A double feature blog/review of the best show of the season so far… well, the only actually good show of the season. And also the show that’s not bad per se but isn’t actually good yet (if ever).
Let’s save the best for last and start with the worst for first.
Rolling Girls #2
First off, Rolling Girls isn’t bad. It isn’t anything really. The first episode had a lot of energy but no particular direction. It wasn’t comedic and it wasn’t even enjoyable per se. It had a semi-decent fight and as mentioned, a lot of energy. But ep 2 improves on almost every front. I mean, 1 is an improvement over 0, but it IS an improvement. There’s a whole lot more action in Rolling Girls 2, which made it more enjoyable. We even got a bit of story this time with the whole backstory between Shigyo and Macha Green.
There’s a difference between having a world and having a story and by the end of the episode, we’re finally taking our first tentative baby steps toward having a story as the apparent 4 main characters (presumably these are the titular Rolling Girls) have gathered and there’s even a quest to gather infinity stones.
The problem is that the 4 main characters look like K-On rejects. This show has the potential to be a really enjoyable adventure or it can degrade into conflicts between Bests being resolved with FEELINGS. Episode 3 is probably gonna be the decider on whether or not Rolling Girls becomes a fun ride or a hateful piece of wombat crap… speaking of wombats…
Binan Koukou Chikyuu Bouei-bu Love! #3
Let’s face it, from the very start, Magical Boys had a stigma of yaoi attached to it. The first 2 episodes don’t really pay attention to that aspect, but ep 3 is all about that sweet boy on boy love making. And much like the second season of Genshiken, it works.
Magical Boys #3 totally acknowledges and MOCKS it’s yaoi aspects.
Ep 1 was just a straight up Pretty Cure rule 63 ep, ep 2 showed the show’s chops and ep 3 continues that trend. This was just a good ep overall.
I particularly like money dude and womanizer dude here, since while they remain one note, they’re finally characters. One note characters, but still characters nonetheless. They’re not just background or secondary characters spouting one liners which indicate their gimmick, ala Sengoku Musou.
I’m also digging how they’re building Scarlet. From things like his “fidelity” talk with the wombat, to his awesome paper plane hobby to the fact that he’s the straightest guy in the show.
Now they just need to work on glasses guy, who is basically just a sounding board for bored with life/Prince Baka guy.
Villains, specifically the hedgehog, remain awesome.
And I super dig the ending. I thought it should end that way and surprisingly, it did. The show creator guys know what they’re doing.
So yeah, Binan Koukou Chikyuu Bouei-bu Love! is firmly the best show of the season so far. Maybe it’s not SHOCKING or DEEP, maybe it’s not MIND BLOWING, maybe it’s not even all that funny, but it does its job really well.