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Scarlet Anime Film Review
Is Scarlet Mamoru Hosoda’s best film? No. But is it an above-average film worth watching? Absolutely.
― It's obvious from nearly the first scene of acclaimed director Mamoru Hosoda's newest film that Scarlet draws from the Shakespearean play Hamlet. Character names and basic plot points are ripped straight out of the play—and Scarlet herself is an obvious female proxy to the titular prince. However, ...
Romeo is a Dead Man Video Game Review
A zany story and over-the-top characters, along with an avant-garde and polychromatic presentation, clash with somewhat simplistic combat mechanics and camera issues.
― Suda51 is a Japanese game developer who needs no introduction. Known for games like Lollipop Chainsaw, No More Heroes, and Shadows of the Damned, his studio Grasshopper Manufacturer continues to take the enigmatic approach in storytel...
Hana-Kimi Omnibus Volumes 4-6 Manga Review
It’s got its ups and downs for certain, but this omnibus of the beloved shoujo manga mostly remains a fun read.
― After a slow start, what better way to kick things up than with a school festival? Here we have arrived at one of the more exciting parts of Hana-Kimi's early phases. It approximates itself towards a tournament arc with the way it opens up; what better way to show off than by having the h...
Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties Game Review
Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties ends up improving on the original experience enough to make it well worth the time of anyone that wants to check out this early chapter of Kazuma Kiryu's sprawling life story.
― Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties presents the Like a Dragon franchise at an interesting crossroads. Now that the series has achieved a degree of mainstream recognition and success that its original fans...
Let This Grieving Soul Retire! Season 2 Anime Series Review
There is a single joke at the core of this anime: No matter how far the odds are stacked against him, Krai is always going to win—and it's going to be completely by accident.
― There is a single joke at the core of Let This Grieving Soul Retire!: No matter how far the odds are stacked against him, Krai is always going to win—and it's going to be completely by accident. Now, you might think that knowi...
You and Idol Precure♪ Episodes 37-49 Anime Review
You and Idol Precure♪ has, I have come to realize, one very specific problem: it plants the seeds of meaningful storylines and then doesn’t bother to water them.
― You and Idol Precure♪ has, I have come to realize, one very specific problem: it plants the seeds of meaningful storylines and then doesn't bother to water them. Nowhere is this better seen than in the case of Kaito. Although he's not a ma...
My Gift Lvl 9999 Unlimited Gacha Anime Series Review
This is an anti-hero story so lacking in proper hamminess that there’s hardly a single bit of pork on the bone here.
― There's a part of me that feels there's a much better comedy buried underneath this tale of fantasy melodrama. We have a klutzy warrior girl who doesn't know her own strength and a weird girl who thinks she's a cat. A leading maid's underlings try to trollishly and absurdly seize pow...
Pokémon Horizons: Season 3 - Rising Hope Part 1 Anime Review
Pokémon Horizons does the unthinkable and actually lets the characters age!
― Pokémon Horizons was already doing a lot to break the unspoken rules of the original Pokémon anime. Rising Hope continues that trend by doing the unthinkable and actually integrating a time skip as the catalyst for a new arc. Unlike other anime that might just use a time skip for the sake of changing your character's design...
The Many Worlds of Takahata Isao Book Review
At last, Anglophone readers have an in-depth academic study of the director Isao Takahata, taking us through the depth and breadth of his work.
― This is the first English-language book-length academic study of Isao Takahata, spanning nearly fifty years of his work, from Horus, Prince of the Sun in 1968 to The Tale of the Princess Kaguya in 2013. It's an anthology, with most of the writers taking one...
Nioh 3 Video Game Review
For a lot of folks, Nioh 3 might sound like some form of divine punishment. For sickos who crave a truly hardcore descent into bloody hell, though, Nioh 3 is just plain divine.
―
I am a hardcore fan of the Dark Souls games and their legion of siblings, cousins, and imitators, but even I have to regard the Nioh franchise with a certain amount of dark reverence. The Dark Souls games have become legend...
Wandance Volume 6-7 Manga Review
Is it enough to feel the beat and dance, or does everything need words, too?
― Since Ichirin won their first team competition, by the rules of manga, it is time for a humbling loss. Once again, Wandance bucks the trend. The Ichirin dance team, led by On-chan and the only other male member, Iori, who has a lot of experience in dance battles, shows up and does surprisingly well. Iori takes the individu...
Kakuriyo -Bed & Breakfast for Spirits- Season 2 Anime Review
While the content of this season is a lovely balance of ayakashi lore, peril, and cozy cooking, it doesn't come to anything remotely close to a satisfying conclusion at the end of episode twelve.
― It was a long wait to continue the story of Aoi Tsubaki and her quiet adventures in the Hidden Realm in anime form. (Viz has been releasing the manga right along, although as of this writing the novels rem...
