# Anime/manga megathread



## Fat-Elf

Creating this thread just to get the discussion out of Periphery's megathread and I don't recall seeing a general thread for all animes and mangas even though I once searched for one.

So tell what animes/mangas you have seen/read, discuss about them and ask or tell recommendations. 

GO!


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## skisgaar

Hhhhhhhhmmmmmm....anime I've seen recently....

Mirai Nikki is good, but it's also a fucking trainwreck. Other than that, the only anime I've watched recently is Oreimo No Imouto. Yeah, I know, I'm slow as fuck.

I was thinking of starting Girls Und Panzer though


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## Fat-Elf

Cool, Mirai Nikki is probably one of my top-5 favorite animes and Oreimo is pretty good also. Glad that it gets second season.  

At the moment I'm not really watching anything else beside Space Brothers but I'm just about to start watching Psycho-Pass (thanks to the dude in the Periphery thread) and Initial D because I got a sudden interest in Japanese drifting scene.


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## isispelican

The latest anime i watched was Monster and it was unbelievable! Its thriller-mystery with a very nice flow, an epic journey with very nice evolvement. I also watched Gankutsuou recently, if you havent seen it do yourself a favor and watch it, very intense emotions and insane graphics. 

As for manga definitely check these out : cage of eden, parasyte, berserk, gantz
all of them are unique and really captivating.


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## skisgaar

Fuck man, I've never made it a task to read Gantz properly, but the few chapters I read, after reading the gist of it...let's say the statue room...it was messed up, but seriously intriguing!


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## SamSam

Curently watching Jormagund and Jojo's Bizarre Adventure, both are pretty cool.

Parasyte is a great read, I also recommend reading Monster, MPD Psycho and Biomega (currently on the latter)

Sword Art Online was decent too.


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## kamello

finished watching School Days a few days ago after a friend insisted on seeing it for the ''Awesome as Fuck ending that everyone talks about''
God, I've never seen such a poor character devolopment, and every character in the anime has a kind of slight retardness 

now Im watching Deadman Wonderland, Im in ep. 3 and so far so good


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## nickgray

Uh... well, let's see.

Finally watched the One Piece Fishman Island arc after waiting for one year for it to finish. Awesome as usual, but now I have to wait until the Punk Hazard is over in order to watch it. Probably another year or so  I hate waiting.

Steins;Gate. Probably the best anime I've seen in a few years, totally blew me away. Watched in one sitting, actually.

Suzumiya Haruhi series plus the movie. Pretty damn good, aside from the Endless Eight fiasco. They really should've made no more than three episodes.

Angel Beats. Nice, but a wee bit short and I felt that there was too much action. Could've been better if this was a dialogue-heavy anime, but oh well. It still left a good impression.

Mirai Nikki. Stopped watching after 5th or 6th episode. It's lousy.

Honey and Clover, that's the latest one. I've seen around 6 or 7 eps, not sure if I'll continue. It's just... I dunno, boring. I don't really like the characters (Morita is amusing though) and the story feels somewhat empty and disjointed.

Oh, got around to watching Kino no Tabi. It was one of the first animes I've seen, but back then my English skills weren't as good, so it was pretty hard for me to watch. I stopped halfway through even though I liked it. Well, seeing it again was definitely worth it, hands down one of the very best animes out there.


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## sakeido

I just wrapped up Sword Art Online awhile ago. Pretty damn good, one of the better heroes in anime lately. Doing two story arcs in one season was a really bad idea though.

Anybody seen Steins;gate? I just went over to animenewsnetwork to check for new stuff and it has got some crazy good ratings right now


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## SamSam

Dead Man Wonderland and Steins;Gate are both excellent! Forgot to mention them!

I dunno about you guys but I don't think I could get into another 100+ episode anime. A well paced 25 ep series just hits the spot for me recently.


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## Don Vito

nickgray said:


> Endless Eight


lol I totally watched this 2 summers ago

what the hell were they thinking? The only anime that I watch these days is whatever's on Toonami.

I haven't sat down and watched something on my PC since last summer when I watched Ika Musume. I just don't have the time like I used to.

I'm also a lazy internet browsing bastard/addict. I think I'm going to check out Mirai Nikki because I've heard lots of good things about it and I love the theme song/OP.


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## flavenstein

I actually enjoyed the "endless eight". The animators really did a good job of making subtle changes in each episode: The camera angles, the clothes, etc.

I also really enjoyed the way they completely re-stylized each last scene where Haruhi walks out before each new cycle.

They are really as different as they could possibly be considering they are all describing the same events


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## Polythoral

Always enjoyed anime, but never watched many full series until recently. I still haven't really watched any of the 'canon' sort of anime, like Death Note, Elfen Lied, FMA, Clannad, etc. but oh well.

Currently keeping up with Kotoura-San, Magi, and Psycho-Pass this season.


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## Don Vito

What the fug is on right now anyway?(new stuff)


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## Polythoral

everything I listed myself as currently watching is. o-o


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## isispelican

i dont really like the new stuff, like with movies, the good stuff is in the past


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## glassmoon0fo

Not a lot of time, but everyone here should check out Black Lagoon, Requiem for the Phantom, Baccanno!, and Claymore if they aren't old news to you yet. Some of my all time favorites. Currently keeping up with the Naruto manga (flame sheild on), it's pretty badass if you've been with it from the beginning. I wouldn't dare start it right now, shit's taken me 9 years already


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## isispelican

Yeah im not saying there isnt any good recent anime, i love claymore and im currently watching requiem for the phantom, i just dont find a reason to check out the newer things while there are millions of amazing anime already out. I still read the naruto manga, really curious to see how they are going to stop madara/tobi and why sasuke will join naruto's side (i dont see any other way). Also the anime is doing pretty good i think, if you skip the fillers of course!


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## texshred777

A friend of mine recently introduced me to Toriko. While ridiculous as hell, it's entertaining and hilarious.


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## iamthefonz

Watching Tamako Market and Pet Girl of Sankurasou this season. Digging into the backlog and watching Shigurui: Death Frenzy as well.

It's certainly jarring to go from Shigurui to Tamako Market.


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## kamello

finished Deadman Wonderland, really intense......now I have to wait a shitload of time for a second season or the continuation of the manga


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## Brill

All i can say is
Kawaii Desu.

But seriously, ive been qatching one peice recently. Just finiahed watching deadmans wonderland a week ago, and am planing on watching marchen awakens romance.


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## Fat-Elf

Damn this Initial D.  I started watching this on Monday and now I'm at episode 15. I knew this was good because my friend told me but damn, I didn't except this to be one of those where you just have to watch another episode and another and another... Don't know how interesting this would be to those who aren't into the whole drifting thing but I haven't thought about anything else since last weekend than drifting so this show really hits the spot for me.


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## sakeido

glassmoon0fo said:


> Not a lot of time, but everyone here should check out Black Lagoon, Requiem for the Phantom, Baccanno!, and Claymore if they aren't old news to you yet. Some of my all time favorites. Currently keeping up with the Naruto manga (flame sheild on), it's pretty badass if you've been with it from the beginning. I wouldn't dare start it right now, shit's taken me 9 years already



Black Lagoon! Jesus Christ I fucking loved that series. Quickly jumped up to one of my favorites ever. Did you watch the whole thing including the Roberta OVAs? Maaaan so badass... the manga is finally starting up again now too after a very long hiatus so hopefully we will get some more before long.

Baccanno! I am a little less sure about... beautifully animated to be sure, the story jumping all over the place was kinda neat, but I dunno. Never really hooked me in the way I thought it would. It had a lot of larger than life characters but didn't really do enough with them for my liking. 

Is Claymore actually a serious show? I thought it was just a fanservice anime but I might be mistaking it for something else. 



Fat-Elf said:


> Damn this Initial D.  I started watching this on Monday and now I'm at episode 15. I knew this was good because my friend told me but damn, I didn't except this to be one of those where you just have to watch another episode and another and another... Don't know how interesting this would be to those who aren't into the whole drifting thing but I haven't thought about anything else since last weekend than drifting so this show really hits the spot for me.



Initial D is classic shonen anime, just with cars instead of martial arts and slightly better than usual pacing. They just started 5th Stage a couple months ago after a huge break too, looking forward to watching those. Also I hope you are watching the subbed version with the original music. NO ONE SLEEP IN TOKYO




I'm 10 episodes into Steins;gate right now. This show has been very consistently surprising this whole time, really liking it, and I heard episode 12 is when things get really crazy.. if it actually gets better than it has been, Wow. 

sounds like I'll line up Dead Man Wonderland to watch after this one.


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## Fat-Elf

sakeido said:


> Initial D is classic shonen anime, just with cars instead of martial arts and slightly better than usual pacing. They just started 5th Stage a couple months ago after a huge break too, looking forward to watching those. Also I hope you are watching the subbed version with the original music. NO ONE SLEEP IN TOKYO



Yeah, definitely watching the subbed version. Love the eurodance soundtrack. 

Steins;Gate was very good and it really gets better towards the ending. Remember to watch the OVA too even though it wasn't that good..


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## kamello

ok, now I Slept a normal amount of hours so I can do a proper post  

I really dug the story, atmosphere and characters of DW, something that I did't liked about it is that an aspect of the story is very similar to Elfen Lied


Spoiler



the double personality of Shiro, although I feel it can be implemented way better here, and the way she devoloped this double personality has a bit more coherence IMO


 is a shame that the anime was a bit rushed towards the end and there are many loose ends, I hope the manga can help a bit, and, If it has some sucess on Toonami, a second season can happen (I read that the sales of this anime in Japan were TERRIBLE, under 1000 sales) 


anyways, any recomendation on another anime? Im just looking for something with a good story, preferable under 50 episodes, and that is finished, currently torn between Claymore, Steins;gate or Gantz, I don't have a clue about what they are about though  do you guys have another suggestion?


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## sakeido

Steins;gate is about an otaku "mad scientist" who invents a time machine mostly be accident. He refers constantly to an organization pursuing him but that is mostly a manifestation of his extreme social awkwardness... except I think there actually is an organization after him, SERN (obviously the real life) CERN who have invented a time machine of their own. They rule the future and I assume this guy is going to stop them somehow.

Gantz is about a kid who dies except he's resurrected as a fighter in some kind of ultraviolent game show where you kill aliens. I only read the first part of manga... it read like a high schooler's fever dream. Very bizarre but I still have an itch to go back and check out the rest. Never seen the anime.


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## Fat-Elf

sakeido said:


> Steins;gate is about an otaku "mad scientist" who invents a time machine mostly be accident. He refers constantly to an organization pursuing him but that is mostly a manifestation of his extreme social awkwardness... except I think there actually is an organization after him, SERN (obviously the real life) CERN who have invented a time machine of their own. They rule the future and I assume this guy is going to stop them somehow.



Don't forget the best part. The protagonist is obsessed with Dr Pepper, a drink only for the chosen ones.


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## Greyvy

sakeido said:


> Is Claymore actually a serious show? I thought it was just a fanservice anime but I might be mistaking it for something else.



There's actually not much fanservice in Claymore, it's alright.

Anyone watch Fate/Zero?


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## Don Vito

I started it back in 2010, but never finished. I remember liking it even though I had no clue what was going on.


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## isispelican

does anyone like really sick manga ? Im just gonna leave those two here : 
Gyo 1 - Read Gyo 1 Online - Page 1
Uzumaki 1 - Read Uzumaki 1 Online - Page 1

Horror at its best, this is some seriously nightmarish stuff. Reccomend some if you have!


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## Polythoral

Kotoura-San, stahp.


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## flavenstein




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## SpaseMoonkey

flavenstein said:


>




Azumanga Daioh! Such a weird Anime.


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## phrygian12

I finished Akira a few weeks ago. 







I've seen the movie and had read only a few volumes when I was a kid, but recently I went to an anime convention and bought all six phone book volumes. 

YES, it's much better than the film. I love the movie and what not, but there's just so much more in the comics! IMO it would of been better if they made it a film trilogy or a series. 

Anyway, both the film and comics are worth a look.


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## GatherTheArsenal

I don't read mangas a lot at all but i watch and collect a butt load of anime.

Off the top of my head, some of my standout animes that i really dig whether episodic series or movies:

- Samurai Champloo
- Berserk (i hear the mangas are awesome, and a movie is in the works)
- anything Street Fighter related
- Hellsing both Ultimate OVA and regular series
- Escaflowne is my JAM!! also similarly Gundam
- Shigurui: Death Frenzy (very fucked up but also one of the most captivating 12 or so episodes i've ever seen from anything. Original story line, great voice acting and original approach to character development. Must watch!) 
- Ninja Scroll (the movie's muuuuch better than the series i find, must buy!)
- Death Note (haven't finished it yet but so far i'm loving it)

and would the Beast Wars, Beast Machines series be applicable here?? technically anime but an American production rather than Japanese...


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## sakeido

Just finished Steins;gate. It was fucking AWESOME, can hardly wait to watch it again! Things should make more sense the second time around..


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## Don Vito

I'm watching Mirai Nikki. Murder is always fun.


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## Fat-Elf

Don Vito said:


> I'm watching Mirai Nikki. Murder is always fun.



Man, I would want to rewatch it but I probably should finish the Initial D first.


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## ST3MOCON

Just recently started watching Anime again! Here are some favorites most of them I saw on toonami when I was younger.

Cowboy Bebop
Samurai champloo
Akira
Guyver (the older 12 episode version)
Outlaw star 
Dragon ball Z 
Tenchi muyo/universe
Gundam 8th MS team

Bebop is my all time favorite! My dog chewed on my box set that paid $20 new for. I went online to get another copy and it is like $150!! Super mad but I'm waiting for another boxset. I also have some older session DVDs before the remix. 

Thinking about getting the bebop manga don't have much experience with manga though.

It's strange how EXPENSIVE anime is becoming. Ronin warriors for $500 WTF!


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## Miek

It's actually always been pretty expensive, the western prices are just finally catching up with the Japanese ones. 500 bucks for the BD Giant Robo collection? You bet your ass. That's an OVA that's only 5 episodes or so long, too.

Watching Baccano right now. Not as good as I thought it was going to be, but I think it'll pick up.


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## phrygian12

Miek said:


> It's actually always been pretty expensive, the western prices are just finally catching up with the Japanese ones. 500 bucks for the BD Giant Robo collection? You bet your ass. That's an OVA that's only 5 episodes or so long, too.
> 
> Watching Baccano right now. Not as good as I thought it was going to be, but I think it'll pick up.




Probably not a U.S. Release. There's a few blurays with English subtitles and of course Bluray's are not region locked, but yeah imports are always going to be pretty pricey and the marketing in Japan is pretty out dated. 

Anime is sort of a popular/dying media if that makes any sense. It's very over priced in Japan. They're marketing is pretty outdated. Here in the states we can buy a full season anywhere from $20 to $60. While in Japan they sell single volumes around $40 to 70 each. 

I think Bandai had a fall out with the North American branch or whatever because they still wanted to make single volumes for $40 a piece.

Who's going to buy 20 something episode or more with only 3 to 4 episodes per disc at $30? It's not really selling in Japan, what makes them think it'll work here? Kinda sad though because they were going to release, " Turn A Gundam" in the U.S. 

And then you have collectors selling, out of print U.S. releases for insane prices. I really want to add Ronin Warriors, to my collection...but daaaaaamn they're selling the complete collection for like $449 on amazon. I should of grabbed one when they were pretty common and very cheap.


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## gamber

sweet glad i stumbled on this, im really big into animes now as that i have the time for it. 
my some great ones to check out are: Evangelion (possibly the best there is), Guilty Crown, Eureka 7, Fate stay night/zero, Sword art online, Chaos head, Mirai Nikki, Bakemonogatari ( some of the best art and music), Code Geass, and possibly one of the best ive seen Darker Than Black. 

Feel like a major dork now........uhh insert Djent here


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## Bloody_Inferno

It's been a while since I've sat down to watch anime. Particularly new ones, which a lot doesn't seem to interest me nowadays. Last new ones I saw were Sengoku Basara and Gintama... not all that new. 

In fact I've been going back to classic anime like the Patlabor TV series and the Area 88 OVAs instead. 

Once I go back home, I need to watch the Macross Plus movie. I've seen the series way too many times but not bothered with the movie at all. Odd...


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## Polythoral

Just started watching Ef - A Tale Of Memories and I cannot stop watching episodes. IT'S GOING TO BE A LONG NIGHT.


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## MFB

sakeido said:


> Gantz is about a kid who dies except he's resurrected as a fighter in some kind of ultraviolent game show where you kill aliens. I only read the first part of manga... it read like a high schooler's fever dream. Very bizarre but I still have an itch to go back and check out the rest. Never seen the anime.



Don't bother, Gantz has one of the worst endings of all time for an anime (most people feel the same thing) and there's a small group of episodes where a new group of kids end up in the game and the "twist" is generic as all fuck.


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## XEN

I grew up on Mecha Anime. Stuff like Grandizer, Mazinger (Z), Daltanious, Kotetsushin Jeeg (the original version), Gaiking (again, original), etc. Is there any Giant Robo or sci-fi style Anime worth watching these days? I don't care if it's fan service or whatever, I just want to see some well drawn or animated tech. I really liked that stuff when I was a kid, but watching it now makes me wonder how I ever even made it through an episode.

Agreed with others, gantz was pretty cool until the ending, which was lame.
I was watching Black for a while, but sort of lost track of where I was. Any thoughts on that series?


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## Miek

Watch Shin Mazinger Shogeki Z Hen and Giant Robo: The Animation if you haven't already.

edit: and Gurren Lagann, of course. The problem I have with recommending that is that nearly every single frame of the show is a reference to something else from the history of anime, so if you're not familiar with it you're not going to pick up on them. It's not really a big deal since it stands on its own, anyway.

Also by the same studio, Gunbuster- it's up there with Akira as far as anime that had an affect on the entire industry goes. Worth noting, it's essentially a mecha themed parody of a Tennis anime made in the 70's for young girls. It's a bit more sci-fi than super hero like the other shows, but it's still a good watch.


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## sakeido

I might be in a small minority but I thought Gurren Lagann peaked in the first ten episodes then was just really meh after that... did not get what the fuss was about at all, and I didn't like the robots all that much.

Big O is another one you could try. it's like Batman except with giant robots


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## MFB

Did Berserk ever get more episodes added onto it? I think it ended at 33, and I know there's going to be a new movie coming out but I'd hoped there was more than that to it.


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## Miek

No, it ended right during the Eclipse. The movies are basically starting from the beginning and intend to cover everything from the manga. I'm not much of a manga guy, but I seriously love Berserk. It's got amazing art.


sakeido said:


> I might be in a small minority but I thought Gurren Lagann peaked in the first ten episodes then was just really meh after that... did not get what the fuss was about at all, and I didn't like the robots all that much.
> 
> Big O is another one you could try. it's like Batman except with giant robots


I'm not a big fan of Gurren Lagann either, but it's got great animation and action all throughout. The continuing escalation is what makes it fun.

As far as Big O goes, that's one of my favorites. Up there in the top 3.


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## sakeido

MFB said:


> Did Berserk ever get more episodes added onto it? I think it ended at 33, and I know there's going to be a new movie coming out but I'd hoped there was more than that to it.



Berserk only had 25 episodes, and then the new trilogy of movies cover what happened in those 25 episodes in a seriously abridged fashion. In the third movie they add back in a few things that got cut from the first series - Puck shows up and so does Skull Knight. Then the new movies will be covering stuff that has never been animated before, but they are probably a year+ away.


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## XEN

I tried Gurenn Lagann, but couldn't connect with it much.
I'll check out the others. Thanks guys!


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## Fat-Elf

Thinking of rewatching Angel Beats! or Mirai Nikki. But I have watched both last summer so they're still in pretty fresh memory.


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## Skyblue

I need something new to watch... Started Welcome to the NHK not too long ago, actually haven't finished it yet, I'm sort of stuck in the middle... I think it depresses me too much x: It just reminds me of things that happened in my own life... 

Some favorites of mine were Samurai Champloo, Cowboy Bebop, BECK, Code Geass and Death Note of course, Trigun... probably a few more, but nothing comes to mind at the moment. any suggestions? 

Oh yeah, and saw Neon Genesis Evangelion a few months ago. Shit was fucked up. And I still don't think I understood that...


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## nickgray

Skyblue said:


> I need something new to watch




Steins;Gate

Durarara!!

Mawaru Penguindrum

Not really sure how to describe them, they're all a bit... complicated. Steins;Gate is a drama with a bit of comedy and some sci-fi elements, it has some really good character development and the plot grabs you by the throat halfway through the series. Durarara!! is a pretty stylish and original anime with lots of weird and interesting shit - an Irish mythological figure in modern Tokyo who's riding a motorcycle instead of a horse, strange gangs, an Afro-Russian who helps run a sushi shop, all sorts of bizzare stuff. Mawaru Penguindrum is a bit unusual in its presentantion and art style. It's basically about two brothers searching for a Penguin Drum (don't ask) to help their sister who's terminally ill. They are assisted by three invisible penguins (who are utterly useless). Shit's weird 



> Shit was fucked up



Meh. NGE is extremely overrated, imo.


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## Choop

I watched Darker Than Black a while back after just checking it out on a whim on netflix, and I'm so glad I did. It really surprised me at being super awesome, despite the silly title. Recommend!

Haven't seen a good anime in a while. I'll probably use some of the suggestions in this thread..

Oh. I've been rewatching the DBZ abridged. Seriously, TFS are geniuses.


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## ST3MOCON

I forgot to mention fooly cooly! Haha I got my girlfriend interested in that a while back and i just bought her the DVD. I plan on getting the bluray as well.

These past couple of days I just bought 
Ghost in the shell
2 cowboy bebop boxsets 
Fooly cooly 
Cowboy bebop 6th session DVD 
Also got a ghost in the shell whiteout figurine!

Most of this stuff was a a good price my new anime legends cowboy bebop boxset being the most exspensive! 

Cant wait to see ghost in the shell again! I havnt seen that since like 2001 lol


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## ST3MOCON

AKIRA fan made trailer. This is the first teaser to the actual trailer. 
I don't know how to embed because its something that should be more simple but it's not so here's the link 

Akira Project - teaser # 1 on Vimeo


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## Don Vito

Saw this while browsing Experience Project.






so yeah...


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## Miek

Don Vito said:


> Saw this while browsing Experience Project.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> so yeah...



same


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## Brill

Ive been hanging out with a friend who is an anime freak,she really like to look at lolicon and yuri. Do ive been spend like an hour a day at school looking at vatiouse forms of hrbti with her...


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## Yo_Wattup

Hey guys. Does anyone know if there is any good manga on Google play books? So I can read some on my phone? 

Thanks


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## Don Vito

Loxodrome said:


> Ive been hanging out with a friend who is an anime freak,she really like to look at *lolicon* and yuri. Do ive been spend like an hour a day at school looking at vatiouse forms of hrbti with her...


I thought this stuff was illegal in Australia? Not like they care to enforce it though.


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## Brill

Don Vito said:


> I thought this stuff was illegal in Australia? Not like they care to enforce it though.


 you seem to more about Australia than I do, I don't think its illegal.


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## Don Vito

Loxodrome said:


> you seem to more about Australia than I do, I don't think its illegal.


 Legality aside, you should probably tell your friend to not look at stuff like this at school.


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## Fat-Elf

Hah, accidentally downloaded wrong anime a while back and misclicked it yesterday when I was suposed to watch something else. The fun part is that I ended up watching the whole first episode and I liked it. Told my friend about it and he said he hated it but fuck his opinion.  (The anime is Hayate no Gotoku Can't Take My Eyes Off You, btw)


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## iamthefonz

So after watching Spirited Away (yes, it took me this long), I have a sudden obsession to buy every Ghibli movie I can find. Oooh, my wallet's not going to be to happy about that...

I'm also currently making my way through Psycho-Pass. Man, that shit got fucked up pretty quick.


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## Don Vito

What anime is this from?


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## Miek

One of the new Evangelion movies. 


Started watching Planetes, it's fantastic. Really good portrayal of a near-future burgeoning space economy.


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## Ralyks

Just to throw a question, because I've never really followed Anime hardcore, but recently my interest has grown. But whats good as far as Cyber-Punk or Futuristic-themed goes? I've watched Metropolis, the original Ghost in the Shell movie, Akira, all of Cowboy Bebop... I guess along those lines? I've also watched and enjoyed Last Exile, Trigun, Sgt. Frog (for a good laugh)...


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## Miek

The Ghost in the Shell SAC tv series is really good, and GitS 2: Innocence is probably my favorite Ghost in the Shell production. Other things by Mamoru Oshii are going to be good too, all the Patlabor movies, for instance. Kerberos stuff is good too but that's all live action films with one anime I haven't seen. Try Big O, too.


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## Don Vito

GitS SAC is what got me into anime. Well animated.


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## Idontpersonally

baslisk - made a movie of it 'heart under blade' amazing imo.
mushishi
blue exorcist
fist of the north star
sword of truth
decendants of darkness
x
c

interlude- only previewed but looks good
kurozuka- only previewed but looks good
xxxholic
spawn
yoite

Demon City: Shinjuku
Wrath Of The Ninja The Yotoden
wicked city

missing a couple probably will remember them in a few


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## Nyx Erebos

Die hard fan of code geass here. But after seeing the whole show numerous times I find the end to be crappy. I'm not gonna spoil but Lelouch is supposed to be a genius, so I don't think it was the only way to achieve his goals (I'm just talking for the last ep).

On the bloody side I love shiki and mirai nikki and if you like to be brainfucked go watch bakemonogatari and sayonara zetsubou sensei. I watch almost everything that is watchable so I could go on for days .

Just a little list of my favourites :

Black lagoon (badass action, when I say badass I mean BADASS)
Nodame Cantabile (a must see if you like classical music)
Bakuman ("smart" shonen about mangaka)
Elfen Lied (my first bloody anime)
K-on (musical shojo I guess, I love it because Yui is me when I was in highschool)
Claymore (badass girls, big sword, demon guts)
Yamato nadeshiko shichi henge (it's a comedy shojo I think but each time I watch it I die from laughter)
Minami-ke (it's three sisters who live together, it's funny as hell because the characters are great, I'm sure those who have sisters/brothers will laugh)
Jormungand (for those who like military badassness)

I'm sure I'm forgetting lots of great animes.


----------



## JosephAOI

Elfen Lied has given me so many feels


----------



## Don Vito

I never finished Elfen Lied. Got too weird, but now I want to watch it again.


----------



## Alberto7

Don Vito said:


> I never finished Elfen Lied. Got too weird, but now I want to watch it again.



Read the manga. It's over 9000x better.


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> Read the manga. It's over 9000x better.


I hear that a lot. Will do


----------



## Alberto7

Damn you, guys, creating an anime and manga thread. If there's something that gets me going for ages, it's anime . I'll try to just give my opinion on the ones I've watched, instead of going too much into plot and character details. I'll also try to be relatively brief here... though I don't guarantee it . Here goes my list:

SHOWS:

*-Mahou Shojo Madoka Magica:* I can't even. I love how the took the stereotypical magical girl anime (a la Sailor Moon) and turned it into an incredible anime full of mindfuckery. It's very short, too, but it's extremely concise, and fast, yet properly, paced, which is a plus (fan of shorter animes here, with a few exceptions)

*-Higurashi no Naku Koroni: *I hope I got the spelling right. Seriously, go watch it. It's so dark and so uncannily good. I don't remember much from it, but I remember obsessing with it for a while. It was strange, but great. Watch now.

*-Ano Hana: *Watch only if you want to hate life. It's the most depressing anime I've ever seen. It is cruelly sad and emotional. At the same time, it is immensely good. Very well done, and the art is great, too. I highly recommend it.

*-Code Geass:* Jesus fuck. It has to be one of the best I've ever seen. Many people compare it with Death Note. And rightly so; they're similar in many, many ways, but I like Code Geass better. I just love the MASSIVE array of memorable characters. Also, I'm part of the group who loved the ending. Regardless of it being good or not, it is certainly one of the most memorable endings in any anime I've ever seen. On my top 5.

*-Cowboy Bebop:* Do I really need to say it? One of my top 5 for sure. So fucking classy.

*-D. Gray Man:* It's good. Entertaining, sure. But not the best I've seen. Still, though, it's one of those "background shows" that aren't the best ever, but are good enough to keep you watching. It's also rather long (95 or so episodes, I think), so you'll have something to do on your free time for a while.

*-Elfen Lied:* Awesome anime. So full of feels. However, if you liked the anime, go read the manga. Now. It is so worth it. And I'm not particularly an avid fan of manga. This manga has so much more "feels" than the anime (not to mention the lack of plotholes and continuation of the story until the very end).

*-Ergo Proxy:* This is DEFINITELY for the guy who was asking about another cyberpunk anime previously on this thread. If you like "psychological" anime a la Evangelion, Serial Experiments Lain, and/or Paranoia Agent, mixed in with the best animation I have ever seen in anime (the first 5 episodes, at least... the rest are above par, but none like the first 5), and a really dark post-apocalyptic setting, this anime is for you.

*-Ghost in The Shell: Stand Alone Complex:* Again, I don't need to say why this anime is so great. The sheer intricacy of it is mesmerizing, but what truly got me were the concepts and ideas it presented. Very interesting, indeed. I watched the whole thing very recently (a few months ago. It's the last show I watched), but it instantly sank in as a classic. Top 5, too.

*-Gosick:* Great setting, and great plot. It starts off a little bland and cliche (first 3 episodes or so, which just serve as a base for the rest), but it turns into a GREAT mystery anime. It begins very Sherlock Holmes-esque, and it later turns into a more personal quest for the protagonists (while still keeping the element of mystery). A great watch. Recommended (as with anything on this list, as you've probably noticed by now ).

*-Needless:* It's been a while since I watched this. Not all that great, but entertaining. Super tons of fan service, which isn't really my thing, but it makes it funny. Watch if bored.

*-Neon Genesis Evangelion:* Again... really? Do I need to explain? Okay, fine . Just amazing. It's great to have a mecha anime that doesn't really focus on the mecha aspect of it too much. It's just there because it's visually awesome. After watching the show a few times, there is so much reading to do on it. It's very open to interpretation, and there are many things that are barely implied throughout the series; like some of the motives that drive certain characters to do the things they do, etc etc. And it's so much more interesting now with the new movies coming out. Contrasting the original show and the original movies with the new show is proving super fun. The new movies are extremely good, albeit with a slightly different flavor from the original episodes. Another top 5.

*-Paranoia Agent:* This one is another extremely philosophical, open-to-interpretation kind of anime. It might not be to everybody's taste, but it's one of my personal favorites. The art is rather grotesque in some aspects, but it's extremely fitting. Recommended watch.

*-Planetes: *A top 5 for me. It's the epitome of sci-fi in my opinion. Their representation of the near future is so realistic and blatantly plausible. The main story is also really, really nice, and very moving. Ow my feelings.

*-Samurai X/Rurouni Kenshin:* I am disappointed it hasn't been mentioned yet in the thread. Another top 5 for me. I love the fact that it's all based on true historical accounts. This anime is what got me interested in Japanese culture and history, and it teaches what I consider to be a good base if you're interested in learning those things. The anime itself is rather cheesy, but it's absolutely great. The OVA (Trust and Betrayal) is one of the most artistic examples of media that I have ever seen. It's absolutely beautiful in all departments. It definitely is up there fighting for the spot of my favorite anime ever (an award I still haven't given to any anime yet... so many good things out there!). Oh yeah, and did I mention that the music for both the show and the OVA is absolutely incredible? Check them out! The anime is long, but so worth it. Also, the live action film that came out last year is brilliant as well.

*-Seirei No Moribito:* I'd dare to say that it's the most consistently good anime when it comes to art and animation. Every frame of every episode is so carefully made, and the animation is great. Fight scenes are so extremely fluid. You can see each and every one of the moves that the characters make. Interesting plot, too. Good watch.

*-Serial Experiments Lain:* The epitome of psychological mindfuckery, in my opinion. A bit of a cyberpunk as well. I loved the art as well. It's so simplistic. The opening song is beautiful, too! It's "Duvet" by the band Boa. A classic that should be watched.

*-Shigurui: *My friend gave this to me as a gift, and I've watched the first couple of episodes, but I haven't finished it. I was not in the mood for it when I started watching it. I was not expecting that , very grotesque. It looks great though, I should finish it some time soon.

*-Shinrei Tantei Yakumo:* Not very good, compared to the other ones I've mentioned, but it was entertaining nonetheless. It's short, too, so not a lot of time wasted . Just a guy who can see ghosts and tries to solve mysteries. Very Ghost Whisperer-ish, sans Jennifer Love Hewitt (unfortunately ).

*-Steins;Gate:* Another modern masterpiece and instant classic. I loved the shit out of this one. I also watched this at a stage when I was getting into the science of time traveling, and weird quantum theories and things like that, so that made it better (I was watching Brian Greene's The Elegant Universe too, at the time of Steins;Gate). Yet another top 5.

*-Tales of The Abyss:* Great show. I'm dying to play the PS2 game though. Quite an epic. The show feels rather Final Fantasy-ish, for some reason. You can definitely tell that it's an adaptation from a videogame when you begin looking at it as a JRPG .

*-Trigun:* It took me so long to watch this. Instant classic. It was very Cowboy Bebop-esque. There is a key difference between the two shows, though, that I haven't been exactly able to pinpoint. The best way I've found to describe it is that while Cowboy Bebop is very "smooth jazz and rock n' roll," Trigun is very "Wild West blues."

*-Usagi Drop: (or Bunny Drop)* It's a very endearing and laid-back anime. It's very short too. It's one of those animes where nothing significant ever happens, but that you still want to keep on watching. Basically, it's about a guy who adopts his now-deceased grandfather's bastard secret daughter because nobody else in the family wants her, and how their relationship develops over the course of the following months. It finishes on a cliffhanger though.The manga apparently has a rather controversial ending, though, so I'm avoiding it .

FILMS:
(I haven't watched many, actually).

*-Spirited Away:* Stop reading. Go watch.

*-Princess Mononoke:* A bit more mature than Spirited Away (coming from the same people; Studio Ghibli), but still an extremely beautiful film. You'll feel like living in the forest among the trees for the rest of your life. I feel it brings to attention a lot of issues with society nowadays.

*-5 cm Per Second:* Not from Studio Ghibli, but on the same level as Miyazaki's movies. Beautiful everything about this movie. It's extremely emotional, and the music doesn't help. It also has one of my favorite endings in all of anything ever. It's just so unexpected, and it conveys such a meaningful message. Go and watch it.

*-Ghost in The Shell*: The very first one (1995) is great. My favorite of them. Innocence (the sequel to the first GitS) was good, but it didn't have the appeal of the first one. Solid State Society (the direct sequel to SAC 2nd Gig) was absolutely great, although I would have liked it better if they'd made it into a third season rather than a movie (easier said than done, I know, but a man can dream); there was a lot that could have been expanded upon.

*-Cowboy Bebop:* It's just as great as the anime. It's just like another episode of the anime, except longer, with perhaps better animation, and with a larger sense of completeness to it (due to the expanded time slot).

*-Neon Genesis Evangelion:* Well, the movie order for this one is a mess, so I'll just say that they're all great if you watch them from the right angle. One of them (Death & Rebirth, I believe) is series re-cap sans the last two episodes, plus an alternative ending to the original show. Another movie (The End of Evangelion) is yet another re-telling of the ending. Personally, it's my favorite ending to the original show so far. Then there are the four "Rebuild of Evangelion" films that are still coming out (they're on the 3rd, so far), which are absolutely great. Completely re-animated, a new re-telling of the original plot, and quite a different feel to it. They're much more straight to the point, with less of the philosophical meanderings that often led the original show into dark pits of unintelligible whatthefuckery.


I'm probably missing a few films, and I'm obviating some of the more classic anime (Dragon Ball, Yu-Gi-Oh!, Pokemon, etc etc etc).

PS: I think there are about 6 top 5's in that list... make that a top 6 or 7. Deciding on a favorite anime is not easy.


----------



## habicore_5150

I know I said I needed to get back into watching some more anime, but so far what I've been watching recently was:
*
Soul Eater:* another gaming/anime friend of mine suggested that I go see this one, its actually pretty damn good. Got some funny moments, but still really good

*.Hack//Sign:* Been forever since I last seen this, was talking with the same guy about different anime and video games, and .hack just came up in the middle of the conversation, so I had to go back and watch the first episode again

Still slowly working my way back into watching anime again


----------



## JosephAOI

Tip #1: Read the manga first.

Tip #2: Subs, not Dubs.

That's all I got. 

Also, Rosario + Vampire is one of my other favorite mangas.


----------



## Miek




----------



## Don Vito

Oglaf is the big anime fan.

Hrath is just a weeaboo.


----------



## Nyx Erebos

Alberto7 said:


> *-Ergo Proxy:* This is DEFINITELY for the guy who was asking about another cyberpunk anime previously on this thread. If you like "psychological" anime a la Evangelion, Serial Experiments Lain, and/or Paranoia Agent, mixed in with the best animation I have ever seen in anime (the first 5 episodes, at least... the rest are above par, but none like the first 5), and a really dark post-apocalyptic setting, this anime is for you.



I didn't want to advise that for cyberpunk because of the second part of the anime. It's a memorable experience nonetheless, there are many animes which are depressing because of the story, but this one it's just the mood and the design. I felt so bad after each episode just because of that little thing I can't describe, a masterpiece indeed.



Alberto7 said:


> Gosick : Great setting, and great plot. It starts off a little bland and cliche (first 3 episodes or so, which just serve as a base for the rest), but it turns into a GREAT mystery anime. It begins very Sherlock Holmes-esque, and it later turns into a more personal quest for the protagonists (while still keeping the element of mystery). A great watch. Recommended (as with anything on this list, as you've probably noticed by now ).



Is this one really good ? I avoided it because many people criticize it and say that the characters are not very interesting.



Alberto7 said:


> Serei No Moribito : I'd dare to say that it's the most consistently good anime when it comes to art and animation. Every frame of every episode is so carefully made, and the animation is great. Fight scenes are so extremely fluid. You can see each and every one of the moves that the characters make. Interesting plot, too. Good watch.



I can't believe I forgot Serei No Moribito. You say good watch but to me it's a MUST watch. Beautiful tale with beautiful images.


----------



## isispelican

Most of the good stuff is already mentioned, these are just as great though:

Samurai Champloo : Very simple anime, with an unbelievably chill vibe to it and very fitting music. One of the best.

Xam'd Lost Memories : An epic journey to fulfill destiny with some nice steampunkish themes.

History's Strongest Disciple Kenichi : Very funny with some wtf moments, you dont have to like fighting to enjoy it.

Chaos Head : Internet madness and parallel dimensions, short and sweet, just watch it.

Gungrave : A great story about friendships, mafia and revenge. 

Highschool of the Dead : The title says it all. Simple plot, AMAZINGLY well made though, super enjoyable.

Last Exile : Steampunk


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> *-Samurai X/Rurouni Kenshin:* I am disappointed it hasn't been mentioned yet in the thread. Another top 5 for me. I love the fact that it's all based on true historical accounts. This anime is what got me interested in Japanese culture and history, and it teaches what I consider to be a good base if you're interested in learning those things. The anime itself is rather cheesy, but it's absolutely great. The OVA (Trust and Betrayal) is one of the most artistic examples of media that I have ever seen. It's absolutely beautiful in all departments. It definitely is up there fighting for the spot of my favorite anime ever (an award I still haven't given to any anime yet... so many good things out there!). Oh yeah, and did I mention that the music for both the show and the OVA is absolutely incredible? Check them out! The anime is long, but so worth it. Also, the live action film that came out last year is brilliant as well.



While this is, and still remains, among my top 5 favourite anime every, my biggest gripe is that the Rurouni Kenshin anime suffered the "waiting for the manga to finish for the anime to catch up" syndrome. And unfortunately, the Jinchu arch in the manga (the best part of the whole series) suffered because of this and resulted in the crappy and forgettable Tales of the Meiji anime filler arc. Such a shame as the Jinchu arc becoming an anime would have been beyond epic. 

Despite all that, I still rate this extremely highly as one of my favourite anime of all time (tied along with SD Macross and Neon Genesis Evangelion). Manga over anime of course. The Reflection OVA, does an interesting job of wrapping everything up with a story post manga canon, despite the disapproval of the conclusion by the series creator.


----------



## Alberto7

Nyx Erebos said:


> I didn't want to advise that for cyberpunk because of the second part of the anime. It's a memorable experience nonetheless, there are many animes which are depressing because of the story, but this one it's just the mood and the design. I felt so bad after each episode just because of that little thing I can't describe, a masterpiece indeed.



I don't understand, what's wrong with the second part? I'm just asking; I haven't seen it in a while, so I have definitely forgotten some things.



Nyx Erebos said:


> Is this one really good ? I avoided it because many people criticize it and say that the characters are not very interesting.



On the contrary, I found the two main characters to be delightful (albeit annoying at times... but that's part of their charm. Kind of like an annoying sibling ). I remember there being a couple of characters that I wished had been developed a bit more, but all in all I really enjoyed it. I'm a sucker for love/friendship/family-relationships themes though, and there's a lot of that in this anime, so that's a good reason why I liked it a lot.



Nyx Erebos said:


> I can't believe I forgot Serei No Moribito. You say good watch but to me it's a MUST watch. Beautiful tale with beautiful images.



Absolutely. The only reason I said "good watch" is because I wanted to vary the language a bit . I think all of the ones I mentioned are a must watch (with the exception perhaps of Needless, Shinrei Tantei, and D. Gray-Man, which are all enjoyable, but not as memorable).



isispelican said:


> Most of the good stuff is already mentioned, these are just as great though:
> 
> Samurai Champloo : Very simple anime, with an unbelievably chill vibe to it and very fitting music. One of the best.
> 
> Xam'd Lost Memories : An epic journey to fulfill destiny with some nice steampunkish themes.
> 
> History's Strongest Disciple Kenichi : Very funny with some wtf moments, you dont have to like fighting to enjoy it.
> 
> Chaos Head : Internet madness and parallel dimensions, short and sweet, just watch it.
> 
> Gungrave : A great story about friendships, mafia and revenge.
> 
> Highschool of the Dead : The title says it all. Simple plot, AMAZINGLY well made though, super enjoyable.
> 
> Last Exile : Steampunk



I love the fact that I haven't watched any of these. I will write these names down on my to-watch list. (I've been meaning to watch Samurai Champloo for a while, but I keep putting it off).



Bloody_Inferno said:


> While this is, and still remains, among my top 5 favourite anime every, my biggest gripe is that the Rurouni Kenshin anime suffered the "waiting for the manga to finish for the anime to catch up" syndrome. And unfortunately, the Jinchu arch in the manga (the best part of the whole series) suffered because of this and resulted in the crappy and forgettable Tales of the Meiji anime filler arc. Such a shame as the Jinchu arc becoming an anime would have been beyond epic.
> 
> Despite all that, I still rate this extremely highly as one of my favourite anime of all time (tied along with SD Macross and Neon Genesis Evangelion). Manga over anime of course. The Reflection OVA, does an interesting job of wrapping everything up with a story post manga canon, despite the disapproval of the conclusion by the series creator.



You see, you're a big step ahead of me there . I haven't read the manga (which I know I should, because it contains the real ending to the story), so I don't have a reference point to know what's missing on the anime, as far as the pre-Shogo Amakusa arc goes. There are quite a lot of fillers in the anime, but I think even those do a very good job, and usually develop the characters a bit further. I'll probably get my sister to chip in with me to buy the manga (she reads much more manga than I do, so I doubt she'll say no ). I know that after the Kyoto arc (Shishio), it's "non-canon," to put it that way, but I actually quite liked the Shogo Amakusa arc. The last arc, though, the one with the wind and water (or whatever element) families, is kinda weird, and I've always felt it doesn't really fit in with the rest of the series.

I also still haven't watched the Reflection OVA. I made the mistake of reading reviews of it before attempting to watch it, and they deterred me from doing so. I still want to watch it, but I keep putting it off. Still, though, Trust and Betrayal goes with me everywhere on my phone. I must have watched it like a million times. The music on it is so haunting and beautiful I often have to re-watch scenes. I especially like the opening scene. And Kenshin walking in the snow towards the end.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> You see, you're a big step ahead of me there . I haven't read the manga (which I know I should, because it contains the real ending to the story), so I don't have a reference point to know what's missing on the anime, as far as the pre-Shogo Amakusa arc goes. There are quite a lot of fillers in the anime, but I think even those do a very good job, and usually develop the characters a bit further. I'll probably get my sister to chip in with me to buy the manga (she reads much more manga than I do, so I doubt she'll say no ). I know that after the Kyoto arc (Shishio), it's "non-canon," to put it that way, but I actually quite liked the Shogo Amakusa arc. The last arc, though, the one with the wind and water (or whatever element) families, is kinda weird, and I've always felt it doesn't really fit in with the rest of the series.
> 
> I also still haven't watched the Reflection OVA. I made the mistake of reading reviews of it before attempting to watch it, and they deterred me from doing so. I still want to watch it, but I keep putting it off. Still, though, Trust and Betrayal goes with me everywhere on my phone. I must have watched it like a million times. The music on it is so haunting and beautiful I often have to re-watch scenes. I especially like the opening scene. And Kenshin walking in the snow towards the end.



Without spoiling too much:



Spoiler



Canon via manga: After the Shishio Arc, Kenshin reveals the origin of his cross shaped scar through the events of Trust and Betrayal, which becomes the catalyst of the Jinchu arc. Everything in the anime after the Shisho arc, including the Amakusa arc was either filler or new arcs to compensate for the manga, much how Naruto got the same shaft. The one filler episode where Tomoe was mentioned was pretty neat though.



Reflection, is from the same makers of Trust and Betrayal OVA (including the awesome music of Taku Iwasaki) and consolidates the major parts of the entire story (sans Trust and Betrayal of course), and continues off to a new conclusion. The reviews are mixed, but don't let that stop you from seeing it. It's got the same dark gloomy mood mike the other OVAs. Once you finish the film, you can make up your own mind on the ending. 

I forgot to mention Rurouni Kenshin: The Motion Picture. It's essentially a "gaiden" storyline more in the spirit of the anime, and its actually pretty cool.  However, DO NOT WATCH THIS DUBBED as the translation is way off to a point where key points don't make any sense.


----------



## M3CHK1LLA

my favorite anime series does not have ninjas, robots, super powers, wizards, swords, aliens, magic or anything normally found in the genre. yet it is one of the best out there imho.


----------



## sakeido

Rurouni Kenshin was so awesome... when Hajime Saito showed up the first time, that was out of control epic. Shows up at the dojo, waits for Kenshin, lets him know he could have killed everybody while he was out. Comes back for an _epic_ duel, one of the best shonen fight scenes of all time. It is really too bad they couldn't animate the Jinchuu arc... some day, though, I bet it'll happen.


----------



## Idontpersonally

^thats one i forgot.
and then Natsume Yuujinchou-
nabari no ou- probably mentioned
Touhai Densetsu Akagi- if u like gambling
witchblade
forgetting this really good black and white anime cant think of the name of it atm


----------



## Nyx Erebos

Alberto7 said:


> I don't understand, what's wrong with the second part? I'm just asking; I haven't seen it in a while, so I have definitely forgotten some things.



I meant that I wouldn't recommand it as a cyberpunk reference because of a big part where I don't really feel a cyberpunk vibe.


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Without spoiling too much:
> 
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> Canon via manga: After the Shishio Arc, Kenshin reveals the origin of his cross shaped scar through the events of Trust and Betrayal, which becomes the catalyst of the Jinchu arc. Everything in the anime after the Shisho arc, including the Amakusa arc was either filler or new arcs to compensate for the manga, much how Naruto got the same shaft. The one filler episode where Tomoe was mentioned was pretty neat though.
> 
> 
> 
> Reflection, is from the same makers of Trust and Betrayal OVA (including the awesome music of Taku Iwasaki) and consolidates the major parts of the entire story (sans Trust and Betrayal of course), and continues off to a new conclusion. The reviews are mixed, but don't let that stop you from seeing it. It's got the same dark gloomy mood mike the other OVAs. Once you finish the film, you can make up your own mind on the ending.
> 
> I forgot to mention Rurouni Kenshin: The Motion Picture. It's essentially a "gaiden" storyline more in the spirit of the anime, and its actually pretty cool.  However, DO NOT WATCH THIS DUBBED as the translation is way off to a point where key points don't make any sense.



If that is the case, I will watch Reflection as soon as I have the chance to. Although I might wait until I finish the manga (already started it). I have the feeling that I will like having alternate endings to choose from (even though I've known for a while how both end ), kind of like Evangelion.



sakeido said:


> Rurouni Kenshin was so awesome... when Hajime Saito showed up the first time, that was out of control epic. Shows up at the dojo, waits for Kenshin, lets him know he could have killed everybody while he was out. Comes back for an _epic_ duel, one of the best shonen fight scenes of all time. It is really too bad they couldn't animate the Jinchuu arc... some day, though, I bet it'll happen.



That scene is well beyond amazing.



Nyx Erebos said:


> I meant that I wouldn't recommand it as a cyberpunk reference because of a big part where I don't really feel a cyberpunk vibe.



Aah okay okay, gotcha . I didn't really know what cyberpunk was the time I watched it  (and I haven't watched it since), so you might be right. Still though, from what I remember, the elements are there for the most part. A rebel/outcast that wanders around a future utopia where technology is bringing mankind's existence to an end. Of course, they mix that in with existentialist themes, and ridiculous amounts of popular references, ranging from mythology and philosophy, to modern day films and movies. I guess that makes it not be a "pure" cyberpunk, as it focuses on other things, too.


----------



## Don Vito

Moe Motivation


----------



## Brill

Went to the local anime club. Uts pretty fun, theyve got a university hall booked for 4 hours so its on a huge screen. Seems to be my only way to.see new anime (i currently do.t have internet beyond my Phone)


----------



## Don Vito

Don Vito said:


> I hear that a lot. Will do


I decided to ignore Alberto's advice for some reason and watch the anime. I can't say I enjoyed it at all.

Suffers from a lot of older anime cliches, and has to try really hard to be over the top. I first tried watching a few years ago when I was getting into anime, so that must be why I initially enjoyed it so much.


----------



## habicore_5150

Just picked this up earlier ago





Its pretty good.
I know I really need to get back into reading some manga. (and I need to pick this game back up and play it again)


----------



## Alberto7

Don Vito said:


> I decided to ignore Alberto's advice for some reason and watch the anime. I can't say I enjoyed it at all.
> 
> Suffers from a lot of older anime cliches, and has to try really hard to be over the top. I first tried watching a few years ago when I was getting into anime, so that must be why I initially enjoyed it so much.



That's why you always listen to good ol' me .................. ...

 On a serious note, though, I only watched Elfen Lied once, but I did like it a lot. I guess I just didn't have a very critical eye at the time.

I read the manga later on though, and I realized it's just on a whole different level. I still recommend you read it . Not only are the characters developed further (along with the introduction of many new, and very key, characters), but the plot goes on for much longer and the themes have a stronger presence throughout the series. Oh, and if you're a sucker for love stories like I tend to be, prepare to have your insides turn inside out.


----------



## Don Vito

Does the manga have repeated instances of a certain character saying "Nyu!"?

If so, I don't want to read it. This isn't Pokemon.

Oh, and this came in the mail


----------



## Alberto7

Don Vito said:


> Does the manga have repeated instances of a certain character saying "Nyu!"?
> 
> If so, I don't want to read it. This isn't Pokemon.



Oh my God, yes  I had forgotten all about that. Just as much as in the anime. The only difference is that you don't hear it, so it's not as annoying. It never bothered me, I just didn't pay attention to it, but I understand how that could be a deal breaker. It's an example of one of those quirky things about anime/manga that you either love or hate. Quirky, but perhaps too quirky for some.


----------



## Don Vito

eh, I'll still read it

I'll black out the nyu's so we don't have to see them.... EVER AGAIN


----------



## flavenstein

Yeah when I first started watching anime I tried watching Elfen Lied---I didn't get further than ep. 1. Then later after hearing so many people rave about it, I gave it another shot. I got no further than episode 2.

I'll take some good ol' K-On! moe-types any day. Or some INDEX. OR BOTH


----------



## Don Vito

I love K-On! 

Why did it have to end? They could have made a mini series based around the romantic travels of Mr. and Mrs. Hirasawa, and I would have watched/read it.


----------



## Fat-Elf

"Ugh, it's called futanari, baka~"


----------



## Don Vito

That's a trap, not futanari.

The face is too masculine.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Don Vito said:


> That's a trap, not futanari.
> 
> The face is too masculine.



I was thinking the same but Touhou trap-manga.. Seriously?


----------



## Don Vito

Oh, I never got into Touhou. I only recognize a few characters.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Don Vito said:


> Oh, I never got into Touhou. I only recognize a few characters.



I never really got into the games neither but I listen to Touhou remix music all the time and browse through some "fan art"..


----------



## Don Vito

Why is fan art in quotations? 

I actually discovered Touhou through the music. I like bullet hell games in general, but I'm so terrible at them.


----------



## straightshreddd

Okay, so I'm super noob when it comes to anime. My buddy is a huge anime head and always used to suggest shows and movies to me, but I could never really get into them besides this one movie he let me borrow, when we were 12, called Samurai X. That film was actually pretty damn sick. I just never looked into anime much after that, but wouldn't mind checking some out now.

I mean, I was huge into DBZ as a kid but I don't really count that. I also liked a little bit of Gundam and Cowboy Bepop when I was young, but not enough to recall any of the story. I also remember watching this movie on cartoon network about some bitch on a broom with a mean ass grandma or some shit. I remember liking how crisp and fluid the animation was.

Also, my friend once accidentally got mailed a Naruto boxed set last year. She doesn't like anime and offered it to me and I was like "Sure." 'cause this chick I was interested in at the time always had Naruto stickers and shit like that everywhere. So, I got high and watched it... 


Didn't like it. lol Too goobery for me.


I apologize for the novel, but I guess I'm asking for suggestions on some good anime. I like samurai themes, yakuza themes, brutal violence and good animation. I don't like too much fantasy(magic and sailor moon type snizz). 

One thing that always put me off about anime was how overly dramatic and romantic it gets at times. Is there any anime that's violent, brutal, has a good story, and isn't like a soap opera? I don't mind a little romanticism if it fuels the plot. I also loved the anime scenes in Kill Bill if that helps. I'd watch an entire series and the movies if it was like those scenes. 

Oh, I also remember watching this anime movie, like, 7-8 years ago about some chick killing werewolves and it was really sick. Blunt and brutal with sick animation.

So, yeah. Anyone got any suggestions? I'd greatly appreciate it. I felt it was about time I delve into the world of anime. haha


----------



## habicore_5150

straightshreddd said:


> So, yeah. Anyone got any suggestions? I'd greatly appreciate it. I felt it was about time I delve into the world of anime. haha



Don't know if I have any suggestions for you off the top of my head. Have you checked out some places like AnimeSeason, CrunchyRoll and Anime44?

So yeah, got to check out a couple more anime, most of em just one episode, a few others, at least two

*Blue Exorcist:* It's really good, don't really have much to say about it (other than "I need to watch a couple more episodes, because I'm liking it so far")

*Is this a Zombie?:* At first, I thought it was gonna be one of those slice of life anime . . . until I got about 3 minutes into the first episode and I almost lost it. Saw a little bit of fan service, but its still pretty good

*Star Ocean EX:* Only seen the first episode (was talking with another big anime friend of mine about some shows), but it looks great, and I do like the art style they used in the anime (was made around the 90's)

*Orphen:* I do have the game for PS2, didn't know they did an anime of it a while back. Has a couple of chuckle-worthy moments but its good


----------



## Alberto7

Just dropping this here:



And thought this was really awesome:


----------



## Alberto7

straightshreddd said:


> Okay, so I'm super noob when it comes to anime. My buddy is a huge anime head and always used to suggest shows and movies to me, but I could never really get into them besides this one movie he let me borrow, when we were 12, called Samurai X. That film was actually pretty damn sick. I just never looked into anime much after that, but wouldn't mind checking some out now.
> 
> I mean, I was huge into DBZ as a kid but I don't really count that. I also liked a little bit of Gundam and Cowboy Bepop when I was young, but not enough to recall any of the story. I also remember watching this movie on cartoon network about some bitch on a broom with a mean ass grandma or some shit. I remember liking how crisp and fluid the animation was.
> 
> Also, my friend once accidentally got mailed a Naruto boxed set last year. She doesn't like anime and offered it to me and I was like "Sure." 'cause this chick I was interested in at the time always had Naruto stickers and shit like that everywhere. So, I got high and watched it...
> 
> 
> Didn't like it. lol Too goobery for me.
> 
> 
> I apologize for the novel, but I guess I'm asking for suggestions on some good anime. I like samurai themes, yakuza themes, brutal violence and good animation. I don't like too much fantasy(magic and sailor moon type snizz).
> 
> One thing that always put me off about anime was how overly dramatic and romantic it gets at times. Is there any anime that's violent, brutal, has a good story, and isn't like a soap opera? I don't mind a little romanticism if it fuels the plot. I also loved the anime scenes in Kill Bill if that helps. I'd watch an entire series and the movies if it was like those scenes.
> 
> Oh, I also remember watching this anime movie, like, 7-8 years ago about some chick killing werewolves and it was really sick. Blunt and brutal with sick animation.
> 
> So, yeah. Anyone got any suggestions? I'd greatly appreciate it. I felt it was about time I delve into the world of anime. haha



Based on your preferences, I think you'd REALLY like Shigurui, and Ghost in The Shell, specially the former. 

I think you might also like the Rurouni Kenshin (Samurai X) series (OVAs and movies included) and Cowboy Bebop. I'd recommend Samurai Champloo, since it seems to have some of the things you're looking for, but I haven't watched it myself, so I can't say for certain that you'd like it.


----------



## Brill

Lol 
Watching sono hanabira ni kuchizuke wo with a friend.
Lol


----------



## straightshreddd

habicore_5150 said:


> Don't know if I have any suggestions for you off the top of my head. Have you checked out some places like AnimeSeason, CrunchyRoll and Anime44?



Nah, I'm noob as hell when it comes to anime but I'll check those out. Thanks, man.



Alberto7 said:


> Based on your preferences, I think you'd REALLY like Shigurui, and Ghost in The Shell, specially the former.
> 
> I think you might also like the Rurouni Kenshin (Samurai X) series (OVAs and movies included) and Cowboy Bebop. I'd recommend Samurai Champloo, since it seems to have some of the things you're looking for, but I haven't watched it myself, so I can't say for certain that you'd like it.




Word, thanks, bud.  I heard the name Ghost in the Shell before but never watched. Finna check them jawns out, man.


----------



## Alberto7

^ No problemo


----------



## straightshreddd

Just watched the first episode, Sword Match at Sunpu Castle. I'm likin' this so far. Irako's stance was creepy as hell. haha And that one n*gga pulling his own intestines out, in the beginning, was pretty savage.


Edit: Of Shigurui, that is


----------



## Don Vito

I haven't watched it in a while, but I should point out that the Stand Alone Complex series of Ghost in the Shell isn't as action packed as it looks. I'm not sure about anything else related to the series.

S.A.C is still worth watching though.


----------



## Alberto7

^ While that is true, I do feel that it has that "action film" kind of feel, mainly because of Bato. The badassness of his character knows no bounds. But it's true, though; there aren't nearly as many fights as in other anime (if you're thinking DBZ, gtfo, nothing tops that ). GitS is mainly philosophical and political talk. They manage to keep the mystery and suspense up at all times though.



straightshreddd said:


> Just watched the first episode, Sword Match at Sunpu Castle. I'm likin' this so far. Irako's stance was creepy as hell. haha And that one n*gga pulling his own intestines out, in the beginning, was pretty savage.
> 
> 
> Edit: Of Shigurui, that is



I only watched the first two episodes as well . I haven't finished it. But, based on those two only (and what I've heard of it in general), I figured you'd like it.


----------



## iamthefonz

straightshreddd said:


> One thing that always put me off about anime was how overly dramatic and romantic it gets at times. Is there any anime that's violent, brutal, has a good story, and isn't like a soap opera? I don't mind a little romanticism if it fuels the plot. I also loved the anime scenes in Kill Bill if that helps. I'd watch an entire series and the movies if it was like those scenes.



I feel like you'd really enjoy Hellsing Ultimate. Filled to the brim with violence and badassery. 
You might also dig Baccano. It's actually somewhat light-hearted, but it gets really dark and violent when it needs to. It manages to be dark and violent but also really fun in a way. 
Deadman Wonderland was pretty action packed and brutal. You might dig that.
If you would prefer something a little slower paced and more of a horror/mystery, you might like Another. It has a bit more of a plot based focus, but it's kind of like an anime Final Destination. It's pretty slow to start, don't jump off until you get past the third episode though. That's when shit starts to pick up and people start dropping.


In other news, I recently finished Waiting in the Summer. It's kind of a nice nostalgic throwback to back when romantic animes weren't just about cramming as much fanservice and harems as in as possible. It kind of ruins itself with a misplaced sci-fi plot but it still was a ton of fun. The middle section when it focuses just on the characters is by far the most enjoyable part of the show. 
I'm also watching Tari Tari because I'm easily amused by slice-of-life shows around music.


----------



## straightshreddd

iamthefonz said:


> I feel like you'd really enjoy Hellsing Ultimate. Filled to the brim with violence and badassery.
> You might also dig Baccano. It's actually somewhat light-hearted, but it gets really dark and violent when it needs to. It manages to be dark and violent but also really fun in a way.
> Deadman Wonderland was pretty action packed and brutal. You might dig that.
> If you would prefer something a little slower paced and more of a horror/mystery, you might like Another. It has a bit more of a plot based focus, but it's kind of like an anime Final Destination. It's pretty slow to start, don't jump off until you get past the third episode though. That's when shit starts to pick up and people start dropping.



Nice, man.  Thanks for the suggestions. Definitely gonna check those out. I think I saw Helsing on Netflix, too. I can't believe I never really gave anime a chance. haha Now, I have all these sick shows to catch up on.



Alberto7 said:


> I only watched the first two episodes as well . I haven't finished it. But, based on those two only (and what I've heard of it in general), I figured you'd like it.



I went on a binge and straight drank beer and watched most of the season last night and finished the last few episodes this morning. 

Damn, so despite the fact that it didn't have constant, crazy fight scenes, I quite liked it. I felt immersed in the story and constantly thought "Oh, hell no. No that n*gga did not just do that." even though the last episode leaves several questions unanswered. lol Lots of crazy shit goes down in that show. Wieners gettin' burned, nipples and eyeballs gettin' pulled off and eaten, and all types of shit.

They never explain or show how Fujiki lost his arm, though. And they didn't show the fight between Irako and Fujiki at the tournament but refer back to it in later episodes. 

I still liked it, though. It was pretty nuts how everyone was fucked up in their own way. Like, you wanted to feel bad for Irako for getting blinded, crippled, and having his wiener burned, but his intentions were fucked, too. He was a greedy bastard in it for the money and glory. I was rootin' for him when he started fucking people up in revenge though.

Even Fujiki had his dick moments when he was following through with the Sensei's fucked up ass orders.

Ushimata creeped me the fuck out sometimes, but towards the end, he began to seem more chill.

And the Senei Iwamoto is one of the most twisted and crazy characters I've seen and was on some zombie shit. 



Started to watch some Basilisk after that and seemed pretty cool, but I had to leave so I might check it out again later.

Thanks again, dudes.


----------



## kamello

wooah, Alberto gave such a detailed list in the page before, gonna have to give a few Animes a go, I need to learn how to manage my time before though, between guitar and Uni I don't have time for anything


----------



## straightshreddd

Just watched this Danish anime this morning called Princess. It was pretty emotional and kept me enthralled by how the story played out. The mix of live action and anime really brought the story to life. The animation isn't the best, but it was pretty interesting to see the Danish approach to anime. If you like emotional stories, violence, and mild elements of humor, check it out. It's on Netflix. The ending is nuts.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_(2006_film)


Oh, and I'm watching Samurai Champloo right now. Shit's pretty damn sick. Diggin' it a bunch.


----------



## Amanita

hasn't been mentioned yet, to my slight amazement
anything by Masaaki Yuasa - excellent unconventional animation style, mindbending stuff.
Mindgame, Kaiba, Kemonozume


----------



## Nyx Erebos

Amanita said:


> hasn't been mentioned yet, to my slight amazement
> anything by Masaaki Yuasa - excellent unconventional animation style, mindbending stuff.
> Mindgame, Kaiba, Kemonozume



I've watched kemonozume, that was quite an experience.

@straightshreddd if you like brutality as much as me you must watch mirai nikki. The fights are not the apex of badassery but the mental and physical pain through which the characters go is just delightful. There are romantic elements but romantic in a "bitches be crazy" (like psycho) way.

Now I'm watching tenjou tenge, that's brutal too, after watching a lot of recent animes I didn't think it was possible to show a first fight go that way. It's quite old but the characters are badass and the fights are quite graphic. The plot is very simple though (I've just watched the 6 first episodes) that's two gangstas that kicked asses all their life who end up in a martial art school, they try to pick fights but they rapidly see that it's not a good idea when you're surrounded by godlike fighters.


----------



## sakeido

I've been watching some Hellsing Ultimate and just don't get it. Very stylized look, lots of violence sure... but are these long ass speeches supposed to be filler or something? At the end of one episode this Nazi guy spent literally five minutes talking about how much he loved war. 

Everybody just talks and talks and talks with almost zero content, as far as I can tell the main vampire is completely invincible and cannot be stopped so I don't see where the dramatic tension is coming from, then there are some "lighter" moments with Seras face-glitching like she's in a little kids series that are so forced... overall, I think Hellsing is godawful. Only thing that made it worth watching was AAAAAAAMENNNN


----------



## ST3MOCON

Black lagoon - just bought it on bluray for $26 and it's bad ass. Supper funny and the girl is on the brink of being annoying but it makes her funny hahaha.

Basilisk - watching on Netflix. Pretty good so far about halfway through this as well. 

Ergo proxy- Just bought a box set with the first DVD. I still have to watch it I got it yesterday. Heard some good things and the animation looks awesome.

Blood the last vampire movie (ova?): bought this for a few bucks, really good animation and very cool but TOO SHORT.


----------



## UnderTheSign

I used to think all anime was stupid and for pimply neckbeards but my girl showed me JoJo's Bizzarre Adventure and I actually quite enjoy it... The anime that is. Phantom Blood had a great styling and Battle Tendency has some really cool characters.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Once I go back home, I need to watch the Macross Plus movie. I've seen the series way too many times but not bothered with the movie at all. Odd...


 
Finally saw it, and as somebody who adored the original 4 part OVA, I thought the film plot flowed much better with a lot of the excess fat being trimmed out. The ending was much more well done with some elaborated scenes which made key points of the story more fitting. Overall superb, I can't believe I waited this long to see it...


----------



## Don Vito

I have to watch this now.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Don Vito said:


> I have to watch this now.




Creepy. I was just watching the same video the other day.


----------



## Fat-Elf

It's 1:23am and I just started the 2nd episode of Angel Beats!. 12 episodes to go. It's going to be a long night but let it be. I have beer, candy and Coke.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Well, I did it, I marathoned the whole Angel Beats! in one sitting. It's 6:59am. I guess it's time to hit the bed.


----------



## Nyx Erebos

Fat-Elf said:


> Well, I did it, I marathoned the whole Angel Beats! in one sitting. It's 6:59am. I guess it's time to hit the bed.



Did you like it ? Everywhere I read that people love it but personally, although I like the main idea, after watching it I was like "meh".


----------



## Fat-Elf

Nyx Erebos said:


> Did you like it ? Everywhere I read that people love it but personally, although I like the main idea, after watching it I was like "meh".



Well, it was the 4th time I watched it so..


----------



## Nyx Erebos

Fat-Elf said:


> Well, it was the 4th time I watched it so..





Since you're a fan I feel the need to justify myself . I don't say it's bad, I watched it and liked it (the end was pretty good) but it lacked a little something to me so it's not the kind of anime I would watch 4 times.

Yesterday I began my 3rd watch of highschool of the dead (uncensored). I love it, it's how a shonen should be, brutal with well placed ecchi. Younger I hated ecchi because in general it was a way to avoid having an actual content but in HotD it just adds to the action.


----------



## Don Vito

Fuck it, I looked it up. Seems like fun.

I still haven't watched Russian tank girls.


----------



## flavenstein

Don Vito said:


> What's angel beats!?(I'm banned from google)
> 
> I still haven't watched Russian tank girls.



ANGEL BEATS?!! You have to watch Angel Beats. The tears just don't stop. Why am I proclaiming this publicly? Oh yeah, alcohol. Whatever. I love this show.


----------



## Don Vito

I will. I've heard of it btw, but the weird title always turned me off from watching it.

idk





idk


----------



## Fat-Elf

Don Vito said:


> I will. I've heard of it btw, but the weird title always turned me off from watching it.
> 
> idk
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> idk



Weird title? Well, there is an angel and she beats up people.. Sounds pretty epic to me.  Nevermind, I really recommend anyone to try it even though it is one of those shows that some people absolutely love and some absolutely hate. I remember watching it the first time and hated the every second of the first episode and dropped it after it but for some reason I picked it up again and thank god I did!


----------



## Don Vito

I thought it was an angel that made sick beats.

Or angels that danced to the beat of love. I don't want to watch that.

Angels don't dance. Angels don't kill.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Whatever dude, if your attitude is that to begin with then better go watch some Strike Witches and masturbate to the pantsu shots.


----------



## Fat-Elf

It's 7:11am again and I just started watching Hanasaku Iroha (for the 2nd time). WHAT AM I GOING TO DO WITH MY LIFE?!


----------



## Alberto7

^ Seriously . Though I totally relate. I wish I still had the time. Can't wait for summer when I have a bit more time!

On that note, I really, REALLY want to watch Evangelion: 3.0 You Can (Not) Redo.


----------



## habicore_5150

Sucks that I didn't go with one of my friends to this one anime convention in Nashville this weekend. Even more so since I saw a picture of him with Todd Haberkorn







Oh well, gonna be watching a bit of Soul Eater and D.Gray-Man a bit later anyways


----------



## Alberto7

^ That's awesome! I've never been to an actual anime convention. Went to one once, but it was tiny, and crappy. 

That picture reminds me of when my cousin met Billy, the blue Power fucking Ranger. Yes, the original blue Power Ranger. He showed me the picture. I wanted to murder him.


----------



## Don Vito

THE ENDLESS REGRET





;_;


----------



## Vinchester

I have just discovered Gunslinger Girl the anime about ten days ago. Finished it, thought it was pretty good, and found out about the 15 volumes of manga which continues far beyond the anime. IT IS AWESOME! Don't let the little girls fool you that this is just another sick lolicon fetish! The story is dead serious, but beautifully written also. The author depicts Italy and classical references very well.

So these past three days I marathoned all the 100 chapters (roughly 3,000 pages) and it's so satisfying. I'll be buying the books soon.

You can check it out at mangafox.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Vinchester said:


> I have just discovered Gunslinger Girl the anime about ten days ago. Finished it, thought it was pretty good, and found out about the 15 volumes of manga which continues far beyond the anime. IT IS AWESOME! Don't let the little girls fool you that this is just another sick lolicon fetish! The story is dead serious, but beautifully written also. The author depicts Italy and classical references very well.
> 
> So these past three days I marathoned all the 100 chapters (roughly 3,000 pages) and it's so satisfying. I'll be buying the books soon.
> 
> You can check it out at mangafox.


 
 My sister is dead into the series and she says the same thing. I really should start going through the collection... 

... actually, I have started with the Megazone 23 OVAs. Yeah, I'm watching old anime but so what. 

Come to think of it, I really should start going through Saiyuki Gunlock and Gaiden already. Been putting them off for far too long. Yeah old anime as well but...


----------



## Idontpersonally

Sry if someone already mentioned flame of recca but im a few minutes in and it looks niceee.


----------



## SamSam

Anyone got any recommendations for the new season? There's a few promising looking shows. Got a bunch of Ep. 1s waiting for me.


----------



## Fat-Elf

SamSam said:


> Anyone got any recommendations for the new season? There's a few promising looking shows. Got a bunch of Ep. 1s waiting for me.



Oreimo 2.


----------



## SamSam

Will I need to watch season 1?


----------



## Fat-Elf

SamSam said:


> Will I need to watch season 1?



I'd say yes.


----------



## Don Vito

Fat-Elf said:


> Oreimo 2.


I'm sleeping under a rock.


----------



## gamber

just finished sword art online, that was freaking awesome


----------



## SamSam

SAO was decent for the first half. The second half got kinda silly.

My round up of this season so far:

Hataraku Maou-Sama! : Fucking hilarious, I hope this maintains the standard ep 1 set.

Devil Survivor 2 : Was decent, not too into it. The action sequences are very well animated.

Mahestic Prince: Very well animated, comedy mecha. First ep was decent. Will watch a few more at least.

Dansai Bunri no Crime Edge : Fell asleep, Gf said it was alright

Pending: Red Data Girl, Shingenki no Kyojin (I have high hopes for this), Kakumeiki Valvrave and Asian Risshiden no Shima Kousaku.

Lemme know if I missed anything else I should be watching!


----------



## Fat-Elf

Don Vito said:


> I'm sleeping under a rock.



Well, it's time to wake up because the first episode was awesome.


----------



## Alberto7

sakeido said:


> Rurouni Kenshin was so awesome... when Hajime Saito showed up the first time, that was out of control epic. Shows up at the dojo, waits for Kenshin, lets him know he could have killed everybody while he was out. Comes back for an _epic_ duel, one of the best shonen fight scenes of all time. It is really too bad they couldn't animate the Jinchuu arc... some day, though, I bet it'll happen.





Bloody_Inferno said:


> While this is, and still remains, among my top 5 favourite anime every, my biggest gripe is that the Rurouni Kenshin anime suffered the "waiting for the manga to finish for the anime to catch up" syndrome. And unfortunately, the Jinchu arch in the manga (the best part of the whole series) suffered because of this and resulted in the crappy and forgettable Tales of the Meiji anime filler arc. Such a shame as the Jinchu arc becoming an anime would have been beyond epic.
> 
> Despite all that, I still rate this extremely highly as one of my favourite anime of all time (tied along with SD Macross and Neon Genesis Evangelion). Manga over anime of course. The Reflection OVA, does an interesting job of wrapping everything up with a story post manga canon, despite the disapproval of the conclusion by the series creator.



So I just finished reading the manga. Jesus fucking Christ. I was truly living under a rock, specially considering that I've been a fan of the series since childhood. That was an absolute roller coaster. There were just so many parts where my jaw hit the floor. The historically accurate facts used in it are one of the things that really gave me constant nerdgasms . Like you guys said, the Jinchuu arc MUST be made into anime. I was expecting something great, but it far outdid my expectations. Having watched Trust and Betrayal before reading the manga, though, I think added a lot to the shock factor of the manga . I could go on forever about the things I liked about it (and also the very few I didn't like... which were too minor for me to really care anyways), so I'll put it like this: in terms of character development and storyline, I think it's safe to say that I have found my favorite anime/manga.

Now, onto the Reflection OVA.

EDIT: Aaaannd I just finished Reflection. Definitely a masterful work of art, but man am I glad it's not canon! I loved how they took a more "what it would have been in real life" sort of approach. The animation and the art were wonderful. Same thing with the music (although I still rate the music as 1. Anime, 2. Trust and Betrayal, 3. Reflection). The story itself was excellent as well; really enthralling. However, now I completely understand why it isn't deemed canon, and I'm quite happy about that.


----------



## sakeido

gamber said:


> just finished sword art online, that was freaking awesome



That show was awesome. One of my favorite anime protagonists in recent memory. Doing two story arcs in one normal length season was kind of a "WTF?" decision though.. very rushed


----------



## Don Vito

Are there any animus/manga out there about lonely middle aged women liked Nanako from Lucky Star, or Sawako from K-On!?

They're the best characters.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> So I just finished reading the manga. Jesus fucking Christ. I was truly living under a rock, specially considering that I've been a fan of the series since childhood. That was an absolute roller coaster. There were just so many parts where my jaw hit the floor. The historically accurate facts used in it are one of the things that really gave me constant nerdgasms . Like you guys said, the Jinchuu arc MUST be made into anime. I was expecting something great, but it far outdid my expectations. Having watched Trust and Betrayal before reading the manga, though, I think added a lot to the shock factor of the manga . I could go on forever about the things I liked about it (and also the very few I didn't like... which were too minor for me to really care anyways), so I'll put it like this: in terms of character development and storyline, I think it's safe to say that I have found my favorite anime/manga.
> 
> Now, onto the Reflection OVA.
> 
> EDIT: Aaaannd I just finished Reflection. Definitely a masterful work of art, but man am I glad it's not canon! I loved how they took a more "what it would have been in real life" sort of approach. The animation and the art were wonderful. Same thing with the music (although I still rate the music as 1. Anime, 2. Trust and Betrayal, 3. Reflection). The story itself was excellent as well; really enthralling. However, now I completely understand why it isn't deemed canon, and I'm quite happy about that.


 


Also look up Rurouni Kenshin: Restoration. Nobuhiro Watsuki is rebooting the series with a few subtle changes.


----------



## Alberto7

^ That's exciting news! Also, I'm assuming that Restoration is the English translation of Rurouni Kenshin: Kinema-ban, right? It's also supposed to follow the plot of the live-action more closely, correct? That is, in a nutshell, what I've been able to gather about it. I gotta check that out. It seems we're never gonna run out of RK material


----------



## Alberto7

Alright, so, my sister just sent me this little gem by Junko Iwao, who (fittingly) does the voice for a somewhat minor character in Evangelion (as well as voices for many other anime, including Tomoe in the Rurouni Kenshin OVA, some girl in Madoka Magica, etc).

A Cruel Angel's Thesis, estilo brasileiro!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BEqNcMa7dX0

EDIT: fuck non-embedding


----------



## CrownofWorms

I'm reading this







And re-watching this for the billionth time (probably will get it 100% this time)






All this talk about Anime reminds me that I have to finish Mirai Nikki


----------



## SamSam

Parasyte is excellent! My girlfriend is currently reading it too!


----------



## Fat-Elf

Kinda off-topic but WHAT THE FUCK AM I WATCHING?


----------



## Don Vito

Fat-Elf said:


> WHAT THE FUCK AM I WATCHING?


The future.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Don Vito said:


> The future.



The future never fails to be scary.


----------



## Alberto7

No, seriously, what the FUCK was that...?? Ah, Japan...


----------



## ST3MOCON

Just saw the dub trailer for Black Lagoon-Roberta's Blood Trail. Can't wait!!! I had to force myself not to watch the subbed version. The Black Lagoon Dub is so good!


----------



## phugoid

We just worked our way through Avatar: The Last Airbender for the second time as a family. My two boys (3 an 6), and my wife and I loved it!

Any recommendations for something similar? It seemed like Avatar had it all - great voice acting, drama, humour, cool stuff for little kids and complex characters for the grown-ups. Also an epic plot lasting four seasons. 

English overdub is a must (for the kids), limited violence, something generally wholesome.

P.S.: We found that Legend of Korra was rather dark and had less thinner characters than Avatar...


----------



## Don Vito

I picked Mirai Nikki up and finished it.

That ending.. yeah..


----------



## Alberto7

phugoid said:


> We just worked our way through Avatar: The Last Airbender for the second time as a family. My two boys (3 an 6), and my wife and I loved it!
> 
> Any recommendations for something similar? It seemed like Avatar had it all - great voice acting, drama, humour, cool stuff for little kids and complex characters for the grown-ups. Also an epic plot lasting four seasons.
> 
> English overdub is a must (for the kids), limited violence, something generally wholesome.
> 
> P.S.: We found that Legend of Korra was rather dark and had less thinner characters than Avatar...



I'd recommend Usagi Drop, but I think it'll bore your kids to death  hardly anything happens. I think you'd need a good bit of mental maturity to really appreciate it. It's a very slice-of-life kind of anime. It's also kind of new, so I'm not sure if there are dubs for it yet... I hope someone has something better than me to offer you!



Don Vito said:


> I picked Mirai Nikki up and finished it.
> 
> That ending.. yeah..



I've heard so much about this anime. From people praising like it's the end-all be-all of anime, to people saying it straight up sucks. I've also been told (from sources I trust in this respect) it's supposed to be all over the place, and its very inconsistent. Kind of like an anime that could have been great, but wasn't.


----------



## Don Vito

I didn't find it too inconsistent. It's just that the ending was very contrast to the rest of the episodes. I felt like I was watching a completely different anime.

I liked it, but it could have been better somehow.


----------



## Alberto7

I'll need to watch it this summer. So much to watch. I swear this summer I'm just gonna stay home watching anime *sad life*.

I must start with Clannad. I really, REALLY want to watch it.


----------



## flavenstein

Alberto7 said:


> I must start with Clannad. I really, REALLY want to watch it.



Be prepared to cry like a little girl.

Related:


----------



## Alberto7

^ I so am . I went through Ano Hana already; an anime that just hates you and makes you agonize for as long as you watch it and then some more. It turned my heart into stone and calcified my lacrimal glands


----------



## lolicide

Anybody watching this? The manga was pretty cool from what I heard.

On the side note, any Strike Witches fans?


----------



## Fat-Elf

^Watched the first season of SW back when I was pretty new to anime. Tried to watch the S2, couldn't make it past the first episode..

On the other news, I must have a 5th sense. I just got a feeling that there was supposed to be a new chapter of Watamote coming around these days so I went and checked; new chapter out today.  Though, I really don't think I can keep up with it any longer. So much feels.


----------



## Don Vito

I was reading Watamote just yesterday actually.

Thanks for the heads up!


----------



## pullingstraws

Hey, guys! I wondering if anyone could help me out with identifying an anime.

I was watching this old school anime compilation video, and there was an anime that caught my attention. The video's description has the names of all the animes except for the one I'm trying to find. It has a name in the description, but I'm pretty sure it's incorrect because whenever I try looking it up, some completely different anime shows up in the search results.

Here's the video: (It should start 5 mins. in)

80's & 90's Old School Action Anime Exhibition (Part 11) - YouTube


----------



## Somnium

Later tonight or tomorrow I'm going to try to find a nice rip of the third Evangelion rebuild. I was gonna try to just wait it out but I've got that jones for it. I've really been wanting to watch Paranoia Agent again lately but the DVD's are so damn expensive. I'm sure I can just watch it online but I'm a man that enjoys his physical copies. Perfect Blue and Paprika are next on my list of movies to acquire too.


----------



## Alberto7

^ I JUST finished watching it, and... I'm still not too sure what to think. Not because I might think it's bad, but because, in true Evangelion spirit, has raped my mind to no end and has left me without an opinion for the time being. It definitely DOES have that. But it does certainly take a sharp turn when compared to the other Rebuild movies, to the point of resembling the actual original show a bit more (not really... but you'll get what I'm saying after you watch it).

I will say another thing: the animation is nothing short of absolutely incredible.


----------



## kamello

Started with Ano Hana today......prepared to cry like a little girl in the future


----------



## Fat-Elf

The new studio for the 2nd season of Oreimo really took the fanservice to another level. 

"Spoiler"(/NSFW) alert: *https://static.ylilauta.fi/files/an....mkv_snapshot_05.44_[2013.04.28_00.00.07].jpghttp://........com/blm9f8p*


----------



## Mordacain

flavenstein said:


> Be prepared to cry like a little girl.
> 
> Related:




Yea, I watched Clannad without any warning while I was still working 3rd shift. I wanted a mental enema afterward.

It actually had me so choked up that I couldn't even get through the sequels.


----------



## skisgaar

New Oriemo suddenly became fanservice city. I don't know why so many people think the episodes so far have been bad though, I mean...it's a slice of life anime, it's not going to be story telling gold in any way shape or form


----------



## Nyx Erebos

BBC News - Colombia arrests fake nuns with drugs in their habits

Reminds me so much of Black lagoon.

I recently watched psycho pass and zetsuen no tempest, they both have great characters and great moments but the overall stories have some weaknesses.

I watched shinsekai yori too and the only thing I want to say is wtf. Watch it you'll understand.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Anyone who haven't seen DMC yet needs to go watch it RIGHT NOW! It's seriously one of the funniest anime series ever, especially if you're into metal music.


----------



## Bekanor

I think I'm the only person on the internet who actually prefers the Tokypop English dub of Initial D. I just prefer the voice acting in it, mostly because of Onizuka's voice coming out of K.T. but I think on the whole it's better than the other English version I've seen. 

The voice acting has more character on the whole where in the other version, the deliveries are all really dull and flat. Anime purists give it a bunch of shit for Westernising things too much but I don't care, I'd rather watch a bastardised version with good voice acting that actually makes me give a shit about the characters than a more faithful representation where everyone sounds like they're voiced by the same person and I don't give a shit. 

I'm now faced with the problem of trying to buy the right version, basically I'm looking for the version with Steve Blum (Onizuka, Mugen from Samurai Champloo) as 'K.T.' Takahashi. Can anyone help me out? I haven't gotten into much anime in years because this shit gets so confusing sometimes.


----------



## habicore_5150

There's a couple that I've been watching recently

Apart from watching a bit of Soul Eater and D-Gray Man, I just started to get back into watching YuYu Hakusho
Also watched a bit of Neon Genesis Evangelion 1.0: You are [not] Alone
And sometime last night, I was introduced to a pretty weird anime called Kemeko Deluxe, I found out about it in a small collection of "funny" clips on YouTube.
This small scene had me chuckling a bit


----------



## Alberto7

lolicide said:


> Anybody watching this? The manga was pretty cool from what I heard.
> 
> On the side note, any Strike Witches fans?




I've had a few people recommend it to me, claiming it to be bloody as all hell. I'm actually liking the whole art style presented in the opening sequence. I'm hoping it'll serve as a good contrast to Clannad, which is just making me rot from the inside out... 



Mordacain said:


> Yea, I watched Clannad without any warning while I was still working 3rd shift. I wanted a mental enema afterward.
> 
> It actually had me so choked up that I couldn't even get through the sequels.



I just finished the first season, plus the OVA episode ("Another World: Tomoyo Chapter"). Needless to say, I'm afraid to watch After Story. I need a punch in the face to get back to the real world, damn it.

And just a quick remark about anime in general. I don't know what it is about some anime out there, but it affects me (and all other anime fans I've talked to) more than many things one would normally expect to be heavily affected by. I wonder if any studies have been done about that. Some people claim it's the art, or the storytelling, voice acting, characters, music... the list goes on. And, while I do think the combination of all those things heavily contributes to its addiction factor, I feel there's more to it than that. It might perhaps be how a completely alternate reality is presented, where one can actually connect strongly with the characters. But, then again, that's what "real-people" shows and movies do, and I find most of them less engaging than most anime I've watched (with a few exceptions). From my point of view, it's much like a reality-altering drug, and it should be handled with care. I can't watch them too often, or otherwise I actually stop or slow down on what I need to be doing to actually live (studying, socializing, working, paying bills, etc). Just thought I'd share that and see what others have to say.


----------



## kamello

Finished Ano Hana, now I don't know if I have a heart or not, I didn't cried , but still it was very touching, overall I liked it a lot, and I know that there is a movie in the works


now Im torn between watching Evangelion, Steins;Gate, or Clannad, what do you say guys?


edit @Alberto: interesting topic, I've only been adicted to watching Anime when I was little and had the time to do so , BUT, that was before I was in Uni or played music, now every moment I spend playing videogames or watching something I think ''I could be playing guitar or studying....'' so that stops me from being addicted (or watch more than one chapter daily, it was a self-imposed rule I made.....wich I always break towards the ending of a series ) 
and, just as drugs, and my personal case, I think that some (emphasis on some) people become kinda addicted to it for the same reason the people I know became addicted to weed, lack of other interests and no goals.
Also, I agree with you in something, I become waaaay more connected to Anime characters rather than movies and shows, you pointed out art and music, and yes, most Animes have those aspects way more devoloped than American toons, and is one of the reasons of why I love it (apart from the general ''more mature'' atmosphere I get, while still being childish in some moments) I rarely watch movies (like 10 in a year) so I cannot voice an opinion on that aspect....


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> And just a quick remark about anime in general. I don't know what it is about some anime out there, but it affects me (and all other anime fans I've talked to) more than many things one would normally expect to be heavily affected by. I wonder if any studies have been done about that. Some people claim it's the art, or the storytelling, voice acting, characters, music... the list goes on. And, while I do think the combination of all those things heavily contributes to its addiction factor, I feel there's more to it than that. It might perhaps be how a completely alternate reality is presented, where one can actually connect strongly with the characters. But, then again, that's what "real-people" shows and movies do, and I find most of them less engaging than most anime I've watched (with a few exceptions). From my point of view, it's much like a reality-altering drug, and it should be handled with care. I can't watch them too often, or otherwise I actually stop or slow down on what I need to be doing to actually live (studying, socializing, working, paying bills, etc). Just thought I'd share that and see what others have to say.


 
Having grown up and raised with anime my whole life, I can see where this is coming from. From my experience and observations:

*1: The 'human-ness' of characters and plot that viewers can relate to.*

Characters:

The 'regular guy' living (or yearning to live) a 'normal life' has always been a common theme in most anime. Before the internet when anime was still an exotic art getting translated only by die-hard fans, this kind of story telling was rare in the western cartoon/comic world. Most protagonists are either superhumans or regular guys becoming superheroes in the name of justice. In the case of anime characters, those who become superheroes or gain a superweapon of some sort tend to freak out and become extremely reluctant with their new awesome power and the responsibility that follows. 

Shinji Ikari may be today's best example of an anime archetype trope hero, but you can't blame the guy for reacting the way he did. Just like how his predecessors Amuro Ray, Kamille Bidan and Hikaru Ichijo (Rick Hunter) did before him. We've seen it many times up to the point where it's now (unfortunately) a trope stereotype that's been done to death. 

In the case of characters who are already superhumans, anime characters show their human side far more than their western counterparts to the point of certain episodes are completely dedicated to them. All incarnations of Son Goku, be it all Dragon Ball or Saiyuki series have been faithful to the respective legend and showed moments where he's ate and partied hard. Saiyuki in particular showed many moments of hard drinking and smoking among other regular activities. Having been to Japan and having many Japanese friends I've met over the years, much of the surroundings of everyday life is usually recorded in anime right down to a tee. Hell, I've already lived some episodes of Love Hina first hand... sorta... 

Setting/Plot:

Like the characters, anime tends to deal with many events that parallell many in the real world. Most of the protagonists are usually school kids dealing with their coming of age and a lot of screen time is focused on that. Viewers get to see plenty of the ordinary tasks that we do in real life and how the character deals with the trials of every day living. For entertainment purposes, this is the last thing we want to see  but in anime it's engaging because it makes characters more likeable on a deeper level than just being the hero beating up bad guys. 

Gundam was never just a bunch giant robots killing each other unlike many Super Robot series that preceded. Gundam dealt with the horrors and consequences of war. Watch any Gundam series directed by Yoshiyuki Tomino and check out how every significant death affects all the characters and plot to see what I mean (and Tomino loves keeping the body count extremely high). Speaking of which...

Death:

Everybody cried when Optimus Prime died in the 80s Transformers movie. If you didn't you have no soul  or you haven't seen it. If it's the latter, here it is:



Nothing is more emotional when somebody close to you dies. To have a significantly developed and likeable character die in a series is heartbreaking for the viewer, and to have this done on Western animation would be ludicrous in the early days (for the record, Transformers is originally not one but two seperate Japanese toy lines by the way ). When it comes to character deaths, Japan did this in spades. And they'll make you remember it. In fact, Vampire Princess Miyu's TV series has one of the most gut wrenching endings in any series ever. 

Some character deaths are actually convenient ways to end a story. It makes a character/series give it that 'legendary' notion much like a heroes death. Not every series can go for as long as Lupin III, Detective Conan or any of these that run longer than Simpsons and Pokemon combined. But some deaths are important, it'll be boring otherwise. 

So a lot of the character traits that are developed over the course of an anime series are ones us viewers can relate to, while simultaneously escaping reality to fantasy entertainment. It gives a stronger desire to relate, sympathise and admire the character. 


*2: Anime has something for every demographic*

I've been talking about most anime that existed pre Google searching, but during that time, anime was catering to different kinds of audiences whereas western cartoons were aimed purely just for kids. This became a wonderful alternative at the time where stories are told in a fantasy world but dealt with a lot of mature topics (as stated earlier). 

Gundam had already been mentioned, but Macross' biggest theme (that isn't war against aliens and giant transforming mecha) is romance; in this series, love triangles in particular. Throughout the course of the series, you see Hikaru/Rick struggle with his love for the mature/strong willed Misa/Lisa or the young/naieve Minmei/same diff and recurs throughout every Marcross sequel. Unfortunately this theme has also become a trope with many anime series, spawning a subculture of it's own. 

Then you have plenty of history based anime. Usually it's limited to historical samurai figures, but they aren't shy about bringing outside themes like The Bible, The Count of Monte Cristo, all Dracula/Alucard incarnations, and even Hitler. Of course these can be heavily romanticised up to the point where a lot would eschew historical facts to ridiculous proportions. 

It's not all about beating up bad guys though. Some anime is set in the real world with no grand aspirations. Plenty of romantic/comedy series like Ranma 1/2 and Tenchi Muyo put supernatural themes in the backseat while some like Love Hina eschew them completely. Tons of drama like Fruits Basket and Mushishi (the former being light hearted while the latter being melancholy). Hell there's even an anime about making bread. 

Don't get me started on hentai/tentacle rape... There's plenty of them ranging, from ero-games, ero guro anime, etc. That's as far as I'll go thank you very much... 

Manga in particular is read by everyone of all ages and even have sub-categories for the appropriate demographic. Initially, manga was meant to be disposed after one reading, though I would assume Western influence would change that. 


So yeah, no real conclusion here as I've felt that I've properly explained how a lot of anime relates to viewers very strongly. And now with the turn of the century, Google and Pokemon now bringing anime to the masses, there are more fans than ever before. And even the rest of the world are catching on, borrowing plenty of influences, most notably Avatar among many others. 

I will leave the fact that despite everything I've said above, Japan still is under the notion that anime is still meant for kids.


----------



## sakeido

kamello said:


> now Im torn between watching Evangelion, Steins;Gate, or Clannad, what do you say guys?



I'd go Steins;Gate on that one 10,000%


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno knows his stuff. Thanks for all the interesting and well-elaborated points! I agree with you on all accounts, but you definitely have more experience with anime than I do, and are able to say it much better. That last read in particular actually struck me as rather surprising. I always thought anime was much like manga, in the sense that it was widely accepted, just not nearly as popular. But I never knew it could have negative connotations.



kamello said:


> Finished Ano Hana, now I don't know if I have a heart or not, I didn't cried , but still it was very touching, overall I liked it a lot, and I know that there is a movie in the works
> 
> 
> now Im torn between watching Evangelion, Steins;Gate, or Clannad, what do you say guys?
> 
> 
> edit @Alberto: interesting topic, I've only been adicted to watching Anime when I was little and had the time to do so , BUT, that was before I was in Uni or played music, now every moment I spend playing videogames or watching something I think ''I could be playing guitar or studying....'' so that stops me from being addicted (or watch more than one chapter daily, it was a self-imposed rule I made.....wich I always break towards the ending of a series )
> and, just as drugs, and my personal case, I think that some (emphasis on some) people become kinda addicted to it for the same reason the people I know became addicted to weed, lack of other interests and no goals.
> Also, I agree with you in something, I become waaaay more connected to Anime characters rather than movies and shows, you pointed out art and music, and yes, most Animes have those aspects way more devoloped than American toons, and is one of the reasons of why I love it (apart from the general ''more mature'' atmosphere I get, while still being childish in some moments) I rarely watch movies (like 10 in a year) so I cannot voice an opinion on that aspect....



You see, for me it's the other way around. I have set myself several goals, which I'm working hard to accomplish, but some times I let myself get carried away by an alternate reality that's put right in front of my eyes, and I tend to stray from the path. That's why I try to limit myself some times. It's also true that when I have little free time I tend to not mind if I go a few days without watching the anime.

As for what you should watch... Evangelion, Steins;Gate, and Clannad.... well, you need to watch all three anyway  and they're all great, so you might as well start with the one that will take less of your time. Namely, Steins;Gate. It's just 24 episodes, and a movie which was released few weeks ago, but still hasn't come to the West. Then I would say you go with Clannad (which, mind you, is VERY different from the other two). Two seasons, plus a movie. And the last one should probably be the mightily complicated Evangelion, whose creator just hates your guts. There's so much to watch and read, concerning Evangelion, that I'd recommend you watch it whenever you're in a period where you'll have a lot of free time. That is, if you want to get into it fully.

Also, this:


----------



## kamello

just read Inferno's post today  (first time I saw it I was sleepy as ....) and...wow, that sum it up perfectly  


I've got a little doubt now after reading his post.
Which animes do you guys think represent Japan more accurately?


----------



## Alberto7

kamello said:


> just read Inferno's post today  (first time I saw it I was sleepy as ....) and...wow, that sum it up perfectly
> 
> 
> I've got a little doubt now after reading his post.
> Which animes do you guys think represent Japan more accurately?



"Represent Japan" in which way? As in an anime that portrays Japanese culture accurately, or an anime with which the Japanese population identifies?


----------



## Aceshighhhh

kamello said:


> now Im torn between watching Evangelion, Steins;Gate, or Clannad, what do you say guys?


 
I'd say Clannad. I've seen all of them and Clannad is just so much more memorable. I'm hardly an emotional person but After Story almost became too much at times


Evangelion is a bit overrated IMO.(insert 2deep4u joke)


----------



## kamello

Alberto7 said:


> "Represent Japan" in which way? As in an anime that portrays Japanese culture accurately, or an anime with which the Japanese population identifies?



that represents the Japanese contemporary culture in an accurate, or at least similar way to how it really is


----------



## Alberto7

^Got me right there , I don't actually have an anime for that. The one that comes to mind as the most "slice-of-life" kind of anime would be Usagi Drop. And, it being a Japanese anime, I take that its slice-of-life nature depicts more-or-less typical days in the life of your average Japanese person.

I'll tell you something that has helped me understand Japanese culture a bit better: learning a bit more about the Sengoku and Edo periods of Japan. I've learned mostly by:

- Watching anime based on historical accounts: Rurouni Kenshin.

- Films that show life in Japan as it was during those times: Samurai Seven and Zatoichi.

- Books that talk about the Japanese lifestyle of the time: Shogun. Read that. It's absolutely brilliant. It's beautifully written and it's very detailed, but without getting lost in details so much that it becomes boring. It's closely based on real characters and real events, just barely changing their names (although names of places and battles remain the same, for the most part).

(Those recommendations aren't necessarily the best, but are the ones I've seen).

Of course, those things tend to exaggerate some times, so I always double checked facts online (Wikipedia is your friend) to check if they really happened, and to go a bit more in depth into whatever I was looking for. I also have a friend studying East-Asian and Japanese culture, and he's currently living in Japan. He's been an incredible source of information as well. He's taught me, loosely, how the language works, and it surprisingly lends itself to the culture, too.

Ultimately, by understanding their roots a bit better, you understand how that culture developed into what it is nowadays. Of course, you can never stop learning. I am, of course, just an amateur with no experience whatsoever, but I do feel like I understand Japanese culture a little better nowadays.

Perhaps Bloody_Inferno will chime in eventually .


----------



## Aceshighhhh

kamello said:


> that represents the Japanese contemporary culture in an accurate, or at least similar way to how it really is


 

As far as a slice of life anime that accurately represents modern Japanease culture, I would HIGHLY recommend Welcome to the N.H.K. - it's one of my favorites.

It's basically about a 22 year old NEET(Not in Employment, Education or Training) - a guy who is afraid of society and stays couped up in his apartment in fear of going outside. This is actually quite a big issue in Japan at the moment, with tons of young adult males suffering from this sort of social stigma. 

I feel like a lot of people on this forum would relate to the main character. I know I do


----------



## Nyx Erebos

Aceshighhhh said:


> As far as a slice of life anime that accurately represents modern Japanease culture, I would HIGHLY recommend Welcome to the N.H.K. - it's one of my favorites.



Actually that one made me laugh at the beginning because it reminded me of my intense gamer's life back in middle school, but the story of the main character getting into the real world was really depressing. The scene on the cliff made me laugh and cry inside at the same time.


----------



## God Hand Apostle

pullingstraws said:


> Hey, guys! I wondering if anyone could help me out with identifying an anime.
> 
> I was watching this old school anime compilation video, and there was an anime that caught my attention. The video's description has the names of all the animes except for the one I'm trying to find. It has a name in the description, but I'm pretty sure it's incorrect because whenever I try looking it up, some completely different anime shows up in the search results.
> 
> Here's the video: (It should start 5 mins. in)
> 
> 80's & 90's Old School Action Anime Exhibition (Part 11) - YouTube



In the video details it is noted as True Fist Legend. However, the full english name is True Fist Legend Tight Road while the japanese name is Shinken Densetsu Tight Road. Aired October 7, 1994-December 28, 1994. Good luck finding anything more than that tho.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> Perhaps Bloody_Inferno will chime in eventually .


 
 Held back for a while because I was busy and need to sit down to reply:

If my previous post had proven anything, it just shows signs of my age.  

Now I'm sitting down, be prepared for a culture shock:

Cracked pretty much summed up the outside world's cultural preception of Japan in 3 pictures:

1900:







1997: One year before Google was founded:






Today:







Okay, glad I got that out of the way.  Now comes the real point:


Japan really isn't all that weird. 


I'll be honest, I don't know many actual "slice of life" themed anime (I may have some, but I don't really watch them), but if there's one thing I've observed is that a lot of the anime themes (or the weird wierd world of Japan in general) are the result of a conformist nation venting. 

I've touched on how some of the everyday scenes from anime are basically something out of a typical everyday life in Japan. I've seen a bunch of drunk business men eating at Yakitori place and they were pretty loud and complained about their work. One would normally think, Japanese are usually polite, but in this case it really is no different from walking to a pub with your workmates after a day's work. I've been to parties and karaoke bars with a ton of Japanese and I've noticed that the girls who act like anime characters are usually considered immature. They can be annoyingly loud too...

I purposely ended my last post with the link where Japan sees anime being still meant for kids. For one think the word Otaku actually means obsession. And Japan has a very negative view on "adult-anime-nerds". Case in point: how the Governor of Tokyo said that the tsunami was a divine punishment to anime geeks and got re-elected for it. Bear in mind that more than 50 percent of the Japanese population are in the middle ages and older, and a lot of them still stubbornly hang on to many age old traditions. Also add to the fact that Japan is one of the most homogenous nations in the world.

But a lot of what we see as ridiculous Japanese trends were actually of Western influence:

For the record: Rurouni Kenshin was set in the Bakumatsu to Meiji Restoration era. 

That transition in Japanese history was very important. Prior to that; was 300 years of the Edo reign that began from constant war of every state of Japan against each other... also the source of tons of Samurai Anime themes equivalent of the Wild West or European Medieval times. Of course not many of them will touch the homoerotic traditions of Samurai though, surprisingly Samurai Champaloo did.  And of course you've got the story of how the samurai hairstyle was laughed at by the Western world.

Anyways, the Meiji Restoration was important as viewers of Rurouni Kenshin ought to know. A certain cast member of Friends bought a bunch of black ships and gave Japan the ultimatum to assimilate Western Culture and industrialise, or die. Japan industrialised and worked extremely hard (more on this later) to a point where things got out of hand, making a terrible decision to attack America. For those who don't know their history: MAJOR SPOILER ALERT! It didn't end well for Japan.

Funny because of that major incident, Godzilla and the giant monster (Kaiju) film genre was born. And incidentally enough, so did a ton of post-Apocalyptic anime. Notice how even with some of the modern anime, Tokyo's usually the first to go. 

WWII bought in a ton of other Western influences. And a lot are hot topics in anime. For instance tentacle rape and pixelated male genitilia was the result of American censorship being introduced. Prior to that, it was never considered taboo. Underwear was another issue. Women never wore undies prior to the Western influence. This also lead to all sorts of silly things like used underwear vending machines. They're highly illegal by the way. 

So that ought to explain why Hentai exists, and that there is certainly an audience for it. 

You've seen how anime treats the workplace: I said before how workers were just complaining about their job after hours. Considering how the Japanese working man stereotype is to work themselves to death, you can thank a certain W Edwards Deming for that one. A friend of mine was saying that in most companies, it's very impolite to go home before your boss does. Yep, that's absolutely true. 

Funny enough, anime animators have to work like dogs as their wages aren't that much. And even more striking is that the anime industry is in fact dying on it's ass.

Ultimately, with all of this happening, it comes to no surprise that a lot of the artists were affected by all of the events of the last few centuries. This resulted in a whole heap of weird-ass subcultures too like Lolitas, Gyaru and for those adventurous enough, look up Yankii...

Though some Western family values are also touched on anime as well: the first episode of Great Teacher Onizuka touches on the hard working stereotype and focuses on family first. And it's no secret that the Japanese are infactuated by Western culture: they really love Disney, and they love light skinned blondes. It's come to a point where my friends and I joke about how and why a lot of Japanese women tend to marry non Japanese, and for various reasons such as breaking out of their male-ruled conformist traditions or a taste of exotic culture or perception of good looks etc... which leads to a few of the homogenic problems I mentioned earlier. 

Still, with all that said and done, don't let all of the above stop you from watching anime or learing more about Japan (I've only touched the surface here). It's a beautiful country with beautiful people, and I've got a heap of awesome Japanese friends. But really it's just a normal country, it's actually pretty ordinary outside Tokyo. They just love to portray and romanticise a lot of their history, culture and a lot of imagination into a form of entertainment we can all enjoy. 



TLDR: *Japan really isn't all that weird. *



But enough of my ramblings... MOAR ANIME! 


EDIT: Regarding the otaku culture, Genshiken is an manga/anime that addresses heavily on the subculture, references and all. It's pretty funny actually.


----------



## Alberto7

^ As usual, you deliver 

The way I see it, modern day Japan is basically the result of a clash of two cultures and, more particularly, two different ways of thinking. When two cultures as different as those two meet... well, I'd be surprised if the outcome weren't anything similar to tentacle porn . It's a long topic to elaborate on, and I certainly do not have the necessary knowledge to expand on it without sounding like an idiot, but, with the little that I do know, I can definitely see how contemporary Japanese culture is based very much on a mix of both Western and traditional Japanese ways of thinking.

Okay, now to speak anime.

It was mentioned on the last page, but I'll mention it again:
SHINGEKI NO KYOJIN . Jesus Christ, I've only watched the first 3 episodes, but it's just so exciting from the very get-go. Keeps you on the edge of your seat at all times. It's absolutely brutal. This should be soundtrack for it; I wish I could listen to this while watching the show:


But the opening is pretty epic as well 


The art and animation are just as badass and beautiful as in the opening. I also hear it gets intense x1,000,000,000 after the 5th episode. It's still airing, and only 7 episodes have come out so far.

In other news, I'm almost done with Clannad: After Story. I'm about to begin watching episode 21. I should be making a small review of it after I finish it. But, let me just say, it's made me feel like utter shit. It's so bad. I wake up, and as soon as I remember what happened on the last few episodes, or as soon as I remember the music from it (it becomes catchy after so many episodes), I get depressed. Ano Hana was bad. But this shit's just evil. (On a more objective and non-exaggerated note, it's actually a VERY good anime; the best of its kind that I have seen, and high up in my list of anime that I like. Extremely touching. But I'll leave that for when I write that quick review).

NOTE: the terms "bad," "evil," and the like were used loosely, and were not meant in a literal sense ... except perhaps "evil." Some times I think it is just genuinely evil 

EDIT: and yeah, you're right about Kenshin. I probably should have mentioned it was during the Bakumatsu and Meiji era, but I thought that they're related enough to the Edo period. But you're right. Accurately speaking, it describes what the transition between the Edo and Meiji eras was like (going through the Bakumatsu).


----------



## Cynic

clannad and afterstory are really good. dude's life gets flipped turned upside down tho


----------



## Alberto7

Cynic said:


> clannad and afterstory are really good. dude's life gets flipped turned upside down tho



I literally finished it not 2 minutes ago. I can say I am ENTIRELY satisfied with the ending, and the anime as a whole. If I ever thought that starting this anime was a mistake (because, let's face it, it's an effing roller coaster), the last 3 episodes alone really made me change my mind.

Now bed time


----------



## Cynic

dude has it rough in afterstory. it's like 

"shit, i stubbed my toe. i think it's still going to be a good day thoug-"
"not so fast ............. what if...



Spoiler



EVERYTHING YOU LOVE DIES


"


----------



## Alberto7

^ Exactly  it's ....ing brutal. I might put that in spoiler tags, btw.


----------



## Cynic

how do spoiler tags?

i think it's vague enough to not be a spoiler, but i guess i'll cover it up.


----------



## Alberto7

Maybe I'm just exaggerating by other people's standards. However, I just think that this anime works best if you literally know nothing, and just dive right into it. That, and it's easy to deduct what will happen if the viewer keeps what you said before in mind.

Just type:

[*spoiler]text to be hidden goes here[*/spoiler]

but without the * inside the brackets.


----------



## Cynic

fair enough


----------



## Nyx Erebos

Alberto7 said:


> Maybe I'm just exaggerating by other people's standards. However, I just think that this anime works best if you literally know nothing, and just dive right into it. That, and it's easy to deduct what will happen if the viewer keeps what you said before in mind.



I found it pretty obvious that what happened would happened because the anime went in a direction that I liked (it's not a regular cliché anime) so I thought "that would be great if *put spoiler here* and I think it's really going to happen because it'll make the anime legendary".

Nonetheless with the emotional buildup, the beautiful music and the carefully crafted pictures, it was like the doctor from surgeon simulator did a heart transplant on me.


Shingeki no kyojin looks badass, those naked giants and the jumping soldiers remind me of claymore.


----------



## Alberto7

Nyx Erebos said:


> I found it pretty obvious that what happened would happened because the anime went in a direction that I liked (it's not a regular cliché anime) so I thought "that would be great if *put spoiler here* and I think it's really going to happen because it'll make the anime legendary".
> 
> Nonetheless with the emotional buildup, the beautiful music and the carefully crafted pictures, it was like the doctor from surgeon simulator did a heart transplant on me.
> 
> 
> Shingeki no kyojin looks badass, those naked giants and the jumping soldiers remind me of claymore.



Yeah, I agree completely. Actually, Clannad is rather predictable, but that's part of what makes it good. You'll understand once you watch haha.

SnK is ....ing RIDICULOUS. Watch only the first episode to get a taste of it. It's just 12 minutes long. You'll be hooked.

A review for both Clannad and SnK is in order. I started writing yesterday night a review of Clannad (now that I finished it) for this thread, but it's proving so difficult to review without spoiling that I temporarily quit  I'll write it on another moment when I get my thoughts together.
*[Edit]* Funny that you mention Claymore, because I just found out that the same screenwriter for SnK was also the screenwriter for Claymore  Yasuko Kobayashi. *[/Edit]*

EDIT: I apologize for the misinformation. SnK's first episode isn't 12 minutes long. It's just that I had seen that latter half of it . It's a full 24 minute episode.


----------



## Fat-Elf

I've had more than plenty of spare time for the last few days because school's over so I decided to start watching some anime again. Watched the first episode of Bleach last night but as the whole series is almost 400 episodes I won't probably continue it. Just watched the 8th episode of Oreimo's second season and it just keeps getting better each week. I will probably start watching Clannad again as I dropped it after the 4th episode the first time. So many people recommend it that I guess I just have to force my way through it if I don't end up liking it.


----------



## habicore_5150

Guess I can add a few more anime to my list here

*Maji de Watashi ni Koishinasai!!*
Got introduced to this anime after watching about 3 different clips that were uploaded to YouTube. Even though I'm into the first episode, it's got my attention (then again, the clips that I've seen only reflected some of the funnier/weirder moments in the anime)

*Seitokai No Ichizon*
Even though I really don't watch a lot of anime that has this kind of setting, this one is actually pretty good. Contains plenty of parodies to past anime and cartoons

*Shingeki No Kyojin*
Been hearing that this is a pretty crazy anime. Only one episode in and I guess I gotta agree with them. Definitely gonna be watching some more of this over the weekend


----------



## Alberto7

Fat-Elf said:


> I've had more than plenty of spare time for the last few days because school's over so I decided to start watching some anime again. Watched the first episode of Bleach last night but as the whole series is almost 400 episodes I won't probably continue it. Just watched the 8th episode of Oreimo's second season and it just keeps getting better each week. I will probably start watching Clannad again as I dropped it after the 4th episode the first time. So many people recommend it that I guess I just have to force my way through it if I don't end up liking it.



Don't give up on Clannad just on the 4th episode! It begins to get into the first arc around the 4th-5th. That's when it begins to get interesting.

I've been on the verge of watching Bleach, just to see what all the fuss is about... but I can't be bothered watching 400+ episodes of anything :/


----------



## Skyblue

No need to watch all 400+ episodes of Bleach... half of it is Filler arcs which are usually lame and have nothing to do with the original manga plot. skip those, and you could still enjoy it. Keep in mind though, that it IS a longer-type anime... you know, those who stretch your boss battles over 70 episodes


----------



## Alberto7

Skyblue said:


> No need to watch all 400+ episodes of Bleach... half of it is Filler arcs which are usually lame and have nothing to do with the original manga plot. skip those, and you could still enjoy it. Keep in mind though, that it IS a longer-type anime... you know, those who stretch your boss battles over 70 episodes



Yeah  longest I could ever watch was Dragon Ball, but only because I was a kid when I watched it, and nowadays because of the nostalgia factor.

So, apparently the Shingeki no Kyojin (Attack on Titan) opening theme is the new "Guile's Theme"... and I must say, it's ....ing AWESOME:

Shingeki no Eva:


Attack on Witch: (Madoka Magica content)


Shingeki no Mewtwo:


Shingeki no Dragon Ball Z:


Shingeki no Steins;Gate: (surprising how little, if any, editing was needed)


Attack on Code Geass:


And a few funny ones:






There's like a gazillion more of those. I'm not particularly a fan of AMV's, but God are those addictive! I've been watching them nonstop since yesterday 

EDIT: I was listening to the theme today, and I'm considering doing a guitar cover of it. It gives me such a power metal-ish vibe, a la Stratovarius or Rhapsody.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

^ That theme rules, and if you look up the composer (Revo), it's easy to see why.

He's done all the Sound Horizon stuff (Linked Horizon is basically a continuation) and that includes a ton of top musicians as collaborators and live musicians including Kaori Oda (Fiction Junction), Motoi Sakuraba (all the Tales/Star Ocean games/first Saiyuki anime series and a ton of awesome prog stuff), Jun-ji (Siam Shade, top session drummer for a ton of J-Rock acts), and even had Marty Friedman and Miku Hatsune on the same song. 

All awesome stuff.


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


> ^ That theme rules, and if you look up the composer (Revo), it's easy to see why.
> 
> He's done all the Sound Horizon stuff (Linked Horizon is basically a continuation) and that includes a ton of top musicians as collaborators and live musicians including Kaori Oda (Fiction Junction), Motoi Sakuraba (all the Tales/Star Ocean games/first Saiyuki anime series and a ton of awesome prog stuff), Jun-ji (Siam Shade, top session drummer for a ton of J-Rock acts), and even had Marty Friedman and Miku Hatsune on the same song.
> 
> All awesome stuff.



I swear I am having a COMPLETE and thorough nerdgasm listening to "Ido e Itaru Mori e Itaru Ido" (I hope that's correct... I got the name from Wikipedia). It's like all my favorite things in the world put together: anime storytelling, amazing guitarwork (Marty always delivers), Hatsune Miku (I don't listen to her much, but I do have a soft spot for her music and her actress's voice ), and the fact that it's an actual musical piece (not that most anime music is bad, but themes and soundtracks are very watered down, musically, most of the time. Exceptions do exist, however).

Thanks for showing me this. I had just found out today who the composer was for "Guren no Yumiya," but I hadn't searched him up yet.

EDIT: now's when I wish I spoke Japanese so I didn't have to go around looking for the lyrics' translations and so I didn't have to somehow follow a Japanese song while reading the lyrics in English.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> It's like all my favorite things in the world put together: anime storytelling, amazing guitarwork (Marty always delivers), Hatsune Miku (I don't listen to her much, but I do have a soft spot for her music and her actress's voice ), and the fact that it's an actual musical piece (not that most anime music is bad, but themes and soundtracks are very watered down, musically, most of the time. Exceptions do exist, however).


 
Japan does this all the time.  They've got Drama CDs/Audio novels that act as either a prelude/continuation of the plot and/or dictate key points of story/characters. Usually it's the voice actors themselves who do the actual performance. Some are damn good at it too (Maaya Sakamoto). In fact some anime's Drama CD chapters exclusively explain a whole heap of important story (the Guilty Gear series for example).

Speaking of Guilty Gear, Blazblue is getting the anime treatment.! 

Also, Miku Hatsune is a Vocaloid, completely program generated... a notion that was predicted by Macross Plus almost 2 decades ago... pretty creepy. Though it's also funny that guys like Gackt gets his own Vocaloid modelled after him too.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Oh yeah, I know Hatsune Miku is a completely computer generated vocaloid (which, more than creepy, I actually find absolutely fascinating... technology is a wonderful/scary, and, moreover, amazing thing). But I meant that one of the seiyuu that participated in the Revo single featuring Hatsune Miku, was actually Saki Fujita (the actress after which Miku's voice is modeled), and her character's voice was awesome.


----------



## sakeido

this is my fav of those AMV openings, Starcraft 2


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

To be honest, I can't stand AMVs. I don't see the appeal, but that's just me.

However my single favorite AMV is this:



It was also made in Melbourne too.


----------



## Alberto7

^ That was actually pretty funny .

I generally don't like AMV's. Not because I don't like AMV's, but because most of them are so insanely terrible. I have to consider the music to be perfectly fitting to the video... and that isn't the case 99% of the time. 99% of the time the video editing is also poor. I'm pretty sure I can count all the AMV's that I've watched and genuinely liked with just my fingers. Normally I can't stand watching an anime that doesn't have its original soundtrack, and that's why this is one of my favorite AMV's ever:



The "Guren no Yumiya" AMV's are an exception though, as I do find that song to go truly well with many videos, much like Guile's theme does. That, and there's the obvious bias, since I'm following the show very closely, and I honestly think it's one of the best shows to have come out in a while. Most of them I just find hilarious, however.

Of course, I understand why a lot of people wouldn't like them, or find no appeal in them, as you say.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Just finished watching Bartender for the second time. I don't like episode based animes but this one works very well.


----------



## Nyx Erebos

Fat-Elf said:


> Just finished watching Bartender for the second time. I don't like episode based animes but this one works very well.



I don't know if I should watch it. It looks like a slow paced anime and I need a good story to keep me interested when it's not all about fight'n'boobs. Do you recommend it ? (I guess yes since you watched it 2 times)


----------



## Fat-Elf

Nyx Erebos said:


> I don't know if I should watch it. It looks like a slow paced anime and I need a good story to keep me interested when it's not all about fight'n'boobs. Do you recommend it ? (I guess yes since you watched it 2 times)



I wouldn't really call it slow paced or that it has great story because every episode has its own story. It's very dialog heavy, though. Most of it is really the bartender talking with people on the bar counter.


----------



## habicore_5150

I know I don't read a lot of manga (even though I did get Kingdom Hearts 2 a few months ago, you guys know this), I wasn't aware that there was a manga of Terranigma (one of my favorite and underrated SNES games).
So far I read the first 5 chapters [well, the only 5 I found for now], and it's really good, it's really close to the game


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

habicore_5150 said:


> I wasn't aware that there was a manga of Terranigma (one of my favorite and underrated SNES games).
> So far I read the first 5 chapters [well, the only 5 I found for now], and it's really good, it's really close to the game


 
Neither was I. Well there goes my weekend now.


----------



## habicore_5150

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Neither was I. Well there goes my weekend now.



You're welcome

But yeah, my weekend's gonna be me watching some more
Shingeki no Kyojin
Maji de Watashi ni Koishinisai (seen another couple of random clips of this show...yeah, it has its fair share of WTF moments)
Evangelion (random side note, one of my friends thinks I can pull off a good cosplay of Shinji Ikari. I can suddenly imagine me in one of those ridiculous plugsuits)
Soul Eater
D.Gray-Man
Fullmetal Alchemist (same friend thinks I could also cosplay Roy Mustang. Think I might be leaning towards that a lot more, not as ridiculous as me being in a plugsuit)
and probably some Sword Art Online (heard it was coming to Toonami, don't remember when exactly)

...oh, and playing some more Terranigma, such a fun underrated game


----------



## Alberto7

^ Your weekend better be long!  Anyone care to comment on Soul Eater? I've been recommended it by a couple of friends, but I still don't know how much I should prioritize it in my to-watch list.

Bartender also sounds interesting for a more relaxed kind of show, and not too plot heavy. Upon reading the description for the show, it kind of reminded me of Shinrei Tantei Yakumo (Psychic Detective Yakumo), in that it's very episode-based and that it's some guy who helps others through their problems. I'll be checking it out some time soon 

Also, I just finished the first two episodes of Black Lagoon. It isn't bad by any means, but I guess I had my hopes up way too high. I feel as though, so far at least, the plot develops way too fast for its own good. I also feel like it tries too hard to be badass... and it succeeds, but it feels forced, in a way. Still though, I can't conclude anything after only two episodes , that's just my opinion on the first two episodes. I'll definitely keep on watching; it's got me interested on what happens next. What I do know is that I don't like the ending song. The opening is slightly better, but I can't get over the broken English lyrics .


----------



## Fat-Elf

AOTY right there. You heard it here first.


----------



## Bretton

Alberto7 said:


> ^ Your weekend better be long!  Anyone care to comment on Soul Eater? I've been recommended it by a couple of friends, but I still don't know how much I should prioritize it in my to-watch list.
> 
> Bartender also sounds interesting for a more relaxed kind of show, and not too plot heavy. Upon reading the description for the show, it kind of reminded me of Shinrei Tantei Yakumo (Psychic Detective Yakumo), in that it's very episode-based and that it's some guy who helps others through their problems. I'll be checking it out some time soon
> 
> Also, I just finished the first two episodes of Black Lagoon. It isn't bad by any means, but I guess I had my hopes up way too high. I feel as though, so far at least, the plot develops way too fast for its own good. I also feel like it tries too hard to be badass... and it succeeds, but it feels forced, in a way. Still though, I can't conclude anything after only two episodes , that's just my opinion on the first two episodes. I'll definitely keep on watching; it's got me interested on what happens next. What I do know is that I don't like the ending song. The opening is slightly better, but I can't get over the broken English lyrics .



Soul Eater is my 2nd favourite of those I've seen, right after Full Metal Alchemist


----------



## splinter8451

habicore_5150 said:


> You're welcome
> 
> But yeah, my weekend's gonna be me watching some more
> *Shingeki no Kyojin*



A few days ago I finished reading everything that is out so far and holy shit... it started off slow but just kept getting better and better. 

But I am sad that I caught up, now I have to keep waiting for releases 

Another good manga that was on hiatus forever started back up a few months ago, *Deadman Wonderland*. It is in the final story arc now and will probably end in a couple months, the story is insane. I definitely would recommend it.


----------



## sakeido

started watching Attack on Titan and didn't really dig it. Gorgeous art, when the Colossal Titan shows up was awesome, and the Armored Titan was super cool but the rest... eh... hate the main character, everyone is just yelling instead of acting, and it's an anime following a manga that isn't very far along so it'll stall out soon.


----------



## Don Vito

Fat-Elf said:


> AOTY right there. You heard it here first.


----------



## Alberto7

sakeido said:


> started watching Attack on Titan and didn't really dig it. Gorgeous art, when the Colossal Titan shows up was awesome, and the Armored Titan was super cool but the rest... eh... hate the main character, everyone is just yelling instead of acting, and it's an anime following a manga that isn't very far along so it'll stall out soon.



I'll pretend like I didn't read the part where you said you didn't like it , but, regarding the manga thing, it's possible, but I don't think it'll go that way. It was announced that the anime is supposed to be 25 episodes long, and there's already sufficient material in the manga to make up for most of the 25 episodes, apparently. Both my cousin and my sister are reading the manga (so considerate of them not to spoil me anything ), and they tell me that they've made a couple of re-arrangements for the anime to make the story flow better and have more impact (not changing the story or the plot themselves; just the order in which a couple of things are told), so something tells me that the guys working on the anime know what they're doing. Like anything that hasn't yet happened, it can go either way, but I do have faith that they'll make a true instant classic out of this show.



Fat-Elf said:


> AOTY right there. You heard it here first.




Wait, enlighten me please o.o


----------



## Fat-Elf

Alberto7 said:


> Wait, enlighten me please o.o



It's the first trailer for the upcoming anime of this manga called WataMote (for short). I'm pretty sure it will be the AOTY (anime of the year) for me as it has been pretty lazy year for anime in my book. 

Speaking about WataMote, new chapter uploaded 4 hours ago.


----------



## Alberto7

^ It seems to have potential to be extremely hilarious , I'll keep an eye out for it this July!


----------



## Don Vito

You have to be Tomoko to understand Watamote. No exceptions.


----------



## iamthefonz

The best comedy is always the one that hits far too close to home.

Watamote = AOTY


----------



## Fat-Elf

Don Vito said:


> You have to be Tomoko to understand Watamote. No exceptions.



This is actually true. Same applies to Welcome to the NHK. If you can't relate to the main character then you will have bad time.


----------



## Don Vito

Me when I was 15/16. Right down to the coffee shop fiasco.
It


----------



## texshred777

I've recently come to enjoy Soul Eater.

The new Hellsing is pretty damn good too, even with the terrible accents the VA's use.


----------



## Don Vito

I caught an episode of Soul Eater in bits on Toonami like an hour ago. Seems like a really good show.


----------



## Alberto7

Anyone watch this yet?



Based on this trailer and a few gifs that I've seen, the art and animation are about the most incredible I've ever seen. And, if it is anything like 5 Centimeters per Second, it is bound to be a masterpiece.


----------



## habicore_5150

Think I need to add Fairy Tail to my list of anime that I need to keep watching. Already two episodes in and I'm liking what I'm seeing. Pretty crazy anime (got a lot of work to do here, think its at least 175 episodes or something)


----------



## texshred777

Accel World. 

A friend recently introduced me to this one.


----------



## MFB

Started watching "Attack on Titan" recently, I dig it so far


----------



## Alberto7

^ How can you not? 

So, since us anime fans don't get many good live actions... here are a couple films that might temporarily satisfy our needs 

Being a fan of Planetes, I feel reminded of it by this movie's trailer:

Also, here's the thread where I heard first about this movie http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/mo...-sci-fi-thriller-directed-alfonso-cuaron.html

And I guess this will allow me to wait a bit longer for the Evangelion live-action. I'm willing to bet big money that the Evangelion franchise had influence on this film:


----------



## Alberto7

I know I saw someone on here asking about *Spice and Wolf* a while ago, so here goes:
Just finished watching both seasons (I and II)... f*cking brilliant. It's got some of the most enchanting script and dialogue I've seen in anime and/or media in general. The pacing of the show is just right; fast where it needs to be, and slow and calm on points that demand it to be that way. It gets massive bonus points for being different, too; mixing economics and romance throughout the whole thing in such a peculiar and complimentary way. Of course, it's made all that much better if you have an interest in economics (which I kind of do). It kept me at the edge of my seat on several occasions, and, when it didn't, it just kept me all dreamy. The art and animation are really nothing that will instantly make you go "ZOMG SO GOOD" but it is captivating in its own way, and it truly does capture the medieval setting and makes it fit just right with the premise of the show. Character design is quite strong as well (just look at all the Holo fanbois around in all of animedom ). The characters, I feel, are where this anime really shines. They are really well-rounded and are developed with much finesse. It's quite delighting when you compare both main characters by the end of the series to themselves at the beginning, and you feel how they've changed, and how their relationship and their behavior towards each other have changed. My only gripe with it is that the supporting characters are disposed of almost immediately after they've served their main purpose. However, I guess that does make sense, considering the ever-changing lifestyle of a traveling merchant (which Lawrence, one of the two main character, is), but I still wish I could know just a little more about them. Another (not necessarily bad) thing is that it really leaves you hungry for more, and there are quite a few things towards the end that perhaps could be expanded upon. I didn't notice any major plotholes by the end, but a 3rd season would still be awesome. Perhaps I should go read the graphic novels that it is based off of. While on that note, I actually really loved the ending. Overall, a simple story made into a compelling one via brilliant writing, captivating art and animation, and great and careful character development. An 8.5/10 in my book.


----------



## kamello

Alberto, the trailer ws beautiful, looking forwards for that one, even though I don't know shit about the plot


----------



## Choop

Just watched Neon Genesis Evangelion finally (because I am a slow mofo) and I can see how the ending may have caused a stir with a good number of people who watched it! 

Haven't watched either of the movies yet. Honestly I didn't think the ending was terrible for the series in a thematic sense, but the rehashed animation and way it was told felt a little anticlimactic. Does End of Evangelion end it well enough so that it feels more resolved and isn't just a bone they threw to everyone who hated the series ending?


----------



## Vinchester

Choop said:


> Does End of Evangelion end it well enough so that it feels more resolved and isn't just a bone they threw to everyone who hated the series ending?



Oh boi. You are in for a surprise  Gainax is just unable to do things in a normal way! With a very unconventional ending, The End of Evangelion is profound in its own way. I'd suggest you watch it.

After being hooked on the first episode, I went on to read the Attack on Titan manga. Personally I am quite disappointed at how poorly written the series is. Maybe the anime version would benefit from improved pacing and better animation, but the source material shows the author is prone to do things just for the awesomeness of it (which often doesn't really make sense)

I'm surprised it still retains this much popularity that the series is pretty much a phenomenon. Maybe I am taking entertainment too seriously.


----------



## MFB

I think the manga is popular right now _because_ the show looks good and such, not the other way around


----------



## Alberto7

MFB said:


> I think the manga is popular right now _because_ the show looks good and such, not the other way around



So much this.

My sister and a friend of mine are reading the manga, and they tell me it's just not worth it when you can be watching the anime. That is unless you can't handle the wait for the next episode. Apparently the art is pretty mediocre (based on the only page of it that I have seen, it is quite terrible), and the pacing is weird.



kamello said:


> Alberto, the trailer ws beautiful, looking forwards for that one, even though I don't know shit about the plot



Here ya go buddy 
http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=14995

I think I'm going to Otakuthon this year, so I'll see if they're selling the DVD or Blu-ray. Or I might end up buying it online, eventually.


----------



## kamello

watched *5 cm per second* with a friend yesterday, definitely tops along my favourites in the artwork aspect, and the story portrayals in a very familiar way the 90ties and our current time, it can feel kinda cheesy it times if you are not in the mood though , it's basically just a love story, but I thought it was beautifuly told

 


I lol'ed so hard at the description of the trailer  ''_Enjoy the glory of this short trailer that explains nothing, but gives you very pretty scenes to look at and very beautiful piano music to listen._ ''


----------



## Alberto7

^ Hahaha  I love 5 cm Per Second. The art and animation are the first obvious things that one sees. It is also a beautiful story, though perhaps too gooey and sappy for some people. But what I truly like about it is the message of it, which is really all conveyed by the ending. I know many people dislike the ending, but I think it is absolutely perfect and fitting. Beautiful, beautiful film. It _slightly_ reminds me of a relationship I had (though mine was definitely not nearly as dramatic ), so I might be slightly biased.

EDIT: I laughed hard at a YouTube comment I read on some trailer for The Garden of Words (by the same creator as 5 cm Per Second), that read "5 wallpapers per second"


----------



## Choop

Vinchester said:


> Oh boi. You are in for a surprise  Gainax is just unable to do things in a normal way! With a very unconventional ending, The End of Evangelion is profound in its own way. I'd suggest you watch it.



Woo, just got around to watching it. Still way weird, but I liked it much more than the ending the series left off on. It was good to see the characters again, and see that the series got some kind of resolve...


Spoiler



...even if it means pretty much everybody died lol.


----------



## Mr-Jemhead93

I got done with cowboy bebop about a week ago I have to say it's probably one of my favorites but my buddy tried selling it to me that it was the best one ever, and I think because of that I was let down a little (and by little I mean microscopically) he would say how it was so much better than animes like Samurai Champloo, Tri-gun, Deathnote etc. for me personally Samurai Champloo is probably my favorite overall and I just don't think Cowboy Bebop topped it for me


----------



## habicore_5150

Kinda sorta unrelated, but since I posted a pic of one of my friends at a con, might as well do it again

Me with Tiffany Grant (some of you may know of her as Asuka Langley Soryu)






And me with Micah Solusod (Soul Evans)





...he tried to eat mah Kid 

But back on topic, been watching a bit of Shingeki no Kyojin, Ghost in the Shell, Zoids, Evangelion, D.Gray-Man, .hack//SIGN, and Maji de Watashi ni Koi Shinasai! . . . as well as a couple of bits from some random fanmade AMV's that were shown at Seishun Con (which was really fun)


----------



## MFB

Started watching Sword Art Online (SAO) and it's alright so far, but seems kind of jumpy. I mean, I understand they said that there's no level cap and the skills are unlimited, but by like episode 3 - or 4 at least - Kirito is already a level 78; and I get that he was a beta tester but still, seems a bit extreme.

Haven't gotten to go back and watch any of AoT besides the first two episodes, but I'm not too eager either since what's his name the main character, is extremely bi-polar and either whispers his dialogue OR IS IN FULL RAGE MODE AND HAS TO YELL EVERY LINE WHILE ON THE VERY OF CRYING


----------



## Vinchester

I just watched Evangelion 3.33. After so many years I'm as clueless as Shinji as to what's happening, so I have to resort to reading plot synopsis afterwards. The graphic is seriously awesome but I'm feeling that the series has lost its magic from being milked so much already.


----------



## Alberto7

^^ Despite all of my previous praise for Attack on Titan, I've been rather disenchanted by it lately. I assume it's because I've been waiting for a week between each episode (I don't usually watch shows upon release), which lets each episode really sink in, and makes me realize that it's maybe not as perfect as I previously thought (or maybe I'm just getting bored of waiting). Don't get me wrong, I think it's an amazing show, and it's full of awesome, but I feel it lacks the finesse that most of my favorite shows have. It is incredible for what it is - in your face holy shittery - but, so far, the clever and witty dialogues that I've come to love in other anime, or the subtle yet shocking character development, are lacking here. I am now waiting for it to finish airing, and then I'll watch it all at once (over the span of a few days, as opposed to over the span of an entire year/half year).


----------



## Fat-Elf

Some stuff I have been watching:

Death Note; Simply ....ing awesome. One of the best animes I have seen.

Attack on Titan; So far it's also becoming a favorite for me. So good.

Danganronpa; Just started airing couple of days ago. The first episode seemed fairly interesting.


----------



## Don Vito

Fat-Elf said:


> AOTY right there. You heard it here first.


Since the creator of this thread has gone AWOL, I must report in alone.

Watamote Episode 1 was just okay. In my opinion, it moved way too fast, and the reason for this seems to be lack of original writing material.

They pretty much took the manga and animated it. Sounds good in most cases, but not here. The manga is great, but each chapter is short. It's something you casually read through in a couple minutes. This caused the scenes in the anime to move way too fast.

It picked up in the second half as the plot became heavier(the McDonald's scene was very well done), but overall, left a strong sense of "meh". 

I hope it will get better. The material is good and it's there, they just need to put it together in a more fashionable manner.




*btw, I love your new avatar Alberto.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Haruhara Haruko!  I had heard so much about FLCL, I finally decided to give it a shot, seeing as it is really short as well. I'm taking it slowly, too, so it sinks in on me; an episode a day or so. Only two episodes left. It has far exceeded my expectations. I am having the time of my life watching it. It's as nonsensically retarded as it is utterly and completely brilliant. I can see why some people wouldn't like it though.


----------



## MFB

OH man, Sword Art Online takes a drastic turn and starts kicking you right in the ....ing emotions by the halfway mark, with episode 14 making me almost cry my eyes out; and 15 wasn't much better for that matter, to the point where I was slamming my desk and just repeating the word "no" during the last 5 minutes.


----------



## Alberto7

So, just do update on some things I've watched over the past few months (since April or so). I'll be going in reverse chronological order:

*-Haibane Renmei:* I finished it just today, so I'm still kind of taking it in. Two words that spring to mind when thinking of this anime are "charming" and "delicate." Very thought-provoking. It's like shoving your nose into a bouquet of flowers and paying attention to the palette of fragrances (as cheesy as that sounds, it's as accurately descriptive as I can put it). It's a very laid back, dialogue-heavy anime that seeks to ask meaningful questions and lets the viewer answer and interpret them, while still keeping a very clear plot (as opposed to, say, Serial Experiments Lain, whose plot isn't exactly what you'd call clear). Don't expect any action whatsoever. One of the finest wines in anime.

*-FLCL (Fooley Cooley):* Where do I even begin with this one?  Fast-paced, witty, intelligent, and downright hilarious. I find it to be a very dense show, since there's a lot going on at the same time even amidst all of its whatthe....ery. A second watch might be advisable for a lot of people, but at just 6 episodes long, that's really not a problem. Some people might put it in the "wtf Japan" category, but, honestly, I think it's just brilliant. It also has one of my favorite characters in all of the anime that I've seen (see display picture ).

*-Spice and Wolf:* Go look up pictures of it on Google Images. Now try to imagine what it is about. Well... you're probably wrong. Very wrong . In a nutshell, it's an economics show. I can't really say a lot about it because it's a very simple show, with a fairly simple story. However, it has one of my favorite scripts ever, and character development is absolutely beautiful. It's very subtle. The characters feel very real, despite the fact that one of them is some sort of mysterious canine demi-god . It focuses mainly on developing the two main characters and their relationship, while relying on the economics side of it to give it a plotline, and it does an excellent job at that. Even when very little was happening, it managed to keep me on the edge of my seat most of the time. It sits on the same shelf of fine wines as Haibane Renmei.

*-Shingeki no Kyojin (Attack on Titan):* I've talked about it quite a bit in this thread. It's still airing, so I can't give a definite opinion just yet. Having watched the first 10-11 episodes, though, I have a VERY good feeling about it. Incredibly fast-paced, keeps you on the edge of your seat at all times, and has the highest concentration of "WTF?!?!?!" moments per minute of any show I've ever seen. However, I feel it lacks that certain "finesse," if you will, that most of my favorites have. Let's see how I end up liking the whole thing. I stopped watching it because I can't be bothered to wait a week between episodes. I'll pick it back up once it finishes airing.

*-Black Lagoon:* Women with guns and prominent breasts. This show is as badass a thing as you'll ever see in anime. Jesus Christ, the amount of gunfire and blood are unreal, and the characters some of the most awesome I've seen. It takes a while to really settle itself in (I only started liking it after the 3rd episode or so), and takes and even longer while to REALLY get good (on the second season i.e. after the 12th episode). But, holy shit, it becomes a roller coaster of bullets and exploding shit afterwards (not to say the first season isn't entertaining though!). And don't forget to watch Roberta's Blood Trail after finishing up the actual anime, because it gets even more brutal (though a lot of focus is taken off of my favorite character, sadly). It's basically a continuation of one of the mini-arcs from the second season, and takes place right after the events of the second season. Also watch if you want to get some mad laughs out of the most awesome Engrish you'll ever hear (even Spangrish!!).

*-Clannad and Clannad: After Story:* I don't even know what to say. First season is good. Tons of character development, lots of hilarious mishaps, very touchy and tearful moments, and it really draws you in and makes you feel attached to the characters. Then After Story comes in and puts its hand on your chest, begins pressing real hard against it, until it suddenly shoves its hand INTO you, rips your heart out, shreds it into bits, and force-feeds it back to you. The soundtrack is also one of my favorites in anime. I don't know what else to say about it.



...and I should probably stop spending so much time writing about these things


----------



## Fat-Elf

Danganronpa just gets better and better. It's currently at 4th episode so pick it up before it ends, or not.. at least you don't have to wait a week for a new episode.

Attack on Titan has been a bit boring during the last few episodes, too much talk, too little action.

Watamote is also fun but I still kinda prefer the manga.


----------



## Mordacain

MFB said:


> OH man, Sword Art Online takes a drastic turn and starts kicking you right in the ....ing emotions by the halfway mark, with episode 14 making me almost cry my eyes out; and 15 wasn't much better for that matter, to the point where I was slamming my desk and just repeating the word "no" during the last 5 minutes.



Yea, it did that to me (or something relatively close save for the desk slamming)

I'm watching Chihayafuru atm and it's pretty cute. I've limited my anime to light-hearted stuff due having just finished catching up in Game of Thrones last week; I've had my full OMFG what did I just watch!?!??!?! for the time being anyway.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Light-hearted, you say? Usagi Drop. As light-hearted as I've seen 

So, I have a question. Considering the shows I have lined up - the likes of Baccano!, Durarara!!, Samurai Champloo, and others that I can't quite remember - how much priority do you guys think I should give Sword Art Online? I've read enough mixed reviews of it to make me doubt it; from "absolute masterpiece," to "good start but quickly makes a bad turn." I'm thinking it might be a bit of a niche kind of show? I'm not particularly a fan of MMORPGs, but I don't know if that matters at all. Regardless, I plan on watching it at some point. I'm just trying to figure out what to watch next.


----------



## Mordacain

Alberto7 said:


> ^ Light-hearted, you say? Usagi Drop. As light-hearted as I've seen
> 
> So, I have a question. Considering the shows I have lined up - the likes of Baccano!, Durarara!!, Samurai Champloo, and others that I can't quite remember - how much priority do you guys think I should give Sword Art Online? I've read enough mixed reviews of it to make me doubt it; from "absolute masterpiece," to "good start but quickly makes a bad turn." I'm thinking it might be a bit of a niche kind of show? I'm not particularly a fan of MMORPGs, but I don't know if that matters at all. Regardless, I plan on watching it at some point. I'm just trying to figure out what to watch next.



Honestly, I don't think an appreciation of MMOs is needed at all to enjoy SAO. It's not Shakespeare and it's not really breaking the mold and pushing boundaries in any way.

That being said, I found it enjoyable, with some very likable characters and some interesting twists. The second part is not as good as the first until the last couple of episodes, but it's not bad by any stretch and the ending is pretty damn awesome I thought.

I'm not one of those people that is constantly looking for new experiences in entertainment though and gets unreasonably disappointed when I don't find them, so take that with a grain of salt. SAO does have a unique enough perspective that comes across well I think.


----------



## Alberto7

Interesting. It sounds kind of like what I've created in my mind about it. I've been watching shows lately that aren't necessarily considered masterpieces, but I've been enjoying them just as much as the ones considered as such. So what you're making it sound like is appealing. Having my mind blown away so often can be quite tiring . Thanks for the input!


----------



## MFB

I enjoy MMOs in theory, and SAO made me realize why - because you need full VR in order to experience them fully, which is why I latched on to the show. You can create great friendships through the internet in any sort of online game - be it FPS or MMO - and that's another aspect of the show that helps.

Not to mention, it's only 25 episodes so you can go through it fairly quick, and even take a break at 15 since the last 10 do feel different from the first 15.


----------



## texshred777

*Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion *
I've only seen a few episodes, but really good story so far. It centers around Britannia's conquer and subjugation of Japan..now titled Area 11. The title character Lelouch, is a fallen prince of Britannia now living in Area 11. He gains access to a psionic like compulsion power, and plots revenge.


----------



## SamSam

SOA is basically your bog standard Shounen OP main character themed show. It's ok, starts decent, second half drags a bit, the ending is ok though.


----------



## Jes Johnson

My all-time favorite's actually Beck: Mongolian Chop Squad. Lol, it's the only anime I know of that's specifically about music. I also love DBZ, anything by Miyazaki, Jojo's Bizarre Adventure, Naruto, etc. Soul Eater's probably my favorite as far as newer stuff goes. Lol, it's ridiculous how excited I get when toonami's on.


----------



## Alberto7

^ I've always said that if you want to get someone into anime, get him/her to watch anything by Miyazaki.

On a different note, I was about to begin watching Sword Art Online, until I, somehow (I forget how exactly), came across RWBY. Basically, it's an American-made "anime," if you want to call it that, depending on how you define anime. It's made by Rooster Teeth. In any case, it is great so far! The most astounding parts of it, so far, are the fight scenes, which have INCREDIBLE animation and ridiculously fluid coreography, and the music... Jeez, the music is simply awesome. Four trailers came out some time before its release. I'll leave my two favorite ones at the bottom of this post. There are only 4 episodes out, each one (sadly) being 6 minutes long, and the first one clocks in at 12 minutes.





I didn't link the other two trailers ("Black" and "Yellow") because I really, really dislike the voice acting in them. However, don't let that put you off from watching the actual thing; voice acting is MUCH MUCH better. It fits the characters very very well. Overall, I recommend it as a new anime (or cartoon or whatever it is) to watch. Can't wait for episode 5 this Thursday! Episodes come out every Thursday on the Rooster Teeth website, and they're uploaded about a week later to their YouTube account, which I feel has them in higher quality.

EDIT: Oh yeah, here's the opening, which is super badass


----------



## Cynic

nailed it


----------



## Jes Johnson

Oh yeah, I just started watching RWBY a few days ago. I love the art style, and yeah, the fights are badass.


----------



## Alberto7

Thought I'd update on the fact that I just finished episode 14 of Sword Art Online... f*ck... the show's got some glaring flaws but I mean... FAWK  I can't stop watching it!


----------



## Jes Johnson

I like Sword Art Online, but a part of me wishes it would find a plot line and follow it. I don't like it when animes start out with characters just doing random stuff every episode.


----------



## Alberto7

^ I feel it's very unfocused. I'm currently on episode 17, and it almost feels like I'm watching a different show from what it was just a couple of episodes before. I could spend days talking about the flaws I've found in it so far (I'm actually taking notes on an episodic basis as I watch it, since I'm fervently discussing it with a friend of mine who recently finished it), but I still can't stop watching it. Truth is, despite its flaws, its entertainment value has been a 10/10 for me.


----------



## MFB

That was my biggest issue with SOA - the first 15 all take place in one world, and then it takes a huge shift to another world but it feels like a different show even though the characters are the same


----------



## Jes Johnson

Yeah, I'm only a few episodes in, and I'm enjoying the hell out of it so far. I just feel like I'm gonna get bored if it doesn't start telling a coherent story pretty soon.


----------



## MFB

The beginning is all about Kirito and getting used to the world, but around 6 or so is when it begins to pull together with the rest of the world and the story forms


----------



## Alberto7

Just finished SAO episode 22.


Spoiler



Like... do these children have no parents?


----------



## bouVIP

Sword Art Online anime is weird because the first few episodes are all side stories from the light novel, but I guess it helps stretch out the episodes...

I hope they make the Gun Gale Online arc into an anime soon~


----------



## Alberto7

I really want to write a full-on review of this, but I have so much to say about characters, their development, plot, premises, how they're accomplished, etc., that alas, I can't be bothered. I also don't want to take 10-pages from this thread, since I already seem to post a bit too much here. So, here goes a quickie:

I just finished SAO, and I'm glad I finally did. Not because it's bad (it isn't), but because I was so goddamn confused for the last 10 episodes, not knowing exactly why I liked it so much.  It has soooo many plot holes, but the thing about it is that it challenged my intellect by appealing to my emotions that it made me love it no matter what. This show is a master of giving you dem feels. It does have some awesome premises and what not, but, honestly, if I wanted to see those same premises executed in a more "brainy" manner, I'd go and watch Ghost in The Shell or Serial Experiments Lain (even though the latter suffers from the exact opposite problem than SAO; too much brains and not enough feels). But, for what it does accomplish, it does so excellently, even if it isn't exactly what I wanted it to accomplish. Now I want to take a vacation in Aincrad. 

All in all:
- Objective overall rating (as objective as I can be anyway): 6.5/10

- Personal rating: 8.5/10, because I enjoyed it so much.

Thanks everyone for recommending it. If anything, it taught me how to analyze things better and realize why I like certain things when I can't find an explanation for it.


----------



## jahosy

Was a big Manga / Anime fan myself in the late 80's to mid 90's. Favorites include Dragonball, Transformers (Jap series), wicked city, peacock king, crying freeman, Urotsukid&#333;ji, ghost in the shell, record of lodoss war, and the last i've followed was neon genesis. 

But something came up recently that caught my attention and i'm back on the manga craze again! 



Epic!


----------



## Alberto7

^ Perfect gateway drug if you want to get anyone into anime, or if you want to get someone who hasn't been into anime for a long time back in the game.


----------



## Mordacain

Alberto7 said:


> ^ Perfect gateway drug if you want to get anyone into anime, or if you want to get someone who hasn't been into anime for a long time back in the game.



I have this in my Crunchyroll queue currently as well.

It will have to be really good to unseat Full Metal Panic as my gateway anime of choice thoguh


----------



## Alberto7

Haven't watched FMP yet, so I really can't say. But AoT is just... I mean... how can you not like it?  Maybe the gore and the shock factor can be a little off-putting for a few, but I honestly can't see too many people other than parents not liking it because of that.


----------



## jahosy

Alberto7 said:


> Haven't watched FMP yet, so I really can't say. But AoT is just... I mean... how can you not like it?  Maybe the gore and the shock factor can be a little off-putting for a few, but I honestly can't see too many people other than parents not liking it because of that.



I'm a parent myself. And I love it!!!

Still not suitable for my two kiddos though


----------



## Alberto7

Yeah, I don't think anyone sane enough would let their children see how


Spoiler



the protagonist's mother gets eaten alive by an unimaginably creepy humanoid giant. It scared the crap out of even me. 


 Still, it makes me happy that the newer generation of parents are showing anime to their kids. It is, imo, a very unexplored type of media in the West due to (most of the time) undeserved prejudice.


----------



## MFB

I wanted to like Attack on Titan, but Eren is too god damn bi-polar and then they did the traditional "give the main character superpowers" when I thought it would actually be about little guys fighting back as hard as they could and we get to watch their uphill battle.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Yeah, that's one of the reasons I decided to stop watching it and retake it again after this season stops airing and is up on Crunchyroll. I decided it wasn't worth the stress and anxiety of waiting a whole week for the following episode to come out. It's kind of like SAO; I can see its flaws, but I love it anyway (though AoT isn't as outrageous as SAO in that sense).


----------



## sakeido

Alberto7 said:


> Haven't watched FMP yet, so I really can't say. But AoT is just... I mean... how can you not like it?  Maybe the gore and the shock factor can be a little off-putting for a few, but I honestly can't see too many people other than parents not liking it because of that.



the art in Attack on Titan was great but I didn't think it had much going on aside from that. couldn't stand the characters... I do not need them to extensively internally monologue not once, not twice, not even three times to illustrate that they are, in fact, stock shonen characters. Armin was the worst for this. 

It has taken some interesting twists but cuz of the above character issues I don't think the writer(s?) are good enough to come up with any kind of good ending either so I'm not spendin time on it



Alberto7 said:


> I really want to write a full-on review of this, but I have so much to say about characters, their development, plot, premises, how they're accomplished, etc., that alas, I can't be bothered. I also don't want to take 10-pages from this thread, since I already seem to post a bit too much here. So, here goes a quickie:
> 
> I just finished SAO, and I'm glad I finally did. Not because it's bad (it isn't), but because I was so goddamn confused for the last 10 episodes, not knowing exactly why I liked it so much.  It has soooo many plot holes, but the thing about it is that it challenged my intellect by appealing to my emotions that it made me love it no matter what. This show is a master of giving you dem feels. It does have some awesome premises and what not, but, honestly, if I wanted to see those same premises executed in a more "brainy" manner, I'd go and watch Ghost in The Shell or Serial Experiments Lain (even though the latter suffers from the exact opposite problem than SAO; too much brains and not enough feels). But, for what it does accomplish, it does so excellently, even if it isn't exactly what I wanted it to accomplish. Now I want to take a vacation in Aincrad.
> 
> All in all:
> - Objective overall rating (as objective as I can be anyway): 6.5/10
> 
> - Personal rating: 8.5/10, because I enjoyed it so much.
> 
> Thanks everyone for recommending it. If anything, it taught me how to analyze things better and realize why I like certain things when I can't find an explanation for it.



ahaha, I'd agree with you totally on your rating. Objectively it left some to be desired... biggest problem was a lack of time. If they had expanded the Aincrad arc to a full 25 ep season, it would have been incredible I think. Sticking the Aincrad and Alfheim (??) arcs in one season was just too much - neither one had time to breath, and it probably created a lot of plot holes since they didn't have the screen time they needed to really cover everything. Probably also led to the highly disjointed feel of the early eps.

Things I did love though - likeable characters, especially the main guy. Most badass anime protagonist in a long time. Kirito was still a little too shut off for his own good but they did justify it somewhat. Asuna was a great romantic lead until the 2nd half of the story. Supporting cast all good too, could have done without the bro/sis stuff in the 2nd half too but whatever. And so many great character designs. 

Man I loved it! I want to take a vacation there so bad. With the pace Oculus Rift and VR technologies are advancing, who knows we might actually be able to by the time the show thinks the Nervegear will be real (2027 iirc?) 

seriously tho if you want feels from your anime, Steins;gate. Just watch it.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Have watched Steins;Gate some 5 times already  and I freaking love it. I really want to watch the movie, but I'm afraid my emotional state will be left on a similar state to when I finished Clannad: After Story. 

Yeah, I actually really liked the characters in SAO in the sense that they're very likeable (Jesus, did I love Asuna... too bad she became Princess Toadstool by the latter half of the anime). In general, my gripe with them is that they're poorly developed, and fell square into strict archetypes. Supporting characters were also very likeable, but most of them only appeared for like an episode or two. Objectively speaking, my favorite character was, by far, Yui (and I also develop a strong sense of personal attachment to her). I wish she had been given more dialogue. She filled her role sooo well, and her introduction to the viewer was wonderful. I'll go on with some spoilers here:


Spoiler



Kayaba Akihiko had the potential of being the most badass character in the whole series, but alas, his development was well near zero. I won't go into the whole sister/cousin thing, because it kind of freaked me out. I'm the older brother of two sisters, and I'm normally okay with it when animes develop that kind of cousin-cousin relationship. I understand it's not as bad in their culture as it is in ours, but here... they even made the character herself feel guilty about it, because she believed, for her entire life, that she was his actual sister. I know this will sound blunt, but I doubt that anyone who, after over 15 years, finds out that his/her sibling is not actually a sibling, but a cousin, or not even blood related, would suddenly want to f*ck them. I sure as hell wouldn't, and that's why it bothered me. I will say that, all the weirdness aside, she was a mildly cool character.



I also want it to be 2022, so that they come out with a real life version of SAO. I would so play the shit out of it. 

As for AoT... my reasons for not watching it are many, and kind of complex, but they're similar to yours. I can stand the (lack of) depth that they're given in the show, as long as they keep the shock and entertainment factors high. I'm a sucker for good twists. However, I cannot justify the stress of waiting an entire week to watch something that is ultimately not as fulfilling as I'd like. It was right after I watched the anime Spice and Wolf that I made the decision of dropping AoT until the entire season is available. Upon seeing the incredible and genius character development of SaW, I realized how much finesse AoT lacks. AoT relies on pure shock factor, and that's perfectly okay since the twists are VERY well done and the art and animation are incredible, but I concluded that I could not justify the anxiety of waiting for the next episode, when I had so many more awesome shows that were already out there and readily available to watch in their entirety *cough*SAO*cough cough*. I actually keep drawing parallels between SAO and AoT, as they're both shows that I love, but whose obvious and glaring flaws I'm entirely aware of, and have served as deterrents. Even their respective flaws are very similar.
The other problem with AoT is that, at least for me, they've created such a bizarre, disgusting, and utterly despicable antagonist, that I cannot see a satisfying enough reason as to why it's so f*cking disgusting. I cannot come up with anything satisfying that could explain just WHAT the titans are. Almost any explanation would demystify them and thus render them not as scary. It'd be like explaining why evil is evil... no reason other than "just because" would do it justice.


----------



## sakeido

I agree about AoT... pure shock factor. Having read a bit more into the manga, some of the twists are pretty ridiculous - no idea what they are trying to do. Might just be a manga equivalent to Lost in the end  

And yes! Steins;gate! Just watching it again now - was going to knock off a few eps last night but watched the one where


Spoiler



they undid Feyris's d-mail


 and I was so crushed I had to stop after just one ep. My heart couldn't handle it... one of the best uses of time travel as a plot device ever, I think. 

The movie iirc should finally come out in English around October? Can hardly wait. 

And you liked Spice and Wolf eh... that was one of the ones that was next on my list to watch


----------



## Alberto7

I tried searching for the film shortly after it came out, but couldn't find it anywhere. Once the DVD comes out, I'll be first in line to buy that thing.

Spice and Wolf, along with Spice and Wolf II (its second season), is one of those anime that you come across very rarely, and is, in my opinion, the equivalent of a very, very fine wine. It has a unique and strong personality. It is very laid back and very charming, yet there are times where it manages to keep you at the edge of your seat. The way in which they make the story advance is quite interesting. It's an economics-based story, and there's a lot of business jargon involved. Despite that, they manage to make the economics side of it very understandable and interesting, and, even though I'm not really the most economics savvy person out there, there were points in the story where I just wanted to scream out of how exciting it got. It's and arc-driven story, with an overarching plot, but you don't feel as though you've switched to a different show with every arc change. It is all about character development and lots and lots of amazing dialogue, and I cannot emphasize enough how brilliantly these are done. From hilarious, to sarcastically witty, to sad, happy, touching, and everything in between. The setting is also really nice, and it lends itself perfectly to the story (medieval times + pagan deities + intolerant church). Art-wise, it has some outstanding and beautiful landscapes and backgrounds, and the character's designs make them even more likable. Animation isn't particularly outstanding, but it is really nice and suits the show very well (although there is one short scene where the animation has been a matter of laughter across animedom ). A lot of emotions arise when watching this anime, but they're very kind of honest emotions, and aren't overblown as they are in most other anime. It doesn't try to use emotional appeal from impossibly tragic situations (like in SAO, or Code Geass), but rather from situations that feel very real and meaningful. "Honest" is how I like to describe it. All in all, it is a personal favorite of mine, and I would certainly recommend it, as long as you don't mind the dialogue-driven plot and the lack of any significant action (there is some, but it's not a trait for which this show stands out at all).

Like I did before:
- Objective rating (again, as objective as I can be): 8.5/10, due to the fact that it can be slow for some, and the animation isn't really the best out there, technically speaking.
- Personal rating: 10/10.

EDIT: oh, and the music. Tabi no Tochuu . One of my favorite opening sequences/songs in anime.


----------



## jahosy

sakeido said:


> I agree about AoT... pure shock factor. Having read a bit more into the manga, some of the twists are pretty ridiculous - no idea what they are trying to do. Might just be a manga equivalent to Lost in the end



RE:AoT > thought the manga had more depth in its character's development, and loving the twist (no doubt ridiculous ) but hey, that's what manga is about! Can't wait to find out about the titan's origin  

+1 on the shock factor. I've got sucked right into it 

Another thing about AoT is its close resemblance to JAP Strategic RPG games, which i totally love! (Shining force 1,2 & 3; Langrisser, valkyria chronicles etc) Wouldn't be surprised if this franchise ends up on the consoles.


----------



## Mordacain

Alberto7 said:


> Haven't watched FMP yet, so I really can't say. But AoT is just... I mean... how can you not like it?  Maybe the gore and the shock factor can be a little off-putting for a few, but I honestly can't see too many people other than parents not liking it because of that.



FMP is a must for any anime fan IMO. Also holds the honor of being one of the few English dubs that I actually prefer or at least enjoy equally with the original Japanese.


----------



## Jes Johnson

Damn, I hadn't even heard of Attack on Titan yet. I'll have to check that out.


----------



## flavenstein

Speaking of Attack on Titan,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sa-DZWKvmB0


----------



## Alberto7

We could be doing this for weeks. There's hundreds and hundreds of SnK's OP crossovers all over YouTube.

Here, have this:


----------



## sakeido

Alberto7 said:


> spice n wolf snip



Any suggestions for good subtitles for this series? I downloaded it last night but the translation I've got is ass


----------



## Alberto7

sakeido said:


> Any suggestions for good subtitles for this series? I downloaded it last night but the translation I've got is ass



I watched it on Funimation's YouTube channel. Here's the playlist for Spice and Wolf I (first season/first 12 episodes) subbed:

Spice and Wolf (SUB) - YouTube

I just found out that they made Spice and Wolf II private... which sucks massively, especially since I wanted to watch it again soon, and Funimation's subs are great. On the Funimation website you have to be subscribed if you want to watch the second season...

Watch Spice and Wolf - Watch Anime & Live Action Streaming Episodes & Video Online

Other than that, I really don't know where to get subs. Sorry bro.


----------



## sakeido

ahh the Funimation sub is good. the DLed version I grabbed has better picture quality but the show isn't the best animated one around so YouTube 480p vs. BR-rip 720 not a big loss 

But damn! This is a good show. Six eps in. They really do make economics epic and I like the characters a lot


----------



## Fat-Elf

Anyone watched the new episode of SnK?

I have only two words for it:


Spoiler



....ING FINALLY!


----------



## Don Vito

I started watching SAO on Toonami. I have no idea what's going on, but I really like it. I like the main character because he's very mysterious and emo. And talk about waifu material... damn! Too bad every girl in the show is a weak cry baby and ends up getting killed or gets someone else killed.

This show get's a D- in the feminism department. I'll have to report it to the jaws of the internet.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Feminists are bound to rage at SAO, especially because of. that.. one... scene.... 

Also, Kirito is shit just because I'm not him. I wish I were him so I'd get all the bitches and be all pimp while I slay dragons and live in an awesome virtual world where I can't feel pain but then everything stops making sense and suddenly I can feel pain again just because and run-on sentences.

^^ Fat_Elf, I am so tempted to read what's in the spoilers.  It needs to end already so I can watch and see if it's actually worth my time. I feel as though I'm going to like SnK in the same way that I liked SAO.


----------



## Alberto7

Just finished watching *Eden of The East*. I wrote like 4 paragraphs about it, but the overly complicated plot made me give up.  It's in the same vein as Ghost in the Shell (though less philosophical), Death Note (though the plot doesn't feel as finely crafted), or Code Geass (without the egocentric bastard of a protagonist). Art and animation done by Production I.G, so expect incredibly high quality and attractive artistic work. In fact, art and animation are possibly my favorite aspects of it. Mind the opening and, particularly, the ending of the TV series, as they are some of my favorites in the art department, and the songs are pretty good too. Watch the TV series AND the two films, both of which continue the plot directly from where the previous one left off. I feel bad for whomever watched the TV series as it was airing... In fact, it can't be watched as just the TV series, or just the movie. The films just feel like the ending episodes to the show. The pacing can be a little strange some times, and so can the order in which things happen, which gives rise to seemingly sub-par character development during the TV series and part of the first movie (last movie is crucial) and an apparent load of small plot holes. Worry not, however, as it all gets tied up surprisingly nicely in the second film. Watch until after the credits of the second movie; otherwise you might well end up hating the series.  It has its problems, but you'll most probably find them very forgivable, particularly after you finish watching the whole thing. I know for me it was like that, and I like to nitpick. And just a quick props for super likable and charming characters. Go watch that shit. It's awesome.

EDIT: forgot to add that the show is only 11 episodes long, and then there're two feature-length movies. There's also a compilation movie for the TV show, but I don't even know why that exists.


----------



## texshred777

I've seen the first episode of AOT, was ok. Don't know if I'll keep watching or not. The art was well done, I enjoyed the animation style.


----------



## tacotiklah

Managed to get through 9 seasons of the pokemon "anime". I've come to REALLY hate team rocket. Like, I will fast forward through their scenes now. I don't think I can take that motto much more.


----------



## MFB

Alberto7 said:


> ^ Feminists are bound to rage at SAO, especially because of. that.. one... scene....



Possibly THE most painful thing I've ever watched


----------



## Don Vito

ghstofperdition said:


> Managed to get through 9 seasons of the pokemon "anime". I've come to REALLY hate team rocket. Like, I will fast forward through their scenes now. I don't think I can take that motto much more.


I've been watching season 1 on boomerang for nostalgia purposes.

Looking back, it was definitely a kids anime, but it's still better than most things on at 5 in the afternoon.

























also, Sabrina is my waifu <3


----------



## Alberto7

Okay, I realize I'm posting here way too much... but I can't help it. Netflix will be the end of me.

*Rin - Daughters of Mnemosyne:* ...*sigh*... here's one that the feminists (and even non-feminists) will definitely rip on. You know, sigh and everything, it's one of those animes that makes me reflect on one of the main reasons why I love anime so much: its incredible variety of styles across different titles paired with its ability to almost always pull you into the story, whatever it may be. Because, you know, I'm usually not into the concept of sadistic torture porn, yet Daughters of Mnemosyne is one of those extremely f*u*cked up shows that will keep you on the edge of your seat despite the fact that it's basically about an immortal girl (and I mean put-her-inside-a-giant-meatgrinder-make-a-patty-out-of-her-and-still-won't-die kind of immortal) getting endlessly tortured by sexually deviant beings. They're very fond of showing the viewer how she's tortured, too, and, while they don't show the most explicit parts of the act itself (like, say, the SAW movies), there IS a lot of screaming, on-screen blood, and close-ups of facial expressions. If you manage to look past its explicitness, it does havea rather nice, intriguing, and very dark story and plot, with tons of mystery and suspense. In a way, it's kind of a detective show, and the first 4 episodes do follow a very similar and episodic format. However, everything that happens in each episode is connected to the overarching plot, which never ceases to be feel present. It's not the most well-developed plot that I've ever seen, but the mystery of it makes it very entertaining. The use of nudity and explicit images is limited to the scenes that warrant it (which are a lot, unsurprisingly), and the characters remain clothed and relatively "featureless" when other things are going on. In other words, it doesn't come across as fanservice for the sake of fanservice (in fact, no bouncing boobs. :yeah: And NO TENTACLES :yeah::yeah. Funnily enough, the way the plot unravels probably wouldn't be nearly as good without all the psychopathic sadomasochism. It's definitely the thing that gets people talking about it, and kind of what drives the story forward. Of course, they could have chosen a story that didn't have to involve tits, rape, and blood on the same still, but then I wouldn't have the possibility of being so amazed at the fact that I actually liked something that goes so much against my morals. Kind of defeats the point of it for me. If anything, it's captivating.

On the more technical side of it, it's 6 episodes long, each one ending near the 45-minute mark. Character design is pretty cool, the art is great and very detailed, and the animation ranges from very very good when it needs to, to just ok the rest of the time. The music is great. The opening and ending themes are badass, and the music within the show itself is pretty good, too, and fits the different moods very well.

I can't give it an objective rating, because I still can't fully look past its deviousness and its appeal to the general public (which is bound to be very low, given the subject matter).

As far as a personal rating goes, I'd give it a 6/10. Didn't make it to 7 because I admit it was quite uncomfortable to watch.

I've definitely been a bit scarred.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

^ At least the 2 Galneryus songs used are awesome.


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> endlessly tortured by sexually deviant beings


----------



## Negav

Could anyone tell me a list of super funny anime? I mean seriously funny. I'm watching Gintama, so exclude that one. Oh and need some ....ed up anime, been in need for it.


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


> ^ At least the 2 Galneryus songs used are awesome.



They are AWESOME. I really, really loved the tunes. Some riffs are heavy enough to flatten entire cities. Also, Syu is a freaking guitar genius.

EDIT: F*ck it, here's the full opening 





Don Vito said:


>







Negav said:


> Could anyone tell me a list of super funny anime? I mean seriously funny. I'm watching Gintama, so exclude that one. Oh and need some ....ed up anime, been in need for it.



Fooly Cooly (FLCL) might be your end all be all if you're looking for funny/f*cked up


----------



## MFB

Negav said:


> Could anyone tell me a list of super funny anime? I mean seriously funny. I'm watching Gintama, so exclude that one. Oh and need some ....ed up anime, been in need for it.



I suggest you look into Sgt. Frog


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Negav said:


> Could anyone tell me a list of super funny anime? I mean seriously funny. I'm watching Gintama, so exclude that one. Oh and need some ....ed up anime, been in need for it.


 
You're gonna have a very hard time finding another humor based anime after Gintama... IMO of course. I'll get back to you on some suggestions...



Alberto7 said:


> They are AWESOME. I really, really loved the tunes. Some riffs are heavy enough to flatten entire cities. Also, Syu is a freaking guitar genius.
> 
> EDIT: F*ck it, here's the full opening
> 
> Galneryus: Alsatia


 
I actually sang this song at a karaoke bar with my friends. One of the few songs I can sing without having my nuts bursting, though I couldn't stop laughing at the terrible engrish and Yama-B's diction I tried to recreate. 

That's played on a 7 String by the way.


----------



## Alberto7

^ That must have been a high point in your life. I know it would have been in mine.  I find Yama-B's English accent when he's singing to be very decent when compared to other Engrish songs,  sounds almost like slurred American English, though still noticeably Engrish. I also suspected that the song was played on a 7. Bb standard, right?


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> ^ That must have been a high point in your life. I know it would have been in mine.  I find Yama-B's English accent when he's singing to be very decent when compared to other Engrish songs,  sounds almost like slurred American English, though still noticeably Engrish. I also suspected that the song was played on a 7. Bb standard, right?


 
Yeah. Galneryus songs are a semitone down so it's Bb standard on their 7 string material. I wouldn't go so far as to say it was a life high point, I just hang around a lot of Japanese who like to go to a karaoke bar chock full of this stuff. Alsatia was easy and my Japanese is garbage, so I went with that on the day... 

For comedy anime (assuming these haven't been seen):

Great Teacher Onizuka
- One of my favorite comedy anime series ever before I saw Gintama

Detroit Metal City
- It's been said a few times in this thread already. Short and fun.

Cromartie High School
- Weird as all hell but it's got some great moments. Seriously, a silent Freddy Mercury wannabe, a talking trash can robot and a giant gorilla in one series has to be good. 

Azumanga Daioh / School Rumble
- I categorized them together as the premise of both are pretty similar. Didn't find this funny as much as the rest of the people I know so it's an aquired taste. You might like them. 

Crayon Shin Chan
- Something more old-school. It's a pretty damn long series too. 

Golden Boy
- Another semi-old-school-ish anime. A bit short but a fun ride full of laughs. 

There's more that I've forgotten but that's some that stick out.


----------



## flavenstein

Negav said:


> Oh and need some ....ed up anime, been in need for it.



Have you seen School Days? I'm not sure what kind of ....ed up you're looking for, but I'm pretty sure it would count no matter what your definition of "....ed up" is.


----------



## bouVIP

hataraku maou-sama is a great recent comedy anime!


----------



## Fat-Elf

SnK 23


----------



## Ikiharmaa

:O first post in this section. I barely ever read manga, but this one seemed to have promising art so I gave it ago tonight. 

http://www.batoto.net/comic/_/comics/abara-r1235

Astonishing read. The art is brilliant and the sparse use of speech gives it this quite mysterious (imo amazing) atmosphere. I'm not usually a big fan of super epic things, but this had some massive scenes. Had to read some of the pages multiple times to be able to follow, and given the fact that a lot of it was this superhuman speed stuff it made some of the fighting scenes a bit boring. I'm sure the plot is a bit hard to follow, but at the same time I think that fits the mood perfectly here. If anyone has any recommendations with as amazing art please let me know  Decent anime seems to be easier to come by.


----------



## Skyblue

Started watching Darker Than Black, quite fun so far. 
Will probably finish Welcome to the NHK in a few days too..


----------



## Dalcan

I was super into the Gundam series, and really loved 00- anything else that you guys can recommend?


----------



## MFB

thisisdoodoobaby said:


> I was super into the Gundam series, and really loved 00- anything else that you guys can recommend?



Gundam Wing is fantastic, and there was another one (maybe G Gundam?) where each country had their own Gundam and they competed in an international tournament. Best of the country's Gundams? Holland, hands down.






FIND THE GUNDAM


----------



## bouVIP

thisisdoodoobaby said:


> I was super into the Gundam series, and really loved 00- anything else that you guys can recommend?



Valvrave is kind of like a new Gundam produced by Sunrise.


----------



## Dalcan

bouVIP said:


> Valvrave is kind of like a new Gundam produced by Sunrise.



Thank you


----------



## Alberto7

Skyblue said:


> Started watching Darker Than Black, quite fun so far.
> Will probably finish Welcome to the NHK in a few days too..



Who are you and why are you watching the same things I'm watching?! 

...  no, really, I started watching DTB a couple of days ago. I finished episode 4, and it's good so far. A lot of weird pseudoscience that comes across as a little forced to me, but so far I'm able to look past it. A friend has recommended Welcome to the NHK a lot of times already, and the way she paints it, it should be right up my alley. Looking forward to watching it after DTB. Then, after NHK, it's time to re-watch Madoka Magica in preparation for the new movie. 

... that is, of course, assuming university lets me...


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

thisisdoodoobaby said:


> I was super into the Gundam series, and really loved 00- anything else that you guys can recommend?


 
If you've seen Gundam 00, you may find Wing disappointing, as the premises are very similar, and the ending was pretty lame (somewhat redeemed with Endless Waltz at least). 

You may have to go backwards with Gundam. Go with the full UC series: Original Mobile Suit Gundam - War 0080 - Startudst Memory - Zeta Gundam - ZZ Gundam (this one's not necessary) - Char's Counterattack - Gundam Unicorn: in that order (for maximum plot effect). Or if you want your still beating heart ripped right out of your chest, I highly recommend Victory Gundam (also UC): it's the darkest of any of the series (and Zeta isn't far off that mark either). 

For non UC Gundam, the 2 standouts are Mobile Fighter G (what MFB is talking about, starts off rather goofy but gets incredibly epic as it progresses) and Turn A Gundam (if Victory is dark, this is nice and uplifiting). Gundam X is ok I guess... Don't bother with Seed/Destiny if you're gonna go UC first. I haven't seen Gundam Age yet, though I've read a bit about it to not really rush for it...

For non-Gundam mecha anime: try the Macross series. It's less focused on the horrors of war and more on space opera and love/relationships. All are excellent (actually, you can skip Macross 2). 

And more modern/recent anime, Code Geass is a standout, great all round anime, Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann is also good.


----------



## bouVIP

Zeta Gundam is the best!


----------



## habicore_5150

Haven't been watching that much anime recently.
Did watch the first episode of RWBY, might have to watch a few more episodes, its pretty good so far.
Also watched Evangelion 1.0: You Are (not) Alone

Also for any of you Bayonetta fans out there


----------



## CrushingAnvil

MFB said:


> Gundam Wing is fantastic, and there was another one (maybe G Gundam?) where each country had their own Gundam and they competed in an international tournament. Best of the country's Gundams? Holland, hands down.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> FIND THE GUNDAM



The one for Mexico was the funniest ....ing thing ever 

Right now I'm watching _Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam_ (1985) - I downloaded the whole series in 720p and it's amazing.

I have the whole of _Gundam Wing_ on DVD. I had it on my computer (recorded onto it with VLC) but moved it to make room, it's like 50 GB of _Gundam Wing_ 

_Mobile Suit Gundam 0079, Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam_, and _Mobile Suit Gundam Wing_ are ....ing timeless.


----------



## Skyblue

Alberto7 said:


> Who are you and why are you watching the same things I'm watching?!
> 
> ...  no, really, I started watching DTB a couple of days ago. I finished episode 4, and it's good so far. A lot of weird pseudoscience that comes across as a little forced to me, but so far I'm able to look past it. A friend has recommended Welcome to the NHK a lot of times already, and the way she paints it, it should be right up my alley. Looking forward to watching it after DTB. Then, after NHK, it's time to re-watch Madoka Magica in preparation for the new movie.
> 
> ... that is, of course, assuming university lets me...


I'm you from your future! or, present actually. 
Shhhhhh 

Anyway NHK is really fun and quite depressing at the same time, definitely give it a shot. I think I'll move on to Steins;Gate after finishing DTB... 

Does anyone have something similar to Cowboy Bebop or Samurai Champloo to recommend?~


----------



## Alberto7

Trigun for something similar to Cowboy Bebop. It's more "howdy-do" than Bebop though. It's like CB gone even more Western, and I feel lacks part of its the depth. It's a classic anyway. Oh, and yes, watch Steins;Gate. One of the best to have come out in recent years, imo.


----------



## Skyblue

Alberto7 said:


> Trigun for something similar to Cowboy Bebop. It's more "howdy-do" than Bebop though. It's like CB gone even more Western, and I feel lacks part of its the depth. It's a classic anyway. Oh, and yes, watch Steins;Gate. One of the best to have come out in recent years, imo.


I was like "should I mention I already saw Trigun as well? Nah, never mind, too lazy..."
So yeah, already watched that, and loved it


----------



## Dalcan

Bloody_Inferno said:


> If you've seen Gundam 00, you may find Wing disappointing, as the premises are very similar, and the ending was pretty lame (somewhat redeemed with Endless Waltz at least).
> 
> You may have to go backwards with Gundam. Go with the full UC series: Original Mobile Suit Gundam - War 0080 - Startudst Memory - Zeta Gundam - ZZ Gundam (this one's not necessary) - Char's Counterattack - Gundam Unicorn: in that order (for maximum plot effect). Or if you want your still beating heart ripped right out of your chest, I highly recommend Victory Gundam (also UC): it's the darkest of any of the series (and Zeta isn't far off that mark either).
> 
> For non UC Gundam, the 2 standouts are Mobile Fighter G (what MFB is talking about, starts off rather goofy but gets incredibly epic as it progresses) and Turn A Gundam (if Victory is dark, this is nice and uplifiting). Gundam X is ok I guess... Don't bother with Seed/Destiny if you're gonna go UC first. I haven't seen Gundam Age yet, though I've read a bit about it to not really rush for it...
> 
> For non-Gundam mecha anime: try the Macross series. It's less focused on the horrors of war and more on space opera and love/relationships. All are excellent (actually, you can skip Macross 2).
> 
> And more modern/recent anime, Code Geass is a standout, great all round anime, Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann is also good.




Thank you so much for this. I just finished Valvrave and it thought it was pretty good! I am downding the rest of this as we speak. I've seen most of the Gundam stuff.


----------



## Cynic

recently finished both seasons of spice and wolf and watamote. probably about to start the tatami galaxy.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Yeah, finished Watamote too. I really hope the blu-rays will sell well so they would make a second season. In any case, at least the manga is still going.

Started Zero no Tsukaima yesteday, only watched the first episode but it seems fairly interesting.


----------



## Cynic

i started to lose interest after about halfway through. don't see how it's going to get a second season.


----------



## bouVIP

thisisdoodoobaby said:


> Thank you so much for this. I just finished Valvrave and it thought it was pretty good! I am downding the rest of this as we speak. I've seen most of the Gundam stuff.



Season 2 of Valvrave is coming up soon as well~


----------



## Alberto7

Cynic said:


> recently finished both seasons of spice and wolf and watamote. probably about to start the tatami galaxy.



How'd you like Spice and Wolf? I'm the only person I know that's seen it in its entirety  so it'd be cool to hear your take on it. I think I've made it clear in this thread already  but, personally, I found it amazing.


----------



## Cynic

Alberto7 said:


> How'd you like Spice and Wolf? I'm the only person I know that's seen it in its entirety  so it'd be cool to hear your take on it. I think I've made it clear in this thread already  but, personally, I found it amazing.



i really like it so far, but i would like to read the light novels to finish the story before i cast judgment.


----------



## jahosy

Bloody_Inferno said:


> If you've seen Gundam 00, you may find Wing disappointing, as the premises are very similar, and the ending was pretty lame (somewhat redeemed with Endless Waltz at least).
> 
> You may have to go backwards with Gundam. Go with the full UC series: Original Mobile Suit Gundam - War 0080 - Startudst Memory - Zeta Gundam - ZZ Gundam (this one's not necessary) - Char's Counterattack - Gundam Unicorn: in that order (for maximum plot effect). Or if you want your still beating heart ripped right out of your chest, I highly recommend Victory Gundam (also UC): it's the darkest of any of the series (and Zeta isn't far off that mark either).
> 
> For non UC Gundam, the 2 standouts are Mobile Fighter G (what MFB is talking about, starts off rather goofy but gets incredibly epic as it progresses) and Turn A Gundam (if Victory is dark, this is nice and uplifiting). Gundam X is ok I guess... Don't bother with Seed/Destiny if you're gonna go UC first. I haven't seen Gundam Age yet, though I've read a bit about it to not really rush for it...
> 
> For non-Gundam mecha anime: try the Macross series. It's less focused on the horrors of war and more on space opera and love/relationships. All are excellent (actually, you can skip Macross 2).
> 
> And more modern/recent anime, Code Geass is a standout, great all round anime, Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann is also good.



'0080 War in the pocket' was my very first Gundam movie that i watched as a kid. Such intense story line  

Personal fav will be 08MS team, followed by 0083 stardust memory. The rest of the series were too long and draggy for me to follow  definitely love building those gundam kits !


----------



## Skyblue

So yeah, finished Darker Than Black. Second season was quite confusing to be honest, they kinda didn't bother to explain anything. 
Will probably finish NHK till the end of the day, and from there I'm planning on Black Lagoon and Steins;Gate.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

Alberto7 said:


> How'd you like Spice and Wolf? I'm the only person I know that's seen it in its entirety  so it'd be cool to hear your take on it. I think I've made it clear in this thread already  but, personally, I found it amazing.



It is amazing, I love the slow pace and the character interaction/development. Lots of great dialogue and I'm remembering the story had some depth in it too. Animation could be better though, but the characters don't look like chibis so I don't mind. The mood is perfect and fits a rainy october day nicely, would be a good time to rewatch 





Skyblue said:


> Will probably finish NHK till the end of the day, and from there I'm planning on Black Lagoon and Steins;Gate.



You've probably been told this a thousand times, but Steins;Gate is brilliant. Black Lagoon I enjoyed too, but on most days of the week I'd pick Jormungand over it.

About to finish Cowboy Bebop myself


----------



## Osorio

I've been watching Shingeki no Kyojin and really enjoying it. A lot of stuff about it is just great (good humor, interesting social commentary, etc.. oh yes, good fighting as well. My only real complain is Arumin).
Anyone care to recommend more stuff in the general direction of "animes that are not filled to the brim with moe" and are at least decent? 
I haven't really been keeping up.


----------



## Alberto7

Skyblue said:


> So yeah, finished Darker Than Black. Second season was quite confusing to be honest, they kinda didn't bother to explain anything.
> Will probably finish NHK till the end of the day, and from there I'm planning on Black Lagoon and Steins;Gate.



I think you should probably watch S;G first and then Black Lagoon. Too many feels after S;G, and there are fewer ways to counterattack those feels than by watching Revy and Balalaika kick some ass Roanapur-style. It's what got me through my Clannad-induced depression.  Unless you like feeling that way... 



Ikiharmaa said:


> It is amazing, I love the slow pace and the character interaction/development. Lots of great dialogue and I'm remembering the story had some depth in it too. Animation could be better though, but the characters don't look like chibis so I don't mind. The mood is perfect and fits a rainy october day nicely, would be a good time to rewatch



Yeah, character development and the script were definitely the highlights of the show for me. Animation was just like you said, although I found the art itself and the scenery to be absolutely wonderful. Good call on the rainy October day mood... now, if only I could find some time in October to watch anime and not feel guilty about it


----------



## Fat-Elf

Just finished Danganronpa. Hard to say anything about it. It was really only interesting in the last 3-4 episodes when it didn't just repeat the same pattern as all the earlier episodes but I'm glad I sat through it because the ending was pretty nice (although kinda abrupt). I think the biggest issue was the characters which didn't have any depth. 

Now I'm going to keep watching Zero No Tsukaima and see if it gets more interesting or then I just start watching the second season of Spice & Wolf.

SnK of course kicks ass. Those fighting scenes are just too good. I wonder how they're going to end it if the next (26th) episode is really the last one.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Didn't the last one come out yesterday??


----------



## kamello

a friend forced me to sit down and watch SnK (I don't like watching series that haven't finished yet, so I can really sink into them during the weeks/months that take me to watch an Anime, mostly at one EP a day) but f_u_ck, probably Im going to make an exception with this one. Just got into EP 7 and so far so good, the art style is gorgeus and I really like the concept (although it feels very...game-ey, like a tower defense game  ) but,


Spoiler



I hope they give a reaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaally good explanation for the reasons behind Eren condition. The way the anime pictured the struggle between humans and titans IMO was spectacular, but now with this in the plot I feel like a lot of the tension in the Anime is lost  ....


----------



## bouVIP

kamello said:


> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> I hope they give a reaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaally good explanation for the reasons behind Eren condition. The way the anime pictured the struggle between humans and titans IMO was spectacular, but now with this in the plot I feel like a lot of the tension in the Anime is lost  ....





Spoiler



If I remember correctly, they kind of do with the whole random flashbacks to his dad injecting him and stuff. I don't want to spoil too much, but I suggest reading the manga because in the manga you can more or less put the puzzle together with the whole Titans and humans thing.


----------



## Osorio

I've been watching Kakumeiki Valvrave... I'm up to episode 7 by now and I REALLY hope this gets IMMENSELY better on the second half, or the soon coming second season... The pace on this series has been hideous so far. I'll keep watching, since I already got the 12 eps and it makes for a nice lunch distraction, but gosh... Such a poor-men's Evangelion. 

Rukino is probably the most irritating excuse for character I have ever seen. Actually, the whole cast is pretty bad.

I wonder if I would enjoy the Gundam series. Even if they are old, as long as the plot is good... I never really looked into Gundam because I don't particularly enjoy the mech design, but I'm a huge Macross fan... Might look into them, since there was a huge recommendation of plot effectiveness earlier in the topic.


----------



## gamber

if anyones looking for a good anime, i suggest fate zero. That shits dope


----------



## Fat-Elf

Alberto7 said:


> ^ Didn't the last one come out yesterday??



Apparently it did. It ended so abruptly that I could have sworn that there would have been at least one more episode. Which kind of anime has 25 episodes instead of 26?


----------



## bouVIP

Osorio said:


> I wonder if I would enjoy the Gundam series. Even if they are old, as long as the plot is good... I never really looked into Gundam because I don't particularly enjoy the mech design, but I'm a huge Macross fan... Might look into them, since there was a huge recommendation of plot effectiveness earlier in the topic.



Definitely watch Gundam 0079 and Zeta. They have the greatest stories of all Gundam series IMO (also doesn't help that most after them are ripoffs)


----------



## Cynic

finished inu x boku ss

now for hachimitsu to clover


----------



## Osorio

bouVIP said:


> Definitely watch Gundam 0079 and Zeta. They have the greatest stories of all Gundam series IMO (also doesn't help that most after them are ripoffs)



I'll check those out for sure. Thanks! Nice to see a list of a gazillion names reduced to two.

Also: Yes, Shingeki no Kyojin "ending" was just... URGH. Either they need to make a season 2 on this thing and stop prancing around the issues, or I need to start reading the manga, because that was by far one of the worst endings I have ever seen (the original ending to Evangelion [pre-movies] and Macross Frontier not included).


----------



## habicore_5150

Saw the very first episode of Kill la Kill. I will say this: its pretty damn good, especially if you're a fan of FLCL and/or Gurren Lagann


----------



## Alberto7

^ Yeah, I'm definitely watching Kill la Kill whenever I get the chance to. Saw Gigguk's review of it, and it looks damn awesome. Certainly very reminiscent of FLCL (can't say about Gurren Lagann as I still haven't watched it).


----------



## habicore_5150

Alberto7 said:


> ^ Yeah, I'm definitely watching Kill la Kill whenever I get the chance to. Saw Gigguk's review of it, and it looks damn awesome. Certainly very reminiscent of FLCL (can't say about Gurren Lagann as I still haven't watched it).



Gurren Lagann is something else that I need to get back into watching.


----------



## bouVIP

Anyone watch Magi? I just started and it's really good so far!


----------



## Osorio

Just finished Valvrave and BY GOD is that thing awful. I don't think I'll follow the second season, as curious as I am about some of the "future scenes" they have been showing.

However, it did me put in the mood for some "so bad it's good" stuff, so I've dusted off Kanna(d)zuki no Miko. The show is simply awful, and to a point, similar to Valvrave in the "it has everything bad about anime" aspect (I prefer to look at the whole thing as a fantastically clever parody, which I'm pretty sure it is not), but the music is simply PHENOMENAL. Definitely put me in the mood to get some writing done. Great flute work.


----------



## Alberto7

bouVIP said:


> Anyone watch Magi? I just started and it's really good so far!



I know my sister watched it and really, really liked it. She had an unhealthy obsession with Jafar. She spends her days drawing and painting, so she's drawn like 10 billion pictures of him and has/had them plastered all over the place. I've been tempted to watch it, but I haven't gotten to it yet.



Osorio said:


> Just finished Valvrave and BY GOD is that thing awful. I don't think I'll follow the second season, as curious as I am about some of the "future scenes" they have been showing.
> 
> However, it did me put in the mood for some "so bad it's good" stuff, so I've dusted off Kanna(d)zuki no Miko. The show is simply awful, and to a point, similar to Valvrave in the "it has everything bad about anime" aspect (I prefer to look at the whole thing as a fantastically clever parody, which I'm pretty sure it is not), but the music is simply PHENOMENAL. Definitely put me in the mood to get some writing done. Great flute work.



This might suit your tastes, then:



And yes, that is the official dub  at least, one of them, made by ADV Films. It's f*cking hilarious. I guess they just thought it was so shit that they re-wrote the dialogues to their liking and kept the storyline the same . Here are more details:

Ghost Stories (anime) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


----------



## Osorio

> In the dub, dialog changes from serious to tongue-in-cheek where characters often break the fourth wall, make pop culture references, engage in brief exposition, and use profanity. (...) when Hajime encounters Momoko for the first time, in the Japanese version, he says "She's beautiful"; however, in the ADV dub, he says "Giggity giggity!"



Based on this and the above clip: Fvcking sold. 

I hope I can find this particular dub around though. Worth the effort to scout the wilderness.


----------



## habicore_5150

Anyone watching Blazblue: Alter Memory? First episode just came out. It's really good


----------



## bouVIP

habicore_5150 said:


> Anyone watching Blazblue: Alter Memory? First episode just came out. It's really good



Awesome! Been waiting for this!!


----------



## sakeido

anybody know of a good manga reader app for Android? I want to start working through Claymore on my phone


----------



## Don Vito

habicore_5150 said:


> Anyone watching Blazblue: Alter Memory? First episode just came out. It's really good


Had no idea about this. I was a big fan of the game in 2011, and I always hoped they would make an anime.


----------



## Alberto7

sakeido said:


> anybody know of a good manga reader app for Android? I want to start working through Claymore on my phone



Mango is my end-all mobile manga reader. It's not available on Google Play though. Search for "Mango manga" on Google and you should be able to find it.


----------



## sakeido

Alberto7 said:


> Mango is my end-all mobile manga reader. It's not available on Google Play though. Search for "Mango manga" on Google and you should be able to find it.



whoa this app is sick. thanks so much!


----------



## LanguageOfStrings

sakeido said:


> anybody know of a good manga reader app for Android? I want to start working through Claymore on my phone



Claymore is perfect manga, much better than bersek.

atm, only one manga I am active reading is bleach. (i'm bleach addict =)


----------



## Alberto7

So, what happens when you mix the art and look of Astro Boy and Popeye, the creative randomness of 50's Disney cartoons, and some of the themes and concepts of Ghost in the Shell? You get Kaiba:



Such a weird anime, but I'm really digging the style so far. The music is fantastic, too. (The song in that trailer is the song in the OP) Trippy as all hell, and it's a very refreshing series that veers off from most anime stereotypes while noticeably feeling like one. Got this recommendation from a friend just yesterday, and found it so attractive that I caved in and started watching it right away, at the beginning of midterm week... good thing it's only 12 episodes long.


----------



## Amanita

Alberto7 said:


> So, what happens when you mix the art and look of Astro Boy and Popeye, the creative randomness of 50's Disney cartoons, and some of the themes and concepts of Ghost in the Shell? You get Kaiba:
> 
> 
> 
> Such a weird anime, but I'm really digging the style so far. The music is fantastic, too. (The song in that trailer is the song in the OP) Trippy as all hell, and it's a very refreshing series that veers off from most anime stereotypes while noticeably feeling like one. Got this recommendation from a friend just yesterday, and found it so attractive that I caved in and started watching it right away, at the beginning of midterm week... good thing it's only 12 episodes long.


i've seen it like 3 years ago and Tree Song still haunts me from time to time 
good stuff.


----------



## Abaddon9112

I recently found a hilariously awful old anime called Angel Cop. It is most known for having a ludicrous amount of grammatically incorrect swearing in the English dub, and for having some extremely offensive anti-Semitic plot points in the Japanese dub. But the English version is full of lulz. 

Here is a condensed version that highlights some of the choice dialogue. 

Warning: NSFW for swearing and a little of the old Ultra-Violence


----------



## OmegaSlayer

OnePiece addict here


----------



## HellGamer666

Pretty new to anime, but I've seen some of the better ones out there. Steins; Gate, Death Note, Code Geass, Cowboy Bebop and Black Cat are among the favourites. 

Any good recommendations for an anime that's fairly story/character-driven? Violence, sex and the like don't offend me in the slightest. Preferably dubbed with decent animation quality. Thanks, guys!


