A day late and little less complete than I hoped because my wife and I spent good part of yesterday dealing with the aftermath of an overflowing washing machine… But I decided with all these shows, I didn’t really want to delay it an entire week.
Plus, if I waited an entire week I wouldn’t be able to talk about the premiere of Kiyo in Kyoto: From the Maiko House!
Hit the jump, and let’s dive in!
The shows that I’m watching are in bold, shows my wife and I are watching together are in bold italics, strikethrough marks dropped shows and (*) marks shows with no comments this week.
A reminder for the Winter 2021 season: Due to the large amount of shows this season, brief comments and no comments are likely going to be common… This is about the only way I can remain sane.
Attack on Titan: The Final Season Episode 11
Shingeki no Kyojin: The Final Season
It’s to Titan‘s credit that it can take a point that it hammered home several times already, repeat itself, and it’s horrifying rather than annoying. And I didn’t miss the irony of who was driving that point home to Gabi – and why she was alive to do so. Nor the household where she lived.
And earlier, we saw the return of the “Eldian Empire” rhetoric… There are no innocents, and no easy solutions. We’re all doomed.
Poor Hange. She’s the token idealist in this whole mess, and she’s in way over her head. And I’m pretty sure she know it.
Cells at Work!! Episode 7
Hataraku Saibou!!
Cancer Cell first appeared in Episode 7 of the first season of Cells at Work!, and they took a bit of criticism for making him something of a sympathetic character. Well, he’s back – and there’s no sympathy this time!
Though they dragged out Regulatory T Cell’s schtick a bit long, they did build drama pretty effectively. I’ve heard rumors this was supposed to be an eight episode season – and this (episode 7) sure felt like a penultimate episode.
I invite correction on that of course, but I’ve been unable to locate a primary source that definitively gives an episode count.
Dr. Stone: Stone Wars Episode 6
All about Chrome pulling a Mark Watney and science-ing the heck out of it… Will a little help from Ukyo. What is his deal? It’s unquestionable now that he’s got his own game going on. We don’t know his endgame, but certainly not on Tsukasa’s side.
I doubt that was Taiju who slid him the battery. If it was, that opens a whole raftload of questions. Like – doesn’t Tsukasa have any internal security? He’s not that dumb. And if he does, we’re back to Ukyo being in a better place to subvert it.
Horimiya Episode 7
Hori-san to Miyamura-kun
That was… So very well done.
And yes, I saw the post credits. Nothing to freak out about (as I’ve seen in some quarters)… It’s perfectly natural and I think it’s to Horimya‘s credit that they treat it so.
Idoly Pride Episode 7
Except for the poor girl who hadn’t finished her summer homework, mostly downtime for the cast… Pretty much a bog-standard “day off” episode. Kudos though for not making it a fanservice heavy beach or onsen episode.
Kiyo in Kyoto: From the Maiko House Episode 1
Maiko-san Chi no Makanai-san
If you haven’t seen the announcement this morning… Crunchyroll has picked up Kiyo in Kyoto up for weekly streaming! We watched the first ep yesterday on our DVR, but we’ll be swapping over to Crunchy as it’s much more convient.
Anyhow, first impressions… Seems like a sweet character driven slice-of-life so far. There’s hints of mild drama left unresolved (so far), but mild drama and actual plot and SOL aren’t inconsistent at all.
Well, well worth watching.
Laid-Back Camp 2nd Season Episode 7
Yuru Camp 2nd Season
Man… I want to try some gomoku shigure myself! Pretty good episode overall, I love the parallel journeys of our two protagonists. Also loved learning a bit more about Sakura – a closet otaku! At least about that one show…
Non Non Biyori Nonstop Episode 7
Parent’s Day was funny as all get out…
So I’m a Spider, So What? Episode 7
Kumo desu ga, Nanika?
I think all this will all make a lot more sense when the two tales converge… There’s a lot more to the world than we’ve seen from out worm’s eye view. Kumoko knows this now, and Elf-sensei appears in on it (or at least more knowledgeable about it).
