Only one more week to go? How have the tables turned!

This week’s challenge: Since horrible cosplay is trending… take a picture of you cosplaying from one of the characters from your show!

Wake Up, Girls! (Episode Eleven)
Player: Kanashimi
Class: Boss

Oh right, we start the episode off on depressing news that I-1 released a Wake Up, Girls! song. This jerk producer shows up and states he thought of a better song, so they should learn that one now instead. That makes sense, right? Let them learn a new song and dance a few weeks before the finals. That’s wonderful. His reasoning is that if they’re top idols they can learn this in days. With that, like a whirlwind, he’s gone. No one argues, they just accept the fact they have to.

Over on the other side of the show, I-1 is stating how difficult their song is, but if they don’t do it well then some of them can just leave. They’re so cut-throat anyway, so what does it matter who leaves? Even worse, the girls seem to know that it was Wake Up, Girls! song first. They seem pleased about it, which makes many of them even less relatable and more like villains you want to see lose.

In the okatu corner, the fans of Wake Up, Girls! are consulting their tactics to cheer them on. In addition, they’re even trying to tone it down a bit as to not make the rest of the audience uncomfortable. They also plan to bring food for the girls; their dedication is certainly admirable.

Tange is reminiscing while the girls work; she’s rather surprised the group she made on a whim got this far. Her enjoyment prompts her to sign for a new office. The girls, however, have made quite a name for themselves and have a lot of fans cheering them on before they go for their win.

Here we find out their last song is the theme song to Wake Up, Girls! They perform the song in front of the jerk producer; he barely states they pass. He makes some weird comments about his potatoes growing and a restaurant. He does finally get serious and tell them their most important thing to do is entertain as many fans as possible and there is no perfect score that makes them an idol. Nanase reveals she made everyone matching scrunches and gives them to the girls. She has a lot of pressure on her considering she is the center for this song, which I have to say is kind of a relief. I don’t dislike Mayu, but she didn’t really need to be the center of everything.

Speaking of Mayu, her mother tells her to do her best despite how angry she’s been since the beginning. There are other wishes of good luck going along to the other girls as well as they practice late into the night and prepare for their performance in the finale. However, Nanase seems to be quite nervous as the girls head in for practice at the area of the finale. As they leave practice, Nanase trips, and her ankle seems to twist on a cable on stage. She appears fine initially, but checks her foot once they’re off stage, and it is completely bruised at the ankle. Welp, there goes Nanase’s time to be center, guess Mayu has to fill in. Thanks, plot point.

And to complete the challenge I decided to dress up in Wake Up, Girls! uniform as Miyu. They have a bow, I have bow. They have a (green) jacket, I have a (white) jacket. They’re in a dress, I’m in a dress. That’s how cosplay works, right?

Watch Wake Up, Girls! on Crunchyroll or talk about this episode on our forums.

Gundam Build Fighters (Episode Twenty-Three)
Player: Elk
Class: DJ

Welcome back to Gundam Build Fighters!

This is going to be an odd review as I’m going on an episode I watched 1 week ago with my toe on the deadline to get this in. For that reason, we won’t be celebrating the OP and ED breaks as usual.

Luckily this was an awesome episode that I remember most of. After the victory last episode, everyone is cooling down from battle with a fair dedicated to Gundam and Gunpla.

Not only are people building and battling Gunpla, but there are also tons of cameos from basically every important character in every Gundam anime ever made. A nifty thing they included in this episode was the real-life 1/1 scale Gundam. The surprise is that there was also a 1/1 scale Char custom Zaku, and at the same time as this episode came out, a teaser image about the next stage in “project real G” was released. So perhaps we can see a real 1/1 Char Zaku in the near future? That’d be awesome.

Aila built the Miss Sazabi, Mao built a custom Crossbone Gundam which looks pretty mean. The Miss Sazabi is super cool though, and I want one. I’ll have to maybe scrounge up some dollars for it and the K9 Sniper.

The BIG finale to this episode in my opinion was Reiji and Sei facing each other in battle. Reiji with his Beginning Gundam he built under the tutelage of Sei’s dad, and Sei with the Mk II Build Gundam.

It’s epic and you have to see it for yourself. Lots of random action today, including the newly resurrected and upgraded Wing Fenice. Just do it. It’s so cool. Also massive upgrade to the Gyan from episode 1.

Besides that, Nils was captured infiltrating the Plavsky factory.

That’s really all I can say. Next episode should be the finals, which is amazing. I’m just hoping this is only the halfway point.

Oh, and because cosplay:

Watch Gundam Build Fighters on Gundam.Info or talk about this episode on our forums.

Sakura Trick (Episode Eleven)
Player: Midnight
Class: DJ

This player did not turn in their episode summary for the week. As such, they will not be awarded 50 flat points or the additional 30 for doing a challenge. Midnight is considered a no-show and as such has lost a dollar of her original bid. She has three more chances before she will be kicked out of the competition.

