Well, when diplomacy fails, there’s always good old-fashioned violence to fall back on. Xylo and Kiviaโs harebrained plan to get close to Lideo Sodrick, the head of the adventurer guild that put out a hit on Teoritta, has gone up in smoke. Now everyone in the slums is out for them. Though, to be frank, if these adventurers were smart, they would just get out of the pairโs way. They’ve fought Demons that can tear most people limb from limb. This episode is basically the showโs equivalent of watching Batman and his partners delivering a smackdown on a gang of criminals.
So, after their cover gets blown, Lideo decides to run for it alongside his sister, Iri, while his adventurers try to fight Xylo, Kivia, and Frenci. Emphasis on the word โtrying,โ because like I said, they’re about as big a threat as a group of nameless thugs is to a superhero. And given how Xylo and Kivia have military training, this stuff is nothing to them. But as always, its a visual feast to us! Even more so once Teoritta and the rest of the Hero Unit show up and start mopping the floor with the rest of them. And the demon faerie that manages to appear.
This entire part of the episode reminds me a lot of those scenes where the protagonists all work together to fight off a bunch of low-level kooks, like the Straw Hats in the Fishman Island Arc. It’s really just an excuse to let them show off what they can do, and it’s worth every second of animation. To sweeten the deal, though, is the unexpected banter between Kivia and Frenci. Xylo has plenty of reason to worry about the two being at each otherโs throats, but what’s even scarier, though, is how well they get along. Mostly because they diss him for his perceived flaws.
I would say that Frenci is no good for Xylo, but keep in mind, she’s willing to call him her fiance despite his Hero status. She does care about him.
At any rate, Lideoโs plan to escape was already doomed to failure. Xylo thought ahead and had Dotta lie in wait to capture him in case he made a break for it. What’s more concerning is the fact that Boojum brought a faerie, Shiji, and one other adventurer show up to tie up loose ends. Which, any savvy viewer should know, means to make sure loose lips donโt sink the ship.
It gets worse. Lideo manages to escape, but not before Xylo and Kivia manage to get some useful information out of him: the name of the person who ordered the hit on Teoritta, Mahaeyzel Zelkoff. That name shocks Kivia, as she seems to know who that is. That will have to wait until the next episode, though. What’s an even bigger shock is the reveal at the end of the episode.
I have to admit, I was impressed by how the story pulled the wool over my eyes. They really had me thinking that Boojum was Spriggan, but it was Iri all along. That’s a good red herring there! And between that and Kiviaโs reaction to the name Lideo dropped, it’s safe to say that things are about to get a lot harder. I’m looking forward to it!
I Give โSentence: Underground Investigation in District of Sodrick 2″ a 3.5/5
Remember how big One Punch Man was when it first came out, only for it to fall off after that first season? Well, when it was in vogue, it was a pretty good parody of shonen heroes and superheroes in general. Itโs what TV Tropes refers to as a cliche storm: a story where the authors take tropes and ideas common in other stories like it and use them for the love of the game. It can a story feel like an affectionate parody of whatever genre itโs part of, in the hopes of making people who are into these stories laugh. And Toonami just released this yearโs version of One Punch Man, but with the main character being an animal. A rooster, to be precise. And it so ridiculous, that it works. Welcome to Rooster Fighter, everyone!
Nobody: Literally nobody: Me: C-C-Come and kick up! Are you ready, ready? ๐โโโโโ โโโ
So, in the world of Rooster Fighter, demons exist. The first episode doesnโt fully explain where they come from, but it seems that when people succumb to despair, they can turn into Kaiju-sized demons. Case in point, we see a car dealer turn into a demon who looks like that one teacher from Brain Age or some other Nintendo work. Or this three-headed she-demon ranting about trying to find her boy and trying to eat some random boy it picks up. Itโs crazy like that. And whatโs even crazier, though, is the fact that the latter is stopped by the arrival ofโฆa rooster. And this is how we are introduced to the titular rooster fighter, Keiji.
I will be completely blunt and upfront: Keiji is a walking, crowing cliche. He acts and thinks like heโs a wandering warrior, like a grumpy ronin from some old samurai movie. He never stays in one place for long, hates kids, and treats everything, no matter how silly, with the utmost seriousness. And remember: heโs a rooster. A bird that humans either raise for meat and eggs, companionship, and in some cultures, to fight others of their kind for our amusement. And he can take down demons with his talons, crow loud enough to shatter demons, and can somehow fire ki blasts from his beak.
Oh, and our extended flashback shows him first getting down with a random hen for a one-night stand. And it gets better. Heโs got a tragic backstory where he had to watch his baby sister get eaten by a white demon. Heโs been hunting it ever since like his white whale.
I love Keiji. Heโs a perfect example of the comically serious character, which is helped by the fact that heโs voiced by Patrick Seitz. Many of the characters he voices are known for being incredibly serious and menacing, like DIO and Endeavor. But heโs also good with comedic characters like Franky from One Piece. So this feels like the absolute perfect role for him, and he milks it for all itโs worth.
The Warrior Rooster
The main plot of the episode is an extended flashback as Keiji deals with a group of kids and an old widower as that demon who likes heโs from a Nintendo game attacks. And again, this is where Patrick Seitzโs acting chops work wonders as he constantly acts like this stoic warriorโฆwhile also praising the taste of stinkbugs and gawking when a girl tries to feed him fried chicken. The other big draw, though, is the action. Iโm not sure if you know this, but modern birds are descended from theropod dinosaurs like the T-Rex and Velociraptor. And it shows, as Keiji is as deadly as a raptor. So cool.
