the ancient magus’ bride

Glancing Upstream: Fall 2017 Retrospective and Review

Who doesn’t love a few surprise twists at the end?

A group of seven people - two women, a girl, and four young men - gather around an iPad that's being held out by an off-screen character. They are all wearing shocked expressions.

To say this season didn’t play out as I expected is a major understatement. Shows I was hyped about early on fizzled out at the end, series I wanted to love didn’t quite win me over, and a show that didn’t even get mentioned in my midseason review came out of nowhere to become one of my favorites of the year. And through it all, there were rocks and composers. Dear, reliable rocks and composers.

Hit the jump for fumbled passes, strong finishers, and dark horses alike.

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Panning the Stream: Fall 2017 Midseason Review

I may have chipped away a few series, but this season still rocks.

An androgynous person with iridescent chin-length hair holds a slug-like creature in their hands and smiles.

Unsurprisingly, given the strength of this season, I’m watching way too many shows. I also wrote way too many words about them. So let’s skip the preamble and dive right in, shall we? Away we go, to mages and musicians and MMOs!

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Rule of Three Review: Fall 2017 Anime Digest

Now with friends!

Four girls and two boys in school uniforms stand around a table covered in boxes filled with what look like blu-ray cases. A pink-haired girl looks startled, while the other seem happy. Subtitle: "We have plenty of time to watch and discuss anime."

Change of pace this season: I participated in a three-episode check-in roundtable with Amelia and Vrai over at Anime Feminist. So instead of doing my usual solo act, I’ll just direct you over there for all the chatter. More shows, more voices, and more recommendations for you dear readers!

Oh–and we didn’t mention sequels, but I’m also keeping up with ClassicaLoid (still a delight), Blood Blockade Battlefront & Beyond (still weird and entertaining), Hozuki’s Coolheadedness (still uniquely silly), and Mr. Osomatsu (still tastelessly amusing). Truly, my watchlist runneth over.

Click here for the full post on AniFem!

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Panning the Stream: Fall 2017 Premieres Digest

Let the battle for a spot on my watchlist begin!
A blonde girl in a school uniform stands with her eyes closed and one hand stretched out to the side. Beside, her someone in a black suit and gloves stands, their face and most of their torso hidden by a tall stack of what appear to be blu-ray cases.

This. Season. Is. STACKED. Or, at least, that’s how it looks after a deluge of strong premieres. Six shows impressed me enough to earn a guaranteed three episodes, not including the four sequels I’m locked into; and honestly, in a normal season, at least a few of the fence-sitters would have been “guaranthreed,” too. I eventually had to start dropping stuff not because I hated it, but because I was terrified my watchlist would topple sideways under the weight of all those shows and crush me beneath it.

Point being, there’s almost certainly something listed below that will catch your fancy as much as or more than it did mine. So let’s dive right into ’em, shall we?

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Panning the Stream: Fall 2017 AniFem Premiere Review Digest

Crawling the dungeons for anime treasure.

A young man and woman dressed in fantasy garb face away from the camera; across from them is a small treasure chest and a giant, fluffy gold mouse. They appear to be standing in a dungeon.

I picked up another batch of full-length premiere reviews at AniFem this season. You’ll still get the usual Premiere Review On All The Things post later this week (once I’ve had a chance to sleep a little), but as has become tradition, I wanted to make these available in a nice digest post.

As has also become tradition, they’re organized by how highly I’d recommend them, from “a whole lot” to “not at all”:

  • The Ancient Magus’ Bride – A beautifully animated adaptation of one of my favorite ongoing manga series. That opening chapter sure is side-eye-tastic, though.
  • Recovery of an MMO Junkie – I found it super cute and charming, but YMMV if you’re bothered by its somewhat shallow handling of gender and sexuality.
  • Code: Realize ~Guardian of Rebirth~ A fun otome VN adaptation with smart pacing, a solid plot, strong aesthetics, and good boys? Folks, we found The Unicorn!
  • Black Clover – A paint-by-numbers shounen fantasy series, but harmless enough.
  • DYNAMIC CHORD – A poorly plotted, cheaply animated, angst-riddled mess. I kinda liked it.
  • KONOHANA KITAN – A neat premise hamstrung by assault “jokes” and fanservice. Sigh.
  • SENGOKU NIGHT BLOOD – The other otome VN adaptation. Almost hilaribad, but alas, not quite.
  • Inuyashiki – Better executed than a lot of the shows above it, but so viscerally unpleasant that I just don’t care.

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