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July 3rd-9th Week-In-Review

It’s nice to be back to writing again. I used to get so ashamed after taking breaks from writing that it would become more and more difficult to come back to it. It becomes sort of a self-defeating process and I’m nothing if not self-defeating. In any case, I’m trying to be better about working through my personal writing blocks nowadays. Things aren’t perfect, but they’re better.

I think part of the issue is that my time has been very divided lately. Not only do I want to watch anime and write about it, but I also want to knit and crochet (things that help me handle my anxiety). I also have to deal with a lot more things at work than I have in the past, and with some minor medical stuff tossed on top it’s just… a lot. I think the key for me is just being able to indulge in different pleasurable activities as I’m able and not get too caught up in non-constructive thinking about it.

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Anime Reviews First Impressions Reviews

Summer 2022 First Impressions – Tokyo Mew Mew New

Streaming: HIDIVE

Episodes: 12

Source: Manga

Episode Summary: Now that Ichigo Momomiya has entered high school, she’s become completely boy-crazy. With the help of her friends, she hopes to attract the attention of Masaya Aoyama, the most popular boy at school. As luck would have it, a random classmate gives Ichigo tickets to an exhibit on endangered species, which happens to be a topic Aoyama-kun is deeply invested in. When they “randomly” run into one-another in the courtyard, he’s excited to have the chance to go with Ichigo.

Though the exhibit itself is interesting, Ichigo’s idyllic date doesn’t last long before an alarm causes an evacuation of the premises. After being dragged outside, Ichigo and three other girls are hit by beams of light that cause them to see strange visions. When Ichigo returns to consciousness and meets back up with Aoyama-kun, they’re immediately attacked by a giant rat monster. As it turns out, the beam of light was more than just a daydream – it provided Ichigo the means to transform and fight with very cat-themed powers. Saving the world is great and all, but what about her budding relationship with Aoyama-kun?

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Anime Reviews First Impressions Reviews

Summer 2022 First Impressions – Vermeil in Gold

Streaming: HIDIVE

Episodes: 12

Source: Manga

Episode Summary: Alto Goldfield has a problem – if he can’t form a contract with a familiar before class the next day, he’ll be held back a year in magic school. He’s already tried almost everything, but as he’s pondering his situation in the library, a book of summoning magic falls from the shelf and hits him square in the head. Luckily for him some of it is still legible, so he draws the magic circle and chants the words written in the book. What bursts forth from the magic ring isn’t any ordinary spirit, however; instead, Alto seems to have summoned himself a very powerful, buxom demon.

The demon’s name is Vermeil and she informs Alto that the reason that no other creature would allow itself to be summoned to his side is because his mana is simply too potent for them to tolerate. Luckily demons are so powerful that they’re the one exception, and Vermeil knows many… creative ways to extract the mana she desires as payment for her services. Despite some headaches in class the next day, Vermeil is deemed acceptable as a familiar. However, Alto’s childhood friend Lilia isn’t quite so accepting. She challenges them to a duel, which despite her efforts Lilia loses spectacularly. Her penance is to become friendly with Vermeil, which she accepts, albeit not without some misgivings.

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Anime Reviews First Impressions Reviews

Summer 2022 First Impressions – My Isekai Life

Streaming: HIDIVE

Episodes: 12

Source: Light Novel

Episode Summary: Yuji is a tamer – what that means to those around him is that, though his heroic abilities are interesting, they aren’t especially powerful. He manages a small group of slimes that help him to defeat monsters in creative ways. This makes Yuji appear to have a knack for completing missions, but despite some rumors of certain slimes that are able to breathe fire, most folks around town don’t think much of Yuji.

That changes when the town comes under attack from a huge group of demons. As the horde approaches the outer borders of the city, Yuji uses his slimes to conduct a remote magical attack. The truth is that Yuji isn’t just a tamer – he has the abilities of a sage as well, which includes a bevy of extremely powerful magic spells. This allows him to wrap the city in a barrier and let loose with some terrifying flame magic, eventually defeating the enemy. In the aftermath of the encounter, evidence appears that seems to suggest the involvement of a certain cult in the attack.

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Anime Reviews First Impressions Reviews

Summer 2022 First Impressions – Spriggan

Streaming: Netflix

Episodes: 6 (45 minutes apiece)

Source: Manga

Episode Summary: The ARCAM organization is guided by the writing on a mysterious golden tablet, imploring anyone who might read its words to protect the artifacts and technology from the ancient world from being misused. When an altar is found beneath Mount Fuji that seems to have connections to an ancient civilization which had the power to control the volcano’s eruptions, ARCAM seeks the help of young linguistics professor Yamabishi to decipher its cryptic writing.

Of course, Yamabishi’s skill and the potentially limitless power offered by this altar also draws the attention of several other factions, including those out of Russia looking to claim the power for their own world-dominating aspirations. Luckily, professor Yamabishi falls under the protection of Yu Ominae, ARCAM’s elite fighter, code-named “Spriggan.” With his orichalcum body armor and keen fighting sense, Yu is a force to be reckoned with. But Russia has its own elite forces – will Yu’s abilities be enough to prevent the power of Fuji’s Flame Serpent from falling into the wrong hands?