Dragon Quest VII Reimagined Game Review
A worthy remake of a fan-favorite Dragon Quest that newcomers will love—but oldtimers might want to take advantage of the higher difficulty mode...
― You'd be forgiven for having some number of misgivings about Dragon Quest VII Reimagined; the Final Fantasy VII Remake trilogy isn't everyone's cup of tea, and while the previous Dragon Quest VII: Fragments of the Forgotten Past remake on the 3DS is app...
Fire Force Volumes 11-20 Manga Review
There’s a certain point one comes to when reading Fire Force where it’s best to set aside one’s critical faculties and be swept along by the pyroclastic silliness.
― In my recent review of Fire Force volumes 1-10, I lauded Atsushi Ohkubo's apparently final manga series for its accomplished art, excellent character design, goofy humor, and exciting battles, while expressing frustration at the intrusiv...
The Camphorwood Custodian Anime Film Review
While there are some minor issues with The Camphorwood Custodian, overall, this is an enjoyable film.
― When I go into films, one of the first things I pay close attention to is the story and narratives presented to me. The reason for this is that, no matter the visuals or camera work, if a story is engaging, other aspects of the story can be forgiven. However, The Camphorwood Custodian forced me to ...
Mobile Suit Gundam Hathaway: The Sorcery of Nymph Circe Anime Film Review
If deep character explorations and interpersonal drama are your cup of tea, you'll get your fill. If you're just in it for giant robots fighting each other, you'll get that too.
― Like with the first Hathaway film, The Sorcery of Nymph Circe is a character-driven movie more than a plot-driven one. While the story is step-by-step building towards Mafty's impending attack on the Earth Federation Leader...
One Piece Pirate Warriors 4 Next Gen Update Review
The game moves at lightning speed, and this next-generation update helps oil up the gears to keep them chugging along with the action.
― The Next Gen update for One Piece Pirate Warriors 4 adds yet more reasons to play one of - if not the - best One Piece games on the market. If you are unfamiliar with the base game, let me bring you up to speed. One Piece Pirate Warriors 4 is another in the long-run...
Li'l Miss Vampire Can't Suck Right Anime Series Review
There’s a slow-paced, low-stakes, soporific vibe to proceedings that means Li’l Miss Vampire Can’t Suck Right is best imbibed in small portions to avoid losing consciousness.
― Back in September 2025, when I reviewed the first volume of this anime's source manga, while I wasn't overly enamoured with it, I stated, “I think Li'l Miss Vampire Can't Suck Right is likely to translate well to anime.” Was I...
Wash It All Away Volume 2-5 Manga Review
Near the gleaming beaches of Atami, a small cleaning service can ensure that your clothes are just as bright.
― This manga, written and illustrated by Mitsuru Hattori, has a relaxed, somewhat distanced feel, even as we run around town with Wakana. The narrative is trying to do several things at once, and some of those things it does well, while others feel like a dissonant note to the whole. To begin...
Code Vein II Game Review
If the original Code Vein is “Anime Dark Souls,” Code Vein II is “Anime Elden Ring.”
― 2019's Code Vein is very much a game built on the Dark Souls foundation. It plays similarly in most ways, but two things set it apart from that series: its anime-inspired art style and its focus on plot and characters (more than on environmental storytelling and collecting brief snippets of lore from item descripti...
Record of Ragnarok Season 3 Anime Series Review
In a world where rapid changes are frequent and often unrequested, it can be comforting to have a show that is consistent almost to a fault.
― Record of Ragnarok Season 3 is precisely what it purports to be – no more, no less. Dear reader, I'm not completely sure how to approach this review. In part, that is because this work is exactly what it says on the tin, no surprises and no curveballs. I would...
Detective Conan: Rivals Of The Great Detective Part 2 Anime Series Review
It's this span of episodes that showcases what makes Detective Conan so great.
― Rivals of the Great Detective continues to showcase some of the stronger elements of the Detective Conan franchise. I can continue to question the release order or overall plans for the franchise's global release until the sun explodes, but instead, I'll channel all of that energy into reviewing these batches of episodes...
White Note Pad Manga Review
White Note Pad is a story that demands introspection.
― Tomoko Yamashita is adept at writing stories that explore humanity. Although not many of her works have been translated into English, the two anime adaptations she's garnered – The Night Beyond the Tricorner Window and Journal with Witch – both amply demonstrate her thoughtful exploration of identity, gender, and sexuality alongside complex emot...
Cosmic Princess Kaguya! Anime Film Review
What do you get if you smash together The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter with the online-sphere riffs of BELLE and a dash of Revolutionary Girl Utena's sapphic affection?
― What do you get if you smash together The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter with the online-sphere riffs of Belle and a dash of Revolutionary Girl Utena 's sapphic affection? You get a chromatic storm like the fantasy sci-fi musical Cosmic Pri...
