Category Archives: review

Emergent Pain Play: The Amazing Digital Circus

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Perhaps it’s just the circles I’m exposed to, but The Amazing Digital Circus was like something that just suddenly spawned one day as the internet’s new favorite show. People seemed to be in absolute love with this jester character, Pomni, with all the requisite fanart that entails.

There have been a lot of cartoons with similar levels of pull that I hadn’t paid attention to over the years, but what convinced me to actually check out TADC was just seeing the wildly varying reactions to its conclusion. Some seemed angry about it to the point of regretting their fandom, and in completely different ways. Others were angry at those who were angry, and still others were profoundly moved by it. Notably, the person whose impressions really made me want to check the series out was VTuber Dr. Nova(e), from V4Mirai, who mentioned in one stream that she left the theater in tears.

A girl suddenly finds herself in a virtual world with a hazy memory and an appearance resembling a jester. She learns that she’s one of a handful of inhabitants of something called The Amazing Digital Circus, run by a ringmaster named Caine, where the goal seems to be simply playing different games, and where escape is said to be impossible. Unable to recall her own name, she’s assigned one—Pomni—and begins to learn about this “circus” and its “performers.”

Strangely, I find it difficult to separate my thoughts on the show itself from the fandom surrounding it—something that I was able to do even with My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic back in the day. I still want to explore my thoughts and impressions of it as just a piece of fiction regardless of whatever audience it has garnered, but I think a lot of its draw comes from presenting a world for fans to speculate and bring themselves into, and so ignoring it entirely wouldn’t be right either.

With that said, I have two basic impressions. First, I find TADC to be a neat personal project on the part of its creator, Gooseworx. Second, it feels like a 2020s-era cross between two animated works: Steven Universe (silly characters who are deeper than they appear) and the much older Reboot (a game-world setting with mini-games as a narrative device). Heck, Caine is like a spiritual successor to the latter’s Mike the TV. Given that both of those series have been host to some very intense fanbases over the years, I can see why people gravitated towards the series, especially with a culture both on and descended from Tumblr-esque aesthetics. The characters are quirky nervous wrecks and the world they’re forced to inhabit creates a lot of questions as to what the hell is actually going on. Together, these aspects make for some fertile spaces for  people to plant and cultivate their imaginations into overdrive, and I think that’s why it has both thrived and had its fair share of fandom controversy.

Based on my viewing experience and no outside knowledge about the creation process, TADC comes across as a work with an ending in mind, but uncertainty as to whether it would reach that ending for sure. The result is, up until Episode 9, a story that drops tidbits of info in a sparse yet enticing manner. As the pieces add up, you get both a sense of their own individual histories from before they entered the space called The Amazing Digital Circus, as well as their histories with one another, as well as the nature of this world they occupy. Central to all this is the idea that the characters are all deeply affected by their memories or lack thereof, whether they’re something lost that needs to be found, a source of comfort, or the cause of deep trauma.

I think the fractured response from the fans is because the series has a definitive ending that carries both a sense of finality and an openness that closes the door on certain types of speculation and leaves room for others. Certain characters get more development than others—notably Jax and to a lesser extent Kinger—which makes the overall narrative of TADC into something more focused and precise at the possible expense of being that space for viewers to play around. The fact that Pomni ends up acting almost as more of a “player character” in the sense of being the figure through whom the mysteries of the circus are discovered, means those who connected mainly to Pomni might not get the emotional catharsis they would be seeking through her.

I personally enjoyed and appreciated it, but I ultimately did not form a powerful attachment to The Amazing Digital Circus, for better or for worse. I think I’m at a place in my life where I don’t connect to it that way, though I can easily see why it grabs people of all ages.

I want to end off with a bit of an anecdote and a thought that came to mind. Prior to watching TADC, I had seen comments that it actually has quite a number of younger fans, and that the theatrical releases of the final episode saw a lot of kids in attendance. I could understand this intellectually, but I don’t think it hit home until I literally saw a young girl one day with a Pomni backpack. What I’m left with, funnily enough, is the notion that TADC (especially that final episode) may be this generation’s version of The Transformers: The Movie now 40 years later—an animated work whose general kid-friendly appearance ultimately leads them to experience their first trauma through fiction. I’m curious to see if that will be its legacy in ten years’ time.

