You can tell that Gunslinger Girl is really old, and not just because the animation looks old. You can tell it’s really old because, despite the name, it doesn’t actually use the modern Gunslinger Girl trope. But you know what else? That’s a good good thing. Okay, first of all, we have to remember that […]
Confessions of an Overage otaku
17 days ago • Subscribe
More like this
How To Build a Story: Descending Stories
I know there’s a Descending Stories anime. I think it’s on Tootsieroll, or whatever that service that Sony just bought is called, but I haven’t seen it. But…
How to Build a Story: The Flowers of Evil (Part I)
Sawa Nakamura her own self I waited until the complete The Flowers of Evil manga set went on sale before picking it up. I won’t say that was…
How to Build a Story: The Flowers of Evil (Part II)
Okay, last week we left the Flowers of Evil kids in the pits, as Acts I and II of the five that comprise the story resolve the first…
Gunslinger Girl Review
It’s not uncommon in anime to depict children committing violent acts, and presenting this as exciting, titillating, or cool. Gokukoku no Brynhildr, Black Bullet, and Pupa are all…
Black Bullet, Brynhildr in the Darkness, Gunslinger Girl, Pupa
How To Build a Series: Toradora
I always like a nice case of Stealth Storytelling. Look, in a lot of ways, when you have a really basic story what you’re really exploring is character…
How to Build a Series: Toradora
Romances, especially teen-aged romances, seem pretty difficult for anime. Not harems, mind you, just plain old every day romances between two people. There aren’t a lot of them…
How to Build a Series: 86
Our old friends Salvati and Simplicito scored BIG on their last series, The Elite Classroom (not to be confused with Classroom of the Elite, which was created by…
How to Build a Series: Death Note
Death Note is one of those anime stories that tries to be deep by asking deep questions. There are others. Ghost in the Shell asks “What does it…
Confessions of an Overage otaku
One-Punch Man, Revolutionary Girl Utena, Death Note, Ghost in the Shell
How to Build a Series: TP Bon
Okay, I write science fiction, so I’m a sucker for stuff like time travel as long as the writers can convincingly deploy handwavium. You know handwavium: “We can…
How to Build a Series: Strike Witches
I’ll just say it: the neat thing about Strike Witches is that it’s like a good stew, a whole bunch of things thrown together that work together to…
How to Build a Series: Fruits Basket
Fruits Basket is one of those things that looks like a delightful piece of fluff but is actually a masterclass in story construction when you look at it…
How To Build a Series: Steins;Gate
Steins;Gate is one of those things I saw a long time ago but never really had a chance to take a close look at until just recently. It’s…
How to Build a Series: Samurai Champloo
I don’t talk enough about Samurai Champloo. I guess that’s because it’s Shinichiro Watanabe’s second series, and let’s be honest: Once you’ve made Cowboy Bebop there’s only one…
Gunslinger Girl — Anime Review
Now this isn't criticism on my part. Gunslinger Girl is very aware that its premise is nightmarish from a moral perspective.
How to Build a Series: Dan Da Dan
Okay, first of all Dan Da Dan falls under the “It’s New” rule. I’ll do my best not to reveal spoilers. Although, SPOILER, it’s a high school romance…
How to Build a Series: Knights of Sidonia
There are some shows that are constructed so cleverly that I would give anything to be a fly on the wall during their development meetings. In fact, I…
How to Build a Series: Thermae Romae Novae
WARNING: This discussion violates my rule on not talking about anime that are just out. It contains spoilers! Be warned. In a lot of ways Thermae Romae Novae…
How to Build a Series: My Happy Marriage
Look, there are times when you can look at creating a story/series as being like cooking from a recipe. That doesn’t mean it’s going to work. You can…
How To Build a Series: Spy X Family
Okay, repeat after me: Stories don’t need conflict if you don’t want people to pay any attention to them. Of course, if you DO want people to like…
Gunslinger Girl – 10 [Amare (To Love)] – Throwback Thursday
A day late on this weeks Gunslinger Girl, I know. Personally, I blame the pandemic because I have lost all sense of time, stuck at home all day.…
Gunslinger Girl: Il Teatrino OVA
I’ve gone over most of the anime Gunslinger Girl series. This time around we’re finishing the series with the OVA, like Il Teatrino, this one was handled by…
Gunslinger Girl, Gunslinger Girl -Il Teatrino-, Gunslinger Girl: Il Teatrino OVA
How to Build a Series: Classroom of the Elite
Due to popular demand, we return to our anime-writing friends Salvati and Simplicito. You know, the guys Galileo used to explain how the Earth goes around the Sun.…
How Not to Build a Series: Girls und Panzer
I REALLY REALLY wanted to like Girls und Panzer. Seriously, among other things I have been a World War II buff for years. My dad – Staff Sergeant…
How to Build a Series: Teasing Master Tagaki-san
I’ve been watching something utterly inane called Teasing Master Takagi-san on Netflix. To qualify, “Teasing Master” is a title, not a verb: Takagi does the teasing rather than…
How to Outline a Story or Novel
Outlining and My Novel Plotting Methodology I created a novel plotting methodology here . The methodology is broken up into two main phases...
