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86 episode 9

Rating: 5 (of 5) One sign of a great episode is when you can watch it twice in the same afternoon and it loses none of its impact on a second viewing. That was my reaction to episode 9, which mostly completes the adaptation of the first novel. It brings the series’ first story arcContinue reading “86 episode 9”

So I’m a Spider, So What? episode 21

Rating: 3 As the title of this episode – “So, I’m Not in This One, Am I?” – suggests, the titular character does not appear at all in this episode. (Or at least not in spider form in the spider-side timeline, anyway.) White – who’s been all but outright said to be the human-side versionContinue reading “So I’m a Spider, So What? episode 21”

86 episode 8

Rating: 4.5 (of 5) Storytelling in all forms has a habit of exaggerating the evil actions of an enemy or an oppressor just to make sure that the audience has no sympathy for them. Much more rarely, though, the full extent of the evil is just a logical extension of what has already been established.Continue reading “86 episode 8”

So I’m A Spider, So What? Episode 20

Rating: 4.5 To answer the question in the episode title – “this isn’t my fault, is it?” – yes, Kumoko, this one is most definitely your fault, both directly and indirectly. However, it’s not entirely your fault, as you also unwittingly played into the plans of a country that was just looking for a triggerContinue reading “So I’m A Spider, So What? Episode 20”

86 episode 7

Rating: 5 (of 5) From the beginning of the series until episode 5, one of the unspoken truths about Spearhead Squadron was Shin’s ability to hear the voices of the Legion. However, another unspoken truth has lingered just as long. At first, the 86s didn’t inform Lena because it didn’t seem important, but as theyContinue reading “86 episode 7”

So I’m A Spider, So What? Episode 19

Rating: 4 In this episode, both the spider and the human protagonists reach goals that they have been pursuing for several episodes now. The results are entirely different, and atypically, the spider side is the one which comes up a bit disappointing this time. That side starts with Kumoko being an object of veneration byContinue reading “So I’m A Spider, So What? Episode 19”

86 episode 6

Rating: 4.5 (of 5) If the more serious parts of 86 ever fail the series, it has a good fallback plan: just depend on Lena being adorable. The way she gradually loses it in the scene right before the closer, as she realizes that what she just innocently said to Shin could be interpreted aContinue reading “86 episode 6”

So I’m a Spider, So What? episode 18

Rating: 4 What happens when you go flashing your OP powers around normal people without thinking much about the consequences? You become a religious icon, of course! That is the entirely sensible conclusion of this episode, which combines a look at five different viewpoints and a peek at some of the setting’s bigger machinations inContinue reading “So I’m a Spider, So What? episode 18”

86 episode 5

Rating: 4.5 (of 5) Though the franchise does not advertise it, 86 does have a mild horror element, one that has only been vaguely hinted at through the first four episodes. (Really, the only significant indicator so far was the series’ opening scene, where Spearhead Squadron’s previous Handler loses it.) This episode is the oneContinue reading “86 episode 5”

So I’m A Spider, So What? Episode 17

Rating: 4 The bulk of this episode focuses on the human side. One of the episode’s late scenes shows the likely reason why: by doing so, it explicitly puts Schlain’s group and the Demon Lord and her forces on a direct (if eventual) collision course at the elf village. The more interesting aspect at thisContinue reading “So I’m A Spider, So What? Episode 17”