Tuesday, February 28, 2017

Top 10 Cutest Anime Girls Of Winter 2017


Greetings and salutations, avid readers. Now that we've passed the halfway point of the season, it's finally time to take all of our newly obtained waifus and rank them from cute to cutest! As you may or may not know, I do something like this every season because, frankly, what else do I have to do with my life? I apologize in advance if some of your favorite characters didn't make it onto the list but I can't watch everything, you know? Regardless, I'll try to keep this countdown as diverse as possible so no one throws anything at my house.

Girls will be judged based on not only appearance but personality, voice, and random other aspects that make them adorable.

Let us begin!



10) Sucy Manbavaran


Anime: Little Witch Academia
CV: Michiyo Murase


Okay, so 'cute' probably isn't the right word to describe Sucy. She's more of a mysterious, somber-type character that speaks to me and many others on more levels than anyone ever. She's not your run-of-the-mill anime girl, which is even more impressive considering she's surrounded by them in a show comprised almost entirely of rambunxious little witches (Hence the name of the series). There is never a dull moment with Sucy is around as she easily serves as a driving force compelling many to continue on with the show.



9) Kon Tatsumi


Anime: Urara Meirochou
CV: Kaede Hondo


You know, I didn't really expect to care much for Kon when I started Urara Meirochou (Which can also be referred to as 'That one show this season that no one is watching'). But after a couple episodes whizzed by, I realized that she was indisputably the best girl in the series. And a lot of this stems from the fact that she's the only one in the entire Urara group that isn't completely out of her mind. In fact, Kon is one of most level-headed loli's out there, already having her future planned out for years to come...even if that future seems incredibly lackluster. Oh, and that look at that ribbon. Come on, you know you love it.



8) Matome Mayonaka


Anime: Akiba's Trip The Animation
CV: Rie Takahashi

If you've read any of my other 'Cutest Girls' countdowns, you'll probably remember my affinity for red hair. But when that hair starts to glow? Oh man. Plus, Matome kicks ass. Not only is she a complete badass but she's super tsun as well and that's another trope right up my alley. The fanservice and the fact that she's voiced by Rie Takahashi (Best girl IRL) only add to the fact that she's the trump card in Akiba's Trip and I would easily give away my humanity to hang out with her every day.



7) Tooru Miyamae


Anime: Seiren
CV: Shino Shimoji

I had a feeling Tooru was going to be my favorite Seiren girl the second I saw the opening for the first time. When she was finally introduced along with the fact that she's a hardcore gamer, my love for her immediately skyrocketed. Tooru is such a great character because she seems realistic -- one of the key components to Seiren. The only unrealistic part is how she swarmed to such a beta protagonist so easily. Regardless, Tooru's character is endearing from start to finish and is one of the very first to stand out for me in these Amagami-type shows.



6) Serika Onoe


Anime: Chaos;Child
CV: Sumire Uesaka

There's a certain air of mystery to Serika that, for some strange reason, oddly attracts me to her. At times she can seem super carefree and just moments later she'll transition into a girl who's just straight up unsettling. No information about Serika is revealed in the first several episodes of Chaos;Child apart from the fact that she is somehow connected to Takuru's past. Either way, she works this mystery into her favor and, thanks to an absolutely adorable character design, she has earned her spot in this countdown.



5) Aki Adagaki


Anime: Masamune-Kun's Revenge
CV: Ayaka Ohashi

Here is an example of a character I knew I would love right off the bat. Twintails, check. Tsundere, check. Ribbons, check. Despite being such a bitch all the time, Aki has a plethora of traits that breathe life into her character, culminating in a final product that no one can resist. Well, at least those of us who can deal with the neverending barrage of insults that comes along with pursuing her. Poor, Masamune. We all know you're going to fall in love with Aki, too.



