Strawberry Loft

  The perks of working from home include more time to sleep, time for breakfast, a short commute, and overall, more time for yourself. A meet cute seems more unlikely when you’re a single person office, somehow though Nokoru finds one during his break time on his balcony. Though the romance started from the comfort of his own home it still comes package with all the same uncertainties and stress of starting any new relationship. Home Office Romance is a story about the pandemic which I feel like we don’t get to see very often. Sure, tv shows had characters wear masks to acknowledge it, but I felt like I didn’t see too many stories about people just living through it. Home Office Romance showcases how new bonds didn’t stop forming just because people were stuck inside. Not only in the traditional sense of bonds with others, but people also found themselves connecting with old hobbies or picking up new ones, finding joy in things they were once too busy for. People suddenly had time ...

  On October 6 th 2024, Netflix brought Ranma ½ back into the light of the anime world, though I don’t think it ever really left. Ranma ½ seems up there as a timeless classic like Inuyasha. Unlick Inuyasha though I’ve never seen more than clips of the original Ranma anime. I did try to watch it at some point and loved the soft early '90s, but something about the plot didn’t jive with a younger me. Watching this remake, however, had me yelling at my computer screen in a good way. I had fun with the Netflix adaptation of Ranma ½ and I think you will too. Ranma ½ is a staple of the anime community, at least it was when I was younger. There was fan art and clips all over the internet, and even if you never saw the show, you knew something about it. Ranma is the main male lead with the worst kept secret, when hit with cold water he turns into a girl. This creates one of the main gags for any character who changes when they’re hit by cold water, keeping their other identity a secret f...

  After twelve episodes, the first season of Dandadan comes to a close amidst a chorus of disappointment. Fans are not only upset that they’ll have to wait until July for another Dandadan Thursday, but they’re also put off by how the last episode ended. By no means was Dandadan a disappointing watch. In fact, it took the internet by storm, and it's all anyone has been able to talk about. I knew nothing about the manga and barely had any knowledge of the plot before going in. Suddenly, my social media timeline has become flooded with Dandadan screenshots, memes, and beautiful fan art. The opening alone has become iconic for its stylized art direction and the song Otonoke by Creepy Nuts. I had a lot of fun watching the first season of Dandadan . I knew it was a show about fighting yokai, but I still get giddy every time they mention a real legend. It gives me a moment of "I know that!" When it comes to aliens, I have no prior knowledge, and that tends to go over my hea...

  It only takes a small spark to start a fire. Look Back is a story about finding inspiration and, at the same time, losing all that motivation in the blink of an eye. It’s not a story of giving up; it’s a story of moving forward for yourself and in memory of others. Look Back opens with Ayumu Fujino, an elementary school student who writes manga comic strips for the school newspaper. She enjoys drawing, telling stories, and the attention she receives from her classmates. Fujino isn’t shy in the slightest, boldly showing her work. When she’s asked to relinquish a manga slot to another girl, Kyomoto, Fujino begrudgingly gives in. Kyomoto is good—professionally good—at backgrounds. This sparks a one-sided rivalry for Fujino, who throws herself into art, aiming to be just as good as or better than Kyomoto. I felt like Fujino’s art montage was very authentic to anyone who has a creative passion. There’s an explosion of ideas; you just want to work on a project all the time, and i...

Fall anime is here, and it’s shaping up to be a memorable 2024 season. So far, I’ve seen the first episodes of two highly anticipated titles: Uzumaki , produced by Adult Swim for the revitalization of Toonami, and Dandadan , produced by Science Saru. I’m excited to watch these shows as they release weekly, as both fandom spaces are buzzing with life and anticipation for more. These shows showcase amazing technical animation abilities and hard work. Starting with my impressions of the first episode of Uzumaki , I was getting antsy waiting for it. I loved the manga and was thrilled when the anime made my skin crawl and sent the perfect shiver down my spine. The atmosphere was unsettling and spooky from the very first frame shown on screen. The wait was well worth it, with Uzumaki originally being announced at Crunchyroll Expo 2019. The anime looked as if they had magically pulled the still manga images from the page and brought them to life, which is very on-brand for Junji Ito. The e...

