Anime

XENOVERSE 3! XENOVERSE 3 IS REAL!!!

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

The legends are true! XENOVERSE 3 is real!

A few months ago, Bandai Namco revealed that they were working on a new Dragon Ball game under the code name โ€œAge 1000.โ€ That name generated a lot of buzz in the fandom, especially amongst the most hardcore fans, for good reason. As I explained in an article, Age 1000 is the setting for the now-defunct MMORPG, Dragon Ball Online. While the game never officially made it out of Asia, a lot of its DNA would serve as the basis for two other games, Dragon Ball Xenoverse and Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2. I speculated that Age 1000 was meant to be a spiritual remake of DBO, but it seems I underestimated Bandai. On April 19th, 2026, Bandai revealed to the world that Age 1000 was, in fact, a cover for a game ten years in the making: Dragon Ball Xenoverse 3.

Ten Years…Good Times

First released back in 2015 with a follow-up released a year later, the Xenoverse games seem to have maintained a steady popularity despite being over a decade old. With its ability to create characters based on the five most prominent races in the franchise (Human, Saiyan, Namkeian, Majin, and Frieza’s people), the chance to experience the story of Dragon Ball from Z onwards as self-inserts, and online competitive play, the games have remained fairly popular despite being a decade old. It also helps that Xenoverse 2 has regularly recieved updates and DLC. But for years, fans have been wondering when, or even if, there would be a third game to the series, to the point that it became something of a myth in the fandom. It seems that all that waiting is about to pay off, though, as Xenoverse 3 has now been confirmed, and it seems to be the overtly similiar to the premise of Dragon Ball Online out of the games.

What Happens in the Trailer

This announcement trailer doesn’t reveal much in the way of what the story is about, instead focusing on the setting and time it takes place in. As the code name suggested, the game takes place in the year Age 1000, two hundred years after the end of the original manga. The already pretty high-tech world of the series has only grown even more advanced, with holographic billboards now being commonplace. Even better, the diverse population of the previous games has carried over, as we can see characters that are Human, Saiyan, Namkeian (Piccolo), Android, and even a girl from the Demon Realm as a J-Pop artist promoting her new song. More importantly, instead of the Time Patrol, we have something called the Great Saiyan Squad. A clear nod to the late Toriyama’s love for the Tokukatsu genre, the GSS seems like a continuation of what Gohan started as the Great Saiyaman. The fact its members, including the white-haired boy from the first teaser, all wear similar outfits pretty much confirms it.

The thing that everyone is talking the most about, though, isn’t even the fact that this game is the long-awaited Xenoverse 3. It’s the fact that woman sitting behind the chair for the heroes is none other than Bulma. And that has left a lot of people confused.

How is Bulma Still Alive?!?

At this point, it will have been over 200 years since Goku left to train Uub at the end of the manga and Z anime. The longest a human being has been confirmed to live in real life is 122 years, and that’s likely to increase as medical research improves. Even factoring in how much more advanced the world of Dragon Ball is, the idea of a human living into their 200s seems like a stretch. Add in the fact that Bulma looks like she’s hardly aged from her mid-30s, fans are rightfully asking how she’s not only alive, but still so young-looking.

The current leading theory is that Bulma decided to bite the bullet one day and asked Shenron to give her eternal youth. Or, alternatively, Shenron got tired of her using him to take a few years off her life and just decided to give it to her to get her to leave him alone. I speculated that it isn’t even Bulma at all, but one of her and Vegeta’s descendants, but apparently it’s been confirmed that that is Bulma!

How she’s alive is still anyone’s guess, but I am enjoying seeing the theories about it amongst the Dragon Ball-related discord servers I’m a part of. There’s also the fact that she now has an angelic halo around her like Whis and the other Angels which only thickens the plot. Regardless of how it happened, I’m eager to learn how Bulma got this way, and I’m eager to see how the world became this way.

Xenoverse 3 releases in 2027, but it’s already available for wishlisting on Steam and the major consoles. Hopefully, the player base for Xenoverse 2 will start wishlisting it, because I’m looking forward to playing it! I better start coming up with names for my characters!

Rimuru Got Invited to Join the Isekai UN

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

That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime S4 Ep 4 Review

You know whatโ€™s one of my favorite things about Slime Tensura? Itโ€™s not the fighting, or the power-scaling, or the fanservice. Itโ€™s the politics. As the series has progressed and Rimuru becomes more important, the story shifts away from fighting to dealing with nation-building as the human-turned-slime works to build a world for humans and monsters to live in peace. And that means that thereโ€™s going to be people taking advantage of him and trying to take him down, and heโ€™s got to put them in their place. Case in point, the Rozzo family has just used their influence on the nations to the west to invite Rimuru to join their international club as part of a plan to get him under their control. But they donโ€™t know who theyโ€™re messing with.

So after they managed to send Team Green Fury packing, the avatar quartet, humorously, didnโ€™t stop there. They liked hunting adventurers so much that they got carried away and went on an absolute tear, to the point that people are calling them the โ€œDungeon Dominators.โ€ Unfortunately for them, that lands them in hot water for neglecting their other roles, with Millim being the first to suffer. It turns out she snuck off to Tempest to get out of her Demon Lord duties, leading to Frey to have to drag her back home to do her homework.

Poor Millim! I know how you feel about hating homework! And shame on her friends for selling her out like that. At least Rimuru gets some karma when Shuna realizes heโ€™s been goofing off in the Dungeon.

