Language Disguises Thought, Baby (1/2)
I said I'd do this, so consider this the opening to my Space Dandy episode-by-episode minireview post. I'm going to break this up into season 1 and 2 because there's a very clear shift that happens between them (although I'd argue that a few late season 1 episodes show this shift)
there will be no scores, no rankings, just a few sentences and my take on whether I liked an episode or thought it fell flat. these are more of rambles than actual reviews, so I'm not even trying to offer anything besides my opinion
<EVERYBODY COME ON>!
1: Live with the Flow, Baby
this isn't my favourite episode, but it does something very important: it catches your attention. it very quickly and (arguably) elegantly teaches you about how inconsequential mortality is to the crew of the Aloha Oe. this may be a strange comparison, but it reminds me a lot of Ichigo Mashimaro Episode 0 in terms of tone
I forgot just how funny this show was. improved immensely by watching it on a couch with others, so that no slapstick or animation gag goes un-giggled-at
in isolation, this is a very okay episode. as the first episode tasked with easing people into a very weird show, it does its job well
2: The Search for the Phantom Space Ramen, Baby
I may be a bit biased in saying this, because there's a memory attached to this episode, but this is one of my favourites of early season 1. Meow is a very charismatic character who would be completely insufferable if not for Dandy, and the same is true in reverse
the martial arts homage in this episode is fantastic, even if it feels a bit like a red herring for Cowboy Bebop fans in the same way as the woolongs are
you also start seeing the existential themes emerging which become the show's bread and butter later on. this is an episode I'd consider "essential" to understanding the tone of Space Dandy
3: Occasionally Even the Deceiver Is Deceived, Baby
an incredibly funny episode. I remember people making a big deal out of this back when the series first aired, with plenty of people dropping it outright (as was the fashion at the time) because it seemed like it was going to be an ecchi comedy
all that said, there's so many visual gags in this episode. it feels weird to try and fine-comb what makes these early episodes good, given how obvious it is: they're not afraid to be silly and have fun
I'm being very gentle on the first few episodes because opening for a show like Space Dandy before anything was really established had to be brutal
4: Sometimes You Can't Live with Dying, Baby
the first time I saw this episode, as it was airing, I still hadn't realised how the show was going to be formatted. the second half felt like a kick in the ribs that I didn't fully recover from until several episodes later, when I finally stopped trying to figure out how the zombie thing resolved
this episode is a little bit of a dud to me, despite the hilarious second half, because it's just not all that interesting. even so, a middling episode of Space Dandy still beats [checks what else was on at the time] ah, yeah, that's why I don't remember much about this season besides the four series I watched at the time
what do you want me to say about it? it's the zombie episode. it's fine. I could take or leave it
5: A Merry Companion Is a Wagon in Space, Baby
I've spent years singing this episode's praises. I watched it three times when it came out. can you imagine how scared I was about the off chance I'd see it on the rewatch and find it lost its luster? the good news is, it didn't. I still got a little choked up
A Merry Companion stands so strongly that it could have existed outside of Space Dandy as its own series. fortunately, it doesn't have to. for my money, this is the best episode of the entire series.
and what a needle drop! the montage of Dandy and Adélie travelling to Want to Know has some of the best vibes (for lack of a better word) the series ever clicks together
heartfelt, melancholy, and sincere. paced like a delicious meal that leaves you wanting nothing. peak television. this is the episode where Dandy becomes really likeable beyond surface level novelty
6: The War of the Undies and Vests, Baby
this episode has one of the "dudes rock" moments of all time when Dandy and Meow are arbitrarily assigned sides in a pointless conflict and immediately start beating each other up for reasons they don't understand. this episode would be a dud to me if it weren't so funny
...and if it didn't have that finale.
regardless of how you feel about the entire plot of this episode being designed to anticlimax and set the stage for the Stardust Pipeline needle drop, it's a great needle drop, so it's hard to feel too grouchy about that
of course, maybe that's the point? Space Dandy is about nonsequiturs and going with the flow, so this episode actually conveys that philosophy really well. a passing grade, if only on technicality
7: A Race in Space Is Dangerous, Baby
I like death races. I like bishies. I like homoeroticism, and I like rock organ solos. these are all things you should know about me before you get upset that I really enjoyed this episode.
the sheer quantity of colourful fun in this episode is unbelievable. it's incoherent, it doesn't say much, but it stuck the landing for me. this episode is quintessential Space Dandy, distilled... for better and worse! but that's part of why I like it
also Dandy symbolically tops a twink in this episode and it's not subtext. lot to unpack there.
8: The Lonely Pooch Planet, Baby
a rare case where the second half of the episode being so irreverent actually does detract from the first half. this is another episode where we get to see the heart behind Space Dandy, and then we get a diversion into an (admittedly funny) slapstick plot
this one doesn't really stick with me as much as it should, given how gorgeous the animation is. I don't think they needed to change the format, but I'm not sure they chose the correct second half for this one
this episode, to me, falls flat. sadly.
