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Friendly Talks With Arthifis – Meiji Tokyo Renka Final Thoughts

Posted on April 4, 2019April 3, 2019 by Karandi

Thanks everyone for joining Arthifis and me as we review the final few episodes of Meiji Tokyo Renka. We’ll be covering The Rising of the Shield Hero over on the Anime Shelter with Arthifis so be sure to check that out as well. As usual, I will be red, where Arthifis will be bold and blue. Hope you enjoy.

Hey Arthifis, welcome back. The Winter anime season has been a lot of fun but it’s finally coming to an end. I’m going to be a little sad to see this one disappear from my watch list. What about you?

Hey Karandi! Thanks for having me yet again on your blog! 😀

I’m with you! In the beginning the Anime Winter Season seemed to not have much to offer, but there were many nice gems going on! 😀

When it comes to Meiji Tokyo Renka, completely agree with you! Especially on episode 10, in the end of Ougai’s arc I really felt that I wanted more than 12 episodes! It’s a little bit strange because I didn’t realize, but my feelings for Mei as a character really grew and I got somewhat attached to her!

What did you think about Ougai’s arc completion?

I think with Meiji Tokyo Renka the characters and their stories are really the winning piece of the puzzle. They are all pretty charming, even if a lot of the support cast didn’t get a lot of development. Ougai, who had been a bit of a mystery all the way along, finally got his well deserved focus and as you said, episode 10, it just felt like this story had so much to offer.

That doesn’t make it perfect by any means, given there are plenty of things that could have been improved, but with such a cute cast and the general fun that was found in watching most episodes, overall I just ended up really charmed by this one.

I did find it weird the Shunsou’s arc was completed after Ougai’s. What did you think?

Well, I think Meiji Tokyo Renka ended up in a weaker note than the rest of the overall Anime. For me these 3 last episodes were the weakest and that many things were basically rushed to make it end by episode 12.

For example, there are things in Ougai’s arc that are not very well explained. I mean, I understand that Elise “spirit” is probably Ougai’s mental state. However, being this an Anime where spirits lurk around, it just makes it confusing.

Then Shunsou’s arc… That episode is probably the worst of the Anime, in my opinion. Not only things were not quite well explained as the overall episode execution had way less quality than the rest of the Anime. It had even more static frames for example.

And then, plot wise, it ended up not being really explained. First, Shunsou’s eyes problem… It was never there until that episode which is a little bit strange. Then, the black cat appearing from nowhere was just… Meh… I mean they have been looking for him since episode 1 almost and then the cat just appears randomly…

Last, but not the least, Shunsou’s eyes seem to just magically heal on the last episode. What do you think?

Shunsou’s eyes bothered me. It was like we knew he couldn’t paint because the black cat went missing but to find out there was a medical problem that no one had felt the need to raise in ten episodes, to the point where he couldn’t see something right in front of him, just seemed really fake and like they just suddenly had to come up with a problem.

That said, and while the sensible me knows very well the plot of that episode is complete rubbish, the girl in me really loved the episode.

Mei chasing after Shunsou and helping him gather up his paintings again. Her reassuring him and helping him to metaphorically see, and as he comes to terms with the fact that he needs to get the surgery done the black cat returns to him.

I thought it was absolutely adorable even while the logical side of my brain tried to escape. Then again, you also mention the number of static images in the episode, which I also really liked because they were really pretty and easy to grab as screen caps, but in terms of animation quality, that’s pretty dreadful.

Let’s be honest though, Meiji Tokyo Renka has always been average at best when it comes to animation so falling a little down at the end of the season was probably to be expected.

Still, Shunsou’s episode aside, we then have the final episode which just felt really rushed considering it seemed like a complete turn around from where we were just three episodes ago.

Yeah that was what I going to comment next. Mei just had said that she would stay in the Meiji Era forever… And then, last minute, she decides to go back.

I have a few problems with this. First, how did Ougai knew, from the bat the she was going away, when she just had said to him that she loves him and wants to stay with him for the rest of her life.

Second, why did she go? That’s the main question, right? Because, not even once she really gives the vibe that she wants to come back. Of course, that’s part of her missing memory. However, she actually just met the man of her life… If I was in her shoes I would just stay there lol

The why did she go question really bothered me as well. I mean, Ougai is really great for her. Perfect in point of fact. And yet, she gets her memory back and just decides to go back home.

I kind of put this down to it being a Voyage and Return story in the end. Like Alice in Wonderland, it doesn’t matter how much fun she has, once she learns her lesson she is right back to reality. Of course, that doesn’t make it any less a terrible way for this show to end because seeing Mei back in the present didn’t bring me any joy at all.

Yeah, it basically became an “accepting yourself” kind of story like I mentioned in one of our first conversations. It just went with the route that I was expecting from the start, which is a bummer.

Nevertheless, being Meiji Tokyo Renka originally a game, I’m pretty sure they just went with one of the routes – the Ougai romance. I’m not sure though if in the game there is the option for you to decide to stay or to go… But, even if there isn’t, I would prefer 1000 times that she just stayed with Ougai. It makes more sense to the story, and I would end the Anime a happier person xD

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I know, right. Like Ougai and Mei actually become officially engaged and then we end with a wedding scene. It is so cliche and silly and yet it would fit perfectly with the tone and atmosphere of this anime and just leave you smiling. Of course, it would kill any other ships viewers had for Mei, but the way the story is presented there really aren’t a lot of viable options. Sure there were plenty of guys introduced but only Ougai got enough attention to be taken seriously.

Or do you ship Mei with one of the others?

Nope… I mean I actually found rather cute how Izumi, who doesn’t touch anything because of his fear of germs, to grab Mei’s hands and dance with her nonetheless. However, it’s without a doubt Ougai who I ship the most.

Talking about the dance… Don’t you think that the way she said goodbye to everyone was a little bit… Too damn fast? Especially Shunzou… I mean, they ended up being close and she doesn’t even say the word goodbye lol

I actually kind of thought it made sense she didn’t say goodbye to him. They had become very close and at times they kind of seemed like brother and sister. So for me it was like she couldn’t bring herself to actually say goodbye. Though, that brings us back to wondering why she left at all.

What did you end up thinking about Charlie after all of that?

Well, you already know that Charlie, for me (not as Mei’s ship or something like that), is basically the most handsome of them all. So, it was great to see that he was in fact coming from a good place and that he was a spirit that was always there to protect her. A spirit, that was strong enough to have a real body and make time travel, twice.

However, I don’t think that Charlie really had to “die”. Although I understand why they decided to do that. He had done his main objective and goal, he was able to develop Mei to someone who is going to be able to be happy… But, yeah… Can’t lie and say that I didn’t become a little sad when I saw him disappear. What about you? You were the one saying last time that you thought he had a hidden agenda somewhere 😀

Yeah, that didn’t really pan out. However, I didn’t mind this with Charlie having manipulated the situation to help Mei learn something and then giving her the choice of staying or going back. Not quite as good as if he was some mastermind villain… There really is no bad guy in this story. Actually, in a lot of the anime I’ve watched this season there is no real villain. It is making my list of possible best villains of the year really short so far and a few that I’ve written down are kind of lame.

Hahaha now that you talk about it, you are right… This season has been way more about the voyage than actually heroes and villains… Besides Shield Hero and Neverland there is not actually “villains”… The only one I can remember now is Asuka Special Corps.

However, it’s nice to see that, even without synergy, many Anime shows were able to be interesting and enjoyable to watch. Meiji Tokyo Renka is one of them and I give an overall 4 stars out of 5.

Something that I did yesterday, was to look up who the characters are in real life. I just looked up Ougai and Shunzou and, well, it’s really nice to see how they picked real important people and took into account some details. For example the black cat painting is one of the most popular paintings from the real guy 😛

I think this is one like Bungou Stray Dogs where now that it is done, I’ll probably find some time at some point to look up the characters. As for an overall rating, I don’t tend to use any kind of scale, but I had a lot of fun with this anime this season and it was certainly one of the more consistently entertaining even if the overall quality was a little average in some aspects.

I had a lot of fun discussing it with you during the season as well.

Any final thoughts before we wrap this up and go discuss Shield Hero?

Well, not really. Just wanted to say that I’m really thankful for you to have picked this one for us to follow this season. It was a lot of fun and I probably wouldn’t give so much thought if not for this collab 🙂

Yes, I didn’t expect this to be anywhere near as enjoyable as it ended up being, and our talks were really fun. Hopefully we do this again and find an equally fun show to follow. Alright, over to the Shelter.

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Karandi James

Episode 1: Alert! Time Travelling Heroine Surrounded by Pretty Boys!
Episodes 1 – 4: Friendly Talks With Arthifis
Episodes 5 – 9: Friendly Talks With Arthifis
Episodes 10 – 12: Friendly Talks with Arthifis
Meiji Tokyo Renka Series Review
Images from: Meiji Tokyo Renka. Dir. A Daichi. TMS Entertainment. 2019.

