Did you watch the final Evangelion movie on Amazon Prime? I didn’t. I gave up on that franchise a long time ago. Heck I haven’t even seen End of Evangelion, and have no intention to. I suppose I’m glad that the whole thing has been put to bed. Did it have a happy ending? I don’t know, and to be honest, I don’t really care. Some anime follower I’m meant to be, if I ignore one of the most high-profile franchises of our time.
We got a recap episode of Remake Our Life! this week, so no coverage of that until Week 7. I thought it was a very unusual time to put up one of those, and there may be a few reasons why. The kind of reasons that I get to see in my out-of-season show Girlish Number, and how their show Millennium Princess x Kowloon Overlord has become such a laughable mess. I won’t be gloomy about it this delay or whatever the studio are doing, since I’m curious to know what kind of eroge game they will end up doing. I’ll dip straight into my other shows instead.
Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid S Episode 6
It’s often at this stage of the season when viewers start to worry about filler episodes, and how much they can affect shows in general. Thankfully, a show like Dragon Maid doesn’t need to worry about that, since the skits (with added cutesy moments) all blend together so well. This week, Tohru took a step back, with some of the other dragons and secondary characters stepping forward for some screen time. And while we have three ‘stories’, I think only two were really interesting.
It begins with how much Shouta (remember that poor kid?) is getting more frustrated in how Lucoa is pushing his pre-pubescent buttons. She already is his familiar, and so they are affectively stuck like glue; he only wishes she’d treat him like the man he wants to be. This week, we finally learn a little more about Lucoa; interesting since, like Elma, she has had very little backstory until now.
This has been one thing I’ve really enjoyed in this second season; secondary characters having more of a spotlight while the show remains pretty much the same. This was something that season 2 of K-on! did well, with a 2-cour season that expanded on their 5 girls’ story and them doing well in the Light Music Club. I hope that the remainder of Dragon Maid‘s second season does become a worthy competitor to season 1, just as season 2 of K-on! was to its first season.
I guess an episode of Dragon Maid wouldn’t be cutesy if it didn’t feature Riko’s massive crush on Kanna, and it’s this week where they effectively take the next step: go out on a date…
…okay, so it was more like Riko proving to her classmates that she could make it to the far side of town without adult supervision. For this part of the story, we all know what happens and how things play out, but as we watch Riko squeal with joy when her beloved Kanna gets close, we can’t help but smile. And that’s another cutesy thing that Kyoto Animation have been able to do in their adaptation of Dragon Maid; make the better pairings in the manga/show work so well. As we saw from last week, we can predict that some high-school boy is going to wind up courting Ilulu (since they both work in his grandparent’s candy store). We’ll just wait and see if Kyoani don’t make that ‘pairing’ weaker in comparison.
The Aquatope on White Sand Episode 6
I wasn’t really sure what to make of this week’s The Aquatope on White Sand though. We’re getting 2 cours here, so we won’t be getting that happy ending until Christmas. We learn straightaway that the local papers have broken the news of Gama Gama Aquarium closing. This episode might have the air of a filler, but it’s like as each week goes by, the more Kukuru realizes she is out of her depth when it comes to running a tourist attraction and taking care of a variety of marine life.
And it is this newspaper headline that gives her some motivation to do something about it…like having a shaved ice stand…something they could have had long ago. In fact, I found parts of this week a little frustrating. An aquarium that still brings in visitors, and wants to continue doing so in the future, and the one thing that they haven’t thought of is having a social media account. Also, there’s the matter of what happens when idol followers realize where their beloved Fuuka has been hiding.
Ugh, this might be just me and my pessimism this week. Or maybe it’s me having to see more of Kuuya and how much of an eyesore he has become in this show. He’ll have his own episode eventually, and something miraculous might happen that’ll make him have more than one facial expression. I swear, if I was the aquarium’s director, I would have fired him long ago.
But this week’s episode wasn’t entirely on their idea of selling shaved ice at an outside stall. Instead it went back to what I think is a core part of what The Aquatope on White Sand will become: visions people see at a aquarium. We already know that Kukuru is taken aback when she sees visions of her late parents there, but this week we meet a regular visitor who apparently comes at the same time every year, and tells Kukuru that he can see a vision of his deceased brother.
If this aquarium is closing at the end of August, then it’s going to need more than just one shaved ice stall to keep a constant flow of visitors, and someone willing to invest in the place. I’m not sure that ‘seeing visions’ is going to be something that will work on their posters and promo leaflets, even if it’s a very integral part of both the aquarium and the show.
Having seen this ‘filler’ episode, I honestly don’t know what kind of direction the show will go on. We’ve had the Angry Mother arc already, and the First Penguin story too. I was rather clueless on the direction of other original P.A Works shows as well, so this is no different. I suppose now that they have their social media accounts, Kukuru will think more people will flock to the place, only to realize that some of them are there probably to see their beloved Fuuka. These episodes of The Aquatope on White Sand are very tough to predict, and I think that’s one charm I like about it. But one thing we need more of, it’s Udon-chan’s mom. She rules.
Girlish Number Episode 6
Oh, how I’ve missed this show. I mentioned in a past review (for another site I wrote for) that the humor we see in Girlish Number isn’t for everyone, since not everyone wants to see their beloved anime shows crash and burn like the one these guys are making are. Maybe it just depends on how you as the viewer would rather have at the end: Chitose finally wising up and taking voice work seriously, or have the show be even more of an embarrassment, leaving permanent stains on the resumes of the cast and staff.
In the last episode, we see how Kuzu wants to increase the budget, and do something promotional for the show, although it’s pretty plain to see that he’d rather take advantage on a fully-paid vacation to Okinawa. But what do the main five girls make of this? Well sure, free sun and booze in paradise is something, but they still want to work. Or rather, just get this show done with so they can do better voice acting.
Cracks are starting to form here. Chitose is still upset about the comments she got in her livestream, both Momoko and Kazuha seem to have some family issues they both have to deal with, and even Yae is starting to talk behind Chitose’s back. Our main girl is still behaving like an entitled brat, which is the core selling point of Girlish Number, and makes what this show the way it is. While her colleagues get extended voice lines, she gets annoyed when she has so little at one point. It’s because she is the main lead in this show they are making, she feels like she deserves to have more lines, more praise, and more love.
What about their show itself? The first season is over, with a pitiful wrap up party to celebrate it, and their second season ready to go. Does anyone even want this second season? Watch this episode, and you can see how dead everyone looks inside. The cast are already desperate to find other voice work and the staff just want the show to disappear into obscurity. Kuzu knows the show is a disaster though, despite his annoyingly laidback and upbeat attitude, simply taking everything in his stride. And for the second season, the torch has been passed to his lackey Towada. I think there’s either two reasons for this: one is that the bosses saw Kuzu’s budget increases and kicked him off the team, or he is just that much of a douche that he doesn’t want to do it anymore, and would rather party and drink.
There’s very little about the making of the second season of Millennium Princess x Kowloon Overlord I remember, However, there is one thing: it’s at this halfway point when the main cast really let their frustrations out, largely because someone new is coming in the show to join them.
Coming soon is my review of Josee, The Tiger and The Fish, which came out recently here in the UK. Aside from that, now we’re at the halfway stage in this season, are you already planning your Fall shows? I mean, I already am, so I’m probably not alone. I’ll still be watching The Aquatope on White Sand, but I have more shows to pick out.