• Hey, guest user. Hope you're enjoying NeoGAF! Have you considered registering for an account? Come join us and add your take to the daily discourse.

Winter of Anime 2013 |OT -6| How much lower can we go?!

Status
Not open for further replies.

Extollere

Sucks at poetry
JoJo 19

I know it's been said a million times before, but how this show manages to be this consistently entertaining, I'll never know... It's silly, and unbelievable, but who the hell cares when it's this much fun?

Also, I don't know how Lisa Lisa was handled in the manga but it's refreshing to see such a strong and capable female lead that isn't constantly being stereotyped because of her gender. She is basically respected because of her skills and expertise and that's that it seems. Really there is nothing more sexy than a woman who stands tall and proud by her own accord. I think she is a vixen; a buxom brunette goddess worthy of our highest admiration.
 
JoJo 19

I know it's been said a million times before, but how this show manages to be this consistently entertaining, I'll never know... It's silly, and unbelievable, but who the hell cares when it's this much fun?

Also, I don't know how Lisa Lisa was handled in the manga but it's refreshing to see such a strong and capable female lead that isn't constantly being stereotyped because of her gender. She is basically respected because of her skills and expertise and that's that it seems. Really there is nothing more sexy than a woman who stands tall and proud by her own accord. I think she is a vixen; a buxom brunette goddess worthy of our highest admiration.

Didn't see it yet, but I agree with you: Lisa Lisa is the sexiest anime women I've seen in a long time. (Hawkeye in FMA beats her closely though)
 
Silver Ball - 106

dPPo9ft.jpg

Captain Tsubasa janai! Captain Katsura da!

Zura and Elizabeth are so fucking awesome.
Kagura with different hairstyle, looks good.
Three Goalkeepers?! Looks like something my team could use after what R. Ceni did saturday. =____=
The old man Janitor at the end. The last play was awesome.
Amarao is totally a brazilian striker,
every night partying.
Better than The knight in the area.
 

Syrinx

Member
The iDOLM@STER 23

Jesus, when'd this show get all depressing and shit?

Haruka's trying to get everybody together to practice for the New Year's Concert, but has to face the hard reality that nobody really has the time. I should think that the agency would schedule a date and time for everybody to rehearse, but apparently not. Though maybe they did and Haruka's just trying to get everybody together.

Why the hell were Makoto and Haruka playing backup to fucking Yukiho? Both of them could wipe the floor with her ass.

Then later, the fucking pricks CANCELLED LIVE ON SUNDAYS! WHAT THE SHIT?! Apparently the whiners at other agencies are mad that they use up the studio every Sunday to tape it. Oh yeah, you fuckers? What the fuck are you going to film that's better than Live on Sundays? Oh, wait, what's that? You can't put together something as awesome as Live on Sundays? Then stop your bitching and film your stupid bullshit on another day.

Then Haruka's practicing for the play with Miki, and now has to face an even harsher reality. Now that the girls have hit it big, they're now competing against each other in a lot of ways. It's no longer "We're all in this together." Everybody's trying to advance their own careers now.

Then producer was talking to Haruka, and Haruka was almost about to spill her emotions, but then fucking Miki had to ruin it, cause ruining things is what Miki does. Then when she goes away, Haruka decides to bottle her emotions. Then,
she starts to fall down a trap door that some dumbfuck left open and producer saved her, but fell down himself and got seriously injured in the process. How fucking deep was that thing?! Cue slow credit sequence with slow piano and emotional reaction shots of everybody.

Fuck man, I wanted something pleasant and mild. Now I'm sad. Dammit.
 

Syrinx

Member
Wogh nice avy Syrinx.

Haha thanks. You're actually the second to say that now, which is more than my previous avs combined. I was reluctant to put Ein away cause I haven't finished Bebop and Ein is a boss. But this show is doin' thangs to me man.
 

Extollere

Sucks at poetry
Didn't see it yet, but I agree with you: Lisa Lisa is the sexiest anime women I've seen in a long time. (Hawkeye in FMA beats her closely though)

It isn't really her body or physique that I find attractive (since she isn't really my type), it's more her independence and her confidence that I find so arousing. Lisa Lisa is more than a woman you see. She's a person who strives to achieve her ideals - she is dedicated to her cause, and she is highly respected for her abilities, and not her sex. Rather than to fit into some sort of boxed gender role, Lisa Lisa simply commands our respect through demonstration, and through elegance. She's an experienced woman who could even channel the power of her Ripple down through her vagina while having sex. So think about that.
 

Jarmel

Banned
Dennou Coil- fin

I have a much more favorable impression coming out of the final 6 or so episode then I did going into them. Around episode 20 or so, I was actively starting to get annoyed with the show as it was seemingly breaking with the earlier scifi roots and taking a more fantastical and spiritual element. In fact, there is a short conversation that points out how illogical the events that were taking place were. That said, the show did come around and gave out the answers in a logical manner that didn't really 'break' the scifi element although it certainly stretched it. I would have probably preferred the technology component being a bit 'harder'. Despite my issues with the show, I can say that the show was made with love and that element comes through on pretty much every level.
Writing-
Here is probably my biggest issue with the show. The pacing in the first half is pretty much a bore. The mystery angle isn't all that interesting and it drags on and on. That said, it was interesting seeing the elaborate world-building that the director and co. had planned. Small touches such as the hand-motion for telephones were fairly cool and a possible real-life solution to stuff like the Google Glasses. There is one rather consistent issue that the show has though and that's the heavy use of jargon that isn't really properly explained until near the end. It reminded me of Ron Moore and his complaint about how ridiculous Tekkie jargon got at times. It also served to make the dialogue feel kinda exposition heavy, which isn't inherently bad but it felt clunky at times in the show. The show also telegraphed certain moments a bit too heavily such as having it rain in the middle of a dramatic confession.