Friendly Talks With Arthifis – Meiji Tokyo Renka Episodes 5 – 9

Posted on March 13, 2019March 12, 2019 by Karandi

We’re back and this time Arthifis and I are discussing the mid-season of Meiji Tokyo Renka and we have been having a great time with this one. If you hop on over to the Anime Shelter you will find our thoughts on The Rising of the Shield Hero. Anyway, I’ll be in red and Arthifis will be in blue. Hopefully you enjoy our chat and if you’ve been following the show let us know what you think of it in the comments below.

Welcome Arthifis, it is good to see you again. Glad we’re back discussing this anime. It has been a little bit surprising. Have you enjoyed it so far?

Hey there Karandi! Likewise! 🙂 Yeah, I’ve been really enjoying it, probably Meiji Tokyo Renka will be the most underrated Anime of the season if this continues like this. What about you?

I’ve really been enjoying it, though probably because I went in with fairly low expectations given the genre. That said, I think the most underrated anime this season is probably My Roommate is a Cat. That has been consistently adorable. However, this one is certainly being overlooked by the larger community with very few reviews of it to be found each week. Which is a shame, because it is just kind of fun.

Oh yeah! Completely forgot about My Roommate is a cat for a second. To be honest, the winter season this year is full of surprises! Hopefully, posts like these will bring awareness to how good Meiji Tokyo Renka is 😀

Well, last time we both seemed to be enjoying Mei as a character and I must say she’s continued to really grow on me over the mid-season. Though I have a few questions about her singing about electricity. How have you found her?

Are you kidding? XD The electricity is just the best… Im not sure how is that not a meme yet hahaha

Yeah, I can definitely see that being a meme or worse, an endless repeated loop on a YouTube video. I’m just going to close my eyes and pretend I didn’t see it.

hahaha yeah, the singing was not really that great, and the music was terrible. But, I think that was the idea. Bu well, I’m still enjoying Mei as a character and I think she is strong enough to lead Meiji Tokyo Renka.

She is interesting, funny and kind, so she has been a very good character to follow. However, I do have some small problem with her which is how oblivious can she get. I mean, I know she is a teenager from the future, but how does she not know what is a Geisha or a Geisha house? That just seems quite a reach to me… But, more than that, she is more than ok. How about you?

I think I like her because she seems a bit more active in directing events than other similar protagonists who feel like they get dragged along. Sure she got sent to the past without really being involved but since then she’s made plenty of decisions and seems to have a clear idea of what she wants to do. I really like seeing the guys getting dragged in her wake sometimes and find her just a lot of fun.

You are right about her being just a little on the dense side though. She’ll know about some author or novel but then not know something blindingly obvious. It is a little hit and miss sometimes. Also she’s incredibly oblivious about how Ougai feels about her which seems insane given how open he’s been about declaring her his finace.

Yeah, you are right about making her own decisions! In fact, one thing I wanted to comment is how she is always defying the guys around her and will do what she thinks best. She will turn down any guy (who is not Ougai) and even when it comes to Ougai, she will do what she things instead of just following his lead. It makes me remember Ouran High School main character a little bit.

Regarding she being oblivious towards Ougai, well she ends up to understand when he is completely faceforward with her in the geisha house. But, it is true that when it comes to any other guy, she is completely naive and does not get that everyone is getting in love with her. Though I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised how Mei started liking Ougai and will not budge from that feeling, which just makes it feel like more of a romance than a reverse harem.

I have to agree. It is nice to see her clearly make a choice with her feelings and so early in the series. You would think given he likes her and she’s infatuated with him they could just get together, but clearly we’re going to have to deal with his issues in the next couple of episodes before that can happen. Still, it kind of puts all the other guys on the shelf which is probably a good thing given I think I remember like two of their names without looking them up at this point.

Don’t get me wrong, they are all fun enough characters. I just can’t really remember them after their time on screen. I think Shunsou (probably spelt that totally wrong) is about the only one who has left much of an impression and that’s only because they use the excuse of looking for his cat to get into almost every other situation.

I get you! Is not that the characters are not interesting or funny, it’s just that they only appear here and there, making it difficult to remember the name! >.< But, they all did make an impression on me, good or bad 😛

When it comes to Shunsou, well he is always there, he may even appear more times than Ougai at this point, so it makes sense that we remember is name hahaha

On that note, who is your least favourite character so far?

That’s a difficult question 😛 I’ll put Ougai aside just because, well it would be unfair to the others haha. (let me just search the name really quick) Well my favourite is a tie between Kyouka Izumi and Orojirou Kawakami (geisha version) XP What about you?

My favourite is probably Kyouka (if we put Ougai to the side). But I think my least favourite has to go to Fujita. He seemed like he would be a really interesting character, though a little bit intense. And then episode 8 happened and we got a tiny bit of his story and he was just kind of nothing. I kind of feel like his character didn’t go anywhere.

Yeah, Fujita is also my least favourite… Though the guy who is always speaking English can also be pretty annoying…

But well, what about the story? One of the things you commented in the last time was that you were afraid that the story would just throw Mei’s capabilities through the window at some point and just go for a generic reverse harem… What do you think now?

I am actually pretty impressed how they’ve managed to keep Mei’s abilities as part of the story and used it quite a number of times as the central focus (even more so than the guys). I also really like that they haven’t forgotten about the time travel aspect and I definitely want to ask your opinion about episode 9 in a moment, but one thing at a time.

The episode with the spirit in the lake was fantastic and I really loved how Mei ended up intervening in that story and saving the day, even if she then needed saving from drowning (Ougai comes in handy occasionally). But pretty much all the stories with the spirits or ghosts in them have been entertaining. I wonder if she’ll ever find the cat though.

Yeah, I also feel they did a good job. It’s true that we have an “arc” where she spends 3 days inside that geisha house being hit every second to learn etiquette, but those episodes were so funny that I don’t mind at all xD

When it comes to the episode of the lake, I’m with you! To be honest, when it comes to ghosts she moves and reacts a little bit like Natsume 🙂 Even against everyone’s advice she will always try to defend the spirit in some sort of way.

I also have to say that it was a pretty interesting ride. Since Kyouka also has the power to see ghosts, a character from his writing was able to come out of the story and become a spirit… It’s actually a pretty interesting idea, but I would hate to be in Kyouka’s shoes… I mean, everytime you want to write you need to make sure you don’t create something too violent xD

But, what did you want to ask from episode 9?

Charlie? What do you make of him? I mean he sends Mei back to the past and then tells her he can send her back at the next full moon. And now she says she doesn’t want to go and he’s like ‘no problem’. Do you think he’s up to something or do you think he genuinely just wants her to stay where she’s happy?

I also felt that scene a little off. In fact I just thought to myself, really? That easy huh?

Well, to be honest, I believe she will have to go back in the full moon. If you remember Charlie was not really happy when he heard the news. He seemed just concerned and wished that she had said something sooner, so I’m pretty sure she won’t be able to stay in the Meiji Era that easy.

I don’t think that Charlie is plotting anything though, Meiji Tokyo Renka just does not seem an Anime to go to that route. If it went, it would be a very unexpected turn to me xD What about you, what do you make of this Charlie?

Honestly, I think he’s up to something. I don’t think it was an accident he sent her back in the first place, as much as he ‘acted’ surprised. I think he genuinely wanted her to do something in the Meiji era and I’m not so sure if he wants her to stay. Then again, maybe I’m just starved of a decent anime villain at the moment and looking for villainous characters where none exist. I mean, other than Fujita, there’s no antagonist in this story at all and it is more just Mei dealing with various situations.

Not that lacking a villain is a bad thing. The story is really fun without it. But I just keep thinking Charlie must be up to something. So I was kind of hoping that maybe he’d reveal his true colours in the final few episodes. Though, we do have Ougai’s story to deal with so maybe there’s no time left for a surprise bad guy.

Is there anything else you want to discuss from these episodes?

Yeah, I think this last few episodes will be about Ougai and that female ghost… But, I get what you are saying! But, after watching The Rising of The Shield Hero, it’s more than ok to not have annoying characters who want makes me want to push the screen xD

But, anyways, I do believe you may be right. It seems not, but the electricity song you were talking earlier made the course of the past to change. Everyone only got on-board after her song, so maybe if she was not there we would have a future Japan lighless? We will never know! (Though I do have to say that was one of the most random Anime episodes I’ve seen in awhile)

So, yeah, my last question would be, what do you think about Mei having such impact in huge events of the past? I know that the show is not that deep, but she is changing the course of the Japanese history at this point!

I kind of felt it was reasonably expected given she seemed to recognise all the guys she was meeting (I assume they are reasonably famous in Japan and I haven’t looked them up yet but I’m sure when I do they’ll be very important). So I kind of figured her presence was there to either witness changes to history or be the cause of it.