But with that out of the way, Rimuru has to face the more important task at hand: the Rozzo family and the Western Council.

Made up of the human nations located to the west of the Jura Forest, the Council of the West is sort of like a fusion of the real-life United Nations and groups such as NATO. Theyโ€™re an economic and political alliance meant to help the whole of humanity prosper, and the rise of the Monster nation of Tempest has been of great concern to them. Unfortunately, much like the UN, their effectiveness and competency vary a lot.

The latter half of the episode is all about the Council members arguing about whether to invite Tempest to join. Can they be trusted? Whatโ€™s to stop Rimuru from wiping them all out? How can we use them for our own benefit? Some of them even question if Rimuru is as strong as they say he is. Hinata was invited to serve as a witness on Rimuruโ€™s behalf, but her thoughts are exactly what the viewers are meant to feel about this: not impressed. Itโ€™s clear that theyโ€™re only thinking about their own interests and looking down on Rimuru. It becomes even more apparent when they suggest inviting Tempesr to join so its military power can serve as a check on the Eastern Empire, a name that keeps popping up in conversations lately.

Even if Mariabelโ€™s monologues didnโ€™t confirm it, itโ€™s pretty obvious that the Council is being puppeted by the Rozzo family with the way they talk. The manipulation becomes even more apparent when Hinata is approached by the Prince of Englassia and asked to serve as his bodyguard and fight Rimuru if the time comes.

Those fools know not what they are doing. They’re lucky that Rimuru is so chill, or else he would torch them all. Hinata was right to bail out of this.

So, Rimuru and the others are getting invited by the Council to see if they will let him join. Given how useless they were, though, I wouldn’t be surprised if he takes one look at them and says “Nah, we’re good!” Good thing that they’re leaving Shion behind! If she went and someone insulted Rimuru, she would level the city.

I Give “Invitation” a 4/5

This Little Girl is a Problem

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That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime S4 Ep 3 Review

Iโ€™m pretty sure Iโ€™ve talked everyoneโ€™s ears off about how much I hate Witch, AKA Bitch, Whore, and formerly known as Malty S. Melromarc. Sheโ€™s everything wrong with elitist mindsets rolled into an ugly package thatโ€™s so easy to despise. The good news is that she also matches Cersei Lannister in terms of idiocy, so if you know her game, itโ€™s easy to beat her. Can you imagine if Witch was as smart as she thinks she is and how screwed the world would be? Well, Rimuru may not know it yet, but he might have just made an enemy out of someone with the same mindset and the competency to back it up: Mariabel Rozzo.

Mariabel of Greed

So, the OP and ED for this season of Slime Tensura have put a lot of emphasis on the girl known as Mariabel. In anime, that typically means that theyโ€™re important to the plot. Plus thereโ€™s also the fact that weโ€™ve seen Mariabel always hanging around her grandfather, AKA the one who orchestrated that stunt with the merchants in the last season. Their plan was to con Rimuru into a situation where heโ€™d owe them a favor, but he was too smart for that. Itโ€™s not the old man thatโ€™s the problem, though; itโ€™s Mariabel. Sheโ€™s a reincarnator like Rimuru.

Whereas our lovable slime was a working man on Earth, Mariabel was the opposite. She was born into the upper crust of European aristocracy, and she did not let her gender get in the way of her Littlefinger arc. She spent her entire life amassing wealth and power from the shadows until she ruled Europe from behind the scenes! The anime even implies that she profited off World War I, AKA the most pointless war in human history. That’s how you know that sheโ€™s evil. And she managed to die of old age, before getting reborn in the Tensura world as a baby princess. And she got a terrifying unique skill to boot: Greed.

Remember how Rimuru has that unique skill, Gluttony, lets him eat and gain the abilities of anyone he wants? Mariabelโ€™s Greed lets her use other peopleโ€™s desires to brainwash them. And the more the target wants, the easier it is to control them! By the time she was out of diapers, she had already brainwashed most of her house, until finally she became the right-hand of her grandfather, Granbell Rozzo, the thousand-year-old founder of the Kingdom of the Siltrosso and, like I said, the puppet master behind that merchant stunt!

Rozzoโ€™s ultimate goal is, at first glance, actually pretty noble. He doesnโ€™t want normal humans to live in a world ruled by monsters and Demon Lords, so heโ€™s been pulling strings in the west to create a place where humans can live in peace. And Rimuruโ€™s idea of a world where all races can live in peace is getting in the way of that. Hence the whole scheme with the merchants. And while I donโ€™t entirely get it, Iโ€™m pretty sure the Rozzoโ€™s and Yuuki are the ones funding Team Green Fury, AKA the guys cheesing their way through the Tempest Dungeon. So, they have to be dealt with.

Thereโ€™s just one problem: Rimuru, Veldora, Ramiris, and Millimโ€™s avatar bodies suck!

Avatar Team PWNS CHUMPS

We saw how the newly formed Avatar Team got their butts whooped at the end of the last episode, but this episode gives us an even better look at why. Not only are the Demon Lords and Veldora weak in their artificial bodies, but their teamwork stinks! Theyโ€™re so used to being so OP that they can solo everything that they donโ€™t know how to fight in a team. So while Kurobe makes them some sweet armor, Rimuru has them go through some intense training. Since theyโ€™re basically operating like the typical RPG team, they also have to learn teamwork. Which is good, since they could stand to learn that.

