#Like not to get too technical but I haven't seen a manga with a better sense of force in the characters movements than bllk in a while

[azulock]

LIGHT SPOILERS FOR THE MANGA HERE

LOOK AT THIS FUCKING PANEL!!

I legit fucking hope that as soon as bllk ends Nomura gets hired to do some battle shonen, cause he is gonna KILL at it. He's an insane artist with an absurd ability to show movement and intensity and he would murder at a battle manga. Legit this manga wouldn't work without his art and he deserves all praise for that.

Anyways love that this chapter is Barou imploding, Hiori airing out his kinks (we didn't need to know that, king), and Kaiser going super sayan in rage alone. Also crumbs of PXG, but only Rin, WHERE IS SHIDOU???

[danzohater]

Hello....If you don't mind, can I ask your top 5 (or top 3) favorite characters from Jujutsu Kaisen? And why you loved them? And your top 5 favorite moments from the series? Sorry if you've answered this before.....

hi omg YES thank u for sending i haven't ever answered this! also i'm curious about your top 5 for both!!!! <3 (sorry this is so long 😭)

top 5 characters and why i love them...

1. geto, he is hands down my ultimate favourite. i think he has the most interesting back story, and i love the whole trope of a a character that has gone through something terrible with someone else but one of them became out 'bad', the other 'good'. he's my biggest comfort character!!!! i also like that his morals never changed, it's just his vision of who should be protected did (which i think is understandable, albeit completely wrong). i also love that he's amazing at karate as well, and i love his humour!

2. higuruma!!!!! like geto, i just completely adore his CT. i actually think objectively it's the coolest and most impressive one and i love when gege gets a bit more technical in explaining stuff (like with choso's blood manipulation too), also judgeman's design is AMAZING imo

3. rn shoko, i LOVEEE HER! once again i just think her character design is really cool, i love rct as a technique and i ❤️ characters as healers. i loved her in hidden inventory, i always think about her trying to teach geto and gojo rct in the most nonsense way. i'd say gege give her more screen time but i need her alive and happy with utahime by the end of the manga...

4. YUTA!!!!! once again i just love his character design, he is so cutesy. i love how sweet and adorable and awkward he can be, and ALL of his friendships are so cute. one of the coolest character designs in the manga, and the most recent chapter with his new domain?!!!! i'm still not quite sure if i prefer that or higuruma's domain more, i THINK i prefer deadly sentencing

5. TORN BETWEEN CHOSO AND MAKI, but ultimately i think choso... honestly once again i just love his design, i like the whole idea of what makes humanity and the way he brings in curses vs humans (it works better knowing jogo, dagon, etc all mourned other curses and said to meet again). overall he's charming and funny, nothing endears to me more than a character that just wants to protect someone. the best big brother. i love that he cries a lot, i want to give him a hug.

AND my top 5 moments... (warning for manga spoilers!!!!!!!!!!)

1. nanami's death. as much as i hated it and i love him, the voice acting was INCREDIBLE in that episode. the piano, the way he speaks so quietly, the cut scenes from it being so beautiful to the noises of him being in shibuya. i first watched it drunk and i replayed it honestly about 20 times, i even called my dad and made him watch it while i cried 😭 ... THE FACT THAT JUST BEFORE IT YUJI IS HAVING A BREAKDOWN... ugh all of it!!!!!! everyone's VA was immaculate... the emotion behind yuji's 'what the hell are you mahito' was incredible, and hearing mahito scream back for the first time made my stomach drop. incredible, amazing. i've seen that so many times but just hearing nanami's 'i'm tired, exhausted even' makes me start to tear up. god BLESS the voice actors for that scene

2. yuji vs mahito, specifically the imagery and how yuji is portrayed with the wolves. so beautifully animated, incredible. mahito throwing snow at yuji was sad but satisfying

3. mai's death and maki's awakening... okay so off the bat maki is amazing. seeing mai answer back her father and then sit over maki broke my heart. they're both just kids who love their sibling. they are just so tragic, maki's 'okay i get it, now come back' after mai says as long as i'm around you'll never develop. i love that scene because it shows that maki is already willing to go against all of the odds, even before complete heavenly restriction. i remember her telling yuji she would kill her clan (?) in jjk0 and even believing her then. the burn marks also add a lot to this scene i think. it was just really sadly cathartic to see the resolution to them as sisters, and heartbreaking. the first panel where she open's her eyes telling mai to wake up BREAKS ME. the panic on her face. also the line 'destroy everything big sister'. the fact she does. UGHHH!!!!

4. hmmm... choso's fake memory. the fight scene was really cool, but specifically, the part where yuji is eating with choso and his brothers. it's beautiful. the switch up in the way it's animated, looking like it's on an old vhs tape. so emotional. seeing yuji feeding choso and calling him big brother, just to cut to choso punching something and crying like he can't breathe. ugh i love them

5. the fight scene in hidden inventory... i just love it, i think it sets up all three of their personalities so well. i love how easily it portrays geto's personality: his morals, his ego, the sense of superiority he has. it perfectly displays his and gojo's friendship, their differences. we get to see them so in sync as yaga walks in and they both look away stretching, the way they both antagonise each other in sync before that

[veebs-hates-video-games]

Ok so what if I made a list of things I started at some point in the past like five years or so and haven't finished but am still pretending I'll get back to them eventually? Maybe that would be interesting to literally no one but me, which is good enough.

The Witcher 3 is one of my favorite games ever. I'm like 90 hours into it, have at least twice that left to go, and I haven't touched it in like three years. Like most of the rest of this first section the main problem is that it's on my computer, and being able to sit comfortably in a way that doesn't injure myself while also being able to see the screen isn't going well these days.

Tales of Berseria is also a lot of fun, but it has the computer problem. I need more Magilou because she's such a gremlin.

Final Fantasy 13-2 is definitely my favorite post-12 FF game and might even be the one I've had the most fun with since 6, 7, and 8. Alas, computer.

BlazBlue Cross Tag Battle is a very silly crossover that feels like it shouldn't exist. I keep saying I'll go back and finish the rest of the storylines, but computer and also I just haven't had a strong desire to yet. I did figure out that I can win fights using an old Guitar Hero guitar though, so that was fun.

Berserk and the Band of the Hawk is something I started after finally getting caught up on the manga after years and years, because I tend to like Warriors/Musou games when I'm in the right mood. It's decent but not amazing, which hasn't motivated me to get past the computer issue.

Xenoblade Chronicles X is technically also a computer thing because I was playing it in Cemu. It gets extra bonus points for being hard to see because the text and UI are so small, but also I managed to break my save file like 70 hours in and haven't gotten around to figuring out what's wrong with it yet. Everything seems fine except my character and the camera get loaded in different locations, and I could probably use the memory editor to reset my location and fix it, but it's not worth the trouble until I can see.

Boyfriend Dungeon is great and I already finished the base game right when it came out, and I've been meaning to go back and do the post-launch stuff they added later and still haven't.

Atelier Ryza finally got good like half a dozen hours in after one of the worst-paced intros I've ever seen, and I haven't worked up the fortitude to try playing more past there so far.