Then again, I’m not expecting the anime to really get into the ramifications of that change. As you said, it just isn’t that deep.

Though, I agree, that was a really random episode. What was with the camel?

I laughed so hard in that part hahaha But then, one moment to another everything is completely fine because of Charlie’s magic lolol What the hell, it was really strange!

Well, considering this was kind of a random pick for covering this season, I’ve really had a lot of fun with it and I’m looking forward to seeing how it ends. Are we ready to head over to the shelter to tackle the other title on our review list?

That makes 2 of us! I’m also really interested in watching what is going to happen next, at this point I’m not sure if it’s gonna be a “and they lived happily ever after” kind of thing, so I’m intigued! 🙂

Yeah, let’s go eheh! Time to tackle The Rising of The Shield Hero!

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DANCE IN THE LIGHT (MEIJI TOKYO RENKA – YUMIHARI NO SERENADE THEME SONG)

Episode 1: Alert! Time Travelling Heroine Surrounded by Pretty Boys!
Episodes 1 – 4: Friendly Talks With Arthifis
Episodes 5 – 9: Friendly Talks With Arthifis
Episodes 10 – 12: Friendly Talks with Arthifis
Meiji Tokyo Renka Series Review
Images from: Meiji Tokyo Renka. Dir. A Daichi. TMS Entertainment. 2019.

Friendly Talks With Arthifis – Meiji Tokyo Renka Episodes 1 – 4

Posted on February 6, 2019February 6, 2019 by Karandi

Arthifis and I are joining forces once again this season to bring you coverage of two anime. We’ll catch up after four episodes and share our thoughts. Here on 100 Word Anime we’ll be discussing Meiji Tokyo Renka and over on The Shelter we will be getting into The Rising of the Shield Hero. Hopefully you will join us on our journey and share your thoughts on both of these shows as the season unfolds.

I’ll be the one in red and Arthifis will be blue and bold. Hope you enjoy.

Hey Arthifis, welcome back. It is great to be working with you again this season and covering another two anime with you. How are you today?

Hey there Karandi! I have to say the same to you! I’m thrilled to do this with you again this season! Especially, because I think we were able to pick 2 strong Anime shows in this season! One who is more popular and other a little more underrated, but both have surprised in a very nice way! 😀 I’m good thanks! 🙂 Trying to have my head over water with all the Anime shows I still have to cover haha what about you?

Well, I kind of came down sick which doesn’t surprise me given things have gotten super busy in the real world and next week is looking to be a killer. However, that just means there is more reason to watch anime because I’m not exactly wanting to go out and about.

Ooooh! Sorry to hear that! I can understand you very well! Life has been pretty crazy in the past few weeks, but I’ve managed not to get ill… At least for now! Hope you get better soon!

You are definitely right in that we picked two strong anime. I wasn’t actually expecting all that much from Meiji Tokyo Renka but so far it has actually managed to be pretty decent and seems to be getting better. I do enjoy being pleasantly surprised by anime.

Yeah, completely! I had the same idea as you, that basically, the twist the Anime had was going to be thrown away for the reverse harem factor. However, it has not been the case so far. The anime has been pretty interesting and funny so far.

Where do you want to start? I do have a lot to say about this one, so it’s better that you take the lead and conduct this conversation, if not I think I’ll just start speaking in circles haha

Now I feel like I’m standing in front an orchestra and counting down, but okay. I think we should probably look at the premise first. As you said, it seemed at first like we were just getting another time travel gimmick that would quickly get forgotten or sidelined for the harem side of the story, but they actually seem committed to their premise. It is a pleasant change after Sengoku Night Blood last year kind of did a similar thing but then didn’t do anything with it. So far, Meiji Tokyo Renka seems like it is actually taking the fact that Mei has travelled through time seriously, and the fact that she can see spirits fairly seriously. I’m really liking it. How about you?

Well, I can’t say anything about Sengoku Night Blood because I haven’t watched it! But, when it comes to Meiji Tokyo Renka, I’m with you! In fact, it’s very nice to see that both harems of the season have been very interesting Anime to watch, this one and Gotoubun no Hanayome.

There are a lot of things that makes me enjoying Mei so much, so I’ll try to cut it down! First, how Mei is a very fun and sweet character to follow. She’s so freaking clumsy and not lady like at all… It’s actually nice to see that she is like that when she does not feel that she is going to be ridiculed or something like that by being herself. In episode 1 for example, we see a way more gloomy Mei.

Then, I also loved the “Ghost Whisper” kind of episode! It completely focused in the premise of the show which is Mei being able to see ghosts! It was nice to see her using her power to help someone. Clearly, that will make her more confident of herself.

Next, it’s the music, but I’ll let that one for later.

Last, but not the least, I love how Mei does not seem actually interested in most of the handsome guys the show presented… I mean, she doesn’t even remember to meet that handsome actor which all girls seem to be in love with! She was way more interesting in the meat haha

What about you? What are the main points you like the most about the Anime?

I definitely like Mei. Episode one I was worried we were getting another token blank slate protagonist to be shoved about by the guys and the plot and she did kind of seem that way. The whole amnesia thing was kind of a red flag for me because mostly that just seems to serve as a plot excuse to make the central female character completely passive as things happen around her and to her.

Fortunately, Mei didn’t stay in this blank slate mode very long. Despite missing some of her memories she seems very much her own person and while she does get dragged around from time to time, she’s making her own choices. I really liked when she met the guy in episode 2 (the magician whose name I cannot remember) and he pretty much told her she could get home again once the next full moon came so she might as well enjoy herself. I thought it was great how she took on that advice and decided to embrace her ability to see ghosts, something she had never been able to do.

I also really like her fixation on food, to the point where she doesn’t remember the guy at the party because she was focused on the plate of meat he was holding. In that way she kind of reminds me of Haruhi from Ouran High School Host Club. Yes she’s surrounded by all these apparently attractive guys but she’s just not interested.

That said, I’m curious about Ougai and the whole fiancee thing because he sometimes seems like he’s kidding and other times like he’s dead serious and while I get how it benefits Mei I haven’t figured out why it benefits him yet. Any ideas?

Hmmm… Well, I had the same feeling as you, until episode 4. After episode 4, where we see that everyone is trying to make him marry a girl from a noble family (something that is pretty normal for the Meiji Era), I think what he benefits from all of that, is that, this way he can say that he is already taken and doesn’t have to concede to his family pressure.

However, I believe that when he announced Mei as his fiancee in the first episode, the solely purpose was to protect her from the ghost hunter (I can’t remember his name). Basically, she was going to get killed in that moment if Ougai didn’t use his status and power to save her.

We’re both doing well with remembering the guy’s names. Honestly, I’ve been writing up episode reviews of this for my patrons and yet I still end up having to search for the names. And it isn’t that the characters aren’t memorable, I remember who they are and what they did, but their names just go straight out of my head.

Hahaha well, I think that’s what happens when you have around 10 guys introduced to you right in the first episode! It’s just way too many names to get right from the bat! It’s like when you start a new job and in the first day your boss presents to everyone in your team… After 5 minutes you just can’t remember anyone’s name xD

On the other hand, the other thing I like is how many nods they are giving to the era. It isn’t like they just gave the cast a wardrobe change and said, hey we’re in the Meiji era. The entertainment, the social circles, the cost of items, everything seems to be trying to create a believable time period for the audience and the sense that Mei isn’t where she belongs. While I’m not into history enough to know how historically accurate it is, I actually feel like this anime is making an effort to produce at least the feeling of an era.

Regarding the era… Thanks for bringing that up, it was something that I wanted to discuss. I’m loving that we are getting a lot of Meiji Era references. Being in the background, or actually how Mei ends up facing different ways of doing things! I mean, I love that for her to understand the price of things it has to be by knowing how many beef bowls she could buy with said money!

But, more than that, I love that things that are completely normal and everyone knows in Japan at the present, when Mei shows those skills in the Meiji Era, she seems to be a very intelligent person. Like knowing Shakespeare or knowing how to properly eat with a fork and a knife (something that of course, in Japan was only for the high class). I also loved how she just created a mop to help the maid in doing her job easily and faster haha It just made me think how different things are today versus 150 years ago…

Okay, so you wanted to talk about the music as well?

Yeah! Well, I just wanted to say that I love most of it haha I could live without the more cheesy soundtracks when we are seeing more “romantic” scenes, but all the rest is actually pretty good. In fact, the intro song may be one of the best of the season! Do you like it?

I don’t dislike it, but it hasn’t really stood out to me all that much. In fact, most of the music here as felt pretty standard for this type of show. It isn’t bad but I’m not paying that much attention to it. Though you are right about the cheesy music in those moonlit scenes with whichever guy Mei happens to currently be near. It is all a little much but also quite expected.

Really? Oh I love the jazz-ish music of the intro!

