Sara Talks Anime

I know, this is the time where I would usually be posting a write up of the latest episode of Secrets of the Silent Witch. Unfortunately for me, however, this week’s “episode” of Secrets of the Silent Witch is a recap episode, which I have chosen to skip, as it contains minimal, if any, new content.

But, I can’t exactly leave you guys without a post at scheduled time, now can I? So, in lieu of having an episode with new story content to do a writeup about, I’m going to rant about my disdain regarding recap episodes, as someone who has the majority of their anime experience be watching episodes of shows after their simulcast season is done.

On the offchance you can’t piece together what recap episodes are, they’re when shows take one of their time slots and use it to have an episode that goes over what events have already occurred in the series. Now, the idea isn’t necessarily a bad idea: if someone has forgotten what’s happened in the series because they aren’t regularly following it, or if they’re picking the series up after a long period of not following it, recap episodes can help to remind viewers of what’s already happened, so that they can continue the series after that prolonged break, or even if it’s been several years since the first season, to remind viewers of what’s happened.

However, unfortunately, for the followers who are really interested in a story, recap episodes are ultimately not needed, unless someone genuinely needs a reminder of what’s happened during the anime season.

Now, I can fully understand why this occurs. According to research that I’ve done, schedules for when shows on Japanese television air are picked in advance, so if they picked up a timeslot, they’d have an obligation to fill. This would be a sound answer to me, if we didn’t have the case of several shows needing to delay episodes from their original timeslots.

Giving a massive side glance to YOU, Zom 100: Bucket List of the Dead, with that statement. Or would the more accurate title be Zom 100: Production Issues from the Dead?

Yes, these typically stem from production issues, and are likely given out far enough ahead to give the station time to find something else to play in its timeslot. However, if that can be done, then how come some shows decide to air recap episodes during their first season, when that timeslot could be filled with something else instead?

Thankfully, it seems like this isn’t as bad as another show I followed, as when I was just about to get into the flow of following the series episode wise, bam, skip week because something else connected to the show aired in its timeslot, with Crunchyroll not adding it, likely because it’s not animated. (*cough* Ameku M.D.: Doctor Detective *cough*)

Honestly, I’d prefer if they managed to get something else to air in its spot instead of having a timeslot get taken up by rehashing events that the viewer has already seen if they’ve already been regularly following the series. Again, I understand why they exist, but that doesn’t mean I have to like them.

Although, this does explain why the previous episode without a decimal point didn’t include a thing for the title of the next episode, due to that recap episode. I should get back to doing my regular writeups for Secrets of the Silent Witch next week, so I hope you guys enjoyed me speaking about recap episodes and why I don’t like them.