My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom! – Episode 1
My Next Life as a Villainess has a lot of points in its favor, but I’ll start with this one: Catarina is an absolute A-plus delight of a protagonist.
Posts by Dee
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Bungo and Alchemist -Gears of Judgement – Episode 1
Okay, time to spend several hundred words talking to myself.
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The 8th son? Are you kidding me? – Episode 1
8th Son is not out here reinventing the isekai wheel, but the wheel it presents is pretty well-made and charming, all things considered.
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Tower of God – Episode 1
International collaborations can, in theory, inject fresh ideas and perspectives into the medium, creating a story that can say new things and appeal to diverse audiences. I’m, uh, not so sure Tower of God is gonna do all that, though.
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Nonconforming in the ‘90s: How Pokemon’s gender variance caught the hearts of generation
Twenty years ago, I fell in love with the Pokemon anime. Now, I think I can finally tell you why: why this strange, silly, sincere show mattered. How it filled the space between “boy stuff” and “girl stuff,” treated both as having value, and challenged why there was a division in the first place.
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Z/X Code reunion – Episode 1
You ever watch something and then thirty minutes later realize you’ve forgotten almost everything about it? That’s where I am with Z/X Code reunion right now.
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Special 7: Special Crime Investigation Unit – Episode 1
Do you like supernatural cop shows? Then congratulations! You’ll enjoy this entertaining and competently made premiere!
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Ascendance of a Bookworm – Episode 1
You know, maybe it’s just me, but I think the protagonist of this series kinda likes books.
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Ahiru no Sora – Episode 1
Ahiru no Sora takes its cannon full of bright energy, points it downwards, and blasts itself straight in the foot by making 95% of its cast a bunch of unpleasant dirtbags.
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Nichijou and the Everyday Epics of High School Girls
Through its central cast of silly, snarky, kind, anxious, energetic high school girls, Nichijou not only showcases many common (and not-so-common) trials of adolescence, but also expands the narrow image of what it means to be a “normal” teen girl.
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A Girl Worth Fighting For: Kingdom Hearts III and the mystery of the missing heroines
Kingdom Hearts’s cast and audience may have grown up, but its tired “boy saves girl” gender politics remain just as outdated as they were when the franchise first launched.
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Lady Leads & Sidekick Lads: Flipping the script in Team Rocket’s “Training Daze”
The Team Rocket trio have never been your typical villains. So perhaps it’s no surprise that their special backstory episode defies as many conventions as they do, taking the classic team origin story and turning familiar gendered archetypes cleverly on their heads.
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Sirius the Jaeger – Episode 1
I am extremely annoyed that I had to stop watching Sirius the Jaeger to write this review, which gives you a real good idea of how much I enjoyed this premiere.
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All Folks Bright and Beautiful: The casual gender diversity of Heaven’s Design Team
Come for the neat animal facts, stay for the charming cast breezily ignoring gender norms.
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Karakuri Circus – Episode 1
Congratulations, Karakuri Circus. I don’t know how you did it, but you managed to make Murder Circuses and Puppet Fights boring.
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Radiant – Episode 1
If you’re as much a sucker for air balloons, floating islands, and grizzled lady sorcerers as I am, then give this one a try. You may be as pleasantly surprised as I was.
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Boarding School Juliet – Episode 1
Please keep your arms and legs inside the review at all times, ’cause Boarding School Juliet is about to take you on a roller coaster ride.
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Hinomaru Sumo – Episode 1
There’s nothing wrong with straightforwardly playing genre beats if they’re played well, and Hinomaru is full of vim and vigor and Fighting Spirit. It’s as solid as its sumo wrestlers. But if you’re looking for something that shakes up the formula, based on this premiere, it’s unlikely you’re going to find it here.
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Emma’s Choice: The gender-norm nightmare at the heart of The Promised Neverland
The Promised Neverland begins as a sharply crafted horror story, but it soon reveals itself to be a sophisticated critique on restrictive social practices—including the hellishly limited roles expected of girls.
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We Rent Tsukumogami – Episode 1
We Rent Tsukumogami is a historical fantasy based on Shinto-inspired Japanese mythology. It has cute spirits, a great aesthetic, and fun facts about daily life in Edo. It is so squarely in my wheelhouse I was halfway around the bases before I even pressed “play.” So why did this first episode leave me lukewarm?