A Slug's Dream has some decent puzzles and I was enjoying it enough, but I totally forgot it even existed. Maybe some day.

Xenogears I also keep forgetting because it's in an emulator on my computer and not somewhere I remember to look to see what game I should play. It sort of bypasses the usual computer problem by being ancient and designed for 480i screens so everything is huge. I'll finish it one of these days.

Ok I think that's all the stuff on the computer. There are a couple others that I'm not including because I only made it like an hour into them before getting sidetracked, so I'll just start them over if I ever go back to them.

3DS next? 3DS next.

Fire Emblem Fates is what's currently in there I think. It's taken multiple years, but I've finished Birthright and most of Conquest. Some day I'll finish that one and then maybe do Revelation. Any year now...

Shadows of Valentia might come back around too. I've had enough of a break to at least partly get over how mediocre a lot of the maps are and how annoying certain enemy types are, and I do want to at least try to finish it for the sake of the story, just not while I'm in the middle of pretending to play Fates too.

Shadow Dragon deserves another chance too when I'm in a better frame of mind for it, I just don't know when that'll be.

Radiant Historia is amazing and I really need to get back to it and finish it, and I don't know why my brain keeps not letting me for the past couple years. One of these days it will though, and it'll be great.

Kid Icarus: Uprising is also pretty great, but it's physically painful for me to play. I keep saying I want to try to figure out some way to work around that, but it's been multiple years and I still haven't.

Shovel Knight is one I completely forgot I even have, but it was way better than I expected and I should give it another chance.

Project X Zone is another ridiculous crossover that feels like it shouldn't exist, and it's pretty fun sometimes too, but wow does it really drag sometimes with how long each level is and how many of them there are. I might be able to manage it in smaller chunks though.

Ok Switch gets to be in a separate post or I'm going to run out of tags.

[bringerofdeathandtheapocolypse]

So I'm actually kinda curious to see what people think of this.

Was it ever confirmed who killed Belno?

Cause I was doing some FT quizzes cause I'm bored and procrastinating and one of them was a who killed who quiz and the answer for Belno was Torafuzar. So I did some googling but there is nothing on the wiki and the only thing I could find was a debate on Reddit from 3 years ago where one person thought it might be Seilah and one thought perhaps it was Torafuzar.

I personally don't think its Seilah since she was already waiting at the house where Elfman and Lisanna were so she had the intention of finding someone else.

I like the idea of Torafuzar being the one to kill her because Tartaros is full of fights that have reason for the characters. Mira and Elfman fight Seilah who was the one to kidnap Lisanna and force Elfman to blow up the guild hall. Erza fights Kyoka, the person who tortured her for their own pleasure. Gray fights Silver, who pretends to be Deliora and is also his dad. (Technically Laxus only kills Tempester in the anime while Gray does it in the manga but I like that better seeing as its Laxus getting the blood and beating the guy who tried to kill his friends)

So with that in mind, Gajeel fighting Torafuzar and perhaps he taunts Gajeel about being the one to kill Belno, whether knowingly or not, and this really angers Gajeel to know that the person who killed Belno is right in front of him. Especially as he expresses that he wanted to show her how he'd changed and had found a better life for himself. It gives a little depth to this relationship that was implied with how Gajeel reacted to her death but we only really see one scene where she tells him that sticking with Phantom could get him in trouble (Which it did) which is kinda disappointing, especially as the only council members we know as developed characters are Ultear(who died last arc so she doesn't really count), Jellal(Who doesn't die, just a weird illusion death) and Yajima (who comes close to dying but thanks to Tempestar's blood, doesn't.

If we'd gotten a little bit more on their relationship before. Even a small arc or couple chapters focused on Gajeel where he thinks about Belno or we get a flashback to them interacting before her death would make her death just a bit more impactful. It would link her to a character we know before her actual demise which is a lot more impactful because then we would be rooting for Gajeel to go see her, to show her how he had improved his life only to reach her house to find her dead with no chance of him showing her how he'd changed.

It is still sad how it was done in canon but like this would just make it that more emotional. Besides we are lacking in solid canon Gajeel backstory (I am very disappointed that the Rhodonite manga isn't canon) which is why I'm so desperate to get something out of him. Like we have never even seen a scene of child Gajeel interacting with Metalicana when we've seen that for the other three(Rogue also got this treatment). We didn't even have a voice or possible personality to put to Metalicana until the end of Tartaros where he dies anyway. Like how can you just ignore one of your most fascinating characters. I'm all for giving other characters focus, but we haven't really had an arc that dissects Gajeel the way the early arcs did with Team Natsu. Erza had Tower of heaven, Gray had Galuna and Lucy had phantom. Natsu got the Alveraz arc to explore pieces of his past and character and Edolus does have a decent amount of Wendy focus with her relationship to Mystogan and all.

If 100 years quest gives us a chance to more deeply focus on Gajeel (And Laxus. I want a lot more specifics on him too) Then that would be great. It could be lots of things. Perhaps something to do with a former member of Phantom Lord who's a bad guy or something. Maybe a similar magic to what Neinheart had where someone from his past is brought up like Belno, Metalicana or Jose. Or someone who brings it up. Maybe some Gajeel and Rogue backstory if Rogue really is getting brought into the story. Anything.

[liciatalks]

I'm seeing the conversation of shows having shorter seasons. Where old series would have 16-20 episode seasons, 8 episodes seem to be the standard now. Series are missing "Filler" episodes.

SIDE NOTE: Western media never had "filter" episodes. Filler episodes is a term originating around anime, where animes based off of mangas would catch up to the current story line and would have to produce episodes to buffer the time. Think vamping during live shows, noise until the next band or act is ready.

There is a server lack of non plot driven episodes.

Some series do not need them, they are written in a way where that the audience has all the information they need. Contrary to popular belief, you do not need to know the complete backstory of every single character. Some things can and should be left up to the imagination.

'The Last of Us' is a great example of this. We connected to the characters and story with zero "Filler" episodes. Every episode was too push the plot forward.

Controversialy, Hazbin Hotel also did not need these episodes. It is structured like a Broadway musical so it's storytelling reflected that. You don't just stop the story of a play to have two characters have date night unless that moved the plot forward.

Other series would benefit from these episodes. As much as I love 'The Mandalorian' and 'Loki', both series would benefit with longer seasons. Choices and moments felt rush and you either didn't connect to characters or they felt really out of character.

The reason for shorter seasons could come down to several things.

Networks/Streaming services will only pay for 8-10 episodes

Show creators, fearing cancellation, condensed their stories down

Audience comprehension of media literacy

I believe in some article it was revealed that Netflix has technical specifications for every single one of their shows down to what cameras can be used. So it's not out of the realm of possibilities that networks/streaming services would limit how many episodes you could write. With limited episodes come with limited storytelling, You now have to figure out which pieces are important and which pieces you can leave out.

Series are also getting canceled in shelved almost everyday on these platforms. So creators knowing this try to squeeze as much as they can in a small format thinking it's better to tell any story whether it's good or bad. Just hoping they can make it to a second season to "fix" things.

MEDIA LITERACY. There is a growing number of audiences that if something is more complex than a saltine cracker it confuses the everliving fuck out of them.

