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Winter-Spring 2014 Anime |OT3| People incapable of guilt usually do have a good time

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firehawk12

Subete no aware
I find brevity is wonderfully condusive to being as succinct about the plot as possible so that you can try and be critical in what space remains. But maybe it's not the same for web writing.
I understand that a review necessarily requires you to give some aspect of the plot to the reader, because they have no context for your criticism otherwise. The problem lies in how much you trust the reader to be able to understand the context in as few words as possible.

Of course, with ANN's style, I think they would be better served if they just had one person write a summary and put that at the top of the page so that the critics can just do their own thing.
 

fertygo

Member
See now this is what I'm talking about, even if this isn't a serious. It just comes off as a pretty dumb attempt to slight another poster that's built on the assumption that everyone thinks ANN writers are awful.

It's just not necessary or helpful. If you disagree with someone's reading of a particular show than respond to that. If you simply don't share the same tastes as someone else then there's not really anything interesting that you can say about that because everyone has different tastes in terms of what they enjoy.

I don't even think that far tbh lol
But I guess you're right I shouldn't do that, sorry then Phsycho!
 

Grzi

Member
Ping Pong - 01

Best first episode this season, without a doubt. It just flows so well, it's simple, but executed flawlessly in a way that leaves you wanting more. It's classic sport tropes but done a bit better and subtler than usual, with just a tad of that shounen addictiveness.
The visuals are great, they fit the tone of the show, the comic book style cuts were nice, and I'm quite pleased overall.
 

BluWacky

Member
Ping Pong - 01

Best first episode this season, without a doubt. It just flows so well, it's simple, but executed flawlessly in a way that leaves you wanting more. It's classic sport tropes but done a bit better and subtler than usual, with just a tad of that shounen addictiveness.

What do you think those sports tropes were here? I don't watch a lot of sports anime but the tropes there always seem to be "the plucky rookie starts the sport and will win with lots of enthusiasm!", whereas here we're dealing with people who are already at the top of their game. It reminds me a little of 3gatsu no Lion, a manga in which all the shogi players are top-ranked and so each match is more about their inner psychology as a player or their personal issues rather than being the best etc.

It seems to me that this show is really about Smile as a person, more than anything.
 

firehawk12

Subete no aware
What do you think those sports tropes were here? I don't watch a lot of sports anime but the tropes there always seem to be "the plucky rookie starts the sport and will win with lots of enthusiasm!", whereas here we're dealing with people who are already at the top of their game. It reminds me a little of 3gatsu no Lion, a manga in which all the shogi players are top-ranked and so each match is more about their inner psychology as a player or their personal issues rather than being the best etc.

It seems to me that this show is really about Smile as a person, more than anything.
The burned out athlete, the cocky athlete, the apathetic athlete. Heck, these are literally real life characteristics you see in professional athletes that most people would say can only be fixed with good coaching.
 

Jex

Member
The burned out athlete, the cocky athlete, the apathetic athlete. Heck, these are literally real life characteristics you see in professional athletes that most people would say can only be fixed with good coaching.

So it's like reality? We should fix the tropes in real life?
 

BluWacky

Member
The burned out athlete, the cocky athlete, the apathetic athlete. Heck, these are literally real life characteristics you see in professional athletes that most people would say can only be fixed with good coaching.

Are those tropes, though, or just characterisations? I dunno, they don't feel like box-checking exercises. Maybe it's because it's not a team-based show in the same way that shounen sports shows tend to be so they already feel more rounded as characters?

So it's like reality? We should fix the tropes in real life?

Flippant, but summarises the point I was trying to make :p
 

sonicmj1

Member
Ping Pong 1

This was as good as everyone said it was.

ixfmfozAuh8Lf.jpg

In the final faceoff with China, the ball's animated really well. It's easy to tell just how Peco is getting outplayed without the characters having to tell you exactly what's going on before your eyes.

