Darker Than Black II, Episode 4: The Ark Rocks on the Lake

I'm now almost caught up with Darker Than Black II. I'll try and review episode 5 soon so that this won't be behind at all for those who care about that sort of thing. It's hard to discuss the plot of Darker Than Black II at all at this point without spoilers, so I can't do much of a summary this time around.

Season two of Darker Than Black has been pitch perfect up to this point, but for me, this episode faltered a bit. I still enjoyed it- a so so episode of Darker Than Black is still worlds better than a lot of anime out there- but it just couldn't compare with earlier episodes of the season. This series has always been dark, but I felt like this episode took the darkness into a seriously unpleasant territory. It often felt weird to watch.

The first season of this show really started to get good around the episode 5-6 mark, so I have high hopes for the next episode of this show. Darker Than Black II already feels like it's light years away from the first episode, so I'm really curious about what direction they'll take things in from here. I really hope we start getting some answers soon.

Rating: 90/100

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Sasameki Koto, Episode 4: 4+1

I'm now officially one third of the way through Sasameki Koto. In the fourth episode, 4+1, we get to see a little more of some of the characters introduced in the last episode. Introducing them made for some great comedy, and I hope we see a lot more of them. An injection of humor is just what this show needs to appeal to more than just yuri fans.

In spite of all the laughs this episode had to offer, I felt really bad for some of the characters. I really hope that both Sumika and Akemiya are happy by the end of the show, no matter how things wrap up. Both of them have had to go through a lot in the episodes of the anime that I've seen so far, and I expect they still have a bit of suffering left before the show is over.

Hopefully Sasameki Koto will continue to churn out episodes like this one so that it can have a wider appeal. Obviously there are plenty of people who'll come check out any yuri anime, but it'll be nice if they can stick around for the comedy. Things are really shaping up nicely, and I have high hopes for the rest of the show.

If you want to watch this episode of Sasameki Koto online, head here.

Rating: 88/100

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The Book of Bantorra, Episode 4: The Setting Sun, Shiron, and Colio

I've just finished the fourth episode of The Book of Bantorra. There are a lot of things that can be said about the series, but I don't think anyone can say that it has no surprises. This blog is a spoiler-free zone, so I won't say anything about it here, but those of you who haven't seen this one yet are in for a treat.

This episode definitely had the best action sequences of the series so far. The Book of Bantorra has had some good action scenes before, but nothing on the level of this. This episode also had some really touching scenes, and overall I feel like this anime is steadily improving.

I still don't feel like I like Book of Bantorra as much as I should. I've said before that I just can't get as into it as I should and come up with various reasons as to why that might be. When I still feel that way after an episode as good as this, I'm starting to think it might just be me. I'll still happily watch this one for the action sequences alone, and hope that one of these days I'll like this show as much as I feel as though I should.

Rating: 85/100

If you'd like to watch this episode of The Book of Bantorra online, you can do so here.

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Nyan Koi!, Episode 4: Beautiful Person

I've finally managed to get to episode 4 of Nyan Koi! I generally try and hold out so that I can watch subs from the same group for each episode of a show, but I didn't want to wait any longer to blog this one. In this episode, Junpei thinks that he may have a competitor for the affections of Kaede.

For the first time, the episode's best comedy didn't come from the cats. I would've missed the great cat stuff I've become accustomed to, but I was laughing too hard at all the other stuff to notice. This was probably the anime's funniest episode to date. I'm also really starting to appreciate how different Nyan Koi! is as far as harem shows go. It's such a tired genre, but I really feel like there's doing a lot that's new and different with it.

Nyan Koi! continues to be the best comedy show of the season. I'm a little concerned about what will happen with the main plot of the show since Junpei hasn't helped too many cats in the first four episodes, but there's always room for a second season if the show needs it. I'd definitely check it out.

Rating 88/100

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Seitokai no Ichizon, Episode 4: The Creative Student Council

I've now reached Seitokai no Ichizon's fourth episode. While a lot of the show is still pretty repetitive, I thought this episode was a big step up from last week's. The plot of the episode is perfect for the style of the humor the show uses, and it was fun seeing a lot of the stuff it had to offer. I didn't laugh out loud as much as I had with some earlier episodes, but I still think this was a stronger episode overall.

I still don't feel like this is really my sort of show. I do enjoy the referential humor, but this anime has so much of the same in each episode. It's hard to stay interested even though I think this was probably the best episode of the series to date. I almost wish I'd seen this one first.

This show only has 13 episodes total, but 9 more episodes feels like a lot to me given the style of this show. I feel like maybe this one would've been better as a 3 episode OVA. I hope they manage to find a few more ideas like this one for the anime, as they make a perfect match.

Rating: 80/100

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Kimi ni Todoke, Episode 4: Rumor

Kimi ni Todoke is now on episode 4, and as I suspected, they're going with a plot line I'm not particularly fond of. Kimi ni Todoke is a very well written show, and they're handling it much better than many other places I've seen this storyline used in, addressing my major complaints with it. However, it's still not something I really like to watch, although I understand why other people get sucked in by this type of story.

I didn't think this was a bad episode by any means and I was very involved in it from beginning to end, but I just didn't enjoy it as much as I have previous episodes. This is totally a personal taste thing and not the fault of the anime. As I said, they're handling things really well and all the major characters are being written impressively. This episode also had some of the weirdest facial art and the best backgrounds I've ever seen on the show. It was a weird mix of everything I like and dislike about the way Kimi ni Todoke is drawn.

I hope that they wrap up this plot soon and I can go back to enjoying Kimi ni Todoke as much as I was. However, it's still an excellent show, and if you're really into watching stuff with personal drama, this episode is going to be a great one for you. If like me, you preferred the show for its slice of life feel, hopefully the show will go back to that soon. It's still great regardless.

Rating: 87/100

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The Sacred Blacksmith, Episode 4: Vow -Promise-

I'm now officially a third of the way through The Sacred Blacksmith, and it continues to improve. I was concerned that last week's episode was just a fluke, but the better Cecily becomes as a character, the better the show's gets. Even the action scenes are much improved, which I believe was something I complained about during the show's first episode.

This one did have a fair bit of pure anime fanservice, but I didn't mind it so much. Maybe it's because it came from likable characters, or maybe it's just because it made sense in the context of the show, but I didn't find it at all irritating. I'm also growing to like a lot of Cecily's fellow knights. Going by the OP, quite a few more characters should be showing up in the next few episodes, and I hope I enjoy them as well.

I'm really looking forward to seeing the next episode of The Sacred Blacksmith's next episode, which honestly shocks me. This show has improved so much so quickly. It's honestly pretty incredible. I'm really glad that I didn't drop it before I got to see how entertaining it can be.

Rating: 89/100

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