DBZ Kai - The pacing of this episode is odd; there are three rather distinct story phases here, and the show blows through them all in 20 minutes. First, we have the continuation from last week with the Dragon Balls changing hands. Second, we have the focus on Gohan's power-up and the almost-fight that ensues. Finally, we have the Ginyu Force and the team-up it creates between Krillin, Gohan, and Vegeta. Not that moving along with a storyline is bad, but when you don't have much of a buffer between these changes in the plot, when they feel almost instantaneous, it makes them feel a little pointless. The episode kind of feels like everyone is just running around aimlessly until the Ginyu Force shows up; it's not boring because of how quickly it moves, but it never feels truly integral to the plot. Maybe my impressions are colored by how much I enjoy it when things fly in the face of the "SERIOUS BUSINESS!" image some people have of this franchise, but I love the Ginyu Force's very silly entrance. I think it almost single-handedly makes the episode.
Kill la Kill - The story of Kill la Kill has gone more or less off the rails, as we watch characters all get thrown at each other with lots of shouting and lots of clanging and lots of explosions. This can work if it's done well, because quality storytelling isn't really what the show's going for; it wants style and flair and fun. But it's none of that, because the execution can't live up. Nothing really...happens. We watch Nui bounce off various characters, we watch Satsuki trade monologues with Ragyo, we get backstory for the sake of an underwhelming and sloppy twist, but what's the point? Where are the interesting, inventive moments? Where's the good animation and choreography? They pop up here and there, but up until the end Kill la Kill demonstrates how you don't handle a show that largely eschews the importance of its plot: you make it boring. On the other hand, the ending is how you do it right. Ragyo putting on Junketsu is unexpected and outstanding in its impact, even if it doesn't make a ton of sense. Likewise, the twist with Ryuko is poor because it concerns a plot point just introduced ten minutes prior, but the fact that it also concerns Ragyo pulling Ryuko's heart out makes it all worth it.
Sword Art Online II - Gratuitous ass shots return, reaching the height of their stupidity in a scene that is framed in such a way that Kirito seems to find the answers in the crack of Sinon's virtual ass. The explanation for Death Gun is a boring one; it's plausible, but it leaves a distinct feeling of "that's it?" The fact that it's so conventional is supposed to be clever and unexpected, but it just comes across as a disappointment because of its simplicity; it feels like a lot of pointless theatrics. This gets worse when you realize that the show essentially conjures up the image of Death Gun sitting in Sinon's room, watching TV and continuously checking his watch as he waits for her to lose at a video game. Kirito's explanation feels like it just appears out of thin air, too; I see how he gets there initially, but the connections he makes to figure out the whole thing feels nonexistent. We spend almost the entire episode in this cave, jumping between the dull explanations and the hilarious melodrama and the jarring fanservice, and the only time we get out of the cave is when we go to the harem to get a recap of the events up to this point...as well as a completely inadequate explanation for why the government cannot track down Death Gun.
InuYasha: The Final Act - I get that the whole conflict with the jewel is supposed to come full circle, but the show has done such a poor job of building up that conflict that it feels very thrown-together. Worse, that conflict is one of the most anti-climactic I've ever witnessed because it amounts to just this: InuYasha talks to some demons, InuYasha calls out to Kagome, InuYasha uses the Meido somehow, InuYasha and Kagome kiss, Kagome wishes the jewel away. It's such a bare-bones finish with no real tension to speak of; the whimper the jewel goes out with borders on comical. From there, we trudge through several minutes to the very obvious conclusion of Kagome returning, when the show becomes...okay. It's nice to see how everyone gets along after a timeskip, but that's about the only positive I can mention for this episode. Goodbye, InuYasha. You were never fantastic or anything, but I'm still sorry The Final Act ended up being a rushed pile of shit.
Naruto Shippuden - Things that happened this episode: Sora transformed. Sure, some other stuff happened, but was it really relevant? Some poorly-animated fighting between Asuma and Kazuma. Some poorly-animated fighting between Sora and the other kids. Some poorly-drawn transforming from Naruto, only to have him put it away again in favor of screaming "SORA!" for the entirety of the episode. I'm almost numb to the whole "you're just like me" storyline at this point. I just want it all to end. Really this episode is just an awful jumble of screaming and fighting, dragging its feet to the finale.
One Piece - We begin with a rather long check-in on all the characters which is funny even if it outstays its welcome a bit before we finally return to Luffy vs. Lucci. And their fight kind of proves my point about how the action choreography of a flurry of blows is boring and lazy: when they escape the water, they begin trading punches with another on a looped animation. Then they break away from it, and suddenly they're sending new attacks each other's way, and they're dodging them and they're aiming them and the leap in quality is immediately apparent. It's the best fighting we've seen from the show's run since it started on the revived block; it's fluidly animated and the blows are all huge in impact, culminating in an impressive finish with Luffy's explosive Third Gear. It almost makes up for the general disjointed feel of the fight. Almost.