I will admit that current events have left me with no time for shows. Not only do I have home study for a teacher training course, but I will soon be moving to a new apartment. Somewhere bigger. Has the limited time I have impacted on my opinions of shows though? Well…

I have been kinda obnoxious when it comes to Hinamatsuri, and I’m not sure if I can contribute the reason to that to limited time. Although what I know for sure is that I should have cut this show some slack, because it’s an episode like this that proves not only how laugh-out-loud funny the show is, but incredibly emotional and heart-warming.

As usual, the show is split into part 1 and part 2. Part 1 is where Nitta brings Hina to his family where, unsurprisingly, hilarity ensues, and we learn that one should never ever incur the wrath of a mother and sister. I mean, how is Nitta meant to explain how Hina arrived in his life in the first place? So far, he’s had to tell people Hina is his daughter, so when his real family asks questions, he has to give a BS answer again.

It’s only when part 2 comes around when this laugh-out-loud comedy does a 180, and we see Anzu get…a happy ending. I don’t want to spoil too much of it, but after seeing 4 episodes of Anzu arriving in the same manner as Hina but being resorted to living with the city’s homeless and selling scrap cans for change, through her we appreciate how lucky people really have it. While Hina lives the life of luxury, ikura and video games in Nitta’s fancy highrise apartment, Anzu has been living in a shack deep inside a city park. And while we have chuckled at her antics, we ultimately come to realise that a young girl like her, who has turned from petty thief to a hard-worker, does not deserve the life of a homeless…just like no child should.

Although one question for us now is whether Anzu will even be a recurring character in this show, now that she has been given, effectively, a happy ending. We’ll see; Anzu has now become untouchable by the fans now, and no critic would dare talk negatively about her, for the fear of getting the same treatment as Ichigo defenders have had.

I have also been a douche when it comes to Uma Musume Pretty Derby as well. When the first two episodes hit on April 1st, I thought this was some kind of April Fool, and as I continue watching, I would have little sympathy for any of the horse girls in the show. Well, I won’t be bending over backwards or climbing any mountains for any of the characters here, as I still feel there is something missing with all of the characters. Special Week plays the clueless devotee of Silence Suzuka, and it shows this week when her devotion to helping Suzuka get better effects her upcoming race…a race that one of her classmates (Grass Wonder, in the other team) had been really looking forward to.

By the end of every episode, and at the end of every race in the show, I think for a split-second why the writers of this show don’t write something more serious, and make these horse girls fight tooth and nail for popularity and race wins, talking smack behind their backs, and pulling dirty tricks in order to win…

…but then I remember that this is a show about sweet-natured horse girls who still want to race and win, but still want to be your best buddies. Not reflective of any kind of professional sport, but will we be seeing horse girls who put on idol shows at the end of their races in real life? No.

The kids in Darling in the Franxx have fully adjusted to life by themselves, and the idea that they can live lives without the all-seeing all-knowing Papa gets stronger and stronger. It only had to go and be the Nines to be the ones who would ruin their fun, with their smugness and superiority complexes. As they just ‘invite themselves’ into the house, Squad 13 is told that they haven’t been abandoned, and that the adults were keeping their distance for some other reason. In the meantime, Kokoro finally spills the beans on her thoughts on reproduction, which surprises the others in the squad (who have not even been taught sex education – unnecessary to their jobs as pilots) and rattles everyone else.

As we watch Hiro and Zero Two (and Mitsuru and Kokoro) get closer, and the Nines get increasingly annoyed by the kids’ growing rebellious nature, it becomes more and more obvious that these kids are still Papa’s lab rats no matter what anyone thinks. The scene with the Klaxosaur princess has brought up even more conspiracy theories as to who is really human, who is really artificial, as well as who is the true antagonist of the show. But as Hiro says, the kids have a capacity to rebel against Papa and the adults, and this week’s episode pretty much kicks that off…but at the same time, I now have no idea on how this thought-provoking yet extremely flawed show will end.

Oh, and I’m sure some viewers of the show have enjoyed Nine Alpha and his secretly evil attitude…well this episode confirms him as most punchable guy of the entire anime season. If you don’t watch the show, then you have no idea how much of a jerk he has been to nearly everyone, even beating early-show Mitsuru.

You may have noticed that, as I have been reviewing Darling in the Franxx each week, I have not really been touching on the hidden thematics in the show, and how it seems to promote the idea that only heterosexuality can bring true happiness. My reason for doing this is purely because I am never really sure how to approach it without angering anyone. (I mean I’ve already pissed off Darlifra fans for having a not-negative opinion of Ichigo). But this episode seem to give off contradicting ideas, and I can understand why a lot of forward-thinking/progressive viewers and critics are putting this show down so much. Darling in the Franxx is just a victim of poor writing, and perhaps one could say that this may be a blip on Trigger’s otherwise pretty impressive resume. They have 2 new shows coming up in the future, so we’ll see, I suppose.

The others in OASG have acknowledged my new love for Princess Principal, and I approve of this. Episode 6 is Dorothy’s episode. The mission she (and Beatrice) are sent on is put on the back seat, and we learn about the remaining main girl. Her real name is actually Daisy, and adopted her mother’s name when she ran away from her abusive father to the Commonwealth. While their mission is to steal a cipher from a dead body, Dorothy is able to use the time to reunite with him and learn he is in massive debt. It has a tragic ending and it seems nearly everyone has some daddy issues in this show: Chise’s dad was a traitorous assassin, Beatrice’s dad was a mad scientist who experimented on her, Princess’s uncle is the antagonistic Duke of Normandy, while Dorothy’s dad was an abusive drunk. Pretty sure both Ange and Charlotte’s dads will get their time in the spotlight.

What has got me in this episode is that I can finally understand the fans’ love of the Dorothy/Beatrice pairing. It was something I could never understand after watching past episodes, as way more focus was on Ange and Charlotte. Plus I really really love how Dorothy has been rocking the green Victorian lady look, as it definitely suits her. It’s curious to know whether Princess Principal would be bigger in the spotlight if Crunchyroll had picked up the rights for it, and not Amazon.

One other thing I learned thanks to the nerds: the royal train featured in the previous episode is a mirror of what Queen Victoria’s royal train looked like, and in addition to this, Queen’s Mayfair is also a spitting image of Dulwich College, a boarding school in south-east London. Thanks, nerds 🙂

Halfway through now, and what have you enjoyed? Is there anything you think this guy who takes anime shows too seriously should check out? Have you made a Nine Alpha voodoo doll yet? Feel free to air your opinions in the comments below…