Villains must be villainous in heroes must be heroic. Do not make my villain have a sympathetic moment. The hero can't be seen as an asshole they're the hero. The plot isn't going in a straightforward line, confusion. Why are they on this side quest this has nothing to do with the main mission, even though later on it will. How Am I supposed to know those characters are together, they haven't had sex or kissed !?

And if audience are reviewing something bad because they couldn't understand it networks/streaming services are going to shift gears to reflect that. Meaning complex in slow burning stories are out the window. They want simple fast pace easily consumable shows.

Until networks/streaming services stop thinking only of money, and show respect for those creating their series AND audiences start comprehending things above a first grade reading level we're not going to see any changes.

Networks/streaming services make money off of these series and they're just consumable enough to get people talking about it.

If you're wanting complex long form series your best bet is going to be indie project and companies. Those who are in it for the art.

[fumiko-matsubara]

List of Multi-talented AssClass Characters

This includes both characters who have actually showcased their many skills and characters who had shown potential to be multi talented.

¤ The teachers, assassins, and Gakuhou won't be included in the list as they are already a given.

Asano Gakushuu

I mean, do I even have to say anything? He's got the grades, the athleticism, the artistry, the reputation, and even being able to responsibly handle all of these at the same time. Rather than asking what else he can do, the better question is: What CAN'T he do??

This guy is the epitome of multi talented because it's not just him having a lot of skills, but you can really expect him to be good at each and every single one of them. Truly an ace.

Akabane Karma

This one is just half-assed lol. But let's be real, I can't even expressed how much of a genius this guy is, it's actually terrifying. Like imagine being able to remember the stuffs you've secretly studied for after two weeks of study ban, to the point that you managed to place 2nd in rankings among the entire 3rd years?? He's ridiculous.

I think it's just him being disinterested that's stopping him, because it should be obvious that he'd be the type to easily become scarily good at the skills he just picked up.

Isogai Yuuma

Being practical is his strongest suit. It probably stemmed from the fact that he's currently the one providing for his family, but I could totally see Isogai picking up plenty of skills just for the sake of making things easier. For all we know, he could've tried applying for different kinds of jobs that required certain skills before he settled on being a waiter.

Then top it all off with his good grades, being athletic, and leading the class well, yeah he's got it good.

Sugino Tomohito

One day we are going to have a whole discussion about Sugino having many hidden talents (that he's also VERY good at doing). Let's start off with baseball. It has been confirmed by Matsui himself that ever since Sugino had joined a local baseball team in town, along with perfecting his own curved ball pitching technique, it's been assessed that in the technical side of baseball, Sugino should have already surpassed Shindou in most areas.

As stated by Karasuma in the character book, Sugino literally has ZERO flaws in his assassination skills and if you look at his stats, there was not a single category that he was lacking in omg. Sugino had also shown exceptional skills in the art department, specifically in acting and drawing, as repeatedly praised by Korosensei.

Chiba Ryuunosuke

Being multi-talented isn't just about having as many skills as possible, it's also about being incredibly good at the skills you have even if they aren't that many. Chiba is a great example of this.

Sniping, maths, architecture, and spatial awareness ー those are some of the skills he was explicitly shown to have in canon and there is no denying that he is good at every single of one these. Not just good actually, but exceptional, to the point of being directly praised by actual professionals themselves.

Kayano Kaede

Being a gifted young actress, it would be no surprise that Kayano would have to have a very wide range of skills in order to be able to tackle any acting role given to her, which is what she was specifically known for.

And who passes the entrance exams of an academically renowned school on their first try at the last minute? She has it all lol.

Kataoka Megu

I think Megu is the type to find herself picking up skills and become good at them since she is a leader with a natural sense of responsibility. Especially when it's sports, because you're telling me that this ace swimmer with a record for freestyle swimming is also good at basketball, enough to both coach, lead, and carry her team all at the same time?? Damn.

Of course not forgetting the fact that she's also one with exceptional grades and is good at languages, Megu is defintely a well-rounded leader. Wish we could have seen more from her.

Hayami Rinka

As remarked by Koro-sensei, Hayami is a "jack of all trades but lacks in her own individuality and passion". Because she is said to be skilled enough in so many things, she became a reliable worker who people can depend on no matter what it is for as she can surely tackle them.

Perhaps a little bit too reliable? While there are some skills that she is obviously good at, like her sniping and dancing, I don't think people would really notice how much of an ace she is at first glance, likely because she wasn't being loud about it (as in she was lowkey).

Maehara Hiroto

Defintely the dress to impress type.

I am adding Maehara to this list because this dude came back 3 years later and suddenly he's good at b-boying!

He's good at sports, dancing, singing, he gets along with people, he dresses well, and for a carefree playboy like him, the last thing you would expect from him is his best subject being Maths, right?

I won't be surprised if plenty of these were just because he wanted to impress the girls he goes on dates with. If anything, it's likely lol. Whatever helps him I guess.

Bonus: Potentially multi-talented

Yada Touka

Being under the tutelage of Irina, it would be no surprise that Yada would end up wanting to expand her skillset as she'd find it beneficial for her in the future.

Nakamura Rio

Maybe because she's bored or just wants to be funny, but Nakamura had shown skills with... random stuffs (like diassembling gadgets or the ability to make geeky boys flustered with her dirty jokes through the school radio... 😭). As long as it can be funny, I think she can pick up anything she can use to toy with others.

Kurahashi Hinano

Drawing! It's surprising because no one can argue that she is the best at it among the girls, but it wasn't explicitly showcased AT ALL (if it weren't for that skills ranking in the manga extras, we wouldn't have known this). I wonder what else she's really good at that haven't been addressed.

Takebayashi Koutarou

I am adding that joke from the career chapter of Koro q that Takebayashi is apparently good enough at dancing to land a career for it 😂

But yes, he also ranked 4th best artist among the boys for being the "2D master". Being an anime fan does have plenty of perks... I wonder how good his singing is 🤔

[ukaiknowsbest]

Review: Tamayomi

[will contain spoilers]

Lately I have been pretty bored with the recent developments in Daiya no A and Oofuri. New Shonen anime stuff just don't appeal to me, so I bit the bullet and watched Tamayomi for at least one episode a day.

Like me, people would normally think "HOW TF ARE THEY GOING TO PLAY BASEBALL? AREN'T THEY WEARING SHORTS??? IS THIS JUST FANSERVICE?? OMYGOD"

But I did it. I watched the whole thing. 12 episodes.

And I enjoyed it.

THE SETUP/PLOT

pretty standard fare

Pitcher Yomi Takeda accidentally reunites with her childhood friend who's actually a nationals-level in middle school catcher when they both end up in the same highschool.

School: former powerhouse located in Saitama, now baseball club is almost non-existent. Yomi and a few other will try to revive the team from scratch.

Basically Shin Koshigaya is a brand new team where they struggle to look for new members and majority are first years.

They have to face other stronger teams even when they have a few members and some decent players.

Demographic is SEINEN (like oofuri, last inning, one outs, etc.)

CHARACTERS

Yomi Takeda as Main character and pitcher- skilled, resilient, funny, hardworking, does a lot of research which enabled her to perfect her form and hone her breaking ball. She keeps improving in a good pace too.

