Blog Archives
Goblin Slayer Anime- A Good Start but Where Do We Go From Here? (Episode #1 Review)
Hey guys. We have an interesting and somewhat divisive anime review today. Episode #1 of Goblin Slayer. I do need to do a small content warning.
Content Warning- Goblin Slayer’s Episode #1, I cannot speak for the whole series, has very graphic scenes of murder, mutilation, and even rape. Personally, I will not be touching on the rape scenes during the overview. We may address it later on in the review because it is one of the factors leading to the divisive nature of reviewers. So, if you are someone who gets triggered, not using the word in a negative manner but in the way the word was intended to be used, I will keep talking about those scenes to a minimum. However, I can already tell you if any of the above factors sound like too much, you will not like this anime. Now let’s get on to the review.
The anime starts off promising enough. The animation production is high quality. The main character is a vibrant and happy lead character. The Adventure Guild is a sprawling hub full of cheery inhabitants bragging about their strengths. From here, Priestess, the main character, is quickly introduced to her team. 3 eager adventurers dead set on stopping a tribe of goblins who kidnapped some girls from a village. The show is littered with foreshadowing and irony from this point on.
The bright undertones are swiftly replaced with the caves dark setting, void of any color except for a single torch frantically flickering, clinging to what little light there is in the world. There are several mentions of them all being rookies, and lackadaisically, almost mockingly, asking “they’re just goblins, what could possibly go wrong?”. Midway through the cave the camera pans showing just darkness, but trained eyes will notice it is a secondary pathway housing several Goblin soldiers. The young boy in the group, like the rookie he is, hits his sword against the top of the cave. In hindsight, for such a dark cave, their doom was clear as day.
The adventurers inadvertently separate into groups of 2. This makes them easy pickings for the goblins who single out the mage first. Breaking her staff then stabbing her and infecting her with poison. Don’t worry, I will describe bits of the violence but I will not touch on the more graphic details, for those of you who still may be reading but aren’t comfortable with that level of disturbing content. Just know, Goblins 1-Adventurers 0
Of course, Action Lad jumps in and kills a goblin or two just for the foreshadowing to now be in the forefront. His blade hits the top of the cave, dislodging it from his grip. The goblins make haste swarming him. They leave only his corpse behind.
Goblins 2- Adventurers 0
Lastly is Ms. Kick Boxer. She gets a few good kicks in (Papa Roach would be very happy). In the end though, she attempts to kick the big cheese, the Hobgoblin. This does not, in fact, end well. Her face promptly makes contact with the rocky, rough sides of the cave walls. Her body, not quite lifeless, is left for the goblins own devices
Goblins 3- Adventurers 0
All that’s left is Priestess as she tries in vain to carry the dying mage to safety. An arrow emerges from the darkness and breaks skin, penetrating her shoulder. The goblins close in on her in the same menacing manner. The goblin are about to claim the victorious 4-0 sweep. The adventurers are finished. Right? Well, not quite. Not yet.
The titular Goblin Slayer ambles stoically from the bowels of the cave. From here, the anime completely switches gears. The goblins are annihilated one by one. The bonus points part is that they are slain in a multitude of ways. Sure, there is a lot of head cleaving, but we also see spears, traps, setting the hobgoblin on fire and rolling him down a hill. Most are brutal and brutish in nature, but that’s okay too. The story for this episode really wraps up at this point. The Goblin Slayer and the Priestess kill all the known goblins in the cave and rescue the kidnapped girls. The Goblin Slayer and the Priestess reconvene at the guild ready for more days of goblin slaying.
Okay so, that’s your recap. Now, normally I try to avoid just recapping the episode, so why did we spend a lengthy time summarizing the first 10 minutes of the show? For several reasons. Let’s discuss.
Setting the Tone- A lot like with Attack on Titan and Akame Ga Kill, it is important to know that characters just get brutally murdered sometimes. Life is meaningless, to a certain degree anyway. If you don’t respect death and all the critters under your feet, in this instances goblins, you will be utterly and completely destroyed even if you are the hero. The gruesome mutilations and the depiction of rape scenes had many in the Crunchyroll comment section turned completely off of the anime. I understand that.
It Perfectly Tells You How To Feel- It’s a cartoon. Sure. But murder and rape are real life things. So, while I dont glorify these actions, I think this anime uses them to great conviction. What do I mean? Because the first 10 minutes are so brutal, so barbarian, it really paints Goblin Slayer as the most heroic and lifesaving dude in all of anime. You spend 10 minutes watching goblins molest, violate, and butcher a bunch of kids. Its’s grisly and savage, yet so commonplace in this world. When Goblin Slayer slices a goblin’s head open you cheer. Then he sets one on fire and you fist bump. He pierces the heart of a goblin with a spear and you let out a “Get em!”. He finds four baby goblins and bludgeons them to death and you ponder if the only good goblin is a dead one. Then you get flashbacks of Star Wars 3.
It Felt Real- Some people may disagree with this part. That’s fine. Kids today are clueless about a lot of parts of life. When adventure lad felt so sure of himself and that he was a hero just to get slaughtered by a world that felt nothing for his heroism, it just felt real. Kids today aren’t taught how to manage money, how to pay for a house, or how to change a tire. Yet, they still get thrown out in the world (most thinking they are ready for it). A lot of them get mercilessly fed to the beast. So many people I know are buried on financial burdens. The younger ones under student loans while the older ones are crushed under credit card debt or trying to pay off a house or what have you. And all those financial woes are just commonplace. I feel like you could go on and on and on about people just being unprepared for the real world but I think you guys get the point.
