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regarding-stories · 3 months

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Winter Was Not An Exciting Season

When I started writing this, about 3-4 episodes had dropped for most shows that started in winter 2024 season on Crunchyroll, and I came to the conclusion there was no reason to get excited... And I think that's pretty much how it worked out. I stopped watching most of these shows at some point. Eventually I dug into the archives on Crunchyroll instead... which was much more rewarding.

I by the way never bothered with "Solo Leveling" or "Shangri-La Frontier" because I don't get what's the point with these kind of shows. OP skill this, video game that, and usually no actual stakes at all. Why bother?

Delusional Monthly Magazine

Hot trash.

Weird scientist tries to place his research in a paper that's more of an "I saw an UFO manned by Elvis" style tabloid. Lots of unconvincing hijinks happen.

Stopping point: I switched off in episode 1 when somebody suddenly developed a superpower because this is all over the place. And stupid.

Villainess Level 99: I May Be the Hidden Boss But I'm Not the Demon Lord

Girl gets reborn as the hidden boss of a game she used to play. She decides to avoid becoming a problem and also levels up to 99, which is a level reached by no one in this world (and the limit).

It does not help that she has dark magic as attribute and the heroine of that game is a light magic user.

What's hard to bear is that she gets constantly ostracized way into episode 4. Everything she does is taken negatively and the potential love interests of the heroine (it's a dating sim) constantly stir trouble for her because everyone assumes the worst.

On the surface this is yet another show about being reborn into a dating sim, like "The World of Otome Games is Tough for Mobs" or "I'm in Love with the Villainess". Though I can't help but think that the setup is also a tongue-in-cheek about how being exceptional can get you bullied in Japan. "The nail that sticks out gets hammered down" is idiomatic there for a reason.

In general a decent show, but what kind of person is the protagonist that she doesn't understand social cues at all? I don't think that's established very well.

Stopping point: I'm not sure why I stopped watching around episode 6, there seems to be no strong reason beyond losing interest. Might revisit.

Sasaki and Peeps

Middle-aged salary man gets himself a pet bird which turns out to be a reborn wizard from another world.

What follows is a wild (and also illogical) mix of genres. He gets transported to an Isekai world and learns magic, but mainly he wants to open a business there by transporting Japanese goods there and selling them. (Yet he never figures out that he could transport gold back to pay for them - or just be rich.)

His magic then gets him recruited into a squad of psychics fighting other psychics. He's totally OP because psychics have only one ability and his magic works differently for every spell. Anyway, the show doesn't benefit from cutting across plots. It first tries to hit the "living the quiet life in another world" vibe, then goes into "everyday man thrust into the world of superpowers", and now seems to also tap into "adventuring in another world..."

Sasaki is likable enough, an innocent man, mostly, really drab and unassuming. What disturbs me is that so far all the females appearing are minors. There's a high school girl waiting for him every day next door - why? I don't want to know. His wild colleague at the agency who is a snappy dresser? Supposedly 17. (Yes, high school age.) The person he's supposed to protect next - a child beauty. (She seems important as she was given a completely "doll style" credits variation of her own.) I seriously don't want to know where this is going...

None of the GIFs here on tumblr feature the protagonist. Funny.

Stopping point: After Episode 3. After the third under-age girl appearing I was wondering how many other genres they are going to cram into this one.

Hokkaido Gals Are Super Adorable!

Tokyo boy moves to rural Hokkaido and meets his future girlfriend, a total gyaru (gal).

Actually, he meets several, but I can't imagine this show playing out any other way. Has surprisingly little to say about Hokkaido itself except that it snows a lot and you need to keep warm.

The show has a mellow, slice of life flair but lacks originality. I actually ended watching the full season, it's an easy show to watch. The three heroines are all pleasant people that overlap with part of his life, making the harem-ish setup of all three crushing on him a bit annoying since two of them never stood a chance.

Stopping point: I actually finished this one but I must say the drama built for the last episode was a complete no-show and completely unconvincing, even by the typical "Japanese is a language of unsaid things" standard.

The Wrong Way to Use Healing Magic

Frankly, initially this was the absolute highlight of the season. I waited for every episode.

Two talented teenagers are summoned to be the heroes saving another world. And a third, average guy, who happened to be nearby. He ends up stealing their thunder because he has the rare healing magic talent.

