When the clock strikes midnight, it's time for the dog to go to sleep and for the cat to take over the night. This episode introduces us at last to that cat, the Duke of the Night known as the Cat Viper. Unlike Dogstorm who seems fairly collected and withdrawn, Cat Viper is wild and unhinged. He has a big poofy lion's mane and dresses like a Japanese crime boss, meaning that's he's obviously one of the coolest new characters in recent memory.
However, he's only present for about the last fourth of this episode, if even that. The rest of the episode is the padded continuation of Dogstorm and the Musketeers fighting off Jack and the rest of Kaido's men in flashback form. There's something very unfortunate about the direction of this episode, because it's so notably lifeless for large chunks of it. Panels that I remember being amazingly cool in the manga (like Dogstorm stopping Jack's trunk in a big explosion of dust) are nowhere near as impressive here, and the pacing and music choices throughout demand little attention. My first thought when the episode started up was, “Wow, we've done nothing but watch this mammoth guy stand in place for three episodes now,” and that's really how it feels.
I've got mixed feelings on Jack at the moment. When one of his henchmen announces to the Minks (and more importantly, the audience) that his boss's bounty is a whopping one billion berries, my heart did a little pitter-patter of excitement. I've always loved bounties as a device in this series to create a hierarchy among the strong characters and establish who is a big deal and who is not very quickly. One billion is so much higher than what we've seen in the series so far (Luffy's 500 million is about as high as it's gotten), and yet Jack is still technically an underling of Kaido's. We've essentially just established the next ceiling for Luffy to break.
My mixed feelings come from just how unimpressive he is in this anime. Again, there's a lot of just standing around and talking, but even the big action highlights feel bereft of energy. We can safely assume that Jack and his henchmen are only being introduced at this moment, and that they will become more present and familiar as the Straw Hats get more and more entangled with Kaido, but there's still something that feels undefined. Like, could you imagine these guys being the common battle fodder in a Dressrosa-sized arc? Because that's what we'd have to expect.
Otherwise, this episode does give us the wonder that is Master Cat Viper. I was in awe when midnight hit, as we see his eyes open in the dark and hear his booming “nyaaaaa~" echoing throughout Zou. Dogstorm vanishes between shots like a slasher movie villain, aware that his turn has ended. There's still some wonkiness to the animation when Cat Viper arrives, but he enters the scene with so much speed and energy that I can forgive it. Jack and his men seemed like they were at least starting to sweat after hours of fighting with Dogstorm, and now they have a much wilder, well-rested opponent to fight.
Aside from Cat Viper, these last few episodes have been a bit draining. The fantastic production of the initial Zou episodes is on break, and we're in the middle of a slow-burn exposition dump as Luffy and friends get filled in on the happenings before their arrival. Both Dogstorm and Cat Viper are pretty cool dudes, but I'm hoping we get some forward momentum again soon.
I can't recommend the series, nor think that any hypothetical viewer would enjoy it, but it is the kind of trash TV that's rewarding to dissect.― Have you ever wondered what Baki would be like if it had a conservative bent instead of queer undertones? Well, look no further because the answer is Kengan Ashura! While Kengan is trying to convey the same spectacle and white-knuckle action of the long-ru...
Film also available to rent, purchase digitally on several major outlets in N. America― The official X/Twitter account for TOHO's Godzilla franchise announced on Saturday that Takashi Yamazaki's Godzilla Minus One film is streaming worldwide on Netflix. The film is available worldwide, but is currently not available in Japan. Godzilla Minus One/Minus Color, the black-and-white version of the film, w...
One Piece: Heroines novel also licensed― Viz Media revealed its new licenses and new print releases planned for spring 2025 on Friday. Kazuyoshi Seto's Minecraft: The Manga: Announcement: Add this book to your enchantment room! Join Nico on his chance to escape the blocky confines of his home and prove how strong he's become when zombies attack! Minecraft: The Manga, by Kazuyoshi Seto, releases Spri...