The episode ends with Keiji continuing his wanderings, but not before he learns that his one-night stand has already moved on in the funniest way possible. We do get a post-credit scene, though, where another demon is taken down by a hen who acts a lot like Keiji.
A mi me dijeron que el anime del pollo luchador era de peleas, no de traiciones ๐ญ pic.twitter.com/XWKhOVaaJg
This is going to be a fun show to watch, everyone! Iโm glad that Toonami managed to snag the dub for this series, and I canโt wait to see what happens next! It may be the year of the horse, but itโs the spring of the rooster!
Next time on #RoosterFighter: A stray baby chick enters the fray! …By accident we assume. Catch the all new episode next Saturday at midnight! Only Toonami, on Adult Swim. pic.twitter.com/YJa7ET5cQF
Everything RJ Writing Ink Wants to watch Spring 2026
Time to put away the snow shovels and cold-weather jackets, people. Itโs finally spring. That means going outside to touch grass, watching the flowers and cherry blossoms bloom, and most importantly, enjoying a new season of anime. And there is a lot of anime for us to enjoy this year. From a new season of a few of the Seven Summits of Isekai to the return of some legendary Shonen anime, we have a lot to look forward to over the next few months. I donโt know how much I will actually be able to watch, but here are a few of the ones that I know are on my list. And who knows? I might end up reviewing them for the D&A Anime Blog!
Rooster Fighter, March 15th-
When it comes to fearsome animals, chickens arenโt exactly high on peopleโs tier lists. But then you remember that theyโre related to dinosaurs like the T. rex and that some people pay to watch them fight each other and think, โdang. These birds are tough!โ And someone in Japan to take that premise and run with it with a web manga thatโs now getting welcomed onto Toonamiโs block. Set in a world where demons have appeared in Japan, Rooster Fighter follows Keiji, a rooster who wanders the land like a ronin of old, beating the snot out of demons in search of the one that killed his sister. If it sounds incredibly silly and over-the-top, thatโs because it is. But the fact that Keiji acts so serious despite being a rooster somehow makes it both funny and awesome. Plus, heโs dubbed by Patrick Seitz, the voice of Franky, Endeavor, and DIO. The idea of man who voices DIO playing a fighting rooster is too good to pass up!
Speaking of DIOโฆ.
Steel Ball Run: JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, March 19th
Let the race begin! After four long years of waiting, JoJoโs Bizarre Adventure returns with the long-awaited adaptation of Part Seven, Steel Ball Run. Serving as Hirohiko Arakiโs love letter to spaghetti westerns, the premise behind Part Seven is the titular Steel Ball Run, a race that stretches from one end of the United States to the other with a massive cash prize awaiting the winner. Since this is JoJo, though, that means that thereโs a bizarre conspiracy at work and supernatural powers at play. Regarded by many as Arakiโs magnum opus, Steel Ball Run also has the distinction of being the first part to take place in an entirely new timeline, featuring reimaginations of many characters fans have come to know and love. Jonathan Joestar is now Johnny Joestar, Zeppeli is a mysterious vagabond, and best of all, Dio is now a cocky horse jockey. And thatโs just the start, from what I hear! The best part is that it seems Netflix will be releasing new episodes weekly rather than dumping an entire cours at once!
That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime, Season 4, Pt. 1-April 2nd
We here at the D&A Anime Blog are massive fans of That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime, and if youโve seen the show, itโs not hard to understand why weโre excited for his return. Having solidified his status as a Demon Lord and debuted his country on the world stage, Rimuru and his friends continue their efforts to build a world where humans and monsters can live in harmony. Much like before, though, there are people working in the shadows trying to knock him down, and he will have to show them why that is a terrible idea. It should also be noted that this is just part one of the fourth season, with the entire thing being broken up into a staggering 5 coursโ spanning 50 episodes! Thatโs either madness or sheer brilliance, but either way, weโre not complaining.
Daemons of the Shadow Realm, April 4th-
Fullmetal Alchemist is considered by many to be one of the greatest anime of all time and a must-watch for anime fans. But did you know that weโre about to get an anime adaptation of another one of its creatorsโ works, Daemons of the Shadow Realm? Set in a world where people can control supernatural creatures called Daemons, Daemons of the Shadow Realm, much like Fullmetal, is a story about two siblings, Yuru and Asa. Separated while young, the two embark on a journey to reunite as they discover that they are meant to control all Daemons in order to save the world. So, pretty standard shonen stuff. But the fact that it was created the woman behind FMA and is getting animated by Studio Bones should be all the reason why fans should check this out.
Dr. Stone-Science Future Part 3-April 2nd
Full disclosure: I actually skipped over watching the second part of Dr. Stoneโs fourth season. I know that everything works out in the end, but given how close Senku and the others came to biting it in part two, I didnโt feel like dealing with that kind of stress. However, given how close the series is to the end, and Senku and the Kingdom of Science are to making it to the moon, I think Iโm going to hop back on.
Now before we get to the last anime Iโm looking forward to seeing, letโs talk about the one that I wonโt be watching.
The Beginning After the End, Season 2, April
Last year, one of the founders of D&A Anime Blog had told me about this webcomic that was getting an anime adaptation, and I wound up binge-reading most of it in a few days and loved it. It combined the best aspects of Mushoku Tensei with powers systems and abilities that reminded me of Avatar: The Last Airbender, one of, if not, my favorite show of all time. Unfortunately, the anime has gone down in infamy as the biggest disappointment of 2025. The animation was complete trash. I knew it, the fans knew it, and I think even the creator of the series himself knew he got screwed over. I stuck with it out of principle, but Iโm not going through that again!
