Month: December 2024

100 Reasons Why I’m Obssessed with CHADtaro

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RJ Writing Ink’s Recap of Season 1 of The 100 Girlfriends Who Really, Really, Really, Really, Really Love You, Pt 1

It’s a new year, and with that, comes new anime and returning anime with new seasons. And one of the anime that I’m most eager to see return also happens to be the pinnacle of the often-maligned harem genre. The reason why it’s the pinnacle is because it goes out of its way to avoid many of the pitfalls of that genre while also fleshing out the girls involved so that they are not cookie-cutter, one-note individuals. I’m talking about The 100 Girlfriends Who Really, Really, Really, Really, Really Love You.

I’m RJ Writing Ink, and welcome to my hilarious recapping of the first season of 100 Girlfriends to get you primed for the upcoming season. There will be major spoilers ahead, so either keep reading or go watch it on Crunchyroll.

Why Can’t Rentaro Get a Girlfriend? Because a god Messed Up

Rentaro Aijo is a boy who only wants to find love and get a girlfriend, and he’s spent his entire life bettering himself towards that goal. Unfortunately, despite being the ideal that every boyfriend should strive for, the poor boy keeps getting rejected. It’s gotten to the point that by the time he leaves junior high, his rejection streak has hit 100! Out of options, Rentaro goes to a local shrine to pray for love. Miraculously, he gets some divine intervention in the form of the shrine’s Love God. Said deity explains that he’s not destined to meet his soulmate in high school. He’s destined to meet 100 soulmates! He will know who they are because when they eyes meet, they’ll get that zing of love.

Rentaro then threatens to burn the shrine down if the Love God is lying (No cap)

Girlfriends 1 & 2: the Love Freak and Tsundere

Sure enough, on Rentaro’s first day of high school, he literally walks into his first two soulmates, Hakari Hanazono and Karane Inda. This is also when the story starts demonstrating how each girl serves as a deconstruction of their archetype. In this case, Hakari acts sweet and cute, but she’s really a girl whose very aggressive in her affections and willing to take things to the next level. In contrast, Karane is a tsundere, but that’s because she’s very shy and insecure about her feelings. That doesn’t stop her from acting as the straight woman to Hakari and the other characters craziness, though.

By the end of the day, the two girls wind up confessing their love for Rentaro and beg him to go out with one of them. At a loss, Rentaro goes back to the Love God for advice, only to learn something horrible. Getting a soulmate uses up all of a person’s luck, and if they reject them, that person will die. And the reason why Rentaro has 100 soulmates is because the Love God was distracted with his paperwork the day he was born watching a Miyazaki film. In other words, the Love God has put the lives of 100 people in danger!

Rightly horrified, Rentaro doesn’t know what to do. At first, he considers dating the two and any future soulmates behind their backs…but he punches himself for even considering that. In the first of many examples of why he’s CHADtaro, Rentaro understands how scary it is to confess your love to someone and fade reflection. Rather than let them experience that and face death, he makes the only move available to him: he will date them all.

Rentaro Aijo manages to prove himself a step above almost all other harem protagonists. He will not only date all 100 women, but will love them equally and make them all happy! And to prove his sincerity, he gives Hakari and Karane two pink four-leafed clovers that are said to make a love confession succeed. The two girls are so in love with him, they wind up agreeing to this insane proposal.

And with that, girlfriends one and two are secured. The next step is deciding who will get to kiss him first.

The Perfect First Kiss

Since the two are his first girlfriends, Rentaro has yet to receive his first kiss. At first, the girls try to fight each other over the right to claim his lips first, but being the savvy man he is, Rentaro figures out what’s happening. Thus, he comes up with this convoluted scheme involving blindfolds and earbuds to make sure no one knows who kissed him first. It doesn’t go so well, and when the two start fighting again, he gets so upset he runs through the hallway to attract the inhuman vice-principal and recieve her unholy kiss of death. Thankfully, the girls threaten to get her fired, saving the day. After that, they just agree to kiss each other at once, and all is right with the world.

Girlfriend 3-The Mute Bookworm

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But then, they head to the library, and Rentaro gets another zing, heralding the arrival of the next soulmate. Meet Shizuka Yoshimoto, the shy, quiet, and sweet cinnamon bun girl who loves books. However, her quietness not by choice. She has a hard time speaking, so she communicates using phrases from her books. All that does is weird people out, including her own mother, making her even more isolated and insecure than she already is. So what does Rentaro do to help her? He commits his next action as CHADtaro: he takes her favorite book, transcribes it all onto a text-to-speech app by hand, and then has her download the app onto her phone, allowing her to finally speak with others! Once she confesses her love, Rentaro happily accepts.

And with that, girlfriend #3 has been secured.

The Harem Grows

After Rentaro introduces Shizuka to his other two girlfriends, their reactions are mixed. Hakari’s overjoyed to see how much love Rentaro has for all of them and thinks Shizuka is the cutest thing in the world. Karane gets mad at first but rolls with it because she loves Rentaro so much. The problem is that Shizuka remains uncomfortable around the other girls, so to break the ice, he has them all play old maid with the winner getting to tickle the loser.

Rentaro proceeds to win the first three rounds and tickles each girl, with comedic results. When Shizuka wins, though, she holds back, greatly irritating Karane. When Rentaro senses things are going wrong, he steps out, allowing the three girls to speak honestly. Karane tells Shizuka off for holding back her true feelings, and Shizuka tells them how insecure she feels to each of them for their beauty and confidence. The three talk their feelings out, and when Rentaro re-enters, Shizuka gains enough confidence to ask him for her first kiss.

