#like wtf happened mappa

[akikos-tribble-army]

NOOOOOOO.

So, the worst case has happened. MAPPA canceled YOI: ICE ADOLESCENCE.

Funfact: YOI made MAPPA big. Cancelling the movie of the anime that got them where they're now... Wonder what went on behind the scenes and how much of the movie is done?

[ai-megurine]

Okay so unless JJK is meant to be a tragedy, I have absolutely no idea how they're supposed to win against full-power!Sukuna. Unless Yūta somehow pulls the Six Eyes from his ass because he's Gojo's relative and because of Rika's ability to copy stuff? JJK's original OS had Yūta as the main character so I guess it could happen. Still, it feels lazy and forced. Like, why bother with the Sukuna vs Gojo fight and the "Gojo wins" statement?

Someone said that Yūta, Yūji, etc. might be trying to save Gojo right now and that's why they're not with Thunder guy. If that's the case, it would be great but even if Gojo survives, I don't see him fighting again simply because of how exhausted he'll be. Which means Yūta, Yūji and Maki will have to go against Sukuna once Thunder guy dies (unless Thunder wins but if that's the case I'm burning my merch).

And like... I get Gege wants to end his manga and doesn't like Gojo (like, why did you create him then? You're in charge of the plot my dude) but this is so fucking underwhelming.

Sukuna's backstory is non-existent and we're reaching the final fight, meaning he has nothing but charisma (aka Mappa and his VA doing god's work) and Yūji, the main character, is doing fuck all and doesn't even have a curse technique. He's sympathetic enough that I don't exactly need more and my boy needs to rest, but still.

Uraume is a complete enigma who has no bearing on the plot and even less explanations, and Kenjaku is apparently taking a holiday because wtf is he doing? Yuzu-something's plot relevance was killing Megumi's spirits in the dumbest arc I've read in a while. The bad guys in general are all so underwhelming.

Jogo and Mahito were much better villains. Mahito's power and cruelty were terrifying, the way he's an amalgamation of humans' hatred for/fear of each other was great. Like, I didn't need backstories for them because I know who they were and what they wanted. But we don't know what Sukuna and Kenjaku want, we don't know anything about them. It's... it's bad.

Also why did Sukuna wait to be against Thunder guy something to use his original form and Yuzu-something's gift? Is he scared of this guy whose name I can't remember to save my life but wasn't afraid of Gojo who dominated 99% of the fight? Like, what?

[crehador]

brother crab's winter 2024 parting thoughts: bucchigiri?!

basically "they had us (me and my attention and affection) in the first half ngl" the anime

so this fell off enough to no longer be an aots contender for me, HOWEVER... despite the gripes i have with it i still enjoyed it immensely (especially the first half)

what it boils down to is imo it was too ambitious for a 1-cour show. i distinctly remember thinking, when the arc shift happened mid-season, like "wow! it's really ambitious for them to be doing basically two distinct arcs in a 1-cour show? but it's been great so far so it'll be fine!" reader it was not fine

i think if it had had at least 20 episodes they could have made something work, but it feels oddly disjointed. like the ending does feel like it matches the beginning, but the rest of the first half doesn't

at the very start, it absolutely felt to me like the series was heading towards senya in arajin vs ichiya in matakara. and that is where the series did lead us! however the entire first arc felt tonally like a different show entirely, and that was the best and most fun part of the series to me

it almost feels like they set out with this plan, this beginning and this end, but then had SO MUCH FUN writing the first half (because it was so much fun to watch! you could feel the joy in the creation of it too!) that they completely lost sight of their intended ending. then just like. hit the panic button and tried really awkwardly to swerve back on track, which didn't really work for me

(not staying that is what happened, of course, just what it felt like)

anyway the animation at least was consistently on point, especially in the last episode. no complaints about that whatsoever, if mappa had wanted to call this a 25th anniversary project they could have and even with the story issues it has a production quality that they could be proud of (BONES I'M STILL... WTF anyway)

overall an enjoyable watch to me still, i love all the beautifully deranged shitlords in here green guy my beloved arajin my beloved akutaro my beloved MAHOROOOOOOOOO MY BELOVED

tl;dr still fun for me but (again, for me) the first half was way more fun than the second

[ly0nstea]

My thoughts on the final special, skip to the end if you just want the review and not my hilarious commentary as i watched

The ringing in armins ears was a very nice touch

Armoured titan continues to do all the heavy lifting

Uh ohhhh

Adding scenes with onyankopon at the fort was nice

Getting to see more of the nine was really nice

Pieck solos fr

Pieck getting got by the tybur warhammer and reiner by porco and marcel is kinda hilarious

Connie solos frrr

MIKASA JUST FUCKING RAPID FIRE 3 THUNDERSPEARS WTF

Dude ymir HATES reiner bringing up his whole past

WHAT REINER DOESNT GET EATEN IN THE MANGA WHAT THE FUCK

Nvm he does i just checked i forgot

HOW IS REINER SO FUCKING INVINCIBLE

Jean forgiving reiner L take jean

SNAKE TITAN

BOOOOO GABI THROW HER OFF

Why is falcos titan green

LETS GOO ANNIE

"Where's Arm- i mean, Pieck" ARUANI ARE SO WINNINGGGGGG

Booooo dont kill eren let him win

The eldians should kill all the marleyans fuck them shoot their asses

THEY HAVE LIGHTNING AND FUCKING BOWS AND ARROWS?????

AND FUCKING SWORDA???? AND AXES

Pieck solos again

PIECK KEEPS SOLOING

Jean does not solo bro please

Mikasa not being able to fuckung speak lmaooo

Fucking gabi tryna shoot the titans dumbass tell her ass levi

Cringe Levi L take stomp them all out he doesnt regret his choice bcuz hr knows erwin wpuldve done the based thing and wiped out humanity outside the walls

Slingshot mikasa we stan

Oopsie

Annie doing parkour off the spine of the titan shes the real mvp

Armin having an out of body experience

Damn armin hates himself, based tbh hes a lil bitch

Fucl yea all thosw bitches and the giraffes getting trampled

YO COLLOSSALS ON THE LAVA THATS SO SICK

Millenia of history getting wiped out only paradis deserves to stand 💪💪💪💪

Zeke building his lil castle

Ey its the explanation

"Being alive means dying eventually" zeke youre not smart please stfu

Baby eren ❤️

Zeke and armin talking about the same thing but seeing entirely different things might genuinely be my favourite image in the entire series holy shit

AND SCYTHES

Bertie boys fighring for the love of his life bros so cucked

Ymir saving reiners life bros so cucked

Fucking gabi and her stupid rifle hate that bitch

Aruani stays winning

Krugers so cool bro

Why does zeke love being naked so much

Zekes always fucking up erens shit man

Cucktoldt is back

Zeke getting to reconcile with grisha was nice

Levi gettjng the fucking brawl sound affect for killimg zeke lmaook

Booooo why didnt the baby get thrown

Imagine being the last guy to fall off that cliff thatd suck ass

Jean finally did something

Reiner continues to fucking carry the entire plan by himself

If only armin used his nuke on more civilians </3 him getting held up was sick asf tho

Gabi got to live and her parents booooo kill them all

LET REINER FUCKING DIE HOLY SHIT

LETS GO ERENS ALIVE ABSOLUTE LEGEND

Boooo the eldians and marleyans are working together L bozos kill the marleyans every man woman and child

How did connie figure that out

Honestly id accepy jean and connie dying if it meant gabis bloodline being ended right now

That was such a nice send off for connie and jean im kine of mad its a fake out tbh

REINER CARRYING ONCE AGAIN

Mikasa stop getting fucking headaches and do your job holy shit

Uh oh cabin time

The why are you crying symmetry oo

Cabin erens a lil bitch

HES SO TALL

ROCK HIS SHIT EREN

Mikasas cut looks so good in this

HE TURNED ARMINS FACE TO RUBBLEEEE

Mikasas such a traitor

WHYD SHE CUT HIS HAIR

Mikasas a necrophiliac and ymirs a voyeur

Child armin looks so mich like a girl in mappas style

Whys he tryna make mikasa the mc in the last chapter 🤡🤡🤡

Eren killed his own mom what a madlad

Get rocked eren

Whys armins face like rhat

Its the "worst manga panel of all time"