Now for the Bad.
Priestess is a Lame Character- Maybe she gets cooler or stronger in later episodes. I just did not relate to her as a character. Sure, I could sympathize with her in that situation. I mean, your crew was just brutally murdered before your eyes. There was an interesting discussion in the CR comment section about how what finally broke her was the baby goblins dying. One person defended her saying it was the weight of everything and that was the first moment she was able to breathe. Personally, I don’t buy it. I think they wanted to create a sense of moral ambiguity about killing baby goblins. Too which there is none. You kill them. They are not like humans which have at least a shred of humanity, even if buried real deep. So, she gets no sympathy from me in that moment. Couple the crying with the fact that she literally needed no time mourning her fallen teammates before she eagerly joined Goblin Slayer again felt disingenuous. There is a way to make it feel more real and earned. Show her grow in the cave. Honestly, I didn’t really see any growth on her part. Sure, she cast Holy Light twice. So what? How about more internal monologues? She gave plenty but yet I never really saw her say anything about a rush of adrenaline from killing goblins or how she wants to avenge her dead members. She just talks about how scarring and common events like these are but she is definitely an adventurer. It just felt like an ending they forced instead of a natural progression of her character. Maybe the novel dives more into it? Even so, we are judging the anime, and this has got to be one of the most unsatisfying endings. I’m not against the product of the outing being a stronger, more brave Priestess, just that they did nothing to make it a believable evolution.
Hopefully all my thoughts about Episode #1 are clear and not too confusing. I’ve read some other people’s reviews and everyone tends to have a lot to say about the anime. Personally, I saw some metaphors for life today. maybe I’m off base with those connections. I don’t the anime is completely tasteless or void of substance, but I can see other people not caring for it. I had a lot of thoughts and just wasn’t entirely sure how to structure everything.
Goblin Slayer Episode #1 is good. It certainly is not for everyone. It is important to remember that some people will not be able handle this level of disturbing anime. That’s okay. And if you enjoyed the darker side of this anime, that is okay too. Everyone’s taste is different.
My score for this episode changed a lot over the course of writing this. Episode #1 was an adrenaline trip of mixed emotions. Ultimately, I was ready to watch the next one and rate this one a very solid 9 out of 10. But after bouncing everything in my head a few times, I still really liked the first episode, bad ending aside, I landed on 7.5 out 10. Goblin Slayer more than makes up for how meh Priestess is. The ending didn’t deter how action packed the first episode was. Though I do question where we go from here. Not perfect by any stretch, yet still solid. Here’s a recap for anyone interested.
Action- Some of the best of any anime I have reviewed.
Romance– Not the good kind.
Plot- As of right now it is very grounded. There is no immanent, greater danger. In comics, we call this street level villains. Yet I’m not sure where we go from here.
Characters- Priestess was easily the most boring, so of course she is the one who lived. I loved the goblins as far as villains go. Perfect villains. And Goblin Slayer is the perfect hero.
The World- Most of the episode took place in a cave. Other episodes might follow suit. The world is cool as a whole. I’m just not sure how much of it we will see.
Humor– I’m not sure there was a single funny part in this whole anime. Maybe something chuckle worthy before the cave, but virtually nothing past that. I did laugh a couple times when goblins died, but who didn’t?
What did you guys think about Goblin Slayer? Which side of the coin did you fall under? I’m not really sure where the anime goes from here. It did get a 2nd season so I guess it has to go somewhere, right?
Thanks for reading! Have a great day everybody!
More Continued Readings Below:
The God of High School Episode #1 Review (Anime)
The God of High School Episode #1 Review (Anime)
The God of High School drew me in with an absurd name and tournament combat scenario akin to the classic animes I grew up watching. Did it disappoint or did it manage to live up to a name like The God of High School?
The God of High School positions itself as an all out brawl of an anime. If you can, imagine Dragon Ball’s Strongest Under the Heaven tournament style. Whoever happens to win the tournament gets their wish granted. Talent scouts have been testing many contestants to gather what they assume to be the strongest fighters. The big day arrives and BOOM, it is go time. The first episode has a fun little mini arc revolving around a petty thief who steals a grandma’s money and how our three main characters team up to stop him. It only takes about half the episode but it is a great introduction. This opening showcases each character’s personality and strengths. It’s fast-paced, action packed, and a fun joyride.
After that sequence, we get right into the heart of the premise. Our three heroic teens from the start: Jin Mori, Han Daewi and Yu Mira, all happen to be entered into the contest. Well, it is mostly action from this moment worth. A lot of cool characters are introduced, but few to none are named.
That’s about it as far as plots go. There’s something going on at the very beginning about running the country or some other babble, but that is lost on me at this point. No other hints of world danger are present, so we just have to wait and see what the dangerous, world threatening organization has in store for us in later chapters.
So, with plot out of the way, let’s dive into characters. We will be talking about 3 in particular.
