#i also think definitely half the plot revolved around building a romance rather than the romance being informed by the plot

[aroaessidhe]

2022 reads // twitter thread    

Bloody Spade

anime-inspired modern fantasy world where magic has suddenly become a reality

catboy thief corrupted by dark magic is saved by a powerful softhearted girl determined to save him

magical girls (& boys), action, romance, aspec MCs

start of a series (duology?)

[mediaeval-muse]

Book Review

Butterfly Swords. By Jeannie Lin. Toronto and New York: Harlequin, 2010.

Rating: 2.5/5 stars

Genre: historical romance

Part of a Series? Yes, Tang Dynasty #1

Summary: During China's infamous Tang Dynasty, a time awash with luxury yet littered with deadly intrigues and fallen royalty, betrayed Princess Ai Li flees before her wedding. Miles from home, with only her delicate butterfly swords for defense, she enlists the reluctant protection of a blue-eyed warrior. Battle-scarred, embittered Ryam has always held his own life at cheap value. Ai Li's innocent trust in him and honorable, stubborn nature make him desperate to protect her which means not seducing the first woman he has ever truly wanted.

***Full review under the cut.***

Content Warnings: violence, sexual content

**DISCLAIMER: I’m not an expert on Chinese history or the Tang Dynasty, so I can’t speak to the book’s historical accuracy. If you’ve read this and have any thoughts, feel free to reach out! I’d love to learn!***

Overview: I decided to give this book a try after seeing praise for the author on Courtney Milan’s website. I’m always in the mood for some non-European historical fiction, and the romance aspect just made this book even more appealing. While there were some things I liked about Butterfly Swords, there were also some things that irritated me, such as the protagonists’ relationship and the focus on traveling. As a result, this book was a middling read for me, but I would be interesting in seeing if (and how) the author improves, as this is, to my understanding, a debut novel.

Writing: Lin’s prose is somewhat matter-of-fact, relating events and emotions in a plain, straight-forward style. At first, I thought the prose rather sparse, but as I progressed through the novel, it became more descriptive, especially once our two protagonists finally admitted (to themselves?) that they had feelings for one another and wanted to engage in a relationship. Because this book takes place in what Lin calls a “sensuous” era (as she discusses in her author’s note), I do wish more of that sensuality came through in her writing style. Because the Tang Dynasty is so temporally removed from our current time, it would have been fun to bring the setting to life more vividly. I would have loved more lush descriptions of what the world and culture was like, and since this book is only 282 pages long, I think there was definitely some room to add more detail.

Plot: The majority of the plot involves Ai Li, our heroine, fleeing from her marriage to a warlord who has betrayed her family. She chances upon Ryam, our hero and lone wandering “barbarian,” and convinces him to act as a kind of bodyguard and escort her back to her father. This premise lasts for maybe half the book, switching to focus on what to do once Ai Li has a falling out with her family (for lack of a better term, without spoiling anything) and how she and Ryam can be together. I found the first half of the book to be a little rocky; the lack of detail about the politics driving this situation made for some confusion, and the looming threat of the warlord’s forces was less suspenseful and more convenient.

The majority of the plot also revolves around Ai Li and Ryam traveling, and personally, I think these kinds of narratives are difficult to do well. Traveling or journeys provide an easy narrative structure, but they lack suspense. Events don’t really build on one another as much as they just happen - characters encounter this village where this event happens, then they continue to this part of the forest, where this happens, and so on. This isn’t necessarily Lin’s fault - it’s a problem I see throughout fiction that structures narrative this way. The threat of the being detected isn’t really felt or, if it is, it can feel repetitive.

I much preferred the moments when Ai Li interacts with her family. Family and honor are priorities for her, and the politics of the book were woven in well with Ai Li’s  personal stakes. Ai Li risks losing her family in multiple ways: by bringing shame to them through her disobedience, by refusing to marry her fiance and creating peace in the empire, by disapproving of her father’s plans regarding her mother, etc. It created interesting tension at both micro and macro levels, and I was pleased that the personal-political conflicts neither framed family and honor as “old fashioned” or necessarily repressive, nor did the story as whole advocate for a complete break from values and traditions. Instead, it explored the delicate balance of obligation vs selfishness, considering the value of honor in a world devoid of it.

Characters: Ai Li, our heroine, is a sword-wielding princess who flees an arranged marriage to a traitorous warlord. She’s impulsive and reckless without being irritating - she acts without thinking mainly when it comes to her desires, and while it does sometimes get her in trouble, I don’t think there were any moments when she did something genuinely stupid to make plot happen. I also liked that she valued honor and her family but not to the extent that she would tolerate immorality from those closest to her. She is somewhat naive in that she had never been in an actual fight and doesn’t quite know how to survive on her own - her disguise is obvious, she can’t concoct convincing lies, and she trusts a bit too easily (hence the need for Ryam), but she’s unafraid to trek out on her own, if she has to.

Ryam, our hero, is a “foreigner” who roams throughout the empire after a disastrous military encounter leaves him on his own. His self-loathing through repeated references to how he was a “barbarian” and not a good person got a little repetitive after a while, and aside from his ability to fight, he didn’t have much going for him. He doesn’t seem to have clear goals or motivations, which made it hard to see why Ai Li was drawn to him until the author tells us that he listens to her and considers what she wants. I wish some more effort was made to make him more interesting, not just a gruff warrior who makes excuses about not being good enough for his love interest.

Supporting characters were more or less fine, playing the role they are meant to play. I really liked the kindness of Ai Li’s grandmother, Ryam’s commander (Adrian), and the former princess Miya. All of them seemed to genuinely care about the people around them, and it was wonderful to see them interact with and offer guidance to the protagonists, who were struggling with sorting out what they wanted.

I didn’t much care for our antagonist, a warlord named Li Tao. He’s somewhat of a boogeyman in that he doesn’t show up in person until the end of the book, making his looming threat somewhat toothless.

