First Look at the New Titles for the Fall of 2023

The first week of October has come and gone and with it the introduction episodes for most of the new anime I had on my watch list.  Here's a run down of the initial impressions.

Dekoboko Majo no Oyako Jijo (The Family Circumstances of the Irregular Witch)

    This series fooled me and/or I wasn't paying close enough attention.  But the initial gag of the anime is that the buxom witch looking character is the teenage adoptee and the little girl looking character is the couple hundred years old witch mother.  This series focuses way to much on boobs...bu there are some other qualities that make it enjoyable.  The series definitely comes from yonkoma origins as the episodes have no over all narrative.  It will be interesting to see if the humor can remain interesting enough to keep my interest and how much time is going to be spent on world building in general.

Under Ninja

    I went into this one only based on my enjoyment of the original authors previous work and so far I am intrigues.  The animation is what I expected based on his style and the preview.  You can ignore the awkward CGI in the opening segment, the rest is pretty good.  The first episode does very little to explain whats going on.  The story flips back and forth between two different time frames, establishing a baseline of the world and the main characters situation and personality.  It feels like there is an active amount of subterfuge in the anime its self, which is fitting for a show about ninja.  I look forward to more of this weird story.

A Girl & Her Guard Dog

     This show has a very strong pedophile aspect to it...but that aspect is subtle.  Consider that Keiya is 26 years old in the current time of the show, he was made Isaku's guardian at the age of about 16 or 17.  Isaku is in love with his stoic protector and it sure seems like Isaku is attracted to the girl he raised who is currently 14 or 15.  Not a problem right?  But Isaku's character is fun, shes a clutz and quite socially awkward even though she looks like a traditional shojo princess.  Keiya and the rest of the yakuza clan they have shown so far are boring and stereotypical.  There is some potential for this to be a fun slice of live story if the creepy romance portion stays at a subdued level.  Though it is no Yakuza's Guide to Babysitting.

 

 Yuzuki-san Chi no Yon-Kyodai (The Yuzuki Family's Four Sons)

     Subtitle kerfuffle aside I am not sure this show is worth my time.  The family dynamic of the four brothers is more than predictable and it seems that dynamic is the entire basis of the plot lines, at least it is for the first episode.  Not a fan of the artwork as well, it doesn't really have any soul to it.  I'll give it a few more episodes to try and turn things around but I'm not too optimistic about it in the end.  Why was Minami-ke never released in English!!!!?????

You Were Experienced, I was Not: Our Dating Story

    The cold opening for this one made it out to be way more of an otaku wet dream story than it appears to be.  The premise is rather shaky but Runa's character appears to to have more substance than just a pair of boobs and dyed hair.   Her entire justification for deciding to date our MC Ryuto is an angle not normally taken, but she has some thought into her approach to dating.  She doesn't appear to be as shallow as you would assume and it feels like she may be the character with depth in the series.  There was enough reason in the way the first episode to keep me interested to see how it develops.  What has the outward appearance of little more than a shitty fantasy of what a relationship could be, might turn into a well done human relations piece as the two main characters begin to learn about themselves.  I got caught in this trap in the beginning, trying to be super critical of the show, calling out the idea that Ryuto only likes her for her looks and doesn't no anything about her.  She points that out, saying he approach to dating is to get closer to someone to learn about them in the hopes that honest feelings could develop as the she starts to learn the real person behind the declaration of love.  I am truly surprised by how this development caught me off guard.

Ancient Magus Bride season2, part 2

    Not much to say here, it is picking up where the last episode in the Spring left off with the Alchemist College now being sealed off to help prevent further attacks on the staff and students as they try to understand who stole a dangerous grimore and why.  Chise is trying to understand her classmates more as she gets closer to them, but there are definitely secrets that will begin to reveal themselves as the danger persists.

Spy x Family, season 2

    The misfit fake family returns for continued adventures!  The first episode was a great welcome back to this amusingly odd story.  Yor spends the entire episode trying to hide a fresh bullet wound to the butt and Loid thinks shes angry with him, threatening to compromise his mission.  Only Anya knows the truth and helps to thwart an attempt on her new mamma's life.  The show keeps up its energy and form right out of the gate...can't wait for more!!

My New Boss Is Goofy

    The artwork is a bit crude but this is a cute and amusing slice of life comedy.  I'm still low-key rooting for this to turn into a Bl anime, but I suspect that won't come to be.  Its nice to just turn your brain off and enjoy something pointless and cute for a while and this does that well enough, even with the terrible animation.

 

Pluto....sadly this does not premier until the end of October as its a Netflix series not a TV broadcast anime.  I also need to finish up the first season of Kaina of the Great Snow Sea before picking up season 2.

One Piece - anime part 8 - Water Seven

    One Piece (ワンピース) is the epic pirate themed shonen battle anime based on the manga of the same name by Oda Eiichiro.  The eighth story arc of the series, Water Seven, originally aired between April of 2005 and April of 2006 for a total of 35 episodes, between 229  and 263.

    With the Marine Base G-8, the Foxy crew, lose of memories, the return of Foxy and a dangerous Marine behind them, the crew continues on their journey to discover the One Piece!

 

    After surviving their run in with Admiral Aokiji, the Straw Hat pirates move forward towards their ultimate goal.  They run aground when they come across sunken train tracks for the worlds only sea train.  The woman who manages the station at the section of track the encounter tells them about all of the islands connected by it.  She tells them their Logpose is pointing at a nearby island called Water Seven, home to the best ship builders anywhere.  They strike off with enthusiasm in hopes they can finally find a shipwright to join their crew and get the Going Merry back into shape.  Water Seven is a marvel of engineering.  The city is made up of a series of canals that are traversed by sea creatures that act as horses, the foundations of the building underwater.  While not exactly refused entry, everyone they come across on their way to dock tells them to dock away from the city, not waiting to deal with pirates directly.  The moor the ship on a rocky outcropping and break off into groups to explore the city and resupply.

    Luffy, Nami and Usopp head out to cash in their gold treasure from Skypiae and then to the shipyard to find someone to work on their ship.  They meet members of the shipwright company Gallery La, who had just gotten through thrashing a gang of pirates refusing to pay for their repairs.  One of the foreman, a man named Kaku, who shares a prominent proboscis like Usopp agrees to take a look over the Going Merry to assess the damaged.  While he is away Usopp is attacked by a gang of thieves called the Frankie Family, who liberate him of two thirds of their money.  They also attempt to attack Zoro, who is the only one keeping on eye on their ship.  Meanwhile Chopper is separated from Nico when she is approached by a masked man.

