Reaction: Gun Gale Online – Episode 9

The episode starts off and we’re immediately bombarded by still frames. Oh, A-1 Pictures, you.

So Kirito’s harem is in some room watching the BOB tournament. And of course, all they can do is talk about how AMAZING Kirito is. And that he’s sooo smart and such an amaaazing strategist.

All hail Digital Jesus!

WE GET IT. He’s amazing and you all want the D. Now SHUT UP. Please.

DEASU GUNNU kills someone and the overly dramatic bad guy speech ensues. Hey, Kirito! Sinon! While he’s giving his stupid speech why don’t you try to…you know…attack him? Sinon fires one shot, misses, and they just…sit there.

DEASU GUNNU leaves and our two GGO heroes go after him. But not before they get attacked by some nameless guy and they beat him. Nothing new.

I suck at shooters and I hardly play them, so I can’t really criticize the tactics they use. But even I know that there were A LOT of idiotic things that characters did throughout this tournament. Starting with that guy who went after both Kirito and Sinon. Yes. Go after not only the 2 best players in GGO, but go after TWO people at once. Genius.

Also, can I just say again, WHY ISN’T EVERYONE A SNIPER?! Clearly you’d have a huge advantage in this stage! But, whatever.

Kirito tells Sinon that DEASU GUNNU can actually kill people in real life and she’s in disbelief that “someone like that plays GGO”! How dare a psychopath play her precious video game.

What’s even worse is that as he tells her this, she has another one of her flashbacks and starts freaking out. Sinon THEN proceeds to tell Kiritina that she has a hard time believing his story.

Uh, if you don’t believe him, why are you freaking out? Sigh.

Oh yeah, and we now know that Sinon CAN get panic attacks in GGO. So all these people saying that the “headgear keeps her trauma in check” can now SHOVE IT.

If anyone is actually fearing for Sinon’s life…and were at the edge of their seat at this scene…. I seriously laugh at you.

Who wants to bet that in the next episode, Kirito will show up and “heroically” save his haremette? No one? That’s right, because it’s so painstakingly OBVIOUS that’s what will happen.

Misogyny Online. Where females can’t save themselves. Ever.

If you haven’t noticed the trend, Kawahara CONSTANTLY uses the whole “damsel in distress” trope as a way to heighten drama. And when Kirito inevitably saves said damsel, he’s suppose to be glorified as some kind of mighty savior.

-throws up-

This all goes back to the whole self-insertion theme that is Krito. When something good happens to him…you cheer NOT because you’re cheering for Kirito, but because you want that to be you.

And the “Highlight of the Episode” award goes to….

Heck, I don’t even know anymore.

Next episode, I guess.

Reaction: Gun Gale Online – Episode 5

Well, I’ll say this much about the SAO franchise: It knows its audience and EXACTLY how to pander towards it. But since the core of SAO is wish fulfillment and nothing more, this is NOT a good thing.

The episode starts off with Kirito– er….Kiritina… and Sinon “just barely” making it to the sign up for BOB. It’s funny because Sinon says “hurry!” as they casually WALK in. Nice.

As Kiritina is about to enter his info for sign ups, the form asks for his real information in order to sign up. Obviously he can’t say he’s a male because….no. There is no logic behind that. What’s even funnier is the fact the form he entered was EMPTY. (That’s right. EMPTY.) AND HE WAS STILL ABLE TO ENTER THE TOURNAMENT!! What? He entered a BLANK form and was able to get into the tournament? How????? 

Actually, I’m not surprised. This is SAO afterall. Where logic does not apply. (“THE ONLY DIFFERENCE IS THE AMOUNT OF DATA!!”)

Wrong, Sinon. You’re both in Block F because of plot convenience. 

Something I forgot to mention last episode is the fact KIRITO STILL LOOKS MALE. Look at him! Look! He’s just a male with long hair and big eyes! Jeez.

So they go to the dressing room and Sinon strips down. Kirito, being the “oh so pure and innocent” boy he is immediately acts bashful and reveals he is in fact, a male. And then there’s that stupid 30 second pause before Sinon actually reacts. (WHY do they always take so long?! WHY?!?!) And she pulls the stupid moe-tsundere face –

And then she slaps him of course. Because…I don’t know. It’s suppose to be funny I guess? Because that trope hasn’t been done in THOUSANDS of other anime, obviously. Really though, look at that stupid moe face. THIS is why SAO is popular. For the pandering. Who needs actual good writing, right?

