The Lily Podcast – Episode 3

https://soundcloud.com/user-888234938/the-lily-podcast-episode-3

I tried keeping to 3 sentences tops for each series, but that just meant I wrote/said some really long strings of words to stay within the limit, oops.

I’m basically only reviewing the shows that I haven’t dropped yet (the last one is on the fence, however), but I did forget to include Ryuuou no Oshigoto!. That one was a good show but the excessive presence of underaged girls really really detract from the show in my opinion.

I have to call people for work starting from tomorrow and I thought I could record myself talking like this as practice but then I spoke too fast and didn’t enunciate properly…

Hakata Tonkotsu Ramens

Despite the fact that Hakata Tonkotsu Ramens is a somewhat misleading title, the show is about baseball and hitmen and baseball and trust and baseball. Protagonists never seem to be in danger since the antagonists never seem like actual threats and the considerable amount of violence and mistreatment towards women in the first arc might turn off some viewers. With that being said, Hakata Tonkotsu Ramens is, in short, cool and fun to watch, and is also easy to follow which makes DURARARA!! and its chaotic and anachronic manner of storytelling seem silly in comparison.

Mitsuboshi Colors

The trio felt like genuine girls, which is a nice change from those walking sources of political or social commentary which masquerade as children in other shows. The only problem is explaining why you’re watching a series involving elementary school girls running around town causing trouble and relieving boredom should anyone ask. All in all, the show is kept as a lighthearted, silly watch since the girls kept true to their colors…haha.

Sora yori mo Tooi Basho

The show earnestly conveyed what it means to struggle with poor self-image and being a “loner” and personal doubt, which surely resonated with many viewers. It was exhilarating to see Shirase change so drastically from a girl who went inside a bathroom stall to cry about how she lost a million yen to a girl who willingly left something precious behind in a place further than the universe. In short, the series is a journey and all the characters (even Kimari) grow and develop, which potentially caused viewers to be become motivated to try harder in real life, too.

Hakumei to Mikochi

An easygoing series about tiny people and animals of assorted sizes going about in their daily lives. It’s a vibrant, beautiful world in which nothing overly drastic happens, so that’ll either hook in or repulse viewers. Can I just say I love the relationship between Sen and Konju?

Slow Start

Probably the gayest show of the season since viewers and critics have to make a sincere attempt in order to ignore the very blatant yuri thematics. Anime fans who like shipping characters with one another and who enjoy these slice-of-life shows featuring a plethora of girls should consider Slow Start. The only problem I have is the fact that some may think that Hana’s reluctance to tell her friends that she was effectively held back a year is a bit weak to build a series around, but the series makes it work and becomes a tale about accepting one’s shortcomings and making genuine effort to grow as a person.

Karakai Jouzu no Takagi-san

Wholesome fun can be had seeing a girl utterly humiliate a boy she likes. Said boy also happens to like the aforementioned girl so it’s basically the advent of a boy who awakens to the pleasure of being a masochist. I knew the popularity of tsundere characters signified a shift in sexual preferences…!

Koi wa Ameagari no You ni

The series shies sprints away from the themes that were presented in the initial synopsis in order to focus more about pursuing forgotten passions and self-improvement and introspection. But the threat of an age-gap relationship was enough since it got people talking and the characters acting and moving. A very pretty show among an entire season of beautiful titles.

Pop Team Epic

You either hate it or dislike it or love it. Even those who like the series may care little for certain episodes. Even though I didn’t like some of the episodes as much as other episodes, I did enjoy this series as a whole, however, and I do like how there are so many different seiyuu for Popuko and Pipimi.

Yuru Camp△

THE healing series of the season. You either like it because it’s so easygoing and calming or you hate it for the same reasons. For what it’s worth, I found myself falling sleeping while watching episodes, so I guess that supports both sides?

Violet Evergarden (Ongoing)

Even with Violet’s slow yet undeniable character growth, she still feels like a robot to me since she still repeats lines over and over. Then again, a lot of characters do the same. There are the same ol’ character templates and story beats that have been done over and over in other shows present in Violet Evergarden, but it tries its best to strike emotional notes to keep the viewer engaged, which some may claim to be “emotionally manipulative” (I care little about that phrase).

DARLING in the FRANXX (Ongoing)

Haha.

Cardcaptor Sakura Clear Card-hen

Theme song (was gonna sing original dubbed series opening song here to signify that nothing much has changed from the original but I just decided to talk)

Gakuen Babysitters

Alternates between being off-putting and cute. Why is there a character who gets nosebleeds from looking at and interacting with children? Why is there a sexist and hypocritical father?

Märchen Mädchen

Fuck this show.