Other: I personally found the romance between Ai Li and Ryam to be up and down. While I did like that Ai Li felt that Ryam valued her voice and desires more than anyone else in her life (which Lin definitely should have leaned into more), I ultimately thought the foundation of their relationship was a little weak. From their first meeting, Ai Li and Ryam are physically attracted to one another, which is fine, but Ryam’s constant thinking of how he had to keep his masculine impulses in check was annoying. In addition to Ai Li deciding to trust a man she’s only just met (which seems foolish to me), the two kiss after knowing each other for one day, and only as a reward for Ryam winning a sparring contest. It felt too physical and because their relationship starts out this way, I had a hard time seeing what each character saw and wanted in the other, other than physical attraction. When they started to open up to one another, things got a little better, but the entire book takes place over something like a month, making their eventual union and declaration of love feel rushed. Moreover, even after things got a little more emotional, I still wanted more exploration of how the two enriched each other’s lives. There was a great foundation in that Ryam listened to Ai Li and took her desires (romantic or otherwise) seriously, but Ai Li’s role in making Ryam less self-loathing and more honorable wasn’t quite as interesting or empowering.

The repetitive nature of their budding relationship also made their romance hard to get excited about until the middle/end, when things got more complex. Ryam would constantly work on suppressing his sexual feelings, while Ai Li would talk about her family and her brothers. Then, the two would kiss or do something somewhat sexual, then back off while making excuses about how they could’t be together. Their interactions cycled through this script a few times, which ensured that their relationship didn’t progress as much as it followed a predictable pattern.

Recommendations: I would recommend this book if you’re interested in historical romance, the Tang Dynasty, political conflict, sword-wielding heroines, and romances not set in Europe.

[thepunisher]

Why I think Supergirl season 2 is better than season 1

There’s a discourse™ going on since this season started and while some are raising excellent points, other things being said make me think that a season 1 rewatch wouldn’t be a bad idea, since a lot of people seem to have forgotten what actually happened last year on the show.

Supergirl is by no means perfect. It has a lot of faults and it could definitely improve in many ways. That said, I do believe season 2 is actually doing better than season 1 in several regards:

In season 1 everyone seemed to suffer from the draco malfoy syndrome. What is that, you ask? Simple. Kara was at the center of the universe, and everyone’s lives revolved sorely around her. No one had any other purpose than being tied one way or another to her. They only existed to move around Kara and forward the plot. There’s only a couple of episodes who are an exception to that.

This season on the other hand, we’re experiencing the exact opposite. Now that the characters are established, each and everyone of them have their own personal arc that is completely separate from Kara’s. And I personally think that’s great and it’s an improvement. Yes, this is Supergirl and Kara is the protagonist. But nothing screams bi-dimensional characters more than having them all only revolve around one focal point. This year they still intersect in the middle, but everyone is moving forward on their own.

This season Alex is more than a sister who’s trying to prove her worth beyond that fact, Winn is more than the typical loser in love with his bff, Jimmy is more than someone who can’t decide which girl he loves. 

You may not like where some of these arcs are headed, which is totally fine, obviously, but how can you deny that having separate arcs at all is a good thing?

In season 1 we were reminded every two minutes of how Supergirl was not Superman.

I for one am really really happy that they stopped doing that. I liked that they wanted to emphasize that she was not his cousin and that being a woman made a lot of things different/harder, including hero-ing, but the constant reminder that this was a supergirl show was getting on my nerves. The first 4 episodes (if I remember correctly) were especially full of that. While not being there at all, superman was a huge shadow over Kara in season 1. I really love that despite Clark having appeared on the show, this time around he’s not so predominant in the narrative, and we get to enjoy Kara as she is, without being constantly reminded that a. she’s a woman, b. she’s not superman.

I’m also really happy that we’re getting to see more of Kara as a woman and what it means to be both hero and woman, than simply what it means to be supergirl.

People are complaining that this season is too focused on Kara’s love life/Kara’s potential love interest.

Uhm, excuse you? Are y’all suddenly collectively forgetting that the entire season 1 plot half revolved on a love triangle shoved down our throat? (Which is dc tv’s favourite troupe btw) Literally each episode was focused on whether Kara was going to do something about either Winn or Jimmy, or whether Jimmy was going to pick Kara or Lucy. Every.Single.One.Of.Them. (with the only exception being the episode in which Kara dated ms Grant’s son.)

So, last year it was fine but this year it’s.. not?

Winn’s purpose other than being the comic relief and the convenient IT genius that every DC show needs was to have unrequited feelings for Kara.

Jimmy’s purpose was to share some Superman related wisdom and pine over Kara or Lucy.

This season BOTH of them have a purpose that goes beyond Kara. Both of them have actual lives. Winn realized that he can be more than an IT guy and that he can be a hero in his own way, make a difference even when he’s afraid and doesn’t have the courage that all his friends seem to be showing. (Let’s talk about what big improvement it is for a character who said “You must be a lesbian, that’s why you don’t like me romantically!” back on his first appearance in ep1 s1.)

Jimmy’s arc is what I’m liking even more, cause sure, arguably it’s a little rushed (a lot of things are this season, including sanvers, but the number of episodes is limited and tbh I’ve seen worse on tv to complain) but it’s beautiful and it’s finally doing the character justice. He’s beyond just a love interest now, he has his own arc, he has found purpose in life beyond making up his mind about who he wants to date and he’s trying to leave a mark even without having super powers. He’s also no longer just a photographer, he’s a black man in a position of power and he’s learning what it’s like to stand his ground and be a leader. The only thing that would make this better would be more screentime.  (I would die if we had something similar over at the flash, where three seasons later Iris West is still only treated as Barry’s love interest and has no life nor purpose other than being Barry’s lover.)

When it comes to Alex, I do agree that her relationship with Maggie was a little rushed as well and we’re seeing a lot of their romance rather than Alex’s usual badass self we got used to last season. But the two things are not mutually exclusive and we still have a few episodes left to go in which Alex can be both (as she’s already shown). Also, as a queer person myself, I can’t help but being really happy with how Alex’s coming out story was handled and everyone’s reactions to it (including words like “you haven’t dated much lately.” “this is real, it’s not a phase.” “this is not cause I haven’t found the right man.”) 

Again, all these arcs may not be perfect, but I’m liking a lot how they’re taking these characters to the next level and towards different directions, rather than still have all of them only attached to Kara.

On karamel and Mon el in particular, I have a lot to say, especially cause a lot of people in the fandom have gone crazy over it, have started harassing fans and have forgotten the basic decency of tagging their hate. (Also, a lot of these people insulted Chris Wood appearance as a reason to hate on the character.... like, wow, a++ argument there buddy, now I’m definitely going to take your very serious argument seriously.)