I feel somewhat obligated to start with the art style here. As one of the commentaries here pointed out, this is an adaptation of a manga, and the anime's art is a close match to the source's style. There's lots of flat shading, and distant objects lack any kind of detail. That doesn't always make for the most pleasing screenshots, but where this less-defined style really stands out is in the ping pong scenes. The exaggerated stretch and squash, along with the way the camera bounces back and forth across the table, make these scenes absolutely riveting. Everything animates beautifully.


Within the art style, I really like the character designs, too. Everyone's clearly not cut from the same mold. Peco's small, round face reads impish innocence, while China's face and hair use sharp, aggressive lines, showing his competitive drive. He actually reminds me a little of Rin in Free. You can tell a lot just from everyone's silhouette. It's top-notch work.


Smile and Peco are defined for us nearly as soon as they appear onscreen. The way the ping pong coach asks the club captain about everyone suggests that he's a pretty absent figure, and it brings us up to speed in terms of everything we don't know. For everything directly stated, something else is implied. Peco can't make friends because he's a hothead; Smile can't make friends because he's utterly humorless. Peco plays ping pong because he's good at it, and likes the feeling of superiority he gets from winning (hence the love of hustling fresh faces at his local club). It's less clear why Smile plays, but from their dynamic it's easy to understand why he holds back against his friend.

More importantly, this episode lays out a clear theme for us.

iBwpmWFfYwnd0.jpg

This Engish quote fits nicely coming from their slightly eccentric coach.

The protagonists are slackers of different kinds, coasting on their talent. But with the arrival of China, that will no longer be enough. How do they respond? Where will that lead them? Basically, we already know what the show's about, which is more than I can say for a sprawling mess like Black Bullet.

iVrg2VDOJHtUI.jpg

The all-white cut to the sky that confused DTL serves to rise us up from the practice match going on and take us to the roof of the school, separating us from the gym in both time and space. I like how we only really "see" what the two listeners are hearing; closeups of footsteps or the ball hitting table and paddle.

Have I mentioned how awesome it is that the characters speak Chinese? That's so awesome.

I can't wait for more.
 

Shengar

Member
What do you think those sports tropes were here? I don't watch a lot of sports anime but the tropes there always seem to be "the plucky rookie starts the sport and will win with lots of enthusiasm!", whereas here we're dealing with people who are already at the top of their game. It reminds me a little of 3gatsu no Lion, a manga in which all the shogi players are top-ranked and so each match is more about their inner psychology as a player or their personal issues rather than being the best etc.

It seems to me that this show is really about Smile as a person, more than anything.

I never realized it, but it seems this is the reason why 3 Gatsu no Lion appealing to me even though I don't know shit about shogi. There are only few sport mangas that focused on professional level and even fewer that get animated (and those who get animated have rather shitty adaptation *weep Giant Killing).
 
Are those tropes, though, or just characterisations? I dunno, they don't feel like box-checking exercises. Maybe it's because it's not a team-based show in the same way that shounen sports shows tend to be so they already feel more rounded as characters?

I wouldn't call those tropes, but I'm not sure tropes is a word with any useful meaning anymore. It's certainly not a good lens to evaluate fiction through.
 

Jex

Member
I never said tropes were bad. Tropes are just tropes. Characters are just characters. Settings are just settings. Themes are just themes. And so on. It's all about how you use them.

Yeah, that really wasn't actually aimed at your post, in retrospect!
 

Jex

Member
There are actually lots of problems with the review for me. Maybe it's worth breaking down just to discuss what I think doesn't work.
Your points are all valid but I guess what I meant was, ANN producing low-quality writing is kind of a known quantity. It's a subject which has been discussed here, off an on, for sometime. Basically, I don't expect anything better from them and so when I see rather poor episode reviews like those I don't bat an eye.
 

BluWacky

Member
Its remind me, 3 Gatsu no Lion need anime adaptation, noitaminA pls.

It needs to finish first, IMO. As desperate as I am to see an anime adaptation, particularly one as good as HachiKuro's was, I'd like it to be the whole story. I have no idea whether it's anywhere near the end of the story yet.
 
