Author: Roderick J "Jay" Friz

I’m Reviewing the new Season of One Piece, and you Can’t stop Me!

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

Primer for One Piece Elbaph Arc

After all these years, we’re finally here. The One Piece anime has officially made it to Elbaph.

A few months ago, Toei Animation shocked the world of anime with some unbelievable news. After almost three decades of near-continuous running, the One Piece anime would no longer be an all-year-round show. Starting from the end of the Egghead Island Arc, the anime would switch to the same seasonal format that has come to define the industry in recent years. While some got upset about this, others understood the need for the switch. The anime was catching up to the manga, and with Eichiro Oda prioritizing his well-being in recent years, that meant fewer chapters were out. Between that and the higher quality of animation the series has gotten in recent years, releasing a new episode every week isn’t sustainable for anyone. Plus, no one wants to see more filler episodes and we hate those recap specials that keep popping up! Hence the need to move to a seasonal release schedule. But trust me, it will be worth it, because if you only watched the anime, you have no idea how crazy the Elbaph Arc is going to get. But I do.

Over the past several years, I have been covering the One Piece manga on my personal blog, recapping and reviewing each chapter from the end of Act One of the Wano Country Arc onwards. And I’ve been reading the manga for about fourteen years, with it currently in the middle of the Elbaph Arc right now. Which is I’m going to do something that I haven’t thought of doing before: I’m going to review the One Piece anime.

In the past, I’ve never considered reviewing the One Piece anime because I never felt it necessary. I already knew what was going to happen, so I didn’t think that I could properly review it. But then it occurred to me that I review plenty of shows that I already know the outcomes to, both on here and on my personal blog. With that not being an excuse, and the shift to a seasonal format becoming more appealing, why shouldn’t I review the anime? If anything, the fact that I’ve been covering the manga should help me review everything better!

Plus, when I say that the Elbaph Arc is going to be crazy, I mean that it’s going to be crazy. The first look that just dropped on YouTube is just the beginning.

Why this is So Hype!

I don’t know how many people who read this blog like One Piece or have been a long-term fan of it, but indulge me as I explain why this arc is so hyped up. Next to the island where the One Piece is said to be located, Elbaph has been the most anticipated location in the entire series. Ever since it was first mentioned in an arc twenty-seven years ago, Elbaph has been one near the top fo the places that Luffy has wanted to visit. It’s the homeland of most of the Giants, who, as we have seen throughout the series, are some of the strongest warriors in the world. More importantly, it’s a land that’s heavily influenced by Norse culture, AKA the Vikings. Next to the real-life golden age of piracy, the Vikings are who most people think of when they think of pirates. But they’re more than just pirates; they were explorers, traders, nation-builders, and had a culture that has had influenced the world long after the actual civilization faded away. Case in point, we have what Marvel and God of War have done with Norse mythology. Culturally, they’re a pretty big deal! And Eichiro Oda has spent the majority of the manga feeding us tiny hints of what this fantastical land is like, longer than he has for any other location.

There is a reason for why Oda has devoted so much attention to Elbaph. When he was a kid, he grew up watching Vicky the Viking, a German-Japanese show about a smart but timid boy who used his brains to help out his village. That show is what made him want to become a mangaka, and eventually led him to create One Piece. Part of what makes the series so great is that Oda draws influence from real-world cultures for almost every location the Straw Hat Pirates visit, and in the case of Elbaph, it’s the Vikings. To put it simply, Oda’s spent most of his life wanting to tell a story like that of Elbaph, and so far, he hasn’t held anything back.

You are Not Ready for Loki

If you’ve read the manga already, then you already know just how crazy the Elbaph Arc gets, but this quick teaser is more of the “show-but-don’t-tell” variety. That’s understandable, given how it’s only 30 seconds long, but it makes the best of it to hype us up for what we’re about to see. Granted, by the time this goes out, the first episode will already be released, but that’s besides the point. The main focus of the trailer, though, is the introduction of a new character that plays a major role in the arc. A character, as of where the manga is right now, is considered a prime candidate to join the Straw Hat Pirates: Loki, the accursed Prince of Elbaph.

If you know anything about Norse mythology, then you know Oda wasn’t playing around naming this behemoth of a Giant Loki. The fact that the first time we see him, he is blindfolded and chained to a tree should be enough to tell you that this guy is dangerous. If that doesn’t convince you, the fact that he tells Luffy that he’s the Sun God who will destroy the world should tell you how dangerous he is. The fact that he’s claiming to be the Sun God, a title that we thought Luffy unknowingly has thanks to his Devil Fruit, only cements this.

I won’t spoil anything, but for a good part of the arc, Oda does a good job of leaving readers unsure of what to think about Loki. I still remember how people were debating about whether Loki is as bad as his countrymen say he is, or if he’s misunderstood. Oda keeps us guessing for a while, and it was interesting to listen to the debates about it amongst the fans. But I’m getting ahead of myself.