Zombie Land Saga: Yumeginga Paradise Film Review
Zombies battle aliens in the Zombie Land Saga movie, which isn’t as funny as the show but reminds us why Tae Yamada is Legendary.
― The strongest quality of Zombie Land Saga's first two seasons that this movie mostly lacks is the power of surprise. The TV series excelled at taking huge swerves, dishing out the most absurd comedic situations interspersed with unexpected heartwarming moments. The movie...
Love Through a Prism Anime Series Review
For all the brickbats that you could throw at it, Netflix's sumptuous new romance series set in 1910s London is admirably well-made and thoroughly entertaining.
― Love Through a Prism is the lavish new period romance anime series. It's mostly set in England of the 1910s; it's animated primarily by Wit Studio (though with a plethora of collaborating studios in the credits); and it's co-written by Boys...
Inexpressive Kashiwada and Expressive Oota Anime Series Review
I wanted a spin on the usual “opposites attract” story, and that’s exactly what I got. Perhaps I wanted it a little too much.
― I feel like I was the only person on the face of the Earth who was the least bit excited for Inexpressive Kashiwada and Expressive Oota. Why not? I enjoyed the first episode enough, with its solid direction and its spin on the archetypal “opposites attract” premise. He's an ...
Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans – Urðr Hunt Special Edition Anime Film Review
This film is essentially a remastered compilation of several video game cutscenes, and that origin ultimately hampers what could have been an interesting feature film.
― 10 years ago, the director and writer behind anohana: The Flower We Saw That Day took her shot at a Gundam entry with Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans. Between Tatsuyuki Nagai's underrated skill as an action director (A Certa...
Alice in Wonderland: Dive in Wonderland Film Review
This modernized film of Alice in Wonderland is pleasant in places, but it's too mediocre to justify a cinema release.
― Maybe you've had the experience of waking in the early morning, turning on the TV, hopping channels, and stumbling on a kids' fantasy cartoon that you've not seen before; not a TV episode but a stand-alone cartoon special or film. Honestly, it's not a great cartoon in terms of its s...
Hell Mode Volumes 2-3 Light Novel Review
In a word, Hell Mode has thus far been tedious.
― I get what Hell Mode is going for by having its protagonist—a 35-year-old gamer named Kenichi, who's renamed Allen upon his waking up in this new world—reincarnated into this generic RPG world as a baby. Born into this new world, our protagonist doesn't have to grapple as hard, if at all, with the logistical difficulties that come with being overnight...
Whoever Steals This Book Anime Film Review
Whoever Steals This Book is, unfortunately, one of those films that is 100% style over substance.
― Whoever Steals This Book is a film filled to the brim with imagination. Mifuyu's adventure takes her into wonderfully realized storybook worlds. There's a Japanese fairy tale filled with surreal visuals, a noir detective story portrayed with a black and white color palette and film grain over the top, ...
Baki The Grappler Volumes 5-6 Manga Review
This is a manga in which a thirteen-year-old bulks up by eating and training so effing hard he hits galaxy brain mode and bulks up in ways that are impossible.
― Having defeated Kureha Shinogi, despite the man's intimate knowledge of the human body gained at the cost of dozens of other's lives, Baki almost immediately seeks his next fight. He's spotted fighting 100 delinquents at once, knocking out o...
My Death Flags Show No Sign of Ending Volumes 1-2 Manga Review
Kazuki is a very boring, nothing character that is strictly driven by his survival and he needs to spend most of the story riding a very thin line.
― On the one end, I do appreciate a series that really likes to just cut out all the fat. When Death Flags starts, we don't get any set-up or preamble about our protagonist's past life or how he found himself in the circumstances that he does. He just wak...
The Greatest Wolf of My Life Volume 1 K-Comic Review
The Greatest Wolf of My Life is an immensely entertaining story in its first volume.
― In any other manhwa, or manga or light novel, a pop star moving into the apartment next door would be the first sign of a budding romance for an ordinary young woman. Not in Ran's The Greatest Wolf of My Life - for Eunbyul, having Kang Bin show up in the shabby rooftop studio next door to hers, it's the beginning o...
A Wild Last Boss Appeared! Anime Series Review
In an anime landscape where video game isekai are standard issue, A Wild Last Boss Appeared! is easily one of the more ambitious—and certainly better animated—such titles.
― We never technically learn the name of the protagonist of A Wild Last Boss Appeared! (henceforth WLB). In fact, we only catch brief glimpses of what he actually looks like. Still, we do learn that he's one of the all-time best pl...
Drops of God Season 2 Live-Action Series Review
Sometimes the only way to save something you love is to destroy it utterly. Sometimes, destroying what you love doesn't save anything at all.
― Drops of God, Season 2, has some of the absolute finest acting I have ever seen. Which is both wonderful and devastating, as this sequel to the live-action television series on Apple TV is a difficult and very tightly wound sequel to the live-action televisio...