    Kaku returns with grave news about the Going Merry, her wounds are too severe to repair and they are faced with having to dismantle her and find a new ship to continue on their journey.  Before they can break the news to Usopp, they notice that he is missing.  At the same time they realize that their luggage was swapped and the foreman explains it was done by someone from the Frankie Family.  Nami runs off to take what remains of their money to the ship encountering a badly beaten Usopp in the process.  Usopp confesses about his attack and theft.  While Nami heads back to the ship to get help, Usopp drags himself to the bass of the Franky Family, to demand his money back.  He is unable to do anything and their leader, Franky leaves him to be beaten to death by his gang.

    Luffy and the others head off to find Usopp and the Franky Family in order to get their money back.  When they come upon the near dead form of their ship sniper all concern over the missing money is lost.  With the boss missing in action, the Straw Hat pirates lay waste to the Frankie Family and their hide out, wanting nothing but revenge for what happened to their friend.  Returning to the Going Merry they tell Usopp that they are going to have to find a new ship.  Usopp, unwilling to accept the truth chooses instead to leave the crew and challenges Luffy to a fight to end things between them.  Luffy wins the dual easily, leaving Usopp to his own devices as has fully chosen the leave the Straw Hats crew.  Unwilling to force the issue the others decide to take what they can from their ship and leave it to Usopp as they head out to find a new one on their own.

 

    The next morning the town is a buzz with news that the mayor and head of the Gallery La Company was attacked in the middle of the night and almost killed.  When the mayor a man named Iceberg regains consciousness, he says that one of the two two would be assassins was Nico Robin.  World spreads immediately and the foreman of the Gallery La Company starts to hunt down all of the Straw Hat pirates.  Hearing the news about Iceberg, Luffy and Nami head to meet him in order to find out whats going on and to talk about securing a new ship.  Before they can get to him, Franky challenges him to a fight in the shipyard.  The fight is interrupted by the foremen of the Gallery La Company who tell Luffy they are going to kill his crew for trying to kill their boss.  No matter what Luffy says, he can't convince them they have the wrong idea about the shooting.

    In a bought of rage, Frankie fires a devastating weapon at the foreman who are interfering in his battle with Luffy.  Luffy and Nami use the distraction to escape into the city, trying to regroup with the other members of their crew and figure out their next move.  Luffy finds Iceberg recuperating in his bedroom and tells him that the blame placed on his crew is wrong.  Iceberg confirms that rumor that Niko Robin was one of his assailants and tells Luffy to bring her to him.  They run into Zoro, who is fleeing a mob of citizens looking for street justice.  They hide long enough to escape them and rejoin with Chopper.  Chopper tells them about what happened when he and Sanji found Robin.  They take her parting words as a message to them, that she and the people she are working with will be attempting to finish the job again that night.  The crew decides they will intervene in the attack in order to clear their names and get Robin back to their crew.

    They find the compound heavily guarded and before they can figure out a plan of action the group that Robin is working with, a mysterious group known as CP9, makes their move.  CP9 proves to be more powerful than the dockyard workers can handle and easily invade the compound.  In a moment of betrayal Iceberg learns that many of his trusted foreman have been undercover CP9 agents the entire time.  They are part of a secretive wing of the Wold Government and are finishing an operation that has been in action for years.  TCP9 has been searching for secret plans to build a powerful hip that has the capabilities of destroying the world.  The plans have been passed down in secret for years between master shipwright and apprentice.  Iceberg's master was known to be in possession of those plans meaning Iceberg is their current custodian.  Iceberg, prepared for this eventuality, had tried to fool them into thinking he had the plans.  Instead they reveal their knowledge about a second apprentice who was long thought to be dead that should have the real plans.  That apprentice is none other than the gang leader Frankie.

    Luffy and crew bust into the Gallery La company compound during the chaos of the CP9 infiltration, hoping to face Robin and resolve their problems.  With the Straw Hats innocence revealed, Iceberg and his remaining loyal foremen fight together against CP9...but are quickly subdued as they carry on their mission.  In the meantime, seeking revenge against Luffy, Frankie tracks down Usopp and kidnaps him and the Going Merry as bait, not knowing the real threat that is unfolding.  CP9 easily subdues Luffy and the other defenders at the Gallery La headquarters.  They have rigged the building to explode in a matter of minutes and leave to hunt down Frankie and the plans.  Back at Frankie's hideout, he forces Usopp to say good by the the broken Going Merry, releasing it into the churning waters of the approaching storm.  Not long afterward, CP9 arrives to secure the secret plans.

    With the plans in hand, CP9 arrests Usopp and Frankie, then head to the sea train, to depart before the storm hits the island.  A flashback sequence shows how Frankie, abandoned by his parents, was adopted by the master shipwright Tom.  He long with Iceberg were trained as his apprentices.  An agent from CP5 named Spandam had come to the struggling Water Seven island in search of the secret plans that he suspected Tom had in his possession.  The plans for the ancient fearsome warship Pluton.  Tom refused to confirm his possession of it and confronted the arrogant agent.  Years earlier Tom was help guilty of treason for building Gol D. Rogers flag ship and sentenced to death.  He had convinced the judge to let him amend for his 'crime' through his plan to build the sea train and its track.  His goal was to connect Water Seven to the neighboring islands, allowing it to trade goods and services with the others, in hopes of reviving its failing economy.  Agent Spandams arrival in search of the plans coincided with Tom's delayed judgement and the completion of the sea train.

    Spandam enacted a covert plan to make Tom look like a criminal, ruthlessly attacking the city he loved, using ships built by Frankie.  All three shipwrights were found guilty and were to be executed.  Tom convinced the judge to let his completion of the sea train be used as payment for the recent attacks he and his apprentices were blamed for.  Instead he would only be found guilty of his original crime, aiding the worlds most notorious pirate.  The judge approved and Tom was executed while his apprentices were pardoned.  Unsatisfied with the outcome Spandam had to return to the World Government defeated, to plan another course of action to retrieve the Pluton plans.  Spandam is now the leader of CP9 and is the mastermind of the infiltration of Icebergs company.

    Knowing that Nico Robin is leaving the island with the rest of CP9, the crew rushes after her before the sea train departs, but are unable to reach her in time.  To make things more dire the yearly storm hits the city with a furry never seen before.  Unknown to her, Sanji had gotten to the train earlier and was successful in sneaking on to it.  The remaining members of the pirate crew regroup and convince the head of the foreman, Kokoro, to help them stop the train and get Nico Robin back.  The remnants of Frankies Family arrive as well, recognizing that Luffy and his crew are not their enemies, vowing to join them in their fight against CP9, knowing they need to rescue Frankie.  The woman from the train station, who is revealed to have been Toms partner, takes the band of misfits to a hidden sea train, the original prototype, with the intent of helping them use it to catch up to the one speeding away to the Government island Enies Lobby.

