The Toei team delivers once again. This could have been a relatively stale setup episode, but instead we are treated to a deft bit of framing for the coming fight. The road to Onigashima has been long, and it's important to contextualize why the battle is important through events past and present. Kaido, Orochi, and the Beast Pirates have their evil laid out for all to see as both a reminder to the audience and to the Straw Hats themselves.
If there were a theme for the episode, I would say that it is excess. Food, drink, sex, dance – everything is overflowing on Onigashima, heedless of consequences. This is a victory celebration where anything goes and where the closer you are to power, the greater the hedonism. Even though we see a lot of mirth and excitement during the party it is not a happy episode, and we as viewers are meant to be repulsed by what we see. It is all too much, too fast, and too loud. The goons on the floor go so far as to remind Zoro and Luffy, our first two Straw Hats, that they know this food/drink/merriment comes at the expense of the little people of Wano. It brings them joy, and makes their refreshments taste all the sweeter.
This is to ensure that the audience knows how to feel in the coming stages. No matter how off the walls the ensuing battle will be, these people deserve the justice that Luffy and co are bringing. This is a fight for the freedom of Wano from cruel overlords who know precisely the harm they are causing.
Visually, the episode reinforces this theme of excess brilliantly. The screen is often popping with a kaleidoscope of rainbow colors, or shown with the colors reversed. It gives everything a distorted feel, and even in moments with “normal” coloring the screen is often blurry at the edge. Furthermore, there's a lot of fanservice in this episode of the Bouncing Bazonga™ variety, and hey, if there were any episode to include it in it would be this one. Surprisingly, because everyone ends up wearing these outrageous Beast Pirates costumes, the episode, on the whole, comes off a bit more balanced and natural-feeling in that regard than some other episodes have been.
Also we get the SUPERRRR wholesome content involving Franky. Him getting to deploy all the vehicles, ride bromance style with Brook, and put Chōpper and Usopp into their little tank together is heartwarming, as was the bit with Robin and Jinbei calmly walking towards the battle as the mature ones. Bless.
Wandering Son creator's manga about girls in opera school ran from 2011 until this past March― Ohta Publishing announced on Thursday that Takako Shimura's Awajima Hyakkei manga is inspiring an anime. Ohta Publishing has not revealed any further details about the anime adaptation. The coming-of-age omnibus series follows the girls at an opera music school, with each chapter centering around different...
If I were to sum up Hokkaido Gals Are Super Adorable! in a single word, that word would be “cute.”― If I were to sum up Hokkaido Gals Are Super Adorable! in a single word, that word would be “cute.” Shiki and Fuyuki's interactions are a mixture of playful (and sometimes sexual) teasing and heartfelt feelings as the two come to value each other. They have real chemistry—and that drives the anime stra...
Lucas and Steve catch up on the Hunter × Hunter manga in time for the long-awaited new chapter and gush about why, even with years between releases, Hunter × Hunter is worth it.― Lucas and Steve catch up on the Hunter × Hunter manga in time for the long-awaited new chapter and gush about why, even with years between releases, Hunter × Hunter is worth it. Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed...
Series previously inspired 52-episode anime in 1993― This year's 24th issue of Shogakukan's Weekly Shonen Sunday magazine revealed on Wednesday that Gosho Aoyama's Yaiba manga will be getting a new anime adaptation. Aoyama is supervising. The series follows the titular Yaiba Kurogane, a young samurai boy inspired by Miyamoto Musashi, the real-life swordsman who pioneered the Hyōhō Niten Ichi-ryū sty...
Based on the novel by former Nogizaka46 member Kazumi Takayama, trapezium asks its audience to follow one girl who will use anything, and anyone, to achieve her dream.― Trapezium is a strange movie, to say the least. On the surface, it's a rather simple movie that explores youth, their dreams, and the lengths they'll go to achieve those dreams. It's a coming-of-age story wrapped in the veneer of the...
ZeroReq011 remembers what made Spice and Wolf a story for the ages, from its fully realized world and economics to Holo and Lawrence's romantic chemistry.― Back when Funimation was still its own company and not owned by Sony, long before its in-house streaming service was terminated in favor of Crunchyroll's streaming platform, it owned a TV channel. Legal streaming had yet to dominate the Western a...
Nick and Chris recount some of the most frustrating anime cancellations, from the Yuri on Ice movie to the second half of Stars Align.― Nick and Chris recount some of the most frustrating anime cancellations from the second half of Stars Align to the 2007 JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Phantom Blood movie. Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the participants in this chatlog are not the views...
Welcome to the rankings for the Spring 2024 season! The perfect place to check out which hidden gems might have flown under your radar.― 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 ...
Producer Masakazu Kubo shares the animation team's dedication to realism, including bringing in a pro golfer to produce the anime's sound effects.― 64-year-old Masakazu Kubo has been planning and producing anime for decades. He's had a major hand in everything from Pokémon and Detective Conan to Teasing Master Takagi-san and Dorohedoro. Recently, he sat down with us to talk about Tonbo!, his attemp...