I do agree that having Kara do a 180 when it comes to her relationship with Jimmy was really weird and poorly executed (especially since season 2 takes place the day after season 1.) That was bad writing on the authors part, especially since they really went overboard with the pining last year, so have her suddenly not being interested felt really odd. I did not ship Jimmy/Kara (I have a hard time liking ships that are presented as triangles and I really hate when a man makes two women suffer cause he can’t decide what the fuck he wants) but I can understand the shippers frustrations at that predicament and I understand that part of that anger is based on the fact that it seems like a black man has been replaced by a white one. What I don’t understand is the collective hate towards Mon el as a character rather than take offence with the authors, and the use of the word “abusive” when it comes to describing Mon el/Kara’s relationship. (People like to throw that word around, apparently.)

In what universe is that ship abusive or Mon el a manipulator?

I think the introduction of his character was actually very well constructed. It’s really telling that they decided to bring him in as he is in a season where they finally introduced Clark Kent. We have on one side the epitome of the perfect man and perfect hero by anyone’s standard. And on the other hand we have a seemingly dudebro who comes from a planet of fratboys and is adjusting to a life in which he's learning that he can be more than what he’s used to be cause he meets a woman.

I’ve seen a lot of discourse™ going around and people mad that Mon el seems to be interested in the hero-ing business only cause of Kara (as if there’s something wrong with that). If you look closely and if you look at the bigger picture, you’re going to notice how the whole season is build around “being a hero” and “doing the right thing” and why. Kara’s reasons are not M’gann’s, are not Winn’s, are not Jimmy’s, are not Mon el’s. They’re all trying in their own way and they all have different reasons on why they do what they do, did what they did. No two reasons are the same. And yet we do not question them when it comes to other characters. 

I especially like the comparison between M’gann and Mon el, cause they both come from people who are often described as “bad” (obviously for very different reasons) and the show is clearly trying to say that where you come from and who you’re supposed to be cause of that should not define you and what you can become. M’gann did that already back on Mars and J’onn accepted it after some reluctance and has seen past his prejudice. Mon el is getting there (and I think we’ll have more of that to see, since they’re clearly building up towards the big reveal of him being the prince of Daxam.)

I don’t really see what’s wrong with Mon el deciding he wants to be a hero cause he met a woman that showed him he can be more. I’ve seen a lot of complaining on how Kara is being “used to forwards a man’s growth” and I’m ???Jimmy and Winn are doing the exact same thing and I’m sorry people, but where do you actually live that you don’t get inspired to do/be better by the people that are in your lives? I mean, if that doesn’t happen to you, if you don’t have those kind of friends or significant others that just by their presence inspire you to be better, you should get out more and meet more people. Kara has inspired a LOT of people since season 1, same as Cat Grant and her cousin inspired her. 

The most beautiful relationships (and I don’t only mean this only romantically) are built on becoming better cause someone showed us that we can be more.

Also, again, this season shows the different reasons behind why being a hero and not everyone does it for the same reasons as Kara or Captain America. Are any other reasons any less valid?

That said, I really like criticizing the media that I consume, so I can really understand people doing the same. What I don’t get is why some people who ended up clearly hating the show are still watching it. Been there, done that, it’s pointless and only lead to bitterness. And just cause you don’t like a character or a ship, accusing a show of promoting abusive relationships (seriously?!) is beyond ridiculous when you present absurd facts at a base of your hate.  You’re perfectly entitled to hate whatever you want, but when you start spitting lies to justify your dislike and accusing fans of liking twisted things, that pisses me off.

If you’re no longer into where this show is going, you should maybe consider moving on. Or, you know, stop attacking people for still liking it. Or better yet, start tagging your wank, so we can all block it. 

Like what you like and hate what you hate, but leave people be, leave them free to enjoy what they want. You’re not better cause you criticize something that other people like.

[i-dream-of-fairytales]

Having realised that it’s been two months (!!!) since my last update I decided that its about time I posted a life update to explain my absence. One word can explain it all…

Dissertation.

Since May I have been buried in research and journals and surveys, all to help me complete a 15,000 word paper on crowdfunded publishing. A topic that I, thankfully, have been finding incredibly interesting. But I’m also thankfully that I can almost see the end coming, with 2,500 words left to write (final chapter AND conclusion, I’m an over writer apparently) and edits to complete.

But in the past few weeks I’ve also been preparing for my temporary bookshop job that starts next week, and finding a place to live so I can stay in Edinburgh for said job (flats are expensive, I’d been told but now I finally see, ahahaha *hysterical laughter*), and looking for publishing jobs or internships that will let me get my real dream job. It’s been a busy few months, and it also feels like this summer has been going on forever. I love University and my student flat, but I can tell it’s time to get back into the real world, but this time I’m not moving home and I have a MSc under my belt too!

Yet that doesn’t mean I haven’t been reading, because reading has actually been one of the only things that has truly let me relax and get lost in someone else’s worries for a while. I’ve still managed to read 10 books since May so I’m pretty pleased with myself.

The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden I’ve been waiting to read this book for ages, and thankfully it didn’t disappoint. It was atmospheric, intriguing and unique. Arden built the word so clearly and I was so immersed, though it took me a while to get into the story, once I finally did I loved it. Can’t wait to read the sequel, it just needs to come out in paperback first…

Mort by Terry Pratchett My friend bought me this book for my birthday, I’d never ventured into Terry Pratchett or the Discworld until now but I’m glad she recommended it to me. It was exactly what I needed at the time, fun and light but still so well-built and developed. It actually made me chuckle at points, which is rare in the books I read, and I realised that not all books have to have complex overly detailed books to create a whole new world. It was fun. Which is exactly what reading is supposed to be. I’ll definitely be reading more of the Discworld.

Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear by Elizabeth Gilbert

Around the same time I was also reading this non-fiction novel that the same friend recommended to me. I don’t read a lot of non-fiction (or any really) but this was a breeze to read. There were points that didn’t hit the write note with me, especially when it came to writing, yet I still found inspiring and soothing? That sounds like the wrong word but in a way my soul felt soothed at having read this. Especially at a point when my writing had gotten away from me.

Scythe by Neal Shusterman Another birthday present! One I’d requested, I’d heard so many good things that I wanted to know what it was all about. Although the beginning was slow, the pace and intrigued picked up towards the middle which it desperately needed. I enjoyed the different take on a futuristic world (I’ve read a lot of dystopia so some twisted utopia was a nice change). But I didn’t see what everyone has been raving over? Maybe that will change with the second book, which I will be reading because overall I did enjoy it.