A sea of blood thats beautiful

80% not enough it shouldve been 90% with only the 10% on paradis left

"Im sure the hell we went through has happened over and over" i actually dont think this has happened before armin

Gross hes holding hair and teeth

"It was at out feet but you were always looking at the distance" is a very nice allegory for freedom and drive

0/10 armin didnt kiss him as well

Still mad we dont get to see anyone elses converstions with eren, especially floch

Pieck is so unserious

MICHE AND PETRA ON SCREEN LETS GO 10/10 FINALE

gabi on screen 0/10 finale

"Give him a proper burial" his is ass does NOT deserve that

"Prove it" cant prove a negative dumbass this is why marley deserves to die theyre all dumbasses

Ymirs all grown up and is it too early to say—

Erehisu stans are so fucking fuming rn holy shit

JAEGERIST INSIGNIA IS SO FUXKING COOL SHIT

Nicoli on screen 0/10 finale

HITCH ON SCREEN 10/10 FINALE

Reiner please calm down for 2 seconds

ANNIE IN A SUIT SHES SO SMALL I LOVE HER

Levi on screen L YO HIS EYE THOO THATS SICK

Can gabi and falco please fuck off

Paradis looks so pretty

Mikasa never threw away the scarf smh

Love the idea that shiganshina becomes a fucking cyberpunk capital and not just a big city

Anyway all jokes aside, the ending still feels a bit inconsequential seeing that no one dies in the final battle, considering how the rest of the show was. Eren's still a coward and a pussy and his inability to act with decisiveness is the reason shiganshina (and presumably the rest of Paradis) is inevitably destroyed, it also proves the Jaegarists point that no matter what happens theyll never stop trying to wipe out eldians, even centuries after titans are wiped out. Eren lied to the people of Paradis and got them killed so like 8 people could live half decent lives cleaning up his mess, most hollow victory of all time. Over all its like a 7/10 ending, there isnt any other way it really could have ended comsidering the story. The new paradis emblem is so fucming cool tho holy shit. Get Rumbled Stay Humbled.

[unikittythings]

Jujutsu Kaisen season 2

Episode 12:

The video format grants way more gore (not really my vibe)

My boy!! Toge my beloved🫶🏻

Hi, Choso

The narrator explaining what happened but most of it is going straight over my head with the science talk

MAPPA really went for it when drawing Choso, he looks hot

It's crazy that we (manga readers) still don't know why people are getting fabricated memories

Oh nooo, girlies 😭

Episode 13:

Why did Gege write Mei Mei and Ui Ui like this 😑

Dagon, that's fucking disgusting

Ey the old man can be useful, hurray

Surprise entrance of my third boy

Maki is right, he is a showoff with his domain expension

Honestly Noabito should get a heart attack from Toji (Nanami probably too)

Episode 14:

Big miscalculation on your side Dagon

They really went for the crazy camera perspectives this season

Time for a father-son meeting

✌️Yep as traumatic as I remember

Nobody's getting a break here

You don't know what you're starting girlies

Effortless and unbothered

I'm being delusional in my simping for Sukuna, he's fucking scary😨

The episode 🔪💔, the ending 👬🧍🤳

Episode 15:

Yes, Megumi it's crazy what's going on and you don't even know everything

You're lucky you don't know that you're fighting your father Megumi, this would have caused even more daddy issues

Btw I need a fanfic rewrite where he is aware of their connection

Yeah guys I think you have a bigger problem than fighting each other 😬

I knew about mass destruction but seeing it animated, I ask myself how anyone survived Shibuya 😨

Dude the german voice actor has this air of playful sarcasm, that I haven't heard from others

The Sukuna vs Jogo fight felt way too short. What happened?

Episode 16:

"With this tressure I summon" (it's

Flashbacks all around

Yeah you're fucked Haruta

Come to save your favorite human, Sukuna?

How dare you casually snack on junk food 🙄

Thanks for showing me the people who will be dead in a minute 🙃. I didn't need a visual reminder

I didn't exactly know what I was looking at in the manga and I still don't know in the anime

"Jetzt kotz nicht, Bängel!" EXCUSE ME BITCH "DON'T VOMIT, DON'T VOMIT" WTF

🤏I was this close to start crying along with Yuji

Screw you Ending song

Couldn't have waited till next episode with showing us Nanami 😭

[twentyfivemiceinatrenchcoat]

236 and i have a love hate relationship. I refuse to read it but i know everything that happens 😭im just scared because if i read it in full i know ill sob like a baby but ill definitely read it before that season comes out

i hope the next time around Mappa takes their time with breaks and all :/ even if we only get an episode a month or the end product is still not 100% - i’d rather experience everything to its fullest potential

#sukugo is on par w stsg to me 😭 one of my favorite dynamics Ever

YES!!!! stsg lives in my head fr but sukugo… the way they are polar opposites yet also the closest people that can truly understand each other… lots to unravel and loads of potential there

#one thing abt akutami is he WILL not miss an opportunity to create the most homoerotic fight i’ve seen in my life 🙏🙏

i think i read a fic or a hc once (i forget who wrote it) where sukuna got off on fighting gojo and ari it was chefs kiss. perfection. i need to find it again. gege really cooked with that fight (still on a rollercoaster of emotions ab how gojo d*ed ; some days im completely behind it other days im like. wtf.)

#what if they turn sukuna vs gojo into a movie … i would Cry out of joy

jjk0 -esque… i can see the vision.. i just need that fight to be done justice thats all i beg for 😩😩

SOOOOO REAL OF YOU ANON i’m glad we agree on the sukugo dynamic they make me INSANE. the fact that gojo genuinely wanted to teach him about love…… that he wanted to reach out to him and save him from his isolation. goshhh they mean so much to me………. :(((

OOOOH AND AND AND i think i might know the fic you’re talking abt…. maybe not but this one fic on ao3 is what got me into sukugo and still one of my favorite jjk fics 🙏 the writing and characterization are so good….. i can’t find it anymore either though :’3 will try looking more later!!! pretty sure i have some screenshots of it somewhere…….

but yes pls take as much time as you need to prepare yourself before reading 236 ….. i genuinely sobbed. like actually. i couldn’t speak 😭😭 but it’s SUCH a wonderful chapter both art wise and dialogue wise….. i won’t survive seeing it animated i fear </3 (ALSO pls do yourself a favour and read the chapter on tcb because their translation is easily the best one 🙏)

AND HEAVY ON MAPPA’S PRODUCTION i’m begging them to give their employees a break next season….. i wouldn’t mind a monthly episode at all. just want them to be able to feel satisfied w their own hard work T_T !!

[worldwright]

Good evening !

Another day, another skipping classes for me, but like does anyone care at my college ? not really lol, officially im still hospitalized even if i show up at some classes (well, my classmates also don't care, even those i thought were close w/ me, the only one who cares enough is my main russian prof, but we don't have the time to unpack all of that)

Still writing that oneshot, I want this one out by next week. My partner is going to be with me for Halloween ! We'll probably just watch some 50yo anime and eat candies but hey, we both love that !

I want to be tomorrow now, for the next jjk episode -I can't wait to watch it ! (also, funny thing, even if I read the Shibuya arc and a bit more, I feel like I'm spoiled if I get a gif or smth for every new episode, like bitch you already know what will happen ! And I'm not even one who cares or not to be spoiled ! I already know some monster of spoilers and I was just like "okay I NEED to know what happened to have that kind of thing happening" and that's what keeps me on a story actually ! BUT NOT FOR THE ANIME SOMEHOW ???? BC WHAT THE FUCK WHY IS THE FANSERVICE SO GOOD ???? LET ME LICK THE BLOOD OF CHOSO FOR THE LOVE OF GOD I KNOW FOR SURE IT'S AMBROSIA JRLZALJTMLZJTGK)

Have a good morning !

oh literally literallyyyyyyyyy jfc mappa is feeding us WELL this season. nanami choso gojo yuki nobara TOJI?????? dying

I THOUGHT THAT SAID "EATING CANDLES" FOR A SECOND LMAO

also super exciting about the fic!!! hehehe :3

I impulsively started making a cabinet yesterday. because I need a better way to store all my incense. and apparently the solution is to spend six hours with a craft knife destroying my fingers lol. it's gonna be cool though, it's a vertical tambour cabinet with a bunch of small slots for different scents of incense and a little shelf on top for a lighter and the incense tray. I would have just bought one but apparently nobody actually stores incense like this???? what do they do then. wtf. anyway I see a problem I make a thing about it, obviously 😂😂

hope you enjoy your evening!!!