My Awkward Senpai Chapters 1-104 Manga Review
What starts as comedic social awkwardness soon becomes an example of someone that is a workaholic and plagued by a deep fear of emotional dependency.
― I always find it at least a little bit funny when a series portrays an incredibly capable person in a field that requires a lot of social interaction only for the twist to be that they actually have no social skills whatsoever. Maybe there are some pe...
Fire Force Volumes 1-10 Manga Review
Fire Force has so many other positive aspects that it seems absurd that the author should want to torpedo his chances of a wider audience by so prominently featuring such prurient, out-of-place fan-service.
― Man's fascination with fire dates back to the primeval ages. Fire on demand was one of the very first technologies, and its transformative effects, once harnessed, led directly towards the machi...
10Dance Live-Action Movie Review
Worlds collide on the dance floor as two men with the same name learn how each other moves
― The movie begins with Shinya Suzuki. He is a ladies' man, a laid-back yanki of a dancer. Half Cuban, half Japanese, he longs for his island home. He lives in a tropical enclave in Japan, but is outwardly uninterested in dancing on the international stage. For reasons he cannot identify, he finds himself const...
Elden Ring Nightreign The Forsaken Hollows Game Review
Despite its clear ups and downs, Elden Ring Nightreign The Forsaken Hollows is well worth the asking price of $15.
― Since its release, Elden Ring Nightreign has had more than a few major updates. From harder versions of each boss (which basically add an entire new phase to each fight) to a new way of playing that not only increases the difficulty the more you win but also doubles the amount of chara...
The Legend of Heroes: Trails Beyond the Horizon Game Review
The beginning of the end of the Trails saga sets off for the only worthy setting: space!
― Falcom's Trails series represents a truly massive epic in the making: twelve RPGs produced over the course of 20 years that tell the ongoing story of personal, political, and industrial change in a fictional world. After 20 years, the series is making the jump to its final frontier: space. Being a Trails neophy...
Hana-Kimi Omnibus Vols. 1-3 Review
The beloved shoujo manga still maintains its charm after thirty years, even if the narrative reveals a few old cracks here and there.
― Towards the end of Hana-Kimi's second volume, Hisaya Nakajo wrote that before Hana-Kimi's success, she never penned a story that went beyond six chapters. She might not have expected her manga to achieve such international popularity either, even as she hastily drew ...
Kaya-chan Isn't Scary Volumes 2-4 Manga Review
It’s not quite as good as its most obvious sibling, Mieruko-chan, but it’s still a fascinating take on the ghost story.
― When I reviewed the first volume of Yuritaro's Kaya-chan Isn't Scary manga for the Manga Guide, I said that it was basically Mieruko-chan but in kindergarten. That holds true for the next three books, as the milder elements are gradually overshadowed by the horror, only deepening ...
Temirana: The Lucky Princess and the Tragic Knights Visual Novel Review
Temirana is a light, sweet game that’s easy to pick up, put down, and play when you have the time and it’s long enough to feel worthwhile while also being short enough to feel like you can play to completion.
― How much time do you have to sink into an otome game? If the answer is “not tons,” consider picking up Temirana: The Lucky Princess and the Tragic Knights. It's not a short game by any means, ...
Black Jack - The Complete OVA Series Blu-ray Review
Before Ameku, M.D., before House, there was only one name to call when medicine got weird – the infamous unlicensed surgeon, Black Jack.
― Osamu Tezuka, often called “The God of Manga” (in many cases by himself), has certainly given us many iconic characters—Astro Boy, Sapphire the princess with two hearts, and his epic Phoenix. Among these is the instantly recognizable Black Jack, a man with mismatc...
Shabake Anime Series Review
Shabake may have flown under a few radars as it was airing, but it's a solid show that deserves more attention.
― If you've been watching anime and reading manga for a while, you're probably familiar with the basic ayakashi, or spirits and supernatural beings, that crop up frequently. The kappa, the kitsune, the tanuki, the nopperabo…it'd be easy to assume that these and a few others make up the bulk...
Yano-kun's Ordinary Days Anime Series Review
Every episode is a gift for anxious anime girl reaction face screenshot lovers.
― This delightfully wholesome high school romcom flew under the radar for most anime viewers during the Fall 2025 anime season, and that's a huge shame, as Yano-kun's Ordinary Days is one of the sweetest examples of its genre. Central to the show's charm is the leading lady and audience viewpoint character, Kiyoko Yoshida...
Utawarerumono: ZAN Game Review
Utawarerumono Zan trades out the series trademark strategy with visceral action—does it stick the landing, though?
― While the Utawarerumono series is best known for its strategic leanings, Utawarerumono Zan took the series into a more action-oriented angle when it released in 2018. After six years, Shiravune has brought it back to PC in America. While it has a few flaws in its formula, it's a nevert...
