Slice of Life is Unfairly Maligned

Slice of Life is a pretty divisive genre. To those who love it, it’s calming and despite its simplicity it can deliver wonderful themes that relate to almost everyone. To those who hate it, it’s a boring genre devoid of substance which is polluting the anime industry. Finding the genre boring is obviously dependent on taste and there’s no benefit to arguing that the genre as a whole is interesting. That said, the idea that there slice of life shows have taken over the industry is ridiculous, and only leads to vitriol and arguments within the community.

Why Lady Maria is the Best Boss in Bloodborne

After owning the game for months, and playing it for around 60 hours, I’ve finally managed to beat every boss in Bloodborne. They weren’t all great – Micolash and Witch of Hemwick stand out as particularly awful – but overall it was a game that was full of fun and challenging boss fights. The one that stands above the rest though is Lady Maria of the Astral Clocktower, featured in The Old Hunters DLC.

Humanity and the Moonlight Butterfly in Turn A Gundam

I wrote a good bit about my thoughts on Gundam Thunderbolt in a previous post. I said that while I had enjoyed the show, its oppressive bleakness and lack of faith in humanity’s potential kept it from being emotionally resonant. The show was far too dark for it to one of my favorite Gundam anime, let alone one of my favorite anime overall. It’s fortunate then that I recently finished Turn A Gundam which avoids all the major issues of Thunderbolt and delivers the satisfyingly positive, pro-human, and anti-war Gundam anime I was looking for, with fantastic visuals, sound, and execution as well.