[madraleen]

Attack on Titan - Season 4 Part 2 A predictably long commentary because as much as I talk about AoT, it's never enough.

(full manga spoilers, including for the ending)

-okay! part 2! i feel uneasy, the further we get into post-time skip stuff, the more painful it ge- AAAND we open with levi's cut-off fingers. great.

-they're nailing the silences and the pauses, they give things time to breathe.

-wtf, that op??? omg?? mappa?? i cry??

-again, eren "didn't expect marley to risk an all-out attack." not omniscient.

-this "koi yo, reiner" lives rent-free in my head

-reiner to eren: "nobody needs to suffer anymore. *you* don't need to suffer anymore." oh reiner

-OH THE CHILDREN ARE IN PRISON, THESE WERE THE HIGH-PITCHED SCREAMS! RIGHT!

-armin just NAILED eren's entire plan and situation just like that, huh. i mean, he didn't realize how FAR he'd go with the rumbling, but all else is spot-on.

-the end titles??? mappa, i cry???

-did armin suspect a full rumbling?? with the sea flashback?? did i completely underestimate armin post-time skip - I GOT OVERWHELMED, OKAY, I WAS FREAKING OUT

-one of my regrets with aot was that eren and mikasa never talked on page about the fact that he didn't mean it when he said he hated her, and that he was actually protecting her. i know we can surmise it from switzerland and that he might have actually said it off-page too, but i wish we'd seen it.

-EREN LOOKS SO VULNERABLE WHEN ZEKE COMES I HATE IT (this was my exact reaction in the manga too. i love eren so much.)

-if there's one thing i've learned from opening titles is they're chock full of spoilers if you know the source material

-it's sweet how falco and gabi inherit a levi, isn't it

-is this where gabi blows eren's head off. i'll watch it if i have to but I HATE IT IT HURTS

-oh so eren didn't want zeke turning the wine-people into titans (and didn't know it would come to him doing it, not omniscient)

-dude the tension in the "brothers" ep is real

-pfff eren's lil roll out of his titan is so cute. the shot is coming tho and i hate it (and eren didn't know it would happen).

-DUDE THE HEADSHOT SCENE IS SO GOOD, WHAT, MAPPA HAVE OUTDONE THEMSELVES WITH AOT

-eren also didn't know about the coordinate and ymir (not omniscient).

-oooh so zeke COULD call for the euthanasia plan bc he nullified the vow waiting for eren to regenerate, but eren won ymir over HOW DID I FORGET THAT

-dude aot is unbearably good help

-eren didn't know grisha found the reiss family this early

-dude, loose-long-hair eren is so pretty.

-i love the part with eren screaming in the op, i love it so much, it's so raw

-eren: "if someone's aiming to steal my freedom, i'd gladly steal theirs first."

-eren interrupts his bashing of zeke to stare silently at baby eren and baby mikasa. as you do.

-yuki kaji is just. perfect.

-eren learned the close-to-your-face manipulation stance by mikasa

-okay so grisha doesn't physically see zeke, he sees eren's memory of what’s happening as eren relays it and knows he's there, but he basically hugs thin air.

-okay so, eren knew he'd manipulate grisha bc he's seen this - he's probably seen grisha hear eren's voice. he didn't know *how* this comes to be. i think he realizes he can show grisha memories when sleeping grisha wakes up to "seeing" zeke. eren looks surprised, so i think that's when he understands he can show him selective memories in real time, and that's why he goes from "why are we doing this" to "let's go. next memory. now."

-i can't stress enough what a great job zeke's va does.

-wait, i love this cast so much, i can't

-since armin is usually right, eren *couldn't* turn the pure titans into humans. either because they were zeke's titans, or because that's not what he asked of ymir, and ymir at that point would never destroy titans bc the king willed it so; or maybe it just isn't possible and tweaking eldian dna to defend from a virus is entirely separate to changing someone from titan to human.

-oh look, tanjiro and zenit- i mean, falco and connie. I'M SORRY I LOVE TO MAKE THESE REFERENCES

-dude. mappa. let's talk. you've done a good thing.

-there's just sth iconic about seeing annie and reiner fight together, i said so in the manga and i say so in the anime

-odiha

-can i just say how refreshing it is that floch is smart. he's detestable, but it's refreshing that he's not the dumb right hand blindly following eren, he's actually a force to be reckoned with

-everything in the port is so (appropriately) ugly, paradis killing paradis with such viciousness. so ugly. great work. excellent work mappa. excellent. i'm tearing up.

-eren/mikasa, what nonsense, we should be shipping mikasa/ice cream, she's so lovely

-ah the semi-good times in marley when eren could still smile/laugh

-smiling drunk eren took one look at smiling drunk armin and mikasa and was like, 'ah yes, rip the world.'

-i think it fitting that other than mikasa and armin it's jean that sleeps the closest to eren. i think they have a special bond

-ep28 is structured like a his-and-hers episode.

-ah ok, eren knew about the wine.

-to be fair, eren isn't exactly explicit with historia. he could have said "IMMA FUCKING ELIMINATE THE TITANS," but no, he said he'll end the hate by burying history and civilization. why go half-way, just tell her. It’s a shame we didn’t explore historia’s mindset on not opposing eren at all (and no, a one-line argument doesn’t count).

-so eren saw CONNIE in the memory shards, not sasha's death. no context.

[smol-boiii]

Was working on a final project presentation and my idea of a true visionary is Isayama hajime. So now watch me explain it to my very confused sir 💁‍♀️ GPA IS DEAD.

[kalofi]

You got me to go back and try to watch jjk again bc when I tried to watch it as it was coming out I didnt really like it but your art was so cute I decided to give it another shot and,,, wtf sir lofi I feel lied too. By you, by the op, by the adorable dinner scene 🔪🔪🔪/lh

im so sorry im so sorry im so sorry im sorry ok pls im sorry. MAPPA RLY DID US SO FUCKING DIRTY WITH THAT OPENING THOUGH. THEY RLY MADE US THINK. GODDAM. IMAGINE. HE WAS SO SPECIAL AND DEAR TO ME AND THEN. AND FUCKING THEN. i cant handle this anymore. this is why i have to draw cute silly fanart bc if i remember what actually happens in canon for even one second my heart breaks in two then crumbles to dust

[rawr-mortgage]

Watch me praise the heck out of Jujutsu Kaisen despite starting only two nights ago and only being on EP 12 so far

Jokes aside, Jujutsu Kaisen is turning out to be one of the best anime series i've ever watched and quite possibly, one of the best animes of the coming decade???

Plot is actually interesting to theorize about and to see it play out. The main goal of our protagonist, Itadori, is to find and harvest all of Sukuna's fingers for him to consume and house the whole version of Sukuna's soul just for the Sorcerers to kill him once he finally does in order to vanquish and be rid of one of the most powerful cursed entities in existence. That's insane. That's a hella good main plot. Itadori's basically just a lamb being cared and fed for until he eventually has to be led to the slaughter. And he's aware of it and completely accepts it cuz being the only person in the world who's able to control Sukuna as his vessel, he thinks it would be selfish of him not to do it, to not willingly sacrifice himself and help other people remove this evil entity from the world at the expense of his own life.

Initially, he wanted to do good becuz he wanted to honor the fateful last words of his grandfather, who outright told him he's meant to help and save other people becuz he was gifted with outstanding physical capabilities and he should put it to good use. But then, he's told that if he's only engaging with the cursed spirit world becuz of his grandfather's wishes, he'll eventually start to resent his grandfather and blame him for all the pain he has to endure and the sacrifices he'll make being involved with dangerous and malevolent beings that'll stop at nothing to kill him in order to harbor Sukuna's powers for themselves, until he reaches the point where he's laying on his deathbed filled with regret and cursing his grandpapi to the depths of hell.

Having realized this, your boi makes his own resolve to dabble in the spirit world on his own terms and fight for defenseless people who are unaware of the inhuman dangers that lurk the earth becuz Itadori actually has a strong sense of justice and believes people get what they deserve, but no one is horrible enough to deserve suffering and death at the hands of cursed spirits.