Jin Mori- Our main character. As of right now, he does not have any super powers. He is just really well trained in taewkondo. He seems to be of pure heart as he drops everything he is doing to help recover the grandma’s money. So far, he is a likable lead character.
Han Daewi- As of right now, he come’s across as another good intentions kind of guy. He works hard and still needs more shifts for more money. I don’t believe the show reveals why he needs the money. However, he is the one who ultimately stops the thief. I don’t think he takes any of the recovered money either, even though it is documented he needs more money for something.
Yu Mira- Admitted, I don’t know what to make of her. She is introduced just going ga ga over some muscular men. With little to no hesitation, she joins Jin on his quest to stop the thief. I don’t quite understand the source of her power but she is very strong, no doubt.
This is normally the time when I address the world. However, the world seems pretty normal outside of the fact that there is a fighting tournament going on.
This show is just 3 or 4 episodes into the anime. My plan is to get caught up over the coming days and then maybe do a review of the show in a few weeks. Maybe after it hits 12 episodes or whatever it calls a season. This was a very strong start to an anime. It gave the lighthearted vibes of One Piece at times while also having that battle royale tournament set up that old school animes perfected in the 90’s and early 2000’s. In other words, as of right, this anime is right up my alley.
Continued Reading
Top 5 Most Anticipated Xbox Series X Games
Super Mario 64 Remake Want List! (Super Mario 35th Anniversary Rumor)
Super Mario 64 Remake Want List! (Super Mario 35th Anniversary Rumor)
Hey guys, The Nintendo Direct may have been a little lackluster if you wanted more Mario. However, on my Youtube channel, I took the time to make a want list for Super Mario 64 Remake. Below are 5 things I want added to the eventual Super Mario 64 Remake!
P.S. Dont have time to read or just prefer a video format? Here’s the link to my video: Super Mario 64 Remake Want List!
#5 Better Mechanics and Controls: Come on. This is almost a no brainer. The only way this isn’t implemented into the game is if we get a basic bare bones port. Anything above that should bring Super Mario 64 into the modern generation including an actually useful camera, tighter controls, and improved movement. Regardless of what artistic approach they take with the remake/port, better mechanics and controls is an absolute must.
#4 Better graphics- duh. Yet, there’s a sliver of a chance the game doesn’t get any graphical oomph. Honestly, I’m not the most technical savvy person so I’m not going to rabble on and on about video outputting and other jargon, I’m just going to say, I hope this is an HD remastering and not just simple porting.
(I do not own this picture)
#3 2 Player Co-OP- Mario hacks have existed for a while now that have enabled a co-op mode, so in 2020, I don’t think it’s unreasonable to enable a co-op mode in a home console release of Super Mario 64. Something Nintendo has been pretty stingy about. Mario 64 and Sunshine have no co-op mode to speak of. Galaxy 1 and 2 have extremely lack luster co-op functions allowing the 2nd player to play a disembodied pointer grabbing star bits using the Wii remote. Odyssey features the best co-op to date if we aren’t including 3D World. The 2nd player assumes the role of Cappy and can greatly help or hinder Mario on his quest for endless moons. As stated, people have pushed the boundaries of Super Mario 64 via rom hacks, meaning I’m sure Nintendo has the tools needed to do the same, but do they have the guts to utilize it?
(I do not own this picture)
#2 New Hat or Mario Powers- Mario Galaxy 1 and 2 gave us plenty of new power ups which would be cool to see here. I think an obvious power up to include would be the fire flower or ice flower. This could introduce new puzzles such as torches, water walking, enemies that can only be killed by fire, burning down bushes, etc. etc. I wouldn’t mind Boo Mario or Bee Mario but the cap power probably would make it redundant. Giant Mario could be another viable option. Giant Mario has been a staple of Mario since the very beginning, however, on the DS Mario was made ginormous. Wario even got in on the giant action in Mario 64 DS.
(Duh)
#1 New Stars in each level – Blame Odyssey if you must, blame not wanting a standard port or even blame the DS remake, but its time to start adding new content to the game. Super Mario DS added 30 new stars (I think). Odyssey allows the player to nearly double the number of moons found in each kingdom. I think implementing some system like this would be genius. These additional stars could be sprinkled in the game after beating Bowser. This way old school players can still enjoy the game the way God intended while players like myself who want a little more oomph in their remakes can get that added content. This could be done by adding some remixes of old stars such creating 5 new secret spots, making the Koopa race harder or a different route altogether, modifying existing stars in the same manner that comets did in Galaxy. The Mario team is normally pretty darn creative so I know if they tried they could come up with something good that also fits Mario 64.
So there you have it. I have a few more items on this want list. If I can come up with five more, I’ll make a follow up to this post. If you want to see what those items are now though, you can check the video in the link above!
Thanks again for reading guys! If you are excited for the remakes, leave a comment down below and let me know what you would add.
Continued Reading:
Somali and the Forest Spirit Episode 1 Review!
Manga Monday: Clay Lord Master of Golems
The Mandalorian Review
Girlish Number- Random Wednesday Number 1
Reacting to my very first post “To all Potential Readers,”
I’m going to just copy and paste my very first post here so we can talk about it.
This is my very first post so this will be a run down of what content I will be putting out!
I am going to be blogging on mostly what anime I am watching, what comic books I am reading, what video games I am playing. Every now and again I will post about movies music or sports too!