Watch Sakura Trick on Crunchyroll or talk about this episode on our forums.

Nobunagun (Episode Eleven)
Player: Bobby Henshin
Class: DJ

We have Cyx and Gandhi to the east, Newton and Capa to the south, Nobunagun to the north, and Jack, Gaudi, The Princess, and France Hopper to the west! Time to begin Operation Stone Forest! Welcome to episode 11 of Nobunagun.

So here is the plan if you don’t remember from last week: Sio is on a battleship to the north. The battleship is also lined with tanks, because you know there is nothing better then a high school girl with her own army of tanks. They will be stationed in the lake waiting for the giant squid to pop up and destroy it. While they keep it busy, Newton and Capa are to use Capa’s powers to make copies of Newton while she uses the most powerful attack she has to force the Objects to dig up towards a town where the others will be waiting to destroy them and finish off the original cells of the Invasionary Objects, hoping this will end the threat forever. Gandhi and Cyx are to dig into the tunnel behind the hoard of Objects and use Gandhi’s barrier to push them all out of the hole. And that is the plan so far.

We cut to what looks like we are looking through the eyes of an Invansionary Object as it is going through the footage the others have collected on the E-Gene holders. It seems to be focusing solely on Nobunagun. Understandable, seeing at Nobunagun has ruined all of their plans in the past. But now it looks like they are getting smarter because it is now starting… to speak! That’s right. What I believe to be the Alpha Object has learned how to talk. The only word it can say, though, is Nobunagun.

Meanwhile, at the lake, Sio and her army of tanks line up to destroy the giant squid object. The Commander and Vidocq are wondering why she wanted tanks when she knows that only A.U. Weapons can harm the objects when normal weapons can’t. This is where she goes into the only thing a weapon otaku knows best, gun science! She goes into an otaku rant about how this tank is the best tank for the job, and that the tank will be firing a special kind of bullet which actually works as a spike. The spikes wont hurt it, but it will apply enough pressure to the arms. Now, if you remember back in episode 8 that the arms are filled with line mine-type objects that explode on contact. The spikes will cut off the path for the mines and will cause a build up in the arms which will make them explode. She will use this opening to get close and deliver the final blow. But the arms grow back, so to combat this, she has all three orbiting stations fire their drop pods to keeps the arms tied up and bound. The pods are also connected to receivers that will relay info on the Object directly to Vidocq. This is so Vidocq can locate a weak point on the Object so Sio can deliver a final blow. Sio, after she asks one of the tank drivers for an autograph, makes her way to the squid in her walk-on-water boots! But she is not alone.

Looks like some line mine objects made it out of the arms and are now going right for Sio. With a well-timed explosion she is launched right on top of the squid. She slips off and is now hanging from a arched piece of flesh on the object. Vidocq informs Sio that the only way to kill the squid is to shoot it right between the eyes, which is great because she is hanging right from its brow and is staring it right in the eyes. We now cut to the attack team where Geronimo, Francis, and Jack are playing Texas hold’em. Gaudi is using his powers to keep an eye out for the objects for when they pop out of the ground. Not too long after Jack makes an all-in bet, the objects pop out, and it’s battle time. Also, if you wanted to know, Jack won the hand. The battle rages on as Cyx and Gandhi are now pushing the objects to the surface.

Back to Sio: she delivers the final blow to the squid and makes it explode. She lands on the eye and gives a wave to the cheering tank drivers on the battleship. But the victory is short lived as a gigantic shadow comes up from the ocean and grabs Sio in its tentacles. This is where it goes into pervert territory as the tentacles are grabbing her in the place where it makes it a borderline hentai. What will happen next as we go into episode 12 next week?

Watch Nobunagun on Crunchyroll or talk about this episode on our forums.

Log Horizon (Episode Twenty-Three)

Player: Siege

Class: Content Provider

I thought we were getting a glimpse into the real world for a second, but it looks like rooms in the game look kind of like normal bedrooms. I guess there are teddy bears in MMOs. That’s not unreasonable since this world has cat people and no cats.

Speaking of cat people, that’s who I decided to cosplay.

Isn’t it great? It was a great choice since cosplay is fantasy, and I can’t cook or be a cat.

Anyway, back to the show. We start with a dumb joke. I guess it was a joke? It’s hard to tell with ninja girl. Post-war, I can only presume that the rest of this show is filler. But hey, maybe it’s not. I don’t know. Something interesting could happen.

Here’s what looks like the food episode. Naotsugu is going around tasting food because it’s his job. His job also appears to be to dress as a detective? I don’t know.

I’m going to go ahead and guess that this episode is all fluff and no substance. The ninja girl is trying to get noticed by Shiroe. So we’re going for the love triangle angle? Okay. Whatever. Great. Fun.

And by fun I mean not at all fun. Exploring everyone’s relationships is a change of pace at least. It’s still not something I’m interested in.

The little girl has become a scribe like Shiroe, which has to be the most boring MMO subclass I’ve ever heard of. Seriously, what kind of role would they possibly play in an MMO? The boring role, I’d bet.