The Elbaph Arc will begin on April 5th, 2026, and with our release schedule for new posts, it’s likely that has already passed. Hopefully, I will have already reviewed the first episode by the time you’re reading this and it will be scheduled for publishing. If so, I hope you enjoy it!

The OG Dub VA for Luffy Returns as Joy Boy

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

They’re Bringing Back the OG VA for Luffy for One Piece

After all of these years, the OG dub VA for Monkey D. Luffy is getting some recognition.

These days, it’s hard to imagine a world in which One Piece isn’t one of the most popular media franchises in the world. But like anything great, it didn’t start off that way. It’s taken decades for One Piece to become the globally mainstream hit it is now, and I think that part of the reason why it is that way is due to how bad its initial debut in the West was. The people who enjoy the English dub tend to think of the ongoing Funimation (now Crunchyroll) dub of One Piece, but like Dragon Ball and other anime that came westward in the 90s and 2000s, there were other English dubs. It just so happens that the OG dub of One Piece is infamously considered one of the worst ever made: the One Piece 4Kids dub.

Anyone Remember 4Kids?

Before the rise of Funimation, 4Kids Entertainment was the premier company when it came to localizing anime in the West. From the original Pokemon anime to Yu-Gi-Oh! and its numerous sequel series, 4Kids was once the king of anime. I was one of the kids who grew up loving everything they did, but looking back on it now, you can tell just how much they changed things for their audiences. The shows they dubbed were subjected to a lot of censorship and changes meant to make them what they deemed to be suitable for kids because they thought it was what was best for them. In doing so, though, they removed a lot of the tension and stakes that made the shows so compelling, with questionable results. They could get away with in Pokemon since it was meant for kids, but it starts becoming noticeable in shows like Yu-Gi-Oh! And then came the show that would ruin them: One Piece.

And they never wanted to do it in the first place.

4Kids didn’t know what it was doing

4Kids never had any intention of dubbing One Piece in the first place. The only reason that they did it is because it was part of a package deal they got with Toei that included shows that they actually wanted. They didn’t know anything about it going in, and when they saw all the more mature themes (smoking, death, fanservice) and said “we can’t show this to our demographic!” So they censored like they never censored before…with disastrous results.

There’s a reason why the 4Kids dub of One Piece is considered one of the worst dubs of all time, and if you grew up watching it, find it on dvd, or find it online, you’ll understand why. All the blood was removed, alcohol was replaced with other drinks, they removed the guns or replaced with ridiculous props. Not to mention just how bad the voice acting was. I didn’t realize it as a kid, but it was absolutely terrible! And worst of all was how they cut out key moments from the story. I didn’t even know until years later about Laboon or Little Garden because they were outright removed!

Ultimately, their attempt to dub One Piece the beginning of the end for 4Kids. It was so poorly received that their reputation would never fully recover, and several years, the company went belly up. Now all that remains is the memory of it and the dubs they left behind. As for One Piece, Funimation would eventually take up the role of dubbing it, but it would take years for them to undo the damage. These days, the English dub is in a much better position, but I’m willing to bet that there are plenty of fans that prefer sub over dub partly due to what 4Kids did. Honestly, I don’t blame them. I look back on the 4Kids dub, and realize just how bad it really was.

The sad irony? I actually stopped initially watching One Piece after the 4Kids dub ended.

At Least 4Kids Introduced me to One Piece

I was only ten years old when I started watching One Piece, and I had no idea just how bad a hand I had gotten with it. Even with all the censoring and changes, One Piece still looked so cool to me, to the point where I started going around wearing the closest thing I could find to Luffy’s straw hat. And when it ended and I think Toonami switched to the Funimation dub, I was so confused that I walked away from it altogether. Again, I was just a kid who didn’t know any better. Plus, I wasn’t able to find ways to watch the anime and read the manga until I was in high school, so there wasn’t much that I could do. Yet despite knowing how bad I got it, I can’t truly bring myself to hate the 4Kids dub of One Piece, if only because it was how I got into the series in the first place. Which is why this next bit of news brings a smile to my face.

It will have likely already passed by then, but on March 24th, for the first time ever, the dub of the One Piece anime will be caught up to the subbed. For decades, fans have had to deal with the fact that the English dub remained dozens, even hundreds, of episodes behind the subbed version. That alone is a big win. But it just got even bigger: they’re bringing back the original dub VA for Luffy.

In one of the final batches of episodes before the anime went seasonal, One Piece introduced us to the voice of Joy Boy, a legendary figure in the lore of the series who was said to be the first pirate, and the last person to wield the powers that Luffy now has. In a fun twist, the Seiyuu for Joy Boy is Uraka Takano, the original voice of Luffy. Most people don’t know this, but there was actually an OVA of One Piece released in 1998, predating the Toei series and with different animation and voices. So it’s poetic to have Joy Boy voiced by the OG Luffy.

