SEASONAL PRATTLE
Mushoku Tensei: Isekai Ittara Honki Dasu is back and with a fourth outing that is challenging for a lot of viewers – concerning itself deeply with sexually touchy material from cheating to rape as it closes out another week. This series has always had a salacious tint, but the writing around Paul, Zenith, and Lilia here clearly flaunts it with structural results that are surprisingly good despite the inherently cruddy nature of the material they represent. By that, I mean Okamoto actually does a solid job of converting Paul’s adverse behavior into digestible growth for Rudy – letting him mediate, resolve and considerably reflect on his father’s actions in a way that’s mapped where it’s arguably more telling for his character than Paul’s. And that avenue of writing is further enhanced with Four’s choice of accessory narrative threads: The parts with Sylphy, Ranoa, and Ghislaine certainly have their implications and personal marks on Rudy, but more subtly, they speak to the larger views of Mushoku Tensei’s world and that deserves a little extra appreciation. Tackling content like this isn’t easy, but Mushoku Tensei holds up.
Wonder Egg Priority (3)
“One of those uncommon shows whose wealth of creativity is actively amplified by a great articulation of its desires”
Wonder Egg Priority was notably on-brand for this third act, in that both its thematic pulp and physical vision of the concepts it employs continue to ooze a high fundamental level of confidence and aptitude. Episode three’s steep focus on routine character behavior and smart dependence on viewer assumptions has allowed its framing of Rika to be very digestible without sacrificing the gravity that underscores her story: In ways, she’s easy to comprehend – her personality is openly brash and intrusive enough to immediately “get her”, however, the hints of self-harm, particular geography of her dream world and relationship with Chiemi grants her a good dose of substance beneath the surface. Her particular anecdote is cleanly weaved with more learnings of Ai, whose overarching narrative seems just as piercing as this episodic tangent, uncovering insightful reveals on Sawaki sensei and Koito. And all of this is packaged in a rhythmic box of storytelling! Wonder Egg Priority is one of those uncommon shows whose wealth of creativity is actively amplified by a great articulation of its desires. Sharp as an escapist tale and fluent as a character story – this is a seasonal show you should be watching.
Horimiya (4)
“Horimiya seems better off if it devoted itself wholly to Shindo’s arrival or Hori’s fever”
Not as impressive as its initial episodes, but still steady enough to be reasonable; Horimiya’s fourth performance virtually operates in two worlds, where its early material squarely lands as light and fun, working from an ensemble approach that leads to some entertaining interactions between the secondary cast, and that’s ultimately pulled off with little fuss or hangups. And then for its later material, where well, things aren’t so great when it matters the most to put it bluntly. The chemistry between Miyamura and Hori is understandably strong, which is surely critical, given their connection is literally the title of the show, however, the big emotional stroke between them here feels undercooked – functional in the sense that Miyamura “could” confess when he did and it would pass as a believable stepping stone of the story, but distinctly weak as its build-up and delivery is so thin and lifeless. In hindsight, Horimiya seems better off if it devoted itself wholly to Shindo’s arrival or Hori’s fever – but the combination of the two was a balancing act the episode couldn’t exactly execute without a cost and it shows.
Jaku-Chara Tomozaki-kun (4)
“No doubt Gen Satou had a great performance voicing it”
Jaku-Chara Tomozaki-kun expressed some welcome sensitivity this week, in an episode heavily focused on Izumi’s insecurities and wavering relationships. Izumi is framed well enough early on to come across as an entirely effective supplement to Tomozaki’s character; her personality feels almost like it was designed as a safe wall for his increasingly optimistic view on life to thrive on and climb, making for a few pleasing breakthroughs in her room that lends both characters more definition. And episode four essentially props up the rest of its content from that base, maneuvering itself into position to ease Izumi’s personal conflict with Nakamura all off the back of a rant driven climax that doubles down on its messaging from the first half. Tomozaki’s outburst in a lot of ways is uncomfortable, largely because it has to be, but there’s no doubt Gen Satou had a great performance voicing it. You can really feel the passion for his hobby come through which is very fitting for Tomozaki’s character and something I hope we see more of moving forward.
Urasekai Picnic (4)
“Energetic audio cues, expressive character work, and well placed poignant moments”
This latest Urasekai Picnic was one that the series needed, bouncing back nicely from last week’s mess with a performance that’s overall better designed and suggestive of a trajectory that implies more interesting things about the narrative to come. Episode four’s first half is easily the best opening segment Urasekai has offered – energetic audio cues, expressive character work, and well placed poignant moments among our trio to foster development are all appreciable attributes to be found in there. And on top of that, the second half is no slouch either – managing to accomplish the feat of actually conveying the otherside’s creepiness in a tangible sense, letting Watanabe’s haunting soundtrack take over of what average shows would need to accomplish with commentary and tethering that to polished composites. Good job.