The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon Another recommendation from my friend, though this one had been on my TBR list for quite some time. It wasn’t what I was expecting, it was slower paced, darker, and if I’m honest not as magical realism as I expected it to be. I figured out the mystery quite quickly and wasn’t that attached to the main character, I did however, love the character of his friend who’s name escapes me. It was a good book, but it didn’t blow me away.

The Sudden Appearance of Hope by Claire North

This was the biggest disappointment that I’ve had while reading in a long time. I didn’t even finish it I was so not into it. The concept had intrigued me for ages, a girl who is forgotten every time she’s out of view? What a novel concept with so much potential! And yet… it was slow and boring and nothing ever seemed to happen. Hope could’ve been such a sympathetic main character but she wasn’t, the plot didn’t revolve around her being forgotten, rather a commentary of the idea of being “perfect” and not one that interested me at all. I’m just thankful I picked it up in the library.

Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi After that I went back to good old fantasy, and this book was exactly what I needed. Interesting conflict, plot, characters, and world. And such a badass book with great and much needed representation. It was refreshing to read a fantasy novel based on a culture that has hardly been touched upon, and it worked so well. The only thing that brought it down for me was the romance. It was too quick a turn around and frankly a little unbelievable from both characters. However, it does seem to be setting something up for the next book so I’m willing to let it go because it was a great novel and a much needed read.

Assassin’s Apprentice by Robin Hobb A fantasy writer that I hadn’t read and felt I should. The world was, again, well-built and even though the plot was slow and often unclear, probably more along the lines of a bildungsroman than I expected, I liked the book. I enjoyed Fitz’s narrative and his unusual connect with animals (though – spoiler – I nearly threw my kindle in sea every time a dog died, it was too much Hobb, leave the dogs alone). It was a slow burning book and not the most amazing fantasy I’ve ever read, but extremely enjoyable and I probably will pick up the rest of the series but I’m not rushing and eager to collect them just yet.

The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender by Leslye Walton

Pretty sure I read this book in a day. I’ve tried to start it before but didn’t get past the few 20 pages, I think having that level of concentration dedicated to the novel was exactly what I need to get into the story. It was another book I’d heard a lot about, however, I didn’t think it as amazing as everyone else seemed to. The writing was beautiful and I thoroughly enjoyed all of the characters (except for that creep near the end, if you’ve read it you know who I mean). But it didn’t hit all the right notes with me.

 Legendary by Stephanie Garber

I love these covers. It was one of the reasons I picked up the first last year and I’m so glad they kept up the theme. I also really enjoy the story, purely engaging, and so unashamedly YA is something that I like to read every now and again. The plot is interesting and fun, the characters and so loud and bright but I like them anyway, and the world of Caraval is well thought out. I especially liked the further world building that Garber did in this novel with the Fates. I also enjoyed hearing from the sister I kinda disliked in the first book, though I think Scarlett kind of slipped a little in this novel. However, I eagerly wait the conclusion and hope the cover is just as gorgeous.

Currently Reading – The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson I’m not even half way through this novel and I love it so much. Sanderson is a master at fantasy world building and getting me to care about every narrator in his books. I’m so glad this is living up to the hype and I cannot wait to reach the end and start the second one.

Time Flies – A Life and Reading Update. Having realised that it's been two months (!!!) since my last update I decided that its about time I posted a life update to explain my absence.

[dreamsandgrains]

The Fold: A novel by Peter Clines - I’m Sold: A review by Me

“STEP INTO THE FOLD.

IT’S PERFECTLY SAFE,”

screams the blurb on the cover of The Fold. If that wasn’t enough of a hint for you, here’s a spoiler: NO. THE FOLD IS NOT REALLY ALL THAT SAFE.

I know, I know, it came as a bit of a shock to me as well.

If you haven’t read the book, here’s what you need to know: what starts out as promising science fiction, gradually devolves into nonsensical “horror”. The transition is gradual until it isn’t. It suddenly goes Lovecraftian (at least, that’s what people seem to call it) full-tilt with no warning. That said, the story itself is a breeze. Incredibly short chapters make it a rapid read, and I finished this book the fastest I’ve finished any book in quite some time. If you’re looking for an easy read that keeps you interested with vague science-words-fiction-terms, give it a shot, you will enjoy it.

“We take over six hundred pages of math and force-feed it to the universe through an electromagnetic funnel. We tell the universe ‘I don’t care what you think. I’m lifting my foot here and putting it down there.’ ”

“And the universe doesn’t object?”

Arthur finished off his whiskey. “Not so far.”

That’s an actual quote from the book.

As someone who’s read four other books by Peter Clines, I can pretentiously say with conviction that his writing in The Fold is a definite step-up. Looking past his egregious use of double contractions like wouldn’t’ve and his weird obsession with the phrase ‘baker’s dozen’ - though both of which made but a single appearance each in this book, if I’m not wrong - I thoroughly enjoyed how well-paced the book was. The earlier chapters slowly build momentum, building anticipation, making you desperately want to know how things work. And when finally you do, it’s kind of a let-down.

I air-quoted nonsensical “horror” because with so much of cinema and literature touting world-ending crises and heroes rising against odds, I’ve been desensitised to any and all forms of disaster. I just did not feel invested enough to care or be horrified that the world might be ending. And in this book, so many others indeed do end. And that just dials up the numbness to said endings of said worlds.

Mild spoilers follow.

Let me elaborate. A bunch of scientists make something they call the Albuquerque Door that lets people travel great distances in the blink of an eye. But the hero later discovers that each time a person uses the door, they essentially enter a different reality and displace their selves from that new reality into ours. Let’s call ours the base reality, because ours is the most important reality and everything revolves around us. But the story goes on to say that the scientists who have stepped through the fold have been replaced each time with their alternate selves from other similar realities. Now this is an incredible concept and I love it! And I absolutely love the foreshadowing -

“Half the time I feel like I’m surrounded by strangers.”

But we learn that many of these realities have been destroyed utterly. Meaning the OG characters from base reality could have at some point travelled to these realities, sent their selves from there to base reality and then died there with that reality. When there are infinite such realities, why does anything matter? Nothing we ever achieve can ever mean anything and everything is pointless. So why bother? Unless Clines meant all of it as a clever metaphor for our own existence, in which case, wow, that took a depressing turn.

Spoilers end. For now.

