Roving Thoughts archives

Looking back at the Summer 2019 anime season

This turns out to be so extensively delayed that I only just noticed that I'd never written it. So, it's very past time for my traditional look back at what I watched in the Summer 2019 anime season, to follow up on my earlier impressions. Since it's almost a year since I saw these, my impressions are a bit faded.

• Symphogear XV: This was basically everything I could have reasonably asked for in a Symphogear show, especially one that basically wraps up the entire project (it may not stay wrapped up, in the way of these things, but it's definitely over for now). Symphogear unfortunately faced some structural story-telling issues in this season, but it still did good work, was quite enjoyable, and did some things to make the Symphogears not the sole saviors.

• Granbelm: This was generally well made and well put together, it had a bunch of characters that I liked, and for much of its run it was quite good. Unfortunately, it took its story in a direction I'm no longer a fan of, and so I can't really judge the show fairly as a result of that. I think the show took its story where it wanted to go and probably succeeded on its own terms (or mostly succeeded, there were some awkward bits), and it was a good spectacle. But the end result left me a bit let down.

I eventually dropped everything else that I was watching in Summer 2019. Lord El-Melloi II's Case Files and Isekai Cheat Magician both failed to sustain my interest, Fire Force was too typically shonen (and there was the horrifying Kyoto Animation tragedy), Astra Lost in Space lost me for various reasons, and I stopped being able to put up with the flaws in Cop Craft, especially in its writing surrounding Tilarna.

My (Twitter) reactions to the first episodes of the Spring 2020 anime season

As before I'm collecting here all of my tweeted reactions to the first episodes I've seen (in the order that I saw them).

• Listeners episode #1: That was interesting, atmospheric, nicely directed, and had a good climax with some interesting action. The story felt pretty standard and I'm not sure where the show will go next; this was all setup and background. →

• Kakushigoto episode #1: This is beautiful, well made, and reasonably sharply written, but as usual its comedy doesn't work for me (and I'm not sure I'm a fan of the fundamental joke at its heart). It's nice and good, but not for me. ♯

• My Next Life as a Villainess #1: That was fun and funny, and Catarina makes a solid lead. It's nicely put together, too (beyond being my kind of thing). I'm very much looking forward to what happens next and what sort of absurd situations Catarina gets herself into. →

• Princess Connect! Re:Dive episode #1: This was reasonably fun and periodically funny. It's a bit hard to engage with these people as people, instead of cutouts, but potato-kun is definitely improved by mostly not speaking or doing anything. →

• Gleipnir episode #1: That was awkward, uncomfortable, and rather adolescent (male) sexual gaze, all of which was entirely intended. It was also pretty good; intriguing and well put together (although not flawless), with a fine control of atmosphere and quiet hanging tension. →

Actually posting this entry has been delayed because I kept thinking I would watch a few more first episodes, but so far that's not happening. I will probably see some of Brand New Animal sometime but not right away, and I've decided that Sing "Yesterday" for Me is probably not my kind of thing in general and especially with the world and local mood as it is right now.

PS: As has become my habit, I've threaded my reactions to subsequent episodes for each series that I'm (still) watching on these first episode tweets.

The flaw in In/Spectre's conversations

Over on Twitter, I said:

I've realized that In/Spectre's fatal flaw is that these characters are explaining things to each other, rather than arguing back and forth, yelling past each other, or trying to pull fast ones. There's no conflict or drama in their conversations.

In/Spectre is by the same writer as Blast of Tempest, a show which I quite enjoyed (see my Winter 2013 retrospective). Both shows are full of talking and clever dialog (it's one of the writer's signature traits), but I'm not enjoying In/Spectre half as much as I did Tempest; in fact I'm increasingly finding In/Spectre kind of boring.

What I realized is that the two shows have different types of conversations. In Tempest, there was a conflict at the heart of most conversations; people were arguing with each other, trying to persuade each other or do deals, or at least trying to hoodwink and fool each other or hide information. In/Spectre is great when it's doing that sort of thing, when people are arguing or bickering or sniping at each other, but its most recent run of episodes has mostly involved people explaining things to each other or coming up with plans. There's no conflict, just talk.

(The few conversations that were not like this still have the spark to them, both in dialog and how they're staged.)