#kobayashi reina

[ringoarchive]

Sheena Ringo with Reina Kobayashi and Yurina Kumai for the tv show Ousama no Brunch, aired on November 16th, 2019.

[mashleverse]

Mashle: Magic and Muscles - BBBB Dance CAST SPECIAL Ver. (Creepy Nuts - Bling-Bang-Bang-Born)

A special video featuring all the dances from the 20 Mashle seiyuus has been released! Enjoy the final episode and the final Bling-Bang-Bang-Born!

[stuff-diary]

Maboroshi

Movies watched in 2024

Maboroshi (2023, Japan)

Director & Writer: Mari Okada

Mini-review:

I was really curious about this movie, since Mari Okada has written and/or directed some pretty amazing stories, and the promotional materials and trailers looked very interesting. However, I can't say I liked it as much as I expected. I did love how ambitious the film is in terms of concept and themes, and the animation definitely lives up to the Mappa standard. In particular, the final act includes some truly stunning visuals. Unfortunately, I just couldn't connect with these characters, and I didn't find any of them likeable or interesting. Therefore, this movie doesn't even come close to the emotional wallop delivered by the ending of Okada's previous directorial work, the beautiful Maquia: When the Promised Flower Blooms. So yeah, Maboroshi is well-made, but rather disappointing.

[dayooooonds]

[potetopro]

MASHLE JP Voice Actors Lifting Magical Dumbells

[tokusongs]

"Cepel Pas Pel", from Kishiryu Sentai Ryusoulger (2019). Performed by Cardena (Tanaka Reina) and Fita (Kobayashi Rei).

[movienized-com]

Mashle: Magic and Muscles

Mashle: Magic and Muscles (Serie 2023) #ChiakiKobayashi #KatsuyukiKonishi #HiroakiHirata #ReinaUeda #Cho #YukiKaji Mehr auf:

Serie / マッシュル-MASHLE- Jahr: 2023- Genre: Anime / Action / Abenteuer Hauptrollen: Chiaki Kobayashi, Katsuyuki Konishi, Hiroaki Hirata, Reina Ueda, Chô, Yûki Kaji, Takuya Eguchi, Kaito Ishikawa, Yûichirô Umehara, Reiji Kawashima, Hiroki Nanami … Serienbeschreibung: In der Welt der Magier wird Mash geboren, ein Junge, dem die Magie fehlt, aber der dennoch die stärkste Person ist..

[matt0xp]

🌟M-Line Special Concerts🌟

Make a Wish 2021

COIN 💛💜💙

I CAN'T STOP ME 🖤🤍🖤

Second Season 2021

Kon'ya mo Suteki ni Ochitsukenai 🩵🩷❤️

Style of my love 🤍🤍🤍

My Wish 2022

Gobaku ~We Can't Go Back~ 🧡💙💚

MVSK 🖤🤍🤍

Magical Wish 2023

Cupid➶ / Tell me (FF) 💛💚🩷*

Koisuru ♡ Angel ♡ Heart 🤍🖤🤍

*90's Songs.

[cooliogirl101]

(Because I want Reina throwing the canon!verse into chaos)

"Absolutely not. I won't allow it!" Hiashi raged, slamming both hands onto the table.

"Unfortunately, we may have no choice. Konoha cannot afford another war at this moment." The Sandaime sighed, looking every single one of his years at that moment. "Not when we are still recovering from the Kyuubi attack."

"Still, what kind of precedence does this set? That we allow foreign nin to kidnap our children and steal our bloodlines, and yet we are the ones to pay retribution?" Inoichi asked sharply. "You say we cannot afford another war, but surely we also cannot afford to look this weak in front of our enemies."

"What Inoichi said. After what those bloodline-stealing, clouds-for-brains ninja tried to pull? If anything, they should be worried about us declaring war on them," Inuzuka Tsume snarled.

"This move buys us time while we build up strength," Utatane Koharu argued. She shot Hiashi a sharp look. "This wouldn't have been necessary had you the foresight to show a little restraint. I don't know what you were thinking, killing off a high-ranking Kumo nin with diplomatic immunity--"

"He took my daughter--"

"He was evidence--"

"Enough," Hizashi spoke up quietly. "If this will save lives and ensure the safety of the Byakugan, then I am willing. I can think of no more honorable way to serve my village and my clan."

"Try living," a new voice called from outside the doors, a split second before they opened and a vaguely familiar woman walked in. She was startlingly pretty, Hizashi couldn't help but notice-- delicate, almost elvish features, bluish-black hair tied up in a casual twist, deep blue eyes with a hint of mischief within.