Tamaki Yamazaki former childhood friend of Yomi. Is a decent catcher in middle school. A bit well known. Good communicator.

Yoshino - team manager and coach. srsly she is a boss. She's not infallible but she tries her best.

and other decent players with adequate skill

For a sports anime they have decent cast. This is probably the closest we can currently get of a story where the girls are just focused on the sport, do their own strategizing/planning/training. All of them are cute but also serious about what they do.

There's no boys here so there's no talk about het-crushes and other distractions. It's a clamfest babyyyy.

I've seen a little of Major 2 (the one abt the son and his coed team) and I couldn't stand it because it was just slice of life in sportsy undertones.

There is also decent communication among all the players. It's pretty refreshing to watch. The catcher is well rounded and the pitcher is good. Everyone talk things out and there is not a lot of drama.

FANSERVICE

Wearing shorts to a sport that involves a lot of making contact with the ground is just illogical lmao.

Their school uniform skirt is pretty short

A little bit of their manager prodding the thighs of each person she meets but with good reason (she can tell how much muscle/exercise a person does just by a little prodding). It's a trope thing.

That's all. There are no panty shots, unnecessary locker room nudity, boob action, see through sweaty shirts. Most of the cringy things I've seen in other girls sports anime aren't present.

Eventually I even forget that they're wearing shorts or that it impedes their performance. It seems like it doesn't matter much to the characters so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

I don't know if like the hugging or holding hands is considered fanservice. In my experiece we ladies just act like that irl. What they do is nothing out of the ordinary.

REALISM

3/5. They wear shorts and dont tie their hair up. The baseball part seem pretty decent though. The pacing of the story and matches was like watching IRL Koshien. It's all very clinical and straightforward.

Plus they include a lot of interesting baseball stuff which I haven't seen happen in early stages of other shonen anime like: specifically training the pitcher in other positions, showing what fielders yell to each other, letting other relievers start to reserve their ace (ppl can yell DnA did this but remember Tanba was injury boy throughout Act 1).

COMPARISON TO OTHER BASEBALL MANGA

based on technicality Tamayomi is prolly one of the top among baseball anime/manga I have seen.

Last Inning

Oofuri

Tamayomi

Daiya no A

Now don't chase me with pitchforks because of this ranking just yet. The fact that Shin Koshigaya coach's decisions and reasonings for plays and lineups are discussed makes the show at par with Last Inning and Oofuri. (we dont see DnA kataoka talk abt this sht like..ever)

Moreover Tamayomi has similar vibes to Oofuri/Big Windup but less dramatic. I do not think it's good for beginners too (especially with just 12 episodes). You need to have prior baseball knowledge to understand what the characters were doing.

However, this show is probably the most no-fuss baseball anime/manga I have watched. It does not rely on hype like DnA and it also don't have heavy topics like Oofuri and Last Inning. It's not wacky like One Outs and it's not uber slice of life like Cross Game. It's just baseball.

My minor complaint is that they don't give numbers when talking about things like pitching speed tho. It would've been more realistic if actual numbers were dropped XD

ART/ DESIGN/ANIMATION

A.k.a the thing most viewers complain about.

Character design is subpar. Everyone's faces are almost the same. You can tell who's the character not by face but by hair and height. Personally I don't mind this. I don't really look for realism in most things I watch. And I think the hair designs are cool.

Lots of people drop this show because of bad animation. There are shots/scenes where it's like I'm watching fanmade AMV's in nicovideo/youtube from the early 2000's. Pitching motions and Batting motions look like character movements in rpg games.

It's not really a problem for me though. I think it's charming for some reason. I don't mind it. A lot of people do but I'm not them.

CONCLUSION

NGL I wanted more. 12 episodes is too short. I hope a better animation company picks this up. I'm rewatching the whole thing because I enjoyed it a lot. I'll even check out the manga if I have time.

If anyone's interested here's my tamayomi livetweet thread

This is one of the closest thing I could get to what a decent girl sports anime looks like. If the character designs, art, animation and the uniforms were just better this show would have gone pretty far.

Compared to Shonen types of manga this was relaxing to watch, especially before bed. I'd honestly recommend it you wanna watch smth that doesnt involve a lot of feelings and drama but still feel like watching an actual sport.

Girls are fun. Finally.

[personal notes under the cut]

I get that people reading this would think I'm being too optimistic about a show they considered shtty but I kid you not, I dropped Bakuten (boys gymnastic's anime) coz even with it's wonderful animation i thought it was boring af.

I have dropped so many prettily animated shows coz i just cant get into the characters nor the story.

I've also said before in my Two Car review that I am actively avoiding shows with popular VA's. Idk much abt female VA's in anime, therefore watching Tamayomi was the perfect solution for me.

The reason I like tamayomi so much is that it gave me the same feeling of watching Summer Koshien 2021. I just think an anime that made me remember that kind of feeling was cool.

I'll rewatch hanebado next. wish me luck.

[bakugoukatsuki-rising]

I'm. The new covers, op. The new covers. Gosh. Both of them hold so much symbolism. And technically they both are canon, they are both original ideas that could perfectly be valid. Horikoshi simply found something better. But anyways, I'm going to go ahead and ramble about it because Im- Op, prepare for a long ask! Hope you like it!

So!

On the one where Katsuki's the one in the picture, he's not on his knees like he is in the other two covers. Instead, he has his face down, body forward, one hand on one leg, the other one holding out for something...He's bowing. Bowing in Japanese culture is a pretty big deal. Hes not just tilting his head a bit, his head and body are on full on commitment.

Such a tilted bow means a LOT, specially from THIS guy, Mr dont let anyone walk in front of me. Even more when hes not just bowing, but accepting such an open display of given help, Mr shonen anime lone wolf. Accepting something he always has trouble admitting to. Accepting the past, accepting the wrongs. Accepting Izukus help means so much, and that's what these three covers have in common.

His hand is sctretching out. He's ready to say yes to that hand out in the air.

(Ps. I wonder if he's watching his own reflection on the water in this panel, as well?)

Hes in middle of the picture with those childhood friend at the back, which means audience. It means letting people see what hes done, what he's sorry for. He is being open and exposed and vulnerable. That's no fighting stance.

Remember guys, in case you haven't noticed before, Horikoshi puts lots of metaphorical value in his manga and on his covers. Sometimes you've got to dig in deep and think to get the bigger picture. And in this case, the bigger picture screams regret and wanting to make things right from the start.

This cover occurs in the past, at the moment where everything started, and Katsuki fully remembers this. Katwuki has thought of this, is thinking about this. He's had eye bags for gods sake, he's clearly troubled by all of what it means.

These three covers are the visual explanation of what's going on inside Katsuki's head, because this is clearly focused on him and his perspective.

(Ps. Rivers symbolise the massage of time. If that doesnt add to everything else, I dont know what to tell you.)

So! Next!

Wow, if this isnt one of my favourite things ever. Okay. Christ.

I have two options here. Scratch that, three options. Scream into the void, scream into this post, or actually make a good presentation of my inner turmoil. I'll have to go by the third option. (Haha. Just like horikoshi did. Dont # me, I'm funny in my head.)

