Now that we're slowly wading our way through the real story of Whole Cake Island, the usual concern over how far Toei's production values can carry things rears its head. This is an episode full of ideas that's undercut by sloppy and inconsistent art. Characters will randomly morph into much shinier, more sinewy versions of themselves, and there's the common risk of the female characters' loud, over-sexualized designs drowning out a scene's intended tone. We're entering the phase of the story where it's going to be The Pudding Show for a while, but we can only count on the show's more deft hand to work its magic on her some of the time.
After learning what a hot mess the Vinsmoke family is, it turns out that the Charlottes may be even worse. The Straw Hats' old friend Lola was under the impression that things are square between her and her mother, but that's not how Big Mom sees it at all, swearing that she'll pull Lola's whereabouts out of Nami so that she can track her down and kill her. Lola, the wandering marriage-proposal-spewing pirate, was dishing out the rejection once upon a time, which unfortunately led Mom's most important political marriage into ruins. Lola isn't an active participant in this arc, but it appears as though her time back home left quite the scar.
Thus we return to Pudding, who's implied to be a victim of her mother in a similar way. We flash back to baby Pudding saying goodbye to her big sister Lola, the only member of the family to ever take fate into her own hands and leave. Whether Pudding ultimately feels more sorry for herself or Sanji in this marriage is left vague, since the myriad of upcoming twists are going to leave you with different answers as to her true nature.
Tying everything together this week is the back half of Big Mom and Luffy's phone argument, where all of Big Mom's worst qualities get tested. Her past failure to become King of the Pirates and the way she aggressively dominates her children are the qualities that make her feel like a weak soul, especially with the ever-tenacious Luffy on the other end of the conversation. We have no doubt who would actually win in a fight (Mom), but Luffy's straight shooter attitude continues to make him a great foil for any villain. Big Mom's precious wedding is tomorrow, and now her feathers are ruffled, making her all the more pathetic and threatening.
Big Mom is at her most entertaining when she's angry, since she looks like she's just seconds away from sinking the whole island out of frustration. The last scene of the episode is great as she tries to cheer herself up with the usual Disney musical sing along, but the constant bad news turns the instrumentation sinister and she has to take a seat to simmer down. This episode's execution is at odds with itself, dancing the line between exhilaration and embarrassment. It looks so ugly at times, but I admire its spirit when I'm not distracted by Pudding's badly drawn barbie doll cleavage.
Pokémon Horizons continues to display some of the best the franchise offers with great character work, creative setpieces, surprisingly strong direction, and a focus on a plot that continues to feel engaging.― Pokémon Horizons felt like a breath of fresh air as a new mainline Pokémon series. With a more timid and empathic main character and a stronger emphasis on the adventuring aspect of being a Po...
Sony and Square-Enix are both reorganizing, from new CEOs to staff cutbacks. Also, sad news about Penny Blood, more Cotton, and the latest video game news!― Welcome back, folks! You know, it's always nice to discover old stuff from a franchise you love that you didn't know existed. For example, I didn't know that the old Captain N: The Game Master cartoon had an episode that featured the world of Dr...
Ahead of the romance anime's second season, director Takehiro Kubota discusses the choices, the challenges, and balancing the story between the everyday and the supernatural.― My Happy Marriage began its life as a series of novels written by Akumi Agitogi, and it has since been adapted both as manga and, as of July 2023, an anime series simulcast by Netflix. Agitogi's tale, set in a nebulous time t...
Steve and Chris compare some of the highs and lows of an anime studio change-up, from Attack on Titan and One-Punch Man to Spice and Wolf.― Steve and Chris compare some of the highs and lows of an anime studio change-up, from Attack on Titan and One-Punch Man to Spice and Wolf. Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the participants in this chatlog are not the views of Anime News Network.S...