Peace is restored!

And this is where we will end part one, as this is too long for us to cover in a single post. Part two will continue things as we head to girlfriends numbers 4 and 5.

War of the Rohirrim: the Prequel No One Asked For

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Lord of the Rings: War of the Rohirrim Review

Lord of the Rings is one of the most famous fantasy series of all time. But it’s also a series to which I’ve never fully committed myself. I understand the broader strokes behind it, but the lore is so thick even I’ve found it hard to keep track of everything. Still, I appreciate the impact it’s had on fiction over the last century, and there’s no denying that the Peter Jackson films are the gold standard for the high fantasy genre. Thanks to that, and due to my undying love of anime, I was willing to give the anime film, Lord of the Rings: War of the Rohirrim, a chance.

There’s no easy way to say this…it’s not that good of a movie. At least not compared to the Peter Jackson films.

Who Asked for this Film?

Set two hundred years before the events of The Lord of The Rings, War of the Rohirrim is, in a nutshell, the story of how the stronghold of Helm’s Deep got its name. It’s told from the perspective of Héra Hammerhand, daughter of the stronghold’s namesake and a character so important, her name is lost to history. When the arrogant father of her childhood friend, Wulf, tries to seek her hand in marriage to his son, the two dad’s come to blows. When Helm kills Wulf’s father with a single punch, Wulf snaps and vows revenge. What follows is something that TV Tropes describes as amounting to a manchild throwing a huge tantrum because he didn’t get what he wanted.

If my opinion about Wulf as an antagonist doesn’t sound that high, that’s because it isn’t. Wulf is not a great villain in this film, and much of it can be attributed to poor writing. At the start, Wulf goes along with his father’s marriage proposal because he genuinely loves Héra. However, despite father Freca making it obvious that this is a play for the throne, and thus brought his death upon himself, Wulf refuses to acknowledge this fact. More importantly, his feelings of inferiority towards Héra make him take her rejecting the proposal far more personally than he should have. I know no one likes the “it’s not you, it’s me” line, but in this case, it really was Héra. She had no interest in marrying at all, valuing her freedom too much to be tied down. Instead of moving on and trying to find another woman, though, Wulf obsesses over her and lets that love grow into a spiteful hatred. I’ve seen antagonists who were obsessed with revenge and hate before, and Wulf doesn’t bring anything new to it.

Then we have Héra, our main protagonist. Despite appearing in Tolkien’s lore for the series, she’s barely mentioned, to the point where she’s not even named. She is, in essence, a character created solely for the film. And from I’ve seen in the film and what I’ve heard, she was heavily inspired by the strong female leads in Hayao Miyazaki. She does have that type of character down. She’s a strong-willed, independent young woman who is more than capable of taking care of herself, much like of Miyazaki’s female leads. Unfortunately for her, there’s one difference between her and characters like San, Nausicaa, Chihiro, and others. That difference is that, in the context of their stories, their gender is not that big a deal. However, for Héra, her gender is a big deal.

The film establishes early on that, despite being the most capable of Helm’s three kids (the other two are sons) and adored by her father, Hera still faces the sexist views of a medieval world. Ignoring what she has to say is what ends up leading to events playing out as they do in Tolkien’s history. It’s only when people start taking her seriously that she proves capable of saving the people of Rohan from certain destruction. Unfortunately for her, Game of Thrones already beat Héra in the “badass female warrior-leader” department years ago with characters like Danaerys Targaryen and Arya Stark. And Arya has a body count that numbers in the tens of thousands by the time the show ended! Héra’s got nothing on Arya!

Not that Good a Film

It’s not just the story and the characters that I have a problem with, though; it’s the animation. While I cannot deny that the animators did a great job trying to make Middle-Earth as breath-taking as fans remember, when it comes to the characters, they fall short. The way they move is stiff more often than not. Their facial expressions, often a big part of anime, aren’t that deep. And when they do fight (which isn’t as much as you would think), it’s not as exciting as you would think. Ignoring the fact that they had to stick to the established world and how battles are fought, the fights here pale in comparison to the films. As someone who sees animation as a means for us to transcend the limits of live-action, I consider that particularly egregious! Why did they even bother making this an anime film?

On paper, the idea of a Lord of the Rings anime film was a good idea. However, when it comes to the execution, War of the Rohirrim seemed to fall short for me. While some hardcore fans of Tolkien’s world might like it, for a more casual fan, like me, this film doesn’t do much to interest me. If you like Lord of the Rings, it might be worth seeing this in theaters or streaming whenever it’s out. Otherwise, I think you can pass on it.

I Give Lord of the Rings: War of the Rohirrim a 2.5/5

A Very Merry Fairy Tail Christmas

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Fairy Tail: Fairies’ Christmas OVA

Most of Japan may not be Christian, but that hasn’t stopped them from enjoying the season of Christmas. Whereas in America it’s all about the exchanging of presents and time with family, in Japan, Christmas is considered a more romantic holiday. Couples, especially young ones, use Christmas Eve to show their partner how much they care about each other. That’s why many episodes of anime that feature Christmas tend to focus on the romantic aspects of the day. However, one of my favorite examples of how Christmas is seen in Japan also stems from a Shonen anime that has a…mixed reception: Fairy Tail.

