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Shonen Jump Go’s Digital and Fans are Loving it by usotaku

A couple of weeks ago I was trying to post about the fact that Shonen Jumps English weekly publication was making the move to digital but I lost the post and didn’t get around to writing another one. Now that it has been out for a bit the app is topping charts and the overall response to the move has been good over all.

When Shonen Jump first made the announcement, they also announced that their back catalog would also be available so new readers and fans could go back and get caught up on older issues or re read their favorites. This was a bit of big news for manga fans and Shonen fans a like since it gives them access to new manga as it comes out and for a small subscription access to the full back catalogue of Shonen manga chapters.

Personally there isn’t much in the Shonen world that I have been fallowing or plan on fallowing manga wise but if you are then check out viz media’s website for more and to get access to their full catalogue for just $1.99 a month. Well that’s it for now, until next time, jane!

Image source: https://www.newsweek.com/shonen-jump-interview-subscription-andy-nakatani-1262172

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Summer 2018 Seasonal Round up by usotaku

Yikes I can’t believe how far I’ve fallen behind not just with the blog but with this season in general since were almost half way through the fall and there are still Summer episodes I haven’t finished. I guess this is what happens when you get wrapped up in a long running live action show and have a whole lot of stuff in your life that demands so much of your time and attention that when it comes to finding time to sit and finish a season wrap up or a new blog post in general you just don’t have the energy or words to do it with. Despite that I knew I needed to get a new post up and browsing my drafts I just had to finish this so here it is, better late than never, let’s dive right in! 

Steins;Gate 0

The successor to the original Steins;Gate anime 0 brought us a view of the events that proceeded Okabe’s failure to save the woman he loved. Unlike the previous series this series took for ever to spool up and get going. I had a very hard time sticking with this series until the end but I managed it was finally worth it to see Okabe finally beat his lack of confidence and return to his former self so his true brilliance can finally shine through. 

Attack on Titan

When are we ever going to find out what was in the basement? I don’t know if that was the question on every ones mind through the first two season on AoT but it was deffinatly on mine. However this season, despite it’s start has done more to advance the story narratively than either of the first two seasons as a whole and in only a few episodes. 

Cells at Work

I picked this one up after fallowing some of the hype after its debut for the season and I’m not really sure how I felt over all about it. From a story standpoint it was good with it’s episodic nature and its detail for the world it portrayed but by anthropomorphizing cells in the human body even for educational purposes just seems a bit strange. Then again this a Japanese production and I shouldn’t be the least bit surprised by this fact but I think it kind of contributed to my loss of interest in the show a little over half way through. 

Angolmois

Despite the sketchy (literally) nature of the animation in this series this was a far better show than I expected. The characters were extremely well written and while the action was short and to the point it never dragged out much of anything beyond human limits giving it a very deep since of realism that many historic pieces lack. I’m deffinatly hoping this gets a season 2 at some point to wrap up the stories end since the final episode left things fairly open. 

Asobi Asobase

Yep deffinatly not what any one expected unless they read the manga this totally bonkers anime was based on. What I thought was supposed to be cute girls doing cute things turned in to a mixture of the bizzare, barely understandable and weird as the season progressed. I did still enjoy it for all its strangeness and exploration of the darker side of human emotion but I’m just not sure I would watch it again.  

How not to Summon a Demon Lord

When I first read the synopsis I thought “oh joy another Iseki, harem with another OP MC that will make me want to cringe in horror at just how lame he is and how bad the writing gets. Then I started watching what turned out to be a laugh out loud echi comedy that never took its self to seriously and just had fun with what it was doing. Now I’m actually considering reading the light novel and waiting for season 2 so I can see just how many more antics our OP hero can get in to. 

Holmes of Kyoto

Well this one was a let down. After reading the synopsis on MAL’s seasonal list I thought this would really be worth watching as a Holmes spinoff but the episodic nature and lack of a truly admirable villain left it lacking and only occupying a space in the romance genre. It took a lot to get my self to watch this week to week and in the end I lost all interest in it at all with its bland characters, lack of dramatic tension and basic plot lines.

