#i know this has been commented on but i am re reading the spinoff

[madmarchhare]

Well that's just a lie now wasn't it?

[shiny-procrastinates]

(re)Watching Magia Record S1 - part 1

Hello and welcome everyone to the first post on this watch-along commentary of the first season of Magia Record! Whether you are just now watching it for the first time, or are re-watching in preparation for the second season, or have only played the game and are curious about the anime (in which case I'd be surprised you even exist) I hope you can have some fun reading these ramblings as I try to put my thoughts into words  (actually turned more into narrating the show) throughout all 12 13 episodes.

Before we can get to it, though, I have a few warnings to give:

1 - As much as I'd love to be able to memory swipe so I can watch this fresh all over again, such an ability is sadly still beyond my grasp. In other words, this isn't my first time watching (or second, for that matter; more like the sixth… or seventh…). That being the case I can't claim that these are my first impressions and it's very likely this commentary will be somewhat biased by my previous knowledge. However, I can guarantee one thing: I will do my best to keep this spoiler-free, so you don't have to worry if this is your first time watching.

(I will, however, be assuming that you have watched the OG series and Rebellion, so beware of that).

2 - Please don't come into this expecting it to be Madoka 2

Also no, this is not a continuation of the OG, it’s an alternate universe spin-off.

This one's for first-time viewers.

Well, ok, this sounds like vague tweeting and I'm kind of whining here, but I have seen a number of peeps on the internet saying that Magia Record is bad only for their argument to boil down to "because it isn't OG Madoka!"

Yeah it isn't. I'm pretty sure there's "Side Story" written somewhere in the title too.

Leaving aside the matter of nostalgia glasses and whether the original series was that much of a masterpiece or not (it's been over five years since I last watched it, so I can't say anything either way.) it seems kind of weird to me that someone would bash a spinoff on the grounds of how close it is to the original. Because here's the thing: to me, the whole point of spinoffs is taking an already existing scenario and putting a spin on it to make something new. That's exactly what makes them fun!

MagiReco didn't need to be a Madoka clone or to try hard and beat the original. That would probably have made it bad, actually. What it did need to do was to create an interesting story using the world set up by the OG Madoka and the other spinoffs, and that, in my opinion, it did, so I hope people can give it a chance and judge it on its own merits rather than only compared to the original. I'm not saying you can't hate it, either, I myself have my own problems with it, it's just that I want to see more reasonable reasons than "it's not the OG so it's bad".

3 - As you can probably already tell from these warnings, these posts are bound to get looong, so I'd recommend setting aside a fair amount of time and getting real comfy if you're gonna read it all. I also don't mind if you just skip ahead and only read the interesting parts, I'm not the internet police.

3.5 - I don't want to use it as an excuse, but I think I should make it clear that English is not my native language, so I apologize in advance for any mistakes and awkward/stilted text. It's hard to tell by myself, so feel free to correct me if you find something.

SO, with that out of the way let’s get down to what’s really important:

Puella Magi Madoka Magica Side Story: Magia Record Episode 1

Whew, now that’s a mouthful.

You know, in my mind I always thought a “side story” was something that happened alongside a “main story”, like another POV, so I’m not sure that’s the most appropriate title, but who am I to judge?

So here we go, we’re off with some beautiful futuristic scenery already, that’s the Madoka series I know.

As the classic Sis Puella Magi plays in the background, two unseen narrators tell us the tale of the so called “magical girls” as we are shown the reality of being one, meeting our first witch for this series.

Risking your life to save a cat doesn’t seem like the smartest of things. Rather, witches eat cats? That’s mean.

No, you really, really don’t. This narration definitely seems made to make everyone who saw the original say this, particularly with how silly are the wishes these girls suggest. 

And hey, look, even this girl who supposedly had her wish granted doesn’t seem very happy.

Hang in there, this is only the first episode.

Man, this scenery really is pretty though.

After an exciting fight with a witch in the train, our girl here silently goes home to find

Whatever the heck this is.

So, our girl here seems to be having strange visions whenever she enters her room, that is very very suspiciously cut exactly in half. Protagonist, you sure have an unique sense of interior decoration.

She goes on with her day, makes two lunchboxes and… oh, it seems she’s all alone.