As with his other series Ex-Heroes, Clines relies quite a bit on pop-culture references to evoke a sense of connection in readers. Now I don’t strictly have a problem with this, but I hold the snobbish opinion that any story should be able to stand on its own, without having to lean on other, better works for people to be able to like it. But damn it, I’d be lying if I said I didn’t sit there grinning like an idiot at that reference to Portal. And The Fold goes on to redeem itself further. Popular culture plays a crucial role in the characters figuring out information vital to the plot. So as much as I want to write it off as a crutch, I can’t help but appreciate how well pop-culture is used naturally, to keep the narrative consistent.

If you like puzzling things out, then boy, are you in for a treat. Everything, and I mean every last thing in the book is a Chekhov’s gun. Clines has assembled an intricate jigsaw where hints hang directly in front of you waiting for you to make the connection; from pets to infestations, nothing exists without purpose.

I wouldn’t necessarily call any of it complex, but it definitely is rewarding to piece things together and go ‘Ahhh!’ every now and then.

The characters that populate the many worlds of The Fold left me rather ambivalent. One description of the book contains the sentence:

“A cunningly inventive mystery featuring a hero worthy of Sherlock Holmes”

Hmm. I wonder why that is. Could it be because the protagonist’s nickname is Mike, as in Mycroft Holmes? Or because the last section of the book is legit, titled “Sherlock”? Nah, that seems unlikely. Mike feels very much like a professionally written mumbo-jumbo (I mean, sci-fi), fan fiction version of Sherlock Holmes. He’s got a killer IQ and an eidetic memory that let him visualise 3D models of places and superimpose them on the real world. He can replay any movie he’s seen in his mind, at any speed he chooses. He can make detailed mind-spreadsheets, learn C++ in a couple of hours, read really fast, find his way around in the dark with nothing but his memory, and annoy you by remembering everything and always being right. He can also play back memories frame-by-frame. Did someone forget to tell him that real-life motion doesn’t work like a video’s frame rate? Like I said, Sherlock fan-fic.

Now, Mike is not just a piece of intellectual meat. He has a love interest. Because, why not? That’s what the end of the world was missing. To Clines’ credit, I didn’t cringe into non-existence reading the way he writes sex. But the “romance” happens immediately like the flip of a switch (not at first sight, which I might have been fine with. No sir, this happens well into the book, after the two have so far been at what some might call loggerheads), and I honestly don’t think it mattered in any way to the story - except in letting Clines sneak in a couple of lines of horny dialogue.

The author’s whimsy extends further than just the romance, where characters have intense reactions to the realisation that they’re from a different reality when Clines pleases, and silently resign themselves to their fates when Clines doesn’t.

But it stands that things are happening too fast to notice these little inconsistencies. The bottom line is, despite its flaws, it’s a fun ride.

I didn’t know that The Fold was an extension of the universe the author had started building in his earlier book 14, until after I finished reading this one. And that, put the ending in perspective for me. It had the smell of a TV show that’s not sure if it’d be returning for another season and ties up enough ends that it’s not a cliffhanger and you get closure, but still makes sure to set something even larger up, piquing your interest, so that, should it be renewed, it can coast on its success.

[mononohke-archive]

Anime Roundup - Winter 2017 [Spoilers]

As always, this season flew by despite how disappointing it was (for anime that started airing during it, not leftovers from Fall 2016). Well, maybe it was also because near the end I started playing video games and fell behind on my normal watching schedule. Either way, it didn’t feel like a whole 3 months. I’m a little late, as usual, and I didn’t write as much this time around. (Chalk it up to laziness and distraction by the aforementioned video games.)

Overall: I think this season qualifies as the worst I’ve seen yet. So many disappointments but only one or two highs.

Featured Anime: Ao no Exorcist S2, Gintama., Rakugo Shinjuu S2, 3-gatsu no Lion, ACCA, All Out!!, ClassicaLoid, Nanbaka + S2, Onihei, Trickster

Total: 10 | Average Score: 6.8 | Word Count: 4,581

~ (DIRECT) SEQUELS ~

Ao No Exorcist: Kyoto Impure King Arc [5/10]

Let me be blunt, the only thing I actually give a crap about in Ao no Exorcist is Yukio. Specifically, Yukio as a character and his brother complex for Rin. That is really what carried me through the first season of AnE and made me feel like it deserved more than a 5. In season one, the whole dynamic between them, Yukio’s complicated feelings for Rin, and their rivalry was the main theme of a significant part of the show. But in this season and arc, Yukio is barely there at all. The shift focuses more to Suguro, his family, and the Impure King. While I don’t dislike Suguro (Nakai Kazuya being his voice helps), I really don’t care enough to watch a whole cour about him and his family. There’s a lot of Rin too, of course, but he’s the main character and that’s obviously unavoidable. 

Well, at least there a little bit of Yukio, however. He’s there for a few episodes and there’s like half an episode dedicated to his and Rin’s relationship, but that’s a pittance compared to the last season. For those reasons, AnE has dropped one point and just went into boring/average territory. If Yukio is a major part of next season or some future season, the score will go up to 6 again, but this one will stay at 5.

To give some credit though, I’m really grateful that they brought back all the original cast for this long awaited sequel. Unlike D.Gray-man last year, I never felt like something was wrong because all the voice actors and art style were different. It is unfortunate that they couldn’t get Keiji Fujiwara to reprise his role as Rin and Yukio’s father, but still 99% of the cast is the same.

Gintama. [8/10]

It is with a heavy heart that I have to give a title in the Gintama series less than a 10 (only applies to the main show and not movies/specials/OVAs). Unfortunately, the recent change in Gintama’s pace is tiring and got boring rather quickly. This problem was beginning to show in the previous season, but at least that had enough episodes and arcs to have more change. 

This season honestly didn’t have a bad start... it was really great seeing the Joui4 together again especially Sakamoto (since he appearances are normally so limited) but then it went into Kamui and Umibozu’s backstory arc. To be clear, I like Umibozu, don’t care about Kamui, and love Kagura, but this whole arc was mostly about Kamui, Umibozu, and Kouka (Kagura and Kamui’s dead mother). Kagura herself felt like an afterthought in this arc. This was more about explaining Kamui’s issues with his dad and how Umibozu met Kouka. 