----------



## sakeido

I can't comment on dubs like, at all. Everything sounds too ridiculous like a kid's show when you put it in english. for some reason my suspension of disbelief holds out better if everyone is speaking Japanese 

is the Claymore anime as good as the manga? I'm about 30 chapters in and lovin it so far


----------



## bouVIP

HellGamer666 said:


> Pretty new to anime, but I've seen some of the better ones out there. Steins; Gate, Death Note, Code Geass, Cowboy Bebop and Black Cat are among the favourites.
> 
> Any good recommendations for an anime that's fairly story/character-driven? Violence, sex and the like don't offend me in the slightest. Preferably dubbed with decent animation quality. Thanks, guys!



Try Magi. I'm currently watching it and the story is really good


----------



## Static

sakeido said:


> I can't comment on dubs like, at all. Everything sounds too ridiculous like a kid's show when you put it in english. for some reason my suspension of disbelief holds out better if everyone is speaking Japanese
> 
> is the Claymore anime as good as the manga? I'm about 30 chapters in and lovin it so far



The anime diverts from the manga half way through the series..The manga is way better though.


----------



## Osorio

HellGamer666 said:


> Pretty new to anime, but I've seen some of the better ones out there. Steins; Gate, Death Note, Code Geass, Cowboy Bebop and Black Cat are among the favourites.



I'm not sure what you are counting as "the better ones out there", but you missed Neon Genesis Evangelion in your list, so I instantly assume you have not yet seen it (because, as a major Evangelion fanboy, the thought that you have seen it and does not consider it one of the best animes ever hasn't crossed my mind AT ALL). The old series (26 episodes) + movie ("The End of Evangelion") is outstanding... 
There is also the Rebuild going around... a series of 4 movies with 3 having been released so far (I guess). I've seen a couple of comparison screen shots from the first movie, and it looks FANTASTIC. I haven't seen it personally, as I'm waiting for everything to be released so I can watch it all in one go, clean, and likely die of an overdose of awesomeness.

But anyway.. Yeah. Evangelion. If you haven't yet, you really should.

Also, if you watched and liked Cowboy Bebop and want something character / story driven... Do check out Ergo Proxy. It's ridiculously amazing and in my opinion puts Cowboy Bebop to absolute shame in every regard (except soundtrack. Cowboy Bebop's OST cannot be topped). It's by the same dude.


----------



## sakeido

The Evangelion dub really is great but man that series.. I dunno. As a teenager I loved about 2/3rds of it, as an adult I still love about half, but it gets so bogged down in existential angst and wankery towards the end, with almost no meaningful answers.. eh. I hesitate to recommend a series with such a lacking payoff to most people. After a bout with depression maybe it could resonate with you better (iirc Anno was hugely depressed towards the end of that series). 

But these days I'd recommend Gurren Lagann over it just for the much higher quality animation and proper beginning-middle-end to the series. But then again, a lot of the humor relies on you knowing some mecha tropes already, so maybe watch Eva first, then End of Eva, then 1.11 and 2.22


----------



## Alberto7

Osorio said:


> I'm not sure what you are counting as "the better ones out there", but you missed Neon Genesis Evangelion in your list, so I instantly assume you have not yet seen it (because, as a major Evangelion fanboy, the thought that you have seen it and does not consider it one of the best animes ever hasn't crossed my mind AT ALL). The old series (26 episodes) + movie ("The End of Evangelion") is outstanding...
> There is also the Rebuild going around... a series of 4 movies with 3 having been released so far (I guess). I've seen a couple of comparison screen shots from the first movie, and it looks FANTASTIC. I haven't seen it personally, as I'm waiting for everything to be released so I can watch it all in one go, clean, and likely die of an overdose of awesomeness.
> 
> But anyway.. Yeah. Evangelion. If you haven't yet, you really should.
> 
> Also, if you watched and liked Cowboy Bebop and want something character / story driven... Do check out Ergo Proxy. It's ridiculously amazing and in my opinion puts Cowboy Bebop to absolute shame in every regard (except soundtrack. Cowboy Bebop's OST cannot be topped). It's by the same dude.



I agree with you about Eva. It is one of my personal favorites. The premises are incredibly good, the animation (first 3/4 of the show) are amazing for its time, character design is about the most amazing and iconic I've ever seen, the soundtrack is incredibly good, and there's just SOOOO much nostalgia attached to it. HHOOWWEEVVEERR... Jesus, that ending ... I can stand it because I'm a fanboy, but holy shit did it just end terribly. If anything, skip the last two or so episodes and watch The End of Evangelion. 

The Rebuild series... up until 2.22 they are so amazing that I cannot even begin to put it into words. However, by 3.33... another . Not only does it change the story COMPLETELY (that's not necessarily a bad thing, but I was not expecting such a huge change), but the way in which some things happen are just weird, and the storyline itself is a tad... strange, and comes across as somewhat of an asspull. Also, they totally butchered Unit 2 design-wise, with all of its weird alternate forms . Then again, they make up for that by introducing a couple of new kickass Eva units. All in all, 3.33 isn't BAD, but I don't feel a strong attachment to it. Animation, though, is possibly the best I've ever seen in any anime. They'll need to really step up their game with 4.44 to make up for hiccup that was 3.33 (all this in my opinion, of course. I know quite a few people who loved 3.33).

I had never seen anyone who liked Ergo Proxy better than Bebop ... not that it's bad, it's just I've never met anyone who thinks so. Don't get me wrong though, I have Ergo Proxy in VERY high regard, and remained my favorite anime show for quite some time.

Also, HellGamer666, go watch Madoka Magica. I think you'll really like it. Amazing story, great characters, and really dark with just the right amount of violence and the f*cking apocalypse.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Started watching K-on! once again. Yui still makes me cringe but it's still pretty fun. Especially as I can watch the episodes in any order as I want as it doesn't really matter.

There really doesn't seem to be any watch-worthy animes this season. God, I miss SnK.


----------



## Osorio

I have a lot of history with Evangelion. I was very depressed when I first watched it, and it did nothing but get me even deeper into depression, but I still hold it very dear to me. I find it curious to "chastise" Evangelion for lack of "answers" when the principal theme of the series, as I see it, is Life, and what it means to be a human. No one has the answer for that, certainly not some hyped anime from the 90s. It is indeed filled to the goddamn brim with angst and whinny Shinji, but I always felt that it made it unique. I really like Shinji, too. I think he is a very well written character. People can bitch about him being a pussy all day long, but he got that reaction because he is probably the most human a character that has ever been. He is a pussy because the average teenage boy is a pussy. Happens. Anyway...

Ergo Proxy: Me and my fiancee loved it, and the both of us found it way better than Cowboy Bebop. I have to be very careful trying to defend this anime, because I don't think I can do it without being patronizing... But I'll try my best: The thing about Ergo Proxy is that it is very weird for an anime. It has little to no violence or sex appeal (at least as far as I recall, the first two episodes aside). Everything about it is very minimal and I would understand if people are generally not drown-in to that aesthetic. But the story contained is really interesting. Not only because of what it is, but because of what it isn't, or because of what it doesn't try to be, or what it doesn't try to show. I really thought it was a really elaborate display of storytelling. I can't recall an episode that had me closer to the characters and their story than the episode about passing time... That shit was glorious.
I tried to watch it when it was first released and I couldn't get past episode 4, I believe. it just wasn't clicking. A few years later I gave it another go and was completely blown away with it... It asks a lot of the viewer (in my opinion), but it gives a lot back if you open yourself to it. But you gotta follow it, you have to pay attention, you have to be invested. Ergo Proxy is like Classical Music... Whereas Valvrave is like Ke$ha.

I think I'm done sounding like a pretentious tool. Anyway, give Ergo Proxy a go... It's really good.

_[Disclaimer: Everything contained in this post is the sole product of my own views. There are no facts here, only subjective opinions. If I have insulted you, I'm very sorry. I'm only trying to add to the debate in a civil manner, not to start a war]_


----------



## Alberto7

^ I always support good, civilized debate. There's also no reason that anyone would be insulted by your post haha it's as civilized and humble as it gets.

I happen to agree with everything that you just said. I like what you wrote about it demanding a lot from the viewer, but giving back a lot more than it asked for. It was exactly like that for me and a friend of mine whom I made watch it. If you're going to watch Ergo Proxy, it's best if that is the ONLY thing you're doing, and let it be the only thing you're watching. Attention and thought are needed to really get the most out of it (particularly with all of the relatively obscure and thought-provoking references). After my first watch I probably spent more time reading about it than watching it.  Then I went and watched it again, and liked it even better.

As far as Eva goes, I agree again. I was talking mainly about the quality of art and animation going completely down the drain during the last episodes, which, in turn, limits coherent plot and character development. It's always been attributed to mismanagement of budget. Of course, all the whininess of Shinji and the whole angst theme are meant to be there. I joke about Shinji a lot, but I certainly don't dislike his character. I still stand by the opinion that Evangelion is a must for any fan of anime.

EDIT: oh, and here's possibly my favorite thing from Eva 3.33. Her voice is so angelical:


----------



## Fat-Elf

Don Vito said:


> YUI IS AUTISTIC PERFECTION. BEST PART OF THE SHOW IMO EXCEPT THE EPISODE WHERE RITSU AND MUGI GO OUT ON A DATE.


That is a good episode but my favorite must be the live house one. Yui breaking her nose is the most amusing part.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Don Vito said:


> WTF I DONT REMEMBER THIS AT ALL
> 
> WHAT IS THE EPISODE #?



14th on the first season. It was a special episode so no wonder.


----------



## Alberto7

Amanita said:


> i've seen it like 3 years ago and Tree Song still haunts me from time to time
> good stuff.



Haha awesome! It's such a beautiful, calm, and haunting song. I still need to finish it. Midterm week got the best of me, and I've given priority to finishing Breaking Bad as quickly as possible, because it is so painful.  I'm on episode 6 of Kaiba. Finishing it after BB for sure 



Fat-Elf said:


> Started watching K-on! once again. Yui still makes me cringe but it's still pretty fun. Especially as I can watch the episodes in any order as I want as it doesn't really matter.
> 
> There really doesn't seem to be any watch-worthy animes this season. God, I miss SnK.



You didn't like Kill la Kill?? I've been looking forward to watching that one...


----------



## Fat-Elf

Alberto7 said:


> You didn't like Kill la Kill?? I've been looking forward to watching that one...



Really I haven't watched anything. Kill la Kill was actually the one that seemed somewhat interesting so I've been planning to check it out someday. So no need to worry, you'll probably like it and I hope I will too.


----------



## Alberto7

^ I just sighed in relief out loud  although I do have a friend who didn't like it. I didn't get a reason though.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Just watched the first episode of Kill la Kill and...

It was awesome! It had everything. Nice heavy soundtrack, great art style, half-naked chicks and talk about fast paced. Definitely going to spend rest of the night watching it.


----------



## bouVIP

Started watching Log Horizon. I have to say I like it more than Sword Art Online and I really liked SAO.


----------



## Netherhound

After hearing about Monster for a while now, I finally committed 5 days of vacation time to watch it through and let all the crazy shit sink in.


One of the best anime I've seen in a long time
(BTW Lunge's jap voice acting...awesome)


----------



## Fat-Elf

bouVIP said:


> Started watching Log Horizon. I have to say I like it more than Sword Art Online and I really liked SAO.



Decided to check it out because you mentioned SAO. While it is kinda similar to SAO it's still way too different for me to compare the two. I loved SAO but so far I also really like Log Horizon too. It's much more slow paced and doesn't have such clear plot as SAO had from the beginning but that makes it interesting. I think the battle scenes are more entertaining too because they resemble a real MMORPG more than SAO which was just sword fights.

Kill La Kill was great too like I mentioned before. Too bad there were only 5 episodes out (same with Log Horizon).


----------



## bouVIP

Fat-Elf said:


> I think the battle scenes are more entertaining too because they resemble a real MMORPG more than SAO which was just sword fights.



Yes, this! That's my favorite thing about it when compared to SAO.


I need to check out Kill La Kill still. Hearing a lot of good things about it.


----------



## MFB

Where's Log Horizon available to watch online? I loved the shit out of SOA, more than I have anything in a LONG time so if it's on par with that then hot damn


----------



## Alberto7

Osorio said:


> However, it did me put in the mood for some "so bad it's good" stuff, so I've dusted off Kanna(d)zuki no Miko. The show is simply awful, and to a point, similar to Valvrave in the "it has everything bad about anime" aspect (I prefer to look at the whole thing as a fantastically clever parody, which I'm pretty sure it is not), but the music is simply PHENOMENAL. Definitely put me in the mood to get some writing done. Great flute work.



I don't know if you're still looking for "so bad it's good" kind of anime, but... this just happened in my life:



Technically not anime, and everything about it is shit, but who gives a crap anyway, IT'S FVCKING METAL


----------



## Osorio

^ I've completely given up on watching regular and cable TV, so I find myself in a state of constantly looking for new stuff to watch in between game sessions and studying...

Have been giving Crunchyroll some serious thoughts as of late. As a way of simply always having some anime readily available instead of having to hunt for this stuff down. Anyone have thoughts on this? Is this a good service? And does it consume a lot of internets? My connection is not the greatest ever, but I can watch netflix somewhat fine. Resolution sometimes takes a hit, but I bet this would be less noticeable on anime.

Also, I watched some five minutes of that and loved it. Gonna watch the rest over many meals this week and probably the next. Thanks for the recommendation!


----------



## Ikiharmaa

Osorio said:


> ... so I find myself in a state of constantly looking for new stuff to watch in between game sessions and studying...



I guess I'm lucky to have a to-watch list longer than the list of anime I've seen so far  at this rate it'll take me a few years to finish those, and who knows how much more I can find in the meantime, idk if I'll ever catch up ;_;

That said I just watched "Hanbun no Tsuki ga Noboru Sora" yesterday and it was a nice little series. I feel it had potential to be a lot better though, maybe it would've benefitted from being longer, or maybe it just wasted time on unneeded things. The characters remained too shallow for my liking, which is a shame because I really liked the plot and conclusion a lot. I guess it's something people call romance anime?


----------



## bouVIP

Started watching Kill La Kill. It's weird but interesting...

Also started Golden Time. It's a really good romantic comedy anime. It's revolves around college kids which to me makes the characters less annoying compared to the typical High School love story.


----------



## AndruwX

I watched the first episode ok Kill La Kill and DAMMIT THAT WAS A-WE-SO-ME.
I hope I can watch the rest soon. Also, question, Who watched Horizon In The Middle Of Nowhere? Is pretty ....ing good, sadly the novels are LONG and they adapted only 2 seasons.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

AndruwX said:


> Also, question, Who watched Horizon In The Middle Of Nowhere? Is pretty ....ing good, sadly the novels are LONG and they adapted only 2 seasons.



Had to check we're talking about the same anime since you typed it in english, but yeah, I enjoyed it a whole lot when I watched it. It's difficult for me to recommend it to anyone though as I somehow have the feeling I'm not supposed to like it as much as I do, maybe it's the groping  I'm remembering it being very confusing at the beginning as well, but it's definitely a unique and hilarious watch. Has the most unforgettable romance scene I've seen in anime so far, and it's not even a romance anime at all. Greatly built world and character designs as well. 9.6/10, but don't expect anything too intellectual or deep.


----------



## isispelican

Netherhound said:


> After hearing about Monster for a while now, I finally committed 5 days of vacation time to watch it through and let all the crazy shit sink in.
> 
> 
> One of the best anime I've seen in a long time
> (BTW Lunge's jap voice acting...awesome)



Monster is one of the best pieces of art ever created


----------



## sakeido

Ikiharmaa said:


> Had to check we're talking about the same anime since you typed it in english, but yeah, I enjoyed it a whole lot when I watched it. It's difficult for me to recommend it to anyone though as I somehow have the feeling I'm not supposed to like it as much as I do, maybe it's the groping  I'm remembering it being very confusing at the beginning as well, but it's definitely a unique and hilarious watch. Has the most unforgettable romance scene I've seen in anime so far, and it's not even a romance anime at all. Greatly built world and character designs as well. 9.6/10, but don't expect anything too intellectual or deep.



best romance scene ever? It'd be hard to top Kenshin and Kaoru's goodbye in rurouni kenshin. that was a pleasant surprise for a shonen series. 

I've watched the first three eps of Kill la Kill now. really don't know what to think of it... hilarious, over the top, but man this show is so perverted it is embarrassing to watch


----------



## Ikiharmaa

sakeido said:


> best romance scene ever? It'd be hard to top Kenshin and Kaoru's goodbye in rurouni kenshin. that was a pleasant surprise for a shonen series.



Best is always very subjective, but at least it was a very very memorable scene for me. Maybe it wasn't even a romance scene but just another lols moment though, idk, but I remember it, unlike many scenes in other anime. Then again I've probably seen less than 50 anime so far, so I'm far from being knowledgeable in this area  Not to mention I haven't even watched rurouni kenshin yet because so many episodes frightens me ._.

Like I said though, I'm having a bit of a hard time justifying my love for the series. Can't help my feelings though; I really enjoyed it.

probably going to watch Michiko To Hatchin or Planetes next, I'm guessing I can't go wrong with either one.


----------



## sakeido

With Kenshin, you can safely skip more than half of it - crappy filler with only a bit of character development. I think I watched the first 12 or so episodes, just until they had all the group together, then skipped to ep28 (start of the Kyoto arc) then stopped after ep62. Totally worth it.

Way more worth it than watching, say, all of Hokuto no Ken without skipping anything.... yikes that could be a slog at times


----------



## Alberto7

^ That's why you read the Rurouni Kenshin manga.  Kenshin's love story with Kaoru is really nice and very well developed, but I love his relationship with Tomoe so much more. The anime is absolutely wonderful during the "canon" parts (the ones that follow the manga), and it's very entertaining during filler episodes and non-canon arcs, but the manga tells my favorite story of anything ever. Then there are the Rurouni Kenshin OVAs, which are also wonderful, but I'm of the opinion that the manga must be read first.

On a different note, I got tickets to go watch this little gem in theaters on December 9th:

Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica: Rebellion (the 3rd film)





and I am SOOO pumped for it! I'm rewatching the whole show, and, holy shit, I had forgotten how glorious it is! I'm just not sure yet if it'll be dubbed or subbed... I hope it's subbed.
Here's a picture of the poster that I snagged at the theater:




I'm supah dupah excite.


----------



## Fat-Elf

^At least all the Miyazaki movies here in theaters are shown both subbed and dubbed.


----------



## Alberto7

I hope that is the case with this one. I imagine it'll be subbed though, since the poster at the theater is in Japanese, and it released barely a month ago in Japan.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Watched a couple of episodes Golden Time. Seems interesting, nice characters and I like the university setting. Getting into university age myself, high school animes start to feel so dull and repeative. I would so join the tea club.


----------



## Don Vito

Fat-Elf said:


> Watched a couple of episodes Golden Time. Seems interesting, nice characters and I like the university setting. Getting into university age myself, high school animes start to feel so dull and repeative. I would so join the tea club.


I never really went to highschool, so higschooler animes are always cool and mysterious to me. 

I need some cool animes to watch. I wish there were more music animes out there like K-On(when they are playing music which is never) Any recs bros?


----------



## Fat-Elf

Don Vito said:


> I need some cool animes to watch. I wish there were more music animes out there like K-On(when they are playing music which is never) Any recs bros?



Detroit Metal City and BECK are the only ones I have seen that involve some actual band stuff. I heard Nana tells about a punk band but I haven't seen it yet.


----------



## Don Vito

I've heard of Beck before, but I couldn't remember the name. It looked good. Is it?


----------



## Fat-Elf

Don Vito said:


> I've heard of Beck before, but I couldn't remember the name. It looked good. Is it?



It had some boring drama stuff that I didn't care about that much but it pretty much revolves around the band stuff. The only problem is that iirc they were supposed to do a second season but they didn't so it ends kinda short.


----------



## kamello

not groundbreaking, but pretty fun IMO  , it's cool to see the resemblances between real musicians and some of the characters

OT: I watched it with a friend and we learnt allmost all the songs of the anime and sang them with our best Engrinese accent


----------



## Alberto7

Just came back from the cinema. We went to watch the Puella Magi Madoka Magica: Rebellion film (3rd Madoka film). FVCK ME IT WAS GLORIOUS. A lot of people seemed to dislike it, or have very mixed feelings about it... but I find that the majority of the people that didn't like it didn't understand it either. The film is akin to Evangelion: 3.0 - You Can (Not) Redo, in the sense that for the first hour it's just a huge mindf*ck and you don't know what's going on. The thing is, in Rebellion they actually explain what's going on, albeit it's worded in a way that is perhaps a little difficult to understand given the speed at which they explain things. Also, some people seemed to have this idealized preconception of what the continuation/culmination of the story to Madoka Magica should have been like, and when they saw something different from what they expected (which, to top it off, is understandably challenging to take in) they kinda freaked out. I actually rewatched the entire series just a couple of weeks before the film, so everything was still very fresh in my memory, and I feel that REALLY helped me to understand this movie. It's Madoka Magica on steroids. Everything that's good about the series is there, and it's blown to literally epic proportions. Overall, it's really one of my favorite sequel films in all of anime. It's absolutely great. And the music is fantastic, as expected.

Also, Kyubei has one of my favorite concepts for a character that I've seen in anime. He's creepy as shit, but he fascinates me.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Kinda off-topic but I had to get this shared.



Now I know what I want for Christmas.


----------



## habicore_5150

Been watching Final Fantasy VII Advent Children and DBZ: Battle of the Gods. They're pretty good

Only caught the ending scene of Akira last saturday before I dozed off (too damn tired at the convention that night)

Started watching the End of Evangelion, and I do gotta thank another friend of mine for giving me a fair warning about the beginning scene in the movie


----------



## Don Vito

Watched Summer Wars on tv. Was disappointed they didn't sex but w/e good movie.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

So yea, I watched Michiko To Hatchin and despite almost dropping it at first it was great. It was also way more serious and depressive than I thought it would be (the funky color scheme tricked me). I'd guess for me this falls under the somewhat demanding yet rewarding watch, like Ergo Proxy in that sense although for different reasons. Recommended.


Now I'm happily back to watching one or two episodes of Aria per night  Such a soothing and heartwarming anime. My feelings can't be described with mere words.


----------



## Fiction

Just started Sword Art Online, its not too bad.. The artwork in it is amazing, though the characters are pretty cheesy.


----------



## Don Vito

You have to watch SAO with noob goggles on.


----------



## KJGaruda

I've heard nothing but good things about SAO, I need to check it out. 

I just watched DBZ: Battle of Gods a couple days ago. It was sweet to see the characters back in action, but I was pretty disappointed at how silly the movie was. 

Currently though, I'm catching up on Attack on Titan and the OnePunch-Man manga.. fvcking insanity.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Same here. I finally finished catching up thoroughly with Attack on Titan a few days back. I still stand by what I've already stated about the show, but it DOES get better after episode 12/13 (where I initially stopped watching), AND I do feel like the characters become more rounded and are given more depth by the second half of the season. I really can't help but point out how similar I found AoT to Evangelion by the end of it, which is actually not a bad thing at all. All in all, it is definitely a must-watch and, if you have any friends/family that you want to get into anime, this might be the one to show them (if they can stand the horrors in it, that is). Eagerly waiting for a second season (and I refuse to read the manga). 9/10

Oh, and like Don Vito said, watch SAO with n00b-goggles on. It can make or break the anime for you.

I also just finished watching Welcome to the NHK. Brilliant brilliant brilliant brilliant. It is beautifully introspective, which, in turn, makes it painfully relatable, and its characters are also painfully lovable. Despite it's very dark themes and topics, the way the story is executed makes it hilarious and adorable. It's very much a slice-of-life kind of anime, so I presume that personal life experiences will heavily affect how strongly one relates to and/or likes this show. I know the fact that I related so much on a personal level with most of the characters made it all THAT much more enjoyable for me, and I feel like I also got a lot of positive things from it. It's exactly the kind of brainy and emotion-heavy show that I like. 9.99/10


Now on to tackle the infamous Haruhi Suzumiya... I dread what lies ahead.


----------



## Don Vito

I assume you know to skip season 2 of Haruhi.


----------



## Alberto7

^ I've read about that, but even so, I can't help but feel the need to watch it anyway, if only to be able to judge for myself, and also to see what all the Endless Eight fuzz is about... or because I'm a rebellious and punk-ass prick yeah anarchy f*ck authority sk8 n' NOFX.

In other news, Santa did some generous impulse buying for me this Christmas:





And damn it, I love this series. I've been wanting to read this for a while; I can't stand not knowing what happens after the anime ends. I hope that by the time I'm done with these 9 volumes, they'll have finished translating the rest of the series. I've only read the first 60 or so pages, and it is surprisingly well written; it doesn't feel like a translation from Japanese. The wit and cleverness of the script are kept absolutely intact. I have two complaints though: 1) These books are way too expensive for their quality, and 2) the art is inconsistent, ranging from kinda iffy pictures to really beautiful images. All in all, though, I'm happy and excited with this purchase.

(I do feel bad for spending money on these things rather than on music gear... having two hobbies and being able to afford only one of them is a pain in the ass).


----------



## Skyblue

Alberto7 said:


> I also just finished watching Welcome to the NHK. Brilliant brilliant brilliant brilliant. It is beautifully introspective, which, in turn, makes it painfully relatable, and its characters are also painfully lovable. Despite it's very dark themes and topics, the way the story is executed makes it hilarious and adorable. It's very much a slice-of-life kind of anime, so I presume that personal life experiences will heavily affect how strongly one relates to and/or likes this show. I know the fact that I related so much on a personal level with most of the characters made it all THAT much more enjoyable for me, and I feel like I also got a lot of positive things from it. It's exactly the kind of brainy and emotion-heavy show that I like. 9.99/10


I had to stop every once in a while when I watched NHK, it got too depressing for me  An amazing anime.


----------



## MrPepperoniNipples

I'm not that into anime, but I'm starting to get to be, but I don't know all that many of them. Looking for some suggestions.

I'm really liking some of the horror/death/mystery ones, I loved Another and I'm finishing up Shiki right now, which I also like a lot.
I also watched Higurashi no Koroni ni, which I thought was okay.

Does anyone have any suggestions of others of that nature?


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> In other news, Santa did some generous impulse buying for me this Christmas:


I never watched the anime, but I've thought about picking these books up several times. 

I always try to buy manga when I'm at the book store, but I'm such noob I can never figure out what to get.

I almost bought this yesterday because the cover looked promising, but I was little short on cash. Has anyone read this?







MrPepperoniNipples said:


> I'm not that into anime, but I'm starting to get to be, but I don't know all that many of them. Looking for some suggestions.
> 
> I'm really liking some of the horror/death/mystery ones, I loved Another and I'm finishing up Shiki right now, which I also like a lot.
> I also watched Higurashi no Koroni ni, which I thought was okay.
> 
> Does anyone have any suggestions of others of that nature?


I'm not to good with this genre, but there's Mirai Nikki(Future Diary) which is sort of a mystery/death/action thing. The anime is excellent. 

And then there's Umineko no naku Kori Ni, which had a decent anime, but ended on a cliff hanger. I've flipped through the novel a few times, and it seems okay, albeit boring as hell for the first chunk of pages. It has the time loop thing like Higurashi, so if you didn't like that then stay far away.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Just watched Perfect Blue for the second time. Damn, that movie is weird.


----------



## Alberto7

Skyblue said:


> I had to stop every once in a while when I watched NHK, it got too depressing for me  An amazing anime.



Yeah, it's a really heavy show.


Spoiler



Yamazaki leaving was one of the harshest moments for me. Not to mention how painful the relationship between Misaki and Sato is.





MrPepperoniNipples said:


> horror/death/mystery



You didn't mention it, so I'll assume you haven't watched Death Note yet? Haven't watched it myself yet (shame on me, I know), but that seems to be one of those "go-to" anime, and it fits that description almost perfectly. I also only watched the first five episodes of Darker Than Black, and it was pretty good... I should get back to it some time.



Don Vito said:


> I never watched the anime, but I've thought about picking these books up several times.
> 
> I always try to buy manga when I'm at the book store, but I'm such noob I can never figure out what to get.



If you don't mind paying about $13 per book, then go for it. The story is excellent, and the writing is solid. Subtle, yet remarkably sharp and witty. The novel provides a bit more direct insight into the characters' thoughts and emotions, too.



Don Vito said:


> I almost bought this yesterday because the cover looked promising, but I was little short on cash. Has anyone read this?
> *image*



That looks really interesting: Judge Manga - Read Judge Online at MangaHere.com, and it is illustrated by the same dude who illustrated one of the manga adaptations for Higurashi no Naku Koro ni.



Fat-Elf said:


> Just watched Perfect Blue for the second time. Damn, that movie is weird.



Watched a trailer for it. I love the art, and it looks dark and phucked. Adding it to my to-watch list.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Alberto7 said:


> Watched a trailer for it. I love the art, and it looks dark and phucked. Adding it to my to-watch list.



Yeah, I think Satoshi Kun's movies have the best art after Ghibli movies but the plots are just crazy. 

Started watching Non Non Biyori yesterday because everyone has been talking about it. It just felt too slow paced for me and made me feel awkward just watching bunch of elementary school kids doing cute things.


----------



## MrPepperoniNipples

Don Vito said:


> I'm not to good with this genre, but there's Mirai Nikki(Future Diary) which is sort of a mystery/death/action thing. The anime is excellent.
> 
> And then there's Umineko no naku Kori Ni, which had a decent anime, but ended on a cliff hanger. I've flipped through the novel a few times, and it seems okay, albeit boring as hell for the first chunk of pages. It has the time loop thing like Higurashi, so if you didn't like that then stay far away.



I'll check them out, thanks!


Took a small break from the mysterious stuff and watched Magical Shopping Arcade Abenobashi.
I enjoyed it a lot, but the ending was a really lame I thought. I must have missed something, because that was a terrible way to end what I thought was a great story.


----------



## Alberto7

Ok, so I finished Haruhi Suzumiya. Watched both seasons chronologically (oh Endless Eight...) and then the Disappearance film. And why, oh why, did it end? Can't be bothered writing a review of it because I wouldn't even know where to begin, but I can't recommend it enough. Judgement must also be reserved until the end of the Disappearance film, as it ties most things VERY neatly. My only review and opinion of this series can be summarized in two words: Yuki Nagato.


----------



## AChRush1349

I love perverted Harem anime, so High school DXD has been a big one for me...in terms of non-perverted Anime, I've really been digging Attack on Titans.


----------



## bifftannen

I did a search thread but has anyone seen Elven Lied? Man, it's really good and I'm definitely far from squeamish but it is f*cked.up. and not in a sex with tentacles way but in a disturbing story and violent kind of way.

EDIT: Never mind I found some posts one it, my bad.


----------



## Mordacain

bifftannen said:


> I did a search thread but has anyone seen Elven Lied? Man, it's really good and I'm definitely far from squeamish but it is f*cked.up. and not in a sex with tentacles way but in a disturbing story and violent kind of way.
> 
> EDIT: Never mind I found some posts one it, my bad.



Yea, I saw Elven Lied years ago. It was ....ed up enough that I kinda wish I hadn't finished it. 

Didn't watch Gantz because of it after talking to folks who'd seen both.


----------



## Fat-Elf

bifftannen said:


> I did a search thread but has anyone seen Elven Lied? Man, it's really good and I'm definitely far from squeamish but it is f*cked.up. and not in a sex with tentacles way but in a disturbing story and violent kind of way.
> 
> EDIT: Never mind I found some posts one it, my bad.



Elven Lied? What's that? Elfen Lied with elves (like me)? 

Nvm, I've seen "Elven Lied". It's pretty ....ed up but enjoyable anime.


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> Ok, so I finished Haruhi Suzumiya. Watched both seasons chronologically (oh Endless Eight...) and then the Disappearance film. And why, oh why, did it end? Can't be bothered writing a review of it because I wouldn't even know where to begin, but I can't recommend it enough. Judgement must also be reserved until the end of the Disappearance film, as it ties most things VERY neatly. My only review and opinion of this series can be summarized in two words: Yuki Nagato.


Congrats on getting through Endless 8. Oh, and if your new waifu asks you to play against her in _The Day of Sagittarius III_, politely decline because she is quite... skilled.


----------



## MrPepperoniNipples

bifftannen said:


> I did a search thread but has anyone seen Elven Lied? Man, it's really good and I'm definitely far from squeamish but it is f*cked.up. and not in a sex with tentacles way but in a disturbing story and violent kind of way.
> 
> EDIT: Never mind I found some posts one it, my bad.



I am very intrigued
I'm gonna run through it tomorrow night


----------



## Don Vito

From page 4 


Don Vito said:


> I never finished Elfen Lied. Got too weird, but now I want to watch it again.



I still haven't finished it.


----------



## Alberto7

Don Vito said:


> Congrats on getting through Endless 8. Oh, and if your new waifu asks you to play against her in _The Day of Sagittarius III_, politely decline because she is quite... skilled.



 I have this nagging feeling in the back of my head that my very existence is in peril whenever the waifu is around... but i wub her anyway. rabu <3

Oh, and I enjoyed the heck out of Endless Eight. It was kind of frustrating, but it was enjoyable. I can see how it must have been absolutely horrible during broadcast... It's just... I expected a MUCH grander conclusion to it, but it was totally made up for with the film, which has instantly become one of my favorite anime films.


----------



## bouVIP

So new season of SAO!
Crunchyroll - VIDEO: "Sword Art Online II" Anime Activated

I've been reading the light novels and so glad they are animating the Gun Gale Online arc!


----------



## MFB

Hoooo shit. I was just thinking about re-watching SAO so I might have to marathon it to start the new chapter


----------



## Alberto7

Well, damn!! I'm actually really excited for this. I totally think that that show went straight to shit a couple of episodes in, but it was still SO enjoyable. I will definitely watch the new season!


----------



## habicore_5150

bouVIP said:


> So new season of SAO!
> Crunchyroll - VIDEO: "Sword Art Online II" Anime Activated
> 
> I've been reading the light novels and so glad they are animating the Gun Gale Online arc!



Must I add another resolution for the new year?

Heard that Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei is gonna be getting an anime adaptation around April of this year. Even though I never read the manga, it should be pretty interesting


----------



## bifftannen

Mordacain said:


> Yea, I saw Elven Lied years ago. It was ....ed up enough that I kinda wish I hadn't finished it.
> 
> Didn't watch Gantz because of it after talking to folks who'd seen both.


 
Gantz? I must check that out. Yeah it's pretty rough in fairness but at least it's original and well thought out. I think if a film/anime/book/music evokes some emotion in you then it's something that you will remember.


----------



## bifftannen

Fat-Elf said:


> Elven Lied? What's that? Elfen Lied with elves (like me)?
> 
> Nvm, I've seen "Elven Lied". It's pretty ....ed up but enjoyable anime.


 
 That's why I didn't find any posts on it, I spelt it with a V instead of an F.


----------



## petereanima

So, I am completely new to the whole Anime thing, other than having seen Akira and Fist Of the North Star ~ 20 years ago.

After researches I am now watching Death Note, and REALLY liking it. But I am half-through already, so the end is in sight and I need something new for the future.

Things I want to check out are Steins;Gate and Darker Than Black...Oh, and at some point Neon Genesis Evangelion - although there seems to be a shitload of material eavailable, and I couldn't really find out in which order I need to watch everything (I don't want to read too much in wikipedia articles as I am super afraid of spoilers).


----------



## Alberto7

^ You're doing well starting out with the likes of Death Note and Steins;Gate. I started DTB and liked it, but I dropped it after the 4th episode... I wasn't in the mood for it.

As far as Evangelion goes, watch the original series from 1995 first (titled Neon Genesis Evangelion), then watch the The End of Evangelion film (which is just basically an alternate ending, which replaces the last couple of episodes from the series), and then, after you mull it over and get angry because the whole thing was so goddamn confusing and you really liked it but can't make up your mind about an objective rating, start with the Rebuild of Evangelion films. They're four films which basically retell the entire story of the 1995 series, giving it new (INCREDIBLE) animation. Only three films have come out so far, and the fourth one doesn't have a release date yet as far as I know.

I hope I nailed that; anybody feel free to correct me.

EDIT: an addendum for that first paragraph:
There's a ton of must-watchs in the anime world, and there's a whole lot of good stuff to choose from, and it's all very varied in style and tone, so, when deciding what to watch, it usually boils down to what you feel like watching and what mood you're in. It's how I choose anyway, or some times choose on a whim and see what you get.


----------



## petereanima

Thanks mate!

I think I will wait with NGE until I have a ton of free time haha...

I know there are a ton of must-watchs etc., my problem is that i get turned off pretty easily as soon as it gets just a _touch_ too chilidsh for my taste, so I need to be careful haha..


----------



## Alberto7

Haha don't worry, I think everyone is like that when they first get into anime. I suppose there are a lot of different definitions for what constitutes as being childish, and I can't be sure what you regard as such, but odds are that, however you see it, you'll eventually come to not mind it, or perhaps even like it; your threshold for tolerating such things increases when you really get into anime and your perception changes slightly. It's one of the beauties/dangers of anime; you choose how far you go into it.

But I digress. Sorry for rambling; it's late at night and I'm bored.


----------



## Fiction

petereanima said:


> I know there are a ton of must-watchs etc., my problem is that i get turned off pretty easily as soon as it gets just a _touch_ too chilidsh for my taste, so I need to be careful haha..



My exact problem


----------



## petereanima

Alberto7 said:


> Haha don't worry, I think everyone is like that when they first get into anime. I suppose there are a lot of different definitions for what constitutes as being childish, and I can't be sure what you regard as such, but odds are that, however you see it, you'll eventually come to not mind it, or perhaps even like it; your threshold for tolerating such things increases when you really get into anime and your perception changes slightly. It's one of the beauties/dangers of anime; you choose how far you go into it.
> 
> But I digress. Sorry for rambling; it's late at night and I'm bored.



No problem mate, and yeah, I am sure my tolerance-level in this regards will rise while watching. But it's "once bitten, twice shy" - I have a japanese part in the family, and when I was 15/16 I had to babysit my 2 cousin girls - huge Sailormoon fans back then. I have seen probably every episode and it was like torture for me. Years later, my girlfriend and I were babysitting her 2 cousin boys, and they were extremely into Pokemon - and I actually found this worse than Sailormoon. (Please don't hate me  )


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

petereanima said:


> No problem mate, and yeah, I am sure my tolerance-level in this regards will rise while watching. But it's "once bitten, twice shy" - I have a japanese part in the family, and when I was 15/16 I had to babysit my 2 cousin girls - huge Sailormoon fans back then. I have seen probably every episode and it was like torture for me. Years later, my girlfriend and I were babysitting her 2 cousin boys, and they were extremely into Pokemon - and I actually found this worse than Sailormoon. (Please don't hate me  )



Don't worry. I was the same. But thankfully my first anime exposure was to Robotech when I was 6. Maybe a little too for most at that age, but I loved it.

Admittedly I'm not hip with the current anime favorites but the good ones are worth finding.


----------



## Don Vito

petereanima said:


> No problem mate, and yeah, I am sure my tolerance-level in this regards will rise while watching. But it's "once bitten, twice shy" - I have a japanese part in the family, and when I was 15/16 I had to babysit my 2 cousin girls - huge Sailormoon fans back then. I have seen probably every episode and it was like torture for me. Years later, my girlfriend and I were babysitting her 2 cousin boys, and they were extremely into Pokemon - and I actually found this worse than Sailormoon. (Please don't hate me  )


Oh man, I loved Sailor Moon when I was like 5. I had no idea what was happening, but the transformation scenes always made me feel funny down there so I never questioned it.


----------



## sakeido

Just watched the new Steins;gate movie over my Christmas break. Dodgy fansub but god damn... I loved that series, and I loved the movie. Whole thing gets a 5 outta 5 from me and it is my favorite series ever, officially now hahah 

New season of SAO is awesome news. First season had a lot of wasted potential but still was way better than almost everything else that gets a lot of hype these days (*cougH* attack on titan *cough*) 



petereanima said:


> Thanks mate!
> 
> I think I will wait with NGE until I have a ton of free time haha...
> 
> I know there are a ton of must-watchs etc., my problem is that i get turned off pretty easily as soon as it gets just a _touch_ too chilidsh for my taste, so I need to be careful haha..



if childish moments are a turnoff, you will have to wait until your tolerance level builds a bit. But Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood is one of the best series out there and is 100% worth watching. While it has some distinctly Japanese-flavored bizarre asides early on, those drop out of the show as things get more serious.

For stuff with no childish moments at all, Ghost in the Shell: Standalone Complex both first season and 2nd season (2nd Gig) are outstanding. 2nd Gig in particular was brilliant


----------



## MrPepperoniNipples

Mordacain said:


> Yea, I saw Elven Lied years ago. It was ....ed up enough that I kinda wish I hadn't finished it.
> 
> Didn't watch Gantz because of it after talking to folks who'd seen both.



Just finished Elfen Lied
It was sometimes brutal and gruesome, I didn't think it was that f_cked up.


Spoiler



the relationship between the cousins was a little weird


I thought the anime as a whole was alright. It had its moments.

I guess Gantz is next up on my list.


----------



## Alberto7

petereanima said:


> No problem mate, and yeah, I am sure my tolerance-level in this regards will rise while watching. But it's "once bitten, twice shy" - I have a japanese part in the family, and when I was 15/16 I had to babysit my 2 cousin girls - huge Sailormoon fans back then. I have seen probably every episode and it was like torture for me. Years later, my girlfriend and I were babysitting her 2 cousin boys, and they were extremely into Pokemon - and I actually found this worse than Sailormoon. (Please don't hate me  )



Yeah, Sailormoon and Pokemon are a little too much for me nowadays.  The only reason why I would actually watch any of those shows is because of simple nostalgia. If I don't know it from my childhood, then I probably will never watch it. I think it also depends on how much of that "Japanese flavor" you consider childish, as the two can often overlap.



MrPepperoniNipples said:


> Just finished Elfen Lied
> It was sometimes brutal and gruesome, I didn't think it was that f_cked up.
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> the relationship between the cousins was a little weird
> 
> 
> I thought the anime as a whole was alright. It had its moments.
> 
> I guess Gantz is next up on my list.



Now go read up the manga. I always bitch about this to people  it is SO MUCH better than the anime. I read it a few years ago and, granted, my view of what a good anime is has changed drastically over the past couple of years, I remember it as being actually really good, judging by any standards. So many feels... &#3237;_&#3237; (anime and manga thread, so figured would use awkward emoji... ).

Gantz is supposed to be a lot of blood and tits. I've always heard about it, but I'm reluctant to watch it. Is it worth it?

EDIT: oh, and I agree with sakeido on Ghost in the Shell. That stuff is art.


----------



## HellGamer666

Elfen Lied didn't strike me as anything TOO messed up. I'll admit that it was difficult to get through, though; I found the animation lacking, which is a deal-breaker for me. Pretty new to anime and it's cool to see what you all think. I'm currently re-watching Steins; Gate (my favourite anime of the 20-or-so I've watched) and I just went out and bought Horizon in the Middle of Nowhere, which is pretty interesting so far. The animation is great and the story and setting seem really interesting, but the characters feel kinda generic and their interactions are so... Typically anime, if ya know what I'm saying. I'm sure that'll change with development, though. Will probably watch Ghost in the Shell when I'm done with all of my current shows.


----------



## Alberto7

^ I find that Elfen Lied is a very popular gateway anime, and popular among people who are just getting into it, and thus strikes the viewer as more messed up than it actually is if you compare it with the rest of shows out there. It's not a walk in the park by any means, though.

I'm currently watching Kara no Kyoukai (Garden of Sinners). The animation is some of the most incredible I've seen in anime, the art is beautiful. Its presentation is really weird, too. It's comprised of seven movies that span the duration of a normal 24-episode anime, and the narrative is not in chronological order (with each film telling a different part of the story) which makes it really weird. The story is really awesome so far, albeit quite confusing due to its non-chronological nature. It's a very dark show, with a very serious and quite depressing tone to it. AND it's properly messed up. The beautiful art makes the gore all that much more striking. GRArkada on YouTube has a really cool review of the show, if you want more details (his reviews are incredible, btw. I've watched a good deal of shows because of him, and he's been spot on every time).

I love being on vacation at home; I get to watch so much anime.


----------



## Mr-Jemhead93

I finished watching a few animes since the summer and I was greatly pleased 

Cowboy Bebop
Death Note
Fairy Tail (only up to whatever was on Netflix)
Akira
GunXSword 

and theres one more that I'm forgetting crap this is going to bug me


----------



## Fat-Elf

Mr-Jemhead93 said:


> and theres one more that I'm forgetting crap this is going to bug me



http://myanimelist.net


----------



## Mr-Jemhead93

Fat-Elf said:


> http://myanimelist.net



sweet!


----------



## bouVIP

D: anyone else here use MAL?

Should add me -_-AzN-_-


----------



## PAZ

Any one a fan of "Attack on Titan" ?
I am about half way through Season 1 and it is pretty interesting!


----------



## MFB

I was a fan of it until two things: 

A. The characters are incapable of delivering dialogue like actual human beings; IE, they either scream it in anger or deliver it while sobbing like bitches

B. The big plot twist which denied me the show I wanted which was seeing how human ingenuity overcomes these giant titan motherfvckers, but instead there's magic and typical anime-ness to it


----------



## Don Vito

Space Dandy premieres on Toonami tonight. I have no idea what it's about, but it looks colorful and loud.


----------



## MFB

I'm pretty pumped for Space Dandy. It seems like it'll be a fairly casual but still enjoyable anime; not trying too hard to be something its not.


----------



## Don Vito

Don Vito said:


> Space Dandy premieres on Toonami tonight. I have no idea what it's about, but it looks colorful and loud.


Posts reminder; totally forgets to watch. 

Okay, I had some late night errands that got in the way, but I should have re-scheduled. Did anyone catch it?


----------



## M3CHK1LLA

so after watching the inital d for the 4th time...

...i started in on the "gotchaman" series. quite a bit different from the "g-force / battle of the planets" i watched when i was a kid. still diggin it tho.


----------



## Alberto7

"Space Dandy! He's a dandy guy... in space."

 I think I'm really going to like this. Good music, hilarious narration, and breastaurants. What's not to like?


----------



## Mr-Jemhead93

Mr-Jemhead93 said:


> and theres one more that I'm forgetting crap this is going to bug me



I remember now i rewatched spirited away


----------



## Alberto7

Okay, right, so I just finished Kara no Kyoukai: Garden of Sinners... I liked it A LOT, so I think I'm gonna break my spell and go into a bit more detail about it (spoiler free):

*Kara no Kyoukai: Garden of Sinners*

Oh boy. That was BRUTAL. I have no idea why that series isn't more popular, because it is pure genius and it is absolutely beautiful to behold. 

I'm going to refrain from going into detail about the story and characters, as a good deal of the fun of watching Kara no Kyoukai was finding out what was going on, and understanding the characters' psyche. Put very simply, the show focuses mainly on the two protagonists, Shiki Ryougi and Mikiya Kokutou, as they solve crimes that have little rational explanation, thus resorting to the supernatural. Sounds fairly standard, buuuuut it's anything but. I'd say why and how, but I'd probably get into spoiler territory, and I do not wish for anybody to go into this awesome show with any kind of spoilers. Character and plot development are heavy, so expect your fair share of talking and a reminiscence. The script and dialogue are really engaging though, so that's not a problem at all. It has such a dark and heavy atmosphere, and the story can be as gruesome and f*cked up as it can be endearing and touching (there's a few instances of eye-bawling moments). And that seems to be a theme within this show, as it ranges from really sweet interaction between characters and deep emotions, to really messed up twists in the storyline, not to mention how utterly insane and f*cked some of the characters are.

Following this sort of "theme," the visuals can get to be as gruesome and disturbing as they are completely gorgeous. I wouldn't say it's a gory show per se, but when there's gore and it wants to leave an impression... it quite does. I was constantly pausing the film just to look at the backgrounds; it was all so beautiful and detailed, and I found character design to be really likeable (I love the way they drew the eyes). I think it's safe for me to say that the animation is, along with the art, some of the best that I have seen so far in anime, coming head to head with that of the Rebuild of Evangelion films. The fight scenes are just... well, jawdropping. Literally. It's not an action anime though, and I can probably count all the fight scenes with just the fingers of my hands, but they are all SOO worth it. Overall, the production quality of this show has left me almost speechless.

It also has an incredible soundtrack by Yuki Kajiura (Fate/Zero, .hack// franchise, Sword Art Online, Madoka Magica, basically one of my favorite anime composers), which, again, ranges from upbeat epics with string and choir arrangements to downright beautiful and soft piano tunes.

One of the more curious aspects of the show is its presentation. It's comprised of 7 films that, in total, add up to about the same running time as a regular 24-episode show, giving it a lot of time for development. Each film is anywhere from 45 to just a little over 60 minutes long, with two films being around the 2-hour mark. Each film has its own focus on plot, while touching on issues brought up in past films, and presenting new ones.

The other peculiarity is that the films aren't shown in chronological order, much like Haruhi Suzumiya. HOWEVER, it is done solely for narrative purposes, and, while you could watch it in chronological order, I'd strongly recommend watching it in broadcast order, because it is just so much more fun that way. Things get confusing, but not so much that the viewer won't understand, or in a way that too much time passes and one forgets all the details. That's where a big chunk of the genius of the film was put into. The narrative is just so exquisitely done.

All in all, and I will repeat myself, the fact that this anime is not more well-known kind of baffles me. It is completely brilliant, and, as of yet, I haven't found a flaw in it. Perhaps that fact that it's somewhat confusing in the beginning will throw some people off, as it does answer all the questions, but it does so in a very slow and progressive kind of manner. There are very few deus ex machina moments where many questions are answered at once, but I'd say not to worry; everything gets tidily resolved and tied with a bow so beautiful you'll want to see how it was tied several times over. At this point, I feel that saying it's "one of my favorites" has lost a lot of meaning as there is so much good anime out there, but I do think that this one will remain as one of the most memorable for me, if only for its sheer brilliance of execution and production values.

TL;DR go watch it RIGHT NOW because it is amazing.

EDIT: I forgot to put in there somewhere that the show actually reminds me a lot of a much more mature, much better executed, much less creepy (though it admittedly has a hint of a "moment"), much more atmospheric and a tad darker, and infinitely more gorgeous Elfen Lied (not to put it down, but I found it so much better). The plots don't resemble each other a lot, but it somehow feels very similar.


----------



## Alberto7

So I made a bad decision earlier today and marathoned School Days... I REALLY wish I hadn't watched that abomination of a... thing...


----------



## KJGaruda

I got started with Sword Art Online a couple days ago, but I didn't realize it had a romance sub-theme until halfway through. 

I'm now on the 16th episode and it all feels... distracted for some reason. Like, there was a story, a set goal, and then it just sorta peters off into something else. My girlfriend loved it, but I'm just sorta feeling like  now.


----------



## Alberto7

I swear I will stop posting here so often as soon as university work really kicks in, but I'm just cramming in as many anime shows as possible before that happens, and I feel like I have to write the things I like somewhere in the form of recommendations. Which leads me to say that I started watching Aku no Hana (tr. The Flowers of Evil) yesterday. Shit is WEIRD, but if you're able to get used to the rotoscoped art and animation, you should be able to really feel how raw, unpredictable, and ultimately real it is. The rotoscoping gives it that sensation of it being more of a live-action show than an anime, and makes it feel a lot more real. It's kinda psychologically messed up. It's actually really creepy in a strange way. And the ending music. Oh, that ending! Not only is it great by itself, but it suits the mood of the anime perfectly. I love how it begins playing by the end of each episode before it actually ends, and how it compliments the situation. So good. But really, it's kind of understandable why someone wouldn't want to watch it. The art is REALLY weird and kinda choppy. Experimental, but perhaps too experimental. As far as story, script, and mood go, though... .... me, it's almost perfect.


----------



## bouVIP

Nisekoi finally aired! It's a typical shounen jump romantic comedy, but the art is beautiful and characters are likeable!


----------



## Alberto7

^ Thanks for pointing that out! I went and watched the first episode. Thoroughly hilarious, and the characters seem great. Of course, it's as stereotypical as it gets in anime, but it's really enjoyable anyway; the love triangle is set up nicely and quickly (though very predictably), and it isn't trying to be something it's not. It doesn't feel forced. The art is great with vibrant colors and likeable character designs, and the animation is great; not perfect, but quite good. Of course, we're still barely on the first episode, so a lot of these things are likely to change - for better or worse. What really has me worried about it is the fact that it's an anime based on a manga that hasn't yet come to a conclusion. I'm fearing either fillers or distasteful cliffhangers, or both. Regardless, the first episode was well worth the watch.

EDIT: forgot to make mention of the music. I liked the main theme of the show, and the opening music is performed by ClariS, who also performed the opening for Madoka Magica. While it isn't anything to write home about, it's quite pleasant.


----------



## bouVIP

Alberto7 said:


> ^ Thanks for pointing that out! I went and watched the first episode. Thoroughly hilarious, and the characters seem great. Of course, it's as stereotypical as it gets in anime, but it's really enjoyable anyway; the love triangle is set up nicely and quickly (though very predictably), and it isn't trying to be something it's not. It doesn't feel forced. The art is great with vibrant colors and likeable character designs, and the animation is great; not perfect, but quite good. Of course, we're still barely on the first episode, so a lot of these things are likely to change - for better or worse. What really has me worried about it is the fact that it's an anime based on a manga that hasn't yet come to a conclusion. I'm fearing either fillers or distasteful cliffhangers, or both. Regardless, the first episode was well worth the watch.



well the manga is 100+ chapters in and the anime will probably be like 20 or so episodes. No spoilers or anything, but manga isn't anywhere close to a conclusion haha


----------



## Alberto7

Well then, I hope they find a way to wrap it up nicely haha. It's not impossible to do, that's for sure. Haruhi Suzumiya did it very well with the Disappearance film. I guess I'll wait and see, and enjoy the ride meanwhile


----------



## Raaaaal13

bouVIP: I'm really glad I'm not the only one excited for Nisekoi(digging the fact that your avatar is Tsugumi btw). Loved all of the manga so it being a show makes me so happy. Dug the first episode and really glad that ClariS did the theme. Also I believe the show will be 26 episodes. I think I read somewhere that it will reach the "Romeo and Juliet" arc but don't quote me on that one.

While keeping up with this current season, I decided to watch a show I never had the chance to watch before: Outlaw Star. So far I'm digging it. Its pretty weird to be watching current stuff while watching this show as well though considering the age gap.


----------



## MFB

Re-watching "Attack on Titan" and I've gotta say, the dubbed version really ruins this show and it shouldn't have EVER been dubbed. The Japanese voice actors emote the characters way better; namely Eren, as in this case he actually speaks not just YELLING AT MAX VOLUME WHILE CRYING or whispering like a little scared baby. I'm now on episode 7 and I started just last night from episode 3.


----------



## bouVIP

Raaaaal13 said:


> bouVIP: I'm really glad I'm not the only one excited for Nisekoi(digging the fact that your avatar is Tsugumi btw). Loved all of the manga so it being a show makes me so happy. Dug the first episode and really glad that ClariS did the theme. Also I believe the show will be 26 episodes. I think I read somewhere that it will reach the "Romeo and Juliet" arc but don't quote me on that one.



oh Awesome! Tsugumi is the best <3


Finally caught up with Log Horizon and the story has become intense! I'm loving it.


----------



## sakeido

MFB said:


> Re-watching "Attack on Titan" and I've gotta say, the dubbed version really ruins this show and it shouldn't have EVER been dubbed. The Japanese voice actors emote the characters way better; namely Eren, as in this case he actually speaks not just YELLING AT MAX VOLUME WHILE CRYING or whispering like a little scared baby. I'm now on episode 7 and I started just last night from episode 3.



I thought the Japanese voice actors were awful too. Overall, I hated that series. 

Of the new stuff out this season I've been enjoying Kill la Kill at least 10,000 times more. It's just so ridiculous and over the top and hilarious, with some pretty cool fight scenes too AND some cool twists without that Lost kinda feel, like how Attack on Titan keeps throwing all of these curveballs at you when I don't think there is any way for them to give a good explanation for them. 

like... seriously...


----------



## Alberto7

I love anime, but.. just... what...? .... 


I cringed so hard it broke my spine.


----------



## MFB

sakeido said:


> I thought the Japanese voice actors were awful too. Overall, I hated that series.



The only one I don't care for is Armin's. He's WAY too girly/wimpy.

I watched a video recently about all the new animes of 2013 and Kill LA Kill just seems too ...self-aware that it's an anime. I heard some of the lines and it does the traditional anime faces way too often for me to even care; same for Log Horizon. It's the same premise as SAO but I feel like it just won't come close to it in my book since that one had so many good moments.


----------



## Necris

If someone could condense Attack on Titan down to a bunch of clips of Titans killing people and being killed that would suffice for me. I don't care to watch the series.


----------



## Somnium

So yesterday I finished watching Puella Magi Madoka Magica...and somehow today I'm supposed to function normally in society?! Takes me back to watching the End of Evangelion or The Fountain, in that I feel absolutely empty inside afterwards lol. Defs top 5 for me though, retardedly highly recommended, just prepare yourself for hecka feels.


----------



## Alberto7

^ If I have a problem with anime, it is exactly that. I just don't know what to do with myself after a really good show. I was completely inept in every aspect of life for about a week after finishing Clannad: After Story. I was useless and just wanted to curl up into a ball and cry forever. Also happened with Madoka Magica (after watching the show, and then after the Rebellion film), and many others, but Clannad AS takes the cake by far.

It might also happen again now after I'm done with Fate/Zero. I'm on episode 17, and I'm REALLY into it. I don't think I'd ever say it's my favorite anime ever, but it's way up there, and it's got me completely involved. If there's something that Fate/Zero does perfectly is consistency. It is ALWAYS good, and episodes go by FAST. So far there haven't been any moments like the church scene or the end of Cowboy Bebop, or the Asuka-goes-all-psycho scene of End of Eva, or the main twist in Steins;Gate, or the deep philosophy of Ghost in the Shell and Serial Experiments Lain, but it's just... excellent all throughout, in all aspects. If I were to compare it, I'd say it has the enjoyment and grip of Attack on Titan, but done right.


----------



## M3CHK1LLA

just got through watching some old-school gotchaman...

...no, not g-force or battle of the planets.


----------



## DanielC1996

An anime i recently watched and loved was Guilty Crown it's got cool music,terrorists,some robots, and just brought the feels out for me


----------



## DanielC1996

Oh and i didn't see this one posted either Accel World its like a sister series to SAO.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

DanielC1996 said:


> An anime i recently watched and loved was Guilty Crown it's got cool music,terrorists,some robots, and just brought the feels out for me



They definitely had the right production values. But to me it really was worth watching mostly for the visuals/music/production. The actual content wasn't too special, in fact I found it somewhat childish and stereotypical a lot of the time. I still love it for what it is though, and I still spin the egoist album regularly.

And it DID deliver the feels, I remember feeling really down after it.



Lately I haven't watched an anime that I'd feel like sharing with you guys..
Chihayafuru was great apart from it being way too sports oriented, the characters and the development of their relationships was more fun than karuta, not that karuta wasn't fun, but I wasn't cool with the ratio. I guess I just can't do sports anime even though I really liked some parts of the show.

Not sure if I should mention I also watched Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai and Amagami SS (Kaoru was alright). Probably shouldn't.

Kokoro Connect was cool though, that one I can recommend. Great character development/interaction, and the love triangle was handled beautifully even though I thought I'd hate it.



I also rewatched the first season of Aria during christmas and I just can't. It's unlike any other anime, it doesn't suck you in with a plot and stuff, I don't feel like watching it in two days because I want to know what happens.. it's just something that makes my heart melt with happiness. It's like waking up to cuddling on a sunday morning, too soft and sweet to be true.


----------



## bouVIP

DanielC1996 said:


> Oh and i didn't see this one posted either Accel World its like a sister series to SAO.



It is written by the same person, but the MC of Accel World is so annoying -_-



Anyone looking for a hilarious comedy should check out Seitokai Yakuindomo. The jokes can get pretty raunchy....


----------



## MFB

Welp, finished Attack on Titan

I know who everyone is because I got antsy and looked it up but I can only see the show going one more season since the book ends with one more arc after that; and they most certainly can do it in 25 episodes as long as they don't do fillers up the fvcking high heavens like the first season had.


----------



## bouVIP

The Attack on Titan manga is still going on though


----------



## MFB

bouVIP said:


> The Attack on Titan manga is still going on though



Really? I thought it ended after the Clash of the Titans arc


----------



## bouVIP

MFB said:


> Really? I thought it ended after the Clash of the Titans arc



I'm not sure what arc that refers to since I haven't seen the anime, but I see ch53 as the newest 1 and it's currently about Eren and Historia


----------



## MFB

bouVIP said:


> I'm not sure what arc that refers to since I haven't seen the anime, but I see ch53 as the newest 1 and it's currently about Eren and Historia



Clash of the Titans arc hasn't been shown in the anime yet, hence why I imagine it'll be the second season of the show. 



Spoiler



In the manga, it's the arc that follows them capturing Annie and it's when the identities of the Colossal/Armored Titan and one other Titan are revealed as well as their possible deaths. If they do die - I can't remember and don't care to look it up right now - then after that it'd end on the note of Eren going into the world with Armin and Mikasa I imagine, and end on a solid note of not being 16698541 episodes of filler like SOME animes *cough*Naruto/Bleach/DeathNote*cough*


----------



## bouVIP

MFB said:


> Clash of the Titans arc hasn't been shown in the anime yet, hence why I imagine it'll be the second season of the show.
> 
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> In the manga, it's the arc that follows them capturing Annie and it's when the identities of the Colossal/Armored Titan and one other Titan are revealed as well as their possible deaths. If they do die - I can't remember and don't care to look it up right now - then after that it'd end on the note of Eren going into the world with Armin and Mikasa I imagine, and end on a solid note of not being 16698541 episodes of filler like SOME animes *cough*Naruto/Bleach/DeathNote*cough*





Spoiler



Oh that part. They ran away and are alive and after that is where they (Eren and friends) are in hiding with Levi and the others and they talk about Krista/Historia's past


----------



## MFB

Ah, OK then


----------



## MFB

Watched the first episode of Log Horizon. So far it's what you'd expect but I'll give it two more to see if it does anything really worth sticking with.


----------



## Alberto7

^ So, have you watched the other episodes is it worth sticking with? I saw a first-impressions video of it when it was still in its early episodes, and it looked promising. A part of me wished it would be like SAO, but without the f*ckups. I still want to watch it though.

On another note, I finished Fate/Zero yesterday and, holy crap, what a ride. What a twisted series. Those last 5 episodes really do bring teh feels. I kinda feel like watching Fate/Stay Night now, but I think I'm just going to wait for the "remake" this year; it looks like it will be incredible. ufotable + Type-Moon collaborations seem to produce amazing results, so this Stay Night remake should be awesome. I'm also thinking of playing the visual novel.


----------



## Don Vito

Ah, Fate Zero. Never finished that one, but I remember it being pretty good. I really couldn't figure out what was happening with the story and characters, which is probably why I ended up dropping it.

Dat OP


----------



## MFB

Alberto7 said:


> ^ So, have you watched the other episodes is it worth sticking with? I saw a first-impressions video of it when it was still in its early episodes, and it looked promising. A part of me wished it would be like SAO, but without the f*ckups. I still want to watch it though.
> 
> On another note, I finished Fate/Zero yesterday and, holy crap, what a ride. What a twisted series. Those last 5 episodes really do bring teh feels. I kinda feel like watching Fate/Stay Night now, but I think I'm just going to wait for the "remake" this year; it looks like it will be incredible. ufotable + Type-Moon collaborations seem to produce amazing results, so this Stay Night remake should be awesome. I'm also thinking of playing the visual novel.



I just finished episode 3, and so far it's kind of boring. I'm also really tired of hearing "My Lord" from Akatsuki whenever she speaks.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Hhmmm... I guess if it's trying to appeal to the SAO crowd it will have a tough time coming across as entertaining, since SAO is so ridiculously fun and engaging. I'll probably watch it at some point, but every time I ask someone about it my expectations lower further.



Don Vito said:


> Ah, Fate Zero. Never finished that one, but I remember it being pretty good. I really couldn't figure out what was happening with the story and characters, which is probably why I ended up dropping it.
> 
> Dat OP
> *LiSa video*



I watched a review of it on YouTube before starting to watch it (Gigguk's review), and it gave me enough context to at least know what I was getting myself into. That plus focusing on memorizing character names and descriptions from the first episode really helped me to follow what was happening. But yeah, it is kinda convoluted in the beginning, given that each character has such a massive backstory, and the rules of the Holy Grail War are so many and aren't stated outright. By the end of it, there were still a couple of unanswered questions, which is why I'm itching to play the VN. And yes, the music is fantastic. I mean, Yuki Kajiura... again.  She's everywhere, I swear. The only piece I didn't really like was the ED for the second season, but even that wasn't bad.

It's also really cool how they got actual historical figures, items, and events and brought them to life while giving them a lot of cool twists. It was quite a nerdgasm in that sense.


----------



## MFB

Alberto7 said:


> ^ Hhmmm... I guess if it's trying to appeal to the SAO crowd it will have a tough time coming across as entertaining, since SAO is so ridiculously fun and engaging. I'll probably watch it at some point, but every time I ask someone about it my expectations lower further.



I think the one thing that kind of kills it, and separates it from SAO, is that if you die in the game: you still revive. Which to me just says, there's no worries. They say that there's a penalty for dying, which I imagine is just a fee you pay when you revive (a la Borderlands) but aside from that my only real goal for watching the series would be to find out what the actual end-game is; but since it's in Japanese, that's half-an hour per episode I have to sit reading for something I only kind of care about.


----------



## bouVIP

Well currently in Log Horizon, you find out more about the consequences of death and why everything is happening. I personally prefer it over SAO cause the battles are more like a game and the story is a bit deeper than SAO. It's not as straight forward so there's more explanation


----------



## Alberto7

MFB said:


> I think the one thing that kind of kills it, and separates it from SAO, is that if you die in the game: you still revive. Which to me just says, there's no worries. They say that there's a penalty for dying, which I imagine is just a fee you pay when you revive (a la Borderlands) but aside from that my only real goal for watching the series would be to find out what the actual end-game is; but since it's in Japanese, that's half-an hour per episode I have to sit reading for something I only kind of care about.






bouVIP said:


> Well currently in Log Horizon, you find out more about the consequences of death and why everything is happening. I personally prefer it over SAO cause the battles are more like a game and the story is a bit deeper than SAO. It's not as straight forward so there's more explanation



So, from what I gather, it is, in a way, a more-or-less realistic take on the MMORPG genre (what with the focus on more traditional game mechanics and whatnots), with the catch being that the people are actually trapped in the game. It's good to hear that the consequences of dying do become more apparent later on in the show, and that those consequences are explored. That kind of rekindles my expectations a little bit. In any case, I think I've gathered what I need for now, and I'll just need to see it to judge for myself. Thanks for the input, guys.


----------



## Mr-Jemhead93

so I bummed it the last few weeks and watched through episode 150 something on Fairy Tail. I was really liking it but then I felt like it started getting a little too predictable, dont get me wrong I do like it a lot but its disappointing when you already know what the outcome is going to be several episodes ahead


----------



## Osorio

this is so very thinly related to anime that I don't know if I should post it here, but it seems like the best place to get a decent answer, since it pertains anime playback... Here is my problem:

I like to watch anime, I like to have archival copies of stuff, and I've been going through a process of getting 1080p (sometimes 720p so that my internet doesn't die) copies of stuff.

Every time I stumble into anime I see it in an .mkv container, but most "live action" series seem to be distributed in .mp4 nowadays (that I've seen at least). And the file sizes are usually smaller (which should never be the case with variable encoding, as anime has HUGE chunks of space that are the exact same color, reducing the overall color spectrum by A LOT). 
As someone bugged by efficiency, I've always wandered if transcoding these .mkv into .mp4 (and strip the useless shit in the process) would be a good idea. The decrease of size is obvious, but I'm wondering if there are any downsides (expect for the possible lack of subtitle styling which I REALLY couldn't possibly care any less for).

Any thoughts?

*EDIT:* After some rather convoluted research, I discovered that there is no real downside to MP4 aside the loss of subtitle styling. As long as the conversion is done with some level of care, MP4 seems to be a more widely accepted format and gives me less headache than MKV, so I might as well go for it. 

Relaying my findings in case anyone finds themselves in a similar situation.


----------



## bouVIP

So many yeses


----------



## Alberto7

^ Oh yeah! I was talking about that remake a couple of posts ago. I really can't wait. And it's gonna be directed by the same guy that did _Fate/Zero_ and _Kara no Kyoukai_ (a.k.a. _The Garden of Sinners_), so I'm 100% confident it'll be amazing. I swear I'm becoming the hugest ufotable fanboy. 

I'm currently playing through the _Fate/Stay Night_ visual novel, and so far it's awesome. Almost all of the questions that I had from _Fate/Zero_ have already been answered by the prologue alone. Really cool series, and I'm super glad I finally decided to indulge in it; it'll keep me occupied for a while.


----------



## SamSam

Alberto7 said:


> ^ Hhmmm... I guess if it's trying to appeal to the SAO crowd it will have a tough time coming across as entertaining, since SAO is so ridiculously fun and engaging. I'll probably watch it at some point, but every time I ask someone about it my expectations lower further.



Stick with Log Horizon man, it's a slow starter but there's much more of a story to be told than SAO which was ok, but ultimately rather shallow compared to the better series out there.


----------



## Alberto7

SamSam said:


> Stick with Log Horizon man, it's a slow starter but there's much more of a story to be told than SAO which was ok, but ultimately rather shallow compared to the better series out there.



Good to hear that. They might end up being complementary to each other, after all. I haven't started it, but it's on my list of things to watch, and it has a relatively high priority, so I think it'll happen sooner than later.


----------



## Somnium

So yesterday I finished watching Fate/Stay Night (even more feels) and ordered the Unlimited Blade Works OVA (along with both volumes of Steins;Gate) and I'm now wishing I could afford those super fancy blu-ray box sets for Fate/Zero. Also received that Saya No Uta visual novel sans the mailman. Been on a Gen Urobuchi kick since watching Madoka Magica so now I have to devour his other works lol. I'm thinking next on the list to watch is probably either going to be Steins;Gate or Fate/Zero. I feel like I should probably take a break and watch something more uplifting though, because after watching Black Rock Shooter, Madoka Magica, and Fate/Stay Night in quick succession; this niqqa is in a dark place lol. 

@Alberto7: Mind if I ask where/how you acquired the Fate/Stay Night visual novel? I know I'm going to be investing plenty of time in that at some point down the road. I also saw that Jast is currently taking preorders for a localized version of the Steins;Gate visual novel if you haven't heard.


----------



## Alberto7

^ I got it from a friend, but that thing's all over the place on the internet too. I found out yesterday that they have it at my university's anime club and that they could have just rented it out to me.  Aren't there any manga cafes and/or anime clubs near you? Check with them to see if they have it for rent, as physical copies of the game are incredibly expensive. Cheaper for the PS2 and Vita, but at $80 (assuming you have either console), it's still ridiculous.

And yes, Gen Urobuchi certainly can't be the happiest man in the world , but he's at least not as f*cked in the head as others of his kin out there *cough*Mamoru Oshii*cough*Hideaki Anno*coughcough*. That reminds me I have to watch Psycho-Pass at some point.

As far as the _Steins;Gate_ VN goes, I've heard it's really good, though I've never played it. Good to hear that it's being released in North America. I'd love to get the Limited Edition if only for the Future Gadget Lab member badges that it comes with . I'm not in a hurry to play that one though, as the anime was very satisfying to me (still have to watch the film though).

By the way, since you mentioned wanting to watch _Steins;Gate_ (HIGHLY recommend that you do so) and having watched _Black Rock Shooter_, have any of you checked out the Huke artbook?





It's mainly concept art from_ Black Rock Shooter_ (which I haven't watched), but as he's also the character designer of Steins;Gate, there's a good chunk of the book (about a 3rd of it, I'd say) dedicated to concept _Steins;Gate_ art. I really, really love his character designs and concepts. I've no idea what BRS is about, but it also looks awesome, based just on the art. There's also some miscellaneous art in there. My sister and I bought it a while back, and I've spent hours just looking at the different pieces and pages. It's friggin' beautiful.

EDIT: Apparently Huke is also a "deviant." You can see some of his artwork there, including things from the book I just mentioned: http://ryoheihuke.deviantart.com/gallery/


----------



## Somnium

I WANT THAT BOOK SO GOSH DARN BAD MAN YOU DON'T EVEN KNOW. Huke's artwork is phenomenal. I'd definitely recommend checking out the Black Rock Shooter series though. It's only 8 episodes and it's pretty well done imo. You can probably skip the OVA though. Steins;Gate should be waiting for me when I get home from work so I'm pumped as hell to start watching that.

I figured the Fate/Stay Night visual novel would be pretty easy to find online but unfortunately I'm one of those cursed individuals that revels in the ownership of physical products, and yeah that ish be pricey as fugg. If you were able to rent that copy and say, lose it in drug deal gone awry, I wouldn't mind trading you some currency for it huehuehuehuehueh.

Also, have you watched any of the Garden of Sinners? I mean sure $150 is steep, but with each passing day I feel myself slipping farther and farther into an anime-induced psychosis...a very expensive anime-induced psychosis...


----------



## Don Vito

Loli Cries!


----------



## Alberto7

Somnium said:


> I WANT THAT BOOK SO GOSH DARN BAD MAN YOU DON'T EVEN KNOW. Huke's artwork is phenomenal. I'd definitely recommend checking out the Black Rock Shooter series though. It's only 8 episodes and it's pretty well done imo. You can probably skip the OVA though. Steins;Gate should be waiting for me when I get home from work so I'm pumped as hell to start watching that.
> 
> I figured the Fate/Stay Night visual novel would be pretty easy to find online but unfortunately I'm one of those cursed individuals that revels in the ownership of physical products, and yeah that ish be pricey as fugg. If you were able to rent that copy and say, lose it in drug deal gone awry, I wouldn't mind trading you some currency for it huehuehuehuehueh.
> 
> Also, have you watched any of the Garden of Sinners? I mean sure $150 is steep, but with each passing day I feel myself slipping farther and farther into an anime-induced psychosis...a very expensive anime-induced psychosis...



Hahaha dude, get the book! It's gorgeous, and its presentation is breathtaking. The hard cover, the matte finish on the protector, the quality of the paper, the art (of course)... as a fan of BRS and as a future fan of _Steins;Gate_ (because, let's be honest, how can anyone not be?), you owe this to yourself.

Like you, I have a strong need to have everything I like in physical (licensed) format. Not only because of the novelty of it and all the extras that come with it, but because I like to have it in the highest quality possible. I've been buying a few things over the last couple of years, but I spend much faster than I can gather funds, so my list of anime-related things to buy is long and unfulfilled.

I watched _Kara no Kyoukai_ (a.k.a. _The Garden of Sinners_) over the winter break, and I still can't really get over how absolutely stunning it was. I posted a quick (and honestly kinda crappily-written) review of it on page 20 of this thread. It's what pushed me to finally watch _Fate/Zero_, actually (since they're both made by ufotable and Type-Moon). This is my current first on that to-buy list that I talked about before, but I have to wait a little more... thing's expensive as hell.  Between that and the guitar-related stuff, I don't know what's gonna ruin me first.



Don Vito said:


> Loli Cries!



I think I had a stroke. That site is the stuff of nightmares (and guilty pleasures... oh, Lord... )

... tuuu-tuu-duuuuuu *Mayuri's voice*


----------



## bouVIP

Have any of you guys seen Hamatora? It's pretty good and reminds me of a less dark version of Psycho-Pass.


----------



## Somnium

Alberto7 said:


> tuuu-tuu-duuuuuu *Mayuri's voice*



HHHNNNNNNNGGGG.

So I started watching Steins;Gate yesterday, and after about 4 or 5 episodes I'm already hooked. I NEED TO GET OFF WORK SO I CAN WATCH MORE.


----------



## Alberto7

bouVIP said:


> Have any of you guys seen Hamatora? It's pretty good and reminds me of a less dark version of Psycho-Pass.



The art style and animation look really, really cool. The music didn't make that much of an impression on me the first time, though that could change over time. Seems worth checking out! Thanks for sharing that 



Somnium said:


> So I started watching Steins;Gate yesterday, and after about 4 or 5 episodes I'm already hooked. I NEED TO GET OFF WORK SO I CAN WATCH MORE.



Yeah, just wait about a half dozen episodes or so more.  You won't leave the house.


----------



## Fat-Elf

NSFW-ish

Wait a minute.. Next time I go buy some cheese, there will be a pic of a Ika Musume on the cover? Neat..


----------



## Somnium

Okay, so I recently finished watching Steins;Gate and I can easily say it's one of the greatest things I've ever experienced. That being said, I was shedding tears like an abandoned infant all over the damn place. That one brought the feels, man. I plan on importing a copy of the film here when I get some more of that sweet-ass cash money, then it's on to the Madoka Magica movies. By the way, rightstuf is currently taking preorders for the third Madoka Magica film (the one that isn't a recap of the series) and I believe it's set to drop in early April. Fugging Aniplex you bastards why must you rob me of money I don't have?!


----------



## Alberto7

Glad you loved _Steins;Gate_! I knew you would.  Truly one of the greatest animes to have come out in recent years and, dare I say, an instant classic. I must urgently watch the damn film. I'm impatiently waiting for a North American release.

And yeah, anything Madoka related is ridiculously expensive. When the DVD's for the show first came out the prices were exorbitantly high. My little sister has been trying to buy this figurine for the longest time, but it's always $150+ for it:





I kinda justify the price though... it's friggin' gorgeous.  I feel like I should it buy it for her some time when I have money.

I haven't watched the first two Madoka movies, but as they're just recap, I don't really have an urge to watch them, unless it is for the new and remastered soundtracks. I watched the third movie at the cinema on the Canadian release day, and it's honestly one of the best cinema experiences I've ever had, not to mention that it became one of my favorite anime films ever (of the series-based variety anyway), and I consider it a perfect addition to the Madoka series; despite the huge controversy, I feel it's incredible what they did with it and how they did it. Visually speaking, it's f*cking gorgeous; even more so than the series.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

so I thought I should keep another break from the overly sweet and fluffy stuff and finally watched Mnemosyne no Musume-tachi after adding it to my to-watch list whenever it was mentioned in this thread. I think it fulfilled whatever expectations you guys made me have for it nicely. That's all, thank you.

Can't really recommend it though since I think Kurozuka is way better, although I'd probably need to rewatch that to make an objective comparison.


----------



## Alberto7

Never heard of _Kurozuka_, but I can only assume it resembles _Daughters of Mnemosyne_, am I right?

Also, I have a question: how often do you guys say the phrase "it's only natural"? Or refer to something of normal occurrence as being "natural"? I feel like they say that WAY TOO MUCH in anime.  I've been playing the _Fate/Stay Night_ VN a lot lately, and I love it, but literally every other frame contains the expression "it's only natural," or, at least, the word "natural" in it and, while it doesn't bother me, it's got to the point where I can't not notice it.  I found its usage is also quite high in the _Spice and Wolf _graphic novels. I only started to notice it recently while going through those two titles, so I can't really remember how prevalent it is in anime/manga as a whole. I suspect it might be a translation thing, but certainly not everything is translated by the same people haha.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

Alberto7 said:


> Never heard of _Kurozuka_, but I can only assume it resembles _Daughters of Mnemosyne_, am I right?



Yes and mostly no. The mood is very different, and Kurozuka lacks the ecchi/yuri/sexual aspect, but the common theme of immortality/time-skip-confusion/love is very apparent in both. Kurozuka definitely comes off as the more mature one of the two but it's also a lot heavier watch. Needless to say both are rather violent, which to me isn't anything I look for in an anime. However:







Do I even need to say more?


----------



## Alberto7

Holy shitzoes, Batman, the animation there looks amazing. Just checked out the OP as well, and it *looks* good. Will be adding it to the list to watch it at some point.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

yeah, it hasn't done too well in reviews though (around 7 on mal), I guess it's the sort of things many will either love or hate. Don't hate me if you don't like it ;D To me it appealed a lot, but I can understand why it doesn't appeal to everyone even if they were into the genre in general.


----------



## Alberto7

Haha no worries; when I know what I'm getting into (like now), it's hard for me to be disappointed. If I enjoyed Mnemosyne (which, generally speaking, isn't that great), I guess I could like this, too. It seems to be very good eye candy, so I predict it to be at least enjoyable.


----------



## Alberto7

After 36 and a half hours of gameplay, I finally finished the _Fate_ route (first one) on _Fate/Stay Night_... and oh my God the feels are eating me inside out. I'm glad I still have at least 30 more hours to go through the other routes, because I still can't get enough of it 

Really, really good game and awesome story. Great, constant plot twists, and I got all of the unanswered questions that lingered from _Fate/Zero_. I still have two more routes to go, where I hope that even more questions get answered. It begins very light-heartedly, and has very light hearted music a lot of the time, which gives it a seemingly easy-going and somewhat innocent nature in the beginning. However, things begin to turn progressively darker and darker, and it just doesn't stop until the very end. And the ending - oh, that ending! It's so damaging, yet so fulfilling.

It's my first time playing through a visual novel, so getting used to the "gameplay" was fun, too. This particular one is very uninvolved, and just requires the player to click through the text and voice acting, and there are very few decisions to make compared to how long it is. It's kind of curious how slow paced it is, too, considering how much action there is. The character's actions, thought processes, and motivations are extremely detailed out, which I presume is what makes it feel so slow. That level of detail is what brings me to my next point...

... One downside, however... I don't mind sex scenes; in fact, they add another layer of depth to the story when used well (and I do believe they were very well placed within the story, and they work to great effect in order to develop the plot), but when those scenes make it so obvious that this game was originally designed to be a full-on erotic visual novel (i.e. full-on hardcore hentai), I do have a problem with it. The aforementioned scenes - few and far between on this route - are very long, and extremely graphic. I feel the need to emphasize: _extremely_ graphic; background stills included. Jeez, talk about unnecessary.  I hear they're even more persistent on the Heaven's Feel route, so I'm bracing myself for that. 

It's a big complaint, but the only one I have really. Luckily, I feel it's easy for me to look past disappointing things when it comes to anime, but that was a hard one to overcome. I do think it's totally worth suffering through them just to experience the rest of the story though.

I will hopefully be writing a full review of the whole _Fate_ series once I'm done with the _Unlimited Bladeworks_ and _Heaven's Feel_ routes. Then I'll do a separate one for the remake coming out this Fall.

EDIT: I forgot to add that this series has what is my favorite villain in a long time.


----------



## bouVIP

I've only gotten pass the prologue 


Also started watching D-Frag and I recommend it to anyone looking for a funny anime.



Probably my favorite anime this season.


----------



## habicore_5150

I don't mean to hijack the thread, but...

AKIRA Remake Director Says Story Lacks 'Strong Characters'

Apparently, we got a guy working on a live action remake of Akira (I can see the torches, pitchforks, and shotguns from 20 miles away), who came out and admitted that he doesn't like the characters because they wasn't "strong enough"

Anyone feel the urge to smack this guy?


----------



## Alberto7

bouVIP said:


> I've only gotten pass the prologue



That prologue was friggin' long. It took me 3 hours to go through. I was taking my time though, and getting accustomed to the whole thing.



habicore_5150 said:


> I don't mean to hijack the thread, but...
> 
> AKIRA Remake Director Says Story Lacks 'Strong Characters'
> 
> Apparently, we got a guy working on a live action remake of Akira (I can see the torches, pitchforks, and shotguns from 20 miles away), who came out and admitted that he doesn't like the characters because they wasn't "strong enough"
> 
> Anyone feel the urge to smack this guy?



I haven't watched Akira ([wapanese]wakatta wakatta[/wapanese], shame on me), I can't say much about the lack of strong characters (even though they're pretty friggin' iconic, and I believe it to be for a valid reason), but why on Earth would he do a remake of a movie he doesn't like? I hope he doesn't try to "fix" it.


----------



## bouVIP

Started watching Witch Craft Works. It's pretty great! I love the humor and there are some pretty cool fight scenes.


----------



## Somnium

So I haven't watched anything since Steins;Gate, and now I'm trying to decide if I want to pay $70-80 to import the movie. On top of that I found out they have Steins;Gate nendoroids that are retardedly adorable and I want to own all of them forever. I really wish I didn't have to wait til the end of March for the visual novel to drop as well...I JUST WANT MORE STEINS;GATE

Has anyone ever played the Chaos;Head visual novel? Thinking about taking a shot at that while I wait for Steins;Gate


----------



## Alberto7

I haven't watched the _Chaos;Head_ anime, nor have I played the visual novel, but reviews aren't favorable at all for the anime.

As far as your need for your Steins;Gate fix, I totally understand your pain. I'm going through something similar at the moment, and it's in the following paragraph.

Quick update on my _Fate/Stay Night_ adventure, should anyone be interested (or, rather, for posterity ): THIS GAME IS SO F*CKING LONG!! I have played for literally 57 hours flat, and I still haven't even finished the second route (although I'm pretty sure I'm about to finish it). I feel like I've read like 7 books worth of visual novel already. I'm loving the heck out of it, don't get me wrong, but my fear is that I literally will not know what to do with my life once I finish it; I have never been so involved and drawn into one universe alone and this consistently for so long. I play at least a couple of hours a day before going to bed, and it has quickly developed into a very intense routine. It'll be like quitting smoking all over again; I was not expecting this.  I still highly recommend it though. I'll write up a short review of the second route like I did for the first one, and, once I finish it, a proper review of the whole thing.


----------



## sakeido

DL and watch the movie. It is exactly what you need to get over a Steins;gate withdrawal. 

And seriously, nobody else here watching Kill la Kill? episodes 17-19 were all sooooo awesome


----------



## Alberto7

So, 62 hours and 16 minutes later, I'm done with the _Unlimited Blade Works_ route.

... man, I really like these endings. I feel they're really, really well suited for the length and scope of such epic stories. I also found out that, in some cases, there's more than one good ending for a particular route, and only one of those good endings will be the true (canon) ending, so you have to choose one. It becomes a hard choice when you like one of the non-canon good endings better than the canon one. 

Overall, I feel like this route was much more story-driven, and focused a lot more on developing the main character. I feel I'm still slightly more attached to the events in the _Fate_ (first) route, but this one is still worthy of some manly tears.

One thing I didn't like much is that _Unlimited Blade Works_ never really made up its mind as to whether or not it wanted to go through all the details, concepts, premises, and character introductions again, or if it wanted to skip all that. Some scenes, particularly in the beginning, felt rather unnecessary, since they were literally copy/paste from the first route. It's like it wanted to attract viewers that hadn't gone through the first route. However, as the story develops, the game progressively begins to assume that the viewer/player already knows things that are fleshed out in the first route, and it doesn't go through them again. Like the player already knows some of the character's backgrounds and identities if he/she's played the first route, but those same things are never really made clear within the frame of this second route... I guess that somewhat makes sense , it's kinda complicated to explain, especially if you haven't played a visual novel before.

In any case, I liked the story itself better this time around. It was much more straight to the point, a lot more balls-to-the-wall action, more suspense and intrigue, and less idle time and scenes where the characters are just chilling around without doing a lot; it has a much less casual/slice-of-life-ish feel than the first route. Some characters are left a little bit out of the picture, but that's due to the MASSIVE development of the main two characters, and the heavy focus on the story. However, that's okay if you've played the first route already (which I totally believe you should if you're playing this one), since they're more developed there.

Also, some porn in this route as well. However, it's not as bad as on the first route, and I think it's easier to brace through. Still, I wish it didn't have to be so graphic. 

Now, onward with the third, and final, route: _Heavens Feel_!


----------



## bouVIP

Man I wish I had time to finish FSN. Lol

Started watching Steins;gate since every1 talks about it and now I know why! It's so good


----------



## Alberto7

Truth is, I shouldn't have the time to play it. I'm forcing it into my schedule, and it hasn't been good at all in that sense. It's just that I picked up too much momentum with it before uni started kicking my ass . I have some time to breathe now though; I can wait until after I'm done with exams and other duties so I can begin playing it again and not feel like it is destroying my life .

Also, good for you for watching _Steins;Gate_. Every anime fan should watch it at least once.

As for _Kill la Kill_, I want to watch it, but I never seem to get that initial drive to sit down and do it. I did watch part of the first episode when it first came out (until my internet decided to take a shit on me), and it was awesome, but I didn't keep on watching, for some reason. At this point, I'm just waiting for it to end and hear/read some reviews of the entire thing. I'm definitely watching it at some point though. Really like the art style and character designs.


----------



## wat

Total Anime noob here. I was never into Anime but I recently watched all Of _Attack On Titan_ and LOVED it. I'm all about it. Now I'm on to _Trigun_ and I really like that too and I'm starting to realize I'm really into the art styles and the way characters are written in this kind of stuff.

What are some must-watch Anime's for a noob? Not necessarily stuff that's beginner friendly, but just the must-watch stuff. new and old? 

I know I need to watch _Ghost In The Shell_ and _Neon Genesis Evangelion_ because I can tell those are right up my alley. But what else? It also helps if it's on NetFlix right now.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Good to hear you're getting into anime! I'd say you should watch:

_*Cowboy Bebop*_, which I think goes hand-in-hand with _*Trigun*_ as they complement each other very well (even if they have nothing to do with each other storywise).

You rightly mentioned *GitS* and _*NGE*_.

You should also probably watch _*Spice and Wolf*_ if you're into character development, character interactions, and witty scripts and/or dialogues. You have the first season of this show on Funimation's YouTube channel, and the second season is on Netflix (in Canada).

_*Death Note*_ and _*Code Geass*_ for their ridonkulous epicness and smart plots.

_*Haibane Renmei*_ for its incredibly beautiful and soulful nature, which gets you thinking a lot.

_*Madoka Magica*_ because it's so awesome seeing the generally non-serious magical girl genre being torn to pieces, not to mention it is actually amazing in and of itself.

_*Steins;Gate*_ if you like sci-fi and intense and sudden plot twists along with great characters.

_*Clannad*_, since the second season is one of the most beautifully heart-ripping things I've ever watched, and it's great seeing a story that feels as complete and fleshed out as this one.

I would personally also recommend _*Planetes*_ if you happen to like hard sci-fi a la _*2001: A Space Odyssey*_, but with a ton of character development.

Those are just some of the ones I really like, and I'm sure I'm missing a few others.

Here's a pretty good video listing 25 must-watch shows that I agree with for the most part. I like the way he reviews anime:


EDIT: I don't know why I didn't say this at the beginning of my post, but go through a few pages of this thread. There are a lot of things people have recommended already, so you'll surely find some that are interesting.


----------



## habicore_5150

No idea why, but I'm seeing a mix of Gundam and Evangelion. Looks interesting


----------



## MFB

I recommend Trigun to anyone who's looking to get into anime. It seems to be the perfect blend of starting off light-hearted and then getting more serious within the last half while not feeling like you started watching an entirely different series.

It's easily my all-time favorite anime, and one of the four shows I've ever given 5 stars on Netflix


----------



## sakeido

Before I watched much anime, a friend of my brother's was describing Trigun.. he said "It's a little weird and gets annoying from time to time, some sweet characters like Wolfwood. Then Legato shows up and changes *everything*." And JESUS was he ever right! 

I thought the conclusion was extremely lackluster (ep23 was soooo much better than 26) so it isn't by any means one of my fav animes but it is still great.


----------



## MFB

Really? That's disappointing but I'm more than happy to say I'm biased towards the ending because I'm a big utilitarian which is what the entire show boils down to later on so the ending to me was exactly what it needed.

That said, I understand why some people expect/want more from it's ending


----------



## Alberto7

I'd comment more on _Trigun_, but it's been ages since I watched it, and I barely remember it. I just remember liking it a whole ton, and it somehow reminded me of _Bebop_, even though they're very different anime. Must be that Old Wild West sort of feel.



habicore_5150 said:


> No idea why, but I'm seeing a mix of Gundam and Evangelion. Looks interesting




Heard of the manga, but I've no idea how good it is. It looks really cool. And totally spot on with the Gundam/Eva comparison. I'll keep an eye out for this one.


----------



## Muzakman

I'll add one thing.. they should start dubbing DBZ Battle of Gods because the japanese voices are a real turn off for me.. Kamehameha people..


----------



## Fat-Elf

Anyone here using Crunchyroll? Are the shows subbed or dubbed? I don't want to pay $6,95 a month for some dubs.


----------



## Don Vito

>buting anims


----------



## Fat-Elf

uwotm5?


----------



## Don Vito

dont feel bad i spent 50 dollars on haruhhi season 2 at best but

ill never forgive myself


----------



## Fat-Elf

Don Vito said:


> dont feel bad i spent 50 dollars on haruhhi season 2 at best but
> 
> ill never forgive myself



That's pretty bad but the thing is that I can't really download anime during weeks and I'm usually too tired to watch any anime during the weekends so my only solution would be to subscribe to Crunchyroll.


----------



## Don Vito

das racist


----------



## Fat-Elf

Don Vito said:


> das racist



go2bed


----------



## Don Vito

its 6 pm here

u go to bed


----------



## Fat-Elf

Don Vito said:


> its 6 pm here
> 
> u go to bed



It's 2am here, I am going to the bed but I will continue lurking with my awesome new phone.

#technology #paying4anime #


----------



## Don Vito

what phone did you get??


----------



## Fat-Elf

Don Vito said:


> what phone did you get??



Alcatel One Touch Scribe HD, cheap but good.


----------



## Don Vito

never heard of it

must be some euro thing

expensive phones are overrated as .... doe


----------



## Somnium

So I had some extra cash chilling it up from a guitar I had recently sold so I decided to play stupid for a second and drop the $100 on the limited version of the Steins;Gate film (2:00 in the morning, stoned, jonesing for some Steins;Gate, amazon mobile app...shit was a recipe for disaster.) Paid an extra $10 for shipping too. Got that ish in the mail yesterday and the fuggin box is dented to hell. I was pretty heated, and to make things worse that was the only copy on ebay/amazon that was actually in the US so I'd have to wait 3 weeks to import another copy. Shit was absolutely uncash as fugg.

So now that I won't be watching the Steins;Gate film for a while (at least not legally...) I'm looking for something new to watch. Has anybody watched any Robotics;Notes yet? I ended up buying the first half when Amazon had it discounted to $20 (and it actually just shipped today) and was just wondering if I could expect it to get dark like Steins;Gate. Other than that I'm thinking I might snag Psycho-Pass when that drops.


----------



## Don Vito

im gonna watch lucky starz in 240p in individual parts on youtube

2007 4ever 



bouVIP said:


> Started watching Witch Craft Works. It's pretty great! I love the humor and there are some pretty cool fight scenes.


i'll watch this too because im behind on new anime

last things I watched were wagamogi(which i never finsished despite my undying love for tomoko) space dancu which i never catch because its tv, and mirai nikki this time last year

hell i might just rewatch that amazing shit


----------



## Fat-Elf

Don Vito said:


> never heard of it
> 
> must be some euro thing
> 
> expensive phones are overrated as .... doe



Yup,
it's French. I wanted a Samsung but the clerk said they're overpriced and has worse specs so I got this one.


----------



## Don Vito

everyone that doesnt have an iphone has a samsung galazy

you can get'em free with certain plans though

i have an iphone 4 that i hate cus apple sux dieeeeee

i should go back to my old samsung key pad phone from 2008 that shit was cash


----------



## Fat-Elf

Keypads 4 lyfe


----------



## Don Vito

so i just finished episode 1 of witch craft works

i didn't really like the mc(kinda generic) but the witches were cool, and some of the parts were funny too(a lot of it went over my head though or just wasnt that funny)

2 1/2 stars outta 5 but ill watch another episode


----------



## Don Vito

Watched Blue Exorcist on TV last night. Will definitely be keeping up with this one, cus I like anything to do with the occult and famous religious characters. 

It's funny doe cos I grew up in catholic church/school, so seeing these priests(who are catholic) battle with demons is funny.


----------



## habicore_5150

Don Vito said:


> Watched Blue Exorcist on TV last night. Will definitely be keeping up with this one, cus I like anything to do with the occult and famous religious characters.
> 
> It's funny doe cos I grew up in catholic church/school, so seeing these priests(who are catholic) battle with demons is funny.



Blue Exorcist is a good one
Had another friend of mine recommend Shaman King, but kinda spoiled me on the ending a bit. Might check it out anyways just to see how it is


----------



## Alberto7

habicore_5150 said:


> Blue Exorcist is a good one
> Had another friend of mine recommend Shaman King, but kinda spoiled me on the ending a bit. Might check it out anyways just to see how it is



A friend of mine gave me _Blue Exorcist_ like 4 years ago, and it's still sitting unwatched in the bowels of my computer.  Perhaps it's time I watch it.

Also, I was into _Shaman King_ for a good while during my very early teens (11-12), and it was a blast. I only remember the fight scenes though, but they were great. Actually, in the very first online chatroom I ever accessed my nickname was Horohoro.  I never finished it, sadly.


----------



## Don Vito

I watched Shaman King when I was 10-11. I think it came on Cartoon Network at some point.

I had one of the PS2 games as well.


----------



## Alberto7

I just began to get into the meat of the _Heavens Feel_ route, and it seems like it will be reeeaally f_u_cked up in every sense of the expression that I can imagine. So far it's much faster-paced than the other two routes, and it does assume the player/reader to have gone through the other two routes and expects him/her to be familiar with the entire _Fate_ universe and its rules. That's something I appreciate, since I feel it frees up A LOT of room for plot and character development (which I sense will be dense).


----------



## Ikiharmaa

so I finally watched _Serial Experiments Lain_ yesterday despite having the feeling I wasn't ready for it yet. It was... interesting. I liked the themes presented in it a lot and everything from the art to soundtrack supported it pretty perfectly. The only 'problem' I have with SEL is that to me it wasn't very entertaining at all (at least not in the usual way), perhaps a bit similar to _Welcome to the NHK_ and certain parts of _Ergo Proxy_ in that sense. I think it was a good watch even if I didn't enjoy it immensely. I might watch it again in a few years after reading a book or two though just to see if it makes any difference.


I also watched Canaan earlier this year, it's not really worth mentioning though because an annoying character that wasn't even the mc kinda killed it for me ;_; 


idk what I'm watching next, probably something really light-hearted to bring balance to my little world.


----------



## Alberto7

Interesting that you mention _Welcome to the NHK_ as conveying for you the same feeling that SEL did. I find that SEL is entertaining on a deeply intellectual and analytical level, rather than on a more traditionally "feel good" kind of way. To me, it was more of the "I have to figure this out" and "to think it could come to this..." kind of entertainment. It was a mental challenge that instilled a bit of a sense of gruesome wonder in me. It also didn't really have any particularly likeable or relatable characters. _NHK_, on the other hand, was greatly entertaining to me, in a very anime-esque way, while still being very brainy, and so relatable that it became scary at points. I find them both to be very, very good, but also quite different.

If you want light-hearted, go watch _Usagi Drop_. It's unfairly adorable.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

yes, you put it to words so much better than I, SEL definitely was entertaining on an intellectual level. I do however feel like I could've gotten more out of it had I been more familiar with the themes. Right now I mostly feel like I appreciate it and know it's good, but couldn't really enjoy it that much for myself.

I think my comparison with NHK has more to do with the depressiveness of the art than anything else. I really disliked the more realistic, even 'ugly' depictions in NHK. To me the art in SEL was similarly realistic albeit in a completely different way. Maybe it's just the fact that art serves another purpose than to appeal that makes it difficult for me to watch, I'm not really sure. You're certainly right that SEL is far further from traditional anime than NHK and I'd feel unfair to compare the two side by side. It's just that some scenes from NHK and Ergo Proxy popped into my mind when I was thinking of what to compare SEL to. The shows aren't similar at all really, but to me they have that same kind of aspect to them at times. Probably there would be better examples of what I'm talking about though, but I somewhat tend to avoid the more bleak anime.



And yes, Usagi Drop is a great suggestion so I second that to anyone who hasn't seen it yet. It also feels good to have already seen something that's suggested, for once :3


----------



## Don Vito

Funny, I watched the first episode of SEL today and you guys were already talking about it. 

To me, it was the anime equivalent of drone music.

Oh, and I have to watch this now.


----------



## Somnium

Sooooo I recently started playing Dangan Ronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc. Not too far into chapter 3 and so far it's a lot of fun. Shitty thing is that the character I was vibin' with got iced at the start of chapter 2, and now I'm all sad and angry. Thanks Japan, another video game/anime chalked full of feels, another set of hands holding the pistol to my head. WHY DO I KEEP DOING THIS TO MYSELF?!


----------



## Alberto7

^ Anime really shouldn't be something we enjoy  because that's what happens EVERY GODDAMN TIME :'(



Don Vito said:


> Funny, I watched the first episode of SEL today and you guys were already talking about it.
> 
> To me, it was the anime equivalent of drone music.



That last sentence is so perfect I can't even emphasize it enough. That's exactly what it feels like.  Oh, and do tell how you like it once you finish it or feel comfortable to say so.



Don Vito said:


> Oh, and I have to watch this now.
> *vid*



That was so damn cute. I suppose I'm adding that to the "Watch to Relax" section of my to-watch list.


----------



## Alberto7

By the way, _Fate/Stay Night_'s _Heavens Feel_ is *FUCKED* up. Like REALLY fucked.  It is actually unnerving.

EDIT: Sorry to keep yapping about F/SN  it's become routine to post updates that serve as emotional outlets. I swear I'll stop once I finish it.


----------



## Somnium

Alberto7 said:


> By the way, _Fate/Stay Night_'s _Heavens Feel_ is *FUCKED* up. Like REALLY fucked.  It is actually unnerving.
> 
> EDIT: Sorry to keep yapping about F/SN  it's become routine to post updates that serve as emotional outlets. I swear I'll stop once I finish it.



Guess that means I won't be playing that one for a while, I've been putting off Fate/Zero because I'm sure it's gonna bring the feels. I'm pretty excited about playing the Steins;Gate visual novel at the end of the month tho and seeing how Mayuri's and Ruka's stories play out. Thanks Steins;Gate, I guess I have a thing for traps now lol.


----------



## Alberto7

Funny you commented now, because I JUST finished the game. FINALLY. It _only_ took me 99 hours and 8 minutes.  AND OMG DEM FEELS I won't be able to sleep tonight...  that last route was quite something. I think I'm gonna begin writing the review now that everything is still fresh, and will come back to it tomorrow after it's sunk in a bit better. And I SERIOUSLY cannot wait for the remake coming out this Fall.

_Fate/Zero_ does, indeed, get very emotional at points, but I feel it's a different type of feeling than some of the things in the visual novel. Situations in F/Z are presented very well, and are really well paced, with nice music and all. However, F/SN is emotional on a more conceptual basis; the very situation, regardless of presentation (which, granted, isn't always the best), is so messed up and gripping that it feels like your heart is squashed with a hammer. I'll develop more on that F/Z vs. F/SN contrast later, since I found it really interesting. Also, I'm re-watching F/Z. It'll be a million times more awesome now.

I think I may actually play the _Steins;Gate_ visual novel some time soon, since I really liked the whole thing about basically reading a book while having actual voices play out the dialogue, background music, complimentary graphics, and actually getting to make decisions. Do you know how much further in depth does the S;G visual novel go compared to the anime? EDIT: oh, and by the way, what ever happened to your copy of the S;G film? Did you return it? Was the CD itself actually unusable? Do you know when and if you're getting another copy? That's really shitty to hear man  I don't know why didn't comment on that before.


----------



## Alberto7

For any of you who are interested, and in an attempt to finally put to rest my frantic posting about the _Fate/Stay Night_ visual novel that I have been playing for the past two months, here is my review of it. This will be a huge one; the longest one I've done to date. I will keep it as spoiler-free as I can.

First, let's state some opinion-free facts and give a little context.

Plot:

_Fate/Stay Night_ is a visual novel that contains a HUGE and complicated story and plot, which follows Shirou, our male lead, and three other female protagonists. They live in a world where magi exist but where their practices are kept secret so that their magic does not intervene with normal society (so far it just sounds like _Harry Potter_ ). However, most magi live by a set of complicated, selfish, and cynical rules and rituals that make them quite different from regular people, despite appearances. On their pursuit for their goals as magi, some of them participate in a battle royal called the Holy Grail War, in which seven magi are chosen as Masters, who then summon one Servant each. Servants are legendary, historical and/or literary figures who, after being summoned by means of some obscure and powerful magics (the inner workings of which are explained in the story), form a contract with their Masters to follow their orders, and are made to fight other Masters and Servants to the death. The victor of this war obtains the Holy Grail, which is a mysterious, magical artifact capable of granting any wish.

Now, I know that this (VERY) basic description might sound kinda shallow and dull, or a little too fantastical for some people's liking, but bear with me. Shit's actually insane.

Gameplay:

The novel is made up of three main routes, each one happening in parallel worlds (i.e. stories unrelated to each other aside from characters, their personalities, their backgrounds, and the setting) and each one putting emphasis on the development of different characters, particularly the three female protagonists. The beginning for all the routes is the same, but they diverge at specific points early in the story depending on whether or not you've played the previous route already. Despite being a visual novel, it is actually relatively linear since there is only one playable route in the beginning, which must be finished before the following one is opened, and there are comparatively few decisions to make (average of about 35-36 decisions per route). However, the last two routes have two alternate endings each, one of which is canon (true ending). The way it works is the following: some times, when the player is asked to make a decision, that decision will earn him/her points towards a specific character and/or situation. Depending on how many points for a character the player accumulates, or if a certain event was triggered due to a choice made, the story may lead the player through a slightly different storyline. However, these deviations in storyline are usually not very long and converge back into the main story very quickly (although some deviations are quite important). Some decisions will lead to bad endings, which is the equivalent of dying and/or losing in a regular game. The different ways in which each ending the player gets at the end of a route are determined are a) by a decision made very close to the ending itself, b) the addition of all the points collected towards a specific character has to be >= or <= a certain value + maybe the activation of a certain event, or c) the aforementioned addition of numbers + being the second time beating that same route. Also, "extras" are unlocked depending on how many hints the player requests once he reaches a bad ending, which decisions you make, etc, etc. These extras include souvenirs like images, songs, animation sequences, etc. There are supposedly extra scenes unlocked when you collect every single bad ending, and once you've unlocked every single ending (canon and non-canon), but I haven't done those things yet.

If, while playing this, all you're interested in is the story and not really the decision-making part of it, do like I did and play the game with a flow chart that will tell you where each decision will lead you. It'll make life so much easier.

I'm going to divide the review up into three main parts. One for each route. The names of the three routes are _Fate_, _Unlimited Blade Works_, and _Heavens Feel_, plus I will leave a few extras and general notes at the end. I will list the routes in the order in which they are unlocked. Furthermore, I'll be following some cues from some of my favorite reviewers by dividing up each route into plot/story, characters, and personal enjoyment, and then doing a general section for art and another one for music. I feel that way I'll give a bit better of an overview.

Now that the introduction and technicalities are out of the way, let's get on to the actual review:


Alright, since there are couple of things that span across all three routes, I'm going to talk about them before getting into each separate path. Let's begin with

*The Art:*

I found that the art was quite inconsistent. There are frames where characters look incredibly badass and/or adorable, while there are others where they look somewhat disproportionate or distorted, and where the picture just looks lazily done. A stylistic approach on the art that bothered me at times was the way in which they drew the shoulders. Instead of the collar bone being slightly tapered down and ending on the shoulder like a normal person's, they would just be at a right angle from the line of the neck with two circular bulges at the end for the shoulders. It just makes characters look stupidly buff and manly. Now, this didn't happen all the time, but it was a very common thing I noticed on all characters, even on the girls, which were otherwise designed to look very fragile and delicate.

Now that the criticism is out of the way... character design is amazing. Right from the time I started watching _Fate/Zero_ (which is what introduced me to the whole _Fate_ universe) I really, really dug character design. Every single Servant looks different and unique, and the main characters each look like they have personality. The dullest ones would have to be Shirou, the protagonist, and Sakura, one of the female leads, who are pretty much feature-less, and whatever features they do have don't stand out much. Saber, Gilgamesh, Rider, and Kiritsugu are definitely my favorites.

Also, the backgrounds used were great. At the Emiya household it really felt like I was home. The art conveyed that home-y feeling really well when it had to, and gave a sharp sense of uneasiness when the scene called for such a feeling. The backgrounds were also very detailed, yet very subtle. Some of them were gorgeous, too. I particularly liked the ones with the view from the bridge, or from the park next to the bridge, and the way to Shirou's home. The entrance to the Ryuudou Temple is quite a memorable one, too.

All things considered, I think it's safe to award the art a solid B, or perhaps even a B+.

*The Music:*

Having come directly from watching _Fate/Zero_, at first I was a little underwhelmed by the different themes used in the game. Then, however, I remembered that F/Z has some genuinely EPIC music composed by Yuki Kajiura, and that having simple yet catchy tunes is far better in a game where there is so much reading to do. I think more complex music would have been kind of a nuisance when really all that's needed is something to set the mood. In this regard, the visual novel does a stellar job.

The themes used, while quite simple and short (they almost resemble jingles), set the mood absolutely PERFECTLY. From the feel-good, home-y themes that play at Shirou's house when everybody is relaxing, to the couple of themes that play during the sex scenes, each one of them heightened the atmosphere that each scene conveyed to a whole other level. They are very catchy and memorable, too, including the more creepy and serious ones. I couldn't really pick a favorite out of them all, but two that really stand out in my memory are the one that plays during the most climactic battles at the end of each route (usually plays only once per route, if I remember correctly), and the one that is played during the saddest and most nostalgic moments of reminescence.

All in all, the music is great. I give it a solid A.

Now, on to the routes.

*PART I: FATE*

*Story and Plot Development:*

Being the first path, _Fate_ makes a very good job of explaining the entire setting, and giving backgrounds for each character. In that regard, I would say it is the slowest-paced and "noble" out of all the routes. It takes more of a descriptive role, and it is very careful and detailed in describing a setting, or going through a character's thought processes. What I mean by "noble" is that it contains rather ideal scenarios and a general feel-good vibe going on, with a lot of funny moments, relatively laid-back sitting around at Shirou's place, and generally positive outcomes for stressful situations. I attribute this to the fact that much of the narrative was spent on the description of the setting, and thus there was little room left for developing a complicated story. Of course, this is only relatively speaking, since the other two routes are, simply put, messed up. _Fate_ still has a lot of super interesting twists, moments full of emotion, and is actually quite dark by any standards; it's just overshadowed by the other two routes.

Like I've stated in previous comments in this thread, there are hentai scenes, and, while necessary for the development of the plot, they are overdone. They are _very_ graphic; unnecessarily so. It's as though the creators were angry at the fact that their project for a full-on hentai visual novel was scrapped and then decided to make up for it by making the sex scenes as explicit as they possibly could. There are two sex scenes in this route, each one of them taking about 30-40 minutes to get through, if I remember correctly. My problem with them is not specifically that they were very graphic, but that all of the emphasis was put into the explicitness of them, which makes those scenes feel like they're part of another unrelated story altogether. This is honestly my biggest complaint in this route.

The writing is nothing to call home about, really, but it is concise and understandable, and serves its purpose very well. There are, indeed, some lines that come across as very poetic, and hold a ton of meaning behind them, but they are few. To paraphrase, the writing is objective and concise, and serves its descriptive purpose very well, but not more than that. This applies for the majority of the game, except for the third route, which I will get to in due time.

I don't think I would dare name any of these routes as my favorite, since they're all really good, and quite different, but I will say that this one was the least stressful to go through simply because it focuses on my favorite character, it's so full of genuine and (again) noble emotion, and there are none of those emotionally uncomfortable 180-degree turns that I dread/love. And, my God, was that ending satisfying. Like I said before in a previous comment: damaging, yet fulfilling. I am really glad that we get epilogues for each route, too. It relieves a lot of the tension from an ending, and it eases that painful "void" felt after finishing a story you were very involved in.

Rating: B+

*Characters:*

Again, since this is the first route, they really take their time to present the characters. In particular, the character of Saber is developed massively, which makes the _Fate_ route feel, in a way, like the rightful successor of the story in _Fate/Zero_. Of course, F/Z basically sets up every single route in F/SN, but, since the focus is heavy on Saber in F/Z, it feels like this route is a rightful successor to that story. (Saying it like that reminds me of one of my favorite lines in literature: "...whoso pulleth out this sword of this stone and anvil, is rightwise King born of all Britain").

Emphasis is put on the first female lead, of course. It is so much fun learning who she actually is and why she is there. It makes it so intriguing.

The fact that Servants are actual figures of legend who allegedly existed at some point in real life or who are part of works of literature (most of them anyway; there are a couple who were made up for the story) is used to great effect. The liberties they take with such characters are awesome, and there's one particular liberty that the creators allowed themselves that makes the whole thing so much better. That liberty is (major spoiler ahead)


Spoiler



that King Arthur is actually a girl, and why every record of her in actual real lore depicts her as a man. That shit still blows my mind because of how cool it is. Arturia Pendragon.  Shit's brilliant, yo!



The characters of Emiya Shirou (protagonist) and Tohsaka Rin are also introduced and developed on enough to understand their true natures and define their character archetypes. And yes, unlike _Fate/Zero_, character archetypes in this novel are very present, but they are justified, so it's really not much of a problem. Matou Sakura is also introduced and we get to sense which archetype she satisfies, but she is mostly kept in the dark.

The main villain/antagonist of this route is also very well-developed, and he is actually one of my favorite villains ever. He's so messed up in the head, but he's so stupidly awesome at the same time. If you played through the visual novel and want to see him developed further, go watch _Fate/Zero_ where you'll see a lot more of him. I think that, between him and Kotomine, they really make the concept of moral and cultural relativism spring to mind, which is a field that I've always found intriguing.

It is worth mentioning that the main romantic relationship present in this route is my favorite one in the entire game. It's perhaps not the one best developed, or the one that feels most meaningful (which is actually on the last route), but it's very special and very, very touching. If you don't feel a void upon finishing this route... you heartless bastard.

A possible issue for some people might be that, since so much is spent presenting this massive universe, a lot of the characters are merely introduced, and their stories remain on the backseat and/or aren't really developed. This, however, is made up for by the great story being told, and by expanding upon the characters further in the next two routes. Eventually, everybody gets a chance to shine. 

Rating: A-

*Personal Enjoyment/Verdict:*

Like I said before, it's the easiest one out of all three routes. Other than the hardcore porn, I really, really enjoyed this route. Even with its slow pace, it is gripping and interesting. There is also the fact that, since it's the first time going through the game, many of its pitfalls (that become more apparent in the last route) go unnoticed.

Some character's stories and events are cross-referenced between routes, to kind of plant a seed of doubt and inquiry into the reader's mind, which keeps interests high.

All in all, very enjoyable.

Also, Kuuderes/Danderes FTW.

Rating: A


*PART II: UNLIMITED BLADE WORKS*

*Story and Plot Development:*

This story begins similarly to the first one but, soon, the differences begin to become apparent. This leads to a story that is much more fast-paced, concise, and also quite a lot darker and serious in tone than the first one. It takes some time to make up its mind about whether or not it should re-explain the setting and the characters to the player, but it eventually settles down and assumes that, since the player went through the first route, he/she knows all he/she needs to know. But, really, I think that's all the criticism I can give it.

As far as quality of storytelling goes, this is where this entire game really shines. It's literally the middle point of the game. Where the first route might lack in pace, action, and multiple character development (and I mention multiple because the _Fate_ route focuses mainly on a couple of characters, leaving the rest feeling a little flat), this route has it, and whatever the third route has in inconsistency of pacing and storytelling (more on this later), this one has it fixed. It takes a truly interesting twist in the story, as well; a twist that is very character-driven.

There's porn, too, in this route, but it's not nearly as bad as the first route's. There is only one sex scene, and that one scene is more tolerable than the first one. Its graphic nature (like all the other sex scenes in the game) did shock me quite a bit at first, but it didn't leave a long-lasting and/or nearly-traumatizing impression on me in the long run, like all the other erotic scenes in the game.

The ending was super emotional, and very, very fulfilling. I can't tell whether or not it leaves a void or not, since I was in the middle of exam week when I finished the route, and I had the thought in my mind that I was going to jump into the darkest part of the story - the third route. This didn't leave me with enough time to even check if I was feeling a void haha. Again, I am very, very grateful for these epilogues; they work so great in these stories.

Rating: A

*Characters:*

As would be expected, a lot of the recurring characters that weren't allowed much screen time during the first route are given a chance in the spotlight each, and are developed further. Few characters remain untouched here, which is great. The ones that do, is because they will be talked about more on the next route.

Putting our first female lead on the copilot's seat (although still having a very prominent role), we begin to focus on our other heroine and co-protagonist. This is a route of massive character development for our three (two, rather) main characters. This development is what drives the core of the story and what guides the interactions between characters. Like in the previous route, the concept of Servants is expanded upon slightly and is exploited very effectively to drive the plot forward.

Rating: A

*Personal Enjoyment/Verdict:*

There really isn't much to say about this route, because it slightly resembles the first one in vibe - albeit darker - and is just very well made all throughout. Super enjoyable, gripping, emotional, and keeps the player at the edge of his/her seat.

Without much more to say, I'll skip to the rating for this section.

Rating: A

*PART III: HEAVENS FEEL*

*Story and Plot Development:*

Oh, boy... I truly don't know where to begin here. This one will be a challenge.

Like all other routes, it begins somewhat light-heartedly and paints the familiar picture: the characters meet each other, they go to school, find out about Servants and the Holy Grail War, Shirou, Saber, Sakura, and Fuji-nee chill at home, eat together, and all that good stuff. However, the mood quickly and drastically changes once the development of that last enigmatic character begins, and the atmosphere quickly becomes extremely dark, gloomy, and mysterious. Characters and settings have been thoroughly explained in the last two routes, so its focus is completely directed to creating a massive and complicated story and to developing existing characters even further. So much so, that the story requires the introduction of two entirely new characters (one of which, if you've seen _Fate/Zero_, you'll recognize). The sheer scope of this route makes it quite complicated to go into detail. However, it is the darkest part of the game. And, my God, is it absolutely twisted, even in comparison to the two other, already twisted enough routes. It is cruel, it is brutal, it is emotional, it is gory, it is touching, it is creepy, and it is completely nerve-racking. It is the one route where sex scenes don't feel out of place, even with their explicitness. In fact, I'd dare say they are one of the crucial elements of the story, since we get to understand more of the characters that way. The themes of the story involve rape, extreme physical and mental torture, preservation and denial of personal ideals, and - remaining true to the novel's shounen influence (which I forgot to mention before, but it does feel slightly shounen-ish at times) - overcoming one's own limits. The latter can be a bit cliche and slightly redundant at times, but I won't deny that it is actually well-developed most of the time, and is, overall, much better than what you'd find in your standard shounen series. Twists are constant, and the state of affairs frequently takes 180-degree turns, almost always for the worst. This makes this route emotional torture. But it's not the _Clannad_, _Anohana_, _*insert very sad series here*_ kind of emotional torture; rather, the constant twists and dark atmosphere make it agonizing to get through. I think its length contributes a lot to that as well, since there is never really an end in sight. Actually, if you have ever watched _Breaking Bad_ I think you'll know what I am talking about. It's THAT kind of emotional torture. A total rollercoaster.

If I am to criticize the story and the plot, however, it would have to be on their predictability. The player has suffered through two routes already. The player knows the characters, and he/she knows the narrative inside out. This makes some parts of the story very predictable, merely through narrative alone. Major events and twists are really unforeseeable and do take the player by surprise, but the outcome of a lot of specific, individual situations becomes rather apparent halfway through them. I do think that the narrative and the writing suffered from the intense focus given to the creation of a story as immense, complicated, and dark as this one

The ending (I'm only speaking about the true ending, which is the only one I've got) is wonderful, although it does leave the player feeling the infamous void (which is actually indicative of a good show, but does not necessarily feel good). I'll say it for the third time: I am very, very thankful that each route has an epilogue. The pain would have been unbearable without it haha.

Interestingly enough, this route is, according to the creators, the true, canon route containing the true, canon ending to the series.

Rating: A-

*Characters:*

Right from the beginning of the first route, it is glaringly obvious who the three female leads will be, and, by mere process of elimination, the main spotlight character in _Heavens Feel_ becomes apparent. Her development and her relationship with other characters are very well done. Conceptually, she is an extremely interesting character. Her quietness and the cross-referencing clues left during the first two routes really heighten the mystery surrounding her. However... she is so f*cking annoying that I just wanted to roundkick her in the mouth. She satisfies a quite common anime character archetype, which I guess is fine, but the way they made her is... just... so annoying. It didn't detract much from my enjoyment of the story, but had she been given even slightly different lines and her voice hadn't been so f*cking annoying for the first 7/8's of the story, I would've liked her a lot better. Still, though, very interesting character.

Two new characters are introduced for this route. I won't go a lot into detail, as they are central to the story, and if I say anything I might give too much away. However, I will say that one of them is possibly one of the most messed up characters I've seen in a while. I hated that character so f*cking much, Jesus Christ.

The main male lead is also changed up quite a bit this time around. It's where the theme of preservation of ideals that I mentioned before comes into play. They took him in an interesting direction for this part of the game.

Curiously enough, and even though the _Fate_ route is the one that feels the most like the continuation of _Fate/Zero_, _Heavens Feel_ is the one that has more character ties to F/Z. For example, we learn of Emiya Kiritsugu in all routes, but this one puts a lot more emphasis on explaining what kind of person he actually was, and what his role was during the events that took place during F/Z. This happens with a few other characters, too. Every time I'd see a link to F/Z I would get all warm and fuzzy inside haha.

However, there was one thing they did that I really didn't like... at all. I am not going to go much into detail for fear that I might spoil a good chunk of the story, but let's just say that it felt like leaving some delicious cake in the fridge, which you were really looking forward to eating later on, only to come back and find that someone else ate it. I don't think it was a bad decision plot and story-wise, but I was rather disappointed. If you've played the visual novel, you probably know what and who I am talking about. In fact, I will state it outright for those of you who have played the visual novel:
(WARNING: extreme spoilers follow. Do not open them if you don't want to have the whole thing ruined)


Spoiler



Saber. What the f*ck. What did they do to my Saber?! I always remained hopeful that she'd come back; that she'd help Shirou and Tohsaka again, and that she'd be freed from her burden. But no. She had to go and die at the hands of her own Master, and be forgotten by him, too. Once I shake off my own bias, I think it was actually awesome that that happened, but it was so painful that I can't just overlook it. Definitely among my top 3 moments of extreme feels in the whole game, and among my top 10 painful deaths in anime.



Rating: A-

*Personal Enjoyment/Verdict:*

I think this route had many more shortcomings than the other two. However, I attribute them to two things:
1) The fact that the story is made so long and complicated that some attention to detail suffers.
2) The fact that the writing remains, stylistically, unchanged. Since the game is so long, it provides enough time for the player to learn to predict what will happen once certain narrative patterns emerge.

Despite that, I enjoyed the living shit out of this route, and it left me with a sense of accomplishment for having gotten through something like it. The plot and the story are gripping and interesting, and at no point do they become dull. No part feels unnecessary. It did begin to feel quite long towards the end of it, but that was probably because I've been looking forward to writing this review for so long, and I couldn't do it until I finished it. 

Again, I wouldn't say this is my favorite route, as each one has its own thing going on, but this is certainly the most interesting and twisted one as far as the characters and the story go.

Rating: A+



Alright, so I think that's it for each one of the paths! Whew, that was long.

99 hours and 8 minutes is the time that it took me to finish this monstrous visual novel. Granted, about 3 hours of those were lost in bathroom breaks and/or idle time (was probably getting food and/or posting here on SSO ). The fact that my playing sessions were held late at night, right before going to bed, probably extended the time it normally would have taken me by a couple of hours, since I would begin to get drowsy some times and would read very slowly by the end of a lot of sessions. I actually fell asleep for about 10-15 minutes in one occasion. 

Now, something that was really cool was how I kept noticing every single one of the links it has with _Fate/Zero_. It made me aware of how great F/Z actually is. It doesn't skimp on any little detail. With _Fate/Zero_ telling the events ten years before the visual novel's, one realizes that a great part of F/Z's masterfulness lies on how skillfully it set up not one, but every single route on the visual novel. Not a single inconsistency. Gen Urobuchi did an incredible job there.

All this about _Fate/Zero_ is really nice and (space) dandy but the question remains: which should you watch/go through first? And my answer would be: I'm not entirely sure what's better, so just go with either. You can't really make a wrong choice. If you play the visual novel first, you will already be familiar with the _Fate_ universe, which will help you a lot with F/Z. However, it will totally spoil you the ending of F/Z and a lot of the events that happen in it. If you watch F/Z first, you'll begin the visual novel having the upper hand by knowing some of the character's motivations and true identities, which is extremely cool. It's super awesome seeing all these characters and all of their attributes again but in a different context. However, you will be left with quite a few questions about F/Z, which won't be completely answered until you play the visual novel in its entirety. That's not to say that F/Z is not an absolutely marvelous stand-alone anime, but it becomes even better once you know everything beforehand. Either way, you can't go wrong. Perhaps most people will watch _Fate/Zero_ first, since it's much more accessible than the visual novel (and the visual novel is absolutely not for kids. Not that F/Z is, but it's definitely not as bad).

Another quirk that I noticed at the very end of _Heavens Feel_ was really cool. There is a subtle reference to another TYPE-MOON visual novel which Studio ufotable (responsible for adapting the _Fate/Zero_ novel to an anime) adapted into a 7-episode anime: _Kara no Kyoukai_. In fact, right at that moment where I caught the reference, I instantly realized all the many conceptual parallels between the two works, which leads me to think that perhaps they are set in the same universe (EDIT: I just found out it's called the "Nasuverse" ). This, in turn, makes me indulge in wishful thinking, hoping that a crossover series happens some day... man, would that be something. 

One last thing I want to mention: I CANNOT wait for the TYPE-MOON/ufotable _Fate/Stay Night_ remake coming out this Fall. I previously thought it was supposed to follow one of the routes from the visual novel, but upon digging a bit more information, it turns out that there is still nothing confirmed. The only confirmed fact at the time of this post is that there will be some new scenes and a few other expansions going on. This *might* imply that there is a new, original route in development for the remake, but that is only speculation. The trailer for it on YouTube includes scenes from _Fate/Zero_ and footage from the opening sequences for each one of the routes in the Vita version of the visual novel. Based on the poster and the trailer, my guess is that it will be heavily influenced by either one of the first two routes, but will also have a lot of elements from _Heavens Feel_. There are also rumours that it will be much closer in feel to _Fate/Zero_ than the visual novel (a.k.a. more serious), and that Kinoko Nasu (original story writer for the visual novel) will be an advisor for the script. Again, this is all speculation, as there are virtually no hard facts stated so far. In any case, I am fairly confident that ufotable will knock it out of the park, seeing as how their teaming up with TYPE-MOON already did so with _Fate/Zero_ and _Kara no Kyoukai_.

In conclusion, _Fate/Stay Night_ is, I think, one of the most unique experiences that the world of Japanese animated media entertainment can provide, and is one of the most submerging and involving stories of its kind. It does have its shortcomings, but it is absolutely worth it. To me, it was an experience that really came across as much, much more than the sum of its parts. I heartily recommend it to anyone who is keen on anime, manga, or visual novels. It's good stuff, I promise. 

And with this, I finally conclude my review of _Fate/Stay Night_.


PS: I apologize for the immense wall of text.  I spent the last 24 hours writing it on and off, and I really had a ton of fun doing so, even if it may not be as up to par in quality of writing and structure as I would like it to be.

Also, no TL;DR section for you. 

EDIT: I forgot to mention that in every single route, PEOPLE DIE IF THEY ARE KILLED. It is amazing how they didn't forget to add that line on every one of them.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Just subscribed to Crunchyroll.


----------



## Don Vito

I think Alberto7 just broke the SSO record for longest forum post. I'm just now waking up, so I'll read the second half a little later.


----------



## Alberto7

I promised a long review.  I haven't written this much since I did my research paper for the final project in my political science course a year and a half ago. I honestly missed it; I love writing.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Watched Another earlier this week. Pretty good and pretty slow paced but it got better in the end. The whole series was kinda like Final Destination the anime. I gotta say the last two episodes had some fine black humour in them or I'm just sick in the head.


----------



## Alberto7

I've heard good things about _Another_. I haven't given it a try myself, but it looks nice; I dig the main character's design.

In other news, I just found this, and I'm all happypanda:



Filmed at AnimeJapan 2014 (first edition of the expo, curiously). I can't wait for the high-quality version to come out so I'm able to have a better judgement of what to expect.

I'm showing my sister _Fate/Zero_ and she's loving the shit out of it.

EDIT: I went to the fate-sn.com website, and they've updated with news on the second trailer (even though they haven't shown it publicly yet, other than the expo on video above), news on the cast (all the original voice actors from the F/SN anime), and news on the staff (all people involved in previous iterations of F/SN and F/Z). They also uploaded a new poster, and mention a few key things about who will be the protagonists. I do see images in whatever's visible of that video that belong to key parts of the story that I was hoping would show up, and the animation looks stupid amazing. In other words, this is bound for greatness.

I said I'd stop with the whole _Fate_ thing, but they just keep coming up with all this amazing stuff, and I can't stop being excited.

EDIT: This is it http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2014-03-24/fate/stay-night-anime-remake-cast-staff-revealed


----------



## Somnium

Yeah so when I got that Steins;Gate movie in the mail the box was mad smashed up. $100 collector's edition movie + $10 extra for shipping and they send it to me in a bubble mailer. Top lel. My friend, who just finished the anime actually, downloaded the movie. Gotta prepare myself for feels of the most harrowing kind lol. Also needa peep the third Evangelion rebuild, and Fate/Unlimited Blade Works, and the 3 Madoka films, and Summer Wars...

All that aside, I was going to start watching Kill La Kill on Hulu because I wanted something without soul rending feels, but not even 3 minutes into the first episode I had to sit through 5 ads. So I hopped over to Netflix to see what was new and decided to watch some Sword Art Online. That's nice and light-hearted right? lol. Just lol. On the plus side SAO totally exceeded my expectations, like friggin ten-fold. On the flip side I wasn't expecting all dem feelz. Sword Art Online? More like Suicide Art Online. Niggas jumping to their deaths all over the place lol.


----------



## Alberto7

Don't get me started on SAO. It's a f_u_cking brilliant piece of polished turd, and I say that with a lot of love.

If you haven't played the visual novel, I strongly recommend against watching _Unlimited Blade Works_. I watched it a few days ago and I was quite disappointed. It's really cool to see the battles animated (even if they do fall on the short side), and the production values are great, but it's just so horribly put together. You won't have a clue of what's going on.

Well, once you do watch the S;G film, even a short, spoiler-free opinion would be appreciated. A couple people in this thread have already said that it's good and a good way to kill that S;G void, while I've heard elsewhere that it's really just fanservice and that they didn't appreciate it. I'm afraid to look for reviews online in case they spoil it, so it'd be nice if you, or anybody who's watched it, could shed some light on it. 

And, since _Kill la Kill_ ended, I'm thinking ever more seriously of making that my next watch after I'm done with my F/SN craze. Apparently it does live up to its hype.

There are also a couple of really cool anime coming out this Spring. I'll leave some descriptions and trailers of the ones I'm looking forward to (even though I'm not sure how closely I'll follow them):

*Brynhildr in the Darkness:*
This looks really cool. It gives off a slight S;G vibe to me, for some reason. The source material is supposed to be great. I'm loving the music in the trailer, too.

Gokukoku no Brynhildr | AniList

_*One Week Friends*_:
This looks like it will be a very mean cross between _Usagi Drop_ and something like _Anohana_. I expect an overdose of cute and feels.

Isshuukan Friends. | AniList

_*Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei*_:
Apparently it's being hyped up a lot, and I really like the premise, but I'm not digging the art and the moe. I have a feeling this will be like SAO, but it's just a hunch:

Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei | AniList

_*Mushishi Zoku Shou*_:
Second season of Mushishi. The reason I'm looking forward to it is because I've been meaning to watch the first season for the longest time (which came out like 8-9 years ago...!!), as, from what I've heard, it's right up my alley. Not leaving a trailer for this one in case it contains spoilers, so I'm just going to leave the description page of the first season.
Mushi-Shi (TV) - Anime News Network

_*Mekaku City Actors*_:
I just really, really like that poster. All trailers are just a picture of the character with its corresponding voice acting; no actual footage.
Mekaku City Actors | AniList

_*Knights of Sidonia:*_
Right, this is what I am actually looking forward to. It's like _Evangelion_ meets _Gundam_ meets _Attack on Titan_ in glorious CGI. It sounds incredibly interesting, and the visuals are super cool. Leaving three trailers for this one.



Sidonia no Kishi | AniList


There are a million other shows coming out and it seems that this spring is really hyped-up, so I expect to see good shows. Here's the entire list of Spring shows: AniChart.net | Interactive Seasonal Upcoming Anime Charts


----------



## sakeido

I just finished Kill la Kill yesterday. The ending was a little lackluster imo but considering the show starts on a high and then just gets crazier and crazier up until around episode 21 or so, it kinda makes sense it eventually has to cave in and start doing things by the numbers. Episode 25 out in September or something like that as a bonus for the last bluray release iirc 

But awesome artwork, great animation, a lot of funny moments, pretty decent characters (obviously nothing on the level of steins;gate). Highly entertaining start to finish. 

re: Steins;gate movie.

Fanservice it is... you want to spend more time with these characters, so you get it. And actual fan service too from Kurisu. The actual issue in the story she is trying to resolve comes up suddenly, and since they had to wrap it all up in one movie it doesn't get room to breathe. A large number of convenient plot devices occur to help wrap things up within the movie's running time. Overall, the plot pales in comparison to the original series, but after a certain point I watched S;g 95% for the characters and only about 5% for the plot


----------



## Alberto7

Sounds like I'll like it, then, since it sounds similar to what I had in mind. Like you, what I like about _Steins;Gate _are mostly the characters, so, if that's the case, I should enjoy it.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

I guess I should watch that too, wasn't even aware something like that existed 

Anyways, I figured I'd post here again now that I've been procrastinating so much that I've managed to finish a whole bunch of anime. My to-watch -list isn't getting any shorter though because I just keep picking random anime instead of watching something that I have even little expectations of. Oh well, let's just move in a chronological order:

_Dog Days_ was that "something cheerful" after watching Serial Experiments Lain, and tbh it delivered. After the first episode I figured it would be something like a sports/fighting shounen, but fortunately it turned something different (the amount of sports in chihayafuru was too much for me already). At times the setting was a tad harem-like though, which I thought was a bad sign but it's all nice and dandy actually. I guess simply saying I liked it because of how light-hearted it was would be wrong, because it turned out to get more serious than I initially thought.. It was probably more something like kindness. Aaaand I really love the way Yukikaze talks, and D'arquien, and some others whose names I don't remember because there was plenty of really nice cast.

_Crest of the Stars_ + _Banner of the Stars_ seasons and whatnot everything related. I probably enjoyed the first season the most, but the other seasons also had that same witty dialogue and progress in their relationship so I guess for the most part what I enjoyed was kept intact. I'm glad that it was more about strategy and politics when it came to battles, but apart from the first battle I didn't really find the actual battles too interesting (the dialogue and the abhs taking part were tons more interesting to me). I have to say though that I haven't seen such cinematography in anime elsewhere. The first season has a sort of special moment that I will probably remember for a long time simply because of how effective the cinematography around that moment was.

_Denpa Onna to Seishun Otoko_ had nice graphics and a few cute characters (the aunt, the tall, and the futon). Truth be told I accidentally clicked the title when I was going to watch_ Denpa Teki na Kanojo_, and I enjoyed this one more despite the male lead being way more stereotypical.

_Denpa Teki na Kanojo_, yeah no. It's not too bad at all really I guess, but it's just not something I'd enjoy watching. The characters aren't that clichey and there's some rather interesting scenes as well, but I was rather turned off by the art and the ugly mood. Perhaps it's just not my genre.
_
Kodomo no Jikan_ was an interesting watch to say the least. After the first episode I was dropping it and calling it what Gunslinger Girl might've been with ecchi, but I'm glad I didn't actually drop it because it turned out to be surprisingly thoughtful (not with the fanservice, mind you). It certainly was a weird mix of comedy and feels, and way underage ecchi to go with it all, but the themes it handles are exquisite, and somehow they are fondled without breaking too many bones even. Out of all of the shows I've watched lately this definitely felt the most profound. To me personally, the fanservice didn't even feel like any sort of fanservice after the first episode so it didn't disturb me as much as I thought it would.


I'll be back in few weeks again :3


----------



## bouVIP

So I watched and finished Engaged to the Unidentified after seeing the clip from here. It was pretty funny. I especially liked Benio's weird character and Mashiro!


----------



## Alberto7

Well, that's a bunch of shows I haven't heard of, which is quite cool. The past couple of days I've felt like watching something that's not as supremely epic as what I've been watching for the past months, so I might come back to the last few names dropped in a few weeks and pick one to watch to just kind of relax and be surprised



Ikiharmaa said:


> ... way underage ecchi to go with it all, but the themes it handles are exquisite, and somehow they are *fondled without breaking too many bones even.*



Giggity!


----------



## bouVIP

So I've watched like 5 episodes or so of Steins;gate, but do you guys think I should play the VN first or finish the anime and then play?


----------



## HexaneLake

Anyone watch Real Drive (Sennou Chousashitsu)?

Beautifully animated.


----------



## Alberto7

Looks interesting! Very cool premise. Really reminds me of _Ghost in The Shell_, on paper, at least. And it's made by Production I.G. too. Who woulda thought? 



bouVIP said:


> So I've watched like 5 episodes or so of Steins;gate, but do you guys think I should play the VN first or finish the anime and then play?



I've never played the VN. I watched the anime and it still instantly became one of my favorites. The one person I know that played it (or that began playing it, at least; I never asked him how it went) did so after finishing the anime. I'm not sure how much it might affect the anime's entertainment value.


----------



## HexaneLake

Its pretty good, I LOVE Ghost in the Shell tho. Nothing takes that spot. Black Lagoon anyone? also a classic


----------



## Fat-Elf

bouVIP said:


> So I've watched like 5 episodes or so of Steins;gate, but do you guys think I should play the VN first or finish the anime and then play?



Just watch the anime. The VN was just boring.


----------



## Alberto7

After bouVIP asked the question I searched about a little bit, and it seems like the VN is quite a bit more detailed (understandably so) and the alternate endings are apparently worth it. It also depends on how well you get along with the concept of visual novels. I understand why some people wouldn't dig that concept. I personally found the concept really cool when I played F/SN, and quite different from anything else.



wootsmitty said:


> Its pretty good, I LOVE Ghost in the Shell tho. Nothing takes that spot. Black Lagoon anyone? also a classic



_Black Lagoon_ kicks so much ass. That one scene with Balalaika and the f*cked up twin...  that's possibly one of my favorite moments of sheer badassery in all of anime. And, of course, Roberta. Oh, Roberta.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

wootsmitty said:


> Black Lagoon anyone? also a classic



I'd pick Jormungand over Black Lagoon any day of the week, even if Black Lagoon is the original classic. I liked both though, very high entertainment value.

And I'm sure I've said the exact same thing before already, with the same words too.


----------



## Don Vito

Found season 2 of K-ON at the thrift store, so now I can watch the English dub.


----------



## Alberto7

That's awesome. All I find at thrift shops here are smelly jackets, gaudy shirts, dirty children's toys, and electronics from a decade ago.


----------



## Don Vito

Trust me, I was surprised to find something good in this particular store. 

I almost bought a Yu Yu Hakasho dvd, but went with Blade Runner instead.

edit: HARUKO IS BACK!!!!!!!!!!! <3


----------



## Fat-Elf

I noticed the first two volumes of Mirai Nikki in a kiosk yesterday. I was in a bit of hurry so I didn't buy them. I'll probably get them when I get outside this weekend.


----------



## Alberto7

Get those badboys! If they're for cheap, even better. Unless there's a dedicated manga/anime place near you, you never know when you might find them again.

Also YES, I can't have enough love for Haruko. I was listening to the OST yesterday so I just had to bring her back. The music in FLCL is so stupidly cool. I want a left-handed Rickenbacker 4001 to hang on my wall so bad.

Ggrrrruuuunnggyy no Hamuustta!

GAH! So f*cking dope.
Song is _Ride On Shooting Star_, by The Pillows.

Also, Don, what's your avatar of? She struck me as awesome when I first saw her.


----------



## Don Vito

I still need to check out The Pillow's other songs outside of FLCL. 

The girl in my avatar is Chidori from the game Persona 3. There's a movie/anime adaption of that game that I need to watch at some point.

And I have to say, It's nice to occasionally watch anime without reading subtitles. I should do it more.


----------



## Alberto7

Oooohh right! I've watched reviews and trailers of the Persona 4 anime, and I really dig the art and the character design. It's got a lot of style, artistically. I should check it out some day (or, even better, play the game, whenever I do happen to get a non-Nintendo videogame console, or whenever I stop having a shitty, underpowered computer)

Whenever I watch _Black Lagoon_ again, it'll be the dubbed version. It doesn't seem to make much of a difference for me though, whether I watch dub or sub. I normally prefer sub, but if the dub is good, I'll go for it. I watched the English dubbed version of _Ghost in the Shell_, and some times I forget that it didn't have subtitles.

------------------------------------------------------------

And I forgot to say before. Last night I FINALLY watched _The Garden of Words._ It's so f*cking dreamy. The plot is almost exactly the same as _5 Centimeters Per Second_ (which I hear applies to all other Makoto Shinkai films). Very short and simple romantic story (it's only 45-minutes long), but I felt it was well developed, although maybe a little too fast-paced, given its short running time. The characters are likeable and even relatable. The romantic elements are endearing and the film is able to dig down into your heart, assuming you're able to relate to those dreamy and sort of idealized stories of a distant and unattainable love.

... but nobody gives a shit about that, because HOLY SWEET MOTHER OF GOD ALL THAT EYE CANDY!!  It deserves to be watched in NOTHING but 1080p, because it looks friggin' GORGEOUS. It is, by far, the most detailed and beautiful art that I have ever seen in any animated medium ever, and the animation itself is equally as jawdropping. Literally any still from the film is worthy of becoming a poster, and I would happily use it as my desktop's wallpaper.

Story/plot/characters/all that jazz: 8/10

Music: 8/10

Art and animation: Billions/10

I'll leave this here again:

That trailer really doesn't do the art and animation justice, even if it already looks beautiful.


----------



## Somnium

Props to Don Vito for the amazing avatar. Just preordered the localization of the first Persona 3 movie today! Also just received the third Madoka Magica movie (holy ....ing awesome collector's edition) so I'm planning on watching all 3 sometime soon. 

In Steins;Gate news, I've had like 4 of my friends watch it so far. One of my friends, who's favorite anime are Kino's Journey and Welcome to the NHK, said "Holy shit dude I've never watched an anime that made me want to rage quit with sadness before, and I've seen a lot of anime.". Another, who's really into Evangelion and Fate/Stay Night, text me "Dude Steins;Gate left me all mad twisted inside and I haven't even finished it yet. Makes these gloomy days even gloomier and now I'm listening to a bunch of old OSTs and the nostalgia doesn't help. You've broken me...". And to think I was about to overlook Steins;Gate because I had heard it had a comical side to it. Now I realize that without the comedic breaks that show would be 110% unfiltered depression fuel. A couple of us are planning on getting together on Thursday to watch the movie though. Gonna have us a good old fashioned brotherly cry sesh lol.


----------



## Alberto7

^ I liked every single word in that post.


----------



## Alberto7

Right, so I've begun prodding into the new season. Watched the first episode of a few shows, but the only ones that really stuck and that I'm definitely going to follow are these two:


Ryuugajou Nanana no Maizoukin | AniList
It has a slightly Haruhi-ish feel to it (part of the Haruhi staff being involved in this is probably a reason why), and it's friggin' hilarious. This first episode kind of reminded me of the beach episodes of Haruhi. The fact that it's supposedly about treasure hunting adds to the whole Haruhi thing. Loving the main characters presented so far, and the art is great. I have a thing for anime and eyes, and I always look at how they're designed, and I'm liking the eye design on these characters.


No Game No Life | AniList
Getting to see an L/Lelouch cross-over voiced by Kirito in an SAO-like world dipped in rainbows where all matters are settled by playing board games... now that shit blew my mind.  It's hilarious, pretty to look at, and the animation is wonderful.

Honorary mention goes to _Sidonia no Kishi_ and _Isshuukan Friends (One Week Friends)_. Sidonia was really awesome, and the premise is really cool, but I'm still undecided about the animation. The latter was really, really cute and adorable, but the way they presented the story was slightly different from what I had imagined. Feels will be had, methinks. Will follow these two as well.

Still waiting for _Mekaku City Actors_ to come out tomorrow, which people have been getting me hyped over.

Have you guys watched anything yet?


----------



## bouVIP

The only new anime I've watched is Soul Eater Not! and No Game No Life. No Game No Life is definitely one I'm going to keep up with.


Also just started watching Inari Konkon. Pretty interesting so far.


----------



## Alberto7

I haven't watched _Soul Eater_ yet, but that spin-off sounded kinda strange.  I guess I'll watch it whenever I finish _Soul Eater_.

Just watched the first episode of _Mekakucity Actors_, and it delivered. My impressions from the first episode is that it is definitely on the weird, psychedelic side, but it's actually quite funny, and the art is great, if only because of how weird it is and how much I liked character design. I also just found out it's directed by Akiyuki Shinbo (who directed _Madoka Magica_, among other things) and produced by Atsuhiru Iwakami (who produced _Fate/Zero_, _Kara no Kyoukai_, _Madoka Magica_, _Magi_, and _Sword Art Online_). In other words, this sounds promising, and kind of explains the strangeness/brilliancy of the first episode.


----------



## Ralyks

Just started Sword Art Online now that they added it no Netflix. Possibly my new favorite Anime, probably behind only Cowboy Bebop, but side by side with Darker Than Black.


----------



## MFB

Ralyks said:


> Just started Sword Art Online


----------



## angelofdeath

This is just for the manga. 

If you like football, or even if you don't, Eyeshield 21 is awesome. 

Feng Shen Ji has amazing art and great story. Full of epic.

I just got into Shokugeki no Soma. It's a cooking manga... never thought I'd get into that but it is great. Full of food porn and hilarious as well.

Prison School makes me laugh out loud all the time. 

Also try Great Teacher Onizuka (GTO).

There are also cool Manwahs (korean): The breaker, The breaker new waves, Noblesse, Tower of God.

These are full of awesome.


----------



## Alberto7

Ralyks said:


> Just started Sword Art Online now that they added it no Netflix. Possibly my new favorite Anime, probably behind only Cowboy Bebop, but side by side with Darker Than Black.



Just you wait...


----------



## bouVIP

angelofdeath said:


> This is just for the manga.
> 
> If you like football, or even if you don't, Eyeshield 21 is awesome.
> 
> Feng Shen Ji has amazing art and great story. Full of epic.
> 
> I just got into Shokugeki no Soma. It's a cooking manga... never thought I'd get into that but it is great. Full of food porn and hilarious as well.
> 
> Prison School makes me laugh out loud all the time.
> 
> Also try Great Teacher Onizuka (GTO).
> 
> There are also cool Manwahs (korean): The breaker, The breaker new waves, Noblesse, Tower of God.
> 
> These are full of awesome.



omg I love Shokugeki no Soma!!! It's so great!


----------



## M3CHK1LLA

just started watching wangan midnight, got to ep 3, liked it so much i went ahead and ordered the live action movie.


----------



## Ralyks

MFB said:


>


 
I... hope thats a good thing?


----------



## sakeido

I really, really liked SAO but show was mega rushed. Be prepared.

I just got a 120" screen put in my house so I want to blow my mind by watching some of the best animated stuff out there... all of Studio Ghibli is on the list since I own all their stuff anyway, maybe Akira. Other suggestions?


----------



## Alberto7

Jesus Christ. What I would give to watch _The Garden of Words_ Blu-Ray on a 120".  I reckon that most of the newer Kyoto Animation works would look astonishing, too. The newer _Evangelion_ films must look spectacular, too. The fight scenes in _Seirei no Moribito_ are crazy; they have to look incredible on such a large screen.


----------



## bouVIP

All this SAO talk makes me so pumped for SAO 2 in a few months. Still have yet to finish reading the Gun Gale Online volumes, but I definitely like it more than the Fairy Dance Arc.


----------



## MFB

Ralyks said:


> I... hope thats a good thing?



It is. I'm a big fan of SAO and it hit me "right in the feels" as the kids say so I support anyone else watching it as well


----------



## Skyblue

Wasn't sure if I should start a new topic so I'll just ask here- I want to watch some stuff by Miyazaki as I've seen nothing by him so far aside for Ponyo which I randomly caught on TV once, and I'm kinda lost on where to start. Any recommendations? 

Also, half way through Steins;Gate. Shit is getting F#%$ up


----------



## bouVIP

I definitely recommend Castle in the Sky, Kiki's Delivery Service, My Neighbor Totoro, Howl's Moving Castle, Spirited Away, and not a Miyazaki film but is animated by Studio Ghibli: Graveyard of the Fireflies. 


Also reminds me I need to watch The Wind Rises.


----------



## Skyblue

bouVIP said:


> I definitely recommend Castle in the Sky, Kiki's Delivery Service, My Neighbor Totoro, Howl's Moving Castle, Spirited Away, and not a Miyazaki film but is animated by Studio Ghibli: Graveyard of the Fireflies.
> 
> 
> Also reminds me I need to watch The Wind Rises.



Thanks a lot! Which one should I start with though?  

I'm thinking I'll go with either Howl's Moving Castle or My Neighbor Totoro...


----------



## bouVIP

Howls moving castle!


----------



## Fat-Elf

Just finished Mikakunin de Shinkoukei. Surprisingly enjoyable in the end. Hopefully there will be a second season.


----------



## Don Vito

Watching SAO in chronological order as apposed to random episodes on TV. The pacing is definitely rushed lol. This scene though: http://youtu.be/qba3Oo7ztlo?t=14m48s

I had no idea there was an SAO 2 in production.

I watched Chuunibyou yesterday after hearing about it for the past few years. It's too random for me to keep interest, but it's got cute characters at least. I also started Magi: TLOM, but I don't think I'll pick it back up.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Don Vito said:


> I watched Chuunibyou yesterday after hearing about it for the past few years.



First season was okay. Watched the first episode of the 2nd season and dropped it after that because there was a movie in between and supposedly the 2nd season picked up where the movie ended and I was too lazy to see the movie.


----------



## bythepainiseetheothers

I just finished in my Easter holidays Kill La Kill (watched the last 5 episodes today) and EVA. Now I don't know what to watch now hahahah


----------



## bouVIP

Don Vito said:


> Watching SAO in chronological order as apposed to random episodes on TV. The pacing is definitely rushed lol. This scene though: Sword Art Online Episode 7 of 25 The Temperature of the Heart - YouTube



I've heard people say that, but I think it's funny since the anime was actually taking longer than the novels. The 1st few episodes were from the side story part of the novels.


----------



## Don Vito

bouVIP said:


> I've heard people say that, but I think it's funny since the anime was actually taking longer than the novels. The 1st few episodes were from the side story part of the novels.


Well, I never read the novels, but I don't think it's a bad thing. It keeps me interested actually.

I've also noticed that there's lots of traps in SAO. Not cross dressers, but everyone gets trapped by something or someone every few episodes.


----------



## Somnium

Still haven't watched the second half of SAO. Impulse bought the crap out of NISA's new Nyaruko box set for whatever reason. I figured I could use some comedic anime to counteract all that depressing shit I can't seem to get away from. Other than that I've watched the first episode of Robotics;Notes and the first episode of Fate/Zero (thank you based Netflix). I'm considering buying the second half of Robotics;Notes, but I'm waiting for it to not cost me $60. 

So has anybody here watched/played/read Danganronpa? Been playing it on and off on my Vita (already completed the main story) and holy fugg is it the shit. Great characters, great dialogue, just all around straight up OG. If you don't own a Vita I think you can download it for free over at that fuwanovel website for your PC. Number 2 is scheduled for September and holy shit does a coma sound mad inviting right now.


----------



## Nour Ayasso

Ahhhh ***** waddup found my new favorite thread.
Wolf's Rain and Elfen Lied hands up best animes I've ever watched.


----------



## Ralyks

Finished SAO yesterday. Good lord, I loved it so much that I may go start it again later today. SAO 2 can't come soon enough.


----------



## Nour Ayasso

Did anyone watch the SAO special?


----------



## Ralyks

Nour Ayasso said:


> Did anyone watch the SAO special?


 
I just found out it existed....


----------



## Alberto7

OMG ISSHUUKAN FRIENDS IS SO ADORABLE I CAN'T HANDLE IT I don't know what to do with myself... and it's only on its 4th episode. I hope they don't f*ck this one up, because it's almost perfect so far, imo. It really reminds me of _Usagi Drop_, except with perhaps just a little bit more drama. Definitely my favorite anime this season, along with _Mekakucity Actors_, whose art direction is nothing short of brilliant. So stylish and has a lot of personality.

Still following _Sidonia no Kishi_. The concept is really awesome, the animation is strange and choppy, but interesting, and its pacing is kinda messed up... it goes so fast, yet we still know virtually nothing about anything, and some scenes feel completely pointless and/or ineffective. I'm still giving it a shot though. Besides, I just want to know what the shit the Gauna are; kinda like the titans in _Attack on Titan_... I smell a rising trend here (the unknown and terrifying enemy who is pushing mankind to the edge of extinction for no damn good reason and which will take at least 2 seasons to explain).

I'm also up to date with _No Game No Life_. It's definitely more on the comedic side than I thought it would be, and it is absolutely hilarious.  Bad tendency to just pull wildly random cards out of its ass (in the figurative way), but it's so over the top that I don't really mind. I'm getting into it.

_Gokukoku no Brynhildr_ - which I found out is written by the same guy who wrote _Elfen Lied_ - is quite a mess so far, with a pretty terrible script and barely-on-par pacing. Art and animation are... well... meh. However, like _Elfen Lied_, you just want more of it even though you feel like you shouldn't. Actually, it's EXACTLY like EL (and I really can't emphasize this enough), but not quite as entertaining. If you really liked EF, then I assume you'll like GnB as well (or the first 4 episodes at least, which are how many have come out at the time of this post)

_Ryuugajou Nanana's Buried Treasure_ has a really good first episode, a so-so second episode, and a better third episode. I feel like the overarching theme is a bit of a mess so far (still though, only 3 episodes in), but the treasure-hunting scenes are fantastic. Will keep watching.

EDIT: these are all from the current Spring 2014 season.


----------



## Nour Ayasso

Ralyks said:


> I just found out it existed....



it's basically a recap with some extra stuff here n there


----------



## Don Vito

Watched half of _Hell Girl_, and while the concept is interesting on paper, it just wasn't that entertaining. Basically, there's this website where you can summon this girl(hell girl), who is kind of like Satan's messenger boy, and she will offer to banish someone to hell as a revenge tactic, only the person using the curse also goes to hell when they die.

The punishment/death scenes were cool, but that's about it.

Oh, and Black Lagoon is ....ing awesome. Nuff' said..


----------



## sakeido

yeah Black Lagoon was awwwwwwesome. They finally started up on the manga again after a hugely long hiatus. And so did Berserk!!! First new chapter in 2 years, and another one coming in May.


----------



## Alberto7

Started watching _Mushishi._ Only two episodes into the first season and I'm already in love with it. It is so surreal. So far, each episode feels a lot like watching a Miyazaki film condensed into the most exquisitely paced and scripted 24 minutes, but with a much heavier, more relaxed, and more psychological atmosphere. This will be my next go-to show for late night sessions right before heading to bed. Has anyone else watched it?


----------



## chopeth

Alberto7 said:


> Started watching _Mushishi._ Only two episodes into the first season and I'm already in love with it. It is so surreal. So far, each episode feels a lot like watching a Miyazaki film condensed into the most exquisitely paced and scripted 24 minutes, but with a much heavier, more relaxed, and more psychological atmosphere. This will be my next go-to show for late night sessions right before heading to bed. Has anyone else watched it?



Mushishi is one of the most beautiful series I'd recommend to anyone. You'll love each episode, they are small pieces of art. It was long ago since I watched it but I still remember everytime I finished one episode, I felt peace and joy. I don't watch/read any anime/manga anymore, I feel old for such naive and manichean plots and I can't stand the terrible endings of most animes/mangas anymore, but I would recommend pieces of art such as Mushishi, Samurai Champloo, Cowboy Bebop or Ghost in the Shell all the time. I wish there were more contemporary series as these.


----------



## Don Vito

Just finished Madoka and my head hurts from that ending and I nearly cried about 3 times.


----------



## broj15

sakeido said:


> And so did Berserk!!! First new chapter in 2 years, and another one coming in May.



I can't wait to see Rickert reunite with Griffith for the first time. It will be interesting to see what direction Miura takes.


----------



## Alberto7

chopeth said:


> Mushishi is one of the most beautiful series I'd recommend to anyone. You'll love each episode, they are small pieces of art. It was long ago since I watched it but I still remember everytime I finished one episode, I felt peace and joy. I don't watch/read any anime/manga anymore, I feel old for such naive and manichean plots and I can't stand the terrible endings of most animes/mangas anymore, but I would recommend pieces of art such as Mushishi, Samurai Champloo, Cowboy Bebop or Ghost in the Shell all the time. I wish there were more contemporary series as these.



You have good taste.  I like all anime, but I, almost unconsciously, separate shows into two main categories. The first one would be where I put great shows like _Fate/Zero_, _Steins;Gate_, _Madoka Magica_, _Haruhi Suzumiya_, etc., which are pieces of art in and of themselves. But then there's the other category where I fit shows like the ones you mentioned plus others like _Haibane Renmei_ and _Kara no Kyoukai_. Needless to say, the latter category is a tad more exclusive. I see it as the "high art" of the anime world. Of course, there are a lot that fall into a kind of grey area. For example, I feel as though _Clannad: After Story_ could have made it into the latter category if it weren't for some of its incredibly stereotypical anime characters and it's moe-ness. In any case, both categories are kind of separate, and I don't specifically like one over the other, but I do have a sort of higher degree of artistic respect for something like _Ghost in the Shell_ over, say, _Black Lagoon_, even though I enjoy them equally.

I guess that kind of makes sense. 



Don Vito said:


> Just finished Madoka and my head hurts from that ending and I nearly cried about 3 times.



It pleases me that this happened.


----------



## Don Vito

I expected _something_ from Madoka, but it surpassed my expectations quite often. I actually started watching the series when it was first airing, but dropped it because I thought the first few episodes were boring. How naive 

Just started on Kill la Kill and now I want to be Ryuko is this normal please respond


----------



## Alberto7

Well, you know what they say... being Meguca is suffering...


----------



## Don Vito

Oh, I suffered all right


----------



## Alberto7

OMG I think I just had a mini heart attack. Gooby is best Meguca. meduka meguca - Puella Magi Wiki

That reminds me. Best anime ever:



And yeah, that is an actual show. animation is so sugoooiiiiiii

I think I just went full retard.


----------



## Don Vito

That's exactly how my first date went. True story.


----------



## Alberto7

Wait, it went how? Like that episode of NNSG or full retard? Not that I think there's a difference, but now I'm curious.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

chopeth said:


> Mushishi is one of the most beautiful series I'd recommend to anyone. You'll love each episode, they are small pieces of art. It was long ago since I watched it but I still remember everytime I finished one episode, I felt peace and joy.


 
 Musishi was one of the last series I've seen that I've felt satisfying to watch from beginning to end. The live action was actually pretty good too. 

...though I haven't watched any anime for quite some time, in fact my busy schedule has made me stop completely. Gotta check some new stuff...


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> Wait, it went how? Like that episode of NNSG or full retard? Not that I think there's a difference, but now I'm curious.


There is no good answer I can give to that question..... 

Anyways, just started Mekaku City Actors after seeing it on a Spring 2014 list, and I'm pretty stoked because it has a hikki as the MC.

I'm only 4 episodes in, but I can highly recommend Kill la kill. My hentai state of mind tends to agree with Ryuko's shame. She also wears thrash metal shoes.






edit: oh god I'm 5 minutes into Mekaku and I already love it


----------



## Alberto7

Dude, _Mekakucity Actors_ is turning out GREAT. Damn you, Akiyuki Shinbo, and all your greatness. You'll notice how a lot of scenes and settings will seem to have come straight from _Madoka Magica. _ Like I said before, it is stylistically brilliant, and dat 3rd episode, yo, and dat 4th episode ending!  I hope it stays this awesome.

I don't know if I should start _Kill la Kill _while I watch _Mushishi_... too big a difference and it might ruin the mood  but I REALLY want to watch KlK.


----------



## Alberto7

So, this came out today (F*CKING FINALLY):



A tiny bit underwhelming of a PV I think (especially given the hype and long wait), but I am excite anyway. Art and animation seem to be just as incredible as, if not even better than, _Fate/Zero_'s_._ I like the slightly darker color palette that they're using as well. I also dig the original music from the VN, although I wouldn't complain if they got Mrs. Kajiura to do the OST.


----------



## Alberto7

Aaaaannnd now this:



I'm running around in circles.


----------



## habicore_5150

Well, instead of playing a bit of catch up with a few other series that I've been watching, I decided to check out a few others to see if I can get into them.

Only two I've started watching recently:
Yozakura Quartet and Seikon no Qwaser

Might need to see a couple more episodes of Yozakura Quartet, but it looks pretty good so far

As for Seikon no Qwaser...I really don't know what I can say about this. The only things that are circling my head after seeing the opening episode is "breastfeeding causes explosions in a rather epic looking battle". Though I have been thoroughly warned about the later episodes


----------



## Don Vito

how do we watch anime together? I want this to happen


----------



## Fat-Elf

Just finished the latest chapter of Watamote. So Tomoko is a brony.. 

Fvcking dropped.


----------



## Alberto7

Don Vito said:


> how do we watch anime together? I want this to happen



Yo this seriously needs to happen. If you guys are going to any conventions, do post them up here so we know when and where to look for each other. I wanted to make it to Anime North this year, but that ain't happening. I am, however, going to Otakuthon here in Montreal this August. If anyone just so happens to be here by then and is going, do let me know! Besides, Nobuo Uematsu is paying us a visit, along with Yui Ishikawa (Mikasa Ackerman's Japanese voice). 

Also, the links I posted for the _Fate/Stay Night_ 2014 remake preview videos got deleted off of YouTube, apparently.


----------



## Don Vito

Fat-Elf said:


> Just finished the latest chapter of Watamote. So Tomoko is a brony..
> 
> Fvcking dropped.



WAT  edit: YOUR ANALYSIS WAS WRONG



Alberto7 said:


> Yo this seriously needs to happen.


I will do all in my power to make this happen. Concerning conventions, I'm about as far away from Canada as an American can be.


----------



## Alberto7

Don Vito said:


> I will do all in my power to make this happen. Concerning conventions, I'm about as far away from Canada as an American can be.



I assumed that'd be the easiest way for some of us to possibly meet. I do want to some day go to Anime Expo in LA though, which I suppose is somewhat more feasible for you guys in the US. The odd Skype call I guess would also be doable, albeit slightly weird.  Like everybody sets a date to watch a specific show and then everybody is on conference call while watching said show at the same time. Lots of room for technical difficulties though.

... I don't know, I'm just crazy-talking at this point.


----------



## Alberto7

Has any of you watched _Little Witch Academia_?? I watched LWA a while ago and thought it was a gorgeous piece of animation, but I just finished the "making of" documentary, and it has given me a completely newly found respect for storyboarding, animation, and the whole process involved in animating a show. I mean, I already had a huge appreciation for it, but holy shit. It's one of the most time-consuming, mentally grueling, and ultimately beautiful tasks that I've ever seen.


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> I assumed that'd be the easiest way for some of us to possibly meet. I do want to some day go to Anime Expo in LA though, which I suppose is somewhat more feasible for you guys in the US. The odd Skype call I guess would also be doable, albeit slightly weird.  Like everybody sets a date to watch a specific show and then everybody is on conference call while watching said show at the same time. Lots of room for technical difficulties though.
> 
> ... I don't know, I'm just crazy-talking at this point.


Oh, I fully understand these thoughts. 

Anyways, I set up a Twitch account(http://www.twitch.tv/kennedyblake), which seems to be our best bet.

(example: Twitch)

We just need to decide on a date and time to get together, and of course, pick a show to watch. I could very well .... it up somehow, but I'll do my best.


----------



## Alberto7

Oh, that's actually an awesome idea! I never even considered Twitch (I've never used it other than to watch five thousand people play Pokemon Blue at the same time... ). I'm not sure how available I'm going to be this weekend though. I have family coming over and I'll likely have to host someone in my room with me (awks). Sunday I'm free all day errday though. Weekdays can be a bit tricky, but I do have a few nights free per week.

If this does end up happening, and your friends have ditched you and/or you just have no friends and feel the need for a virtual buddy to cry your feelings to, do join us. 

This should be so awesome, I never considered it.  Awesome proposal, Mr. Don-sankunchansenpaidonosama.


----------



## Don Vito

Yeah I'm usually free on weekdays, except every other Thursday or so. Fat-Elf is usually only free on certain weekends because of his military duty. Not too sure about everyone else though(please chime in!) 

Apart from that, we need to decide on something to watch. I'll think about it some more when we can actually find a pocket of time where we are all free.

This is like the anime club I never had in Catholic school. 


video unrelated


----------



## Don Vito

Some other things I needed to address:

1. I assume English subs are okay? I don't think any one in this thread understands Japanese fluently, and we all have some grasp of English. I only ask because you have to read the text fast.

2. No series that have over 9000 episodes. Getting together to watch 2-3 episodes of a series is going to be an event for us. It seems pointless to start something that we'll never finish.

3. Movies suggestions are welcome.


----------



## bouVIP

Woah cool idea!

I'd definitely be interested in watching something new with other people lol. 

no idea what to suggest though...


----------



## habicore_5150

Hey, I'm down for a SSO anime group thing (can't come up with a creative name, lol)

Another one that I stumbled across that I know I could probably finish in about an hour or two is Senyuu

Even though I really haven't gotten my fair share of anime that has lots of parodies in it, this is one of em. Despite the fact that just about each episode runs about 5 minutes each


----------



## Alberto7

I was gonna say _Elfen Lied_ b/c it's teh lulz, but now I'm interested in that _Senyuu_ show monsieur Cody here is talking about.


----------



## habicore_5150

Alberto7 said:


> I was gonna say _Elfen Lied_ b/c it's teh lulz, but now I'm interested in that _Senyuu_ show monsieur Cody here is talking about.



I'm already up at episode 12, just started the series (mini-series if you think about it) when I made that previous post. It's just stupid funny to me


----------



## Alberto7

Damn, that's so cool that it's so short. I like short anime for a change. It's part of the reason why I thought _FLCL_ was so cool. I'm down.


----------



## Don Vito

Elfen Lied would be sooooooooooo uncomfortable to watch together lol.

Maybe that's a good thing somehow.

It's hard to suggest anything because you're not sure if your choice is too obvious and everybody has seen it a thousand times, or if it's too obscure and alienating. Personally, I think something like season 1 Haruhi would be perfect. It's got moe, action, time travel, comedy. Not too heavy either.




habicore_5150 said:


> Hey, I'm down for a SSO anime group thing (can't come up with a creative name, lol)
> 
> Another one that I stumbled across that I know I could probably finish in about an hour or two is Senyuu
> 
> Even though I really haven't gotten my fair share of anime that has lots of parodies in it, this is one of em. Despite the fact that just about each episode runs about 5 minutes each



Noted!


----------



## Fat-Elf

Boku no Pico has only three episodes. Just saying...


----------



## Alberto7

Oh, Fat-Elf, I really do hope someone decides to take your advice and watch that. I would pay real money to see their reaction.

But yeah, I suggested _Elfen Lied_ precisely because of the awkwardness. I just make fun of awkward parts and I like to make fun of all the ass-pulls in the show.  But something like _Haruhi_ would be great, too (no Endless Eight pl0x). Truth is, comedic anime isn't my forte, so I have very few recommendations to make in that area. I guess something in the _Monogatari_ series would be good? I heard it's really good, but I've never watched it.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Alberto7 said:


> Oh, Fat-Elf, I really do hope someone decides to take your advice and watch that. I would pay real money to see their reaction.



I actually once watched streamed gay hentai. It was okay but the chat comments made me crack up.


----------



## Don Vito

Okay, Elfen Lied is definitely a go, because yeah.



Fat-Elf said:


> Boku no Pico has only three episodes. Just saying...


 noted

edit: oh god I'm not sure about elfen lied.. forgot how HORRIBLE it is

plus I accidentally got the english dub 

edit 2: If something happens with Twitch, we can watch pre uploaded streams and chat using CyTube. http://cytu.be/r/ssbros


----------



## Alberto7

Hahaha  we don't have to do EL if you don't want to; there are many more, possibly even better, options. CyTube is new to me, so I might act retarded for the first couple of episodes, but if it works, hey why not?  Although I thought we could chat directly on Twitch, no?

Anyway, seems like what we need now is set a date. I can do:

Saturday - after about 8pm EDT (GMT -5)
Sunday - same
Monday - same
Wednesday - same
Thursday - after 11pm EDT (GMT -5)
Friday - same as Saturday

In general, rinse and repeat. Unforeseen and unique changes might apply.


----------



## Don Vito

Merci! If we can get everyone's time schedule, that would be great.

The CyTube thing is just a back up for now.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Fvcking time zones, it makes things like this so hard to execute if you have one guy on the other side of the earth. Well, if you're planning on doing this then don't mins me not showing up because I'm probably sleeping.


----------



## Alberto7

Oh, that schedule I posted is quite flexible, particularly on weekends. I just said after 8pm because the rest of the day I'm usually hanging out with friends and/or family, running errands, doing things around the house, or being all-around sugoi and kawaii desu, but I can definitely set time aside before then. That, or we could arrange separate viewings for people in more similar time zones. Then again, for the latter we'd need more people willing to host them.


----------



## habicore_5150

Just got into watching Mekakucity Actors (or Kagerou Project) a few days ago. Might need to watch a few more episodes of it, looks pretty good, though one of the characters made me think about a loose adaptation of Miku Hatsune


----------



## bouVIP

habicore_5150 said:


> Just got into watching Mekakucity Actors (or Kagerou Project) a few days ago. Might need to watch a few more episodes of it, looks pretty good, though one of the characters made me think about a loose adaptation of Miku Hatsune



I saw LiSA sing a song for it and looked cool. Might have to check it out now!



Also for Persona fans the P3 movie is out with eng subs!


----------



## Alberto7

habicore_5150 said:


> Just got into watching Mekakucity Actors (or Kagerou Project) a few days ago. Might need to watch a few more episodes of it, looks pretty good, though one of the characters made me think about a loose adaptation of Miku Hatsune



The story is based off of a song series by Kagerou Project, which is all sung using a vocaloid software. That's as much of the series's background as I know  but it's enough so that I wasn't surprised to see that Ene resembled Hatsune Miku, or any of the other vocaloid characters out there. I love character design in this show. The story, so far (6 episodes), is interesting and episode 3 was a beautiful way to wrap the confusion of episodes 1 and 2, but it is all still a little confusing and too fast-paced for me to make a real judgement. I'm gonna have to give everything another watch to really let it sink in. What keeps me coming back though is the art direction. I feel it's somewhat detrimental for the clearness of the story-telling, but it's so quirky that I can't help it. It's like _Madoka Magica_ but on crack.


----------



## kamello

is the akward-international-nerdy-video-conference still a project?, I want to chime in 

anyways, GMT -4 here, so I don't have any problems with the schedule posted in page 28...
I can foresee myself getting lost in my engrish and just end up speaking spanish with Alberto


----------



## Don Vito

I was a little bummed with Mekaku, as it turned into a completely different anime after the first episode. But I'm not dropping it, as it still seems like something that could deliver.

And about the group anime viewing, it's still a thing, but this has been one of those rare weeks where I've had a lot going on. I am however, free for this weekend, and the foreseeable future. I'd love to watch something tomorrow actually.



bouVIP said:


> Also for Persona fans the P3 movie is out with eng subs!


1 vote for P3(me)


----------



## Alberto7

I'm down for tomorrow, actually. I don't mind watching the Persona movie, actually. Does it require previous knowledge of the series? I've never played the games/read the manga/watched any of the animes/nothing.


----------



## bouVIP

Alberto7 said:


> I'm down for tomorrow, actually. I don't mind watching the Persona movie, actually. Does it require previous knowledge of the series? I've never played the games/read the manga/watched any of the animes/nothing.



Nope the movie is basically the game story from the beginning and none of the games are really connected story wise and the 1s that are take place after P3



If you guys do tomorrow, what time were you thinking? I Work all day tomorrow but night works for me.


----------



## Alberto7

Yeah, I think night time would be best. You're GMT -6, right? Night around what time?

And just to begin the back-and-forth, what would you guys say about doing it at 03:00 GMT? Or is that too late? Just shooting for later times since some of you work during the day tomorrow.


----------



## bouVIP

Yea anytime after 10PM central works for me but idk how late it'll be for everyone else.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Don Vito said:


> And about the group anime viewing, it's still a thing, but this has been one of those rare weeks where I've had a lot going on. I am however, free for this weekend, and the foreseeable future. I'd love to watch something tomorrow actually.



Tomorrow would be pretty good for me too as I probably won't have anything going on and I have to go back in Monday so I don't have to worry about my sleep that much.


----------



## Don Vito

bouVIP said:


> Yea anytime after 10PM central works for me but idk how late it'll be for everyone else.


I think Alberto and kamello are an hour a head of you, I , and habicore. 10:30 or 10:45 would be a good time to start. 11:00 if we need extra time to round everybody up.



Fat-Elf said:


> Tomorrow would be pretty good for me too as I probably won't have anything going on and I have to go back in Monday so I don't have to worry about my sleep that much.


I shouldn't have posted that at midnight, because by tomorrow I mean't today .

I think it will be around 6 or 7 A.M. your time tomorrow when I'm going to stream it. 

...or you could get some secret plane keys from your dad and come to the private screening at my house 

make sure before you come over, use your bathroom, because I don't have any

you'll have to go outside if you need it


----------



## Fat-Elf

Don Vito said:


> make sure before you come over, use your bathroom, because I don't have any
> 
> you'll have to go outside if you need it



Not sure if actually serious or not. 

But yeah, in case the thing is today I will not probably attend because I'm busy.


----------



## Sofos

Just got done watching SAO. It was really good, but goddamnit i got attached to it. Too short, should have been a lot longer.


----------



## Alberto7

^ No worries, you're getting a second season in a little over a month (5th of July) 

Alright, so 11pm Central Time, then? I'll be there. Here... somewhere. Wherever.


----------



## Don Vito

Persona 3 starts in 5 minutes or so. Sorry for the delay, I was breaking a world record by not ordering steak at a steakhouse, but instead, eating 3 salads.


----------



## Alberto7

I feel like the biggest creeper on the planet right now. I literally just saw you type that post on Twitch.  F*ck yeah, science! Anyway, back to Twitch.


----------



## Don Vito

Yeah, I wonder if anyone has just let their twitch run without noticing.


----------



## Alberto7

Was a good stream guys  definitely worth giving it another shot with more people this time! I had to quit the stream cold turkey; otherwise I would never go to sleep.


----------



## Don Vito

5/24/14


----------



## habicore_5150

Don Vito said:


> 5/24/14



Hey, it's Oompa-Tan-Chan


----------



## kamello

I went to sleep at... 3 am I think?, got up at 7, and passed out on the bus on my way home and woke up like 5 km away, worth it


----------



## Alberto7

kamello wtf! 

Anyway, I finished watching the first season of _Mushishi_ a few days ago, and then watched the OVA that came out this January. I'm all caught up with the new season that's currently airing. It is an instant favorite of mine. It's so beautiful and calming, even though it can get quite gloomy. Totally different from pretty much any other anime I've ever watched. I could just watch loose episodes to pass the time. I suppose I could write a review about it, but it would be kind of difficult given its episodic nature. In any case, I'll begin writing it today. I'll post it whenever I finish it.


----------



## Don Vito

kamello said:


> I went to sleep at... 3 am I think?, got up at 7, and passed out on the bus on my way home and woke up like 5 km away, worth it


legendary

Anyways, I think I'm going to start NGNL sometime today. Might stream it, might not.


----------



## Fat-Elf

kamello said:


> I went to sleep at... 3 am I think?, got up at 7, and passed out on the bus on my way home and woke up like 5 km away, worth it



Hah, I had the same thing happen to me last Friday. I took a bus home at 1am, fell asleep and suddenly I'm like 13km away from home. Took a taxi home with some random guy and didn't have to pay a penny.


----------



## Alberto7

You guys sure live life on the edge. So metal!


----------



## kamello

haha 
I finished my exams this week so I haven't sleep a normal amount of hours in quite a few days, so I guess today that just took a toll on my body (god I was a mess during band rehersal  ) 

anyways, gonna start with Mushishi or Watamote soon




Fat-Elf said:


> Hah, I had the same thing happen to me last Friday. I took a bus home at 1am, fell asleep and suddenly I'm like 13km away from home. Took a taxi home with some random guy and didn't have to pay a penny.



I would count that as flirting


----------



## Alberto7

Damn, in my head that choice sounded like "today do I want to play a Fender Strat or do I want to play a Vagina?"


----------



## kamello

Alberto7 said:


> Damn, in my head that choice sounded like "today do I want to play a Fender Strat or do I want to play a Vagina?"



but Vaginas are cool 

yeah, I know, weird options, saw the first ep of Watamote and it looked fine and had a good laugh with it, but, you got my interest in Mushishi when you compared it to _Miyazaki with a heavier atmosphere_

so I guess it depends on how Im feeling tonight


----------



## Fat-Elf

Watch Watamote, AOTY 2013.


----------



## Alberto7

Hahaha  yeah, that's what I meant with that comparison. Both are cool, but have totally different vibes about them. I haven't seen _Watamote_ yet though.

Oh, and when I compare _Mushishi_ to Miyazaki films, it's mainly because they both use similar themes about the relationship between man and nature in order to convey a deeper underlying message. It reminds me a lot of _Princess Mononoke_ in that regard.


----------



## Sofos

Don Vito said:


> 5/24/14



lol funny thing is she's the one i'm 'dating' in Persona 3


----------



## Don Vito

Fat-Elf said:


> Watch Watamote, AOTY 2013.



rly



Sofos said:


> lol funny thing is she's the one i'm 'dating' in Persona 3


Yeah, they don't show it in the movie, but she becomes less horrible later in the game.


----------



## bouVIP

Started to watch Space Dandy thanks to the stream lol. This show is great.


----------



## Sofos

Don Vito said:


> rly
> 
> 
> Yeah, they don't show it in the movie, but she becomes less horrible later in the game.



oops for a minute i thought that was Yuko, but it's the chick that was bullying Fuuka.


----------



## Don Vito

haha, I was about to say "I don't even think you can date her, but what do I know!"


----------



## Ikiharmaa

So I finished Planetes a few days ago and enjoyed it a lot, especially the last episodes. I'd want to give it a higher mark, but I somehow didn't connect with it personally that much, the mood didn't captivate me somehow even if the subject matters and art were really nice. 8/10, but certainly one of the better shows I wouldn't hesitate to recommend for the more mature audience, or for people who are bored with the usual anime out there.


In another news I'm continuing my journey with Aria (the origination) and it's still just as great as it ought to be, so kind it's beautiful. I know I know, I always say it's my personal favourite but I can't help but fall deeper in love with her.


----------



## Alberto7

Planetes was friggin' beautiful. I'm so glad I did connect with it and the characters. And dat ending! And the hard sci-fi stuff was giving me constant nerd-boners. I really should watch it again.

I keep hearing wonderful things about Aria. I want to watch it but, as it often happens, I'm not sure where to start.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

Alberto7 said:


> I keep hearing wonderful things about Aria. I want to watch it but, as it often happens, I'm not sure where to start.



Sure you do, because I keep praising it in every post I make. The order is the following:

Aria The Animation (13 episodes)
Aria The Natural (26 episodes)
Aria The OVA: Arietta
Aria The Origination (13 episodes + special which is #5.5)


----------



## Alberto7

Okay, so excuse the capslock and the bad grammar, but WTF ONE WEEK FRIENDS... ;_; ... at this point, I want this show to play while I die. It's so stupidly happy and warm and fuzzy and perfect. Like, it's ridiculous how beautiful it is. And then at the end of this last episode it's all *BAM!* "WAT R U DOIN... STAHP...!!" and then massive cliffhanger and a very unpleasant title for the next episode, and now I'm fearful of this turning all dark and I CAN'T EVEN- *gasps* Someone follow this with me. I'm the only one of my friends and relatives following it. I can't be the only one suffering without being able to let it out. *curls into ball and cries*  Seriously though, BEAUTIFUL anim_e._

Oh, and thanks for the info on Aria, Ikiharmaa  I'm writing this down on my "to-watch" list!


----------



## kamello

Fat-Elf said:


> Watch Watamote, AOTY 2013.











...denko


----------



## Don Vito

sakeido said:


> I just finished Kill la Kill yesterday. The ending was a little lackluster imo but considering the show starts on a high and then just gets crazier and crazier up until around episode 21 or so, it kinda makes sense it eventually has to cave in and start doing things by the numbers. Episode 25 out in September or something like that as a bonus for the last bluray release iirc
> 
> But awesome artwork, great animation, a lot of funny moments, pretty decent characters (obviously nothing on the level of steins;gate). Highly entertaining start to finish.


_Finally_ finished this one(honestly, could only stomach like 3 or 4 episodes a week because sensory overload). Totally agree about that ending. Wasn't terrible, but left sooooooo much room for creativity. What they really need in that blu ray is an alt ending or something.

I also saw the english dub trailer today, and it's... not good at all. They totally ruined any charm Senketsu had. Wouldn't be surprised if Toonami/Cartoon Network picks it up at some point.

But still 10/10 would synchronize again.


----------



## habicore_5150

Figured it's best to post this in here since it is anime(ish) related
Guess we're gonna have to put up with Bay-vangelion in the coming years
I predict that Megan Fox will play the role of Asuka Langley Soryuu, and Shia Lebouf as Shinji Ikari. And instead of Evas and Angels, it's Transformers
Michael Bay Sets Sights On Neon Genesis Evangelion Movie | Aggressive Comix


----------



## Alberto7

Does this man just want the world to hate him? Why not kick a puppy or something instead? I am not happy about this. Michael Bay's style of direction is the exact polar opposite of what an Evangelion film demands and deserves.

In happier (and related) news, this is happening:
[EDIT: NSFW nudity inside] Filmmakers Create Homage to Ghost in the Shell - Interest - Anime News Network [/EDIT: NSFW nudity inside]
I'm still not sure if they're actually remaking the entire opening scene as the article claims, or if they're just creating posters and short animations (as evidenced by the video). Still incredible though. My nerd-boner is raging.

EDIT: also, Cody, I love your avatar.


----------



## Don Vito

I forgot to mention.. regarding the stream and all, my laptop has been crashing a lot lately at random, so I won't be airing anything until I can get a new one. I might try to stream Watamote tomorrow around 11 pm Central Time, but I can't promise it will work. 

In the meantime, anybody else is welcome to start a twitch stream in my place. I can still watch on an iPad.


----------



## Alberto7

I might just give it a try, although I don't know what the system requirements would be for using Twitch, seeing as how my laptop is 4 years old and still runs on Vista (.......... ). In any case, I'm busy with exams this weekend and next week, so if I do it it would be next weekend. We should probably begin throwing suggestions out there though. I don't mind re-watching stuff, so anything goes. I think _Mekakucity Actors_ lends itself very well to comments and discussion, and it is a super fun watch. I also wouldn't mind watching _Isshuukan Friends_ all over again.


----------



## Don Vito

Twitch really depends more on your internet speed. The software used for broadcasting will run better depending on your computer.

FFsplit


----------



## kamello

Im finally visiting my hometown this weekend after 3 months at Uni, so I won't be seeing the streaming  
have fun guys!, 
Im already at ep. 7 of Watamote, loving how it makes me laugh and feel so sad at the same time  , Tomoko reminds me of a few people I know, sadly...

edit: me am retaerded at 2 am, no streaming this weekend?


----------



## Alberto7

Yeah, the broadcasting software is what's got me worried the most, but I shall do a few test streams before doing the actual one if I get around to it. My internet speed should be good at least until July.


----------



## Don Vito

kamello said:


> edit: me am retaerded at 2 am, no streaming this weekend?


I might stream Watamote tomorrow, but just the first 2 or 3 episodes.

btw, your avatar + name on twitch made me lol Alberto


----------



## bouVIP

I would definitely be interested in watching isshuukan friends or mekaku city actors some time next week since I haven't started on those yet.


----------



## Don Vito

I'm scared to watch isshuukan. The way Alberto described it makes me feel like I'll have an inner crisis, which I have not felt since Madoka, times infinity.

I'm fine with Mekaku. Need to catch up on that one anyways.


----------



## Alberto7

I've been guilty of using hyperbole before (in fact, I might just do it again now).  _Isshuukan Friends_ is really just a super sweet, slow-paced, and heart-melting show about friendship and puppy love. It can be a little overwhelming at times from how perfectly innocent and conflict-free it is ... until last episode, that is, where we had an unexpected turn of events at the very end (although not so unexpected in retrospect). The name of the next episode also unashamedly hints at some upcoming soul-shattering events. Part of me remains hopeful that it won't be that big a deal. I don't want this turning into another _Clannad_ or _Anohana_. Those two are enough for a lifetime of sorrow and sadness, and this show has been the complete opposite so far. The first 8 episodes at least are the anime definition of "D'AAAWWWWWWWW" but with more D's and A's and W's.

I use way too many hyphens. Need to expand vocabulary.


----------



## gamber

just finished tokyo ravens...wow stupidly good


----------



## Don Vito

k, tomorrow we've got the possible choices of:

Watamote
One Week Friends
Mekaku City Actors
and I'm throwing out Ika Musume because Fat-Orc and I are talking about it in steam chat JAU JAU JAU JAU

Gonna go a head and log off it's like 3 AM here, keep it posi guys.


----------



## habicore_5150

Alberto7 said:


> Does this man just want the world to hate him? Why not kick a puppy or something instead? I am not happy about this. Michael Bay's style of direction is the exact polar opposite of what an Evangelion film demands and deserves.
> 
> In happier (and related) news, this is happening:
> [EDIT: NSFW nudity inside] Filmmakers Create Homage to Ghost in the Shell - Interest - Anime News Network [/EDIT: NSFW nudity inside]
> I'm still not sure if they're actually remaking the entire opening scene as the article claims, or if they're just creating posters and short animations (as evidenced by the video). Still incredible though. My nerd-boner is raging.
> 
> EDIT: also, Cody, I love your avatar.



I've heard about that one, looks pretty neat
And honestly with the avatar. I was tossing back and forth with Seto or even Kano...Or if I really wanted to, I could have used Yuko and edited my title as Oompa-Tan Chan


----------



## Alberto7

Haha Oompa-Tan-Chan slays. <3 I love Kido though. Always playing the hardass but she's really just all a ball of mushy feels. 

And yeah okay, I'll take the chance to keep hyping it up; the 2014 _Fate/Stay Night_ anime has had its two trailers officially subbed to English by Aniplex. It's so much more exciting when you can understand what's being said. 

Trailer 1:


Trailer 2:


----------



## Don Vito

Twitch stream is up an hour late if anyone still cares lol


----------



## Alberto7

I actually did spend a bit of time last night looking at other Twitch streams (was watching this guy speed-running _Super Metroid_ once in every category... I hadn't seen something so entertaining in a while) waiting to see if you started yours by any chance, but it had been such a shitty day that I just went to sleep early.  What did you end up watching/streaming?


----------



## Don Vito

I watched about 40 minutes of Ika Musume until I got bored and went to sleep. I really wasn't in the mood either 

I tend to watch a lot of Megaman speedrunners on twitch. And now that I'm thinking of it, I've never played a Metroid game before, unless you count the one on Gamecube.


----------



## Alberto7

Aaahh _Squid Girl_, I had to resort to Google.  I've heard the name and seen her character before, but I don't know much more than that. The premise sounds hilarious though.


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> Aaahh _Squid Girl_, I had to resort to Google.  I've heard the name and seen her character before, but I don't know much more than that. The premise sounds hilarious though.


It's one of my favorite laid back SOL series.


Anyways, catching up on Mekaku and why can't Ene be my gf


----------



## bouVIP

Squid Girl is great!!! Also loved the dub version with the understandable puns.


Just finished Space Dandy and omg July feels like forever!!! I need season 2 now.


----------



## Don Vito

I didn't know they were making a season 2... thanks for the heads up!

Doesn't the new SAO arrive in July as well? stoked


----------



## Alberto7

Yeap, they actually just released a second super short PV for SAO 2 (it's like 16 seconds long). I still need to finish _Space Dandaaayyy_ season 1! I stopped after episode 6, for reasons that I don't quite comprehend, since I was loving it till that point.

I'm telling you, this is a good year for anime. 

Also, gamber, I completely overlooked your post the first time! It's my first time hearing about _Tokyo Ravens_ but it looks fairly interesting. It's always good to add a new name to my repertoire.


----------



## Alberto7

Oh Jesus, _Mekakucity Actors_ episode 8... right in the feels. Finally things begin to make sense (sort of), and it is awesome. This show is a lot darker than it is first apparent. Am I the only one who loves the stories about the monster after the end credits? 

If you guys are interested in watching the source material for _Mekakucity Actors_, I came across this post by a member over at the Anime News Network forum:



> If you are ever interested in following it, the only other thing you need to is to watch the corresponding music videos. You can do it two ways:
> 
> 1. Go on Youtube, type the names of the episode titles and you will find the corresponding music videos that tell the story. The episodes and corresponding music videos are:
> 
> - 1 - Jinzou Enemy
> - 2 - Kisaragi Attention / Otsukimi Recital
> - 3 - Mekakushi Code (also known as Blindfold Code)
> - 4 - Heat Haze Days (also known as Kagerou Days)
> - 5 - Kaien Panzermast (no corresponding music video...ironically the only episode that seemed accessible to many)
> - 6 - Headphone Actor / Yuukei Yesterday
> 
> The next two episodes will be Konoha's State of the World and Lost Time Memory.
> 
> 2. Type 'Kagerou Project' on Youtube and just check out whatever music video that pops up.
> 
> Part of the fun is piecing together the story. I managed to do that through the music videos (they have immense re-watch value) and used the anime as a guide to connect the plot. I think I've put together most of the story now; it's actually quite simple, it just has a non-linear way of telling it.


I think I may just do that.


----------



## Don Vito

I'll have to do that at some point as well. One reason I got behind on Mekaku was because it was like "wtf is going on here?". The other reason was Kill la Kill.


----------



## Alberto7

_Gokukoku no Brynhildr_ is so shit, I can't stop watching it.

My friend has a theory where the original English title (_Brynhildr in the Darkness) _was meant to be Behind the Darkness, but, before the final submission of the title, someone tried to type the word "Behind" with their forehead and "Brynhildr" was what came out. I support that theory.


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> _Gokukoku no Brynhildr_ is so shit, I can't stop watching it.
> 
> My friend has a theory where the original English title (_Brynhildr in the Darkness) _was meant to be Behind the Darkness, but, before the final submission of the title, someone tried to type the word "Behind" with their forehead and "Brynhildr" was what came out. I support that theory.


Oh god, the trailer I watched on Youtube looks tragic. I know what I'm doing tonight lol.

Brynhildr sounds Norwegian.


----------



## Alberto7

It's actually German. Same dude who made _Elfen Lied, _so no surprise there. So many German words in his works.

Man, it's so bad, it brings about many lols. The story itself is really dark and twisted (it's actually an exact copy of _Elfen Lied_), but it is just so horribly executed and the art is so cheesy. I could go on for days about it. Watch the OP. It sums up the anime pretty well. It's all super dramatic but oh so badly done. The music in the OP is pretty bad as well, but it is sooooo catchy and epic that you can't help but love it. Same deal with the anime itself.

And yeah, I remember that preview video. I saw it before the anime started to come out and I was sooooooo pumped for it. I was more pumped for it than anything else this season. Turned out to be my least favorite out of the 6 shows I'm following, and one of the most terrible ones I've watched so far


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> Same dude who made _Elfen Lied, _


Okay, now I'm really getting scared.

I couldn't even make it through the first episode last time I tried to watch Elfen Lied. The way the characters are drawn disturbs me for some reason. It's like this awkward blend of 90's design and 00's design.


----------



## gamber

OH MY GOD A NEW FATE SERIES HAHSFHAHFAHSFHA YAAAASSSS


----------



## Alberto7

that is exactly my reaction every time I watch one of the trailers.  And not only that but it is also made by the same people who made _Fate/Zero_.


