Uzaki-chan Wants to Hang Out Proves That There's No Such Thing as Bad Publicity

Uzaki-chan Wants to Hang Out Proves That There's No Such Thing as Bad Publicity

Mary Lee Sauder
Blog Post

Have you been watching Uzaki-chan Wants to Hang Out this season? It’s a fun show about a loner college student named Sakurai and his obnoxious, but well-meaning kouhai Uzaki who makes it her personal mission to get him to enjoy life a little more. Nothing particularly original here, but the comedic antics are entertaining and the dynamic between Sakurai and Uzaki is much more genuinely sweet than you might expect it to be. Still, is that really enough to make it the fourth most watched anime (besides sequels) on MyAnimeList for all of Summer 2020? Sure, the pandemic means that there isn’t much competition right now, but how did it manage to get so much attention?

Hana Uzaki vs Haruhi Suzumiya - Who's the Better Manic Pixie Dream Girl?

Hana Uzaki vs Haruhi Suzumiya - Who's the Better Manic Pixie Dream Girl?

Mary Lee Sauder
Blog Post

The summer 2020 anime season’s surprise hit Uzaki-chan Wants to Hang Out is all about how a loner college student named Sakurai gets his life turned upside down by his energetic kouhai Uzaki. Uzaki is a classic “manic pixie dream girl” – a term coined in 2007 by film critic Nathan Rabin that refers to boisterous female characters whose only purpose in the story is to give a sad-sack male protagonist a new lease on life through wacky antics and bright smiles. One of the most prominent anime examples in recent memory is, of course, Haruhi from The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya.

Top 5 Kuudere Characters in Anime – Cold on the Outside, Sweet on the Inside [Updated]

Top 5 Kuudere Characters in Anime – Cold on the Outside, Sweet on the Inside [Updated]

Mary Lee Sauder
Blog Post

A “kuudere” is an anime character who acts high-and-mighty or unflappable on the outside (hence the “kuu”, short for “cool”), but is actually quite sweet on the inside (“dere” meaning “to become affectionate”). Unlike the mostly female tsundere category, kuudere are equally likely to be any gender, and may be of any age or class as well. All that matters is that other people view them as untouchable, even though they’re squishy little cinnamon rolls once you finally chip away at their tough outer shell. Let’s take a look at some of our favorite kuudere characters in anime!

5 Best Weddings in Anime - Ring Those Wedding Bells!

5 Best Weddings in Anime - Ring Those Wedding Bells!

Mary Lee Sauder
Blog Post

Wedding season may be winding down, but we can never resist a good romantic celebration – especially when it comes to anime! Seeing our favorite characters dressed to the nines (usually in Western-style outfits, since that’s how the majority of ceremonies are performed in Japan) and professing their undying love for each other isn’t something we see often, so it’s extra special when a show tenderly confirms a long-standing ship or creates havoc with a wacky matrimony gone wrong. Let’s take a look at the best weddings in anime!

5 Best Flashback Scenes in Anime - Mastering the Art of Reincorporation

5 Best Flashback Scenes in Anime - Mastering the Art of Reincorporation

Mary Lee Sauder
Blog Post

Writing a flashback scene isn’t easy. They interrupt the flow of the current storyline, so they can come off as clunky and unnecessary if a few lines from one character could get the point across much more quickly, or if the same flashback is shown multiple times for no real reason. Likewise, the contents of the flashback must have some important effect on the main storyline (referred to as “reincorporation”) or else the entire thing feels useless.

Can We Talk About That Kickass Western Samurai Showdown in Appare-Ranman?

Can We Talk About That Kickass Western Samurai Showdown in Appare-Ranman?

Mary Lee Sauder
Blog Post

Okay, so episode 8 of Appare-Ranman had this amazing fight scene that we simply have to talk about. Despite primarily concerning itself with cross-country racing, this P.A. Works original occasionally likes to take advantage of its Wild West backdrop by staging some truly fantastic anime-fied versions of classic Western scenes, and this episode takes on the “showdown at high noon”. We’ve got dramatic dust clouds, allies strung up at the gallows in dire need of rescue, and a soundtrack straight out of a Clint Eastwood movie... but instead of a lone gunman facing off against a gang of evil thugs, it’s one lone samurai – the previously cowardly Kosame Isshiki, now brimming with dark determination and ready to crack some skulls. Let’s take a closer look at this kickass scene!

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