Luffy vs. Cracker is a fight with an interesting shape to it. There's some funkiness going on in how it translates to the anime, since they're animating a lot of content that was off-screen in the manga, but the idea of an exhausting, uphill battle that Luffy has to overcome just so he can reunite with Sanji and continue the rest the arc is a good one. The real danger comes with the inclusion of Fourth Gear, which can only last so many minutes in a fight that takes hours. This episode opens with Nami and a deflated Luffy doing their best to keep the fight going despite their incredible disadvantage, and the sequence is well animated with a lot of expressive movement. It looks great.
But the real meat as always rests with the Sanji stuff, where we enter the newest and most thorough flashback regarding his childhood with the Vinsmokes. The focus is mostly on the bullying that his brothers dished out, as well as his father's disappointment in him since can't keep up with the intense superhuman training that the kids are put through as a result of their genetic modifications. Sanji's modifications never held, so he's a regular human among pseudo cyborgs, which makes it that much more satisfying that present-day Sanji's going toe-to-toe with them in strength.
Since this is the beginning of a flashback, the most gut-wrenching stuff is still to come. Seeing Sanji fight his brothers in the present while they beat on him in the past is effective, but we've seen that quite a few times in this arc by now. It's the little moments that shine in these backstories, like Sanji's turtle friend that his brothers feel the need to kick around, or Judge firmly establishing how reprehensible he can be. Sanji's parents are interesting because there seems to be this whole other story there that we've barely scraped the surface of. Judge is a garbage dad, but his awfulness seems to be in service of something. He's got a dream he's trying to accomplish.
This episode has all the feeling in it that I want from One Piece. It's active and awake during the fights, and calm and sensitive during the flashbacks. The art and music come together really well, making this one of the more appealing episodes in recent weeks. We're in "I wish the anime was like this more often" territory once again, and I couldn't be happier. The Cracker fight could easily be overstaying its welcome if you're experiencing this through the anime for the first time, but of all the Cracker-heavy stuff lately, this week is pretty strong. That, combined with the great Sanji flashback and an overall energy to the episode, makes this a good one in my book.
T・P BON embodies the spirit of classic sci-fi adventure like almost no other recent anime.― I adore classic sci-fi, especially when it involves time travel and grand adventure. T・P BON embodies the spirit of classic sci-fi adventure like almost no other recent anime. Based on a 1978-1986 manga by Doraemon co-creator Fujiko F. Fujio, this ultra-shiny modern adaptation from studio BONES and director M...
Manga launched in 2009, inspired TV anime in 2014― Manga creator Mizuho Kusanagi confirmed on X (formerly Twitter) on Saturday that her Yona of the Dawn (Akatsuki no Yona) manga is in its final arc. Kusanagi referenced the final arc alongside the news that the manga won an award in the Long Seller Comics Division for the Rakuten Kobo e-Book Award 2024. Kusanagi — the creator of Mugen Spiral, Game X ...
Art resurfaces when he was announced as judge for Shonen Jump's Sports Manga Award― Being talented in one aspect of your life doesn't stop you from being talented in other aspects. For instance, former seven-time Mr. Olympia Arnold Schwarzenegger went on to have a prolific acting career. But what about Shōhei Ohtani, the biggest name in sports today? Well, it turns out he's not just one of the great...
I can't recommend the series, nor think that any hypothetical viewer would enjoy it, but it is the kind of trash TV that's rewarding to dissect.― Have you ever wondered what Baki would be like if it had a conservative bent instead of queer undertones? Well, look no further because the answer is Kengan Ashura! While Kengan is trying to convey the same spectacle and white-knuckle action of the long-ru...
Series starring Miku Martineau, Ayo Solanke, more starts production in Toronto― The Hollywood Reporter entertainment news site reported on Thursday that showrunner Simon Barry (Warrior Nun creator) and Boat Rocker Media are producing a live-action series for Netflix titled BET that "is based in part" on writer Homura Kawamoto and artist Tōru Naomura's Kakegurui - Compulsive Gambler manga. The show h...
Jean-Karlo attempts to condense two big video game showcases into a coherent column, from the revamped Silent Hill 2 to the grazing pastures of Story of Seasons.― Welcome back, folks. This is related to a big story for this week, but this past weekend, I listened to Utada Hikaru's re-recording of "Simple And Clean". It's very emotional. Utada Hikaru is a good twenty-plus years older than when she or...
In the Eisner-nominated work, Maki Fujiwara chronicles her daily life with her husband, lionized mangaka Yoshiharu Tsuge. Though deceptively simple at first glance, a foundation of abuse is slowly revealed.― At first blush, Maki Fujiwara's My Picture Diary does what it says on the tin. It tells the story of her daily life as a housewife and mother, spending time with her daily activities, noting the...
Now streaming on Netflix, Tomotaka Shibayama's first feature animation mixes the magical with reality to share a simple but important message.―
Director Tomotaka Shibayama's latest film, My Oni Girl, is an action-adventure drama with elements of a buddy comedy and a relatable coming-of-age story. The film, produced by Studio Colorido, was released in theaters in Japan and on Netflix on May 24, foll...
Kaiju No. 8 takes the top spot this week while Tonari no Yōkai-san pushes to #3 in the cmulative! Check out our weekly user rankings!― Let's have a look at what ANN readers consider the best (and worst) of the season,
based on the polls you can find in our Daily Streaming Reviews
and on the Your Score page with the latest simulcasts. Keep in mind that these rankings are based on how people rated in...
Mospeada is a work very much of its time, riffing on ideas and tropes that were all the rage when it was made, and doesn't do anything exceptional with them.― It can be easy for even longtime fans to forget that alongside Macross, there were two other 80's sci-fi anime that got Frankenstein-ed into what we'd eventually call Robotech. While this isn't the first time one of those series has made it to...
Following the upcoming retro programming block Toonami Rewind, Chris and Lucas look back fondly on the afternoons spent watching Naruto and Sailor Moon.― Following the upcoming retro programming block Toonami Rewind, Chris and Lucas look back fondly on the afternoons spent watching Naruto and Sailor Moon. Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the participants in this chatlog are not the v...