SEASONAL PRATTLE

It’s been a while since any sort of coverage has been thrown Eizouken’s way, largely, because it’s not only hard to discuss it concisely like Seasonal Prattle aims for with this weekly series (doing so doesn’t really do it justice) but arguably more important – its “quality” is super volatile based on perspective and watching that unfold has taken a few episodes in its own right.

So with a month’s worth of content now down, I want to be crystal clear: Eizouken ni wa Te wo Dasu na! is a good work and this latest fourth episode is another testament to that. However, it’s not “great” nor was the episode. Why the distinction? Well, for as much praise that’s rightfully deserved for a work and performance like this week that cleanly rings all sorts of meta bells and continues its visual competence – it’s just not as strong textually. At its heart, Eizouken operates thickly in the cramped box that most “school club” series live in, and four’s primary flows and beats readily reflect that once you get past the glitz, glam and quirks of its exterior design and look at what was actually written in an episode pinned around budget approval.

With that said, while it’s extremely easy to oversell Eizouken if one were to mainly observe and discuss its physical craft, I suggest the bigger constructal picture should be taken into account and thoroughly examined – paying equal weight to the show’s scripting. Doing so more readily separates “good” from “great”, and ultimately lends better clarity. A practice that’s particularly useful here given the lopsided nature of its discourse, and likely will remain as such moving forward.

Kyokou Suiri (3)

“Letting Kotoko work off of the core cast has proven to be a consistently favorable outcome”

Good to see Kyokou Suiri bounce back with an all-around more engaging performance, putting last week’s sluggish, dialogue-heavy drag in the rear-view mirror. Letting Kotoko work off of the core cast has proven to be a consistently favorable outcome for the show: Her banter with Kurou early on is just as enjoyable as that found in the latter half with Saki – all mixing quite nicely with the immediate appeal of Nanase’s narrative that’s now taking center stage. Be that as it may, some more coincidental bits of scripting could have been presented much smoother, with Saki and Kotoko’s all too coincidental meeting leading that pack and the time skip not being too far behind, but it’s not enough to completely sink the ship. Let’s see if next week can build upon the positives from here.

Oshi ga Budoukan Ittekuretara Shinu (3)

“Occasionally smirk worthy gags”

“Underwhelming idol anime” has been a descriptor this Winter for a fair share of new shows, and Oshi ga Budoukan Ittekuretara Shinu certainly doesn’t escape that label’s reach despite its perspective. Episode three does little to alter a formula of occasionally smirk worthy gags and heaps of writing that’s clearly content with just being passable for much of its run as it slithers to a close. Eripiyo’s waning train encounter with Maina is somewhat rewarding, but given that you have to climb through a slew of tedious sequences to get there, it’s more of a small consolation medal rather than a full trophy. Borderline showing at best.

Darwin’s Game (4)

“Robbed by the bleak, lazy penmanship”

Darwin’s Game’s fourth showing should come as a surprise to anyone who expected it to go twenty minutes without its writing falling awkwardly in a pitfall, as lo and behold, it does, and in a fairly obvious way at that. Kaname’s fight with the florist, which eats up a decent chunk of this episode and inevitably encapsulates its climax, is sadly robbed by the bleak, lazy penmanship of flashback/realization plot armor – the greatest weapon for any D-rate shounen MC. Thus, despite a moderately entertaining build-up with Rein that carries early on, it’s hard not to be disappointed by episode four’s results when it’s all said and done. Decent performance if you can turn a blind eye to the holes in its internal logic.

Nekopara (3)

“Dull and super safe”

Nekopara marches forward, now three episodes deep and establishing a rhythm of light drama to complement its easy-going cat girl shenanigans. If there’s anything to praise here, it’s not the story – the narrative is dull and super safe, clearly just a loose backbone to give this show some sense of progression as opposed to being a legitimate focus. However, it’s enough to get by in reasonably selling Chocola’s concern in this latest outing, landing her resolution with about as decent footing as you would predict from a show like this.

Infinite Dendrogram Tokunana (3)

“Dwindling optimism for its future”

Lastly, while the first two episodes were impressively less than average, Infinite Dendrogram’s third entry at least manages to avoid being a blatant failure, finding glimpses of much-needed momentum and engagement with the introduction of Altair Kingdom’s Four Superiors. Despite that, episode three’s stunted production and this series’ overall weak grasp of pace and direction hampers the moment – limiting what easily could have been a much more visceral display if it were in better hands to a mild performance. Throwing salt in the wound, the rest of three’s content follows the lead of the previous two, falling neatly back into the dusty hole where Dendrogram’s scenario writing resides along with viewers’ dwindling optimism for its future.