City the Animation

 City the Animation is the 13 episode adaptation of the manga City by Arawi Keichi.  The series originally aired during the Summer of 2025.

     City is less a continuous story and more a collection of antics by a wide cast of characters, much like Arawi's previous work Nichijou.  The arguably primary characters are known as the Mont Blanc Trio and consist of college students/roommates Nagumo Midori and Niikura Ayumu.  They are joined by coed Izumi Wako who lives in a different apartment in the same complex.  Nagumo is naturally talented and unmotivated, coasting through life.  Niikura is hungry for success and is secretly dedicated to the older Nagumo.  Wako is carefree and coasts through her life without any challenges, having modest success in the things she finds interesting and with very little able to dampen her mood.  The room mates struggle through the entire series with being poor college students but only attempt quick ways to change their situation, refusing to look at things in the long term.  Wako...well, we're not really sure what she ever has planned in her life.

    The rest of the cast are a misfit collection of other characters, residents of City, who directly or indirectly interact with the Mont Blanc Trio from time to time.  The Makabe family is helmed by  father Tsurubishi who runs a moderatly sucessful restaurant but is easily distracted by childlike fancy.  The oldest child, high school student Tatewaku spends his time playing soccor poorly and trying to gain the love of Wako's younger sister Riko.  The other child is daughter Matsuri who spends all of her time outside of familly and school with her best friend Amakazari Eri (Ecchan).  Together the middle school aged girls have an incredibly imaginative sense of play and wonder through out the City.  A much larger family is the Adatara clan, who's father runs the liquor store next to the Makabe restaurant.  The mother struggles to reign in all 5 of their kids, of various ages and Grandfather Adatara has a strange fued with Mr. Makabe.  There is a small group of people who run the City Magazine and a struggling manga author with in its pages, who also lives in the same apartment complex as the Mont Blanc Trio.  There is the aloof and ultra wealth Tanabe, who spends her time and her staff rewarding people for being good citizens...all be it in less than ideal ways.  The list goes on.

 As with Nichijou the series is a collection of vignettes about the wide cast off weird characters as they go about their semi-normal lives in the City.  Over the course you learn their personalities and history, building on a greeted understanding and connected-ness as it progresses.  While not as insane in its comedy as Nichijou was, City the Animation is a fine example of innocent comedy for comedy's sake.  It isn't bogged down by the need to tell a cohesive story.  That's not the point, its really just a look into the odd ball lives of the cast purely for amusement.  No lessons, no tension, just stupidity at its highest form.

    Kyoto Animation delivered a phenomenal product in their adaptation of the manga.  There are a lot of fast cuts and comedic turns as we have seen in Nichijou but what heightens this series is the fantastic creativity in panel layout and directing.  On top of that the story of friendship between Ecchan and Matsuri was pure joy and heart breakingly sad at the same time.  Delivery, character templating, casual physical comedy and absurdity at a very high form.  It's not for everyone.  Some people just want to see masculinity and power and thats OK.  Manga and anime are mediums of expression for a diverse audience.  City absolutely delivered what I needed and wanted and it hands down the best anime of 2025.  Now its time to begin reading the manga, a thing I put off since the anime was announced.

The series is available on Amazon Prime.

The Summer Hikaru Died - Season 1

 The Summer Hikaru Died (光が死んだ夏) is a 13 episode adaptation of the manga of the same name by Mokumokuren.  The series originally aired during the Summer of 2025. 

 

    During the winter Indo Hikaru becomes lost on a sacred mountain outside of his village.  The men of the village search for him, with no luck but the boy returns to town a few days later, as if nothing wrong occurred.  His best friend, Tsujinaka Yoshiki knows something is off and brooches the subject at the beginning of summer.  He outright ask him if he's not the real Hikaru.  In a moment of panic the thing that is pretending to be the teenage boy begins to unleash its supernatural essence, threatening to take over Yoshiki but pulls back before any harm can be done.  Thus begins the strange relationship between an eldritch being posed as a boy that was lost in a dreary winter night on a sacred mountain and his best friend in the entire world.

     Yoshiki struggles with the truth of his friends death but isn't ready to let go and tries to maintain the status quo with the thing puppeting Hikaru.  It has the majority of the boys memories and has an understand of his mannerisms and countenance, but it is noticeably different.  This version is filled with a greater sense of wonder and excitement as its experiencing things for the first time, things it knows Hikaru had experienced countless times in his own life.  Yoshiki appears to be the only one that notices the difference but the village senses something if out of place.  The thing that is Hikaru lacks any understanding of life and the consequences of death and when it feels threatened by an elderly woman who believes the boy is a manifestation of an ancient god Nonuki he murders her in cold blood.  Her death sets off a series of events by the towns elders, fearing an ancient curse come to reclaim its price.  Out of desperation they begin working with a strange man who specializes in exorcisms.  Hikaru and Yoshiki try to understand the things nature, as Hikaru has no recollection of its existence prior to taking over the boys body.  The longer he stays among the human population, the more they understand that his presence brings danger to those around them. 

     I picked up the first volume of the manga shortly after it came out due to the hype around it.  I enjoyed it and continued to pick the other volumes out as they became available.  Once I learned that it was getting an anime adaption I stopped reading the manga so I could have it as one of the shows on The Otaku Network Podcast.  That time has now come and gone and I can finally return to the source material.  I enjoyed this slow burning mystery.  Its hard for anime and manga to be scary and this one was no exception but I feel that wasn't it's purpose.  It told a story that we have seen again and again but this time it added a complicated human side to it.  The medium is full of tales about the dark things people do in remote locations that pop up unexpectedly later on, causing...concern.  In this case the manifestation of that shameful legacy decides to pretend to be human for a while.  In doing so that human it emulates comes with more baggage than it bargained for and it has a yearning for acceptance and continuation in the process.