Rimuruโ€™s plan ultimately works, and the timing couldnโ€™t have been better. Green Fury was about to beat the 49th floor. So it was time for the admins to assert their authority.

I have to admit, it was nice seeing the Avatar Team put a stop to Green Fury before they could ruin everything. Hopefully, they can patch things so that no one else can use that exploit any further. As a gamer, I understand how much that sucks, but itโ€™s better to win without resorting to cheap tricks like that. Good riddance, Green Fury!

The real problem, though, remains Mariabel. With her familyโ€™s plan with the merchants having backfired and Rimuru suspicious of Yuuki of the Free Guild, Mariabelโ€™s going to change tactics. She plans to invite Rimuru to the West to the Council so she can get him alone and try to use Greed on him to turn him into her puppet. Little does she know that sheโ€™s grasping at straws, because a.) Rimuru is our protagonist, and has that protagonist plot armor; b.) heโ€™s Rimuru. Heโ€™s got GOAT status. Heโ€™ll be fine! In fact, I say he should accept the invitation just so we can see him embarrass her! But that doesn’t make her less of a threat. She managed to kill the merchant who organized that fuss under Souei’s nose!

I Give “The Avatar Team is Formed” a 3.5/5

I’m Calling Nami the Weather Queen after This

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

One Piece Ep 1159 Review

Well, it looks like my prediction was spot-on! This is the last episode that we will be spending in this little mini-arc that was the Block Kingdom! On the last piece of One Piece, Luffy, Zoro, Nami, Usopp, and Chopper managed to confront the “Sun God” who created the LEGO set they woke up in and thoroughly enrage them. Now, they’re on the run from an angry Giant who wants to keep them captive forever for his own amusement. But, as I felt when I was reading the manga, this guy must not be very smart if they think they can hold Monkey D. Luffy!

RUN AWAY FROM THE GIANT!

The vast majority of this episode can be summed as resembling the climax to the classic fairy tale, Jack and the Beanstalk. Well, the parts where the main character is being chased by the Giant, at least. The only thing the Straw Hats stole was the blueprints to the Block Kingdom, and given how they woke up unwilling captives and want to escape, they’re justified. Using the giant cat that Luffy is forcing to obey them, they’re making a dash for the other side of the Block Kingdom. Which, in case it wasn’t obvious, is actually an old cell designed to hold Giants prisoner. Which, given how Luffy is stronger than most Giants by this point, is really not a problem.

I know people are still going to have some problems with the pacing of the episodes, but the anime makes up for the extended scenes with the high quality of its animation. The series has come a long way from the simpler look it had in 1999, with its look evolving to better suit the evolution of the craft. That means that it feels a lot closer to what Oda draws in the manga as he’s grown more and more confident over the years, much to fans’ enjoyment. And, if I’m being honest, I like seeing the Straw Hats continuously outsmart their captor as they try to catch them.

This Guy Technically Works for Luffy

Speaking of which, it’s already obvious that the one holding them isn’t a God, but I don’t think any of us were expecting him to be who he turns out to be. The Giant that built this fake world is named Road, a member of the New Giant Warrior Pirates led by Hajrudin. Introduced back in Dressrosa as mercenaries working for Buggy, they were one of the groups that chose to pledge their loyalty to Luffy and form the Straw Hat Grand Fleet. That means that Road is technically supposed to be one of Luffy’s allies, but he can’t stand the idea of Giants working for a tiny human. So when one of his pet crows found the Sunny and half the Straw Hats fast asleep on it out at sea, he got the bright idea of putting them in his Block Kingdom so he wouldn’t have to work under them. And, for extra renegade points, he stripped them of their clothes so he could put new ones on them, including Nami.

It’s been months since these events took place in the manga, and my thoughts on this whole reveal haven’t changed: this guy’s an idiot. I can forgive him for ignorantly thinking that he could hold someone like Luffy because he hasn’t seen how strong he is like his crewmates have, but he really didn’t think this through. If the other Giant Pirates found out that he was holding Luffy captive, then they would punish him for it! And while I respect him for the LEGO model he built and the hand-made outfits, he’s still giving our fellow nerds a bad name. The part where he pauses mid-chase to gush about how this unscripted conflict in his world is so awesome comes off as creepy coming from him.

So, he must be punished. And it’s fitting that it’s Nami who’s the one who pays him back.

One of Nami’s Best Moments Yet!

The way that Nami has Zeus grow to the size of a storm and then has him hit Road with a lightning strike was already amazing. But that smug, s*it-eating smirk on Nami’s face as she claimed it was “divine retribution” was hilarious! That might not have been divine retribution, but that was a case of karma at work!

So, much to no one’s surprise save for that of Road, the Straw Hats manage to escape from the Block Kingdom. And I am happy to say that next week, we are going to head straight into the good stuff: Elbaph. The actual Elbaph is about to appear, and it is going to be amazing, you guys!! You are going to love it!

I Give “Destroy the Miniature Garden – Escape Block Kingdom!” a 4.5/5

Nami’s Misadventures in LEGOland!

