.

I mentioned before, Cecily is both a "what if" of an older Mineva Zabi as she appeared in the Zeta/ZZ, which also makes her the blueprint for Mineva Zabi as she actually appears in Unicorn. The flaw here is the Ronah family: unlike the Zabis, who rose to power and infamy with cloak and dagger, the Ronah family just... exists? And they have enough power and resources to form a fighting force as threatening to the firmly entrenched (but arguably stagnant/in-decline) Federation as the Crossbone Vanguard? It'd be easier to handwave if F91 took place, like, 100 years after CCA, but with only 30 years it's just bizarre.

Also not to let Cecily off scot-free, it's very not flattering how easily she fell for the absolute monarchy meme. Like, ok, she's 17 and definitely in over her head, but when Seabook came to rescue her I still don't understand why she was like "no, it's too late, they already convinced me facism is based".

Wiki diving on this subject indicates the Ronah family is basically a new money family that bought an old money name to sound more important, which is delicious, and even sort of ties in with Iron Mask being a Cyber-Newtype, but that's not really present in the movie. Never a good thing when I have to wiki dive to understand something better.

Speaking of this movie only taking place 30 years after CCA: this is not at all the fault of F91, because at the time it was made nothing had else had really been written to have happened aftere Char's Counterattack, but it's very weird to see people who should know better be like "there used to be these people called 'Newtypes', and a special kind of mobile suit called a 'Gundam'".

The Bugs are comically stupid. If I were being charitable, I could chalk this up to Iron Mask being a seething cuck and wanting to be as cruel as possible to the people he's killing, but the idea that self-propelled heat seeking sawblades are a more viable method of mass killing than the gas attacks in Zeta is bananas. (I wrote this right after watching F91, and now that I've had the chance to think back on Zeta- specifically how the first colony we see that got hit with the Titans' gas attack was still uninhabitable years later- I can kind of see the rationale behind the Bugs, but they're still very dumb)

Most of the mech designs in this are pretty great, but I gotta say I'm super disappointed with the Rafflesia. I kept waiting for it to bloom into a dope-ass Qubeley/Kshatriya lookin' thing but it was just the Final Weapon from Mega Man X4.

I mentioned I liked the mobile suit designs, but the Crossbone Vanguard in general is not beating the Star Wars allegations.

OTHER OBSERVATIONS:

I aspire to own the BEAUTIFUL LIFE TOMINO jacket in the way that other guys with different brain problems than me aspire to own the jacket from Drive.

There was a bunch of stuff in this movie I thought was very funny, intentionally or otherwise:

Despite how horrifying the scene gets, the War Museum fight kicking off with the curator announcing/revealing that the name of the museum is "Roy's War Museum" killed me.

Seabook jumping off the maintenance platform and audibly shattering his knees is incredibly fucking funny.

However, Seabook's mom hopping on a moped and immediately eating shit is maybe the single funniest scene in any Gundam media ever.

You're right, random citizen attending the Crossbone Vanguard propaganda rally: beam flags ARE awesome!

This sentence is just a literal observation of what's literally happening in the scene. Like, thinking about it, most attacks on colonies from space in the Universal Century would necessarily come from what would technically be considered "underground" because of how they're designed, but I'll be damned if it doesn't sound poetic. Tomino strikes again!

I've talked about SPEEN before, but it has literally never been SPEEN-ier than F91. Like, here's over a full minute of So Much Fucking Spinning (with the dub audio, where they added in sound effects for everything that's spinning for some reason):

If you don't count the numerous manga follow ups: lol, lmao

IN CONCLUSION:

In an alternate universe where F91 had the chance to be the TV show it was intended to be, I think it would have been successful in trying to soft reboot Gundam. There's a ton of stuff I really like about this, but the execution is lacking because of course it is, and judging it as is without considering hypotheticals, I'd probably put it about on par or just a hair above Char's Counterattack. It has almost the exact same pacing problems I had with that movie, but because it's effectively a clean slate and a single, unconnected, complete narrative, it winds up being a less frustrating watch.