The dub seems to have taken a similar stance on the matter, as it was announced that the English voice actor for Joy Boy is Erica Schroeder, aka the original English voice for Luffy from the 4Kids days.

I can’t help but smile at this small tribute to what came before it. Even if it was one of the worst dubs of anime in history, 4Kids is still a part of the history of One Piece. It’s how I fell in love with One Piece in the first place, so I at least respect it for that. Getting to hear the OG voice of Luffy is going to be something that I hope makes me very happy, and I’m glad that it’s getting acknowledged.

Plus, for all its faults, yjere was one thing that 4Kids did right by One Piece: the opening rap. Say what you want about everything else, but that rap song isn’t half bad.

Did they Just Have a Final Fantasy VII Battle?

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

Sentenced to be a Hero Ep 11 Review

We are one episode away from the finale of Sentenced to be a Hero, and this has been one of the most visually stunning anime of the year. I only started watching this because it was animated by the people who did the best animation in Mushoku Tensei, but I’ve wound up staying for the plot. And while we’re all focused on the fighting against the Demon Blight, there’s an even bigger plot at work in the background. And we just got a hint at what the true goals of the Demon Blight are, as well as what is leading them.

Another Hail Mary in the Works

The fighting in Port Ioff is not going well by any accounts. The Demon Blight is overrunning the place, with the Holy Knights lines being broken in the sewers. The Hero Unit is holding the faeries off for the time being, but they’re fighting an uphill battle. Then again, what else is new at this point? Every battle we have seen Xylo’s unit fight in has had the odds stacked against them.

The good news is that Xylo and Teoritta manage to save a group of civilians holed up in a makeshift shelter. The bad news is that their goal of storming the lighthouse means that they can’t stick around to protect them. So they have to leave their protection to Rhyno.

There is just something off about Rhyno, and we all know it. He acts like wholeheartedly believes in fighting for humanity, but at the same time, his lack of empathy isnt helping anyone. When Xylo asks him to show the citizens how to use some magic staves they have, he asks him who would make the best cannon fodder if the worst case occurred! I get that in war, civilians die, and that not everyone can be saved. But that doesn’t mean that soldiers shouldn’t at least try to save everyone, or consider using civilians as fodder!

And yet, I can see why Xylo keeps him around. He’s got marksmanship that rivals that of Usopp or Hawkeye, as he proves instrumental in clearing one of the human mercenaries that Boojum hired to help him. All it takes is a few good shots for him to send the armored Iron Whale to oblivion.

Iron Whale got off lucky, though. As Xylo and Teoritta make their way to the tower, they run back into Shiji Bau. And she ends up being barbecued by Jayce and Neely!

An Epic Boss Fight!

And that brings us to the main event of the episode. The fight of Xylo and Teoritta vs Boojum. As should be expected by this point, the fight is absolutely incredible. I know that I compared their boss fight at Mureed to something out of Dark Souls, but the one here feels more like something from a JRPG. To be more precise, the changing battlefield and Boojum mutating remind me of something out of Kingdom Hearts or the remakes of Final Fantasy VII. They’re fast-paced, frenetic, and rely a lot on spectacle to keep the audience enthralled. In short, I loved it.

There was something about the fight, though, that I can’t help but ponder. Before they slew Boojum, we heard him mention how he was following the orders of someone higher up. Not another Demon Lord, but a king. The Demon Blight has a king, presumably the one who’s been calling the shots for the Demon Lords. Considering how dangerous the Demon Lords have been, we can only assume the Demon King must be terrifying. And should this series get more seasons, I can only assume that this will be the final boss. Assuming that it isn’t the Coexisters.

Speaking of which…

Yeah, Kivia’s Uncle is Sus

While the majority of the episode is focused on the fighting, the B-plot continues Kivia’s storyline. And she is starting to lose it.

Throughout the series, we have seen Kivia undergo some significant character development, going from straight up hating the Hero Unit to respecting them. More importantly, she started to realize that not everyone on Humanity’s side is working in its best interests. The Coexisters were already worrying her, but then she heard the name Lideo gave for the person who ordered the hit on Teoritta: Mahaeyzel. We don’t know who that is yet, but the fact that she was shocked means it’s someone important. And then she heard her uncle mention them at the end of the last episode!

The result? She spends the entirety of this episode looking like she’s close to losing it. And I don’t blame her, either. She has good reason to suspect that her uncle, her mentor, is a Coexister and a traitor to humanity. And since she’s the only one who knows this, if she decides to act on it, then she will be setting herself up to look like the bad guy.

I don’t need to know the spoilers about what happens to know that whatever Kivia does next, it’s not going to end well for her. She’ll be called a traitor and criminal like the rest of the penal Heroes. Though at this point, I think most of the Hero Unit only got sentenced because they were set up by the Coexisters. Which means that there’s only one solution: purging!

