• What are you watching this winter? I’m reviewing Iron-Blooded Orphans and Yowamushi Pedal New Generation for Anime News Network, and watching Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid and Descending Stories: Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju just for fun.
• Last week I wrote about the tropes in Iron-Blooded Orphans, calling it Mari Okada’s take on the Gundam universe. But after a discussion with translator @karice67, it appears I may have given Okada too much credit. Their response to my piece, ‘Iron-Blooded Orphans’ is not ‘Mari Okada’s Gundam,” is surprisingly measured and informative for a title that just sounds like it’s going to own me really hard.
• The Powerful Women of Trigun. I had the privilege of editing Elena’s piece for Anime Feminist. After reading this, you will not be surprised to learn she is writing her thesis on Trigun! My edits were mostly to make it shorter which is the real difference between writers trained as journalists and writers trained as academics. I can’t even write long when I want to!
• Overwatch’s gamer girl hero inspires a feminist movement. Feminists in South Korea are uniting under the banner of the National D.Va Association. It continues to impress me just how culturally relevant Overwatch continues to be.
• Don’t Rein It In: The Necessary, Unrepentant Weirdness of My Horse Prince. Whether it’s in anime, comics, or games, I’m of the mindset that weird is good. Kudos for media that doesn’t all look the same!
• Art Under Fascism: Overcoming Hopelessness and Making Something, Because it Matters. I don’t believe that the best art is made when people are stressed or depressed. I certainly do my best work when I’m relaxed, and have been more distracted than usual recently! Angela Webber, one half of geek band The Doubleclicks, discusses her struggle to be creative in a world she no longer recognizes. HT Zoe.
• If you are feeling hopeless right now, taking action doesn’t have to be difficult. I’ve been using the website 5 Calls every day on my lunch break to call my senators. There’s a script so you won’t have any phone anxiety, and it takes around 5 minutes! I’ve been getting a lot of busy signals, but occasionally I can leave a message.

Screenshot via Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid.