Arum Journal

He’s honestly the biggest foil of Gero in a way, even in the way they dress. Both are sharply dressed and socially awkward men fighting bloody battles. Gero wears a black suit with a white shirt underneath that has has a blue and pink gradient collar. Piichi wears a white suit with a black vest and a dark blue shirt underneath accessorized with a red tie. Gero uses his fists and tools to help enhance his capabilities. Piichi uses weapons and tools to fight but does not need any sort of enhancer as sleep is his biggest ally. Piichi has a girlfriend who means the world to him while Gero is on the search of his one and only. It’s crazy how both have a lot of parallels yet are opposites.

Still, Piichi is a bit of an airhead, but that doesn’t mean he has zero thoughts. In addition to his extraordinary strength, his mind is also extraordinary as his thoughts move fast as he fights. He’s essentially both brains and brawn. He thinks as he fights, but both do not overlap. He’s a very interesting character, honestly.

Dogo, on the other hand, is pretty crazy. While he’s still like a cartoony villain, I guess I’ll have to upgrade him to cartoony supervillain after the events of this episode. As arrogant as the man is, he’s quite intelligent as he knows how to play the game in his favor. Creating a chimera made out of 93 different animal species is honestly madness. The fact that he can inject the chimera blood into him and become some sort of twisted chimera monster in a human vessel is crazy. I honestly applaud the author’s creativity with this. It’s so unique.

His henchwoman Byakko also gets some spotlight. She was considered an outcast of the Beast Clan as she and her mother never had an animal partner of their own. To make up for the lack of one, Byakko’s mother’s “partner” became dead animal carcasses which her blood can use to control from the inside. However, it doesn’t seem like it’s a very healthy method as it complicated her mother’s health which later caused her to pass on. Byakko wanted to get medicine for her mother but because of their status as outcasts, not even the hospital that Beast Clan members go to cannot give medicine. The unfairness of the world was what caused Dogo to seek her out and that’s how their partnership began. The fact that Byakko’s blood isn’t suited for animal partners, but controlling their carcasses is an insane twist. It even extends to be the battery that powers the ‘Frankenbeast’ that Dogo created.

Anyways, Piichi’s girlfriend Marin is voiced by Yume Miyamoto who voices Asa from Daemons of the Shadow Realm and Matsuya from Captivated By You. Since she’s basically his mission control, it does make me wonder if she watches Piichi’s every movement on that computer of hers… Byakko’s mother is voiced by Ai Kaneta who mostly voiced supporting cast members. 

I do commend Kinosaki for being able to stare down Dogo despite being the only non-combatant of the group. Also, Kimie doesn’t have a lot of screen time in this episode, but it’s understandable. If anything, I feel bad for her because she’s slowly dying because of the collar and no one wants to deal with a prison break. I think the one thing this episode made me chuckle about is the fact that there are walrus users. I don’t know why it amused me. I just think walruses are fascinating, underrated creatures in a way. Anyways, let me know your thoughts on this episode!

This episode is mostly about the test as the apprentice witches try to get through to the cave. In all honesty, I love how the Serpentback Cave is animated. The part where Richeh tried to fly through the cave but then got confused about the structure was animated well—I liked that part. Other than that, it’s mostly showcasing each of their personalities and how they use magic. Richeh is still very free-spirited and wants to finish the test how she wants to. Instead of doing the right thing like Euini suggests, she crossed the gap by making sand ribbons and getting her myrphons across. I like that Agott uses the things she observed from Coco like glyph repetition to help her get across. Even if she can be a bit too overconfident with her abilities, she is slowly taking in her surroundings and it’s influencing her.

The spotlight mostly goes to Euini as he’s very self-depreciating. There’s even a flashback to how Kukrow’s teachings have impacted him negatively. It gets to the point where he blanks out when someone else is watching him draw. The way Richeh helps Euini slowly gain some confidence was sweet. She’s influencing him in her own way and because of that he’s gained some confidence. I liked his Cloak of Solitude spell. It makes him look like a cute Heartless from the Kingdom Hearts franchise! Seeing Euini in this episode just makes me want to punch Kukrow even more. That man deserves a special place in hell.