Here is a list of what anime’s I am watching and how far I am into them: Naruto(415), One Piece(170), Attack on Titan(Episode 27),Parasyte-The Maxim(24) Assassination Classroom(17), Death Parade(12) Is it Wrong to Try and Pick up Girls In A Dungeon(10),
Ones i plan to start watching: Akame Ga Kill, Punch Line, Kill La Kill, Fairy Tale, Reborn, etc.
Games I currently Playing: Madden 15, Fallout New Vegas, Pokemon, Super Smash Bros, Majora Mask 3DS, Borderlands Pre-Sequel, Fable, Wind Waker(wiiU)
Comics in 2015 I am reading: Aquaman and the Others(1-7) Lobo(1-5), Secret Wars(0-1), Convergence(0-5) Suicide Squad(3,5). I am mostly a 60’s-80’s kinda guy.
Also, I will be doing weekly Top Fives!
If this sounds like stuff you want to talk about and hear my opinions on be sure to check out often!
Okay, lets break it down.
“I am going to be blogging on mostly what anime I am watching, what comic books I am reading, what video games I am playing.”
I would say I kept this part pretty faithful. Anime and manga reviews make up the bulk of my content. I’ve kept comic books off for the most part. I’ve talked about Pokemon and Zelda a good bit.
“Here is a list of what anime’s I am watching and how far I am into them: Naruto(415), One Piece(170), Attack on Titan(Episode 27),Parasyte-The Maxim(24) Assassination Classroom(17), Death Parade(12) Is it Wrong to Try and Pick up Girls In A Dungeon(10),”
Okay, so I have seen all of Naruto since making this post. One Piece, I am up to 300 and something. Attack on Titan, I am a few episodes into season 2. Parasyte only ran for 24 episodes if I remember right. Death Parade I think only ran for 12. I’m not sure I’ve seen anymore of Assassination Classroom. I think I finished season one of Is it Wrong to Try and Pick up Girls In A Dungeon. However many was that.
Since this post, I’ve watched Season One of My Hero Academia and Food Wars. Im on episode #10 of Tower of God. I’ve seen all of Girlish Number, The Devil is a Part Timer and Amagi Brilliant Park, loved all of them. I’ve seen up to about episode 4 of Dr. Stone. I’d love to revisit this one. I actually finished season 1 of Monster Musume oddly enough. Not sure if it got a 2nd season. Case Closed and Yu Yu Hakusho are two I’ve seen a lot of but I couldnt even tell you where I was on them. I’ve seen a handful of episode 1s that havent been brought up on the blog yet.
“Games I currently Playing: Madden 15, Fallout New Vegas, Pokemon, Super Smash Bros, Majora Mask 3DS, Borderlands Pre-Sequel, Fable, Wind Waker(wiiU)”
So, I actually have restarted playing New Vegas but on PS3. Not with any consistency though. I still play Pokemon of course, but now I am up to Sword.
Here’s the games I am playing now: A Hat in Time, Yo Kai Watch (3DS), Super Mario Odyssey, DOOM (XBOX ONE), The Outer Worlds (XBOX ONE), Pokemon Sword, Shovel Knight (Wii U), Bloons Tower Defense 5 (Steam).
“Comics in 2015 I am reading: Aquaman and the Others(1-7) Lobo(1-5), Secret Wars(0-1), Convergence(0-5) Suicide Squad(3,5). I am mostly a 60’s-80’s kinda guy.”
A few things may jump out to you. A. Nothing really Marvel. I had Secret Wars 0-1. Not super impressive. Truth be told, aside from Daredevil and Ghost Rider, I don’t read a lot of Marvel anymore. One day I may try to read more of the new X-Men titles. B. This was all DC New 52 stuff. I love that era. I actually quickly fell out of New Comics shortly after this past. In fact, at the time, I don’t think I got another new comic until 2018 during DC’s Universe/Rebirth (Their modern iteration). I may go back an update this part with all my new comics later. I don’t have it written down and again, comics have never been a big part of this blog.
Okay, I am going to add a teaser part. Mangas. At the time of this post, I never really owned a manga that I didn’t get from my brother. It didn’t take long into the blogs life for me to rectify this problem. Here’s a list of the major manga’s I collect
Dragon Ball (3-1 editions of Volumes 1-18), Dragon Ball Z (3-1 editions of Volumes 1-6), My Hero Academia (Volume 1-13), Eden Zero (Volumes 1-5), Rave Master (Volumes 1, 3-4, 15-17), Samurai 8 The Tale of Hachimaru (Volumes 1 and 2. Current up to this point). I’ll go more in depth about my manga collection later, but these are the ones I really care about.
Also, I will be doing weekly Top Fives!
If this sounds like stuff you want to talk about and hear my opinions on be sure to check out often!
Top Fives are the longest running topic on the blog! It got started with top 5 Pokemons, than top 5 reasons to own a Wii U, and then 5 things I want from E3. I just put out one like last week or so talking about Mario levels. Later this week, I will be revisiting my original top fives. Safe to say this might be my favorite section but they are thought provoking.
Well, thats it for today. I might revisit this post over the next few days an add more as I reflect on my five years here. That’s if I get the time. I have been surprising busy this week. I might just leave it as it is. Just depends how I feel I suppose.
