Amid shots of gorgeous scenery, a handful of elementary and middle school-age kids attend the Japanese equivalent of a one-room country schoolhouse. Silliness ensues, periodically interrupted by more landscape shots. The heart of Non Non Biyori is Renge, a precocious and hilarious first-grader. Then there’s Hotaru, a former city girl whose family moved out to… Read More First Impression: Non Non Biyori, Season 3
Tomozaki is a gamer. In fact, under the handle nanashi, he ranks first in online play in Japan for a fighting game rendered in the the light novels and Japanese dialogue as “Atafami,” and in the subtitles as “Tackfam.” (Both are abbreviations of “Super Attack Families,” a clear nod to Nintendo’s Super Smash Bros. series.)… Read More First Impression: Bottom-Tier Character Tomozaki
Because I’m a hopeless SAO fanboy, I’m writing about Sword Art Online‘s Christmas episode…again. I did so last year, and others have done the same three and five years ago. But I couldn’t let the chance to write more about SAO slip past me. To recap: In the third episode, “Red Nosed Reindeer,” Kirito joins… Read More 12 Days of Christmas Anime, Day 5: Sword Art Online
I feel rather conflicted about Chivalry of a Failed Knight, Vol. 1. But first, I should explain what the story is about. Failed Knight is set in a parallel universe where Jedi knights Mage-Knights exist. These warrior-wizards are, as one might expect, a cornerstone of military power and heavily influential (a magic samurai led Japan… Read More Review: Chivalry of a Failed Knight (Vol. 1)
I once beat an old-school, combat-heavy, indie RPG called Geneforge 3 as a technical pacifist, never once performing an attack. There were combat-focused zones I couldn’t clear of course, but in terms of finishing the main storyline, there were always alternatives to fighting. I’ve also played through a couple of Pokemon games with type-themed teams.… Read More Review: Redefining the META at VRMMO Academy, Vol. 1
Originally airing its two seasons in 2006, The Third: The Girl with the Blue Eye is post-apocalyptic, slice-of-life, western, adventure story with the occasional giant robot battle. In a distant future, after a high-tech war devastates the environment and kill off most of humanity, self-proclaimed jack-of-all-trades Honoka roves the desert in a tank doing odd… Read More The Third: The Girl with the Blue Eye DVD Set Review
Like the world of Avatar: the Last Airbender, the newest anime adapation of a light novel, Our Last Crusade or the Rise of a New World, features hundred-year war. The belligerents are the magic-intolerant Empire (no further name is given) and the pro-magic Sovereignty. In the prologue, imperial warrior prodigy Iska receives the title Saint… Read More First Impression: Our Last Crusade or the Rise of a New World
The demon king has kidnapped the princess! Oh noes! The overly serious hero is working on the problem, but what’s going on with Princess Syalis in the meantime? The food is good, but she’s bored. And restless. Obviously the solution is to brush her teddy bear jailers to collect their fur, as well as borrow… Read More First Impression: Sleepy Princess in the Demon Castle
As if 2020 weren’t bad enough, back in July, glowing pillars erupted from mountains around the world and began spawning monsters (or maybe they’re robots?). With the pillars proving impervious all known human weapons (up to and including nukes), the world is in crisis. Obviously, this calls for the Norse god Odin to show up… Read More First Impression: Warlords of Sigrdrifa
As a child, Elaina read stories about the adventures of a witch named Nike and wants to go on travels of her own. When her parents say she can travel once she becomes a witch, she studies hard to pass the official exams and become the youngest apprentice witch in the kingdom. For reasons that… Read More First Impression: Wandering Witch: The Journey of Elaina