    There is just one thing I feel the anime was lacking and that was truly knowing the characters.  Outside of some exposition conversations and indirect hints, we honestly didn't get a lot of information about them.  We don't really understand what the real Hikaru was like.  We don't know what Yoshiki's goals in life are outside of removing the stressors around himself.   Tanaka may have the deepest mysteries and it may be interesting to see a spin off series about him.  In reality the most fleshed out character was the town itself, which was central to the neurosis' of the towns folks in relation to what was pretending to be Hikaru.  But even then we really didn't get an explanation for what he was and why he was, left to accept that at some point it changed and the towns attitude towards it changed and things began to become twisted and dark.  Regardless of the lightness in the depth of story telling it was still an interesting tale and a refreshing spin on the premises we have seen countless times before.  Fortunately, we will be getting a second season and hopefully more depth will be expounded upon!  Only time will tell and my manga volumes might stay lonely for the time being.

The series is available on Netflix. 

With You and the Rain

 With You and the Rain (雨と君と) is a 12 episode slice of life series based on the manga of the same name by Nikaido Ko.  The series originally aired during the Summer of 2025.

     Fuji, a quiet and introverted novelist, comes across an abandoned animal on a rainy day.  The small creature, huddled in a box with a note asking to be adopted pulls at her heart strings enough to take it in.  She isn't sure what type of animal it is, when she asks it if it's a dog it replies by writing on a piece of paper that it is a dog...  In reality it's a tanuki and this is a world in which tanuki might not be common?  Fuji never gives her new 'dog' a name, only refering to it as kimi (you in English) and goes about her life, adjusting to this interesting creature being a part of it.

    Fuji is reluctant to interact with others, preferring solitude and contemplation.  She has achieved an amount of success with her writing and enjoys a mostly peaceful existence.  Her life begins to open up a bit to others with Kimi in it and she begins to befriend her neighbors child, a young girl of German and Japanese heritage.   Her father, whose personality is the exact opposite of Fuji, frequents her apartment in order to spend time with Kimi...who in turn doesn't like the attention.  But she remains connected to the world with those few people around her and wonders idly about the life of Kimi before they met.

    This is a very calming and subdued slice of life series that doesn't concern its self with lessons, over arcing plot or resolution.  The viewer is peeking in at a slice of time in a woman's life adjusting to adopting a pet....albeit a strange one.  The artwork helps convey the atmosphere with its simplistic and reserved elegance.  Kimi is fun and mischievous, but subdued in its antics.  The perfect companion for the reserved and concise Fuji.  Her air is enhanced by the fantastic voice acting provided by Hayami Saori...but I may be speaking from a biased fanboy position!

    This was a perfect slice of life series for me.  The point of interest character was an adult going about their normal life.  We see glimpses into her mindset and her past as w take the journey but there is no rush to accomplish anything over the course of the story.  All in all, its a really well put together package for what its supposed to be.  Its not flashy, exciting or thought provoking.  Its just a nice warm cup of hot cocoa and a warm fuzzy blanket on a cold rainy Autumn afternoon.  Perfect.

The series is available on Crunchyroll. 

Sakamoto Days - Season 2

 Sakamoto Days season 2 is the 11 episode continuation of the adaption of the shonen action manga of the same name by Suzuki Yuto.  The series originally aired during the Summer of 2025.

     There is no time to rest as Sakamoto and his chosen family are targeted by four releases serial killers bent on killing them.  The battle against the savage murders exposes a deeper threat to them and the body governing Japanese assassins, the JAA.  The mysterious Slur makes his first move while everyone is distracted by the rampaging killers and attacks a regions JAA office, murdering a large majority of its personnel..  The attack is stopped at the last moment when Sakamoto, Shin and Heisuke are backed up by the most mysterious member of The Order, Takamura.  In the battle Sakamoto realizes that Slur is an old classmate of his in assassin school, Uzuki, who was thought dead.

    The confrontation with Slur and his companions ends in a stalemate.  Sakamoto, unable to get cooperation from the JAA about Slur decides to do his own investigation.   He and Shin enroll as new students in the JCC, the assassin schooling system under the JAA.  He figures that is the best way to gain access to the records of Uzuki's time at the school and supposed death.  The initial screening tests for applicants goes sideways as Slur enacts an attack on the group as a way to recruit new members to his cause.The event leads to Sakamoto and Shin gaining a few more comrades in their cause and SHin's acceptance into the JCC as the top of his class.  Sakamoto on the other hand is rejected, failing to hide his identity but Nagumo arrives at the right time to offer a solution.  We will have to wait for season three for the start of the school arc.

    Its no secret I only watched this season for the podcast as my co-host David loves shonen and to force me to watch it along with him.  I didn't particularly enjoy season one and didn't plan to watch season two on my own.  The strongest thing Sakamoto has going for it is its pace of story telling.  Unlike its peers in the shonen action/battle genre it doesn't spend a lot of time on minor details.  The first half of the season exemplifies this as the serial killer threat is dealt with faster than they probably should have!  Then as it moves into the confrontation with Slur the combat takes center stage and I actually enjoyed this fight, much to my surprise.  Plot armor kicks in hard but it was still an entertaining melee.  Then we get into the back half of the season and my enjoyment erodes as we move into the dreaded testing arc... I hated it in Naruto, it ruined the second half of Frieren and it dragged on way to long in Sakamoto.  We could have needed the season in the school arc...but had to waste a lot of time with pointless exposition and characters.  This part really enhanced my dislike of Shin as a character as his personality is overrun with his flaw of self doubt that continues to be readdressed.

     I don't like Sakamoto Days, its not for me.  The joke of Sakamoto himself wore out early on in the first season.  Shin becomes a major focal point for this part of the story and hes not a good or interesting character.  Heisuke and Lu are far superior in their design and personalities.  Yet we saw very little of either of them in the course of the season, even before it shifted location.  I dread the return of the anime because I know it will be a part of the podcast again!!  But...that is what it is.  There is an audience for this story and its not me.  I do appreciate the pacing, most of the time, but it needs to be consistent.

The series is available on Netflix. 

My Dress-Up Darling - season 2

  My Dress-Up Darling (その着せ替え人形は恋をする) is the second 12 episode season a the slice of life anime based on the manga of the same name by Fukuda Shinichi.  Season two aired during the Summer of 2025.