Those Were the Days of Our Lives: Goodbye, Lara

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From the very beginning, Goodbye, Lara is a gorgeous work of animation. With its visual style reminiscent of both storybooks and 90s anime, intriguing plot loosely based on The Little Mermaid, and world mixing the mundane and the mysterious, it comes right out of the gate making a powerful impression. I’ve seen similar series with similar potential falter at the finish line, however, and as I watched this show I kept hoping beyond hope that it would not meet a similar fate.

Fortunately, I think it not only sticks the landing beautifully but is strong the entire way through. One thing that I think it does splendidly is having the little slice of time called the “present” feel truly special for its mermaid heroine Lara. The passage of time is a major component of Goodbye Lara, and the intimate focus on daily life amid her desperate mission to find love makes the mundane downright magical.

While the execution and results are very different, the use of time brings to mind the series Apocalypse Hotel. In a sense, it and Goodbye, Lara tackle the coming and going of ages in opposite ways. Whereas the former takes brief yet poignant looks at specific periods over a long span, the latter  intensely focuses on a specific period amid an enormous time span. When Lara says that she cherishes her life in this situation, it comes across as heartfelt and convincing.

Overall, we have a great original anime here. Goodbye, Lara is playful, evokes a lot of complex emotions, and somehow captures both the whimsy of youth and a deeply resonant maturity.

Heaping Helpings: Rice Curry Manten 

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Earlier this year, I traveled to Japan and went on a tear eating at as many curry restaurants as I could. I wanted to try all sorts of different places and styles, from the basic to the foreign to Japan.

One spot was Rice Curry Manten. Japanese curry in general is a very humble food, but what they serve at Manten is like a no-nonsense mechanic: It’s there to fill you up with few frills, and it’s dedicated to that job. It’s been around for decades, and site reviews praise it for its generous portions and affordable prices. While an oft-recurring joke is that Japanese food portions are miniscule compared to what you find in the US, this place is definitely what I’d call “America-worthy.” 

While the katsu curry seems to be the go-to, I instead opted for what I’d call a unique menu item: shumai curry. I’ve been going to dim sum all my life so I am very familiar with shumai (as well as how it tends to differ in Japanese cuisine), and I really wanted to see the approach this curry restaurant would take.

The answer: Make them huge and deep fry them. They were easily the biggest shumai I’d ever seen in any context, and I got plenty of pieces to boot. As for the main part of the dish (the rice and the curry), it was satisfactory. The rice was cooked well and the sauce was satisfyingly salty and savory. That said, because I was trying to eat my way through Japan, I did not opt for the largest servings, and in that sense, I may have not had the true Rice Curry Manten experience.

Prior to going, a friend told me about how they used to serve a kind of kitchen-sink meal, where they threw literally every topping onto a massive pile of curry rice. However, there was apparently so much wasted food from people giving up on finishing it that they stopped having it as an option. My only regret is not being able to try this for myself, or at least see someone else tackle the Manten monster.

What Does “Skin-Deep” Really Mean?: Tamon’s B-Side

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Tamon’s B-Side is a shoujo manga that first got on my radar because it received praise from hololive VTuber La+ Darknesss. She’s an extremely prolific reader of manga, and even if our tastes don’t necessarily align, I know I’m in for an experience, and I decided that the anime adaptation would be a reasonable way to see what the series is all about. 
What I did not expect is for the premise of the series to make me think about a fairly involved philosophical question: What should you consider “the real you”?

The story follows Kinoshita Utage, a high school girl who’s a big fan of the male idol group F/ACE (pronounced “face”), especially its center, the impossibly handsome and suave Fukuhara Tamon. To her surprise, she’s assigned one day for her part-time work to housekeep for the real Tamon himself, only to discover that the confident ladykiller he appears to be in public is nothing more than a facade, and that he’s actually a nervous wreck prone to self-derision when not in “performance” mode. Utage is such an ultra-fan, however, that she refuses to let anyone badmouth Tamon—even himself. Over time, she gets to know the other members of F/ACE as well, which includes their own “inner selves.”

Not long after I started watching the anime, I saw a person on social media reacting to a piece of a comic called “Love vs. Lust.” Apparently, the comic and the above reaction drew so much attention that they’re both featured on Know Your Meme.