This cover melted my insides, froze them all over, and hit me with them like a hammer.

I know they're kids, but let me get this straight-so kids seriously look at their friends with these looks in their eyes and think "ah, yes. This is my very good friend. This gentle smile and kind look I'm giving him as if he was my whole world? Well, hes just a very good friend."

I looked at my childhood crush this way, I dont know what to tell you.

Anyway, let's actually jump to the information at hand.

This panel seems like it's making a reference to what Katsuki wishes could have been. And if that's not absolutely soul-crushing...this cover is Katsuki's feelings, guys. These are probably his very thoughts. This scene has gone through Katsuki's head at some point.

We've got Izuku in his stuck up pose all over again, in just an awkward angle. It's like katsuki isnt looking AT this katsuki right now, but at the spot where the actual past Katsuki, at some point, was. As if this Isuku is frozen in time. Dont believe too much in this paragraph, I still have my doubts about that, but I feel it's a possibility. Izukus eyes seem to be focused on the water, while Katsuki is just the tiniest bit back, reaching for Izukus hand. And gosh.

I dont think I've ever seen older NOR child Katsuki have this look plasted into his face before. He's...sheepish. Kindly, awkwardly sheepish. No hate, no anger, no shame, no nothing. His face is clear and sweet and has this "Whoops. You got me. But thanks." kind of expression on.

The hand behind his head, just the tiniest but embarassed? That little smile? It's all so soft.

Rambling about softness though- I really liked the hand scene in this particular panel. If you close up your view, you realise that theres no effort to pull anyone out of nowhere. In this panel, they are simply holding hands in frozen time for no purpose at all.

Katsuki has his hand around Izuku...simply holding there.

Again, because the angle is awkward, it's kind of messy, but you get the point.

It's all simply beautiful. Horikoshi clean likes give me life.

And lastly. The actual cover.

I screeched so hard when I saw this. My first instinct when seeing this for the first time was to straight up go trigger happy fingers and write about it to my friends. Christ.

Everything is so...SOft. horikoshi made a good decision by mixing both previous drawings in one. We have parts of the two covers in one, which is amazing. In this one, Katsuki isnt alone, as Izuku's there too. But we dont have the audience either. Probably because the main focus on this panel is no one else except them two.

Again, Katsuki looks like he's bowing, but instead of looking all the way down, he's in the middle. Not looking at Izuku nor looking at the ground, like it shows in the previous covers. Instead, Horikoshi found a middle ground. He's looking at his hand. At the gesture.

Hes not holding hands quite yet, but his hand is there. At arms reach. Not close enough but there. Wanting.

Theres so much regret and again, softness.

Again, like you Op said a bit bad, the angle is off here. This is present Katsuki remembering his past. The angle is off because this Izuku isnt holding out for our Katsuki. This is a memory. A wish. Katsuki's wish.

(Ps. Izukus trousers drenched in the rivers water. This detail was so nice. It's a subtle action that describes Izukus characterization so much. Izuku went in the river with Katsuki in mind, not caring if he got his clothes soaked in the process too. For Izuku, only Katsuki was there. And for Katsuki, only Izuku is.

As a plus, I can't believe the cover of this is literally called Bakugou Katsuki rising. They named the entire thing after that one chapter. Actually, I very much, totally believe it. It's the moment so many people have been waiting for, after all. The moment so many scenes have been amounting for, little by little.

*dreamy sigh*

Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed this little thing, I had to get it out of my system and dont want to bother my dear friends anymore than needed.

Have a good day, OP! I'll stay updated!

You kinda just...took my heart and curb stomped it, not gonna lie. Your observations are so beautiful and so accurate. The sketch with little Bakugou taking Izuku’s hand is so...raw, and yeah, that expression is definitely one of love. Those eyes, the way he is HOLDING Izuku’s hand, not TAKING it. He isn’t taking it to stand up, he is literally just...holding it. 

That isn’t the way you take someone’s hand when you’re trying to pull yourself up. It’s an awkward angle and just...wouldn’t work right. No, he is literally just holding his hand, and that’s exactly what Bakugou wishes he did all that time ago. He wishes that he not only took Deku’s hand, but held onto it. Held it as if it were something precious, something to be cared for and protected. 

These are Bakugou’s true feelings expressed in these drawings, and I think Horikoshi released them on purpose, to show us more of what he wanted Bakugou to be feelings through all of this. Since after all, we know that Bakugou expresses himself in action, not so much words. And because Horikoshi is an absolute genius, he thought to give us these other glimpses in how he feels through these actions. 

And the other sketch with him bowing his body to Izuku, and the way the log looks like it’s on his back with his ‘friends’ on top of it. 

The pressure of needing to be the coolest, the strongest, the best. Those kids put that kind of pressure on him, even if they never realized it. They encouraged his behavior and fed his ego, and it never allowed him to see how he was wrong. But now he is realizing it, and he is bowing himself in light of that acknowledgement. He is lowering his head and putting his pride away, so he can get back what he lost all those years ago; the opportunity to take Izuku’s hand.

To take the hand of the only one of those kids that ever loved him unconditionally. Who never pressured him or expected him to be invincible. Who saw all of his flaws and was completely prepared to support him despite all of it. The only one. 

I’m just a mess over all of this, and I am so incredibly thankful to Horikoshi for creating this beautiful relationship. AND IN A SHOUNEN MANGA, NONETHELESS!!  

Thank you friend, for your beautiful thoughts. I think they’re spot on, and I am so emotional all over again because of this. 

[penguin251159]

I was tagged by @7nessasaryevils to do @sunsetknowsaboutyou 's tag game. Thanks so much for tagging me! Apologies for all the rambling answers that lay ahead.

1. your all time favorite bl and why

Right now it's Bad Buddy. I'm wraking my brain for another one that I loved as much as this but I can only think of Cherry Magic and the manga (and ova) Doukyusei that come close to the feeling I have for this show. Maybe we could say that it's cause I just finished it yesterday and it's the number one thing on my mind at the moment but, nah. I'm honestly pretty sure it's gonna be at the top of this certain list for a long time. Why is it my favorite? The characters and the natural chemistry between all of them. I liked the story and that it was relatively simple and it didn't veer off into a million different directions. This show almost felt real and had so much heart behind it. I said before that in only 11 episodes (up to that point) they had managed to put so many beautiful moments and so much love into them and i didn't know if I'd seen a show in recent memory (bl or not) that had been able to do the same, and those shows tend to have the same if not double the amount of episodes. And I will just...never be over the way they both stepped towards eachother on the rooftop and I will never be over Pat saying "No." and the way he said it when Pran asked if he wanted to be friends. I genuinely loved getting to watch the story unfold every week. Even when the darn previews made me nervous! It just made me so happy. Like...it made me feel the same sort of love for characters that The Princess Bride did, THAT'S where I'm at with this show lol.