9: Plants Are Living Things, Too, Baby
inconsolable. this episode is every bit as insane as I remembered.
looping back around to the criticism I made of episode 8, this episode doesn't even have a pivot. it's just a weird enough concept to feel confident in riding it out until the end
and you know what? it works. I got emotional over some faceless plants.
heartfelt, beautiful, and of course, lots of fun. this episode is a treat and it would be a disservice to try and fail to articulate every reason why
10: There's Always Tomorrow, Baby
I completely forgot the lesbian twist and almost threw up laughing. this episode manages to combine quiet beauty and batshit humour seamlessly, with a universally understandable emotional thread. Meow becomes a significantly more likeable character for having this context
and credit where it's due, the lesbian gag is really good. it doesn't feel mean-spirited and is careful to ensure that the joke comes off as "Meow realises that he never asked if his crush was actually into him" instead of "Katie is a lesbian and this is Meow's divine punishment for abandoning his friends"
the Endless Eight homage is cute, too. this, in all honesty, feels like the first episode to engage fully with the themes that would define season 2
11: I'm Never Remembering You, Baby
do you ever feel like you're willingly calling yourself an idiot online and nobody's even paying you to do it? that's how I feel saying that this episode is just okay to me.
the concept of the librarian is extremely creative, along with the library planet and the way it works. it just doesn't do as much for me as the more colourful episodes
12: Nobody Knows the Chameleon Alien, Baby
big fan of this episode. there are so many amazing gags in it that you'd be doing yourself a disservice by watching it alone
with that praise delivered, it's a really straightforward concept and I'm not sure what I can say about it. it's funny that QT gets really into fishing for tsuchinoko, it's funny that the chameleonian disguises itself as a random guy, it's funny that they have a game show
it's a funny episode. I like the jokes, and that's a perfectly fine way to be a good episode
13: Even Vacuum Cleaners Fall in Love, Baby
I fully believe this episode started as a post-it note. the concept of "a vacuum cleaner falls in love with a coffee maker that gets thrown away" just feels like that. what a sweet episode, though
some wild sakuga in this one for a character who doesn't really lend to sakuga. the novelty of seeing QT engage in mecha combat elevated the finale of this episode
this is also a pretty nice continuation of the plot thread where our trio has to come to accept that not everyone is available to them. just like with Katie, there's plenty of obvious foreshadowing that QT is missing something
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Finished in 2023 - BLUE REFLECTION
Definitely one of the worst (or, most mid) games I still cannot really hate.
I was in the process of writing a 3000-word minireview of the game, until I realised that I don't want to do it to myself. One could spend a lot of keyboard clicks, which could all be summed up as "the game design is very confused" and "we've aimed for the lowest hanging fruit of making a clichéd story about feeling, bonds, and emotions".
For game design, I have no other explanation for it than "we came up with systems for the game in the original design document, and just went through with it without trying to adjust things later". And as for the story, uh... it's amazing how you can make a game without any research, based solely on your preconceived notions and cliches...
Still, I hear a lot of good about the second game, and even a little about the anime. So, even if this isn't that good of a good game itself, it still may be a springboard to something better and more nuanced...
(oh right, this game also has no right to have soundtrack as good as it is. Hayato Asano single-handedly lifting the quality of this game...)
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Happy book birthday to Painted Devils!!
Boy oh boy did I love Little Thieves. I didn't even know the fairytale that inspired it, but I enjoyed it so much!
Then to see there would be a SECOND book?!
I was absolutely amazed when I was approved to read it via @netgalley. Thank you guys!
Unfortunately I didn't love it ~as much~ as the first, but it was still enjoyable. There was a LOT going on in this book: cults, false gods, terrible business owners, family, and adventure too of course.
My least favorite part of the book was how much of it focused on the main characters having sex. In short, one character needed to be "claimed" in order to not be sacrificed, and a big chunk of the book focused on the characters feeling pressured to do something they didn't feel ready to do.
Like, a LOT of the book focused on that.
And the second half of the book threw in a whole family element, which tied into the story as a whole but felt hastily added in there (considering family wasn't really discussed in the first half). It all came together in the end, but she kind of found family where she wasn't looking for it.
So, the book did have some good elements, but there was also a lot going on at any given time. The ending definitely surprised me though, and it left on ~enough~ of a cliffhanger that I'm interested to see if there will be a third book!
•
How many siblings do you have?
__________
-> I have four younger brothers!
#bookstagram #littlethieves #painteddevils #margaretowen #fantasy #yafantasy #fantasyseries #minireview #netgalley #bookish #cult
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Magic Tides: ★★★★★
Book Summary:
It's been twelve years since the eventful battle we all remember. Since then, Kate and Curran have focused on raising their son, Conlan. They very recently left Atlanta, hoping to offer him some semblance of a normal life. Because that's going to be so easy, right?
Naturally, their home isn't even finished before Kate finds herself on the job. A child has been kidnapped, and she's not turning away from this one. Not even when it drags her all over the city, pitting her against surprising odds.
My Review:
Holy cats. Magic Tides is the Kate Daniels novella I never knew I needed. Having read it, I honestly don't know how I survived all the years without it. Reading this made me realize how much I miss this world. Clearly (another) read-through of the series is in order.
With a heavy dose of nostalgia, Magic Tides brings lots of action, worldbuilding, danger, and of course – our favorite characters. Readers have been pretty curious to see how Conlan's childhood would go (especially after that glimpse in Blood Heir). Well, now it's just a bit easier to imagine.
The sass, snark, and magic are still very much alive in this series. It is going to live up to any expectations you may have and then some. It'll make you giggle, cheer, and sometimes groan. And it'll leave you begging for more.
Long story short - Magic Tides is everything I could have hoped for, and I'm afraid my heart wants more.
Highlights:
Kate Daniel's World
Worldbuilding
Shapeshifters/Vampires/Gods
Kick Ass Heroine
Trigger Warnings:
Kidnapping
Child death (mentioned/implied)
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