Two little but very important notes before I begin talking about Grass. The first is this book was given to me as a review copy by Drawn and Quarterly. The second is that Grass is about about the life of a Korean comfort woman during WWII so this book is unmistakably about sexual violence. There is nothing visually graphic in the book. There is not even any nudity. But if you are disturbed by sexual violence you should tread into the book very carefully.

I have to apologize for not posting a main article on the blog since I finished my Otakon posts. A mixture of shakeups at work, my trying to restart my long-running D&D game, and some general ennui have been a bit of a roadblock. The other thing is I promised myself my next post would be a review of Grass. The thing is I could have easily done a simple review of the new Urusei Yatsura volumes. They are wacky books that are fun to write about with a mixture of nostalgia and whimsy. Grass, on the other hand, is a heavy and powerful story that requires a different amount of weight and consideration. Posts like this one are distinctly harder to write. They don’t flow as naturally from me but that sometimes makes them all the more valuable.

Of all the things I have written since Kate has decided to take a break this is the post I most feel her absence from the blog. I feel most of the posts on Reverse Thieves would have been better with her adding to them but this is the first where I actually feel something is lost without her presence. I will try my best without her but I fully acknowledge this post will not be what it could have been without her. In that respect, I ask your forgiveness and to bear with me.

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Sound! Euphonium has been an interesting ride as a series. The first season seemed like it could go either way but turned out fairly strong with some really strong character moments with a nice mix of drama and comedy. Kumiko and Reina’s growth is compelling and heartwarming and the supporting cast rarely overstays their welcome. Sapphire and Hazuki are particularity adorable supporting characters. There are some flaws but overall it was compelling.

The second season was a bit more of a mixed bag. When they focused on the characters from the first season everything went along swimmingly. Digging into fan-favorite characters like Asuka Tanaka provided some greater depth to the cast. When the story centered around Mizore and Nozomi everything seemed to be moving through molasses with Kumiko mostly being an observer until the end. If anything the main problem seemed to be when the series got hung up on minor characters it always dragged things down. Overall the main story-line triumphed even if the more tedious parts made it weaker than the first season. The second season ended at a place would easily have concluded the series but also left it open for more adventures.

The thing about the Mizore and Nozomi is it almost felt like a back door pilot for a series about them. Considering that the Liz and the Blue Bird movie is all about them it might have been an attempt at creating a side series. I did not watch that movie but considering it is a companion piece to the main movie I will probably seek it out if and when it comes to home video. In retrospect, considering how much I felt that their arc dragged in the TV series it might have , been a better medium to have their story in a more compact form like a movie. I guess they just burned me enough that I did not even think about that.

So now with the Liz and the Blue Bird parts are taken out of the story of Kumiko and Reina adventures I was curious to see how well Kyoto Animation could fit a new year of the saga of the Kitauji High School Concert Band Club into a single movie.

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I’m going to talk about my impression of Rumiko Takahashi’s newest manga MAO in a bit but if you would indulge me I want to give everyone a bit of context. If I am known for anything it is as the dude who REALLY likes Type-Moon which truth be told is a fairly reasonable reputation. That said my closest friend will tell you I have an extreme fondness for Rumiko Takahashi. Her work was some of my first expose to anime, it was her series that seriously got me into fandom, and Maison Ikkoku is still my favorite manga. So anything Rumiko Takahashi is rather personal to me.

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