Well, on my side I just have one thing I want to discuss, which is basically the only thing bad that I have to say about this Anime which is about the Animation movement and the eyes design.

When it comes to the animation movement I just feel there are way too many static frames. I know that it’s something you are used to see on these kind of Anime, but, I mean… For 2019, it’s way too much!

The eyes thing, is about the shadow they use when a certain character is not the focus of the scene. I believe it’s just a way to make it faster to be drawn. I mean, it’s easier (and cheaper) to do just a shadow than a pair of eyes… However, how it is done, it just feels the characters are plotting something evil all the time haha

I get what you mean about the static frames. It does make screen capping a lot easier but it kind of gives away the whole based on a game kind of thing. And as you said, it is pretty standard for this type of show to use it, but it does seem excessive. Which is a shame because the art is gorgeous in a lot of these scenes but they barely feel animated at times.

The eye thing hasn’t really bothered me but now that you’ve pointed it out I guess I’ll see if I notice it more in the next episode.

As for negatives, probably my biggest one so far is that I’m not seeing much of a central plot just yet. Sure she’s gone back in time and lot’s of stuff has happened and I guess her finding her way home could be the whole story, but it would be nice to think there was a little bit more to the plot then that.

I don’t really agree with you in the plot 😛 I think that the plot is going to be about Mei, more than finding her way home, finding herself and be able to become content with the thing of seeing spirits. It’s sort of a come of age if you want…

Though it’s not even half as good as Natsume, I believe Mei will end up meeting every single guy, work her magic, make those guys fall for her (it is a reverse harem after all), but in the end, with meeting all these guys who are able to see spirits, guys who WANT to see spirits, or even just being there to protect her like Ougai it will make her to be a happier person and, more importantly, more confident of herself.

Yes, they kind of seem to be setting up a Voyage and Return story, similar to Alice in Wonderland and the journey Mei goes on will probably change her. Is it wrong that I’d like a little more than just a character journey though? I have nothing against a good self-discovery story but it would be nice if in the process there was some ongoing story for them to work with. And I know that is kind of contrary given I do love shows like Natsume that kind of pride themselves on being very character centric over the plot.

Either way, this one has so far been pretty pleasant to watch so even if I don’t get a central plot to work with, I’ll be pretty happy watching Mei continue to grow. It just won’t be quite as memorable for me. Anything else you would like to add?

Hmmm, I can see your point of view! Well, maybe we will be able to see a nice romantic relationship happening along the way? I’m not sure how… Unless she ends up wanting to stay in the Meiji Era or one of the guys end up going to the present with her? But, being the source a game, I’m pretty sure that the game is for you to build the relationships with the guys xD

I don’t really have much to add! I’m also really liking the Anime and it’s been pretty pleasant so far. In fact, I believe this is going to be probably one of the most underrated Anime shows of the Winter Season!

This one isn’t going to rank overly high in terms of my favourites of the season. It isn’t strong enough on the production side and it isn’t a genre I’m overly fond of. That said, I haven’t got much to say about it that is negative and mostly I’ve been enjoying each episode for what it is. So this one is joining My Roommate is a Cat in my list of anime just to kind of chill out to this season and enjoy for what it is.

It was great having you Arthifis, though I guess we better get over to the Shelter and discuss Shield Hero.

Thank you for having me here once again Karandi! Yeah, let’s go the shelter so we can protect ourselves from the cold… Though where you live it’s actually summer at the moment lolol… Well, it’s a shelter, it protects from the cold AND the heat! (It has air conditioner xD)

Air con? I’m there.

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DANCE IN THE LIGHT (MEIJI TOKYO RENKA – YUMIHARI NO SERENADE THEME SONG)

Episode 1: Alert! Time Travelling Heroine Surrounded by Pretty Boys!
Episodes 1 – 4: Friendly Talks With Arthifis
Episodes 5 – 9: Friendly Talks With Arthifis
Episodes 10 – 12: Friendly Talks with Arthifis
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Images from: Meiji Tokyo Renka. Dir. A Daichi. TMS Entertainment. 2019.

Friendly Talks with Arthifis – Final Thoughts on Dakaichi

Posted on January 8, 2019January 8, 2019 by Karandi

Dakaichi Episode 10 Takato and Junta kiss

And here we are with the final collaboration post between Arthifis and myself, for the Autumn season. We’ve had such a good time we’ve decided to take on a similar project in the Winter 2019 season so just wait and hopefully we’ll soon be announcing the shows we’ll be discussing. In the meantime, here are our final thoughts on Dakaichi, and over on Arthifis’ new place, the Anime Shelter, you can check out our final impressions of Goblin Slayer.

Below I am in RED and BOLD and Arthifis is in BLUE and ITALICS.

Welcome back Arthifis. It is great to see you again and today we get to discuss the end of Dakaichi. So much happened in these final episodes I’m not even sure where to start. Though I suppose, we should probably start with episodes 9 – 11 before we discuss episode 12, where things more or less conclude, before we get to episode 13 which just seemed like its own thing. What do you think?

Thank you for having me once again ^.^ I always love doing these eheh

Yeah, I would start from there! I actually liked this last arc (before the conclusion) I wasn’t really expecting that it would go for that route at all! I was almost sensing that it would be another guy/girl coming up in the series trying to steal either Junta or Takato from the other. But, contrary to all that they played the tabloid card, which for me was unexpected and interesting!

The thing that I liked the most is that, how Japan deals with celebrities such as idols or actors, it is something that I cans see happening in real life. I also have to love how Junta was able to completely fool me and made me think that he started dating with a girl… I mean, I knew that he was saving Takato in his own way, but I thought he was actually with her 😛

On the other hand, there was an excellent character development on the Takato’s side. It was really pleasant to see Takato starting to take out his mask and letting himself go with his emotions more and more 😛

What about you, what is your verdict on this arc?

I really enjoyed it but I ended up with mixed feelings about a few things. I loved that the relationship drama focused very much on their careers rather than a love triangle or something similar. Dakaichi was always at its most entertaining when it focused on their jobs with the relationship sitting behind that and so having to think about their relationship in terms of how it would impact on their acting career seemed like a really suitable arc for this story to end on and I really loved that.

I didn’t love the lack of communication that still exists between the pair at this stage in their relationship. Takato dumping Junta to protect him and Junta ‘dating’ whatever her name was in order to set up his take-down of the tabloid; I just felt like if they’d actually had a conversation they could have bypassed a lot of the drama. Admittedly, then it wouldn’t have taken as many episodes and it probably would have been pretty uninteresting to watch, but in terms of them having any kind of healthy relationship it would have been nice to see.

That said, I’m with you in that I loved seeing Takato’s development as a character (big surprise given how much I’ve enjoyed Takato in general). However, seeing him at the end of this arc, I really loved how his character had been changed by the events of the series while still being Takato.

Did you have a favourite moment?

First let me just comment in the healthy relationship that you commented 😛 I completely agree with you, but at the same time if not like this, there would not many episodes (as you said). But, also I think Takato had to develop to what he is today so he could have this conversation.

Regarding the favourite moment… Well, I think my favourite moment is when Junta is on TV and says everything ahah I loved how everyone who worked with Takato went to Twitter telling their story with Takato being clumsy ahah The guy who tries to be always perfect in the public eye just had everyone showing his softer and cuter side ahah (though I can’t remember if this is in episode 11 or 12).

I also loved the rings scene… It just means a lot both for the characters and for me! I mean, I also put my heart and feelings out for this relationship to work, right!?

What about you?

I also have to pick Junta’s announcement on TV. I may not be the biggest fan of Junta but he played this so well and it was such a well executed moment. The tweets about Takato being clumsy were hilarious but I think what I loved the most was how Junta just smoothly slid in the idea that he was going to move in with Takato mid-TV announcement and so much else was going on that no one even batted an eye. I have to give his character credit for being pretty gutsy.

What about least favourite moment?

From all the series?

Why not, though if you have one from the final episodes that would be cool.

Well… Both include in someone trying to take advantage of Takato, so I’ll give you both ahah

My least favorite from all the series is, of course, when the other guy is thinking of forcing himself on drunk Takato and ends up stopping because of Junta’s phone call.

From the last episodes, has to be that director (producer?) who tests Takato and tries to go to bed with him. Of course it was to make the point that Takato was still in love with Junta, but I just don’t like these kind of stuff lolol

What about you?

My least favourite moment is also a Junta moment. Where he is pretending to be dating the actress and gets in Takato’s face about his expression. I mean, I know Takato dumped him, but Junta has more or less figured out why and what is going on with Takato, so this scene just feels like he’s being a bit of a jerk for the sake of it.

Anything else from these episodes before we get to episode 13?

Just gonna comment… I’m not sure if Junta knew that it was what was happening… Truth is, Junta always seemed pretty insecure when it comes to Takato, like Takato would flee far away one day or another. This way, I somewhat understood the elevator scene.

