I already had a problem with the One Piece manga introducing the character of Cosette just so Niji could show off how evil he is by beating her up. It's definitely shocking, but how on earth could you be comfortable with something like that? It's not like it's imperative to the story that we learn what a bad boy Niji is to begin with. We already know.
But it turns out that I'm not a big fan of the anime toning the violence down, either. In the manga, it's brutal. Cosette's bloody, swollen face is one of the most striking and violent panels of the Whole Cake Island arc. The anime has been known to lessen the bloodshed in certain scenes, but we've also seen it commit to moments that have surprised me, so I never know what to expect when it comes to adapting the darker parts of this series. In this version, the anime keeps Cosette's face off-screen, focusing much more on Sanji as he grits his teeth in seething anger. The fact that the violence feels so impersonal is the most disappointing part. They went so far as to show the moment before, when Niji approaches Cosette later that morning just to make it that much creepier, but this whole episode has a very arm's length feeling to it.
All of that is on top of how ugly it looks. The production values are currently bottoming out, which usually means we're on the verge of a massive up-swing in quality, but this is still one of the worst looking episodes of the arc yet. Everybody is falling off-model, body language is stiff and unnatural, and the molasses pacing is not helping any of it. We keep cutting back and forth between the Cracker fight and the Carrot and Chōpper mirror world shenanigans, but that's ultimately the same bunch of repetitive time wasting we've been seeing the past few episodes. It's a bummer.
From there, the story moves to the revelation about how the Germa 66 army works. It turns out that Sanji's father was once a brilliant scientist and a peer of the infamously elusive Vegapunk, (which would also make him a peer of Caesar Clown, perhaps?) and it turns out they've discovered the secret to DNA cloning, thus the hundreds of powerful men growing in test tubes in Germa's basement. You can definitely see the value in Big Mom and the Vinsmokes pooling resources. There's also some emphasis put on Sanji's discomfort and disbelief of the situation, but coming off the Cosette stuff, it feels like such an extraneous element to add to the story. The direction here is very lifeless and matter-of-fact.
I really hope the quality upswing for the anime is coming soon, because this is not a great time for One Piece. I was already lukewarm on this part of the arc in the manga, but the adaptation quality is especially poor right now. You can feel how thin the production is being spread, and it makes me very sad whenever it gets like this, because I love this show and I want to see the best in it, but that's just not happening this week.
Anime's teaser visual also revealed― A website opened on Thursday to reveal the original anime project of animation studio GoHands titled Momentary Lily, which will premiere in January 2025. The website also revealed a teaser visual and promotional video. The visual above teases: "Our daily life is always fun." GoRA and GoHands' K television anime series premiered in October 2013, and had a TV serie...
SAND LAND is a curious game that combines an eclectic set of gameplay features into a well-realized package that, despite its flaws, is perfectly solid and more than the sum of its parts.― SAND LAND is a curious game that combines an eclectic set of gameplay features into a well-realized package that, despite its flaws, is perfectly solid and more than the sum of its parts. Going into this one, all ...
Atlus reveals its big new game, Metaphor: ReFantazio, amid the recent exit of Shin Megami Tensei artist Kazuma Kaneko. PLUS: A Golden Axe comedy series and Pokémon Go models get a makeover.― Welcome back, folks! As you probably noticed, Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes came out earlier this week. It's a fun time, as you could see in my review of it. It's come to my attention that there are some per...
Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes promises to revive the Suikoden series in everything but name, but what's so great about Suikoden that it's worth reviving? Well, read on…― It's 1996, and the PlayStation is just starting to take over the game industry. It has many genres covered: racing, fighting, action, sports, puzzles, train-conducting, deep-sea diving, fire-fighting, and so forth. But what abou...
Some of Shonen Jump's biggest manga hits are approaching their end. Does the magazine have new heavy-hitters lined up to take up the mantle?― Some of Shonen Jump's biggest manga hits are approaching their end. Does the magazine have new heavy-hitters lined up to take up the mantle? Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the participants in this chatlog are not the views of Anime News Netwo...
Seki voiced Shutaro Kiba in Mōryō no Hako, Zhang Fei in Sōten Kōro― Talent agency En-kikaku announced on Tuesday that voice actor Takaaki Seki died on April 15 due to esophageal cancer. He had been undergoing medical treatment. He was 54. There was a funeral held for close relatives. Seki was born in Osaka, Japan on November 5, 1969. He entered the En Theater Institute in 1995 and joined Engeki Shūd...
James and Lynzee reflect on the end of Solo Leveling and whether its worldbuilding is worth its edgy turn. PLUS: The big monsters of Kaiju No. 8, & court intrigue in Yatagarasu!― Will You Watch Solo Leveling Season 2? James and Lynzee reflect on the end of Solo Leveling and whether its worldbuilding is worth its edgy turn. PLUS: The big monsters of Kaiju No 8, court intrigue in Yatagarasu, and a li...
Some books are good. Some books read like self-insert fanfiction from the early days of AO3, but you can't stop reading and enjoying them. Dark Moon: The Blood Altar is one of those.― Some books are good. Some books are not and read sort of like self-insert fanfiction from the early days of AO3, but even though you recognize that they aren't objectively filled with literary merit, you can't stop rea...
Hayashi and Tōchi play mentee/mentor in heart-warming golf anime series.― Golf anime Tonbo! is one of the new anime premiering in the Spring 2024 season. At Anime Japan 2024, we sat down with lead voice actors Rika Hayashi and Hiroki Tōchi to talk about their characters, their experiences with golf, and the positives of country life in Japan. In her first voice acting role as a main character, Hayas...
The third season of Sound Euphonium reignites the fandom controversy over Reina and Kumiko's relationship. Chris and Steve delve into it and why 'queerbaiting' is such a loaded term.― The third season of Sound Euphonium reignites the fandom controversy over Reina and Kumiko's relationship. Chris and Steve delve into it and why 'queerbaiting' is such a loaded term. Disclaimer: The views and opinions...
You can't accuse the Pretty Cure franchise of resting on its laurels. Wonderful Precure! could move too slowly for some viewers. But these episodes are full of unmitigated joy.― You can't accuse the Pretty Cure franchise of resting on its laurels. While there are distinct similarities between all iterations of the long-running Magical Girl franchise, recent years have done their best to maintain the...