Vividred Operation - Episode 5

As the mysterious girl responsible for "powering up" the Alone over previous weeks, it's about time that this villain of the piece got some time in the limelight - enter Rei Kuroki, who also just so happens to be a classmate of Akane's.

Of course, there's more to this story than simply Rei serving as a force of evil - indeed, the first half of this episode might as well have simply consisted of a neon flashing sign saying "REI IS A GOOD GIRL REALLY", given how we follow her admiring birds, smiling at the thought of a camping trip and carefully tending to the parrot in her care at home.  In spite of this, Kuroki is a cold character when it comes to dealing with others, pushing Akane's advances of friendship away while keeping her distance from all and sundry.

So what is the story of Kuroki's involvement with the Alone?  While we don't learn everything about the source of her troubles, it's clear that she's being blackmailed in the promise of her parents returning to life if she only helps the Alone to complete their mission, that being the destruction of the Manifestor Engine.  Such is her desperation to succeed in this task that she's even willing to go it alone (Alone... geddit?), risking life and limb with dangerous consequences that also leads to the loss of the key which connect Rei to her family - an implement which quite literallt proves to be a possible key to a budding friendship with Akane and the gang.

As I've alluded to already, the first half of this week's Vividred Operation isn't exactly subtle as it goes about laying out Kuroki's character, to the point where it becomes unintentionally hilarious at times - I'm surprised they didn't show her cuddling an injured kitten and kissing a baby just to hammer the point home.  Beyond that, the episode was fairly decent in getting to the crux of what drives Rei's actions, in an instalment that was largely free of action but has set up another major aspect of the show's plot.  Perhaps we can drive forward towards something that breaks free of the show's current formula and really kicks things up a notch as a result.

Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai NEXT - Episode 5

It's time for another uneventful session in the Neighbours Club, albeit initially at least, in this week's Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai NEXT, providing a sense of normality that is almost a relief as Yukimura's brush with the truth about her own gender seems to have left her drive to become a "real man" unaffected.

Somehow or other, the discussion turns to gaming, and with Rika having plenty of games laying around before we know it Yozora is playing an otome game.  After dodging a vengeful bullet after Sena tries to give the main character a crazy name (Charlie Tunoku or somesuch), Yozora predictably makes a hash at wooing any of the guys within the game as she spends all of her time worrying about her characters stats.  But has she found love in the form of the game's resident delinquent?  Of course, even this ends in tears, leaving us with a glimmer of hope that Yozora might actually have learned her lesson for once.

From here, our attention turns to Rika - not just her ever-changing hairstyles, but also her proclivity to make impressive but rather dull inventions.  At Kodaka's probing, Rika sets out to make a time machine - at least so she claims.  Using Hasegawa himself as a test for the system, he finds himself propelled back into his past and finding himself with an opportunity to set right his youthful mistake in moving away without saying goodbye to his childhood friend... a friend who was, of course, really Yozora.  While all of this proves to be nothing more but a dream once it all goes rather awry, the outburst made by Kodaka during his sleep has opened up a substantial can of worms which is going to take some explaining.

Not for the first time in this series, there was a lack of any particularly sharp humour on show in this week's Haganai - its visual novel focus feels like yet another rehash of something done before, and better, by the series, and the interactions between the main cast remain similarly predictable.  Thankfully, the second half of the episode offers a little more meat upon those otherwise bare bones, giving us the prospect of returning to one of the core tenets of the show's wider concepts; something which could give the series a much-needed boost, with any luck.

Psycho-Pass - Episode 16

Shogo Makishima's goals have taken him to the heart of the Sibyl system, hidden from the general public though its true nature might be.  Can the trio of Tsunemori, Kagari and Kogami put a stop to his plan, whatever it might be?

Right off the bat, things are further complicated by the fact that Makishima and his accomplices have split up, with some taking to the roof of the building and its radar antenna, while the rest have set off for the basement.  With Kogami in particular given explicit instructions to capture and arrest Makishima alive, he sets off for the roof with Akane, leaving Kagari in charge of handling the basement, which proves to be far more expansive than even the building's public blueprints suggest.