So then Sinon is all upset for whatever reason. Because, a male using a female avatar online is SO rare.

Some people counter this and say “Kirito lied to her, she felt betrayed! That’s why she’s so upset.” Seriously? That’s the best you can come up with? At most I would feel awkward. And it’s not like Kirito took advantage of her account or anything! Honestly.

It’s her fault for believing he was female in the first place. Doesn’t she know anything about stranger danger? The online world is full of lies, Sinon. Don’t you live in the future? Don’t they teach anything about online safety or whatever? Apparently not!

Anyways, Sinon is pissed off at Kirito but tells him not to lose in the tournament.

Get off your high horse, Sinon. You don’t teach Digital Jesus. Digital Jesus teaches YOU.

Really though, they were probably together for like, an hour or two? The only things she taught him were things that SHOULD’VE been explained in one of those first-time user tutorials. But there was no such thing, because this is SAO. Where video games are nothing like video games.

Kirito enters his first fight (but not before Sinon pulls yet ANOTHER moe-tsundere face) and if you thought he would have ANY trouble winning, you’re obviously watching the wrong show. (And if you are, keep it that way.)

He acts like deflecting bullets will actually be difficult for him. Har. Har.

I’m still laughing at how he’s seriously the ONLY user with a lightsaber. Of course we need to make him a super special snowflake. But the thought of NO other users having a melee weapon? I assure you TONS of other people would have one if not simply for the cool factor. Also, why WOULDN’T more people have a melee weapon?! WHY?! Don’t tell me Kiritina is the only person who thought of using a gun for distraction and having a sword as the main weapon. But that’s EXACTLY how it is! He is literally the only one! 

Ugh. 

Anyways, Kiritina wins and is ported back to the lobby. The fact that they took the time to show Sinon’s friend was still in the lobby only PROVES he’s related to DEASU GUNNU!! They tried to be “clever”, however and trick the viewers into thinking this isn’t the case because DEASU GUNNU himself appears in the lobby too. But it’s still so blatantly obvious how they’re playing this out…it’s pathetic.

The two have a stare-down and the only thing I can think of is Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader.

Wait a second.

WAIT A SECOND.

Lightsabers….Cyberpunk….. A villain that looks like Darth Vader himself?! GGO IS A POOP COPY OF STAR WARS!!! The Gary Stu Mary Sue is strong with this one.

(They missed a perfect opportunity to call DEASU GUNNU, “Darth Gun”!!)

So, Kirito realizes that DEASU GUNNU is also a SAO survivor and the episode ends.

Boy was this episode dry. Obvious and forced “suspense”, idiotic dialogue, more moe-tsundere faces and fanservice that will boost rating…Same stuff, different day.

Sighhhhh.

This episode gets no “Highlight of the Episode” award. I’m mostly watching this series now so when people ask me “Have you seen SAO?” I can say “yes I have and it’s garbage!”. And I won’t be accused of saying that, quote, “only because I haven’t watched it all.”

Also, it’s still a lot of fun to laugh at. Onto episode 6!

Reaction: Tokyo Ghoul – Episode 5

Major episode spoilers ahead. Read at your own risk.

Not gonna lie, guys…. This week’s episode was a MESS. 

The way this has been progressing is abysmally awful. The story is fine, but they way events skip around is SO frustrating and confusing!

The opening scene starts off with Kaneki having a nightmare about Tsukiyama (the flamboyant blue-haired dude) and he wakes up in a cold sweat at…some office. Wait, wait, wait. What? How did he get there? What happened at the ghoul restaurant?! Did they just let Kaneki go?! They left off at a cliffhanger last week and they’re not even continuing from that point?!?! WHAT HAPPENED?!

As the episode went on I thought that maybe they would at least mention the events from last week…. Boy was I pissed off.

Nothing. They gave us NOTHING. They didn’t tell us how Kaneki escaped, they didn’t show Kaneki even asking Tsukiyama why he did what he did – NOTHING! It’s like they stopped mid story and started a new one!!! If they’re trying to pull a Scheherazade on us, it’s not working.

Tsukiyama: “I may have been a bit hard on you. Can we forget about this?” Don’t you DARE tell me this is legitimately how they ended things. You’re kidding me. No. *Frustrated growling*

Something else I immediately noticed right off the bat was the animation quality. 