     Marin and Gojo's relationship has cemented its self as one of comradery based around cosplay but she spends much of her free time with him, even being a regular guest at his house for dinner.  Their time together has enhanced her feelings for him but she struggles to express them to him.  Gojo himself is very conscious about his relationship with her even though he struggles with feelings he has for her.  Not wanting to ruin her reputation or embarrass her, he refuses to accept that they could be anything more than friends and work partners.

    In between them overcoming their personal roadblocks, they set out and make friends with more cosplayers.   Marin, partially due to work obligations an partially due to concerns about recent weight increase, has put off new cosplays and instead is enjoying events as a spectator.  She and Gojo spend the entire day with an guy in college who crossplays and helps them increase their skill knowledge but discussing how he convincingly sets up his cosplays.  Due to Gojo trying to up his game they also get wrapped into a trio of college girls who have their own cosplay club/group and eagerly invite them to join them.  Marin in turn drags in the Inui sisters for a big group event centered around a beloved horror game.  The event brings many of the participants to a new awareness of themselves and their feelings...but can Marin bring herself to vocalize her feelings to Gojo?

    The first season was full of love and beautiful character development, even if it struggled with  over emphasizing Marin's body in uncomfortable ways.  Season two quickly sped past the first part of the story too deepen the love of Marin and Gojo as it reinforced their companionship.  The first part of the season really fell back on the central issue with Gojo's self doubt.  It was wonderful to see care put into the outside world convincing him that there is nothing wrong with his passions, even if he's unable to express that concern out loud.  Marin is an open book and this season begins to show her that not everyone around her shares in that exuberance.  But while she's expressive on the outside she struggles to tell Gojo, the most important person in her life, her true emotions.

    The series is really half romantic slice of life story and half cosplay 101.  A lot of details about technique and problem solving coat the series as it did the first time around.  This time we have our duo meeting with more experienced hobbyists that super charge their enthusiasm and dedication to the past time.  The friend group grows to include different personality archetypes and backgrounds, further fleshing out the depth of the story.  Things are not always rosy but My Dress Up Darling still exists largely in a reality free of tragedy.  My emotions welled up with the final episode of the season to cement it in my head as a truly lovable and fantastic tale.  I can't wait for the next season to come out and Marin...of poor sweet Marin... Also, great to not be focused on the ick factor with this season.

The series is available on Crunchyroll. 

Detectives These Days Are Crazy!

 Detectives These Days Are Crazy! (まったく最近の探偵ときたら) is a 12 episode comedy series based on the manga of the same name by Igarashi Masakuni.  The anime originally aired during the Summer of 2025.

    Nagumo Keiichi is a middle aged man who achieved fame as a genius detective while in high school.  That propelled him into a successful career as a private detective.  The years have not been kind to Nagumo however, as he struggles to find lucrative work, has fallen out of the limelight and his body is feeling the affects of his age.  One day an enthusiastic high school girl names Nakanishi Mashiro arrives, demanding to be his apprentice.  Not wanting to be bothered with anything, he denies her request.  His opinion changes when she helps him on a case, using inhuman brutality and strength.  Now...firmly set in middle age and suffering from disillusionment, Nagumo has to contend with this eccentric free loader as he struggles to pay his bills.

    As Mashiro helps Nagumo with his cases she begins to see a different world when it comes to the famous teenage detective of yore...and quickly grows to despise him, hoisting all manner of misconceptions about him.  Yet, with a gleeful smile, she continues to work with him, reveling in the experience.  But the city they live in is full of weirdos and scoundrels...and a rival new genius young detective named Asunaro Yuu.  Asunaro and his apprentice Kazamaki Hana become both rivals and co-conspirators, much to Nagumo's frustration.

    This is a crazed and off kilter gag comedy that fits nicely into that genre.  The character archetypes are fun, the gags are familiar but welcomed.  Nagumo is the straight-man to everyone else's absurdity. This series feels a lot like Gintama with the main personality of the main cast and many of their antics.  It also doesn't hurt that Gintoki's voice actor, Sugita Tomokazu, voices a trio of neighborhood weirdos.  There are plenty of homages to pop culture, manga and weirdness in general.  For the majority of the series there is solid pacing and fun turns with the gags.  The 11th episode is a bit of a slow story that didn't hit the mark very well over all.

    I've said it before, I'm a big fan of gag comedy in anime and manga and this series did not fail to deliver.  It's not the best of the genre, but it does a good job of keeping you entertained with its crazy cast of characters and their terrible interactions with each other. I think I like this version of Detective Conan a lot better...especially when it comes to the character design!

The anime is currently available on Crunchyroll. 

Dan Da Dan - season 2

 Dan Da Dan season 2 (ダンダダン) is the continuation of the super natural comedy romance series based on the manga of the same name by Tatsu Yukinobu.  This season ran for 12 episodes over the Summer of 2025.

    The story picks up right were season one left off...so if you need to, you might want to check that out before cotinuing.  Momo and Okarun have been tasked to investigate what's going on with Jiji and his parents by Momo's grandmother.  The small village where he's currently living has a dark secret perpetrated by a creepy family.   The house Jiji is staying at is the sight of a centuries long sacrificial ceremony perpetrated by the Kito family.  They have been sacrificing people to an underground worm god they believe is keeping the volcano outside of the village dormant.  Their plan backfires when they attempt to sacrifice Jiji and his friends and everyone falls into the cavernous recesses below the house.  They find a history of their crimes in sunken homes that span the decades and their god...a mythical UMA that has gone crazy with its thirst and size.

    There is something lurking below however that is a problem, a long forgotten darkness built upon pain and neglect of a tortured child from centuries ago.  That pain manifested into a powerful spirit known as Evil Eye and before they can stop him, Jiji merges with the being.Jiji's incredible physical strength and spiritual energy allows Evil Eye to have a powerful vessel for enacting his revenge on the world at large.  Momo, Okarun and Turbo Granny struggle to defend themselves and the ensuing battle leads to the eruption of the volcano.  As their demise seems to be guaranteed, Momo's grandmother arrives with the cavalry to contain the problem.  Evil Eye is contained but Jiji is still possessed so they bring him back to their home to keep and eye on him while they figure out how to proceed...concerned that if it comes out again they wont be able to contain it, let alone defeat it.  The series wraps up with a prolonged introduction to the cliffhanger to make everyone thirsty for season 3!