Purely and simply, the majority of this episode is a straightforward race to catch up with and stop the main instigators of the chaos currently ensuing, with Kagari finding himself being tempted to join the "dark side" by Makishima's hacker accomplice, while the relationship between Kogami and Makishima himself is far more simpler.  While goings-on in the basement offer us a couple of twists and turns, at the top of the building it's left to Akane to choose between her emotions and her ethics with Makishima at her mercy.

In the grand scheme of things, and compared to much of its output thus far, this week's Psycho-Pass didn't really have anything in particular that it wanted to say, leaving the episode open to some simpler entertainment as we watched our "heroes" set forth on their mission to stop Makishima's plan.  In terms of this goal, the episode succeeded - the action was pretty slick for the most part, we got a real sense of the depth of Akane's character in terms of her drive and determination, and we also gained some glimpses into Kogami and Kagari's psyche and why they are considered to be "latent criminals".  Where the series goes from here I have no idea - with some big reveals made and others clearly around the corner though, I remain hooked in terms of following through with whatever Psycho-Pass has in store for us next.

Bakuman Season 3 - Episode 18

Things are looking up in the world for many of the major players in Bakuman as this latest episode gets underway - Eiji Nizuma and Ashirogi Muto are both hard at work on the titles they hope will bring them new successes, while Azuki's career is also reaching a new pinnacle.

Our focus, however, is on our two rival manga artists as they put together their concepts for a pair of one-shot stories, with Nizuma's Zombie Gun and Ashirogi Muto's Reversi provoking plenty of excitement in the editorial offices of Shonen Jack.  This excitement proves to be well-founded too, as these two one-shots debut in consecutive issues of the magazine, and both prove to be record breakers.  Is this finally the moment where Takagi and Mashiro reach the top of the tree?

Given the incredible popularity of both series, it's clearly time to consider serialisation for both of them, which presents some unique problems.  In Mashiro and Takagi's case, the problem is an obvious one - can they possibly work on two series at the same time, with PCP also proving to be a continuing success?  The answer to this is to shift their new outing to the equally new Hisshou magazine - or is it?  Hattori clearly has an opinion on this, as do the artists themselves, and the final outcome is one that also looks set to spur on Eiji in his own goal of creating the world's best manga.

What all of this adds up to is a wonderful feel-good episode - everything is fresh and exciting, and that sense of excitement, potential and the fact that we're on the cusp of something special for those involved is genuinely infectious.  It might not have any massive drama or tension, but it's simply great fun to sit down and watch as we move on towards the "final battle" between our manga artists.  It's a climax that I certainly can't wait to immerse myself in, and this third season of Bakuman shows no signs of abating in terms of its quality.

Tamako Market - Episode 5

In the height of summer, what better way to cool off than a visit to the swimming pool?

That said, Tamako and her friend's pool visit is more about business than pleasure - with a school trip to the beach that involves a fair amount of swimming coming up, teaching Tamako how to swim takes top priority.  Meanwhile, Mochizou's inability to join the girls on said pool visit sends him into a malaise as he ponders his relationship (or relative lack thereof) with Tamako.  Maybe this is something that self-professed love expert Dera can help with?

Although Dera does succeed in getting Ouji sufficiently psyched up to consider writing a love letter to Tamako, he soon runs into an obstacle in the form of Midori, who not only prevents this letter from being delivered but also warns Ouji off confessing to Tamako in no uncertain terms.  Is this jealousy she's feeling, and if so is it feelings for Ouji or Tamako that's getting in the way, and do those feelings consist of friendship alone or something rather more substantial?  It's this mystery that effectively sustains this episode.

Well, I say "sustains", because it's still pretty boring and largely unfunny in the way it goes about things - the traditional KyoAni physical comedy has been done too many times before to get any big laughs by this point, and the main cast of characters all remain largely dull; even Midori, perhaps one of the more interesting individuals within the show, becomes a whole lot tougher to like thanks to her attitude and behaviour in this show.  And hey, remember that whole thing about Dera finding a bride for his prince?  Yeah, I'm pretty sure that was some kind of plot point within this series before we got sidetracked by beach and festival episodes.  Maybe if we get back to that side of affairs this series can prove itself to be something more than schmaltzy and mediocre.