Okay, what the heck happened there? In the first few episodes, I highly praised Tokyo Ghoul for it’s strong art and animation. I don’t know if anyone else noticed, but both have been progressively dropping. Character movements were strange and choppy, and the way characters were drawn was pretty disappointing in most scenes. 

The biggest flaw I’m seeing with Tokyo Ghoul so far is how RUSHED everything is. Events happen so quickly and don’t connect well to one another. The story line feels choppy, like they’re leaving out lots of important points.

Moving on to characters, there’s one in particular that bothered me this episode – Hinami.

I like Hinami’s character, I really do. Which is why I was disappointed with last week’s episode because she didn’t show up. Well…she showed up this week, but now I just have to wonder… WHY? Maybe she’ll be important to the story later, but I feel like the only reason she showed up this episode was…just for the heck of it. Just so she can wave at the audience and be like “yeah, I’m in this show. Remember me? I’m that one character.” There’s no point in putting a character into an episode if they’re not going to either A) progress the plot, or B) foreshadow something. Which Hinami did neither of.

Anyways, we get to the real meat of this episode where Kaneki finds Nishiki being beat up by some ghouls in an alley.

He fights them, wins, yadda yadda. But the way he won was just like….Really?

Last week, they LITERALLY showed 3 seconds of Kaneki’s “training”…and now we’re suppose to believe he’s the melee king? No kidding, he punches out a burly ghoul with one hit. I completely facepalmed during this scene. Just….sigh.

Kaneki takes Nishiki back to his home where Nishiki’s girlfriend, Kimi, a HUMAN, is waiting. Remember her? Yeah, me neither. Until about 17 minutes into the episode where I was like “…Oh, she’s that one chick from episode 2!”

It was frustrating the way she spoke as if she’d been in the anime the whole time. Ugh.

Kimi then talks to Kaneki and he….promises her he’ll “see what he can do”. That is, about Nishiki being a ghoul….Are you kidding me?! What do YOU know about being a ghoul?! You were only recently turned into one! He really had the nerve to act like he’s some ghoul expert and can help the couple’s relationship. Or…actually, he never even MENTIONS what he’ll help her with! Again – WHAT THE F**K IS GOING ON!?

And Kimi immediately trusts Kaneki (to do whatever the heck he’s going to do) like as if they hadn’t just met 2 seconds ago. This is so laughable. SO laughable.

So, blah blah blah, Kimi is kidnapped by Tsukiyama so Kaneki and Nishiki go to save her. A fight happens, of course, and Touka shows up.

I feel like I’m mostly watching this anime just for the sake of Touka. Because seriously, she’s BY FAR the best character.

As much as I’ve been slowly turning to somewhat dislike Kaneki….1000 awesome points to him for roundhouse kicking Tsukiyama in the face.

So we get halfway through the fight and Nishiki starts having flashbacks about his past.

Okay, fine. I do have sympathy for what happened to him. But the way everything was executed was SO melodramatic. It was like, I had a sister, she died, now I have a girlfriend.

That is literally how I felt it was presented. I couldn’t get invested into his story at all.

Touka takes a bite out of Kaneki, Tsukiyama flips out, the episode ends…and I’m still wondering what the heck happened after the events at the ghoul restaurant.

I’m just….SO disappointed in this episode. It was an utter atrocity. Plot holes, forced drama, rushed events, dropped art/animation quality, and SO many times I facepalmed.

And the “Highlight of the Episode” award goes to..

Touka. Just like last week. Because she’s slowly becoming the main reason I’m watching Tokyo Ghoul.

Let’s hope episode 6 plays out better 😛

Reaction: Ao Haru Ride – Episode 4

Okay, I’m sold. I originally had no interest in this anime but now 4 episodes later, I’m sucked in.

Something I can’t BELIEVE I didn’t notice about Ao Haru Ride is the fact the opening song was written by Honey Works. I knew I loved the opening the first time I heard it, but I didn’t realize it was composed by one of my most favorite Vocaloid producing units! The rhythm and sounds were familiar, but I never made the connection until now. As a die-hard Vocaloid fan, this was SUCH a great surprise. 🙂

 I can’t believe I even missed the nod towards Honey Works’s mascot!!

Well, jumping into the episode, we’re thrown into a fast-paced story line. The beginning scenes were really fun to watch Kou and Futuba running around trying to get to their destination. Overall, the episode was just a blast to watch.