Well there we have it, I finally got to the end of this only a month after I first started writing it. Over all this last season just got really interrupted with my interest in a current running American program and I only really finished watching a few shows that were really important. Hopefully the spring won’t be as bad since were half way through the winter almost and I’m way behind on every show I planed on watching. Sometimes you really do get burnt out on focusing only on anime it happens a lot more often than I like. What were your thoughts from the summer and how are you enjoying the current season. Let me know in the comments or via social media and until next time, jane!

Image Source: https://myanimelist.net/

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Funimation and Crunchyroll Parting Ways by usotaku

If you haven’t seen the news yet then yes, Cruchyroll and Funimation are ending their 2 year licensee sharing agreement in November. The Sony owned subsidiary Funamation has decided to go its separate way as Sony hopes to build the brand up to be the go to for sub and dub anime in the world. While ambitions are good and create further competition among anime streaming companies Funamation is already a power house in the anime world with thousands of titles under its umbrella already and this move creates another pay wall behind which some of the most popular anime will be locked in the future. 

Presently though this won’t affect current simualcasting shows such as Attack on Titian and My Hero Academia as well as any property licensed during the partnership will still stream on both services. If your a VRV premium subscriber you’ll instead be getting access to Hidive as Crucnhyroll partners with them to continue to provide a premium service through VRV. I’m not sure what this means over all for Crunchyroll but when Sony and Funimation begin focusing on similar services we might see a huge shift in the anime world especially if the rummors are true and Sony is planning an exclusive service for Playstation owners only. 

What is for certain is that as the landscape changes some of us will have some decisions to make on where we consume our anime and we may see Crunchyroll’s dominance slip a fair bit in the near future especially if they continue to neglect their user interface and customer desires. They do however, have plenty of time to grow in order to stem the tide and I would hope they make the effort to focus on that rather than investing in things their base customer has zero interest in and not on improving their services. At this point only time will tell how all of this affects the western anime industry and how it will play out but over all it may be good for the consumers because it will force these companies to provide a more a desirable service. What are your thoughts on the break up and how do you think it will affect us? Until next time, jane!

Article source: https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2018-10-18/funimation-crunchyroll-end-content-sharing-partnership/.138330

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Let’s Talk Anime; Why Is Everyone so Obsessed with Bowsette by usotaku

Wow, it certainly feels like its been forever since I posted one of these let’s talks and it really has. I’ve had a few different topics and times I’ve tried to get nailed down and posted as attempt to restart this weekly segment again but things just always seemed to get in the way in one form or another. That said lets dive in to this weeks topic because unless you’ve been living under a rock this past month I don’t know how you could have missed this one since it’s explosion on twitter. Shortly after Nintendo announced a new item in the Mario universe that turns it’s wearer in to a Princess Peach version of them self a fan art appeared on twitter of Bowsers Peach version dubbed Bowsette and the internet had a collective stroke. 

The sexy, busty, hyper sexualized vision of Bowsette was so good it spread like wild fire and managed to create a whole barrage of similar concepts and adaptations of the idea with other Mario universe characters. In all honesty I really just don’t get it! I mean why is everyone so far over the moon about what was an interesting concept that it has become the number 1 most searched think in sceezy sites and sparked open source fan games? Is it the novelty and difference of the concept or just the Mario universe has become so stale with the same old characters that having the opportunity to create something new and exciting from a single concept that has sparked a spontaneous flow of creativity from the Mario fan base?

What ever the case is this has really showcased the varied talents and abilities of people with in the community and I deffinatly applaud all you for taking the concept and showing us just how creative and artistic you can be with this single idea but as the trend dies don’t lose that spark. What ever it was that attracted us to this concept of Bowser gone Peach style is certainly still there and waiting for the next big moment to blossom in to a new idea. So stay creative and keep coming up with new ideas. Until next time, jane!

