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blazingsaadi · 3 years
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REVIEW TIME: Dorohedoro (manga)
Final Rating: 9.2/10
*Spoiler freeeeee*
I’m actually going to start off with this: I have NOT seen the anime, but the clips I have seen? The anime does NOT do this manga justice and I highly suggest reading. That being said, we’re going to do this a bit differently this time, due primarily to how much I throughout love/enjoy this manga...I ADORE THIS MANGA FOR THE FOLLOWING REASONS:
The art style is INCREDIBLE, and probably my favorite part of the manga—not to detract from the rest, but the art was just THAT great to me. There’s no other way to properly describe it other than a chaotic, beautiful disaster. It’s messy, gory, weird, but this is probably some of my favorite art to date. I absolutely loved the style, and the overall vibe that it gave the manga; Q is a beyond talented artist, but she’s certainly not lacking in other areas, either. And yes I said SHE. ♥️
While the plot did start a bit slow and seemed simplistic in nature, it picked up and never slowed down, yet the overall theme still remained while the plot thickened. It was truly great writing. You constantly had questions on your mind that would be answered, but then replaced with new questions. In my opinion, that’s the best storytelling style there is—don’t leave the audience feeling empty handed, but always keep them guessing. The twists weren’t at all predictable (and the ones you CAN predict, you’re either WRONG or they’re so minor they hardly mattered), and a few I had to read again to make sure I actually read it right; the final three volumes were some of the most page-turning I’ve read since 20th Century Boys—and man, can Q write an ending that just feels so perfect. I just really did adore the setting, the plot, really everything about this story was beyond incredible TO ME. And don’t get me started on the final twist...I wasn’t ready for it.
Onto the next though, the characters were truly what made this manga special, as well as their relationships with each other. From sad backstories to lifelong friendships (and possibly more, I’ll go down with my ship, okay?) to hatred of enemies, the characters and the way they intertwined was beautiful—and messy, similar to the art style. I can’t think of a single character that fell short, they even had characters for comedic relief that hit almost very time they popped up—which is always a plus.
If I had any negative criticisms...I would honestly be nitpicking at this point, but it would be the slow start and at times the panels were too muddied. Of course, NO OTHER ART STYLE would fit this manga—in my opinion, if it was attempted, it would be a flop. So, it’s not even that I would change the style, maybe just rework a few panels to make it clearer. But again, this is nit-picking at its finest. Additionally, a few of the powers were a bit standoffish—just a bit TOO weird, however they DID fit their characters personality’s extremely well, it just felt...silly...sometimes. But again, Dorohedoro is just a bit W E I R D, so I’m here for it.
Anyways, this manga was right up my alley, personally. It’s my style, my vibe, and I adored the characters and plot—I truly have NO complaints. It’s currently slotted at my #2 for manga, while it’s not the best-written (but still goated), beautiful (still beautiful too) piece of work, this is just too ME—I ABSOLUTELY adore it as I said. 🤝
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blazingsaadi · 3 years
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REVIEW TIME: Haikyuu!!
Final Rating: 9.4/10
*No spoilers in the review, can’t say the same for the comments*
I’m not going to lie, I was nervous for this one. A SPORTS anime? What could possibly be interesting/exciting about that? Well, past-self: everything.
I’m going to start out with the plot, because it is volleyball so it’s rather simplistic in nature: these boys are trying to go to Nationals. But it’s never about the destination, it’s about the journey, and while the journey is still straightforward, imo it was one hell of an experienced filled with fun times, sad times, happy times, etc. and such an amazing cast that we’re just going to go ahead and jump right into that.
Damn near every single character has *something* about them, so much so that the main team—Karasuno—BARELY made my Top 5 for teams, and only one member from Karasuno made my Top 5 overall (in the show, ofc). I attribute this to the fact that every character is given a unique background and personality, and they have intricacies and quirks and are just so beautifully crafted as a whole. You absolutely cannot help falling in love with their personalities and differences, and sometimes similarities (looking at you, Nekoma/Karasuno). Additionally, their interactions with other characters—on their team or not—is also well done; it’s amazing that these characters are so in-tune with each other on the court: which brings me to the sport itself.
