Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood 42

May figures out the secret to Scar's brother's research, while Hohenheim visits Lior.

Al: I am not a toy. Stop trying to put the wrong pieces together for your own amusement.

Summary:
Al wakes up and finds himself inside a house and in pieces. To carry Al, Scar's group had to disassemble him. May and Marcoh continue to mull over the book from Scar's brother, but they haven't gotten anywhere. Marcoh and Winry then turn their attention to reassembling Al, and this inspires May into breaking the bindings of the book to rearrange the pages. After spreading the pages out on the floor using the passages as clues, May connects the dots and reveals the Philosopher's Stone transmutation circle. Marcoh is disappointed that this is the secret and starts losing hope, but Al suggests that they turn the pages over. The group follows Al's instructions and May connects the dots once again, and this time it shows a different transmutation circle based on Xingese alchemy.

So this was a connect-the-dots puzzle book.

Kimblee to Pride : I know I look great in my pimp suit and scarf, but you don't have stare at me like that.

Meanwhile, Kimblee is walking through the mining tunnels trying to track down Scar's group, but he loses the tracks. Instead, Kimblee walks into a boarded-off side passage which led to the tunnel Sloth dug. In here Kimblee is approached by Pride's shadows, and Pride tells Kimblee to go back to Briggs and create bloodshed. Kimblee warns that it's not going to easy as the Brigg soldiers and disciplined and strong, but Pride states that they are going to use Brigg's strength to create the bloodshed.

Out of Mustang's subordinates, looks like Fuery got transferred to the worst location.

Back at the Briggs, Miles returns and informs Buccaneer and Falman that Ed, Kimblee, and Kimblee's two subordinates have gone missing. Later, Falman calls Breda who is out in the west. Breda tells Falman that there has been heavy fighting in the west and in the South where Fuery is stationed, Falman is frustrated that his side can do nothing while the bad guys are on the move. Somewhere underneath the Briggs mountains, Sloth has finished digging his tunnel.

Aren't you immortal? Why do you have to eat?

Walking on water is easy when you can transmute with your feet.

In Lior, the people are busy rebuilding their war-torn city. Rose and the roadside cafe owner serve up lunch to the workers, and during lunchtime they are approached by Hohenheim who is hungry from his travels. After filling up on Rose's soup, Hohenheim asks Rose and the cafe owner to lead him to old headquarters of the Sun religion. Rose and the cafe owner leads Hohenheim to an underground passage within the old headquarters. The passage is flooded with poisonous water, but Hohenheim builds a bridge with his alchemy and walks over the water. The passage eventually leads to the tunnel that Sloth had dug, and Hohenheim is quickly confronted by Pride's shadows. After several unsuccessful attempts to block Pride with his alchemy, Hohenheim stumbles back into the passage he came from and discovers that Pride's shadow cannot leave the tunnel. Now in a safe position, Hohenheim comments that Pride's form is reminiscent of Father's original form in a flask. Pride asks Hohenheim to come with him to Father, and Hohenheim states that he'll visit Father even if Father didn't ask. Hohenheim then walks back to the entrance warns Rose and the cafe owner not to let anyone go down the passage. Rose wonders what Hohenheim was doing inside the passage, and Hohenheim answers that he had declared war.

You can't get me. Na na na na na!

Up in the north, the guards on top of the Brigg's fortress spot columns of Drachma soldiers approaching through a blizzard. The Drachma soldiers are being aided by Kimblee, who tells the Drachma commander that he has forces inside the fortress who will cause chaos on the inside while the Drachma forces attack from the outside. The Brigg's forces quickly respond by loading up their cannons, and the two sides starts firing at each other.

While people in the south have learned about trench warfare, looks like these guys are still stuck in the 19th century with their marching columns, which is pretty much the worst formation you can have when going against artillery.

In a northern town, Zampano calls into Central to report that Marcoh is hiding among the slums of Asbec. After answering the call, Envy prepares to go up north to retrieve Marcoh.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


After the action episode last week, this week FMA:B is back in build-up mode once again. The good guys finally have some heading as to how to stop Father from destroying the country. I don't remember how Scar's group figured out the transmutation circles from the research, and I think I know the reason why: it was just not a very memorable moment. Flipping the pages and connecting the drawings was clever, but it's not especially notable when compared to all the other important moments in the series. For something that could prove to be the winning formula for the good guys, I was expecting a grander revelation. Maybe my expectations are just too high.

Other than connect the dots, this episode also featured Hohenheim's visit to Lior where things seemed to have calmed down after the Central/Homunculi induced conflict. The roles of Lior and Rose in the manga/FMA:B are very different from the first anime. In this series, Rose is just a side character trying to live in unstable times, and Lior is just a town trying to recover from a conflict. They other no other importance beyond that. As for Hohenheim, he is starting act against Father's plan, but at the same time he hasn't done much. The only part that I found interesting with the visit was that Pride's shadow cannot exit Sloth's tunnel. Based on what Hohenheim said, Pride's range is limited to the tunnels and Central. I guess there must be something special about the tunnels for Pride to extend his shadows this far. I don't know if this limitation of Pride will amount to anything though.

The episode ended what looked like a bad note with Drachma attacking Briggs and Envy coming after Marcoh once again, but the preview once again gave a lot away. I'm looking forward to the Marcoh vs. Envy battle though.

To Aru Kagaku no Railgun 17

A few days in the life of Tessou Tsuzuri, the bumbling and bespectacled teacher/Anti-Skill member.

Too bad you aren't the girl who can leap through time.

An example of Anti-Skill fail.

List of shoddy highlights:
It's summer at Academy City, and most of the students are enjoying their summer vacation. As such, Anti-Skills are called to help Judgment patrol the streets and maintain order.

Day 1:
- Tessou is late for her patrol with Yomikawa. The two gets called to help with a robbery and Tessou ends up becoming a hostage, but Yomikawa resolves the situation by throwing a riot shield into both the bad guy and Tessou.
- Later in the day, Tessou runs into Mikoto and friends at an arcade. Tessou is supposed to tell the students to go home as it's almost time for curfew, but she is almost tempted into playing a game by Mikoto's gang. Yomikawa shows up to snap Tessou back to the task at hand. Yomikawa goes to shoo away rest of the arcade's patrons, and Ruiko and Kazari recognizes that one of the customer is a boy named Kounoe from their class.
- Tessou, Yomikawa, and Komoe enjoy a night out in the spa and then have dinner and a few beers together.

