Posted on by Alexander Case

Quick Update: Wildfire Season

So, the climate in Oregon is acting like it was 2 years ago when everything was on fire again – Portland General Electric is doing targeted power outages in some areas to prevent wildfires, and we are encountering wildfires on the edges of the Portland Metro area – as of this writing, there is a brush fire that recently started in Milo McIver State Park near Estacada, with Clackamas Community College serving as an evacuation site (CCC had previously been an evacuation site 2 years ago, before turning into a staging area and command post for fire fighters as the fire approached Oregon City).

So, this, combined with my recent bout of COVID-19, is really playing hell with my workflow, so expect some interruptions in terms of my post schedule. Also, if you’re in an area at risk for wildfires, please be safe, and if you can, besides any Ko-Fi donations, please consider donating money to the Red Cross.

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Posted on by Alexander Case

I have COVID

So, I got COVID-19 this past week (specifically starting probably around 8/20), and I’ve been sick and varying degrees of bed-ridden all week. Obviously, this has impacted my ability to keep to my regular schedule of posts (outside of ones that I had scheduled in advance), so consider this my explanation. I will do a post getting into my experiences later, but for now, consider this the update.

Posted on by Alexander Case

Spriggan (2022): Anime Review

A long time back I checked out the Spriggan anime film from the library, on the merits of Katsuhiro Otomo’s involvement in the film in a supervisory position. When I learned that the manga series was getting revisited with a new anime series from David Production on Netflix, I figured this was worth checking out. While the series itself is something of a mixed bat, there is some fun to be had here.

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Posted on by Alexander Case

Yashahime Second Season: Anime Review

Yashahime was a sequel series to Inuyasha that was somewhat unique by the fact that it was a completely anime-original story, with a new generation of characters, that Rumiko Takahashi was not actively involved in. The first season felt somewhat aimless, though, and going in I had concerns that the second season would be similarly directionless. Thankfully, this is not the case.

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Posted on by Alexander Case

AMAIM: Warrior at the Borderline (Season 1): Anime Review

AMAIM: Warrior on the Borderline was an anime series from Sunrise Beyond (formerly XEBEC), which touted itself as being a mecha series that continued with having fully hand-drawn mecha, instead of ones created using CG. Unfortunately, it ended up trying to surf into some politically awkward waters, in terms of its plot, and while it may have navigated them successfully, it didn’t try to do anything interesting either.

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Posted on by Alexander Case

The Heike Story: Anime Review

We’ve had a moderate array of various historical anime coming out – from Demon Slayer being set in the Taish? period, to the Yashahime series, much as with its source material in Inuyasha, being set at an ambiguous point in the Warring States period. What we haven’t gotten in a while is anything set in the Heian period – enter The Heike Story, an anime series that, basically, tells of the end of the Heian period, adapting the Heike Monogatari, and telling the tragic fall of the Heike through both their own hubris, and the machinations of others.

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Posted on by Alexander Case

Kumoricon 2021 Con Report

After being an online convention for 2020, Kumoricon 2021 returned to being an in-person convention. Certainly, part of this is undoubtedly related to not having an order from the City of Portland or the Governor that would prevent the convention from being held in person, and in the process setting off the Force Majure clause of their contract. That said, Otakon 2021 was also held in person and managed to be held without a significant COVID-19 outbreak, which was a positive sign. Further, the Oregon Convention Center had its air filtration system upgraded part due to the outbreak (both because of being a vaccination site and possible field hospital last year) and also because of being an evacuation site due to the wildfires last year, I felt safe enough to attend the convention in person, so it’s time for some thoughts.

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Posted on by Alexander Case

My Hero Academia Season 5: Anime Review

From the discussions I’ve seen online as the season went on, My Hero Academia Season 5 is probably the most divisive season of the show thus far, between those who have been reading the manga, and those who have been watching the show, and a lot of that comes down to the decisions made around the final arc of the season, the My Villain Academia arc. It’s not that the season is bad, it’s that the narrative decisions that were made about where they would include that arc in the season was very controversial.

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