Surprisingly, the other two people are really decent (looking at you, "Shield Hero") and in general he's treated well. The only dramatic concern is that healing magic has found its master in his teacher, an over-the-top drill sergeant style woman.

It quickly becomes apparent that healing magic, if used wrongly, is the strongest of them all - giving you infinite stamina, instantly restoring your strength, making you the perfect tank. You just have to train like a maniac. Which our drill sergeant ensures will happen.

Stopping point: After episode 7. The show is funny and has heart up to a certain point, but somehow I lost interest, also because it's destroying its previous vibe by hinting at impending doom. Interestingly I read a review today that points to mid season being a complete drag and messing up the pacing, and the finale not saving it. I guess I'm not surprised?

7th Time Loop: The Villainess Enjoys a Carefree Life Married to Her Worst Enemy!

A woman gets reborn into another world as a noble, only for her defining moment to repeat over and over. She turned down by her prince fiancé and basically ejected from her social status.

But this filly has spirit, and so she cuts out a life of her own successfully. Only to die in a war years later and to find herself at the same scene! Since she retains her memory she starts to pick different routes, leading various lives, picking up skills and knowledge, only to die eventually in the same continent-spanning war.

Her last time around, something odd happens. Just as she's escaping her betrothal she runs into the instigator of that war, the dark prince of the empire. And he is so taken with her, he proposes to her.

An unusual setup for sure. At some point we will likely learn what is behind the whole war business, but just watching her navigate all situations in stride is actually interesting by itself. As the title suggests, big drama is mostly absent so far ever since her "final life" started.

Stopping point: Middle of Episode 6. The mini-villain little brother turns out to be the complete opposite of a schemer and actually only wants the attention of his oniiii-chaaaan!! The whole flip was so unconvincing, I couldn't anymore. It's absolutely unclear why the guy she married does anything, including telling her to avoid his brother.

Tales of Wedding Rings

It would be hard to take this show serious at any level as it mostly exists as a vehicle to get this guy together with big-buxomed vixens for plot reasons - but there isn't much plot either.

He follows his childhood love to another world and accidentally marries her, getting the first ring of power. Then he learns he must fight off some evil led by the Abyss King. For that he has to marry more princesses.

There's no logic to the action, though. In the first kingdom he can fend off abyss monsters but gets his ass handed to him by an abyss knight. So they run off, abandoning their own kingdom?!? Then, as soon as he gets the ring from the elven princess he easily hands the abyss knight their ass without even trying. Instant wipe. So that knight keeps showing up and somehow evil rings appear and there's no rhyme or reason to the drama.

Otherwise it's pretty clear that he wants things to work out with his childhood love, but the other girls want attention, too. So another unrequited harem, badly done, too. And yes, the kingdoms they encounter are sexy elves, sexier cat people, and lolicon demon people. Expect plenty of fan service.

Stopping point: Episode 9. No special reason. The show is easy to watch, undemanding, but also doesn't deliver much. You can pick it up at any point and leave it and you won't miss much. Ironically I got mostly GIFs for "Rings of Power" when searching, and frankly, even this anime is better than that.

A Sign Of Affection

I almost forgot this one.

The heroine of the story is for all practical purposes deaf but she soon gets to know an absolute boy-hunk and wonders what these feelings are. Which she then proceeds to find out since he also likes her.

As for a story that focuses on a character with a disability, it does very little with it except her having a lot of trouble reading situations around her and the impediments of communication. And people constantly getting in her space. (Which is a necessity but unusual in Japan.)

It's certainly a high profile production for a romance, with great art.

Stopping point: After Episode 2.

In spite of being a fan of romance stories, it somehow rubbed me wrong that not only does an absolute model boy (the art is good enough that nobody needs to tell us) become immediately interested in her, he also is portrayed as this interesting character who travels abroad in a moment's notice for his studies. Mr Perfect on day 1. There didn't seem to be anything interesting to be going on at all. So I lost interest.

When looking around on the internet, in most places this show is described with one short paragraph for a synopsis. A critic compared it to "A Silent Voice", but that show needs almost a full page to have its synopsis laid out on Wikipedia - because it's a complex take on multiple topics - disability, bullying, social dynamics, and the ability to change. Somehow that strikes me as a contrived comparison.

#delusional monthly magazine #villainess level 99 #sasaki and peeps #hokkaido gals are super adorable!#the wrong way to use healing magic #7th time loop #tales of wedding rings #a sign of affection

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