Took out my trumpet to record a bit. Can only do about 15 minutes before lips get too tired, but was nice to get it oiled up and making sound again. Still frustrated that I can’t seem to find my SM57s after the remodel. Was holding off on getting new mics thinking they might turn up, but no dice.

Tsue to Tsurugi no Wistoria

None of the charm of Dungeon but with all the production values (trailed off at the end - You could tell they ran out of money in the last third as every action shot was matched with one or two stills) The discrimination conflict just isn’t believable and is far too repetitive.

6/10

Interesting that again there was a huge spike but no long tail in artist accounts moving from Twitter/X to Bluesky. I was expecting a longer tail as what seemed to be a critical mass took action, but maybe it has to do the venn diagram of communities.

I think this latest dick move has finally pushed the rest of the artists I used to follow on twitter to create accounts on bluesky and I’m 100% here for it. My timeline is finally starting to feel like it did a few years ago.

I always thought Blue Box would have been a better story without the “living in the same house” angle, but seeing Wit Studio put the vision on screen is a treat in and of itself.

Tokidoki Bosotto Russiago de Dereru Tonari no Alya-san

This one was unexpected. I thought it would be a show rife with “misunderstanding” hijinks, but the language conceit cleared a path for more in depth character motives and backstories. To be clear, there are definitely hijinks to be had, but with more charm than I was expecting. Doga Kobo knows what they are doing and at this point, you should give every one of their shows a fair shot. Looking forward to season 2.

8/10

Make Heroine ga Oosugiru!

The attention, love, and care the production team put into this adaptation is breath taking. Incredible animation, environments, voice acting - An absolute tour de force. The story may be hit or miss depending on what you bring to the table, but the characters are more honest and real than most in this genre.

9/10

Forgot that the iPad version of Photoshop doesn’t let you edit the parameters of the crop box, leaving it exclusively to your meat fingers to try in vein to precise crop an image. No presets for you either. What a joke.

In spite of the heat wave causing delays this week, I got a chance to ride CalTrain’s new electric trains. Have to say, a very worthwhile upgrade. Still, a bit miffed that my stop was dropped from the limited service, but I’ll make due with the local train.

Mayonaka Punch

Great animation from PA Works with a heart felt (if not contrived) plot device. The Youtube/creator elements didn’t really resonate with me, so this one is probably just a hit or miss depending on your approach to the subject matter. Still, I enjoyed the show even if I wanted a bit more from the main couple.

6/10