As always, thanks some much for reading. You can read the original on its original page here.
Manga Monday Dragon Eye Volume #1
Dragon Eye was created by Kairi Fujiyama and published by Kodansha, a company I don’t think I was familiar with up to this point. It ran for 3 years and produced 9 collected volumes. Interestingly enough, it seems the series may have a had a resurgence in Japan under the name Dragon Eye RT. I believe this book is still exclusive to Japan, so I’m not sure how much news actually exist for that iteration of the book.
Spoilers- Typically, I say there’s only spoilers for the first volume. However, this is one you will absolutely want to read first if you want to stay spoiler free. There’s two big reveals early about 2 of the 3 main characters. So if you want to experience those for yourselves, I recommend reading the book before reading this review any further.
Plot- In the world of Dragon Eye, a virus is running out of control which turn the living into monsters. These monsters are dubbed Draculas. Usually, a scratch from a dracula will convert the person into a monster as well. However, for a select lucky few, they are immune to the virus. These people are fighters known as VIUS. These fighters, band together to fight the monsters and protect those weaker than them.
Characters: Characters are certainly a strength in this book. The 3 main characters shine right a way as Squad Zero. First up Issa Kazuma
Issa Kazuma– As stated, if you want to remain spoiler free, then you’ll want to skip this entire section. Issa is disguised as a student coming up through the VIUS program. He is sent on a recon mission like all the other trainees. While there, the students learn their intel was bad and that there are actually really strong draculas lurking in their area. Issa is forced to reveal that, not only is he actually a high ranking proctor for the academy, he also has a Dragon Eye, one of the strongest weapons in the world. Issa is super interesting. If you are familiar with comics, he almost falls into that antihero role. Everything he does is most likely for the betterment of people, however sometimes those things are very shady. Like, it is lead on to believe that he straight up murdered a little girl. More on that later. Still, Issa is awesome and I wonder if I am wrong to think that. He is extremely powerful as he wields one of the few known Dragon Eyes to exist in this world and he is not afraid to use it. I feel like we are going to have more to write about him as time goes on.
Leila Mikami- She is an interesting character. Often times in the earlier pages she takes over as the main character, yet she never really does anything. She is brave at times and really determined. Still, she is a passive character who has yet to be given her time to shine. It’s really unfortunate. I kept waiting for her to have a big moment and it just hasn’t happened yet. I don’t have a lot to add, yet. Issa sees potential in her but I doubt his judgment so far.
Sosei Yukimura– Now this dude is hyped. He is formerly of Squad Five. Now disclaimer, squads haven’t really been explained too well. Sosei volunteers to aid Squad Zero because they are light on members. It is quickly revealed Sosei was only so eager to help so he could get close to Issa. Remember how I said Issa murdered a little girl. Well, it was Sosei twin sister! Talk about some drama. Well, Sosei wants revenge, go figure. However, his efforts are constantly thwomped by the fact wherever Issa goes, so do Draculas. Talk about inconvenient. For now, they must team up to keep humanity safe. But Sosei swears to have his day in the sun. It doesn’t help that all records from that mission have been falsified to cover it all up.
The World- What is there to say about it? It’s like ours but humans are fighting for survival. Towns are designed to keep Dracula sightings to a minimum. However, there’s talks of mountain ranges in the north that seem to differ than the cityscapes of where we are now.
Recap- The first chapter seems slow, but when this book is rolling it is real good.
Action- One of the books strong suits.
Romance- Nothing at the moment, but Issa and Leila have potential.
Plot- I say it all the time with mangas like this. I don’t know if this plot is revolutionary or original, but it is good.
Characters- Leila is cute and likeable. Issa and Sosei bring the hype. It gives me Sasuke and Itachi vibes in a very good way.
The World- The world exist.
Humor– While this isnt a Shonen Jump comic, it felt like that same style of humor. Maybe a little less funny than say Naruto or One Piece.
Verdict– I look at this book and I wonder where it lands among the best. I don’t know. I do know it was an enjoyable read. I found Volume #2 and already bought it.
Score- I’m going with a 7 out of 10. I just reviewed Rave Master. I think Dragon Eye might have had better characters, but I think Rave Master was slightly more enjoyable.
Thanks again for reading and have a great day everybody!
Continued Reading down below!
Somali and the Forest Spirit Episode 1 Review!
Manga Monday: Clay Lord Master of Golems
The Mandalorian Review
Girlish Number- Random Wednesday Number 1
Tower Of God Episode #2 Anime Review
Hey guys, today were going to keep the review train going. This will be a follow up to our Tower Of God Episode #1 Anime Review found here. Make sure you’ve read that one first!
Alright let’s dive into it.
Plot Updated: I really don’t think there’s been any big reveals or revelations at this point. I’ll be honest. The show has begun explaining a new concept. Regulars vs irregulars. This part is new to me and went a little over my head a bit. The gist of it seems to be irregulars are people born outside the tower. I could be completely wrong there. Bam seems to say something about him and Rachel being the only ones born outside the tower. Again, I could be wrong there. One of the superiors also says “Bam is a monster” so there’s more to Bam than initially lead on.
Characters: Alright, so I would say we were introduced to at least five more characters! And two minor characters that will either develop into bigger characters or be comedy reliefs of sorts.