When looking at how the sport itself was portrayed, I would say 10/10. The mangaka utilized characters such as the teacher, manager, etc. (aka characters who don’t know much about the sport) to explain little details about the sport that the audience may not have been able to pick up on otherwise. This allows for the “information dump” to feel fluid as well as entertaining in nature, and not overwhelming/boring. Even for people who have never played volleyball a day in their life, the series was incredibly detailed so that you can follow it 100% of the time. Additionally, through the usage of several teams and in-depth looks at each, we get a view of the various play styles/mindsets in the sport of volleyball, and watching clashing styles/ideologies, as we all know, is one of my favorite things.
As for as downsides go, I don’t have many, at all. At times, some of the “inspirational speeches” felt cheesy—but so did the speeches in any high school sport, so it checks out due to it being realistic. But the one qualm I did have that is more-so personal/biased more than anything is the usage of a certain character and his girlfriend to explain certain events in the final season; I just hate the character and wished it was someone else—so that’s on me.
Haikyuu!! is no doubt a Top 10, possibly Top 5, maybe even Top 3 anime for me. I find it hard to rank due to the fact that the genre isn’t one that I’m familiar with, so when comparing to anime such as AoT, Monster, etc. I feel at a loss since they are so DIFFERENT. But what I can tell you is that this is no doubt one of my favorite anime of all time, and that despite finishing it literally two minutes ago I want to rewatch it already.
Instead, I’m actually reading the manga as we speak, and you can expect a mini-review/update as soon as I’m done with that!
Did I miss something? I feel like I missed something. It’s just great, okay? 😭
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blazingsaadi · 3 years
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REVIEW TIME: Anohana
Rating: 9-10/10 (read on)
As far as this anime went, it had some of the most relatable characters I’ve ever seen. In one aspect or another, I felt like I connected to all of them whether it was a scenario they were faced with or an emotion they felt. Speaking of emotions, from the beginning this anime was tugging at my heartstrings, and had me crying by the time it was over. All of the emotions it played on were so raw; guilt, sadness, pain. It was a change of pace, for sure; it’s not a genre that is captivating and action-filled, but it is beautiful and raw and REAL. And that’s 100% okay, I get the Slice of Life hype now. I wouldn’t say it’s my favorite genre, but damn: this hit.
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blazingsaadi · 3 years
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𝐀𝐧𝐢𝐦𝐞: Dororo (Supernatural; 24 episodes)
Intro: This anime is actually a remake of the 1969 version, which was basically horror themed Mickey Mouse. Not hating on it, it just really looks like that. Produced by MAPPA and Tezuku productions, this is the story of a warrior with prosthetics fighting demons while traveling with a young thief
𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐆𝐨𝐨𝐝
The Story: It's simple, but that works to it's advantage. Some stories often suffer from the author trying to get to deep or have several twists and turns, but what they end up getting is a convuluted mess. The simplicity of Dororo allow the themes to come through easily. Such as "sacrifice," "survival," and "individualism vs. collectivism."
The Fighting: If you're a fan of Samurai Champloo you'll like these fights. Dynamic but not too crazy with supernatural elements and strength boosts
The OST: the soundtrack fits just right here. Doesn't stand out as much as others, but it does a very good job at conveying the emotions of the scenes and gives a good feeling of warring Japan
𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐎𝐤𝐚𝐲
Pacing: The pacing is a bit slow at times but it's not too bad. The anime could've been 20-22 episodes, not the full 24 .
𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐕𝐞𝐫𝐝𝐢𝐜𝐭: This is one of those anime that are a very solid watch. Nothing crazy or ground breaking going on, but a good story with good action and good themes present. There really wasn't anything that was bad about it
𝐒𝐜𝐨𝐫𝐞: 𝟖.𝟓/𝟏𝟎 Worth putting on the list. The OP is fire
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blazingsaadi · 3 years
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REVIEW TIME: Hunter x Hunter
Final Rating: 9.2
First and foremost, I’ll say that going into this anime I was dreading it; I’m not a fan of most mainstream shonen (DBZ, MHA, Naruto, etc.) so I thought this would be a bust. However, HxH is—and y’all quote me on this—the only anime I’ve seen that can PERFECTLY pull off those overused, redundant tropes and make it something special and unique that severely outclasses the rest.
