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Stop watching boku no pico

ur just horny

“My friend, you have met a terrible, terrible demise. But, uh, you know, I-I don’t feel too bad about it. After all, if- if it weren’t from me, it would have just been from someone else, ya know? I guess what I’m trying to say is life, life goes on. W- well, from- for everyone else, life goes on. Not- not for you, you’re, you're dead. But that’s neither here nor there. It reminds me of one summer day in the park, I was having just a delightful picnic with my good friend Orville. And I said to him, I said, “Orville, I-I have a story,” And he said to me, “What’s the significance of the story?” I said to him “Orville, not every story has to have significance, ya know? Sometimes uhh, you know, sometimes a story is just a story. You try to read into every little thing and find meaning in everything anyone says, you’ll just drive yourself crazy. Had a friend do it once - wasn’t pretty - we talked about it for years. And-and not only that, but, you’ll likely end up believin' something you shouldn’t believe or thinkin' something you shouldn’t think o-o-or assumin' something you shouldn’t assume, ya know? "Sometimes," I said, "a-a-a story is- is just a story, so just be quiet for one second of your life and eat your sandwich, okay?" Of course, it was only then I realized I made sandwiches and, poor Orville was having such difficulty eating it! Elephants have those clumsy hands, ya know? A-Actually, I-I suppose that’s the problem; they don’t have hands at all, do they? They've, they’re all feet! A-an I-I couldn’t imagine someone asking me to eat a sandwich with my feet. Now, if I recall correctly there was a bakery nearby. I- I said to him “Orville, l-let me go get you some rye bread.” Now, I-I’m unsure if elephants enjoy rye bread, but I assure you that Orville does. Now this was on a Tuesday which was good because rye bread was always fresh on Tuesday. They made sourdough on Monday and threw it out Wednesday. O-or rather they sold it at a discount for people wantin' to feed the ducks and then, probably at the end of the day finally they threw it all out, I-I don't recall. I do remember a man who would being his son to the bakery every Wednesday, and-and go feed the ducks. He would buy all of the sourdough bread. Of course, you know, you’re not supposed to feed the ducks sourdough bread at all. It swells up in their stomach and then they all die. At, ah, at least, at least that’s what I’ve heard. Ya know, I never saw any ducks die myself, but I did notice a substantial decrease in duck population over the course of a few years. I just never thought to stop the man and tell him he was killing the ducks by feeding them sourdough bread! And if you want my opinion on the matter, heh, and I told Orville this as well: if you wanna feed ducks or birds or any kind for that matter, especially buy seed. I mean, when you think about it, breads of any sort don’t occur in nature. They don’t grow on trees or spring up from the bushes! I don’t think birds know what to do with bread. What was I saying? Oh, oh yes yes. So I bought Orville some rye bread. What a fine day it was.”


“Huh, it seems that you have met your end. Ugh, what a pity. Y'know I-I dont feel too bad about it, though. After all, if it weren’t me, it would’ve just been one of the others, I guess. I’m honestly just glad to be out of those air ducts. Y’know it’s-it’s not easy for a hippopotamus to fit up there, and not easy to get down either. I’m not as young as I used to be, as you can see. I used to be able to do all the sorts of things. Y-you’re young, you’re vibrant, you have that sort of pep in your step. Heh, reminds me of a conversation that I was havin’ with one of my good friends Orville. We were havin’ a nice picnic one day. I believe it was summer or perhaps it was…was it the fall? Yes, yes. It was the fall because the leaves had turned already. But I said to Orville I says, ‘Orville I have a story to tell you,’ and Orville looked at me–y’know, kinda odd–and, and said, ‘What’s it about?’ I said to him, ‘not every story has to be about something Orville. Sometimes a person just wants to talk. Why does everything have to be a story?’ I said to him. He just looked at me. He said, ‘Well y-you said you had a story.’ Y’know he was quite right. I did in fact. I told him I had a story. I suppose if a person just wants to talk then it’s best to not announce that you’re telling a story. Tellin’ a story does come with its own pressures and expectations I-I suppose. After all, if you’re just talking to a friend then there’s no more expectations than if you were talkin’ into the wind. Words by themselves aren’t expected to carry–uh, aren’t expected to stick, but if, y’know, if you announce that you’re tellin’ a story well then there’d better be a point to it all, y’know? No one wants to sit and listen to someone ramble on and on and on with absolutely no end in sight. So, y’know it’s-it’s good to be mindful of that when you tell someone that you’re about to tell a story, that you have something to say. Tellin’ someone that you’re gonna tell them a story is tantamount to askin’ them to stop what they’re doin’ and–and pay attention. You’re basically sayin’, ‘hey, hey buddy, stop everything, stop what you’re thinking. I have a solution to everything.’ And well I didn’t really have a story to tell. In-in hindsight I-I probably just misspoke when I said that I had a story. I think it would’ve just been better to tell Orville that I wanted to tell him something, rather than tell him that I had a story. But, y’know, even then it mighta put too much importance on the whole thing. Either way, it was quite a nice day. I remember–I remember that we were drinking tea.”

“Well, it seems that your journey has ended. Very sorry about that. It-it was always going to end this way, of course. If it weren’t by me, it would’ve just been by some other, y’know, terrible thing, just–you could not imagine how terrible it would be-just-I get scared thinkin’ about it. Glad it’s not me. Reminds me of a-of a time I was speaking to my good friend Orville. We were–we were sitting on a park bench watching the pigeons. I was on the left; he was on the r–wait, was I on the right? Or left? Anyways, it doesn’t matter. We were sitting on there watching the pigeons. And uh, -II said to Orville, ‘Friend, those birds are frozen, and he kinda looked at me like I’d lost my mind, but I reminded him that it was winter, y’know, and often birds will sit in a tree until they freeze then-then they y’know they sort of fall to the ground ‘til the sun warms up a-and they can y’know move around again. So I said to Orville, ‘you might as well save those breadcrumbs until the birds thaw, ‘cause they can’t very well enjoy them in the condition they’re in.’ To which he asked what I meant, and asking what condition the crumbs should be in before he threw them to the birds–assuming that I meant the birds couldn’t enjoy the breadcrumbs in the condition that the crumbs were in, when in fact I had meant the birds could not enjoy them in the condition that the birds were in, considering that the birds were frozen. Y’know so he took a moment and then threw his last handful onto the ground. I said to him, ‘Orville, why did you just throw the breadcrumbs to the birds when I just told you they’re frozen?’ To which he responded, ‘the breadcrumbs are not frozen.’ Again, misunderstanding my words. I didn’t mean to say that the breadcrumbs were frozen, when I said, ‘I told you they’re frozen’, I’d been referring to the birds. Y’know, in hindsight what I should’ve said was–and this would make perfect sense, ‘Why did you throw the breadcrumbs to the birds when the birds are frozen?’ He misunderstood upon my correction, statin’ that he didn’t know what else to do with the breadcrumbs, and that perhaps, y’know, when the birds thawed, they’d still be able to eat the crumbs. So I-I said to Orville, I said and this is what I said to him, I said, ‘Orville, the birds may be dead.”

“Huh, it seems that you have met a-a horrible demise, my friend. But, uh, y’know, these things happen, an-and life, life goes on. Not for you, obviously, uh, you’re dead, but uh it reminds me of a time I was-I was havin’ a conversation with my friend Orville. We were–uh, where were we? We were by the–wh-the-the river, we were sitting by the river and watching the fish leap over the falls and uh, I–I said to Orville, ‘Y’know sometimes I feel like a fish leaping over and over again. Always trying to get somewhere. Oh, I don’t know where only to find myself in the jaws of a beast.’ He ‘course looked at me surprised, y’know? ‘Have you been in the jaws of a beast, friend?’ To which I said, ‘no, of course not, Orville.’ I said, ‘No, no, no I-I simply meant that life can seem like a relentless endeavor. Overcome meaningless obstacles only to meet an equally meaningless fate, regardless of your efforts, regardless of the obstacles you’ve passed.’ And, uh, Orville, he stood and proceeded to drape me with a picnic cloth. To which I-I-I asked him, I said, ‘friend, what–what are you doing?’ He looked at me–very concerned–really. ‘I feel like you’ve gotten too much sun.’ Indeed, huh, indeed I had. He proceeded to pour me a glass of just ice cold lemonade, ooh, you ever mix it with iced tea? Do a like–little half lemonade half–ooh, it’s so–you try it some–well you can’t, because you’re dead, but–anyways. So, you may be asking yourself, how did I go from sitting by the falls drinking lemonade to being wedged in the air duct, not only with Orville, but with an entire assortment of fruity-colored friends? Well, there’s uh, there’s really no good answer to that, but perhaps I met a demise of my own at some point and this is my afterlife or my dream–whatever it might mean I honestly don’t know. Or, maybe it doesn’t mean anything at all. Maybe it doesn’t mean anything at all.”

Cap

Konosuba is an anime that I initially thought was going to be great. I mean, it had awesome character design, and it was funny! Well... as you can probably see by the score, my opinion changed pretty quickly. In my opinion, at least 90% of comedy anime are destined for failure, because not everyone is going to find them funny. This one is no exception.
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STORY: 2/10

I'm pretty sure everybody has said this already, but, it really is true. After the extreme success of Sword Art Online the reality to game genre has become an insanely overused trope. Konosuba does have one thing going for it though... Instead of choosing to become ridiculously powerful like almost every other protagonist, this protagonist decides to take the wish granter with him to the 'subarashi sekai'. I can tell you, I wasn't expecting that!
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ART: 6/10

The art itself in Konosuba... is bad. Really bad. As in, it looks way too old for 2016 quality. It could have been worse, MUCH worse, but it is by no means impressive. What is impressive however, is the animation, especially in episode 10, with all those explosion scenes. Radiant colors flaring everywhere, shapes of all different sizes, but most importantly, in the episodes with the succibi and in the mansion..... HOLY CRAP DID YOU SEE THOSE JIGGLE PHYSICS?!
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SOUND: 3/10

Ugh... well, here goes. Konosuba's sound factor. The opening theme is very catchy. But not the kind of way that makes you want to sing it all the time, the kind that makes you regret ever haring it because you can't stop singing it. The ending theme as well, is just plain and not something anyone will remember. I did like how some characters got themes to match their personalities, but even then the music was mediocre at best. The voice acting is done decently, but is nothing special. The sound effects were also average.
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CHARACTER: 4/10

I'll start off with character design. Unrecognizable. Every. Single. One of 'em. They have the traditional 'fantasy world' clothing and design, through and through. As for their personalities: Kazuma is a funny lead that tries to defy the harem cliches. Aqua is funny as well, and memorable for sure, but she is outshined by Darkness, a masochist. Yep. You heard me. A masochist. Hilarious! And of couuuurse, how could I forget fan favorite Megumin! Super cute and always unleashing explosions, what is NOT to love about these characters?!....... They aren't funny anymore. Usually unique characters being fit into a 10 episode anime like this are praised and loved by all, because there isn't enough time to realize the flaws in the character. (I'm guilty of this also). That's not the case with Konosuba. I think it was around episode 7 when I stopped laughing because I had heard the same jokes over and over again. By episode 10, they were straight up annoying.
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OVERALL: 3.75/10

