This post was written by Dark_Sage. He is Dark_Sage.
I was able to wince my way through 13 shows this season. Yet why do I feel so empty after such a grand accomplishment? Fuck it, have a review.
Anne Happy – 9/10
Analyzing Anne Happy as simply a “highschool girl slice-of-life comedy” would probably put it around a 7, if we were to be fair. Ain’t really all that good at it.
But the show throws a litany of interesting, new concepts (including visual direction) at the wall, and enough of them stick well enough you can sometimes forget you’re watching a cast of idiots bumble about a frustratingly implausible world.
Big Order – 5/10
(Editor’s note: This is where I’d insert the fanart if anybody had cared enough to make some for Big Order.)
Thank god I wasn’t hyped for this or the letdown of suffering a transparent, low-effort Mirai Nikki imitation would have permanently scarred my pure parade heart.
Boku no Hero Academia – 5/10
Ignore the sweet-looking bait image, Academia is a superhero series made for the shortbus crowd.
You have an economy based around heroes fighting villains (as nearly all people have superpowers in this world), but the villains are almost universally trash and have no motives other than “I’m a villain so I’m gonna do villainy things”.
I could deal with a world not being fully built or realized, but Academia doesn’t even have anything to say. There was more nuance in WW2 propaganda for chrissake, and I guess that pisses me off almost as much as the limpdick fight scenes & trash character abilities. This cancer can’t even shounen right.
Bungou Stray Dogs – 7/10
Despite being reminiscent of Soul Eater in a lot of the direction (and I mean that in a good way, people with bad taste), this is still a slow-paced adaptation of a fast-paced manga. If you’re into fujo shounen, just read the manga.
Flying Witch – 8/10
Normally I detest slow-paced slice-of-life series because they either focus on world-building with boring shots of stale landscapes or stupid characters doing tedious things. Yet Flying Witch managed to break the mold by taking good characters and putting them in the spotlight, then letting everything unfold from there. All I ever fucking wanted.
This is a perfect summer series to watch on a porch with a nice breeze, a tall glass of lemonade, and a 750 of Jack Daniel’s because good anime still can’t cure alcoholism.
Joker Game – 7/10
I’m giving this a 7 because it’s seinen and we don’t get a lot of that these days. As unambitious and pointless as the show ended up being, it really is lucky this is a season where it was easy for it to earn points for simply having a dull color palette.
Koutetsujou no Kabaneri – 7/10
Animated by the studio behind Attack on Titan, directed by the guy who brought us Death Note, written by the guy who straight up created Code Geass… where the fuck did it all go so wrong?
We’re stuck with a whiny main character protected after the first episode solely by progress-killing plot armor, as a moralizing tone renders the show incapable of honestly analyzing either the characters or the world. Either this was an intentional cash-in or Okouchi and Araki need to look into their nursing home options. What a waste of time.
Kuma Miko – Girl Meets Bear – 9/10
There’s probably a reason I like this show. I just can’t remember it.
Netoge no Yome wa Onnanoko ja Nai to Omotta – 7/10
Some guy gets an online girlfriend who ends up being his real-life schoolmate. To his dismay, despite having huge personalititties, she is crazy fucked up. Thus begins a story where he tries to fix her, and fails, but decides he’s still in because, c’mon, this is about as high a guy who trawls for online girlfriends will ever be able to reach.
I dunno, there were cute moments. I think.
Re:Zero kara Hajimeru Isekai Seikatsu (Cour 1) – 10/10, this show’s great
Everyone I’ve recommended the show to has loved it. Everyone. The fuck else do you need? Watch this.
Also, don’t believe the hype, the twins aren’t that great. (Fight me.)
Sansha Sanyou – 8/10
As much as I loved it for the colorful characters, I’ve watched this anime before. Hundreds of times. (Okay, not hundreds of times.)
Despite being significantly more enjoyable than most highschool girl slice-of-life comedies, this is still, well, one of those. Playing it safe means it’s harder to fail, but I wish the show had showed an iota of ambition, because as-is I doubt I’ll remember Sanyou until I come back to this post in a year to jerk off to my writing.