I'm usually indifferent to shonen MCs cuz they typically follow the same format when it comes to their characterization. Your typical guy next door who's friendly, outgoing, kind of an airhead, gets flustered around girls, doesn't get much attention from the people around him, feels inferior and has a rivalry going on with the 2nd male lead, all smiles and sunshine and sickeningly nice, yada yada yada. All in all, just flat out BORING.

I'm running out of words so I'll stop here, I don't think I need to comment on the animation cuz no amount of praise or blubbering on my end can justify how beautiful and exquisite the animation is. Let's just say I now see why some AoT fans went on a rampage and claimed MAPPA was playing favorites with JJK cuz the animation on this series is sensational enough to make any other series jealous along with its fanbase (not that I'm saying the accusations were true and that I condone the hate that the studio was subjected to. like wtf, people who harass the folks that work their asses off to bring you god-level quality entertainment don't deserve anime).

Surprisingly enough, the sentiment doesn't ring true when it comes to Itadori. Even tho he shares a few generic character traits with other shonen MCs, I actually really like him and he isn't a bore to watch and follow around as the story progresses and I'm honestly just questioning what makes him different from all the other MCs and why can't every other shonen protagonist be likable and interesting enough to not turn me into a goat becuz they always make me go: meh.

I also really like the non-linear narrative JJK has going on. It actually has the potential to be quite off-putting since not a lot of animes do that sort of thing (at least I can't think of any at the top of my head), but they execute it well and do it in moderation to effectively steer it away from being too jarring. I think it's a great method for avoiding potential info dumps and filler episodes and other manga authors should deploy this technique more often cuz it's a great switch-up, storytelling-wise.

The narrative is also somewhat fast-paced, bordering on neck-break speed on some occasions, and I don't mind honestly. Don't you just hate it when the story goes full-on snail mode where every episode feels like a chore to finish and not at all like it has a 23 minute time constraint? Yea, completely throws enjoyability out the window. There hasn't been a dull moment yet in my experience, and how quickly everything plays out just encourages you to pay utmost attention and keep your eyes completely glued to the screen so to not miss any of the epicness happening before your eyes.

The soundtrack has no business being this fucking amazing. You might think I'm being nitpicky and actively looking out for things to criticize the animes that I watch on, but no, most times I don't even pay attention to all that or miss the quality of those elements entirely cuz it's too subtle of a detail for me to notice. But here, it just enhances the experience so much and compliments what's happening on-screen so well that it's hard not to take notice and feel so fucking appreciative of the awesome background music that gets you properly hyped while watching the fight scenes and lending the ambience for the milder and more emotional scenes.

Might make follow-up reviews in the future, who knows. Still haven't finished it like I said and I have a lot of thoughts on the other characters, if I feel like ranting about it, rest assured I definitely will lol.

[snkpolls]

SnK Episode 60 Poll Results (for Anime Only Watchers)

The poll closed with 159 responses. Thank you to everyone who participated!

Please note that these are the results for the Anime Only Watchers’ poll. If you wish to see the results for the Manga Readers’ poll, click here. 

Anime only watchers, beware of spoilers if you venture over to the manga readers’ poll results.

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RATE THE EPISODE 130 Responses

And we’re back! An explosive premiere brings the series back. The vast majority seemed to enjoy the episode, with only 2.3% of folks giving it a score below a 3.  

I thought some of the directing in the action scenes was odd and the music didn’t feel as well integrated/utilized as in past seasons.

If this season is consistently as good as this first episode, AOT will indeed end as a perfect masterpiece

ARE YOU HAPPY ABOUT THE CHANGE FROM WIT STUDIO TO MAPPA? 127 Responses

The Studio change from WIT Studio to MAPPA was a subject of much scrutiny and debate before the season’s release. With almost 61% showing some form of enthusiasm about a new studio’s take on the series. The opinion is not uniform, of course, with just over 18% stating their preference for WIT studio. Slightly less (17.3%) can’t give an answer yet and the rest don’t seem to care at all.  

I wished MAPPA would make the latter episodes a little more vibrant and lessen the blur

mappa as some of my favorite shows (banana fish, yuri on ice, etc) so it was kinda cool to see they picked up AOT szn 4 ! i’m excitedly waiting to watch the next episode, (and with my ‘watch partner’ aka tumblr friend who discusses with me as we watch LOL).

WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT THE CGI TITANS? 127 Responses

If there’s one thing that’s rather controversial about the series’ animation adaptation, then it’s certainly the use of CGI (particularly when animating Titans). The opinion of the fanbase seems to be rather positive, nonetheless. 72.4% of responders gave the CGI some praise (be it more open or more reserved), while 18.2% were more negative about the use of CGI. At the bottom was 9.4% who stated that they preferred WIT’s style of CGI to the one utilized in the episode.  

cgi wasn't bad but I was disappointed that it wasn't the 2d animation from the trailer

HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THE NEW OPENING? 128 Responses

When it came to the season’s opening, there was a positive response, with more than 72% expressing a favorable opinion. 21.1% didn’t seem to care for it and about 6% stated that they thoroughly disliked it. 

OP is WAY too overrated, nowhere near as good as the original, too much glorification of the kind of nationalism that led to Nazi germany's rise to power

HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THE NEW ENDING? 130 Responses

The new ending received very similar scores, with a similar figure of more than 72% expressing a positive view of the ending and a little over a quarter not caring for it. The proportion disliking it was much lower however, with only 2.3% of folks expressing those thoughts.

HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THE 4 YEAR TIME SKIP? 126 Responses

One of the grandest developments that came about in this episode is the fact that a 4 year time skip has occurred since the defeat of the Warriors in Shiganshina. Although there is a sizable minority expressing negative feelings (13.5%), the definitive majority is coming in with enthusiasm (70.6%). The rest are still thinking this change over. 

wtf is going on? Who are these new people? Why are we supposed to care about them if they're from Marley? Where are the main characters? Yeah, I suppose Reiner and Zeke technically count as MCs, but there is an appalling lack of 104th characters that needs to be fixed asap!

HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THE SETTING CHANGE? 125 Responses

In a similar vein, a remarkable new development is a change of setting. The majority (almost 61%) see it in a positive light, while 16% seem to dislike it. Just over 19% aren’t certain yet. 

After what Reiner and co. did, I am not at all interested in their side of the story and just want Eren and co. to completely decimate these people

Fun to meet new characters but I'm eager to know whats going on with the characters we know

It feels a little disorienting but it's a logical progression of the story

Strange

Wouldnt mind the change of setting if we at least had it from the 104th's perspective

I wasn’t expecting it to be so focused on new characters, and I was disappointed at first but I’m indifferent now.

Not liking the new perspective. At least for this new batch of kids. If Reiner and Zeke are going to be a major focus for a while, wouldn't a short series of flashbacks for their pasta work better than a completely new spin-off from the main story?

WHICH NEW CHARACTER IS YOUR FAVORITE SO FAR? 125 Responses

As this episode introduced a lot of new characters, we got a colorful pie chart for this one. The plurality of responses (40%) chose the kind-hearted Falco, while 28% went with passionate Gabi. 14.4% chose the caring Colt and 13.6% went with the cool Jaw Titan holder. The last couple of responses picked out the stoic General Magath and the quiet Zofia. Poor Udo didn’t get a single vote!

I loved it. I love the new art style, my favorite scene was Gabi destroying the train, she's awesome. I really love Falco as well and Colt. Galliard's titan design is sick

I literally don't give a shit about these new kids, I don't care about their story, just bring back EMA and the 104th already!

WHO DO YOU THINK WILL INHERIT THE ARMORED TITAN? 125 Responses

Another colorful pie chart! An almost even split for the (possible) future inheritor of the Armored Titan. 37.6% believe Falco will take it, while 27.2% went with Gabi. 33.6% do not see any of the cadets inheriting Reiner’s titan and the last couple of votes went ahead to Zofia instead.