Khun- Khun is the most interesting character to dive into this episode but not the most mysterious. Due to Bam wielding the The Black March, Khun decides to follow him and figure out how Bam got the princess’s signature weapon. Bam has been warned to not trust Khun so we will see where that goes.
Rak Wraithraiser- Rak is pretty fun for a dumb brute. I think there’s a lot to like about the character. The tower has strict guidelines but Rak goes by his own code which might get him in trouble. This episode highlights him as a strong warrior and a joke at different times. He reminds me in a lot of ways to Drax the Destroyer from the Guardian of the Galaxy movies.
Anak and Hatsu- I really wish we could go more in depth here, but I’m not sure they talk too much. They are strong, silent, and clearly respect each others as rivals. For some reason, they gave me Yu Yu Hakusho vibes. Could just be me though. Either way, they are shaping up to be legitimate contenders here.
Lero-Ro So this guy is basically an instructor. He shows up and intimidates the contestants. Again, not too much is lead on about this guy. Much like Headron, I still felt like he was worth mentioning.
Princess Yuri and Rachel were both completely absent from this episode other then in mention.
The World/The Tower-
Lets dive into the floors.
Floor Two- Floor two’s style remained the same of course, a battle royale. However, the pacing slowed down as we focused on the above characters. This was enjoyable yet the combat was almost nonexistent in a weird way. Khun and Bam just evaded Rak until time ran out. Anak and Hatsu simply matched blows for blows. It all culminated into one final test on the floor. Of the 200, form a team of 3. Forming teams of 3 must be an anime trope or something. Either way, Rak, Khan and Bam form a team. Anak, Hatsu, and Purple Jumpsuit guy form their own team. With these out of the way, we meet our characters on Floor 3.
Floor Three- Okay, so I watched this episode a few days ago. The water concept is a little weird to me. Shinsu, or that weird water looking stuff, is apparently the tower source of power. Either way, being in its presence is very taxing on the body. Shinsu forms a wall that only the strongest can pass. Lero-Ro claims on the higher floors, the Shinsu will be almost unbearable. Either way, Bam is not pushed back by the giant tidal wave of Shinsu. He automatically passes. His teammates aren’t so lucky. Yet, Rak and Khun still pass through the Shinsu very easily. Well, Khun’s briefcase isnt as strong but it still gets through. Hatsu and Anak both move pass the wall with ease as well. Finally, after some lollygaggin around, Purple Jumpsuit Guy clears the wall and were onto the next floor.
So that’s really it for this one. There was major tonal shifts in this episode. Rachel is still the goal, but we focus on the challenges at hand more so in this one instead of fantasizing about the higher floors. As far as I am concerned, the momentum is still going strong. Two episodes in and it still has my approval. Go watch.
Thanks so much for reading guys. Have a good night guys!
A Destructive God Sits Next to Me Episode #1 Review
Alright, today we have a fun blog. Its a quick review for the anime A Destructive God Sits Next to Me. I say quick, because I watched this anime last Monday (Whenever I put up the Tokay Ghoul review) and the days have just kinda blurred and ran together. This blog was suppose to come out the day afterwards and here we are on a Saturday night. So, I cannot promise I’ll remember everything, but I do remember enjoying it. Since this is a weird one we may review it a little differently compared to other post.
The first thing that stood out to me was the fact the dialogue exchange is very hectic and all over the place. It is a mix of external conversations with internal monologue. In English, this wouldn’t be a problem. In Japanese, the words are laced on top and bottom of the screen and several characters are talking at the same. I figured I was in over my head trying to follow the plot as I was completely lost in the opening scene. However, the nonchalant humor really kept me engaged.
For a show whose main character is a destructive god of unspeakable power, the humor is all over the place and I love it. In a way, I got Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo vibes and that is always a great thing. Our main character Seri Koyuki has very little in the way of confidence and actually was relying more on slapstick humor than I was expecting. Honestly, this was a turn off and I didn’t care much for him. Yet, when he is paired with Kabuto Hanadori (The Destructive God) and fellow classmate Utsugi Tsukimiya, the chemistry really clicks and the group are very funny and enjoyable.
The plot goes something like this. Handadori is a destructive god (Yeah, no kidding). Whenever a student belittles him or insults him in any way, he resorts to lifting his eye patch to unleash his real power. Koyuki consistently has to calm him before he takes vengeance on his classmates.
My thoughts with this show were a roller coaster. I was looking for something funny, charming, and lighthearted. At first, this show seemed like a mess that didn’t know what it was trying to do. By the time the gang was playing “Animal Crossing” on the roofs, I was sold. I don’t know if I’m in love with this anime yet, but clocking in with just 12 episodes, I should be able to sit down and churn through this one and get a more accurate gauge at some point.
As of now, I am excited for episode #2! We will certainly be revisiting this one at a later date to see if that humor, chemistry, and all around wackiness remains as enduring as it has started! Thanks for reading guys. I hope you all enjoyed this and will give the show a chance on Crunchyroll. Have a great night everyone.
Continued Reading!
