F.G. Meanie here. Welcome to Meanie Says, a blog where I think a lot about stories, philosophy, and ideology, all through the framework of manga reviews.
Topics I Hope to Cover:
- Genre analysis for:
- Battle shōnen;
- Action more generally;
- Science fiction;
- Fantasy;
- Horror, and;
- Slice of life romance;
- Philosophy and some loose Spinozism;
- Breakdowns of story themes, messages, ideology, and portrayals;
- Whether the author intended them or not, and;
- What that difference could mean;
- Experimental reading strategies for story “failures”;
- Discussion of fight choreography, martial arts, and power systems;
- Case studies connecting overall world building, plot, and character;
- Strategies in page layout, composition, and style;
- Reviews where I’m saddened by the popularity of series I dislike, and:
- The reasons I’m right about it, also;
- Why your fave is mediocre, also;
- Why your takes are cold;
- And more!
I’m very open to suggestions. Any contribution to this project in good faith is welcomed with open arms. Let me know if you want me to cover a subject not listed above!
My Rating System
I say this on my Anilist page, but I will say it here as well:
In theory I use the full scale from 1 to 10 but if it’s below a 4.5 I’ve likely dropped it (or pushed myself to read it for specific reasons). Here’s a short description of the milestones of my ranking scale:
- 1: I had trouble getting through the first chapter, and likely didn’t read further.
- 2.5: I found it mainly bad with some redeeming qualities, and as you can tell, I probably still dropped it.
- 5: It was equal parts bad and good, or generally lackluster and mediocre.
- 7.5: An enjoyable read with noticeable flaws that didn’t keep me from liking it overall. Or, it can also be a series that has my opinion split, with a high ceiling and a low floor.
- 10: I couldn’t think of a way to improve it even if I tried, a.k.a. Yotsuba and Haikyuu tier.
Recent Manga Reviews and Analyses
- Arknights – Meanie’s Rolling AdmissionsMeanie’s Rolling Admissions is a series of reviews of gacha games – games with a loot-crate or random draw mechanic.… Read more: Arknights – Meanie’s Rolling Admissions
- Fate/Grand Order – Meanie’s Rolling AdmissionsFate/Grand Order holds the distinct dishonor of setting the bar for other gacha games to beat. I will say from the outset it’s very fun.
- Blame!: I Don’t Understand It. Should I Want To?It’s been ages since I read Blame! and I don’t think I could name more than three characters if I tried, let alone locales or technologies.