Sousei no Onmyouji (Cour 1) – 3/10
Once, not so long ago, shounen had entire multi-episode blocks of “training” arcs whereby it was beaten into the viewers just how hard these genki kids were training to punch people harder. Taking more than a dip into the nostalgia barrel, Onmyouji hug-rapes the outdated concept by making the entire show into a training arc.
Yet with series like Hunter x Hunter where even the straightest collar could loosen at the sight of Gon and Killua sweating over each other, the characters in Onmyouji have all the appeal of drinking sawdust. So yeah, shit sux.
Tanaka-kun wa Itsumo Kedaruge – 9/10
Tanaka just wants to aimlessly drift through life. And you know what? Fuck you if you wanna take that away from him. He goddamn deserves it. ;_;
Watch this show if you wanna learn how waifus can come in more than just one gender. It’s a beautiful thing.
The tracking:
Normal Length:
| Title | 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | Final Score |
| 12-sai | 6 | Drop | Dropped | |||||||||||
| Ace Attorney | Drop | Dropped | ||||||||||||
| Anne Happy | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | |
| Bakuon | Drop | Dropped | ||||||||||||
| Big Order | 7 | 7 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 5 | |||
| Boku no Hero Academia | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| Bungou Stray Dogs | 9 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | |
| Endride | 6 | 5 | 5 | Drop | Dropped | |||||||||
| Flying Witch | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | |
| Haifuri | Drop | Dropped | ||||||||||||
| Hundred | Drop | Dropped | ||||||||||||
| Joker Game | 8 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 7 | |
| Kiznaiver | 7 | 6 | 6 | Drop | Dropped | |||||||||
| Koutetsujou no Kabaneri | 10 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | |
| Kuma Miko – Girl Meets Bear | 10 | 10 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | |
| Kuromukuro | 8 | Drop | Dropped | |||||||||||
| Macross Delta | 7 | 7 | Drop | Dropped | ||||||||||
| Mayoiga | 7 | 7 | 7 | 5 | Drop | Dropped | ||||||||
| Netoge no Yome wa Onnanoko ja Nai to Omotta | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | |
| Re:Zero kara Hajimeru Isekai Seikatsu | 10 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 10 | 10 | 10 | |
| Sakamoto Desu Ga | 7 | Drop | Dropped | |||||||||||
| Sansha Sanyou | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | |
| Shounen Maid | Drop | Dropped | ||||||||||||
| Seisen Cerberus | 7 | 7 | 5 | Drop | Dropped | |||||||||
| Sousei no Onmyouji | 8 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | |
| Super Lovers | Drop | Dropped | ||||||||||||
| Tanaka-kun wa Itsumo Kedaruge | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 |
Shorts:
| Title | 01 | 02 | 03 | 04 | 05 | 06 | 07 | 08 | 09 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | Final Score |
| Bishoujo Yuugi Unit Crane Game Girls | 5 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Onigiri | 7 | 7 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 |
| Pan de Peace | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Ragnastrike Angels | 9 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 7 | |
| Space Patrol Luluco | 8 | 8 | 9 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 |
| Usakame | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | |
| Wagamama High Spec | 4 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
Of these, Onigiri is the most notable. By the end you realize it gives no fucks about anything, and it’s really disappointing the first few episodes couldn’t properly reflect that. Worth a trip if you think Teekyu might somehow still be enjoyable if the girls took their ADHD pills.
and if you want my opinion: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E9pmFYuzCLc
No way is that your real voice….
u got a problem fam?
:^)
11.2/10 review, would listen again
Best part is when you turned into Bill Cosby and started choking.
Subscribed.
Nice taste, sir!
Good taste is what I’m known for~
Shit taste, you mean? No Berserk?
Berserk aired in Spring 2016?
Yes, the twins aren’t that great
Roswaal on the other hand…
Why would you drop kuromukuro? The show is fucking great.
Please do yourself the favor of giving it one or two more episodes.
Even Macross Delta is better than Kuromukuro…
Yessss
DS came over to the right side
Re-ZERO is da best!
Fuck the twins, Elsa-oneesan is best!