WHO HAD THE BETTER GLOW UP? 127 Responses

When drawing comparison to Reiner and Zeke’s looks in the previous season, there was a clear favorite among the responses - Reiner, with 74%. Zeke had the preference of 15% and those who didn’t feel like either of them “went through a glow up” took 11%. 

can we acknowledge how good zeke, reiner, and [redacted] looked 😌🥰

REINER PLEASE FUCK ME

WHAT DID YOU THINK OF THE JAW TITAN? 126 Responses

New season, new setting, new titan! The vast majority of viewers seem hyped about the Jaw Titan and find its design really cool. 15.9% aren’t as thrilled about it, and 9.5% haven’t decided yet. Most of the write-in comments implied a connection with the Jaw Titan. But for the purpose of avoiding spoiling those who haven’t drawn the same conclusion, we won’t be publishing them. Just know we see you. ;)

i was lowkey scared lmao

CART TITAN - BETTER WITH ARMOR OR WITHOUT? 127 Responses

We are reunited with the eerie Cart Titan from S3, but this time flexing cool armor and machine guns on its back! The overwhelming majority of respondents prefer it better tricked out in its armor, over a small minority who appreciate its natural creepiness more.

MOST OF THE EPISODE FOCUSES ON GABI. WHAT DO YOU THINK ABOUT HER? 124 Responses

Gabi appears to be a point of controversy among anime viewers already, with 38.7% viewing her favorably, 37.9% viewing her less favorably, and 16.9% not sure how to feel about her yet. Some comments feel she is similar to Eren in some ways, while others found her annoying. And yes, she did break international law. :P

Eren, but smol and female xD

I hate her already

I think she’s awesome

She's like Eren was

she passionately creepy but i like her lol

shes annoying

Gabi is SO annoying istfg really hope Falco gets more focus than Gabi, he seems nicer and more relatable

FALCO MENTIONED SOMETHING ABOUT “FLYING AROUND WITH A SWORD” AND “ATTACKING TITANS.” WHAT DO YOU MAKE OF THAT? 126 Responses

Overall, no one seems to know what’s going on, though many are theorizing that this is related to the paths, titan powers/memory transfer, or Eren somehow. What could this mean for the future of Falco’s character?

Dig at anime viewers returning to S4

He saw the memories of a survey corps member

I have a couple theories, regarding the memories that intelligent Titans share back and forth

maybe he had one of those flashback/forward things that erens dad had

WHO DO YOU THINK WAS BUYING THE NEWSPAPER AT THE END? 126 Responses

Nearly 90% of respondents are certain that this mystery character is someone we know, while just a small handful of people believe it’s someone new, and about the same amount not ready to make a call one way or the other yet. Some write-ins on the poll had guessed specifically who the character may be already. But we won’t spoil you just yet. 👀

The end credits guy is definitely someone we know, but I highly doubt it's Eren

The sharp-looking dude at the end just HAS to be someone we know on Paradis, there's no way they'd just throw us in to this new cast of nobodies without some connection to the main characters

WHAT DID YOU THINK OF ELDIANS BEING USED AS WAR FODDER? 126 Responses

The treatment of Eldians on the mainland is something that the majority of respondents see as detestable, with 87.3% finding the use of them as war fodder to be downright cruel. A smaller amount of people either felt it was a necessary evil, or didn’t feel strongly about it one way or the other. 

Literally waiting for the 104th to show up and fuck shit up for these inhumane monsters

That's what happens in the real world. The persecuted minority gets used as war fodder.

i d k 👀

DO YOU THINK IT’S POSSIBLE FOR RELATIONS BETWEEN ELDIANS AND MARLEYANS TO IMPROVE? 123 Responses

Colorful opinions mean more colorful pie charts! Most viewers feel that there is no way for the relations between Eldians and Marleyans to improve (30.1%) or that relations will never improve, with the exception of a rare few who are sympathetic to Eldians (22.8%). A smaller amount (totalling 32.5%) feel that it’s possible for things to improve whether it be due to a change in Marleyan leadership or due to the two sides having to come together for the greater good. 14.6% of respondents stand in the middle ground, unsure of whether relations can improve or not.

ADDITIONAL THOUGHTS ON THE EPISODE?

Honestly at first it was very confusing but overall I enjoyed it

So when do we get to see the 104th again?

I figured there would be more modern technology involved in the story, but I'm not a fan at all of the direction it's going so far. Makes me worried the ultimate basement reveal was the peak of AoT's greatness.

it was action filled!!! although i was sad so see that there are 16 episodes n not like 24(i think), it means every episode is gonna deliver!!! off to a great start, op and ed are amazing. renier had a nice glow up and JEAN WAS THAT U AT THE END?? yessir!!! beast titan looked ugly asf but when was he not ugly?? LOL

Idk wtf that opening was but I kinda like the ending. Falco seems like a good kid. I just REALLY hope he doesn't end up doing anything to hurt the protagonists (I fully expect Gabi to, she's already a violent ax-crazy kid)

just give me some Armin

WHERE. IS. EREN?

WHERE DO YOU PRIMARILY DISCUSS THE SERIES? 124 Responses

Thanks again everyone for participating in the poll! We look forward to seeing your responses for next week’s episode!

[solarisetlesetoiles]

Hey Folks, it is cry about God of High School hours

!watch out for the spoilers!

Spoilers and the like below the cut

super fucking happy they included this

OH NO

YESSSS 

it is about to fucking go down

pt. 1 of Daewi and Mira being like “wtf?”

Mori is big mad

pt. 2 of Daewi and Mira being like “wtf?”

Sure Taek, sure

Mori’s like “Perish.”

Don’t mind me just sobbing at seeing these scenes animated

The range on this man, absolutely incredible

Gosh Mori’s such a cutie

ewwww

pt. 3 of Daewi and Mira being like “wtf?”

Bangs hands on table: Mopyo! Mopyo! (look at Ilpyo smug little smirk)

T-T no word just tears

Ilpyo’s so pretty

look at the team work (I know it’s not super clear, but that’s Ilpyo’s leg)

Even after everything Ilpyo’s still trying to be help (what a sweetheart)

god he’s pretty

well damn

gosh they’re such cuties (no, unfortunately I am not going to shut up about how cute I find these characters)

Hm, I love him

XD

Is that who I think it is?

IT IS!!!! QUEEN!!!! I love her

chibi Mori is too cute

ah hahahaha XD

pffft look at his little angry face :D

She’s right and she should say it

another pic of Ungnyeo being beautiful

Ilpyo and squad because I love them

baby boy

aww such supportive friends T-T

This is why Mori is the goodest boy

yet another picture of Ungnyeo being beautiful

And now Seungah being beautiful (Idk fam, there are just so many pretty ladies on this show)

T-T 

awww

Goodest boy is taking a well deserved nap

AWWWW (yeah the next section is just going to be cooing over all the characters)

They made him food T-T

Immediately asks about his boyfriend Ilpyo after he wakes up 

look at that cutie, I love him

Fox boy!

Hojosa! I hope we get a season two, I want to see Hojosa animated (please make it happen Mappa)

T-T too cute I can’t handel it

He got noddle in his eye, I’m dying XD

Ugh, I love them T-T

Yeah this episode got me right in the feels, not gonna lie. I will write a more hm... put together piece on my thoughts eventually, but I’ve got to let the emotions run their course first

I will say again that anime-onlys should definitely read the webtoon:

The God of High School

[meny-sempai]

MO DAO ZU SHI IS A MASTERPIECE – part 01

OH MY GOD EP 15! That was so… UGH. I have so much to say, yet I’m speechless at the same time! Aaaaa! Ok, that’s it! It’s time!

The first season is over and I can finally talk about my experience with the piece of art that is Mo Dao Zu Shi. Yes, it is a piece of art and I will prove it to you in this short series of my thoughts about the show.

I just have to say – I’m not a native English speaker so bear with the mistakes I’m bound to make. I did read the novel, but only as far as the Exiled Rebels Scanlations translated it (thank you Rebels, you’re gods). I started reading the novel after the first airing of the third episode, so at the very beginning of MDZS mania – I went in blind and… it was FUNNY. I’ll talk more about that down below. And yes, I know a lot of spoilers, but I can’t say I know the whole story – If I start theorizing be aware that I’m just theorizing, I’m not actually telling the plot, but, just to be sure: SPOILERS ahead, I will use the facts I know for my analysis.

For the first two episodes I’m going to tell you my blind reactions and compare them with my impressions after finishing the season. My misinterpretations are hilarious and I admit I was really dumb. Enjoy my stupidity.