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

One Piece Ep 1157 Review

If youโ€™re a fan of the One Piece anime, then youโ€™ve probably heard people complain about one thing: the pacing. It is notoriously slow when it comes to adapting the story of the manga, which is a consequence of it starting in an age when anime filler was necessary to keep something from overtaking its source material. Thatโ€™s why one of the biggest selling points of the new seasonal format has been the expectations of improved pacing. Less filler, more of the actual story, as some fans had hoped. However, it feels as though those hopes were dashed with the showโ€™s second episode since its return, as Toei is still relying on the same tricks as before: padding the episodes out and making parts of the story longer than necessary.

LEGO’S?!?

On the last piece of One Piece, the Giant and Straw Hat pirates were all celebrating their escape from Egghead Island with a party. The next thing we know, Nami is waking up someplace made out of LEGO in an outfit she doesnโ€™t remember putting on. And trust me, manga readers were just as confused about this as the people watching the anime probably were. Things only managed to get even stranger when the episode starts off with some people in the vicinity are talking about some kind of trouble with one of the local deities. What should catch everyoneโ€™s attention, though, is the name they give to the giant tree in this blocky kingdom: Yddragsil. Thatโ€™s the name of the cosmically-sized tree from Norse mythology that connects the worlds together.

One thing that Oda seems to like doing, and is very skilled, is foreshadowing well ahead of time. If the name of someone or someplace weโ€™ve never heard of before gets mentioned, that means that its going to be important at some point in the future. And as manga readers were quick to figure out, Nami had somehow woken up someplace thatโ€™s tied to Elbaph, if not Elbaph itself. The clothes and name of the tree were a dead giveaway, but what I really like is how the whole place is built out of LEGOs. LEGOโ€™s from Denmark, AKA the region of the world where Vikings came from; it makes sense.

What didnโ€™t make sense, though, was how massive the animals were. No sooner had Nami woken up than she was being attacked by bees twice her size! Iโ€™m able to tolerate bees, but stinging insects are enough to make me run for the hills! Thankfully, she and Zeus are able to roast them, no problem. But then theyโ€™re attacked by a giant hedgehog!

This is where I noticed how those complaints about the pacing began to resurface on social media. In the manga, Nami getting chased by that hedgehog takes up half a page, at best. The anime translates that into a full minute of her running around this blocky castle before she runs into Usopp and saves him from a giant cat. And from there the entire episode more or less revolves around them trying to get away until the Monster Trio of Luffy, Zoro, and Sanji save their bacon.

The Animation is Still Good

Say what you want about the whole thing, but at least the animation is still amazing. Iโ€™m little surprised at the fact that theyโ€™re choosing to make an eye catch just for this blocky kingdom. It feels unnecessary considering how theyโ€™re likely not to be in it for that long!

So like Nami and Usopp, the Monster Trio has no idea where they are or how they got there. But they donโ€™t really care. If someone was dumb enough to put them in this place, then whatever happens next is on them. Besides, Luffy and Usopp are too excited about Elbaph to be worried.

I know that this first half of the season is only about 12-13 episodes, so you might be worried about this taking up too much time. But donโ€™t worry, you guys. By my estimations, the group will be out of this Block Kingdom inโ€ฆtwo episodes.

I Give “Nami in a Fix! An Adventure in Block Kingdom” a 3/5

El-balph! El-baph! LAND OF THE GIANTS!

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

One Piece Ep 1156 Review

Sorry Iโ€™m late, everyone, but Iโ€™m ready to get this voyage underway! I wouldnโ€™t miss One Piece for all the money in the world!

I know that the founders of this blog arenโ€™t the biggest of fans of One Piece, but as their primary writer, Iโ€™m an absolutely massive fan. Iโ€™ve talked about it a lot on D&A Anime Blog. Iโ€™ve gushed about the live-action series and other big pieces of news about the franchise. And on my personal blog, Iโ€™ve been reviewing each chapter of the manga since partway through the Wano Country Arc! But with the anime having gone seasonal, I decided that now was the best time for me to try my hand at reviewing the anime. This will be the first time Iโ€™ve reviewed an anime of something whose manga Iโ€™m concurrently covering, but itโ€™s going to be worth it. Whether youโ€™re a long-time fan of the series or a newcomer, you might have picked a great time to come aboard, because we are about to arrive at a location so awesome, so amazing, so mind-bendingly cool, that nothing short of finding the One Piece itself can compare! The story that Oda has wanted to tell since he was a little kid is here. The story of ELBAPH!!

Full disclosure: if youโ€™re a newcomer, there are going to be a lot things thrown at you that I donโ€™t have time to explain. In that case, either go read the manga or go find one of the many, many people on YouTube who can recap and explain the series. Otherwise, Iโ€™ll just assume youโ€™re caught up so I can enjoy myself!

After a brief flashback to the end of the Little Garden Arc where Luffy and Usopp resolve to one day visit Elbaph, the episode returns us to the present day. The Straw Hats, Giant Warrior Pirates, Lillith, Bonney and Kuma have just escaped from Egghead Island and are on their way to Elbaph, so theyโ€™re celebrating by partying. Itโ€™s pretty much a law that the Straw Hats end an arc with a party. What I wasnโ€™t expecting, though, and soemthing that was totally original to the anime was getting to hear Brook play โ€œNew World.โ€ There are a lot of good songs in One Piece, but New World has to be one of my favorites. Upbeat, exciting, and optimistic, it encapsulates the positive messages that the series sends us. That, and itโ€™s a pretty good bop.

