Love Lab Episode 7 Highlights & Thoughts

This week I watched the 7th episode of Love Lab, and it was quite a funny episode. We get some good interaction between the 5 girls which makes for a fun watch. We get a few teasers for what to expect in the upcoming episodes, but not much else this episode. It’s still enjoyable though, so let’s get into the highlights. Warning Spoilers ahead!


The episode begins with Nana from the school newspaper hopelessly trying to snoop on what the school council girls. The moment is short lived and we don’t get much tension between them and the school council, but we do get a funny scene of Mizushima and Enomoto just watch her struggle. Mizushima is so ruthless, she’s one of my favourite characters on the show for that reason. She observes a lot more than she tampers with, but when she does tamper it makes for an enjoyable scene. I’d like to see the confrontation that unfolds between her and Riko. The tension seems to build all the time. Will she reveal Riko’s lies? If anyone’s going to I imagine it would be her.

The second part of the episode consists of the girls all visiting Riko. Of course her little brother Ren falls for Maki. It’s funny how extremely he changes around her compared to the other girls. Unfortunately for him Maki is oblivious, and moreover uninterested in younger boys! Perhaps there will be more of Ren’s struggle to win over Maki. It would make for some funny scenes. Too bad he doesn’t have short curly hair, then maybe he’d be more her type.

And so in the last few minutes we see Satoshi reappear! I knew he wasn’t going anywhere. I’m excited to see what happens between these two. It’s pretty obvious Riko is almost falling for him, while he’s still hopelessly attracted to her. It’s a fun spin on the story that will make for a gratifying ending if they end up together! And Yan makes another appearance as well. Will he terrorize Maki’s ego some more? Probably.

And that was the episode! Once again we’re teased with the tension between the school newspaper and the girls and yet nothing comes of it! The teaser at the end shows that they are planning something, but let’s be honest, are they even a threat anymore? Or were they never one? I want to see more conflict! This episode had some nice jokes but not a whole lot really happened. Nothing that I felt was direly significant except the end scene with Satoshi. Despite the lack of development it was enjoyable though. I’ll be expecting episode 8 along with some story drivers to make this anime move! Until then!
Christina

Chihayafuru Anime Review

I remember when this show first aired in the Fall Season of 2011. It’s been a while since then, and the show has had 2 seasons worth 50 episodes since. Despite centering around a traditional Japanese memory game called Caruta, it has quite the following from all cultures. It originally caught my eye because it falls under two specific categories, josei and poetry. That couldn’t appeal to me more! I began watching it as soon as it aired in October of that year. Now that its second season wrapped up at the end of June I believe it’s time I reviewed the anime. So let’s get on with it!

The story of Chihayafuru (appropriately titled after its protagonist) follows a second year high school student named Chihaya. She and her two childhood friends Taichi and Arata  bonded over playing Caruta together. But as they got older, Arata moved away and their friendship was severed for many years. Luckily what brought them together in the first place ultimately brought them together again. The story of their friendship however is not exactly the main focus, the story focuses mainly on the culture that surrounds Caruta, for high school students as well as those looking to play on a national scale. The story of the three friends takes a back seat as often practicing, tournaments and Caruta culture is what keeps the story moving forward. Chihaya creates a Caruta club for her high school and so opens up the cast of characters to her teammates as well as other students from other schools. We get to learn the inner workings of different types of characters, their mentality towards the sport and their thoughts as they play the game. There’s a lot to this anime and that’s a strong point. They offer so many perspectives that you can get wrapped up in all the little details pretty quickly.

Stella Jogakuin Koutouka C3-bu Episode 5 Highlights & Thoughts

I was excited to see this episode because the more I watch this show the more I like it. As Yura’s character gains confidence (and loses hair) she becomes more interesting. It’s nice to see that she has potential and is finally living up to it. It’s clear in this episode, and we know that as time goes along, she’s going to become more of a force to reckon with in time. Warning! There’s episode 5 spoilers ahead, so if you haven’t caught up do so now, or check this post out if you missed out.

The girls have changed scenery again, this time they’ve traveled to a small (presumably) uninhabited island where they play against the Seto group. The reason for this? Just for fun I guess! These girls are fun rivals with tricky tactics, they could definitely give the Stella girls a run for their money. But this time around Yura isn’t afraid to get in the fray, so the girls are shaping to be more of a team with Yura, rather than having her as the shy puppy dog follow them around.

Yura has to own up to the pressure she feels as being a member of the team, she’s still insecure about her abilities but this time around she’s calling the shots. Is that the Yura we know? Not really, it seems like she’s changed a lot and is prepared to make orders to her teammates. It’s a bit out of character for her and we can see that Sonora is a bit hesitant towards this newly discovered Yura as well. It’s nice to know I’m not the only one who feels that this is a sudden change, the show is self aware! It makes for an interesting dynamic, we don’t know Sonora’s subtext here so we’re left with wanting a bit more, so that’s why I’m excitedly waiting for episode 6.

This episode is a little heavy on the fanservice with the girls playing in bikinis. I can overlook it, but it’s a kind of unnecessary and annoys me. Just my little gripe! All in all, I’m excited to see what’s up Sonora’s sleeve (do you think she’s threatened by Yura?). Who knows! Just another lighthearted fun episode with just enough to get you wanting more!
Christina

Review of Kids on the Slope (Sakamichi no Apollon)

For any josei anime fan I’d recommend this anime in a heartbeat. It’s got day-to-day life, romance and friendship, as well as some great music! If you’ve watched Nodame Cantabile don’t miss this anime, you will love it! That aside, let’s get into the review…
We’re introduced to Kaoru, the typical nerdy quiet high school kid. He’s had trouble making and keeping friends in the past so he’s hesitant to get to know anyone. You know what’s coming for him, of course he meets an eccentric schoolmate named Sentaro who loves playing drums and causing trouble. The two are opposites, but in this scenario opposites attract and they soon become friends. What brings them together you might ask? Music. Jazz music. This anime is set in the 1960’s when jazz was a popular and unconventional style of music (especially in Japan). Music and hardship push this show along as their friendship meets a head at the end of their high school careers. With romantic interests like their shared friend Ritsuko, it has all the elements of a daily life drama that also has a fulfilling and optimistic message. The show has a solid foundation that makes for an enjoyable series. It has a realistic tone that makes the story feel real, and for those out of high school, it’ll make you remember how you felt about friends and love all those years ago.



My favourite aspect of the show has to be the friends Sentaro and Kaoru, how they change and become men, breaking down their walls and having a friendship that’s so believable you feel like you’ve met someone like them before. I  personally enjoyed the character of Sentaro over the character of Kaoru, although the two were necessary together. Sentaro takes on a lot of responsibility towards his family, and lashes out in bursts of violence because of how he interprets protecting those he cares about. I love how he changes, although the more serious he gets, the more tragic he becomes. He’s very relatable for those who take on more responsibility than they should because they protect those they care about. Kaoru on the other hand is analytical and pensive, but as the show progresses he relaxes and fills out into the man he wants to be. Although I don’t personally grapple with the problems Kaoru faced throughout the show, I feel like he’s the best kind of best friend character, he’s loyal and kind, and becomes someone any girl could imagine herself being with. Speaking of girls, I unfortunately did not enjoy the character of Ritsuko. She played more of the girl there for the relationship dynamic than anything else. This would make you believe this show is more geared towards young men, I would however disagree because the story is relatable no matter the gender. I wish her character had more development or at least more personality than the sweet girl next door. Her failings aside, the two best friends make up for any lack of character development on Ritsuko’s part.