----------



## habicore_5150

First time I got around to watching a few older anime movies
Starting off with Metropolis, and I gotta admit, it's pretty good
No idea what I'm gonna watch next, maybe re-watch X at some point (even though it's probably one of the bloodiest anime that I've seen within years. despite the fact that I remember seeing bits of another anime somewhere in this thread that looked pretty gory, though I forgot the name)


----------



## kamello

finished Watamote, and fvck, it made me feel so anxious at times! I can't say I enjoyed watching it  (maybe 'cause loneliness is one of the things I dislike the most, and it hitted home a few times. I was really hard to come-by during my childhood until my early-mid teens, and when I moved to a new city last year a few of thoose insecurities from my childhood started to pop-up) 
the loneliness of Tomoko is really emphasasized since she practically doesn't speak to anybody else in the series apart from her brother and a friend...




Spoiler



also, I disliked the lack of growth in Tomoko's character, there was just a tiny hint of it at the very end of the series, which was sad since, well, all her problems are caused by herself.



OT: there will be a stream this weekend guys?


----------



## Alberto7

Not from my part (sorry, I forgot to mention that before). I've already tried two broadcasting softwares and I get errors for both of them and I can't be bothered to find their cause and then fixing them. Even if it worked, I'd have to stream at 480p because my laptop's so old and outdated.  If that weren't enough, my internet, of all times, decided to become shitty this last week and is still being shitty. Sorry guise 

Also, I keep hearing the same comments about Watamote, that it makes you feel very anxious and the pain is shared between character and viewer. Seems like I'll have to watch it eventually.

For now, I'm gonna go watch the first episode for _Ergo Proxy_... again. For like the millionth time. I'm considering rewatching the show.


----------



## Don Vito

kamello said:


> finished Watamote, and fvck, it made me feel so anxious at times! I can't say I enjoyed watching it  (maybe 'cause loneliness is one of the things I dislike the most, and it hitted home a few times. I was really hard to come-by during my childhood until my early-mid teens, and when I moved to a new city last year a few of thoose insecurities from my childhood started to pop-up)
> the loneliness of Tomoko is really emphasasized since she practically doesn't speak to anybody else in the series apart from her brother and a friend...
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> also, I disliked the lack of growth in Tomoko's character, there was just a tiny hint of it at the very end of the series, which was sad since, well, all her problems are caused by herself.
> 
> 
> 
> OT: there will be a stream this weekend guys?


When you are a hopeless NEET in training, there is no room for character development. *scarfs down entire plate of bagel bites*

You might like the manga though, because Tomoko


Spoiler



makes friends


.

Anyways, I actually wanted to stream Watamote, since I'm only up to episode 4(which is ....ing hysterical.. actually had me lol'ing), but I'm also interested in Attack on Titan, since I missed out on that whole thing. But hey, I'll watch anything at this point if my peepz are willing to show up 

My computer is working again btw.


----------



## Alberto7

Let's do it Saturdaaaayy niiigghhttt then, come on d00ds/d00dettes D: that's good news about your computer!


----------



## bouVIP

I'm totally up for Saturday night stream. Ran out of things to watch so I picked this random anime call Nanana's Buried Treasure. D:

Also that new No Game No Life was awesome.


----------



## Alberto7

Haha oddly enough, Nanana is one of the 6 airing shows I'm watching. I had no idea what to expect at first and I thought it would be kind of Haruhi-like, so I thought the first episode was near perfect. Then the second came and had my doubts. Then I started losing hope by the third. When they revealed the first twist (ep. 4 or 5, not sure), I lost interest. I just keep watching it because why not, and because the OP music is killer, but I'm not actually sure of what's going on, nor do I care too much. Nanana time = time to shut my brain off.

NGNL was amazing. It honestly keeps getting better and better with each episode. I'm glad we got a Shiro episode, because her role in the anime was very undefined and she just came across as mere gratuitous 11-year old fanservice. After this last episode she is still that (which kinda bothers me, tbh), but she is revealed to be a much more integral part of the cast than it is initially apparent. Also, she had all of my feels during ep. 9. This show feels like a sort of parody of _Code Geass_ that decided to keep the more serious bits... sorta.


----------



## Somnium

Can't remember what the last thing I had posted about on here was, but the last series I made it through was Attack on Titan. As with Sword Art Online, my expectations were pretty low, but I was pleasantly surprised yet again. I really, really want some more episodes. Seriously. Hook it up. Other than that I watched the first of the Persona 3 movies about a week ago. Definitely enjoyed it; although they left off after they save Fuuka so I'm not sure how they're gonna fit the rest of the story into one more film. Regardless, it was totally solid. That $80 collector's edition (thank you Aniplex...) was worth it, the packaging is fuggin gawgeous. Also dat protagonist/Makoto Yuki, anime mancrushin' over here lol.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Been re-watching Bartender for a few nights now for who knows how many(eth?) time. There needs to be more animes about alcohol.


----------



## Don Vito

Somnium said:


> Other than that I watched the first of the Persona 3 movies about a week ago. Definitely enjoyed it; although they left off after they save Fuuka so I'm not sure how they're gonna fit the rest of the story into one more film. Regardless, it was totally solid. That $80 collector's edition (thank you Aniplex...) was worth it, the packaging is fuggin gawgeous. Also dat protagonist/Makoto Yuki, anime mancrushin' over here lol.


Haha we watched this like 2 weeks ago and I was like "wtf its already over?" I thought it covered the whole game.


----------



## Alberto7

Gotta say, I was not a huge of fan of _Sidonia no Kishi _(a.k.a._ Knights of Sidonia_) for the first 4-5 episodes or so. Characters, their relationships, and setting introduction were kinda iffy and strangely paced, and it was kinda confusing. The animation style didn't really help much. However, the latter episodes are amazing (on episode 9 now). They have everything set up nicely and the setting is pretty clear. Character development got A LOT better, there's a lot more action, and I feel as though even the animation changed a bit towards the more traditional side (or perhaps I'm just getting used to it).

It feels like a mix between _Evangelion_ and _Gundam_. For the more modern anime oriented, it's quite similar in concept to _Attack on Titan_, but in space. A mysterious enemy incapable of any level of human communication appears out of the blue and drives humankind to the verge of extinction, destroying Earth in the process. Humanity develops *gigantic* ships which contain the last remaining humans (one of them being named Sidonia. Guess where the story takes place?). All that happened ~1000 years ago. By this time, technology is incredibly advanced and robotic frames (reminiscent of Gundams) are created to combat the Gauna (the aforementioned 'mysterious enemy'), on which humanity has next to no information, despite 1000 years having passed since their appearance. Really cool and and creepy.

Of course one of the supporting characters (and pretty integral to the story, too, apparently) is a bipedal talking bear with a robotic hand-claw thing, because why the fuck not.

Regardless, I suggest you give it a watch. It's heading in a promisingly epic direction.


----------



## bouVIP

Alberto7 said:


> Haha oddly enough, Nanana is one of the 6 airing shows I'm watching. I had no idea what to expect at first and I thought it would be kind of Haruhi-like, so I thought the first episode was near perfect. Then the second came and had my doubts. Then I started losing hope by the third. When they revealed the first twist (ep. 4 or 5, not sure), I lost interest. I just keep watching it because why not, and because the OP music is killer, but I'm not actually sure of what's going on, nor do I care too much. Nanana time = time to shut my brain off.



I had no idea what it was about when I started it (only watched it cause I saw a gif and it looked cool). The plot twists felt so random to me, but on episode 5 and I like it.


----------



## habicore_5150

Alberto7 said:


> Gotta say, I was not a huge of fan of _Sidonia no Kishi _(a.k.a._ Knights of Sidonia_) for the first 4-5 episodes or so. Characters, their relationships, and setting introduction were kinda iffy and strangely paced, and it was kinda confusing. The animation style didn't really help much. However, the latter episodes are amazing (on episode 9 now). They have everything set up nicely and the setting is pretty clear. Character development got A LOT better, there's a lot more action, and I feel as though even the animation changed a bit towards the more traditional side (or perhaps I'm just getting used to it).
> 
> It feels like a mix between _Evangelion_ and _Gundam_. For the more modern anime oriented, it's quite similar in concept to _Attack on Titan_, but in space. A mysterious enemy incapable of any level of human communication appears out of the blue and drives humankind to the verge of extinction, destroying Earth in the process. Humanity develops *gigantic* ships which contain the last remaining humans (one of them being named Sidonia. Guess where the story takes place?). All that happened ~1000 years ago. By this time, technology is incredibly advanced and robotic frames (reminiscent of Gundams) are created to combat the Gauna (the aforementioned 'mysterious enemy'), on which humanity has next to no information, despite 1000 years having passed since their appearance. Really cool and and creepy.
> 
> Of course one of the supporting characters (and pretty integral to the story, too, apparently) is a bipedal talking bear with a robotic hand-claw thing, because why the fuck not.
> 
> Regardless, I suggest you give it a watch. It's heading in a promisingly epic direction.



Been meaning to get around to watching Knights of Sidonia. And I told you that it has an Evangelion and Gundam (at this point, should we even say Evangundam, or Gundamelion or something ridiculous?) vibe to it


----------



## Alberto7

^ Ah man, I don't remember that, sorry. I remember a friend posting the trailer a couple of months before it came out, and it was very Eva-ish. Gundamelion sounds about right.  The control room and how missions are carried out are EXACTLY like in Eva. The robots look like more streamlined Gundams. It's a really cool show, I just wish they had gone about the storytelling a little differently.



bouVIP said:


> I had no idea what it was about when I started it (only watched it cause I saw a gif and it looked cool). The plot twists felt so random to me, but on episode 5 and I like it.


Their randomness threw me off so much. I never expected them and by the time I got over my state of shock, the plot had advanced too much for me to fully understand what was going on. However, episode 9 renewed my interest in it a little bit. Things begin to get more interesting, even if I'm still not 100% sure of what's going on. I have so many questions about this anime.  Maybe I just haven't been paying attention enough.

There's also the fact that I looove Nanana's character, even if she doesn't really take much of the spotlight at all despite being in the anime's freaking title.


----------



## habicore_5150

Alberto7 said:


> ^ Ah man, I don't remember that, sorry. I remember a friend posting the trailer a couple of months before it came out, and it was very Eva-ish. Gundamelion sounds about right.



I was the guy that posted it in here


----------



## Alberto7

Well, shit  my attention span is close to zero these days.  It means I must thank you for reminding me that I had to watch it, so thanks.  Give it a watch whenever you can. Hopefully you'll get past the first few episodes.


----------



## habicore_5150

Alberto7 said:


> Well, shit  my attention span is close to zero these days.  It means I must thank you for reminding me that I had to watch it, so thanks.  Give it a watch whenever you can. Hopefully you'll get past the first few episodes.



Watching it right now, and it looks as good as it did in the previews. Already on ep 2 right now


----------



## Alberto7

Do let us know how you like it!


----------



## habicore_5150

Already on episode 6 of Sidonia, and it's pretty damn good. Really does stick with the Evangundam style like I thought it would

And note to self, never watch episode 6 of Sidonia at about 16:45 in, and listen to Isolation Theory by After the Burial at about 52 seconds in, AT THE SAME TIME...for those who have seen/listened to both will understand


----------



## Ikiharmaa

oooh, I just realised this Sidonia no Kishi you're talking about is Nihei's piece of work. I wonder if it'll translate well to anime.. I can't imagine the other mangas of his that I've actually read to work too well as anime tbh. Regardless, I highly recommend reading Abara and Biomega, if not for anything else, the art and mood in them is impeccable. I quite like his slighly mystic, rather silent, and sometimes a bit hard to follow way of story-telling too, the mood is definitely there in a way that isn't present in other manga.

Luckily batoto has them in excellent quality, idk if there's any other way to view them in a decent quality, at least not unless you know japanese and are able to buy the actual copies.

http://www.batoto.net/read/_/59599/abara_v1_ch1_by_illuminati-manga/1

and an image from the first pages of Biomega








I guess I'll finally need to read Blame! and start on Sidonia no Kishi, although I don't think it's completed yet which makes me not want to read it more than I already have (first 20 pages).


----------



## Alberto7

Yeah, I hear Nihei likes bears. Somehow, though, it works in the show. I don't find it intellectually and/or emotionally obtrusive.  And wait, the source material for Sidonia isn't finished yet? That's not good news. I was hoping we'd get to cover the entire story in the anime without being left up in the air like what happened with _Attack on Titan_.



habicore_5150 said:


> And note to self, never watch episode 6 of Sidonia at about 16:45 in, and listen to Isolation Theory by After the Burial at about 52 seconds in, AT THE SAME TIME...for those who have seen/listened to both will understand



Haha I wish I had known about that song before I watched that episode. 

Guys, is the stream tonight still happening?


----------



## Don Vito

idk what you guys want to watch 

and I can't help but think of chewbacca when I see a bear holding a rifle, and that's a good thing I suppose


----------



## Alberto7

Meh I think I'll bail for today. Not feeling it right now. I'm probably just gonna go work on uni stuff for a bit, then watch the new Mekakucity with a beer and a few chips, and then go to bed... maybe. I'll keep Don's twitch open just in case I change my mind and in case you guys go live, but it's up to you guys. For what it's worth, I was going to say let's do _Watamote_.

EDIT: here's Lala Hiyama, Sidonia's very own talking bear. For comparison with the _Biomega_ manga page that Ikiharmaa posted. Quite different art styles :


----------



## Don Vito

Well, I really wanted to watch Watamote, but wasn't sure how everyone else felt about it. I'm only up to episode 4, and it's really started to get hilarious. 

And goddamn I love those bears. They're cuter than the moomins(talking Finnish hippos)


----------



## Alberto7

Okay, the new _Mekakucity Actors_ made my mind explode and my heart crumble. Like seriously. 

I will definitely need to marathon this once it's over. It totally deserves a second watch and a proper judgement.


----------



## Don Vito

I think I'm actually going to hit the bed too. Sorry guys 

Anyways, there's a bad thunderstorm rolling through, so I wouldn't be surprised if my power goes out.


----------



## Alberto7

Guys, it's official, _Gokukoku no Brynhildr_ now djents:



Well... not really. But it does enough for me. Now I just hope the anime becomes as good as that opening.


----------



## habicore_5150

Alberto7 said:


> Guys, it's official, _Gokukoku no Brynhildr_ now djents:
> 
> 
> 
> Well... not really. But it does enough for me. Now I just hope the anime becomes as good as that opening.




Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (which makes me think about a cross between Crossfaith and Sever Black Paranoia) really doesn't fit that opening. It does sound good though, might check out the anime too for curiosity's sake

And there's another anime currently in the works right now called Akame ga Kill which premiers on July 6th (so early 23rd birthday present, woot!)


----------



## Alberto7

It doesn't really fit, but I'm happy with anything different from the incredibly melodramatic first opening, and the song is pretty good. I've read a few people referring to this show as Elfen Lied 'Lite'.

_Akame ga Kill_ looks pretty cool. Never read the manga, but everything I just read about it has been praise. Besides, the trailers look good (as short as they are). I'll keep an eye out for it.

Also, it's almost summer, and I'm already beginning to make my to-watch list for summer. Do any of you guys have something that you might be following? I'll post some links to the trailers of whatever's got me excited later on tonight or most likely tomorrow.


----------



## bouVIP

Oh god I love FALILV. I heard that they were going to do the OP for an anime, but didn't remember which 1. 




Also been watching Mahouka and it's pretty cool. I like the fighting scenes.


Akame ga Kiru is amazing!!! I love the manga so much and hate that it's monthly. It's basically anime Game of Thrones.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Daaaammmn sporting a Mayones and all! That song kicks ass. It reminds me of _Blood Stain Child_ but with a lot more metal.

So, I wanted to make sure that my 3000th post was in this thread, because mucho love-o. Here are a few cool things:

I could do with a gore/horror/thriller this summer, for sure!


Is it wrong that I'm excited for this?  It looks so good. More like the manga, less like the original anime.


And, lastly, pigeon love finally comes to us officially translated to the English language:
Hatoful Boyfriend Pigeon Dating Game Gets English Remake - News - Anime News Network


----------



## Don Vito

When I'm on Youtube without being logged in for whatever reason, that Sailor Moon trailer is ALWAYS on the front page  The only thing I remember about that show is the transformation scenes.


----------



## bouVIP

I actually want to watch the new Sailormoon too D:


----------



## Alberto7

I don't remember anything from the _Sailor Moon_ anime.  I just remember some of the Sailor girls (Wikipedia is just informing me that there's even a Sailor Pluto... I wonder if she'll even be allowed to be a character, given Pluto's relatively recent demotion ), Sailor Chibi Moon, Luna (the cat), and the dude with the cape, the top hat, the red rose, and the funky 80's glasses. I'm just excited because it's being hyped, and because from ages 4-13, or so, my sisters and cousins would watch the show all the friggin' time. In fact, I think it even aired at the same time as _Dragon Ball_, or _Shaman King_, or _Beyblade_, or something like that, so there were constant conflicts over who would watch what and when. 

I also remember thinking as a child about how much I would have liked seeing Vegeta and Goku beating the shit out of everyone in that show. Kind of like how I wanted my G.I. Joes and my Power Rangers action figures to gang up to beat the shit out of all of my sisters' Barbies (needless to say, it did happen in one or two occasions :lol). It makes me think of how disturbingly deviant a child I was.  But I digress...


----------



## bouVIP

new SAO PV


and just found out 1 of my favorite mangas is getting an original anime DVD or whatever!!



â&#8364;&#339;Yamada-kun to 7-nin no Majoâ&#8364; Manga to Get OAD Adaptation


----------



## Somnium

So after watching that Persona 3 movie, it would seem my latest anime/video game obsession has gone from Steins;Gate to Persona. 30 hours into my first playthrough of Persona 4 Golden, been playing a lot of Persona 4 Arena with my friends (I can't stand fighters, but omfg dat Labrys), and I currently have the OST's for 3 FES and 4 playing at my work. Also just got a swagged out Aegis figma in the mail yesterday ($73 for Labrys is depressing). I just need all of this to last me til September so I can go back to obsessing over Danganronpa when the second game drops. BTW there's a super steezin' collector's edition over at NIS America's store for preorder. Get it now because the CE of the first game goes for like $120-150.


----------



## habicore_5150

Catching up on some Mekakucity Actors, I'm liking it a lot more since I'm getting further into it
Gonna check if any new episodes of Knights of Sidonia came out yet


----------



## Alberto7

^ Ah man, Mekakucity... it's one of those quirky little shows that seem really cool and funky, but suddenly grip you by the balls and make you scream in pain. Yesterday's episode was amazing.

Also, new Sidonia came out like 3 or 4 days ago. It was awesome. Almost every episode is better than what came before it. After watching it a while you begin to appreciate the sheer scale and size of the show.


Spoiler



EIGHT THOUSAND TIMES THE SIZE OF SIDONIA located at 1.2 million kilometers. It's just numbers, but that shit blew my mind. 



Now I'm gonna go catch up on _Brynhildr in the Darkness_, _One Week Friends _(so ready to have my heart shattered into a million little pieces), and the new _Mushishi_ so I can go sleep in peace.


----------



## habicore_5150

Alberto7 said:


> ^ Ah man, Mekakucity... it's one of those quirky little shows that seem really cool and funky, but suddenly grip you by the balls and make you scream in pain. Yesterday's episode was amazing.
> 
> Also, new Sidonia came out like 3 or 4 days ago. It was awesome. Almost every episode is better than what came before it. After watching it a while you begin to appreciate the sheer scale and size of the show.
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> EIGHT THOUSAND TIMES THE SIZE OF SIDONIA located at 1.2 million kilometers. It's just numbers, but that shit blew my mind.
> 
> 
> 
> Now I'm gonna go catch up on _Brynhildr in the Darkness_, _One Week Friends _(so ready to have my heart shattered into a million little pieces), and the new _Mushishi_ so I can go sleep in peace.



Oddly enough, was talking with a few guild members when I got back into playing Eden Eternal, we got to talking about anime (which is not a rare thing, XD), someone mentioned Brynhildr out of at least a hundred names that we all threw out there. Kinda wanna watch it just to see how it is


----------



## Alberto7

Like I wrote in another forum, BitD is like that dorky neighborhood kid that can never be cool no matter how hard he tries, but everybody loves him anyway. It's like that kid in your group of friends that always tries to be edgy and rad but fails hard at it every single time. Despite that, you can't help but love him.


----------



## bouVIP

OMG I WANT 1 SO BAD!!!


----------



## Alberto7

^ Holy sweet mother of all that is good and pure.  I had already seen him do Link's Master Sword, but then I just kinda forgot about him. Totally sub'd to his channel now though. That Elucidator came out badass!

Now I want him to make every single weapon from the _Fate_ universe, starting with Excalibur and Avalon, of course:






Then Caliburn:




And Dark Excalibur would be awesome as well:





Now all of them in a single pic just because


----------



## Alberto7

I officially love _No Game No Life_. The line that comes before this is "That's right. This is a game,":






It's hilarious how they actually censored it in the show.


----------



## habicore_5150

Alberto7 said:


> I officially love _No Game No Life_. The line that comes before this is "That's right. This is a game,":
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> It's hilarious how they actually censored it in the show.



And here I am expecting them to say either .h*ck// or S*O


----------



## Alberto7

But he means like _actual_ games in real life. Although, given the context and setting of that episode, .h*ck// and/or S*O would have made just as much sense, if not more.  I just love how NGNL doesn't take itself (or anime/gaming in general) seriously at all and constantly breaks a weird kind of 4th wall, yet it manages such intense climaxes and suspenseful build-ups.

EDIT: should I watch the new _Nanana's Buried Treasure_ episode + the new _Mushishi_ or one episode of _Hannibal_? Ever since I started watching that show on Netflix, I keep delaying everything else that I'm watching.


----------



## bouVIP

Nanana's Buried Treasure! I'm about to catch up on this weeks anime as well @[email protected] been so busy with work full time.


----------



## Alberto7

^ That I did! I watched Nanana. T'was a good episode, surprisingly enough! Man, Nanana iis such a lovely character. One of my favorite designs this season, along with Jibril and Tet from NGNL. They all just kind of linger in your mind for a while; quite memorable.

Change of plans. _Hannibal_ first, and then, if I'm still awake, _Mushishi_ right before going to bed. It'd be nice to have all the horrors from _Hannibal _disappear from my mind before sleeping. I had actual nightmares a few nights ago because of it.


----------



## bouVIP

Jibril and Nanana are awesome!!! I even named my purple PRS SE-7 Jibril lol


----------



## Alberto7

Aw man! I added that name to my pool of options for my next guitar!  Other names include Arturia (_Fate/Stay Night_), Asuka (_Evangelion_), Lain (_Serial Experiments Lain_), Tear (_Tales of the Abyss_), Holo (_Spice and Wolf_), Ushio (won't say where from because of spoilers. Also, don't Google it if you don't want to ruin for yourself one of the greatest animes I've ever watched), and, obviously, Haruhara Haruko (_FLCL_). I've been considering the name Ginko as well (from _Mushishi_). I have a list somewhere. 

So far, I've given Lucy (I just really like that name. It also happens to be from _Elfen Lied_) to my Ibanez Gio, and Faye (_Cowboy Bebop_) for my Carvin, whose name I finally settled on a few months ago, after years of consideration and hesitation haha. I have an LP copy beater, a Jay Turser, that I don't think I'll even name, as I might get rid of it soon. Only if I decide to make it a project guitar and make it better will I give it a name. I've considered giving the name Holo to my Cordoba classical, but I haven't yet been able to perfectly match the personality of Holo's character to how I see that guitar.

Then there's the name Rin, which is arguably my favorite name ever. I don't know if I want to give that name to a guitar though. I think I might just reserve that one for my actual daughter, should I ever have one. 

EDIT: Also, I just checked out your NGD thread for that guitar. It's friggin' beautiful and, I won't lie, I kind of want it haha. Congrats man! Time to update that signature, eh?


----------



## bouVIP

Those are some nice names. I really like Arturia. I try to give my guitar names that relate to the guitar. Like Jibril cause she has purple hair and feathered wings. 

I named my old Fender Lucy but from Fairy Tail lol.

I love the name Rin too!! Rin and Ren are like my favorite names for some reason.


Thanks! It's a great guitar and yea about to update after I get a few more 

edit: Just decided to name my blacked out telecaster Kuroyukihime!


----------



## Don Vito

Man, I should have named my Fender jaguar Lain. I originally named it Satsuki(from Kill la Kill), but it's an offset body shape, so it's not fit for such a perfectionist. I settled for Sabrina(Pokemon), which is technically an anime, just not a good one 

Speaking of Kill la Kill, a few comments for that sword video are requesting Ryuko's scissor blade. Personally, I think it would be boring aside from it's size. 

And I'm not entirely sure if it would be able to slice up shit like it does in the anime.


----------



## donray1527

What do you mean pokemon's not good!? Lol 

And that man at arms channel is badass. He does some awesome game of thrones stuff


----------



## Don Vito

Well it's not too bad, but I find Ash to be annoying for some reason. I don't care much for his hat either.


----------



## habicore_5150

bouVIP said:


> Jibril and Nanana are awesome!!! I even named my purple PRS SE-7 Jibril lol



I take it that I'm not the only one wanting to name some of his own guitars after anime characters, lol. (expect me to start calling my RG8 "Kid" after I'm finished upgrading the whole thing )

Gonna do a lot of catching up on No Game No Life and Sword Art Online, might check out Brynhildr and Black Bullet


----------



## bouVIP

habicore_5150 said:


> I take it that I'm not the only one wanting to name some of his own guitars after anime characters, lol. (expect me to start calling my RG8 "Kid" after I'm finished upgrading the whole thing )
> 
> Gonna do a lot of catching up on No Game No Life and Sword Art Online, might check out Brynhildr and Black Bullet



Yup I love naming my guitars after animes for some reason lol Hope you post some pics!


----------



## Don Vito

It took 2 summers, but I finally finished Watamote. The ending wasn't great, but the series as a whole is really funny. There's also a new chapter out in the manga I'm about to read.

I almost want to throw down $40-$60 for the Tomoko nendoroid, but I'm afraid my cat will try to chew on it. 

Anyways, going to start something new tonight. Dunno what yet *peeks around thread*


----------



## Grindspine

I started re watching Death Note last night... Great series; music, animation, & plot are all spot on.

I dig how the entire show is strategic, but often bounces between idealism and darker intentions.


----------



## Alberto7

So, remember that last Nanana episode I mentioned last page...? Turns out it was the last one >_______> ... wtf. It took the definition of "open ending" closer to "no ending whatsoever." I didn't even realize it was the last one until I went to check on Anichart.net the release date for the following episode only to find out there was no release date and that amount of episodes was 11/11. I later confirmed it on the Anime News Network board. I am thoroughly disappointed. Just when I was beginning to get into it. I seriously hope they do a second season.

In other similar news, I also found out that the last _Mushishi_ episode was the one released next week. It is likely to be the last episode ever, seeing how it took them 9 years to come back for a second season. I think I'm going to postpone watching that episode until it feels right to watch it.

Also, the last _One Week Friends_ episode was released today. I am fearful. I think I'll end up writing a review on this one.


----------



## bouVIP

Alberto7 said:


> So, remember that last Nanana episode I mentioned last page...? Turns out it was the last one >_______> ... wtf. It took the definition of "open ending" closer to "no ending whatsoever." I didn't even realize it was the last one until I went to check on Anichart.net the release date for the following episode only to find out there was no release date and that amount of episodes was 11/11. I later confirmed it on the Anime News Network board. I am thoroughly disappointed. Just when I was beginning to get into it. I seriously hope they do a second season.



THIS SO MUCH!!!! 

It was such a weird way to end the seasons because it just seemed like another episode.


I'm gonna start watching One Week Friends now since it's done...if I ever have time that is T_T


----------



## Don Vito

Finally started Attack on Titan while waiting on a game download. 

Between this and USA vs Portugal, I'm going to need therapy. I can't imagine it getting any worse than the first episode, but I'm sure it will prove me wrong at some point. 

edit: by worse I mean dramatic


----------



## Alberto7

AoT never drops the intensity, except through episodes 11-14 or so, one of which is a recap episode. It quickly picks it back up though. It becomes more shonen-y, too, if you're into that kind of thing. Really good show overall though, and incredibly intense.

Gah, I haven't had time to watch anything. Still have the _One Week Friends_ episode there, staring at me. T__T I am not sure I'll like the ending that much though. They arguably screwed up after the end of episode 8 (which, by the way, is one of the most magnificently dreamy episodes of anything I've ever seen. Hopping bunnies and rainbow-shitting unicorns everywhere). The change in tone was expected, but not entirely welcome.

Also, just found out that they are releasing the second part to _Mushishi's_ second season this Fall.  I'm a happy panda.

EDIT: _Brynhildr in the Darkness_ just leveled up. I think it's evolving. I think it'll now be called _Brynhildr in the Stupid_. I've never seen something so ridiculous, far-fetched, and poorly scripted in my life. And I love it.


----------



## Alberto7

Finished watching _One Week Friends_. I want to die. Cuteness overload, can't handle it. That ending was surprisingly good and very fitting. It doesn't take the direction that one would hope for (not entirely anyways), but it fits perfectly what the show is about, and that is the main reason I loved it. I'll give this show an 8.3/10, simply because 8/10 seems kinda low, and 8.5 might be a bit too high, though it's closer to that mark. I will likely will write about this again and go more into detail. Maybe after a second watch, but for sure after I've gotten over the void of having finished it.

Also, just how can you not love it:

Saki-chan will have my love forever and ever










And this is how finishing the show makes me feel:





---------

Now, if you'll excuse me, I need my testosterone back.


----------



## Don Vito

Man, I shouldn't have started watching Attack on Titan in English. The dub isn't supposed to be fully released until November ;_;(;-; for people in the know)

Of course I'm _extremely _ tempted to pick it back up in Japanese, but I'm afraid it will be too weird, as I already have the character's voices engraved into my mind. fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu

And for some reason I keep smelling Jagermeister while watching this.

*[I'm being blown away]*


----------



## Fat-Elf

Don Vito said:


> And for some reason I keep smelling Jagermeister while watching this.
> 
> *[I'm being blown away]*



It's probably because one of the character's surname is Jager, iirc. 

;-;

Okay, this video has nothing to do with anime but can you spot the anime reference? 

[Youtubevid]Qmkn59N5SDg[/MEDIA]


----------



## MFB

Don Vito said:


> Man, I shouldn't have started watching Attack on Titan in English. The dub isn't supposed to be fully released until November ;_;(;-; for people in the know)
> 
> Of course I'm _extremely _ tempted to pick it back up in Japanese, but I'm afraid it will be too weird, as I already have the character's voices engraved into my mind. fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu
> 
> And for some reason I keep smelling Jagermeister while watching this.
> 
> *[I'm being blown away]*



I'd say just stop wherever you're at because the personality of the characters really don't match the English voices, like, at all. Everyone sounds bad to me, but I feel that way about most dubbed animes now. SAO had that happen to it as well.


----------



## Alberto7

Fat-Elf said:


> It's probably because one of the character's surname is Jager, iirc.
> 
> ;-;
> 
> Okay, this video has nothing to do with anime but can you spot the anime reference?
> 
> [Youtubevid]Qmkn59N5SDg[/Youtubevid]



Omg I did see Levi (AoT) hiding in the woods the first time around, but it was only in the comments that I found the second one.  That was brilliant.

Obvious hint is obvious: (NSFW)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NFmfH5JFco8


----------



## sakeido

MFB said:


> I'd say just stop wherever you're at because the personality of the characters really don't match the English voices, like, at all. Everyone sounds bad to me, but I feel that way about most dubbed animes now. SAO had that happen to it as well.



Dunno if it is just me or what but most NA voice actors can't do anything right. I am having a really hard time watching Avatar because the voice acting is so bad. 

Last NA animated show I could say had legit good voice acting was Gargoyles  or feature films too, but those usually aren't just voice actors. They are real actors that happen to only do voices.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

Good voice acting is a really big deal no matter the language and I definitely look forward to the voice acting and the whole audio-aspect of every anime I watch. I much prefer my voice acting in Japanese though, just seems way more fitting in most anime. Another thing about having the audio in Japanese for me is that I can't understand it, so I'll listen to it more carefully because I don't have to listen to the meaning of what's being said. Like, instead of what I get more into how it actually sounds.

I'm quite sure that subs are something one gets used to as well. I'm very used to following subtitles because most of the stuff I watched from tv since I was a kid had subs on them. When watching something with english audio I don't mind having english subs around, since to me they don't ruin anything or aren't really a distraction like I can imagine them to be for people who are not too used to them. But that's just my imagining so idk really.


Anyways, I didn't really have anything to say but I'm finally watching GitS:SAC. Slowly but surely whenever I have the time.


----------



## MFB

sakeido said:


> Dunno if it is just me or what but most NA voice actors can't do anything right. I am having a really hard time watching Avatar because the voice acting is so bad.
> 
> Last NA animated show I could say had legit good voice acting was Gargoyles  or feature films too, but those usually aren't just voice actors. They are real actors that happen to only do voices.



Games seem to be the only ones that get it right as of late, but in terms of movies/shows, it's definitely not 100%. I feel like there are some _roles_ that get it right (Spike from Cowboy Bebop/TOM from Toonami by Steve Blum, Johnny Young Bosch as Vash the Stampede, and Kevin Conroy as Batman are the big three that jump out) but I can't think of a show that overall I think has it down


----------



## Alberto7

I watched the whole _Stand Alone Complex_ GitS series/movies dubbed, and I loved them that way, to the point where I don't feel the need at all to watch in Japanese. Sure, it does come across as slightly cartoonish at times, but it's not very often, and even the Japanese can some times come across as so (particularly when characters begin wailing and crying... it can be really cringe-worthy).


----------



## Don Vito

Fat-Elf said:


> [Youtubevid]Qmkn59N5SDg[/MEDIA]


Boku no Pico.

Anyways, I usually watch anime in Japanese, but I'm really starting to prefer English dubs these days. It's just easier for me to sit down and actually finish a show if I don't have to read subtitles. To be perfectly honest, I can't tell if Japanese voice acting is good or not, since I don't speak it. AoT's dub is pretty decent I think. Not GitS level, but above your average dub.



Alberto7 said:


> I watched the whole _Stand Alone Complex_ GitS series/movies dubbed, and I loved them that way, to the point where I don't feel the need at all to watch in Japanese. Sure, it does come across as slightly cartoonish at times, but it's not very often, and even the Japanese can some times come across as so (particularly when characters begin wailing and crying... it can be really cringe-worthy).


GitS dub is what got me started into anime. Before that, my only picture of it was ripped dudes screaming at each other and powering up their energy.

edit: Started downloading the Blazblue anime they did last year or so. I didn't hear much about this one, so I don't have my hopes up. But it's Blazblue, so there's bound to be some good fight scenes.


----------



## Alberto7

Just finished _No Game No Life_... I am SO down for another season (or five, or six...), though I fear we may not get one for another while; even the light novels (source material) are still unfinished. They wrapped up this season really nicely though. Super uber giant nail-biting cliffhanger, but still gave a sense of accomplishment and arc completion.

I'm honestly surprised that a show that focuses so much on ecchi and sheer nerdiness has managed to make me fall off my chair laughing while keeping me at the edge of it with all the suspense. Not to mention the wits of the protagonists and the ridiculously intricate, yet understandable, plot that the writer came up with. Such a clever anime. I am sad it's over.

I am tempted to find translated copies of the light novels (if they exist at all), but I fear it will not be nearly as entertaining as the anime. Sure, the story itself is interesting enough, but the anime had SO much charm with all its colors, and the voice acting, and the hilarious Engrish, and the pop culture references, and the... you get the point. Perhaps I could find translated copies of the manga (although I don't know at which point in the story it is so far), but I will still miss Shiro's voice going all "omega good job" on me...

Aaagghhh 8.5/10


----------



## bouVIP

I still need to find some time to finish it!!

No Game No Life - Baka-Tsuki

It's not fully translated, but with the animes popularity it should be translated a bit faster. Idk how this light novel compares to the anime, but when I was in a rush to finish SAO I read the light novel and was still immersed in the story so who knows lol.


edit: Jibril forever


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## Alberto7

Aaahhh thanks a lot, man! I think I'll give them a shot, just to see what's what. Do let us know how you like it once you have some time to catch up with it; I know you've been into it, so I'm interested!

EDIT: I am trying to give you +rep for that post, but it won't let me...  I am also currently looking for pics of Jibril to set as my avatar haha I have a new waifu  I would have said Saki from _One Week Friends_, but that's just weird...


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## bouVIP

Will do!

Jibril tag on tumblr is awesome for pics/gifs
https://www.tumblr.com/tagged/jibril

Thanks appreciate the rep even if it doesn't work lol

Also updated my signature with my guitars and their names which are mostly anime characters lol


----------



## MFB

Currently re-watching SAO, it definitely doesn't hit as hard the second time and as much as I usually hate the leading roles becoming a couple, I'm totally OK with the Asuna/Kirito pairing. In the show it seems to play out really quickly but if you pay attention to how much time passes, it's definitely a natural progression. Not sure if I'll be able to handle Yui's death a second time but we'll see.

In other news:


----------



## Don Vito

Don Vito said:


> edit: Started downloading the Blazblue anime they did last year or so. I didn't hear much about this one, so I don't have my hopes up. But it's Blazblue, so there's bound to be some good fight scenes.


I never played the single player mode in Blazblue, so I have nooooooooooooooooooooo idea what is going on. Something about a cauldron and a time loop... anime shit yo xD 

It is nice to see the characters do their respective thing(albeit with somewhat low quality and static animation), and I do recognize a few songs from the game.


----------



## Don Vito




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## Alberto7

I just don't know how else to react to that...


----------



## Redoubt9000

REQ:

Of all the shows for this year, any recommendable standalone/new series worth watching? Here lately I've only been doing marathons on shows that have had quite a long stint (Dragonball, Gintama, Natsume Yujincho) as I just haven't been in the mood to dive into a new show... But I think I'm up for something! Just not sure what yet >_> Any help appreciated! 

No particular genre pref, but I think I'd jump off a roof if I'm faced with another slice-of-life show filled with bantering. It's like eating too many sweets and I've had my fill for now! xD


----------



## bouVIP

No Game No Life...your welcome. But seriously it's great


----------



## Alberto7

Seriously, _No Game No Life_ seems to have been the biggest success this spring. Awesome show.
_
Mekakucity Actors_ if you want your mind to blow up with non-linear storytelling and flashy art everywhere.

I was going to recommend _One Week Friends_, but you said you don't want slice of life... this is more of a drama-oriented slice of life though, rather than a Haruhi-style one.

From last winter I guess you could watch _Kill la Kill_, though I can't give a recommendation myself since I haven't watched it. Everybody says it's good though.

_Attack on Titan_, too, which is from last spring, but I'm pretty sure you'd like it.

Most of this year's interesting shows are coming out during summer and fall though, so you might want to keep your eyes on those two seasons' shows. Here's a super helpful website that I use to check what things are coming up and to keep track of what I'm watching and when new episodes come out:

http://anichart.net/


----------



## Redoubt9000

Alberto7 said:


> I was going to recommend _One Week Friends_, but you said you don't want slice of life... this is more of a drama-oriented slice of life though, rather than a Haruhi-style one.



Bah, guess I'm not entirely opposed to slice-of-life, it is one of my more fav genres! But recently I attempted Acchi Kocchi as it was on the back burner for a good long while, and tbh it was god awful and sorta dampened my mood lately. First show in a long time that I dropped with absolutely no regrets  Sure if it has solid plot I'm sold, but again if it's driven by mindless banter that inevitably leads to more boring shit happening - then yeah can't say I'm very keen on it.

One Week Friends though has certainly piqued my interest in the past. I know I've always preferred to wait it out until a season airs in its entirety before I get around to watching anything.

Thoroughly enjoyed AoT  They need to get to that 2nd season going 

Thanks for the link btw! I've always went to animeph as it gave me a quick n' dirty rundown on everything for the upcoming season, to include archived listings by season. Your link is easier on the eyes tho ^^


----------



## Don Vito

1.


> Glasslip Description | More Info
> The story follows six high school students who meet during the summer. The protagonist is Touko Fukami, a 17-year-old born in Fukui Prefecture. Her dream is to become a glass artisan.


Man, they are running out of ideas . I'll check it out anyways.

2. Tokyo ESP actually seems quite neat. Has nothing to do with the ESP shop in Tokyo unfortunately. 

How cool would that be though? A slice of life anime set in a Japanese music store. I'd watch it. ¯\_(&#12484_/¯

3. Space Dandy 2!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!




Alberto7 said:


> From last winter I guess you could watch _Kill la Kill_, though I can't give a recommendation myself since I haven't watched it. Everybody says it's good though.


This! Kill la Kill is ultra violent, overly sexual, and never takes it self seriously. The plot is surprisingly creative as well.


----------



## Redoubt9000

Yeah definitely have yet to give Kill la Kill much of a shot! I think I got around to watching the first ep when it first began to stream, but it was so soon after I rewatched Panty & Stocking and with the familiar art style, I kinda just went meh* and dropped KlK soon after -figuring I would pick it up later.

Rail Wars!
Something to look forward to, sounds like a show that'll keep me entertained^ In a similar vein to Library Wars I hope!


----------



## Alberto7

Ah, well, _One Week Friends_ finished just a few days ago, so you can now marathon it if you want. They wrapped it up nicely, too, so I doubt we'll get a second season. The manga does continue on with the story, but the anime does a good job at stopping where it does and gives the show a sense of completeness. It definitely isn't just bantering though. It's a very, very sweet and dreamy anime, and it does hold some nice themes and portrays good values, if that's your sort of thing. It has a ton of meaning behind it. It has a slightly similar tone to _Usagi Drop_, but it's definitely more on the tear-jerker side. It's not very sad though; it's rather a very "OMG THAT IS SO CUTE I WANT TO CURL UP IN A BALL AND DIE" kind of show. It did have its flaws, I thought, but they were quite subjective. Overall a very good anime.

Oh, and by last winter I meant last year.  I actually don't remember exactly when _Kill la Kill_ came out, but I think it was during summer.

Man, so much goodness coming out this summer. I am most hyped for these:

*Aldnoah.Zero:
*Written by Gen Urobuchi (_Fate/Zero, Madoka Magica, Psycho-pass_), directed by Ei Aoki (_Fate/Zero_ and a couple of the _Kara no Kyoukai_ films), music by Hiroyuki Sawano (_Kill la Kill and Attack on Titan)_, and main theme performed by Kalafina (_Fate/Zero, Madoka Magica, Kara no Kyoukai_... Yuki Kajiura's brainchild project, basically). So yeah, that's a pretty f*cking mindbending dream team right there.


*Akame ga Kill!:
*I don't have much info on this one, but character design looks neat, and the manga is supposed to be cool.

*Psycho-pass edit:
*Because I'm too lazy to go and watch the original series. It's just the same series but in 1-hour long episode format and with some new scenes. I'm on a quest to watch everything Gen Urobuchi has put his hands on, so I cannot pass this one up.

*Rail Wars:
*Why would anyone not watch a show about people FIGHTING FOR THEIR TRAINS?! I have a feeling it's going to be on the same vein as all those recent sports anime *cough*_Free_*cough*. Besides, the animation looks stupid good, and it's made by some people that have never done jackshit before, which makes it interesting.


*Tokyo Ghoul:
*Again, I hear the manga is great, and it's been a while since I've seen a good gore/horror anime. The trailer looks crazy good.


*Sword Art Online II:
*SAO is my biggest love/hate relationship in anime. It's a poorly executed amazing idea with beautiful animation, art, and music. However, its poor execution did NOT stop me from enjoying the hell out of it. So now I'm really pumped for its second season!
(won't post trailer... bouVIP posted one in one of the two the previous pages, I think)

*Zankyou no Terror (a.k.a. Terror in Resonance, or Terror in Tokyo):
*Another dream team right here. Directed by Shinichiro Watanabe (_Cowboy Bebop _and _Samurai Champloo)_, and music score composed by Yoko Kanno (_Cowboy Bebop_ and _Ghost in the Shell_). The animation looks GORGEOUS, and the plot sounds super interesting. Along with _Aldnoah.Zero_ and _Fate/Stay Night_, this is the anime that I've been waiting for all year.



I have others that I have my eye on this summer though. Gonna keep an eye on _Tokyo ESP_, since it actually looks quite interesting. I know _DRAMatical Murder_'s source is... questionable, to say the least, but apparently they're taking out all the robot-that-transforms-into-dog-and-then-you-can-f*ck content out of the anime and keeping the good bits. The art and setting look interesting enough to make me turn my head. I also like how _Glasslip_ looks, and I'm a fan of slice of life, so why not. Of course, I'll likely be watching the new _Sailor Moon_ as well.

Then there's _Minarai Diva_, which, according to what I heard, will actually be a friggin' live broadcast from a set where actors will be performing in front of motion-sensitive cameras that will transform their movements to computer models. I am not gonna watch it (it sounds really shit), but the concept sounds unique enough.

EDIT: Haha got 'd about _Rail Wars._  Now that I think about it, the name sounds like one of those really crappy reality shows on The Discovery Channel. 

EDIT 2: I am also considering adding this to my signature to make everybody here hate me forever.




(Anybody know where I can find a bigger version of that gif? I have one on my computer, but I can't find it anywhere online. I don't remember where I got it from)


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## Don Vito

Man, that gif takes me back to 2007. I wouldn't even be able to load a proper gif right now, since I'm at my lake house this weekend with horrible back woods internet. 

And Rail Wars, damn... how'd I miss that? The first half of the trailer just looks like some typical SOL. But ya know, Japanese teenagers and their trains.

edit: 4600th post 

edit 2: why do all animes focus on teenagers? why not make the MC some badass old hermit like Master Roshi? I'd watch a SOL about a middle aged mom for some reason. MILF wars.


----------



## blckrnblckt

Tokyo Crazy Paradise and Red River are my favorite manga of all time. Glass Mask is probably one of the best anime.


----------



## Redoubt9000

I keep forgetting there's a rep system or something on this site... Thanks all!


----------



## Alberto7

Aw man, I just finished _Mekakucity Actors_. What a nice anime, albeit weird as all f*ck. I don't know why people complain so much about it. They keep saying it's super confusing. It kind of is, but it is understandable. I don't think they've seen, say, _Serial Experiments Lain_, or _Paranoia Agent_  even though those are in a completely different vein. Finishing it feels like saying goodbye to a bunch of good friends. 

Super weird anime, but ultimately and consequentially a super cool one.

7.3/10, although my personal enjoyment of it must have been around an 8-8.2.


Now I just have _Brynhildr in the Darkness_ left to finish from the Spring season. I'm pretty sure I'll give it about a 5/10, but I've enjoyed it on a 7/10 kind of way. Let's see what that finale has in store once it comes out in a few hours.


----------



## Don Vito

I thought Toonami was going to show the newest dubbed episode of Titans tonight, but it was one I had already seen 

Mekaku is something I still need to pick back up, since I had already invested 7 or 8 episodes into it.

And I don't think I'll finish Blazblue. It's so boring.


----------



## Pedantic

I really don't get why everyone says Mekaku is so confusing. It seems mostly straigthtforward which is really unfortunate. Does anyone have any recommendations for a show similar to Yoshitoshi Abe's works (Lain specifically), Boogiepop Phantom, and Paranoia Agent?


----------



## Alberto7

Don, I've heard the name BlazBlue before regarding an anime, and it has always been associated with the term "shit" somehow.  I don't even know what it's about, but I don't think I'm about to watch it, given what I've heard of it.

Pedantic, I take it you've seen _Haibane Renmei_? It's an original by Mr. ABe; from the writing, to the drawing. One of my favorite animes of all time. I assume you're looking for something more cerebral and intense than that though, based on what you mentioned. I'd give _Ergo Proxy_ a shot.

Again, agreed on Mekaku. It is quite straightforward, it's just that the storytelling isn't exactly linear, and it has its fair share of frame narrative. Other than that, it's simple to piece everything together. I think it's mainly its weird visual style that can make things confusing and slightly overwhelming. The art alone is like 70% of the show, as it seems to affect the viewer's perception of everything else. If you don't like the visuals, chances are you won't like the anime as a whole either.

EDIT: I finally caved and I'm watching _Death Note_ with my sister. She pushed enough buttons to get me to watch it.  We're on episode 9, and it's pretty awesome so far. I just can't stop laughing at everything though; so many tropes came out of this one anime and they're all so popular that it's impossible not to be extremely conscious about them.  Still, really well made anime.


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> Don, I've heard the name BlazBlue before regarding an anime, and it has always been associated with the term "shit" somehow.  I don't even know what it's about, but I don't think I'm about to watch it, given what I've heard of it.


It's actually a rather good fighting game from Arc System Works, but the plot is just so stupid. 


But of course, you don't buy a fighting game for the complex story. Ever watch that awful Street Fighter movie?


----------



## habicore_5150

Well, after getting a bit of free time from doing things at home, playing music and video games, I decided to catch up...well, finish up Mekakucity Actors. It was really good, albeit a bit short, but it was still good nonetheless

And now, after having a friend of mine send me a few episodes to an abridged series on YouTube over the course of a few nights, I need to make some time to watch Code Geass from start to finish


----------



## Pedantic

Alberto7 said:


> Pedantic, I take it you've seen _Haibane Renmei_? It's an original by Mr. ABe; from the writing, to the drawing. One of my favorite animes of all time. I assume you're looking for something more cerebral and intense than that though, based on what you mentioned. I'd give _Ergo Proxy_ a shot.


I have watched some of Haibane. I should definitely finish that up soon, and I'll check out Ergo Proxy too. Have you seen Kuuchuu Buranko? It probably has the strangest art style I've ever seen and it is really great.


----------



## tm20

Over the weekend my friend invited me to his house, said he was going to watch a movie. I get over there and the movie is Akira. I'd never seen it before but had read many things about it so I thought this should be good. It was beyond good, it was amazing. Visually brilliant, mind ....ing and creepy and just an amazing film overall. Haven't stopped thinking about ever since.


----------



## Alberto7

God no  I've always avoided that SF movie like the plague haha. I don't know much about the SF other than they are awesome fighting games though. I just avoid it because I feel it'd be a waste of time. 

@habi, YES watch _Code Geass_. It's been a couple years since I last watched it, but good God is it glorious. Even the parts that *might* be a little so-so are worth going through just for that ending.

@Pedantic, you should totally finish _Haibane Renmei_ man! There's really very little point in not watching it whole, unless it's really not your thing. The point of the show is just the message and all of the interpretations behind it, and none of those are fully conveyed until the very end. _Kuuchu Buranko_ definitely sounds and looks interesting; I'll put it on my to-watch list. Seeing how you don't mind weird art, I'll go out on a limb and say that you would probably like _Aku no Hana_ (a.k.a. _Flowers of Evil_). It's all rotoscoped (and kinda shittily done), but it's such an amazing trip down the main characters' psyches. Oh, and that friggin' ED could not be more perfect.

Aaahh Akira... the legend I have yet to watch.  I don't know why I keep putting it off. Maybe after I finish _Death Note_, which is the other legend I still need to finish (even though I pretty much know the entire story already).


----------



## Alberto7

I thought this merited its own post rather than just an edit to my previous post, so here goes.

_Brynhildr in the Darkness_, the last one I had yet to finish from this season. Ugh. It's one of THOSE shows. Sooooo baad but soooooo engaging. Plot holes, ass-pulls, and shitty pseudo-scientific talk galore, not to mention the horrible pacing and the terribly underdeveloped characters (and Murakami's cringe-worthy wailing), but the hooks are SO GOOD. I can't put my finger on how they do it, but they manage to get the viewers' interest. The ending, however, just when I thought it might kind of ever so slightly redeem itself, was so completely unoriginal, yet strangely satisfying in a mild way. It was also slightly infuriating, and I promptly felt like hurting a puppy, but alas, puppies are cute, and this anime is not. In fact, it's unnecessarily bloody and violent. I'm glad they ended it when they did though; it was already pushing the scale of ridiculousness up to _Dragon Ball_ levels, and we all know that only _Dragon Ball_ is allowed to do that. It tried hard to be like its older sibling, _Elfen Lied _(same creator), but didn't quite get there, even though the similarities are uncanny and the stories are almost identical.

To put it into perspective for those of you who have seen EF (and for those who haven't also), the story, without spoilers (nothing that isn't revealed in the first two episodes), is as thus:
Guy meets strange girls (one of which wants to legitimately, unashamedly, and blatantly fuck him) with superpowers (witches is what they call them) who turn out to be the result of human experimentation who escaped from a lab and now the lab is looking to recover them to fill their secret agenda of pure evilness and world domination, but also the protagonist falls in love with the main girl who may or may not be his best buddy from elementary school on whom he had a crush who, after she falls down a precipice because he accidentally let go of her hand while trying to rescue her and now he blames himself (obvs), was then taken in by the lab to be experimented on and had all of her childhood memories somehow wiped so she could not remember him at all. The only way he'd be able to tell if she is really his childhood friend is by visually confirming if she has three moles on her left tit. For real.

Now that I re-read that paragraph, it might be so cheesy so as to actually go full circle and be interesting again.  If they had made it into a proper, well-developed anime then it might not have been quite as good. It might, after all, be close to perfect the way it is. I wouldn't have it any other way, I don't think.

EDIT: also, my theory stands: 90% of high school kids in anime seemingly have no parents. What's up with that?

In any case,
"Objective" score: 5.5/10
Personal enjoyment score: 7.3/10

PS: sorry for lack of punctuation in that paragraph. I couldn't bother.

EDIT 2: ok, I'm tired of editing this for grammar mistakes and structure improvement. It stays shitty like this.


----------



## habicore_5150

tm20 said:


> Over the weekend my friend invited me to his house, said he was going to watch a movie. I get over there and the movie is Akira. I'd never seen it before but had read many things about it so I thought this should be good. It was beyond good, it was amazing. Visually brilliant, mind ....ing and creepy and just an amazing film overall. Haven't stopped thinking about ever since.



I'm probably gonna get shunned for saying this. But the only time I got a chance to watch Akira last time when I was attending YamaCon 2013, but I only caught the ending parts. So I'm gonna have to rewatch it

That, and WaffleTheEpic suggested that I go check out Heaven's Lost Property and Sekirei

If anyone was curious about the Code Geass abridged videos that I've been watching lately


----------



## Alberto7

That abridged series is so dumb, but so hilarious 

Also, not exactly anime, but I just discovered this:



I listened to it like 6 times in a row after my first listen. Soooo caatcchyyy I'm so making a guitar cover of this song.  I also love how many different versions of it the internet has come up with.


----------



## Don Vito

Once you go Touhou, you never come back...

Oddly enough, the games aren't nearly as popular as the fanmade music and hentai 

I watched the first episode of that No Game No Life show this morning. I'm not sure what to think of it yet, but it has given me a loli playing computer games with her feet while eating ramen. I also made it halfway through Blazblue Alter Memory, and I'm torturing myself in the process.

In non anime news, I tried watching some Japanese TV. 
Crunchyroll - No Dropping Out -Back to School at 35- - Episode 1 - Crunchyroll

A little feel-sy and dramatic, but there is some humor and good stuff squeezed in there. And the way it's shot is so different from American TV. Seems more "real' somehow. I think I'm going to keep up with it.


Don Vito said:


> I'd watch a SOL about a middle aged mom for some reason. MILF wars.


And it simultaneously fulfills my need for this


----------



## Alberto7

It's odd how I've known about the Touhou games for the longest time, but I've never played one. I also really suck at those kinds of games. When I first got my Wii when I was about 16-17, I bought it as part of a deal that included three games: two were chosen by the dealer, and the other I could choose. I chose _Super Mario Galaxy, _and the two other games were a Monopoly game and none other than _Castle of Shikigami III_. At the time I had no idea - I didn't even know where the hell that game had come from - but, in retrospect, I understand why I have a kind of phobia towards those kinds of games; CoS III is f*cking IMPOSSIBLE and it frustrated me enough to rage-quit it forever, and Touhou is like 10x worse.  Great music and character design though, that's for sure.

Give NGNL a chance. I was hesitant about it in the beginning, too. It eventually clicks though.


----------



## bouVIP

Oh god this forum is finally back lol 

New SAO!!!!!!!!!!!! Can't watch until I'm home tonight though


----------



## Don Vito

OMG, I'm back in the forum. It kicked me out once, but I'm here.

Had no idea the new SAO episode was already here. Stoked.



Alberto7 said:


> It's odd how I've known about the Touhou games for the longest time, but I've never played one. I also really suck at those kinds of games. When I first got my Wii when I was about 16-17, I bought it as part of a deal that included three games: two were chosen by the dealer, and the other I could choose. I chose _Super Mario Galaxy, _and the two other games were a Monopoly game and none other than _Castle of Shikigami III_. At the time I had no idea - I didn't even know where the hell that game had come from - but, in retrospect, I understand why I have a kind of phobia towards those kinds of games; CoS III is f*cking IMPOSSIBLE and it frustrated me enough to rage-quit it forever, and Touhou is like 10x worse.  Great music and character design though, that's for sure.
> 
> Give NGNL a chance. I was hesitant about it in the beginning, too. It eventually clicks though.


I've only ever played Touhou 6, but I kept getting stuck on Patchy(and that was on easy mode). I've never heard of Castle of Shikigami, but it sounds right down my ally. Unfortunately, I don't have a TV to play my Wii on right now  I'll pick NGNL back up once I'm finished watching this other show. I downloaded episode 2 yesterday, but something is wrong with the file. Need to find a bundle download for the whole series.


----------



## TRENCHLORD

bouVIP said:


> Oh god this forum is finally back lol
> 
> New SAO!!!!!!!!!!!! Can't watch until I'm home tonight though




And you got the first new post !!!


----------



## Alberto7

Jesus, I was beginning to display the same withdrawals symptoms that Ryuk does in _Death Note_.

So, I've watched a few of the new shows.

I first watched _Glasslip_, which was kinda boring and uninteresting, but the art and character design were super pretty. I guess I'll give the second episode a chance to see if I like it better. 2.5/5

_Tokyo Ghoul_ had an incredibly well made first episode. It's I am super excited for that one. I posted a short review of the first episode on the ANN forum:


> "What a delightfully gruesome way to start a series! I was looking forward to this one based solely on the trailers (I am not familiar with its source material), and it was better than I was expecting. Very straight-to-the-point first episode. It didn't meander through the story with unnecessary plot points/devices, yet it was slow and thoughtful enough to let the viewer take in every plot detail and to make every emotion it wanted to convey sink in deep into the psyche.
> 
> I particularly liked the way
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> they portrayed Kaneki's terror of finding that he's been half-turned into this abominable human-eating monster. It somewhat reminded me of how well _Attack on Titan_ conveyed the horror of the situation during the first few episodes.
> 
> 
> 
> If there was one thing I didn't like was how they held back on showing the details of that one fight scene near the end (by doing the typical move of having two characters approach each other at full speed, clash with a bang, and then the delayed wounds and blood out of thin air), and how some of the more gory stuff was sort of left out of frame or shaded black. I'm not sure if it's just censorship that might be removed in future DVD/Bluray releases or if it's meant to be that way. In either case, it was quite a minor drawback during this first episode, and I didn't even consciously think about it until after the episode ended. Nothing to worry about here for now.
> 
> Can't wait for more!"


4.5/5

I also watched _Rail Wars!_, and it looks AND sounds fantastic. Beautiful art and animation. The pacing is fast and kinda odd, but it's entertaining. Big flailing tits. 3/5

I just finished the first _Sword Art Online II_... it was as interesting as I expected it to be, but it had a different vibe from what I expected. It had its interesting bits, but for the most part it was Kirito being his usual self and trying to make a difference (and being bribed with cake) while Asuna was all "I jzt want 2 b 4evr wid mah boifr3nd." A lot of fanservice for fans of the first season, for sure. The plot seems to have potential to develop into something interesting, and it definitely did have its small hooks that were cool. However, like I said, I sense the presence of the negative traits from the first season. Also, the new game doesn't look as interesting as Sword Art Online or Alfheim Online. I also disliked that villain design. Then again, this is just the first episode. 3.5/5

I still have to watch the new _Sailor Moon_ and the first _Aldnoah.Zero_ episode. I am excite!


----------



## Fat-Elf

Alberto7 said:


> I listened to it like 6 times in a row after my first listen. Soooo caatcchyyy I'm so making a guitar cover of this song.  I also love how many different versions of it the internet has come up with.




Babby's first Touhou song.

Actually, I also thought of making a cover of that song this weekend but got bored and drunk instead.


----------



## Don Vito

no bully pls ;-;

About to watch Rail Wars episode 1


----------



## Alberto7

Fat-Elf said:


> Babby's first Touhou song.
> 
> Actually, I also thought of making a cover of that song this weekend but got bored and drunk instead.



Time well spent, then.  I did try making a cover of it, but as soon as I found out it is tuned half a step down from standard guitar tuning all the ideas I had for it flew out the window,  and I can't be bothered to re-tune my guitar.  I did find out that the song lends itself very well to seven strings though, so I'm still interested in making that cover. I just need to sit down and plan it out.


----------



## bouVIP

@Alberto7 I thought Glasslip was pretty good though I've been in the mood for slice of life stuff.


----------



## Alberto7

Yeah, I don't know, a lot of people are liking it quite a bit. Granted, it looks beautiful, and the ED is super cute, but it just didn't grab my interest much; it didn't seem to go anywhere. The very end (when they set up that love triangle) is the only thing that gave it some sense of direction and it's what saved it for me.


----------



## Alberto7

Just finished the first episode of _Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon: Crystal_. Ladies and gentlemen (though mostly the latter), the loud, obnoxious, superficial, consumerist-oriented, prepubescent-teenage-girl-self-esteem destroying 80's are back! AND IT IS SO AMAZING YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND. 

Seriously, it is such a loud, bright, and outrageously ridiculous show by today's standards, and I friggin' love it for it. 

Of course, had it not had the "Sailor Moon" name attached to it, I'd be rage-hating on it for the exact same reasons I like it. 

On the downside though, I feel about 35% less manly now. Then again, that shouldn't be a worry for someone who watches anime. 

I love the way that Carl Kimlinger put it in his 1st episode review on ANN:


> "There are shows that are shows, and then there are shows that are events. This is one of the events. A re-adaptation of mangaka Naoko Takeuchi's 90s mega-hit Sailor Moon, Sailor Moon Crystal is a show with so much historical baggage that it's pretty much impossible to evaluate on its own merits. If any other show were to do, in this day and age, what _Crystal_ does, we might very well taunt it straight to its grave. An ordinary girl who transforms into a magical warrior at the behest of a talking cat? Unknown forces seeking an all-powerful maguffin known only as the Silver Crystal? A mysterious top-hatted man named Tuxedo Mask? With any other provenience, it'd be a joke. But it's not any other provenience. It's Sailor Moon. The original magical girl phenomenon. The show that started it all. These are things we make fun of because Sailor Moon made them ubiquitous."


---------------------


EDIT: so as not to spam too much, I'll update this post instead of making a new one.

_Aldnoah.Zero_ has quite an interesting post-apocalyptic setting. The overall picture does have its cliches (build giant robots to defend humanity, get children to pilot them, Earth 15 years after THE disaster... did anyone say _Evangelion_?), but once we get to learn a bit more of its intricacies it does become a lot more interesting. Oh, and what makes it even better, it's quite a sci-fi fest, as though they actually seem to at least sort of know what they're talking about. 

Setting aside, the dialogue was solid, the pacing was more than adequate, the music was TOTALLY EPIC (Yuki Kajiura & Kalafina and Hiroyuki Sawano in the same show?! Would you be so kind and take possession of all my currency?), and the art and animation looked great. CG robots and spaceships, but they looked good regardless. The action was very straight-forward and the setting was explained well, leaving little room for speculation, so I expect a twist pretty soon.

Oh, and the ending scene was amazing. Let's talk about that for a second (don't worry, spoiler tags included). I mean, let's just


Spoiler



destroy New Orleans in one shot by dropping a castle/spaceship-meteorite on it


 while playing a song by the same composer and the same performer that brought you _Kill la Kill_'s soundtrack, because why the shit not? After all, it's an anime written by Gen "Urobutcher" Urobuchi, and he can do whatever the f*ck he wants.

I am liking it a lot. 4.5/5


----------



## Don Vito

Dat new Space Dandy  

_"I wanna die.."_

_"Who invited Captain emo?"_


----------



## Alberto7

dat pun  fuuuucckkk I need to finish the first season!  I have too much to watch. ;_;


----------



## bouVIP

Me too D: hoping to catch up this week though since I'll be done working for the summer!!

Also just watched Aldnoah Zero and it's pretty good. It's like a darker version of Gundam.


Edit: Akame ga Kiru is almost out too!!! I highly recommend giving it a watch and hopefully they don't censor it too much.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Well, I went ahead and watched the first episode of _Akame ga Kill_. Not bad. Not bad at all! I actually found the first 15 or so minutes to be kind of dull. It was funny, but ultimately uninteresting. It didn't show me anything that really grabbed my attention. It felt like picking up any random fantasy/adventure shounen anime in the middle of its 13th season on a filler episode. But then the twist/hook came... shit, son, that was f*cked! It's a lot darker than it is first apparent. Also, I love how Akame came across, and I liked "The Boobs."  I have no idea where this will lead, but I sense good things coming.

3.5/5 will keep watching!

EDIT: oh, and there was something I forgot to mention. It's only the first episode, so I won't judge from now, but I'll keep an eye on that aspect: it seems like another one of those anime that try to make some sort of social and/or political statement in a rather crude and thoughtless manner. "F*ck the rich!" "mmkay but why?" "Because being rich is bad" "ah, okay, sure." It could be a pretty big complaint if it really goes down that route. If an anime is to make those kinds of statements, it should do so in tasteful, thought-provoking manners. A good example is _Death Note_. But yeah, like I said, it's just an air it gave off; I can't judge just yet.


----------



## bouVIP

Glad you liked it! I just watched it myself and loving the anime version so far. I like the weird funny parts mixed in with how dark and grim it is. Can't wait until my favorite Esdeath shows up.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Resisting the urge to Google that name!  (and please, no, don't clarify! )

EDIT: although I would like you to clarify my edit above... sorry, added it after you left that post!


----------



## bouVIP

Well she's in the intro lol but that's all I'll say....


----------



## Alberto7

Man, I really need to stop watching anime for a while... I think I may have a problem. 

I just watched _DRAMAtical Murder_ episode 1. That was all kinds of interesting. It reminded me a lot of _Mekakucity Actors_ in that its visuals are quite stunning. The very interesting and futuristic/dystopian-looking setting contributes a lot to that. The plot itself... I guess it is sort of interesting, but it's been around before. There's a part to it with some sort of VR game that resembles SAO and _Log Horizon_ a lot, and I'm just not in the mood for anything like that again. It seems like the gaming part of it is a lot less pronounced than in both SAO and LH though. It is also based on a yaoi visual novel. Supposedly the yaoi content has been taken out of the anime, but it still really feels like one. It feels like playing a visual novel, and it's so incredibly obviously yaoi.  Judging from the character design and the suggestive dialogue, I'm not sure if it really has the intention of getting rid of the yaoi content altogether or if it was just for the first episode... we'll see. Regardless, it has a lot of style and it miiiigghhhtt just become interesting.

3/5

Also watched that _Rail Wars!_ episode again to make up my mind on it... eeh...  let's take that rating down to 2.5. I guess I was too hyped for it  the way those characters are set up is downright ridiculous.


----------



## DanielC1996

So I haven't posted in here for a minute I just finished Heaven's Lost Property well the 2 seasons that are on netflix anyway. That show is kawaii as shizz the perviness to the show is really funny as well. I also just barely started Baka and Test i'm liking it so far. Last week I watched 07 Ghost that one was really cool IMO. Recommend me some anime to watch, it would be very much appreciated


----------



## Alberto7

Continuing my end-of-vacation airing anime rampage, I went ahead and watched the first episode of this anime called *Hanayamata*. Judging by its first episode alone, I see it as this season's _One Week Friends_ in terms of tone and cuteness. It's an overwhelmingly adorable anime about girls dancing yosakoi. The first episode was almost perfectly paced and very well-rounded. It was an introductory episode, but it still felt like it first set some goals and accomplished them all by the end of it. It also has quite a few absolutely hilarious moments. Really worth taking a look at. Oh, and it's produced by Madhouse Studios, so the art and animation are completely gorgeous. Very well done; I'll try to stick with this one.

It's also funny because I have a friend who is exactly like Hana, one of our main characters. Completely hyper and overwhelmingly optimistic; almost annoyingly so. It's quite contagious.

[shitty lo-fi gif]


















EDIT: oops, forgot mandatory first episode rating.
4.5/5


----------



## bouVIP

^Gonna need to check that out when I get time!

Just saw the new Space Dandy and omg that episode was hilarious!!!!!

@daniel what genre are you looking for?


----------



## DanielC1996

bouVIP said:


> ^Gonna need to check that out when I get time!
> 
> Just saw the new Space Dandy and omg that episode was hilarious!!!!!
> 
> @daniel what genre are you looking for?



Anything really xD but I guess my preference would probably be fantasy


----------



## bouVIP

DanielC1996 said:


> Anything really xD but I guess my preference would probably be fantasy



Then you should check out Magi!


----------



## Alberto7

@DanielC1996, well, that's really vague, considering that most anime out there is fantasy.  In any case, sticking with fantasy, and if you don't mind dark and complicated plots, I'd recommend _Fate/Zero_. And the whole _Fate_ series, really. Look into it; it's HUGE. I've made a few posts on it on this thread, should you be interested. But really, just start with _Fate/Zero_. I'll just leave this here in case you're still not sold...


----------



## DanielC1996

I've actually watched both seasons of Magi xD Started that back in November then started the Kingdom of magic when it was airing from japan and I LOVED the Fate/ stuff Zero was just amazing I liked it alot better than Stay night. I'm actually all caught up with the manga on Magi as well I totally knew that was where they going to end season 2 of it xD If you haven't read that at all seriously give it a read stuff gets pretty interesting where the 2nd season ends like super crazy its all backstory right now about who solomon is


----------



## bouVIP

Finally someone else who reads manga! I am more or less caught up with the manga of Magi as well and I agree it's really interesting!

You could check out No Game No Life if you haven't seen it yet or Mahouka, Hunter X Hunter, Akame Ga Kill, Shinsekai Yori, Ao No Exorcist...animes I'm currently watching and find interesting.


----------



## DanielC1996

My buddy is in love with hunterxhunter I'm actually all caught up with the manga on that as well and I'm angry with No Game No Life 12 episodes is not enough Whats Akame ga Kill about I haven't even heard of that. Ao No Exorcist is super cool I was psyched when I heard they were running the dub on Toonami. I'm super bad when it comes to watching anime and reading manga if the series is completed I seriously sit there and read or watch the episodes until I'm all caught up with them xD. Has anybody watched Nobunaga the Fool that one was really interesting i just hate how it ended too much like the ending for Code Geass R2 it was strong in the feels


----------



## bouVIP

I bet you're glad it's finally of hiatus then haha. 

Akame Ga Kill
"In a fantasy world, fighter Tatsumi sets out for the Capitol to earn money for his starving village, and finds a world of unimaginable corruption, all spreading from the depraved Prime Minister who controls the child Emperor's ear. After nearly becoming a victim of this corruption himself, Tatsumi is recruited by Night Raid, a group of assassins dedicated to eliminating the corruption plaguing the Capitol by mercilessly killing those responsible."

All the things I'm watching/reading aren't complete so I can never get closure T_T


----------



## DanielC1996

That sounds like something I could definitely get into I'll start on it tonight


----------



## DanielC1996

Oh and for people that like manga there's this cool one called Soul Cartel check it out


----------



## Alberto7

Bye-bye Oranje-kun









... I'm sorry, I had to make this...


----------



## DanielC1996

^ They got him so good in the beginning I seriously couldn't stop laughing xD


----------



## DanielC1996

@bouvip Wow Akame ga Kill is super cool I read all the manga if you know of anything similar definitely let me know that is the kind of stuff I love xD


----------



## bouVIP

Glad you liked it! The manga is so crazy right now!!! Will do.

I started watching Sabagebu!... It's weird


----------



## Alberto7

Aaahh I heard someone on the internet (and I seem to recall it was one of the PodTaku/J-Taku guys) commenting on it and saying how it would be a great one within its genre. I might check it out soon.

I just finished watching the first episode of *Zankyou no Terror (a.k.a. 'Terror in Resonance'/'Tokyo Terror')*... yeah, it was pretty much perfect. Visually, it is RIDICULOUSLY beautiful and incredibly well animated. _Fate/Stay Night_ (from ufotable) has met its match for the year in terms of animation; that's considering that ufotable does my favorite animation to date (see _Fate/Zero_ and _Kara no Kyoukai_). It's that good. Really. The story and plot are exquisitely developed, and the characters are made very intriguing. The whole psychological/depressive aspect to it is exactly right up my alley as well. It has that dark mood a la Lain, _Ergo Proxy_, _Paranoia Agent_, etc., but with pretty art and an understandable plot to cheer you up and keep you interested. The direction is so brilliant, too; each shot and each angle accentuate beautifully the art and make for some very pretty scenery. It complimented the mood of the episode perfectly. I have a gut feeling that this all might just go uphill from here. It's my favorite first episode this season, and I expect it to remain my favorite anime this season.

5/5 for first episode.

Also just finished *Tokyo Ghoul* episode 2. Yeah, depending on how _Aldnoah.Zero_'s second episode goes, TG might be my other favorite anime. So horrifically delightful. Can't wait for more.


----------



## Alberto7

*Tokyo ESP* episode 1:

I'm pretty sure I just watched the Japanese version of X-Men...  which is not a bad thing. Nihon no Ekkusu-Men, or whatever.  Not at all what I was expecting (I thought it'd be a kind of cute sort of esper-based action/slice of life ), but pretty good first episode riddled with action scenes and likeable characters, nonetheless. It doesn't hold back with gore and blood either, which shocked me (in a good way). Pretty good animation, and great character design. Bad thing is that they just throw you in the middle of a conflict that came seemingly out of nowhere; like you're watching a sequel of something you haven't yet seen. I'm sure it will all be explained in due time. Regardless, it's a good one.

3.5/5

And I believe this one concludes my first-episodes for the summer season! I'm still not sure which ones I'm going to be sticking with, but _Aldnoah.Zero_, _Tokyo Ghoul_, and _Zankyou no Terror_ are the ones that I will be following for sure.


----------



## Alberto7

I can't get over how awesome this OP is. One of my favorites in a long time:



The full song is even better.


----------



## HurrDurr

Anyone checked out the new Netflix Orig. series Knights of Sidonia? I've already seen the full first season and _(being the sucker for mech anime that I am)_ I totally love this show. Thoughts?


----------



## bouVIP

Ling Tosite Sigure is awesome! I still need to check out Tokyo Ghoul.


Just watched Tokyo ESP and it was pretty good. Loving all the action animes this season.

Also Aldnoah Zero episode 2 was epic! I'm really loving this series!! It had me all on edge and it's only the 2nd episode.


----------



## Alberto7

Aaaahhh need to check out A.Z's new episode! I'm gonna catch up tonight on whatever episodes I haven't watched this week.



HurrDurr said:


> Anyone checked out the new Netflix Orig. series Knights of Sidonia? I've already seen the full first season and _(being the sucker for mech anime that I am)_ I totally love this show. Thoughts?



I think it's funny how they called it a Netflix original. They merely just bought the rights to show it in the West. It's like Funimation calling _Steins;Gate_ a Funimation original. At any rate, I thought it was a good anime, but it did have its pitfalls. The pacing is all over the place and it takes a while to get used to the characters in that weird CGI. For what it's worth, it's one of the best extensive uses of CGI that I've seen in anime, but it's still somewhat odd. Regardless, I really liked it and can't wait for the second season to arrive this September.  Reminded me of a mix mainly between _Evangelion_, _Gundam_, and some _Attack on Titan_ (which really just draws from and exaggerates a few of the concepts of _Evangelion_).

In other news, I found out yesterday that my university is hosting the Fantasia International Film Festival this year, and they're making a huge deal out of Mamoru Oshii. They're doing the first showing of _Ghost in the Shell 2.0_ outside of Japan this Thursday... which I missed buying tickets for by literally one minute. I am so f*cking pissed about that. I knew I should have purchased on impulse and THEN research where the box office was to go pick up my ticket. 

But whatever, I think I'll get to see the new _Appleseed Alpha_ film on Sunday.  I'm so happy my university is doing this haha so cool. They're also showing a few other anime films as well as some interesting Japanese and South Korean stuff.


----------



## Alberto7

Just watched the second Aldnoah.Zero episode... it was pretty damn awesome (although the more I think about it, the more I can't perfectly bode with the way the story is being presented, though I'll hold judgement at such an early stage), but that nonsensically ultra-stoic protagonist really pisses me off. They better have a damn good explanation for having calcified all of his emotion hormone-emitting glands. I forgave it during the first episode due to the short exposition we had of him, but this time around I feel was too much. I usually like characters of that style (see Ginko, Homura Akemi, Mikasa Ackerman, etc, etc, etc.), but it just barely makes sense in his case. Anyway, that's my gripe with the show for now. Other than that, it is pretty damn badass. It still reminds me a lot of _Code Geass_ with all the mech stuff and how the IMPOSSIBRU SUPAH SUTRONGU empire crushes humanity like ants.


----------



## Miek

HurrDurr said:


> Anyone checked out the new Netflix Orig. series Knights of Sidonia? I've already seen the full first season and _(being the sucker for mech anime that I am)_ I totally love this show. Thoughts?



I like it but that's only because I'm a big fan of the manga. I'd have a hard time recommending it to someone who wasn't already a fan.


----------



## bouVIP

Started watching Chuunibyou demo Koi ga Shitai! I thought it was some stupid harem fanservice anime from random screen shots and stuff, but it's not! The characters are really likeable and they have a lot more depth than I expected from a slice of life anime. It's really funny too.


----------



## Don Vito

anime is the devils work

repent sinners and may your soul be saved from the burning pits of hell

if you have fancy dream about OTAKU i will fix you


----------



## Fat-Elf

Man, SAO II has been such a borefest so far. 

*SPOILER WARNING*

The first episode was just an introduction, yes I'll give it that. The second episode was such a filler, we (well at least I) don't care about some blue haired ho being all badass and shit, show us Kirito being all badass and emo and shit. Then the third episode just shows more about the blue haired ho now being all anxious and shit because she once fired a gun or something, I don't care...

Worst anime of the year, every year.

Now this is what SAO is all about:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nms3eZGEb3w


----------



## Don Vito

That's disappointing about SAO. I was going to watch it at some point, but idk.. I guess it never left a lasting impression on me, even though there are some amazing moments scattered throughout the series.

Just downloaded and am re-watching FLCL  This time in Japanese. Although I will always love the English version first.

Speaking of good English dubs, new Space Dandy 2nite!!!!!!!!

edit: As much as I love Space Dandy, I just saw the preview commercial, and it's yet another episode about time and space manipulation. jeez..

edit 2: It was still great as ever.


----------



## bouVIP

Now I remeber why I could never finish the Gun Gale books especially Sinon's chapters....

new Aldnoah Zero was pretty awesome! 

@Alberto7 I don't know about you, but I think it was good episode in the way it showed the main character's emotions and reactions.


edit: Just saw the new Akame. I've always hated and found Mine annoying, but her annoying voice matches her character so much and I hate her even more now...


----------



## Alberto7

Yeah, new Aldnoah made up for the previous one by being just PLAIN F*CKING AWESOME.


Spoiler



dat fatality.  I like that it showed a very cartoon-y super impossibru overpowered character and actually pointed out all of the nit-pick flaws that a picky viewer would find and then took advantage of them.


 Sans the details, it actually followed the same train of thought that I had the first time I saw that character. Main character was much better this episode, too. Still unhappy about how he was portrayed during that second episode.

Will get back with thoughts on a few more anime after I find time to catch up with them tomorrow.

+1 to Don for re-watching FLCL. That shit just never gets less awesome.


----------



## Skyblue

Soooooooooo, I'm done with Stein's;Gate. It was awesome, though I have to admit I think I would've liked it a bit more if


Spoiler



either Kurisu or Mayuri would have remained dead, or he simply didn't meet Kurisu at the end... I'm not a fan of those all-too-happy endings



Now what?  

If anyone can recommend anything along the lines of Champloo, that'd be great (general vibes, not the whole samurai thing necessarily). I think I made myself a list of must-see animes ones, I should probably check that out...


----------



## Orzech

Dunno if it has been covered here yet but the new Mushishi is one of the must beautiful animes I've seen so far. Really recommend it.


----------



## Alberto7

Orzech said:


> Dunno if it has been covered here yet but the new Mushishi is one of the must beautiful animes I've seen so far. Really recommend it.



Don't even get me started on _Mushishi_ man haha. It's one of my favorite pieces of media ever. That show is not just any anime; that thing is up there with high literature. The last episode in Zoku Shou (season 2) moved me nearly to tears, and that closing haiku by the narrator was beautiful. It was quite a quirky and humorous one as well. Most other episodes in that season (or the whole series, in fact) had a similar effect on me, actually. The only reason I mention that one is because I watched it just a few days ago. I didn't realize there was one more episode until then. 

Can't wait until that special on August 20th, and then the second part of Zoku Shou this Fall season. It's one of my two most anticipated shows that season.


----------



## Orzech

I had similar thoughts about this anime 

It's nice to take a break from shounen-mecha-whatever-watch-and-forget and enjoy real art, which this anime in fact is. My girlfriend cried a lot during some episodes we watched together.


----------



## Don Vito

Due to waking up bright and early at 4 AM yesterday, I was fast asleep before the new Space Dandy came on, so it's officially the first episode of the current season I've missed. 


Don Vito said:


> Funny, I watched the first episode of SEL today and you guys were already talking about it.
> 
> To me, it was the anime equivalent of drone music.


However, I decided to pick Lain back up, and it's still eclectic as ever. I'm pretty sure Lain has autism or something, and her dad reminds me of myself when I'm on the computer lol. I also couldn't help to think of that awful looking new movie with Morgan Freeman called "Lucy", when they explained the Accela drug in episode 2.


And I couldn't help to think of Efflen Lied when I saw the title of this film, and the part where she's walking around ....ing everything up with her omnipotent powers.


----------



## bouVIP

New Space Dandy was so weird lol

New Aldnoah Zero was epic though 

Also for Alberto7

Fate/Stay night's 'Heaven's Feel' Route Gets Film - News - Anime News Network


----------



## Alberto7

YES YES YES I came here just to post that!  So many announcements regarding the _Fate_ series, I think I'm gonna have a heart attack.

TV anime coming out this Fall confirmed to follow the _Unlimited Blade Works_ route, with its own new preview video and all, AND IT LOOKS AMAZING:



And Kalafina doing the music?! Yeah, okay, I just pooped a little.

Also, if you happen to have played the UBW route, this YT comment is best comment:


> I AM THE BONE OF MY HYPE
> 
> UFOTABLE IS MY BODY, AND KALAFINA IS MY BLOOD
> 
> I HAVE CREATED OVER A THOUSAND FAN-GASMS
> 
> UNKNOWN TO DEEN, NOR KNOWN TO BUDGET,
> 
> HAVE WITHSTOOD YEARS TO CREATE MANY EPISODES
> 
> YET, FATE ROUTE WILL NEVER BE ANIMATED
> 
> AS I PRAY, UNLIMITED HYPE WORKS


Justice is being done to correct that abominable UBW movie from studio DEEN! 

As for the _Heavens Feel_ movie, I'm curious to see what the people at ufotable do though. _Heaven's Feel_ is too MASSIVE a route to fit into a single movie. Here's hoping it gets the _Kara no Kyoukai_ treatment (a whole movie series) instead of studio DEEN's treatment for _Unlimited Bladeworks_ (single movie for a 25-30-hour route). It's honestly the only way to do it justice, unless ufotable work some black magic on it, which wouldn't surprise me. I have faith in them.

EDIT: somehow I forgot to post this for completness's sake:


Based ufotable, maddafackas!

/unable to contain excitement

EDIT 2: and something about the _R__éalta Nua_ version of the novel on Android and iOS or something... can't read Japanese though, and the text is all in an image format so Google translation is impossibru, so I'm not sure what it is.


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> studio DEEN!


gross


----------



## Alberto7

And I still have to catch up with a lot of anime from this season... it's been a hectic last couple of weeks for me and I've had time to watch few things.



Don Vito said:


> Due to waking up bright and early at 4 AM yesterday, I was fast asleep before the new Space Dandy came on, so it's officially the first episode of the current season I've missed.
> However, I decided to pick Lain back up, and it's still eclectic as ever. I'm pretty sure Lain has autism or something, and her dad reminds me of myself when I'm on the computer lol. I also couldn't help to think of that awful looking new movie with Morgan Freeman called "Lucy", when they explained the Accela drug in episode 2.
> 
> 
> And I couldn't help to think of Efflen Lied when I saw the title of this film, and the part where she's walking around ....ing everything up with her omnipotent powers.




Haha man, keep watching Lain, it's such an unreal trip. It's kinda confusing, and it makes me sleepy at points, but it's strangely addictive.

Now if only we could fit _Elfen Lied_'s Lucy into that Lucy, and make a Lucy-ception of sorts where Lucy ....s Lucy with her invisible arms of death... I should behave my age.

EDIT:


Don Vito said:


> gross


 Yeah I should have put that with a parental advisory warning next to it.


----------



## Don Vito

Yeah, I'm trying to watch Lain, but this Fat Elf guy won't stop sending me lewd messages on Steam.



Alberto7 said:


> where Lucy ....s Lucy with her invisible arms of death...


Rule 34 man.


----------



## Alberto7

And new visual novel, _Fate/Grand Order_, announced for Android and iOS: Fate/Grand Order

Should be interesting, though I gotta play _Hollow Ataraxia_ first, I reckon. No idea what it's going to be about either, but Jean D'Arc seems to be a character, meaning that Blue Beard's unexplained obsession with Saber in _Fate/Zero_ will have more meaning now.

The _Fate_ route of the original visual novel is also going to be available for Android and iOS, although I don't know which markets it'll reach.


----------



## bouVIP

Man I really want to get back into Fate/Stay Night but so confusing lol 


Also new Akame Ga Kill~. Kurome <3


----------



## Orzech

I wish I had more time to catch up with Fate/ series...


----------



## Don Vito




----------



## sakeido

Watched the first four eps of Knights of Sidonia... yeaaaaah dunno about this one. It is relatively pretty during the mech scenes, Sidonia looks cool, but the plotting and characters are so extremely flat I don't think I care enough to finish watching it. Plus, outside of the mechs, I find this show to be quite ugly aside from the backgrounds.


----------



## Somnium

Still on a pretty big Persona kick lol. HURRY UP AND RELEASE THE PERSONA 3 MOVIES ANIPLEX I CAN'T WAIT TO PAY FOR YOUR OVERPRICED (but totally cool) COLLECTOR'S EDITION BOX SETS. On a similar note, Sentai really needs to drop some Big O sets because I don't want to pay $100+ for half of that series. Come on guys, I need my Dorothy R. Wayneright fix.


----------



## Alberto7

Don Vito said:


>



It had to be done.



sakeido said:


> Watched the first four eps of Knights of Sidonia... yeaaaaah dunno about this one. It is relatively pretty during the mech scenes, Sidonia looks cool, but the plotting and characters are so extremely flat I don't think I care enough to finish watching it. Plus, outside of the mechs, I find this show to be quite ugly aside from the backgrounds.



It was a cool anime and I don't feel like I wasted my time by watching it, but it had SOOOO much wasted potential. Let's see how the second season pans out this Fall.


----------



## Don Vito

Somnium said:


> Still on a pretty big Persona kick lol. HURRY UP AND RELEASE THE PERSONA 3 MOVIES ANIPLEX I CAN'T WAIT TO PAY FOR YOUR OVERPRICED (but totally cool) COLLECTOR'S EDITION BOX SETS. On a similar note, Sentai really needs to drop some Big O sets because I don't want to pay $100+ for half of that series. Come on guys, I need my Dorothy R. Wayneright fix.


Persona  The first Persona 3 film covered so little of the game, I was a bit disappointed when I watched it.

Big O was a childhood favorite of mine, and I've been meaning to re-watch it all these years, because it seems like something I could get into even today.

And I finished off the last episode FLCL yesterday afternoon, so now I'm jamming this into the sunset. 


And I'm on episode 5 of Lain. It's hard to sit and watch for long periods of time, but I'm enjoying it so far, even though I have no idea what's going on.

Oh, and one more edit.. I downloaded the episode of Space Dandy I missed last weekend, but no dual audio  The Japanese version is good, but I'm used to the English dub(which is great).


----------



## sakeido

Actually just watched episode 6 last night where they 


Spoiler



killed the main character's love interest!



so that has captured my interest. Let that be a lesson to all anime heroes: get it while the gettin's good. Two teenagers spend 11 days stranded in space and all you do is hold hands for two hours? you will be kicking yourself for, basically, the rest of your life.


----------



## bouVIP

Anyone a fan of the OP for No Game No Life?

Transcribed it~

Bou Yo (Konomi Suzuki - This Game Tabs)


----------



## Alberto7

bouVIP said:


> Anyone a fan of the OP for No Game No Life?
> 
> Transcribed it~
> 
> Bou Yo (Konomi Suzuki - This Game Tabs)



Holy shit, motherduder! I am definitely a fan of it. It was stuck in my head nonstop for that entire season. That's an awesome transcription man  will definitely be learning it at some point. Thanks for sharing it dude, would +rep thrice if I could!

On slightly non-anime but music related news (thanks bouVIP for the segue ), I was not going to attend Heavy Montreal this year, but now I'm considering paying for the ticket just for this:

Babymetal, Unlocking the Truth, Whores. and more added to the lineup! - HEAVY MONTRÉAL HEAVY MONTRÉAL

 I don't know what to do


----------



## Miek

sakeido said:


> Actually just watched episode 6 last night where they
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> killed the main character's love interest!
> 
> 
> 
> so that has captured my interest. Let that be a lesson to all anime heroes: get it while the gettin's good. Two teenagers spend 11 days stranded in space and all you do is hold hands for two hours? you will be kicking yourself for, basically, the rest of your life.



Tanikaze spent his entire life underground with a dead dude for like half of it, and the other half of the time he was playing giant robot video games. He's basically autistic. That he got that far is pretty impressive. 

If you read the manga though, the latest chapter has a pretty fantastic thing in it.


----------



## Don Vito

Oh man, I had dream last night where the K-On's were in Robot Chicken. Whatever I'm eating before bed, I need to lay off of it... or not.


----------



## Don Vito

Space Dandy.... more fish, more basslines, more loincloth.

edit: MORE DUCKBOAT


----------



## Alberto7

Gah, I feel unexplainably guilty for not having picked Space Dandy back up from where I left the first season. 

In other news, this happened:





...


----------



## Don Vito

Idk what that is.. but I don't think we get anime films here much. I saw a commercial for the new DBZ movie(animated, not live action), and I thought it would be cool to go see, even though I haven't had any interest for DBZ past age 8.

With Space Dandy, I just watch it on TV once a week. That's something I'm usually not good at doing because I forget, or become lazy, but it has garnered enough interest in me I suppose. I never watched every single episode of season 1, and have been meaning to go back to it. I also never watched last week's episode, despite getting a Japanese download. 

On another note, I caught episode 13 of AoT dub, which is where I ended my recollection of the series, and I kind of understand why people don't like the dub for this now, including me. Now I feel more comfortable to go forward with it in Japanese.

And Lain, still on episode 5... here's the problem: can't watch it at day because out of house, can't watch it in the afternoon because I live at an apartment with lots of kids(which ruins the atmosphere blah blah), can't watch it at night because step dad playing AC/DC loudly, and can't watch it early morning(12 am) because I'm asleep(except now, because 3 iced coffee drinks, but I don't have my personal computer anyways). So the only time I can watch it is when I wake up, and I waste too much time doing routine stuff around this time. _nichijou..._

Sorry for the rambling, I'm bored.


----------



## Alberto7

Those tickets are for the second screening of the Western release of the second live action film for the _Rurouni Kenshin_ (a.k.a. _Samurai X_) manga, covering the first part of the second (Kyoto) arc. We get tons of anime-related stuff here in Montreal, luckily enough, with it being the second largest city in Canada and priding itself on its very le-French-avec-des-escargots artsy-fartsy posh kind of culture and all.

I can never commit to watch anything on TV anymore. I mean, as a child I watched all the 300+ _Dragon Ball/Z_ episodes, plus the entire first two seasons of _Pokemon_, _Yu-Gi-Oh!,_ _Shaman King_, _Digimon_ first season, etc etc etc, but since I discovered the internet... nah. Besides, I haven't owned a TV ever since I moved out to an apartment.

Sucks about your living space not letting you be in the mood for Lain though. She's lovely in a very crude, sterile, and contrived kind of way (love my oxymorons). And yeah, the morning routine always makes me not do anything productive and makes me be late everywhere I go. Try going to a quiet place with wifi instead and catch up on some coolness. You can be all hipster and go to one of those cool coffee places where people sit down with their Macs and pretend to work/study.

Also, rambling is cool.

EDIT: I didn't realize you had quoted me on your sig.  I'm honored, senpai-san-dono-sama-kun-chan!

EDIT 2: just watched the two latest _Aldnoah.Zero_ episodes. Few things I'd do differently here and there, and I still don't fully gel with the protagonist, but it was really awesome anyway!

Also just watched the latest _Akame ga Kill_ (episode 4), and it rocked! Akame is a total badass. I smell new WOTS (waifu of the season) material there. Can't wait for the new episode in a few hours! Hopefully I'll be able to watch it soon enough.


----------



## Don Vito

I'm really surprised TV isn't dead by now. I know people still have their singing shows and what not, but you'd think Youtube and Netflix would have taken their toll by now. I wouldn't bother watching it at all if it wasn't included with my apartment. And to my knowledge, Space Dandy premieres first on US TV. (At least, according to Cartoon Network is does.) A quick Google search has showed me that it doesn't actually air in Canada. That is a shame, since you gave us the best anime of 1999, Ed, Edd, and Eddy. edit: 2nd best, forgot about Courage-kun.

I would go to a coffee shop to watch Lain, but I have a feeling the Mac people will judge my Asus G73, the warship of modern laptops.

Btw, your new avatar is beautiful.

edit: Had to get another anime avatar, but Lain is too pure for SSO, so I went with a minor SAO character holding a baby blue eyes white dragon from pokemon.

edit 2: Speaking of TV, the station in my old town STILL airs the now defunct G4 channel. Just re-airing the same episodes of the same shows over and over and over. It's funny to see the 2012 episodes of X-Play, when they were trying to whore out Mountain Dew and Halo 4 like everybody else at that time.

I mention this because they're showing the Marvel _Blade_ anime right now, and it's surprisingly good. It has that Teen Titans(which has nothing to do with Shingeki no Kyojin) thing going on, where it feels half American, half Japanese. They also show an Iron Man anime, and I think one for Wolverine as well. But Blade is my favorite. 

Despite Twilight soiling the genre a bit, I still ....ing love vampires. The Twilight movies actually aren't as bad as people make them out to be. Maybe a little too macho man sexual(and the sparkling shit is pretty wack), but other than that it's... _decent_. 

/rant


----------



## bouVIP

Akame is awesome and all, but

Esdeath!!! Esdeath!!! Esdeath!!! Esdeath!!! Esdeath!!! Esdeath!!! Esdeath!!!


----------



## Alberto7

Ok I just wrote a huge post, but apparently SSO decided to shit on me and tell me my "token has expired" and everything I'd written got deleted. So, .... it. *cries* Long-story short, I watched new _Akame ga Kill_ and they introduced Esdeath. I can't wait to see more of her!

EDIT: also, something about vampires and Kate Beckinsale and Buffy and Angel. And Blue Eyes Ultimate Dragon.
EDIT 2: and this being awesome


----------



## Don Vito

I _love_ Vampire Slayer. And I'm not going off topic here, because the guy who played Spike played Piccolo in DBZ: Evolution. How the mighty have fallen.


----------



## Alberto7

_Zankyou no Terror_ is seriously friggin' beautiful. That last episode was amazing. My favorite anime this season by quite a long shot, and the music is absolutely fantastic! EDIT: on that same note, I've noticed that there's so much good music in the different anime shows this season!

Now on to catching up with _Tokyo Ghoul_! 

And then, hopefully, the _Pscyho-Pass_ remake, which I watched the first episode of but haven't had time to watch the others.


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> _Zankyou no Terror_


I've been meaning to watch this actually. I always imagine Uuryu from Mirai Nikki when I think about it haha.


----------



## Alberto7

Holy shit, him and 12 from ZnT really do look like they came from the same mold.  I haven't watched MN though, so what he looks like is as much as I know about his character.

But yeah, ZnT is really cool. Very artsy, yet down to earth. Maybe it's because I'm very conscious that both the director and music composer for _Cowboy Bebop_ and ZnT are the same, but it does slightly remind me of the former in the way that some scenes are played out. One of the last scenes in ZnT's episode 4 (the one with Lisa and 9's bike) reminds me of the all-famous scene from Bebop's Ballad of the Fallen Angels.

EDIT: if you don't mind very minor spoilers (the scene doesn't reveal anything, actually), here's the scene I'm talking about. It's so beautiful:


----------



## Don Vito

About to watch episode one!

Uuryu is a terrorist, and is pretty kawaii.













Alberto7 said:


> EDIT: if you don't mind very minor spoilers (the scene doesn't reveal anything, actually), here's the scene I'm talking about. It's so beautiful:


gawd, that music ;_;(I mean this in a good way)


----------



## Alberto7

LOL that's funny. That was not at all the character Google turned up when I searched for "Uuryu."  I got this guy, instead:





Who reminded me of 9 (not 12 like I said before, sorry) from ZnT:





You can tell I haven't watched _Mirai Nikki_... 

Also, enjoy that episode


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> Who reminded me of 9


What's funny about this, is that the main characters in Mirai Nikki are referred to by a number, and she is 9, or Ninth.
Minene Uryu - Future Diary Wiki



Alberto7 said:


> That was not at all the character Google turned up when I searched for "Uuryu."


Probably because I spelled it wrong.  On the wiki it says "Uryu", but a lot of people spell it "Uryuu".


----------



## Alberto7

Aaaahh that explains it.  I was confused for a second. I was a bit weirded out that the art in MN was as plain as that character's (the one I posted).


----------



## Cbutler

would probably find a lengthy opinionated discussion if i hunted far enough back, but for the sake of boredom.. thoughts on space dandy? i am pretty picky but it seemed funny. i mean it is directed by the direct godsend Watanabe haha


----------



## Alberto7

I find it awesome, honestly. I don't understand the (rather minimal) hate it gets. However, I'll let the experts handle this one,  I dropped it the first season for reasons that still elude me.


----------



## Don Vito

Hate? I haven't been there in a long time, but apparently even 4chan's /a/ board were pretty optimistic about the series, and they hate everything that isn't some obscure mecha drama from the 90's.

Of course, I'm all about some Space Dandy, and have been keeping up with every episode this season except the one from 2 weeks ago. I'm not exactly great at writing up reviews, but I'll try and ramble for a bit.

The only negative I can find about this series, is that they tend to re-use certain themes a lot. Teleportation/alternate universes/time travel are the norm for an average episode. The newest season even had two episodes centered around a fish. 

The core writing is good though, and I base this opinion solely on the fact that it makes me laugh out loud. I find lots of anime humorous, but they rarely force me to audibly acknowledge it. This could be different based on which language you watch it in. I've been watching it on US tv, so for me it's been English, but I've seen a bit of the Japanese version as well. The English dub is really good by the way.

The highlight of this series would be the animation. The production quality never ever dips from one episode to another, and the universe and different planets Dandy and his crew visit in the show are flippin' gorgeous. Character design is fairly memorable as well.

I haven't payed much attention to the music in the show, but I do love the OP and US ending.
 

Guh-roovay.


----------



## Don Vito

Forgot to mention that I finished this.


Don Vito said:


> In non anime news, I tried watching some Japanese TV.
> Crunchyroll - No Dropping Out -Back to School at 35- - Episode 1 - Crunchyroll
> 
> A little feel-sy and dramatic, but there is some humor and good stuff squeezed in there. And the way it's shot is so different from American TV. Seems more "real' somehow. I think I'm going to keep up with it.


And, yeah.. I'll probably never watch Japanese TV again because of this ....ing show. It was like Glee without the music, and somehow even more mind numbingly stupid. I still like the way it's shot though.


----------



## Cbutler

yeah the dub is actually pretty amazing. i need to finish SE01! my friends hate it it until i tell them the creator. a fish? oh man


----------



## Skyblue

Realized I forgot I never saw Black Lagoon. Few hours later and I'm halfway through already


----------



## Cbutler

Skyblue said:


> Realized I forgot I never saw Black Lagoon. Few hours later and I'm halfway through already



ITS SO LEGITTTT


----------



## Alberto7

Alberto7 said:


> In other news, this happened:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ...





Alberto7 said:


> Those tickets are for the second screening of the Western release of the second live action film for the _Rurouni Kenshin_ (a.k.a. _Samurai X_) manga, covering the first part of the second (Kyoto) arc.



So, I went to watch this yesterday at the cinema with a massive crowd of other _Rurouni Kenshin_ fans. I seriously still want to cry from how great it was. One of the most intense fangasms I've ever had, for sure. Also, the crowd watching the film was epically entertaining. It really does make a difference when the people around you actually know what the f*ck is going on and all react to the same things.


----------



## Fat-Elf

First post decided what anime I start watching tonight.

Ps. No Boku no Pico, I've already seen it.


----------



## Don Vito

Fat-Elf said:


> First post decided what anime I start watching tonight.
> 
> Ps. No Boku no Pico, I've already seen it.


Hi Hi Puffy Ami x Yumi


The only show I'm watching at the moment(besides Lain a.k.a let's make 25 minutes seem like 3 hours) is Zankyou no Terror, but I can't tell you if it's good or not since I'm too early into it. Actually, you should probably still watch it.



Alberto7 said:


> So, I went to watch this yesterday at the cinema with a massive crowd of other _Rurouni Kenshin_ fans. I seriously still want to cry from how great it was. One of the most intense fangasms I've ever had, for sure. Also, the crowd watching the film was epically entertaining. It really does make a difference when the people around you actually know what the f*ck is going on and all react to the same things.


I wish I could relish in your excitement.. but I still don't know what this is  I googled it, and I've seen that character around forever. Like in Shonen Jump magazines as a kid and stuff.


----------



## Alberto7

Fat-Elf said:


> First post decided what anime I start watching tonight.
> 
> *Ps. No Boku no Pico, I've already seen it.*



I feel like that should make me worry, but all it did was make me roflcopter around my room.

@Don, if you ever want to try out what it's all about, I suggest you begin with the manga (the series also goes by the name _Samurai X_ in some western countries), and, if you wish to see it animated, go ahead and watch the first two arcs of the anime (the rest of it I'll leave up to you, since it's not bad, but it isn't canon either. It deviates completely from the manga).

If you ever want to watch a work of art (one of my favorites), watch one of the anime's OVAs, titled _Rurouni Kenshin: Trust and Betrayal_. It basically focuses on the first part of the third arc of the manga, which explores Kenshin's past as an assassin and how and why he stopped. It has a very serious and a dark, heavy tone, unlike the anime, but everything about it is just perfect. If it's of any help to convince you, it's #4 on ANN's top 10 anime list, and #14 on My Anime List.


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> If you ever want to watch a work of art (one of my favorites), watch one of the anime's OVAs, titled _Rurouni Kenshin: Trust and Betrayal_. It basically focuses on the first part of the third arc of the manga, which explores Kenshin's past as an assassin and how and why he stopped. It has a very serious and a dark, heavy tone, unlike the anime, but everything about it is just perfect. If it's of any help to convince you, it's #4 on ANN's top 10 anime list, and #14 on My Anime List.


That seems more convenient to me. Thanks!

It's kind of impossible to grow up in late 00's chan culture and not watch Boku no Pico at some point. It's a classic.


----------



## Skyblue

Just saw Spirited Away. 

Miyazaki


----------



## Don Vito

I was just talking about Miyazaki... never watched any of his movies, but I imagine they're sort of in the vein of a Studio DEEN production.


----------



## Skyblue

Don Vito said:


> I was just talking about Miyazaki... never watched any of his movies, but I imagine they're sort of in the vein of a Studio DEEN production.



That's actually my first of his movies (well, I saw the last half of Ponyo a few years ago on TV...) Story was great, animations and overall artistic ideas were awesome. Definitely going to check out more from him. I'll probably go on either Howl's Moving Castle or My Neighbour Totoro. 

Definitely recommended!


----------



## Alberto7

dafaq, that's like imagining Slayer playing church music for a living. _Spirited Away_ is one of the most artsy and dreamy things that I have ever seen. Studio DEEN is like... I don't even know (although I used to love _Eat-Man_ as a kid, and _Fruits Basket_ has a pretty good reputation).


----------



## Don Vito

Tom Araya was probably a choir boy. I should watch it this weekend, just to finally say I've watched a Miyazaki film. There's a comic store down the street with a huge poster for it in their front window.


----------



## ILuvPillows

5 Episodes
Refreshing fusion of styles
Samuel L Jackson

...ticks all the boxes.


----------



## tm20

My friend introduced me to a series called Astro Fighter Sunred, I hope I'm not the only one who watches this because it's hilarious


----------



## Ikiharmaa

What a coincidence, I just watched Spirited Away a week or so ago as well. It was more enjoyable than I remembered. Also watched Arrietty for the first time, it was visually gorgeus, but I didn't enjoy the story as much as certain other ghibli films.

That is all, haven't been in the mood for anime lately.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Skyblue said:


> Just saw Spirited Away.
> 
> Miyazaki



Hory shitto. This made me remember to check the release for the new and last film of Miyazaki. Apparently it's been already out since April! There's only one screening today so I think it's going to go out of screening soon. I really wouldn't want to go back to the town but I must see it in a theater or I'll never forgive myself.

Thank you, Skyblue. You just saved me from the biggest fail of my life.


----------



## Don Vito

New Space Dandy was surprisingly tame, but next week's episode looks to be great(Dandy joins a band). I'm still going to watch Spirited Away, but I had plans that got in the way this weekend.


----------



## Alberto7

That last _Aldnoah.Zero_ episode (6th ep.)... ... I don't know what's going on in Urobuchi's head, but the writing, pacing, and script were... subpar, especially by his ungodly high standards. Either I was expecting way too much (this is Gen Urobuchi we're talking about... I have a right to expect a lot ), or he's really just not into it with this anime.

EDIT: new _Akame ga Kill_ though... all of my tears....


----------



## Skyblue

Fat-Elf said:


> Hory shitto. This made me remember to check the release for the new and last film of Miyazaki. Apparently it's been already out since April! There's only one screening today so I think it's going to go out of screening soon. I really wouldn't want to go back to the town but I must see it in a theater or I'll never forgive myself.
> 
> Thank you, Skyblue. You just saved me from the biggest fail of my life.



My pleasure man 

Anyway, saw Howl's moving castle yesterday. Animation was wonderful as always, the story... well, it had some weak spot (characters doing things that they wouldn't normally do, just to advance the plot and so on) but then again, it wasn't his original script, so he might not be the one to blame. Still a great movie though.


----------



## Don Vito

Skyblue said:


> Realized I forgot I never saw Black Lagoon. Few hours later and I'm halfway through already


I've never actually watched Black Lagoon in order, just random episodes on TV. I'm d'ling the whole series as of now, and I had no idea they made 2 seasons of this show. Stoked


----------



## Alberto7

^ DUDE you gotta watch _Black Lagoon_!! It seriously has some of the most badass characters I've ever seen. Watch the first and seconrds seasons, and then the _Roberta's Bloodtrail_ OVA. So much br00tz. Balalaika


----------



## Cbutler

its so bueno. it has an amazingly natural dub too!


----------



## Alberto7

If by natural you mean "swear out your ass like a sailor" then yes, it's pretty much the most wonderful dub ever! 



And you can't not totally love Revy:


So satisfying


----------



## habicore_5150

I gotta make some time to go watch Black Lagoon. But of course, when I get to talking about a certain game series with a friend of mine, I tell myself "Hey, I know some of the Tales Of... anime exist. I need to go watch them"


----------



## Don Vito

Black Lagoon is really easy to watch. It's shallow, but not dumbed down either.


----------



## Alberto7

Yeah, _Black Lagoon_ is one of the most badass anime I've ever watched. It's just "badass" done well. It is what helped me get through the emotional nightmare that was _Clannad: After Story_.

And speaking of those _Tales of..._ anime, I watched _Tales of the Abyss_ ages ago. Really cool anime. The mythology it creates for itself is pretty cool, making it that much more immersive and interesting. I remember really liking the female lead. I wish they made her outfit but for men.


----------



## Mordacain

Alberto7 said:


> Yeah, _Black Lagoon_ is one of the most badass anime I've ever watched. It's just "badass" done well. It is what helped me get through the emotional nightmare that was _Clannad: After Story_.



QFT. ....ing Clannad... I watched that during a stint on third shift and damn near had to leave early that ....er wrecked me so. I got about halfway through and never finished it.

I swear, no-one and I mean no-one does depressing shit like the Japanese.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Started rewatching Death Note last night. Probably won't finish it as I didn't remember how dark and grim it is, holy shit. I need some moe stuff now.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

whenever someone mentions Black Lagoon I must mention Jormungand. I mean how could you not get hooked on it just from hearing the opening? 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uDhEtUl7U-A


----------



## habicore_5150

Ok, I've promised myself that I would watch a Tales of anime, and so far I'm up to episode 5 of Abyss and I love it

Tempted to get a copy of the game so I can love it more


----------



## Don Vito

Don Vito said:


> New Space Dandy was surprisingly tame, but next week's episode looks to be great(Dandy joins a band). I'm still going to watch Spirited Away, but I had plans that got in the way this weekend.



Can someone with a tumblr please get me a pic of Meow holding his blue Steinberger bass? 

edit: nvm, got a good screen cap from the trailer


----------



## Alberto7

Well, I'm twice as pissed now. As soon as I hit "Post Quick Reply" it went to the Database Error screen and didn't let me post all that I had written.  In any case, I was writing about how I was pissed (sigh) because I thought I'd make that picture of Meow into a transparent .png so that someone could use it as an avatar and I could have an animu-avec-da-bass buddy, but the service I usually use to do that pulled this one on me today, after not giving me any problems since I started using it some months ago:






and then, after you're done and proud of your work, you go and click the download button and this happens:





/rant

In any case... are any of you guys con-goers? Have you ever been to one alone? Otakuthon is happening this coming weekend, but all of my friends who are going are either selling stuff (so they'll spend the entire time at the dealer's section) or are staff, and I feel very awkward going to a con (of all things) by myself, and I think I may not end up going. Thing is... Nobuo Uematsu (yeah ) and the dude who sings "Ask DNA" in the _Cowboy Bebop_ film will be there, among other cool peeps, and I'd hate to miss that. I'm just wondering what it's like to go alone to a con...


----------



## habicore_5150

Alberto7 said:


> In any case... are any of you guys con-goers? Have you ever been to one alone? Otakuthon is happening this coming weekend, but all of my friends who are going are either selling stuff (so they'll spend the entire time at the dealer's section) or are staff, and I feel very awkward going to a con (of all things) by myself, and I think I may not end up going. Thing is... Nobuo Uematsu (yeah ) and the dude who sings "Ask DNA" in the _Cowboy Bebop_ film will be there, among other cool peeps, and I'd hate to miss that. I'm just wondering what it's like to go alone to a con...



That first bit about trying to get Meow out of that picture, have you tried using Paint.net?

But on point, the two cons that I went to were never me going by myself (well, we really can't count AnimeDay which was a one day marketplace, that one I did go by myself). But then again, I mostly wandered around the cons by myself, while my other friends were doing other things around the con
But if you DO go to that con, we all expect a pic with you and Nobuo Uematsu


----------



## Alberto7

habicore_5150 said:


> That first bit about trying to get Meow out of that picture, have you tried using Paint.net?
> 
> But on point, the two cons that I went to were never me going by myself (well, we really can't count AnimeDay which was a one day marketplace, that one I did go by myself). But then again, I mostly wandered around the cons by myself, while my other friends were doing other things around the con
> But if you DO go to that con, we all expect a pic with you and Nobuo Uematsu



I just realized I'm an idiot. I hesitated too long and now the tickets for the Final Fantasy concert with Uematsu are sold out.  I didn't even know about this event, I just thought he'd be doing a panel or something. Huge bummer... screw having analysis paralysis, seriously.

Guests of Honour - Otakuthon 2014

I don't know if he'll be making appearances in other events, so I doubt I'll end up going now. I have to ask about that.

I think this one will be going to the confessions thread soon. 

Oh, and thanks for telling me about Paint.NET! I'm gonna download it and check it out. EDIT: nvm, I'm still running on Vista...  another reason to upgrade to Windows 7.


----------



## MetalGravy

Alberto7 said:


> any case... are any of you guys con-goers? Have you ever been to one alone? Otakuthon is happening this coming weekend, but all of my friends who are going are either selling stuff (so they'll spend the entire time at the dealer's section) or are staff, and I feel very awkward going to a con (of all things) by myself, and I think I may not end up going. Thing is... Nobuo Uematsu (yeah ) and the dude who sings "Ask DNA" in the _Cowboy Bebop_ film will be there, among other cool peeps, and I'd hate to miss that. I'm just wondering what it's like to go alone to a con...




Right here, though, not as many as I'd like . I've hit ACen and AnimeIowa so far this year. I've been meaning to hit Otakon again for a while, but who know when that will happen.


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> Oh, and thanks for telling me about Paint.NET! I'm gonna download it and check it out. EDIT: nvm, I'm still running on Vista...  another reason to upgrade to Windows 7.


I have Windows 7, and it won't let me install it unless I have the latest service pack, which is like a 5GB download 

I'm not sure there are any cons where I live that aren't held in small libraries full of painfully out of date Inuyasha cosplayers lol. I hear Anime Weekend in Atlanta is good though, and that's coming up in September.


----------



## habicore_5150

As promised, I need to get a copy of Tales of the Abyss. Just finished all 26 episodes of the anime. Honestly, this is the first time that I actually got a bit teary eyed when the ending came about

Now to look around for others that I might need to watch. Might as well watch Akame ga Kill!

EDIT: Birth of the 1,111th post (probably won't make it up to 8,888 to appease Death the Kid)


----------



## Ikiharmaa

there we go, praise the power of photoshop cs3:


----------



## bouVIP

Anyone else watching Tokyo ESP? I really like the ending~ makes me want an E-II 8 string


----------



## wat

Alberto7 said:


> ^ Good to hear you're getting into anime! I'd say you should watch:
> _*Cowboy Bebop*_, which I think goes hand-in-hand with _*Trigun*_ as they complement each other very well (even if they have nothing to do with each other storywise).
> You rightly mentioned *GitS* and _*NGE*_.
> You should also probably watch _*Spice and Wolf*_ if you're into character development, character interactions, and witty scripts and/or dialogues. You have the first season of this show on Funimation's YouTube channel, and the second season is on Netflix (in Canada).
> _*Death Note*_ and _*Code Geass*_ for their ridonkulous epicness and smart plots.
> _*Haibane Renmei*_ for its incredibly beautiful and soulful nature, which gets you thinking a lot.
> _*Madoka Magica*_ because it's so awesome seeing the generally non-serious magical girl genre being torn to pieces, not to mention it is actually amazing in and of itself.
> _*Steins;Gate*_ if you like sci-fi and intense and sudden plot twists along with great characters.
> _*Clannad*_, since the second season is one of the most beautifully heart-ripping things I've ever watched, and it's great seeing a story that feels as complete and fleshed out as this one.
> I would personally also recommend _*Planetes*_ if you happen to like hard sci-fi a la _*2001: A Space Odyssey*_, but with a ton of character development.
> Those are just some of the ones I really like, and I'm sure I'm missing a few others.
> Here's a pretty good video listing 25 must-watch shows that I agree with for the most part. I like the way he reviews anime:
> EDIT: I don't know why I didn't say this at the beginning of my post, but go through a few pages of this thread. There are a lot of things people have recommended already, so you'll surely find some that are interesting.



I watched_ Death Note_ per your recomendation.  It was amazing.

In addition to _Death Note_, _Trigun_ and _Attack On Titan_, I've now completed_ Black Butler_ 1 & 2,_ Knights Of Sidionia, Sword Art Online, _and am in the middle of_ Psycho-Pass_ which I think is just godly so far...I'm also current on Attack on Titan and Knights of Sidonia's mangas.


----------



## Nour Ayasso

Did anyone watch the latest episode of Space Dandy? We're all musicians so I assumed it'd be more entertaing to all of you, it was for me at least. The drums were programmed....lulz


----------



## Don Vito

Nour Ayasso said:


> Did anyone watch the latest episode of Space Dandy? We're all musicians so I assumed it'd be more entertaing to all of you, it was for me at least. The drums were programmed....lulz


I was cracking up at their first gig. Playing the same riff for 2 hours?


----------



## Alberto7

bouVIP said:


> Anyone else watching Tokyo ESP? I really like the ending~ makes me want an E-II 8 string




I watched the first episode and really liked it, so I eagerly awaited the second one. I found the second one so dumb that I immediately dropped it.  I thought it had potential a la _Akame ga Kill_, but that episode came and it was like insta-suck. I'll admit I found the ED song really cool though; I was happy to hear some ERG riffage in there.



wat said:


> I watched_ Death Note_ per your recomendation.  It was amazing.
> 
> In addition to _Death Note_, _Trigun_ and _Attack On Titan_, I've now completed_ Black Butler_ 1 & 2,_ Knights Of Sidionia, Sword Art Online, _and am in the middle of_ Psycho-Pass_ which I think is just godly so far...I'm also current on Attack on Titan and Knights of Sidonia's mangas.



Haha I feel like such a hypocrite  I've only watched the first 10 episodes of _Death Note_ and one of the live-actions ages ago (first one)_._  I do know pretty much the entire story, including the ending though, and most of the tropes that came out of it. Still have to finish it; it's such an entertaining show.

You're on a roll though  that's quite a few anime! How'd you like _Black Butler_? My little sister keeps bothering me to watch it, but I kind of refuse. 

---------

Somewhat unrelated but... I watched _Scott Pilgrim vs. the World_ last night (LOVED IT), and, amidst its innumerable references to pop ("nerd") culture, I found a strong resemblance, if only in essence, to _FLCL_, except it's a ton less weird (putting _FLCL_'s strangeness in good perspective ).


----------



## Nour Ayasso

Don Vito said:


> I was cracking up at their first gig. Playing the same riff for 2 hours?



lmao hey Meshuggah gets away with it why not others?!


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Man I've been out of the anime loop... 

I've recently started to watch some again now I've been visiting my sister's house often, she's been giving me some for viewing. Attack On Titan, I swear I will watch eventually, and I need to get into Knights of Sidonia as well.

...except I stated re-watching Mobile Figher G Gundam instead.  I forgot how un-Gundam that series was, but damn it's glorious.


----------



## wat

Alberto7 said:


> Haha I feel like such a hypocrite  I've only watched the first 10 episodes of _Death Note_ and one of the live-actions ages ago (first one)_._  I do know pretty much the entire story, including the ending though, and most of the tropes that came out of it. Still have to finish it; it's such an entertaining show.
> 
> You're on a roll though  that's quite a few anime! How'd you like _Black Butler_? My little sister keeps bothering me to watch it, but I kind of refuse.



I _loved_ Black Butler. It's in 18th century England & is about 13 year-old Ciel Phantomhive, an Earl & loyal servant to Queen Victoria who inherited the estate when his parents were murdered. He sold his soul to a demon butler, Sebastian Michaelis, to help him avenge his family's death in exchange for Ciel's soul. Ciel, dubbed "the Queen's Guard-dog" and Sebastian solve crime cases and do the Queen's dirty work while trying to find his family's murderers.

It's pretty smart and unique and the nature of the demonic contract does a lot to make the show interesting similar to how the nature of the notebook makes Death Note really interesting. It also ties in with Jack The Ripper, the spread of opium through england and ties some historical figures and events into a plot about the war between heaven and hell.


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> Somewhat unrelated but... I watched _Scott Pilgrim vs. the World_ last night (LOVED IT), and, amidst its innumerable references to pop ("nerd") culture, I found a strong resemblance, if only in essence, to _FLCL_, except it's a ton less weird (putting _FLCL_'s strangeness in good perspective ).


I effin' loved this movie! I can see the Fooly Cooliness now  His Rickenbacker bass only adds to it all.


_milk and eggs bitch_


----------



## bouVIP

Sort of anime related...they brough SAO Hollow Fragments for PS Vita to NA which is awesome!!!


----------



## Alberto7

So I did end up going to Otakuthon, but, as expected, I missed everything involving Nobuo Uematsu. It's okay though, I got to spend most of the day talking to random strangers in cosplay and walking around the (humongous and overcrowded) dealers' room.

I got a poster and a very special print from my favorite freelance anime artist at the moment, who happens to be from here and had her booth set up in the artists' area. Her artist name is Sakimi-chan, and some of you _might_ have actually seen some of her work around the interwebz; she's gotten quite popular, especially with some of the super sick gender-benders that she's done (https://www.facebook.com/pages/Sakimi-chan/1409836239257534?fref=ts). I got her Samus poster, and her Mononoke-hime print. The latter is what got me into her work a few years back, and is what I had as my phone's wallpaper for well over a year. It is also my favorite artist interpretation that I have seen of any anime ever, so it is a very special piece for me. I got both pieces signed (Samus one the back and Mononoke on the front), so I am super stoked about having been able to get two Sakimi-chan originals.  She's a total sweetheart, too, and I might just end up getting another print from her tomorrow haha.











And I also got a copy of _Haibane Renmei_. It's the only copy of it that I saw at the whole con, so I'm really happy that I got it. It's also one of my favorite anime, so I consider myself lucky. I was about to spend almost twice as much on _Spice and Wolf_ (both seasons) instead, but I decided that it's a lot harder to find a _Haibane Renmei_ copy.






I also have another purchase tomorrow. It's my biggest purchase for this con, and it's something that I have been wanting to get for some time now. It's totally beautiful. I'll wait until I finally get it to post it though. 

I am super, super glad that I decided to go to this con. I am a con-virgin no more, and it is marvelous. I can't wait for the rest of the weekend!  Hopefully tomorrow I'll spend more time going to panels and screenings. This con is turning out to be a pretty big one this year - a lot bigger than anybody expected - and there is a lot scheduled (and unscheduled) that I am really looking forward to.


----------



## Don Vito

Really dig that artwork.

And that angel looks so much like Lain!


----------



## Alberto7

Haha Yoshitoshi ABe, maing.  He was the artist and character designer of SEL, and _Haibane Renmei_ is his brainchild, in its entirety (art and writing). Same kind of philosophical vein that Lain is on, but actually understandable and super laid back and chilled out. That doesn't mean it isn't dark thoug; it's dark, if only because of how real it feels. Beautiful anime.


----------



## MFB

Not sure what this is from, but it's one of the few times I'll tolerate the 'anime face'


----------



## habicore_5150

MFB said:


> Not sure what this is from, but it's one of the few times I'll tolerate the 'anime face'



Looks like Gintama. I keep hearing about this and I kinda wanna see what it's all about


----------



## bouVIP

Yep Gintama and omg it's probably my favorite comedy/gag manga/animee! Highly recommended because it's ridiculous, but it also has some great serious feels moments.


----------



## Alberto7

Mikasa Ackerman asked me to send her regards to SSO on behalf of the Survey Corps.


----------



## Alberto7

Remember that bike scene from _Zankyou no Terror _that I posted a few posts ago? The song was released in full and... just... what is this music from heaven?!



EDIT: I just finished catching up on _Zankyou no Terror_... hory shitto, battoman! This show is total tits!  It just keeps getting better and better. I can totally see this becoming a classic if it keeps going the way it is.


----------



## Choop

Just finished watching Sword Art Online. Overall I enjoyed it, despite having some annoying characters and plot paths...also the first half of the show was much more engaging than the second. I like the concept; it reminded me somewhat of .Hack a bit, though I like .Hack's concept a little better the actual show was pretty boring IMO.

Not my favorite anime, but definitely decent and interesting enough to finish it.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

bouVIP said:


> Yep Gintama and omg it's probably my favorite comedy/gag manga/animee! Highly recommended because it's ridiculous, but it also has some great serious feels moments.








I haven't laughed so hard in an anime in quite some time since Gintama. And add to the fact that it pokes fun at pretty much every other anime you can think of and not hold back about it. 

Seriously:









That's barely scratching the surface...


----------



## Don Vito

Oh man, I haven't watched hardly any anime recently. Summer is supposed to be the prime time to start watching since it's hotter than satan's asshole where I live. My download for Black Lagoon finally finished a couple weeks ago(the seeding window was tiny as ....). I'm about halfway through that, maybe a little more. It feeds my itch for badassery, and I would probably watch it if it were a live action movie as well. I really got a kick out of the Romanian twin's episodes, which is where I left off. That really pushed some boundaries I haven't seen yet. And because I appreciate a well done dub, I'm thinking about picking of the Blu Ray's for it, just to have.

Other than that, I also need to catch up on _Zankyou no Terror_. The one character that is smiling all the time and being kawaii and shit puts it off for me. Like, that's such an _"anime" _thing to do.

Oh, and I watched the first episode of SAO II and really liked it. Gotta catch up on that. Maybe I'm just out of touch, but I haven't heard as much hype for it as the first 2 initial seasons of SAO. Maybe because it hasn't aired on TV here yet


----------



## habicore_5150

It seems to me that I've kinda been in a mood to check out some more mecha based anime. So far I've only seen the first episodes of IS: Infinite Stratos and M3: Sono Kuroki Hagane (which the latter kinda makes me think just a tiny bit about Knights of Sidonia in a way)

But kinda adding a bit of variety to the mix (and after doing a bit of checking and finding out that I'm going out of order), I decided to check out Re:_Hamatora. I think I might have to start at the very beginning

And apparently I've been told from one of my friends that the Kill la Kill OVA is supposed to be out tomorrow


----------



## Don Vito

Weird, I was going to ask about that Kill la Kill thing in my last post, but forgot to.


----------



## Mordacain

Don Vito said:


> Weird, I was going to ask about that Kill la Kill thing in my last post, but forgot to.



Watched Kill la Kill a few weeks ago and it was pretty awesome. Great, funky art style and just an overall wacky concept.

Over the top in the best sort of way (in that sort of FLCL way)


----------



## Alberto7

Meh, after Otakuthon two weekends ago I can't get myself to watch much of anything. Too much anime at once, I suppose - gotta tone it down for a bit. I did catch up on _Zankyou no Terror_ (though I haven't watched the last episode). Also, ever since I bought my Shiki figure at the con, I've been re-watching the _Kara no Kyoukai_ films. Watching them a second time strengthens my belief that anime could hardly ever get any better than that for me.

Other than that, I haven't been obsessing about it like I usually do.


----------



## Don Vito

Mordacain said:


> Watched Kill la Kill a few weeks ago and it was pretty awesome. Great, funky art style and just an overall wacky concept.
> 
> Over the top in the best sort of way (in that sort of FLCL way)


I might just have to re-watch it. The figures(if you're into that) are being released next month. I was going to pre order Ryuko waaaaayyyy ahead of time, but I thought her under boobs would make for awkward convo piece :/

In the meantime, the dub is in full motion. Ryuko sounds like Naruto, and it's over all a terrible sight.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

Finally watched the second season of ghost in the shell SAC and the original movie afterwards. Great stuff, I can understand why gits gets recommended a lot.

I also watched Sora No Woto (Sora No Wo To?), which I quite liked despite usually not being very fond of brass instruments. I was quite disappointed when it took a turn for more serious, but they actually resolved it beautifully so I can't complain. I'd have liked to see more development in the characters and their relations though, but I guess I can't have everything. Regardless, I'd give it an 8/10. It certainly has that warm soothing mood to it that I much enjoy.

I might just have to watch K-On! next, since I was picking up some references to it in sora no woto.


----------



## Don Vito

I really need to re-watch SAC. It was my first _real_ anime, and I probably haven't watched it in 4 years now. 

I've seen Sora No Wota on some image boards in the past, but I never got around to watching it. I don't know how much it has in common with K-On!, but I should warn you that K-On! doesn't have as much to do with music as it advertises. Most of the time they're drinking tea and doing typical moe stuff. I'll check out SNW though. Trumpets aren't my thing either, but maybe the setting makes it interesting.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

I now see what you mean. Certainly, I think much higher of Sora No Woto than of K-On! now that I've seen 13 episodes of both.


----------



## Don Vito

The second season of K-On! is where it's at IMO. Natsu Fest episode, Death Devil episode, Mugi and Ritsu go on a date episode. The movie is also pretty good.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

Might have simply overdosed on that moe stuff too. I think I'll restrain myself to just one episode per day instead of the whole season


----------



## Alberto7

^ Good luck with that


----------



## Don Vito

I don't even watch moe. I just have a soft spot for K-On! because it cheered me up during a really ....ed part of my life. Other than that, I have a little bit of Lucky Star nostalgia, but haven't watched it in years. 

Some random K-On! gifs from tumblr because the world is a dark and terrible place and I wanna die.


----------



## bouVIP

oh man your post is both moe and sad 


on a different note... There is freaking Light Novel fighting game coming out!!!!!

SAO, Strike the Blood, Black Bullet, Oreimo, Shakugan no Shana, Durarara!!, Accel World, Mahouka, Railgun, and 
Toradora... omg D:


----------



## Don Vito

I didn't expect it to be a_ real_ game backed by SEGA. I guess seeing anime characters in games is more common in Japan, as I remember seeing an Umineko fighting game a couple years back(think it came out in 2012?). It was kind of expensive to import, and I needed a Japanese Xbox to play it. 



Don Vito said:


> I might just have to re-watch it. The figures(if you're into that) are being released next month. I was going to pre order Ryuko waaaaayyyy ahead of time, but I thought her under boobs would make for awkward convo piece :/
> 
> In the meantime, the dub is in full motion. Ryuko sounds like Naruto, and it's over all a terrible sight.


Speaking of Kill la Kill, best picture I've seen all year.


----------



## habicore_5150

^ lol

I know this is something I should have posted in the Gear/Pedals thread, but apparently this is a thing now (and yes, I had to check, they ran out of stock in what I can assume was less than 24 hours)


----------



## bouVIP

I see they're available for pre-order from some UK stores but it's like $260 to the US. Ishibashi also has it, but they won't sell KORG products outside of Japan....god I hope some US dealer gets it.


edit: It's actually listed on the KORG USA site as a new product so possible US release maybe/hopefully. 

http://www.korg.com/us/products/effects/mikustomp/index.php


----------



## Alberto7

habicore_5150 said:


> ^ lol
> 
> I know this is something I should have posted in the Gear/Pedals thread, but apparently this is a thing now (and yes, I had to check, they ran out of stock in what I can assume was less than 24 hours)




OMG I NEED THIS IN MY LIFE and I don't even own an amp...


----------



## habicore_5150

bouVIP said:


> I see they're available for pre-order from some UK stores but it's like $260 to the US. Ishibashi also has it, but they won't sell KORG products outside of Japan....god I hope some US dealer gets it.
> 
> 
> edit: It's actually listed on the KORG USA site as a new product so possible US release maybe/hopefully.
> 
> MIKU STOMP STOMP EFFECT | Effects | KORG



So... any chance of seeing a Vocaloid Multistomp? For anyone who wants Miku, Rin, Luka, and everyone else all in one little floorboard?


----------



## Don Vito

I'd be more interested in a Luka pedal.


----------



## bouVIP

This part "Lyrics for "Senbonzakura" (a Japanese song) are preset. " is all I need


----------



## Alberto7

And then also an app to do custom lyrics. Vocaloid songs on the guitar... my head might explode if I ever get that thing.


----------



## kamello

Alberto7 said:


> Meh, after Otakuthon two weekends ago I can't get myself to watch much of anything. Too much anime at once, I suppose - gotta tone it down for a bit. I did catch up on _Zankyou no Terror_ (though I haven't watched the last episode). Also, ever since I bought my Shiki figure at the con, I've been re-watching the _Kara no Kyoukai_ films. Watching them a second time strengthens my belief that anime could hardly ever get any better than that for me.
> 
> Other than that, I haven't been obsessing about it like I usually do.




daaamn man!, are you/were you feeling good  ? (I ask half-joking half-seriously  ) 



@Vito: regarding K-On, it was _kinda_ similar for me (I wasn't in a bad part of my life, but last year of school, preparing my last gig in my old city with my friends, and you know... that ep where the girls...oh...damn...fvck...feels  )
still, for music related Anime, I enjoyed BECK a lot, even though the engrish songs made me  and cringe many times


on topic: I. Have. To. Sit. And. Finish. Fvcking. Steins;Gate
hell, there is a post I made here like 2 years ago asking if it was good, I got tons of recomendations, and I've been postponing it for ages


----------



## Don Vito

I've never watched Steins;Gate, but Fat Elf sent me this video and now I feel like I need to.


----------



## Alberto7

^ That is likely my favorite part of the entire show.  That scene was the first time I genuinely laughed out loud at an anime, to the point I had to stop watching for a few minutes to finish laughing.



kamello said:


> daaamn man!, are you/were you feeling good  ? (I ask half-joking half-seriously  )
> 
> 
> 
> @Vito: regarding K-On, it was _kinda_ similar for me (I wasn't in a bad part of my life, but last year of school, preparing my last gig in my old city with my friends, and you know... that ep where the girls...oh...damn...fvck...feels  )
> still, for music related Anime, I enjoyed BECK a lot, even though the engrish songs made me  and cringe many times
> 
> 
> on topic: I. Have. To. Sit. And. Finish. Fvcking. Steins;Gate
> hell, there is a post I made here like 2 years ago asking if it was good, I got tons of recomendations, and I've been postponing it for ages



Haha I'm fine, thanks for asking.  It's just that I've been doing a lot of things recently (I've actually been playing guitar consistently the past few days ), and I'm pretty burnt out once I get back home, so I don't really feel like watching anime... except _Kara no Kyoukai_ or _Fate_ related stuff. I seem to always have time for those no matter what.  (Just 27 days till the new _Unlimited Blade Works_ remake! )

I've also been meaning to watch _BECK_ for ages, but I never do. It sounds like I'd love the shit out of it.

Aaaannd, finally, yes. Watch _Steins;Gate_. You owe it to yourself as an anime fan to watch it. I do think it is just slightly overrated, but I understand why. It has a bit of everything for everybody, and it is all done very well. It's a kind of jack of all trades, master of none, except in the case of this show, it is a jack of all trades, and ALMOST master of all. All this, while still keeping its very own, very palpable personality. So yeah, watch it.


----------



## Alberto7

Meh, time to fangirl a little bit. Just today I realized there's less than 4 weeks till the new F/SN remake begins airing, and I am stoked.

Rin preview:


Archer preview:


Shiro preview. For those who don't like him because they think he's annoying. 


Saber preview. :waifu:


I've been pondering what it would take to make a cosplay of Saber's male version - the design that Nasu originally intended for her, as seen in _Fate/Prototype_ - but the thought of taking on such a complicated outfit is extremely daunting for me, considering I have zero skills making cosplays. I'd love to one day make it though, regardless of when.


----------



## kamello

since I have so many friends who cosplay, sometimes I've toyed with the idea of doing it (now that I think about it, all the girls I've been involved with were cosplayers, and I always discovered that after dating... damn, I will never go to a con)
the thing is, Im half arab half latin, so only Ganondorf and Master Yi cosplays for me, I don't like the akwardness of some guys/girls who cosplay asians/StupididlySoftFace characters while having very pronounced latin/arab feautures... that sounds like otakunazism now that I read it  

regarding Beck, I wouldn't say that it is particulary a good anime. The ending as I remember correctly was a letdown, actually, I barely remember it , but being a guitarist it's a fun watch cause it tend to hit familiar places, also, there are references to famous rockstars which are so lulzworthy (yes, Yngwie is there!  ) 

warning: will make you want to give a few shots to a Les Paul just to increase it's Mojo points by 40%


OT: it makes me so happy to read that you are taking the guitar again , I remember your thread saying that you were thinking about quitting


----------



## Don Vito

tfw when too ugly to crossdress


----------



## Alberto7

I am losing my shit watching animeweedlord420. The tears running down my cheek are real.


----------



## Alberto7

I just finished the seven core Kara no Kyoukai movies plus the recap film between 6 and 7 for the second time. It's funny how they managed to make something so twisted into something that beautiful.

Seriously, if you guys ever feel like watching something a little different, I cannot recommend this enough. There are very few shows I feel comfortable saying they're in my top 5, but this one has a spot reserved.

Be warned though, no happy moe stuff in this one. Imagine Fate/Zero, but even more twisted and depressing.


----------



## soliloquy

i just started and finished and LOVED attack on titan! i wasn't expecting it to be that good!


----------



## Don Vito

I got halfway through Titans, and have been meaning to finish it. I was going to keep up with it on TV(they're showing the dubbed episodes as they're released here in the US), since I (accidentally) downloaded the first 13 episodes in English, and found out afterwards that the rest of the dub hasn't been fully released. I failed, because I can never remember if it comes on at 10:00 or 10:30, and the channel I watch it on gets really glitchy on my digital cable, which is weird since it's the only channel that does this, and usually only when I'm wanting to watch the anime block. Like it's telling me not to watch the dub. This also gets in the way of Space Dandy, which I've missed 2 weeks in a row now(not the TV's fault actually, I was away on vacation)


----------



## soliloquy

i watched it on netflix and they only had it in japanese. i'm not too bothered with subtitles, but it irritates me at times when there is SO much they are saying and so much thats going on screen that you're missing things...good thing i have rewind though


----------



## Don Vito

Oh and I forgot to mention... he main site I DL my stuff from has been down for like a week now. Either I need to find a new source, or these few Lain episodes I haven't finished will have to tie me over.


----------



## wat

Just started watching Noragami. It's a pretty neat portrayal of the idea of supernatural beings everywhere that go unnoticed while feeding on the emotional energy of the living and affecting their emotional state.

Main character reminds me of Vash the Stampede a lot which is nice.


----------



## glassmoon0fo

Hi all, I'm not a major consumer of anime lately but just stopped by to say that Psycho Pass and Knights of Sedonia are the SHIT. Currently rewatching Hunter x Hunter for nostalgia, turns out I never finished it so here's hoping it doesn't suck later in the series. 

Also, if you havn't seen Requiem for a Phantom, that's a damn good one.


----------



## bouVIP

glassmoon0fo said:


> Hi all, I'm not a major consumer of anime lately but just stopped by to say that Psycho Pass and Knights of Sedonia are the SHIT. Currently rewatching Hunter x Hunter for nostalgia, turns out I never finished it so here's hoping it doesn't suck later in the series.
> 
> Also, if you havn't seen Requiem for a Phantom, that's a damn good one.



Are you watching old HxH or 2011 one? Cause the new 1 is ending soon


----------



## HurrDurr

Hey folks, I've been away from this thread for a while and sorry if I'm interrupting an on-going conversation, but what are some good mecha anime in the vein of Gundam? Gundam's always been my thing but lately I'm just curious as to what else is out there while I await the Gundam Origin series to be released. Thanks!


----------



## bouVIP

You should take a look at Valvrave (Gundam with teen angst), Suisei no Gargantia, Aldnoah Zero, and Code Geass. They might not exactly be similar to Gundam, but they are pretty good mech series.


----------



## HurrDurr

Awesome, will do. Thanks!


----------



## glassmoon0fo

bouVIP said:


> Are you watching old HxH or 2011 one? Cause the new 1 is ending soon


 
I don't really know, I watched in college and the Greed Island arch hadn't even dropped yet, so I'm assuming it's the first series. Glad to know it's still running, it was one of my favorites back in the gap


----------



## Alberto7

I second Knights of Sidonia and Aldnoah.Zero as cool mechs (even though the latter I've only watched the first 6 episodes of). I started watching the Psycho-Pass re-release, but haven't watched past the first episode. The premise is really cool, the first episode was really cool, and with the story writer being Gen Urobuchi, it is bound for nothing but greatness.

In other news, this sums up my thoughts on Rail Wars (which I only watched the first two episodes of):

AHMAHGAHD GET DA BUGZPREY
NSFW: it is loud and vulgar.


Oh, and for the Persona fans, here's a cool little thing Nintendo is releasing, although I'm not sure how interesting the new Persona Q game for the 3DS will be for long-time fans of the franchise:


----------



## Don Vito

I totally forgot about Persona Q. I was excited for it earlier this year, as I thought about picking up the Zelda XL, but I don't have the money to blow on gaming stuff anymore.

*clicks under $5 on Steam store*


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

HurrDurr said:


> Hey folks, I've been away from this thread for a while and sorry if I'm interrupting an on-going conversation, but what are some good mecha anime in the vein of Gundam? Gundam's always been my thing but lately I'm just curious as to what else is out there while I await the Gundam Origin series to be released. Thanks!


 
Assuming you haven't seen any of the following:

As stated, There's Knights Of Sidonia, which carries the Gundam theme of war and it's consequences. Gundam veterans will be very comfortable here... speaking which, I really should take my own advice and watch this. 

Code Geass is also very similar, as it's politically driven and it has it's own Char Aznable like figure. Great anime overall. 

Another Gundam-like series is Zone Of The Enders. It serves as a prequel to the games, and dabbles with the Neon Genesis/RahXephon style mysticism... but only a tiny bit. 

If you want something more space opera vein, you can check out the Macross seres. It's one big universe so start at the beginning to get the full enjoyment of it, but it's not necessary. Plus the whole series is rich in lore. 

For something a bit more light hearted, Gurren-Lagann is another solid choice. At times it pokes fun on the genre, but it's enjoyable through and through. 

The Patlabor series is an odd choice but still highly recommended. It's slower paced over the rest, and very low key generally speaking. 

I'm not gonna recommend Evangelion as everyone and their dog has already seen it.  I will recommend RahXephon as I once wrote it off as a verbatim Eva clone, but it turns out to be much more than that.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

Bloody_Inferno said:


> I'm not gonna recommend Evangelion as everyone and their dog has already seen it.



Have not, and it's not because I don't have a dog. Might as well watch it next though, the art seems fine.


----------



## Don Vito

I've never watched Evangelion either. I guess there's so much hype surrounding it, that I'm afraid it won't live to any expectations. Kind of like Madoka, an anime I highly enjoyed, but was skeptical about due to the over hype, and also the fact that I watched the first 2 episodes when it was airing, and thought "meh generic moe action PASS".


----------



## Kullerbytta

I, too, have never watched Evangelion and I've had dogs since I was little  
No idea as to why I've not seen it yet, everybody's all crazy about it. 

Maybe it's because I've been reluctant to watch animes from the start and the only reason I did watch the ones I did was because my friends were going ape-shit about the ones they've seen  

I don't dislike anime or manga at all, it's just that if no one is practically forcing me to watch one I don't bother looking up any by myself. 

The ones I've seen I've really enjoyed, though they're mostly all the mainstream ones.

Death Note
Code Geass
Hellsing (series and OVA's) 
Bleach (I actually stopped watching it and started reading the manga during Hueco Mundo-arc)
FMA and started watching Brotherhood (again, friends were going ape-shit about it) 
FLCL - Favorite so far. Delightful experience, I love The Pillows and just about the right running time and number of episodes for me
Gantz - Don't remember much. Apart from many lulz and many wut's. Liked it though.
Elfend Lied - This was the one that din't hold up to all the praise _everyone_ gave it. The whole idea is exactly my cup o' tea... But I just din't care :/


----------



## Don Vito

I tried re-watching Elfen Lied earlier this year, as I planned to show it in the group stream we had just for lulz. I couldn't make it past the first episode. I never finished it initially because I hated it so much by the mid point, and age certainly didn't help. It's so bad.


----------



## habicore_5150

Don Vito said:


> I tried re-watching Elfen Lied earlier this year, as I planned to show it in the group stream we had just for lulz. I couldn't make it past the first episode. I never finished it initially because I hated it so much by the mid point, and age certainly didn't help. It's so bad.



Speaking of which, aren't we due for another stream at some point?


----------



## Don Vito

The first stream was fun, but a technical pain in the arse on my end. I'm reluctant, but I guess we could try again.




Voting begins now. I nominate Hitler for the Ice Bucket challenge, and I think we should watch Evangelion, because their are 4 confirmed people in the thread that haven't seen it(me, 2 guys up there ^, and Fat Elf).

edit: oh, but of course there are ....ing time conflictions when it comes to getting Eurobros in the stream.. everyone from the last stream was from the Americas iirc


----------



## wat

glassmoon0fo said:


> Hi all, I'm not a major consumer of anime lately but just stopped by to say that Psycho Pass and Knights of Sedonia are the SHIT.



Yes. Yes they are.

Psycho-Pass might be my favorite Anime


----------



## HurrDurr

Knights of Sidonia I've seen what's out so far _(S1 on Netflix)_ and absolutely loved it. Yes, _very_ comfortable to watch as a veteran Gundam fan. I dabbled a bit in Code Geass way back as a wee lad, but don't remember much of it, so definitely should be getting around to watching a few episodes of that again soon. Zone of the Enders has always intrigued me, yet I've never given myself the time to sit down and play any of the games or watch any episodes of the show. I've seen a remastered box set of all the games out on PS3 before, so I might make a grab for that as an excuse to drag myself away from Destiny on my PS4 and wipe the dust off the older machine. I'm not entirely sure, but is it Code Geass that has some sort of ties to the Gundam franchise? I heard something about a write/creator/designer for Gundam as part of the dev team for a mech anime and I think it was CG, which would probably explain my original interested in it way back then. I don't know, it may have been about another show but my memory serves it was CG.


----------



## MFB

Add another one to the "never seen Evangelion" list, I have however seen _this_ which I imagine is as close as I'll come for some time


----------



## bouVIP

I too have never seen Evangelion, but I do love Cruel Angel Thesis


----------



## Alberto7

Well, then we definitely need to set up an Eva stream. I've seen Evangelion about twenty seven thousand nine hundred and thirty eight times by now, but I'm always down to watch it again.


----------



## wat

I've also been dying to watch NGE. What's this Eva stream?


----------



## Don Vito

wat said:


> I've also been dying to watch NGE. What's this Eva stream?


Earlier this year, we got together and streamed Persona 3 and Space Dandy on Twitch. It was a bit frustrating for me, due to a brief software malfunction, and the fact that I had to run another computer just to use the chat(as my main computer was playing the movie full screen). And when you use the chat on a separate device, you're also using the stream and more bandwidth. I think this is what caused the streaming program to screw up.

I've done some research to see what the l33t anime savvy image boards use for their streams, and let me tell you, the technology has not surpassed what we currently have


----------



## Skyblue

Question, guys- NGE Movies. 

Yes? No? Which? In what order?


----------



## Alberto7

Which NGE movies? The old ones or the Rebuild series? If you haven't (sorry, my memory fails me), watch the original series first. Then watch The End of Evangelion film (a retelling of the las two episodes of the series). Skip over the Death and Rebirth film as it is absolutely useless (being just a short and ineffective recap of the series and then the first few minutes of The End of Eva).

Once you're done with that, watch the Rebuild of Evangelion films (of which, so far, we only have 3 out of 4 movies). They're basically a retelling of the original story. The first two movies don't deviate much from the original series, but have absolutely BRILLIANT animation and are a lot more to the point, instead of wasting time meandering through the character's messed up psyches. The third is 100% new material, and is totally weird and incomprehensible in true Eva fashion. Also, lots of fanservice for Kaworu + Shinji fangirls.

The reason I say that you watch the original series first is because the Rebuild series' quality is so much higher that you will likely be put off by the original show's animation. The original show is still my favorite in terms of story and development though. Yes, it is confusing, and yes, it is weird and depressing, and no, it's not very understandable upon first (or second, third, fourth, n-th) watch, but that is, to me, what Evangelion is all about.


----------



## MetalGravy

habicore_5150 said:


> ^ lol
> 
> I know this is something I should have posted in the Gear/Pedals thread, but apparently this is a thing now (and yes, I had to check, they ran out of stock in what I can assume was less than 24 hours)





You could make some really  sounds with that and a whammy pedal.


----------



## kamello

Don Vito said:


> The first stream was fun, but a technical pain in the arse on my end. I'm reluctant, but I guess we could try again.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Voting begins now. I nominate Hitler for the Ice Bucket challenge, and I think we should watch Evangelion, because their are 4 confirmed people in the thread that haven't seen it(me, 2 guys up there ^, and Fat Elf).
> 
> edit: oh, but of course there are ....ing time conflictions when it comes to getting Eurobros in the stream.. everyone from the last stream was from the Americas iirc



YES YESYESYESYEYSYESYESY IVE NEVAH WATCHED EVA


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> The reason I say that you watch the original series first is because the Rebuild series' quality is so much higher that you will likely be put off by the original show's animation.


This sentence confuses me greatly.


----------



## Anchang-Style

Found the K-On Movie on Blu Ray at my public library (yeah my public library got like 500 Movies on BD and 2000 on DVD...it rocks)...yeah not a K-On fan but still gonna give it a shot just for shit and giggles.


----------



## Alberto7

Don Vito said:


> This sentence confuses me greatly.





- (1995-1996) Neon Genesis Evangelion animation + art quality = amazing for the time, meh by today's standards.
- (2007-present) Rebuild of Evangelion's animation + art quality = holy shitballs gouge my eyeballs out no need to see anything else ever.

If you watch Rebuild first and then go back and watch the 1995 original series, you'll be all "why does this shit look so bad" and that might stop some from enjoying the series to the fullest. It happened to one of my roommates, who didn't like the original series after having watched Rebuild. Also, original Eva has synchronized-dance murder and low-budget, acid-induced doodles; Rebuild doesn't. You wouldn't want to not enjoy that.

I tried looking for reference material to support my point, but it seems Bandai has gone all stupid recently and have decided to ban a bunch of previously available videos with which I could have compared the two.


----------



## habicore_5150

MetalGravy said:


> You could make some really  sounds with that and a whammy pedal.



Honestly, I kinda wanna get this just so I'd have something to experiment with. Really surprised that nobody on my Facebook went after me after I said "Forget the Axe-FX, I want this instead!"

But on a side note, after taking an unexpected trip to the mall a few days ago, I came home with a Death the Kid rubber wristband and a Sword Art Online throw blanket, which is REALLY comfy


----------



## wat

l just saw _Ghost In The Shell: Arise_ on Netflix- any good?

I haven't seen the original.


----------



## sakeido

Rebuild of Eva 2.0 was so goddamn good it blew my mind. The whole part at the end, when all that stuff goes down... I'd been waiting for that for like 15 years. Then that surprise post-credit twist ending? God damn! 



Spoiler



Like, Shinji finally manning up, being so awesome he generates a new arm using an AT field, shot a ....in eye beam with a cross explosion and epic music playing and all that! Third (or is it fourth?) Impact? OMGOMGOMGOMG so ....in cool! Then he gets skewered by the Lance of Longinus, and Kaworu drops down from the ....in Moon!?!?!?!?!



Then I heard 3.0 was definitely insane and debatably horrible, and I still haven't worked up the heart to watch it.


----------



## Alberto7

^ 2.0 was brilliant and refreshing. I still miss the f*ckedness of the original show, but the first two films (especially 2.0) of Rebuild are A LOT more palatable and easy to digest.

3.0 worked in true, tried and tested (and still with mixed results) Evangelion fashion. It was great, but it... well... you just have no idea what the hell is going on for 3/4 of the movie, and there are A LOT of questions left up in the air, which everyone hopes will be covered in 4.0 (apparently now officially called 3+1 >_>). Also, there are a lot of changes and new things that gave mixed feelings to someone who's been a fan of the show for the last 16 years, like the


Spoiler



new, kinda silly form of Unit 02 and that goddamn flying ship... although Unit 13 is one of the most ungodly badass things that I have ever seen.


 I wouldn't say it was horrible, but it was very different and very polarizing.

I really should get around to re-watching that film.


----------



## Alberto7

Started watching Barakamon. SO ADORABLE. It's also absolutely hysterical and full of personality so far. It should be very relatable for a lot of us, too, given that it's about a professional calligrapher who constantly puts in doubt his own skills and struggles to find inspiration to continue his art. Very laid back and chilled out slice of life. I'm barely on episode 4, and I can already sense the emptiness I'll feel once it finishes airing.


----------



## sakeido

Alright I watched Evangelion 3.33 last night and... sorry man, but IMO it was horrible. Zero out of Five stars. An absolutely massive letdown after 2.22. All of the insane plot decisions _could have_ worked, but the movie failed at even the most basic storytelling. 

It is an Idiot Plot, there were more lines of technobabble than there were actual lines in the script, the composition of the action scenes was terrible especially compared to the great stuff in 2.22. In the opening fight I really couldn't tell what was happening. The way the whole climax played out was just "whaaaaaaaaat" and I think most of the story was exposited by Kaworu in one paragraph about 2/3rds of the way through the movie. The movie didn't even look that great - again, I thought it was a huge step down from 2.22. Where did all that time and money go? Did they throw out a complete movie just to go with what we ended up with? 

There was no beginning (left all of that out - 14 year time skip), no ending, and a confusing, muddled middle. It was really, really, really Bad. I really want that hour and a half of my life back 


...I'll probably still watch the final movie


----------



## bouVIP

I only watched 1 episode of Barakamon before stopping cause I prematurely thought it was meh, but after seeing so many funny gifs I'm going to start it again.


----------



## Choop

Choop said:


> Just finished watching Sword Art Online. Overall I enjoyed it, despite having some annoying characters and plot paths...also the first half of the show was much more engaging than the second. I like the concept; it reminded me somewhat of .Hack a bit, though I like .Hack's concept a little better the actual show was pretty boring IMO.
> 
> Not my favorite anime, but definitely decent and interesting enough to finish it.



QUOTIN' MAHSELF. I started rewatching this recently since it appears I had actually missed a couple episodes, and at the time of watching it the first time I definitely had issues with it but overall I thought it was decent. I dunno if it was just because it was new to me or because I was with my girlfriend watching it at the time and we could joke around about stuff within the show, but this time around I found I maybe kind of hated it. -.- Not to slam it hard but ultimately I think the show had a lot of potential and just squandered it all at pretty much every opportunity. Sorry, I don't want this to come off as a nerd-rant. It just didn't sit well that I had praised it (half-praised, really) and had a change of heart about it. I AM glad I watched it at least, to see what all the hype was about when it was more new.

On another note, I watched the first season of Knights of Sidonia on Netflix, and then liked it a lot so I read up to current on the manga. There is some awesome sci-fi conceptual world-building stuff in there, fo' real. I feel like it drags sometimes though, but so far it's still neat anyways.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Sounds like me on the SAO front, except I admittedly enjoyed the anime because I found it very entertaining. I'm also really pumped for Knights of Sidonia's second season!  Anybody know if it will be directly released through Netflix or if it'll be broadcast elsewhere?

As for Eva 3.0... I'd need to re-watch it. I know I had _very_ mixed feelings about it once I finished it, but it kinda grew on me after a while, for reasons that are perhaps not even valid. Maybe I just want to give it another chance. I do think it worked in a very Eva way though, in the sense that it felt exactly as though Hideaki Anno decided to turn around, sit down, and shit all over his fans' hopes and expectations while still receiving praise for it, which is something that he has proven to be VERY good at ever since the original series came out.

The film did provide us with this though, which I think is one of the most beautiful tracks I've heard in anime. Such a lovely, lovely voice, and such a lovely and dramatic tune:
Sakura Nagashi of Utada Hikaru in video on Jukebox
(No YouTube link, sorry)


----------



## wat

^^I agree with the above about _SOA_. Overall I enjoyed it but..

And yeah, _Knights of Sidonia_ is . First manga I've read too.

I just started watching _DeadMan Wonderland_ on netflix & it's pretty sweet. It's about a prison where they film gameshows & reality TV with the prisoners for funding. A demon(or something) kills everyone in the MC's school classroom causing him to be convicted for the murder and sent to the prison where as he struggles to adapt to life there, he finds himself wrapped up in a sprawling conspiracy. The show gets shockingly twisted and morbid at times 


I would recommend anyone and everyone to watch _Psycho-Pass_.  Futuristic dystopian police show where everyone has a sensor that measures their mental state. If your "crime coefficient" gets too high you're considered a "latent criminal", & you're arrested and forced into therapy, jailed, or even killed on the spot if it's too high. The police inspectors employ latent criminals with an aptitude for policework to do the dirty work for them so that their own psycho-passes don't get messed up from the violence. The main character is a 19-year-old girl who just started as a police inspector.

It's so well done in every aspect that it's insane. The setting, plot, characters, animation, etc. are all just ace. Just an awesome, awesome show.

And I really like this song from the show


----------



## MFB

SAO is definitely a one-watch kind of show. I tried watching it a second time through and was just fvcking BORED by episode 8, which is a shame, but I still love it as a series.


----------



## Alberto7

Zankyou no Terror is getting crazier by the minute. Just finished episode 10, and it was absolutely fantastic. This series, so far, is exactly what I expected from the names attached to it. Just one more episode to go; I am very, very curious to see how they'll wrap this one up! At the same time, I almost don't want to watch the last episode for fear that I won't have any more of it to watch. Definitely, hands down, anime of the season - and, so far, anime of the year - for me (though I still have to finish Barakamon. Very different anime from ZnT, but it is speaking to me on a very personal level). Let's see, then, what the fall season has in store for us.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Took me long enough, but I finally saw Attack On Titan (over the course of 2 days ). 

Yeah it's good overall and I finally understand what all the hype is about, but I don't really consider it a anime true game changer that so many people say it is. When some of the first few episodes are brilliant (fast paced and doesn't even give me time to breathe) it gets a little cliche-by-anime-standards towards the middle up until the end. 

Still I enjoyed the whole ride and eagerly awaiting both Season 2 and the live action.


----------



## bouVIP

AoT gets even more cliche as it goes on sadly 


Anyways I finished Aldnoah Zero finally...and I hate it...SOOO MUCH. The anime is good and all, but I just hate how it ended~ I do not approve >_<


----------



## bouVIP

edit: accidental double post


----------



## Don Vito

I'm not watching any anime, but I was on Amazon ordering something this morning, and a plastic statue for the Haruhi character Tsuruya(my first waifu ever btw) popped up in my front page, and I got to thinking about that show. I came across this, which bummed me out, but didn't surprise me, as I was never holding my breath for it, even back in the day. The reasoning behind a lack of Haruhi S3 | Ultimatemegax's blog

I would actually like to catch up on the manga at some point. The last entry I read was no. 10, and it was pretty good, but ended on somewhat of a cliff hanger. (well not really a cliff hanger, but a dramatic ending for the series). To my surprise, they are already up to 20, so I have quite a bit of catching up to do! I'd prefer to have the real book over reading it on mangafox or something, but something tells me they haven't translated all of them yet lol.

I'm so buying that statue too.

And I'm going to make it a personal mission to catch up on Zankyou no Terror today, Alberto. Even if I hated one of the characters.


----------



## ferret

Slowly watching Psycho Pass right now.

Sword Art Online was pretty good but not amazing to me.

Knights of Sidonia resulted in a full marathon watch session, followed by a full marathon read session. Desperately seeking next chapter.

Tried to watch Attack on Titan the other week, but I've been reading it for months and something didn't seem to click with me. Maybe need another episode or two to get out of the early introduction to everything.


----------



## ferret

Weird double post due to forum blip.


----------



## habicore_5150

For anyone interested in AoT: Attack on Titan Creator Isayama: Manga to End in About 3 Years - News - Anime News Network

Even though I've only caught a small glimpse of it, I've had another friend of mine recommend that I check out Deadmans Wonderland. From what I've heard, it's supposed to be pretty bloody. No idea how it compares to X in terms of overall goriness


----------



## Ikiharmaa

I finished NGE (including end of evangelion) a few hours ago, and I do admit it was quite a ride. My problem with it is kinda similar to my problem with SELain, it wasn't very entertaining for me, apart from the plugsuits, those are some great design. I also liked how the plot revealed itself. But it was a rather heavy watch tbh. While I wanted to enjoy the philosophical and psychological aspects to it I just couldn't because of the way a lot of them were presented. I do appreciate the effort though, it's far better than being yet another piece of mindless entertainment.


----------



## Don Vito

Just watched episode 1 of Sailor Moon Crystal, and my head's gonna explode from the 90's cheese. I don't actually remember this show to well, but if this is supposed to be a remake, it sure doesn't look or feel like it. I caught one more episode of ZnT, but my marathon will have to be postponed due to computer trouble. It's really sucking me in though. I honestly wish I could just stream the next few episodes up until the latest ones, just to catch up quicker. 



Ikiharmaa said:


> My problem with it is kinda similar to my problem with SELain, it wasn't very entertaining for me


Still haven't finished Lain. Love it, but yeah, no entertainment value. I think I'm a little over halfway through it. Who knows when I'll finish it. In the mean time, I'll jam this yo.


^ the good kind of 90's cheese


----------



## Alberto7

^ Intro sounds like a didgeridoo through an amp with really shitty and gritty distortion.  Cool tune though. Zoned me the f*ck out.

As far the original NGE goes... yeah. I've been watching the show since I'm about 8 years old, so I have no idea how it'll appeal to new viewers. The way I imagine it, it has a lot of entertainment to offer, but the entertaining bits are very intertwined with what might come across as unintelligible pseudo-philosophical gibberish, making having to wait for the next good bit very tiring. Not a lot of cool on that front for someone not used to it. These days, NGE relies a lot on its nostalgia factor, given how big of a thing it was back when it first came out. This is just me speculating, but the Rebuild series might just be a way to expand the Eva fanbase and keep the franchise going, given that an older fanbase will inevitably grow disinterested over time and become a less reliable audience.

Unlike Lain, however, which does have a palpable point and a message behind it all and has a more or less complete plot (with very unorthodox storytelling for sure, but, again, it does not really focus on entertainment per se), Neon Genesis Evangelion is riddled with actual plot holes. These holes are small enough, though, that with a bit of a stretch of the imagination it is not overly hard to gap them, thus all the countless theories about what's actually going on with the show. It is precisely there where I think that the allure of the show lies to a good deal of longtime fans.

I am fairly convinced that the world that Hideaki Anno initially is both a product of his brilliance, a poorly-managed budget that led to incomplete storytelling, and perhaps even a widely misinterpreted message, with people focusing way too much on the face value of the universe he presented rather than on the philosophical message and the deconstruction of the anime itself.

I don't know why I've been so inspired to attempt to break down Evangelion so much on this thread recently.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

Alberto7 said:


> The way I imagine it, it has a lot of entertainment to offer, but the entertaining bits are very intertwined with what might come across as unintelligible pseudo-philosophical gibberish, making having to wait for the next good bit very tiring. Not a lot of cool on that front for someone not used to it.



idk, I enjoyed the pseudo-philosophical stuff as long as it wasn't just the character raging/being depressive for the whole episode. I liked the questions the show asked, but I don't like the way it asked them. The good bits for me were the grand plot slowly revealing itself and the characters interacting with each other, and the plugsuits. The characters themselves... I think their depiction focused too much on their faults making some of them a bit flat even.

In the end I guess it boils down to how the show resonates with the viewer, and probably I just didn't connect with it like you've done. Also, analyzing things like what makes one like certain things is fascinating every now and then.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Agreed. I lean very strongly on nostalgia when it comes to my reasons for liking the show. In reality, I don't necessarily connect with Eva all that much. I honestly can't relate to such outrageously broken characters (not even during the darkest phases of my life), and I've never really interpreted the show's message like some people assert Hideaki Anno wanted it to be interpreted (more on that at this link), but I do find all of its intellectual mumbo-jumbo and its over-the-top references very interesting, regardless. That and what's not to like about giant robot-beasts tearing at each other?

It's honestly hard explaining why one likes a show. Especially one as complicated and controversial as Evangelion. But I agree with you that finding out why one likes these things is really cool.


----------



## wat

habicore_5150 said:


> Even though I've only caught a small glimpse of it, I've had another friend of mine recommend that I check out Deadmans Wonderland. From what I've heard, it's supposed to be pretty bloody. No idea how it compares to X in terms of overall goriness




It's pretty cool! 

It gets pretty violent but the most morbid aspect is actually the dialogue, especially around/after the middle of the show. Some seriously morbid shit is said on that show


----------



## Choop

Just marathon-watched Attack on Titan on netflix, and thought it would be relevant to say so since there are posts recently about it!  Overall I liked it, though it definitely dragged with filler every now and then. It got really interesting with the last 7 or so episodes but now it's over for a good while. :C

One thing I think is odd about AoT is the animation seems to vary a lot between absolutely amazing, and then just kinda meh, or like certain animations didn't seem to be consistent with the rest of the show. 

I think I'm ready to go back and watch something a little older, maybe finish up the other Gundam stuff that I haven't seen yet.


----------



## ferret

Choop said:


> One thing I think is odd about AoT is the animation seems to vary a lot between absolutely amazing, and then just kinda meh, or like certain animations didn't seem to be consistent with the rest of the show.



I think this is one of my issues with the anime. The manga has a very.... I don't have a good word for it. The style is...awkward? It grew on me after a time, and now I'm accustomed to it. Then the anime has a lot of more traditional stylings to it, with occasional throw backs to the manga style, and it bothers me how it jumps about.

I don't know....


----------



## Alberto7

Hah, it's funny. I thought the anime had fantastic art and animation; they definitely had someone who knew what they were doing when it came to budget allocation (and it was, by no means, a small budget). In contrast, one of the reasons I haven't bothered with the manga (other than I'm not much of a manga reader to begin with) was that I found the art to be inferior to the anime. I know I could get over it if I began reading the manga, but I haven't been willing to put in the effort.


----------



## Alberto7

bouVIP said:


> I finished Aldnoah Zero finally...and I hate it...SOOO MUCH. The anime is good and all, but I just hate how it ended~ I do not approve >_<



A.Z is getting the Fate/Zero treatment. The initial plan was to release 12 episodes, then wait out a season, and then do another 12 episodes. So, technically, no ending thus far.  You can go back to liking it. Please? I need some reassurance that it got better after episode 6, because I began to lose faith in that show early on.  I need to get back to it. I dropped it at episode 6 (the one with the fist mecha).



Don Vito said:


> I'm not watching any anime, but I was on Amazon ordering something this morning, and a plastic statue for the Haruhi character Tsuruya(my first waifu ever btw) popped up in my front page, and I got to thinking about that show. I came across this, which bummed me out, but didn't surprise me, as I was never holding my breath for it, even back in the day. The reasoning behind a lack of Haruhi S3 | Ultimatemegax's blog
> 
> I would actually like to catch up on the manga at some point. The last entry I read was no. 10, and it was pretty good, but ended on somewhat of a cliff hanger. (well not really a cliff hanger, but a dramatic ending for the series). To my surprise, they are already up to 20, so I have quite a bit of catching up to do! I'd prefer to have the real book over reading it on mangafox or something, but something tells me they haven't translated all of them yet lol.
> 
> I'm so buying that statue too.
> 
> And I'm going to make it a personal mission to catch up on Zankyou no Terror today, Alberto. Even if I hated one of the characters.



Hah do catch up with it. I've noticed that most characters fit typical and cheesy anime stereotypes, but they are played out SO well. In that regard, it's like a fine piece of Emmental cheese, if you know what I mean. There is only one character, whom I really like anyway, but whose purpose I still find a little... not the finest of cheeses. Regardless, the plot is fantastically played out, and the animation is beaauuuttiful.

Regarding anime accessories and paraphernalia... I want to see that Tsuruya statue once you get it! That's not something I've come across, I don't think. Just a couple of days ago I caved and bought something really cool to give my Shiki figure some much deserved company.  I'll post pictures once I get it.


----------



## bouVIP

Alberto7 said:


> A.Z is getting the Fate/Zero treatment. The initial plan was to release 12 episodes, then wait out a season, and then do another 12 episodes. So, technically, no ending thus far.  You can go back to liking it. Please? I need some reassurance that it got better after episode 6, because I began to lose faith in that show early on.  I need to get back to it. I dropped it at episode 6 (the one with the fist mecha).



I actually stopped on episode 6 awhile back and just finished the last 6 yesterday. I love it haha and yeah I know there's a season 2 but it still doesn't make me feel better...you'll just have to watch it to know why


----------



## Don Vito

I've also finished AoT recently. Nice ending I thought, but god damn, it's going to be a while before any new material surfaces. I know a little bit of the manga as well, and where they're at in the story. This series already has so much legacy, but still so much to go on. I've also spent enough time away from watching the English dub to where I'm not taken back by the Japanese voices, which is one reason I was finally able to get through it this time around. 

Speaking of figures and statues, I thought they did a good job with the AoT figures, and I'm not normally a fan of anything with ball joints. The design of the boots actually conceal the knee joint, which is quite a nice touch. Might have to get one at some point.


----------



## Alberto7

^I was actually eyeing the Ryuko figma when I took the plunge on another one a few days ago, even though I haven't even watched Kill la Kill yet.  I like figmas for that specific reason: they almost look like statues, rather than poseable figures. The one I bought has quite a broad range of motion, but the only joints you can barely see are at the elbows. I have a friend who has the Mikasa Ackerman figma, and it looks absolutely fantastic (she also got the figma's base signed by Yui Ishikawa ). They're all sculpted very, very nicely. That, and they are a lot cheaper than most of the other statues out there.

I've also just been informed that the release date of the figma I pre-ordered has been postponed from September to late November T_____T... it was so close... I also really wanted it for this upcoming anime season, because of reasons...


----------



## Don Vito

There's too much butt cheek and under boob for me to proudly display.






^ That doesn't even look comfortable! edit: whoops not a figma, but the same basic idea


----------



## glassmoon0fo

just started Deadman Wonderland last night, looks pretty promising. The japs come up with some twisted shit man


----------



## ferret

Deadman Wonderland was fantastic. And you get to finish it!  When I was reading it, it went on hiatus due the mangaka's pregnancy for year.


----------



## wat

^In the middle of watching Deadman Wonderland a second time. Lots of good stuff I'm picking up on that I didn't catch the first time. 


I watched the 1st few episodes of _Welcome to the N.H.K. last night._ Love it.  My first anime that isn't fantasy/sci-fi either. Would this be considered "slice of life"?


----------



## Alberto7

Welcome to the NHK does have a lot of slice of life elements, but it is a lot more than that. As absolutely hilarious and relatable as it can be, it is also extremely depressing very often, delving deep into the characters' psyche. The show's climax is... well, I'd rather you see it for yourself, but it is intense. It's actually one of the few parts from the anime that I still remember. Beautiful, beautiful show. I really should watch that one again, because it spoke to me very personally, and I can't remember much of it.


----------



## mrdm53

anyone watched Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun? best comedy of this season, even better than Barakamon


----------



## bouVIP

mrdm53 said:


> anyone watched Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun? best comedy of this season, even better than Barakamon



OMG YES!!! I LOVED IT!!! It is by far my favorite anime from this season. So many funny moments.

Seo is my fav char haha


----------



## Alberto7

I just watched the very last episode of Zankyou no Terror...






... I don't even know, man. I don't even know...


----------



## kamello

^ gotta get on that one, a friend talked to me about it during the whole class yesterday


----------



## Alberto7

^ Yeah, it's honestly the best anime I've watched this year (that was released this year, that is). I just wrote a small review of sorts over at ANN addressing some of the criticism it has received. I am currently feverishly defending it against the arguments I'm being thrown  (people there are friggin' harsh towards newer shows... ). The anime did have its flaws here and there, but what it did well, it did brilliantly enough to overshadow its shortcomings.


----------



## wat

I have a question about Netflix subtitles and closed-caption. 

On some anime shows, under "subtitles" I have a choice between "English" and "English [CC]". 

"English" is just yellow subtitles. 
"English CC is white subtitles with Closed Captioning so it also describes sounds like [loud crash], [eerie chanting], etc.

Thing is, sometimes the actual dialogue is really different between the two. Here's an example from Deadman wonderland. 

*"English" setting:*


> *Ganta: *If I become stronger, I won't have to be this miserable!
> I want to be strong enough to beat down my weak self!
> 
> *Senji:* You got the right answer...but you're letting out too much fluid.
> Are you prepared? Always being "correct" is the muddy road that lies closest to hell.



*"English [CC]" setting:*


> *Ganta:* ...Strong enough to not feel this f_u_cking miserable all the time!
> I just want to be strong enough...to kill the Ganta I used to be.
> 
> *Senji:* Heh...not that I don't dig your reasons...but I coulda done without the waterworks.
> Are you sure about this? 'Cause once the old you's dead and gone...then you gotta own up to whatever takes it's place.



What the hell? There are a lot of examples like this in other shows. I can't remember them at the moment but I've come across instances where the difference is big enough to lead to two pretty different viewing experiences.

So when I have the option to choose either *"English"* or *"English [CC]"* is there a rule of thumb as to which one will be closer to the artist's intent? Or it is just a crapshoot?


----------



## Fat-Elf

Watched a couple of episodes of that Gekkan Shoujo anime. Kinda boring, dull characters, didn't make me laugh (well, kinda chuckle.. once). I still keep watching it because I honestly haven't watched a single episode of anime in months and I feel bad about it.


----------



## ferret

wat: I ran into this EXACT situation last night with Psycho Pass. I was explaining to my wife how annoyed I was when the small bits of Japanese I do understand, or where names are clearly used, don't match the subtitles.

... And what I think is happening is that English [CC], which Netflix/Roku defaulted to, is the CC track for the English audio, while English is the translated subtitles.

It kinda makes sense in a way. Japanese Audio -> English Subtitles. English Audio -> English Closed Caption.

I'm going to go back and check a spot that really bothered me after work to try to confirm.


----------



## ferret

Edit: Sigh, another weird double post.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

don't you just love it when you pick a random anime and it turns out to be gorgeus. Or maybe all recent anime are this pretty, I've probably been watching older stuff lately.






edit: here's more


----------



## Don Vito

Don Vito said:


> Found season 2 of K-ON at the thrift store, so now I can watch the English dub.


Found this figure at the same store. I got excited when I saw her going for $80 + $20 shipping on ebay, and less excited when I saw her on Amazon for $50 no shipping. I still could have profited from her, but the box has some rough wear on the corners, and I noticed upon looking closer, that the emerald on her left breast had broken somehow, so I had to completely unbox her to glue it back on(which thankfully worked like a charm). After I had her out and fixed, I just decided to keep it. Have no clue what series she is from.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Don, I have no idea who she is, but I'm diggin' that over the top 90's design. Not surprised to read the "GAINAX" label on the box!  Looks like Asuka cosplaying an Eva.  And no worries about the price; same thing happened to me with my Shiki figure. I saw her at the con, went back home, checked prices on ebay, saw her going for quite a bit more than it was at the con, went to the con the next day, bought her, came back home that night, checked prices again, saw it going for like $40 less on Amazon and everywhere else. eBay is not a good source for prices on new things. It's alright though, I still feel like I got my money's worth for my statue, and I don't regret the purchase at all.



Ikiharmaa said:


> don't you just love it when you pick a random anime and it turns out to be gorgeus. Or maybe all recent anime are this pretty, I've probably been watching older stuff lately.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> edit: here's more



Horee shitto!  Look at those backgrounds! Beautiful stuff, for sure. I don't think that's a standard thing for anime, even these days.  I feel as though animation quality is improving at a faster rate than the art itself. Those are some very pretty pictures; which anime are they from??



wat said:


> I have a question about Netflix subtitles and closed-caption.
> 
> On some anime shows, under "subtitles" I have a choice between "English" and "English [CC]".
> 
> "English" is just yellow subtitles.
> "English CC is white subtitles with Closed Captioning so it also describes sounds like [loud crash], [eerie chanting], etc.
> 
> Thing is, sometimes the actual dialogue is really different between the two. Here's an example from Deadman wonderland.
> 
> *"English" setting:*
> 
> 
> *"English [CC]" setting:*
> 
> 
> What the hell? There are a lot of examples like this in other shows. I can't remember them at the moment but I've come across instances where the difference is big enough to lead to two pretty different viewing experiences.
> 
> So when I have the option to choose either *"English"* or *"English [CC]"* is there a rule of thumb as to which one will be closer to the artist's intent? Or it is just a crapshoot?



Most of Netflix's anime subtitles that I've seen have come across as really shitty (not sure if they use the original subtitles in all cases. Regardless, Funimation subtitles are kinda meh when you're used to reading fansubs). And I've arrived at the same conclusion as ferret on this one; the *English [CC]* option is probably the subtitles for the actual English dubs. There are anime that don't have that option, simply because they haven't been translated yet (I forget the examples now).


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> ^ Don, I have no idea who she is, but I'm diggin' that over the top 90's design. Not surprised to read the "GAINAX" label on the box!  Looks like Asuka cosplaying an Eva.  And no worries about the price; same thing happened to me with my Shiki figure. I saw her at the con, went back home, checked prices on ebay, saw her going for quite a bit more than it was at the con, went to the con the next day, bought her, came back home that night, checked prices again, saw it going for like $40 less on Amazon and everywhere else. eBay is not a good source for prices on new things. It's alright though, I still feel like I got my money's worth for my statue, and I don't regret the purchase at all.


Turns out she's from a 6 episode space shonen from 2004 called _Diebuster_, and it even got a movie at some point. Just might have to watch it. I'm not bummed on the figure at all, considering I only paid $14 for it. It's quite nice as well. Has 3 different faces, another set of arms, weird metal bars that stick out of her legs... but more importantly, her little hair swoop is articulated lol.

But for now, I'm finally going to view the hype firsthand: Welcome to the NHK.


----------



## Alberto7

^ I have a feeling you'll like Welcome to the NHK. If the image of you that I have in my head is any accurate, I'm pretty sure you'll like it. Same kind of humor and drama that I imagine you like.


----------



## Fat-Elf

SAO II 13th episode. Now this is how you turn the most boring anime of the year back to the glory it once had. 

Best of part of the episode was the rock version of this:


----------



## Toshiro

Don Vito said:


> Turns out she's from a 6 episode space shonen from 2004 called _Diebuster_, and it even got a movie at some point. Just might have to watch it. I'm not bummed on the figure at all, considering I only paid $14 for it. It's quite nice as well. Has 3 different faces, another set of arms, weird metal bars that stick out of her legs... but more importantly, her little hair swoop is articulated lol.
> 
> But for now, I'm finally going to view the hype firsthand: Welcome to the NHK.



Diebuster is a continuation/prequel/sequel(the time-line is kinda pretzel-ed, gonna have to watch it to understand) to Gunbuster, one of the classic giant robot anime. 

The fall season has my attention...
Karen Senki:



Cross Ange:


2nd season of Log Horizon too.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

Alberto7 said:


> Those are some very pretty pictures; which anime are they from??



Nagi no Asukara. I do recommend it, they even pulled off the romance rather well despite it looking bad for most of the show (love triangles and stuff that doesn't go anywhere tend to be annoying). The production is top notch, including the design aspects of it, world, characters, outfits. It isn't for the action-oriented audience obviously, but it isn't a slice-of-life show either.. perhaps something between Seirei no Moribito and Kokoro Connect, both of which were great as well btw.

I think I'm content with anime again for a while. Afterall, I did watch something like 80 episodes during the school week since I also watched Special A in addition to NGE and Nagi no Asukara.


----------



## Alberto7

Toshiro said:


> Diebuster is a continuation/prequel/sequel(the time-line is kinda pretzel-ed, gonna have to watch it to understand) to Gunbuster, one of the classic giant robot anime.
> 
> The fall season has my attention...
> Karen Senki:
> *PV1*
> *PV2*
> 
> Cross Ange:
> *PV*
> 
> 2nd season of Log Horizon too.



Cross Ange actually doesn't look so bad judging from the PV, but the premise is hilariously nonsensical: humanity reached a point of absolute peace and harmony, and everybody has learned to use magic, except for a princess, who, as a result, goes to a deserted island TO FIGHT DRAGONS.  Also +1 on those Code Geass Knightmare-style cockpits that are so perfect for ass shots.  Also, so many dragons this season, too. 

The Fall season is honestly pretty effing ridiculous. I'm gonna post some PV's of shows I'm looking forward to as well as some comments for some of them:

*Fate/Stay Night - Unlimited Blade Works*

If you've read any two pages of this thread, then you probably know how big of a Fate and ufotable nut I am. Not only is the main Fate franchise brilliant, but ufotable are the friggin' kings of anime, in my opinion. Their art and animation are the most ridiculous that I have ever seen in any piece of animation ever, and I'm certainly not the only one who thinks that way. With how utterly action-packed the Unlimited Blade Works route of the visual novel is, I have a feeling ufotable will go all out with the insane eye candy. It will be friggin' epic. It also doesn't need to be said, but this is THE anime that I've been anticipating the most for the past year, and it's starting in 5 days. 

*Garo: Honoo no Kokuin*

From studio MAPPA, the same people who gave us Zankyou no Terror. They started out VERY VERY well with ZnT, but this season MAPPA is going all out, with two anime, Garo being one of them. They are also the only studio that I know of that can pull off CGI that actually looks great. Garo is supposed to be a really popular film franchise (though I'm not familiar with it). It looks really promising, and I think it's worth keeping an eye on this one.

*Shingeki no Bahamut: Genesis*

This is the other MAPPA anime this season. It is based on a card game, and it looks geeky as hell, but holy ass it looks incredible!  That PV is nuts. The art and the animation look amazing, and the CGI looks great as well. The only thing is, I just can't get over CGI dragons, because of reasons.  I have a feeling this will be one of my main anime this season, along with Fate, Garo, and what Mushishi.

*Mushishi: Zoku Shou 2*

I don't even need to say why my body is ready for more of that. This will be the second part of the second season, the first part of which aired during the spring season. Seriously, go watch Mushishi if you haven't. (Also, I just pulled a fan-made trailer off of YT, because I don't think there's an actual PV for Zoku Shou 2)

*Gundam: G no Reconguista*

It is the first time I'm actually looking forward to a Gundam show.  I've also never watched one in its entirety. The only reason I wanna watch this one is because I LOVE the art style. It's what I picture Eureka 7 would look like if it had been made in the early 90's, but with better animation. That, and the name is catchy as phuck. G NO RECONGUISTA. 

*Terra Formars*

Apparently humanity dun f*cked up again and we created giant mutant people-looking cockroaches... on Mars. Yeah. First episode is out, and, according to what I hear, it's Attack on Titan with naked roach-people, as opposed to just big naked people. It sounds so ridiculous that I'm on my way to watch the first episode already. 
*EDIT: *dat first episode... that was... ummm... yeah.  The premise is cool and all, but that first episode made me give little ....s about it. Pretty bad first episode, imo. People who like the manga are saying it was bad. Also, I will never berate Tokyo Ghoul's censoring as much anymore after seeing how stupidly censored this show is (click here for sample censoring). I came for the guts, now gimme dem, pls. >_>

*Kiseijuu a.k.a. Parasyte*

Well, that just happened.  I've never read the manga, but I'm very aware of it. Mega popular stuff in Japan. They've changed the artstyle quite a bit, but it still looks really cool, and the animation is "pretty." It looks unsettling as shit, too, which should be really cool. Will be keeping an eye on it.

*Shirobako*

An anime about making anime. That's gotta be good. And it looks like they might go into the more technical aspect of making anime, too, which should be really cool. Will definitely be following this one!

*Sanzoku no Musume Ronja*

It should be interesting, given that the director is Goro Miyazaki; Hideo Miyazaki's (Studio Ghibli) son. Contrary to what most people are saying, though, this is NOT animated by Studio Ghibli, so don't panic at the (iffy) CGI. It's animated by Polygon Pictures, who are responsible for Knights of Sidonia. From what I have read, it is based on a Swedish children's book called Ronia the Robber's Daughter, written by the same author as Pippi Longstocking. In that sense, it does sound like something Studio Ghibli would do. I'll be following it, since it might actually turn out to be really interesting, despite appearances.

And that's about it for the ones I'm currently looking forward to this season. It's kind of crazy, honestly, how much of it looks incredible. 



Ikiharmaa said:


> Nagi no Asukara. I do recommend it, they even pulled off the romance rather well despite it looking bad for most of the show (love triangles and stuff that doesn't go anywhere tend to be annoying). The production is top notch, including the design aspects of it, world, characters, outfits. It isn't for the action-oriented audience obviously, but it isn't a slice-of-life show either.. perhaps something between Seirei no Moribito and Kokoro Connect, both of which were great as well btw.
> 
> I think I'm content with anime again for a while. Afterall, I did watch something like 80 episodes during the school week since I also watched Special A in addition to NGE and Nagi no Asukara.



Aaaahh Nagi no Asakura! My roommate keeps going on about it, and she's been pushing me to watch it at some point,  so I'm glad to know it looks this good.

Never watched Kokoro Connect, but Seirei no Moribito is what got me back into anime after spending my teenage years (from about 12 to 19) not giving a f*ck about it and even labeling it as childish and stupid on occasion. Amazing anime, that one.


----------



## Captain Butterscotch

wat said:


> I just started watching _DeadMan Wonderland_ on netflix & it's pretty sweet. It's about a prison where they film gameshows & reality TV with the prisoners for funding. A demon(or something) kills everyone in the MC's school classroom causing him to be convicted for the murder and sent to the prison where as he struggles to adapt to life there, he finds himself wrapped up in a sprawling conspiracy. The show gets shockingly twisted and morbid at times



I just started watching this as well and it took me by surprise at how violent it gets at certain times.


----------



## Don Vito

Oh man, NHK is ....ing hilarious. I thought it was going to be a total sobfest, but maybe I just haven't gotten there yet. It gives me flashbacks to Watamote, because I feel like I've been there done that. Only this guy is much more likable than Tomoko, who I have come to hate in the past couple chapters of the manga. Really impressed so far, even though I had to revert to the English dub. Dual audio with Russian subs only lol. Luckily, the MC is voiced pretty well.


----------



## Alberto7

^ That relatability of NHK was, to me, its main selling point. I've never been nearly the hermit that the protagonist is (that'd be extremely alarming >_>), but either I've been in a similar enough position to understand him, or the show really knows how to work some black magic to convey the feeling perfectly. It gets progressively sadder as it goes on, but funny bits are always present everywhere to provide some comic relief and somewhat alleviate the mood.

Gah, I think I might start it again. I'm gonna watch the first episode tonight. Let's see if I pick up enough momentum to actually finish it.


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> ^ That relatability of NHK was, to me, its main selling point. I've never been nearly the hermit that the protagonist is (that'd be extremely alarming >_>), but either I've been in a similar enough position to understand him, or the show really knows how to work some black magic to convey the feeling perfectly. It gets progressively sadder as it goes on, but funny bits are always present everywhere to provide some comic relief and somewhat alleviate the mood.
> 
> Gah, I think I might start it again. I'm gonna watch the first episode tonight. Let's see if I pick up enough momentum to actually finish it.


I got to thinking about something; how does this guy make a living? Look, I'm not far into it, but at this point, he has no job. His apartment costs money, because his neighbor mentions he needed someplace "cheap", which implies that there is rent, even if it's not much. And then there's the food, internet, electricity, ect.. Does Japan willingly give money to the unemployed? It's understandable if you were fired or had to leave, but this guy has been NEET for like what... 3 years? There's money in the US for people who fail to meet certain mental priorities, so maybe he gets money for being socially dysfunctional, or whatever medical condition that would fall under. He doesn't actually seem to have any issue talking to people though, even if he says some derpy shit every now and again. 

OT: I'm glad it keeps some of the comic relief throughout.


----------



## Alberto7

^ I don't remember if they explain that, actually. I seem to remember an episode where he gets a visit from his mother and he tries to clean up his place so that she doesn't find out he's NEET, as she is the one paying for his place, but I may actually be imagining things. I'm like 50% sure that that happens. I know it happens in some NEET anime that I watched, but I am not exactly sure which one.

If it's not in NHK, I'd be willing to live with that flaw, much like I'm willing to accept that most high school anime characters are run-away children who seemingly have no parents and do whatever the shit they want anywhere they want and at any time they want *cough*HARUHICHARACTERS*cough*


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> ^ I don't remember if they explain that, actually. I seem to remember an episode where he gets a visit from his mother and he tries to clean up his place so that she doesn't find out he's NEET, as she is the one paying for his place, but I may actually be imagining things. I'm like 50% sure that that happens. I know it happens in some NEET anime that I watched, but I am not exactly sure which one.


Ah, that would also make sense.



> *cough*HARUHICHARACTERS*cough*


Haruhi's parents are probably relieved they don't have to put up with her much as a result. I imagine raising her was a pain in the arse.


----------



## Skyblue

Alberto7 said:


> I just watched the very last episode of Zankyou no Terror...
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ... I don't even know, man. I don't even know...



AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH 

Just finished it myself, it was awesome! And, and... Ahhhhhh! 

small things that kinda bothered me-


Spoiler



In the end, the american army killed Twelve, then waited. Why? Did they know Nine would just die by himself? I mean sure, dramatic speech time, but I found that to be kinda annoyingly-weird... Second, where the hell was Lisa's mom?  girl run's away from home, her mom calls her a few times and then forgets about her? can be explained but meh... I AM kinda nitpicking here so w/e. Also Yay for Twelve's Synesthesia! I've got it too 





Alberto7 said:


> ^ That relatability of NHK was, to me, its main selling point. I've never been nearly the hermit that the protagonist is (that'd be extremely alarming >_>), but either I've been in a similar enough position to understand him, or the show really knows how to work some black magic to convey the feeling perfectly. It gets progressively sadder as it goes on, but funny bits are always present everywhere to provide some comic relief and somewhat alleviate the mood.
> 
> Gah, I think I might start it again. I'm gonna watch the first episode tonight. Let's see if I pick up enough momentum to actually finish it.



The relatability of that show nearly killed me  I obviously wasn't a hikikomori like he was but damn, they did show some moments that had me going "FLUFF THAT SHIT I'LL GO CRY IN THE CORNER, HAPPY NOW?" 
Loved that show...


----------



## wat

Alberto7 said:


> ^ That relatability of NHK was, to me, its main selling point. I've never been nearly the hermit that the protagonist is (that'd be extremely alarming >_>), but either I've been in a similar enough position to understand him, or the show really knows how to work some black magic to convey the feeling perfectly. It gets progressively sadder as it goes on, but funny bits are always present everywhere to provide some comic relief and somewhat alleviate the mood.
> 
> Gah, I think I might start it again. I'm gonna watch the first episode tonight. Let's see if I pick up enough momentum to actually finish it.




Yeah, I'm loving the show. 4 episodes left. I can totally relate to the main character as his circumstances and feelings are like exxagerated versions of theings I've been through. I'm so scared that this show is going to make me extremely sad, lol.



Don Vito said:


> I got to thinking about something; how does this guy make a living? Look, I'm not far into it, but at this point, he has no job. His apartment costs money, because his neighbor mentions he needed someplace "cheap", which implies that there is rent, even if it's not much. And then there's the food, internet, electricity, ect.. Does Japan willingly give money to the unemployed? It's understandable if you were fired or had to leave, but this guy has been NEET for like what... 3 years? There's money in the US for people who fail to meet certain mental priorities, so maybe he gets money for being socially dysfunctional, or whatever medical condition that would fall under. He doesn't actually seem to have any issue talking to people though, even if he says some derpy shit every now and again.
> 
> OT: I'm glad it keeps some of the comic relief throughout.



His parents give him allowance. They also think he's in school and have no idea he dropped out, or that he's hikikamori and NEET. His attempts to keep lies like this going pretty much propel the 1st half of the show.


----------



## wat

Misaki is super cute


----------



## wat

Misaki is super cute


----------



## Alberto7

^ Finally! A post that not only deserves two likes, but is actually able to get them!  Misaki is love. She was designed by Yoshitoshi ABe, the same dude who did SELain and Haibane Renmei.  Here's the cover of the original book:






Also, Sky, I'll get back to you on Zankyou no Terror once I get back home tonight.


----------



## stevo1

Decided to check out the first episodes of Tokyo ghoul finally after seeing it pop up in hulu. I also checked out the end of the show too, as a I skipped sleep, and watched it all last night.


----------



## ferret

Psycho Pass done.

Kill la Kill started.

vroom.


----------



## wat

ferret said:


> Psycho Pass done.
> 
> Kill la Kill started.
> 
> vroom.




How'd you like psycho-pass? I thought it was 

I've heard good things about Kill La Kill but I've been hesitant to start it for some reason


----------



## ferret

Liked Psycho-Pass, but it's a little bit discolored by figuring out the Netflix subtitle thing mid-way through. I felt the ending was just a little abrupt and left some details unresolved.


----------



## Alberto7

Skyblue said:


> AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
> 
> Just finished it myself, it was awesome! And, and... Ahhhhhh!
> 
> small things that kinda bothered me-
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> In the end, the american army killed Twelve, then waited. Why? Did they know Nine would just die by himself? I mean sure, dramatic speech time, but I found that to be kinda annoyingly-weird... Second, where the hell was Lisa's mom?  girl run's away from home, her mom calls her a few times and then forgets about her? can be explained but meh... I AM kinda nitpicking here so w/e. Also Yay for Twelve's Synesthesia! I've got it too



So, Zankyou no Terror...


Spoiler



haha yeah, things like that have apparently been the downside of the show, and a lot of people have overblown those tiny issues and completely missed the point of the show. What you said about Twelve is funny: I thought he had been shot, but that they went with the stylistic/artistic approach of not letting us hear the gunshot but to instead letting the music shine through to intensify the scene (kinda like in the Cowboy Bebop episode "Ballad of the Fallen Angels" when Spike falls through the church's window and we don't hear the grenade explosion but rather the song "Green Bird." One of the most iconic scenes in anime, directed by the same guy from ZnT and the music composed by the same person. I have my reasons to draw that conclusion ). Someone pointed out to me that he just kinda died of his illness there, much like you said, which is perfectly plausible as well, but that's not how it initially came across to me, and I prefer to think that he was shot. Regardless, it doesn't make the situation any different.