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Based on an omake chapter of the same name, Fairies’ Christmas revolves around the titular magical guild enjoying the holiday season. When resident swordswoman Erza decides (unilaterally, I might add) to throw a Christmas party at her teammate Lucy’s apartment, things get out of control. Most of the women get drunk and start clinging to whatever guy they’re closest to, leaving Erza alone and upset at the fact that she’s single. In a drunken haze, she forces everyone to take part in a penalty game that forces everyone to do rather embarassing things to each other if they lose.

Chaos. Ensues.

You’ll Either Love This…or you Won’t

I already said it before, but I’ll say it again: I’m well aware that Fairy Tail has a mixed reception. However, that doesn’t change the fact that, when it’s allowed to let loose, it can make for some pretty hilarious moments. And since the concept of Legal Drinking Age doesn’t exist in their world, that means that drunken hijinks ensue thanks to Erza. As if Erza isn’t scary enough as it is, when she’s drunk, she’s an absolute wildcard.

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As mean and unwelcome as Erza’s penalty game may seem when you consider the context behind it, it’s somewhat understandable. Japan sees Christmas as a romantic holiday, but due to circumstances beyond their control, she’s unable to be with the guy she likes, Jellal. Though that hasn’t stopped Hiro Mashima from teasing the heck out of fans about shipping them.

This OVA really has no purpose to it beyond giving us some laughs for the holiday season, but that doesn’t make it pointless. While things do get crazy, that’s generally par for the course when it comes to Fairy Tail. Plus, the special does end on a rather awkward, but still sweet, Erza and Jellal. As to what happens, that’s up for you to see for yourself. If you’re willing to give Fairy Tail a shot, it might be worth a watch for the holidays. If not, no loss.

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is the Movie Fans Have Always Wanted

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Sonic the Hedgehog 3 Review

From the moment people saw the mid-credits scene for Sonic the Hedgehog 2, fans knew what was coming. The next Sonic movie would be adapting Sonic Adventure 2, widely considered to be among the best Sonic games ever made, if not the best. With the way that the Sonic films had managed to defy the curse of video game movie adaptations, combined with the rumors of Keanu Reeves playing Shadow, expectations were sky-high. And while it doesn’t follow the game’s beat-for-beat, Sonic the Hedgehog 3 still manages to meet those expectations, and then some!

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Live and learn! If you beg or if you borrow!

Sometime after the events of the previous film and the Knuckles miniseries, Shadow, the Ultimate Lifeform, escapes from imprisonment by G.U.N. As the edge lord alien carves a path of revenge across the globe, Sonic, Shadow, and Knuckles are called in to stop him. When they prove no match for him, though, they’re forced to team up with a very much alive Dr. Eggman. But then, things take a turn when it’s revealed that Eggman’s grandfather, Gerald Robotnik, is alive (and sprightly for a super-centenarian) and pulling the strings behind Shadow’s quest for revenge.

And that is only the start of things.

They got Keanu Reeves as Shadow. THEY GOT KEANU REEVES AS SHADOW!!!

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While the game doesn’t always hold up to modern standards in terms of graphics, there’s no denying that Sonic Adventure 2 was a high point for the franchise. The 2000s anime Sonic X had already adapted the story for itself, but any attempts to bring it to the big screen would be held to high standards by the fandom. While the source material being a video game meant that creative liberties had to be taken, they do nothing to detract from the overall story. For example, while Shadow’s revealed to be an alien like Sonic in the film, it doesn’t change his backstory. He still has that tragic past where G.U.N. killed his only friend, Maria. And he’s still the bitter, angry, and vengeful edgelord that the fans know, love, and love to make fun of. Except this time, he’s voiced by Keanu Reeves.

For years now, fans who wanted to see a movie version of Shadow the Hedgehog said that Keanu Reeves was the best choice. Given his roles as characters like Neo and John Wick, it’s not hard to see why they wanted him so badly. While he’s been memed as this ultimate edgelord, Shadow is, at his core, a character whose origins were marked by tragedy. And while his lines feel a little stiff at times, Keanu brings all of that angst to bare as Sonic’s famous rival. If anything, the film does a good job of explaining why Shadow talks the way he does. When you see how happy he was with Maria as his friend, and how heartbroken her inevitable death was, you understand why he’s filled with so much anger. He’s one hundred percent done with the world that took his happiness away from him, and he spends most of the film wanting to punish it for the injustice he suffered.

What really makes Shadow work here, though, is that he becomes even more of a direct foil to Sonic than he is in the games. Both are aliens who came to Earth, both have extraordinary powers, and both suffered great loss early in their lives. The film is very direct in saying how Shadow is how Sonic could’ve turned out if he never found friends and family. In anime terms, they become Naruto and Sasuke. But it’s so entertaining that you can’t help but enjoy seeing them banter and battle!

Double Carrey Trouble!

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Speaking of banter, we have the other standout of the film, Jim Carrey as he plays double-duty as the Robotniks. Despite saying he planned to retire from acting on a high note after Sonic 2, he wound up coming back to play Eggman again. Apparently, director Jeff Fowler wanted him back so badly that he agreed to the actor’s previous jokes about wanting a “golden script given to him by angels.” So they delivered a copy of the script printed in 24-carat ink to his doorstep. That’s how serious they were about wanting him back, and it was the right call. Bringing Dr. Eggman to life has proven to be Jim Carrey’s best performance in years, and now he got to play not just Eggman, but also Gerald Robotnik. In the same scenes, no less!