In fact, I think it was on that point where Junta understood that Takato still loved him and ended everything to protect him.

But, that’s all… Now, episode 13… I don’t even know what to say about it ahah Basically it seemed like a DVD special more than anything.

I liked it. I liked it a lot. I mean, it is kind of special to see Takato running everywhere trying to find the best present and place to go with in Christmas. Moreover, it is pretty fun to see him believe everything he overhears. I mean, he even starts thinking that Junta will dump him if he doesn’t have a present for him ahah

It was a cute episode, ending the series in a bright note! However, I would prefer that the episode was around that play they were talking about in episode 12 😛

What about you?

I agree that it definitely felt like a DVD special more than a final episode. That said, it was a very good special and I really loved watching Takato bump into literally everyone we have met this series before finally getting Christmas with Junta. It was just cute and sweet.

That said, it didn’t actually do anything for the story and given episode 12 left us with a few points (such as the new project that Takato and Junta are working on and that random new character they introduced), it just makes me wonder if they ever intend to do anything with that.

On that note, if they did, would you watch it?

Ooooh! It WAS a new character! I actually thought it was someone who I just had erased from my memory. That, or just showing that the director (producer?) was also gay, just because how he said to Takato that being gay (or just having a relationship) would destroy his career.

Answering to your question… YES! I really loved it! It was one of the best Shounen-Ai Animes I’ve ever watched! So, I really want to thank you for introducing me to this series 😀 I would do the first impressions nonetheless, but by having this collab with you made me really want to watch everything eheh

What about you?

If Takato is in it, I’m going to be watching.

No, I really loved watching this series even with some of its more problematic moments, so I’d happily take a second season. I think there’s still heaps that these characters can do and I’d definitely love to see more of the behind the scenes stuff at their work. So fingers crossed that eventually we get another season (no idea how far the source material went at this point though I might need to go refresh my memory about that as well at some point).

I think this one is still a little bit hard to recommend. There’s a lot about it that is really good but I found myself last week explaining the plot to a friend and by the time I got to the end of the first episode they were ready to bolt. It definitely is one that only really works if you kind of know what you are getting into and you aren’t going to be put entirely off by those moments that really push the envelope.

Final thoughts?

Well, I basically am with you! It’s shounen-ai and as most Anime shows under this genre, it’s created for a specific public. This way, I would say it is not for everyone. But if you like the genre, or even if you like romance a lot, I think this Dakaretai is one to try out! 🙂

In the end, I think it’s not perfect, but it’s really good! Every episode was entertaining and I didn’t feel bored not even once. Something that I cannot say from the Anime we are discussing at my place ahah

So yeah, that’s my final verdict! 😛 A very strong shounen-ai Anime which I recommend a lot to people who like this kind of setting… Oh! Also, before I forget! Sasaki Takumi is the best manager! (I think that’s the name XD)

Thanks so much for joining me to cover this anime. We’ll definitely have to try this again in a future season. Hopefully the readers have also enjoyed following along with our friendly chats.

Thank you for doing this with me! 🙂 It was really fun and I would love to do it in a future season! And, yes, hopefully you guys also liked to follow our little chats eheh 😉

See you next season, maybe? 😀

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Friendly Talks with Arthifis: Dakaichi Late Season Thoughts

Posted on November 28, 2018January 5, 2019 by Karandi

Hey everyone and welcome to Arthifis’ and my late season thoughts on Dakaichi. I can’t believe we’re already three quarters through the season and soon we’ll be doing our final thoughts on the season. That’s kind of exciting and I will admit I have absolutely loved this collaboration with Arthifis this season (and if you haven’t checked it out already, be sure to check out Arthifis’ Ultimate Guide to the season).

Admittedly, both of us suffered from time zone issues this time around with Arthifis needing some coffee to help him wake up and me needing some pepsi to keep me awake as our marathon effort at discussing both Goblin Slayer and Dakaichi stretched on. The problem was, we both had so much to say about both shows and I think we probably could have kept going except that I needed some sleep and I’m sure Arthifis needed to do something else with his Saturday besides chat with me.

Anyway, if you haven’t already been and read it, please check out Arthifis’ site where our thoughts on Goblin Slayer will be posted and with that let’s get into Dakaichi. Today we’re covering up to episode 8.

Welcome Arthifis. I’m really glad we’re back again and discussing Dakaichi. I’m going to be honest, the last few episodes have made it clear that my memory of this one is patchy at best because other than Junta’s episode, a lot of the events in the last few episodes have come as a surprise to me and I realised that yeah, I don’t remember much of anything else from the source. So, we’re almost on a level playing field when it comes to this one at the moment.

On that note, how have the last few episodes been for you?

ahah I know the feeling of not remembering anything at all from something I read/watched.

Well… There is way too much happening on these episodes and a lot of things that I want to touch and ask your opinion xD So,maybe I’m gonna start with the conclusion of (browsing the name of the guy)…Is it Kiyotaka? I’m having a blank lol No, it’s not! It’s Ayagi.

Ok, let me just rephrase that, then… So, maybe I’m gonna start with the conclusion of Ayagi’s situation, what do you think?

I actually kind of liked how that concluded in the end mostly because Ayagi’s existence makes Junta look less creepy by default and also because the attention very much turned to Takato and the fact that he actually does kind of like Junta. It’s been hard to tell whether Takato is into the relationship or not previously, but after his encounter with Ayagi it really does make it clear that Junta isn’t forcing anything (or at least not too much) and Takato has made a clear choice.

That said, Ayagi is a really horrible person,but a necessary character. Or at least that’s how I saw it. (Is Kiyotaka the younger guy?) How did you find the conclusion to the Ayagi/Takato situation?

Nope, the younger character is Narumiya… I actually can’t find who Kiyotaka is LOL There is no pictures in MAL besides Junta and Takato and on Anime-Planet he doesn’t even appear on the character list LOLOL So, let’s just let him be for now ahah

Well, I understand what you are saying, but I don’t agree, to be honest. I found most part unnecessary. In fact, if we look up close, Ayagi was ready to force himself and rape Takato if Junta had not phoned. For me, it’s just not ok. Yes, Ayagi sleeps with everyone who he feels that he has to so he can climb in the ladder, that’s not ethic, but completely fine by me. However, from there, to actually rape someone who is passed out because how drunk they are it’s just… Not ok in my book. I mean, I don’t mind seeing media where that situation is used in a way of bringing awareness where the victim passes through hell and etc. I think the bad stuff also has to appear on the big (and small) screen. However, in this case, the situation is brushed off very easily.

I do think you are right when it comes to Junta though. When I was watching the episode I felt that Junta was stalking a little too much (the scene where Junta seems to be following Takato and knows where he is and what he is doing). However, after watching I put myself in his shoes and… If my boyfriend was close to being rape like Takato I would probably be even madder than Junta and would actually destroy the guy’s pretty face right away. Moreover, if I was in some kind of a world where that situation couldn’t be discussed or brought to the authorities and my boyfriend had to forcefully work that guy nevertheless, I would go and keep a close eye to what was happening.

However, at the end, I didn’t like how things were brushed off. Right away we can see that Ayagi is not such a bad guy after all. Meaning, he would not go to bed with someone if they are in a relationship. Besides, he actually goes in a quest in trying to make amends for what he has done to other girls. A little bit because of Junta’s blackmail, but also because of liking Takato and wanting to conquer his love. So, it just doesn’t make much sense…

What about Junta’s episode? Did you like it?

Before that, I think the depiction of rape and consent is a huge issue in any kind of Yaoi/BL story. The way it is portrayed,the consequences of it, the impact it has on people’s lives, it is very seldom explored in any meaningful way and is regularly used as a gateway into a same sex relationship which is just appalling. However, what that does mean, is that going into this story, I kind of expected it to be a lot worse. I was fully prepared for Junta to force Takato in episode 1 and for them to then try and build a relationship out of it (much like they did in Junjou Romantica – and that is still kind of creepy that they end up in the relationship they do).

So, by the time we get to this scene with Ayagi almost but not raping Takato, it isn’t so much that I think they did a good job of how they present the issue, because to be perfectly frank, they didn’t. Mostly because of all the reasons you’ve already identified. But, in my head I’m rationalising with the ‘it could have been worse’ argument. Which isn’t a great justification and for people who identify with this kind of event, won’t help that once again the issue of rape is being trivialised by this particular kind of story. Still, it is why it didn’t bother me so much while watching. I was genuinely expecting this series to be worse than it is in terms of how that issue was presented.

Does that make sense?

Yes, it does. And I remember when we first did this, you talked about that scene. The truth is, since they didn’t go that route in episode 1, I was expecting that they would not do it this time around.I was trying to find a scene where Takato could be at fault by leading Ayagi. However, that would not make sense to his character. So.. I think they could goat the route of Ayagi just trying to kiss him or something like that. It would piss off Junta nevertheless and it would be easier to digest.

