I'm going to do my best to write about this episode without absolutely frothing at the mouth over giant evil women. I'd also promise that would not color my review, but I won't make a promise I can't keep…
Episode 1044 continues to illustrate some of my core theses about One Piece. Firstly, the episodes which delve into the emotional context of the core Straw Hat crew are far and away the strongest material in the series. Secondly, Nico Robin is a strong enough character to have her own series entirely.
Let's take the flashbacks for example. Most of the flashbacks we see, while artfully done and cinematically rich, are reminders of what we have already seen. Events such as her mother's death, Saul teaching her to laugh, being hounded by other people, and so forth – it hits hard, but there's not much in the way of new revelations here. We already knew most of these things and their emotional beats (though they are always nice to revisit).
The one new piece of information we do get is a bit about Robin's time with the revolutionary army during the time skip. We still know next to nothing about what happened during those two years, and this flashback doesn't exactly reveal a whole lot. We knew she spent time with Koala and Sabo, but now we get more details about Koala teaching her a few Fish-Man Karate techniques. It's a very small amount of new information, but everything – from their little arguments about who gets to work with Robin to her emotional journey in self-worth and fighting to protect herself and others – is incredibly engaging. Robin was with the revolutionary army for two years, and finding out about a single moment in that time is enough to fill an episode with depth and introspection.
Not to mention the marquee fight being an absolute tour de force. Black Maria and Robin's throwdown is somewhere between a kaiju battle and a Devilman fight, and it is full of gorgeous visuals and fluid motion. Toei really made this feel like the highlight of Wano – and I wonder if they'll be able to top it by the end.
Chris and Steve explore this season's magical girl offerings while threatening to recategorize the whole genre. It's a magical free-for-all, from Minky Momo to Acro Trip!― Chris and Steve explore this season's magical girl offerings while threatening to recategorize the whole genre. It's a magical free-for-all, from Minky Momo to Acro Trip! Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the partic...
If you enjoy a slow-burn visual novel, this is going to be right up your alley.― The Memories Off series of visual novels first debuted in 1999, and it's only now in 2024 that we're finally getting one of them in English. In fact, SINce Memories: Off the Starry Sky is the first new entry in the franchise since 2015, and while one or two characters from the earlier games pop in as bit players, this i...
We see major battles through their eyes – distant laser beams visible only from the sparks of light and titanic punches that can be felt miles away as they shake the earth – and realize what it means to be an average person in these times.― One Piece Fan Letter is precisely what its title describes in the best possible way. What a breath of fresh air this was. It's hard to encapsulate all my feeling...
The team raised US$6.68 million for the first-ever film, described as an "experiment" that will blend 2D and 3D elements and audience participation.― On April 8, a one-minute clip circulating on social media caught anime fans' attention worldwide. It's actually the pilot film of the newly-announced anime film titled KILLTUBE. The film is scheduled to be released sometime in 2026, but it's safe to s...
Like any great game with immersive sim elements, Echoes of Wisdom feels like you're getting away with something anytime you solve a problem with anything other than the most obvious solution.― How do you even review a Zelda game? They're some of the most overtly influential video games in the medium's history and are directly responsible for the art form's growth several times over. It's impossible ...
Lucas and Coop discuss the recent Junji Ito anime catastrophe: Adult Swim's Uzumaki adaptation.― Lucas and Coop discuss the recent Junji Ito anime catastrophe: Adult Swim's Uzumaki adaptation. Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the participants in this chatlog are not the views of Anime News Network.Spoiler Warning for discussion of the series ahead. Uzumaki is streaming and available ...
Director Eri Osada and Producer Sho Ohtani discuss Harley Quinn's turn as an independent woman and the DC character that almost made it into the anime.― A team of Super-Villains on a rampage in another world! The Suicide Squad, also known as Task Force X, is a special task force of Super-Villains forced to undertake top-secret government missions in exchange for lesser sentences. The nano-bombs imp...
We all knew Dan Da Dan was going to be a hit this season, but did you expect Orb: On the Movements of the Earth to start so strong? Discover the first user rankings of the Fall 2024 season!― Let's have a look at what ANN readers consider the best (and worst) of the season,
based on the polls you can find in our Daily Streaming Reviews
and on the Your Score page with the latest simulcasts. Keep in m...
Come get your fill of October releases, featuring fan-favorite yuri, horror for Halloween, and plenty of [pumpkin] spice!― Welcome to Anime News Network's Spring 2024 Manga Guide! You may have seen one of our seasonal Anime Preview Guides, where a team of critics writes up each new anime television premiere as it airs at the beginning of a season. Now, doing something like that for manga is tricky ...
My Sister Took My Fiancé and Now I'm Being Courted by a Beastly Prince is off to a solid start. It may not be wholly innovative, but Cordelia is a good heroine and nobody's fool, except when it comes to herself, and she's wholly cognizant of that.― Life is not easy for Cordelia. The daughter of a noble in the kingdom of Liobern, Cordelia isn't so much unremarkable as she is less outwardly beautiful ...
The voices of Ichigo and Uryu reminisce about their decades of memories among a cast that "improves together while supporting one another."― JAPAN HOUSE Los Angeles with VIZ Media hosted a panel with Masakazu Morita (Ichigo Kurosaki) and Noriaki Sugiyama (Uryu Ishida) of BLEACH. In promoting the third season of Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War Part 3 - The Conflict, the two were invited for a Q&A and...