The one thing that bothered me the most was Five. She had so much potential as a character, but she just turned out to be a mere foil for our protagonist. If you think about it, the only thing she was useful for was for getting our antagonist (US government) in contact with our protagonists. Anything else she might have done, was quite useless in terms of story, aside from being a mere plot device to highlight Sphinx's nature. Take her out of the picture, and her actions would be irrelevant to the ending of the story. In other words, more than a character, she was a plot device. It's not like that is a bad thing in and of itself, but I thought she could have been so much more, while still serving as a foil.

Lisa also gets a lot of shit, but I actually really liked her character. She is the most relatable of all, given that she's the only main character who is just a regular person with her own set of issues. Issues which, if perhaps more severe than that of the average person, are a lot more relatable than, say, idyllic memory, or incredible crime and puzzle-solving analytical skills. I see her as the viewer's anchor with reality, in some sense. I do wish she had been fleshed out a little bit more, but I attribute that to the low episode count. She's also super kawaii and moe, and I just love that; bite me. 



There were more things that bothered me a bit (note that all of these "flaws" could have been made better had there been more episodes to flesh things out), but none of them bothered me enough to stop me from enjoying how great it was.

Direction, art, and animation are some of the best I have ever seen, and dat score... DAT OST MAN. It is so stupidly good; Yoko Kanno solidifying my belief that she is the best thing to have happened to music in anime.

I can't really be bothered to write a review of this anime even though I really like it - I've written enough about it that I don't feel a need to review it - but if I were to rate it on a numerical scale...

8/10. It was f*cking amazing, and easily my favorite anime of the year *so far.*


----------



## Skyblue

Alberto7 said:


> So, Zankyou no Terror...
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> haha yeah, things like that have apparently been the downside of the show, and a lot of people have overblown those tiny issues and completely missed the point of the show. What you said about Twelve is funny: I thought he had been shot, but that they went with the stylistic/artistic approach of not letting us hear the gunshot but to instead letting the music shine through to intensify the scene (kinda like in the Cowboy Bebop episode "Ballad of the Fallen Angels" when Spike falls through the church's window and we don't hear the grenade explosion but rather the song "Green Bird." One of the most iconic scenes in anime, directed by the same guy from ZnT and the music composed by the same person. I have my reasons to draw that conclusion ). Someone pointed out to me that he just kinda died of his illness there, much like you said, which is perfectly plausible as well, but that's not how it initially came across to me, and I prefer to think that he was shot. Regardless, it doesn't make the situation any different.
> 
> The one thing that bothered me the most was Five. She had so much potential as a character, but she just turned out to be a mere foil for our protagonist. If you think about it, the only thing she was useful for was for getting our antagonist (US government) in contact with our protagonists. Anything else she might have done, was quite useless in terms of story, aside from being a mere plot device to highlight Sphinx's nature. Take her out of the picture, and her actions would be irrelevant to the ending of the story. In other words, more than a character, she was a plot device. It's not like that is a bad thing in and of itself, but I thought she could have been so much more, while still serving as a foil.
> 
> Lisa also gets a lot of shit, but I actually really liked her character. She is the most relatable of all, given that she's the only main character who is just a regular person with her own set of issues. Issues which, if perhaps more severe than that of the average person, are a lot more relatable than, say, idyllic memory, or incredible crime and puzzle-solving analytical skills. I see her as the viewer's anchor with reality, in some sense. I do wish she had been fleshed out a little bit more, but I attribute that to the low episode count. She's also super kawaii and moe, and I just love that; bite me.
> 
> 
> 
> There were more things that bothered me a bit (note that all of these "flaws" could have been made better had there been more episodes to flesh things out), but none of them bothered me enough to stop me from enjoying how great it was.
> 
> Direction, art, and animation are some of the best I have ever seen, and dat score... DAT OST MAN. It is so stupidly good; Yoko Kanno solidifying my belief that she is the best thing to have happened to music in anime.
> 
> I can't really be bothered to write a review of this anime even though I really like it - I've written enough about it that I don't feel a need to review it - but if I were to rate it on a numerical scale...
> 
> 8/10. It was f*cking amazing, and easily my favorite anime of the year *so far.*



So... 



Spoiler



I'm guessing you mean Nine? As Twelve is clearly shown being shot... Anyway, I actually haven't considered the fact Nine might have been shot, interesting. Still would have made it a bit weird for the US Army to wait though. I Also totally agree with you about Five- In the end, her sole reason for trying to capture Nine was what, to show him she can catch him? a rather weak plot point... And what did the whole scene in The Settlement when they ran away meant? You see Five going after them, but was she trying to stop them? Join them? One time you see her laughing maniacally, but it might have been a twisted memory... They didn't really explain that, and that made Five unclear as a character I think. As for Lisa, her character was great. They really pictured the fact that she's a lost teenager, that stumbles into 2 terrorists, who finally give her a sense of belonging, something she never had, and she decides to help them, yet she's still a normal teenager- no super powers or anything...



And just to be clear- Flaws or w/e, I absolutely loved that show  Easily one the best I've seen. The OST was absolutely amazing, Yoko Kanno is divine. 
Definitely 8/10. 

Now, any recommendations for a new anime?  Anything that resembles in style, general vibe, or simply anything awesome. (Yes, I've seen Cowboy Bebop) 
I've been out of the anime loop for a while so I have no idea what's up...


----------



## TaP

I loved: Death Note, Code Geass, Gundam Wing, AoT, Samurai Champloo, Shippuden before I realized I have to be stupid to keep watching/reading. 

Suggestions pl0x. I looked up "Zankyou No Terror" it looks like exactly what I like off reading "psychological thriller" Japanese writer KILL it with the smart ass mind games.


----------



## glassmoon0fo

NOT happy with the way Deadman Wonderland cut short like that. The show is killer, but there are just too many unresolved story lines to deal with and it looks like they wont be finishing the TV show. Just a heads up, don't get too attached =/


----------



## ghostred7

Just recently started watching Sankarea. Still feeling it out.


----------



## Skyblue

TaP said:


> I loved: Death Note, Code Geass, Gundam Wing, AoT, Samurai Champloo, Shippuden before I realized I have to be stupid to keep watching/reading.
> 
> Suggestions pl0x. I looked up "Zankyou No Terror" it looks like exactly what I like off reading "psychological thriller" Japanese writer KILL it with the smart ass mind games.



While Zankyou No Terror IS awesome, it's not the same kind of psychological thriller such as CG and DN. It is, still, highly recommended. You also might like Kaiji- It's an anime about a guy that has a big debt to pay to some mobsters if I'm not mistaken, and they invite him to a gambling night in which he could pay off his entire debt. I watched it about 5 years ago, but I remember it was insanely suspenseful.


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> She was designed by Yoshitoshi ABe, the same dude who did SELain and Haibane Renmei.


Okay, I officially love this guy. This might seem like an otherwise useless post, but we've hit 666 likes.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

ghostred7 said:


> Just recently started watching Sankarea. Still feeling it out.



I remember watching that. Or well, can't remember much from it, but back then I hadn't really seen too much anime to begin with. I guess it wasn't absolutely horrible since I didn't drop it? Not a very memorable one for me it seems. Then again our tastes might not meet anyways, so yea.

Sometimes I'm not completely sure why I even post in the first place.


I'll probably watch Nodame Cantabile next, if the art is decent enough that is. Judging from the little picture on mal I might have some trouble adjusting.


----------



## Alberto7

Skyblue said:


> So...
> 
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> I'm guessing you mean Nine? As Twelve is clearly shown being shot... Anyway, I actually haven't considered the fact Nine might have been shot, interesting. Still would have made it a bit weird for the US Army to wait though. I Also totally agree with you about Five- In the end, her sole reason for trying to capture Nine was what, to show him she can catch him? a rather weak plot point... And what did the whole scene in The Settlement when they ran away meant? You see Five going after them, but was she trying to stop them? Join them? One time you see her laughing maniacally, but it might have been a twisted memory... They didn't really explain that, and that made Five unclear as a character I think. As for Lisa, her character was great. They really pictured the fact that she's a lost teenager, that stumbles into 2 terrorists, who finally give her a sense of belonging, something she never had, and she decides to help them, yet she's still a normal teenager- no super powers or anything...
> 
> 
> 
> And just to be clear- Flaws or w/e, I absolutely loved that show  Easily one the best I've seen. The OST was absolutely amazing, Yoko Kanno is divine.
> Definitely 8/10.



Yeah, sorry, I meant Nine, not Twelve. I keep getting their names mixed up.  Which brings me to


Spoiler



their "names." I don't know why people keep saying they have names. As far as I know, the names that we are shown are only the names that they used to register at school. I doubt those are their actual names. They're orphans who were taken in by some shady organization before the age of 5 (much like another super smart character in another mega popular anime, if you know who I'm talking about ) and were given numbers as names. So their real names are just Nine and Twelve. That's I get from it anyway.

Also, I did think of what you're saying about the sniper taking too long to shoot Nine. Maybe they wanted to see what Shibazaki was going to do to see if they'd let him live or not, but "epic threatening speech time" sounds like a way simpler and more fitting explanation. 





Skyblue said:


> Now, any recommendations for a new anime?  Anything that resembles in style, general vibe, or simply anything awesome. (Yes, I've seen Cowboy Bebop)
> I've been out of the anime loop for a while so I have no idea what's up...





TaP said:


> I loved: Death Note, Code Geass, Gundam Wing, AoT, Samurai Champloo, Shippuden before I realized I have to be stupid to keep watching/reading.
> 
> Suggestions pl0x. I looked up "Zankyou No Terror" it looks like exactly what I like off reading "psychological thriller" Japanese writer KILL it with the smart ass mind games.



Suggestions, hhmmm... I mean, I can't deny that *Fate/Zero* has been my "favorite" anime for the last 11 months, or so. It seems to be the most complete anime that I have seen so far, in the sense that it has just a little bit of everything; from straight up magic, to psychological drilling and conspiracy stuff. The only thing lacking is comic relief; it has literally zero comic relief. It's just dark, gritty, depressing, and honestly quite shameless, but it is SO INTENSE. I'll leave this fan trailer here (for like the 37th time  it's my favorite trailer ever) to let you judge:



Aside from that, if you have the time and the patience, another gritty and dark-as-phuck anime is *Kara no Kyoukai*. It's an experience in and of itself. It's different from any other anime I've watched. It's hard to get into, if only because of how confusing and long it is the first time you watch it (it's a story told out of chronological order across 10 movies), and how big of a mindf*ck it can be, but it is so, so, so worth it. It feels like animated literature. It's about murders and detectives to some extent, too, but it's a lot more "metaphysical" than DN and CG, and has a lot of magic stuff going on. Same universe as the Fate franchise, too.

Watch *Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex*. nao. If you haven't, you owe it to yourself.

*Black Lagoon*. It's, simply put, the most badass anime I've ever seen. Everything just kicks ass in that show.

*The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya* (plus *The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya* film) to completely contrast my previous suggestions in terms of tone. Also, Melancholy is worth watching (in chronological order as opposed to the order in which it aired, for God's sake) in its entirety just to be able to experience the masterpiece that the Disappearance film is.

*Planetes* is REALLY cool as well. It's some very hard sci-fi and a great plot line. Extremely underrated anime, too.

*No Game No Life*, for some Death Note/Code Geass-ish action and some seriously otaku-nerd fun.

*Usagi Drop*, since it is, to this day, my favorite slice of life.

*Clannad + Clannad: After Story *(particularly the latter, although you NEED the first season to watch After Story) if you like getting stabbed in the heart repeatedly. I feel evil just recommending this anime.  It's one of my favorites though.

*Trigun*, for some more old-school, Western-styled action. I don't remember that much from it, except that I really dug it.

*Rurouni Kenshin*. It's hard to recommend it, because it's very expansive, with a long manga (the length of which I forget), a 95-episode anime (the first 60-or-so episodes of which are the only ones truly worth watching), two 2-hour OVA's depicting Kenshin's past (the first part of the manga's third arc, i.e. his violent past as an assassin for the Meiji government during Japan's Bakumatsu period) and his life after the events of the manga, and three live-action films retelling the first two arcs (not to mention that the manga is being re-written and the Kyoto arc of the anime has been re-animated). It is, however, super worth it. If you're into historical anime, Japanese history, and exaggerated samurai fights, this is right up your alley. It is my favorite story ever told, just because of how gripping it is. Also, the manga is a lot more engaging than the anime. The anime is aimed at a younger audience, whereas the manga, despite having a ton of comic relief and being a straight up shonen manga, feels a lot more serious in tone (not to mention that the last arc, which has never been adapted to a screen in any form, is super dark and depressing most of the time).

Hopefully, among those, you'll find something to your liking. I'd recommend more, but I need to work, and the amount of shame I feel is directly proportional to the length of my posts, so yeah. 

And here goes to getting carried away with anime recommendations instead of working.


----------



## mrdm53

Usagi Drop : the whole premises is how to raised a loli to be your future wife.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Only in the manga. And we don't speak about the manga.


----------



## Don Vito




----------



## mrdm53

Alberto7 said:


> ^ Only in the manga. And we don't speak about the manga.



that's why i regret the fact that i read the manga after watched Usagi Drop anime because of my curiousity 

awesome drama though, cute rin is cute


----------



## Alberto7

mrdm53 said:


> that's why i regret the fact that i read the manga after watched Usagi Drop anime because of my curiousity
> 
> awesome drama though, cute rin is cute



Yeah, I read about the manga afterwards, since I had decided I wasn't going to read it anyway, and I decided to pretend it doesn't even exist.  As far as cute anime characters go, Rin is probably my favorite. Rin is also one of my favorite names.

Also, I just finished _Barakamon_... SO WARM AND FUZZY I want more. :'( I don't know how to review a slice of life/comedy anime, since I usually focus on plot and what not, but it was damn near perfect for me. It has a kind of humor that I haven't really seen much in anime before, it came across as very original, its themes hit home on a very deep and personal level, it forges and develops characters perfectly as well as their interactions, and it had all the warms and the fuzzies you could ever ask for. Not a tear-jerker, but it definitely hit home hard enough to make my face swell up and make me eyes feel like wrinkly raisins afterwards. I can't compare it directly with Usagi Drop, since I haven't watched it in so long, but I hold it, for now, as my favorite slice-of-life along with UD.


Spoiler



That last episode when Sensei came back through the door and Naru jumped on him with the biggest smile on her face made me all fuzzy and my eyes watery.



Straight 9/10 for me.
I'd give it 10/10, but somehow I don't feel right giving a perfect rating to something right after having finished it, especially when I wouldn't give a perfect score to anything I've watched so far (even though I might have in the past... that doesn't count; I act on impulse some times). 

I need to watch some manly shit now. My testosterone is running low.


----------



## mrdm53

need some manly shit? try Tengen Toppa Guren Lagann

Manliest Super Robot ever


----------



## Toshiro

Well, Karen Senki EP1 was a bit of a let down. Under 12 minutes? The show feels like cut scenes from a JRPG strung together, no real plot, just one disjointed piece after another.. I expected more from ex-Sakura Taisen staff, though I can't fault Fujishima, his character designs are always nice.  EP2 will have to a complete turn around to get me to continue.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Just finished the Watamote anime for the second time and this time Tomoko just made me feel like punching her in her face and tell her to man the fvck up instead of whining around and blaming everyone else on her shitty life unlike the first time when I actually felt bad for her to some extent. 

Man, I need something less aggravating to watch now. Barakamon seems interesting. I think I saw couple of minutes of it in army when one of my friends was watching it from his laptop.


----------



## Skyblue

So I'm starting Fate/Zero  I'm just at the beginning, and it's a bit confusing, but it'll probably be easier once I get into it. Looks awesome so far anyway~


----------



## Don Vito

Fat-Elf said:


> Just finished the Watamote anime for the second time and this time Tomoko just made me feel like punching her in her face and tell her to man the fvck up instead of whining around and blaming everyone else on her shitty life unlike the first time when I actually felt bad for her to some extent.
> 
> Man, I need something less aggravating to watch now. Barakamon seems interesting. I think I saw couple of minutes of it in army when one of my friends was watching it from his laptop.


I still feel bad for her in the anime and early chapters of the manga because A. She's only 15 and 15 year olds are stupid that is a FACT B. She has no friends, and only talks to cake-chan every now and again.

But in the current manga, I'm pretty sure she's almost 17, maybe 16 1/2. She also has 2 friends she regularly hangs with, which is fine, but she treats them like shit sometimes. And cake-chan puts up with this. >_<


----------



## bouVIP

Man I need to start watching Fate/Zero again, but I'm pumped for F/SN soon.


Also just watched the new Gundam and it's way too early to decide how good it is, but so far I like it. Really love the art and music so far.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Fate/Stay Night on Saturday at 11am!!!!! 

Also gotta get onto watching that new Gundam. It looks so cool.



Toshiro said:


> Well, Karen Senki EP1 was a bit of a let down. Under 12 minutes? The show feels like cut scenes from a JRPG strung together, no real plot, just one disjointed piece after another.. I expected more from ex-Sakura Taisen staff, though I can't fault Fujishima, his character designs are always nice.  EP2 will have to a complete turn around to get me to continue.



Karen Senki... I guess it looked sort of cool from the trailer, but the exclusively CGI animation makes all of my red flags go up. It's good you're telling us that though, because I can change my expectations whenever I go into it, if I ever do.



Skyblue said:


> So I'm starting Fate/Zero  I'm just at the beginning, and it's a bit confusing, but it'll probably be easier once I get into it. Looks awesome so far anyway~



Fate/Zero's first episode is quite something. It's quite an info dump with some really cool scenes, but it provides all the necessary information to follow what's coming. It tries to explain the Nasuverse in a nutshell (the chunk pertaining to the Fate series anyway), and that's a huge challenge. If I were to give any advice while you're still on the very early episodes, it would be to remember names and associate them with each character, and try to remember their motivations as the story develops. The earlier you have a clear image of who's who, the better, because there are a lot of characters and they are all developed extensively, so it can be a little hard to remember everything.


----------



## bouVIP

oh also forgot to mention

@Alberto7

I'm planning to transcribe the band score of unravel (Tokyo Ghoul opening) so I'll share when I finish


----------



## Alberto7

NO WAY! If it's anything like your No Game No Life one, then horee shitto!  I've sat down to learn it quite a few times (EDIT: both your NGNL transcription and Tokyo Ghoul's OP), but I always get carried away playing something else. EDIT: Catching up no Psycho-Pass's new release of its first season I realized that its OP is performed by TK as well; same people who did Tokyo Ghoul's OP.

Oh, and I just finished G no Reconguista's first episode. Boy, was I out of my comfort zone!  Obviously, I can't say anything about the plot, but the setting is interesting. The writing of the episode itself was pretty mediocre by my standards, but, then again, this is Gundam, and I have no idea how I should judge it. I came and stayed just for the art though. I LOVE how much style it has. That mix of CGI and old school animation should not work, but it does. And the art and character design are crazy beautiful! The OP was great.


----------



## wat

Just finished _Welcome To The N.H.K._ 


Soooo good. I honestly didn't even know anything like this existed


----------



## kamello

just got into _those_ episodes in Steins;Gate. Alberto, thank you SO much for insisting me to see it (now we have to convince Vito ), it really changes the pace around the 7th-9th ep (yes, it has taking me this long, exams inbound  ) 

major spoiler


Spoiler



got into the EP where Mayuri dies in the metro, my head is about to explode


----------



## mrdm53

Alberto7 said:


> NO WAY! If it's anything like your No Game No Life one, then horee shitto!  I've sat down to learn it quite a few times (EDIT: both your NGNL transcription and Tokyo Ghoul's OP), but I always get carried away playing something else. EDIT: Catching up no Psycho-Pass's new release of its first season I realized that its OP is performed by TK as well; same people who did Tokyo Ghoul's OP.
> 
> Oh, and I just finished G no Reconguista's first episode. Boy, was I out of my comfort zone!  Obviously, I can't say anything about the plot, but the setting is interesting. The writing of the episode itself was pretty mediocre by my standards, but, then again, this is Gundam, and I have no idea how I should judge it. I came and stayed just for the art though. I LOVE how much style it has. That mix of CGI and old school animation should not work, but it does. And the art and character design are crazy beautiful! The OP was great.



what do you expected from the director who previously created Original Gundam?

well i laughed at that slap scene, reminds me of Bright Noa's bitchslap to Amuro


----------



## Skyblue

Alberto7 said:


> Fate/Zero's first episode is quite something. It's quite an info dump with some really cool scenes, but it provides all the necessary information to follow what's coming. It tries to explain the Nasuverse in a nutshell (the chunk pertaining to the Fate series anyway), and that's a huge challenge. If I were to give any advice while you're still on the very early episodes, it would be to remember names and associate them with each character, and try to remember their motivations as the story develops. The earlier you have a clear image of who's who, the better, because there are a lot of characters and they are all developed extensively, so it can be a little hard to remember everything.


Yeah, I was just a bit confusing with the names and who's who, but I'm at ep4 already and I think I'm ok. First fighting scenes, looking awesome  
The more I watch the more I get reminded or MMORPG's  But that's a good thing in my book~


----------



## Alberto7

mrdm53 said:


> what do you expected from the director who previously created Original Gundam?
> 
> well i laughed at that slap scene, reminds me of Bright Noa's bitchslap to Amuro



I don't know, I've never watched any Gundam before!  Also, the parts where the commander hit the girls sat really terribly with me. I hated those two parts.



Skyblue said:


> Yeah, I was just a bit confusing with the names and who's who, but I'm at ep4 already and I think I'm ok. First fighting scenes, looking awesome
> The more I watch the more I get reminded or MMORPG's  But that's a good thing in my book~



Haha I had never thought about the MMORPG thing, but it does kinda feel like one, now that I think about it. 

----------

Continuing on with the Fate/Stay Night news... 14 hours till release!!  I feel like one of those rabid iPhone fans that viciously wait with frothing mouths for midnight on the day of release to buy the new phone.

Also, it seems as though the first two episodes (dubbed #00 and #01) will be one hour long each! 

And here are some comments I read on YouTube from people who allegedly attended the private screening of the first episode in LA:




YouTube user said:


> Well, first off seeing ufotable quality animation on the big screen with surround sound is marvelous. Now down to the episode. I've never played the visual novels so I can't say how well it adapted the original material. I do know the general story of all three routes of Fate/Stay Night and have seen Fate/Zero, though. But it turns out I don't think I'll be needing that info. Like Fate/Zero's first episode, this first episode was slow, but(in my opinion) in a good way. The first half was very slice-of-life, visual novelish showing Rin going to school. To some it might be stupid or unnecessary, but to me it is well needed, because it showed a lot about her character and the life she lives. The 2nd half of the episode though, was full of the magic stuff, and some very, very well crafted actions scenes. It started off slow, but gradually eased into the more fast paced content. Overall, I think it was a very nice way to start off a series.






the same YouTube user said:


> ...At the preview, we actually got a short commentary from the producer, director, and animation director regarding the series. They said that usually for a series they will cut, edit, or alter scenes and plot points to make the series(in their eyes) more enjoyable and allow it to fit the time restraints. However, they do NOT want to do this with the new Fate/Stay Night because they want to fully flush out the series/characters and because there is already a very loyal fanbase attached to the original material. And they are treating this more as a sequel to Fate/Zero rather than Deen's adaptions. In the commentary, they said that they are approaching the series is a little differently because the characters aren't middle-aged adults like in Fate/Zero. Which is why I think it was important for them to have kept that first half of the episode with Rin going to school. It clearly showed that these characters in Fate/Stay Night are not serious, cold-blooded adults, but are rather high schoolers still growing up.
> Oh, and I'm pretty sure I saw 1 or 2 throwbacks to Fate/Zero in the 1st episode, and I have a feeling that they weren't in the original VN.&#65279;


----------



## Mordacain

mrdm53 said:


> what do you expected from the director who previously created Original Gundam?
> 
> well i laughed at that slap scene, reminds me of Bright Noa's bitchslap to Amuro



Just for reference guys, do know that Yoshiyuki Tomino's nickname is "Kill em all Tomino."

You'll be happy for just a standard Gundam 'disciplinary' scene towards the end. Of course, on occasion, Tomino doesn't kill all the main characters in every series he does...just most of them.


----------



## mrdm53

Mordacain said:


> Just for reference guys, do know that Yoshiyuki Tomino's nickname is "Kill em all Tomino."
> 
> You'll be happy for just a standard Gundam 'disciplinary' scene towards the end. Of course, on occasion, Tomino doesn't kill all the main characters in every series he does...just most of them.



i do remember V's mass kill though


----------



## Mordacain

mrdm53 said:


> i do remember V's mass kill though



Damn, I really need to finish V. Think I got about halfway through and just lost interest. Still need to dig out ZZ at some point too.

Too much Gundam man...just too much


----------



## bouVIP

I can already claim Fate Stay Night is amazing because of Rin focus!!!


Also started watching denkigai no honya-san. It's a comedy anime so far and so far it seems like one of those animes you just turn your brain off, sit back, relax and enjoy which is my favorite kind of comedy anime.


----------



## Alberto7

bouVIP said:


> I can already claim Fate Stay Night is amazing because of Rin focus!!!
> 
> 
> Also started watching denkigai no honya-san. It's a comedy anime so far and so far it seems like one of those animes you just turn your brain off, sit back, relax and enjoy which is my favorite kind of comedy anime.



Yep, the Unlimited Blade Works route is focused on Rin, Shirou, and Archer. Also, apparently the first episode (#00) tells the prologue from Rin's point of view, and the second episode tells it from Shirou's point of view. That's what I understood from what I read anyway.

I just finished *Terra Formars* episode 2. I know two episodes is usually very little, but I don't know if this can even be made right even with 20-something more episodes to come. I don't think I've ever seen such a terrible manga-anime adaptation ever, and I haven't even read the manga. I feel like the anime is trying too hard and is epically failing at it. I don't even know who's who, and characters that I did recognize from episode 1 are like completely different people now personality-wise, or show up for like two seconds. The writing was abysmal, and the "slice-of-life we're just killing time awaiting the horror" mini-plot was handled absolutely terribly. I would stay for the gore and the blood, but it doesn't even have that; it's censored to hell and back. Let me know once the uncensored DVD is out and I might watch this just for the guts. I'm normally not this blunt when giving an opinion, but that shit f_u_cking sucked so many bags of dicks, you don't even know. The first episode made me kind of skeptical, but I was willing to give it another shot. Now, I couldn't have more negative things to say about that second episode. Third time's a charm, or so they say; I'm willing to test that, because I believe this thing _really_ has a lot of potential, but I _really, really_ doubt they'll pull it off.


----------



## Don Vito

Man, I don't know anything about the Fate series, but you guys are making me want to watch it. I've mentioned it waaaaaayyyy back in the thread, but I did try to watch Fate/Zero once about 3 years ago now, and I got really hooked on it, but ended up dropping it because I was so confused. I knew they were fighting for monty python's holy grail, and I knew the historical backgrounds of the erm.. "summoned" characters?.. but I still felt like I was missing something. There were many character relationships and interactions that seemed totally alien to me. The fight scenes were the only thing interesting me. Then I found out that this was the second anime adaption following Fate/Stay Night, a visual novel I had no clue existed. What do I need to understand the characters better? I guess I should just watch the first anime series, because I do not have the patience for visual novels, unfortunately.


----------



## mrdm53

Mordacain said:


> Damn, I really need to finish V. Think I got about halfway through and just lost interest. Still need to dig out ZZ at some point too.
> 
> Too much Gundam man...just too much



a little bit spoiler thought

first half of ZZ story is just utter crap, falling downright from ultra serious Zeta into kid's prank using hi-spec robot

then we have Ple two, and things started to be good. especially after colony drop arc


----------



## Fat-Elf

....ing yay.. I'm spending the weekend at our summer cottage (which is at backwoods as backwoods go). So because I have no other form of entertainment, I bought the Crunchyroll sub for my phone so I could watch anime but firstly, because of the shitty internet connection I don't have any patience to wait the (streamed!) anime to load enough so that I could watch it. Secondly and more importantly? only thing I really wanted to even watch was the new SAO episode but the latest episode they have is like a month old. "Watch anime an hour later than it was aired" my ass. Fvck Crunchyroll, I'm never giving this shitty service any more of my money even if it was the only source to watch any anime.


----------



## bouVIP

So got both seasons of Fate Zero and planning to binge watch them before starting the new FSN

Also just really wanted to post this cause best


----------



## Alberto7

Guys... it's loading... guys... what do I do... I have so much work to do... but too much hype... guys... I'm about to explode... guys... GUYS.


----------



## Alberto7

Don Vito said:


> Man, I don't know anything about the Fate series, but you guys are making me want to watch it. I've mentioned it waaaaaayyyy back in the thread, but I did try to watch Fate/Zero once about 3 years ago now, and I got really hooked on it, but ended up dropping it because I was so confused. I knew they were fighting for monty python's holy grail, and I knew the historical backgrounds of the erm.. "summoned" characters?.. but I still felt like I was missing something. There were many character relationships and interactions that seemed totally alien to me. The fight scenes were the only thing interesting me. Then I found out that this was the second anime adaption following Fate/Stay Night, a visual novel I had no clue existed. What do I need to understand the characters better? I guess I should just watch the first anime series, because I do not have the patience for visual novels, unfortunately.



You need nothing else to watch Fate/Zero. All you need is to really pay attention to that first episode and memorize the characters, events, and their names. Fate/Zero is excellent as a stand alone piece, although it does get you more hyped if you've played the visual novel before. However, you don't really need to do that. You can skip Deen's adaptation, too. I think if you start Fate/Zero again, you'll get into it.

Also, you don't need Fate/Zero, nor the visual novel, nor (God fobid) Deen's adaptation of the Fate route, to watch the one that's coming out now.


----------



## Alberto7

GAAAHHH so episode #00 of *Fate/Stay Night: Unlimited Blade Works* was endlessly satisfying. I love the way they're approaching the prologue. We get Rin's perspective of the events that happen during the prologue of the visual novel, which are never directly shown in the VN, and which pleases me greatly. In the VN we almost always follow Shirou, including the prologue, and it's not until much later that we can finish putting the pieces together and fit Tohsaka's perspective. It's really cool to see some new images. Aside from that, it seems to be following the VN identically. It is really cool that we did get a couple of blatant throwbacks to Fate/Zero (which aren't 100% necessary, but will tie things in with F/Z later on), including the episode's opening scene (don't worry, not a big spoiler for F/Z here), where we begin with a flashback of the moment when child Rin says goodbye to her dad (Tokiomi Tohsaka).

And that animation, maaaan... THE ANIMATION. Exactly like the YouTube commenter I quoted earlier said, it begins kind of slice-of-life-ish (which is important to get a feel of the context of things), and then we are treated with some absolutely GLORIOUS battle scenes. It's not just the battle scenes though, as even mundane scenes feature gorgeous sights and great detail of movement.

I cannot wait for next Saturday to get Shirou's perspective on the prologue (and, obviously, more action). 

EDIT: sorry for continuous posts. I'm too excited. 

EDIT 2: I just rewatched the episode. I just reaffirmed my belief that the name Unlimited Budget Works seems a lot more fitting:

(video will probably be taken down soon...)


----------



## Don Vito

Fat-Elf said:


> ....ing yay.. I'm spending the weekend at our summer cottage (which is at backwoods as backwoods go). So because I have no other form of entertainment, I bought the Crunchyroll sub for my phone so I could watch anime but firstly, because of the shitty internet connection I don't have any patience to wait the (streamed!) anime to load enough so that I could watch it. Secondly and more importantly? only thing I really wanted to even watch was the new SAO episode but the latest episode they have is like a month old. "Watch anime an hour later than it was aired" my ass. Fvck Crunchyroll, I'm never giving this shitty service any more of my money even if it was the only source to watch any anime.



Lol im also @ the backwoods summer house, but my phone's got 3g internet. Unfortunately, its an outdated samsung from like 2010, and crashes every current app, including crunchyroll and spotify. I can watch like one episode with Naruto ads every 2 secs, and then it gives me the middle finger. Fvvvvck


----------



## bouVIP

Glorious animations in GIF form for Alberto

















and bonus cute Rin


----------



## mrdm53

damn, cute Rin is cute. much better than it's predecessor 

dat Lancer vs Archer, as epic as during F/Z's Saber and Berserker. And Prisma Illya's Illya Archer and Dark Saber


Cross Ange, definitely AOTS lol, it's barely 1 episode and we already got yuri rape scene


----------



## Alberto7

Haha man, that battle from yesterday's episode is one of the most badass animated battles that I've seen, even if I do feel like it was a tad short (short only because I could have watched hours of just that ). Rin also made me laugh. I knew she was a super tsundere, but I didn't realize how much of a tsundere she actually is until I watched that episode  so funny. Also, mrdm53, I had never seen that Alter Saber vs. Archer Illya fight; I never cared for that Fate Illya whatever stuff enough to watch it. That fight, however, is a lot more badass than I would have expected. 


Will have to watch that Cross Ange episode  it just sounds so ridiculous haha.


----------



## bouVIP

omg blonde waifu






Also Grisai no kaijitsu came out. It's based on the adult VN and one of the best VNs I've played. A lot of adult humor mixed with some serious and heart wrenching drama. Not sure what route they are going to do, but so far it's a very faithful adaptation to the game.


----------



## Alberto7

^ It's weird how I totally knew EXACTLY what was going to happen at that precise moment, but I got so excited anyway when Saber showed up.  Perfect moment and perfect closing line to end the episode.

Also, tonight is episode-1-binge-watching-night for me, so I'll update this later with some ep. 1 opinions. I'm curious now about Grisaia no Kaijitsu; I searched it up online and apparently the VN is really good. Hopefully the anime is good as well.

EDIT: watched *Cross Ange *episode 1. This... could have been handled a lot better. The premise and the story actually seem to be really, really interesting, but the writing is pretty awful. It's very rushed; it feels like a total rookie's work. It's exactly the kind of story that I can perfectly picture Gen Urobuchi coming up with, and knocking it out of the park. It really reminds me of _Psycho-Pass_ in a way, but with wizards, witches, and the odd muggle (with these "muggles" being the equivalent of people with a cloudy psycho-pass measurement). Hell, they even have space quidditch!  Lots of 90's-esque fanservice, too, with nipple-less boobs, revealing dresses, tight suits, and some serious _Code Geass_-like mecha ass-shots. Also, _dat rape scene_.  This anime seems like someone proposed a really good idea and an interesting story, and the studio just went "ALRIGHT COOL, NOW LET'S PORNO THAT BAD BOY UP AND LET A HORNY TEENAGER WRITE IT." At least the animation is pretty decent so far, and the mecha designs are really cool.

EDIT 2: just watched *Grisaia no Kajitsu*, and I don't even. On the surface, there seems to be absolutely nothing to keep me watching, but just how "off" everything felt was enough to grab my attention pretty tightly. The hints at the main character's true identity were interesting enough (although his stoic-enough-to-ignore-boobs personality made me go all "*le sigh* not another one of these"). And then, of course, there was the episode's ending. That totally threw me off, and I'm definitely watching episode 2 to see what that was all about. Totally feels like a visual novel, too. It was odd and I'm still skeptical, but I bit the hook pretty well.


----------



## mrdm53

Cross Ange's mecha cockpit is like Langrange's. Same ass shot style with skimpy outfit 

What is Norma anyway, and why it's only on woman lol.. for the sake of FS?


----------



## Alberto7

From what I have read, basically Cross Ange is set in a super advanced civilization where humanity has discovered a technology that is kind of like magic (Light of Mana), and that has somehow helped rid mankind of all wars, conflicts, and bloodshed... or so they claim. Most people are able to use this Light of Mana stuff, but Norma are people who aren't born with the predisposition to use it, and so they have the potential to cause conflict and throw off the balance that the Light of Mana has set, and thus they are discriminated against and are stripped of all of their human rights...

... so they get sent to an island to fight dragons. >_>

... I assume there's some sort of ongoing war against some kind of magical/interdimensional beasts (dragons, in this case, it seems), and Norma are the people who get sent to the frontlines. This would maintain a balance in society by ridding it of those filthy muggles and making them dragon food. I could speculate that maybe the Light of Mana either a) attracts the dragons somehow, or b) was stolen from some sort of super advanced and/or magical race of beings who may either use dragons as proxies to wipe out mankind, or be dragons themselves.

I don't even know man, this show is kind of ridiculous so far.


----------



## bouVIP

Alberto7 said:


> EDIT 2: just watched *Grisaia no Kajitsu*, and I don't even. On the surface, there seems to be absolutely nothing to keep me watching, but just how "off" everything felt was enough to grab my attention pretty tightly. The hints at the main character's true identity were interesting enough (although his stoic-enough-to-ignore-boobs personality made me go all "*le sigh* not another one of these"). And then, of course, there was the episode's ending. That totally threw me off, and I'm definitely watching episode 2 to see what that was all about. Totally feels like a visual novel, too. It was odd and I'm still skeptical, but I bit the hook pretty well.




The best thing about Grisai is that each route for the female characters are well written. They all have emotional and great character driven stories which is also why I'm not sure how it's going to translate into an anime because as far as I am aware there is no "true route". They'll probably do a mixture of all of their stories while taking out the specific romance parts.

Also I like Yuuji the main character lol He's not all wimpy and he just seems like he's stoic on the outside. In game he has a lot of inner monologue which explains why he acts the way he does. He also has his own story that's pretty good, but it's explained more in the sequel.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Well, seeing how Clannad and Clannad: After Story are basically all of the VN routes put together, and seeing how exceptionally well the adaptation turned out, I suppose it could be done with Grisaia as well. Then again, Clannad _does_ have a true route, which is what happens in After Story (which is supposedly unlocked after you've beat all other routes). Having no true route, then, if Grisaia is successful, they might do what they're doing with Fate: adapt every route.

Also, I liked Yuuji, but that scene where he walked into the girl - boobs hanging in the air - and didn't even flinch even after all of her suggestive commentary... I was all "uuuggggghhhhh you cliche idiot, lay dat pipe already!" It didn't make me hate his character,  they certainly developed his character very well to be intriguing. It's just the first episode anyway. I haven't yet judged the show. Besides, I like your taste in anime, so I have a good level of confidence it'll turn out well.


----------



## bouVIP

For the record....Amane route has the most H-scenes lol


----------



## Alberto7

Just watched the first episode of *Shingeki no Bahamut*. Holy shit!  It looks like it'll be so f*cking metal.  No moe shit going on on this one (which is apparently the reason why it's been supposedly poorly received in Japan ). It was exactly what I was expecting, but with a totally unexpected humorous twist that fit like a glove. The scene with the random dog, in particular, killed me with laughter.  And GODDAMN that art and character designs!  The girl with the white/pink hair is one of the absolute most badass things I've seen on a first episode. And the animation is totally majestic, just as expected! Totally epic. Between this and _Fate/Stay Night_, I am sure that this season will be more exciting for me than this whole last year.

EDIT: some cool gifs















I also just read it being compared to _Pirates of the Caribbean_, and it really does feel like that with the kind of humour and all.


----------



## mrdm53

yep, Shingeki no Bahamut is on my top watch list. No moe shit, just pure action! the art looked like Space Dandy though, which is a minus for me.

have you try Garo? smooth CGI, just like when we watch real live action lol


----------



## Toshiro

Alberto7 said:


> Karen Senki... I guess it looked sort of cool from the trailer, but the exclusively CGI animation makes all of my red flags go up. It's good you're telling us that though, because I can change my expectations whenever I go into it, if I ever do.
> .



2nd episode was better than the first, at least the scenes seemed more connected. I still feel this would be better served as cutscenes in a JRPG than a stand alone series. There are far better things to watch, maybe I'll wait until the series is over and binge it for the overall plot.


----------



## wat

Watched _Chaos;Head_ and didn't really love it. I guess it was too highschool-y. I liked it okay, just didn't love it. The ending left me feeling good though.

Finally finished the Welcome To The NHK manga a few minutes ago.  Man, the anime was really different and the anime didn't really show how batshit crazy and manipulative Mikasi really is.

Even though a lot of the scenarios were much more well done (imo) in the anime, I like the manga slightly better mostly because the ending in the manga was just so genius and beautiful. Dat ending


----------



## Alberto7

mrdm53 said:


> yep, Shingeki no Bahamut is on my top watch list. No moe shit, just pure action! the art looked like Space Dandy though, which is a minus for me.
> 
> have you try Garo? smooth CGI, just like when we watch real live action lol



Haha yeah, the character design for Kaisar is practically the same as Dandy's.  Not only that, but they're both phabulous. Add into the mix the fact that Favaro is played by Hiroyuki Yoshino, who voices Meow in Space Dandy, and yeah. 

I haven't tried Garo yet, but it's on my watch list for tomorrow/after tomorrow.



Toshiro said:


> 2nd episode was better than the first, at least the scenes seemed more connected. I still feel this would be better served as cutscenes in a JRPG than a stand alone series. There are far better things to watch, maybe I'll wait until the series is over and binge it for the overall plot.



Yeah, usually when I binge-watch shows I enjoy them more, even if they're not all that great. It's simply because I don't have to wait a week for something that I didn't even like that much in the first place.



wat said:


> Watched _Chaos;Head_ and didn't really love it. I guess it was too highschool-y. I liked it okay, just didn't love it. The ending left me feeling good though.
> 
> Finally finished the Welcome To The NHK manga a few minutes ago.  Man, the anime was really different and the anime didn't really show how batshit crazy and manipulative Mikasi really is.
> 
> Even though a lot of the scenarios were much more well done (imo) in the anime, I like the manga slightly better mostly because the ending in the manga was just so genius and beautiful. Dat ending



Really? Huh, that is interesting. I had heard that the manga was different, but I don't know how different. Is the manga the same as the original novel? I'm curious now; I might have to read it some day.

Also, today I watched a few new first episodes:

_*Gugure! Kokkuri-san*_. t'was very meh. The first 4-5 minutes were funny, but it the devolved into using the same silly, overly cliche jokes over, and over, and over, and over again, and it becomes really dull really quickly. I dropped it halfway through. Besides, I never liked _Inu-Yasha_. 

*World Trigger*. This one was even worse. I hate narrator-given info-dumps, and this one does exactly that. That, and they give little to no justification for some of the crazy shit that happens. Even more annoying than that, the music made me feel like I was at some shitty club with a bunch of annoying people listening to shitty electronic music. The art and animation were simplistic, but in a bad way. Character designs are really dull and generic. A male version of Rei (from _Evangelion_) with white hair seems to be our protagonist. Their disproportionately large heads really irked me as well. Anyway, I just couldn't stomach it and dropped it 10 minutes in. It might get better later on, but I'd rather someone else watch it for me to find out if it does.

*Kiseijuu: Sei no Kakuritsu, a.k.a. Parasyte -the maxim-. *Now THIS is what _Tokyo Ghoul_ should have been like. This seems like it will satisfy my cravings for some gore anime (and it isn't censored at all!!!!! Finally!! !!!), and, at least the first episode, was very well written. Really interesting and cool premise. This is one of three anime that I will for sure follow this season (I still have to watch _Garo_, but I feel like I will like that as well).


----------



## wat

Alberto7 said:


> Really? Huh, that is interesting. I had heard that the manga was different, but I don't know how different. Is the manga the same as the original novel? I'm curious now; I might have to read it some day.



Yeah, there are some pretty big differences. I actually just finished the original light novel and all three are pretty different from eachother.  

The manga's ending is seriously great though...the feeling of it is like the Anime but just..MOAR. The final 2 frames give the perfect payoff IF you pay attention to all the details contained in the last picture.  Just perfect, really.


I started watching Fate/Zero last night. Totally awesome- i don't know why I was put off from starting it before.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Yeah, Fate/Zero is pure greatness. Given that the first episode is out, I think that if you want to watch F/SN, it's a good thing you're watching Fate/Zero first. Not because you won't understand F/SN, but because it gives more context and background to what is going on, which makes it that much more exciting.

-------------------------

I just watched the first episode of *Garo - The Animation.* I was a bit disappointed, to be honest. With MAPPA being the main studio behind this, and given their reputation and their other incredible-looking anime this season (_Shingeki no Bahamut)_, I was expecting higher quality. The CG doesn't look bad, but it doesn't look as good as I thought it would. It's also really easy to tell that the vast majority of budget went into the CG department, as the animation is pretty sub-par, and character design is... well, each character has a unique design, but they're very simplistic, and it's just not really my thing; other people will no doubt think differently. The combination of high-grade, fluid CG with the oddly simplistic art and animation are really disparate and jarring. As far as the plot itself, it seems quite interesting. It's like a nod to _Zorro_ (judging from the character's names) while placing it in the middle ages amidst a (literal) witch hunt. The writing was odd, but not bad. It is pretty f*cking metal, much like _Shingeki no Bahamut_, but, given the choice, I'd pick _Bahamut_ any day of the week.

It'll be a bit problematic following _Garo_ for me, I think. With how incredibly well done and promising _Fate/Stay Night, Shingeki no Bahamut, _and _Kiseijuu (Parasyte)_ look, _Garo_ pales a bit in comparison, despite looking like a good and promising show in its own right. I might take the time to watch a few more episodes and see how it pans out, or I'll just keep an eye on the fandom to see if it does end up delivering quality content.


----------



## bouVIP

New Psycho Pass omg so good. Really loving the opening and ending too since it's by the same people from last season.


----------



## Fat-Elf

I just found out there is a Sword Art Online movie...

WHY DIDN'T ANYONE TELL ME?!


----------



## bouVIP

Isn't it just like summary of season 1?


Also started Fate/Zero and now I remember how depressing Sakura's life is. God damn you Matou family. T_T


----------



## Alberto7

bouVIP said:


> Also started Fate/Zero and now I remember how depressing Sakura's life is. God damn you Matou family. T_T



Wait until the Heavens Feel movie gets released (or play the visual novel). Just uttering the word "Matou" will fill you with tenfold the disgust and blind rage that F/Z makes you feel.



Fat-Elf said:


> I just found out there is a Sword Art Online movie...
> 
> WHY DIDN'T ANYONE TELL ME?!



I didn't even know this existed ... although if it's just a recap of season 1, then screw it. I think I had enough of season 1, :lo: and season 2 I'll watch eventually... some time.


----------



## bouVIP

Spoiler



I know vaguely what that bastard bitch ass ....er Shinji does to her!!!!!




So finished episode one. I remember not finishing episode one before because I thought it was going to be full of talking and be boring, but boy was I wrong. 

The 1st episode is so great. I thought all of the exposition would be too much for me to pay attenion, but it really keeps you interested and locked in with how things began and develop. It explains the Holy Grail War and everyone's motivation well too. There was never a dull moment even though there weren't any fighting scenes or anything. Also the end of the episode holy crap was so freaking awesome!!!!



Spoiler



I didn't know about Kiritsugu being Ilya's father either...and her mom is pretty <3



and bonus adorable kid Rin












edit: Forgot to mention but I hated it when they showed adorable Rin scene and then right after they showed super depressing Sakura scene :/


----------



## Don Vito

Wait, is that Fate Zero? I don't remember that episode. I just watched the first episode of the new one whatever it's called, still dunno who anybody is but I liked it. Wat do


----------



## Fat-Elf

SAO 14.5

Does Japanese people have a memory of a goldfish or why the fug they keep making these pointless recap episodes?


----------



## Alberto7

^ They either a) need of some extra money for the following episodes, b) want to build up on hype, or c) all of the above. It's really shitty when that happens, especially where there is literally no break from one half of it to the other. Same thing happened with Attack on Titan. I totally skipped that episode. 



bouVIP said:


> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> I know vaguely what that bastard bitch ass ....er Shinji does to her!!!!!
> 
> 
> 
> 
> So finished episode one. I remember not finishing episode one before because I thought it was going to be full of talking and be boring, but boy was I wrong.
> 
> The 1st episode is so great. I thought all of the exposition would be too much for me to pay attenion, but it really keeps you interested and locked in with how things began and develop. It explains the Holy Grail War and everyone's motivation well too. There was never a dull moment even though there weren't any fighting scenes or anything. Also the end of the episode holy crap was so freaking awesome!!!!
> 
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> I didn't know about Kiritsugu being Ilya's father either...and her mom is pretty <3
> 
> 
> 
> and bonus adorable kid Rin
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> edit: Forgot to mention but I hated it when they showed adorable Rin scene and then right after they showed super depressing Sakura scene :/



Yeah, that first F/Z episode is fantastic. It's understandable why a lot of people don't like it though; it can feel like a huge info dump if you're not expecting it, but it does such a great job at giving out a lot of information while still keeping it interesting. Also, I can never get over the Saber twist by the end of it. 



Don Vito said:


> Wait, is that Fate Zero? I don't remember that episode. I just watched the first episode of the new one whatever it's called, still dunno who anybody is but I liked it. Wat do



Yep, that's from F/Z. I think it's from the first episode, but I could be wrong. It's from the scene where Kotomine is seeing little Rin and her mother off from the Tohsaka household.


----------



## bouVIP

Yea first episode closer to the end of the episode.

I've watched a few more episodes today (thank you slow day at work) and I love this series so much. The fight scenes are so awesome and the characters are great. F/Z Rider is so awesome! Way cooler than the 1 from F/SN.


----------



## mrdm53

bouVIP said:


> Yea first episode closer to the end of the episode.
> 
> I've watched a few more episodes today (thank you slow day at work) and I love this series so much. The fight scenes are so awesome and the characters are great. F/Z Rider is so awesome! Way cooler than the 1 from F/SN.



Come on, Iskandar was a BRO. Personally i like him because he was more humane than other character, including Masters. i laughed lot during early episodes with Waver in his supposed-to-be parents.


----------



## wat

I LOOOOOOVE F/Z.  Currently watching it a second time and picking up a lot of thing I missed ther first time around.

Rider is the man. I thought he was going to be annoying at first but he ended up being great. He has so many awesome quotes in this show. "If I defeat an enemy...you will buy me pants?" 


Not a rider quote but one of the most moving "war is hell" type quotes I've ever heard and it came from this show:



Spoiler



"And there you go. You heard her, Iri. Our Heroic Spirit over there considers a battlefield to be better than Hell. What a joke. A battlefield is Hell itself. There's no hope to be had on one. There is nothing but unspeakable despair. Just a souless crime we call victory, paid for by the pain of the defeated. But humanity has never recognized this truth. And the reason is that, in every era, a dazzling hero has blinded the people with their legends, and kept them from seeing the evil of bloodshed they bring. True human nature has not advanced a step beyond the Stone Age."


----------



## Alberto7

This thread is very Fate-oriented these days.This pleases me.

But yeah, Fate/Zero has some great quotes and dialogue in general. I also find that particular quote you posted to be one of the best ones in the show, if only because I do think it tries to address a real issue. I loved Rider's


Spoiler



"I did say this drink is as your blood. If you insist on spilling it..." and then proceeds to wreak havoc.


 Not to mention the whole of the Grail Dialogue episode (episode 10 or 11, not sure).



mrdm53 said:


> Come on, Iskandar was a BRO. Personally i like him because he was more humane than other character, including Masters. i laughed lot during early episodes with Waver in his supposed-to-be parents.



Broskandar is the shit. Other than being a coolio character (and perhaps the only little bit of comic relief in the entire show), I found his "let me convince you to make love, not war, or I'll f*ck you up" sort of thinking pretty interesting.


----------



## wat

^^I absolutely* loved* the contrast between Rider's and Saber's ways of thinking. 

Saber believes the ruler must sacrifice every bit of their self for the people and that a happy life is a privilege a good ruler doesn't get to enjoy.

Rider says it's not only a king's right, but a king's _duty_ even, to live more vividly and shine brighter than anyone else. And that a king who doesn't live life to the fullest is a fool.

Two ideals that are completely at odds with one another, yet both utterly convincing.

Saber's and Kiritsugu's clash of ideals is really great, too.


----------



## Alberto7

^ You got that exactly right. Honestly, the clash of ideals is the backbone of the entire Fate franchise (of the core franchise anyway). I'll spoil a good chink of the ending of F/Z and some of Fate/Stay Night (all routes, but mainly Heavens Feel) here, so don't open if you don't want to read it, but, regarding contrasting ideologies,


Spoiler



the change in Kiritsugu's way of thinking after the Lesser Grail is destroyed is the biggest philosophical foil to Shiro's ideals in Fate/Stay Night. He starts off similarly to Kiritsugu: trying to save everyone (with the difference that Shiro is our typical shonen hero who refuses to kill anybody). However, in the Heavens Feel route, he turns around that ideology completely in order to save what he finds most important, much like Kiritsugu after the Lesser Grail is destroyed).



If the current Unlimited Blade Works plays out well, and the dialogue is kept intact, there's a really interesting ideological battle coming.

PS: also, I just noticed we've made it 50 pages!  It's a proper megathread in true SSO fashion.  Thanks everyone for keeping this thread alive for so long, even though we're not too many. 



*EDIT:* I'll add onto this post this article that I found today, where the author briefly breaks down F/Z's 11'th episode, The Grail Dialogue. Honestly, I found it even better reading it than watching it, especially with all of the possible philosophical and political references that the author pointed out (some of which I had to look up, but were interesting nonetheless). That episode is such a great piece of writing.

(Beware of spoilers, obviously)
http://crusader888.blogspot.ca/2013/04/when-i-watch-anime-especially-classics.html


----------



## Toshiro

Fat-Elf said:


> I just found out there is a Sword Art Online movie...
> 
> WHY DIDN'T ANYONE TELL ME?!





Alberto7 said:


> I didn't even know this existed ... although if it's just a recap of season 1, then screw it. I think I had enough of season 1, :lo: and season 2 I'll watch eventually... some time.



It's a recap with some extras, worth watching if you're a complete-ist, but that's about it. This and the recent 14.5(ugh) would be good for fast forwarding someone you want to watch new episodes with though, without having to wait for them to catch up. 

Here's hoping the next villain isn't so cliche.


----------



## ferret

Kill la Kill done.
Gurren Lagann done.

What's next for me, gentlemen? On Netflix, original audio, decent subtitles, and preferably completed.


----------



## Don Vito

I've been playing Assassin's Creed 3 lately, and now I'm looking for anime with Native American themes. I've only found one series from the early 80's so far, and I remember seeing something called "Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet" that had some native looking character, but it's more of a sci-fi. Other than that, I've been re-watching Haruhi(as you could probably tell by my recent avatars), and damn, it's hitting me hard with nostalgia. Bad day? Just throw on some vintage Aya Hirano and put a smile on your face. Might have to re-watch Lucky Star next.

And I might have just gotten the new Levi Ackerman Figma for FREE. I'm pretty sure my situation is legal and 100% the dealer's fault, but my guilty conscious will probably end up returning him. 

If not, pics soon lol.



ferret said:


> Kill la Kill done.


That reminds me, I still need to check out the OVA.

edit: omg that ova was so stupid but awesome. only in anime can you see this kind of stuff.


----------



## Fat-Elf

"fatelfwillneverfinishklk"

Lol, I just noticed that and finished it today.


----------



## Alberto7

Don Vito said:


> And I might have just gotten the new *Levi Ackerman*...



I'm gonna come back to this later since I'm on my phone, but... why did you just say Levi 'Ackerman'...? ._.


----------



## ferret

Cause that's his name. They've never explained why he and Kenny share it though, other than the fact Kenny trained him.


----------



## Don Vito

He's an Ackerman, man.


----------



## bouVIP

So just watched episode 11 of Fate/Zero - Grail Dialogue and holy .... is it the best episode ever or what!? 

It was mostly talking between Archer, Rider, and Saber but it was so awesome haha. I especially loved the part where Rider just bitchslaps Saber's ideals for a king. This episode made me like Gilgamesh a lot more too, and the exchanges between him and Rider were so funny.



Spoiler



also the end where Rider shows off his epic Noble Phantasm was so sweet




Anyone watching anything in the current season?


I'm watching a bunch, but so far my favorites are Amagi Brilliant Park and Inou Battle Within Everyday Life. Plot for both of them are pretty run of the mill, but they're funny and I love the art for them. I especially like Inou Battle because adorable characters with epic super powers is always win for me.


----------



## Alberto7

I haven't watched any of those two, but I hear Amagi Brilliant Park is decent enough, though extremely different from anything Kyo Ani has done before. Inou Battle... I'd only watch it because it's Trigger, but I don't think I'd be very interested. I might give them a shot next time me and any one of my roommates are bored.

This season, my mains are Fate/Stay Night UBW (duh), Parasyte, and Shingeki no Bahamut. They all rock like you don't even know. Parasyte (Kiseijuu, in Japanese) is _exactly_ what Tokyo Ghoul should have been like.

I've watched the first episode of quite a few, but I haven't been a fan of most.

I watched Gugure! Kokkuri-san and didn't really like it. Recycled jokes get old fast.

Watched the first of World Trigger. It didn't pique my interests one bit.

Watched the first of Cross Ange, and I feel it had A LOT of wasted potential.

Watched the first one of Garo, and it was alright, but I don't think I'll follow it religiously.

Watched the first of Grisaia no Kajitsu, and, while it wasn't my favorite, it feels like there could be something big brewing in there. Also, I'm following bouVIP's recommendation on this one.

Gundam G-Reco looks absolutely gorgeous with its old school style Eureka 7 vibe, but I'm just watching it because of visuals.

I also watched Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso (a.k.a. Your Lie in April) and, while it wasn't bad, nor was it badly done, it was too cheesy for me to really care enough. The art and animation are wonderful though.

Terra Formars f*cking sucked, bad. I watched the first two episodes and that was it.

And that's it for this season. Still gotta watch Shirobako though!

Worth mentioning is that I watched the first 3 episodes of Gekkan Shojo Nozaki-kun (even though it's from the summer 2014 season) and... I just don't understand why people rave about it so much. It's not terrible, but there's just nothing to keep me there, and I wasn't a fan of the humour (I'm generally not a fan of anime humour anyway). I was bored out of my mind. Only reason I watched 3 episodes was because my roommate was watching with me, and she wanted to give it a chance. We both dropped it. The OP song freaking rules though!



ferret said:


> Cause that's his name. They've never explained why he and Kenny share it though, other than the fact Kenny trained him.





Don Vito said:


> He's an Ackerman, man.



I literally had no idea that was his last name. Mind you, I have only watched the anime; I haven't read any of the manga. The fact he shares the same name as Mikasa is mind-blowing to me. Also, I have no idea who this Kenny dude is  first thing to pop into my mind was South Park, but that obviously doesn't belong in this thread...  (unless we're talking about FLCL )


----------



## mrdm53

Alberto7 said:


> Watched the first of Cross Ange, and I feel it had A LOT of wasted potential.



patience is the key, buddy 

i do remember this kind of story just like ML:Alternative, where MC was just like Ange in terms of self-conciousness

and then reality bitchslapped him, and he turned into badass.

OMG i literally crying during DAT scene in ML:A...


----------



## ferret

Alberto7 said:


> I literally had no idea that was his last name. Mind you, I have only watched the anime; I haven't read any of the manga. The fact he shares the same name as Mikasa is mind-blowing to me. Also, I have no idea who this Kenny dude is  first thing to pop into my mind was South Park, but that obviously doesn't belong in this thread...  (unless we're talking about FLCL )



Well there you go... I've only read the manga and not watched the show, didn't know Mikasa was Ackerman too. So, wonder what the meaning behind it is suppose to be.... Maybe it's just a adopted last name for urchins/orphans?

I was going to start watching Blood+ last night, have heard about it in the past. However, despite Netflix claiming that the audio was Japanese with NO English track.... 5 minutes in the first character line was delivered in horrible English dub. Abort, abort.

Now watching instead....

Fate/Zero.


----------



## bouVIP

Alberto7 said:


> I haven't watched any of those two, but I hear Amagi Brilliant Park is decent enough, though extremely different from anything Kyo Ani has done before. Inou Battle... I'd only watch it because it's Trigger, but I don't think I'd be very interested. I might give them a shot next time me and any one of my roommates are bored.
> 
> 
> Worth mentioning is that I watched the first 3 episodes of Gekkan Shojo Nozaki-kun (even though it's from the summer 2014 season) and... I just don't understand why people rave about it so much. It's not terrible, but there's just nothing to keep me there, and I wasn't a fan of the humour (I'm generally not a fan of anime humour anyway). I was bored out of my mind. Only reason I watched 3 episodes was because my roommate was watching with me, and she wanted to give it a chance. We both dropped it. The OP song freaking rules though!



Anime comedy seems to be where are tastes differ haha. Most anime humor comes from the whole boke and tsukkomi thing which I love. Also the opening is amazing.


----------



## wat

ferret said:


> I was going to start watching Blood+ last night, have heard about it in the past. However, despite Netflix claiming that the audio was Japanese with NO English track.... 5 minutes in the first character line was delivered in horrible English dub. Abort, abort.
> 
> Now watching instead....
> 
> Fate/Zero.



I had the same experience with blood+. As soon as they started talking I was like NOOOOOO...

Fate/Zero is fukking amazing


----------



## Ikiharmaa

Alberto7 said:


> I also watched Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso (a.k.a. Your Lie in April) and, while it wasn't bad, nor was it badly done, it was too cheesy for me to really care enough. The art and animation are wonderful though.



I thought I'd give this a go since you said it has something going on for the art, and I've been on a roll with these kind of romance animes lately.. So I watched the first two episodes and it didn't make me cringe much and the production is a bit better than decent, so I think I'll try and keep watching it weekly. The shounen tag it has on mal kinda scares me though, but I might have misunderstood its meaning or they just can't tag.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Yeah, I was excited for that one since it looks really pretty, and I thought it was gonna touch a bit more upon the music aspect of things. The first episode, however, gave off the impression that the whole music thing is just a means to an end, with the end being what came across as a cheesy romance, and I'm not interested in that at the moment. I mean, I guess I can't judge it just yet, but I have enough as it is with following three anime (I've set that as a sort of limit for myself so that I can balance out anime and real life ). When there are a certain number of good, solid anime coming out in a single season, and having a limit as to how many I can watch, unless the first episode really grabs my attention, I'll drop it and pick it back up only if people rate it highly enough, or I might watch it on a whim at some point in the future.

Also, those tags I've found are just loose guidelines. Some times shows are completely different from what the tags describe. More often than not, reading the show's description and watching the trailer(s) gives me a good enough idea of what to expect.


----------



## bouVIP

So I just finished Fate/Zero season 1 and how could they end it there? Haha kind of glad I waited for both seasons to finish airing. Also this thread hyped me up so much for it (mostly Alberto7 ) and it did not disappoint. I love I so much.


Also Fate/Zero was made even more epic by the fact the opening is sung by my favorite Japanese singer LiSA, who sang the 1st openings of SAO and Mahouka and is also going to sing the next SAO II ending.


----------



## Don Vito

https://lainchan.org/player.php?v=/w/src/1409447540176.webm&t=a visits k.webm&loop=1

_"you talkin shit about my waifu?"_


----------



## Alberto7

bouVIP said:


> So I just finished Fate/Zero season 1 and how could they end it there? Haha kind of glad I waited for both seasons to finish airing. Also this thread hyped me up so much for it (mostly Alberto7 ) and it did not disappoint. I love I so much.
> 
> 
> Also Fate/Zero was made even more epic by the fact the opening is sung by my favorite Japanese singer LiSA, who sang the 1st openings of SAO and Mahouka and is also going to sing the next SAO II ending.




Haha it's kinda funny how a lot of people in this thread started watching it all of a sudden. I'm really glad you're liking it dude. I don't remember how season 1 ends; I've only ever watched it as a single set of episodes, and I didn't even know it was split into two seasons the first time I watched it.  Also, LiSa is pretty darn good. I like her music, and I really like her live voice; it sounds different, but still gives me the same chills her studio recordings do.



Don Vito said:


> https://lainchan.org/player.php?v=/w/src/1409447540176.webm&t=a%20visits%20k.webm&loop=1
> 
> _"you talkin shit about my waifu?"_



LOL I don't even know. That is a disturbingly scary man. 

-----------

Also, I'm beginning to hate the way they're ending episodes in the UBW anime. F*cking cliffhangers drive me up the walls making me wait for the next episode, even if I know exactly what will happen.  It reminds me of the reason I dropped Attack on Titan in the first place haha.


----------



## bouVIP

Spoiler



S1 ends right when Saber jumps to go fight Caster at the river



Also I am extremely broke and poor right now, but it did not stop me from ordering this







and Rin gif







edit: also caught up with SAO II today and Phantom Bullet Arc is a lot better animated than reading it haha. I <3 Sinon so I ordered this too.


----------



## Don Vito

bouVIP said:


> edit: also caught up with SAO II today and Phantom Bullet Arc is a lot better animated than reading it haha. I <3 Sinon so I ordered this too.


Where did you order this?


----------



## bouVIP

Don Vito said:


> Where did you order this?



I preordered it off of Jbox. It's being released in December.


----------



## Alberto7

Those are some really cool Nendoroids! Surprisingly, I like the Sinon one better than I do Saber's.  I think it's her eyes.

Last time I ordered, I ordered from Tokyo Otaku Mode as per some friends' recommendations, including my roommate. We've gotten packages from them at home, and they seem reliable. Also, their stock of figures is sick. I need mo' moneyz! I wanna get me dat foot-and-a-half of pure Eva greatness https://otakumode.com/shop/53e0572b735d6ebd6f00271c


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> Tokyo Otaku Mode


Oh I like this site. It's clean.


----------



## bouVIP

I love Sinon's eyes!! They look so cool.


That Eva model is so ....ing sick!!!! $431 though @[email protected]


----------



## Don Vito

I almost nearly dropped $300 on an Azone doll about a week ago. And then I realized there is a finite amount of money in my bank, and no one will feel sorry for me once it's gone.


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> Terra Formars f*cking sucked, bad. I watched the first two episodes and that was it.


I went back and watched the trailer you posted for no reason, and I actually wanted to watch it because the bug people were fvckin' LOLZ. Like I can't stop laughing every time I think about them. 

Btw, do you subscribe to a particular Youtube channel for anime trailers? I feel it might be a better way to keep up with things.

Sorry for the double post. I should have just edited the above, but it was too late.


----------



## Alberto7

LOL Terra Formars is so bad,  the roach people are really funny looking, but also quite disturbing in the same way as the titans from AoT were, though to a lesser extent.

I don't really subscribe to any channel for trailers per se. However, as far as online sources go, I just visit this website a lot AniChart.net - Interactive Seasonal Upcoming Anime Charts and I always listen to these guys on YouTube https://www.youtube.com/user/podtaku and I follow their individual channels and content as well. That is all enough to keep me up to date with new shows. For other anime-related news, sometimes I visit the ANN forums and news site (where I also _sometimes_ post).

But yeah, I don't think I'm ever spending $300 on a figure, to be honest.  I haven't gotten to that stage yet, and kind of don't want to ever get there...


----------



## Don Vito

Lol, there is no way in hell I'm actually going to watch it. It was only a good laugh for a moment. 

Idk why I even asked for a way to keep up with the current anime, when I could just easily read your posts on here.

And dolls are just a whole different ballpark from figures and stuff. It's pretty common for doll collectors(who are a strange bunch I don't mind saying) to spend upwards of $200+ on their purchases. 
Amazon.com: [The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya] Suzumiya Haruhi (1/3 scale Doll) JAPAN: Toys & Games

_"Your rent money is mine, your bodily resouces are mine, your soul is mine."_

edit:


----------



## bouVIP

wat said:


> Not a rider quote but one of the most moving "war is hell" type quotes I've ever heard and it came from this show:
> 
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> "And there you go. You heard her, Iri. Our Heroic Spirit over there considers a battlefield to be better than Hell. What a joke. A battlefield is Hell itself. There's no hope to be had on one. There is nothing but unspeakable despair. Just a souless crime we call victory, paid for by the pain of the defeated. But humanity has never recognized this truth. And the reason is that, in every era, a dazzling hero has blinded the people with their legends, and kept them from seeing the evil of bloodshed they bring. True human nature has not advanced a step beyond the Stone Age."



I just got to this episode and this scene was so great, and the scene leading up to it was so brutal and epic >_< GODDAMN I LOVE FATE/ZERO




Spoiler



OMG the scene where Waver uses all of his command spells made me tear up T_T Iskander is the best


----------



## Alberto7

Don Vito said:


> Lol, there is no way in hell I'm actually going to watch it. It was only a good laugh for a moment.
> 
> Idk why I even asked for a way to keep up with the current anime, when I could just easily read your posts on here.
> 
> And dolls are just a whole different ballpark from figures and stuff. It's pretty common for doll collectors(who are a strange bunch I don't mind saying) to spend upwards of $200+ on their purchases.
> Amazon.com: [The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya] Suzumiya Haruhi (1/3 scale Doll) JAPAN: Toys & Games
> 
> _"Your rent money is mine, your bodily resouces are mine, your soul is mine."_
> 
> edit:



OOOHHH those dolls; the ball-jointed ones! Yeah, those dolls are crazy expensive (and pretty f*cking creepy as well ). My sister has been wanting one of those for the last couple of years already, and I know this one cosplayer chick that has two BJD's that she dresses up and puts make up and what not... I don't really know her well at all, but she comes across as a really odd person, and she looks exactly like a doll as well, but she's cool. 



bouVIP said:


> I just got to this episode and this scene was so great, and the scene leading up to it was so brutal and epic >_< GODDAMN I LOVE FATE/ZERO
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> OMG the scene where Waver uses all of his command spells made me tear up T_T Iskander is the best



PREACH IT, BROTHER!








Also, this is so f*cking hilarious  (it's a doujinshi, so no worries about spoilers)





MY VAG000!! And that last frame!


----------



## Don Vito

*sigh* They'll figure it out one day.





Also, Rider is best waifu.


----------



## bouVIP

I've actually seen that doujin a long time ago lol 

Also just finished Fate/Zero

and to keep it short ....ING AMAZING...



Spoiler



SO GLAD that they gave Waver a happy ending, but poor Rin and Ilya T_T. Also Kiritsugu. Great ending for him.




Already late, but going to start UBW anyways and pretty much said screw work, school, sleep and life cause going to start F/SN VN soon.


----------



## mrdm53

Saddest character in F/Z? it's Sakura for god's sake...

play the VN for the details, especially Heaven's Feel route


----------



## Alberto7

^ Sure, Sakura is probably the most broken character I've ever heard of. But they just had to make her so.f*cking.ANNOYING. (in the visual novel anyways) Hearing her voice is like having a sharp needle being thrust into my brain through my ears. She becomes more bearable throughout the last 3/4 to 1/2 of HF though. I already hate her in the UBW anime, and she's only in like three scenes.  She's an extremely interesting character, nonetheless.


----------



## Don Vito

Man, I've been nostalgia-ing over Dragonball Z lately. What an awful show, especially once you hear Goku's Japanese VA lmfao. It's still fun to go back and watch all of those famous, and LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONG fight scenes though. And the OST is surprisingly awesome. Never even noticed the music until now. Dat Cell theme. DBZ-Gohan Vs Cell {Full Fight} (1080p HD) - YouTube

I had the newest DBZ movie ready for viewing today, as well as Evangelion(I guess I'm stuck in the 90's atm), but I got side tracked with other shit, so I'll have to watch them tomorrow, along with catching up to SAO II.


----------



## wat

bouVIP said:


> I just got to this episode and this scene was so great, and the scene leading up to it was so brutal and epic >_< GODDAMN I LOVE FATE/ZERO
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> OMG the scene where Waver uses all of his command spells made me tear up T_T Iskander is the best



Same here, big time feels.


----------



## bouVIP

Alberto7 said:


> ^ Sure, Sakura is probably the most broken character I've ever heard of. But they just had to make her so.f*cking.ANNOYING. (in the visual novel anyways) Hearing her voice is like having a sharp needle being thrust into my brain through my ears. She becomes more bearable throughout the last 3/4 to 1/2 of HF though. I already hate her in the UBW anime, and she's only in like three scenes.  She's an extremely interesting character, nonetheless.



Oh man I used to hate her in the F/SN anime since Saber is the true waifu and Rin is the true mistress, but now that I know how depressing she is I just feel bad. Every time I see her in the UBW anime, I'm just like aw :\


----------



## Don Vito

Don Vito said:


> I had the newest DBZ movie ready for viewing today


That. Sucked.

Like, I am appalled at how lame that movie was. It's called BATTLE OF THE ....ING GODS. Nobody died, nobody got constipated, and the actual battle was shorter than a level 100 Mewtwo fighting a Pidgey outside of Pallet Town.

This was about as entertaining as it got.


Evangelion up next, hopefully it's better 

In manga news, I have been enjoying Yotsuba. I am painfully out of date. The Gen 1 Pokemon reference isn't helping.


----------



## MFB

I watched like, 5 minutes of the Goku vs. Bills fight on YT, and like anything that features the name "Bills" it disappointed. Seriously, no traditional DBZ fighting, just monologues and Goku complaining about being a SS God because it can't achieve it on his own (even though he couldn't achieve SS4 on his own either)


----------



## Ikiharmaa

Don Vito said:


> Evangelion up next, hopefully it's better



Speaking of which, has anyone seen "Top wo Nerae! Gunbuster"? From what I've read about it, I'm guessing I might end up liking it more than NGE. That is just a guess though, but I'm interested.


----------



## Don Vito

Ikiharmaa said:


> Speaking of which, has anyone seen "Top wo Nerae! Gunbuster"? From what I've read about it, I'm guessing I might end up liking it more than NGE. That is just a guess though, but I'm interested.


I've been curious about this ever since I found a figure from it's spin off_ Diebuster_ at a thrift store. They're both only 6 episodes, but I had trouble finding a working download/seed for Diebuster, and I really don't want to order the DVD's online. 

Speaking of which, I found this interesting FLCL related tidbit on the wikipedia entry for Diebuster.

*"The art style of the show is drastically different from the 1988 original Gunbuster. Director Kazuya Tsurumaki, scriptwriter Yoji Enokido, producer Hironori Sato, and character designer Yoshiyuki Sadamoto all previously worked together on the anime FLCL. This is reflected in both the artistic style and in thematic elements. They also appear to be set in a similar universe.[original research?] The Fraternity, mentioned in FLCL, is one of the chief entities in Diebuster.

Regarding the show's influences, Tsurumaki said, "Since I'm directing the show, you know there's going to be some FLCL-ishness&#8230; [We] all have differing opinions on how this new series should go. Sato likes hot-blooded sports shows, while Enokido wants to do a story about an average boy coming to realize his own weaknesses and fighting to make a better life for himself, like in Evangelion and Nadia. What I want to do is combine a bunch of technical sci-fi concepts with an indescribably weird mood."*


----------



## Toshiro

Considering Gunbuster was the first anime with boob-jiggle....  It's VERY 80s though, so do not expect modern.

Might wanna youtube EP1 before spending too much time wondering: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7VrDl1RRoaw

Also, I feel like Anno kills shows he's involved with for too long, like the last parts of Nadia and NGE. The NGE movie reboots do no have this issue, and Gunbuster was short enough on it's own to avoid it, IMO.


----------



## ferret

Don't hate me... I didn't get deep into Fate/Zero yet.

Nostalgic feelings called me back to an old favorite, Fullmetal Alchemist.


----------



## Don Vito

Toshiro said:


> Considering Gunbuster was the first anime with boob-jiggle....  It's VERY 80s though, so do not expect modern.
> 
> Might wanna youtube EP1 before spending too much time wondering: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7VrDl1RRoaw


Workin' on that six pack.


----------



## Alberto7

Ok, I'll get back to you guys some time tomorrow or after, but have any of you watched the 3rd F/SN UBW episode yet?!  That was one of the best animated fights that I have ever seen, holy shit!!  They actually changed, how that fight happens quite a bit, and revealed some things and hinted at others way before they do in the visual novel. Also, as has been noted elsewhere, it begins to become more and more obvious that UBW is, indeed, pretty much a direct sequel to F/Z, since it's been trying pretty hard to tie into it, which I think is awesome (as long as the main storyline doesn't suffer because of it). I'm VERY curious to see how they handle it in the following episodes.

EDIT: this was me watching this episode





... and it isn't even the best part yet.


----------



## bouVIP

Just watched and HOLY .... is this really only episode 3?!?!? SO much epicness already!!! also tiny and evil adorable Ilya <3


and 2nd best <3


----------



## Don Vito

I was watching Gurren Lagann last night and noticed this.











Turns out, both shows share the same director.

Ironically, he also worked on the 3 anime I mentioned on the last page: FLCL, Evangelion, and Diebuster, as he used to work for Gainax before Trigger.


----------



## mrdm53

well, i never been so PISSED OFF while reading any anime/manga/VN etc2, unless it was either very awesome or chaotic

but damn, i never expected this particular manga had manage to made me mad.

Damn you Seo Kouji, seriously.


----------



## MFB

Started watching Gurren Laggan, it's OK. So far it hasn't done any of the traditional anime tropes that I despise, with the exception/one that'll never go away: the scantily clad female companion. Seriously, Yoko's outfit reminds me of Quiet from the new MGS.


----------



## bouVIP

mrdm53 said:


> well, i never been so PISSED OFF while reading any anime/manga/VN etc2, unless it was either very awesome or chaotic
> 
> but damn, i never expected this particular manga had manage to made me mad.
> 
> Damn you Seo Kouji, seriously.



Just read this new chapter and I STILL CAN'T BELIEVE IT >_<!!!!!!!!!! WHAT THE ....!?!?!?!??!!?


----------



## Alberto7

ferret said:


> Don't hate me... I didn't get deep into Fate/Zero yet.
> 
> Nostalgic feelings called me back to an old favorite, Fullmetal Alchemist.



I won't hate you. I might stop liking you, but I won't hate you. 

...  seriously though, I hear FMA is pretty damn incredible (I've yet to see any of the two anime D: ...), and when there is nostalgia involved, it's hard to get in the way of that.



bouVIP said:


> Just watched and HOLY .... is this really only episode 3?!?!? SO much epicness already!!! also tiny and evil adorable Ilya <3
> 
> 
> and 2nd best <3



All I have been doing since this episode came out is work and watch this episode every break I get. It's too f*cking perfect for all the good reasons. Unlimited Budget Works, based ufotable.



Don Vito said:


> I was watching Gurren Lagann last night and noticed this.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Turns out, both shows share the same director.
> 
> Ironically, he also worked on the 3 anime I mentioned on the last page: FLCL, Evangelion, and Diebuster, as he used to work for Gainax before Trigger.



Yeah, that's the reason Kill la Kill had such huge initial success. People knew that Trigger was going to be very Gainax-like due to the staff involved. That, and Little Witch Academia, of course, which is pretty amazing, despite the story itself being pretty generic; it's very (classic)Disney/Ghibli-ish in its tone.



mrdm53 said:


> well, i never been so PISSED OFF while reading any anime/manga/VN etc2, unless it was either very awesome or chaotic
> 
> but damn, i never expected this particular manga had manage to made me mad.
> 
> Damn you Seo Kouji, seriously.



Who is this Seo Kouji person you speak of? I found a few works associated with him, but I didn't know any of them.

Also, have you watched School Days by any chance? Now that's a show to piss you THE F_U_CK off (it pissed me the f_u_ck off anyway ). It does have the most satisfying ending of any anime ever though, even if it is still the worst/most hateable anime I've ever watched.



MFB said:


> Started watching Gurren Laggan, it's OK. So far it hasn't done any of the traditional anime tropes that I despise, with the exception/one that'll never go away: the scantily clad female companion. Seriously, Yoko's outfit reminds me of Quiet from the new MGS.



I haven't watched it, but I thought GL was popular for having all of the anime tropes that people love to hate and making them enjoyable. Like it's typical anime taken to the extreme, to put it that way.


----------



## Don Vito

I really can't get into Gurren Lagann for some reason. It's not bad, and I can definitely trace it forwards to Kill la Kill. Similar-ish art styles, over the top, gotta believe in myself to get stronger, ect..



MFB said:


> I watched a video recently about all the new animes of 2013 and Kill LA Kill just seems too ...self-aware that it's an anime.



Yeah, this


----------



## mrdm53

bouVIP said:


> Just read this new chapter and I STILL CAN'T BELIEVE IT >_<!!!!!!!!!! WHAT THE ....!?!?!?!??!!?



yeah, that sucks man, 37 chapters just for prologue?! then why he bother to make the main heroine's name as title in the first place if he want to **** her off in latest chapter?





Alberto7 said:


> Who is this Seo Kouji person you speak of? I found a few works associated with him, but I didn't know any of them.
> 
> Also, have you watched School Days by any chance? Now that's a show to piss you THE F_U_CK off (it pissed me the f_u_ck off anyway ). It does have the most satisfying ending of any anime ever though, even if it is still the worst/most hateable anime I've ever watched.



ever heard of Suzuka? Kimi no Iru Machi? he's the mangaka


School Days? i laughed a lot on that nice boat ending  perfect ending


----------



## bouVIP

mrdm53 said:


> yeah, that sucks man, 37 chapters just for prologue?! then why he bother to make the main heroine's name as title in the first place if he want to **** her off in latest chapter?
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> ever heard of Suzuka? Kimi no Iru Machi? he's the mangaka
> 
> 
> School Days? i laughed a lot on that nice boat ending  perfect ending



Right? I mostly feel sad for Suzuka :\ and what an ass move throwing in a cameo in that chapter...



edit: OMFG YES YES YES They just announced Shokugeki no Soma anime!!! It's a cooking manga and one of my current favorite ones to read. The story is unique enough and the art is ....ing beautiful, like even better than Nisekoi quality.

http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/new...rs-shokugeki-no-soma-tv-anime-for-2015/.80442


----------



## mrdm53

Prepare for more porn. After ordinary porn, we have Guitar Porn, then Food Porn! Nikumin FTW


----------



## Dusty Chalk

Sorry to derail slightly, but I thought this might be the place to ask -- any one deadly with Japantrendshop.com? Respectable? I want to get the Korg Miku, and they show up early in the googly search.

EDIT: deadly? I think I meant 'familiar'...


----------



## wat

ferret said:


> Don't hate me... I didn't get deep into Fate/Zero yet.
> 
> Nostalgic feelings called me back to an old favorite, Fullmetal Alchemist.



I need to watch Fullmetal Alchemist. Someon told me not to even bother with the original and just watch Brotherhood. Sup with that?

I watched the first two episodes of each and wasn't grabbed by either honestly.


----------



## mrdm53

wat said:


> I need to watch Fullmetal Alchemist. Someon told me not to even bother with the original and just watch Brotherhood. Sup with that?
> 
> I watched the first two episodes of each and wasn't grabbed by either honestly.



yes. don't bother with the original and stick to Brotherhood, since the original has different ending, where Brotherhood stays faithfully with manga, even better.

edit:
on the other hand i highly recommend ShiroBako if you really want to know behind the scene in every anime production


----------



## MFB

Man, GL got really depressing at episode 8


----------



## bouVIP

wat said:


> I need to watch Fullmetal Alchemist. Someon told me not to even bother with the original and just watch Brotherhood. Sup with that?
> 
> I watched the first two episodes of each and wasn't grabbed by either honestly.



I second what mrdm53 said. Just watch Brotherhood and it starts off a bit slow, but it gets really good as it goes on. 




So kind of sort of not really off topic, but I wanted a bass so I decided to makes a parts project....let's just say Blue, Chrome, and Gold are part of the theme


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> Started watching Barakamon. SO ADORABLE. It's also absolutely hysterical and full of personality so far. It should be very relatable for a lot of us, too, given that it's about a professional calligrapher who constantly puts in doubt his own skills and struggles to find inspiration to continue his art. Very laid back and chilled out slice of life. I'm barely on episode 4, and I can already sense the emptiness I'll feel once it finishes airing.


I really wish I hadn't waited so long to watch this. It's not a Fall/Winter feeling anime, that's for sure. Still makes me smile though.


----------



## Alberto7

bouVIP said:


> I second what mrdm53 said. Just watch Brotherhood and it starts off a bit slow, but it gets really good as it goes on.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> So kind of sort of not really off topic, but I wanted a bass so I decided to makes a parts project....let's just say Blue, Chrome, and Gold are part of the theme



I hate you.  I'm thinking of making my next guitar a Carvin (eventually though; I don't have the money for it now), and I wanted to make it a blue flamed top (or quilted, I'm not sure which one would fit the theme better) SCB6 with chrome hardware and lots of maple-y goodness.


----------



## bouVIP

Alberto7 said:


> I hate you.  I'm thinking of making my next guitar a Carvin (eventually though; I don't have the money for it now), and I wanted to make it a blue flamed top (or quilted, I'm not sure which one would fit the theme better) SCB6 with chrome hardware and lots of maple-y goodness.



That would be pretty sick especially with a quilted maple top cause definite Lady of the Lake reference there. I got some pretty cool ideas for mine, but not sure how much I'll be able to do. Command Seal engraved neck plate though...that is hopefully happening.



Also OT 


anyone watch the Monogatari series? I love it even though sometimes it gets hella awkward with the bro/sis stuff...


----------



## mrdm53

bouVIP said:


> That would be pretty sick especially with a quilted maple top cause definite Lady of the Lake reference there. I got some pretty cool ideas for mine, but not sure how much I'll be able to do. Command Seal engraved neck plate though...that is hopefully happening.
> 
> 
> 
> Also OT
> 
> 
> anyone watch the Monogatari series? I love it even though sometimes it gets hella awkward with the bro/sis stuff...



why don't you make Saber theme Bass, with maple fingerboard, silver bluish top and excalibur inlay 

OT

BakeMonogatari was the best, after that it went downhill for me


----------



## Ikiharmaa

mrdm53 said:


> BakeMonogatari was the best, after that it went downhill for me



Indeed, one of the six shows I've given 10/10. Lovely pacing and brilliant mood to it. It's not like the second season and the rest were bad at all, the opposite really, but obviously they haven't had as big of an impact or nearly as memorable moments. That said I still need to watch hanamonogatari though. I'll get it to at some point.


Anyways, I really just came to say that I'm quite fond of the manhwa/webcomic format (from what little experience I have with it). I enjoy manga too, but it's very refreshing to read something stylishly colored and something that's designed to be read from a screen every now and then. And this is just so cute:


----------



## Don Vito

Ikiharmaa said:


> Anyways, I really just came to say that I'm quite fond of the manhwa/webcomic format (from what little experience I have with it). I enjoy manga too, but it's very refreshing to read something stylishly colored and something that's designed to be read from a screen every now and then.


Got any links/recs?


----------



## bouVIP

I've only finished up to Nisemonogatari, but I thought it was a great season....though I am Tsukihi biased.



@Don Vito

you can read find some at mangahere.com

I'd also reccomend The Gamer

It's a manhwa about a kid who's life becomes like a game. Pretty good.

The Gamer Manga - Read The Gamer Online at MangaHere.co


----------



## Ikiharmaa

Don Vito said:


> Got any links/recs?



Like I said I only have very little experience, I've only read "fairytale for the demon lord", "the friendly winter", and "girls of the wild's", from which the cute picture is from. They are all completely different from each other though, but I enjoyed them all. I usually read from batoto since they seem to have the best image quality by far, which I think is damn essential. I'm probably superpicky about the visuals though, which keeps me off from a lot of manga too. Idk if it's just me, but it seems more care is put into all those doujinshis than into actual mangas... Sometimes I think I might be better off just reading whatever vanilla is found on fakku.

A Fairytale for the Demon Lord - vol 1 | Batoto!

I don't think I'm really fit to recommend anything though, I don't know anything about the scene.


edit: nooo, bou-bou  It's all about Senjougahara! and Shinobu!


----------



## bouVIP

I love Senjougahara and Shinobu (which is also why Nisemonogatari was awesome) and also Kanbaru


----------



## Ikiharmaa

you should watch season 2 at some point, just saying :3


----------



## bouVIP

Planning to after I finish Nekomonogatari Kuro and No Game No Life.


----------



## Don Vito

bouVIP said:


> I love Senjougahara and Shinobu (which is also why Nisemonogatari was awesome) and also Kanbaru


Diabeetus-chan <3


----------



## myrtorp

I just finished Kill la kill. It was alright I guess. The plot didnt do much for me but it has that over the top humour and manages to be serious despite all the unserious things going on, and nice animations!

I have a few animes on my watch list, but seeing the praise for Fate/Zero i think that might my my next one


----------



## bouVIP

^DO IT!


New episode of UBW! No fight scenes this time, but it was still so beautiful lol. Preview for next episode makes it seem like it's about to get really epic.

Also so many awesome scenes of my waifu.


----------



## Alberto7

bouVIP said:


> ^DO IT!
> 
> 
> New episode of UBW! No fight scenes this time, but it was still so beautiful lol. Preview for next episode makes it seem like it's about to get really epic.
> 
> Also so many awesome scenes of *my waifu*.



I will fight you.


----------



## Dusty Chalk

*Shigurui: Death Frenzy* -- classic honorable fighters vs. apparently dishonorable up-and-comers story, delightfully ultraviolent during the actual matches. Only an episode or two in.

I actually don't have a lot of experience with anything other than mainstream anime and manga, so would appreciate qual suggestions -- I've seen GITS:SAC, need to finish Last Exile, will start Fate/Zero. Really not interested in Knights of Cidonia. Blood+? Loved Kite and Blood and Mezzo Forte and Jin-Roh: Wolf Brigade...

Read (and enjoyed) Battle Royale, Crying Freeman, Berzerk (up to a point, need to resume), Blade of the Immortal (ditto). Leaving out all the one-shots and not-so-hots that I started and never finished and/or have no intention of finishing. Not reading any manga right now; suggestions? Thinking of Darker than Black.


----------



## bouVIP

Alberto7 said:


> I will fight you.



Bring it


----------



## Don Vito

Look boys, I wanna see a good clean fight. No twin tail pulling, no concealed eye patch lasers, and I don't wanna hear anyone calling anyone a baka.

You will be allowed one 5 minute break to restore your mana.

Good luck.


----------



## Alberto7

bouVIP said:


> Bring it



Cute.








Don Vito said:


> Look boys, I wanna see a good clean fight. No twin tail pulling, no concealed eye patch lasers, and I don't wanna hear anyone calling anyone a baka.
> 
> You will be allowed one 5 minute break to restore your mana.
> 
> Good luck.



I'm not even going to ask how we're going to restore our mana...


----------



## bouVIP

Alberto7 said:


> Cute.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I'm not even going to ask how we're going to restore our mana...




so gay...


----------



## mrdm53

bouVIP said:


> so gay...



talk about gay, it seems that recent chapter of Fuuka has turns MC into real gay


----------



## bouVIP

mrdm53 said:


> talk about gay, it seems that recent chapter of Fuuka has turns MC into real gay




God I was hoping for more development. It's going too slow lol


Also random Sinon gif


----------



## MFB

I feel like Gurren Lagann suffers from the same point as SAO, where the series is only one season and there's a mid-way point where it switches gears; but it feels like it'd be better flushed out with one bad guy for 26 episodes, then a breather, and a second season focusing on the new villains leading to a build up and conflict. It's not bad, but I just don't care as much about the Anti-Spirals coming to Earth and everything as much as I did with the Lordgenome fight.


----------



## tm20

finished reading Akira a few weeks ago, and of all the books, movies, comics etc this has to be one of the most amazing. The whole time my soundtrack to it was Joshua Travis' instrumental stuff on his soundcloud, as well as some Glasscloud. His music just suits the story and the different scenes so well.


----------



## Fat-Elf

I've been watching a lot of this lately.


----------



## Don Vito

Don Vito said:


> Big O was a childhood favorite of mine, and I've been meaning to re-watch it all these years, because it seems like something I could get into even today.


I was right. This show is just as awesome from when I was a kid, but I can actually appreciate the narrative now. It's a bit like Batman, but Batman(Roger) has a giant mech and a qt. android assistant. Dorothy figma inbound. 

My only real complaint so far is that most of the mech fights I've seen so far have been a little short and anti-climactic. Big O is op as fvck. lol.

okay, one more edit



Alberto7 said:


> Hah, it's funny. I thought the anime had fantastic art and animation; they definitely had someone who knew what they were doing when it came to budget allocation (and it was, by no means, a small budget). In contrast, one of the reasons I haven't bothered with the manga (other than I'm not much of a manga reader to begin with) was that I found the art to be inferior to the anime. I know I could get over it if I began reading the manga, but I haven't been willing to put in the effort.


I was reading SnK yesterday. A wild Armin appeared.


----------



## wat

Started watching _Fate/Stay night_. So glad to have more Fate/ in my life. 

I finished_ Arpeggio of Blue Steel_ the other day and it's pretty cool. Doesn't pack the emotional punch of Fate/ or Attack on Titan but it's cool sci-fi with a neat take on Artificial Intelligence and the submarine battles are really cool. Awesome tactics.




bouVIP said:


> God I was hoping for more development. It's going too slow lol
> 
> Also random Sinon gif



Sinon is super cute. Kind of in a similar way to Saber.

I just found out there was another season of SAO last night and started watching. Pretty neat. This is kind of a "one-watch" kind of show for me but it's perfect for that one watch.



Don Vito said:


> I was reading SnK yesterday. A wild Armin appeared.



Haha i finally got current with the snk manga the other day. Not sure if i wanna start something new or re-read SNK or Sidonia again just so i can soak in more details. 

Anyway, it actually made me sad when Armin said what he said right before that pic...what he said was insightful as always which is part of what makes it sad but man, he and the other characters are growing up and changing so fast.


----------



## bouVIP

Saw this on twitter...thought it was funny and appropriate for this site/thread.


----------



## Dusty Chalk

What, no Korg Kaoss Pad?


----------



## Alberto7

bouVIP said:


> Saw this on twitter...thought it was funny and appropriate for this site/thread.



This made my night. Thank you.


----------



## mrdm53

bouVIP said:


> Saw this on twitter...thought it was funny and appropriate for this site/thread.
> 
> https://pbs.twimg.com/media/B198x1FCYAE2MPz.jpg
> 
> https://pbs.twimg.com/media/B1hY19-CQAAbAYw.jpg
> 
> https://pbs.twimg.com/media/B1cZ6sSCEAAw_-a.jpg
> 
> https://pbs.twimg.com/media/B1CZmK5IQAEfDau.jpg



1st we have airplane musume, then gundam musume, then gun musume etc2. this, gonna make my day 

too bad i never owned them, currently GASing for IRT studio 

anyway whose art is this? i want to share in my FB timeline


----------



## Ikiharmaa

mrdm53 said:


> anyway whose art is this? i want to share in my FB timeline



It says @kumahina at the bottom left of every picture, dude. It'd be weird if that wasn't the artist.


Also, I just read My Girl and I rather loved it. I've read an another manga from the same author before and that was really nice as well. The art is beautiful and the stories are touching. Super-recommended.

http://bato.to/read/_/19813/watashitachi-no-shiawase-na-jikan_ch1_by_storm-in-heaven
http://bato.to/read/_/46441/my-girl-sahara-mizu_v1_ch1_by_storm-in-heaven


----------



## Fat-Elf

Finished this anime called "ImoCho - Another Shitty Sister Manga Adaptation" a couple of days ago. First ecchi anime that I've actually finished. It was surprisingly good. The characters were likeable and it actually had a plot (....ed up though). I'd recommend it.

If this doesn't get you sold then I don't know what would:


----------



## Don Vito

ImoCho is probably my AOTY, and I haven't even finished it yet.

Would have given it 10 lewd thoughts out of 10 if it was uncensored.


----------



## bouVIP

So I've been watching Grisai and not a fan of how they're condensing all the routes. They do a somewhat decent job of explaining the back stories for each character, but they cut out so much of the details and the pace loses the impact of the original stories. Also taking out the romance aspects makes Yuuji seem like a creep more than a main character especially with the lack of inner monologue so you can understand why he does things. It's good for people who have played it as a sort of fan service deal, but not a good standalone anime.

They also really butchered Yumiko's story and changed it a lot....no bueno.


On a more positive note, I finished Barakmon. Amazing is all I have to say.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Just finished B Gata H Kei, which was fvcking great. The 90´s/early 00´s character design kinda put me off at first but I learned to like it and it was actually pretty refreshing for a chance. Literally one of the funniest, or pretty much one of the handful of animes that have actually made laugh out loud.


----------



## bouVIP

So not 100% done cause I need to get the pickguard painted and a few other things, but I'll just leave this here

Saber Bassu~


----------



## wat

Fate/Stay Night finished. Right in the feels. 

When Saber


Spoiler



went back to her time, did she really think that it was all a dream?  Also, did she die when she decided to have excalibur thrown back into the lake or did she just go back to sleep?




Now on to unlimited blade works. Is the movie the same as the series, just all the episodes streamlined into one?


----------



## Alberto7

^ Wait, you watched the 2006 F/SN anime or played the VN? If you did the former, then go back and read the visual novel.  To answer your question though,


Spoiler



yeah, Saber does die... :'( she has finally accomplished her life goal and she is relieved of her burden and is finally let rest in peace. I cried bitch tears at the end of the _Fate_ route. Also, I'm not sure she thinks it was all dream. Maybe she does, I'm not sure. After all, her own reality is the time when she dies; anything else she went through was a trial on a different reality/timeline. She might as well have interpreted everything as a mere dream where she was set with challenges. But whatever, at least she did get with Shiro, which is all I wanted on that front. 



The UBW movie is basically 20-30 hours of reading compressed into a 2-hour movie. It's terribly mangled together, and it does not serve its purpose. If you have not read the Unlimited Blade Works route of the visual novel, don't even bother with the film, as you won't understand anything. They just get the fight sequences, animated them (quite prettily, admittedly, though not as good as the series), and cut out the plot. Also, the most important fight (which is really long in the VN) was watered down to nothing. I'd just watch the series, really; ufotable's current adaptation of UBW is, so far, absolutely brilliant.


----------



## Dusty Chalk

Fat-Elf said:


>


Thanks, my mind went full retard with that gif.


----------



## wat

I watched the 2006 anime. Yeah I'll need to find a way to get ahold of the VN. From what I've read the 2006 anime attempts to shoe-horn the other 2 routes in as well and makes it kind of a mess. I hope I haven't messed up my experience with this series this way. 

I just realized UBW is actually still airing which would explain there only being a few episodes on Hulu. Because of that I thought maybe it was a really short series that they made into a movie. I'll avoid the movie then. I was seriously gonna watch it tomorrow under that assumption  Sounds like I avoided a disaster


----------



## mrdm53

bouVIP said:


> So not 100% done cause I need to get the pickguard painted and a few other things, but I'll just leave this here
> 
> Saber Bassu~



where's da excalibur? without it you can't claim that bass is Saber-theme

oh wait, dont forget about legendary ahoge, or else prepare for Saber Alter's incoming


----------



## bouVIP

mrdm53 said:


> where's da excalibur? without it you can't claim that bass is Saber-theme
> 
> oh wait, dont forget about legendary ahoge, or else prepare for Saber Alter's incoming



I can totally claim it to be Saber in a few weeks after I finish some more aesthetic details!

Relevant


----------



## Don Vito

^ Oh my god


----------



## Alberto7

mrdm53 said:


> where's da excalibur? without it you can't claim that bass is Saber-theme
> 
> oh wait, dont forget about legendary ahoge, or else prepare for Saber Alter's incoming



As well as a Saber-themed guitar, I was toying with the idea of getting an Excalibur-themed guitar. I want to do Caliburn more than anything else, but the color palette is harder for me to imagine in guitar form... I feel it'd look kinda tacky.

In any case, bouVIP, that bass is turning out badass! You're getting the pickguard painted what? Another shade of grey? Because that one looks pretty good to me.


----------



## bouVIP

Thanks and the plan right now is to have Saber's armor design painted on it.


An Excalibur guitar would be sick. Wouldn't the colors be similar to Saber's pallete?


----------



## mrdm53

bouVIP said:


> I can totally claim it to be Saber in a few weeks after I finish some more aesthetic details!
> 
> Relevant



Fate Ataraxia? lol i remember Saber played football with kids. Such heartwarming scene, coming from usual, cool Saber


----------



## Solodini

Anime people! There's an anime I was trying to remember the name of yesterday but couldn't for the life fo me and my attempts at searching the internets didn't help. It came out maybe 2, 3 or 4 years ago, loads of people had some mutation where crystals grew on their skin, one character could pull items from a person's spirit, including this girl whose item was this big gun thing. She had this wee robot which followed her around.

I think the mutation was caused by something called Black Christmas or something like that. Ring any bells?

EDIT: just searched this thread and found it. Guilty Crown. SSO beats the rest of the internet for searching!


----------



## Ikiharmaa

awww, I wanted to say it's Guilty Crown! It had real nice production, especially with the music. It does have it's weaknesses though.. but yeah, I still liked it.



Spoiler



The ending was so depressing though. I felt awful after watching it, it just wasn't fair ;_;


----------



## wat

Alberto7 said:


> ^ Wait, you watched the 2006 F/SN anime or played the VN? If you did the former, then go back and read the visual novel.



I looked into the VN and I ahh, I don't know if I can handle that


----------



## bouVIP

Anyone a fan of Inuyasha or Ranma 1/2? The creator of both those has another manga that's finally being animated! 

Kyokai no Rinne

 

It's much better than Inuyasha imo and hilarious. Reminds me of Ranma.


----------



## Don Vito

I hated Inuyasha when I was younger, as the some of the characters(mainly the demons) freaked me out for some reason. Like the way they were drawn or something haha. But still, I watched it so much that I developed some weird nostalgia for it. I tried re-watching it last year, and I actually thought it was alright except for Inuyasha being considerably more annoying and unlikable compared to just about every other character in the show.


Leaving this here for reading content.

http://www.reddit.com/r/weeabootales/


----------



## stevo1

Been watching a lot of these styles of shows on Netflix / Hulu. My friend originally came to me about Attack on Titan, and after I watched that, I went on a roll, watching all these shows that people I know have been talking about for a while now. 
As of now, I just finished up Tokyo Ghoul and deadman wonderland which I thought were pretty similar in concept, and started guilty crown and fate/Zero. 

Is there an order I'm supposed to be following with the fate series? As I've seen there are multiple fate/ shows and I assume they're connected.
Yes, I'm a bit of a novice on anime .


----------



## bouVIP

Just watch Fate/Zero and then the new F/SN UBW anime
Ignore the movie and 2006 anime


----------



## stevo1

Ok cool. Thanks man!
Also watched Elfen Lied recently too, which is probably the most gory one I've seen yet. Didn't have high expectations for that show, but it was pretty good.


----------



## Dusty Chalk

Yeah, that opening sequence...


----------



## stevo1

Yeah, with that, and the Gregorian chant opener, I was like "what the .... am I watching?" Completely unexpected  but I got into it pretty quickly. I usually give a show 3 episodes to see if it will hold my interest.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Finished the first season of Seitokai Yakuindomo last night. Pretty fun anime, actually. Might continue watching the second season but on the other hand I want to watch something different for a change so I started Sakurasou No Pet Na Kanojo.


----------



## bouVIP

Fat-Elf said:


> Finished the first season of Seitokai Yakuindomo last night. Pretty fun anime, actually. Might continue watching the second season but on the other hand I want to watch something different for a change so I started Sakurasou No Pet Na Kanojo.



(I just really wanted to post this Rin pic)






I love SYD! but 2nd season is so raunchy....


Sakurasou is pretty good cause Mashiro is win, but I never finished cause the last few episodes are really meh....


----------



## wat

Sakura is really cute in UBW too. They drew her a little differently and made her much cuter than in the 2006 F/SN as well as actually gave her a personality.


----------



## Fat-Elf

bouVIP said:


> I love SYD! but 2nd season is so raunchy....



Perfect because I didn't find the first season raunchy enough. 

Edit: Lol at this Sakurasou. I didn't know they made other anime about people with Down sydrome along with K-on..


----------



## Alberto7

Huh, I feel slightly out of touch with this thread (and this forum) these days. Life gets in the way, unfortunately.

I haven't been watching much anime. Only things I'm watching are UBW (next episode (ep. 7) should be badass), Parasyte, and I've recently started watching Avatar after much pressure from two of my roommates (I know, not anime, but close enough for an honorary mention ).


----------



## Don Vito

Don Vito said:


> I don't even watch moe. I just have a soft spot for K-On! because it cheered me up during a really ....ed part of my life. Other than that, I have a little bit of Lucky Star nostalgia, but haven't watched it in years.


I might have to take back this statement, as I started Hidamari Sketch after seeing a Nendo toy of one of the characters at the bookstore. Hidamari Stretch >.<

Btw, has anyone read the German manga Yohen Buzz? It's about this like grunge/punk band, and I thought the few pages I read of it were ....ing hilarious.



Fat-Elf said:


> Edit: Lol at this Sakurasou. I didn't know they made other anime about people with Down sydrome along with K-on..


Yui has autism not down syndrome. Stop cyber bullying her(and me).

I gotta check this out when I'm done with Hidamari.


----------



## Don Vito

Sorry to post twice in a row, but there's a viral video out about this children's toy with a photo shopped girl slitting her arm.


Doesn't have much to do with anime, except that the packaging is using a licensed character. Some of them also have random anime characters behind the foil instead of the girl.





Evil Stick with Evil Girl | eBay


----------



## bouVIP

Just wanted to share~


----------



## Alberto7

^ Bastard! I'm still waiting for mine >_< ... and that is one badass neck plate! I would have so gone with Kiritsugu's seal though!


----------



## Don Vito

I love it!  


Anyways, might start Sakurasou because I couldn't get into Hidamari at all : / I think it might be one of those series that works better as a comic strip. I like the 2 main characters a lot though.


----------



## myrtorp

I've watched fate/zero now, really nice. It's got that "no bullshit" story progression, no annoying characters which is nice!

After that I watched Steins Gate, I really recommend it. Very nice time travel plot. One of those animes when the episode is over you just have to watch another one.


----------



## habicore_5150

Only have two to add to the list:
Shingeki no Bahamut: Genesis
and (probably gonna get hated for not starting it sooner) Fate/Stay Night

Of course, one of my friends was watching both of em about a couple of episodes in, but I need to start back at the beginning (even though what I seen with Bahamut was a recap episode anyways)


----------



## Alberto7

Shingeki no Bahamut had an incredibly strong first episode, but then I just kind of lost interest. I still catch up on it every few weeks and binge watch what I missed, but I don't look forward to it like I do, say, Parasyte or Unlimited Blade Works. Still though, cool show with beautiful art and animation. Very Pirates of the Caribbean-ish. 

Also, here are a couple of things I really want to watch:

The fact that something like this even exists makes me happy. It looks so incredibly pretty, I don't even know what to do. I didn't even know Studio Ghibli had this up their sleeves until a few weeks ago. Need to watch this film!


Also, my roommate showed me this, and it looks trippy AS BALLS and I seriously need to watch it. Anybody seen this?


And then there's this short made by Studio Khara (same people who made the Rebuild of Evangelion films). VERY NSFW and pretty cringe-worthy, but super sweet animation and music! The latter was done by TeddyLoid, who also made a good chunk of the Panty and Stocking ost. Also, cool idea behind it:

http://animatorexpo.com/mememe/


----------



## Dusty Chalk

Alberto7 said:


> The fact that something like this even exists makes me happy. It looks so incredibly pretty, I don't even know what to do. I didn't even know Studio Ghibli had this up their sleeves until a few weeks ago. Need to watch this film!


You hopefully have discovered Mamoru Hosoda by now, he's kind of taken over the "beautiful" mantle as carried by Miyazaki for so long. I've only seen Summer Wars and The Girl Who Leapt through Time so far, but I need to see Wolf Children as much as I need to see Princess Keguya.


----------



## Alberto7

Yeah, I've seen Hosoda's three big works (the ones you mentioned). The only one that I can safely say truly stands up to Miyazaki's best work would be Wolf Children. Summer Wars and TGWLTT were excellent, and I enjoyed them a lot, but I felt Wolf Children: Ame and Yuki was a loooott stronger.

Worth mentioning is also Makoto Shinkai's work, who has also been compared to the new Miyazaki (though I don't really agree, as his style is so different and focuses primarily on romance). I've only seen The Garden of Words, and 5 Centimeters per Second (lovingly dubbed 5 Wallpapers per Second), and they're great short films. The art and animation on those two are hands down the best I have ever seen in animated media (sorry ufotable  you're my favorite studio, but Makoto Shinkai's stuff is too much).


----------



## Dusty Chalk

Really?! More so than Ghost in the Shell: Innocence? That's still the most mind-blowingly beautiful anime film I've seen, in terms of faux-cinematography. I mean, for Pete's sake, the birds had a separate animation team.

_(wanders off to put Garden of Words and 5 cm per second in queue)_

And no, I didn't mean compared to his _best _work, I just mean he really captured that consistent 100% beginning to end quality that I think pervaded _all_ of Miyazaki's films.


----------



## bouVIP

new F/SN oh sooooooo good


and I love this clip in SYD


----------



## wat

Can someone school me on _Ghost In The Shell_?

What to watch, what to skip, etc.


----------



## Alberto7

Dusty Chalk said:


> Really?! More so than Ghost in the Shell: Innocence? That's still the most mind-blowingly beautiful anime film I've seen, in terms of faux-cinematography. I mean, for Pete's sake, the birds had a separate animation team.
> 
> _(wanders off to put Garden of Words and 5 cm per second in queue)_
> 
> And no, I didn't mean compared to his _best _work, I just mean he really captured that consistent 100% beginning to end quality that I think pervaded _all_ of Miyazaki's films.



Wait, you mean Innocence's animation, right? I haven't watched that movie in ages (only watched it once, and I wasn't that big a fan, honestly), but I recall the CG graphics being very jarring. In terms of actual 2D animation, it was excellent. I mean, it's Production IG and Studio Ghibli, ffs!  I should still give it another watch though.

Oh, and yes, I agree for the most part, except I found TGWLTT had a really unexpected and jarring twist. I came to terms with it pretty quickly, but at first all I was thinking was "wtf just happened and where did this dude even come from?" Still though, lovely, lovely movie.



wat said:


> Can someone school me on _Ghost In The Shell_?
> 
> What to watch, what to skip, etc.



Everything. Just watch it. All of it. Doesn't matter how, really, only when, and when should be now.

Although, if you still have doubts, this is how I watched it:


Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex (anime series)
Ghost in the Shell: S.A.C. 2nd GIG (anime series)
Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex - Solid State Society (film. Conclusion to anime series)
 Ghost in the Shell (original 1995 film)
Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence (2004 sequel to original 1995 film)
As much as I consider the original film to be a masterpiece, I liked the anime series better. It's a lot easier to stomach, and the constant exposure to all the characters makes them more relatable. Despite this, it maintains the same level of depth that the original movie carries. Also, Tachikoma! 

There is also the Arise OVA that's coming out, but I haven't sat down to watch it just yet. I don't hear anything particularly good or bad about it though. In fact, if anything, I haven't really heard or read anyone commenting on it.

To sum up, if 'deep' is your thing, then Ghost in the Shell might honestly be the single best thing that anime has to offer. I can't think of anything else in anime with as much depth, philosophy, and relevance while at the same time remaining accessible. Of course, that all works perfectly because everything from the animation, to the screenplay, to plot development is handled masterfully. *cough*notEvangelion*cough*

EDIT: Also, I might add that there is A LOT of good discussion about the series as a whole around the web. It's fun for whenever you finish the series but still want to mull it over a bit more and/or are left with a hole in your soul because you just witnessed something amazing.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

I don't think the anime (SAC) was that deep most of the time, so if that was my only reason to watch it I'd skip it. Fortunately I enjoy some action and decent plot too, so it was like a good anime becoming awesome because of the deeper sci-fi philosophy themes. It is what makes it special.


----------



## wat

Alberto7 said:


> Everything. Just watch it. All of it. Doesn't matter how, really, only when, and when should be now.
> 
> Although, if you still have doubts, this is how I watched it:
> 
> 
> Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex (anime series)
> Ghost in the Shell: S.A.C. 2nd GIG (anime series)
> Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex - Solid State Society (film. Conclusion to anime series)
> Ghost in the Shell (original 1995 film)
> Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence (2004 sequel to original 1995 film)
> As much as I consider the original film to be a masterpiece, I liked the anime series better. It's a lot easier to stomach, and the constant exposure to all the characters makes them more relatable. Despite this, it maintains the same level of depth that the original movie carries. Also, Tachikoma!
> 
> There is also the Arise OVA that's coming out, but I haven't sat down to watch it just yet. I don't hear anything particularly good or bad about it though. In fact, if anything, I haven't really heard or read anyone commenting on it.
> 
> To sum up, if 'deep' is your thing, then Ghost in the Shell might honestly be the single best thing that anime has to offer. I can't think of anything else in anime with as much depth, philosophy, and relevance while at the same time remaining accessible. Of course, that all works perfectly because everything from the animation, to the screenplay, to plot development is handled masterfully. *cough*notEvangelion*cough*
> 
> EDIT: Also, I might add that there is A LOT of good discussion about the series as a whole around the web. It's fun for whenever you finish the series but still want to mull it over a bit more and/or are left with a hole in your soul because you just witnessed something amazing.



Ohhh, I did begin watching Stand Alone Complex on Hulu but had trouble getting into it because it was only available in English dubs. Sounds like I'm watching the news. 

I did watch some of the Arise OVA on Hulu. There were two long episodes available and it was very cool, made me want to dig deeper into the series.


----------



## Don Vito

Yeah watch SAC in english. The dub is preemo.


----------



## Alberto7

Yeah, SAC is the only anime I've watched in English only, and it totally rocks.

That's what I felt about SAC. It has the same depth as far as the concepts involved go, but the development is much more action-packed and a lot easier to stomach.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

With all this Fate/Stay Night talk and the new series out, I probably should watch Fate/Zero rather than sitting on it for years with a ton of other series eh...


----------



## wat

Cool I'm watching Stand Alone Complex. I just finished the 2nd episode and it was awesome . Right up my alley. 

I guess the dubs aren't that bad after all. This is cool because I've been on a Fear Factory kick lately which is quite fitting. 

I also just finished WataMote. loved that perfect, simple abrupt ending.


----------



## Dusty Chalk

Alberto7 said:


> Wait, you mean Innocence's animation, right?


Yeah, I mean the animation. So beautiful. So much scale. In Akira, they did stuff they can only do in animation -- you know how your eye goes to certain detail to sense "scale" -- they did that exactly right, they made sure the detail was there where your eye went, so that it saw scale. But in Innocence, they put the freakin' detail everywhere, so no matter where your eye went, it was there, and that's how they did scale.

And if I may suggest -- by all means, watch the dub. It's a completely different movie. If you're watching the sub, you're spending half the time reading, and it seems like a pretentious, self-indulgent, literature-dropping, plodding mess, but when it's a dub, all those quotes, they become just little bon mots or pithy observations, and you can actually enjoy the film. And there's one scene where Batou actually conveys a sense of deja vu that doesn't come across when you're just reading what he says.

I would recommend the order they came out:

Original movie
SAC S01
SAC S02
Innocence?
SAC:SSS?

SAC is basically a parallel universe where the events of the movies did not/do not happen, so it's really:

Original movie
Innocence

...and:

SAC S01
SAC S02
SAC:SSS

But there's a span of years between the two movies, so feel free to split them up for yourself as well, so you can feel what the characters are feeling.

Also, I concur: Tachikoma! So much win. They totally stole my heart. And if you read the manga, they play a large role there, too.


----------



## Whammy

^ Don't forget Ghost in the Shell: Arise
The most recent release.

I've watched everything else Ghost in the Shell related and loved it all.
Has anyone watched the Arise series yet? It's only four 50 minute episodes.


----------



## Don Vito

I've heard poor things about Arise, but mostly commenting the change in art.

I'm curious about it, but I feel I need to watch the non-SAC movies first.


----------



## wat

Whammy said:


> ^ Don't forget Ghost in the Shell: Arise
> The most recent release.
> 
> I've watched everything else Ghost in the Shell related and loved it all.
> Has anyone watched the Arise series yet? It's only four 50 minute episodes.





I've watched the first two episodes and it was really cool


----------



## soliloquy

i just finished this and thought it was okay.






then started this out of sheer boredom. and i'm so glad i was bored. from the first 10 minutes i knew i was going to like this show. 





the name is rather stupid. but its got a pretty interesting story line so far.


----------



## Alberto7

Don Vito said:


> I've heard poor things about Arise, but mostly commenting the change in art.



I remember saying the same thing about Rurouni Kenshin: Trust & Betrayal before watching it, since the art style is completely different to both the manga and the anime. Needless to say, I almost cried in shame after watching it, for I had just been witness to one of the greatest things I had ever seen.


----------



## Dusty Chalk

Whammy said:


> ^ Don't forget Ghost in the Shell: Arise
> The most recent release.


I was not aware of this. Thank you. (Wanders off to put it in his queue.)

EDIT: Oh shit, it's live, I know what I'm doing today. :couchpotato:


soliloquy said:


> i just finished this and thought it was okay.


I only got as far as the first episode(s?) in Knights of ...couldn't get into it. I don't mean to be insensitive, but I thought the tranny aspect was weird.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

Dusty Chalk said:


> I only got as far as the first episode(s?) in Knights of ...couldn't get into it. I don't mean to be insensitive, but I thought the tranny aspect was weird.



I've only read a bit of the manga and it didn't really get me either. I still recommend reading some of his other pieces. Abara and Biomega are quite damn epic to say the least. The art is beautiful in it's honest grittyness, fits the mood perfect. 10/10

Abara - vol 1 ch 1 Page 1 | Batoto!


----------



## wat

I looooove Knights Of Sidonia both the anime and Manga. The writing is very trollish though and there are places where the writer is obviously being cheeky and poking fun at otakus and anime/Manga in general. 

But the story and world just become more and more interesting as it goes on. 


Deadman Wonderland is great also and that show just gets better and better as it goes on. I love that show. I need to read the Manga because idk if we'll ever get another season


----------



## Dusty Chalk

Re: GitS:Arise -- only 2/4 episodes on Netflix, whu? Just finished 1st episode, 't'was awesome!

Re: Knights of Sidonia -- alright, will give it more try.


----------



## bouVIP

Unlimited Burger Works

Lotteria Invokes Unlimited Burger Works


----------



## MetalGravy

So, basically like going to McDonald's whenever Pixar releases a new movie.


----------



## wat

The new Black Butler is pretty sweet.

And new psycho-pass


----------



## Don Vito

Considering I wasn't a fan of S1 for some reason, S2 of My Little Sister Can't Be This Cute has turned out to pretty good so far. I don't really like the otaku parts because I hide my power level irl, but I guess the show would be boring without it. That and the incestuous undertones : /

My least favorite character is Kirino's dad, but someone's gotta pay the ....ing bills and keep shit straight.


----------



## wat

What is it with incest undertones in anime/manga?


----------



## Don Vito

I don't know. I've been trying to figure it out myself.

For the most part, it stays in the realms of ecchi and hentai, but occasionally crosses over to the mainstream(Sword Art Online, Oreimo, ect..).

Most people with this fetish probably don't have siblings, though I can't really explain the mom x son stuff that's all over sites like fakku.  The sibling stuff sometimes gets away with it because they use step siblings instead of blood siblings, like ImoCho did.


----------



## bouVIP

It's really awkward, but some times kind of funny like in Mahouka where the bro and sister just make everyone else in the show feel embarrassed and awkward.


Though speaking of really really awkward scenes....


----------



## Fat-Elf

bouVIP said:


> Though speaking of really really awkward scenes....




And some people call this the anime of the year.  

Well, who am I to judge for actually liking ImoCho...


----------



## bouVIP

Aside from some awkward and fan service scenes, it's really good. I just started Monogatari Second Season and am loving it. The series as whole is really good. It has great stories and characters and really good dialogue exchanges between them.


----------



## Fat-Elf

bouVIP said:


> Aside from some awkward and fan service scenes, it's really good. I just started Monogatari Second Season and am loving it. The series as whole is really good. It has great stories and characters.



I tried to give it a chance but never got into it. It would've had enough dialogue for ten animes.


----------



## stevo1

Damn.. Fate/Zero is goooooood.


----------



## wat

Just began Tokyo Ghoul and F*cking Hulu just tricked me into watching the last episode when I thought I was watching the first 

I'm not used to how Hulu defaults to the most recent episode. 


THEN it suggested to watch Terror In Resonance but I thought it was the next episode of Tokyo Ghoul so I just pressed "A" on the xbox controller while still not realizing what had just happened. 

So I just watched the last episodes of TWO anime thinking they were episode 1 & 2 of the same show because I'm not used to Hulu's interface after using Netflix so long


----------



## Ikiharmaa

Fat-Elf said:


> I tried to give it a chance but never got into it. It would've had enough dialogue for ten animes.



Exactly, ten times better than most anime  /jk

It certainly comes down to personal preferences, most of my favourite anime are quite heavy on dialogue/clever (Monogatari, Hyouka, Spice and Wolf, Steins;Gate and so on). But really, it just ticks a lot of my boxes: unique and strong mood, somewhat slow pace, clever dialogue, characters with multiple sides/depth (talk about Kaiki here), Senjougahara.


Lately I've only watched not very serious anime though. I did in fact watch the first season of OreImo as well. Not that I remember much from it, but I did finish the season so it probably wasn't the worst anime I've seen.


----------



## wat

bouVIP said:


> It's really awkward, but some times kind of funny like in Mahouka where the bro and sister just make everyone else in the show feel embarrassed and awkward.
> 
> 
> Though speaking of really really awkward scenes....





Another what the fuck moment brought to you by Japan


----------



## wat




----------



## Don Vito

wat


----------



## Alberto7

Dafuq  I remember that one scene from the VN (I forget which route) with Kotomine eating ridiculous amounts of super spicy curry while he developed some pretty serious dialogue... I was very confused.


----------



## Don Vito

Started Evangelion, and I'm liking it so far. Love how they rush through the episodes without any context to anything, which I think makes it less boring somehow.

It's kept me up til' 6:30 in the morning anyways. *yawn*


----------



## wat

Alberto7 said:


> Dafuq  I remember that one scene from the VN (I forget which route) with Kotomine eating ridiculous amounts of super spicy curry while he developed some pretty serious dialogue





Dude WAT? 

goddamn dude I'm just trying to picture Kotomine eating a bunch of hot curry while dropping some serious dialogue 

I guess he uh,


Spoiler



can't get heartburn


----------



## Alberto7

wat said:


> Dude WAT?
> 
> goddamn dude I'm just trying to picture Kotomine eating a bunch of hot curry while dropping some serious dialogue
> 
> I guess he uh,
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> can't get heartburn



Definitely one of my favorite Fate jokes I've read in a while. 

Here's the scene in question:



The guy skims over all of the dense conversation and only leaves the dialogue for the silly, spicy food parts. 

EDIT: my roommate makes the meanest mapo tofu that I have ever tried, btw. It's such a delicious dish. I definitely want some of what Kotomine is having there.


----------



## bouVIP

I'm definitely going to play F/SN now...just so I can see this scene in game. 


Oh man I love mapo tofu D: lucky for you~


----------



## Dusty Chalk

Started 5cm per second.

Fog, that is some beautiful animation.


----------



## bouVIP

The Greatness of Rin


----------



## Alberto7

I really need to watch the last two episodes! I feel like it's been so long. Life is such an asshole, always getting in the way and shit.


----------



## Sofos

Over the past week I've watched 3 anime series:

*Digimon: Tamers*

Best Digimon series. I'm sure most of you have seen it already.



*Steins;Gate*

Quite possibly the best anime I have ever watched. Fantastic English voice cast as well. It's one of the few shows I've ever watched where I actually felt heartbroken when the characters did.



*Yamada's First Time (B Gata H Kei)*

Absolutely hilarious anime about a freshman in high school who wants to have sex with 100 guys before she graduates. There's only one problem: she can't even get one! It seems like a really 'girly' anime from first glance but I just about pissed myself laughing almost constantly.


----------



## wat

bouVIP said:


> I'm definitely going to play F/SN now...just so I can see this scene in game.
> 
> 
> Oh man I love mapo tofu D: lucky for you~



Never had it but this looks delicious as fawk


----------



## sakeido

any recommendations here dudes? It kinda feels like I've already watched every anime I might ever enjoy. 

Ghost in the Shell, FMA:B, Steins;gate, Darker Than Black, Code Geass, Jojo's Bizarre Adventure, Berserk, all of Miyazaki's stuff. Tried Knights of Cydonia, totally didn't dig it.

What about the new Ghost in the Shell series?


----------



## bouVIP

Check out Parasyte!

I just started it myself and I love it! Has a really great story and a great balance of humor and darkness to it. Also really good OST's (My favorite band does the OP) and has 2 of my favorite voice actresses.

and Fate/Zero if you haven't already seen it. PSYCHO-PASS is also good (2nd season so far is meh though). Aldnoah Zero is also a good mech anime.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

sakeido said:


> any recommendations here dudes? It kinda feels like I've already watched every anime I might ever enjoy.
> 
> Ghost in the Shell, FMA:B, Steins;gate, Darker Than Black, Code Geass, Jojo's Bizarre Adventure, Berserk, all of Miyazaki's stuff. Tried Knights of Cydonia, totally didn't dig it.
> 
> What about the new Ghost in the Shell series?



It might help if you fleshed out a little what aspects of those shows you most enjoyed and which you disliked.

However, you're still missing a lot of classics:
Cowboy Bebop
Samurai Champloo
Baccano!
(Mitchiko to Hatchin)
Serial Experiments Lain
Black Lagoon
(Jormungand)

The ones I'd actually suggest to you would however be:
Ergo Proxy
Kurozuka
Seirei No Moribito


----------



## sakeido

I have watched Cowboy Bebop (hated it), Samurai Champloo (ehh), Baccano! (only a couple good eps), and Black Lagoon (loved it). I forgot to list Death Note and Evangelion too 

Some shows I like because they are character driven without falling victim to the new anime trends I hate hate hate like ultra-wimpy, dopey, asexual protagonists and moe girls.. Black Lagoon, Steins;gate. 

Others I like for the good worldbuilding and classic shonen style fights.. FMA:B, Kenshin, Jojo's, Fist of the North Star

Then Ghost in the Shell is everything. Somewhat realistic version of the future, great characters, smart plots, great animation, everything is just awesome. 2nd Gig and to a leser extent the first season are in my top 5 TV shows of all time, not just my favorite animes. Berserk falls into that category too.. great chars, cool world, amazingly tragic storyline.

Seirei no Moribito I have downloaded and I think I watched the first ep and it didn't grab me. Kurozuka sounds awesome! So does Ergo Proxy, for that matter. I might take a stab at that once first.


----------



## Don Vito

I was at some store that buys target/walmart's old crap, and they had like 30 TV's playing RE: Degeneration. It's a CG video game style movie, but it's kind of anime-ish. Sat and watched it, didn't buy a thing lol.

I feel out of touch with this thread. I can't bring myself to watch anything these days, and even ending up dropping Oreimo out of pure laziness, even though I was loving it. I guess the biz feels slower compared to late 2013/early 2014. I also hate my computer atm, which is also my anime station. Maybe I'll get more PUMPED when my new build is done.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

hmmm.... yea, I don't think I can help you much more. I prefer shows to portray intelligence as well, and design/aesthetics/world building is something I enjoy a whole lot.

The thing is though that I rather dislike shounen style fights and fighting in general unless it looks especially good, Kurozuka being the best example of how it's done right (and what little fighting is in Seirei No Moribito, I imagine it's not that interesting for you though). And I don't mind the protagonist being wimpy as long as he/she has enough substance and depth and isn't overly annoying (you might guess I didn't really like Evangelion).

Definitely add Jormungand on your list if you liked Black Lagoon, they're not the same, but obviously there are lot of similarities. To me, Jormugand was the better one out of the two because of the intellectual side of it being a bit stronger, and I didn't feel the same lack of direction that I sometimes felt in Black Lagoon.. but that's just for me obviously, I'm sure there are at least as many people who prefer Black Lagoon over Jormungand as the other way around.

Hopefully the others will be of more help :3


----------



## Don Vito

I thought Shinji was gonna be a hothead shonen guy, but he turned out to be a total crybaby, which hits me in my gayness via Armin Arlert.


----------



## Dusty Chalk

sakeido said:


> What about the new Ghost in the Shell series?


Abso-foching-lutely. I totally love that they made her petite, it's more in line with her character, IMHO. And it's just as smart as the rest of the series.

I thought I'd go back and re-watch a show that I hadn't watched but for the first episode or so -- Last Exile -- but Netflix doesn't have the second disk! At all! Weird. I may just have to buy it. I do remember it being that good -- my anime watching buddy -- it's his favourite. I know, I'll rent the first disk, first. Maybe it's on amazon prime...I'll have to check when I get home.

But from what you said of your criteria, I'd recommend it.

Elfen Lied -- albeit totally messed up -- is superb. A little inconsistent -- it's impossible to live up to the promise of the opening episode, so I forgive it for that. If you can handle Berserk's violence, you'll be alright with this. (The worst bit is at the beginning, and I'm not spoilering anything saying that, because it is literally the first thing that happens.)

I'm with you, I need more smart stuff. Summer Wars and Girl who Leapt through Time were both fantastic.

EDIT: Oh, and Samurai 7 -- Seven Samurai done mecha, lollers.

EDIT #2: Oh, and Kaze no Yojimbo -- Kurosawa's Yojimbo story done OAV style.


----------



## Alberto7

Don Vito said:


> I feel out of touch with this thread. I can't bring myself to watch anything these days, and even ending up dropping Oreimo out of pure laziness, even though I was loving it. I guess the biz feels slower compared to late 2013/early 2014. I also hate my computer atm, which is also my anime station. Maybe I'll get more PUMPED when my new build is done.



Yeah, tell me about it... :/ I feel out of touch with anime in general, too. I even dropped UBW.  Not completely dropped, but I haven't watched it in over 2 weeks, and I'm not in the mood to watch it this coming week.

The only thing I've been watching regularly is Avatar: The Last Airbender, but only because I watch it with my roommates (who've seen it like 10 times), and I love bonding with them. The show is also REALLY good, especially towards the end... and it ain't even anime. It is so different from anime, yet so similar in many ways. It's been extremely refreshing for me, honestly. Too bad I only have one episode left.


----------



## wat

I have a fukkton of Ghost In The Shell I need to watch before my Hulu free trial runs out. 

And just a fukkton of anime in general


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> Yeah, tell me about it... :/ I feel out of touch with anime in general, too. I even dropped UBW.  Not completely dropped, but I haven't watched it in over 2 weeks, and I'm not in the mood to watch it this coming week.
> 
> The only thing I've been watching regularly is Avatar: The Last Airbender, but only because I watch it with my roommates (who've seen it like 10 times), and I love bonding with them. The show is also REALLY good, especially towards the end... and it ain't even anime. It is so different from anime, yet so similar in many ways. It's been extremely refreshing for me, honestly. Too bad I only have one episode left.


I know nothing about Avatar itself.. but I know it has a huge grown up fanbase, so there must be something to it. Even my friend's 40+ year old dad has been into the show since it started airing.

For me, it's not really a mood thing, I just feel like I need to be doing something else other than diving into 2D. I'm moving soon, so I think that's been on my mind more so. I'm going to finish Evangelion at least, and call it a year. Can't believe it's December already. Feels like yesterday we were talking about the hot new spring shows and streaming Persona 3.


----------



## Sofos

Don Vito said:


> I know nothing about Avatar itself.. but I know it has a huge grown up fanbase, so there must be something to it. Even my friend's 40+ year old dad has been into the show since it started airing.
> 
> For me, it's not really a mood thing, I just feel like I need to be doing something else other than diving into 2D. I'm moving soon, so I think that's been on my mind more so. I'm going to finish Evangelion at least, and call it a year. Can't believe it's December already. Feels like yesterday we were talking about the hot new spring shows and streaming Persona 3.



don't finish Evangelion. Biggest disappointment I have ever experienced in a TV show.

I haven't watched P3 yet, but the P4 anime was good.

Avatar/Korra are fantastic, Korra moreso than Avatar IMHO due to there being a constant, consistent story with almost no filler


----------



## jahosy

sakeido said:


> any recommendations here dudes?



Have you tried Attack on titan? 

2nd season starting early / mid 2015


----------



## Don Vito

Sofos said:


> don't finish Evangelion. Biggest disappointment I have ever experienced in a TV show.
> 
> I haven't watched P3 yet, but the P4 anime was good.
> 
> Avatar/Korra are fantastic, Korra moreso than Avatar IMHO due to there being a constant, consistent story with almost no filler


They released P3 as a movie, but it only covers like 1/4 of the game. It's good, but I'd wait until the other parts are released.

I already kind of know about Evangelion's ending and everything, but I still want to finish it.



jahosy said:


> Have you tried Attack on titan?
> 
> 2nd season starting early / mid 2015


That soon?! I'm totally watching it. The recent manga is ridiculous, but I don't care as long the anime is done well(which it was). Like seriously, there's some mysticism shit going on the book atm lol.


----------



## jahosy

Don Vito said:


> That soon?! I'm totally watching it. The recent manga is ridiculous, but I don't care as long the anime is done well(which it was). Like seriously, there's some mysticism shit going on the book atm lol.



haha yeh some crazy shit on the manga but i'm loving how the storyline's heading. 

Glad that it's finally coming to a close


----------



## bouVIP

You guys read the new chapter of AoT yet? I've been finding it meh lately, but hoping they start to reveal more secrets soon.


----------



## M3CHK1LLA

i have a friend that works at funimation (btw he is on here and got me into 7's)

i asked him today when the 5th stage of initial d was to be dubbed, hope to here its soon.


----------



## Sofos

M3CHK1LLA said:


> i have a friend that works at funimation (btw he is on here and got me into 7's)
> 
> i asked him today when the 5th stage of initial d was to be dubbed, hope to here its soon.



If he reads this, he should start a petition to get the 2nd season of D. Grey-Man dubbed haha


----------



## Sofos

Just finished Fate/Zero

Ending was almost as stupid as Evangelion's.


----------



## mrdm53

bouVIP said:


> You guys read the new chapter of AoT yet? I've been finding it meh lately, but hoping they start to reveal more secrets soon.



still bad, it look slike we need dozens of chapter before we back into human vs titan again.


----------



## Sofos

About halfway through the first season of Freezing right now. Way too much fan service, but otherwise it's pretty good.


----------



## jahosy

bouVIP said:


> You guys read the new chapter of AoT yet? I've been finding it meh lately, but hoping they start to reveal more secrets soon.





mrdm53 said:


> still bad, it look slike we need dozens of chapter before we back into human vs titan again.



Tbh I kinda like how the story is evolving lol but Yeah they should get back to some titan slaying!


----------



## wat

Attack On Titan manga has gotten really interesting. Which reminds me I need to catch up on the latest 

You can tell the writer really knows what he's doing here because of how certain instances of foreshadowing or character development that took place WAYYY back in the beginning of the series just fit like puzzle pieces with the latest developments.

Like remember the part where Krista helped "potato girl" in the beginning? Well....


Also, Krista is sooo cute/pretty, especially in the manga 

Even though she looks so much like Armin, sometimes I wonder if she's actually related to Eren because they really look like they could be related:








krista's


Spoiler



half-sister


:







Eren


----------



## wat

Sofos said:


> Just finished Fate/Zero
> 
> Ending was almost as stupid as Evangelion's.



Have you watched/played any Fate/Stay Night?

Without getting spoilery, If you haven't, that could be why the ending seems that way.


----------



## mrdm53

rather than human politics + Reiss's family stuff or blablabla, i'm curious about ape-like titan in past chapters

remember that it was the first titan who has intelligence, different from others


----------



## bouVIP

Spoiler



Yeah, but a lot of Historia's story is involved with the titan affair so it might explain at least the origins even though some of it's pretty obvious


----------



## sakeido

jahosy said:


> Have you tried Attack on titan?
> 
> 2nd season starting early / mid 2015



Yup! I absolutely hated it hahahah

Gorgeous art and some pretty cool design work but everybody screaming their emotions out loud all the time, those awful filler moments with the blond wimp... I think he had two monologues about how worseless he was in one episode.. all that killed it for me and I only made it eight or nine eps in. I don't really get the hype myself, but it's cool to see a show grab so much interest in such a short time.


----------



## Don Vito

sakeido said:


> Yup! I absolutely hated it hahahah
> 
> Gorgeous art and some pretty cool design work but everybody screaming their emotions out loud all the time, those awful filler moments with the blond wimp... I think he had two monologues about how worseless he was in one episode.. all that killed it for me and I only made it eight or nine eps in. I don't really get the hype myself, but it's cool to see a show grab so much interest in such a short time.


Blasphemy! Armin is best titan waifu.










hhhhhhnnnnnnnggggggggg

edit: Just read the latest chapter(which I thought was one I already read). I thought it was pretty good actually.


----------



## Fat-Elf

^Dat Shima-armin...

Can't wait for the second season of AoT and the start of the Kantai Collection anime next year. Everytime I go to browse lewd anime pics 90% of the pics are from Kantai Collection and I used to be so mad because I had no idea what it was.


----------



## wat

I looove Armin


----------



## Sofos

i hate Armin :| a bit too annoying for my liking. 

My favourite character:


----------



## jahosy

mrdm53 said:


> rather than human politics + Reiss's family stuff or blablabla, i'm curious about ape-like titan in past chapters
> 
> remember that it was the first titan who has intelligence, different from others





Spoiler



Yes the ape titan!!! Really intrigued about that one!! And what ever happened to other armoured / colossus titans.. ?





sakeido said:


> Yup! I absolutely hated it hahahah
> 
> Gorgeous art and some pretty cool design work but everybody screaming their emotions out loud all the time, those awful filler moments with the blond wimp... I think he had two monologues about how worseless he was in one episode.. all that killed it for me and I only made it eight or nine eps in. I don't really get the hype myself, but it's cool to see a show grab so much interest in such a short time.



haha fair enough but personally love the intensity and emotions of all the characters. What i hated most in the series though is just when you've gotten to like certain characters they get 'chewed' off a few episodes later  (petra comes to mind) 

Think the 2nd season of AoT is going to be sick. Havn't enjoyed anime this much since Gundam 08 MS team


----------



## Alberto7

GUUUYYYSSSS spoiler tags, shit!! >_<


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> GUUUYYYSSSS spoiler tags, shit!! >_<


His appearance is brief, and doesn't really reveal anything plot wise. I doubt he'll even show up in season 2.


----------



## MFB

Armin is the worst character in an anime, possibly since ever. No contest in my book.

The show/manga has good ideas but it's not quite what I was hoping for when I watched it. Needs more just humans fighting back against giant titans with their resources and desperation and less Titan vs. Titan combat BS.


----------



## Sofos

^I agree about Armin. Whiny brat...

I just finished both seasons of Freezing. Like I said before, too much fanservice, but if you look past that, it's a really good show. Reminded me a lot of Evangelion, but, you know, not a mindfvck. And, you know. Tits.

I've downloaded all 3 manga series, gonna start reading them tonight.


----------



## wat

Finished Tokyo Ghoul and Terror In Resonance even though I accidentally watched the last episodes of both first. 


Both are very cool. Feels at the end of Terror In Resonance.  that one would make a good movie I think. 


Next up is Steins; Gate. Really looking forward to this one because of what I've heard


----------



## Sofos

wat said:


> Finished Tokyo Ghoul and Terror In Resonance even though I accidentally watched the last episodes of both first.
> 
> 
> Both are very cool. Feels at the end of Terror In Resonance.  that one would make a good movie I think.
> 
> 
> Next up is Steins; Gate. Really looking forward to this one because of what I've heard



you'll definitely enjoy Steins;Gate. It's definitely a journey. The movie was alright, though it doesn't add anything to the story.


----------



## sakeido

I wish I could watch Steins;gate again for the first time


----------



## wat

I'm excited because I don't know anything about Steins;Gate. Like literally nothing. Looking forward to starting tonight.


----------



## Alberto7

wat said:


> I'm excited because I don't know anything about Steins;Gate. Like literally nothing. Looking forward to starting tonight.



The only thing that I will tell you is this: do NOT give up on it at first. Everything will make sense when the time is right, and you WILL NOT be disappointed. It doesn't happen to many people that they find the beginning boring and thus they stop (I personally find it very entertaining), but it does happen. However, I know of literally ZERO people who have not absolutely adored the show, even the ones who found the beginning boring but stuck through with it. Shit does get real. Have fun and keep us posted on how you like it.


----------



## Sofos

wat said:


> I'm excited because I don't know anything about Steins;Gate. Like literally nothing. Looking forward to starting tonight.



I will add in: Pay attention. Even things that seem insignificant have important roles in the story, even if the parts are just minor. It's the only anime I've ever seen with THAT much attention to detail.


----------



## wat

Oh yeah, already digging Steins;Gate a lot.

Main character is like Saito from NHK & Vash The Stampede mixed together. 

I got the impression right away that I really need to pay attention so I'll be making sure I don't let myself get distracted. 

I totally LOVE alternate universe/timeline & time travel type stuff in fiction. Especially when you can be both dead and not dead. That stuff gives me goosebumps & this is tickling my brain in the exact way as Donnie Darko or when I played Bioshock Infinite. Right up my alley. 

Makise is cute/hot and I like her character a lot. And I laughed HARD when Okabe said that Daru is like the universe- he keeps


Spoiler



expanding


----------



## Sofos

wat said:


> Oh yeah, already digging Steins;Gate a lot.
> 
> Main character is like Saito from NHK & Vash The Stampede mixed together.
> 
> I got the impression right away that I really need to pay attention so I'll be making sure I don't let myself get distracted.
> 
> I totally LOVE alternate universe/timeline & time travel type stuff in fiction. Especially when you can be both dead and not dead. That stuff gives me goosebumps & this is tickling my brain in the exact way as Donnie Darko or when I played Bioshock Infinite. Right up my alley.
> 
> Makise is cute/hot and I like her character a lot. And I laughed HARD when Okabe said that Daru is like the universe- he keeps
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> expanding



Are you watching the English dub? Best dub i've ever heard. There's also an awesome jingle in I think Episode 3 that has been stuck in my head for over a week.

Also, the


Spoiler



...and a dude


 is one of the funniest things i've ever seen


----------



## bouVIP

oh man you guys make me want to finish Steins;gate now... D:


----------



## wat

Sofos said:


> Are you watching the English dub? Best dub i've ever heard. There's also an awesome jingle in I think Episode 3 that has been stuck in my head for over a week.
> 
> Also, the
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> ...and a dude
> 
> 
> is one of the funniest things i've ever seen



I'm watching the sub. On Hulu only the 1st four episodes are available w/ english dubs. I wouldhook my laptop to my TV and watch it on Funimation but my laptop is so messed up I can barely watch videos.


----------



## mrdm53

dropped Steins;Gate long time ago, not because it was bad or something like that. I'm just not have enough time to watch, IRL stuff 

currently my top 3 anime is Cross Ange, Bahamut and Log Horizon. I'm not into hype for UBW, yes i like it better than movie, it just that i'm looking for something new.

vote Ange for heroine for the year! it's been a long time since we had this kind of heroine haha


----------



## Ikiharmaa

mrdm53 said:


> dropped Steins;Gate long time ago, not because it was bad or something like that. I'm just not have enough time to watch, IRL stuff
> 
> currently my top 3 anime is Cross Ange, Bahamut and Log Horizon. I'm not into hype for UBW, yes i like it better than movie, it just that i'm looking for something new.
> 
> vote Ange for heroine for the year! it's been a long time since we had this kind of heroine haha




idk if I should say this or not, but I've actually been watching Cross Ange.. And it has to be the worst anime I've watched so far. I guess it has some sort of charm in its stupidity though as I haven't dropped it. Maybe it's one of those things that are so bad that they're good? At least the production company seems to know that it's bad.. I don't hate Angelise though, god knows there are many more annoying mcs out there. It's not her fault the whole show is so unreasonable.

And while we're at it, Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso is also bad, although not even remotely as bad. It just takes way too long for each little thing instead of focusing on progressing anything, not the characters, not the story.. And I freaking love slow-paced anime, almost all of my 10/10 have a slow pace. It started out quite good though, so there's hope still.

Man, I really feel like I might just be incompatible with following on-going stuff as I rarely do that. I swear I'll never do this again  I really hope I've not been enjoying myself because of the wait, but idk, they might just really be bad too.

/rant


----------



## Don Vito

I should probably watch Steins Gate sometime. I have a phobia of VN's turned anime for some reason. Studio DEEN traumatized me early on with their Ryukishi 07 adaptions(which I loved at the time admittedly).


----------



## mrdm53

Ikiharmaa said:


> idk if I should say this or not, but I've actually been watching Cross Ange.. And it has to be the worst anime I've watched so far. I guess it has some sort of charm in its stupidity though as I haven't dropped it. Maybe it's one of those things that are so bad that they're good? At least the production company seems to know that it's bad.. I don't hate Angelise though, god knows there are many more annoying mcs out there. It's not her fault the whole show is so unreasonable.
> 
> And while we're at it, Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso is also bad, although not even remotely as bad. It just takes way too long for each little thing instead of focusing on progressing anything, not the characters, not the story.. And I freaking love slow-paced anime, almost all of my 10/10 have a slow pace. It started out quite good though, so there's hope still.
> 
> Man, I really feel like I might just be incompatible with following on-going stuff as I rarely do that. I swear I'll never do this again  I really hope I've not been enjoying myself because of the wait, but idk, they might just really be bad too.
> 
> /rant



no problem man, everyone has their opinion 

i've seen worse than Cross Ange (Valvrave aka Valvrape), yes it has bad stuff like racism, or feminism and stuff like that, but overall Cross Ange has steady character development compared to other series so far

and Ange wants to become villain, which is very interesting  she's a bitch but she's awesome


about Shigatsu, i think that it has worst MC ever, as a musician.. yes i know he's just in 2nd grade, has trauma with her mother, and his trauma affect him in his playing..

but that's not a reason to screw up in competition  i think that maybe it's better when he found his reason to play WHILE he was practicing at home or school with Kaori, not when he screwed up in serious moment..

that was biggest letdown of Shigatsu, for me


----------



## Fat-Elf

Don Vito said:


> I should probably watch Steins Gate sometime. I have a phobia of VN's turned anime for some reason. Studio DEEN traumatized me early on with their Ryukishi 07 adaptions(which I loved at the time admittedly).



If you do, remember to drink copious amount of Dr Pepper while watching it.

I kinda want to rewatch S;G but I feel like it would bring back too many mixed memories back from 2011 when I originally watched it.


----------



## Sofos

wat said:


> I'm watching the sub. On Hulu only the 1st four episodes are available w/ english dubs. I wouldhook my laptop to my TV and watch it on Funimation but my laptop is so messed up I can barely watch videos.



Sorry for the late reply. All of the episodes of S;G are on YouTube in English, here's the 1st 5:


----------



## bouVIP




----------



## wat

Oh my god Steins; Gate 

Almost done. Dem feels


----------



## wat

Sofos said:


> Sorry for the late reply. All of the episodes of S;G are on YouTube in English, here's the 1st 5:





I'm almost done already but I think I will watch this version when I re-watch the series


----------



## sakeido

Dem feels is right... it was a smart choice to use the time travel for dramatic purposes, that's what Steins;gate was all about for me. It's a sci fi story that is more about the characters. So goddamn tragic. Christmas break starts soon - a rewatch is in order.

Just started Ergo Proxy too. This is one damn beautiful show, world seems cool too, overall plotline is not really revealing itself to me just yet


----------



## Alberto7

^ the plotline in EP takes a while to unravel, and does so very slowly. Astonishing show, for sure, but not without its shortcomings.


----------



## wat

sakeido said:


> Dem feels is right... it was a smart choice to use the time travel for dramatic purposes, that's what Steins;gate was all about for me. It's a sci fi story that is more about the characters. So goddamn tragic. Christmas break starts soon - a rewatch is in order.




That show was genius in so many ways. Some complain about the slow start but that just serves to let you get into the groove of the main characters' carefree life which in turn, makes it so much more effective in the way it morphs from a Slice of Life comedy into a Sci Fi/tragedy. 

at times it got absolutely heartbreaking to the point where I was scared to finish the show, lol. 

Also when time travel/alternate reality is done a certain way it has this creepiness that's like nothing else and this show was dripping with it. Closest feeling I can think of is the feeling H. P. Lovecraft's cosmic horror stuff gives off. 

10/10 can't wait to watch again. It'll probably be even better on the second viewing after I wait a while.


----------



## Sofos

wat said:


> That show was genius in so many ways. Some complain about the slow start but that just serves to let you get into the groove of the main characters' carefree life which in turn, makes it so much more effective in the way it morphs from a Slice of Life comedy into a Sci Fi/tragedy.
> 
> at times it got absolutely heartbreaking to the point where I was scared to finish the show, lol.
> 
> Also when time travel/alternate reality is done a certain way it has this creepiness that's like nothing else and this show was dripping with it. Closest feeling I can think of is the feeling H. P. Lovecraft's cosmic horror stuff gives off.
> 
> 10/10 can't wait to watch again. It'll probably be even better on the second viewing after I wait a while.



Glad you dug it! I'm gonna rewatch it soon myself.


----------



## kamello

sakeido said:


> I wish I could watch Steins;gate again for the first time



this, this, this, this, so much this.




sakeido said:


> Dem feels is right... it was a smart choice to use the time travel for dramatic purposes, that's what Steins;gate was all about for me. It's a sci fi story that is more about the characters. So goddamn tragic. Christmas break starts soon - a rewatch is in order.
> 
> Just started Ergo Proxy too. This is one damn beautiful show, world seems cool too, overall plotline is not really revealing itself to me just yet




IMO, what makes Steins;Gate excell over other series is that it doesn't feel forced (although the relationship between Okabe and Makise is a bit fast-paced in the anime in relation to the original graphic novel, from what I've read) It keeps an incredible balance between the life of the characters, making them actually feel relatable, and the sci-fi aspects 

gotta watch Ergo Proxy soon...



Alberto7 said:


> It doesn't happen to many people that they find the beginning boring and thus they stop (I personally find it very entertaining),



si, quien podría sentir que el comienzo es aburrido?  , definitivamente yo no.......... 


OT: after messaging Alberto (like a month ago) asking him for a few recomendations, wishfully thinking that I would have time in my hands during my exams period to watch one or two series during that time 
Im gonna watch Mushishi and Kara no Kyoukai now that Im free


----------



## Don Vito

_Eva 21_

So that's where this is from


----------



## Don Vito

double post


----------



## Ibzzus

Berserk

/thread


----------



## wat




----------



## sakeido

hahahahahahah what the hell is that? Awesome


----------



## Sofos

wonderful

absolutely wonderful


hahahha


----------



## Dusty Chalk

"If you knew all this prior, continue to stare blankly. _(beat)_ A-ha! Just as I suspected..."

Also:

"...and because every moment we fritter away pondering such nonsense, we lose time more fruitfully spent advising ways to unravel The Organization's plan."
"Oh yeah. My bad. Didn't mean to take us down the rabbit hole, there."
"Hold thy tongue, hack, you are addressing the rabbit hole's pre-eminent denizen..."

Okay, this may be the best show ever.


----------



## wat




----------



## wat

sakeido said:


> hahahahahahah what the hell is that? Awesome


----------



## wat

Bast laff evar


----------



## Dusty Chalk

"Aw...you use so many big words, the little ones around them don't make sense either."


----------



## Don Vito

Finished Evangelion about a week or two ago. Really loved it, and I can see now how much it influenced shows of today. I would be watching a certain scene and be like "HEY! that one anime had something exactly like this!". Now I've got to watch the 97' movie sometime. Dunno if I'll watch the newer ones, as I'm a little burn't out at this point.

My favorite scene had to be the one where they teamed up against the Angel that was spewing acid into the facility.

Also Rei is love, Rei is life.


----------



## Sofos

I just wish NGE hand't gone all mindfvck in the second half. Really lost me there.


----------



## Don Vito

I made it half way though Serial Experiments Lain, so I'm prepped for any kind of mind fvckery. That's what the ending made me think of anyway.


----------



## wat

^ nice avatar


----------



## sakeido

that is a beautiful av

Watching SAO II right now just cuz it's on Crunchy Roll. More of the first season I think.. pretty good, entertaining, doesn't fall face first into modern anime nonsense, but not one of the all time greats

edit: but seriously, FFS, how has this girl not keyed in that kirito played SAO? you'd think that would have been such massive news especially to VMMO players she would have figured tihs out by now


----------



## Don Vito

I really need to pick SAO II back up. I assume it's finished by now.

And speaking of Evangelion, the 2nd movie happens to be on TV right now.

edit: I'm pretty lenient when it comes to anime dubwork, but yeah, this Eva dub isn't good at all. I'll watch it some other time in Japanese.


----------



## wat

Wow, ufotable really knows how to pour salt in studio Deen's wounds 

So they got the rights to the opening song "Disillusion" in the 2006 F/SN anime, and included a re-recorded version in the credits of the most recent 1-hour episode of UBW. 

This song:


----------



## Sofos

Just watched the 1st season of Knights of Sidonia. Not too bad, though it starts out slow and the animation style took a LOT of getting used to (cell shaded)


----------



## Dusty Chalk

Someone on Facebook had a bad banana, so I mentioned that it made me think of Steins;gate, and eventually someone posted this pic.


----------



## Sofos

Dusty Chalk said:


> Someone on Facebook had a bad banana, so I mentioned that it made me think of Steins;gate, and eventually someone posted this pic.



Getting dangerously close to time for me to rewatch Steins;Gate.


----------



## wat

Sofos said:


> Just watched the 1st season of Knights of Sidonia. Not too bad, though it starts out slow and the animation style took a LOT of getting used to (cell shaded)



I looove that show. I'm current on the manga too. 

It's great but the writer _does_ write in a very trollish way, often poking fun at manga/anime in general. Especially when it comes to love interests, or a new technology or weapon that would serve as a "power-up"...and then it gets destroyed before ever being used. 

Another way he does it is that he hints that all his stories could be in the same universe because they share similar things like Toha Heavy Industries, and Gravitational Beam Emitter, but he never gives anything to connect the dots.

Speaking of, there is a trailer for an anime adaptation of the same writer's _Blame!_ series in knights of sidonia


----------



## Sofos

Rewatching SAO. Just got done with part 1 (Aincrad). Gonna watch Part 2 tonight. Is SAO II good and is it finished?


----------



## Don Vito

It's finished according to MAL. I just realized I never even made it halfway through.  I remember it starting out really slow.


----------



## sakeido

Sofos said:


> Rewatching SAO. Just got done with part 1 (Aincrad). Gonna watch Part 2 tonight. Is SAO II good and is it finished?



SAO II is pretty good, I'm up to ep19... but there hasn't been any important plot this entire time. There is no major story arc here that I can see. For the first part 2/3rds of the old cast isn't even involved with the plot. 

Season one having two story arcs I guess means season two had to be the same way. 

So I'd say it is entertaining and I get a kick of how awesome the games they are playing are but it's not THAT great


----------



## bouVIP

S2 technically has 3 arcs but the 2nd 1 is like a short filler. Overall SAOII is pretty good. The last arc is pretty much focused on Asuna. 


I honestly just like SAOII for Sinon though <3

Also this <3


----------



## Sofos

That's an adorable Saber. Too bad I hated the ending of Zero


----------



## mrdm53

Brace yourself, C87 incoming!


----------



## Don Vito

mrdm53 said:


> Brace yourself, C87 incoming!


Huh, I always thought this was a summer event. Then again, my knowledge is purely from anime. 

Nice collection bou! I don't have any Nendo's yet..


----------



## mrdm53

nope, it was winter event. lots of Amagi Briliant Park doujin was release today


----------



## wat

Anybody catch the latest F/SN UBW?









dat seibah


























dat rin


----------



## bouVIP

I still need to watch the last 2 episodes, but I have fully converted to Goddess Tohsaka.


----------



## Dusty Chalk

Argh! I'm...like...one or two volumes behind on Berserk (manga) -- why didn't anyone tell me there was a new volume in 2013?!?!?

_(lifts skirt, runs off comically)_


----------



## Fat-Elf

*Fate Zero megathread


----------



## Don Vito

is this a good list?


----------



## Fat-Elf

Don Vito said:


> is this a good list?




Are you joking? Naruto? Entry-level shit. Dragonball? That's hardly even anime. Pokémon? ....! That list is shit.


----------



## ferret

Some what on topic, just watched the Battle Royale movie. Gonna grab the book sometime.


----------



## Dusty Chalk

The book is fantastic. I actually think the movie is the weakest of the three versions (book/manga/movie).


----------



## Sofos

just finished SAO2. My thoughts about it:


Spoiler



why didn't they try and back up Yuuki to the internet like Akihiko did? .1% chance of success, but she was dying anyway. They could have had it set up for a last-chance effort in her dying minutes or something. Idk *shrugs*. I did like how SAO2 focused on people other than Kirito, though, mainly in the first half with Sinon. I know the next season will focus on Alicization/Underworld, but I'd like to see how they handle Ragnarok in ALO. And with that, why the hell isn't Klein using Mjolnir? I'd kill for that if I played ALO. Anyways, rambling. Not a bad season.



PS, Alex, PLEASE make "spoiler" tags a shortcut in the post box, like images, urls, quotes, etc. Same with "youtubevid". Get's really old typing it out all the time, especially in threads like this 

So, what anime should I watch next? Anything good on Netflix I haven't seen? Here's what I've already watched on there: Psycho-Pass, Deadman Wonderland, Deathnote, Fairy Tail, Soul Eater, Samurai Champloo, FMA, Trigun, Yu-Gi-Oh (duh lol), B Gata H Kei (Yamada's First Time), Pokemon, Digimon, AoT, Eden of the East (just under Steins;Gate as my favourite anime), Knights of Sidonia, Freezing, Fate Zero, SAO, Eureka 7. Also watched Squid Girl when that was on there, awesome anime.


----------



## Cyntex

Almost finished watching Mirai Nikki, real messed up show, but very cool

Finished Deadman wonderland, I really wish it ran longer, seen Tokyo GHoul and High School Of The Dead..., Beserk, AOT, ELfenlied

What other horror/bloody anime should I watch next?


----------



## Sofos




----------



## Don Vito

Is that like a homemade bootleg of an old Revoltech? Jesus 

1+ for Squid Girl. Chill summer show.


----------



## Sofos

Don Vito said:


> Is that like a homemade bootleg of an old Revoltech? Jesus
> 
> 1+ for Squid Girl. Chill summer show.



is oviusly sader, duh


----------



## Sofos

Fat-Elf said:


> *Fate Zero megathread



is Fate Stay Night better than Zero? I watched Zero and didn't like the end of it. At all.


----------



## bouVIP

Sofos said:


> is Fate Stay Night better than Zero? I watched Zero and didn't like the end of it. At all.



Yes because Rin is in it. But seriously F/SN is just the sequel to Zero. I kind of don't like Shiroe, but story wise it's still good.


----------



## Sofos

Greatest. Thing. Ever.


----------



## wat

Sofos said:


> is Fate Stay Night better than Zero? I watched Zero and didn't like the end of it. At all.





Well the end of F/Z pretty much sets the stage for F/SN since F/Z is the prequel. It's kind of meant to be watched in reverse order too since F/SN UBW is an adaptation of one of three possible routes of the F/SN visual novel. that's the source material & came out long before F/Z

if you watch F/SN a ton of things will come together. Also keep in mind that the main character is the way he is because a combination of Kiritsugu's influence AND because he's not right in the head fom what happened in the end of F/Z. but you don't see how F'd up batshit he is on the surface. Sakura is like that too.


----------



## myrtorp

I love this thread!


----------



## sakeido

Re-watching Steins;gate! My brother is watching it with me too, it's his first go through... we just got past episode 12, he was destroyed


----------



## Sofos

sakeido said:


> Re-watching Steins;gate! My brother is watching it with me too, it's his first go through... we just got past episode 12, he was destroyed



That's the point in most anime where I'd be debating if I wanted to keep watching (I always do) but this time... THEY HAD A TIME MACHINE D:


----------



## Sofos




----------



## wat

Just finished Samurai Champloo 

Reaaaaaly loved that one


----------



## Negav

I finished Steins;Gate yesterday. Started on Tuesday at 11pm and fished yesterday (Wednesday) around 12pm. Couldn't stop. GREAT series. I'm a new man now after watching it.

El Psy Congroo!


----------



## Fat-Elf

'sup? Just having dinner with my parents and my waifu.

https://media.riemurasia.net/albumit/m34359/1554650842.webm


----------



## Don Vito

Fat-Elf said:


> 'sup? Just having dinner with my parents and my waifu.
> 
> https://media.riemurasia.net/albumit/m34359/1554650842.webm


The normalfags in this thread are gonna spoil the beauty of this.


----------



## myrtorp

I started wathing Clannad. Manages to be serious and funny, from what I've seen so far. 
I always thought Clannad was about sword fighting for some reason. Looking forward to seeing more!


----------



## Sofos

Fat-Elf said:


> 'sup? Just having dinner with my parents and my waifu.
> 
> https://media.riemurasia.net/albumit/m34359/1554650842.webm



My life is now complete. Greatest. Thing. Ever.

Here it is with audio, btw:


----------



## Dusty Chalk

*Patema Inverted* -- only 99 cent rental on Amazon Prime right now, watching it now.


----------



## kamello

sakeido said:


> Re-watching Steins;gate! My brother is watching it with me too, it's his first go through... we just got past episode 12, he was destroyed



HAHAHHAHAHA  

exact same thing here! 


I insisted a pair of friends who _kinda_ are into anime to see it, at first they where a little hesitant because I didn't want to spoil the series and just told them that ''it's about a group of friends who make a Time Machine with a cell phone and a Microwave'' 

we just got to see to episode 13 and yep; they were addicted and destroyed , a few hours after that I had to come back to my city and my inbox was about to explode between all the rage/sad/joy messages with capslocks 




anyways; finally I sat to see a bit of Mushishi, and so far Im loving it. It's a beautiful beautiful world. Gonna expand a bit more with my opinions once I finish the first batch of episodes


OT; but, anybody here into Kingdom Hearts? 
I've been working on and off during almost all 2014 preparing a little rearrangement for guitar (based around Kyle Landry's version for piano) and since Im finally on holidays I've got around to record a wee-bit of it.
Being honest; I thought it would be a total dissaster, since I've never used clean guitar in the forefront of a mix, and I thought the ammount of tracks I was working with on Guitar Pro just wouldn't translate well to a real recording, but Im actually quite surprised with how it turned out; far from perfect, but I definitely see this working with some polishing

gonna post the full version when it's ready, but here is a small preview (I know I know, gonna fix the pop's and clicks' later  ) 

https://db.tt/W96NhqVC


----------



## bouVIP

DUDE THAT SOUNDS AWESOME!!! I LOVE THIS SONG SO MUCH.


----------



## Negav

Guys could you recommend me a Shounen-Comedy-Romance anime? (maybe with ecchi harem)


----------



## bouVIP

Nisekoi, Hayate no Gotoku, Date A Live, Oreshura, Chuunibyou demo Koi ga Shitai!


----------



## Dusty Chalk

kamello said:


> https://db.tt/W96NhqVC


_(involuntary wink hentai)_

Really sweet tones, there, dude.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Just quick watched the first episode of Kantai Collection. Didn't even know it had started already but damn that was lame. It was literally like Strike Witched but without pantsu shots. Even the plot seemed exactly the same. Cute girls flying (well, floating in this case) over sea and shooting at some alien monsters whatever. Plus the worst part, only one small scene with my favorite character and she didn't even say anything in it. Dropped.


----------



## Don Vito

That's why I couldn't get into Strike Witches. I still think they're cute though, and want some of the figures. 

Same with Kancolle. Don't feel like playing some browser game with leet Japs pwning me, but that doesn't mean I can't be a fan.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Don Vito said:


> That's why I couldn't get into Strike Witches. I still think they're cute though, and want some of the figures.
> 
> Same with Kancolle. Don't feel like playing some browser game with leet Japs pwning me, but that doesn't mean I can't be a fan.



Yeah, it's not like Kancolle (or Strike Witches) wouldn't make great fap material but the anime are just so boring to watch.


----------



## kamello

@Dusty; @BouVIP, thanks a lot guys!


----------



## Fat-Elf

Just finished Non Non Biyori. Funnily, I dropped it after the first episode about a year ago but something made me pick it up and it kept my interest till the end. Normally I'm not into these plotless "cute girls doing cute things" kind of anime but this one had likeable characters with some personality in them and some of the scenes were pretty funny. I really liked the countryside setting and how it was overally a bit more slow paced and relaxed compared to it's genre counterparts. 

Probably going to pick up Golden Time again because I never finished it as I was being too busy with the army back in summer and it's been so long that I can't really remember what happened in it or what episode I even left it so I'll start it from the beginning.


----------



## bouVIP

I love Non Non Biyori!!! Season 2 soon too!!


----------



## Fat-Elf

bouVIP said:


> I love Non Non Biyori!!! Season 2 soon too!!



Really!? I was really hoping for season 2 but didn't know they were actually making it.


----------



## bouVIP

Yup! No idea when, but it's happening!!!


----------



## Sofos

Sofos said:


> So, what anime should I watch next? Anything good on Netflix I haven't seen? Here's what I've already watched on there: Psycho-Pass, Deadman Wonderland, Deathnote, Fairy Tail, Soul Eater, Samurai Champloo, FMA, Trigun, Yu-Gi-Oh (duh lol), B Gata H Kei (Yamada's First Time), Pokemon, Digimon, AoT, Eden of the East (just under Steins;Gate as my favourite anime), Knights of Sidonia, Freezing, Fate Zero, SAO, Eureka 7. Also watched Squid Girl when that was on there, awesome anime.



Bumping my own post :| noone answered me and I'm bored haha


----------



## Ikiharmaa

Sofos said:


> Bumping my own post :| noone answered me and I'm bored haha



You've seen the classics like Cowboy Bebop or Ghost in the Shell series yet? I imagine you'd enjoy those enough, at least GITS, maybe even Code Geass too. On the softer side of things maybe Spice and Wolf? Hyouka?

I think that I like the more intelligence/dialogue-driven shows, like you, so feel free to refer to my mal. I find that apart from just randomly reading synopsis of anime, the second best way to find new stuff to watch is to look at other people's lists. So it goes like this:
someone's anime list with ratings -> pick interesting title -> look at cover art -> glance over synopsis and reviews -> if I still haven't dropped it I'll add it to my to-watch -list. 

http://myanimelist.net/animelist/Ikiharmaa&show=0&order=4


----------



## Sofos

Ikiharmaa said:


> You've seen the classics like Cowboy Bebop or Ghost in the Shell series yet? I imagine you'd enjoy those enough, at least GITS, maybe even Code Geass too. On the softer side of things maybe Spice and Wolf? Hyouka?
> 
> I think that I like the more intelligence/dialogue-driven shows, like you, so feel free to refer to my mal. I find that apart from just randomly reading synopsis of anime, the second best way to find new stuff to watch is to look at other people's lists. So it goes like this:
> someone's anime list with ratings -> pick interesting title -> look at cover art -> glance over synopsis and reviews -> if I still haven't dropped it I'll add it to my to-watch -list.
> 
> http://myanimelist.net/animelist/Ikiharmaa&show=0&order=4



CB and GITS are fantastic, and CG:LotR is one of my all time favourites. I haven't seen those other two yet. Are they on Netflix and/or have English dubs? (I have kinda shitty eyes so subtitles get tiring to read, especially considering I like to binge watch [20+ episodes a day 4-5 times a week haha])

EDIT: I see you also watch B Gata H Kei. Friggin hilarious show. I'd give it a solid 8, as well. If there are any anime that i feel should have gone much longer, it's that one. Or a spin off following that one flat-chested chick that was all over the 'hot guy' (it's been a couple months, I don't remember names)

Also, on our PtW, I recommend FMA:B next, just for the sake of it being in my top 3 of all time (with Steins;Gate and Code Geass: LotR)

EDIT 2: Here's my list: http://myanimelist.net/animelist/Sofos&show=0&order=4


----------



## Ikiharmaa

Sofos said:


> EDIT: I see you also watch B Gata H Kei. Friggin hilarious show. I'd give it a solid 8, as well. If there are any anime that i feel should have gone much longer, it's that one. Or a spin off following that one flat-chested chick that was all over the 'hot guy' (it's been a couple months, I don't remember names)



Haha, yeah, it was surprisingly fun! I had actually dropped it earlier but picked it up again this fall when I watched a lot of rom-coms for whatever reason.. I have no clue, I just wanted to enjoy but not be really amazed?

Anyways, definitely the best of the "season" for me was Seitokai Yakuindomo. I should find the post in here and +rep whoever posted about it. It is amazingly funny. Don't read anything about it, just watch the first episode right off the bat.

I like how japanese as a language sounds, and the voice acting is usually (a lot) better and more fitting so I personally always go for subs. Not being a native english speaker I actually find following subs sometimes easier than trying to follow the speech. So I have no idea about netflix or dubs :/

Also, you aren't really watchng anime until it's 6am and everything looks blurry  (jokes aside, slice-of-life/comedy is actually fine in small doses too, anything with a real plot and drama isn't).



FMA:B has been on my list for as long as I've had one probably, lol. I should get to it at some point, I'm just scared of shows with more than 26 episodes.


----------



## bouVIP

I have no idea what animes are on Netflix so I can't recommend anything OTL but check out Durarara!! if it is on there. It's also dubbed! It's a fun and intense series and S2 is out right now!

http://myanimelist.net/animelist/-_-AzN-_- D:


----------



## Fat-Elf

Ikiharmaa said:


> Anyways, definitely the best of the "season" for me was Seitokai Yakuindomo. I should find the post in here and +rep whoever posted about it. It is amazingly funny. Don't read anything about it, just watch the first episode right off the bat.



Probably me as I was looking for something similar after B Gata H Kei and Seitokai Yakuindomo was one of the recommendations. Still need to finish the 2nd season before I forget it.


----------



## wat

Sofos said:


> Bumping my own post :| noone answered me and I'm bored haha



_Welcome to The NHK _is one of my favorites. If you like Steins;Gate, especially the characters, then NHK is a good one. Both funny and sad.

I just started watching _My Little Monster_ and I like it. 

I like _Noragami_ too. It's about a small-time deity who wants to hit it big one day. Funny and interesting.


----------



## Dusty Chalk

Patema Inverted was enjoyable. Also Summer Wars and the Girl who Stepped Through Time.
Vampire Hunter D?
Elfen Lied?
Last Exile?
Attack on Titan? (haven't watched this one yet, myself)
Kite?
Blood: the Last Vampire? (the original is the only one I'm recommending; the live action movie -- well, I enjoyed, but I can enjoy anything, that's my superpower, but pretty much universally despised; and I haven't watched Blood+ yet)
Jin-Roh: Wolf Brigade?

Oh, good, 3rd episode of Arise is up, I know what I'm doing tonight.


----------



## OmegaSlayer

Sofos said:


> Bumping my own post :| noone answered me and I'm bored haha



I don't know if it's on Netflix and it's an insane amount of episodes, but you should REALLY REALLY REALLY watch OnePiece, which has one of the coolest and better done stories ever.


----------



## Sofos

OmegaSlayer said:


> I don't know if it's on Netflix and it's an insane amount of episodes, but you should REALLY REALLY REALLY watch OnePiece, which has one of the coolest and better done stories ever.



I read the manga (well like 300 chapters of it) and i just got bored of it after a while. The VA in the Dub is awful. Same with Naruto.


----------



## ferret

Who watches dubs? 

Anyone else reading Sukedachi Nine? Only a couple chapters so far.


----------



## Don Vito

Kancolle 2

Some bitch ate a plate of curry that looked like a giant turd.

I'm out.


----------



## Alberto7

Right, so... I'm back from the dead!

I finished watching UBW, ad holy shit. I absolutely love the direction they're taking it in and how they're doing it.

Also, I'm a huge fan of Death Billiards (that stand-alone episode that came out a few years ago along with Little Witch Academia), so I flipped shit the other day when I began watching Death Parade and realized that it's Death Billiards turned into a series! Really cool stuff, and gorgeously animated. The music is incredible; it reminds me slightly of Cowboy Bebop, but more lounge-y. Also, the intro and the ending songs and sequences are super, duper cool. I mean, just watch/listen to this!




Aaaannnddd my Saber 2.0 Figma finally came in a couple of days ago! 





She looks amazing, but posing her is a bitch and a half. I can't seem to be able to do it without making her look retarded. She came with 8-10 different hand positions, 3 facial expressions, and two sets of hair. She also came with Excalibur + Avalon, and Caliburn + sheath, and then the stand. Lots of things! I'm slowly figuring her out, but it's taking time. Still though, I am happy with her!

Aaannndd the entire family:




The super adorable Petanko Saber and the Titan mug were gifts that I got from my roommates during a gift exchange we had a couple of weeks ago. And my Shiki statue, of course.


----------



## Fat-Elf

^Dat tissue box.


----------



## Alberto7

Fat-Elf said:


> ^Dat tissue box.



LOOOOOL I knew someone would comment on that.  I do suffer from chronic rhinitis, but... whatever, excuses.


----------



## bouVIP

OMG ALBERTO7!!! YOU HAVE BEEN MISSED!!

Really nice figures <3


----------



## Don Vito

Anyone seen MS Hololens? The waifu age is here. 

Submit yourself to NSA onii-chan :3


----------



## Alberto7

bouVIP said:


> OMG ALBERTO7!!! YOU HAVE BEEN MISSED!!
> 
> Really nice figures <3



Thanks dude! I missed you guys as well. I've been taking it easy with anime the past couple of months, but I felt a sudden urge to drop by and post a little update haha. I always lurk though, and I do read whatever's posted here.  I also came back because I am beginning to fangirl Death Parade.



Don Vito said:


> Anyone seen MS Hololens? The waifu age is here.
> 
> Submit yourself to NSA onii-chan :3



I am Sabering this bitch up in here with mah HoloLens. F*ck all of the posters my roommates put up in the living room; I am overlaying all that shit with Saber pics.


----------



## habicore_5150

Figured I'd stop by and say hi

I really can't say much of anything else other than "Christ, I have a TON of catching up to do on a lot of anime that I need to get back into watching, and anime that I NEED to watch"

And just for the hell of it, here's my small (and in desperate need of updates) MAL: http://myanimelist.net/animelist/habi5150


----------



## Dusty Chalk

I don't have room for toys any more, but there is some fine detail on those.


----------



## Alberto7

habicore_5150 said:


> Figured I'd stop by and say hi
> 
> I really can't say much of anything else other than "Christ, I have a TON of catching up to do on a lot of anime that I need to get back into watching, and anime that I NEED to watch"
> 
> And just for the hell of it, here's my small (and in desperate need of updates) MAL: http://myanimelist.net/animelist/habi5150



Huh, I should probably get me one of those. (MAL) Would help me keep track of what I watch/am watching/have watched. It seems a lot easier than keeping an ASCII list on notepad on my laptop. 

And talk about catching up... gonna go keep watching Legend of Korra, Book 2. That second season, save for a few episodes (which are incredible), is pretty hard to get through because it's kinda boring. Gotta hit that third season though, which I hear is beast.



Dusty Chalk said:


> I don't have room for toys any more, but there is some fine detail on those.



If I get another figure, I'll probably have to sleep outside.  My dresser is pretty small and my desk is crammed with things, so I'm gonna have to buy a couple of shelves to screw unto my walls to put all my shit on haha


----------



## Don Vito

Dusty Chalk said:


> I don't have room for toys any more, but there is some fine detail on those.


Nonsense, toys are mean't to be played with ; ) (sorry for potato)


----------



## habicore_5150

dat Aigis

Unfortunately, all I have is a few plushies, and no real figures (save for one which is pretty cool)


----------



## Ikiharmaa

Alberto7 said:


> Huh, I should probably get me one of those. (MAL) Would help me keep track of what I watch/am watching/have watched. It seems a lot easier than keeping an ASCII list on notepad on my laptop.



It's not that much easier actually, I kinda miss my old notepad list. It's however cool because it's easy to share with others. And because/if you've rated each anime others get a good idea about how similar your tastes actually are, so you know if you should listen to their advice


----------



## bouVIP

Anyone watching Food Porn? aka Koufuku Graffiti? It's pretty great to me~

Also been collecting nendos~ Up to 5 right now with 2 on preorder. (also NGD preview: Her name is Rin~)


----------



## Dusty Chalk

Don Vito said:


> Nonsense, toys are mean't to be played with ; ) (sorry for potato)


If I had a mansion, I'd have display cases everywhere.


----------



## MetalGravy

Dusty Chalk said:


> I don't have room for toys any more, but there is some fine detail on those.




You need a job with a cubicle.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Origa Dead: &#8216;Ghost In The Shell&#8217; Singer Dies At 44 - Hollywood Life

Wow... as a massive fan of everything she sang on, this is extremely depressing. 

RIP







The fact that I have Historia Crux as my morning alarm makes it sadder...


----------



## Alberto7

WHAT?! NO

That is some sad news...  I only know her from the GitS soundtrack (which I listen to constantly), and the odd, non-GitS song on YouTube playlists. Such an angelic voice she had. Lung cancer, no less... :/

May she rest in peace.


----------



## Don Vito

Inner Universe literally got me into watching anime. Even as a kid in the early 00's who had no idea what was going on in GiTS, I loved to watch the opening movie and hear that song. Extremely nostalgic.  RIP


----------



## Dusty Chalk

Wow, that was one singer singing all those multi-lingual parts? Her Russian was immaculate.

I has a sad.


----------



## Cyntex

Damn, 


Came in here to tell you to watch Psycho Pass, if you haven't already seen it. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWF_-XqOsAc


----------



## Alberto7

This is so goddamn cool



I love this series, but I think they knocked this one out of the park. The finished product is SOOO beautiful. Just look at the grain patterns on that red blade!


----------



## Don Vito

"The transformations all use magic"

o rly


----------



## Alberto7

I just watched the fourth episode of Death Parade. Talk about an emotional rollercoaster, holy crap. Thematically, it's one of the darkest things I have seen in a while on anime. I am so loving this show.


----------



## habicore_5150

I know something like this should be in the tech subsection, but oh well, I thought looked kinda neat You can visit Sword Art Online in your Rift | KitGuru

Been a pretty busy weekday, just gotta figure out what all I'm gonna watch over the weekend. Maybe start up on Psycho Pass or something


----------



## Sofos

So Digimon Adventure 3 is happening this year. So excited. It follows the original DigiDestined 6 years after the original series, and they are high schoolers now.


----------



## myrtorp

I finished Clannad and Clannad Afterstory a while back. Dude. It's the most emotional anime I've ever seen, (Afterstory that is). I was almost brought to tears at a few points and that never happens otherwise. I actually got a bit depressed afterwards, not only because of the story but because it made me think about my own life and what I want to do, as it feels like i am stuck not knowing which way to go. 

(lol watch it becuase you will get depressed!) what a selling point!

I really recommend it, First season is a pretty fun slice of life with its serious moments and Afterstory is a direct continuation with great storyline.

It also has a pig pet side character that can only say "Puhi Puhi!" I love those guys in anime. Another character like that is Boota from Gurren Lagann.


----------



## habicore_5150

I said I needed to start up on Psycho Pass. I'm now saying that I wanna watch more of it. Even though i rarely watch shows with cops, I think I'm starting to like this one

And is it me or do I see a resemblance between Nobuchika Ginzoa and Sebastian Michealis from Black Butler?


----------



## wat

habicore_5150 said:


> I said I needed to start up on Psycho Pass. I'm now saying that I wanna watch more of it. Even though i rarely watch shows with cops, I think I'm starting to like this one
> 
> And is it me or do I see a resemblance between Nobuchika Ginzoa and Sebastian Michealis from Black Butler?



I looooove Psycho-pass.  there is Psycho-pass movie now that picks up after the 2nd season now too. I need to watch that. 



Also,


----------



## Alberto7

Sort of anime related but... Monty Oum, the creator of RWBY, has passed away. 

http://roosterteeth.com/members/journal/entry.php?id=3302319

I dropped RWBY halfway through Volume 1, since I hated waiting so long for such short episodes, but I was into it (despite its glaring flaws and idiocies) and I'm planning on catching up with Volume 2 soon. Sad stuff.

In his honor:



and


----------



## habicore_5150

wat said:


> I looooove Psycho-pass.  there is Psycho-pass movie now that picks up after the 2nd season now too. I need to watch that.
> 
> 
> 
> Also,



Can't see that, though I do get some of my pics and wallpapers from here, Minitokyo and AlphaCoders (and rarely Danbooru)



Alberto7 said:


> Sort of anime related but... Monty Oum, the creator of RWBY, has passed away.
> 
> http://roosterteeth.com/members/journal/entry.php?id=3302319
> 
> I dropped RWBY halfway through Volume 1, since I hated waiting so long for such short episodes, but I was into it (despite its glaring flaws and idiocies) and I'm planning on catching up with Volume 2 soon. Sad stuff.
> 
> In his honor:
> 
> 
> 
> and




Wow. I heard that he was hospitalized not too long ago, didn't know that he died already. It's sad to hear, even though I have seen maybe one episode of RWBY

And I'm already up to Ep.8 on Psycho-Pass, but took a little break from that (not because of some of the deaths and such are pretty brutal and gruesome, that [in anime and cartoons at least] doesn't bug me) to start Durarara!! all over again


----------



## Don Vito

Don Vito said:


> I made it half way though Serial Experiments Lain, so I'm prepped for any kind of mind fvckery. That's what the ending made me think of anyway.


Jeez, after almost a year, I finally finished this show 

I hated it by the end, but then I let it sink in for an hour to let lain wash over me.

I've been in a state of nirvana ever since.

I did have to wiki the plot line a bit though.


----------



## Dusty Chalk

Steins;gate

Unholy carp! I just got to _that_ episode earlier today.



Spoiler



the one where Mayuri dies repeatedly



I wept openly. Fortunately I had my cats to console me.


----------



## mrdm53

surprisingly, i found that Eri Kitamura could sing some brutal song, absolutely no Jpop-ish music. 

i'm listening to Shidonia no Kishi's ED, when i accidentally play Greedy;(cry) from the same single. Damn, that's very low tuning song  almost like Tokyo ESP's ED


----------



## Sofos

Rewatching Steins;Gate while also watching Gurren Lagann for the first time with my brother. Going 5 of S;G, 5 of GL, 5 of S;G, etc. Halfway on both.


----------



## bouVIP

Eri Kitamura is awesome <3





Also Saber bass!!


----------



## Alberto7

DAT PICKGUARD.!1!!!!11!111!!!eleven!!1!

where is the rep system when I need it 

Seriously though, that came out sweet as phuck! 

... now I want a t-shirt with her armor design on it.


----------



## Don Vito

Did you put in the gold saddle things? Serious dedication to detail!

Dunno if anybody cares, but KLK dub is starting on US tv tomorrow. Might re-watch it, or not(2 late 4 me)


----------



## Alberto7

^ At this point I don't really feel like watching KLK... dunno why. Maybe once I'm back into watching anime full time. That's cool though that it is finally getting the long-awaited dub. I'm still watching it in Japanese though, whenever I decide to watch it.


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> ^ At this point I don't really feel like watching KLK... dunno why. Maybe once I'm back into watching anime full time. That's cool though that it is finally getting the long-awaited dub. I'm still watching it in Japanese though, whenever I decide to watch it.


It's like any other Gainax show I've seen. Tits, gotta believe in urself 2 unlock ur power, ect...

You're not missing anything.


----------



## wat

Finally watching Neon Genesis Evangelion. Been looking forward to this for a while


----------



## wat

bouVIP said:


> ]
> 
> 
> Also Saber bass!!






Oh my god 

The pick guard just takes it there. You should get the Saber command seal/symbol thing on the headstock or the fretboard or something


----------



## Sofos

wat said:


> Finally watching Neon Genesis Evangelion. Been looking forward to this for a while



NGE was the biggest disappointment in the history of anime for me. Definitely did not live up to the hype. I gave it a 4/10.


----------



## bouVIP

wat said:


> Oh my god
> 
> The pick guard just takes it there. You should get the Saber command seal/symbol thing on the headstock or the fretboard or something



1 step ahead of you~









I finally got around to downloading KLK just need to watch it now. Might check out the dub though.


----------



## wat




----------



## MFB

Why download Kill LA Kill when its on Netflix and a bajillion other sites to just stream it?


----------



## Sofos

MFB said:


> Why download Kill LA Kill when its on Netflix and a bajillion other sites to just stream it?



Plus didn't the English dub premier today?


----------



## Fat-Elf

MFB said:


> Why download Kill LA Kill when its on Netflix and a bajillion other sites to just stream it?



Because streams aren't trve kvlt.


----------



## Don Vito

Torrent is king unless you're looking for some obscure/old shit with 1 or 2 seeders. Netflix probably isn't good there either.



Fat-Elf said:


> Because streams aren't trve kvlt.


VHS MASTER RACE



Sofos said:


> Plus didn't the English dub premier today?


On Toonami. I watched half of it, and I actually liked the cast other than senketsu or whatever his name is. Ryuko's english voice is pretty close to her jp va imo.

I think they used a re-recorded version of "Don't Lose Your Way" though. It might have just been me, but it sounded like it was sung by a high school anime club chorus. That's like 40% of the show's appeal for me(srs) That and dem' titties.


----------



## bouVIP

I heard the dub was pretty good.

Actually watched episode 1 subbed last night. KLK is ridiculous and fun.


Also download cause 1080p and more convenient for me.


----------



## MFB

I feel like I should go back and watch KLK, since the first half of GL is fun and dopey; the second half, I didn't care about, but man I did enjoy the first. I get tired of overly serious animes, every once in a while I need a stupid one, but once I watch one, I've had my fix for a good chunk of time.


----------



## wat

I've been thinking of watching KLK but I'm scared it's too silly or something. That didn't stop me from adoring Trigun @ Samurai Champloo though. Is it anything like those shows?


----------



## Alberto7

^ I haven't seen KLK, but I'd _very_ surprised if it is anything like Trigun. I feel as though Trigun is its own thing, pretty much. KLK is just... Gainax doing what they do best, according to what I've seen/heard. Over the top silliness and action with lotsa boobs.

(I feel like I'm quoting Don here )


----------



## MFB

Trigun is some top tier anime shit. KLK would only be so lucky to be that good.


----------



## wat

Should I skip the last 2 episodes of Evangelion and watch End of Evangelion instead? 



I've heard that Evangelion has a wtf/nonsense ending and that End Of Evangelion sort of smooths it over or something. I'm getting towards the end and it's getting pretty weird. How should I approach this? lol


----------



## Alberto7

Hahaha I would say watch both. The show has a happier ending, even if it doesn't make any sense. The End of Evangelion, however, is more cohesive, and comes across as a much more suitable ending and it's a lot more in line with the tone of the show... but it still doesn't make much sense at all.


----------



## wat

WTF did I just watch 


I really enjoyed NGE but the end was even worse than I had prepared myself for  Guess I'll watch The End of Evangelion tomorrow


----------



## mrdm53

wat said:


> WTF did I just watch
> 
> 
> I really enjoyed NGE but the end was even worse than I had prepared myself for  Guess I'll watch The End of Evangelion tomorrow



just skip episode 25-26, and straight into EoE. The last 2 episodes are absolute nonsense


----------



## Alberto7

^ Nah, I still think those should be watched, if only to be able to say that you've seen them. If you're gonna do something wrong (watching NGE in the first place), do it right.


----------



## Don Vito

stupid post about eva ending being for gross hipsters like me cause lack of sleep


----------



## Alberto7

Woops, I guess we know what that makes me.


----------



## wat

mrdm53 said:


> just skip episode 25-26, and straight into EoE. The last 2 episodes are absolute nonsense



I really wish I had.


Now that I've done a ton of reading on the Wiki and I know a lot more about the characters and setting, I'm gonna just rewatch the series again and skip 25-26 this time.


I may even edit everything together into a few movies, idk


----------



## Don Vito

nevermind, i don't want to talk about eva anymore


----------



## Don Vito

Speaking of which, I'm looking for more alternative anime after watching lain. It doesn't have to weird or anything, just nothing with fighting/cute girls doing cute things. There was one series I really wanted to watch last year which was about glass art, but I can't remember the name(it's buried some where in this thread). I really want more slice of life that isn't moe moe kyun. I love that shit, but I've been watching it forever. Kind of like how SEL was when lain was hangin' with her homies, and wasn't on an acid trip.



Don Vito said:


> I'd watch a SOL about a middle aged mom for some reason.


I'm still looking for this, but all I can find is porn.


----------



## MFB

That's kind of what Sergeant Frog is, the stuff that happens in it is fairly slice-of-life and there's not much mischief (that I remember) due to the fact that they live with a group of alien frogs. The mom loves them, the sister is annoyed by him, and the brother is fairly neutral.


----------



## bouVIP

Don Vito said:


> There was one series I really wanted to watch last year which was about glass art, but I can't remember the name(it's buried some where in this thread).




Glasslip? Please for the love of god do not watch it. It's so freaking awful.



I've been watching Saekano this season and it's really good and funny. Might be too moe for you though 

It's about an otaku trying to make a game and he's just so ridiculous.


----------



## Don Vito

That sounds good yo ; )


----------



## Alberto7

Alternative, non-moe, no fighting? Lain as reference? Seems like you want to watch Haibane Renmei. Surely one of my favorite anime ever (as evidenced by the gigantic poster in my room ). I've been meaning to watch it (yet again) lately, but I never find the time. Here are two trailers that, together, really give you a feel for what Haibane Renmei is all about.



Or you could watch Aku no Hana... that weird rotoscoped anime that weirded everybody out, but which was actually really, really good. Only bad side is that it ends on a cliffhanger, and you'll need to read the manga to know what happens after.

Or maybe try Paranoia Agent. Much in the same vein as Lain, but easier to follow.


You should also _totally_ watch Planetes if you're in the mood for some seriously hard sci-fi. Very, very good plot, and has a lot of slice of life-ish moments. Not sure if alternative, but definitely unique.


Also, if you want something _really_ alternative, you could go for Kaiba, which I never finished. Here's the OP just so you get an idea:


Then there's Tatami Galaxy, which I never watched, but I've been recommended it a lot, and it looks pretty out there.


Then there's Gankutsuou (Count of Monte Cristo), whose art is totally out there. Haven't watched it either, but I'm looking forward to at some point.


I showed your question to my roommate, and she actually went out of her way to find a list she saw a while ago that she thought you'd like.

Just for the Meh

... I'm all over that list. I don't know why she didn't show it before. So many interesting things in there. In particular, I've been dying to watch this:


And, of course, there is always Mushishi. I will forever recommend Mushishi if you're looking for something different and/or soothing.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Tried to watch Saekano but it was way too lewd for me as I've been trying to avoid that kind of stuff lately.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

Don Vito said:


> I'm still looking for this, but all I can find is porn.




http://myanimelist.net/anime/26349/Danna_ga_Nani_wo_Itteiru_ka_Wakaranai_Ken

I haven't seen it though, but judging from the reviews it seems rather interesting. Maybe I'll watch it myself next


----------



## Don Vito

Ikiharmaa said:


> http://myanimelist.net/anime/26349/Danna_ga_Nani_wo_Itteiru_ka_Wakaranai_Ken
> 
> I haven't seen it though, but judging from the reviews it seems rather interesting. Maybe I'll watch it myself next


Kiitos! Exactly what I was looking for.

Because I'll never get that K-On! spin off where Sawako finds true love


----------



## mrdm53

Ikiharmaa said:


> http://myanimelist.net/anime/26349/Danna_ga_Nani_wo_Itteiru_ka_Wakaranai_Ken
> 
> I haven't seen it though, but judging from the reviews it seems rather interesting. Maybe I'll watch it myself next



it's pretty good actually, talk about a newlywed couple with husband's as otaku 

too bad it's just short anime, i want 2nd season with full anime episode duration


----------



## Don Vito

You weren't lying, the first episode is 3 and a half minutes long. 

It's good. Very cute.


----------



## habicore_5150

Decided to start up on the 2nd half of Psycho-Pass, but I had to pause about a minute into the 12th episode

I'm sure some of you have already seen this, but can anyone recognize a few references to some amps in this pic? Like the Ibanez Thermion for instance?


----------



## wat

Double-poast


----------



## wat

Yeah I'm pretty much obsessed with evangelion right now. It just hits all the spots for me as well as some I didn't know I had. 


Time to hurry up and wait for the next movie, lol


----------



## Daemoniac

Started watching Ergo Proxy today - really great show so far, interesting art style. It's like Deus Ex Human Revolution and the original Ghost in the shell had a beautiful love child.


----------



## kamello

hey, for the ones interested, I finally finished the Dearly Beloved rearrangment I posted I while back 


[SC]https://soundcloud.com/emiliosfeir/dearly-beloved-wip[/SC]


and here is the thread I made with more detail for it
http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/re...ent-clean-guitar-piano-shreddy-heavy-etc.html





Daemoniac said:


> Started watching Ergo Proxy today - really great show so far, interesting art style. It's like Deus Ex Human Revolution and the original Ghost in the shell had a beautiful love child.



Got. to. start. with that one before I start with classes again


----------



## habicore_5150

Daemoniac said:


> Started watching Ergo Proxy today - really great show so far, interesting art style. It's like Deus Ex Human Revolution and the original Ghost in the shell had a beautiful love child.



Heeeyyy, where have you been?