However, I have to say that this scene, yet again, showed how Takato’s character is a little all over the place. I mean,one day he is this strong male character who doesn’t let anyone to play games with him, in the next he just seems someone who needs a strong man to defend him from everything… Oh, well… I understand, it’s the uke and seme formula that everyone wants to watch.

However, I do have to say, that they could just make Takato behave in a different way while near Junta (it would make a lot of sense) and still give the uke and seme formula without making me feel that Takato’s character is always changing with really no reason at all.

Sorry, just started another topic before even talking about Junta’s episode 😛 It’s just, this Anime is kind of a hate-love for me… I just love the relationship and both characters, but then I hate the flaws that the Anime has in my opinion xD

So do you want to finish discussing Takato and then tackle Junta’s episode? Because I could talk all day about Takato.

Ahaha! Yeah sure! 😀 I mean, I think I gave my opinion for these episodes, so go ahead eheh

Alright, I’m with you in that Takato’s character changes a lot but for me I find every change fairly relevant to what is happening at the time. When he’s in front of others or at work he has his professional face and personality. When he’s initially dealing with people he’s fairly stand-offish and tactical. Junta’s just forced his way through Takato’s barriers so he almost has no reason to put up a front anymore because Junta’s already seen him at his worst so he can just kind of let himself go.

However, after the incident with Ayagi, we see an actual vulnerable Takato. I loved the sequence after he woke up and he ended up wrapping himself in the curtain. As much as the anime isn’t dealing with the issues anywhere near as seriously as it needs to, it did give us a really good moment right there with Takato feeling lost, bewildered, doubting himself and then that moment of panic about how Junta was going to take it. Also, after being attacked, or allowing himself to be taken to bed by someone, it kind of made sense that Takato continued to feel a little out of sorts and vulnerable during the remainder of the episode before he got his feet back under him again.

I really enjoy these small changes in his character. Admittedly, they aren’t as nuanced as they should be to really pull it off and so he does come across as someone who kind of changes too much, but thinking about each scene I can kind of see where he’s coming from. That and because it was established that so much of his exterior is facade in the first place, it makes sense that he readily changes to suit the occasion. Then again,I really like Takato as a character so I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt.

Onto Junta now? Or did you have something to add?

Dakaichi Episode 6 Junta — I can kind of see where Junta is coming from here.

Yeah, let me just comment in what you said xD(We should just do a post about Takato and call it a day ahah)

I’m with you, I really am. I compeltely understand having two different personalities when it comes to work. Especially when you work at the show biz. I also completely understand how Takato is way more vulnerable when he’s with Junta. In fact, Takato never had that kind of support, so it’s just natural that he wants to be himself and let his barriers go when he’s with Junta.

However, in this case, we see a weak Takato in front of Ayagi… I mean, this could be because Takato is slowly becoming more himself even when at work… However, it just felt a little too convenient so we could have that scene.

Nevertheless, I think Takato’s experience after that night is very well executed. In this case, I don’t’t think Takato would ever think that he was about to be raped. In his mind, he just asked himself if he had drunk too much, had sex with the guy and completely forget about it (without anyone forcing anyone). Only the viewers know what Ayagi was trying to do. And Junta, who gets it right away.

So, yeah, I think Takato is a great character which is becoming more and more complex 🙂

Well, let’s start on Junta’s episode? XD

Junta it is. And I will admit episode 7 did a lot to make me start actually caring about Junta as more than just the other guy in the relationship. I do remember part of his story from reading it, but it was really nice to see his character and motives getting fleshed out. I actually really found it cute how he slowly started noticing Takato and what he was doing on the set until Takato kind of dominated all of his attention. And then he overhears Takato having a bit of a tantrum and you see the light bulb go off in his head and you know he’s hooked. It was adorable and for once I didn’t find Junta just the extra in the relationship but actually a character worth noting for who he was.

You?

See? I told you Junta was awesome! 😀

Now, for real… I’m completely with you! I wasn’t expecting for this episode. I didn’t really thought they would give an episode where we can hear Junta’s brain side. I loved to see how he fell in love by Takato and how things developed for him. In fact, it makes way more sense that first episode now xD

However, of course, I have to say that trying to steal a kiss while Takato is in bed ill, was a little too much ahah Again,Takato had the luck of someone entering the scene at the right time so he didn’t get advantage off.

Buuuuuut, I understand Junta’s feelings. When I was a teenager, in parties and things like that I would sleep in the same bed as my best friend who I was terribly in love… I’m not gonna say that I was never tempted to do something like that (of course I never did, because there are boundaries and things like that). But, I understand the feeling of loving someone so much and not being both ways. It messes with your head >.<

Now… I want to address last episode… Episode8… What did you think about this… Well filler episode? XD

Can we just call it trash and move on? Or do we actually need to discuss it? Because honestly, if we just cut out about a minute of Ayagi attempting to be a better person and the last five minutes where the two are photographed by the reporter (and maybe a small little slice where that other guy seems to notice their relationship) then the rest of this can just kind of get tossed in the bin.

I don’t really mind filler but beach filler is lazy at best. Breaking the episode into seemingly mindless vignettes of the characters doing whatever was actually pretty tedious and every time they cut between sequences it just made me check the time to see if the episode was nearly done.

How about you?

AHAHAHAH! I did the exact same thing when the cut between sequences happened. Damn! Those were a LOT, and I mean a LOT of cuts!!!! I think if you take it all of them the episode would be 5 minutes less.

I don’t really know what happened, but I felt the same way as you… Everything felt lazy as hell. Not only the scenes, but even the animation, the backgrounds… Everything seemed rushed. Character design was always changing and there were scenes where Takato didn’t even seemed himself LOL Also, character design just felt soooo off-place versus the background… Damn, it was a mess!

Oh, and also! I mean, we are in a filler episode and we didn’t got much fanservice. Which… Well, I don’t mind, but really makes you ask what the point of the episode all along…

However… there were so many scenes I laughed…I hate myself… And I loved Takato’s character on this one! XD I loved how he was all bumped on playing volleyball because Ayagi told him that he probably was bad at it xD

I don’t know… It’s true, the episode is trash…But I ended up hating and loving it at the same time! I think if they had put a little more time in creating this one that I would had just had fun from the beginning to the end ahahah So, let’s call it a guilty pleasure of mine xD

I actually think you raised a good point about the lack of fan-service. Now it is odd for me to say that they should have more fan-service or more sexually explicit content in anything, but honestly, that probably would have improved this episode. And wow… I’m never ever writing that sentence again.

Anyway, the theory I came up with in my head was that they are aiming to end the series at a particular point and they needed to stretch the run time and so we have off-model volleyball playing with a lot of stills and panning.

I should probably admit that despite this being my low point for this series, it is still getting ranked in my weekly rankings that I’m keeping at about the mid-range level so I can’t have hated it that much.

Alright, anything more to discuss or are we wrapping things up?

Ahahah xD See… I don’t know, there was just something in that episode that shines and makes the episode fun 😛

But, yes, agree with your theory. I also think that they are more into creating the perfect finale, which means, they decided to take less time on working in episode 8 and just get more time to work in the final 4.

And… Well, never say never XD We never know whatt he future may bring.

Nevertheless, I don’t really have much to add.Just wanna say that I’m pretty excited with what it’s coming there! Having the couple being exposed in the media is going to be an interesting ride to watch.If they do this correctly, the relationship will come out way stronger and we will get that cheesy ending moment where they will both say to each other:

“Even if lose my career, what I want is to be with…” – proceed to kiss in a bed

And that’s it from my end 🙂 Can’t wait to watch the rest of it and comment with you our final thoughts ^^

I’m also really looking forward to the end of this one. Not because I don’t like it, but because I really want that moment where they either end up together or choose their career (and I honestly can’t remember how it goes so I’ll be really surprised either way). But I have loved this journey they are on with their relationship. For all the problems this series has, it is still fantastic to see these two getting together and seeing how that is changing them as we go.

Thanks so much for joining me for this one and I really am excited for our next post where we do our final impressions.

Thank you for having me 🙂 And I’m pretty excited too eheh

Okay, that was a really long chat but we both had a great time and hopefully you enjoyed joining us for it. Of course both Arthifis and I would love to know your thoughts on Dakaichi so leave us a comment below and remember to check out our thoughts on Goblin Slayer over on Arthis’ Place. If you missed our previous talks the links are below.

What Was He Thinking? An Interview With the Amazing Arthifis

Posted on November 24, 2018November 30, 2018 by Karandi

There was some exciting news last week as Arthifis unveiled their project they’ve been teasing for some time. The final reveal: a guide book to the Autumn season of anime. Arthifis has taste-tested quite the selection of ‘fall’ anime for those who just don’t have the time to try everything for themselves and written up his findings in a beautifully organised and cleanly laid out format that is a delight to read. And after all of that work and effort and love (and it really is a project filled with love and enthusiasm) he’s made is available for everyone right here.
Now, you can donate to his ko-fi if you want to support him and the work he has done, and you can use his links to Amazon if you are feeling the need to go shopping, but really he’s put this out for free and asked only that we help spread the word.

