This Week in Anime [Week 18, 2021]

Date Published: Thurs 6th May, 2021

Top of the day to ya, dear readers! If there's one word to describe how this week has been, it's absolutely gotta be "chaotic", because there's been a lot of developments that have shocked and flabbergasted people everywhere. What are we talking about? Here's your Rapid Rundown:

1. Walmart closes its doors to Yu-Gi-Oh!

2. Made in Abyss Gets Second Season!

3. Shadows House Causes Massive Scare!

The world may be experiencing a global crisis but that hasn't stopped humans from brewing up their own madness. Buckle up for this one folks, because this is gonna escalate real hard, real fast.

1. Walmart closes its doors to TCG!

Wednesday morning brought with it a strange photo of a notice circulating the internet. This article (pictured above) effectively read that the store in question would immediately stop the sale of all TCG related products, prime of which are YuGiOh, Pokémon and MTG, owing to certain misdemeanors which were left unexplained. Adilsons dug around and following counsel with some exclusive sources, we have officially confirmed the following facts:

•This notice applies only to a single store, and not- as has been incorrectly implied by several sources- a decision made by the Walmart / Target franchises as a whole
•The misdemeanors which lead to the event was mainly the fault of LCSs dealing with Pokémon cards, who'd often send merchants to line up mornings to immediately buy out all the new stock and sell for a notable profit

As the pandemic forced everyone into their homes, people naturally found solace in card games. This greatly boosted the popularity of YuGiOh, but more notably of Pokémon, with Walmart and Target stores finding themselves rapidly out of stock as new enthusiasts disturbed the previously established balance of demand and supply. Perhaps the simplest proof of this increase in demand can be seen on Yugioh channels like TeamAPS, who have posted a video just over a week ago showcasing shelves upon shelves denuded of any product. While this does make our favorite games more popular again, this delicate order unfortunately finds itself prey to notorious scalpers, who quickly lead situations to progress to such extreme levels that one store has already decided to forego an entire niche of their services.

One insidious consequence of this development may yet reveal its ugly head: a possible inflation in the price of YuGiOh and Pokémon products sold on the secondary market may be just around the corner. The recently released Ghosts From the Pasts set is currently selling at prices more than 150% of its quoted MSRP on Konami's website, a grim indicator of what may come to follow for anticipated upcoming releases like Lightning Overdrive and perhaps even Dawn of Majesty. Adilsons advises all readers to be aware of this possibility and avoid contributing to the rush which is currently plaguing a few (at the time of writing) stores in America. You'll get your cardboard fix for much cheaper with just a bit of patience.


2. Made in Abyss Gets Second Season!

Now onto some great news: the anime we've all come to love is finally getting a follow up season after 4 years of silence! Don't get your hopes too high, however, as the second season is projected for release in 2022 so there's at least 7 more months of waiting in store. Then again, 7 months is a flash compared to 4 years, isn't it? While the Dawn of The Deep movie (released last year) acted as a sequel to the first season, the second season reportedly will continue the story and is titled The Sun Blazes Upon the Golden City (Retsujitsu no Ougonkyo). It is still unknown about which company will animate the second season, but fans have come to speculate that Kevin Penkin (composer of the first season) will return to fill the same role for the future release following him tweeting on the second season's release.

For those unfamiliar with this absolute masterpiece, here's the synopsis as taken from Wikipedia (edited for brevity):
"An orphaned girl named Riko lives in the Belchero Orphanage in the town of Orth. The town surrounds a strange, giant hole going deep into the earth, which is commonly called the Abyss. The Abyss harbors artifacts and remnants of a civilization long gone, and is therefore the popular hunting spot for so-called Cave Raiders, who undertake arduous and dangerous descents into the mist-filled pit to recover whatever relics they can find. Returning from the Abyss can be dangerous as "the Curse of the Abyss," a mysterious and potentially fatal malady, manifests upon ascension. Some legendary Cave Raiders earn the title of White Whistle, one of them being Riko's mother, Lyza. Riko's longing in life is to follow in her mother's footsteps and become a White Whistle."

Be warned however: don't let this show's sweet aesthetics mislead you- Made in Abyss quickly sets itself up as a perilous journey full of gore and horror and most definitely isn't suitable for kids 13 and under. Regarded as one of the best anime to be released in 2017, the second season certainly has big boots to fill, but given its considerable break of 4 years, we're confident that an equally well thought out adventure-oriented sequel lies in store.

More good news is in store for fans of this franchise (everyone, basically?): Made in Abyss will be getting a game that's based on the anime and will allow players themselves to descend into the deep, deep abyss. It has currently been confirmed for the following platforms: PC, PlayStation and Nintendo Switch. The game titled "Made in Abyss: Binary Star Falling into Darkness" will also be released in 2022, giving fans even more reason to sit tight and rewatch the beautiful story depicted so far. That's certainly our plan for this weekend.


3. Shadows House Causes Massive Scare!

Not in the "horror anime" context, unfortunately. We're talking "inching towards the Promised Neverland Disaster" kinda horror. Allow us to explain.

Shadows House has established itself as one of the most promising anime of this year so far, but fans were left feeling all shades of confusion, displeasure and even fear after last week's episode unexpectedly decided to stay from the path taken by the manga. This difference, as pointed out by many, involves the introduction of a certaim veiled doll which was essentially glossed over in the anime, whereas the manga took things... a little bit further. Perhaps this seems trivial to the new anime fans out there, but the cause for our worry isn't the anime: it's the studio. CloverWorks made a notorious name for itself earlier this year following a catastrophic decision to curtail the story of The Promised Neverland in such poor fashion that it left fans aghast as they witnessed the show butcher itself into mediocrity.

If you're curious about what we mean, you'll can check out the two articles we made detailing the downfall of The Promised Neverland. Unfortunately, the choice by Shadows House to follow in the same footsteps left many fans rightfully worried. Fortunately enough, the mangaka of Shadows House was quick to console fans on Twitter and reassured everyone that the decision was made to fit the story within the alloted 13 episodes and that any plot holes which may arise as a consequence will be duly addressed and remedied. That's more than The Promised Neverland ever did, so consider us pleased, Somato! Only time will tell if our trust isn't misplaced.

That does it for this week's news, everyone. We'll catch you next week with more exciting updates and reviews, right here- same time, same place! Live Your Passion with Adilsons!