FIF#229-Blue Lock

Yoichi Isagi has been chosen for an experiment unlike any before.  He and 300 other prospective Soccer Players, all Striker positions on their on teams, will participate in Blue Lock: a new training regiment designed for one purpose: to create the Ultimate Striker, capable of taking Japan’s hand picked soccer team to the world stage.  But this is a goal that only one of these 300 players can achieve.  It’s a game that only the most savage and single minded individuals have a chance of winning.  For glory, for redemption and for a place in Japanese Soccer History, how far is Isagi willing to go to win it all?

 
We all know most Sports Anime as feel good and inspiring comfort Anime, the kind that really make you go “HELL YEAH” when something goes right.  It’s what makes Free and Haikyuu some of the best in that genre. Well Blue Lock is neither of those.  In fact it’s an entire beast all of its own.  Forget that feel good vibe of bringing a team together to win the big match.  This is a much more cruel and demented game that I’m kind of shocked any sane person would even accept an invite to try.  This is the Battle Royale of Soccer and man I can see why this is a new hit in the community…but it just doesn’t feel right to me.
 

T5W#494-Top 5 Magfest 2025 Cosplays (Sunday Only)

Magfest, for those who may not be aware, is a Video Game-centric convention held in the same location as Katsucon, the Gaylord Hotel and Convention Center in National Harbor, about 3-4 weeks before Katsu.  I’ve never been to Magfest but I hear good things from those who go and I still wonder how some of my friends can still do both cons back to back.  Just for the heck of it, I decided to check out the Gaylord in advance of Katsu and see what the cosplay scene for Magfest looked like on a Sunday.  Probably could have seen more if I could get into the Expo Hall but hey, I’ll take what I can get.  Normally I’d hold off on this kind of Top 5 til October but since this was a rare event, I figured on todays’ Top 5 Wednesday I’d countdown my Top 5 Magfest 2025 Cosplays (Sunday Only).  This was only a taste of the epic convention cousin of Katsu and I’m hoping 2026 will mark a full weekend stay, but we’ll see.  Anyway, onto the cosplays.

Shimoeta: A Boring World Where the Concept of Dirty Jokes Doesn't Exist-Part 4 Episodes 10-12

An attempt to bring down Gathered Fabric leads SOX right into a trap and a shocking betrayal.  With then opposition crushed, White Peak takes his insane fetish to the next level by taking an entire school hostage.  Outnumbered and outgunned, Tanukichi and Ayame will have to pull out all the stops and form some questionable alliances to bring down this freak who’s giving SOX a bad name.  Will the Dirty Joke Terrorists become the heroes society needs or is this to be their final battle in the name of freeing this Boring Society where Dirty Jokes Don’t Exist?

Like I said at the end of last weeks set, I didn’t think we were going to see a full culmination of SOX’s crusade to bring the lewd and naughty legitimately back to Tokyo over the span of three episodes.  What we did get though was an immensely fun showdown between two groups of perverted crusaders filled with action, humor and even a payoff to a slow building romance.  The Series Finale might leave a lot to be desired, or maybe just could have been omitted altogether.  As far as epic showdowns in finales go however, Shimoneta delivered the goods.
 

FIF#228-The Eminence in Shadow

When Minoru Kageno is hit by a truck, his dreams of becoming the strongest are seemingly dashed forever.  That is until he discovers he’s been reincarnated into another world with the means by which he can attain his impossible dream.  Slowly, Kageno, now Cid Kagenou, begins to amass a following of beautiful maidens coerced into helping him into fighting a shadowy organization.  But fantasy is becoming reality and the more power Kageno builds in this new world, he must now live up to his newfound reputation and strike back against a legitimate Cult aiming to bring society under its control.

 
One common component with Isekai Anime is that the main character is 9 maybe 8 times out of 10 an overpowered protagonist, a power fantasy come to life.  While Emincence in Shadow looks to be another one of those kinds of Isekai tales, there’s one other bit that left me baffled watching the first episode.  So you know the saying, “Always be the very best you can be…unless you can be Batman”?  I couldn’t get that out of my head watching the first episode of this Isekai series.  Is that a good or bad thing and does it make me want to see where this premise goes?
 