The Barto Club Screws Up

The episode then cuts away to another series tradition that accompanies the start of a new arc: checking up on events around the world. Oda is great when it comes to world-building, and moments where he takes the focus away from the main characters remind us of that by showing that the world doesnโ€™t revolve entirely around what they do. In this case, it picks up with one of Luffyโ€™s allies/biggest fans, the Barto Club, and one of his greatest enemies, the Blackbeard Pirates.

So, after they parted ways with Luffy, Bartolomeo and his crew went to a particular island to sell some Straw Hat pirate merch. However, they chose to go to an island under Shanksโ€™ protection, and they refused to buy anything. In response, Barto torched their flag, leading to Shanks to give them a butt-whooping. And then he decided to test/troll them by ordering Barto to make Luffy drink poison or else their lives were forfeit. And you can guess where this is going.

Anyone who has been with One Piece long enough knew that Shanks was just messing with Barto. He just wanted to make sure that Luffyโ€™s followers werenโ€™t some fair-weather friends, and Barto passed the vibe check. But Yassop still destroyed their ship. They had a reputation to keep up.

Iโ€™m sure theyโ€™ll be fine!

Blackbeard is Nearing his Endgame

Meanwhile, back on Pirate Island, Blackbeard isnโ€™t happy that the Marines managed to raid the place and rescue Koby while he was gone. However, his crew points out that heโ€™s now in an arguably better position. Not only do they have Luffy’s grandpa and hero of the Marines, Garp, prisoner, but they also raided Big Momโ€™s territory and abducted Pudding. And with Caribou newly arrived and ready to spill everything he knows about the locations of two of the three Ancient Weapons, things are about to get a lot worse.

I think I mentioned it on my blog when reviewing the chapter, but Iโ€™m going to say it here: Blackbeard is being set up as the final enemy that Luffy must face to become King of the Pirates. Once he knows where and who the Ancient Weapons are, heโ€™s going to try to seize them. That means that nations with people that the Straw Hats call friends will be in harmโ€™s way. Add in the fact that Teach now has Luffyโ€™s grandpa and Sanjiโ€™s ex-fiancรฉ prisoner, as well as what he did to Ace, the Straw Hats have all the motivation they need to go to war with the Blackbeard Pirates. Unfortunately, this will mark the last point for a while where the anime doesnโ€™t focus on anything outside of their next destination (not counting flashbacks.)

Speaking of which, where are the Straw Hats?

Where did half the Straw Hats Go?

When I read the chapters where the Giants woke up to find half the Straw Hat Pirates and their ship missing, I was as confused as everyone else. How the heck did they get separated from everyone else? Then it got even weirder when Nami woke up in a place that looked suspiciously like it was made out of LEGOโ€ฆand wearing an entirely different outfit. None of us knew if she was tripping from the alcohol, or if this was a detour from Elbaph. If it had been the latter, though, I think the fans wouldโ€™ve lost it! And then we had to wait an entire week (or two) to find out what was happening. Thankfully, the anime will be sticking to a weekly release schedule, so anime only people donโ€™t have to worry about that!

This was a good start to the return of One Piece, if you ask me. I have been reading the manga for years, and I can say that you guys are in for something very special. Welcome to the Elbaph arc, everyone! Hope you enjoy the trip!

I Give “The Long-sought Elbaph! The Big Reunion Banquet” a 3/5

OG Founder: The Novelty…(You Know The Rest)

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So…where do I stand?

I’m gonna keep it 100 with ya, I really don’t know how else to title this, so the old phrase “The Novelty Has Worn Off” came to mind. I could go on and on about the first year that I started watching anime, and that my first ‘real’ anime experience came from Toonami’s first broadcast during the Moltar era. Yes, all of that is true, but now in 2026 I don’t really know where I stand in my relationship with anime.

For anyone who’s NOT pushing 40, you may have a much different experience. If you’re a Shonen fan, then you’re probably living in the best timeline right now; with Dragon Ball Super getting a remake as well as the Moro Arc FINALLY getting animated, to the Demon Slayer crew finally about to kick Anime Michael Jackson’s ass! If you’re new to the world of anime, that world is pretty much your oyster. Next year will mark 30 years since I became an anime fan, and although being a fan doesn’t have an expiration date, your perspective as well as your taste and opinions change over the years.

Look, I didn’t really even know how to title this, but maybe for me…the novelty might be wearing off.

Chat, am I cooked?

Fan Overhype…

One of the reasons why I feel that the novelty has worn off for me at least…is Overhype. Unrealistic expectations is very common among the anime community, when it comes to certain shows. Honestly, I don’t really have a problem with the overhype of a popular show, but when you make the hype of that show your ENTIRE personality (and I know some of ya’ll do this), it gets annoying as hell! Like I get it, you really love the show and your passionate about it, DAMN!

You can’t say I’m biased, because I was one of those overhype fans when I found out Panty & Stocking was coming back after 15 years; especially when Jamie and Monica said they would “do the show right” if they returned. Well, ya saw what happened with that, right? Since I barely watch any anime anymore, I’m not too concerned about fan overhype in this day and age. So, if you like a show and wanna overhype it, cool with me. As for me…I’m good.

Anime Conventions…

Lately, I’ve been hearing some rumblings and I’m not talking about AOT. The landscape of anime conventions is so…SO different in the post-covid era. With everything becoming expensive, I already knew this was the case with anime cons–especially if you’re traveling to ones out of state! I don’t think the novelty for cons has worn off for me…but the community atmosphere is much different than it was in the 2000s. Many older fans like myself crave the nostalgia of what cons used to be, before they became all industry driven. Throw in the fact that there are cons out there, who are ran by individuals who don’t have the anime community’s best interest, or safety at heart. (Looking at YOU FanimeCon and Anime Matsuri!)