2. that one bl that scarred you for life

Ok so, when I think about being scarred for life by a show or a movie I think about a movie like Requiem For A Dream that I could only watch once and it is forever burned into the back of my brain for better or worse. Like, just hearing the soundtrack will reduce me to a sobbing mess. The seagulls at the end?? Anyways. I haven't had that sort of reaction with any recent bl's. One that HAS had that sort of effect on me is, and idk if this technically counts here but I'm going with it anyway cause why not, Ai No Kusabi (the one from 1992 haha). That OVA messed me up and funnily enough had a a lot of stuff in it that I don't like but! It somehow still drew me in and then ripped my heart out. To this day I cannot listen to Eternal without singing along and crying. Seriously go find that song and try to tell me you don't feel the sadness?! Lol

3. is there any bl that made you feel very single?

Bad Buddy and Cherry Magic, without question.

4. if you could change one thing from a bl, which one would it be?

I mean there are a few tropes I'm not too fond of but!! The rampant lack of communication is high up on that list. I mean, honestly, that could be said about damn near every movie and TV show but it really kills me that it takes wayyyyy too much happening for characters to just talk to eachother? Like I get that it's scary or hard to open up and let yourself be vulnerable but...so much can be avoided by just TALKING! Lol, maybe that's another reason I loved Bad Buddy so much. Pat and Pran actually communicated most of the time and especially after they got together. It was like a breath of fresh air! I also really hate non-con/dub-con stuff. Cheap deaths that are for nothing other than to evoke pain and sadness of other characters. When characters get away with bullshit behavior with barely a slap on the wrist if anything at all (yes, I'm looking at you Wai!).

5. that one bl you detest (don’t hold back)

Idk if I have any bl's that I detest. If I start watching a show and stuff starts happening that I know won't sit well with me I have no problem dropping it and reading spoilers until I know it's fine for me to start watching again or just never pick it back up. That being said...shows that I couldnt necessarily get into were What The Duck and Theory of Love. I tried to watch them, I really did! But they just weren't for me.

6. your top five:

1. Bad Buddy

2. Cherry Magic

3. Trapped

4. Manner Of Death

5. 2gether

7. that trashy bl that you lowkey like

Why R U, I LOVED Saifah and Zon. Also YYY, that show was a MESS! It reminded me of older low budget independent movies I used to watch on The Sundance Channel lol, but it was so much fun and surprisingly sweet at times.

8. your favorite korean bl (it’s important we know)

I haven't seen many but I really liked Where Your Eyes Linger. But also, once again no idea if these really count since they're older, BUT! This movie called No Regret and this one short film called Just Friends? No Regret was a heavy movie to watch but it ended on a very hopeful note and the acting is SO GOOD! I liked it so much that I actually bought the DVD and Just Friends? was sweet and had bonus musical moments pop up out of nowhere lol.

9. but also your top 3 for kbls

1. No Regret

2. Where Your Eyes Linger

3. My Sweet Dear

10. season 2? which one?

Bad Buddy cause I already miss it. But maybe just as special episodes like they did for 2gether and not a full on season? Whatever they put out, if anything, I'd enjoy though. I won't be picky!

11. a bunch of dramas will air soon. which ones are you the most excited for?

Vice Versa, Moonlight Chicken, The Eclipse, Kinnporsche and I know there's more but I forgot lol

Idk who to tag, haha! If anyone that follows me wants to fill this out too, have at it!

[babyybitchhh]

No. I haven't heard of the anime/ manga. Is it good? -💅🏾

Yes! It’s actually one of my favorite titles and tbh I’ve never seen anything quite like it before. Noda, the mangaka, is completely off his shits and I’m honestly surprised by some of the stuff he gets away with. I think a lot of people overlook it because the art style isn’t your typical pretty boy bishonen squeaky clean look but if adult men are your thing ... 😎👌

I’ll show you some of my faves but fair warning, the eyebrows and facial hair can be WILD at times but that’s part of the appeal. You won’t find these character designs anywhere else and I respect that creativity tbh.

This is Tanigaki 🥰 big beefy bear of a man with ass for days. Very hairy. Very soft. Went from sociopathic asshole to baby over the course of a single arc. Love him.

This is Kantarou, my token Shikamaru look alike boo thang. Lol He’s really sweet, actually, and a Leo like me!! 🎉 I love my fellow Leo kings and queens! Unfortunately he hasn’t gotten to play a very big role in the story but he’s definitely there and I AM looking. 👀

My man Usami 🤪 this dude is clinically insane and I live for it. Like. He’s actually certifiably out of his mind. Totally off his rocker. I want him to fuck me up but also fuck up shit WITH him. Our love for Tsurumi will bring us together. 🥰

Speaking of Tsurumi, here he is. 😍 So sexy. So gallant. So charming. This is actually from a flashback and he doesn’t look quite like this in the main storyline but ... I didn’t want to scare you guys. 😅 He has a major head injury and is also off his shits, but in a “I’m scared yet also aroused” way. Lmao

I’ll go ahead and shout out Kiroranke too because he’s another beefy, hairy man who also happens to be a father and he likes his women THICC, which I respect. He’s got this very ... fatherly/uncle vibe to him that just hits all my buttons. I’d like for him to take me out in the woods and ... teach me a few things. 😏💦

Ogata is an honorable mention because, while he’s not at the top of MY list, he’s by and large the fan favorite. Basically everyone wants a piece of this bastard cat. He’s got his fair share of loose screws (almost everyone in this series does 😂) and he’s a certain kind of vile, but god is he fucking hot. PHEW.

So anyway yeah, there are plenty of other dudes I didn’t even mention. Tsukishima is VERY attractive to me, for example, but this post is already long enough. Lol I’ll just say that regardless of your preferences, whether it’s old men or sneaky bastards or rugged outdoors types or sociopathic murderers or dads or military men, this series will probably have you covered. If you do decide to check it out, I’d suggest going with the manga. It’s much better than the anime, which skipped some arcs and censored some of the more ... gruesome stuff. 😅 Also the art is just better, the first two seasons of the anime were kind of low budget but the third season is looking pretty good now.

Also fair warning, there IS quite a bit of uh triggering content involving animals. I’m sensitive af when it comes to animals and I was very upset at the start of the series but luckily it kind of shifted focus and scenes like that only pop up occasionally now. It’s a damn good story, I’m just a big baby when it comes to our furry friends. 🥺 There’s a lot of hunting and living off the land going on here, so while it’s not like ... technically animal abuse, it still made me sad. And since I know some people care about this I’ll also mention that there isn’t really any female fanservice but the dudes DEFINITELY get their money shots in. 🥴

[sillyfudgemonkeys]

what's wrong with P5A's characterization? (admittedly I haven't been watching it but I thought you liked it o3o;; )

This is mostly aimed at Anne and Ryuji tbh. Ren…..I like his name, as of the later chapters in the manga I think I might Akira’s personality more….mostly cause he really is a newbie goofball and 100% not like what the fandom considers the MC to be like. It’s kinda refreshing (of course the art doesn’t help but I can slowly see some funny quirks).

This all mostly happens in the first 3 episodes, and tbh sours the first dungeon for me. 

Anyway from least irritating to most (there’s 4 things but technically the first two are in the same scene so maybe there’s only 3), Ryuji I think is the worst part but Anne’s is so confusing tho she does actually get railroaded back to her game counterpart the early episodes really screw her character over (anyway basically they have some….OOC moments….big ones….important ones). Sorry it’s not SUPER in depth, maybe later I can go frame by frame between the game, anime, and manga. 