    As the entire back up squad heads out into the raging storm, Sanji starts to fight his way through the train, rescuing Usopp and Frankie in the process.  Sanji, using a communicator on the train, is able to contact Nami to let her know whats going on.  Nami tells Sanji that Robin has purpously given her self up to the members of CP9 in order to protect the Straw Hat pirates from the wrath of the Marines.  She has chosen to sacrifice herself to save the only ones she has considered her friends, fearing the same force that wiped her home island from existence will bear down on Luffy and the others.  Unwilling to accept that sacrifice, they head further through the train to rescue her.  All while the others a rapidly speeding towards them, everyone ready for a serious fight for their own brand of justice against the world government.

    Usopp is able to get to Nico Robin as Frankie and Sanji confront the SP9 agents.  Instead of fighting them, they decide to flee with Robin but are thwarted in their attempts by her.  She continues to insist that she is done with them and is a fully compliant prisoner of the agents.  Forcing them to leave the train and her behind.  Luffy and the others catch up to them and learn of what transpired.  Unwilling to accept her surrender they charge ahead, understanding that they will not be able to stop the train from reaching Enies Lobby, choosing to bring the fight to the front door of the World Government instead, risks be damned.

    The Water Seven arc leads directly into the longer Enies Lobby arc and was a much needed palette cleanser from the terrible Foxy arc.  This arc covered ushered in a new direction for the story as the crew is faced with the possibility of having a different make up than it has to this point.  The loss of their ship plays a big roll in the dynamics of the crews inner struggles.  The underlying story centered around Nico Robin that has been charging ahead since Alabasta is fully revealed.  The World Government is trying to recover long lost super weapons as a last ditch effort to end the age of pirates for good.  This doesn't sit right with pirate or average citizen, as both are highly suspect of the World Governments real intentions or trustworthiness.

     This arc gave us a new style of conflict as well which is a welcome change to the standard antagonists the Straw Hat pirates encounter.   In every confrontation before there was a clearly defined line between enemy and ally.  But with the attack on Iceberg and the convenient set up of the pirate crew, they find themselves being hunted by a group of people they had considered allies the day prior, people they are not exactly willing to beat into submission.  On top of that they have to face the vary dangerous group think of the citizens of the city, as world spreads quickly.  There is so much respect for Iceberg and rumors spread quickly that the citizens, who normally would shy away from getting involved in pirate conflicts, fully mobilizes to dispense mob justice to the unjustly framed pirates.  Luffy has to start using his mouth and brain to try and resolve the threat that snowballs out of control.  The only saving grace is the second attack from the government agents, deftly revealed by Robin.  As the scheme speeds ahead to its conclusion, forces that were enemies become allies in a shared threat and a change in perspective.

    Next up, the assault on the center of the World Government to save Nico Robin and Frankie...Enies Lobby.  What kind of monsters lurk in this place of 'justice'?  Only Sniperking knows!!

Horimiya: The Missing Pieces

 Horimiya: The Missing Pieces (ホリミヤ -piece-) is a 13 episode continuation of the original Horimiya slice of life romantic comedy series.  It is based on the manga Hori-san to Miyamura-kun by Adachi Hiroki.  The series originally aired over the Summer of 2023.

 

    Missing Pieces isn't a continuation of the original series, it is really a companion piece, being a collection of plots from the manga that were not included in the original run of the series.  Each episode is a collection of stories that are related to each other, but may not occur with in the same time frame in the natural progress of the manga.  The stories put more focus on the side characters, expanding their roles in the overall story.  Characters not shown in the original anime also make appearances, rounding out the cast.  The story shows the students on a trip to Kyoto, struggles with swimming during gym and humorous non-sequitur anecdotes like how to sleep four people under the same kotatsu or what to do with a teacher who loves the girls too much.

    I was initially concerned that this would be as disappointing as the side story season of Ranking of Kings turned out to be.  The first episode quickly quelled those fears and I fell in love with this side story compilation as much as the original.  It is sad to not get a continuation of Hori and Miramura's relationship after high school, but this was just as good.  Its was enjoyable to see more about the side characters, many of which add much depth to the main characters.  The way sometimes disparate segments were grouped together under a common theme made it more enjoyable as well.  It's hard to find anything at fault with this series.  If a future anime does something similar this format should be the golden standard.

    Horimiya is a great story, with lovable characters, its just too bad this is probably the real good bye to them in the form of anime.  Crunchyroll went through and came up with a comprehensive order to watch the episodes from both series' so that it follows the flow of the manga...its really really in-depth and specific.  I will have to follow their specified order after I read the manga to see how well it covers the original material.

 

    This, like the original series, is available on Crunchyroll and is well worth the time!

Spy x Family - Season 1

 Spy x Family is a comedic slice of life espionage series based on the manga of the same name by Endo Tatsuya.  The first season originally aired during the Spring and Fall seasons of 2022 for a total of 25 episodes.

 

    Twilight is the top spy for the nation of  Westalis.  There has been an uneasy peace between his country and their neighboring country, Ostania, following a costly war between both nations.  Twilight's' primary operation is to ensure the current peace and to work towards making is permanent.  He goes to any lengths to achieve success in all of his missions, abandoning his past, present and future for the sake of peace.  He is given a very difficult mission in hopes to thwart one of the most influential radicals in Ostania's government before a new war can be sparked.  His mission; get close to the leader of the National Unity Party, Donovan Desmond.  Desmond is a notorious recluse, who rarely makes public appearances.  Twilight's superiors feel the best way to get to him is through his youngest son via school functions at the exclusive private school he attends.  In order to fulfill this mission he must assemble a fake family and enroll his fake child into the academy.

    Twilight assumes the identity of a young psychiatrist named Loid Forger.  The first step of his mission is to find a child he can adopt to pose as his own.  He finds one in a less than reputable orphanage, a strange girl named Anya.  Unknown to Loid, Anya is the result of secret and illegal experiments which have unlocked the ability to read peoples minds.  Anya, fearful of Loid rejecting her and knowing immediately that he is a spy that needs her for his mission, does everything she can to hide her abilities from him.  Anya is absolutely enthralled with Loid being a spy since her favorite cartoon is a fantastical spy show.  The next step, given the prestige of the private Eden College, that Anya needs to enroll in, find a mother figure for Anya.  In a stroke of luck he encounters a beautiful and single woman names Yor.  Before he can ask her to pretend to be his wife, to help his daughter succeed in the admission process, she asks him is he will pretend to be her boyfriend for a work party.  Yor works in city hall and is struggling to not draw suspicion from the Ostania Secret Police.  The nation is uneasy and paranoid following the peace accord.  Neighbors and coworkers routinely report people for any perceived deviations from normalcy on suspicion of being spies.  Yor, being beautiful, a public servant and single means she is a likely target for espionage suspicions.  In reality, Yor is a highly successful assassin for a shadowy group working to eliminate threats to the country.  She fears that her true line of work will get her executed...or at least make her younger brother incredibly disappointed in her.