But as for Ergo Proxy, I remember seeing a few episodes a couple of years back. I'd have to watch it again, but I thought it looked pretty good

And of course I'm already done with season 1 of Psycho-Pass, and I'm just patiently waiting to start up S2

Guess I got a couple more anime to watch between now and then

*EDIT*
Looking back at ep.12 of Psycho-Pass where I posted that one pic showing some of the amps and such. They'd parody those, but not do a parody of guitar strings


----------



## wat

habicore_5150 said:


> Heeeyyy, where have you been?
> 
> But as for Ergo Proxy, I remember seeing a few episodes a couple of years back. I'd have to watch it again, but I thought it looked pretty good
> 
> And of course I'm already done with season 1 of Psycho-Pass, and I'm just patiently waiting to start up S2
> 
> Guess I got a couple more anime to watch between now and then
> 
> *EDIT*
> Looking back at ep.12 of Psycho-Pass where I posted that one pic showing some of the amps and such. They'd parody those, but not do a parody of guitar strings






i was surprised she played 9's, i had pegged her as an 11's chick


----------



## habicore_5150

wat said:


> i was surprised she played 9's, i had pegged her as an 11's chick



I saw that episode and I thought to myself "Ok, so we're about 200 or so years from this point in time right? So where's the Axe-FX XXL Omega at?" 

I thought she looked like someone who'd play 10's


----------



## Dusty Chalk

Finished Steins;Gate -- that was superb. The end was a little drawn out (dat last episode), but it does so much else right, that it is forgiven for that.

RWBY. Alright, first? The CG is horrificly bad. HORRIFICLY. (I think it even makes fun of itself. It's like old ... does anyone remember the game ... what was it called, "Tank"? Where you could accidentally embed yourself in a wall? It's that bad.)

That said, the sense of humour is definitely my sense of humour and makes the bad CG worth it. Example:

Character 1: _(statement)_
_(beat)
(wind sound, tumbleweed blows by in one direction)_
Character 2: _(another statements)_
_(beat)
(wind sound, tumbleweed blows by in the other direction)_
One of the characters (I don't even remember which one): Sure is windy.

I don't know why, but I laughed pretty hard at that scene. Also:

Ruby: "Friends! Sisters! Weiss!" (Weiss is one of the characters.)
Weiss (offscreen): "Hey!"

Also: the violence is pretty well choreographed and easy to follow and nicely spectacular, in a "character carries a weapon that's twice their body weight" kind of thing. The opening scene will explain this fairly clearly.

And apparently, there's a 4th Ghost in teh Shell: Arise, but it hasn't shown up yet, but in the meantime, Netflix has separated the first three episodes, and you can't find them by searching for 'arise' or similar. The guy on the phone (yes, I actually called) said to watch the first 20 seconds or so, then click on the "report a problem" link, so I did. I'm thinking if enough other people do the same, they might glue them back together, so please do so, and don't forget to mention the 4th episode "Ghost stands alone".


----------



## Don Vito

Narcissu made me cry like a bitch, and I suggest you all play it. It's free.

The anime about the otaku husband + waifu was really funny and unique. The first time I've seen a legit trap in anime, unless we count Crona from Soul Eater. It was even a bit sad near the end, which I wasn't expecting at all. Oh and on the trap thing, I think Kirito counts as a trap now, even though I dropped it a long time ago.


----------



## Dusty Chalk

Lollers at your avatar in the context of the above post.


----------



## russmuller

wat said:


> Yeah I'm pretty much obsessed with evangelion right now. It just hits all the spots for me as well as some I didn't know I had.
> 
> Time to hurry up and wait for the next movie, lol



You may enjoy my Eva Unit 01 NGD from a while back.

I have been dying for something great to watch since Attack On Titan finished airing the last episode. I am almost done with Sword Art Online; it's not a bad show.


----------



## habicore_5150

russmuller said:


> You may enjoy my Eva Unit 01 NGD from a while back.
> 
> I have been dying for something great to watch since Attack On Titan finished airing the last episode. I am almost done with Sword Art Online; it's not a bad show.



EVA Unit 7620 eh?

Probably gonna start up Durarara!! again this evening


----------



## wat

russmuller said:


> You may enjoy my Eva Unit 01 NGD from a while back.



Oh god, that's awesome. :shinji jizz-hand: Yeah, I'm all up in some Eva right now- it's probly my favorite anime series now.




russmuller said:


> I have been dying for something great to watch since Attack On Titan finished airing the last episode. I am almost done with Sword Art Online; it's not a bad show.




I don't know what you have seen but _Psycho-Pass_, the _Fate_ series and_ Death Note_ are all incredible. Knights of Sidonia is really great too.


----------



## wat

Kill La Kill


----------



## Don Vito

I was listening to kek la kek ost today.


----------



## wat

I was listeningto the OST on Youtube in the shower this morning


----------



## Fat-Elf

Don Vito said:


> I was listening to kek la kek ost today.




I listened the whole thing the other day. Album of the year 2014.


----------



## Skyblue

Picked up Fate/Zero after kinda dropping it for technical reason. 
Just watched the episode where


Spoiler



Lancer kills himself and HOLY FLUFF WHAT THE HELL THAT WAS REALLY MEAN I liked Lancer  I also seriously think Rider is a much more interesting character than Saber *FLAME SHIELD ON*, so far she's being the kind of saint-do-good character, which I find kind of boring, while Rider is much more interesting to watch (though his master is kinda boring)


I hope to finish it by next week~


----------



## Fat-Elf

Finally found a stream for Futabu yesterday after over a year of searching. Shit was so cash. $$$


----------



## Alberto7

Self-proclaimed resident Fate slut reporting in:

So, for whatever reason I was going through some Fate-related stuff, and I started listening to all the music from the original visual novel. I hadn't realized just how moody the music is. I'm not sure about you guys, but the music in a show can actually make it 10x better for me, and it can take a scene from being all "meh" to making me jump in excitement or bawl like a toddler. Still, after a year of having read the Fate VN, its music still evokes the same emotions it did when I was reading it... which made me go and re-read a couple of scenes. Reading through that scene in Heavens Feel


Spoiler



where Shirou kills Saber along with his memories of her


 made the feelscoaster take a stomach-churning dive. I'd forgotten how brutal that scene was, and the music accompanying that scene made it all that much worse. Super simple melody, but super effective.



But yeah, I just thought I'd throw that out there, since I really don't have any other anime-related stuff to post. 



Skyblue said:


> Picked up Fate/Zero after kinda dropping it for technical reason.
> Just watched the episode where
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> Lancer kills himself and HOLY FLUFF WHAT THE HELL THAT WAS REALLY MEAN I liked Lancer  I also seriously think Rider is a much more interesting character than Saber *FLAME SHIELD ON*, so far she's being the kind of saint-do-good character, which I find kind of boring, while Rider is much more interesting to watch (though his master is kinda boring)
> 
> 
> I hope to finish it by next week~



Yup, Rider is definitely oneof the main emotional hooks in F/Z, and surely one of my favorite characters in the show. But Saber is just generally badass. It was only after reading the Fate route of the visual novel that I started to _really _like her. I liked her already in F/Z, but the VN presents her entire background, which is really cool. I find her character to be super interesting (first of all, genderbent Arthur? Yes, please!); how she ended up where she is and all of her motives behind her actions - it's all really cool, and really sad, too. She's a character with a lot of development across the core Fate series.


----------



## coffeeflush

what does it mean when you say an anime is a trap ?


----------



## Fat-Elf

coffeeflush said:


> what does it mean when you say an anime is a trap ?



It's bad. It's like a trap. Don't fall on it.


----------



## Don Vito

coffeeflush said:


> what does it mean when you say an anime is a trap ?


A trap is a character who is a boy, but impersonates or takes the appearance of a girl.


Armin from SnK. A fine choice in trap husbando/waifu.








Fat-Elf said:


> It's bad. It's like a trap. Don't fall on it.


^^^^^This is B FVCKIN' S. This guy even fell for an irl trap on the FInnish version of 4chan. I foretold of this, and it be.


----------



## Fat-Elf

^Faps to Armin. Your argument is invalid.


----------



## Don Vito

not to be confused with trap music


even though traps apparently love trap dick


#dicksquad


----------



## Don Vito




----------



## Don Vito

Fat-Elf said:


> ^Faps to Armin. Your argument is invalid.


I don't fap to Armin. Our love is pure.


----------



## Don Vito

anyone wanna stream [email protected] CINDERELLA GIRLS? i have the raws so you need to speak fvckin' japanese okay?


----------



## Fat-Elf

I can stream Futabu. :3


----------



## Don Vito

Fat-Elf said:


> I can stream Futabu. :3




Unless it's Anzu Futaba.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Don Vito said:


> Unless it's Anzu Futaba.




pls no bully


----------



## Don Vito

Fat-Elf said:


> pls no bully


how do i unsubscribe


----------



## Don Vito

anyone wanna stream yung lean? i have the raws so you need to speak fvckin' japanese okay?


----------



## Don Vito

evangelion review:

everyone has ptsd


----------



## Fat-Elf

Just rewatched Attack on Titan. I still hate Armin for being such an useless ..... but I'm eagerly waiting for a second season.


----------



## Don Vito

Fat-Elf said:


> Just rewatched Attack on Titan. I still hate Armin for being such an useless ..... but I'm eagerly waiting for a second season.









Here we see Armin making a delicious meal. It could be for himself, or he could be sharing it with someone in the regimen, such as Annie or Eren. Far from useless, and 100% cute.


----------



## Fat-Elf

^Can't see the picture. Yet another reason why Armin is so useless.


----------



## Don Vito

Fat-Elf said:


> ^Can't see the picture. Yet another reason why Armin is so useless.


I linked it to you in chat so you did see it. It's already in your head forever.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Don Vito said:


> I linked it to you in chat so you did see it. It's already in your head forever.



Sorry, but can't remember it. Gotta love selective, drunk memory.


----------



## wat

Armin is the man


----------



## habicore_5150

*
Owari no Seraph/Seraph of the End*

Supposed to have an anime adaptation sometime early April
From what I've seen with the promo video, it looks pretty good


----------



## bouVIP

I like the character design^ Might have to check it out~


Also this


----------



## Don Vito

Sorry for all the shitposting lately. Speaking of the above pic, I'm re-watching the K-On! movie right now. It's much better than I remember it being, probably because when I first watched it, my internet could only handle 240p window stream, and that was a shitty time in my life in general. 

The intro is unbelievably metal, and I forgot they show Yui's parents for a minute, which is kind of cool to me idk.


----------



## stevo1

I picked up Aldnoah Zero recently, and so far that's been a good one!

I also re-watched SAO in it's entirety, both shows. I liked the GGO arc a lot more this time around, considering I didn't have to wait weekly for new episodes. SAO is one of my favorites so far.

I just started Akame ga Kill tonight too!
Edit after first episode: Shit's good! It already caught my attention


----------



## Don Vito

I am re-reading a very run-of-the-mill yuri manga called Girlfriends. It's uber cute.






The tomboy lesbian at the checkout gave me a lewd face when I bought it, so I had to leave the store real fast like Japanese ninja.


----------



## wat

Random, pointless Kill La Kill poast


Ryuko & Satsuki both look super awesome & cute 
Kudos to the artist












this track is hypnotic 




dat cosplay












Anyway yeah, Kill La Kill


----------



## Don Vito

Where would you take Ryuko or Satsuki out on a date?

I would take Ryuko to a batting cage, cause that seems more her speed. Afterwards, we'd go to some frilly dessert shop so I can watch her get embarrassed when she orders something really sweet and decadent. 

I would take Satsuki to the beach and just lounge. She'll get a tan though, which I'm not sure how I feel about.


----------



## wat

I'd take Ryuko to a festival with roller coasters, rock climbing, and stuff like that. Then we'd go to something like Dave & Busters for drinks, food & games.


and i'd take Satsuki to a museum, then take her to a winery that does tours and has a restaurant.


----------



## Alberto7

The strip club. Both of them. At the same time.


----------



## Skyblue

Don Vito said:


> Where would you take Ryuko or Satsuki out on a date?
> 
> I would take Ryuko to a batting cage, cause that seems more her speed. Afterwards, we'd go to some frilly dessert shop so I can watch her get embarrassed when she orders something really sweet and decadent.
> 
> I would take Satsuki to the beach and just lounge. She'll get a tan though, which I'm not sure how I feel about.





wat said:


> I'd take Ryuko to a festival with roller coasters, rock climbing, and stuff like that. Then we'd go to something like Dave & Busters for drinks, food & games.
> 
> 
> and i'd take Satsuki to a museum, then take her to a winery that does tours and has a restaurant.





Alberto7 said:


> The strip club. Both of them. At the same time.



I love this thread


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> The strip club. Both of them. At the same time.


Ryuko would slap your shit so hard like "H-h-#####-HEEEEEEEEEENTAAAIIIIII!!!!"

You'd be blasting off again like Team Rocket.


----------



## wat

Finally started Code Geass and it's very good. I have a feeling it's gonna get really sad though.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Code Geass has its sad moments, for sure, but I remember it for being mostly a never-ending thrill. And that ending, that motherF*CKING ending man.


----------



## wat

Every time I see Lelouche's sister I wanna hug her lol. So sad.




What about Guilty Crown? I've heard it's really similar but I've heard that's it's TOO similar.


----------



## Don Vito

Don Vito said:


> anyone wanna stream [email protected] CINDERELLA GIRLS? i have the raws so you need to speak fvckin' japanese okay?


Watched the 1st episode of this with the subs. I found it to be boring, but I was never really into this series to begin with. I just really, REALLY like the character design. Anzu and Ranko make my kokoro go boom boom boom ya know. I'm going to keep watching until there are more episodes for those characters.

I also started Log Horizon but couldn't get into it either. Made me want to re-watch S1 SAO.


----------



## Alberto7

wat said:


> Every time I see Lelouche's sister I wanna hug her lol. So sad.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> What about Guilty Crown? I've heard it's really similar but I've heard that's it's TOO similar.



I've yet to watch Guilty Crown, even though I've it on my harddrive for a couple of years now. I hear it's good though.



Don Vito said:


> Watched the 1st episode of this with the subs. I found it to be boring, but I was never really into this series to begin with. I just really, REALLY like the character design. Anzu and Ranko make my kokoro go boom boom boom ya know. I'm going to keep watching until there are more episodes for those characters.
> 
> I also started Log Horizon but couldn't get into it either. Made me want to re-watch S1 SAO.



Checked out the character designs for that [email protected] Ul7r4 l337 m4573r r4<3 thing, and it looks so stupidly adorable. Reminds me of Love Live, in a way (which, along with Tokyo Ghoul, has been all the hype at my place for the last few months).

... btw, if you haven't played the Love Live game... well, don't. It's so addictive. I refuse to watch the anime because I'll obsess with the whole thing.


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> [email protected] Ul7r4 l337 m4573r r4<3


LOL. 

Love Live looks like a similar kind of thing, and I'm really surprised I haven't heard of it before. Idolmaster is originally a video game I think, but I have no clue what you actually do in them. I just like watching the clips on Youtube :3.



BEHOLD

THE SONG OF MY PEOPLE


----------



## bouVIP

Oh is idol anime finally acceptable to spazz about here? Cause I'm super obsessed with Love Live and slightly less with [email protected]

Also spent over $1000 on LLSIF cause addiction...


----------



## Alberto7

Don Vito said:


> LOL.
> 
> Love Live looks like a similar kind of thing, and I'm really surprised I haven't heard of it before. Idolmaster is originally a video game I think, but I have no clue what you actually do in them. I just like watching the clips on Youtube :3.
> 
> 
> 
> BEHOLD
> 
> THE SONG OF MY PEOPLE




Love Live is also a game, but it's a smartphone game. It's a rhythm game, a la Tap Tap Revenge, Cytus (a personal favorite), etc. It's also free, but there is optional paid content.

That video was... I don't even know. 



bouVIP said:


> Oh is idol anime finally acceptable to spazz about here? Cause I'm super obsessed with Love Live and slightly less with [email protected]
> 
> Also spent over $1000 on LLSIF cause addiction...



Ah, it's always been alright, as far as I'm concerned, but still... $1000 ON LOVE LIVE?!?! Shit brah. 

You should come visit some time. My place has become a den of idol anime (and 2D characters in general, really). We have this friend who always comes over, and she is absolutely OBSESSED with Love Live. She will literally ditch everybody for hours on end to play the goddamn game. Somehow, we've been able to talk her out of spending money on the game (or so we think).

On top of that, two of my roommates, the girl who always comes over, and a few other friends of theirs are cosplaying all of the LLSIF Muses for an upcoming con this year. I really want to be there so I can truly feel like I am in a harem anime. 

Personally, I tend to like the videogames, but because the gameplay is addictive. Otherwise, I find the whole genre uncomfortably fuzzy and bubbly.


----------



## bouVIP

That is so awesome though haha and your friend too~ Fellow comrade!!

Also this is relevant


----------



## bouVIP

Accidentally double posted~


----------



## Alberto7

So, I'm FINALLY watching Psycho-Pass, and it's amazing so far.

... also, this is the cruelest thing to have happened so far in this anime. It bruised me right in the mothertruckin' feels:






That was just Clannad levels of not okay.


----------



## habicore_5150

Alberto7 said:


> So, I'm FINALLY watching Psycho-Pass, and it's amazing so far.
> 
> ... also, this is the cruelest thing to have happened so far in this anime. It bruised me right in the mothertruckin' feels:
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> That was just Clannad levels of not okay.



I take it you saw my previous post pointing out that Thermion knockoff 

Honestly, if I was in her situation (being a latent criminal because I like playing really really heavy music), Kogami would have offered a set of D'Addarios instead and I would have joined the MWPSB 



bouVIP said:


> That is so awesome though haha and your friend too~ Fellow comrade!!
> 
> Also this is relevant



I take it you're aware of the ESP-vangelion?


----------



## kamello

habicore_5150 said:


> I take it you saw my previous post pointing out that Thermion knockoff
> 
> Honestly, if I was in her situation (being a latent criminal because I like playing really really heavy music), Kogami would have offered a set of D'Addarios instead and I would have joined the MWPSB



Im not sure if this is serious or not


----------



## wat

^^^ why does Rei have red hair!? dafuq?


----------



## Alberto7

^ For whatever reason, when I see knock-off anime-themed items, they'll often use differently colored characters. Same design, straight out of the official art, but with different color schemes.

That said, that EvaSP is kinda cool, regardless, and the Love Life one is... well, lovely 



habicore_5150 said:


> I take it you saw my previous post pointing out that Thermion knockoff
> 
> Honestly, if I was in her situation (being a latent criminal because I like playing really really heavy music), Kogami would have offered a set of D'Addarios instead and I would have joined the MWPSB



Haha yeah, I did!  Those Iginez half-stacks rocked 

And yeah, I thought the same. I'm more of a D'Addario kind of guy, but I've been guilty of buying Ernie Balls on occasion, and I like them just as much.


----------



## wat

grrrrrr


----------



## Alberto7

wat said:


> grrrrrr



Come here man, it'll be okay, I promise...


----------



## Alberto7

Just finished Psycho-Pass (the 'Extended Edition' re-release)... HHHHNNGGGG THAT WAS SO GOOD.

It was quite a bit better than I was expecting and everything about it was pretty much perfect. For me it definitely fell under the same category as Ghost in the Shell in terms of thematic content and the tone of the show. I don't feel it was as well developed as GitS, and it had a more "standard" approach in its development (i.e. it felt more like an anime than GitS), but it still managed to convey its point very well.

Also, Akane Tsunemori is probably the best shonen character in disguise that I have ever seen.  Her development was pretty great, too, turning this obnoxious, flimsy little girl into this total badass.

My only real (albeit minor) gripes with the show were:

1) Shogo Makishima initially came across as a super interesting character, but he wasn't as well-developed as I think he could have been. He was given a ton of dialogue and screen time, but his dialogue became borderline repetitive and almost monotone, and his development stagnated. His dialogue became repetitive. 

2) The build-up to that climactic moment in episode 8 (I think that'd be episode 17 of the original run


Spoiler



where Kogami finally meets Makishima and where we begin to learn about the truth about the Sibyl System


) felt pretty underwhelming. The fight in that episode was also kinda meh.

3) I have mixed feelings about what came after that climax. While the things revealed were very exciting and very interesting, some of the devices used to reveal those things felt like a bit of an asspull, and gave the last few episodes a bit of a dragged-out feel.

Even with those problems, the sheer level of interest that the themes generated in me were able to offset them well:

8/10 would tap again.

Oh yeah, I think Kogami looks like an idiot. Like he's trying to be edgy, but can't. Tomomi Masaoka FTW.


Now Psycho-Pass 2!


----------



## habicore_5150

^ I gotta start up Psycho-Pass 2 at some point


Spoiler



I'm starting to miss Kagari since I saw Ep. 16, that and I feel bad for Ginoza after what happened to Masaoka at the end of Season 1


----------



## wat

Psycho-pass is incredible. Yeah,


Spoiler



I miss Kagari too.



Also everything I've heard about the movie makes me feel better about the ending of Psycho-Pass 1 and Psycho-Pass 2 as a whole.

I didn't know about the extended edition. I've been wanting to watch it again and I'll probably pick that up.


----------



## Alberto7

I've watched the first couple of episodes of P-P2, and it's pretty good, but I don't feel as hooked as with the first season... I know I'm still very early into the series to pass any kind of judgement, but I already miss the twisted inner monologues and nihilistic worldviews that Urobuchi introduced in the first season right from the first episode. Let's see if it picks up the pace soon.

In other news, my sister designed these and she finally got the shipment! 






Suzuya (Tokyo Ghoul) body pillow covers.  I didn't think I would, but I am so keeping one and hanging it on my wall.


----------



## Alberto7

AANNNDD dropping this here in case you haven't seen it





idk how I feel about the cast being Japanese, as they're mostly European/caucasian in the anime, but that's probably for the better anyway.


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> idk how I feel about the cast being Japanese, as they're mostly European/caucasian in the anime, but that's probably for the better anyway.


Damn, I wanted to see Tom Cruise slay a titan.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Somehow I feel like I would pay actual money to see that, though for the wrong reasons.


----------



## Skyblue

Started watching Trigun again because why the f*ck not. 

Vash


----------



## Alberto7

$$60,000,000,000


----------



## Alberto7

habicore_5150 said:


> ^ I gotta start up Psycho-Pass 2 at some point
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> I'm starting to miss Kagari since I saw Ep. 16, that and I feel bad for Ginoza after what happened to Masaoka at the end of Season 1



Just finished episode 9 of Pyscho-Pass 2. It's still not as good as the first season, imo (it's more of a detective/mystery show rather than a psychological one like the first season), but it's like 5x as f*cked up. It's just so wrong, and borderline gory. Just go and watch it. It's very different, but still really good. It's more of a thriller than anything else, though.


----------



## bouVIP

I thought Psycho-Pass 2 was awful and I believe they had a different director or something....but I heard the movie is amazing


----------



## Alberto7

^ Yeah, I just finished the last episode of Psycho-Pass 2, and meh... I mean, it's not awful per se, but there's A LOT left to be desired compared to season 1. And I mean like, A LOT. It lacks all of the character development of the first season. I believe the main difference is that Gen Urobuchi did not write any of the script for it. I still have to watch the movie though. Some time soon.


----------



## bouVIP

Is it nerdy of me that I totally think Veil of Maya's new song Mikasa is a reference to AoT?


----------



## Don Vito

Don Vito said:


> Oh man, NHK is ....ing hilarious. I thought it was going to be a total sobfest, but maybe I just haven't gotten there yet. It gives me flashbacks to Watamote, because I feel like I've been there done that. Only this guy is much more likable than Tomoko, who I have come to hate in the past couple chapters of the manga. Really impressed so far, even though I had to revert to the English dub. Dual audio with Russian subs only lol. Luckily, the MC is voiced pretty well.


FINALLY finished. I highly enjoyed this one, but there was one tiny issue that bothered me.




Spoiler



So all the characters in this show are mentally disturbed, but at least by the end they have their happy end and find a way out. Even Sato seems chill, albeit kind of empty near the end. Misaki on the hand, seems to be the same obsessive, but deceptively sweet girl she started out to be. I mean sure Sato was helping her with her education and keeping her company, but I don't feel like she got any sort of long term help that she so obviously needed. She was still too attached with Sato, and he just had to accept this. It's kind of creepy in a way.



In other news, it looks like a certain dead series is getting some sort of spin off/reboot? Now that I think of it, I've been seeing more copies of the Haruhi-chan spin off book when I'm out getting books. Maybe they're trying to dust it off and get it back out there. Makes me sad for some reason.






bouVIP said:


> Is it nerdy of me that I totally think Veil of Maya's new song Mikasa is a reference to AoT?


Haven't heard it yet, but AoT is a really popular show, so probably. ( season 2 still seems so far away ;_; )

edit: the guy in the video actually reminded me of Armin a little lol


----------



## wat

Don Vito said:


> FINALLY finished. I highly enjoyed this one, but there was one tiny issue that bothered me.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> So all the characters in this show are mentally disturbed, but at least by the end they have their happy end and find a way out. Even Sato seems chill, albeit kind of empty near the end. Misaki on the hand, seems to be the same obsessive, but deceptively sweet girl she started out to be. I mean sure Sato was helping her with her education and keeping her company, but I don't feel like she got any sort of long term help that she so obviously needed. She was still too attached with Sato, and he just had to accept this. It's kind of creepy in a way.






I really, really loved NHK. 

I would actually recomend reading the light novels and the manga as well as they are all different but good in their own ways.

Also, Misaki is like Tomoko-tier batsh*i*t crazy in the manga, which the anime doesn't show and I think the manga has the best ending. But yeah, NHK.


----------



## habicore_5150

bouVIP said:


> Is it nerdy of me that I totally think Veil of Maya's new song Mikasa is a reference to AoT?



I sat there looking at the title thinking the same thing

Still waiting for someone to do a album where all the song titles are named after the Angels from Evangelion 

And it looks like there's another anime adaptation in the works called Rokka no Yusha [Video] A Certain Light Novel Gets Anime Adaptation!!


----------



## Don Vito

wat said:


> Also, Misaki is like Tomoko-tier batsh*i*t crazy in the manga, which the anime doesn't show and I think the manga has the best ending. But yeah, NHK.


That scares me  But I'm definitely going to read it. She's a sweet character in the anime, really. But if you look hard enough, there's some sort of borderline yandere quality about her. Maybe it's not the "hack up some girl out of jealousy" yandere, but the obsessive fixation is there.


Spoiler



You could argue that her back story is really sad


, but that's also the case for EVERY yandere character ever.


----------



## bouVIP

Rokka no Yusha looks kind of cool~


So I know Kancolle isn't liked much around here, but I enjoyed the anime  Also started playing the game and have been crazy addicted for the last month.

and this


----------



## wat

Don Vito said:


> That scares me  But I'm definitely going to read it. She's a sweet character in the anime, really. But if you look hard enough, there's some sort of borderline yandere quality about her. Maybe it's not the "hack up some girl out of jealousy" yandere, but the obsessive fixation is there.
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> You could argue that her back story is really sad
> 
> 
> , but that's also the case for EVERY yandere character ever.



Yeah, agreed on all points. In one of the last episodes where this part happens --->


Spoiler



https://38.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m7dytiMdnl1qjlwa8o1_500.gif is like all her issues that were hinted at coming to a head. Her expression when she says she doesn't wanna be lonely & she's falling apart makes you wanna squeeze her and then Satou just leaves her as if he hasn't grown a bit the whole time 



I really love that show. Usually I watch my favorite shows twice in a row but this is one I feel like I should wait a year so I can come back to it with a different take.


----------



## wat

Watched the 1st episode of Serial Expriments Lain last night. Pretty cool, I like it.

I've kind of dropped Gurren Lagann temporarily like 7 episodes in because I just got bored even though I've seen enough anime by now (trigun, champloo, steins;gate, etc ) to _know better_ than that.  I've heard it gets super epic, I'll definitely finish it.


I feel bad because i have such a hard time getting through SOA II, i keep trying to watch it and keep drop it. I wanna finish it but at this point i've probly forgotten some key points, yet i don't feel like starting it over.

I wanna watch Guilty Crown, Andnoah Zero, Eureka Eleven, Clannad, Parasyte, and I REALLY wanna just dive headfirst into Ghost In The Shell when I'm ready to just fixate on one anime again like i was with Evangelion for the last couple months.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad Clannad

just so you can watch Clannad: After Story. *slits wrists*


----------



## wat

I actually did watch the first episode of Clannad the other day and liked it. I've heard it's really good and afterstory is amazing. Plus it seems different than what I've seen so far so when I finish Geass R2 and Lain I'll watch it


----------



## myrtorp

Clannad afterstory....... damn.... first anime to make me cry.. and i dont cry alot. SHIEET


----------



## Alberto7

I remember episode 3 of Clannad was when it first began to get interesting for me. First season has a lot of sad moments, but it's also pretty funny, and more light-hearted. Afterstory is infinitely better though, and simply doesn't know when to stop hitting you with the feelsbat.

... actually, I feel like I could watch it again. It's been almost two years since I first (and last) watched it. Maybe I should.

But yeah, good to hear you're liking Lain! That's definitely a hard one to get into.


----------



## Don Vito

bouVIP said:


> So I know Kancolle isn't liked much around here, but I enjoyed the anime  Also started playing the game and have been crazy addicted for the last month.


What I said about Kancolle earlier in the thread really wasn't fair, since I only watched 2 episodes. I wouldn't mind picking it back up sometime.



wat said:


> Watched the 1st episode of Serial Expriments Lain last night. Pretty cool, I like it.


Rules to enjoying SEL:

Rule 1.

Love Lain




Alberto7 said:


> *slits wrists*


----------



## Alberto7

Don Vito said:


>




Señor Pacman!

And also, this made me die:

[SPOILER ALERT - though, given how hard it is to read, unless you pay close attention, it'd be hard to find the spoilers in this gif]


----------



## wat




----------



## habicore_5150

wat said:


>



kogi pls


----------



## wat

Man I'm halfway through Code Geass R2 and this show is really impressive. So sad though. Definitely gonna have to watch this one again a second time to fill in details.


----------



## wat

habicore_5150 said:


> kogi pls





fak of kasy


----------



## Alberto7

inb4 the pain that is to come in the second cour of Unlimited Blade Works, starting tomorrow.



EDIT: funny how Illya is such an adorable fluff ball in F/Z...


----------



## Alberto7

Aaaannndd there goes Unlimited Budget Works, living up to its hype and being all amazing. The new OP is pretty good too, and I actually like the song a lot better than the first one.



Oh, and crying Tohsaka:







Cool episode. Stuck well with the VN, and had a really cute ending.


----------



## Don Vito

Ikiharmaa said:


> http://myanimelist.net/anime/26349/Danna_ga_Nani_wo_Itteiru_ka_Wakaranai_Ken
> 
> I haven't seen it though, but judging from the reviews it seems rather interesting. Maybe I'll watch it myself next


This show got a second season somehow, and I am stoked. That is all.

Watching episode 1 today.


----------



## wat

Wow, the new F/SN OP sounds like it could have been played by periphery, lol


----------



## Alberto7

^ Never thought of it that way, but yeeaah haha. Also, I knew I recognized that voice, and now that I know who it is, I like the OP THAT much better. She sings one of my favorite songs from one of my favorite anime last year, which coincidentally also has some of my favorite anime music ever. She sings the ED for Zankyou no Terror (a.k.a. Terror in Resonance).



Such a haunting and beautiful song!


----------



## wat

^oh yeah i love that song and that show. had no idea it was the same artist. i need to watch that one again, such a good story.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Yeah, that was a really cool anime. Too bad it was so short and rushed. The animation, moody atmosphere, character concepts, and music were just perfect.

---------------------

EDIT: I just watched the first episode of Plastic Memories. Finally I find something good this season! (Other than UBW and Ghost in the Shell) It is totally adorable. It's like someone took Planetes and Chobits and mashed them together (the second scene of the episode, where Tsukasa is introduced to his new colleagues is pretty much a carbon copy of the that same scene in Planetes; it's uncanny). It's got stereotypical characters and anime tropes everywhere, but they're actually pretty well done and portrayed. This show looks like it will be this season's tear-jerker, too.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Anime Satirizes Life, Shocks Its Editors

YES! Gintama is back, and what a way to begin.


----------



## wat

Finished Tokyo Ghoul &#8730;A and thought it was pretty good. Watched 6 or 7 episodes of Serial Experiments Lain...pretty interesting & it has that certain brand of creepiness that I like.

And finally watched the original Ghost In The Shell movie. So great 


Also I just remembered a drunken conversation I had the other night at a party with someone who was absolutely raving about Hayao Miyazaki so now I'm gonna have to check out some of his films.


----------



## Skyblue

wat said:


> Also I just remembered a drunken conversation I had the other night at a party with someone who was absolutely raving about Hayao Miyazaki so now I'm gonna have to check out some of his films.



You are. F_cking masterpieces.


----------



## Alberto7

^ I'm surprised you've never done Miyazaki! Go watch Princess Mononoke. Now. That reminds me, I still need to watch The Tale of Princess Kaguya; that extended trailer for it is one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen:



Also, my sister (who is literally the biggest Tokyo Ghoul freak I have ever seen) absolutely despises the anime.  That last episode of season 2 (which is one of the only 2 eps that I watched of it... I kept getting spoilers from my sis, so I had context) was the one of the worst last episodes I've ever watched.


----------



## wat

I've only even begun to concern myself at all with anime within the last year and a half and that was because I stumbled on Attack On Titan by accident and was sucked in within seconds. So yeah- casual, pleb, etc.

Regarding Miyazaki, this guy the other night was absolutely RAVING about his stuff and I typed his name into youtube on my phone so hopefully later on I'd see the name in my search history & it would remind me.


Re: Tokyo Ghoul- Yeah, I've heard that pretty much everyone who has read the manga hates the anime. I was entertained enough but the last few episodes had some weird pacing. I may read the manga but i'm kind of scared to start any new manga because i'm a completionist and...idk. All I've read so far are N.H.K., Attack on Titan & Sidonia which I'm current in.


----------



## Alberto7

^ aahh right! I'd forgotten you just recently got into anime. Fair enough, then! 

But yeah, supposedly the TG manga is very different. It also finished, but they revamped it with a slightly new story, which is still coming out... they're milking it as much as they can. 

And don't worry. For as much anime as I've seen (which isn't a lot compared to most hardcore fans, honestly), I've only ever read 3 manga: D.Gray-Man, Elfen Lied, and Rurouni Kenshin.


----------



## Alberto7

Spammiiiinnnnggg!

I loved this AMV. It's every single band experience I ever had (you know, when I used to do that stuff ) plus anime. Pretty cool that this AMV was completely edited in 2 hours and in front of a live audience; this girl doesn't cease to impress me with the quality of her videos.


----------



## habicore_5150

One of my friends (who got me into Soul Eater) told me about another anime called Shokugeki no Souma
I didn't watch all the way through the 1st episode, but from what I've seen was just....just...what?

...and then I saw a couple of pics of scenes from some of the episodes


----------



## Alberto7

^ I've heard of it, and how ridiculous it is... it's kind of funny that it's named similarly to Rail Wars. Boob burgers? Bouncing jello titties? Buttcheek-skirt sandwich? idk...


----------



## habicore_5150

Alberto7 said:


> ^ I've heard of it, and how ridiculous it is... it's kind of funny that it's named similarly to Rail Wars. Boob burgers? Bouncing jello titties? Buttcheek-skirt sandwich? idk...



I haven't watched Rail Wars. Is it just as ridiculous?


----------



## Alberto7

This sums it up pretty well:

https://33.media.tumblr.com/aca7fda83e0af58d8114ce5016f4b293/tumblr_n9m2qfroso1r3rdh2o1_500.gif

Like, actually.

PD: I won't actually embed the gif, because I'm not sure if this would be considered NSFW.


----------



## habicore_5150

Interesting plot





I'll see myself out of this thread now


----------



## Choop

Watched the 3 movies for Berserk about the golden age...and got super intrigued so I started reading the ridiculously long manga lol. It makes me sad to find out that the series may not ever actually end with any closure, but I just can't stop reading it. D:


----------



## bouVIP

I love Shokugeki no Soma! It's pretty ridiculous early on, but there's an actual plot and they tone down the crazy foodgasm scenes later. The characters are funny too. It's very shounen like though so if that's not your thing you probably wouldn't like it anyways.


Also the original artist for the mangaka has a career of making hentai.....which is relevant....


----------



## Alberto7

habicore_5150 said:


> Interesting plot
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I'll see myself out of this thread now



 It's okay, that's what this thread is for. 



bouVIP said:


> Also the original artist for the mangaka has a career of making hentai.....which is relevant....



Then there's that... 

Although it's a very common thing in the industry: GoBoiano - 29 Famous Manga and Anime Artists That Have Done Hentai


> 11. Ken Akamatsu (_Love Hina_)Akamatsu got his start in the industry drawing a hardcore _Cardcaptor __Sakura_ doujin, and I am so sorry for mentioning that.



My childhood...


----------



## habicore_5150

bouVIP said:


> I love Shokugeki no Soma! It's pretty ridiculous early on, but there's an actual plot and they tone down the crazy foodgasm scenes later. The characters are funny too. It's very shounen like though so if that's not your thing you probably wouldn't like it anyways.
> 
> 
> *Also the original artist for the mangaka has a career of making hentai.....which is relevant....*



Welp, that explains some of the scenes in there

Still gonna watch it


----------



## Alberto7

Choop said:


> Watched the 3 movies for Berserk about the golden age...and got super intrigued so I started reading the ridiculously long manga lol. It makes me sad to find out that the series may not ever actually end with any closure, but I just can't stop reading it. D:



One of the only three manga I've ever decided to read (D.Gray-Man), never finished. The mangaka (forget her name) is apparently pretty infamous for putting a lot of her work in hiatus and never actually finishing.


----------



## bouVIP

Why Alberto7!!!! I did not expect Sgt. Frog mangaka ;-;

A lot of the other ones make sense though like Air Gear lol



Alberto7 said:


> One of the only three manga I've ever decided to read (D.Gray-Man), never finished. The mangaka (forget her name) is apparently pretty infamous for putting a lot of her work in hiatus and never actually finishing.



Apparently she had some legal dispute with Jump over DGM rights or something......and a lot of other crap that I'm not sure is true or not....either way doesn't look like it'll be continuing soon....


----------



## habicore_5150

Already finished ep1 of Shokugeki no Soma, and yeah...it was as ridiculous as people say it is

In a good way



And of course, I had to pick the worst possible time to watch this: about an hour before I start grilling out


----------



## wat

Finished Serial Experiments Lain and thought it was pretty cool.


Clannad is well underway & I like it


----------



## habicore_5150

Rather interesting news for anyone looking forward to more Log Horizon

Log Horizon Author Mamare Touno Charged With Tax Evasion - News - Anime News Network


----------



## DanielC1996

I finished watching Welcome to the NHK today not usually the type of anime I find myself liking but damn, it was funny and totally relatable also started Seraph of the end today it's looking to be pretty cool right now


----------



## Alberto7

With finals right around the corner, I havent had much time for anything this past week... however, there is always time for Fate/Stay Night when it's released every Saturday a little past noon. And holy ...., am I fangasming all over this thing, and harder than ever. This adaptation is so great. So far I like it even better than I remember liking the visual novel's namesake route. Rin is best tsundere ever, if I can even call her that.


Spoiler



Ilya  ... totally saw it coming, obvs, but it is as... heartbreaking as ever *ba-dum-tissss*


----------



## habicore_5150

Got kinda busy myself, though I got a few recommendations from another friend of mine
Steins;Gate (I'm sure I've seen the hype surrounding it in this thread at least 4 or 5 times), Assassination Classroom and Death Parade


----------



## DanielC1996

^ You cannot go wrong with Assassination Classroom you'll laugh your ass off or well at least I am xD,actually watching it as I type this. Death Parade is super cool as well! Also if you wind up liking Stein's Gate you'll love Robotics Notes.So far this year Funimation is just putting out great stuff


----------



## Alberto7

Never watched Assassination Classroom, but I followed Death Parade weekly as it came out. Wonderful show. Very thought-provoking. Classy and relaxing, but still keeps you on edge, if that makes any sense haha. However, I really disliked how they handled some situations, and I disliked the last episode. I just feel like it should have been fleshed out much, much more. There was a lot of unused potential. It actually reminds me slightly of Cowboy Bebop (minus the fact that Cowboy Bebop is pretty much perfect ).

EDIT: it also had, BY FAR, the best OP of that entire season, and easily one of my favorite OPs that I remember. ED is also really, really cool.


----------



## habicore_5150

DanielC1996 said:


> ^ You cannot go wrong with Assassination Classroom you'll laugh your ass off or well at least I am xD,actually watching it as I type this. Death Parade is super cool as well! Also if you wind up liking Stein's Gate you'll love Robotics Notes.So far this year Funimation is just putting out great stuff



Have yet to watch Robotics;Notes. Guess I'll add another to the list (Of plan to watch. That section must be overflowing by now )

*EDIT as of 10 AM*

So, how about that new season of Dragon Ball?
Dragon Ball Gets 1st New TV Anime in 18 Years in July - News - Anime News Network


----------



## Alberto7

^ Aaahh I came in here to post just that!

All I have to say is


----------



## isispelican

DB BITCHYYYS!


----------



## habicore_5150

Well, I can see why Steins;Gate gets such a good rep from a lot of people
Just finished episode 13 and I'm liking what I'm seeing



Spoiler



I'm sure everyone kinda knows, but in that episode, J Michael Tatum mentioned at a panel in AWA 2014 that he had a legit breakdown during the recording of one of his lines in that episode


----------



## Alberto7

Aaahh you finally got there.  I actually had no idea about the Michael Tatum thing, as I haven't seen the dub. Not surprised though.


----------



## habicore_5150

For proof (spoilers-ish though)


@ 9:25


----------



## bouVIP

I actually just finished Steins;gate awhile back myself. Great stuff


----------



## JEngelking

Steins;Gate is awesome, I finished binging that show a couple months ago with some friends.

I've not posted in this thread or looked into it before, but I'll have to use it to get some new info on shows to watch, as I'm relatively new to watching anime and am rather slow about doing so. 

So far I've watched Steins;Gate, Attack on Titan, Code Geass, a couple episodes of Cowboy Bebop, and I'm currently in the process of watching Gurren Lagann. All of these shows I like.  I think next I'm gonna watch either Higurashi, or Evangelion.


----------



## Don Vito

Take it from a former fanboy, the Higurashi anime isn't very good in my opinion. The first chapter of the game is being released to Steam this month, so I would wait and play that if you really need some Higurashi in your life. The manga seems decent as well, but I've only read the canon side stories for it. Evangelion is a safer bet.


----------



## Fat-Elf

fvck anime


----------



## Alberto7

Fat-Elf said:


> fvck anime



/thread


----------



## Skyblue

Fat-Elf said:


> fvck anime



Hentai, yes?


----------



## KJGaruda

I finished Gurren Lagan a week or so ago and I'm feverishly waiting for the 4th Evangelion movie to come out. 

I started on Berserk finally after 3 years of procrastination and watching the 3-part movie last weekend. All I can say about that one is...  (in a good way)


----------



## habicore_5150

So...how to describe Steins;Gate in about 2 words

"Emotional Roller-coaster" maybe?

Now that I'm done watching it (of course, I'll watch it all again in the future [provided my future self doesn't send a D-Mail instructing that I shouldn't ] ), I might start up on Death Parade and I've heard that it's a 12 episode feel trip


----------



## wat

Dat Fate/SN 


I just finished Parasyte & wow  freaking incredible  I really wasn't expecting this to be as good as it was. Reminded me of Steins;Gate in a lot of ways. Definitely gonna have to re-watch this one and I'm gonna read the manga for sure. Murano is my new best anime girl 

Finished Serial Experiments Lain & liked it a lot. Gonna have to watch it a second time because after doing a little reading I see there is a lot of cool stuff I didnt pick up on. 


I feel guilty because I got bored with Clannad AND Guerren Lagan.  I probably just need to go a little farther for things to pick up.



Zenki_Kouki said:


> feverishly waiting for the 4th Evangelion movie to come out.



Seriously. Can't get enough Evangelion.


----------



## Alberto7

And, again, dat Fate/Stay Night. 

Finally, the big reveal of Archer's identity is out (although the show had hinted at it very strongly already), and they did so beautifully. It's something I love about the UBW route; the build-up to revealing who Archer is is really well done, and then the climax is intense as sh*t. Hopefully, that'll come within the next couple of episodes. Still some good stuff to come there. Aaaaahhgggg I'm super excited for this show, damn it.



Spoiler



Also, what's up with the next-episode preview on that last episode? Was it just me or did the imagery hint at Heaven's Feel? You know, with the black bishop chess piece and the red tribal patterns reminiscent of Sakura's in Heavens Feel.



And yesss, I still need to finished Parasyte. I stopped it a while back, but I need to get back into it.

Also, try to make it through Clannad. Once you get to After Story, you won't want to stop. And, if you do want to stop, it will be to rip your own heart out.


----------



## mrdm53

it seems that since the F/SN hype is build up, Type-moon recently started F/SN Heaven's Feel manga


----------



## Alberto7

Wait whaaaaaa-  do you happen to have the source? I need detaiiilllsss! D: I feel like manga would be an even better medium to convey that story than the original visual novel... not accounting for the music, of course, which is a good part of the reason why that VN is so good.


----------



## mrdm53

Alberto7 said:


> Wait whaaaaaa-  do you happen to have the source? I need detaiiilllsss! D: I feel like manga would be an even better medium to convey that story than the original visual novel... not accounting for the music, of course, which is a good part of the reason why that VN is so good.



Fate/Stay Night - Heaven's Feel Manga - Read Fate/Stay Night - Heaven's Feel Manga Online For Free - MangaPark

still 1st chapter though


----------



## Alberto7

Well damn, thanks man! I think this might well be the 4th manga I ever read.  Gotta prepare for that movie later this year/next year!


----------



## mrdm53

Keijo!!! An unusual battle manga using Fan Service as MC's (and everyone) main weapon

both fun and unique at the same time, who else think that boobs and ass can be used as weapon?


----------



## Alberto7

^ Not posting image directly because NSFW but

https://33.media.tumblr.com/fd4c1b89a2573b609e01429696a5f015/tumblr_nfdqbzYbzL1shbc9ho1_500.gif

yeah


----------



## mrdm53

Alberto7 said:


> ^ Not posting image directly because NSFW but
> 
> https://33.media.tumblr.com/fd4c1b89a2573b609e01429696a5f015/tumblr_nfdqbzYbzL1shbc9ho1_500.gif
> 
> yeah



lol MeMeMe

this: Keijo!!!!!!!! Manga - Read Keijo!!!!!!!! Manga Online For Free - MangaPark


----------



## habicore_5150

Alberto7 said:


> ^ Not posting image directly because NSFW but
> 
> https://33.media.tumblr.com/fd4c1b89a2573b609e01429696a5f015/tumblr_nfdqbzYbzL1shbc9ho1_500.gif
> 
> yeah



Austin Powers Fembots, eat your hearts out


----------



## Alberto7

Hahahaha no idea how I forgot about those!


----------



## habicore_5150

And then there's K Project

From what I've been told it's supposed to be pretty good, albeit a bit short like Mekakucity Actors (which I don't mind, just wanna watch something good)

Kinda helps that the same guy who mentioned K Project is a fan of the Tales series, and the dub is supposed to have a good number of VAs who worked with some Tales games before...which may or may not contribute to me checking it out soon


----------



## Skyblue

Done with Fate/Zero 

Now to SAO~


----------



## Alberto7

Huh, quite the contrast there, between F/Z and SAO! Only similarities will be the music, though I still liked Kajiura's work in F/Z more memorable.

And I am curious... is it just me on this board that has seen the Kara no Kyoukai movies? It's so .... that I literally have no one to talk about them with. Everybody seems to watch anime, but nobody seems to know Kara no Kyoukai, and that makes me sadface.


----------



## Skyblue

Alberto7 said:


> Huh, quite the contrast there, between F/Z and SAO! Only similarities will be the music, though I still liked Kajiura's work in F/Z more memorable.


Yeah, I kinda wanted a change in direction and a friend recommended SAO so there we are! I'll probably come back for F/SN in a bit~


----------



## Alberto7

For anybody that loves Elfen Lied's OP soundtrack, Lilium: (which I like to assume is everybody. )



This arrangement is so great.


----------



## Don Vito

The only anime I've watched recently is Dragonball: Resurrection of F(rieza), in what appeared to be cell phone footage from a south Asian movie theater.

Overall I liked it better than the last one, since this had more fighting. But the ending was so bad it ruined everything. I'm going to spoil it cause it's so .... and no one here gives a hoot about an anime for over caffeinated 10 year olds. So basically Frieza blows up earth, wins cause he can breathe in space, but Beerus and Whis entrap Goku, Vegeta, Roshi, ect.. in a flying space bubble, and Whis is like "I'm going to turn back time so Goku doesn't .... up". Goku indeed doesn't .... up and stops Frieza before he unleashes his energy attack. The end.

I hope Dragonball Super is better than these movies.



Alberto7 said:


> For anybody that loves Elfen Lied's OP soundtrack, Lilium: (which I like to assume is everybody. )
> 
> 
> 
> This arrangement is so great.



Lilium has been stuck in my head so much recently and I have no idea why. There are 2 tracks on the new Veil of Maya album called Nyu and Lucy. Not much to say other than that, since I haven't read the lyrics or listened to the songs haha.


----------



## JosephAOI

Yo guys, I just finished watching the first season of Attack On Titan, was wondering what I should look into next? I was gonna go online and read all of the manga that's been released but I didn't know if I should wait for the second season to be released or if there's anything else out for it?


----------



## Don Vito

JosephAOI said:


> Yo guys, I just finished watching the first season of Attack On Titan, was wondering what I should look into next? I was gonna go online and read all of the manga that's been released but I didn't know if I should wait for the second season to be released or if there's anything else out for it?


If you're desperate for answers, season 2 probably won't go too deep. The manga has just recently started to get interesting again. I liked the anime better though, and I wish I had waited for it, but I lost patience.


----------



## Dusty Chalk

I finally saw episode 4 of Ghost in the Shell: Arise. It was good.

That is all.

(Yeah, I still haven't even seen *The Wind Rises*, much less *...Princess Kaguya*...)


----------



## Alberto7

^ lol I've been going on about how much I want to watch The Tale of Princess Kaguya for like a year now, and I still haven't. I've been waiting for the right time, I guess, whatever and whenever that happens to be.

I began to follow GitS: Arise - Alternative Architecture and it's actually pretty good. I intend on finishing at some point.

For now, however, I will go watch yesterday's episode of UBW, since I still haven't.  (Blasphemous, I know.)



JosephAOI said:


> Yo guys, I just finished watching the first season of Attack On Titan, was wondering what I should look into next? I was gonna go online and read all of the manga that's been released but I didn't know if I should wait for the second season to be released or if there's anything else out for it?





Don Vito said:


> If you're desperate for answers, season 2 probably won't go too deep. The manga has just recently started to get interesting again. I liked the anime better though, and I wish I had waited for it, but I lost patience.



Is there even a release date for the second season? I know there's this side-story OVA they came out with, detailing Levi's and (I think) Erwin's past, or something. I forget what it's called though. It came out either last season (winter), or the one before last (fall).


----------



## Dusty Chalk

Oh, I forgot -- watched the first Berserk movie from the recent reboot (the Golden Age Arc 1: The Egg of the King) on Netflix streaming -- great, can't wait to see things get as messed up as they will get.


----------



## source field

JosephAOI said:


> Yo guys, I just finished watching the first season of Attack On Titan, was wondering what I should look into next? I was gonna go online and read all of the manga that's been released but I didn't know if I should wait for the second season to be released or if there's anything else out for it?



You should check out the OVA episodes.


----------



## habicore_5150

After beating around the bush with it for a while, got around to watching K Project a few hours ago and I just finished it this minute

It's really good


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> In other news, my sister designed these and she finally got the shipment!


Who did your sister go through to have this made? Did she draw the picture, and if so, does she take commissions?

I'm trying to get a daki of a minor SAO character, but the only ones I can find online are lewd as heck. I've got 2 or so pictures saved that I could have printed on. Google would have given me some names by now, but whoever made that one seems like a safe bet.


----------



## Alberto7

^ PM'd


----------



## Alberto7

Oh, also, I began watching Sound! Euphonium, and it's REALLY cool if you ever were in school band. I like that, at least the first 3-4 episodes, focus mostly on the music side of things, and the dynamics involved in orchestrating a large band, and how each member's attitude towards the band (i.e. whether they take it seriously or not) will impact the performance of it. It's also absolutely hilarious without being an over-the-top comedy anime. It's pretty slow paced though, but I don't mind that.

I also began watching Kyousou-Giga. Hilarious, over the top visual mindf*ckery, and does not take long to hit those feels. It has a really unique style, slightly reminiscent of something Gainax would make (reminds me of FLCL in a way). It's really cool.


----------



## OmegaSlayer

WOW!


----------



## Don Vito

On ep. 5 of The Devil is a Part Timer. Basically Satan gets stuck on earth with none of his powers, and has to slum it as a McDonald's employee while scheming to invade the planet.
Has kind of an Ika Musume/Invader Zim thing going on. Super funny, and even has some serious action elements to it.

I got a new figure 2 days ago.





Paint job is a bit spotty, but overall I'm happy with it.


----------



## Sofos

Don Vito said:


> I got a new figure 2 days ago.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Paint job is a bit spotty, but overall I'm happy with it.



She is by far one of my favourite characters, it's a real shame she's shown in like, 2 episodes, then ignored from then on.


----------



## Don Vito

She's pretty much background decoration for whenever there's an Asuna scene lol.


----------



## stevo1

More like Unlimited Wreckage Works.


----------



## MetalGravy

Anyone try MPD Psycho? That manga is ....ed up.


----------



## myrtorp

I finished Log Horizon, season 1 and 2. First one was pretty alright, some nice twists and turns. 2nd one picks up directly where the 1st one ended. Its here that I feel like they lose focus a bit, they could easily have ended it here, but it keeps going with spreading plots and I really lost patience with it when I realized its gonna be ANOTHER season or more before the story ends. Oh well!

Now im watching Highscool DxD. It's just downright ridicolous, in all the fights the womens clothes gets torn off and the main character is a huge perv. Its nice to blend some easy going stuff in between.

Next up is Sword Art Online II!


----------



## Alberto7

stevo1 said:


> More like Unlimited Wreckage Works.



 I'm curious to know why you say that. Is it in a literal sense, or because you didn't like it? I can't blame you for the latter. The last few episodes were kinda wonky, and the changes they made (especially concerning the design for the Holy Grail) weren't necessarily for the better, not to mention the bizarre pacing. Also, is it just me, or have the last couple of episodes seen a major downgrade in the art department? It seems the animation is still fairly fluid, but there's a lot less detail in the art compared to the first season, and even the first half of this second cours. Even then, however, and being the fanboy that I am, I'm super pleased with how it turned out. Not perfect, but finally this part of the story is told in more glorifying detail. Oh, and that


Spoiler



Shiro vs. Gilgamesh fight was intense as f*ck, and a lot more memorable than even in the visual novel imo. As much as I like him, seeing Gilgamesh get a sword to the face is one of the most satisfying moments in the anime.


 Now we just need the Epilogue episode, and we're done. 

And then Heaven's Feel, whenever that may come out...

EDIT: forgot to mention that, in this penultimate episode, I REALLY appreciate the use of the remixes of the original VN soundtrack. Makes it feel very nostalgic, and really intense.


----------



## stevo1

No, I was saying that because of the ending of the Gilgamesh fight . I haven't followed the storyline besides watching the new anime and 5 minutes of the old version so I can't really comment on the quality of it compared to how it was in past versions.

I loved the show however!


----------



## Alberto7

LOOOVED the last episode of UBW! It was like an extended version of the visual novel's epilogue for that route, but with a more cinematic twist.

Also, this might be THE most kawaii/badass/nosebleed-inducing thing I have seen so far in anime. Tohsaka in her sports suit is just AIUSDFLIASDG. I hope they don't take this video down any time soon...



Also interesting to see Luvia in here. She's a character in Hollow Ataraxia (the sequel to the original VN). I guess that means that I gotta play Hollow Ataraxia now.


----------



## Alberto7

Done with Sound! Euphonium (a.k.a. Hibike! Euphonium) and what a brilliant show. The most well-rounded Kyoto Animation show I've ever watched and my favorite one after Clannad: After Story. It's a music anime that is ACTUALLY about music. Damn near perfect. So many feels.


----------



## mrdm53

myrtorp said:


> I finished Log Horizon, season 1 and 2. First one was pretty alright, some nice twists and turns. 2nd one picks up directly where the 1st one ended. Its here that I feel like they lose focus a bit, they could easily have ended it here, but it keeps going with spreading plots and I really lost patience with it when I realized its gonna be ANOTHER season or more before the story ends. Oh well!
> 
> Now im watching Highscool DxD. It's just downright ridicolous, in all the fights the womens clothes gets torn off and the main character is a huge perv. Its nice to blend some easy going stuff in between.
> 
> Next up is Sword Art Online II!



Don't watch Highschool DxD anime. not worthed it. LN version much better



Alberto7 said:


> I'm curious to know why you say that. Is it in a literal sense, or because you didn't like it? I can't blame you for the latter. The last few episodes were kinda wonky, and the changes they made (especially concerning the design for the Holy Grail) weren't necessarily for the better, not to mention the bizarre pacing. Also, is it just me, or have the last couple of episodes seen a major downgrade in the art department? It seems the animation is still fairly fluid, but there's a lot less detail in the art compared to the first season, and even the first half of this second cours. Even then, however, and being the fanboy that I am, I'm super pleased with how it turned out. Not perfect, but finally this part of the story is told in more glorifying detail. Oh, and that
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> Shiro vs. Gilgamesh fight was intense as f*ck, and a lot more memorable than even in the visual novel imo. As much as I like him, seeing Gilgamesh get a sword to the face is one of the most satisfying moments in the anime.
> 
> 
> Now we just need the Epilogue episode, and we're done.
> 
> And then Heaven's Feel, whenever that may come out...
> 
> EDIT: forgot to mention that, in this penultimate episode, I REALLY appreciate the use of the remixes of the original VN soundtrack. Makes it feel very nostalgic, and really intense.



more like Unlimited Bitchin' Works.


----------



## Mr-Jemhead93

Anyone here a fan of Hajimme no Ippo? I've been binge watching it lately I'm already on Hajimme no Ippo: Rising, I never thought a boxing anime would be so freaking amazing!


----------



## bouVIP

Monster Musume is the best anime ever


----------



## Don Vito

bouVIP said:


> Monster Musume is the best anime ever


I have a friend who's really obsessed with the snake girl. Monster girl anything puts up a red flag for me usually, because of the uhhh... fetish aspects in the subculture. But I don't know, Monster Musume sounds kind of fun. I'll check it out since I really need some fresh 2015 anime.

edit: According to recent research, Saiyan girls with their tails still in tact are considered monster girls, AND I'M OKAY WITH THIS.


----------



## tacotiklah

bouVIP said:


> I actually just finished Steins;gate awhile back myself. Great stuff



Probably the best anime I've seen yet. I'm still a newcomer in all of this, but


Spoiler



the part where Ruka had to change back to being a boy made me cry. It's a trans thing.


----------



## Devyn Eclipse Nav

Don Vito said:


> Monster girl anything puts up a red flag for me usually, because of the uhhh... fetish aspects in the subculture.



Fun fact - Monster Musume is adapted from some hentai comics of the same characters that the original artist made under the title of "My Life With Monster Girl" - or something of that nature.

So in that regard, I can hardly blame you


----------



## Don Vito

Hahahaha, it always ends up in the sex dungeon with the monster girl genre. I actually don't care that much tbh.


----------



## habicore_5150

About 5 episodes in and I can see why one of my friends said that Death Parade was quite a feel trip

*EDIT as of 9:55PM*

Aaand with that Feel Parade is finished


----------



## Alberto7

Anyone watched Dragon Ball Super yet? Can't say anything yet, because nothing's really happened, but I get so excited watching it  I feel like I'm 10 years old again. I don't usually get into super long anime, but I hope they run this one for like 350 episodes. No such thing as too much Dragon Ball.


----------



## Don Vito

Whaaaaaaaaaaat???!! I didn't know it had aired yet. I'm on such a Dragonball kick this year. I've been watching the TV re-runs they're doing on Saturdays over here. I could DL the whole series, but it's more authentic to wait for each episode like I did when I was a kid. So much fun, honestly. I even started to read the original Dragonball manga a little. 

There's also some new content like the Resurrection of F, which I watched a ....ty theater bootleg of, and well.... I wrote about it a few pages back and pretty much hated it due to the absurdly lazy ending, but one of the local theaters is showing it next month, so I'm going to go just because anime films are rarely shown where I live. 

And then there's the Xenoverse game, which I don't own, but like to mess around with at this game shop that has the full game set up to play. Basically you create your own character and play this alternate dimension in the DBZ universe. The controls are perfect. They really nailed how it would feel in the show to fly around, teleport, unleash energy/ki attacks. Wish I had a system or good enough PC to play it on.

Anyways, going to check out that Super episode asap.

edit: If anyone has a link to an English subbed version, that would be much appreciated! The one I got from nyaa is Greek.

edit 2: Goku on a tractor.


----------



## Alberto7

Goku on an freaking tractor, indeed.  I'm watching AE's version, which is also on nyaa. You gotta skim through the first couple of pages to find the first 3 episodes though, they're far between.

I really wanna watch Resurrection F. The art and the animation looked gorgeous in the trailers and previews I've seen, tbh, and I just want all of that blue-haird Super Saiyan God stuff. And gold Frieza.

I'e also always wanted to play Xenoverse, as it looks goddamn great, and now has playable characters and transformations from the latest two films.


----------



## Alberto7

For whoever is interested, I just found out that Netflix finally added season 2 of Knights of Sidonia. I can finally watch it in good quality without having to spend 3 hours looking for the latest episode online only to find a low quality stream.


----------



## Veldar

Figured I post in here since I've been watching more anime than I usually do. I've started watching cowboy bebop after 3 years of everyone recommending it to me and it's been pretty good so far up to episode 17 and then I have the movie to watch once the series is over, I also watched most of ghost hunt but got bored and stopped and I have psycho pass on my hard drive so that'll be next.

I do have a question though, are any of the Code Geass ova's good, it's my favorite Anime tied with Evangelion but do they add anything interesting.


----------



## Alberto7

The only thing I know about Akihito The Exiled is that it is a completely alternate story in a different country that takes place between the events of season 1 and season 2 of Code Geass. I believe there are no common characters with Code Geass, but it takes place in the same universe.

Also, I finished season 2 of Knights of Sidonia a few hours ago (don't judge me, I'm still on vacation ). Much better than season 1, I thought, and the last two episodes were great, with one glorious final battle taking place. Despite its downfalls, I've come to love the show, if only for the atmosphere and feeling of absolute isolation it gives off. And I've come to realize that this is a show that merits being watched in full HD at 60 fps. Obviously the story doesn't even remotely end with season 2, so I may just have to pick up the manga, and I think I will, because I just NEED to know now.


Spoiler



Tsumugi is so oddly cute, too. So friggin' creepy (not to mention she's usually in the form of an incredibly phallic tentacle in an anime that gets ever more lewd), but she's still adorable.


----------



## bouVIP

Anyone watch the Psycho-Pass movie? It's sooooooo much better than S2 (cause written by the S1 writer). Hopefully we get more Psycho-Pass, but not like S2.


----------



## Alberto7

Aaahh I need to watch it. I didn't know it had come out already! I was pretty disappointed by season 2, given how good season 1 was. I'll watch it as soon as I can. (Which will probably be tomorrow.)


----------



## Alberto7

Aaannnddd watched it. Pretty awesome film! Not quite as good as Psycho-Pass season 1, I thought, but beats season 2 to hell. I just like that style of writing a lot better than what they did with season 2. I felt the actual plot and premise weren't as thought-provoking as season 1's, but for its length it did a great job.


----------



## Fat-Elf

This season is pretty good. I've been watching Monster Musume which is decent for an ecchi/harem anime and I'm also familiar with the source material cool. Working!!(!) getting a third season is awesome. Non Non Biyori second season, finally! Also, Gangsta seems somewhat promising and I've heard good stuff about it but I haven't had time to watch more than the first episode.


----------



## habicore_5150

At some point, I had to owe it to myself to watch Elfen Lied. I'm glad that I started watching it now
Only up to the end of episode 6, and there were some moments there where I almost teared up a little


----------



## BigBaldIan

On a mate's recommendation I've watched Panty & Stocking with Garterbelt, for those not in know take The Powerpuff Girls, add equal amounts of Dirty Pair, Ren & Stimpy and Drawn Together. Then give the heady brew a hefty slug of weapons-grade recreational pharmaceuticals and allow to percolate. Possibly one of the wrongest and funniest things I've seen in a very long time.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Sis has it on DVD. Been dying to watch it, but I never get around to it, for whatever reason.


----------



## habicore_5150

And with that, Elfen Lied is finished


----------



## coffeeflush

Anyone here into jormungand ?


----------



## Alberto7

habicore_5150 said:


> And with that, Elfen Lied is finished



How'd you like it? You should read the manga.  It's a looooott better. I keep repeating myself by telling people that, but it's seriously a lot better, even if the anime itself wasn't too bad.


----------



## habicore_5150

Alberto7 said:


> How'd you like it? You should read the manga.  It's a looooott better. I keep repeating myself by telling people that, but it's seriously a lot better, even if the anime itself wasn't too bad.



Thought it was pretty good. There were a couple of moments in the anime where I almost teared up a little because of what happened with some of the characters (in the present time or in flashbacks)


Spoiler



Before the end, I thought that Lucy was the raging psychopath of the anime. That was until I saw the third Diclonius



The next thing to do is for another friend of mine (who recommended Steins;Gate) - watch Black Butler


----------



## Dusty Chalk

Started watching Last Exile again -- watched some of it before, but forgot where I left off, so I thought I'd just rewatch the whole thing from the beginning.

Is good. Top tier.


----------



## Alberto7

habicore_5150 said:


> Thought it was pretty good. There were a couple of moments in the anime where I almost teared up a little because of what happened with some of the characters (in the present time or in flashbacks)
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> Before the end, I thought that Lucy was the raging psychopath of the anime. That was until I saw the third Diclonius
> 
> 
> 
> The next thing to do is for another friend of mine (who recommended Steins;Gate) - watch Black Butler



Again, read the manga, and I guarantee you will be bawling like a child.  But yes, the anime managed to capture the essence of the manga well throughout most of it, but then decided to end it at a pretty random place and in the most stellar of ways either...

My little sis was obsessed with Black Butler for the longest time, but he keeps saying it's an irrational thing because apparently it isn't even that good, just very addicting.  I wouldn't know though. I'll have to watch it at some point. She also tells me that the manga is a lot better (as it usually is with manga-based anime...)


----------



## habicore_5150

Alberto7 said:


> Again, read the manga, and I guarantee you will be bawling like a child.  But yes, the anime managed to capture the essence of the manga well throughout most of it, but then decided to end it at a pretty random place and in the most stellar of ways either...
> 
> My little sis was obsessed with Black Butler for the longest time, but he keeps saying it's an irrational thing because apparently it isn't even that good, just very addicting.  I wouldn't know though. I'll have to watch it at some point. She also tells me that the manga is a lot better (as it usually is with manga-based anime...)



I wanted to watch that cause I got that as a recommendation from the same guy who recommended Steins;Gate simply because J Michael Tatum is in it. But after that, it's either Tokyo Ghoul or Mirai Nikki


----------



## Alberto7

My OTHER sister (got two) is the one obsessed with Tokyo Ghoul. Again, apparently the manga is infinitely better, though I can say that the first five episodes are still pretty good. I didn't like how they ended the show though (also watched the last episode). I should also watch Mirai Nikki at some point. I keep hearing mixed reviews of it, but everyone agrees that it is really entertaining.

On another note, I just finished watching the first episode of Gakkou Gurashi! (School-Live! in English) and... I mean... nothing could have prepared me for THAT TWIST. Holy sh*t. The last two minutes of the first episode. I loved that first episode, just because of those last two minutes. It's a comedy/slice-of-life episode, but look for the signs... just look for them if you do watch it. (Which you should.) *EDIT:* yeah, this show is pretty f*cked. 4 episodes in. It manages to be so disturbing on a very deep level while still remaining light-hearted enough... but the more you think about it, the more unsettling it becomes.

I guess I should also mention that I began watching God Eater, only because it's by ufotable. I absolutely LOVE the character designs, and the atmosphere of it. Too bad the story and plot are nowhere to be seen. A lot of people like the animation, and, while it is pretty fluid and well choreographed, there's something off about it that I can't quite pin point. I think it's the way that characters stand out so much from their backgrounds that they seem like magazine cut-outs in some frames, and, of course, the terrible CG. Good action though. I think ufotable just want to make a quick buck with this one before spending more money on something a bit more lucrative, like the Heavens Feel movie(s).


----------



## Don Vito

I have very fond memories of watching Mirai Nikki, but I tried re-watching it last year and couldn't even stomach the first 2 episodes. It's not a good show, but as you speculated, it is entertaining for at least one watch. There are some decently memorable characters like the pink haired yandere girl Yuno. There's also a qt. terrorist who may or may not have been my waifu circa 2013.



Alberto7 said:


> My OTHER sister (got two)


Anime must be genetic.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Kinda.  Anime is huge in South America, and most kids grow up with it to some extent. I haven't met a single person over there from my generation that isn't more familiar with Dragon Ball than with, say, Family Guy, or South Park (of which the latter is hugely popular there, too). In fact, it wasn't until a later age that I became conscious of what anime actually was. To me, they were just the coolest of all cartoons. Anime was a word/concept that wasn't in my lexicon. I knew some of them came from Japan, but that was it. My cousins, my sisters, my friends, and I grew up watching the likes of DBZ, Sailor Moon, Inuyasha, Rurouni Kenshin (Samurai X over there), Evangelion, the Saber Marionette series, Soul Hunter, Ah My Goddess! (which, to date, has some of my favorite character designs ever), etc. We used to have this trippy ass channel called Locomotion where they'd show all kinds of anime, including more obscure ones from the 80's and 90's, regardless of genre and/or maturity level (it surprises me that my mom never blocked that channel, even though she hated it...). I remember watching part of SLE upon release, not knowing what it was. That channel eventually ceased to exist and got replaced by Animax, although I think that one was removed from Venezuelan TV ages ago. However, national TV still broadcasted the main shonen anime from back then on a regular schedule (and I think they still do). Then my family and I moved, so my sisters and I abandoned anime for quite a few years (you know, growing up as a teen in an American high school and anime being uncool 'childish cartoons'... which, really, in hindsight, they kind of are,  but I can't be bothered to care anymore). I reluctantly picked it back up at around 19 at a friend's request, and my sisters followed shortly.


----------



## Alberto7

Sorry for spamming the thread again all of a sudden, but I think I've officially caught the bug once more, and I'm finding some pretty great anime this season.

I just finished watching the first episode of Rokka no Yuusha. It looks gorgeous, it seems interesting, and I am loving the world-building they're doing so far, and their visual influences feel really fresh. The premise seems good enough, too. Also, the score is absolutely great, with my favorite OP this season from what I've seen, and my favorite ED theme.



Love the celtic/folk vibe of the ED. It reminded me slightly of the music from Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of Time.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Needed some real moeblob action so I started watching Himouto! Umaru-chan which turned out to be really entertaining. I really like the OP.


----------



## Don Vito

^ wannabe chang'


----------



## Fat-Elf

Don Vito said:


> ^ wannabe chang'



Haha, kinda true. I feel loli NEET gamer girls is the next trend in anime.


----------



## Don Vito

Fat-Elf said:


> Haha, kinda true. I feel loli NEET gamer girls is the next trend in anime.


Well at least this show doesn't make you sit through a bunch of idol dorama for 2 minutes of the chang'


----------



## Fat-Elf

Don Vito said:


> Well at least this show doesn't make you sit through a bunch of idol dorama for 2 minutes of the chang'



Literally my thoughts. I'm still waiting for someone to make that Anzu compilation on Youtube.


----------



## bouVIP

School-Live and Umaru-chan are 2 of my favorite ones from this season.


Anyone watch Shimoneta(A Boring World Where the Concept of Dirty Jokes Doesn&#8217;t Exist )? It's ridiculous haha Definitely check it out if you liked SYD


----------



## wat

Just watched Claymore and loved it. Really drew me in although the highlight of the story for me was the part near the beginning with teresa of the faint smile. I would love to see UFOtable remake this with Fate style fighting and epic facial expressions.

Speaking of, finished all of Unlimited blade works and loved it.

Still obsessed with evangelion. 

Still need to pick up clannad again and i should probably just start SOA II over again.

Started watching Elfen Lied the other night but I have to rewatch the first couple episodes because I was too drunk, lol. But I can already tell I'm gonna love it.


----------



## Dusty Chalk

Dat opening. (Elfen Lied)


----------



## Alberto7

So, I just found out that the Attack on Titan live-action film is being screened at my university tonight for the Fantasia Film Festival. This happens right the day before I fly back into town. No point in that either because the movie is sold out. T___T For what it's worth, I read a review, and it's apparently pretty sh!t.

... yesterday they also screened Rurouni Kenshin: The Legend Ends, which I have been DYING to watch after watching Kyoto Inferno at the festival last year.

*cries*


----------



## Don Vito

I saw a trailer for the SnK film tonight. Pretty sure it's the same one on Youtube, but yeah, it looked so-so. I'd still like to see it of course, but no idea yet if it's coming here.

Also, I redact every statement I've made about Resurrection of F. Seeing it at the theaters was a much better experience than watching it in a 2 part webm 

I also paid more attention this time around, and the ending finally makes sense now. It's still not the best ending, and I could feel a slight air of disappointment from people who hadn't seen the film yet(it's only been screening since yesterday). But there's one part earlier in the movie where Goku and Vegeta are training with Whis(not much of a spoiler, as it happens so early into the movie). If you really pay attention to this part, it links up with the ridiculously OTT ending, and actually makes a point. But there's so much flashy fighting and screaming going on the rest of the movie, that I feel most people didn't pick up on this detail at all. I certainly didn't the first time around.

There's also some great fight scenes with the old school Z fighters I forgot about(I skimmed over my original viewing so much it wasn't even funny). Like Master Roshi and Tien going at it with Frieza's army.


----------



## Alberto7

Haha man, I'm dying to watch it. I know it's screening in Canada in some cinemas. I'm gonna try to find out how long it'll be screening for and when, so hopefully I can go watch it after the con this weekend. Good to hear it's better than you first found it though. The clips on YouTube look amazing.


----------



## tacotiklah

So I'm scrolling through netflix and I can't seem to find another anime that piques my interest enough. I was considering Expelled from Paradise though. Is it any good?


----------



## Don Vito

tacotiklah said:


> So I'm scrolling through netflix and I can't seem to find another anime that piques my interest enough. I was considering Expelled from Paradise though. Is it any good?





Don Vito said:


> On ep. 5 of The Devil is a Part Timer. Basically Satan gets stuck on earth with none of his powers, and has to slum it as a McDonald's employee while scheming to invade the planet.
> Has kind of an Ika Musume/Invader Zim thing going on. Super funny, and even has some serious action elements to it.



When I was trying out Netflix, this was one of my favorite shows they had.


----------



## Alberto7

tacotiklah said:


> So I'm scrolling through netflix and I can't seem to find another anime that piques my interest enough. I was considering Expelled from Paradise though. Is it any good?



Not sure what you guys have in the US, or what you're interested in specifically, but if you like a good fantasy adventure anime, Moribito: Guardian of the Spirit is really, really good. If you like fantasy adventure with a more calm yet brooding atmosphere, watch Mushishi. The Madoka Magica series is also pretty awesome if you manage to get past the whole magical girls thing (of which it is meant to be a deconstruction). I also see they just added the first season of Fate/Stay Night: Unlimited Blade Works, but I understand that that show isn't for everyone.


----------



## Don Vito

Oh yeah, I forgot Madoka was on netflix. Really need to re-watch that one.... some time later this year. The feels are still fresh.


----------



## Alberto7

So it's Otakuthon weekend here in Montreal. Amazing con so far. Will write up more about it after it's over. So far, this picture best describes my excitement. Photoshoot after the Fate/Type-Moon panel. Still gotta work on that Fate cosplay. Perhaps Kiritsugu for next year.


----------



## Don Vito

is that a pikachu kigurumi??

you have your priorities straight my man


----------



## Dusty Chalk

Crossplay always cracks me up. You gotta have bigger kahunas...er... more extroversion than I do to pull something like that off. My respect to that guy.

Um...


----------



## Fat-Elf

Pikachu seems to have an open zipper...


----------



## Alberto7

lol yeah, it's an old(ish) onesie, and the lower buttonhole is too lose for the button to hold.  Since I had no cosplay, I had no choice but to wear that at least for that day haha. And yeah, there were a lot of crossplays this year, and most of them were really good (save for the really, really skimpy outfits. But, then again, those have never really been my thing). It sounds like fun, but, like you said, I don't yet have the balls (though I'd like to someday do a Sheik crossplay). We still have people over at my place that came over to Montreal for the con, so once they leave in a couple of days and I have more free time, I'll make a post just to get my thoughts out about it and post a few pics.

Bonus: one of the Sabers in the pic is a friend of ours and is actually staying at our place. I've never ever nerded so hard over the Fate franchise with anybody irl before, aside from the Fate panel at the con. I finally found someone who understands me. 

Why, hello there, post-con depression.


----------



## Curt

So the last time I was into anime, the only shows I paid attention to were Dragon Ball Z, Yu-Gi-Oh, Inuyasha, and Yu Yu Hakusho. Been wanting to get into it again, but have been so out of the loop. Any suggestions?


----------



## awake69

I saw DBZ Resurrection F with my son on opening night. What a fun flick and a VERY enthusiastic packed house. It's already become one of the highest grossing animes here in the States....and it's only on 800 or so screens.


----------



## Dusty Chalk

Curt said:


> So the last time I was into anime, the only shows I paid attention to were Dragon Ball Z, Yu-Gi-Oh, Inuyasha, and Yu Yu Hakusho. Been wanting to get into it again, but have been so out of the loop. Any suggestions?


Last Exile, Ghost in the Shell: Stand-alone Complex, Ghost in the Shell: Arise, Berserk: The Golden Age.

EDIT: And Steins;gate.


----------



## Don Vito

awake69 said:


> I saw DBZ Resurrection F with my son on opening night. What a fun flick and a VERY enthusiastic packed house. It's already become one of the highest grossing animes here in the States....and it's only on 800 or so screens.


One of the reasons I'm not going back to see it a second time is because I'm afraid the vibe won't be the same without all those fans seeing it for the first time. I've never heard people applaud for fictional characters before, and it was kind of beautiful.


----------



## awake69

Don Vito said:


> One of the reasons I'm not going back to see it a second time is because I'm afraid the vibe won't be the same without all those fans seeing it for the first time. I've never heard people applaud for fictional characters before, and it was kind of beautiful.



That's definitely what made it so fun that first time. The fact that Krillin's ring tone was the One Piece theme was a riot for me. Personally, I'd see it again just to see DBZ on a cinema screen.


----------



## kamello

Alberto7 said:


> Bonus: one of the Sabers in the pic is a friend of ours and is actually staying at our place. I've never ever nerded so hard over the Fate franchise with anybody irl before, aside from the Fate panel at the con. I finally found someone who understands me.
> 
> Why, hello there, post-con depression.




hell, I must be a really good listener. Haven't seen anything from the Fate series (I will I will) yet my friends insist on nerding about it with me  



also, OT; but looking at the Con pic I was trying to guess who was you and went something like...

''Damn, Alberto is crosspl- nope, he's definitely the Pikachu''


----------



## tacotiklah

The Fate anime is badass! Saber from the first one is legit! 

Just finished watching Death Note the other day. I wasn't liking it at first, but then it started getting really, really good. I may or may not have binge-watched it after I started digging it.


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

And so, I began watching _Dragon Ball Z_ from the very beginning tonight. 

I haven't seen an episode in a very long time. I remember when I was a kid in elementary school and the episodes of the original _Dragon Ball_ and of DBZ first aired here in the USA over a decade ago. But that is it. I haven't watched an episode or seen the show since.

I'm not much of a fan of anime or manga, so I feel sort of "behind on the times" because so many people my age love DBZ and were so stoked for the new _Resurrection of F_ film that was just released. I figured that it's about time that I catch up, see what all the acclaim is about, and relive a bit of my childhood!

After I finish DBZ, I'll bounce back to the original _Dragon Ball_ and then onto _GT_ and _Kai_, etc., and I'll intersperse the movies in chronologically.


----------



## myrtorp

I started on School Rumble, it seems cheesy enough!


----------



## Don Vito

Emperor Guillotine said:


> And so, I began watching _Dragon Ball Z_ from the very beginning tonight.
> 
> I haven't seen an episode in a very long time. I remember when I was a kid in elementary school and the episodes of the original _Dragon Ball_ and of DBZ first aired here in the USA over a decade ago. But that is it. I haven't watched an episode or seen the show since.
> 
> I'm not much of a fan of anime or manga, so I feel sort of "behind on the times" because so many people my age love DBZ and were so stoked for the new _Resurrection of F_ film that was just released. I figured that it's about time that I catch up, see what all the acclaim is about, and relive a bit of my childhood!
> 
> After I finish DBZ, I'll bounce back to the original _Dragon Ball_ and then onto _GT_ and _Kai_, etc., and I'll intersperse the movies in chronologically.


I'm doing the same thing. Still have a .... ton of DBZ to watch, but I'm knocking out the movies online. Btw, Kai is just the original series with redone animation and voice work. It's way better IMO. I didn't realize how bad some of the voice acting in the original dub was until I compared the two. 

Btw I finally watched Monster Musume. 2lewd4me.


----------



## MFB

Man, I felt like I was gonna be the one starting a trend since I was coming in here to say once I get finished moving apartments I'm gonna start DBZ from the start. It's probably my second favorite anime of all time behind Trigun, and I'm out of other shows so why not? The filler stuff will probably kill me, but I might skip over them if I can find some sort of guide online as to what's not necessary.


----------



## Skyblue

OK guys, took me a while but I finally got to it- FMA. 

Which one do I start with? FMA or FMA:B?


----------



## Don Vito

Finished Dragonball GT last night. I never really watched this one as a kid. I think it may have been the fact that I watched DBZ in it's entirety, and was just burn't out by the time GT had aired. I also thought it was lame that Goku was a kid again, but that doesn't bother me anymore since I have an appreciation for the original Dragonball series. 

GT is one that I've always heard mixed opinions about, and I can totally see why. The start of the series really reminds me of the original Dragonball, so that's cool. But then you get into the Baby saga, and what a load of .... that was. I'll give Baby one thing; unlike most other villains in the series, he actually had a clear motive.


Spoiler



But come on, Bulma shooting rays from a tower to make great ape baby vegeta stronger than "pssh nothin' personal kid" ss4 Goku was even far out there for Dragonball standards.


 I actually really liked the ending of GT, despite it being completely non-canon now.


----------



## tacotiklah

Skyblue said:


> OK guys, took me a while but I finally got to it- FMA.
> 
> Which one do I start with? FMA or FMA:B?



Chronologically speaking, start with FMA. FMA:B is sort of a recap, and has a bit of an alternate plot to it.


----------



## Sofos

tacotiklah said:


> Chronologically speaking, start with FMA. FMA:B is sort of a recap, and has a bit of an alternate plot to it.



not even close Jess, the first half of FMA is directly from the Manga. The second half was released without the Manga being complete so the story is completely different from the Manga, and honestly kinda crap.

Brotherhood, on the other hand, is the REAL ending from the Manga. The first 10 or so episodes are more or less a recap of the first half of FMA, but the rest of it is completely different and absolutely fantastic.

Go with FMA:B, ignore FMA.


----------



## MFB

Don Vito said:


> Finished Dragonball GT last night. I never really watched this one as a kid. I think it may have been the fact that I watched DBZ in it's entirety, and was just burn't out by the time GT had aired. I also thought it was lame that Goku was a kid again, but that doesn't bother me anymore since I have an appreciation for the original Dragonball series.
> 
> GT is one that I've always heard mixed opinions about, and I can totally see why. The start of the series really reminds me of the original Dragonball, so that's cool. But then you get into the Baby saga, and what a load of .... that was. I'll give Baby one thing; unlike most other villains in the series, he actually had a clear motive.
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> But come on, Bulma shooting rays from a tower to make great ape baby vegeta stronger than "pssh nothin' personal kid" ss4 Goku was even far out there for Dragonball standards.
> 
> 
> I actually really liked the ending of GT, despite it being completely non-canon now.



Ending of GT made me cry like a little girl. I've loved the DragonBall series since I was a kid and I skipped through most of GT since it was just bleh; but the ending with having to fight each of the Dragons was the only part worth it.


----------



## MetalGravy

Sofos said:


> not even close Jess, the first half of FMA is directly from the Manga. The second half was released without the Manga being complete so the story is completely different from the Manga, and honestly kinda crap.
> 
> Brotherhood, on the other hand, is the REAL ending from the Manga. The first 10 or so episodes are more or less a recap of the first half of FMA, but the rest of it is completely different and absolutely fantastic.
> 
> Go with FMA:B, ignore FMA.




I liked them both, but yeah, Brotherhood is better. Though Netflix doesn't have it all on streaming, they should have the rest on DVD.


----------



## Sofos

MetalGravy said:


> I liked them both, but yeah, Brotherhood is better. Though Netflix doesn't have it all on streaming, they should have the rest on DVD.



I know you can find them all streaming online


----------



## tacotiklah

Sofos said:


> not even close Jess, the first half of FMA is directly from the Manga. The second half was released without the Manga being complete so the story is completely different from the Manga, and honestly kinda crap.
> 
> Brotherhood, on the other hand, is the REAL ending from the Manga. The first 10 or so episodes are more or less a recap of the first half of FMA, but the rest of it is completely different and absolutely fantastic.
> 
> Go with FMA:B, ignore FMA.



I honestly really liked both tbvh. I will say that the ending to FMA is complete balls though. That crap irritated the hell out of me.


----------



## Alberto7

Finally got some peace of mind to sit down and recount the con. Because I'm lazy, I'm just gonna go over the main highlights for me plus a few pics I took, and an album (of pictures NOT taken by me, because my dying cellphone's camera sucks. )

I got to meet several English voice actors (Colleen Clinkenbeard, Wendee Lee, Todd Haberkorn) and attended their respective panels, but, since I don't really watch dubs, I wasn't as excited as I was to meet the Japanese guests.

I got to meet Rikiya Koyama, who is Kiritsugu Emiya's voice in the Fate franchise (among A TON of others, including Neo in The Matrix's Japanese dub.  He's also a character in Shokugeki no Soma (aka Food Porn the Anime), Kekkai Sensen, etc. http://myanimelist.net/people/113/Koyama_Rikiya). He was a total rockstar;  super enthusiastic, eager to please, and sure of himself. Such a nice man, even through his broken English. During his Q&A he impersonated a sh1t ton of his characters, with his most requested one being Kiritsugu, of course. He even loosely re-played that one scene between him and Ilya at the end of Fate/Zero... tears were shed. Then he apologized for having crushed our hearts. 

The Japanese band angela also came and played a concert. They play the OP themes for several anime, including K and Knights of Sidonia. Their concert was sick. It had been years since I'd seen a band with that much energy and stage presence. Atsuko's voice is absolutely on point. It reminded me of the voices in Kalafina, but displayed more range. They played Cruel Angel's Thesis as an encore, and everybody was going nuts. Their Q&A was pretty good too. They asked Atsuko what her favorite anime song was, and she thought for a little while, and just said "Oh yes, Love Live!" and instantly began singing Snow Halation acapella, and everybody began singing along. It was beautiful. 

We had a few people that came for the con from the Toronto area and Seattle and stayed at our place, and one of them was a huge Fate fan. She cosplayed Saber Lily on the second day, and she just pulled it off in such a lovely way. Then on the third day, she cosplayed Rei Ayanami on her EVA Racing attire, but in black. We nerded out pretty hard over everything Fate-related. Finally someone irl who understands me.  My roommates and the people that came over cosplayed Kuroko no Basuke, Yurikuma, Love Live!, Fate/Grand-Order, Evangelion, and Pokemon. It was honestly pretty great. All of us walking into the metro at 8am in cosplay and people turning their heads and sneaking the odd picture or two. 

There was a lot more to the con, honestly, but I'd spend days writing. We had 20,210 attendees this year, over 3k more than last year, and it is now officially the second largest dedicated anime convention within Canada, after Anime North (which has been applying a 30k cap the last couple of years). Sadly, I didn't get as many things this year as I wanted, but I'm very pleased with what I did get:

Some awesome prints:






Some more prints (left one was made by my roommate, and the right one by my sister's girlfriend):





My angela autograph (their Sidonia EP):





My two Koyama autographs (the con's booklet plus my Saber figma's base... forgive her sloppy posture; she's pretty delicate and I messed her up by setting up the crappy picture ):





And my new, super rad FLCL t-shirt:







And here's a link to my favorite photo album of the con that I've seen so far. Sooooo many good cosplays, it's pretty great!

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1008030069248046.1073741913.690319034352486&type=3


----------



## Alberto7

Also, I am kind of absolutely in love with Carnival Phantasm right now.



Like, that OP, I can't even.


----------



## Dusty Chalk

So many comments, I can't spill them all -- that photographer gets some great shots. I really dig that Spirited Away print. And your shirt.


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto, that is too much for me to come up with anything meaningful to reply with, so I'll just say I'm glad you had fun.  I'm still on the fence whether or not I want to go the con we have down here. Most of the guests are English actors that I don't have any particular attachment to, but it still might be fun to go watch the bands and pick up some swag. 

I also found out they're screening that SnK live action here next month, so now I'm obligated to go see it even though I don't want to.


----------



## Alberto7

Haha it was fun indeed. I find it hard to put those kinds of experiences into words, because there's a lot to them, and I've become increasingly lazy when it comes to writing (which is ironic, because I do love writing these things for other people to read). My suggestion is that you DO go to the con, even if just to walk around, see some cosplays, and/or meet new people. The English voice actors's panels and Q&As are usually a ton of fun. Most of them are very interesting people and always have cool stories to tell.

Also, I got a hold of that SnK/AoT live action, and it's sitting on my laptop waiting to be watched... I've heard so many comments already on how terrible it is, I kind of _really_ want to watch it.


----------



## MFB

> I've heard so many comments already on how terrible it is



Color me unsurprised, another anime adopted into live action that doesn't do well


----------



## bouVIP

Alberto7 said:


> Also, I am kind of absolutely in love with Carnival Phantasm right now.
> 
> 
> 
> Like, that OP, I can't even.





Looks like you had fun at the con! I still want to go to one.


Also yes Carnival Phantasm OP is the best OP ever and the series is so funny


----------



## Alberto7

^ Man, Carnival Phantasm... I may be somewhat biased, but it's honestly one of the most hilarious anime shows I've ever watched, if only because of how goddamn meta and utterly self-conscious it is.  I rarely laugh out loud while watching anime, but this has me in stitches. I'm even loving the Tsukihime and Melty Blood episodes (games that I've never even played). It's just such a charming show. I just finished Ilya's Castle special, and the fact that that's an actual mini-game from Fate/Hollow Ataraxia and that the voice actors are just giving live commentary has made me watch it three times in a row.  And Medea's Saber figurine collection.  I feel like I came too late to the Carnival Phantasm party, much like Nero Saber. 

tl;dr Carnival Phantasm I just can't even so much as the f*ck.


----------



## tacotiklah

Decided to give absolutely no f**ks, so I'm gonna binge watch Yugioh. It's actually better than I thought, though it has some definitely cheese moments in it.


----------



## Alberto7

Nooo shaaammeeee  I always say I'm gonna watch anime that I used to watch as a kid, but I never really do. I really like Yu-Gi-Oh! for the card game, and I always liked it more than the anime itself, but it was a total blast at the time lol.

Just finished Carnival Phantasm. As short as it was, it's left a hole in my soul.


----------



## MFB

tacotiklah said:


> Decided to give absolutely no f**ks, so I'm gonna binge watch Yugioh. It's actually better than I thought, though it has some definitely cheese moments in it.



I've tried to find the Seto Kaiba and YuGi duel during the Pegasus Tournament to see if it's as climatic as I remember, but man, WB Kids have that .... taken down everywhere


----------



## tacotiklah

The first two seasons, including that battle, are on netflix.


----------



## MFB

tacotiklah said:


> The first two seasons, including that battle, are on netflix.



Really?

I thought they just had the later stuff that got really confusing and self-inflated, like GX, and all that noise. 

Oh well, I ended up Googling the duel and read a summary of how it went down, turns out I was right and as an adult it is very anti-climatic (and 100% douchebaggery on Kaiba's part)


----------



## broj15

Am I the only one stoked for the new chapter of Berserk next week?


----------



## MFB

broj15 said:


> Am I the only one stoked for the new chapter of Berserk next week?



NEW BERSERK NEXT WEEK?


----------



## tacotiklah

MFB said:


> Really?
> 
> I thought they just had the later stuff that got really confusing and self-inflated, like GX, and all that noise.
> 
> Oh well, I ended up Googling the duel and read a summary of how it went down, turns out I was right and as an adult it is very anti-climatic (and 100% douchebaggery on Kaiba's part)



Yeah, they got a whole 4 part block of the whole duel, plus the episodes that follow after that. 



Spoiler



You'd think Seto Kaiba would stop being such a dick after Yugi saved both him and his brother. As you watch season 2, you'd realize you were wrong. If anything, he became even more of a dick.


----------



## Don Vito

SCREW THE RULES I HAVE MONEY


----------



## Dusty Chalk

broj15 said:


> Am I the only one stoked for the new chapter of Berserk next week?


Didn't know, but now that I do -- YES! AM STOKED! 

Thanks for that.


----------



## Fat-Elf

My Steam friend has a really weird anime avatar and I got curious what anime it was from. I found out that it's called Shimoneta (for short). I watched a couple of episodes of it today and I'm loving it! It's an ecchi/comedy but it actually has a clear plot which makes it interesting to watch. I definitely recommend checking it out but I gotta warn that it's really raunchy. Even raunchier than Seitokai Yakuindomo, I think.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Huh, interesting you mention Seitokai. Just yesterday I was trying find out where one of angela's songs that they performed at the con had come from. After a bit of digging I realized that one it came from Seitokai Yakuindomo. I saw a clip from the anime, and it looks totally hilarious, so I think I may just watch it at some point.

The song in question was Aoi Haru by angela:


EDIT: in other news, I've finally begun playing Fate/Hollow Ataraxia, since I found out that the final version of fan translation was finally completed and quality-checked last year.


----------



## bouVIP

Fat-Elf said:


> My Steam friend has a really weird anime avatar and I got curious what anime it was from. I found out that it's called Shimoneta (for short). I watched a couple of episodes of it today and I'm loving it! It's an ecchi/comedy but it actually has a clear plot which makes it interesting to watch. I definitely recommend checking it out but I gotta warn that it's really raunchy. Even raunchier than Seitokai Yakuindomo, I think.



oh it's really really really really raunchy


----------



## MetalGravy

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shimoneta:_A_Boring_World_Where_the_Concept_of_Dirty_Jokes_Doesn%E2%80%99t_Exist


Dirty joke terrorist?


----------



## Fat-Elf

MetalGravy said:


> Dirty joke terrorist?



Just watch it.


----------



## Alberto7

Anybody here watching/watched Hunter x Hunter? I began watching it two days ago and, before I knew it, I'd already finished the first season.  It's so entertaining, it goes by so fast. I really love how non-threatening it feels and looks, but then you get characters like Killua, or Hisoka (basically Tokyo Ghoul's Tsukiyama's final form on crack. ) Dangerous show. Illumi's introduction is probably one of the best I have ever seen. 

In other news, still playing Hollow Ataraxia, and really liking it. Much more relaxed and slice-of-life-ish than F/SN. I've also been digging around for some Fate artwork, and I came across this a couple of weeks ago https://www.reddit.com/r/Saber/?count=26&before=t3_3hdhoz. It never occurred to me that there would be an r/Saber subreddit.  It's fantastic. Lots of fan-art from the new Servants from Fate/Grand Order, including Jeanne D'Arc (total waifu material), and even the new Saber Servant, designed by huke, responsible for character design in Steins;Gate and Black Rock Shooter, and she looks great:


----------



## Dusty Chalk

Finally finished watching Last Exile -- t'was awesome.


----------



## tacotiklah

Alright, I made it to season 4 of Yugioh and started to yawn. First 3 seasons were great, but it just drops off from there.

I'm thinking of hitting up Dragon Ball next, but I'm not sure if I should start with the original, Z, or GT. Thoughts?


----------



## Sofos

tacotiklah said:


> Alright, I made it to season 4 of Yugioh and started to yawn. First 3 seasons were great, but it just drops off from there.
> 
> I'm thinking of hitting up Dragon Ball next, but I'm not sure if I should start with the original, Z, or GT. Thoughts?



Wanna talk about boring? Most of DB is filler. Pretty meh in my opinion. Have you watched Eden of the East or Trigun yet? or Code Geass?


----------



## Alberto7

I watched the original when I was too young to remember, but I do recall it being a lot less serious than Z, and actually quite a bit of fun. With that said, you're perfectly safe to start with Z. In fact, I'd outright tell you to just watch Z, since I think that's where the bulk of the appeal of Dragon Ball lies.

As far as GT, it all takes place after the events in Z, and it's not canon, nor did Toriyama have anything to do with it, other than giving the green light to carry on with the project (word is that Akira Toriyama didn't like what they did with it).

Dragon Ball Super is coming out now, and it is overwriting whatever happened in GT with actual canon material. Think of the latest two Dragon Ball films (which are an alternate reality, so to speak), and that's the kind of stuff they're doing, but the animation is slightly crappier (less budget per episode than for an entire film). They're only on episode 7-8, so it's really too early to tell what will be happening with it, but it's really fun so far.

EDIT:


Sofos said:


> Wanna talk about boring? Most of DB is filler. Pretty meh in my opinion. Have you watched Eden of the East or Trigun yet? or Code Geass?



Meh, I don't think you can compare. DB is its own thing, and it is, by no means, a "good" anime, meaning the story telling, character development, and overall plot are not mature at all, but rather childish and light-hearted. It's just exciting, makes you wonder, and it carries with it a big load of nostalgia. At the end of the day, it's the epitome of shonen, perhaps even beyond Naruto, imo. Otherwise I'd be recommending Steins;Gate, Fate/Zero, Kara no Kyoukai, Madoka Magica, etc., which have, by any standards, some pretty refined story-telling, plot, and character development, but I don't think that's the point when you're set on watching Dragon Ball and are coming from a Yu-Gi-Oh! streak. I think Jess knows what she's getting into.


----------



## MFB

Trigun is one of the best animes of all time in my opinion. It starts off light-hearted, but about half-way through it really picks up and becomes pretty philosophically/morally heavy, and you really feel bad for the position the characters are put in.

Punch-for-punch as a whole, I'd rank it my #1; DBZ would be if it didn't have a good chunk of filler since I do love the characters and overall what they do, but there are times where it's a little too much fluff for me.


----------



## bouVIP

Alberto7 said:


> Anybody here watching/watched Hunter x Hunter? I began watching it two days ago and, before I knew it, I'd already finished the first season.  It's so entertaining, it goes by so fast. I really love how non-threatening it feels and looks, but then you get characters like Killua, or Hisoka (basically Tokyo Ghoul's Tsukiyama's final form on crack. ) Dangerous show. Illumi's introduction is probably one of the best I have ever seen.
> 
> In other news, still playing Hollow Ataraxia, and really liking it. Much more relaxed and slice-of-life-ish than F/SN. I've also been digging around for some Fate artwork, and I came across this a couple of weeks ago https://www.reddit.com/r/Saber/?count=26&before=t3_3hdhoz. It never occurred to me that there would be an r/Saber subreddit.  It's fantastic. Lots of fan-art from the new Servants from Fate/Grand Order, including Jeanne D'Arc (total waifu material), and even the new Saber Servant, designed by huke, responsible for character design in Steins;Gate and Black Rock Shooter, and she looks great:




YEAH! I love HxH. It's so awesome and darker than typical shounen stuff. I would suggest picking up the manga after you finish the anime, but it's nickname is Hiatus x Hiatus.


Also F/GO is a pretty neat game. Simple gameplay, but fun and time consuming. Also there are a lot of cute Servants


----------



## Skyblue

Seriously enjoying FMA:B so far. It gets from light-hearted laughs to depressing stuff in a heartbeat, though


----------



## Dusty Chalk

I'm trying to remember the name of a manga. I only read a little bit in the store, but it seemed that there were these people being "teleported" by an unknown but superior technology to this place, and they're together, and there's this one guy who's trying to be alpha, and another guy who's the storyteller, and another one who is the loose cannon, and a girl who apparently was in the middle of getting raped? She's really freaking out. And others. It was very adult (obviously), but not full-on porn/hentai or anything, at least, not as far as I got. I don't even know if it was any good -- I got kinda turned off by the rape aspect, she was really traumatized, but the setup is haunting me, so now I want to read a little bit more just to see where they went with this. Or to find out for myself if it's any good.


----------



## bouVIP

^Gantz


----------



## MFB

Isn't Gantz notorious for having one of the most disappointing endings for an anime? I remember my old roommate in California telling me about it, and I've seen the Abridged version, but that's really it.


----------



## bouVIP

It's been awhile since I've seen it but yeah I do remember it ending on a pretty poor note. The manga was better from what I read, but never finished it.


----------



## tacotiklah

Alberto7 said:


> Meh, I don't think you can compare. DB is its own thing, and it is, by no means, a "good" anime, meaning the story telling, character development, and overall plot are not mature at all, but rather childish and light-hearted. It's just exciting, makes you wonder, and it carries with it a big load of nostalgia. At the end of the day, it's the epitome of shonen, perhaps even beyond Naruto, imo. Otherwise I'd be recommending Steins;Gate, Fate/Zero, Kara no Kyoukai, Madoka Magica, etc., which have, by any standards, some pretty refined story-telling, plot, and character development, but I don't think that's the point when you're set on watching Dragon Ball and are coming from a Yu-Gi-Oh! streak. I think Jess knows what she's getting into.



I'm just trying to avoid investing into an anime only to be bored to friggin' tears. If I'm gonna veg out on some anime, I want to watch one that piques my interest in some way. Judging from what few episodes I've seen of DB, I think I'd probably enjoy watching Z or GT more. The original has some funny moments, but there's just something about it that's not grabbing my attention for some reason.


----------



## Dusty Chalk

bouVIP said:


> ^Gantz


Yup, that's the one, thanks!


----------



## MetalGravy

Fat-Elf said:


> Just watch it.



But it isn't on Netflix!


----------



## Alberto7

bouVIP said:


> YEAH! I love HxH. It's so awesome and darker than typical shounen stuff. I would suggest picking up the manga after you finish the anime, but it's nickname is Hiatus x Hiatus.
> 
> 
> Also F/GO is a pretty neat game. Simple gameplay, but fun and time consuming. Also there are a lot of cute Servants



Yeaah, people keep telling me to pick up the manga but after the disappointment I felt upon finishing the last volume of D.Gray-Man and finding out that the series was on hiatus (though I hear she started it again a few weeks ago), I think I'm gonna hold that off until it's finished. (if ever)

Oh so you've played F/GO already? I've been meaning to at least try it out, but I'm really iffy about it, with there not being any kind of translation or anything. I'm seeing so much fanart and so much hype around it, that I know I'll cave soon.



tacotiklah said:


> I'm just trying to avoid investing into an anime only to be bored to friggin' tears. If I'm gonna veg out on some anime, I want to watch one that piques my interest in some way. Judging from what few episodes I've seen of DB, I think I'd probably enjoy watching Z or GT more. The original has some funny moments, but there's just something about it that's not grabbing my attention for some reason.



I see. Well, then beware of fillers in DBZ (and GT as well), like Sofos and MFB said. With that said, I do remember Z as being a ton of fun, so I'm pretty sure you'd like it. EDIT: I guess I should mention that the last time I watched DBZ was about 5 years ago, and I only started from halfway through the Frieza arc.


----------



## MFB

Z is a blast, and there are definitely guides out there to avoid filler episodes (I looked it up not too long ago, there's not too many actually); but GT is a god damn snorefest. If you must watch it, just skip to episode 41 and watch till the end since that's where all the good fighting happens.


----------



## Dusty Chalk

MFB said:


> Isn't Gantz notorious for having one of the most disappointing endings for an anime? I remember my old roommate in California telling me about it, and I've seen the Abridged version, but that's really it.





bouVIP said:


> It's been awhile since I've seen it but yeah I do remember it ending on a pretty poor note. The manga was better from what I read, but never finished it.



You guys weren't kidding! Even the manga loses its way right after the battle with the funky Buddhas...I managed to get back into it a little with that one mission he had to do alone, but yeah...kinda losing interest.

Kinda curious where the anime stops.


----------



## MFB

Dusty Chalk said:


> Kinda curious where the anime stops.



On a horrible note


----------



## Don Vito

Got a guest pass for Netflix, and noticed they have Persona 3 The Movie pt 2. I'm not streaming it this time 

Really not much to say if you've played the game. It follows the main plot exactly. Obviously they left out a lot of the social link characters in the movie, since they aren't necessary outside of the game format.

One negative is Aigis. The way she is drawn is... wrong. Her hair is too short and scruffy. I know her art and figure designs for instance are wildly inconsistent, and this is one of those cases where it's not so great in my opinion.


----------



## Dusty Chalk

MFB said:


> On a horrible note


Okay, I read the synopsis of the anime, and it sounds like at episode 22 they veer off _massively_ from the manga (although not necessarily any less dark --


Spoiler



in the manga, instead of Kei himself becoming the target, his girlfriend Tae becomes the target


). So end of the manga is just as bad? Oh well, I'm kinda stuck in it. I've read about 241/383 of the manga.

Thanks for the warning, though.


----------



## M3CHK1LLA

so my wife picked me up a copy of "ex-driver"

she knew im a fan of car-related anime like initial d and wangan midnight. not sure if this is even remotely like them judging by the cover art, but im willing to give it a shot. it was just really cool of her to think about me though. she's a keeper.


----------



## Dusty Chalk

Have you seen _*Redline*_?


----------



## OmegaSlayer

Not many OnePiece fans here, but today's chapter 799 was insane.


----------



## wakjob

OmegaSlayer said:


> Not many OnePiece fans here, but today's chapter 799 was insane.



It's on my hit list. I'm finishing up Naruto atm. 

Started a new series called "Gate". Only 9 episodes so far. Awesome. Awesome. Awesome.


----------



## OmegaSlayer

wakjob said:


> It's on my hit list. I'm finishing up Naruto atm.
> 
> Started a new series called "Gate". Only 9 episodes so far. Awesome. Awesome. Awesome.



Prepare yourself for a hell of a ride.
That if you love an intricate story with many layers and memorable characters.
The fights are not flashy as the ones you might see in other mangas or anime.
Very far from that, I would say that the fights are serviceable but impactful.
But the story...the story SHINES. 

The story is a bit slow until it reaches the events of episode 18, then it starts picking up speed and gains the pace at episode 48.
Unfortunately there are some filler episodes that are not worth the watch in my opinion as they ruin the overall pace imho, but consider that although I watch the anime too I'm mostly the manga version fan, and I really favour the pace of the manga more.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

meh, this shimoneta ain't even touching seitokai yakuindoimo tbh. The jokes aren't nearly as good, mostly perverted instead of funny. There's 2 more episodes left, but yeah, just not on the same level even if there were a few good bits.


----------



## awake69

I have been watching One Piece with my son since January. I'm on the Punk Hazard arc now. I have been enjoying the show immensely. It has been great to start from the beginning and watch these characters grow. I can definitely say I'm a One Piece fan now.


----------



## Sofos

Not sure if you guys have talked about this, and I don't feel like going through dozens of pages to find out, but I just found out there is going to be a "mid-quel" sequel series to Steins;Gate called Steins;Gate 0.

Spoilers:


Spoiler



From Kotaku:
"Steins;Gate 0 is the story of the future Okabe &#8212; the Okabe that killed Kurisu and eventually dedicated his life to finding the perfect worldline, the Steins;Gate. What&#8217;s interesting is that this story has already been told in light novel and manga form.

The Epigraph Trilogy (Steins;Gate: Epigraph of the Closed Curve, Steins;Gate: Pandora of Eternal Return, and Steins;Gate: Altair at the Apoapsis of Infinity) follows the life of future Okabe. Suffering from severe PTSD after his failure to save Kurisu, Okabe attempts to become a normal student. At a scientific conference, he meets Maho Hiyajo. This young genius in the field of neuroscience is working on &#8220;Amadeus&#8221; &#8212; a program that allows a person to make a digital copy of his or her brain which then becomes an AI avatar of the person.

Soon Okabe discovers that Amadeus is the project Kurisu was working on before her death and &#8212; even more shocking &#8212; Maho has a copy of Kurisu&#8217;s brain from just before she left for Japan.

While Steins;Gate 0 will have its own original scenario apart from the Epigraph Trilogy, the game&#8217;s first trailer shows that Maho, the Amadeus program, and virtual Kurisu will all show up in some form or fashion. Everything else, besides the basic plot about future Okabe, however, could be completely different."



Trailers (Also contain spoilers, so I'm just linking them):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=60svW9uElXk
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y0PiPld3_lg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F1VDZEploiA

And the website: STEINS;GATE 0


----------



## Alberto7

^ I feel like I just spoiled for myself everything that is not in the anime.  But I don't care, that is some pretty exciting news! I should dedicate time to catch up with the visual novels and so on.


----------



## Sofos

Alberto7 said:


> ^ I feel like I just spoiled for myself everything that is not in the anime.  But I don't care, that is some pretty exciting news! I should dedicate time to catch up with the visual novels and so on.



I speak a grand total of zero Japanese so I'm screwed in that sense haha


----------



## Alberto7

Sofos said:


> I speak a grand total of zero Japanese so I'm screwed in that sense haha



 I actually spoke from ignorance. I thought there'd be a fan translation patch out by now, but I haven't checked. Besides, I don't know which ones are available for PC, if at all.


----------



## Don Vito

watching #toystory2 on #abcfamily : )

#justotakuthings ; ) :3


----------



## MFB

Don Vito said:


> watching #toystory2 on #abcfamily : )
> 
> #justotakuthings ; ) :3



...did you just call Toy Story 2 anime?


----------



## Sofos

MFB said:


> ...did you just call Toy Story 2 anime?



i think he's being Ironic


----------



## Don Vito

For real though, Akame ga Kill is pulling me in atm. I thought it looked like a boring shonen, but it has a good sense of humor that reminds me a lot of FMA.


----------



## M3CHK1LLA

Dusty Chalk said:


> Have you seen _*Redline*_?



no i have not...thanks for the heads-up.

as i was checking it out, i noticed that the 6th stage of initial d was released as well as a new movie (part of a 3 movie set) was also available too.

i have them incoming now...only bad thing is, its english sub only. i wish funimation would get off their hind-ends and finish out this series. they stopped at the 4th stage.


----------



## myrtorp

I watched a few now so I thought id write down my thoughts!

I finished watching School Rumble, and it was okay. It had some really funny humor from time to time but the plot was the same through out the entire thing, the protagonist loves a girl who loves another guy, and they all struggle with feelings to confess. I never wanted to watch more than 2 episodes at a time. But I'd recommend it if you want a really easy going thing to watch, set in a school environment. 

Next up was Kiseijuu: Sei no Kakuritsu, or Parasyte.
It's about a guy who gets a (alien??) parasite in his arm, so his right arm is actually the parasite, who can shapeshift and look like a normal arm, or get eyes and talk and fight.. 
And they have to live together, and fight other parasites, also disguised as humans. 
Sounds pretty cheesy but it was really good, you know when you just have to watch another episode. I finished it in 3 days. (School Rumble took 3 weeks)
It gets pretty violent and gory.

I looked up anime with a related plot and found "Midori no Hibi".
Instead of waking up with a parasite in his right arm the protagonist finds that theres a girl instead of his right hand. A girl who also has a crush on him. I just had to watch that as it sounded hilarious. Its just 12 episodes and im halfway through. Pretty solid humor!

Heres Parasyte:







And heres Midori no Hibi lol


----------



## myrtorp

Don Vito said:


> For real though, Akame ga Kill is pulling me in atm. I thought it looked like a boring shonen, but it has a good sense of humor that reminds me a lot of FMA.



I was suprised by it, much better than i had anticipated!


----------



## Dusty Chalk

I need another really excellent manga like Blade of the Immortal or Battle Royale -- any recommendations? I've read the entire 6(?)-volume Akira, and most of the Ghost in the Shell ones up until ... ugh, maybe pretty far back. (I should probably go back and re-read both of those, since I don't remember much except that it had some great detail that didn't make it into neither the movies nor SAC.)


----------



## Alberto7

Friend of mine went to NYC for the Love Live! movie screening, and got me this:







The August issue of Type-Moon Ace magazine. There's so much awesome content inside!  It's got a long interview with Kinoko Nasu, and interviews with Gen Urobuchi and the dude who's directing the Heaven's Feel movie(s). Not to mention some of the awesome artwork from Fate/Grand Order and from the Tsukihime remake, and even some amazing fanart. It also comes with a CD (which I still haven't checked out because I gotta wait for my friend to come back and lend me her USB CD drive) and that super cute Saber keychain.

Too bad it's all in Japanese.  My new roommate can actually hold his ground in Japanese, so I might ask him to help me. (Ironically enough, he doesn't even like anime )


----------



## Skyblue

Random friend suggested I'll try Psycho Pass after I'll finish FMA:B which should happen in about a week. Yes? No? Other random suggestions?


----------



## Alberto7

^ Absolutely yes. Psycho-Pass isn't only very well written, but it's also very interesting. I love me some Orwellian stories.

Also, watch Gakkou Gurashi! (School Live!). It's from this summer season. It has one of THE best first episodes in anime I've ever seen. DO NOT look the anime up, because the first episode has a twist that will dictate the direction of the entire show, and you do not want that spoiled. That first episode... just watch for something strange. I've watched it 6 times already, and it's equally as unsettling every time.


----------



## Don Vito

I'm sick in bed watching a show from 2013 called Yuyushiki. It's a moe slice of life about 3 girls who run a "data processing" club, which means they just google random .... on the computer after school.


----------



## MFB

Think I might rewatch Avatar from the beginning. Dragonball Z was boring and I remember enough of it that I was jumping from fight to fight, so it wasn't worth continuing. But man, the development in Avatar just makes it so GOOD.

Noooo, Netflix doesn't stream it anymore. This is garbage.


----------



## Alberto7

MFB said:


> Think I might rewatch Avatar from the beginning. Dragonball Z was boring and I remember enough of it that I was jumping from fight to fight, so it wasn't worth continuing. But man, the development in Avatar just makes it so GOOD.
> 
> Noooo, Netflix doesn't stream it anymore. This is garbage.



YES, I actually want to watch it again. It's soooo goooood, and the lore is so interesting. The fight scenes are so damn creative, too. And then there's Korra, which is also great, though it doesn't feel as epic, and most of the character development isn't as good as Avatar's.

For what it's worth, I'm still enjoying the heck out of DB Super, so you may want to check that one out.


----------



## Don Vito

The only thing that bothers me about Dragonball Super is Goku's skinny arms.


----------



## MFB

Yeah, Super Saiyan God gets really weird. Then you've got the ridiculous notion of Super Saiyan God Super Saiyan, and it's like - where does it end?!



> And then there's Korra, which is also great, though it doesn't feel as epic, and most of the character development isn't as good as Avatar's.



If you haven't, you should see my progression in the LoK thread thats on here. I started out loving it, then grew to HATE it by the end. Which is a bummer cause I had high hopes for it.


----------



## Alberto7

lolwut there's a Korra thread?  Haha I started Avatar not long after Korra ended, and I only finished Korra about 2 and a half months ago. I binged the first three seasons, and, honestly, the third one was my favorite. It seems to me to be the most interesting, though I really, REALLY wish they had elaborated more on Zaheer as a character, because he was, imo, one of the most interesting villains in the series. I think it's better if you binge through it, rather than waiting it out week by week. More room for disappointment after a week's worth of hype and anticipation between episodes, and months between seasons.

Meh, I actually like skinnier SSG Goku. I think SS3 was big enough.  Then again, I like sleek-looking characters. That never-ending and over the top power ladder is kind of what I like about DBZ, so the more powerful the better for me.  Then again, we do know from Toriyama himself that Whis is the most powerful being in the DBZ universe so far, so we know there's a limit for now.

Also, relevant:


----------



## Don Vito

Pls, Yajirobe is the most powerful character in Dragonball, he's just holding back.


----------



## Alberto7

Always thought it was Yamcha, but f*ck me, you're right.


----------



## MFB

Alberto7 said:


> Always thought it was Yamcha, but f*ck me, you're right.


----------



## MFB

All these showed up on my dashboard today and I couldn't help it


----------



## Alberto7

I legit just drooled from laughter. Thank you for making my day a better one.

Zuko x Mako, Sokka x Suki, and Korra x Cabbage were too much.


----------



## Don Vito

there was a picture of asuka sitting on a dr pepper can here, but i eated it


----------



## JPhoenix19

OMG those Avatar pics had me rolling!

Just started Fate Zero a couple days ago, and so far I really like it.


----------



## Dusty Chalk

I don't even get most of those, and I still laughed.

Also, Wut, there's a live action *Attack on Titan*?!?!?


----------



## Don Vito

>2018

Is this a different movie? Because the only live action AoT movie I know of is screening where I live at the end of this month.

I read something today online talking about the movie. Apparently the director put a helicopter in the movie. ....ing helicopters in Attack on Titan. Hilarious.

edit: it was just one minor scene, but still..


----------



## MFB

Googling "Kouji Tajima" reveals an arts website, and the poster is from there, so I can only assume it's a fan made and not actual promo material; not to mention the architecture of the buildings is all wrong compared to the source material


----------



## Dusty Chalk

I hadn't noticed 2018 on the poster I posted, but the search was triggered by the knowledge that it was screening soon around here, too.

And they may have gotten the architecture wrong, but the scale looks pretty good.

And: ...the hell? Helicopters? That's just antithetical.

I'll probably still see it, just to see how they do. And in the theater. Unless it's one of those one-time special events things, in which case it's probably already sold out, just like last time (Death Note, I think it was).

Last time == last time I was paying attention enough to want to go.


----------



## Alberto7

Watched the movie, and it's f*cking terrible. Actually, if you learn not to expect the characters to be the same people as in the manga/anime, the first half isn't that bad. They convey the horror side of things pretty well. The second half is just plain cringeworthy though. The MILF scene was downright hilarious from how horribly done it was.  Also, yeah, there's a worn down (seemingly out of order) helicopter in a very short scene, and it had me and my friends all WTF. The setting for the movie is actually not all that bad. I quite liked it. It doesn't have the same, sort of orange-y and dusk-esque feel to it, but it does make use of very bleak colors to convey that sense of doom.

I know there's a second part to the movie that was meant to be released on the 19th of September (yesterday), but I don't know if it actually did. I don't know why that poster says 2018.


----------



## Dusty Chalk

Maybe I'll wait for video.


----------



## Don Vito




----------



## Alberto7

^ 

The people from Man At Arms have been really good at making me like them, and now I've maxed out.


----------



## habicore_5150

Took me an eternity to get around to doing this, but I started up Tokyo Ghoul last night, and finished it this evening. Looked really freaky, but was pretty cool



Spoiler



That torture scene though
All this time I thought I had been watching the censored version since I didn't actually see anything happen (other than the cries of agony and the dismemberment). And then I look at the uncensored version and see the same thing. Oh well, what can ya do?


----------



## MFB

Is Fate/Stay Night related to Fate/Zero, or can it stand alone?

The MaA kind of has me intrigued since there's classes etc, but I don't wanna watch one series just to get context for another


----------



## Alberto7

Fate/Zero is the prequel to Fate/Stay Night. Exactly the same rules, but most of the characters are different ones. (The classes you were talking about are the different kinds of servants: Saber, Archer, Rider, Caster, Assassin, Lancer, Berserker.)

With that said, both are stand-alones. F/SN actually came out years before Fate/Zero did, but as a visual novel (that has three routes, of which Unlimited Blade Works is one. They animated the first route in 2006, but it was garbage). Fate/Zero was written by Gen Urobuchi, but the project was supervised by Kinoko Nasu, who is the original creator of the Fate universe. Both series are complimentary to each other, and very related, but they can both be watched without having watched the other.

If you want my suggestion, watch Unlimited Blade Works first, and then watch Fate/Zero. However, it really doesn't matter too much. I did it the other way around, and it was still perfect.

Fate/Zero: darker and much more mature and cohesive writing.
Fate/Stay Night: higher production value and more shonen.

Both are incredibly good in every department though (save for their face designs... ugghh even I can draw better faces)


----------



## Skyblue

Finished FMA:B! WOW. What a ride. 

King Bradley is a complete badass. Mustang can be one crazy mofo (but probably one of the best characters I've seen). Armstrong  

Now to decide on what's next...


----------



## Alberto7

Skyblue said:


> Finished FMA:B! WOW. What a ride.
> 
> King Bradley is a complete badass. Mustang can be one crazy mofo (but probably one of the best characters I've seen). Armstrong
> 
> Now to decide on what's next...



Watching it after I finish HxH. I highly suggest you watch Hunter x Hunter! It's been amazing all the way through. I'm a bit over halfway into season 2. Kurapika is love.  I don't know if I like him because he's badass, or because he looks and acts so much like Saber.


----------



## Alberto7

This is one of the best things I have ever seen, and I'm not even kidding


----------



## mrdm53

more like : notice me Archer!


----------



## Alberto7

^ That's exactly it


----------



## MFB

Started watching F/SN since I couldn't find UBW online without pirating, and I don't have time for that, so I said screw it. I like the character designs so far, and true to form, I already seem to fancy the Lancer class out of all (I'm a big fan of lances/halberds/etc), so I'm hoping Rin gets her own that's as fancy as the other dude's.


----------



## oneblackened

So, did anyone watch Gate this season? It was my favorite of the new shows, though the overtly nationalistic bit is a little strange to me.


----------



## mrdm53

oneblackened said:


> So, did anyone watch Gate this season? It was my favorite of the new shows, though the overtly nationalistic bit is a little strange to me.



They tone down the violence in the manga, a lot. And add more moeness 

still a good show anyway.


----------



## sakeido

Skyblue said:


> Finished FMA:B! WOW. What a ride.
> 
> King Bradley is a complete badass. Mustang can be one crazy mofo (but probably one of the best characters I've seen). Armstrong
> 
> Now to decide on what's next...



the whole medium peaked with Brotherhood and has been going downhill (fast) from there.

you should have saved it until you had seen all the other good-but-not-great animes out there (there are dozens) because NOTHING will measure up


----------



## Sofos

sakeido said:


> the whole medium peaked with Brotherhood and has been going downhill (fast) from there.
> 
> you should have saved it until you had seen all the other good-but-not-great animes out there (there are dozens) because NOTHING will measure up



I loved Brotherhood but honestly I think I liked Steins;Gate better. The anime I've rated 10/10 are:

FMA:B
Steins;Gate
Eden of the East (and movies)
Code Geass
Devil is a Part-Timer (NEEDS to be a 2nd season)


----------



## mrdm53

To commemorate Muv-Luv's incoming into the world (The Best VN saga ever, no competition), i decided to ask a local guitar cabinet maker to make a 1x12" cabinet loaded with Celestion V30 with Meiya Mitsurugi's theme in mind

turns out to be awesome!






can't wait to see it to my home!


----------



## awake69

Skyblue said:


> Finished FMA:B! WOW. What a ride.
> 
> King Bradley is a complete badass. Mustang can be one crazy mofo (but probably one of the best characters I've seen). Armstrong
> 
> Now to decide on what's next...



LOVED FMA:B. I enjoyed it infinitely more than the original series and, from what I understand, it's much closer to the manga. Greed is my favorite character. Come to think of it....I may need to watch it again sometime.


----------



## Alberto7

mrdm53 said:


> To commemorate Muv-Luv's incoming into the world (The Best VN saga ever, no competition), i decided to ask a local guitar cabinet maker to make a 1x12" cabinet loaded with Celestion V30 with Meiya Mitsurugi's theme in mind
> 
> turns out to be awesome!
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> can't wait to see it to my home!



CHEESUS that thing is gorgeous!  Haven't heard of that VN, if I'm honest, but that artwork looks great. Neat stuff man, congrats!  Post a video of you using it.


----------



## mrdm53

Later man, gonna finish my Muv-luv cover soon. Still in rough ideas anyway 
https://soundcloud.com/danu-wisnu-wardhana/muv-luv-metal-remix


Here is my current rig


----------



## Alberto7

Sounding and looking good man! 

Today I realized how incredible Le Chant de Roma from Akame ga Kill is, and while looking for AMVs, I came across this, and f*ck me if the song doesn't go perfectly with the show!


----------



## wakjob

oneblackened said:


> So, did anyone watch Gate this season? It was my favorite of the new shows, though the overtly nationalistic bit is a little strange to me.



Yep! My new fav. Love Rory Mercury!

Also liking Parasyte a lot. 

Started watching Rokka-Flowers of the Six Braves... it's okay.

Too much anime to keep up with. It's


----------



## Alberto7

^ I still have to watch the last 3 episodes of Rokka. Honestly, I really like it. There are quite a few things I'd change, but overall I think it's pretty good... too bad that I haven't heard talk of a second season. The story as it is is completely unfinished, it's just the 7th Flower arc and that's it 

This season I'm not aware of too many things that I want to watch. I'm only curious of One Punch Man, because the animation is RIDICULOUS and beautiful, and that one with the girl with a bone fetish, because the art looks gorgeous. Other than that, I really have no idea what to watch based on current PV's. 
EDIT: I mean, just look at these gifs of One Punch Man! 

















With that said I'm already on season 5 of Hunter x Hunter and I LOVE IT. Such a good show. There's a lot of things that I don't like about it, but everything else that's good with the show makes up for it. (Like how some seemingly main characters just up and disappear when their development is starting to get good, never to be talked again... or at least they barely show up for a few minutes and then go away. )


----------



## Don Vito

devin townsend finally got his own anime congrats


----------



## Alberto7

^ LOL


----------



## Dusty Chalk

mrdm53 said:


> Later man, gonna finish my Muv-luv cover soon. Still in rough ideas anyway
> https://soundcloud.com/danu-wisnu-wardhana/muv-luv-metal-remix
> 
> 
> Here is my current rig


That looks great! (Will have to listen later.)

I finally watched Berserk -- The Golden Age Arc II: The Battle for Doldrey -- was great, really nice to watch really nice animation (compared to, for example, the version from almost 20 years ago.).

One Punch Man looks great.


----------



## MFB

The 2d animation for Berserk is great but when they do some of 3d stuff, they integrate it so poorly tbat you notice something is different and it takes you out of the moment.

I've been catching episodes of DBZ Kai and man, the animation on that really is so much cleaner compared to the originals.


----------



## M3CHK1LLA

just picked up the 6th & final stage of initial d...

...time to read the movie


----------



## habicore_5150

mrdm53 said:


> To commemorate Muv-Luv's incoming into the world (The Best VN saga ever, no competition), i decided to ask a local guitar cabinet maker to make a 1x12" cabinet loaded with Celestion V30 with Meiya Mitsurugi's theme in mind
> 
> turns out to be awesome!
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> can't wait to see it to my home!



Now I have an urge to do something like that when I get some cabs. Problem is I don't know what to put on them

But with Cab-chan out of the way  I'm getting around to watching Future Diary/Mirai Nikki. Only on ep3 right now but it looks pretty crazy


----------



## Don Vito

Uryuu best girl.


----------



## Alberto7

Ok, One Punch Man is the best thing ever. Over the top, stupidly action packed, absolutely hilarious, amazing character designs, and visually drop dead motherfriggin' gorgeous. It's so easy to watch.

The two episodes so far make it feel like a sort of Powerpuff Girls monster-of-the-week kind of show, except from the perspective of a hero who is literally bored of being too goddamn strong, with nobody being able to put up a fight.


----------



## Skyblue

Sofos said:


> I loved Brotherhood but honestly I think I liked Steins;Gate better. The anime I've rated 10/10 are:
> 
> FMA:B
> Steins;Gate
> Eden of the East (and movies)
> Code Geass
> Devil is a Part-Timer (NEEDS to be a 2nd season)



I can't really compare the two... They're not really the same type of story. Both awesome, of course.


----------



## Dusty Chalk

MFB said:


> The 2d animation for Berserk is great but when they do some of 3d stuff, they integrate it so poorly tbat you notice something is different and it takes you out of the moment.


I've seen worse.


----------



## Edika

Alberto7 said:


> Ok, One Punch Man is the best thing ever. Over the top, stupidly action packed, absolutely hilarious, amazing character designs, and visually drop dead motherfriggin' gorgeous. It's so easy to watch.
> 
> The two episodes so far make it feel like a sort of Powerpuff Girls monster-of-the-week kind of show, except from the perspective of a hero who is literally bored of being too goddamn strong, with nobody being able to put up a fight.



Haven't watched the anime yet but I have been reading the manga. I don't want to give away any info for people watching, even though the anime a lot of times tends to veer of the manga story line, but aside from a few plot holes of the kind "why would the guy bother with some things" that can just be explained by his extreme boredom, he hasn't really shown the extent of his abilities.


----------



## wakjob

One Punch Man... watched the first two episodes. 

Dig it!


----------



## habicore_5150

And as of last night, Mirai Nikki is finished, even the OVA


Spoiler



HAPPY END indeed


After that, I don't know what I wanna start up next


----------



## Alberto7

Edika said:


> Haven't watched the anime yet but I have been reading the manga. I don't want to give away any info for people watching, even though the anime a lot of times tends to veer of the manga story line, but aside from a few plot holes of the kind "why would the guy bother with some things" that can just be explained by his extreme boredom, he hasn't really shown the extent of his abilities.



I think it's the kind of thing where, if you're concerned about plot holes, you're just not watching/reading it right. The third episode came out, and it is as perfect and hilarious as the first two. It is probably one of the most painfully hilarious anime that I've ever watched, and it looks absolutely gorgeous. I knew Studio Madhouse was capable of some of the best anime out there production-wise, but this is far beyond anything by them that I've ever seen.


----------



## Sofos

Am I the only one super upset that there isn't a second season of Devil is a Part-Timer?


----------



## Fat-Elf

Haven't watched any anime lately but I went to see When Marnie Was There in a theater yesterday. I thought it was good but somewhat confusing. Also, didn't even realise that it might be the last Ghibli movie ever.


----------



## JEngelking

Sofos said:


> Am I the only one super upset that there isn't a second season of Devil is a Part-Timer?



Not at all, that show NEEDS a second season. The first is great and super fun to watch, but I felt like it got wrapped up kind of quickly so I'd love if there was a second season.


----------



## Don Vito

Sofos said:


> Am I the only one super upset that there isn't a second season of Devil is a Part-Timer?


No, because I never even finished the first season and instantly fell in love with it.


----------



## Dusty Chalk

Fat-Elf said:


> ...last Ghibli movie ever.


That would make me a sad panda.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Dusty Chalk said:


> That would make me a sad panda.



Sad panda?


----------



## Dusty Chalk

I'm showing my age -- IIRC, it's from an episode of South Park.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Dusty Chalk said:


> I'm showing my age -- IIRC, it's from an episode of South Park.



I remember seeing that episode but I made a reference to the one of the most popular hentai sites there is.


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

So, here is an odd question: anyone on here have any tips for creating anime-esque J-pop or J-rock tunes? Anywhere that I can look online to learn?

I've been studying the production on some songs from anime soundtracks for the past week or so and I am looking to try my hand at making some of that kind of music. I also got asked to tentatively compose and produce a little theme for an animated short that a friend of mine is doing. (We will see if that actually happens.)


----------



## Don Vito

Fat-Elf said:


> Sad panda?


Final boss of the internet.


----------



## Alberto7

I lol'd hard.

"Is this a happy place? NO."


----------



## JEngelking

Alberto7 said:


> I lol'd hard.
> 
> "Is this a happy place? NO."


----------



## Don Vito

lol'd at mirai nikki since i started hunger games recently


----------



## Sofos

Inuyasha: KAGOME!!!!


----------



## Don Vito

Kagome: INUYASHA!!!!


----------



## Sofos

Matt Damon: Matt Damon


----------



## JEngelking

That list is made even funnier due to the fact that I just finished Evangelion and I love that one line summary.


----------



## habicore_5150

Sofos said:


> Am I the only one super upset that there isn't a second season of Devil is a Part-Timer?



I'll get back to you on that when I get around to finishing the first season of it


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Emperor Guillotine said:


> So, here is an odd question: anyone on here have any tips for creating anime-esque J-pop or J-rock tunes? Anywhere that I can look online to learn?
> 
> I've been studying the production on some songs from anime soundtracks for the past week or so and I am looking to try my hand at making some of that kind of music. I also got asked to tentatively compose and produce a little theme for an animated short that a friend of mine is doing. (We will see if that actually happens.)



Depends... how much do you want to know/dive into?

I can give a few hints with the limited knowledge I have I guess.


----------



## Skyblue

Almost finished Psycho-Pass. Cool stuff. 

New ideas? I have like one month before going to New Zealand and living in a car for 3 months lol


----------



## Ikiharmaa

Skyblue said:


> Almost finished Psycho-Pass. Cool stuff.



What a coincidence, I just finished the first season of psycho-pass (22 eps). Long story short, I was rather disappointed in it until ep 13, after that it become worthwhile and I didn't have to consider dropping it anymore. Fortunately I already ranted about it on other forums so you don't have to hear me complain about how predictable it was. 8/10

That said I probably won't watch the second season (and the movie?) unless someone tells me to.



I might have also watched mariaholic, accidentally, 4/10.


----------



## Alberto7

^ If it was that hard for you to like season 1, for the love of God, do not watch season 2 unless you are a completionist, because, while not bad in and of itself, it does not measure up to the first season. The movie is pretty good, but season 1 is obviously still much better.

I'm currently only watching One-Punch Man, Dragon Ball Super, and Hunter x Hunter (slowly but surely. Currently almost done with season 5). I tried starting FMA:B again, but I've watched that first episode so many times.  Not that I don't like it, but I lack momentum to watch past episode 2. Maybe after all the craziness in my life atm calms down a little bit I will dedicate it some time.


----------



## JEngelking

Am officially on the One Punch Man hype train. Needless to say I'm hyped, it's great so far.


----------



## Alberto7

^ One-Punch Man is one of the most entertaining things I've seen in a while. It accomplishes its goal absolutely flawlessly. And its comedic timing is on friggin' point. Too bad they're blue-balling their audience after the 12th episode.


----------



## JEngelking

Alberto7 said:


> ^ One-Punch Man is one of the most entertaining things I've seen in a while. It accomplishes its goal absolutely flawlessly. And its comedic timing is on friggin' point. Too bad they're blue-balling their audience after the 12th episode.



Really, how so? I hadn't heard anything about that.


----------



## Alberto7

Yep, the anime is only planned to be 12 episodes long (Source: AniList) and it won't finish the story in the manga. Also, given Madhouse's track record, I wouldn't hold my breath for a second season (No Game No Life *sniff*)


----------



## MFB

Watched _Resurrection of F_ not too long ago, loved the animation and everything, but it felt like it was over in a minute - and it's your standard hour and a half movie. Maybe it's just because the first and second acts were so similar, but the 3rd was all action so that usually screws with the concept of pacing.


----------



## wakjob

*"Fate/Stay Night"* was absolutely fantastic! Kind of a Japanese hero/Highlander merge.

Watched all 28 episodes in two nights... I need help.


----------



## Sofos

Just got done with Ouran. Needs a 2nd season. and 3rd. and 4th. and 5th...

Re-watching Log Horizon, this time with the dub. Much easier to follow along in English.


----------



## JEngelking

Alberto7 said:


> Yep, the anime is only planned to be 12 episodes long (Source: AniList) and it won't finish the story in the manga. Also, given Madhouse's track record, I wouldn't hold my breath for a second season (No Game No Life *sniff*)



Oh, that's a little disappointing. Well I guess that shouldn't detract from how enjoyable it is, and we can at least hope that they end it on a good conclusion.


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> ^ If it was that hard for you to like season 1, for the love of God, do not watch season 2 unless you are a completionist, because, while not bad in and of itself, it does not measure up to the first season. The movie is pretty good, but season 1 is obviously still much better.
> 
> I'm currently only watching One-Punch Man, Dragon Ball Super, and Hunter x Hunter (slowly but surely. Currently almost done with season 5). I tried starting FMA:B again, but I've watched that first episode so many times.  Not that I don't like it, but I lack momentum to watch past episode 2. Maybe after all the craziness in my life atm calms down a little bit I will dedicate it some time.


I've been on and off with Dragon Ball Super. I just want them to use the new content already! 


Spoiler



The alternate universe thing is going to be interesting. There are already so many fan theories being thrown around, as is expected from the DB fanbase.



I've been reading the manga online, which I think is about a segment ahead of the anime. Or maybe I'm retarded.


----------



## Sofos

Don Vito said:


> I've been on and off with Dragon Ball Super. I just want them to use the new content already!
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> The alternate universe thing is going to be interesting. There are already so many fan theories being thrown around, as is expected from the DB fanbase.
> 
> 
> 
> I've been reading the manga online, which I think is about a segment ahead of the anime. Or maybe I'm retarded.



I don't think you are... but Alexi's fedora is


----------



## OmegaSlayer

awake69 said:


> I have been watching One Piece with my son since January. I'm on the Punk Hazard arc now. I have been enjoying the show immensely. It has been great to start from the beginning and watch these characters grow. I can definitely say I'm a One Piece fan now.



I lost this post but it makes me insanely happy to read it.
How's your son enjoying it, and how old is he if you don't mind saying?
I guess from your nick you're from 1969.

The growth of the characters is insane, and Water7/Enies Lobby is just magnificient in the narration.

Dressrosa arc is really long, but what an arc!

To the others here I just post this


----------



## Don Vito

Mitsudomoe is my jamz right now. At first I thought "wow look at this pedobait, there's no way this is actually good". I was so wrong, this is one of the funniest shows I've watched in a while. They basically turned a bunch of 8 year olds into catty old ladies.


----------



## Mr-Jemhead93

I'm going to add to the One Punch Man hype, I think its a perfect parody of the typical anime hero. That and the animation is super freaking cool.


----------



## Don Vito

I forgot to charge my phone last night, so I had to listen to FM radio on my morning drive.

The morning talk show was talking about waifus and anime. I wanted to cringe and run into a ditch, but I found it too hilarious and surreal. Basically they had this new intern on the show who they found out liked anime or something, and they kept asking questions about why he liked anime, how he got into it, ect.. The hosts of this show are like extremely normal 40 year old country guys. Finally one of the hosts asked the guy if he gets off to anime, thus revealing he has the hots for Cammy from Street Fighter. And then they started googling her and making a bunch of sexual comments. I would cancel my Spotify if the daily radio was always this entertaining.


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Finally finished all 291 episodes of _Dragon Ball Z_. I'm going to go backwards right now and wrap up _Dragon Ball_ (already seen a good chunk of the episodes from when I was a kid and it aired here in the USA) and then finish up all the movies up to the chronological point where I am at now before I move on to start watching _Dragon Ball GT_.


----------



## Don Vito

As much .... as GT gets, it can be somewhat entertaining. I marathoned it a couple months ago, so it held my attention somehow.

Get ready for


Spoiler



*GREAT APE BABY VEGETA*



Speaking of DB, I've been reminiscing on Resurrection of F thanks to Youtube and Funimation somehow not being content nazis.


One of my favorite scenes from the film. 

Only thing I would have changed:

- Tien should have used solar flare in the cave, used ki blasts on the roof of the cave while flying out, and the cave would have collapsed on the soldiers.


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

For now, I'm skipping _GT_ since it is not canon. I'm wrapping up _Dragon Ball_, finishing all the movies and specials (in chronological order), and then moving on to _Super_. (I guess _Super_ is just a rehash of _Battle of Gods_ and _Resurrection of F_ as of right now?) Speaking of which, I watched _Battle of Gods_ last night. God, it was terrible...


----------



## Alberto7

I'm wondering... what criteria do people use to judge whether Dragon Ball is good or not? I mean, the only reason I watch it is because of the nostalgia factor, and because I know the mythology decently well and I was so invested in it as a kid. The thing is, I actually think that all of it is pretty terrible.  Don't get me wrong, I love the show, but I'm very curious when people begin passing actual judgement on one of the arcs, series, and/or movies. It's all the same to me; sometimes more lighthearted, sometimes less lighthearted, but always ridiculous.


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Alberto7 said:


> I'm wondering... what criteria do people use to judge whether Dragon Ball is good or not? I mean, the only reason I watch it is because of the nostalgia factor, and because I know the mythology decently well and I was so invested in it as a kid. The thing is, I actually think that all of it is pretty terrible.  Don't get me wrong, I love the show, but I'm very curious when people begin passing actual judgement on one of the arcs, series, and/or movies. It's all the same to me; sometimes more lighthearted, sometimes less lighthearted, but always ridiculous.


Took over 3/4ths of the film's runtime to build up to the turning point. The turning point was a pudding cup.  Then the "climactic" fight was never all-out, ended prematurely, and was never resolved. Felt like a ripoff. That is why _Battle of Gods_ was terrible.

Aside from that, I agree with you on your post.


----------



## Don Vito

I feel that with Dragon Ball and the first 2 DBZ sagas, there's this real sense of adventure and danger. Around the Cell and Buu arcs it becomes a super saiyan fest, and GT was just an excuse to make up uninspired and stupidly strong villians.

DB Super has one interesting thing going for it that makes Battle of the Gods an important addition to the series. But we haven't been shown this element in full detail yet.


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Don Vito said:


> I feel that with Dragon Ball and the first 2 DBZ sagas, there's this real sense of adventure and danger. Around the Cell and Buu arcs it becomes a super saiyan fest, and GT was just an excuse to make up uninspired and stupidly strong villians.
> 
> DB Super has one interesting thing going for it that makes Battle of the Gods an important addition to the series. But we haven't been shown this element in full detail yet.


^ THIS. All of it.


----------



## Dusty Chalk

"Large, naked people eat small, clothed people."

LMAO

My attempts:

Last Exile: two kids fly around in the middle of a war zone and somehow elude getting killed all to death
Ganz: omnipotent something makes people hunt aliens and stuff
Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex: cyberpunk police procedural with cyber enhanced cops
Elfen Lied: programmed crazy psychotic murderer tries to act all normal amongst people

I want one whose description goes something along the lines: WTF?

I'm totally on board the One Punch Man bandwagon -- I'm only up to episode 3 on Hulu, but loving it. Especially the part where he's reminded that he did not, in fact, miss the sale, so runs off.

The good animation is actually really good, but they do still do the thing where they just pan across a still image against a still background either side-to-side or up-and-down, so Berserk is still better. And Redline is still the high-water mark.


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Just finished up _Resurrection F_. Pretty entertaining, especially compared to _Battle of Gods_. The fact that the song "F" by Maximum the Hormone (some on here know my love for the band) was a redeeming factor for the film.


----------



## Alberto7

Dusty Chalk said:


> I want one whose description goes something along the lines: WTF?.



Serial Experiments Lain: WTF?!

Alternatively,

Serial Experiments Lain: Internet!


----------



## Don Vito

I've read several, highly detailed analyses of SEL, and I still have no idea what it's about. I mean, I have a vague idea, but I couldn't put it into words.


----------



## Dusty Chalk

I need to revisit that -- I started watching it, don't remember why I stopped.

Thanks! I think...


----------



## JEngelking

Alberto7 said:


> I lol'd hard.
> 
> "Is this a happy place? NO."



Just finished the last episode of Madoka Magica. Can confirm is not happy place. 

Now on to the movie...


----------



## Alberto7

Aaahhh Meduka... being Meguca is suffering, as Cooby would say. Just keep in mind that the first two films are basically the anime series but with a few new scenes and remastered production and music. Then there's the third movie, Rebellion, which you will either love or hate. Personally, I loved it.


----------



## Don Vito

Weird, I've been thinking about Madoka a lot today. I've had Rebellion on my "plan to watch list" since last year.

I skipped class today, stayed in my warm and cozy room watching Yuyushiki while it rained outside :3


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Watched _Bojack Unbound_ last night. Pretty cool for a DBZ movie since it's just a short, sweet 50 minutes of fight after fight with little-to-no filler. But so much was wrong with the movie (holes) or just didn't make sense at all. 


Spoiler



- all of the good fights take place in a dome building on a island, and somehow the inside of the dome is ridiculously large, like almost the size of a planet
- Bojack and his fighters randomly appear
- Bojack's swordsman Kogu randomly goes full power (changes his skin color) but then it cuts and the animators/artists clearly forgot to change his skin color to the new color multiple times
- everyone on Earth knows Bojack's name and knows who he is despite his name never being said by anyone on Earth
- Bojack randomly goes full power (no great spiel beforehand)
- Bojack randomly kills his female fighter Zangya for no reason while attacking Gohan
- the Z-fighters randomly pass out
- Goku somehow broke the rules of Otherworld and appears for a second on Earth even though he is dead to help Gohan (what a cop out)
- Gohan defeats Bojack with one punch through the stomach (how anti-climactic)


----------



## Don Vito

That's one of the movies I haven't seen. Whenever I hear the name Bojack, I think of pancakes, or Bobobobobobo..



Spoiler



"Gohan defeats Bojack with one punch through the stomach (how anti-climactic)" heh, that's a dbz movie for you. this happens a lot it seems.



My favorite of the older DBZ movies has to be Bardock - The Father of Goku, which is more involved with the TV series than most of the others.


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Don Vito said:


> That's one of the movies I haven't seen. Whenever I hear the name Bojack, I think of pancakes, or Bobobobobobo..


OMG! Someone else remembers that! 

I remember Bobobobobobo from when I was a kid. That whatever/anime was so short-lived. But, hey, I guess a story about a guy that is like a cross between Johnny Bravo lol and Hercule (Mr. Satan from DBZ) and his nosehair really isn't that entertaining.

Whenever I hear the name "Bojack", I think of Bojangles. Yep...the fast food joint. Someone break out the chicken and biscuits with gravy! 



Don Vito said:


> My favorite of the older DBZ movies has to be Bardock - The Father of Goku, which is more involved with the TV series than most of the others.


Not a movie actually. Just a special. But a very good one at that. And then there was the _Episode of Bardock_ which was a spinoff and the English dub was done by fans. 

My question though: did the event between and Chilled in the _Episode of Bardock_ actually happen? or is it just one big "what if"? I mean, how can you get knocked into the past by an attack by Frieza?


----------



## JEngelking

Alberto7 said:


> Aaahhh Meduka... being Meguca is suffering, as Cooby would say. Just keep in mind that the first two films are basically the anime series but with a few new scenes and remastered production and music. Then there's the third movie, Rebellion, which you will either love or hate. Personally, I loved it.



That I am aware of, fortunately. A friend of mine just watched all three movies so I was just gonna watch Rebellion on his recommendation, should've specified that in my first post haha. But that friend of mine has good taste and said he liked it a lot so I think I'll enjoy it.


----------



## Alberto7

I have good taste too! ... ... Saber is our one and only True King. 

And everytime I hear/read Bojack, I just think BoJack Horseman, which is great. I'd love to talk about it here, but this happens to be only about Japanese animation or anime-like stuff.


----------



## Skyblue

halfway through Paranoia Agent, and this is some weird shizz. I like it. 

Satoshi Kon is a brilliant director- If you've never seen anything by him, go do so now. Paprika is absolutely genious.


----------



## Static

Alberto7 said:


> Serial Experiments Lain: WTF?!



..And you dont seem to understaaand..


ima get out now.


----------



## Alberto7

^ And I totally still don't. dafuq is going on?


----------



## Don Vito

Since we're on the topic, I can share this now.


----------



## Alberto7

It's one of those songs that makes me really moody, and that is so catchy it won't leave my brain for a long while. Long term moodiness, here I come.


----------



## Dusty Chalk

I'm a just coming back in here to thank you (whoever is responsible) for introducing me to One-Punch Man. I laugh every time during the opening credits. And then several times over the course of the show. What the hell is that star thing? And then he punches it. And then the big blobby thing. And then he punches it. New monster appears. And then he punches it. &c.


----------



## MFB




----------



## Alberto7




----------



## wakjob

One Punch Man... 'National Superhero Registry'.

Brilliant!


----------



## Don Vito

Damn, the people who were subbing Dragon Ball Super in english got shut down by Toei, or whoever owns the rights to Dragon Ball. Oh well, by the time anything interesting happens maybe the dub will be out. I have enjoyed the scenes of Vegeta and Goku living day-to-day on Planet Beerus.


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Watched _Broly - The Legendary Super Saiyan_, _Broly - Second Coming_, and _Super Android 13_. The first two were pretty good for DBZ flicks. The last one...not so much...not at all actually. And all three had some serious coherence issues and contingency issues with major holes.

_Broly - The Legendary Super Saiyan_


Spoiler



- Piccolo randomly appears out of nowhere amidst the fighting. You don't see him at all previously in the film. 
- No one is any match for Broly. It's not even a fight. Then Goku asks everyone to give him their energy and he defeats Broly with one quick, anti-climactic punch through the stomach. (Same as when Gohan beat Bojack with one quick, anti-climactic punch through the stomach.)
- the planet they are on gets destroyed; yet somehow upon the exact moment of destruction, Goku makes all the Z-fighters an entire population of slaves in a Capsule ship that appears out of nowhere. But it wasn't through his Instant Transmission. Absolutely unexplained cop-out ending.



_Broly - Second Coming_


Spoiler



- Broly somehow magically survived the destruction of the planet from the previous movie
- Gohan randomly appears out of nowhere amidst the fighting. You don't see him at all previously in the film.
- Krillin randomly appears out of nowhere amidst the fighting...dressed as Piccolo. (I guess it is because Piccolo couldn't randomly appear out of nowhere and attempt to be the savior for this flick?) You don't see him at all previously in the film.
- somehow, the Dragon Balls granted Goten's wish without the dragon Shenron being summoned and without Goten even verbally stating the wish.
- Goku somehow broke the rules of Outerworld *AGAIN* (like in _Bojack Unbound_) and appears just to help and then disappears.
- Broly did not die with one quick, anti-climactic punch to the stomach.



_Super Android 13_


Spoiler



- Android 14 is a little, purple-skinned guy who wears an oversized hat, oversized bow-tie, drinks out of a flask, and is reminiscent of a pimp. That entire description right there is wrong in and of itself.
- Android 14 and Android 15 explode upon being severely damaged; whereas, that *never* happened with any other Android. (Note: 16, 19, and 20 all survived with their heads removed.)
- Piccolo randomly appears *out of the ground* nowhere amidst the fighting. You don't see him at all previously in the film. 
- Vegeta randomly appears *out of an iceberg* amidst the fighting. You don't see him at all previously in the film. 
- Vegeta gives his word-for-word spiel about how he isn't there to save the world from the bad guy, he just wants to save Kakarot for himself to fight at a later date. (Well...at least this is consistent.)
- No one is any match for Super Android 13. It's not even a fight. Then Goku asks the Earth to give him its energy for a Spirit Bomb, he absorbs the energy from the Spirit Bomb into himself (change-up there!) and he defeats Super Android 13 with *(AGAIN!)* one quick, anti-climactic punch through the stomach.
- the film ends with Vegeta and Piccolo sitting isolated together on an iceberg. (Similar to _Bojack Unbound_ which ended with Vegeta and Piccolo sitting isolated together on a roof.)



I'm starting to see a trend here...


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

So it seems I haven't properly watched an anime series in years to the point I've pretty much abandoned the media completely. I probably should watch all of Fate after Stay Night by now especially considering the copious amounts of Yuki Kajiura listening I've been doing. Still haven't seen Brotherhood either.


----------



## Alberto7

^ I approve of your plan and give you the SSoA (Saber Seal of Approval):


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Really the hardest part is finding time. I was supposed to start Knights of Sidonia but never got to it. I'm still procrastinating Gintama... 

Maybe that Kalafina Best Blue/Red Concert I recently obtained will make me watch Fate... that is if I get around to watching that concert as well.


----------



## Don Vito

I always have anime playing in the background while I'm doing some else. Unfortunately I don't have dual monitors yet, but i'll do the 'snap' feature on windows(which every other OS has nowadays) and have some show going while I'm reading the news in the morning or whatever.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Don Vito said:


> I always have anime playing in the background while I'm doing some else. Unfortunately I don't have dual monitors yet, but i'll do the 'snap' feature on windows(which every other OS has nowadays) and have some show going while I'm reading the news in the morning or whatever.



My sister and brother in law are like that, they've got a quad screen setup in their house. In fact, my brother in law insists on having something playing while playing Diablo 3. 

I sort of want that kind of setup but I just can't keep up anymore. It's funny because when listening anime/game music in the car, I always think, maybe I should go check out the series where said music came from. Especially when the music as awesome as this:



Probably should put Puella Magi Madoka Magica on the list too I guess.


----------



## Alberto7

That's exactly the reason I haven't been watching much anime. I lack the time, but it also makes me forget that the real world exists (sssshhhhhhh) . I can't let it run in the background though. I'm all or nothing. In fact, I normally don't even like watching anime with other people in the room  I find it distracting from what the anime has to offer.

With that said, if you want the best of Kalafina in anime... Madoka, obviously, and Kara no Kyoukai (the anime that Kajiura created the group for). It's kind of nuts how good most of the anime that they've been in are.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> Kara no Kyoukai (the anime that Kajiura created the group for).



Also known as another anime on my procrastination pile since it come out despite being a massive fan of the music. 
Hell, I absolutely love the Seventh Heaven album too...



It sucks considering I've been following all things Kajiura since .hack/Sign...


----------



## Alberto7

It's arguably my favorite anime ever (yeah, even more than Fate  at least from a more objective, or 'mature,' point of view), and the music is a good part of the reason. It's a slow and long watch though, and it demands every drop of your attention, so I understand why people procrastinate on it.


----------



## mrdm53

Madoka is the best example when cute anime goes wrong in a positive way, especially Rebellion

I never expected that Homura is a hardcore Yandere until later in the series


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

How about that, Madoka Magica just happens to be on TV right now.... except it's the final episode. 

I'm watching it anyway, just for the Yuki Kajiura factor.


----------



## Edika

I've been watching the One Punch Man anime and I've got to say I'm hooked. I've read the manga and even the webcomic by ONE and the anime really gets you into the atmosphere. The animation, the music everything is just so well done.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Started watching One Punch Man because everyone has been praising it but I just couldn't get into it. It just made me feel depressed for some reason. 

I've also been watching Death Parade which I think is pretty cool. Kinda gore-ish and gross but also has a cool jazzy soundtrack and some nice characters. Can't wait to see how it ends.


----------



## Alberto7




----------



## Alberto7

Started catching up with Dragon Ball Super once again. I only have episode 20 left (the last one that's come out), and it's been totally hilarious and epic so far. Really like how they jumped into Resurrection of F now; it's always exciting seeing a new villain come back to life, especially one of my favorite ones from the series! Also, I somehow never knew of Vados's existence until now (Whis's sister), and I am kind of in love with her character design haha can't wait for them to develop her character more. I also didn't know the part of the DBZ universe with the 12 different universes. Found out while finding info online on Vados and Champa.


----------



## Alberto7

I just watched the extra episode that came out included with the Unlimited Blade Works Bluray, called Sunny Day. It's the alternate ending (the good ending. A happy-er ending, basically) to the UBW route from the VN. It's only 10 minutes long, but watching it animated... man, all of my tears.


----------



## Alberto7

Bad thing, picking Fate back up. Now I can't stop myself.  Sorry for spam, but some Fate content I hadn't seen before:

Fate/Grand Order's opening:


And Vimeo links to the openings for Fate/Hollow Ataraxia's PS Vita port, animated by utofable:

https://vimeo.com/119683637

https://vimeo.com/119683638

I love the fact that Aimer does both of Hollow Ataraxia's openings; one in Japanese, one in English.


----------



## Dusty Chalk

"Nice head -- are you related to an octopus by any chance?"

LOLOLOL

Unrelated (yet more Lulz):


----------



## MFB

Watched the first two out of four episodes for Digimon Adventure Tri, and episode two nearly had me in tears it was so perfect.


----------



## Sofos

has anyone watched "K" yet? First episode was really odd. Not sure if I should keep going or if I should watch something else.


----------



## Alberto7

^ I watched the first two episodes of K because a lot of my friends have watched it and it's occasionally talked about. I want to keep watching because it looks pretty stylish, but it was, indeed, pretty odd. 



MFB said:


> Watched the first two out of four episodes for Digimon Adventure Tri, and episode two nearly had me in tears it was so perfect.



Aaaahhh I didn't know it was coming out already! I haven't been keeping up with this season's anime. Will have to watch it! I barely remember anything from the original Digimon, but I remember I liked it a lot back then; I remember it as being sort of like Pokemon's more mature and cynical older cousin.


----------



## Don Vito

All I remember about Digimon is this song in the movie.


----------



## Sofos

Don Vito said:


> All I remember about Digimon is this song in the movie.




Every time I hear "All Star" all I can think is the movie.


----------



## MFB

Alberto7 said:


> Aaaahhh I didn't know it was coming out already! I haven't been keeping up with this season's anime. Will have to watch it! I barely remember anything from the original Digimon, but I remember I liked it a lot back then; I remember it as being sort of like Pokemon's more mature and cynical older cousin.



They're releasing it in 4 parts, and each part is four episodes on its own - so a total of 16. Next one doesn't come out in Japan until April or May from what a buddy told me.

The 4 episodes in this first one bounce back and forth between exposition and action; two episodes of each.


----------



## coffeeflush

Finished Shokugeri no Soma, its a really good anime. Really reflects the attitude Japanese have towards their work.


----------



## Alberto7

^ My roommate ruined that anime for me. She overhyped and fangirled it into oblivion for me, to the point that every time she begins talking about it I just leave the room because she gets so annoying.  Shame, because it actually looks really good.


----------



## mrdm53

Alberto7 said:


> ^ My roommate ruined that anime for me. She overhyped and fangirled it into oblivion for me, to the point that every time she begins talking about it I just leave the room because she gets so annoying.  Shame, because it actually looks really good.



Food Porn indeed

We need more anime with Guitar Porn theme.. Too bad that K-on only using Fender and Gibson, 2 brands which i'm hating for it's ridiculous yet over the top price (And their bolt-on, honestly i never like that kind of huge bolt-on construction. I prefer Ibanez's AANJ or Schecter's set neck)


----------



## Don Vito

Death Devil used to throw down on some BC Rich's 






edit: the .... happened to my picture resolution


----------



## Alberto7

I'm just gonna drop this






and this





*insert pic of Ibanez half-stack that appears in same Psycho-Pass episode which I am too lazy to take a screenshot of and can't find on Google*

... seriously speaking, I agree we should get more guitar porn anime!

If you crave some music porn, however, I point you to Hibike! Euphonium. Oh my God, what a beautifully looking and, more importantly, sounding anime. It is the school band version of a sports anime.


----------



## Sofos

^I honestly was about to post the first two. 

I still think there should be a Babymetal anime. It would sell like crazy. 

Anyone remember Hi Hi Puffy Ami Yumi?


----------



## mrdm53

^^ Hey is that from Kunizuka's bandmate arc? I do remember it very well, Ernie Ball on advertising  lol i'm burst in laughter after i saw that greeny 10 gauge of Ernie Ball


----------



## Alberto7

Haha it is! When they literally bribe her out of jail to serve for the government by giving her Ernie Ball strings.  I was jumping in all my fanboyism haha.

Also, yes! I remember the Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi show! Haha that was a blast. It had such a weird concept. I guess it wasn't technically an anime, but it was totally a weeb's show.  Also, real life Ami (Ami Onuki) and Yumi (Yumi Yoshimura) are so hot. 

There's the super rad opening for Hi Hi Puffy AmiYumi:


And they also did the Teen Titans opening


EDIT: LOOOOOOL @ "Guest Guitalist"  I'm dying watching this, jeez. It's soo good.

Haha man, you're really taking me down memory lane here  I hadn't given any thought to these things in so many years.


----------



## Alberto7

Yeah, got around to watching Resurrection of F... agreed that it was pretty boring. Frieza felt as underpowered and as nonthreatening as he did when he showed up in his mecha form in DBZ. That, and the movie just lacked that feeling of tension suspense and anticipation that I felt it wanted to have, but just couldn't. The transformations into SSGSS and into Golden Freeza were absolutely underwhelming; I felt like Spiderman could have won that battle. Training with Whis and Planet Beerus was pretty cool though!

Now that they're starting this arc on DB Super, I feel like Super is doing a much better job at presenting the story. The last episode that came out is infinitely better than the same section of the movie (when Frieza first arrives to Earth). The way he threatens Krillin in Super and how scared he gets is actually pretty f*cked up. This doesn't happen in the movie. And that's just one example.


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

After reading all the endless hype about _One-Punch Man_, I decided to delve into watching it.

......ABSOLUTELY BEST DECISION THAT I HAVE MADE IN A LONG TIME!

Episode 9 that just came out was a major hit in the feels. The animation and particularly the soundtrack were spot on!

Many people online were saying how this uber-clichéd scene in Ep. 9 moved them to tears. Man, I felt it...






^ It really proved how Mumen Rider is the realest hero. He is (as someone on Reddit put it) "the angel that we don't deserve". The very last scene at the ending of Ep. 9 confirms it.

And on a related note, this is how to handle the Internet.


----------



## coffeeflush

Seriously though, an Anime about Guitars would be amazing. 
The members of this site alone would make a huge market imo.


----------



## mrdm53

Show by Rock? I saw some King V with Schecter's headstock lol


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

The idea of getting a custom guitar company to build me a custom One-Punch Man guitar is slowly materializing in my head...


----------



## Don Vito

PSA

Yosh1toshi Abe(Serial Experiments Lain, Haibane Renmei, Welcome to the NHK, ect..) has his own Youtube page. It mostly consists of his pet lizard, drawing, random outdoor movies, and Apple products of course.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXNsoUix1kehZdBGwuM20pw

edit: had to edit his name because SSO was censoring it


----------



## Alberto7

How on EARTH did you even find that?!  That's so random. I'm really liking some of his characters, by the way. He's got some lovely designs. Always good to see more of Mr. ABe. Haibane Renmei is an anime that I hold very dear (I even have a huge fabric poster of Raka being cute with her friends ).

Case in point:


----------



## Don Vito

It's really strange, because mangaka and anime artists are usually very private people. But then you have this guy, who really needs to show you a 30 second video of him turning on a laptop or petting a cat.


----------



## Alberto7

I don't understand what I am currently feeling. I think I need my soul cleansed.



The description reads "... This song is a gift to the world singing of everything Japanese and will be used in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics."


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

The only thing that weirds me out about Ladybaby is that Ladybeard is Australian... 

Alberto, get back on your Kalafina binge mate.


----------



## Static

^Enjoy! Sa, Enjoy!


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


> The only thing that weirds me out about Ladybaby is that Ladybeard is Australian...
> 
> Alberto, get back on your Kalafina binge mate.



Osu, senpai!  It caught me off guard haha Babymetal was weird but fun, but this blew a tiny fuse in my brain somewhere. Kalafina aren't going anywhere anytime soon though, that's for sure.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

Talking of music and anime, you guys so need to watch sakamichi no apollon if you haven't. It's pretty darn good, trust me. You're missing out on something real good.

I'd link the opening song, but it doesn't seem to be available, so just listen to the soundtrack a bit instead:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UKQqR-uOAS4&list=PL392549EA6617ADBD&index=1


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> Osu, senpai!  It caught me off guard haha Babymetal was weird but fun, but this blew a tiny fuse in my brain somewhere. Kalafina aren't going anywhere anytime soon though, that's for sure.



 I started a Ladybaby thread a while back and you can pretty much guess what the consensus was. I like Babymetal, but this is a little too far. Good on the Aussie guy for striking while the iron is still hot though. 

As for your fuse, here's a cure. Keiko's solo ought to fix you up. 



...which reminds me. I saw a snippet of Sword Art Online a while back and was meant to start it. It's the same MMO premise as the .Hack series (though less cynical and dark) and Kajiura does the music as well. Hmm... I need to get back on the anime train bad...


----------



## Alberto7

^ Meh, you're better off watching Madoka Magica or Kara no Kyoukai first,  unless you're really saving best for last.

Also, OMG Keiko.  I'm so gay for her, it's ridiculous. For all of them, really, but especially Keiko. She's an angel. I'll stop now.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> ^ Meh, you're better off watching Madoka Magica or Kara no Kyoukai first,  unless you're really saving best for last.



It must be said, what I saw of SAO didn't give me the DAMN I REALLY HAVE TO WATCH THIS! response. Maybe I'm just getting too old now... 



> Also, OMG Keiko.





> but especially Keiko. She's an angel. I'll stop now.



I'm amazed at you saying this considering Wakana is standing right there.  But yeah, all of Kajiura's vocalists are great. They're all hand picked for a reason. 



Spoiler



But yeah... Keiko is amazing... and hot but that's beside the point, she's amazing.


  

Those are from Kajiura's 2008 concert in Shibuya O East. That was the concert that made me really love Kajiura's works. See Saw and her stuff in .Hack is stellar and I loved it then, but seeing the live performances really makes them all the more special.

I'm also confusing our visitor messages with this thread.


----------



## Don Vito

Sometimes I'll see a figure I want, but can't justify getting it unless I'm a fan of the series. With that said, I started reading Nisekoi for the cuteness that is Onadera. I normally don't like Harem stuff, but this one is pretty funny. I was audibly laughing in the bookstore like a weirdo at one page.

I don't think humor in anime and manga is very clever, it just becomes funny when you realize they're trying to sell off absurd and unrealistic scenarios as serious plot points.


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


> I'm amazed at you saying this considering Wakana is standing right there.  But yeah, all of Kajiura's vocalists are great. They're all hand picked for a reason.
> 
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> But yeah... Keiko is amazing... and hot but that's beside the point, she's amazing.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Those are from Kajiura's 2008 concert in Shibuya O East. That was the concert that made me really love Kajiura's works. See Saw and her stuff in .Hack is stellar and I loved it then, but seeing the live performances really makes them all the more special.



Why must you make my life difficult by making me choose?!  With that said, I am totally and unashamedly factoring Keiko's looks into the equation when I say she's an angel.  So far, it seems to be as though Wakana has the largest range and most control of her voice over that range of the group, but Keiko's low register is hers and hers alone, and has no substitute. Kind of a jack of all trades vs a specialized expert, though maybe I just haven't heard enough of them to know how true that statement is. Most importantly, though, is the fact that they complement each other so well.



> I'm also confusing our visitor messages with this thread.



Meh, it's anime related enough that I don't feel bad about it. 



Don Vito said:


> Sometimes I'll see a figure I want, but can't justify getting it unless I'm a fan of the series. With that said, I started reading Nisekoi for the cuteness that is Onadera. I normally don't like Harem stuff, but this one is pretty funny. I was audibly laughing in the bookstore like a weirdo at one page.
> 
> I don't think humor in anime and manga is very clever, it just becomes funny when you realize they're trying to sell off absurd and unrealistic scenarios as serious plot points.



I could never get myself to buy a figure of an anime that I didn't absolutely love. I see it as a big investment for something that is, ultimately, utterly useless.  I sure drool over other people's gigantic collections though.

I watched the first two episodes of Nisekoi and, while cheesy, I thought it was really funny. I found it really self-conscious too, which added to the hilarity of it. Good humour is, indeed, rare to come by in anime. Most times I just laugh because I get bored of blankly staring at the screen at terrible jokes.


----------



## Don Vito

I've wanted this cutie for over a year, but no matter hard I try, I can't get into Idolmaster. ;_;


----------



## Skyblue

coffeeflush said:


> Seriously though, an Anime about Guitars would be amazing.
> The members of this site alone would make a huge market imo.



Dude. 

BECK: Mongolian Chop Squad.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> Why must you make my life difficult by making me choose?!  With that said, I am totally and unashamedly factoring Keiko's looks into the equation when I say she's an angel.  So far, it seems to be as though Wakana has the largest range and most control of her voice over that range of the group, but Keiko's low register is hers and hers alone, and has no substitute. Kind of a jack of all trades vs a specialized expert, though maybe I just haven't heard enough of them to know how true that statement is. Most importantly, though, is the fact that they complement each other so well.


----------



## mrdm53

Skyblue said:


> Dude.
> 
> BECK: Mongolian Chop Squad.




>Fender
>Gibson

Yeah right.. Anyway, why the heck most of mangaka who doing guitar related manga like K-on, Beck or Shiori's Experience always using either Fender or Gibson? 

Why not Ibanez, ESP or Fujigen? We need more ERG


----------



## Fat-Elf

Skyblue said:


> Dude.
> 
> BECK: Mongolian Chop Squad.




The problem with BECK is that it starts kinda slow but literally stops too short (the studio had some budget problems or something so they never could even finish the season). Still worth watching for the lack of music related animes.


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


>







mrdm53 said:


> >Fender
> >Gibson
> 
> Yeah right.. Anyway, why the heck most of mangaka who doing guitar related manga like K-on, Beck or Shiori's Experience always using either Fender or Gibson?
> 
> Why not Ibanez, ESP or Fujigen? We need more ERG



From what I hear, Fender and Gibson are much more popular in Japan than Ibanez, ESP, or any of the other Japanese brands, much more than in the West. It would be great to see something a little bit more guitar-oriented!


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

mrdm53 said:


> >Fender
> >Gibson
> 
> Yeah right.. Anyway, why the heck most of mangaka who doing guitar related manga like K-on, Beck or Shiori's Experience always using either Fender or Gibson?
> 
> Why not Ibanez, ESP or Fujigen? We need more ERG



Easy answer. The majority of the Japanese Guitar market consists of players who love vintage instruments from Fender and Gibson. They love their American instruments actually. It's easily evident from all the lawsuit copies that been going on since the 70s or even prior. Fujigen/Ibanez and ESP did start doing exactly that.  Hell, ESP have vintage copies in all their subsidaries (Edwards, Navigator) to this day. And even some of the newer brands and luthiers in Japan (T's, Providence, Sugi etc), while churning some new and original designs, they're pretty much modern takes of the classic strats/teles/les pauls/335s of yore. 

Ibanez is also interesting, as outside their J-Custom line, their guitars aren't all too regarded. Hell, some of them would go so far as considering MIJ RGs as junk. 

The visual kei guitars can be thrown into argument I guess, but believe it or not, that's still a minor perentage to the vintage/American made market. Most of ESP (and to some extent Fernandes) wacky shapes are usually requested by the artist to build touring instruments, also adding the visual importance of the instrument. It's also more of a showcase of craftsmanship for the luthier... now _THAT_ would make a more feasable anime premise actually.  These signatures are targeted towards visual kei fans, and as guitar forums outside Japan has proven time and again, these are gaudy to the rest of the world, hence why they don't sell all too well in a large perspective. 

The ERG bug has only recently hit Japan, and just like everywhere else in the world, the ERG market is pretty tiny in comparison to the Fender/Gibson Juggernauts.


----------



## mrdm53

.......

I'm sorry, it's just my rants since i really hate Gibson and Fender (no hate for PRS or Charvel thought lol)

Even DMC's are using SG....


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

If it's any consolation, if you look closely through the live action Beck film, there's an RG7321 that briefly pops up.


----------



## Skyblue

Throughout BECK I remember seeing the following: 
Fender Telecaster 
Gibson Les Paul 
Gretsch White Falcon
Fender Jaguar/Mustang 
Musicman bass of some sort 

There might even be more, but that's what I recall. So yeah, no Ibanez, but it's slightly more than your usual Fender/Gibson~


----------



## mrdm53

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_2-CH1mhaE4

not really an anime but, hell that cool Gus G's look-a-like red guitar is rarity!


----------



## Alberto7

That actually really f*ckin' rocked! o.o  Doki doki doki


----------



## mrdm53

Good thing is, Absolutely NO Fender or Gibson, fully endorsed by ESP Japan!

https://www.facebook.com/ESPGuitarsJAPAN/?fref=ts


----------



## Don Vito

Okay I haven't made a Dragon Ball spam post in a while, so here are the new enemies in DB Super. They're kind of bad lol. Bald purple Cell, androgynous saiyan, Frieza re-paste, fat bear, and what appears to be a minor enemy from an 80's Megaman game.


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Don Vito said:


> Okay I haven't made a Dragon Ball spam post in a while, so here are the new enemies in DB Super. They're kind of bad lol. Bald purple Cell, androgynous saiyan, Frieza re-paste, fat bear, and what appears to be a minor enemy from an 80's Megaman game.


Well...it's getting stupid now...

The Frost Demon (member of Frieza's clan) in the middle on the bottom kind of reminds me of Chilled a bit (minus Chilled's bright orange colors). Maybe it's just the skin color.


----------



## Don Vito

It seems like a minor thing to nitpick about.. I mean, maybe they'll do something great with this. But Toriyama's associated characters are kind of famous for their unique designs. I don't know if he directly drew these characters or not, but you think he would at least have some oversight


----------



## Alberto7

I just finished One Punch Man... I do not lie or exaggerate when I say that it is one of the funnest things I have ever watched. I was watching it together with my sister, and that fight on the last episode had us both literally yelling at our TV, no joke (and she's the artist, go figure). It is also one of the funniest anime I've watched. Sure, it could have had more plot, or more twists, or whatever, but then it wouldn't be One Punch Man. So, for being what it is, having a strong personality, and sticking to its guns, I can't help but give it a 10/10 for now.


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Alberto7 said:


> I just finished One Punch Man... I do not lie or exaggerate when I say that it is one of the funnest things I have ever watched. I was watching it together with my sister, and that fight on the last episode had us both literally yelling at our TV, no joke (and she's the artist, go figure). It is also one of the funniest anime I've watched. Sure, it could have had more plot, or more twists, or whatever, but then it wouldn't be One Punch Man. So, for being what it is, having a strong personality, and sticking to its guns, I can't help but give it a 10/10 for now.


I've turned so many people on to this show lately. Haha.

It's just so well done on all levels. The characters, the humorous story, the incredible animation that still is receiving praise from animators across the globe and all over the Internet. Plus, the music in the series is great. I'm working on doing a few covers of some of the themes and musical excerpts from the show.

That fight between Saitama and Boros is one of the best fights in the history of anime. 

Now we wait for however long it takes until the Season 2 anime is completed. Could be 6-9 months. Could be 1-2 years. (I even saw online conjecture of 2-4 years.)


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

After seeing it receive a lot of praise on these "top lists" on different sites all over the Internet, I'm starting _Attack on Titan_ now. So awesome! Brutal, apocalyptic vibes.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> I just finished One Punch Man... I do not lie or exaggerate when I say that it is one of the funnest things I have ever watched. I was watching it together with my sister, and that fight on the last episode had us both literally yelling at our TV, no joke (and she's the artist, go figure). It is also one of the funniest anime I've watched. Sure, it could have had more plot, or more twists, or whatever, but then it wouldn't be One Punch Man. So, for being what it is, having a strong personality, and sticking to its guns, I can't help but give it a 10/10 for now.



I promised myself to watch this over the next few weeks. My sister's been raving about it. Thankfully it's not all too long so I can digest this quickly. 

That and my friend wants to collaborate on an English cover of the OP.


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Bloody_Inferno said:


> I promised myself to watch this over the next few weeks. My sister's been raving about it. Thankfully it's not all too long so I can digest this quickly.
> 
> That and my friend wants to collaborate on an English cover of the OP.




I actually just uploaded a cover of the opening theme a few days ago. (Excuse the quality.)


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


> I promised myself to watch this over the next few weeks. My sister's been raving about it. Thankfully it's not all too long so I can digest this quickly.
> 
> That and my friend wants to collaborate on an English cover of the OP.



DO IT DO IT DO IT. I'd loooove to see that cover haha.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> DO IT DO IT DO IT. I'd loooove to see that cover haha.



I'm actually game to do it.  I just wish I wasn't so damn busy. Only just finished my first solo outing, and within 2 weeks, I'm hitting the studio again with my prog band. But we'll see. And I expect my friend to no less, nail that long scream at the end. No ifs, no buts. 

I am toying with a few anime related covers in the future. All guitar based. Naturally as of late Yuki Kajiura/Kalafina are up on the list, but since everybody does Magia, I may settle for &#31354;&#33394;&#12398;&#26885;&#23376;/Sorairo no Isu instead...

Or maybe this. 



Since I've been hanging around studios lately, I probably should sneak in a recording or so... 



Emperor Guillotine said:


> I actually just uploaded a cover of the opening theme a few days ago. (Excuse the quality.)




Very cool. Good job man!


----------



## Don Vito

Emperor Guillotine said:


> After seeing it receive a lot of praise on these "top lists" on different sites all over the Internet, I'm starting _Attack on Titan_ now. So awesome! Brutal, apocalyptic vibes.


You picked the perfect time to get into it because season 2 is supposed to be released in 2016. People who watched it back in 2013 have been waiting what seems like forever.

I almost gave up on AoT after sitting through some boring arcs in the manga, but it's picked up and gotten good again recently, so I'm stoked.

Also, ran into some guy named Don on Dragon Ball. I should challenge him to a fight to determine who the real Don is.


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Don Vito said:


> You picked the perfect time to get into it because season 2 is supposed to be released in 2016. People who watched it back in 2013 have been waiting what seems like forever.


I KNOW RIGHT?!?! A buddy just told me about that last night when I told him that I was binge-watching the series and he was like: "Dude, Season 2 is supposed to come out early 2016." 

I was like: "WHAAAATTT?!?"


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Finished _Attack on Titan_ Season 1.

Season 2 can't come fast enough!


----------



## Don Vito

haha, I saw your post in the "why are you happy thread". I would love to have that same feeling of seeing Attack on Titan for the first time.


----------



## wakjob

Just finished One Punch Man episodes 7-12 tonight.

Can't wait for season 2.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

What are the best series on Netflix right now?


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Don Vito said:


> haha, I saw your post in the "why are you happy thread". I would love to have that same feeling of seeing Attack on Titan for the first time.


Awh man... There are a lot of films/shows/series that I wish I could have that "first time experience" feeling again. _Attack on Titan_ is definitely one of them. The soundtrack though was something extremely notable and crucial in my experience. Like I said in the other thread, something hasn't left me feeling this inspired in a long time.

This particular heart-wrenching track (it wasn't given a name - just a production code consisting of what I'm assuming are the instruments and the date of production) really hit right in the feels. Track 5 off OST 2.



^ This track is actually two different themes combined. The first theme is the from the scene where Eren emerges from the Titan and Mikasa embraces him amidst the shock. The second theme is the "Marco" theme that you hear repeated a few times throughout the series. (I'll attach each below for reference.)





It's really quite something how far anime soundtracks have come. From the cheesy, synthy J-Pop stuff of the 80s and 90s to full-out epic orchestral masterpieces. Joe Hisashi's work and Hiroyuki Sawano's work are just endless inspiration and some of my favorite pieces of music to listen to.



Grand Moff Tim said:


> What are the best series on Netflix right now?



Best Netflix Anime List | Top New Anime Shows on Netflix


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Got three and a half weeks of vacation coming up and nothing else to do with myself, so I think I'll be watching a ton of anime .

This past week I've been watching Sword Art Online. It's... okay. It has its moments, but definitely has its flaws. I'm enjoying it, but I hope I can find better stuff without having to torrent anything.


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Grand Moff Tim said:


> Got three and a half weeks of vacation coming up and nothing else to do with myself, so I think I'll be watching a ton of anime .
> 
> This past week I've been watching Sword Art Online. It's... okay. It has its moments, but definitely has its flaws. I'm enjoying it, but I hope I can find better stuff without having to torrent anything.


Had a friend today recommend _Sword Art Online_ to me. 

It has one of the greatest anime fight scenes of all time. But other than that, I'm not sure if it is something that I personally would dig. It still has very high ratings as being a notably excellent anime.

I just started _Another_ today. It's short with only 12 episodes. I hope it'll be entertaining.


----------



## Sofos

Hey everyone, I've got a question. I was using Funimation and noticed that everything they have is hosted on Hulu. Why subscribe to Funimation if everything is already in a Hulu subscription? Is there something I'm missing?

Also, must be dubbed for me. Subs give me bad migraines.


----------



## Alberto7

Actually, you can watch a ton of Funimation shows for free on their YouTube channel. However, they're usually in 480p (I think, though they might have 720p as well, I don't remember), and are subbed for the most part. If you subscribe to their services, you'll be able to watch everything in HD, dubbed (whenever the dub becomes available), and you can watch new shows the very moment a new episode is released, whereas their free service means you have to wait a week after the release of the episode to see it.

They pull some stupid sh*t sometimes though, where they'll have one season of a show for free on YT, and the other season you can only watch on Netflix, or some other streaming service. They did that with Spice and Wolf, where season 1 was free (subbed), and season 2 was only available on Netflix (and Netflix didn't even have season 1 in the extremely odd case that you wanted to start, you know, from the beginning). They've since pulled Spice and Wolf from Netflix, but are currently doing the exact same thing with Mushishi.


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

I've been watching stuff on Crunchyroll lately. They have everything that I could want to watch and more. And the best part, it's free - or you can get a membership. Majority of their anime is all subbed though with a small select of dubbed stuff. For dubbed stuff, you would have to browse around some sites such as The Anime Network or WatchDubbed.

On Crunchyroll, you can select from standard definition, 480, 720, or 1080. (The higher options require a membership, but the standard and 480 seem just fine and crystal clear as far as anime goes regardless though.)

I have the Crunchyroll app on my tablet, and it is great for watching stuff while I'm on the go. However, you have to put up with the annoying ads that they have placed in the breaks anime (like commercials when you're watching a TV show). The ads will be removed if you get a membership. However, if you watch on the Crunchyroll website from a computer though, there are no ads. It just skips them. (You can't watch from the browser on a tablet sadly. It prompts you to download the app.)


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Emperor Guillotine said:


> it wasn't given a name - just a production code consisting of what I'm assuming are the instruments and the date of production)



That's pretty much Hiroyuki Sawano's schtick. Almost all his song titles are in code, some with cryptic meaning, while others don't make any sense (namely the Kill La Kill soundtrack among others). Sawano himself states that there really isn't any deep meaning to any of the titles, and says "don't think too hard about it." He's certainly having a good laugh about the whole thing too.

He also tends to insist that all his inset songs are sung in English and German instead of Japanese, simply because he perfers the sound of the language. 

Of all the newcomer anime composers, Hiroyuki Sawano is definitely the MVP of the new bunch. After hearing his music in Sengoku Basara X, I knew he's off to something special. 

Hell, his soundtrack to Xenoblade Chronicles X is basically my album of 2015.


----------



## JEngelking

I watch everything on Kissanime, with Animefreak as my backup.

Also, finished the last three episodes of One Punch Man the other day. Gave it a 10/10, I really saw no reason not to, as my only issue was that the last episode seemed to wrap up a little quickly after the final fight was over. Still though, great show and extremely entertaining.


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Bloody_Inferno said:


> That's pretty much Hiroyuki Sawano's schtick. Almost all his song titles are in code, some with cryptic meaning, while others don't make any sense (namely the Kill La Kill soundtrack among others). Sawano himself states that there really isn't any deep meaning to any of the titles, and says "don't think too hard about it." He's certainly having a good laugh about the whole thing too.
> 
> He also tends to insist that all his inset songs are sung in English and German instead of Japanese, simply because he perfers the sound of the language.
> 
> Of all the newcomer anime composers, Hiroyuki Sawano is definitely the MVP of the new bunch. After hearing his music in Sengoku Basara X, I knew he's off to something special.
> 
> Hell, his soundtrack to Xenoblade Chronicles X is basically my album of 2015.


Is he really that much of a newcomer? I mean, it is 2016, so he has been doing this for about a decade now.

I don't play video games, but I'll have to check out the Xenoblade Chronicles X soundtrack now. I'll also probably be moving on to watch _Guilty Crown_ or _Kill La Kill_ after I finish what I'm watching now, so that I can analyze some more of his soundtrack work.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Emperor Guillotine said:


> Is he really that much of a newcomer? I mean, it is 2016, so he has been doing this for about a decade now.
> 
> I don't play video games, but I'll have to check out the Xenoblade Chronicles X soundtrack now. I'll also probably be moving on to watch _Guilty Crown_ or _Kill La Kill_ after I finish what I'm watching now, so that I can analyze some more of his soundtrack work.



Technically, yes a decade has passed since Sawano's debut so he's been in the game for a while. A few reasons why I may have dubbed him that:

1: I'm (perhaps unfairly) comparing his body of work to all the other titan composers I've grown up and loved; Joe Hisashi, Kenji Kawai, Yoko Kanno, Yuki Kajura, Naoki Sato, Kow Otani among others, these composers have much larger discographies spanning for more than a decade (in some cases, more than 2), most works being a lot of A-list anime. 

2: I'm out of touch on what's hip with anime these days so excuse that.  But having said that, even some of the new wave of anime have said composers working on them. Sawano was a name I didn't recognise but stuck with me. 

Also, you don't have to play the game to appreciate this (though it helps):


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Just finished watching _Another_. 

Super intense horror/mystery. The pacing of the entire series (like one big movie as opposed to separate individual episodes), the eerie atmosphere, and the gripping, bloody climax all did the original novel justice. 

This anime is really worth a watch. It will keep you guessing. It's short with only twelve episodes and one OVA. Make sure you watch the uncensored version though. Ranker.com currently has it listed as the #1 "Top Horror Anime of All Time" and as the #1 "Best Gore Anime of All Time".

What's next on the anime list?


----------



## stevo1

Hiroyuki Sawano (and xenoblade X)

I started the show Plastic Memories Sunday, and finished it ealier today, and it was pretty much a feels roller coaster, but all around pretty good. 

Started watching a show called punchline a few minutes ago, as I need to watch something not as serious after that


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Started _Death Note_ tonight.

Not at all what I had expected. (I remember seeing the manga all the time as a kid, but I never read it.) Eight episodes in thus far, and I'm loving it!


----------



## Alberto7

stevo1 said:


> I started the show Plastic Memories Sunday, and finished it ealier today, and it was pretty much a feels roller coaster, but all around pretty good.



Aaahhh I remember, I watched the first few episodes of that as it was coming out (3 or 4), and I liked it. It looked like it was gonna be a feels trip and I wasn't ready, so I stopped watching.  It reminded me a bit of One Week Friends (Isshuukan Friends). There was also something I didn't like, from a story-telling point of view, but I don't remember what it was. Good to hear someone saying it's good; I may give it a re-watch.


----------



## OmegaSlayer

Emperor Guillotine said:


> Started _Death Note_ tonight.
> 
> Not at all what I had expected. (I remember seeing the manga all the time as a kid, but I never read it.) Eight episodes in thus far, and I'm loving it!



The manga is sooooo much better


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Holy f*u*cking sh*i*t, I was _not_ prepared for how the second half of Sword Art Online season 2 played out. That was some heavy ass sh*i*t. Like a sledgehammer to the feels. Jesus Christ. 

The first half of the season was really good, especially compared to the second half of season one, so I didn't think they'd be able to top it. Godd_a_mn, though. Was hoping to go to bed after binge-watching some sweet action-packed anime fighting action, not after seeing


Spoiler



a teenage girl die of AIDS.



For f*u*ck's sake, Japan. D*a*mn.

I need something stupid and goofy to watch now


----------



## Sofos

Grand Moff Tim said:


> I need something stupid and goofy to watch now



Devil is a Part Timer? Squid Girl? Yamada's First Time? Ouran HS Host Club?


----------



## Fat-Elf

Grand Moff Tim said:


> I need something stupid and goofy to watch now



If you don't mind raunchy stuff then I can recommend Mangaka-san to Assistant-san to. I just marathoned through the first 9 episodes last night and it was pretty funny. Going to watch rest of it tonight. 

Found it with this list so there's probably some other good stuff on it: 13 Comedy Anime Series for when you want some laughs - Album on Imgur


----------



## awake69

I've been re-watching "Space Battleship Yamato 2199". I loved Star Blazers as a kid and absolutely love how they've modernized it, yet remained true to the original series. They added a few new characters and some little plot lines to keep it fresh and new.

My son and I binged all the One Punch Man episodes over two nights. It's a lot like The Tick in terms of the superhero aspects, which I LOVE. It's incredibly funny and can't wait to see where they go with it. 

Also just ordered the complete "The Devil Is A Part-Timer" which is another funny series.


----------



## awake69

Oh...and my son recommended Hitman Reborn to me.


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Spent all day yesterday producing my first orchestral arrangement, and uploaded it last night. It's just a little something from one of the anime series that I watched recently. Being the first orchestral arrangement that I've ever done, it's nothing too great, but I figured I would at least share it.

I'm attaching a Soundcloud link - since the embedded Soundcloud player no longer works here on the forum, as well as a Google Drive link with slightly better quality - since Soundcloud terribly compresses everything and annihilates certain frequencies.

Soundcloud Link 1

Google Drive Link 1

I also did a version with the solo violin playing the vocal melody removed. The idea behind this was to make a version for vocalists who would like to sing over my arrangement.

Soundcloud Link 2

Google Drive Link 2


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Sounds good man!


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Went with One Punch Man to get me out of the funk the ending of SAO2 left me in .

Funny, but a bit short. There needs to be more soon.


----------



## Tech Wrath

If you haven't yet, go watch the 1st episode boku dake ga inai machi (think that's how you spell it, just search boku dake episode 1) the first episode came out Friday/Saturday and is looking to be an amazing supernatural/mystery/ridiculously intense anime lol. I would tell you about it but anything I say would spoil it.


----------



## OmegaSlayer

awake69 said:


> Oh...and my son recommended Hitman Reborn to me.



I really enjoyed the manga of Reborn, very nice and enjoyable, but never watched a single episode of the anime.


----------



## stevo1

Alberto7 said:


> Aaahhh I remember, I watched the first few episodes of that as it was coming out (3 or 4), and I liked it. It looked like it was gonna be a feels trip and I wasn't ready, so I stopped watching.  It reminded me a bit of One Week Friends (Isshuukan Friends). There was also something I didn't like, from a story-telling point of view, but I don't remember what it was. Good to hear someone saying it's good; I may give it a re-watch.



It starts getting pretty real around episode 6 or 7, and really starts hitting on the last three episodes. One thing about the story telling of it is it's relatively predictable, but the show plays well on that aspect, making what you know is coming a bit more heavy when it does.


----------



## asher

Just watched _Puella Magi Madoka Magica the Movie: Beginnings._

That was *mind bendingly good*. And utterly gorgeous. Jesus.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Watch the show!! The movies are good, but I think the show does a better job of portraying all the ideas, and it's not that much longer than the two movies put together. That, and I like the music better in the show (for example, the song Magia sounds A LOT better when the voices are added during Mami's first fight. The voices are omitted in the movie). Granted, the movies do look a bit more polished animation and art-wise.


----------



## asher

Alberto7 said:


> ^ Watch the show!! The movies are good, but I think the show does a better job of portraying all the ideas, and it's not that much longer than the two movies put together. That, and I like the music better in the show. Granted, the movies do look a bit more polished animation and art-wise.



There's a third movie, which I understand from my friend (he and I and a third all watched it synced up) is a proper sequel. I/we may go back and watch the show after.


----------



## Alberto7

asher said:


> There's a third movie, which I understand from my friend (he and I and a third all watched it synced up) is a proper sequel. I/we may go back and watch the show after.



Sounds like a good plan. And yeap, you'll either love it or hate it. In my case, I friggin' loved it. I went to watch it at the cinema, and I remember everybody arguing after the movie, something I've never seen immediately after walking out of a movie.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

asher said:


> Just watched _Puella Magi Madoka Magica the Movie: Beginnings._
> 
> That was *mind bendingly good*. And utterly gorgeous. Jesus.



You've beaten me at least.


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


> You've beaten me at least.



*gotmyeyesonyou.gif*


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> *gotmyeyesonyou.gif*









Yeah, that gif again.


----------



## Don Vito

asher said:


> There's a third movie, which I understand from my friend (he and I and a third all watched it synced up) is a proper sequel. I/we may go back and watch the show after.


Make sure to watch the Disney dub.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Oh God, the memories.


----------



## Don Vito

Speaking of memories, I just had a serious goosebump nostalgia trip. I never thought I had seen Rurouni Kenshin, but I pulled up episode 1 on netflix and realized that I watched this show all the time when I was a kid. (I remember us talking about waaaaaayyy back in the thread)


----------



## Alberto7

Holy crap dude, I didn't know it was on Netflix! They only have one season though. Still, sounds like it's about time for a re-watch  I'm totally down. It's that kind of comedic and brooding mix that I've been looking for recently. Maybe this time around I'll even watch it in English, dubbed. (My first time as a kid was in Mexican Spanish, second time Castilian Spanish, and from then on in Japanese)

But yeah, that anime has one of my favorite soundtracks in anime (yeah I know, I have a lot of favorites, but RK has a special place in my heart), and the manga is one of my favorite stories I've ever heard. It's so great haha I'm not surprised to hear you used to watch it as a kid. Everybody used to watch that sh!t, and somehow only a fraction of those people remember it. 

EDIT: Funny remark: I love how Netflix keeps trying to categorize anime using standard Western categories (drama, comedy, fantasy, sci-fi, etc.), and they keep jumbling them up, and they keep getting them wrong.  Like how Kill la Kill and Genius Party are categorized as sci-fi, or how Fate/Zero is not on the anime drama list.


