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My Adventures With Superman S2 Ep 5 Review

The Daily Planet Trio can’t catch a break, can they? In the last episode, Superman was made to look bad in front of the leaders of the US government thanks to Task Force X. Lois had her father run out on her for the umpteenth time, right when she needed him most. And worst of all, Jimmy discovered that his friendly advice to Ivo’s former assistant made him become Lex Luthor. Everyone’s in the wrong place, and it’s about to worsen. Superman gets so desperate for people who understand him that he calls his cousin, Kara, to Earth. And once she shows up, a series of unfortunate events only worsens things.

The worst part? We got a ton of ship-tease between Kara and another character, only to go nowhere!

Superman is an Eligible Bachelor?

So, the episode’s crux centers around Kara’s arrival on Earth and the annual “Most Eligible Bachelor and Bachelorette Contest” in Metropolis. And as the episode title shows, Superman is one of the people who got nominated.

This…causes a lot of tension for Lois and Clark. They can’t tell people that Superman’s not single without outing Clark, so they must act like he’s single. That means Superman has to lie to everyone, which is bad enough. However, that awkwardness is nothing compared to what Lois is feeling.

Lois’ mental state is already at a low point thanks to the job offer in Gotham and her dad leaving (again), and now she has to watch while her boyfriend gets hit on by other people. Not helping matters is snooty reporter Cat Grant, who strong-arms Lois into letting her come. The woman’s convinced Superman’s already dating one of the contestants, which only worsens Lois’ insecurities. And the whole time I was watching, I wanted to scream at Cat to shut up. Lois’ insecurities and feelings of inferiority are nothing new; they’ve been examined since day one. However, seeing events conspire to hurt her like this is heartbreaking. By the end of the episode, I don’t know if Lois and Clark are still a couple anymore.

And that doesn’t even include what happens with Kara and Jimmy.

WHY MAKE US SHIP JIMMY AND KARA, THEN DO THIS?

While all this is happening, Jimmy’s so guilty about events at the symposium that he’s ghosting Clark. Then, when he saves someone from getting hit by a truck, it turns out to be…Kara. As many people have pointed out on Twitter, her design and outfit are the spitting images of Android 18 from the Dragonball franchise. I already knew that anime fans were on the team making the show, but this is just a new level of calm! And the show is trying hard to make people ship Jimmy and Kara.

And it’s working. Jimmy uses Kara’s request to find someone (Superman) to have the two enjoy themselves around Metropolis. And the two click so well together! Knowing the Internet, there’s probably already artwork of the two as a couple!

This only makes things all the more heartbreaking when things come to a head.

Kara Has Been Manipulated by Evil

I didn’t expect Kara to be an agent of the New Kryptonian Empire. The show made it clear that the Empire still existed in some form, but the fact that Kara served it caught me by surprise. And judging by the person she speaks to during their fight, she’s been raised by a version of Brainiac. That’s not good!

By the time the episode ends, things have hit a new low, and that’s saying something for the show. Jimmy’s new crush ended up kidnapping his best friend. Lois and Clark’s relationship is more fractured than ever. Task Force X will probably use this incident to fuel their crusade even more. And did I mention Superman’s been kidnapped?!? And I don’t know if he’ll return to Earth by the end of the next episode.

This isn’t Going to Be Good!

No, seriously. The preview for next week’s episode shows that he has no idea where he is in the cosmos. However, the new outro, depicting Lois and Jimmy but not Clark, is an even bigger hint. Things are going to get even crazier from here on out!

Man, I love this show! I don’t even care if we can never catch a breath! This is too good!

I Give “Most Eligible Superman” a 4/5

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My Hero Academia S7 Ep 7 Review

No plan survives first contact with the enemy. Especially when said enemy is a crazy yandere that loves you so much, they want to kill you. And thanks to Toga, Deku is nowhere near Shigaraki, the person only he has a chance of beating. And without him, the hero’s plans to take down the League of Villains (or whatever they go by now) will fall apart quickly! So, Deku has to fight past his number-one stalker! *gulp*.

Do you ever wonder if these villains wouldn’t have turned out wouldn’t if they had received the proper therapy? Because I do.

This is Why They Needed to Split Up the Villains!

After the opening drops, the episode exposits more on what we already know about the hero’s plan: they need to split the villains up to win. Send all the core members of the League of Villains to different locations and take them down with teams best suited to handle them. The rest will guard the captured villains and ensure they don’t escape. Eight separate battles for the heroes to win. But like I said, no plan survives first contact with the enemy, and thanks to Toga, Deku’s nowhere near Shigaraki. And Shigaraki shows the show scary he’s become.

One advantage animation has over its manga counterparts is that it can go into greater visual detail about events. In this case, the anime spares no expense showing how scary Shigaraki is, even with Monoma and Eraser Head suppressing his Quirk. The man sprouts hands out of his body like Tetsuo from Akira and starts tearing into the heroes! They can barely their own against him! If he could use his Quirk, he could annihilate an entire city alone! It’s a pretty effective way of showing the viewers how the heroes have their backs against the wall, even when they’ve stacked the odds in their favor.

And we all have Toga to thank for that.

Toga, I Feel Sorry for You

Even if she’s got no excuse for killing people, I still can’t help but feel bad for Toga. If she’d gotten the help she needed, she wouldn’t have such twisted views on love and friendship. And I thought this was shown pretty well in her part of the episode. After dragging Deku along for the ride, she confesses her love for him and asks him to be her boyfriend.