4) Koyuki Hinashi


Anime: Fuuka
CV: Saori Hayami

Let's get one thing straight -- I was team Fuuka for more than half of the anime. It wasn't until a week or two ago when I finally came around and decided that Tama-chan was clearly the best girl. Her and Fuuka have a lot of parallels when it comes to their characters, but do you know what Koyuki has that Fuuka doesn't? The childhood friend trait. And not only is she a childhood friend, she is a childhood friend that has been in love with the protagonist for literally ever. In fact, she loves him so much that she actually became famous BECAUSE OF HER LOVE. Tama-chan would easily make the best girlfriend on this list out of anyone. End of story. Oh, and Saori Hayami.



3) Hinae Arimura


Anime: Chaos;Child
CV: Suzuko Mimori

On a strictly visual level, Arimura wins this countdown hands-down. Even with me not typically being a fan of blondes, Hinae is strikingly adorable and only becomes more attractive when her weird, psychic side comes out. I'm learning this season that I really do love ribbons because I think a lot of my attraction for Arimura comes from those colossal bows holding her twintails in place. I feel like dating Arimura would be absolutely terrifying, even without taking her power into consideration. Like, I feel like I'd need to ask for permission to do anything. Is it weird if that makes me like her more?



2) Megumin


Anime: KONOSUBA Season 2
CV: Rie Takahashi

You knew it was coming. This is Megumin's second appearance in a best girls countdown of mine (The first of which was Winter 2016 where she lost to Saya Endou and Kayo Hinazuki respectively). This time around, however, Megumin has earned THE POWER TO LOVE. It's clear that the Megumin x Kazuma ship is beginning to set sail and I have first class tickets. She's just as rambunxious and adorable as always AND NOW she even has a cat! If Megumin keeps this up, she may one day take first place after all. Also, congratulations to Rie Takahashi for her second character on this list. I'm not playing favorites, I promise.



Winter 2017 Champion: 1) Sanae Ebato


Anime: Scum's Wish
CV: Haruka Tomatsu

Ecchan is an example of a character that gets better and better each time you see her. Being head over heels for best friend, Hanabi Yasuraoka (Yes, she is a girl and this is a 100% yuri pairing), we get to witness just how much Ecchan's affection tears her apart from the inside out. With Hanabi already being romantically involved with her [fake] boyfriend, Mugi, not being able to see her love realized becomes borderline unbearable to watch, ultimately culminating in Sanae accepting that she is only good to be used as an item. Having so much pent-up emotion crammed into one adorable and endearing character (ALSO NOTE: Red hair) is a surefire way to claim the number one spot. This is the easiest decision I have had to make in quite a while.


And there you have it, everyone. The 10 cutest girls from the past three months. Feel free to change your desktops, wallpapers, etc.

See you again at the end of next season for another "Cutest Girls"

Feel free to browse the rest of FandomPost while you wait for the next one!

Saturday, February 25, 2017

Neo Parasyte Complete Manga Review


May this Earth be a world that blesses all those who are new.

Creative Staff:
Art/Story: Various Artists
Translation: Kumar Sivasubramanian
Lettering: Steve Wands
Editing: Lauren Scanlan
Cover Design: Phil Balsman

What They Say:
A parasite keeps a house of mysteries that is full of twisted exhibits. Another kills an entire family, only to get stuck infecting a teenage daughter obsessed with fairy tale romance manga. These and 13 more stories, from some of the greatest shojo manga artists alive today, together make up a chilling, funny, and entertaining tribute to one of manga’s horror classics!

The Review:
Content: (Please note that the content portion of the review may contain spoilers)
Ahh, Parasyte -- one of the most intricate and complicated stories of our generation. With themes as heavy as mortality and the meaning of life, it's no wonder the series has been critically acclaimed since its conception in the 90's. But thanks to the recent anime adaptation, Parayste has seen yet another surge in popularity. And what better way to milk that popularity than by creating a compilation manga with short stories from fifteen different artists? Oh, but do you know what would be fun? If we limited that to only shoujo manga artists!