The rest of the episodes will have my impressions and analysis that I now have after finishing the show. There will be a few of these kind of posts on my profile because I can’t fit everything I have to say in just one. I don’t actually do analysis of shows here, because this is my personal art blog, but I sometimes make exceptions. As an animation student I just had to talk about Mo Dao Zu Shi. I want more people to see it. I want people to know that it is much more than BL.

So… Here we go!

INTRODUCTION – or, who the hell even asked for my opinion?

I’ve been a fan of anime/manga since I was 13, which was 12 years ago (I’m old, I know). Sure, I’ve watched Digimon, Pokemon, Bayblade and all that jazz when I was even younger, but that doesn’t count, because I had no clue about the concept of anime.

I’ve seen a lot of shit, I’m quite open to a lot of shit and if I’m in the right mood I can take a lot of shit, but I still regard myself as someone who has a good taste. The older I get the less time I have to take a chance at something I wouldn’t normally watch. Even if there is something I’d watch I usually end up not having time for it. Since I started studying and doing animation myself, my criteria for the quality skyrocketed. I long gave up on the three episode rule. One episode is enough to see potential if there is potential (some shows can still trick me – I’m looking at you Sirius the Jaeger).

Ok, ok, I’m not bashing on Sirius the Jaeger. I’m just saying the show had a lot of potential and threw it out of the window. If there was no Mikhail and Yuliy dynamics… Scratch that – if there was no Mikhail in the show, the story would have been completely empty. At least for me.

Since we’re talking about other shows, I’ll use this opportunity to declare Mo Dao Zu Shi as the animation of the year. Sure, the year’s still not over, sure I only watched Cells at Work, Free! Dive in to the Future, Sirius the Jaeger and BANANA FISH, but I still believe in what I say.

Sorry Cells, you’re cute, you make me care more about my body, you make me have weird feelings about Cancer (WTF). I wish I can show you to all the school kids in my country, but you’re not the best this time. Please, give me another season, thank you. Love the manga. Guys, please watch this anime!

Sorry Free, you… Pfff… Ok, yeah, FREE, I love you dude, thank you for all the sexy muscles and almost BL drama (and some actual deep moments). Thank you for all the Rin, we can never have enough of Rin. And thank you for Kisumi and Asahi – didn’t know I needed that. Thank you, but… yeah, know your place (hint: it’s right here in my arms).

Sorry Sirius, I wish you had more episodes to explore the story and the characters. Liked the OP and the animation.

Sorry BANANA FISH, oh god, I really am. Before MDZS I lived for you BF, I lived for you! I was an old fan of the manga and I was so hyped. I can’t say I’m dissatisfied with the anime adaptation. I liked a lot of things they did, the way they adapted stuff, added and changed stuff, but it was just too much plot for 13 episodes and the effects of it became clearer and worse while the anime progressed. I have no idea how MAPPA will handle the second season. My fingers are crossed. Guys, watch this anime. Even with all the flaws it’s worth your time. 

And yes, I watched Voltron and The Dragon Prince. This will be a really long post if I start on those, so I won’t.

So… YES. Mo Dao Zu Shi came out of nowhere for me and took the crown. Wow… where to start…?

How did I find this show…? Actually, how did this show find me? Well… It was my beta reader, I think. After 13 years of being a silent fan of Asian comics and animation, I decided to finally write a fanfiction. Surprisingly, it was for the small fandom of the Korean comic Noblesse (nobody cares, carry on). I don’t know why, but my beta told me about this new BL “anime”. When I realized it was Chinese I rolled my eyes. I’m an asshole, I know, but I just never liked anything I saw from the Chinese (I haven’t seen much, but what I saw was poorly animated/was in 3D and I’m not a huge fan of 3D). I also never liked the voice acting… Ok. OK, I admit! I never liked the language, ok? Shoot me!

Then… Everything changed when the Wen clan attacked.

Anyway… I was bored, I was lazy and didn’t want to do work for my university, so I said: “What the heck! Hit me with some Chinese BL.” I clicked on the first episode not even bothering to read the summary. Man… My expectations were the low of the lowest.

EPISODE 01 – or, what the fuck did I just watch and is there more of it?

Oh shit… I’m terrible at names, especially Chinese names! Am I supposed to remember all this, is this important? The clans, the wars, the titles? This is BL, right? Should I take out my note book? Fuck, pause it. Ok… Ok… I get it? Let’s just continue.

(When I look at it now it was pretty clear. I really am dumb. To be fair, you need time to get used to how they use names. And for someone who never watched Chinese animation seriously and doesn’t know anything about the culture it really was a lot of new information. But don’t let that stop you from watching it!)

Ughhhhh…. 3D… damn it. And it was going so well. Ugh, just look at those wings flapping! Are the wings broken? What the hell! Why do they do this?

(Lol, I was so triggered. XD The bird is actually fine. I like how the scene transitioned from the pupil of a scared man to the pupil of the crow. As if they were watching each other in the eye, only adding to the creepiness. The lighting is also great. Everything is dark and gloomy, fitting the “horror” atmosphere really well, yet at the same time the dark scenes are vivid and clear. It’s hard to make the misty night look clear and colorful. The flying is a bit iffy, but it doesn’t really matter because the effect of hundred birds covering the sky is strong and meaningful.)

Holly shit! This is amazing! Pause it! No, go back, I wanna see this again. Oh my god, that flute! The music is awesome, I’m having goosebumps. Ooohh, love the music, I never heard something like this. Oh, this dude is so cool. Red eyes and zombies and… What is this show about again? Zombie BL? Really? It’s not really zombies, right? Please don’t be about zombies, I hate zombies.

(Honestly, this scene is stunning. A really effective way to reveal a character. Especially a character that we are not sure whether he is good or bad. The most amazing thing for me about this is how they used music. It isn’t just the background music to accompany the atmosphere. It isn’t there just to tell something about the character and make him stand out (it’s not a character theme). The flute is not alone here, there are many themes working with it. Together they are not there to tell us “this is a scary action scene” so feel this, or “this is a sad scene”, or a “funny scene”. No. The music here is its own art piece. It’s actually there to tell us in its own language the story that we are seeing on screen. I don’t know how to explain it. For me, the way the music changed was perfectly synchronized with the way people were saying words, the way Wei Wuxian moved his head, the way the corpses stood up to attack. If I close my eyes I can see the scene by only listening to the music. This is something that regularly happens in this show. I don’t know how they do it, but I applaud to it. I can’t remember the last time the music left such an impact on me in the animation series. And this is just the first episode and the first scene. We have no idea who these people are. We are not expected to feel emotional for them. But I felt the connection. I felt like I was there and the corpses were about to get me.)

Ugh! 3D, you’re killing me! And it was such a cool intro! Ok, calm down, what are they saying? So… That’s the guy with the flute, right? No, it was Wei, but Wei Something else. No, wait, it has to be him. Go back. Yeah, it is him. What the hell is a courtesy name? Ok, never mind, try to remember.

Oh no…! More exposition, more names and clans! My brain is melting! Cool smoke/ink animation, though. Hmm, purple ring. Nice. That’s important, right? Oh! The amulet thing! Remember that. That’s gonna bite us in the ass later, ain’t it? Alright, so “Wei something” died. Killed by… shidi? So… the younger clan member? So…? This Wei also had his own clan? Am I getting this right? I’m probably not getting this right. Ugh, just watch the damn episode, quit pausing every goddamn second! It’ll explain itself.  

I like the OP! The similar smoke/ink animation and… Wow, ok, there are too many handsome guys here. I’ll have to focus. The music is catchy. I like the singer’s voice. Cool!

(I’m now quite fond of the 3D in here. The tortoise and everything. XD Also, in my defense - they have three names, like, come on. I didn’t see that coming. I don’t even have a middle name. Although, I do think having three ways to be addressed is pretty interesting. You can tell and convey a lot by just picking a name the character uses in his speech.

Fun fact no1. – at the time I couldn’t even recognition the names when they would speak. All of the words sounded the same to me, which was so unusual. I can now recognize a lot of words and phrases. And, I think… Well, you’ll see what I now think about Chinese and VAs. I’m just gonna say this: I’d like to learn Chinese just so that I can write a love letter to Guo Haoran.

Fun fact no2. – It took me 6 episodes to actually pay attention to the lyrics of the OP and ED and to realize that they are representing Wei Wuxian and Lan WangJi. That’s a really beautiful touch, very smart. And it brings so much meaning to the table when the ED changes. I don’t think I ever saw OP and ED used in this particular way.)