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It can be hard to play a role opposite of a character that has to be CGI’d into a film as they have to be added in later. However, Jim now had to play opposite of himself, and he did a phenomenal job of it while also making the Robotoniks feel like two distinct characters. While Eggman has always been unhinged, his repeated losses against Sonic have brought him to new lows. While he largely remains as evil as ever, Sonic 3 shows how he’s hit rock-bottom, living in hiding and eating junk food while watching telenovelas. When he meets his grandfather, someone who’s not only family, but on his intellectual level, he becomes gleeful at getting to enjoy the childhood he never had. It would honestly be heartwarming if the Robotniks weren’t villains.

As for Gerald Robotnik, having him appear alive in the film is, by far, the biggest deviation from the games. Some fans may not like that since it was his and Maria’s deaths that shaped the story, Jim does a good job of justifying him being alive, despite being more energetic than a 110-year old would normally be. It feels like Jim was channeling his precious experience as the Grinch into Gerald, as he’s even more manic than his grandson. But while Ivo is more blatant in how much he’s suffering, Gerald is a lot more subtle in how broken he is on the inside. The fact that Jim could play characters who are so similar, yet also different, at the same time is an impressive feat. If he were to retire for real after this, no one could blame him.

DROP EVERYTHING. GO WATCH THIS MOVIE!!!

Besides the executional acting from all members of the cast, Sonic the Hedgehog 3 contains plenty of callbacks and references to the franchise for fans to find. From reusing lines directly from the games and shows to even deeper cuts that only hardcore fans will get, the film is a pretty big love letter to the Sonic Franchise. It’s the best out of the Sonic movies so far, and if the people behind it decided they wanted to end things here, no one could blame them. It honestly makes it a little concerning knowing that a fourth film is already slated for 2027? How can Sega and Paramount top this? Even if the films end up going downhill from here on out, though, the first three films are still going to hold up as their own trilogy. This was easily one of the best films of 2024, and manages to blow the competition out of the water.

Does it have “Live and Learn,” though? Go see for yourself! No spoilers here!

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I Give Sonic the Hedgehog 3 a 5/5

Dan Da Dan’s Ending the Season Like That?!?

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Dan Da Dan  Ep 12 Review

It’s been a wild ride this fall, but the first season of Dan Da Dan is now in the history books. Fortunately, the next season has already been announced to be closer than we thought, and given how this season ends, fans will appreciate it. But before we get to that, we have to go over everything that happens in this season finale. As Momo, Okarun, and Jiji head to exorcise Jiji’s house, Okarun is still trying to get over the fact that he’s jealous of Jiji’s relationship with Momo. If only he could see that Momo doesn’t think of him like that.

We Can’t Hate Jiji!

So, after that whole fiasco with the living mannequins (and convincing Seiko to let the girlfriend live at their house), it looks like the mannequin thing is wrapped up. Unfortunately, Taro the mannequin didn’t have one of Okarun’s missing balls. He was just alive because…reasons.

Some people might want an explanation as to why these two mannequins are alive, but it’s actually funnier to leave people guessing as to why. With all the weirdness in the series, you learn to roll with this sort of thing.

Speaking of rolling with things, Okarun is dead set on keeping Momo’s attention firmly on him. That leads him to spend much of the episode trying to find ways to impress her, only for Jiji’s extroverted attitude to interfere. The worst part is that Ken can’t bring himself to hate the friendly Jiji, either. The young man is so nice that the two even start to bond over their shared interest in the supernatural. However, that doesn’t stop them from butting heads over who is closer to Momo, which is fun to watch.

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Why End Things Here?

What wasn’t fun to watch, though, was the way that the episode decides to end things. And since this is the season finale, it’s going to be generating a lot of controversy.

As Jiji explained, and Momo confirms for herself, his house is haunted by a powerful spirit. So powerful that it even manages to alter the appearance of the structure in a way that they don’t notice at first. However, that’s not the most unsettling part. During the episode, Momo breaks one of the cardinal rules of the horror genre by choosing to try out one of the village’s hot springs alone. Worse, the hot spring she winds up choosing is co-ed, a fact she only becomes aware of when a group of men come barging in. The episode ultimately ends with those same men openly attempting to assault Momo!

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Not a Good Way to End Things

This…was not a good moment for the season to end things. While seeing perverts trying this sort of thing on women isn’t new in the Shonen genre, that doesn’t make the site of it any less horrifying. The fact the anime chooses to end the season without showing how Momo will get out of this only adds to the anxiety it’s going to put fans through. While they can always read the manga, some people prefer only to watch the anime to enjoy the story as it goes along. For that matter, having the anime cover the start of the next big arc only to end the season on such a tense moment seems like a failure to properly pace things out.

As much as I have enjoyed Dan Da Dan, I think that the anime genuinely screwed up by choosing to stop when it did. Not everyone is going to appreciate having to wait months to find out what happens next. It’s only the fact that they don’t have to wait long that may end up bringing them back.

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While it was likely meant to be revealed at the end of the episode, Studio Saru announced that the next season of Dan Da Dan would be coming in July 2025. Relatively speaking, that’s fast for an anime! Hopefully, the season finale won’t end up driving away the fans that the show has worked so hard to gain, as it’s easily one of the best anime of the year. I, for one, am looking forward to getting to see more of it next summer!

