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https://blacknerdproblems.com/anyway-im-falling-in-love-with-you-e1-review/

It’s the year 2020, and Mizuha is having the worst 17th birthday ever. Her parents forgot it’s her birthday, she still can’t seem to get close to the senior she likes, and all her school trips and tournaments are canceled thanks to a new disease going around. She’s convinced she’ll never have the kind of youth she’s always dreamt of…until her childhood friend, Mizuki, suddenly asks her out.

Here’s a mostly spoiler free review for the first episode of Anyway, I’m Falling in Love with You which will premiere on Thursday, January 9, 2025 on Crunchyroll. A big thanks to Crunchyroll for the early access!

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“An Awful Birthday”

The very first episode of Anyway, I’m Falling In Love With You begins with an adult Mizuha out in the big city, contemplating her adolescence after seeing some students walking the streets. She thinks back on the start of an awful birthday that she had as a teen when she was much more carefree. The audience is transported back to the morning of July 1, 2020 when she wakes up on her birthday–one that everyone seemingly has forgotten. On her way to school, she’s greeted by her four childhood best friends, whom she’s known all her life. She mentions all four boys are partially her siblings as they walk their way to their local high school where they are all second year students.

These childhood friends are the bespectacled Shuugo, the influencer Airu, the blonde and quite observant Shin, and the youngest of the group, Kizuki. Kizuki is perhaps the closest to our main character, labeled as “the baby” of the group, and someone Mizuhan sees as someone to look after. Finally at school, she comes to the realization that her slightly younger male friend is growing up and someone who is eye candy to the girls at school. She’s on a mission though–she’s hoping to meet someone at school who is important to her, and she has a message for them.

What initially drew me to Anyway, I’m Falling in Love with You when I was reading the manga (read the Manga, Chapters 1-4, for Free via Kodansha) was Shojo romance via a crushing pandemic. Originally set during when the COVID-19, I remember reading the start of the manga series and really loving how the series was reflecting the times. Mizuha is a teenage girl during a year where everything is cancelled and postponed: sporting tournaments for her athletic friends, classes suspended, firework shows. The world hasn’t stopped completely, but nothing is going right for this girl in the grand scheme of being a teenager and all the plans she had. Not to be dramatic but she comes home that evening thinking to top it off that the people closest to her have forgotten her birthday! 

You may watch this first episode of Anyway, I’m Falling in Love with You and decide that there are no big action scenes. Yet, there is rising action and plenty of scenes where characters are sharing big confessions and connecting the dots on current events within their friend circle popping off. Yes, there are a few swimmers on the high school team (Kizuki is one of them), but this isn’t  Free! – Iwatobi Swim Club. 

Instead, I do like that most of the action focuses on Mizuha and the catalyst of this very important year of her life with all the transitions and changes that come with it. There’s a big pivotal scene toward the end that is very flashy that fits the high emotional intensity of the scene that audiences will be sure to pay attention to. I loved the nighttime scenes of Mizuha’s birthday evening where her friends surprise her and the audiences both–some serious and others and very comedic via the animation. I’m happy that Typhoon Graphics got assigned this series as they handled Why Raeliana Ended Up at the Duke’s Mansion, another Shojo/Josei leaning fave from the realm of manhwa quite well.

“Anyway, I’m Falling in Love with You focuses on all the ups and downs of the brilliant adolescence of a teen girl whose life is upended in 2020. Shojo lovers will recognize a meaningful story starting to build in this very first episode that includes longing, discomfort and several realizations that will change lives forever.”

Verdict

Anyway, I’m Falling in Love with You has given us a well-paced, charming first episode full of the highs and lows of teenage adolescence. I am a big fan of the story adapted from the manga that resonates for anyone watching who experienced growth, transitions, and many changes: good and bad. So far, it is looking like the manga’s distinctive story is being adapted well to anime, and it is engaging and entertaining to see a newer Shojo series blossoming in its anime version. I am a fan of seeing Mizuha and friends on screen and seeing their different personalities shine as she comes into her seventeenth year and one step closer to being an adult. 

As a Shojo stan, I am always hoping that more and more Shojo anime gets to us in the ongoing and very much publicized Shojo anime drought–here’s a great video from one of my faves, Colleen of Colleen’s Manga Recs and another from Phoenix of The Anime Tea. Not only have we been in a decline of Shojo anime (and by association, Josei anime), we’ve also been in a decline of longer running adaptations. Yes, I’m looking at every twelve-episode series that we’ve been receiving with little to no communication of whether we are receiving another season or some other update to see more.

I very much want to see more Shojo anime and more interest from studios in bringing it to us as these stories are very important. Anyway, I’m Falling in Love with You brings us a shining example of the genre focusing on all the ups and downs of the brilliant adolescence of a teen girl whose life is upended in 2020. Shojo lovers will recognize a meaningful story starting to build in this very first episode that includes longing, discomfort and several realizations that will change lives forever.