Well, this is getting really dark and interesting. This Wei may be a refreshing MC. Probably a good guy at heart, but shady as fuck and ready to kill. I do have another name to worry about, but Mo is easy to remember (“Don’t close mountain” – if you know what I mean :P). I wonder if Mo is important to the plot. I see potential for some twists here. 

2D animation is looking good so far. I like how they made us look from the protagonist’s POV. Really refreshing directing… hmm… Still not buying the Chinese, but Wei has a nice voice. The music is still great.

Bahahahaha! Scratch that, Wei is an idiot! Good to know that liquor is your priority, Wei! XD Omg the donkey, too, look at that face, look at the eyelashes!

The fuck is this shit? Are those people flying? While standing? Are they standing on something? What the hell? XD Man, that sky is nice. Oh! Oh, oh, wait, those guys! Those were the shadows I saw a scene earlier. Mmm… Attention to detail. Nice. Looks like I’ll have to pay close attention to every scene. Been a long time I had to focus so hard on an “anime”.

(10 minutes and I was already very intrigued. I didn’t know shit, but I was in. With all the pausing I probably spent 50 minutes on this episode, but it felt like barely 20 minutes had passed. At the beginning I paused a lot because I was too slow to read the subtitles (no, I don’t watch dubs, I’m just too used to Japanese and their culture references that reading subs is child’s play, but this was new territory for me). I also paused a lot because I felt I’ve missed something, or because I was surprised at how some scenes looked. 

I don’t pause that often now. Mo Dao Zu Shi trained me to see and hunt for detail. As I said, it’s been a long time since I had the need to carefully look at the backgrounds and pay attention to all of the characters’ expressions. Mo Dao Zu Shi tells a lot in silence and in small details. It awards you if you take time to look at the scenery. When I find something that I’d usually miss, I don’t necessarily feel smarter, but I feel the show is treating me as someone smart. MDZS respects its audience. It makes them think and remember. Which makes this show 100% re-watchable. I watched all the episodes 3 times. Some I watched even more – like episode 11. And I always have a new experience. I love coming back to it. Even when I work I play the episodes and listen to them. It’s interesting. Try it. Try just to listen to the audio. It has rare quality to it. The sounds and music are used wisely and a piece of music always has a legit reason why it’s played.)

Ok, this run is too slow. I get that he’s fat, but still, the foot exchange doesn’t fit with the distance he’s making. Also, the flying guys are not flying anymore. I got more info. And MORE NAMES. Kill me now. The info is interesting, though. Cultivators are Chinese exorcist, right? I really should have read the summery.

(I still think the running was not convincing. There are moments such as these in the show, but honestly, MDZS has fascinating animation and it only gets better in the later episodes (I’m not even gonna start with ep 11 – ep 11 will get its own post). The animators know what they are doing and the director knows how to make a scene work at full capacity.

Fun Fact no3. – D.Gray-man destroyed me. I now only know how to say “exorcist” the Japanese way.

MDZS also has a way of making seemingly stupid stuff look and be cool. Surfing on swords sounds pretty dumb, but when you actually see it and have it explained to you, when it has plot significance it becomes a fresh idea. I want to have my own sword to surf on!)

Well, hello… Lan… Jingyi ~ (How do you read this? O.O) Mmm… I’m digging the art style. Cute boys~

Also, Wei, you’re a fucking genius! XD The Oscar goes to you, my dude.

(… I still think Wei Wuxian is a fucking genius. I’m not gonna talk a lot about him right now, but I just gotta say that he is such a classic MC, yet at the same time he is so original. He’s just one of the proofs how great the writing this series has.

Speaking of writing – this show has some of the best dialog I’ve ever seen. Not only because of what is being said, but also because of the VAs, directing, music and animation. Dialog often has more than one meaning and always serves to deepen the characters and their relationships. I love how they use animation to show how the characters are truly feeling while saying something and what they actually mean when they say it. Everything they say has a reason and it makes you pay attention to other’s reaction to what is being said. I love how the character can say the same thing in so many different ways and that this is used to show his development and growth. I’m also amazed at how simple “hmm-s” and “mmm-s” mean so much in this show. 

I’m not saying character animation and rich expressiveness is something new, but it is rare and this show is really good at it. For example, quite a few characters laugh or cry but they all do it differently. They raise their eyebrows differently, they’re surprised and scared differently etc. This all sounds as a no-brainer, but it’s not so common. It’s difficult to pull off and I’m not saying MDZS is perfect, but it’s close.)

(Please… You think you can take down someone who spent his whole life perfecting the art of climbing up trees? Pff! You’re not Lan Zhan, Lan Zhan.)

(He looks so comfortable among corpses. It’s funny, yet so sad. These are all great hints for the mind-set of a character that you’ll miss at first watching, but you won’t forget about it. And when the memory clicks – it makes a loud click. Not a second is wasted in this show. Everything has a point. I’ll elaborate more on that with some examples in other posts.)

Bahahaha! I feel you bro! XD

But I feel you too. I mean, I don’t care about you, wench, don’t get me wrong, but it’s kinda sad. I’m liking these zombies. They’re my way of creepy and there’s potential for a deeper plot for them if it’s true that their personalities are still there somewhere. This just adds to the debate whether Wei is good or bad. The grey area… I love the grey the most. All 50 shades of it. And I’m enjoying the mystery vibe of this episode. Was there a mystery tag on this “anime”? Also, the fight scenes are not bad. And it’s cool how they all hate Wei but use his technics and knowledge. Realistic. Cool.

Oh my god! The colors! Whaaat? What the hell, look at that hair animation! And the music from that… string thingy- instrument – so cool. Ooohh, wait, this is the white dude, THE dude. Here comes the BL!

Ooohhh, I see what you did there. Kudos for you, director! Similarities and contrasts. Nice. And it’s over, I can’t believe it’s over! How can you cliff hang like that?! There’s a second episode, right? Mm, the ED is so pure. There IS a second episode! Well, while I’m here, don’t mind if I do!

EPISODE 2 – or, how I got everything wrong!

I bet he’s thinking: “The fuck is with this aim? The little shit almost killed me! I’m annoyed and amazed! Better play a fool and run for it.” But, seriously, that aim! Wei actually paused (love the little wobble effect on the arrow). And I have another name to remember! Ugh! And another color! Are they color coded? That could be helpful. Also, look at that tree. Wow… They’re blending the 3D backgrounds quite well with the 2D.

And Mo is important to the plot! Nice! So he has connections with the Yellow clan. The plot thickens.

I just gotta say – all of them have interesting designs. I wonder if every cultivator has his own sword. Bleach style or something. On the other hand, animators must be pulling out their hair because of all the details. XD

Cool little battle. Great camera work. They showed the difference between a student cultivator and an experienced one in an entertaining way. That soul summoning was nice too.

(This fight served as a nice show of power difference. It adds a lot to the future episodes where all of the main cast are students and have to face various trials. It gives us a hint at how powerful the clan leaders must be, it gives us a new perspective on the war and its casualties. We now get why many cultivators died so “easy”. It also hints at how talented students are different from the average which is an important detail in the plot. This little “unimportant” fight grounds it all and makes the levels in the clan system believable and palpable.)

This is really clever. Kudos for the reflection. Wei, haven’t you ever watched an anime? It’s clear the kid doesn’t have a mom. He probably doesn’t even have a dad.

(Ok… prepare for a full on fangirl attack.)

… My ears are tingling.

… This voice… Oh my ears, please calm down, something big is happening right now. Wait… Oh wow, he knows him! Look at the face he’s making, oh shit! And this new guy…! We haven’t even seen his face and he’s making threats! Hmm… Can’t say I don’t like that. Yeah, I like that… He’s gonna be the villain, isn’t he? I always like the villains and they always have the best voices. Well… if he’s a villain, let’s hope he’s hot-

Oh, wow, this is really good. The way the light appears, and that little shine of the… bell? Purple… Purple? The purple ring? Is this connected? Well, anyway, he has a pretty dramatic reveal and nice music – yep, he’s the bad guy. Let me see your face-

Wei… why are you so scared? They sure take their sweet time in revealing this guy. This may be more important than I thought. Don’t miss anything!

(Are you prepared?)