While the comment is an attempt to dunk on millennials, I think the poster’s implied values make for an interesting discussion, and also map onto Tamon’s dilemma very well. In front of outsiders, he’s an incredible talent brimming with confidence, but behind doors, he sees himself as the very opposite. And yet, all that talent and ability he displays in public are undeniably products of his own talent and effort. It’s also not uncommon for flamboyant performers on stage to be much more quiet in private, e.g. Freddy Mercury.

We live in a world where even regular people try to create a “brand” for themselves and curate their own image. This can easily make one’s outward image an endless cascade of smoke and mirrors, and for the unadorned self to be rejected in a sad and unfortunate way. But what if someone lives in a situation where their core being is denied by those closest to them, and it isn’t a place where they feel “at home”? What if their main way of finding their true selves comes from a social media account, or even going into chatrooms in the year 2000 and talking with people sharing the same hobby? How does this interact with a topic like sexuality or gender or gender dysphoria? 

Tamon, with his two sides, is like a “safer” version of these topics. And the fact that Tamon goes back and forth means it’s more like asking what if there were two Ships of Theseus where both were 50% old and 50% new parts.

Brief Thoughts on The Water Magician

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The Water Magician is the kind of series that won’t necessarily convince an isekai hater to check it out, but it’s got enough going that it’s approachable for those who are more neutral or ambivalent. I think what makes the difference for me is that Ryo, the titular magician, has a kind personality capable of outshining his inherently overpowered nature.

It makes you want to see him come in and kick ass when the other heroes are on the ropes, because it feels like his rescues come in addition to generally helping others better themselves. And because he’s so strong, it stands out all the more when an opponent can actually make him sweat. 

Ryo is an emotional support isekai hero, and that’s a fine thing to be. The slick action scenes don’t hurt either. 

Instant Curry Review: Whaling Ship Curry

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On a previous trip to Japan, I visited a shop called Curry Land, which is dedicated to selling pre-packaged instant curry from all over the country. The plan is to eat and review every single one, and this time it’s WHALING SHIP CURRY.

What that means is the curry is the kind served on a particular whaling ship. It contains no actual whale meat. 

However, what it does have as its first ingredient is actually thresher shark meat. I looked that up, and apparently it’s sustainable and not one of the ones that are over-fished. The meat had a chewy texture that’s different from something like tuna, and felt somewhere in the vein of fried dace or salmon jerky.

As soon as it touched my tongue, I could feel the hit of saltiness and spice. I would call it barely spicy at best, with maybe a slight lingering of peppery heat at the very end. Overall, it was nice and savory and didn’t have the overwhelming artificial taste of some instant curry.

Overall, the only really unusual thing about it is maybe the thresher shark, which gave a pretty decent curry a different texture than what I’m used to. I would probably eat it again, but would prioritize trying different curry styles. 

Soul of Chogokin Godmars and Respect for the Late Murakami Katsushi

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A trip to Japan earlier this year put me in a great position to buy things I had put off because of the whole tariffs fiasco, and I came out of it with a Soul of Chogokin Shinkalion E5 Hayabusa. But I also had some extra luggage space and a favorable exchange rate, so after some serious deliberation, I came away with another robot: the Soul of Chogokin Godmars, or more specifically the 50th anniversary edition. 

Rokushin Gattai Godmars is not one of my all-time favorite mecha series, but it is one whose role in history always intrigues me. As an early work that developed a large female following and was even a Comic Market doujin darling, it’s essentially the predecessor to shows like Gundam Wing. Granted, none of that factors into the robot merch, but another part of the legacy of Godmars is that its original toy sold very well—enough for the show itself to end up over 60 episodes.

While the Soul of Chogokin version sacrifices some of the ease of playability for a more pleasing visual aesthetic that tries to capture the heroic proportions of the anime version, one thing shines through: Godmars is an inherently entertaining design for hands-on play. While it’s infamously lacking in terms of animation quality—Godmars moves more like a slide show than a fighting hero—that goes out the window when you take in its simplicity and elegance. The six individual robots are fun, joining them together is satisfying, and the resulting combination just looks awesome. The fact that it manages to have such a nice aesthetic with virtually no sharp or angular parts jutting out is impressive in its own way. After getting jabbed over and over putting together the Shinkalion, this was a welcome change. 

