Yes, this is a reallyyyyy late post lmao. I wanted to post it last month but I kinda got bombarded with different things happening so yeah~ It also didn't help that Final Fantasy VII Remake came out so I kindaaa spent a lot of my time playing that lol. Anyway, better late than never! Btw, if you're interested in my impressions of the remake and other games, this is the link to my gaming blog atopearth :)
So, I watched a couple of Winter 2020 anime but honestly none of them really grabbed me enough to really talk about it. Oh wait, there is one, so I'll add it to the post now haha, but otherwise, I think the anime movies I got to watch last month were better than the Winter season lol.
Kyokou Suiri (In/Spectre)
Genre: Mystery, Comedy, Supernatural, Romance, Shounen
Episodes: 12
My Rating: 7.5/10
I've read the manga before, so I was really excited when I found out that it was getting an anime adaptation! Sadly, it's quite short and only really deals with two cases, with the latter one taking up most of the episodes, nevertheless, I still enjoyed it quite a bit. Honestly though, aside from the anime giving it colour and stuff though, I think the story felt better through manga as a medium imo. Otherwise, Kurou and Kotoko are soo cute together, and yes Saki is as great as ever too! The highlight of the series is definitely the characters and their interactions, since it is a story that thrives on the characters communicating and discussing theories etc.
The story follows Kotoko who after an incident during her childhood, she ends up becoming a sort of "God of Wisdom" for the youkai/spirits that inhabit this world. Whenever the youkai have a problem, they would seek her out to help them inspect the problem and rectify it. The interesting thing about the whole thing is that Kotoko doesn't really solve things in a conventional way where she would seek out the "truth" and solve things through the truth. Instead, she solves problems by making up stuff to give people or youkai the explanation they end up thinking is either the most plausible or basically the one theory that they "like" the most. For example, the first case delves into a snake wondering why a woman decided to "bury" a body by pushing it into the lake he inhabited in. The first and most likely explanation that the police came to was most probably what actually happened, but the snake wasn't satisfied with that answer and kept questioning "flaws" to the story and the woman;s thinking. In this, Kotoko doesn't really tell the listener the "truth" but instead she logically presents scenarios and theories on alternate reasons and stories as to why it could have happened the way it did, and allows the snake to come to the conclusion and accept whatever he deems to suit his thinking most. I find the premise really interesting because a lot of the time it's true that the "truth" isn't always interesting or fun and may even be boring, so satiating everyone's curiosity with false stories that they're happy with is pretty amusing.
I also really enjoy Kurou's background and how he and Kotoko act. I also enjoy the contrast between Kotoko and Saki as the former being his current girlfriend and the latter being his ex. I think the story delves really well into how Saki and him couldn't work out, it's also amusing how different Kotoko and Saki are. Whilst I really enjoyed Kurou and Kotoko's shenanigans and how they both cared for each other in their own different ways, I think I enjoyed how realistically and fun it was when they all interacted with each other as a group and how Kotoko and Saki communicated with each other. It's a story heavily focused on the characters' talking though, so it might not be your cup of tea, but honestly, even though the Nanase case was a bit draggy, I still enjoyed all of it because I just loved to hear all their banter and back and forth discussions. The atmosphere really dragged me in and I found it quite immersive. And Kotoko is super cute haha.
Kono Subarashii Sekai ni Shukufuku wo!: Kurenai Densetsu (KONOSUBA -God's blessing on this wonderful world!- Legend of Crimson)
Genre: Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy, Magic, Parody, Supernatural
My Rating: 8/10
Okay, I'll admit and say that I never really liked S2 of Konosuba because I felt like the fanservice was too much for me and I've never really liked Darkness (I'm sorry), so even though I still liked most of it, a lot of it just wasn't as good as I would have hoped. However, the movie has definitely reminded me of how much I love Konosuba! Yunyun best girl tbh, she's such a cinnamon roll! A lot of people have said that they cut out the more serious and proper development between Kazuma and Megumin, so I'm kinda sad about that, but the movie was still super enjoyable and funny!
In this movie, we get to follow Kazuma and the party to Megumin's village and come to realise that EVERYONE is just like her LOL. I found it so hilarious that the Crimson Demons were as crazy and chuuni as she was, it was crazy. I think the idea of them keeping the demons around as a "fireworks attraction" was so LOL. The villain is as ridiculous as always and the way they defeated "her" was so stupid but funny, I didn't know whether to shake my head or just laugh my head off hahaha. Honestly, it's a must watch if you enjoy the previous Konosuba seasons because it really follows the same kinda pattern of comedy that we all enjoy and love. The Crimson Demons were better than I thought and I loved the whole part about them. The villain was really not my type of silly and funny but I really loved how they delved more into Yunyun and Megumin's bond through it. Gotta love how much of a joke world Konosuba is sometimes haha, definitely great for a good laugh!
Violet Evergarden Gaiden: Eien to Jidou Shuki Ningyou
Genre: Drama, Fantasy, Slice of Life
My Rating: 7.5/10
So, I watched a couple of Winter 2020 anime but honestly none of them really grabbed me enough to really talk about it. Oh wait, there is one, so I'll add it to the post now haha, but otherwise, I think the anime movies I got to watch last month were better than the Winter season lol.
