I don't currently have Netflix, so I've been watching the new dungeon meshi with my friend on Sundays, and so far they've definitely retained the same humor! I can't wait til it gets to the later chapters, but for now watching the crew eat weird stuff is so nostalgic and satisfying. The food is Ghibli level pretty as well!
finished Lucky Star! god the vibes are immaculate, i feel so peaceful and balanced now. maybe this is a sign to watch more anime in my downtime, which tracks. it always makes me feel more peaceful when i do, it releases a lot of my anxiety, but i get so in my own head i can't hit play lmfao might re-start chobits so i can finish it finally.
it's so good ... they're doing such a good job of hitting the same beats that the manga does, i love studio trigger, they're really knocking it out of the park for real.
Finished Magical Girl Raising Project yesterday. It was... "mid", is the only word I can really use for it. It had some interesting ideas but was very half-assed on a concept level and had some excellent adaptational flair that ultimately couldn't elevate what a stupid fucking text it was overall. This is in contrast to Summertime Rendering, which I finished last week, which was absolutely a fun, slick supernatural thriller with thoroughly excellent visual design overall. I especially really liked how thick the regional dialects all the characters spoke was, it really gave STR a texture in the vocal performances that I don't run into a lot in anime.
Hidamari Sketch Just finished this anime. Definitely peak Cute Girls Do Cute Things era, but with an art highschool vibe. It's not as focused on the art side of things, like GA Geijutsuka Art Design Class is in contrast, but the vibes are very very soft and gentle. Good fun laid back times, positive vibe, likable characters. The little chibi expressions are adorable, and the cast is loveable. Sae being an author is a very nice touch, it adds a sense of the intensity to the otherwise placid surroundings. There's so many spinoff series... As well as a manga I'm slowly starting to poke at, because I have a feeling the manga is going to have the same sweet vibes. I hope to get through all of them someday! It's not catching me as strongly as, say, Lucky Star or Nichijou did, but it's still soothing and nice to vibe with. Def recommend.
Two recs for anyone, but @TheMockingCrows specifically if you like Cute Girls Do Cute Things stuff I strongly suggest Sound! Euphonium and Asobi Asobase. I've not seen more than a few episodes of Sound! because I originally watched it as it was being released and, like most media, I have trouble keeping focus if I basically get 20 minutes a week and am expected to remember what happened over that period of time. Basically cute anime girls join a band class and learn to love music and their respective instruments, and has what id describe as sports anime passion for competition but Gentle. Watching the girls progress and struggle to learn is heartwarming instead of anxiety inducing and it's overall super wholesome iirc. Asobi Asobase is just a little group of middle school girls doing nothing much but as insane as possible. It's a little like nichijou but without the insane action scenes, and focuses on how weird kids can be. I've rewatched it many, many times and it's a bit of a comfort anime. To add a third one in that might appeal more in general but I'm not a hundred percent sure you specifically would like is Blend-S, it's totally out of my usual wheelhouse in genre (maid cafe with hyper specific archetypes to appeal to a certain clientele) but they do this while staying on the employees point of view? The main heroine is a sweet, awkward girl who wants to save money to study abroad, but no one will hire her because she has a natural glare and is socially awkward so people tend to think she's insulting them. Goes exactly how you'd think. The other archetypes subvert expectations in a similar way but it's just. So cute? They genuinely care for each other and it honestly gives ouran vibes
Comic Girls! This anime series, AND manga but I've not completed the manga, is honestly such a feel good series for me. It's the story of a 4 koma mangaka who just... kinda sucks all around moving to a dorm with three other teenage mangaka girls who all work in different genres. (and a 4th one later!) A shoujo artist, a romance/pervy stories artist who originally wanted to draw children's comics but got scouted for this instead, and a shounen artist who's hiding the fact she's a girl from her readers. The fourth girl is a horror artist! The entire series can be summed up by: Kaos (the 4 koma artist) is way way too hard on herself and depressive. She cries often and easily, catastrophizes, and often feels entirely hopeless and helpless as she fails over and over to create something passable for her editor. She's a little otaku and generally feels like she doesn't belong among Normal People whatsoever because she feels so separated from everyone around her that it just makes things harder and harder to relate to. But they become good friends, they learn and grow together, they overcome obstacles. It's a very good feeling show. ALSO there is explicit lgbt rep between two of the girls with absolutely none of the "oh but this is weird gasp we're two girls" for more than a split second of uncertainty from one side. They do not shy away from it. They do no try to downplay it or hide it, it's refreshing. It might not be for everyone. But if you're feeling down on your own art, and need a pick me up, I'd say it's definitely worth a watch.
Started watching Dunmeshi with a couple of friends on Sunday mornings! I'm really enjoying it so far, and am excited to see more. It's doing a good job of making me fall in love with the characters, and as a biologist I appreciate the ecosystem talk a LOT!
