Alya Sometimes Hides Her Feelings in Russian

 Huh. I totally forgot about this one: Alya Sometimes Hides Her Feelings in Russian. I was watching it back in September and I watched 8 episodes. But I haven't watched any since then. Should I pick it back up?

So, Alya kinda likes this one dude (the only dude in the picture, so you can easily figure out who he is) but she pretends she doesn't (and doesn't even seem to totally realise it herself)...but she sometimes says things in Russian where it's very flirty, etc., not realising that he understands her because he knows Russian.

And why, you ask, does he know Russian? Even though they didn't officially out it by episode 8, it's obvious that the childhood friend he learned Russian for/from is Alya's older sister.

Which is, honestly, probably why I wasn't enthusiastic about picking it back up again. That and some weirdness -- like, why does he pretend not to know Russian? What's up with the underling girl and the other ones running for Student Council? Why is running for Council such a cut throat thing? Why is there still so much misunderstandings when he can actually understand her and knows what she says? Why does the dude and his sister have such a weird relationship (and don't admit they are siblings)? And, probably the biggest ICK...WHY does the little sister have to be such a clingy weirdo where she does really inappropriate things to her brother??

That's the biggest reason I haven't picked it up again. I was liking elements of it but it seriously grosses me out when they do the brother / sister thing. Especially when he doesn't act like it's that big a deal. Dude. Your sister flashes you on purpose.

So...I looked up the current state of things and it looks like officially in the light novels that they haven't even confessed to each other that they like each other. Which means the anime likely doesn't have any resolution. So...yeah, I don't think I'll pick it up again. I thought the original conceit was interesting, but not interesting enough to get past the other dodgy shit.

Kono Oto Tomare (Sounds of Life)

I finished this one quite a while ago as well and I really enjoyed it. Kono oto Tomare is about a school's koto club (a traditional musical instrument) and the members, who each have their own challenges. It's a slice of life type of thing, but with some romantic elements.

That said, the three characters in the forefront of the picture are the main characters. 

There's Chika (the blonde). His grandfather was a koto maker and he was a bit of a juvenile delinquent (but with a good heart). Some ruffians basically trashed his grandfather's store, pinning it on him, and his grandfather died soon after, so poor Chika has a heavy burden on his heart. His exterior is rough and tough, but he's a marshmallow inside. He joins the club because of his connection with his grandfather and his yearning to be a better person (not that he realises that part).

The dark haired girl is Satowa, who was a koto prodigy and daughter of a grandmaster (or whatever you'd call it) of a koto school. But her father died and her mother pushed her away to the point that now she lives on her own and has been disowned. She joins the club in hopes to rekindle her love of the koto, in part, but also to find herself again.

The dark haired guy in glasses is the sole member of the club after the rest graduated. He's Takezo Kurata. His baggage isn't as heavy as Chika and Satowa, but he's got some too -- the pressure of keeping the club alive, being put down by school bullies & his own brother, and general feelings of inadequacy. That said, he's a stand up guy.

The other boys are all friends of Chika's that believe in him even when no one else did because he helped them out even when he didn't have to. Weirdly, his closest friend isn't a member of the club, but we see him a lot in the show (Tetsuki). The other girl is in the same year as Kurata and at first joins the club with the intention of breaking it up but winds up finding a place for herself. There's some hints of romance beween her and Kurata by the end of the second season and Chika and Satowa are also headed that route.

However, it's not really a romance anime. It's more of a found family / overcoming adversity / learning to believe in yourself & others, etc. etc. The story is good, the characters are good (even the three guys have distinct personalities beyond just caricature), the art is good, the koto playing is well done...really, it's an all around good show.

Definitely glad I watched it. Would watch it again someday too. If they ever did another season, I'd watch it (though that seems unlikely since it came out in 2019). I'm not sure that I'll buy it to read it, but mostly just because I've already got so many different series going. Well worth it though.

Buddy Daddies

Buddy Daddies is another one that little dude and I watched together a while ago. I honestly can't believe that someone hasn't snapped it up to make it into a movie starring one of the Ryans (Gosling or Reynolds) because either one would be perfect in it.

So, basically, there's an odd couple pair of hit men -- the blonde one, Rei, is the Felix Unger kind of one (cleans, cooks, keeps things organised) and Kazuki is the gamer-probably never opened something with a can opener in his life-trigger man who comes from a yakuza family. They've been living and working together for a while when they cross paths with Miri...

Miri is a little girl (4? 5?) who has gone off by herself (her mom works a bar as a singer) to try and find her dad...who just happens to be their new target. Miri doesn't really know who he is and it's a veritable miracle she manages to make it to the party that her not-very-nice dad is throwing. The two hit men wind up with her and no idea what to do about it.

And thus ensues hijinks as two hit men with their own crazy baggage try to raise a mischievous kid. 

I love a lot of things about this one -- the dynamic behind the guys is great. They're friends through thick and thin. This isn't a BL, but it could have been, but I think it's kinda nice that it wasn't. It's Found Family, is what it is. I love that there's an actual end on it too -- after Kazuki "gets out" (after his dad goes so far as to try and kill Rei and Miri to get him back in), there's a time jump and you see them years later when Miri is a teenager. They're still together, but now running a restaurant or bar, not killing people. 

Well, I wouldn't want to cause trouble in that establishment, that's for sure.

It's a madcap story with engaging characters and it's got heart. I really enjoyed it and would even, probably, watch it again someday.

Yuri on Ice!!!

Yuri on Ice!!! has possibly one of the most excited anime titles out there. I somehow didn't see it when it first came out (and was HUGE), but little dude and I watched it together back in August. 

It's about a Japanese dude who's a professional figure skater and about to retire ignominiously after a massive failure. But after a performance, THE top skater Victor decides to sort-of retire and be Yuri's coach.

Ok, let me just say that the anime is WAY more goofy and silly than either of us imagined it would be, even with the clips we'd seen of it. I mean, it was everywhere for a while. ALL of the characters were more EXTRA than we'd thought too. 

There's definitely some attraction / tension between Victor and Yuri and it's, like, kinda realised but also kinda not? It's got hints of BL but also doesn't fully commit. Well, sort of. Maybe it's because it's so goofy that it's hard to take seriously. But, it's altogether a feel good type of show. 

We both enjoyed it and we'd definitely watch a second season if it came out. The animation was really quite good, especially of the ice skating scenes--impressive, really. I'm sure that's partly why it was so well received. It's a show about skating and it really feels like they skate, if you know what I mean.

Am I glad I watched it? Yeah, of course. We both really enjoyed it. Would I watch it again? Um, maybe, if little dude wanted to or another season came out.