Amidst all the ninja stiffening in alarm, Hizashi noticed Uchiha Fugaku letting out a low groan, pinching the bridge of his nose in an uncharacteristic display of emotion.

"Kobayashi-san," the Hokage said, eyeing her with...wariness? What was going on? "This is a classified meeting."

"Yes, you really do need to work on your security seals, Sandaime-sama, they're terribly outdated," she mused. "I do apologize for the intrusion but I admit to feeling rather worried after I overheard this esteemed council seriously consider handing one of Konoha's most valuable dojutsu over to Kumo on a silver platter." She clasped her hands behind her back, offering him a falsely bright smile. "As a tax-paying citizen of Konoha, you'll take my concerns into consideration, I hope."

Across the table, Nara Shikaku snorted at the blatant sarcasm in those words.

"Reina-san--" Fugaku growled. The woman--Reina-- waved at him cheerfully.

"Hi Fugaku-san! Mikoto-chan would like you to pick up some tomatoes on your way back. Sasuke-kun got into the pantry again, so we're out." She shook her head fondly. "That boy, honestly. I don't know what to do with him."

Next to him, Hiashi choked on his spit while most of the room stared at her in disbelief (with the exception of Tsume, who was currently stiffing her laughter behind a fist). With an abrupt start, Hizashi remembered where he'd seen this woman before. It had been a popular topic of gossip the past few days, when the Uchiha Matriarch had, seemingly out of nowhere, struck up a close friendship with a civilian woman who made a living decorating cakes and cookies.

Hizashi glanced at the woman standing calmly in front of them, having effortlessly broken into one of Konoha's most secure buildings, completely unconcerned by being in a room full of Konoha's most powerful and influential ninja.

If she was a civilian, he'd eat his shoes.

"We wouldn't be 'handing the Byakugan over on a silver platter,' girl," Danzo scoffed, narrowing his eyes. "Don't speak of things you don't understand."

"Oh? Because by my understanding, you were planning on sacrificing Hizashi-san's life for his brother's and just hoping the Caged Bird Seal does its job and prevents Kumo from utilizing the Byakuyan," she said sweetly. "The problem with that plan, of course, is that the Caged Bird Seal is an absolute atrocity and an embarrassment to fuuinjutsu, designed by someone who cared more about enslaving his family members than actually protecting his bloodline."

"The Caged Bird Seal is infallible," Hizashi interjected before he could stop himself, voice hoarse. It was infallible because it had to be-- because if it could fail, then his and his son's suffering meant nothing.

An unreadable expression crossed her face.

"Is it?" She asked softly. "Why don't you ask your son that?"

She turned towards the door.

"Neji-kun, come inside for a moment, will you?"

His son walked inside, forehead bare as the day he was born, and Hizashi's world shattered.

~~

"How? How did you remove the Caged Bird Seal?!"

"What, like it's hard?"

~~

"So you've proven that the Caged Bird Seal can be removed," Danzo glared at her. "That does not solve our problem; in fact, it worsens it."

"Danzo is right," the Sandaime agreed. "Kumo will still demand payment in blood and--"

"No, they won't." Reina tilted her head to the side. "Oh, I probably should have started with that. Yeah, they retracted their demand for Hyuuga-san's life, and send along their most sincere apologies for what happened, and their most sincere assurances that they had no idea their head ninja was planning such a thing, blah, blah, blah. You're welcome."

There was a long silence. It was the first time Hizashi had ever seen Sarutobi Hiruzen speechless. He probably would have enjoyed it more had he not been so focused on keeping his own mouth from dropping open.

"Um, excuse me. What?" Inoichi asked, sounding as gobsmacked as Hizashi felt.

"How the hell did you manage that?" Tsume exploded.

"Passed along a message?" Reina shrugged. "Although to be honest, it wasn't so much the content of the message as much as the method of delivery."

"Reina-san," Fugaku said, voice low and laced with dread. "What did you do?"

She grinned, twirling around a very familiar looking kunai-- one that Konoha hadn't seen in a very long time. Next to him, Hiashi drew in a sharp breath.

"Did you know A has one of these just lying around in his office? Probably in an attempt to deconstruct it. But oh man, you should have seen his face when I popped in!" She laughed. "Or should I say, flashed in. Never seen a man turn white so quickly! That was totally worth the motion sickness."