I Give “Let’s Go to the Cursed House” a 2.5/5

The Last: Naruto the Movie-A Ten Year Retrospective

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RJ Writing Ink’s Look back on The Last: Naruto the Movie

December 2014, one month since the popular Shonen manga Naruto ended. It was the holiday season, but I only wanted one thing for Christmas that year: to see The Last: Naruto the Movie. I wanted it so badly I bought tickets to see it in theaters despite it being in another state. By fate or by luck, I wound up not needing them, as I was able to watch it somewhere else a few days after Christmas. At the time, I thought the film was a masterpiece, but that was due to riding the emotional high that came with the ending to the manga. Fast-forward ten years later, would I still consider it to be a masterpiece? Wanting to know this, I went back and rewatched it for the first time in years. And I’m happy to say that it’s as good as I remember it being.

A Thrilling Epilogue

Taking place two years after Naruto and Sasuke’s final battle, The Last: Naruto the Movie revolves around two things: saving the world and romance. Right as Hinata is working up the courage to confess to our titular hero, her sister gets kidnapped by a mysterious man named Toneri, who also wants her for some reason. Simultaneously, the Moon begins falling towards the Earth, threatening to wipe out all life on the planet. Sensing the two are connected, the now Hokage Kakashi sends Naruto, Hinata, Sakura, Sai, and Shikamaru on a mission to rescue Hinata’s sister, find Toneri, and stop the coming armageddon. However, the mission gets complicated by Toneri’s conitnued pursuit of Hinata and Naruto coming to realize just how much he means to her, and she to him.

There’s no denying that Naruto is one of the all-time Shonen greats, but even its most die-hard fans can admit it had two major shortcomings: lead female heroines and romantic sub-plots. She may not have started out as the main heroine, but it became apparent that many fans preferred Hinata over Sakura. Hinata’s efforts to grow out of her shy and timid nature, as well as her unconditional support for Naruto, endeared her to countless people. In contrast, Sakura started out the series being a flat, uninteresting character who’s only defining trait was her interest in Sasuke. Kishimoto tried to have her grow out of this, but the damage had already been done.

Furthermore, despite the series coming to have many different ships over the years, Kishimoto never capitalized on it due to his embarrassment over writing about romance. As a result, the chief ships found in the series, NaruHina and SasuSaku, the former didn’t get as much focus as it’s supporters wanted, while the latter ended up becoming toxic in nature after Sasuke went AWOL before Naruto finally set him straight.

Being Rushed Didn’t Make it Bad, Ya Know?

To put it simply, The Last was the film team and Kishimoto’s attempts at course correction, but some people say that it came too little, too late. To be fair, they’re not wrong. Looking back, the aftermath of the Invasion of Pain arc would’ve been the perfect chance for Naruto and Hinata to get a relationship upgrade. Hinata had not only fought to protect Naruto from Pain, but she flat-out told him she loved him. Yet nothing came of it, and with everything that followed, that plot thread never had time to be properly addressed. So, yes, the film had to shoehorn the romance in while they had the chance.

Here’s the thing, though: that doesn’t necessarily make it a bad thing. Sometimes, we can do our best when we’re under pressure. And with this being the last chance Kishimoto had to tell how Naruto and Hinata became a couple, he and his team were definitely feeling the pressure! But once he got over his reluctance to write a proper romance, he knocked it out of the park. I fully consider the time Naruto and Hinata spent searching the abandoned Ninja Village together to be their first date, and am prepared to die on that hill! I’m pretty sure I gasped when the moment came when Naruto turned out to be the one to confess his love to Hinata first, rather than the other way around. And that famous kiss that the two of them shared at the end of the movie, as they’re floating in the sky with the moon in the background. *Chef’s kiss* That’s how you do a kiss scene, people! And that’s not even getting into the scenes of their wedding that take up the credits. I started crying tears of joy when I went back to watch it again!

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As sweet as it was to see the two getting the chance to make up for lost time, though, there’s another reason why I think the romantic part of this film works. In a critical scene partway through the film, the group gets trapped in a genjutsu based on their memories. During that time, Naruto winds up seeing many of Hinata’s memories, including a recent conversation she had with Sakura. That memory has Sakura explaining that Naruto has no concept of what romantic love really is. To some, that might not make sense because Naruto has understood what romantic love is. But remember that for all his emotional intelligence at times, Naruto did grow up orphan. Not having his parents around to show him what a romantic relationship looked like probably didn’t do him any favors. Also, the tearjerker section for the TV Tropes page for the movie speculates that, thanks to his lonely childhood, the idea of someone being in love with him was practically a foreign concept. He may have largely gotten over his hard early life, but that doesn’t mean it didn’t still affect him!

ABSOLUTE PEAK FIGHTING!

It wasn’t just the romance that made the movie so enjoyable for me. This is still a Shonen film, and that means that there’s plenty of action to be had. Naruto’s friends and allies working to destroy the falling meteorites before they can wipe out the planet. Hinata holding her own against Toneri’s army of puppets until Toneri himself intervened and captured her. And last, but not least, Naruto fighting against the empowered Toneri on the surface of the Moon. They wound up traveling all the way from Earth to the Moon and fought on its surface with no problems whatsoever. It doesn’t matter if that shouldn’t be possible; it’s cool as can be! And the best part is that that final clash was done to a remix of Naruto’s original theme song. It’s a testament to where our hero has come from and how much he has grown from being a weak outcast to the strongest ninja alive! Ten years later, I still get goosebumps rewatching it!