Next up: Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Stardust Memory! This one is a coin flip, because I don't think I've ever heard a single complementary thing about this outside of Cima Garahau's design and the fact that it's a beautiful 90's anime OVA, but it takes place in a timeframe (smack between 0079 and Zeta) that is just so rich with potential that even if it's bad, it should at the very least be interesting.

[newspropaganda]

People say Yu-Gi-Oh! 5D's was messed up due to production problems during the best parts of the show, but they conveniently ignore the fact that Tomioka left early, around Episode 27, leaving people wondering what happened on which side. Yeah, you guys aren't nice.

In my opinion, Tomioka was even worse than Yoshida. How can the fandom stay silent and not realize that if Tomioka admitted the earlier episodes felt off, she should have left sooner, instead of causing the production problems that made the Dark Signer Arc hard to watch? But then, we got the post-Dark Signer Arc, which completely fixed those issues and smoothed things out for us to enjoy.

Tomioka should never return. 5D's only real fault was the timing of its early production, and that's it.

And don't even get me started on Des Shinta, who can’t admit that he’s made mistakes. He never explained why Tomioka left 5D's, and instead made a review that focuses more on trivial nonsense than providing any logical explanation.

[bllnr]

BLLNR reviews Shinta Mani Cambodia https://tinyurl.com/29q82grw

[shintawahjoe]

REVIEW PRODUK SPENCER'S INDONESIA, Tepung Ayam Goreng Sehat FITMOM

Halo guys, kenalkan saya shinta... Disini saya akan review produk tepung ayam goreng sehat Fitmom by Spencers. Yang bikin saya suka dalam produk Fitmom ini adalah tepung yang tidak mengandung gluten (gluten free), tidak mengandung MSG, tidak menahan minyak, menggunakan rempah2 asli dan rasanya sangat khas unik lezat. kebayang gk sih , makan enak jaman sekarang yg sehat lebih susah dicari… apalgi seperti saya pribadi yang sangat suka dengan ayam goreng tepung.. Setidaknya kita tidak was was dalam konsumsi FITMOM, menurut saya ya..

Yang saya pernah coba beberapa varian produk spencers indonesia khususnya Fitmom dgn varian Spicy, Super Spicy, Original.. menurut saya rasa gurihnya OK, Crunchy, dan sensasi pedasnya ini beda dari yg lain.. rasanya seakan baru pertamakali makan kentucky yg rasanya sangat lezat tapi beda dengan yg ada dipasaran.

Apalagi buat ibu2 yg suka menyiapkan keluarga makanan2 dengan tepung, mending bisa beralih menggunakan FITMOM ini.. Mau bikin Ayam goreng ataupun makanan lainya yang biasa menggunakan tepung, pasti enak.. Pasti lebih lega bisa bikin makanan kreasi baru yg aman buat keluarga, termasuk makanan sehari2 untuk anak2…

Tak perlu panjang lebar, pokoknya kalian harus coba ya !! Biar bisa buktikan sendiri !! btw spencers punya banyak mitra, kalian bisa order di kota terdekat kalian loh <3

spencersindonesia #mitraspencersindonesia #bisnisspencers #testispencers

#spencersi.id #spencersasik #fitmom

[bloghasnah]