Kumo, after Reina breaks into their Kage’s office with an S-Class jutsu that was thought extinct but still gives like half the ninja world PTSD: I’m sorry Konoha, I wasn’t familiar with your game

(In Reina's world, there's like half a dozen people who know the Hiraishin, although obviously Minato's the best at it. Reina learned because after what happened with Obito and Rin, she wanted a way to teleport instantly to her precious people in order to provide emergency medical care (she also was on standby while Minato was developing it, just in case of any teleporting mishaps/he ended up needing any limbs reattached). She doesn't use it for combat though and dislikes using the jutsu as it gives her motion sickness. Kushina also technically knows it but doesn't have the chakra control to use it effectively. Kakashi and Orochimaru also know how to use it, and Minato plans on teaching Naruto one day as well. Which is a sharp contrast to the canon world, where the number is like zero).

[crehador]

mashle voice actors + s2 op dance compilation

in order of appearance: mash burnedead (cv. kobayashi chiaki), abel walker (cv. umehara yuuichirou), abyss razor (cv. nanami hiroki), lance crown (cv. ishikawa kaito), dot barrett (cv. eguchi takuya), lemon irvine (cv. ueda reina), finn ames (cv. kawashima reiji), rayne ames (cv. kaji yuuki)

part 2 here!

[ecargmura]

Blue Box Episode 1 Review - Badminton And Basketball

Before I start my review, I just want to know what is Japan’s obsession with the color blue? This season has four different anime that all start with Blue in their titles—two of them are on my watch list; Blue Box is one of them! Now onto the review.

This is quite an interesting blend between sports and romance. I do like that they both seem equal in the sense that while the main character Taiki Inomata has a crush on his senpai Chinatsu Kano, he still does sports as well as her. However, what makes this unique is that the sports they play are completely different. Taiki is a badminton player while Chinatsu is the star of the school’s basketball team. Not only that, the school they attend specializes in sports too! Sports manga usually focus on one sport, so it’s really unique to have a variety of sports be the prime aspect of this one—this is also a Jump title too! Jump titles usually have intriguing sports topics that become super popular like Captain Tsubasa, Slam Dunk, Prince of Tennis, Kuroko’s Basketball and Haikyuu to name a few!

For what Blue Box is doing, I think the author is doing a very good idea in that they can use the character’s specialized sport to help readers and viewers understand what sort of person they are. For Taiki, he specializes in badminton, which can either be a team or individual play sport—he even mentioned that he’s terrible with basketball because he’s terrible with team sports. He even described why he likes badminton so much. Chinatsu is the star of her basketball team and seems to be very understanding of others and is also the type to take the lead. I really like that the sports they play and their position in their team helps determine who they are as a person and how that’ll help them grow. What I like best is that the sports the leads are doing are interesting choices. Badminton really isn’t a sports that’s covered much in manga while basketball is something I usually see from male-centered sports; it’s interesting to have a female character play basketball and not be tall at that too! It’s nice to see the stereotype of basketball players having to be tall to play the sport to not be at play here. I just like seeing a sports series where a female character isn’t a manager for once. We need more female sports athletes in anime/manga!

For the romance aspect, Taiki has a crush on Chinatsu, but it doesn’t affect him all too much. What I mean is that, while he does have a crush on her, he can balance it while still being known as a badminton player. I do like that he’s not particularly good at the sport, but still wants to get better, showing that he’s not flaky about it.

I also like Taiki’s interaction with his teammate Kyo and the rhythm gymnastics athlete Hina Chono. Kyo is like his opposite in every way but it does seem like they get along well. Hina plays a different sport, but she still stops by every time to mess with Taiki. I bet she has a crush on him or she just likes being a troll towards him.

I think what stands out the most in this anime is the animation. It’s really good! Romance shows aren’t really high quality most of the time, but this one was super high quality. I really liked the beginning aspect where the camera slowly pans out the gym as it shows the type of sports the school has. The part where Chinatsu and Taiki play basketball was really good in animation too! I also like how Taiki ran to the gym and the camera was running alongside him from his perspective. I really like that the animators know how to use camera angle in a show like this. I can’t wait to see more!

This anime also has a stellar voice cast. Taiki is voiced by Shoya Chiba and Chinatsu is voiced by Reina Ueda. They’re basically recent big names, especially Ueda. In fact, the characters of importance are all voiced by quality voice actors. Hina is voiced by Akari Kito; Kyo is voiced by Chiaki Kobayashi. Those two are also names I’ve been seeing in anime a lot recently. What’s even crazier is that Taiki and Chinatsu’s mothers have high quality voice actresses. Taiki’s mom is voiced by Ryoka Yuzuki and Chinatsu’s mom is voiced by Kaori Nazuka. I mean the anime looks like it has a high production budget, so it makes sense that they’d hire high quality voice actors to go along with it. I think it’s interesting that they went with a basically all-star cast with this Jump sports title as Jump sports stories are usually ones where they cast new talents to help them set foot into the voice acting world.

