This weeks theme was JYB. Even with Bleach long over, the Bosch continues to dominate Toonami. On to the reviews!
Dragon Ball Z: Kai - Nothing quite like child death to show how villainous your villains are. Even though he can be a bit cowardly, Krillin really has a lot of good strategies and can keep a level head during battle. Using that kai-o-ken move to blind Dodoria worked better than I expected. After an unnecessary but brief Bulma bath scene we finally got to the real fight. I guess all it took for Vegeta to learn how to see and hide power levels was seeing Goku do it. Uhhh
okay. Whatever. Destroying the Sayian homeworld at least gives both Vegeta and Goku more reason to fight Freeza and Im looking forward to that. Another decent episode but nothing too great. Rating: Lost Cargo
Kill la Kill - BassForever said, One of the weaker KLK episodes, saved mostly because JYB and Sheh are fucking fantastic in their roles. and I would agree with that. I liked the stuff with Mako and her family too but this episode always feels a bit like filler to me. If it werent for that final scene where Senketsu gets destroyed, not much really happens aside from the Raid Trip leaving campus. Its not a terrible episode but it wasnt great either. I will admit that I enjoyed it more with the improved localization and dub. Rating: La vie est drole
Sword Art Online II - I honestly didnt mind the flashback to a scene that never happened in the first series. Im even willing to buy into Kirito having PTSD over killing those people in SAO. In fact, Id be more surprised if everyone who was stuck inside that MMO of death for years wasnt more messed up in the head. I wonder if Sinon knows her buttcrack is showing on her avatar because it is. BOB is such a ridiculous name I can only assume it sounded cooler to Japanese viewers. Most of the episode was bleh but that final HAX showdown and embrace was so cringeworthy as to be hilarious. The posts being made during that scene were simply glorious and made the pain of watching totally worth it. Ham-fisted bullshit
this is the SAO I remember. A good episode for all the wrong reasons. Rating: Post Traumatic SAO Disorder
InuYasha: The Final Act - The whole beginning with Kagome in modern times felt like a PSA about staying in school. Is it really that hard to get into high school in Japan because they really made a big deal about it. Anyway, I thought it was kinda weird of her family to be all like stay for dinner just as their daughter is about go off to a life or death battle. We see Naraku immediately uses the power of the Shikon Jewel to kill a bunch of innocent animals. Goku would not approve! Im glad the show finally realizes Shippo adds nothing to the combat scenes and leaves him left behind. I also liked that Dark InuYasha is back. It was really, really, REALLY dumb of everyone to just go inside Naraku. I know Rin is in there but theyre just going to get pounded in the Naraku spider dimension or whatever that is. This episode was a huge step up over last week and with only five more to go, I get the impression this battle will really be dragged out. Rating: Giant Enemy Spider
Naruto: Shippuden - As sometimes happens in Shippuden, there was an odd mix of both good and bad animation. I cant say enough about just how terrible the Leaf Villages security forces are. For a society made up mostly of ninja warriors, they are just pathetic. It doesnt help that Tsunade just sits around in her stupid office waiting for shit to get really bad before issuing any orders. By the time she even raises a finger the power has already been shut down and a huge wall surrounds the entire village. Did I say wall? I meant defense barrier. Did you get that? Its a defense barrier. In case you didnt hear, theyll repeat defense barrier 10 more times. The only person doing less than Tsunade is Naurto who just keeps yelling questions at everyone in his annoying voice. Also, theres zombies now for some reason. Meh. Rating: Definitely not Choji-liscious
One Piece - Ive said it a million times but damn if Spandam isnt a great villain. He never misses an opportunity to ham it up about how awesome he thinks he is while at the same time acting like a douche. What a cocky bastard. One thing Ive been wondering recently is why hasnt Robin tried using her devil fruit powers? Is it the handcuffs shes wearing? I originally thought it was because she *wanted* to be caught but thats not the case any more. Im glad we can super count on Franky. Ive really grown to like the guy but holy shit I love Kaku even more. His hilarious giraffe moves are fantastic! Never again will I underestimate the the power of giraffes. Another great episode! Rating: Pasta Machine!
Overall, this week was kinda weak. Nothing really great stood out to me aside from One Piece. Even with KLK and SAOII bringing the humor (intentional and unintentional, respectively) most of the night was simply passable. Heres hoping things improve next week.