Yup. That's right.

Neo Parasyte features short stories from fifteen different established shoujo mangaka, giving each one less than twenty pages to get their vision and take on the series across. This idea, which seemed incredibly logical and interesting on paper, had serious potential. But here's the catch -- none of them are good! In fact, most of them come across as forced, subpar fan fiction from artists who seemed like they never intended to write something like this in the first place. It gets so bad at points that you can literally envision the planners for this manga going up to the compilation writers and begging them to be a part of it. And to add insult to injury, some of those artists even leave comments after their work exemplifying just that. With that in mind, however, a couple of them (And I really mean only two or three max) are at least average -- which is a feat in itself for stories of their size.

The problem you're going to encounter when throwing together a compilation for a series as huge as Parasyte is simple -- you don't have enough time to get anything across. These artists aren't bad. If they were, they wouldn't have been approached for a compilation in the first place. But the fact that each of them was so limited in the amount of time and space allotted to leave their mark comes across as nothing more than boring, meaningless drivel. I can't even evaluate half of the stories considering they ended so quickly that I couldn't even remember the characters' names. In revisiting the book to try and gain more headway for this review, I discovered that most of the stories had already found a way to sneak out of my memory. That is how small the impression they leave on you is. Hell, Kodansha even throws reviews for the original Parasyte onto the back of this book just to try and coerce you into buying this nonsense.

To those who are utterly obsessed with Parasyte, however, you may still gain solace in knowing that something like this exists -- even if it's borderline unreadable at points. I'm not against compilation volumes. In fact, I think a Parasyte compilation is a great idea. Its universe is limitless when it comes to thematic exploration. But when you're putting something like this together, it's probably best to make sure the writers of the short stories- I don't know, care? What we have here is a book with fifteen different stories and maybe three or four different themes in total with the other seventy-five percent of it screaming, "Hey, look at this Parasyte fanart I drew!"

But hey, at least there's only one of these, right?

In Summary:
Kodansha Comics finds a way to milk the popularity of Parasyte by throwing together forced fanfiction from established shoujo mangaka. With maybe two or three of these stories actually being readable, it's safe to say that this compilation volume is designated for consumption by only the most dedicated Parasyte fans, leaving much to be desired by anyone else. Even those dedicated fans, however, will most likely be let down when they discover that each of these stories can in no way, shape, or form, live up to its source material.

Content Grade: D+
Art Grade: C
Packaging Grade: C
Text/Translation Grade: B+

Age Rating: 16+
Released By: Kodansha Comics
Release Date: November 8, 2016
MSRP: $13.99

Friday, February 24, 2017

Death March To The Parallel World Rhapsody Vol. #01 Manga Review


The Godkiller.

Creative Staff:
Art: Ayamegumu
Story: Hiro Ainana
Character Design: Shri
Translation: Jenny McKeon
Lettering: Rochelle Gancio

What They Say:
Suzuki was a programmer in the midst of a death march--crunch time, when coders live on caffeine and pull twenty-hour days. He just needed a little nap...but then he has a dream. A dream where he's in another world, with RPG-powers right out of his game. A dream where he calls down a great disaster. A dream that, suspiciously, just won't end.

The Review:
Content: (Please note that the content portion of the review may contain spoilers)
Death March is the latest addition to the ever-growing genre of 'dudes getting sucked into gaming universes without a means of finding their way home'. That being said, there are a plethora of ideas we're already pre-exposed to before even turning the first page of this book. However, Death March decides to take a relatively different approach to it -- albeit not an entirely new one considering Wataru Karasuma's "Not Lives" does essentially the same thing. Basically, our protagonist, Ichirou Suzuki (Aptly named after perhaps the most notable Japanese baseball player of all time) is a game developer who goes by the alias 'Satou' (Aptly named after the protagonist of KONOSUBA -- another story where a dude is sucked into an alternate universe). After falling asleep following thirty consecutive hours of work on a game called "War World," Ichirou is sucked into the world he was developing just minutes ago. Of course, this new world shares the same interface and systems that WW had, making him familiar with how it works right off the bat.