Konosuba... ok, I'm not even going to say it had potential, because it didn't. It was doomed to fail from the start. If you consider this anime funny it is definitely something to try, but if not, don't bother. I would only recommend it to extreme fans of the reality to game genre, and.... well... that's it. If you enjoy it, good for you! As for me, Konosuba was not my cup of tea.
Reviewer’s Rating: 4

NANI!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (⁄ ⁄•⁄ω⁄•⁄ ⁄)(⁄ ⁄•⁄ω⁄•⁄ ⁄)(⁄ ⁄•⁄ω⁄•⁄ ⁄)(⁄ ⁄•⁄ω⁄•⁄ ⁄)(⁄ ⁄•⁄ω⁄•⁄ ⁄)(⁄ ⁄•⁄ω⁄•⁄ ⁄)(⁄ ⁄•⁄ω⁄•⁄ ⁄)(⁄ ⁄•⁄ω⁄•⁄ ⁄)(⁄ ⁄•⁄ω⁄•⁄ ⁄)(⁄ ⁄•⁄ω⁄•⁄ ⁄)(⁄ ⁄•⁄ω⁄•⁄ ⁄)(⁄ ⁄•⁄ω⁄•⁄ ⁄)(⁄ ⁄•⁄ω⁄•⁄ ⁄)(⁄ ⁄•⁄ω⁄•⁄ ⁄)(⁄ ⁄•⁄ω⁄•⁄ ⁄)(⁄ ⁄•⁄ω⁄•⁄ ⁄)(⁄ ⁄•⁄ω⁄•⁄ ⁄) I LOVE YOU TO STEFAN-CHAN UWU BAKA <3