     The first season was a tour de force by Science Saru that also came with a concerning amount of fetishization of teenage girls bodies.  It ended with what appeared to be an attempted sexual assault on Momo, so those that had only watched the anime were very concerned for how season two would start out and what kind of tone it would set for the continuation of this fantastic series.  Those fears were quickly squashed and we were treated to a single episode that has more story, emotion and bad ass fight choreography than some other shows are ever able to squeeze out in 13 episodes.  The first half of the story goes hard as our beloved awkward heroes battle for their lives.  Then it shifts back to their version of the mundane and we see further development between Momo and Okarun and it was way to cute to handle!

    This season was fantastic even though it contained a more connected story that thread through the entire run, as opposed to the first season that seemed more episodic.   As with the first, the artwork is top tier with fantastic directing and choreography.  But there is something more important and that's heart.  These characters are all just normal teenagers, dealing with normal teenage problems who also happen to have to devote way too much of their energy correcting super natural messes they get dragged into.  But at the end of the day, they just want to be seen and be loved like everyone else.  This season was better than the first with the exception of episode 8, where I feel the story stalls and spends way too much time dealing with a pointless conflict with terrible character designs for the antagonists.  Other then that...one of the best anime of the year!

The series is available on Crunchyroll and Netflix. 

Gundam GQuuuuuuux

Gundam GQuuuuuuX is a 12 episode original mecha series in the Gundam franchise.  It originally aired during the Spring 2025 season. 

Click HERE for a discussion about this series on The Otaku Network Podcast. 

    Set in an alternative version of the Universal Century, through the help of Char capturing the Gundam RX-78-2, the Principality of Zeon wins the One Year War.  Unfortunately for them, they lose Char in an incident where his Red Gundam disappears in an event called a zeknova.  A few years later his partner Chalia Bull finds himself at the Side 6 colony in his search of Char's Red Gundam.  As luck would have it, the Gundam appears and his team sends out the experimental GQuuuuuuX Gundam to capture it.  The battle doesn't go as planned and both are lost in the colony as security steps in to tamp down on the incursion.

    After becoming entangled with a refugee girl working as a black market courier, Nyaan, a disaffected upper middle class high school student, rebels hard.  After stumbling upon the GQuuuuux and syncing with it easily, she decides to participate in illegal mecha fighting called Clan Battle.  She find a partner in a weird boy names Shuji who happens to pilot a Red Gundam and share a love for the emotional release of piloting  Together they begin to achieve victory after victory in the Clan Battles but not without notice.  Chalia wants to reclaim both the GQuuuuuuX and the Red Gundam, hoping it will lead him closer to Char.  But unknown to all of them a dangerous plot is unfolding that will absorb all of them as the head of Zeon attempt to punish Earth once and for all. 

     I have not watched as much Gundam as I should have over the years but I have a general understanding of the world building.  This series however is a deep dive into the core story and nods at every chance it can to under served characters from the original.  While it is not set in the Universal Century it relies heavily on the viewer having watched and original series at the very least, demanding it for all of the context.  Since I have yet neglected to watch the original and its direct follow up stories, I spent a lot of time on the Gundam Fan Wiki...recognizing that there was a lot of context I was unaware of.  That missing intimacy lead to less than ideal viewing experience.  The story shifts about 2/3s of the way through to a a complex plot that becomes engaging.  The first 8 episodes had little resonance with me partially due to me not being familiar with the legacy characters that appeared.  But is that my fault or the stories?  A problem I have had with some Gundam stories is the heavy reliance on a deep understanding of the franchise its self, pushing out more casual viewers or people new to the fandom.  Reconguista in G is a prime example of this problem.  GQX suffers from that to less of a degree but after talking with die hard Gundam fans about the show, a viewer with intimate deep lore will get more out of GQX than casuals.

     That said, the last third of the story when everything culminated and the disparate threads started to connect grabbed my attention but its sadly was a bit late for me to fully appreciate what was going on.  The creative team behind this series really did it as a love letter to Gundam its self, as a whole, pulling references from a long line of UC stories, spinning them into a newer narrative.  GQX is in many ways, fan fiction and a love letter to Gundam in general.  They did a good job with it, especially once I understood the references and nuances of what they were showing.  But that under-serves the casual viewer and its only strong point from there is its short length and tight story telling.  It does do a good job of character development and narration to get its core point across, sans all of the references and homages.  That said...I really disliked the character designs for the unique cast.  Most of the characters who appear that exist in legacy Gundam titles retain a design philosophy closer to their original versions, but the brand new characters have a strange and out of place design.  This does serve as a gateway into Gundam fandom though as its easy to access, short and teases you with a far deeper lore than you could imagine...luring you further into the woods if you so choose.  You can enjoy it as a stand alone story without any of the context, but it plays differently and more emotionally when you do know the context. 

The series is available on Amazon Prime.  

Rascal Does Not Dream Of His Girlfriend - light novel

      Rascal Does Not Dream Of His Girlfriend (青春ブタ野郎はガールフレンドの夢を見ない) is the fourteenth volume of the Rascal Does Not Dream light novels written by Kamoshida Hajime featuring artwork by Mizogushi Keeji.  The fourteenth volume was originally release in 2024 and in English in 2025. 

     The following synopsis may spoil some aspects of the first thirteen novels in the Rascal Does Not Dream series, if you do not want to ruin those stories stop reading until you have.  

Book Twelve: Rascal Does Not Dream Of Santa Claus here!