We have one episode left in the season, and I have no idea where things are headed right now. All I know is that things are about to blow up in a big way.

I Give “Sentence: Aid in Evacuation of Ioff Cheg Port 2” a 4/5

JoJo! STEEL BALL RUN!

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

STEEL BALL RUN JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure Ep 1 Review

Calling all JoJo fans, calling all JoJo fans!! PEAK ANIME HAS RETURNED! You are all invited to witness history in the making as Hirohiko Araki’s magnum opus is getting an anime. Come join us for the STEEL BALL RUN!!!

If I sound like I’m super excited right now, you can’t blame me. Ever since the anime went international ten years ago, JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure has proven why it’s one of the GOATS of Shonen. From the music to the artwork, to the posing and memes, JoJo has become an internet legend. Unfortunately, Netflix had to yank it off the airwaves and make Part Six exclusive to its platform, and the arrival of Part Seven hasn’t changed that. However, if there was ever a reason for anime fans to get Netflix(besides the live-action One Piece and other series), then it’s for Steel Ball Run.

Quick Refresher!

If you are a newcomer to JoJo, then you don’t have to worry about needing any prior knowledge about the series beyond the basics. It’s broken up into separate parts, each of which covers a different character whose initials can spell JoJo or some variation of it. That, and it follows the adventures of the Joestar family, with each part following a different family member. Moreover, Part Seven is when the mangaka, Hirohiko Araki, chose to start fresh in an entirely new timeline as he took the manga from shonen to seinen. And since Araki is a massive westernphile, he decided to start strong with a love letter to spaghetti westerns, giving us Steel Ball Run.

The Ultimate Race!

The year is 1890 on the West Coast of the United States. Business tycoon Steven Steel has invited people from all over the world to participate in the first-ever Steel Ball Run. It’s a massive cross-country race spanning 4,000 miles across the continental US from San Diego to New York City, with the winner getting a grand prize of $50 million!

The premise to this part alone should be enough to excite fans, especially Americans. One of America’s biggest selling points is its sheer size and diversity. From the deserts to the south and west to the plains of the heartland and the forests and mountains, America is truly a land of such diversity. And I think that Araki wanted to use that to his advantage by telling his grandest story since Stardust Crusaders. And the characters are already memorable and memeable.

So Many Cool Characters!

There are hundreds of people taking part in the Steel Ball Run, but this extra-long episode focuses primarily on the five that will be major players in the arc. First up, we have Gyro Zeppeli, the Italian with gold-plated teeth and these mysterious steel balls. And for those debating about sub vs dub, I recommend dub. Zeppeli is voiced by Kaiji Tang, and he brings that signature charm of his to play.

Next up, we have our resident JoJo, Johnny Joestar. And he’s a piece of work. While he’s part of the upper crust of society like his Part One counterpart, that’s where the similarities end. Unlike OG JoJo, Johnny was an arrogant and self-centered horse jockey who was once at the top of the world. But when he cut in line for something, the guy he cut shot and crippled him from the waist down, robbing him of his talent and pride. But then this happens!

And that is enough to make him join the Steel Ball Run, so he can learn the secret of the Spin and how to walk again.

Having spent so much time with the noble and heroic Joestar family, it’s a little surprising to see a JoJo who’s so obviously flawed. Other JoJo’s have had their flaws. Several of them were troublemakers, rude, and delinquents. But Johnny feels like the JoJo with the most overt character flaws, as him losing the ability to walk was entirely his fault. He wrecked his own life, and now he wants to prove that he’s not worthless. Despite that, though, Johnny has the determination and willpower that have defined the Joestars, as he refuses to let his disability stop him from joining the race.

https://twitter.com/KonoYimeDa/status/2034557638122291468?s=20

Friends or Foes?

It wouldn’t be JoJo, though, without Dio, though. And despite him dying back in Part Three, we get an alternate version of Dio, Diego Brando, joining the story as a rival horse jockey. So far, he’s not pure evil like DIO, just arrogant. But we should still give him a wide berth.

Lastly, we have two other characters that are clearly set up to be supporting cast members, Sandman and Poco Loco. One is a Native who’s determined to finish the Steel Ball Run with his own superhuman legs, and the other is lucky to the point that it’s laughable. In fact, I’m pretty sure I did laugh watching what went down in the first leg of the race! And what a leg it was!

BEST RACE EVER!

One thing that I consistently love about JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure is its ability to turn the most mundane and regular activities into the most exciting things you can imagine. Now, a cross-country horse race is already plenty exciting, but Steel Ball Run manages to make it into the coolest thing ever. I couldn’t hope to capture how crazy it is in words alone, but thankfully, Twitter provides.