One of the ideas the developers of WW had in order to drag in new players was to start everyone off with three charges of a skill called "Meteor Shower" which eliminates all enemies in a wide area of effect. Being summoned into the middle of 300 burly lizard dudes, Ichirou uses his meteor charges and wipes out every single one of them, immediately boosting him to the level cap and maxing out his stats. So now, within just the first chapter, our protagonist is already as strong as possible. What most people would do in a situation like this would be to make the most of their newfound strength and essentially just tear everyone to shreds. Ichirou, on the other hand, has a different idea.

After encountering a Wyvern and accidentally shooting it to the ground, Ichirou stumbles upon some troops from a town by the name of 'Seiryuu,' ultimately saving one of the female soldiers who immediately becomes indebted to him because why the hell not. After some background information is necessarily exchanged, the troops bring Ichirou into the city where he then takes solace in one of the town's inns. Knowing full-well that he shouldn't reveal his true identity (Or level) at this point in time, Ichirou tells everyone that he's simply just a travelling peddler named Satou. And, of course, everyone believes him. I mean, the dude looks about as threatening as a bowl of soup.

From this point on, it's just a lot of touring Seiryuu with the two attractive girls that will most likely serve as the primary love interests in the series (Martha is best girl). But after all of the mandatory sightseeing is out of the way, we're introduced to the heavier ideas of slavery. Apparently, 20% of the population in Seiryuu is comprised of slaves -- most of which are 'beastfolk'. The beastfolk, as you may have expected, are just humans with animal-like properties. According to Zena (The primary love interest that isn't best girl), something happened a long time ago that basically just caused everyone to hate the beastfolk, bringing the theme of racism into play which obviously can be directly linked to slavery. One thing leads to another and Ichirou winds up sticking up for some of the slaves as they are stoned in the center of town. The owner of these slaves, however, winds up having a terrible secret (Which he may or may not even be aware of)...But I'll let you find that out yourselves.

Despite how unoriginal this title may seem at first glance, Death March is actually pretty good. The systems encased within the world of WW seem like they would really make a solid RPG. And with a very detailed levelling and character advancement system, it's easy to tell that a lot of time was put into the world building. Even with Ichirou level-capping instantaneously upon his arrival, it feels like there's still a lot that needs to be done. And the fact that this universe seems to have an immensely fleshed-out backstory leaves even more to be desired as we traverse the rest of this journey.

In Summary:
Don't be fooled by the seemingly unoriginal basis this series throws at you in its synopsis. Death March Rhapsody brings us an incredibly interesting world that stands out amongst the similar series out there and ultimately lays the foundation for what I expect to be a phenomenal story. The characters are likeable and not over-the-top by any means whatsoever -- a feat of its own for a series like this. Though the art may prove to be slightly disorienting at times, this first volume is definitely one I'd recommend to any lover of the fantasy or action genres.

Content Grade: A
Art Grade: B-
Packaging Grade: B-
Text/Translation Grade: A-

Age Rating: 13+
Released By: Yen Press
Release Date: January 24, 2017
MSRP: $12.99

Tuesday, February 21, 2017

Rewrite Episode #19 Anime Review


You can't grow stronger without confidence. 

What They Say:
Kazamatsuri, a modern, well-developed city renowned for its burgeoning greenery and rich Japanese culture, is home to Kotarou Tennouji, a high schooler least privy to the place's shared values. Content to fill his pockets with frivolity, the proud and nosy boy whiles away his time pestering the self-proclaimed delinquent Haruhiko and indulging in his amorous feelings toward the oddball Kotori.

