Keiji Yugami Episodes 7-10

The last two episodes were pretty good. I didn't even realise who the actor playing Yokoshima was until very late. Though the individuals stories just wasn't good enough to make this a must watch, the chemistry between the characters kept me interested.

As for why the individual crime stories seemed lacklustre, I guess its because they sort of had this generic afternoon police drama feel instead of being gritty crime stories.

The ending sets up the sequel to Keiji Yugami though they'll have to think of a different name for season 2. I don't know what's so great about Yokoshima as a villain though. He's just a hack writer who committed rape 20 years ago. I guess its because he's the villain created by Yugami in order to protect a little girl.

Looking forward to season 2 of whatever the sequel will be called for more Yugami and Hanyu banter!

Made in Abyss anime review

Made in Abyss is seemingly child-like anime about a girl and her robot who go on this adventure deep into the abyss. What I mean by seemingly is that while the art style and the songs makes the anime's target audience seem like kids, there are a lot of scary things that happen that would scar any young child for life and would probably require lots of therapy to overcome.

To be honest, most of the first season of Made in Abyss is pretty bland. Riko and the robot boy Regu have aren't that interesting of a pairing. Their adventure felt more suited for an Ico style game and Made in Abyss didn't seem much more than a typical adventure anime.

However, it does two things well; world building as in providing little details about this society of Divers who live around this abyss and juxtaposing the child like feel of the show with the mature contents. I would not have kept watching if someone did not recommend Made in Abyss to me.

Made in Abyss finally hits its stride when you meet the third member of the group Nanachi and she has a lot more chemistry with Regu than Riko has. Riko is just too boring and not very useful.

And then Made in Abyss hit me with the most devastating ending in all of anime, except for the eclipse in Berserk. Made in Abyss is for two types of people; first are people who have too much happiness in life and want to feel what its like to have their heart split in two and people you hate because the ending of Made in Abyss will crush their spirits.

After the soul destroying ending, the question is is it worth continuing with Made in Abyss? Certainly the chemistry between the characters is improved with Nanachi and the show presents so many questions to be answered. Will the gimmick of the anime be emotionally draining revelations?

Made in Abyss is a watchable anime provided you can survive the ho-hum first half. I won't be rushing to watch the second season when it comes out but the first season of Made in Abyss is an anime I will never forget.

Meishi Game Episode 1

Tsustumi Shinichi is a quiz program producer who wakes up in a cage and has to guess the identities of 3 people who hold a grudge against him in order to save his daughter and himself. He was once at the low end of the totem pole but once he got successful, he completely changed into a Harvey Weinstein.

Episode 1 was interesting because it looks at the high pressure world of tv where ratings are king. I whinge a lot about the state of jdoramas and prevalence of idorus and tarentos but in the end its about ratings and ratings determine whether producers and staff get to keep their jobs.

The story for episode 1 was really sad and I'm sure there's more to come. I don't know what twists are coming but its a WOWOW show so I have more faith in the show. The raws can be found on nyaa here and the subs by Monchi at d-addicts here. Watchable.

7 things I like about Keiji Yugami Episodes 1-6

1) Asano Tadanobu, Kamiki Ryunosuke and Inamori Izumi have great chemistry. Asano and Kamiki are constantly trying to one up each other. Kamiki is always teasing Asano about Inamori entering the police force the same year as him yet Inamori is now his boss. Their banter feels very natural.

2) No incompetent police officers scowling and not doing any work. I can't believe a non-WOWOW show has realised that it is so unnecessary!

3) Ohgo Suzuka in episode 1. How many years has it been since Sexy Voice and Robo and why can't she get a major role.

4) Ohgura Yuko in episode 1.  She can't act and she can't sing so she's just right for a small cameo. If only it were the same for every talento.

5) Anyone could see the twist coming in episode 1 but it still made great viewing because of the acting.

6) I like the build up of Asano's hacker girl and how they slowly reveal information about her each episode.

7) Asano and Kamiki's constant game of one-upmanship.

 SUMMARY

 The first episode was the best and the 5 following episodes were a bit up and down but I still kept watching cause of the characters. Kamiki is still too young to be a detective but his chemistry with Asano is great. Surprisingly very watchable series. Thanks to Ra168E and Anon for the recommendation. You can get the series with English subs at nyaa here.