Is this something you should be telling your own daughter?

Long story short, Iroha’s parents are abroad right now (as is suspiciously the case with many a anime protagonist parents). I actually love the parallel this scene draws with OG Madoka: whereas Madoka’s parents seem responsible and Madoka even looks up to her mom and they’re a happy united family, Iroha comes off as being the responsible one in her family and her parents are gone from the get-go. This way, the lonely atmosphere of the previous scene also starts making sense.

So, it seems like there’s something Iroha wants to do here, and that’s why she decided to stay behind.

Perhaps. Did you wish to save a black cat?

Wow, this teacher is speaking fast. Calm down lady, we’re not here to speedrun the content, geez. Though I guess we should be happy she’s at least giving a proper class, unlike a certain other teacher…

Oh great, it's this guy.

Ok, Iroha doesn’t remember what she wished for and Kyuubei doesn’t know either, although he knows she used her wish for the sake of someone. Kyuubei theorizes that the reason she doesn’t remember might be that not remembering was part of her wish, but Iroha doesn’t think she’d wish for that. I don’t think you’d ever think to wish for something like that until you had to wish for something like that though.

She’s got a fair point. After all, wishing in this universe is basica— the heck is going on in the background there?! O-kaaay…

Iroha was having a weird think-spot mental conversation with Kyuubei there, and missed speedrun teacher’s lecture entirely. Being meguca is suffering.

We get some school motto propaganda, and now we’re on the roof. Oh? Where did all the friendship stuff from the propaganda go? Seems like Iroha’s not following the school spirit. Unless she considers the white weasel a friend, so that’s why she gave him her extra… wait, Kyuubei can EAT? I thought he was some alien machine-like being. H-Huh...

Classmate A: Tamaki-san, maji tenshi!

She’s probably just shy. According to her classmates, Iroha used to be busy doing something or the other, but no one can remember what that is.

Cute. 

But maybe don’t do that somewhere someone could easily walk in on you, Iroha.

Iroha gets a call by the girl from the combat scene from before, whose name is Kuroe. I couldn’t tell from their conversation if they’ve known each other for a while or if they just met each other for the first time in the fight before.

On the train, although she’s the one who called her over, Kuroe remains silent. Iroha, clearly uncomfortable, tries her best to make conversation. Poor Iroha, I know the feeling.

We learn from her that the number of witches around has been decreasing. She comments that being unable to get Grief Seeds is troubling, but it’s better than having witches causing trouble. Poor girl has no way to know just how much of a bad news it is running out of Grief Seeds.

What’s with pink-haired girls and lacking self-esteem? Iroha, are you sure you didn’t wish to save a black and forget that you did? You did save a white one just before.

Kuroe finally decides to talk, and she tells us this:

If you go to Kamihama, you’ll be saved. To anyone that saw the OG, the first thought that comes to mind is that they’ll be saved from their destiny of turning into witches, but it seems Kuroe doesn’t know the truth yet. She just doesn’t want to fight witches anymore. I think.

The train lights up, and…

...this is extremely unsettling considering the truth about witches and the conversation they’re having right now. There’s a lot of this, but this just hits different having watched the original.

Iroha’s not inclined to believe what Kuroe’s saying. Of course, despite not remembering her wish, she’s the type that’s happy with fighting witches if she can save someone, and Kuroe’s not being very convincing either. The whole thing is apparently a rumor spread by some girls who saw a dream that told them that.

Except that Kuroe actually had the dream too.

Like most magical girls, Kuroe made a short-sighted wish, and regrets it. She now wants to be saved, so she’s going to Kamihama.

...or she was, but before that, they’ll have to defeat the witch they let escape the other day, ‘cos she’s back for more.

I actually have so many questions about this scene. Weren’t Labyrinths pocket dimensions? How come this one’s moving in physical space? We know witches themselves move and their Labyrinth goes with that, but I thought it was more, like, the entrance to the Labyrinth moves. Then how come witches can escape if magical girls get carried with their Labyrinth when they move…? Just... just... what?

The answer to all of that is probably “magic”.

Like that, Express Witch Labyrinth crashes right into what seems to be a train station. Labyrinths don’t have brakes, confirmed.