If you’re thinking the story about the Romonons that Qifrey told to Coco and Tetia is out of place, it’s not. It’s a story about how greed and arrogance will only destroy a person. In a way, it’s a cautionary tale about how the Witch Society could’ve been like if they hadn’t made the pact. Though, it could also be foreshadowing the feud between Pointed Caps and the Brimmed Caps in a way. Anyways, from my experiences from Japanese media or any media is that if a legend or a folk tale is mentioned in the story, it will often be a real thing. Just keep your eyes out for possible Romonons, okay?

An interesting trivia for this episode: Richeh’s previous teacher who appeared in the flashback is voiced by Yoji Ueda who voiced Eisen in Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End. Since Witch Hat Atelier is considered one of the top fantasy mangas of modern times alongside Frieren and Delicious in Dungeon, it was cool to see someone from the Frieren cast be in Witch Hat Atelier.

By the way, I don’t really like the subtitles for some of these parts. They are awkwardly translated. The part where Richeh asks to Euini, “Do you not want to be yourself anymore?” Is incorrect as the actual dialogue translates to “Do you hate yourself less now?” Just where did they get the first one from? Anyways, with Sasaran showing up and nabbing Alaira, things are going to get either better or worse depending on how the season finale pans out. Let me know your thoughts on this episode!

The story is about a salaryman who got transmigrated into an Otome game he was hooked into and realized he transmigrated into his favorite character’s younger stepbrother, Alba! After realizing that the stepbrother Orsis has a tragic fate and that his favorite character canonically had a bad relationship with him, Alba decides to make this new life into a happy one where his new stepbrother can smile and the family can live happily.

I mean, the anime itself is not bad in terms of story and content, but only making three minutes per episode for the entire season does get a little ridiculous to watch. It does make me wonder why can’t bigger animation studios just pick up BL media to animate. I get that some BL media are full of smut, so it makes it hard to adapt, but it does seem a little unfair that the same quintessential harem power fantasy isekai stories can have adaptations, but stuff like this get low budget powerpoint movements that would make Blue Lock Season 2 look like it’s S-tier in quality. Look, I’d take a poor quality 20-minute seasonal BL anime over low-budget powerpoint presentations any day.

I just feel like it’s a waste to adapt a BL light novel series, where there’s more than enough content to get a seasonal anime adaptation, like this. I get that BL creators might accept the offer because it’s an opportunity to get their work more noticed, but it does feel like the authors need a bit more self-respect. All in all, it’s just an ad that asks the first-time curious viewers to buy the source material and for the fans to try and promote it so that they can get others to buy it. It’s a marketing strategy in a way, especially since the leads are voiced by popular voice actors like Shouta Aoi, who voiced Orsis, and Ayumu Murase, who voiced Alba.

Look, I get why some of my BL moots on Twitter are worried about the state of BL anime these days. I try not to be too pessimistic since I’m a person who takes things as they are. Anyways, the anime is available to watch on OceanVeil, if you have an account there. The first four episodes can be found on Youtube for a limited time, which I’ll post below. If you have watched this anime, let me know your thoughts!

I feel like Reina was handed the evolution as an apology for taking too long, in a way. Tomoro and Makoto got theirs from bonding with their partners and learning and accepting themselves as they are. Reina doesn’t get severe consequences from her hesitation other than Kyo surviving from the bomb attack and then getting reassured by the rest of Glowing Dawn which then leads to the long awaited evolution. Her biggest issue was her fear of not being useful to her family, but the episode honestly doesn’t focus on that too much. Yes, she does get upset over it, but I feel like Pristimon should’ve been the one to reprimand her and not Tomoro in a way. Like, out of the evolution episodes, this one focuses the least on the Digimon and only on the Owner, making it unfairly imbalanced as Tomoro’s evolution episodes always feature him getting closer to Gekkomon and Makoto has him risking tooth and nail for Chiropmon. The Digimon is supposed to be a reflection of their Owner. The sequence of events in this episode only makes Pristimon feel like an extension of Reina in a way. I wanted to know Pristimon’s feelings too!

Other than that, I honestly really like Bearcatmon’s design! If you didn’t know, the bearcat is the nickname of the binturong, a weasel-like creature belonging to the Viverridae group, which is what the weasel, civet-like creatures belong to—the more formal term would be feliform. Anyways, these creatures are native to South and Southeast Asian area, making Bearcatmon take the form of a South/Southeast Asian in a way. I honestly love the tomboyish look and that she wears a bearcat helmet with the tail being like a makeshift ponytail. She takes the form of a skater in a way, and I think that’s unique. While Bearcatmon is the smallest of the ultimates, she’s still strong enough to carry Reina around both in the bridal carry and then on her back—they’re both around the same height.