 (Notice that Murao is blushing)

LOVE TRIANGLE SPOTTED!

I’ve always loved friendly love triangles. They’re SO much fun. Especially when you root for either couple. Thumbs up to you, Ao Haru Ride.

Yuri is still my favorite character.

This just made her character even better. It’s usually painfully obvious when characters have alter egos, but I didn’t see it coming with Yuri AT ALL. More points to you, Ao Haru Ride!

I cringed during this scene, however. Have you ever noticed that main characters in shoujos always fall in love with the male love interest because he’s better than her at something? (More often than not, everything.) Ao Haru Ride still hasn’t escaped the cliche shoujo anime zone, but its certainly gotten better.

DO THE SPIDERMAN KISS. DO IT.

 Futuba makes her move!

Jokes aside, his part definitely surprised me. I feel like the romance is moving a lot faster than it should be.

Lady, you just KISSED his head. Stop. If Futuba ends up being a tsundere you can just kill me now. I DETEST tsunderes.

The side ships are starting to appear! I think that was my favorite part about this episode. The fact they’re establishing other couples now.

Okay….fine. I’ll admit it. I’m kind of getting on board with the romance now. Just a little bit.

Or maybe not. STOP THE TSUNDERE. STOP IT. Ao Haru Ride can still escape and keep out the tsundere relationships. I have no desire to watch Futuba turn into some immature, emotionally unstable character who’ll become violent at the drop of a hat. 

(Sorry for the throw up of pictures.)

Anyways, this episode was definitely the best one so far. It’s amazing how much I’ve come to enjoy watching this series. But I swear if Futuba continues to push away her emotions, I’m done. The whole “What are these feelings I have? Is it love? No. I can’t possibly love him!” trope has always pissed me off. It’s fine to a REALISTIC extent, but when they go overboard for most of the season, I end up wanting to shoot the girl. Luckily, when Futuba holds her feelings back, it’s understandable. But the fact she boldly makes a move on Kou and tells herself she doesn’t have feelings for him is nothing but a bad attempt at trying to create drama.

And the “Highlight of the Episode” award goes to…

The love triangle and the new side ships!

Tune in next time for a look at episode 5! 🙂

Reaction: Barakamon – Episode 4

Because of last week’s episode I was pretty hesitant of this week’s….

But thank GOODNESS I worried for nothing! Episode 4 definitely brought back the same feelings I had the first time I checked out Barakamon. Laughs for everyone!

This episode was so much fun to watch! I just couldn’t help smiling!

I’m actually SUPER allergic to cats myself so Seishuu’s reaction to them made me laugh at how relatable it was. (But unlike him, I’ve always preferred dogs ❤ )

Naru and Hina both appeared in this episode for a large majority too, which already made this episode FAR more enjoyable than last week’s.

This episode was just tons of fun! Which is exactly what I expect from Barakamon. I’m glad this series got back on its feet after episode 3 was such a flop.

And the “Highlight of the Episode” award goes to…

Being an actual episode of Barakamon. Unlike whatever that mess of an episode was last week…

Glad to see it got back to its hilarious, fun roots. Hopefully next week’s will be just as good.

Grave of the Fireflies

• Characters: 2  /3
• Story: 3  /3
• Enjoyment: 1  /2
• Art: 1  /1
• Animation: 1  /1

Overall Score: 8/10

Grave of the Fireflies in one word: Powerful.

The story is about a young boy named Seita who passes away shortly after the end of World War II. His spirit looks back at his experiences during the war as he struggled through various hardships…

I love Studio Ghibli films to death. But, surprisingly, I’d never seen Grave of the Fireflies until recently. I had no idea what it was about before watching it, and wanted it to be a surprise, so I didn’t do any research on the film prior.

Immediately I realized I was about to watch something that would have me crying at the end. And yep. I was.

The characters, the story, the animation…it’s everything I expected from a Ghibli film, but completely different from any other I’d seen. I fell in love with both Seita and his sister, Setsuko. Their bond, their struggles, their laughter, their love for each other…I was completely sucked into the story because of them.

As always the case with Studio Ghibli, the characters were very realistic and well written. But what captured me about Grave of the Fireflies was definitely the story.

