It's time once again for a 'midway' update on my earlier impressionsof this season . This update has been delayed partlybecause I've gotten lazy and partly because I've been a little bitreluctant to actually admit something about what I'm watching ( thishappened last season too ).

Excellent:

• Eccentric Family second season: This is perhaps not quite asexciting as the first season was, but that's because we've seenthe first season so there are fewer surprises and revelations

Once again it's time for my traditionallook back at what I watched in the past Winter season, to followup on my early impressions and my midway views . This time around there is a surprise new appearance,which is part of why I haven't written this retrospective before now.

Excellent:

• ACCA - 13-Territory Inspection Department : Some of the plottwists in the last episode were awfully convenient even if theyhad sort of been set up in advance and there were a few aspects ofthe

We're somewhere between three and five episodes into everything I'mwatching, which is long enough for most shows to show their cards andmy opinions to firm up (and for me to drop some things). So, as usual , here's how my views of this season have shaken out,to follow up on my first episode reactions .

Excellent:

• Eccentric Family second season: This doesn't have as explosive astart as I remember the first season having, but then we know a lot

As before I'm collecting here all of mytweeted reactions to the first episodes I've seen (in the order that Isaw them).

• My Hero Academia episode 14 is just the same as always; I like thecharacters but the pacing is still really slow and hurting the show. →

• Granblue Fantasy episode 1 is not interesting enough for me toeven finish the episode; I made it 15 minutes before quitting. →

• Alice & Zouroku episode 1 was fun, interesting, and intriguing,but

Kemono Friends was a series that didn't even make my radar for the winter season , but it's been steadilypicking up buzz and good press and I recently started watchingit . Thisexperience very much benefits from knowing some general spoilers due towhat I'm going to call the Symphogear effect .

Much like Symphogear but more so, the opening episodes of KemonoFriends are not particularly attractive on their surface. The CGI isfrankly janky (although I can get used to it and I even find it kind

It's time for a slow-moving midway update on my early impressions . This update has been delayed in part because I didn'twant to admit something, and that was partly because of the tacitpressure of conformity .

Excellent:

• ACCA - 13-Territory Inspection Department : This has continuallybeen the most interesting show I've been watching this season. Itwasn't always clear where it was going (and it's still not), but ithad such a sense of style,

(This won't make much sense if you haven't seen Flip Flappers , plusit sort of has spoilers.)

To follow on my original entry on the sources of the Pure Illusionworlds , here are some additional notes thatare really too big to be added on as an update to the original entry.

• episode 3: As of episode 11, the episode 3 desert world is prettystrongly attributed to Sayuri, per @PeterFobian and @B0bduh . Nick Creamer's tour of the Pure

Apparently the manga version of Long Riders! is much moreexplicit about what real-world bikes all of the protagonistsrode than the anime was (as usual, the anime altered mostbrand names). This report on the manga volume 5 release names everyone's bikes, and this Reddit comment has more specific model numbers (and see also this Reddit comment onAmi's road bike ).

The first surprise here is that Makino , the brand name of Saki'sbike, is a real Japanese bike maker

We're three episodes into everything I'm watching, which is long enoughfor shows to get at least a bit established and for my opinions to firmup (and for me to drop some things). So here's how my views of thisseason have shaken out, following up on my first episode reactions .

Good trending to excellent:

• ACCA - 13-Territory Inspection Department : The show has managed tonail being stylishly cool and intriguing. Things have been developingslowly, but it's