If I could list at least one major complaint that I have looking back on the film, though, then it would have to be about the film’s main antagonist, Toneri Otsutsuki. When I first watched the film ten years ago, I saw as this poor, misguided young man who thought he was following his ancestor’s wishes by trying to destroy the world. As Hinata discovers for herself, though, that belief was based on his half of the family misunderstanding their ancestor’s wishes. That led to them wiping each other out while Toneri was still a child, leaving him the last person alive on the Moon. And after being defeated and learning how wrong he was, he chooses to exile himself there forever, with not even his puppet servants to keep him company.

My One Gripe (or Two)

As sad as Toneri’s life is, after rewatching the film years later, my sympathy for him has decreased. While he does try to care about Hinata as a person, the way he interacts with her reminded me of an abusive husband, right up to the point where he tries to violate her free will using his own Chakra. That just shows how little he understood other people! And unlike the whole “colony drop” thing, his actions against Hinata and Naruto were all on him. He’s lucky that they were nice enough to save his life when they could’ve simply let him die at the end!

Oh, and I never really liked Naruto’s new appearance in this movie. I don’t like seeing his hair so short! It looks weird to me!

So, the bottom line is that, while it would’ve been better had the series done more to move Naruto and Hinata’s relationship forward, I can’t complain that much about The Last: Naruto the Movie turned out. Ten years since its release, it still remains one of the series best stories. It shows that Kishimoto did have it in him to write a good romance. And while some might see it as a reminder of what we could’ve gotten had he realized this sooner, I’m still happy that we got it at all!

Have Yourself a Slimey Little Christmas

Aside Roderick J "Jay" Friz Anime, Anime Reviews, Christmas , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Slime Diaries Christmas Episode Review

If there are good examples of why you don’t need to be Christian to celebrate Christmas, Japan is one of them. Most of Japan isn’t Christian, but they celebrate the holiday nonetheless for the commercial and romantic aspects. People drink, celebrate, and give gifts to loved ones, with couples getting a lot of focus. That doesn’t mean that the concept of how Christmas is celebrated in the West isn’t unheard of in Japan. A good example of this is in the penultimate episode of Slime Diaries, a slice-of-life spin-off to the popular Isekai anime That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime.

With winter having arrived in Tempest in full, Rimuru remembers that it must be close to Christmas time back on Earth. When his friends/citizens/companions get curious, Rimuru ends up introducing the concept of Christmas to Tempest. Never one to pass up a chance to party, the citizens of Tempest eagerly get into the spirit of the holiday. The rest of the episode consists of everyone celebrating Christmas in their own way.

Slime Diaries Christmas

At the D&A Anime blog, we’re big fans of That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime. It’s not hard to understand why. It’s a member of what I consider the Seven Summits of Isekai, it’s got some of the best world-building in any isekai, and Rimuru might be one of the most OP protagonists in all of anime. And his true form is a slime, one of the most basic enemies you can find in a JRPG. But despite achieving godlike power and getting plenty of chances to show it off in the main anime, anyone who knows Rimuru knows he’s a pretty chill person. All he wants to do is make a place where he can enjoy his second life to the fullest. So, Slime Diaries depicts him and his friends doing just that, with no real tension to be had.

The end result? No real drama, no plot involving everyone having to save Christmas. Just some good people getting to enjoy the holidays together. Shuna cooks a delicious Christmas dinner for everyone at Tempest’s big festival. Resident ms. fanservice Shion shows off in a Sexy Santa outfit, only to tick Rimuru off when she brings up the romantic aspects of the holiday (he was a 37-year-old single man in his first life. It’s a sore subject!) And as soon as she hears about Santa, Millim becomes convinced that she’s going to get a present. This is in spite of the fact that her frequent acts of destruction would be grounds for being a naughty-lister.

However, it makes the moment Rimuru tries to leave her a present, and she mistakes him for Santa pretty funny. Every little kid has tried at least once to stay up and get a look at Santa (including me!)

I Love Santa!

Speaking of the jolly man in the red suit, the episode ends on a very heartwarming moment. Rimuru returns to his office to find a present addressed to him…from Santa.

Full disclosure: I don’t really care if Santa’s real or just a historical saint. What matters is that the legend of Santa provides us with a sense of wonder everyone needs as a kid. Plus, I wouldn’t be surprised if Santa could travel to other universes to give people presents. He’s Santa; it just works.

All in all, this is a pretty fun Christmas episode. No real stakes, no real drama, just a family enjoying themselves like people should.  

Wait, this Guys was Momo’s First Crush?!

Aside Roderick J "Jay" Friz Anime, Anime Reviews, Crunchyroll , , , , , , , , , ,

Dan Da Dan Ep 11 Review

Jealousy, envy, coveting; call it what you want, but when we feel it, it’s never a good thing. And right now, Ken Takakura is feeling both jealous…and dejected. When Momo’s old friend and first crush shows up at her doorstep, the poor boy’s already low self-esteem takes an even bigger nosedive. Thankfully, this episode revolves around him getting a reminder of why he shouldn’t be so quick to give up on his feelings. And, in typical Dan Da Dan fashion, it happens in the most hilarious, over-the-top fashion.

Is Jiji’s Gojo’s Long-Lost Cousin?