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Anyway, I’m Falling in Love with You

Premiering on Crunchyroll

January 9, 2025

– PRODUCTION STAFF –

Based on the Manga Anyway, I’m Falling in Love With You Created by

Haruka Mitsui

Directed by

Junichi Yamamoto

Series Composition Written by

Yu Murai

Script Written by

Yu Murai and Nagisa Nario

Character Design

Io Shiiba

Sub-Character Design

Katsuzo Hirata

Rena Okuyama

Prop Design

Yoshihiro Ujiie

Daiki Ueda

Art Director

Atsushi Satomi

Art Director

Yuriko Imose

Color Design by 

Chieko Hibi

Director of Photography

Yuzuru Funakoshi

Editor

Tsuyoshi Imai

Music Composed by

Keiji Inai

Sound Director

Yasunori Ebina

Animation Producer

Takashi Sakurai

Animation Production by 

Typhoon Graphics

– SONGS –

Opening Theme Song “Make It Count” Performed by

INI

Ending Theme Song “Negaigoto” Performed by

Marcy

– JAPANESE VOICE CAST – 

Sakura Shinfuku as Mizuho Nishino

Kazuki Ura as Kizuki Hazawa

Sion Yoshitaka as Shin Kashiwagi

Shoya Chiba as Airu Izumi

Satoshi Inomata as Shugo Hoshikawa

Yuto Uemura as Ryosuke Saito

Azusa Tadokoro as Chika Kurashiki

Yūichirō Umehara as Tōgo Hoshikawa

Kaori Nazuka as Manami Shiraishi

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About Crunchyroll

Crunchyroll is the global anime brand that fuels fans’ love of anime. With the ambition to make anime an even bigger part of pop culture, Crunchyroll offers fans the ultimate anime experience and destination centered around a premium streaming service. Crunchyroll has the largest dedicated anime library, an immersive world of events, exciting theatrical releases, unique games, must-have merchandise, timely news, and more. Anime is for everyone and is accessible to stream across territories through Crunchyroll—whether on the go on mobile, through gaming consoles and big-screen devices at home, or on desktops anywhere.

Crunchyroll, LLC is an independently operated joint venture between U.S.-based Sony Pictures Entertainment and Japan’s Aniplex, a subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment (Japan) Inc., both subsidiaries of Tokyo-based Sony Group.

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Cover image: ©Haruka Mitsui, KODANSHA/Anyway, I’m Falling in Love with You Production Committee

Read the Manga, Chapters 1-4, for Free via Kodansha

Winter Anime 2025 Season is here! Did you catch our site’s review of the start of season two of Solo Leveling?

How About ZENSHU? Love anime? So do we! See what else we have to offer on the site via anime here!

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The post Shojo Reflecting The Times: ‘Anyway, I’m Falling in Love with You’ Episode 1 Review appeared first on Black Nerd Problems.

https://www.essence.com/beauty/best-beauty-looks-sag-award-nominees-2025/

Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for Academy Museum of Motion Pictures By India Espy-Jones ·Updated January 8, 2025

Today, the nominees for the 31st annual Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards were announced, with the ceremony scheduled for late next month. Until then, we’re left to speculate the beauty moments we’ll see from the actresses—including Zendaya, who is engaged to her Dune: Part Two co-star Tom Holland—as they don the red carpet in understated glamour. 

The Bear’s Ayo Edebiri—nominated for her outstanding performance as Sydney Adamu—often has luminous skin as the foundation of her beauty look, as seen at the W magazine pre-Golden Globes party (then, paired with a flipped bob). In the same category, a short pixie on Abbott Elementary’s Quinta Brunson has been her signature as of late, while monochromatic lip and eye makeup looks are a close second. 

For Colman Domingo, his eyeliner at the Met Gala is in for a much anticipated return with the men’s makeup industry on an uptick. Wicked topped the SAG Awards with five nominations, including Cynthia Erivo’s outstanding performance, supported by her dramatic, decorated manicures (see: the 2025 National Board of Review Gala).

From Zendaya’s Fendi micro-bang to a slick back on Zoë Saldaña, take a look at some of our favorite beauty looks from this year’s nominees.