     With her proposal to be a fake boyfriend, Loid suggests she pretend to be his new wife as well.  Yor, not suspecting that Loid is not a widower psychiatrist father of a young girl attempting to enroll in Eden College, agrees to pretend to be his new wife, to help her stave off suspicion on herself as well.  The preparation for Twilight's' mission has now been completed, the next step...Anya's success in enrolling to the academy.  Even with her amazing mind reading abilities, Anya's success is not guaranteed.  The strange little girl isn't the brightest bulb in the pack and she is definitely not six years old, based on her mannerism and lack of self control.  The admission to the college includes more than just success in testing, it also requires proper etiquette and social conciseness.  Twilight can prepare all he wants and train the girl as much as he can, but he can't control any randomness she could undertake in her daily activities.  Is his mission doomed to fail before it even has a chance to truly begin?  The greatest spy from Westalis struggles to control vital aspects of his mission that are out of his own hands.  But, he will do everything he can to ensure the success of his mission, since the sake of continued peace relies on it.

    Spy x Family is deftly crafted homage and satire of the classic cold war spy story.  The setting is fictitious but vaguely mid 20th century European in design.  Its hard to not compare this series and its tropes with the James Bond franchise, the later of which has left a strong legacy to the genre.  the characters and their situations border on the absurd at every corner.  Twilight/Loid is uncanny in his perception and physical prowess.  Yor literally switches personalities between her job as a a top assassin and her normal everyday existence.  Though, her extended contract killing work has definitely tainted some of the way she interacts with the world, almost on a subconscious level.  The star of the story is with out a doubt Anya.  Her larger than life expressions and quirky monologues push the comedy to a satisfying level.  The show would also be enjoyable to see Twilight go through his motions, with all the amusing twists and turns, surrounded by a cast of off beat allies and enemies.  But Anya makes the show as amusing as it is.  Yor...well shes really just waifu material unfortunately.  Her character is really the least interesting aspect, she shines the best when she reacts instinctively to mundane situations, but in general she is the weakest of the three characters.

     Both the artwork and writing is really strong in this series.  The character designs add to the satire of the series, with more and more characters being unnaturally odd in appearance and mannerism, but still within the realms of reality.  The resolution of the individual episodic plot lines is able to execute amusing bait and switch solutions, leaving you wondering more about what insanity will transpire instead of trying to figure out how it will happen.  The plot though does seem like it's moving a little too slowly at this point.  while these characters and their antics are enjoyable and amusing, I fear that the story may overstay its welcome in the long run.  As the second season dawns we will see how long the story can stretch out its conclusion and what that may entail.  Either way, I will enjoy the Forger families exploits while I can and hope that it doesn't become cumbersome before we say good bye to them.

    The series is widely available and is streaming in both dub and sub formats.

One Piece - anime part 7 - Escape! The Marine Fortress & The Foxy Pirate Crew

      One Piece (ワンピース) is the epic pirate themed shonen battle anime based on the manga of the same name by Oda Eiichiro.  The seventh story arc of the series, Escape! The Marine Fortress & The Foxy Pirate Crew, originally aired between June of 2004 and March of 2005 for a total of 33 episodes, between 196 and 228.

    After following the logpose into the heavens and confirming the existence of a floating island, Skypiea, the Straw Pirates face off with a God to protect the innocent people who were just as willing to sacrifice them to it for their own safety.  Along the way they learn the truth behind the fabled city of gold.

 

    From the frying pan and into the fire, their balloon decent to the Grand Line goes off course and lands them in the middle of a heavily fortified Marine base, G-8.  Their splashdown is seen my many on the base, even though its the middle of the night.  The Marines search the ship, not finding any of the crew, and impound the ship.  The base is commanded by Vice-admiral Jonathan, an intelligent and patient commander.  The men who searched the Going Merry begin talking about it being a ghost ship.  Jonathan realizes the crew has escaped and will be attempting to free their ship and flee the base.  He instructs his men to keep and eye for any strange people that suddenly how up while working to set a wide ranging trap.

    The Straw Hats got separated as they fled their ship.  Shanji and Luffy meet each other while wandering the maze-like halls of the base.  They end up in the kitchen and pose as two famous chefs who have transferred to this base from Marine headquarters.  Nami ends up disguise herself as a janitor first, resulting in some aggressive menial labor.  She abandons that plan quickly, favoring the role of a nurse instead.  A battered Marine ship has just landed and the entire medical wing is on full swing to treat the wounded, dragging Nami into a role she has no abilities in.  She finds Chopper, doing his best pretending to be a normal doctor, wanting to aid the only available doctor, who fears the sight of blood.  The two pirates work diligently to help the wounded Marines.

    Zoro is the first one captured and finds himself contemplating his situation in the brig.  Usopp ends up meeting the head mechanic on the base, who reinforces Usopps pride in the ship he struggle to keep sea worthy.  He ends up being captured and tries unsuccessfully to convince them he is an inspector that is supposed to be coming to the base.  Robin, who has already encountered the inspector and subdued him, convinces Jonathan that she is the real inspector, brushing off Usopps attempts at subterfuge.  Sanji and Luffy are still working in the kitchen, mostly due to Sanji being madly in love with the head chef, Jessica.  Luffy delivers food to the captain, at which point their identities are uncovered.  Fearing capture and learning about Zoro and Usopps imprisonment they head off to attempt to free them while evading the Marines.  Jonathan anticipates their actions and sets a trap for them at the brig.  Unexpectedly, Usopp and Zoro concoct a plan to escape the jail, blowing up the cell in the process.  In the confusion the mostly reunited members head off to free their ship.