One Piece, Elbaph Arc Cours 1-April 5th
I donโt think that everyone was happy when Toei announced they were moving One Piece to a seasonal release schedule, but letโs be honest: it was inevitable. Anime that release every week year-round have been phased out for years, with One Piece being the last big holdout. Having read and covered the manga on my own blog, though (which I welcome you to read), I understand why theyโre doing this. Next to the island where the One Piece is located, Elbaph, home of the Giants, was the most anticipated location that fans wanted to see the Straw Hats visit. And Oda has made the decades-long wait worth it, as Elbaph is one of the most fantastic places in the entire series. If youโre not caught up on the manga, then you are going to be in for a wild and crazy ride as the Straw Hats make it to the land theyโve dreamt of for years. In addition to the usual Straw Hat shenanigans, weโre poised to get one of the most important flashbacks in the entire series, while Luffy has his first encounter with one of the two characters I consider to be in the running for the ultimate antagonist of the series. Honestly, Toei needed this extra time to cook!
Everyone, would you do me the honors and come sail with me to the Grand Line in search of the One Piece?
Three years ago, Netflix managed to do what many, myself included, thought impossible: made a live-action version of One Piece that was actually good. For that matter, making a live-action adaptation of an anime that was good, period. How did they do this? To paraphrase Honest Trailers, “by changing absolutely nothing, no matter ridiculous it may seem.” That, and Eichiro Oda made sure the streaming giant didn’t wreck his life’s work. The bottom line is that Netflix’s One Piece was better than anyone thought possible. People who had never gotten into the series got to give it a try, and the people who had stuck with it for years got to fall in love with it all over again. But the thing about the first season is that it was just a warm-up. The second season is when the show would really show whether or not if it could live up to the legendary anime and manga.
After spending the entirety of my weekend binging the series, I can confidently assert that, once again, One Piece knows what it’s doing. Thank you, Eichiro D. (G)oda!
One Piece is Back
The first season of One Piece was an abridged retelling of the first part of the story of Monkey D. Luffy and his crew. How he met and assembled the pirates that initially made up the Straw Hat Pirates, got their first ship, and became the toughest pirates in their native East Blue. After that, it’s off to the Grand Line to find the One Piece…with one last stop.
For reasons I cannot understand, some fans were convinced that Netflix was going to skip the Loguetown Arc, the last portion of the opening saga of the series. I knew that they weren’t going to do that, though! That would bring up too many plot holes in the future! I still found it funny, though, when the show had Nami cheekily say “and you thought we were gonna skip Loguetown.” The writers know the fans so well!
As for the Loguetown Arc itself, it’s only the first episode of the season, so it has to condense a lot of material. That includes adding in a certain character who sees what Luffy does in Loguetown and becomes an important ally much later in the story. That’s the benefit of the Netflix series, though. Having almost three decades of extra lore and knowing who and what will be important means they can add a lot of stuff that Oda didn’t add when writing the story.
Who Cares Who Plays the Characters?
Case in point, we got to see Luffy sing Oda’s original song, Binks Brew, to a giant whale. And we got to see a flashback to Brook, his future crewmember, back when he wasn’t a talking skeleton. For some reason, though, people seemed surprised to have him played by a Black man. Me? I just shrugged my shoulders and didn’t care. The Straw Hats were already supposed to be a multi-national crew, so why does it matter?
Speaking of which, I need to bring up the elephant in the room: Princess Vivi, who joins the cast as one of the main characters this season. Last year, a lot of people were in an uproar about who was cast to play the Princess of Alabasta: Charithra Chandran, a British-Indian actress. Haters thought that it was Netflix trying to enforce diversity onto the show. However, that is not true. Not only did Oda base Alabasta on Middle Eastern and Indian cultures, but he personally chose Charithra to play Vivi. And in that regard, I think Charithra excelled. She starts off as the menacing Miss Wednesday, but once she abandons that, she’s the same kind, compassionate, and caring princess I remember watching in the trenches from the 4Kids days. So all those people owe her an apology.
It Gets Crazier from Here
Now, the real test of this season was how accurately it could capture the story going forward, as the first season was just a warm-up. Once the story moves from the East Blue to the Grand Line, realism starts to take a backseat as Oda started to incorporate the more fantastical elements to the world he created. Whales big enough to swallow ships; islands that need special compasses to navigate to them; every location varying in climate, culture, and wildlife. The halfway point of the season alone takes us to an island populated by dinosaurs! And that’s not even getting into all the new powers!
In the first season, the only two characters who had the powers of a Devil Fruit were Luffy and Buggy. That changes in the Grand Line, as almost every location the Straw Hats visit and many of the foes they face have Devil Fruit powers. From a guy turning his boogers into explosives to a creep who can create candle wax, the powers are only going to get crazier from here on out. And some of the ancillary characters that survive in the manga bite it here.
I’m not kidding. If you thought Mihawk killing Don Krieg was surprising, wait until you see how many of the bad guys end up dying once their roles are fulfilled. At least they go out in style, though.
Which brings me to another great aspect of the show: the combat.
Remember how Zoro cut down 100 Bounty Hunters?