Good thing I decided to cosplay the cat, because he does the only action-y thing all episode. Though even that is pretty boring. He just escorts a guy out of a bar.

A lot of interesting insight into Shiroe and pushing-glasses-up-on-faces later and we’re at the end of the episode. Not before we get some moe from the ninja girl and a little bit of buildup to next episode where things just might get a little more interesting.

Oh well, maybe this show can pick up before it’s too late.

Watch Log Horizon on Crunchyroll or talk about this episode on our forums.

Kill La Kill (Episode Twenty-Three)
Player: Knightshade
Class: DJ

So, this week was tough, and I think that, from the new season of challenges, this is the first time I couldn’t do it. I think I’ll bite the bullet on this one; however, this doesn’t change the fact that this episode was a cluster of awesome! Awesome fighting, epic returns, and a nail-biting cliffhanger! I was never good at sewing, but who cares? This was an order of amazing with a side of fries! Alright, let’s cut the talk and start the review already!

Ryuko and Satsuki arrive at the original Life Fiber to confront Ragyo, who now wields her own set of what look like modern scissor blades which prove resilient to their weapons. As the original Life Fiber turns to attack the ship, the Elite Four don new Goku Uniforms to assist Mako. These new suits look pretty cool; though I do like the previous Goku Uniforms, change is required for the final battle. Anyway, during the battle, Ragyo cuts Ryuko’s body in two, but this is revealed to be a plan laid out by Ryuko, who had Satsuki distract Ragyo while she heals in the ocean and targets the Life Fiber.

Spurred on by the arrival of Mako, who uses her sheer willpower along with the support of the other Honnouji students to run on a giant hamster wheel powering the boat. They are able to launch the Naked Sol like a giant dagger. Ryuko manages to cut through the core of the Life Fiber and send it crashing down. With victory within reach, everyone celebrates, saying that they’ll come back alive. As the credits roll, Nui interrupts and shows us that she finished preparations for Ragyo’s ultimate Kamui, Shinra-Koketsu. Ryuko and the others prepare for an epic final battle the likes of which the world has never seen!

Wow… just wow. This episode was so full of action I almost cried. I am loving where this is going. I really want 3 more episodes to finish off the series. I don’t really want it to end, but everything must come to an end, and I think we’re going to have an epic ending the world hasn’t seen since robots threw galaxies at each other for dominance! This episode is getting 10 flying ships out of 10! Now, if you’ll excuse me, I must fix the hole in my wall I made with the realization that the series is ending!

Watch Kill La Kill on Crunchyroll & Daisuki or talk about this episode on our forums.

Engaged To Unidentified (Episode Eleven)
Player: Kayarath
Class: Content Provider

It only took eleven episodes, but Kobeni and Hakuya finally go on a date! Spring break has come up, so it’s time to have some fun! Hakuya is feeling the pressure of what to get Kobeni, Mashiro wants them both to go on a date, and Kobeni wants to show everyone around town. Looks like it’s time for a group outing! While Mashiro fears being a third wheel, Hakuya points out that Kobeni isn’t the type to leave someone out of the fun, so off they go!

Once Benio gets word of it, she goes full on Yandere, creepily insisting that they do not go. Luckily, she gets dragged away to work an event or something. Don’t worry about her, there are plenty of little girls there to give Benio her moeh fix.

It really was more of a group outing instead of a date. They mostly did stuff Mashiro wanted to do. Oh well; Hakuya doesn’t mind as long as he’s hanging out with Kobeni anyway. Things were going along smoothly until a plot-level wind blows Hakuya’s hair aside, revealing a scar he incurred when saving Kobeni’s life. Kobeni feels quite guilty about being the cause of that scar, despite Hakuya and Mashiro’s attempts to brush it off.

The next day, Kobeni goes into their room to discover that they left! It seems that Mashiro was spotted using her freaky powers and was ordered to return home as a result. Looks like it’s a trip to the mountains for the finale! Will Kobeni be able to reunite with Hakuya? Will Benio get to moeh over Mashiro again? Isn’t the answers to these questions obvious? Either way, tune in next time for the final episode (not counting the OVA) of Engage the Unidentified!

Watch Engaged To Unidentified on Crunchyroll or talk about this episode on our forums.

Nisekoi (Episode Eleven)
Player: Zero Gravity
Class: DJ

This player is officially out of the competition, but can join again for the Spring season.

Watch Nisekoi on Crunchyroll or talk about this episode on our forums.

Week 011 Tally

1. Kanashimi: 2,897
2. Elk: 2,418
3. Midnight: 2,361
4. Bobby Henshin: 1,940
5. Siege: 1,710
6. Knightshade: 1,670
7. Kayarath: 1,630
8. Zero Gravity: 900

Next week’s challenge: The end of your show has occurred, but was it the right ending? No! Then let us know how you would have liked it to end.

Make sure to vote for your favorite review below! You can give your favorite an extra 20 points.