Ah, Valentine’s Day—one of the most beloved and hated holidays of the year! We get emotional as the day draws near and that messes with our minds, even with we have a solid foundation of what love means. Today, Mike looks to Judges and Ephesians for advice in love—and to that irascible ninja Naruto—in our… Read More The Power of God and Anime, Episode 17: Naruto’s Perspective on Love
Gabriel and the Guardians, an anime-style series three years in the making, finally premieres today on Angel Studios’ platforms. In my review of the pilot episode, I noted that it “exceeded my expectations” and “sets the stakes high for the remainder of season one.” But those praises don’t only refer to the encouraging first episode—they… Read More Christians Coming Together in Creativity: The Gabriel and the Guardians World Premiere
A Christmas encounter with an orphaned pre-schooler forever changes the lives of two hitmen in P.A. Works’ comedy Buddy Daddies. Not your usual Christmas anime episode! (Especially considering the on-screen executions, trigger warning!) But don’t worry, Buddy Daddies is just getting started: the final three episodes also revolve around Christmas, one year later, and it’s… Read More 12 Days of Christmas Anime, Day 12: Buddy Daddies & Why We Need Many Christmases
Christmas happens in the second season of Log Horizon, but it’s just an incidental part of a multi-episode arc (or maybe it’s two parallel arcs, depending on how you look at it). These are “Christmas episodes” only in the sense that the holiday is a background detail—lights twinkle and vendors dressed like Santa hawk strawberry… Read More 12 Days of Christmas Anime, Day 9: Log Horizon’s Resurrections
It’s the crossover episode! Today, Mike joins the 12 Days of Christmas Anime countdown by discussing kindness and caring through a Christmas episode of Happy Lesson. But before he gets to that, Mike tlks about his birthday celebration, The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim, and the upcoming winter anime season, and… Read More The Power of God and Anime (Ep. 13) x The 12 Days of Christmas Anime (Day 6): Happy Lesson
Does anyone think of “vulnerability” and “trust” when they think of Christmas? Perhaps not, especially when we turn toward anime, which emphasizes the holiday as an occasion for romance. At first glance, Kimi no Todoke’s season three Christmas episode (not to be confused with season one’s) seems to fit the lovey-dovey mold, as not one… Read More 12 Days of Christmas Anime, Day 4: Kimi ni Todoke and a Vulnerable Christmas
The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki is a charming spinoff full of amusing nods to the better-known anime The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya. But although Haruhi gets booted from the title, she still has a major presence in the story. Of relevance to the current season, her approach to Santa Claus aligns surprisingly well with a… Read More 12 Days of Christmas Anime, Day 3: The Disappearance of Nagato Yuki and Haruhi’s Wager
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