THE OPENING (al-Fatihah) 1. In the name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful. 2. Praise be to Allah, Lord of the Worlds. 3. The Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. 4. Master of the Day of Judgment. 5. It is You we worship, and upon You we call for help. 6. Guide us to the straight path. 7. The path of those You have blessed, not of those against whom there is anger, nor of those who are misguided. 2. THE HEIFER (al-Baqarah) In the name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful 1. Alif, Lam, Meem. 2. This is the Book in which there is no doubt, a guide for the righteous. 3. Those who believe in the unseen, and perform the prayers, and give from what We have provided for them. 4. And those who believe in what was revealed to you, and in what was revealed before you, and are certain of the Hereafter. 5. These are upon guidance from their Lord. These are the successful. 6. As for those who disbelieve—it is the same for them, whether you have warned them, or have not warned them—they do not believe. 7. Allah has set a seal on their hearts and on their hearing, and over their vision is a veil. They will have a severe torment. 8. Among the people are those who say, “We believe in Allah and in the Last Day,” but they are not believers. 9. They seek to deceive Allah and those who believe, but they deceive none but themselves, though they are not aware. 10. In their hearts is sickness, and Allah has increased their sickness. They will have a painful punishment because of their denial. 11. And when it is said to them, “Do not make trouble on earth,” they say, “We are only reformers.” 12. In fact, they are the troublemakers, but they are not aware. 13. And when it is said to them, “Believe as the people have believed,” they say, “Shall we believe as the fools have believed?” In fact, it is they who are the fools, but they do not know. 14. And when they come across those who believe, they say, “We believe”; but when they are alone with their devils, they say, “We are with you; we were only ridiculing.” 15. It is Allah who ridicules them, and leaves them bewildered in their transgression. 16. Those are they who have bartered error for guidance; but their trade does not profit them, and they are not guided. 17. Their likeness is that of a person who kindled a fire; when it illuminated all around him, Allah took away their light, and left them in darkness, unable to see. 18. Deaf, dumb, blind. They will not return. 19. Or like a cloudburst from the sky, in which is darkness, and thunder, and lightning. They press their fingers into their ears from the thunderbolts, in fear of death. But Allah surrounds the disbelievers. 20. The lightning almost snatches their sight away. Whenever it illuminates for them, they walk in it; but when it grows dark over them, they stand still. Had Allah willed, He could have taken away their hearing and their sight. Allah is capable of everything. 21. O people! Worship your Lord who created you and those before you, that you may attain piety. 1 2. THE HEIFER (al-Baqarah) 22. He who made the earth a habitat for you, and the sky a structure, and sends water down from the sky, and brings out fruits thereby, as a sustenance for you. Therefore, do not assign rivals to Allah while you know. 23. And if you are in doubt about what We have revealed to Our servant, then produce a chapter like these, and call your witnesses apart from Allah, if you are truthful. 24. But if you do not—and you will not—then beware the Fire whose fuel is people and stones, prepared for the disbelievers. 25. And give good news to those who believe and do righteous deeds; that they will have gardens beneath which rivers flow. Whenever they are provided with fruit therefrom as sustenance, they will say, “This is what we were provided with before,” and they will be given the like of it. And they will have pure spouses therein, and they will abide therein forever. 26. Allah does not shy away from making an example of a gnat, or something above it. As for those who believe, they know that it is the Truth from their Lord. But as for those who disbelieve, they say, “What did Allah intend by this example?” He leads astray many thereby, and He guides many thereby; but He misleads thereby only the evildoers. 27. Those who violate Allah’s covenant after its confirmation, and sever what Allah has commanded to be joined, and commit evil on earth. These are the losers. 28. How can you deny Allah, when you were dead and He gave you life, then He will put you to death, then He will bring you to life, then to Him you will be returned? 29. It is He who created for you everything on earth, then turned to the heaven, and made them seven heavens. And He is aware of all things. 30. When your Lord said to the angels, “I am placing a successor on earth.” They said, “Will You place in it someone who will cause corruption in it and shed blood, while we declare Your praises and sanctify You?” He said, “I know what you do not know.” 31. And He taught Adam the names, all of them; then he presented them to the angels, and said, “Tell Me the names of these, if you are sincere.” 32. They said, “Glory be to You! We have no knowledge except what You have taught us. It is you who are the Knowledgeable, the Wise.” 33. He said, “O Adam, tell them their names.” And when he told them their names, He said, “Did I not tell you that I know the secrets of the heavens and the earth, and that I know what you reveal and what you conceal?” 34. And We said to the angels, “Bow down to Adam.” They bowed down, except for Satan. He refused, was arrogant, and was one of the disbelievers. 35. We said, “O Adam, inhabit the Garden, you and your spouse, and eat from it freely as you please, but do not approach this tree, lest you become wrongdoers.” 36. But Satan caused them to slip from it, and caused them to depart the state they were in. We said, “Go down, some of you enemies of one another. And you will have residence on earth, and enjoyment for a while.” 37. Then Adam received words from his Lord, so He relented towards him. He is the Relenting, the Merciful. 38. We said, “Go down from it, all of you. Yet whenever guidance comes to you from Me, then whoever follows My guidance—they have nothing to fear, nor shall they grieve. 39. But as for those who disbelieve and reject Our signs—these are the inmates of the Fire—wherein they will remain forever.” 40. O Children of Israel! Remember My blessings which I bestowed upon you, and fulfill your pledge to Me, and I will fulfill My pledge to you, and fear Me. 41. And believe in what I revealed, confirming what is with you; and do not be the first to 2 2. THE HEIFER (al-Baqarah) deny it; and do not exchange My revelations for a small price; and be conscious of Me. 42. And do not mix truth with falsehood, and do not conceal the truth while you know. 43. And attend to your prayers, and practice regular charity, and kneel with those who kneel. 44. Do you command people to virtuous conduct, and forget yourselves, even though you read the Scripture? Do you not understand? 45. And seek help through patience and prayer. But it is difficult, except for the devout. 46. Those who know that they will meet their Lord, and that to Him they will return. 47. O Children of Israel! Remember My favor which I bestowed upon you, and I that favored you over all nations. 48. And beware of a Day when no soul will avail another in the least, nor will any intercession be accepted on its behalf, nor will any ransom be taken from it, nor will they be helped. 49. And recall that We delivered you from the people of Pharaoh. They inflicted on you terrible persecution, killing your sons and sparing your women. Therein was a tremendous trial from your Lord. 50. And recall that We parted the sea for you, so We saved you, and We drowned the people of Pharaoh as you looked on. 51. And recall that We appointed for Moses forty nights. Then you took to worshiping the calf after him, and you turned wicked. 52. Then We pardoned you after that, so that you might be grateful. 53. And recall that We gave Moses the Scripture and the Criterion, so that you may be guided. 54. And recall that Moses said to his people, “O my people, you have done wrong to yourselves by worshiping the calf. So repent to your Maker, and kill your egos. That would be better for you with your Maker.” So He turned to you in repentance. He is the Accepter of Repentance, the Merciful. 55. And recall that you said, “O Moses, we will not believe in you unless we see Allah plainly.” Thereupon the thunderbolt struck you, as you looked on. 56. Then We revived you after your death, so that you may be appreciative. 57. And We shaded you with clouds, and We sent down to you manna and quails: “Eat of the good things We have provided for you.” They did not wrong Us, but they used to wrong their own souls. 58. And recall that We said, “Enter this town, and eat plentifully from it whatever you wish; but enter the gate humbly, and say, 'Pardon.' We will forgive your sins, and give increase to the virtuous.” 59. But the wrongdoers among them substituted words other than those given to them, so We sent down on the wrongdoers a plague from heaven, because of their wicked behavior. 60. And recall when Moses prayed for water for his people. We said, “Strike the rock with your staff.” Thereupon twelve springs gushed out from it, and each tribe recognized its drinking-place. “Eat and drink from Allah’s provision, and do not corrupt the earth with disobedience.” 61. And recall when you said, “O Moses, we cannot endure one kind of food, so call to your Lord to produce for us of what the earth grows: of its herbs, and its cucumbers, and its garlic, and its lentils, and its onions.” He said, “Would you substitute worse for better? Go down to Egypt, where you will have what you asked for.” They were struck with humiliation and poverty, and incurred wrath from Allah. That was because they rejected Allah’s revelations and wrongfully killed the prophets. That was because they disobeyed and transgressed. 62. Those who believe, and those who are Jewish, and the Christians, and the Sabeans—any who believe in Allah and the Last Day, and 3 2. THE HEIFER (al-Baqarah) act righteously—will have their reward with their Lord; they have nothing to fear, nor will they grieve. 63. And recall when We received a pledge from you, and raised the Mount above you: “Take what We have given you earnestly, and remember what is in it, that you may attain righteousness.” 64. But after that you turned away. Were it not for Allah’s grace and mercy towards you, you would have been among the losers. 65. And you surely knew those of you who violated the Sabbath. We said to them, “Be despicable apes!” 66. Thus We made it a deterrent for their generation, and for subsequent generations, and a lesson for the righteous. 67. And recall when Moses said to his people, “Allah commands you to sacrifice a heifer.” They said, “Do you make a mockery of us?” He said, “Allah forbid that I should be so ignorant.” 68. They said, “Call upon your Lord to show us which one.” He said, “He says she is a heifer, neither too old, nor too young, but in between. So do what you are commanded.” 69. They said, “Call upon your Lord to show us what her color is.” He said, “He says she is a yellow heifer, bright in color, pleasing to the beholders.” 70. They said, “Call upon your Lord to show us which one; the heifers look alike to us; and Allah willing, we will be guided.” 71. He said, “He says she is a heifer, neither yoked to plow the earth, nor to irrigate the field; sound without blemish.” They said, “Now you have brought the truth.” So they slew her; though they almost did not. 72. And recall when you killed a person, and disputed in the matter; but Allah was to expose what you were hiding. 73. We said, “Strike him with part of it.” Thus Allah brings the dead to life; and He shows you His signs, that you may understand. 74. Then after that your hearts hardened. They were as rocks, or even harder. For there are some rocks from which rivers gush out, and others that splinter and water comes out from them, and others that sink in awe of Allah. Allah is not unaware of what you do. 75. Do you hope that they will believe in you, when some of them used to hear the Word of Allah, and then deliberately distort it, even after understanding it? 76. And when they come across those who believe, they say, “We believe,” but when they come together privately, they say, “Will you inform them of what Allah has disclosed to you, so that they might dispute with you concerning it before your Lord?” Do you not understand? 77. Do they not know that Allah knows what they conceal and what they reveal? 78. And among them are uneducated who know the Scripture only through hearsay, and they only speculate. 79. So woe to those who write the Scripture with their own hands, and then say, “This is from Allah,” that they may exchange it for a little price. Woe to them for what their hands have written, and woe to them for what they earn. 80. And they say, “The Fire will not touch us except for a number of days.” Say, “Have you received a promise from Allah—Allah never breaks His promise—or are you saying about Allah what you do not know?” 81. Indeed, whoever commits misdeeds, and becomes besieged by his iniquities—these are the inmates of the Fire, wherein they will dwell forever. 82. As for those who believe and do righteous deeds—these are the inhabitants of Paradise, wherein they will dwell forever. 83. We made a covenant with the Children of Israel: “Worship none but Allah; and be good to parents, and relatives, and orphans, and the needy; and speak nicely to people; and pray regularly, and give alms.” Then you 4 2. THE HEIFER (al-Baqarah) turned away, except for a few of you, recanting. 84. And We made a covenant with you: “You shall not shed the blood of your own, nor shall you evict your own from your homes.” You agreed, and were all witnesses. 85. But here you are, killing your own, and expelling a group of your own from their homes—conspiring against them in wrongdoing and hostility. And if they come to you as captives, you ransom them, although it was forbidden to you. Is it that you believe in part of the Scripture, and disbelieve in part? What is the reward for those among you who do that but humiliation in this life? And on the Day of Resurrection, they will be assigned to the most severe torment. Allah is not unaware of what you do. 86. Those are they who bought the present life for the Hereafter, so the punishment will not be lightened for them, nor will they be helped. 87. We gave Moses the Scripture, and sent a succession of messengers after him. And We gave Jesus son of Mary the clear proofs, and We supported him with the Holy Spirit. Is it that whenever a messenger comes to you with anything your souls do not desire, you grew arrogant, calling some impostors, and killing others? 88. And they said, “Our hearts are sealed.” Rather, Allah has cursed them for their ingratitude. They have little faith. 89. And when a scripture came to them from Allah, confirming what they have—although previously they were seeking victory against those who disbelieved—but when there came to them what they recognized, they disbelieved in it. So Allah’s curse is upon the disbelievers. 90. Miserable is what they sold their souls for—rejecting what Allah has revealed, out of resentment that Allah would send down His grace upon whomever He chooses from among His servants. Thus they incurred wrath upon wrath. And there is a demeaning punishment for the disbelievers. 91. And when it is said to them, “Believe in what Allah has revealed,” they say, “We believe in what was revealed to us,” and they reject anything beyond that, although it is the truth which confirms what they have. Say, “Why did you kill Allah’s prophets before, if you were believers?” 92. Moses came to you with clear proofs, yet you adopted the calf in his absence, and you were in the wrong. 93. And We made a covenant with you, and raised the Mount above you: “Take what We have given you firmly, and listen.” They said, “We hear and disobey.” And their hearts became filled with the love of the calf because of their disbelief. Say, “Wretched is what your faith commands you to do, if you are believers.” 94. Say, “If the Final Home with Allah is yours alone, to the exclusion of all other people, then wish for death if you are sincere.” 95. But they will never wish for it, because of what their hands have forwarded. Allah is aware of the evildoers. 96. You will find them, of all mankind, the most eager for life, even more than the polytheists. Every one of them wishes he could live a thousand years; but to be granted a long life will not nudge him from the punishment. Allah is Seeing of what they do. 97. Say, “Whoever is hostile to Gabriel—it is he who revealed it to your heart by Allah’s leave, confirming what preceded it, and guidance and good news for the believers.” 98. Whoever is hostile to Allah, and His angels, and His messengers, and Gabriel, and Michael—Allah is hostile to the faithless. 99. We have revealed to you clear signs, and none rejects them except the sinners. 100. Is it not that whenever they make a covenant, some of them toss it aside? In fact, most of them do not believe. 101. And when there came to them a messenger from Allah, confirming what they had, a faction of those who were given the Book 5 2. THE HEIFER (al-Baqarah) threw the Book of Allah behind their backs, as if they do not know. 102. And they followed what the devils taught during the reign of Solomon. It was not Solomon who disbelieved, but it was the devils who disbelieved. They taught the people witchcraft and what was revealed in Babylon to the two angels Harut and Marut. They did not teach anybody until they had said, “We are a test, so do not lose faith.” But they learned from them the means to cause separation between man and his wife. But they cannot harm anyone except with Allah's permission. And they learned what would harm them and not benefit them. Yet they knew that whoever deals in it will have no share in the Hereafter. Miserable is what they sold their souls for, if they only knew. 103. Had they believed and been righteous, the reward from Allah would have been better, if they only knew. 104. O you who believe! Do not say ambiguous words, but say words of respect, and listen. The disbelievers will have a painful torment. 105. It is never the wish of the disbelievers from among the People of the Book, nor of the polytheists, that any good should be sent down to you from your Lord. But Allah chooses for His mercy whomever He wills. Allah is Possessor of Sublime Grace. 106. We never nullify a verse, nor cause it to be forgotten, unless We bring one better than it, or similar to it. Do you not know that Allah is capable of all things? 107. Do you not know that to Allah belongs the sovereignty of the heavens and the earth, and that apart from Allah you have no guardian or helper? 108. Or do you want to question your Messenger as Moses was questioned before? Whoever exchanges faith for disbelief has strayed from the right path. 109. Many of the People of the Book wish to turn you back into unbelievers after you have believed, out of envy on their part, after the Truth has become clear to them. But pardon and overlook, until Allah brings His command. Allah has power over all things. 