Rooster Fighter Volume 1-8 Manga Review
For a series that could be boiled down to super chickens taking down demons that threatened humanity, the artwork goes so much harder than expected.
― It took me a while to really figure out how I could articulate what makes Rooster Fighter so appealing. At first, I thought it was just the absurdity of its premise because it's a simple yet effective setup for what I thought was going to be a more com...
Wandance Volume 4-5 Manga Review
Wandance really gets you moving.
― Kabo and Hikari are both driven to get better as dancers. Club President On-chan, trying to entice Iori back to the club in the hopes that he'll step up as president next year, agrees to take the club to a dance battle. Kabo gets to bond with the only other guy in the club, and we get to learn the difference between street, house, and break dancing. I absolutely lov...
Search and Destroy Volume 1-3 Manga Review
Kaneko’s art is so sharp it looks like it was drawn with a scalpel.
― “Why are you so… angry?!” So every opponent asks of the vengeful Hyaku immediately before their violent dismemberment at her rage-filled hands. Hyaku, it turns out, has a lot to be angry about. Like her namesake Hyakkimaru, protagonist of Osamu Tezuka's classic Dororo, Hyaku's infant body parts were sacrificed and replaced with pro...
Girl Past the Filters Volume 1 Manga Review
When the girl next door turns out to be your sexy selfie idol, and falls butt-first into your face, you know you’re in a manga comedy.
― This manga was the manga-est of all manga volumes I have read in the past year. Not a single thing that happens actually happens, but they all happen here, one after the other, to create a suggestive sit-com of manga situations. Narumi, who was traumatized for tryin...
Plus-sized Misadventures in Love! Volume 1-3 Manga Review
This went from being a story I was cautious about to a story that I think needs to be told more.
― Plus-size representation in media is very rare, and it's even more rare when it is positive representation. Anime doesn't have the best track record with displaying people of more unique body types in flattering ways, so making a plus-size person the literal face of your entire manga is admirable on its...
Drops of God: Mariage Volume 6-7 Manga Review
This manga about the perfect marriage of food and drink finally finds the perfect marriage of character and plot.
― Now that we are in the middle of this sequel to Drops of God, the story is really hitting its stride once again. Shizuku lost the first round (to prove himself worthy of the challenge of identifying the “Drops of God”) to Issei, saved a local western-style izakaya from competitors and j...
Metroid Prime 4: Beyond Game Review
By and large, Metroid Prime 4: Beyond is a shining example of everything I love about these games, and it makes for an immersive and satisfying experience that is perfectly at home on the Switch 2.
― To say that the wait for Metroid Prime 4: Beyond has been a long time coming would be a massive understatement. It has been nearly two decades since Samus last graced a Nintendo console, and needless to ...
Frieren: Beyond Journey's End Volumes 5-9 Manga Review
The journey can be more important than the destination, but a journey can also be its own destination.
― Frieren: Beyond Journey's End is structurally one of the very best manga I have ever read. The story is simple. More than two decades after the death of Himmel the Hero, Frieren, an Elven mage, takes to the road once again, this time accompanied by Fern and Stark, students of her dear friends. Alo...
Dead Account Manga Review
After reading Dead Account, I think this work is going to be my new go-to example of “shonen slop,” but that being said, this is pretty good slop.
― I think a person's enjoyment of Shizumu Watanabe's Dead Account will mostly boil down to their ability to tolerate characters talking like Redditors nonstop. On its surface, Dead Account promises a deeper examination of the growing intersection between s...
It's Just a Dream...Right? Volume 1 K-Comic Review
This is a book you pick up when you're just looking for some mindless BL smut.
― If the premise of White Eared's It's Just a Dream…Right? sounds like a thinly veiled excuse for the main characters to have sex, that's probably a feeling you should go with. While many a work of either romance or erotic fiction has operated on an even thinner pretext, this one certainly doesn't bury its purpose very dee...
Easygoing Territory Defense by the Optimistic Lord Volume 1-3 Manga Review
For this reincarnated salaryman, a life as an unwanted noble’s son is a ticket to a new beginning, but an easygoing life is a long way off.
― Human creativity is unendingly interesting to me. We are in an unprecedented time of stories that start in incredibly similar ways, and yet, each story is different enough for us to warrant taking time to tell you all about it. Today, we are speaking of the fir...
Fate/strange Fake – Episodes 1-4 Review (Special Screening)
As a longtime fan of the Fate franchise in general and Fate/strange Fake in specific, it was everything I hoped for and more.
― The full series of Fate/strange Fake has been a long time coming. Written by Ryohgo Narita of Durarara!! fame, the book series has been ongoing since 2015 with the first novel getting an animated TV special, Fate/strange Fake -Whispers of Dawn-, back in 2023. Last year, the ...