The Digimon causing problems in this episode is Bombermon which is an unused Ultimate evolution of Gammamon like now Fumamon was. I feel like the group tends to struggle with the Gammamon evolutions more than the other GIFT-related mons in a way. Anyways, I honestly do like how creative his bombs are used in this episode from the spiders to the expanding time bomb. What’s amusing about Bombermon is that his voice actress is Yu Kobayashi who voiced Ruli Tsukiyono in Ghost Game. This means that the Wolvermon/Bearcatmon vs Bombermon battles are essentially Hiro vs Ruli (Hiro has the same VA as the Pristimon line). Bombermon’s partner Sana Tsujimine is voiced by Shiori Izawa who voiced Pochita in Chainsaw Man, Kanata Ubuyashiki in Demon Slayer and Nao Makimura in Sasaki and Miyano.

Anyways, the funniest thing about this episode was the fact that GD was giving Reina the pep talk while there was a time bomb slowly going off. Other than that, the fact that Miharu got to bomb Chairman Wong was honestly a shocker. I don’t think he’s out that early though—he’s too important to go out just like that. Let me know your thoughts on this episode!

It’s honestly crazy that a thirteen-year-old kid has the biggest intel on the parents than anyone in the story by far. Ken Tadera seems like a very sweet kid! I found it funny how he was mistaken to be Dera’s secret child and when Dera denied, he paused and then denied the claims once again. He’s not Dera’s son, but Dera’s dad Roei’s son, making Dera and Ken half-brothers with a twenty-two year age gap; this means Dera is 35 years old. He’s also very knowledgable for his age as he knows about the legend of the twins, what daemons are, and the names of the parents. It’s honestly a good way to not regurgitate what we already know to a new, young character. I may not know anything about Roei, but I definitely know that Roei gave Ken all this knowledge just in case Dera dies. Ken was definitely born as an alternative successor in a way.

Anyways, it seems that Roei was the one who taught Nagisa and Mine the way out of the village as the former figured out his identity and demanded he spill out everything he knows—she has a strong personality. However, that’s all there is to know about what Roei knows. Roei’s so secretive that no one has pictures of him nor do they know his whereabouts. He’s like an urban legend at this point.

Anyways, since Ken has nowhere to go as his Ethiopian mother passed away recently and his father is missing, Dera takes him in and the Danno family gains a new member. It’s honestly funny how Hana is bamboozled about what Dera brought back in a span of a day from gambling and night club cards to another child she’s forced to take in. Fortunately, Ken becomes her favorite child when she learns about his assets—he has a LOT of money as Roei deposits child support every month. This means that Roei is still alive somewhere. Regardless, Hana may not seem a combat-oriented character at first, but there might be a hidden side to her as her arms are rather muscular when putting Yuru in a chokehold. 

But yeah, this episode is mainly a lay low episode as more clues about the parents emerge. It also has to integrate Ken into the story in a way, so a slow episode like this is a good way to relax after an intense battle last week. It does seem as next week will focus on the adults like Dera and Hana as they try to find clues on their own while Yuru and Ken stay home.

Ken is voiced by Natsumi Fujiwara who voiced Damian Desmond in Spy x Family and Ult in Pokemon Horizons. She does seem to be the go-to for young boy characters these days. One of Asuma’s daemons, Asagiri, is voiced by Ayumu Murase, which makes it one of the rare times a male voice actors voices a female character. Since Murase’s voice is so androgynous, him voicing Asagiri is fitting. If you’re curious about other female roles Murase voiced, he voiced Sailor Aluminum Siren in Sailor Moon Cosmos and Istaroth in Genshin Impact.

By the way, since the Danno family are pretending to be a family, does that mean Ken is going to be another child from another marriage in the public viewpoint? People are definitely going to feel for Hana as she got into a bad marriage—I feel for her too. Let me know your thoughts on this episode!

This episode is mainly about how Ditto accidentally became a viral sensation when it transformed into a mini version of Nidothing and crashed her stream. Because of this, Dot and the crew are invited to a Bread festival where one of her viewers, Tongs, wants to collaborate by making Nidothing-shaped bread. Ditto also has been trying to go around and make others happy, but it doing a clumsy job at it, so there are shenanigans revolving around that too.