110. And perform the prayer, and give alms. Whatever good you forward for yourselves, you will find it with Allah. Allah is Seeing of everything you do. 111. And they say, “None will enter Heaven unless he is a Jew or a Christian.” These are their wishes. Say, “Produce your proof, if you are truthful.” 112. In fact, whoever submits himself to Allah, and is a doer of good, will have his reward with his Lord—they have nothing to fear, nor shall they grieve. 113. The Jews say, “The Christians are not based on anything;” and the Christians say, “The Jews are not based on anything.” Yet they both read the Scripture. Similarly, the ignorant said the same thing. Allah will judge between them on the Day of Resurrection regarding their differences. 114. Who is more unjust than him who forbids the remembrance of Allah’s name in places of worship, and contributes to their ruin? These ought not to enter them except in fear. For them is disgrace in this world, and for them is a terrible punishment in the Hereafter. 115. To Allah belong the East and the West. Whichever way you turn, there is Allah’s presence. Allah is Omnipresent and Omniscient. 116. And they say, “Allah has begotten a son.” Be He glorified. Rather, His is everything in the heavens and the earth; all are obedient to Him. 117. Originator of the heavens and the earth. Whenever He decrees a thing, He says to it, “Be,” and it becomes. 118. Those who do not know say, “If only Allah would speak to us, or a sign would come to us.” Thus said those who were before them. Their hearts are alike. We have made the signs clear for people who are certain. 6 2. THE HEIFER (al-Baqarah) 119. We have sent you with the truth—bringing good news, and giving warnings. You will not be questioned about the inmates of Hell. 120. The Jews and the Christians will not approve of you, unless you follow their creed. Say, “Allah’s guidance is the guidance.” Should you follow their desires, after the knowledge that has come to you, you will have in Allah neither guardian nor helper. 121. Those to whom We have given the Scripture follow it, as it ought to be followed— these believe in it. But as for those who reject it—these are the losers. 122. O Children of Israel! Remember My blessing which I bestowed upon you, and that I have favored you over all people. 123. And beware of a Day when no soul will avail another soul in any way, and no ransom will be accepted from it, and no intercession will benefit it, and they will not be helped. 124. And when his Lord tested Abraham with certain words, and he fulfilled them. He said, “I am making you a leader of humanity.” He said, “And my descendants?” He said, “My pledge does not include the wrongdoers.” 125. And We made the House a focal point for the people, and a sanctuary. Use the shrine of Abraham as a place of prayer. And We commissioned Abraham and Ishmael, “Sanctify My House for those who circle around it, and those who seclude themselves in it, and those who kneel and prostrate.” 126. When Abraham said, “O My Lord, make this a peaceful land, and provide its people with fruits—whoever of them believes in Allah and the Last Day.” He said, “And whoever disbelieves, I will give him a little enjoyment, then I will consign him to the punishment of the Fire; how miserable the destiny!” 127. As Abraham raises the foundations of the House, together with Ishmael, “Our Lord, accept it from us, You are the Hearer, the Knower. 128. Our Lord, and make us submissive to You, and from our descendants a community submissive to You. And show us our rites, and accept our repentance. You are the Acceptor of Repentance, the Merciful. 129. Our Lord, and raise up among them a messenger, of themselves, who will recite to them Your revelations, and teach them the Book and wisdom, and purify them. You are the Almighty, the Wise.” 130. Who would forsake the religion of Abraham, except he who fools himself? We chose him in this world, and in the Hereafter he will be among the righteous. 131. When his Lord said to him, “Submit!” He said, “I have submitted to the Lord of the Worlds.” 132. And Abraham exhorted his sons, and Jacob, “O my sons, Allah has chosen this religion for you, so do not die unless you have submitted.” 133. Or were you witnesses when death approached Jacob, and he said to his sons, “What will you worship after Me?” They said, “We will worship your God, and the God of your fathers, Abraham, Ishmael, and Isaac; One God; and to Him we submit.” 134. That was a community that has passed; for them is what they have earned, and for you is what you have earned; and you will not be questioned about what they used to do. 135. And they say, “Be Jews or Christians, and you will be guided.” Say, “Rather, the religion of Abraham, the Monotheist; he was not an idolater.” 136. Say, “We believe in Allah; and in what was revealed to us; and in what was revealed to Abraham, and Ishmael, and Isaac, and Jacob, and the Patriarchs; and in what was given to Moses and Jesus; and in what was given to the prophets—from their Lord. We make no distinction between any of them, and to Him we surrender.” 137. If they believe in the same as you have believed in, then they have been guided. But if they turn away, then they are in schism. Allah will protect you against them; for He is the Hearer, the Knower. 7 2. THE HEIFER (al-Baqarah) 138. Allah’s coloring. And who gives better coloring than Allah? “And we are devoted to Him.” 139. Say, “Do you argue with us about Allah, when He is our Lord and your Lord, and We have our works, and you have your works, and we are sincere to Him?” 140. Or do you say that Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, and the Patriarchs were Jews or Christians? Say, “Do you know better, or Allah?” And who does greater wrong than he who conceals a testimony he has from Allah? Allah is not unaware of what you do. 141. That was a community that has passed. To them is what they have earned, and to you is what you have earned. And you will not be questioned about what they used to do. 142. The ignorant among the people will say, “What has turned them away from the direction of prayer they once followed?” Say, “To Allah belong the East and the West. He guides whom He wills to a straight path.” 143. Thus We made you a moderate community, that you may be witnesses to humanity, and that the Messenger may be a witness to you. We only established the direction of prayer, which you once followed, that We may distinguish those who follow the Messenger from those who turn on their heels. It is indeed difficult, except for those whom Allah has guided. But Allah would never let your faith go to waste. Allah is Kind towards the people, Merciful. 144. We have seen your face turned towards the heaven. So We will turn you towards a direction that will satisfy you. So turn your face towards the Sacred Mosque. And wherever you may be, turn your faces towards it. Those who were given the Book know that it is the Truth from their Lord; and Allah is not unaware of what they do. 145. Even if you were to bring to those who were given the Book every proof, they would not follow your direction, nor are you to follow their direction, nor do they follow the direction of one another. And if you were to follow their desires, after the knowledge that has come to you, you would be in that case one of the wrongdoers. 146. Those to whom We have given the Book recognize it as they recognize their own children. But some of them conceal the truth while they know. 147. The truth is from your Lord, so do not be a skeptic. 148. To every community is a direction towards which it turns. Therefore, race towards goodness. Wherever you may be, Allah will bring you all together. Allah is capable of everything. 149. And wherever you come from, turn your face towards the Sacred Mosque. This is the truth from your Lord, and Allah is not heedless of what you do. 150. And wherever you come from, turn your face towards the Sacred Mosque. And wherever you may be, turn your faces towards it. So that the people may not have any argument against you—except those who do wrong among them. So do not fear them, but fear Me, that I may complete My blessings upon you, and that you may be guided. 151. Just as We sent to you a messenger from among you, who recites Our revelations to you, and purifies you, and teaches you the Book and wisdom, and teaches you what you did not know. 152. So remember Me, and I will remember you. And thank Me, and do not be ungrateful. 153. O you who believe! Seek help through patience and prayers. Allah is with the steadfast. 154. And do not say of those who are killed in the cause of Allah, “Dead.” Rather, they are alive, but you do not perceive. 155. We will certainly test you with some fear and hunger, and some loss of possessions and lives and crops. But give good news to the steadfast. 156. Those who, when a calamity afflicts them, say, “To Allah we belong, and to Him we will return.” 8 2. THE HEIFER (al-Baqarah) 157. Upon these are blessings and mercy from their Lord. These are the guided ones. 158. Safa and Marwa are among the rites of Allah. Whoever makes the Pilgrimage to the House, or performs the Umrah, commits no error by circulating between them. Whoever volunteers good—Allah is Appreciative and Cognizant. 159. Those who suppress the proofs and the guidance We have revealed, after We have clarified them to humanity in the Scripture— those—Allah curses them, and the cursers curse them. 160. Except those who repent, and reform, and proclaim. Those—I will accept their repentance. I am the Acceptor of Repentance, the Merciful. 161. But as for those who reject faith, and die rejecting—those—upon them is the curse of Allah, and of the angels, and of all humanity. 162. They will remain under it forever, and the torment will not be lightened for them, and they will not be reprieved. 163. Your God is one God. There is no god but He, the Benevolent, the Compassionate. 164. In the creation of the heavens and the earth; in the alternation of night and day; in the ships that sail the oceans for the benefit of mankind; in the water that Allah sends down from the sky, and revives the earth with it after it had died, and scatters in it all kinds of creatures; in the changing of the winds, and the clouds disposed between the sky and the earth; are signs for people who understand. 165. Yet among the people are those who take other than Allah as equals to Him. They love them as the love of Allah. But those who believe have greater love for Allah. If only the wrongdoers would realize, when they see the torment; that all power is Allah’s, and that Allah is severe in punishment. 166. Those who were followed will then disown those who followed them, and they will see the retribution, and ties between them will be severed. 167. Those who followed will say, “If only we can have another chance, we will disown them, as they disowned us.” Thus Allah will show them their deeds, as regrets to them, and they will not come out of the Fire. 168. O people! Eat of what is lawful and good on earth, and do not follow the footsteps of Satan. He is to you an open enemy. 169. He commands you to do evil and vice, and to say about Allah what you do not know. 170. And when it is said to them, “Follow what Allah has revealed,” they say, “We will follow what we found our ancestors following.” Even if their ancestors understood nothing, and were not guided? 171. The parable of those who disbelieve is that of someone who calls upon someone who hears nothing except screaming and yelling. Deaf, dumb, and blind—they do not understand. 172. O you who believe! Eat of the good things We have provided for you, and give thanks to Allah, if it is Him that you serve. 173. He has forbidden you carrion, and blood, and the flesh of swine, and what was dedicated to other than Allah. But if anyone is compelled, without desiring or exceeding, he commits no sin. Allah is Forgiving and Merciful. 174. Those who conceal what Allah revealed in the Book, and exchange it for a small price— those swallow nothing but fire into their bellies. And Allah will not speak to them on the Day of Resurrection, nor will He purify them, and they will have a painful punishment. 175. It is they who exchange guidance for error, and forgiveness for punishment. But why do they insist on the Fire? 176. That is because Allah has revealed the Book in truth; and those who differ about the Book are in deep discord. 177. Righteousness does not consist of turning your faces towards the East and the West. But righteous is he who believes in Allah, and the Last Day, and the angels, and the Scripture, 9 2. THE HEIFER (al-Baqarah) and the prophets. Who gives money, though dear, to near relatives, and orphans, and the needy, and the homeless, and the beggars, and for the freeing of slaves; those who perform the prayers, and pay the obligatory charity, and fulfill their promise when they promise, and patiently persevere in the face of persecution, hardship, and in the time of conflict. These are the sincere; these are the pious. 178. O you who believe! Retaliation for the murdered is ordained upon you: the free for the free, the slave for the slave, the female for the female. But if he is forgiven by his kin, then grant any reasonable demand, and pay with good will. This is a concession from your Lord, and a mercy. But whoever commits aggression after that, a painful torment awaits him. 179. There is life for you in retaliation, O people of understanding, so that you may refrain. 180. It is decreed for you: when death approaches one of you, and he leaves wealth, to make a testament in favor of the parents and the relatives, fairly and correctly—a duty upon the righteous. 181. But whoever changes it after he has heard it, the guilt is upon those who change it. Allah is All-Hearing, All-Knowing. 182. Should someone suspect bias or injustice on the part of a testator, and then reconciles between them, he commits no sin. Allah is Forgiving and Merciful. 183. O you who believe! Fasting is prescribed for you, as it was prescribed for those before you, that you may become righteous. 184. For a specified number of days. But whoever among you is sick, or on a journey, then a number of other days. For those who are able: a ransom of feeding a needy person. But whoever volunteers goodness, it is better for him. But to fast is best for you, if you only knew. 185. Ramadan is the month in which the Quran was revealed. Guidance for humanity, and clear portents of guidance, and the Criterion. Whoever of you witnesses the month, shall fast it. But whoever is sick, or on a journey, then a number of other days. Allah desires ease for you, and does not desire hardship for you, that you may complete the number, and celebrate Allah for having guided you, so that you may be thankful. 186. And when My servants ask you about Me, I Am near; I answer the call of the caller when he calls on Me. So let them answer Me, and have faith in Me, that they may be rightly guided. 187. Permitted for you is intercourse with your wives on the night of the fast. They are a garment for you, and you are a garment for them. Allah knows that you used to betray yourselves, but He turned to you and pardoned you. So approach them now, and seek what Allah has ordained for you, and eat and drink until the white streak of dawn can be distinguished from the black streak. Then complete the fast until nightfall. But do not approach them while you are in retreat at the mosques. These are the limits of Allah, so do not come near them. Allah thus clarifies His revelations to the people, that they may attain piety. 188. And do not consume one another’s wealth by unjust means, nor offer it as bribes to the officials in order to consume part of other people’s wealth illicitly, while you know. 189. They ask you about the crescents. Say, “They are timetables for people, and for the Hajj.” It is not virtuous that you approach homes from their backs, but virtue is to be pious. So approach homes from their doors, and observe Allah, that you may succeed. 190. And fight in the cause of Allah those who fight you, but do not commit aggression; Allah does not love the aggressors. 191. And kill them wherever you overtake them, and expel them from where they had expelled you. Oppression is more serious than murder. But do not fight them at the Sacred Mosque, unless they fight you there. If they fight you, then kill them. Such is the retribution of the disbelievers. 10 2. THE HEIFER (al-Baqarah) 192. But if they cease, then Allah is Forgiving and Merciful. 193. And fight them until there is no oppression, and worship becomes devoted to Allah alone. But if they cease, then let there be no hostility except against the oppressors. 194. The sacred month for the sacred month; and sacrilege calls for retaliation. Whoever commits aggression against you, retaliate against him in the same measure as he has committed against you. And be conscious of Allah, and know that Allah is with the righteous. 195. And spend in the cause of Allah, and do not throw yourselves with your own hands into ruin, and be charitable. Allah loves the charitable. 196. And carry out the Hajj and the Umrah for Allah. But if you are prevented, then whatever is feasible of offerings. And do not shave your heads until the offering has reached its destination. Whoever of you is sick, or has an injury of the head, then redemption of fasting, or charity, or worship. When you are secure: whoever continues the Umrah until the Hajj, then whatever is feasible of offering. But if he lacks the means, then fasting for three days during the Hajj and seven when you have returned, making ten in all. This is for he whose household is not present at the Sacred Mosque. And remain conscious of Allah, and know that Allah is stern in retribution. 197. The Hajj is during specific months. Whoever decides to perform the Hajj—there shall be no sexual relations, nor misconduct, nor quarrelling during the Hajj. And whatever good you do, Allah knows it. And take provisions, but the best provision is righteousness. And be mindful of Me, O people of understanding. 198. You commit no error by seeking bounty from your Lord. When you disperse from Arafat, remember Allah at the Sacred Landmark. And remember Him as He has guided you. Although, before that, you were of those astray. 199. Then disperse from where the people disperse, and ask Allah for forgiveness. Allah is Most Forgiving, Most Merciful. 200. When you have completed your rites, remember Allah as you remember your parents, or even more. Among the people is he who says, “Our Lord, give us in this world,” yet he has no share in the Hereafter. 201. And among them is he who says, “Our Lord, give us goodness in this world, and goodness in the Hereafter, and protect us from the torment of the Fire.” 202. These will have a share of what they have earned. Allah is swift in reckoning. 203. And remember Allah during the designated days. But whoever hurries on in two days commits no wrong, and whoever stays on commits no wrong—provided he maintains righteousness. And obey Allah, and know that to Him you will be gathered. 204. Among the people is he whose speech about the worldly life impresses you, and he calls Allah to witness what is in his heart, while he is the most hostile of adversaries. 205. When he gains power, he strives to spread corruption on earth, destroying properties and lives. Allah does not like corruption. 206. And when he is told, “Beware of Allah,” his pride leads him to more sin. Hell is enough for him—a dreadful abode. 207. And among the people is he who sells himself seeking Allah’s approval.

