Category Archives: Discussion

“Penny for your thoughts?”
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Slimes, Slaves, and Sexy Maids: The New Wave of Tropes?

Posted on July 28, 2022 by Merlin

It’s no secret whatsoever: when something new and unusual gets any sort of success, it gets copycatted out the freaking wazoo. Hollywood’s scramble to imitate the Marvel Cinematic Universe is but one outstanding example of that. There’s also all the … Continue reading →

Posted in Anime and Cartoons, Anime-ted Living, Discussion | Tagged Black Summoner, By the Grace of the Gods, My Isekai Life, One Piece, Overlord, Redo of Healer, Rising of the Shield Hero, Skeleton Knight in Another World, Slave Harem in the Labyrinth of the Other World, So I’m a Spider So What, That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime, The Devil is a Part-Timer, The Duke of Death and His Maid, The Great Jahy Will Not Be Defeated, The Maid I Hired Recently is Mysterious | 4 Comments

Some Non-Combative Magic Systems in Anime

Posted on July 14, 2022 by Merlin

War is the natural state of Man. That was observed by Thomas Hobbes, and he was referring to how the absence of government leaves every man in the world fighting a war against every other man in the world. Conflict … Continue reading →

Posted in Anime and Cartoons, Anime-ted Living, Discussion | Tagged By the Grace of the Gods, Flying Witch, Fullmetal Alchemist, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood, Kamitachi, Magi, Magi: Labyrinth of Magic, No Game No Life, The Ancient Magus' Bride | 1 Comment

The Easy Imbalance of Too Much Virtual Living

Posted on July 7, 2022 by Merlin

This is one of those posts that is born from a bit of an epiphany which, in turn, is born from some honest self-reflection and self-recrimination. I have seen something which needs to be addressed, a growing imbalance in the … Continue reading →

Posted in Discussion, Random Realizations | 4 Comments

Eren Jaeger: The Anatomy of a Devil’s Birth

Posted on June 30, 2022 by Merlin

I will start this with a SPOILER ALERT! If you want to be surprised by anything in this story, then you do not want to read this! Fair warning! 😉 I have a confession to make: though I was avid in … Continue reading →

Posted in Anime and Cartoons, Anime-ted Living, Discussion | Tagged Attack on Titan | 2 Comments

Vegeta: Redeeming a Villain. Or, How to Make Everyone Forget He Slaughtered Planets for Fun

Posted on June 23, 2022 by Merlin

Vegeta. A proud Saiyan prince. One of the greatest and most powerful warriors in all the universes. Antihero. Bad boy. Tough guy. Redeemed villain. If there is one thing that people like more than a hero, and even more than … Continue reading →

Posted in Anime and Cartoons, Anime-ted Living, Discussion | Tagged Angel, Avatar: The Last Airbender, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Dragonball Z, FarScape, Marvel Cinematic Universe, Monster Rancher, Once Upon a Time, Ronin Warriors, She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, Star Wars, Stargate SG-1, Supernatural, The Originals, The Princess Bride, The Vampire Diaries, X-Men, Yu-Yu Hakusho | 1 Comment

A Few Wholesome Anime. No, Really!

Posted on April 14, 2022 by Merlin

Hilarious. Heart-warming. Wholesome. Three descriptors I love to hear about or apply to my entertainment. Thus, I am greatly saddened as I find that there seems to be a vast dearth of anime (and other stories) to which they can … Continue reading →

Posted in Anime and Cartoons, Anime-ted Living, Discussion | Tagged Barakamon, By the Grace of the Gods, Dragon Goes House-Hunting, Fruits Basket, Kamitachi, Kids on the Slope, Sleepy Princess in the Demon Castle, Snow White with the Red Hair | 1 Comment

The “Real” in White Collar

Posted on March 31, 2022 by Merlin

What is “real?” It’s such a simple question. It has such obvious answers. Yet when those answers can be disputed, conflict ensues. Is that a real dollar bill or a counterfeit? Is this a real work of art or an … Continue reading →

Posted in Discussion, Random Realizations, TV Shows | Tagged White Collar | Leave a comment

Why Are There So Many Harems?

Posted on February 17, 2022 by Merlin

If you look it up on Wikipedia, there is a list of harem manga and anime. It is a massive list. And while, at a cursory glance, I am fairly certain not every title included actually is a harem anime, I can also … Continue reading →

Posted in Anime and Cartoons, Anime-ted Living, Discussion | 1 Comment

Robotic Uprisings: The Deeper Fear

Posted on February 10, 2022 by Merlin

Robots. AI. Man-made life. These are staples in fiction, especially science fiction, featured in countless – and more every year – books, movies, TV shows, games, cartoons, anime, and more. It seems there is practically no limit to all the … Continue reading →

Posted in Anime and Cartoons, Books, Discussion, Movies, Random Realizations, TV Shows | Tagged Age of Ultron, Agents of Shield, Answer, Armitage, Battlestar Galactica, Blade Runner, Brandon Sanderson, Bubblegum Crisis: Tokyo 2040, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, David Weber, Doctor Who, Eagle-Eye, Frankenstein, Fredric Brown, Fullmetal Alchemist, God of War, Hellboy, Hellboy II: The Golden Army, Honor Harrington, Howard Taylor, I Robot, John Ringo, Jurassic Park, King Arthur, Kung Fu Panda, Logan, Marvel Cinematic Universe, Mary Shelley, Medabots, Mega Man, Monalisa Foster, Mordred, Pokemon, Ravages of Honor, Richard Roberts, Samurai Jack, Schlock Mercenary, Sherlock Holmes, Skyward, Sonic the Hedgehog, Spider-Man, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Wars, Stargate, Stargate SG-1, Stargate: Atlantis, Terminator, The Flash, The Matrix, Troy Rising, Vivy: Fluorite Eye's Song, War Games, Warcraft, X-Men, You Can By a Cyborg When You're Older | 2 Comments

Cowboys and Samurai

Posted on January 13, 2022 by Merlin

Cowboys and samurai. The icons of American and Japanese culture and history. At first glance, the two could hardly be more different. But as I was recently tinkering with a post for the far future (relatively speaking) it suddenly struck … Continue reading →

Posted in Discussion, Random Realizations | Tagged Cowboys, Samurai | 1 Comment