[C] The Money of Soul and Possiblilty Control Episode 10

There are two of them?! And the one on the right has green hair and speaks in Engrish?!

With 'C' continuing to change the lives and futures of many, Jennifer and Kimimaro finally decide to take on Mikuni to save their own futures. The two decide to enlist the help of the information broker, Taketazaki, who believes that Mikuni can only be defeated if they make the yen as useless as paper. He then manages to somehow throw some of Mikuni's savings all over Japan...And chaos ensues. This scene was done excellently, from the crowd's overjoyed reactions to suddenly gaining a large sum of money, to their frustrated reactions upon finding out that the yen is now useless.

I don't know why, but that pink dog balloon thing caught my eye.

And so it begins.

What is with this show and its random victory dances? On another note, nice apron.

Kimamro then decides to challenge one of the members of the Guild while Jennifer battles Mikuni elsewhere. Out of concern for Msyu, Kimimaro refuses to have her participate in the battle against the creepy dude in the Hawaiian shirt whose name escapes me. Though the battle initially looks bleak for Kimimaro, but he manages to land a final, winning blow on that creepy guy with the aid of Msyu. Jennifer, on the other hand, is in the opposite situation.

Money as a substitute for blood...okay...

DID NOT SEE THIS COMING.

Just when I was beginning to like her too.

After Q's "awakening", Jennifer no longer stands a chance and suffers a crushing defeat. Before she passes, however, she gives Kimimaro her asset, Georges, and then I left my mouth hanging open after realzing what just happened. Kimimaro, seething with rage, charges at Mikuni without thinking...Not a very smart move, though you can't really blame the guy after what just happened.

He was owned so bad.

The episode ends on another cliff hanger, hinting that the final showdown between Mikuni and Kimimaro will finally be featured on the following episode. Although Jeniffer died here, this episode was still extremely well-done in setting up the final battle and increasing the tension in this series' final episodes.
This episode gets:

Ano Hana Episode 9 and 10

This scene was amusing to watch.

As you may have noticed, instead of just doing a one-episode review, I've decided to lump episodes 9 and 10 together. Sadly, I had suffered from the laziness syndrome for a while, and before I knew it, episode 10 was already out. So...yeah...I'm still recovering, but worry not, I will fight this ailment and continue to diligently submit my reviews for my few readers out there! As a result, the reviews may also be briefer than normal...Some of you may have also noticed, but for some reason, the caps I took for episode 9 are mirrored, so please bare with it.
Episode 9:

Awkward.

 After Menma's existence is revealed to her other childhood friends (barring Jinta), she decides to bake some muffins as a sort of celebration. However, since Jinta is the only one that can see her, the rest of the group can only see a tray of muffins levitating mid-air. Yukiatsu continues to irk me with his drama that "Oh, Jinta didn't want to share Menma with us because he thinks he's better than us and blah blah blah". Before I have time to reach through my laptop's screen and wring his neck, the scene shifts back to Jinta's house, where we witness a heart warming scene between him and Menma.

Yukiatsu, please go die.

 Later, Yukiatsu decides to actually do something for Menma instead of just ranting about how Jinta gets to have her to himself. He asks and gains permission from Menma's father to create the dream fireworks from Menma's diary. Later, the group then sets out to get everything ready. Anaru and Yukiatsu have a chat away from the rest of the group (with the exception of Tusuruko, who happens to be eavesdropping on their conversation) and Yukiatsu brings up his offer to go out with Anaru again, believing that the two are kindred spirits since both have lost in their respective battles of love. Anaru rejects him again (ha!), and the two start to somewhat playfully bicker with one another. Afterwards, Jinta goes out and leaves Menma alone with Popo, only to finally realize that he doesn't want Menma to disappear.

It makes sense, and yet, it doesn't.

Noooooo, don't tell me... Menma, you player!

What you say is what you are.

Menma~

This episode gets:

Jinta's mom was so pretty~

Episode 10:
The fireworks near their completion, which means that Menma will be leaving soon...Jinta decides to invite Menma's parents as well, but Menma's mother still refuses to go. Satoshi, on the other hand, firmly states that he plans to see the fireworks, leaving his mother in tears. 

There's alot of crying in this episode.