Elsa p. good. Felix p. best.
Good taste for once. I’m proud.
although your opinions still strike me as becoming worse and worse, they always manage to put me at ease.
thanks for the shit taste as always.
I mean, seriously? Re:Zero; a 10/10? even after seeing the pathetic excuse for a new arc?
Pathetic scores for pathetic show and main character.
I like this new arc the best tbh. Show is subversive as fuck. If Subaru said all the things he did but the show kept him with a cocky attitude all throughout it, it’d be just another good shounen. But for Re:Zero to show Subaru’s bullshit for what it is – pathetic and self-serving… like, goddamn, that takes some fucking courage. And I am impressed it’s willing to go there.
Your poorly informed grand sweeping generalizations of Academia never fail to depress me…
If you feel strongly about the show, and think I’m missing something, you’re free to argue your point. Crymore ain’t exactly an echochamber.
Too much of your opinion of the series is based off assumption and too little is based of what the series has actually presented to you.
I’m not exactly positive about how part of the world’s economy being based off of heroes fighting villains, which is an interesting concept executed well by the series imo, is affected by the quality of the villains motivations for one. Those two things are pretty exclusive.
That’s not to say that the villains’ motivations are bad. I see no reason why Hands(Shigaraki) can’t both hold that world view and enjoy what he is doing. I’ll agree that the scene feels somewhat awkward, but Funimation’s garbage-tier subs and Bones’ presentation choices certainly aren’t lending it any favors. The show makes it clear that the villains have some greater goal and reasons they want to achieve that goal, but purposely doesn’t offer you more information at the time.
Calling the major enemies trash while knowing so little about them seems poorly informed to me. You could make the argument that the first season did not do a great job setting up the villains motivations which I would agree with slightly though.
Along with that, expecting the series to have something profound to say so soon in its run is just odd. What is your favorite Shounen series? I can almost definitely bet it did not say anything profound within the first 13 episodes.
I will say Academia has already presented interesting ideas though. The importance of strong “symbol” for a society to rally behind and how that relates to peace is one great example.
As for the “limpdick fight scenes and trash character abilities,” I guess that’s just your opinion. It’s mostly up to Bones’ presentation choices whether the fights look good or not and your own personal taste. Most people agree that the Eraser Head and All Might fights were pretty sweet along with Deku’s plan to take out all the villains surrounding the boat at the very least. The actual choreography of many of the fights was really good for the most part as well. I know we’re judging the anime here, but all the fights were awesome in the manga. Only fight I would say the anime improved upon would be All Might vs. the Nomu.
When it comes to the character abilities, they are designed in a way as to have certain drawbacks, have room for growth, and be able to be combined with others for interesting results. The interesting parts come from how characters can use simple powers in creative ways and work around their drawbacks. This is a series where there are so many powers that there is bound to be some that you really like anyways, so again that’s a somewhat broad sweeping generalization.
I’m not trying to say the series is perfect, it’s definitely not. Season 1 really doesn’t present any 10/10 material, that’s for sure. I can’t really say that your grievances listed here hold much weight though.
Almost forgot to add the more simplistic powers of MHA are highly preferable when compared to the wacky shit we get from so many other shounen series. I’m glad it’s not this universe-altering crazy shit like powers from something like Bleach, NnT, or even Jojo. In a way, the powers of MHA feel refreshing because they’re so much more grounded than what we normally get.
>your opinion of the series is based off assumption and too little is based of what the series has actually presented to you.
My opinion of the series is based on what has aired of the series. Why shouldn’t it be? That’s the whole point of an anime review.
>The show makes it clear that the villains have some greater goal and reasons they want to achieve that goal
No it doesn’t. It shows that Mr. Hands takes his orders from someone else is all. There is no indication they have ‘greater’ goals, let alone any goals beyond “Kill Superman”.
>Calling the major enemies trash while knowing so little about them seems poorly informed to me.
I call them trash because that’s what they are. The villain army got wrecked by trainee scrubs even when they had the advantage of a surprise attack. They couldn’t even inflict any casualties. Useless.
>What is your favorite Shounen series? I can almost definitely bet it did not say anything profound within the first 13 episodes.