  After a long day of work, the best feeling is enjoying some free time to yourself. To some, that means binging a new TV show, reading, or playing video games. Others find relaxation in cooking or going out to eat—a quiet moment to take in the aromas and appreciate the flavors. Eating a good meal can rejuvenate anyone. Delicious in Dungeon was the anime on everyone’s tongue, offering a creatively fun take on dungeons and dragons and fantasy food! It left a satisfying taste on everyone’s palate and may have left some people hungry for more. Luckily, I have a bite-sized dish for you. Wakakozake is a slice-of-life show about a young salarywoman named Wakako who spends her evenings trying local restaurants to enjoy a good meal with the perfect alcoholic pairing. Depending on the day Wakako had at work, she sometimes goes more for the drink. Wakako gets excited about every meal she has, talking about its smell, texture, and taste. She also takes other factors into consideration, li...

       Summer has a reputation for being filled with potential. Warm sunny days that stretch on forever causing motivation to run high. People start dreaming on cool summer nights sitting under the stars. Summer is often seen as a transitional period as people step away from work and experience new things. Who will you be when summer ends? In Summer Ghost three strangers take the chance to chase a ghost on a warm summer night not knowing they would become bound by fate under those stars. Summer Ghost was an unexpected treat as well as a tearjerker. When I pulled it from the shelf of the barns and Noble, I never realized I’d find a manga that would leave me speechless. I picked up the complete manga collection and it came in at 389 pages. This ghost story is not for the faint of heart. Our story begins on a ghost-hunting forum where three strangers decide to trust each other enough to chase an urban legend. Our ghost-hunting trio consists of a girl named Aoi, and two ...

  Having an immensely popular anime air for years will eventually open it to criticism. Even with no ending yet. As the stories start to outdo themselves every season, the cracks in the weaker plotlines begin to show. In this case, I’m talking about One Piece, which I thought of originally as almost untouchable. However, the consensus from enough of the fanbase is to skip Skypiea. I started watching One Piece a few months ago, and as I came face to face with the first episode of Skypiea, I had a lot of feelings. Then the show moved on, and I had even more feelings. Skypiea isn’t bad, but I get it. Skypiea pulls viewers in with a mystery when an ancient boat falls from the sky, nearly crushing the Straw Hat crew. The log pose is pointed up, and a choice is presented: keep pushing forward or follow the idea of a fairy tale. Luffy, not one to shy away from the possibility of a grand adventure, investigates the story of the mythical city of Skypiea. This season is the first time I beli...

  What’s your favorite anime currently? Did you think about a popular show with at least three seasons? Maybe it has lots of merch or content? Did you think of something more popular with a large fan base and lots of merch? That’s where I believe most people start when discussing anime, the heavy hitters, One Piece, JJK, and Naruto just to name a few. There’s a lot to discuss there. Eventually, you switch to smaller shows, typically seen in the slice-of-life genre, maybe even some smaller action series. Something that may have fizzled out to a small fan base as the years went on with twenty-six episodes and a finale, or worse, no end. I’m looking at you Noragami. This could also be shows like Princes Jellyfish, and Horimiya -though the missing pieces did come out. These shows are loved, but the fan base in my opinion is smaller than the stories I mentioned before. They’re a well-loved series but have short or unfinished runs with so much potential.   The anime I’ve listed I’m ...

            Have you ever found yourself pacing around the room patiently waiting for the next installment of One Piece? Maybe not, maybe you’re like me and more recently started your Once piece journey and there is thankfully, a lot of content ahead of you. How about just getting to know more about the characters you’ve come to connect with? If you’re a Sanji fan I’ve got the perfect manga for you to sink your teeth into. Shokugeki no Sanji, or Food Wars Sanji I bet you can guess the author who brought this series of side stories to life. That’s right this 6-chapter anthology series about our star chef was handled by a familiar name in the world of food-related stories, Food Wars creator Yūto Tsukuda. Readers are not only treated to in-depth short stories all pulled from different points in Sanji’s life, but also beautiful visuals to accompany them created by Shun Saeki.  Originally Shokugeki Sanji ran in Weekly Shonen Jump from July 23, 2018, to...