The Promised Neverland 2nd Season Episode 6
Yakusoku no Neverland 2nd Season
This… Should have been a high water mark for the season, full of drama, emotion, and feels. Instead, poor direction and storyboarding, lackluster voice actor work, and frankly…. piss poor writing give it all the impact of a Wikipedia article. (OK, gotta be honest, I stole that last from ANN’s episode review.)
It also doesn’t help that Titan is wrestling with many of the same moral issues this season – and is much better at doing so.
My wife and I still watching, but we’re increasingly uncertain as to why. This was supposed to be, in our estimation, a make-or-break episode… and it’s hanging on by the tips of it’s fingernails. Too many plot holes, and the fabric of the tale is weak and rapidly unraveling.
Over at 100 Word Anime, Karandi asks: Is Season 2 Of The Promised Neverland Weaker Than Its Predecessor? An entirely reasonable question, and her answer (and reasoning) well worth reading. FWIW, I agree.
The Quintessential Quintuplets ∬ Episode 7
Go-Toubun no Hanayome ∬ (Second season)
Confessions are in the air! Though if you’d have asked me, I’d wouldn’t have expected Miss Walking Baggage Cart to have been the first. But then… she did do the whole Dramatic Haircut [TV Tropes link] thing, symbolically breaking her ties with the past.
From on the outs with their father to being comfortable with him… all in the span of the episode. And some of what he says, and how he says it, is creepy as hell. He’s got control and stalker issues. (And can’t make up his mind about Futarou.)
And then… we have something new. One of the sisters has stealthily declared war on her siblings. All’s fair in love and war?
Uma Musume: Pretty Derby Season 2
Episode 6 (last week) – introduced an entirely new character and solved her problems.
Episode 7 (this week) – not watched.
(*) With a Dog AND a Cat, Every Day is Fun
Inu to Neko Docchi mo Katteru to Mainichi Tanoshii
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Sorry for this not being as long/full/well done as usual… Life kinda hits you between the eyes sometimes.
It may be hard to comment because you’ll probably have already seen our Thursday shows, but no spoilers please!
Anyhow, as usual, drop a comment and let’s chat!
Apprentice Mages Lounge. 
Oh man, overflowing washing machines are no fun. Hope everythings okay now.
LiveChart says 8 episodes for Hataraku Saibou (so it’s finished now). If I’d have still watched the show, that would have caught me by surprise. (I actually liked sympathetic cancer cell from season, since it makes sense. If they rowed back on that, depending on how they did that, I’m probably glad I dropped it.)
This was probably my least favourite Horimiya episode to date, mostly because it felt all over the place with no transitions. Suddenly there was a new storyline and it took a me a minute to realise. It’s got nothing to do with the content, though; that was great as usual. My teenage self was basically Yuki. And Sakura appearing in the doorframe with that too-large jersey zipped up over the chin was just adorable. No doubt my favourite show this season.
And the Maiko show is fun. I really like the look. There’s hardly any animation, but the art is so pretty that it feels like a picture book with some automated movement. Maybe like a weird cross between a picture book and a puppet show that does its best to look like a regular anime? In any case, I really like the effect.
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Happily I was home and heard it… so only a couple of gallons spilled. But even so, we had to pull everything out of the laundry room to get at all the water. Waiting on our landlord to decide if she’s going to repair or replace, and she’s working on that.
re:Hataraku Saibou
Only 8 episodes? That’s kinda sad considering we basically got three stories. (The middle one, the lactobacilli being long and kind of repetitive.) Between that and Black, it has not been an impressive second outing.
I’m loving it, except maybe the “dish of the day” segments. They’re not bad by any means, just kinda jarring. The animation style did take a bit of getting used to, but I find it charming. I’m hoping it gets more attention out in the community.
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Damn, my sympathies. After the events of the last two weeks, I would not have placed a bet on us having less property damage than you, but apparently that’s where we are. We got lucky.