I can’t believe how many people bash this movie and say it “demonizes Americans” when it absolutely DOESN’T. The point of the story is not to show how horrible us Americans were – or anyone for that matter. It was to show the devastating effects war has in general while also telling a story that tugs at your heartstrings. There was a comment on the site where I was watching the movie where the person called this movie laughable. That they couldn’t feel sympathy for the characters because they were Japanese, America’s enemies during WWII. How pig-headed do you have to be to say something like that? I understand that in war, you do what you have to do. But it doesn’t change the fact that war is ugly for everyone. And the fact he couldn’t sympathize with Seita or Setsuko, war victims, is lost on me.

This movie is definitely, er…depressing. Like….very depressing. Yet it’s so powerful that it’s ultimately a masterpiece. I’ve said this before, but the best kind of writing is something that makes you feel. Something that can move an audience and bring out emotion. Grave of the Fireflies brought tears to my eyes and made me feel like I’d been punched in the gut. (In a good way, if that’s possible) I felt so much watching this movie; it’s such an enthralling tale.

And of course, as expected of a Studio Ghibli film, the animation was SUPERB. The hand-drawn, smooth movements characters have never cease to impress me.

You can call the art style of Grave of the Fireflies outdated if you want. But that doesn’t change the fact it’s done not only very well, but makes it a classic anime movie. 

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So to sum it up:

Pros: It’s powerful. Definitely a classic anime movie. The characters, story, atmosphere – everything is done brilliantly. It’s a very deep, enthralling tale. For something that came out in 1988, the art and animation are both top quality.

Cons: It’s rather depressing. Kind of like someone beat up your emotions and left them to rot…

Worth watching? If you can handle an anime with deeper, more mature themes… If you can handle being handed a masterpiece at the expense of having your feelings ripped to shreds… Grave of the Fireflies is exactly what you want. It’s a beautiful, compelling, and gripping story that WILL get you to tear up. Plus, it’s a Ghibli film which automatically makes it a top-notch anime movie.

 

Reaction: Zankyou no Terror – Episode 3

I feel like the only reason everyone has been going nuts over this anime is because it gives off such a Death Note kind of vibe. I don’t know what it is about Zankyou no Terror, but I have a tendency to zone out while watching it.

It took me a bit longer to finish watching this week’s episode because of how many times I had to rewind and re-read the subs. Before I knew it, the episode was over and I could hardly recall anything that happened. Maybe I’m losing interest, maybe my attention span depletes once I hit the play button….whatever it is, I always find myself zoning out.

 

To be honest, I’m really only interested in Shibasaki. He’s somehow ended up becoming my favorite character. Probably because he’s the only thing keeping this series even remotely interesting for me….

 (Maybe it’s because he kind of reminds me of Dr. Ozaki from Shiki.)

This series does a great job at trying to keep it as realistic as possible (regardless of the fact they play the “teenagers can do anything” trope). But whenever Lisa’s mom appears, I can’t help but feel it loses its believability in those moments.

Aaaaaand STILL waiting to see how Lisa’s character has any importance to the story.

I just don’t really know what I WANT from this series. A psychological thriller? Something with more action? More mystery? I’m just waiting for something to happen that’ll actually strike my interest. For now this series is nothing more than a mind numbing experience to pass the time with.

I guess what I’m waiting for is something that’ll make me go “No way!” or “Aha!”. That’s why I keep coming back every week. I’m just waiting around hopefully for SOMETHING….And I really want that something to come soon…

The “Highlight of the Episode” award goes to…

Shibasaki.

I guess I’ll check out episode 4 next week….

 

 

 

Daily Lives of High School Boys

• Characters: 3  /3
• Story: 3  /3
• Enjoyment: 2  /2
• Art: 0  /1
• Animation: 0  /1

Overall Score: 8/10

I finished Daily Lives of High School Boys (Danshi Koukousei no Nichijou) the day I started it, but my internet connection was messed up, so I couldn’t write a review.

First off, writing a review for a comedy is obviously different from reviewing something like, oh, Angel Beats!. So, even though I gave Daily Lives a higher score, it’s in a different category entirely. The two can’t be compared because they’re so DIFFERENT. So with that out of the way, let’s get started.

Daily Lives of High School Boys is about exactly what it’s called. Can’t get any simpler than that. It’s comprised of short stories rather than a linear plot.The entire anime is nothing but short, simple, hilarious, rollicking stories. It’s probably the funniest anime I’ve ever seen. 