I honestly can’t wait to see what the story has in store now that Taiki learns that Chinatsu is going to stay at his house. I just hope nothing skeevy happens and that he stays in his lane. Since we’re at the topic of sports, what sports have you played? I tried playing tennis in my childhood, but I wasn’t good at it.

[mashleverse]

Mashle: Magic and Muscles Special Event Archive Viewing

A paid archive for the livestream version of this event is now available to purchase at Rakuten TV! This special event not only features the announcement of the next season but also has talks among the voice actors and actress, as well as an original live drama reading by the seiyuus, about Mash and his friends in a Sherlock Holmes-inspired universe! It has different endings between the day and evening performances, and there are different contents between the two performances as well!

The archives for both performances are available until June 2nd, 21.00 JST. There are two options: with and without exclusive merchandise for livestreaming. Check the source link to purchase and enjoy the performance and the original live drama reading!

Note: May not be available in your region and may require a VPN.

[imasallstars]

INTERDIMENSION FESTIVAL: IDOLM@STER★♥LOVE LIVE! UTA GASSEN

Information regarding the first IJIGEN FES 2023 live has been revealed! The live will occur in the TOKYO DOME on the 9th and 10th of December 2023. This first fes will feature three branches of IDOLM@STER performing with four branches of Love Live!

The voice providers participating in this stop are as follows:

DAY 1 ONLY

IDOLM@STER CINDERELLA GIRLS 　Kotomi Aihara (Shiki Ichinose), Hiromi Igarashi (Anzu Futaba), Asami Takano (Frederica Miyamoto), Yuki Nakashima (Yuuki Otokura), Yuko Iida (Kanade Hayami), Honoka Inoue (Nanami Asari), Sumire Uesaka (Anastasia), Aya Suzaki (Minami Nitta), Miyu Tomita (Akira Sunazuka), Ru Thing (Syuko Shiomi), Teru Ikuta (Natalia), Hina Tachibana (Nagi Hisakawa), Nanami Yamashita (Yui Ohtsuki) IDOLM@STER MILLION LIVE 　Haruka Yamazaki (Mirai Kasuga), Azusa Tadokoro (Shizuka Mogami), Machico (Tsubasa Ibuki), Momo Asakura (Serika Hakozaki), Kotori Koiwai (Tomoka Tenkubashi), Atsuki Nakamura (Roco Handa), Emi Hirayama (Reika Kitakami), Yui Watanabe (Nao Yokoyama) IDOLM@STER SHINY COLORS 　Karin Isobe (Kogane Tsukioka), Chisa Suginuma (Mamimi Tanaka), Anna Yamaki (Sakuya Shirase), Shio Watanabe (Yuika Mitsumine), Yuina Mizuki (Kiriko Yukoku), Honoka Kuroki (Amana Osaki), Ryoko Maekawa (Tenka Osaki), Noriko Shibasaki (Chiyuki Kuwayama), Yuu Wakui (Toru Asakura), Rio Tsuchiya (Madoka Higuchi), Saran Tajima (Koito Fukumaru), Miho Okasaki (Hinana Ichikawa), Azusa Shizuki (Nichika Nanakusa), Aya Yamane (Mikoto Aketa)

DAY 2 ONLY

IDOLM@STER CINDERELLA GIRLS 　Ayaka Ohashi (Uzuki Shimamura), Ayaka Fukuhara (Rin Shibuya), Sayuri Hara (Mio Honda), Amina Sato (Arisu Tachibana), Tomoyo Kurosawa (Miria Akagi), Hana Tamegai (Risa Matoba), Makoto Koichi (Haru Yuuki), Asaka Imai (Chie Sasaki), Natsumi Haruse (Kaoru Ryuzaki), Misaki Kuno (Nina Ichihara), Yuri Komori (Koharu Koga), Mina Nakazawa (Yukimi Sajo), Maki Hanatani (Kozue Yusa) IDOLM@STER MILLION LIVE 　Aimi (Julia), Miku Itou (Yuriko Nanao), Ibuki Kido (Kana Yabuki), Arisa Kori (Kaori Sakuramori), Yuri Komagata (Sayoko Takayama), Rie Suegara (Fuka Toyokawa), Saki Minami (Tsumugi Shiraishi), Rikako Yamaguchi (Rio Momose) IDOLM@STER SHINY COLORS 　Hitomi Sekine (Mano Sakuragi), Reina Kondo (Hiori Kazano), Mayu Mineda (Meguru Hachimiya), Hiyori Konno (Kaho Komiya), Haruka Shiraishi (Chiyoko Sonoda), Mariko Nagai (Juri Saijo), Wakana Maruoka (Rinze Morino), Akiho Suzumoto (Natsuha Arisugawa), Yuki Tanaka (Asahi Serizawa), Eri Yukimura (Fuyuko Mayuzumi), Sayaka Kitahara (Mei Izumi), Rina Kawaguchi (Luca Ikaruga), Haruna Mikawa (Hana Suzuki), Rena Ozawa (Haruki Iketa)