I cannot lie to you about this: I was really invested into what was happening in the race that makes up the second half of the episode. It felt like I was watching an actual horse race to the point that I started cheering at one point watching the jockeys. And the artwork! They managed to capture all of Araki’s Louvre-level talent in animation form. Combine that with the peak music, and we have a masterpiece.

Again, I cannot lie to you: I wasn’t sure if I was going to cover it for the D&A Anime Blog. But after what I just saw, I NEED to give it the attention it deserves. Steel Ball Run is a contender for anime of the year in my book! I can’t wait to see the rest of the race!

I Give “Steel Ball Run” a 5/5

Megumi Almost Broke his Back!

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

Jujutsu Kaisen Season 3 Ep 11 Review

Megumi is a badass. Well, we already knew that he was a badass. After all, he is the son of the guy who came close to killing Gojo and was the boogeyman of the Jujutsu world. Even Sukuna has a vested interest in keeping him alive; given how Sukuna doesn’t care about anyone but himself, that speaks volumes about his potential. And the Culling Game is giving us yet another example of how much of a badass Megumi is, as he manages to win a contest of endurance and will against one of the deadliest opponents in the Game. All while almost breaking his back, to boot!

Megumi is a Badass!

When we last left off, Megumi had laid a trap for the Sorcerer Regie Star using his Domain Expansion. Since he hasn’t fully mastered it, he got around that problem by luring him into a closed gymnasium. Thanks to that, Megumi is able to turn the tables while Tengen narrates how his plan is supposed to be working. And as is the case for the entire season, the animation is superb.

Unfortunately, those receipts of Regie’s are super powerful, as is his mind. He was able to figure out that Megumi’s shadow has a finite carrying capacity. He needs to make room for himself or risk bearing the weight of everything in his shadow. So Regie uses his receipts to summon a trio of cars to get sucked into the domain, essentially threatening to crush him!

This fight then becomes a battle of attrition as the two throw the heaviest things they have at each other in an attempt to crush the other. And this is where we get a visible reminder of just how tough Jujutsu Sorcerers are compared to normal humans. The two of them are forced to endure several tons of weight on their backs that could cripple or kill a normal human being. And despite being pushed to their limits and risking internal damage, they are able to make it out alive. And one of those things is a house. An actual house. I don’t even know how Regie got a receipt for a house.

Thankfully, though, Megumi managed to pull a big brain move by cancelling his Domain, sending them down to the pool in the basement and ruining Regie’s receipts. Checkmate! And with that, Megumi takes another W and manages to all of Regie’s points before he dies.

The bad news is that Megumi ends up passing out right afterwards. The good news, though, is that he is attended to by the Angel girl that he and Yuji were looking for in the first place! Talk about a lucky break!

As for Takaba, we get to see the end of his fight with the exploding guy as the latter calls it quits and leaves. The narrator then explains everything that I already did in the last review about how his powers work. Like I said, it’s the rule of funny in jujutsu form.

Everything that we’ve seen, though, is nothing compared to what Yuta is facing.

Yuta is Just Built Different!

If you have seen JJK 0, then you should know just how much of a badass Yuta Okkotsu. Next to Gojo, he is the strongest Jujutsu Sorcerer alive. And the strongest JuJutsu Sorcerer gets sent to the strongest battlefield in the Sendai Colony. The episode explicitly states that it is far deadlier than what we’ve seen in Tokyo, with multiple heavy-hitters caught in a stalemate due to their incredible power. Two are reincarnated sorcerers, another has crazy cursed energy, and the last one is a special-grade Curse! And Yuta manages to kill one of them right after he arrives.

This isn’t an ordinary Sorcerer, either. This was a reincarnated Sorcerer who was powerful enough to conquer all of Japan two thousand years ago. And Yuta killed him like he was nothing. Not even worth showing the fight!

I don’t know how many episodes are left in this part of the season, but if this next episode is the last, then I’m going to enjoy it. I knew that Yuta was holding back against Yuji, so I want to see what it’s like when he goes all out! This is going to be so cool, you guys!!!

I Give “Tokyo Colony No 1-Part 5” a 3/5

Takaba is Hilarious, and you Can’t Change my Mind!

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

Jujutsu Kaisen S3 Ep 10 Review

Okay, guys. I know I said that the last episode of JJK was my second favorite of the entire season. But I’m already calling it: this episode is my third favorite! While Yuji managed to get Higuruma to change the rules to help their plan, Megumi wound up getting jumped by a group of hostile sorcerers. And now, we get to see our sullen sorcerer in action. More importantly, though, we get to see my favorite character in the entire series in action. The god of comedy himself, Takaba!

Megumi is a Stone-Cold MOFO!

