Happy news, everyone! There's going to be a wedding! Sanji and Pudding have vowed to live happily ever after, and I'm sure there's no way it could go wrong. No siree.
These are the parts of the series that get the most frustrating, because execution becomes so important. I was impressed by Luffy and Sanji's big fight because it made what was already a relatively weak thread of the arc (Sanji's departure from the crew) a lot more potent, and I wish that was the case more often. The heart of this episode lies in Sanji and Pudding's private conversation away from their parents, where Pudding sees the hurt that Sanji's family is putting him through, so they promise each other to make their marriage a happy one. They're two peas in a pod in this unwanted marriage, after all. From Sanji's point of view, there's no going back to the Straw Hat pirates, but living with a beautiful, caring young woman seems to be the next best thing. It's a glimmer of light in the darkness.
The animation's not pretty enough to keep up with the soft piano decorating the scene, so a moment like this gets lost in the shuffle given the scope of the arc. Pudding's role in this story is in a precarious position for a number of reasons, and the only thing that can save her from being a snore is to go all in. Make her so sweet my teeth hurt. Right now, I think her charms are working on Sanji a lot more than they're working on us, and I just find myself hitting my head against my desk, wishing this show could be drawn better or moved faster or something.
This conversation between Sanji and Pudding is sewn between scenes of Luffy and Nami fighting off Big Mom's army. There's a moment of empowerment as all of Mom's henchmen doubt that Luffy could have been the one to defeat Cracker, only for Luffy to put up a surprisingly good fight against so many enemies. Again, this is a sequence let down by so-so animation, and the fact that this battle of futility appears to be going on for yet another episode is disappointing. That said, it is nice to see the smaller names of Big Mom's family have a moment with Luffy before the rest of the arc happens.
We're tumbling into the lowest point of the story for our heroes, after a brief victory at the end of the Cracker fight. We can be pretty certain that Sanji will return to the crew at some point, but right now there are enough complications to keep it interesting. What would it take for Sanji to leave Pudding and put Zeff's life back at risk? What happens if Luffy can't keep his promise to stay waiting in that spot? That last one is a self-imposed rule for Luffy, who's assuming Sanji's coming back as much as we are. It's a gesture that anchors the whole story, no matter how much things go out of wack in the episodes to come.
I like the ideas behind the story enough to enjoy the episode, but am really worn down by the pacing and presentation. I really wish that Luffy vs. Big Mom's army wasn't being divided between at least three episodes, and you can feel the production running thin once again.
Co-founder Hideaki Anno's current studio Khara acquires Gainax's trademark― Anime studio Gainax announced on its website on Friday that it filed for bankruptcy in the Tokyo District Court on May 29. The bankruptcy proceedings are happening just short of the studio's 40th anniversary in December. Gainax's Statement In its statement on Friday, Gainax explained that its financial situation worsened sta...
Lynzee slays the Nosferatu Arucard, but isn't sure if she enjoyed the experience.― Welcome back to The Anime Backlog, the column where I chronicle my journey to overcome a backlog of 100+ anime titles. After slaying my behemoth of shame, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, I decided to dive into the quintessential dark and edgy series of the aughts, Hellsing Ultimate. Hellsing Ultimate Why Is It Impo...
Synduality: Noir perhaps ends up better than other video game tie-in series, but in the larger mecha genre, it's still an also-ran.― This second cour started as a big fat question mark. While the first half of Synduality: Noir had occasional drama, most of its runtime was all about chilling with its extended cast as they got into cool robot fights. While that lent the show a lot of charm, it meant t...
Before Summer Game Fest truly kicks off, Jean-Karlo checks out the upcoming Yakuza TV series news and Gen Urobutchi's deceptively cute rabbit puzzler.― Welcome back, folks! In honor of the Astro Bot announcement, I spent some time playing Astro's Playhouse over the weekend. It's a cute tech demo disguised as a platformer, helped by Astro being an adorable little mascot. The historical angle of colle...
Anti-hero or villain? Scar and Magneto present evidence for either interpretation.― X-Men' 97 has now concluded its stunning first season, and those ten episodes highlighted the best and worst of Magneto — a man who's been both the X-Men's nemesis and leader. Introduced at the very beginning of X-Men in Stan Lee and Jack Kirby's 1963 debut issue, the "Master of Magnetism" has changed a lot in his s...