Image Source: https://geekspin.co/bowsette/

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Anime Season Fall 2018 Watch List by usotaku

Again the seasons are changing! The weather is cooling, the leaves are soon to change and new anime season is upon us. That means it’s time once again to up date the seasonal watch list and let you all know what shows I’ll be talking about this season. Now I know I haven’t been all that active lately but I am working on getting the blog going a bit more regularly in the near future so thank you for sticking around through what ended up being an unintentional but necessary break. So with out much more adue here is what I’ll be watching this season.

1. SAO:Alcinization

Of course this one was going to be on this list because despite its problems I do enjoy most of this series. Plus I’ve heard that this arc is supposed to be the best in the in light novels and I’m genuinely curious how they plan on handling it with the adaptation.

2. Beatles

Yep, the series I kind of ragged on for two consecutive seasons is back for the finale and I just have to know how it ends. So despite its generic story and thick plot armor power fantasy I do plan on watching this last run to see how it all ends.

3. FLCL: Alternative

I know we’re already 3 episodes in and half way through this final chapter I’m still watching it in to the fall season. So far Alternative has been frustratingly slow and no where near as good as the previous incarnations but as we get closer to the end we’ll just have to wait and see what they are building too.

4. Goblin Slayer

I’ve had my eye on the light novel series since it first launched on Bookwalker but just haven’t had the free cash to spend on it. So I’m pretty happy to see this come out as anime this season. Hard fantasy is truly a a guilty pleasure of mine and I’m always happy to see it pop up in anime instead of the isekai power fantasies. Deffinatly looking forward to this. 

5. Sono Toki, Kanjo Wa

I was really attracted to this one from the synopsis where it describes the series as a romance fallowing 4 girls in their lives from high school to adult hood. I’m really expecting some good character progression with this series and hopefully a wonderful story. 

6. JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: Golden Wind

I’m not exactly as hyped about this one as many fans because while I’ve seen the whole JoJo’s series I wasn’t a big fan of it. However I did enjoy watching it and I’m interested in seeing this one and what it will have to offer. 

7. Jingai-san no Yome

I’m not too sure about this one but from the synopsis it sounded like something I might find interesting and a bit different. That is if the story is handled properly of course because it has the potential to be completely disastrous. I mean who wouldn’t be curious about a boy being the wife of an odd looking creature?

Well that about wraps up what I plan on watching this season. As always though I’ll be on the look out for new shows that are running this season to add to the list especially after FLCL ends and when and if I drop a series. I did kind of over whelm my self a bit with this last season and the number of shows I was watching that I need to get up on especially since I became interested in a live action show I’ve been binge watching like crazy but I do plan on getting the seasonal round up posted as soon as I can get it done. All in all I think this season has some good potential for break out shows but we’ll see what comes in the days a head but feel free to let me know what you think of this list and what shows you’ll be watching. Until next time, jane! 

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Made it Through Florence to Blog Another Day by usotaku

Its been a very anxious week this last week with hurricane Florence bearing down on us in the Carolinas, however we were among those lucky enough to only see wind and rain from this devastating storm. What was supposed to make land fall as a category 4 storm lost so much power on its slow ride here that it only came a shore as a category 2 and dissipated even further in to a tropical storm that only doused the inland areas in its path with wind and rain for a little over 24 hrs. 

While we were lucky, many of our fellow Carolinians weren’t so fortunate and many more still face massive flooding in the days a head as this storm continues to over flow rivers and drop rain to the north. So if you do fallow this blog and are in an area affected by the possibility of flooding please don’t stay where you are and get to higher ground. Water is a powerful element that can destroy roads, homes and more in an instant. Please don’t drive in to any flooded areas and heed all emergency warnings. Please stay safe. 

I am also fortunate to still have power and thankful it was never lost during the storm. Sadly so many others are again not so fortunate but we are grateful to the crews who will be working around the clock in those areas to restore power to those affected as soon as possible. We are certainly fortunate here in the US to have the recourses and dedication we have in the form of all our first responders and dedicated volunteers. Cleaning up after this storm will be no simple task and at high cost so if you have the ability to donate to the relief effort I hope you will. Until next time, jane!