Which is why I’m supporting local cons around my area, and I think you all should too! I have no issues with bigger cons wanting to give fans a bigger experience, but ya’ll need to start hiring people who ACTUALLY care about the anime community and the medium as a whole, and not PROFIT off of it as a way to get rich quick!

Nope…you won’t find me here!

I don’t know man…

Maybe in spite of it all; from the issues regarding the anime industry (especially Crunchyroll’s latest debacle), to age-old ‘fandom wars’, a part of me is still fighting to hang on to hope. Hope that things will get better and that I won’t feel like the novelty has worn off. Many of ya’ll may not feel that way, and think this is the best time to be an anime fan. If you do, that’s cool! Me…eh.

Alright, enough saddage for one day. Lemme bounce before I get depressed.

OG Founder!

Out!

The Warrior Princess and the Barbaric King Initial Series Review

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

Hello, everyone! RJ Writing Ink here with another first impression for a new anime Iโ€™m considering watching. So, have you ever heard how Spike Spiegel once said โ€œI love a woman who can kick my ass?โ€ Heโ€™s not wrong; a lot of people like strong women who can stand up for themselves. Well, what if there were an entire culture of warriors whose romantic preference was strong women? Now put that into a medieval fantasy setting, have the female protagonist be a badass knight, and the male be an uber-powerful barbarian warrior in love with her. Then you would have this new anime I just found, The Barbarian’s Bride. The first episode is out, but this one clip of it on Crunchyrollโ€™s YouTube channel was enough to get me interested.

A Lady Knight Meet Cute

Meet Seraphina de Lavillant, a 26-year-old knight from the Illdoren Kingdom and leader of the Eastern Expeditionary Force. For centuries, her kingdom has waged war against the โ€œbarbariansโ€ of the east for all the usual reasons people fight: land, resources, and seeing the easterners as savages. But then the day comes when Sera finds herself in combat against one of the enemyโ€™s leaders, Veor. And despite managing to hold her own against him for a time, eventually her sword breaks during their clash, spelling her ultimate defeat. And while she bought enough time for most of her forces to get away, Sera is taken captive by the Easterners.

The premiere episode opens up right in the middle of Seraโ€™s plight as she finds herself in a cell in the Easterners territory. And she fully expects that they will torture her, sacrifice her, violate her, or some horrible combination of all three. But she decides that she will remain defiant to the end and not give them the satisfaction of begging for mercy. What she wasnโ€™t prepared for was learning the reason why she was brought back. It wasnโ€™t to kill her or violate her dignity like she thought; it was because Veor wanted toโ€ฆmarry her!

As I bluntly commented in the above video, Veorโ€™s entire culture basically simps for badass warrior maidens. They like strong women who can hold their own in a fight, and this makes sense, when you think about it. The land they call home is full of all sorts of dangers, so they need to be strong in order to survive. That holds true in real life, as well. When you live in a tough environment, you have to be either tough or smart in order to survive, and you see those qualities in a partner as a positive trait. So, for centuries, the men of Veorโ€™s people have married the strongest women they can find; it just so happens that they tend to be the ones who were trying to kill them at first. And when Veor clashed with Sera, he basically fell for her then and there. So he followed the traditions of his people.

Theyโ€™ve at least got good taste. And, judging by the thousands of likes my comment got, plenty of people are thinking the same thing. Like Spike Spiegel once said, men like a woman who can kick their asses.

Read the Manga. It’s Actually Nicer than you Think!

Now, as a modern audience, there are undoubtedly people who look at this series and have some serious ethical concerns with it. Taking someone captive to marry them is frowned upon by a lot of people. Not to mention the idea that said captives potentially falling in love with them could be seen as Stockholm Syndrome. Theyโ€™re not wrong; it does raise some eyebrows. I would like to point out three things, though. Firstly, Veorโ€™s culture is wholly different from ours, and itโ€™s technically unfair of us to judge it by our own morals and ethics. Secondly, despite looking like a brute, Veor manages to subvert the stereotypical barbarian warrior. Despite it being well within his power to take her by force, Veor is nothing but a gentleman toward Seraphina. He treats her with the respect he would give a fellow warrior and equal and refuses to do anything without her consent. Which segues into my third and final point: Seraphina is treated better by Veor than she ever was by her own people.

As this first episode reveals to us through flashbacks, Seraphinaโ€™s home of Illdoren is a pretty awful place. Most of the common folk suffer from poverty and famine. We even see a poor man starving on the streets. Meanwhile, the upper crust is living in mansions and gorging themselves on the best food, overly fancy outfits, and caring more about gossip than helping those theyโ€™re supposed to look after. Not to mention how their entire society is incredibly sexist. Female knights are not uncommon, but Sera was still made fun of for something that her people largely see as a manโ€™s role. For instance, there was the time when she became the First Knight and leader of the Eastern Expeditionary Force. She went back to her brother filled with pride at what sheโ€™d done. Instead, he chose to berate her for turning down multiple marriage proposals to keep playing knight, and that she should quit now that sheโ€™s at the top. Completely ignoring her accomplishments!