T5W#493-Top 5 Ideas for Castlevania: Nocturne Season 3 (or future franchise entries)

Castlevania: Nocturne Season 2 dropped this weekend after two years of anticipation and…I’m not gonna lie I wasn’t a fan.  The first season was already pretty uneven for me and Season 2 did nothing to make the show worthy of the praise of it’s near perfect predecessor.  Still I’ll save more thoughts on that for a future full series review.  Today on Top 5 Wednesday, I’m talking about ideas of where Nocturne could go should it be renewed for a third season.  And even if it isn’t, the Castlevania video game franchise is pretty big and could always try again with a new story or adapting another game.  So let’s take a look at my Top 5 Ideas for Castlevania: Nocturne Season 3 (or future franchise entries).  Also I’ll be diving a little bit into Season 2 Spoilers, so here’s your SPOILER WARNING!!

Shimoeta: A Boring World Where the Concept of Dirty Jokes Doesn't Exist-Part 3 Episodes 7-9

As SOX expands its network of connections to other Dirty Joke Terrorist Groups, new threats emerge to challenge them.  The first are the Prefects led by Oboro Tsukimigusa, who seeks to eliminate all forms of naughty display no matter how small (and give Anna the room she needs to be as wild as she wants).  Then there’s Gathered Fabric, undergarment thieves who are starting to give SOX a bad reputation.  Oh and SOX has a new member who’s so determined to make her mark even if it might do damage to SOX.  Are Ayame and Tanukuchi in way over their heads or is it time for the foreplay to end and take their plans to the next level?

If Shimoneta excels at anything it’s being a world of anything goes, nothing is ever clean revolution.  While its material can be a little much even for me, I’m legit enjoying this show a ton and laughing at most of the absurdity.  The stuff that does make me cringe uncomfortably is still there (and even gets the explanation I theorized was the case in my last review) and there’s a new character I just cant bring myself to like.  Does this mean Shimoneta is losing steam and that the earlier episodes are the best ones?  Definitely not and let’s break down why.
 

FIF#227-Love After World Domination

When the evil Secret Society Gekko threatens the world with fiery destruction, an elite fighting force of five young warriors is assembled to combat them: Freezing Sentai Gelato 5.  Unbeknownst to both teams, the unthinkable has happened.  Reaper Princess Desumi Magahara and Gelato Red Fudo Aikawa have fallen in love.  Determined to make their blossoming romance work, Fudo and Desumi enter a forbidden relationship where they spend their private time trying to navigate being a couple and their public time staying mortal enemies on the battlefield.

 
I’ve been on a bit of a Super Sentai kick lately, so this is a pretty timely Anime to get brought to my attention.  Being a casual Power Rangers fan, I know it’s not uncommon for series to have a subplot similar to Love After World Domination’s premise.  However, I’m pretty certain none of them have been played for laughs quite like this.  LAWD is a full blown Rom Com offering with a side of Super Sentai action, tropes and gags…and a pretty adorable couple to lead the way it seems.
 

T5W#492-Top 5 Macross Plus Songs

Well they overshot it by a couple of weeks into 2025, as opposed to the promised 2024, but we finally have what we’ve been long promised: a whole plethora of Macross titles making their US debut on Disney+.  So where did I start?  Macross 7?  Macross Delta?  Well I might have plans for those later this year so, no.  Nope, I started with an old friend: Macross Plus.  While the subtitles might be a bit of an issue, there’s no denying this legendary OVA looks more amazing than ever in high definition.  I could talk about my favorite scenes but how about we talk about the one part of this Anime whose power no one can deny: the OST by Yoko Kanno.  This mix of sweeping orchestral composures and future techno tunes could be considered Kanno’s Magnum Opus (or maybe a very close second behind Cowboy Bebop).  Today on Top 5 Wednesday I’ll be counting down my picks for the Top 5 Macross Plus Songs.  No orchestral stuff, just the lyrical melodies sung by digital songstress Sharon Apple or Myung Fang Long.