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FLCL Alternative Premier Wasn’t the Wow it Could Have Been by usotaku

We’re finally in to September and the hype that cooled a fair bit after FLCL Progressive has reached sub zero with the premier of Alternative. In fact the first episode was so flat I’m worried about the direction of the next few episodes in general which only reinforced my concerns about the creative direction given the lack of original staff returning for the new project. Which is really unfortunate because FLCL was a masterpiece of writing, styling and music that despite its short length gave us a great story with a satisfying conclusion. Not to mention a cast of characters that were just as crazy and mixed up as the a series that borrowed elements from every corner of the industry. 

So where did Alternative go wrong? Well the first episode was more a collection of cute girls doing cute things than an introduction to the new series. Obviously some time has passed between Progressive and Alternative but we don’t even know how much. The characters are nothing more than the cardboard cut out stereotypes they represent and lack even the slightest amount of depth necessary to pull you in and I would argue that despite my issues with it Progressive did a better job with its first episode than Alternative. 

Maybe the bar set by FLCL was just way to high to expect any subsequent editions to the series to reach and I’m being overly critical but when the only memorable highlight of the first episode is a well choreographed fight scene you might want to study where you went wrong. At this point I’m almost willing to give up that this series will live up to its name and considering looking at it as a total separate with clean, very visually appealing animation and a great sound track that are, at this point, its only redeeming qualities. 

As a matter of fact I’m beginning to think I should do that with Progressive as well with it’s half backed efforts to try and recapture the glory of the original that were enough to leave it feeling like a cheap knock off instead of a new original work that could stand along side the original FLCL. So here is to hoping that Alternative will stop playing it safe, pull out all the stops and amaze us with a new brand of wow that gives us a reason to watch week after week because so far I just can’t see that happening. What are your thoughts on this latest installment? Do you agree or am I just being overly critical and comparing it too much to the original? Until next time, jane!

Image source:https://myanimelist.net/anime/227/FLCL

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FLCL New OP’s Together on YouTube by usotaku

Its finally September and we are now that much closer to return of FLCL with the start of season 3 on the horizon. In honor of that moment it seems TOHO animation has released a special single video release of both openings from The Pillows for season 2 and 3. FLCL Progressive ended in June of this year and Alternative will begin airing Sept. 8th on Cartoon networks Adult Swim block as well as streaming on the Adult Swim web page. 

After watching Progressive I’m not exactly ecstatic over the up coming season but I’ll more than likely be watching it. That said I love The Pillows and catching this vid was worth it just to hear them play both OP’s along with the visuals from both shows plugged in with their live performance. They are such an amazing band with a really unique sound I fell in love with after watching the show for the very first time. So check out the vid and let us know what your thoughts are on the up coming season. Until next time, jane!

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Summer 2018 Mid Season Roundup by usotaku

Summer 2018 Seasonal Roundup by usotaku

Temps are reaching record highs and the sweltering weather continues with no end sight so it’s definitely a great time to sit and enjoy some of the great anime this season has to offer. However you better hurry if you want to catch up because once again we’ve reached the half way point in the season and it’s time for the mid season round up. So sit back, relax because here are the 7 shows I’ve been watching this season and some of my thoughts (no spoilers included).

Steins:Gate 0

When I watched Steins; Gate for the very first time it took me a bit to fall in to the series but once I did I was blown away. The writing was a bit silly, the characters fairly exaggerated and the plot ludicrous but it was still an awesome series I wouldn’t think twice about adding to my all time favorites list. So imagine my excitement when the second series was announced! I couldn’t believe what I was reading and really looking forward to it but this second season has been a let down of predictability and just over the top bad writing. I’m hoping it ends stronger than it started.

