I had missed that this was a .5 chapter when I started and was really confused. I was expecting some kind of resolution to the big cliffhanger from last chapter. I will never complain about a hot springs chapter though.

That is fantastic. I know some people don’t like when localization goes beyond just translation, but that is a work of art.

Daisuke is just too strong at this point. He has been on a 300+ chapter training arc in the background apparently.

It makes me sad that there are just four chapters left to go, but I will definitely be keeping tabs on this author going forward. Between this series and Shinryaku Ika Musume, their sense of humor for SOL is just so perfectly aligned with mine. Really glad to see that we are getting some time with other characters next chapter.

Wonder how many of these Aster stories we are getting. They are still introducing new characters like this new wizard master.

I do like how she has learned enough about herself through this process to realize she could have been happy without going to such extreme lengths.

Only one more chapter to go…

For the penultimate chapter we get a bit of a speedrun through university entrance exams and graduation prep. My favorite part was how they were literally running to each other for a celebratory hug.

Looks like the final chapter will be graduation speeches by both of them.

A quick search turned up a game for the Sega Saturn. I have heard of the series before, but didn’t know about the game until now.

Aoi is out here causing misunderstandings with her students. Turns out she also wants to eat the rich:

Hopefully that is what the news is going to be. I have enjoyed this one. The dad suddenly appearing like a jump scare was pretty good.

I don’t think doing anything like that is what she has in mind…

it’s way less serious than the PVs make it look like

That is what I was hoping for. I am down for debugging hijinks, so sign me up.

I have grown to like the Ruri/Maeda dynamic. It’s kind of nice to have a character that isn’t afraid to throw around cutting remarks, but…out of love, to keep the others grounded.

Really love that they stuck erasers on her horns. It’s such a little thing, but totally feels like something you would do to tease your friend if they had horns.

I was wondering why Akira wasn’t there during the training. Seems like she will be the final boss instead. Both Sumika and Kanae were great this chapter. Kanae knows exactly what she wants and isn’t afraid to be a bit shameless about it.

I think you are missing Dahlia in Bloom. @NineSwords@ani.social recommended that one based on the LN, so I am planning on checking it out.

Another one I have my eye on is Quality Assurance. I haven’t really been able to make heads or tails of it based on the synopsis and the PV. The title makes me think that it is a VR-style world and the QA part of the title is about hunting for bugs in the code. However, all the synopses and the PV make it look like a serious fantasy story. Probably going to wait and see what the initial reaction is before diving in.

Yeah, this only adapts the first chapter of the manga and Takuma kinda sucks here. I had kind of forgotten that this is how we are introduced to his character because it feels so different than how he acts in the rest of the story. Like, the obsessing over Mina is always there, but the drinking and overall patheticness are dialed back going forward and it is much more of just a romance.

What are your thoughts on Mina’s voice? Unlike Mina, I have mixed feelings about it. I am hoping that I get more used to it as time goes on.

Yeah…I was excited for this one since I really like the manga. However, my excitement has dropped a bit after the first episode. I am not sure if I am going to get used to the Mina voice or not. I hadn’t watched any of the PVs before diving in since I knew this was one I was going to check out already, but…yeah…will take some getting used to. This might be one of those things that is done better in the manga format, where the dialog boxes are shaped differently to denote that Mina is speaking:

Otherwise, this episode only adapts the first manga chapter, establishing the premise. Now that we got Takuma’s pathetic phase out of the way, we can focus on the actual fun part of the story. Reading into the OP and ED, it looks like we are going to get a pretty full cast of characters. However, some notable absences from the characters we see that I welcome:

Looking forward to see where this goes and I am hoping that the Mina voice won’t bother me as much going forward.

@rikka@ani.social

Have you read the source for this one? I haven’t really looked at the Fall season too much yet to see what’s coming. The only show I know is airing this Fall I am definitely watching is Natsume. So, likely plenty of room to squeeze in a good otome story.

Their teaser visual is basically just a lightly edited version of the LN Vol. 1 cover. However, the date announcement I thought was worth posting. The series was originally announced back in 2023 with no updates since.

I am trying to think of demographics that wouldn’t really be represented here and I came up with a couple ideas, but the biggest is probably kids. So, I wonder if a show like Tonbo! did well enough with a young audience to get a second season, but it just isn’t showing up here.

It’s pretty safe to say that Astro Note bombed pretty hard based on the staff apologizing about the show.

So, a bit of a different type of post from me this week. Instead of highlighting interesting series I found this past week, I wanted to talk about a couple series I have come across recently that all seem to have a similar premise. See if you can spot a theme!

In no particular order:

• Ore ni Trauma wo Ataeta Joshi-tachi ga Chirachira Mitekuru kedo, Zannen desu ga Teokure desu

This series begins with the MC’s childhood friend turning down his confession because she is dating somebody else. We then see him declare himself as a gloomy character on the first day of school and profess that he is going to drop out. As the story goes on, we see that he has a history with several other female characters in which he thinks they loathe him and he tries to push them away while living his best life without them. However, is loathing what they really feel towards our MC?

• Itsumo Baka ni shitekuru Bishoujo-tachi to Zetsuen shitara, Jitsu wa Ore no Koto ga Daisuki Datta you da.

This story starts with the MC in a relationship. However, his girlfriend breaks up with him for being too nice and accommodating, allowing others to take advantage of him. We later meet two other characters; a kouhai that mercilessly teases him, and a maid at a local cafe that berates him (and the other guests). Eventually, the MC gets fed up with this treatment and decides to cut all three out of his life altogether. However, after doing so, they approach him completely differently. What could their true feelings towards the MC be?

• Osananajimi Kanojo no Morahara ga Hidoin de Zetsuen Sengen shite Yatta

This one starts with the MC dumping his girlfriend. Then, he gives himself a bit of a makeover and makes a debut in school as a hottie (I guess bangs make the man?). As the story goes, we see the MC get to know his classmates (something his overbearing girlfriend never let him do) and his ex scheme her way back into his life. For somebody that treated the MC like crap, she sure is trying hard to get his attention…

All three of these series are wish fullfilment in its purest form. Enormous mountains of drama that don’t hold any punches in dialing up the absurdity. It is a bit of a guilty pleasure of mine to read stuff like this that is just full angst and manufactured drama (I blame DomeKano for starting me down this path). If that is what you are looking for, then these series are decent passes at it. Don’t expect logic, likeable characters, character growth, or any of that. Just turn your brain off and strap in. If you like fantasy/isekai stories that are “I got kicked out of the hero’s party and my life is awesome while theirs sucks now” then you would like this high school equivalent genre of “I dumped the toxic people out of my life and my life is awesome now.”