YOu know likeRukia Execution shock!!!

In manga it’s not uncommon to throw in multiple panels of spectator characters reacting to what just happened. And in a comics medium, this works just fine, because the reader’s eye just skips over it, it doesn’t interrupt the pacing at all.

But in animation, where everything has to be shown sequentially, this can wind up bogging down the pacing badly if directly reproduced.

This minute-and-a-half clip has two of them and doesn’t cause any pacing problems at all

The first one whips by in an instant. There’s no attempt to make every face and reaction legible; the only thing that needs to come across is the vibe.

The second set is held on for longer and each reaction has a little animation, but this actually works in the pacing’s favor. It’s deliberately extending the moment of realization for just long enough to make it pop.

Importantly, the reactions are totally silent. There’s no interruption of the soundscape to tear the viewer out of the moment.

Just a really good execution of something that throws a lot of anime adaptations