For the record, I think Deku’s reaction was both on-point and matches up well with the manga.  He may be a hero, but Deku’s still a nerdy boy with no romance experience. If it weren’t for the fact that this is a plea for help from Toga, I would find this funny.

Himiko Toga does love Deku in her way; the fact the attack off didn’t set off Danger Sense is proof of that. However, the story clarifies that this confession is Toga’s last, desperate plea for people to understand her. Tragically, being on a tight schedule (and doesn’t know anything about romance) means that Deku rejects her. And with that, Toga shuts down and decides to be as evil as she wants. It’s sad, and I honestly think she wouldn’t have turned out so bad if she got the help she needed. Now it’s up to Uravity and Froppy to take her down as Deku races back to Shigaraki.

The Real War Begins

From this point in the anime, things will start to slow down a lot. Enough that people may begin to complain about the pacing. However, that’s what happens with these kinds of war arcs. With so many players on both sides fighting it out, the story must slow down to focus on them all. Not everyone may like it, but I enjoy it. It gives everyone a chance in the spotlight to show what they can do. It’s an excellent way to ensure that many fans are happy! Naruto did it with the Fourth Great Ninja War. One Piece does it at least once per arc. It’s just something that I like to see.

And this next fight is one that many fans have wanted to see: Dabi (AKA Toya) vs Shoto. Two masters of fire, two siblings whose lives were shaped by their father’s actions in a fight to the finish! It’s a great premise, even if having siblings turn on each other seems a little cliche. And I’m looking forward to seeing what happens next in the episode. Go beyond, PLUS ULTRA!

I don’t understand the meaning behind the title for the episode, though.

I Give “Inflation” a 3.5/5

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One Piece Chapter 1117 Review/Recap

Do you ever get one of those moments enjoying a work of fiction, only for it to just blueball you? To leave you hanging at the worst possible time and just wanting more? For better or for worse, Eichiro Oda has become very proficient in the art of cliffhangers, and that can leave some fans feeling blueballed. I understand that he does it to increase anticipation for what comes next, but in this case, I still feel pretty blueballed. And

it’s not just the readers. Thanks to the Five Elders, the entire world has gotten blueballed, and I dont think the fans are happy about it. Read on and you’ll see why.

Recap

More and more people around the world continue to show their reactions to all the bombshells that Vegapunk’s dropped. Some are ecstatic about what they’ve heard and wonder what treasures may lie at the bottom of the sea. Others have a hard time processing everything. But many want to hear more, shouting at Vegapunk to tell them more (they’ve been blueballed.)

On Egghead Island, the Straw Hats and their remaining allies are at the breaking point. On the shoreline, the Marines are close to overrunning the Giant Pirates ship. On the sky island above, the Sunny’s in position to set sail; they just have to wait on everyone. Suddenly, Nusjuro comes charging in, ready to slash the ship apart. Thankfully, Zoro and Jinbei show up in the nick of time, stopping the attack. However, there’s no time for them to climb aboard. Zoro tells them to cast off; they’ll jump aboard! Meanwhile, Luffy, Dorry and Brogy have almost made it to the Giant Pirates ship, only to discover Warcury isn’t following them anymore.

Vegapunk’s recording has one last message, though. This time, its for those who carry the initial “D.” All he manages to say, though, is “Among you, there is-” before the broadcast is interrupted. Warcury made it to the Iron Giant and tossed it into the air before letting it crash down to the ground. As a result, the broadcast shuts off! No one in the outside world knows what he wanted to say!

Review

What the heck, Oda? You didn’t just blueball your fans; you blueballed the entire world of One Piece in one fell swoop! Not cool, man! Not cool!

Well, I do understand why Oda might have done this, from a storytelling perspective. The Will of D. has been one of the greatest mysteries behind the entire story of One Piece. We’ve only learned bits and pieces of it as he’s sprinkled them throughout the story. And knowing him, we won’t know the full extent of the puzzle until we reach Laugh Tale. So, this is one mystery that will stay as such; for now, at least. And this isn’t the first time Oda’s blueballed us, so should we really be upset about it?  

That being said, I’m a little upset about this myself. I was hoping that Vegapunk would use this broadcast to clear the name of the people of Ohara. To let the world know that what happened to them was not an act of justice, but of genocide and mass murder. However, I’m content with the knowledge that, after everything Vegapunk revealed, the World Government will lose almost all control of the world. Everyone who has either met Luffy or is aware of the corrupt practices of the World Government will realize that they’re the ones at fault. And that open revolt is the only way to stop this madness.

So Many Old faces Coming Back

All that said, though, I appreciate how this chapter continued this arc’s theme of bringing back old characters. If you notice, Don Krieg and his crew were among those present on Pirate Island. I dont know how they got to the New World, but it’s impressive to see.

As for the fighting on Egghead Island, the Straw Hats need to leave. NOW. They’ve already gotten plenty of lucky breaks, and I dont think they’re going to get any more, save for the Iron Giant itself. Still, it was really cool seeing Zoro and Jinbei block Nusjuro’s attack. However, I can’t help but worry that Zoro intends to stay to get his hands on the blade that Nosjuro is using. He did say it was a Kitetsu blade, so it makes sense he would want it.

This story is getting down to the wire right now. Vega punk’s broadcast might have ended, but that leaves the Five Elders distracted. If Luffy and the others can get to sea, they can finally escape. Then, the Elders failure will be total. That eases the pain of being blueballed a little, in my opinion.

I Give “Mo-” a 4/5

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