Now, aside from my general disinterest in Kamui, the problem is not really with the backstory itself. It’s the fact that Gintama had turned into a battle shounen. I really dislike the pacing in battle shounens, especially if they are done badly *coughsNanbakacoughs*, and the worst part is that Gintama normally does these bits right in previous drama arcs. In this one though, it was boring... maybe not unbearable, but I found myself tuning out a lot more than I would watching Gintama - y’know, one of my all time favorite anime. 

Personally, I think the comedy in Gintama has always been stronger than the drama. The drama, when done in arcs between a lot of comedy, is really when it’s at its best because that is when the show brings a necessary change of pace and adds more depth to the characters. When it’s just one drama arc after the other, the battle shounen portions tend to take over. Plus, I just really miss the humor. It always gelled with me and that’s why I loved the show so much from the beginning. I miss laughing my ass off every episode, but in season I only chuckled a few times.

There is one silver lining though and that is Utsuro, who is becoming more and more interesting. While it is kind of cliche that he came back from the dead and turned out to be immortal, I think the way it’s presented is really good, and I can’t wait to see more of him. The last episode giving his backstory definitely pulled me in for the next season. I just hope it lightens up a little more because the comedy is where Gintama always shined the best.

Shouwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu: Descending Stories [9/10]

This show... how am I supposed to talk about it? I want to do a proper review that does it justice, but obviously that review would be spoiler free. In this post though, I think I’ll just quickly summarize my overall feelings.

First, let me say that Rakugo has totally met my expectations in S2. It expanded on the story pretty much just as perfectly as it needed to. There was one little thing that ruined it just a teeny bit near the end, but honestly it was otherwise masterful. For me to articulate exactly how I feel, I really need to rewatch both seasons. Sorry, I’m gonna skip actually putting effort into this lol, but I will try my best to get out a proper review on MAL later. Maybe one day I’ll even attempt an analysis, but that’s far off.

~ INDIRECT SEQUELS  & NON-SEQUELS~

3-gatsu no Lion [9/10]

3-gatsu no Lion is easily one of the best and most emotional anime that I’ve seen recently. I’m actually surprised that it is a Shaft production (most famous for the Monogatari series and Madoka Magica), but it has Shaft all over it with Akiyuki Shinbo at the helm. I know some people have mixed or negative feelings on his style of direction, but I like it in all the other Shaft shows I watched and I especially like it here. It’s the first time I’ve seen Shaft do an anime like 3-gatsu, which has no fanservice, no harem (elements), no strong humor, nor any fantasy or supernatural elements.

In my opinion, they did an excellent job. If 3-gatsu was not presented in the way it is, it might not have been as interesting as it is. It would’ve been so easy to make this a dry and boring adaptation, but Shaft brings it to life with such incredible bold, imagery. And it pulls off mood whiplash (sudden mood changes) a lot better than most anime I’ve seen. Normally, I think they clash with the overall tone, but when 3-gatsu does it, it feels like an exaggerated version of what happens in real life, where tone does not stay consistent between moments.

Then there’s Rei, the main character. He really skirts the line between being relatable or not. On the one hand, he is a Shogi genius and makes his own living at age 17. On the other hand, he has a complicated past, depression, and is a very down to earth and nice person. The whole series really rests on Rei’s shoulders, as he is the narrator and everything revolves around him. But I think he’s excellent written and relatable despite being essentially a child prodigy. 

Speaking of the shogi, I was also worried that it would be hard to understand the series because I don’t know shogi very well. Thankfully, that’s not the case. While there is a significant amount of focus on the shogi, the real focus on the characters. I’m sure for people who are familiar with shogi, it gives an extra layer to the narrative, but even for those who aren’t, it’s not so focused on the games that there’s nothing left. At least shogi has similarities to chess, which most westerners have a passing knowledge of. Still, even if you know fuck all about shogi and chess, I think the great depth of characters and the wonderful visuals carry the show and make it incredibly watchable.

ACCA: 13-ku Kansatsu-ka [7/10]

I... liked ACCA. Don’t love it, but liked it well enough. It has a uniqueness to it that you don’t see often in anime. For example the cast are all adults and most of them are government bureaucrats, the plot revolves around a conspiracy, and the anime is fairly slow paced and is very light on action. More than half the series is spent on world-building, with very little romance or other cliches. I could probably go on.

The color palette and art style is also a highlight with lots of bright, pastel colors. ACCA is just a neat little package of an anime that I appreciated watching for being something a little different. Have to say though, I’m not sure how much this will stick to me in the long run. Some of the world, maybe, and definitely the art style/colors, but not really the characters or plot.

All Out!! [6/10]

What initially drew me to All Out!! is a) rugby, never seen that sport before in an anime and b) incredible diversity in body types with a very wide variation in height, muscularity (although most are muscular guys), and weight (never seen so many chubby guys in an anime). So, while All Out!! does have some things that set it apart, unfortunately in literally every other way, it’s pretty much exactly the same as other sports anime. The protagonist is, OF COURSE, a newbie who joins the sport for the first time as a high school freshman. He’s overly energetic and most of the rest of the team thinks he’s annoying, but he’s super motivated and improves at an incredible rate. And he has another freshman friend who is a lot more experienced and naturally talented at the sport who serves a foil (especially since they have opposite personalities). The captain is an extremely motivated guy who’s tough on his team, but he’s also incredibly protective of them ie. team dad, and so on. The cliches just don’t stop...

That doesn’t mean AO is unenjoyable, just that the unique elements in the beginning wore off rather quickly and I was left with another run-of-the-mill sports anime (especially since this show is 25 episodes and not 12). My ratings for sports anime thus far have worked on a different scale than most other anime simply because sports is such an unusual genre with its own strict conventions that I have no choice but to rate them compared only to others in the genre. That means if sports anime were judged relative to the rest of anime I’ve seen, they would be rated lower (by between .5-1 points) because 95% of them have the exact same plot and many of the exact same characters. 

I mention this because as I’ve watched more and more sports anime, my standards have steadily been getting higher and are finally starting to match the rest of my rating scale. If this was one of the first sports anime I ever watched, it would easily be an 8/10. Now, as the dozenth sports anime I’ve seen, it’s only a 6/10. I am finally getting really tired of the old sports anime cliches and want more unique experiences. That’s why I praised Baby Steps so much for being different when I recently saw it. Looking back, I may have to re-rate some of the other sports anime I’ve seen, especially more recently like Days of the Summer/Fall seasons last year.