Soul Eater. But hell, kid, even Naruto had the Zabuza arc start at episode 6.
>I will say Academia has already presented interesting ideas though. The importance of strong “symbol” for a society to rally behind and how that relates to peace is one great example.
Now I’m on a Naruto kick, thanks a lot. “Hokage”. Next one?
>Most people agree that the Eraser Head and All Might fights were pretty sweet along with Deku’s plan to take out all the villains surrounding the boat at the very least.
Ignoring the obvious logical fallacy there, the fights have no impact because they lack consequence. Good guys always win, no one dies, bad guys lose because they’re bad guys. Everything gets wrapped up just in time for recess.
>When it comes to the character abilities
Some series have interesting character abilities. Recently (same season): Bungou Stray Dogs. Or even something like Hunter X Hunter. Academia is simply uninspired.
I’m really not getting from your defense why you like it.
>My opinion of the series is based on what has aired of the series. Why shouldn’t it be? That’s the whole point of an anime review.
I’m basically trying to say that making such grand sweeping generalizations about the series as a whole this early, when it will clearly be continuing, is like trying to make a full judgement on the entirety of Soul Eater by episode 13. It lacks any foresight, and can easily be held up to scrutiny.
>No it doesn’t. It shows that Mr. Hands takes his orders from someone else is all. There is no indication they have ‘greater’ goals, let alone any goals beyond “Kill Superman”.
Have you ever though about what the implications of killing superman actually are? What wide scale effects that would actually have on society and how that would allow someone in power to actively change the view of the world?
>I call them trash because that’s what they are. The villain army got wrecked by trainee scrubs even when they had the advantage of a surprise attack. They couldn’t even inflict any casualties. Useless.
Those are not the “main villains” as clearly stated by the show. The ones that got taken out so easily were scrubs recruited to try to overwhelm the students with sheer numbers. Most of Class 1-A have been working towards becoming pro heroes since they were extremely young and have been training ever since. Most of the random thugs off the streets haven’t had the training or education the students have had most of their lives.
>Soul Eater. But hell, kid, even Naruto had the Zabuza arc start at episode 6.
So you’re saying Soul Eater or Naruto had something profound to say after 13 episodes. Neither of them did even in the slightest. I guess only “kids” don’t share your opinions, right?
>Now I’m on a Naruto kick, thanks a lot. “Hokage”. Next one?
The Hokage of Naruto is treated far differently from All Might as a symbol. Naruto’s Hokage is more like an elected official, while All Might is more like nuclear weapons during the cold war. He makes us feel powerful and safe, and active symbol of peace that lets us throw our weight around in the name of “peace”.
>Ignoring the obvious logical fallacy there, the fights have no impact because they lack consequence. Good guys always win, no one dies, bad guys lose because they’re bad guys. Everything gets wrapped up just in time for recess.
Are “logical fallacies” the new buzzword in town? I won’t disagree there is some conformation bias here, I’m just seeing people trying to disprove others with the phrase all over now. As for the stakes, anyone expecting any of these characters to really die in the first 13 episodes of a SJ series is insane. I certainly don’t recall any major deaths in Soul Eater or Naruto by episode 13. You might need to rewatch some Akame ga Kill if you want something with writing that bad.
>Some series have interesting character abilities. Recently (same season): Bungou Stray Dogs. Or even something like Hunter X Hunter. Academia is simply uninspired.
I’m really not getting from your defense why you like it.
Again your opinion I guess, but again you only know a small amount of character abilities from the series. I personally like how everyone just has their own special “quirk” that is more like a biological function than a spiritual energy or whatever.
I’m not really trying to show why I like the series, just disagree with your problems. I could gladly write why I love the series in great detail, not that S1 really includes too much of why I love it. Part of the reason I already liked it quite a bit when all that was out was the first 20 chapters (what season 1 covers) was because I could easily see the potential of the series, I enjoyed the character personalities, I liked the relatively quick pacing, and I could feel how genuine and full of heart the series was.
>I’m basically trying to say that making such grand sweeping generalizations about the series as a whole this early, when it will clearly be continuing, is like trying to make a full judgement on the entirety of Soul Eater by episode 13.