The Invisible Man and His Soon-to-Be Wife Volumes 1-6 Manga Review
Soft, slow, and sweet, The Invisible Man and His Soon-to-Be-Wife is mostly a nice bit of reassurance that, despite what the news may tell us, the world isn't completely horrible after all.
― It can sometimes feel like not a lot of romances start at the very beginning or go beyond the couple getting together. Either we meet them when they're already fully involved with each other or leave them at that...
Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment Game Review
While you will still be slaying hundreds of enemies and using massive attacks to slay enemy leaders, you do have to pause and take your time to avoid being caught flat-footed.
― Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment is another strong Warriors title that provides plenty of enjoyment for Zelda fans and musou die-hards alike. As I like to do in my reviews, allow me to lay out my background before I get i...
Ren Arisugawa Is Actually a Girl Manga Review
If you’ve been reading manga for a while, chances are you’re familiar with the basic set up of Ren Arisugawa Is Actually a Girl.
― Norito Asaduki's Ren Arisugawa Is Actually a Girl is an interesting work. Not so much for anything it does within its text, but because of its place within fiction broadly today. It's a digitally published manga in a vertical format, which would suggest that it's a work p...
Kirby Air Riders Game Review
Kirby at his zooming-est.
― Mario Kart World—as in, not the millionth expansion for Mario Kart 8, but an actual, brand new Mario Kart game—and Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds were already enough to cement 2025's status as a fantastic year for racing games. To get Kirby Air Riders (KAR)—the long-awaited sequel to the widely beloved Kirby Air Ride on GameCube—during the same year is just icing on the cartoon...
Jujutsu Kaisen Manga Series Review
The story becomes impenetrably incoherent to anyone without a PhD in Akutami’s fictional curse mechanics.
― What is it about recent big shonen hits that involve their protagonists engaging in cannibalism? My Hero Academia was bad enough, with Izuku Midoriya inheriting All Might's quirk by ingesting his hair. Then comes Jujutsu Kaisen's Yuji Itadori gobbling down Ryomen Sukuna's mummified finger to ga...
A Gentle Noble's Vacation Recommendation Volumes 1-10 Manga Review
While I wouldn’t quite classify A Gentle Noble’s Vacation Recommendation as iyashikei isekai, there are definitely enough elements of that peaceful genre to make a decent case for it.
― Most isekai fiction in recent years relies upon one of a few set formulas, with nearly all of them taking a person from our world and depositing them in another, typically game-based fantasy realm. (The presence of RP...
Romancing Saga: Minstrel Song Remastered International Game Review
If Romancing Saga: Minstrel Song gets its hooks into you, you'll likely find that there are few other titles out there that scratch the RPG itch in quite the same way.
― There are three facts that you probably need to know before reading much further into this review of Romancing SaGa: Minstrel Song - Remastered International: 1. Aside from the newly localized scripts, this is the same game that Squa...
My Hero Academia: Vigilantes Manga Series Review
Vigilantes breaks the spin-off mold by shattering expectations, at times rivaling or even exceeding its progenitor manga.
― Spin-offs often come with the expectation that they're mere money-grabs, cynical exercises in milking popular franchises. Plenty of popular shonen manga receive short-lived spin-offs, most often comedic or episodic in nature, and they're rarely essential reads, even for die-hard...
You And I Are Polar Opposites Volumes 2-7 Manga Review
The story does a lot with setting up expectations, flipping them on their heads, but then making the reason for why they were flipped on its head different than what you would originally expect.
― One thing that caught me off guard about You and I are Polar Opposites was just how quickly our main couple got together. It's very rare nowadays to have a slice of life comedy romance where the two main le...
Dark Moon: The Blood Altar Volumes 1-7 K-Comic Review
Dark Moon: The Blood Altar knows precisely what it wants to be and who it wants to be for. It's a fun, occasionally intense fantasy hung on a familiar framework and filled with small delights.
― Every so often, you encounter a series that is more fun than sensical, that wears its influences on its sleeve and gleefully indulges in narrative conventions designed not so much to tell an engaging and cohe...
Jujutsu Kaisen: Execution Anime Film Review
If you're expecting a coherent re-telling of this arc or a chance to rewatch your favorite action cuts uninterrupted, prepare to be disappointed.
― If you've seen the trailers, you're probably aware this comes packaged with a recap of the entire Shibuya Incident. On paper, this seems like a way to catch up viewers who haven't seen this arc in preparation for the new episodes. Here's the thing: the mo...
Frieren: Beyond Journey's End - Part 1 SE & Part 2 LE Blu-ray + DVD Review
At the end of the day, it’s all about the people we meet along the way...
― Looking back at the brisk autumn nights of 2023, I can't help but remember the visceral initial reaction I had to the first few episodes of Frieren: Beyond Journey's End. Despite not being much for fantasy, my heart dropped when the titular character realized she'd lost someone dear to her and never once told him how much he ...
