Meaning Behing Jigoku Shoujo Anime

This anime holds special significance to me. A lot of people misunderstand what it is about, including even those who made 3rd and 4th season. Many call it a horror. I made a review about it a while back but felt there is more to be said about it.

While some scenes are indeed cruel and gruesome, this anime is not about scaring people. It's about providing victims of abuse, bulling and other kinds of wrongdoing with relief and justice.

We all (at least most of us) would like to live in a helpful and supportive environment that cares and nurtures us. Something close to what Gochiusa or Bofuri depicts. 

However not everyone is lucky enough to be surrounded by such a nice people. Sometimes cruel and malicious people enter your life and stay there to keep causing you pain misery and suffering. No matter what you do, they do not stop. Sometimes it's the very knowledge that it hurts you, motivates them to continue. No matter how much you protest or cry, they keep causing you harm. 

Sometimes you or someone else can stop them, but other times they are too powerful or have too much control over your life to allow you to simply get rid of them. Back then I was in such hopeless powerless situation. There was nothing I could do to end the suffering they caused me.

I personally had to deal with a number of people just like that. There were certain cruel classmates in Russia, who thought that beating me and throwing away my belongings into rubbish bin was fun. Then they were my stupid parents who though that their crazy principles and rules are more important than my wellbeing and insisted on forcing them on me no matter how much I protested and cried. A true testament to "inhumanity of human nature", to quote Diablo II.

I did try to talk to my parents, but they mocked my complaints instead of doing something. I tried to complain to teachers about bullies, but they did nothing.

Sure, not all people are like those above. Some are nice and helpful. Some can even be friends. There were certain periods in my life when I was surrounded only by friendly people, and these were happy times when I could forget about past troubles.

However, one cruel monster often enough to eclipse 100 good guys. The amount of pain they caused leaves psychological scars that occasionally come back to haunt you in your nightmares.

Back then I could surely wish that I could just contact Jigoku Tsushin and get Enma Ai to solve my problems. Watching Jigoku Shoujo now let me feel glad that at least on-screen victims eventually got their relief and justice. That was the help I did not have, I had to constantly wake up back to the same old nightmare, my evil parents decided to plunge me into.

Nowadays I often blame bad things in my life on my parents. I somehow feel they are creeping somewhere around me discreetly to poison my life as much as their diminishing ability still allows them. However it could be some other malicious actors, who act against me in secret. 

I am far too familiar with spiteful and malicious side of human nature and can easily suspect that such people are behind the hard times we are currently experiencing. Everything around us is a sick joke by these bastards. These bastards are too evil to be defeated by 'no kill policy' Batman or other superhero. They way they will break out and cause more harm. Only one way trip to hell for them will save us from misery and suffering they are spreading around.

One of the rules of Enma Ai's contract is that a person who made a pact will go to hell after their death. For most of the victims that is still a relief as their abusers make their lives worse than hell and getting out if this hell even briefly is still a relief. Many of the victims, whom Enma Ai helped, especially in the first season, saw her as a savior. 

I can fully understand that sentiment. I can also understand a desire for revenge, people who caused me harm, deserve to suffer in return. 

First season is the best in that. It takes on the matters with utmost seriousness. First it shows just how bad humans can be and makes sure very person Enma Ai sends to hell certainly deserves it. Then it executes justice in a somber and dignified manner.

Perhaps there are people out there that blame themselves instead of perpetrators like Shinji Ikari from Eva. There are also people who like to do victim blaming either out of favor or bribe from the abusers.

I am not one of them. I blame those who caused me suffering and want to see them suffer in retaliation for pain they have caused me. When it comes to depicting this psychology, there are surprisingly little anime out there. Other than Jigoku Shoujo there is also Elfen Lied and that is all.

I do hope that Enma Ai will eventually send everyone who ever caused me pain to hell. This is the kind of happy end that will make me happy. 

Hamidashi Creative Review

Overall Rating 5.7 out of 10 - Random Filler Anime

I recommend watching it instead of other fillers

More like Hamidashi - Lack of Creativity

This is an anime that has nothing in particular going for it but at the same time nothing in particular going against it either. It is just 12 mostly unconnected to each other short episodes with half of the screen time are taken by an outro. Even then scriptwriters struggle to fill the remainder of 4 minutes long episode with dialogue. I presume most of "creativity" went into girl's design and most creative time into drawing their very detailed eyes.

On the other hand, there is nothing in this show that annoys me. That is an achievement in itself as world is full of woke agenda shows that are hellbent to deny man his rightful entertainment. I can recommend it just for that reason if you have nothing else to watch or simple need a show to watch in breaks to something heavy like Kaiji, Akagi or Umineko. Despite its lack of creativity, this show has a purpose. 

Kimi wa Meido-sama Review

Overall Rating: 6.2 out of 10 - Relatively OK show.

I can recommend watching.

Komi-san, now in maid flavor

Problem with popular tropes is that they often attract creators who would rather make a different show. However, either producers or editors insist that they go for proven receipts or they themselves opt to do it, craving fame and publicity.

Maids are one such trope. Feminist "liberation of women" left men unable to find women who cleans, cooks and serves man. Entertainment industry figured out how to fill the void with maid cafes and shows about maids. Thus, anime about maids near guaranteed to sell.

Creators of Kimi wa Meido-sama seems thought that women who simply cooks and cleans would be too boring, so they decided to spice it up with assassin backstory, "challenge of being normal" and a few more twists. Some of it good, some not so much. All of it however takes the show too far from its core purpose. It's clear that creators want to make this show into a sober narrative about one's approach to live. While I can understand what they trying to say, it hardly makes the show more enjoyable to watch, it adds some sympathy towards Yuki but that is about it. Neither does it covers the existentialist questions sufficiently enough. It's just too far to be next Umineko, Byousoku 5cm, SEL, Utena, Kaiji, Akagi or any other decent attempt at literary fiction.

Maid in question, Yuki, is likable enough and that should be a good enough reason to watch this show. Due to trends in anime industry, even half decent shows are hard to find. Pink haired girl, that appears in second half of the show is also likable. The same cannot be said about male protagonist's sister and nurse that later became PE teacher.

Still show somewhat recovers closer to the second half. More than half of the scenes are enjoyable to watch. Not a stellar endorsement, but so many other shows are horrible in almost every scene. 

Overall, it's OK and can be enjoyed during periods of few good shows.