Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. – Episode 3.05: “4,722 Hours”

It’s always darkest before the once-every-18-years dawn.

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After juggling multiple plot lines all season, SHIELD tries its hand at a single, streamlined story, going back in time to detail Jemma Simmons’ six months on the Desert Otherworld in one fell swoop. It’s a solid narrative decision all things considered, as an SF survival story is different enough from the rest of the season’s events that trying to intersperse it through episodes would likely have made it disjointed and tonally jarring. Telling it all at once keeps the pace from dragging, and Elizabeth Henstridge is talented enough to carry an episode more-or-less on her own. As for the decisions made within that narrative … well, your mileage may vary.

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Rule of Three Review: The Perfect Insider

In murder as well as mystery, execution is key.

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In keeping with this season’s trends, I’m going to start another post by saying that X genre can be a hard sell for me. The genre this time is mystery. I love a good mystery integrated into my stories, mind you—who’s this strange person, what’s the relationship between these two characters, why’s all this weird stuff happening in town, and so on—but your straight “whodunit” stories? Not so much. The question “who committed this crime?” simply isn’t enough of a draw.

So, if you want to hook me with a mystery, you need to accomplish at least one of two things: Compelling character drama, or an atmosphere so thick you can cut it with a knife. Fortunately for the rather sparse fall season, The Perfect Insider is two for two in that regard.

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Noragami Aragoto – Episode 4: “Wish”

Storm’s a-comin’. A-yup.

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We’ve been heading toward this godly showdown since season one, so it’s no surprise that last week’s kidnapping(s) serve as the spark that finally sets the whole thing ablaze. Yato’s on the warpath, Yukine is right there with him, and Bishamon is only too happy to cash in that Revenge Card she’s been carrying for centuries. Too bad they’re all pointing their weapons at entirely the wrong person.

Click here for the full post on Anime Evo!

Sailor Moon Newbie Reviews: Episodes 150-151

Out with the old, in with the who?

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I’m on the road for the next couple weeks, so I was already planning on this post being on the short side, but, er, well… I may have left my notes on these two episodes at home (yes, I take notes on paper, like some kind of peasant). And, what with all the running around, I didn’t have time to rewatch the episodes. Meaning that all I have to remind me of what happened this week is a series of screenshots and whatever plot darts stuck to my brainspace. So today, we’ll be playing a new and exciting game: Josei Vs. Fallible, Faulty Memory! And a 3, 2, 1…!

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Rule of Three Review, Dark Horse Digest: Mr. Osomatsu, Dance with Devils

Give me something to sing about~ ♪

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I knew nothing about either of these series and was expecting even less than that, but both have managed to hook me with a hefty dose of the ridiculous. Although, arguably, that’s only intentional for one of them. Read on to learn about fall’s surprise guests, and to hear why both have managed to sink their silly hooks right into my heart.

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Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. – Episode 3.04: “Devils You Know”

SHIELD faces their greatest challenge yet: playing well with others.

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A simple recruiting mission goes awry, two secret organizations make for uneasy bedfellows, personal priorities conflict with professional duties, and a character I liked may have exploded. Yep. Just another day at SHIELD HQ.

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Rule of Three Review, Superhero Digest: Concrete Revolutio, One Punch Man

Can these do-gooders power their way onto the watchlist?

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If mecha is a taste I’ve never quite acquired, then superhero is one that I find myself enjoying more with each year. Give the MCU ample credit for that, as well as new western lady-led comics like Ms. Marvel or The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl, for sure, but magical girls and powered rangers have had a place in my heart for a while now, too, and that place grows a little warmer all the time. So it’s no wonder that both of these shows received glowing premiere reviews not too long ago. As for whether or not that glow has worn off… well, that requires a few more paragraphs than this one.

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Rule of Three Review, Giant Robot Digest: Comet Lucifer, Iron-Blooded Orphans

Time to mech it or break it.

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Some day I’ll do some serious soul-searching and figure out exactly what it is about the mecha genre that generally doesn’t appeal to me. Something about the way they handle militarization and aggression, maybe? I’ll keep thinking about it. Whatever it is, it means both of these series were going to be something of a hard sell for me regardless of general quality. I needed characters I could latch on to or a plot I could sink my teeth in. So, did either of these make the cut, or at least do well enough that I’d recommend them to people who do generally enjoy mecha series? The thrilling answers below!

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Noragami Aragoto – Episode 3: “False Bond”

The characters’ worlds may be unraveling, but Noragami‘s narrative is as tightly woven as ever.

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Three episodes in and Noragami shows no signs of slowing down its full-steam-ahead plotting, yet there’s never a moment where things felt rushed or confusing. This is partly thanks to the wise inclusion of short lulls between the conflicts, moments that allow the cast (and audience) to digest and react to the conflict that just took place, but it’s also a testament to the show’s confident, character-driven storytelling style. Events don’t just happen because the plot needs them to—individuals make them happen, interacting with and affecting one another in ways true to their established strengths and flaws alike.

Simply put, this show’s firing on all cylinders right now, and it makes me groan every time the end credits roll and I have to wait another week to see how Bishamon and Yato’s rapidly accelerating crises are going to turn out.

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Sailor Moon Newbie Reviews: Episodes 148-149

Forget Freytag pyramids—this dramatic structure is all about Amazon arcs.

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Redemption arcs, that is, and wouldn’t you know it, Sailor Moon pulled off another magnificent one. If I had to name the single, primary element of anime that got me to fall in love with it, it’d be its interest in telling stories like these: about sympathetic antagonists and all-too-human villains, and the underlying belief that even those of us who seem the most hateful or hopeless can and often do learn, grow, and improve.

It was just so different from the all-good and all-bad morality of the Disney films and most of the cartoons I watched growing up, and that interest in nuance for both heroes and villains struck a chord of truth in Preteen Me that’s resonated ever since. There’s value in creating ideal characters for audiences to seek to emulate, to be sure. But for my money, the stories about flawed, selfish people nevertheless learning how to move towards empathy and altruism are the really uplifting ones.

That was a long way of saying these episodes were great and I loved them. The even longer way of saying that is below the jump.

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