DAY 1&2

AQOURS (LOVE LIVE! SUNSHINE!!) 　Anju Inami (Chika Takami), Rikako Aida (Riko Sakurauchi), Nanaka Suwa (Kana Matsuura), Arisa Komiya (Dia Kurosawa), Shukai Saito (You Watanabe), Aika Kobayashi (Yoshiko Tsushima), Kanako Takatsuki (Hanamaru Kunikida), Aina Suzuki (Mari Ohara), Ai Furihata (Ruby Kurosawa) NIJIGASAKU SCHOOL IDOL CLUB 　Aguri Ohnishi (Ayumu Uehara), Mayu Sagara (Kasumi Nakasu), Kaori Maede (Shizuku Osaka), Miyu Kubota (Karin Asaka), Natsumi Murakami (Ai Miyashia), Akari Kito (Kanata Konoe), Coco Hayashi (Setsuna Imura), Maria Sashide (Emma Verde), Chiemi Tanaka (Rina Tennoji), Moeka Koizumi (Shioriko Mifune), Shu Uchida (Mia Taylor), Akina Homoto (Zhong Lanzhu). 　Support Member: Hinaki Yano (Yu Takasaki) Liella! (LOVE LIVE! SUPERSTAR!!) 　Sayuri Date (Kanon Shibuya), Liyuu (Keke Tang), Nako Misaki (Chisato Arashi), Naomi Payton (Sumire Heanna), Nagisa Aoyama (Ren Hazuki), Nozomi Suzuhara (Kinako Sakurakoji), Akana Yabushima (Mei Yoneme), Wakana Okuma (Shiki Wakana), Aya Emori (Natsumi Onitsuka), Yuina (Wien Margarete), Sakura Sakakura (Tomari Onitsuka) HASUNOSORA SCHOOL IDOL CLUB 　Nirei Nozomi (Kaho Hinoshita), Kokona Nonaka (Sayaka Murano), Nina Hanamiya (Kozue Otomune), Kotoka Sasaki (Tsuzuri Yugiri), Kanna Kan (Rurino Osawa), Kona Tsukine (Megumi Fujishima)

[dayooooonds]

[thoughtssvt]

the contrast of dot barett and eguchi takuya (his jpn VA) bc in cast interviews when ishikawa kaito (lance), kobayashi chaiki (mash), ueda reina (lemon damn i miss the yellow option on here so bad), and kawashima reiji (finn) are being chaotic he's just 🧍‍♂️

eguchi takuya is just so interesting to me bc he's so stoic even when recording silly lines XD

[megaboy335]

Anime and Manga of 2024 Review

It’s that time of the year again. Below is my overview of the anime I watched and the manga I read throughout 2024. There will be spoilers and remember it's just my opinion.

1. Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End When I make these yearly lists I consider anything that ended within the year to be eligible so of course the top anime of the year is without a doubt Frieren. I’ve been following the manga since it began and I knew right away that it would be a massive hit someday. Frieren is about the passage of time with an Elf who realizes how short the human lifespan is. She comes to realize that despite always being with Himmel and his party for 10 years, she barely knew a single thing about them nor treasured the time together. So with a new party and a renewed goal of reaching Heaven for one last conversation with Himmel, she sets forth on a quest that is part making new memories while retracing old events. I thought the anime was the most perfect adaptation I’ve seen in a long time. They nailed the atmospheric slow pacing, they went all out on the action scenes, and the seiyuu cast brought out the best of the characters. I would even argue it’s an overall improvement on the manga. The manga is good, but the paneling isn’t the most exciting and the art can be plain looking. I can’t possibly recommend this anime enough. I’m eagerly looking forward to season 2.