Equipped with the superhuman ability to permanently rewrite any part of his body to multiply his strength or speed, Kotarou is naturally drawn to the supernatural. One special meeting with the lone member and president of the Occult Research Club, the "Witch" Akane Senri, leads to Kotarou reviving the Occult Club by recruiting Kotori and three other members: the clumsy transfer student Chihaya, the strict class representative Lucia, and the unassuming Shizuru. As Kotarou unveils hidden secrets of each member of the Occult Club through their shared adventures, he will inevitably encounter a fate that only he might be able to rewrite.

The Review:
Content: 
(Please note that the content portion of the review may contain spoilers)
Now that Kotarou and his squad have been given their first assignment, it's time for them to prove themselves. However, that's a bit easier said than done considering the team has been essentially placed on look-out duty, leaving Mikuni's gang to do all the fun stuff. And, in adherence to the new standards of Rewrite, we are greeted, once again, with a loli-fied heroine -- Akane Senri. This, being Akane's second loli appearance, is basically a huge repeat of the first. After Akane somehow wanders away from the adoption center, Kotarou comes across her and calls the number provided on her cool little necklace in order to send her back home. Being on an undercover mission, Kotarou is incapable of revealing himself to orphanage aid (The same woman that asked him to babysit Akane what is presumably a year or two ago at this point) and simply carries on with his business. That is until some weird alarm that only Guardian can hear goes off and beckons everyone to the woods.

After his team leaves him behind to go follow their own desire for heroism, Kotarou embarks on a journey through the forest on his own and, what do you know, comes across Akane again. I want to say this girl is a genius escape artist or something like that, but these disappearances can really all be chalked up to bad parenting. I know she's an orphan and all that jazz, but this really is the most inefficient orphanage of all time. Apart from encountering Akane again, Kotarou also encounters what is probably the biggest dinosaur this season (Yes, there have been enough to start ranking them). After it ravages the corpses of some of his classmates, Kotarou decides to chill out for a little and go check out some glowing light off in the distance. Blinded by curiosity, Kotarou stuffs Akane's unconscious body into a tree and sets off for the light, only to find that it's Kagari. Hooray! She isn't gone.

Of course, Kotarou has no memory of Kagari. Apparently, the world lines have gotten messed up enough for that to finally be the case. But...maybe he does remember her after all? I mean, it's the only thing that can explain why he literally just walks away from her when Guardian's mission is kill her by any means necessary. In fact, he even goes as far as lying about even seeing Kagari to begin with. Being utterly gullible, Guardian simply says, "Okay!" and gives Kotarou a slap on the wrist before telling him not to do bad things anymore and stick to his assignments. Oh yeah, Kotori was in the forest too or something. I don't know. She's only shown for maybe like two seconds.

Other than that...nothing really happens.

In Summary:
This episode slows things down yet again with only minimal advancement of the plot. All of the scenes with Akane, though very cute, don't really serve any purpose apart from giving her character more time to be in the frame. And it sucks because, even when she's there, she's doing literally nothing. Kotarou's team-mates show a bit more of their self-interest in leaving him behind to follow a moment of potential heroism, which once again highlights how much of an outcast Kotarou is in this universe. He doesn't really get along with anyone. And...you know what? Maybe that's what the whole Akane thing is about. I think I just figured it out. She's just taking to Kotarou because both of them are misfits. Anyway, I'm pretty sure this arc will be ending soon. I just hope the idea behind it becomes a little more evident in the coming weeks.

Grade: B-

Streamed By: Crunchyroll

Wednesday, February 15, 2017

Rewrite Episode #18 Anime Review


I hope you don't break.

What They Say:
Kazamatsuri, a modern, well-developed city renowned for its burgeoning greenery and rich Japanese culture, is home to Kotarou Tennouji, a high schooler least privy to the place's shared values. Content to fill his pockets with frivolity, the proud and nosy boy whiles away his time pestering the self-proclaimed delinquent Haruhiko and indulging in his amorous feelings toward the oddball Kotori.