Given how fantastical One Piece is, the fights tend to be absolutely insane. So adapting them for live action was always going to be a big concern. The first season showed that it could do it, but like everything else, season two is where the series really has to step up. To make a long story short, it does, and while I could give plenty of examples, my favorite has to be Zoro’s legendary 1v100 bar brawl. They could’ve skimped on it, but Netflix didn’t. Mackenyu gave us twelve minutes of Zoro annihilating everyone in his path, and it is glorious. I have no idea how long it took to film all that, but considering how he did his own stunts, that must have been a crazy workout! Respect to him and the rest of the cast for all that they did.
Speaking of the cast, though, we need to talk about my favorite part of the season: Drum Island.
Drum Island Still Made me Cry
I started my One Piece journey right around the tail-end of the Drum Island arc that introduced us to the series mascot, the ever-adorable, floofy Chopper. I spent the better part of my time watching reruns on Cartoon Network to get caught up. And when I got to the Drum Island Arc…man, it stuck with me.
If you know One Piece, then you know that a lot of the characters have very, very sad backstories. But for ten-year-old me, Chopper’s backstory had to be the saddest. Ostracized by his fellow reindeer, considered a monster by humans (why, though? He’s so cute!) And losing his father figure, Hiruluk? Even with all the censoring that 4Kids did for the dub they never wanted, I knew that Hiruluk blew himself up! That was hard to watch as a kid, and the Netflix series managed to make it every bit as heart-breaking to watch as an adult. In other words, I LOVED IT! And I loved Chopper.
Don’t get me wrong: at times Chopper’s CGI model could be cringe to look at, especially his human-bruiser form. And I do wish that they had just gotten Brina Palencia to voice him like she does in the dub, as it took me a while to get used to his voice actor. I’m not even sure if I really got used to him by the time the season ended! But I knew going in that the show was going to be fighting an uphill bringing Chopper into live-action. All things considered, I think that they did a decent job. It could’ve been far, far worse than what we got. Plus, the climax of the entire season was absolutely incredible. Something that we didn’t get to see in the anime, and still managed to be awesome.
I Give Netflix’s One Piece another 3 Seasons, tops
So, did One Piece manage to hit the mark once again? Yes. Is it a perfect adaptation? No, but is anything really perfect in this world? Are some of the changes for the better? I can’t be the one to decide that. Am I going to watch it again in Japanese? ABSOLUTELY. But where do we go from here?
Well, the next season is going to cover the arc where I actually stepped into the world of One Piece, the Alabasta Arc. And given how big that arc was, and how it marked the start of several major formulas for the series going forward, I think it’s safe to say that it will be the sole focus of the entire season. Which is fine by me, because I’m well aware that there’s no way Netflix can adapt the entire anime into live-action. At some point it will take too long, cost too much money, the actors will get too old to reasonably play the roles, and frankly, I don’t think the technology exists to capture the franchise in its latter stages. My guess is that it will run to the end of the Water Seven Saga, if we’re lucky! But regardless of how long it lasts, I intend to enjoy it all. My only wish is that the third season will switch to a weekly release date. This way we can fully enjoy everything as it comes out. Please, Netflix? Give this to us!
Oda, you absolute mad lad! You just created a real-life treasure hunt!
At this point, One Piece is more than just an anime and manga series; it’s one of the most popular stories in recorded history. With hundreds of millions of fans worldwide, a long-running anime and film series, and a live-action Netflix series airing its second season, One Piece is more popular than ever. It’s gotten to the point where people are waving the jolly roger of its main protagonists, the Straw Hat Pirates, at protests around the world. And all of this has made Eichiro Oda, the creator, one of the most beloved authors in the world. And Oda just did something crazy to celebrate the manga selling 600 million copies. Something that is making his fans go absolutely crazy: he wrote down what the One Piece is and hid it.
Let me explain: The One Piece is the namesake of the entire series. It’s a legendary treasure hidden for centuries at the end of the world that was found by Gol D. Roger, the King of the Pirates. He told everyone about its existence right as he was being executed, bringing about the Great Age of Pirates. Finding it is the ultimate goal of most pirates in the series, especially for Monkey D. Luffy.
Here’s the crazy part, though: we have no idea what the One Piece is.
The series has been ongoing since 1997, and in all that time, fans still have no clue what the One Piece even is. The story’s given us hints about it. We know that it’s centuries old, was hidden away from those who seek to destroy it, and that whatever it is could potentially turn the world upside down. In other words, it’s something that those in charge want to make sure is never found. But we still don’t know what it is, and we likely won’t until the day Luffy and the Straw Hats make it to the final island, Laugh Tale.
At least, that’s how it was supposed to go. But Oda might have shot himself in the foot on that.
In a special video celebrating the manga selling 600 million copies, Oda did something he’s never done before: he wrote down what the One Piece is, something he’s kept to himself for almost thirty years, onto a slip of paper. He then locked it into a chest that was then sealed inside a pressure-resistant glass sphere. That chest was then taken out to sea and dropped into the ocean, coming to rest at a depth of 651 meters. The video proclaims that it will rest there until the day the series comes to an end, safe from the rest of the world.
That…might no longer be an option, though.
A big thing about One Piece fans is that when they want to know something, they will pull out all the stops. The series has a very healthy community of scanlators and leakers constantly posting the latest chapters online before they’re officially released. Now it’s claimed that Oda wrote the answer to one of the greatest secrets in the history of literature and left it someplace impossible to find? Most people would leave it at that. For the most die-hard One Piece fans, though, they’ve taken it as a challenge to a real-life treasure hunt. And they’ve managed to make major headway. In less than two days, people online have managed to narrow down the location of the chest using clues from the video.
๐ดโโ ๏ธ UPDATE: The search area just collapsed.