Yukiatsu and Anaru continue to meet with each other despite their agreement to "not date". That evening, a "farewell party" is held for Menma who shows her appreciation via her diary. Yukiatsu then suggest that they recreate the day before Menma died, and surprisingly enough, even Popo goes along with it. This time, though, instead of denying his feelings and calling Menma "ugly", Jinta finally admits that he does like-like Menma. And instead of wearing an embarrassed smile, Menma cries in response.

I want this mug.

 After Jinta's "confession", Anaru starts crying on her way back from the secret base, Tsuruko in tow. It is also revealed that this entire time, Tsuruko has had a thing for Yukiatsu (despite his jerky personality and borderline creepy obsession over Menma, seriously, the only thing this guy has going for him are his looks and grades). Back to Jinta and Menma, the latter seems to have taken the confession extremely well. Jinta then finally tells Menma that he doesn't want her to disappear. Menma disagrees as she believes that she will be reborn once she gets to heaven. As much as I love this show, I strongly disagree with the whole "reborn" belief (probably because I'm a Christian), but anyway, either way, I'd still like to see these two somehow get together.

I knew it.

I don't care if she's dead, I'm still shipping these two together.

This guy needs a new hobby.

 The day that the fireworks will be set off arrives, and Jinta is having second thoughts about pushing through with it. Satoshi arrives and more crying ensues with Menma embracing her younger brother. Though Satoshi can't see her, he comments that he smells a "familiar scent" and possibly feels the added weight to his body. Afterwards, the fireworks are finally set off...And Menma's still there.

I'm liking Tsuruko's new look.

It's kind of sad that, if Menma were still alive, she'd only be a few inches taller than Satoshi. Pfffttt...Like I'm one to talk.

They don't really look like fireworks, but they are colorful.

This episode was heavy on the drama and angst, but that's what makes this show and its characters feel so real. The animation was also turned up a notch during the fireworks scene, especially when Menma started moving about when she realized that the plan had failed. The way she moved looked...so..lifelike, I guess? Well, you get the idea.

 This episode gets:

Gintama Eouside 213

We're off to a good start.

The Kabuki District arc continues with the Yorozuya group showing off their skills against the other district residents. However, despite their inhuman strength, the group is still clearly outnumbered. Thankfully, they receive back-up from their past clients (many of whom we haven't seen in over a hundred episodes). Whilst this battle is going on, apparently Catherine had also set out to rescue Saigo's kidnapped son using her mad cat thief skills to prevent a fight from breaking out between Gin and the "trannies".

Camus

I lol'd so hard when I saw Madao Hasegawa's outfit.

How very naughty indeed.

 With the aid of their comrades, the Yorozuya group now has a large advantage over their enemies. Then again, this being Gintama, the comedy is still fresh even during the intense battle scenes. For one, Hasegawa is completely useless and simply acts as some sort of punching bag for the enemy, Otae intimidating the enemies with her awesomeness, Gengai's robots doing more damage to the town than the actual enemies, and the male hosts having a large advantage over the trannies for obvious reasons.

Oh, Otae.

This is so wrong on so many levels.

You've gotta be kidding me.

Then what is that unshaven thing underneath your mouth?

The action is very thick in this episode, but what I like about Gintama is that it manages to balance the comedy, action, and dramatic parts extremely well, so this episode did not disappoint. Although a bit over-the-top at some points, this is Gintama, so that's to be expected. Though, the best part of this episode for me had to be this:

Pirako finally gets what she deserved.

Kagura crushing heavy, solid objects isn't anything knew, but it was still pretty awesome to watch.

Later on, we see Jirochou and Kada having a little chat, revealing more of Pirako's past in the process. We get some insight on how Pirako and her mother fared while Jirochou was away. Apparently, Pirako's mother was sickly and Pirako herself seemed to despise her dad. But her mother still seemed to have faith in him despite the fact that she passed away before seeing him once more. After their little "chat", Kada reveals her true colors and turns against Jirochou. Not long afterwards, the Yorozuya trio arrive in the nick of time. While Shinpachi and Kagura set out to rescue Saigo's son, Gin finally confronts Jirochou in the most creepily amusing way possible...

Why do all Gintama villains have to have some sad background?! It's making it so much harder for (most) viewers to hate on them!

That whole laughing exchange between Gin and Jirochou...

it was weird...

This episode gets: