Hinamatsuri Episode 8 & 9 – Anime QandA Review

What’s the show? Hinamatsuri, Episode 8 & 9.

Right. So last time you reviewed this show it was for Episode 6 & 7 and it ended up turning into an essay about the different ‘classes’ in Japanese society, with each of the main middle school aged girls in this show representing a different ‘class’. Yes, that’s correct.

So what great pontifications on life do you have to draw parallels to with regards to Episode 8 & 9? None whatsoever!

Uh-huh. Well we’re off to a great start. Hey, I didn’t ask you to bring up the previous review, that was a fluke! Lightning doesn’t strike twice, you know!

Fine, so I guess this is going to just be a run-of-the-mill recap and assessment of these previous two episode then? Maybe, but I did notice and interesting topic I could talk about that links these two episodes in particular. Namely, the introduction of two new characters who’ve yet to prove their worthiness to an already well-established narrative.

Okay, I’ll bite. Who are the new characters? In Episode 8, Kei Ikarugu is introduced, she’s the Security Chief of the mysterious organisation that ‘owns’ the psychic girls from another world/dimension. She’s here to gather details on Hina, to see if she’s ~assimilated~ into everyday life, and whether she’s calmed down enough to return home. In Episode 9 there’s Mao, another psychic girl ordered down by Kei to bring with her another ‘red ball thing’ that’s meant to replace the one Hina “lost” so she can return home. Unfortunately for Mao she lands not in Tokyo, or even anywhere near and instead on a remote and deserted Japanese island.

Right… This show is weird and hilarious and I love it, FYI.

I gathered as much, so what did you specifically want to talk about with these characters? Since you seem to avoiding traditional recap style reviews for most of Hinamatsuri. I wonder, whether these new additions to the cast really add anything that I want. I’m so used to slice of life anime that don’t really bother to focus on world-building outside the established niche that they carve out by the end of the 3rd episode, and so for Hinamatsuri to keep adding new characters which not only add to the ‘greater’ story but detract from the “everyday life” shenanigans kind of makes me feel conflicted.

How so? Surely ‘world-building’ is a good thing? No? I guess I didn’t really expect it nor need it in this show. Sure, it’s still suitably ~random~ on an episode-by-episode basis, it plays fast and loose with plausible scenarios and common-sense, but adding this extra dimension that fleshes out the world where these psychic girls come from or adding new characters that will do as much kind of isn’t a top priority for me. I’m just happy to watch Anzu be happy about her new life while being amazed at simple things us working class folk take for granted, and happy to watch Hitomi tend bar and get intermittently horrified by things. And Hina… well, Hina can be funny, when she’s not being mean-spirited and instead is actually trying to contribute (and fails miserably).

Okay. So you’re not happy with the way the show is going? Ugh, that’s not really what I’m trying to say… it’s just I’m not used to watching a show thats actively this invested in shaking things up. If these characters were being introduced mid-way through a second season I’d probably be more open to it, but it feels like we’ve hardly had time to have fun with our established cast, before new people are being introduced… as I said, I’m just not used to anime that has such urgency with the plot—at least not anime of this genre.

Wikipedia says its a “Science Fiction, Supernatural, Comedy, Slice of Life.” Yeah, sounds accurate now. But when I first started watching it I would have almost reversed them… assuming the order of them indicates the priority of genre.

I don’t think it does. Man, I thought this review was a good idea at the time… how wrong was I. This hardly makes any sense.

What else is new. Any words to wrap up? If you haven’t already started just watch Hinamatsuri, it’s better use of your time than reading my nonsensical ravings. Seriously this show is amazing at times and I kind of hate this review for being so critical of something that obviously knows what it’s doing a heck of a lot better than I do.

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Previous Hinamatsuri Reviews:

Episode 1 Review
Episode 2 & 3 Review
Episode 4 & 5 Review
Episode 6 & 7 Review

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Hinamatsuri Episode 6 & 7 – Anime QandA Review

What’s the show? Hinamatsuri, Episode 6 & 7.

Another show you said you’d stop reviewing week-to-week. Sometimes you watch a show and you’re not sure if it’s worth continuing with week-to-week reviews and sometimes you realise you’re in the presence of anime greatness and need to record the experience for posterity.

Uh-huh. So it’s that good then, huh? It’s always been ~that~ good, it’s just a show like this is easy to take for granted because it’s so effortlessly good. No, effortlessly great. And it’s kind of hard to put into words, it’s the kind of show that needs to experienced without preconceived notions or pontificating reviews.

And yet here we are? And yet here we are…

Umm, so then why exactly are you reviewing a show that you’ve both said is “hard to put into words” and is better “without reviews”? As I said, I want to be on paper as proclaiming this shows brilliance throughout and not just early on or as an afterthought but all the way through.

So ego then? Yeah, something like that.

So this review’s for? It’s for people who are watching the show and are enjoying it. Or better yet, maybe it’s for people who don’t know why the show they are watching is so good.

Then why are they still watching it? I don’t know why people do what they do, but there are some people out there who are ‘confused’ about this show’s tone, because in the blink of an eye it turns from broad laugh-out-loud character driven comedy, to brutally honest heartbreaking drama and—in this reviewers opinion—does so flawlessly.

But such tonal dissonance, isn’t that a recipe for an uneven and possibly confused show. You know what else is uneven and confused and painful and stupid and funny and dumb? Life. This show captures the unfairness and ambiguity and awkwardness and absurdity of life in all its beautiful and exhausting qualities.

Explain? Our three middle school girls each represent a different class in Japanese society. (And by extension most Western societies too.) Hina is “born” into her wealthy, upperclass lifestyle where she wants for nothing and is similarly sheltered from the realities of life for anyone under her, even when exposed to it. Anzu on the other-hand, choses the lowest of lower class, homelessness rather than ask for help. She works all day collecting cans just to afford enough to eat a meal—her allotment in life is pure hardship. Hitomi is middle-class to a tee, working so hard, though never truly suffering and ever at the beck and call of those a step or two higher on the totem poll (her bartender boss/Hina/the student council).

Seems like you’ve thought about this a lot. It’s hard not to with a show as unexpectedly rich and multi-faceted as Hinamatsuri. Admittedly on the surface it could seem like a silly sci-fi comedy with too much time on its hands but there’s no denying the depth to the writing and characterisation—even if it’s subtext—that pervades this entire show.

And we didn’t even get to the proper content of these episodes itself?! You know you probably could have saved this rambling to a full season review instead of blowing it all in this review only a dozen people will probably end up reading. I don’t care. It’s easy enough to look up individual episode synopsis’ at this point, or better yet just watch the damn show! Whether you take it at surface level or dare to dig a little deeper this is a show that’s not only worthy of watching and discussion and dissection, it’s just so damn good. I don’t know if I’ll continue reviewing this week-to-week, or every second week as has been the case here for a while, but know that it’s worth it and worth your time too.

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Previous Hinamatsuri Reviews:

Episode 1 Review
Episode 2 & 3 Review
Episode 4 & 5 Review

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My Reasons Why – Untold Questions

What’s this? Good question, I’ve been selected by the lovely Irina, to participate in a tag created by Kimchisama.

Is it an award? Not as such, a similar format, but this is more of a… reflection. A chance for people to focus on the positives in their life and share them with people in this aniblogging community. Our lives are too often spent dwelling on the negatives, this tag is a perfect way to take stock of everything that makes this life worth living.

Right. So I’m assuming there’s rules? There’s always rules.
1. Mention the person who nominated you.
2. List 13 reasons why you keep going/living (This is borrowed from the book but I’m taking it the opposite direction).
3. Nominate 10 or more people to give their reasons why.
4. Use the picture that I (Kimchisama) created in your post. I’m sorry that I’m a bit bad a making these things… But I tried.

Okay, so how are we going to do this? You’ll pick up quick, just be your usual smarmy self and we’ll get through okay! Also I’m doing this in alphabetical order, makes the most sense this way.

Tch. Fine, so reason number 1? This one’s obvious but Anime & Manga, among my various passions and past times this is the one that brings me the most immediate and pure joy. A day without anime or manga is a day wasted!

And number 2? While relatively new to my life Blogging has proven an immeasurable boon not only to my self-confidence but to just general life happiness. Being able to share the things I love with like-minded individuals and have them respond so kindly is just beyond words.

Number 3? You might not know this about me but I’m a pretty damn good cook, so Cooking is number 3. I do all the cooking in my life and I love cooking for people, its satisfying to be able to make people happy with something that comes so easy to me.

Number 4? This one might seem a bit counter-intuitive since it’s probably doing the opposite for me, but Fast Food, I know it’s bad for me and the only reason I like it so much is because of chemicals and what not screwing with my brain, but then again, isn’t everything we love just the result of chemicals in our brain reacting favourably to input? Anyway that’s my excuse for the “negative” things in this list. *winky face*

Uh-oh, Number 5 then? Chemicals, hey? Aren’t they great, I do love Having a Drink. By which I mean alcohol of course, bourbon is my drink of choice btw.

You know there’s a word for people who need alcohol as a ‘reason to live’. Shut-up. I know my limits, it’s just something I enjoy is all.

Okay then. Number 6? Japan! That’s right the whole damn place, I’ve only been twice, but the most recent trip was so much fun and I love (almost) everything about it that I can’t wait to go back! The people, the food, the public transportation, the city, the country, all of it! Just please, North Korea, don’t do anything silly—leave Japan alone.

Number 7? In general, I think people should just be nicer to one another, doesn’t matter if you don’t agree with someone’s opinions, just be nice. Kindness is something that’s so underrated, whether it’s kindness to and from your friends and family, or the kindness of strangers. We all should show more kindness and I’m always appreciative of when people show kindness to me, especially when it comes from unexpected places or in unexpected ways.

Number 8? Now, I must preface this one by saying I messaged Irina to just inquire whether this one was “appropriate”, she said “I dunno”, so to my followers (especially the more ‘shy’ among you) please forgive me, I promise I won’t go into any detail. I’ll say it and we can move on. Okay, ready? Masturbation. Next!