Brutal.

Looks like it’s not only magical girls who have territorial disputes going on. Although it’s nice that they won’t have to fight two witches at the same time, this is not exactly a relief when you consider these two were already struggling with the previous one, and this one just ripped it apart like crab.

As expected, Iroha’s arrows do no damage at all. When all seems lost…

A wild singing mini Kyuubei appears! Is this a shiny?

The singing Kyuubei distracts the witch and jumps towards Iroha, who uses her pro white cat catching skills to grab it, and… something happens. Whatever this Kyuubei did, Iroha’s having some flashbacks now. Sadly, the middle of a battle isn’t the best time to be having a BSOD and, despite Kuroe’s attempts to snap her out of it, they’re sitting ducks right now, a black and a white one.

Thankfully for them, though, they’re not alone in this barrier. This mystery blue haired girl spams flying spears and makes short work of the witch Iroha’s arrows didn’t even scratch earlier. She’s clearly at a whole ‘nother level.

Also, chibi Kyuubei’s gone. Totally not suspicious. Nope. Not at all.

So, from this OP miss get-the-heck-out-of-my-territory, who didn’t even bother saying her name, we learn that not only there is no salvation in Kamihama, there are more, stronger witches, and there are currently no Kyuubei. She gives them the Grief Seeds from the two witches before, and passes on a warning to them. Not the friendliest of magical girls. Though if you consider what happens when you run out of Grief Seeds, one could understand why it’d be undesirable having too many magical girls in the same place.

With this, Iroha and Kuroe take the train back to their town and things are totally awkward again.

Welp, seems like Kuroe doesn’t want to chat anymore, so we’ll have a dream sequence instead.

Forgive my lack of words, but this scene doesn’t need them. This is just… you couldn’t ask for a better representation of what being a magical girl wishing for salvation is like. Everyone has their own reasons, but in the end, having known despair, these girls are desperately clinging to this last hope called Kamihama. It’s almost a pilgrimage.

“Let’s go to Kamihama. We’ll be saved there”

And in the midst of all that is the mysterious girl from Iroha’s dreams.

(the track here, Paradero de Memoria, is also great btw)

Now, with various wishes written all over in the background, we get Kyuubei’s spiel about magical girls. I think this is word-by-word the same from the original too.

We now get to finally know what our protagonist’s wish was.

So Iroha wished to cure her younger sister’s illness, but the sister in question is now nowhere to be found. Worse: everything related to her is gone. Even Iroha, who made a wish for her sake, didn’t remember her existence until now. Oh man, that’s no normal disappearance. What happened? Guess that’s what Iroha will have to find out now.

With that, we conclude the first episode of Magia Record(’s s1)!

This is a really strong first episode in my opinion. It decently introduces our protagonist, sets up the mysteries we will be dealing with from here on and also manages to trace connections with the original, while using the viewer’s previous knowledge to give a whole different impression to some scenes. You wouldn’t be like “hell no” at the rumor there at the start if you didn’t know the truth about magical girls, and I doubt that final scene would hit that hard either. It’s just really good at this and it’ll continue doing that from now on. I love it.

Speaking of the final scene, me having watched the original over five years ago might also be part of it but that is really my favorite scene in Madoka overall. I just really really love that scene. (Seriously, I’ve watched this scene so many times I know it by heart now. Help.)

Alas, I lied, the episode’s not over yet, we still have our classic anime first episode ending-opening to watch. So let’s listen, to Gomakashi:

This logo’s real pretty.

So yeah, pretty standard anime opening. If you pay attention, there are some references to Connect too, what with the selfcest and whatnot. Although I managed to mistake this when I first watched, this one’s actually sung by the trio TrySail rather than ClariS. That’s the VAs for Iroha, Asakura Momo; Yachiyo (the get-out-of-my-territory girl), Amamiya Sora and Natsukawa Shiina, whose character we’ve yet to meet. TrySail has a lot of cool songs, so do check them out if you haven’t already. (free ad)

This time, in fact, the episode is over! Whew, I did say this was going to be long, but not even I thought it’d be this long. By the time this is posted I should have a backlog of these, so my plan is to post one everyday until we are done. I hope you had fun reading this here rant and I’ll be looking forward to meeting you guys again tomorrow, same place, maybe same hour, so we can go on and watch episode 2 together!