Tease Me Harder: A Sweet and Kinky Romance Volume 1 Manga Review
I never thought that I would use the word "wholesome" to describe an adult BDSM story, but here we are!
― I never thought that I would use the word "wholesome" to describe an adult BDSM story, but here we are! As a person who practices BDSM, I've always been quite unsatisfied with how it is portrayed in the media. It always seems to come from the perspective of people who genuinely don't understand t...
Milano's Odd Job Collection Game Review
This is a game that feels like it's doing everything that it wanted to do, but on the surface, it's very nature does make it hard to recommend to people.
― Boy, kids were definitely built differently in Japan during 1999. Back then I was an annoying seven-year-old who could barely tie his shoes. But here? Milano is doing everything from making pastries to milking flying cows at the ripe old age of el...
The 13th Footprint Volume 2 Manga Review
If I could just figure out the message behind all of the fires, I feel like I’d be a step closer to solving the mystery, and that’s either a brilliant use of a red (hot) herring or a carefully seeded clue.
― How do the puzzle pieces fit together? Like putting together a jigsaw puzzle, unraveling a mystery story involves finding the ways the nubs and gaps line up, and in many cases, we find ourselves ...
Persona 3 Reload Game Review
Persona 3 Reload's bones are nearly 20 years old, but it easily competes with or beats many modern titles for sheer depth, beauty, and fun.
― I have agonized over the review of Persona 3 Reload like almost no other video game piece I have written, and as such, this review comes quite a ways after its release on the Switch 2. And why is that, you might ask? It's simple, really - what the heck do you s...
HOOL!GAN'S Volume 1 Manga Review
Alchemy may not turn lead into gold, but in Hool!gans it turns a lot of people into dust.
― Well, that sure was a lot of things exploding. Sometimes it even had a reason. But “reason” and “plot” take a second place here to “all hell breaking loose.” Lee Heartrib is an orphan. Saved on the street by the alchemist head of the Antilia
Family mafia, Lee is irresponsible, lazy and dedicated to the goal of...
Be Forever Yamato: Star Blazers: Rebel 3199 Episodes 11-14 Anime Review
This season of Space Battleship Yamato is one of the timeliest sci-fi anime I’ve ever seen.
― With the fourth REBEL 3199 “movie”, titled “The Aqua Sasha,” we reach the midpoint of this glossy modern retelling of 1980's Space Battleship Yamato movie Be Forever Yamato and TV show The Bolar Wars. Comprising episodes 11-14, these recently appeared on Crunchyroll at some point soon after their October the...
Fuuto PI: The Portrait of Kamen Rider Skull Anime Film Review
This movie just might be the best distillation, the most coherent adaptation of this material, whether it's for the established fans or the anime-only audience learning about it for the first time.
― A series defined by duality, the FUUTO PI anime managed to balance the double tasks of being a sequel story for fans of the original Kamen Rider W tokusatsu series, as well as a series that allowed new v...
Octopath Traveler 0 Game Review
Octopath Traveler 0 has proven to be one of the best gaming surprises of the year.
― I will admit that I was incredibly wary when I learned that this newest entry of the Octopath Traveler franchise was born from a free-to-play mobile game fueled by micro-transactions and gacha mechanics. I am perfectly aware that plenty of great and ludicrously popular titles have been forged in the merciless fires ...
The Twelve Kingdoms: Shadow of the Moon, Shadow of the Sea Part Two Novel Review
Youko may have been thrown in the deep end, but no matter how deep the water, she was always going to have to learn to swim on her own.
― One of the most familiar fantasies in children's literature is that the protagonist is secretly royalty from another world. But what if that's more of a nightmare than a fantasy? That's the position Youko finds herself in in the second volume of Fuyumi Ono's classi...
Tales of the Hundred Monsters Next Door Volume 1 Manga Review
This is how you write a book about yokai.
― This is how you write a book about yokai. Yokai are, of course, the supernatural given form. Monsters of our own imaginations, mysteries of daily life, the strange, the unusual, the scary, who are assumed to have their own whims, and their own rules. Throw in a little non-linear storytelling that breaks all its own internal structure, then wind it up and le...
Fermat no Ryōri Anime Series Review Season 1 Part 2
Not only does this show address my issue with the lack of mathematics, but it even uses that as a plot point, tying into the larger narrative.
― After watching the first five episodes of this season, my biggest complaint was that Fermat set up a very interesting premise that it wasn't fully utilizing. The show sold itself under the idea of a protagonist who utilized mathematics in the world of cookin...
JUNK WORLD Stop-Motion Movie Review
Certifiably bonkers stop-motion work of cinematic madness.
― Director Takehide Hori is an auteur in every sense of the word – his singular, obsessive vision saw him single-handedly produce the thirty-minute stop-motion short Junk Head 1 back in 2013. So rapturously received was his debut work that he spent seven years expanding it to feature-length format, with the full Junk Head movie seeing interna...
