Liv Writes Words Again

  Sometimes, the joy of something is being silly. Take a premise you know and be silly with it. This doesn't avoid the notion of both enjoying the source and it doesn't mean mockery of it makes you hate the source at the same time. It comes from a knowledge of something, the ridiculous and the wonderful.   Mashle is that! A anime that ostensibly laughs at and also loves the silliness of the world building of wizard school as a genre and while taking a different approach then similar shows like Little Witch Academia, a very earnest and comical sendup that leans more to adoring the tropes while deconstructing them, Mashle leans into how fucking ridiculous the tenants of this fiction is and ruthlessly makes fun of the pomp and circumstance while staying true to the sincerity of friendship that runs core to the best aspects of the fiction.   What if the main character of a wizard school show had no magic and maximum physical strength instead? Simple as it come...

  CW; Dementia   Imagine art. Alright, whatever it is in your head, hold onto that idea and wonder why you think it is. Is it colourful? Stylized? Is it something you think about a lot because of something that you still ponder on? Is it bad in a way you can never forget? Does it annoy you but is it memorable? Can you taste how you felt when you were chewing through it, fresh anger, resentment, joy or tragedy?   Okay, so Flip Flappers is art. It's not art I quite always agree with. It's not art I like every aspect of and it's art that feels indulgent in some ways that make me fucking roll my eyes. -But-. But but but. It is art. And it's art I remember.   Flip Flappers is a story about two girls who may (or may not?) be quite lesbian, may or may not be in a magical girl style show with transformations and a lot of exploitation both intra and extra diagetically and also, they may be fighting some very suspect looking characters in tall white hoods w...

  This review was written by me after having watched both seasons as that's when I began to write reviews again; as such it encompasses both.   The art of a story being told is a powerful one; we're fascinated and founded on stories, the idea of someone's adventures, misdeeds, successes and failures infusing all forms of life, all words telling it in some way or other. So an anime founded on telling them, I was unsurprised gripped me even if I was unfamiliar with it.   Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinjou is a story that spans multiple generations across a vast stretch of time; from before the advance of Japan into war, to the post-war years and slowly stretching itself into our modern day, it follows a series of story tellers, connected as they are but a dysfunctional and tragic family dynamic that none the less, finds love suffused into it at various parts, including the anxiety, detest and even love of performing. It is a story of people who love stories, peopl...

  This is a review of the first season as a complete experience. The second will be looked at later.   It's been a struggle of late to feel things openly. I'm not happy about it, but it is true that to cry, to feel deeply and to possess emotion outside of tired has been a bit difficult. So it means all the more when something comes along that actually helps me find the path forward.   My Next Life as a Villainess I've remembered fondly since the first time I watched it beside my spouse and brother and upon rewatching in a time where it's hard to muster feeling, it's what anchors me both to the grief I feel and I hope I well, hope I can cultivate for myself. For others. The story, of a girl who dies and is transported to another world as the villainess character of her 'otome' or fem led visual novel and awakens and fearfully tries to prepare for the chance of death, is a premise I found original when it came out and played on the 'transpo...

  There are experiences that are always a little marred by stumbling blocks; they go for shock value and do so at times where it's trying to set a tone then they stumble with it, they stir up anger and drama but do so in a way that's baffling and confusing rather than investing, it chooses beats that don't match the tempo the story has been trying to keep up. But, there are experiences that manage to do that and somehow pull out enough good and joy that you almost forget about it or even find a way to appreciate it beyond the fault. Fafner: Dead Agressor is one of those experiences.   Fafner fell through to me through being exposed to it through an old handheld game, Super Robot Wars K and hearing of its famed brutality, the idea no one was safe. That a lot of the characters, I assumed pilots were up to die and no one was off the table. Watching the series, I'm learning that there was a thing this show should probably be better known for; being a love letter...