Reviewed thoroughly by the chosen work of Denny Ja 18: Naga Thousand Faces

In this article, we will thoroughly review one of the chosen works of Denny Ja 18 entitled "Naga Thousand Faces". By using a professional language style, we will explore various aspects of this work, including storylines, characters, themes, and messages that the author wants to convey. I. Introduction In this introduction, we will give a general picture of this work and why the work is interesting to be reviewed in depth. "Naga Thousand Faces" is a fictional essay poem written by Denny JA 18, a famous writer in Indonesia. This work has been a concern of many readers since it was first published, and we will dig deeper to see why this work is so interesting. II. Storyline First of all, let's discuss about the storyline of "Naga Thousand Face". This work tells the adventures of a hero named Arjuna who is trying to fight the evil forces who want to rule the world. This story has an interesting plot and is full of surprises that keep the reader involved in this story. Denny JA 18 managed to create a strong conflict and describe every moment with charming details. III. Character Next, we will discuss the characters in this work. One of the things that makes "a thousand faces" so interesting is strong and deep characters. Arjuna, as the main character, is described as a brave hero and has a strong determination. In addition, there are also supporting characters such as Dewi Shinta who is beautiful and wise, as well as Rama with a knight. Denny JA 18 succeeded in creating complex and attractive characters, making the reader feel connected to them. IV. Theme The themes raised in this work are also worth considering. One dominant theme is the struggle between goodness and evil. Through its characters, Denny Ja 18 illustrates how important it is to maintain positive values and fight against evil forces. In addition, the theme of love and sacrifice also feels strong in this story. Denny Ja 18 managed to convey a deep moral message through an entertaining story. V. Message Finally, we will discuss the message that the author wants to convey through this work. "Dragon Thousand Faces" teach us about the importance of fighting for truth and loving sincerely. In a world that is often full of crime and hatred, this work reminds us to stick to positive values and dare to fight evil forces. This message is very relevant and can inspire many readers. VI. Conclusion In this article, we have completed the Denny Ja 18 chosen work entitled "Naga Thousand Faces". Through the analysis of storylines, characters, themes, and messages delivered, we can see how great this work is. With a professional language style, Denny Ja 18 managed to create an interesting and entertaining story. "Naga Thousand Faces" is proof of the author's ability to create inspiring fiction. 

Check more: review with thoroughly selected by Denny JA 18: Naga Thousand Faces

[ljaesch]

Manga Review: Akane-banashi Volume One

Akane-banashi Volume One focuses on rakugo, which is a type of verbal entertainment in Japan that features one performer on stage taking on the role of all the characters in the story by themselves. Akane-banashi Volume One Written by: Yuki Suenaga Publisher: Shueisha Inc. English Publisher: VIZ Media Release Date: August 8, 2023 The first chapter introduces the reader to Shinta, a rakugo…

[des-shinta]

"For Want of a King" Shinta Reviews Super Robot Wars X part 9 X Continues with over-stressed individuals and the discussion of harmful retcons; both within and outside the game's make.

[tokufan400]

At this point, I would trust reviewers like Des Shinta to review the show properly to be honest. Dude would be harsh on the points he doesn't like, but he does the research and explains his problems with the media in a concise manner. At least if he doesn't like RWBY it wouldn't be out of spite. That, and he did do a review of Vol 1.

Take a look at these two photos. These were what were happening in RWBY V8′s second to last episode.

Now then…take a look at these edited ones.

Memeable , isn’t it? Especially if you remove all context. Ruby in this episode was focusing on Cinder, gathering up mental focus on what makes life Sacred in order to use her silver eyes against Salem’s Maiden.

Neo? Was trying to attack Ruby from Behind.

Yang? Intercepted Neo  by pushing Ruby out of the way, and using her own body to shield her sister, due to Neo being an extremely fast opponent, faster than Yang.

RWDE and R/RWBYCritics took advantage of the facial expressions to manipulate audiences into believing that Ruby ONLY made those expressions after Yang fell. In order to make it look like Ruby was apathetic.

You wanna see Ruby’s facial expressions? HERE

A sister horrified at losing her sibling. The image that every single RWBY Critic will hide from you, because showing this image provides context, showing this image showed that Ruby cared, showing this image, means that the criticism is based on lying.

When your criticism revolves around editing images to provide an out of context take on the situation, your critique should lose all validity, and be classified as bad-faith criticism.

Sadly, these days, Criticism is no longer about providing context, and more about lying. Its about editing things to be taken out of context. The reason people hate on V8 is due to people literally lying about what happens.