At the end of the last episode, Momo opens her front door to find a tall, athletic, and handsome young man standing outside. This is Jiji, Momo’s old friend when they were little kids, and, according to her grandma, her first crush. His family moved before middle school, and, to make a long story short, their house is haunted. So haunted that the ghost chased off every medium they hired…or made them kill themselves. Now his folks are in the hospital, and Seiko is the only one who can purge the ghost. But since she’s useless outside their city, Momo will have to do it. That won’t happen until the next episode though.

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The main focus of this episode is the arrival of Jiji and how he affects the status quo. Played by Aleks Le, Jiji is, essentially, a younger, even goofier version of Gojo from JuJutsu Kaisen. Given how goofy Gojo can be, that should tell you what kind of person he is. Between his good looks, his extroverted personality, and charisma, he quickly wins over everyone at school. Even Seiko likes him, though that’s because he compliments how amazing she looks. Momo, though, sees him and finds herself questioning why they were friends to begin with.

It should be noted that Jiji was one of the people who made fun of her for believing in ghosts as a kid, a fact that he deeply regrets. Combined with the possibility that he returned her crush (and may still have one), it’s clear he’s trying to make amends for his past actions. However, Momo just finds him annoying now, preferring a more solemn guy like Ken Takakura…the actor. She still won’t admit that she’s fallen for Ken-Chan.

Speaking of which, poor Okarun’s already low self-esteem takes an even further nosedive here. Jiji is everything that he isn’t, or at least what he thinks he isn’t. And since he’s starting to fall in love with her, that is making him jealous. Rather than get angry and aggressive over it, though, he decides to bow out. While that normally would be the right thing to do, in this case he means to cut himself off from Momo altogether.

Don’t Stop Fighting for Momo, Okarun!

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Love and friendships can be hard when you are young, and with how introverted Ken-Chan can be, it’s understandable that he doesn’t see how good a person he really is. If he higher more self-esteem, he would be able to recognize that Momo’s one-time friend now greatly irritates her with his antics. Fortunately, since he is a protagonist, the universe provides him with the reminder he needs…in the silliest way possible.

Dan Da Dan has shown us many crazy things: aliens of all sorts, ghosts, and more. But I think the sight of an anatomical mannequin running through the streets to find his girlfriend at a dump might be the craziest thing I’ve seen on this show. And that’s counting the race with Turbo Granny! But seeing him be so passionate about reuniting with his love lights a fire in Okarun. Thanks to that, he’s able to overcome his insecurities and fight for his friendship with Momo. Not that he needs to fight for it, mind you. The reason why he and Momo work so well together is because they’re polar opposites. They balance each other out, keep the other grounded. Rest assured, their friendship is stronger than either of them realizes.

Sad to say it, though, but next episode will mark the final episode for this first season of Dan Da Dan. However, with how popular it has proven, it’s going to get a second season. And I look forward to seeing that come to pass.

I Give “First Love” a 3/5

One of those Times When Earth Has Something Aliens Find Useful

Aside Roderick J "Jay" Friz Anime, Anime Reviews , , , , , , , , , ,

Dan Da Dan Ep 10 Review

The last few episodes of Dan Da Dan have been chaotic for our group of teens. First, Aira’s misguided attempts to seduce Ken lead to a misunderstanding between him and Momo. Then those banana-obsessed aliens come back with minions and try to capture Ken and kill Momo and Aira. And even though they win, every high schooler’s worst nightmare takes place. The entire school sees the girls in their underwear and Ken in his birthday suit!

Time to run damage control.

Damage Control

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After the most embarrassing moment of their lives up to that point, Ken, Momo, and Aira take shelter in the nurse’s office and get spare tracksuits. Thankfully, the nurse is the understanding and supportive type…though I almost lost it when I saw that she gave off the energy of a dominatrix. She had the flogger and everything!

Now comes the real issue: explaining the incident and salvaging their reputations before they have to change schools. Momo’s friends come up with the silliest, but also most believable, explanation in the form of a gladiator fight between the girls over Okarun. To be fair, they’re not wrong to assume there’s a love triangle. We should know by now that there is a love triangle between Momo, Aira, and Okarun, even if Momo and Okarun don’t realize it yet. And while Ken does manage to explain what really happened when she walked in on him and Aira, I didn’t appreciate how she teased him over his reasons for being quiet about exercising. Trying to look cool in front of a person you like is a big deal for someone like Ken, and as light-hearted as it was, her trolling him felt a little mean.

But not as mean as what Aira did to Momo.

RIP Aira’s Popularity

Initially, the trio planned to tell the school that the incident was Momo’s fault, but before Aira can do that, her past actions come back to haunt her. Remember how she spread lies about Momo being promiscuous before? Those lies, combined with what happened, almost incite Aira’s classmates into an angry mob. And Aira, in a moment of character development, fesses up that she started the fake rumors, destroying her popularity.

When we first met Aira, she was the kind of shallow, self-absorbed person who would do something that mean-spirited. And while she’s still a bit full of herself, the fact that she was willing to fess up for the sake of a girl she doesn’t like that much is a sign of positive character development. There might be hope for Aira yet, people! There has to be, though, since they still have to deal with Yokai and Aliens.

Earlier in this episode, Ken theorizes that the reason the Serpoians wanted Turbo Granny’s powers is because the aliens’ tech is useless against all the supernatural forces found on Earth. I’m no stranger to seeing science and magic existing in a shared world, but it’s still pretty cool hearing that ghosts and spirits are acting like a nuclear deterrent against alien invasion. However, at least one alien won’t bother them anymore: The Mantis Shrimp, AKA the Dover Demon, Kappa, and Mr. Peeny-Weeny.