The second half was more the revelation part of the mysteries and at times, seemed rather twist heavy. I also felt that the information handed out wasn't done so in an organic manner in regards to timing. It really created this 'crunch' aspect in regards to the pacing. The show also really shifted gears and lost a lot of the fun aspect the earlier episodes had. So what ended up was a show that goes too slow in the first half and a bit too fast in the later half.

Theme-wise, there certainly were a few good elements. This was something the show focused in on and really delivered. The first is what is real? I found the parents version of something you touch as being real as being strongly outdated. The children come to this realization also that it is the feelings that matter moreso than a physical object. The other theme about letting go was pretty strong and realized exceptionally well in the show. Not only is pain part of the growing up process, it's also a necessity for a relationship.

The highlight of the show are the series of stand-alone episodes in the middle that discuss the personalities of the voids. The plesiosaur and bearded ones were great episodes that were not only funny but also sad at the same time. One thing the show absolutely nailed is pet ownership. It also served to illustrate the technology itself in a simplistic but fun way.

As for the characters, they pretty much all had their moments. Fumie definitely got the shaft in the later half as the show shifted focus to Isako. I'm also not wholly fond of Yasako as she's a rather boring lead, due to her more mellow personality. One real issue I had with the characters was the villain, who was pretty much way over-the-top and somewhat shallow in that regards. He needed a lot more development than what he got.


Soundtrack-
It's definitely a more laidback and atmospheric soundtrack. I'm more of a fan of 'louder' soundtracks so I can't see it goes on my favorites list however it is well done. I've been listening to pieces separately for the past half-an-hour and I'm warming up to it. A stand-out to me is Hyouryuu. There's a couple that stand in my mind while watching the show, the primary one being in episode 26. There's a pretty strong emphasis on strings which I've always been partial to.

ibdHU98rxI4RYp.gif


Animation-
Yea this is the star of the show moreso than anything else. The two strongest words I can use to describe it are consistent and fluid. The fluidity is probably the most remarkable thing about the show and really gives it its life. It really helps make things dynamic and gave certain scenes an extra 'oomph'. The special effects at times were really noticeable. That said, I didn't like the use of the CG and it served to yank me out at times, mainly in regards to the Sachi. That said, sometimes it was used effectively in order to convey the 'otherworldiness' of the VR. The character designs are relatively simplistic but still somewhat distinctive. The coloring reminded me of pastels actually and seemed rather muted, which I'm sure was a deliberate choice in order to fit with the mystery component of the show.

icPPNMidqG6dM.gif


Conclusion-
Could I recommend this? Depends on the person/audience. The main issue is with the pacing, primarily in the first half, that I could see some people getting annoyed. I also didn't find the core mysteries altogether that interesting. That said, it is a very solid title in the scifi anime genre.

Now onto Serial Experiments Lain.
 
It isn't really her body or physique that I find attractive (since she isn't really my type), it's more her independence and her confidence that I find so arousing. Lisa Lisa is more than a woman you see. She's a person who strives to achieve her ideals - she is dedicated to her cause, and she is highly respected for her abilities, and not her sex. Rather than to fit into some sort of boxed gender role, Lisa Lisa simply commands our respect through demonstration, and through elegance. She's an experienced woman who could even channel the power of her Ripple down through her vagina while having sex. So think about that.

I agree with all of that really.
And the parallel with Hawkeye is justified because Hawkeye too is respected for her snipers talents, but not only, she's also a tactician and logistician of talent. She isn't sexualized as Wenry is, but still, she has something in the way that she stands, protecting what she holds dear. Which makes her incredibly sexy too.

Ripple sex would be awesome.
 

Syrinx

Member
I saw an episode of CCS once. It was alright. Something about a test of courage where they sent kids into a dank, dark cave for reasons.
 

cajunator

Banned
I think Maedhros either had all the joy in his life beaten out of him or else he mistakenly watched Cardcaptors. Either reason is acceptable.
 

Regulus Tera

Romanes Eunt Domus
I think Maedhros either had all the joy in his life beaten out of him or else he mistakenly watched Cardcaptors. Either reason is acceptable.
I think Maedhros is just pulling the "all moé anime is the same dumb creepy otaku shit" card he's pulled before in the past.
 

RurouniZel

Asks questions so Ezalc doesn't have to
I think Maedhros is just pulling the "all moé anime is the same dumb creepy otaku shit" card he's pulled before in the past.

Would you believe me if I told you that about 5-6 years ago this would have accurately described by view of moé anime?
 

cajunator

Banned
I distinctly recall always loving the cutesy styled anime. Just didn't have a particular name to describe it until recently.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top Bottom