    Sakuta finds himself in the throng of people heading to the concert in Yokohama that, according to the Dreaming Hashtag, Mai will reveal that she is Kirishima Touko.  While heading to the venue he notices the knapsack version of Mai flitting through the crows and chases after, failing to catch up with her.  Giving up, he heads to the venue, diverting his course to the backstage area where a chance encounter with Mai's manager allows him access to her trailer.  He does his best to ensure that Mai won't do what everyone is expecting her to do.  She assures him its not going to happen and ushers him out so she can finish preparing.  Once out of the backstage area he reconnects with Akagi and they join the massive crown for the performance.  Everything plays out as he dreamed and the bottom falls out from his stomach when Mai takes the stage and performs the Kirishima song.  Against his wishes, Mai goes along with the script and tells the audience that she is the mysterious YouTube singer, completing the Dreaming Hashtag and sending Sakuta into a spiral of confusion and betrayal.

    After the concert he again approaches Mai in her trailer to find out whats going on.  She tells him that everything was a secret from her agency and she is sorry she couldn't tell him sooner.  He leaves, stunned, unwilling to believe it, understanding it to be a lie.  He was unable to stop it from happening and according to the message from the other reality, he fears the worse for his girlfriend.  Returning home, numb, he encounters something even more confusing when the Kaede that greets him is the Kaede from her period of memory loss.  He calls his parents house and when the real Kaede answers real confusion set in for Sakuta.  Both versions of his sister currently exist.

    In the morning, after trying to clear his head, he rushes off to his parents to see for himself is Kaede is there.  On his way to the train station he runs into Nodok and Uzuki who are frustrated by Mai's announcement undercutting their group set to perform at the Budokan.  He doesn't argue too much with this drastic change in their fortunes and heads off.  Once he does, he uses the excuse of having to cover a shift to leave again and heads back to his neighborhood.   At work a conversation with Koga confirms that every aspect of his life has been altered as she talks about going to his college instead of the all girls school she was recommended for.  He knew he needed to track down the real Kirishima Touko before things got too far out of hand.  As if he willed into existence a friend from the past makes a sudden appearance, Shouko, wearing the same high school uniform he first saw her in years earlier.  This was the real Shouko, who is about to begin her high school life.  But she was supposed to be in Okinawa?  

    She informs him that she is healthy enough to move back, as she really wanted to attend the same high school he did.  But she came for a more important matter...she wants to take him to meet Kirishima Touko.  Much to his disappointment, he has to spoil his first trip driving on Shouko instead of Mai as they head on a trip to Touko's home.  After a while Shouko felt compelled to find and connect with the family of the person who's heart was inside of her.  Much to her surprise that person was the Kirishima Touko, meaning that the woman Sakuta has been chasing after this entire time has been dead.  The visit with her mother is tense and somber.  But in the course of looking at her preserved bedroom Sakuta learns a very important clue to understanding what is going on...Touko's best friend has been the one uploading all of her songs online and is closer to him than either of them could ever imagine, now its a matter of confronting them and putting a stop to all of the madness before his future slips away from him.

     The second to last entry into the Rascal Does Not Dream series starts to pull everything together, at least in regards to the college arc and everything revolving around Kirishima Touko.  I keep repeating myself with each volume...but it just gets better with each new one.  SO in theory, the final volume should be the best of the series.  Thats a hell of a task to accomplish.  Anyways, this volume is significant and impactful, echoing across all of the story that has preceded it.  I read this about halfway through the broadcast of the second TV series, Rascal Does Not Dream of Santa Claus.  The series covers light novels 9 through 13 and the story took on a very different tone when with the information learned in volume 14.  In reality not a lot occurs in this volume when it comes to a complex story.  This is all set up for the final show down in the next volume and we get a lot of details out of the way, very important details.  In reality only three things happen.  Mai's announcement, Shokou's confrontation with the Kirishima family and Sakuta's confrontation with the person upholding Touko's memory.

    Volume fifteen has a hige task ahead of its self and I am eager to read it.  I wonder if the story will dive back into unresolved things from the high school arc as it wraps up the college arc.  What sort of release can we expect?  How does the essence of Kirishima Touko play into widespread adolescent syndrome?  The obvious conclusion is the disjointed reality that Sakuta encounters in this volume will become resolved when he tackles the problem at the root, but what will that mean to his world as it comes to its narrative conclusion?  I really love this series, it has grown into a passion of mine and has supplanted some legacy titles for me in importance.  It is what got me to finally dive into light novels and has made me rethink the quality of my beloved Haruhi series.  The emotions have been intense over its course and I may be setting myself up for disappointment if the conclusion does not blow me away.  But...a few months from this writing, I will have my answer.

See You Tomorrow at the Food Court

 See You Tomorrow at the Food Court (フードコートで、また明日) is a 6 episode slice of life comedy based on the manga of the same name by Nariite Shinichiro.  The anime originally aired in the first half of the 2025 Summer season. 

     Wada, a reserved and understated girl, who everyone assumes is a model student and Yamamoto, a tall and flashy gyaru, make an unusual pairing.  The two high school girls wile away their time together at a local malls food court, consuming various food items and chatting about their lives and interests.  While everyone assumes she's reserved and studious, Wada is irrational, academically deficient and vindictive.  Yamamoto, given her fashion choices, is presumed to be a sexually promiscuous airhead is reserved, considerate and driven by a goal to move to America.  The two of them reconnected once in high school after developing an unusual friendship in middle school and cherish their idle time together.

    Wada rages about anything she sees as a slight against her and battles popular opinion online.  Yamamoto does her best to reason with the unhinged girl but doesn't let it bother her when her friend refuses to accept logic.  Yamamoto doesn't follow pop culture as much as people would suspect, instead focusing on studying and enjoying Wada's company.  What do they spend their time doing every afternoon?  Whatever topic pops into their head, as there is never any plan outside of meeting.  They truly just enjoy the company of the other to that degree. 

    This was a surprisingly fun and endearing series that unfortunately only ran for half the season!!!   If any anime has ever hit me in the nostalgia nerve this one might be the most notable.  It reminded me of my teenage years spent aimlessly wasting time with friends at restaurants and coffee houses with nothing planned outside of spending time with them in public.  To make thing 'worse' I couldn't help; but seeing a lot of my own personality deficiencies represented in Wada...  I felt called out!  The way she made snap judgements on emotion over reason and tried to establish her world view in opposition to popular opinion out of reflex more than anything.  In the beginning it is established that she rages about the popularity of a specific idol figure in a popular mobile game but it comes out that hatred only comes from her being temporarily locked out from accessing his character in a way she wants.  Once she is able to join the elite's that can access him, her tone changes completely.