I'll make you scream and cream please be my baka pweasssssssssssssssssssssssssssssssse (๑>ᴗ<๑)

The term "Men" originated from mannish language. It is used to mean "them" or "us" - group of people. The term is analogous to the word "Mer" in ancient Aldmeri tongue. Both of the racial groups have come to calling each other by the names and do not find it offensive in any way. They have been seen to be referring to their own kind by the term as well. This is probably due to the fact that both groups share certain distrust for each other and arrogance to consider themselves better. The words men and mer are often not capitalized when used together in the same context.

Members of this race who are of the masculine gender are referred to as "men", or a "man" when referring to an individual. As with mer, but more commonly as the words originate in Tamrielic, those of the feminine gender are known as "women" collectively or a "woman" individually; when grouped together as a race irrespective of gender they are all called "men". "Mankind" is also a word used in the context of referring to the entire race.

Men, as a racial term, encompasses beings of the human race in Tamrielic culture that are not Mer. Because they are able to have children together,[1] sometimes the races of men and mer are both considered to be members of the human species, but at other times only men are considered human.[2]

Men are different culturally and physiologically from mer and beastfolk, yet they are genetically capable of interbreeding with the former, while rumors of interbreeding with the latter exist but are unproven.[1]

Men come in an array of skin tones and pigments depending upon their ancestry, with Nords and Bretons being the palest and Redguards being the darkest. There are four subraces of Men currently existing on the Tamrielic continent. These include, Imperials, Nords, Bretons, and Redguards. The Nedes are an extinct race of Men from which the Imperials sprang.

Several Men came from Akavir during the reign of Reman Cyrodiil. These Men formed The Blades. It is unknown whether Men still exist on the Akaviri continent.

ill beat you to death with my bare fists.

stove

1/10
darling in the franxx

For decades, glorious Nippon has been growing closer to extinction. To cure Nippon through the limitless power of anime, our lord and savior Trigger has blessed us with Darling in the FranXX! But to our surprise, this anime was touched by Satan himself, A-1 Pictures, and its true purpose was to accelerate the extinction!!

(Long spoiler-filled review ahead. Spoiler-free TL;DR at the end.)

With the declining birthrate in Japan, people are living longer, but fewer babies are being born; there aren't enough young people to take care of the elderly. The Japanese government is spending more money on health care; the workforce is shrinking with fewer young people to fill jobs; people are getting overworked to death due to a lack of employees. The economy isn't flowing properly. The country's issues become abundantly clear when looking at how pharmacies stock their shelves with more diapers for adults than for kids.

Then there's Darling in the Franxx, a shoddily written clusterfuck of a mecha series that attempts to inform its audience about Japan's declining birthrate. Yet when it does address the birthrate dilemma, it only manages to conjure the most asinine, idiotic, and offensive answers possible. While it's animation, storyboarding, and fight choreography are exceptional for at least half of the show, it's writing fails on every conceivable level. Beginning as a subpar and predictable character-driven drama with a vague sci-fi setting, it gradually fell into incoherence. The lack of information was a trick used to mask the nonsensical lore. There's a lot to unpack here, so I split my review into parts for the sake of organization.

Part 1: [Hiro & Zero Two]
The first indication that something is wrong with A-1 Pictures/Trigger's dystopian mecha series appears in the first scene: A monologue by the monotonous protagonist Hiro and his soon to be wild waifu Zero Two.

"The Jian, also known as the bird that shares wings, only possesses one wing. Unless a male and female pair lean on each other and act as one, they're incapable of flight."

Throughout the series, this metaphor is present. You can find the bird on the characters' uniforms and the futuristic infrastructure, yet there is no such thing as a 'Jian' bird in real nature. There are no bird species that only has one wing. Even implying a one-winged bird that wouldn't die out through natural selection is ridiculous. This metaphor has two meanings; the literal: the kids pilot mechs known as Franxx, which require a male/female pair. The series demonstrated this rule in Partner Shuffle (ep. 11) when two girls could not pilot together. The message is clear: every human requires another person of the opposite gender to thrive. Franxx mistook relying on another human for survival as love. It's not. That's just codependency.

The show romanticizes toxicity. It never attempts to refute this message: Codependency is necessary for survival. Hiro and Zero Two need everything from each other. They're never genuinely in love. He is physically unable to piolet with anyone except her. She needs him because he's the first partner she hasn't killed. Plot contrivances pull them apart, then put them back together—of course, with fanfare to trick you into thinking they overcame something. Yet, the series frames them as a perfect couple; this is codependency, not love. They both NEED something from one another, and that's what is tying them together, not a bond! They're like two snakes wrapping around each other until one of them suffocates first.

At the beginning of the series, Hiro is wallowing in self-pity because he was just too good for his last piloting partner, she was a lame normal girl, and the show decides he needs a wilder girl. He's just a potato self-insert protagonist; everyone loves him for shallow reasons. Seeing all of the characters admire Hiro feels so unnatural. It's apparent they're deliberately written to like him regardless of his lack of charisma. He's a surrogate for the audience. The writers know the (male) audience desires the affection of friends and women. All of Hiro's struggles are rooted in him being better than everyone else. He just perceives himself as being worse because of his frustratingly low self-esteem. That's what the writers think is relatable. No matter how much he annoys us with self-pitying monologues, he's never believable.

Once his wild waifu Zero Two shows up, and they start piloting with one another, he finally feels fulfilled. She's a half-monster/half-human hybrid, and she has horns. That's the single flimsy explanation we get for her craziness, not nearly enough to find her personality believable, but at least she didn't have the same generic design as all of the other characters. She's known as the 'partner killer' because anyone who pilots with her dies after three times (keep in mind this was back when she was allowed to have worthwhile personality traits). This conflict gave the show chance to discuss how Hiro felt physical pain when he piloted with her, but as we would come to see, the show had no interest in delving into its characters in any meaningful way. Zero Two spends the first half of the show wallowing in angst. After all, she's not a human or whatever, which is moderately intriguing because she develops PTSD and, in hallucinations, sees the past partners she killed. It gave the show a chance to develop her in a meaningful way, but it dropped this entirely for the sake of making her relationship with Hiro seem as saccharine as possible.

The Beast and the Prince (ep.13), their backstory episode more or less existed solely to contribute to the cloying tone. Zero Two began as a test subject for the creator of the partner piloting system, Dr. Franxx himself, and he's a Super Evil guy, so the episode spends a fair bit of time on her getting tortured. Genericness and predictability aside, the episode itself is decent enough upon your first inspection; Hiro became friends with Zero two as a kid while in training, he taught her what it's like to be a normal kid, they tried to escape Dr. Franxx together but eventually got caught, and then the doctor erased their memories of each other. I didn't care for the episode considering it was more or less a copy of Yuri Kuma Arashi's climactic scene; the director ripped storyboards and narrative beats from Kunihiko Ikuhara—but Franxx had none of the thematic implications of Yuri Kuma. Franxx copies great anime like this (mostly Evangelion and Gurren Lagann) to craft a hackneyed story that's less interesting than even one of its parts. The only reason anyone will remember this anime is for the climactic moments and otaku pandering. I can't give it any credit because the director plagiarizes the anime's only creative shots. It's repugnant.

The travesty that was Punishment and Confessions (ep.14) was the turning point in the series when it lost any chance to develop the two leads beyond their one-dimensional starting point. In this episode, Hiro's squad separates him and Zero Two because their last time piloting together left him in critical condition, with her merely remarking, 'If he can't handle it, then he's not worth it.' Hiro's squad is always in the right when they call out Hiro for his bullshit. Yet the show wants us to believe they're the villains. The primary cause of conflict between them is when Zero Two visits Hiro, but when she arrives at the infirmary, by some coincidence, Hiro happened to have snuck out of the room and went looking for her. When she noticed he was missing, she went into psycho girlfriend mode and tried to murder his friends. Then through another coincidence, Hiro returned and saw this brawl, convincing him to break off their relationship. This isn't a conflict that arises due to their difference in personalities. It's a lazy plot contrivance. It only existed for them to have a reunion one episode later. The show pretends like they overcame something. No, they did not learn ANYTHING from this. Hiro and his friends all forgive Zero Two with no discussion whatsoever. In the next. Goddamn. Episode. No apologies for her beating the crap out of all of them.

The show treats this like the grandest climax so far; and it is the last time Trigger's fantastic sakuga is on display—it's like they ran away as soon as everything went to shit. The visuals are pure mediocrity for the following nine episodes.

Hiro and 02's reunion had virtually no impact. It contradicted what we saw in the previous episode because it nullified all of Zero Two's emotional baggage. After episode 15m the whole partner killer problem is forgotten. Her PTSD does not get discussed again. Her half-monster genetics are barely an afterthought—because being in a codependent relationship fixed all her problems! After episode 15, they were still very much relying on one another to survive. They didn't develop organically. Eventually, their parasitic relationship led to Zero Two sacrificing herself, hilariously turning into a statue. She also turned into a giant space robot lady. Yes, you read that right. I have to admit; I laughed my ass off when she transformed into a giant mecha woman—of course, with exposed cleavage the size of the moon.

In the beginning, Zero Two was the most interesting character in the series; her unpredictability defined her. She had intriguing emotional hang-ups—she had the potential to be a good character. Then by the end, she became a rock, both physically and metaphorically. She lost any edge she had because Hiro tamed her wildness. As we see throughout the series, this is the case with all of the pairings. Their relationships stunt character growth. For the rest of the show, Zero Two had no agency over the story other than sacrificing herself for her darling's sake.

Part 2: [Story & Setting]
In the early episodes of Franxx, the setting purposefully is left vague. This post-apocalyptic Earth populated by deserts is run by a council of powerful adults who issue orders to kids' various squads to protect the plantations containing adults unfit for battle. Kids pilot mechas to destroy oncoming attacks from giant alien creatures known as Klaxosaurs.

What began as a standard premise rapidly descended into nonsense. With each big reveal and twist, the show gradually lost what the main story was even about. At the start of the series, the kids fight aliens, then it's revealed to be an older form of humans (very original), THEN it's revealed the councilmen were the real aliens all along. Because why the hell not! There's no foreshadowing, but we need twists to make sure the mouth breathers don't fall asleep. Then it's revealed all of the adults are immortal because they injected molten lava into themselves. Yes. Again, you read that right. There is so much illogical the lore of Franxx. The best way to look at the story is from a thematic perspective. That's all the show seems to care about anyway.

Rather than competently crafting a story, Franxx emphasizes its characters, themes, emotions. Like the mecha classics that it copies incessantly, like Evangelion and Gunbuster, this is an emotional narrative. Except, they don't know how to make characters feel like believable humans, and the themes attempt social commentary without actually commenting on a person/group of people in the real world.

The story progresses in a semi-episodic structure similar to Evangelion. Episodes typically do not pick up right where the previous ones leave off plot-wise. Instead, they follow the ten main characters' squad as they experience becoming pilots and overcoming drama amongst one another, all while delivering small details on the setting to keep you intrigued to where it may go. If Franxx were good, this plot structure could work just as well as the shows it's imitating, but it's so much worse. Despite being relatively well animated, its story beats are mind-numbingly generic, and it never surprises. It feels like the script was generated by a soulless corporation, ticking off a checklist with each generic story beat, cliched character archetype, and seemingly crucial themes used cheaply as window dressing.