How to build a zecha: from concept art to 3D model
Ever wonder how a 2D concept illustration ends up as a fully rendered 3D character in a game? It’s definitely a team effort involving several different artists. Let’s…
Gunslinger Girl – 1 [Fratello] – Throwback Thursday
Welcome all to the new season of Throwback Thursday, this time featuring Gunslinger Girl! Anime is well known for it’s loli’s, and well known for gratuitous violence, but…
How to Cook a Story: Komi Can’t Communicate
Somehow I keep saying that Komi Can’t Communicate was something whose premise didn’t appeal to me. I’m going to say it again: Shoko Komi doesn’t need a hundred…
How to Start a Series: Revolutionary Girl Utena
Revolutionary Girl Utena is one of those concoctions, like Neon Genesis, that is sometimes so deep it seems like the creators outsmarted themselves trying to show themselves how…
Slice of Death – Gunslinger Girl Spoiler Review
Gunslinger girl is a unique show. The pitch is this: in the ambiguous near future, the government of Italy Social Welfare Agency is a front that picks up…
Gunslinger Girl – 7 [Protezione (Protection)] – Throwback Thursday
Welcome all to the halfway point of Gunslinger Girls! This week we go to Florence, appreciate some art and shoot some bad guys. All in a days work…
Gunslinger Girl – 5 [Promessa (Promise)] – Throwback Thursday
Another week, another episode of Gunslinger Girl, and another new cast member is introduced. This week we get another Brother/Sister pair, a deeper look into the Agency and…
Gunslinger Girl – 2 [Orione (Orion)] – Throwback Thursday
Episode 2 of Lenlo's Gunslinger Girl episode by episode watch series. This week we learn about Henrietta and Jose's past and follow up last weeks mission!
The Wandering Witch Reminisces with Gunslinger Girl
Welcome, all, again. As regular readers will know, I tend to gravitate towards slice-of-life series. However, I might seem to some to be a bit generous with that…
Gunslinger Girl – 12 [Simbiosi (Symbiosis)] – Throwback Thursday
You know, its still technically Thursday for me when I send up this Gunslinger Girl post, so i’m not really late. My own poor scheduling aside, considering how…
Gunslinger Girl – 3 [Ragazzo (Boy)] – Throwback Thursday
Another week, another dose of child soldiers and government conspiracies with Gunslinger Girl! This week is another character focused one, though surprisingly not with our main pair. So…
Gunslinger Girl – 4 [Bambola (Doll)] – Throwback Thursday
Another week, another episode of Gunslinger Girl. This week marks more of the same for our child soldiers, which is both a blessing and a curse. So without…
Garden of Sinners 1 – How to Build Atmosphere
I have always had a hard time explaining why I like the Kara no Kyoukai movies (or Garden of Sinners from now on) to the extent that I…
How Not to Start a Story: Heaven’s Design Team
The manga Heaven’s Design Team gets itself hyped with the blurb, “Does for zoology what Cells at Work! does for human biology.” I know this for a fact.…
Gunslinger Girl Anime Review – 57/100 – Throwback Thursday
I really wanted to like Gunslinger Girl. Made by MADHOUSE, Directed by Morio Asaka of Chihayafuru and Card Captor Sakura: Clear Card fame, Gunslinger Girl has a simple but compelling…
The CZ 75, Rico's pistol in Gunslinger Girl
I bought a CZ 75 because of Rally Vincent. True story. Rally would insist on an early "short-rail" variant instead, though.
Gunslinger Girl – 6 [Gelato (Ice Cream)] – Throwback Thursday
This week on Gunslinger Girl we finally dive into some plot, kill some terrorists and Henrietta gets some ice cream. What more could you ask for in a…
How To Build a Series: The Disastrous Life of Saiki K. Reawakened
Okay, the Saiki K. series is a whole franchise built around a gag manga, and like any gag-based show, as long as the jokes keep coming, so do…
How to Adapt an Unadaptable Story
About 'Night on the Galactic Railroad.'
Spring 2024 Anime Week 0.5: How to Start a Story
April 6th, 2024 Spring 2024 is here! The start of any new anime season is always exciting. You experience the emotional highs of the shows from the past…
Back, in Action – Gunslinger Girl Il Teatrino Spoiler Review
Il Teatrino is the sequel to last week’s review, Gunslinger Girl. Produced after five years, it has some significant discontinuity from the “first season” and thus today I’m…
The Sig Sauer P230SL, another gun of Gunslinger Girl
If anything, it's sort of remarkable how many people Triela doesn't shoot.
Gunslinger Girl – 13 [Stella Cadente (Shooting Star)] – Throwback Thursday
Here we are everyone, the finale, the end of Gunslinger Girl Season 1. This post isn’t going to be terribly long, I am saving most of my thoughts…
Gunslinger Girl – 11 [Febbre Alta (High Fever)] – Throwback Thursday
Another week another late post of Gunslinger Girl! I can only blame the pandemic so many times before it stops working as an excuse, but here we are.…
How (Not) to End a Story: Love, Chunibiyo, and Other Delusions
There’s something so cute about Love, Chunibiyo, and Other Delusions that make it close to irresistible, isn’t there? Yuta is basically such a nice young man, so earnest…