"It's like the dang old world has become a sewer, man."

And yes, I have been thinking about it before today. Just haven't started anything yet.

NGL, having some second thoughts. Especially with WIT's president being a little too Oda-adjacent these days.

(Phew! Haven't done that in ages!)

I saw the WIT news going around, so I'm gonna bounce for an hour before I think about pushing back my Ranking of Kings retrospective indefinitely.

We may not be in total agreement on the specifics, but at the end of the day, if it looks like a fire, and it smells like a fire... it is probably a 𝘨𝘰𝘥𝘥𝘢𝘮𝘯 fire.

I'm not telling you to put it out. My job is to tell you that it's there.

Obviously, fire alarms come in all forms. Some are louder. Some are false alarms. Some are better at detecting fires.

You don't think about fire until it happens. But if someone were looking to fireproof their space, I think they'd want to know the best fire detector.

So you call an expert.

Think of a critic's opinion as a fire alarm. Not everyone owns one or keeps theirs operational and you don't want it to go off 24/7.

But at some point, it will go off. It can't put out the flame directly. It can't tell you what to do exactly.

But it can alert you that there is a fire.

Now, compare this to say, Hell's Paradise S2, another MAPPA joint and go one step further: "do I understand these characters better at the end of the season than I did at the beginning?"

I'll tell you one thing: there's a night and day difference between the two. And it ain't the graphics.

I still have one more episode, so I'll come back to this. In the meantime, if you're still mad I'm not giving JJK full credit, ask yourself the following:

"If I were to cut this fight scene entirely, could the plot still move forward? Would the story drop to a halt if I were to remove this scene?"

You can compliment MAPPA for doing a good job art wise without putting JJK's writing on a pedestal. Again, it's one of the most divisive arcs of the series for a reason. Even the most glowing reviews have brought some component of the writing as its weakest element.

Never thought I'd see the day where simply pointing out The Culling Game is divisive (i.e. hard to follow), even among fans admitting as much would be controversial.

This is not a new idea. It's been well documented it has a lot of moving parts. You're gonna lose some people at some point.

IDK who needs to hear this, but since one of my recent followers apparently took issue with my JJK take, this is a reminder that I analyze media here. The good, bad, divisive and my personal favorite, obscure.

It's in my bio folks, plain as day.
medium.com/@thegrimaether

This is going to get a lot of future mileage, I tell you hwat.

And hey, if you liked it, more power to you. A fan doesn't have to justify their likes.

A professional, on the other hand, I kind of expect to see a little more consistency to put it nicely. Because if it's only MAPPA's animation doing the work, then what does that say about the original script?

Of the three reviews I've come across, it's truly baffling the number of ways people can rephrase "yes, it's convoluted. Yes, it doesn't make sense. But at least the fights were good. 9/10 guys!"

More people, especially critics, should learn to differentiate between good adaptation and good story. A good adaptation can elevate the source material and still tell a bad story if the original writing wasn't up to par to begin with.

(yes, I'm talking about Jujutsu Kaisen)

TVアニメ『あかね噺』ノンクレジットオープニング映像｜桑田佳祐「人誑し / ひとたらし」 YouTube video by tv asahi animation YouTubeチャンネル

Welp, this earworm is going to occupy the rest of my day.
Now you can have it too!😆
www.youtube.com/watch?v=33pS...

Gnosia (anime, 2025 - 26, cover)

24) Gnosia (anime, 2025 - 26)

Onto greener pastures, this was an unexpected gem of mystery and sci-fi intrigue. Stellar performances, art direction and gotta love that soundtrack.

Add +1 to the list of good video game adaptations.

Fire Force (Season 3 Part 2, cover)

23) Fire Force (Season 3 Part 2)

A poorly executed finale combined with some of the sloppiest writing of its contemporaries, to say nothing of Ohkubo's vindictive ego on full display because no one laughed at his unfunny joke the 1st time around.

Now you got to drag [redacted] into your mess?!

A rushed stitched together "Slipaiden" shirt (Slipknot + Iron Maiden). (Taken from West Tokyo Metal Bros)

"The Darwin Incident" - The Stage Play

No, really.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jlmz...

The Darwin Incident (anime, main cover)

22) The Darwin Incident

The seasonal guilty pleasure, if you will. Not wholesale "unga bonga" mode, but so baffling unhinged and unsubtle that you keep watching to see what bonkers thing comes next.

I̶t̶'s̶ ̵s̶t̶i̶l̶l̶ ̵b̶e̶t̶t̶e̶r̶ ̵t̶h̶a̶n̶ ̵S̶h̶i̶b̶o̶y̶u̶g̶i̶

Beastars Final Season Part 2 (main visual)

21) Beastars Final Season Part 2

Didn't quite nail the finale, but this might be my favorite season of the show. It expanded the world, kept me engaged, and threw in a decent foil.

While I still think it bites more than it can chew thematically, overall, I appreciate its big picture storytelling.

Fate/strange Fake (anime, main cover)

20) Fate/strange Fake

Late start; practically binged till I got caught up. Guess the delays paid off in the end. Recommended.

I love how much this Saber is an Arthurian nerd :)

Gonron Egg (volume one cover)

19) Gonron Egg (manga, final)

Oh dear. It's one thing to know a series you are reading is on the chopping block ahead of time, it's another to see it happen in real time.

Yeah, the writing has been on the wall for a few weeks now, so I won't repeat its shortcomings. Best of luck Tanizaki.

Dorohedoro (Season 1, main cover art)

18) Dorohedoro (Season 1, Rewatch)

"Finally, some good food!"

My almost 2020 AOTY and runner up. Been wanting to rewatch this forever and write something, but the draft never came together.

Or as they say, it got lost in the chaos.

Tshirt that says I love hole

For a year that didn't have a "definitive" anime of the year IMO, this was the most time I've spent deciding 10th place, and the closest Top 3 I've had making these annual lists.

That said, my #1 was decided the moment I saw THAT scene. Having the best needle drop didn't hurt either.

Been seeing a lot of recommendations flying around here, so your regular reminder to check out Radiant if you're needing something new in your rotation.

Oh, and anime girl of the day: Lupa ("Has a Norse Wolf") Lycco

The people who whined about the previous seasons of Jojo not streaming weekly must realize the levels of karma regarding the timing of Steel Ball Run's delay.

(Yes, I know it's a coincidence, but shush! It's funnier if we frame it that way.)