Equipped with the superhuman ability to permanently rewrite any part of his body to multiply his strength or speed, Kotarou is naturally drawn to the supernatural. One special meeting with the lone member and president of the Occult Research Club, the "Witch" Akane Senri, leads to Kotarou reviving the Occult Club by recruiting Kotori and three other members: the clumsy transfer student Chihaya, the strict class representative Lucia, and the unassuming Shizuru. As Kotarou unveils hidden secrets of each member of the Occult Club through their shared adventures, he will inevitably encounter a fate that only he might be able to rewrite.

The Review:
Content: 
(Please note that the content portion of the review may contain spoilers)
Okay, so I think I finally understand what's happening. Kind of. When we last left off, we had discovered that Kotarou had begun a new life in a timeline extremely different from the one we're used to. In fact, the timeline is so different that all of the heroines from the previous one are now way too young for Kotarou, even by anime's standards. One thing this means, however, is that Kotarou is now present for the early stages of Guardian and Gaia's formation. And, thanks to that chance meeting with Esaka and the others last week, Kotarou has been eyed for recruitment.

Wanting more than anything to get away from the Martel group, Kotarou leaves home and joins up with the other Guardian hopefuls at Esaka's behest. However, upon enlisting, Kotarou finds that he isn't as physically capable as the other 'superhumans'. But instead of rewriting himself in order to compete, he simply falls in line and takes the training as it comes, being wary of what consequences his rewriting may bring. This is probably the first time in Rewrite that Kotarou has taken a second to really think about his actions before flat-out doing them. Good for you, Kotarou. It only took you seven universes.

Even after finishing his training, Kotarou feels as if he isn't going to be of any help to Esaka. Of course, the handsome monocle-wearing hunter has other plans and tells Kotarou that he doesn't need to be some beefcake in order to be of service. He then goes on to mention plans for a 'huge operation' in Kazamatsuri, which expectedly surprises Kotarou considering...you know, he lives there and stuff. After a few more words of inspiration from Kotarou's new foster-parent (Not really), the episode comes to a close.

So, what I think is going on here is a glimpse into multiple spectrums. After this arc with Guardian comes to a close and the universe undoubtedly comes to yet another unpleasant end, I think we're going to wind up seeing things from Gaia's perspective as well. Kagari is out of the picture, all of the heroines are too young to do anything useful, and Kotarou is surrounded by new friends and acquaintances that he once just viewed as normal adults. With Kotarou now capable of fighting alongside them, we can learn more about how these two opposing factions view the state of the world. Of course, after that next route ends (Should it even happen to begin with), we'll most likely wind up seeing a 'true route' of some sort -- a timeline in which everything comes together.

Or I am completely wrong.

In Summary:
Rewrite is able to get back on its feet as give us the first decently paced episode since the start of the second season. The only question now is whether it will be able to maintain that balance or not. The glimpse we get into Gaia doesn't show us much about their objectives or ideologies but, finally, explains why Lucia and Shizuru were so damn badass in the last season. With Kotarou being handed a front seat to watch how this group ticks, I'm actually invested in the plot for the first time in quite a while. Bonus points to Rewrite for recovering from a hell of a quagmire.

Grade: B+

Streamed By: Crunchyroll

Tuesday, February 7, 2017

Rewrite Episode #17 Anime Review


WHAT IS HAPPENING?

What They Say:
Kazamatsuri, a modern, well-developed city renowned for its burgeoning greenery and rich Japanese culture, is home to Kotarou Tennouji, a high schooler least privy to the place's shared values. Content to fill his pockets with frivolity, the proud and nosy boy whiles away his time pestering the self-proclaimed delinquent Haruhiko and indulging in his amorous feelings toward the oddball Kotori.