Kyokou Suiri (In/Spectre)
Genre: Mystery, Comedy, Supernatural, Romance, Shounen
Episodes: 12
My Rating: 7.5/10
I've read the manga before, so I was really excited when I found out that it was getting an anime adaptation! Sadly, it's quite short and only really deals with two cases, with the latter one taking up most of the episodes, nevertheless, I still enjoyed it quite a bit. Honestly though, aside from the anime giving it colour and stuff though, I think the story felt better through manga as a medium imo. Otherwise, Kurou and Kotoko are soo cute together, and yes Saki is as great as ever too! The highlight of the series is definitely the characters and their interactions, since it is a story that thrives on the characters communicating and discussing theories etc.
The story follows Kotoko who after an incident during her childhood, she ends up becoming a sort of "God of Wisdom" for the youkai/spirits that inhabit this world. Whenever the youkai have a problem, they would seek her out to help them inspect the problem and rectify it. The interesting thing about the whole thing is that Kotoko doesn't really solve things in a conventional way where she would seek out the "truth" and solve things through the truth. Instead, she solves problems by making up stuff to give people or youkai the explanation they end up thinking is either the most plausible or basically the one theory that they "like" the most. For example, the first case delves into a snake wondering why a woman decided to "bury" a body by pushing it into the lake he inhabited in. The first and most likely explanation that the police came to was most probably what actually happened, but the snake wasn't satisfied with that answer and kept questioning "flaws" to the story and the woman;s thinking. In this, Kotoko doesn't really tell the listener the "truth" but instead she logically presents scenarios and theories on alternate reasons and stories as to why it could have happened the way it did, and allows the snake to come to the conclusion and accept whatever he deems to suit his thinking most. I find the premise really interesting because a lot of the time it's true that the "truth" isn't always interesting or fun and may even be boring, so satiating everyone's curiosity with false stories that they're happy with is pretty amusing.
I also really enjoy Kurou's background and how he and Kotoko act. I also enjoy the contrast between Kotoko and Saki as the former being his current girlfriend and the latter being his ex. I think the story delves really well into how Saki and him couldn't work out, it's also amusing how different Kotoko and Saki are. Whilst I really enjoyed Kurou and Kotoko's shenanigans and how they both cared for each other in their own different ways, I think I enjoyed how realistically and fun it was when they all interacted with each other as a group and how Kotoko and Saki communicated with each other. It's a story heavily focused on the characters' talking though, so it might not be your cup of tea, but honestly, even though the Nanase case was a bit draggy, I still enjoyed all of it because I just loved to hear all their banter and back and forth discussions. The atmosphere really dragged me in and I found it quite immersive. And Kotoko is super cute haha.
Kono Subarashii Sekai ni Shukufuku wo!: Kurenai Densetsu (KONOSUBA -God's blessing on this wonderful world!- Legend of Crimson)
Genre: Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy, Magic, Parody, Supernatural
My Rating: 8/10
Okay, I'll admit and say that I never really liked S2 of Konosuba because I felt like the fanservice was too much for me and I've never really liked Darkness (I'm sorry), so even though I still liked most of it, a lot of it just wasn't as good as I would have hoped. However, the movie has definitely reminded me of how much I love Konosuba! Yunyun best girl tbh, she's such a cinnamon roll! A lot of people have said that they cut out the more serious and proper development between Kazuma and Megumin, so I'm kinda sad about that, but the movie was still super enjoyable and funny!
In this movie, we get to follow Kazuma and the party to Megumin's village and come to realise that EVERYONE is just like her LOL. I found it so hilarious that the Crimson Demons were as crazy and chuuni as she was, it was crazy. I think the idea of them keeping the demons around as a "fireworks attraction" was so LOL. The villain is as ridiculous as always and the way they defeated "her" was so stupid but funny, I didn't know whether to shake my head or just laugh my head off hahaha. Honestly, it's a must watch if you enjoy the previous Konosuba seasons because it really follows the same kinda pattern of comedy that we all enjoy and love. The Crimson Demons were better than I thought and I loved the whole part about them. The villain was really not my type of silly and funny but I really loved how they delved more into Yunyun and Megumin's bond through it. Gotta love how much of a joke world Konosuba is sometimes haha, definitely great for a good laugh!
Violet Evergarden Gaiden: Eien to Jidou Shuki Ningyou
Genre: Drama, Fantasy, Slice of Life
My Rating: 7.5/10
Not to be mistaken as the movie that has yet to come out btw! Instead, this is more like a side story movie about Violet going to tutor a rich girl with a sad story (of course) and helping her find comfort in herself and her decisions. It basically plays out like a normal case/story in the anime but is just an extended version imo. It also (spoilers!) delves into both sides of the story by showing Isabella's sacrifice at first, and then delving into how her younger sister Taylor is living now. Honestly if you enjoyed the anime, you'll like the anime because it's the same stuff as usual with a bit more developed Violet as she has gone through everything that she has.
Although I never enjoyed Violet Evergarden's story and emotional stories to the letters etc as much as others did, I still really love seeing the world and how Violet interacts with it regardless, mainly because I love the idea of delivering your thoughts and feelings through letters. I've always loved letters so seeing an anime delving in how important they can be was really refreshing and sweet. I also really liked how the movie explored how fulfilling the job of a postman delivering letters was as well. I always found Benedict really cool and stuff, so seeing more about him and his job was awesome! I think the movie nicely tried to balance through the sisters how important it was to write and receive each other's feelings through letters and I found that heartwarming to watch. Otherwise, I didn't think Isabella and Taylor that entertaining as characters haha. Still a good watch though.