HOLLY MOTHER OF GOD WHAT THE FUCK OH MY GOD WHAAATT??? Was he this beautiful in the OP? Whaaaatt? AAAAHHHHHH!!!! SCREENSHOT! WALLPAPER! GO BACK, REPEAT THE SCENE! YOU! YOU, MY BOY, HAVE ENTERED MY HAREM. Oh what a day to be alive! Mmmm, ok, calm down, we’ll draw him later, let’s try to focus. Jiang Cheng. Ok, it’s a more common name, I’ll remember him. Heh. Like I could forget this boy. Oh, no, not a boy, a MAN. This is a man. Uhuhuhu~

(Aaaand my mind was a bit hazy for the rest of the episode – you will see the results.

Fun fact no4. – Immediately after this episode I looked up MDZS on Tumblr and realized that the fandom is calling Jiang Cheng JC. Still under the effects of what I just saw I thought calling him God was quite appropriate.)

NICE PROFILE!!! Is he going to be the other love interest for the MC? Are we gonna see the cliché love triangle? If it’s with this dude, maybe it won’t be so bad~ Ok, seriously, watch the show!

Ok, the magic light here is a nice touch. This Jiang Cheng is a bit cold even to his nephew. He doesn’t recognize Wei, but that’s expected. Wei is strongly reacting to him. What’s the connection? Judging by the music – it’s sad? I expected something more, I don’t know, menacing? Evil? But it’s just sad. Maybe he’s not a villain. That… that could open so many doors… TO MY KOKORO.

“Feed your dogs.” Ouch, that’s dark. Someone really hates the “demon” cultivators.  

“Could this boy be…?” What? What is he? Want’s the connection? Should I know, did I miss something?

The white dude and my purple man clash! Holly, Jiang Chang sounds pissed (passive aggressive enough?), while White poster boy here doesn’t give a damn! XD Ahahaha! Could Jiang Cheng be the Chinese tsundere? No, no, no, let’s not call such a man a tsundere. It’s too early.

Oh, Uncle is the leader of the sect. Nice. How old is the Uncle? Is he married?

This obvious metaphor of concealing the light is distracting me from fangirling. It’s interesting how it connects with the Jiang Cheng reveal. I feel that… shit is about to go down.

I was right! He’s the ring! What does the ring represent? And he’s doing what I always do! I play with my ring like that all the time! Nice.

SCREENSHOT! Oh, but he’s pissed. Oh, but I love the way he looks at me~ I feel all mushy.

Ha! Interesting. He’s smart, he has some self-control. Refreshing. But don’t turn your anger at your nephew, please. Also, it seems like the white dude and the Uncle have some history. Hmm…

I thought so. The white dude was the one who killed Wei. The tragic love. I can already see it.

(Yep. I thought Lan WangJi was the Shidi who “killed” Wei Wuxian. You are allowed to face palm.)

Oh no… I know where this is going. And the music…

Oh man… It’s the second episode and I’m already having the feels. What happened, Wei?! I refuse to believe you’re a bad guy!

But, I get Wei’s reaction to Jiang Cheng now.

(I don’t know how it happened, but I was thinking… What if she was killed by Jin Zixuan’s sword? We know Wei Wuxian stopped using his. From this shot we know he wasn’t the one who stabbed her, so was it Wen Ning? It’s obvious he was involved in the tragedy. As far as I know SPOILERS Wen Ning killed Jin Zixuan. If the killer sword is the one we know – if it’s Jin Zixuan’s then Wei’s reflection in this episode has a deeper meaning.)

Bahahaha I feel you, honor student. I like the kids.

(Honestly, they balance the humor and the serious stuff masterfully.)

I died.

This is giving me Gantz PTSD. That shit gave me nightmares. Nephew is really bold.

(I believe Jin Ling has some of his Uncle Wei’s recklessness and hero complex, but he also wants to prove himself just like his other two Uncles. I’ll talk more about them in another post.)

Uuhh, Wei is playing the flute! Risky, I like it.

(Ok, people. Be prepared for the ultimate face palm.)

Oh my god! Don’t tell me he summoned his own body! This resembles the scene from the narration… and he’s wearing black!

I’m right! Nephew wants revenge! Great shot by the way. You can feel the rage in the movement.

(You face palmed yet?)

I really love the way they use the flute! It depicts the flow of the camera so well!

… Wen… Wen what? Wen Ning? Who’s Wen Ning? What? Wait, are they talking about the corpse? What’s going on??? O_O Who’s Wen Ning?! Did I miss something? What’s the full name of the MC again? Ugh… This is so tiring… Ok, never mind, enjoy the beautiful flute song.

Busted!

I swear to god, this guy is illegal!

Oh, boy he figured it out too and he’s… sadistically happy? Eh… But, I get it. If he believes that Wei killed his sister, I get it. And her husband? Did he “kill” the dad, too?

I can’t believe he has a whip AND a braid? And he’s purple??? Did someone look into my diary? Is it Christmas yet? XD Am I dead?

Did he just smile? Am I imagining things? XD I can’t figure him out!

Please! Don’t lie, white dude! “He’s path is uncommon”, yeah right, we all know what you want.

THIS IS ONE OF THE BEST THINGS I’VE SEEN AND HEARD IN MY LIFE.

(This would have annoyed anyone no matter who said it, but because it was Wei Wuxian, I think it was even more annoying in Jiang Cheng’s head. Wei Wuxian knows him too well. It’s even funnier when you know that JC is blacklisted. XD He’s no good even to the lunatic.)

And at this exact moment Wei knew he fucked up. XD This is golden. 

... Please DON’T turn into rape BL.

(It so DID NOT.)

Oh Wei, you’re no match for this guy! :D

Hmm, looks like we’re going back in time. I love me some juicy flashbacks. Can’t wait to see more.

... I can’t believe I actually like this zombie BL. I just hope they don’t fuck up the animation later on.

(And the rest is history. As you can see - I’m obsessed.)

-----

That’s all for today! Next posts will have more character, story and art analysis. Hope you liked this and please forgive me for making this so long. See you! 

[pekorosu]

i was taking a look at the preview for ep 20 again and i noticed that this is the furthest point:

...which is a whopping TWO HUNDRED PAGES IN. makes me wonder wtf they’re going to cut to fit it all in. the last time this happened they cut almost 80 pages of material. i’m definitely bummed out since this is my fave arc... but anyway, my guesses on what will have to go:

- a whole bunch of talking, as usual

- alex and kong’s truck diversion scene

- alex’s “i can’t swim” moments. i actually hope this makes the cut, no matter how brief ):

- alex + sing’s side of the escape, up until they join up with eiji again

- eiji’s machine gun scene. again, i hope this makes the cut. @ mappa pls stop removing all my fave eiji scenes ):

- eiji, bones and kong’s “whoops i think we’re lost” scene

- the scene with ash drawing attention to himself all the way to the museum might be shortened drastically

- museum scenes will probably be shortened as well

...i'm not sure where to predict the end of the ep. initially, i thought it’d be good to stop before the museum scenes, but the preview has shown a few shots of the museum so... hmmm.

i feel like capping it off at the end of the conflict with yut-lung being all “just u wait ash i will have my vengeance >:(” would be a little too far ahead (240 pages), but any earlier also feels off? oh well, we’ll see how it goes.

[roscgcld]

*quintuples it* :DDD Reminds how in exams etc I write long ass answers which is why I always submit late oof— I think I can relate XD BUT PLS NO DON'T REMIND ME OLD WRITING EWWWWWWW!! And yes pretty boy supremacy 😌😌 please those eyelashes. EYE FLIPPING LASHES UHMMM?? THEY FEEL SO FLUTTERY. also ye mappa be v good 👌👌 top notch animation and art style ngl

*wtf is five times???* it* <3

Y E S - and your teacher will always go ‘you know you can cut down’. yes sir, i know i can, but my brain does not process it that way cx sometimes i read back out of curiosity and then wish that people did not read that shit lol. Like how did I think it was good writing? MAPPA really out here feeding us all simp worthy men lol also feel like they always set up characters in a way that reminds me of yuri on ice - highkey gay, but with such lowkey vibes lol. until a surprise engagement in front of a cathedral in the snow happens - someone better put all that effort in for me lol. but Megumi in the newest episode is so pretty TT it’s not fair