One thing I liked about the episode is that it did not escalate into a conflict where they get into a squabble with Ditto. Instead, the RVTs know that Ditto just only joined them recently, so they want to understand its actions rather than reprimand it. Honestly, I like that. It shows that they respect Pokemon and treat them as individuals and not something they can control. No one ever got mad at Ditto for transforming and Roy later realized that Ditto only wants to help out, but has a lot of shortcomings due to its ticklish nature or its timidity.

Understanding Pokemon’s feelings is supposed to be Liko’s thing, but she’s mostly fangirling over Nidothing and Miniguru in this episode. Honestly, I like it when the characters go out of their usual roles in a way. Liko’s usually calm and composed, so to see her be in total fangirl mode is honestly adorable. The fact that Meowscarada is jealous, but is also understanding of Liko’s fangirling was sweet; the part where she covered her eyes with her Flower Trick bombs was funny—it’s like a camera sticker filter in a way. Because of the fangirling, Roy is the voice of reason for this episode; Ult’s comic relief like always.

I do feel as if Nidothing has become more popular since the last time an episode was focused on her. There was a huge crowd wanting to see her and Miniguru. Though, I do realize that no one has recognized the RVTs out on the streets. I guess since the group doesn’t flaunt their fame, people might just think of them as regular kids or fans of the RVT kids with their Pokemon and such.

I think the best part about the episode was seeing the creativity in baked goods. I’d honestly love to try the Voltorb pizza and the Charjabug roll. They all looked so good. The Nidothing bread looked cute too! I can see why Liko would think it’s a waste eating it. I don’t know about you, but this episode certainly does make one crave bread…is that only me? I’m currently eating two baguette slices with melted brie cheese on top and drinking a blend of yuzu earl grey and peppermint tea. I wonder what the Pokemon equivalent would be. Let me know your thoughts on the episode!

Kimie honestly gets more likable each episode. While she isn’t great at fighting and keeps getting kidnapped, she dos her best to get herself out of her predicaments without needing a man to save her. I like that she’s the first person to get Gero to eat someone else’s cooking and she’s surprisingly a good cook as she was taught by her long-lost brother. It also turns out that she really was the pink-haired girl from that one flashback in Episode 7. Because of this, she dedicated herself to becoming Gero’s fan for life. However, she knew that he wasn’t in the best state at the time, but she’s still head over heels for him when he has mellowed as an adult, showing that her love isn’t so shallow. There are instances where fans abandon their favorite idols when they’re not what they appear to be; such is not the case for Kimie who loves any type of Gero. While hamsters aren’t the best suited for combat, Kimie is more specialized in reconnaissance-type abilities like scouting and such. She’s able to communicate with rats as well and can project her voice onto them like a speaker. I found that cool. I honestly can’t wait to see a possible jailbreak.

Ushio being a surprise hire was honestly a shock for me, but there were hints that she’d make more appearances in the opening as she appeared several times in it. Bless Kinosaki for hiring the extra help! She was a dangerous foe in the first arc, but seeing her as an ally makes her feel very powerful. I honestly like that she can combine her attacks with Gero’s to create combination moves like poison mist. I think this is the first time Gero has done a feat with another master. I also like that Ushio has a cute side to her as she’s not used to getting praised, which causes her ears to turn red. I feel like she could also be a potential marriage candidate.

To be honest, my expectations for Dogo has dropped as he just feels like a cartoony villain. Maybe his true motivations will be revealed, but he’s just an asshole for the sake of being one. Also, after this episode, there might be people who theorize that Dogo might be related to Kimie, but they’re not; her brother’s voice actor is different as he’s voiced by Nobuhiko Okamoto who voiced Himmel in Frieren: Beyond Journey’s End, Nikaido in Captivated By You, and Bakugo in My Hero Academia. I knew it was him the moment he laughed.

Anyways, if Kimie’s brother has a prevalent voice actor, I’m guessing that means he’s going to be important later on. Regardless, this episode has been going fast, but not as fast as it was last week. Let me know your thoughts on this episode!

I like that all the humans contribute in some way. Yuru and Dera aren’t protecting the old lady; she’s a part of the fight too, even if she doesn’t contribute much action-wise. She does give out who she’s working for, though: Asuma Kagemori. Ha, I knew he was suspicious! She also gave away Yuru’s true identity as Left and Right’s real master as a way to distract them from Dera. Also, the old lady doesn’t have an actual name; she’s voiced by Kimiko Saito who voiced Ryme in Pokemon Horizons and the Madam in The Apothecary Diaries.