When we last saw Megumi Fushiguro, he was in the process of getting jumped by a bunch of Culling Game players, led by this guy named Regie Star whose outfit is the biggest amount of receipts I’ve ever seen. I’m not sure if it’s mentioned here, but he’s one of those reincarnated sorcerers and thinks that Kenjaku has some secret plan to the Culling Game beyond merging with Tengen. So he’s trying to recruit people to help when the time comes. Naturally, Megumi doesn’t care beyond stopping Kenjaku and saving his sister, so he says no. And then we witness Megumi getting jumped by this entire posse.

And this is one of the moments where I think JJK’s power system really has a chance to show off.

I know that a few episodes ago I was complaining how about strange some of the powers in JJK can be, like Kirara’s was. But as long as it looks cool and can kick butt, I’m willing to roll with things. And Megumi’s fight with Regie’s group shows how dangerous sorcerers can be in the modern day. Like this one guy who can turn his body parts into explosives and regenerate them. It’s like a grosser version of what Bakugo from MHA can do! But the scariest threat is Regie himself. By burning those receipts he has, he can summon whatever they were used to buy. Like gasoline, a Vespa, or even an 8-wheeler truck. He can basically summon stuff and throw it at Megumi like weaponized garbage! That may sound dumb, but then you remember what would happen if one of those receipts was for something like an assault rifle.

Thankfully, Megumi is a badass with a bunch of shikigami to back him up. And unlike Yuji, he’s fully willing to kill opponents if that will help his goals, as shown when he actually kills one of Regie’s mooks. He almost gets overwhelmed early into the fight until someone unexpected shows up to interfere: Fumihiko Takaba, my favorite character.

TAKABA IS HILARIOUS AND YOU IMITATE EVERYTHING HE DOES

We already met Takaba before. He was that struggling comedian we saw at the end of a few episodes back, and now he’s participating in the Culling Game. And he’s doing it in a costume straight out of a tokusatsu that’s split right down the middle, leaving half his body exposed. And I do mean exposed. There are a few moments where the anime has to obscure his nether region from hanging out. And keep in mind that he’s a 35-year-old man whose running dressed like this. And if you thought that is cringey, then you hear his jokes! They are so bad that they lead to this hilariously overdrawn awkward beat that goes right into the eyecatcher that marks the halfway point of the episode.

I cannot lie to you guys: I love Takaba. I don’t know if it’s because I like goofy characters who act free and uninhibited. Or if it’s because his jokes are so bad, they’re good. But I just love Takaba so dang much. He was the character I was looking forward to seeing the most this season, and for good reason. After all, he’s one of the strongest characters in the entire series.

Don’t. Underestimate. The Fool

No, I am not joking. He may look like a fool, and he is, but don’t let that deceive you. He’s got one of the most broken, overpowered cursed techniques in the entire series. The kind that could potentially bring down the likes of Gojo! What is it, you may ask? In a nutshell, the jujutsu version of the rule of funny.

Have you ever seen the Looney Tunes or gag manga and anime? In those stories, the characters are able to regularly defy the laws of the universe, allowing to survive things that should kill them. Why? Because of the rule of funny: something is allowed to break the laws of reality if people find it funny. And Takaba’s technique, Comedian, allows him to do anything he wants so long as he thinks it’s funny.

I was not exaggerating when I said that Takaba could go toe-to-toe with Gojo. That man has the cursed energy equivalent of toon force, allowing him to survive fatal injuries and turn the tables on that guy with exploding body parts. And I don’t care if he’s meant to be cringey or not. I find him to be hilarious. Then again, I grew up on a diet of cartoons, so I might be biased. I just hope he appears again soon.

Sadly, our time with Takaba is short, as the main focus is the fight between Megumi and Regie. And Megumi is actually on the backfoot due to being unable to gain an advantage over his opponent due to how unpredictable his powers are. So Megumi has to pull out the big guns: his domain expansion. The bad news is that he hasn’t fully mastered it yet, forcing him to take the fight to an enclosed space where he can actually use it. But the good news? We’re gonna get to see Megumi’s domain expansion.

This was such a fun episode for me. I love characters that can make me laugh, and I want more of Takaba!

I Give “Tokyo Colony No. 1 – Part 4” a 4.5/5

Your Honor, My Client is Built Different!

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

Jujutsu Kaisen Season 3 Ep 9 Review

Your honor, my client is not guilty by virtue of being built different!

So, after Yuji got separated from Megumi, he managed to find the Culling Game player he was looking for, Higuruma the Defense Attorney. Unfortunately, Higuruma was in the middle of a crash out due to years of watching his clients get unfairly sentenced for crimes they didn’t commit, so he wasn’t in the mood to listen. If Yuji wants to make his group’s plan to stop the Game work, he’s going to have to fight this guy! Both in a fight itself, and in one of the most based courts of law that I have ever seen in fiction. Yuji is going on trial!