    There is yet another trap waiting for them at the dock their ship is moored.  Before the standoff can begin Chopper and Naki, still masquerading as medial staff, convince the gathered masses that the pirates are holding them hostage.  They take advantage of the distraction and escape on their ship, heading into the harbor.  The escape is not as easy at is seems, as the bass is surrounded by a ring of cliffs with only one sea gate.  The Marines unleash the entire bases defenses in order to stop the Going Merry.  In the confusion they hide their ship in an abandoned dock and head back into the base to retrieve the treasure they took from Sky Island.  Jonathan, knowing that the most important thing to pirates is their treasure, has laid this as the final trap.  The crew succeeds in breaching the bases vault, to learn it is empty.  After escaping this trap they understand the only place their loot could be is in Jonathan's office.  In a crazed sequence of events they secure the treasure and escape into the port.  Yet the final trick puts their freedom in jeopardy.  The port is shallow and with the tide going out the Going Marry runs aground.  Thinking they are finally captured for good, Jonathon and the rest of the Marines are astonished by the final trick the crew has in store.  Using the octopus they used to float back to the Grand Line, they succeed in reinflating it and using an impact dial to propel the ship over the cliffs and out to open sea, where they will need to dock to do some serious repairs before they can continue on their journey.

     The next island they stop at seems to be abandoned and idyllic.  Yet everything on it is...long.  The only thing they find is an abandoned hut and a strange looking horse.  Before they can figure out their next move, walking bamboo attacks them...or become attacked by Luffy.  The bamboo ended up being extremely tall stilts piloted by an old man named Tonjit.  He explains that he became trapped on his stilts ten years earlier an that his people, who are nomads, have long since moved on to other islands.  The island they are on is made up of a ring of islands that become one when the tide is at its lowest, in a multi year cycle.  His people move from island to island during these periods.  Before they can enact a plan to help him reunite with his people a crew of pirates shows up to challenge them to a game called the Davy Back Fight.

    Luffy, being as impulsive as he is, instantly agrees to the challenge by the rival captain, Captain Foxy.  The Davy Back Fight is an honorable challenge between pirate captains.  The opponents face off in a series of challenges, for each challenge won, the winner may choose to take something from the looser.  This typically means crew mates or even the losers jolly roger.  Unfortunately for Luffy and crew, Foxy is full of tricks and cheats, having a long history of using the Davy Back Fight to strengthen his own crew.  The first of three challenges involves a race around the island using only a few pieces of wood.  Luffy and company immediately realize how underhanded the Foxy Pirates are willing to be in order to ensure victory.  After all, pirates gonna pirate.  The first win goes to Foxy who claims Chopper as his first prize.  This leaves the Straw Hat team for the second challenge down one member.  Zoro and Sanji face off against the biggest members of the Foxy pirates in a game where a ball attached to one team members head has to land in a circle on the court.

     Miraculously, Sanji and Zoro are able to put aside their own conflict in order to overcome the opposing teams tactics, cheats and crooked referee to win back Chopper.  The final contest is a points race on a roller rink.  Miraculously they are able to overcome Luffy's inability to roller skate, Foxy's devil fruit slow motion powers, rampant amounts of cheating and other disasters.  Luffy chooses to make Tonjits horse the new member of his crew for the win, shocking everyone.  Not wanting to walk away empty handed, Foxy suggest a rematch, which Luffy instantly agrees to.  Now they have to face off against the massively underhanded prates for another three challenges to ensure their crews safety.  The first challenge for the second round is a game of red light green light.  Just before they Straw Hats can secure victory, the win is snatched from them and Foxy chooses Robin to be his newest crew mate.

    The second challenge in the rematch is race to the top of the island, which the Foxy pirates easily win, securing Chopper once again.  With only one challenge left, Luffy is faced with the dilema of loosing one crew member, as he can only hope to win one back.  Nami suggests and all or noting bet for the final challenge, which Foxy gleefully accepts.  The final challenge is a one on one boxing match between Luffy and Foxy with the ring being the entire Foxy pirate ship.  Luffy overcomes a series of devastating beatings and all manner of underhanded tricks at Foxy's hands, but is able to persevere in the end using Foxy's slow motion ability against him.  Now everyone except 3 members of Foxy's crew are part of the Straw Pirates.  Foxy floats away in defeat but before he can get far Luffy releases all of the new members from their service to the Gong Merry.

     With the crew safe and secure and the ship as stable as can be with out a real shipwright, they head off again to the next island, mooring overnight at a coral surrounded island.  Something happens to them and everyone who was asleep wakes up in the morning to have no memories going back to the point at which they joined the pirate crew.  The only one unaffected was Robin, as she has been awake when the attack happened.  Robin works to convince them of who they all are, but not everyone readily agrees to her truths.  The culprit behind the memory theft ends up being a seahorse, claiming to be a millennial dragon...or at least thinking if he consumes all those memories he will turn into one.  After defeating the seahorse, the crew and inhabitants of the island get their memories back.  The heroic pirates are chased away instead of getting rewarded as the villager blame them for the memory losses.

    On their way to the next island, and caught in rough weather, they come across Foxy and his reduced crew/boat.  Pitying the problematic pirate, they rescue them for near death and bring them onboard the Going Merry.  The next day they come across his old pirate crew, who are now sailing under the banner of a pirate crew they had previously defeated in a Davy Back Fight challenge.  Foxy challenges this new rival captain for the right back to his crew and ship.  Luffy feels sympathy for Foxy, he is being beaten badly by the challenger, offering to step in to fight for him.  Foxy takes the opportunity, recognizing that he can make use of Luffys crew to win back his crew and capture them to make up for his defeat at Long Long Island.

    Before this arc I had never concerned myself with known which episodes were fillers or not.  Something about the first part of the arc made me check into the list of filler episodes.  Surprisingly and a little concerning is that the only part of this arc that was from the manga was the absolute worst story line in the entire series so far.  Foxy and his entire ordeal was absolutely terrible.  It was annoying, repetitive and went on significantly longer than it really should have.  Foxy's character is terrible and his crew is a hodgepodge of caricatures that are more at home in the late 60's Hanna Barbera cartoon, Wacky Races.  Too make matters worse, the final part of this arc, which sees the return of Foxy is also filler.  The first part, the escape from Marine Base G-8 is really enjoyable and continued the wave of fun that took place in Skypiea.  The characters are fun, the situation, even if it goes longer than it probably should have, does not get tedious or repetitive.  Vice-admiral Jonathan is a really enjoyable character, too bad hes not from the manga.  This entire arc makes me question Oda's intent and direction in the overall narrative of his story.  Is he trying too hard to regurgitate anime he grew up on as a kid in the 80's?  

