Demon Slayer Infinity Castle: Filler At It’s Most Heinous

The Demon Slayers are back and now they are having to defend themselves from waves of Demons in the Infinity Castle.

So as the first of the big three Demon Slayer movies to end the series this was better than the previous season, the Hashira Training Arc, which was filler incarnate. Here we got some good fights and the plot advanced along, in many ways that was the problem.

As the plot advanced you were like here we go we are getting somewhere finally things are happening outside of the needlessly long flashback sequences. You had hopes they might even make it out of the infinity castle in this film, and then they hit you with an egregiously long back story for one of the upper rank demons. I understand that the character was important as he had killed the fire hashira in a previous season, but I don’t think anyone was crying out for over half an hour worth of backstory for him.

I would have liked to have seen more from the other characters and see other fights rather than have this one fight dragged out for so long. It did once again feel like filler which is becoming a clear issue with Demon Slayer in both series and film formats as it comes to its end.

Overall, it does advance the plot some and you do get to see some cool fights so I am not entirely cold on it, but I do wish they would work on the filler content and the pacing of these films before they release the next two.

3.5/5

Pros.

The fights

The plot advancement

The scale

The animation itself

Cons.

The pacing

The filler

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Demon Slayer Hashira Training Arc Series Overview: A Waste Of Time

Summary

The new season of Demon Slayer has one goal, to waste your time.

So if you have read my other season reviews for Demon Slayer then you know I often have the same complaint, the pacing and the filler, more often than not each season will have a few good episodes and then lots and lots of filler around it, this is where that shifted.

I wish I could tell you that the change is a good thing but it isn’t, this season was almost entirely filler far more than the other seasons. Basically the whole of the season was just the character’s training, which I know is what the season is called, but there is no build up to a grand show down as there was with the other seasons, no here it basically just builds up to a pretty disappointing death and then the cast are thrown into the pocket dimension with a big to be continued vibe to it.

I like the characters and I like seeing them interact but this was long drawn out nothingness, and the fact that there wasn’t even a satisfying pay off at the end of the all the filler makes it doubly annoying.

Overall, this is just killing time until the films and everyone knows it.

1/5

Pros.

It has a cool ending

Cons.

It is all set up and no pay off

It is all filler

It is boring and badly paced

It hits the same beats over and over again

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Spy X Family Code White: The Quest For Poo

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

The Forger’s head off on another family trip.

As a big fan of Spy X Family I was a little upset that rather than a second half to season two we were getting this, however, after watching it I can safely say that though I would have liked a few more episodes this was far more worthwhile than I had expected it to be.

I liked seeing the family come together both in terms of the family unit but also in terms of action, as this is the first time we see Loid and Yor fighting together, when they aren’t pretending to be something else or doing it in a comedic fashion, though I suppose they still don’t know about the other.

I also liked seeing that the promised Loid and Yor romance grows ever closer to happening, as a person who at times could be described as mushy it warms my heart to see Yor clearly having feelings for him. It remains to be seen if Loid has them back but it is still very interesting to watch.

The one area where I would say the film goes off the rails somewhat is with the long drawn out sequence of Anya needing to poo. I understand they were trying something there and with the different animation style I am sure a lot went into it, however, personally I felt like it didn’t fit the style of the show well at all and felt very disconnected.

Overall, a worthwhile follow up to the series but not without its off moments.

4/5

Pros.

The Forger family coming together

The romance grows

Anya steals the show

It is funny and sweet

Cons.

The poop stuff goes on for far too long

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Spy X Family Season 2: Overview

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

A spy, an assassin and a telepath pretend to be a happy family this time with added cruises.

I think this second season is even better than the first, in many senses the series really hits its stride here and gets into what you want to see from it.

The world building on display is solid and we get to find out a lot more about the lives of the characters we met in the first season and though there isn’t as much high stakes action as in the first season I think the character work here is stronger and that makes up for it. Also Yor’s fights on the boat more than match any of the action scenes we got in the first season.