Anyway under the cut because in this essay I will be (btw sorry if it’s all over the place)….

Let’s start with the weirdest one….when you first meet her, ok well…the first first one is just a minor one the thing RIGHT AFTER is the weirdest one. Ok so there’s more going on in the anime/game than the manga, but the anime unlike the game has dialogue. That’s fine….thing is…..the manga might do….a better job with capturing Anne’s character than the anime did. I mean it’s less shippy (but we get new shippy scenes later I’ll get to that). I mean let’s look at her reaction to the MC staring at her:

Game:

Manga:

Anime:

What’s the difference?

The smile. Doesn’t Anne look friendlier in the Game/Manga? Isn’t your first impression….”huh she seems nice!” I think the anime tried to give her more of an action like “actions speak louder than words” kinda thing, with her taking the petal off of the MC’s head. “See? Isn’t she nice? She helped remove the thing he couldn’t see!” And, I get what they are trying to do there, but she still comes off as coldish. I said a second ago they wanted to give her an action, but the thing is…..smiling is already an action! A very simple one! She’s already showing she’s friendly by giving him a greeting smile (or just a polite one). Also the way it’s presented, the manga and game give off a warmer atmosphere than the anime. The game’s colors are soft and bright and welcoming (and she’s drawn in a softish way), the anime it’s darker and dreary. The manga, even tho it’s black and white and has a plain ass background, Anne is drawn in such a soft way, it’s even shaded a little to give off her being illuminated (like notice the lower corners where it’s darker, the way it’s shaded the light is drawn to her fact brightening out her smile). 

Like we got all we needed to know from our first meeting in both the game/manga, she’s friendly. Maybe the anime wanted to amplify her cold exterior to make the “oh she’s really friendly underneath” hiddens side of her a reveal…..but….the thing is….THEY DIDN’T DO THAT! They set it up with no pay off, like it would’ve been different and I can’t knock them for that, but now it’s just different FOR NO REASON! Like the game/manga show she’s friendly, and later we see her colder wall she puts up all while hearing rumors and putting the pieces together as to WHY she has a cold wall, all while knowing she’s friendlier than she appears. And if the anime wanted to do something different that’s fine but it didn’t follow through so it’s an issue for me.

Anyway, again, it’s minor, it still bugs me tho. Moving on to….when we first meet Kamoshida in the car. And this one is weird. Let’s compare Anne again.

Game:

Manga:

Anime:

What’s the difference?

It’s the way they look, the way the lines are delivered, the dialogue, the way she moves. I mean one thing to keep in mind is they want to have her smile so they can cut away to her looking unhappy and have you thing “hmmmmm something is up.” 

Game!Anne, her smile is mandatory polite (smile cause it’s the right thing to do, she probably also did this in mind with the MC too but hey she had the music with him and not Kamo 8V basically what I’m trying to say a person who is uber cold wouldn’t politely smile and at the same time just cause they smile doesn’t mean they are happy). Her dialogue is also a bit….apprehensive, and just mandatory polite as well. It’s what I would say if I didn’t want to get in the car with someone but also had no reason to say no. Anyway the cut to her looking upset shows us her real emotions.

Manga!Anne however really doesn’t look pleased, I mean you could totally read it as “relief,” possibly due to not being trapped in the rain. Same as the game, it cuts away to her not looking happy (and actually amplifies it some more in the manga with Kamoshida talking to her). 

Anime!Anne. Unlike the other two, she had yet to show a smile, unlike the other two who came off as polite with no wall, Anime!Anne does not have that frame of reference. Instead it’s a juxtaposition. She had a bit of a wall but then as soon as Kamo showed up, she bursted out into this big smile. Her words are a bit more eager, it looks like she practically runs to the car (while she just casually walks to it in the other versions). She seems happy. Sure maybe it’s cause she doesn’t need to be in the rain. But again, this is the first time we’ve seen her smile. Then it cuts away to her not looking happy. It’s…..it’s some whiplash man. I think it’s cause they wanted us to buy into thinking Anne is Kamo’s girl by choice….. I mean later in ep 2 Kamo shows jealousy over the fact the MC was with Anne alone. But the thing is….this misdirection makes no sense, they don’t spend nor have the time to slow things down to make us wonder. The whole plot point is useless because it’s dropped very fast considering her later reactions in ep 2. 

Side minor nitpick before moving on. I don’t like the way they introduce Ryuji. The Game/Manga have him running after Kamo’s car, well after Kamo has driven away (not aware of Ryu even approaching). The anime has Ryujis slowly approaching the car and Kamo takes notice and has him drive off. I dunno it feels weird, Ryu would totally run after that car and Kamo wouldn’t really give a shit about Ryu approaching. Minor but a bit annoying, this change wasn’t needed.

Now onto…..my biggest problems with how they handled Anne, it’s this scene, this fudging scene right here:

This did not happen in the game. This did not happen in Spain. This did not happen in the Game writer’s brain. It did not happen here Nor there. It did not happen anywhere. It did not happen in the manga. It did not happen under Obama. It did not happen in a conga. It did not happen here nor there. It did not happen anywhere. SO WHY THE FUDGE IS IT HAPPENING HERE?????

First off half of this convo is taking place a day early, they are talking about Shiho’s volleyball problems which is suppose to take place the next day on the bench:

OH THE BENCH SCENE STILL TAKES PLACE! But they change the first half of the dialogue to reflect the optional dialogue you can hear when talking to the volleyball team, WHICH INSTEAD HAPPENS A DAY PRIOR TO THE BENCH DAY:

(let’s play I was using didn’t have them talk to Anne/Shiho but there’s the location/date, it’s about the same dialogue, talking about how BS the rumors are about the MC). 

But like what purpose does the corridor thing hold??? Cause when I first saw it I thought they were moving the bench scene. But obviously that didn’t happen. So why include it? Then I realized it was suppose to replace this scene:

The scene they are reinterpreting is happening a day later in the anime (4/13), with the bench scene still taking place (4/14) in the anime, but it moves the optional scene from the game (4/13, mentioned above) to 4/14 as well. They also removed Anne telling them to be careful about asking questions (4/13 in the game) to 4/14 when the bench scene is taking place. Giving Anne a more aggressive/protective role over Shiho, rather than going out of her way to warn them where it doesn’t involve Shiho at all (the manga did something similar to he anime). Now before we got back to the corridor and why it’s just SO FREAKING BAD, the reason why I don’t like Anne telling off the guys in the anime/manga is because it makes her ignorant. It brings about her now being aware of Kamo’s bad traits and the rumors to full force. The game she just knows they are going around and trying to dig up dirt about Kamo and considering what happen to Ryuji a year prior, she’s like “Guys she’s a teacher you aren’t going to win.” Coupled with the fact she’s kept in the dark about what they are investigating, as opposed to the anime (the manga she’s still in the dark, but it’s still a negative because she didn’t approach them herself to warn them they are getting into deep shit, you know cause she actually cares). 