Pretty much every character in this show is hilarious. The conversations and childish antics they partake in is the center of Daily Lives. Not to mention all the characters are completely likable/lovable! The thought of a comedy centered around high school boys definitely sounded interesting to me. I stress “boys” because school comedies seem to always be centered around high school girls for some reason. Lucky Star, Nichijou, Azumanga Daioh, etc. But one about boys? At first I expected an anime with lots of video games and trying to pick up girls. And while there was a conversation or two about both, Daily Lives had SO much to offer! Something I was really surprised about was the fact that there are actually a LOT of girls in this anime too. Regardless of the fact the main characters attend an all boys school. In an anime like Lucky Star where the characters even go to a coed school, I’m pretty sure there was a maximum of 2 males in the entire show. (It doesn’t count if they’re just characters in the background.) There’s even a short at the end of every episode called High School Girls are Funky! Just because of that, Daily Lives brought something totally new to the table!

I really had to pause the video a couple times because I was laughing so hard! While there were some jokes I normally wouldn’t laugh at in any other anime, Daily Lives gets away with it because of how ridiculous it KNOWS it is. It’s been a while since I could just shut off the “critic” part of my brain, sit down, and just watch something without ever making a snide remark!

 

Even without a plot, Daily Lives managed to become one of my favorite anime. I enjoyed every second of it because I never stopped laughing!

While the art and animation isn’t the best by any means, that doesn’t take away from the show at all. It’s too funny to just NOT enjoy!

While Daily Lives portrays pretty much every female character as treating males like monsters or lower beings, it’s only to give way to funny moments. Rather than coming off as misogynistic, it seemed like the opposite, in fact. It felt a lot more along the lines of “girl power!”.

And the males were all completely lovable as well. There’s even a scene where one of them rants on how guilty he was when he accidentally saw up a girl’s skirt. I feel like it’s rare in anime to find males who act like gentlemen without being either overly flamboyant, prince-like, or shy. Daily Lives breaks the norm once again.

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So to sum it up:

Pros: It’s HYSTERICAL. You will be entertained to the very end. There is not one story that didn’t at least make me smile. Not one. The characters are all memorable and lovable – even though it’s not necessary to remember their names!

Cons: The art/animation is under average. (But this definitely doesn’t take away from the anime AT ALL.)

Worth watching? If you like slice of life comedies, this is probably the best one you will ever find. (It’s definitely my favorite.) If you want to watch something that will have you on the floor laughing, Daily Lives is DEFINITELY worth checking out!

 

Reaction: Ao Haru Ride – Episode 3

Well, I can’t believe I’m saying this, but Ao Haru Ride actually seems to only be going up. It’s interesting how a series I really had absolutely no interest in is getting better, while my favorite anime this season (Barakamon) is going downhill.

While the romance is still as cliche as it gets, the anime is starting to get pretty fun to watch. Not because of the romance, but because of the characters.

I’m loving the side characters so far. I hope Ao Haru Ride gives them plenty of attention instead of keeping the spotlight solely on the main couple.

As I said, the romance still feels very cliched and forced, but I’ll admit that there WAS a cute moment in this episode.

I honestly wish Kou had kept his previous personality. His and Futuba’s past relationship is far more interesting than how they are now.

Overall, the episode was surprisingly decent. It’s still far from NOT being a generic high school shoujo, but it’s definitely improved since the first episode. Still, the romance is incredibly unconvincing and I’m FAR more interested in the side characters than anything else.

I’ll bite. Onto episode 4!

And the “Highlight of the Episode” award goes to…

The 3 side characters, Murao, Kominato, and Makita

Reaction: Gun Gale Online – Episode 3

This entry is going to be rather long, so buckle up. (If you don’t want to read that much, just look at the main points in bold.)

It’s Saturday which means a new episode of Crotch Shots Online is out!! This episode was ESPECIALLY distasteful so, as always, it was lots of fun to see how much worse this pile could possibly become.

The episode starts off and we see Sinon/Asada being bullied by 3 chicks. (Bullies always come in threes, don’t you know?!!) The entire scene had me on the floor laughing. This series takes itself FAR too seriously. I couldn’t feel bad for Asada because of how pathetic her reaction was. She almost peed herself and I just, I couldn’t. So then she’s saved by her friend, Shinkawa Kyouji. But really, he’s just another spineless guy who always puts himself down. After all, we can’t make him cool in fear of overshadowing Mr. Gary Stu himself, Kirito.