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

It's finally over. Just finished _Death Note_. Deep, completely addicting, and keeps you on the edge of your seat guessing. But it got a little lame after Episode 25, and the finale was less climactic than I had hoped. (For those who have read the manga, was the ending any different?) Phenomenal series that deserves to be watched again at some point when I'm in the mood for a crime/drama series.

So, what's next? _Sword Art Online_, _Puella Magi Madoka Magica_, _Kill La Kill_, _Guilty Crown_, _Hellsing_ (and _Hellsing Ultimate_), _Elfen Lied_, _Cowboy Bebop_, _Fullmetal Alchemist_, _Boogiepop Phantom_, and _Charlotte_ are all currently on the list to watch at some point.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Your lack of Fate/Zero disturbs me. Other than that, good list!

EDIT: and Steins;Gate. One must NEVER forget Steins;Gate.


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Alberto7 said:


> ^ Your lack of Fate/Zero disturbs me. Other than that, good list!
> 
> EDIT: and Steins;Gate. One must NEVER forget Steins;Gate.


I'll do some looking into _Fate/Zero_. Not sure if I have heard of it up until now.

I'll be starting _Steins;Gate_ at some point too. That one has come up a few times now, and I was going to ask a friend about it.


----------



## Tech Wrath

Alberto7 said:


> ^ Your lack of Fate/Zero disturbs me. Other than that, good list!
> 
> EDIT: and Steins;Gate. One must NEVER forget Steins;Gate.



Sometime later this year they're coming with Steins;Gate0 which will have an alternate ending and crap. Don't know whether to be excited or scared because the original was ....ing aweome


----------



## Alberto7

Steins;Gate is getting another adaptation?! Wow... I just read up on S;G 0. It's apparently "marketed as a sequel" but turns out to actually be a "midquel." I'm kind of looking forward to it but, the thing is... there are many different visual novels which branch off into parallel timelines or whatever, and it's kind of overwhelming for me to be up to date with it. To me, the S;G anime was nicely self-contained and so perfect on every level, that I honestly don't know if I'd ever change anything about it, or add anything to it. Maybe it'll blow my friggin' mind if I ever go deeper into it, but, as it stands, colour me cautious. Not trying to get my expectations too high.



Emperor Guillotine said:


> I'll do some looking into _Fate/Zero_. Not sure if I have heard of it up until now.
> 
> I'll be starting _Steins;Gate_ at some point too. That one has come up a few times now, and I was going to ask a friend about it.



F/Z is probably one of the darkest and most brooding anime that I've seen, yet it manages to be really colorful by being set in a heavily fantastical setting, which, at the same time, is rooted in reality (some of the characters are actual historical and/or literary figures, and they use their original legends). Then again, I might be biased; if you've been following the thread for a while, then you know that my one anime obsession is the entire Fate franchise.  If not, I think other members can attest to it for me haha.


----------



## asher

Emperor Guillotine said:


> It's finally over. Just finished _Death Note_. Deep, completely addicting, and keeps you on the edge of your seat guessing. But it got a little lame after Episode 25, and the finale was less climactic than I had hoped. (For those who have read the manga, was the ending any different?) Phenomenal series that deserves to be watched again at some point when I'm in the mood for a crime/drama series.
> 
> So, what's next? _Sword Art Online_, _Puella Magi Madoka Magica_, _Kill La Kill_, _Guilty Crown_, _Hellsing_ (and _Hellsing Ultimate_), _Elfen Lied_, _Cowboy Bebop_, _Fullmetal Alchemist_, _Boogiepop Phantom_, and _Charlotte_ are all currently on the list to watch at some point.



bebopbebopbebopbebopbebopbebopbebopbebopbebopbebopbebopbebopbebopbebop

I've seen the first couple episodes of S;G, and I was seriously nonplussed  maybe it was about to get interesting the next one.

(also, yes, Death Note is fantastic. the soundtrack is also seriously underrated)


----------



## habicore_5150

I started to talk to one of my friends that i haven't talked to in a while, and he somehow convinced me to watch the first episode of One Punch Man, and I'm sitting here jaw on the floor...


----------



## Alberto7

^ You have a good friend. One Punch Man is some serious over the top sh!t, in the best way possible. 



asher said:


> I've seen the first couple episodes of S;G, and I was seriously nonplussed  maybe it was about to get interesting the next one.



The first 12 or so episodes are pretty entertaining, and it gets increasingly interesting. However, it isn't until around episode 13 that sh!t REALLY, and unexpectedly, hits the fan. After that, it just doesn't know when to stop.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Just finished watching Gunslinger Girl, and seriously, wtf is up with me and finding anime that features the tragic deaths of young girls lately? It's like I need a goofy brain scrub for every other anime I watch.

Oh, uh... spoilers, I guess? Iono, that anime's like 14 years old now. Surely there's a limit.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Grand Moff Tim said:


> Just finished watching Gunslinger Girl, and seriously, wtf is up with me and finding anime that features the tragic deaths of young girls lately? It's like I need a goofy brain scrub for every other anime I watch.
> 
> Oh, uh... spoilers, I guess? Iono, that anime's like 14 years old now. Surely there's a limit.



Your anime selections makes me think you and my sister will get along well. 

I assume you've already seen Le Portrait de Petit Cossette or Mushishi as well?


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Your anime selections makes me think you and my sister will get along well.
> 
> I assume you've already seen Le Portrait de Petit Cossette or Mushishi as well?



How old, and is she hot?    

And no, I haven't seen either of those. Hell, I haven't even heard of the first one. I'm pretty low-key when it comes to to anime compared to some of you guys, so the list I've seen is likely relatively short.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

She's married with children so hard pass. 
Focus on getting a Korean hottie. 

As for those 2 I mentioned, those are more on the melancholy side of things, so watch those only after the light humour stuff.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Focus on getting a Korean hottie.



I'm gonna look for work in Japan after one more year here, so my sights will be set on ladies a bit further east than Korean ladies. 

Plus then I'll be able to drink my anime straight from the tap...


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

I just logged in to crunchyroll for the first time in years, and the selection looks... well... super sh!tty. Do I have to pay for the premium membership to get access to shows that aren't for teenage girls? I'm fine paying if it'll get me better content, but if all it'll get me is the same shoujou nonsense but in higher definition and closer to the original broadcast date, then I'll pass.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Don Vito said:


> Make sure to watch the Disney dub.




God I miss that one guitar cover of this song by the absinthe drinking jap.


----------



## Tech Wrath

asher said:


> bebopbebopbebopbebopbebopbebopbebopbebopbebopbebopbebopbebopbebopbebop
> 
> I've seen the first couple episodes of S;G, and I was seriously nonplussed  maybe it was about to get interesting the next one.
> 
> (also, yes, Death Note is fantastic. the soundtrack is also seriously underrated)



The beginning is slow and may not be appealing at first but it sets up everything that is going to happen. A lot of people get turned off from it because of this but once they watch the whole thing they are blown away
Don't judge a book by its Cover XP
Rationally speaking it is one of the best 10 anime ever (almost any site will show this lol XD)


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Grand Moff Tim said:


> I just logged in to crunchyroll for the first time in years, and the selection looks... well... super sh!tty. Do I have to pay for the premium membership to get access to shows that aren't for teenage girls? I'm fine paying if it'll get me better content, but if all it'll get me is the same shoujou nonsense but in higher definition and closer to the original broadcast date, then I'll pass.


My answer.


Emperor Guillotine said:


> I've been watching stuff on Crunchyroll lately. They have everything that I could want to watch and more. And the best part, it's free - or you can get a membership. Majority of their anime is all subbed though with a small select of dubbed stuff. For dubbed stuff, you would have to browse around some sites such as The Anime Network or WatchDubbed.
> 
> On Crunchyroll, you can select from standard definition, 480, 720, or 1080. (The higher options require a membership, but the standard and 480 seem just fine and crystal clear as far as anime goes regardless though.)
> 
> I have the Crunchyroll app on my tablet, and it is great for watching stuff while I'm on the go. However, you have to put up with the annoying ads that they have placed in the breaks anime (like commercials when you're watching a TV show). The ads will be removed if you get a membership. However, if you watch on the Crunchyroll website from a computer though, there are no ads. It just skips them. (You can't watch from the browser on a tablet sadly. It prompts you to download the app.)


There actually is a lot on Crunchyroll as long you don't need dubbing. I was watching a few series on a Crunchyroll.


----------



## Sofos

Emperor Guillotine said:


> My answer.
> 
> There actually is a lot on Crunchyroll as long you don't need dubbing. I was watching a few series on a Crunchyroll.



That's my big problem: I generally need dubbing. reading subs gives me migraines, and i have a hard time paying attention to the show when i'm stuck looking at the bottom 10% of the screen 90% of the time


----------



## Don Vito

Fat-Elf said:


> God I miss that one guitar cover of this song by the absinthe drinking jap.


Damn son, I forgot all about that. Now I'm sad


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Emperor Guillotine said:


> My answer.




I'm not sure that really answered my question. So is the content the same when you pay for the premium service? Because seriously, I went over the free content, and there was next to nothing that looked intriguing at all. Are you finding better stuff because you've paid for premium, or am I just not on your level of anime appreciation and unable to see the appeal of all the stuff the free version has?

If the only thing I'll get out of paying for premium is higher def and the ability to watch on a tablet without ads, I don't see much point. I'm already paying for Netflix every month, and even that has a more interesting selection than free Crunchyroll seems to, especially since I can just set my VPN to a Japanese server and access all the stuff on Japanese Netflix now.


----------



## Alberto7

Grand Moff Tim said:


> *Japanese Netflix*



Even though it's not an anime (though it might as well be), and even though you don't need to access Japanese Netflix to access it, you reminded me of this 13-episode Japanese TV show I found on Netflix at the beginning of December called Atelier. I really liked it, but it's friggin' weird, so be advised.  To put that into perspective, the show's name in Japanese is "Underwear."  It's a sort of coming-of-age story about a recent "fabric school" graduate (i.e. a chick who nerdgasms over touching a shapeless piece of fabric) who finds a job at a high-class lingerie workshop in Tokyo and learns to find her own way within the backstabbing chaos that they portray the Japanese lingerie industry to be. Surprisingly enough, they manage to make it very clear (save for a few moments in the first episode) that the show is not at all about girls in lacey underwear (which they do joke about once or twice) but rather about the creative process of making something and maintaining a business that deals exclusively with custom-ordered products amidst an ocean of companies that manufacture mass-produced and affordable-yet-high-quality versions of the same product. I loved how they managed to put me in the mind of the artist/designer and how it gets decently technical about the design and manufacturing process. (For a TV show anyway.) Interpersonal relations are really cool and interesting, and the whole thing just builds up nicely. All this while keeping it distinctly "J-Pop" and weird as sh!t, bordering on melodrama at points (and by that I mean it comes across as unnecessarily dramatic at points, but alas, Japan). Production values through the roof. Think of it like the best soap opera you'll ever watch.

Really, the only difference between an anime and this show, is the fact that it's not drawn. It's a live-action sports anime that deals with designing, making, and selling lingerie instead of playing sports.  Everything else is exactly the same, and I totally think it belongs in at least _some_ anime section.  Probably something like sports shonen. Or shojo.

Somehow I felt the need to post that. 

EDIT: this, my 4000th post on this forum, is about a Japanese show called Underwear.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Alberto7 said:


> Even though it's not an anime (though it might as well be), and even though you don't need to access Japanese Netflix to access it, you reminded me of this 13-episode Japanese TV show I found on Netflix at the beginning of December called Atelier.



Watched it all last week, dude. It was ridiculous and I don't know why I couldn't stop watching it, but I watched the whole thing. 

EDIT: Don't know if you've watched any Korean dramas, but they're apparently pretty popular in Japan, and the influence was pretty obvious in Atelier.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Omg, I can't believe someone actually watched it.  I was raving so hard about it to all my friends while I was watching it.

My sister keeps trying to put me off of Korean dramas, and keeps telling me they're bad, for no particular reason. Her girlfriend (who is Korean) tells me the same, and also doesn't tell me why... but that just makes me even more curious, especially if Atelier is anything like them. Any suggestions?

(Sorry for the off-topic)


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Alberto7 said:


> ^ Omg, I can't believe someone actually watched it.  I was raving so hard about it to all my friends while I was watching it.
> 
> My sister keeps trying to put me off of Korean dramas, and keeps telling me they're bad, for no particular reason. Her girlfriend (who is Korean) tells me the same, and also doesn't tell me why... but that just makes me even more curious, especially if Atelier is anything like them. Any suggestions?
> 
> (Sorry for the off-topic)




Korean dramas _are_ pretty bad, generally speaking. 

If you're dead set on watching some, I can give two to start with. 

The first one was super popular, and probably one of the ones that had a big influence on other Asian markets. It's called _Boys Over Flowers_, and I don't know about now, but it at least used to be on Netflix. It's pretty representative of all the K-Drama tropes: Person from poor family somehow ends up in rich society, rich people disapprove, obstacles are overcome, crotchety old rich woman sees the error of her ways. Once you've seen this, you'll have pretty much seen 90% of K-dramas .

The other one is called _City Hunter_, which also at least used to be on Netflix, and might still be. It's more action-oriented, though it's still got some of the typical themes, and even stars one of the actors from _Boys Over Flowers._ It's a fair bit more entertaining, IMO, since it's got a revenge & espionage thing going on. Added bonus: Koreans can't pronounce the "si-" sound without turning it into an "shi-" sound, so you'll get a nice giggle every time someone mentions the "Sh!tty Hunta."

Iono. I don't really recommend getting in to K-dramas, but that could just be because I live here, so any cultural novelty watching one might have to a foreigner doesn't really have any impact on me anymore. If anything, watching Korean TV nowadays just makes me groan and roll my eyes every ten seconds . Your experience may vary.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Because of a lot of my relatives swear by their love K-Drama, especially the soapy stuff, I refuse to watch any form it. 

That said, both your recommendations just happen to be adaptations of Japanese manga, so I guess there's some appeal to those in this thread...

With Boys Over Flowers, I'm familiar with the J-Drama version Hana Yori Dango, but after seeing 1 episode, I wasn't too keen on finishing it off. I ended up forgetting about it aside from the Ai Otsuka and Utada Hikaru songs in it. My younger friends love it fondly though, but not for me. 

City Hunter is a more obscure one as the source material is older, from the 80s. I'm assuming it's more modernised in it's K-Drama form, thus I'm also assuming it's already better than Wong Jing HK attempt starring Jackie Chan. And judging from this clip:



...that's not saying much at all.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Well that'd certainly explain why they're more tolerable than other K-Dramas I've subjected myself to.


----------



## Don Vito

I watched a J-Drama once. It was awful on many levels, BUT I COULDN'T STOP WATCHING. It sucked me in until the end. I don't remember the name but it was about this middle aged woman who was an undercover spy trying to stop bullying in high school. It was sort of a comedy.


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Just blazed through all four episodes of _Corpse Party: Tortured Souls_ in two sittings.

Man, that was straight f*cked up. This was one of the goriest, most sadistic things that I've ever watched. I mean, out of all of the movies, TV series. etc. that I have watched, this anime (a frickin' anime) was a grueling gorefest. There is one particular, absolutely sadistic scene that makes me kind of wish that I didn't watch this. Yet now at the same time, I'm tempted to see if there is a way that I can play the original games.


----------



## Don Vito

Started "Nana". Funny enough I tried to read the manga a couple years ago and hated it. 

I think it's yuri, but I'm not far enough to tell yet.


----------



## Alberto7

Alright sweet, I'll keep those K-dramas names safe within my list of things to watch when I get bored.  Thanks!

In other news, I'm watching a video series about Japanese animation. It's a panel given by three guys detailing how anime is animated and a bit of the history of it along with short reviews of the work of some important animators (YouTube playlist click here). They showed this clip from the opening of an anime called Black Heaven, and I thought some people here would like it, especially after talk of a lack of anime showcasing non-Gibson/Fender guitars and metal music.



From Wikipedia:

_*"Black Heaven (&#35506;&#38263;&#29579;&#23376; Kach&#333;-&#332;ji?), also referred to as The Legend of Black Heaven and Kacho-&#332;ji, is a thirteen-episode anime TV series about the middle-aged members of a short-lived heavy metal band and their unexpected role in an alien interstellar war."*_

Sounds pretty f*ckin' metal to me.  Might check it out at some point.


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Ok, after giving it a bit, I have come to the conclusion that _Corpse Party_ was actually a pretty good anime despite it being an excuse for excessive gore and sadism. I might spend today working on covering or arranging some of the music from it.

Next on the list...


----------



## mrdm53

Alberto7 said:


> Alright sweet, I'll keep those K-dramas names safe within my list of things to watch when I get bored.  Thanks!
> 
> In other news, I'm watching a video series about Japanese animation. It's a panel given by three guys detailing how anime is animated and a bit of the history of it along with short reviews of the work of some important animators (YouTube playlist click here). They showed this clip from the opening of an anime called Black Heaven, and I thought some people here would like it, especially after talk of a lack of anime showcasing non-Gibson/Fender guitars and metal music.
> 
> 
> 
> From Wikipedia:
> 
> _*"Black Heaven (&#35506;&#38263;&#29579;&#23376; Kach&#333;-&#332;ji?), also referred to as The Legend of Black Heaven and Kacho-&#332;ji, is a thirteen-episode anime TV series about the middle-aged members of a short-lived heavy metal band and their unexpected role in an alien interstellar war."*_
> 
> Sounds pretty f*ckin' metal to me.  Might check it out at some point.




Gibson

meh

Well, I might check it out sooner. John Sykes's intro was cool


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Le Portrait de Petit Cossette





Grand Moff Tim said:


> I haven't even heard of the first one.



So it's 5am here and I can't sleep so for those interested...

A 3 episode OVA, Le Portrait de Petit Cossette is a dark and dramatic love story with supernatural horror themes. It nails the gothic lolita theme down pat and despite a plot you can see coming a mile a way, it's still an engrossing experience. From the visual imagery to Yuki Kajiura's exquisite score... it's quite depressing actually. 

The theme song itself is haunting.



And for Alberto, here's Keiko's version live.


----------



## Don Vito

mrdm53 said:


> Gibson
> 
> meh
> 
> Well, I might check it out sooner. John Sykes's intro was cool


No way, Gibson's totally shred!


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

John Sykes should've been enough of an argument honestly.


----------



## Sofos

Just started One Punch Man. I'll follow up soon


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Sofos said:


> Just started One Punch Man. I'll follow up soon


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Hey guys, I'll be working on quite a few covers and arrangements of music from some of the anime series that I've been watching. So make sure to follow me on Soundcloud if you want to stay updated. I just posted two new songs tonight and have more on the way. I'm currently on a streak of putting out a cover or arrangement every day or every few days, and I'm hoping to keep that productive streak going.

Soundcloud


----------



## MetalGravy

Don Vito said:


> Started "Nana". Funny enough I tried to read the manga a couple years ago and hated it.
> 
> I think it's yuri, but I'm not far enough to tell yet.



It isn't, but the anime is quite good.



Bloody_Inferno said:


> Because of a lot of my relatives swear by their love K-Drama, especially the soapy stuff, I refuse to watch any form it.
> 
> That said, both your recommendations just happen to be adaptations of Japanese manga, so I guess there's some appeal to those in this thread...
> 
> With Boys Over Flowers, I'm familiar with the J-Drama version Hana Yori Dango, but after seeing 1 episode, I wasn't too keen on finishing it off. I ended up forgetting about it aside from the Ai Otsuka and Utada Hikaru songs in it. My younger friends love it fondly though, but not for me.
> 
> City Hunter is a more obscure one as the source material is older, from the 80s. I'm assuming it's more modernised in it's K-Drama form, thus I'm also assuming it's already better than Wong Jing HK attempt starring Jackie Chan. And judging from this clip:
> 
> 
> 
> ...that's not saying much at all.





That scene was amazing and you ....ing know it. I remember the movie being enjoyable, but haven't watched it in a while.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

MetalGravy said:


> That scene was amazing and you ....ing know it. I remember the movie being enjoyable, but haven't watched it in a while.



 It was amazing when I saw it in the 90s.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Watching _Durarara!!!_ now. I remember watching a few episodes on Adult Swim back in the day and thinking it had some potential, but the dub was kind of annoying and if I stopped paying attention for ten minutes I'd have no idea what was going on. Now that I'm watching it subbed and actually paying attention, it's much more entertaining.

I'm also watching the second season of _Gunslinger Girls_ off and on. I'd be watching it more consistently, but the art style and some of the voice acting changed between seasons 1 and 2, and the changes aren't sitting too well with me. I'm curious how it all ends, but it takes a concerted effort to sit through too much in one viewing, due to the changes. It's not bad or anything, but the art and voice acting were some of the best parts of season 1.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

Grand Moff Tim said:


> I'm also watching the second season of _Gunslinger Girls_ off and on. I'd be watching it more consistently, but the art style and some of the voice acting changed between seasons 1 and 2, and the changes aren't sitting too well with me. I'm curious how it all ends, but it takes a concerted effort to sit through too much in one viewing, due to the changes. It's not bad or anything, but the art and voice acting were some of the best parts of season 1.



Agreed, I dropped the second season during the first episode, I honestly couldn't stand the quality being so off compared to the first season (which wasn't super awesome quality either).

I had really liked the first season though, the subject matter was cleverly ....ed up and they even handled it somewhat mature from what I recall.



I haven't watched much anything lately though, but I did read the whole Lone Wolf & Cub, which is apparently an old legendary manga. And yeah, I can see it has been influential, but I still don't get the bushi. At least the art was rather pretty. 7/10, but it had strong educational value (avg. on mal is 8.75).

Also read Kimi wa Petto because I heard it was some strong josei.. but it really wasn't that good tbh.. just having adults as the main characters doesn't make it any more mature than the usual shoujo.


A Method To Make The Gentle World was completed, that one was a very enjoyable manga to me. Well played romance stuff? 8/10


And then I started reading Helck, which is rather awesome.

And Magi no Okurimono, which was short and sweet. Neatly written little story, I think I cried too much considering how short it was, but I had the perfect background music for it so I couldn't help it.


----------



## wakjob

Well, for those interested, GATE took a a turn for the "whatever" with the open episode of season 2.

It got very sexual and lost some of its allure for me.

I'll keep watching though. Might let a few episodes build up and binge it some night.


----------



## asher

Watched Eternity last night.


aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa*brainsplode*


----------



## DanicaL

has anyone seen the attack on titan live action movie? I cant imagine it would be any good?


----------



## Alberto7

^ Saw the first one. It is not good. Like, at all. The only redeeming part is the first 40-or-so minutes, where the movie does a decent job at conveying that desperate feeling of terror that the characters experience. Other than that, it's garbage. Still, it might be worth the watch just for the lolz.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Yeah, the Attack On Titan live action is universally acclaimed as not very good. There were arguments due to the all-Japanese cast portraying anglo saxon characters but that's pointless and moot. I mean, as a standalone, it's fine at best, definitely watchable, but not when it's named as a part of a glorified anime/manga franchise, a fact that looms eerily over the film. 

And to be frank, the ratio of good anime to live action adaptations aren't very highly regarded, well majorly at least to the non Japanese anyway. And the biggest issue is almost always due to the nature of the source material itself, especially when major plot points, characters, mcguffins are difficult to adapt to live action, not just by technology, but writing, pacing and the fact that you're trying to fit a massive span into a few hours. As a result, the filmmakers tend to alter the source material to suit. Sometimes it works fine a la Death Note films, others not so much a la Devil Man film. Some shows just damn right have no choice like the Great Teacher Onizuka series... I wanted a german suplex dammit!  But physically speaking, just too difficult. Others like Mushishi worked out all right. 

Attack On Titan makes some ballsy but understandable compromises but loses a lot of the rich character building that the source material had, as well as a weirdly distorted version of the frantic pacing of the original. And to be fair, that's hard to do in limited film time. 

The race issue the film's been criticised about is moot, and I stand by it. Nobody should've flinched when Idris Elba played Heimdall, and Michael B Jordan wasn't bad in Fan4stic because he's black, he's a great actor. He's bad because the movie was so bad it dragged him down with it. Man, even those who refuse to see Fan4stic (me) even knew that was coming. Attack on Titan suffers heavily from the acting, it's like a bad J-Drama... and there's lots of those. 

Honestly, as a schlock B-movie standalone, it's fine, not too bad. But as part the Attack On Titan name, it's cactus. But the second movie I suppose is enough merit to sit through this. 

But if you really want a live action adaptation fix, you're better off watching the Rurouni Kenshin trilogy again. That one is head and shoulders above everything else. That home run needs to happen more often...


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Yeah, the Attack On Titan live action is universally acclaimed as not very good. There were arguments due to the all-Japanese cast portraying anglo saxon characters but that's pointless and moot. I mean, as a standalone, it's fine at best, definitely watchable, but not when it's named as a part of a glorified anime/manga franchise, a fact that looms eerily over the film.
> 
> And to be frank, the ratio of good anime to live action adaptations aren't very highly regarded, well majorly at least to the non Japanese anyway. And the biggest issue is almost always due to the nature of the source material itself, especially when major plot points, characters, mcguffins are difficult to adapt to live action, not just by technology, but writing, pacing and the fact that you're trying to fit a massive span into a few hours. As a result, the filmmakers tend to alter the source material to suit. Sometimes it works fine a la Death Note films, others not so much a la Devil Man film. Some shows just damn right have no choice like the Great Teacher Onizuka series... I wanted a german suplex dammit!  But physically speaking, just too difficult. Others like Mushishi worked out all right.
> 
> Attack On Titan makes some ballsy but understandable compromises but loses a lot of the rich character building that the source material had, as well as a weirdly distorted version of the frantic pacing of the original. And to be fair, that's hard to do in limited film time.
> 
> The race issue the film's been criticised about is moot, and I stand by it. Nobody should've flinched when Idris Elba played Heimdall, and Michael B Jordan wasn't bad in Fan4stic because he's black, he's a great actor. He's bad because the movie was so bad it dragged him down with it. Man, even those who refuse to see Fan4stic (me) even knew that was coming. Attack on Titan suffers heavily from the acting, it's like a bad J-Drama... and there's lots of those.
> 
> Honestly, as a schlock B-movie standalone, it's fine, not too bad. But as part the Attack On Titan name, it's cactus. But the second movie I suppose is enough merit to sit through this.
> 
> But if you really want a live action adaptation fix, you're better off watching the Rurouni Kenshin trilogy again. That one is head and shoulders above everything else. That home run needs to happen more often...



Exactly f*u*cking this. All of it. Every word.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Another good live action adaptation was Basilisk to Shinobi Heart Under Blade. Both are adaptations themselves, based on the old Koga Ninja Scrolls novel ie: the Iga/Koga ninja rivalry of the Edo period. 

I don't have to say how good the Basilisk anime is, but if you haven't seen it... go on. I'll wait...

Both the anime and film were liberally altered but the core plot remains the same, and it's a great one at that so there's little room for errors. 

What makes Shinobi so good? For starters, there's the acting. You have 2 great leads (by J-Live action standards) and a strong supporting cast. Yukie Nakama (when she's not on every Japanese commercial ever) is actually a great actress, as is Joe Odagiri, who's proven himself with some good serious roles (did a great job as Ginko in Mushishi). The cinematography is lush and colourful but maintains it's dark and moody tone (movies need more purple), and Taro Iwashiro's score is as fantastic as ever. Both the anime and live action diverge to their own respective endings but each is extremely satisfying. 

Overall, this was one of my go to pre-Kenshin live actions. It's still stands well and definitely worth viewing. 




I've been on a roll with these large writeups lately, certainly been a while since page 9.  I'll probably do something on anime soundtrack composers next since we've touched it in the last few pages. The last few posts I did here ought to indicate who's gonna be expected... Yes Alberto... you know...


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Started watching Kill La Kill last night. Talk about pure unadulterated whackiness. It's like an anime that makes fun of anime . It's also like 75% ecchi/fanservice, but so goofy and over the top about it that it's not _too_ creepy, haha. I'm enjoying it, and keeping my fingers crossed that it doesn't change gears halfway through and turn into some soul-crushing depression pit, like half the stuff I've been watching lately.


----------



## Don Vito

I said it before and I'll say it again..

Attack on Titan hurt itself by not featuring a white lead character played by Tom Cruise.



Oh and I'm still trying to watch Nana, but the flashback episodes are getting boring.


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Another good live action adaptation was Basilisk to Shinobi Heart Under Blade. Both are adaptations themselves, based on the old Koga Ninja Scrolls novel ie: the Iga/Koga ninja rivalry of the Edo period.
> 
> I don't have to say how good the Basilisk anime is, but if you haven't seen it... go on. I'll wait...
> 
> Both the anime and film were liberally altered but the core plot remains the same, and it's a great one at that so there's little room for errors.
> 
> What makes Shinobi so good? For starters, there's the acting. You have 2 great leads (by J-Live action standards) and a strong supporting cast. Yukie Nakama (when she's not on every Japanese commercial ever) is actually a great actress, as is Joe Odagiri, who's proven himself with some good serious roles (did a great job as Ginko in Mushishi). The cinematography is lush and colourful but maintains it's dark and moody tone (movies need more purple), and Taro Iwashiro's score is as fantastic as ever. Both the anime and live action diverge to their own respective endings but each is extremely satisfying.
> 
> Overall, this was one of my go to pre-Kenshin live actions. It's still stands well and definitely worth viewing.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I've been on a roll with these large writeups lately, certainly been a while since page 9.  I'll probably do something on anime soundtrack composers next since we've touched it in the last few pages. The last few posts I did here ought to indicate who's gonna be expected... Yes Alberto... you know...



Man, your long posts are the sh!t.  I try, I really do, but they'll never beat yours.  Teach me your ways, master, for making long, interesting, and informative posts.  Also, of course I know who's showing up. 

Also, you remind me, now that I've finished the Mushishi anime (both seasons + specials), I should probably go on to watching the live action... I'm really curious, and Mushishi has a premise that should be very translatable to a live action, feature length format.

That and, of course, the latest Rurouni Kenshin movie, which I totally missed when they had it at Fantasia this summer.



Grand Moff Tim said:


> Started watching Kill La Kill last night. Talk about pure unadulterated whackiness. It's like an anime that makes fun of anime . It's also like 75% ecchi/fanservice, but so goofy and over the top about it that it's not _too_ creepy, haha. I'm enjoying it, and keeping my fingers crossed that it doesn't change gears halfway through and turn into some soul-crushing depression pit, like half the stuff I've been watching lately.



Man, I need to get my ass to watch that show... even my new roommate, who's not into anime (other than Studio Ghibli), watched Kill la Kill recently.



Don Vito said:


> I said it before and I'll say it again..
> 
> Attack on Titan hurt itself by not featuring a white lead character played by Tom Cruise.



rekt


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> Man, your long posts are the sh!t.  I try, I really do, but they'll never beat yours.  Teach me your ways, master, for making long, interesting, and informative posts.  Also, of course I know who's showing up.



  Just enjoy what you're talking about and be honest in critique... and do a ton of research, and you'll be fine. Your Fate posts are awesome, makes me wanna finish it off... 



Ok, Now I've sat down, time to strike while the iron is hot. 

Obviously I was gonna do a Yuki Kajiura writeup thanks to my recent love renaissance and listening to nothing but her for the last 2 months. 

Anyways:







Yuki Kajiura was playing in promising but short lived girl trio See Saw with Chiyaki Ishikawa from the early/mid 90s but it wasn't until working with anime director Koichi Mashimo when Kajiura started doing anime soundtracks beginning with Eat Man. Her first well known works were Noir (the first of a Girls with Guns trilogy including Madlax and El Cazador de la Bruja) and the .Hack series (sign, liminality etc), which was kind of a precursor to Sword Art Online. This lead to a heap of vocal collaborations, like Yuriko Kaida, who's a longterm mainstay, Emily Bindiger, who is pretty much the voice of the .Hack series. 

Almost sounding fully developed right from the cradle, Kajiura's distinct style of dark female chants (with full lyrics and a made up language fans know as Kajiurajo) mixed with prominent use of violins and flutes over world music and/or pulsating beats made the music stand out from the rest of her contemporaries. Bascially, right off the bat Kajiura already had a distinct style of her own. Her music was so successful that she revived See Saw with Ishikawa and did the .hack insert songs as well as Gundam Seed/Seed Destiny.





Side note: Chiyaki Ishikawa has since become a known anime solo singer herself. 

What separates Kajiura's vocal work from the usual Gregorian chanting is that each song has full lyrics. The entire .Hack series have dreary and cynical lyrics that depict the cyber world the anime is set in, which also becomes more apparent during Liminality, where it was set in the real world. All her songs go beyond the ominous latin chants and become more than just background music. It's singable and more importantly, memorable. If not sung in English or Japanese, Kajiura can always throw in her Kajiurajo made up language mix of Latin, Japanese, Hindi, Russian and then some. It's a stark contrast and a nice added seriousness to what's usually a shonen/shojo aesthetic in pretty much almost all the anime Kajiura works with. 

2005 was where her popularity skyrocketed. Along came Tsubasa Chronicles and it was a major success across the anime world. Tsubasa Chronicles was a massive fan-service of CLAMP franchises all lumped together centralised with the Cardcaptor Sakura protagonists all being thrown into a dark edgy-at-the-time plot. Not only did CLAMP pull it off well, but the music was absolutely stunning. How so? Just listen to the main theme...



I put the live version just to drive it home harder. 

The live concerts basically allowed Kajiura to go under the moniker Fiction Junction, which is essentially her "solo effort" with an entourage of hand chosen female singers... all amazing btw, each singer categorised as a seperate project, yet all still under Kajiura's umbrella. Most notably, Fiction Junction allowed Kajiura re-record and/or compile a selected group of songs for both anime and live performances. Sounds confusing? It certainly did to me the first time I heard about it.  

Fiction Junction: Yuuka was the first and most prolific of the bunch. With mostly inset songs like the cool battle theme from Madlax, to Gundam Seed, to Tsubasa Chronicles, again among others. The other singers included Kaori (who's now singing for Revo's Linked Horizon) for... Tusbasa Chronicles yet again, Keiko for um... Tsubasa Chronicles again , Wakana for Fist Of The North Star: Legends of the True Saviour... the very last thing in the world I'd expect Kajiura to do to be honest, Asuka for Elemental Gelade, and Yuriko Kaida. The links ought to show every singer's distinct styles. 

As you can already tell, Tusbasa Chronicles was kind of a big deal for Kajiura.  

That wasn't enough for Kajiura though. In 2007, in addition to writing the music to Kara No Kyokai, Kajiura took Wakana's "goddess voice" and Keiko's "best low harmony in Japan" (Kajiura's own actual words) and formed Kalafina. Two other singers Hikaru and Maya were added, but the latter left soon after a few singles, leaving Kalafina as a trio exclusively. 

Originally they were solely made for Kara No Kyokai, but have since been heard on other animes as well as a full touring unit leaving Kajiura solely as songwriter and producer. So the concept is that Kalafina can go tour as a pop act while Kajiura can focus on composing for anime, games, more Kalafina etc. 

The result? Well... just listen to it. 



I'm just gonna get this out now: *I FREAKING LOVE KALAFINA*. From hearing Oblivious for the first time, there was no turning back. Hell, 5 of the 6 CD deck in my car right now is all their albums. Seriously, I can do another massive post just on them alone.  But I won't... for a good reason I'll say later.

What makes Kalafina different from Kajiura's previous efforts? Many factors actually. Unlike Fiction Junction, which is merely a vehicle for Kajiura to perform selections of her large body of work with her entourage assigned per song, Kalafina's vocal parts are far more intricate, each singer intertwining parts with each other effortlessly, sometimes in just one verse. The three also get to exercise their strengths making each of them distinct. Musically speaking, this is also Kajiura at her most experimental she's ever done, broadening her compositional skills even further, diving head first into new genres like Bollywood, Hard Rock, Latin or Medieval Folk, among others. This is a welcome change especially after long listening of her body of work. 

Anime wise, a lot of you guys already know the songs. Kalafina have the songs to Kara No Kyokan, which their first album Seventh Heaven is pretty much a "best of" insert song collection from said anime. They also have THE GREATEST ANIME END THEME EVER (IMO of course). Speaking of Magica Madoka, they even get not one but two great songs extrapolated from Kajiura's actual score. And from what I've heard (I haven't seen Magica Madoka yet), it's pretty much Kajiura's darkest score to date. And there's the song from Fate Zero, the part of the Fate series which Kajiura scored full. All good quality stuff. 

Lastly there's also a collaboration with Revo of Sound/Linked Horizon. It's as ridiculous and overblown as it sounds, you can pretty much know what to expect:



The choreography is impressive for so many people onstage. 


Those still with me...

Anyone who's listened to Yuki Kajiura can pretty much know what to expect. Her distinct compositional style gives her focus and doesn't stray too much from her winning formula. Hell, she's openly admitted that she won't be writing jazz anytime soon. And fair enough.  However this has developed a byproduct of fans accusing her as a one-trick-pony and all her songs sound the same, repetitive and predictable. Admittedly, having obsessing over her music since the .Hack series, I agree to an extent. There was a period where I broke and stopped listening to her completely (most likely due the the Revo collab honestly). She also had the extremely daunting task of following Yasunori Mitsuda's soundtrack to Xenosaga EP 1 (aka my favorite album of all time). While it was a damn good effort, I kinda felt disappointed. Not her fault at all, it's just Mitsuda raised the bar extremely high for me. 

Kalafina, with all the praises I can give, unfortunately suffers too with their last album. I'm not a fan of Ring Your Bell, and I tried to really like Heavenly Blue from Aidona Zero, but it sounds so Kajiura by the numbers, she's done that before to the point that it sounds uninspiring. Hell, as if Mirai was already too Kajiura-ish enough, she reintroduces it on the recent Fiction Junction tour under a different key, (imo inferior) arrangement and altered lyrics. It comes to the point where all here works become a blur and you can't help agree with all the one-trick-pony accusations. 

Having said all that, I understand her work. I listen to Kajiura the same way I listen to AC/DC and Slayer, I know exactly what to expect, and I'm absolutely fine with that. And when it hits me, it hits me damn hard. My recent renaissance of falling in love with Kajiura's music all over again was no accident. And after seeing live footage of Heavenly Blue... the song sounds more appealing to me now, though Ring Your Bell live, it's still not doing it for me... yet...



So yeah, there's more than enough of Yuki Kajiura rambling that I needed to get out of my system. Those who've clicked the links and loved the songs, you're welcome. Those who fall with the one-trick-pony argument, fair enough and understandable. But in that case, just listen to Magia again. 



...and again.


----------



## asher

The scoring for the Madoka movies (watching the third movie Sunday night) has been top notch. Very very complementary to themes and scenes. Battles music is cool but not distracting like I feel like happens a lot.

I didn't know she did Noir, I've never watched but have the soundtrack. Also haven't watched boogie pop phantom (idk composer) but that is excellent too.

It's not really an anime but the music for the BlazBlu games is actually stellar


----------



## Don Vito

Blazblue got an anime adaption a couple years ago. It wasn't bad, but didn't hold my attention long enough to finish.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

asher said:


> The scoring for the Madoka movies (watching the third movie Sunday night) has been top notch. Very very complementary to themes and scenes. Battles music is cool but not distracting like I feel like happens a lot.
> 
> I didn't know she did Noir, I've never watched but have the soundtrack. Also haven't watched boogie pop phantom (idk composer) but that is excellent too.
> 
> It's not really an anime but the music for the BlazBlu games is actually stellar



I'm not fully familiar with Boogiepop Phantom, but I looked it up and looks like there's a chock full of them. 

For BlazBlue, naturally as a spiritual successor to Guilty Gear, naturally it was composed by Daisuke Ishiwatari. Aside from (Contra) Hard Corps Uprising, he hasn't really done anything much outside his 2 main franchises. 



Don Vito said:


> Blazblue got an anime adaption a couple years ago. It wasn't bad, but didn't hold my attention long enough to finish.



It was alright, does a decent job of trying to tell the story of the BlazBlue universe. Which says a lot considering that the franchise has the one of the most (if not the most) jarringly nebulus and convoluted stories in history, and that's being kind.


----------



## asher

Just watched Rebellion (the sequel Madoka movie).

....and I thought my brains were everywhere before. I almost have no idea wtf just happened...


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Finished Kill La Kill, and I don't know what to watch now. There's soooo much on Netflix Japan, but most of it doesn't have English subs. Not that I'd really expect it to, of course, but sometimes even shows that are also on US Netflix and have subs _don't_ have subs on Japanese Netflix. I know Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood is on US Netflix with subs, but I tried to watch it on Japanese Netflix and it didn't have subs. I suppose I could just try watching stuff in Japanese, but my Japanese skills are still in their infancy, so I wouldn't get too much out of it.

You're probably thinking "Why don't you just watch it on US Netflix, jackass?"

Netflix is international now, but the selection for the Korean market is super sh!tty, so I have to use a proxy network to watch version from other markets, which chokes my internet speed. The Japanese proxy servers I have access to are twice as fast as the fastest US ones I have access to, so I can watch Japanese Netflix with very few buffering or picture quality issues, whereas watching US Netflix is often like watching a completely pixelated screen.

That's why I was wondering about the show selection difference between free and premium Crunchy Roll, because if there's another option for watching loads of anime for a decent price that I don't have to use a VPN for, that'd be spiffy.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

I actually just tried watchin kill la kill as well, I dropped it at ep 8 or so though. It didn't seem to go anywhere interesting and it wasn't that funny imo... I guess my sense of humor just doesn't quite match with what is currently popular. The color schemes and style of the art was neat though, that I did like about it.

But I did finally watch FLCL (furi kuri), and this time the randomness wasn't off-putting at all really. I feel like I missed a lot of the references though, but at least the art was super neat so that made it worth watching.


----------



## Alberto7

Haven't read the latest posts yet (I'll get to that soon), but I HAD to post this, because it's THE f*cking dopest.
Ever wonder what Joe Hisaishi would sound like through the tires of your car? Well, wonder no more; Japan's got you covered:

Melody Roads: Highways That Play Music | Goin' Japanesque!

Somebody dying in the back of my car and is in urgent need of medical attention? Well, too f*cking bad, because this next song coming up is b!tchin', and I need to drive at speed to hear it.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

So the unthinkable has happened. I _finally_ got off my lazy ass to sit on my lazy ass and started watching Puella Magi Madoka Magica. 

...it's alright. 

It's also a realisation that I've not seen a shoujo anime like this in a loooooong time.



EDIT: A few more episodes in now. I thought that I'm being lulled in to familiar shoujo territory until episode 3 where it takes a massive left turn and bites my head off. Then I smirked and thought "Ah, now I see why. I totally get it now. "


----------



## asher

Bloody_Inferno said:


> EDIT: A few more episodes in now. I thought that I'm being lulled in to familiar shoujo territory until episode 3 where it takes a massive left turn and bites my head off. Then I smirked and thought "Ah, now I see why. I totally get it now. "





The first 30-45m of the movie are like that too.

I do wanna go and watch the series at some point. There's apparently a few important scenes that don't make it into the movie, at the expense of not having the very well overhauled visuals.

Just, Rebellion. Gahhhhhh. I think it's absolutely the "correct" and "better" way to write it and have the plot and arcs move, but mannnnnnnnnnnn.

aside: forgot how fantastic the BB music _actually_ is.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

asher said:


> I do wanna go and watch the series at some point. There's apparently a few important scenes that don't make it into the movie, at the expense of not having the very well overhauled visuals.
> 
> Just, Rebellion. Gahhhhhh. I think it's absolutely the "correct" and "better" way to write it and have the plot and arcs move, but mannnnnnnnnnnn.
> 
> aside: forgot how fantastic the BB music _actually_ is.



It'll probably be a while before I get to the movies, probably because I'm trying to fit One Punch Man in my already busy schedule too.  I kinda anticipated that 2 of the 3 movies are compilations/retellings of the series, but I will end up watching those anyway.

Looking up more on Gen Urobuchi, his style looks like something I can really get into, which will lead me to Fate/Zero (I swear I will watch this) and Aldonah.Zero. I've got a lot of catching up to do...


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Alternating between watching Mushishi and re-watching Samurai Champloo now. Mushishi seems to be having a constant competition with itself to see how depressing it can make its stories, so I'm breaking it up with some good ol' Samurai goofiness. I know, I know, Champloo isn't always depressing-moment-free, but it at least punctuates things with action and comedy.


----------



## myrtorp

Grand Moff Tim said:


> Alternating between watching Mushishi and re-watching Samurai Champloo now. Mushishi seems to be having a constant competition with itself to see how depressing it can make its stories, so I'm breaking it up with some good ol' Samurai goofiness. I know, I know, Champloo isn't always depressing-moment-free, but it at least punctuates things with action and comedy.




I was thinking about re watching Champloo, one of my favourites!


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Grand Moff Tim said:


> Mushishi seems to be having a constant competition with itself to see how depressing it can make its stories



This statement is about as dead on as it gets.


----------



## Don Vito

Nana is awesome, best show I've watched since NHK. But I just realized it's 47 episodes long :O Don't know where I'm going to find the time for that.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Bloody_Inferno said:


> It'll probably be a while before I get to the movies, probably because I'm trying to fit One Punch Man in my already busy schedule too.  I kinda anticipated that 2 of the 3 movies are compilations/retellings of the series, but I will end up watching those anyway.
> 
> Looking up more on Gen Urobuchi, his style looks like something I can really get into, which will lead me to Fate/Zero (I swear I will watch this) and Aldonah.Zero. I've got a lot of catching up to do...



Looks like I'm back to watching anime regularly in a big way.  

Since this post, I've smashed right through Madoka Magica (excluding movies) and One Punch Man. 

I can see how Madoka's gotten some fans outside the usual shoujo genre. As I said in my previous post, the show falsely lulls you in what seems like typical sugary shoujo before suddenly throwing a curveball and sends you spiralling down into dark Faustian territory with heavy Nihilistic undertones. The surrealist pop art imagery was really fun, kinda reminded me of Le Petite De Portrait Cossette, so it was a nice throwback to that and I don't have to say anything about the music that I haven't already said before. I kept being thrown with more odd twists when characters develop even further. While the themes are quite heavy, at least I felt it didn't get to overtly preachy about it. Overall, yeah, I had more fun that I'm willing to admit with this despite not really big on shoujo overall. Time to watch the movies, and see how the story _really_ ends...

As for One Punch Man, it was bombastic, ridiculously over the top, goofy as hell without being overtly obnoxious about it and most importantly, FUN. Being a parody show by nature, this had not come in at a more perfect time when I'm constantly obsessing over the Hollywood influx of the superhero genre, where it's goofiness almost comes off as sattire, thus part of the unique charm (well at least until Deadpool premieres). The hype was merited and definitely worth viewing. That was one hell of a ride. 

Looks like Aldnonah.Zero's next on my list.


----------



## Don Vito

Looks like Barakamon is getting an anime for it's side prequel. I was excited until I saw that it's just some high school SOL. I was ready for comfy summer vibes 

Also I forgot to mention that(it surfaced a week or two ago) Akira Toriyama is apparently unhappy with DBS. Most likely due to the shoddy animation.


----------



## Static

Nana...ahh the nostalgia. The biggest problem with Nana is its been on hiatus for years. I think the anime stopped as a direct result of the manga being on hiatus and 

on the worst cliff hanger you can imagine. 

The anime was really good and the endings theme always made the last scene of every episode really effective lol.


----------



## Don Vito

Yeah, they always play the ED at just the perfect time to where it builds suspense for the next episode.

I'm definitely going to give the manga a second chance now. Does it go any further than the anime?


----------



## Static

Don Vito said:


> Yeah, they always play the ED at just the perfect time to where it builds suspense for the next episode.
> 
> I'm definitely going to give the manga a second chance now. Does it go any further than the anime?



Yeah, it goes quite a bit further from what I remember, but if you're the type to hate incomplete plots then I suggest you skip the manga cause of the ridiculous point 

it just stops at. Considering the last chapter was out nearly 7 years ago, I don't think we'll ever see the end to the story.


----------



## OmegaSlayer

Grand Moff Tim said:


> Finished Kill La Kill, and I don't know what to watch now.



There's OnePiece but you guys keep ignoring my suggestion 

By the way, the Lupin III live action is not that bad.
A bit more Michael Bay-ey than it should, but not bad at all.


----------



## Don Vito

One Piece is fun, but it's a huge time investment  I'll watch it every now and again if it's on TV, but I've never followed along chronologically. 

Anyone I talk to irl about anime ALWAYS asks if I'm into Bleach or Naruto. I have to politely say no, and when they find out it's all "duuuude you gotta watch the demon summoning bukkake arc maaaannn it's only 261 episodes!!!!!" O_O


----------



## Alberto7

Don Vito said:


> "duuuude you gotta watch the demon summoning bukkake arc maaaannn it's only 261 episodes!!!!!" O_O



I miss the rep system.

Also, wtf about Barakamon? If it's not in summer in a tropical island with annoying and hilarious children, then forget it.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

If there's one thing Kill La Kill helped me accept about myself, it's that I enjoy excessive fanservice. As a result, I seem to have just dropped all shame and pretense and decided to watch a straight up Ecchi series . High School DxD, specifically, because f_u_ck subtlety. It actually has more of a plot than I was expecting, which is nice, but also fairly secondary.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Don Vito said:


> One Piece is fun, but it's a huge time investment  I'll watch it every now and again if it's on TV, but I've never followed along chronologically.
> 
> Anyone I talk to irl about anime ALWAYS asks if I'm into Bleach or Naruto. I have to politely say no, and when they find out it's all "duuuude you gotta watch the demon summoning bukkake arc maaaannn it's only 261 episodes!!!!!" O_O



This. 

One Piece is (really) great and all, but I don't have time to sit through 700+ and counting episodes. 

I guess that's part of watching through any of Weekly Shonen Jump's most popular list. You kinda have to catch the train right from the get go, and hang on the whole time until it ends. The fillers don't help at all either. I gave up on Naruto a long time ago, and I lost interest in Bleech as well. 

Maybe I'm showing my age here, but while I'm bummed that some of the new anime series aren't as long as they used to be (the last 3 I'm in are 12-13 max), I'm kinda glad they've shortened so I don't have to invest so much time on them. Though this could also mirror to what I said back on page 9 that the anime industry is predicted to die a slow death.



Grand Moff Tim said:


> If there's one thing Kill La Kill helped me accept about myself, it's that I enjoy excessive fanservice. As a result, I seem to have just dropped all shame and pretense and decided to watch a straight up Ecchi series . High School DxD, specifically, because f_u_ck subtlety. It actually has more of a plot than I was expecting, which is nice, but also fairly secondary.



Kill La Kill is something I need higher on my priority list. Namely because of Hiroyuki Sawano score. 

I don't mind parody and fanservice every now and then, granted that it rubs me the right way. I wasn't really a fan of Haruhi Suzumiya flame: shield on) nor High School Rumble but I didn't mind Cromarte High School and thought Gintama was the pinnacle of the genre. I'll get to Kill La Kill eventually...


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Since that last post felt like such a downer... I'm just gonna talk about the Ninja Gaiden anime OVA that nobody saw until somebody uploaded it on youtube. 

It was releasd in 1991 loosely based on the NES trilogy set after the events of II (long story as to how III is an interquel, typical in Japanese continuity). Actually, I'll just let moviebob from Screwattack do all the talking:



 It pretty much describes how I felt the first time I saw it years ago.


----------



## Static

Telling anime fans you haven't watched Naruto, Bleach and One Piece is like telling metal heads you haven't heard master of puppets or rust in piece... you end up getting the same look but the difference is that MOP and RIP had an end. 

These shonen jump series needed to end years ago.Especially Bleach. ESPECIALLY BLEACH.


----------



## OmegaSlayer

I can't disagree about the length and time investment.
And I think it's essential to not skip a single episode except the damn fillers.
Maybe it helps that I read the manga except OP for which I see the anime too.
Honestly I think it's worth it, I went through the full anime episodes 2 years ago in 2 months, but I'm quite crazy (also episodes are 15 minutes long when you cut Opening, Recaps, Ending Titles).
But at the same time, watching an anime is a way to spend time, so especially if you haven't anything else to watch...it's worth the time


----------



## asher

Static said:


> Telling anime fans you haven't watched Naruto, Bleach and One Piece is like telling metal heads you haven't heard master of puppets or rust in piece... you end up getting the same look but the difference is that MOP and RIP had an end.
> 
> These shonen jump series needed to end years ago.Especially Bleach. ESPECIALLY BLEACH.



Eventually I'll get back to Naruto.

But my friend laid it out really well: watch the first 135 or so to finish the big arc.

_Then skip all the fvcking filler and bull.... until the time skip at LEAST_


----------



## mrdm53

Static said:


> Telling anime fans you haven't watched Naruto, Bleach and One Piece is like telling metal heads you haven't heard master of puppets or rust in piece... you end up getting the same look but the difference is that MOP and RIP had an end.
> 
> These shonen jump series needed to end years ago. Especially Bleach. ESPECIALLY BLEACH.



FYI, i never watched any episode of Naruto, Bleach nor One Piece. Just straight into Gundam Wing, Cardcaptor Sakura, and the list are going more and more....

And One Piece, Naruto and Bleach aren't on the list 

Anyway, any input for my cover of Muvluv are appreciated. i'm just re-mix the song. I want to do Staple Stable and D Rock City in the future

https://soundcloud.com/danu-wisnu-wardhana/muvluv-metal-2-master


----------



## coffeeflush

Started with death note, got into the darker stuff fast. 
Got into the Ecchi stuff with prison school, shokugeri no soma and most recently Kill la Kill, 
I lurk these threads for recommendations regularly. You guys are awesome.


----------



## OmegaSlayer

mrdm53 said:


> FYI, i never watched any episode of Naruto, Bleach nor One Piece. Just straight into Gundam Wing, Cardcaptor Sakura, and the list are going more and more....
> 
> And One Piece, Naruto and Bleach aren't on the list
> 
> [/url]



Not a problem in my book.
Unless you went through Dragonball...Z, GT and all those filler series.
If anyone went through the Dragonball ordeal and isn't willing to watch OnePiece...well...their loss 

I don't comment on Naruto and Bleach, as I didn't saw the anime, but read the manga...at least until the point where they were cool, and they were really cool until Jiraya and Aizen.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Finished both seasons of Aldnoah Zero last night. So despite the wall of text, I'll keep this spoiler free...



Firstly, finally I can now type the word Aldnoah without misspelling. 

Now this series, being a war/drama based mecha/action anime, will obviously get a massive comparison to the other mecha behemoth Gundam, just like Code Geass before it. Don't tell me that you didn't think that LeLouch was the Char Aznable of the new generation because he totally was.  So naturally it will happen here too. 

Now I enjoyed the series overall. Having said that, it's flaws are painfully obvious. For 2 big reasons. 

1: The short series (12 episodes in 2 seasons) affects the pacing negatively. 

The reason why One Punch Man is so good despite it's short time is it's simplicity. The title alone is the entire premise and what you see is what you get. Hell, you know how each episode is gonna end. Saitama needs little development because there's not much there to begin with. Supporting cast from both sides have a few deeper backstories but overall it's still straight to the point. It's goofy and extremely unapologetic about it. 

Being a war themed anime, Aldnoah Zero is the exact opposite of that, where you need characters to develop over the course of the series. And with only 2 short seasons to play with, there's little time for that. The whole show runs at a fast brisk pace that gives very little time to the characters to breathe, and when they do, their story doesn't really go anywhere further than it's potential. One of the main marquee characters gets some meaty screen time to build his arc, but towards the last few episodes takes a massive sprint only to be panting in the end, feeling like a superficial cop out. Another character I hoped to get developed more during the season transition sadly gets pushed back into a background decoration, which is a shame as it could've gone better. Hell, a lot of the supporting cast from both sides of the war become footnotes as it progresses, giving a truncated feel. 

It's all stuff that's already been done better before in the same genre, which leads to the next point...

2: Aldnoah Zero will always be compared (negatively) to Gundam's finest. 

...well, at least to hardcore Gundam geeks anyway. 

And not just the superficial war, mecha stuff, superior technology, and war on earth or in space either. In fact, the 2 main characters are another (albeit actually refreshing) take on the Amuro/Char dynamic. I accept the fact that when sympathetically portraying war from both sides, Amuro and Char are pretty much the anime standard everything else (including other Gundam series) are measured. I will say that I do like it here. 

The story overall also borrows heavily from Gundam so a lot of tropes are present. Though most Gundam series had the advantage of spanning well over 40 episodes to fill with rich backstories, Aldnoah Zero as I said before unfortunately doesn't have that luxury. This gets even more apparent in season 2. While season 1 felt like a constant tension builder with no release until the amazing jaw dropping curveball of a finale, season 2 tries to replicate but stumbles every now and then thanks to the jarring changes forced by the fast pacing (once again). Yeah, pacing is an issue with these short anime series. 

Now despite the 2 flaws, I still find Aldnoah Zero a fun ride. I'm one of those guys that jumps on board immediately once you involve giant mecha robots. The designs here are really cool, stunning actually, and it's nice to see some crude but utilitarian looking hunks of steel struggle against the either sleeker or oddly designed superior mecha. That underdog theme is also the bulk of the really cool battle scenes. It's cool to see the main protagonist strategise his way to victory against an impossible opponent. It actually reminded me why I loved Rurouni Kenshin so much. And here's where the fast pacing works in it's favour. All the battle scenes aren't dragging slugs, they start and end at the right amount of time. And there's plenty of action packed scenes to keep you on the edge of your seat. 

I love the music. Despite my Kalafina obsession, I didn't love Heavenly Blue but it works much better in this context, and Eir Aoi's Genesis is simply awesome, epic j-pop goodness. But it's Hiroyuki Sawano's full score is what makes a lot of the scenes more thrilling to watch. Large bombastic millitaristic themes have always been his specialty since Sengoku Basara. And here is no exception, they have rock, electronica, lots of improv vocals and English lyrics, and they all work here. I might do a comprehensive post on Sawano sometime when I'm bored...

Lastly, as much as I criticised the story issues due to fast pacing, I still enjoyed what it was overall. Underdeveloped characters aside, the story did lead to a satisfying end for the series. Some unexplained loose ends that aren't bothered to be resolved, but satisfying nonetheless. 



TL/DR: So overall, yeah I enjoyed it far more than I should've. Hardcore Gundam fans will brush this off as Gundam-lite but less focus on plot and more stunning giant robot action, and it's still a fun viewing, Gundam fan or otherwise.


----------



## Don Vito

For any con-goers, is it worth it to attend more than 1 day?


----------



## stevo1

Bloody_Inferno said:


> 1: The short series (12 episodes in 2 seasons) affects the pacing negatively.



This was my gripe about Aldnoah as well, the ending of it specifically. Season 1 was relatively well paced, but Season two overall felt super rushed in comparison. The pacing had me believing the .... was about to hit the fan and things were going to get real, but it climaxes super quickly, and all this stuff is just happening chaotically within the show, nothing feels truly resolved, and then it gives you a pretty "give-up" feel ending (drops off).

+1 to Genesis, Kalafina, and other J-Jams though! I rock those consistently.


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Finished both seasons of Aldnoah Zero last night. So despite the wall of text, I'll keep this spoiler free...
> 
> 
> 
> Firstly, finally I can now type the word Aldnoah without misspelling.
> 
> Now this series, being a war/drama based mecha/action anime, will obviously get a massive comparison to the other mecha behemoth Gundam, just like Code Geass before it. Don't tell me that you didn't think that LeLouch was the Char Aznable of the new generation because he totally was.  So naturally it will happen here too.
> 
> Now I enjoyed the series overall. Having said that, it's flaws are painfully obvious. For 2 big reasons.
> 
> 1: The short series (12 episodes in 2 seasons) affects the pacing negatively.
> 
> The reason why One Punch Man is so good despite it's short time is it's simplicity. The title alone is the entire premise and what you see is what you get. Hell, you know how each episode is gonna end. Saitama needs little development because there's not much there to begin with. Supporting cast from both sides have a few deeper backstories but overall it's still straight to the point. It's goofy and extremely unapologetic about it.
> 
> Being a war themed anime, Aldnoah Zero is the exact opposite of that, where you need characters to develop over the course of the series. And with only 2 short seasons to play with, there's little time for that. The whole show runs at a fast brisk pace that gives very little time to the characters to breathe, and when they do, their story doesn't really go anywhere further than it's potential. One of the main marquee characters gets some meaty screen time to build his arc, but towards the last few episodes takes a massive sprint only to be panting in the end, feeling like a superficial cop out. Another character I hoped to get developed more during the season transition sadly gets pushed back into a background decoration, which is a shame as it could've gone better. Hell, a lot of the supporting cast from both sides of the war become footnotes as it progresses, giving a truncated feel.
> 
> It's all stuff that's already been done better before in the same genre, which leads to the next point...
> 
> 2: Aldnoah Zero will always be compared (negatively) to Gundam's finest.
> 
> ...well, at least to hardcore Gundam geeks anyway.
> 
> And not just the superficial war, mecha stuff, superior technology, and war on earth or in space either. In fact, the 2 main characters are another (albeit actually refreshing) take on the Amuro/Char dynamic. I accept the fact that when sympathetically portraying war from both sides, Amuro and Char are pretty much the anime standard everything else (including other Gundam series) are measured. I will say that I do like it here.
> 
> The story overall also borrows heavily from Gundam so a lot of tropes are present. Though most Gundam series had the advantage of spanning well over 40 episodes to fill with rich backstories, Aldnoah Zero as I said before unfortunately doesn't have that luxury. This gets even more apparent in season 2. While season 1 felt like a constant tension builder with no release until the amazing jaw dropping curveball of a finale, season 2 tries to replicate but stumbles every now and then thanks to the jarring changes forced by the fast pacing (once again). Yeah, pacing is an issue with these short anime series.
> 
> Now despite the 2 flaws, I still find Aldnoah Zero a fun ride. I'm one of those guys that jumps on board immediately once you involve giant mecha robots. The designs here are really cool, stunning actually, and it's nice to see some crude but utilitarian looking hunks of steel struggle against the either sleeker or oddly designed superior mecha. That underdog theme is also the bulk of the really cool battle scenes. It's cool to see the main protagonist strategise his way to victory against an impossible opponent. It actually reminded me why I loved Rurouni Kenshin so much. And here's where the fast pacing works in it's favour. All the battle scenes aren't dragging slugs, they start and end at the right amount of time. And there's plenty of action packed scenes to keep you on the edge of your seat.
> 
> I love the music. Despite my Kalafina obsession, I didn't love Heavenly Blue but it works much better in this context, and Eir Aoi's Genesis is simply awesome, epic j-pop goodness. But it's Hiroyuki Sawano's full score is what makes a lot of the scenes more thrilling to watch. Large bombastic millitaristic themes have always been his specialty since Sengoku Basara. And here is no exception, they have rock, electronica, lots of improv vocals and English lyrics, and they all work here. I might do a comprehensive post on Sawano sometime when I'm bored...
> 
> Lastly, as much as I criticised the story issues due to fast pacing, I still enjoyed what it was overall. Underdeveloped characters aside, the story did lead to a satisfying end for the series. Some unexplained loose ends that aren't bothered to be resolved, but satisfying nonetheless.
> 
> 
> 
> TL/DR: So overall, yeah I enjoyed it far more than I should've. Hardcore Gundam fans will brush this off as Gundam-lite but less focus on plot and more stunning giant robot action, and it's still a fun viewing, Gundam fan or otherwise.



All I have to say about Aldnoah.Zero is that I dropped it after episode 6, and it would take a lot of convincing to get me to pick it back up.  I never liked the main character, and, even though the plot that far was interesting and well written, it just didn't truly grab me. I initially felt disappointed in Urobuchi for not having lived up to my expectations, until I found out that he had only come up with the plot and the universe the story plays in, but that he stopped his involvement in the show after around season 2.



Don Vito said:


> For any con-goers, is it worth it to attend more than 1 day?



In my experience and opinion, yes, it is. Even when there are no interesting panels or events going on, I love just walking around seeing all the cosplays, taking pictures of/with strangers, and meeting random people with cosplays that I really like. I make it a conscious choice to invest everything I have to give for that entire weekend into it though, including my time. Con weekend is con weekend, and nothing gets in between. I try to plan ahead and shove all of my responsibilities for that weekend into the following week, or the week before, so that I don't have to worry about real life during the con. Con weekends for me are 9am to 10pm days every day, but it's just because it's like a gigantic geek party for me, and it's almost therapeutic.

With that said, for some people it may largely depend on what's happening each day, as some people only go for the events and/or panels. I suggest you look at the schedule beforehand if you're only interested in events.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

stevo1 said:


> This was my gripe about Aldnoah as well, the ending of it specifically. Season 1 was relatively well paced, but Season two overall felt super rushed in comparison. The pacing had me believing the .... was about to hit the fan and things were going to get real, but it climaxes super quickly, and all this stuff is just happening chaotically within the show, nothing feels truly resolved, and then it gives you a pretty "give-up" feel ending (drops off).



That's season 2 in a nutshell alright. 


Spoiler



Hell, that's Slaine's entire arc in a nutshell right there.





Alberto7 said:


> All I have to say about Aldnoah.Zero is that I dropped it after episode 6, and it would take a lot of convincing to get me to pick it back up.  I never liked the main character, and, even though the plot that far was interesting and well written, it just didn't truly grab me. I initially felt disappointed in Urobuchi for not having lived up to my expectations, until I found out that he had only come up with the plot and the universe the story plays in, but that he stopped his involvement in the show after around season 2.



Ah, that explains a lot then. And after some snooping around, there's actually a lot more to it. 

Personally I was actually hoping that Urobuchi would have just fully embraced being the next Yoshiyuki Tomino like he's already shown in the past.. Probably explains why the sick bastard in me really enjoyed the Season 1 cliffhanger.  

Though with or without Urobuchi, I still think Aldnoah was fine overall. I just wished there were more episodes and at least stretch into a 3rd season so all the rush jobs are fixed, and more time on character building and a more substantial finale. 

Finish it off anyway but don't rush in doing so.



Alberto7 said:


> In my experience and opinion, yes, it is. Even when there are no interesting panels or events going on, I love just walking around seeing all the cosplays, taking pictures of/with strangers, and meeting random people with cosplays that I really like. I make it a conscious choice to invest everything I have to give for that entire weekend into it though, including my time. Con weekend is con weekend, and nothing gets in between. I try to plan ahead and shove all of my responsibilities for that weekend into the following week, or the week before, so that I don't have to worry about real life during the con. Con weekends for me are 9am to 10pm days every day, but it's just because it's like a gigantic geek party for me, and it's almost therapeutic.
> 
> With that said, for some people it may largely depend on what's happening each day, as some people only go for the events and/or panels. I suggest you look at the schedule beforehand if you're only interested in events.



 Granted that I haven't been in the convention game in a looong time, my sister and I did the same whenever there was one. It's a different experience when you're there for more than a day. Do your shopping first (before the stock goes away), then do the extra viewing, reading, game playing, cosplay seeing/photos, meeting new friends, building nerdy comradely, winning odd tournaments, etc. 



stevo1 said:


> +1 to Genesis, Kalafina, and other J-Jams though! I rock those consistently.



Side note: For those into watching PVs, After my massive Kajiura post, turns out Kalafina recently uploaded a heap of their clips on their Youtube Vevo channel, and then uploaded even more yesterday. That's a plus for me at least, and hey Alberto, the clips for our respective avatars are there now too.


----------



## asher

Yup. Absolutely hit multiple days. Even aside from having different panels/tourneys/events/etc each day, the vibe totally varies. It's nice to get the full range, from being able to just chill or actually talk to booth/event people to super full game tables and awesome costumes everywhere.

And yes, do your shopping ASAP. And then if you're really unsure about something, just see if it's still there last day! Vendors often want to just sell things to avoid having to take it home and you can score deals


----------



## Alberto7

Regarding shopping at cons, I tend to do a mix of buying the first day and the last day. Friday afternoons (the first day) is mostly a reconnaissance mission of the artist's/vendor's area, and I only buy what I think I cannot afford to have sold out by the last day (e.g. my Kotobukiya Ryougi Shiki statue). If I see something I'm interested in, I make sure to ask the vendor how much stock of that item they have, and how fast that item has sold in the past.

Then, there are Sunday sales, which are a pretty big deal at most cons. A lot of booths (I'd say about half of them), including independent artists, will have some sort of deal, and you can usually find pretty good stuff for more reasonable prices. (Since, let's face it, most things at cons are way overpriced if you compare each item with its eBay counterpart ) Whenever my sister sells her stuff at cons, she always has quite a few items on sale on Sundays, and so do most people I know that are in that business. It's how I usually end up buying most of my prints, since that's what tends to take a bigger toll on my wallet.

Also, piece of advice, have a budget and stick to it.  It's too easy to get carried away when, if left to your own devices, you'd rather just buy the entire dealer's area, because everything is so pretty.


----------



## Don Vito

Wow, you guys sound like grizzled war veterans 

Then it's settled, I must defend my honor and weeb out for 3 days consecutive days.

Until the con arrives, I will pray every night to the arch angel Konata for strength and guidance.


As far as merch goes, I'm hyper specifically looking for some figure or plush to put on top of my new computer. Yeah I could get what I want online, but there's no fun in that. I'm sure I won't go over budget with that in mind. I live at home, so I can't have AoT yaoi prints in my bathroom.

But yeah, the concerts and VA's should be cool to go see.


----------



## asher

I've actually only been to two and they've been smallish local ones


----------



## Alberto7

I've only ever been to two different cons, twice one, once the other.  One of those cons is pretty large though (Otakuthon), so it's given me a pretty good idea of how cons work. That, and, for two years now, I've been living and hanging out with weebs who travel far and wide to sell their stuff at cons, plus I have quite a few friends who are staff/organizers/volunteers at Otakuthon and Anime North. I've just put into practice a lot of the things they've told me and its worked great, so I keep doing them. In other words, I've had great teachers, but I'm just an intern.  Being in weeb school is fun.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

...and finished Madoka Rebellion. 

...yeah.  I understand the reactions of everyone who's seen it now. I can also see why it's so polarizing for some, as if they think the show hates them by declaring this as the correct way to end. Because it totally is. 

It's like the mind raping surrealist and nihilistic themes just weren't enough in the series and first 2 movies, they decided to turn them all up to full and rip the knob off. Once again, the film lulls you into cute enchanting shoujo territory before it sucks you in deep into the dark rabbit hole and letting you and the characters know that you're a long way from home. The sucker punch transition to the second act is eerily visceral and whatever notion you thought you had known at what's going on gets thrown out the window. And THEN Rebellion decides that it can top itself in the third act by dragging you into End Of Evangelion levels of insanity with a bit of Lain ambiguity thrown in for good measure. 

The finale itself is enough for anime fans to go wild with speculation much like Evangelion before it, and obviously they have already done so. And no matter how cute Kalafina are when serenading to you during the end credits, you're left emotionally beaten down and confused by the whole ordeal, until the movie finally pushes you off the cliff with a wry grin. 

Needless to say, I loved every minute of it.  It's as good as all the fans say it is but it's certainly not for the faint hearted. Don't let the shoujo theme put you off like it did for me before. For those who haven't seen it, the Madoka series are worth viewing. 



Don Vito said:


> Wow, you guys sound like grizzled war veterans
> 
> Then it's settled, I must defend my honor and weeb out for 3 days consecutive days.
> 
> Until the con arrives, I will pray every night to the arch angel Konata for strength and guidance.
> 
> 
> As far as merch goes, I'm hyper specifically looking for some figure or plush to put on top of my new computer. Yeah I could get what I want online, but there's no fun in that. I'm sure I won't go over budget with that in mind. I live at home, so I can't have AoT yaoi prints in my bathroom.
> 
> But yeah, the concerts and VA's should be cool to go see.




 Enjoy man. You'll be fine. Going full 3 days is how you have the most fun when it comes to conventions. I did it annually for about 5 years at a local convention and got so much out of it. Bought soundtracks, seen new anime, got into a local fighting game community and even have a second place medal in a Guilty Gear tournament.  I ended up stopping altogether after my first trip to Japan. I may attend some of the bigger ones someday.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Watched Strike the Blood over the weekend. I enjoyed it, though apparently opinion on it is pretty divided online. I found it because I was looking for more Ecchi stuff (don't judge me), but it ended up not being overly Ecchi at all. It was more like fanservice stuff most of the time, and not really any more Ecchi than Kill La Kill was, and nobody mentions KLK when listing Ecchi shows.

I think I liked that it wasn't too in your face about it, because some of the other shows I tried watching just made me feel weird and uncomfortable (lookin' at you, Kiss X Sis  ). Then again, High School DxD is about as over-the-top and in your face with it as it can be, and I enjoyed that sans too much awkwardness, so who knows? 

Not sure if I'll try another Ecchi anime any time soon, but in the meantime I've started watching Tokyo Ghoul, because why not. Seems pretty decent so far.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Grand Moff Tim said:


> I've started watching Tokyo Ghoul, because why not.



"Because the ending is immensely unsatisfying" is why not, apparently. Ugh. I enjoyed it, but if there isn't a season three or at least some OVAs to wrap things up, then I'm going to be permanently grumpy about the series because of how season two ended.



...And yes, I know there's a manga. I might try reading it one of these days, but for now I'm sticking with subbed anime, so I can get some listening practice for my Japanese studies.


----------



## asher

Rebellion:

The more I think about it, the more I'm convinced that is the only way it could end.


Spoiler



Homura would have to pretty much be a god herself to maintain her drive forever. As strong as she is she's shown to be under way too much stress in the second movie; this is the unavoidable result. You kind of just don't know about the stasis field. I was actually thinking very early that we might, in fact, be in some creation of Homura's soul, but wasn't sure if they'd really go there, or what the ramifications would really be.

My friend and I spent the next hour going WTFWTFWTF and trying to work out what actually happened metaphysically with the third friend who was showing it to us. 

Also, as much as you abhor the fvcking adorable cat-dumpling by now, the last shot of quivering Kyubey is seriously disturbing.



I'd love to see a fourth movie! Are we correct in thinking


Spoiler



Homura has doomed the universe to entropic heat-death, and how hard is it going to be to continue suppressing Madoka from re-ascending?



As for it being shoujo... I think it's honestly just the perfect delivery vehicle for what it wants to explore. I could almost argue it's not inherently necessary: you could do much of the same thing with, like, conventional superheroes, this has a ton of parallels to Mage (both Awakening and Ascension) from the World of Darkness TT games, etc... but it's just more effective this way. The age range lets the characters feel realistic while still being as motivated and as pure of heart as they are, and really doubles down on innocence lost.

And it's SO much better that


Spoiler



Homura and Madoka are both girls


. Imagine how much ....tier that relationship would have been if one were a boy.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

asher said:


> Rebellion: Stuff



I was gonna try and respond earlier, but it was 3am at the time and chose to sleep instead. 

Call me old and cynical, but my lifetime of anime overload has kinda made me stonehearted, which probably explains why my overview of Rebellion was a bit more... restrained I suppose. 

That said, I agree that Rebellion's ending is pretty much the only way the story could've ended...



Spoiler



...albeit dark and twisted while spilling into Judeo-Christian themes. 

The big Act 3 gotcha moment is the controversial part that nobody expected. With all of the serious Nihilism themes being thrown at you... and lets face it, Kyubey is THE symbol of Nihilism here, from left field, we suddenly get Homura take up a 'Devil' role antithesis to Madoka's 'God'. 

It's not the usual duality simplicity either. Homura did it out of her love for Madoka. That scene during the field of flowers is a dead giveaway of this as well as eerily shows how far Homura would go while clouded in oversentiment. It also shows how selfish Homura really is in wanting her wish. It's beautifully excruciating similarly to the scene in End of Evangelion where a young Shinji is playing in the sandpit building a pyramid then immediately destroys it. 

All that makes the finale much more poignant. With all the efforts Kyubei had build up throughout the series, he is terrified with this new world that Homura had created. In a sense, Homura gets her wish that Madoka is left alone from the Incubators. The Law Of Cycles has been distorted beyond even normal comprehension at this point. The Nihilistic ideology is challenged with the good/evil duality, hence why Kyubey is so terrified. Then again, that whole scene is so damn bizarrely ambiguous, I guess any kind of conclusion is valid. 

Funny how despite the Nihilistic themes are common in Urobochi's works (hence why I mentioned it a lot), apparently it was director Akiyuki Shimbo's idea to why the whole Act 3 turned out the way it did.



...man I'm spending too much time in this thread now, with this long winded posts. 

Personally, I don't think there should be another Madoka movie. While completely up in the air, I still feel that it's the most complete and logical conclusion the franchise could have. Though naturally I will be curious as to how the hell they're gonna attempt to follow that up. 

I don't have a problem with the shoujo subgenre in general, in this case it's perfect actually. Though I did get over most shonen/shoujo anime a long while back. I blame Clamp...

Regarding the relationship comment, I'm not phased by it at all plotwise and otherwise. I guess it's a more solid portrayal of the shoujo-ai/shonen-ai genre. Maybe it's my "get off my lawn" stone heart talking again...


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Watching Psycho-Pass now. Enjoying it a lot so far. When I first started it, the vocalist for the opening theme sounded super _familiar_, and for good reason: the singer for the band who does it also did one of the themes for Tokyo Ghoul, which I just finished watching yesterday. 

I dug both of those songs, so now I apparently need to get some stuff by Ling Tosite Sigure. The stuff I've listened to on YouTube so far would certainly suggest it'd fit right in with my musical mood lately, which has consisted of a lot of Tricot and 9mmPB.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

From the creator of One Punch Man comes this Bones manga adaptation:



Music by Kenji Kawai.. I'M IN!


----------



## asher

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Regarding the relationship comment, I'm not phased by it at all plotwise and otherwise. I guess it's a more solid portrayal of the shoujo-ai/shonen-ai genre. Maybe it's my "get off my lawn" stone heart talking again...



I'm pretty sure "not phased by it" is the completely correct response, actually.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

asher said:


> I'm pretty sure "not phased by it" is the completely correct response, actually.



It is from a general perspective yes. But I should clarify:

The whole shonen ai/shoujo ai genre (and yaoi/yuri for the matter) is over saturated with fan service its rather irregular not to be phased, Japan in particular. I'm not big on the genre period but my sister and I did watch a lot of anime made by Clamp and they rode fan service all the damn time. I was gonna mention that on my previous post but opted to edit it out. 

There was the anime Loveless, that was pretty upfront about it but took away a lot of yaoi tropes that it was actually mature and refreshing. I would've finished Loveless if it didn't bore me to sleep.  The theme songs are nice though, particularly the ending.



Grand Moff Tim said:


> Watching Psycho-Pass now. Enjoying it a lot so far. When I first started it, the vocalist for the opening theme sounded super _familiar_, and for good reason: the singer for the band who does it also did one of the themes for Tokyo Ghoul, which I just finished watching yesterday.
> 
> I dug both of those songs, so now I apparently need to get some stuff by Ling Tosite Sigure. The stuff I've listened to on YouTube so far would certainly suggest it'd fit right in with my musical mood lately, which has consisted of a lot of Tricot and 9mmPB.




I probably should watch Psycho-Pass as well since my last few posts indicate I've been on a Gen Urobuchi streak right now.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Finished Psycho-Pass last night and absolutely loved it. It was pretty heavy stuff, though, so I think the next series I watch needs to be goofy fan-service-y again.

Off to watch some Rosario + Vampire...


----------



## Don Vito

Grand Moff Tim said:


> Finished Kill La Kill, and I don't know what to watch now.


I've had DONT LOSE YOUR WAAAAAY stuck in my head, so it made me remember the OVA bonus episode for KLK. You should totally check it out, it gives you kind of a second ending related to Ragyo's assistant lady.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Just watched Prison School today, and it was one of the funniest things I've ever watched. If ecchi isn't your thing then you'd be better off avoiding it, but if you aren't bothered by it then I highly recommend it.

Maybe lock your door while you watch it, though.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

Grand Moff Tim said:


> Just watched Prison School today, and it was one of the funniest things I've ever watched. If ecchi isn't your thing then you'd be better off avoiding it, but if you aren't bothered by it then I highly recommend it.
> 
> Maybe lock your door while you watch it, though.




I didn't find the manga very funny when reading it, but it sure had gorgeous art.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Ikiharmaa said:


> I didn't find the manga very funny when reading it, but it sure had gorgeous art.



I started reading the manga after watching the show, and I can definitely see what you mean. The humor comes across _much_ better in the show than it does on paper, though. The anime's actually a pretty faithful reproduction of the manga (pretty much shot-for-shot in many places), but the comedic timing is more effective on screen.

I watched the Corpse Party OVAs today after reading what Emperor Guillotine said about them a couple pages back. Gotta say, for the most part it wasn't as gory and over the top as I was expecting. I say "for the most part" because what OVAs 1, 2, and 4 lack, OVA 3 more than makes up. I was definitely squirming in my chair a few times. 

Almost hard to believe it's based on a PSP game. I'm watching through some Let's Plays of the game it's based on now to see if the game actually gets anywhere near as gory as the show. So far the answer is no .


----------



## Alberto7

Watched the first two episodes of a new, manga-based anime that is currently airing this season, called Boku Dake ga Inai Machi (otherwise known as ERASED, in English). If the rest of the episodes turn out to be even half as good as the first two, that is definite anime of the year material right here. It's a sort of fantasy/murder investigation/time travel/childhood trauma kind of deal, which is REALLY cool. Kind of gives me Madoka/Steins;Gate-ish vibes (funnily enough, the voice actress for one of the protagonists, Kayo, is Aoi Yuuki, who also voiced Madoka, among other really cool characters). Also, the feels are strong with this one, so beware. Comic relief has been on point the first two episodes though; not too much of it, but has extremely effective timing. It looks like it'll be a roller coaster, so I think I'm just going to wait for this season to end so that I can pick it back up and binge watch it at some point.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Decided to go back and forth between a serious anime and an ecchi anime, watching an episode of one and then an episode of the other and repeating that until I was done with both. The serious anime I went with was _Another_, and the ecchi was the first season of _Sekirei_.

_Another_ was pretty good, but I kinda wish I had come upon it randomly. Instead, I found it by looking at "best of" lists for horror/bloody anime. It featured towards the top of most of the lists I found, so I figured I was in for a treat. I can't say it wasn't good, but my expectations were a little higher than they should have been, so I felt a bit let down. It was neither as bloody nor as scary as I had hoped it would be. Many of the death scenes it has were interesting, in a Final Destination sort of way, but many more were complete throw-aways. 

There was a decent sense of suspense throughout the entire series, which was nice, and it didn't rely on jump scares like you might expect modern horror to, which was also nice. The story was interesting, if a bit hard to follow at times, and it actually wrapped up nicely in the final episode. That was extra nice, because I'm used to series finales that leave me either thinking "Aw, I want to see what happens to so-and-so," or "wtf, that resolved things way to hastily." With _Another_, though, there was no goofy deus ex machina at the end (a sliiight twist, but not quite d.e.m.-level), and if there were any loose strings left unresolved, I didn't notice them.

Blablabla, I'd recommend it, just don't expect gore on the level of something like Corpse Party, or suspense on the level of that late 90s, early 00s wave of J-horror that got Hollywood to pay attention (a la _Ringu_ or _Ju On_).

_Sekirei_ is what you'd expect it to be: An ecchi manga with a harem of super-powered chicks with huge t!ts fighting to protect their useless man. It's got the usual tropes of the genre, like the Smart One, the Stuffy One, the Stupid One, the Broody One, and of course the Prepubescent One (they leave her out of the ecchi stuff, thankfully). It's silly, full of dumb anime cliche humor, and plenty of action. It was a nice way to keep from getting too dragged down by a serious anime, which might seem like it defeats the purpose of a serious anime, but I kinda don't need any help bogging down my emotions   . 


I'll most likely watch season 2 of _Sekire_i, but now I need to find another serious anime to watch. Any recommendations for scary stuff? What's the scariest anime you guys have seen?


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

^ Check out the Higurashi series. They're supposedly mix horror and mystery well enough, but it was another series that I showed a bit of interest back in the day but neglected entirely. So let me know how it goes.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Dammit, now I'm going to have to start reading the Sekirei manga. Season two ended on a huge "to be continued"...

...six f*cking years ago.

Apparently there will likely never be a season three, but also season two went so far off the rails compared to the manga that even if there was a season three, they'd have to pretty much make almost the entire thing out of filler. Lame.

So yeah. Now I have to read the manga to see how it turns out, haha. Bad enough I ended up reading all 206 issues of Prison School after watching the anime, now I have something else to go through. I try to stay away from manga, because if you think binge watching an anime is time consuming, holy sh!t you should see me when I get into "let's read manga all day" mode.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Bloody_Inferno said:


> ^ Check out the Higurashi series. They're supposedly mix horror and mystery well enough, but it was another series that I showed a bit of interest back in the day but neglected entirely. So let me know how it goes.



I watched the first eight episodes of Higurashi no Naku Koro ni, and to be honest, unless it get _a lot_ better later on, you aren't really missing out. Some poking around online reveals that consensus is that episodes 3 and 4 are the creepiest/scariest ones of the series, and if they're as good as it gets, my hopes aren't high for the rest of it.

One of the biggest problems is that the animation _sucks_. Like... filler throw-away episodes of Bleach level sucks. It's just not good. Compound that with the show's inclusion of an inordinate amount of goofy animation tropes you'd expect more from a light-hearted comedy series, and just just tears down nearly all suspense or atmosphere is might've had. I've seen some people saying that it could really use a remake, and I think I agree. 

I suppose credit where credit is due, episodes 3 and 4 were pretty decent, but they'd have been so much better with better animation, production, and direction. Like... you know what they were going for, but it was just so poorly executed that it's hard to really appreciate the story they're trying to present. It's actually weird to think that whoever owns the intellectual property it's based on (first some games then a manga) gave the anime the greenlight looking like it does. Iono. I'm no expert, I guess.

Another weird thing is that it's broken down into "chapters" that are usually around 4 episodes each (some fewer, some more), with each containing its own story arc...

...and the storyline resets with each arc. Like... completely resets. After episode 4, episode 5 started with all the characters who had died alive again and the timeline rewound back to beginning, then the story played out again with a completely different ending. I guess I can't say that _every_ arc resets the timeline, but that's the impression I got from reading what people had to say about the series after I watched 1-8. I could be wrong, and I imagine I'll find out if and when I bother to watch another arc or two.

Think I might try something different, though. A couple other "suspenseful" titles I saw thrown around that sound promising are _Shiki_ and _Shinsekai Yori_, but I'm honestly a bit worried that horror anime just won't be able to live up to its live action cinematic counterparts.


----------



## Don Vito

Grand Moff Tim said:


> It's actually weird to think that whoever owns the intellectual property it's based on (first some games then a manga) gave the anime the greenlight looking like it does. Iono. I'm no expert, I guess.


This is the original art in Higurashi.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Well that begins to explain it, I guess.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Grand Moff Tim said:


> Think I might try something different, though. A couple other "suspenseful" titles I saw thrown around that sound promising are _Shiki_ and _Shinsekai Yori_, but I'm honestly a bit worried that horror anime just won't be able to live up to its live action cinematic counterparts.



I ended up watching _Shinsekai Yori_, and though I definitely wouldn't call it horror or suspense, it was seriously _super_ good. It had a couple animation consistency hiccups, but apart from that, man. It's taking a lot of effort here to not drop too many superlatives and build it up to the point that it couldn't live up to the hype.

The story has some confusing bits, but it all makes sense eventually, and it's definitely worth watching through to the end. It's like... I don't know. Try to imagine if Tolkien rewrote the screenplay to _Scanners_ and then handed it off to Kurosawa, and you'll have the beginnings of an idea about the story/setting. I don't know if i can say more than that without spoiling things that will be more fun to realize for yourself.

Not sure I want to dive into anything new right away now. It'll be really hard to follow that. Guess I'll just watch more ecchi harem manga, since I have completely different expectations of that.  

EDIT: It might behoove me to add a warning that it does get a bit rooty tooty fresh and fruity for exactly one episode. You guys seems like a pretty open-minded bunch, so I doubt a little yaoi will dissuade you, just be aware that it's there. It surprised me a bit, but it does make sense in the context of the story.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Finished watching _Shiki_ today. I think it suffered a bit from My Expectations Were Too High Going In Syndrome, since it was on quite a few lists and threads I found for horror anime recommendations. 

That's not to say it was bad, of course. If you've got some time and are patient with your anime, then you should definitely check it out. The concept is interesting, and it raises some interesting moral/philosophical points, but the main issue is it takes *SO. FRIGGING. LONG.* to really get good. It spends a lot of time building up the story, and has more interlocking story elements than you realize at first.They do all come together nicely, you just have to really be patient to get to the pay-off.

That doesn't mean that none of the earlier episodes are good or anything. There are definitely some good moments fairly early on, but you won't hit a _really_ good episode until #10, IMO, and you're probably have to watch at least through 8 to get a decent feel for the series. Incidentally, that seems to be the magic number I've arrived at: If I'm not feeling a series by 8 episodes in, I probably won't really be able to get in to it. Anyway, though, it gets pretty damned good by the last four or five episodes, so it's worth sticking with it to the end.

Story and pacing aside, the voice acting was decent (I watch subs), and the animation was... unimpressive, but at least it was consistent. I didn't completely care for the character design, but at least I don't remember any drops in quality. That's always nice in a 20+ episode series. Certainly more than I could say of _Shinsekai Yori_, even if I enjoyed that one much more as a whole.

One final note is that the intro song for the first half of the series is super f_u_cking irritating. Well, maybe not the entire song, but it starts out with some of the most jarring caterwauling I've ever heard in an intro. If it bugs you, too, the intro is about 1:30 long, so you can just skip it every time, lol.

Following my "watch one serious show then one goofy show" routine, I also watched the entire 12 episode run of _Shimoneta: A Boring World Where the Concept of Dirty Jokes Doesn&#8217;t Exist_ (*whew*) today.

As seems to be a recurring theme with stuff I've been watching, if you don't like ecchi, don't watch it . If you do like it (or at least don't mind it) and you haven't checked this series out, you should probably do so right away. It's godd_a_mned hilarious. Maybe not quite _Prison School_ hilarious, but it's up there. Just dumb, goofy, innuendo-laden fun. 

The basic premise is that severe censorship laws have been enacted in Japan, to the point that everyone wears a personal monitoring device, and they can be prosecuted for saying banned words. People have become so sheltered that they often don't know a lewd thing when they see it. The protagonists of the series form a perverted "terrorist" cell that operates by exposing people to filthy language and erotic material, in an attempt to enlighten them. It's exactly as stupid as it sounds, and it's wonderful. Highly recommended.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Uff, someone's been eating anime for breakfast!  For some reason, it really pleases me that you're so into it and keep posting reviews. Sadly, I haven't watched most of those shows, so I wish I could comment, but now I'm a lot more curious to watch them at some point! 

--------

In other news, this has been making rounds online:

This is.what Disney princesses would look like if.they were anime characters

And the complete DeviantArt gallery: Mari945's DeviantArt Gallery

I find her Mulan to be one of the most beautiful interpretations of a female lead that I've seen, the other being sakimichan's (first version of) San, from Princess Mononoke (which I loved so much I personally bought a print of it from her and got her to sign it  it is now one of my favorite pieces on my room's walls). I really liked Rapunzel and Merida, too. Some of her other art is really cool, too. It's good eye candy if you have a minute to spare.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Alberto7 said:


> ^ Uff, someone's been eating anime for breakfast!



You aren't kidding. One of the perks of being a grade school teacher, I guess: Winter Vacation. I had way more days off this winter than I was even anticipating, and I threw them all away watching TV 

To sum up what I've watched since January began...

Stuff I watched every episode of:

_Psycho-Pass
Tokyo Ghoul
Shinsekai Yori
Highschool DxD
Rosario x Vampire
Sekirei
Prison School
Shiki
Corpse Party
Durarara
Sword Art Online
Shimoneta
Rin: Daughters of Mnemosyne
Another
Strike the Blood
Kill la Kill
One Punch Man_

Stuff I started but haven't finished yet:

_Mushishi
To Love Ru
Gunslinger Girls
Samurai Champloo_

Stuff I started and probably don't intend to finish:

_Higurashi no Naku Koro_ ni

...And stuff I watched that isn't anime, because why not:

_Atelier
Arrow
Jessica Jones
Daredevil
Gotham_


Yikes. 
Sooooo yeah. I've had a lot of free time, hahaha.


----------



## mrdm53

I do really want someone do the Umineko Answer Arc season. I've played Umineko's VN arc until episode 6 then dropped it because it was so weird.


----------



## mrdm53

Grand Moff Tim said:


> You aren't kidding. One of the perks of being a grade school teacher, I guess: Winter Vacation. I had way more days off this winter than I was even anticipating, and I threw them all away watching TV
> 
> To sum up what I've watched since January began...
> 
> Stuff I watched every episode of:
> 
> _Psycho-Pass
> Tokyo Ghoul
> Shinsekai Yori
> Highschool DxD
> Rosario x Vampire
> Sekirei
> Prison School
> Shiki
> Corpse Party
> Durarara
> Sword Art Online
> Shimoneta
> Rin: Daughters of Mnemosyne
> Another
> Strike the Blood
> Kill la Kill
> One Punch Man_
> 
> Stuff I started but haven't finished yet:
> 
> _Mushishi
> To Love Ru
> Gunslinger Girls
> Samurai Champloo_
> 
> Stuff I started and probably don't intend to finish:
> 
> _Higurashi no Naku Koro_ ni
> 
> ...And stuff I watched that isn't anime, because why not:
> 
> _Atelier
> Arrow
> Jessica Jones
> Daredevil
> Gotham_
> 
> 
> Yikes.
> Sooooo yeah. I've had a lot of free time, hahaha.



Are you interested in old school anime? Then try Neon Genesis Evangelion, but skip episode 25-26 and rush through End of Evangelion.

One of the best anime ever.

Oh and i dare to challenge you to marathon UC Gundam series, start from original gundam through Char's Counter Attack


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

mrdm53 said:


> Are you interested in old school anime? Then try Neon Genesis Evangelion, but skip episode 25-26 and rush through End of Evangelion.
> 
> One of the best anime ever.
> 
> Oh and i dare to challenge you to marathon UC Gundam series, start from original gundam through Char's Counter Attack



I'm sure Tim has already seen Evangelion. Right Tim?


----------



## Alberto7

Grand Moff Tim said:


> You aren't kidding. One of the perks of being a grade school teacher, I guess: Winter Vacation. I had way more days off this winter than I was even anticipating, and I threw them all away watching TV
> 
> To sum up what I've watched since January began...
> 
> Stuff I watched every episode of:
> 
> _Psycho-Pass
> Tokyo Ghoul
> Shinsekai Yori
> Highschool DxD
> Rosario x Vampire
> Sekirei
> Prison School
> Shiki
> Corpse Party
> Durarara
> Sword Art Online
> Shimoneta
> Rin: Daughters of Mnemosyne
> Another
> Strike the Blood
> Kill la Kill
> One Punch Man_
> 
> Stuff I started but haven't finished yet:
> 
> _Mushishi
> To Love Ru
> Gunslinger Girls
> Samurai Champloo_
> 
> Stuff I started and probably don't intend to finish:
> 
> _Higurashi no Naku Koro_ ni
> 
> ...And stuff I watched that isn't anime, because why not:
> 
> _Atelier
> Arrow
> Jessica Jones
> Daredevil
> Gotham_
> 
> 
> Yikes.
> Sooooo yeah. I've had a lot of free time, hahaha.



Holy sh*tsnacks, that's A LOT of shows!  That's like my quota for an entire year, and a productive one, too. Even when I have time, I just can't stomach that many shows  my brain numbs out.

Also, not anime, but Jessica Jones was really good stuff. 

The only anime I'm currently still (very slowly) watching is Hunter x Hunter... and just because I need to put it out there: F_U_CK the last 25-or-so episodes of the Chimera Ant arc a thousand times. They are objectively bad and whoever directed those episodes should be hung by a testicle. Like, a single one. The narration is the single most annoying and useless piece of writing I've ever seen. Also, when after 6 or so episodes of NOTHING happening the narrator says, and I quote, "only three minutes have passed since the attack began," I just feel like flipping my sh*t and throwing a shoe at the screen. I can't be friends with anybody who likes those episodes, because they are abysmally narrated torture, and I just don't trust people who enjoy that kind of pain. I'm only watching them for the sake of completion, and because I was promised a good last arc after this one is done. And it's too bad, because I genuinely like some of the characters.

I apologize deeply for the hyperbole, but it really is that bad. The rest of the show is great, but that little bit is driving me nuts.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Bloody_Inferno said:


> I'm sure Tim has already seen Evangelion. Right Tim?



I actually haven't. I realize that's probably blasphemous for someone who professes to be a fan of anime, but I've managed to give it a pass so for. I've heard plenty of people talk about how great it is, but I just can't make myself care about mech stuff. It doesn't really interest me at all. I don't think I've actively watched anything involving mechs since I watched Voltron when I was a kid back in the 80s . The kaiju element doesn't really add any appeal to me, either. 

I understand that the writing is supposed to be pretty good, with references to religion and philosophy or whatever, but meh. Interesting plots or not, it's still mechs punching giant monsters, and that just doesn't get me going. Fair play to all the people who dig it, of course. Lord knows I've demonstrated an interest in stuff that the average fan might not enjoy as much (I think like half of that list up there is ecchi/fanservice ).

Last thing I watched was _Rin: Daughters of Mnemosyne_ yesterday, which wasn't too much of a time investment. The series is only 6 episodes longs, albeit six 45 minute episodes. I watched it because I read about it on a horror anime recommendation list, but it ended up being more gory than scary, and even most of the blood wasn't too bad. 

There was a heaping helping of T&A, which I didn't know going in, but wasn't about to complain about. It wasn't in a goofy fanservice or ecchi sort of way, though; more like in an R-rated movie sort of way. Action, blood, and booty. 

The story was pretty interesting, but nothing mindblowing. Same can be said of the animation and direction, I suppose. It was good, I'm glad I watched it, but I wasn't champing at the bit to come here and tell everyone all about it when it ended . 

I don't know what I'll watch now, though. I only have a couple days before the new school year starts here in Korea, and then I'll have to cut my watching back down dramatically. I'll probably at least finish _Mushishi_, since I'm nearly done with it. I still have a lot of _To Love Ru_ left to watch, but the thing about that series is so far there are no real story arcs. Every episode contains a complete story. That's nice when I just have time to sit and watch an episode or two of something, but it doesn't really do much to draw me in long-term. For the unfamiliar, it's yet another goofy ass ecchi manga, so avoid it if that isn't for you, haha.

I dunno. Recommend me something short and great.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Grand Moff Tim said:


> I actually haven't. I realize that's probably blasphemous for someone who professes to be a fan of anime, but I've managed to give it a pass so for. I've heard plenty of people talk about how great it is, but I just can't make myself care about mech stuff. It doesn't really interest me at all. I don't think I've actively watched anything involving mechs since I watched Voltron when I was a kid back in the 80s . The kaiju element doesn't really add any appeal to me, either.



Fair enough. And that's totally cool not to be interested in Evangelion, or mecha/kaiju in general. 

Ah, Mnemosyne. I watched through all that just because of Galneryus alone.  It was ok overall, nothing mind blowing but just a nice way to pass time for me. 



> Recommend me something short and great.



Assuming you haven't seen Puella Magi Madoka Magica yet, there's always that. Bloody hell, Alberto's been pestering me to watch that show, now here I am recommending it.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Ah, Mnemosyne. I watched through all that just because of Galneryus alone.



Hahaha, I didn't even know Galneryus had anything to do with it until I started watching it. The intro started and I was like "Oooh, riffs." Then the vocals came in and I was like "Hey wait a minute..." 
It was a pleasant surprise.


----------



## dr_game0ver

> Ah, Mnemosyne. I watched through all that just because of Galneryus alone


Is there an other reason to watch it?



> Recommend me something short and great.


Have you watched TO? it's only 2 (45mns) episodes long.


----------



## Alberto7

Agreed on Mnemosyne. It's funny though, I've known about Syu (Galneyrus's guitarist) for years and years (mainly because of this YouTube video), but I never knew of Galneryus until I watched Mnemosyne. I still listen to the OP and ED songs pretty frequently. The anime was fun, but nothing to write home about.

Also, while it's fair game not to be into mechs (I don't like them either, generally speaking), I'll point out that Evangelion is, to me and many others, not even a mech anime. Sure, there are giant "robots" *cough*creepygianthumans*cough*, but it's almost funny how secondary to the plot they are. With that said, the action scenes are, to this day, second to none in the world of anime. I will also say that while it is true that it should be watched at some point, and as significant as that anime is for me, there are still far more entertaining things to watch out there. 



Bloody_Inferno said:


> Alberto's been pestering me to watch that show, now here I am recommending it.


----------



## Don Vito

I didn't like mecha at the time that I watched Evangelion, and now I consider it one of my top 5 favorite shows. 

BTW, has anybody seen Dagashi Kashi? The anime started last month and it's been clogging up my feeds. One of the girls looks like Kaoru from Danna Ga Nani, so I am much interested >.>

_Hello!_


----------



## Ikiharmaa

tbh I only gave NGE a 6 or 7 out of 10, wasn't too entertaining or interesting to me.. I quite cannot get the hype apart from it coming up with new stuff back in the day, kind of like master of puppets or something. It does have some good stuff going for it though, like the animation quality.

but yea, it didn't click with me, that's all I guess.



lately I've just been reading the usual light-hearted manga that I follow, New Game! Tomo-chan wa Onna no ko! Kawaii Joushi wo Komarasetai, Dungeon Meshi, Helck, Horimiya, and so on.


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## Bloody_Inferno

Since I promised myself (and to anyone remotely interested) that I was gonna do more writeups on anime composers (this is a music forum after all ), I'd thought now's a good time to stop procrastinating. 

After Kajiura, I was gonna either go for Naoki Sato, or Hiroyuki Sawano, but since the latter seems popular lately and much easier to write about at the moment...






A relative youngblood and newcomer in the soundtrack biz, Hiroyuki Sawano bursted into the scene in 2006 with (ahem) eroge anime, though those were less than stellar in success. It wasn't until 2009 when Sawano was commissioned to score the anime adaptation of Capcom's Sengoku Basara series. The series is a heavily romanticised and extremely over-exaggerated retelling of the Sengoku Jidai: the most chaotic civil warfare during Japan's feudal times. And exaggeration it is in every sense of the word (think Samurai setting directed by Michael Bay, but more awesome, epic and goofy all at once). The big theme of the series allowed Sawano to go all balls out on the soundtrack. 





Seriously, when I first heard these in context, I wanted to grab something hard and swing it around hoping everything I hit explodes. 

Sengoku Basara showed the promise that Sawano was on the way to something unique and special. He stayed on the Basara series up until it's end The Last Party in 2011. 

Side note: Sawano didn't do the games. Those were done by Masahiro Aoki, aka Godspeed, yes that Godspeed. 

2010, showed no sign of slowing down. He landed a scoring job for the then current instalment of the Gundam franchise: Gundam Unicorn. And his epic meter was raised even higher with the knob cranked, ripped out and thrown away. 





Being a massive franchise, this was a big deal for Sawano. From 2011 onwards, he was busy with some A-list anime. 

From Blue Exorcist...



...to Guilty Crown...



But it was 2013 where Sawano unleashes the 1 2 punch that proved that he mean't business while blowing away everyone in the process. You guys know the 2 that's coming...


First was the fan favorite Shingeki No Kyojin/Attack On Titan...



...then second was Kill La Kill.



We all know how awesome those OSTs were right? 


And from 2013 to present he's more popular than ever with other greats from Aldnoah.Zero, Seven Deadly Sins and Seraph Of The End. His next upcoming anime score will be for K&#333;tetsuj&#333; no Kabaneri/Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress, due out next month. 


Though funny enough, my favorite of Sawano's work is surprisingly not from an anime, but from a game: Xenoblade Chronicles X. From following his work since Basara, I knew he was gonna be a great choice despite having heavy hitting titans compose the predecessor. But with a main theme like this:



...it's safe to say the game's in good hands. Already getting accolades across the board, that's mighty impressive for a game OST debut. An accolade we haven't seen since Yasunori Mitsuda debuting with Chrono Trigger. 



Sawano, like Kajiura, also chooses selected vocalists to collaborate on for OP, insert and ED songs and go under the name SawanoHiroyuki[nZk]. Such singers are Aimer for Gundam Unicorn, Mizuki for Aldnoah.Zero, Cyua for Attack On Titan, and a ton of others like Mika Kobayashi, David Whitaker (yes, that guy), Aimee Blackschleger and more for various works through out his career. 


I'd say that's pretty impressive for a 10 year run from a Gen-X-er.  




If there's 2 words I can describe Sawano's compositional style it's these: KITCHEN SINK. In terms of composition, instrumentation, arrangement, he throws it in with reckless abandon, and yet still remains creative about it. The results, as you've heard in the examples above, are dynamic, epic and cover a lot of sonic territory. Also notice that militaristic themes are one of Sawano's greatest strengths. And Sawano will musically travel to all the ends of the earth to achieve his goal. Fusing electronic and military drums isn't enough, but will also use all sorts of exotic instruments like Latin and African percussion and digeridoos. Vocally, he has no limits either. Tribal and gothic choirs are all well and good, but then throw in some Vocaloid, Americana, Freestyle Rap and whatever the hell else... and it all still fits into one cohesive body of work Sawano can uniquely call his own. That's talent right there. 

Another thing you'll notice with his style is that each theme has quite a few movements, even the short ones. Buildups, breakdowns and silence are all used effectively and uniquely to the point where songs get more engaging after repeated listens. 

However, Sawano still has his shortcomings. Epic bombastic themes are often his bread and butter and with all the heavy instrumentation used, especially with percussion, both electronic and otherwise, all that can get a little exhausting at times. Thankfully, Sawano's emotive moments are all great as standalone pieces as well. 

Possibly Sawano's greatest weakness are the lyricism of his vocal driven tracks. Insisting that almost all his non OP/ED songs are to be sung in English, German among other languages in favour Japanese, simply because Sawano loves the sound of the language (I don't think he got the Engrish memo). Lyrical results are often lost in translation, despite the songs themselves rocking, leaving some unintentionally hillarious and immature results. 

Xenoblade X wasn't safe either. When the OST was released before the game, it already was the most controversial battle theme heard in a game since.. well, that chocobo theme a few paragraphs back. Obviously all the music works better in context; its the nature of the soundtrack beast. And a lot of these (namely Black Tar) works so much better in their respective contexts. 

Lastly, and this may be more of a minor annoyance than anything. I've mentioned earlier in this thread that Sawano likes to use weird song titles. A lot of the Kill La Kill, Attack On Titan and Xenoblade X names for instances look like formula jibberish that'll make Aphex Twin blush. Sawano himself has stated that they don't really mean anything and encourages not to take them too seriously. At least he has a sense of humour about it. 

Overall, with the density and large scope that covers Sawano's work, it can be a polarising experience to go through, however I still think that's a damn good body of work considering that's only a short time compared to his anime titan peers like Joe Hisashi, Kenji Kawai, Yoko Kanno etc... and personally, I think Sawano has paid his dues as a bonfide anime composer giant. Here's to another 10 or so years of great awesome music. 








I'll see if I can continue on with these composer shtick on a monthly basis. Otherwise if I can't or you don't want me to, feel free to hit me in the head with something heavy.


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## Don Vito

Cool this is my favorite anime song it's a 6th grader singing about boobs.


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## Alberto7

Omg, I'm gonna need to take an afternoon to thoroughly go through that Sawano post!  Thanks for posting that dude 

On the other hand, the recent Evangelion talk on this thread made me go rewatch a few scenes. Naturally, I ended up rewatching this legendary little piece of history, and had to post it for its own sake:

(watch from 11:34 if you haven't seen it and want to avoid spoilers... even if said spoilers really don't mean much for the overall plot anyway, if you think about it)

I can't get over how beautifully animated and acted out that whole scene is; it's f*cking horrifying.


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## Grand Moff Tim

Decided to bite the bullet and watch Evangelion after all. I figure it's just one of those series I'm "supposed to" watch as a fan of anime, in much the same way that I think a fan of metal should at least listen to the first couple Sabbath albums even if that style isn't really their thing.

That said, I've watched nine episodes so far, and if every single character introduced up until now is killed in episode ten, I can't imagine I'll give a sh!t. Not one person in the show at this point isn't insufferable for one reason or another. 

Curiosity about wtf is actually going on in the show's universe will likely be enough to keep me interested, especially if the story picks up a bit, but I'm sure not continuing to watch because I like any of the irritating jackasses introduced so far.

At least by episode 8 or 9 the show is finally breaking out of the formula it had established for the first 6 or 7 episodes...

Minutes 1- 20: Shinji mopes like a little baby.
Minutes 21-23: either A) Shinji continues to mope like a little baby, or B) something interesting finally happens but is over in two [email protected] minutes.
End of episode.

Hopefully it doesn't revert to that formula now that it's moving away from it.


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## mrdm53

Grand Moff Tim said:


> Decided to bite the bullet and watch Evangelion after all. I figure it's just one of those series I'm "supposed to" watch as a fan of anime, in much the same way that I think a fan of metal should at least listen to the first couple Sabbath albums even if that style isn't really their thing.
> 
> That said, I've watched nine episodes so far, and if every single character introduced up until now is killed in episode ten, I can't imagine I'll give a sh!t. Not one person in the show at this point isn't insufferable for one reason or another.
> 
> Curiosity about wtf is actually going on in the show's universe will likely be enough to keep me interested, especially if the story picks up a bit, but I'm sure not continuing to watch because I like any of the irritating jackasses introduced so far.
> 
> At least by episode 8 or 9 the show is finally breaking out of the formula it had established for the first 6 or 7 episodes...
> 
> Minutes 1- 20: Shinji mopes like a little baby.
> Minutes 21-23: either A) Shinji continues to mope like a little baby, or B) something interesting finally happens but is over in two [email protected] minutes.
> End of episode.
> 
> Hopefully it doesn't revert to that formula now that it's moving away from it.



In the end, Shinji still will be pain in the ass.. Don't get your hopes up yet. 

Anyway, just skip the last 2 episodes and jump straight into End of Evangelion. It's more worth it than useless ramblings in episode 25 and 26


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## Alberto7

Grand Moff Tim said:


> Decided to bite the bullet and watch Evangelion after all. I figure it's just one of those series I'm "supposed to" watch as a fan of anime, in much the same way that I think a fan of metal should at least listen to the first couple Sabbath albums even if that style isn't really their thing.





...  seriously though, I agree. The characters are painfully annoying most of the time. The only one I ever gave a sh*t about was Misato, because she keeps a penguin in a fridge (mucho love for PenPen), can handle her beer like a champ, and is an outright badass. Asuka was... a whiny sh*thead most of the time, but has one of the best fighting scenes in anime history. Shinji is an annoying little sh*t, and it's impossible to feel anything towards Rei. Like mrdm53 said though, the whole anime is just sadness and unintelligible despair, with the word "unintelligible" being the main trope. With that said, there is still enough left out in the open to keep you interested. After the show, you'll likely want to go to the Eva Wiki and read up on fan theories, etc., all of which will melt your goddamn brain.

But it's okay. They made up for most things with the Rebuild of Evangelion films (Eva 1.11, Eva 2.22, Eva 3.33, and the yet-to-be-released-if-ever Eva 4.44). They made Shinji into a surprisingly likeable character in those films, and the plot changes a lot towards the end of the 2nd movie (with the third one being completely different) to keep things fresh.


----------



## Don Vito

Grand Moff Tim said:


> Minutes 1- 20: Shinji mopes like a little baby.
> Minutes 21-23: either A) Shinji continues to mope like a little baby, or B) something interesting finally happens but is over in two [email protected] minutes.
> End of episode.





Don Vito circa 2015 said:


> I thought Shinji was gonna be a hothead shonen guy, but he turned out to be a total crybaby, which hits me in my gayness via Armin Arlert.


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## Grand Moff Tim

Welp, That's _Evangelion_ watched. 

It really got me thinking: What did I do to upset the guys on the SSO anime thread? Why would they recommend that I inflict that show upon myself?

Man. I'm not sure I can think of anything good to say about it. I'll respect that you fellas like it, though, and keep the many, _many_ negative things I have to say about it to myself.

Before anyone suggests it, no. I'm not going to watch the movies. I'm not going to watch the supplemental stuff. I'm not going to go read about any of it. I watched the series, I'm done with it, now I'll be able to say I've seen it, and I'll understand more references and recognize more cosplays. I feel absolutely no need whatsoever to involve myself with this particular intellectual property any further.

I do, however, feel the need to find something I'll actually enjoy to watch. I only have three days off left and I'll have to spend at least one of those throwing together some lesson materials, so it's time to start poking around for something that looks interesting.


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## dr_game0ver

there is Mankatsu, a compilation of short stories based off of the works of Monkey Punch.


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## Ikiharmaa

Preach it brother!


Not like our tastes were really similar though, but I do feel kind of lonely on sso tbh..


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## Bloody_Inferno

Grand Moff Tim said:


> Welp, That's _Evangelion_ watched.
> 
> It really got me thinking: What did I do to upset the guys on the SSO anime thread? Why would they recommend that I inflict that show upon myself?
> 
> Man. I'm not sure I can think of anything good to say about it. I'll respect that you fellas like it, though, and keep the many, _many_ negative things I have to say about it to myself.
> 
> Before anyone suggests it, no. I'm not going to watch the movies. I'm not going to watch the supplemental stuff. I'm not going to go read about any of it. I watched the series, I'm done with it, now I'll be able to say I've seen it, and I'll understand more references and recognize more cosplays. I feel absolutely no need whatsoever to involve myself with this particular intellectual property any further.
> 
> I do, however, feel the need to find something I'll actually enjoy to watch. I only have three days off left and I'll have to spend at least one of those throwing together some lesson materials, so it's time to start poking around for something that looks interesting.



I was waiting until you finished the series to finally say what I wanted to say:

*IT'S PERFECTLY FINE TO DISLIKE EVANGELION.*

There. Finally.  And that's general statement as well. 

That's coming from a fan who has it in high regard. However, it's actually not one of my highest when it comes to recommending to others. I certainly won't try to shove it down others throats claiming this is what anime is all about (but I did ask if you've seen it due to the ubiquity of the series) because it's the sort of anime that creates polarising responses. Rather, let people watch it themselves and make up their own mind. 

And I'm well fully aware of it's flaws... there's a lot. 

And I can understanding you hating it, and with a passion it may seem. And that's totally fine. Hell, I'll just say that I can't stand any ecchi anime (unless it has Galneryus in it apparently), and you like those, so that's cool. 

I can actually go on and on about all the terrible things about Eva, arguably more than you could, all up to the point where I will tear this beloved series apart like a savage wolf, but I've been doing enough long posts here as of late so, let's all agree to let that pass.


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## Alberto7

My apologies you didn't like it, I suggested it genuinely, not just to f*ck with you!  I thought there might be a good chance you'd like it.

With that said, I agree with the above statement. I could never rag on someone for not liking Evangelion. You are neither the first one that I've pushed to watch it, nor the first one of my recommendees that has hated it. Heck, If I watched it for the first time today, I probably wouldn't think much of it much either (aside from the visual style), especially the latter half of the show, where it just devolves into a clusterf*ck of nothing.

Maybe I should have suggested that you watch the movies first, because I feel like the first two redeem what's wrong with the first half of the show, but alas, no point in beating a dead horse now.  Good to know you gave it a shot though!

EDIT: f*ck, I just realized that my subscription expired. Goodbye, large avatars


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## neotronic

Grand Moff Tim said:


> I do, however, feel the need to find something I'll actually enjoy to watch. I only have three days off left and I'll have to spend at least one of those throwing together some lesson materials, so it's time to start poking around for something that looks interesting.



Try this: https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/encyclopedia/anime.php?id=6278

Its different from what you watched, maybe it will surprise you.


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## Grand Moff Tim

Believe it or not, I actually _really_ wanted to like _Evangelion_. It's an iconic series, and I've seen some pretty sweet merch available, haha. 

I know I said I avoided it because I'm not really in to mech/kaiju stuff, but in the end that particular aspect of the show didn't bug me at all (in fact, it actually has me wanting to give mech shows another shot ). Even after that first "review" I posted about not caring about any of the characters, I was still holding on to hope. It's not like I've never enjoyed an anime with a character or two that I couldn't stand (*CoughCoughTachikomaCough*).

I do think it's possible that I might have enjoyed it more several years ago, before I started to zero in more on what I do and don't like from an anime series. Hell, I'm still evolving in that regard, but apparently at this point in my fandom there were just too many things in the "don't like" column for me. Perhaps at some point in the future I might be able to enjoy it more. Who knows.

Until that theoretical time comes, I'll just have to sit here wondering how the show has the iconic status it does, and why the streets of Tokyo didn't run red with blood as the skyline burned to the ground as a result of the violent riots those last two episodes surely must have caused.

CONGRATULATIONS!


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## Alberto7

I have never ROFLMAO'd this hard at a comments section before


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Grand Moff Tim said:


> Until that theoretical time comes, I'll just have to sit here wondering how the show has the iconic status it does, and why the streets of Tokyo didn't run red with blood as the skyline burned to the ground as a result of the violent riots those last two episodes surely must have caused.



Actually... that's sorta what happened... well not really, but kinda close enough. 

It wasn't on a grand 'Green Lantern HEAT' scale, but it was enough to make End Of Evangelion.



Alberto7 said:


> I have never ROFLMAO'd this hard at a comments section before


----------



## Alberto7

^ Semantic satiation happens rather quickly with the Japanese version. I quickly begin hearing "o-me-ret-to" (omelette), and then I just hear sounds. Also, need to watch Gintama.  *Feels sinful*


----------



## mrdm53

For more peaceful anime, try Haibane Renmei


----------



## Alberto7

^ Haibane Renmei was a borderline religious experience for me (no pun intended). What a cathartic anime to watch. Soooo much depth to it.

I feel like Ginko from Mushishi could have perfectly made a cameo in that show, for some reason.


----------



## Alberto7

So, this will be a thing:

Netflix is producing an original anime series with the studio behind Ghost in the Shell | The Verge


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Spent yesterday bed ridden sick, so my usual activities were limited. But I also has a musical obligation to fulfill so...

Used up the whole day watching the 7 Kara No Kyoukai movies including the short epilogue. Loved every minute of it. A series I really should have watched years ago, but better late than never I guess.  

And since Alberto's pretty much praised the series throughout this thread (and rightfully so), I'll keep my overview in point form:

- It's a Type Moon anime, so it shares tons of themes and motifs from the other series. And being Type Moon, expect the visuals and art aesthetic to be top notch. 

- I didn't realize I already had associated myself with Type Moon on the Melty Blood games. 

- Possibly the slowest pace of any of the Type Moon anime. But here it's a great thing. It's also the most topically mature of any of the Type Moon series. 

- The first 4 movies are played in a non canonical narrative so it'll confuse the hell out of a lot of people at first viewing. I initially thought why would they do this especially when episodes are in 1hr to 2hr movie durations, but then I thought, Type Moon have already done this before: all canonical storytelling was thrown right out the window with the Fate Series. So yeah, because Type Moon. 

- Actually, that non canonical order actually gives more time for the characters themselves time to breathe and develop, but it does require your utmost attention. There's always viewing it in it's canon order, but better do that after watching it in it's original intended order first. 

- I don't need to say how awesome the music is because I've already done that a few pages before. That said, The Seventh Heaven album lives in my car and gets heavy rotation to the point of punishment. But hearing the songs in the context they were intended for really made me warm inside. Especially in Episode 4. All the lyrics are also thematically intertwined with their intended episodes too. It also shows the eerily sinister undercurrent of the lyrics to the song Oblivious... 

- Wearing a leather jacket over a kimono is funny to me for some reason. 

- There's some icky themes tackled in Episode 6, but thankfully not in an overindulgent fanservice way like say... Angel Sanctuary. The song Fairytale played throughout does mask it a bit giving more innocence... or make it creepier, you decide. 

- The epilogue, while a nice sentiment, felt too much of an afterthought, and went longer than I though it should've had. Episode 7 already had plenty going on, so this sits fine on it's own. But I thought it could've been handed better and shorter. 

- Episode 8 is a Gaiden/Side Story so I'll watch that some time later. Didn't want to see it through yesterday considering the massive marathon this series already puts you through. 



That was longer than what I intended.  So yeah, TL/DR: Go see this series.


----------



## Alberto7

^ That post just made me so happy.  I think you're the first person I get to watch Kara no Kyoukai.

But yeah, episode 6 is quite the oddball within the series, but I like it for what it is. Make sure you watch Mirai Fukkuin (Future Gospel) at some point, as the side story is pretty cool, and seeing what Shiki is up to 10 years after the events of Kara no Kyoukai is interesting.

The epilogue OVA is very simple in its presentation (but beautiful with its imagery), but provides a lot of insight into Shiki's character(s), as abstract as it may be.

EDIT: also, this is a thing happening right now Picture Exhibit: The Garden of Sinners. I'd love to buy one of the original prints, but at an alleged $1000+ a piece, I'm happy just looking at them on my screen.  EDITCEPTION: nvm, this happened almost two years ago, lel.

EDIT 2: +1 point for red leather + kimono aesthetic. It's hilarious, yet charming in a weird way.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> ^ That post just made me so happy.  I think you're the first person I get to watch Kara no Kyoukai.
> 
> But yeah, episode 6 is quite the oddball within the series, but I like it for what it is. Make sure you watch Mirai Fukkuin (Future Gospel) at some point, as the side story is pretty cool, and seeing what Shiki is up to 10 years after the events of Kara no Kyoukai is interesting.
> 
> The epilogue OVA is very simple in its presentation (but beautiful with its imagery), but provides a lot of insight into Shiki's character(s), as abstract as it may be.
> 
> EDIT: also, this is a thing happening right now Picture Exhibit: The Garden of Sinners. I'd love to buy one of the original prints, but at an alleged $1000+ a piece, I'm happy just looking at them on my screen.  EDITCEPTION: nvm, this happened almost two years ago, lel.
> 
> EDIT 2: +1 point for red leather + kimono aesthetic. It's hilarious, yet charming in a weird way.




It was inevitable I'd watch the series, but I suppose I should thank you for giving that last push over the cliff. 



I'll probably watch Mirai Fukkuin soon, IE sometime this week.


In the meantime, here's Keiko trying to bite Wakana in the neck.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Dammit, Japan.

I thought I'd wrap up my anime-tastic winter break with some more goofy ecchi comedy before I have to buckle down and start making lesson materials for the new school year. You know, to end things on a light and silly note.

But no. Japan had other plans.

It started out well enough, with watching both seasons of _Kore Wa Zombie Desu Ka_. Dumb, funny, plenty of action: Just what I needed. Only real disappointment is that the DVDs didn't sell particularly well, apparently, so there probably won't ever be a season three. Oh well. There's still the manga, if I want to know what happens badly enough.

But then I got greedy. 

I figured hey, I've still got time to watch one more short series. As luck(?) would have it, I saw some recommendations for _Hentai &#332;ji to Warawanai Neko_ (The Hentai Prince and the Stony Cat), so I watched that.

It started out well enough. Comedy, pervy jokes, pratfalls, all that fun stuff. Towards the end, though, they started to sneak in subtle references to heavier themes. Not enough to notice too much at first, but it built to the point that in the final episode


Spoiler



the main characters are sent back in time to see their younger selves watch one of their mothers die of lung disease, and then one kid sacrifices his memories to the other kids so they can have his happy memories of their mother, but he'll never be able to remember his happy childhood friendship with them.



See, Japan, this is why we can't have nice things. I don't want to play with you anymore.


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


>



I scream inside every time I see them being all cute, and this is such an instance.



Grand Moff Tim said:


> See, Japan, this is why we can't have nice things. I don't want to play with you anymore.



 Japan loves you though, and it will entice you to play with it again, and you will take the bait. It's a fact of life. There's no going back after you fall for it the first time.

Watch the first episode of Gakkou Gurashi if you want a ridiculous twist. Just the first episode. You don't need to watch more if you don't want to. Do not read up on it online, as it will spoil absolutely everything. The whole show is fine, but that first episode is something that I've already made 6 people watch (while I was with them), and I've watched it 3 times on my own. It's brutal each and every single time.


----------



## NicePants

I'm pretty hype for the new Berserk anime. It's almost enough to assuage the pain that Miura went on hiatus until summer right after he got them off the ....ing boat.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> Also, need to watch Gintama.  *Feels sinful*





Go see it. 

Of all the meta-humour themed anime out there, Gintama is the most upfront and shamelessly unapologetic about it, up to the point where the filler is as strong or if not stronger than the actual story arcs themselves. 

The more you watch the show and pick up parody references, the more you feel like it's making fun of you as the viewer for watching too much anime, as well as poking fun of the anime you've watched and loved. 

Also:



Spoiler



That whole Evangelion parody is not just that Congratulations part. They retread THE ENTIRE FREAKING EPISODE 26 VERBATIM. Because they can.



Seriously, watch it. 






Go on...


----------



## bouVIP

Hey guys it's been awhile haha I've literally been spending my entire life playing Kantai Collection. It's my life now....


Anyone watching Konosuba? It's one of the few things I'm watching this season and holy crap it's so funny. The characters are all terrible people teaming up together which makes for some great comedy.


----------



## wakjob

How is that Durarara?

I just watched episode 1 of Black Bullet. Not bad.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

wakjob said:


> How is that Durarara?



I enjoyed it. I didn't really like it when the English dub was on TV a while back, but I gave it another shot recently when the sub showed up on Netflix and really liked it.


----------



## mrdm53

bouVIP said:


> Hey guys it's been awhile haha I've literally been spending my entire life playing Kantai Collection. It's my life now....
> 
> 
> Anyone watching Konosuba? It's one of the few things I'm watching this season and holy crap it's so funny. The characters are all terrible people teaming up together which makes for some great comedy.



A bit refreshing, really. "Transported/ressurected into different world" theme is overused lately (Gun-Ota, Mushoku Tensei, Arifureta, Death March etc).


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Bloody_Inferno said:


> I'll probably watch Mirai Fukkuin soon, IE sometime this week.



That sometime this week happened last night.

While Episode 8 of Kara No Kyoukai is subtitled as a Gaiden/side story, there's actually a few surprises and payoffs that it feels like a logical conclusion to the whole series. It's actually more satisfying than the epilogue...

...just a brief digression: despite the insight to Shiki's character, I still think that the epilogue episode could've been handled better rather than just a punch line at the end of an already character narrative driven series. It's still nice to have, and it works better with Episode 8 following afterwards. 

Back to Mirai Fukkuin:

The episode takes a slight change to the rest of the series and goes for a more brighter tone. And while it's still gloomy (this is Type Moon after all), it's a welcome change after 7 long movies. 

However, my favorite parts are the surprises I mentioned. Keeping it spoiler free: for a side story the payoffs to the main characters are well deserved, even more impressive when one of them is handled mostly off screen. The 2 new focal characters are also fine revelations who do well to carry the movie and while I kinda wish they developed Shizune Seo a bit further, her screen time is still well spent. All of it builds to a third act twist, which I refuse to spoil even if you paid me. Overall a stunning way to use a side story to end a series. 

I was late to the party when I finally stopped procrastinating to watch the Kara No Kyoukai series, but better late than never. Here I am praising it's awesome merits.  The snail paced narrative may put off some viewers though. Then again, my favorite anime films just happen to be Wings Of Honneamise and the first 2 Patlabor films (3rd was ok...), all focus less on action and more on mature and engrossing dialogue that with patience and attention, becomes even more rewarding in it's own right. As I said before: go se the series.



Also side note: I just realized the 2 main protagonists are voiced by the couple Maaya Sakamoto and Kenichi Suzumura, 2 voices I really should've recognized by now.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

So uh... when you watch a lot of anime, is it normal to develop a bit of a crush on a voice actress?

Or am I just _really_ lame?


----------



## bouVIP

Grand Moff Tim said:


> So uh... when you watch a lot of anime, is it normal to develop a bit of a crush on a voice actress?
> 
> Or am I just _really_ lame?



It's perfectly normal to be obsessed with voice actresses....I know I am


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Grand Moff Tim said:


> So uh... when you watch a lot of anime, is it normal to develop a bit of a crush on a voice actress?
> 
> Or am I just _really_ lame?



If you're fine and non obsessive with googling the voice actress' appearance I suppose. 

I did remember meeting the Yuko Miyamura when she was in Melbourne, she was ok. And I don't think I can ever look at Maaya Sakimoto ever again, because she looks exactly like one of my closest friends.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Bloody_Inferno said:


> If you're fine and non obsessive with googling the voice actress' appearance I suppose.



I'm not completely sure what you mean. I googled her to see what she looks like, because of course I did. I'm not like... constantly doing it or going through page after page of pictures, but my curiosity wouldn't let me NOT know.

I look up the names of the voice actresses for characters who I think are portrayed well, and it seems like one in every three times I did that throughout my recent anime binge, the actress was Kana Hanazawa. She's all over the place. I might even start choosing stuff to watch based on what else she's done.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Grand Moff Tim said:


> I'm not completely sure what you mean. I googled her to see what she looks like, because of course I did. I'm not like... constantly doing it or going through page after page of pictures, but my curiosity wouldn't let me NOT know.



That was exactly what I meant.  You're good then. 

Admittedly I'm pretty bad myself, though not with voice actors. I've had different pics of the same singer for my avatar since June 2009... until late last year. That only changed, when I wanted 3 instead of 1.


----------



## Dawn of the Shred

Just got into anime. I love everything on toonami so what else should i check out? Including graphic novels and comic's?


----------



## Ikiharmaa

Grand Moff Tim said:


> the actress was Kana Hanazawa. She's all over the place.



She is, I don't really check up voice actresses that often, but she seems to have played a lot of characters with that somewhat annoying whispery voice lol. Good ones too though, really dig her work in guilty crown, had no idea she also did sugar's voice :0

There's a few voices I like myself, not sure if it's the voice acting or the voice itself, but Takehito Koyasu - MyAnimeList.net has somewhat recognizable voice that rubs me the right way everytime I hear it.. like I just instantly like the characters he voices lol.

Kana Asumi - MyAnimeList.net Does my favourite uh, what's it called, back-in-the-edo-period style voicing as Yukikaze on Dog Days, I should honestly watch the third season too just to hear her again.

And I really like what Miyuki Sawashiro - MyAnimeList.net does: Kanbaru from Bakemonogatari, Honda Masazumi from Kyoukaisenjou no Horizon. I guess I'll need to speed up my schedule to watch Mushishi sooner now that I learnt she does his voice. and Utawarerumono.


----------



## dr_game0ver

Dawn of the Shred said:


> Just got into anime. I love everything on toonami so what else should i check out? Including graphic novels and comic's?



Detroit Metal City!


----------



## Fat-Elf

dr_game0ver said:


> Detroit Metal City!



I have no idea what Toonami is but DMC gets a  and  from me. I was actually planning to rewatch it once again tonight but I was too tired for it. Maybe tomorrow.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Ikiharmaa said:


> She is, I don't really check up voice actresses that often, but she seems to have played a lot of characters with that somewhat annoying whispery voice lol.



Them's fightin' words!

I think what you meant to say is "She seems to have played a lot of characters with that awesome super cute and expressive voice."

Right?
_
RIGHT???_


----------



## Alberto7

The only two voice actors I have ever obsessed a bit over have been Yui Ishikawa and Rikiya Koyama. The only real reason I've ever liked them more than other voice actors is because I've met them in real life (however briefly) and I really like the characters they portray, but that's about it. 

I'm always looking at who plays who when watching an anime, but it's interesting mostly when they've played more than one character I know. I obviously can't tell the little details and nuances of acting in Japanese (much less if I'm not even looking at their facial expressions), so the acting alone isn't usually enough to get me interested in a show.

Like Bloody_Inferno, I do have more of an interest in singers... but I don't think my fixations are as intense as his? 



Grand Moff Tim said:


> I might even start choosing stuff to watch based on what else she's done.



See you in 2018 buddy, good luck.



Dawn of the Shred said:


> Just got into anime. I love everything on toonami so what else should i check out? Including graphic novels and comic's?



Not sure what's on Toonami, but that's a brooooaaaaaddd question.  Anime is as varied as music, including each and every genre of rock and metal and their subgenres.  What do you like and/or feel like at the moment?


----------



## Dawn of the Shred

I like Dragon Ball Z, Dimension W, Samurai. Champloo, Naruto, Kill la Kill, One Piece, Parsayte,


----------



## Don Vito

Anyone outside of US isn't going to know Toonami.

It's mostly action shows, but they used to show stuff like Shin-chan and FCCL every now and again.

I actually just started Dimension W since they aired it last weekend. I also finished Akame Ga Kill because of them, and man was that a Sword Art-tier experience.

Horrible on so many objective levels, but presented in a highly entertaining pacing format.


----------



## Alberto7

Dawn of the Shred said:


> I like Dragon Ball Z, Dimension W, Samurai. Champloo, Naruto, Kill la Kill, One Piece, Parsayte,



Okay, then I'm gonna go ahead and recommend one of my favorite shows: Fate/Zero. Tons of incredibly well animated and choreographed action, great, deep dialogue, and tons of super interesting characters. Gritty, moody, and just overall dark as phuck, too. It's on the heavy/depressing end of the scale though, and comic relief is just occasional (and whenever it happens, it's by the same character. I think that's why everybody loves Iskandar. ).

On the opposite end of the spectrum is a new favorite of mine: One Punch Man. It's like Fate/Zero in that it has incredibly well animated and well choreographed action, witty dialogue, and interesting characters. However, it's as funny as funny gets, it's really light-hearted, and does not take itself seriously at all. If anything, it keeps making fun of itself and the tropes that are normally associated with that style of anime. The action is Dragonball levels of ridiculous, but it's so entertaining. SOOO ENTERTAINING. Also, the music friggin' ROCKS. Go watch it.



Don Vito said:


> Anyone outside of US isn't going to know Toonami.
> 
> It's mostly action shows, but they used to show stuff like Shin-chan and FCCL every now and again.
> 
> I actually just started Dimension W since they aired it last weekend. I also finished Akame Ga Kill because of them, and man was that a Sword Art-tier experience.
> 
> Horrible on so many objective levels, but presented in a highly entertaining pacing format.



It's funny, I actually began watching Toonami when it was first launched on The Cartoon Network at night.  I think pretty much anywhere that gets Cartoon Network will also get Toonami. Same goes for Adult Swim (though I'm not sure if CN and AS go together everywhere).


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

I'm gonna echo One Punch Man as a recommendation. It's simple and to the point, plus it's short enough to enjoy quickly. 

Same with Detroit Metal City. Also helps that the episodes are extremely short, you'll blast through them. 

And assuming you haven't seen it, Rurouni Kenshin... obviously. It's in the familiar territory Toonami viewers are used to, but it gets better in the Kyoto arc. 

The Fate series, may need to take some easing in to, as there's a fair amount of lore building. Start with Fate Stay Night before going Zero and Unlimited Blade Works etc. Speaking of which... 

I'm also adding anime films to the list as they're easier for consumption than binge watching episode runs (but if you have time, go ahead). Ninja Scroll, a timeless classic is definite essential viewing. Hell, even the English dub (and uncut) 1995 Street Fighter Animated film is mandatory viewing. 




Alberto7 said:


> The only two voice actors I have ever obsessed a bit over have been Yui Ishikawa and Rikiya Koyama. The only real reason I've ever liked them more than other voice actors is because I've met them in real life (however briefly) and I really like the characters they portray, but that's about it.
> 
> I'm always looking at who plays who when watching an anime, but it's interesting mostly when they've played more than one character I know. I obviously can't tell the little details and nuances of acting in Japanese (much less if I'm not even looking at their facial expressions), so the acting alone isn't usually enough to get me interested in a show.
> 
> Like Bloody_Inferno, I do have more of an interest in singers... but I don't think my fixations are as intense as his?














Ahem...

To make things even more interesting, a lot of the voice actors, either by their agency or by design, are accomplished singers themselves. Megumi Hasyashibara (probably the biggest example), Nana Mizuki and my friend Mih... I mean, Maaya Sakimoto have almost as many albums as their voice acting credits. And there's Kisho Taniyama, a male voice actor who has his band Granrodeo to strut his vocals. 

And then of course there's the Drama CDs, where almost all voice actors have songs based on their character that they have to sing. And some of those songs rock (if you're into J-pop/J-rock, but let's face it, you're posting in an Anime/Manga thread, so I'm assuming you are). Sure it's another example of the churning pop machine for the masses, but there's also some hidden story and lore buried in these stories obviously aimed for the hardcore fans. 

So in general, don't be surprised if your favorite seiyuu can sing or not already have a few songs/albums under their belt. 

And also... because, Keiko...












I'll see myself out.


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


> And assuming you haven't seen it, Rurouni Kenshin... obviously. It's in the familiar territory Toonami viewers are used to, but it gets better in the Kyoto arc.



Agreed with this. Being such a fan of that franchise and being such an obvious choice, I feel somewhat bad that I forgot about it. 



Bloody_Inferno said:


> The Fate series, may need to take some easing in to, as there's a fair amount of lore building. Start with Fate Stay Night before going Zero and Unlimited Blade Works etc. Speaking of which...



I'd tend to agree, except for the fact that many people disliked the first Fate/Stay Night anime, regardless of Fate/Zero's existence (which is infinitely better, and thus, by contrast, overshadows Stay Night), so it might be a turn-off for the franchise. For the sake of understanding the full story in all its detail, then yeah, Stay Night first, but I think Fate/Zero is a great stand alone. A dense one, but a great one nonetheless. It's what got me started out with the whole Fate franchise. If you do watch Fate/Stay Night first though, I'm sorry and I promise that i gets 100000000% better. 

Also, shut up, UBW f*cking rocked.  It's no Fate/Zero, of course, but, as an adaptation, I thought it was good, and I really liked the new material they added in. If anything, it felt more like the visual novel than Fate/Zero did. Pretty awful as a stand alone though.



Bloody_Inferno said:


> I'll see myself out.



Please do. It's embarrassing. (But like, keep PM-ing me cute Keiko gifs. ) 

In all seriousness though, where on Earth do you find so many Kalafina gifs?  Are you tumblr-ing your life into oblivion?


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> Also, shut up, UBW f*cking rocked.  It's no Fate/Zero, of course, but, as an adaptation, I thought it was good, and I really liked the new material they added in. If anything, it felt more like the visual novel than Fate/Zero did. Pretty awful as a stand alone though.



I think you misunderstood me... What I meant was that, I have yet to see any of the Fate series past Stay Night, you know... procrastinating.  I'm sure UBW rocks, it's Type Moon after all. But the lore of the Fate series is already convoluted as it is so hence why I didn't recommend jumping in head first. And yeah, Stay Night wasn't exactly a good start. 

But I will say that you're right about Zero. Even my sister, the other big Fate advocate I know, that isn't you, will agree. 



> Please do. It's embarrassing. (But like, keep PM-ing me cute Keiko gifs. )
> 
> In all seriousness though, where on Earth do you find so many Kalafina gifs?  Are you tumblr-ing your life into oblivion?



The Canta-Per-Me page and forums. You thought I was bad, they're more obsessive.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Started watching Psycho-Pass. Looks like Gen Urobuchi watched Brazil, Minority Report and Gattaca and decided to make an anime out of it and make it as Urobuchi as possible. So far so good. 

Also didn't realize that they made an anime based on the God Eater games. I'll probably start watching that really soon since I've been on a Go Shiina kick lately.

EDIT:



Bloody_Inferno said:


> And yeah, Stay Night wasn't exactly a good start.



I'm not sure if it made any difference, but considering the source material is of eroge genre after all, you take away all that aspect and there wasn't much there to begin with, resulting in Stay Night being average at best. 

Then again, I tend to avoid all things eroge anyway... just not interested. So I really don't know how it suffered when adapted to anime. 

Hmm, after Psycho Pass, I probably really really REALLY should watch Fate Zero for real now.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Started watching Psycho-Pass. Looks like Gen Urobuchi watched Brazil, Minority Report and Gattaca and decided to make an anime out of it and make it as Urobuchi as possible. So far so good.



I liked it a lot. My aforementioned seiyu crush voices Akane.


I started watching _Nisekoi _expecting ecchi harem stuff, because it came up in a discussion about the Prison School manga. It ended up not really being ecchi at all, and was more or less just a shounen rom-com...

...and I watched it all anyway.

...Then I read all of the currently available chapters of the manga, because I wanted to know what happens. It's ongoing, so I still don't, but oh well.

This is dangerous, though. I've learned I can enjoy stuff like that, so there is SO MUCH MORE I can waste my time on now.


----------



## bouVIP

Grand Moff Tim said:


> ...Then I read all of the currently available chapters of the manga, because I wanted to know what happens. It's ongoing, so I still don't, but oh well.



It's ending soon so.....soon


----------



## OmegaSlayer




----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


> I think you misunderstood me... What I meant was that, I have yet to see any of the Fate series past Stay Night, you know... procrastinating.  I'm sure UBW rocks, it's Type Moon after all. But the lore of the Fate series is already convoluted as it is so hence why I didn't recommend jumping in head first. And yeah, Stay Night wasn't exactly a good start.
> 
> But I will say that you're right about Zero. Even my sister, the other big Fate advocate I know, that isn't you, will agree.
> 
> 
> 
> The Canta-Per-Me page and forums. You thought I was bad, they're more obsessive.



... oops, I did misunderstand, then.  In all honesty, I did love UBW, but its tone is much different from F/Z. In fact, I'd say it's the other way around: Fate/Zero has a much different tone than the rest of the Fate franchise. The only thing even remotely as dark as Zero is Heavens Feel, which I'd argue is even more twisted. However, it is also longer, with lots of cooking scenes (*sigh*), so it is perhaps a bit easier to digest in the beginning (save for the fact that the story assumes that the viewer/reader is familiar with the basics of the lore, and goes all out unforgivingly with its presentation of even more complicated lore).

Also, I'd disagree that if one took away the eroge from the franchise it would remain empty. I feel like I may be misunderstanding once more  but I'll elaborate anyway. In both the Fate and the Unlimited Blade Works routes, any eroge present serves a very specific purpose during a specific process. Said process could honestly be modified without affecting the plot at all. Sadly, people like the eroge way too much (and it kinda creeps me out, honestly ), so any anime adaptations have had to at least make some sort of reference to it... Studio DEEN gave us a sh*tty CGI dragon, and ufotable gave us weird shiny sperm-dolphins.

In Heavens Feel... yeah, I'd agree with you.  However, it uses sex in two ways: one, in the aforementioned way, which could be modified and still perfectly retain the plot, and two, in a way that creates an atmosphere of horror more than an appeal to the viewer's sexual drive (a.k.a. rape... which some people sadly get off to, but that's a different topic). I'd say that Heavens Feels is less eroge and more horror.

With all that said, even if you just yanked out all of the actual sex scenes from the visual novel, everything would remain exactly the same. (See the Realta Nua version of the game for the PS Vita, where you can actually turn off all the h-scenes.) They're just there because that was Nasu's compromise to having his ideas executed by Type-Moon. (As far as I understand it anyway.) I don't believe s/he (they?) initially wanted their story to have any eroge elements, though I could be wrong. Seriously, whenever the game jumped into a sex scene, it's like I was reading something COMPLETELY different. I am almost sure that those scenes had to have a different writer.

... but anyway, don't let me get carried away with Fate stuff. It's a weakness of mine. 



Bloody_Inferno said:


> Started watching Psycho-Pass. Looks like Gen Urobuchi watched Brazil, Minority Report and Gattaca and decided to make an anime out of it and make it as Urobuchi as possible. So far so good.



Psycho-Pass is good stuff. It's like Gen Urobuchi watched too much Ghost in the Shell while reading George Orwell novels.



Bloody_Inferno said:


> Also didn't realize that they made an anime based on the God Eater games. I'll probably start watching that really soon since I've been on a Go Shiina kick lately.



I watched the first five episodes of the first season. Up until episode 3 I disliked it. Bland characters, really weak development, almost zero context... I was about to drop it. Then episodes 4 and 5 began building the characters a lot more, and the plot became more interesting. I don't know why I stopped watching it, honestly. I guess I got lazy. I do plan on picking it back up at some point though, as I've promised myself I'd watch everything done by ufotable. Also, save for the CGI enemies, the art is really cool, and I love character design.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Grand Moff Tim said:


> I liked it a lot. My aforementioned seiyu crush voices Akane.



Elaborating more on voice actors also being singers:



Kana Hanazawa in this case, has 3 albums of music. And that's not just some amphitheatre, that's the freaking Budokan. 


@Alberto

...yeah, I'm not even gonna challenge your Fate series knowledge. You've got me there.  I'll just have to watch Zero UBW and Heaven's gate to catch up before attempting another long winded post. 

Hentai games, well the hentai eroge genre in general, are a weird anomaly. I can fully elaborate more about what I said in page 8 and 9 (and straight faced if you can believe it) but that's a big topic on it's own. I admit that I have seen some back in my teens (namely La Blue Girl and the superior Urotsukidoji series), but that was just the curiosity of youth. Looking back at La Blue Girl, aside from the copious amounts of sex, it was just another Sailor Moon clone where the sex took over the action scenes instead, making the plot just another boring predictable romp to slug through. I say Urotsukdoji was superior because it had a lot plot and surprisingly decent if not convoluted story and decent characters. The sex (unless you're pre-pubescent) didn't get in the way of the story... probably because if you blinked, you'd get lost and confused by the constant twists going on.  In fact, I'm gonna go as far as to say that the sex was actually vital to the story, and in this case it works because despite sex being well... sex, those scenes don't really deter away from the overall viewing. 

That was why I questioned the Fate eroge origins to it's transition to a mystery supernatural action. I do agree that one sex scene in Stay Night that absolutely had to happen (the obvious one), and that's fine. To be honest, I thought the anime handled it quite tastefully actually... well at least what I remembered of it. 


Regarding Psycho Pass... that makes sense. The series was made by Production IG, and seems they wanted to pick up where Mamoru Oshii left off. Up to Episode 12 so far and yeah, it's a great and tense ride. 
EDIT: Nice Ernie Ball product placement. 

As for God Eater... that's a bit disappointing to hear. Admittedly I haven't played any of the games (they seem to be a Monster Hunter clone), so I'm gonna jump in head first in the dark about this. Still gonna check out Go Shiina's score though because he rules. Even better when he proved to be one of the more colourful composers I've met. Really cool dude actually.


----------



## Alberto7

^ God Eater may actually be the next thing I pick up.

I just finished Evangelion 3.33 for the second time, though it may as well have been my first. The first time I watched it was just a few days after its release on a sh*tty streaming website where they'd put up a recording of someone who took a video of it at some cinema, and it had Engrish subtitles.

That film is so different from everything with the name Evangelion on it.  It was a lot more understandable than I remembered it to be, but still a mind-bender. I felt as though the main concept of the original show was preserved, including all of the main character's plots and schemes, but it was presented in a much different way (i.e. with a different plot). It takes a lot of the smaller details for granted, which make it seem lacking in depth compared to the 1995 anime, but it's possibly a sacrifice that had to be made in order to make the show easier to digest.

Even though it is stylistically very different from what Evangelion has traditionally been, it still looks absolutely gorgeous, and the action is as great as ever, though that feeling of sheer weight and momentum in the animation is mostly gone. The art style and the animation actually remind me a lot of the 2014 short Me! Me! Me! produced by Studio Khara. (Of which Hideaki Anno - Evangelion's creator - is president, as well as much of Gainax's original staff being part of the studio.)

All in all, cool flick. It's kind of a refreshing change of pace from the original anime, and, at the end of the day, feels very Gainax.

Now I'm ready for Evangelion 3.0+1.0 to finally be done with the franchise... Hideaki Anno just needs to finish his damn Godzilla movie so he can start working on Eva again! 

Fun fact: the opening sequence for the Me! Me! Me! video (with the Animator Expo logo) was created by Hayao Miyazaki.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

You guys.

I think I'm broken.

I just finished watching what may be one of the best debut seasons of an anime that I've ever seen, but...

It wasn't ecchi.
It wasn't full of fan-service.
It wasn't horror.
It wasn't fantasy or sci-fi.
It wasn't action.

It... it was...



...a shoujo anime, based on a shoujo manga.

It was _Ore Monogatari (My Love Story)_, and it was absolutely _adorable_.
Ugh. By all accounts, it shouldn't have been something I enjoyed too much. I saw that it was getting decent praise in some "best of 2015" lists, and enjoying the romance aspects of _Nisekoi_ nudged me just enough to be willing to give this one a shot. [email protected] if I didn't enjoy it from start to finish. 24 episodes, not a bad one among them. 

I can't remember the last time I smiled so much watching a TV show. Not just smiling as a result of laughing, either; smiling from genuinely touching moments. It was one of the most charming things I've ever seen.

Ugh.

Man Card thoroughly and utterly revoked.


Anyway, if you any of you like sappy shoujo stuff and for some reason haven't seen it yet, you might want to consider it. If you _have_ seen it and enjoyed it, do me a solid and recommend me some similar stuff.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Oh no!  I always end up watching the first few episodes of those kinds of shows, but for some reason I never finish them.

I guess if I were to recommend some "sappy shojo," as you rightly called it, my first recommendation would be Clannad and Clannad: After Story (a.k.a. second season). Not sure I'd categorize them as sappy shojo though... I'd probably consider it more as wrist-slitting, cry-forever shojo. It's so sad, but so beautiful.

Then would be Anohana. Kinda like Clannad in terms of sappiness, but only 11 episodes. Short and sweet. Be emotionally prepared.

I keep wanting to watch Toradora! but I never do. It's hailed as one of the best shojo out there.

Also, since you liked both Nisekoi and Ore Monogatari... it isn't anime, but, I don't know, I think you mmmmaaaaaaaaayy just want to read this:
Nisekoi x Ore Monogatari!! crossover


----------



## Ikiharmaa

idk about shoujo, but relationship-based anime and manga is definitely my cup of tea so I'll give that monogatari a shot.


I really liked Usagi Drop, Kokoro Connect, Hanasaku Iroha, Spice & Wolf, Hyouka, Sakurasou, Nagi no Asukara... Angel Beats and Chihayafuru too, and Golden Time. 

Toradora was cool, but I absolutely hate when things are predictable, so the premise made it kind of lame.. but I think they did pull some stuff right too. It was still more interesting and serious than the usual romcoms like Special-A or Kaichou wa Maid-sama!. Probably up there with my first list, but not a personal favourite really.



Also I just watched Amagi Brilliant Park, 6/10.


----------



## Alberto7

Ikiharmaa said:


> I really liked Usagi Drop



Usagi Drop and Barakamon may very well be the end-all-be-all of all slice-of-life anime for me.



Ikiharmaa said:


> Spice & Wolf



Spice and Wolf is one of my favorite shows just because of how witty and subtle it is, but I have to say, as much as I absolutely adore the chemistry between Holo and Kraft, the tension of NOTHING EVER ACTUALLY HAPPENING between them is awfully painful, and I think everybody should be aware of that before watching it.  It's the reason why I bought 9 of the 17 light novel volumes at once, because the anime only covers volumes 1, 2, 4, and 5.  I also wouldn't call it shojo at all. If anything, I'd say it's seinen. But oh well... not gonna get into the whole "is this extreme brutal tech-death or satanic bleached black metal with a hint of core" thing. 



Ikiharmaa said:


> Nagi no Asukara



My roommate keeps bugging me to watch it. It looks very pretty, stylistically.



Ikiharmaa said:


> Golden Time.



Again, haven't watched it, but I've seen it be hailed as one of the best romances in all of anime... though it'd be hard to beat Clannad. 



Ikiharmaa said:


> Also I just watched Amagi Brilliant Park, 6/10.



Watched the first couple of episodes. Wasn't into it. When KyoAni want to do something good, they bat that ball right out of the park, but they've disappointed me more often than not.

While I'm on the Kyoto Animation note, Tim, you might want to check out Hibike! Euphonium at some point. Absolutely gorgeous music anime (which is ACTUALLY about music... looking at you, K-On!), and, in my opinion, one of KyoAni's best. It's total yuri-bait, but still has all of the cutesy elements of a shojo. Fun for anyone who likes music, especially if they were in high school band.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

Alberto7 said:


> Spice and Wolf is one of my favorite shows just because of how witty and subtle it is, but I have to say, as much as I absolutely adore the chemistry between Holo and Kraft, the tension of NOTHING EVER ACTUALLY HAPPENING between them is awfully painful, and I think everybody should be aware of that before watching it.  It's the reason why I bought 9 of the 17 light novel volumes at once, because the anime only covers volumes 1, 2, 4, and 5.  I also wouldn't call it shojo at all. If anything, I'd say it's seinen.



Yea, it probably IS the witty dialogue that makes the show, that is truly something I adore... but if we go that route then there'd also be the whole monogatari series and Crest of Stars series. I think I mentioned earlier also that Sakamichi no Apollon is superb, idk how I forgot it from my list before, definitely the best anime I've seen in a long while tbh.

and yea, my list isn't shoujo at all.. I prefer josei and seinen, but the labels are whatever really, what matters is if it's good or not.





Alberto7 said:


> My roommate keeps bugging me to watch it. It looks very pretty, stylistically.



It is, probably half the reason I watched it in the first place, wasn't let down on that department. The drama was sweet too though, less triangles and more squares++. On par with Kokoro Connect in that regard, which to me is a huge feat. I'll just quote the synopsis here so you'll all get interested in Kokoro Connect too:



> The five members of the Cultural Research ClubTaichi Yaegashi, Iori Nagase, Himeko Inaba, Yui Kiriyama, and Yoshifumi Aokiencounter a bizarre phenomenon one day when Aoki and Yui switch bodies without warning. The same begins to happen to the other club members, throwing their daily lives into disarray.
> 
> At first the five students find some amusement amidst the confusion, but this unwarranted connection also exposes the painful scars hidden within their hearts. As their calm lives are shattered, the relationships between the five students also begin to change...


 
Now that's honestly a really really good setting for getting your relationships messed. I should rewatch it though so I could be sure I'm not telling you to watch something mediocre.. it has been some years.





Alberto7 said:


> Again, haven't watched it, but I've seen it be hailed as one of the best romances in all of anime... though it'd be hard to beat Clannad.



I haven't seen clannad though, mostly because the art bugs me so much.. I should get over it already, lol. I promise to write my thoughts on it when I finally watch it ._.


----------



## wakjob

Okay. I'm not anime johnny like some/most of you but,

Why the lack of originality in the bulk of it? Seems VERY formulaic.
Yeah, it's far out fantasy uber weirdo stuff for the most part but,

The big eyes?
And general art work being the same? Come on, same faces... different hair!

Things like the 10 year old girls having quadruple D-cup boobies, and general perversion?
And of course, the obligatory face into or clumsy hand groping of them?
Up-skirt embarrassment?

The passionate angry-face screaming?
The dark hair bangs covering the eyes when things get serious?
The quivering shaking eyes of sadness and/or remorse?

And why does everything have to take place in a school or with children or tween?
Seriously beginning to think the makers of anime are all serious pedos.

General theme or subject seems to prevail throughout most of the stuff I've watched.
Just a few "adjustments" to make a bit different. 

Not bashing, but it feels like there's SO MUCH anime being haphazardly cranked out just for the sake of getting something out there that will stick and be the next big thing like Naruto or One Piece ect...


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

wakjob said:


> Okay. I'm not anime johnny like some/most of you but,



Ok. All legit points, so I'll try to tackle this as informative as I can but keeping it simple as possible:



> Why the lack of originality in the bulk of it? Seems VERY formulaic.
> Yeah, it's far out fantasy uber weirdo stuff for the most part but,


Yeah fair enough. Most, if not all of them are really trope driven. The bulk of the anime seen outside Japan is usually stuff that gets exported thanks to mainstream popularity. There's a whole heap of genres of subgenres of anime that never get translated, even with fansubs. Also consider that up until recently, Japan has been the only country making this kind of cartoon. Then again, really the term anime really just means animation. So it's all cartoons in the end. I'll elaborate later...



> The big eyes?
> And general art work being the same? Come on, same faces... different hair!


You can thank Osamu Tezuka (Astroboy, Kimba, Blackjack etc) for that one. He just happens to be a big Disney fan who adapted the big eyes then became the godfather of the anime genre. Of course the style has evolved over the years. Plenty of small eyes, and even shut eyes.  



> Things like the 10 year old girls having quadruple D-cup boobies, and general perversion?
> And of course, the obligatory face into or clumsy hand groping of them?
> Up-skirt embarrassment?


If you look at my long post on page 9 of this very thread, I touched on Japan's censorship origins. It's a broad subject but that's the from those origins came all of what you mentioned. 



> The passionate angry-face screaming?
> The dark hair bangs covering the eyes when things get serious?
> The quivering shaking eyes of sadness and/or remorse?


I suppose this is more of a cultural thing. Drawing from it's manga origins, manga's current form is still actually relatively new. I suppose it's from all their prints, kabuki plays, and whatever Japan had as entertainment in their history. Again Japan was the only country doing this for a while. 



> And why does everything have to take place in a school or with children or tween?
> Seriously beginning to think the makers of anime are all serious pedos.


Going back to my Page 9 post, I also stated that anime in Japan is really meant for kids. So naturally most of them have characters and settings based on that demographic. As for the pervs, that's what hentai and eroge are for. Also for the record: the word Hentai is Japanese for pervert. 



> General theme or subject seems to prevail throughout most of the stuff I've watched.
> Just a few "adjustments" to make a bit different.


I might sound like a cynical old man who's seen too much anime, but I will state this. A lot of Gen X anime fans have grown up and now making anime. And even the vanguards of the genre like Hideki Anno and Hayao Miyazaki are saying that anime is dying thanks to those said fans making anime recycled from their favorite shows. I did a long ramble again in Page 8 on how anime is different to most genres, but as time has passed, it seems that the medium has sort of collapsed onto itself and needs a bit of a shake up. Guys like Gen Urobuchi is among the few exploring new ideas though, so while the industry is dying, there's still some fight left. 



> Not bashing, but it feels like there's SO MUCH anime being haphazardly cranked out just for the sake of getting something out there that will stick and be the next big thing like Naruto or One Piece ect...


To repeat, all you've said are valid arguments. Thankfully, you posted it here instead of an actual anime forum, where you'll be savaged by 4chan-esque zealots. As an anime fan, I despise those kind of folk and really gives a lot of us a bad name. Also funny enough, I also said in page 9 how anime nerds in Japan (or Otakus... a word meaning Obsession... or house, but former is in context here), are all viewed negative in Japan... yeah, what I wrote on Page 9 is a little bit relevant here. 

If you decide to take more interest in the medium, try to go past a lot of the mainstream and also more into the Japanese culture, as that's obviously where a lot of inspiration comes from. Also note that Naruto and One Piece are both from the Shonen Jump company, which by design, are meant to be generated by the masses and consumed by the masses. Sometimes to a flaw when the anime catches up to the manga long before the manga is completed. This is a common paradigm, and it's actually happening outside anime too. George R Martin is going through this right now.

Hope all that helps.


----------



## Alberto7

^ I was really hoping you'd be the one to handle those questions.  If you hadn't I probably would've sent you a PM about it, as you're probably the most informed of us with regards to anime history and such. 

But yeah, in general, I feel like a basic understanding of Japanese culture is very important to look past the main tropes in anime. Knowing where something came from, or being able to draw up a picture of how things are the way they are, and having some context is extremely helpful in coming to terms with what may be perceived as a flaw or defect.

I know this may sound cheesy, but the anime that helped me understand anime was Rurouni Kenshin. It got me interested in Japanese history, and, aside from some relatively superficial online research, I went ahead and read the book Shogun, by James Clavell. The amount of parallels that I was able to draw from what's described in that book and what I knew of Japanese pop culture was honestly mind-blowing, even though it's a book whose story takes place in the 1600's. Of course, since then, I've learned quite a bit more, and I feel I have at least a general grasp of where the Japanese come from. In other words, I have a basic context that helps me understand where what I'm watching came from.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Alberto7 said:


> I know this may sound cheesy, but the anime that helped me understand anime was Rurouni Kenshin. It got me interested in Japanese history, and, aside from some relatively superficial online research, I went ahead and read the book Shogun, by James Clavell. The amount of parallels that I was able to draw from what's described in that book and what I knew of Japanese pop culture was honestly mind-blowing, even though it's a book whose story takes place in the 1600's. Of course, since then, I've learned quite a bit more, and I feel I have at least a general grasp of where the Japanese come from. In other words, I have a basic context that helps me understand where what I'm watching came from.



Have you read _Musashi_, by Eiji Yoshikawa? If not, you might want to give it a go. It's pretty long (in the ~900 page range), but it's worth it. IIRC, it was originally published as a serial in Japan and then eventually collected and sold as a novel as well. If I were to be forced to pick my favorite novel, it would probably be it. It still stands as the only book that friggin' long that I've voluntarily read multiple times. 

There's a manga based on it, too, called _Vagabond_. I started reading it once upon a time, but I never stuck with it because I already knew exactly what was going to happen at any given point.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

I agree, most anime is probably trash (not that I'd have seen everything, but it certainly seems to be). But I also think that of most everything else, most movies are trash, most metal music is trash. Everyone's just doing things that have already been done before, or are doing things that are new but sound/look/feel like ..... It's always about getting past the mainstream facade and finding the things you find inspirational and connect with on a personal level.

I can't explain the pantyshots and high school setting etc, but it seems one gets used to it and can more easily look past it to find the essential content. Kind of like the action in action movies does nothing for me mostly, but there can still be such movies that are good if I just look past that aspect of needless violence. Most probably people just love cute things, just like some love kfc, it doesn't have to be more complicated than that.

The facial expressions being as simplified as they are is because it's cartoons, and to me half the greatness in cartoon illustrations is the simplifying, it's an essential part of what makes it cartoon. I don't know what else you'd expect tbh. It's not like most studios have a budget of a disney film anyways, even if the animation is on par at times.


----------



## wakjob

All valid explanations. Thanks folks!

I still enjoy kicking back at night and watching a series of something.
Just always questioned what I was watching.

But for _jaybus_, I got into 1 and a half episodes of Monster Musume, and was like NOPE!!!!


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> ^ I was really hoping you'd be the one to handle those questions.  If you hadn't I probably would've sent you a PM about it, as you're probably the most informed of us with regards to anime history and such.



Yeah.. about that... 

When I saw wakjob's post, I pretty much was compelled to respond, simply because being a Gen X anime fan myself growing up with it my whole life, living through different time periods of a really quickly evolving genre, I had to at least oblige to clarify any misunderstandings. Today everyone can just google or wiki their way to any info, but I had a hard time looking for this stuff as a kid. I dug through a lot of history and still do every now and then. And because I love it and still do even when I quit watching it for a bit, I try to be informative about it as much as I can. Thanks for getting be back on the saddle... bastard.  

Funny because all my Japanese friends find me fascinating because I know so much about a subject most of them barely payed attention to in school.  But at the same time, I get into real deep discussions about their history and culture (particularly the conformity of society). A lot of them lightheartedly call me aniki because of that, but I've ended up with some lifelong friendships, which is really cool when they thank me helping them learn more about themselves. Not bad for some shmuck living in Melbourne...

I can go on about Japanese history all day... hell, I can go on and on about the Sengoku Jidai alone (where Shogun was loosely based), but Extra Credits did such a great job on doing a short series about it.

Watch it here. 

Regarding Shogun and Musashi, both are great books. I read Shogun when I was younger and didn't appreciate it until years after. Musashi, I loved, and I have the 3 part film adaptation with Toshiro Mifune on DVDs as well as the Vagabond manga. Sure it's heavily fictionalised, but it's about the most badass swordsman in Japan. Also read The Book Of Five Rings: basically Miyamoto's version of Sun Tzu's The Art Of War. 

Going back to Shogun, as it's a sort of interesting parallel to a lot of anime fans who fall in love with a new exotic culture. A Western man who finds new infatuation in an foreign land. It's a sort of Eastern/Western paradigm that I'm also interested in. Especially when I speak to my Japanese friends about it, they're all doing the opposite with their fascination for Western culture. Again way too big a topic that I can ramble about.


Going back to anime...

Regarding Tim's post about the feel good light hearted shoujo genre, I had the same reaction as that when I saw Fruits Basket for the first time years ago. Oddly enough I've never watched another anime genre like that ever again. What's up with that?


----------



## Skyblue

Had a few empty days in a hostel during a trip, so I watched Samurai Champloo again (fluffin' great as always) and finished One Punch Man. 
I might go on to Samurai 7 (nostalgia got me hard) and then probably Ergo Proxi and... another anime I forgot (I have a list somewhere lol)


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Watched both seasons of _Noragami_ today. It was reasonably entertaining, I suppose, and I'll probably watch season 3 if and when that comes out.

I don't really have anything more to say about it than that, but I felt like dropping in here to tell someone... _anyone_... that I watched it. There's nobody I know IRL that gives any kind of sh!t about my interests.


----------



## Alberto7

Grand Moff Tim said:


> Have you read _Musashi_, by Eiji Yoshikawa? If not, you might want to give it a go. It's pretty long (in the ~900 page range), but it's worth it. IIRC, it was originally published as a serial in Japan and then eventually collected and sold as a novel as well. If I were to be forced to pick my favorite novel, it would probably be it. It still stands as the only book that friggin' long that I've voluntarily read multiple times.
> 
> There's a manga based on it, too, called _Vagabond_. I started reading it once upon a time, but I never stuck with it because I already knew exactly what was going to happen at any given point.



Aaahhh yes, Vagabond. It's my sister's girlfriend's favorite manga - Inoue Takehiko is her favorite illustrator too - and she's been trying to get me to read it. She recommended it just like you: when she found out I was a huge fan of Rurouni Kenshin and Shogun.  I actually have the Wiki page bookmarked so I don't forget about it... but it's been bookmarked for like 8 months now.  Regardless, I do want to read it, though now I may actually just want to read the book, since I didn't even know it was based on one, and I'm not that big a fan of reading manga anyway.



Bloody_Inferno said:


> Thanks for getting be back on the saddle... bastard.



Any time. 



Bloody_Inferno said:


> I can go on about Japanese history all day... hell, I can go on and on about the Sengoku Jidai alone (where Shogun was loosely based), but Extra Credits did such a great job on doing a short series about it.
> 
> Watch it here.



You reminded me of this:


Which nearly made me sh*t my pants in laughter the first time I watched it. 



Bloody_Inferno said:


> Regarding Shogun and Musashi, both are great books. I read Shogun when I was younger and didn't appreciate it until years after. Musashi, I loved, and I have the 3 part film adaptation with Toshiro Mifune on DVDs as well as the Vagabond manga. Sure it's heavily fictionalised, but it's about the most badass swordsman in Japan. Also read The Book Of Five Rings: basically Miyamoto's version of Sun Tzu's The Art Of War.



I read up a little bit on both of those books when I started practicing karate a little over a year ago. They sound very interesting, but quite dense. Whe I do read them, it will probably be with a more academic approach, so I'll need to be in the right state of mind for that. 



Grand Moff Tim said:


> Watched both seasons of _Noragami_ today. It was reasonably entertaining, I suppose, and I'll probably watch season 3 if and when that comes out.
> 
> I don't really have anything more to say about it than that, but I felt like dropping in here to tell someone... _anyone_... that I watched it. There's nobody I know IRL that gives any kind of sh!t about my interests.



I watched the first couple of episodes of Noragami. I liked it, but like meh. It didn't keep me too interested, for some reason. My roommate has an unhealthy obsession with that show though, so I probably will never watch it for as long as I live with her.  I usually end up hating whatever she's into, because she's so goddamn intense and annoying about it that it makes me hate it. She's the anime equivalent of a rabid Tool fan who has lost touch with reality.

And please, do keep telling us all about whatever anime/manga/Japanese-related whatever that you watch/read/whatever. That's what we're here for. 

Also,


----------



## wakjob

^
That video was awesome!


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> You reminded me of this:
> 
> 
> Which nearly made me sh*t my pants in laughter the first time I watched it.




My friends were sharing this on their FB pages. What's great about that vid is that it's dead on. A lot of fat was trimmed to necessitate the length, but to summarise the country's full history up to present day, they nailed it.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Making my way through _Rurouni Kenshin_ now, since it's another one of those classics I should probably get around to watching if I want to call myself a fan. Just bit by bit, though, rather than in one or two binges. For some reason it's much easier for me to pace myself like that when there is a huge number of episodes like _Kenshin_'s 90+, as opposed to a standard 12 or ~24 episode season or series.

I'll also probably go through some other shows while doing so, too, which is actually what I did with _Noragami_ this weekend. Not sure what I'll move on to next, but I do know I'll keep plugging away at _RK_.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

Ore Monogatari was pretty fine, not a bad watch at all. Although it kind of got lamer towards the end. I like how it handled all of the awkwardness and sillyness for the mc (main couple!), quite realistic depiction imo, so it was easy enough to connect with. And I think it said some important things.

7/10? something like that, tbh my ratings on mal are so messed up.. but I did enjoy it for most of the time.


----------



## Alberto7

Does anybody know a good reenactment of the 47 ronin legend? I just watched the 2013 Hollywood adaptation, and I need to cleanse my soul, especially after the discussions we've been having on this thread.  It doesn't matter which medium, I just want it to be better than that horrendously offensive film.  To be fair though, it had absolutely exquisite sets and costumes, and it was nevertheless entertaining, if only for its eye candy and its beautiful cast.

In fact, since I'm at it, also give me something that looks as pretty as that movie, both in style and quality. (i.e. a nice-looking feudal Japan era setting.) Either anime or live action, it doesn't matter. I'm just craving some more of that eye candy atm.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

I like how _Rurouni Kenshin_'s intro song starts out sounding like it's going to be some cheesy old school metal goodness, but then turns into one of the worst intros I've ever heard. 

That aside, I'm up to episode 22 now and still enjoying it well enough.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Grand Moff Tim said:


> I like how _Rurouni Kenshin_'s intro song starts out sounding like it's going to be some cheesy old school metal goodness, but then turns into one of the worst intros I've ever heard.



I've got a soft spot for Judy And Mary because I had to cover that song for a J-Pop session. It's pretty fun to play... but I see where you're coming from. 

The show still has one of the best ending themes ever, not far off from... still the best ending theme ever, but I digress...

Speaking of Kenshin...



Alberto7 said:


> Does anybody know a good reenactment of the 47 ronin legend? I just watched the 2013 Hollywood adaptation, and I need to cleanse my soul, especially after the discussions we've been having on this thread.  It doesn't matter which medium, I just want it to be better than that horrendously offensive film.  To be fair though, it had absolutely exquisite sets and costumes, and it was nevertheless entertaining, if only for its eye candy and its beautiful cast.
> 
> In fact, since I'm at it, also give me something that looks as pretty as that movie, both in style and quality. (i.e. a nice-looking feudal Japan era setting.) Either anime or live action, it doesn't matter. I'm just craving some more of that eye candy atm.



You have finished the live action Kenshin trilogy right? RIGHT? 

Obvious aside, shockingly enough, there's been no known anime based on this classic tragic tale. For movies, there's been very few in different time periods. I haven't seen any of them though, but I hear the 1969 Chushingura film is considered the best. If you want a film that's shares a similar premise, go see 13 Assassins. It's less showy and more bloody, but it's directed by Takeshi Miike so you know it's great. 

For samurai anime, there's at plenty of good ones. I've been aping Sengoku Basara because it's great. Sure it's heavily bastardised and more explosions that will make Michael Bay blush, but it's still great. Plus one of the main characters is basically an amalgamation of Dante from DMC crossed with Wolverine, so that's cool on it's own. So something a little more dramatic, there's the Sengoku Musou anime; relatively new but based on the Samurai Warriors games. There's also Samurai Deeper Kyo and Basilisk. I haven't seen the former, but the latter is definitely awesome. Visually stunning and a great story overall. There's also Brave 10, based on Yukimura Sanada's 10 braves, but I haven't seen that either, but what I've seen from the artwork looks great. 

For live action, aside from the obvious Kenshin and 13 Assassins, there's a few good ones. Shinobi Heart Under Blade, I've already praised earlier but needs to be mentioned because it's so gorgeous. Goemon is also pretty fun. The protagonist is the same guy who played live action Hajime Saito, and it's also visually stunning (albeit heavily CG dependant), but a fun romp nonetheless. Azumi 1 and 2 are also good fun (though the first is superior). For something more slower paced but heavy in plot, check out Yoji Yamada's Samurai Trilogy: Twilight Samurai, The Hidden Blade, Love And Honour. These 3 are just exquisite, plenty of history and depth. 

I suppose you can also go through the Akira Kurosawa and Toshiro Mifune classics. Pre Red Beard Kurosawa is pretty much gold (including the immortal Seven Samurai and Hidden Fortress) are mandatory viewing to the point of perfunctory to talk about. Ran however is done in colour and it's pretty much the best Kurosawa film visually. There's the Musashi trilogy that's already been discussed too. And of course the classic Lone Wolf And Cub and Katsu Shintaro's Zatoichi series. Beat Takeshi also does a good reboot of it too back in 2003. 

That ought to keep you occupied for a bit.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Lolwtf. 

To break up the long stretches of_ Kenshin_, I started watching _Infinite Stratos_, too. A guy's gotta get his harem fill, after all. In episode 5 a new character was introduced who was supposed to be a guy, but it's a harem anime, so I was pretty certain the newbie would turn out to be a girl in guy's clothing. As soon as he/she opened his/her mouth to speak for the first time, I was like.... 

Hey...

Wait a minute...

I know that voice...








Lolol. I swear, I didn't even pick that anime because of her. I had no idea she was involved. Like I said, lolwtf.

I think it's a sign. Do you think it's too soon to propose?


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Oh ho ho, she almost fooled me this time.

I've been watching _Hanagai_, too, and this time around I got to episode 10 before I realized she was voicing one of the characters. In my defense, she voices a little kid in it, so she alters her voice to reflect the role and it isn't immediately obvious that it's her. In episode 10, though, she slips up a bit, and just one little expression got those "hey, wait a minute..." wheels turning in my head again. 

Okay, now I'm even creeping myself out...


----------



## Ikiharmaa

gl man.


Also, I finally got to watching Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso (dropped it at ep 9 when it was airing), and damn, I liked it a lot more than I thought I would. I mean sure the art and music was always gorgeous, but the pacing and amount of recaps was kind of annoying me the last time... and it's so overly melodramatic.. but still, it really hit me in the feels. Sure, sometimes it left me wondering if this was the part where I was supposed to cry, and not the one before it, but still... In the end it was a beautiful story, told in a very beautiful, emotion-provoking way. Music, pictures and words all tangled up in such a neat way.


I also rewatched Kokoro Connect before that, and I can now recommend it whole-heartedly. It is as magnificent as I remembered it to be.


+ I watched Nisekoi, and Oreshura, latter being the better out of the two imo.. but I guess harem is not really my cup of tea, although I did enjoy the first episodes of Oreshura a lot before I realised it's a harem. And at least the mc actually made some sort of decision and wasn't clueless and annoying. And Natsukawa had a lot of potential as a character, I liked her.


----------



## awake69

Ok. I know the anime purists would scold me for saying this, and although it isn't technically "anime", I recently watched the entire series "Avatar: The Last Airbender" and love it! There's definitely some anime influences, but it really is an engrossing and excellently told story from start to finish. 

I may go watch FMA Brotherhood again for the umpteenth time.


----------



## wakjob

Bokurano is SO different in style than most of the stuff I've been exposing myself to.

Different art, tone, dialogue... just good stuff altogether. Really digging it.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

awake69 said:


> Ok. I know the anime purists would scold me for saying this, and although it isn't technically "anime", I recently watched the entire series "Avatar: The Last Airbender" and love it! There's definitely some anime influences, but it really is an engrossing and excellently told story from start to finish.



You know, if I'd have read this maybe 10-15 or so years ago, I probably would've gone all hipsterish about it. But in this day and age, it really doesn't matter anymore. Anime needed to globalize to stay alive and well, and now with Avatar, Samurai Jack, Afro Samurai, Power Puff Girls Z, and even Marvel anime, it's all becoming a cool blur. Hell, a while back Japan returned the favor with a TMNT anime (it was insane in a cool way). 

I actually haven't seen an episode of Avatar, but I do appreciate it's cultural impact. The live action... well... 



wakjob said:


> Bokurano is SO different in style than most of the stuff I've been exposing myself to.
> 
> Different art, tone, dialogue... just good stuff altogether. Really digging it.



This is another anime I really should be watching. It's got all the elements I like (mecha, hints of horror, tragedy etc), and I really love the Chiyaki Ishikawa songs.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

I know I complained and didn't really have anything nice to say about _Evangelion_, but watching it did make me realize that it being a mecha anime was the very least of the reasons I disliked it. So if I got anything out of it, it was the realization that I might be over my distaste for mecha stuff, and I decided to test that theory this weekend.

To test it, I watched the first season of _Knights of Sidonia_, and holy sh!t, I'm hooked. Sooooo good. The animation took a little bit of getting used to, but only when it comes to human faces. The faces still seem a bit... erm... uncanny valley, I suppose, particularly the mouths, but I've managed to move past it.

Gonna start season two now...


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Grand Moff Tim said:


> I know I complained and didn't really have anything nice to say about _Evangelion_, but watching it did make me realize that it being a mecha anime was the very least of the reasons I disliked it. So if I got anything out of it, it was the realization that I might be over my distaste for mecha stuff, and I decided to test that theory this weekend.
> 
> To test it, I watched the first season of _Knights of Sidonia_, and holy sh!t, I'm hooked. Sooooo good. The animation took a little bit of getting used to, but only when it comes to human faces. The faces still seem a bit... erm... uncanny valley, I suppose, particularly the mouths, but I've managed to move past it.
> 
> Gonna start season two now...





In all seriousness, mecha really is just only another medium to tell the story... or (let's not kid ourselves) an over glorified toy commercial. Looking past that gimmick, there's a few subgenres, but not all too different to a lot of anime. 

There's the old enemy-of-the-week romps that the giant mechs of the 70s exploited, there's war and conflict themes, space opera, religious psychoanalysis, or even an everyday occupation (Patlabor, is really just based on an incompetent police team with the mecha pushed far into the background). 

Evangelion, goes for that surreal/messy psychoanalysis allegory, while Knights of Sidonia goes for the war and conflict theme that Gundam has been championing since the late 70s. The only thing that these 2 anime have in common is the man controlled giant robots. 

So yeah, if you can look past the &#822;t&#822;o&#822;y&#822; &#822;c&#822;o&#822;m&#822;m&#822;e&#822;r&#822;c&#822;i&#822;a&#822;l&#822;s&#822;.. mecha, you might find a few more anime you'd never thought you'd like. 


Speaking of Knights... I really should've seen all of this by now...


----------



## mrdm53

Grand Moff Tim said:


> Lolwtf.
> 
> To break up the long stretches of_ Kenshin_, I started watching _Infinite Stratos_, too. A guy's gotta get his harem fill, after all. In episode 5 a new character was introduced who was supposed to be a guy, but it's a harem anime, so I was pretty certain the newbie would turn out to be a girl in guy's clothing. As soon as he/she opened his/her mouth to speak for the first time, I was like....
> 
> Hey...
> 
> Wait a minute...
> 
> I know that voice...
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Lolol. I swear, I didn't even pick that anime because of her. I had no idea she was involved. Like I said, lolwtf.
> 
> I think it's a sign. Do you think it's too soon to propose?



I'll bet you're gonne be more surprised when you watch Psycho Pass...

Her voice are good, and can cover many ranges. But seriously overused. I mean, after her role as Nadeko in Bakemonogatari, she's everywhere. I do remember certain season when she had role in every shows that aired.

My favorites are Nana Mizuki, Aoi Yuuki (Clementine from Overlord), Sawashiro Mizuki, Yui Horie (Nepgear, Wiz), and Amamiya Sora (Useless goddess )


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

mrdm53 said:


> I'll bet you're gonne be more surprised when you watch Psycho Pass...



Already did, broseph.


----------



## Skyblue

Anyone here saw Sakamichi no Apollon? It's not really my style but it does have Jazz, Yoko Kanno and the guy who did Cowboy Bebop and Samurai Champloo, so...


----------



## Ikiharmaa

Skyblue said:


> Anyone here saw Sakamichi no Apollon? It's not really my style but it does have Jazz, Yoko Kanno and the guy who did Cowboy Bebop and Samurai Champloo, so...




I did a few pages back. And I still RECOMMEND IT TO YOU ALL SO MUCH.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Just got done watching _Yahari Ore no Seishun Love Comedy wa Machigatteiru (My Teen Romantic Comedy SNAFU)_, and it was pretty [email protected] good. It's another high school comedy/drama, yes, but it isn't like any others I've seen. It's not about wacky antics, outrageous situations, or torrid romance. It's mostly just an antisocial loner making observations about common social situations, and I gotta say, his socio-philosophical musings are on f*u*cking _point_. 

I've watched quite a few series these past couple months that ended their runs after two seasons- whether or not they ended on a cliffhanger - and I have to say, if this one doesn't get a third season, I might just have to go burn down Japan. It ended on a b!tch of a cliffhanger, and I'm squirming as I sit here typing this, so bad is my desire to see how things are resolved.

It isn't a 10/10 groundbreaking must-see or anything, but I definitely think you guys should check it out sometime.

Oh, and Kana Hanazawa _isn't_ in it! Can you imagine?!?

Oh! And the opening theme for the second season introduced me to a singer whose voice I really dig, so I think I'm going to have to find some of her stuff to acquire.

Her name is Yanagi Nagi:




EDIT: Apparently she did the opening theme for the first season, too, but I didn't really take note of her voice until the second theme.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

I completely agree about that opening, super cool. The anime itself was a 7/10 for me maybe an 8 if I believe there'll be a third season and a satisfying ending. I'll give mc's little sister a 10/10 though, she's the best and their interactions are the best. Overall the characters could have more depth though, and the story could go somewhere... honestly, they had plenty of time during the two seasons.

I didn't hate it though, like, it was quite enjoyable despite the short-comings.


edit: oh yeah, somewhat similar, but I guess not quite, but somewhat because of the mc probably.. Hyouka, which to me is much better, personal favourites stuff. 10/10.

Yahari Ore something is kind of more like Boku wa Tomodachi, but much more interesting, and better.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Ikiharmaa said:


> I completely agree about that opening, super cool. The anime itself was a 7/10 for me maybe an 8 if I believe there'll be a third season and a satisfying ending. I'll give mc's little sister a 10/10 though, she's the best and their interactions are the best. Overall the characters could have more depth though, and the story could go somewhere... honestly, they had plenty of time during the two seasons.
> 
> I didn't hate it though, like, it was quite enjoyable despite the short-comings.
> 
> 
> edit: oh yeah, somewhat similar, but I guess not quite, but somewhat because of the mc probably.. Hyouka, which to me is much better, personal favourites stuff. 10/10.
> 
> Yahari Ore something is kind of more like Boku wa Tomodachi, but much more interesting, and better.



Pretty much agreed on your assessment of _SNAFU_. Good, not great, hope it gets a third season. I liked _Boku was Tomodachi ga Sukunai_ well enough, I suppose. It wasn't a thinker like _SNAFU_, but it was goofier and threw in plenty of ecchi, which is always a good way to get my attention .

I'll try to remember to check out _Hyouka_ pretty soon. Our tastes aren't 100% similar, but they've revealed themselves to be similar enough lately that I'll probably enjoy it.

Currently watching _Campione!_ and _Love Hina_, because after watching _Knights of Sidona_ and _SNAFU_, I needed more good ol' harem action. 
Neither are anything to crow over so far, but they're keeping me entertained enough to see them through to the end.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

Grand Moff Tim said:


> I'll try to remember to check out _Hyouka_ pretty soon. Our tastes aren't 100% similar, but they've revealed themselves to be similar enough lately that I'll probably enjoy it.



I like:

- thick atmosphere / moody (Hyouka, Ergo Proxy, Bakemonogatari, Abara, Måsstaden, Fallujah, Insomnium, Gregor Samsa, Journey, Shadow of the Colossus)

- pretty visuals (skies, clouds) and soundtracks, vital in creating that atmosphere (Guilty Crown, Seirei no Moribito, Jormungand, Nagi no Asukara, Kurozuka, Samurai Champloo, The Afterimage, Destiny Potato, Corelia, Erra, Scar Symmetry, Wintersun, school food punishment) 

- world building and good design (Kyoukaisenjou no Horizon, Kantai Collection, Seirei no Moribito again for using less standard cultural references)

- intricate, witty dialogue, lots of it, such characters too (Spice & Wolf, Senjougahara, Crest of Stars)

- complex things, like plots (Steins;Gate, Baccano!, Higashi no Eden, Tigran Hamasyan)

- other things:
thoughtful things (Ghost in the Shell)
important things and life lessons (Aria the Animation)
human relationships (Kokoro Connect, Nagi no Asukara, Hyouka, Hanasaku Iroha, Golden Time, Watash*i*tachi no Shiawase na Jikan)
happy things (Aria the Animation, Usagi Drop, Dog Days, Sithu Aye, Supercell, Jin, that OP by Yanagi Nagi, Iiro Rantala New Trio, This Will Destroy You)
of humanity and music (Sakamichi no Apollon, So Ra No Wo To)
crying (Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso, Anohana, Madoka, My Girl)

Then there's the whole "connecting on a personal level" thing.. I think the strongest cases of this for me are Hyouka, where I strongly identified with Oreki right from very start, and the Aria series, in which I found characters to truly look up to and consider as something I want to grow up to be like myself. It defines who I am, or at least want to be. And it's the kind of series that feels like someone caressing the back of your head after you've ....ed up everything, to me at least, escapism at its best.

Not sure where to put Cowboy Bebop and Gurren Lagann, other than that it's a complete list of my 9's and 10's. I hope that helped and you can evaluate my recommendations more accurately and not have to waste time on something that'll only be mediocre to you !


----------



## Alberto7

FURI KURI TIME!

So, FLCL season 2 is happening for real!
Toonami to Co-Produce 2 New FLCL Seasons (Updated) - News - Anime News Network

I am both jumping around uncontrollably and puking a little bit. FLCL season 2 is the equivalent of having a Cowboy Bebop season 2. It's exciting and incredibly nostalgic to see all of our favorite characters come back, but in the back of your head you know that, after the unforgettable greatness that the classics were (and still are), there is only one way, and that way is down.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Alberto7 said:


> So, FLCL season 2 is happening for real!









Not sure if want.


----------



## Alberto7

^  My thoughts, too.

Like I said, it'll be cool to see Haruko, Naota, and the bunch again, (I hope) but like... that anime is its own thing. That's as good as it's ever going to get. Like they say, once you've hit rock bottom, the only way is up... only backwards.  If it turns out to be sh*t, I'll probably still watch it anyway, BUT... I'll just pretend like the original is all that exists.


----------



## Skyblue

Alberto7 said:


> FURI KURI TIME!
> 
> So, FLCL season 2 is happening for real!
> Toonami to Co-Produce 2 New FLCL Seasons (Updated) - News - Anime News Network
> 
> I am both jumping around uncontrollably and puking a little bit. FLCL season 2 is the equivalent of having a Cowboy Bebop season 2. It's exciting and incredibly nostalgic to see all of our favorite characters come back, but in the back of your head you know that, after the unforgettable greatness that the classics were (and still are), there is only one way, and that way is down.



Great, now I'm living with a constant fear of a Cowboy Bebop second season


----------



## wakjob

A little Bokurano update:

Man this is a sick show ( not in a good way ).
Dark and disgusting. Don't know if I can hang on all the way through this one.

I can respect it, but man... I don't know. whew!


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Going through season 2 of Psycho-Pass but first a brief non-anime digression...



Alberto7 said:


> Does anybody know a good reenactment of the 47 ronin legend? I just watched the 2013 Hollywood adaptation, and I need to cleanse my soul, especially after the discussions we've been having on this thread.  It doesn't matter which medium, I just want it to be better than that horrendously offensive film.  To be fair though, it had absolutely exquisite sets and costumes, and it was nevertheless entertaining, if only for its eye candy and its beautiful cast.



Just watched this last night, and oh boy did it disappoint hard.  Boring would be the word to suit it best. And also agreed about the stellar cast being wasted with what little they have to work with. They're all better than this. Seriously, Ko Shibasaki (who I know far better as an ass kicker in Battle Royale and Shaolin Girl) does almost nothing here. And Tadanobu Asano can add this to his list of "what the hell am I doing here" bad decisions with Battleship. 

I really wanted to like this film despite the bad reviews but...


----------



## bouVIP

So Fate/Extra is getting an anime made by SHAFT and Heaven's Feel will be released as three films. HYPE


----------



## Alberto7

OMGOMGOMGOMG Fate/Stay Night: Heavens Feel FINALLY confirmed as a 3-part film releasing in 2017! 

Fate/stay night Heaven's Feel Film Project Is Trilogy Starting in 2017 - News - Anime News Network

Really not sure if 3 films will be able to cover everything but... I have faith in ufotable. They've yet to disappoint me.

EDIT: totally got 'd there!


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Sometimes I have to sit back, have a nice chuckle, and ask myself "Tim, wtf are you watching?"

I screengrabbed one such moment today.


----------



## mrdm53

It seems that EVERY Fate series will come in anime version. And we will have FATE/EXTRA anime in 2017 Fate/Extra Game Gets TV Anime in 2017 - News - Anime News Network

2017 is going to be an awesome year, Fate/ Extra + Heaven's Feel and Saekano S2? i'm in


----------



## Alberto7

Somehow, I'm really happy that Shaft is doing Fate/Extra. As much as I love ufotable, sometimes I do get tired of the awkward way in which they draw faces (round, almost nose-less faces), particularly their profiles. That, and Shaft has a very... particular style.  Think Madoka Magica and Bakemonogatari.

They also already did the opening sequence for the Fate/Extra CCC videogame:


I'm ready for all those head tilts!


----------



## bouVIP

Nero's design in the poster isn't my favorite, but it looks nice...Bring me all the Nero head tilts


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Preach, Sairenji.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Dragging my feet lately, but finally finished Psycho-Pass 1 and 2. 

Really enjoyed it through and through, the second season is a nice take on the Orwellian premise. Off to see the movie.

Then God Eater next, and hopefully finally lay Fate Zero to rest... hopefully...


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

I've been watching _Hell Girl_ and _Boogiepop Phantom_ this past week, while also occasionally throwing in episodes of _Rurouni Kenshin_ and _To Love Ru_, which will both take longer than the stuff I usually watch, because they have more episodes than the stuff I'm accustomed to.

I'll reserve comment on _Hell Girl_ and _Boogiepop_ until I'm done watching at least the first season of the former and the entire run of the latter. They're both pretty interesting so far, but they're also both a bit of a slow burn. I get the feeling I won't have the full picture until I'm done with them.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Decided to hold off on the Psycho Pass movie and jump straight into God Eater, because it's only 13 episodes. 

Like the game it's namesake comes from, it's shares the same premise as Monster Hunter. So far, 3 episodes in and it's enjoyable. A little predicable at parts, and I feel it borrows too heavily from other well known anime. Episode 1 felt like Attack On Titan-lite, and it even borrows the Newtype trope from Gundam. But it's still to early for me to rib into it...

EDIT: I should note that the weaponry here is so over the top that it'll make Cloud Strife question his manhood. 

What's keeping me going is Go Shiina's score. While mostly known for games, he's been consistently great in all of them (think the best song in a Tekken game, and it's him). He's even at time outshined his Tales series co composer Motoi Sakuraba, a guy already so good I did this thread about him.


Speaking of composers, I realized I didn't do one last month.  Been busy... that and the one I've chose for the next post is a little dense and extensive. We'll see...


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

...and just finished God Eater. 

While I still stand by what I said about the first 3 episodes, the series picks up it's stride and stands on it's own by episode 5 onwards, and thankfully for the better. It gets dark and incredibly gory pretty quickly and intensifies like a cranking vice as it goes on. 

The newtype premise (completely different to Gundam) isn't really dwelled on either, which is good considering how much it was beaten over the head of the viewer unlike the series this borrows it's namesake. 

There are a lot of anime tropes here though, and quite heavily driven. For one, it's the cast. It's everyone you expected from other series of the same genre. Eren Yeager, Roy Mustang, Jet Black, Sailor Mercury, an amalgamation of Rei Ayanami and Asuka Langley Soryu... they're all here. Second it's the story. I don't put the Attack On Titan comparison lightly: it's the same setting. Humans living in the post apocalypse hopelessly trying to survive against a far superior race of monsters (and very one dimensional here). Only on God Eater's case, it's far more grim, there's barely any kind of civilization or even flora and fauna, so it's akin more to Mad Max. It's because of these tropes that it's really hard to get through the first few episodes. 

Despite these extremely obvious flaws, it does get better. Anime has this weird rule where it does get better by episode 3 onwards (it happened with Madoka). Here, it works to some extent, but as I said earlier, episode 5 onwards is where this really gets good. Over the course of the 13 episodes, the characters do rise up beyond their trope driven boundaries (in quite a few flashback scenes), and do so without wearing their welcome: somewhat of blessing and a curse especially during a short series duration. And while the action ends a little earlier than expected on episode 13, it does wrap up with a few sinister odds and ends that are left open for a second season that's totally happening. 

The visuals are stunning despite being mostly grey and dreary and the weapon designs are awesome. I'll repeat myself by saying the music is breathtaking. Go Shiina's epic moments sound like he's opening the games of Heaven and Hell. Even the auto-tuned engrish insert song/s are listenable in context. 