Using the rectangle proposed by @OPHunterTV, I ran a new bathymetric analysis with the SRTM15+ global seafloor dataset in Python.
The result is striking.
At the depth mentioned in the video (651 m), the possible location is no longerโฆ pic.twitter.com/vYso3yuSse
The only real issue would be the location itself. 651 meters is about 2,000 feet. Only submersibles and the most advanced diving suits can survive that far down, and they cost millions to use. But Oda might have underestimated his fan’s determination. For example, IShowSpeed, an extremely popular streamer and huge One Piece fan, announced he wants to do a live-stream hunting for the chest. And with his influence and resources, he might be able to pull it off. Fans will no doubt attempt to crowdfund their own attempts to find the chest, and barring the Japanese authorities getting involved, I think they’re likely to find it. But what should they do with it if they do?
My suggestion: leave it there or destroy it. Whatever we do, don’t open the box and look at the paper.
Don’t get me wrong, I want to know what the One Piece is just like everyone else does. And I normally don’t mind spoilers. But when it comes to the ending of One Piece, I will absolutely refuse to hear a word. Why? Well, Luffy can say it better.
This scene encapsulates how I hope the vast majority of One Piece should feel about the chance to learn the truth prematurely. It would be awesome for the brief second that we learn it, but then, we would realize that there would be no point in continuing to read this incredible story. No point in getting to enjoy further adventures with Luffy and the Straw Hats. No point to the entire story! And I don’t think that I could live in a world where the ending to one of the greatest stories of all time is spoiled to me! If a fan does find it, they should destroy it without looking at it. That’s what Luffy would do.
Of course, I have a sneaking suspicion that Oda didn’t write the ending on that paper. I think he knows his fans well enough to to know we would try to find it, so he might have thought ahead and wrote a fake message on it. Or maybe he really did write the secret on there, and is trusting the fans to not spoil it. Either way, it’s up to us to decide what to do with this. We have the chance to learn the answer to one of the biggest questions in literary history before its time. Do we really want that, though?
Also, it should be noted that if someone decides to open it and spoil the ending for all of us, they will become a global pariah.
Crash outs. Moments where people hit their rage-breaking point and proceed to commit acts that can be considered violent, reckless, or stupid. Jujutsu Kaisen has already given us a prime example of how dangerous a crash-out can be thanks to Makiโs purging of the Zenin Clan. Though in that case, it was justified by the fact that they were already planning to kill her on top of the years of abuse. However, Yuji and Megumiโs efforts to stop the Culling Game have led them to look for someone else who not only crashed out, but is in the middle of it: Hiromi Higuruma. And we get to see firsthand what happens when a good person hits their breaking point and proceeds to crash out.
No Bullying EVER!
Now, Yuji and Megumi have gotten separated after entering Tokyo Colony No. 1, but their ultimate goal remains the same: finding a Culling Game player with the points to add rules that will allow them to play without killing anyone or giving unwilling players the chance to tap out. Their first target is a guy named Higuruma, and while both find someone who claims to know where he is, Megumi is being led into a trap. That girl he met is bringing him back to this player whose powers I think have to do with receipts. Am I worried? No; it’s Megumi. He’s got his shikigami! It will work out!
Yuji, on the other hand, is being told the truth. The guy whose leading him is someone who knew him before he became a sorcerer. He was this guy who hung with bullies and did what they said because it was easier than making himself a target. One day, though, Yuji showed up and beat the bullies up, and this guy realized he had been a coward and decided to clean up his act.
This is why I love shonen protagonists so much. Whether it’s Goku, Luffy, Naruto, or Yuji, they have a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to people abusing their power for evil. It doesn’t matter if they’re stronger than them, or higher in status, or even if they’re a god. If they catch you doing wrong, they’re gonna throw hands. And more often than not, they bring them to justice in one form or another.
What Happens when a Good Man Crashes Out
Justice, by the way, is something that needs to be mentioned. Because justice, or the lack of it, is what defines the man whom Yuji came to find: Hiromi Higuruma. And it’s why this man chose to crash out.
Interesting fact about the Japanese criminal justice system: it has a successful conviction rate of 99%. Thatโs not because it’s just that good, but because it only pursues cases that it already thinks will end in a guilty verdict. That might sound efficient, but there’s a flaw to this line of thinking: what if the defendant is innocent? Then the prosecution will look stupid and ruin their careers. Even worse, though, is being the defense attorney. How are you supposed to do your job when everyone else thinks it’s a waste of time since they already decided the person is guilty? That is not good for oneโs mental health, and nowhere is this better shown than with Higuruma, Defense Attorney.
Higuruma is a man with an incredibly strong sense of justice. If he thinks that a client is innocent, then he will raise hell to prove it. He genuinely wants justice to be enacted, no matter what society thinks. But a society that’s already decided the defendantโs guilty will use everything it has to make sure it wins. And then when his clients are still found guilty, they blame him for giving them false hope. He knows that theyโre only doing this because of how desperate they are, but it still hurts!
Case in point, there was latest client accused of murder. He didn’t do it, and was just in the wrong place at the wrong time, and despite the mountain of evidence proving his innocence, the justice system wouldn’t take the L. So they appealed the verdict, and despite not finding any new evidence, they still convicted the man. And that was enough to make him finally crash out and awaken as a Jujutsu Sorcerer.
