I’ve been a bit…distracted this week, as we all have. 4 days straight of watching election coverage and my seasonal shows combined have played havoc on my sleep schedule this week. I’m sorry it just had to take so long to declare a new president. This isn’t the place to talk about that though; nearly all of us see anime as a distraction from real life after all.
I’ll start this week with Tonikawa instead of the other two, as things are really heating up in both Assault Lily and Adachi & Shimamura now we’ve hit the halfway stage. Heck, even BNA has made some considerable progress in my eyes. More on that later though.
Tonikawa: Over The Moon For You Episode 6
A super sweet episode of Tonikawa this week. Some can see it as a bit of a filler, but we notice that Nasa and Tsukasa are making a lot of progress now, in all sorts of ways.
One of the main themes here is how Nasa feels bad over Tsukasa sleeping on a futon on the floor, and believes moving to a bigger place would suit them both. Funny how Tsukasa was pretty much sold on the idea when Nasa proposed (out of the blue) the possibility of getting a bigger TV and cabinet to hold her entire movie collection. Nasa makes enough to get by, but still needs a guarantor…and then the penny drops; Nasa still hasn’t told his parents he’s married.
Looks like this part will be some ongoing story in Tonikawa – getting a bigger place, meeting Nasa’s parents in Nara Prefecture, getting them to be guarantors, and Chitose getting angry again. The episode featuring her was a single gag one, but now she’s reappeared, and determined to ruin her adopted sister’s marriage in the most comical way possible just seems grating now. I’m not finding her a likable character; she’s selfish, childish and spoilt rotten. Even as an adopted sister to Tsukasa (who appears to have left that sheltered lifestyle to be in the real world), Chitose feels almost out of place. She’ll be back for sure, and truth be told, I’m not looking forward to those moments. Let’s just hope that it’ll dawn on her that her sister’s happiness is more important than her own petty temper tantrums.
Assault Lily: Bouquet Episode 6
A few significant moments happened in this week’s Assault Lily: Bouquet; some could even say that the book of Yuyu’s past has been shut once and for all. The new Legion has been authorized under the name Hitotsuyanagi. Why they name it after Riri, I’m not entirely sure. Since Yuyu is the one whipping her into shape (along with fellow second year Thi Mai Yoshimura), surely it ought to be named after her, right? I don’t know; the girls seem to like the name Hitotsuyanagi more. It is a memorable one, at least. Anyway…
In a training/observing session, they watch their fellow Legion Alfheim practice, only for a gigantic Huge to appear out of the lake, and it becomes even more of a problem for all the Lilies when they realize that Yuyu’s former CHARM, Dáinsleif, is embedded inside the core – the very same CHARM that Yuyu used in her Lunatic Trancer Rare Skill to accidentally kill her old Schutzengel Misuzu.
I’m happy to see some real action in Assault Lily: Bouquet at last, but I’m even happier to see some character development, outside of just yuri Lilies being yuri Lilies. We see that this Lunatic Trancer skill of Yuyu’s acts more like a curse than something she can genuinely use to fight the Huge, and we hear her pour her heart out to Riri, saying she doesn’t deserve to be her Schutzengel.
Some cynical fans would call this week’s episode is one with a few holes, and if I look at it again, I’d understand why they think that. Some more Assault Lily lore is brought in, but at the same time, there is one thing that can be noticed straightaway: how did this Huge suddenly arrive, and how did it get so much backstory and foreshadowing in such a short amount of time? I’m normally that kind of cynical person, and so I don’t know what is happening here. It has to be this show, and the fact that I’m enjoying it so much to the point that I’m even remembering lore and technical terms after 6 episodes must mean something.
We’re only halfway through here, and I know there’s still so much more to cover – the Huge themselves, some more character development, and whether there’s some secret relationship between the Huge and the Lilies that makes good content. But I can tell you this: SHAFT were the best studio choice to adapt this. They have made what was initially a mixed-media project revolving around manga and figurines into something that’s really enthralling to watch, both from a yuribait/comedy standpoint and an emotionally charged action/drama one.