Equipped with the superhuman ability to permanently rewrite any part of his body to multiply his strength or speed, Kotarou is naturally drawn to the supernatural. One special meeting with the lone member and president of the Occult Research Club, the "Witch" Akane Senri, leads to Kotarou reviving the Occult Club by recruiting Kotori and three other members: the clumsy transfer student Chihaya, the strict class representative Lucia, and the unassuming Shizuru. As Kotarou unveils hidden secrets of each member of the Occult Club through their shared adventures, he will inevitably encounter a fate that only he might be able to rewrite.

The Review:
Content: 
(Please note that the content portion of the review may contain spoilers)
So, in the week-long gap between episode sixteen and seventeen, Kotarou has joined the army. Don't be too concerned, though, because he's only in the army for one scene at the beginning of the episode and then again in the new opening theme. After that, he's simply just normal Kotarou in a slightly different timeline. Everyone that existed in the 'real' timeline (If you can even call it that?) is still present, just...they're children now. And Kotarou winds up babysitting two of them -- Akane and Kotori. In addition to his new found power of being the most mediocre babysitter in Kazamatsuri, Kotarou has also figured out how to control his blood and fly. And, in other news, I have no idea what's going on anymore.

Apparently, Kotarou's parents are part of the Martel Group (That sketchy organization about preserving the environment). Kotarou, however, doesn't exactly see eye-to-eye with said organization and winds up just doing whatever the hell he wants day in and day out. That, of course, includes killing weird looking monsters because this is Rewrite and there has to be at least one of them in each episode. Using his Beyond The Boundary blood-power, Kotarou winds up beating up a few dinosaurs before being mauled to near-death yet again. But just before he passes out, along comes Esaka and the other hunters who go on to predictably save his life. Since this timeline takes place before the original one, Esaka is, of course, a lot younger and a lot more handsome. Oh, and he still has that cool monocle -- don't worry.

After being scolded about his late night walks in the forest by young Esaka, Kotarou encounters the Kotori of this world. Surprisingly, Kotori was a huge bitch when she was little and immediately forms a toxic, hate-fueled relationship with our protagonist. What these two do have in common, however, is their disposition toward the Martel Group. Kotori eventually coerces her mother into severing ties with said group while Kotarou is left needing to oblige by his parents' will. Even though the two are no longer connected by the position their parents are in, they wound up being brought together yet again by the first normal-looking animal of the series -- a dog named Pero (Totally not a play on the Spanish word for 'dog'). Kotori apparently took the dog in after his previous owners abused him and has since been trying to get him to like people again. Pero has other things in mind, though, and winds up running away. But don't worry, Kotarou conveniently finds the dog in the forest and puts him in a bag before giving him back to mini Kotori.

After Pero is rescued, he dies anyway and everyone is sad. The audience, however, is still left questioning what the hell is going on in this series. Why is Kotarou's personality so different? Why is everyone else a child? Why is Kotori's mom so hot? These are the questions that will hopefully be answered in the coming episode(s).

In Summary:
Uhh...Yeah, so some things happen that may or may not be related to the rest of the series. Kotarou joins the army for four minutes and becomes Mirai Kuriyama. Everyone else transforms into a baby and stops remembering what their personality is supposed to be like. The world is ending yet again, but this time no one is really aware of it. Kotarou also gets a cool new sweatshirt. I think that pretty much sums it up. I guess it was kind of interesting, though, so I'm not going to complain.

Grade: C+

Streamed By: Crunchyroll

Friday, February 3, 2017

Rewrite Episode #16 Anime Review


Bon voyage, humanity.

What They Say:
Kazamatsuri, a modern, well-developed city renowned for its burgeoning greenery and rich Japanese culture, is home to Kotarou Tennouji, a high schooler least privy to the place's shared values. Content to fill his pockets with frivolity, the proud and nosy boy whiles away his time pestering the self-proclaimed delinquent Haruhiko and indulging in his amorous feelings toward the oddball Kotori.