I understand that thereโ€™s the idea of being loyal to your country even when itโ€™s not loyal to you. However, at some point, you have to question whether or not said country even deserves your loyalty. Now compare that to Veorโ€™s people, who will not look down on her for being a woman and recognize her badassery for what it is: something to respect. I donโ€™t know about you, but if I had to make a choice between a home that doesnโ€™t respect and appreciate me for who I am and a place that does, Iโ€™d choose the place that does.

I know that Barbarianโ€™s Bride is not going to be for everyone, and thatโ€™s understandable. Not everyone is going to be into these kinds of stories. But Iโ€™m the kind of person who likes people from different cultures getting along. Youโ€™d be surprised at how much more in common we all have with each other. So I wound up reading the manga, and found that it doesnโ€™t take long for Seraphina to grow accustomed to this new land. Sheโ€™s happier here than she ever was back home, and the more she gets to know Veor, the more she realizes that the stories she was told about his people were inaccurate. That, and when he ditches the beard, Veor is very much her type, to her initial dismay. For bonus points, Veor is only 18.

Thatโ€™s right, Veor is only 18, can grow an impressive beard, and is making an older woman fall for him. Impressive game!

You’ll Never Guess Who is Sentenced to be a Hero

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

Sentenced to be a Hero Ep 12 Review

I normally donโ€™t regret learning about spoilers. When Iโ€™m really into something, I want to learn as much about it as possible, not caring if it ruins the journey. But there are some instances where even I acknowledge that spoiling myself is going to ruin how Iโ€™ll react to it. And in this case, the season finale of Sentenced to be a Hero is making me regret looking up what happens on TV Tropes. Because I was barely able to watch what happened to Kivia.

Also, I just want to say that this was the only episode of the season that failed to be simul-dubbed, and I feel disappointed by that fact. So close!

The Fight is Over…

So, the fight for Ioff has ended, with the Hero Unit once again managing to pull off a successful suicide mission. And while Teoritta is feeling great about herself, that good feeling is soon squashed when she and Xylo come back and run into Iri, AKA Spriggan. Using their human disguise, Spriggan comes dangerously close to killing Teoritta, and while they drive the demon lord off, it leaves the goddess and Xylo shaken. She only made it out because she blocked the attack with a dagger Xylo bought her; dumb luck! And while she immediately goes back to her cheerful self afterwards, I think sheโ€™s just putting on a front. She asks Xylo to train her to fight after this, and I donโ€™t think Xylo will object. He wonโ€™t always be there to protect her, so itโ€™s better that she can handle herself.

The good news is that Spriggan isnโ€™t coming back again. Rhyno makes certain of this by killing them himself. But while doing so, he proceeds to monologue about who he really is: the Demon Lord, Puck Puca. Like Spriggan, heโ€™s possessing Rhynoโ€™s body and is using it hunt his own kind.

Full disclosure: I already knew this. But even if I didnโ€™t, I would say it explains a lot. He acts so unethically because heโ€™s having to learn what ethics are from scratch. And while the idealist in me makes me think that this is proof that the Demon Blight can be good, Iโ€™m not getting my hopes up. Rhyno/Puck all but admit that theyโ€™re killing their own kind for the love of the game. That doesnโ€™t make him a good person, just a psycho whoโ€™s conveniently on the protagonistโ€™s side. In all honesty, I think I would trust Boojum more than Rhyno.

Speaking of Boojum, he turns out to be alive, having swapped himself out for a double. Which means that weโ€™re likely going to see him again in the future.

…But the Victory is Hollow

In the present, though, this victory turns out to be very hollow. As the Hero Unit is resting, Frenci comes to them and drops a bombshell: the capital city of the kingdom has fallen. The attack on Ioff was just a diversion! And this is soul crushing to hear. After spending an entire season watching the protagonists make small, but meaningful, wins, theyโ€™re all undone by this gut punch. Itโ€™s enough to make someone want to give up and throw in the towel, like Kiviaโ€™s uncle.

Like i said at the start, I already knew going into this episode what was about to happen. I made the mistake of reading the files on TV Tropes and regret it. Because it made watching the parts of the episode about Kivia almost unbearable to watch.

Kivia…

Just as Kivia feared, her beloved uncle is a Coexister. He gives this whole spiel about how humanity will lose the war, and how their only way to survive is to become the Demon Blightโ€™s slaves. I have heard all those arguments before in other works, and I didnโ€™t buy them then, and neither does Kivia. So he kills her lieutenant, and then she kills him. And then she gets arrested and accused of being a traitor and everything else that her uncle was doing.

This is the sad part about Kivia, in my opinion: sheโ€™s too nice for her own good. She only told one other person what she knew and then brought them as a witness, which got him killed and deprived her of the evidence she needed to show she was justified. Had she been a bit more savvy, she should have told as many of her men as possible and had them spread the word in case this happened. At least that way she would get the benefit of the doubt. Instead, sheโ€™s hauled off as a traitor and doesnโ€™t even get the chance to defend herself in a trial.

I feel so bad seeing what happens to Kivia, but I also canโ€™t help but note the irony. When we first met her, she automatically assumed the worst about Xylo without giving him the benefit of the doubt . She eventually learned and acknowledged that she was wrong, but she never wrapped her mind about how not everyone on her side was working in the best interests of mankind. That led her to this moment, and now she has a choice to make: deathโ€ฆor death.

Wait…That’s how they Become Heroes?