 

Shimoeta: A Boring World Where the Concept of Dirty Jokes Doesn't Exist-Part 2 Episodes 4-6

To further her plans for a social sexual awakening across the city, Ayame Kajou targets a mythical buried treasure in Yotsuga Forest.  But there’s more than just the Decency Police standing in SOX’s way.  The Student Council President, Anna Nishikinomiya, has had an awakening and Tanukichi is not prepared for what he’s unintentionally unleashed.  And with a new breed of Peace Makers about to be rolled out, keeping ones dirty little thoughts and urges secret is about to become a lot harder.  That wont stop Blue Snow and SOX, not when the world deserves to let its freak flags fly without shame.

Just when I thought I knew what I was getting into with Shimoneta, along comes this newest set of episodes that proves I have no idea at all.  This show continues to make the case of it being just a straight up Hentai but for mainstream audiences, especially in the case of one character (and it isnt Blue Snow).  It can make me feel uncomfortable (FYI wear headphones when watching this so the neighbors don’t ask questions), but Shimoneta is still nailing its hilarious social commentary and dialogue that’s snappy and continually creative with its sexual innuendos and work arounds. 
 

FIF#226-Terminator Zero

2022.  Mankinds war against Skynet continues with no end in sight.  1997. Scientist Malcom Lee, plaguged by apocalyptic visions, conceives a specialized computer that could avert the future.  Skynet sends a new Terminator back to the past in order to stop Lee and ensure it’s own existence.  A lone resistance fighter named Eiko has fought against this type of monster before and volunteers to stop another from destroying the future.  With mere days before Judgement Day arrives, the final battle for the future begins.

 
Are we really in need of a Terminator Anime at this point?  Ask anyone and they’ll say the franchise rightfully so topped out at T2: Judgement Day.  Except maybe for The Sarah Connor Chronicles TV Series, any subsequent sequel afterwards has failed to reach the heights of the first two legendary films and the failure of Terminator: Dark Fate seems enough to put the franchise out to pasture for good.  Yet we now have a Terminator Anime to try and redeem the franchise one more time.  It’s a new story, new cast, as of the first episode no ties to John Connor or Arnold Schwarzzenegers’s iconic T-800.  It’s completely fresh.  So is it enough to get invested in the Terminator one more time?
 

T5W#491-Top 5 Story Ideas for Star Wars Visions 3

Depending on who you ask, Star Wars is in an overall interesting state at the moment.  People either love the expanding universe TV Series or think theyre as bad (if not worse) than The Rise of Skywalker.  One thing we can all agree on is that Star Wars Visions is an awesome anthology series and it’s about time we got news that a third volume has been announced for release sometime in 2025.  Unlike the more worldwide offerings of Volume 2, Volume 3 will be returning to Visions original Anime roots with 9 new stories from a plethora of studios including Studio Wit, Trigger and Production I.G.  My one fear of this approach is that while Anime and Jedi go hand in hand, Volume 1’s biggest shortcoming was it was all lightsaber duels and little else (as cool as those were).  Volume 2 mostly looked past that with tales involving some Jedi but a lot of everyday people in various adventures across the galaxy.  I really want Volume 3 to continue in this direction so for todays Top 5 Wednesday I’m sharing my Top 5 Story Ideas for Star Wars Visions 3.