Dune: Part Two, Outstanding Action Performance by a Stunt Ensemble in a Motion Picture PARIS, FRANCE – JANUARY 25: Zendaya attends the Fendi Haute Couture Spring/Summer 2024 show as part of Paris Fashion Weekon January 25, 2024 in Paris, France. (Photo by Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images for Fendi)BEVERLY HILLS, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 05: Zendaya attends the 82nd Annual Golden Globe Awards at The Beverly Hilton on January 05, 2025 in Beverly Hills, California.(Photo by Monica Schipper/Getty Images)NEW YORK, NEW YORK – SEPTEMBER 21: Zendaya is seen in Midtown on September 21, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by The Hapa Blonde/GC Images) Cynthia Erivo, Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role NEW YORK, NEW YORK – OCTOBER 29: Cynthia Erivo attends the WSJ. Magazine 2024 Innovator Awards on October 29, 2024 in New York City.(Photo by Noam Galai/Getty Images for WSJ. Magazine Innovators Awards)NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JANUARY 07: Cynthia Erivo attends the 2025 National Board of Review Gala at Cipriani 42nd Street on January 07, 2025 in New York City. (Photo by Mike Coppola/Getty Images)Cynthia Erivo during the 82nd Annual Golden Globes held at The Beverly Hilton on January 05, 2025 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Michael Buckner/GG2025/Penske Media via Getty Images) Colman Domingo, Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role Colman Domingo at the Boucheron In America event during New York Ready to Wear Fashion Week held at Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum on September 10, 2024 in New York, New York.(Photo by Lexie Moreland/WWD via Getty Images)NEW YORK, NEW YORK – MAY 06: Colman Domingo attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 06, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 04: (L-R) Colman Domingo and Quinta Brunson attend W Magazine’s Annual Best Performances Party at Chateau Marmont on January 04, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Jerritt Clark/Getty Images for W Magazine) Sheryl Lee Ralph, Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – OCTOBER 19: Sheryl Lee Ralph attends The Fourth Annual Academy Museum Gala at Academy Museum of Motion Pictures on October 19, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/GA/The Hollywood Reporter via Getty Images)SANTA MONICA, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 14: Sheryl Lee Ralph attends the 29th Annual Critics Choice Awards at Barker Hangar on January 14, 2024 in Santa Monica, California. (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – FEBRUARY 24: Sheryl Lee Ralph attends the 30th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards at Shrine Auditorium and Expo Hall on February 24, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Amy Sussman/WireImage) Ayo Edebiri, Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series Ayo Edebiri at the 30th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards held at the Shrine Auditorium and Expo Hall on February 24, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Michael Buckner/Variety via Getty Images)LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 04: Ayo Edebiri attends W Magazine’s Annual Best Performances Party at Chateau Marmont on January 04, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Charley Gallay/Getty Images for W Magazine)LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 15: Ayo Edebiri, winner of the Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series award for “The Bear,” poses in the press room during the 75th Primetime Emmy Awards at Peacock Theater on January 15, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevin Mazur/Getty Images) Quinta Brunson, Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – OCTOBER 19: Quinta Brunson attends the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures 4th Annual Gala in Partnership with Rolex at Academy Museum of Motion Pictures on October 19, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Stefanie Keenan/Getty Images for Academy Museum of Motion Pictures)Quinta Brunson at the 75th Emmy Gala held at the Los Angeles Convention Center on January 15, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Michael Buckner/Variety via Getty Images)LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 04: Quinta Brunson attends W Magazine’s Annual Best Performances Party at Chateau Marmont on January 04, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for W Magazine) Zoë Saldaña, Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role BEVERLY HILLS, CALIFORNIA – JANUARY 05: Zoe Saldaña attends Netflix’s Golden Globe Afterparty 2025 at Spago on January 05, 2025 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Charley Gallay/Getty Images for Netflix)Zoe Saldana poses in the press room at the 36th Annual Palm Springs International Film Awards at the Palm Springs Convention Center on January 3, 2025 in Palm Springs, California. (Photo by Chad Salvador/Variety via Getty Images)LONDON, ENGLAND – DECEMBER 05: Zoe Saldaña attends the reception for a screening of Netflix’s ‘Emilia Pérez’ on December 05, 2024 in London, England. (Photo by Dave Benett/Getty Images for Netflix)TOPICS:  celebrity beauty looks nominees sag awards

The post Our Favorite Beauty Looks From The 2025 SAG Award Nominees appeared first on Essence.

https://nerdist.com/article/meta-removes-fact-checking-shifts-to-community-notes-facebook-instagram/

It’s a wild world out there on the internet. There’s no denying that. Sometimes, it’s wild in an awesome way, where people’s weird and wacky dreams can come true. But the truth is that determining fact from fiction on the internet has become incredibly difficult. And now, it’s about to get a little bit more tangled. Following on the heels of the model set by Elon Musk’s Twitter (we guess, if there were a time to call it X, it would be now), Meta has announced that it will remove its fact-checking systems from Facebook and Instagram and replace them with Community Notes.

According to Mark Zuckerberg, the complicated fact-checking system Facebook had in place, which utilized independent third parties, made “too many mistakes,” had “too much censorship” and was “too politically biased.”