Kurozuma and Konori aren't the only fans of Musashino Milk.

In such an advanced city, you'd think that every Anti-Skill would get a GPS... but then again, maybe Tessou wouldn't even know how to use one.

Day 2:
- Tessou has an unsuccessful day on the patrol which included causing a traffic jam.
- Late in the day Tessou goes to the arcade again to tell the students to go home. Tessou notices Kounoe playing an old fighting game called Gekisho 9 which she had used to play. Tessou distracts Kounoe into losing and Kounoe leaves.
- On their night out, Yomikawa and Komoe notice that Tessou is feeling down, and Yomikawa suggests that Tessou do something fun to cheer herself up.

Good thing Yomikawa doesn't drive, and Komoe doesn't get drunk.

Day 3:
- Tessou is stuck at school marking exams. Yomikawa lets Tessou off of the patrol, but in exchange Tessou has to finish her marking and pay for dinner next time.
- After finally finishing her work, Tessou goes to the arcade again and sees Kounoe playing Gekisho 9. Tessou unlocks a secret character in the game and is about to start playing, but she is called away by Komoe who told Tessou that Yomikawa was in an emergency situation.
- It turns out that the "emergency" was just Yomikawa getting drunk, and Tessou is tasked with carrying Yomikawa home. On the way, Komoe asks if Tessou feels happy. Komoe then states that she's happy everyday because she loves all the different students in the city, including the person who blew off her roof.

Look who finally decided to show up.

Who's the girl on the left?

Day 4:
- Tessou is back on patrol and she's surprisingly enthusiastic. On her patrol, Tessou encounters Index (who is chasing a cleaning robot for sweeping up her dropped donut) and Aisa (who tries to buy all the hamburgers from a fast food joint). Tessou also helps a girl find her lost pedant.
- After the patrol, Tessou goes to the arcade to play Gekisho 9. In the process, she is challenged by someone using her favorite character and she loses the match. Tessou then discovers that it was Kounoe she was playing against. Tessou walks Kounoe back to his place while talking about the video game and Kounoe thanks Tessou before parting with Tessou.
- After parting with Kounoe, Tessou receives a call from Yomikawa telling her to get to the dinner place since Tessou is supposed to be treating.

Should save your celebration for after you've won the slot machine jackpot.

Last Day (not necessarily day 5):
- Tessou and Yomikawa visit the arcade during the day and learns from Mikoto's group that Kounoe has transferred to a school specialized in video game development. Tessou is quite happy with the news and enthusiastically continues her patrol.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A filler episode about a fairly unimportant side character and her love for a 10-year-old video game. The video game story with the boy is not much to talk about, but this episode was not entirely uninteresting. If you were wondering why the Anti-Skill are so useless, just take a good look at this episode. I don't want to be mean, but I'd be a little worried if someone like Tessou was in charge of maintaining peace and order in my community. She didn't exactly put up a stellar performance this episode. It's not that she's not a nice person, but she's a bit too bumbling for the duties required for a riot/SWAT police squad member. I suppose Tessou is not representative of the entire Anti-Skill (at least I hope not), but Anti-Skill are just too easy to make fun of. At least Yomikawa is somewhat capable at taking down regular criminals, although she does seem to have a drinking problem (hope she doesn't drink and drive).

Other than the story on Tessou, this episode had some interesting cameos. Komoe had a similar extended role like in episode 14, and Index and Aisa finally showed up doing their usual goofy things. I have a feeling that the girl who lost her pedant might also be a cameo appearance or someone important, but I don't know who she is. The little girl in the picture inside the pedant looks somewhat familiar, but I can't pin a finger on that either.

Next episode is another filler about Mikoto and Kuroko's dorm supervisor, who seems less fierce than before. I'm not holding high expectations for that episode either, but it'd be fun if the supervisor will knock Kuroko out at least once in the episode.

Bleach 390

Aizen pwns a few shinigami and Vizards.

Komamura: made to be pwned.

Summary:
Hitsugaya starts attacking Aizen, and Komamura, Rose and Love also join the fray. From a nearby building, Gin observes that all of the good guys are going to be pwned even if Aizen doesn't use his zanpukto powers. Lo and behold, Aizen slices up Komamura and then slashes Rose while taking no damage whatsoever.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Okay, we get it. Aizen is godly. If Aizen was good enough to take on all the good guys by himself from the start, then what was the point of having the arrancars again? Okay, let's not dwell on the past. So Aizen pwns two good guys, including his favorite target Komamura, but the ever popular Hitsugaya is unscathed for now. I'm not sure what happened to the other Vizards and shinigamis that haven't joined the fight yet. They were supposed to all gang up on Aizen, but maybe some of them changed their minds and decided to sit back and have some popcorn? That's what Gin is doing anyways.

Oh well, let's see which of the good guys Aizen will cut through in the next chapter.

Deadman Wonderland 28

Ganta tries to rescue Azami while Azami tries to kill Ganta.

Ganta to Azami: Isn't this the best hand-holding you've ever experienced? You know it is!!

Summary:
Ganta crawls out of a duct and is immediately confronted by Azami who has been sent to kill Ganta. After a brief struggle, Ganta is able to grab Azami's mask, but instead of going back to normal Azami smashes Ganta through the floor to the mechanical room below. Azami jumps down into the room to look for her mask and she spots it behind a machine. Azami reaches for her mask, but she accidentally turns on the machine which jams into her outstretched arm. Ganta regains consciousness and tells Azami to forget about the mask, but Azami reacts violently and sends a blood snake at Ganta. Ganta doesn't want to injure Azami with the Ganta gun, so he plunges his arms through the snake and grabs Azami's hand, taking the snake's bite in the process. The hand holding eventually makes Azami snap out of her mask addiction, and Ganta frees Azami by blowing out the machine with the Ganta gun.

Meanwhile, Shiro has been looking around for Ganta because she doesn't understand why Ganta suddenly hates her. She learns from Senji that Ganta is looking for the Forgeries, and later she runs into a brother and sister who are collecting tissue samples from Deadmen-Forgeries battles. Shiro and the siblings have seen each other before at old man Tamaki's house, but the siblings have no love for Shiro. Shiro does learn from the siblings that the Deadmen are being targeted by Forgeries, and she begins to wonder if Ganta was in fact trying to protect her when he told her that he hated her.

Back to the machine room, Azami manages to extract all the poison from Ganta and patch up his arm. The two begin to make their way out of Forgeries territory and find themselves in a ladder shaft. Suddenly, Ganta spots something outside and purposely locks Azami in the shaft. Outside the shaft, Ganta is confronted by a group of Forgeries and armed prison guards led by the crazy doctor. Ganta lies that he had killed Azami, and the doctor orders her forces to capture Ganta alive so she can get samples from him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

So Ganta actually was trying to protect Shiro by telling her that he hates her? Really? And there I thought maybe Ganta was on his way of becoming bad-ass and finally realized that it's all Shiro's fault that he is in Deadman Wonderland. I suppose that the latter will happen eventually. If Ganta was in such a hurry to find Azami, wouldn't letting Shiro help be the logical choice? Shiro knows her way around the prison better than almost anyone, and Ganta couldn't really count on Chief Makina giving him the map and Azami's tracking signal. It was just a lucky break that Makina decided to use him to track down Azami.

Anyways, I'm impressed that Ganta actually managed to get Azami off of the addictive mask by just hand-holding. I was expecting at least a hug. Ganta is becoming quite the lady's man lol. It's curious that Ganta didn't instantly blow up after being bitten by Azami's blood snake. Ganta did have some reactions, but he seems to be able to hold off the effects better than other Deadmen. It's probably because of Ganta's "evolving" branch of sin.

So now Ganta is up against the nutty doctor and a couple of Forgeries and guards. The Ganta from 10 chapters ago would stand no chance against such foes, but Ganta's attack is a lot more powerful than before. If Ganta can pull off the Kamehameha that destroyed the Carnival Corpse broadcast then the crazy doctor and her cronies are toast, but in that situation Azami would probably be toast too.

One Piece 572

Whitebeard gives his last order as a captain.

A declaration of heroic sacrifice.

Summary:
Ace and Luffy jump back onto the battlefield and cause chaos among the Marines. The other pirates are reinvigorated and work to clear out a path for the brothers. A band of pirates led by Squadro (the guy who was tricked into stabbing Whitebeard) rows the remaining ship onto land in an effort to cover the escape of the other pirates, but Squadro and the ship is stopped by Whitebeard. Whitebeard then calls out to all the pirates and orders them to escape back to the New World while he stays behind to hold off the Marines.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Well, we all saw it coming. Now that Ace has been freed, Whitebeard is going to make the heroic sacrifice so that Luffy, Ace and the others can escape from Marine HQ. I'm sure Whitebeard can hold off a good number of enemies, but he can't hold all of the Marines and Shichibukai off can he? There's still the question of how the rest of the pirates are going to escape since they only have one ship remaining. Maybe the pirates from the archipelago are going to show up and ferry Luffy and company away? Everything seems to be set for Whitebeard to go out in a blaze of glory, but I wonder if there are going to be any more surprises.

Naruto 480

The conclusion to Danzo vs. Sasuke (?).

Congratulations to Sasuke for graduating from "emo" to "nut-job" status.

Summary:
Danzo and Sasuke appear to have pierced each other with their respective chakra blades. Danzo claims victory first because he had one eye left for Izanagi, but he quickly realizes that it was Sasuke who landed the blow. Sasuke used Tsukuyomi to fool Danzo into thinking he had one eye left whereas in reality Danzo's supply was spent. Sasuke starts gloating but he falls to ground due to over-exertion, prompting Karin to offer up her arm for biting. Despite being seriously injured and out of chakra, Danzo refuses to give up, but first he loses control of the 1st Hokage’s wood jutsu and loses his right arm in the process. Danzo pulls off his bandages to reveal his remaining Sharingan, and since Sasuke has overused his eyes, Danzo manages to get around Sasuke and grab Karin. However, instead of trying to rescue Karin, Sasuke stabs through both Karin and Danzo with an arrow of chakra. From the sidelines, Madara looks on with approval.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ha, I was right about Sasuke using Tsukuyomi on Danzo, but then again most people would have guessed it. Looks like Sasuke is on his way to becoming an insane super villain of the series. That was a nice deranged crazy face he made near the end of the chapter. I'm not sure if Sasuke's new personality is an upgrade or downgrade from the previous emo state. We'll have to see what he does from this point. Sasuke is getting closer to beyond redemption (if he isn't already), so the chances of Naruto turning him back to the light is now slim to none which is probably a good thing. I'd prefer those two take each other out at the end (instead of taking each other out on a date).

It seems that both Danzo and Karin are done for now that Sasuke stabbed them both through the heart, but you can never be sure when there are Sharingans and Danzo involved. Maybe Danzo will turn into a liquid or something (a la Kurotsuchi from Bleach) and escape, since I have trouble believing that a mastermind like Danzo would be killed on the road and not as a part of a climatic showdown. Given that Danzo played a major part in a lot of Konoha's history, you'd think he'd stay alive until his secrets were all revealed, but who knows. This is Sasuke's show after all.

Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood 41

Ed vs. Kimblee and chimeras in Baschool.

Summary:
The blizzard has cleared in Baschool, which means Kimblee and Miles' groups can resume the search. Miles tells Ed and two loyal subordinates that they are going to take out Kimblee and his two underlings during the search. Ed disagrees with the killing, but Miles states that this is not the time to hesitate.

Golden Man? Are you guys talking about the Oscars?

I spy a metal boot sticking out of the snow.

Meanwhile in the mining tunnels, Scar's group takes a break to look at Scar's brother's research. Marcoh wonders what the book means by "golden man", and May explains that in Xing, the Golden Man refers to someone who is truly immortal. May also adds that legends said that it was a man who had gold hair and eyes (hinted to be Hohenheim) who brought alchemy to Xing. At this time Yoki returns and leads the group to the exit. As the group travels across the snowy outdoors, Winry and May hear a voice calling out for help, and quickly they located Al who is buried in the snow nearby. After being dug out, Al relays the news of Central soldiers taking over Briggs and advises the group to find another hiding place. Scar then leads the group towards a nearby village where a group of Ishvalans is rumored to live.