Under the Oak Tree Volume 2 Novel Review
Under the Oak Tree’s second hardcover release is just as beautiful as the first, and the story makes real progress, both in terms of Maxi’s relationship with her husband and with herself.
― Are you the sort of reader who gets irritated when characters are just one good conversation away from understanding each other? Then Suji Kim's Under the Oak Tree may not be the novel series for you. As anyone wh...
Drops of God: Mariage Volume 4-5 Manga Review
When you’re a baseball player, wine tasting is just like a baseball game
― Let's get the most important thing over with first. After reviewing Volume two and three, I did get my Comté cheese. I paired it with an affordable Côtes du Rhône red wine, fig crackers, and greens. It was delicious. Thank you for asking. Issei would have sneered. Or not. In these volumes, Shizuku enters the Tokyo Food and Win...
Cat's Eye Episode 1-6 Anime Series Review
While this seems like a relatively functional introduction to Cat's Eye, it's hard not to feel like you might be better served with the 80s anime instead.
― While Shonen Jump is mostly associated here in the west with big action titles like Naruto or Jujutsu Kaisen, the magazine has always had a bit more variety beneath the surface than it's usually given credit for. All sorts of unique series have m...
Grand Blue Dreaming Season Two Anime Series Review
Grand Blue Dreaming is back with a fiery, if not incredibly idiotic, vengeance. And I’m all for it.
― After seven years of being in limbo, Grand Blue Dreaming is back with a vengeance. Its second season is still as dude bro as ever, with its “beer and tits” style of slapstick littering practically every frame. You can almost imagine being in the frat house as you're watching it, with the room reeking...
Pokémon Legends: Z-A Game Review
It’s a very different Pokémon experience, for better or for worse.
― Kalos is, by far, the Pokémon region most deserving of a Legends game. When X/Y came out in 2013, it was the first new generation of Pokémon not to get a third (or in the case of generation 5, third and fourth) game. This would later become the new normal for Pokémon of course, but that didn't even happen immediately following X/Y, ...
In the Clear Moonlit Dusk Volumes 2-8 Manga Review
In the Clear Moonlit Dusk feels like the sort of series I ought to be enjoying more than I am, which is an awkward position to be in.
― Mika Yamamori has proven over the course of her English-released series that you can't predict where her romances are going to go. Write off purportedly no-chance rivals at your peril and make assumptions about the trajectory of the story at your own risk; Yamamori i...
Detective Conan: Rivals Of The Great Detective Anime Series Review
I'm not sure if this was always the intention or if these episodes were a direct response to the first batch of episodes that TMS put out, but it looks like more episodes of Detective Conan have been adapted that now add some much-needed context.
― Those mad lads did it! I'm not sure if this was always the intention or if these episodes were a direct response to the first batch of episodes that TMS p...
Touring After the Apocalypse Volume 2-3 Manga Review
Even after destruction, Japan’s tourist destinations are worth visiting.
― Upon reading Touring After The Apocalypse manga, I was immediately struck with a sense of familiarity. We've probably all read a few manga in which two girls scavenge for food and shelter after the end of the world, so my initial thought was that it felt like Girls Last Tour, with the same melancholy inevitability. More than t...
The Red Spectacles Film Review
Mamoru Oshii’s first live action film, opening at NYC’s Metrograph theater on November 21, takes place in the same universe with Jin-Roh but couldn’t be more different.
― The Red Spectacles flopped in its original 1987 Japanese release, but the merchandisable design of the Kerberos armor somehow led to the creation of a whole franchise. The best-known film in said franchise is the animated installmen...
Painting The Worlds Of Studio Ghibli Book Review
This is a book for people who love Studio Ghibli's movies, and who also love huge books as physical artifacts in their own right.
― This is a book for people who love Studio Ghibli's movies, and who also love huge books as physical artifacts in their own right. There is, of course, no shortage of Ghibli art books already. You can find individual ones in English for all of the Ghibli films directed by...
Angel's Egg Anime Film Review
Surreal and beautiful, Mamoru Oshii and Yoshitaka Amano's Angel's Egg anime film remains an enigmatic entry in both creators' careers.
― Mamoru Oshii and Yoshitaka Amano's Angel's Egg remains an enigmatic entry in both creators' careers. Years out from his iconic directorial turn with Ghost in the Shell, Oshii wrote the film's story with Amano before the artist touched Final Fantasy. Just a hair's br...
Radio Storm Volumes 1-2 K-Comic Review
It’s hard to truly fight zombies, after all, when you aren’t sure that the people in charge are any less bloodthirsty.
― How do you know you're living through an apocalypse? Zombies are a pretty good clue, as well as pervasive humanitarian crises and endless war. But one major indicator is rarely explicitly discussed, possibly because it feels too alarmingly real: the constant use of misinformation o...
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