SEASONAL PRATTLE
I said it once and I’ll say it again: When carefully crafting a high-quality meal, chefs obsessively concentrate on choosing the proper ingredients. They know that taste relies on choosing how much of each to put in and when they choose to add them into the dish. In a way, a scriptwriter is like a chef and should know the ingredients they have to choose from – not rely on how they think their story will taste. This recent entry from Given was in clear control of its ingredients, presenting fantastic storytelling that’s backed by a firm wall of character work. The way small offhand moments are sold to create a sense of isolation and reflection, the ability to grant a degree of naturalism and gravity even with minimal craft, the timing and awareness to convey more emotional exchange than actual language; Aspects like this may not be as immediately appealing as a show’s larger narrative strokes, but they’re very rewarding in the foundation that they create and a big reason why this latest Given is so successful. Bravo to the overall capture and portrayal of this emotionally drenched episode down to the details.
Granbelm (10)
Shining once again, Granbelm serves up a showing brimming with decisive direction, engaging emotive beats and understated craft. Episode ten is just flat out good at framing its narrative with care, and you really don’t need to look beyond Shingetsu and Suishou’s second half sequences to verify that. However, the real attraction this week was just how taut the tonal execution was. After a few playbacks, it’s pretty clear that Granbelm has a very deliberate grasp on the switches it wants to flip – pumping out one scene after another of finely timed beats that convey both thematic nuance and a firm understanding of the dark, depressing brand of drama this series specifically wants to deliver. It’s beautiful to see unfold!
Machikado Mazoku (9)
Checking in on Machikado Mazoku, and I’m happy to report its use of fundamentals are still firing smooth enough to dependably steer twenty minutes of content into satisfying places – even if that content is relatively linear. This week didn’t have as much snap or pop in out of its jokes as some of its previous showings, but Yuuko’s antics still harmonize well enough with her supporting cast, and the underlying level of charm bleeds through to an appreciable extent, to keep this a respectable outing nonetheless. Not bad all in all.
Fire Force (9)
After a turnout just a week ago that presented one of its more complete efforts in awhile, Fire Force quickly relapses, reminding viewers how utterly incompetent it is when putting pen to script. It doesn’t take long to realize episode nine is fundamentally inept as every ounce of Tamaki’s emotional distress that seven days ago, this series worked hard to convey, evaporates quickly with the absolute out of place choices to use her as fanservice during Rekka and Shinra’s fight – both effectively devaluing her character and killing the tension that has been built thus far in one awful move. If that wasn’t bad enough, Fire Force continues to trip over its feet, bearing an anticlimactic loss for Rekka and compacting that with another layer of vague bricks on the already loose foundation that is this show’s core mystery and trajectory. Yikes.
Okaasan Online (9)
We’re still dealing with a similar level of storytelling and conceptualization that withered away at any shreds of value Okaasan Online’s very early content could whip up. Currently, it’s hard to imagine this series ever deviating from that. Even with the introduction of Amante and Mamoko seemingly in legitimate danger, J.C. Staff’s totally banal voicing of the material presents nothing that actually separates it from anything more than lightly serviceable at its best. Time will inevitably tell of course, and “time” is clearly an asset that this series is quickly running out of – with every passing minute being more and more of a foregone conclusion that Okassan Online won’t be making any last-second quality turnarounds, and instead, take its rightful place in the dumpster.
Maou-sama, Retry (10)
Maou-sama, Retry returns with a spectacle that pulls off the grand feat of being completely vapid and weightless – saturated in irrelevant chunks of dialogue and romantic feelings that will go absolutely nowhere when the smoke clears. Some semblance of reasonable scripting is hinted at early on; The decision to unravel Luna’s backstory gave a glimmer of hope, but alas, it was just a glimmer as the script quickly degrades into meaningless hot spring shenanigans for much of its course, and this series’ allergies to notions such as “depth” and “texture” remain strong. Just business as usual for this thoroughly lackluster show.
Araburu Kisetsu no Otome-domo yo (10)
Not satisfied with last week’s front flip into a shallow pool, Araburu is back with an episode even more determined to show off its ever-diminishing textual chops and affection for cheap, tedious drama – now emptying the pool completely and going for a swan dive instead. Our twenty minutes spent is thick with missteps and underwhelming choices to such an extent, that I honestly don’t even know where to begin: The blunt way atmosphere is crafted with copious cuts of a blood-moon beating on every other scene as if the audience is completely tone-deaf? Izumi being stupid in such an overwrought fashion that he rivals harem leads from fifteen years ago? The desperately tossed in teen pregnancy to obviously set the stage for friction between Sonezaki and Amagi? Don’t even get me started on the fumble of Momoko’s character or the blistering trashcan that Sugawara’s has become. Given these episodic entires try to maintain some level of brevity here, there simply isn’t enough space to unpack that all and what’s listed isn’t even the half of it.
With that said, let me just take a step back and leave you with this in summary: When the quality of your writing is noticeably reminiscent of what can be found propelling an episode of School Days, you know you messed up in a big way.