It's Lion King and Donkey Kong!

Back in Baschool, Ed accounts for the missing Al by making a Briggs soldier wear a fake suit of armor. The search for Scar begins, and soon Miles is informed that Kimblee's group is going to search the mine entrance, but they don't want any Briggs soldiers to be involved. Sensing that Kimblee is on to his plan, Mile and his two subordinates take up position in a building near the mine entrance. The two subordinates aim their rifles at Kimblee who is standing out in the open, but suddenly Ed walks onto the scene unexpectedly. Kimblee tells Ed that he knows there are snipers nearby and he uses alchemy to create a plume of fog and smoke to block out the vision of Miles' snipers. Ed spots Kimblee going into the mine, but he is blocked off by Darius and Heinkel who have transformed into their chimera forms. In the fog and smoke, the two chimeras have the advantage with their acute senses. Ed missteps and falls into mine and lands near boxes of damp dynamite. The two chimeras follows Ed down, but Ed takes them out by transmuting the dynamite into ammonia which overwhelms the chimeras' sense of smell.

It's still Lion King and Donkey Kong, who realize they need some noseplugs.

With Heinkel and Darius out for the moment, Ed confronts Kimblee. Kimblee takes out his Philosopher's Stone, but Ed knocks it away and slices through Kimblee's left hand. Ed thinks he has won, but Kimblee actually has another Philosopher's Stone in his mouth, which he uses to cause a great explosion that destroys most of the mine entrance. Ed eventually wakes out among the wreckage and discovers that he has been run through at the waist by a steel beam. At the same time out of the snowy wilderness, Al feels that his soul is being dragged to the Gate and loses consciousness.

There'll need to be some reconstruction if they want to open this town again.

OMG!!! Ed is dead!... Almost.

Back at the destroyed mine entrance, Ed summons enough strength to free Darius and Heinkel from the wreckage. Ed needs the two to pull the steel beam out of his body so he can seal the wound with alchemy. Darius and Heinkel are initially unsure, but they decide they are no fan of Kimblee and should repay Ed for saving their lives. After Heinkel pulls out the beam, Ed uses alchemy to seal his wound, paying with his own lifespan. Ed wants to go after Kimblee, but he faints due to blood lost and the wound not being completely treated. Darius and Heinkel pick up Ed and decide to carry him to a hospital first. Before leaving, Heinkel also picks up the Philosopher's Stone that Kimblee dropped.

Doing battlefield surgery on yourself is not a pleasant experience.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I didn't realize the series would be on to the "Ed almost died" part already. Brotherhood definitely hasn't slowed down. I remember one of the manga chapters ended with the cliffhanger with Ed discovered he was run through with a metal beam, but this episode went right past that. I suppose everyone knows that Ed can't die... at least not until the end anyways. At this rate, the series is going to run out of manga material to cover pretty soon. They might sneak in a recap or two in there, but I wonder how they are going to end this series. We all expect Brotherhood to end with the manga ending, but the manga doesn't look it'll end within the next half year.

Anyways, this was a pretty good episode. The first half was tame when compared to the exciting second half, but the scene where Scar, Marcoh and May were talking about the research was informative. I completely forgot that Hohenheim was supposed to be Sage of the West who brought alchemy to the Xingese. This partially explains what Hohenheim had been doing after leaving Xerxes, although there is still a lot of mystery surrounding the guy.

The highlight of the show was of course the second half action sequence. Heinkel and Darius made their action debut, and Kimblee finally did something impressive after getting out of jail. The battle showed that while Ed is ready to do nearly everything to get what he wants, his morality and decision not to kill/serious injure opponents can get him into trouble in battles against ruthless fiends like Kimblee. Both Ed and Al will be out of action and Kimblee got away, but on the bright side Ed gained two more allies in Darius and Heinkel. It's apparent that none of the chimeras have any real love for the Central military, and they are ready to switch sides when presented with a better option or any sort of hope. That's good news for Ed and their friends, since the the chimeras are pretty handy in a lot of situations.

A thing that I didn't really understand in this episode (and in the manga) is why Ed had to use his own life force to heal himself. The situation in this episode is not the same as he was trying to revive his mother since he is just sealing a wound rather than bringing a dead person back to life. It seems that any Amestrian alchemy that is done of the human body requires some source of power other than the usual power source. It just seems weird to me.

To Aru Kagaku no Railgun 16

Konori and Kurozuma's connection is revealed.

Aren't you girls getting a little too curious?

So Big Spider was originally a dance club.

Summary:
After chasing off the Big Spider gang, Konori wonders why Kurozuma hasn't contacted her, but Kurozuma leaves without saying much. After that day, Konori took a few days off from her Judgment duties, which leaves Mikoto and friends to wonder about the relationship between Konori and Kurozuma. To get some answers, Mikoto and company visit Konori's dorm. Konori is at home, but her roommate knows about Kurozuma and reveals that Konori used to be a member of Big Spider. Mikoto can't understand why Konori can't leave this behind and get back to her Judgment duties, but Konori's roommate and Ruiko separately state that it may be hard for Konori to let go of her past because the past is what made Konori the person she is today. Mikoto still doesn't understand, and back in the Judgment office Mikoto and friends learn that the Anti-Skill are planning to sweep through Strange tomorrow to apprehend Big Spider members.

Here's the lesson of the day: Say No to Gangs.

Later in the day, Mikoto confronts Konori on top of the building in Strange. Konori reveals that two years ago, Kurozuma went alone to rescue Hebitani from a rival gang. When Konori had arrived at the scene, the building at the scene had burned down and the only thing left of Kurozuma was his jacket. Konori states that incident and her experiences with Big Spider is what made her the person she is, but Mikoto is still unsatisfied. At this moment, Kurozuma appears and states he will take care of Big Spider by himself. Kurozuma advises Konori not to come back to Strange again as she has a new place to be, but Konori emotionally declares that her heart hasn't changed.

Ah Mikoto, always the one to use excessive force.

Looks like Konori-senpai has a few moves of her own.