Tower Of God Episode #1 Anime Review
Tower Of God Episode #1 Anime Review
Tower of God is a new anime I just started watching last night. It is shaping up be either the most interesting anime I’ve ever seen or it will crash on its own momentum. The first episode sets up a fantasy setting, a strange objective, and a hole host of characters. What this means for the series as a whole is yet to be seen
Plot: The plot seems straightforward yet eerily mysterious. A tower stands tall tempting its challengers with a simple promise. All that you wish can be found at the top of the tower. Who is brave enough to accept the challenge and who is strong enough to complete the challenge? A better question may be why would someone challenge that. Well, we have the answer for the two main characters, Rachel and Bam.
Characters:
Rachel. Rachel is the presumed love interest of the story. The story comes right out and says this is her and Bam’s story, though I find it hard to call her the main character. She almost seems like an unrealistic goal or dream Bam aspires to reach. I call her the presumed love interest because I don’t think the show elaborates on what kind of love the two characters share and if that love is even mutual. She saves Bam earlier in their lives (how much earlier is not known to the viewer). However, she still chooses to abandon Bam to challenge the tower. Her quest is to see the stars, something she makes known the second they meet.
Bam. Bam is more inline with what I think of a main character. The scene is vague, but I feel led to believe he was trapped in a cave until Rachel finds him. In a way, she may very well be the only other person Bam knows which would explain the obsession with Rachel. Of course, he joins the tower challenge all to find Rachel and reunite with her. He seems very Jon Snow in that manner. He wants to do right by Rachel even though every other character in the show is in it for personal gain. This makes you like him and at times go “kids going to get himself killed.”
Headron- Headron introduces himself on the first level of the tower but his exact role still seems fuzzy to me. He is like a game show host in a way. He introduces the challenger to the floor and what task they will have to undertake. He seems to get a sick thrill from challengers dying or, at least being at a disadvantage. Despite us leaving him on floor 1, I doubt this will be the last time we see Headron.
Princess Yuri and Evan- Princess Yuri shows up to help Bam out in the first floor, and just in time I might add. With her comes a ton of mystery and allure. Her dialogue with Headron leads us to believe their is a royal family lurking around. What do they gain from the tower and the gauntlet the inhabitants undergo? I’m sure all this will be explored later. As for now, Yuri grants Bam access to her powerful sword which allows him to progress through the floors.
The World: The world actually seems terrible. Again, it is revealed Bam was trapped in a hole in a cave until Rachel finds him. Also, stars and the sky are all rumors. This implies people havent even seen beyond the cave ceilings. Such a wild thought. The tower itself is intriguing. The tower will ultimately be made up of several floors (I’m not sure how many floors there will be in total). The floors all range in difficulty, aesthetics, and challenges.
Floor One- Floor one appears straightforward yet is layered in complexity. Bam is also the only challenger on this floor. The room is almost a sewer or water chamber protected by a giant, majestic eel. The goal? Break a giant, black ball while not being ate by the eel.
Floor Two- Floor two is completely different. It is a wide open field where each contestant is tasked with killing the other. The round begins with 400 contestant and they are told to get that number down to 200. This is where the show turns into a Hunger Games or PUBG style elimination event. Honestly, I’m not crazy about the pacing here. People just die left and right. There’s a jump of adrenaline from characters getting absolutely swatted left and right. That jolt of suspense wears off when you realize you don’t know any of the characters and it is just mindless murdering. Still an exciting scene in the moment. I do hope it slows down a bit in the second episode.
Recap: This show has insane potential or could flop. I could completely see it going either way. Everyone was hating on the graphics. It was noticeable but it didn’t derail my enjoyment.
Action Each floor looks as if it will rely on action. I’m sure some floors will be more mentally taxing as we go, but that’s yet to be seen.
Romance Again, the plot seems to be a love story. How stable or romantic it is is to be determined.
Plot The plot isnt super interesting in and of itself. The plot is mostly used to justify the setting and Bam’s motivation.
Characters Bam is the only character we got some level of peek into. Here’s a funny thought. Bam rarely says a word that isnt more or less “I’m doing this for Rachel” yet he easily comes off as a main character. It’s a bullheaded, reckless abandonment, throw caution to the wind, that would get old or come off as stupid that I find compelling about Bam. But again, it is kind of stupid still.
The World World, meh. Tower, very captivating.
Humor laugh out loud moments were pretty sparse. It might have had moments that make you giggle but it wont make you fall out of your seat dying of laughter.
Verdict I cannot wait to see how this one unfolds. It will either lose steam or be amazing. Let’s keep an eye out on this one.
Score I’ll give it a solid 8 out of 10. We will see how this score changes as we go.
Bonus material
I watched episode one of this anime last night before bed. I was about to pass out and jotted down some notes so I could freshen up my memory. Check out my early thoughts below.
Love story in epic setting. Each floor has challenges. First one, survive and open ball. 2nd one, survive and eliminate other challengers.
Great plot and characters, animation quality dipped at certain times but was surprising charming and grew on me.
8.0 out of 10.
Manga Monday: Rave Master Volume #1
Rave Master was written and illustrated by Hiro Mashima. It was brought stateside by TokyoPop. Rave Master originally debuted in 1999.
Spoilers: Today, were only looking at the first volume, so spoilers will be very limited.
