Bitchin’ Space Pirates 8 – Don’t Trust Royalty

Even without the suspicious looks from Misa and the princess herself, I would have been suspicious of Princess Serenity.

Something about her just seems . . . off. She seems quite up front: Polite to the crew once she understands the situation, puts on a nice face for everyone at school, and she tells the crew of the Bettenmaru straight up that she would like their aid in seeking out a ghost ship (the same ghost ship that Marika and Chiaki saw earlier in the series?). Doubtless she has some personal connection to this ghost ship. However, I can’t help but think there’s something more to it than even that, though I cannot put my finger on what exactly that is.

Sister Princess Saturday Report! No. 25 – The Middle

When we last left off in our dire tale, Akio had turned the tables on the Sisters by talking Wataru into leaving Promised Island, and thus turning his back on his beloved Sisters. I suppose that’s within the margin of error of whatever monstrous ritual Akio is performing. The Sisters also had another shock to the system when Akio revealed he had resurrected Kaho — that most detestable of the Sisters — and turned her against the brood. How Akio developed these nefarious powers is beyond me, but he had them and used them.

“Kaho, you’re back!” Hinako said. “Help us get Bro Bro back!”

“I am not the Kaho you once knew,” Kaho said. Her voice sounded faintly metallic; her eyes were tinged with emptiness.

“That’s not true!” Hinako said, running toward Kaho. “You’re still my sister!”

“Eliminate her,” Akio said.

“Yes, Master,” Kaho replied.

GUESS THE DUMB Week 5

A rare decision to be semi-classy from the owner of this blog.

I have a theory about Evil Inori: She is the Enemy of Moe. When Inori goes all evil and crazy and whatnot, she engages in acts of ultraviolence, and this episode shows evidence that Evil Inori will also — GASP! — engage in acts of a sexual nature! (It is unclear if she does it with everyone, though, or if It’s OK Because It’s With You, Onii-chan Shoe.) This is all stuff that girls do in those explody cartoons those old-timers love, while Regular Inori is all soft-spoken and demure, and she also sings and stuff like those newfangled moe lovin’ kids enjoy.

So, basically, Guilty Crown is about the struggle between old folks and those gosh darned kids who won’t get off their lawns.

Hunter x Hunter 20 – Friends for Life

Whose eyes are those eyes?

The method of telling the entire tournament to Gon as he wakes up is fairly cheap in the original anime, and I find it no less cheap here. The fight between Hisoka and Kurapika in particular suffers in this version. I don’t remember it being a particularly long, involved battle in the original, because Hisoka has his reasons for holding back, but the battle still means something. It feels big in the context of the story, and when Hisoka whispers something in Kurapika’s ear, it’s a genuine, “Wait, what just happened??” moment.

Bitchin’ Space Pirates 7 – All Work and No Play

inb4 only piece of exciting action in the series is a dream sequence lol

This dream sequence, though, does make me believe that Marika is getting something different from her pirating ventures than she initially expected, as is the audience. Sure, it eventually develops into a nightmare where all Marika’s pirate buddies abandon her and she’s about to get shot down in space by vicious villains, but before that, she’s flying through space all awesome and shooting stuff and being a cool captain and whatnot. The dream, as is often the case, is different from reality, however.

Sister Princess Saturday Report! No. 24 – The Beginning

Last time we left Akio, there was something coming out of his closet, but frankly, I find that dull, so we’ll skip that nonsense for now until it is more convenient for me.

Breakfast the next morning was not fun. The Sisters hardly ate anything; they spent the entire meal exchanging nervous glances with each other. Wataru was, of course, oblivious to the general vibe of the room and shoveled food down his gaping maw as usual. Akio, on the other hand, was well aware of the sense of unease his presence inspired in the Sisters. He gingerly ate his food with a smug grin on his face, glancing every so often at one of the Sisters and delighting in the reaction. I would admire this young man’s behavior if I didn’t find him to be such a distasteful individual.

GUESS THE DUMB Week 4

This episode strikes me as the opposite of last week’s — the dumb is piled on heavy and hard from the start, but the actual ending is strong, even if the path to get there could not be dumber. I’ll give credit where it’s due, though: The ending elicited a genuine “OH SHIT!” from me, even if I felt terrible about it afterward. But I think this is yet more proof that I am remarkably easy to please on occasion.

(Spoiler talk after the break!)

Hunter x Hunter 19 – The Beginning of the End

It’s definitely unfair to compare the Hanzo/Gon fight in the Hunter x Hunter remake with its counterpart in the original series — not only is it possibly the best fight in the original show (it is definitely my favorite), but it is also one of the better shonen anime fights I’ve seen. It’s not top-tier Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood level by any means, but the directing, art style and slow burn development make it an excellent, brutal fight. Some of that remains in the remake, but not as much.

Bitchin’ Space Pirates 6 – Oh, Those Wacky Pirates!

I enjoyed this episode quite a bit, particularly the first taste of true piracy we’ve witnessed thus far. I especially loved the interesting perspective on piracy in this world that comes via the folks riding the space cruise ship.

The initial set-up of Mouretsu Pirates seems to imply that pirating is somewhat Serious Business. They have official backing from the government, children inherit captaincy from parents, and there’s even electronic warfare. Marika’s decision to become a pirate captain is painted as a serious life decision that will change the course of direction her life takes. However, the piracy in which Marika and her crew engages is decidedly less serious than the tone that precedes it. On Twitter, kadian1364 referred to it as “Disney show-esque pirating”, and that description is right on the money.

Sister Princess Saturday Report! No. 23 – He Walks Among Us

“There you go, Dear Brother,” Sakuya said, putting the finishing touches on the guest bed. “The bed’s all ready for your friend.”

“Thanks, Sakuya!” Wataru replied. “I really appreciate it.”

“No problem,” Sakuya said. Wataru walked toward the window and looked outside; while his mind was elsewhere, Sakuya leaned over to Karen. “Has he been spotted yet?”