Fall Semester has me Swamped (but I've started the Fall anime season anyway)

I thought about doing a Rewind post today. I recently watched 5 Centimeters Per Second, and that would certainly be post-worthy. But it would require a second viewing to understand better, and I'd want to properly process it... which would require me to use the English-major-Literature-class part of my brain. Unfortunately, that part of me is a little overtaxed right now.

And you know what? I haven't done a real Swamped post in a few months. So, here you go: I'm swamped with homework. I'm terribly behind. I expect to be fully caught up in December... after finals week.

But I have to take breaks, so anime obviously occupies a few hours of every week. I've almost finished Terror in Resonance. I love it, but it's a bit heavy, and when I'm this swamped, I prefer to go easy on the dark plotlines. I'm sure I'll finish it soon. Part of the problem is that, with anime, I feel like I have to have an opinion about what I watch. Sometimes, it's more relaxing to watch live action, because I'm not as critical. I guess this is just a side effect of aniblogging (and anitweeting) that I still need to sort through.

Still, I have started some of the Fall Season anime. I've been wanting to talk about them:

Yowapeda 2, or Yowamushi Pedal: Grande Road, isn't any better than the first round. I know this is a popular anime, but it definitely isn't in my top ten sports anime. When I found out that Yowapeda would return this fall, I was disappointed. I'm still watching it, of course. But the race is barely holding onto my attention. I mainly watch for Onoda (who's barely been in this season's first two episodes)... and to find further proof that Midousuji is an experiment that escaped from Orochimaru's lab.

Midousuji, supposedly a human in his 1st year of high school, mocks
friendship as he races ahead of the other constants—including the aces
of our two favorite teams, even though, in the world of Yowapeda, aces
are supposed to have superpowers (basically). Don't worry, I still take
this show more seriously than Free! and even Area no Kishi.
(Screenshot from ep. 2 of Yowapeda 2)

Log Horizon 2: This show continues to intrigue me, although for whatever reason, it's hard to get very excited about it unless I talk about it with someone else.

Sword Art Online II: A recap episode aired last week, didn't it? Maybe I'll watch it while I clean my room this weekend... no, wait, that is listed as a "TV Special," and not as a regular episode. I can skip it without messing up my episode count on Anime-Planet. Phew. It was hard enough watching this show self-destruct the first time. I don't want to watch a recap of it, unless it's to fuel a rant. I am so irritated with the creators' refusal to deal with relational realities.

Actually, I had fun ranting about that to friends at dinner the other night... so I guess SAO's recent episodes have had some good effects after all.

Daiya no Ace: Still watching and enjoying this, of course. It's the only decent sports anime on my watching list this season... kind of a let down after the past several seasons.

Shirobako: This is my happy anime this season. I need one every season, especially during the school year. In the summer, it was Nozaki-kun. Before that, Tonari no Seki-kun. Haikyuu!! make me happy, too...

... okay, I'm tired now. I didn't intent to write this much, but at least it didn't require as much thought and decision-making as a Rewind post would. Time to go night-night so I can get some homework done this weekend.