With a lot of combining giant robot toys and figures, you can tell that they prioritize either the separate robots or the unified robot assembled from them. In the case of Godmars, however, I find that it strikes a really strong balance between the constituent parts and the unified whole. 

SoC Godmars came out in 2008, and there are aspects of the toy that show its age. The fists are awkward in that they are off-center on the forearm due to the way they fold into the robots that form Godmars’s arms. The legs also have very little articulation, and a lot of the techniques used in later years to allow things like kneeling positions and more dynamic posing just aren’t present here. I don’t consider those deal breakers, though, and I think the reason that it keeps getting reissued and updated is because the design holds up well even 18 years later.

This past week, reports came out that the original designer of Godmars, Murakami Katsushi, passed away on July 20. Not only was he the mind behind the Godmars design, but his influence extends heavily across Japanese pop culture in its anime, tokusatsu, and toys—so much so that he is called the “Father of Chogokin” and is one of the reasons anime has a “mecha designer” credit in the first place. Among his works are Leopardon from the Japanese Spider-Man, Gavan, Combattler V, Cy-Kill from Gobots, Dancouga, and Reideen. His mecha thrilled children and continue to fascinate adults as a visual and tactile experience. While this review is of the Soul of Chogokin version of one design, it’s clear that a lot of what makes it a success can be found in the original DNA provided by Murakami.

Instant Curry Review: Pink Curry

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This is my very first review of the instant curry I bought from Curry Land! Up is Pink Curry, from Tottori. I mostly bought it because of the Rose of Versailles–style art. 

It sure was pink! It reminded me of the blue Sonic the Hedgehog Curry, if it was themed after Amy Rose instead. The taste was all right but much saltier than I expected. The Ingredients include chicken meat, chicken bouillon, and chicken extract: triple chicken power.

Pretty unremarkable aside from the hue, but I felt like I knew that going in. It’s a fun gimmick, but I’m not sure I’d have it again over something more interesting.

Phew, the Witch Hat Atelier Anime Turned Out Amazing

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One of my most anticipated anime adaptations of the past few years was Witch Hat Atelier. The manga is, without exaggeration, one of the greatest masterpieces of comics and fiction in general for how wonderfully it weaves together great characters, a fascinating world, and a powerful story that both excites readers and challenges us to think about difficult philosophical and political questions.

But while production on an anime was officially confirmed back in April 2022, it only came out in April 2026 after multiple delays—including one that was declared to be “to present the charm of the project at an even higher quality.” That’s literally four years for this thing to get out in the world, and I would expect people to ask, “Does it even live up to the hype after so long?”

The answer is a resounding “hell yes.” If you haven’t ever read the manga, this is a fantastic opportunity to get into one of the best works of fiction you’ll ever see. And if you have read the original manga by Shirahama Kamome, this anime does such a fantastic job of bringing it to the screen that you will likely want to see how the characters and the world move, breathe, and live. Also, while it’s more or less a direct adaptation, it does add a few things here and there that help it work better in animation.

Over the decades, there have been so many anime based on gorgeously drawn manga that have utterly failed to capture what makes their art so exquisite, and there was always a fear in me that Witch Hat Atelier would suffer the same fate. Seeing it all in motion lifted a weight off my heart, and renewed some of my faith in the industry. I know not every manga will be this fortunate, but I’m glad we have such a great example of when things go right. 

Independence Concert Hall: Found Futures and Doki Doki Rewind Time

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The dream of the 3D concert is a unique aspect of VTuber culture, and I’m glad that there exist organizations that help make the goal feasible for creators who aren’t part of big companies. One such group is Fantastic Reality, and this past July 4 weekend, they helped produce two in-person concerts: Found Futures and Doki Doki Rewind Time. 

Found Futures

Taking place on July 2, Found Futures was an eclectic mix of indies who ranged from decently well known to top names in the scene, with a welcome diversity of music genres. There was even a bit of opera!

Among the participants were former members of the now-defunct Vshojo: kson, Henya, Matara Kan, and Zentreya. All of them might be better known for their charming banter than their singing ability but clearly strived to put on a good show (with the notable exception of Zentreya, who uses text-to-speech and doesn’t really sing, per se). Matara was also joined for one song by Densetsu.exe (albeit not using their main 3D models).