HIGURUMA HITTING THE DESK WITH HIS HAMMER AND SUMMONING JUDGEMAN FOR THE FIRST TIME LOOKS SO FUCKING BEAUTIFUL MAN ๐ฉ๐ฅ pic.twitter.com/LYXjUNxQfL
This has to be one of the coldest moments in the entire series, and for good reason. There are people online saying that Gege Akutami consulted with actual defense attorneys to make Higuruma as authentic as possible. If that is true, then he managed to write an absolutely scathing critique of his countryโs justice system, because Higuruma is a man who has reached his limit with the law. And when the law fails a good person too many times, they may crash out and take matters into their own hands. In Higurumaโs case, he manifests a Shikigami and forces a retrialโฆbut not for the defendant.
Spoiler alert: he ended up killing the judge and prosecutor. And by the time Yuji meets up with him, he’s still in the middle of a crash out, as he doesn’t care about helping Yuji. And when Yuji presses the issue, he hits back. Hard.
This is gonna be one Epic Fight!
This is one of the best moments of the entire season for me. Not only is the animation as smooth as butter, but it also shows just how powerful Higuruma is. He’s only been a Jujutsu Sorcerer for two weeks, and he’s already got a Domain Expansion. Do you know how insane that is? It’s so impressive, itโs actually scary! And now Yuji has to fight this guy in a courtroom-style fight. The next episode cannot get here soon enough, you guys!
If what I have seen with all the gifs and memes about Higuruma online are any indication, this is going to be a fan favorite episode. Higuruma is in the running for the crash out hall of fame, and I can’t wait to see his technique at work!
So, there’s no beating around the bush: there are humans trying to kill Teoritta. And considering how she’s both an adorable little sister to Xylo and the others and one of mankind’s best hopes against the demon blight, that’s bad. Someone powerful wanted to off her, but the hero unit has no idea who it was. But they at least have an idea about the middleman who hired the mercenaries to kill her. Which means it’s time for Xylo and Kivia to launch a sting operation.
So, after getting sold out by someone in their own ranks and losing a lot of Holy Knights, Kivia and Xylo aren’t ready to trust anyone who isn’t part of their group. As far as they’re concerned, everyone else is sus. And curiously enough, this high-ranking priest, who also happens to be Kivia’s uncle, agrees. Thus, it’s up to the hero unit to figure out who hired the adventurers to kill Teoritta.
The good news is that they already got a lead. Lideo Sodrick, the head of the local adventurer’s guild. He’s the one who hired the would-be assassins. Ergo, their best bet to learn the truth is to bring him in for…questioning. The bad news is that they can’t get anywhere near the place without attracting attention. The only way they can get close is by going incognito, pretending to want to hire someone to do something shady.
And that’s where we get the crazy plan for this episode. Kivia is going to pretend to be a noblewoman looking to off her husband, while Xylo is her secret lover…what?
I understand that the series is hinting at the two having chemistry, but this felt forced. And I mean really forced. The best romances in fiction are the ones that seem to come the most naturally, and given how the two started off, it’s hard to see this working. Plus, there’s also the fact that Kivia’s disguise feels like a shout-out to that fancy dress Eris Greyrat wore when she and Rudy went out for a day in Roa as kids. And I think Eris pulled it off better.
You hear that, Eris? You managed to pull off the lady look better!
All joking aside, I think this shipping aspect of the series is my least favorite part. Normally, I love this sort of thing, but I’m too busy watching the epic animation to care. The only good thing of note is the fact that it gives Kivia a chance to open up about why she became a Holy Knight. The short version is that her parents were priests, and she hated that kind of influence. So she’s got good instincts.
Dotta Got it Rough
Sentenced to be a Hero ep 8
Dรฉcidemment toutes les meilleures scรจnes de l'anime ce sont les procรจs injustes. On sent vrm la tension ร son paroxisme. C'est les moments oรน je suis le plus hype par le scรฉnario qui, en dehors de ces scรจnes, est assez faible.#sentencedtobeaheropic.twitter.com/FaKIvW9gPK
The other good thing of note, though, is that this episode is Dotta’s turn to get his backstory revealed. He’s always been a thief, but one with standards. And when the Crown Prince of the kingdom begged him to help him escape…something, he got caught. And then the church sentenced him for it. At this point, it should come as no surprise that the church is full of it, and that it needs purging, but that will have to wait.
It should also come as no surprise that the plan to infiltrate the guild goes sideways fast. They’re quickly outed, and things get even crazier when Xylo’s ex-fiance, Frenci, was also at the guild for similar reasons. It’s pretty telling that Crunchyroll named the clip for this “His fiance meets his girlfriend.” Title-Kun is pushing an agenda!
At any rate, the whole thing devolves into chaos, which leads to the only surefire way to get some answers: violence. We’re about to get a good-old fashioned brawl, everyone!!!
I Give “Sentence: Underground Investigation in District of Sodrick 1” a 3/5
Have you ever looked at something or someone before and thought, “Wow. That has to be the cutest thing in all of existence.” Of course you have. Humans are naturally attracted to anything that we find cute and adorable. I even recently learned about the existence of cute aggression, a phenomenon where something is so cute that we want to pick them up and hug and squish them forever! If there’s something that everyone on the planet could unanimously find cute, Iโm betting that world peace would start just so we could all fawn over it. Sadly, such a thing doesnโt exist yet in our world, but I did find a new anime thatโs about pretty much that: The Demon Kingโs Daughter is Too Kind!
The Demon King Ahriman, ruler of all demonkind and enemy to all that is good in the world. For years, his forces have been on a campaign to conquer all and make non-demons bow down to demonkind. Thereโs just one problem: his infant daughter, Doux, will not act like how most demons do. Whereas other demons care about hurting people and causing misery and strife, even amongst themselves, Doux is the exact opposite. All she cares about is making people happy and bringing smiles and joy to everyone. Sheโsโฆtoo kind.