     In reality there is not a lot going on with the series.  Over its course some world building is done, but largely the setting is the two girls sitting at the same spot having casual conversations about their lives.  Some world building occurs, particularly revolving around a girl in Wada's class that she utterly despises.  She attacks the girls looks and her attempts at establishing a makeup routine but in reality the girl doesn't deserve the venom.  There is a boy who Wada went to grade school with who through a series of misunderstandings we learn holds a crush so hard on her to this point that he is dating a girl who looks like her.  Yamamoto goes along with all of these oddities, understanding that she won't really be able to change her belligerent friends mind once set on something.  But...there's not as much substance as a lot of people would like so this isn't really for everyone.  It was absolutely for me and I cherished each episode, I might have to pick up the manga. 

The series is available n Crunchyroll. 

A Ninja and an Assassin Under One Roof

 A Ninja and an Assassin Under One Roof (忍者と殺し屋のふたりぐらし) is a 12 episode comedy series based on the manga of the same name by HundredBurger.  The series originally aired during the Spring of 2025.

 

    Satoko is a failure of a ninja.  When she becomes entangled in a plot by her superior to run away from the authority of their ninja village, she finds herself starving, alone and being hunted in a city shes not familiar with.  Her fate changes when a ninja sent to kill her is killed by a serious girl who she quickly learns is an assassin.  The professional killer, Konoha, decides not to kill the helpless ninja when she learns her only ability is instantly converting inanimate matter into leaves.  She see's this as a sure fire way for her to improve her ranking in the assassin world.  She is a highly skilled killer but gets bad reviews from her customers based on the messiness of the aftermath.  If this ninja can be convinced to clean up all of her messes the bad reviews should go away.  With that, Satoko, who knows nothing of the world outside of her closed off village, moves into the small apartment of a cold blooded paid killer.

     The ninja village continues to send their own assassins after Satoko and her superior, Kuro.  Satoko is less than useless when it comes to combat let alone survival and Konoha has to intervene during each attack.  Kuro, who has thrown away her ninja ways, is trying to live a normal wife with a woman she started dating and living with.  Unfortunately she has become addicted to pachinko and is more of a freeloader than Satoko is.  Kuro, feeling responsible, does try to help her underling become more self sufficient but in the end remaining in contact with her only brings more trouble.  In their time together a strange relationship blossoms between the lost ninja and the calculating assassin.  Neither of them are certain if its love or not.  Konoha's cold, dismissive and largely abusive attitude towards her freeloader acts as a road block to any break through. 

    This is a really weird and hectic comedy..that turns into a yuri pretty quickly.  But its a mundane almost not yuri yuri.  If I recall correctly...there are essentially no male characters in the entire run of the anime, everyone is female.   Most of them, if there is any notion of anything romantic, is gay.  A strong point of the story is how nonchalant the fight scenes are handled.  This isn't a battle anime and theres very little of anything shown.  Usually Konoha one shot kills and the next thing we know theres a pile of leaves in existence.  So if your looking for people sparing for episodes on end, shouting out special moves...this will be sorely disappointing.  If your looking for a quirky comedy that runs the line of a yuri romance, this might just trip your trigger.

     A strong point with the anime is the artwork and the sequencing of events.  The characters are bold, simply drawn but very expressive.  A lot of the comedy comes from their reactions and the timing of scene jumps.  But...there's a lot of innocent fan service making one wonder, who exactly is the audience for this show?  Its for otaku, otaku who love cute girls doing weird things.  I suspect its a cross over between those who drool over girls with guns stories and iyashikei featuring girls doing normal fun things.  In the end I enjoyed the comedy and the main characters were a lot of fun.  The personality and design traits of some of the side characters were not to my liking and in the end...the story really doesn't do anything.  But, who said something has to happen to be enjoyable.  I wouldn't mind a second season but I don't think I can be bothered to read the manga. 

The series is available on Crunchyroll. 

First Look at the New Titles for the Summer of 2025

July brings yet another new batch of anime.  Here are the initial thoughts on the premier episodes of the titles that attracted my attention. 

Detectives These Days are Crazy

    Nagumo Keiichiro was a famous detective in his youth but has lost his touch as he ages.  Tha is until he is forced to hire a perculair high scholl girl named Mashiro-chan.  Mashiro wants to be a great detective herself and has traind hard to aquie various skill she belives will benefit her future career.  Will this nw blood put some spark in Keichiro's life and work?

    I am a fan of gag manga and this one is quite strange but nothing too out of the ordinary.  Its an aburdist comedy that could be likended to...what would happen is Conan grew up (again) and started to be a terrible detective.  Mashiro is perhaps the most interesting character so far but i do look forward to moe weird tales of stupidity from this show.

The series is being simulcast on Crunchyroll. 

Nyaight of the Living Cat

    One cat developed a mutation that would allow it to turn anyone who it touched into a cat as well as spread the ability to other cats...patient zero in the nyandemic.  Now, humans have a much different reality in which they either do everything they can to avoid the worlds more prolific hunter or join their ranks.

    This is a weird half serious entirely ridiculous post apocalyptic anime directed by the legendary Takashi Miike.  I don't know if this is a story that can really carry its self through an entire season of episodes instead of an hour OAV or something...but we're about to find out either way.

The series is being simulcast on Crunchyroll.  

With You and the Rain

    On a rainy day an unnamed woman finds an abandoned...dog?  It particularly agreeable aura leads her to bringing it home.  Unsure if it really is a dog she goes with it and decides to let it live with her.  Lucky for her it understands Japanese and can write to communicate ideas with her.

     Its clearly a tanuki...but so far the world of the story is presented to us as if no one knows of the existence of tanuki.  This may be one of the cutest iyashikei I have ever seen and I can't wait to see more of it!! 