Normal 14 year old have all legit reason to freaked out and snap like Shinji in the nightmare he got into.

But 16 year old is super-secret magic agent and have sister that want his thing so bad is certainly just another LN wankfantasy.
What matters is context and presentation."he had his reasons" is like no escuse when it was his major character trait during the first 26 ep of this show.

Because of that one image this has been added to the backlog. Thanks for that....
Don't worry ... pretty sure you'll enjoy it.

shes a cutie but her main flaw is not being Onodera.
Main flaw ? it's her main asset !
#TeamChitose

Happiness Charge Precure 10
I am enjoying this show way too much :,(
If this continues I am forced to watch older PreCure shows. Don't do this to me :(
You talk as if watching the best previous seasons ( heartcatch,splashstar ) is not a good thing.
It is a good thing.
These are the biggest things wrong with Mahouka. The series has multiple MAJOR problems. Warning: some spoilers.
NIce explaining .. too bad i didn't read it because it's full of spoilers. I consider this show to be one with potential so there is no reason for me to spoil my enjoyment
Isn't this too much ?Talking about plot points that aren't even used in the anime yet when only the first episode aired ?

I read SAO way before the anime started , so should i had done something similar and spoil all the points that were controversial over a lot of people in advance ? I don't think that's cool
 

firehawk12

Subete no aware
I wouldn't call those tropes, but I'm not sure tropes is a word with any useful meaning anymore. It's certainly not a good lens to evaluate fiction through.
They're useful for cataloging repeated narrative devices. By themselves, they hold no qualitative meaning. Like a "damsel in distress" without any context is not necessarily negative or positive. It just expresses a repeated device found in fiction.

I personally think they're less than characterizations because a burned out player can be anything. It's the fact that he's angry about it that defines his character.

I treat them the way Vladimir Propp treated types, where he essentially said that every Russian fairy tale can be boiled down to a series of 31 specific "functions":
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vladimir_Propp#Functions
 

fertygo

Member
It needs to finish first, IMO. As desperate as I am to see an anime adaptation, particularly one as good as HachiKuro's was, I'd like it to be the whole story. I have no idea whether it's anywhere near the end of the story yet.
I guess so, maybe I shouldn't put all my hope to noitaminA committee as possible producer for the adaptation, like Chihayafuru or Space Brothers got maybe?
What matters is context and presentation."he had his reasons" is like no escuse when it was his major character trait during the first 26 ep of this show.

Aand Eva does that, you can see dynamic that he goes through, its pretty easy from where Shinji come from with him actually settling as Eva pilot at some point just to get shitty betrayal.
 

dimb

Bjergsen is the greatest midlane in the world
Gochuumon wa Usagi Desu ka 01
This is a really strange intersection of a European town with a Japanese cafe. The delivery on the jokes is quick, and the characters are never grating. It's the right kind of easygoing. I even actually laughed, which is way more than I could say for most shows of this type.
 

Shergal

Member
I'm finding it oddly interesting that Ping Pong is not nearly as divisive as the other Yuasa works, be it here or anywhere else. Yes, you get the occasional complaints about the "artstyle" but these are simple dismissals, not people tearing the work apart from all directions like I always see with, say, Mind Game or Kaiba.

I honestly think it's because Yuasa is not trying to take the spotlight here. He's doing an adaptation, but unlike Mind Game he's not overwhelming the source with his personal idiosyncrasies, drawing style and general approach to themes (something I find to be a constant among his works, both originals and what he adapts). To me Ping Pong really feels like the staff is playing the part of perfect craftsmen who use their talents to bring a source material alive, rather than aggressively showcasing themselves like it generally happens in the stuff Yuasa does.