Attack on Titan

I’m beginning to think we need to change the name of this show too Erin Gets Captured, Again! I mean I get focusing on minor characters to advance a plot narrative but the main characters have spent so little time and n screen this season I’m wondering if they’ll be back next season. Oh, what in the name of all was Erin’s Dad hiding in the basement already?

How Not to Summon A Demon Lord

Do you love echi, harems, comedy, op MC’s, lolli cat girls, huge round plot points that can’t possibly be real and getting lost in another world? Well then why aren’t you watching this series? In a market flooded with generic, copy cat protagonists and cookie cutter isekai; How not to Summon a Demon Lord shows them all how it’s done!

Holems of Kyoto

Taken straight from the pages of Sir Arthur Conan Doilies’ Sherlock Holmes, Holmes of Kyoto puts a bit of a romantic spin on the classic duo in a modern day setting. 

Angolmis

I love historical dramas and despite the sketchy art style this show has been using its been a very good drama. The Mongol empire was a scourge in the 14th century and its expansion touched every corner of Europe and Asia. Japan was no exception in this conflict and set in that period Angolmis has provided a great look at that. 

Cells at Work

Teaching biology through anthropomorphized body cells, Cells at Work has been a bit of fun this season. When I read the synopsis prior to the season start I wasn’t all that interested but after the first episode aired it received a fair bit of praise that caught my attention and I went a head and started watching it and I’m glad I did. This show has been entertaining and a great refresher on some of the things I’d forgotten from biology class.  

Asobe Asobase

Cute girls doing cute things, cute girls doing cute things, what is wrong these cute girls? One of the biggest surprises this season for my self was this show and its crazy contrasts and complete lunacy. Despite some of the utter nonsense this has gotten too it’s still been a good watch to see the crazy antics these three can get up too. 

Well there it is, my thoughts on this half of the season despite the fact it took me a bit to get them up. Writers block has been a huge issue this past few weeks and a large part of why this took so long to post as well as getting any posts up at all. Still this season has turned out a bit better than I first thought and I’m glad to find some great new shows. I hope you’re all enjoying it as well. until next time, jane!

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Will Attack on Titan Season 3 Move Forward by usotaku

It’s really hard to believe were almost half way through the Summer anime season and as some shows are taking shape others are lagging a bit behind and already leaving some of us unsatisfied and AoT is one of them for me. This might be of course because I don’t read the manga and so everything that airs in the anime is a total surprise to me but I just feel like it’s leaving a lot more to be desired with it’s pacing and focus. In earlier seasons the internal politics behind the walls were a bit of a minor story point and one that I didn’t feel needed serious attention because after all there are a lot larger questions this series needs to answer like what are Titans, where did they come from, why are they bent on destroying humanity and what the heck was in Erin’s basement in season 1 that was a big secret?

Currently the show is focused solely on the internal politics behind the wall and the skeletons that dwell in the closet of regime bent on maintaing the status quo rather than furthering humanities ability to fight these apparent invaders known as Titan’s and reclaim their position as the dominate species. What were seeing now is the collective masses huddling behind the walls in terror and its dependance on a government that prioritizes ignorance and superstition in the name of safety by going so far as to even sacrificing their own citizens to maintain the illusion of peace against an enemy bent on destroying them. 

From the point of view of the last season this is a huge let down. After Erin was captured we finally had the chance to gain answers to some of the most pressing questions with the reveal of human form Titans but rather than moving the story forward to those answers the writers took a huge step back to artificially maintain a sense of suspense and drama by turning the story away from those nuggets of truth and leaving us starving for the meager morsels they are dolling out by simply letting on that with the governments fall huge truths can be revealed by way of an information dump. 

Such turns are a tragic constant in anime that only ever demonstrates the writers poor storytelling skills and lack of understanding for narrative. The best writers rarely rely on info dumps and use the narrative to constantly drop those tidbits of information that lead up to the end result even if they are only misdirections that are meant to keep you in suspense for the final reveal and it works oh so well. Only rarely dose this happen most action anime whose writing style relies on exposition via conversational info dumps. Previously keeping the story vague and shallow in order to lead up to the “reason I’ve been doing all this” reveals from that is generally only seen from over the top villains that can’t help but monologue their master plan to the hero in what they assume will be their moment of triumph only to have their plans defeated because the hero now has all the information they need to thwart their machinations.  