Higuruma is Such a Badass

If the last episode didn’t make it clear enough already, then this episode cements it: Higuruma is built different. He has only been a Jujutsu Sorcerer for a few weeks with no prior knowledge on cursed energy, Jujutsu sorcery, or anything that has to do with it whatsoever. And he’s already one of the top players in the Culling Game. That means that without anyone to teach him or any directions to guide him, he was able to figure all the mechanics by himself. He was even able to do something that only a handful of sorcerer’s can pull off: a Domain Expansion.

As was the case with the last episode, and most of the episodes of this season, the animation was incredible. It more than made the long wait fans must have had feel worth it to see Higuruma’s Doman, Deadly Sentencing, activate.

As for what Deadly Sentencing does, it puts Yuji on trial. An actual trial!

The rules are simple: Higuruma uses his Shikigami, Judgeman, to accuse his target of a crime. The defendant has one chance to defend himself, while he has to prove that they’re guilty. The defendant can remain silent or lie, but in exchange, Higuruma gets evidence only he gets to know about. And if he wins, Judgeman can penalize the defendant. Which leads to a rather humorous exchange where Yuji is held to task about gambling underage at a pachinko parlor. Which he did do, by the way; he’s guilty. The sentence: confiscation of his cursed energy.

This is followed up by the actual fight between Yuji and Higuruma, which is also spectacular. Higuruma is throwing his massive gavel around like he’s a male Harley Quinn, and Yuji’s running for his life and dodging or tanking hits left and right. And this is where we get to see an outsider’s perspective regarding how Yuji is built different. Most Jujutsu Sorcerer’s are as weak as normal humans without their cursed energy, so they should they be easy prey for Higuruma. Yuji, though, was already built tonka-tough before he became Sukuna’s vessel. It gets to the point where it looks the two of them are locked in a stalemate, with Yuji only breaking the deadlock by demanding a retrial.

And this is where the episode really shines as it shows the true character of both combatants as Yuji is put on trial for the crimes of mass murder in Shibuya. And Yuji? He pleads guilty.

The sentence: death.

Yuji is LEGALLY Innocent, people!

We already know by now that Yuji is still beating himself up over what happened during the Shibuya Incident. It’s likely that he’ll never stop feeling guilty about it. But we, as outside observers, can assert that what happened was not his fault. He was unconcious as he was basically drugged to let Sukuna out, and he proceeded to level the Shibuya district, not Yuji. But Yuji still blames himself and thinks he should be punished for it. And this shakes Higuruma to his core.

That bit about Higuruma learning some piece of evidence about the defendant? In this case, he learned everything about Sukuna: how he shares Yuji’s body, how he took control of him, and then proceeded to kill all those people. And he doesn’t understand why Yuji is willing to plead guilty about it. He knows that it wasn’t his fault, but he’s still willing to accept the blame! And this is enough to finally shake Higuruma out of his crash out, choosing to spare Yuji’s life.

This was an incredibly powerful scene for both characters. Higuruma dedicated his life to defending the innocent even when the whole world believes them to be guilty. Yuji considers himself guilty for something that wasn’t his fault, and he still thinks he should be punished for it. Both have had to kill people, either in self-defense or because they wanted to kill them. And both of them feel great guilt over what has happened. The difference is that, even if the public would want to see Yuji hang, he’s innocent of those crimes.

No, really. Higuruma cites the Japanese laws stating that, because he had no intention of killing anyone or any control over his actions, he cannot be held accountable for them. He was basically drugged without consent, possessed without consent, and not in control of his actions. He’s innocent in the eyes of the law.

One Step Closer

With the fight now over, Higuruma finally acquieses to Yuji’s request and adds the rule to share points between players. Their plan can now go forward. Sadly, Higuruma will not help them. He plans to wait everything out and then turn himself in for murder.

I feel bad for Higuruma. He is a good person at heart, and he was pushed to his limits to the point that he crashed out. But before we cast our stones, we need to ask ourselves this: if we were in his shoes, would we do what he did? You’d be surprised. All we can do it hope he finds peace.

This might be my new favorite episode of the entire series. Second favorite, at least. The next episode, though, is going be even crazier.

I Give “Tokyo Colony No. 1 – Part 3” a 4/5

Rhyno is…So Weird

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

Sentenced to be a Hero Ep 10 Review

The Demon Blight is getting more and more dangerous. It was bad enough that Xylo and the others had to keep fighting in suicide missions, but now they have to look over their soldiers to make sure they aren’t stabbed in the back. Even Kivia, who has been an ardent believer in their fight, is starting to see just how corrupt their cause is. And it’s starting to break her. In fact, I think that the events of this episode might end up being what pushes her over the edge and makes her crash out altogether. And it’s also making me regret looking up what happens on TV Tropes.