At night back in her own dorm room, Mikoto thinks about Konori's situation and eventually comes to an understanding. The next day, Konori, sporting the red jacket she wore during her Big Spider days, arrives in Strange looking to help Kurozuma, but first she is joined by Mikoto and Kuroko who have also pledged to help. Not far away, Kurozuma has already tracked down Hebitani's gang and knocked out the door guard. Knowing that they are no match for Kurozuma in a fight, Hebitani and his gang pull out their guns, but Konori, Mikoto and Kuroko arrives and Kuroko puts spikes into all of the pistols. Hebitani then plans to use Capacity Down, but Mikoto blows up the van with a railgun coin. Kurozuma then proceeds to demolish Hebitani's cronies, and Konori lends a hand by knocking out a guy who was hiding a pistol. Soon only Hebitani is left standing. The desperate gang leader pulls open his jacket to reveal a belt of dynamite and threatens to blow himself up, but Kurozuma punches him out before he can light the fuse. After the fight, Hebitani and his gang are taken away by the Anti-Skill. Kurozuma also asks to be arrested, but before being taken away he jokes with Konori about drinking milk.

What kind of thug are you, Hebitani?
If you have a knife, you aim for the biggest target which is the body, not the head.

I think the jacket fits just fine.

Drinking milk helps you grow, including that area you two are looking at.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I wasn't expecting much out of this episode, but it turned out better than I thought mostly due to Konori's story. So Konori, the model senpai and dedicated Judgment member, actually used to be on the not-so-right side of the tracks. Konori certainly doesn't look like the type who would join a bunch of guys who rode around on motorcycles and raised a ruckus everywhere they went, but she was a loner back then and just wanted to find a place to belong. Kurozuma, despite being a hooligan and the milk thing, was a pretty charismatic leader, and it's not surprising that a young and slightly unbalanced Konori was drawn to him. This episode focused on the themes of "finding a place to belong" and "a person is influenced by their past", and I think the episode did a decent exploring these themes by telling Konori's story and having Mikoto question/think about Konori's motivations. Mikoto, having always been revered and respected, never had the sort of experiences that Konori and other not-as-talented students had, and so this was a good life lesson for her.

That was the decent parts of the episode. The not so great part was the whole thing with Hebitani and his thugs. I don't understand why Kuroko and Mikoto didn't arrest the whole lot of them after the end of last episode. The thugs were beat-up, on the run, and the Capacity Down van was broken. I'm reasonably sure Mikoto can stop bullets (given that she can instantly form a shield out of nearby metal), so there was nothing to stop them from putting away those thugs. The fight at the end of the episode wasn't bad, but Hebitani wrapping himself with dynamite was kind of stupid. Konori's see-through sight was also poorly showed up during the fight. Let's see, this hostile thug is reaching into his pocket in the middle of a fight for something. What could it possibly be? You don't exactly need X-ray vision in that situation.

Next episode looks like some random filler. Doesn't look too promising, but maybe it's a good thing that I'm keeping my expectations low.

Tenjou Tenge 130

I don't even know what's going on anymore.

Warning: Not safe for work.

Masataka, you lucky bastard!

My pathetic attempt at a summary:
The day after the big battle, Masataka, Maya, Aya, and most of the Juuken Club crew wake up back in their clubhouse. Meanwhile, Bunshichi is rushed to the ER while still smoking a cigarette. Elsewhere in the hospital, a bandaged-up Mitsuomi sits in bed while a doctor is flabbergasted that Mitsuomi's heart condition has disappeared. Mitsuomi explains that his brother has knocked the evil energy out of his heart and asks to be released from hospital. Emi and the rest of Executive Council officers are standing near the door to Mitsuomi's room, and Mitusomi tells them to follow their own paths.

At another corer of the hospital Madoka is feeling sick, and some of the nurses are barfing all over the place because a bunch of dead people including the Kabane siblings and Mitsuiro have come back to life. Mrs. Hotaru realizes that someone is using the Fire Dragon's Gate to revive these dead people, and there is only one person left in the world who has this ability...

How I wish this was a real fight between Souichirou and Masataka...

Behind the Juuken Club clubhouse, Masataka confronts the long-haired Souichirou. Souichirou explains that he has used Sohaku's power (which he absorbed) to revive all the people who were killed in the big battle, but the spell will only last as long as Souichirou himself is still alive. Souichirou asks if Masataka wants to fight him even knowing that it would mean the permanent death of the others. Masataka answers that he is not fighting to kill Souichirou, but Souichirou thinks that Masataka is not ready, so he arranges for the two of them to fight the next time the cherry trees bloom. Souichirou then dashes off, and Masataka practices his moves by stabbing his toothbrush into a nearby cherry tree.

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Uh... *Looks back at chapter 129*... uh... I'm at a loss for words. What in the universe happened here?! I was expecting two big battles: Masataka vs. Souichirou in the real world, and Souichirou and co. vs. Sohaku in the imaginary world. But now suddenly the battles are over and the good guys won?! WTF?! I feel robbed. Did I miss a couple of chapters in between? Seems like a large chunk of the story is missing here...

Usually series tend to do a time skip after the climatic battle, but it looks like Tenjou Tenge went one step further that and chose to time-skip over the climatic battle entirely. I'm not sure what the point of this was, other than to make the series even more hopelessly confusing. If you are not confused after chapter 129, you should be after reading this chapter. I think Oh! great might have given up and decided to end this series with as little effort as possible. Well, at least you can say that he did in style. That was some epic trollage.

Anyways, this is not the last chapter, so perhaps there will be a final Masataka vs. Souichirou fight, but at this point does it matter anymore? I've followed this series this far, so it's too late for me to stop reading.

Neon Genesis Evangelion 84

The battle continues at NERV HQ.

Farewell.

List of highlights:
- Asuka destroys a few more mass-produced Evas as the battery to Unit 02 runs down.
- Misato kills herself and a few enemy soldiers with a grenade.
- Shinji arrives at Unit 01's chamber but he can't climb into the Eva because of sludge/mud blocking his way. Shinji begs Unit 01 (addressing it as his mother) to move, and miraculously Unit 01 swings its arm out to provide a path for Shinji, and in the process the Eva kills a couple of enemy soldiers.

