An American Writer's Thoughts on Japanese Animation

Count to Four – Yozakura Quartet (2008) Spoiler Review

Anime has always had its overused genres or genre clusters. Right now the cluster you hear the most complaints about is the Isekai-Videogame sort of space, consisting of Isekai animes (whether or not they actually use video game interfaces for their powers) and fantasies whether high or urban (and whether isekai or not) that use video game conceits like stats and level as the core of their fantastical system. But, that hasn’t always been the fad. In days gone by, supernatural battlers were king. As attested by 2021’s Kemono Jihen, the genre isn’t dead and will probably never truly die, but no matter what the future holds it’s easy to say that at least a heyday for these kind of things is in the past.

I’ve addressed plenty of these battlers before such as 2013’s Beyond the Boundary, 2005’s Shakugan no Shana with its sequels in 2007 and 2011, and 2008’s Ga-Rei Zero. Well, the very same season as Ga-Rei Zero, in Fall ’08, there was yet another of these Urban Fantasy battle shows. Actually, there were a few of them, including A Certain Magical Index and the target of today’s review, Yozakura Quartet.

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Technically a Video Game Anime – Cyberpunk: Edgerunners Spoiler Review

For those who aren’t aware, in 2020, a company called CD Projekt Red came out with a video game known as Cyberpunk 2077, based on a series of tabletop RPGs that nobody remembers – “Cyberpunk”, usually referred to as either Cyberpunk Red or, ironically given when the video game dropped, Cyberpunk 2020. While most folks seem to like 2077 well enough now, at launch it was something of a buggy mess.

But maybe that’s because CD Projekt Red had other priorities, famously getting Keanu Reeves for a major role in their game and, relevant to this blog, enlisting Studio Trigger to… not exactly adapt the game to anime form, but instead to produce a series in the same setting. That would be Cyberpunk: Edgerunners.

Honestly, if the bug fix money went to Keanu and Trigger, I can’t really blame them.

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Benefits Package – Magilumiere Magical Girls Inc. Spoiler Review

I enjoy the Magical Girl genre. I really do. But between dubious choices and disappointing outings, that hasn’t shown much in this year’s Magical Girl May, has it? Well, to avoid going out on a sour note, I’ve sourced just the girls for the job. Sure, the service involved is something a little different, but it’s still deeply tied to traditions. A sterling aesthetic that can blend its genres and deliver – it’s time for Magilumiere Magical Girls Inc.!

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Magical Girls Broken – Twin Angels Break Spoiler Review

It’s Magical Girl May, so you know what? Enough of this half-counting nonsense. Arjuna and Magikano may show up on lists of technically magical girl shows, but they’re not in tune with the core of the genre. Twin Angels Break, on the other hand, is about as core a Magical Girl show as you could hope for, with all the tropes of a post-Sailor-Moon action Magical Girl outing on full display. After how the last couple of weeks have treated me, that’s good enough in my book to be worth a watch.

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Which Witch? – Magikano Spoiler Review

Well, once again my duties have brought me a show that’s old enough to vote and it seems like barely anybody cared about the first time around, but heck, what have we got here? Some cute witch girls on brooms, some dated moe, an even more dated poppy love song that could have gone with anything for the opening? You know, against all sane expectations, I’m going to choose to be hopeful. I don’t expect this show to be good, but I will entertain the premise that it could be, and that if it isn’t good per say it may at least decline to hurt me. I know that isn’t much, but it’s still optimism. Show me what you’ve got, Magikano!

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