“Simpler is better” Read more

It’s in Toi’s story where real darkness and subtlety lies, I think – especially as it continually shows us that two seemingly contradictory things can seem equally true. Read more

Ikuhara is really starting to tie all the plot threads into a knot now. Read more

This is an Ikuni we haven’t seen much of, and I confess I rather like it. Read more

There’s so much that’s bizarre and fabulously creative in the visuals of an Ikuhara series that the narrative doesn’t need all the self-indulgent stuff he piles on most of the time – the experience is mind-bending enough as it is. Read more

I’m starting to see quite a dichotomy with Sarazanmai. Read more

It’s been a long time since Utena, but Ikuni does love his tropes. Read more

You know you’re in an Ikuhara moment when you see a headline like “Anime Director Says Pitch Did Not Mention Butts”. Read more

Ikuhara may well care whether his shows are popular or not (I very much suspect he does) but he does an excellent job of writing and directing as if he doesn’t. Read more