The series is being simulcast on Crunchyroll. 

Hotel Inhumans

    In the underground there is a hotel that specializes in assissting those who murder for their profession.  The hotel provides all of the tools nessicary to assist their cliantel in their complicated wark environment.  The first episode is a boy turned killer by the gang holding his sister hostage.  Just as he is on the cusp of buying her freedom, the new head of the gang decides hes no longer needed.  In a last ditch effort he arrives at the hotel, seeking their support in finding his sister.

    So there is this great drama series called Death Parade about a limbo where the recently dead are judged based upon their deeds while alive.  The limbo is an upscale coctail launge where the staff assist the dead in reaching their judgement.  Hotel Inhumans felt similar to that fantsastic show, but instead of the recently dead its those that live shadow murderous lives gthat happen to be stuck it problematic situations.  This show is no where near as compelling as the older one and there is just too high of a moe level to make it any better.  I may give this one another two episodes before passing final judgement though....but its not looking good. 

The series is being simulcast on Crunchyroll. 

Watari-kun's *** is About to Collapse

    Watari is a high school student who only cares about his 10 year old sister, especially after their parents died two years earlier.  They are lucky enough to stay with a woman in her late 20's and live a relatively serene existence.  That is until a girl from his past returns and turns his life upside down.

    This is mash up of the old neighbor girl that you were close with returning and a dark secret story smashed into one.  Not sure what to make of this.  Watari absolutely dislikes the girl from his past, since the day she disappeared from his life she destroyed his families ample garden.   Now the girl has returned and refuses to tell him why shes obsessed with him or what was up with the garden murder and her disappearance.  Le sigh...we will give this one a few episodes but so far its not very engaging.  It seems like the only reason you would want to continue this story is to find out the secret shes hiding.  the characters are not very interesting and did I forget to mention there's a love triangle already established?

The series is being simulcast on Crunchyroll. 

Rent a Girlfriend season 4

    We dive right back into the story as Kazuya tries to get back into routine with the start of the new semester.  The emotional damage and stress of making the movie for Chizuru's grandmother took a huge toll on both of them...especially after her grandmothers death.  Ruka wants more attention from him after all the leeway she gave over the summer.  He doesn't know how he will let her down easily while he has his eyes only on the girl hes not sure he can get.

    Well, we are back here again.  Interesting start to the fourth season with Kazuya masturbating.  They did a half way decent job of refreshing that audience with a bunch of the main characters and the most recent/relevant plot points as we move into the continuing waltz of  Kazuya being a weak bitch.  At this point I'm in it until the end, but I'm not happy about it.

The series is being simulcast on Crunchyroll. 

Dan Da Dan season 2

    We pick up right were we left off in season 1 as Momo is about to have a bad time at the hot spring.  Things get worse when relatives of the people attacking her are giving Jiji and Okarun the 3rd degree.  All in the name of the giant serpent god.

    Welcome back Dan Da Dan...but I do miss the Creepy Buts opening from season 1.  Science Saru still comes with the high intensity animation and directing.  Let's goooooo!!!!

The series is being simulcast on Crunchyroll. 

Rascal Does Not Dream of Santa Claus

    Sakuta is in college now, same as Mai, but he still doesn't get to spend a lot of time with her.  The campus keeps an eye on him as their relationship is well known.  Even if he can't see the most beautiful woman on Earth as much as he wants, he's gathering more people around him.  But even though they are young adults, they still can't outrun problems brought on by the final throws of puberty.

    This is defiantly the series on the top of my anticipation list.  The Rascal Doesn't Dream Series has been a favorite since the original series came out and I'm 1 volume off from being up to date with the English releases of the original light novels.  I always say this, the story just improves on its self with each successive arc.  Can't wait to see how much the second TV show covers.

The series is being simulcast on Crunchyroll. 

The Summer Hikaru Died

    Yoshiki's best friend Hikaru went missing on the mountain near their small town.  When he returned a week later something was different.  Months later, after continuing his life as normal, Yoshiki asks Hikaru if he's the real one.  Hikaru then admits that his friend is dead and he has inhabited that body, experiencing life as a human for the time being.  It retains all of the dead boys memories and experiences but every new thing brings wonder and emotion.  The new Hikaru wants nothing more than to be with his best friend Yoshiki...threatening to kill him if that changes.  Yoshiki doesn't understand whats going on and fears the thing puppeting his friend but goes along with it, because at least his friend is still there...even if its not the real Hikaru.

    This is a highly anticipated adaptation of a well regarded horror manga.  I have been picking it up since it launched but have only read the first volume, wanting to wait for the anime to come out instead.  The production company has stated they want to enhance the terror in the story compared to what the manga elicited.  We shall see...its really hard to make manga or anime scary by any stretch.

The series is being simulcast on Netflix. 

City the Animation

    Set in an average city in modern Japan we follow the mundane exploits of various semi interconnected characters as they go about their ordinary lives.  But these eternally positive individuals are anything but ordinary and the way they approach life can sometimes be a bit...weird.

    This is the second anime adaptation of a manga by the genius behind Nichijou.  It could take place in the same universe?  But we really don't know.  All we are doing is sitting down and learning about the weird quirks and mundane adventures of our cast.  My soul is ready!!!!!!!!  Bring on the normal weird.

The series is being simulcast on Amazon. 

My Dress Up Darling season 2

    We jump right back into the lives of Marin and Gojo and their awkward relationship.  he first episode sets us up for cosplay work that Gojo decides to do for her based on a ridiculous action comedy series where the main characters where bunny-girl suits.  The episode ends when the series began, with Gojo in the depths of his self doubt when Marin invites him for a Halloween gathering.  Gojo is still petrified by the rejection from his youth for being into dolls and accessories.  But this group of peers seem to crack that shell when they don't see any issue with him doing Marin's makeup.

    Aside from the obvious sexualization concerns over its 15 year female lead, this is a fantastic and beautiful show about growing up, building confidence and finding yourself.  I am very happy for this to return and wonder what the road will look like as our lovable almost couple journey onward. 

The series is being simulcast on Crunchyroll. 