You've probably read some version of this story before, but I doubt that you've ever seen it be this adorable.― You've probably read some version of this story before, but I doubt that you've ever seen it be this adorable. You and I Are Polar Opposites is based on the tried-and-true formula of a thousand romantic comedies: Suzuki is a popular girl, and Tani is the class nerd. She's bright and perky,...
Suzumura to concentrate on recovering from deteriorating health condition― Talent agency Intention announced on Thursday that Kenichi Suzumura will take a break to concentrate on resting due to poor health. The agency stated that Suzumura's health condition continued to deteriorate, and after a diagnosis from the doctor, it was decided that he needs to take a break. The agency stated that it will pr...
Games have both individual, double pack releases― Update: Spike Chunsoft confirmed in a press release on Friday that it is releasing both games and the double pack for PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, and Steam in North America and Europe on May 23 as digital downloads. Source: Press release The PlayStation Store and Nintendo Switch eShop began listing on Thursday the first two visual novels in The Q...
Crunchyroll to stream upcoming anime― Aniplex and Crunchyroll announced on Wednesday that the late manga creator Hisaya Nakajo's Hana-Kimi manga is inspiring an anime. In addition, Crunchyroll announced that it will stream the anime when it premieres in North America, Central America, South America, Europe, Africa, Oceania, the Middle East, the CIS, and India. The announcement did not reveal the deb...
James and Lynzee look into Hideaki Anno's latest hint that there might be more Evangelion after the last movie and news on the Lord of the Rings anime film!― Could There Be More Evangelion on the Horizon? James and Lynzee look into Hideaki Anno's latest hint that there might be more Evangelion after the last movie and news on the Lord of the Rings anime film! Plus, we catch up with Kafka and the Ka...
Grant Jones dives into the wild world of giant monsters and how Kaiju No. 8 builds on their legacy.― Kaiju No. 8 is a series that wears its influences on its sleeves. As the first word in its title suggests, it comes from a long line of works in the kaiju genre, using giant monsters and burning skylines as a backdrop to tell stories. While many likely know kaiju in a passing sense, it may help to h...
This steamy manga's appeal is going to depend on how much you can stomach a female protagonist who kicks off the romance by assaulting her former fiance.― This is a tricky one. Before You Discard Me, I Shall Have My Way with You is, to all appearances, a story that opens with a sexual assault. Agnès has been betrothed to Crown Prince Lucilleur since childhood, and she's been in love with him just as...
Japanese studio to handle production slated for broadcast, streaming globally― Kadokawa and Singaporean game developer and publisher Garena announced on Monday that they are co-producing an anime adaptation of Garena's Garena Free Fire battle royale shooting game, with a Japanese studio handling the animation. Kadokawa's Kadokawa Qingyu subsidiary is the production manager. The anime is planned to b...
Healer Nanna's powers have one very unique caveat: she has to have sex with the person to heal them. See why Rebecca Silverman calls it "a cute story, decently racy, and generally good, fluffy fun."― One of the fun things about Seven Seas' Steamship line of racy manga aimed at a female audience is finding which romance tropes are prevalent in any given release. While every genre has its tropes and s...
What's the perfect recipe for waifu supremacy? Lucas and Nick look at fan-favorites from Yu Yu Hakusho to Spice & Wolf.― What's the perfect recipe for waifu supremacy? Lucas and Nick look at fan-favorites from Yu Yu Hakusho to Spice & Wolf. Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the participants in this chatlog are not the views of Anime News Network.Spoiler Warning for discussion of the s...
Train to the End of the World and Voice Actor Radio are getting a lot of love these last few weeks! Discover which other series stand out in 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...
Crystal Kay previously sang themes for 2004's Fullmetal Alchemist and Nodame Cantabile― Recently, Anime News Network was able to sit down with singer-songwriter Crystal Kay and talk about not only her involvement with anime over the years but also what it was like to grow up in Japan as the child of a Korean-Japanese mother and an African-American father. Anime fans likely know of Crystal Kay throug...