Naturally there are some instances in anime where this appropriate but in show like AoT it quickly leads to boredom as focus shifts to back ground stories of relatively minor characters that only drives the narrative forward at a snails pace rather than the pace of action previously set by opening episodes. Still there is plenty of room in this season for improvement and really hope this season will prove my assumptions incorrect but right now I just find it really frustrating that episode after episode isn’t bringing us any close to the final resolution. What are your thoughts so far on this season and do you agree or a disagree with my conclusions so far? Until next time, jane!

Image source: https://myanimelist.net/anime/35760/Shingeki_no_Kyojin_Season_3

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The Rumors are Finally True, Ghost in the Shell is Getting a New Anime by usotaku

Last year rumors began floating around the net that GTS:SAC director Kenji Kamiyama would be directing a new GTS anime series. Today ANN dropped the news that in fact GTS is getting a new 2 season, 12 episode each run produced by Production IG and directed by Kamiyama for the first season and Apple Seed director Shinji Aramaki for the second season. The release date has not yet been announced but with the production schedule IG seems to run we may not long to wait or so I’m hoping.

This actually really exciting news for fans of the series who haven’t had much since SAC’s second season and the prequel OVA Arise (which I personally didn’t care for) so seeing this coming back to the screen after the live action disaster is very exciting. I am however a bit disappointed that Kamiyama won’t be directing both season after the wonderful job he did with SAC but Aramaki is an accomplished director in his own right with a some what similar vision so we may get to see something a bit different. Although I wasn’t exactly a fan of the Apple Seed series, which was due more to the writing, I’m very curious to see how he will handle what is my personal all time favorite anime.

Are you a fan of the series, what are your thoughts on its return and what are your hopes for this coming series? Let me know what you think in the comments, via twitter and Facebook and until next time, jane!

Image Source: https://myanimelist.net/anime/43/Ghost_in_the_Shell?q=ghost

Article source: https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2018-08-02/new-ghost-in-the-shell-anime-will-have-2-seasons/.134977

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Asobi Asobase Takes a Turn for the Very Weird by usotaku

What began as a cute trip down high school girls lane quickly takes a turn for the comical and bizarre in Asobi Asobase. From the shows description it sounded just like another cute girls doing cute things and the opening certainly reassures you of that fact and then you start watching the first episode and the shock value is almost epic! As some one who hasn’t read the manga for this series or even heard of it I was extremely surprised with its darker nature and twisted humor but this weeks episode just took that to a whole new level of weird.

I mean its no secret that BL manga is a big thing in Japan and the community as a whole and its often referenced in current anime and adapted for them as well. However what Asobi Asobase did in episode 4 this week took something of a curiosity and made it cringy at best. For all its talk of writing a BL story and then Honda’s family employees personal story it all just went off the rails pretty quickly by regaling us an alien abduction, implanted lasers, a kindly old man that offers aid and a just out right odd relationship between Honda’s family and this staff member. 

Asobi Asobase certainly hasn’t shied away from any territory generally considered uncouth and the way it handles it by poking fun of the stereotypical responses is something of breath of fresh air for some but I can’t help but wonder just how far it will go. Still jabs at the political correct crowds are kind of funny and nothing seems off limits to the author of this series so I can only imagine the ground it will cover in coming episodes but I’m also wondering just how much my constitution can stand as I continue to stare that that train wreck you just can’t look away from for al its shock value. 

We’ll see in the weeks to come if the writing for this can keep it fresh and interesting or just turn it in to shock value just for the sake of it which gets boring after a while. Until next time, jane!