When I first saw the trailer for this series, I thought that seemed like another silly slice of life series. And to be fair, that is what it is. It makes it no secret that itโs an anime thatโs meant to make people feel good. But thatโs the thing about it. When they say that Doux is too kind, thatโs not hyperbole. And itโs not because her dad spoils her and acts like a doting parent with her. When they say sheโs too kind, they mean that she doesnโt have an ounce of evil in her body whatsoever.
Take the first episode, for example. The Demon Kingโs lieutenant is given the task of training her to be a ruthless demon. The first thing that Doux does is run off to force her to play hide-and-seek. And she does it to the tune of this song that little kids would sing while befriending all the animals she runs across!
And itโs not just animals and demons that sheโs nice to, either! Itโs everyone and everything. She regularly visits the slaves to play with the kids and give food to everyone. She once helped out an angel for the sake of it. And every time she tries to be scary or mean, it just backfires because sheโs just that nice!
And the crazy part? She might actually conquer the world with kindness. In fact, I think that that might actually be her ultimate plan.
The thing that makes this show adorable is that Douxโs kindness is infectious. Whether theyโre human, demon, angel, or animals, Doux brings out the best in everyone around her, making them nicer and happier. It gets to the point that her attendant thinks she might destroy the concept of evil altogether by getting everyone to be friends and nice to each other. And you know what? Iโm all for it!
Itโs no secret that our world can suck. A LOT. Seeing everyone constantly getting mad over things and fighting each other on the news can be enough to make a person give up on the world. But then you remember the characters from tv shows that were just unfailingly kind to everyone, and you think, โthese guys? They get it.โ They get that being mean to everyone isnโt going to make things any better, and so they choose to be nice. And Doux is so nice and cute that I canโt help but want to be nice just by watching her. And the world needs more kindness in it!
Even before we learned about the traitors in the human ranks, I knew that it was only a matter of time before Xylo and the Hero Unit would have to face off against their own people. Xyloโs main goal in life is to find those who led to Senervaโs death and get revenge; itโs inevitable. However, I didnโt expect things to happen so quickly, but the fighting at Mureed Fortress has forced everyoneโs hands. Now Xylo, Kivia, and the others have to stay away from the front to protect Teoritta. And in doing so, we get to meet more members of the Hero Unit, as weโll see for our own eyes that Venetimโs story about demons disguised as humans was true.
After defeating another Demon Lord at Mureed, Kivia visits Xylo in the hospital and lets him know that he and Teoritta are being benched. Not because theyโre doing a bad job, but because theyโre doing so well that the Coexisters want Teoritta dead. So to make sure theyโre taken care, sheโs having them pretend theyโre on vacation to draw them out. On the plus side, this gives Xylo and Teoritta a chance to collect themselves, as well as give us a chance to meet another member of the Hero Unit. And he might be my favorite one yet.
Meet Jayce Partiract, a man who exudes main character energy. His spiky red hair alone makes him look like the protagonist of a JRPG, but then thereโs the fact that heโs also a dragon rider. He loves dragons so much that he tried to free all the ones serving the kingdom, which led him to get the hero sentence. And the dragons love him for that, much to the dismay of his personal dragon, Neely. Heโs smug, rude, and the first thing he asks of Xylo is to pay up for winning a bet about who could kill the most Demon Lords. If you dyed his hair blonde, he could pass for a Targaryen. But anyone able to befriend a dragon has to be tough, and he does come in handy at a critical moment in the episode.
The biggest surprise, though, has to be the visitor that Xylo gets, this priestly-looking woman named Frenci. She used to be Xyloโs fiance, but due to heroes being banned from marriage, it was canceled! She claims to be working on getting him pardoned, but meeting her is enough to make Teoritta jealous that the source of her headpats could get stolen. That gets superseded, though, by the reveal that Frenci is hunting another Demon Lord called Spriggan, who can disguise themselves as a human. So Venetim was right without even knowing it.
An Imposter Among us
This is a legitimately stressful situation. It’s bad enough the heroes have to look out for enemeis amongst their own, but if the demons can disguise themselves, it can make everyone seem sus. What’s worse, though, is the fact that Teoritta can’t use her powers on the humans she’s supposed to protect. And sure enough, both problems rear their head by the end of the episode.
Xylo and Kiviaโs plan to draw the heretics out works as they, Teoritta, and Tsav are attacked in the market. To be fair, though, they were pretty sloppy in their methods, and they saw them coming easily. Once they drew them into an alleyway, though, they find themselves outnumbered by more heretics, including two assassins, Shiji Bau and Boojum. Jayce saves the day with Neely burning the rabble, but Shiji escapes. What’s more concerning, though, is Boojum? He took the flames head-on, and he didn’t flinch. And Teoritta notes how he felt different from the rest of the assassins.
It’s safe to say that Xylo found the Demon Lord Spriggan. But how are we going to deal with him? Questions for later. I’m still stuck on the fact that Xylo has a fiance!!!
I Give “Sentence: Feigned Day Off at Port City Ioff” a 4/5
This right here, is a NEW series that I’ll be doing; where I VENT about things that dig into my skin, like the scarabs from The Mummy. There are some things (and possibly people) that I’m going to roast, and will do so in the most comedically-angry way possible. Normally I’m on the gray side of things when it comes to online debates, but in this series; any opinions you have about whatever I say going forward, will be treated as toilet paper that I will wipe my ASS with! Now onto the VENTilation!! New Panty & Stocking with Garterbelt!