What makes this worse is that lies spread like wildfire, are harder to debunk, and the more people that repeated said lies, the more people are willing to take lies as truth over the actual truth.

And this, sadly, is part of the reason why Media Literacy is dead. Because truth doesn’t matter anymore…simply what people want to be the truth or what people want their take on the truth to be.

[love-sapphirerose]

Optimally Maximal Relationship Failures

https://www.deviantart.com/antoni-matteo-garcia/art/Optimally-Maximal-Relationship-Failures-863430102

This demotivational poster is super aggro and mega highly Anti-SessKagu, Anti-KogAya, Anti-InuKag, Anti-Kagura to some extent, Anti-Kouga to a vastly significant extent, Anti-Kagome to a huge extent, but also Pro-Sesshoumaru, Pro-Inuyasha, Pro-Ayame, and highly Pro-SessAyaInu. Sit back and relax, as I tear into Sesshoumaru's and Kagura's failure of a relationship, Kouga's and Ayame's major fart of a romance that should never have been, and Inuyasha's and Kagome's annoying volatility, why Kagura does not deserve Sesshoumaru, why Kouga and Kagome only deserve my ire, wrath, and fury, and why Sesshoumaru, Inuyasha, and Ayame deserve so much better in each other. Furthermore, this is my contribution to this year's Red Ribbon Reviewers' month. Behold, my dear readers, my three greatest NOTPs of all time. Sure, I consider Naraku with anybody my greatest choice of a NOTP because someone as manipulatively dastardly such as Naraku deserves to be alone, done for, and truly deserves jack shit! However, that is too obvious of a choice. These three are the ones that make me want to tear my hair off and carve the hearts of Kouga and Kagome out with a blunt knife as well as tell Kagura to vamoose. As you can clearly tell, I have put these from bad to worse to the worst, with Sesshoumaru x Kagura being something absolutely unpleasant, Kouga x Ayame being a whole lot more atrocious, and Inuyasha x Kagome being the indubitable equivalent to toxic waste mixed with gallons of poison. Ergo, SessKagu is a bad pairing, KogAya is so much worse, and InuKag is the absolute worst pairing to exist in Inuyasha. I am aware that there are a good number of people who love to pair Sesshoumaru with Kagura because of how appealingly sexy they appear together. However, now that I have discarded those rose-tinted glasses for good, I can see this failure of a relationship for what this signifies and this all falls on Kagura's shoulders. Lest one forget that Kagura killed Kouga's tribesmen of her own volition and got pleasure out of that, trapped Miroku and Sango at Mt. Hakurei also by her own volition, kidnapped Rin, used Akago as a vessel to feed on Kagome's dark side, was manipulated into serving Princess Kaguya in the false hopes of wanting her freedom, and tended to mock Inuyasha. All of these atrocities would make Sesshoumaru fully cognizant that Kagura is far from being his equal in a relationship. Her dirty record as well as her hissy fit at Sesshoumaru for not helping her desire to be free from Naraku make her a co-dependent partner which can only spell failure in the long-term. As a mother to Rin, she would definitely fail badly because of her aforementioned dirty record and she would not be fully worthy of any sort of emulation. For someone like Kagura who is a formidable fighter, she has abused her wind powers to cause chaos and misery. Her passing may be tragic, but the awful deeds she has done are not worthy of my forgiveness. At least Sesshoumaru is free from being in a co-dependent relationship with that polarizing wind sorceress. Kouga x Ayame or KogAya is a couple I will never understand the appeal of. Yes, they are both wolf yokai, but these two could not be any more different, as Kouga is a big bluffer of a bully and a Karma Houdini and Ayame is a naturally brave, strong, fearless warrior princess with hidden depths that should have been fully realized! I have dreaded at the thought of these two ending up together because of all the failures and atrocities that would all resurface if Ayame were to find out all the horrible crimes Kouga has committed against an innocent young girl, Rin, and his entire tribe. This also extends to him not being the strong fighter he has made himself out to be and nothing more than a perennially pathetic loser