The family boat trip is easily the best part of the entire second season, not only do the a and b storylines work really well together, it feels like an epic event as it spills out over so many episodes, and the final of the mini arc where they get to enjoy a nice family day out at the island is one of the most wholesome things I have seen on tv in a long time.

Overall, a fantastic follow up season with my only real complaint being that it is a lot shorter but hey at least we are getting a film fairly soon.

4.5/5

Pros

It is wholesome

It ups everything that worked from the first season

It has great action

The boat mini arc is my favourite so far

It is a lot of fun

Cons.

It is too short

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Spy X Family: Season One Overview

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

A spy, an assassin and a telepath pretend to be a happy family.

This is one of the best animes I have watched in a while, and easily replaced some of my favourite animes in my all-time ranking. I would put it up there with Way of the Househusband, and Demon Slayer for sure.

I think what works so well about the first season of Spy X Family is how wholesome and sweet it is, but rather than have it be so soft that there are no stakes and nothing to care about and move the story forward, you have the action and the comedy elements as well which provide for a nice contrast. I think the three areas mesh well together as the healing aspects, action and comedy work together to create a well rounded package that does have something for everyone.

My one criticism of the first season would be that some of the B stories drag. Often you get an episode with an A and B story that both work well together and that provides the contrast I was talking about earlier, but sometimes you just get a random tacked on feeling B story that doesn’t add much and just feels like a way to pad out an episode which can then hamper even the most well done A plot.

Overall, a delightful time and an anime that I would say truly for everyone.

4/5

Pros.

The wholesomeness

The action

The comedy

The character work

Cons.

Some weak B-Plots

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Flying Witch: Anime Overview

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

A new witch moves to town and gets lost frequently along the way.

I discovered this series as I was looking for a replacement after Way Of The Househusband and this fulfilled the same sort of wholesome and at times comedic sensibility. I would argue it is far more wholesome than comedic and more often than not it is just a good show to watch if you are feeling down as the relentless positivity will make you feel better.

I liked most of the characters though I would say the lead herself is quite bland. I think blandness on the whole is an issue for this show as though it is very wholesome and that is nice the problem arises from the fact that there are no real stakes or drama or threat of any kind and that doesn’t lead to the most interesting of stories.

However, something this series does well is its worldbuilding which feel unique and special in a way I have not seen from other animes. There is such a sense of wonder here as the supernatural crosses over with the regular that it is a shame the show didn’t get picked up for more seasons as there is far more exploring to be done in this world, ah well that’s what the manga is for.

Overall, wholesome and inoffensive but lacking enough punch to keep you engaged.

3/5

Pros.

It is wholesome and sweet

The wider cast of characters are quite entertaining

The worldbuilding is well done

Cons.

The lead is bland

There are no real stakes and that makes caring about things hard

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Demon Slayer To The Hashira Training Event Film

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

Tanjiro and co begin their training to become Hashiras

As I have already reviewed the Swordsmith Village Arc I won’t be talking about the first half of this event film. It was fine but I had already seen it and talked about it so why waste words.

The opening episode of the new arc however was intriguing. The Wind and Serpent Hashira chopping down a legion of demons and unwittingly discovering the Infinity Castle that has been used to organise demon meetings before is interesting as now the Corps will seek it out. I also liked that Tamayo is now going to be more directly involved in the series if she goes to help the demon slayers.

My main complaint of the film was that it didn’t show what the remaining high ranking demons were up to, the implication is that they will now all come for Nezuko but it would have been nice to have got a moment seeing them discuss this.

It would also have made more sense for this to be a combination of the first two episodes of the new season rather than the last episode of the last season and then the first new one as most of the people in the audience, myself included had already seen the first half of this compilation film.

Overall, a promising start to the new season but it would have been better if it didn’t rehash the end of the last season again.

3/5

Pros.

A promising new start

The opening is strong and heavy on the action

It is nice to see the characters react to Nezuko talking

Cons.