I think Ben's post put it well when he said Yuasa "disappears" into Matsumoto. Sure, you get his classic directional touches which are closely entangled with animation, like the moving backgrounds zooming in and out while accompanying a movement from a character (Peco vs China mainly), or his extremely slanted perspectives with heavy 3D movement around the screen (that between-the-legs cut in the Peco vs Scrub match). But it is simply giving dynamic to a moment that is supposed to be dynamic, as intended in the original manga -which I haven't read, but I always hear how good the matches are-, in contrast to being a more indulgent flourish made just because (a criticism I find constantly aimed at Yuasa on almost all of his works).

In any case, I'm glad this is the approach they're taking for the show because it fits much better with this type of tone and material.
 
Bokura wa Minna Kawaisou 2

This was a lot better than the first episode, with a some of the more obnoxious moments being toned down and the humor working much better. It still feels like an inferior rendition of a premise that's been done many times, and it isn't helped by how its characters aren't particularly compelling. I think the show needs to hit on the comedy or there won't be any real reason to keep watching, I'm not expecting much coming from the actual romance or characters here. Though maybe I'd just be better off spending my time going with the real thing and finishing Maison Ikkoku.

They're useful for cataloging repeated narrative devices. By themselves, they hold no qualitative meaning. Like a "damsel in distress" without any context is not necessarily negative or positive. It just expresses a repeated device found in fiction.

I personally think they're less than characterizations because a burned out player can be anything. It's the fact that he's angry about it that defines his character.

I treat them the way Vladimir Propp treated types, where he essentially said that every Russian fairy tale can be boiled down to a series of 31 specific "functions":
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vladimir_Propp#Functions
I suppose it works if you treat them in that matter. I think I've just seen way too many horrible uses of TVTropes that I cringe whenever I see an argument forming around tropes.
 

firehawk12

Subete no aware
I suppose it works if you treat them in that matter. I think I've just seen way too many horrible uses of TVTropes that I cringe whenever I see an argument forming around tropes.

TVTropes is funny to me because it takes the formalist approach to the next, and inevitably nerdy, level. Propp identified 7 character types in his original study of folktales, but there are probably thousands on TVTropes.

That said, I still find them useful - especially when considering two texts for the sake of comparison. The Wire and The Shield both have anti-hero cops, but one is clearly different from the other in terms of how those characters actually develop and are characterized.
 

Jex

Member
I'm finding it oddly interesting that Ping Pong is not nearly as divisive as the other Yuasa works, be it here or anywhere else. Yes, you get the occasional complaints about the "artstyle" but these are simple dismissals, not people tearing the work apart from all directions like I always see with, say, Mind Game or Kaiba.

I honestly think it's because Yuasa is not trying to take the spotlight here. He's doing an adaptation, but unlike Mind Game he's not overwhelming the source with his personal idiosyncrasies, drawing style and general approach to themes (something I find to be a constant among his works, both originals and what he adapts). To me Ping Pong really feels like the staff is playing the part of perfect craftsmen who use their talents to bring a source material alive, rather than aggressively showcasing themselves like it generally happens in the stuff Yuasa does.

I think Ben's post put it well when he said Yuasa "disappears" into Matsumoto. Sure, you get his classic directional touches which are closely entangled with animation, like the moving backgrounds zooming in and out while accompanying a movement from a character (Peco vs China mainly), or his extremely slanted perspectives with heavy 3D movement around the screen (that between-the-legs cut in the Peco vs Scrub match). But it is simply giving dynamic to a moment that is supposed to be dynamic, as intended in the original manga -which I haven't read, but I always hear how good the matches are-, in contrast to being a more indulgent flourish made just because (a criticism I find constantly aimed at Yuasa on almost all of his works).

In any case, I'm glad this is the approach they're taking for the show because it fits much better with this type of tone and material.
Good explanation of how Ping Pong differs from his other works. I believe, in summary, his detractors would that it doesn't feature "all that yuasashit" that he's known for.
 