    The Foxy part is terrible, the short segment afterwards, with the lost memories absolutely feels like filler, but isn't too bad that you want to skip it.  The final part through, is just as bad as the real Foxy segment, fortunately its only a few episodes long.  With this we move onto the next part and I am beginning to question if the story can return to the quality that we had in the Skypiae and Alabasta arcs or if we are just going to continue running into more and more ridiculous characters with terrible design and narratives.  We had a slight glimmer of actual plot progression with Skypiae and given the only manga based part of this arc is the Foxy challenge, we will hopefully see a return to the actual pursuit of the One Piece...but 950+ episodes left to go through at this point doesn't make that likely.  As a side note, I forgot the period of time in Japan when afro's were all the rage...or at least in anime.  Strange times the mid 00's were indeed.  Another side note, I am picking up an a noticeable improvement to the artwork of the show compared to the original seasons...but that also means Nami's chest is becoming more of a point of interest.

    Next up, now that we are finally free and clear of the terrible and annoying Foxy pirates, the Water Seven arc.

The Masterful Cat Is Depressed Again Today

 The Masterful Cat Is Depressed Again Today (デキる猫は今日も憂鬱) is a 13 episode slice of life comedy series based on the manga of the same name by Yamada Hitsuji.  The series originally aired over the Summer of 2023.

     Fukuzawa Saku is a young, hardworking, office worker in her 20's.  She comes to work everyday ready to tackle anything she is given.  She comes with homemade lunches that make her the ency of her co-workers.  She is the ideal employee and highly desirable as a marriage partner.  Yet the seemingly confident and well put together woman is not exactly as she appears to be.  Those that remember her when she first started at the company can recall how much of a mess she was.  Saku has a secret that she strives to keep from everyone, unsure how to actually explain the situation she is in that will make sense to those around her.  The secret is the only reason she is able to be as productive and put together and nourished as she is, is due to her cat, Yukichi.

    A few years prior, Saku had rescued Yukichi from near death in the middle of winter.  The lost kitten was so appalled by the horrendous state of the woman's apartment that he decided to do what ever it took to improve his living conditions.  For some reason, the seemingly ordinary alley cat is highly capable of understanding human speech .  Being a normal cat he can not speak himself but is capable of understanding enough to interact with humans on a rudimentary level that helps him express his intentions.  Understanding that the health of his human means his health as well he begins in earnest to clean her trash filled apartment and cook nutritious meals for her.  With out explanation he also grows to be the size of a small bear, standing taller than the woman who saved him.  Now, Yukichi has assumed the roll of Saku's mother, seeing to her every needs for health and security.  Scolding her for not being mindful and nursing her to health when sick or hungover.  But having a bear sized house cat who acts like a human is really strange and Saku does everything she can to hide the truth about him from those she knows.  Unfortunately...Yukichi is independent to the point where he does all of her grocery shopping, being somewhat of a celebrity at the local supermarket, where the staff and customers refuse to believe its not a strange human in an elaborate cat costume.

 

    This is a really fun and cute low key slice of life series that takes an absurd concept and runs with it in a very mundane way.  Yukichi is very much the diligent housewife, always cleaning, cooking and fusing.  Saku doesn't really question how he came to be that way, grateful for his efforts to make her a better person....or at least a person who is less than a slob as she really is.  Saku is incredibly lazy and self centered.  Wanting nothing more than to lay around, drink, eat snacks and watch TV.  She realizes that Yukichi isn't getting anything out of the situation and fears the day that he decides to leave her for a better life with someone else.  She also struggles with how to explain to people that all of her merits are her cats doings.  Yet she goes about happily each day, enjoying the vastly improved life her stray cat has given her.

    This, along with The Girl I Like Forgot Her Glasses, is my first real exposure to the animation studio GoHands.  They definitely have a style that they like to use, for better or worse.  Thankfully the worst aspects of their directing quirks are limited with this series, mostly relegated to the city-scape cut scenes.  I don't have any issue with 3d CG, being a huge fan of Polygon Pictures, but man...GoHands really needs to tighten up their motion algorithms and try to make moving objects more natural.  Every car looks like its fresh out of the shop with a brand new reflective wrap, quite unsettling indeed.  But aside from the questionable choices, over all the artwork for this series is really enjoyable and the directing, regardless of what others say in criticism, worked well with the story.  In reality there is little in the way of story, we see a progress of side character introduction and interaction but the meat of the show focuses on the daily lives of Saku and her cat.  Showcasing the deftly absurd manner that Yukichi tackles tasks as if he were a human.  From wearing rubber gloves when preparing food, diligently clipping coupons and taking full advantage of the supermarkets rewards program, to ensuring that Saku is ready to face every day the best she can.  Meanwhile, Saku dodges all manner of perceived suspicions, while constantly questioning how long she can live like this and keep him a secret...even though most of her neighborhood is aware of his bizarre existence and brush it off.  Its fun and quirky and worth the time if you like lazy slice of life stories with no drama or plot.

 

    The series was simulcast on Crunchyroll and is currently only available in sub format.

Rent-A-Girlfriend

 Rent-A-Girlfriend (彼女、お借りします) is a slice of life romance comedy based on the manga of the same name by Miyajima Reiji.  The anime has so far had three seasons broadcast between the Summer of 2020 and the Summer of 2023 for a total of 36 episodes.

    At a low point of depression following the sudden break up with his girlfriend, college freshman Kinoshita Kazuya decides to try out a rental dating service to take his mind off of things.  The girl he ends up renting for an afternoon date is the beautiful and pleasant Mizuhara Chizuru.  The situation becomes complicated when he drags her to visit his grandmother who was just admitted to the hospital.  Kazuya is the sole heir to his families and his grandmother, being the strong matriarch that she is, wants nothing more than to see the future of her family secured after she is gone.  Fearing that his grandmother is on her deathbed, he uses the timing to show her that he does indeed have a girlfriend and not to worry about him.  The arrive to find that it was a minor incident and the old woman won't be dying any time soon.  She however has taken a great liking to Chizuru and in conversation realizes that she is friends with her grandmother, who is also currently in the same hospital.  Due to Kazuya's panic and knee-jerk reaction to the situation, Chizuru also has to lie to her grandmother about the nature of their relationship, too keep her work as a rental girlfriend secret.

    What was only intended to be a one time thing to cheer him up during his heartbreak has now become a complicated recurring nightmare for Kazuya.  He plans to tell his grandmother that he and Chizuru have broken up, but is unwilling to do it so soon.  Instead he has to continue to rent her out on trips to the hospital to keep up appearances.  Meanwhile he discovers that Chizuru, whose real last name is Ichinose, is also a student at his college and his next door neighbor.  What is a man to do when the hole he keeps digging does nothing but go deeper and deeper with each lie.  More and more people see the two of them together, causing the girlfriend lie to grow further, to help protect Chizuru's job secret.  A college friend of Kazuya's even goes so far to present his own rental girlfriend as the real deal in a double date.  The secret is threatened by the other girl, Sarashina Ruka, when she realizes the truth about Kazuya and Chizuru's relationship.  They convince her to keep their secret but instead Ruka quits her work and forces Kazuya to start dating her for real.  Chizuru, not actually in a relationship with him, thinks its a good idea and convinces him to do so, seeing the situation as an opportunity to put and end to their charade.

