New Monday, new week, new season of anime. It’s time for fresh beginnings! The very first summer shows have already aired, but the bulk of them are starting over the course of this week. Also happening this week, where I am from, it is a holiday (July 4th in the US). So, if you are like me and will be out on the beach a lot this week, then here’s to us, enjoying an irl beach episode.
In any case, please use this thread for all your anime discussion needs. I want to hear what your thoughts on the new batch of shows are. Thanks in advance for letting me know what to watch vs. skip when I get back from vacation!
As always, remember to be mindful of spoilers. If you want to know more about how to handle spoilers in this community, check the guide here (also linked in the sidebar).
So, I usually try to quickly binge a show in the slow week between seasons. I had been planning for that show this season to be Patlabor. However, with the discussions around the upcoming summer season, I kept seeing people talking about Tower of God. When the show first came out, it didn’t really pique my interest and I pretty successfully just ignored it.
However, for the sake of community involvement, I thought it would be fun to quickly get caught up to try to be active in the threads this upcoming season. So, I started watching it the other day…and then just didn’t stop…at all…until I finished it. I went back and tried to capture the thoughts that were running through my head as I was watching. So, spoilers galore below the tags. Suffice to say, I will be right there with everybody when season 2 airs. Not sure how I will handle waiting week to week though.
Episode 1
What the hell is going on? Where are we? Who are these people? Why in the Hunger Games are there this many people (creatures?) fighting each other? Lots of unanswered questions here. I feel like I was just thrown into the ocean having never been taught how to swim.
Episodes 2-5 (through the Crown Game)
We seem to be putting together a main cast during this game. Also, Rachel is back, and she is in her hooded phase. I still can’t claim to have much of an understanding of this world we are in or most of the characters in it. I will say that one of my favorites almost immediately is Lero-Ro because it is so instantly recognizable as the voice of Shiki from Tsukimichi.
Episodes 6-7 (training)
Lots of lore on the tower and the characters during this training period. Also, some shady stuff happening with the test administrators. It is pretty clear already that this is the type of show where everybody is always acting with an agenda of some type or another. Any character might just be acting out a scheme and no character is safe (I should have suspected something like episode 12 at this point).
Episodes 8-9 (Playing tag)
Schemes upon schemes upon schemes. Turns out Khun is one of the better schemers out there. Also, metagaming is totally a thing through the use of stuff like that note. Some battles might be won before they are ever fought. All the betraying and (literal) backstabbing in this sequence should have been more hints at what was to come.
Episodes 10-12 (Underwater Hunt)
I literally, physically gasped at the conclusion of episode 12. For whatever reason, bingeing through this season at a breakneck pace, I never stopped to consider the possibility that Rachel was anything other than what Yoru had presented to us. I happened to watch this episode right before bed as well, so I was forced to sit with it and ponder it for a whole day before I could watch the finale. Rachel’s turn in this episode really, really makes me want to know more about Yoru and Rachel, about their time before the tower and before each other.
Episode 13 (Finale)
The way this season ends makes it feel like the story up until now was really the prologue to the actual meat of the story. I still think that there has not been enough establishment of the setting overall, but the show is cool enough that it doesn’t bother me too much.
If you think about this season as a prologue, then there is still a lot of story left to tell in which those gaps can be filled in over time. You get the sense also, that sometimes it just doesn’t matter. The Tower is a place where rule of cool wins…always. Screw your rules, power systems, logic, schemes, none of that matters unless you do it in a cool enough and interesting enough way.
Also, totally digging the new rurouni-version of Lero-Ro. Safe travels!
Overall, I can’t say that it is one of the best shows I have ever seen. However, it was certainly gripping and can’t help but ooze a cool vibe between its animation, characters, and the fantastic OST. Very much looking forward to the discussions coming this season.