(P.S.: I am considering doing a series of posts at a later date comparing the anime to the game, but we’ll see. The first few chapters are fine, but the game is stupidly long, so I feel it’d take a lot of motivation and stamina I’m not sure I have at the moment. There’s also the possibility watching the first arc again would bring back my yt copy-apocalipse grief back and that’d suck, definitely don’t wanna go through that again.)

[soul-dwelling]

Anything thoughts on big shonen series like One piece or Naruto?

One Piece: Probably the best plotted manga, if not the best manga, out there, currently in publication or otherwise, just in terms of plot setup and payoff. I have not done well keeping up with the manga and anime, so I am ignorant about a lot of what is going on right now, so I can't speak very well regarding the anime's pacing and some animation problems and animation highlights.

Naruto: I wish I had kept up on the series, as I have some thoughts about Naruto's role as a trickster--although that obviously has changed by the time we get to Boruto. I just haven't gotten into Boruto, the anime (when it was on Toonami) or the manga.

And for a few others:

Dragon Ball: I pretty much really like only Super for its tighter plot (yes, even that way-too-long tournament finale), more time engaging with the characters, animation that at least to me was easier to follow and cleaner, and a good portion of Saiyaman thrown in. I do wish Vidal was brought back for more fighting, though.

My Hero Academia: I have been struggling to get through a lot of it since the Meta Liberation Army Arc, in terms of trying to figure out, "Is this too dark?" "Does the animation seem limited in the anime because they were busy working on the third film?" "Should we be getting back to the high school stuff or is that no longer relevant?" and "Is the pacing off or rushed?" Add to all of this that the spinoff manga Vigilantes has taken a long time to wrap up and has the same "fridge a woman character" problem that the main manga has had.

Bleach: I lost track. I think I saw the final episodes of the first anime when they were on Toonami, and I just didn't feel much.

Haikyu: I enjoyed a lot of what I saw in the anime and the manga--but then I skipped to the manga's finale, which spoiled a lot of anticipation for me, which is my fault, but it does speak to a problem I have with sports-focused series: once you know the outcome, it's kind of hard to ever feel interested in re-reading or re-watching it (barring some sports series like Hajime No Ippo / Fighting Spirit).

Gintama: I did not think I would enjoy that series as much as I have. There are definitely problematic parts of it, although I think for the most part the show matures beyond those parts and gets better. I wasn't satisfied with where the anime ended: yeah, it's obvious the adaptation wasn't done yet, but that was such a troll ending. At least there is a real finale in the new film...Too bad COVID is making sure I'm not about to set foot in a movie theater to see it. So, I'm stuck waiting for that film (and the second live action film) to get official home video releases.

Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba and Black Clover: I am so behind on both of these and don't feel comfortable commenting on them without a re-read and a re-watch.

Attack on Titan: I'm ambivalent, especially given its politics. Granted, it's debatable whether it's shonen.

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Can something be too bizarre that you struggle to keep up with the plot intricacies and decide, "I'm just going to sit back and turn my brain off"? Yeah, yeah, I know, I should have figured that much with a title like "bizarre."

Hunter x Hunter and YuYu Hakusho: I struggle to keep up with the former, I really enjoyed the latter on a much later re-watch.

Jujutsu Kaisen: I only wish other series handled the complexities of representing death and loss as well as the story's initial setup did, and how it has continued to approach that topic. I'm not a fan of body horror, so getting through some of it is rough.

And for some lesser appreciated ones:

Magu-chan: God of Destruction: This one is just delightful, relaxing, and funny, like a children's introduction to Lovecraftian horror.

Bungo Stray Dogs: Again, debatable whether this is shonen, but intricate plots, lots of back story to dig into, humorous character interactions, deep lore into the giants of Japanese and United States literature, and some well-animated adaptations from Studio BONES.

[myshyyangel]

BLs of 2020 *year in review(>×<?) *

I decided to make a list of bls that I HAVE WATCHED and rank them. First half of the list will be the ones that were questionable, or just not... Good and disappointing. Other half would be the ones that were good or THE BEST. *REMEMBER THIS IS MY OPINION, THANK YOU. *

5. BenxJim - justnotg.

Although I didn't post anything about this BL in here, I did have a lot to say on MyDramaList. It was cute at first BUT it ended up just... Not being good. The acting is okay, everybody needs work, I think the script was the biggest flaw, there were some unnecessary points or plots and the only saving grace was Olan. I'll say this though, thank you, because it was filmed during the pandemic so thank you for being able to do the series. But. Re-watch value 5/10.

4. Oxygen - disappointed.

If you have been following me for a couple of months/weeks then you'll know how I feel about this series. Disappointed, at best. It started so cutely and soft, but it turned into the same generic plot, characters, and everything else. There was chemistry, but the characters WERE SO BADLY WRITTEN that there was no growth whatsoever. The only saving grace: PhuKao. Anything else, you can find it in another bl. Re-watch value 1. I can watch Sotus or anything else, it is honestly the same as Oxygen. Or if you want to read my other comments on the series, scroll down.

3. My Engineer - disappointed

Writers need to know about this word: balance. How would you make your SIDE CHARACTERS OUTSHINE THE WHOLE MAIN COUPLE? And the lack of chemistry. The biggest mistake is giving the side couple what the main couple is supposed to have. Aside from that, the direction was ok, but there was a lot to be fixed. The writers decided to give all the love to the other couples, while two of those LACK a lot of chemistry, the main and one of the side couples. The cutest was Lay and Perth and the doctor and the other student. It was disappointing because at first, it was a cute show *I need to stop calling them cute cause they end up being aksjaks*but after that, I WANTED TO SKIPPED THE MAIN COUPLE AND BossMek(?). Anyways, re-watch value 4/10 because you re-watch RamKing (2) and Brother LOL (2). Also, a second season is coming so...

2. My Gear and your Gown. - questionable

This is probably the only unfair addition to this list because... I dropped it. My bad. Let me pick it up, puuur. No, I'm just kidding. But I did stop and it was because I was not into it at all, it felt long and confusing. So that's why the questionable. I dropped right in like half of but even if did try to continue, it felt like a drag. The writing and the acting, I felt like it was not there. Idk maybe I should finish the whole series and then come back here to tell y'all how my mind changed but...

AND MY NUMBER ONE IS...

1. Still 2gether - not good/disappointing/whatisthis(?)/idonotsee.

I fear, I FEAR BUT. this is my opinion. There was no need to make this "spinoff, lemme fix somethin'" type of series special whatever it was. I was not excited about this after ep. 1. It was a drag. And the plot, the plot... FORCED. you can tell when a series is rushed, and enough time has not been dedicated to it. Aside from that, there are no cute moments on the series, yes, I know, "you must be blind or something", but no, I am not. The acting is there, but MAN this was not it. I would have rather wait for a whole year to get a second season WITH THE KISS than this. I know I am not the only one who felt this way. Anyways, don't drag me. There was nothing to fix from the first season, BUT TO IMPROVE and that's not what Still 2gether did. I'm pretty sure everybody loved the color pallette/scheme of the first season, and even that turned to sht on this special eps. The direction was choppy and the editing too. Re-watch value 5/10. And it's weird cause I haven't watched this eps since it ended.

I'll post the next half tomorrow.

credits to the creators of the gifs, I do not own any of these. If you see yours, dm me and I'll add your name here. Thank you.

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[sixmorningsafter]

Ok so I'm back and am ready to review. I was VERY Overwhelmed after the bombshell that was chapter 14 (maybe bombshell isn't the right word in comparison to recent chapters aka Chapter 12 which was a lot more bombshell like but anyway). First off I just want to say that this is the most in fillery filler chapter ever in all the best ways. I've gone from "Let's get on with this Date I'm too excited for fillers" to "Everyone stay exactly where you are and continue what you are about to do"

REPLY: This is the last of the chapter 14 reviews that I have to answer and I am the most shattered of friggin’ records right now re: apologizing for the delay in responding but I’m going to do it again because this entire review is genuinely hilarious and wonderful! I love it and I love how much you always relate to Bonnie and I love all of your insights and the things you comment on and I’m about to let you know just how much I love it as I work my way through some answers so let’s gooooooooo!