Sure it's a ride you've been on many times before, but it does get better, and by the time it ends, you're waiting for the next season to come, albeit very patiently. 

Lastly:



Spoiler



If you ever for some reason I'll never understand want to see the bloodiest and goriest animated cesarean in... ever... this anime is for you.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Read the spoiler tag. Wanna finish watching it even more now.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> ^ Read the spoiler tag. Wanna finish watching it even more now.





Also, it's with pleasure to tell you that I've got off my ass and started Fate/Zero! 

Granted that I only started Episode 1 and initially thought I was watching a completely different anime altogether... well, until Rin showed up...


----------



## wakjob

Has anyone watched or is watching "World Trigger"?


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Also, it's with pleasure to tell you that I've got off my ass and started Fate/Zero!



My mission is almost complete. 

But yeah, Fate/Zero is pretty different from the rest of the series... and by that I mean that it is better,  though granted, I love it all the same.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Whilst playing catch up with Fate Zero, I got to see the first live action movie of Parasyte.

Granted that I had zero knowledge of the manga and anime of said film so I don't have any baggage to carry, I still kept my expectations low, as I do with all live actions sans Kenshin. 

It's ok, pretty average overall. Like all live adaptations of anime, it suffers from trying to cram in as much backstory and info as possible with obvious forced sacrifices. It didn't affect me as much for reasons I said above, but it does affect the underdeveloped characters feel so empty at times. And this will really piss off fans of the source material. There's more of the hilariously contrived acting I expect from most of these, especially from Ai Hasimoto (aka Sadako 3D), so that doesn't help either. Add to the fact that it feels like they're trying to make a David Cronenberg movie but falling short, it's so dreary and flavorless overall. I do like that Tadanobu Asano shows up later for the setup for part 2.

...and I guess I'll have to watch that too since I've got it now. But I'll probably sit on it for a while.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Had another "Welp, I need to screencap that" moment today...


----------



## Alberto7

^ Omg 

That's Grisaia, right? I think it was bouVIP who recommended it like a year ago. Watched the first three episodes of the first season and somehow I just forgot about it. 

Also, Parasyte movie... no thx, for now anyway. Gotta finish the anime first, (which I had to stop watching halfway through... long, non-anime related reasons. ) and then I maaaayyy watch it.


----------



## Mathemagician

Recommendation Requests: 

1) Anime with the most over the top fan service ever, that still has an interesting storyline. I'm looking for "annoying as hell" levels of fan service, and funnier is better. 

2) Anime that I'll think is super-cool and will make me try to shoot fireballs like DBZ did when I was a kid because Goku & Friends were just so badass. Don't need "lonely guy in black". Up-beat is better. Avatar (while American) was a hit with both my fiancé and I.


----------



## wakjob

Mathemagician said:


> Recommendation Requests:
> 
> 1) Anime with the most over the top fan service ever, that still has an interesting storyline. I'm looking for "annoying as hell" levels of fan service, and funnier is better.
> 
> 2) Anime that I'll think is super-cool and will make me try to shoot fireballs like DBZ did when I was a kid because Goku & Friends were just so badass. Don't need "lonely guy in black". Up-beat is better. Avatar (while American) was a hit with both my fiancé and I.



Blue Exorcist comes to mind. Mildly serious with lots of humor.


----------



## Mathemagician

wakjob said:


> Blue Exorcist comes to mind. Mildly serious with lots of humor.



Is that for request one or two? Or both? Either way I'll check Netflix.


----------



## wakjob

Mathemagician said:


> Is that for request one or two? Or both? Either way I'll check Netflix.



Forget Netflix, just go to crunchyroll.com

You'll find that 90% of what they offer will fit your criteria.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Alberto7 said:


> ^ Omg
> 
> That's Grisaia, right? I think it was bouVIP who recommended it like a year ago. Watched the first three episodes of the first season and somehow I just forgot about it.




Yeah, it's from the third season (if you count the movie as the second "season"). I'm just about done with it, and I really enjoy it. It hits the feels a lot harder than you'd expect something with such ecchi moments to.


----------



## Guamskyy

Been on an anime binge the past month or so and have watched these:

Tokyo Magnitude 8.0
Terror in Resonance
One Punch Man (lol)
Aldnoah Zero

I'm currently 3 episodes away from finishing Aldnoah Zero but I'm liking what has been presented so far.

Tokyo Magnitude 8.0 was probably the show that had the most impact on me out of all of them because it seems like what happened in the plot can very well happen in real life. Plus I had all types of feels in that one, I'll admit it 

Terror in Resonance was pretty good, but I thought the ending could've been better. It kind of made me just go "eh." But despite that, the story was pretty cool.

One Punch Man to me pretty much lived up to the hype that everyone has given it, and I am eagerly awaiting new material.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Mathemagician said:


> Recommendation Requests:
> 
> 1) Anime with the most over the top fan service ever, that still has an interesting storyline. I'm looking for "annoying as hell" levels of fan service, and funnier is better.



Oh man. Soooo many recommendations... What springs to mind first...

In increasing levels of ecchi/fanservice:

_Heaven's Lost Property_. A connection opens between Earth and another dimension inhabited by powerful beings that imprint on their "masters." Its super goofy sometimes, but the story still pulled me in more than I expected it would.

_Shimoneta: A Boring World Where the Concept of Dirty Jokes Doesn't Exist_. Japan has enacted such stringent censorship laws that people don't even recognize lewdness when they see it, so a "terrorist" organization forms with the goal of exposing people to sex-related things. It's not the deepest plot, but it's friggin' _hilarious_, so it's worth watching.

_Prison School._ Think Prison Break, but with hormonal high schoolers. It's one of the funniest shows I've ever watched.

_Highschool DxD_. There's a war between the Demons, the Angels, and the Fallen Angels. Some beings are imbued with extremely powerful items, including of course a group of high school teens, because Japan. Reasonably interesting plot, and _loads_ of ecchi fanservice. Highly nsfw .

_Shinmai Maou no Testament_. The most over the top ecchi of all the ecchi anime I've seen, which is an increasingly long list. It's only a hop, skip, and a jump away from being hentai sometimes. The plot is... reasonably entertaining, but you have to understand there's a balance between how ecchi a show is and how much effort will be put into the story . It's fairly typical Demon vs Demonslayers fare, but it's enough to keep you interested.

Honorable mention: _To Love Ru_. The first (and longest) season isn't overly fanservice-y at all, and not particularly engaging. The following seasons, though, all the gloves are off and it get more and more raunchy while the story gets more and more involved. If you start watching it, don't let the first season turn you away. You might even skip it, but you'll miss some important exposition.

I'll limit it to those, I suppose. Let me know what you think, if you get around to any of them. I don't think any of them are on Netflix, but they're all on Kissanime.

If you're willing to lower the ecchi/fanservice threshold a bit, there are ecchi shows with *great* stories, but without such intense fanservice. Some examples would be...

_Kill La Kill_ (The only one I know of that's actually on Netflix.)
The _Grisaia_ series. (Note: The OVAs are _waaaaaaaaaay_ more ecchi than the seasons & movie.)
_No Game No Life
Date a Live
Trinity 7._

Again, those aren't as raunchy as the earlier list, but they have more interesting stories.




Yes, I'm a perv. I've seen waaaaay too much ecchi anime, and I have no intention of slowing down.


----------



## Alberto7

Mathemagician said:


> Recommendation Requests:
> 
> 1) Anime with the most over the top fan service ever, that still has an interesting storyline. I'm looking for "annoying as hell" levels of fan service, and funnier is better.



See Tim's post before this one. Also, I can vouch for No Game No Life. That show kicked so much ass. It's basically Death Note gone slightly pervy and with just a hint of Sword Art Online. (Though a lot better than the latter, I thought.)



Mathemagician said:


> 2) Anime that I'll think is super-cool and will make me try to shoot fireballs like DBZ did when I was a kid because Goku & Friends were just so badass. Don't need "lonely guy in black". Up-beat is better. Avatar (while American) was a hit with both my fiancé and I.



One Punch Man. Seriously. Absolutely not "lonely guy in black" and totally upbeat. Some of the best humour I've ever seen in anime, yet still remains completely badass. (Just wait for those last few episodes. Oooffff)

Also, +1 on watching Avatar. It is everything a long animated show should be.


----------



## bouVIP

Highschool DxD is probably the best harem ecchi show with actual plot....


----------



## Mathemagician

It's mostly to annoy my fiancé/have something goofy to put on. She made fun of HSOTD, while still being interested in the zombie story. So now I'm looking for something that's somehow more over the top than that. (Sniper boob scene had us dying). Still like zombies.

One punch man is something I've heard mentioned a lot. Will have to check some of these out. Thanks guys.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> Also, Parasyte movie... no thx, for now anyway. Gotta finish the anime first, (which I had to stop watching halfway through... long, non-anime related reasons. ) and then I maaaayyy watch it.



Honestly, when you're done with the anime, you'd probably best to give the movies a hard pass. That is unless you're fine with a LOT of liberal changes. 



Alberto7 said:


> One Punch Man. Seriously. Absolutely not "lonely guy in black" and totally upbeat. Some of the best humour I've ever seen in anime, yet still remains completely badass. (Just wait for those last few episodes. Oooffff)



A thousand times this. And all the hype is merited, in fact, I'm expecting you're watching it already before you even read this post. It's that good.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Mathemagician said:


> It's mostly to annoy my fiancé/have something goofy to put on. She made fun of HSOTD, while still being interested in the zombie story. So now I'm looking for something that's somehow more over the top than that. (Sniper boob scene had us dying). Still like zombies.
> 
> One punch man is something I've heard mentioned a lot. Will have to check some of these out. Thanks guys.



If she likes zombies but you still want to annoy her with more ecchi, then you should watch _Kore Wa Zombie Desu Ka._ It isn't as extreme in the fanservice department as some of the stuff I mentioned above, but it's there. It isn't a zombie show in the same way as HSOTD, since it's the main protagonist who is a zombie, but it might amuse her.


----------



## Alberto7

So, not entirely anime related, but I HAD to post this here:



The trailer for the new Godzilla film. Written and directed by the one and only Hideaki Anno. (Neon Genesis Evangelion and the brains behind Gainax.) As goofy as Godzilla movies usually look, this iteration of the monster is possibly the most terrifying looking that I've seen so far. Granted, I have only watched parts of a few movies when I was a child and caught them on TV late at night.

More than that though, Anno's directing is so obvious in the trailer, it's actually kind of hilarious and awesome.  That shot of the tanks turning their turrets right before firing at the monster is such an Eva take, and the music... jeez.  That alone REALLY makes me want to watch this.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> So, not entirely anime related, but I HAD to post this here:
> 
> 
> 
> The trailer for the new Godzilla film. Written and directed by the one and only Hideaki Anno. (Neon Genesis Evangelion and the brains behind Gainax.) As goofy as Godzilla movies usually look, this iteration of the monster is possibly the most terrifying looking that I've seen so far. Granted, I have only watched parts of a few movies when I was a child and caught them on TV late at night.
> 
> More than that though, Anno's directing is so obvious in the trailer, it's actually kind of hilarious and awesome.  That shot of the tanks turning their turrets right before firing at the monster is such an Eva take, and the music... jeez.  That alone REALLY makes me want to watch this.




Good to get back to seeing good Godzilla movies. You know... Godzilla movies with Godzilla actually being in it for more than 15 minutes. 

Speaking of Hideki Anno and Live Action, did anybody here see the Cutie Honey film released a decade ago?



It's one the few faithful adaptations, and that's saying a lot. 


I'll be doing some huge hyperbolic post about Fate Zero soon, because once I finish it, there's a ton to talk about....


----------



## Alberto7

So, apparently back in November 2015, SHAFT held its 40-year anniversary celebration thing (which it funnily dubbed "Madogatari" ) and showed a new "concept movie" for Madoka Magica, as a sort of pitch for possible ideas for the Madoka Magica Project and any continuation of the project:

Madoka Magica Concept Movie Will Be Core of New Project - News - Anime News Network

If you can find English subs for the following video, it'd be great, because I really like what I'm reading in those Spanish subtitles. Seems like the premise for the new Madoka could work really well, and would open a whole new world of suffering megucas and coobie.





Bloody_Inferno said:


> Good to get back to seeing good Godzilla movies. You know... Godzilla movies with Godzilla actually being in it for more than 15 minutes.
> 
> Speaking of Hideki Anno and Live Action, did anybody here see the Cutie Honey film released a decade ago?
> 
> 
> 
> It's one the few faithful adaptations, and that's saying a lot.
> 
> 
> I'll be doing some huge hyperbolic post about Fate Zero soon, because once I finish it, there's a ton to talk about....




Haven't seen Cutie Honey, but that certainly looks like a ton of fun! 

Will be looking forward to that F/Z post. 

Oh, and I friggin' loved 2014 Godzilla by Legendary. I took it for what it is though, and I don't really associate it nor compare it with the TOHO ones.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> So, apparently back in November 2015, SHAFT held its 40-year anniversary celebration thing (which it funnily dubbed "Madogatari" ) and showed a new "concept movie" for Madoka Magica, as a sort of pitch for possible ideas for the Madoka Magica Project and any continuation of the project:
> 
> Madoka Magica Concept Movie Will Be Core of New Project - News - Anime News Network
> 
> If you can find English subs for the following video, it'd be great, because I really like what I'm reading in those Spanish subtitles. Seems like the premise for the new Madoka could work really well, and would open a whole new world of suffering megucas and coobie.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Haven't seen Cutie Honey, but that certainly looks like a ton of fun!
> 
> Will be looking forward to that F/Z post.
> 
> Oh, and I friggin' loved 2014 Godzilla by Legendary. I took it for what it is though, and I don't really associate it nor compare it with the TOHO ones.




Interesting about Madoka. Asher and I were discussing back on page 92 that Rebellion was pretty much the 'complete' way to end the series, but still would be nice to see it go on somehow...

Cutie Honey somehow successfully keeps the whimsical charm of the source material during the transition to live action. It's similar to the Weather Report Girl live action (a bit old but search and you shall find plenty of WTF), but then again, Cutie Honey is done by Go Nagai, the pioneer of all things ecchi and hentai.  Still, definitely a fun romp worth viewing. 

I dunno if I could ever top your Fate/Zero posts, and it's futile for me to even try.  But given my complex relationship with the franchise, there's a lot to talk about....

Which reminds me, I'll have to watch Boku Dake Ga Inai Machi sometime after all the Fate stuff. You know, the music...

As for Godzilla, agreed the 2014 movie is fine as a standalone and shouldn't be compared to the TOHO films. But when you put Godzilla in the title of the movie, you'd expect him to be actually be IN THE MOVIE for more than the third act. Even Sharktopus had more screentime in it's own movie than Godzilla. Granted that the third act is awesome.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Madoka fans ought to appreciate this:


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Binge watching _Bakemonogatari _before bed is a great way to make sure you have weird ass dreams.


----------



## Alberto7

^ How's Bakemonogatari? I've been meaning to watch it for more than a couple of years now, but I never get around to it.



Bloody_Inferno said:


> Interesting about Madoka. Asher and I were discussing back on page 92 that Rebellion was pretty much the 'complete' way to end the series, but still would be nice to see it go on somehow...
> 
> Cutie Honey somehow successfully keeps the whimsical charm of the source material during the transition to live action. It's similar to the Weather Report Girl live action (a bit old but search and you shall find plenty of WTF), but then again, Cutie Honey is done by Go Nagai, the pioneer of all things ecchi and hentai.  Still, definitely a fun romp worth viewing.
> 
> I dunno if I could ever top your Fate/Zero posts, and it's futile for me to even try.  But given my complex relationship with the franchise, there's a lot to talk about....
> 
> Which reminds me, I'll have to watch Boku Dake Ga Inai Machi sometime after all the Fate stuff. You know, the music...
> 
> As for Godzilla, agreed the 2014 movie is fine as a standalone and shouldn't be compared to the TOHO films. But when you put Godzilla in the title of the movie, you'd expect him to be actually be IN THE MOVIE for more than the third act. Even Sharktopus had more screentime in it's own movie than Godzilla. Granted that the third act is awesome.



 Nah, there's so much to Fate that not even I know. About that - and I'm about to get a little carried away here: sometimes I've made a comment on a YouTube video about Fate trying to be a bit of a smartass, and it backfires when all of the Fate ultranerds jump on me.  The most recent instance of that being on a video of that one incredibly epic fight in Madoka: Rebellion between two magical girls. Someone commented "Gate of Ammunition vs. Unlimited Rifle Works" and someone else said how Gilgamesh could probably kill Homura anyway. A fun discussion comparing the two franchises ensued, and I thought the OP was so brilliant and the comparison so much fun that I decided to jump in with a slightly tongue-in-cheek comment. I just said how Saber would f*ck 'em all up because of X and Y, proudly stating how I am a biased Saber fanboy. I got jumped back at with counter-reasons A, B, C, D, all the way through Z and into the hexadecimal system, and now they're bringing in servants from Fate/Grand Order that I don't even know and all of their obscure powers and properties plus historical facts about their real-life counterparts. Needless to say, I'm not even following that anymore. 

I think I've mentioned it already, but I also have Boku Dake Ga Inai Machi pending. I've heard many, many good things about it. Just waiting to finish finals so I can sit back and watch all that I've been postponing.



Bloody_Inferno said:


> Madoka fans ought to appreciate this:




That's one I didn't think I'd hear!  As usual, his playing is on point.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Alberto7 said:


> ^ How's Bakemonogatari? I've been meaning to watch it for more than a couple of years now, but I never get around to it.



I'm enjoying it. I finished the "first" season and liked it enough to keep going with the other stuff, at least.

I do kinda wish you guys wouldn't have made me aware of the Shaft Head Tilt, though. Now it's all I can f_u_cking see.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> Nah, there's so much to Fate that not even I know. About that - and I'm about to get a little carried away here: sometimes I've made a comment on a YouTube video about Fate trying to be a bit of a smartass, and it backfires when all of the Fate ultranerds jump on me.  The most recent instance of that being on a video of that one incredibly epic fight in Madoka: Rebellion between two magical girls. Someone commented "Gate of Ammunition vs. Unlimited Rifle Works" and someone else said how Gilgamesh could probably kill Homura anyway. A fun discussion comparing the two franchises ensued, and I thought the OP was so brilliant and the comparison so much fun that I decided to jump in with a slightly tongue-in-cheek comment. I just said how Saber would f*ck 'em all up because of X and Y, proudly stating how I am a biased Saber fanboy. I got jumped back at with counter-reasons A, B, C, D, all the way through Z and into the hexadecimal system, and now they're bringing in servants from Fate/Grand Order that I don't even know and all of their obscure powers and properties plus historical facts about their real-life counterparts. Needless to say, I'm not even following that anymore.









That is all. 



Alberto7 said:


> That's one I didn't think I'd hear!  As usual, his playing is on point.



Speaking of Yamato, check out the GOD thread. I've bumped it with new info: they're releasing a new album in a few days. And judging by the preview, it's gonna be well beyond epic!


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Ok... now I finished Fate/Zero. And I need to vent out and it's gonna be a long one, so buckle up...


First, I need to address that I have a rather complex history with the Fate series. I saw Fate/Stay night during it's first airing years ago way back in 2006... wow that was TEN FREAKING YEARS AGO!  My sister was and still is a massive fan, so I was well exposed to the Fate universe. 

The Stay Night series for me, was great at the time I saw it. But over the years I was drifting on to other anime, and other interests in general. I was aware of the manga extending the story and lore, but just stuck to the anime. And as time went by, my impression of Stay Night went from great to good and slowly deteriorated more. It's a good standalone, but it didn't stick with me like my favorites did. Eventually it fell by the wayside. 

When Fate/Zero came along in 2011, I got too busy with band and touring activities that I just had no time for anime altogether. But I somehow managed to listen to Eir Aoi's Memoria and Sora wa Takaku Kaze wa Utau by Luna Haruna a hell of a lot.  And a big fat DUH on Kalafina obviously.  Though when the anime binging came back again, I kept procrastinating on Fate/Zero. Namely that I wasn't in the mood for the large world and the prequel rebuilding stuff. Then after a bunch of series written by Gen Urobuchi (a name that I'll be dropping a lot here), it eventually lead me back to the Fate series. So here I am again. 

There were a few baggages I bought in prior to watching this. When I watched the first episode, it felt like a different anime altogether. I had no idea who the hell was who... well until Rin Tosaka showed up anyway. The class roles sans Saber threw me off completely, and I completely forgot who Kirei Kotomine that I had to wiki Stay Night just to refresh.  It has been 10 years....

So here I am again. Back at the Fate series, and boy I'm glad to be back.  Oh, and I loved Fate/Zero by the way. 



Now , I'm gonna assess this in a different way. Alberto's written a Bible's worth of info in this very thread, but I'm gonna try not to repeat a lot of that. And assuming everyone's seen it... mild spoilers to those who haven't. 



Once again, the fact that Gen Urobuchi writing Fate/Zero loomed over the whole series like a black cloud. Fans have already known Urobuchi's themes of Nihilism being a common thread tying all his works together. I've already mentioned it in Madoka, and while I didn't discuss it in Psycho Pass, it was definitely there, eerily ever present. Even in it's second season where it's not so apparent, nihilistic themes are still there and it's a theme that refuses to go away whether you like it or not. 

Having Fate/Zero going on a longer format (24 episodes), and a larger cast, this is arguably Urobuchi's nihilism at it's most upfront. While Madoka Magica was one constant fierce strike after another, Fate/Zero was a slow and painful burn. I remember a post here a while back expressing that the ending of Zero is as stupid as Evangelion... opinion aside, even an opinion this nadir, the comparison is still appropriate. 

Another common theme in Urobuchi's works: for every nihilist yin, there's an idealist yang. In Madoka it was Kyubei to Madoka. In Psycho Pass, it was Shinya Kogami to Akane Tsunemori... or arguably, all villains to Akane anyway. Zero carries the theme again, this time in the form of the seemingly stone-hearted bastard Kiritsugu Emiya and the noble and faithful Saber. 

Sidebar: because of Kiritsugu's dark and cold persona and mostly spending time in the shadows, it felt difficult to treat him as the main protagonist, often giving the screen time heavy lifting to Irisivel von Einzbern, who conventionally feels more suited to share the protagonist role than Kiritsugu ever could. This sort of character dynamic was odd, but all the more makes this more compelling. This is not the Saber master I know at all. /Sidebar. 

Now the nihilist/idealist dynamic goes far beyond that. As it turns out it's more complex than that, and the deeper I dug, the more dark and depressing it got. There's a well known article that depicts on how each character has a distinct personal trait and how how as the series progresses, that their ideals and beliefs are all eventually futile at the end. And it's dead on. 



Spoiler



From Kiritsugu's consequentialism, Kirie's masochism, Saber's obligation to duty, Lancer's fatalism, Rider's hedonism, Kariya's vengeance, Ryuunosuke's embrace of nilhilsm (one of the characters that's straight up about it), The Grail's corruption... each character carries their give trait like Christ burdening the old rugged cross, all the way up to the point of being crucified on to it, either resulting in death for what they believe in, or their own beliefs being destroyed by the crushing weight of futility and truth about the Grail War. Each character had a sense of purpose and they cling to it strongly, and almost always to their detriment. And at the end, not one character was left unscathed and all suffered heavily for it. 

Kiritsugu, towards the end, eventually feels like a main character. And he suffers worst of all. The constant notion of saving the world from conflict by killing whoever gets in his way in the process, is a strong belief he stubbornly hangs on to, and eventually catches up on him. His backstory doesn't even give him sympathy points either. He was bound to stain his hands with blood from the start, and the Grail poignantly presents the futility of his ideals bare before him, even getting bathed in blood himself. In the end, he chooses to destroy the Grail, in turn, his own ideals and walks away a pathetic hollow shell of his former self, whom, unlike Kirei, still keeps his ideals, at the sacrifice of his own humanity. Kiritsugu's only form of redemption comes in a surviving Shirou, which leads to the Stay Night/Unlimited Blade Works/Heaven's Feel parallel path arcs.



So overall, it's a bleak prequel to a big series. An exercise in nihilism in the same vein as Urobuchi's own Madoka (especially Rebellion). He wanted to show how dark the Fate series really is, and that Zero is the path that leads to a dark depressing black hole you can curl into fetal position into. Mission accomplished sir. 


Now that dreary time is over, time to move on to Unlimited Blade Works.  Dammit Type Moon, why do you have to be so unconventional about narrative? This is making Kara No Kyoukai feel like a children's storybook. 

Also: Yuki Kajiura's returning to write the score for the Heaven's Feel movie trilogy.  



....of course my 100'th post on this damn thread is about Fate..


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Because I know you all care immensely, here's what I've watched or am in the process of watching since the last time I gave an update:

Finished watching:

_Campione
Love Hina
Trinity 7
No Game No Life
Date a Live
Grisaia no Kajitsu
Grisaia no Meikyuu
Grisaia no Rakuen
Cupid's Chocolate
Bakemonogatari
Nisemonogatari
To LOVE-Ru
Motto To LOVE-Ru
To LOVE-Ru Darkness
Shinmai Maou no Testament_

Still watching:

_Hell Girl
Boogiepop Phantom
Shinmai Maou no Testament Burst
To LOVE-Ru Darkness 2nd
Rurouni Kenshin_
And the rest of the _...monogatari_ stuff.


Only brief comment I'll make about any of it is that _Cupid's Chocolate_ was actually a Chinese-made anime performed completely in Mandarin, so depending on how big a purist you are, it might not count. Visually it definitely fit the bill:


----------



## Tenaba

Grand Moff Tim said:


> Because I know you all care immensely, here's what I've watched or am in the process of watching since the last time I gave an update:



How fast do you watch things?

Also, here's the heaviest K-ON! video I stumbled across recently.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I54vB1T31js


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Cardbird said:


> How fast do you watch things?



Most stuff tends to be only 12 episodes long, and cutting out the opening and closing songs, episodes tend to be about 22 minutes long. That's 264 minutes, or around 4 and a half hours. That's about how long it takes to watch two full-length movies these days.

I know it looks like a lot to list off 15 things I've watched recently, but with that info in mind it's about like watching 7 or 8 movies. Spread out over two or three weeks, that isn't overly unreasonable, IMO.

On the other hand, I really do genuinely have absolutely no social life, so all of the above is just what I've come up with to make myself feel better about the fact that watching anime is all I ever do with myself anymore.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Grand Moff Tim said:


> Most stuff tends to be only 12 episodes long, and cutting out the opening and closing songs, episodes tend to be about 22 minutes long. That's 264 minutes, or around 4 and a half hours. That's about how long it takes to watch two full-length movies these days.



I'll second how 12 episode series can easily be viewed in a span of less than a week. I've gone through a fair bit myself over the last few months thanks to the short span. It's much easier to go through than the 50 or so episode big series of yore that I've been accustomed to.


----------



## Tenaba

Grand Moff Tim said:


> Most stuff tends to be only 12 episodes long, and cutting out the opening and closing songs, episodes tend to be about 22 minutes long. That's 264 minutes, or around 4 and a half hours. That's about how long it takes to watch two full-length movies these days.
> 
> I know it looks like a lot to list off 15 things I've watched recently, but with that info in mind it's about like watching 7 or 8 movies. Spread out over two or three weeks, that isn't overly unreasonable, IMO.
> 
> On the other hand, I really do genuinely have absolutely no social life, so all of the above is just what I've come up with to make myself feel better about the fact that watching anime is all I ever do with myself anymore.



Yeah, I cut out the OP and EDs too once I've watched them. I also have no social life, I just have trouble gathering the willpower to watch something for 22 minutes, as ridiculous as that sounds. If that sounds bad, I really, really don't like movies.


----------



## dr_game0ver

An épisode is 22 mn long with 90s of opening and 90 more of ending so an épisode is realy 19mn long... well, back when i still gave one about animés...


----------



## Alberto7

So I finally finished finals last Monday, and binged through the rest of Hunter x Hunter. My God, was the Chimera Ant arc just HARD to get through. The middle episodes of it are so unbearably awful, it took me about 5 months to finish. With that said, I really, REALLY enjoyed the ride overall. Killua, Hisoka, Meruem, and Alluka have got to take the cake for favorite characters. Gon is a little sh*t though, drove me nuts, but I'll miss him dearly too.

I can't say that the anime is good or bad when I invested so much time into it. It certainly made me care about the characters and root for them, regardless of whether the narrative is amazing or incredibly awful.



Bloody_Inferno said:


> Ok... now I finished Fate/Zero. And I need to vent out and it's gonna be a long one, so buckle up...
> 
> 
> First, I need to address that I have a rather complex history with the Fate series. I saw Fate/Stay night during it's first airing years ago way back in 2006... wow that was TEN FREAKING YEARS AGO!  My sister was and still is a massive fan, so I was well exposed to the Fate universe.
> 
> The Stay Night series for me, was great at the time I saw it. But over the years I was drifting on to other anime, and other interests in general. I was aware of the manga extending the story and lore, but just stuck to the anime. And as time went by, my impression of Stay Night went from great to good and slowly deteriorated more. It's a good standalone, but it didn't stick with me like my favorites did. Eventually it fell by the wayside.
> 
> When Fate/Zero came along in 2011, I got too busy with band and touring activities that I just had no time for anime altogether. But I somehow managed to listen to Eir Aoi's Memoria and Sora wa Takaku Kaze wa Utau by Luna Haruna a hell of a lot.  And a big fat DUH on Kalafina obviously.  Though when the anime binging came back again, I kept procrastinating on Fate/Zero. Namely that I wasn't in the mood for the large world and the prequel rebuilding stuff. Then after a bunch of series written by Gen Urobuchi (a name that I'll be dropping a lot here), it eventually lead me back to the Fate series. So here I am again.
> 
> There were a few baggages I bought in prior to watching this. When I watched the first episode, it felt like a different anime altogether. I had no idea who the hell was who... well until Rin Tosaka showed up anyway. The class roles sans Saber threw me off completely, and I completely forgot who Kirei Kotomine that I had to wiki Stay Night just to refresh.  It has been 10 years....
> 
> So here I am again. Back at the Fate series, and boy I'm glad to be back.  Oh, and I loved Fate/Zero by the way.
> 
> 
> 
> Now , I'm gonna assess this in a different way. Alberto's written a Bible's worth of info in this very thread, but I'm gonna try not to repeat a lot of that. And assuming everyone's seen it... mild spoilers to those who haven't.
> 
> 
> 
> Once again, the fact that Gen Urobuchi writing Fate/Zero loomed over the whole series like a black cloud. Fans have already known Urobuchi's themes of Nihilism being a common thread tying all his works together. I've already mentioned it in Madoka, and while I didn't discuss it in Psycho Pass, it was definitely there, eerily ever present. Even in it's second season where it's not so apparent, nihilistic themes are still there and it's a theme that refuses to go away whether you like it or not.
> 
> Having Fate/Zero going on a longer format (24 episodes), and a larger cast, this is arguably Urobuchi's nihilism at it's most upfront. While Madoka Magica was one constant fierce strike after another, Fate/Zero was a slow and painful burn. I remember a post here a while back expressing that the ending of Zero is as stupid as Evangelion... opinion aside, even an opinion this nadir, the comparison is still appropriate.
> 
> Another common theme in Urobuchi's works: for every nihilist yin, there's an idealist yang. In Madoka it was Kyubei to Madoka. In Psycho Pass, it was Shinya Kogami to Akane Tsunemori... or arguably, all villains to Akane anyway. Zero carries the theme again, this time in the form of the seemingly stone-hearted bastard Kiritsugu Emiya and the noble and faithful Saber.
> 
> Sidebar: because of Kiritsugu's dark and cold persona and mostly spending time in the shadows, it felt difficult to treat him as the main protagonist, often giving the screen time heavy lifting to Irisivel von Einzbern, who conventionally feels more suited to share the protagonist role than Kiritsugu ever could. This sort of character dynamic was odd, but all the more makes this more compelling. This is not the Saber master I know at all. /Sidebar.
> 
> Now the nihilist/idealist dynamic goes far beyond that. As it turns out it's more complex than that, and the deeper I dug, the more dark and depressing it got. There's a well known article that depicts on how each character has a distinct personal trait and how how as the series progresses, that their ideals and beliefs are all eventually futile at the end. And it's dead on.
> 
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> From Kiritsugu's consequentialism, Kirie's masochism, Saber's obligation to duty, Lancer's fatalism, Rider's hedonism, Kariya's vengeance, Ryuunosuke's embrace of nilhilsm (one of the characters that's straight up about it), The Grail's corruption... each character carries their give trait like Christ burdening the old rugged cross, all the way up to the point of being crucified on to it, either resulting in death for what they believe in, or their own beliefs being destroyed by the crushing weight of futility and truth about the Grail War. Each character had a sense of purpose and they cling to it strongly, and almost always to their detriment. And at the end, not one character was left unscathed and all suffered heavily for it.
> 
> Kiritsugu, towards the end, eventually feels like a main character. And he suffers worst of all. The constant notion of saving the world from conflict by killing whoever gets in his way in the process, is a strong belief he stubbornly hangs on to, and eventually catches up on him. His backstory doesn't even give him sympathy points either. He was bound to stain his hands with blood from the start, and the Grail poignantly presents the futility of his ideals bare before him, even getting bathed in blood himself. In the end, he chooses to destroy the Grail, in turn, his own ideals and walks away a pathetic hollow shell of his former self, whom, unlike Kirei, still keeps his ideals, at the sacrifice of his own humanity. Kiritsugu's only form of redemption comes in a surviving Shirou, which leads to the Stay Night/Unlimited Blade Works/Heaven's Feel parallel path arcs.
> 
> 
> 
> So overall, it's a bleak prequel to a big series. An exercise in nihilism in the same vein as Urobuchi's own Madoka (especially Rebellion). He wanted to show how dark the Fate series really is, and that Zero is the path that leads to a dark depressing black hole you can curl into fetal position into. Mission accomplished sir.
> 
> 
> Now that dreary time is over, time to move on to Unlimited Blade Works.  Dammit Type Moon, why do you have to be so unconventional about narrative? This is making Kara No Kyoukai feel like a children's storybook.
> 
> Also: Yuki Kajiura's returning to write the score for the Heaven's Feel movie trilogy.
> 
> 
> 
> ....of course my 100'th post on this damn thread is about Fate..



Not even sure where to begin addressing all of your main points, but I agree with pretty much all of them. As for how dark the show is, some say that Urobuchi was aiming at a "spiritual prequel" of sorts to Heavens Feel, given just how inhumanely dark and twisted that route is. However, I feel as though Urobuchi does it with more finesse, if you will. It's not only his themes, but also his storytelling feels more relatable to me than what's found in Heavens Feel. With that said, Heavens Feel has so much lore, and twists every character in such interesting ways, that I have trouble picking Zero over HF, or vice versa.

Oh, and yeah, so much HYPE for Yuki Kajiura on Heavens Feel trilogy! 

And now, on to Boku Dake ga Inai Machi. (Erased) 

EDIT: oh yeah! almost forgot to post this: History Comes Alive with Fate/Zero, by Gabriella Ekens. Absolutely *DO NOT READ IT* if you haven't watched Fate/Zero, as it contains every spoiler imaginable. It's a super interesting article detailing the legendary and historical figures that the servants in the Fate franchise portray, and how they've been changed to fit the Fate universe. There's also another one written by the same author about the characters in Fate/Stay Night.


----------



## bouVIP

oh Alberto7

There's a Fate Zero event in Fate Grand Order right now and the story for the event is written by nasu and urobuchi (original author for F/Z)


----------



## Alberto7

^ Goddamnit, at one point I even forgot I had the game  I haven't played pretty much since I added you as a friend there.  Any idea on how long it's lasting? I have more free time at the moment, so I may be able to get back into it and get more familiar with the gameplay. (Which is really the main thing keeping me from playing it full time.) Thanks for letting me know dude.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Where do you guys go for info about upcoming anime? I imagine I might eventually want to start watching some new stuff instead of always digging for gems from the past, but I don't want a total crapshoot. It'd also be nice to be able to find out when a new season of a show I like is coming.


----------



## myrtorp

I watched "Daily Lives of High School Boys", or "Danshi Koukousei No Nichijou"
A short slice of life dealing with social awkward social situations done in a pretty entertaining way. 12 episodes and pretty enjoyable!


----------



## Alberto7

Grand Moff Tim said:


> Where do you guys go for info about upcoming anime? I imagine I might eventually want to start watching some new stuff instead of always digging for gems from the past, but I don't want a total crapshoot. It'd also be nice to be able to find out when a new season of a show I like is coming.



anichart.net shows you everything officially scheduled for the upcoming year. Very, very nice and polished layout too, with info about each show on each season. (Including any available PVs or trailers.)

For actual news, Anime News Network is both fast to grab, translate, and publish any new announcements, and has a pretty much immaculate reputation when it comes to anime reporting. They post a lot of cool articles and reviews. That, and their forum is like the SSO of anime. Really cool site.


----------



## bouVIP

Alberto7 said:


> ^ Goddamnit, at one point I even forgot I had the game  I haven't played pretty much since I added you as a friend there.  Any idea on how long it's lasting? I have more free time at the moment, so I may be able to get back into it and get more familiar with the gameplay. (Which is really the main thing keeping me from playing it full time.) Thanks for letting me know dude.



it just got extended to May 18th so should have some time. Also you should get a lot of free quartz so try rolling for Iskander King of Bros!!


----------



## Alberto7

Already finished episode 9 of Boku Dake ga Inai Machi (a.k.a. Erased), and it is HEAVY. I don't think I've ever seen anime that explores that specific theme, and especially not in such a heavy and realistic manner. I REALLY like it so far. It's a total tear jerker, and there are a couple of scenes that are overwhelmingly sad in all of their raw and horrifying realism. I only have three episodes left, and already have an idea of how some of the current loose ends are gonna tie up, but I could be wrong. Will keep on watching it tomorrow. Can't wait!

Also, regarding Kajiura's music in the anime... her music surprisingly doesn't really stand out. And I don't mean to say it isn't good, just that it is very toned down and doesn't often come to the forefront. It's either that, or my mind is so focused on the engrossing story that I've stopped paying attention to the music. It's funny, because when I listened to the ending, I could have sworn that it was just a Kalafina song being performed by another singer.  When I saw it was performed by Sayuri, I refused to believe that song was composed by anyone other than Yuki Kajiura. Indeed, upon digging a little deeper, I found out that Kajiura composed the Ending piece too. It's a really good piece, but honestly sounds like an amalgamation of all the popular Kalafina songs. It actually almost sounds like a rehash of Kimi no Gin no Niwa.  (Or however you choose to spell it in Romaji. ) Of course, while Sayuri is a good singer, Kalafina's voices are unmatched. 

Here's the ED in question: (as usual, DO NOT read the comments before watching the show. This is one where you really do not want ANY spoilers)


----------



## Alberto7

Me _while_ watching Erased:






Me _after_ watching Erased:









While not perfect plot-wise, I felt like the thematic elements of the show were its main draws for me, and it's what I kept paying attention to. The plot itself is still great, however, even if there are a couple of things I wish they would have explained. Regardless, this is honestly one of the best and most moving shows that I have watched in quite a while. At 12 episodes long, and being as gripping as it is, it's a _really _fast watch, as was talked about before in the thread.

With that said, anybody who has played the videogame Life Is Strange... well, this is kind of Life Is Strange: The Videogame.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Finished Unlimited Blade Works last Friday. It took me a while before it dawned on me that I maybe seeing the Fate series wrongly. 


As someone who DIDN'T play the Fate Stay Night game and to be honest, wasn't interested in doing so at the time, it took me a while to grasp the concept of what they're trying to do as an anime series. The only game game I played was the Unlimited Codes fighting game... for 10 minutes. In an arcade. In Japan. In 2008. ...yeah I had no idea the actual Fate game that wasn't that fighting game was a visual novel with 3 optional paths.  So consider my face red. 

Now finally understanding what it's all about, I look back at the original Fate/Stay Night series and appreciate it more now. While I still state that it's not legendary like others I love, and I still tend to poke fun at the horrible "People die if they are killed" mistranslation, it's still a good solid series that I certainly enjoyed a lot. 

And yeah, I enjoyed the hell out of Unlimited Blade Works too. It felt a little more upbeat than the Fate path, all things considered. And it was a great insight to what Rin and Archer's characters were more about, being the more central focus that isn't Shirou. Even Saber gets less screen time, which now I understand the parallel paths makes more sense. And yeah, I thought the buildup to the big reveal was pretty cool. 

The music, while not as legendary as Kawai and Kajiura's past effort, Hideyuki Fukasawa does a pretty damn fine job keeping up. He's frequent on Capcom games and having scored the recent Street Fighter outings (IV and V namely), he knows how to build mood and long lasting themes. Right off the bat, Tohsaka's theme was already stuck in my head as were all variations of it. And I guess I'm warming up to Ring Your Bell a little more now. 

Though I can't help but feel that the dreariness of Fate/Zero is spilled over here. Not as much as it would be on Heaven's Feel (if what Alberto is saying is to go by), but having Archer as a focal character, it was bound to happen. Kiritsugu's ghost subtly haunts the series without really doing anything at all. But again, this is a good development. Overall, another solid series. 

Also, seeing Gilgamesh rocking the casual gear is my single favorite thing in UBW. 


So while I twiddle my thumbs until Heaven's Feel, I'll go watch Boku Dake ga Inai Machi. Speaking of which...




Alberto7 said:


> Also, regarding Kajiura's music in the anime... her music surprisingly doesn't really stand out. And I don't mean to say it isn't good, just that it is very toned down and doesn't often come to the forefront. It's either that, or my mind is so focused on the engrossing story that I've stopped paying attention to the music. It's funny, because when I listened to the ending, I could have sworn that it was just a Kalafina song being performed by another singer.  When I saw it was performed by Sayuri, I refused to believe that song was composed by anyone other than Yuki Kajiura. Indeed, upon digging a little deeper, I found out that Kajiura composed the Ending piece too. It's a really good piece, but honestly sounds like an amalgamation of all the popular Kalafina songs. It actually almost sounds like a rehash of Kimi no Gin no Niwa.  (Or however you choose to spell it in Romaji. ) Of course, while Sayuri is a good singer, Kalafina's voices are unmatched.




My huge Kajiura writeup in page 90 criticised her of exactly just that. And I absolutely adore her. Hell, my piano playing presence is ripped off from her (and some of Roddy Bottum but I digress). So it's a tad painful to see her repeat herself and quite often. Another example: Your avatar:



Beautiful BEAUTIFUL song. But then I thought, hey wait a minute...



...she's kinda done that in Pandora Hearts already. I mean, yeah I understand that everything Kajiura has done is essentially an extension of the Tsubasa Chronicles score, but as a result a lot of her stuff sounds like retreads after more listens. And having Wakana sing Kajiurago in both songs makes it more apparent. And on that note...

[Sidenote] 
It's gonna be like my PMs with Alberto here (so feel free to ignore), but the last few anime shows had made me say I've heard too much of Wakana's voice, something I once thought impossible since her voice is a huge reason I love Kalafina in the first place. And the fact that To The Beginning, Heavenly Blue and Believe, songs from the last few anime I've watched; all have an interchangeable chorus, starting with the same note, same singer leading and possibly the same key is tiresome. Even during my binge listening to all 5 Kalafina albums, I was forgetting what song it was when those choruses came up. Their last album, despite some awesome gems had too much of her to the point that I was thinking, Yuki-senpai... can you get Keiko and Hikaru to rock out a bit more?
[/Sidenote]

...you know what, this sucks and I'm not gonna end this on a bad note. So...








I haven't done a composer post in a while either.


----------



## Alberto7

^ I'll be honest, I'm quite content with whatever we have from Ms. Kajiura at the moment. That's not to say I don't look forward to any new material from her - I do. I'm rather saying that more of the same isn't necessarily a bad thing in my eyes (ears). Anime-wise, with the exception of perhaps Madoka and Kara no Kyoukai (whose scores I find stand out exceptionally from the rest of her works), I find that what she brings, above all else, is a unique mood and ambiance that sets the tone for the show extremely well. Sure, some songs do get stuck in your head for a while, but, like you rightly said, after some time, you won't be sure where those melodies belong. Change is welcome and appreciated, but I don't have her music so disassociated from anime as to think of it as 100% stand alone work that I'd normally require to deviate from the standards it has set for itself every now and again. I don't know if any of that makes any sense. 

Kalafina as a group, however, I'd like to see evolve a bit more. Despite the composer of their music being Yuki Kajiura (and keeping in mind what I said about her in my previous paragraph), I have somehow come to regard them as an independent musical endeavor whose music isn't created solely for TV and is thus allowed to experiment more. (Though given the nature of the Japanese music industry, maybe not.) It'd be great to see her experiment more with the music she composes for them. It's the reason why I regard Moonfesta as one of their most memorable songs, even if it isn't my favorite.

And those are interesting thoughts on the UBW anime. Glad you liked it! I wonder how you would have liked it had they not brought up Kiritsugu as often. In the original UBW, (visual novel) Kiritsugu's character keeps his role, but he's talked about much less. If anything, I feel like Fate/Zero provided some much needed background and support for the visual novel.

It's funny you mention Saber getting less screen time. Halfway through Heavens Feel, you'll be all "who's Saber again?"  She still makes appearances, and even in new forms (*cough*Alter*cough*), but don't expect her to be developed any further. F/Z and Fate route are as much development as she's going to get. That might be considered a spoiler by some, but I sure would have liked to know that before I started reading Heavens Feel... being a Saber fanboy, I was slightly disappointed by that.

The thing about Fate/Zero is that it is a _much_ more mature narrative and story than anything else in the Fate franchise. Zero feels like an adult with a major in philosophy and/or literature wrote it, whereas F/SN feels much more like a story spawned out of sheer teenage angst. Not to say either is objectively better than the other, but they're certainly different.

Bring on more composer posts when you have the time/motivation to do them! They're always a fun read, and are the right length (with the sample music and videos and all) to give me something to do when I'm bored.


----------



## Alberto7

Wondering if anybody here got anything from the Anime Weekend Sale that Steam is currently having? So many dirt cheap games! I didn't know it was happening, I just saw it. I didn't even know Clannad or Higurashi were on Steam!  I wonder if I should get anything...


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> ^ I'll be honest, I'm quite content with whatever we have from Ms. Kajiura at the moment. That's not to say I don't look forward to any new material from her - I do. I'm rather saying that more of the same isn't necessarily a bad thing in my eyes (ears). Anime-wise, with the exception of perhaps Madoka and Kara no Kyoukai (whose scores I find stand out exceptionally from the rest of her works), I find that what she brings, above all else, is a unique mood and ambiance that sets the tone for the show extremely well. Sure, some songs do get stuck in your head for a while, but, like you rightly said, after some time, you won't be sure where those melodies belong. Change is welcome and appreciated, but I don't have her music so disassociated from anime as to think of it as 100% stand alone work that I'd normally require to deviate from the standards it has set for itself every now and again. I don't know if any of that makes any sense.



Despite my nitpicking, I'm on the same boat. And to be fair I was a bit less forgiving on my initial Kajiura binge years ago. And I'll leave her on every time she jumps on the playlist. 




Alberto7 said:


> Kalafina as a group, however, I'd like to see evolve a bit more. Despite the composer of their music being Yuki Kajiura (and keeping in mind what I said about her in my previous paragraph), I have somehow come to regard them as an independent musical endeavor whose music isn't created solely for TV and is thus allowed to experiment more. (Though given the nature of the Japanese music industry, maybe not.) It'd be great to see her experiment more with the music she composes for them. It's the reason why I regard Moonfesta as one of their most memorable songs, even if it isn't my favorite.



Agreed, and while their last album Far On The Water may not be my favorite of the 5, but some of the stylistic changes does show promise. It took me a while to warm up to Identify and One Light, but they're upbeat and feel good pop-rock tracks that work. And Monochrome; the most un-Kalafina Kalafina song in their catalogue is my favorite song on the album next to Sorairo No Isu, which is all things Kajiura. And of course...






Alberto7 said:


> And those are interesting thoughts on the UBW anime. Glad you liked it! I wonder how you would have liked it had they not brought up Kiritsugu as often. In the original UBW, (visual novel) Kiritsugu's character keeps his role, but he's talked about much less. If anything, I feel like Fate/Zero provided some much needed background and support for the visual novel.
> 
> It's funny you mention Saber getting less screen time. Halfway through Heavens Feel, you'll be all "who's Saber again?"  She still makes appearances, and even in new forms (*cough*Alter*cough*), but don't expect her to be developed any further. F/Z and Fate route are as much development as she's going to get. That might be considered a spoiler by some, but I sure would have liked to know that before I started reading Heavens Feel... being a Saber fanboy, I was slightly disappointed by that.
> 
> The thing about Fate/Zero is that it is a _much_ more mature narrative and story than anything else in the Fate franchise. Zero feels like an adult with a major in philosophy and/or literature wrote it, whereas F/SN feels much more like a story spawned out of sheer teenage angst. Not to say either is objectively better than the other, but they're certainly different.



I suppose that happened by design. The game was out first and making the Zero anime then followed with UBW...


Spoiler



...and Archer's entire arc mirror's Kiritsugu's...


...it's unavoidable. Yeah, Zero does give Fate a more solid backbone and weight.

As for Saber, I think being the series' poster girl has a lot to do with it. She's the only character that appears as is in all stories that doesn't age and isn't a core antagonist. Of course that could change depending on how the Heavens Feel trilogy is portrayed. 



Alberto7 said:


> Bring on more composer posts when you have the time/motivation to do them! They're always a fun read, and are the right length (with the sample music and videos and all) to give me something to do when I'm bored.



I do intend on continuing I swear.  I did chose a substantial composer so I'm using that as an excuse to warrant the delay... I'm flying interstate in a few weeks for some downtime so I might squeeze it in then.

That and I started Boku Dake ga Inai Machi. Started 2 days ago and already 7 episodes done. Boy I'm going faster than expected here.


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


> That and I started Boku Dake ga Inai Machi. Started 2 days ago and already 7 episodes done. Boy I'm going faster than expected here.



Not surprised.  Same thing happened to me. "Oh, look, cool animu! I'll start it so I have something to watch during my free time and with my meals over the next few days." *leaves all responsibilities aside and finishes it in 2 days* "Well, that was a really short anime."


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> Not surprised.  Same thing happened to me. "Oh, look, cool animu! I'll start it so I have something to watch during my free time and with my meals over the next few days." *leaves all responsibilities aside and finishes it in 2 days* "Well, that was a really short anime."



Shh. I'm trying to avoid doing that again. 

I did all of Code Geass, and a few 50 episode Gundam series in 3 days. I can't do that anymore. So these short spurt layouts are a godsend for me.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Bloody_Inferno said:


> I started Boku Dake ga Inai Machi. Started 2 days ago and already 7 episodes done. Boy I'm going faster than expected here.



And I finished it last night. Because, of course I did. 

Despite the rather quiet and humble setting, this is a fast paced and a thrilling emotional ride. No real fireworks, all emotion driven tension building. You often forget how fast the series is going especially during the children scenes, and what's essentially, normal every day activities due to being so engrossed and invested in the characters you become. Yuki Kajiura's score is much more restrained here than normal (very little and stripped down instrumentation and no Kajiurago whatsoever). It's so cold, so empty, so... refreshing, and in context, its' perfect. She's a big fan of the source material and that understanding does show here. 

Like Alberto said, it's not perfect. Too many themes are left unexplained, especially the heavy themes and character motives the anime is bending over backwards to portray, and once again the short 12 episode format makes a lot of character development suffer, especially the big reveal at the end, while great, does still leave a few strings dangling. 

Despite the flaws, the emotional investment is what keeps you going, and ultimately leads to a filling and satisfying finale. Overall, highly recommended and worth watching. There's also a Live Action movie, because, of course there is. I might give that a shot sometime. 


Makes me wanna play Life Is Strange now. But I don't have a PS4 yet, and PS3 version isn't out down under.


----------



## Alberto7

I had just written a huge post about Life is Strange, but I lost it when I hit the Post button, as I had had this tab open for way too long and the int0rnet didn't like that... so it killed my beautiful post.

Summarizing, Life is Strange is a great game with a lot of personality, intriguing plots, complex and endearing characters (if Chloe were a real person, I think I'd melt in her presence), good development, nuanced themes, and very noticeable amounts of wasted potential. The decision-based ending(s) is(are) carefully designed to crush the player's heart. It left me with a hole in my soul the size of the Grand Canyon and made me more depressed than losing my entire post.

Oh, and the music is superb. Very calm, tranquil, and emotional music throughout. Doesn't help with the feels.

EDIT: also, Life is Strange is on Steam. It's relatively cheap (though I bought it during the Square-Enix sale) and doesn't require high specs. I played it on my laptop.


----------



## Don Vito

I haven't seen it yet, but I love this ending to Trigger's newest show, Space Patrol Luluco.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Why did I wait so long to start watching _Nichijou_? Sh!t's hilarious.


----------



## MFB

Grand Moff Tim said:


> Why did I wait so long to start watching _Nichijou_? Sh!t's hilarious.



That's what you get for being such a baka


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

MFB said:


> That's what you get for being such a baka


----------



## Don Vito




----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Bloody_Inferno said:


> I do intend on continuing I swear.  I did chose a substantial composer so I'm using that as an excuse to warrant the delay... I'm flying interstate in a few weeks for some downtime so I might squeeze it in then.



Sitting on a hotel in Canberra late Friday evening, I guess now's a good time.  I need to pick an anime to watch anyway. Either watch Gurran Lagann once and for all, or Black Butler... once and for all. Dammit. 

Anyways, I chose a comprehensive composer this time, I may have bitten off more than I can chew. So bear with me, this is gonna be dense. 

Ok... (deep breath)







Prior to anime, Yoko Kanno was doing a bunch of local games for the PC Engines (8801/9801), in the mid late 80s. All were made by Koei, so it's a bunch of Nobunaga's Ambition/Romance of Three Kingdoms' early incarnations. She did work on anime arranging the ending theme to Porco Rosso but it wasn't until 1994 where she composed the music to Macross Plus when her anime career got rolling, the Macross franchise is a huge deal when it's the marquee mecha series that isn't Gundam. 





Side note: Macross Plus also predated the Vocaloid concept by 2 damn decades. Not bad. 

She's done a few other odd OP/ED themes for a few others and also did the awesome Vision Of Escaflowne series, but let's cut to the chase. As far as mainstream anime fans are concerned, Kanno is best known for this:





Not much else to say here, other than if you're reading this, liking the 2 songs and HAVEN'T seen Cowboy Bebop, fix that yesterday. 

That anime also gave us Kanno's band 'Seatbelts', a largely instrumental jazz/blues/experimental band but with multiple guest vocalists like Emily Bidinger, Mai Yamane and many more. It's essentially Kanno's jam session outlet with musicians from around the world. Also original guitarist Tsuneo Imahori gets anime cred himself with soundtracks to Trigun and Gungrave. 

Then on Kanno got busy with:

Brain Powerd (beautiful music to an otherwise forgettable series)

 

Turn A Gundam (wonderful unique series, even if you don't like Gundam, see this anyway)



Earth Maiden Arjuna (highly underrated)



Escaflowne



...and more. 
She also played piano to the awesome Jin Roh movie. If you haven't seen it, check it out on the strength of this song alone.



By 2002, things got even more ridiculously better for Kanno. The biggest being this:





RIP: Origa... 

More hitters like Wolf's Rain:



Darker Than Black:



Genesis of Aquarion:



...and it's sequel Aquarion Evol:



The epic Macross Frontier



Side note: Ok, I absolutely love the Macross series (even the sucky ones like II and Zero), the original series is what got me into anime in the first place (explains A LOT of my J-music fascination come to think of it). And Frontier being the 25th Anniversary series being constant shameless fanservice nods is a joy for me. Even better that despite the constant shameless fanservice nods, Frontier is actually legitimately great. 

And Zankyo No Terror



Oh, and she's also a member of the Space Dandy Band.




After, Zankyo No Terror, Kanno hasn't done any substantial anime of late (odd OP/ED/Insert songs aside). Instead she's focused on film, J-drama, commercials, touring with Seatbelts and writing/producing pop albums with many vocalists like Maaya Sakimoto whom she also tours with, Crystal Kay, May'n, SMAP, Kyoko Koizumi and many more. 



Kanno's music isn't exactly the kind to pigeonhole, she's done more styles one could poke a stick at. But when listening to her music, I can feel a sense of natural organic vibe in all of them. Including the cold electronic stuff from Ghost In The Shell SAC. That's not easy to pull off, especially for someone who'll gladly jump from genre to genre with reckless abandon, even without the constrains of being a composer (writing to what the screenplay requires). 


And to be honest, while I do tend to try to nitpick and find flaws on my biggest influences and favorite musicians, I find it difficult to do so with Kanno. Aside from getting fatigue from most of her jazz stuff (yeah, it's blasphemous, come at me ), there's always the other quirky stuff like Arjuna and Turn A Gundam, which are just exquisite. Ultimately, all of Kanno's music have a sort of feel good uplifting theme that enhances every anime she touches. Okay maybe not Brain Powered... jeez, even the music can't save that steaming turd. 



Well that wasn't too bad, but it still took me 3 hours to post.  And the tube spamming may slow down your browser here, sorry about that. So let's hear more Macross Frontier fanservice. Seriously, it's really that awesome...





Now which anime to watch...


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

> Either watch Gurran Lagann once and for all, or Black Butler... once and for all. Dammit.


Scrapped both plans, took a blind stab in the dark and dived in head first into an anime I had absolutely no idea about. Because I'm stupid sometimes. Oh well, I'll just go with it...

As I'm posting this, I'm watching Bubuki Buranki (or BBK BRNK, because as if the original title didn't make enough sense translation decided to be ironic). First episode off to a good start.

EDIT: Three epiosodes in. Think Voltron meets Pacific Rim with emphasis on ye ole 'power of friendship' chestnut. But instead of giant monsters, the main characters fight other humans in their mecha (or Buranki as it's called here), so it's a bit of Gundam Wing kind of character division thrown in too. That actually sounds like a recipe for disaster come to think of it.  Thankfully it isn't so far. 

EDIT 2: Doing some backtracking in this thread looking for other anime to watch. I remembered another one I'm supposed to have gone through:



wakjob said:


> A little *Bokurano *update:
> 
> Man this is a sick show ( not in a good way ).
> Dark and disgusting. Don't know if I can hang on all the way through this one.
> 
> I can respect it, but man... I don't know. whew!



I was thinking of watching this instead of Bubuki Buranki, but too late now. I guess that'll be the next one. 

Anyway, from what I've read about Bokurano, the anime diverts liberally from the manga. Turns out the director of the anime didn't like the original story so he changed a ton of it.  The manga author approved it though so here we are. That said, with the liberal changes, I'd take it that the manga is probably even more grotesque and macabre...


----------



## Alberto7

^ I hate you for making me listen to Space Lion. That song gets me high without drugs, I friggin' love it. Other than that, FINALLY a Yoko Kanno post. I was honestly waiting for it, perhaps as much or even more than your Kajiura post.  Everything I have ever heard by Kanno has been nothing less than absolutely fantastic. I don't know what it is about her, but everything just... flows wonderfully.

As a curious side note, back in 2014 I got to meet Raj Ramayya during an autograph session, then a 2-hour music industry/song writing panel he held at Otakuthon that year, and then saw him perform later in the afternoon. He's collaborated extensively with Kanno and has contributed music to the Cowboy Bebop film (he's responsible for the opening song to the movie, Ask DNA, which is one of my favorite songs in the whole of Cowboy Bebop) and also contributed music for Wolf's Rain, including the song Strangers. According to him, he's ghostwritten for other TV productions. (I forget which ones he mentioned.) Despite all of this, very few people attended any of his events. There literally weren't more than 15 people in line for his autograph, (in a 17,000+ people con that year) so we all got to chat with him for a while. He was a really nice, super approachable dude. (He's Canadian, what do you expect? ) Not much more to add here, really, other than a fun anecdote related to Mrs. Kanno.




Also, I just started watching Soul Eater... finally. Watching episode 3 tonight. So far, so good!


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> ^ I hate you for making me listen to Space Lion. That song gets me high without drugs, I friggin' love it. Other than that, FINALLY a Yoko Kanno post. I was honestly waiting for it, perhaps as much or even more than your Kajiura post.  Everything I have ever heard by Kanno has been nothing less than absolutely fantastic. I don't know what it is about her, but everything just... flows wonderfully.



I don't think I had a choice.  It's one of those unwritten laws that if anybody speaks anime music, Yoko Kanno being a mandatory mention is an understatement. And with Yoko Kanno, mandatorily comes Cowboy Bebop. I'd post about her sooner or later...

The hard part was the stuff I didn't post. I could go on and on about each of her great works, particularly Macross alone. Macross the series that singlehandedly got my sister and I into anime and J-music well back in the 80s and turned me into the bloody nerd I am today.  The entire series is heavily music reliant (possibly the most insert songs in any anime) and having Kanno on board on Macross Plus onwards was a winning choice. 

I try to revisit Macross Frontier once ever year or 2 years. Especially the soundtrack. Hell, my sister owns Macross F Galaxy Tour DVD that I frequently borrow, and having Kanno flail wildly and happily with Hiromi Uehara like passion with May'n and Megumi Nakajima singing their asses off is a sight and sound to behold. 



I actually did a J-Pop session where the singer let me choose 1 song to play for the band. I knew I wanted something from Frontier but I chose Diamond Crevasse because it was the easiest to transcribe. 

Side note: May'n is awesome.



And because she looks great with these three...








Alberto7 said:


> As a curious side note, back in 2014 I got to meet Raj Ramayya during an autograph session, then a 2-hour music industry/song writing panel he held at Otakuthon that year, and then saw him perform later in the afternoon. He's collaborated extensively with Kanno and has contributed music to the Cowboy Bebop film (he's responsible for the opening song to the movie, Ask DNA, which is one of my favorite songs in the whole of Cowboy Bebop) and also contributed music for Wolf's Rain, including the song Strangers. According to him, he's ghostwritten for other TV productions. (I forget which ones he mentioned.) Despite all of this, very few people attended any of his events. There literally weren't more than 15 people in line for his autograph, (in a 17,000+ people con that year) so we all got to chat with him for a while. He was a really nice, super approachable dude. (He's Canadian, what do you expect? ) Not much more to add here, really, other than a fun anecdote related to Mrs. Kanno.




That's awesome.  I try to catch a few of those myself. But since Eminence have moved from covering anime/game songs in Australia to actually playing anime/game songs in Japan, they've been very few and far between. 



Alberto7 said:


> Also, I just started watching Soul Eater... finally. Watching episode 3 tonight. So far, so good!



Soul Eater is another anime on the 'should watch but haven't' pile. I like the TM Revolution/Abingdon Boys School songs on it, and I kinda know of the anime's existence largely to my sister and her husband going through the phase of yelling 'EXCALIBUR!' around for a few months.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Aw man...

Chibi Maruko-chan/Black Jack Voice Actress Yuko Mizutani Passes Away - News - Anime News Network

RIP.


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


> I don't think I had a choice.  It's one of those unwritten laws that if anybody speaks anime music, Yoko Kanno being a mandatory mention is an understatement. And with Yoko Kanno, mandatorily comes Cowboy Bebop. I'd post about her sooner or later...
> 
> The hard part was the stuff I didn't post. I could go on and on about each of her great works, particularly Macross alone. Macross the series that singlehandedly got my sister and I into anime and J-music well back in the 80s and turned me into the bloody nerd I am today.  The entire series is heavily music reliant (possibly the most insert songs in any anime) and having Kanno on board on Macross Plus onwards was a winning choice.
> 
> I try to revisit Macross Frontier once ever year or 2 years. Especially the soundtrack. Hell, my sister owns Macross F Galaxy Tour DVD that I frequently borrow, and having Kanno flail wildly and happily with Hiromi Uehara like passion with May'n and Megumi Nakajima singing their asses off is a sight and sound to behold.
> 
> 
> 
> I actually did a J-Pop session where the singer let me choose 1 song to play for the band. I knew I wanted something from Frontier but I chose Diamond Crevasse because it was the easiest to transcribe.
> 
> Side note: May'n is awesome.
> 
> 
> 
> And because she looks great with these three...
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> That's awesome.  I try to catch a few of those myself. But since Eminence have moved from covering anime/game songs in Australia to actually playing anime/game songs in Japan, they've been very few and far between.




Aw man, when are those three angels not somehow involved with the stuff I watch?  Not that I mind, of course. 

You begin to make me curious about Macross. I'm usually really not attracted to anything mecha, (unless it involves a certain big, green and purple robot/human demigod, a shady powerful organization with seemingly bottomless pockets, and the Japanese military of the future. Or Code Geass.) but seeing you rave so much about it and knowing that Kanno has been so extensively involved in the franchise... I'm starting to consider it.



Bloody_Inferno said:


> Soul Eater is another anime on the 'should watch but haven't' pile. I like the TM Revolution/Abingdon Boys School songs on it, and I kinda know of the anime's existence largely to my sister and her husband going through the phase of yelling 'EXCALIBUR!' around for a few months.



Man, I'm 8 episodes in, and I haven't seen an anime ooze this much style since perhaps FLCL, which I watched about 3 years ago. Totally different styles, but the sheer amount of it and how it all just kinda... fits, is what impresses me and attracts me so much to it so far. It kinda reminds me of a more blocky and cartoon-ish D.Gray-Man.

All aspects of it are great so far, including the music. I have yet to research any of the music, but I REALLY like the OP sequence + song, plus the overall OST so far.

I think I begin to see why this show is so popular. I like where this seems to be headed.



Bloody_Inferno said:


> Aw man...
> 
> Chibi Maruko-chan/Black Jack Voice Actress Yuko Mizutani Passes Away - News - Anime News Network
> 
> RIP.



Oh no! That's unfortunate. I used to watch Saber Marionette J a lot when I was a child (8-12 ish), and I remember the character she voiced, even though I used to watch the Spanish dubbed version.  May she rest in peace.


----------



## bouVIP

Random thing


was talking to friends about Persona and remembered I watched Persona 3 movie with some of you guys on here haha. Started watching the 2nd and 3rd one now.


----------



## Alberto7

Haha I remember that, it was pretty dope! Even if my internet connection kept crapping up on me and made the whole movie pretty unintelligible.  It was good fun. I should probably go back and re-watch it now that it's on Netflix.

I've brought up the subject of doing a streaming session a few times with Don (and I think with you to, bou? Not sure), but my time keeps getting crammed up, and when I'm not stressing out, I just forget about it.

EDIT: just remembered that that stream is the sole reason I have a Twitch account, which now I just use to watch Kyle Landry do live streams of his piano practice sessions.


----------



## Don Vito

Thanks for the heads up, I didn't know the 3rd movie was out yet. I watched part 2 on Netflix and thought they did a good job on it. I wish it was a little less focused on the action, as P3's biggest draw for me was the downtime eating takoyaki with your friends after school and ..... But I understand that showing this in the movie format is more difficult than fitting it in somewhere in a typical 24-26 episode TV series.

The stream.. well idk


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> You begin to make me curious about Macross. I'm usually really not attracted to anything mecha, (unless it involves a certain big, green and purple robot/human demigod, a shady powerful organization with seemingly bottomless pockets, and the Japanese military of the future. Or Code Geass.) but seeing you rave so much about it and knowing that Kanno has been so extensively involved in the franchise... I'm starting to consider it.



I do love the series, but there's a bit of a disclaimer I need to mention:

Macross is a difficult thing to explain, and let alone try to recommend. Largely because of the existence of Robotech. Most anime viewers from the 80s onwards outside Asia, knew and loved Robotech. And most of them only knew afterwards that it was a combination of 3 different anime series, Macross being one of them. I was fortunate being exposed to the original Macross series pre Google age thanks to actually living in Asia as a kid. 

My recommendation depends on whether you've seen Robotech or not. If so, you can guess the themes of the entire series: music and character development. If not go and see the original SDF Macross. While time has aged the series a bit, it still holds up today. And thanks to the strong and deep cast (Hikaru Ichijyo is still miles ahead of every mecha protagonist ever, and Lynn Minmay is a revelation and the standard to all anime idols are held up to), it's still a great ride now as it was back in the 80s. In fact, it's the plot and music is why I rave about it so much, long before I even mention fighter jets transforming into giant robots...

However, if a 40+ series is too long, there's always the compilation movie Do You Remember Love. It skimps on the meaty parts of the plot it's still great. 

Don't bother with Macross II. It's sub par compared to the rest, and it's been retconned anyway. 

If either of those are too old , start with Macross Plus. Either the OVA and compilation film, you can't go wrong with either. Hell, the English Dub has Bryan Cranston as the main character. 

Macross 7 is more fun, goofy and lighthearted. But it's also a 49 episode series. No rush on this one. 

Macross Zero is ok. More of a prequel to the original series. It's like Earth Maiden Arjuna with transforming mecha. Not really mandatory viewing. 

And much as I rave about Frontier, leave that until last (or at least after seeing Do You Remember Love and Macross Plus movies to express things). Trust me that it's worth getting all the plot and music references.


----------



## Alberto7

Thanks for the guide! It's always daunting jumping into these vast universes. Only reason I didn't feel like that with Fate was because I never imagined that Fate/Zero would be part of something so gigantic. 

Also, just realized that we've made it to 100 pages!!  It only took us a little over 3 years.  Who would have thought that a forum full of greasy old metalheads would have such a dedicated group of weeabos?


----------



## Don Vito

I was never a metal, just greasy and weebish.

So, it looks like there's ANOTHER live action Higurashi. This time in the form of a TV drama.





The first episode aired not too long ago and is circulating the web, but I don't know if it's subbed or not.

I remember watching the film years ago, and it wasn't all that bad.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Huh, reminds me of the fact that I lived thinking I'd watched Higurashi for like 5 years, until I realized that what I had watched was, in fact, Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni *Kai* and I felt my whole world crumble. T'was depressing,  but it was still good and enjoyable at the time. Now I gotta go back at some point and watch the actual show... I've tried, but the art and animation feel so dated that I find it hard to even start. I did almost buy the visual novel on Steam recently, only I was too stingy and didn't.


----------



## Alberto7

Somehow I forgot to address this:


Bloody_Inferno said:


> If either of those are too old , start with Macross Plus. Either the OVA and compilation film, you can't go wrong with either. Hell, the English Dub has *Bryan Cranston as the main character.*



WHAT?!  Now I know which dub I'm watching. 

Oh, also, I have not seen Robotech. So I guess old Macross for me then.


----------



## Don Vito

Alberto7 said:


> ^ Huh, reminds me of the fact that I lived thinking I'd watched Higurashi for like 5 years, until I realized that what I had watched was, in fact, Higurashi no Naku Koro Ni *Kai* and I felt my whole world crumble. T'was depressing,  but it was still good and enjoyable at the time. Now I gotta go back at some point and watch the actual show... I've tried, but the art and animation feel so dated that I find it hard to even start. I did almost buy the visual novel on Steam recently, only I was too stingy and didn't.


Kai is just the second season to the anime iirc. I know what you mean though. The production values are so low, and it's really not worth watching these days. My attachment to the series is almost purely nostalgic, but I did enjoy the manga adaptation, and also want to play the games.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Yep, Kai is the second season, but it isn't so much a continuation of the story as much as an expansion of it, which explores some side plots and other mysteries, if I'm not mistaken. Funnily enough, it is rated higher than the first season, apparently. (At least on MyAnimeList. Haven't checked out ANN.)


----------



## Don Vito

Well maybe because the first season doesn't follow much of a story line. It gives you several different story line based off bad endings from the games, where Kai dives more into the main plot, or what would be the "true" ending.

Actually thinking about now, the creepy mini stories from season one were very entertaining.


----------



## Tr3vor

Grand Moff Tim said:


> Why did I wait so long to start watching _Nichijou_? Sh!t's hilarious.



Yeah, why would you wait. 

bes animu


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> Somehow I forgot to address this:
> 
> 
> WHAT?!  Now I know which dub I'm watching.
> 
> Oh, also, I have not seen Robotech. So I guess old Macross for me then.










Alberto7 said:


> weeabos



I dunno if I'll ever accept that as a term. 

I'll try to keep this light hearted, as last time I tried to write about the term weeaboo, it got rather dark and depressing I lost interest and scrapped the post altogether. 

I get those who use it as a badge of honor (especially Sithu Aye) or a defense mechanism. It's a silly term that shouldn't get to you, it's cool. Like what you like and don't let anyone tell you other wise. That's fine and I get it. But as somebody who actually invested a lot of time in studying the media and Japanese culture, and getting first hand blows from the rude awakenings of a good culture shock, I've always tried to dispel a lot of anime/manga misconceptions at least as much as I can (I wouldn't have did posted those massive ramblings in page 8 and 9 otherwise). 

I think what gets to me about 'weeaboo' is it's term that's essentially the Western word for Otaku, but gets even more extreme with speaking exaggerated Japanese and Engrish they learned exclusively from anime. So just 'Japanophile' spoken in 4chan lingo. And the Urban Dictionary definitions certainly don't help with the stigma either. Great...

I get a giggle out of it when one of my friends (bless his fragile soul) does that with our Japanese circle of friends, and we know him pretty well, but I couldn't help but feel a tad embarrassed at times, at least in a general sense. 

And it gets deeper when we love the medium and culture (again that's great), but lionizing it and disregarding anything similar outside Japan is a bit much. Especially now that anime in Japan is going through an erosion paced death, but generating and blooming more and more overseas. 

On the other side of the cultural spectrum, Japan have always been fascinated with Western culture. Remember when I mentioned Yankii back on page 9? They started of as the exact mirror reverse of 'weeaboo': Japanese youths and (largely) delinquents, completely fascinated with Western culture of the 50-60s. Yankii - Yankee... get it?  The subculture has evolved a bit but they're still looked down upon in a conformist nation. 

And I've already mentioned anime's Disney tied origins back a few pages. Seriously, ask a Japanese girl under 25 (and some over) about Disney and see their response. They love it. There's a reason Tokyo Disneyland still stands and still makes a ton of money. Hell, I have a friend who worked as a hotline clerk for Disney to (get this): speak to people as a Disney character.  I laughed at him, but he insists that it's just another dead serious 9-5 job. 

I've even got some Japanese friends who've constantly criticized their own cultural perks. One of my friends (despite looking like a real life anime character and fashion queen) cannot stand the Japanese girl stereotype, probably helps that she's lived in Melbourne most of her life. We've gone though long discussions about that, and I have a ton of respect for her voicing out her opinions to our other Japanese friends. Another guy, who's the biggest old school death metalhead is a big advocate on criticizing Japan as a whole... but I suppose you all saw that one coming. 

This is why I enjoy and respect what Gaijin Goomba does. We have a similar background with fuelling our interests, but he's done a large amount of research as well as worked his ass off to spread the information we'd thought hard to obtain otherwise (even with Google), and dispel any negativity towards the subculture. 



Anime fans are humans too.


Or maybe I'm just overthinking this? Wanna help me out here guys?


----------



## Don Vito

Interesting you mention the Japanese obsession of Western media. A lot of those early survival horror games like Mizzurna Falls and Silent Hill were produced by Japanese men watching too much Twin Peaks. But yeah, if an American takes an obsession with J Drama or something, he'll be considered a weeaboo or whatever.

But I think Alberto was just using it in a lighthearted way


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Don Vito said:


> But I think Alberto was just using it in a lighthearted way



I know. Alberto and I are cool, at least I hope he's ok with me pumping out Kalafina gifs constantly. 

It's more of a general statement about the weeaboo misconception that I just had to get out of my system.


----------



## Alberto7

Your Kalafina posts are slowly becoming memetic on this thread. Please keep posting them. 

But you know, despite the fact that I was indeed being lighthearted and really didn't think anything about it before throwing the term out there, (and I trust that you guys know that and forgive me for it ) I think it's actually a good thing that every few pages we're reminded, in one way or another, of the concepts and issues that the term carries with it.

I actually couldn't have said it any better than you, JP. You've put a lot more effort into understanding Oriental cultures, the Japanese in particular, than almost every person I've met. The only person I know who could discuss these topics on the same level as you isa friend of mine whose major was literally called "East-Asian Studies" with a minor in Japanese language. (EDIT: sorry, just found out that was an entire major in East-Asian Studies AND Japanese and Chinese language.) As part of his program, he had to spend 2 years in Japan studying East-Asian cultures at a Japanese university.  Though I forget exactly why this is relevant...

... anyway.

Yeah, I don't think you're overthinking it. I think you already know what you ought to know about the use of the term, and you feel about it a certain way, and it's perfectly justified. In fact, I 100% agree with everything you said on that post. Just so long as you don't begin frothing at the mouth every time you hear the term, you should be fine, because boy do I hear that damn term often.  And, if you do, please do let us know haha I live in a household where the term gets thrown around quite haphazardly, so I do let it slip by every now and again without thinking about it... which I should probably mind a bit more.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


>



I'm sorry, what were we talking about again? 

In all seriousness, my post sounded more gloomy than it really is. Personally I have no problem with the 'weeaboo' usage here, this is an anime thread after all. It's bound to happen.  I just felt compelled that at the very least shed some light on the anime subculture as a whole. I'll either defend it or criticize it for the sake of better understanding, just like all the things I love like film, music, games etc. That Gaijin Goomba vid makes the same point probably articulates the topic better than I could. 

And hell, some of us have gotten away with it. Sithu Aye releases an album called Senpai, and he tours Japan with Cyclamen.  Granted that his music has more to do with it but you get the idea. More power to him. 

Don't worry too much about it. All good here.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Finished Bubuki/Buranki (or BBK/BRNK) last night. 

Conceptually, visually and stylistically, it ticks all the right spots for me: it's all stunning and I dig it. I just wish that the series wasn't in such a damn hurry to tell us the story and everything in it's own universe. 

Put it this way: Imagine going to a fair, exhibition or comicon with a hyperactive and over-enthusiastic friend. While you start checking out one particular stand then getting into it, your friend drags you around quickly yelling out, "yeah I'm done with that, check out the next stand!". Then go to that, spend less than 3 minutes before being dragged off to the next one. That goes on for the entire day. 

That's pretty much the description I can think of this anime. Because there's so much going on and so very quickly, there's barely any time for the story to breathe. A lot of the storytelling tissue and fat are trimmed to keep the plot moving at such a fast pace, but too fast that it cuts corners, skipping over places and tripping over itself on various occasions. 

When I described it as Voltron meets Pacific Rim with a hint of Gundam Wing on the side, that's mostly the big premise of the giant mecha (or Buranki) and characters superficially. The series then throws a curveball into Naruto-esque territory and adds in different other factions, each with their own 5 characters that carry clichés and stereotypes from their said origins. Clearly Japan hasn't really evolved in this field since back in Mobile Fighter G Gundam... or frankly...ever really.  BBK/BRNK could've gotten away with them if they had more time to develop into compelling characters, instead they have to hurry with the pace, and throw in more of the usual clichés. 

Hell, aside from the main protagonist, the main supporting cast arcs don't really go anywhere either. It's as awkward as I make it out, and the story goes even faster where I ended up losing interest at times and resorted to a volley of phone browsing. The main character isn't safe either. Aside from his main arc, he's pretty much a vanilla cypher, one so boring, bland and by the numbers, non-Abridged Kirito wants to know who the hell he is. 

By episode 11, the series just throws it's own Bubuki hands in the air (you'll get it if you choose to watch it), and goes balls out with action and a big finale. Action-wise, this is the anime's true strength. If you're into giant robots brutally punching each other, then this anime brings them in spades. Cool. Unfortunately thanks to the ultra-fast pacing, the whole thing becomes a blur that you even lose interest in some of the double-crosses and skullduggery that are supposed to be major plot points, all happening at once. And I also couldn't help but think that the final act's fast pace was a way to hide the fact that a major plot point was something the writers lifted completely out of Gundam Char's Counterattack. Hell, my Gundam Wing comparison is appropriate here, because they did the exact same thing. 

I really wanted to like this series, but it felt like a big swing and a miss. Which sucks as the epilogue hinted at a promise that the next season will actually shift focus to another main character and faction. Roughly similar style as to the Fate (non Zero) story arcs. Which is nice, tough I wouldn't mind more development with... ah, I can't even remember the main protagonist's name. Can't be bothered looking it up either.  

Oh well... off to Bokurano next.


----------



## mrdm53

Is there someone who read translated Light Novel / Web Novel (either by fans or legal publisher)? For some reason recently i'm into it now.

My current fav's are:
1. Hataraku Maou-sama
2. Katahane no Riku
3. The Girl who Ate the Death God
4. Overlord
5. KonoSuba
6. Sevens
7. The Rise of Shield Hero
8. Mushoku Tensei
9. No Game no Life


----------



## Alberto7

mrdm53 said:


> Is there someone who read translated Light Novel / Web Novel (either by fans or legal publisher)? For some reason recently i'm into it now.
> 
> My current fav's are:
> 1. Hataraku Maou-sama
> 2. Katahane no Riku
> 3. The Girl who Ate the Death God
> 4. Overlord
> 5. KonoSuba
> 6. Sevens
> 7. The Rise of Shield Hero
> 8. Mushoku Tensei
> 9. No Game no Life



I'm not particularly into it, but I do have the first nine translated volumes of Spice and Wolf. I've only read the first three though, (which cover the first season of the anime with the third one not being animated) and it is just as good as the anime.

I've considered picking up No Game No Life as well, ever since the anime ended with that horrible spoiler, and a second season does not seem to be on the horizon... did you finish it, by any chance?


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Alberto7 said:


> I've considered picking up No Game No Life as well, ever since the anime ended with that horrible spoiler, and a second season does not seem to be on the horizon...



Hold up, what?

Not on the horizon any time soon, or not at all? Didn't it just come out fairly recently to begin with? Are people already saying there won't be a season two?


----------



## mrdm53

Alberto7 said:


> I'm not particularly into it, but I do have the first nine translated volumes of Spice and Wolf. I've only read the first three though, (which cover the first season of the anime with the third one not being animated) and it is just as good as the anime.
> 
> I've considered picking up No Game No Life as well, ever since the anime ended with that horrible spoiler, and a second season does not seem to be on the horizon... did you finish it, by any chance?



I've read No Game No Life until vol 6. While vol 1-5 is about Sora and Shiro's world conquest, Volume 6 is about flashback



Grand Moff Tim said:


> Hold up, what?
> 
> Not on the horizon any time soon, or not at all? Didn't it just come out fairly recently to begin with? Are people already saying there won't be a season two?



It's MADHOUSE. They rarely do second season of any anime the've produced (Mahouka, NGNL, HataMaou etc)


----------



## Alberto7

^ I was admittedly not up to date when I posted that, but I just did a quick Google check, and apparently the closest thing there is to a confirmed second season was an accidental comment from the owner of some Brazilian manga publisher at a Brazilian anime convention saying that season 2 was confirmed... make of that what you will. 

However, I do believe Madhouse has a fame for making adaptations that are really just a gigantic ad for the source material.

EDIT: totally 'd. Also, for what it's worth, I have never seen anything be declared "defunct" in the world of anime. I mean, they came out with a second season for Mushishi after 9 years, (which they had zero reason to continue the anime, as the whole story - including source material - is almost purely episodic) and yet another continuation for Dragon Ball after 18 f*cking years.


----------



## Alberto7

mrdm53 said:


> I've read No Game No Life until vol 6. While vol 1-5 is about Sora and Shiro's world conquest, Volume 6 is about flashback



Ooooohhhh interesting! The anime had such a cool premise, I really wish they'd make a second season, but I really have no hopes for it. Out of curiosity, how's the anime compare to the source material? (Assuming you've seen the anime, that is.)


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

4 episodes in Bokurano: Ours. Didn't waste any time...

First let me indulge on how gorgeous the OP theme is.



Now that's out of the way...


This anime comes with a major caveat. 

I'm gonna assume that nobody here has read the manga version of Bokurano, and if you have, then yeah... you know where this is going. But for everyone else, Bokurano has an interesting transition from manga to anime. As I said earlier, the source material was so dark and disturbing that even director Hiroyuki Morita just straight up didn't like the story at all, and gone as far as asked original author Mohiro Kitoh permission to change things liberally. Odd for him to even do this adaptation considering his most well known director work is The Cat Returns.  Kitoh has given consent and approved of the changes (as long as he doesn't cop out with the Deus Ex Machina McGuffin, his own words: It's all right as long as you don't use magic). Though Morita still copped a ton of flak for it from the manga fans. But he does warn everyone, and even uses Howl's Moving Castle as an example, and so:



> "In closing, I have to post what I don't want to post: the director of the animated version of Bokurano dislikes the original manga. From here on out, you can't expect the animated version to expand on what you might find appealing in the original. So, fans of the original, please do not watch the animated version from now on."


So in short, if you've read the manga, you can either skip the anime or watch with an open mind. If you haven't WATCH THE ANIME FIRST BEFORE READING THE MANGA. 

I'm actually gonna attempt to watch and read them simultaneously... well watch the anime first, then read the manga during my lunch breaks. 

As for the anime itself.... yeah it is dark and disturbingly tragic. 



Also:



Don Vito said:


> Interesting you mention the Japanese obsession of Western media. A lot of those early survival horror games like Mizzurna Falls and Silent Hill were produced by Japanese men watching too much Twin Peaks. But yeah, if an American takes an obsession with J Drama or something, he'll be considered a weeaboo or whatever.



I was gonna do a detailed response to this sooner, as a sort of "The Bloody_Inferno Page 9 Rambling Manifesto Part 2" so to speak. But I need to ease off on that for a bit.  Maybe...


----------



## mrdm53

Alberto7 said:


> Ooooohhhh interesting! The anime had such a cool premise, I really wish they'd make a second season, but I really have no hopes for it. Out of curiosity, how's the anime compare to the source material? (Assuming you've seen the anime, that is.)



There are slight difference but nothing bad, unlike Overlord which is skipped an entire chapter (and probably major character in the future) during Shalltear's betrayal arc. 

Actually i started to read the source material after i've watched the anime.

A little bit spoiler: Imanity's state during flashback in Volume 6 was much worse, almost close to extinction. Present Imanity now is much better btu still not good enough.


----------



## MFB

Don Vito said:


> Interesting you mention the Japanese obsession of Western media. A lot of those early survival horror games like Mizzurna Falls and Silent Hill were produced by Japanese men watching too much Twin Peaks. But yeah, if an American takes an obsession with J Drama or something, he'll be considered a weeaboo or whatever.
> 
> But I think Alberto was just using it in a lighthearted way



Devil's advocate: he could also be considered Otaku Supreme.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

at the wall of text - the thread tag. Yeah I'm a major culprit. Oh well...



Bloody_Inferno said:


> She also played piano to the awesome Jin Roh movie. If you haven't seen it, check it out on the strength of this song alone.




The music was actually done by her ex husband Hajime Mizoguchi, so that explains her involvement. 

Anyway, I'm bringing this up again because Jin Roh: The Wolf Brigade really is essential viewing. 

It's written my Mamoru Oshii. Supposedly a third live action part of his Kerberos series (he did 2 in the 90s), it was kept in the backburner due to a certain project. That project was Ghost In The Shell. But he did get to finish this into an anime so everybody's happy. 

This movie is nearly on par with Grave Of The Fireflies when it comes to ripping your heart out. Only this time it's much more colder thus less sympathetic. It similar to a Dark Souls style classic Japanese storytelling, in which case, not telling you much at all. You're thrown into it's world, and you just have to follow it through. It also moves at a slow candle burning pace, but it's Mamoru Oshii, look who you're dealing with here. 

Seriously, it looks and sounds breathtaking, and the story is amazing. Watch this movie.


----------



## Alberto7

I was watching Soul Eater, and I thought this had to exist:



I can't handle my sides.


----------



## Don Vito

Man I'm glad places like this thread exist. I was talking anime irl with someone today(not something I do often) and it was so awkward. Probably because most of the shows I watch are in the highschool girl genre, and it's always a hit or miss if the other person is in to that stuff.



Bloody_Inferno said:


> Madoka fans ought to appreciate this:



I forgot to thank you for this since I was banned when you posted it. I've been looking for this video for literally 5 years.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Don Vito said:


> I forgot to thank you for this since I was banned when you posted it. I've been looking for this video for literally 5 years.



Dude, you need to check this thread out right now.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Finally finished both anime and manga of Bokurano: Ours.


First: The second ED is great.



I've always felt a sense of radiance and reverence in Chiyaki Ishikawa's voice. Both before and after See-Saw.  


Second: Word of advice about consuming the 2 mediums simultaneously: DON'T DO THIS. 

For health and sanity reasons really. Unless you really REALLY love anime/manga, I'd still advise against it and urge you to do human related stuff like eat, sleep, see the sunlight, socialize with other humans, play guitar etc.  Though you can read manga in the park or something...


Lastly: Bokurano Ours.

This is difficult to talk about mainly due to what I said about it earlier. But after finally seeing both, I see it similarly to how I see Rurouni Kenshin. The anime has it's place and definitely stands on it's own, but the manga is where all the meaty substance lies. It's no wonder the changes caused an uproar. 

Plot wise, a group of 15 children find a stranger that persuades them to enter a contract to play a game, only to realize that they become pilots of a giant robot and.... that's actually as far as I'm willing to go. Anything more will lead to major plot points that thanks to the nature of the series, I'll refuse to spoil here even if you pay me. 

Most of the premise and story remains largely the same, but the anime filters down and/or changes lot of the heavy subjects of the manga such as the backstories of some of the children, a lot of latter episodes and most of all, the finale. As a result, the anime loses the consequential impact of why the manga was so poignant to begin with. A lot of the characters behave differently too. That being said, it's still a gut wrenching experience to go through. The ending itself is the biggest difference of all. The anime does well to at least try to keep the story together, the watered down plot softens the impact. The manga on the other hand goes balls out insane and results in one of the most emotionally devastating and soul crushing finales ever put to the medium. 

I still liked the anime for what it was and Hiroyuki Morita did a good job all things considered. This is certainly not for the faint hearted at all, even to anime buffs who like a good tear jerking gut wrench every now and then. That said, highly recommended, and definitely read the manga after the anime, the payoff is far more worth it. 

You also want to watch something goofy straight afterwards.  In my case, all signs point to Kill La Kill.. so off I go then.


----------



## Alberto7

So I just finished Soul Eater... that was so much fun, Jesus. 51 episodes felt like watching just 12.

I won't be giving a full, detailed review, but I will say again that what this anime lacks in closure to plot holes it makes up with sheer visual style and total hilarity. It's an anime that can't help but be completely silly, in the best and most innocent way possible, even when it probably shouldn't be. With that said, some of its more serious moments it felt like it was trying too hard to be gritty, though it does work out really well at other times.

Fun all the way through, with the first half - the half that remains true to the manga - being the best one imo, but that finale... oh, that finale. I was borderline in denial that this was a shonen anime, as it tries to cover it up (and does a decent job at it with its narrative and ingenious and abundant visual motifs,) but it unashamedly reveals its true colors in the finale. The power of trust and friendship is strong with this one. It was kind of ridiculous and I was honestly left wanting quite a bit more from it, but taking it for what it is, it's good. If I were to give a recommendation, watch it knowing full well that it's a shonen and that it stands for everything shonen.

If I were to rate it: 8/10, just because it's so much fun and because it is so damn memorable and has such lovely characters.

Favorite charaacter: Death. Can't handle his seemingly oblivious nature and sudden bursts of indomitable badassery.

Cutest laugh in any anime ever: Maka Albarn.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Think I'm finally gonna watch _Puella Magi Madoka Magica_. I watched the first episode this evening, and it practically screamed "I WAS MADE BY SHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAFT!!!!!" the entire time, so I think I'll be able to enjoy it well enough.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Say goodbye to your emotional profile as you currently know it.


----------



## oracles

Grand Moff Tim said:


> Think I'm finally gonna watch _Puella Magi Madoka Magica_. I watched the first episode this evening, and it practically screamed "I WAS MADE BY SHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAFT!!!!!" the entire time, so I think I'll be able to enjoy it well enough.




I did this after how much my girlfriend loves it, I loved it. Granted, it's the only anime I've ever watched, but it was overall fantastic.




Alberto7 said:


> ^ Say goodbye to your emotional profile as you currently know it.



Really though.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Thanks to everyone on the internet's inability to NOT point out that it gets pretty heavy, if not spoiling it outright, I think my emotional profile won't be as damaged as that of someone going in unaware.


----------



## Alberto7

Well, the fact that it gets pretty heavy is more a warning than a spoiler, really, and it doesn't change its impact, but any more details than that and yeah. Still though, watch it if only because the plot and storytelling are wonderfully executed, because it is aesthetically beautiful, and because it will still kill a little piece of your soul anyway.


----------



## Cynic

finished durarara!!x2 today and sad to say that it doesn't match up to the first series in quality.


----------



## Alberto7

There's another one I oughtta watch. Will this must-watch list ever end?!  :/


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> Will this must-watch list ever end?!  :/



Not a chance. Even whilst I'm catching up for lost time (at a alarmingly fast and concerning rate), I still have a must-watch list spanning 3 and a half decades. 

It's fun trying though.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Alberto7 said:


> Well, the fact that it gets pretty heavy is more a warning than a spoiler, really, and it doesn't change its impact, but any more details than that and yeah. Still though, watch it if only because the plot and storytelling are wonderfully executed, because it is aesthetically beautiful, and because it will still kill a little piece of your soul anyway.




Oh, I wasn't saying you specifically spoiled it, but plenty of other people on the webz have had no qualms about it. Generally, though, even the people who don't spoil it outright tend to be unable to resist some version of pointing out that it's "not just another magic girl anime" . 

I'm sure there will still be some emotional impact, but I do think the impact is lessened when you know something's coming, even with only a nebulous idea. That's one reason I tend to avoid nearly everything that everybody is in to/talking about on social media. It isn't because I'm 2 kool 4 skool or anything, I just like to wait until hype dies down so I can watch stuff in more of a vacuum.

And yeah, I'm still going to watch it anyway. Not tonight, though, apparently. Kissanime is being dumb and not loading anything I want to watch. Hope sh!t's sorted out by the weekend.


----------



## habicore_5150

How I spent the first evening of the month







And yes, that is Pizza Hut that I have sitting on my lap, with Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion on the screen, which is advertising Pizza Hut


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Straight up product placements in anime make me laugh. 






...and now I want pizza.


----------



## habicore_5150

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Straight up product placements in anime make me laugh.
> 
> ...and now I want pizza.



You're welcome 
Dunno what's going to be the next anime that carries some kind of product placement


----------



## Alberto7

habicore_5150 said:


> How I spent the first evening of the month
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> And yes, that is Pizza Hut that I have sitting on my lap, with Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion on the screen, which is advertising Pizza Hut



Omega good job! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0kaAl5v0AA (not embedding because NSFW)

Good choice of anime. Good choice of pizza. Very meta. I like your post.


----------



## habicore_5150

Alberto7 said:


> Omega good job! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U0kaAl5v0AA (not embedding because NSFW)
> 
> Good choice of anime. Good choice of pizza. Very meta. I like your post.



No Game, No Life is one that I'm gonna have to start at one point
Technically, continue since I've only seen about 10 mins or so of the first episode, but still


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


> ...and now I want pizza.



Me too, and I just had a giant pizza during a lecture at school, which I didn't even share with anyone because I'm a hungry, hungry hippo.


----------



## Don Vito

habicore_5150 said:


> You're welcome
> Dunno what's going to be the next anime that carries some kind of product placement


Bakuon!! is trying to get otaku's out of the house and buying motorcycles. All the bikes in the show are real life brands and models

I mean, I'm sure some guys got deeper into car culture when Initial D came out. And then there's the itasha scene. 





I would so put Asuka on my Volkswagen. She belongs on an emission rigged German vehicle.


----------



## habicore_5150

Don Vito said:


> Bakuon!! is trying to get otaku's out of the house and buying and motorcycles. All the bikes in the show are real life brands and models
> 
> I mean, I'm sure some guys got deeper into car culture when Initial D came out. And then there's the itasha scene.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I would so put Asuka on my Volkswagen. She belongs on an emission rigged German vehicle.



I don't drive, but if I did, I kinda wanna see either Rei or Shinji on there and fight the urge to claw at my screen


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> Me too, and I just had a giant pizza during a lecture at school, which I didn't even share with anyone because I'm a hungry, hungry hippo.



 I ended up with a pizza sub on the way home. Close enough...

Also, if you haven't already, you need to add Le Petite De Portrait Cossette to your list. It's only 3 episodes so you'll get through it quickly. To reiterate, refer to this post.


----------



## Don Vito

Okay, so Dragon Ball Super hasn't been that great so far. I kind of stopped watching after the tournament arc. I thought they would do something interesting with the whole alternate universe thing, but they didn't. Like, at all.

I have seen one or two episodes since then, the whole super human water thing. Kind of stupid, but very Dragon Ball lol.

So the next arc starts up soon(Sunday I think), and they just released the trailer.


So yeah it's got something to do with Future Trunks from Dragon Ball Z, but what's odd is the inclusion of Mai, a villain from Dragon Ball. If you watched the recent movies, you'll know that Mai got turned into a child, and is Kid Trunk's "girlfriend". I'm guessing this is how they tied her into all this, but it's still very strange, especially considering that in Trunk's original timeline, she would be an old lady like she appeared in Dragon Ball GT. Not that I'm complaining, she looks badass, and has a very different style from most other characters in the series with her 60's military fashion.

And lastly, the villian was revealed early on to be a black clad evil Goku. It's not confirmed whether it's Goku or just some other Saiyan that looks like Goku(sort of like Turles from the Tree of Might movie). But it's most likely some alternate dimension Goku(or Kakarot I should say) that didn't undure brain damage to his hard wired Saiyan battle instinct. But that still doesn't explain how Trunks is there, since Vegeta wouldn't have hooked up with Bulma in this case. 

An interesting theory I have bumping around in my head, is that this version of Trunks is a normal human with no Saiyan DNA. One of the most notable differences between this Trunks and the one we all know is that his hair is purely blue like his mother's, and not purple. Also, in the trailer, he doesn't use any special powers, only his sword. This leads me to believe that he literally can't fight Kakarot, and has to use Bulma's time machine to summon the Z fighters from the current Super timeline. This also baffles me, because literally any character from this timeline would wipe the floor with this new vanilla evil Goku. There's also speculation that they aren't using the Super timeline at all, since normal Goku is wearing his classic Gi in the trailer.

I don't know, we'll see. I'm very excited for this.

edit: I also wanted to add that my initial theory on this evil Goku is probably wrong. I forgot to mention that in a magazine ad, he was wearing a Potara ear ring, which raises so many more questions than it answers.


----------



## zerofocus

Apologies this has already been said (only just seen that we even have this thread)

But how are people watching dragon ball super? is it only available in Japan?

also how are people reviewing the show?

been interested in watching it but had no means to watch it kinda thing

thanks


----------



## Don Vito

zerofocus said:


> Apologies this has already been said (only just seen that we even have this thread)
> 
> But how are people watching dragon ball super? is it only available in Japan?
> 
> also how are people reviewing the show?
> 
> been interested in watching it but had no means to watch it kinda thing
> 
> thanks


The only way to watch outside of Japan with sub titles is through torrents. If you know Japanese, there are 2 Blu Ray releases iirc.

dragon ball - NT > Search


----------



## Alberto7

Don Vito said:


> Okay, so Dragon Ball Super hasn't been that great so far. I kind of stopped watching after the tournament arc. I thought they would do something interesting with the whole alternate universe thing, but they didn't. Like, at all.
> 
> I have seen one or two episodes since then, the whole super human water thing. Kind of stupid, but very Dragon Ball lol.
> 
> So the next arc starts up soon(Sunday I think), and they just released the trailer.
> 
> 
> So yeah it's got something to do with Future Trunks from Dragon Ball Z, but what's odd is the inclusion of Mai, a villain from Dragon Ball. If you watched the recent movies, you'll know that Mai got turned into a child, and is Kid Trunk's "girlfriend". I'm guessing this is how they tied her into all this, but it's still very strange, especially considering that in Trunk's original timeline, she would be an old lady like she appeared in Dragon Ball GT. Not that I'm complaining, she looks badass, and has a very different style from most other characters in the series with her 60's military fashion.
> 
> And lastly, the villian was revealed early on to be a black clad evil Goku. It's not confirmed whether it's Goku or just some other Saiyan that looks like Goku(sort of like Turles from the Tree of Might movie). But it's most likely some alternate dimension Goku(or Kakarot I should say) that didn't undure brain damage to his hard wired Saiyan battle instinct. But that still doesn't explain how Trunks is there, since Vegeta wouldn't have hooked up with Bulma in this case.
> 
> An interesting theory I have bumping around in my head, is that this version of Trunks is a normal human with no Saiyan DNA. One of the most notable differences between this Trunks and the one we all know is that his hair is purely blue like his mother's, and not purple. Also, in the trailer, he doesn't use any special powers, only his sword. This leads me to believe that he literally can't fight Kakarot, and has to use Bulma's time machine to summon the Z fighters from the current Super timeline. This also baffles me, because literally any character from this timeline would wipe the floor with this new vanilla evil Goku. There's also speculation that they aren't using the Super timeline at all, since normal Goku is wearing his classic Gi in the trailer.
> 
> I don't know, we'll see. I'm very excited for this.
> 
> edit: I also wanted to add that my initial theory on this evil Goku is probably wrong. I forgot to mention that in a magazine ad, he was wearing a Potara ear ring, which raises so many more questions than it answers.




I've been following DBS quite regularly every week, and I'm all caught up. Guaranteed that there hasn't been much plot development at all in the show aside from establishing and OVER-establishing Goku's and Vegeta's newfound powers and abilities, as well as introducing some new, key characters. It's all been in really good fund, and it's been pretty quick and lighthearted. The 3-episode arc after the tournament was pretty fun, too. It was just an excuse to have Vegeta and Goku battle it out in a duel to the death once again, only Super Saiyan Blue-style and without actually having to kill off Vegeta. I also loved that episode where Goku temporarily loses his ki due to straining himself beyond his limits, (which resonates well with my karate training, as I tend to go too hard too often and end up with temporary joint pains which make me lose further training. ) and seeing Pan go all Saiyan was the cutest thing ever.

Regarding the new trailer... man, am I pumped for this! They're making it look quite dark (by Dragon Ball standards, anyway) and more akin to an arc from Dragon Ball Z, and almost as though everything up until now in Super is just world-building and character development to use in this specific arc. (Maybe?) That new Saiyan with the Potara earrings has me intrigued. (Assuming they are actual Potara earrings, since these are green, whereas Vegito wore yellow ones.) Also, since part of this saga might take part in the future, I really, REALLY hope they might show us a Super Saiyan Pan. She'd be the first canon female Super Saiyan, as far as I am concerned. 

Speaking of Mai, I think it's perfectly natural that they included her, as the Pilaf gang has appeared quite often in Super thus far. In Trunk's original timeline she'd be an old lady, but doesn't the current timeline affect his? If Mai got turned into a child, then I think it's normal for her to still be Trunk's age during his future timeline. And yes, Trunk's hair color is really strange there. I do wonder why it's blue instead of purple now.

Other than that, I've got no theories to offer. I don't know and/or remember enough DB lore to put the tiny pieces together. I do know that they movies aren't canon though, (at least not anything before Battle of the Gods) so I'd be wary of taking any of them into consideration when forming any sort of theory.

EDIT: you made me curious and went looking. Goku IS wearing his traditional gi in this last saga (post Universe 6 vs 7 tournament) as well as in the trailer. I didn't notice the change when it happened, but I think the last appearance of the new gi so far was the battle against Hit.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

This is gonna sound weird coming from me but...

I'm really over the Dragon Ball series as a whole. There I said it. 

I was just talking to my Japanese friend about the new series that he's watching and said that I should get in on it too. I basically retorted with my love/hate rant towards it all. 

It was great when I was younger, though I was lucky that I got exposed to it before the first wave of English dub came about, and I played the SNES fighting games profusely. Though at the time, I knew very little in what the hell was going on. Then I saw the dub with everyone else in the late 90s. Finally I knew what was happening... and I didn't like it. I loved the characters and plot don't get me wrong, and I really liked how Gohan took over as protagonist (even for a short period). But I hated how everything was dragging on where power ups and fights were stretched to breaking point, then stretched some more. It got rather boring. 

I ended up playing the games again because at least I got the entire plot truncated in 20 minutes. I gave up after the Buu arc and avoid GT onwards altogether. Then I watched it in it's original form. There was when it dawned on me that it wasn't the fact that I saw the dubbed version being a problem, it's the series itself. Even unedited and in it's intended form, I still found it a boring drag-on... a joke I'll always be using whenever DB happens to be in mentioning vicinity. 

I appreciate it as an anime juggernaut. It's one of the biggest Toei and Shonen Jump series, and by the Z series, it's become a life of it's own from what is essentially a bastardised Journey To The West retelling. Nothing can take away it's prestige. I just happen to be not as big on Dragon Ball as I should. 

Sorry, just had to rant that.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Oh, all of what you said is absolutely true.  And there's no shame in saying you don't like Dragon Ball. In fact, when anybody tells me they hate DB I just answer with "Yeah, I can see why."

With that said, I spent so many hours as a child watching Dragon Ball, talking about Dragon Ball with my friends, drawing Goku and Vegeta on every piece of paper I could find, playing the videogames, finding artwork online during the early days of the internet, dressing up as the characters, and role-playing a Dragon Ball fight with my friends, that I can't see myself ever disliking it.  I have a very soft spot for the show. It's an emotional attachment I have to it that lets me overlook everything I would normally hate. Every time I watch an episode, it is a complete disconnection from reality and it's a perfect way to end my day. I LOVE that the fights are long, because that means I get to watch more of Goku and Vegeta being total badasses. I LOVE that it's a power-up race and that everything is so ludicrously exaggerated, because it keeps my sense of wonder alive and I keep asking myself what they could possibly have in store for us next.

Truth is, I have never really seen Dragon Ball as an anime. Not because it isn't (it VERY MUCH is an anime, obviously.  Perhaps even more stereotypically so than a lot of other shows. ) but because it's THE show I watched as a child. By the time I learned what an anime was and THEN realized Dragon Ball itself was an anime, I had already been watching it for so long that it had become its own thing. (I really only yap about DB here because I'm allowed to. ) I grew up with those characters. It's so exaggerated and ridiculous, it's a great break from everything else that I watch. It doesn't have a specific aim and the plot just sort of meanders, using the whole powering up concept as an excuse to keep the story going, but I love that about it. It's so different from everything else that I watch. I usually like stories that are self-contained and have well-structured plots, well-defined characters, no plot-holes, and still enough room and uncertainty to make the viewer think. Dragon Ball is the complete opposite of that, and it makes me unwind like few other things do.

TL;DR - I have a very strong emotional attachment to Dragon Ball and all of its characters that lets me look past its flaws, and, on top of that, it is the perfect guilty pleasure. That makes for a show that has to try REALLY hard for me not to like it. It hasn't tried to make me hate it so far.  With Dragon Ball, I basically allow myself to openly love the things that I hate.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> With that said, I spent so many hours as a child watching Dragon Ball, talking about Dragon Ball with my friends, drawing Goku and Vegeta on every piece of paper I could find, playing the videogames, finding artwork online during the early days of the internet, dressing up as the characters, and role-playing a Dragon Ball fight with my friends, that I can't see myself ever disliking it.



Oh I did this too, don't worry about that. 

I will say that despite being over the series after a long time of love/hate, I still have a soft spot for DB. 

I was the kid that was drawing fanart and even went as far as fanfiction when the games first came out. I was also the kid that tried to introduce non anime fans to Dragon Ball Z while all my friends were still into Street Sharks. I secretly wanted Goku to win the Goku/Superman Death Battles despite already knowing the outcome. I still welcome whatever random fusion/crossover Shonen Jump happen toss him into (Goku wearing Luffy's clothes for instance). And yes, despite seeing a telegraph coming a mile away at the speed of a desert erosion, I was still stung on how awfully bad Dragon Ball Evolution was (watched it purely for the Ayumi Hamasaki song... now that's petty  ). 

I do still like some of it.


----------



## Alberto7

Aahhh drawing Dragon Ball fanart... the days when I actually kind of knew how to use a pencil to draw. 

You know, after I turned 13 or 14 I thought I was over anime. A lifelong friend of mine tells me I used to say anime was just cartoons for kids. (Though I honestly do not remember this. ) Fast-forward to when I was 19 and got a hold of the whole of Rurouni Kenshin and started watching it only for nostalgia's sake. I guess I accidentally awoke the slumbering otaku monster within me, and boy am I glad that I did. 

Then again, teenagers are stupid and should not be considered real people. 

Also, Street Sharks kicked ass. I used to own this bad boy:


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

I started watching _Naruto_ three nights ago. Just watching a few episodes each night. It's crazy how much I remember from the early episodes of this show considering that I only watched it during its USA premiere in 2005 up until late 2006 or maybe early 2007, then I just lost interest. So I never got deep into the show as a kid. Still though, it's just crazy how much I remember after a decade. And the show is still just as entertaining as it was when I was a kid. (I just don't have to wait for the next night of _Toonami_ anymore and can watch on-demand.)

The plan is to watch all 220 episodes and then go straight into _Naruto Shippuden_. I haven't done a big undertaking like this since I began binge-watching all of _Dragon Ball Z_ last fall. But I've got the time, and I've got to catch up on all of the stuff that I missed out on in my childhood. 

Catching up now on all of this stuff that I was into for a little while in my childhood just feels kind of..."special". 
I can't really explain it.


----------



## MFB

Get ready for a LOT of filler episodes in Shippuden. I don't remember regular Naruto being terrible with it, but that one got bogged down because I believe it was still being written while the show was running.


----------



## dhgrind

Reading berserk, blame! And dorohedoro currently trying to find more great manga of similar darkness


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

2 episodes in Kill La Kill, and while enjoying it so far, I just wasn't in the mood for it for reasons that escape me... probably due to the Sengoku Basara-esque over the top-iness. That and I'm also currently playing (or should I say immersed in) Trails Of Cold Steel, a straight up anime in a J-RPG format (not a huge stretch by any means either). So I'm slowing down a bit. 

Though I did start watching Black Butler for obligatory reasons. It's one of those classic style animes where tone be damned, and when 2 separate themes with no business with each other clash and go hand in hand. I haven't done that song and dance for a while so it's actually kinda nice to be back in. 

That and I forgot how much I loved the OP theme (thanks to the Circus album). I've always loved Shinji's single coil tone and funky style. And I love that he's a Free The Tone artist too. 



Alberto7 said:


> Aahhh drawing Dragon Ball fanart... the days when I actually kind of knew how to use a pencil to draw.
> 
> You know, after I turned 13 or 14 I thought I was over anime. A lifelong friend of mine tells me I used to say anime was just cartoons for kids. (Though I honestly do not remember this. ) Fast-forward to when I was 19 and got a hold of the whole of Rurouni Kenshin and started watching it only for nostalgia's sake. I guess I accidentally awoke the slumbering otaku monster within me, and boy am I glad that I did.
> 
> Then again, teenagers are stupid and should not be considered real people.
> 
> Also, Street Sharks kicked ass.



Dragon Ball to you is what Macross is to me. Both are iconic and are what introduced us to anime and turned us into obsessive nerds... otaku really is the appropriate word here. 

And because I never get sick of these:






As for Street Sharks... I was a too old to appreciate it at the time. Thanks to the TMNT cartoons, it just felt like a retread for the next gen, but replace the leader, the nerd and the Wolverine with 3 more Jeff Spicolis (how's that for a reference that shows my age...) or 4 Poochies if you will. 

That toy does look awesome. The toy lines all look pretty neat really, especially when Vin Diesel is playing with them.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Finished _Madoka_ the other day. I did enjoy it, but I guess given all the hype for how ZOMG HEAVY it is, I was expecting it to be heavier than it ended up being. Don't get me wrong, it was still a good anime, but it didn't really have the impact I was expecting it to. Perhaps the fact that I was expecting it to lessened any impact it was going to have? 

Also, the last episode wasn't particularly satisfying. Not bad, but not great. I haven't watched the third movie yet (the one that isn't just a retread of the series), so maybe that will give me a more satisfying ending.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Grand Moff Tim said:


> Finished _Madoka_ the other day. I did enjoy it, but I guess given all the hype for how ZOMG HEAVY it is, I was expecting it to be heavier than it ended up being. Don't get me wrong, it was still a good anime, but it didn't really have the impact I was expecting it to. Perhaps the fact that I was expecting it to lessened any impact it was going to have?
> 
> Also, the last episode wasn't particularly satisfying. Not bad, but not great. I haven't watched the third movie yet (the one that isn't just a retread of the series), so maybe that will give me a more satisfying ending.



Madoka does get it's fair share of anime fandom hyperbolic overhype: one of the few reasons why I avoided it for so long. And the hype is largely due to it's darker themes being on the nose, and usually a first exposure to them for the millennial generation. This is Gen Urobuchi we're dealing with here. 

I enjoyed it for what it is, a short (the cause of many of the show's problems) but extremely rough and tumble ride that kept me guessing. Plus I'm biased towards the soundtrack.


----------



## Alberto7

So this totally happened:


----------



## Don Vito

Huh, I thought he had passed away for some reason :O

I don't know enough about Fate to know what he's saying, but that's neat seeing a legendary actor collide with anime.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> So this totally happened:




 That's awesome.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Nursing an annoying headache has forced me off Trails Of Cold Steel and still going through Black Butler at a pace of a dying man's crawl....

I've wanted to do a post about essential classic anime films. I guess I can fit one in now before I watch a Butler episode before falling asleep. Gotta do another anime composer post again soon... Anyway... 

I'm gonna start with this classic chestnut:






Who would have thought an anime adaptation of a fighting game would have gotten everything so right? Released in 1994, Street Fighter II The Animated Movie was a lightning in a bottle far ahead of it's time. Released just months before that laughable Van Damme movie of the same Capcom license, it actually still holds up today. Over 20 years on, it's still kicks serious ass. 

This was my definitive action anime next to Ninja Scroll back in the 90s (at certain times, Street Fighter trumps above). The plot itself is simple and to the point. M.Bison (Dictator) leader of Shadowloo hunts down the best fighters in the world and has his sights on Ryu. This also gets the attention of the US Army, having Guile team up with Interpol officer Chun-Li to take Bison and his crime syndicate down. Things get complicated as Bison also discovers Ken Masters who has equal prowess to Ryu and decides to hunt him down too. And... yeah that's it. Simple, and simple enough to throw in what the title suggests: lots of street fighting. 

What makes a simple fighting game adaptation so good? Frankly, a lot of reasons why all other fighting game adaptations fail:

*Street Fighter 2 delivers exactly what the title says. *

The intro speaks for itself. Ryu and Sagat not only exhibit their iconic moves, but they really beat each other up. In fact, every fight scene is beautifully choreographed to Hong Kong style meticulous detail. For the special moves, they're treated in a typical anime style superpower used rarely or only used once. There are about 6-7 fight scenes all up and the big finale is amazing. This movie was so awesome that it influenced Capcom on the development of all future SF games: namely the Alpha (prequel) series where key fights (like the Ryu/Sagat fight and the final Battle) and key plot points (Bison's image and Ryu's red band origin) were used directly into the game. 

*The large cast are well managed into the plot. *

Yeah, everybody's here. However the story only focuses on 5 main characters. Ryu, Ken, Chun-Li and Guile being the main heroes, Bison as the main villain, and everybody else as the supporting cast and or cameo. Of course that's really the only way to turn this property into a cohesive and watchable movie, but I'll be damned if anyone says that each role wasn't as note perfect as they were in this film. Cammy's short screentime as a brainwashed thug, E.Honda's tagalong sidekick to Ryu, Zangief and Blanka's fight, Balrog (Boxer) and Vega (Claw)... bloody everyone. It really is the perfect adaptation to each character. Speaking of characters...

*Chun-Li fanservice. *

 Hey... it was the 90s. Moving on...

*The International Dubbed Version is awesome.*

In this day and age where most anime hipsters will go straight to subs and give the dubbing the shaft, the dubbing really holds up. The international version also has a byproduct of having a completely different soundtrack to the original (more on this later). While we're on the subject of dubbed...

*Bryan Cranston as Fei Long.*

He's got a decent anime voice acting resume (as Lee/Doug Stone). Even if for not a long time in this film, let's reiterate: Bryan Cranston. As Fei Long. 


Ok, a lot of that has plenty of my fighting game fanboy praising about. However, Street Fighter 2 has it's shortcomings:

*The pacing has some draggy spots.*

There are moments where the high energy of the film is lost. Namely a lot of the subplots involving Ryu and (and especially) Ken. There's also too much scenes of Shadowloo exposition with Bison and cronies just walking around looking all baddie like. It makes the tone shifts jarring as a result. Not all fight scenes are safe either as some fights (namely E.Honda/Dhalsim and the afformentioned Zangief/Blanka fight) end up just exposition padding for the sake of fanservice. But at least it's the good kind of fanservice, yes including Chun-Li... there I said it. 

*The 2 different soundtracks make this feel like 2 different movies.*

Well... this is more of a complaint if you're planning to see both versions. Both were products of their time. The Japanese version was more typical elevator snoozefests with the odd J-Pop/J-Rock stimulant to key scenes, while the Western version gets the epic 'Action Movie' treatment, added with hard rock songs for inserts. This was the movie that introduced me to Alice In Chains and Korn, and also has one of the best uses of KMFDM's Ultra (spoiler: it involves Chun-Li and Vega). The 2 soundtracks make each viewing a completely different experience to the other. Personally, I think the International version holds up better here. Not from a nostalgia factor, but as it suits the tone of a movie about Street fighters bashing each other's heads in better. Best example is that exact Chun-Li/Vega scene. 


Overall, despite said flaws, this is B Movie anime action cooked to perfection. This was, and still is my standard of game adaptation to film: anime and otherwise all others are measured to... and usually tossed aside. Even other subsequent attempts like Street Fighter 2 V, the Alpha movies and even the SF4 anime tie-in fall short to this. It took 2 decades for anyone to match that with Street Fighter Assassin's Fist. Street Fighter 2 The Animated Movie is arguably the perfect encapsulation of what a great anime action film should be. Even better for fans of the game where they get to see their favorite characters portrayed as exactly as what they would've dreamt of. 

TL/DR: Put this on the list of anime movies you need to watch.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

I started watching _Kuragehime / Princess Jellyfish_ the other day, because I found out one of my favorite Japanese bands (Chatmonchy) did the OP:



Happily, much like Chatmonchy, the anime is quirky and cute so far. It's about a group of otaku NEET chicks who live in a female-only boarding house, their struggles with being socially awkward, and apparently something about a corporation wanting to buy the property to turn it into a luxury hotel (of course ). 

I'm not 100% behind the message it seems to be moving towards (Girls need to be pretty), but I'm only half-way done with it, so that might shift. It's based on a josei manga, after all. Fingers crossed.

Oh, and guess who voices the main character?

...


......



..........








I swear, I'm not watching stuff with her in it on purpose . I didn't realize she was in it until I started watching.


----------



## All_¥our_Bass

habicore_5150 said:


> How I spent the first evening of the month
> 
> [ Pizza ]
> 
> And yes, that is Pizza Hut that I have sitting on my lap, with Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion on the screen, which is advertising Pizza Hut


----------



## habicore_5150

All_¥our_Bass;4602889 said:


>



Indeed

Added another one to the list of things to watch - Tanaka-Kun wa Itsumo Kedaruge (Tanaka-Kun is Always Listless)
Really don't watch a lot of slice of life/school setting anime, but watching some of the mini episodes, I thought I might give the anime itself a try


----------



## Alberto7

Regarding Dragon Ball Super, for whoever might be interested... sh!t just got dark real fast. o.o I'm pumped to see what happens next!


----------



## Alberto7

Someone just posted this on a Fate-related cosplay group I'm a part of on Facebook. A part of me wants to hate it so much, but I can't help but giggle in excitement every time I watch it: bunch of people cosplaying Fate/Grand Order masters and servants while dancing to Carnival Phantasm's OP song.

The cosplays are pretty amazing, too.


----------



## Don Vito

Man, I am so looking forward to finding out the villain's story in Dragon Ball right now. This arc has been pretty great so far, even the animation quality was consistent for the first 2 episodes  The latest one not so much.

I'm also kind of annoyed by Beerus and Whis nowadays for some reason.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Likewise. It feels like the show is getting more serious and assuming a more DBZ-like tone.

Beerus and Whis... yeah. I'm not particularly annoyed by them, but I do feel like they're just there for comic relief and a bit of world-building and data-dumping. It feels like they could do _so much_, given their power and knowledge of the universe, but they just kinda stand there. With that said, whenever they're present, I feel safe  kind of like our heroes can't get hurt, because Whis and Beerus are so ridiculously overpowered and so obsessed with the food they're provided that they'll go to any lengths to protect them. I wonder how they'll react to the new villain.

Sometimes I feel like they shouldn't give even half of the screen time they already do to Krillin, given that he's so useless. Just knowing that he's around is good enough for me to feel like the whole gang is together. 

Pilaf and the dog do annoy me though. I'm happy with just Mai being there, but, unless it's a filler episode, I don't care to see the other two.


----------



## rampant

I just went through the first season of My Hero Academia, which was actually pretty awesome.

I'm impatiently waiting for One Punch Man season 2.


----------



## Alberto7

rampant said:


> I'm impatiently waiting for One Punch Man season 2.



Well, that might not come for a while. However, in the meantime, let me ease your pain by referring back to a post in this thread from a few months ago:

http://www.sevenstring.org/forum/4530706-post2283.html


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

^ Speaking of Mob Psycho 100...



Scheduled for July 12, the styling is familiar for One Punch Man fans, and looks like it's been made with the same gusto. So expect more of that kind of goofy bonkers insane style of anime. 

EDIT: Mob Psycho 100 will actually be available on Crunchyroll over Daisuki this time around.


----------



## bouVIP

I'll just leave this here


----------



## Skyblue

Started AoT (I know, a bit late to the party). Seems cool so far, something about how they animate their faces bothers me a bit but it's just nitpicking. 

Also started Ergo Proxy but actually got stuck after a few episodes. Pacing felt a bit slow, I might try to force myself back into it to see if it gets better. 

2nd Also- realised I never finished Paranoia Agent as I just moved when I was 2/3 in, and haven't gotten around to finishing it. Might try to do so until next weekend.


----------



## Don Vito

yeah the outlines on their face are really strong or something


----------



## Tenaba

bouVIP said:


> I'll just leave this here



Wow, that's nice. Where'd you get it done?


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## Alberto7

bouVIP said:


> I'll just leave this here







Skyblue said:


> Also started Ergo Proxy but actually got stuck after a few episodes. Pacing felt a bit slow, I might try to force myself back into it to see if it gets better.
> 
> 2nd Also- realised I never finished Paranoia Agent as I just moved when I was 2/3 in, and haven't gotten around to finishing it. Might try to do so until next weekend.



Oh boy... Ergo Proxy is probably the slowest, densest, and most cerebral anime with a somewhat understandable plot (reason why SEL doesn't count) that I've ever watched, but it is really interesting. I can guarantee it doesn't really get any less confusing. In fact, it might only get more so.  However, it may very well be worth it if you find the subject matter interesting. Also, if you like anime that use references to obscure works of art and literature, this might be the end-all-be-all show in that regard. Actually, the version I watched had all of the references used on each episode after the ending credits, explaining how they were used and what they might represent. It was quite a trip watching it that way, and might be the only reason I understood it.  In fact, my SSO signature (which I never bothered to change) was inspired by the show's use of "cogito, ergo sum" as a main theme. Overall, Ergo Proxy is on a category of its own, I feel, and that makes it hard to compare against its other, more stereotypical anime siblings. If I had to, I'd say it's as though Ghost in the Shell had a love child with Neon Genesis Evangelion. You'll either enjoy it or you won't.

Paranoia Agent was another hard one to watch, as it was really confusing at times. I remember very little of it, but I do remember having a moment where everything just sort of clicked. Really good show. Trippy ass ending though.


----------



## bouVIP

Cardbird said:


> Wow, that's nice. Where'd you get it done?



Car wrapping place. It's just a vinyl wrap lol


----------



## Skyblue

Alberto7 said:


> Oh boy... Ergo Proxy is probably the slowest, densest, and most cerebral anime with a somewhat understandable plot (reason why SEL doesn't count) that I've ever watched, but it is really interesting. I can guarantee it doesn't really get any less confusing. In fact, it might only get more so.  However, it may very well be worth it if you find the subject matter interesting. Also, if you like anime that use references to obscure works of art and literature, this might be the end-all-be-all show in that regard. Actually, the version I watched had all of the references used on each episode after the ending credits, explaining how they were used and what they might represent. It was quite a trip watching it that way, and might be the only reason I understood it.  In fact, my SSO signature (which I never bothered to change) was inspired by the show's use of "cogito, ergo sum" as a main theme. Overall, Ergo Proxy is on a category of its own, I feel, and that makes it hard to compare against its other, more stereotypical anime siblings. If I had to, I'd say it's as though Ghost in the Shell had a love child with Neon Genesis Evangelion. You'll either enjoy it or you won't.
> 
> Paranoia Agent was another hard one to watch, as it was really confusing at times. I remember very little of it, but I do remember having a moment where everything just sort of clicked. Really good show. Trippy ass ending though.



The subject is great, and I'm a huge fan of Sci-Fi, I think it was just the pacing... It was so slow I just kinda gave up. But I'll definitely give it another go! 

And Paranoia Agent is weird as hell but it's Satoshi Kon so I expected it to be so


----------



## Fiction

Skyblue said:


> Started AoT (I know, a bit late to the party). Seems cool so far, something about how they animate their faces bothers me a bit but it's just nitpicking.





Don Vito said:


> yeah the outlines on their face are really strong or something



Uncanny Valley

My partner is studying Mechatronics Engineering so i've heard her bang on about it a little bit 

Final Fantasy Spirit Within had this problem too.

I enjoyed AoT although I did find myself getting frustrated at the way it unfolded I won't say why as it's to do with story development. I'm waiting eagerly for S2 though so it's sucked me in


----------



## Don Vito

ugh.. dragon ball

such a cocktease 



Spoiler



loved that moment with vegeta and trunks though ;_;


----------



## Ikiharmaa

Skyblue said:


> Also started Ergo Proxy but actually got stuck after a few episodes. Pacing felt a bit slow, I might try to force myself back into it to see if it gets better.




it's all in the pacing and mood dude.

Honestly, if the first episode doesn't get me going, the anime probably won't be spectacular. Drama almost always goes so that things go up a notch later, so an anime that bores me will maybe go to "ok, that was kind of cool", but not become amazing. There's a lot of information in just a single episode tbh, the mood, the dialogue, the cinematography, attention to details.

it's love at first sight, whether that love can hold true until the end is a different story. That's the conclusion I've come to, so no more giving chances to things I don't enjoy from the first episode :3


----------



## Alberto7

Don Vito said:


> ugh.. dragon ball
> 
> such a cocktease
> 
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> loved that moment with vegeta and trunks though ;_;



It's like they got this big chunk of really tasty butter (the plot) but they decide to spread it so thinly on each slice (each episode) that you're left with patches of bread that are virtually un-buttered and taste like nothing but bread. Such is the drawn-out nature of Dragon Ball when the plot gets interesting.

/mandatoryDragonBallcomparisonwithfood

With that said, I think I'm nominating Vegeta as the biggest, baddest, most boundary-breaking, awesomest tsundere in the history of anime. 

Also, I just finished episode 6 of Durarara!! and I friggin' love it so far. It's so damn weird, but so likeable. It reminds me of Soul Eater in the sense that it's got its own unique style, though it's MUCH more subtle than its bombastic and borderline flamboyant sibling. Can't wait to see where this is headed.


----------



## Skyblue

So I finished AoT. Good stuff overall- 

- Unpredictable plot (and I mean that in a good way- I didn't know what's going to happen next)
- They gave time to different characters (instead of focusing only on the protagonist). Could've been done even better but still refreshing. 
- Showed the brutality of war- when people die, they die. And you see it clearly, and you see how it affects their comrades. I really liked that. 

One small thing I didn't like-


Spoiler



After they finished fighting the female titan in the forest, they came back to the city, and next thing we see is them trying to capture Annie- it felt rushed. Armin just suddenly had a splash of genious and figured it out? It felt like there's a missing episode there... It was clear to me it was Annie, but I would've preferred seeing them reaching that conclusion as well.



Now- any recommendations?  I need something with good action (not necessarily non-stop sword fighting) to keep me going, not really in the mood for something slow.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Agreed with the spoiler highlight. That could've easily been remedied if they didn't waste an entire episode for a clip show recollection. I was already sick of them in anime but with Attack On Titan having one was the straw that broke the camel's back for me. 

I suppose either Sengoku Basara or Kill La Kill are good for non stop action.




I haven't been on the anime binge in a while. I blame the fact that playing Trails Of Cold Steel has taken my anime attention. It's a JRPG with every anime trope known to man, and even paces like one, it's like watching a full 50 episode series with interactive battles. And yes, I love it. 

I still need to start Gundam Iron Blooded Orphans too..


----------



## Alberto7

I just finished Durarara!! and I am honestly finding it hard to even. It was so, so, so good. Kinda mad at myself that I didn't watch it before. There were very few things I disliked about it. The only two things I'd say, if I had to be picky, are the slight change of pace in the last few episodes, which felt a bit more drawn out, and the fact that one of the characters wasn't provided with a background. With that said, he was developed in a way that made him appear more three-dimensional than he actually was, (e.g. his actions and personality spoke a lot about him) but I also felt as though a background just wasn't necessary for the plot. Regardless, I was still hooked to my screen watching the show from beginning to end. 

The characters were relatable and absolutely lovely. Their development was excellent and their backgrounds honestly quite huge considering the cast is large and it was only 23 episodes. Each individual had their own, very strong and well-defined personality. The way the plot was developed was fantastic and the narrative had a really cool structure. It felt like several pieces of thread that began completely unrelated to each other and were slowly and beautifully knitted together, with each thread meeting at the same time towards the end. Each character had at least one episode which they would narrate from their point of view and personality. I thought the dialogue was really good. The way humour was used and mixed with the seriousness of each situation was really good, and it reminded me of a Tarantino film, although Tarantino has a tendency to mix a more absurd kind of funny with the grotesque rather than serious. That, and the score was perfect. Recurring themes and songs all the way through, with new soundtracks appearing every now and again, which makes the OST less repetitive, while staying familiar to the viewer and making them feel like there is an overall, developing theme.

I will say though, that the first half (the show is divided in two, as most 20+ episode anime are) was extremely satisfying, and starting anew in the middle of it felt like a bit of a drag at the time. However, it picks up very quickly with themes and plot points established during the first half. It was all extremely satisfying through and through.

I loved that the show leaves one key plot point open ended while completely acknowledging that it did, making it clear that, in the interest of the characters, it just isn't really relevant. Namely:


Spoiler



Celty's head, which she just accepted she didn't need and the show makes sure the viewer understands why. Normally, I'd ask more questions, and it would be cool to know more about her, sure, but they've made her interesting enough as it is, and if the character is satisfied with who she is and what she's got, then why shouldn't I be as well? That's also what the light novels are for.


Then there's that sort of one-dimensional character I talked about,


Spoiler



Izaya,


 who I hope is developed further in the second season or in the novels. It would be a real sham not to develop such an interesting character.

I didn't mean for this to turn into this mini-review, but I guess it did anyway.  I was kind of developing my thoughts as I wrote.

Anybody seen the Durarara!! x2?? Is it worth it, or should I just leave it at that? I hear it isn't as good as the first one, but I'd be curious to see what they could do next.

Now, on to Baccano!


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


> I still need to start Gundam Iron Blooded Orphans too..



I watched a small part of an episode. It felt very different from other Gundam that I've watched. It actually felt like a Gundam I could finally get along with, which might or might not be a good thing for someone who likes what Gundam already is.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Alberto7 said:


> Anybody seen the Durarara!! x2?? Is it worth it, or should I just leave it at that? I hear it isn't as good as the first one, but I'd be curious to see what they could do next.



It isn't as good as the first season, no, but that doesn't mean it's bad or anything. The first season was pretty friggin' good, so something can be not as good as it is while still being pretty good. 

It does give a bit more background for some of the characters, so it's worth watching at least for that.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Yeap, kinda what I thought. It's just that season 1 was so satisfying for me that I didn't want the possibility of having it ruined. Kinda like how the Usagi Drop anime is the most adorable thing I've ever seen, but I refuse to read the manga (source) because of the way it ends.  Regardless, it's too late for that. I'm already on episode two of x2 Shou.  It seems like x2 covers all the remaining novels, so I'm gonna be watching the whole thing. Good stuff.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> I watched a small part of an episode. It felt very different from other Gundam that I've watched. It actually felt like a Gundam I could finally get along with, which might or might not be a good thing for someone who likes what Gundam already is.



You know, after 4 episodes in (because I got curious ), you're right about this not feeling like part of the Gundam franchise. And considering the last few series have been rather ho hum (Age, Unicorn, and the rather disappointing Reconguista in G), it's a great thing. 

A lot of the typical tropes have been completely revamped and/or reshuffled. Rather having the principal mecha being more advanced, Iron Blooded Orphans switched is the other way around. The Gundam Barbatos is an crude, near obsolete hunk of junk while the antagonizing grunts are more on the high tech side of the spectrum... kinda like Aldnoah Zero in a general sense. IBO also adds the Whisker Implant system, something highly original in the Gundam series. 

The main character Mikazuki Augus takes a page from Wing and 00 being a fully fledged pilot and but isn't a typical cold and detached cypher, he shows more humanity way early on unlike Heero or Setsuna, which is a nice change. He also gets a co-star with a serious Senpai Death Warrant that can be easily predicted... but that's business as usual. 

Speaking of death, yeah typical Gundam. Body count is already pretty high by episode 3. 

Overall, I'm getting a more crude, dirty and guerilla vibe in IBO, which is definitely a nice change in the long franchise.


----------



## sakeido

Skyblue said:


> The subject is great, and I'm a huge fan of Sci-Fi, I think it was just the pacing... It was so slow I just kinda gave up. But I'll definitely give it another go!
> 
> And Paranoia Agent is weird as hell but it's Satoshi Kon so I expected it to be so



I think I stopped watching Ergo Proxy at episode 7. 

There's slow pacing, and there's that... has the dubious distinction of being one of the only two anime series I started watching and never, ever will finish.


----------



## Don Vito

I don't play this game(or know anything about it), but they added some Fate stuff recently to the MMORPG Mabinogi.

http://store.steampowered.com/app/212200/


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

So I finished Gundam: Iron Blooded Orphans on the weekend. I guess I could just bump the Gundam Thread and speak about IBO there, but I can't be buggered.  

I said earlier that the series has a more rougher edge to the rest of the franchise (even the music is more acoustic by nature), and it felt more refreshing for the better. Supposedly a spiritual successor to Gundam 00 (also known in my house as Gundam Wing done better), it's refreshing to see this particular ragtag group of mercenaries be a bit more primal, immature and less militaristic this time around. 

There's still some of the usual plot clichés though. Escorting a token pivotal female character, earth re-entry battle, rebellious token Char-clone, telegraphed war casualties, 3 2 1 Bingo. But this is a Gundam series after all so all that comes with the territory, and this time some are improvements. 

The most interesting thing about IBO is that there's very little focus on the mecha up to the point that they're just pushed into the background, focusing more on the strong and actually likeable characters. Both the protagonist (Mikazuki Augus) and token pivotal female character (Kudelia Aina Bernstein.. is that a typical Gundam name right there...) don't waste about. Both characters transcend their tropes quickly and move on to bigger character development, which doesn't happen often in the series, let alone one season. The token Char-clone takes a leaf from LeLouch Lamperouge of all characters, but doesn't reveal himself to be the Char-clone until late in the second act, a similar reveal to 00's Mr Bushido. He also does a decent job of setting things up for the inevitable season 2. 

Overall, it's still a Gundam series, but the rough atmosphere gives Iron Blooded Orphans a unique feel.


----------



## Alberto7

Don Vito said:


> I don't play this game(or know anything about it), but they added some Fate stuff recently to the MMORPG Mabinogi.
> 
> http://store.steampowered.com/app/212200/



What is this Fate MMORPG deal? Downloading it just to see what's up.



Bloody_Inferno said:


> So I finished Gundam: Iron Blooded Orphans on the weekend. I guess I could just bump the Gundam Thread and speak about IBO there, but I can't be buggered.
> 
> I said earlier that the series has a more rougher edge to the rest of the franchise (even the music is more acoustic by nature), and it felt more refreshing for the better. Supposedly a spiritual successor to Gundam 00 (also known in my house as Gundam Wing done better), it's refreshing to see this particular ragtag group of mercenaries be a bit more primal, immature and less militaristic this time around.
> 
> There's still some of the usual plot clichés though. Escorting a token pivotal female character, earth re-entry battle, rebellious token Char-clone, telegraphed war casualties, 3 2 1 Bingo. But this is a Gundam series after all so all that comes with the territory, and this time some are improvements.
> 
> The most interesting thing about IBO is that there's very little focus on the mecha up to the point that they're just pushed into the background, focusing more on the strong and actually likeable characters. Both the protagonist (Mikazuki Augus) and token pivotal female character (Kudelia Aina Bernstein.. is that a typical Gundam name right there...) don't waste about. Both characters transcend their tropes quickly and move on to bigger character development, which doesn't happen often in the series, let alone one season. The token Char-clone takes a leaf from LeLouch Lamperouge of all characters, but doesn't reveal himself to be the Char-clone until late in the second act, a similar reveal to 00's Mr Bushido. He also does a decent job of setting things up for the inevitable season 2.
> 
> Overall, it's still a Gundam series, but the rough atmosphere gives Iron Blooded Orphans a unique feel.



Interesting to hear about a Gundam show.

Also, a good friend of mine's last name is Bernestein. I guess I'll let him know he has a "Gundam last name."


----------



## sakeido

Anybody watching the new Berserk anime? They are adapting the arcs after Golden Age, finally. 

Animation is really inconsistent... dunno about the soundtrack, it's interesting but not on the level of the old stuff... then episode 3 gets really bad for taking liberties with the source material, and verging into outrageously X rated stuff that the manga blasted past in just one or two pages 

I'll stick with it because .... yeah Berserk but the manga deserves a better adaptation than this, I think.


----------



## Alberto7

Don Vito said:


> I don't play this game(or know anything about it), but they added some Fate stuff recently to the MMORPG Mabinogi.
> 
> http://store.steampowered.com/app/212200/



Started playing it, created an account and a character... but f*ck it, I don't have the patience to learn how to play it.


----------



## MFB

sakeido said:


> Anybody watching the new Berserk anime? They are adapting the arcs after Golden Age, finally.
> 
> Animation is really inconsistent... dunno about the soundtrack, it's interesting but not on the level of the old stuff... then episode 3 gets really bad for taking liberties with the source material, and verging into outrageously X rated stuff that the manga blasted past in just one or two pages
> 
> I'll stick with it because .... yeah Berserk but the manga deserves a better adaptation than this, I think.



Oh yeah, I raved and b!tched about them somewhere in this thread. It's horribly inconsistent because it's 2D and 3D blended together at different points, but it's like the 3d models weren't made using the 2D character sheets; so you can immediately tell the difference.

As a fairly large Berserk fan, it was one of the most disappointing moments in my anime fandom.


----------



## sakeido

the thing that gets me with the 2D / 3D mix is that this game called Guilty Gear Xrd has absolutely STUNNING 3D-but-looks-2D animation that in its finer moments really is indistinguishable from actual hand drawn animation, and it's a video game! it's the first game with that kind of graphics that studio has even done, and it looks better than any 3D anime I've seen yet 

The Golden Age movies got better with their 3D over time to the point I didn't mind it at all in the 3rd movie. But then they gave Berserk to a new studio that apparently has done poor work in the past, and they aren't using the 3D very well at all, even though I think 3D is the way to go for stuff like fight scenes. Like its neat they can have the camera flying all over the place and stuff now, but the models themselves look so stiff and poorly done it kinda defeats the whole purpose. 

I'm just confused. Berserk is one of the biggest selling manga series of all time (iirc) and is very well respected in Japan, but they can't get the budget for a proper anime adaptation? Or is it too mature to warrant the expense, since it won't be able to reach a wide TV audience or something? Not sure. 

oh well. If you dig Berserk, something that's been ten years in the offing just happened in chapter 343 and 344 is out in two days!


----------



## MetalGravy

Just finished Your Lie in April. I certainly didn't leave with the feels, nope nope nope, not at all.


----------



## habicore_5150

After a bit of a break from watching any anime, decided that instead of constantly cramming stuff into my large backlog (on the loosest possible terms, since I'm sure people have much larger lists than I do), was gonna start downsizing it (at least until 4 or 5 more get my attention)

Already on ep6 of Aoharu x Kikanjuu. After watching a bit of this, I'm convinced there's an anime for any kind of activity out there.
Kuroko no Basket for basketball, Free for swimming, Hajime no Ippo for boxing, Yowamushi Pedal for biking, and now Aoharu x Kikanjuu for airsoft


----------



## jacksonguitar1111

classic dbz super even if it is not as good as the other ones. 

other than that: one punch man, naruto...


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

After Iron Blood Orphans, the next logical step for me was to jump into another long running mecha franchise.

So I started Macross Delta. 3 episodes in so far...

One of the biggest gimmicks in the franchise is weaponising j-pop music. Delta takes that premise and pushes it to the absolute extreme (further than 7 and Zero) and largely focuses on a 4 piece girl band with magical elements and ace pilot accompaniment. That's not even counting the 2 main protagonists. 

Delta is bound to put off some longtime Macross fans just for that premise alone being turned up to 11 and the knob ripped off clean. In addition to 4 songs being introduced in the first episode (music is a big thing here), so many characters introduced and many other things are happening in episode 1 at an extremely brisk pace. That's not even counting the callbacks and references to the previous series (unlike Gundam, the entire Macross franchise exists in one singular universe). It's too much to take in even for the most die hard Macross fanboy (which I am), but thankfully it slows down dramatically in the next 2 episodes to give some breathing room for character development. 

For a series I hold dear, I sound like I'm bagging it a bit much here. Indeed it's 'girl band' and 'magic' central plot has already put off even the staunch Macross fan (my sister being one of them), but despite all the bagging, I was having too much fun to stay mad at it.  Yeah, it may be the fandom talking, but yeah, I smiled at ALL the callbacks and references and yes I enjoyed the songs more than I should (they're not as memorable as original, Plus or Frontier, but there's a great song in Ep3). So yeah, I'm seeing this through the end. 




Alberto7 said:


> Interesting to hear about a Gundam show.
> 
> Also, a good friend of mine's last name is Bernestein. I guess I'll let him know he has a "Gundam last name."



Your friend needs to say his full name (3 name minimum) around like a declaration of war to get that full 'Gundam' effect.


----------



## bouVIP

Bloody_Inferno said:


> After Iron Blood Orphans, the next logical step for me was to jump into another long running mecha franchise.
> 
> So I started Macross Delta. 3 episodes in so far...
> 
> One of the biggest gimmicks in the franchise is weaponising j-pop music. Delta takes that premise and pushes it to the absolute extreme (further than 7 and Zero) and largely focuses on a 4 piece girl band with magical elements and ace pilot accompaniment. That's not even counting the 2 main protagonists.
> 
> Delta is bound to put off some longtime Macross fans just for that premise alone being turned up to 11 and the knob ripped off clean. In addition to 4 songs being introduced in the first episode (music is a big thing here), so many characters introduced and many other things are happening in episode 1 at an extremely brisk pace. That's not even counting the callbacks and references to the previous series (unlike Gundam, the entire Macross franchise exists in one singular universe). It's too much to take in even for the most die hard Macross fanboy (which I am), but thankfully it slows down dramatically in the next 2 episodes to give some breathing room for character development.
> 
> For a series I hold dear, I sound like I'm bagging it a bit much here. Indeed it's 'girl band' and 'magic' central plot has already put off even the staunch Macross fan (my sister being one of them), but despite all the bagging, I was having too much fun to stay mad at it.  Yeah, it may be the fandom talking, but yeah, I smiled at ALL the callbacks and references and yes I enjoyed the songs more than I should (they're not as memorable as original, Plus or Frontier, but there's a great song in Ep3). So yeah, I'm seeing this through the end.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Your friend needs to say his full name (3 name minimum) around like a declaration of war to get that full 'Gundam' effect.




Ikenai Borderline is one of the catchiest songs I've ever heard..........


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Your friend needs to say his full name (3 name minimum) around like a declaration of war to get that full 'Gundam' effect.



My friend DOES have three names, funnily enough. Would be awesome if I could get him to say it on camera.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

bouVIP said:


> Ikenai Borderline is one of the catchiest songs I've ever heard..........











It does have a cool Superfly vibe to it. 

6 episodes in and this is still my favorite.

EDIT



...just realized the vid I posted earlier wasn't the actual arrangement. Used this cover instead, which is pretty impressive on it's own actually.


----------



## coreysMonster

Bleach is finally almost over. The last chapter is coming in two weeks. FINALLY.


----------



## MFB

I've gone down the YT rabbit hole of "DB Super's animation is utter ....e" and holy Christ, THIS is the follow-up we got to Z and GT? Holy fvck, the animation quality IS terrible! People should be outraged at it's laziness and only reason they're coming back is because it's connected to the DB universe so they're hoping to get SOMETHING out of it.

Dear God, to anyone who's watching, I don't know how you're doing it.


----------



## bouVIP

MFB said:


> I've gone down the YT rabbit hole of "DB Super's animation is utter ....e" and holy Christ, THIS is the follow-up we got to Z and GT? Holy fvck, the animation quality IS terrible! People should be outraged at it's laziness and only reason they're coming back is because it's connected to the DB universe so they're hoping to get SOMETHING out of it.
> 
> Dear God, to anyone who's watching, I don't know how you're doing it.



It gets better after the Frieza arc. I just watched the 2 movies and skipped to the arc right after


----------



## Don Vito

Yeah, the animation is fine now. I've been watching it steady since the Black arc(or whatever it's called lol).

There are some things I prefer about the older art styles. SSJ doesn't look as cool as it used to, and I can't put my finger on why.

In other news, I've started to like Beerus and Whis again. Goku and Beerus are like brothers now, and Whis is their sensible mother man lol.


----------



## Alberto7

I haven't laughed so hard in a while, oh my God:



I am so glad Gigguk is making videos once again.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Ok that was pretty funny. I lost it at "casusl scrub" and "hand job from Kana Hanazawa." 

And I look like an anime character by default apparently.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

I'd gladly take a handjob from Kana Hanazawa...


----------



## Alberto7

^ About that trip to Akihabara, then... 

The Asians looking like anime characters by default thing reminds me of how predisposed everybody around me is to thinking that every Asian person they see is infinitely more likely to be into anime than the rest of the population.


----------



## MFB

Enjoy the nightmares.


----------



## Alberto7

^ I dread the question but, is this a thing now...?


----------



## MFB

No, it's not as far as I know, just a joke that got taken too far by someone


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> The Asians looking like anime characters by default thing reminds me of how predisposed everybody around me is to thinking that every Asian person they see is infinitely more likely to be into anime than the rest of the population.



Speaking from my personal experience as a non Japanese Asian, I had a head start with anime being shown for my morning cartoons. And it was SDF Macross. No shame.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Own it, brother! 

But yeah, I still make a mental remark when I meet someone who's Asian and they don't like anime. Then I remember that their culture isn't based around it, and I proceed to feel awful for having made such an assumption. 
As a non-Japanese, non-Asian, white-passing-but-arguably-not-white Spanish/Latin American, I had a head start with anime in much the same way, except it was a bit more balanced out with the likes of Cow and Chicken, Dexter's Lab, and the whole of Nickelodeon's roster. Of course, by the time I started watching those I already knew very well what Evangelion was, and I already had a crush on Android 18.


----------



## dr_game0ver

Alberto7 said:


> But yeah, I still make a mental remark when I meet someone who's Asian and they don't like anime. Then I remember that their culture isn't based around it, and I proceed to feel awful for having made such an assumption.


What? Next you're gonna tell us Asians don't all practice kung-fu and play violin...


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Tips on making anime (J-pop, J-rock) music? Theory, composition, production, engineering, etc.

I know that I asked a similar question a long time ago. Just kind of stuck at the moment in learning and progressing.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

I've slowed down on Macross Delta to wait for the new episodes to air so I can just binge through them to the end. While doing so I started watching season 1 of Arslan Senki (Heroic Legend Of Arslan) because... BECAUSE. SHUT UP. 






Ahem... Anyway...

I first knew about the franchise from the OVA series from the 90s, which I didn't really care for at the time. Didn't realized that the OVAs remained incomplete to this day. And also didn't realize Yoshi taka Amano (early Final Fantasy, Vampire Hunter D) did the cover artwork for the original novels. So the franchise has had a long life. 

So 3 episodes in (the now golden rule for me before I can pass judgment): based in an alternate reality heavily inspired by BC pre Islamic Persian history and a touch of the Crusades. First episode does the setup and exposition, albeit briefly before throwing everything in a blender and painting everything red in episode 2. This is all a setup for the prince protagonist Arslan assembling a group of ragtag companions against overwhelming odds and HEY LOOK THERE'S A CHAR CLONE HERE, because screw it, I just came out of a Gundam/Macross high I'll react accordingly when I see a masked anime character. 

But it is a fun series so far. Namely because it has the charm of a classic 90s fantasy anime of the good kind (Lodoss War etc). It also happens in a brisk steady but exciting pace. Taro Iwashiro's score is exquisite as always and Eir Aoi gets a nice song here too.  It's also reminded me that it's been a while since I've listened to UVerworld. 

I'll see if I can finish this off before Macross Delta, then do Arslan season 2...


----------



## Alberto7

^ Hikaru and Wakana look like they're having a pillow fight and poor Keiko has been left out...

... I feel an urgent need to hug my pillow and scream into it at the mere thought of that.


----------



## bouVIP

Emperor Guillotine said:


> Tips on making anime (J-pop, J-rock) music? Theory, composition, production, engineering, etc.
> 
> I know that I asked a similar question a long time ago. Just kind of stuck at the moment in learning and progressing.



I suck at music theory, but I've learned that listening to and learning a bunch of anime/J-rock songs helps with just learning the chord progressions and patterns that they tend to use.


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Finished watching _Naruto_ tonight. I made it through all 220 episodes in two months since I began watching back on June 12. 

I was excited to finish it up and be done, but then I learned that _Shippuden_ has 475+ episodes. I was also looking forward to being done with all the seemingly endless filler (since every episode after Sasuke joining Orochimaru is filler), but apparently _Shippuden_ has just as much filler, if not more since it has over twice as many episodes.

At least I won't be bored for awhile. On to watching _Shippuden_.


----------



## MFB

Shippuden has SO much filler, and its not like its an episode here or there, it's like filler arcs which is ridiculous. It gets especially bad towards the end (like, ~460?)


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

MFB said:


> Shippuden has SO much filler, and its not like its an episode here or there, it's like filler arcs which is ridiculous. It gets especially bad towards the end (like, ~460?)


Everything after episode 135 of Naruto (after Sasuke and Naruto battle at the border) is filler. So with a total of 220 episodes before the change over to Shippuden, that is just shy of 100 episodes of straight filler. And with 475+ episodes of Shippuden, I am expecting it to be just as bad. But there actually is more written, so hopefully the filler will be spaced out a bit more and not 100 consecutive episodes of filler.


----------



## Alberto7

Mob Psycho 100 is turning into my new little obsession. My sister made me binge the first 6 episodes before she moved out a couple days ago.

Being from the same maker as One Punch Man, I thought it would be more awesome silliness... and it does start out that way, but it gets infinitely more serious and has actual substance to it, especially once episode 5 rolls in. The art in the first couple of episodes is a little overwhelming, but it fits the tone of the show later on SOOO well. It's kind of like One Punch Man on acid, but it is so damn creative and I love it. Also the ED sequence is beautiful. It's oil paint on glass, according to my sister, and it's so neat. The music is fantastic, too, especially when sh*t goes down.

Fantastic little show so far that's really going under the radar, for one reason or the other. I was expecting it to blow up kind of like OPM did, but I can kind of see why it didn't... it's a tad much on the senses if you're not used to that kind of thing.


----------



## Alberto7

I apologize in advance for the sh*tty quality pictures that follow. It's late at night and lighting in my room isn't ideal.

------

So I went to the local con (Otakuthon) two weekends ago, not including the current one at the time of this post. I hadn't updated about it because I was busy, lazy, and I could only go one day this year instead of the full weekend like I usually do.

It was a slow one this year for me and many others, and I didn't have anywhere near as much fun as I did last year. I didn't find as many cool things to do the day I went. I only went on Sunday - the last day - as I was super busy that weekend, and I wasn't anywhere near as hyped for it as I was last year. I only went with one other friend who just so happened to be available that weekend, and there was none of the long-term group planning that is usually involved in these kinds of things. (Which involves a positive feedback hype loop that gets me pumped for the con.) We also didn't have any cool guests at home that came for the con this year. (We had a couple, but I did not really get along with them much, so we didn't spend any time together.)

The official attendance number hasn't been released yet, but some say it was bigger, others that it was smaller, than last year. (20k + people) Despite that, I got some nifty merch and got this interesting autograph:







That would be Atsuko Tanaka, who voices both Motoko Kusanagi - our beloved Major from Stand Alone Complex - and Caster from Fate/Stay Night. So you can imagine, with Fate and Ghost in the Shell being two of my favorite franchises in anime, that I was pretty starstruck upon meeting her.  The autograph reads "Kusanagi Motoko" on top and below is "Kyasuta" (Caster), since I told her those were my favorite characters she voices. (As did 99% of everyone else.) They wouldn't allow any pictures though, and it was a super quick autograph signing, so, despite my total fanboyism, it was a very fleeting moment. I didn't even get to go to her Q&A session because I was lining up for another autograph that I didn't even get...

... I got to see Takeshi Obata as well, the manga artist for Death Note, and attended his Q&A session. He was very polite, but absolutely looked and sounded like he was sick and tired of being asked questions about Death Note and he just wanted to go back home and chill with his wife and draw, or something.  I missed out on his autograph session, as they limited it to 100 people only.






Other than that, I got around to putting up all the prints and posters I got from the con, (which prompted me to finally write this post ) so the walls in my room are looking a bit more populated:

















I definitely want to frame a couple of these, particularly my sister's Cardcaptor Sakura from the last picture. I really wanna keep that one for longer than the rest of them.

I also got an Eeveelutions t-shirt for my Pokemon GO outings, but it's in a pile of dirty clothes, so no picture of it for now.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

^ Very nice! 



Bloody_Inferno said:


> Arslan Senki (Heroic Legend Of Arslan)



...and I smashed through season 1. 

Yep, it was a fun right right through the end. I mentioned it having a nice 90s charm, I dunno if it's the nostalgia of the classic animes or JRPGs that hooked me but this just felt right, much more than it's own OVA of the time. 

Another separate franchise this shares a odd similarity to is Romance Of The Three Kingdoms, particularly the Dynasty Warriors interpretation. First is that all the major players from all factions are formally introduced with a watermark (kinda like the recent and awesome Taiwanese Three Kingdoms series... go see that btw). The other trait is how some of the main characters are so OP they can just kill a group of soldiers with one attack to fill a theatre.  One character who's of the tactician persuasion is so masterful he may as well be Zhuge Liang (or Sima Yi/Zhou Yu depending on your DW preference). 

Nevertheless, I had a ton of fun. It's nothing new, but it's like nice old slippers, a well cooked steak and potatoes, a good loyal pet: all nice comfy and something you can easily fall back on. 

Now either back to Delta or season 2...



Alberto7 said:


> The music is fantastic, too, especially when sh*t goes down.



I expect nothing less from Kenji Kawai. Speaking of which, I'm overdue for a composer post...


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Speaking of which, I'm overdue for a composer post...



I guess now's a good time.  Speaking of Kenji Kawai...






...this post may be more intensive than that bloated Yoko Kanno post I did before. Largely due to the extremely rich and diverse body of work that Kawai has done. His discography goes beyond anime as he's done live action series, films all extending outside Japan. This is gonna be a big one. 

Anyways.

Right after quitting first year uni, he formed a fusion band for a contest. It didn't last long and he soon quickly worked on TV commercials. But it wasn't until he met sound director Naoko Asari when Kawai got the anime ball rolling. His earliest known work was the Maison Ikkoku TV series in 1986 and the Devil Man OVA based on Go Nagai's classic manga. 



But his work on the film Red Spectacles lead to one of his longest collaborators, anime giant Mamoru Oshii. Wherever Oshii was working, Kawai wasn't too far around. 

Together they did the Patlabor series, beginning with the OVA, then TV series, and all 3 movies. 









The Patlabor series were all tonally different. The TV series and OVA were more the light hearted comedy while the movies were rather somber dark thrillers. This allowed Kawai to be diverse in his works.

Other early works were the Ranma 1/2 series:



Project A-Ko OVAs:



The Kyatto Ninden Teyandee series (aka Samurai Pizza Cats in it's original form):



And many more. Hell, that was just from 1985-early 90s. 

Kawai continued some of the above series in the 90s and also added more works such as Mermaid Forest, another Mamoru Oshii collab StrayDog: Kerberos Panzer Corps. But in 1995, Kawai scored what may be considered his most popular work. Another Oshii collaboration... you know... the one even non anime fans know:



...yeah, that one. 

At the same time Kawai was venturing towards the horror genre. First with the gut-wrenching Vampire Princess Miyu series (OVA and TV).



Then along came collaborations with Hideo Nakata that to various movies, most notably the first 2 Ringu movies, and Dark Water among others.





From 2000 onwards lead to even more known works. Both anime and otherwise. 

First, more Mamoru Oshii collaborations like the Japanese/Polish sci-fi epic Avalon:



WXIII Patlabor 3 and Ghost In The Shell: Innocence among others:





Other non anime like the French Movie Bloody Mallory, 

VariousHong Kong action movies:





 

Anime to Live Acton adaptations:

 



More Hideo Nakata horror films: 



And a hell of a lot more...


Anime wise, there's plenty there too like...

Windy Tales:



The Sky Crawlers:



Fate/Stay Night:



Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Kai:



Gundam 00 (series and movie):



Eden Of The East:



Towa No Quon:



Barakamon:



World Trigger:



And most recently, Mob Psycho 100:




Phew. And that's not even all of them.  30 years on and still going strong. 

Now, I've been a huge fan of this guy for a long time now. I knew him since Devilman and have learned to recognise his still from Patlabor and Vampire Princess Miyu onwards. So I do love me some Kenji Kawai and still do.  A recurring theme that I notice in all his work is that they're all seriously emotion driven, regardless of style and genre. Of course that's the job of all soundtrack composers but Kawai has become a master pulling all the right emotional strings in every one of his works. All his happy songs are sugary and smile inducing. All his horror themes rattles the spine and when he certainly knows how to control an epic scene, be it bombastic, ominous, tearjerking and everything in between. 

One distinct trait that I noticed is his masterful use of the Dorian mode. It's subtile at first listen, but it's everywhere; from the classic sounding anime of the late 80s all the way up to now. I noticed this during the Vampire Princess Miyu TV soundtrack and now I associate it as his signature sound. And I looove it!  Instrumentation is usually around bells/chimes, orchestras, heavy percussion, ethnic or choral vocals and droning effects and minimalist atmospherics. He's also an accomplished guitarist (he was the guitarist in his first band after all). 

Like Yoko Kanno, I'm finding it hard to find any faults and shortcomings here. Though of course this is my biased opinion talking. If I was going to nitpick, it'll be that said Dorian style. To me it's completely recognisable to the point where it does distract me at times (it stopped me on my tracks during Gundam 00). Again it's difficult for me to do this because I'm so attached to his style.  Unless you can? 

In any case Kenji Kawai has built himself a rich discography,has earned a legendary status with many fans, anime and otherwise and he shows no signs of slowing down. 

And his live concerts are awesome. So here's more of that. 







Also just noticed this.



Alberto7 said:


> ^ Hikaru and Wakana look like they're having a pillow fight and poor Keiko has been left out...
> 
> ... I feel an urgent need to hug my pillow and scream into it at the mere thought of that.





I can only respond with this:


----------



## MFB

The Devilman OVA's had some of the most bitchin' tunes for an anime, I remember hearing that battle theme for the first time and was just like, "What the fvck IS this?" but combined with the visual and grit of the whole thing? It was perfect.


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Kenji Kawai goodness + Kalafina



I really, REALLY want the Like system back right now. I want to like the sh*t out of that post. Good job there man. I haven't listened to it all, but it reminded me of how good the guy is. It did make me go and re-listen to the GitS soundtrack after a long time though, which sent shivers running down my spine for the entirety of the performance. What a spectacle. I also never knew that he did Eden of the East and Barakamon! That dude really is a jack of all trades.

And that Kalafina picture is too cute. I can almost hear Keiko going "YOROSHIKU ONEGAISHIMASU!" in a super cute voice.

EDIT: I also had NO idea he had done Ip Man! I looooove those movies. Kind of ironic for a movie that details how the Japanese f*cked the Chinese over. 



--------------------------------------------------------------------------



Also, I just caught up with Dragon Ball Super. Sh*t's getting real serious now, finally! This feels like a proper fully-fledged arc with tons of character exposition and plot development, rather than meandering about aimlessly with short arcs which are just expanded versions of past films or merely setting up the stage for a larger story coming up ahead. I absolutely LOVE Zamasu's character so far, even by general anime standards, and I'm super interested in knowing more. I also like that they're taking time to expand the Dragon Ball lore in general, which is super interesting. I also feel like it's getting even more hilarious, but that's perhaps because the atmosphere is getting much more serious, so moments of comedic relief have a larger impact.

For those of us here who watch it, I lost my sh*t at this scene:





Love Omni King too. "Shut up. I'll wipe you out. &#9673;&#8255;&#9673;"


----------



## Don Vito

Dude I ....in' lol'd at that Beerus scene. It's just funny to watch him do that kind of stuff, since he's usually looking down on everybody else. Seriously, this arc has made me a Beerus fan.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Haha absolutely. I personally always loved him, but he's turning out to be one of my favorite Dragon Ball characters ever. It'll feel weird going back to DB or DBZ and not have Beerus in them. 

Whis too. For all his flamboyancy and overall relaxed and chilled out demeanor, he oozes this air of badassery that I'm dying to see him let loose.

Can't wait for the new episode to come out later today!

EDIT: aaannndd just saw the new episode... I think I peed myself a little.


----------



## MFB

All three seasons of Avatar: The Last Airbender are on Amazon Prime Video.

Oh fvck.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

While waiting for Macross Delta I started something completely new. A friend of mine was recommending me songs from Aika Yoshioka. She thought that some parts of my album resembled her music oddly enough.  That lead to a conversation about her playing the Hakuoki games. So I thought well, I may check out the anime since I've liked what I've heard from Yoshioka so far. 



And checking out anime based on the soundtrack is how I roll now apparently.  Though it does help that Ko Otani (Shadow Of The Colossus) did the music to Hakuoki. 

It's been a while since I've watched an otome/harem anime. Last time may have been a Ranma 1/2 marathon I did about a decade ago. At least this time I'm in more familiar territory. It's based during the Bakumatsu era and focuses heavily on another interpretation of the Shinsengumi. 

I've said before that Japan tend to liberally interpret their historical figures as however the hell they see fit. The Shinsengumi may have only existed for 6 years during the dying days of the Tokugawa Shogunate but they're been embedded in the country's pop culture as much as the Sengoku samurai. They're more or less the Shogun's personal police squad but more like the Iron Guard, but they're usually portrayed as heroes like Peacemaker Kuragone, or support anti/heroes like Rurouni Kenshin and Gintama (the latter being heavily bastardised for comedic purposes and for the better I might add). Here they're mostly a bunch of pretty boys, but this is a otome/harem genre after all. 

I'm only 2 episodes in and so far it's a little slow. I'll wait for a few more before doing the 3 episode judgment rule.

EDIT: 5 episodes in, and yeah, as expected, things heat up in episode 3 onwards. And new plot points are introduced to separate this from a more typical samurai affair.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

MFB said:


> The Devilman OVA's had some of the most bitchin' tunes for an anime, I remember hearing that battle theme for the first time and was just like, "What the fvck IS this?" but combined with the visual and grit of the whole thing? It was perfect.



Devilman was also awesome for getting me into Anthem.









Alberto7 said:


> I really, REALLY want the Like system back right now. I want to like the sh*t out of that post. Good job there man. I haven't listened to it all, but it reminded me of how good the guy is. It did make me go and re-listen to the GitS soundtrack after a long time though, which sent shivers running down my spine for the entirety of the performance. What a spectacle. I also never knew that he did Eden of the East and Barakamon! That dude really is a jack of all trades.
> 
> And that Kalafina picture is too cute. I can almost hear Keiko going "YOROSHIKU ONEGAISHIMASU!" in a super cute voice.
> 
> EDIT: I also had NO idea he had done Ip Man! I looooove those movies. Kind of ironic for a movie that details how the Japanese f*cked the Chinese over.



Glad you're these ginormous posts. It does give some info merit. 

It's also made me listen to that damn Ranma Lambada on repeat again. 

And I love how Keiko's normal voices sounds nothing like her singing voice. At all.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

I feel like a dumbass. 

I had been wanting to check out Yurikuma Arashi for a while now because I saw it on a few Best of 2015 lists, but when I went to check it out on kissanime, the subtitles were dreadfully sh!t-tastic. I tried finding downloads, but kept coming across similar comments about the quality of the subs (apparently the first fansubs were just google-translated from some _German_ fansubs). Since I don't do dubs and the subs were so bad that I couldn't even make it through the first episode, I just put it on my list of stuff to check out later, in hopes that better subs would pop up.

Fastforward to "later," and I dropped by Kissanime to see if any new versions had been uploaded. They hadn't, but I went through the comments to see if anyone mentioned better subs somewhere else, and came across an interesting interaction between two commenters:

"Please reply to me if they ever make the subs better, I can't really stand the typos in the first episode"
"It's only the first episode that's like that. The rest is by Funimation."

F_u_cking derp.

I powered my way through the first episodes horrible subs so I'd have something of an idea of what's going on, and then sure enough, everything starting with episode two and beyond has been the pro subs. And to think, I'd have know about this ages ago (the above exchange is four months old), if I wasn't worried about spoilers in the comment section. 

Incidentally, the show is f_u_cking weird. Don't let the "yuri" in the title fool you. From what I've read, the plot of the story is supposed to indirectly represent LGBTs and their (lack of) acceptance in Japan, which I guess I can kiiiiiiind of see so far, but I'm only four episodes deep, and despite it only being 12 episodes long, 4 is apparently not quite enough to really let me know wtf is going on. 

Unrelated, here's the other shiz I've finished watching since the last time I posted an update in here, if anyone gives a crap:

Nichijou - A must watch for anyone. Hilarious.

Kuragehime (Princess Jellyfish) - I enjoyed it, but if cutesy slice of life stuff isn't your thing, it isn't a must watch.

Aoi Hana - Yuri, but really well done. It didn't seem at all like it was aimed at guys, like much of that particular genre. It was actually well written, and seemed like it was genuinely trying to portray the struggles a lesbian might experience growing up in Japan. Not a riveting watch, but maybe worth checking out if that sounds interesting to you.

Koyomimonogatari - Just the most recent season of the ~Monogatari series. Watch it if you dig that series, skip it if you don't. It won't make a lick of sense to people who haven't been following it .

Gakkou Gurashi (School-Live!): The feels. All of them. A similar gut-punch to Madoka Magica. Not as good all-around as Madoka, but had a better (imo) ending.

Mikagura Gakuen Kumikyoku: Fairly meh. Interesting enough to keep me around long enough to finish it, but over all it was just another cliche "New Enemy with better powers shows up, protagonist discovers new ability to defeat him" anime.

Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress - Awesome, awesome show. I'm waiting for it to blow up in popularity like Attack on Titan did. I'm a bit surprised I don't see people talking about it more, honestly.

Akame ga Kill - Pretty good over all. I kindof assume most of you have already watched it, haha. Potentially the most unsatisfying ending I've ever seen, though. Super disappointing.

Yuru Yuri - Adorable. Don't let the "yuri" in the title dissuade you. Its yuri content is extremely light-hearted, not sexualized at all. It's just a cute cast of characters in a slice of life setting. Check it out if that sounds like your thing.

Candy Boy: Nonchalant Talk of the Certain Twin Sisters in Daily Life - More yuri, this time a bit more overt than the other stuff mentioned so far. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't great. It's really short, though, so you can check it out without having to invest too much time.

Mitsudomoe - I'm almost embarrassed to admit I watched this at all . It has some genuinely hilarious moments, but it also has an uncomfortable amount of "Uh... wtf, Japan?" moments, since it has dirty humor and takes place _in an elementary school_. So yeah. Uh... wtf, Japan?

Ansastu Kyoush_i_tsu (Assassination Classroom) - Another great one, and another one I expect to hear more about in the future once more people have discovered it. Sure, it's already done after only two seasons, but I think it has some staying power. Would recommend.

Shinryaku! Ika Musume (Squid Girl) - A bit of a goofy twist on slice of life. Adorable and funny. I'd recommend it to people looking for something that doesn't take itself too seriously.

I thiiiiiink that's everything.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Grand Moff Tim said:


> Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress - Awesome, awesome show. I'm waiting for it to blow up in popularity like Attack on Titan did. I'm a bit surprised I don't see people talking about it more, honestly.



I forgot I was supposed to watch this.  Thanks for the reminder.


----------



## Ikiharmaa

I finally watched fma:b, 8/10. I liked a lot of the characters and the plot was nicely twisty at places. It also had that adventure feeling that you get in games too, more so than most anime, that was kind of nice.


----------



## Don Vito

Don Vito said:


> Pls, Yajirobe is the most powerful character in Dragonball, he's just holding back.





Spoiler



VEGETA - GOHAN - GOKU - PICCOLO.. SLAIN



But there is.. one.. 






edit: idk why the picture is so small xD


----------



## Skyblue

Finished the 8 current episodes of Mob Psycho 100. It started a bit slow in a way, and was weird overall, but it really got better with every episode. 

Thinking of going for Assassination Classroom or Tokyo Ghoul now, but I'm open to other suggestions~


----------



## Alberto7

^ Gotta catch up on Mob Psycho. Episode 6 was so damn good.



Grand Moff Tim said:


> I feel like a dumbass.
> 
> I had been wanting to check out Yurikuma Arashi for a while now because I saw it on a few Best of 2015 lists, but when I went to check it out on kissanime, the subtitles were dreadfully sh!t-tastic. I tried finding downloads, but kept coming across similar comments about the quality of the subs (apparently the first fansubs were just google-translated from some _German_ fansubs). Since I don't do dubs and the subs were so bad that I couldn't even make it through the first episode, I just put it on my list of stuff to check out later, in hopes that better subs would pop up.
> 
> Fastforward to "later," and I dropped by Kissanime to see if any new versions had been uploaded. They hadn't, but I went through the comments to see if anyone mentioned better subs somewhere else, and came across an interesting interaction between two commenters:
> 
> "Please reply to me if they ever make the subs better, I can't really stand the typos in the first episode"
> "It's only the first episode that's like that. The rest is by Funimation."
> 
> F_u_cking derp.
> 
> I powered my way through the first episodes horrible subs so I'd have something of an idea of what's going on, and then sure enough, everything starting with episode two and beyond has been the pro subs. And to think, I'd have know about this ages ago (the above exchange is four months old), if I wasn't worried about spoilers in the comment section.
> 
> Incidentally, the show is f_u_cking weird. Don't let the "yuri" in the title fool you. From what I've read, the plot of the story is supposed to indirectly represent LGBTs and their (lack of) acceptance in Japan, which I guess I can kiiiiiiind of see so far, but I'm only four episodes deep, and despite it only being 12 episodes long, 4 is apparently not quite enough to really let me know wtf is going on.



I feel like the same has happened to me with subtitles before, but I can't remember which anime. 

But yeah, my sister was a huge fan of the show, to the point that she made cosplays of the bear/person with the green clothes and the ever-creepy brown paws. She really liked it while watching it, but tells me that it was one of those shows that you really like while you watch it but never really stick with you afterwards. I watched a couple of episodes myself and, while I found nothing wrong with it per se, it was way too fantastic-y and weird and I wasn't in the mood for that kind of stuff. I did like the bit of narration where they tell the whole story in a sort of fairy tale fashion.



Grand Moff Tim said:


> Nichijou - A must watch for anyone. Hilarious.



I followed this show as it was coming out for about 3 episodes and I loved it. Beats me why I stopped.  I should go back to it.



Grand Moff Tim said:


> Kuragehime (Princess Jellyfish) - I enjoyed it, but if cutesy slice of life stuff isn't your thing, it isn't a must watch.



On my to-watch list. Heard many good things.



Grand Moff Tim said:


> Gakkou Gurashi (School-Live!): The feels. All of them. A similar gut-punch to Madoka Magica. Not as good all-around as Madoka, but had a better (imo) ending.



DUDE. This anime holds the record of show whose first episode I've seen the most times. I ended up showing the first episode to like 7 different people, and I've watched it like 4-5 times on my own, and everybody I know even myself always have the same reaction, every time. It's THAT f*cking good. I bawled like a baby after the first time I watched it. I followed it for 5-6 episodes and, as is usual for me, I stopped for no good reason. REALLY need to get back to this one.



Grand Moff Tim said:


> Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress - Awesome, awesome show. I'm waiting for it to blow up in popularity like Attack on Titan did. I'm a bit surprised I don't see people talking about it more, honestly.



I was thinking of watching it until I made the stupid decision of watching this video, because gigguk:


I don't usually let these things dissuade me, but the idea of an Attack on Titan clone directed by the same dude who did AoT is kind of a turn-off, especially when I've been feeling like watching AoT again. I'm not crossing this anime out though. I may just watch it at some point.



Grand Moff Tim said:


> Akame ga Kill - Pretty good over all. I kindof assume most of you have already watched it, haha. Potentially the most unsatisfying ending I've ever seen, though. Super disappointing.



It's funny how Akame ga Kill is one of the most hated modern anime. I watched the first 11-12 episodes and, while it wasn't special, it was so much damn fun. Gotta finish watching it. Also, this f*cking song:





Grand Moff Tim said:


> Shinryaku! Ika Musume (Squid Girl) - A bit of a goofy twist on slice of life. Adorable and funny. I'd recommend it to people looking for something that doesn't take itself too seriously.



Also heard good things of Squid Girl, and I do want to watch it at some point.



Grand Moff Tim said:


> I thiiiiiink that's everything.



Thank you. For some reason, this post has made me feel like going back to revisit shows I never finished but should have, and watch anime in general again... right as I go back to school, fml.


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Devilman was also awesome for getting me into Anthem.




Those guitars make me feel like the song will burst into the original Power Rangers theme song any second.  That song friggin' ruled so hard. I can't believe it's in an anime. 



Bloody_Inferno said:


> Glad you're these ginormous posts. It does give some info merit.
> 
> It's also made me listen to that damn Ranma Lambada on repeat again.
> 
> And I love how Keiko's normal voices sounds nothing like her singing voice. At all.



Haha it's funny, because she seems to have a normal voice (to Western ears anyway) rather than the usual high-pitched squeaky voice of other J-Pop celebrities.

Also, I haven't watched Ranma 1/2 since I was like 8 or 9.  I was never much into it, but I remember my cousin loving it to death.


----------



## Don Vito

Kabaneri! I've been looking for the name of that show since I heard of it's concept. It reminds me of that terrible movie Land of the Dead from like 10 years ago. Just makes me want to watch it even more.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> I don't usually let these things dissuade me, but the idea of an Attack on Titan clone directed by the same dude who did AoT is kind of a turn-off, especially when I've been feeling like watching AoT again. I'm not crossing this anime out though. I may just watch it at some point.



I said the same thing about God Eater. I still watched it anyway and thought it was alright, not great like its comparison but just alright. 

Though Kabaneri does have the disadvantage of having the same director and composer to have done Attack On Titan, thus the comparisons are inevitable and judged wrongly by design. 




Alberto7 said:


> It's funny how Akame ga Kill is one of the most hated modern anime. I watched the first 11-12 episodes and, while it wasn't special, it was so much damn fun. Gotta finish watching it. Also, this f*cking song:




Now I'm curious as to why this is universally hated. Is it just by the ending alone?

Music by Taku Iwasaki... yeah I automatically knew that was gonna be good before I hit play. Everything I've heard from him is full of win. 




Alberto7 said:


> Haha it's funny, because she seems to have a normal voice (to Western ears anyway) rather than the usual high-pitched squeaky voice of other J-Pop celebrities.



The high pitched squeaky voice is a put on, especially when in shops. It annoyed me after the 5th day of my first stay in Japan. The maids in Akiba certainly didn't help either.  I asked my friends why the hell they do it and I found out it's just the classic 'higher pitch = happier mood' thinking. I guess it works on occasion...



Alberto7 said:


> Also, I haven't watched Ranma 1/2 since I was like 8 or 9.  I was never much into it, but I remember my cousin loving it to death.



This is a series that I honestly don't know why I'm so attached to.  For a harem series clearly aimed for women and children, Ranma had the luxury of being greedy and catering to both genders. Everything about Ranma is silly and a lot of genuine laughs here. Maybe it's because it's one of my early exposures to anime, or I had some fun with the fighting games despite bland Street Fighter clones, or I thought Ranma Saotome looked cool, before I found out about the getting wet part, or why I rate Ryoga Hibiki as one of the best anime rivals of all time... In any case, I still find it a fun series.


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Now I'm curious as to why this is universally hated. Is it just by the ending alone?
> 
> Music by Taku Iwasaki... yeah I automatically knew that was gonna be good before I hit play. Everything I've heard from him is full of win.



It's apparently a love-it-or-hate-it kind of anime. And let me correct myself: most people do like Akame ga Kill, but a whole lot of the popular online reviewers (YouTube in particular) hate it to death. The way I understand it, they argue that for an anime with so much blood and serious themes, it comes across as a silly and obnoxiously edgy show... I can kinda see why, but I find its edginess and silliness quite entertaining to watch, and some of the characters are just downright badass when they want to be.



Bloody_Inferno said:


> The high pitched squeaky voice is a put on, especially when in shops. It annoyed me after the 5th day of my first stay in Japan. The maids in Akiba certainly didn't help either.  I asked my friends why the hell they do it and I found out it's just the classic 'higher pitch = happier mood' thinking. I guess it works on occasion...



That's what I figured, and I've read about it as well on occasion. It's a lot more tolerable when it's done in anime, but when it's a real person speaking like that I just feel like giving them a candy bar and telling them that they can stop putting on a face for Big Brother. (Some might even say... for Nii-san ....... ... is that what he's called in Japanese. omfg I'll die if someone confirms this. )

I also like how you're switching to hyperlinking Kalafina videos to punctuation marks, almost like little Easter Eggs.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> It's apparently a love-it-or-hate-it kind of anime. And let me correct myself: most people do like Akame ga Kill, but a whole lot of the popular online reviewers (YouTube in particular) hate it to death. The way I understand it, they argue that for an anime with so much blood and serious themes, it comes across as a silly and obnoxiously edgy show... I can kinda see why, but I find its edginess and silliness quite entertaining to watch, and some of the characters are just downright badass when they want to be.



Fair enough. When it comes to youtube comments, I treat them with extreme condescending contempt so that's no biggie.  I'll put it on the long list to consider. 



Alberto7 said:


> That's what I figured, and I've read about it as well on occasion. It's a lot more tolerable when it's done in anime, but when it's a real person speaking like that I just feel like giving them a candy bar and telling them that they can stop putting on a face for Big Brother. (Some might even say... for Nii-san ....... ... is that what he's called in Japanese. omfg I'll die if someone confirms this. ):



Some of the parties I used to go with my Japanese friends felt like that kind of atmosphere. Though I tried to be careful for some of the new girls I kept meeting because I'm not Glenn Quagmire. 



Alberto7 said:


> I also like how you're switching to hyperlinking Kalafina videos to punctuation marks, almost like little Easter Eggs.



 Consider that a one off. Having them go 'hey hey come on' makes me laugh all the time. And we're the only ones enjoying them, so I may as well be tasteful with the spamming. 

Speaking of which, have you seen Tsubasa Chronicles yet?


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Regarding Kabaneri, it does have many plot and thematic similarities to AoT, but honestly, no more than some other shows that are also highly regarded in their own right (I'm looking at you, Knights of Sidonia).

I think there's more than enough that's different about it for it to stand on its own merits. I almost think that the main reason anyone would like AoT more than Kabaneri (or Sidonia, for that matter) would be that they saw it first. I think it'd make sense to say to someone "If you liked AoT, you'll like Kabaneri," and not because one is a clone of the other. 

It's like... I don't know, a bit like saying _Star Wars ep IV_ isn't worth watching because it's just a clone of Kurosawa's _The Hidden Fortress_. Lucas obviously borrowed super heavily from Kurosawa, but in the end they're different enough that they can stand on their own merits.

I look at it as less of a "this is a clone of AoT" thing and more of a "These are both about humanity versus a monstrous outside evil, featuring a protagonist with mysterious powers." AoT didn't invent that, it's just the most recent rendition of it and it happens to be super popular.

Iono. I'm kinda rambling about it at this point. I knew who made Kabaneri and what some people were saying about that going into it (the comments section for it on kissanime was locked, people got so uncivil about it  ), and I still enjoyed it quite a bit. I hope there will be more seasons.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Grand Moff Tim said:


> Kabaneri ramble.



Looks like it's suffered from the assuming cries of the internet and Attack On Titan fanboys. It's no different from me going around a bunch of mecha based anime with a "Like Gundam But" branding iron before giving proper judgment. It happens, and anime do it all the damn time. Hell, I gave God Eater the "Like Attack On Titan But" hot poker right off the bat when I finished the first episode. There are only so many original stories to tell. It's fine to retell a tried and true story so long as there's a new spin on it. 

I'm still going to watch Kabaneri as I've heard nothing but good things about the series.


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Alberto7 said:


> It's funny how Akame ga Kill is one of the most hated modern anime. I watched the first 11-12 episodes and, while it wasn't special, it was so much damn fun. Gotta finish watching it. Also, this f*cking song:



DUDE! YES! I stumbled upon that exact video by accident on YouTube, and it got me interested in Akame ga Kill. The music is absolutely incredible and enrapturing!



Alberto7 said:


> Also heard good things of Squid Girl, and I do want to watch it at some point.


Similar circumstance. I was reading a little write-up that someone did on what he/she considered to be some of the most obnoxious anime opening themes. Squid Girl was on the list, and I clicked the play button of the OP out of interest. Definitely going to watch Squid Girl now.


----------



## Don Vito

Watch Squid Girl now before summer is over. It's mega comfy.


----------



## bouVIP

Akame Ga Kill manga is still ongoing and a lot different from the anime...still not that great though, but it's reaching its climax soon.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Hakuoki.



Finished season 1 and 2. Frankly I dunno whether I should continue on with the season 3 prequel or OVAs. 

I'll reiterate about what I said about otome/harem. I've seen numerous bishojo/harem (female) shows but never an otome (male) show. But already committed to seeing this through and taking one for the team, I pumped through Hakuoki for totally heterosexual reasons. And the deeper I go, it's dating sim origins become more upfront. 

The setting is right bang in the middle of the Boshin War, battles and all. However most of the history points have very little screen and mention time. One of major battles (Battle Of Toba Fushimi) while becomes a turning point in the anime, is still just a backdrop, while the others towards the end (Battle Of Aizu, Miyako Bay etc) are barely just footnotes. So most of the story is based on young Chizuru (who's own arc is shoved aside in the middle of the anime) spending time with her boy band with swords, each becoming a potential deflowering candidate. 

I'm always game at any interpretation of the Shinsengumi. Hakuoki goes for the FAB-U-LOUS shonen look. Their new clothing in season 2 I'll admit look pretty damn good actually, aesthetically, and visually if you're into the shonen sort of thing. Saito seems most consistent in my list of favorites here as well, not that I want to fondle him or anything, he's just been portrayed consistently as someone that I think is cool. And it's always hilarious when the nameless grunts all look historically correct with their shaved heads while the main characters can be summed as the Boshinstreet Boys featuring token underaged female point of relation.  This is female fanservice 101 right here, though knowing that Chizuru is 16 (based on her wiki, despite looking like she's 12), and the rest of the dudes (based on history) are peaking towards their 30s, can be uncomfortable if you're not part of the demographic that this show is trying to serve. 

History buffs ought to know that (spoiler alert), things go south for the Tokugawa side of the Boshin wars (despite moving geographically north: fun fact). And the entire second season felt like a checklist being crossed off per episode. So in comes the tragedy card. There's also that other element that gets thrown in that felt like the developers thought that Stephanie Meyer novels was a great source of inspiration... yep they go there alright. It was a nice little subplot when introduced, but it brought in a bunch of antagonists you don't really bother to care for, instead boosting the main's care factor. It all goes on a flaccid limp towards the end, but I guess I'm not the demographic that this anime is targeted to. 

Ultimately, being an otome anime after all, it's all about Chizuru's relationship with the members of the Shinsengumi. The series is a rather slow caress than a fast thrust, thanks to that as a lot of time is spent with Chizuru's interactions with each potential suitor, much like the game. The animation however does look really nice, and whatever little fight scenes are entertaining. The score is beautiful, but that's expected from the guy that did Shadow Of the Colossus and Haibane Renmei. 

I suppose I could watch the prequel series so I can see how the Arashi of the Bakumatsu period was formed. I suppose I could watch the OVAs, which in essence are just time spent with Chizuru dating each member for potential statutory love before Toba Fushimi changes everything. But I just can't get myself up (incentive) to finish this through. Well, I did thought season 2's end was enough before rolling over and falling asleep I guess. Maybe depending on whether I can wait for Macross Delta to finish airing or not...

TL/DR: Recommended only if you're a fan of otome anime, or at least if you're really into the Shinsengumi in more ways than one. 

...

PS: I'm not gay.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Missed this post before but thought I may address it now:



Emperor Guillotine said:


> Tips on making anime (J-pop, J-rock) music? Theory, composition, production, engineering, etc.
> 
> I know that I asked a similar question a long time ago. Just kind of stuck at the moment in learning and progressing.


 
I may repeat myself from the PMs I sent you on this topic months earlier so...

INCOMING WALL OF TEXT TIME: 


Depending on what you're scoring or adding a theme to, like all scoring you'd want to keep it in the same or similar mindset thematically. That said, there are exceptions, especially in OP and ED themes where they somewhat don't mate the tone, EG: Boku Dake Ga Inai Machi/Erased, where Asian Kung Fu Generation's OP theme sounds livelier and happier than the rest of Yuki Kajiura's somber score. J-Music, once you think about it has plenty of subgenres in itself. Be it jazz, hip-hop, indie, visual kei (and it's many derivatives), Europop influenced, hardcore, or all of the above, you've got quite the palette to choose from. 

Hell, even non Japanese songs have made it's way to anime because it suits the mood of the series:

Eden Of The East got Oasis:



Bleach got The Hellacopters:



And Gunslinger Girl got an arrangement of a Simon & Garfunkel classic:



Each suit their respective anime well (the last though was arranged specifically for the anime). 

Of course the styles and genres are merely templates as like all music, it's all about the songwriting and arrangement. I've mentioned on the PMs that in this style, melody is paramount and it needs to be strong. What gives J-melodies it's distinct characteristics are their origins in enka music (traditional Japanese folk). Enka's usually simple pentatonic based melodies, and that still carries through to the modern Japanese music. Now they have more musical undercurrents to play with. EG:



Chorus melody is simple, sugary minor pentatonic (+ 9th) pop and the harmony is a 4, 5, 6 progression. It's also rather repetitive with the odd flourishes to differentiate each phrase. On it's own it doesn't work, but over the music, the melody comes to life. The repetition works when it's interacting with each chord. The 456 progression is really popular with JPop/Rock and there's always many variations in the genre. 

Another good example of repetition to great effect:



The entire song is just one chord progression (4, 3, 6, 5) and the melodies are dead simple, but it's gorgeous. 

Another trait that choruses in J-music have is that they're very long... well, longer than usual pop anyway.  But with all catchy music, it's all in the hook. All long choruses have a hook that resolves itself. 

Using this example (because I want to ):



It's already a long song in itself, but IMO it's one of the most ingeniously clever written J-pop songs in recent memory. Try learning how to play this and you'll appreciate all the key changes, the chord progressions, the Euro/folk arrangement, the harmonies (duh), all of that really adds to the atmosphere of the women driven Sora No Woto anime. 

With all that in mind, you can pretty much extrapolate these principles into a theme/genre and run with it. 

Another thing that's prominent in J-music is the use of the bass: it's practically a lead instrument in almost everything. 

I was asked to do a few sessions doing J-Pop covers some time last year. Most of the songs were by Tokyo Jihen, Dreams Come True, Superfly among others. Originally I was supposed to play guitar, but finding a bassist to learn and play those demanding parts at the short time needed was too hard, so I switched to bass. And boy, were they quite the workout. Didn't help that I was the music director too.  Japanese bassists all tend to be of the busy kind like:

Tetsuya (L'arc En Ciel)



Ikuo (top session bassist for various bands)



Hidekazu Hinata (Nothing Carved In Stone)


Sidebar: Hinata's pedalboard is amazing. 

And the guys from the 3 bands I linked earlier, among a hell of a lot more. Fun fact: Dreams Come True bassist/leader Masato Nakamura was the guy that wrote the music to the first 2 Sonic The Hedgehog games (eg Green Hill Zone) so he demands respect. 

Other prominent instruments are the piano, violins and pitched chime percussion. Actually, whatever music you write, go and write a piano arrangement of that same song. If the melody is strong enough, then it will carry onto the arrangement and it'll still be as compelling as the original. And you can do this with as many arrangements as you so choose. 

Of course there are only a few examples as there's hundreds of different kinds of J-music used in anime. But the recurring foundation is still a strong melody and the songwriting is dictated accordingly. 

As for the production and engineering side, it's what I said in the PMs: production is a big deal. The pop songs are mixed so pristinely that you can hear every little nuance instrument and effect if you listen hard enough, and still doesn't detract from the main instruments. That's not an easy task especially when the tendency to try to make everything heard ends in a mix where you hear nothing paradoxically. So should you try to mix music as dense as J-Pop, add whatever decorations you want but remember they're just that; decorations. 

That's all I can think of for now; this is a very broad topic (well, maybe not, but having listened to so much of J-music my whole life I can't help but elaborate) so there's still a lot more to talk about. 

There's always my composer based posts in this very thread for plenty of inspiration. Refer to page 90 onwards. 

Hope this helps. And feel free to ask me any more questions.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

...and I started to finally fulfill a musical obligation: I watched the first 4 episodes of Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles. 

For over 11 years, I've procrastinated and avoided watching this 50+ episode Clamp multiverse fanservice behemoth, including it's OVAs and movies, despite worshiping the soundtrack, but better late than never I guess. 

And I guess I owe Cardcaptor Sakura (the character) an apology. I've been in the impression that she spends the entire series as a vegetable, when by 3 episodes in she's awake. Ok she barely speaks and smiles so sweetly that I got ice cream headaches during her screen time.


----------



## mrdm53

Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress is a huge disappointment, while it was fun show to watch IMHO. First arc made me thought that Kabaneri was going on something like Walking Dead, with survivor and bit of drama and action from the characters.

I was wrong, after certain character was introduced..

Yes, I hate you Biba.. The worst villain in anime history IMHO, close to Embryo from Cross Ange


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Finished _Yurikuma Arashi._ It ended as weird as it began. Can't really say I recommend it, unless you're just itching for something bizarre, and not in a fun, FLCL-bizarre sort of way. Just in a "dafuq" way.

I'm half contemplating watching One Piece. Yes, I know there are ten million episodes, but I've been using a One Piece-themed quiz game template with my students lately, and I have no f*cking idea who anyone but Luffy and Zorro are. My students seem disappointed by that, and insist that I watch the show.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Forgot to mention that sometime last week, I smashed through Parasyte -the maxim-. 

Since I watched the live action first (big mistake on my end), I may as well watch a better medium of it. It's twisted and quirky but enjoyable enough to go through. Though the twists and quirks also affect the anime itself. The main character has 3 arcs but his mood changes are too jarring to be believable (yes even with the whole parasites in mind). I couldn't help but feel that it also affected the entire series as a whole too, like each arc felt like distant mini-seasons amongst themselves. 

Other than that, it's still a solid series. The visual aesthetic feels akin to the polished Neon Genesis reboot films, so it's feels a tad dated, but still engaging. The dubstep based soundtrack is a little too modernist for my liking, and I just can't get into Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas.  

Good series, not great (as some would suggest) IMO, but a solid and satisfying series to pass the time.


----------



## Alberto7

I watched the first 11 episodes or so of Parasyte, and I remember really enjoying it. It began reeaally well, but then I slowly lost interest. I also subconsciously associate the show to some pretty awful stuff that happened to me back when I was watching it, (it's all connected) and I can't help but remember those bad things every time I watch it, so I haven't been able to finish it. Regardless of that though, I remember enjoying what I watched, even if that godawful dubstep score made my skin crawl every time it came on.


----------



## JEngelking

For fans of K-On!! and all things grim and frostbitten, I recently made this design. 







http://www.redbubble.com/people/jen...go-tea-time-super-metal?grid_pos=14&p=t-shirt


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

...and that's Macross Delta wrapped up- oh wait, you're gonna finish off in a cliffhanger then fly off into the sunset with a sign saying 'see you in Season 2' stapled on your arse? FINE. I'll see you next year then... pricks. 