While watching Franxx, you are always ten steps ahead of the characters. They're shocked by the most mundane tropes found in any dystopian sci-fi story. Like when the main cast discovers they aren't the first squad of kids who lived in their dormitory, it was information hinted at us many times over with the kids always saying, "Oh I can't wait to be an adult someday…" Wow, what a shocker, the menacing council of enigmatic hooded figures leading an army of child soldiers are Very Evil. Who could have guessed?? None of the idiotic characters. These story beats are so standard, yet the show feels the need to present it with arbitrary foreshadowing as if it's not obvious enough already. Franxx is the kind of series that doesn't believe we're capable of thinking beyond a toddler's level. It spoon-feeds us information, making it even more unbearable to watch. Expecting us to be brain dead idiots or very young children also leads Franxx to create some of the most hilariously stupid metaphors in anime.

The mechas and how the kids pilot them are very obnoxiously a metaphor for sex; the boy mounting the girl in a doggy style position, complete with sex terminology to describe the mechas and seating positions. As if the sex analogy wasn't clear enough, the characters' piloting banter always sounds like they're talking about sex rather than, I don't know, fighting aliens. The mechas are, for some reason, thicc women with big boobs. There's always fanservice right in the middle of fight scenes—it's like they wanted to distract you from the action. The mechs are a mishmash of ugly colors and random accessories that make no sense. And the thing is, the kids have been raised in a sterile environment devoid of any information about sexuality, so they don't even know how perverted it is to pilot the mechs. It's so creepy and only adds to the layer of sleazy fanservice covering this whole mess. Secondly, it presents the procreation propaganda in such a painstakingly literal way that there is no room for analysis. A baby could understand the allegory. If Franxx had even a little self-awareness, it could have at least partially avoided this tonal whiplash if it framed it as humorous. Instead, it's unknowingly parodying itself by being as stupid as possible.

That leads us to the fact that the world of Darling in the Franxx makes no goddamn sense. It's full of contradictions. It repeatedly tells us that the kids don't know anything about sexuality; they don't even know what a kiss is, yet for some reason, they view nudity as inherently sexual and humiliating. The writers did not consider what a culture would look like if boys and girls got raised alongside each other without any real contact with adults or exposure to sex. The boys' ogle' the girls pervertedly, which makes no sense whatsoever because they should not know to view them as sexual, and the fact that the girls feel shame, in turn, makes no sense either. If the show hadn't forced that pointless beach episode, these issues wouldn't have been as noticeable. In a better written dystopian story, the characters' puberty would be free of expectations that society would typically pass onto them. However, rather than carefully considering the dynamics of the sci-fi setting they were attempting to create, the writers simply gave us cliched romantic comedy hijinks seen in any generic anime.

Part 3 [WHAT THE FUCK IS FRANXX EVEN ABOUT?]
The world-building in Darling in the Franxx is flat out awful, which makes the vast majority of the story feel incredibly shapeless. If Franxx wanted to be a good reflection of the birthrate decline in Japan, it would have used its sci-fi setting beyond just stupid sex-robots. For starters, a lack of kids being born would be an explicit conflict in the story to reflect the birth rate decline in modern-day Japan. However, there are a TON of children in Franxx! So many that they can throw them into cryosleep, as we see in episode 22. There is a surplus of kids in Franxx. If discussing birthrate was the real goal of the show, then they failed from the start. The issues the heroes in Darling in the Franxx face is not that there aren't enough children. They want to have children the "correct" way. In the world of Franxx, that means parents can only be male-female pairs (which they got assigned to), but the aliens in control of their system do not allow that. For some reason, the aliens are against traditional gender roles.

Episode 17 is the moment that the series lays down its themes clearer than it ever had before. Kokoro voices that she wants to have a baby in order to feel fulfilled, then the evil Squad Nine comes and takes her book on pregnancy and they tell her humans have cast away their reproductive organs because they cause too much unnecessary drama. He further clarifies by stating the firm belief of APE, the council of aliens leading the anti-reproduction regime.

This is simply connecting a person's fertility directly to their emotional depth. The world of Franxx says you don't need to reproduce OR have emotion, and that's what the main characters are trying to break away from. Of course, why wouldn't they want to break out of a system like that? But why? What does it represent? What person or group in the real world is preventing people from having kids because they want to be shallow, genderless, and without children? No one! It's social commentary written by someone who is out of touch with reality.

In the awful backstory of "Inhumanity" (ep.19), Dr. Franxx voices that he believes humans are only truly beautiful if they can procreate, which is why he puts faith in Hiro's squad to become "real humans" and create children in his designated forced piloting system. The piloting is just pseudo-science that very obviously has no reason for existing outside of serving the show's message and trashy fan service. The show takes this message even further by portraying any person or group who doesn't procreate the Franxx way as a threat to humanity.

Franxx is very much able to say a traditional family is good; mother, father, procreating, that is a good message for tackling birthrate. But for some reason, it chooses to frame anyone who chooses not to adhere to the traditionalist family setup as a threat to mankind. Franxx just ignores the fact that there are many other ways people can have a family, and still live fulfilled lives. There can be same-sex relationships, people can adopt kids, or even to not have children at all, but Franxx says these are all signs of inhumanity. That hilariously stupid wedding episode served only to convey this message but in the most hamfisted way possible. In episode 18, the makeshift wedding between Kokoro and Mitsuru gets raided by the alien SWAT team led by APE. The bride and groom are torn apart, then their memories of one another are erased.

The entire wedding arc was unnecessary to the story and boring as hell, it was just crammed in there for the sake of pushing these themes even more. APE is just the idea of diversity but overblown to ridiculous proportions. It antagonizes anyone who opposes traditionalism to an absurd degree, but it also portrays traditionalists as insanely hysterical in their beliefs in an offensively stereotypical way. Both sides of the political spectrum are written in a way that is so overblown to an alienating degree that very few people will want to agree with it. When the purpose of a piece of art is to change the audience's political views, it is fitting to label it as propaganda. However, assuming that level of thought and consideration was put into the story would be giving the moron who wrote it way too much credit. Regardless of your stance on the themes in Franxx, this is all it has to offer in terms of in-depth analysis, other than that it's boring teenage drama between underdeveloped characters.

Part 4: [The Squad]
How could this have happened?! The voice actors were good enough to mask a lack of depth, the animators were talented enough to make them look like lively pieces of cardboard (at least in the first half), but nope instead they are unavoidably awful and no icing will make this pile of shit resemble a cake. At best they're forgettable, but at worst they're horribly portrayed archetypes that will make you feel sorry for how badly the show treats them. There was so much potential in most of these characters, but without writers capable of crafting cohesive or satisfying arcs, all of them remain flat cardboard cutouts only existing to support Hiro and Zero Two's efforts to be the most obnoxious couple in the show.

Ichigo:
All this poor girl did was have a crush on the potato protagonist, and that caused people to send her voice actress death threats. They're children, who gives a shit about who likes who? Her reason for actually liking him is so vague and petty, they were friends as children. And per Franxx's idiot logic, your first affectionate interaction with a person will decide who you're attracted to when you're older. Ichigo had a few interesting moments of standing up to Zero Two for the sake of protecting Hiro, it went how you expect, with the two parasites wallowing in codependency and nothing developing. She does very little throughout the show aside from looking pouty whenever she sees the two leads acting lovey-dovey around her. It was impossible for me to sympathize with her because I can't comprehend why she would feel so strongly towards a potato. Regardless of her love, by the end, she does not change at all despite being the most prominent supporting character.

Goro:
Occasionally Goro calls Hiro out on his bullshit in some of the most satisfying scenes of the series, then in the most disappointing moments of the series, he immediately apologizes and acknowledges Hiro's superiority. Goro is allowed to be a character for a few seconds once every few episodes, but for the remainder of the show, he has no stakes in the story.
Goro's main attribute is that he's a nice guy who feels unrequited love for Ichigo. He respects her and acknowledges that she has feelings for Hiro and doesn't overstep his boundaries. He's the most likable member of the whole cast, but sadly there is truly nothing to him than his unrequited love for Ichigo. His whole character arc culminates very early on in "Triangle Bomb" (ep. 9) when he confesses his love to Ichigo in the best way he could, explicitly stating he doesn't want to pressure her but wanted to clear the tension between them because he is a nice and respectful guy.
Then Ichigo shrugs off his confession with "I don't know how to respond to that,"
...
...and then she doesn't...
...
FOR THE ENTIRE SHOW.

Kokoro:
Ok, I was bracing myself by talking about Goro first because Kokoro is by far the worst member of the squad. Not only is she the source of many plot holes, but she is also more or less a vehicle for the show's creator to preach the themes. In the totally 100% necessary beach episode (ep.7), she finds her bible, a book on pregnancy, and for the remainder of the series, she preaches it like scripture. She uses it to learn about sexuality, weddings, and childbirth. In "Boys x Girls" (ep.8) she references the book to explain why the boys were ogling the girls, she says 'we have to put up with their perviness in order to pilot together and to eventually have a family with them.' Kokoro believes that girls are supposed to ignore any problems they have with the boys because they have to make a baby regardless of how they feel. Not only is this a harmful message for viewers, but it also causes even more stagnant character writing because the pilot pairings never have arguments over their differences. Nothing is ever overcome because Kokoro perpetuates this outdated rhetoric. All that comes from her character is bizarre teen pregnancy propaganda.

Kokoro does very little throughout the show. She passively sits around until she gets the Baby Craziness and DEMANDS to have a child. After promising she would stay with her piloting partner Futoshi (an overweight kid), she immediately kicks him to the curb for a new guy in episode 11 for no other reason than he's fat. She doesn't want her kid to have fat genes. Basically, she's in favor of selective breeding. Needless to say, she's a monster, and I felt no sympathy whatsoever.

That leads us to the makeshift wedding they come up with, which was one of the stupidest moments in the show; for some reason, right before she gets wed to Mitsuru, they're raided by APE with the council's SWAT team. It's totally ridiculous to think that a futuristic advanced society of aliens could kick down the door at any moment, but they chose to wait just as the two are about to kiss. Furthermore, seeing them waving around guns at kids playing dress-up is so unbelievably over-the-top. That whole marriage episode was a trudge to get through, and I was honestly relieved when the alien SWAT reproduction-abolitionists ended it early. What is the message here? Does the show seriously think a marriage between a man in a woman is a radical act? For some reason, it makes traditionalists look like the oppressed group, and anyone who opposes traditional marriage is a gun-toting maniac.

But wait, there's more. APE erases Kokoro and Mitsuru's memories of one another, but this opens even more plot holes:
1. APE forgot to remove their wedding rings after the memory removal procedure, genius.
2. All of the other kids knew about the memories getting erased, so they just told her and that's how she remembered.
3. She was still pregnant after being captured by the anti-marriage alien SWAT team. They're pretty bad at being an anti-reproduction regime if they can't even figure out this basic shit.
4. Kokoro and Mitsuru regain their memories a few episodes later on their own. They overcome nothing because they return to how they were just before getting married.