The Community Notes system will be slowly phased into the US over the next months as Fact Checking is phased out of Meta. Meta explains, “We plan to phase in Community Notes in the US first over the next couple of months, and will continue to improve it over the course of the year. As we make the transition, we will get rid of our fact-checking control, stop demoting fact-checked content, and, instead of overlaying full-screen interstitial warnings you have to click through before you can even see the post, we will use a much less obtrusive label indicating that there is additional information for those who want to see it.” Basically, though Community Notes will appear on content, they will not largely feature in a post. And also, the notes will be provided not by independent experts, but… by the community, whomever that might be.

Of additional note, a post from Joel Kaplan, Chief Global Affairs Officer at Meta, shares that in addition to the fact-checking updates, Meta will be “getting rid of a number of restrictions on topics like immigration, gender identity and gender that are the subject of frequent political discourse and debate.” Additionally, Meta’s trust and safety and content moderation teams will now shift from California to Texas, which mirrors Musk’s move of Twitter’s headquarters to the same state.

Make of all this what you will. And spend your time on the internet in places that make you feel safe and happy.

The post Meta Removes Fact-Checking From Facebook and Instagram, Shifts to Community Notes appeared first on Nerdist.

https://nerdist.com/article/how-robert-pattinson-could-work-dcu-batman/

Could Robert Pattinson’s Caped Crusader, as we know him from Matt Reeves’ The Batman and its eventual sequel, be our DCU version of the iconic hero? Some rumors making the rounds suggest that James Gunn and DC Studios are at least considering the possibility. Now, we are not advocates for this idea at all. In our humble opinion, the DCU Batman, set to debut in The Brave and the Bold, should be separate from Reeves’ version. Gunn’s new DCU seems to have a totally different tone than what we’ve seen already in Reeves’ world. But let’s say it does happen. Could it work? Yes, maybe it could. Maybe. And there’s precedent for this approach in the pages of DC Comics.

DC Comics Set the Example for How a Realistic Batman Can Exist in a Fantastical Universe

It’s true, Matt Reeves’ version of Batman lives in a gritty, realistic Gotham City. One that doesn’t seemingly vibe with the world of Creature Commandos, or the upcoming Superman. But the comics were very much like this too once. In Frank Millers seminal Batman: Year One, which reintroduced Batman to the modern era, there wasn’t the slightest hint of anything sci-fi or supernatural. Miller’s Gotham was a real world version. (Ok, aside from one mention of “that guy in Metropolis.”) And yet, readers accepted that outside those panels, a far more fantastical DC universe was taking shape. We’ve only had one Reeves Batman movie so far. Technically, it’s early enough into this franchise that more fantastical elements might not feel totally out of place in a sequel.

There could also be a significant time gap between what we see in The Batman and future DCU projects like Superman. Yes, The Batman seemed to be taking place in the present day, or at the very least the 2020s era. But for all we know, Superman and other future DC projects take place in the near future. Enough time for the majority of costumed heroes to have appeared some years after Pattinson’s Batman hit the scene. Yes, Gunn said that his DCU will have some history, suggesting heroes as far back as WWII. But there could be a time gap between those characters and modern-day superheroes. Batman’s debut could theoretically slip into that window of time.

We’ve Seen This Approach Work Before, in the MCU

There’s precedent for all of this in the MCU. If one walked out of the theater in 2008 after having seen Iron Man, they probably were not aware that this technological hero existed in the same universe as Asgardian gods, ancient sorcerers, and giant purple aliens. But subsequent MCU movies like The Incredible Hulk and Iron Man 2 instantly let us know that the world was getting bigger. Matt Reeves could do the same in The Batman – Part II. Even if it’s just a mention of wilder goings-on happening outside the frame. Technically, it’s still early enough to retcon The Batman into being the first DCU movie without being too egregious about it, if they really want to.

Some Wanted Christian Bale’s Batman in the DCEU, Just as Many Want Robert Pattinson’s Batman in the New DCU

The debate over Robert Pattinson’s Batman joining the new DCU is a bit of déjà vu for superhero movie fans. Allegedly, after the massive success of Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight trilogy, executives at Warner Bros. wanted Zack Snyder’s then-upcoming Man of Steel (which Nolan produced) to take place in the same universe as his Batman films. The intent from the folks in charge was that Christian Bale’s Batman and Superman would eventually share the screen together. In hindsight, that likely would have been way more impactful. Not to mention, it would have produced a bigger box office. Allegedly, Nolan put his foot down, and maintained that his Batman’s story was separate (and over). Will Matt Reeves make the same demand for his Bruce Wayne? We’ll all find out soon enough.

The post Here’s How Robert Pattinson Could Become The DCU’s Batman appeared first on Nerdist.