LilyPichu (whose fame predates VTubing by a number of years), performed three original songs with her signature gentle voice and a quiet confidence that elevated both her and the other talents. I recall first learning about her as an amateur voice actor gaining notoriety, and now she’s a veteran of her space! What a world we live in.

But personally speaking, the most notable acts of the night were Emiliya Fell (along with her half-IRL, half-VTuber band Virtual Signal) and Kou Mariya. Emiliya is one of the organizers of Fantastic Reality, and I admire the initiative she has taken to create this platform. I also have to shout out her song choice of “Everybody Wants to Rule the World” from Tears for Fears, because there’s a tendency in VTubing for covers and karaoke choices to be post-2000s fare or stuff that has gotten popular online in recent years.

As for Mariya, she is literally another identity of Emiliya Fell—a fact she herself revealed last year, and I am inclined to believe was referenced when Emiliya sang a refrain of “Maaariya” in one of her songs. She had previously talked about having issues with retaining the rights to Mariya after V4Mirai, but things have since been resolved, and now she is simultaneously both personas. In other words, in another parallel with the world of pro wrestling, VTubing now has its own version of the time Mankind, Cactus Jack, and Dude Love all fought in the same Royal Rumble.

Doki Doki Rewind Time

In contrast to Found Futures, Doki Doki Rewind Time had a much clearer identity upfront: a “retro music” concert helmed by the two Dokis, Dokibird and Chibidoki, the former of whom was also celebrating her birthday. The two marquee names are not exactly renowned for their singing skills, so the concert was mostly about good vibes with cool people and just enjoying these “older” sounds. 

The fact that songs I perceive as relatively new were part of a nostalgic throwback did make me feel quite old: “Sk8r Boy,” “Pen Pineapple Apple Pen,” “A Thousand Miles,” “Caramell Dansen,” etc. Despite my now acute awareness of the passage of time, I can forgive it for being a great experience overall.

Among the guests were some of the biggest Indie names, many of whom had legacies that went well past their current identities. If I were to look at things objectively, the most significant appearance was that of Shachi: an artist and singer who had never been featured in a live concert as we currently know her. 

While technically not a VTuber, she was at least given a visual presence in the form of a punk-rock orca with a spiked collar. Shachi sang two duets with Dokibird, with her vocals on “Thnks fr th Mmrs” being especially moving to listen to. She and Dokibird have both talked about being long-time friends, and I think it’s wonderful that they finally got to perform together.

If we’re going by my personal biases, however, I was most excited to see Doki and Dooby perform together! While they had already been on stage together at Fantome Thief’s Revenge, this felt extra special as a duet. Their cover of “99 Red Balloons” was a nice choice, and fit their voices well. 

When the concert reached its encore, Doki appeared on stage with Dooby, Shachi, and the rest of the Sloppy Sisters (Mint Fantôme, Snuffy, Limealicious). Seeing all of them in one place felt special in a way that’s hard to fully describe, but it felt like both a reunion and the sign of a newer age. I only wish that Nimi Nightmare, who was part of the pre-show, could have joined them here as well.   

Miscellaneous

What follows are some other thoughts and observations:

Apparently, there was a pre-show for Found Futures that wasn’t streamed. As a fan of Michi Mochievee, I wish I could have seen it.

I don’t know if something happened, but the models seemed to be missing some of the typical shading/rendering one usually sees from these models, and that’s something I’ve only ever seen happen at hololive Gen 5’s Twinkle 4 You concert a few years back. The one who seemed to end up looking best under these circumstances was Dooby, and I have to wonder if she just took a different approach compared to everyone else when designing her 3D model.

The mix of live and virtual for the band accompaniment was cool to behold, and it gave a lot of positive energy to both concerts. I already knew about Starlight Daryl from her work composing songs, but to hear her shred on the guitar was really awesome too. I heard she had some serious health scares not long after, so I wish her well in healing as well as continuing to bridge this gap between 2D and 3D.

See You Again

Both concerts are still up until this Friday, so anyone interested has a couple more days to check them out.

Also, a lot of the talents in the Fantastic Reality concerts are set to be part of a number of upcoming concerts, including Skyline Serenade in August in New York City. I look forward to what they have in store.