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The main trope that I think they pull off best is the role of MC and Deuteragonist, so Gon and Killua. Y’all know I hate MCs: Gon is Top 5. Despite fitting that stereotypical MC role of being a not-so-bright, happy-go-lucky, overwhelmingly positive MC (aka everything I hate in a character) Gon pulls this off, and Killua filling my favorite spot in Shonen pulls off the cool, strategic sidekick with ease. And I think the reason for this is that despite having a role to fill, HxH allows these characters to test the boundaries of that role as well as explore the depth/intricacies of each character. It does a great job of showcasing why each character role/type is important, but also notes their weak points as well. It also, at times, will switch up the roles and blur the lines and have you wondering who you should be rooting for—or if you should even be rooting at all. The amount of depth each character has, and watching their emotional journey (btw, as far as emotions go, HxH is one of the most accurate when it comes capturing emotion; guilt, anger, sadness they hit all stages and it’s so raw and beautiful), makes for arguably some of the best characters in Shonen. All of that being said, 3-4 of these characters broke my Top 10, and I haven’t even touched on the villains yet—but trust me, they’re goated.
Another thing that sets HxH severely above the rest is what I believe to be a flawless power system: Nen. While Nen may not be as unique as stands, it shares that uniqueness and adds in the balance of alchemy. It is by far my favorite power system, because it basically states that no character is too OP or untouchable, and that everyone has a specific weakness. Additionally, Nen—at least I think—draws off of the characters personality, especially in their abilities and strategies. It is balanced, personable, unique, and by FAR the best system imo.
And because of this, you have some of the best fights I’ve seen in anime. Of course, this is completely dependent on what makes a good fight for you, because HxH does them a bit different. There is a lot more strategy, ideological clashing (iykyk top 3 fight right here), and narration to the fights; they aren’t just exchanging blows, big blasts, etc. and honestly: none of these characters are that strong in terms of other series. So, if that’s what interests you, you may not be into it; but if you’re into strategy and ideology and NEVER having a clear winner: HxH is for you.
Other good things to mention that I won’t spend too much time on: the soundtrack is honestly one of my favorites and the animation is well done (shoutout to Madhouse).
The only downsides to HxH are that it IS unfinished. The anime ends well-enough, but knowing that there’s more can sort of kill the vibe of the ending. Additionally, there were points that felt a bit slow/dry—granted this was primarily during setup of new arcs, but regardless the fact remains.
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blazingsaadi · 3 years
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Everything wrong with Demon Slayer. In Bullet Points. Spoilers. Obviously.
•Tanjiro doesn't know what a demon is even though there's no reason why he shouldn't. There are so many around that a whole corp is needed to fight them, people in the village believe it, and Giyu was nearby which implies demons are in the area
•We're never told why the Demon Slayer Corp isn't recognized by the govt, nor does it make sense. Demons have been around for 100s of years as the strongest beings on the planet, with many witnesses and victims to verify their existence
•Tanjiro's setup is not done well. A common trope is for the mc to have a good life and have it taken away. When used correctly, the story takes the time to make us learn and care about the characters. The family is on screen for 2.5mins just to show they're a happy family and they aren't memorable. If I'm wrong give me each of their names, personalities, and guy to girl ratio without googling it
•What is the point of having 5 siblings if they're just going to die in less than 3 minutes? If we don't know the characters there's no reason to care if they die
•The training arc is greatly misused. 2 years in 1.5 eps. Should've been longer to flesh out Tanjro's forms and the overall power system (see my post on that if you're interested)
• It was never explained why Tanjiro could see the ghosts of former students
• Zero reasons to care about Nezuko and her 2-year sleep. We dont know anything about her and we know nothing bad will happen cause she's the entire focus of the mc's mission
• No explanation as to why she slept for 2 years. That may be how she heals, but why that long? Nothing prompted that time