I love you…but we got some issues!
Now, I know what many of you are thinking…
“OG! It’s been 15 years, we never thought we’d SEE a Season 2!”
“OG! I miss Jamie and Monica too, but the NEW cast IS trying!”
“OG! I thought you liked the show and gave it a chance, so why switch up now?”
Listen, I hear everything that you’re saying, and many of you have valid points. It HAZBIN 15 years since we last saw the show; with that crazy twist of an ending that sent most Stocking simps into a spiral, over the fact that she was ACTUALLY a demon. A LOT has changed, and plus that’s a WHOLE Alpha generation ago! Ya’ll remember the story of how this show happened; the director and the crew got drunk, got inspired by “Drawn Together”, and when they came back, they started working on the concept of Panty & Stocking. Then the rest was history!
It was one of the most craziest shows I ever had the pleasure of watching, and when the dub got announced, OH boy! Jamie, Monica, and the rest of the OG crew understood the assignment; to make dat motherf*ka raunchy as hell! I’m surprised Adult Swim didn’t pick this show up (and it really needs to). I’m not gonna go over everything that happened in the OG series, so you’ll have to GO watch it if you haven’t seen it!ย
“So…what’s the problem with Season 2?”
Chill! I’m getting to that!
[1st VENTilation: The Dub RECAST!!]
Had to get the obvious one out of the way. When the announcement got made in 2023, everybody was cranked all the way to 11! Fans were rising from the grave that we haven’t seen since 2012, and this hype was justified even further when the SUB trailer dropped in 2024! (It even had the OG Japanese cast reprise their roles, with the exception of one or two.) Keep in mind that it was only the teaser trailer, and if that was the sub, we could only imagine what the dub trailer was going to be like! (Especially with Jamie and Monica HOPEFULLY returning!)
Then the DUB trailer finally hits!
Um…what?
Listen, I have absolutely no hate nor shade towards the NEW cast of the NEW show, but on the same token, you have to acknowledge how mad and disappointed many OG fans were when this trailer dropped. The hype for this show went from 1000-to-zero the second the first line of dialogue was spoken. NO WHERE IN THE TRAILER do you hear Jamie OR Monica, or even some of the rest of the OG cast! (OG Garterbelt being recast I understand, besides it’s 2026 so we already knew that was happening.)
Maybe it would’ve been FINE if this was a partial recast, and Amazon & Pixelogic would’ve kept Jamie and Monica as the MAIN girls. Welp, that didn’t happen. Now I know there are many, MANY theories about the recast having to do with the ‘Weeb War of 2019’, but if we’re still doing that in 2026, GO OUTSIDE!!!ย ย
Dis What “Outside” Looks Like!
[2nd VENTilation: The SCRIPT!!]
The recast was a shock, but I probably would’ve forgiven it…if it wasn’t for the script. I know we live in a microwave society when it comes to dubs (as they used to take a year or two after the original sub came out), but man, the OG Panty & Stocking dub has GOT to be the exception! The sub came out in 2010 and the dub didn’t drop until two years later, then they slapped that thang on DVD with some hilarious extras. Keep in mind the reason why the OG dub was iconic, was because the main cast was DIRECTLY involved with the dubbing process! They had that cake, and ATE it too!
Not to mention when promoting the OG series at conventions, they had cosplayers dancing on stripper poles as Panty and Stocking! That is the best ‘On-the-Nose’ advertising I’ve ever seen! We ain’t get that with New PSG in the U.S. (In Japan, that’s a whole different story!)
“Cool story bro, what’s wrong with the script?”
Jamie’s NOT on it! No Jamie, no sauce.
It was 90% direct translation, and 10% adaptation. That 10% being the Poly brothers. Hunter and Corey were amazing as the Poly boys, and I’m SO glad the director let them add some adlib flava to their characters; cuz’ that direct dub translation was BORING AS HEEL! I guess this is what happens when you make a series like this from sober circumstances–with ‘Suits’ and Compliance Officers.
[3rd & Final VENTilation: Amazon Prime Exclusive!!]
I know Crunchyroll mad as hell they didn’t get it first! Making this series an Amazon Prime Exclusive, to many angry OG fans in their words, was a ‘dumbass choice’! Don’t even get me started with the whole ‘Banana Fish’ situation, cuz’ that’s a whole nother ‘VENTilation’ for a later date! Most of us don’t even like Amazon that much, and throw in the fact that they played a part in the recast of the OG cast, and you can really say that you hate em’ like bad breath during Taco Tuesday!
They probably thought this series was going to be as big and popular as…well ya’ll know what this show reminds another fanbase of. (Go back to the joke I made at the beginning of this rant!) Don’t expect there to be a Blu-Ray dub release of this show, cuz you’ll have to order the Blu-Ray sub straight from New PSG’s website.
“Okay, you made your point. You HATE the show! Now, can we go?”
Slow down, Sonic! I ain’t reach the verdict yet!
On the one hand; I’m happy that the show finally came back after 15 years, as I along with the OG fanbase never thought we’d see the day. There are two things I like about the NEW series; the NEW transformations (lawd have mercy, they did NOT have to make Stocking that DAMN fine!), and the music. No shade to Courtney and Christina, I think they are very talented (even though I like Jamie and Monica a little bit more), I just wish the writing was BETTER! That’s it! (Now ya’ll can’t say that I hate them cuz’ at LEAST I gave them a chance by watching the WHOLE series start-to-finish!)
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