Adachi & Shimamura Episode 5
If you’re following this show too, then you don’t need me to tell you how much of a slow-burner it is. We’ve been getting perspectives from the both of them, on how they see their relationship with the other. We all know that Adachi is a lovesick lesbian who is having more and more thoughts about Shimamura, and now as episodes go by, we see a lot more on what Shimamura thinks.
We get the impression that Shimamura sees the relationship as more conventional, and not anything like what Adachi is thinking, but one part stood out for me this week. Shimamura reminisces on a time in elementary school where she got very close to one girl who didn’t show the same loyalty in return. Now here in high school, Shimamura has Nagafuji and Hino to hang out with, but to her they are just two girls to hang out with, and not be in any close relationship with. So I think this flashback story kind of shows how afraid Shimamura really is in being in a close relationship, since it’s something she doesn’t want to go through again.
What is she to do when she notices Adachi being fidgety and evasive? I mean, she only wants to ask her that incredibly awkward question of “Can I spend Christmas with you?”. Shimamura knows that she is her only friend, and so one would consider this a big deal and a big step, but as usual, she overthinks this, and simply assumes that Adachi only asks this because she wants someone to hang out with. She won’t be having a conventional Christmas after all, with her mother always away from home. I go back to Shimamura’s flashback though, and so I do believe that, deep down, she wants to feel special, and wants to feel that loyalty like she wanted back in elementary school.
These two are finally going on a real and genuine ‘date/not date’. A big step forward, but this is a baby steps show, and so I don’t think we’ll be seeing anything major anytime soon. Meanwhile, in another house, Nagafuji and Hino are making far more progress.
BNA – Brand New Animal Episode 6
I said last week how disappointed I was with BNA, and that I think that Trigger are turning more of a hit-and-miss studio. We can’t deny that the producers, writers and animators are all big nerds who look up to the anime of old and want to pour that love into new and original shows. Now I’m not saying that having a overly-political show in a time where humanity is showing its darkest colors is a bad thing. I just don’t think I’m sold on a show like this, that combines political rhetoric with over-the-top action and short gags.
Episode 6 gives us our first real look at Nazuna. Nazuna is Michiru’s closest friend, who caught the same beastmen sickness she did, but instead of actively resisting it, Nazuna has decided to make a name for herself in Anima City and become a figurehead for the pro-beastmen cult Silver Wolf. This really left an uncomfortable taste in my mouth. As a human in a flashback by Michiru, Nazuna had a dream of becoming an idol. Now that she has essentially become one, albeit for a shady organization, this puts Michiru at serious odds.
Nazuna does highlight the one thing Michiru has always done: charge in head-on when someone is in danger, regardless of whether they ask for it or not. So now that Nazuna has developed a bit of a superiority complex here in Anima City as some kind of ‘prophet’ for beastmen, her arrogance is frustrating to watch but at the same time, when she scolds Michiru for her aforementioned unique trait, it’s kind of deserved. I mean this is exactly what Michiru does, and is the sole reason why she gets into so much trouble in every episode so far.
I know I’ve been too harsh on BNA, and so has episode 6 made me think twice? This is a show that definitely won’t be in my top 5, that’s for sure, and there’s so much more that I want to criticize. I haven’t really put down any of the out-of-season picks in this column, but truth be told, I’m not actually enjoying the story in BNA. I’m finding the characters hard to sympathize with, and I just know that Trigger could have accomplished so much more here. Now I’m no great voice in anime, and I know that BNA has its loyal fans, so I don’t want to antagonize them some more; I learned that lesson when it came to Darling in the Franxx oh so long ago. If there’s anything you guys can find in this show that I can’t, then I’d love to know.
I’ll be compiling my top 5 of 2020 soon enough, plus I’ll be putting together a short list of shows for my regular out-of-season poll. Oh yeah, all that plus some show review posts coming up too. A busy bee I be.
We’re approaching the end of the year now, so are you reflecting on what shows have been airing? Are you already eyeing what’s coming in 2021, like I am? Feel free to hit that like button and air your opinions in the comments below!