Zorome/Miku:
They're the most forgettable members of the squad, simple one-note personalities with no impact on the story. They do have a brief bit of 'development' if you can even call it that abhorrent in "Boys x Girls" (ep. 8). They briefly clash when Zorome ogles Miku (we've discussed how this doesn't make sense), and she reacts by dividing the dormitory with tape in the most sitcom-y episode in the show. It attempts to be serious, yet it throws a wrench in the tone at any chance it gets. It was such an unnatural tonal shift that it made them feel like aliens. Other than this one fanservice episode, they just hang around the squad and offer a few inconsequential quips that add absolutely nothing to the show but background noise.

Futoshi:
This poor chubby kid is just bullied by the show whenever he is onscreen, his whole character arc is one big fat joke. At first, it was just a few offbeat jokes along the lines of "Hey, don't take any of my food while I'm gone." His humor was just as unnatural and stereotypical as the rest of the cast, but then the show takes it a step further from a poorly written annoyance into offensively awful. His piloting partner Kokoro ditches him during "Partner Shuffle" because he has the fat genes and she wants a good baby to further the species. Understandably, this causes him to become insecure about his weight and form an eating disorder. This is a very sensitive topic with plenty of potential for good discussion, but this is Franxx so they flushed any potential down the toilet. Franxx approaches this real-world issue that affects plenty of people with the sensitivity of a sledgehammer.

The writers were too incompetent to handle a serious topic like an eating disorder deftly, so they just ignore it. Episode 16 gets dedicated to Futoshi's struggle with not wanting to eat any food. Zorome confirms that Futoshi is throwing up his food; he has become bulimic—it's depressing to witness, and I felt sorry for him. Yet even though the crew confronts him about his eating disorder, the episode ends with Hiro giving one of his bullshit speeches about friendship with sad piano music playing, cue the whole cast crying. Futoshi's illness was glossed over and never resolved. Instead, they continue shaming him for his weight because none of the corporate drones who manufactured this knew how to handle real-world issues sensitively. The whole episode tacitly endorses fat-shaming—it's morally bankrupt. The director goes out of his way to show us how unhappy Futoshi is with himself in minor ways throughout the show. Whether he is playing with his food or sadly staring down at his full plate, even by the end, it's obvious he's still struggling with his eating disorder. Yet Franxx couldn't give less of a shit about him. Rather than addressing his issue, they choose to force him to be the de facto-priest at Kokoro's wedding. It's so cruel and horrible that I felt terrible for the poor kid. His whole involvement in the depraved and awful show was so depressing to witness.

Ikuno:
Throughout the show, she is in love with Ichigo, which gave the writers a huge chance to backtrack the message that anyone who isn't in a heterosexual relationship is actively part of the birthrate problem. But because Franxx is the anime of disappointments, the writers handled her character arc appallingly. One of the most egregious moments in the series was in "When the Sakura Blooms" (ep. 18) when Ikuno confesses her love to Ichigo, and she wrote it off by saying, "Oh, I was the same when I felt unrequited love for Hiro, but now I am doing what's necessary for the greater good and hooking up with someone else." It's the passive-aggressive type of homophobia I've seen plenty of in real life from people who are only accepting of gay people as long as they become straight eventually. What Ichigo says to Ikuno sounds more like, "Oh how sad that you're defective. Someday you'll grow out of that phase."

And it doesn't end there. Ikuno perpetually gets shown as the least able member of the squad. Like I mentioned previously, this show dives into some dark dehumanizing themes of eugenics. It is explicitly stated that in the world of Franxx, your life force is directly connected to your fertility, if you're not having a kid your hair will become gray and you will die faster than those who chose to further the species. Whether or not it was the creator's intention to dehumanize LGBT people, he threw these pieces on the board and they landed unnervingly close to hate-speech.

Mitsuru:
At the start of the series, Mitsuru is the 'rival' archetype who has an inferiority complex to Hiro, but through subtle coding, he is actually in love with him. Mitsuru received his name from Hiro when he was a child, therefore per Franxx idiot logic, he is gay. With this character, Franxx approaches the topic of homosexuality as a developmental mistake, something you are born with then eventually grow out of. Which is just not true on any level. Sexuality is biodiversity, you're born that way or you're not. A person does not need 'a reason for being gay,' they just are. The fact that Franxx framed it as a discrepancy in Mitsuru and Ikuno's upbringing and that they have to grow out of it regardless of how they feel is appalling.

His turmoil over being in love with Hiro is swiftly brought to a close with him being forced into a relationship with Kokoro. She projects her desire to have a kid on him until he tepidly reciprocates because they are both convinced that unless they have a child they won't be fulfilled in life or ensure the future. Of course with no resolution for his unrequited love. The show goes out of its way to frame his marriage to Kokoro as an obligation rather than a choice. Similar to Futoshi, through subtle character direction you can tell Mitsuru's still pining for Hiro even in the episode he starts his relationship Kokoro. And there's never the same coding for Mitsuru being in love with Kokoro. Hiro flat out tells Mitsuru "you ARE in love with Kokoro" and he accepts that hesitantly. It's as if the writers were trying to indicate that Mitsuru actually wanted to be with Hiro, but needed to suppress his feeling in order to prevent the metaphorical birth rate from declining.

Even if these messages were unintentional, the creators of Franxx are playing with serious issues just for the sake of window dressing to make the sex-robot alien stuff seem less stupid, which is in my opinion just as offensive.

Part 5: [Dr. Franxx, APE, "Inhumanity," and the scienceless sci-fi]
"I'm an atheist, you see ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)"
-Dr. Franxx while licking his lips at the sight of the loli-monster-girl-princess.

Our first introduction to the eponymous Dr. Franxx is him delivering his half-breed experiment kid Zero Two to Hiro's squad. One of his first lines is him uncomfortably sexually assaulting Nana, the squad's parental-type overseer, and telling her to loosen up. The assault is framed as a joke because of course a show as inane as Franxx thinks workplace assault is comedy gold. That's how he's characterized for most of the series, as a guy who does explicitly bad things like torturing Zero Two during "The Prince and the Beast," but he is framed as sympathetic towards the end. They really expected us to think, "he's done bad things, but he really had some good ideas!" He has no value for human life, but somehow designing the awful sex-powered mechas absolves him? It's like a crazy person trying to defend Adolf Hitler. I. Don't. Care. He tortured and experimented on a kid, why are we expected to feel bad for him when he 'sacrificed himself' so everyone could survive at the end of episode 21. I stood up and applauded when a plot contrivance caused him to get violently crushed by tons of falling rocks.

APE is just a bunch of aliens that came down to Earth and pretended to be an organization of scientists, they gave the government a new form of energy, magma, and took over the world more or less. It's a very silly twist, but this is Franxx and it's a stupid show, magma could technically be used as a form of energy and greed could lead the government to trust mysterious scientists. But the magma is somehow also the key to unlocking immortality? How? Magma is molten rock, hot rocks! How the hell do you make the logical leap between a form of energy and DNA mutation? It makes no goddamn sense! APE was just a bunch of random aliens that had so little to do with the main characters, it added nothing to what had been built up in the prior episodes. The magma energy constantly shown in background details supposedly caused the Earth to become deserts? Taking molten lava from the Earth (below the crust) would in no way affect the soil, it might lower the temperature of the surface but that would cause it to become cold, not hot. I'm not sure who thought coming up with scientific-sounding words and a vaguely futuristic aesthetic would make good sci-fi, but it doesn't. Even I, someone who knows very little about science can tell this show is brain dead stupid and no effort went into researching its concepts.

Then after Franxx spends twenty-two episodes building up this illogical science, it throws in a giant twist in episode 20 that nullifies everything that came before it. Oh no! APE was actually aliens and now Zero Two's brain is trapped in space fighting them!! Who gives a shit? At this far into the series, the themes and pseudo-science were all the show cared about. Regardless of how badly they were written, at least it was something to engage with. All of the petty melodrama the characters face, all of the hackneyed lore, even the art quality goes down the toilet by episode 22. Franxx does these twists so often with its story. Whenever it wants to achieve a pivotal moment, it just skips over the build-up and goes straight to the catharsis.

By the end of Darling in the Franxx, it doubles down on the ridiculous plot twists, desperate to make you take it seriously when you're more likely to laugh at it. In its final attempt to make you cry, it kills off its two main characters, but even this lends no catharsis. The only catharsis you'll get from the ending of this train wreck is knowing you'll never have to watch it ever again.

TL;DR
[Story: 0/10] Clichefest, contrived filler drama, terrible world building, nonsensical twists that nullify the whole story.
[Character: 0/10] I've seen planks of wood more interesting and relatable than this entire cast.
[Art: 3/10] No visual identity, good battle sakuga in the first half with hideous mecha designs, very rushed towards the end.
[Sound: 3/10] Mediocre soundtrack, a waste of talented voice actors.
[Enjoyment: 0/10] Both intellectually and personally insulting.

[Overall Score: 1/10]
There's enough potential here to leave you curious as to what the writer/director Atsushi Nishigori might have created if he weren't so satisfied with repurposing classic anime into a clusterfuck that's less interesting than even one of its parts. He never understood what made their themes so impactful in the first place, and he didn't bother to create an anime capable of standing on its own merits. Without a coherent story, remotely believable characters, or even themes rooted in reality, this show offers no redeeming value.

Darling in the Franxx is UNWATCHABLE.

2/10
toradora

Story: Secret love, unrequited love, love triangle... So yeah... The funny thing is that the ending is given away in the beginning. This can't even be considered spoilers to say that the main characters are going to end up together. Anybody who says otherwise is just too blind to realise this. Let's take the main points of the plot. First of all, one guy, one girl, each in love with each other's best friend. Two, those two try to support each other with their love interest. In order to do that, make them spend a lot of time together. Even make them live next to each other. Give them a social outcast aura and the result is: congratulations! you got yourself a very unoriginal couple. Now this is a shame because the idea is quite realistic, only too obvious which gives you no expectations. For all I know, Ryuuji and Taiga could hold hands, cuddle, hug, kiss, have sex, get married and act like there is some distance between. Awkward since there is absolutely none. From the beginning, they were already ridiculously close to each other by living next door but no, not close enough, need to live under the same roof. Even best friends don't do that ( yeah I know, room-mates or particular situation involving money but that wasn't one of them ) so it clearly gives you an idea of their relationship.

Art: This part pisses me off, it is so bad. Taiga is supposed to be cute... it didn't do it for me.She looks like an underdeveloped child with a big head and permanent bed hair. Maybe it's just me but the chara design really need some work. However Ryuuji's face gets +1. Now if I just say this without evidence to back up my argument, it's just trolling. If possible, watch the fight scene between Taiga and Sumire. To avoid spoilers, well, watch it on mute and no subs... The animation is really sloppy here, whether it's the lighting, the background characters with the same face or simply character motions. The art is good only when everything is still. Sloppy sloppy sloppy.


Sound: Too bad I didn't pay much attention, but the openings and endings were nothing spectacular or catchy. When it comes to sound, I would say that music is more important than the voice acting since most of the time, the acting is flawless, it just comes to whether or not the seiyuu's voice is appropriate to the character. In Toradora, it's the usual. The usual being flawless performance. Now for the music, the comparison might be unfair but Toradora is nothing compared to say, Clannad. I chose Clannad because no matter the scene, sad, happy or epic, it's easy to remember the themes while Toradora produces music that you hear in elevators or supermarkets. Only one stands out: Lost my Pieces. But it's just one... Not enough.

