30 Day Anime Challenge – #9 My Favourite Anime Villain

#9 Who is your favourite anime villain?

Griffith

It’s been 20 years since Berserk originally aired (can you believe it?), and many amazing anime villains have graced our screens in that time (Johan Liebert, Light, and Kyuubey were also considered for the purpose of this post), but there has yet to exist another villain as exquisitely written as Griffith. Major spoilers for Berserk ahead! But, seriously, if you haven’t seen it yet, what are you doing with your life? That anime is a masterpiece!

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Character Spotlight: Sasuke Uchiha

Sasuke might seem like a bizarre choice for this month’s Character Spotlight. After all, I’ve been very vocal in my dislike of him, even going so far as to call him a piece of human excrement during a recent blog post. So why have I decided to write about Sasuke, of all people, this month? Well, after almost 10 years of watching Naruto Shippuden, I’m finally just eight episodes away from finishing it – cue the party poppers! This means that I recently watched Naruto and Sasuke’s final fight in the Final Valley. This fight gave me a lot of insight into Sasuke’s character, so much so that, for the first time ever, I felt that, whilst he might not be a very nice person, he is, for sure, an excellent character! I hope that you’ll stay with me as I unpack this statement.

30 Day Anime Challenge – #8 My Favourite Anime Couple

#8 Who is your favourite anime couple?

Izumi and Sig Curtis

Sure, if I asked you to conjure up an image of an iconic Fullmetal Alchemist (FMA) couple Izumi and Sig Curtis probably wouldn’t be at the forefront of your mind! That’s understandable. The FMA franchise has several power couples, including: Ed and Winry, Roy and Riza, and Ling and Lan Fan, and compared to this trio, Izumi and Sig do not get much screen-time. Not to mention that they lack the excitement of will-they-won’t-they, as they were already married long before the shows began. Nevertheless, Izumi and Sig have long been my favourite FMA couple, no, my favourite anime couple, for a number of reasons…

Anime’s Less Than Flattering Depiction of Mental Illness

The issue of mental health is one that’s near and dear to my heart. I’ve struggled with anxiety and depression ever since I was 11 and have recently been diagnosed with obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD). I studied psychology for four years at university and, upon graduating, started work as a recovery worker for a mental health charity. So, with anime also being near and dear to my heart, I’m very interested in its portrayal of mental illness. Over the past few years I’ve noticed anime’s depiction of mental illness improve somewhat. A Silent Voice and Orange both depicted depression and suicidality in a sensitive way and it’s interesting to watch Okabe tackle what appears to be post traumatic stress disorder in this season’s Steins;Gate 0. However, to date anime’s depiction of mental illness has been largely insensitive or inaccurate.

Ty Reviews Assassination Classroom

Assassination Classroom (AC) is a show about a class of F-grade misfits who are one day given the task of assassinating their new homeroom teacher. And if that’s not strange enough, their teacher, Koro-sensei, is actually a seemingly untouchable, tentacled creature who threatens to destroy Earth should they fail in their assassination. Follow the link at the bottom of this post for more info.