Sakura season is Kyoto was made for the phrase “you really had to be there”. Unfortunately the weather for cherry blossom season this year is horrendous. Yesterday was literally the only day during the projected bloom without steady rain forecasted, and rain does more than make viewing the sakura unpleasant […] Read more
Coming on the heels of its best season, Kuroshitsuji delivers its best OVA – and maybe the best OVA I’ve seen in many a year. Judging from the lack of reaction to the post on Part 1 of “Book of Murder”, I’m not sure how many of you are engaged […] Read more
Sanzoku no Musume Ronja elicits a staggering range of thoughts and emotions in me. Which, ironically, is almost the exact same lead-in I used in my First Impressions post – though I’d totally forgotten that fact when I began this one. First and foremost, I think it should be noted […] Read more
Boy, does this show ever have a way of sneaking up on you. There’s never, at any time, been a moment when Kamisama Hajimemashita was my favorite anime airing. Yet it always seem to add up to more than you realize when you’re watching it, and it grows tremendously the […] Read more
For all that there are myriad qualities that can make an anime great, there’s just no substitute for sincerity. I’ll say up-front that I expected this finale to be an emotional one. Expectations can be a pretty big burden to carry, but I had faith that Watanabe-sensei and TMS could […] Read more
And so it begins… The darling buds of March have opened across much of Kansai, and while I’m not going to obsessively photoblog them (honestly, that could occupy all my time if I allowed it to) I will periodically toss up some pics as I snap them. Here’s a batch […] Read more
So much Kansai, so little time. I don’t want to spend all my time writing photoblog posts, so I’m combining several days worth of bits and pieces into a set meal here. In order, we have: Toji Temple Market (largest in Japan, 21st of every month). Fushimi Inari (I’ve taken […] Read more
Every time I think I’m out, they pull me right back in again… It’s certainly never a bad thing for an anime to finish with your best stuff, even if’s only a season break. And Durarara did that here, concluding “Shou” with what might have been the best episode of […] Read more
What a damn tease Ace of Diamond can be. I called Tokyo Ghoul “the most vexing show of the season” – for obvious reasons – but I’d have to say Daiya no A comes in second. Being a fan of this series has always been about taking the bitter with […] Read more
Fair or not, anime are always graded on a curve. And it’s a tough week for Aldnoah.Zero. Let me start out by saying I really didn’t this this was a bad finale. Technically it was solid, the action sequences were (as ever) terrific, and the pacing was fine. It was […] Read more