It would have been nice to have had a better insight into what the demons were planning

It shouldn’t have re-shown the last episode of the last season it just seems like filler

The Boy And The Heron: Ornithophobia

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

A boy enters a mythical world in order to save his surrogate mother figure whilst also investigating the death of his actual mother.

I thought this was a beautiful film to look at every ounce of it had the Ghibli magic that we have all come to know the studio for. The world is so dense and rich and easily explorable, and as you go on this adventure there are so many interesting little side stories established but not fully explored allowing your imagination to fill in the blanks.

The actual plot relating to motherhood family and generations feels very personal, and you care about the character’s journey and want to find out what happened to the mums, and the families connection to this other realm. Though the film doesn’t give away all the answers I would say the ending we got was satisfying and feels weighty.

The one thing I would say about this film, and it didn’t bother me personally but I would be remiss not to say it, is that at times it can be very unsettling, especially in the early parts of the film wherein the heron seems like an almost demonic force intent on harming the kid. As such my point is that this aspect of the film clashes with the wider family friendly tone of the film and if you are considering watching this one with your kids it is something to bear in mind, there are a few frights.

Overall, a lovely swan song for a true titan.

4/5

Pros.

It is a fantastic world

The story is impactful

It leaves a lot to your imagination

It is a sweet film

Cons.

It is not always the most family friendly

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Demon Slayer: Swordsmith Village Arc

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

The Demon Slayer gang head for the Swordsmith Village to rest and repair following the battle in the Entertainment District.

I think that in some ways this is a step up from the Entertainment District Arc and in other ways a step back or a continuation. I liked the story more here I thought it had a lot of good moments such as Nezuko being able to move in the sun, and the introduction of the love Hashira Mitsuri Kanroji who is a scene stealer. Moreover, I thought the threat of the demons themselves were felt more accurately here as the scale of their attack felt larger, in the last arc it was an entire district sure, but here it is the whole village doing battle against the demon attacks which makes the scope feel more epic.

However, I didn’t like that again their was more filler, you could argue that what I call filler is actually backstory for the characters and what not, but I would say a lot of it is largely needless and doesn’t inform much of how we see the characters going forward. It just feels like they don’t want to get on with the main storyline quick enough so they have to pad it out in order to meet the episode count. I also thought the other new Hashira was quite dull and the arc spent a lot of time trying to give him more of a personality but even then you still didn’t like him, one could argue that it is a poor story telling decision to centre so much of your season around an aloof character and expect audiences to them like them or not want to skip through it.

Overall, though it had some cheer worthy moments this is another step backwards and if the filler issue doesn’t get addressed one could foresee that the next arc will be an even further slip in quality.

3/5

Pros.

Some cheer worthy moments

The scale of the final battle

The love Hashira

Cons.

The other Hashira

Far too much filler

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Demon Slayer: Entertainment District Arc

Written by Luke Barnes

Summary

The Demon Slayer gang head for the big city.

I preferred the more individual style of the first batch of episodes wherein they would be less serialised and more loosely connected, like some episodes would carry over but for the most part it felt more like they were going on individual adventures. Anyway, I liked this batch of episodes on the whole, I thought that the new Hashira and his wives were fun and worthwhile additions to the cast, I hope they come back again the future.

I think my major gripe with this arc is that it is a very slow start, the build up to the show down with the siblings takes far too long, there are multiple episodes that almost drag by as though they are killing time, filler I know. In terms of pushing things forward, I think this arc does a lot of good character work and improvements on the main cast as characters in a number of ways. I will say here that making Nezuko into a woman in demon form and giving her a rather low cut top and what not feels a little icky when it is clear that she is clearly a little girl at other points in the show, but maybe there is something cultural I am missing there.

Overall, a little slow in parts but for the most part another fun arc with a lot of entertaining moments.

4/5

Pros.

It advances the characters

The new Hashira and his wives are interesting and good new additions to the cast

The fights are epic

It pushes the story forward in a meaningful way

Cons.

It is a slow start

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