So, after losing Lideo following his escape from custody, Xylo and Kivia are back to square one. They have no clue who ordered the hit on Teoritta beyond it being a Coexister in the Human Kingdoms. And it’s starting to eat away at the two. Xylo has to keep telling Teoritta why she can’t go anywhere and deal with her being upset. Kivia, though? She is close to losing it. I could tell by her tone of voice and the dark circles under her eyes that the stress of what’s happening is really starting to get to her. Note how she reacted when she heard the name that Lideo gave: it was someone she knew or was aware of, but she’s unable to do anything about it…yet.

At any rate, Xylo and Teoritta are at least able to stick near the temple, where Kivia basks in the adulation of the locals, especially children. It’s nice to see her interact with people who look to be her age. But more importantly, some of the locals even talk positively about Xylo. That’s a good sign. Even if he’s a convicted criminal, his actions are showing people that he’s a hero in the traditional sense. And he gets another chance to prove that: the Demon Blight is back. This time, they’ve taken a tower overlooking most of the harbor, and the Hero Unit has to take it back. Alone. Obviously, Xylo isn’t having that, so he comes up with a strategy to make the Holy Knights intervene: lure the enemy to the ships in the harbor. The nobles and merchants won’t risk letting their livelihoods get smashed to pieces.

And it is at this point that we are introduced to the last member of Xylo’s unit: their artillery officer, Rhyno.

This Guy is Off, Even by our Standards

Now, everyone in Xylo’s unit is a certified weirdo. Dotta’s a kleptomaniac, Venetim’s a con man, Norgalle may or may not be delusional. Tatsuya is crazy, Tsav is a sociopath, and Jayce…he’s really into dragons. But even amongst all these weirdos, Rhyno stands out in a way that unsettles Teoritta. Unlike everyone else, he volunteered to be a hero. He willingly chose to be subjected to an eternal punishment of death and resurrection. No one does that unless they have some screws loose!

Then there’s also the way he regards other people; or rather, his lack of. He is willing to risk collateral damage if it means getting the job done and wiping the demons out. While war is inevitably going to lead to buildings being destroyed and innocent people hurt, that doesn’t mean that it should be encouraged. All of this rubs everyone else the wrong way, to the point where I think Tsav looks like a saint in comparison. The best thing that he’s got going for him is that he’s good at his job. And he’s also got this cool armor that looks like a magical version of Iron Man meets Japanese mecha.

Why did I spoil Myself?

Regardless, though, Xylo’s plan appears to work. They’re able to tie up the demons, and Venetim was able to think ahead and lock down the sewers. But then things go sideways yet again. The demons start carrying staves and using them on the heroes. Boojum tears through the Holy Knights in the sewers. And worst of all, the final moments of the episode have Kivia reach a major epiphany, and that someone she thought she could trust might be a traitor to humanity. And we only have two episodes left in the season, so there is a lot to go through!

Man, next week is going to be crazy. Really hoping that things don’t end badly for anyone, because I don’t want to wait for a second season that might not come.

I Give “Sentence: Aid in Evacuation of Ioff Cheg Port 1” a 3/5

Now this Was a Cool Fight!

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

Sentenced to Be a Hero Ep 9 Review

Well, when diplomacy fails, there’s always good old-fashioned violence to fall back on. Xylo and Kivia’s 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 pair’s way. They’ve fought Demons that can tear most people limb from limb. This episode is basically the show’s equivalent of watching Batman and his partners delivering a smackdown on a gang of criminals.

It’s kind of fun to watch, though!

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 “trying,” 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 other’s 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, Lideo’s 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 don’t 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 Kivia’s 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 “Sentence: Underground Investigation in District of Sodrick 2″ a 3.5/5

Rooster Fighter is the New One Punch Man

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

Rooster Fighter Ep 1

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. It’s 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 it’s part of, in the hopes of making people who are into these stories laugh. And Toonami just released this year’s 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!

So, in the world of Rooster Fighter, demons exist. The first episode doesn’t 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. It’s crazy like that. And what’s even crazier, though, is the fact that the latter is stopped by the arrival of…a rooster. And this is how we are introduced to the titular rooster fighter, Keiji.

Keiji is So Weird

I will be completely blunt and upfront: Keiji is a walking, crowing cliche. He acts and thinks like he’s 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: he’s 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. He’s got a tragic backstory where he had to watch his baby sister get eaten by a white demon. He’s been hunting it ever since like his white whale.  

I love Keiji. He’s a perfect example of the comically serious character, which is helped by the fact that he’s voiced by Patrick Seitz. Many of the characters he voices are known for being incredibly serious and menacing, like DIO and Endeavor. But he’s 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 it’s 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 he’s from a Nintendo game attacks. And again, this is where Patrick Seitz’s acting chops work wonders as he constantly acts like this stoic warrior…while 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. I’m 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.

This is going to be a fun show to watch, everyone! I’m glad that Toonami managed to snag the dub for this series, and I can’t wait to see what happens next! It may be the year of the horse, but it’s the spring of the rooster!

I Give “A Rooster Among Cranes” a 4.5/5