Jex

Member
Yes, every critic repeating the plot seems needless

It's just a bad critical habit that's all too easy to fall into. What's the easiest way to write an impression about an episode of anime? Well, you simply summarise the plot and then add either "I liked this" or "I didn't like this". The problem with plot summaries, especially for specific episodes, is that for people who have watched the episode the summary has no value, and for people who haven't watched the episode the summary doesn't really tell you anything about how the viewer has reacted to the work and why they've reacted to it as they have.
 

sonicmj1

Member
One Week Friends

They don't really try to make the premise make sense, but this episode was still pretty sweet.

What kind of surprised me was the tone. Sure, there's a lot of sappy stuff, usually when the two leads are alone or explaining heavy things. But I liked how people had casual conversations. The male lead's dismissive best friend was good, but the conversations between the two characters were kind of realistically about nothing in particular. That gave everything enough grounding for me to care about the relationship.

Everyone blushes all the time.

How much I stick with it will depend on how things develop, but it seems good enough to keep following for the time being. There's a lot of tragedy inherent in the premise, but that'd be a cheap thing to abuse. Seeing her
at a karaoke place
in the preview definitely hit my buttons, though.
 

BluWacky

Member
I'm finding it oddly interesting that Ping Pong is not nearly as divisive as the other Yuasa works, be it here or anywhere else. Yes, you get the occasional complaints about the "artstyle" but these are simple dismissals, not people tearing the work apart from all directions like I always see with, say, Mind Game or Kaiba.

I honestly think it's because Yuasa is not trying to take the spotlight here. He's doing an adaptation, but unlike Mind Game he's not overwhelming the source with his personal idiosyncrasies, drawing style and general approach to themes (something I find to be a constant among his works, both originals and what he adapts). To me Ping Pong really feels like the staff is playing the part of perfect craftsmen who use their talents to bring a source material alive, rather than aggressively showcasing themselves like it generally happens in the stuff Yuasa does.

There's only one bit for me that feels idiosyncratically "Yuasa" and that's the bit at the start of the episode and the OP with the winged man flying into the sun. Visually it reminded me so much of Kaiba it was almost nostalgic!

Otherwise I think you, and Ben, are right - Yuasa has subsumed himself into Matsumoto's style, and it works brilliantly.
 
Aand Eva does that, you can see dynamic that he goes through, its pretty easy from where Shinji come from with him actually settling as Eva pilot at some point just to get shitty betrayal.
We're going to agree to disagree on this one because that's not how i felt when i watched this years ago.
 

jgminto

Member
Neon Genesis Evangelion END

Well...that was something. I feel like I knew enough about the circumstances of the ending to not be surprised by its nonsense but I was surprised by just how budget it was. Now maybe this is just because Gintama wisened me up to it but all of these still and reused shots over the last two episodes felt super blatant. I had noticed it earlier on too but it was especially bad here. I haven't looked into it at all but I'm curious of the circumstances for the tail end of the show, was it budget or something else?

Now onto the most important thing, Kaworu outclassed Asuka as "best girl" in just ONE episode. He should have been the original 02 pilot! While I came to sympathise with her, she was still an annoying brat. I thought people were exaggerating when they talked about gay tones but nope, that was amazing. It's a shame it had to end so quickly and in the way it did...

I guess I'll watch End soon to see if that actually ties that mess together. Then I guess I'll check out the new movies? I know people aren't too hot on 3 but I feel like it's something I should probably see.
 

Shengar

Member
Sorry firehawk I couldn't reply to your post last page because of my lacking english proficiency

Now onto short anime reviews

Mushishi S2
Like the first episode, mushi isn't become the central focus of the episode. But unlike the first , I think this one have better resolution to the plot that come out more naturally. It's still good, I like it more than the special that I feel too direct but the special have interesting Mushi. I hope next week episode have mushi as its central focus.
 

Grzi

Member
What do you think those sports tropes were here? I don't watch a lot of sports anime but the tropes there always seem to be "the plucky rookie starts the sport and will win with lots of enthusiasm!", whereas here we're dealing with people who are already at the top of their game. It reminds me a little of 3gatsu no Lion, a manga in which all the shogi players are top-ranked and so each match is more about their inner psychology as a player or their personal issues rather than being the best etc.