The final third of this episode is devoted to Kivia being visited by the priest Kafzen in her cell, where sheโ€™s offered a choice: she can be executed as a traitor, orโ€ฆshe can become a Hero. This is where we learn something very disturbing. It turns out that the Heroes are not people sentenced to die and be revived forever. They are people who have already died and then revived by the First Goddess. She then holds onto all of their memories for as long as she can, but whenever they die, she loses some of those memories!

This is honestly messed up, in my opinion. I have seen anime where people can come back from the dead before, but the implication that Xylo and the others may not even remember that theyโ€™re already dead is sickening. Not to mention how it makes Frenciโ€™s efforts to get Xylo a pardon might be pointless. For all we know, removing whatever spell that makes him a Hero could mean heโ€™ll die for good!

If that wasnโ€™t bad enough, we then learn that the First Goddessโ€™ power is finite. She only has room to revive one more person, and thatโ€™s it. Which means that the trump card of humanity is already being strained to the breaking point.

The episode, and the season, end with Kivia making her choice: she will become a Hero and keep fighting. No positive ending for anyone involved. But what an ending!

I must admit, I did start to get a little bored with the show at some point, but I never truly stopped loving it. Itโ€™s just too compelling a story for me to want to quit. And the fact that it was animated by the people who gave us the best parts of Mushoku Tensei was the best part. Iโ€™m glad to know that weโ€™re getting a second season in the future, and if Iโ€™m still here, I look forward to reviewing it.

I Give “Sentence: Aid in Evacuation of Ioff Cheg Port 3” a 4.5/5

YUTA OKKOTSU IS THE GOAT

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

Jujutsu Kaisen S3 Ep 12 Review

If you werenโ€™t allowed to pick Satoru Gojo, who in Jujutsu Kaisen would you consider the GOAT? I donโ€™t know if itโ€™s possible to settle on a single GOAT, as season three of the show has given us multiple contenders for the title. Maki managed to wipe out her entire clan of frauds. Higuruma was a newbie as a sorcerer but managed to become one of the top players in the Culling Game. Takabaโ€™s rule of funny technique could give even Gojo a hard time! But if you ask me, I think the season finale showed us that the biggest GOAT is Yuta Okkotsu. He not only heads to the colony with four of the heaviest hitters of the Culling Game thus far, he also manages to beat all of them by himself by the time the credits roll!

If youโ€™re an anime fan, then you know that when a series chooses to skip the OP, that means it needs the extra runtime for something big. And Jujutsu Kaisen is no exception, as it starts right where we last left off: with Yuta killing one of the four sorcerers that had the Sendai colony stuck in a stalemate. This wasnโ€™t any sorcerer, either; this was a reincarnated sorcerer who was so powerful that, 2,000 years ago, he managed to conquer all of Japan. And the series still decided that it wasnโ€™t worth showing us how Yuta killed him. And that is only the end of the last episode and the start of this one.

The rest of the episode can best be described as Yuta running a gauntlet of boss fights against the other three bigshots of Sendai Colony: Kurourushi, a cockroach cursed spirit, Uro, an incarnated sorcerer who can manipulate the space of the sky like solid matter, and Ishigori, another incarnation whose pompadour doubles as a cursed energy cannon. Each of them could the subject of a fight that lasts an entire episode, and Yuta fights them all in just one.

If youโ€™ve seen Jujutsu Kaisen 0, you already know this, but even if you havenโ€™t, this episode is meant to confirm what the season premiere implied: Yuta Okkotsu is that guy. Next to Gojo, he is the strongest jujutsu sorcerer of the modern-day, and this episode demonstrates it. His reserves of cursed energy are practically off the charts, his innate technique allows him to copy other peopleโ€™s techniques, and if that wasnโ€™t enough, he never has to fight alone. Heโ€™s got Rika, the cursed spirit left behind by his childhood sweetheart of the same name after the events of JJK 0. Add in the fact that heโ€™s distantly related to Gojo himself, is it any wonder why Yuta is the GOAT of Yujiโ€™s generation?

He defeats the cockroach spirit Kurourushi by giving it a mouth-to-mouth Reversed Curse Technique.

He fights Uro, who has it out for him because of something his ancestor did. Then he fights the battle-crazed Ishigori. And then he almost fights the latter two in a three-way domain expansion thatโ€™s only stopped by the return of the cockroach.

And during the entire episode, the anime doesnโ€™t let up on the incredible animation that weโ€™ve come to expect this season. All of it eventually boils down to an epic one-on-one between Yuta and Ishigori, all to the OP of the season, Aizo. When an anime chooses to use its OP or ED in the middle of the episode, you know that things have gotten serious!

https://twitter.com/eagle97jjk/status/2037198355273834776?s=20

In the end, Yuta manages to beat all of them. But since heโ€™s such a nice guy, he doesnโ€™t kill Uro or Ishigori, just taking their points. GOAT status, confirmed.

Sadly, this is where season three of Jujutsu Kaisen comes to an end. Even worse, we likely have to wait a year for the second half of the Culling Game. It feels more than a little cruel to know that we have to wait that long, but maybe thatโ€™s why the anime chose to end things here. They wanted to give us absolute peak before we had to wait. Itโ€™s sad, but we have to give great shows like this time to cook. Plus, this season already managed to leave its mark in pop culture, from the stunning animation to the memes that it inspired. The Game shall continue, but until then, we have other shows to watch!

I Give “Sendai Colony” a 5/5