My judgement of Soul Eater was commensurate with my final score: this show is gonna be something special.
>Have you ever though about what the implications of killing superman actually are?
It’s like you’ve missed the past 50 years of nerddom. If you aren’t American, I can forgive ya for that, but yes, this has been rather fully explored. It is also not even an issue Academia really addresses since even if it had the courage to kill All-Might off, he already threw his powers onto MC-kun who is narrating the story from a timeframe in which he has even surpassed All-Might.
>Those are not the “main villains” as clearly stated by the show.
Mr. Hands is a main villain. Mr. Smoke is a main villain. Nomu is a main villain. They got smashed, and all their lackies did too. Piss-poor showing.
>So you’re saying Soul Eater or Naruto had something profound to say after 13 episodes.
Soul Eater and Naruto both presented interesting scenarios after their *first* episode.
>All Might is more like nuclear weapons during the cold war.
I look forward to you explaining this one.
>Are “logical fallacies” the new buzzword in town?
“appeal to popularity” is the fallacy I was referring to. I rarely bother to call these things out, but I will when they’re egregious.
>As for the stakes, anyone expecting any of these characters to really die in the first 13 episodes of a SJ series is insane.
Zabuza and Haku died in episode 16, which completed the Zabuza arc. Had Naruto been cour-based, that would have happened in the first cour.
>you only know a small amount of character abilities from the series
I know all of them that have been shown in the series. I’m glad you enjoyed the manga, but that’s not what I’m reviewing here.
Academia is very much a children’s cartoon. It strives desperately to present things in black and white so that people make no mistake about the morality of its characters. Compare it to eg. Gundam or LotGH where you also have two sides fighting, but most of the time can’t tell exactly which is the “good” one (the shows/movies themselves present convincing arguments in either favor, and at the same time remind you of all the shitty things the sides in question have done in the name of their goals), or if there is one that is good at all. The motivation of Academia’s bad guys in particular is insulting to intelligence because that’s just not how things work with real people.
The show also abuses that annoying and overplayed shounen trope where a powerless character with a strong sense of morality (the stereotypical Lawful Good in RPG terms) is gifted with some sort of overwhelming superpower, the only significant drawback of which in this case is being more or less completely overcome with plot armor before it could lead to anything genuinely interesting. It doesn’t lead Midoriya into situations where he has to question any of his methods, decisions, or morals, thereby doing fuck-all to his growth as a protagonist. You could argue that the (currently) limited state of his power makes him ration his resources, but basically he’s just doing *the exact same thing* he was doing back in ep1 or so. He has become more powerful but he hasn’t grown at all as a character. He hasn’t lost anything or anyone dear to him so far—where are the stakes? Even All Might is neither killed nor has his secret revealed by the end—no-one is really losing anything except the villains who suffer a major defeat. What’s even the point? Fucking One Piece does character growth better—considering its protagonist is the poster child of all things stubborn and headstrong. The only potentially interesting character is Bakugou because he’s the one treading the morality line. Midoriya could have been a very interesting character had he stayed Quirkless, but the way things are going he’ll end up a Gary Sue that is both overpowering and otherwise impeccable. Meh.
You have to consider that good guys duking it out with bad guys to epic soundtracks doesn’t automatically make a show good, interesting, or otherwise significant. Complex and conflicted characters, questioning morals and motivations of said characters, and exploring the consequences of their choices are what makes a show. Academia attempts none of this and remains perfectly flat throughout. It doesn’t teach you any lessons unless you consider “be a goody-two-shoes, and you will be presented with amazing power” a lesson.
Again, broad sweeping generalizations. Luffy does not have any kind of profound character growth in the first 13 episodes of One Piece. How could you even compare Luffy’s slight character growth 100s of episodes into One Piece with your “guess” that Deku will not have any character growth?
One thing that the show is clearly building up to which is something that Midoria needs to learn is that being OVERLY self sacrificial like he has been is going too far and not helping in the long run. Along with that he is going to have to come to terms with the fact that he has to eventually present himself as a symbol that people can rally behind if he truly wants to take up All Might’s mantle. He has already developed as a character by becoming more confident.