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As with most if not all of the previous chapters, I couldn't find any major deviations from the End of Evangelion movie. There are some details that I don't remember seeing, such as Misato killing herself with a grenade and Shinji getting Unit 01 to move by calling out to his mother, but that's probably because I don't remember much from EoE. A couple of commenters mentioned that the manga will probably have the same ending as EoE, which could very well be the case, but I'm hoping for something different. Otherwise, what would be the point of dragging this manga out more than a decade after the film was released just so that the manga can come to the exact same conclusion? (other than people trying to milk the series for all its worth lol)

Naruto 479

Sasuke vs. Danzo continued.

The vacuum cleaner from hell.

Summary:
Sasuke pierces Danzo with another arrow but Danzo survives using Izanagi, and Sasuke is having trouble maintaining Susanoo. Watching from the sidelines, Madara thinks about the Izanagi technique. Izanagi is the ultimate illusion that allows the user to control their personal reality for a moment, but it comes at the cost of permanently blindness. With five open Sharingans left on his arm, Danzo decides to take a chance and summons a huge chimera called a baku which tries to vacuum Sasuke into its mouth. Sasuke and his Susanoo are unable to move under the vortex, allowing Danzo to sneak behind. Danzo creates a gap in Susanoo by hitting it with a wind blade attack, but Sasuke manages to take out the baku with a fire blast and then uses Susanoo to punch Danzo away. On the sidelines, Karin has been keeping track of time and realizes that every minute one of the eyes on Danzo's arm closes. Karin tells this to Sasuke, and Sasuke reacts by immediately smashing Danzo with Susanoo, leaving Danzo with three open Sharingans on his arm. The fight continues and Sasuke lets go of Susanoo and forms his chakra into a blade, while Danzo, now with only one open eye on his arm, puts his chakra onto a kunai. The two fighters charge and impale each other with their respective weapons.

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I'm surprised. Looks like Danzo doesn't have any other improbable powers. His only move of note in this chapter (other than Izanagi) was to summon the giant vacuum beast, which exploded when Sasuke fed it hot air. I'm not quite sure why Danzo's Sharingans started closing really quickly near the end of the chapter even though Sasuke didn't land any major blows, but I suppose it could be just Danzo running out of chakra. Danzo probably dodged Sasuke's stab with Izanagi, but Sasuke went nuclear eyes at the end so he may have hit Danzo with Tsukuyomi. Despite ridiculous powers from both Sasuke and Danzo, this has been a pretty entertaining battle, and I'm looking forward to see how it'll end (supposedly next issue). I want to see if Danzo actually dies or not.

Bleach 389

The shinigamis and Vizards are about to gang up on Aizen.

Honestly, Ichigo, we were just waiting for you to arrive so we can take the group photo.

Summary:
The shinigamis and Vizards take turns to encourage and pledge support for Ichigo, their holy savior. Meanwhile, Unohana goes to take a look at Hyori who is being kept alive by Hachigen. Hitsugaya launches into action first and clashes with Aizen with both swords and words, but Aizen unleashes his trash talking skills and riles up Hitsugaya. While pissing off Hitsugaya, Aizen also has to deal with Kyoraku who sneak attacks twice, but Aizen repels both attempts. Hitsugaya is so pissed that he unleashes his bankai, but Kyoraku warns him to not be so hasty.

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It certainly looks like Kubo is setting Aizen up to cut through a few of the good guys so that Ichigo can get into the fighting mood. As people have mentioned already, if the shinigamis and Vizards were going to gang up on Aizen then why didn't they do it sooner? They waited until Ichigo arrived just so that Ichigo can stay on the sidelines and watch? I suppose by shounen-hero logic, perhaps it makes perfect sense. Since Hitsugaya charged into the fray first, he's probably going to be the first one to fall victim to Aizen, but Hitsugaya probably won't die given his popularity among fans.

Given that everyone's attention seems to be on Aizen, I'm guessing that Gin is going to get more easy kills. Nobody is paying attention to that guy, and he seems to have disappeared from the story in the last few chapters.

One Piece 571

A mad scramble at the execution platform to save Ace.

Kids these days have no respect for their seniors.

Summary:
Garp jumps onto the ramp Inazuma created and is blocking Luffy's way. Luffy asks Garp to step aside, but Garp refuses to budge. Since Garp has broken the ramp, Luffy has no time to stall and charges straight at Garp. Garp swings at Luffy but hesitates at the last moment, and this allows Luffy to dodge the punch and knock Garp off the ramp. Luffy jumps onto the execution platform and fumbles with the key to Ace's cuffs, but the key is destroyed by a beam from Kizaru. Right next Luffy and Ace, Sengoku unleashes his ability and transform into a dark-colored giant, while the Marines around the platform aim their bazookas at Luffy and Ace. At this moment, Luffy suddenly recognizes that one of the executioners is Mr. 3. Mr. 3 wakes up and protects Ace with a wax wall as Luffy takes the brunt of Sengoku's punch by inflating himself. Sengoku's punch causes the platform to tip sideways, sending the brothers and Mr. 3 falling towards the ground. In the air, Mr. 3 forms a wax key to Ace's cuffs and hands it to Luffy just as the shells from Marine cannons fly towards the falling platform. The platform is obliterated by the shelling, but Luffy freed Ace in time and Ace uses his fire to save Luffy and Mr. 3 from explosion.

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Exciting chapter, but I'm a little disappointed that Garp kind of just chickened out and effectively let Luffy get past him. I was hoping for a bit more on the grandson vs. grandpa match-up, but I suppose Garp letting Luffy knock him out was the easiest way out. Garp is probably going to pay for this, but that will be a while later now that Ace has been freed. Now that Ace has been freed, the most pertinent question now is which (pirate) characters will survive this battle. Ace's freedom does give the pirates a morale boost, but I don't think Ace by himself will be able to turn the tides and bring victory to the pirates. The chances of Ace surviving have improved though. Unless some miracle happens, a good number of pirates will probably be killed or captured especially now that Sengoku has inserted himself into the fight.

Gantz 311

More people join the fight against the aliens.

Keep those feet moving, Kurono! You are not going to beat them by standing still.