See You Tomorrow at the Food Court

    This is an unformulated show about two girls from different schools that don't fit in.  Aside from the obvious appearances saying they shouldn't click, they try to meet up each afternoon at a local mall food court to idly chat.

     I enjoyed this first episode significantly more than I expected.  The main characters and they banter remind me not only of how I was with my friends as a teenager...but honestly, how we still are.  Its a fun and endearing look at two people who are conformable with each others company and don't put on a fake face.  I hate to admit it...but I see way to much of my self in Wata,

The series is being simulcast on Crunchyroll. 

Bad Girl

    First year high school student Yuu has a crush on a third year who helps enforce the schools rules.  In order to gain her attention she decides to start acting like a delinquent.  Unfortunately she is too much of a unconscious and well behaved person that she's only pretending to be bad...and her definition of delinquency is rather...mundane.

    This is a yonkoma comedy that doesn't work hard to hide being yuri bate.  I'm not sure if its fun enough to keep watching though...ill give it a few more episodes but so far its not really that compelling. 

The series is being simulcast on HiDive 

April Showers Bring May Flowers

    Hana is failing at making any friends in high school.  She is painfully shy and has low self esteem.  Her school life becomes...complicated, when the most popular boy in class discovers a secret.  Or at least what she thinks is a secret.

    This is yet another entry into the long line of ugly duckling becoming the object of affection of the model student.  At least this one is goofy but these tend to be pretty painful for how self abusing the main characters are.  We shall see how long this one lasts and if it can offer any merits other than the MC being voiced by the beloved Hayami Saori. 

The series is not legally streaming anywhere that I am aware of. 

The Fragrant Flower Blooms With Dignity

    Wataru has always been feared for his features.  It has caused him to accept this as his disposition but he just wants to get through life with as little fuss as possible.  A chance meeting with a girl at his families cake shop opens up his eyes to a different outlook when she doesn't see anything wrong with his looks or personality.

    Yet another black sheep and a princess romance...except this first episode was really good and the characters, especially Rintaro are more compelling than you normally see in this type of story.  I am not sure what about it has spoken to me....but I'm actually excited to watch this show, even though I've sene a dozen other titles exactly like it.

The series will be available on Netflix upon completion...sadly.

Solo Camping for Two

    Gen finds his one escape from the pressures of life, solo camping, utterly ruined by a surprise companion in the energetic Shizuku.  The younger woman forces herself into his life, joining him on his camping adventures, in order to become more adept at camping herself.

     Iyashikei normally center around adolescent girls, but this one deals with a middle aged man and presumably a 20-something woman.  Not sure if it will have enough innovation in its story telling to elicit any interest though...as Yuru Camp has pretty much set the bar for camping iyashikei.

The series is being simulcast on Crunchyroll.

Can a Boy-Girl Friendship Survive?

Can a Boy-Girl Friendship Survive? (男女の友情は成立する？（いや、しないっ!!）) Is a 12 episode slice of life romance based on the light novel series by Nana Nanana.  The anime original aired during the Spring of 2025.

    Natsume Yu has a dream, a dream shared by his indisputable best friend Inuzuka Himari.  That dream is to open a store selling jewelry and accessories centered around preserved flowers.   Yu has a deep love and appreciation for the beauty and hidden meanings of the floral world and over time has developed a method to preserve that for 'eternity'.  Himari became enamored with his vision and eye for detail when they were in middle school during an exposition.  She decided then and there that she would be his assistant in every way possible, putting herself before his dream.  In the process of this arrangement she demands that they be best friends as she has no interest in romance.  Yu, focused on his goal with all of his attention, gladly accepts the arrangement and pushes forward with his vision.  As they near the end of their high school career...things begin to shift in their relationship that begin to cause problems with the shared goal.

    hings become complicated when a girl who Yu encountered earlier in his life, by the name of Enomoto Rion, transfers to their school.  She was the first girl he fell in love with and she has mutual feelings for him.  Unfortunately for her, he has moved on and is focused exclusively on he and Himari's goal.  The arrival of a rival puts Himari on edge and she struggles with letting Yu know her true feelings for him.  To complicate things even more, a long time friend of Rion's is stirring the pot, causing all manner of drama, hoping for his friend to get her wish.  All of the adults around them understand that Yu is going to need to reassess his goal and try to make him understand that hes far from the potential he needs to be successful.  As older, more experienced individuals, they try to convince the kids to slow life down a little and enjoy the time they have.  But can Yu really chose the path that will be the best outcome for him?

    Terrible title, somewhat likeable character but really annoying tendencies and muddled internal conflicts.  This story had a lot of problems and self imposed set backs that made the story struggle.  Everything comes down to Yu and Himari refusing to accept the future together that makes sense and has the highest chance of success.  Instead they are focused on a naive sense of professionalism that increasing emotional turmoil impacts the quality of.  Himari is the most problematic character, but I still really enjoyed her as a character, even though I wanted to slap her everything she fucking things up by being too indecisive.  Consistently she would begin to reveal her true feelings and intentions with Yu then blow everything off as a joke, then stress about what Yu really thought about her.  She sabotaged herself at every opportunity.  She didn't need any of the obstacles that other people intentionally put in her way to stop her from being true to herself and Yu, she did that as much as she could.

    Yu as well was so focused on a flippant promise he made with Himari that he didn't even consider how she could have either changed her mind or been lying the entire time.  The distractions did little to impact him compared to what his internal dialogue did.  Literally the entirety of the drama in the story was self inflicted by the main characters.  Everything else, all of the opposition from outside players, had little to no impact on the outcome of their plight...it was all self inflicted.  The story can be summoned as self sabotage the series.  Yet, the characters did not truly learn from their stupidity and in the end they win.  Sorry...did I spoil the series...be honest you aren't going to watch it.  The only reason I continued to watch it was because I did like the characters outside of their relentless sabotage.  Himari was a fun character, brash, forthright and unapologetic.  Unfortunately, Yu was a bit of a wet paper bag and the relationships between all of the other characters barely resonated.  I guess....pass on this story?

The series is available on Crunchyroll.