The plot armor argument is silly as well, no shit All Might wasn’t going to die already, that would be a massive deal. I think you’re underestimating what a big deal people knowing about All Might’s true form is as well, even if it’s just the class.
I have seen this exact same argument elsewhere. You could argue that S1 does not feel like a full character arc has happened and it doesn’t have a satisfying conclusion, but you’re ignoring that Shounen manga just doesn’t work that fast. You’re trying to compare something that is clearly just getting started to entire complete series or series with 100s or episodes. It just doesn’t make any sense at all.
You cannot seriously compare non-stop shows like One Piece with high-budget single-cour-at-a-time shows like MHA. They operate on completely different pacing sensibilities that, in the case with latter, have to account for at least some kind of intermediary conclusion by the end of every cour because you have to wait at least a year for the next one. The former, on the other hand, is encouraged to waste time so that the manga (which is where half the revenue come from) can catch up.
The rationale for my “guess” is that the “sweet spot” for Midoriya’s growth is already in the past. He didn’t have to work too much for his powers, he started off with his morals already developed, so the amount of further development avenues possible for his character has shrunk to an uncomfortably low value which doesn’t make anyone any favors… certainly not the audience.
As for the confidence, I’m not really seeing what you’re seeing. Even before his first encounter with All Might, Midoriya wasn’t very discouraged from wanting to become a hero, nor from attempting to save a person in a situation where he couldn’t possibly win—quite the opposite was the case. That’s what he started with. Yes, he stood up to Bakugou during the training course, but the difference in that situation was that he *could do it physically* as a result of his training with All Might, whereas previously he just wouldn’t even be able to. I don’t consider that a notable change because that’s just par for the course—even the low-profile characters like the lumpy head one go through that in a matter of several minutes. At the end Midoriya still considered his performance in the fight against the villains a failure and had to be told explicitly by All Might that it wasn’t (at least not completely).
The plot armor refers to every situation that would be expected to have long-term consequences is resolved in a trivial manner. Midoriya’s hits cause massive damage to his body? No worries, he’ll be healed in a day anyway. All Might running out of time? Meh, he has enough in every case. Teachers being defeated? Sure, no problem, they’re all alive and well. Like I said, the show actively teaches you no stakes are involved because every disadvantage or defeat suffered by the good guys is rendered largely inconsequential. I don’t really care what will change in the next seasons because this one has already done everything for me to stop caring. It couldn’t possibly have done any more to further that particular goal.
As for how shounen manga works, I know. Manga isn’t anime, though, as it doesn’t have to deal with TV format limitations. If the screenwriters decided they would go with separate cours but failed to tell a compelling story arc in 13 episodes, it just means it failed, plain and simple. Want me to name some shounen series that succeeded? It’s not even hard: Gurren Lagann shows two major story arcs in 15 episodes, Rurouni Kenshin Tsuioku-hen tells an excellent story in four half-hour episodes, Gundam Unicorn completes its entire story within one cour while introducing and fleshing out more than a dozen of new characters, Durarara’s first (and best) cour is similar in the sense that it introduces a huge cast while rapidly advancing the story in the span of 12 episodes, Re:Zero has plenty of character development in the first 12 episodes that complete two distinct story arcs, Zero no Tsukaima introduces most of its cast and completes a major story arc in one cour… Of course I don’t expect a complete cycle of character development in the span of one cour from every shounen series under the moon, but I do expect two things: 1) that the major character(s)’ personalities undergo significant change in this time span, 2) that the overall story progresses enough to capture my attention. None of the two things happened in MHA, and there’s no-one to blame but MHA itself.
The problem is that Academia’s manga just did not have a better stopping point that would fit within the first 13 episodes because the story wasn’t written as a TV anime. Again, you can say that was a failing on the studio/director’s part, but not really the series itself.
