Because the focus of my blog is both organizing and sharing my ongoing thoughts about seasonal anime, as well as exploring new shows that have already released and sharing my love of shows that I watched before I started my blog, there are two different review formats that I utilize depending upon what show I am discussing and what my history with that show is.

Standard Review

When I am talking about shows I have watched in the past, or shows that I am binging episode after episode outside of my regular seasonal anime viewing, I use a more conventional review structure. This begins with what drew me to the show, and then goes through things like it’s story, characters, production values, romantic relationships, content warnings, or anything else I think is important for a potential viewer to know about.

My regular reviews are broad, sweeping overviews of a show, with the goal of getting people to watch it. I’m not as concerned about season by season breakdowns of a show if I’m reviewing it outside of an active season of anime. You don’t need to know if season three of My Hero Academia is good if you’re deciding whether to watch season one. I write reviews with the intent of helping people find and begin new shows so they can decide for themselves whether they like them. I’m not here to convince you why you should like something. I’m here to share why I like it and why you might want to try it.

Review in Progress

For shows that I am actively covering during an anime season, my review process is different. I utilize a review in progress philosophy, where in addition to the episode discussions that I write, I also write an ongoing review over the course of the season. I find this interesting because it allows me, and anyone else who reads it, to see how my feelings about a show evolve over time.

These reviews, like my standard reviews, begin with my thoughts going in. I then write a first impression after watching the first episode, and a quarter season / three episode rule update after the third episode. The next episode comes around episode six, which is generally half way through an anime season. Here, my focus is on looking at how things have built up and where I think a show is going moving forward.

Next is around episode nine, where a show is at roughly the three quarter mark. And the last happens after a show’s finale, or the finale for that season in the case of something that is running for more than one season / cour. This is where I look at the thing as a whole, in light of my thoughts throughout the course of its run, and determine what I thought of it.

Reviews vs. Episode Discussions?

Reviews are about the overall collective structure of how a season of a show, or a show as a whole, comes together. When I write a review, I am looking at what I liked and did not like, in a general sense, and trying to use that to help someone determine if they’d like to watch a show. In my reviews, I do my best to avoid giving away major spoilers. Reviews are meant to help someone determine whether they want to experience a show. Not to manipulate that experience for them.

Episode discussions are for other people who have watched an episode of a show, and are looking for someone to talk about it. Anime is way more popular than it used to be, but with 50+ shows coming out each season, it can still be tough to find other people who are interested in the shows you are interested in. Especially if your favorite of the season isn’t a returning show or the latest and greatest hotness. In episode discussions, my focus is on diving into an episode, talking about key things that happened in it, sharing how the episode made me feel, and musing about possibilities for the plot, characters, and other story aspects.

My episode one discussions are generally pretty safe for anyone to watch, but as a season progresses and more and more things happen, the spoiler content in each of episode discussions tends to increase a lot. It took me a while making videos and figuring out what I wanted from them to figure this out.