It seems to me that this show is really about Smile as a person, more than anything.

It definitely could be a story about Smile as a person (I haven't read the manga), even better if so, but there's still your classic sports anime underneath it, it's just executed in a more refined fashion.
A person hiding his true skill, being outshined by a less talented flashier comrade, and his skill being recognized by an outsider who seemingly outclasses them both is definitely a type of twist you could expect from shounen sports shows. Plus the whole sequence of listening to them playing is also classic sports shounen, just done extremely well. There's a good reason DTL liked that scene.
 

Jarmel

Banned
I'm finding it oddly interesting that Ping Pong is not nearly as divisive as the other Yuasa works, be it here or anywhere else. Yes, you get the occasional complaints about the "artstyle" but these are simple dismissals, not people tearing the work apart from all directions like I always see with, say, Mind Game or Kaiba.

I honestly think it's because Yuasa is not trying to take the spotlight here. He's doing an adaptation, but unlike Mind Game he's not overwhelming the source with his personal idiosyncrasies, drawing style and general approach to themes (something I find to be a constant among his works, both originals and what he adapts). To me Ping Pong really feels like the staff is playing the part of perfect craftsmen who use their talents to bring a source material alive, rather than aggressively showcasing themselves like it generally happens in the stuff Yuasa does.

I think Ben's post put it well when he said Yuasa "disappears" into Matsumoto. Sure, you get his classic directional touches which are closely entangled with animation, like the moving backgrounds zooming in and out while accompanying a movement from a character (Peco vs China mainly), or his extremely slanted perspectives with heavy 3D movement around the screen (that between-the-legs cut in the Peco vs Scrub match). But it is simply giving dynamic to a moment that is supposed to be dynamic, as intended in the original manga -which I haven't read, but I always hear how good the matches are-, in contrast to being a more indulgent flourish made just because (a criticism I find constantly aimed at Yuasa on almost all of his works).

In any case, I'm glad this is the approach they're taking for the show because it fits much better with this type of tone and material.

Well it's also only the first episode, so we have to see if the show maintains that level.
 

Jex

Member
Neon Genesis Evangelion END

Well...that was something. I feel like I knew enough about the circumstances of the ending to not be surprised by its nonsense but I was surprised by just how budget it was. Now maybe this is just because Gintama wisened me up to it but all of these still and reused shots over the last two episodes felt super blatant. I had noticed it earlier on too but it was especially bad here. I haven't looked into it at all but I'm curious of the circumstances for the tail end of the show, was it budget or something else?

Now onto the most important thing, Kaworu outclassed Asuka as "best girl" in just ONE episode. He should have been the original 02 pilot! While I came to sympathise with her, she was still an annoying brat. I thought people were exaggerating when they talked about gay tones but nope, that was amazing. It's a shame it had to end so quickly and in the way it did...

I guess I'll watch End soon to see if that actually ties that mess together. Then I guess I'll check out the new movies? I know people aren't too hot on 3 but I feel like it's something I should probably see.
Three points:

1) What about the ending do you feel is 'nonsense', in particular? I'm just curious because it's fairly in keeping with the core themes of the show even if it's portrayed in a very unusual way.

2) Yes, time and budget were the key factors here.

3) You Asuka-bashing must end!
 
NO game NO life - 01

I realise that many ( here in particular ) don't like characters that are too overpowered, too smart , powerfull , or too perfect.... but i don't mind seeing characters that are masters in their own field and are rolling with it.

It's just that when I see an overpowered character I don't want to see him fighting against some incompetent fodder character, I want to see he figth another master class...like in Kenichi, masters fight masters and disciples fight disciples.

Kimagure Orange Road 4

Is there a special name for the thing in the picture above? This anime been using it quite frequently and I find it pretty neat.