I’ve already told you about obvious avenues for Midoria’s growth other than just gaining confidence and control over his power, so I’m not going to go much more into that. A handful of series doing it better doesn’t immediately make academia awful, though none you mentioned are based off shounen manga properties in particular. Ruroni Kenshin’s 4 episode OVA tells the best part of the series as a side story. If they decided to do a 4 episode All Might backstory OVA that could be done just as well (though probably not as amazing because that OVA is top tier) either way, not a great comparison.
As for the plot armor, having high stakes is important, but not the be all end all of any series. The stakes can’t really go any higher than “we could die” but bodily damage is a close second because it also affects the character’s future performance. As for recovery girl, her ability is only to speed up the body’s natural healing process. If damage is bad enough she can not heal it with her quirk; case in point, Eraser Head getting his orbital lobes crushed. Her power is more important to keep the pace of the series up so characters aren’t sitting around waiting forever for their wounds to heal.
I personally hate it when a series I’m watching/reading kills off a character we hardly know anything about but has shown tons of potential to be interesting, seems like a waste to me. Also if academia just started killing off characters people would just be pulling the edgy card, so it really can’t win.
You made the right choice with Kiznaiver. It was just angst city.
When it got to the “masochist” I was done. Pander harder, Trigger.
I watched it for the pandering with the masochist and still ended up disappointed. He had 0 relevance to anything after his episode.
>1 to 10 scale
>Uses only 7 through 10 99% of the time
>Drops shows @ 5 or 6
For someone who rates subs on the whole A to F scale, you’re pretty fucking bad at using the base 10 scale.
On MAL I rate 10% of shows a 10, 10% a 9, and so on, attaining a perfect average of 5.5, if that’s what you’re into.
For these posts, I use the same scale that most people do, whereby 7 is an average score and anything above is “good” and anything below is “bad”. A more diverse grouping of scores below the “7” mark would require me to undrop shows, as I generally am not interested in watching something I deem subpar.
Why do you give a shit about “using the same scale most people do”? Only reason people visit this place is to see your scathing reviews of shit subs that deserve an F, that most others wouldn’t bother calling out.
I also don’t understand why you’d have to “undrop” shows if you used 1-10 here. If you do it on MAL already, what stops you from posting it here, other than “most other people”, as I rebutted earlier?
I can do it on MAL because I can force 10% breaks and the breaks make sense because I’m dealing with large numbers. How am I going to force a 10% break on 13 shows in one season? I’d have to throw a bell curve on that shit, and I hate bell curves.
Ultimately, I want to use language that a general audience can understand. That’s why I type like I’m talking to you, and ignore standard conventions regarding writing that I feel get in the way (for example, starting sentences with “And” or “But”). In this case, the score range I use makes the most sense, as it is the score range most commonly used by those who rate media.
If you feel a disconnect between the fansub reviews and other reviews on this site, that’s fine. As far as the fansub reviews go, I have a strong internal understanding of the general score setups that I came up with early in the site’s history, so there should be a pretty common thread between those. When it comes to video games or anime, though, I am far more focused on what I’m saying than the actual score at the end, because I don’t treat the final score as some kind of important canon. Sometimes I don’t even use the score as a score, so much as an addition or a counter to the written narrative. I approach writing these things differently.
Ultimately, if you think there’s a measurable valuable behind modifying my scores to match my MAL, or adopting the system & standards I use in my fansub reviews, I’d ask that you articulate it clearly. I am willing to update my standards if there is a measurable quality improvement to be held by doing so. But I am going to need a strong argument for change, as I am a creature of stubborn habit.
I agree that 13 shows is not enough to use your 10% per interval scale on. However, I still find it very dumb to pigeonhole yourself into that methodology of ratings. You’re continuously doing needless work every time you add another batch of shows to your list, constantly redistributing your scores to achieve near 10% interval bins.
As per your statement about “far more focused on what I’m saying rather than the actual score”, you’re sending conflicting messages. Why do you drop shows midway through, rated @ 5 or 6 (Mayoiga, Kiznaiver) yet stick to finishing shows you rate @ 3 more than 6+ episodes (Sousei no Onmyouji)? The vast majority of people visiting this site will rely on ratings/numbers to cement your opinion about a show. These contradictions will not help that case.