So, do I regret watching All Out!!? No, it has some good and fun stuff in there. Will I watch if there’s another season of it? Probably (even though I don’t necessarily want to) because I only avoid sequels if I give the first series a 5/10 or less... even then sometimes I’ll keep watching for the sake of keeping up (fcking K). Would I recommend AO in the end? Nah, unless you’re really interested in rugby.

ClassicaLoid [8/10]

I... feel almost ashamed to give this show such a high rating. Looking at MAL, my score is a whole 1.53 points higher than the standard deviation, and one of the most incongruous scores I’ve ever given - in the positive direction. In the negative direction, I happen to have some highly unpopular opinions on anime like Erased, Sword Art Online, and Mirai Nikki. 

For a long while, I just couldn’t decide on a score. Normally, I know pretty early on what score I’m going to give an anime, give or take a point in either direction (or two if the anime pulls something towards the end). By the end of a show’s airing, I usually pretty much know exactly what I want to give it. (This doesn’t apply so much to my precise ratings, but rather the broad score I give on MAL.)

For ClassicaLoid, I didn’t know whether I wanted to give this show a “guilty pleasure, I know this show is bad but I enjoyed it a lot” 6/10 rating, a “fuck it, because I loved this show that much 8/10 rating”, or a 7/10 as the balanced alternative. As you can see, I ultimately decided on an 8 (more specifically a low 8, but an 8 nonetheless) in the end. Yes, I really do love this show, and I did find it just that enjoyable and hilarious. It’s one of the funniest comedies I’ve seen recently and definitely my favorite comedy of 2016 (over the likes of Sakamoto Desu Ga? and Handa-kun).

The thing about ClassicaLoid is that if I didn’t love the characters so much and find it funny, it would be a pretty bad show. It seems pretty polarizing because a lot of people think this show is stupid and hate it for that reason. In my opinion, it is stupid, but it has some self-awareness and never takes itself seriously. The other thing is the humor. If the humor does not gel with you, you will hate this show, and that’s also highly subjective and polarizing. I think the humor is spot on most of the time, with great comedic timing and gags. There’s also, I guess, the “gimmick” of the show which is arguably the whole point - the remixes of classical music in the vocaloid style. 

Tbh, I’m not at all familiar with vocaloids and even so, I found the remixes to be mostly average or even a bit cringeworthy. They were the weakest part for me, but that only applies to the songs themselves. The actual visuals that accompanied the almost once-an-episode sequences? They were not bad. Sometimes they were even funny or resulted in hilarious things (Schubert’s fish adventure comes to mind), but most of the time they were a pretty mindless distraction. 

One of the real strengths is the characters. I seriously either love the characters* or I like them. They bring life to the show with their varied personalities. It’s kind of amazing because many of them skirt the line between being one-note quirky archetypes and actually being kind of deep. My favorites include (in no particular order):

- Kanae, who is mostly the straight man character, but plays beautifully off the rest of the cast because she has to put up with so much shit, but has her own silly and selfish sides. (Also, she’s one terrible idol.)

- Schubert, definitely my favorite classicaloid of the bunch. I was kind of surprised because he was introduced a little later than the rest, but Schu is so genuine... so weird, yet so underappreciated in-universe that I think is the opposite irl. His unpopularity is what makes him popular in the first place because aside from being a catty bitch to Mozart (who deserves it, btw), he tries really hard to be a good person.

- Liszt, who is amazing, I love that she’s badass and reliable (the only one who pays rent) but also a sucker for love. And she’s basically a trans women, isn’t she? She’s not the only originally-male-irl classicaloid to be given a female body, but she’s the only one who completely embraces it. 

- Chopin, who in my opinion is a little underused, although that’s partially justified because he’s always hiding. He’s definitely the most relateable, being a shut-in who just on the computer all day playing games or watching stuff (sounds familiar), but he’s also blunt af and has such witty lines. 

- Beethoven, I initially had mixed feelings on him, but came to love him over time. See, he may be voiced by my favorite voice actor (Tomokazu Sugita), but at first all his jokes revolved around GYOZA!!! and being a gigantic fucking ham. It got old kind of fast, but thankfully he gets more jokes and depth over time. I especially love his dynamic with Kanae and Schubert.

*The sole exception is Mozart. Here is where I rant about Mozart because thaT FUCKING PUNK BITCH IS THE WORST, AND IT SUCKS THAT HE’S A MAIN CHARACTER WHO GETS SO MUCH SCREEN TIME AND EPISODES DEDICATED TO HIM. ... Okay, I’m gonna calm down. I’ll stop shouting now and explain why I hate this pos. Here we go: He. Is. Not. Funny. Or. Likable. In fact, the only one who is not funny or likable. He’s always annoying, unhelpful, sexually harassing Kanae, and genuinely a terrible person except when it benefits him. Actually, the problem is not even that he’s terrible, but rather that he’s terrible and gets away with it. 

Compare him to someone like Sousuke, who’s a little similar in some ways, except... hey, get this, there are consequences (funny consequences) when he’s being a douche. Sousuke, along with Schubert, are the butt monkeys of the ensemble. Sousuke is even referred to as “tool” by Liszt and mostly everyone else. If Mozart was also a butt monkey, he would be a lot more tolerable, except he’s not. Mozart behaves like an annoying dick 98% of the time and the anime has the fucking audacity to try and make him sympathetic. 

I also have to bring up his voice actor, Yuki Kaji, who is easily my least favorite voice actor, so maybe I do have some inherent bias against him. See, if Mozart were played by someone who’s not annoying as shit, then maybe he would’ve been more likable, but Yuki Kaji has the range of a triangle (he’s one-note). Compare him to Beethoven, who could easily be so fucking obnoxious, except he’s played by the exceptionally talented and charismatic Tomokazu Sugita. /sighs. Well, I think I’m done ranting now.

Finally, I want to cover the jokes. It’s true, at first they appear to be of the very “lol random xD” type humor, but I think they are deceptively well constructed. There were many episodes where I was laughing out loud and some episodes where I spent the entire time laughing my ass off (again, I bring up the Schubert fish incident). With a few exceptions, I don’t think the humor or gags ever got old because the anime keeps doing more and more with the characters, throwing them into crazy situations. The absurdity of it all is hilarious and the likableness of most of the characters supports it. 

I’m probably one of 10 people in the west who is very excited and happy that there’s a season 2. Only two more seasons left until it’s back :D.