2. Hibike Euphonium Season 3 A running theme in 2024 was new seasons for anime that I highly enjoyed from several years ago, the strongest of which was without a doubt Hibike Euphonium. The new season gave me a good reason to watch the recap movies and then the 2023 special to get myself back up to speed, and let me just say WOW. Hibike Euphonium is just as good as I remember, maybe even better since I’m older now and appreciate some of the finer storytelling techniques. Liz is also worth watching. I’ve been on Tumblr for so long that I have my thoughts on record about season 1 (poorly written) from back in the day. Season 3 is all about Kumiko’s 3rd year of high school. She’s now club president and must deal with all the responsibilities that come with managing the underclassman. However, her Eupho position comes under threat from the transfer student Mayu whose skills on the Eupho are just as good as Kumiko, if not downright better. This stirs up tension throughout the season which continues to build and build to the climax. Kumiko and Mayu are presented as foils to each other in a few aspects. Mayu is good at the Eupho while not seeing herself as someone overly committed to the club. Kumiko in contrast feels inferior to Mayu yet feels earning the coveted position on the Soli is a given her seniority status in the club. Everything comes to a head when Kumiko and Mayu have to compete against each other for a spot in the nationals performance. The club had to vote for which was best, and it came down to Reina’s tie breaker. Even though she couldn’t deny Kumiko's music from sound,  Mayu was obviously the better player. We then had a super emotional scene on Mt. Daikichiyama that mirrored season 1 (I visited this location earlier this year). Easily one of the best anime moments this year. So with this season, Kumiko’s story has come to a close. I couldn’t believe KyoAni actually changed the ending of this arc. In the novels it was Kumiko who won the competition. The change to Mayu was so seamless and honestly always felt like that’s where the story momentum was going. Also Shuuichi was more or less banished from the story so season 3 had plenty more Yuri baiting. Anyhow, KyoAni anime only comes out 1-2 times a year and everytime I’m quickly reminded why they are the best. I can’t wait for City and the Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid movie in 2025.

3. Monogatari Off & Monster Season Speaking of long awaited new seasons, this year also featured a new installment of the Monogatari series. This season covers 3 stories from Off Season and the first volume of Monster Season. Right away it was obvious that the direction style was changed to be a blend of the original Bake era and the style used in later installments. I can only describe it as a return to form of what made the anime so attractive in the first place. It's an approach that still perfectly compliments Nisio’s out of the box writing. The first major arc this season was a Nadeko retrospective story where she has to literally confront her past selves. It was the closure to her previous arcs that I didn’t realize I needed. From shy to outgoing to becoming a god, then reverting back to normal, Nadeko has been on a journey like no other. In Nadeko Draw she comes to accept every aspect of herself and how each moment played a role in bringing herself to where she is today. Ironically she’s become more in-tuned into the world of aberrations than ever before. The second major arc revolved around Shinobu and her backstory. We learned that her beauty brought death wherever she went until she encountered the vampire Deathtopia. It's a very Nisio concept to explore the interaction between someone who can kill all and someone who can’t die. It really put into perspective why she treasured Seishirou and Araragi so much later in life. This backstory was a prelude to Shinobu Mustard. A story about Araragi trying to figure out the vampire targeting Kanbaru’s basketball team. It was great seeing Araragi again after all these years. Between more Monogatari anime and Cipher Academy, I’ve been spoiled on experiencing more Nisio writing lately. The man is a non stop writing machine yet he still has the magic touch to make compelling stories.. Surely there will be another installment of Off Season and Monster Season since there’s still plenty more to cover.

4. Too Many Losing Heroines I am no stranger to the losing heroine archetype as someone with over 15 years of experience watching my heroines lose over and over. This Tumblr blog is themed around Kosaki Onodera, the losing heroine of Nisekoi. So when a series comes along that follows the pov of losing heroines from various archetypes then you know I’m in. Too Many Losing asks “What happens afterwards?” We follow Yanami Anna, the stereotypical blue hair losing heroine who took too long to confess and loses her standing to the new pink hair transfer student with large breasts. It’s a troupe as old as time which even Kosaki fell victim to. The story begins at what would be the climax of Yanami’s story.  She is pushing Sosuke, the male character of her story, to see the heroine one last time before she departs. It's the exact moment when so many losing heroines formally lose to the new heroine. We then meet Lemon (the athletic tomboy) and Chika (the shy bookworm type) along with the cast of characters for their respective stories. From here we basically get the aftermath to each one. Our losing heroines can’t simply let go of their feelings after seeing their guy hook with another girl. They all join the school’s literature club and take comfort in knowing each other. I’ll be the first to admit the writing could be stronger, but I think the series works with a solid base. Yanami is one of the funniest characters from this year. The author recently confirmed how they were inspired by Darling in the Franxx’s Ichigo who certainly had an attitude on her shoulders, just as Yanami. We can only imagine how the losing girls act when they’re off-screen and this series provides a glimpse into the characters. It’s written with earnest love for the genre. I’ve picked up the LNs so maybe I’ll have more thoughts to report in the future.

