BBK/BRNK Gentle Giants of the Galaxy

Fall 2016 – Season End Ranking

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I made it to the end of a season! Wohoo!

We made it to the end of a year! Wohoo!

Yeah, 2016 was a pretty bad hand, but instead of brooding over what was, I think it’s also just as important for us to appreciate what we have. And true enough, 2016 was quite an adventure for me. I’ve been to three different continents, seven different countries, and fourteen different cities; I’ve met random people on the street and have met new friends and faces in all of my travels. And I’m not here to show how blessed I am; rather, I’m here to tell you that it’s important to count your blessings as well.

It’s one of the reasons why I rushed in a review for Flying Witch, to remind everyone to look for the magic in a dismal world. Because it’s only in realizing what’s important to us — the things we value — that we actually strive to see to it that these things are upheld. It’s what ignites passion and fuels change. Never lose sight of the things that have made your life worth living, no matter how shitty 2016 was.

Because the truth is, there’s no telling how shitty 2017 will be. Or the year after that. But if you know what it is you live for, then that’s an entirely different story.

But what does that have to do with anime? Well, nothing really. But I’ve been trying to link the anime I watch with life in general, and to a certain extent I think I’ve achieved that. What I write basically tries to prove to people that you can learn quite a lot about life through moving images on a television screen, and that every story has a hidden message just waiting to be told. We can bitch and rant about the things we hate about 2016 — just as much as we can bitch and rant about the things that sucked about anime. But I’m here to talk about what makes us enjoy the things we enjoy; what makes us hate the things we hate; what makes us keep coming back for more and more anime despite all of that.

In short — anime is love; anime is life.

And before I go on aimlessly with this lengthy entry, let’s move on to the season end ranking, yeah! (man, what a messy segue) Continue reading →

Fall 2016 – Mid-Season Round Up

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Weee! I’m finally writing my first mid-season round up post since I started this friggin’ blog. Two seasons have already passed since then, so I guess third time’s the charm?

But what’s all this for, anyway? I mean, I’m already doing weekly round ups, so why one come mid-season? Well, there are just so many shows, and a number of my RL friends often come to me sometime around mid-season just to ask if there’s anything worth picking up. In some ways, you could say they’re more than happy to make me suffer on their behalf, what having to plough through all these shows expecting for the worst… But at the same time it’s always a good feeling when I can recommend a good title or two. Because let’s face it, some shows grow at their own pace, but knowing a show will be worth the effort is always something helpful to keep in mind.

So this will just be a quick rundown of the current standing of all shows this season based on my current census of titles. As with the season preview list and weekly round ups, these shows are ordered in descending rank. Only the season end ranking places the shows in order of ascending rank (they say it’s more dramatic that way). Also, if you’re lazy and just want a TL;DR, look for the words in bold in the last paragraph of each show description.

On a personal note, I’d highly recommend #’s 1-6. The rest might require a bit of… well, patience. Anyway, enough talk, let’s do this!
Continue reading →

Fall 2016 – Week 5 in Review

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This was a pretty weird week in animeland. Apart from the fact that many of the shows were basically settling in to their established “groove”, a good number of them managed to be overtly offensive. And if that wasn’t the case, it was the animation that took a turn for the worse. So five weeks in and the shows begin to bare their ugly side.

But that’s not to say that the shows started getting ugly per se. Think of it as how you discover that your significant other likes pressing the toothpaste tube in the middle, or how they bite into a TimTam only to leave it half-eaten in the refrigerator. You don’t necessarily hate them for it, but God is it frustrating. But then again, that’s the point we’re at in this season — just a little ways from hitting the midpoint.

So strap yourselves in for the ride and let’s plunge through what just happened this week! Continue reading →

Fall 2016 – Week 4 in Review

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Wow, we’re already one month into the season? That just means two weeks until I have to do a mid-season recap — something I’ve always promised myself to do but never got about to doing. Oh well, perhaps this time around I won’t burn myself out given I’m still around after a month of continuous reviews. That’s gotta mean something, right?

So yeah, the last month was actually quite nice. And I say that with all modesty because I’d hate to jinx the situation. It’s been a long time coming since I’ve actually enjoyed a Fall season (Fall always tends to be the best season for some reason), so jumping in to it with low expectations actually gave me the benefit of being surprised when there were, in fact, quite a number of great shows. Sound! Euphonium is the obvious gem of the season, but there are a couple others that simply can’t be ignored.

For this week, a couple other shows have finally come out of their own, in particular Occultic;Nine, which was actually engaging! So just what exactly happened this week? Let’s run’em down! Continue reading →

Fall 2016 – Week 3 in Review

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Bring out the sparklers, it’s time for WEEK 3 IN REVIEW, wohoo!

Yes, it’s kinda weird how time flies when you have fun — and boy, am I having fun. The shows this season are pretty hefty contenders, and a good chunk of them are just enjoying their time at the top spot. Of course, I’m referring to Sound! Euphonium 2. But hey, there’s more to this season than just the KyoAni house favorite. So let’s run down what’s happened this week! Continue reading →

Fall 2016 – Week 2 in Review

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I hate myself.

As much as I said that I’d “limit” my viewing list, turns out I added another two shows, which in total makes for nine shows. That’s pretty much my standard viewing list, so there goes my hopes of “trimming” down anything. 0 – over 9000 in favor of Animu, I guess.

But that’s only because this season is actually pretty great! I’m such an idiot for thinking the releases were pretty dull (shame on you), and that’s probably only because I was in a hurry to tick off things from the list just because the cover art wasn’t so “appealing”. Having said that, wonderful pieces like Akiyuki Shinbo’s interpretation of March comes in like a lion went completely under the radar, and so did Wataru Watari’s gi(a)rlish number.

And so here we go with the week in review as I nonchalantly include these two titles as if I never missed out on watching them in the first place. That said, please–PLEASE do not recommend any more shows for me to watch. I’m seriously going to stick a cacatuar into my eyes if I end up adding another show to my list.

So anyway, back to this week. The shows pretty much powered their way through this week with very little reason for me to be worried. But as always, the first few weeks are the moments these shows tend to place their best foot forward. But if the prize for “most improved show” must go out to someone, then it most definitely has to go to Natsume Yûjinchou Go… Continue reading →