Dera definitely has some military training because he carries an arsenal of weapons and is also proficient with a rifle. No ordinary man would have those sniping skills and a camouflage  blanket—he knows his stuff. Yuru has high battle intelligence, so he knows how to distract his enemies and even scared them off by bluffing his Seal powers. Seriously, I like that everyone contributes.

Tenaga and Ashinaga were animated superbly. I may find them creepy, but the fight between them and Left & Right is just too good. I like that Left, who specializes in kicks, is handling Tenaga and Right, who specializes in punches, is the one handling Ashinaga. It’s basically a battle of their greatest strengths in a way. I do like how the two stack on top of each other once Dera snipes Ashinaga’s eyes and Tenaga’s legs. It shows that all daemons work well together.

Other than that, I do wonder what Asuma’s deal is. Why is he after Seal? Is it really to take control of Break and Seal, or is there something more? Also, just who is Tenaga and Ashinaga’s master? Let me know your thoughts on this episode!

The first half of the episode revolves around Valentine’s Day, which is anime original content. After seeing his sister working hard to make handmade chocolates for her friends and possible crush, this gets Nakamura inspired to buy friend chocolate for Hirose, but he’s too shy to give it to him. Hirose does seem as if he wanted to get something from Nakamura, but whether that’s true or not is up to interpretation. I did like the silly hijinks that’s typical of this anime like Takeuchi never getting love from Yuka. I also think it’s sweet how Kawamura made cookies for her friends and they gave her store-bought chocolate in return. These girls are such good friends.

This episode marks the last of the manga characters to show up: Hana Sakamoto. She was in the opening, but I did wonder how long it would take for her to show up and it seems that she’s the final “conflict” of the story. She’s Hirose’s girlfriend and they only dated for a week. She’s cute and sweet; however, the fact that she’s the one who asked him out does indicate that she’s a lot more assertive than she looks. Hana is voiced by Yukari Anzai who voiced Azami in Daemons of the Shadow Realm and Ajisai in Watanare.

However, the realization that Hirose is dating a girl does send Nakamura into a depressive meltdown. This is the most upset he has been. Honestly, it’s understandable. Whether you’re queer or not, the pains of unrequited love is excruciating. I remembered when I learned that my crush of five years had a girlfriend, I was a bit in a depressive state for a few days; I didn’t cry, but I felt so listless. This is all part of growing up, though. Not all crushes are reciprocated. I do want to praise Chiaki Kobayashi on how he was doing the sobbing noises. He sounded as if he was crying because he went through his own heartbreak or something—man was sobbing like rent was due.

I just hope no one hates on either Hirose or Hana for this. Just because Nakamura has a crush on Hirose and it’s been the entire plot of the story, it doesn’t mean that Hirose is obligated to reciprocate. I just worry about the hate Hana will get from the first-time viewers because girls in BL stories do tend to get their fair share of ire. Hana did nothing wrong. She had a crush, went for it, and succeeded. There’s no harm or shame in doing so!

Though, I do think that Nakamura’s sister Kana was rather annoying in this episode. I get that she was trying to make chocolate for her friends, but she didn’t need to overreact when Okuto ate one of the chocolates. The fact that she thinks her brother has been loud for the past few days without knowing the reason why was rather harsh. I get that Japanese people have a culture where they are very independent from upbringing, but the fact that no one asked what’s wrong is concerning. However, I don’t think it’s completely right to rule out Nakamura’s family as neglectful or uncaring because, at the end of the day, it’s a cultural difference. His mom does show some concern as she wanted to go find her son when the dad comes back home.

I think the saddest part is that Nakamura doesn’t really have anyone to open up to for his problems. None of his friends are gay. He isn’t as close to Kawamura to have a heart-to-heart with her. His family are just people living their lives. It makes sense why Nakamura is socially awkward, timid and clams up a lot—he doesn’t really have anyone to talk to nor to confide other than Icchan. Honestly, for a BL story, there aren’t that many gay people here.

Will the finale be happy? Since I know how the chapter revolving around Hana ends up, I could see a happy ending, but given the amount of changes the anime did regarding the manga chapters does make me wonder how happy it will be. Will it be the happy that’s open-ended or will it really be the happiest ending ever? Let me know your thoughts on this episode and what you think the ending will be like!