Nanbaka [6/10] / Season 2 [4/10]

I’m put in kind of an awkward position by this show... At first, it was going to be published with the Fall 2016 Roundup until I realized that there was going to be a second season. So then I delayed it for Winter 2017 except the quality of the show has gone down significantly between the first and second season. I wrote most of my thoughts for the first season already, so I’m just gonna talk about season one first by itself and then compare it to season two. Here are my thoughts on S1:

At first glance, yes, the character designs are incredibly silly… an anime podcast I listen to described them as “deviantart ocs”, (which is not too inaccurate), and everything sparkles like a shoujo manga for some mysterious reason. But aside from the strange design choices, the humor was pretty solid and characters are pretty likable. Not just the main 4 characters, but Hajime (my favorite) and the other prison wardens, and their fellow prisoners all have a charm to them.

The first half of the show is pretty damn funny, definitely a solid 7/10, but then the New Years competition arc starts and the pacing screeches to a halt. There are four whole episodes dedicated to this arc and they actually introduce a plot, drama, and some intense action near the end. It comes out of nowhere. The problems don’t stop there, unfortunately. I can forgive the terrible pacing somewhat if they kept up the laughs, but that’s not what happened. Instead, the genre switches and suddenly becomes a drama with a whole conspiracy plot about some of the main characters. Insofar, the only comedy anime I’ve seen pull off dramatic arcs is Gintama (but as I’ve said even that gets tiring after a while). Nanbaka is simply not as well-written as Gintama in either way, and the actual “plot” was a total let down compared to the humor which I genuinely liked.

This plot continues for another few episodes and it takes a little while to get back to the laughs. Humor and characters are the only thing this anime kind of nails. When the author attempts drama, it turns into another generic shounen anime. What a shame. If this anime stuck to being a pure comedy, I definitely would’ve rated it higher.

Ohhhhh boy, now onto season two. My worst fears for the anime basically happened. Imagine the New Years Competition arc I just complained about. Now, slow down the pacing another 500%, take out all the humor from the first season, and chuck in some boring ass cliche shounen crap. That is what S2 is in its entirety. It’s like they sucked out all the fun and hilarity of the first season just to “advance” the plot. I put advance in quotes because the pacing is seriously glacial. It rotates between plot exposition/backstory and “action” comparable to a Naruto filler arc for the entire run time. 

For example, my favorite character Hajime gets locked in a jail cell early on. Then some of the jail mates (including Jyugo, the main character) decide to break him out a little while later in the show. Guess when they reach Hajime? If you guessed the very last episode, you’d be correct! Inbetween is just pointless, boring fight after pointless, boring fight and fucking endless exposition! Either the character talks for minutes on end about their powers or the strategy of their enemies or about some thing in the past or there’s a flashback/backstory explaining the characters (by the way, a whole bunch of new characters are introduced except without the humor, they’re all shit) or the plot, it’s just UGH. 

Halfway through, I came to dread Nanbaka. Most of the time, I would put on the show and zone out as much as possible, although in reality, I spent a lot of time bitterly remembering how funny the first season is and how it actually had characters I liked in them doing funny shit and being likable. If the first season was a lot of fun but was bogged down by the action/drama, then the second season is the bog. Watching it is liking wading through a swamp about waist high. It won’t kill you and it’s doable, but it’s unpleasant, tedious, and you rather wished you just walked around it. 

If you really want to enjoy the show, just watch season one. Even then I only recommend the first half and the last couple of episodes. AVOID SEASON TWO AT ALL COSTS. I am certain there’s going to be a season three later this year or next year, but hopefully I’ll resist the temptation to watch it just because I watched the first two seasons.

God, it makes so angry how this show could’ve been a fairly pleasant humorous affair but ruins it completely and chucks it in the fucking garbage disposal. Way to waste your potential, Nanbaka.

Onihei [6/10]

Onihei is... unremarkable, but not a hard watch either. It’s just... alright? Very very middle of the road, but I can kind of appreciate that because it didn’t require much effort on me to watch, and I could just enjoy it without thinking too much about it. It helps that I’m already into samurai, but I admit I was hoping for more initially. Once I accepted that it was just going to be a simple collection of samurai/pre-modern japanese stories, then I began to enjoy it more. 

My biggest complaint is that there were too many episodes not focused on Heizo (aka Onihei, the main character). Heizo really was the best part of the show, and I liked it most when they focused on him and his backstory, but about a quarter of the show is about other characters that I just didn’t really care for aside from two or three of them. It’s fine that this show is mostly episodic, but because it frequently shifts focus, it is quite inconsistent because some episodes are better than others.

There’s also the fact the show looks very cheaply made, especially in those creepy ass CGI people in background shots. It has almost a B-movie feel, but not as much of the B-movie charm as I’d like. Still, it’s not really bad at all. It’s a good thing I like historical anime and that the main character is great because that is what pushes it up from a 5 to a solid 6. 

Trickster [5/10]

First, let me just say that Trickster baited me - and baited me successfully with the promise of attractive boys and homoerotic subtext. At least it delivered and pretty much met my expectations 100%, but unfortunately, it did not surprise me by being better than I thought it would be. It’s kind of a pity because Trickster actually has pretty good production values, but it falters in more important places: the characters and plot. Both of those elements are pretty clumsily handled. If not that, then they feel cliche, like I’ve already seen [x type] character and [y] trope countless times.

The characters in particular I feel like could’ve made up for the plot, but the anime chooses to focus on the least interesting ones (yes, I know this is a book adaptation). The main character, Kobayashi, is unlikable from the start and even when you unlock his tragic backstory late in the anime, it feels too little too late and it’s another overused trope. Hanasaki, the character who probably gets the most screen time is... actually alright. He’s annoying at first too, but his character development is not handled that badly either. The best characters are probably Inoue and Akechi; the former barely gets any attention at all, and the latter’s subplot is so fragmented by the rest of the characters and their own plots that it gets lost.

In fact, what I just said may just sum up the biggest problem I have with this anime. The whole thing feels fractured, like the writer wanted to give all the main characters (except poor Inoue) their dues, but didn’t know how to tie their separate plots together elegantly or didn’t know how to give all of them development/depth in one flowing plot. With tighter focus, I’m sure it would’ve turned out better, but the cliches and their rather bland execution still drag it all down.

The production values do deserve some praise though. The voice acting is great as always and the animation is overall good, but the music and direction had some standout moments that really elevated certain parts of the show. Unfortunately, the overall mediocreness of Trickster put it at a 5/10.