Shimoeta: A Boring World Where the Concept of Dirty Jokes Doesn't Exist-Part 1 Episodes 1-3

Tokyo is under siege by a nefarious terrorist.  In a society free from the horror of inappropriate language and potty mouthed humor, Blue Swan seeks to restore the wild side of living by any lewd way possible.  When Tanukichi Okuma arrives at the prestigious and pure high school in the country, he discovers he’s been brought here specifically to track down Blue Snow, who may be a student at this academy.  But soon Tankukichi finds himself an unwilling accomplice in student Ayame Kajou’s sexual revolution and high school living is about to change for the wilder

To begin our Anime Corner coverage for 2025, I’ve decided to try something a bit more…risqué and it’s probably the most wild title I’ve covered here since Panty and Stocking.  But it’s hard to resist the challenge of reviewing a show like this.  When I saw the first episode in the middle of 2024 I could not stop laughing and even though we only checked out that sole episode, I wanted to see more of this messed up world and how Ayame was going to give everyone the change to let their freak flags fly.  Well that time has come and we’re spending the month seeing a repressed and sheltered society get brought back into the light of the freaky.  Welcome, Dear Reader, to Shimoeta: A Boring World Where the Concept of Dirty Jokes Doesn't Exist.
 

FIF#225-DanDaDan

Momo Ayase is the granddaughter of a Spirit Medium who believes in Spirits but not Extraterrestrials.  Her classmate, Ken Takakura is the opposite, obsessed with UFOs but refusing to believe in ghosts.  A dare between the two sends them spiraling into a bizarre adventure where both of their beliefs become real and begin wrecking havoc on their daily lives.  Thankfully, these encounters have given Momo and Ken the abilities to fight back against the unknown, no matter how random or dangerous it may be.

 
Welcome Dear Readers to the first First Impression Friday of 2025 and the kick off of its historic Tenth Season.  And boy…have I picked a challenge for myself by popular demand.
 
There are shows that are constantly recommended to me that I kind of get but at the same time have my reasons for not jumping right into them.  Frieren? Subject materials kind of heavy for me.  Trigun Stampede? Cant get past the animation and Vash’s new haircut.  DanDaDan?  Well this is something new even by my standards.  And as far as first impressions go, yeesh I don’t even know where I stand.  It mostly makes me wonder if my friends are ok cause theyre enjoying it and…you know what I’m getting ahead of myself.  Why has this sleeper hit of 2024 left me so perplexed after one episode?
 

T5W#490-Top 5 Ways Evangelion has Infiltrated Gundam

Welcome Dear Readers to 2025 and we’re kicking off a brand New Years Day with a brand new Top 5 Wednesday (cant believe we’ll be at 500 T5Ws in a few weeks).  As you know, we’re weeks away from the debut of the next chapter of the Mobile Suit Gundam saga, Mobile Suit Gundam: GQuuuuuX and all the crazy action that comes along with it.  As I talked about in my T5W about the reveal announcement back in 2024, what’s got me most excited is this being a co-production between Studio Sunrise and Kahra, aka the studios behind Gundam and the Rebuild of Evangelion film series.  It’s a long overdue team up but I wouldn’t say this is the first time Gundam and Eva have crossed paths.  To be more specific, Neon Genesis Evangelion is such an influential title in all of Anime and attempts have been made in the Mecha genre in particular to replicate or enhance those thoughts.  Gundam is no exception an in our first T5W of 2025, I’ll be breaking down what I think are the Top 5 Ways Evangelion has Infiltrated Gundam.

 

Welcome to the Gundam Anime Corner 2025

Happy New Year Dear Readers.  Is it just me or did we make it through 2024 by the skin of our teeth?  Maybe it was me dealing with…well a lot.  But, as always, when the going gets rough, that’s when I turn to the Anime Corner for comfort and I hope that in the coming year, it can be grown and strengthened as such.  After all, this is my own personal corner of the universe to chill and talk about Anime, Video Games, how Anime ties into mainstream Hollywood movies, Conventions, First Impressions, Top 5 Lists, all that jazz.  I’ve definitely got some fun ideas for new features in the coming months and those main events are still a ways off (and need a lot more prep time).  Til then, how about we talk about what is all set and ready to roll, including, for a change, what’s coming up in March for the Gundam Anime Corner’s 11^th Birthday (11, yikes).