So, they’re suppose to be friends, right? Why did he say this then? Why? Shouldn’t Asada KNOW that already? Especially since she KNOWS he’s studying to become a doctor. It literally came out of nowhere. Which mean the only reason he said this was so the VIEWERS know. More examples of SAO’s expositional, illogical dialogue.

Also, this is just a guess, but Shinkawa practically revealed he’s going to be the antagonist. Saying things like how Asada is on a completely different level than him and yadda yadda. Just wait. I’m calling it right now.

I’m not the only one seeing double, am I? Asada is CLEARLY Kirito. Look at her face. LOOK.

And of COURSE she can cook! Of course!! Not only is she the best sniper in GGO, but she’s also waifu material! Asuna, watch out. You’re not the only wish-fulfilling piece of eye candy out there.

So, after Asada has lunch with her “friend”, she goes home and immediately proceeds to walk around without pants. Because that’s what EVERY girl does, ya know? And you guessed it. She lives alone. Because having parents that tell you to wash the dishes while you’re in the middle of a video game would be absolute taboo. So, Asada picks up some toy gun, strokes it for a while, and starts having a flashback. (Though I’m not sure if it really was a toy gun or not. If it was real, how the heck does she even own it? Japan has some of the strictest laws on owning guns.)

And now, we get to my absolute FAVORITE part of this episode. Asada’s “traumatic” experience. To sum it up, she saved innocent civilians, her mother, and a bank. (At least I think it was a bank. Could’ve been a post office for all we know.) because she shot a crazy robber. And apparently that scarred her to death.

…..ARE YOU KIDDING ME?

I’m not saying this couldn’t traumatize someone, but this doesn’t explain AT ALL why she isn’t affected by guns in video games. Yet she nearly pisses herself when something even remotely resembles a gun. In the end, am I suppose to feel bad for her because she SAVED people? Fut the wuck.

Oh, and can I just say she has the best mom ever? Instead of running over to her child to ask if she’s okay, or realize that her daughter just saved her life….she looks at Asada like she’s a freakin’ psychopath.

And if you’ve been paying attention, the animation quality has dropped quite a bit since the first episode. But this is what A1 Pictures DOES. They blow their budget in the first few episodes and fans don’t even NOTICE when it goes downhill.

Where was I?

Ohh right. So after the flashback, Asada’s seiyuu begins making noises like a feral animal being choked. Which I had a great laugh at. Dat voice acting tho.

Stop. You said you need to become strong and now you’re begging someone to save you. Isn’t that kind of contradictory? Whatever.

And now we’re in ALO where Kirito is finally mentioning something about him being an investigator to Asuna.

Why? Give me ONE good reason, Asuna, as to why in the WORLD Kirito WOULDN’T be able to refuse Kikuoka’s request? ONE.

*Vomits* Is Asuna able to say ANYTHING that doesn’t sound like it comes out of a wish fulfilling fanfic? Oh wait, that’s exactly what SAO/GGO IS.

 (Dat art tho)

So, blah blah blah. Kirito goes to some hospital (I’m going to call it right now and say it’s the same hospital that Shinkawa’s family owns) and all of a sudden he has a flashback about Kayaba. Like as if he WASN’T just some deranged lunatic. ASLDKFJAKSDFJLAF. Stop thinking about that guy like he’s a hero! He imprisoned 10,000 people in a game (4,000 of which DIED) and his reasoning for that was because, well, he FORGOT the reason why. Best writing ever, 10/10.

He steps into a room, and we’re introduced to someone named “Aki” who apparently is the nurse that took care of Kirito while he was comatosed. (Even though this was NEVER mentioned.) Introducing wish-fulfilling, fetish-feeding, harem member number X!

And OF COURSE she has the hots for him just like every other girl in this thing. She even goes so far as to GROPE him.

 I can’t.

After some disgusting dialogue, Kirito gets all strapped in and connects to GGO. The episode ends with Death Gun (I mean, DEASU GUNNU! Never going to take that name seriously. Ever.) caressing a picture of Sinon on his computer screen. Again, I’m calling it right now and saying Shinkawa is going to be DEASU GUNNU. Or at least related to him in some way.

Oh God, how much worse can SAO POSSIBLY get? Stay tuned to find out!!

And the “Highlight of the Episode” award goes to…

The disgustingly hilarious and failed attempts GGO is making to seem even decent. Also the fact that no one has mentioned how Asuna’s father practically sold his comatosed daughter’s body to some guy with a raping fetish. 

But I guess we’re not suppose to talk about that, huh?