EVER SEEN AN ALIEN ABDUCT A COW?

Somehow, Mantis Shrimp survived their fight, but is so beat up that he passes out right in front of the girls. Everyone feels so sorry for him that they nurse him back to health and feed him, prompting the grateful alien to pledge his loyalty to them. And Dover becomes even more sympathetic when it’s revealed he only took the job to pay for life-saving blood transfusions for his son. I might not approve of him working for the Serpoians, but I think most of us can agree that he’s a good dad! Also, we got this!

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The funniest part, though? It turns out their species’ blood is exactly like cow milk. So we get one of the most over-the-top versions of the classic “Aliens stealing cattle” trope I have ever seen! And it’s made even funnier when Seiko refuses to believe that Mr. Shrimp’s an alien!

….Uh-Oh

This episode is mostly dealing with the falling action and aftermath to last week’s frankly insane experience. However, just when it looks like things might calm down, we get thrown another curve-ball. Momo’s childhood friend, a boy named Jiji, comes over, having been invited by her grandma to stay for reasons. And to make matters worse, Seiko tells Ken that Jiji was Momo’s first crush.

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And with that, our love triangle has become a love…rectangle? Quadrangle? Double-triangle? No matter what it’s called, the look on Ken’s face and the previews for the next episode tell us that the drama’s about to increase. I feel so sorry for Ken right now!

I Give “”Have You Ever Seen a Cattle Mutilation?” a 4/5

Things are About to Get Harder in Daima!

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Dragon Ball Daima Ep 9 Review

Well, it was bound to happen sooner or later. Now that Goku has beaten one of the Tamagami, his name is spreading like wildfire throughout the Demon Realm. This next episode of Daima has us dealing with the aftermath of Goku’s victory and the unwanted attention it provides. And while the episode largely focused on the comedy, we got a hint about something Gomah is looking for, and see the birth of a potential threat to Goku.

Don’t Steal From Goku

Having won the first of the Demon Realm’s Dragon Balls, the gang decides to spend the night in a hotel instead of camping out again. That means that Goku has to put on a disguise to avoid attracting attention thanks to his newfound notoriety. Since it’s Goku, though…it doesn’t last very long. And, just as the others fear, thieves attempt to steal their Dragon Ball. They do succeed for a short time, but thanks to Panzy putting a tracking device on it, and Goku’s intimidation, they get it back pretty quickly.

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The fact that they almost lose the Dragon Ball isn’t the point, though. The point the series is trying to make is that, from here on out, they’re going to need to be a little more careful about their prize. To the best of my knowledge, they didn’t bring a dragon radar, so if they lose it again, it could hard to get it back. And speaking of losing things, guess who lost their own plane due to it getting stolen by bandits.

In a rather hilarious echo of the first group, Vegeta’s group lost their own plane after he beat up a group of bandits. What’s worse is that when Goku’s team catches up to where Vegeta’s team is stuck, they don’t have the room to hold all of them. Thus, any chance of the parties merging gets put on the back burner.

To be fair, it seems like keeping the entire party in two separate groups is a deliberate handicap on the story’s part. If they all joined up into a single group, they would be strong enough to handle everything thrown their ways. Goku, Vegeta, Glorio, Shin, and Piccolo would mow down every enemy in sight, while Bulma and Panzy would invent something capable of getting them straight to King Gomah. No Mr. Warp needed. As for Hybis, he might be more important than he realizes. Here’s why.

Just a Theory. A Dragon Ball Theory!

During this episode, word reaches Gomah that not only have Goku and the others followed him to the Demon Realm, but Goku already beat one of the Tamagami. With his plans to neutralize the potential threat having backfired, the king once again laments being unable to obtain the Evil Third Eye. Described as a powerful artifact lost during the reign of one of Dabura’s predecessors, the Evil Eye is said to grant immense power to anyone who puts in on their forehead. However, I don’t think it’s actually lost. During this episode, it’s revealed that Hybis has this weird, living he found attached to his belt. The fact that this came up right as we heard about the Evil Eye again can’t be a mere coincidence. It’s subtle foreshadowing that this potentially powerful MacGuffin is already in the hero’s hands and they don’t even realize it. If I’m right, then all those years reading One Piece and learning about foreshadowing were worth it!

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Majin…Kuu?

While Vegeta’s party ends the episode with them poised to recover their plane from the bandits, the episode ends by shifting back to Marba and Dr. Arinsu’s attempts to make a clone of Majin Buu. They manage to succeed, combining the Buu fragment with a Saibaman seed. I never thought we’d see the Saibamen again, so this was a big surprise. Unfortunately, then we learn the name that Arinsu gives her new minion: Majin…Kuu.

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I’m sorry, but what? I’m aware that Toriyama liked to name his characters based on puns. However, for the life of me, I can’t figure out if Kuu is meant to be a pun, or just a lame reuse of Buu. I’m really hoping that there’s a pun in there, or that Kuu is just as strong as Buu. Otherwise, the tension of having someone compete for the Dragon Balls will seem a bit pointless.

It now looks like the race is on for the Dragon Balls, and while this episode was relatively slow, not every episode has to be an absolute banger. Comedy is just as much a part of Dragon Ball as action, and since Daima is returning the franchise to its roots, we should expect plenty more comedy.

I Give “Thieves” a 3.5/5