Image source: https://myanimelist.net/anime/37171/Asobi_Asobase

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Fake News Strikes Iga Japan “There is no Ninja Shortage” by usotaku

The City of Iga, Japan is the latest victim of fake news after U. S based NPR (National Public Radio) announced that the city was accepting applications for Ninja performers. A statement released by the city of Iga announced that “we do not recruit ninjas” after they received thousands of applications for the position. The NPR report claimed that performers could earn 23,000-85,000 U.S dollars per year which could have been fairly good money at the higher end of the scale if the positions were real.

I can just imagine the thousands of mouth breathing, heavy set, weebs (this description is for entertainment purposes only and not to be taken seriously) that heard this announcement and immediately applied looking for their ticket to the “mother land” only to be terribly disappointed by this announcement. However it also demonstrates the power of mass media and the general publics in ability to think for them selves beyond what they hear from news out lets and could be kind of scary. So I suppose the lesson here is, the next time you hear a story on the news about something like this then look it up first before you go crazy and make your self feel foolish.

To all those would be ninja severely disappointed by this announcement I’m sorry because it would actually be pretty cool but if you want to work in Japan take a look at any of the thousands of skilled labor positions Japanese employers are hiring right now for. If you don’t have a skill then set down your controller and learn one because that ticket to the promise land will be worth every grueling hour of study, right (wink, wink). Until next time, jane!

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Let’s Talk Anime: Proliferation of Isekai Light Novel Adaptations by usotaku

Five, thats the number of isekai shows we got this Summer and its almost disturbing. The recent rash of isekai light novel adaptations has been extremely problematic for anime in so many ways but mainly because they have been so poorly handled by their respective studios and staff and leaving fans of these light novel’s disappointed in more ways than one.

Finding out that a manga or light novel series you enjoy is getting an anime adaptation is a really great feeling. Something you can truly look forward too as you watch your favorite characters brought to life in all their 2d glory and the conversations it will inspire with new fans of the IP. Only to find out that the studio staff has taken a different direction from the novel and botched the whole thing in their attempt at “originally” (industry code for cash grab).

So many studios are looking to cash in on the current Iseki trend that the market is now almost flooded with these generic template adaptations that many in the anime fan base are beginning to express their frustration with them. As a community many of us are bit older having grown up in a time when great anime was about all that made it in to western stores or gained our attention because it was hard to obtain.

Now that anime has gained a bit more popularity studios are looking to cash in on the next SAO so they can turn record profit almost over night with out focusing much on the quality level that they require. Truly great anime has a very specific mix of story, characters, art and music that makes it great. The story should always progress to the end goal and fully resolve all major and minor sub plots, the characters should be fleshed out and grow as individuals through the story, art should be appealing to the eye and add to the depth of the story and the sound track should be memorable and flow from scene to scene heightening our enjoyment of the show and adding tension, drama and finality.

Many of today’s isekai anime wholly lack in one or more aspect of these points and it detract so much from the experience that its almost become a meme. As a genre isekai has a lot of potential to provide a great viewing experience but it probably won’t happen in the current mass adaptation environment we have right now where every one is seemingly focused one thing. Still every now and again a promising gem does show up and delivers some quality entertainment and so often its run is cut short by one issue or another, Yes I’m looking at you No Game No Life! Hopefully the industry its self will correct this trend and we’ll get the chance to see better quality adaptations in the future. Until next time, jane!

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Summer 2018 First Impressions by usotaku

Ahh, Summer is here in full swing with the heat, vacations, bbq’s and the newest season of anime! When I first looked at the releases for this season I was kind of disappointed with the offerings this season but now that its here and I’ve picked up a show or two I had over looked I’m actually very happy that it didn’t turn out to be a total bust. So lets dive in and see just whats happened in these first few weeks of my new watch list. 

Steins:Gate 0 Season 2

Yep its back! The second run of Steins;Gate 0 started its run last week and while its started a little slow the story is still un folding. I’ve been enjoying this series since it started last season and getting a second consecutive run is really exciting. I’m deffinatly looking forward to the end of the story and how it will all play out. 