If you’re really keen to suggestions, here is the following scale deemed “3+1”. It doesn’t use numbers, but instead words, that can more accurately describe your feelings towards a show, without conflicting people with your numbers that, quite frankly, do not make any damn sense:
Bad — The show requires effort from you to stand watching it. Will most likely lead to dropping it, but could still finish if you forced yourself to.
Average — The show has some moments, but ultimately does not engage you enough. Might be dropped if you feel your time is better spent on another show.
Good — The show is enjoyable. You enjoy the characters/plot/setting and look forward to the next episode each week. Most likely will not be dropped, unless huge plot changes happen for the worse.
(rare) Best — The show is very enjoyable and stands above the rest. It does something unique, or just executes its characters/plot far better than the rest. Probably only one show a season will have this.
Using these words will allow you to convey your message a lot better without confusing the fuck out of most people. It also allows you to explain why, in some cases, you finished some terrible shows out of spite, while dropping some average shows that really weren’t worth the time.
Still, it’s your site, it’s your rules. I just personally get livid whenever I see people who use only 6,7,8,9,10 , because they are so used to percentage points from school for assessing things.
1. The data entry isn’t that bad, but ranking the shows… that gets harder with my shit memory. So there are issues. But as far as benefits… no one else does it like this, so I find value in that itself.
2. Sometimes I finish shitty shows because they’re easy. Academia is a good example – I don’t have to concentrate on how much I hate it. With something like Mayoiga, I will actively have to watch it, because that’s how the show is set up. And if I’m actively not enjoying myself… well, you can see why I’d drop it. At the same time, maybe a show’s just so bad I have to watch it through. I dunno, people are weird.
I didn’t explain my drops here, so perhaps that’s a takeaway for future improvement.
3. A four-point system? Eh, that could work for a general review like this.
Suppose I could throw the details in a spoiler or something. I track then for my own records anyway.
What I’m taking outta this overall is “communicate better”. So, sure, noted.
ds
where are the summer anime previews at?
whos gonna tell me what to watch?
im dying over here – save me
:<<<<<<
> What a waste of time.
> Gives it a 7
There’s a weird disconnect between what you write about shows and the scores you give them.
Yeah, ain’t it great?
I have to things to say
1) Where are all the shit sub reviews for them giggles? My long lasted read only mode has broke becasue of that.
2) While I agree with many of your scores, I have some things to ask. Why did you drop Sakamoto? Imo it was pretty fun and a bit unsual at its core. Just want to hear you opinion given a score of 7 on the first episode. Can see why you dropped Haifuri though. While I loved it as I am a sucker with a shitty taste when it comes to cute girls, but can clearly see (as clearly as a solar beam with sunny day) why one would drop it or call it shit.
The damn thing about anime is now that all that shit has turned into “who does a cliche with better charactes”. Kinda like hollywood movies (90% of which are dogshit), but on a bigger priduction scale. I was looking through my not so big anime history and honestly can’t tell how some people managed to watch like 2000 tittles. Almost all animes are the same at its core, it all comes to making a good characters now at which many studios (or rather original source authors) fail and do it pretty hard. Some try to do a shit show of characters (Kiznaiver), some go with good ol’ boring character models (*insert any generic anime here*) and there are studios who hit the spot. Like Re:Zero (10/10 pls more). Best main character in a long time. And suporting characters don’t suck a spiky cucumber too. It is good to see that we get more original titles now, without some 18+ visual novel game as a source for 13+ anime title (hello Key animes).
But ffs, my hero academia was bad. People in the net overhyped dat shit. It was okay when I watched it with my friend but I would never watch it alone, not enough giggles. Maybe S2 will be better but I doubt it.
In the end, what I am trying to say is “Pls more sub reviews or I die.” And the communicate better point above,
1. Fansubs don’t really exist anymore, so…
2. Dropped Sakamoto because the manga was funnier and I could get through it much quicker.
It is time to pick the manga up then.
Thank you so much for the rec on Tanaka-kun, that show had completely slipped my attention.
Now it fills the hole that yuyu left in my heart when it stopped being good.
I appreciate these end of the season reviews. I can’t bear to suffer through most of what airs.