Shin Sekai Yori (From the New World) - Episode 18

The previous episode told us that something was seriously amiss in the world of the Monster Rats, in terms of not only their conflicts with one another but also the firepower at their disposal.  So what exactly is going on?

It's certainly a question that is vexing the concerned human parties in town as they pick over the remains of the Robber Fly colony's victory - a victory which came without any loss of life to them, massive injuries to all of their opponents and the complete disappearance of all weapons from the battlefield.  Throw in some arrows that were left completely undamaged even after they've been fired, and theories begin to emerge - has the colony managed to glean information on weapons of mass destruction from a False Minoshiro?  Or do they have human help from somebody with powers?  This latter question brings back some hard to swallow memories for Saki, as she hears it reiterated that there is absolutely no doubt that both Saki and Mamoru died some years previously after their escape from the village.  Is this really the truth, or have the Robber Fly colony pulled the wool over the eyes of their "Gods"?

In light of what is believed to be the case about the colony, the decision of the council is unequivocal - to wipe out the entire colony as soon as possible.  Given how sudden and without further investigation this decision to effectively commit genocide is, the potential for retribution is obvious yet ignored by the powers that be - a grave mistake as the Robber Fly's forces throw caution to the wind and launch a massive assault on their "superiors" and the human town.  It's an uprising that is quelled thanks to some of the vast powers available to the townsfolk but it isn't without its casualties, which in itself looks set to start another cycle of vengeance.

All of this leaves us with another superb episode of Shin Sekai Yori - on the surface it's a brutally compelling progression to the show's plot and some of its major concepts, but did a little deeper and it's much more than that, sporting as it does some obvious nods and probes in the general direction of international politics and foreign policy while also asking some major ethical questions about humanity.  Somehow, it manages to do this without ever feeling too judgemental, and even as a viewer you're left torn in your opinions on what is going on - the Robber Fly colony seem to deserve retribution for their actions, but the town council's quick decision to exterminate them and their clear motivations of revenge and disdain hardly make them paragons of justice either.  In short, Shin Sekai Yori excels in painting a world packing with shades of grey moralistically, and it's this which makes the venture increasingly compelling now that we've ventured into its world with adult eyes as our guides, which has proved to be a smart move.

AKB0048 Next Stage - Episode 5

The elections might be over, but there's no rest for the girls of AKB0048 as they swing straight back into action by shaving their heads and posting tearful YouTube videos at the behest of their management.  Wait a second, that isn't right, is it?

In fact, no sooner has election fever died down then it's straight back into the world of guerilla concerts, with the group sent off to the planet of Baltistar in the face of what is almost certain to be some tough resistance.  Rather than follow Chieri on her debut as a member of AKB0048 proper, we instead get to follow a group of the remaining understudies as they're sent to infiltrate a forced labour camp, going undercover for rather vague reasons by the powers than be.

In the midst of this group is Makoto, who seems to have taken her election "failure" harder than most, opining that she's never going to make it as an idol while the rest of her colleagues seem to have taken the results in their stride.  Of course, this means that Makoto is ultimately the focus of this episode, as the group come across an underground casino which serves as a group for the wealthy to place bets against AKB0048's successes and failures in combat.  Eventually, the interlopers are rumbled (although not on account of the frickin' huge hearts in their eyes, amazingly), and as things get a little challenging on the asteroid which is the home of the camp in question it's left to Makoto to save the day, thanks to some inspirational words from one of her fans.

Aside from the usual dose of mild craziness that this show's core plot always provides, this was another pretty run-of-the-mill episode - some of its revelations could be interesting moving forward (although I bet they won't make any more out of the underground casino in story-telling terms), but everything panned out across the episode just as you'd expect it to, thus offering few surprises beyond just how many plot holes managed to make it through onto our screens.  After the emotionally charged instalment provided last week, it simply doesn't cut it really despite being closer to the core of what this show is all about, leaving us waiting to be fed some more clues about what the Zodiac Group's ultimate goals are.