    Kazuya doesn't actually have any interest in Ruka, going along with it partially due to Chizuru's insistence.  He keeps trying to find a n end to his problem but recognizes that he has developed feelings for Chizaru.  He knows its pointless, since she appears to have no feelings for him and is only around him due to the continued rental services.  He knows she is bothered by his constant participation in her life.  But he is determined to do what ever he can to see her dreams come true, even if its just as a friend.  He learns that she started working as a rental girlfriend to earn money for acting school as well as give her opportunities to practice acting and performing.  her life's goal is to be an actress in movies, so that her grandmother, who acted in her youth, can see her perform.  As Chizuru's grandmothers health worsens will she be able to fulfill her dream and can Kazuya ever end the lie he has been spinning so wide all of this time?

    Rent-A-Girlfriend has gained a rather notorious reputation and it's not undue.  The entire plot of the show could easily have been completed in the very first episode.  Instead the main character, who falls into the category of other personality devoid MC's continues to refuse to admit to his mistake, choosing the path of greatest resistance instead.  The situations he finds himself in exist outside of the realms of reality, particularly all of the coincidences that tie he and Chizuru together.  The fact that almost everyone is fooled by the two versions of her in the first season is equally as unlikely.  She hides in plain sight in the same manner as Clark Kent does and everyone is fooled by it.  Ruka as well is a less than believable character.  Her entire conviction for falling for Kazuya is....strange to say the least.  She suffers? from some heart condition that is more used as a plot device in the beginning than anything else.  I mean, what kind of condition is having a low BPM really?  She's drawn to him because he raises her heart rate to a normal level?   Then there is a whole other group of throw away characters that serve momentary purposes with little meaning for the over all story.  Coming and going as they please for a momentary distraction, offering little in the way of actual plot advancement.

    Yet...I continued to watch the series all the way through.  At first I wasn't sure why, perhaps due to the easy progress in downing one insipid episode after another over the course of a few days.  But something changed in the second season, the story actually started to become interesting...well it had the potential to be interesting.  I started to realize that Chizuru was a character that had depth and realism to her.  Once the story starts to dig into her life and her circumstances it took on a different tone.  It started to move away from ridiculous harem rom-com with all of the usual trappings, into a story about a woman who is struggling with her ambitions in the face of reality.  I had an idea, a different way the story could be told that would make it a more interesting and less uncomfortable story.  If the story would have been written from Chizuru's perspective, we would have a much more grounded narrative.  Kazuya is throw away and pointless.  Ruka only serves the roll of a convenient plot device when needed, being ignored the rest of the time...poor Ruka with her heart condition.  Everyone else is significantly more disposable.

    Forget Kazuya and his pointless background and future.  It's understood that the series will likely end with he and Chizuru being honest about their feelings with each other and becoming a real couple, but there's not much worth in that predestined conclusion.  What is interesting and engaging is Chizuru herself.  She lost her parents at a young age and was raised by her grandparents.  They were loving and genuine, her grandfather being a hopeless romantic and her grandmother being a kind realist.  She learned that her grandmother has once been an actress, appearing in films.  She had given up that ambition when she chose to start a family.  Chizuru feels guilt for this and takes it upon herself to fulfill her grandmothers forsaken life, with her grandfathers support.  Her desire is to make both of them happy, showing them a film with her as an actor, carrying on both of their dreams.  Unfortunately her grandfather is killed in a car accident before she graduates high school.  In college, with her sole ambition driving all of her decisions, she struggles with the fact that her grandmother will not be alive for long, leaving her to be all alone in the world.  She desires nothing more than to achieve her goal for her grandmothers sake, since she was unable to do it for her grandfather.  But...we only see her story from the perspective of our worthless MC, Kazuya...  Side note....I didn't really notice it until season 3, but they are really inconsistent with the size of Chizuru's chest.  And it goes with out saying, there is a lot of tepid fan service in this show.

    The series is widely available in both dub and sub formats...if you feel like slogging through some crap to get to some interesting story.  Not unlike Clannad.

A Quick Look at the Fall 2023 Anime Season

 October signals the start of the Fall season, which historically showcases the most anticipated anime of the year.  What Falls premiers provide high quality entertainment?  Or at the very least, what series has peeked my personal interests to spend some time exploring?

Pluto

     A detective with Interpol is tasked with investigating a series of murders of both human and AI that could be the first case of robot homicide in years.    He is trying to determine if the culprit could be one of the 7 great AI powers in the world.

     This one is a bit of an automatic inclusion.  I am a huge fan of Urasawa Naoki and loved the manga when I read it years ago.  This has been in the works for a while and I suspected when a vague announcement by Urasawa a few years ago related to a new project would be exactly this series.  Even if I really hoped for an anime adaptation of 20th Century Boys.  Regardless, this is going to be a great anime and the previews we have seen have shown great promise for artwork and composition.

 

A Girl & Her Guard Dog

    A girl raised by her grandfather in a yakuza household, wants nothing more then to have a normal childhood.  She chooses to enroll in a normal high school, in an attempt to experience a life away from her grandfathers influence.  Unfortunately for her, one of his underlings, tasked to protect her.  He forges his age and enrolls along with her...unfortunately she has been trying to distance herself from him as well.

    Knowing nothing outside of the synopsis, this one is on the list as a potential romance to enjoy for the season.  We will see how much this leans into comedy or drama.  It could go either way, but episode one should clear that up.  I don;t expect anything ground breaking with this, not anticipating any insane gotcha surprise.  It seems pretty straightforward and familiar.  Just something to past the time, another high school romance notch in the belt.  

Dekoboko Majo no Oyako Jijo

    I witch finds a baby girl abandoned in the woods and decides to raise it as her own.  The baby has grown up to be a strong girl who has more common sense than her aloof step mother.  Which one is the adult in this household?

    Aside form the special attention made to the witches buxum chest, this series seems cute and fun and rather goofy.  I have no prior knowledge of the original source material or what to expect, the PV makes it seem light hearted and fun!