Character: Ami saves the show a little with Minori not far behind but Taiga... Damn she pisses me off! Ryuuji is not bad but too weak to be important.
Ami and Minori had good scenes, good chara development. I didn't give a shit about Kitamura because he is a creepy smiling guy. Ryuuji had some changes but nothing significant. Taiga on the other hand, just got more and more annoying. She's not even a tsundere, the dere part is inexistant and replaced by retard state, otherwise she's just a plain spoiled bitch who needs to be left alone. That does it, she gets a -2 for being so unlikeable. Past the physical appearance which I don't even like one bit, she has nothing left except her execrable personnality. Now one way to sum up this show is that the side characters are more interesting than the main characters. When I say main, I mean Ryuuji and Taiga. Kitamura, Minori and Ami are side characters to me. While watching the show, I realised that I had no interest in whatever happens to Ryuuji and Taiga cause they already act like a couple. The side characters however make you want to know more about them. Creepy smiling dude Kitamura has a good reason for being like this while double face Ami and oddball Minori are kinda left out towards the end after much chara development. Bad idea. My main concern is how people perceive Taiga. She does things that makes you want to slap her really f*cking hard and shout what the f*ck is wrong with you? yet she is still described as being cute, lovely etc... That girl seriously has anger issues and they can't be justified by people calling you palmtop tiger, that's retarded. She's so rude it's not even funny. Now this might be spoilers but it sums up pretty much why I think her personality is the worst. In one scene, she learns about her unrequited love confessing to a certain girl who for specific reasons refuses to give a proper answer. This is because she's going away soon so she can't say yes yet doesn't want to lie to herself by saying no. What should Taiga do in this case? Well, nothing. For the simple reason that it doesn't concern her. Still, she goes out of her way to beat the crap out of that girl while insulting her and forcing her to say she hates the guy. I was thinking "WTF" the whole time. What gives her the right to beat someone up just because that person is a coward when it comes to love? If we had to beat up every person who is a coward because of love, we're doomed. Besides she's also overreacting and goes as far as insulting and hitting people for no reason. With Ryuuji, they represent the epitome of shallow people. Both of them have a crush on someone who's really popular. The reason surely is because they treat them differently from the rest of the class. If that's not being shallow. Take one guy who's a social outcast. Now take a girl who's really popular, kind, funny, pretty and easy to talk to. This one guy would probably fall in love with that girl if she goes to talk to him because he's probably thinking "she's so nice, she talks to me while the other bastards don't even look at me, maybe she cares about me" without realising that maybe she's just nice and talks to everybody. This describes Ryuuji and Taiga perfectly.

Enjoyment: I was really disappointed by Toradora. At first I thought it would have nice development with the introduction of Ami but I guess not. It was dull and slow. Once you feel like there's something going to happen just push the reset button because it has the same feeling. Got some funny scenes though. Unfortunately the show is barely realistic. You don't root for development of the relationship between the characters and their crush because there's no feeling, no background story. Things would've been simpler like this:
Ryuuji: I like Minori.
Taiga: Oh... I see. I like Kitamura.
Ryuuji: !!! What!? Ok. So...

4/10
monogatari season 2


Everyone wants to hear or tell a story people will remember by. It doesn’t matter if the story is fictional, realistic, sarcastic, humorous, imaginative, mysterious, psychological, speculative, or even twisted as it can be. Stories are created by ideas that are formed from the very thoughts we experience in our lives. In order for stories to be told well, they have to evoke feelings, reactions, and attract audience that appreciates its ideas. Monogatari Second Series - the anime that not only attracted me to its franchise - but also presented it in an extravagant way that takes the art of storytelling to a whole new level.

That level of storytelling was already clearly evidenced from its predecessor that achieved international success. Yes, I’m talking about Bakemonogatari that debuted back in 2009. Its success has later spawned other series in the forms of Nisemonogatari, Nekomonogatari: Kuro, and the soon-to-debut Kizumonogatari . Now, it’s back once again as an ongoing story narrative. Monogatari Series: Second Season is an anime adapted from the novel of the same name written by Nisio Isin with artwork by Vofan. If you’re a fan of the previous Monogatari series franchise, then this should be no shadow of a doubt be part of your watch-list as we are told stories at its most definite form.

Similar to what some people might notice in the past, the Monogatari series presents itself in an unique form of storytelling. The term ‘monogatari’ itself defines as literature. For a series based on storytelling to succeed though usually requires a character base with insightful plot, creative setting, descriptive ideas based on connections, and a strong literal sense of execution. Monogatari series plays on most of these concepts but constructs it like an experiment. Whether you dare to take on the experiment might have different experiences. However, there’s no doubt that this series and its franchise has tested their experiment and succeeded in their message. Indeed, the storytelling of Monogatari mixes itself with visual arts and dialogues. The strength of the series comes from its dialogues that creates humor, sense, and might evoke people’s minds to think its true meaning. Most of the time, the meaning of the dialogues are metaphoric and conveys to many ideas. Its usage of word plays presents its unique art style to attract viewers toward its messages. Through these messages, viewers will find out just how exclusive this shows’ storytelling separates itself from most forms of storytelling.

Monogatari Series: Second Season isn’t just about storytelling though. As mentioned before, a strong character cast will attract viewers to almost any form of genre. Luckily, this show has plenty of that starring our Koyomi Araragi, a high school student whose life has changed forever after a certain incident. Obviously, I would assume that you have seen the original Bakemonogatari to understand this but Araragi makes his return in this sequel. He makes his presence well known as other characters in the series speculate him as many things - a lolicon, dangerous, pervert, just to name a few. However, we know that Araragi is a character of loyalty as seen through his relationship with Hitagi Senjougahara. More importantly though, he is also protective towards others including his friends, family, and even strangers. Some of his actions might be interpreted in the wrong way by other characters but the guy definitely has proven many times that he is the type that others can depend on. He seeks to achieve the endings that allows characters live in peace. However, this often puts a burden on himself as Araragi finds that sometimes, he can’t achieve everything alone. This even puts his own lives at risk many times. But hey, he is that type of that guy that takes risks. From a narrative perspective, his actions are often awarded although he doesn’t always takes everything for granted. Instead, he keeps his more of the ‘it’s the right thing to do’ attitude.

Most of the supporting characters from the novels makes their appearances in the story arcs including Tsubasa Hanekawa, Mayoi Hachikuji, Suruga Kanbaru, Nadeko Sengoku, Shinobu Oshino, and Hitagi Senjougahara. All these characters plays their different roles that fulfills some sort of theme or morality to its title. Each of these titles present a different insight on our characters as we see a sort of journey to embark on. And of course, every journey begins with the first step. There’s already trouble in the beginning as we get a hint of supernatural madness going on. To make matters worse, Tsubasa herself finds trouble with her life as sudden changes occurs.

The first story arc initially reintroduces its narrative aspect to get viewers to familiarize themselves the format of how Monogatari works. Its supernatural themes takes on a more gruesome turn later on but there’s also hope and prosperity. As for the other arcs, each of them has a different theme and plot. Some of these arcs also explores the back stories of our supporting characters. Along with that, there’s character interactions that are dynamic with development. Additionally, each arc contains a similar style of storytelling through word plays, visual presentations, and dialogues. As the series contains supernatural elements as well, expect legends to unfold and discoveries to be made. These include spirit apparitions, vampires, mythic cats, and even Gods. The power of its dialogues enhances the experience with the power of its words. It’s an experience you won’t forget especially with some plot twists like one with a snake a girl.

Judging on another level of the series is its humor. The style of Monogatari invokes humor in a sense that is quite peculiar. By peculiar though, I mean it as as a brilliant way because the show likes to experiment. Its stylish dialogues often mixes in parodies of other genres and themes for experimentation. These accompanied with the expressions of our characters creates a lavish theater of animation.

As good as the series sounds, there’s a few aspects I found to be lacking. Namely, there’s perhaps a bit of too much fan service in the beginning that can be distracting. These don’t seem to have any meaning or dynamics and sometimes may distract viewers from the words play and dialogues. Other times, Araragi’s interactions with some of the other characters might even seem a bit creepy or hard to take for granted. This is especially true in one of the later arcs involving Shinobu that takes itself to a rather defiled way with their interactions. More importantly is the fact that the show sometimes likes to get a bit carried away with its conversations. Some of them might even drag on with small talk that can seem to be mundane. Other times, they flash way too fast to be read that can frustrate viewers in attempting to fully understanding its meaning. (if it has one at some occasions) Finally, there are some recap episodes between each story arc that drags the series together. They might help refresh a bit of its previous predecessors but can also be a waste of time for people who wants the series to accelerate itself.

Shaft handles the production of this series. You know what that means right? If extraordinary is a word that just popped into your mind, then you’re on the right track. By that term, Shaft is known to pull out a variety of series over the past year that have impacted the world. Names such as EF: A Fairy Tale of the Two, Arakawa Under the Bridge, Sayonara Zetsubo Sensei, and Puella Magi Madoka Magica are just a few that comes to mind. The artwork of Monogatari is in a sense that can be both visually attractive and descriptive the same time. When not presented as comedy, they hold a deeper meaning or metaphor behind them. Other times, they are connected to the dialogues spoken by the characters to convey their thoughts and feelings. Speaking of characters, most of them are designed in a similar way as their predecessors. Araragi still has that noticeable hair-like antenna sticking out of his head while his girlfriend still retains her haircut. Other characters like Shinobu, Nadeko, and Tsubasa all possesses artistic traits similar to their supernatural counterparts.

Soundtrack wise, the series maintains an eerie like atmosphere. During more of the climatic scenes, the series shifts its gears to a more dramatic tone with explosive entrances and executions. Other times, the series likes to keep its more balanced atmosphere along with comedic vibrations. The soundtrack might not be the most powerful device of the show but its various OP & ED songs makes up this department with its various styles. Almost every arc has a different song accompanied by the voice involving the star of that story. Similar to its word plays, they contain a pattern of artistic visuals to brings out the power of its orchestra. With its cast members also lies in the strength of their voices. Almost every characters demonstrates this with their voice mannerisms. These include the cunning Shinobu (Maaya Sakamoto), the kuudere Senjougahara (Chiwa Saito), innocent Nadeko (Kana Hanazawa), the mature Tsubasa (Yui Horie), the playful sisters of Karen and Tsukihi, and Araragi (Hiroshi Kamiya). Because the narrative aspect of the show is so strong with the dialogues, it is important to characterize each of their voices as a focus in order to bring out their best. And yes, I am grateful that these characters all bought forth their best thanks to the talents of their voice actor/actresses.

So,this anime might not be for everyone. That’s something I’m sure most people have heard about the Monogatari franchise before. But if you pass this up for whatever reason, I still would recommend at least giving the first arc a try. That way, it might refresh a bit of experience of what you get out of the other series. However, I highly recommend watching this series only after you have completed its previous predecessors to gain full experience of its presentation. The Monogatari franchise has already achieved universal success thanks to its unique narrative, powerful dialogues, artistic word plays, and unique characters. Its humor will knock you out with high doses of laughter accompanied by its strange twist of stories. It even has bits of action too so violence is not out of the question there for fans looking for some intensity. (that and maybe its goal of achieving anemia with its fan service.) But all in all, Monogatarai series definitely took on the storytelling concept like never before creating an enjoyable experience. Now that is the ecstasy of success.