Series starring Miku Martineau, Ayo Solanke, more starts production in Toronto― The Hollywood Reporter entertainment news site reported on Thursday that showrunner Simon Barry (Warrior Nun creator) and Boat Rocker Media are producing a live-action series for Netflix titled BET that "is based in part" on writer Homura Kawamoto and artist Tōru Naomura's Kakegurui - Compulsive Gambler manga. The show h...
Jean-Karlo attempts to condense two big video game showcases into a coherent column, from the revamped Silent Hill 2 to the grazing pastures of Story of Seasons.― Welcome back, folks. This is related to a big story for this week, but this past weekend, I listened to Utada Hikaru's re-recording of "Simple And Clean". It's very emotional. Utada Hikaru is a good twenty-plus years older than when she or...
In the Eisner-nominated work, Maki Fujiwara chronicles her daily life with her husband, lionized mangaka Yoshiharu Tsuge. Though deceptively simple at first glance, a foundation of abuse is slowly revealed.― At first blush, Maki Fujiwara's My Picture Diary does what it says on the tin. It tells the story of her daily life as a housewife and mother, spending time with her daily activities, noting the...
Now streaming on Netflix, Tomotaka Shibayama's first feature animation mixes the magical with reality to share a simple but important message.―
Director Tomotaka Shibayama's latest film, My Oni Girl, is an action-adventure drama with elements of a buddy comedy and a relatable coming-of-age story. The film, produced by Studio Colorido, was released in theaters in Japan and on Netflix on May 24, foll...
Miyano, Nukumi play original characters for August 2 film― The official website for My Hero Academia the Movie: You're Next (My Hero Academia: You're Next), the fourth anime film in the My Hero Academia franchise, announced on Friday that the film has cast Mamoru Miyano and Meru Nukumi as original characters. Mamori Miyano as Giulio Gandini, a butler who serves the Scervino family Meru Nukumi as Ann...
Kaiju No. 8 takes the top spot this week while Tonari no Yōkai-san pushes to #3 in the cmulative! Check out our weekly user rankings!― 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 in...
Mospeada is a work very much of its time, riffing on ideas and tropes that were all the rage when it was made, and doesn't do anything exceptional with them.― It can be easy for even longtime fans to forget that alongside Macross, there were two other 80's sci-fi anime that got Frankenstein-ed into what we'd eventually call Robotech. While this isn't the first time one of those series has made it to...
Following the upcoming retro programming block Toonami Rewind, Chris and Lucas look back fondly on the afternoons spent watching Naruto and Sailor Moon.― Following the upcoming retro programming block Toonami Rewind, Chris and Lucas look back fondly on the afternoons spent watching Naruto and Sailor Moon. Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed by the participants in this chatlog are not the v...
Yeah, yeah, Kaiju No. 8 has all the great action scenes, but Yatagarasu is chewing up the scenery as the royal ladies absolutely lose their minds!?― Why Aren't You Watching This Anime Yet? Yeah, yeah, Kaiju No. 8 has all the great action scenes, but Yatagarasu is chewing up the scenery as the royal ladies absolutely lose their minds!? The ANN After Show streams live on YouTube, Facebook, and Twitte...
Here we have a from-the-ground-up remake, but does this beloved classic still hold up in a modern sense, or is that praise just nostalgia talking?― It's nice when Nintendo surprises us with a remaster or re-release of one of their more difficult-to-obtain games. The original Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door for the Nintendo GameCube is a classic for many. However, since the game was never re-rele...
Miles Atherton crunched Netflix's latest numbers for some surprising anime discoveries, from the popularity of My Happy Marriage to the One Piece juggernaut.― Since the advent of streaming, it's been notoriously difficult to gauge how popular a specific anime is with international audiences, both for publishers looking to make informed decisions for a market that generates most of its revenue outsi...