It's easy to forget that all the living objects and trees within Whole Cake Island are animated by the souls of individual people. Pudding reminds us of this when she creates a clearing for the Straw Hats in the forest by using her Memo-Memo powers to return the attacking trees to their original consciousness, at least for the time being. It's a little tragic to think that this arc is basically Thriller Bark 2.0, but without the happy ending where we see the souls return to their original owners.
This is a surprisingly good-looking episode, despite how little story progress is made. This is my platonic ideal for how I'd like the anime to look on a more regular basis, where even the less animation intensive scenes look nice and polished, like the artists actually had time to draw multiple drafts before airing. This would be a perfect episode if anything happened in it, but sadly this is about half a chapter's worth of running forward. Thankfully, this seems to be the end of the Big Mom foot chase before we transition into naval combat, as the rest of the Straw Hats finally arrive to assist Chōpper and Brook on the Sunny.
Chōpper and Brook's side of the fight continues to be really cool, with Brook now fighting with his Soul King ghost hanging off him like a JoJo's Stand. I hope that's just how he fights from now on. It's a little frustrating to know how strong Katakuri and Perospero must be and for them to not just murder Chōpper and Brook with the blink of an eye. Part of that is the anime's pacing, but Perospero's involvement in the fight includes trapping his opponents in candy and then literally putting a clock on their heads to wait for them to suffocate. I believe circumstances demand a little more efficiency on the villains' part at the moment.
Still, the villains' lazy confidence does lead to the highlight of the episode, where Perospero watches the Seducing Woods from a distance and assumes Mom has killed the Straw Hats by now, only for them to emerge intact in a sequence that has some real kick to it. We get to watch the enemy's stunned face as they realize their barrage of obstacles hasn't slowed Luffy and company down at all, and it feels great. The finale also tops the episode off with a well-animated action scene where Luffy plows his way through Perospero's giant candy attacks. It really gets your blood pumping to see the heroes putting so much effort into avoiding Big Mom, as well as trying to throw the other powerful villains off the ship so they can finally take off.
So the Straw Hats sans Sanji have at long last made it to the Sunny, meaning we can only change gears from here. Sanji, Pudding, and Chiffon are off to Cacao Island to rebuild Mom's wedding cake, so the crew's best bet is to sail between the various islands of Totto Land while the baking commences. I'd really prefer that we not still be taking things this slow, but I have a lot of affection for the execution of this episode in all other regards. That fun adventurous spirit can finally breathe, and I hope we get to spend at least a few more episodes at this level of quality as the story delves into heavier stuff up ahead.
Series previously inspired 52-episode anime in 1993― This year's 24th issue of Shogakukan's Weekly Shonen Sunday magazine revealed on Wednesday that Gosho Aoyama's Yaiba manga will be getting a new anime adaptation. Aoyama is supervising. The series follows the titular Yaiba Kurogane, a young samurai boy inspired by Miyamoto Musashi, the real-life swordsman who pioneered the Hyōhō Niten Ichi-ryū sty...
Based on the novel by former Nogizaka46 member Kazumi Takayama, trapezium asks its audience to follow one girl who will use anything, and anyone, to achieve her dream.― Trapezium is a strange movie, to say the least. On the surface, it's a rather simple movie that explores youth, their dreams, and the lengths they'll go to achieve those dreams. It's a coming-of-age story wrapped in the veneer of the...
ZeroReq011 remembers what made Spice and Wolf a story for the ages, from its fully realized world and economics to Holo and Lawrence's romantic chemistry.― Back when Funimation was still its own company and not owned by Sony, long before its in-house streaming service was terminated in favor of Crunchyroll's streaming platform, it owned a TV channel. Legal streaming had yet to dominate the Western a...
Anime will star Hiroshi Kamiya, Kotaro Nishiyama, Kotaro Nishiyama― Distribution company Remow announced on Tuesday that Yura Urushibara's Tougen Anki: Dark Demon of Paradise manga will get a television anime in 2025. The company revealed the trailer, key visual, and main cast for the anime. The anime's cast includes:
Kazuki Ura as Shiki Ichinose, the protagonist who inherits the blood of an Oni. Sh...
Nick and Chris recount some of the most frustrating anime cancellations, from the Yuri on Ice movie to the second half of Stars Align.― Nick and Chris recount some of the most frustrating anime cancellations from the second half of Stars Align to the 2007 JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Phantom Blood movie. Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the participants in this chatlog are not the views...
Welcome to the rankings for the Spring 2024 season! The perfect place to check out which hidden gems might have flown under your radar.― Let's have a look at what ANN readers consider the best (and worst) of the season,
based on the polls you can find in our Daily Streaming Reviews
and on the Your Score page with the latest simulcasts. Keep in mind that these rankings are based on how people rated ...
The final Spring 2024 Manga Guide update includes not-yet-released series from this month, including Sword Art Online Re:Aincrad,Bungo Stray Dogs: The Official Comic Anthology, A Sign of Affection and more.― Welcome to Anime News Network's Spring 2024 Manga Guide! You may have seen one of our seasonal Anime Preview Guides, where a team of critics writes up each new anime television premiere as it a...
Producer Masakazu Kubo shares the animation team's dedication to realism, including bringing in a pro golfer to produce the anime's sound effects.― 64-year-old Masakazu Kubo has been planning and producing anime for decades. He's had a major hand in everything from Pokémon and Detective Conan to Teasing Master Takagi-san and Dorohedoro. Recently, he sat down with us to talk about Tonbo!, his attemp...