Summary:
Kurono #2, Reika, and the civilians they've saved find themselves surrounded by a dozen alien troopers. Reika screams for the civilians to run indoors or into an alley, but it's too late as many of the people are shredded to pieces by the aliens' disc cannons. Kurono jumps in to battle the troopers, allowing Reika to grab the few survivors and drags them onto a nearby balcony. Kurono tries his best to take down the troopers, but there are too many of them and after dodging many discs Kurono is tripped up and falls to the ground. Several troopers train their cannons onto Kurono, but suddenly all of the troopers are crushed into the ground by H-guns. Reika and Kurono wonder what happened, and seconds later they see many other Gantz players decloaking nearby.

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I initially thought that Nishi had saved Kurono #2, but I quickly realized that it's not possible since Nishi has no love for anybody on the Tokyo team. It looks like Gantz players from other locations have been summoned to Tokyo this time. If the new fighters are summoned from other cities, then it probably means that not all cities have been attacked by the aliens. It makes sense for reinforcements to be summoned, since the ~10 members of the Tokyo Team sure aren't going to save the city by themselves, even if they have two Kuronos. It's pretty sad that none of the people on the Tokyo team except Nishi knows how to use the cloaking in their suits. Speaking of Kuronos, Kurono #2 wasn't too impressive this chapter. Yeah, he was up against a dozen troopers, but they are pretty slow and Kurono should be able to dash in and out between them and they might take each other out with the discs.

Things are becoming more interesting now that other Gantz teams have appeared. Most people probably still have level 1 (X and Y-guns) and level 2 (H-guns) weapons, but I wonder if there's anything else in the Gantz arsenal. It'd be cool to see what one of those super-suits would do against the aliens. I'm also waiting to see if the Tokyo team will find anything special in the Gantz apartment.

Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood 40

The story of how Father and Hohenheim came to be.

I don't think Riza would approve of a dinner-date with Major General Armstrong.

Summary:
Olivier Armstrong has been summoned to Central to meet with King Bradley. Bradley asks Olivier about what happened to Raven, and Olivier reveals that she disposed of him and knows about the immortal army and Bradley's true identity. Olivier wants Raven's seat among the top generals, and Bradley gives the seat to her. Meanwhile in the cafeteria, Mustang sits down with Riza to have a little chat, but Riza is secretly passing a message to Mustang. Later in the washroom, Mustang decodes the message and is shocked to learn that Selim is a homunculus.

Couldn't people tell that he was evil just by the appearance?

Deep underground, Father is asleep on his throne and he dreams about a long time ago in the Kingdom of Xerxes. In a laboratory, a young slave called number 23 is talking to an intelligent black mass inside a flask. The black mass, calling himself Homunculus, came to life thanks to the slave boy's blood, so as a show of appreciation Homunculus names the slave Van Hohenheim and teaches him alchemy. Under Homunculus' teaching, Hohenheim becomes an accomplished alchemist and earns the favor of his master. Hohenheim thanks Homunculus for the teaching and states that he might actually achieve happiness by marrying and having kids. Hohenheim asks Homunculus about what would make him happy, and Homunculus answers that he'd be happy if he can live outside the flask and move on his own.

Hohenheim was actually quite the handsome man when he was young... He doesn't look nearly as good now.

Let's get this party started.

One day, Hohenheim's master brings Homunculus in front of the king. The king wants to become immortal, and Homunculus agrees to give out the plan. Following Homunculus' plan, the king orders a huge transmutation circle to be dug around the kingdom under the guise of digging irrigation channels, and on five points of the circle the workers are slaughtered by the king's forces posing as bandits. A few years later, the work is finally complete, and the king assembles his trusted followers, including Hohenheim and his master and also Homunculus, inside the palace for the transmutation. The king invokes the transmutation, but soon he and many of his followers fall to the ground and die. Hohenheim wonders what has gone wrong, and Homunculus reveals that actually it is not the king but himself and Hohenheim who are standing in the true center of the array. A gigantic eyes open from the floor and swallows both Hohenheim and Homunculus, and Hohenheim's body is broken down. The transmutation spreads through the entire kingdom and shadowy arms emerge out of the ground and fly back into the giant eye in the center of the array.

Looks like the party has gone out of control.

The next morning, Hohenheim wakes up and discovers that everyone around him is dead. Hohenheim makes his way to the outside balcony and sees dead people lying everywhere on the streets. Hohenheim wonders if anyone is still alive, and suddenly a voice explains that all the people are dead because their souls have been extracted. Hohenheim turns around and sees a doppelganger of himself, but soon realizes that the look-alike is actually Homunculus. Homunculus explains that he has taken half of the souls from the kingdom and made an immortal body for Hohenheim, and used the other half to make his own body based on Hohenheim's blood. Homunculus thanks Hohenheim for his cooperation, and Hohenheim screams out in horror.

Not trapped in the flask anymore.

Back in the present on a train, Hohenheim is woken up by the dream. Hohenheim is then approached by Izumi and Sig because Izumi recognizes Hohenheim as Ed and Al's father. The three travel into town together and suddenly Izumi has her usual coughing fit. Hohenheim states that he knows a bit of medicine and asks Sig to go secure a vehicle. After Sig runs off, Hohenheim asks Izumi about what she've lost to see the Truth, and Izumi reveals that she lost some of her organs while trying to revive her dead baby. Hohenheim pauses for a moment, and then he stabs his left hand into Izumi's abdomen. Sig returns and punches Hohenheim away, but both he and Izumi are surprised that there's no wound on Izumi's stomach and that Izumi is actually feeling better. Hohenheim explains that while he cannot replace Izumi's lost organs, he rearranged what's left so Izumi has better blood flow. Izumi wonders who Hohenheim really is, and Hohenheim answers that he is a living and breathing Philosopher's Stone. Meanwhile up in the north, Ed states to Miles that he has never seen a Philosopher's Stone bigger than a small piece of rock, and if there are larger ones than it must have been made by sacrificing many people.

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Excellent episode. Bones did a great job putting Hohenheim and Father's story into anime form. This was a really important episode since it basically explains how everything started in FMA. We find out the answers to several big questions, including what happened to Xerxes, why Hohenheim and Father look alike, and the secrets to Father and Hohenheim's bodies. People who don't read the manga also now know who the blond guy in the first OP sequence was (a young Hohenheim). From his rather humble beginnings inside a flask, Homunculus manages to become one of the major powers of the world thanks mostly to people's (the king of Xerxes) fear of death. One important question that wasn't answered though was how Hohenheim's master managed to create Homunculus/Father. Judging by his original appearance and knowledge of alchemy, Homunculus may have come from the other side of the gate, but we don't know how he was created/brought to this world. Maybe the series will explain this and also what Hohenheim did for last couple hundred years later in the story.

