Once again, I don’t have too much to report on from March. Throughout the past month, I mainly spent my days studying, reading manga, and rewatching a few of my favorite anime. It was a therapeutic month, if a somewhat unproductive one on the blog side. While I want to spend April making posts over the things I enjoyed in March, another part of me wants to keep on moving forward. So, there may be posts for older stuff, but also maybe not. I’ll play it by ear. For now though, let’s look at how terribly I failed my goals for March. >.<
Goal Reflection
Write Five Posts Each Month | Did I really only write two or three posts in March? Yikes.
Review More Anime | I did not do this either. If it counts, I did discuss my hopes and dreams for the Evangelion 3.0+1.0 now that it is finally in theaters! And it was a “Cafe Talk” post–like, when was the last time I wrote one of those!?
Continue Writing Manga Reflections | I was able to write a post (AND film a video) for my first impressions of Battle Angel Alita that you can read right here! April will have more manga content for sure!
Write Posts for Video Content | All four of my March videos were uploaded here as blog posts. I’m one short of my YouTube goal there of five videos a month, but please check those out if you’re interested!
Achieve 750 Followers | Current count is 724. Thank you so much for reading and following along~!
What I’ve Watched
The Mystic Archives of Dantalian — I actually started this early 2010s gem quite some time back, but I’ve yet to go further than the first 3 or so episodes. My main reason for starting Dantalian was because it had the same look and feel as Gosick, one of my favorite mystery anime. Although the plots differ, the energy is the same, and I’ll try to keep going with it even if it leans on the slower side. Has anyone else seen this show?
Crest of the Stars — The hype of Evangelion 3.0+1.0 has led me down a tunnel of craving vintage sci-fi anime. I won’t lie, this series didn’t initially catch my eye until Funimation licensed and released it on DVD a couple years back. The art looked mystifying, and I finally caved to watching. I’m 3 episodes out from the end (I think) and I’m enjoying how sad yet romantic it is. Loving the space travel aspect, too. More to come in a review!
Sword of the Stranger — I plan to watch more films in 2021, and it looks like this samurai-turned-vagabond adventure flick was first up. I won’t lie, this era of Japanese history isn’t my favorite. BUT, it’s definitely starting to grow on me, and this film was fantastic from start to finish. The fight choreo and animation hold up super well after all these years, and the MUSIC, oh my GOD, so riveting and passionate!! I might review it, but . . . just know that the Blu-ray will stay on my shelf.
Great Pretender — HELLS YEAH I watched Great Pretender, and HELLS YEAH I loved the shit out of it. This is the kind of series I needed to fill the void left by Eden of the East, Baccano!, and Terror in Resonance, and I couldn’t have enjoyed it more than I did. In fact, I binged all 23 episodes of the series in a SINGLE DAY it was that good, and while I want to review it, I already know my words will be senseless squealing over my mans Laurent, my queen Cynthia, my girl Abigail, and mah boi Edamameeee ❤ Seriously, this was the thrill ride I needed to kickstart my love for anime again. The dub is phenomenal, too! GO WATCH IT!
Attack on Titan Final Season — This was the ONLY simulcast I actually finished in time, and WOW what a series this has been. Of course, we’re not done yet, though, as a the second cour of this anime giant is set to conclude the story this winter. I’m thrilled to see how it ends, especially with the manga’s recent completion. But for now, we wait!
The Promised Neverland Season 2 — CONGRATULATIONS TO THE FIRST SIMULCAST ANIME I EVER DROPPED. LOL. After 5 or 6 episodes, I couldn’t do it anymore. Because I still love the story and characters, however, I took to the Shounen Jump app to start reading the manga. That’s right fam, ya boy’s reading Neverland. I can’t wait to get past the content of the first anime to see where the sequel started. Maybe I’ll revisit season 2 after I’ve read it all just to see how some of it was animated, but otherwise it’s manga-only for me from here on out!
Fire Force Season 2 — With all of the Simuldub episodes finally available on Funimation, I was able to binge the second half of the series and see how it compares to the manga. The good news? Fire Force remains one of the most consistently adapted series that the anime fandom has ever seen. The bad news? At present, we’ve no guarantee for a third season. Keep on supporting the manga and the anime and maybe we’ll get a season 3 before too long!!
***I have yet to continue watching episodes of Wonder Egg Priority, Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation, Skate-Leading Stars, Horimiya. Finishing these simulcasts is the first goal of April! I will have more to report then.
What I’ve Read
Please watch my March 2021 Manga Reading Log video if you have the chance, as I discuss all of these titles there in more depth!!
Battle Angel Alita Volume 1 — Read full the post here!
My Androgynous Boyfriend Volume 1 — Here we have a start to the relationship between a beautiful man who likes makeup and his wonderful graphic designer girlfriend. The art style is super cute, and these two pretty much just support each other for life! It’s a simpler story than I thought it’d initially be, but who knows where the story will go. Looking forward to reading more.
Eniale & Dewiela Volume 1 — Between this hope-yearning angel and trouble-seeking demon, a minor fashion disaster in heaven can spell major catastrophe for the people of Earth. Eniale and Dewiela are just about the pettiest (and prettiest) pair of friends you’ll ever find, yet their individual quirks and charms often cause the other to wreak havoc on the other. And of course, who else would be caught in the conflict than the innocent mortals of the lower world. I think there are only 3 volumes in this series, and you bet I plan to read all of it!
Phantom Tales of the Night Volume 1 — My favorite read of the month! In this series, we are following the innkeeper of an enchanted inn that exists between the spiritual and mortal realms. Seemingly innocent passerbys stumble upon the inn, and for safe passage, they are admitted at a single cost: they must forfeit one of their secrets to the innkeeper. Of course, in monkey’s paw fashion, nothing ever goes right for the guests, but that doesn’t stop the devilish innkeeper from preying on humanity and learning more about them. My only regret from this read was that I didn’t have the next 4 volumes waiting for me on my shelf!
Caste Heaven Volume 1 — This darker BL series explores what happens when high schoolers are forced to find cards scattered all throughout the school and that also dictate that student’s role in the social hierarchy. Poor Ones and Twos will yield to Fives and Sixes, and Sevens and Eights will obey Jacks and Queens. Of course, the King is on top, and anything they say goes–including manipulation and sexual favors. This series is far from clean, but I’m interested in seeing how certain characters will play the game past this initial volume.
Fire Force Volumes 19-20 — When you watch more Fire Force, you naturally want to read more of it, too. Things are starting to gear up towards the series’ climax, I can almost feel it. These volumes cover the end of Season 2 and some change, so if you’re dying to know what is happening to the Tokyo Empire and Company 8, Volume 20 will give you that sneak peak! Now that I’m all caught up with what I own, I can go out and pick up the two latest volumes, yay!
As a whole, March enjoyed a bunch of odd watches, random catch-ups, and much relaxation from school work. That said, April will be tricky if I try to blog more. But, as I’m sure you all know, I never choose the easy way out, heh heh. I’ve already got a head start into manga reading for April, and I don’t plan to slow down. Also, I’ll get back on my simulcast game so I can take a look at what’s new and airing. WAIT, are you telling me that the Spring 2021 anime season has already begun!? Looks like I’ve got lots to catch up on this weekend!
We had a couple rainy days this past week, which was an amazing relief from the dramatically warmer temperatures we’ve been having. Though, it also snowed the other day, so who knows what’s what with weather anymore. I hope you are all doing well and staying safe. Here’s to hoping I get my vaccine shot this weekend!! Thanks for reading, and ’til next time!
– Takuto
Takuto's Anime Cafe 