When asked if I could do a quick post about the project to help spread the word I was delighted, but more than that, I wanted to try something a bit different (for me) and so I asked if Arthifis would mind answering some interview questions about his project. Arthifis agreed and so I now bring you:

The First Ever 100 Word Anime Author Interview Featuring the Amazing Arthifis!

01. You had mentioned this super secret project for awhile now, what gave you the idea to put together a guide for the anime season?

Uuuh that’s a nice question 🙂 Well, as you know, I’ve said that this season I would be following seasonal Anime, something I have never done before. In the beginning I thought in just doing First Impressions in some of the Anime shows I was following at my blog. However, I am a completionist in everything I do, so the idea of doing a guide with all the shows airing at the moment just felt right.
When the idea came, I just liked it a lot. Then, when I started thinking carefully about it I just thought in how awesome this would be and how much fun it would be doing this. So, I just rolled with it eheh

arthifis guide 2 — Excerpt from ‘Arthifis’ Ultimate Guide to Anime 2018 Fall Season’

02. How did you find trying to watch the first three episodes of pretty much everything you had access to? I mean, I watch a lot of anime and even I can’t imagine trying to stick with every show for three episodes. Some don’t last three minutes.

Well, I think that doing a first impressions review with only one episode watched can bite you in the back real fast. One one hand, we have that Anime shows are using over the top first episodes more and more so that they can grab the attention of the viewers in coming back in the next episode. On the other hand, there are also Anime shows which, due to not having so much budget the first episode can be sort of bad and the get better along the time. For example, there were Anime shows who had clear problems in the audio at the first episode and then improved a lot in the following episode.

This way, I think 3 episodes are good enough to get a sense of the show and if I’m going to like it. But, there are some exceptions. Conception is one of those that after watching the first episode I immediately knew where I was going to put it 😛

03. I’m very curious about your three categories you have used in the guide. “Good for the chakra”, “meh”, and “not my cup of noodles”. Were these your first picks, were they inspired by something, or did you spend hours trying to figure out what to call them?

Well, the “Not My Cup of Noodles” just came to me by inspiration. It’s basically a playing of words of “Not My Cup of Tea”. However, the other 2 were not that easy ahah

I really had to thought out about “Good for the Chakra” one. I actually had other thing in mind for that category, but it was not as good. Then I remembered the saying “Good For The Soul” and just added an Anime/Asian twist 😛

“Meh” well that one is actually the feeling I had when I watch something that has a lot of promising and doesn’t seem to actually give what it should give xD

arthifis guide 5 — Excerpt from ‘Arthifis’ Ultimate Guide to 2018 Anime Fall Season’

04. Was there any anime you really regret investing the time in to try and write up your first impressions?

Hmmm, to be honest I don’t even know… Let me see… My sister, My writer is probably one of them. It’s just not my genre and I could have done the review with the first episode. Nevertheless, I wanted to give it a chance before reviewing it… Ended up being the same review I would have done in the beginning.

05. Did you discover an anime that you now absolutely love because of this project?

Oh yes! A few to be honest! This way I’ll just put it as a list:

Himote House – I’m sure I wouldn’t watch this if not for the guide. However, the Anime ended up being really fun to watch. And, yes, I know that the 3D characters is a little off putting, but after a while I was able to just go with it.

Release the Spyce – I’m not a big fan of the Cute Girls doing Cute Stuff, so this one was going to be a pass for me. After watching the first 3 episodes I just love it! Clearly this taught me, yet again, to not judge something by its cover.

Karakuri Circus – Another one that was going to be a pass for me because of the more retro animation. Ended up having a lots of fun and not disliking the animation as much as I thought I was going to.

Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai – This one I blame MAL for my pass. Basically from the cover and the sinopsis it just felt it wasn’t for me. However, the Anime ends up being way more interesting than what the synopsis tries to sell you.

The others are Anime shows that I was already thinking on trying sooner or later 🙂 (From the ones I love, I mean).

arthifis guide 4 — Excerpt from ‘Arthifis’ Ultimate Guide to Anime 2018 Fall Season’

06. I really love the layout and design of each page in the reviews. How did you settle on the look for the guide?

Does, trying out things until I liked suffices as an answer? xD

Now, really, the first thing I had in mind was the font I was going to use. After that was the title for each Anime, meaning the color, size and so on.

Then I already had in mind to have the cover in one side and the basic information on the right. Basically when it came to coloring and so on, it was easier because since I had used purple at the top I had to go with a color that works with that. So, I chose blue.

From there on out it was always going for something that worked with something I did before. I got the template and then just copied the same template to all first impressions.

When it comes to the cover and so on, well, that one took a while to get and a lot of research 😛 I knew that I wanted to do something Autumn-ish, but didn’t know very well how to do it. So I used Pinterest as a way to get inspiration and well, did that ahah

But, in the end, I think, most of the design I tried to create something easy to read and go back and forward, that’s why I have an index with links to all my FIs as I have a back “button” in all of my First Impressions Review 🙂

07. So, super important question, did you have fun working on this project? More importantly, do you intend to do a guide every season (or at least another season)?

Yes, yes I had! To be honest, apart collabs, this was probably the project I had most fun with! It was just great to experience all of these stories and go to Anime shows that I would just pass without even thinking about it! It’s really fun to watch so many different creations, all of them designed and executed in different ways, even if slight ones 🙂

Yes, I am! I mean, it will also depend on how people like this one! It’s something that gives a lot of work. And what I mean when I say a lot, is that it took me almost a month without doing anything else besides… Well, the guide ahah

However, I think I started this one a little bit late in the game. So, for the next season I’m thinking on starting watching all the Anime on day one and following them 1 episode a week. It will probably take more notes from me, but at least I will be able to balance things a little better 🙂

arthifis guide 3 — Exerpt from ‘Arthifis’ Ultimate Guide to 2018 Anime Fall Season’

Random bonus question – After trying so many anime and continuing to watch some of them, have you settled on your anime of the season yet or are you waiting to see how they end?

That’s a really hard question! 😛 To be honest, I want to continue on watching most of the Anime shows, even the ones that are in the “Meh” category. The thing is, 3 episodes are great for a First Impressions but, the truth is that Anime shows can go really well (or really wrong) in the middle of the season.
This way, I’ll be following the Anime shows under the “Good for the Chakra” for sure. Then, I have some in the “meh” side that I also am interesting to watch… So, I think instead of helping, just made my watching list to go even wider ahah

End Interview

Remember you can get the guide from here and remember to thank Arthifis for this amazing work and spread the word.

Thanks for reading
Karandi James

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SPIDER-MAN

Friendly Talks With Arthifis: DAKAICHI Mid-Season Thoughts

Posted on November 5, 2018January 5, 2019 by Karandi

Introduction:

Arthifis and I are back with the next part of our collaboration. We’re five episodes in to Dakaichi and a lot has happened (or at least we had plenty to say about what has been happening) so we recently had a fantastic conversation about the show and how it is going. If you missed our first impressions chat, be sure to check it out and remember we’ll be talking about Goblin Slayer over on Arthifis’ place so if you haven’t seen that post be sure to go and give it a read. For now though, let’s get into it.

Conversation:

Hey Arthifis! How are you this week?

Hey there Karandi! I’m really good to be honest! 🙂 I’m cooking some secret project which is making me watch a lot of Anime… And I’m having a LOT of fun to be honest ahah what about you?

If I’m honest, I’m not in a great space at the moment but that’s just because I’ve been super busy with work and I can see the next few weeks are going to spiral out of control (to the point where I’m looking at maybe having to suspend some posts on my blog in a couple of weeks just to take a breather). Still, it isn’t all bad news. I’m off to a convention next weekend (great timing, I know). I’m really curious about this project of yours though. You’ve hinted at it a few times.

That’s a bummer to hear! 🙁 I actually understand you though… My work has been getting busier and busier and I’m actually struggling a lot to be able to balance Blog with work… Well, in fact I just stopped writing on the blog for the time being completely. But, well… That convention seems to be a lot of fun! So hopefully it will be something good eheh 🙂 Eheh yeah I know, I want to surprise everyone, but at the same time I’m so proud and having so much fun that is being difficult to actually have my mouth completely shut about it xD

Okay, so we’re starting off with Dakaichi today. And we’ve both watched up to episode 5. I’m curious as to what you think of the show so far.

Well, I have to say that I discovered in episode 5 that I have fallen in love with the characters and their romance without even realizing it 😀 But, if that’s ok with you I would like to comment on episode 5 more at the end of the post because I don’t really want to lose all the commentary about the love I have from the series until episode 4. What about you?

