August 13, 2014 -- What We Most Fear

Late update, as per usual! This week we'll be taking a look at the star of this show, Makoto Itou. As you'll recall, I did not have very kind things to say about Makoto last week. I used some strong names such as "dumbass," "miserable prick," and "sentient penis" to describe the main character of this anime. However, I have resolved to put my personal feelings behind me in the interest of analyzing this character.

When asking who the most responsible for the horrible events that transpired in School Days, any discussion should begin and end with Makoto Itou. Let's go into the hows and whys behind this student's sexual coup d'edouche after the break!

August 2, 2014 -- Back To School!

It's August, which means that the end of Summer is upon us. I've been all over (the middle of the northern part of) the country, I planted a vegetable garden, did some dogsitting, helped people move, attempted to build a PC, failed at building a PC, and began the arduous task of writing the most nonsensical crossover fanfiction ever written. Despite all of that, I'd be lying if I said it's been a busy time. Really, the bulk of my time has been spent doing this:

Timeless.

Now it's August, which means that soon many of us (At least those of us in the United States will be heading back to school, so to celebrate this time of year we're doing another theme month! Welcome to August:

School Days Month

So it goes without saying that there absolutely will be spoilers in this month's post, especially this one. If you're one of the five anime fans who hasn't seen school days, I would recommend you stop reading and watch the series-- all twelve episodes-- before reading this. It's on Crunchyroll, and you can watch it there. I can't honestly say that you'll be glad you did, as School Days is a very polarizing show, but everything you read here will make a lot more sense (and be easier to get mad at) if you've at least seen the show. It goes without saying that there will be MAJOR SPOILERS.

We'll start this journey after the break!

April 1, 2014? -- Don't Lose Your Way

I've been holding my tongue about this one for some time, and now that I've gotten my mojo back with Fresh PreCure, I'm ready to give Kill la Kill a piece of my mind. What, you thought that I'd somehow be okay with this show when I so thoroughly lambasted Fresh PreCure for its weird fascination of sexualizing underage characters?

DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW BIG OF A HYPOCRITE THAT WOULD MAKE ME!?

Join me after the break and we'll take a look at one of the poorest examples of storytelling you'll ever see.

March 31, 2014 -- I've Been Beaten Up

This will be my final struggle. It's time to go toe to toe with my old adversary. I'm ending this month by scraping the bottom of the barrel and talking about my least favorite Pretty Cure series: Fresh PreCure.

What makes this show so special? Why, when other PreCure series had plenty of stupid stuff in it as well, does this series in particular send me to the back of the grumpy bus? Find out after the break.

March 30, 2014 -- The Music Shuns Sunshine (...and Smiles)

Well it looks like the anime convention and the subsequent spring break had more of an impact on my ability to write a post than I'd originally anticipated.

The original plan was to go through a sort of order for the various series I wanted to look at this month. The first week was HappinessCharge, the newest series. Why not save the newest for last? Well, if I wound up liking it (spoiler alert: I did) that would make for a pretty boring finale post. I wanted to save something special for the finale.

Devotees will remember that I watched Yes! Pretty Cure 5 last time, a fan-favorite of the franchise that I found decidedly vanilla and underwhelming. Last week I was planning on following that up with a series that I really liked but other PreCure fans almost universally put at the bottom of their list: Suite PreCure. Then this week I would've reviewed my favorite PreCure series, HeartCatch, which means that next week for the finale I would be watching...

Anyway, I decided to change the rule a bit (as I'm wont to do) by looking at the three series that got me hooked on the franchise. I enjoyed them for different reasons, and I'd only go as far as to say that one of them is a particularly good anime. That said, they all struck a chord with me on some level and hopefully you'll see why after the break.

Let's take a look back at Suite PreCure, HeartCatch PreCure, and Smile PreCure!

March 11, 2013 -- Les Cinq Lumieres

Merde. Mon ventre.

This post is coming a little later than I would've wanted. So much happened this Saturday night, the night I usually write these. I was planning on getting started after playing Dead Space with my best friend in the world, but my stomach and lower intestines had a slightly different idea.

In hindsight, that linguine was pretty sketch.

So then I alternated between one hour of sleep and fifteen minutes of something we won't talk about for the next few hours. This would not have been too detrimental to my well-being if it hadn't occurred during

Yeah. So this is coming in late.

Speaking of long, drawn-out intestinal distress, we're continuing Pretty Cure month with Yes! PreCure 5! It's a fan-favorite, but how strongly did it make an impression on me, an expert on all things magical girl? Have I already given away the answer to that? Find out after the break!

March 2, 2014 -- Look Who's Back!

My name's Jim and I need help. Actually I need to write. You know, things ended on a bit of a sour note last time, and that sucks because I really enjoy writing things. Sometimes you watch a show and it just breaks you. For whatever reason you see something you don't like, and you lose your passion for whatever it is you once loved, like anime. I don't want that to happen to me again though. I need to find something to cheer me up. No more super-dark, dreary shows. No more depressing dramas, at least for now.

I need to return to my roots.

Oh my. This is going to be something special.

Welcome to March. Or as I will be calling it: Pretty Cure Month. All this month I'll be looking at select Pretty Cure titles and discussing the highs and lows for each. It won't be as in-depth or detailed as Madoka Month, because there are FAR too many PreCure titles to cover in one month. As such, I'll stray away from the detailed review format and instead give the lowdown on what potentially makes a series stand out over its siblings as well as what could deter you from fully enjoying it.

We're starting with HappinessCharge PreCure! Check it out after the break!