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Anime Reviews First Impressions Reviews

Summer 2022 First Impressions – Yurei Deco

Streaming: Crunchyroll

Episodes: TBA

Source: Original

Episode Summary: On Tom Sawyer Island, love is a ruling force. Or at least that’s the ideal – as people interact with one-another, the love they share with one-another and/or put out into the world is converted into points, which can then be used to upgrade one’s user experience and enhance one’s “Deco” (both the tool used to virtually interact and the outward-facing appearance one has). Berry and her friends are somewhat less inclined to buy into the utopian message that the authorities are selling; what interests them more are stories related to a mysterious figure known as “Phantom Zero” whose actions cause havoc within the Deco system.

Berry’s Deco has been acting-up, but this turns out to give her an advantage; with her malfunctioning right eye, she can perceive cloaked items – and people. She discovers a piece of odd origami stuck to a pole, and soon after encounters a mysterious person who she assumes to be Phantom Zero. After a lot of running around and a couple of confrontations, this mysterious individual draws Berry into a completely separate, truly virtual(?) world where they’re both soon pursued by formations that have the ability to destroy pieces of their Deco. After being forced onto a rooftop, a floating figure descends into view – the real Phantom Zero.

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Anime Reviews First Impressions Reviews

Summer 2022 First Impressions – Bastard!! Heavy Metal Dark Fantasy

Streaming: Netflix

Episodes: 24

Source: Manga

Episode Summary: 400 years ago, humanity reached the apex of its own evil, drawing forth the power of Dark to destroy the world. But before the human race could be destroyed, a huge creature in the form of a white dragon arrived via a pillar of light. The battle between these godlike entities caused several continents to sink into the sea. After it was all over, the remaining humans passed this story on over the years until the line between reality and legend blurred.

Now, in a world of dark fantasy, the country of Meta-Licana finds itself under attack from followers of the late Dark Schneider, a wizard who wielded terrible evil power before being sealed away. A young woman named Yoko, guardian to Lucien and daughter of the head priest, holds a special power – the power to awaken a force sealed away in Lucien. But when the situation looks grim and she unleashes this power, it turns out that Lucien was the reincarnation of Dark Schneider all along. Dark Schneider has plans to destroy the world, but Yoko may have more sway in preventing that from happening than she realizes.

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Anime Reviews First Impressions Reviews

Summer 2022 First Impressions – Phantom of the Idol

Streaming: HIDIVE

Episodes: 10

Source: Manga

Episode Summary: Yuya Niyodo is one half of the male idol group ZINGS, though the effort he brings to the table is probably more around 5%. As an attractive man who got into the industry in order to make “easy money,” the fact that his manager, fans, and group member Yoshino expect him to put in some effort is making Yuya rethink his choices.

As he sits on the cusp of being fired, he notices a young woman sitting next to him on a bench. But this isn’t just any young woman – her name is Asahi Mogami, a famous idol who died a year ago in a tragic accident. As a ghost she can no longer perform for her adoring fans, but perhaps with the help of Yuya, who has a very alive body, Asahi can relive her performing days one last time. When Asahi’s influence causes Yuya and ZINGS to have their most successful performance to date, Yuya invites Asahi to keep their arrangement in place indefinitely.

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Anime Reviews First Impressions Reviews

Summer 2022 First Impressions – Teppen!! Laughing ’til You Cry

Streaming: Crunchyroll

Episodes: TBA

Source: Manga

Episode Summary: After winning a regional manzai comedy competition, the manzai trio Young WaiWai is asked to move into a dorm specifically for national manzai competitors. There, they join other regional groups, each with their own aesthetics and schtick – some are wealthy, others pretend(?) to believe in aliens. Here, they all practice their routines in order to prepare for competition – and to make their audiences laugh.

Young WaiWai turns a semi-autobiographical occurrence into a routine, describing a very unusual case of a broken bodybuilding trophy and the location of its missing head. While they try to hide the situation from the owner of the dorm (the winner of the trophy who’s extremely proud of it), they walk back through a series of truly silly events to discover the true culprit.

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Anime Reviews First Impressions Reviews

Summer 2022 First Impressions – Shoot! Goal to the Future

Streaming: Crunchyroll

Episodes: TBA

Source: Related to Aoki Densetsu Shoot!

Episode Summary: Tsuji was once a star on his soccer team, but his own arrogance over his skills as a shooter eventually spelled his downfall. After that he left soccer behind in favor of other pursuits, though his attitude toward the sport itself took on a specifically sour note. The team at Kakegawa high school has a championship history, but that seems to have faded into the past. Now other teams don’t even find them worth practicing against.

When Jo, one of the current team members perceives Tsuji’s disdain toward soccer, their philosophical differences blow up into a fight. In the background, a mysterious man watches this conflict with unusual interest. This man turns out to be Kamiya, a past member of the team and now a famous pro player. He returned to Japan upon the request of Kakegawa’s principal, and while he seems mostly uninterested in coaching the young members of his former team, witnessing a soccer shoot-out between Tsuji and Jo piques Kamiya’s interest. Perhaps there’s something he may be able to do for the team at Kakegawa high school – but it will take a lot of work for them to reach their destination as a cohesive team.

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