The scenes outside of the main flashback sequence were pretty interesting too. Olivier manages to get a foothold in Central, while Mustang learns about Selim's true identity. The colonel and major general also had a run-in with each other, and despite Olivier's distaste for Mustang, the two of them will probably work together against the Central forces. Moving on, Hohenheim has a chance run-in with Izumi and Sig. We still don't know what Hohenheim is up to these days. Not too long ago he released a few souls into the ground, but nothing came out of that yet. Anyways, it's good that he and the Curtises ran into each other, since the people who are against Central/Father really do need to unite to have a chance at winning.

Next week the story moves back to the north, where Winry's group is still walking towards a trap, Al has trouble walking in the snow, and Ed vs. Donkey Kong and Lion King. Should be fun.

To Aru Kagaku no Railgun 15

Mikoto and Kuroko investigate a gang of armed Level 0s called Big Spider who have been attacking abilities users.

It wouldn't be a Railgun episode without a bit of yuri fondling.

Summary:
In a back alley, Kuroko, Konori and Kazari are investigating an attack against Mitsuko. Mitsuko was surrounded by a gang of Level 0s and a strange headache rendered her unconscious. However, before losing consciousness, Mitsuko remembers a man with a spider tattoo on his back intervened and beat up all the thugs. While listening to Mitsuko, Kuroko notices that Konori seems to be acting weird, but Konori tells Kuroko that there's nothing wrong with her. Later back at the Judgment branch, Kuroko and company discuss the case further and they determine that a Skill Out (armed Level 0s) gang called Big Spider is responsible for the attacks. Konori, appearing to be quite familiar with the subject, states that Big Spider used to have an honor code but has become ruthless in recently.

Deep down, Kazari is wondering why she hangs out with these two weirdos.

Later in the day, Mikoto learns about the attacks and inserts herself into the investigation. Back at the Judgment office, Kazari tells Mikoto and Kuroko that the leader of Big Spider is a man by the name of Kurosma who has a spider tattoo on his back. After learning that Big Spider is headquartered in the 10th district nicknamed "Strange", Mikoto and Kuroko decide to go investigate. They ask if Konori want to come along, but Konori lies that she has paperwork to do. Later back in her dorm room, Konori wonders if the man with the spider tattoo is a senpai she had known before.

Drink milk, kids.

Because this is what can happen to you if you don't drink milk.

Shortly after arriving at the rundown "Strange", Mikoto and Kuroko are approached by a gang of thugs. Mikoto and Kuroko are about to hand the thugs a beating, but suddenly a milk-drinking man intervenes and beats up the thugs. Afterwards, Mikoto and Kuroko talk with the stranger who reveals that he hasn't been to "Strange" in two years. Kuroko asks the man if he knows anything about Big Spider and Kurosma, but the man warns Kuroko and Mikoto to not mention Big Spider before wandering off. Mikoto and Kuroko think the man is rather suspicious, but they decide not to follow the man.

Nice sound system, although it's a bit weird that they use big speakers to generate high frequency sound.

After beating up a band of thugs from Big Spider, Mikoto and Kuroko eventually find their way to Big Spider's headquarters and are confronted more thugs and a man who claims to be Kurosma. Mikoto and Kuroko think nothing of the thugs, but suddenly both are hit with a strange headache which renders them unable to control their abilities. Kurosma points to a speaker system in a nearby van and states that the device, called Capacity Down, emits a sound that has no effect on Level 0s but messes up abilities users. Things look bad for Mikoto and Kuroko, but suddenly the milk-drinking man from before appears and pulls the plug on the speakers. The thugs recognized the man from previous beatings, and "Kurosma" looks as if he is seeing a ghost. The man refers to "Kurosma" as Hebitani, and Hebita can't believe the milk-drinking man is still alive. Hebitani orders his thugs to attack the man, but the man easily takes out all of them and Hebitani runs away with a few thugs. After the fight, Mikoto and Kuroko figure out the milk-drinking man is the real Kurosma. Suddenly, Konori appears out of nowhere, and Mikoto and Kuroko are surprised that Konori and Kurosma seem to know each other.

Had to include a screen shot of Konori, but I don't really have a good caption since she didn't do anything interesting this entire episode.

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Firstly, we have new OP and ED this week. The OP song is still by fripside and the ED song still by ELISA. Both are okay songs, but I think the old ones were better. Maybe the songs will grow on me later on. As for the animation sequences, the ED is just Mikoto's 4-koma playing around. The OP is more interesting in comparison. Judging by the sequence, this season of Railgun won't be covering the Misaka arc in the manga. Rather there will probably be a story arc about the evil glasses lady (not the dorm supervisor) voiced by Sayaka Ohara. It's interesting that Kiyama still received a substantial amount of screen time in the OP, so perhaps she will make a return some time during this season. Lastly, there is a brief glimpse of Index along with Touma in the OP, but I'm guessing those two will be at most making brief cameos.

Moving on to the episode, it was rather mediocre. The preview from last week was misleading since it only showed the brief action scene near the end of the episode, and that was the only action scene. I was expecting more beatdowns. The Skill Outs didn't turn out to be very interesting either since they mostly relied on numbers to take down abilities users. The Capacity Down system was the only somewhat cool trump card Big Spider had, but now that Kurosma has pulled the plug on that there's not much else left in regards to the present story. Without that noise generator, Hebitani and the thugs pose zero threat to Mikoto and Kuroko. It was also disappointing that despite all the hinting about Konori's connection with Kurosma, Knonori herself ends up doing nothing until the end of the show. Next episode will probably be Kurosma moping up what's left of Big Spider and maybe a trip down memory lane about Kurosma and Konori's history, which doesn't sound too exciting. Seeing that every episode will be anime-original from now on, hopefully this episode isn't an indication for the rest of the season. I'll be satisfied if Mikoto gets to blow stuff up every so often.