Moving the confrontation also hurts the anime. In the game, it’s before Shiho gets bruised (or at least before Anne can see Shiho to see she’s bruised). The manga it happens right after Shiho mentions spraining her wrist but it’s def played off more convincingly that it was just a normal practice that did that. She does seem to attempt to tell Anne the truth, but Anne misreads what she was trying to say and assumed it was how she felt inadequate about her spot on the team (which they were also just discussing earlier). And….it works out fine, sure Anne loses some of her caring points from the game (so only real issue with that) but she’s in the dark about the truth so that’s good (from a story stand point that is). But why is it bad in the anime? It’s because…..she hears something is up with the volleyball club, and doesn’t believe Ryu/Ren LITERALLY AFTER LOOKING AT SHIHO’S INJURIES. ANNE IS NOT THIS DUMB (and no her CoOp doesn’t cout that is filled with OOC messes too). Outside her CoOp, Anne is characterized as being able to pick up on people’s emotions. She can read people pretty well (when the writers don’t depower that ability cause they suck). She would’ve figured it out right then and there. 

Anyway what’s wrong with the corridor scene? Other than screwing up the bench scene from here to hell? Just look at it. Look at those two pictures. WHat do you see? Anne gets invited to join the club and she bails. SHE BAILS! AND SHE GETS AN IN! WHAT THE FUDGE?! Like, no nononononon nonono no NOOOO NO! nO FOR ONE aNNE WOULD NOT BAIL ON SHIHO LIKE THAT! She can actually watch Shiho, be near her, one of the issues in the game is that Anne doesn’t see Shiho often. Their lifeline to each other is cut. Yeah maybe Kamo would try something with those two, but I think he wouldn’t want to take his chances since it’d be hard to fight off two at once. So Anne SHOULD be in the clear, him talking to her after the club would be a new issue, but  ANNE WOULD TOTALLY GO TO THE CLUB TO WATCH SHIHO FIGHT ME. And as for reason number two  as to why this scene sucks. It’s the life line, you can see in the game’s bench scene, even in the manga, Anne can’t follow Shiho. She has no in. She’s an outsider. She doesn’t know what’s going on because she’s an outsider and she can’t make Shiho talk. That’s one of the big conflicts of the game (and manga). She’s not on the team, she’s not on some committee like the Student Council, the most she can do for Shiho is cheer her on and try to string Kamo along. But what does Anime!Anne get? A FUDGING IN! The one thing Anne needed in P5, not to be an outsider, she gets an invitation to a thing she needed and she turns it the fudge down!! LIke no! Noooo???!!!! 

*inhales* As you can see I have issues with this on a number of levels. Now do I think it could’ve worked in the anime? Hell yes. Reorder everything to the right order from the game. Change the corridor scene to the optional scene you can overhear with Anne/Shiho on 4/13 talking about the MC and rumors, they split up and after Shiho rounds the corner Kamo catches Anne and the 4/12 scene (the one that MC overhears) happens. Anne declines him and walks away, cut to Shiho who is like “oh I need to tell Anne something” and have her round the corner and run into Kamo. The scene from the anime plays out where he abuses her. This way Anne doesn’t get an in and doesn’t abandon Shiho. Now move Anne yelling at Ren/Ryu about digging up dirt about Kamo, where she shows concern about them, but they don’t reveal any info so she’s still in the dark. Then the bench scene plays out like in the game with no interruptions, and they question Shiho like in the game. 

*inhales* Ok now let’s go to Ryu……Thankfully this should be more straight forward. But man, even the manga got Ryuji right (or at least didn’t get him wrong like the anime did). 

Ok so we all know the issue with Ryuji (and by extension the MC) right? Both are “protector of women” in the first arc, very respectable (well the MC does have the one line I didn’t like but haha we’ll get that THAT in a second), just good guys all around. Then everything post-dungeon 1 it’s “let’s make everything horribly sexual and objectify Anne and IT’S OK IF WE DO IT CAUSE WE’RE THE MAIN CHARACTERS!” Yeah THAT problem. One of the reasons the first dungeon is my fav. So let’s compare how Ryuji reacts to seeing Cognitive Anne (as well to the other sexual imagery) shall we?

Game:

Anime:

Manga:

Before I rip into it, the manga they don’t actually showcase his good boy status like in the game, but they also don’t make him a perv so I’ll fudging take it. And yeah I think it’s Akira talking in that panel, but again, Ryuji isn’t acting like a perv and she’s clearly not happy. (also they never see Cognitive Anne till Anne’s awakening, which….and Mona falls for the real Anne instead of the Cognition as he first meets her when she accidentally gets pulled into the Metaverse)

So……remember how I had a minor nitpick with how they introduced Ryuji? Him not running? Well there was……another thing I realized while typing this. Anime Ryuji doesn’t call Kamo a pervy teacher when he first speaks, Game/Manga!Ryuji do but not Anime!Ryuji. Instead he just calls him a bastard, but not a perv. He doesn’t call him a perv till Anne’s awakening in the anime. YEs this is important. Game/Manga!Ryuji make a point that they hate how pervy Kamo is, and how horrified they are of his perviness. Anime!Ryuji doesn’t until it’s too late. Is it more in-character considering the perv pile he becomes post-dungeon 1 in-game? Maybe, but why would you wanna double down on that? Ryuji was great in dungeon 1! Anyway Ryuji doesn’t show his horror until it’s too late, instead he avoids calling Kamo a perv so he’s not seen as a hypocrite in terms of perving, but then they just…..make him a hypocrite anyway cause he still calls Kamo a perv just later after perving himself. It’s just…..what the fudge….

Also did you notice, the “so jealous line” was originally the MC’s. Now I hate the line, but it really makes no sense for Ryu to say it esp during dungeon 1.  I mean it makes no sense for the MC to say it (this is probably why I hate the MC, I really hate some of his “cheeky lines). But why give….a character that already speaks…a lot more than the silent MC? Why give Ryuji one that makes him look worse to boot???? Like I didn’t like Yu Narukami or the P4 Anime, but it at least made sense why Yu took Yosuke’s “hey it’s the pint size detective” line from him. Yu needs more lines, so does Ren. So why add something unnecessary when you could just give Ren more lines? It’s just…..I’m sorry this really pisses me off. This really killed my goodwill for the anime, and it was dead by episode 3 (but I did finish arc 1). 

Like, the anime did two good things that remember from those eps, 1) Having Kamo be jealous over the MC for being near Anne and the rumors about Ren/Anne hitting on each other (cause it’s SOOOOO in character for him, 2) Shiho’s abuse being shown. And I do like the idea that they are….slightly capitalizing on the fact they are suppose to have their personality change when in the Metaverse (this is mostly Ren tho), but I saw it with Anne as well. I mean they promised that with the game and I thought they did jack with it. Anyway not sure how much they’ve….continue to capitalized on it but…..at least they tried. Tho I think I prefer the manga the  most in this case, just a bunch of useless, newbie doofuses trying their best but they know they aren’t all that. Instead of being a bunch of useless thieves who think they are all that but really they all suck at being thieves (more of a game problem than the anime but tbh considering how Ren is cocky in the anime I wouldn’t be surprised if this was a shared problem).