Attack on Titan Season 3

It’s here! After a year of waiting we finally get to see the third season of AoT and man what a difference! The styling has changed and the narrative has become more focused on the problems in side the walls and the secrets surrounding it. 

Cells at Work

From the description for this show I wasn’t really all that interested but after catching a season preview vid on You Tube I decided to give it a go. Now three weeks in I’m loving this show! It has comedy, action, drama and more as it helps you learn things about the human body you might have not known or forgotten in a fun and entertaining way. 

Asobi Asobase

Cute girls, moe moe girls all doing cute things in the most disturbing manor possible! Yep that about sums it up because this show it certainly not what you’d expect but in a really great way. I almost expected this to just be another high school drama with a trio of cute girls but I never expected a comedy that puts a smile on your face and just makes you feel good watching it. 

Holmes of Kyoto

This series is exactly what it what it’s name implies. A young Kyoto man who solves problems in the Holmesian style with his sidekick and co worker Aoi. I will say though it dose seem a bit rushed at times but each episode is episodic in nature so you don’t really miss much other than the relationship development between Aoi and Holmes week to week. However It dose lack tension and there aren’t any stakes at this point so i’m wondering a main villain will come in later episodes or where that kind of tension will come from to keep the show interesting. 

Angolmois: Record of Mongol Invasion

I always enjoy a good period drama and despite a bit of sketchy art styling that is what this is shaping up to be. Covering a little covered period in Japanese History Angolomis chronicles the Mongal invasion of Japan and their landing at Tsushima island. Definitely worth a watch for any history or samurai buff.

How not to Summon a Demon Lord

Echi meets fantasy in a hilarious isekai drama in all its over powered glory with all the blatant fan servic you’d expect and yet it’s still good. Generally I think these kinds of shows are played out but this one has quickly breathed new life in to the sud genre. As long as the writing stays as solid as it has been so far this will be really good.

Back Street Girls 

So far I’m unimpressed. This show seems to be trying to do too much all at once and with out explaining a lot. Like just how 3 men become dainty J-Pop Idols. The comedy is poorly timed and over the top and I could see my self loosing interest quickly but then I’ve only seen 1 episode.

Well there you have it. My first thoughts on the 8 shows I’m fallowing this season. I had a lot of catching up to do this week and thankfully things slowed down enough for me to do that. You can find 6 out of 8 of these shows on Crunchyroll and Demon Lord can be found on Hulu. What are your thoughts on this season and what are you loving? Until next time, jane!

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Coming Soon: Summer 2018 First Impressions by usotaku

Well here we are already almost 4 weeks in to the summer season and already I’ve adjusted my watch list a bit and fallen a bit behind because of premier dates and difficulty finding which shows are where. For instance Crunchyroll doesn’t have as many shows as I hopped they would have this season but they do have the majority of what I wanted to watch and Attack on Titan and Steins;Gate only just started airing this week. With the time I’ve had available I’ve actually been busy watching something else instead of this seasons new picks so I’m playing a whole lot of catchup this month as well and hoping to have that done before the mid season. 

So far I’ve been watching Asobi Asobase, Attack on Titan, Holmes of Kyoto, and I plan on adding How not to Summon a Demon Lord as well as Back Street Boys and I need to start watching Steins;Gate, Angolmois. I’m not exactly sure how this is going to get accomplished but I should have a full first impressions up soon. Until then, jane!

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You Tube Finds Abroad in Japan Explores Pachinko by usotaku

Every now and again something pops up in You Tube recommendations worth sharing and generally Chris from Abroad in Japan has some really interesting videos exploring aspects of Japan. Today’s find is a great look at Japans #1 gaming obsession Pachinko. Pachinko is part gaming part gambling and a massive industry in Japan. Its so ingrained in Japanese culture it even pops up in anime from time to time as a reference or with a character that actually plays it. So check out Chris’ video to learn more about this national obsession and if you want more great Japan content you can subscribe to his channel, I promise you its worth it. Until next time, jane!

The channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/cmbroad44

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