5. Girls Band Cry Lastly, we have a show that came out of nowhere. Girls Band Cry might initially turn off viewers for its CG, but I assure you Toei is the one studio you can trust to give a CG model the personality it needs. Just see all the Precure EDs, some of the movies, and DB Super Hero as recent examples. I too was foolishly dismissive at first as well, but I should have known better. This quickly became one of those shows that defined the odds and grew rapidly in popularity during the season it aired through word of month alone. Girls Band Cry is about Nina moving to the big city in hopes of changing her life. She wants to get away from her strict family and rediscover herself through the escapism of music. There she meets Momoka, Subaru, and a couple other band members to fill out the group. Nina is quite a bundle of rage who always seems ready to blow at any moment. She gets easily misunderstood by everyone around her. Nina is the type who often times believes she is always right to a stubborn degree. A major point of her character arc is getting Momoka to be less dismissive of her own music as Nina struggles to convey how much it changed her own life. They argue, they fight, and in the end they become closer. This better get another season. The Nari character designs are charming. I want to see the group make it big plus Rupa had no episodes for herself. There’s plenty of room for the band to grow and many more challenges to overcome. The CG allowed the series to stand out in a way that I think surprised a lot of people. Between this, Bocchi, and Girl Meets Rock on Jump+, there’s been a strong streak of girls playing bands lately. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- Best OP/EDs of the Year: 1. One Piece Opening 26 - Perfectly captures the energy going into Egghead and teases everything that will happen in this set of episodes. Also directed by Megumi Ishitani like the previous OP. 2. Tying the Tie with an Amagami Sister ED 1 - Sung by the main seiyuu with pretty visuals. Better than usual for a rom-com ED 3. Bleach TYBW Cour 3 ED - Rare case of ED being better than the OP. I love the stills of each character + there are 3 versions 4. Nadeko Draw OP - A visual adventures in Nadeko's imagination with Yotsugi is very cute. Felt like a continuation of her previous openings 5. Hibike Euphonium Season 3 OP - The Perfect kind of opening that got me in the mood for the episode each week. KyoAni visuals perfect as usual. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Wonderful Precure: Precure is usually on my top 5 list, so what happened? Put simply, after 20 years its gone to the dogs. I know how some years of Precure are better than others and the 2024 series had especially big shoes to fill so I had to keep my expectations tampered. Initially I was not pleased with the animal theme or the lack of fighting and minimal plot. However I come out not completely disliking Wonderful Precure. In my All Stars F post I mentioned how one of Precure’s overarching themes is Bonds. This year we explored bonds between pets and their owners through Komugi/Iroha, Mayu/Yuki, and Satoru/Daifuku. On the opposite side we have the wolf Gaou-sama who completely detests humans after being betrayed and seeing his species nearly go extinct. Its got more depth than you might think from the start. The 2025 series will be idols so that’s already promising. While I wouldn’t list these in my top 5, this was a generally good year for Weekly Shonen Jump (and Jump+) anime adaptations. My Hero Academia came and went with another season. Same issue as usual but I’ll give them credit for improving the drawings. We got a shaft-like experience with Undead Unluck that made the anime stand out in ways I didn’t expect. Unfortunately there were pacing issues in the middle and the back half wavered compared to the start. There will be a 1 hour special in a year so we can only hope for another season after that. Dandadan from Science Saru came out swinging. It was always going to be impossible to adapt Yukinobu’s spread compositions to screen yet that made up for that with superb character animation and voice acting. Dandadan Episode 7 was one of the best this year. Bleach TYBW Cour 3 added several much needed scenes for Uryu. Each week I remember how much I enjoyed Bleach and how we didn’t appreciate Kubo while he was around. The Elusive Samurai is definitely one of the best looking Jump anime in a good while. I never would have expected that one to get such strong animation direction. Matsui was overdue to have one of his manga adapted with such style. It's only held back by there not being more right now.

Lastly, I wanted to mention the single best anime episode this year was One Piece Fan Letter, directed by Megumi Ishitani. She honestly might be too good for directing normal episodes at this point. The special was framed around the normal people within the world of One Piece. How do they see those with crazy powers? How is the shifting times affecting them? Do they engage in power scale conversations? It’s a side of the story focused on a point of view that we never experience. It was such a treat to revisit that turbulent time after Marineford within the world of One Piece. Toei please give Megumi Ishitani a full length movie to direct next. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Manga Section: The Year of Long Runners Ending

As for manga this was a major transition year for Weekly Shonen Jump. My Hero Academia ended an impressive 10 year run in the magazine and Jujutsu Kaisen concluded just weeks later. As of the time of this writing Undead Unluck and Mission: Yozakura Family are looking to likely be ending in the first weeks of 2025. This will put Me & Roboco as the 2nd oldest series in the magazine and its only a 5 year old title.