who has relied on the Shikon Jewel's power instead of harnessing his own strength, as if the Shikon Jewel shards on his legs are a metaphor for steroids being used to give someone an artificial boost of strength and power. If Ayame dared to discover all of those atrocities, crimes, and rubbish Kouga has committed, she will be undoubtedly appalled at him and would repudiate him for good. I will reiterate that all of my sympathy goes to Ayame because of the fact that she deserves so much better than this pathetic waste of effort and time and deserves to grow as a veritably formidable heroine worthy of emulation, especially to all the young girls of the world. The mere fact that Kouga and his wolves killed innocent villagers including Rin who has lost her family and had to wander the world alone before she was revived Sesshoumaru through his Tenseiga and got away with murder, mainly relied on the Shikon Jewel's power to accelerate his strength and speed without working that on his own, and did not avenge his fallen comrades at the hands of Naraku and Kagura should all make Ayame's insides turn and make her reject Kouga for good and for all. Ergo, Ayame does not deserve this pathetic Karma Houdini and deserves to estrange herself from him forever, thus making her be the mother Rin truly deserves and will gladly give her her unconditional love and compassion to help her grow as a person. Speaking of couples I do not understand the appeal of by any shape of the imagination, we have my most dreaded NOTP of all time in the form of Inuyasha x Kagome or InuKag. Even as a child of eleven years old, I did not tune in to Inuyasha to see their soap opera fart of a relationship desecrating Adult Swim let alone the airwaves no matter where I was watching this series. I mainly tuned in to Inuyasha to see him growing from strength to strength and kick loads of butt, especially in his full yokai form. Furthermore, the more I saw Kagome and her brand of shrewishness, manipulativeness, brattiness, pettiness, jealousy, and callousness, the more irritated I became. There was barely any semblance of a romantic relationship blooming between Inuyasha and Kagome, as it was more of Kagome being the owner to Inuyasha's pet, especially where the Beads of Subjugation and the purpose of Inuyasha's sword Tessaiga are concerned. The Beads of Subjugation were used for Inuyasha to not do anything rash while the Tessaiga, aside from being a sword of destruction, was also intended to be used to protect those who are oppressed. Being the manipulative shrew Kagome was, she believed this would give her leeway for Inuyasha to shield her and be her "knight in shining armor" who will save her from all forms of danger without honing her own skills as a fighter. What is worse is that Kagome extends her manipulation to Miroku, Sango, and Shippou aka The Dunderhead Family to be nothing more than her pathetic posse and have them jump on a certain bandwagon that has brought Inuyasha a whole bunch of trauma. I am, of course, talking about how he was still hurting from the guilt he felt when Naraku manipulated both him and Kikyou into betraying each other. Miroku, Sango, Shippou, and especially Kagome never understood Inuyasha's pain and trauma in the slightest and The Dunderhead Family think that anytime Kagome was hurt it was all because of him. Furthermore, there is the fact that Inuyasha and Kagome are an undeniable example of being in a Karmic relationship with each other, given the many times they have been yelling, bickering, squabbling, and getting themselves in a heap of messily addictive habits that will only dig them deeper into more quagmires than find any sensibility or profound meaning. It says something that someone as compassionate, genuine, kind, and natural as Rin makes a far better companion to Inuyasha than The Dunderhead Family and...ugh....Kagome combined. Do not even get me started on the first episode of Yashahime because Inuyasha still has those accursed Beads of Subjugation on and she still does not trust him where Kikyou was concerned. Kagome was never attentive to him, never understood him in a profound level, and always believed she had dominance over him. This, my friends, is why I absolutely loathe InuKag with all of my being and it stands perched atop the medal platform of shame as my most