Plot: The story centers around future hero Haru Glory, a teenager raised by his sister, as he encounters the seemingly mythical creature dog-thing, Plue. The grander scale is that there is a war between light and dark. The light side use the Rave stones while the Demon Card organization harness the power of Dark Bring. Old man Shiba use to be the Rave Master but finds out the stones no longer respond to him. The stones have now chosen Haru to be the Rave Master. He wields the massive sword seen pictured on the cover which responds to his rave and takes on ten forms. The first being “Explosion”, the explosive sword. After defeating some small time thugs who are equipped with a Dark Bring, Haru decides to set off to save the world. You know typical teenage stuff.
Characters: We are introduced to a handful of characters right off the bat. From Haru to his sister Cattleya, we meet a nice group of people. The problem is that by the end of the volume, only Haru and Plue leave the island. Cattleya, Gemma, and I think even Shiba all still reside on Garage Island. I’m sure they will reoccur but for now, we will mostly focus on Haru while discussing the minor characters briefly.
Haru- I really like Haru. The teenage hero archetype has been beaten to death, even in 1999. I can’t really say Haru breaks the mold in anyway other than he feels more genuine then other characters. He is strong right out of the gates. Nothing new. However, Haru trains hard everyday so he can protect his sister since both of their parents are presumed dead. Also, early in the story the rave has already deemed him the new master which probably made him even stronger. So, yeah. I like him. I believe him when he speaks about getting strong to protect Cattleya.
Plue struck me as a mascot/comedy relief but he hasn’t really been used in that direction much. He actually holds great weight to the story since he is a protector of the raves (I think. Whether he is a rave or protects them is something I get mixed up). Regardless, he is very critical to the story.
As discussed Shiba, Gemma, and Cattleya are all still on the island. I assume they wont just be forgotten but time will tell i suppose.
Recap- This is almost a complete throw away section. The story takes place on Garage Island and by the end we have set sail for the mainland. How many more times will we even see Garage Island? I’m not sure. Either way, the island itself is still interesting. Supposedly, people on the island are not aware of all the Demon Card and Raves and such found on the mainland. Yet, Haru’s dad left the island in search of the raves. So, somehow daddy-o found about them so word travels. As more is revealed about the island we will touch on it in more detail.
As for the world itself, the mainland will most likely serve a huge role as the series continues.
Recap: This is an enjoyable, fun story right from the get go.
Action: Probably not as much as you’d expect, but it is definitely there.
Romance: I can honestly say this story does not even feature the slightest hint of romance. In fact, Hiro said late in the development of the story, Cattleya was actually Haru’s uncle, but he wasn’t happy that there weren’t female characters. So yeah, no romance.
Plot: Its very basic light vs dark, pretty boy teenager hero. However, the potential for a just enough fun and engaging plot exist.
Characters: Almost every character was quite enjoyable besides Feber (the low level thug for this volume). Certainly a highlight for the book.
The World: I feel like I sufficiently covered this topic in the above post. So I dont have much to add here. haha.
Humor: Not the funniest in the genre by far. It is lighthearted and a good time. Humor is sprinkled in just enough to keep you laughing.
Verdict: Compared to other action mangas of its time, I’m not sure where I think Rave Master stands. It definitely holds its own without surmounting the likes of One Piece or Dragon Ball. At no point did I ever think “Man, I could just be reading Naruto.”. With all that said, I am actually eager to check out volume 2 whenever I find it.
Score: 7.5 out of 10. I think this score might end up being a little low when it is all said and done, but it feels right for right now.
Thanks again for reading and have a great day everybody!
Continued Reading down below!
Somali and the Forest Spirit Episode 1 Review!
Manga Monday: Clay Lord Master of Golems
The Mandalorian Review
Girlish Number- Random Wednesday Number 1
Life Update (May 6th 2020)
I really like doing these life updates. I like going back and reading them and seeing where I was at in one point of my life. So today, I’m sitting in a tire shops waiting room getting 3 tires replaced. Jessica and I have began full time babysitting her cousins since their school is closed. (We get them Sunday afternoon and they go Friday night. And this has been going on for a month now). I just finished one of the weirdest semesters I’ve ever had. Not the hardest by any means, but certainly weird.
All my classes moved to online due to the Coronavirus. That really threw off the whole groove of the semester being entirely online.
Earlier in the year, my passion for blogging was on fire. I had what I consider to be some of my greatest post to date. However, I tried to channel all that energy into both the Dahubbz YouTube channel and the Dahubbz blog post (the site you’re reading on right now.). Well, the candle burned on both ends burns out twice as fast or something like that.
So I decided to focus on the channel. I started streaming twice a week and they were successful for a channel my size. We streamed custom mods for A Hat in Time. All our viewers really enjoy them. Right now, due to us watching the kids nearly everyday, we havent been able to stream much. We have plans to restart soon.
Of course, most of my readers on here are here for the manga/anime reviews and the Pokemon content. Well, I fully plan to bring those back in strides now that school is over and I can’t really stream and record as much as years past.
Tomorrow or so, I’ll post a blog about some of the options we have available. Jessica and I each picked up about 3 mangas last week.
I dont have a detailed list of blog post I’m planning. I’m just going to kind of post what comes to my mind. In the mean time, if you enjoy our content and want more regular updates, go check out the Dahubbz youtube page (if I remember, I’ll add links later because I’m on mobile at the moment.)
I’m just happy to make post again. I’m always looking for more creative outlets. Here’s to finishing 2020 strong.
Thanks for reading and have a great day!
Da_Hubbz 