As many have pointed out in the past, anime has a bad habit when it comes to starting shows off. An opening episode of anime tends to start off almost grindingly slow, reserving the hook until after the commercial break. Why this has become such common practice is beyond me – when I went to go look for anime with good opening scenes, I was surprised to find a nice little handful, but infinitely more surprised at just what a small percentage that handful was.
Taishou Yakyuu Musume has one of the best starts to a first episode ever. This leads into a charming slice-of-life anime with excellent direction, pretty art and animation, a very soothing soundtrack, and an interesting premise (girl’s baseball in 1920s Japan). The episode is what one might call ‘very good.’ However, it is also what one might call ‘very goddamn boring.’ — HOWEVER, when I did a little research to decide if I should drop the show, I found myself so dumbstruck by the show’s insane pedigree that I honestly just couldn’t bring myself not to continue.
My Sword Is Unbelievably Dull 