On to Defan. I really don’t think SMA defan get enough credit like they are HILARIOUS. I would 100% read an SMA spinoff where Bonnie and Caroline go spend a gap year in New Zealand or something and Defan end up moving in together. I really liked Protective Stefan and I thought it was really fitting for the situation and for Stefan as a character. I really really felt for Damon though. Ngl got a little teary. Damon since day one has been nothing but a really good guy, he’s been super annoying and everything at times but he really has been an easy to live with housemate I mean the poor guy has ended up getting stuck in a tiny apartment with his bootycall who has decided that there not going to be hooking up anymore. And for Stefan to suggest that of him even with Caroline telling him already that that wasn’t the case is just as ass move. Really made me feel for Damon and the fact he just “got over it” just makes it sadder. He’s a really good guy!

REPLY: LMAO a Defan Odd Couple spinoff would be the funnest thing to write ever - I don’t know if you’ve ever seen ‘Don’t Trust the B in Apartment 23′ but I feel like it’d basically be a genderbent version of that show. So, so happy about your Defan love! And even happier with your Damon love! I went into this a bit in the review I answered before this one, but I chose Stefan’s lash out moment to be against Damon for pretty much exactly what you described: I wanted to highlight the fact that despite Damon’s general trouble-stirring/chaos-loving air, he’s actually been the chillest person in that apartment, and having someone judge him based on what he seemed rather than what he’s actually done felt like the best way to do that. Like, obviously the main goal of that tiff was to give more insight into Stefan and his flaws, but I wanted to give it the added bonus of directly confronting the fact that Damon’s actually a lot more composed and helpful than he pretends to be. The fact that you felt bad for him seems to indicate I somewhat pulled that off so that makes me really happy!

I think I might’ve said this already like a gazillion times but I’m pretty sure I am SMA Bonnie. Like the whole “I’m not saying, I’m not saying, I’m not DAMON SEXUAL FANTASIES” she is just the best ever! Also, can we just mention that that was literally one of the hottest Bamon scenes I’ve ever read and they literally did nothing like what???? I was so excited for the date but at that stage I was just like “ABORT, we are not doing that anymore sorry kaleidoscope they’re busy”. Bon being a strong-willed badass is not something I could relate to however because I would be all over Damon in that situation like talk about tension. 

REPLY: I’m pretty sure you’re SMA Bonnie, too! I adooooore how much you relate to her, girl, like it makes me so happy (and also super proud of you because Bonnie’s a boss! A slightly spastic one, but ya know, boss all the same). And re: her willpower, I think at this point you probably know that it kind of ran out in 15, lololol. Damon was all snazzed up and on his game and it was a lot. But in 14, yes, she definitely put up a fight. Adorable.

On to Steroline. I think Bonnie needs to just find the contract at this stage. Like everyone’s making such a big deal of it and yet they leave it on a counter or something they’re all so stressed. I feel like I am the Bonnie of my friend group and I HATE not knowing things everyone else does so I feel for her but damn she’s clueless. I’m actually almost as excited for Steroline alone time as I am for the Bonkaimon date and that saying something. The ending made my laugh so much like once again Bonnie is me getting overdressed and worrying people will be like “she’s overdressed” even though she knows she’s overdressed. You know Damon “Punctual” Whitmore is always the early bird. Looking forward to an update but I have plenty to reread in the mean time. Thanks a mil Gabi you rock!

REPLY: They’re definitely playing a little fast-and-loose with leaving that contract lying around, and there’s a solid chance that’s going to matter in the near future ;) And saaaaaame, I hate not knowing things, especially when people who have way less reason to know than I do, so that’s definitely going to filter into the writing, lmao. Honestly, I think that whole reveal scene’s going to be a mess. I’m not married to any one reaction till I get there (and I still have a fair bit of writing to go that’s super variable) but what I have in mind is pretty lol. Anyway, so, so happy that you enjoyed the chapter, and I hope 15 lived up to what you were hoping for out of it! Definitely a lot of Bonkaimon and Steroline Alone Time (or mostly alone time, sans a friendly feline). Thanks so, so much for writing this long and lovely review, and I hope that everything’s going well for you (med school prep, life, etc)! You’re super welcome, love!