• Nezuko's entire character is being cute. Cute is not a personality trait
• Zenitsu is a bad character. He's comic relief, but he isn't funny. His jokes: he screams, screams about girls, passes out from cowardice. Repeat
•Cant as get invested in fights because we don't know the movesets due to the abilities being specific and restricted (the result of bad training arc)
• Only thing good about the fights is the animation. The choreography is basic and uninspired. MHA is even better in that aspect
• 4 of the 6 lower demon moons were killed for no reason and we never see their abilities. They could and shouldve been used to show progression
MANGA and MOVIE SPOILERS
• Ranking system is barely used and has 0 references for strength. Tanjiro didnt even know how to check his rank and never did it again
•Tanjiro couldnt beat the 2nd weakest demon moon yet somehow beats the strongest of the lower six, roided up on Muzan's blood, with Inosuke's help
- Said demon not using his full power
is nothing more than plot
convenience
•Rengoku dies after the first arc where he's relevant. There's little reason for Tanjiro or the audience to be sad about his death because we barely knew him
• Tanjiro later goes on to talk to Rengoku's family like he knew him his whole life
•The Sound Pillar has a similar issue where he shows up for one arc, we get a bit of info and he's gone for the rest of the story. As for the rest of the pillars, there isn't much to them because we dont get to properly know them
•Example: Snake pillars backstory was shoehorned into the final battle where it had nothing to do with what's going on
•Inosuke gets stabbed in the chest by a poison hook and survived. The Sound Pillar who was trained to fight off poison succumbed to it, but Inosuke is fine because he's "a rugged mountain boy"
•Inosuke still had the strength to decapitate number 6
•Zenitsu randomly has a new ability called Godspeed. Never once mentioned or foreshadowed. Not even in the previous (2nd) training arc after infinity train
•A pillar gets stuck in a water trap by the 5th upper demon moon and cant break through it with his sword. A kid swordsmith fails to do it with a knife, be he somehow blows through it with his lungs
• The comment from the mangaka that the illustrations of the breathing forms are just visual representations and not actually there does not make any kind of sense with a lot of the fights
•Giyu and Tanjiro are losing badly to Demon Moon 3 and only won cause Tanjiro's face looks similar to someone he knew (who we dont care about) and lets himself die cause he Tanjiro helped remembered his past
• Misuse of flashbacks and backstories for most characters. They're either unnecessary, irrelevant to the whole story, or dont contribute anything
•Nezuko is way too op for no reason. The only demon who can recover from sleep, regenerates limbs at the pace of an upper 6 demon moon, gets a whole new transformation which was never explained, doesn't need to sleep to recover the energy, and still has enough power to burn away everyones poison
- her blood demon art is to set HER
BLOOD on fire, so that makes no sense.
There's zero explanation to it so choose
your headcanon
•Nezuko is the chosen one. Literally, she overcomes the sun. Because she can. The asspull was so great it echoed to the main villain, changed his plan, and changed to the overall plot
•Muzan isn't a good villain. Tanjiro just walked up to him and grabbed him like it was nothing. He then didnt kill Tanjiro even though he has the same earrings as another demon slayer who tried to kill him just to keep his human persona.
-Why is he even bothering posing as a human?
-He has a kid that is the result of a demon and
human, how on Earth is that not touched
on?? Was he trying to find the spider lily? If so
how does being around random ordinary
families help? IT'S NEVER EXPLAINED
•Zenitsu goes through a very drastic character change with practically 0 transition (due to his old training partner becoming a demon)
• He uses a brand new form to beat him, which we never saw him develop in the training arc before the fight what so ever
• He goes right back to being the person he was before
• Genya's ability is never explained
• Upper moon 1 says he's seen it before but it's still never explained
• The final fight with Muzan is over 10% of the manga and drags on
•Muzan pulls a "this isnt even my final form"
• Tamiyo claimed she needed the blood of the 12 demon moons to find a way to beat Muzan and heal Nezuko, but just ended working with the insect pillar to develop a poison
• Said poison ages Muzan even though he said to be immortal
• Poison counteracts Muzan by going "this isn't even my final effect" and hinders him in 3 more ways
• Tanjiro becomes a demon for honestly no reason
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