…*shakes head* Number 9? I love Music, the listening to it, not playing of course, I don’t have a musical bone in my body. Also, I don’t just mean anime music, my musical tastes are varied, running across nearly every genre of music and ranging from music from the late 70’s up until today. It’s always been a cornerstone of my life and I wouldn’t be the same without it.

Number 10? A Sense of Humour is important, at least for me it is. Whether my sense of humour is something that is relatable or even inherently evident is up to the individual, but I love being able to make (some) people laugh, or even just smile. Whether it’s in real life or with my silly blog posts!

Number 11? I have a fiancé, her name is Sharon (often referred to on this blog as the ‘irl waifu’) and she means everything to me. The fact that I get to share my life with her is a treat. I’ll never get tired of and the fact that she puts up with me is a testament to how amazing of a person she is. Things aren’t always easy, but we can work through this life together.

Number 12? I don’t get the chance to be as weird as I’d like to on this blog, some people don’t like Weirdness, and that’s okay. But I love it! Whether it’s in the media I’m consuming or out in the world or within myself, I can’t help but be drawn to weird things!

And finally, number 13? Probably the thing I’m simultaneously most passionate about but least secure in sharing is my Writing, not the reviews but rather creative writing or fiction. I’ve got a lot of it under my belt but very little of it sees the light of day, mostly because I put so much of myself into the writing I worry that if someone judges my work harshly they are—in turn judging me harshly. Writing is an outlet for my creativity and imagination, it helps me work through complicated feelings and it even helped me work through a crippling fear of my own mortality. It’s an invaluable tool and an important part of my life.

Wow, that was certainly an eye-opening experience—for better or worse. Please don’t bring it up again. But yes, I enjoyed this, it’s good to focus on the positives!

So now you have to pick 10 people to do this too? Right, so as with all these types of tags, if you’ve already been tagged or just don’t want to do it no pressure. After all it can be an intimidating thing to do, especially for those who are more private about their lives. That said, these are my picks!
Jenn
Auri
Spooky
Ahogegirl
The Bookworm Drinketh
Nesha
Miyo’s Permanent Record
WeeabrosDerek
thelostvoice
TheAniMessenger

And that’s it then! Thanks for reading this, I hope you enjoyed this or found it enlightening, or just wasn’t too creeped out my Number 8. Also, thanks again to Kimchisama for creating this wonderful tag!

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If you liked my post and want to support my content, please consider supporting my Patreon page, or donating by buying me a coffee on Ko-fi!

Untold Questions – The Future of Anime Q and A

What’s wrong? Oh you know, just thinking about the future.

Like flying cars and robots and colonising other planets and stuff? No, like my future and the blog’s future.

Oh, sounds kind of serious. It is, partially so, I mean it is just a blog it’s not life and death, but I’ve been here less than a month and it’s already something I enjoy doing more than a lot of things recently. 2017 was not a good year for me emotionally, but finishing the year off by quitting a job that I hated and going to Japan for three weeks was a real boon to my psyche. But it’s been three months since then and the money from my long service leave payout is almost entirely dried up, so either I go about getting a new job or…

Or? Or I try and make this my job.

This? Don’t be ridiculous. I can dream, can’t I?

You have 34 followers on wordpress, not exactly setting the blogging world on fire. I didn’t say it would be easy…

So what’s the point of this particular blog post exactly? I don’t know. I guess just to let my followers know that with their help I know I can succeed and achieve my goal. And that I’ve got big plans for this blog for the coming months whether I get a part time job or not!

Anything else? Yes, I can’t even begin to thank all the people who’ve liked my content over the past few weeks, it’s been such a boon to this poor writer’s heart, who’s always had the blogging spirit but never the drive or ideas to do so. But in 20 Question Anime Review’s I found a muse that’s a constant voice in my ear, pushing me to create more and more content.

Are you talking about me? Well, yeah. Otherwise none of this would be here…

I’ve never been someone’s muse before! Don’t get so excited, this is already weird enough as it is.

And I believe you wanted to ask your readers something too? Indeed. To all my fellow bloggers, you’ve already done so much, but I ask for your assistance in growing my audience. To the one’s who’ve reblogged and retweeted and recommended I couldn’t ask for more that would be selfish, but know I appreciate it every time you do. It feels like my words are going further than they have ever before and as a writer that’s all I could’ve hoped for. But what other advice would you give me to help grow my followers?

And you wanted to talk about collaborations too, yeah? Right, so obviously being new to wordpress blogging I don’t know a lot about collaborations, in fact to be blunt, I know nothing. For example whose blog do they go on? Do they go on both at the same time? Etc, please unfurl your great knowledge upon me so I can be a better blogger. Also and this is important, if anyone wants to collaborate with me, now would be a good time while I’m still unemployed! Drop me a message on twitter if you want to discuss ideas!

Was there site news too? Yes! Starting in March I’ll be doing 20 Question Manga Reviews! But as they’ll probably take a lot more time to organise, don’t expect more than one a week!

Cool, so that’s it then? For now, but feel free to leave any advice you have for an up and comer like me and once again thank you all for your continued support! Also, sorry if this post was a bit dry but kudos if you made it through ’til the end!