Da-iCE performs 'Story' opening, Boku ga Mitekatta Aozora performs 'Tomo yo, Koko de Sayonara da' ending― The staff for the television anime of Hiro Mashima and Atsuo Ueda's Fairy Tail: 100 Years Quest sequel manga began streaming the anime's main promotional video on Friday. The video announces and previews the opening theme song "Story" by Da-iCE. The staff also announced that the idol group Boku ...
Netflix streams series by director Christophe Ferreira with song by Joe Hisaishi― Netflix announced on Friday that it will exclusively stream Qubic Pictures and Orange's anime series of Scott Westerfeld's Leviathan novel series worldwide in 2025. Christophe Ferreira (Eden designs) is directing, and Joe Hisaishi is contributing an original song. The story begins in 1914 on the eve of war, when a prin...
Sound Euphonium 3 is now the top anime both in weekly and cumulative rankings! Find out how your favorite shows fared in our weekly user rankings.― Let's have a look at what ANN readers consider the best (and worst) of the season,
based on the polls you can find in our Daily Streaming Reviews
and on the Your Score page with the latest simulcasts. Keep in mind that these rankings are based on how pe...
Chris and Steve make the highly questionable decision of watching all of Code Geass in 48 hours. Is the series just as good as it was nearly two decades ago?― Chris and Steve make the highly questionable decision of watching all of Code Geass in 48 hours. Is the series just as good as it was nearly two decades ago? Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the participants in this chatlog are...
Unfortunately, Kengan Ashura isn't dumb fun often enough to be enjoyable, and its politics make it a slog to get through.― The back half of season one of Kengan Ashura — confusingly labeled "Part II" on Netflix and with episode numbers that reset to 1 through 12 — is better than the first part of the season. Unfortunately, that isn't saying much, as this martial arts anime opens with an incredibly w...
Pierrot Films to animate new season― The official website for the Mr. Osomatsu anime revealed on Thursday that the anime is getting a fourth season. Pierrot Films is animating the series. The main six cast members of the Matsuno sextuplets are returning. The Mr. Osomatsu television anime was inspired by Fujio Akatsuka's original Osomatsu-kun manga and "high tension comedy" TV anime, which centers on...
Lynzee and James welcome Richard Eisenbeis onto the podcast to discuss the first episode of the weird sci-fi series Dead Dead Demon's Dededede Destruction!― Why You Should Watch Dead Dead Demon's Dededede Destruction Lynzee and James welcome Richard Eisenbeis onto the podcast to discuss the first episode of the weird sci-fi series Dead Dead Demon's Dededede Destruction, plus NEW revelations in Yata...
The best and worst thing I can say about Garouden: The Way of the Lone Wolf is that it feels like an 80s movie.― The best and worst thing I can say about Garouden: The Way of the Lone Wolf is that it feels like an 80s movie. This track as this anime is an adaptation of the quietly seminal Garōden martial arts novels written by Baku Yumemakura, the first of which premiered in 1985. If you like shows ...
From Aqua to Yunyun, we tried all the KONOSUBA drinks at The Hub to find the most delicious!― If there's one thing many adults worldwide enjoy doing, it's getting an alcoholic beverage with some friends. Be they beers, ales, spirits, wines, cocktails, among other beverages, adults have their drinks of choice. And one of the best places to enjoy your drink is your local pub or bar. In Japan, though, ...
Mysterious Disappearances' first volume probably won't blow you away. But how it plays with urban legend and classic Japanese literature hopefully hints at more interesting usages to come.― What does the original manga version of Mysterious Disappearances offer that the anime does not? Nipples. Specifically, Sumireko's nipples, in both adult and child forms. (Notably, in her youngest form, they're l...
We're taking the age-old argument and updating it for the simulcast era! Is getting a dub now a mark of an anime's overall quality? Are sub-only fans gatekeeping?― We're taking the age-old argument and updating it for the simulcast era! Is getting a dub now a mark of an anime's overall quality? Are sub-only fans gatekeeping? Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the participants in this c...