SEASONAL PRATTLE

At this point, Hoshiai no Sora’s offerings are just a vivid retread of the show’s core issues: Notably containing two distinct modes of storytelling, yet still struggling to be anything beyond mediocre with either of them and outright coming up as inept when attempting to bridge the two.

Episode 8 leans heavily on what’s easily its worst mode: An overtly thirsty dramatic state where apparently everyone’s parents are terrible, and any level of realism is fleeting with each passing plot beat. Immediately seeing what feels like at least the fourth mother being a source of drama, this time with Nao, only for it to receive the faintest of follow-ups (if you can even consider what happened a follow-up at all) was already bad enough, but Hoshiai no Sora washes that down with two more poorly crafted narrative threads. Maki, in all his fourteen years on this planet, talking thoughtfully to Yu about identity politics and social stigmas is outright the show’s silliest attempt to sell any chunk of narrative – vastly unbelievable in a lot of dimensions that are glaring with even a casual watch.

However, that may not take the cake for sheer ineptitude when you consider the bigger picture. The second thread and eight’s last stand, a shallow final minute attempt to carve Mitsue into more than the walking nothingness that’s she’s been is comically underachieving – not only because it’s hard to feel sympathy for her given her attitude and actions to this point, but more so because she’s such a bare-bones character and the attempt to change that is as translucent as filtered water and just as flavorful. What a mess this show has become.

Beastars (8)

Moody sequences elaborating a variety of emotions, purposeful, goal-oriented writing, careful direction and quietly excellent pacing – yeah, Beastars just keeps on showing up strong. The way this series works its dramatic aspirations is almost the direct opposite of what I was discussing above with Hoshiai no Sora, systematically working towards pain points that have been cleanly led to and being multifaceted in the process. The overall build and release of Juno and Louis’ “practice scene” is indicative of this very strength, and just one of many well constructed bright spots in eight that oozes the type of delivery you expect from an upper-tier drama. Good stuff.

Mairimashita! Iruma-kun (9)

Mairimashita! Iruma-kun certainly isn’t a gaudy show, but it really doesn’t have to be given how it wants to operate. This latest episode largely slips by on charm, administering a very warm twenty minutes composed of an arrangement of miniature scenes that demonstrate just how easy going and delightful our cast is – even if the episode itself is largely just a stepping stone of training for next week. When Mairimashita! Iruma-kun isn’t confidently churning out light laughs, it easily leans on being a reliably wholesome viewing experience and that’s a reward on its own.

Shinchou Yuusha: Kono Yuusha ga Ore Tueee Kuse ni Shinchou Sugiru (8)

We’ve come to a crossroads with Shinchou Yuusha where whatever remaining fragments of optimism relating to this show achieving more have just about faded away. Both structurally and in the actual content itself, there’s nothing worth noting here outside of some rougher looking cuts – as this latest performance plays its cards in its typical, borderline serviceable fashion. Some jokes are pulled off decently, others are challenged from the start of the setup, the actual storyline continues to be thinner than a cheap sweater and just as appealing, etc. It’s essentially another day in the office with this one and a very similar dance of mediocrity that we’ve been witnessing for weeks now.

Assassins Pride (8)

This entire Marquis Blossom arc of Assassins Pride has just been one bold reminder of what could have been had the show actually had some notable care put into its writing and delivery, and you know, not just half-baked ideas that are equally as undercooked when implemented. Episode eight had all the key pieces already outlined to make its experiment centered narrative at least entertaining – even if its ultimate reveal was heavily telegraphed last week – if it just did a good job of pulling the trigger. However, the execution simply isn’t there as usual: Spending an ample amount of the episode on fringe content such as the early half detective bit and doubling down hard on its poor foreshadowing – all serving to be missed opportunities in hindsight. Inevitably, the last five minutes of eight are the only ones that actually offer any real value, and even then, it’s just an expository reveal that was easy to figure out long ago. This arc is way better on paper than it is in practice.