Quick thoughts rundown of numerous long runners that concluded this year: 1) Edens Zero - Basically FT in space, could have ended better but I liked the adventures 2) Call of the Night - The kind of romance story you could only get from Kotoyama, loved the atmosphere 3) Twin Star Exorcist - Finally one of the long running Jump SQ series ends after 10 years. Didn’t hate it, but still long past its prime 4) Orient - Got better as it went along. Shame the objective switched to finishing the serialization after it went monthly 5) Hokkaido Gals Are Super Adorable - Hokkaido Gals are indeed adorable. Very heartfelt harem series with a lot of color pages to enhance key scenes.(Best girl was Sayurin) 6) Jujutsu Kaisen - The battles were 10/10, the plot was confusing nor reached its peak for me. 7) Oshi no Ko - Great journey and I think the ending is misunderstood. Ruby has surpassed Ai by being more relatable to her fans. Everyone knows her mom and brother are dead, so they find her performing with a smile to be endearing and inspiring. 8) My Hero Academia - I wrote a long piece on this ending Looking at the Jump graveyard, as always we lost a couple of series that I thought had promising potential. Mamayuyu’s Yoshihiko Hayashi is a mangaka to remember for the future. Their design work and page compositions are already far beyond the skills of a rookie. He only needs to make his writing easier to understand. Green Green Greeens from Kento Terasaka was surprisingly endearing despite some writing faults. It was about discovering how a new passion can completely change your life. Martial Master Asumi from Kawada was just too cultured for normal readers to understand with character writing that was perhaps too nuanced for a shonen audience. And finally my favorite series to die early, Cipher Academy from Nisioisin and Yuji Iwasaki. It was another instance of “Nisio still has it”. Weaving character development and world building through puzzle solving is the most Nisio thing ever. Solving the puzzles on your own as a reader wasn’t important, the hook was how the characters approached each one. However, that did sort of defeat the purpose of having puzzles in the first place.. Overall it lasted just over 1 year and finished the story fairly conclusively. Iwasaki’s art was crazy good and I hope they find themselves drawing on a major hit someday.

Bonus Section:  Catalog reading 1) Fire Force - I should have finished this sooner. It has very strong highs late in the series and tying it into Soul Eater is a fun touch 2) Bakemonogatari - Oh Great was maybe a bit overly ambitious in trying to bring all the Hanekawa arcs together, but they are still one of the best weekly artists around. Very much a unique take on the story that differs from the anime and original LNs 3) Tokyo Ghoul - Its alright and I got what Ishida was going for. I’m simply glad to check it off after all these years. 4) MHA: Vigilantes - This is definitely one of the best spin-off series I’ve read to a popular main story. It holds up surprisingly well on its own while expanding the MHA world in substantive ways. The upcoming anime will be a must watch. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Looking to 2025: The future's looking good for Weekly Shonen Jump. Kagurabachi has risen to become a new flagship title for the magazine. Osamu Nishi and Shiro Uzasaki have teamed up for Ichi the Witch. A manga about the first male witch in a world where only females are supposed to have magic. Ichi overcomes challenges in absurd ways and Uzasaki’s art has already reached new highs within these first several chapters. I’m excited to see how the story unfolds. Tokyo Revenger’s Ken Wakui also showed up in Jump and his series is pretty decent. Astro Royale a yakuza story about unifying the gang after an apocalyptic event. Himaten looks to be holding its own. I hope the characters can become deeper overtime. Nue’s Exorcist is a series that still exists. Kill Blue is an underrated title in the magazine that has grown on me a lot. I will be hoping that Tsutsui Tashi’s Syd Craft: Love Is a Mystery can defy the odds and survive. Weekly Shonen Jump also has plenty of anime to pump out throughout the upcoming year. I hope the Witch Watch anime gets the series more traction. I’m weary of Sakamoto Days from the trailer so far, so we’ll see. Akane Banashi is on deck for an anime announcement next. Please Please Please be in good hands. Jump+ is doing fine by coasting along with anime based on the hits from the last several years. Kindergarten Wars will likely join the ranks by the end of 2025. Girl Meets Rock is doing well, but I think in the grand scheme they’re in a hit lull right now from the new titles. Cheers to another year in the books!!