I like it too, there are one even nicer on episode 14 where this cut begins on one scene an leds to another scene when it comes back and another one that Madoka enters the frame while it's closed on Kasuga.
It's a really nice transition I wish they used it more to change scenes than to give Kasuga thoughts.
 

BluWacky

Member
Nanana's Buried Treasure 1

There is the potential for a vaguely entertaining story about treasure hunting, as exemplified by the pre-credits sequence and some of the ideas introduced later on, in this show. It's a shame it's slathered with layers of Christmas Cake landladies, boob fondling and other such irritating cliches, because it's not got terrible production values by any means. I look forward to plot synopses in future.

What IS the Western equivalent to all these LN stories? It's not something like Artemis Fowl because that's pitched too young IMO, and most of what I can think of as "young adult" literature these days skews female in demographic.
 
DAIMIDALER: PRINCE VS. PENGUIN EMPIRE Episode 2: Danger! The Stolen Sun
BlBJiukIIAAqw27.jpg


There are some chuckle funny moments in this episode especially the Penguin Empire website but often it just remains much too lewd for me. Confused why Im sticking with it but probably because of the robot action that is occasionally alright and just seeing where they go with it. Its kind of surprising still how she just stays with it even with the amount of perviness going on.

Most insane thing
her father being traumatized by the tail dick dance, I couldnt, lol.
.

The smoke and huge light glare levels probably makes the funi experience pretty unenjoyable for people interested in that stuff over their choice body parts, especially for this episode.
 

BGBW

Maturity, bitches.
The only thing Japanese curry has going for it is that it's mild and that's only because I'm bad with spicy hot food (we all have to have at least one weakness). But it's no match for Indian curry.
 

cajunator

Banned
Goddamnit you thief

[02:43] <Enron> http://nic.moe/en/ oh lawd what is this

Where dreams are born

Tokyo Ravens

Holy shit what happened to Kon she suddenly transformed into a mature fox lady, though for some reason I don't hate her transformation probably because she was the best part of this anime.

A downgrade but still good.

I really don't know about the differences, only that Heartcatch ist special.
When it comes to magical girl shows, I mostly watched unusual like Madoka, Nanoha, Ge'nei and My-Hime (if that counts). I can barely remember Kamikaze Kaitou Jeanne, Sailor Moon and Card Captor Sakura from my childhood.
Unrelated to magical girl show: I can enjoy funny, cute, awesome, it only have to be fun and consistent. I hate annoying and irritating characters who make the same mistakes over and over or just be plain stupid (Yaso from Zvezda or Index from... Index), I also hate it when shows pull something out their arse (I really have an issue with Sammunenco) and I absolutely hate if characters are only there to do play a role. Especialy protagonists who have no ambitions besides caring for others. Like Index. Touma has no hobbies, nothing he enjoys, no ambitions, besides doing what he is told (mostly schoolwork, sometimes saving the world) and helping people in distress.
So what PreCure show would you recommend?

Haatocatchi seems pretty popular. Original series is pretty good but a little repetitive.

I was in Akihabara today and I saw some Madoka curry:


Also saw some Angel Beats! stuff. Thought PshycoNinja would like to see this :p

OH MY GOD WANT.

I would be soooo bad in Akiba.
 

BluWacky

Member
Haikyuu 1

Following on from our earlier Ping Pong discussion, this is "tropey". All the underdog-vs-experienced-rival, never-give-up mentality - this, to me, is Sports Story 101 (and particularly amusing given that this time last week I was about to see Rocky The Musical on stage...)

With that said, this is a truly excellent first episode. It's charismatically animated, plays with time effectively (the "team" flashbacks throughout the match, the surprisingly effective jogging montage etc.), and entertaining even for someone like me who knows virtually nothing about volleyball; the match manages to be tense and exciting despite the inevitable outcome, and it's a very effective introduction to our two principal characters.

Whether the inevitable story progression of quirky team members coming together to play tournament after tournament will grind me down in the long run I don't know - but I'm certainly willing to give this a try, which was a very pleasant surprise.
 
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