Equipped with the superhuman ability to permanently rewrite any part of his body to multiply his strength or speed, Kotarou is naturally drawn to the supernatural. One special meeting with the lone member and president of the Occult Research Club, the "Witch" Akane Senri, leads to Kotarou reviving the Occult Club by recruiting Kotori and three other members: the clumsy transfer student Chihaya, the strict class representative Lucia, and the unassuming Shizuru. As Kotarou unveils hidden secrets of each member of the Occult Club through their shared adventures, he will inevitably encounter a fate that only he might be able to rewrite.

The Review:
Content: 
(Please note that the content portion of the review may contain spoilers)
Now that everyone is reunited (Kind of), it's time to get to work. Sakura Kashima has mobilized yet another wave of monsters and it's up to Kotarou and the gang to fend them off while Kagari completes her research. Luckily for the girls, Kotarou was able to create a few weapons out of thin air because, you know, rewriting and stuff. But apparently generating guns is too difficult, so he has to generate stuff like swords and giant logs. Before we go any further, though, can I just say something? How the hell can this dude literally recreate human life but not a firearm? Kotarou is able to somehow create actual physical theories of humanity, but not guns. WHY?

Anyway, even with the 'limited' resources they have available, the Occult Club is able to fend off the next wave of monsters. When everyone is winding down, the heroines finally admit they haven't been able to see Kagari at all since their reincarnation and have simply just been doing what Kotarou asks. One more important thing to note is that, at this point, Kotarou has somehow become an adult out of nowhere and no one really seems to care. Regardless, the assistance from the Occult Club has changed Kagari's theory map. Now, instead of all the branches ending in extinction, many of them have started glowing -- signifying 'uncertain' paths the timelines will take. Kotarou seizes the opportunity to leave the alternate-timeline Kotarous a message and plants his version of a message in a bottle on Kagari's humanity platform. This sparks literally every single timeline to change and essentially engulf all of Kazamatsuri, signalling the completion of the theory. Eventually, one thing leads to another and Kagari winds up being encased in a giant, magical tulip before an even larger, final wave of monsters is let loose.

Sakura, figuring out that her time to interject is running out, harnesses all of her monsters from every single timeline and unleashes them all. Of course, this is a bit too much for the Occult Club to handle and everyone winds up dying just as quickly as they had come back into the world. Somewhere down the line (And I can't remember where since everything is literally just thrown at you in this episode) Kotarou figures out that the reason he is an adult now is because he slipped into a ten-year coma -- something that all of the timelines seem to have in common. But let's forget about that for a second as Kotarou transforms himself into the younger model for whatever reason and ultimately gets his ass kicked by dinosaurs. Just as Kotarou is about to die along with the rest of his pals, Sakuya shows up. That's right- Sakuya is still a character. Yes, I forgot about him too. But luckily for Kotarou, this Sakuya is actually the combination of every possible Sakuya from every possible timeline.

Mega-Sakuya then goes on to throw celestial grenades at the now-colossal swarm of prehistoric monsters chasing after Kagari, backed by teenage Kotarou who has turned his arm-sword into a slightly larger arm-sword. Needless to say, Sakuya gets tired of carrying the team and sacrifices himself (Eliminating his character entirely since this was the incarnation of EVERY Sakuya) to save Kotarou and Kagari, albeit temporarily. In the end, Kotarou winds up going berserk and being killed by the remainder of the monsters. The next scene, however, implies that Kagari was able to save humanity (I think?) and Kotarou vanishes, ushering in the next timeline.

Oh yeah, and apparently we've been on the moon this whole time. Who knew?

In Summary:
Rewrite continues to beat a surplus of information into the viewers to make up for what is going to be another crammed-cour adaptation from the visual novel. Missing several emotional marks yet again (But somehow finding a hefty amount of time for poor dinosaur CG), this third installment of season two becomes too fast-paced to really care about or even follow what's going on. The good that does come from this arc ending, however, is that it gives the series a fresh start in a new timeline -- hopefully one that will be executed better than the last.

Grade: C

Streamed By: Crunchyroll