Yes, episode 5 does need its own kind of section because it goes in a bit of a different direction then the first 4. Still, I’m with you in falling in love with the characters and their romance. Or at least Takato. Junta still doesn’t do a lot for me, but in his defence he doesn’t get a lot of screen time and we’re almost exclusively seeing Takato’s perspective for the majority of the episodes.

Yeah, that’s true. Actually I would like to watch the same story with Junta’s perspective… Nevertheless, I do have to say that Junta is growing more and more inside of me. It’s true that he still doesn’t seem to be able to stay his hmmm… instrument (?) under his trousers. However, we can see that he is in fact in love with Takato and he cares for him deeply. Something I actually liked to watch was how Takato start falling for him… Although maybe I could pass the cheesy momentos where Takato gets teary eyes without really having a reason for it.

My real issue comes from Junta though. As you said, it is clear he really loves him, which is fantastic and what makes so many of the feel good moments of this show stick. But it is also what makes this kind of creepy at times because Junta really pushes the line on consent in a lot of scenes. And the excuse, that they are in love, doesn’t make that sit any better. Admittedly, Junta does stick just on the side of the line that is kind of okay in a story at least, but putting this into a real world sort of situation, I’d tell Takato as a friend to ditch him.

Yeah, I can understand your perspective. However, at my point of view I think Junta just pushes Takato’s boundaries. It’s true that he is pushing himself a little too much. However, contrary to what tropes we normally deal with, here Takato does want to have the sexual relationship, he just doesn’t seem to be completely comfortable with it. For example, the bus scene. Tanako starts saying no, but it’s not because he does not want it, it’s because he is scared of being caught. However, ends up going with it… I’m not sure if that makes any sense?

It makes sense, and it is one of the reasons why I enjoyed reading the story. Takato isn’t against the relationship and while some sequences look very much like Junta is being forceful, Takato very much goes along with a lot of it, and not just goes along, but encourages in his own way. And as you said, comparing it to the tropes and outright non-consensual situations this genre normally throws at us, Dakaichi is at least with this main couple attempting to tone it down in the anime and even reading it after the first couple of encounters a similar toning down happened.

Outside of the relationship though, I’m really enjoying seeing Takato doing his job and part of me kind of wishes we had more sequences where he was on set or doing photoshoots and the like. What about you?

That’s actually what I was going to pick next ahah Something that bothers me a little is how Takato’s personality changes completely when he is working and when he is with Junta. I can understand why they decided to go that route (the guy who always seems to be the best ending up being the “uke” in the relationship. However, I think I would prefer to see Tanako more in his own self way that the teary kind of guy because he is going to have sex. It does not make much sense to me.

So, yeah! I agree with you. I would like to see more of this dominant Tanako since it’s his true personality. Moreover, due to both personalities in this relationship it just does not make sense to me to have a top and a bottom. At my point of view, if this kind of relationship happened they would both be more fluid in bed, meaning they would change sides since both seem to have pretty dominant personalities but also love to be embraced and “dominated” by others. What do you think?

I kind of see Takato a bit differently. I think his personality that he has on set is the cultivated ‘fake’ personality he’s had to construct after a lifetime of working in show business. He’s calculated that appearance and attitude to maximise his chances of success at work, but it isn’t really him. I do enjoy seeing that persona, but it really is just another character he’s playing (which is probably why he’s such a good actor). I kind of feel he has decided to throw aside the persona when he’s alone with Junta and while I do think he possibly becomes a little too sappy, it is kind of nice that he can just kind of let his guard down because it must be exhausting to wear that mask all day.

I can understand your point of view. However, when I was talking about the personality was more about his line of thought, instead of the way he presents to others. His way of thinking is normally in the same page wherever he is (since nobody can actually read his thoughts). And from those kind of thoughts I see someone who is calculist and likes to dominate things. But, yes it’s true that he lets himself go when with Junta.

In fact, I think that persona is what makes Junta to seem to push himself so much because Takato’s persona just can’t accept to be with other guy, I mean it would mean problems in his acting career, right?

You’re right in that Takato’s inner monologue really doesn’t change between when he’s at work and when he’s with Junta. That’s an interesting pick up and one I’ll need to consider.

I don’t have much else to say about the first four episodes, other than I really enjoyed them. Is there anything else you want to discuss before we turn our attention to episode 5?

Let me see… *picks notes*…. Nope, I think we covered everything! Since we are going into episode 5, let me start with this question. What do you think about Takato’s character evolution in episode 5? Isn’t a little strange someone who knows the game, is over-cautious and knows that guy is basically a snake to just let his guard down?

Yeah, I have a big issue with Takato’s character in this episode. The start is great where we see how he’s more or less completely accepted his relationship with Junta (loved the scene where he accepted Junta’s key-card), but then as you said, he lets his guard down. Now, I guess you could argue that Takato has gotten blind drunk and done something stupid before (episode 1) except that in that case he’d just lost his title of Most Huggable/Sexy Guy or whatever and then ended up the supporting actor to the guy who took his title. It kind of made sense that he’d go on a bender. Here, it really doesn’t make sense and I know that they just wanted to set up that final scene, but it really did seem totally out of character for Takato. What did you think?

Exactly the same thing as you. In this episode Takato came out as this naive and “weak” character which we already know he isn’t. It’s true that he can’t handle his drink. However, to be honest, first, I just can’t Takato giving help to an actor he doesn’t like so easily. Second, it’s hard for me to believe that he would just go and get drunk near someone who he knows that is one of those actors that play rough and dirty.

As you, I think they just needed some kind of event to get to that final scene. At this point the romance is completely settled and they had to add some kind of problem into it so there is story to continue. However, I hated the execution. I don’t what was the worst, if the character changing completely, or if it seems that they are building a rape scene to start next episode….

We were definitely diving into uncomfortable territory at the end there (not unexpected but I was kind of hoping they’d tone it down given they toned down episode 1 a lot). But yeah, Takato’s character really suffered in this set up and it is unfortunate given I’ve really been enjoying how he’s come across and during most of episode 5 I just wanted to call him an idiot.

That said, I get why he gave the guy advice. They are going to be on stage together and if the lead doesn’t pull his weight and the show goes down in flames that is going to reflect on Takato’s career as well. Self-interest is always a fine enough motivator even if the guy is a complete jerk. One good thing about Ayagi (sorry, checking notes on that name), is that I really appreciate Junta as Takato’s partner after meeting him. Ayagi is just scum.

That’s a way to take out something positive of this episode ahah I hope… I mean, I REALLY hope that in the beginning of the next episode Takato just pushes him away and that’s the end of it. Yes, it will bring problems since Junta will see that hickey and think he was cheated on. But, to be honest, isn’t just cliché?

I think I would probably prefer to see them just acting like a couple more than that… Work, for example, could become an issue or something like that… Or, maybe I just love these guys together so much that I don’t want to see any kind of attacks against their love ahah

Yeah, they definitely hitting the cliches and tropes this episode. I think overall, I’m still really enjoying watching this show and I really would like to see Junta and Takato get a happily ever after, but there’s no getting around the fact that episode 5 is a little bit a problem and it will all come down to how they continue it in episode 6 as to whether it is a serious red flag or just a momentary mis-step for the show.

Yeah, I agree with you. I once read somewhere something like this: It is completely ok to use coincidences and things that are just there to make a character to enter in some distress. However, it is not ok to do the same thing to take them out of that distress. So, we will see! I hope that in the next episode we will see Takato punching Ayagi’s face! I know that he won’t press any kind of charges because he is an actor in Japan and he’s afraid of losing his career and things like that. However, I do hope that Ayagi is not able to do anything to Tanaka when he seems to be passed out from drunkenness… I mean, that’s just… cheap porn story –’

So, I really hope they are able to come back and make me love the series right away in this next episode!

I think that about wraps this chat up then, unless you have any final points you’d like to raise.

Nope, I think this is all eheh it was nice chatting with you 🙂

Thanks Arthifis for joining me on this one. I really enjoyed the chance to discuss Dakaichi and the characters and I think that I have a lot more to think about with Takato’s character now. Looking forward to when we come together again in a few weeks and hopefully we both don’t rage quit the show at episode 6.

For now though, I think we need to go over to your blog to discuss Goblin Slayer.

Thank you for having me and I couldn’t agree more! I was really looking forward for this talk since I had so much in my chest I wanted to share about Dakaichi with you, so these are always a lot of fun eheh

Well, I won’t rage quit! The most it can happen is that it will go to my Horrible Anime quest pile ahahah I look forward for our next talk in few weeks! ^^ And yes, time to come to my place and discuss a little bit about Goblin Slayer eheh

Dakaichi Episode 5 - Takato — My favourite Takato.

Conclusion:

Thanks to everyone who joined us for this conversation. We’d both love to know what you think of Dakaichi so far so be sure to leave us a comment, and remember to check out our chat about Goblin Slayer over on Arthifis’ blog.