disdained NOTP of all time. InuKag makes SessKagu more tolerable in comparison and the only other NOTP to ever come close to InuKag's brand of disgust is KogAya. Regardless, InuKag is the NOTP I will never want to touch with a twelve-foot pole. You might even noticed a recurring theme in terms of my discussion of my Inuyasha NOTPs and that is the importance of Rin. Well, she does play an integral part in not only Sesshoumaru's life but also the lives of Inuyasha and Ayame. Considering that Kouga and his wolves killed her in cold blood and got away with murder, Kagura kidnapped her as ransom for Sesshoumaru to annihilate Naraku, and that Kagome and The Dunderhead Family do not even come close to Rin's brand of compassion, I say that it was high time for Sesshoumaru to ditch Kagura, Inuyasha to give a big, fat, ugly screw-you to Kagome, and Ayame to drop kick Kouga in his family jewels to be the worthy parents to give Rin the great home she truly deserves complete with siblings in the forms of Dai, Roku, Kai, Shiori, and Shinta. To make things better, Rin will be definitely grateful to have two strong, powerful, brave dads like Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha, one courageous, honorable, compassionate mom like Ayame, three tough, independent, loving older brothers like Dai, Roku, and Kai, a lovable, caring, compassionate "twin" sister like Shiori because they are also the same age though Shiori is a month younger than her, and a lovable, sweet, attentive younger brother like Shinta. Just squeeze in Shuran, Hakkaku, and Ginta to be her loving uncles and Shunran to be her equally loving auntie and it will be a glorious family Rin will be more than happy to be a part of. With that said, having a three-way relationship with Sesshoumaru and Inuyasha being the chivalrous, caring, noble husbands to Ayame is so much better than having these three suffer a series of terrible relationships. This also extends to how proud Toga the Dog General and The Wolf Elder shall be of their progeny for giving Rin a great home and for finding true friends in Shuran, Hakkaku, Ginta, and Shunran who are just as supportive of Sesshoumaru, Inuyasha, and Ayame being in a three-way relationship. In conclusion, I am so ecstatic to make SessKagu, KogAya, and especially InuKag my biggest NOTPs for life. I will never touch these failures with a twelve-foot pole ever again, but the putrid effect of these NOTPs will forever remain ingrained in my memory as a stern reminder what bad relationships can look like. From the co-dependency found in Kagura's failed relationship with Sesshoumaru to the utter deception and lies Ayame would have found herself falling hook, line, and sinker all for Kouga's pathetic hide to Inuyasha's and Kagome's fart of a relationship only spelling death and destruction for years to come, there is nothing that will salvage these losers together. I am just going to keep Sesshoumaru, Inuyasha, and Ayame in a loving three-way relationship complete with a great family they can call their own and Shuran, Hakkaku, Ginta, and Shunran are going to be part of that family as their siblings for life. I hope you all enjoyed my evisceration of SessKagu, KogAya, and InuKag as my biggest NOTPs for life and I would love to hear from you if you agree with me on this. Until then, I will see you in the next submission. Take care and Happy Holidays, everybody. Sesshoumaru, Inuyasha, and Ayame as well as the lame-os known as Kouga, Kagura, and Kagome from Inuyasha belong to Rumiko Takahashi and Sunrise.

[shylax]

I didn’t realize this until seeing Des Shinta’s review of Kamen Rider Black, but the biggest example of Kotaro’s dumbass decay is this:

In Kamen Rider Black, Kotaro fights a Cactus Mutant and defeats it by realizing that overwatering causes cactus to rot.

In Kamen Rider Black RX, Kotaro tries to hide a cactus Reiko gave him to take care of because it rotted...because he overwatered it.

[narashikari]

Why. Why do I do this to myself.

I looked up the translated lyrics for Cyclone Effect on the KR Wikia and. I. Shouldn’t have done that.

Because now I know that this part

Was used FOR THIS SCENE

{gif from @des-shinta who also did a beautiful review of this series on YT}

WHY THE FUCKING FUCK TOEI. JUST. WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS TO MY POOR HEART