@Shingeki no Kyojin:
I give a lot of credit to the voice actors. They really nailed it during the Kaya-Gabi argument. (TIL: Ayane Sakura, who voices Gabi, is also the voice of Best Girl Yotsuba from 5-Toubun and Natsumi from Non Non Biyori… that’s versatility.).
I also like the juxtaposition between Kaya and Louise, two girls who were saved and inspired by vets of the 104th, and made very different life choices based on those inspirations (and Mikasa appears to have had a PTSD flashback from her encounter with Louise).
Picking up yet another series is probably the last thing I should be doing this season, but I must confess I liked the first two episodes of Vlad Love. (And, you guessed it, Ayane Sakura voices a main character in this series too.)
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As I said to Dawn, the actual damage was limited because only a couple of gallons spilled. Got lucky that I was home and heard it. Good news, just got off the phone with the landlady and she has a washer already, just have to figure out when it’ll be installed.
I would never have guessed… Drive my wife crazy because I think I recognize a VA and I’ll pause the show to look them up. Sometimes it is surprising what characters are connected via the same VA. (Also, you have good taste in Best Girls.)
Re:Louise… PTSD or wondering about loyalties and how they can be twisted? I guess with recent events and some of the stuff I see in veterans groups, I’m inclined towards thinking about the latter.
What did you decide on Uma Musume? I think after picking up From the Maiko House I’m done with pickups this season. There’s a bunch of shows I should pick up, but there’s just no time. (And I want to watch WandaVision soon too…)
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I wish I could say I made a final decision… but after finally watching episode 2, I kinda-sorta started catching up and haven’t really decided either to drop the show or pick up Vlad Love. This can’t continue…
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I won’t spoil anything, but I will say Uma Musume doesn’t get any better. Unless you’re a real fan of the first season, I can’t recommend it.
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Nino’s confession was another scene I was looking forward to. Even if she isn’t my best girl it’s still a highlight moment. Her first confession on the back of the bike was originally the end of chapter 59 (and the exam arc) and that’s where I thought they’d end last episode, on that cliffhanger, with the double-down in this episode. But this way worked too. Having Nino confess twice in five minutes definitely emphasizes once and for all that she’s totally different from Miku, who’s been dithering around waiting for the “perfect” time to confess for months now. Snooze you lose, girl! :)
Papakano isn’t a bad guy. If you look at the big picture, he’s in a tough spot as a single parent of five teenage step-daughters that he doesn’t really know as well as he should, since his job keeps him away from home so much. While it’s never spelled out, though, I think Futaro’s words stung him. It seems like he’s making more of an effort to be more involved in their lives since that phone call, however awkward his attempts might be. He doesn’t have any trouble telling them apart, though, unlike Futaro. :)
Weekly Yotsuba: https://i.redd.it/602dfnc8lwd61.jpg
I can sum up my thoughts on LBC7 in one sentence. Nadeshiko makes me very happy, and so did this episode. Also, I rewatched S1E9 (the one where Chiaki makes houtou) a few days ago, and it was the first time I really stopped and thought about how different Sakura seems to be from the rest of her family. Maybe it’s because this season has developed her character so much more that now I’m paying more attention to her earlier appearances.
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OK, I see your point… Papa is doing the best he can, but I don’t think he has to be such an ass about it. OTOH, when he seemed on the brink of accepting Futaro – Nino put her foot in it. He could accept Futaro coming in, but not the girls abandoning him for Futaro.
Nino. She’s had a much longer time to think about this than her sisters. In the end, she couldn’t reject Futaro/Kintarou. So it makes sense… and she’s also the most forward of the sisters. She’s never had a problem speaking her mind.
Ah, that’s a great Yotsuba!
Re: Laid Back Camp. I’ve been thinking a lot about Sakura lately too, and how she’s always been there for Nadeshiko… Right from S1E1, and all the subsequent times she drove her to camp, etc… Sometimes she seems almost a co-parent. I wonder about the parent’s work – are they frequently absent? We don’t know much about them… About any adult really, even Toba-sensei. But that also makes sense, this isn’t a drama and the focus is on the girls.
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