Ancient Magus Bride 2nd season - part 2

    The story picks up from where the first part left off in the end of the Spring.  Chise is enrolled in the alchemist college and has to deal with all of the difficulties this threatening place presents her, while working towards building some sort of mutual and normalized relationship with Elias.

    I really enjoyed the original series and didn't start watching the new season until preparing for this second part to air.  I don't enjoy this new story as much as the original series, feeling it is being limited by focusing on one specific location and somewhat emulating Harry Potter.  But, its still an enjoyable story, even if I feel this part isn't as engaging as the original story was.

Under Ninja

    In the modern world, ninja still exist and are quite active and numerous, hidden in the shadows, conducting covert missions for good or ill.  One ninja, a shut in, is assigned a dangerous mission in which he has to go undercover as a student.

    This story falls well into the type that have little interest to me these days.  The only reason this is even on my radar is the original author, Hanazawa Kengo, who wrote the massively enjoyable zombie manga I am A Hero.  Not sure how long I will watch this...wish his other work would get a series!  I really need to write up that review for I Am A Hero...

 

Yuzuki-san Chi no Yon-Kyodai

  No idea what this one is even about!  It could be a comedy, a drama or a mix of the two.  I am not expecting anything as awesome as Minami-ke but this does look like it could be enjoyable.

You Were Experienced, I was Not: Our Dating Story

    A boy is forced to confess to the girl he likes in school, surprisingly she agrees to go out with him because she is currently single.  Now they have to navigate each other, living in completely different social worlds.

    This one is on the list as another romance for the season...not sure how long this one will last.  If the series is obnoxious or terrible written it won't make it very far.  But, it may hold some form of depth and interesting story telling, my hopes for that are quite low however.

My New Boss Is Goofy

    Momose Kentaro changes jobs, due to his previous boss being incredibly toxic.  He is afraid that he will end up in the same situation with his new boss...only things aren't exactly as dire as he fears...but that doesn't mean it's going to be easy.

   Another series I have zero knowledge of.  This looks like a fun and laid-back office work comedy.  Though, I wouldn't mind if there was some underlying BL romance action, I really don't expect it.  I do have hopes this will be cute and amusing.

Spy Family 3rd season

    Once again the crazy life of Loid Forger and his fake family are back with their hi-jinks and ready for more fun!

    I am a season behind this great show...and I really need to catch up on the story before this one kicks off.  This is such a fun story with great and lovable characters, what is there not to like!  Also, Yor is literally the best waifu, fight me!!

The Ancient Magus' Bride

The Ancient Magus' Bride (魔法使いの嫁) is a 24 episode fantasy series based on the manga of the same name by Yamazaki Kore.  The series aired between the Fall of 2017 and the Winter of 2018.

 

      Chise Hatori has always been able to interact with invisible spirits and beings.  This ability lead to her father abandoning her and her mother committing suicide at a young age.  After her mothers death she lived with distant relatives but her abilities further caused them to distance themselves from her.  Chise, seeing no future for herself, ends up voluntarily selling herself into slavery.  She perks the interest of a number of mages at the auction, held in London and is purchased by a powerful being named Elias Ainsworth.  Elias is a large and intimidating creature with the skull of a cow or ox.  His origins and genetic makeup are unknown.  He has walked the planet for centuries and has gained considerable power in the world of magic.  He initially tells Chise that he bought her to make her his bride, in an attempt to make him more empathetic to other living things.  He also plans to make her his apprentice in order to allow her to tap into her incredible magical powers.  Chise is a special being with immense potential but a fragile body.  Elias understands that many things will seek her out for their own uses and feels he must protect her from the dangerous world around them.

    Elias provides the first real home that Chise has had in a long time, a place of welcome and warmth in the countryside of modern day England.  She is quickly exposed to the greater dangers of the world that more humans can not perceive.  All manner of powerful beings begin to appear around her as she learns the ways of the magic user from Elias.  Fae inhibit every corner of the world, mostly indifferent to humans but some desire to lure them back to their home for unknown reasons.  Along with magicians, alchemists also travel the land offering supernatural services.  Magicians and alchemists generally do not trust each other.  An alchemist named Renfred has an uneasy history with Elias but his apprentice, Alice, soon befriends Chise.  An ancient being named Cartaphilus crosses paths with them, on his eternal search for release from his eternally dying body.  Chise is given the skin of a wolf, allowing her the powers of transformation, from an equally old faerie named Ashen Eye, but he is not benevolent towards humans, seeing them as things to amuse himself with.  Chise is a rare being of magical ability known as a sleih beggy.  They have a strong aptitude towards magic but at the cost of their lives, as the inability to control the flow of magic usually destroys them before long.  Elias will do what he can to keep her safe as long as possible, but when others seek her out for her supernatural abilities that protection may not be enough. 

 

    I watched the series as it originally aired, beginning with the three episode preview OAV series then on to the actual TV series.  That was many years ago now at this point and with the continuation of the story beginning again, I felt it was time for a refresher and to finally finish the review of the original series.  I don't normally enjoy supernatural/magical anime, largely due to many of them falling in the rote shonen battle format.  This series however is far from that type of story.  It is a story of two tragic beings who find each other and lean on each other in times of weakness as they try to make sense of their place in the world.  Much of the world is taken from classic European magical mythology and given a bit of a Japanese animist twist.  The story, its characters and its world is very immersive.  There is much mystery with in and part of the joy of going through the story is unraveling those mysteries.

 

    The main characters are generally uncomfortable in the world around them,  keeping their thoughts to themselves and hiding as much of their inner thoughts as possible.  Its hard to say if this is lazy design as many of the key players in the story tend to share similar traits, or this could be construed as a side effect of the world they live in and the things they deal with.  Either way it gives the story an air of melancholy and ennui.  Chise literally puts herself into slavery because she was unable to commit suicide and just wanted to be with anyone instead of alone.  Elias is a creature of mysterious and unknown origins who is unsure if he can ever share the mindset that humans have.  He isn't even sure if he cares enough about lacking those thought processes to pursue any real change to them, as shown in his willingness to sacrifice another human in an attempt to safe Chise at one point.Elias' master himself voluntarily chooses isolation as he has no desire to interact with other humans and has done so for centuries.    The artwork is enjoyable and sometimes delves into super deform for comical relief.  The effects of the magical world around are what really stand out in the design though along with the composition of shots when some important characters are around.  This is a story that doesn't have any definite resolution or actual central narration beyond the viewer learning about its world along with Chise.  But sometimes, particularly when done well, that is enough.  The show has always reminded me of the tone and feel of Mushi-shi, which is quite welcome.

 

    The series has long been available in dub and sub on Crunchyroll and is well worth the time.