Wall of text with mild spoilers: (may as well pre-alert my long posts...) 

Macross is a series that I hold dear, the original SDF series is what singlehandedly kickstarted my love for all things anime and J-music, and a constant reminder that both mediums are worth defending. My anime/J-music raison d'être, or the dead parents to my Batman if you will. But as I went through Delta, I've found Shoji Kawamori's flagship series hard to defend lately. 

Over the years, I've had a turbulent relation with the series. After SDF, Macross 2 was a snoozefest but won me back in with Macross Plus. Macross 7 was ok at best and terribly unwatchable at worst (flame shield on), where its flaws prevented me from feeling like a return to form, or at least a good followup after Plus. Macross Zero again wallowed in mediocrity, but won me over again with Macross Frontier's guns all blazing (flaws and all). Delta unfortunately is now in my 'losing me' song and dance routine. 

It was already on a shaky path from the get go. As if the yearlong Capitalist promotional campaign for the songs of the new J-Pop Idol group Walkure wasn't enough, Ep1 with too much going on, and hinting on the magic side of things (also what flawed Zero for being too preachy about) would have divided fans, and lose even the most staunch Macross fanboy. But throw me a few callbacks and references and I'll still stay on board hanging on for dear life. But if the flaws are too hard to ignore, then even my blind fanboyism won't get in the way for a good bagging. 

Protagonist Hayate Immelman is a snot nosed kid with an "I can do whatever I want because I'm so damn good" complex, who I was rather surprised that from his actions, wasn't shot dead under the code of martial law. Kind of a more young and annoying Alto Saotome (Frontier), a guy that I have to admit, I've been too kind to, so probably more like Isamu Dyson from Plus. Hayate does develop a bit, much like a slow burn like his predecessors. Most of the supporting cast are frankly background decorations sans the 2 female leads. And thus Delta does the Macross love triangle tradition. It's hard to tell without the full story, but the triangle between the 3 mains is told a tad clumsily here. Maybe because 2 of them (one being Hayate himself) are prepubescent kids...  Or that the dialog is rather atrocious too, but I can't begrudge that too much when most of that problem generally comes from bad subtitling, but the foundation isn't crash hot so I'll begrudge this anyway. 

Surprisingly the antagonists get a fair bit of development. Sure they're border lining the Saturday morning villain trope, and there's a few fascist undertones in some of their large gatherings, but one can't help but feel that it's a fair action when their actions are based on a response to their dilemma. Though one of them is slipping to cliché territory...

Macross has an odd view in throwing war and music together in a blender: weaponising J-pop (and in 7s case J-Rock) against the enemy. Long time fans have known this to be the series' big conceits. Delta puts this on the forefront to the point of throwing their own idols into the battlefield singing away, and then straight up admits this unapologetically by episode 19. This also makes the constant tone shifting so damn jarring that it'll confuse most newbies. 

Thankfully there are 2 redeeming factors here, both happen to be some of Macross's strongest points. First it's the dogfight scenes. 

Surprisingly it's not often the series get straight up plane on plane action (Plus and Zero being most, but both very short series). So there's plenty here and they're all dazzling. The mecha and plane designs are beautiful in aesthetic and in action (Macross can never screw that part up). However Delta is a bit of a step back with it's overabundance of CG. While Frontier looks like a vibrant colourful extravaganza as if the Wachowskis thought their Speed Racer movie still needed more acid, Delta looks too clunky and a jarring. But that's a minor issue when everything else you see and hear is so good. Speaking of hearing...

The music. The big one. 

The words 'girl band' certainly divided the Macross community and those who stuck around after Episode 1 would have considered the series as an endurance test more than anything else. I mean, listen to this and make up your own mind:



Up to you to decide whether you like that or not. 

...I will say that watching the Walkure girls fly around while the Valkyrie (get it now) destroy things is a fun sight to behold. It's infectious to get into and I was all on board knowing how the songs get better in context. Speaking of songs, Delta has, from what I counted... 17 FREAKING INSERT SONGS.  While a lot of them are just battle songs du jour and doesn't even hold a candle to a lot of music of the past, 3 of them are legitimately great by J-Pop standards. My fanboy senses went berserk whenever a callback to a song or singer(s) from a previous installment was mentioned. The antagonists are aware of the power of music and have a singer of their own. Though, they get the short end of the stick with an operatic one hit wonder that sounds more like the theme of a Saturday morning bastard with a moustache than a hymn of liberation. Shoji Kawamori really wants you to root for Walkure's songs. 

As a whole, even my own opinion towards Delta is jarring. At times, I too felt like this was an endurance test from the spastic flailing tone to the mostly forgettable cast, but others I'm fully enjoying it thanks to the songs and battles. It is another step back for the series, but I guess I should be used to this back and forth exchange by now. I suppose there's still Season 2 so I can give my full opinion when that comes out...


TL/DR: Delta is for die hard fans of Macross only, and even then good luck with seeing this through.


----------



## coffeeflush

Grand Moff Tim said:


> Finished _Yurikuma Arashi._ It ended as weird as it began. Can't really say I recommend it, unless you're just itching for something bizarre, and not in a fun, FLCL-bizarre sort of way. Just in a "dafuq" way.
> 
> I'm half contemplating watching One Piece. Yes, I know there are ten million episodes, but I've been using a One Piece-themed quiz game template with my students lately, and I have no f*cking idea who anyone but Luffy and Zorro are. My students seem disappointed by that, and insist that I watch the show.



Watching One Piece atm, you need atleast 100 episodes to get into the real story. That being said, its worth the investment.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

coffeeflush said:


> Watching One Piece atm, you need atleast 100 episodes to get into the real story. That being said, its worth the investment.



I started it the day I posted that. I'm twenty-something episodes in, and the main thing that's taking some adjustment for me so far is the pacing. Most of the shows I've watched over that past year or so have only been 12 episodes long. Not just 12 episodes per season, 12 episodes _period_ . The events that have unfolded in the 20+ episodes of One Piece I've watched so far would've taken up 5 episodes at the pacing of the other shows I've watched. 6, tops.

I don't think that will stop me from keeping with it, since it has been fairly entertaining so far, but it's definitely taking some getting used to.


----------



## coreysMonster

Finished Gurren Lagann last night.

I really enjoyed the pacing of the show. They didn't spend ages fighting the same enemies over and over again like they'd usually do in these kind of animes, they kept the plot going nicely and holy crap they turned everything to 11 in the last couple of episodes.


----------



## Sephiroth952

coreysMonster said:


> Finished Gurren Lagann last night.
> 
> I really enjoyed the pacing of the show. They didn't spend ages fighting the same enemies over and over again like they'd usually do in these kind of animes, they kept the plot going nicely and holy crap they turned everything to 11 in the last couple of episodes.


Now you should watch Kill La Kill!


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Bloody_Inferno said:


> The dubstep based soundtrack is a little too modernist for my liking, and I just can't get into Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas.


They're one of my favorite bands. It was cool to see that one of their tracks was selected as the OP.

I need to watch Parasyte though.


----------



## coffeeflush

Grand Moff Tim said:


> I started it the day I posted that. I'm twenty-something episodes in, and the main thing that's taking some adjustment for me so far is the pacing. Most of the shows I've watched over that past year or so have only been 12 episodes long. Not just 12 episodes per season, 12 episodes _period_ . The events that have unfolded in the 20+ episodes of One Piece I've watched so far would've taken up 5 episodes at the pacing of the other shows I've watched. 6, tops.
> 
> I don't think that will stop me from keeping with it, since it has been fairly entertaining so far, but it's definitely taking some getting used to.



One piece is slower then DBZ but the thing is, because it is vast, it manages to create awesome characters with lot of depth.

On a random note, I love your choice in guitars, especially the white buckethead gibson you got.


----------



## coreysMonster

Sephiroth952 said:


> Now you should watch Kill La Kill!


Had nothing to do, started Kill la Kill last night. What the hell is going on in this.


----------



## Tenaba

JEngelking said:


> For fans of K-On!! and all things grim and frostbitten, I recently made this design.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> http://www.redbubble.com/people/jen...go-tea-time-super-metal?grid_pos=14&p=t-shirt



Ha, that's pretty cool, I got a laugh out of your product tags.

DEATH DEVIL is seriously pretty heavy though. Hikari and GENOM had some great soloing.


----------



## OmegaSlayer

Glad some of you guys started watching OnePiece.
So glad.
I'm a big OP fanboy and I must say that the pace in the anime is not one of the best, and it's not as good as the Manga, still...it's an awesome ride.

On a side note...I recorded a cover of Saint Seiya's theme Pegasus Fantasy in my 250 $ worth home studio  .
Hope you guys enjoy it.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Bloody_Inferno said:


> ...and that's Macross Delta wrapped up- oh wait, you're gonna finish off in a cliffhanger then fly off into the sunset with a sign saying 'see you in Season 2' stapled on your arse? FINE. I'll see you next year then... pricks.



Ok, so I may have jumped the gun here. I was wrong, and Macross Delta came to an end at Episode 26.  My bloated red face aside, now the series has reached it's conclusion, my long opinion hasn't really changed much. But instead I actually wish there's a season 2 coming because Macross Delta just ends abruptly. And a lot of loose ends were either left dangling, or does a real half assed way of tying it's arc together feeling like a sprint to the finish line panting heavily then collapsing face first (I'm looking at you Mikumo). 

The final few episodes were basically Macross Frontier Lite to the point where it felt verbatim but cut too many corners. The dogfighting was excellent but all too brief. The bad guys get an extra song which was actually pretty good so there's that, except most of the antagonistic side get shoved aside just so the bumbling love triangle gets resolved. It felt like the series hit a brick wall and went thank you good night whilst hemorrhaging, so I felt awkwardly unfulfilled. 

So yeah, one of my favorite franchises has left me a disappointed in it's newest installment despite showing a lot of potential. Oddly enough I still prefer this over the over bloated Macross 7, or the all too brief Macross Zero, and certainly over Macross 2. And I'll have Bokura No Senjou in my favorite anime song list for many years to come... so I guess that's a success on their end? 




At the same time, in between that, I had to take a break from Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles inter-seasons to watch Berserk. Just to get in the mood of the new series, I ploughed right through the 1998 originals (the one with the single worst OP song in all anime ), and the 3 recent movies for refreshment. Anyone who hasn't seen or read Berserk... WHY THE HELL NOT? 

4 episodes in the new series, I can see why the CG aesthetic is putting off a lot of viewers. It looks cheap and a step back to late 80s anime, which doesn't do Berserk justice from a visual perspective. Though I'm not gonna let that stop me from enjoying the show whilst screaming for blood. This is a great series, visuals aside.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Just started watching _Aggressive Retsuko._ It's a series of short (~1:30) episodes about... well, here's the write up:

"The show centers on Retsuko, a 25-year old red panda who works in her dream company's accounting department. But it turns out that she is forced to keep doing more and more impossible tasks by her superiors and co-workers. She doesn't talk back to them, but she still has to let off steam, so she ends up going to karaoke by herself and singing death metal."


----------



## OmegaSlayer

I went to check Aggressive Retsuko and watched the 22 episodes in a row.
Thanks Grand Moff Tim


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Bloody_Inferno said:


> At the same time, in between that, I had to take a break from Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles inter-seasons to watch Berserk. Just to get in the mood of the new series, I ploughed right through the 1998 originals (the one with the single worst OP song in all anime ), and the 3 recent movies for refreshment. Anyone who hasn't seen or read Berserk... WHY THE HELL NOT?
> 
> 4 episodes in the new series, I can see why the CG aesthetic is putting off a lot of viewers. It looks cheap and a step back to late 80s anime, which doesn't do Berserk justice from a visual perspective. Though I'm not gonna let that stop me from enjoying the show whilst screaming for blood. This is a great series, visuals aside.




Finished Berserk. Dammit, 2017 is going to be a long wait. Yes the 2D/3D juxtaposition execution sucks donkey eggs bad, but don't let the animation put you off, watch this as Berserk delivers. Of course you have to watch the Golden Age Arc first (either classic series or 3 movies are acceptable).

It was also a good reminder for me on how awesome 9mm Parabellum Bullet are.


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Well, it's official. I've started writing a J-Rock/J-Pop/anime music EP. It might even turn into an album at this rate if I keep writing and don't scrap any songs. Hope that I can generate some hype and some traffic for it when the time comes to release it. I'm putting my all into it. Lots of time, effort, writing, revising, and I'm not even at the production/recording phase yet.

And in the meantime, I've been blazing through _Naruto: Shippuden_. It's getting real gripping now that I'm 130+ episodes in. (Just waiting for filler to come in and ruin it again.) I meant to quickly cram in _Squid Girl_ before summer ended, but I've been so busy and haven't had the time. I'm sure that I'll get to it eventually. There is so much stuff on my list to watch.


----------



## Alberto7

Sound! Euphonium is getting a second season this Fall, and that is all that matters to me.



Hoping they don't f*ck this up.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Right after finally catching up with Daredevil Season 2, in the last 2 days, I smashed through Mob Psycho 100... I really need to reassess my life. 

I, like everyone else, loved One Punch Man. It was absurd, ridiculous, extremely goofy, simple and straight to the point, no fannying about, and best of all, FUN. And I described in this thread that Mob Psycho is from the same developers created with the same level of gusto as One Punch. Turns out, it's a bit more than that. Mob adds more depth in terms of story and character development so it sine waves between the goofiness of One Punch and the emotional tropes of... well, every other anime ever. 

You have Shigeo Kageyama aka Mob, who carries all the schoolboy tropes throughout the 12 episodes, as well as the moral use of powers shtick as well. We've all seen that note played many times before, but it's nice to see it play a different tune here. All the fun and brilliant use of anti climax in One Punch is evident here and keeps the character interesting. 

However, the biggest secret weapon of Mob is MVP Arataka Reigen, who is ALL anti climax. By far my favorite character, he utterly dominates every single moment of screen time he's in. All of that makes me forgive the fact that Reigen himself was birthed from the Mr Satan school of clichés. Which is why it feels so awkward when he straight up disappears in the middle episodes. Sure those moments are about Mob and spent on emotional tension and development, but Reigen leaves such an empty void you miss him when he's not around. 

And it leads to another weak point of Mob: his brother Ritsu. He already carries a baggage of anime clichés (caring younger brother to the special powered Shigeo) and each of them rang alarm bells to a contrived plot diversion you see coming a mile away, until the writers felt embarrassed about the whole ordeal and wrote a rushed resolution for the character's arc never to be spoken of again. Or is it another take on the anti-climax joke? Either way it dragged the series down a bit. 

I sound I'm nitpicking this too much, which I am. But I still had a damn fun time. The intro sequence is amazing, in a sort of Paprika meets Madoka but with even more acid and laugh gas kind of vibe. The visual aesthetic is the same as One Punch and just as pleasing to look at. The music is astounding. With Kenji Kawai doing the tearjerker pieces he does best, it's fun hearing him do extreme goofiness every now and then. I didn't bother talking about the story, because it's straight forward and simple, which is what you want here. And it's also part of the fun when you don't know much about the plot too. There's some world building in the latter episodes showcased by the villains and late support introductions that there's more to the series to be revealed when season 2 hits. But it doesn't get in the way of the wild ride. And the finale... well, let's just say this is one of my favorite finales I've seen in a long time. 

With it's flaws, Mob Psycho 100 is still worth the time. Yeah it stumbles on tropes and clichés that One Punch Man did so well at shamelessly ignoring, but it also has the same charm, and fun factor too. So it's still highly recommended. Compare them as 2 different flavors of the same wild ride.


----------



## pastanator

im 437 episodes into one piece. watched up until the later bits of water 7 pretty quickly then felt like i was getting burned out on it especially during the sea train bit, to the point where i would watch like one or two episodes at a time and feel like i was done for a bit, but once the enies lobby arc picked up and it got into basically non stop fighting i picked way back up. favorite characters are definitely zoro and franky at this point and i think thriller bark is my favorite bit of the series so far, followed by alabasta. i guess worth mentioning is that im watching the funimation dub(until the episodes run out, and then ill switch to the sub probably) and its really cool hearing dragonball voices. like that was a cool part in the beginning of the series when i picked up on luffy being gohan, zoro being piccolo, etc.

my one complaint is the whole bit where they get you all excited to see what happens next and then they proceed to do like 2 episodes of like, "what if all these characters instead of being pirates, lived in a japanese town and did normal people things"
like i could see that being borderline infuriating if i was watching weekly, but im not so i just kinda skip them. outside of that one thing im really enjoying it though, hopefully kissanime is back up soon so i can continue watching


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Right after finally catching up with Daredevil Season 2, in the last 2 days, I smashed through Mob Psycho 100... I really need to reassess my life.
> 
> I, like everyone else, loved One Punch Man. It was absurd, ridiculous, extremely goofy, simple and straight to the point, no fannying about, and best of all, FUN. And I described in this thread that Mob Psycho is from the same developers created with the same level of gusto as One Punch. Turns out, it's a bit more than that. Mob adds more depth in terms of story and character development so it sine waves between the goofiness of One Punch and the emotional tropes of... well, every other anime ever.
> 
> You have Shigeo Kageyama aka Mob, who carries all the schoolboy tropes throughout the 12 episodes, as well as the moral use of powers shtick as well. We've all seen that note played many times before, but it's nice to see it play a different tune here. All the fun and brilliant use of anti climax in One Punch is evident here and keeps the character interesting.
> 
> However, the biggest secret weapon of Mob is MVP Arataka Reigen, who is ALL anti climax. By far my favorite character, he utterly dominates every single moment of screen time he's in. All of that makes me forgive the fact that Reigen himself was birthed from the Mr Satan school of clichés. Which is why it feels so awkward when he straight up disappears in the middle episodes. Sure those moments are about Mob and spent on emotional tension and development, but Reigen leaves such an empty void you miss him when he's not around.
> 
> And it leads to another weak point of Mob: his brother Ritsu. He already carries a baggage of anime clichés (caring younger brother to the special powered Shigeo) and each of them rang alarm bells to a contrived plot diversion you see coming a mile away, until the writers felt embarrassed about the whole ordeal and wrote a rushed resolution for the character's arc never to be spoken of again. Or is it another take on the anti-climax joke? Either way it dragged the series down a bit.
> 
> I sound I'm nitpicking this too much, which I am. But I still had a damn fun time. The intro sequence is amazing, in a sort of Paprika meets Madoka but with even more acid and laugh gas kind of vibe. The visual aesthetic is the same as One Punch and just as pleasing to look at. The much is astounding. With Kenji Kawai doing the tearjerker pieces he does best, it's fun hearing him do extreme goofiness every now and then. I didn't bother talking about the story, because it's straight forward and simple, which is what you want here. And it's also part of the fun when you don't know much about the plot too. There's some world building in the latter episodes showcased by the villains and late support introductions that there's more to the series to be revealed when season 2 hits. But it doesn't get in the way of the wild ride. And the finale... well, let's just say this is one of my favorite finales I've seen in a long time.
> 
> With it's flaws, Mob Psycho 100 is still worth the time. Yeah it stumbles on tropes and clichés that One Punch Man did so well at shamelessly ignoring, but it also has the same charm, and fun factor too. So it's still highly recommended. Compare them as 2 different flavors of the same wild ride.



Uugghh I wanna comment on this so badly but I gotta go to sleep.  Putting it on hold till tomorrow or after, when I get a few minutes to do so.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> Uugghh I wanna comment on this so badly but I gotta go to sleep.  Putting it on hold till tomorrow or after, when I get a few minutes to do so.



 I probably should wait for your post before I do another wall of text review...








...and I couldn't wait. 


Started watching Tales of Zestiria The X (Cross) and 8 episodes in, because playing 50+ hours of the game and it's DLC wasn't enough to for me to spend time with this world and it's characters apparently. 

EDIT: And finished all 13 episodes. 

I'm a bit of a noob when it comes to the Tales anime adaptations, but very familiar with the Tales games since Phantasia... well at least the ones I could get a hand of since Bandai Namco likes to keep most of this particular brand in Japan. But from my understanding, each anime adaptation is just a retelling of the game but obviously without the 'game' and 'interaction' aspect - like what Square Enix is trying to do with Final Fantasy of late ba dum tish. So a lot of the bulk gets truncated into episodic bite size nibbles. I guess this is nice if you want to watch a story but without all the JRPG time consuming annoyances. 

The game aspect actually starts in episode 2 as 1 begins with a prologue backstory focusing on Alisha, a character that got the serious shafting treatment in the game that Namco did a DLC story for her assumingly out of apology. 

Of course this kind of anime needs to be judged without the game's weight, despite the paradoxical fact that those interested in the Tales anime are those who have already played the game. In which case, Zestiria is the usual whimsical medieval setting affair where the main character sets off on an adventure to purge the world of malevolence and yada yada yada. I was gonna link my review of the game from the JRPG thread but that was just me complaining about the camera. Anyway, the story, while not breaking new ground, is solid enough to keep you interested if fantasy is your jam. The animation is as nice as the game, and the music is a 1 2 punch of Motoi Sakuraba and Go Shiina, with all the themes from the game brought in intact. Needless to say, the music is AWESOME. 

But then by episode 6 the show throws a curveball. And by curveball, I mean throw a brand new setting, brand new characters and a brand new story. Wait, what?

It seems that Bandai Namco and ufotable decided to play the Final Fantasy VIII gambit and intertwined the story to their upcoming Tales game Tales Of Berseria, which is a distant prequel to Zestiria, into the main plot. Kinda like how Symphonia is related to Phantasia or like how the Fabula Nova Crystallis trainwreck is supposed to make any damn sense (boy I'm really ragging on Final Fantasy lately). I understand that Berseria is out in Japan (the rest of the world has to wait until January), but this cut and change is terribly forced in. The story and pacing is already slow and steady as is, but throwing in a new set of everything kills the mood. Then it has the gall to jump back into the main story in episode 8 when the pace of the new story gets into some momentum. It's as jarring as it sounds. 

EDIT: Even worse is that after those 2 episodes, the new story is never brought up ever again. Thus the true colours of marketing emerge, promoting the new (apparently direct) prequel of Berseria the game into the anime. 

This is definitely for Tales fans only. I did like how the next episode previews are done in skit shows like in all Tales games, that was pretty neat.


----------



## Don Vito

Can any Eva nerds help me out here... is it Soryu or Sohryu?


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Don Vito said:


> Can any Eva nerds help me out here... is it Soryu or Sohryu?



I kinda hated Eva, but I _am_ a language nerd, so I'll throw in my two cents:

"Soryu" is probably fine, but if you want to write it as a more direct transliteration of the actual japanese, it'd be "Souryuu", or even "S&#333;ry&#363;," if you're feeling frisky. Both vowels are lengthened in the Japanese, which is something English doesn't really have ("Long vowels" in English are something different entirely).


----------



## Don Vito

Google translates the kanji as "Soryu", so I'd probably use your second suggestion for the correct way.. but it's probably fine the way it is.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Don Vito said:


> *Google translates the kanji as "Soryu"*, so I'd probably use your second suggestion for the correct way.. but it's probably fine the way it is.



Yeah, standard English doesn't have the diacritical marks (the lines over the vowels), so it makes sense to just write it without them, especially since it's a name. Sometimes the standards for writing another language in English change over the years, but it isn't uncommon for older spellings for proper nouns like places and names to stay with the older ones. The Korean name "Park," for example, is nothing like current standards for writing Korean in English. It's just left over from past standards.

The kanji &#24803;&#27969; written out in kana is &#12381;&#12358;&#12426;&#12421;&#12358;, which literally transliterates to "souryuu," but that does look a bit wonky. It's understandable that they'd shorten it.


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Right after finally catching up with Daredevil Season 2, in the last 2 days, I smashed through Mob Psycho 100... I really need to reassess my life.
> 
> I, like everyone else, loved One Punch Man. It was absurd, ridiculous, extremely goofy, simple and straight to the point, no fannying about, and best of all, FUN. And I described in this thread that Mob Psycho is from the same developers created with the same level of gusto as One Punch. Turns out, it's a bit more than that. Mob adds more depth in terms of story and character development so it sine waves between the goofiness of One Punch and the emotional tropes of... well, every other anime ever.
> 
> You have Shigeo Kageyama aka Mob, who carries all the schoolboy tropes throughout the 12 episodes, as well as the moral use of powers shtick as well. We've all seen that note played many times before, but it's nice to see it play a different tune here. All the fun and brilliant use of anti climax in One Punch is evident here and keeps the character interesting.
> 
> However, the biggest secret weapon of Mob is MVP Arataka Reigen, who is ALL anti climax. By far my favorite character, he utterly dominates every single moment of screen time he's in. All of that makes me forgive the fact that Reigen himself was birthed from the Mr Satan school of clichés. Which is why it feels so awkward when he straight up disappears in the middle episodes. Sure those moments are about Mob and spent on emotional tension and development, but Reigen leaves such an empty void you miss him when he's not around.
> 
> And it leads to another weak point of Mob: his brother Ritsu. He already carries a baggage of anime clichés (caring younger brother to the special powered Shigeo) and each of them rang alarm bells to a contrived plot diversion you see coming a mile away, until the writers felt embarrassed about the whole ordeal and wrote a rushed resolution for the character's arc never to be spoken of again. Or is it another take on the anti-climax joke? Either way it dragged the series down a bit.
> 
> I sound I'm nitpicking this too much, which I am. But I still had a damn fun time. The intro sequence is amazing, in a sort of Paprika meets Madoka but with even more acid and laugh gas kind of vibe. The visual aesthetic is the same as One Punch and just as pleasing to look at. The music is astounding. With Kenji Kawai doing the tearjerker pieces he does best, it's fun hearing him do extreme goofiness every now and then. I didn't bother talking about the story, because it's straight forward and simple, which is what you want here. And it's also part of the fun when you don't know much about the plot too. There's some world building in the latter episodes showcased by the villains and late support introductions that there's more to the series to be revealed when season 2 hits. But it doesn't get in the way of the wild ride. And the finale... well, let's just say this is one of my favorite finales I've seen in a long time.
> 
> With it's flaws, Mob Psycho 100 is still worth the time. Yeah it stumbles on tropes and clichés that One Punch Man did so well at shamelessly ignoring, but it also has the same charm, and fun factor too. So it's still highly recommended. Compare them as 2 different flavors of the same wild ride.



Yeah, so finally I can breathe a bit. (Actually I convinced myself that I can... but I probably can't afford to. I'll soon find out. ANYWAY.)

So I finished Mob Psycho 100 a few days ago (5 days ago or so), and I friggin' LOVED it. I think, for me, it'll leave a long-lasting impression. It's the first time I see an anime like it, even if it did play on a lot of overused anime tropes.

Like inferno said, being from the same creator, Mob Psycho begs an inevitable comparison to its equally-as-glorious brother, One Punch Man. It follows along with what One Punch Man did, but it begins to branch out in a slightly different direction. It takes itself a lot more seriously than OPM does, but it does let you know quite often that it is absolutely aware of what it's doing. The story and the plot are a lot more genuine and better developed than OPM's, but it does have frequent moments of absolute wit and hilarity akin to the scene where Saitama slaps that mosquito woman into oblivion. This mix of poignancy and moodiness (a.k.a. "feels") with brilliant absurdity and non-sequitur is a good part of the reason why it's so entertaining to watch.

With that said, the story is still straightforward, the plot is simple (but has a lot comedic gold nuggets... *ahem* the cliffhanger twist at the end of the 10th episode and the reveal on the 11th), and it uses enough tropes that it's an absolute no-brainer. However, I found that what they did with what they had was completely polished and very well done. It's a simple, common story that was pulled off very well.

The music is something that inferno could talk much more about than I can, given his extensive knowledge of Kawai's work, but it's perfectly inline with everything else in the show, and stands out at points, particularly during silly moments.

However, the story and the music aren't entirely what I primarily watched this show for, even if they were good in their own right. The real reason I kept on watching the show was the following:

The art and animation. Jesus Christ. Again they are kind of like OPM, but taken to the next level. The show retains the sort of manga-ish look to it, but the sakuga is very noticeably more intricate and elaborate and with a touch more LSD than OPM's, particularly the first 3 episodes or so. Every still and every frame is like a frame taken right out of the manga, and the way everything moves on screen and the way the artists play with perspective is absolutely incredible. Most impressive of all is that it is consistent throughout the show. OPM was incredible, but Mob Psycho is downright ridiculous. My love for what ufotable did with Fate/Zero and Unlimited Blade Works is unconditional, but f*ck me sideways if MS100 isn't one of the most shocking and incredible pieces of animation I've ever seen. Of course, it's almost too different to what ufotable does to even compare them and call favorites. But it goes to show just how good the show was in that regard. My favorite (and many other artists') example of the extent that the animation is taken to at times, is the ED for the show, where the animation is made using oil paint on glass, which is infamous for being painstaking. It looks gorgeous. The same style is used in several scenes throughout the anime. I know my sister (who is a painting and drawing graduate) was freaking the f*ck out when she first saw the show what they did with the animation.

Here's the ED in question:


And here's a little video I found fanboying the visuals in Mob Psycho:


So yeah, that's kind of all I wanted to say about it, I think.  I friggin' LOVED the anime, and I want to rewatch it just to bask in the glory of its visuals and hilarity.



Don Vito said:


> Can any Eva nerds help me out here... is it Soryu or Sohryu?



Given that Japanese can't really be written using the English alphabet, you're good with either one. However, what Tim said is 100% on point, and I always see it spelled as Soryu, or Soryuu.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

^





You writeup makes mine look a little negative in retrospect, even if I still genuinely enjoyed it immensely. But yeah Mob, like One Punch is essential viewing. 

If anything your summary about the animation has made me appreciate ufotable's art style more. Kinda like a stop and smell the roses for a bit moment. Especially since they did such a great job with Tales Of Zestiria, despite my post on the previous page tearing it down.


----------



## Alberto7

^ I'm really just giving excuses as to why I liked it so much, even if it did arguably have some weak points. 

But yes, the only reason I've been wanting to watch Zestiria is because the art and animation look glorious. It's ufotable, after all. I also still have God Eater sitting there waiting for me to watch it. 

And because we all need a little ufotable in our lives:



































I just love the sheer weight and heaviness of their animation. Always reminds me of Asuka's epic fight against the Production EVA units in End of Evangelion (arguably one of my favorite scenes in all of anime along with Bebop's Ballad of Fallen Angels):


----------



## Fat-Elf

Alberto7 said:


> Sound! Euphonium is getting a second season this Fall, and that is all that matters to me.
> 
> 
> 
> Hoping they don't f*ck this up.




Finally I can reply to you since I came across the pic I wasted 20 minutes searching on week or two ago.

I was really disappointed by Sound! Euphoria since the MC didn't look like this the whole time:






Instead she looked like a fancier version of Ui from K-on.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> ufotable



Cheers for the reminder that God Eater's characters are a vibrant colorful and beautifully designed bunch that the dull greyish brown aesthetic of the environment desperately needed. 

Also, thanks for the reminder about Shiki's prosthetic arm that was never brought up in the series ever again after episode 1.  

Zestiria does look fantastic though. In comparison to the game, already visually stunning in itself, the anime is note perfect.


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Cheers for the reminder that God Eater's characters are a vibrant colorful and beautifully designed bunch that the dull greyish brown aesthetic of the environment desperately needed.
> 
> Also, thanks for the reminder about Shiki's prosthetic arm that was never brought up in the series ever again after episode 1.
> 
> Zestiria does look fantastic though. In comparison to the game, already visually stunning in itself, the anime is note perfect.



I think the only reason I want to finish watching God Eater is because it looks gorgeous and because I love the character design. The plot up until episode 5 (where I stopped watching) was kinda bland, (though slowly getting better) but it was total eye candy.

 Shiki's arm is quite overlooked, and I think they could have done some cool stuff with it, but we are at least given a reason as to why she has it on episode 3 (the gif I posted). It also serves as a nice little segue to introduce Touko's character as a puppet-master and what that means for the rest of the series, and even for the Fate franchise.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Blasted through Arslan Senki Fuujin Ranbu (Season 2 of Heroic Legend Of Arslan).


I wasn't really expecting to do this. After the solid 25 episodes of season 1, I was waiting patiently for all of season 2 to air for mass binging. But my sister told me that it's already finished in 8 episodes. This immediately rang alarm bells. Be it budget cuts, cancellation or whatever, it's too short a followup. 

So I set myself up for disappointment and went through Season 2 in 2 nights, because bloody hell.  Now I finished, I'm still waiting for the story to keep going. 

It's merely a short arc and a setup for a more meatier plot that never comes. While I like it's introduction episodes (despite the wonky character focus shifting) and it was nice to change the setting to the seas, a great excuse for naval warfare and the cast to dress up in pirate garbs, there's literally nothing new that the characters have already done before, making it feel like they're jogging in place. Just another retread of Arslan and crew of overcoming the odds they've chalked up plenty of in season 1. Even when one character gets some backstory, there's no development and it ends too quickly. 

So to summarise the season: a bunch of stuff happens again, only this time in the sea instead of land. It is nice of them to spend the last episode gearing up for a grand epic adventure... one that should have immediately followed up this little diversion. 

The animation feels like it's taken a step back as well where while subtle, it doesn't feel as smooth and vibrant as last season. The music is still usual solid fantasy shtick (but it's Taro Iwashiro so it's above average). And while my love and boner for these three women won't die anytime soon (thanks to that wall of text wedding proposal I disguised as a post in page 90), it leans on the too generic anime style so Eir Aoi gets the better song this time around. I can't help but felt I've committed infidelity.  

So despite enjoying some of the pirate themed moments, disappointment all around unfortunately. Would be much better with, well 17 more freaking episodes.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

...and finally finished all of Tsubasa Reservoir Chronicles. 52 episodes, 1 movie, and 5 OVAs. 

Incoming wall of text because reasons. 


Fans of anime company CLAMP would have already known and seen this series. For those unfamiliar, it's one big Clamp fanservice party, with crossovers from most of their series like Cardcaptor Sakura, RG Veda, Magic Knight Rayearth, Tokyo Babylon/X 1999 etc. But turns out it also runs parallel with their XXXHolic series. I'm didn't go through those because I'm suffering from a severe case of 'couldn't be assed'. 

With all that said, the plot is mainly focused on the 2 leads from Cardcaptor Sakura, a little puffy thing from Rayearth, and 2 original characters specifically made for this series. 

And you can obviously tell this is Clamp thanks to their art style. All the characters look like 13 year olds given the stretcher treatment, making them look like the slender people made of taffy. Yeah the visual animation is rough and time hasn't been kind to it, but this was made back in simpler times circa the mid 2000s, and it's a style that's uniquely Clamp's. 

The plot is simple: thanks to some shady dudes, Sakura gets in a comatose inbuggerance, loses all her memories in the form of feathers and it's up to Syaoran and co to fetch them back from all the different parallel worlds they've scattered from. That's it. 

In fact it's so simple that every adventure to a different world felt like an episodic routine. I don't mind going through the motions of small obstacle to overcome plot du jour, but having the main characters suffering from the invincible hero pandemic, made everything a little samey. Do a mini plot in a span of 3 or 4 episodes, remix it again, rinse, repeat, pull the plug at 50+ quota. It's odd when the series suddenly came to live at around episode 15 or so when one of the characters gets injured and stakes are raised. Dunno if that's more of a reflection of me though... 

Season 2 then also takes a nosedive in the concept department and gets boring quick. There's even a world that retreads Yogi's Space Race of all things. One world was spent in a bus chasing a truck. And at this point, the ton of fillers were getting out of hand to the point I started losing interest. The movie that happens between the 2 is nothing more than a longer episode.  There's some nice character development in episode 47, but a little late from the long slug. Even the whole spot the Clamp reference game got old long before season 2 even began. 

Wait, why didn't I stop through this again? Oh that's right. 

The music.



Is.



So.



Bloody.



Damn.



Good.




Despite the fact that it becomes a chore to get through the latter episodes, it's still watchable. 


But then the OVAs come along and suddenly the series came to life. 

It's not just because there's a mass influx of X 1999 characters (my favorite of the Clamp series), but there was actual interesting conflict going on. Stakes are raised, the main characters actually got hurt, and the action scenes (while already not too bad), were more thrilling this time around (the final battle was a blast). Probably helps that production IG were involved in the last 2 episodes. 

But the OVAs were also flawed, mainly due to the plot. Without spoiling anything, let's put it this way: imagine 90s era Spiderman with the Xanatos Gambit being thrown in the last possible minute. I may have not minded 8 years ago, but being the stone hearted creature I am today, this felt like a massive cop out. 


All my complaints aside, it's still a solid series. It was huge in it's time for a reason. Maybe I shouldn't be so hard on such a light hearted anime. I certainly enjoyed the Cardcaptor Sakura characters here far more than in their own anime series, that's for sure. 


TL/DR: If you like Clamp, and/or want to see Sakura and Syaoran in a different light, give this a chance. Just don't expect all too much. 










And since I'm still listening to Kajiura with the intake like the mountain of coke in Scarface, I've jumped extreme late on the Sword Art Online bandwagon that everybody here has since left for dead.  14 episodes in so far...

Speaking of SAO:

Anyone here in US interested, Yuki Kajiura is hosting a SAO concert in LA mid Jan 2017.

http://www.ticketmaster.com/event/090050F2BB234DEA





> Artist: Yuki Kajiura
> Event: Yuki Kajiura LIVE featuring SWORD ART ONLINE
> Date: January 14th 2017
> Venue: Dolby Theatre at Hollywood & Highland
> Tickets Info:
> Pricing: $184 | $124 | $104 | $84 | $64
> (A $5.00 facility fee is included in the ticket price)
> Sales have started since July and the VIP tickets are sold out.
> In the event will perform over 10 musicians (japan sao concert had 11) including Koichi Korenaga, as well as Remi, Kaori, Wakana, and Yuriko Kaida. VIP ticket holders will be able to attend an autograph session with Ms. Yuki Kajiura and the four singers after the concert. No recording of any kind is allowed and will be signed one autograph from each artist per ticket holder.



Unfortunately since I'll be in the other side of the globe at that time so my chances are beneath zero. And that my favorite of her singers ain't coming hurts a bit too.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

...and 3 wall of text posts in a row.  Sorry, can't help it, because SAO sort of demands it from me... 

Mild Spoilers... though most of everyone here's already seen it already so whatever. 

Despite the busy schedule, I found time to smash through the 2 seasons of Sword Art Online. This may just be the most polarizing anime series in recent memory. Not just from me, but from many fans apparently. It's like the Nicholas Cage of anime, where it's either amazingly good or horrifically bad with no middle ground whatsoever. 

Let's face it, any transition from manga/light novel to anime is always a turbulent one, and it's rare for the medium to get what I like to call 'the FMA Brotherhood lightning' to strike. While unfamiliar with the source material, SAO is an MMORPG story that should have been longer than it's final presentation. Almost like the developers couldn't or weren't allowed to decide that each season should be 13 or 25 episodes. As a result, season 1 was shot in the kneecaps before crossing the starting line, yet continues to sprint on, tripping over it's own plot holes like a champ. 

The first arc (Aincrad) of season 1 showed a lot of promise. Borrowing the same premise from .Hack//Sign and putting it on a grander scale was something I can get on board, but lost me thanks to the wonky pacing, gaping plot holes and what felt like crucial scenes missing. It felt like the arc was hacked (unexpected pun not intended) to the bone to fit the 14 episodes, resulting is most of the latter episodes not making any sense. It's the rodeo bull ride experience with a tone that flails manically on the first 5 episodes, slows down to a really well told story in the middle before rising up back to MMORG action. And don't get me started on that ending. 

The second arc (Fairy Dance) fares a little better, having a much more cohesive structure this time around (albeit completely clichéd plot) . At first I thought it was the interference from the powers that be that left SAO suffering, but as the series went on, I can't help that it may also be that the source material itself suffers from bad writing. And you can point plenty of issues to the characters themselves. 

Kirito... ah Kirito. He's got a retro 90s design that would appeal to me when I was 14: black overcoat, dual swords, too cool for school personality and rock solid resolve... ok it's sort of still appealing to me.  He's the ultimate Mary Sue character, which is also why I find him boring, bland and by the numbers. Kirito does have a fair share of fans though, no doubt, but it's no wonder the entire series copped the Abridged treatment... though I'm not interested in those. My theory is that with MMORPG themes in mind, Kirito is meant to be the personification of the viewer. As the camera faced player, you want be faultless and perfect in your thoughts and actions, and whatever plot devices, foreshadowing, red herrings, strategic traits the game throws at you, you'd have figured them all out before other players or NPCs have said "why who what where when". Kirito does all of what you want in your player in spades. And that's exactly why he suffers from a story telling narrative. But hey, that's just a theory...

Season 2 takes all of the great and bad things about season one and escalates them. This time, 24 episodes divided into 3 arcs. 

Surprisingly the series comes to life for me in the first arc (Phantom Bullet). I couldn't help but feel that there's a social commentary subtext on the gaming culture between East and West afoot here. While the East go for the mythological fantasy setting, the Western MMO is portrayed as, of all things, a cover based military shooter hued with fifty shades of greyish brown. And watching Kirito KOTORing his way around the game gave me a resentful laugh. And way to go for wasting an episode of a solid arc with a freaking recap rather than explaining more of the bad guy's origins that supposedly should be in season 1... but isn't. That sure got my rage going. 

The next arc (Calibur), if it could even be called one, was just 3 episodes of best described as "a bunch of stuff happens", this time with some mild harem themes thrown in. Bleh...

The final arc of Season 2 (Mother's Rosario), aka, what you kids would call 'the feels' arc is a conflicting one. Again after the last snoozer, SAO comes back to life again here, and not just because Kirito is shoved aside for one of the token females Azuna to develop, but it shifts in genre and tone, again. I know SAO as a whole is trying to tackle the mature themes of VR and MMORPGs in general. This is where they finally hit those themes hard, and yet still doesn't completely hit home. The topic is already heavy handed as it is and the fact the Yuki Kajiura wrote the music so mournful and tragic that you can practically see her violinist Hitoshi Konno drowning in his own tears. I just wish they spent more time with the focal character much more than her allotted screen time or at least introduce her during the Fairy Dance arc, or something... anything that would make the impact hit harder rather than feel forced and contrived. Yeah, I'm heartless, but I do think it's one of the better of the 5 SAO stories. 

It's funny because the above 9 paragraphs of opinionated indignation aside, when SAO does well, it does very damn well. 

The series itself captures the essence of playing a MuMORPerGer well. All the references and nuances will certainly get points from fans of the genre. And all the psychological and social themes and how living in a virtual world affects the human condition are all present here and played very well (even if .Hack//Sign did it much better many years prior). The action scenes do the job of getting the blood pumping whenever they're on. I really like the Dark Souls-esque skull reaper boss a lot. 

Musically, this is one of the moments where I felt that Kajiura was phoning it in a bit, but there's some breathtaking themes like Swordland and all the pieces that include Kajiurago vocals, all incidentally are heard when the situation 'get's real'. All the piano and especially violin pieces, while are a dime a dozen, Kajiura is a master of using them for the right moment. Though seriously, anime need to lay off the violins for a bit (or give all the Japanese supply to their wrestlers and use them to concuss the audience of an entire pay-per-view event). The latter episodes show Kajiura's experimental and playful side, especially during Phantom Bullet when hearing her try out hard rocking warfare based themes out of her norm is always fun. 

2 of the female characters, Azuna and Sinon are 2/3rds great characters and 1/3rd sexist cliches. Both are introduced strongly but on latter episodes, get seriously downplayed. At least Azuna gets some much needed development I mentioned earlier. 

It's really hard to summarise everything I want to about Sword Art Online as a whole. So many great moments only marred by it's many terrible moments, neither can seem to outweigh each other. There's an epic series buried in SAO that I like, and I do want to like this, as the story is being begged to be told accordingly, but the SAO presented here is constantly pushing me away using all the awful faults that stick around like a sore itch. 


TL/DR: Eh...


----------



## dr_game0ver

> This may just be the most polarizing anime series in recent memory


Ask people about Initial-D...


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

dr_game0ver said:


> Ask people about Initial-D...



Never got into the series. My sister loves it and I've got some friends who think it's cool (so wouldn't now much about the hate for it), but Initial D didn't interest me at all. 

And by 'my' recent memory, Initial D is old.


----------



## dr_game0ver

it's not an easy show to get into. Apart from the races, there is not much to like...


----------



## Fat-Elf

Kinda off-topic but yesterday I went to the foremen's office at my work place and there was a poster of some generic big breasted anime chick in a bikini on the wall. Also a small illustration of Saber from Fate/Zero. They just felt so out of place that I couldn't believe my eyes seeing them on the wall.


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


> [RIP SAO]
> 
> TL/DR: Eh...



You pretty much summarized everything I feel about SAO, except for the fact that I didn't even bother with the second season.

It could have been so much more, but it wasn't. Severely disappointing, yet entertaining.

Also, I know a couple people who have gone through some of the source material, and they say it's as bad or worse than the anime.


----------



## Don Vito

Literally every light novel I've read somehow felt like fan fiction for the show it inspired. Even NHK was underwhelming despite having darker undertones.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

dr_game0ver said:


> it's not an easy show to get into. Apart from the races, there is not much to like...



I've sat through stages 1 and 2. On it's own, Initial D is fine, and certainly has a target fanbase. I'm actually leaning more towards the fans who like the series being justified. It's just the anime isn't for me personally. That and the fact that I find Australian car enthusiasts annoying may play a part of it too. 



Alberto7 said:


> You pretty much summarized everything I feel about SAO, except for the fact that I didn't even bother with the second season.
> 
> It could have been so much more, but it wasn't. Severely disappointing, yet entertaining.
> 
> Also, I know a couple people who have gone through some of the source material, and they say it's as bad or worse than the anime.



I don't blame you actually. Season 1 ends with enough closure without needing to continue on. It's weird because I though season 2 was a better run overall, but not really compelled to recommend it. And the fact that enjoying the shooter based arc the most, somewhat disturbs me... 



Don Vito said:


> Literally every light novel I've read somehow felt like fan fiction for the show it inspired. Even NHK was underwhelming despite having darker undertones.



Considering the target demographic for light novels, that makes sense. And it seems that all the light novels are designed specifically with an anime adaptation in mind. 

So I'm not surprised that SAO's source material is allegedly worse. It's bad enough that the anime had little episodes to work with, but if the original writing is beyond help, then no wonder SAO went the way it did. Such a wasted potential...

There's an upcoming SAO movie coming next year set after season 2, so we'll see if the trend continues.




I'll need an anime to wash all the negativity out of my system.  So I started something I'm familiar with: mecha, specifically Gundam Unicorn RE 0096. Except being familiar with the original Unicorn OVA, this isn't going well...


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

I thought season two of SAO was friggin' great, and anyone who skips it is doing themselves a disservice.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Please don't tell me you guys are dissing SAO light novels here.


----------



## Don Vito

Grand Moff Tim said:


> I thought season two of SAO was friggin' great, and anyone who skips it is doing themselves a disservice.


I only just got around to finishing season 2 and I agree. The ending was totally worth it.



Fat-Elf said:


> Please don't tell me you guys are dissing SAO light novels here.



What the hell is the context for this? Reminds of an Asanagi doujin where they're being raped in the hospital while doing normal stuff in the game world. And then they die along with my boner.


----------



## Fat-Elf

Don Vito said:


> What the hell is the context for this? Reminds of an Asanagi doujin where they're being raped in the hospital while doing normal stuff in the game world. And then they die along with my boner.



Looks like someone didn't lurk /a/ at 4chan around the time when the 1st season of SAO started airing...

Well, tbh I don't know/can't remember the context but it's supposed to be a quote from the SAO light novels. 

Great, now I want to rewatch the 1st season of SAO. Never got around finishing the 2nd season because Kirito's harem got way too ridiculous. Although Asuna looked pretty sexy with a blue hair and elf ears.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

While going through Gundam Unicorn and it's stupidly overlong and unnecessary recaps, I started watching Kubikiri Cycle: Aoiro Savant to Zaregotosukai, or Zaregoto for short because I can't be assed with a title like that.  It's an OVA that only started at the end of October, and it'll be released monthly. Fans of Madoka and Kara No Kyoukai will feel at home here, but it'll confuse the hell out of everybody else (even the Madoka/KNK fans frankly), because the first episode takes a long time to even get a gist of what the hell is going on. 

Still I'm in it for well... these 3  , even if it's something Kajiura has already done before. 




Grand Moff Tim said:


> I thought season two of SAO was friggin' great, and anyone who skips it is doing themselves a disservice.



While I agree that season 2 is much better than season 1, it's 4 episodes and a better written main character and plot away from being genuinely great.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Ok, now it's becoming a problem that I'm posting here more than actually promoting the album I released earlier this year. In which case, BUY BUY BUY MY NEW RECORD.






...sorry about that. 

Moving on...

Since Gundam Unicorn's stretched intro recaps were driving me up the bloody wall, I took a break from it and when through all of Sengoku Basara Judge End. 

I've banged on about Basara throughout this thread: it's Capcom's ridiculous retelling of the Sengoku Jidai period of history (any notion you know about the samurai of the era is skull blasted in this franchise), so it's my kind of samurai goofiness. Judge End takes all that goofiness, explosions, macho yelling and homoerotic subtext (if you look deeper) to it's logical conclusion... again, because The Last Party movie wasn't enough I guess. 

There's been a change of hands in the development side of things. The previous director and screenwriter, as well as all of Production IG have jumped ship, leaving a new team and Telecom Animation Film to carry on. Storywise, there's not much of a difference as they had the games for source material, but the visuals changes unfortunately lost the slickness of the previous seasons. 

The composer has also changed. While Masahiro Tokuda does a valiant job in music suitable for such a ridiculous world, taking cues from his predecessors but in a more classical and operatic flavour, none of the score pieces want me to grab a weapon the size of a street light, ride a horse standing, yelling war cries and swinging as hard as I could at everyone in my way, knocking them into the air and concussing all the birds in the sky the way Hiroyuki Sawano or Godspeed's music did in previous installments. As much as I don't like Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas, their intro song fits right in here, and Chiyaki Ishikawa's outro is as serene as everything else she does. 

I guess there's always The Last Party if I want the old team... 

Having played the Samurai Kings game installment, I'm most familiar with this part of the canon, so I was curious to how the anime will streamline all the characters, paths and endings into at least a cohesive narrative. Frankly, the story is inconsequential even if you're not aware of the samurai history. Sure there's arcs, and character growth, but this is Basara, so here's your story: SAMURAI VS SAMURAI, KILL THEY ASS. 

I guess with nature of Basara, it's all about the action and the over the top reinterpretations of historical samurai figures that carry this franchise. And with all it's pomp and conceit, the ending is disappointingly anti climactic, but that's a tradition in the anime series as a whole. For such a ridiculous anime where Masamune Date is portrayed as a smug Bosozoku prick with Yankii like catchphrases (bad English intact) or Tadakatsu Honda portrayed as a freaking GUNDAM, you'd kinda expect that all of the endings to be bigger than the limp conclusions that's presented here. Oh well, I guess it's all about the journey and not the destination. 

TL/DR: Sengoku Basara is goofy to the extreme, but it's my kind of goof. Give the series a shot if you want loud mindless action or want to see another liberal samurai portrayal. 


Spoiler



PS: buy my album please...









I also started watching Persona 4 anime, though that's being a bit of a slog...


----------



## mrdm53

AKINO from Bless 4's new song surprisingly pretty cool. It's from Shuumatsu no Izetta's OP







AKINO + Leda + Strandberg + Marshall Kerry King =


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Is that Ikuo and Jun-ji on bass and drums?

If so, add 2 more  to the equation.

EDIT: Ok, not Jun-ji but Hideki Aoyama (ex Babymetal) on drums. Still a win.


----------



## Alberto7

Anyone else been following Dragon Ball Super? Now that the Zamasu/Black saga seems to be over... holy f*ck. I think Zamasu is my new favorite main villain along with Buu. That was frigging intense!



Spoiler



I reeaaally hated that they gave my favorite fighter in the whole of Dragon Ball - Vegito - not even a half episode's worth of screen time. I also found super cheesy and very anticlimactic the fact that it wasn't Vegito, or at least Goku or Vegeta, to finish off Zamasu, but Trunks. I did scream like a pre-teen child when I realized Vegito was back after so many years, and now in SSB form! And Zamasu/Black fusion was badass as f*ck.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> Anyone else been following Dragon Ball Super? Now that the Zamasu/Black saga seems to be over... holy f*ck. I think Zamasu is my new favorite main villain along with Buu. That was frigging intense!



Still nope.


----------



## MFB

Alberto7 said:


> Anyone else been following Dragon Ball Super? Now that the Zamasu/Black saga seems to be over... holy f*ck. I think Zamasu is my new favorite main villain along with Buu. That was frigging intense!
> 
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> I reeaaally hated that they gave my favorite fighter in the whole of Dragon Ball - Vegito - not even a half episode's worth of screen time. I also found super cheesy and very anticlimactic the fact that it wasn't Vegito, or at least Goku or Vegeta, to finish off Zamasu, but Trunks. I did scream like a pre-teen child when I realized Vegito was back after so many years, and now in SSB form! And Zamasu/Black fusion was badass as f*ck.



I just watched ep. 66 on YT, totally without context or anything, but I'm glad to see that it picked up in terms of action/quality. 



Spoiler



I don't know why they went with Vegito instead of Gojita, he'd be the more powerful version; and I don't remember there being any limit on the fusion dance vs. Porunga earrings.

Plus, Trunks needed a win. I don't think he's ever beaten a villain that wasn't already being handled by someone else


----------



## All_¥our_Bass

Just started watching "Sakamoto desu ga?"
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Manga/HaventYouHeardImSakamoto?from=Manga.SakamotoDesuGa

Absolutely hysterical.


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Still nope.



Shun the heathen!  



MFB said:


> I just watched ep. 66 on YT, totally without context or anything, but I'm glad to see that it picked up in terms of action/quality.
> 
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> I don't know why they went with Vegito instead of Gojita, he'd be the more powerful version; and I don't remember there being any limit on the fusion dance vs. Porunga earrings.
> 
> Plus, Trunks needed a win. I don't think he's ever beaten a villain that wasn't already being handled by someone else



Yeah, the animation in the last fight got bumped up BIG time. The contrast in quality was almost too much. 



Spoiler



As far as why Vegito and not Gogeta, it really made more sense to me that they went with him, since they had another pair of Potara earrings with them, and just getting Vegeta to perform the fusion dance perhaps would have taken a full extra episode.  Gogeta is also not part of the canon, while Vegito was - according to Toriyama - the most powerful fighter in Dragon Ball before the whole thing with the gods came about. (And, then again, Toriyama disapproves of DBGT as canon now, obviously.)

Something else I didn't like was how quickly the Potara earrings came undone... was the 1-hour limit for non-Supreme Kai users even a thing before this? I don't remember it being so. And yeah, the fusion dance time limit has always been 30 minutes, whereas I always thought the Potaras' fusion was permanent.

But it's true that, in a way, it made sense that Trunks got to destroy Zamasu. After all, it was a fight for a cause that was his. It was still unsatisfying for me though; I wanted to see SSB Vegito kick more ass!


----------



## MFB

Non-spoilers because all this is technically past information out of context  Thinking back, you're correct - Gotenks did have a time limit during his Buu, and he fvcked that up by going SSJ3 and dicking around, so the dance isn't as worthwhile as Potara is.

I also hate that Gogeta isn't canon if Toriyama disowned it, especially since he had a hand in it didn't he? I loved Gogeta more than Vegito


----------



## Don Vito

So Yajirobi could have killed Zamasu if the earth genki dama'd his katana.


----------



## Alberto7

^ 

But yeah, Gogeta isn't necessarily disowned by Toriyama, afaik. His appearance isn't just in GT, but also in one of the movies, which are just side stories and/or parallel universes, so to speak. I just went doing a bit of reading on a couple of the DB wikis and found this, which I found really interesting. I know who Gogeta is, and I've read multiple wiki entries about him, but I've never seen him in action.  Some day I should finish watching GT, or go through the movies... like so many other things I should watch.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> Shun the heathen!



 Even when I've made it public on how I'm over the franchise, my sister was shocked that I haven't got into Super yet. I am in search for a new series to waste away on. It's either Super, Persona 4 or probably watch Turn A again. 



Speaking of series... 


I just finished Gundam Unicorn RE 0096 before the weekend. Sure it's Sunrise milking the bloated cash cow for all it's worth, but that's been the modus operandi since the 80s. 

Really, the TV series is just the OVA series re-edited to 22 20-minute bite sizes, so if you've seen the OVA, you've seen all of this. But RE 0096 adds literally nothing new, instead they padded almost every episode with 5 minute recaps. Ok the latter episodes go for the 2 minute recap instead, but bloody hell, this breaks the flow of the series like the Tooth Chipper rollercoaster ride from The Simpsons. 

Let's just get the good out of the way: Animation is superb, a few steps up from the OVA and the best the UC universe has ever looked this dazzling. Hiroyuki Sawano's score fits every scene perfectly, though I could almost discount that before it's just like the OVA sans a few new OP/ED and Insert songs, but the music is so damn good. 

And that's it. Because it's a direct retelling, all the same frustrating flaws from the OVA are still here. Token main character Banagher Links (bloody Gundam names ) gets annoyingly preachy in the latter episodes more than any other Gundam protagonists. Literal token Char Clone (HE'S LITERALLY A CHAR CLONE, VOICE ACTOR AND ALL) spends the entire series beating around the bush about himself but leads absolutely nowhere. The dialogue of these 2 alone can win the Hideo Kojima award of maximum redundancy. One particular support character is a mess where he goes through some painfully contrived arcs only to end up exactly where he started from. 

The plot starts off solid and at a brisk pace but takes a massive nosedive towards the end. Not as blunt force trauma inducing as say Seed Destiny or cardboard cutout lame as pre Endless Waltz Wing, but similar as mediocre endings go. Dangling threads are left everywhere and the huge McGuffin that the series beats the viewer over the head with results in a resolution that can only be described as 'being pulled out from the hairiest sweatiest ass'. And the fact that this series as a whole is an interquel makes the McGuffin moot when you take the future events in the timeline into account. 

TL/DR: Like UC Gundam? Watch the OVA of Unicorn. Already seen it? Listen to the new Aimer song. Otherwise, RE 0096 can piss off.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> Some day I should finish watching GT,



Nah don't do that. 

...I suppose you can for completionist sake, but no rush. GT was the straw that broke the already dying camel's back for me.


----------



## Don Vito

I'd say the only reason to finish GT is maybe to read AF, a very decent fan sequel to GT. (I only the read the Young Jiji version though)
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/0B_IXFYNfmZhUWVJWcnBNeWhIbEE

But hell, even as a kid I couldn't stomach GT.


----------



## MFB

I skipped 99% of GT, reading the boring parts and essentially just watching everything that had SSJ4 in it  So it was like, the end of the Baby Vegeta saga and Omega Shenron fights.


----------



## Alberto7

^  I dropped GT when I started watching because I found it so friggin' boring, and it was so frustrating for me in the beginning that Goku had reverted back to being a kid. Made no sense in my head. At some point I'll finish it though, if only for completion's sake, as bloody_inferno said.

--------------------------------

In other news: say what you will, but I am SO f*cking pumped for this! It's looking gorgeous.



So far so good. It might end up being garbage, but I'm gonna go watch the crap out of it anyway!


----------



## Don Vito

That GiTS trailer looks great. I lol'd at Batou, but sh!t I guess that's how he would look irl.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

I just made a thread about that. 

...and as I said there, my biggest concern is the director, best known for ahem... Snow White And The Huntsman, and the scandal by banging a slab of concrete with 2 dots and a straight line for a face drawn on it.


----------



## Alberto7

^





I actually looked for a thread beforehand and didn't see it, so I figured I'd post about it here. I didn't search very well apparently, as I just found it using Google kek. 

But yeah, the director has me kinda worried. But hey, worse case scenario I'll get to see more of Scarlett Johanson in nude spandex.  The trailer looks great, but I agree that it could go either way. Regardless, I'm pretty pumped.

I had the exact same reaction with Batou. He looks weird, but hey, he IS weird.  I just wish they'd gone with long-haired Batou from SAC.


----------



## MFB

Alberto7 said:


> I had the exact same reaction with Batou. He looks weird, but hey, he IS weird.  I just wish they'd gone with long-haired Batou from SAC.



Any GiTS visual reference I have for characters is from SAC, so when I first saw Major with her outfits, I was very confused. It still throws my brain for a loop since it's pretty unflattering, but it makes more sense when you realize why she looks like that


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

The film is taking cue form the 1995 Mamoru Oshii film, being the most popular adaptation. And it's not like the source material was sacrosanct to begin with, hell Oshii decided to ditch all the humour from the manga for the 1995 film. 

Speaking of source, curiously, Masamune Shirow has been rather silent about this new adaptation.


----------



## All_¥our_Bass

MFB said:


> Any GiTS visual reference I have for characters is from SAC, so when I first saw Major with her outfits, I was very confused. It still throws my brain for a loop since it's pretty unflattering, but it makes more sense when you realize why she looks like that


The look of this film is more in-line with the *original* movie and manga.

I do tend to like the SAC designs better overall too.
Man I LOVE GiTS SAC , the second season (GiTS SAC 2nd Gig) is great too!


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Speaking of anime recently getting the live action treatment...



As with all anime adaptations, treat with caution or trepidation.


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

I've been watching _Kiniro Mosaic_ (or _Kinmoza!_) over the past week or so. I absolutely love it!  It's got that that cute, cheesy appeal while being loaded with humor.


----------



## Alberto7

That FMA trailer actually looks pretty good! Granted, I haven't seen the anime yet (sue me), but it still _looks_ good.

So turns out that THIS was the last episode of the Zamasu arc on Dragon Ball Super. What a weird ass episode, but it was still pretty good. The last few scenes were so friggin' cool!



Don Vito said:


> I'd say the only reason to finish GT is maybe to read AF, a very decent fan sequel to GT. (I only the read the Young Jiji version though)
> https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/0B_IXFYNfmZhUWVJWcnBNeWhIbEE
> 
> But hell, even as a kid I couldn't stomach GT.



Turns out that one of the Dragon Ball AF fan projects (apparently there are several) was made conceptualized and illustrated by some dude named Toyotaro... who then, eventually, was noticed and hired by senp... *ahem* Toriyama himself to illustrate and storyboard the official Dragon Ball Super manga.


----------



## Alberto7

So I didn't want to make a whole new thread just for it, but I had to share it, and I thought here would be appropriate.

Here's a project by Ember Labs that I had followed for a while but then just sort of forgot about it. Then, two days ago, Theopany dropped his second remix/interpretation album of the Majora's Mask soundtrack, along with a 4.5-minute Majora's Mask short made by Ember Labs. That reminded me of the project I had forgotten about, called Dust. Turns out it's been out for a while. Theopany - known mostly for his amazing renditions of videogame music, having taken part in the Harmony of a Hunter Metroid remix project and having done his own Majora's Mask remix albums, among many other things - also did the music for Dust.

The reason I post it here is because it's allegedly inspired by anime, and I can really see why. It reminds me A LOT of Mushishi, where part of the moodiness (still very present here) was replaced with elements of post-apocalyptic horror. Really neat little film that I thought some here would like.

_Dust_
https://vimeo.com/183239997


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

So Sunrise/Clamp are giving one of their series a 10th anniversary revival:

Code Geass: Fukkatsu no Lelouch.

Some massive spoilers for those who haven't seen Code Geass yet, in which case, WHY THE HELL NOT?  FIX THAT IMMEDIATELY!

I should've expected this from Sunrise as they're back to their old tricks again (see my Gundam Unicorn post). But call me curious and excited because not only was the original a great non Gundam, mecha/war themed series, but I want to know how the hell are they going to follow up from such a perfect ending.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Saw that earlier. Idk how I feel about it, tbh. Part of me is really excited, because F*CK YEAH CODE GEASS, but another part of me thinks that the ending we currently have is so perfect that any sequel (especially as they intend to make it) would be nothing but sacrilege... getting into VERY HEAVY spoiler territory:


Spoiler



I mean, Lelouch is dead, that's it. It's perfect the way it happened. Very painfully perfect. I fear the way in which they'll bring him back. I really, REALLY hope they don't use the Geass's powers as some sort of convoluted abomination of an excuse to revive Lelouch. I will throw a shoe at the nearest child if that happens.


----------



## Kaura

I started rewatching Attack on Titan last night. Can't wait for the next season.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Another live action adaptation of a major anime in the works.



Once again I'm approaching this with extreme trepidation. I have no idea how the hell this is going to work, as most if not all of Gintama is pure piss-take parody. 

Hell, Gintama already parodied their own live action trailer.


----------



## lewis

Kaura said:


> I started rewatching Attack on Titan last night. Can't wait for the next season.



some of us have been waiting for that illusive season 2 for years..............


----------



## KnightBrolaire

lewis said:


> some of us have been waiting for that illusive season 2 for years..............



accurate 

started watching the new berserk series and I like it. The cgi throws me off a bit but it's still very much berserk in atmosphere and character design. the old series is worth a watch if you haven't read the manga (which is obviously the best lol) and fleshes out the band of the hawk a lot more.


----------



## MFB

Attack on Titan promo for s2 dropped today. Anyone else checked it out?


----------



## Alberto7

I just did! What are the odds  it looks cool, I look forward to it. A couple of huge events in the story have been spoiled to me by fans of the manga, but oh well  I guess it'll be fun anyway.


----------



## Alberto7

It might not be the place to ask here, but I figure I'd get more replies here than in the videogames thread.

Anybody play Dragon Ball Xenoverse here? Is it any good? It's on sale on Steam, and I've been thinking about that game for a while.


----------



## Kaura

lewis said:


> some of us have been waiting for that illusive season 2 for years..............



Count me in. I started watching AoT when it was still airing. Can't believe how long they're taking to launch the second season.


----------



## lewis

I cannot believe we spoke about Season 2 of AOT taking years and years to do, and what a day or 2 later......a season 02 trailer drops haha

we should complain in here more often, maybe the Worlds problems will get solved quicker? haha


----------



## Alberto7

Aaahhh I hadn't posted about one of my favorite things in the universe in a while.

2017 will be a damn good year... you could say it'll be a... 'Fate'ful year.






*Fate/Extra: Last Encore* by studio Shaft. I really can't wait to see Shaft's take on the Fate franchise!


*Fate/Apocrypha*, surprised this one is even getting an anime, but I'll definitely watch it!


*Fate/Grand Order: First Order*. Here's one that I've been wanting them to release since even before the videogame came out. I started playing it, but since the game is only in Japanese, online translations are hard to follow, and I'm more interested in the story than the gameplay, I stopped. The first (maybe only?) episode came out just a few hours ago. It's already on Crunchyroll but I don't have a subscription.


*Fate/Stay Night: Heaven's Feel pt. 1*. The mother of all Fates, part 1 of 3. We've known about this for quite a while now, but FINALLY we get a half decent promo video. All of the 'Feels' already, and the Kajiura vibes have me dying with anticipation.


There's also a Fate/Kaleid Liner movie coming out in 2017, but I've never been very interested in that particular version of the Fate franchise.

Needless to say, I'm squealing inside like a prepubescent teenage girl.

EDIT: F*ck me sideways, the Fate/Grand Order special is 72 minutes long and is up for streaming on Daisuke's website:
http://www.daisuki.net/us/en/anime/watch.FateGrandOrder.15831.html


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Well, I'm certainly glad I caught up with all the other Fate series last year. 

Though I'll admit Heaven's Feel is where my attention is aimed at the most.


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Three months to go, gents.


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Well, I'm certainly glad I caught up with all the other Fate series last year.
> 
> Though I'll admit Heaven's Feel is where my attention is aimed at the most.



Why of course  any year getting a Heaven's Feel release is a good year, regardless of anything else. 

Happy new year, everybody! May 2017 bring all of the gud animu. Would be nice to see a stringed instrument or two show up in the medium this year.


----------



## Alberto7

Alberto7 said:


> *Fate/Grand Order: First Order*. Here's one that I've been wanting them to release since even before the videogame came out. I started playing it, but since the game is only in Japanese, online translations are hard to follow, and I'm more interested in the story than the gameplay, I stopped. The first (maybe only?) episode came out just a few hours ago. It's already on Crunchyroll but I don't have a subscription.
> 
> 
> EDIT: F*ck me sideways, the Fate/Grand Order special is 72 minutes long and is up for streaming on Daisuke's website:
> http://www.daisuki.net/us/en/anime/watch.FateGrandOrder.15831.html




Just finished watching it. Feckin' A, it rocked! It's not quite ufotable's level and quality of art and animation, but there were certainly moments were my jaw dropped a little. Music was cool too, with some of the game's original tracks included. Also, the story is SO much better and deeper than I'd imagined. There's room here for the same amount of depth as the main franchise, and it's got Nasu written all over it. (Nasu being the creator of Fate and other franchises, the collective of which forms a single universe, much in the same way that Alien, Predator, etc. are related.) The special barely covers the first arc of the game - sort of the introduction - and the fact that a second special hasn't been announced makes me really sad that the game hasn't been translated to English. I hope the film does well so that the game ends up getting a Western release.

EDIT: I'll say though, I can't imagine this being a very good watch for someone who isn't familiar with the Fate franchise. While they do skim over all, or most, of the relevant background for that universe, it's just that: a quick skim and/or an arguably-obscure reference to the billions of rules there are. Definitely not enough time to grasp how things work in that universe. I'd even put Heavens Feel in the list of suggested-background-knowledge just so the viewer knows where the 'Alter' form of servants even comes from.

EDIT 2: sometimes I feel like I should create a separate Fate thread, but I can't justify that on a forum that deals with guitars.


----------



## Yibby

Alberto7 said:


> Just finished watching it. Feckin' A, it rocked! It's not quite ufotable's level and quality of art and animation, but there were certainly moments were my jaw dropped a little. Music was cool too, with some of the game's original tracks included. Also, the story is SO much better and deeper than I'd imagined. There's room here for the same amount of depth as the main franchise, and it's got Nasu written all over it. (Nasu being the creator of Fate and other franchises, the collective of which forms a single universe, much in the same way that Alien, Predator, etc. are related.) The special barely covers the first arc of the game - sort of the introduction - and the fact that a second special hasn't been announced makes me really sad that the game hasn't been translated to English. I hope the film does well so that the game ends up getting a Western release.
> 
> EDIT: I'll say though, I can't imagine this being a very good watch for someone who isn't familiar with the Fate franchise. While they do skim over all, or most, of the relevant background for that universe, it's just that: a quick skim and/or an arguably-obscure reference to the billions of rules there are. Definitely not enough time to grasp how things work in that universe. I'd even put Heavens Feel in the list of suggested-background-knowledge just so the viewer knows where the 'Alter' form of servants even comes from.
> 
> EDIT 2: sometimes I feel like I should create a separate Fate thread, but I can't justify that on a forum that deals with guitars.



I mean, I wouldn't be upset if I saw one. I'm just getting into the Fat series, and it's a little confusing where to go after Fate:Zero and unlimited blade works


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

So I'm in Boracay for a week with a sprained foot which sucks but I guess going through daily Animax screenings help the recovery a bit.  So I'll be watching whatever the hell they happen to play without much choice. Some interesting ones are being shown so whatever sticks with me I'll end up continuing when I get home.

Right now Ore Monogatari!!! episodes are on. Not my usual thing but it's alright. It's quite refreshing that the protagonist isn't a little shonen with severe blue balls syndrome but a massive hulk of a dude that fits right in Cromarte High School (but still with the blue balls).



Yibby said:


> I mean, I wouldn't be upset if I saw one. I'm just getting into the Fat series, and it's a little confusing where to go after Fate:Zero and unlimited blade works



Just wait for the Heaven's Feel movie trilogy for familiarity. I don't blame you though. Type Moon and convoluted narrative get along like a house on fire. 




Alberto7 said:


> EDIT 2: sometimes I feel like I should create a separate Fate thread, but I can't justify that on a forum that deals with guitars.









Ok, seriously this thread will do.  Remember that Gundam thread I couldn't be assed reviving?


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Right now Ore Monogatari!!! episodes are on. Not my usual thing but it's alright. It's quite refreshing that the protagonist isn't a little shonen with severe blue balls syndrome but a massive hulk of a dude that fits right in Cromarte High School (but still with the blue balls).



I _love_ Ore Monogatari. It's adorable. I did a mini write-up on here when I watched it, but at the rate we all go through stuff, that was probably several dozen pages ago . 

It isn't something I'd normally expect to like, but I saw it on enough "best of..." lists for the year it came out, so I gave it a shot. I've thought about rewatching it, just to improve my mood one of these days. I think one of the things I liked most about it is that not only does Takeo not fit the usual mold, but the entire series didn't revolve around the usual "Will they??? Won't they???" nonsense. They get together right off the bat, and everything afterwards was just about their relationship's ups and downs.


I'm currently slogging my way through One Piece. Well, I say "slogging," but I'm actually really enjoying it, haha. I started watching it because it's a show my students all know, so I wanted to familiarize myself with it a bit. I _kep_t watching it because it turns out I think it's pretty great . I know admitting that I watch and enjoy One Piece makes me a bit of a pleb in the eyes of some of the more hardcore anime fans out there, but oh well.


----------



## Alberto7

Yibby said:


> I mean, I wouldn't be upset if I saw one. I'm just getting into the Fat series, and it's a little confusing where to go after Fate:Zero and unlimited blade works



Honestly, if you really dig it, I'd say go and read/play the original visual novel. Granted, it's quite a large time investment. It took me around 95-100 hours of reading to finish all three routes, Unlimited Blade Works being the second of them, and Heaven's Feel being the final one and the one being animated into the movies that Bloody Inferno mentioned. *Here's a detailed review I wrote a bit over two and a half years ago* (f*ck me, time flies. ) on the visual novel... which will probably take you about as long to read as the VN.  Not too proud of the review or my writing then, but it's intelligible enough, if you care to follow.  Longest post I've ever written.



Bloody_Inferno said:


> So I'm in Boracay for a week with a sprained foot which sucks but I guess going through daily Animax screenings help the recovery a bit.  So I'll be watching whatever the hell they happen to play without much choice. Some interesting ones are being shown so whatever sticks with me I'll end up continuing when I get home.
> 
> Just wait for the Heaven's Feel movie trilogy for familiarity. I don't blame you though. Type Moon and convoluted narrative get along like a house on fire.
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> Ok, seriously this thread will do.  Remember that Gundam thread I couldn't be assed reviving?



Animax f*cking rocks, and don't you tempt me using Keiko's beauty against me... because I'll cave.  Maybe it can be a Fate/Kalafina thread.  The two fit together like bespoke velvet gloves made for The Queen herself.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Bloody_Inferno said:


> .
> 
> 
> Anyone here in US interested, Yuki Kajiura is hosting a SAO concert in LA mid Jan 2017.
> 
> http://www.ticketmaster.com/event/090050F2BB234DEA




http://sao-movie.net/us/yukikajiura/



> We regret to announce that the Yuki Kajiura LIVE featuring Sword Art Online concert on January 14, 2017 at the Dolby Theatre is cancelled due to visa issues. Ms. Kajiura, the artists, and everyone involved in the show were looking forward to performing for the U.S. fans which makes it particularly difficult and disappointing for us to make this announcement. We sincerely apologize for any inconvenience caused by these unforeseen and uncontrollable circumstances.
> 
> All tickets purchased online or over the phone will be refunded at point of purchase. Fees will be automatically refunded to the credit card used at the time of your purchase. Your refund should be in your account within 10 business days after this announcement.
> 
> All ticketholders will receive the collectible event pamphlet and exclusive Sword Art Online the Movie -Ordinal Scale- pouch. Details on how to claim these items will be announced at a later date on our official homepage.
> 
> For more information, please contact Ticketmaster at: http://dolbytheatre.com/events/details/yuki_kajiura/
> Or please call: 800-653-8000



Well that just sucks.


----------



## OmegaSlayer

Grand Moff Tim said:


> I'm currently slogging my way through One Piece. Well, I say "slogging," but I'm actually really enjoying it, haha. I started watching it because it's a show my students all know, so I wanted to familiarize myself with it a bit. I _kept_ watching it because it turns out I think it's pretty great . I know admitting that I watch and enjoy One Piece makes me a bit of a pleb in the eyes of some of the more hardcore anime fans out there, but oh well.




YAY!!!
Where are you at the moment?


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

OmegaSlayer said:


> YAY!!!
> Where are you at the moment?



They just saved Alabasta from Crocodile and Nico Robin joined the crew.


----------



## OmegaSlayer

Grand Moff Tim said:


> They just saved Alabasta from Crocodile and Nico Robin joined the crew.



I'd safely say that now is when thing start to become really interesting.
Those next bunch of episodes in Jaya are very big for what they set into motion.
I hope you manage to stay spoiler free as much as you can.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Grand Moff Tim said:


> Just started watching _Aggressive Retsuko._ It's a series of short (~1:30) episodes about... well, here's the write up:
> 
> "The show centers on Retsuko, a 25-year old red panda who works in her dream company's accounting department. But it turns out that she is forced to keep doing more and more impossible tasks by her superiors and co-workers. She doesn't talk back to them, but she still has to let off steam, so she ends up going to karaoke by herself and singing death metal."



Somewhere in the midst of my travels, I watched the 38 episodes of Aggretsuko, since that only took about 38-40 minutes. May as well get familiar with it before it gets overexposed- oh too late...

It's tons of fun during those short episodes. It does get samey and repetitive so it gets old before you know it. But that gets cancelled out by it's own brevity. Either way I had a ball watching this.


EDIT:



Alberto7 said:


> Animax f*cking rocks, and don't you tempt me using Keiko's beauty against me... because I'll cave.  Maybe it can be a Fate/Kalafina thread.  The two fit together like bespoke velvet gloves made for The Queen herself.



 Funny enough, Hikaru just posted these pics in their lineblog:


----------



## Ralyks

I gotta ask, since I've been slowly making my way back into Anime recently... Is there any plans for Metropolis to be on Blu-Ray in the states? I want to own this movie, and will get the DVD if I have to, but I was really hoping there would be a stateside Blu ray release. Looks like there's one in Japan and I guess one was announced for the UK.


----------



## lewis

anyone heard the news that Warner Bros are trying for the attack on titan rights, to make their own Hollywood movie based on the amazing Manga story?

Im both amazingly excited (given I thought the Japanese movies were garbage from what I saw) but also worried that the casting will be crap and we will get an onslaught of "beautiful teens" who cant act. And maybe some annoying controversy like having Dwayne Johnson as Captain Levi or some other such nonsense.

http://bloody-disgusting.com/movie/3421492/warner-bros-prepares-attack-titan-remake/

EDIT: I pray for a Harry Potter like franchise from this, where we get like 4 movies at LEAST.... but thats just me.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Oh God... I do like David Heyman's movies (and having as big a series as Harry Potter under his belt might be a good indicator for the AoT franchise), but Hollywood doesn't exactly get the best reception when it comes anime adaptations. And we're talking about Attack on Titan here, not just any other adaptation. The only fans I've met that are more rabid, ravenous, and angry than AoT fans are probably Tool fans. I can hear the forks, the torches, and the chanting...



Bloody_Inferno said:


> Somewhere in the midst of my travels, I watched the 38 episodes of Aggretsuko, since that only took about 38-40 minutes. May as well get familiar with it before it gets overexposed- oh too late...
> 
> It's tons of fun during those short episodes. It does get samey and repetitive so it gets old before you know it. But that gets cancelled out by it's own brevity. Either way I had a ball watching this.
> 
> 
> EDIT:
> 
> 
> 
> Funny enough, Hikaru just posted these pics in their lineblog:
> 
> [Fate/Extella pics]
> cute gif of Cutearu.



Those pastries and that coffee are EXactly what I need right now.

Kind of an unrelated remark, but the Fate/themed food made me remember how much I regret having lost a beautiful official Saber keychain I got as a gift last year from a friend that went to NYC and brought me the 10th issue of Type-Moon Ace magazine. Ugh, never attach cool keychains to your everyday-use backpack unless you want them stolen. You'd think I knew this. 

Also, having Chrome translate Hikaru's post for me and then reading it was as amusing and stupefying as it was informative. I feel my English slowly getting destroyed whenever I read something that's been directly translated from English,  but it was cool to read anyway.


----------



## lewis

Alberto7 said:


> ^ Oh God... I do like David Heyman's movies (and having as big a series as Harry Potter under his belt might be a good indicator for the AoT franchise), but Hollywood doesn't exactly get the best reception when it comes anime adaptations. And we're talking about Attack on Titan here, not just any other adaptation. The only fans I've met that are more rabid, ravenous, and angry than AoT fans are probably Tool fans. I can hear the forks, the torches, and the chanting...




yeah this is exactly what concerns me. They would need to realllllly take their time on this. No rushing. No pushing to have it out before deadlines. It would need the utmost care to pull off. It seems from the report, that WB are readying their "Fantastic Beasts and where to find them" director, David Yates, to helm this movie.

I do want it to be a LOTR or Harry Potter style Franchise because I think thats the only way to truly get anywhere near the standard of the source material.

I would honestly accept no name actors for this (i.e we are not familiar with them). Problem is it "feels" very Asian because its an Anime, but obviously only Mikasa is supposed to be Asian (unless Im really mistaken) and you have this issue again where if all the cast are white, there may be complaints....but yet everyone is white in the show other than her. Its a tricky situation.

I think we could get away with more Asian actors/actresses personally. I imagine someone bad ass like Iko Uwais would be perfect cast in this. Maybe as Levi?. Anyone Ive gone off on abit of a tangent.

Im still really excited and I hope they do get the rights but Im optimistically cautious.


----------



## Kaura

Just rewatched Steins;Gate for the first time since it aired and holy sh1t the feels... Didn't remember how wild that anime was. I definitely recommend watching it if someone hasn't seen it yet. 

I also drank like 2 gallons of Dr Pepper while watching it.


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

I've been binge watching _Elfen Lied_ these past few nights.

Fantastic series! A perfect mix of bloody and beautiful; gorey and heartbreaking. There are some real tearjerker moments at the end that contrast strongly against the dark themes presented throughout the episodes. 

The progression throughout the course of all thirteen episodes was crazy. Upon watching the first episode, you would never think that the series would end the way that it does in the final episode. All of the character development and growth, the ambiguity of many characters (constantly shifting between good and bad in the eyes of the viewer), and the psychological elements involved in the story really make it a compelling series.

I'm so glad that I watched this short series, and I'll definitely watch it again in the future. Despite a few bits of choppy animation, I really can't find any other flaws. I'll rack it up as one of the best series that I've watched thus far, which definitely makes it a favorite.

Now I need to get my hands on the manga and read it so that I can know the full story.


----------



## lewis

just started Deathnote. Pretty compelling viewing. Certain aspects of it are abit child like imo (like the Demon who originally owned Deathnote) etc, but in general its a solid show and I power watched the first 3-4 eps back to back when I had time.


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Finally finished up both seasons of _Kiniro Mosaic_ (_KINMOZA!_ and _Hello!! KINMOZA!_) after two and a half months of sporadic watching. Hands-down one of my favorite anime series! So cute, so lovable, and loaded with humor! I will definitely be watching it again soon!


----------



## Kaura

Emperor Guillotine said:


> All of the character development and growth, the ambiguity of many characters (constantly shifting between good and bad in the eyes of the viewer), and the psychological elements involved in the story really make it a compelling series.



That's what I loved about Elfen Lied. Just rewatched Mirai Nikki last night and it's pretty similar. One episode you're rooting for a certain character and next episode you hate them. Might actually rewatch Elfen Lied now. God, do I ever watch any new animes. I just keep rewatching the old ones. Although, it has been +4 years since I've last seen them.


----------



## Alberto7

Emperor Guillotine said:


> I've been binge watching _Elfen Lied_ these past few nights.
> 
> Fantastic series! A perfect mix of bloody and beautiful; gorey and heartbreaking. There are some real tearjerker moments at the end that contrast strongly against the dark themes presented throughout the episodes.
> 
> The progression throughout the course of all thirteen episodes was crazy. Upon watching the first episode, you would never think that the series would end the way that it does in the final episode. All of the character development and growth, the ambiguity of many characters (constantly shifting between good and bad in the eyes of the viewer), and the psychological elements involved in the story really make it a compelling series.
> 
> I'm so glad that I watched this short series, and I'll definitely watch it again in the future. Despite a few bits of choppy animation, I really can't find any other flaws. I'll rack it up as one of the best series that I've watched thus far, which definitely makes it a favorite.
> 
> Now I need to get my hands on the manga and read it so that I can know the full story.



Aw man, the manga...





But really though, the manga is SOOO much better than the anime. I'm not a manga reader, but I am so glad I read that one. Makes the anime feel like a walk in the park. That ending man... brutal stuff. It's been a good 6 or so years since I read the manga, and I can still feel my insides becoming all wrinkly like a prune. Good thing you watched the anime first though. It'll make the manga even better. Also, the manga is about twice as long as the anime, perhaps longer than that.


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Alberto7 said:


> But really though, the manga is SOOO much better than the anime. I'm not a manga reader, but I am so glad I read that one. Makes the anime feel like a walk in the park. That ending man... brutal stuff. It's been a good 6 or so years since I read the manga, and I can still feel my insides becoming all wrinkly like a prune. Good thing you watched the anime first though. It'll make the manga even better. Also, the manga is about twice as long as the anime, perhaps longer than that.


The anime stops halfway through the manga and has its own self-contained ending. But I'm very interested in reading the manga (and I don't read manga either actually). I figured that the manga would be better because it has far more time to develop the characters, get the reader attached to them, and increase the feels.

Is there anywhere online that has an English translation of the manga? Sadly, I don't read Japanese, and the manga was never licensed for a published English translation.


----------



## Kaura

Emperor Guillotine said:


> Is there anywhere onine that has an English translation of the manga? Sadly, I don't read Japanese, and the manga was never licensed for a published English translation.



There's plenty of free sites that has manga, but some of them are banned in US so it might take some time to find one that works or you could hide your VPN (not sure if that works).


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Kaura said:


> There's plenty of free sites that has manga, but some of them are banned in US so it might take some time to find one that works or you could hide your VPN (not sure if that works).


I was looking into this yesterday. I found several sites on my computer (right off Google), but the issue with all of the sites is that I was having to wait for each manga page to load, then refresh, then I had to resize each page after it refreshed so that it fit my screen without me having to constantly scroll up and down.

It just flat-out was impossible to do and didn't work.

I found several apps for mobile, and I'm A/B testing them now.


----------



## Kaura

Emperor Guillotine said:


> I was looking into this yesterday. I found several sites on my computer (right off Google), but the issue with all of the sites is that I was having to wait for each manga page to load, then refresh, then I had to resize each page after it refreshed so that it fit my screen without me having to constantly scroll up and down.



I never really found it problematic to have to scroll the page so can't help there. 

Finished Elfen Lied today. No wonder I couldn't remember anything about the last episode because it sucked. Now I really want to read the manga and see how the story actually ends.


----------



## Ralyks

Take it no one knows anything about a Metropolis blu-ray?

Anyway, I noticed Sword Art Online II is on Netflix. The original is potential my favorite anime ever (maybe not so much the fairy stuff, but that wasn't terrible). Has anyone watched II yet? I almost threw it on the other day before realizing there was only the original Japanese track. I'll still watch it, that just means I have to pay extra close attention.


----------



## takotakumi

Any recommendations from 2016?

Got sucked into TV series but managed to watch a few and Im pretty sure Im forgetting a lot:

One Punch Man & Mob Psycho
Erased
Ushio to Tora
*Forgot to finish Kabaneri and the new Gundam 

I started watching Re:Zero and Liking a lot so far


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

takotakumi said:


> Any recommendations from 2016?



91 Days.

It's what I'm watching right now (9 episodes in). I chose it out of the blue, as I wanted a revenge story. The setting is cool and original by anime standards (set during the prohibition era USA) and it's engrossing as all hell. While it's short (12 episodes), the show demands your utmost attention, as any blink will make you miss key character intros and scenes. 

Highly recommended.



Ralyks said:


> Anyway, I noticed Sword Art Online II is on Netflix. The original is potential my favorite anime ever (maybe not so much the fairy stuff, but that wasn't terrible). Has anyone watched II yet? I almost threw it on the other day before realizing there was only the original Japanese track. I'll still watch it, that just means I have to pay extra close attention.


 
I did a massive writeup a few pages back. Though I practically crucified the series as a whole, I did like SAO Season 2 more than Season 1 overall (despite the crappy 2nd arc sandwiched in between 2 solid arcs).


----------



## takotakumi

Bloody_Inferno said:


> 91 Days.
> 
> It's what I'm watching right now (9 episodes in). I chose it out of the blue, as I wanted a revenge story. The setting is cool and original by anime standards (set during the prohibition era USA) and it's engrossing as all hell. While it's short (12 episodes), the show demands your utmost attention, as any blink will make you miss key character intros and scenes.
> 
> Highly recommended.



Thanks for the recommendation, currently watching drifters and Re:zero.
I had seen great reviews about that one as well. Will report back when finished


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Finished 91 Days, and my recommendation from my previous post only got stronger. 

The plot itself is simple: just think Batman revenge story, booze soaked during Prohibition era US. And by Prohibition meaning, everyone is part of, or associated with the Mafia syndicate. It's all very intriguing, filled with all sorts of betrayal, skullduggery and murder. And at 12 episodes, everything happens at a brisk pace that as I said before, really requires your utmost attention, as every scene, dialogue and character are focal to the story. There's no filler here. It's a vice steadily cranking up tension with absolutely no release until the finale. 

Visually, it feels weak at first as everything looks as if it's been filtered through a greyish brown hue. No vibrant colours here. But it all ads to the booze soaked, cigarette stenched noir setting. Everything is meant to look dire and depressing so the look suits really well. 

If I'm going to nitpick at flaws, there's 2 that come to mind. 

It'd be stubborn, churlish and counterproductive for me to continue to bag out clip shows in anime... so I'll continue to do so here.  I can't stand clip shows and there was no need for an extra episode to air midway dedicated exclusively to recaps, especially with a tight and cohesive plot like this. Though consider 91 Days throwing you a bone if you so happen to answer a text, look away or have a tiny attention span during the first 7 episodes. 

The second is the main character design; it's a little to shonen to fit in late 1920s America. They could've at least made it a little more believable, whilst all the other supporting cast fit right in, even with their own anime style looks, the main character sticks out like a sore thumb. Again, it's only nitpicking as he's a solid character. 

91 Days was a shot in the dark for me. It's not my usual cup of tea and I certainly wouldn't have watched it if I didn't stumble on to the series. But I'm sure as hell glad I did, as this was an amazing series through and through. Watch this series if you haven't done so already.


----------



## feilong29

Some amazing anime I've watched over the last year:

Guren Lagann
Kill La Kill
Hunter X Hunter (amazing!!!)
Seven Deadly Sins
Hataraku Maou-sama (Satan is a Part-timer...just started this)

I'm waiting on One Punch Man and Attack On Titan season 2 to come out!!

by the way, what do you guys think of my anime-fight scene inspired composition??

https://soundcloud.com/berial-feilong29/chocolate-candy-bars-demo-2


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Finished watching _Boogiepop Phantom_ tonight. It's a true mind-bender. I'll probably read the light novels and manga soon so that I can understand the full story. Then I'll go back and watch the anime again.


----------



## MetalGravy

I liked the first season of Ajin--haven't yet watched the second one. Knights of Sidonia and Gargantia the Verdurous World were good. Your Lie in April was great, though, the dialogue can get a little too teen drama at times. Jellyfish Princess is another good one.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Ralyks said:


> I gotta ask, since I've been slowly making my way back into Anime recently... Is there any plans for Metropolis to be on Blu-Ray in the states? I want to own this movie, and will get the DVD if I have to, but I was really hoping there would be a stateside Blu ray release. Looks like there's one in Japan and I guess one was announced for the UK.



I just tried to look this up and it looks like ordering the UK Blu-Ray is probably your best bet sadly. Aside from that there's been zero news on anything about a Blu-Ray release outside Japan.


----------



## Ralyks

Bloody_Inferno said:


> I just tried to look this up and it looks like ordering the UK Blu-Ray is probably your best bet sadly. Aside from that there's been zero news on anything about a Blu-Ray release outside Japan.



I may go this route if it's not region locked. Really want to own a blu-ray copy of this movie.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

That StarCraft thread reminded me that I did a writeup of the Street Fighter 2 animated film back in page 103. It was something that I thought was fun and guess now's a nice time to do another essential classic anime film. Namely my favorite anime film of all time:







Royal Space Force/The Wings of Honnêamise is a movie I like to revisit every few years. Released way back in 1987, I didn't get to see it until 1995. It was one of the first, if not the first anime that made me think of the medium much more seriously. Whenever any of my friends would say that anime is just cartoons for kids, this movie was my proud retort. Seriously, it wasn't just a feature film, Wings of Honnêamise is a work of art. 

Being a Gainax production, yes it involved future big hitters like Hideki Anno and Yoshiyuki Sadamoto. This was also Gainax and Bandai Visual's first big film project so they went all out. The animation is stunning by 1987 standards and amazingly, it's aged extremely well and still looks great today. 

The plot is simple. Based in an alternate Earth, after failing to get into the Air Force and just drifting along through an unremarkable life, Shirotsugh Lhadatt (get used to the names here), has instead ended up the Royal Space Force: a laughing stock of the nation despite its ostensibly lofty ambitions. But all things change when a death of a fellow astronaut and an encounter with a religious woman causes Shiro to take a hold on his life and become the first man in space. 

Long story short, a below average Joe gets off his complacent ass and shoots for the stars seeking redemption. 

But beneath the simple premise lies the richness in which why Wings of Honnêamise is so damn special:

*The simple plot weaves other subplots and expositions beautifully while still remaining cohesive. * 

Slacker to space pioneer remains the root of this movie's plot tree with everything else branching out. It also remains surprisingly grounded throughout the whole movie despite picking up with pace on the second act. Having the Royal Space Force actually working harder than normal and becoming to be taken seriously in the kingdom will obviously reap some heavy political repercussions and raise all sorts of tension. The use of exposition is done really well when its presence is felt but without dwelling too much into it, and theres a lot of wordless scenes that tell so much. A great show than tell example. 

*The characters are amongst the most humane in the entire medium. *

There's no perfect cipher here. Each character is flawed and at times ugly, and even up to the point where you don't condemn the bad decisions they make. The cynicism of the RSF employees is astounding. "We'll strap you up and shoot you out... then BANG! A hero's death!" as Marty Tohn (voiced by Bryan Cranston no less), loudly declares to Shiro with extreme glee. The scene where Shiro declares his ambition is priceless. You actually relate to the cynicism while you watch the group just wallowing in their own mediocrity, but at the same time you really want Shiro to succeed while dragging his reluctant friends with him. 

Shiro himself is a great character. He makes the same human decisions and at times without thinking them through. You relate to him more as the plot progresses as the weight of his status crushes him down. Shiro's religious friend Riquinni Nonderaiko (see what I mean by names) herself is another anchor keeping the film grounded. All her screentime adds more depth not just to Shiro's spiritual enlightenment but has a full sympathetic subplot that doesn't get in the way. The movie's full of relatable and likeable characters overall. 

*The music is sensational.* 

Ryuichi Sakamoto did the music. ...and that's all that needs to be said really. 

I could go on and on with the praises. I could nitpick it's flaws but they get cancelled out by the film working them it it's favor. Such as...

*The incredibly slow pacing is an endurance test.*

It's 2 hours long and it moves like a dying man's crawl. Back then, anime was an alternative medium that showed animated sex and violence. But very few drama based anime was ever released outside Japan at the time. But for me, that was also part of the movie's appeal. Every step is savored. Every scene is meaningful. Even the "fat" moments where the movie slows down and gives time to breathe (as if that's even possible in this case) are engrossing. Little things like when Shiro trains in the Air Force who do nothing but ridicule the RSF are moments of pure gold. 

*Diversity is not the name of the cast's game.*

There's only 2 focal female characters in this entire movie. Riquinni and her surrogate daughter Manna, and even then the former does the heavy lifting and the latter barely says a word. Actually, there's not many characters here at all... but it works in this context. Everything else speaks for itself. There's the Monarchy, there's Rival Factions and their conspirators and their presence is felt. But that remains as an undercurrent while the movie is focused on a small circle of characters that further keeps it grounded rather than disappear in pretentiousness. 

As I said before, this movie was mind blowing for me at the time. Sure, Akira was also mind blowing, and Ninja Scroll and Street Fighter got my bloodlust going, but Wings of Honnêamise was something else. At the time it was the alternative to the alternative, when anime was just mature for it's mature content, but transcends that by being a tender heartwarming drama told in the highest quality of it's time. And it still rules now.

TL/DR: See. This. Movie.


----------



## pastanator

Over the last year I watched all of One Piece and am now caught up/watching the sub weekly. If I theoretically wanted to catch up with the manga anyone know what chapter I should start at? It's probably not like 1 chapter equals 1 episode is it? For reference the last episode I saw was 775


----------



## Alberto7

This.is.so.f*cking.DOPE!



Say what you will, but I'm so excited to go see this movie. Even if it sucks, I'll probably end up liking it anyways due to confirmation bias.


----------



## bouVIP

pastanator said:


> Over the last year I watched all of One Piece and am now caught up/watching the sub weekly. If I theoretically wanted to catch up with the manga anyone know what chapter I should start at? It's probably not like 1 chapter equals 1 episode is it? For reference the last episode I saw was 775



I stopped watching the anime when they had fillers before Zou arc, but it ends at chapter 822 and the next arc starts on 823


----------



## pastanator

bouVIP said:


> I stopped watching the anime when they had fillers before Zou arc, but it ends at chapter 822 and the next arc starts on 823



Yea I realized like the day after I posted that, that I could just go look up a chapter guide. For what it's worth that filler was only like three episodes and I skipped it as well. All catching up to the manga did was make me excited to see Whole Cake Island animated.


----------



## feilong29

I started The Saga of Tanya the Evil last night...WOW! It's like, Final Fantasy meets Battlefield 1, haha. Really good Pilot episode for anyone thinking about trying it out.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

feilong29 said:


> I started The Saga of Tanya the Evil last night...WOW! It's like, Final Fantasy meets Battlefield 1, haha. Really good Pilot episode for anyone thinking about trying it out.



Have you played Valkyria Chronicles by any chance? It's almost a similar premise in VC's case WWII instead of I.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

While everyone's doing the weekly wait for Attack On Titan season 2....



Bloody_Inferno said:


> While going through Gundam Unicorn and it's stupidly overlong and unnecessary recaps, I started watching Kubikiri Cycle: Aoiro Savant to Zaregotosukai, or Zaregoto for short because I can't be assed with a title like that.  It's an OVA that only started at the end of October, and it'll be released monthly. Fans of Madoka and Kara No Kyoukai will feel at home here, but it'll confuse the hell out of everybody else (even the Madoka/KNK fans frankly), because the first episode takes a long time to even get a gist of what the hell is going on.



I had to rewatch episode 1 of Zaregoto to continue as I've forgotten it's premise, but now I've got through my 3 episode rule of judgment, I'm more invested. Not because of a certain trio releasing the ED as a single, actually... that's totally the reason. 

Zaregoto is actually quite an intriguing series. A Cluedo like premise in which a nameless protagonist is central to the mystery despite his best attempts of trying keep away from so. The first 2 episodes is spent on setting up each character before the murders start to happen. One thing's for sure: almost all the characters have a perk that makes you hate them in some way, and it works especially when it comes to pointing the finger at a potential suspect. 

The 2 main characters are you typical archetypes: the nameless main dude is a typical anime kid with the severe case of blue balls, and a super cute bright haired girl who's not what she seems. A lot of time is spent in their dynamic as they discuss everything from all the other characters to the murder mystery etc. So the anime relies heavily on dialog that requires your utmost attention. It's as slow as a snail's pace but it's quite enjoyable.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

Been a while since I've watched much anime. I've been getting my Japanese fix by watching old fansubs of _Hello! Morning_, the variety show that starred members of the J-pop group Morning Musume. 

It's so dumb, but I just can't. Stop. Watching it.


----------



## NotDonVito

Growing up, I hated anything popular and shonen, but now I'm catching up on all of this stuff now that I'm burn't out on moe. Hunter X Hunter and JoJo mainly. I'm reading JoJo and waching the 2012 anime, and Hunter X Hunter, I've only seen the 2011 version.

And Dragon Ball Super. This arc has been pretty good, but I wish there wasn't so much filler leading up to the tournament. I mean, I really don't want to see Goku and Android 17 saving animals from a UFO. It doesn't fit at all, especially with 17's character. But they're gonna ham it up and say "17 realized he couldn't bare the thought to lose all of his animals, so he agreed to enter the tournament of power". I feel like I'm watching Noah's Ark Shippuden.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Hunter x Hunter is the t!ts. Save for the storytelling over 80% of the Chimera Ant arc, that whole show is love.

DBS has been great. I've been enjoying every second of it. The Krillin vs Goku fights we've gotten take me way back, and I like how they adhere back to a theme that had been lost in the series looooong ago: the spirit of martial arts.

Also, wtf happened to your main account?


----------



## NotDonVito

Alberto7 said:


> ^ Hunter x Hunter is the t!ts. Save for the storytelling over 80% of the Chimera Ant arc, that whole show is love.
> 
> DBS has been great. I've been enjoying every second of it. The Krillin vs Goku fights we've gotten take me way back, and I like how they adhere back to a theme that had been lost in the series looooong ago: the spirit of martial arts.
> 
> Also, wtf happened to your main account?


Cool, good to hear that with Hunter X Hunter. Just out of curiosity, have so seen the 1999 version? I started the 2011 series like mid-way though and have no context to what's going on, so I wanted to restart the entire series someday.

With Krillin in DBS(and eventually Muten Roshi and Tien), they really seem to be getting away from the power level element. It's hard to wrap your head around it, but I think it's a good thing in the long run.

My account, it's a long story, but I reinstalled Windows a couple months ago including my browser and realized that the 2011 email I used for the account went out of business, so I couldn't retrieve my password. Almost lost all my Steam games too because of that


----------



## NotDonVito

guiz nyaa is down again ;_;


----------



## Kaura

NotDonVito said:


> guiz nyaa is down again ;_;



I heard, it's for good this time. At least here in Europe some new law about piracy got passed and the owner of the site got scared and drove down the site.


----------



## couverdure

Re:Creators is so damn good. I like the concept of fictional characters from various media coming to life and seeking their own creators, and that it's a 22-episode original anime series.



NotDonVito said:


> guiz nyaa is down again ;_;


I'll give it a few days and it'll be up again, and yeah it sucks that I can't download an archive of what I (want to) watch at the moment.


----------



## takotakumi

NotDonVito said:


> guiz nyaa is down again ;_;



you tried horriblesubs?


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

Watched the final episode of _Naruto: Shippuden_ over the weekend. I'm a little disappointed because it could've been better and shown more of the events. (All of the main characters, including Naruto, have pretty much no screen-time in the final episodes.) Still, it was a pretty emotional closer.

Man, I've come a long way since I made this post.



Emperor Guillotine said:


> I started watching _Naruto_ three nights ago. Just watching a few episodes each night. It's crazy how much I remember from the early episodes of this show considering that I only watched it during its USA premiere in 2005 up until late 2006 or maybe early 2007, then I just lost interest. So I never got deep into the show as a kid. Still though, it's just crazy how much I remember after a decade. And the show is still just as entertaining as it was when I was a kid. (I just don't have to wait for the next night of _Toonami_ anymore and can watch on-demand.)
> 
> The plan is to watch all 220 episodes and then go straight into _Naruto Shippuden_. I haven't done a big undertaking like this since I began binge-watching all of _Dragon Ball Z_ last fall. But I've got the time, and I've got to catch up on all of the stuff that I missed out on in my childhood.
> 
> Catching up now on all of this stuff that I was into for a little while in my childhood just feels kind of..."special".
> I can't really explain it.


I watched all 220 episodes of the original series and all 500 episodes of _Shippuden_. Now, I'm just catching up on the last few movies that I need to watch.

Personally, I don't think that _Boruto_ will be able to carry the flame and keep the legacy going. Something about it just seems off about it... A lot of these spin-offs and "next generation" continuations always seem to go weird.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Finished Season 2 of Gundam: Iron Blooded Orphans. It's good, but I have concerns...

[mild spoilers]

In my last text dump on Season 1, I stated IBO was less Gundam and more guerilla, with the usual tropes hanging in the background. Season 2 brings all the Gundam right back in the forefront and hard. Oh, the Tekadan are still the main focus, but now they have politics, the other factions, conspirators, insurgents rising to rebellion, 2 Char clones and a body count that will make even Tomino to tell writer Mari Okada to "chill out" a bit. So far so Gundam, and I'm not complaining. 

The action is good, and the plot is strong while still retaining what made IBO unique. I like how the main mobile suit is upgraded unceremoniously and not completely overpowered - a stick I will beat Seed/Seed Destiny repeatedly for all eternity. The implant system takes an interesting turn and Mikazuki, while taking the 'too cool' persona to breaking point of annoyance, can't be helped but understand granted the situation he and his crew are in. Surprisingly he doesn't really do all that much, but the conceit is that it's not just Mikazuki, but the whole Tekadan crew and it's members are what serves as main characters. They are one unit rather than a sum of parts, and they look out for each other, a touching them that gets you invested in each member. There's even a gay character that his arc actually feels genuine rather than forcefully tacked. 

However, the season got a bit bloated with even more characters added to the already large cast leaving a lot of underdevelopment. Some characters just straight up go away for a bit then show up in a contrived obligatory reminder that they're still around. 2 particular major characters get the short end; one of them spends his entire arc on a massive build up only to blow his load early and spends the rest of the season with one screw up after another, big disappointment actually, considering his role. The other one suddenly gets a complete character change once the war is over: this one didn't bother me so much as it's an indication on how war affects a character, but the change felt sudden and shoehorned. A few subplots with Mobile Armors and rival/support characters go absolutely nowhere, and way too many plotlines left dangling and unresolved. 

But my biggest gripe of the series are the telegraphed deaths. You see them coming a mile away, which softens the impact. Also, *PSA to every anime ever:* 


Spoiler



*If you're going to off a character for an episode, DO NOT NAME THE EPISODE AFTER THAT CHARACTER.* It's bad enough you give him all the screen time to foreshadow their eventual death, but come on. I know Gundam practically invented this trope, but if you're going to rip our hearts out and kick us in the goolies for good measure, don't publically announce it and walk up to us from the other side of the country at a snail's pace before doing so. At least make it unexpected to really make it meaningful. I will say that 2 deaths did caught me off guard, one of them just earlier than I expected.



The series concludes not too dissimilarly to Code Geass R2 and Char's Counterattack, though not as strong as either due to the problems I stated. Again a few aspects of the ending feeling rather forced, almost reeks of interference from Sunrise telling Mari Okada to "lighten up a bit", but still a satisfying end. It doesn't touch Gundam 00's level of greatness, but it's still better than the disappointing Age or Reconguista In G, and definitely miles ahead of the recent mecha series I've seen late (coughBBKBRKAldnoahZeroMacrossDeltaunconvincingcough). Seriously, screw Macross Delta. 

TL/DR: A strong if not flawed entry to the Gundam legacy, still fun and worth checking out.


----------



## NotDonVito

I watched IBO up until episode 14 or something like that, so just S1? I wasn't much interested in it at first since I'm not very acquainted with the Mobile Suit franchise, but started getting into to once they got to Earth. Should pick it back up sometime. 




takotakumi said:


> you tried horriblesubs?


Thanks man, didn't know they had their own site. Almost missed my weekly DB Super fix.

Speaking of that, the new episode was great, so much more interesting than the 17 episodes IMO. I just like Tien as a character, he's always cool and level headed.


Spoiler



Honjuri Monjuri



Happy Piccolo day btw


----------



## NotDonVito

....ing christ how have I never seen this


----------



## Alberto7

^ You do know that's the actual, official English dub made by ADV and approved by Aniplex, right?  I'm surprised you hadn't heard of it, it's a legend within the anime community!


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Thought you guys might get a kick out of this:



One crucial point that the vid missed: elaborate and complicated bass lines.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

I finished watching _Flip Flappers_ last night. Overall I enjoyed it, since it's nice to see a "mature" take on Mahou Shoujo that doesn't try to do it by being overly gory or gritty. 

My only real issue with it was that the last episode was a bit of a turd. I can't quite put my finger on why, though. Maybe it's because they were trying to shoe-horn too much in to the ending, or maybe they just didn't know where they really wanted to go so they kinda... pulled something out of their asses. Either way, it wasn't a very fulfilling climax at all. Not as unfulfilling as Madoka, but unfulfilling nonetheless.

The art seemed to take a dip for that last episode, too, but considering how much the show tried to mix up the style/art direction throughout the course of the series, I couldn't tell whether that was intentional, or the result of something like budget restraints or a change in personnel. Whatever the case, it was mildly jarring.

Still a fun series overall, though.

EDIT: OH, just remembered, there were a couple instances of fanservice that were a bit... uh... uncomfortable.

...and that's coming from _ME_, Mr. Watches-More-Ecchi-Than-Is-Probably-Healthy.


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Thought you guys might get a kick out of this:
> 
> 
> 
> One crucial point that the vid missed: elaborate and complicated bass lines.




Omfg that video was so perfect!  The captions were hilarious too. I could actually picture it all in my head in excruciating detail.


And regarding Dragon Ball Super, am I the only one who has REALLY enjoyed these last few episodes? Episode 90, Goku vs Gohan, was so badass, up there with (if not better than) the recent episode with Goku training with Krillin. I really, REALLY like the way they're sort of breaking out of the linear power-up progression and focusing more on actual fight dynamics and the character's different approaches to martial arts. I feel like this whole saga is a huuuge breath of fresh air for the series.

Also, new intro is so badass. Dragon Ball OPs always get me so pumped! I've been watching the show almost religiously before going to karate training  it gets me high on energy.

... and yeah, I realize that my occasional DBS paragraphs are mainly just an ongoing conversation between me and Don.


----------



## pastanator

im also really enjoying db super. i watch the show every saturday night as well as read the manga every time a new chapter comes out. i really wish i hadn't seen those huge spoilers for up through episode 93 but whatever im sure it'll be cool even knowing whats happening sort of.

i watched season 1 of my hero academia right before season 2 started completely by sheer luck. i was all like, "man i wish there were more episodes..." and then the universe delivered, so im watching that weekly as well. debating on catching up to the manga but ill probably wait until this seasons over just because im really enjoying it. super rad that funimations doing the whole simuldub thing for it btw.

ever since i caught up to the once piece manga ive been way less into the show. like i still watch weekly but its more because i feel like the current arc _needs_ to be in color to really get the most out of it. todays chapter was really cool though.


Spoiler



seeing dory and broggy, then kashi and oimo talking about going to look for them eventually, and then hajrudin training to become a warrior made me super happy. i dont know how i feel about mother caramel's character though. she probably should have been more stern with linlin instead of just being like, "thats not cool but you meant well so its whatever" but like i said, dunno. excited to see more of elbaf though; hopefully we get some insight onto what the tree is at some point. and theres no break next week so thats cool.


----------



## couverdure

I watched the latest episode of Re:Creators hours ago, and it was definitely a turning point for the series. It finally got a lot more interesting after episodes full of exposition and a few fight scenes.

But I hate that I'll have to wait for a new episode every seven days for the next four months (though I find it better than the "Netflix" all-at-once model because that would kill a lot of hype for me).


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

couverdure said:


> But I hate that I'll have to wait for a new episode every seven days for the next four months (though I find it better than the "Netflix" all-at-once model because that would kill a lot of hype for me).



I'm doing this with Attack On Titan Season 2 (for loud fanboy repellant reasons), and I've learned that I feel really weird about being up to date. 

I tried to go through Zaregoto similarly, but waiting for a new episode every month is something I can't be arsed to do. So paradoxically, I'm waiting EVEN LONGER for a binging.


----------



## NotDonVito

So I haven't had my computer in a while due to moving circumstances, which has left me reading a lot more manga. For starters, finally read the original manga for Dragon Ball Z. It's amazing how Toriyama was able to fit this epic story in such a condensed format. You feel like you're still experiencing the long epic ness of the anime, but in an afternoon break rather than a huge marathon. Of course the illustrations are also fantastic, especially when he gets to draw some kind of vehicle or contraption, but I think Toei did a good job back in the day keeping his vision.

I also got the first issue of Super, which just came out here. I was shocked they entirely skipped the Frieza arc! It moves so fast, and covers the beginning all the way to Son's fight with Frost.

Now I'm looking for the rest of the JoJo books(the soft backs, not the new fancy hard cover issues), and Hunter X Hunter, since I saw they're continuing that series later this month in Japan. 

Are there any good comfy summer shows coming out? I have some stuff lined up like Yuyushiki and Mitsudomoe.


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

On June 9, 2016, I began watching _Naruto_. Two nights ago on June 4, 2017, I finished watching _Naruto_. All 220 episodes of the original series, all 500 episodes of _Naruto: Shippuden_, all 14 OVAs, and all 11 movies spanning across both series. Fifteen years of anime crammed into a single year. (Granted, I did take a break for a few months and instead spent my nights watching a few other anime series that held my interest.)

I think I might cry. I don't even know what to do with myself now. I completed such an immense undertaking in watching the whole story of Naruto from start to finish. (Everything included - even all of the filler.)

I guess it is time to start keeping up with the new episodes of the Boruto spin-off series as it continues the franchise.

I'm quoting my original post from a year ago below.


Emperor Guillotine said:


> I started watching _Naruto_ three nights ago. Just watching a few episodes each night. It's crazy how much I remember from the early episodes of this show considering that I only watched it during its USA premiere in 2005 up until late 2006 or maybe early 2007, then I just lost interest. So I never got deep into the show as a kid. Still though, it's just crazy how much I remember after a decade. And the show is still just as entertaining as it was when I was a kid. (I just don't have to wait for the next night of _Toonami_ anymore and can watch on-demand.)
> 
> The plan is to watch all 220 episodes and then go straight into _Naruto Shippuden_. I haven't done a big undertaking like this since I began binge-watching all of _Dragon Ball Z_ last fall. But I've got the time, and I've got to catch up on all of the stuff that I missed out on in my childhood.
> 
> Catching up now on all of this stuff that I was into for a little while in my childhood just feels kind of..."special".
> I can't really explain it.


----------



## KnightBrolaire

Emperor Guillotine said:


> On June 9, 2016, I began watching _Naruto_. Two nights ago on June 4, 2017, I finished watching _Naruto_. All 220 episodes of the original series, all 500 episodes of _Naruto: Shippuden_, all 14 OVAs, and all 11 movies spanning across both series. Fifteen years of anime crammed into a single year. (Granted, I did take a break for a few months and instead spent my nights watching a few other anime series that held my interest.)
> 
> I think I might cry. I don't even know what to do with myself now. I completed such an immense undertaking in watching the whole story of Naruto from start to finish. (Everything included - even all of the filler.)
> 
> I guess it is time to start keeping up with the new episodes of the Boruto spin-off series as it continues the franchise.
> 
> I'm quoting my original post from a year ago below.


I never seem to make it past the beginning of the shippuden era, which from what I've heard is when it actually gets good. If you want a similar vast undertaking there's always bleach lol


----------



## M3CHK1LLA

recently picked up the ghibli 17 movie collection and watched...

_Castle in the Sky_

_Grave of the Fireflies_

_My Neighbor Totoro_

_Kiki's Delivery Service_

_Princess Mononoke_

_Spirited Away_

_Howl's Moving Castle_

_Ponyo_

they have all been pretty good so far, was surprised by a few of the voice actors i recognized.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

M3CHK1LLA said:


> recently picked up the ghibli 17 movie collection and watched...
> Not Tales From Earthsea


----------



## Emperor Guillotine

KnightBrolaire said:


> I never seem to make it past the beginning of the shippuden era, which from what I've heard is when it actually gets good. If you want a similar vast undertaking there's always bleach lol


Haha.......no. Not a fan of the trendy, overly hyped, "newbie" stuff like _Bleach _or _One Piece_.


----------



## KnightBrolaire

M3CHK1LLA said:


> recently picked up the ghibli 17 movie collection and watched...
> 
> _Castle in the Sky_
> 
> _Grave of the Fireflies_
> 
> _My Neighbor Totoro_
> 
> _Kiki's Delivery Service_
> 
> _Princess Mononoke_
> 
> _Spirited Away_
> 
> _Howl's Moving Castle_
> 
> _Ponyo_
> 
> they have all been pretty good so far, was surprised by a few of the voice actors i recognized.


ooh watch nausicaa or porco rosso- those are excellent. I'm guessing you're watching the english dubs?


----------



## KnightBrolaire

Emperor Guillotine said:


> Haha.......no. Not a fan of the trendy, overly hyped, "newbie" stuff like _Bleach _or _One Piece_.


Bleach is actually pretty good for the first couple of seasons. YuYu Hakusho would be another good choice if you haven't already seen it.


----------



## Alberto7

So after hearing that the last episode of Attack on Titan season 2 had already aired, I went ahead and re-watched the last one of the first season, (because I remembered zero things from it) and then proceeded to watch the second.

Holy cow, I was not expecting it to be this good. I liked the first season, but this one, even at just 12 episodes, is so much better on every front. (Save perhaps the art/animation, which remains mostly the same, although with a touch more CG effects.) I've also had the privilege of avoiding almost all spoilers from the manga, so I've been able to enjoy it in full. I really don't want to wait any longer for season 3 in 2018!

Manga spoiler I did learn about:


Spoiler



That Commander Erwin dies... but I really don't care that much. 



Really glad I decided to watch this. I think I'd give it a solid 9/10.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> So after hearing that the last episode of Attack on Titan season 2 had already aired, I went ahead and re-watched the last one of the first season, (because I remembered zero things from it) and then proceeded to watch the second.
> 
> Holy cow, I was not expecting it to be this good. I liked the first season, but this one, even at just 12 episodes, is so much better on every front. (Save perhaps the art/animation, which remains mostly the same, although with a touch more CG effects.) I've also had the privilege of avoiding almost all spoilers from the manga, so I've been able to enjoy it in full. I really don't want to wait any longer for season 3 in 2018!
> 
> Manga spoiler I did learn about:
> 
> 
> Spoiler
> 
> 
> 
> That Commander Erwin dies... but I really don't care that much.
> 
> 
> 
> Really glad I decided to watch this. I think I'd give it a solid 9/10.



Odd, it didn't feel like a 'last episode of the season' to me. If that's the case, that's a hell of a cliffhanger.


----------



## Alberto7

^  Yeah, it's only 12 episodes long. So, #37 Scream is the last episode. Considering the manga isn't over yet and that, despite having arcs, it is mostly one continuous story, Season 3 is bound to end in an awful cliffhanger too.  With that said, if subsequent seasons are as good as season 2, then I really don't mind the wait.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> ^  Yeah, it's only 12 episodes long. So, #37 Scream is the last episode. Considering the manga isn't over yet and that, despite having arcs, *it is mostly one continuous story*, Season 3 is bound to end in an awful cliffhanger too.  With that said, if subsequent seasons are as good as season 2, then I really don't mind the wait.



Honestly, I much prefer that. Keeps the story cohesive, the pace up, and tension flow at an all time high. Even during the times where the story slows down to give the viewer and the characters a breather (for some development), the dire and unsettling atmosphere still maintains the urgency. That may just be why I didn't feel 'Scream' as the season finale... because I didn't want it to end. I'm actually glad I kept up to date this time around.

Also, thanks to the short season duration, I'm glad for no clip shows.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

After the void that AOT season 2 has left, I needed to jump into a fresh new series. Well the lady in the far right of my avatar just had her birthday and told all her fans to watch the premier of new a particular series. I was happy to oblige. 







...anyway...

*Katsugeki!/Touken Ranbu* is a brand new ufotable series, that's a spin off of another series Touken Ranbu Hanamaru (not by ufotable), both based on a free-to-play card browser game called Touken Ranbu, and this is a long sentence to type and I've typed Touken Ranbu a lot. This new series, unlike it's predecessors is set deep in the Edo period... you know what, it's too confusing. I might just binge watch the Hanamaru series before Katsugeki ep 2 so I get a better gist of it.  Having said that, it's by ufotable so it looks gorgeous and the characters are well designed (in the lines of God Eater/Tales of Zestiria in samurai gear).


----------



## NotDonVito

Technically not a manga, but I've recently become obsessed with the Marvel series Gwenpool, which is illustrated by two Japanese art graduates. I don't read any comic books except for this one(although that might change very soon), so there must be some kind of familiar sensibility that drew me in.

The manga industry, at least in America, could learn something from the comic book industry. It's fun to go in a shop and walk out with a handful of issues for a couple of bucks, rather than paying like $10-20 for some compilation of 4 panels. That's why most manga readers just stick to online, but comic guys will go out on pilgrimages to build their collection. Tangibility creates a more social culture in anything if you ask me.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Also may as well throw this hunk of meat out to the wolves...



Before you all weeb out and mercilessly condemn this to the lowest bowels of hell (if you haven't done so already), can we at least agree that casting Willem Dafoe as Ryuk is a stroke of perfection?


----------



## Alberto7

I haven't had internet since I moved into my new place 6 days ago, and won't have any for another 4... so I've been re-watching anime I have on my harddrive.

I am of firm belief that Carnival Phantasm is the greatest anime of all time. Granted, the pre-requisites to getting full enjoyment out of it are quite daunting, but it is so worth it. I'd do all of Fate and all that Tsukihime/Melty Blood research all over again just to enjoy Carnival Phantasm.


----------



## Kaura

Started rewatching Barakamon. Nothing too special, but it's my feel-good summer anime.


----------



## Alberto7

Kaura said:


> Started rewatching Barakamon. Nothing too special, but it's my feel-good summer anime.



Barakamon is life. It's one of my favorite slice of life animes. It's one the cutest and most endearing things ever. Also quite relatable for most artists, I find.

I'm finally watching Watamote, and just 3 episodes in and I already almost wish I hadn't started watching. This shit's all kinds of cringy and depressing. Jesus. It's worth it just for that badass OP though!

Also, started watching Fate/Apocrypha and KWHTNDIE9TJAPEJE all of my Fate nerd-strings are being struck hard here.

Next step is to watch Katsugeki! I'm looking forward to that once my wifi is back on at home.



Bloody_Inferno said:


> *Katsugeki!/Touken Ranbu* is a brand new ufotable series, that's a spin off of another series Touken Ranbu Hanamaru (not by ufotable), both based on a free-to-play card browser game called Touken Ranbu, and this is a long sentence to type and I've typed Touken Ranbu a lot. This new series, unlike it's predecessors is set deep in the Edo period... you know what, it's too confusing. I might just binge watch the Hanamaru series before Katsugeki ep 2 so I get a better gist of it.  Having said that, it's by ufotable so it looks gorgeous and the characters are well designed (in the lines of God Eater/Tales of Zestiria in samurai gear).


----------



## Science_Penguin

I dunno if this counts, cause this is an (I believe) American production, but, did anyone catch the Castlevania series on Netflix?

I absolutely loved it. The animation, the dialogue, the characters, the fact that they seem to be getting everything right in terms of story, and I'm going to hate waiting so long for the next batch of episodes.
Only complaints I've got: 
1. The music could be better- it's friggin Casltevania, dude c'mon...
2. Though I appreciate the brutality, some bits were a tad unnecessary- without wishing to spoil anything: it makes sense for beasts literally dredged up from Hell to cause that level of viscera, but... with the human characters, I can't help but feel it's a little over-the-top.


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


> *Katsugeki!/Touken Ranbu* is a brand ne
> w ufotable series, that's a spin off of another series Touken Ranbu Hanamaru (not by ufotable), both based on a free-to-play card browser game called Touken Ranbu, and this is a long sentence to type and I've typed Touken Ranbu a lot. This new series, unlike it's predecessors is set deep in the Edo period... you know what, it's too confusing. I might just binge watch the Hanamaru series before Katsugeki ep 2 so I get a better gist of it.  Having said that, it's by ufotable so it looks gorgeous and the characters are well designed (in the lines of God Eater/Tales of Zestiria in samurai gear).



HAH! Having wifi at home really is a thing of beauty. I missed it a lot. I watched the first episode of Touken Ranbu. Somehow I'd missed the fact that it's an adaptation of that card game my sister and my roommates used to play all the goddamn time a couple years ago. I hated the thing.  The Yaoi Swords, they called it.  The show looks very good though! I'm still not 100% sold on the story, but it looks promising, and the art is gorgeous. I love the setting, too. I may just follow this one. Maybe.



Science_Penguin said:


> I dunno if this counts, cause this is an (I believe) American production, but, did anyone catch the Castlevania series on Netflix?
> 
> I absolutely loved it. The animation, the dialogue, the characters, the fact that they seem to be getting everything right in terms of story, and I'm going to hate waiting so long for the next batch of episodes.
> Only complaints I've got:
> 1. The music could be better- it's friggin Casltevania, dude c'mon...
> 2. Though I appreciate the brutality, some bits were a tad unnecessary- without wishing to spoil anything: it makes sense for beasts literally dredged up from Hell to cause that level of viscera, but... with the human characters, I can't help but feel it's a little over-the-top.



I didn't even know this was a thing. I'll have to watch it! Sadly, I never played any of the Castlevania games.  Which is strange considering I'm a huge Metroid nut.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> HAH! Having wifi at home really is a thing of beauty. I missed it a lot. I watched the first episode of Touken Ranbu. Somehow I'd missed the fact that it's an adaptation of that card game my sister and my roommates used to play all the goddamn time a couple years ago. I hated the thing.  The Yaoi Swords, they called it.  The show looks very good though! I'm still not 100% sold on the story, but it looks promising, and the art is gorgeous. I love the setting, too. I may just follow this one. Maybe.



Yeah, it's based on that Yaoi sword card game. I'm finding the non ufotable series rather insufferable where even Kenji Kawai's music isn't saving it (it's all the Ranma style ultra kawaii kind), so I'll just stick with the new one. It's not bad... I am questioning myself as to why I'm plowing through a bunch of Yaoi samurai anime. Yeah sure I know all the historical names and all, but seeing Hijikata's short sword in the form of a yaoi twink is a little odd. 




Alberto7 said:


> I didn't even know this was a thing. I'll have to watch it! Sadly, I never played any of the Castlevania games.  Which is strange considering I'm a huge Metroid nut.



Dude...  Administer Symphony Of The Night and Super Castlevania 4 immediately!


----------



## KnightBrolaire

Science_Penguin said:


> I dunno if this counts, cause this is an (I believe) American production, but, did anyone catch the Castlevania series on Netflix?
> 
> I absolutely loved it. The animation, the dialogue, the characters, the fact that they seem to be getting everything right in terms of story, and I'm going to hate waiting so long for the next batch of episodes.
> Only complaints I've got:
> 1. The music could be better- it's friggin Casltevania, dude c'mon...
> 2. Though I appreciate the brutality, some bits were a tad unnecessary- without wishing to spoil anything: it makes sense for beasts literally dredged up from Hell to cause that level of viscera, but... with the human characters, I can't help but feel it's a little over-the-top.


I loved it. There were some really nice nods to the games in the show too. I think the brutality was done really well, it really enforces the atmosphere of dread and doom. Granted seeing the one demon run off with a baby in its mouth was a little surprising, but other than that I don't think it was over the top. My biggest complaint is how there's only a few episodes. I really loved how they gave Vlad some motive for unleashing the demons and the religious commentary was nice too.


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Yeah, it's based on that Yaoi sword card game. I'm finding the non ufotable series rather insufferable where even Kenji Kawai's music isn't saving it (it's all the Ranma style ultra kawaii kind), so I'll just stick with the new one. It's not bad... I am questioning myself as to why I'm plowing through a bunch of Yaoi samurai anime. Yeah sure I know all the historical names and all, but seeing Hijikata's short sword in the form of a yaoi twink is a little odd.



Aw man, just watched the episode where they all introduce themselves. It's a cool aspect of the series, I never knew that's how it went. Also, whenever there's Shinsengumi involved, I have a bit of a nerdgasm.

To cap it off, the ED is by Kalafina. I think I'm sticking with this anime for now. 



Bloody_Inferno said:


> Dude...  Administer Symphony Of The Night and Super Castlevania 4 immediately!



Osu senpai!


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

KnightBrolaire said:


> I loved it. There were some really nice nods to the games in the show too. I think the brutality was done really well, it really enforces the atmosphere of dread and doom. Granted seeing the one demon run off with a baby in its mouth was a little surprising, but other than that I don't think it was over the top. My biggest complaint is how there's only a few episodes. I really loved how they gave Vlad some motive for unleashing the demons and the religious commentary was nice too.



I've yet to see the Castlevania series (it's based on Trevor Belmont's arc so I'll definitely be catching this at some point), but I've heard it's been good reviews across the board. But with the 2 exceptions: one already mentioned being only 4 episodes. The other, the big one: is the music.

Pre Lords of Shadow series, Castlevania's music has been one of the most important aspects of the entire franchise. And I've heard that the music is rather, generic orchestral suspense type affair (I guess similar to Lords of Shadow incidentally). If that's the case, that kinda bums me out... actually, that bums me out a hell of a lot. 



Alberto7 said:


> Aw man, just watched the episode where they all introduce themselves. It's a cool aspect of the series, I never knew that's how it went. Also, whenever there's Shinsengumi involved, I have a bit of a nerdgasm.



The overtly cutesy turn off was more towards the Hanmaru series. Trying to watch both Kagetsugi and Hanmaru together was just way too jarring for me. I suppose despite not watching much lately, I'm getting my anime overload fix playing Persona 5 obsessively. 

Like yourself, I'll be sticking with Kegetsugi. Ufotable are always reliably consistent. And of course...



Alberto7 said:


> To cap it off, the ED is by Kalafina. I think I'm sticking with this anime for now.



Sidebar: You have no idea low long I waited for that last gif to materialise.  



Alberto7 said:


> Osu senpai!



To reiterate, Symphony of the Night is one of those games you gotta play before you die. Yes, it invented the Metroidvania genre by aping Super Metroid with a Castlevania pastiche but it did it so damn well. It's still the best Castlevania game to date. Super Castlevania 4 is awesome because it's (arguably) the best of the series where you play a Belmont (largely to the whip mechanics). Aria/Dawn of Sorrow are good too. 

These are also good reminders of those ancient times when Konami were one a respectable company. Those were the days...


----------



## Science_Penguin

Bloody_Inferno said:


> I've yet to see the Castlevania series (it's based on Trevor Belmont's arc so I'll definitely be catching this at some point), but I've heard it's been good reviews across the board. But with the 2 exceptions: one already mentioned being only 4 episodes. The other, the big one: is the music.
> 
> Pre Lords of Shadow series, Castlevania's music has been one of the most important aspects of the entire franchise. And I've heard that the music is rather, generic orchestral suspense type affair (I guess similar to Lords of Shadow incidentally). If that's the case, that kinda bums me out... actually, that bums me out a hell of a lot.



Right?! The cool thing about Castlevania's soundtrack was the way they clearly drew influence from Rock and Metal. Like "if only we had the technology, we'd be using real guitars..." and then Symphony of the Night happened, and they totally did.

You'd think an anime would be the perfect opportunity to put together an over-the-top awesome soundtrack with enough gothy vampire J-Rock to make Versailles blush.


----------



## auntyethel

So, to ask a million-dollar question... anyone have a suggestion for something vaguely similar to Attack on Titan? Used to watch anime more than 10 years ago but fell out of it, recently have been enjoying it again mostly due to AoT. I've seen most of the usual classics, just started watching Claymore which seems decent (just wondering if it'll get more off the ground), but looking for anything potentially similar.

Apologies if this has been asked/answered, searching didn't give me an answer and this thread is rather long


----------



## takotakumi

auntyethel said:


> So, to ask a million-dollar question... anyone have a suggestion for something vaguely similar to Attack on Titan? Used to watch anime more than 10 years ago but fell out of it, recently have been enjoying it again mostly due to AoT. I've seen most of the usual classics, just started watching Claymore which seems decent (just wondering if it'll get more off the ground), but looking for anything potentially similar.
> 
> Apologies if this has been asked/answered, searching didn't give me an answer and this thread is rather long



Kind of similar is kotetsuyo no Kabaneri.
Its a steam-punk samurai era setting where there's "metal zombies" and only way to kill them is by piercing their iron core (something like that)
It reminds me of AoT due to the steam-punkish gear, hordes of enemies, cities inside walls, and the main characters having some sort of "ability" like Eren or other others on AoT. I never got to finish it though :v but yeah it vagely reminded me of that


----------



## Alberto7

auntyethel said:


> So, to ask a million-dollar question... anyone have a suggestion for something vaguely similar to Attack on Titan? Used to watch anime more than 10 years ago but fell out of it, recently have been enjoying it again mostly due to AoT. I've seen most of the usual classics, just started watching Claymore which seems decent (just wondering if it'll get more off the ground), but looking for anything potentially similar.



Good to have you back watching anime! I myself drop out for months at a time, and then inevitably come back to it. Dropped out of it for about 8 years too, during my teens, and came back to it starting my 20s.

There are quite a few anime that resemble Attack on Titan. Both anime that served as inspiration for it, and others that have tried to copy what it did.


First recommendation, even though I have not watched it but hear great things about it, would be *Kōtetsujō no Kabaneri (a.k.a.* _*Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress)*_, which is apparently a straight up copy of AoT's premise, but with zombies instead of titans, and supposedly just as good.
You're already watching _*Claymore*_.
I'd have to also recommend _*Sidonia no Kishi (a.k.a. Knights of Sidonia)*_ which I personally loved. This one is a bit more divisive in that it has heavy use of CGI and can be slightly awkward, but I didn't find it hard to grow past that. It is much like Attack on Titan, but in space, and the enemy is even stranger and more unrelatable than the titans themselves. It's also a Netflix show, so you'll find it there.
You say you've watched most of the classics, so I'll assume you've watched this one. _*Neon Genesis Evangelion*_ (1995), despite being this old, I feel was one of the main inspirations behind Attack on Titan. It can be quite a divisive show, but it is an undeniable pioneer, and is in a genre of its own, I would say. It really should be watched if only just to understand where half of anime comes from.  Personally, I like it perhaps more than I should, given that I've been watching the show since I was about 7 or 8 years old. (Which I guess would explain a lot about me... )



auntyethel said:


> Apologies if this has been asked/answered, searching didn't give me an answer and this thread is rather long



I actually don't think it had been asked before. At least not this directly. And ask away; as one of SSO's resident animu nuts, I'm quite proud of how far this thread has come!


----------



## takotakumi

Alberto7 said:


> I'd have to also recommend _*Sidonia no Kishi (a.k.a. Knights of Sidonia)*_ which I personally loved. This one is a bit more divisive in that it has heavy use of CGI and can be slightly awkward, but I didn't find it hard to grow past that. It is much like Attack on Titan, but in space, and the enemy is even stranger and more unrelatable than the titans themselves. It's also a Netflix show, so you'll find it there.




Man I love the show so much. I kind of hated it was CGI at first but that I easily got past that at how great that show is.
This show served my appetite for a Dark/Mecha series since Evangelion OVAs never resumed...

The same people behind that is doing Blame? The animation looks alooooot similar


----------



## Alberto7

takotakumi said:


> Man I love the show so much. I kind of hated it was CGI at first but that I easily got past that at how great that show is.
> This show served my appetite for a Dark/Mecha series since Evangelion OVAs never resumed...
> 
> The same people behind that is doing Blame? The animation looks alooooot similar



I remember seeing angela live two years ago (the band behind the show's first opening song) right after the second season had been released, and I remember losing my shit when they played Kishin Koshinkyoku. They also covered A Cruel Ange's Thesis (Evangelion's OP) as their encore. I am normally more of a Kalafina guy, but my God that lady could sing, holy shit.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

What Alberto said regarding anime similar to Attack On Titan. 

I guess I'll add God Eater as well. A bit lighter on the intensity but in the same similarity as Koutetsujou no Kanbaneri also happens to be. Blue Gender is another one I'll throw in (for more of the classic 90s flavour). I hear Ajin is also another good recommendation, but I've yet to see it. Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann gets thrown around as similar too, though the goofiness is through the roof to be near complete contrast. Still worth it if you're in the mood.


----------



## Alberto7

^ Hah, funny you should mention Ajin. I'm starting the first episode as I type this. My sister has been raving on and on about it for months, and her recommendations have an extremely good track record with me, so I'm finally giving it a shot.

I keep saying I'll finish God Eater and I never do,  gosh.


----------



## Alberto7

Okay, I'm on episode 3 of Ajin and this shit looks.so.DOPE! It's gotten me hyped from the very first 5 minutes. Also, contrary to what apparently a lot of people think, the CG works SO well here. Character design is amazing, and the Ajin looks badass. Really getting Parasyte: The Maxim vibes off of this so far.

I also found out it's made by Polygon Pictures, who made Knights of Sidonia (which is also another Netflix show, like Ajin). Their CG was alright in Sidonia season 1, it got MUCH better on season 2, and it seems they've made a craft of it with Ajin. Also, this brings me to answer this question:



takotakumi said:


> The same people behind that is doing Blame? The animation looks alooooot similar



Yes, I just looked into Polygon Pictures, and they make Blame! too. Never seen that, though.


----------



## auntyethel

takotakumi said:


> Kind of similar is kotetsuyo no Kabaneri.
> Its a steam-punk samurai era setting where there's "metal zombies" and only way to kill them is by piercing their iron core (something like that)
> It reminds me of AoT due to the steam-punkish gear, hordes of enemies, cities inside walls, and the main characters having some sort of "ability" like Eren or other others on AoT. I never got to finish it though :v but yeah it vagely reminded me of that





Alberto7 said:


> Good to have you back watching anime! I myself drop out for months at a time, and then inevitably come back to it. Dropped out of it for about 8 years too, during my teens, and came back to it starting my 20s.
> 
> There are quite a few anime that resemble Attack on Titan. Both anime that served as inspiration for it, and others that have tried to copy what it did.
> 
> 
> First recommendation, even though I have not watched it but hear great things about it, would be *Kōtetsujō no Kabaneri (a.k.a.* _*Kabaneri of the Iron Fortress)*_, which is apparently a straight up copy of AoT's premise, but with zombies instead of titans, and supposedly just as good.
> You're already watching _*Claymore*_.
> I'd have to also recommend _*Sidonia no Kishi (a.k.a. Knights of Sidonia)*_ which I personally loved. This one is a bit more divisive in that it has heavy use of CGI and can be slightly awkward, but I didn't find it hard to grow past that. It is much like Attack on Titan, but in space, and the enemy is even stranger and more unrelatable than the titans themselves. It's also a Netflix show, so you'll find it there.
> You say you've watched most of the classics, so I'll assume you've watched this one. _*Neon Genesis Evangelion*_ (1995), despite being this old, I feel was one of the main inspirations behind Attack on Titan. It can be quite a divisive show, but it is an undeniable pioneer, and is in a genre of its own, I would say. It really should be watched if only just to understand where half of anime comes from.  Personally, I like it perhaps more than I should, given that I've been watching the show since I was about 7 or 8 years old. (Which I guess would explain a lot about me... )
> 
> 
> 
> I actually don't think it had been asked before. At least not this directly. And ask away; as one of SSO's resident animu nuts, I'm quite proud of how far this thread has come!



Thanks guys!

Yeah, I did see Evangelion, back in the day where the entire show would fit onto one CD, all the episodes being like 50x50 Realplayer files  Still didn't detract from how good it was.

Have actually downloaded Kabaneri, will be what I watch after Claymore (time always being a damn issue). 

Will check out Knights as well, looks like it could be cool. I'm not too phased by CGI like I used to be.



Bloody_Inferno said:


> What Alberto said regarding anime similar to Attack On Titan.
> 
> I guess I'll add God Eater as well. A bit lighter on the intensity but in the same similarity as Koutetsujou no Kanbaneri also happens to be. Blue Gender is another one I'll throw in (for more of the classic 90s flavour). I hear Ajin is also another good recommendation, but I've yet to see it. Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann gets thrown around as similar too, though the goofiness is through the roof to be near complete contrast. Still worth it if you're in the mood.



Thanks, will check all of em out too! Actually saw Gurren Lagann back in the day.


----------



## auntyethel

I'm gonna be Captain Request again! Considering I now have some darker, sci-fi steampunky things to watch... Anything like Samurai Champloo? Something funny without being Ecchi or cutesy, something adventurey and fighty, not too heavy on themes or darkness.


----------



## takotakumi

auntyethel said:


> I'm gonna be Captain Request again! Considering I now have some darker, sci-fi steampunky things to watch... Anything like Samurai Champloo? Something funny without being Ecchi or cutesy, something adventurey and fighty, not too heavy on themes or darkness.



For funny and adventurous Fairy Tail (fucking Happy haha) and last year's Ushio to Tora come in mind. I havent watched fairy tail in ages but I found it funny, but at the same time I don't really watch gag stuff. Both of those shows are adventure/fight with some gag added in between.


----------



## Science_Penguin

auntyethel said:


> Will check out Knights as well, looks like it could be cool. I'm not too phased by CGI like I used to be.



I definitely recommend Knights of Sidonia!

...But, just realise, it's currently suffering from that Firefly problem where they kind of stopped making it before actually finishing the story. I'm crossing my fingers that they'll pick it back up, cause, as good as the Manga is, I didn't bother finishing it just cause the art style makes it a little difficult to follow what's going on.


----------



## auntyethel

You guys are awesome, I now have some serious watching to do


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> Okay, I'm on episode 3 of Ajin and this shit looks.so.DOPE! It's gotten me hyped from the very first 5 minutes. Also, contrary to what apparently a lot of people think, the CG works SO well here. Character design is amazing, and the Ajin looks badass. Really getting Parasyte: The Maxim vibes off of this so far.
> 
> I also found out it's made by Polygon Pictures, who made Knights of Sidonia (which is also another Netflix show, like Ajin). Their CG was alright in Sidonia season 1, it got MUCH better on season 2, and it seems they've made a craft of it with Ajin. Also, this brings me to answer this question:



Well now. I'll have to pry myself out of Persona 5 to check this out then.


----------



## lewis

am I the only one who read the Attack on Titan Manga and hates where it ends up after the first 2 seasons??

absolutely drops of a cliff imo. Becomes utter garbage.
Nothing will top series 1 it seems. 
A shame that the mystery and the questions we were asking early on, were massively let down by the answers we got later on.


----------



## MFB

ohnotheydidn't.jpg


----------



## takotakumi

lewis said:


> am I the only one who read the Attack on Titan Manga and hates where it ends up after the first 2 seasons??
> 
> absolutely drops of a cliff imo. Becomes utter garbage.
> Nothing will top series 1 it seems.
> A shame that the mystery and the questions we were asking early on, were massively let down by the answers we got later on.



I'm mad they did a "whole season" as 12 episodes only. Season 1 was 25ish and I remember the excuse for taking so long for s02 was that there was not enough manga material at the time but its been 3 years with plenty of material to use...
Dunno, there might be a better and real excuse for that but that made me slightly angry hehe


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

takotakumi said:


> I'm mad they did a "whole season" as 12 episodes only. Season 1 was 25ish and I remember the excuse for taking so long for s02 was that there was not enough manga material at the time but its been 3 years with plenty of material to use...
> Dunno, there might be a better and real excuse for that but that made me slightly angry hehe



I've said multiple times in this thread hinting that anime is a slow dying industry and I'm pointing the finger at shorter seasons being the most obvious signs of this. As stated, it's not like AOT has the same issue as a lot of the Shonen Jump anime have (what Game of Thrones is going through now), it's the exact opposite. The manga is well ahead plotwise to warrant season 2 to be a full 25/26 episodes and then some. I was disappointed as well to the short duration, but I can't say I didn't see it coming.


----------



## Alberto7

So, for the 4th year in a row, I went to Otakuthon this last weekend. After a 1-year+ anime hiatus, I've been getting back into it, and I thought that going to the con would get me back into it full swing. While it did do that, it also made me realize how out of touch with the community I am. So many new things I just don't know or cared for. The panels and events they hosted I found to be very average and, save for a couple of exceptions, I was pretty indifferent towards them.

With that said, I had a shitton of fun simply because I went with the right people. The best of it all though, was probably my biggest moment of fangirling since I began watching anime: getting to meet Ayako Kawasumi, voice actress for Saber in the Fate franchise. Her Q&A was fantastic, with her acting out several lines by Saber from the Fate series, including the famous Master contract line and the infamous Excalibur yell. Needless to say, I can't even describe what I was feeling.  Then she hosted an autograph session. It was kind of shitty in that we weren't allowed to take pictures with her, as there were A LOT (like SO MANY) people in line and she wanted to give as many autographs as possible in the time they allotted for her. This very often happens, especially with the Japanese Guests of Honor, with the only two exceptions I remember being Rikiya Koyama (Kiritsugu, Fate/Zero) and Yui Ishikawa (Mikasa, Attack on Titan), who were super chill and actually stayed for much longer than their allotted times.

Regardless, now my Saber figma figurine is signed by both Master and Servant, as I got the base signed by Koyama in 2015 and now by Kawasumi. I couldn't be any happier.









I also pulled the plug on a (relatively) cheap Saber Lily figure I saw. I didn't have any Saber Lilies and I really wanted one, but all the others were out of my budget. She doesn't look half bad for the $50 I paid.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Man I haven't done a full on convention in a damm long time...


----------



## Science_Penguin

Just got done watching Blame! a couple of days ago... Tsutomu Nihei and Polygon Pictures is always a winning combo apparently- would love to see what they could do with Biomega. 

It's interesting the way they managed to tell an engaging story in what is a distinctly alien future world and yet explain so little of its oddities. Without having read the manga there was a lot I was left to just assume, but it was easy enough to grasp that it didn't detract from the overall story. And, of course, the action was awesome.


----------



## NotDonVito

Oraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraora


----------



## wat

I think I've been away from this thread for 2 years or more. This thread pretty much got me going on my anime watching career. 

I'm now pretty obsessed with Berserk. Watched the movies first, then the 2016-17 anime (yikes), then the 90's anime. BTW, for anyone who wants to watch the 90's Berserk there is a really good super-cut of it on YouTube. It's cut into 2 hour segments with all the intros and outros edited out. 

Now I'm planning to start the berserk manga. 




Science_Penguin said:


> Just got done watching Blame! a couple of days ago... Tsutomu Nihei and Polygon Pictures is always a winning combo apparently- would love to see what they could do with Biomega.
> 
> It's interesting the way they managed to tell an engaging story in what is a distinctly alien future world and yet explain so little of its oddities. Without having read the manga there was a lot I was left to just assume, but it was easy enough to grasp that it didn't detract from the overall story. And, of course, the action was awesome.




I've been interested in Blame! For some time after reading & watching Knights of Sidonia and hearing that it and Blame shared a lot of themes and were possibly in the same universe.

I liked the movie a lot - it was short on character development but that's expected from a movie adaptation and it made me really wanna read the manga.


----------



## takotakumi

wat said:


> I've been interested in Blame! For some time after reading & watching Knights of Sidonia and hearing that it and Blame shared a lot of themes and were possibly in the same universe.
> 
> I liked the movie a lot - it was short on character development but that's expected from a movie adaptation and it made me really wanna read the manga.



That'd be amazing. I was just talking to my friend yesterday of how similar the setting and plot are from both series and also the fact that the same studio made both-wouldn't be surprised if people confused them to be the same haha 
I neeeed a new season of sidonia aghhh

BTW did Code Geass ever finish the OVAs?
Last one I saw was the 3rd one I believe.


----------



## takotakumi

Wait nvm just found out the OVAs have been finished since 2016 hahah im so behind

AND JUST FOUND OUT ABOUT AN UPCOMING S03 JFC diofhdifhiwhIHDIahisguwgeuho3hehghdiggaugsuugubbxjbjdsjmmsq903992u


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Bedridden sick atm, so can't work on music, nor play Persona 5. We can now officially count Persona 5 as an anime too. 

So I'd thought I'd do a composer based post. Except this will be shorter, and it'll be quite the downer actually...

Let's talk Kenji Yamamoto. (yep, we're going there... )

Yamamoto has been scoring all sorts of anime and tokusatsu shows since the 80s, but his main bread and butter have been the Dragon Ball series. Anime, games, the whole gamut. That is until Dragon Ball Z Kai in 2011 that is. 

To cut to the chase, all of Yamamoto's music has been wiped out of anime's existence due to a scandal that he had been stealing music and using them as his own for almost his entire career. 

Full article (and some sample comparisons) here:

http://www.kanzenshuu.com/features/kenji-yamamoto-retrospective/

Since the scandal, Yamamoto's been allegedly dismissed from Toei and activity has been unknown since. 

Yeah, I'm late to the party talking about this, but eh, what the hell. 

It's easy to jump at the bandwagon of indignation, especially in this day and age. And yeah, a lot of those samples were straight up theft so the indignation is well deserved. But then again, I loved that Cell theme in Super Butoden 2, and I love Pink Floyd too. Hell, I'll willingly admit that I've taken some heavy influence from his early works. 

I guess what I'm getting at is the crux of the matter being the different view of Asian copyright. Yep, also another Japanese culture based wall of text post. 


With Yamamoto's scandal being the martyr result of globalisation, it's not like this is the sort of taboo that Japan, or Asia by the matter have been doing for years. Remember Rob Miles' Children? I certainly didn't... well at least never cared for it, but now can't unhear it every time I play Garou: Mark Of The Wolves.. There's that Fist Of The North Star game Ken's Rage that really just a glorified Killswitch Engage worship. God Hand borrowing heavily to the point of straight up stealing from one of the most iconic TV theme songs of all time. The Guilty Gear series is one of the most obvious examples, thought it can be argued that the series as a whole is one big love letter/homage to all things Heavy Metal, so that sort of gets away with it. 

Outside Japan, it's even more rampant. Hong Kong has many examples but this one is still my favorite:



Some random movie using Street Fighter Characters without permission from Capcom.  And yes that's Andy freaking Lau as Vega.  

I suppose you could add Bollywood action movies, where they're slowly but surely becoming more anime-esque as time goes on. Though Bollywood isn't really my forte and I've only seen one of the Dhoom movies (which was awesome). 

Mind you this barely scratching the surface...

I guess my point is, with globalisation making the world smaller, do we really begrudge Kenji Yamamoto for the plagiarism, especially with his cultural history? And if so, why this decade? I totally understand that I'd be upset if someone straight up stole my work, but with nothing new under the sun and almost all great/original music began from artists borrowing heavily from their influences. Hell, I suppose anime wouldn't exist if Osamu Tezuka wasn't such a Disney fanboy after all. Wherever we draw the line, it's not going to be a fine one, but a wide blur. 

I'm curious what you guys think of it all.

Ok, meds are kicking in, I'll stop now...


----------



## NotDonVito




----------



## Bloody_Inferno

https://www.jrocknews.com/2017/09/s...izo-at-life-size-gundam-special-ceremony.html
















A Hiroyuki Sawano concert, joined by Sugizo at the foot of a life size transforming Gundam Unicorn, playing music from said anime may just be the coolest thing ever.


----------



## couverdure

Hiroyuki Sawano is an amazing composer, and his soundtracks are always top notch. Most of his tracks can end up sounding the same because he follows the "loud orchestra + electronics" formula but a lot of his deep cuts are outstanding. My favorite soundtracks from him have to be Kill la Kill and Re:CREATORS. I also like his [nZk] vocal albums (the second one, or third if you count the Aimer collab album, just came out last week) since he also works well as a pop/rock producer.

That performance with Sugizo in front of the Gundam statue is awesome, in which he performed Next 2 U and Into The Sky (the ED and OP from Gundam Unicorn RE0096, both are also in the new [nZk] album) as well as a new song titled Cage.


----------



## ite89

Any Neon Genesis Evangelion fans out there! Saw it when I was around 11 and I've been watching NGE, EoE with Rebuilds periodically. Hit me up, I just wanna meet more people into ERG and NGE ... if that makes any sense haha.


----------



## Tech Wrath

It has been months since Kimi No Na Wa ("Your name" I think is the English name?) came out, yet it's still one of my favorite anime/movies of all time. 
Incredible, emotional, beautiful, tragic, etc. I think it has everything you could ever ask for.


----------



## takotakumi

Tech Wrath said:


> It has been months since Kimi No Na Wa ("Your name" I think is the English name?) came out, yet it's still one of my favorite anime/movies of all time.
> Incredible, emotional, beautiful, tragic, etc. I think it has everything you could ever ask for.


Been wanting to check that one out for a while, thanks for reminding me.

Also, found it kind of funny reading that from "Tech Wrath" haha 
Who said techdeth fans can't have feelings DD


----------



## NotDonVito




----------



## Ralyks

Started watching Person 4: The Golden Animation... Then stopped after 2 episodes because I realized I'm not far in the actual game at all...

That, and I got the complete Cowboy Bebop on blu-ray off of eBay... And for no reason, the guy also sent me the complete Full Metal Alchemist on blu-ray. Well, I'm not going to say no to free anime...


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Well this just straight up sucks.

http://comicbook.com/anime/2017/11/21/rurouni-kenshin-nobuhiro-watsuki-sex-crime-arrested-anime/

The guy responsible for one of my favorite manga/anime series of all time falls hard from grace. Utterly disappointed in Watsuki, bloody hell.


----------



## Alberto7

^ My sister told me about this the day before you posted it, and I was so sad. Kinda hard now to watch the anime and/or read the manga, or even listen to the wonderful OST, without being reminded of that. It really sucks.


----------



## Michikawa

My personal favourite of all time is the Rurouni Kenshin OVA which was published as Samurai X in the western world. The art, the story, the music, just perfect. Other favourites include Lone Wolf and the Cub, Haibane Renmei and RahXephon.


----------



## KnightBrolaire

saw this and lol'd.


----------



## NotDonVito

kino 






also i've been watching Outlaw Star it's really good


----------



## takotakumi

What are some of the best ongoing/finished shows from this year?
Haven't seen any anime probably since AoT this year haha
TV series took a toll on me


----------



## couverdure

takotakumi said:


> What are some of the best ongoing/finished shows from this year?
> Haven't seen any anime probably since AoT this year haha
> TV series took a toll on me


I'd give Re:CREATORS a shot. It's an original anime by Rei Hiroe (Black Lagoon) and Ei Aoki (Fate/Zero), about a mysterious girl bringing various fictional characters to the real world as a part of her plan to destroy the world due to the death of her creator.

The premise is pretty unique and full of potential, but personally I found the ending to be disappointing though quite a lot of people liked it, so it's up to you to decide if you'd like it or not.

The soundtrack is done by Hiroyuki Sawano (who also did the soundtracks for Attack on Titan and a lot of anime) and it's one of the highest points of the series IMO.


----------



## pastanator

Looks like Dragon Ball Super is ending with episode 131 on March 25th. Some series from like the sixties called Kitaro is coming back on April 1st and taking Super's 9AM timeslot. One of the animators tweeted that episode 126 was going to be his last time as an animation director. 

This sucks. I've been excited to see the new episodes every Saturday night since I caught up during the Future Trunks/Goku Black arc.


----------



## NotDonVito

That sucks. Doesn't even feel like it's been on for very long. I think the first 2 arcs being movie recaps incapacitates this feeling. I hope the last arc has something to do with U6(if it gets wished back by Vegeta Azul). He still has to go to Sadala.



Ginyu Force OVA is what I really want though.


----------



## pastanator

NotDonVito said:


> That sucks. Doesn't even feel like it's been on for very long. I think the first 2 arcs being movie recaps incapacitates this feeling. I hope the last arc has something to do with U6(if it gets wished back by Vegeta Azul). He still has to go to Sadala.
> 
> 
> 
> Ginyu Force OVA is what I really want though.




Tournament of Power is the last arc. The series is apparently over in eight episodes. My thing is this seems really really abrupt. It’s like in November Akira Toriyama said he’s enjoying it and he has plenty of ideas, in December they’re like “new dragonball movie in 2018 get excited” and then in January it’s “dbs is ending in March and we don’t know if it’s coming back”

Like how can you introduce an entire multiverse full of cool characters just to not do anything with them?


----------



## NotDonVito

I guess they just weren't making sales goals for merch and things like that. I mean when I was a kid, Wal-Mart had a huge Dragonball Z section in the toys, but now there's like one Beerus figure at Walgreens, and what kid is gonna want or even know who the heck that is. I think the show coming on at a later time slot means they were marketing more towards nostalgic adults. When I went to see Resurrection of F there was only one kid with his mom in the theater. Kids make a huge difference in the success of any shonen, since they are supposed to be the primary demographic.

I'm not sure about Japan, but I feel the adult otaku probably spend more on those seasonal moe shows.


----------



## pastanator

As far as i can tell from looking into the DBZ reddit and this one guy who translates a bunch of Dragonball stuff on twitter Herms98 its just because the series that's replacing it, Kitaro, is a huge part of Japanese culture(like its their version of the muppets or mickey mouse) and DBS's 9 AM time slot is the same time as the one Kitaro's always had. Like that timeslot's always been either Dragonball or Kitaro except when it was Toriko. All FujiTV is saying is that "its not like the franchise is over" and Totoyaro who does the manga said he's not allowed to say anything.


----------



## Alberto7

Aaaww man, that would suck BIG time if they ended it just like that. From what I've read, it's not a cancellation per se, just a time slot replacement, and they haven't allotted a new one yet for DBS. No official word of a cancellation has surfaced, so I still have hopes.

As far as current Dragon Ball merch sales go, action figures and the like don't have much of a market anymore, I don't think. At least not anywhere near what they did in the 90's and early 2000's. From what I see, parents these days give their children more interactive toys, what with micro-computers taking over the world and what not.

That said, I am still enjoying DBS immensely (and now more than ever), and I still look forward to every Sunday.

-------------------------------

So, let's talk about *Devilman: Crybaby*. The thumbnail on Netflix caught my eye for a few days every time I opened it to watch Friends while I cooked or cleaned the kitchen. (Yes, I basically have Friends on repeat in the background at any given time.) I eventually caved, and I was not disappointed. Holy shit was it weird and out there, but absolutely epic. And I mean epic in the whole sense of the word. Weird art, questionable and hard-to-digest content, mutilated bodies and blood everywhere, awesome and weird score, donkey-moan masturbation scenes... and it's a Netflix exclusive. Reminds me of the good ol' times when MTV showed the Aeon Flux cartoon and, once that was done, I switched the channel to Locomotion/Animax to watch Ghost in the Shell followed by Evangelion. I hope Netflix can manage to make stuff like this a bit more commonplace in an era when anime, while not bad to my tastes, has become somewhat same-y.



-------------------------------

How about *Godzilla: Planet of the Monsters*? Came out a couple of days ago on Netflix, too. Produced by Toho and animated by Polygon Pictures (same people who did Knights of Sidonia and Ajin.) It was fuckin' awesome, I thought. The atmosphere and mood of the movie goes well in line with what little I know of the Godzilla universe. It was basically one giant action scene, and the twist at the end is motherspankin' humongous. (Literally.) I really, really enjoyed that one.



-------------------------------

And now the biggie... the one I spent literal years waiting for. The reason I tried (and succeeded) to make my girlfriend fall in love with Fate/Zero and Fate/Stay Night: Unlimited Blade Works before it came out: the first *Heaven's Feel* movie. We went to watch it together last night at the cinema. It was friggin' bananas. I thought it was an AWESOME adaptation of the first portion of that route. Of course, it won't make sense unless the viewer has already watched AT LEAST Unlimited Blade Works. It just dives right in. If you can get past that, it was fantastic. Everything I was expecting from ufotable. My girlfriend got so into it she was literally rocking back and forth and screaming at every thing that made a loud noise.


----------



## MFB

Ahhhh, so glad someone watched both Devilman and Godzilla, because they're both on my to watch list; Devilman gets the top spot since I saw that film WAY too early, and it made me realize how great anime can be. Friggin, anime titties, limbs getting ripped off, blood everywhere, swearing, it was awesome; and followed up with Berserk, which didnt help at all


----------



## Alberto7

Hahaha yeah, Devilman just took all the bad cliches anime gets criticized for by mean girls, high school jocks, and rabidly conservative parents, and put them all together with a sign that says "FUCK YOU TOO" right next to it, then actually came out the other side looking all cool and sleek.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

It's 3am here, but after binging through the first 5 episodes of DEVILMAN Crybaby, I just can't help myself. A pleasant surprise and my new crowning exhibit whenever I want to yell the phrase "THIS IS HOW YOU DO A REMAKE!"

I'm quite familiar with most of the incarnations of the property, the original manga, the extremely watered down OVA and anime series (the latter moreso to be shown to kids), and that terrible live action movie, and that bizarre 1973 crossover film with Mazinger Z (look it up). But I had no idea this was made let alone a Netflix exclusive of all things. But cheers Alberto for the heads up. 



Alberto7 said:


> Hahaha yeah, Devilman just took all the bad cliches anime gets criticized for by mean girls, high school jocks, and rabidly conservative parents, and put them all together with a sign that says "FUCK YOU TOO" right next to it, then actually came out the other side looking all cool and sleek.



Before I blather on, I have to address this by bringing up Go Nagai. The guy is up there with Osamu Tezuka as an anime godfather as far as I and lot of fans are concerned. He invented the giant robots piloted by humans genre with Mazinger Z, but more infamously, he also was the beginning of the erotic and sexual humor themes as well as graphic violence in manga with Harenchi Gakuen/Shameless School. So anyone in this thread who discovered anime as an adult alternative to Saturday morning cartoons or kids anime (me being one of them), we all have Nagai to thank for that.  It's also no wonder he's highly reverend by other eccentrics like Hideaki Anno, Suda 51 and Gen Urobuchi among others. 

Anyway, what the makers of Crybaby have done was embrace all of that and bring it to a new generation in the same vein as how a lot of us discovered the mature anime as an alterantive. That took a large pair cast iron balls an a ton of polish, because this is the most faithful incarnation to the manga. The gore, ultra violence explicit sex and masturbation, all brought intact. Though there's some big changes, a lot of them due to the modern setting. Smartphones, GPS, USBs and the liberal freestyle rap are all used in the narrative.

The simplicity of the animation works here, and it felt refreshing they went with this more surreal style. It makes all the different scenes with purpose (albeit jarring for those not familiar with the franchise, and definitely for newcomers who stumbled into this). The devils/demons look like Saturday morning renditions of Dark Souls/Bloodborne bosses with a neon twist, and I quite liked that. The soundtrack is fantastic, carrying the neon gothic theme with the bouncy Persona-esque moments of the daytime and school scenes. And I couldn't wipe the smile off my face when a remix of the original Devilman No Uta started playing. 

What I took out of DEVILMAN Crybaby is that it's made with a lot of love of the source material, but without over smothering it to allow some new changes and concepts. It's a remake by anime fans, for anime fans, and done right. I'm sure Crybaby will win a legion of new fans to the medium.

...or at least get completely grossed out from everything.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

...and finished off the last 5 episodes of DEVILMAN Crybaby. Yep, everything I posted above still stands. 

As the episodes roll on, it became more apparent to me that this adaptation really was a labor of love from anime fans to present to anime fans. The original theme song I mentioned earlier (hearing it the second time was a serious emotional punch in the gut, well done ), the meta insertion of Devilman manga/anime ephemera in the Makimura household (the TV series exists in this universe), the 'blink and you'll miss' implication of Devilman Lady's existence. It's the sort of subtle fanservice that's done well that I haven't seen since Street Fighter Assassin's Fist. 

I know there's a danger for those who can be 'too in love' with the source material to remake it and falling short (Warcraft movie), but in this case I thought the big changes worked better (see said theme song above). Some in particular are story based and without wishing to spoil, works better from a narrative perspective. And I certainly don't miss the sideburns.  

If there is a flaw for the new series, it's maybe for guys like me who are well familiar with the 40 year old property: we know what's going to happen, so elements of surprises are reduced to mostly how the reboot will approach it, it takes away from the immersion at times. And it does slow down around the middle when it becomes the "monster of the week" song and dance routine, breaking the flow. But you can't really begrudge Crybaby when it's original story was one of the pioneers that invented that trope. And the final act is still as poignant as it was in the manga. It still preoccupies my head and it'll probably be for a while, just as the original did. 

Two posts worth of TL/DR: Everyone in this thread should see DEVILMAN Crybaby.


----------



## ah_graylensman

Alberto7 said:


> How about *Godzilla: Planet of the Monsters*? Came out a couple of days ago on Netflix, too. Produced by Toho and animated by Polygon Pictures (same people who did Knights of Sidonia and Ajin.) It was fuckin' awesome, I thought. The atmosphere and mood of the movie goes well in line with what little I know of the Godzilla universe. It was basically one giant action scene, and the twist at the end is motherspankin' humongous. (Literally.) I really, really enjoyed that one.




I watched this over the weekend and thought it was just OK. It seemed like a standard sci-fi anime pilot with a global search-and-replace of "aliens" with "Godzilla". The reveal at the end is pretty good though, and their design for the Big G is an interesting combination of the Legendary/Monsterverse and Shin designs.


----------



## takotakumi

Started watching Devilman Crybaby yesterday and I'm already on Ep 7 hehe its sooo good!
Question to the people who watched the originals...was it always this etchi? haha
I had no idea it was so "adult" themed, I was expecting a much different tone but I love how dark and crazy this is.


----------



## KnightBrolaire

starting up on Saint Seiya and Ronin Warriors. Haven't watched either since I was a kid and it was the lame english dubbed/censored versions, so it should be fun to see the original versions.


----------



## MFB

Damn it man, why you gotta make me wanna watch Robin Warriors when I was about to start Devilman? That ain't right.


----------



## MFB

Damn it man, why you gotta make me wanna watch Robin Warriors when I was about to start Devilman? That ain't right.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

takotakumi said:


> Started watching Devilman Crybaby yesterday and I'm already on Ep 7 hehe its sooo good!
> Question to the people who watched the originals...was it always this etchi? haha
> I had no idea it was so "adult" themed, I was expecting a much different tone but I love how dark and crazy this is.



Crybaby is so far the most complete animated version that's true to the source material. I chose those words carefully, as the OVA was also true with the tragic theme but was also incomplete (it ends inconclusively on the Silene arc) and cuts down on the sex, but keeps the violence intact. The old anime TV series was heavily watered down and rewritten for the sole purpose of being a TV show for kids, and done so much that's more of a separate story in itself. Hell Ryo Asuka is completely not present in the TV series, and his role was replaced with a new character.

I more or less said that Crybaby takes the old manga and amps it up to ridiculous levels to cater for the Red Bull generation. Considering that the manga was shocking for the 70s, it makes sense to try and go for that shock gusto vibe for today.


----------



## takotakumi

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Crybaby is so far the most complete animated version that's true to the source material. I chose those words carefully, as the OVA was also true with the tragic theme but was also incomplete (it ends inconclusively on the Silene arc) and cuts down on the sex, but keeps the violence intact. The old anime TV series was heavily watered down and rewritten for the sole purpose of being a TV show for kids, and done so much that's more of a separate story in itself. Hell Ryo Asuka is completely not present in the TV series, and his role was replaced with a new character.
> 
> I more or less said that Crybaby takes the old manga and amps it up to ridiculous levels to cater for the Red Bull generation. Considering that the manga was shocking for the 70s, it makes sense to try and go for that shock gusto vibe for today.


Wow that is very interesting. Thanks for the info!
Crazy how it went from the kid tv show (which is on the tv on the series too haha) to this madness


----------



## KnightBrolaire

Changed my mind, gonna watch Juni Taisen: Zodiac War first and then Ronin Warriors. Saint Seiya can wait.


----------



## takotakumi

Fuck the ending of Devilman     
Ep 9 will forever haunt me


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

takotakumi said:


> Fuck the ending of Devilman
> Ep 9 will forever haunt me



Now imagine that coming out in the 70s.


Spoiler



Aside from a few changes, like the fate of Taro and his parents (which hurts more here), it's a note for note recreation of the manga, Miki's head on a pike and all.



Now while I hype myself up for Fate: Heaven's Feel, back on the Kalafina marathon (10 year anniversary) and about to start Fate/Apocrypha.


----------



## NotDonVito

Tried watching the first two episodes of Yuru Camp, but I'm already bored of it.


----------



## Alberto7

ah_graylensman said:


> I watched this over the weekend and thought it was just OK. It seemed like a standard sci-fi anime pilot with a global search-and-replace of "aliens" with "Godzilla". The reveal at the end is pretty good though, and their design for the Big G is an interesting combination of the Legendary/Monsterverse and Shin designs.



I didn't think it was very original, or smart, deep, or anything like that. It was just a super fun movie to watch. I thought the action and suspense were very well done. I am also a fan of they way Legendary presented its rendition of the King of Monsters, and this movie did it in much the same way, but from another angle. I had a ton of fun watching it and I'm probably gonna watch it again soon.



takotakumi said:


> Fuck the ending of Devilman
> Ep 9 will forever haunt me



Yeah, that shit was tough... :/ I have never been one to find any anime to graphic to stomach comfortably, (unlike some live-action stuff which I have a tough time sitting through) but Devilman was legitimately hard to watch without wanting to look away in horror, especially episode 9. With that said, I LOVED that they had the balls to do something like that, (and, in regards to what Bloody_Inferno said, I can't fathom something like that in the 70's) something that barely any other anime out there has the guts to do, and especially not with such a graphic display and in a way that made everything feel so bleak and hopeless; I LOVED the fact that there's an anime out there that is capable of making me feel something like that. I also rreeaaaally liked the way episode 10 ended. 



Bloody_Inferno said:


> Now while I hype myself up for Fate: Heaven's Feel, back on the Kalafina marathon (10 year anniversary) and about to start Fate/Apocrypha.



Aaaahhh Kalafina marathon. I need to indulge them more. I haven't had the patience to sit down and listen to them in quite a while, but a part of me really misses them. I watched the first season of Fate/Apocrypha on Netflix, and it was a lot of fun. Not quite up to par with my usual fix of Fate, obviously, but it's certainly satisfying as a fan of the franchise that something like that gets made and that it doesn't suck.

Heaven's Feel on the other hand... as someone who went nuts playing the visual novel, that movie delivered everything that I wanted, and, if their precedent is to go by, I am sure that the next two movies will be even better. At this point, I trust ufotable blindly. Time and again I've had ridiculous expectations of them regarding the Fate universe, and every single time they've surpassed them.


----------



## myrtorp

After not watching any anime for a long while I watched KonoSuba. I quite enjoy shorter animes like that. 
Now im watching "Hai to Gensou no Grimgar" Which sorta has the same theme (somehow ending up in a MMO kinda thing) But this one is alot less jokes and more feels.


----------



## KnightBrolaire

Juni Taisen sucked. The fight scenes were good and some of the characters had interesting back stories, but the ending is so anticlimactic and drawn out, even for a 12 episode series.
Guess I'll check out devilman crybaby


----------



## Vyn

So I watched Gurren Lagann for the first time over the last few days (yeah, 11 years late to the party haha). So over the top, so ridiculous but so well executed. Pretty sure I cried at the death of every major character, the feels!


----------



## KnightBrolaire

holy fuck devilman is awesome. I love the art style. Some of the shots they do are just stunning and of course the gore/copious sex is well executed. Some of the demon designs look like they could have been lifted from Berserk or some japanese HR Giger esque manga. Between this and Castlevania netflix is seriously kicking ass in the anime department.


----------



## takotakumi

Vyn said:


> So I watched Gurren Lagann for the first time over the last few days (yeah, 11 years late to the party haha). So over the top, so ridiculous but so well executed. Pretty sure I cried at the death of every major character, the feels!


There is a new anime from Trigger called Darling in the Franxx that looks awesome! So far they have released like 2 or 3 eps but from what I saw it looks gewddd


----------



## Vyn

takotakumi said:


> There is a new anime from Trigger called Darling in the Franxx that looks awesome! So far they have released like 2 or 3 eps but from what I saw it looks gewddd



I've been watching Darling in the Franxx, it's pretty good. Huge EVA undertones but EVA is one of my favourites so no complaints at all!


----------



## NotDonVito

Gotta love thrift store randomness. Now I just need a VCR.


----------



## NotDonVito

trying to learn this on guitar, it's a tough one if you don't know finger picking. also fuck photobucket, it was just a picture of some japanese language cardcaptor vhs i bought.


----------



## MFB

Watched two episodes of Devilman: Crybaby, and I honestly couldn't care about it because the god damn animation feels so fucking lazy and cheap that it's breaking my ability to be immersed and I keep going "why couldn't they just budget for better quality?" My first experience with Devilman was the OVA's and those things still look great (and just ARE great), but this is something else.

Guess I'll just cut my loses and call it quits since I know it's not going to get better or anything, that's just the style of it for the series


----------



## KnightBrolaire

Wow, Ronin Warriors does not hold up to my memory of it. The fight scenes are still good but god it's so lame overall. I guess when I was little I had a better tolerance for super cheesy shit.


----------



## MFB

KnightBrolaire said:


> Wow, Ronin Warriors does not hold up to my memory of it. The fight scenes are still good but god it's so lame overall. I guess when I was little I had a better tolerance for super cheesy shit.



Guess that makes two series I can skip over


----------



## Vyn

Okay, so Darling in the FRANNX has a fucking terrible story but is pretty and the latest episode appealed to my bleeding weeb heart. Yes, there has been wine involved. No, I don't feel any shame. Yes, I will feel ashamed in the morning.


----------



## KnightBrolaire

Starting up Tokyo Ghoul. I've heard it's pretty good


----------



## Vyn

KnightBrolaire said:


> Starting up Tokyo Ghoul. I've heard it's pretty good



Tokyo Ghoul is awesome. If you like manga, read the manga as well, it's even better and more twisted.


----------



## couverdure

I just finished watching B: The Beginning today, it's a new original mystery/supernatural/action anime and it's really good. All episodes are on Netflix if you want to watch it.

Marty Friedman and the vocalist of Man With A Mission did the ending theme and it's on the vocal album that's based on the anime in which Marty's featured on every song, though the rest of the songs weren't used in the anime sadly.


----------



## Alberto7

couverdure said:


> I just finished watching B: The Beginning today, it's a new original mystery/supernatural/action anime and it's really good. All episodes are on Netflix if you want to watch it.
> 
> Marty Friedman and the vocalist of Man With A Mission did the ending theme and it's on the vocal album that's based on the anime in which Marty's featured on every song, though the rest of the songs weren't used in the anime sadly.



Watched the first couple episodes a few days ago and thought it was pretty dope, though it didn't exactly strike me as the kind of anime that will live up to its full potential (which it has a lot of), but I hope to be wrong.

And yes, one of the main reasons it caught my eye (or my ears, rather) was the awesome music. The ED music is super freaking awesome, and now that I see Marty Friedman was involved I understand why some of those guitar riffs and vocal lines are so sexy! I'm gonna keep watching whenever I have a bit of time!


----------



## Alberto7

Alberto7 said:


> Watched the first couple episodes a few days ago and thought it was pretty dope, though *it didn't exactly strike me as the kind of anime that will live up to its full potential (which it has a lot of), but I hope to be wrong.*



Aaaannndd I was NOT wrong.

Just finished the anime. It is very entertaining, but it was quite lackluster. It felt contrived and a bit silly at times. Not to mention they could have expanded the lore on this SO much, but they just didn't. Even the setting felt sort of small, like the only thing that existed in the world were the characters, and thus there didn't seem to be any sort of urgency about the conflicts, other than hoping the character you liked didn't get beat.

With that said, it was still enjoyable. Fights are cool, character designs are pretty dope (although giving swords for hands to literal gods as their only weapons felt a bit silly), the detective work was cool at times, and a couple of the characters were genuinely interesting, and I wish their development had been just a tad more effective. That, and it never made me feel bored at all, and I kept me hooked all along. A second season is very much hinted at at the very end, so I'll be looking forward to watching it.

A show that felt quite similar to this one but that I find was done A LOT better was _Ajin_, which is also on Netflix.

*TL;DR:* 6.5/10. Plot and character development were rushed but it was still enjoyable. Go watch Ajin.


----------



## M3CHK1LLA

just finished watching tales from earthsea. its rated very low compared to other ghibili films, but i enjoyed it.

gonna check out porko rosso next...


----------



## KnightBrolaire

M3CHK1LLA said:


> just finished watching tales from earthsea. its rated very low compared to other ghibili films, but i enjoyed it.
> 
> gonna check out porko rosso next...


porco rosso is awesome. Not as good as say Howl's moving castle or Princess Mononoke or Nausicaa, but still really good imo.


----------



## KnightBrolaire

Checking out GTO (great teacher Onizuka). It's pretty damn funny/pervy


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

KnightBrolaire said:


> Checking out GTO (great teacher Onizuka). It's pretty damn funny/pervy



GTO is amazing, one of my favorite anime series of all time. I kinda wished the anime continued on like the manga did as the story escalates further into utter bedlam.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Ok I've been a bit distant with anime lately, but April 7 is the premier of Persona 5 The Animation so my sights are in that.


----------



## Alberto7

Just finished watching the Dragon Ball Super finale... man, I am honestly kind of surprised at how good the ending was considering two episodes ago it seemed to have no ending in sight and impossible to close in just a couple episodes. It was a bit predictable, granted, but oh so satisfying. It even managed to tug some seriously nostalgic strings. It gave Zen-Oh's character purpose and even had a subtle twist that I really liked regarding Frieza. I can't wait for the movie in December now, and really wanna see the show come back! There's so much more in the DB universe that could be explored.

Now I'm gonna go play the living f*ck out of Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2.


----------



## NotDonVito

Alberto7 said:


> Just finished watching the Dragon Ball Super finale... man, I am honestly kind of surprised at how good the ending was considering two episodes ago it seemed to have no ending in sight and impossible to close in just a couple episodes. It was a bit predictable, granted, but oh so satisfying. It even managed to tug some seriously nostalgic strings. It gave Zen-Oh's character purpose and even had a subtle twist that I really liked regarding Frieza. I can't wait for the movie in December now, and really wanna see the show come back! There's so much more in the DB universe that could be explored.
> 
> Now I'm gonna go play the living f*ck out of Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2.


Oh yeah DB was awesome, I'm really sad it's over for now. But I have to ask, did you see the new FLCL? It was on TV here last weekend as an april fools, but someone's got to have it online.


----------



## Alberto7

^ I haven't! I didn't even know it had already aired! I'd be curious to watch it, but I'm also approaching it like I'd approach a dinosaur turd: with some disgust but with more disbelief, because holy shit, real dinosaur poop!


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

So I saw the first episode of Persona 5: The Animation. Like Persona 4, it doesn't miss a beat in recreating the game's stylistic aesthetic, and trims down to it's bare essentials. That's a godsend for anyone pressed for time thinking the game is too long (it is, but still worth it). Fans of the game will obviously watch this, but for everybody else, I still recommend playing the game because it's awesome as hell.

On a sad note:

https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo...io-ghibli-co-founder-isao-takahata-dies-at-82

 That hurt as much as watching Grave Of The Fireflies itself. It's like Satoru Iwata's passing all over again.


----------



## NotDonVito

Alberto7 said:


> ^ I haven't! I didn't even know it had already aired! I'd be curious to watch it, but I'm also approaching it like I'd approach a dinosaur turd: with some disgust but with more disbelief, because holy shit, real dinosaur poop!


That's an interesting analogy 

The only way I can describe it, the scenes with Haruko feel like FLCL, and the rest kind of feels like a Kyoani show. This episode was actually from season 3 though, and the previews for season 2 look a lot different.


----------



## pastanator

i really liked that first episode of new flcl(its on kissanime btw i dunno if its anywhere legally) but i really need to go back and watch season 1 again cause buds i was watching it with were picking up on every little thing and i had basically forgotten what was up. season two starts on adult swim in june and i saw someone say season 3 will be in september but i havent seen any announcements about that.

and yea the dbs ending was great. im a few chapters behind with the manga but im sure toyotaros gonna do it real good like hes done the rest of the manga real good


----------



## M3CHK1LLA

grave of the fireflies was great. ...but very sad. it was the first ghibli film i saw. it was on a list of the top 100 war movies of all time on the history channel i believe. it wss in the top 20.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

In addition to Persona 5, I've also started watching Poputepipikku/Pop Team Epic. After seeing one episode all I can say is....

...*Do not look up the synopsis and go see it yourself. *This series is best served cold and without any prior knowledge or any expectations. Then make up your own mind, because I sure as hell won't be spoiling anything.



Spoiler



Also during viewing, if you think that the show itself is actively punishing you for all the things you love about anime and pop culture, then you may be right. And I do appreciate the series for that.


----------



## Vyn

Is anyone watching Steins Gate 0 at the moment? Holy crap. Show of the season IMO


----------



## Kaura

Vyn said:


> Is anyone watching Steins Gate 0 at the moment? Holy crap. Show of the season IMO



Wutwutwut? New Steins;Gate? Time to stock some Dr Pepper and start watching.


----------



## Vyn

Kaura said:


> Wutwutwut? New Steins;Gate? Time to stock some Dr Pepper and start watching.



And tissues. Get tissues. You'll fucking need them. Shit isn't any less brutal.


----------



## takotakumi

Vyn said:


> Is anyone watching Steins Gate 0 at the moment? Holy crap. Show of the season IMO


I watched the 1st episode and then waited a bit for more eps to get out...glad to hear this season will be good


----------



## KnightBrolaire

I got distracted and started up Grappler Baki again. God I love it. It's so ridiculous.
Probably going to start watching Yu Yu Hakusho again too. I loved that show when I was younger and always wanted to check out the unedited versions.


----------



## wat

Finally my dream of having someone to watch the Fate series with (so I can explain as we go) has come true, and we'll finish up just in time to catch a screening of Heaven's Feel part 1 at a nearby theater. Can't fucking wait.


----------



## NotDonVito

I DO NOT like FLCL Progressive so far. That is all...


----------



## M3CHK1LLA

just finished watching attach on titan l movie...cant wait to see the second one.

prob get some hate, but i enjoyed it lol. im gonna go ahead and watch the anime soon


----------



## Vyn

So... Anyone apart from me still watching Darling in the Franxx? Err... Episode 20. What. The. Fuck.


----------



## couverdure

Vyn said:


> So... Anyone apart from me still watching Darling in the Franxx? Err... Episode 20. What. The. Fuck.


----------



## Vyn

couverdure said:


>



Trigger's answer to everything.


----------



## wat

Vyn said:


> So... Anyone apart from me still watching Darling in the Franxx? Err... Episode 20. What. The. Fuck.




Just finished the show. I still love it in spite of wtf moments and odd thematic shifts. It just sucks when I really like a show but hesitate to recommend it to others.


----------



## Vyn

wat said:


> Just finished the show. I still love it in spite of wtf moments and odd thematic shifts. It just sucks when I really like a show but hesitate to recommend it to others.



I honestly couldn't recommend it to be honest after finishing it. The pacing is what kills it, and there's 3-4 episodes that focus on individual characters that didn't need to be there that could have been used to smooth that out. I'm actually really disappointed because this had some amazing potential but shit execution. You can tell which episodes A-1 wrote and which ones Trigger wrote.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

While I wait weekly for every new episode of Persona 5, I've gone on an overdue Netflix binge on a few shows. Then I noticed all episodes of Robotech are on there. I've been slowly going through those again, despite seeing them way too many times before. 

I wanted to bring Robotech up in this thread for a while. I've said before that the series was my gateway to the anime medium, the dead parents to my Batman if you will. So it still holds dear to me and will continue to defend the overall medium, despite loving Macross beforehand, which is crazy in the most snobbiest anime circles. Aesthetically it's showing it's age, but amazingly as a whole, Robotech still holds up today. Unlike say other of its contemporaries that are also on Netflix like He-Man. Seriously I DARE YOU to sit through an entire episode of He-Man with a straight face. 

Time for a good old fashioned wall of text write up. 

First some backstory: During the mid 80s a lot of the cartoons I was exposed to were all about trying to get me to convince my parents to buy as many toys as possible. So I was largely watching anime about mecha. Be it a space flying submarine, five vehicles or lions as vehicles turning into a giant robot, or a car driving into a truck that turns into a giant robot, all were certainly good fun, albeit formulaic. But one that really struck me the most as a child was Super Dimension Fortress: Macross, it was different. It wasn't structured as bad guy of the week affair. It was a long continuous story that was just as much about it's characters than the toys it was selling, which was both confusing and mind blowing to me as kid. Then I moved to Melbourne. There were still cartoons like Transformers, M.A.S.K and GI Joe, but I missed the anime aesthetic dearly. A trip to the Video store down the road fixed that fast as I saw most of my favorites on rent... well, maybe not Space Carrier Blue Noah or Tosho Daimos but I took what I got. But Macross was different: it was called Robotech instead. But I instantly recognized the art and jumped on it anyway. It was largely the same... well until the first arc was done anyway. Which leads me to the main crux of why Robotech is so controversial especially for it's time, and it remains one of the most baffling properties to this day. 

Back in the 80s, one of the big ways to sell anime to the western audience was to buy the trademark of a series from Japan and then rebrand them from renaming to censorship. And because Japan was a goldmine for toy manufacturing, it made sense. But the amount of effort and changes were simply baffling. It happened with Transformers with multiple toy lines (more on them later), it happened with Voltron with 2 separate mecha series, hell Science Ninja Team Gatchaman got the opposite treatment and was adapted THREE TIMES in different eras.  Carl Macek masterminded Robotech with Harmony Gold and took the Voltron approach by taking 3 separate series (SDF Macross, Super Dimension Cavalry Southern Cross, and Genesis Climber Mospeada) and turning them into one epic odyssey spanning 3 generations. Unlike the previous examples that were hacked to the bone for western audiences, Robotech is one of the few examples that actually worked for the better. (The other being Samurai Pizza Cats... but that's for another time.) 

Aside from the odd sexual innuendo a few scenes and subplots removed and the main definition of Protoculture, Robotech remained largely unchanged, if not faithful to their original Japanese counterparts. It was actually quite genius for it's time. 2 main characters from the Macross arc give birth to the main character in Southern Cross. That arc also copped the most changes thanks to the original being set outside Earth. The biggest change was it's ending that leads to the New Generation arc, which to me as a kid was sheer brilliance and one of my favorite transitions in any medium ever. The character were already awesome in their original forms and no different here. They're all fully realized and humane with their weaknesses often taking the spotlight (a refreshing change from whatever else was going on). It was as much of a soap opera as it was a space opera. And I loved every minute of it. My sister loved every minute of it. Hell even my mum loved it as we watched it together before school. It's no wonder Robotech even has a bloody SDF1 Barbie Doll house for the female leads. 

And that was also the problem with Robotech.

Anime purists will scoff at the idea of Robotech, even those who grew up loving with it then suddenly turning against it after seeing the originals using false hipster logic while groping their Minmay waifu pillows. I get that with Voltron, but definitely not Robotech. After seeing it side by side with the 3 original forms, there are parts where Robotech actually faired better. The narration helped for younger audiences. The soundtrack actually felt like a war story over the more whimsical originals, and even the songs sung are pretty good too. The dialogue was sharp witted and even gave certain characters more depth. 

But there was another issue about Robotech that's actually prevented the original and long lasting Macross series being widely popular in the West. One reason was thanks to Transformers. They bought the rights of the Valkyrie/Veritech fighter toy from Takara for their character Jetfire/Skyfire and beaten Robotech to the punch in the mecha toyline. Thus prevented the cool transforming fighter/robot as part of their main line. There was a large fighter plane toy, but sadly didn't transform. Even more baffling is that Jetfire in the cartoons looked nothing like the toy.

The other and more pressing reason is that since Harmony Gold own the international distribution rights to Macross, and continues to hold authority to it, none of the new Macross series have been shown in the West (sans streaming sites). Macross 2 and Plus slipped thanks to a loophole with other companies, but nothing after the 90s. A massive shame as Macross is on par with Gundam as a premier mecha anime that's also lived a long rich continuity on it's own. 

Robotech itself isn't fairing too well outside it's main series either. A series that bridged the first and third arcs together called Robotech The Sentinels were in the works, with an ok movie and some comics, but it's since been retconned as secondary continuity. Carl Macek released a Robotech animated movie by repeating the formula and using the Megazone 23 anime as a template, and while that was ok too, it didn't fare too well. It had little relation to the main story and some of the violence and sex from Megazone remained intact and didn't go well with the censorship regulation. This also got the secondary retcon. In between a ton of abandoned projects, there was Robotech The Shadow Chronicles, one of the first signs of new life in the franchise. Unfortunately it suffered from a convoluted plot, shoe horning new characters too quickly and regulars acting way out of what they've been known for. Robotech Love Live Alive was a dedication to Macek's passing, based right after the final act of the Third Generation arc, which was actually not bad, closest we have in the spirit of the original. Top off a few mediocre and cancelled games and we have a series that in the similar dilemma as the Star Wars franchise. 

And of course there's that proposed live action film that's been comfortably living in development hell. Tobey MacGuire was helmed as producer and even got so far as trying to get Leonardo DiCaprio in. Not sure what the status of either are at the moment. James Wan was penned as director at one point, but opted out to focus on Aquaman. Currently Andy Muschietti of IT reboot is on the director chair and Wonder Woman scribe Jason Fuchs on script. Imdb shows a 2019 scheduled release but despite being more possible than ever, I won't hold my breath. 

So there you have it. One of the most baffling and confusing anime properties that is both loved and hated. I like to be in the former that loves both it's incarnations, as it was a major reason that made me take anime as a serious medium after all. Still highly recommended, anime fan or otherwise. 

TL/DR: Unless you're a Macross Nazi Purist (fair enough I understand), Robotech is still worth your time.


----------



## mrdm53

Is there anyone here who watched Asobi Asobase? Best ED of the Year IMO


----------



## John

Binge watched Yu Yu Hakusho (again). Easily one of my favorites, even though the last saga was rushed IMO.


----------



## KnightBrolaire

just found out that there's a live action version of Jin Roh :Wolf Brigade. I think I'm going to watch the original again and see how they compare


----------



## M3CHK1LLA

@Bloody_Inferno 

enjoyed the read. ive always intended to watch both. in what order would you suggest one watch the entire series?

my brother-in-law was a huge fan of robotech. he even gave several models many years ago


----------



## NotDonVito

Watched the 1999 Hunter X Hunter. I like the animation and impact fullness of the fight scenes, as well as the slightly more dramatic tone(in comparison to the other series).

I also caught the new SnK episode, but I'm so lost in the story at this point I couldn't pay attention.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

M3CHK1LLA said:


> @Bloody_Inferno
> 
> enjoyed the read. ive always intended to watch both. in what order would you suggest one watch the entire series?
> 
> my brother-in-law was a huge fan of robotech. he even gave several models many years ago



You can get away with both, as they both start off with essentially, the same origin story but once that season ends, they veer of into their own. Consider it 2 parallel universes. 

Robotech is much easier to consume. After going through the 3 arcs, you can pretty much be done with it. The New Generation arc does get a little overbearing with annoying bits but it's still watchable. Love Live Alive and Shadow Chronicles are optional viewing but unessential. 

Macross is a little more extensive and requires a bit more investment, but the payoff is rewarding for those who persevere... well up to Frontier at least. To watch in canonical order:

Zero
SDF Macross (original)
Plus (Movie) *
Seven (and it's OVAs)
Frontier
Delta **
Two **

* Skip the Macross Plus OVA and watch the movie instead as it cuts out the superfluous fat. Plus is actually a gaiden (side story) so it's not essential, but I thought it was awesome enough to include. 
** You can actually stop at Frontier if you want. Delta was a huge disappointment, and Two is fun, but retconned thus unessential to the canon. 

I didn't count the Macross movies Do You Remember Love/Flash Back 2012 as they're just alternate retellings of the original SDF series. They're still fun to watch though, that is if you're planning to speed up the process and substitute the series with the movies instead. You can do the same with the Frontier movies also.


----------



## M3CHK1LLA

@Bloody_Inferno
thx for the info...definitely helps


so, just ordered tokyo ghoul


----------



## KnightBrolaire

M3CHK1LLA said:


> @Bloody_Inferno
> thx for the info...definitely helps
> 
> 
> so, just ordered tokyo ghoul


did you get the manga or the anime? I don't like the anime as much because they censor the gore


----------



## M3CHK1LLA

KnightBrolaire said:


> did you get the manga or the anime? I don't like the anime as much because they censor the gore



i have zero time to read. was gonna check out the live action movie and anime.

anyone seen both? how do they compare?


----------



## Kaura

Anyone been watching the new season of Attack on Titan? Is it still going? I still need to rewatch the 2nd season since I dropped it about halfway through but might as well just wait for the 3rd season to air completely before I watch anything.


----------



## takotakumi

Kaura said:


> Anyone been watching the new season of Attack on Titan? Is it still going? I still need to rewatch the 2nd season since I dropped it about halfway through but might as well just wait for the 3rd season to air completely before I watch anything.


Yeah, currently s03, ep 9.
According to my roomate -who reads the manga- they just finished the first arc of this season.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

So the final episode of Persona 5 The Animation has aired, and I've just seen it, so I guess a review/recap now is as good an any. 

Getting this right off the bat, this, like Persona 4 before it, will always be compared to the game experience. I did this myself, and admittedly wrongly enough too. Yes the gaming experience of these stories are much more fulfilling when you have complete control of your character, his moves, and his choices that affect the relationship of everyone around you. And in this case, much more than Persona 4; yes, the budget of the anime is much lower than Production I.G.'s stylish behemoth. CloverWorks make a valiant effort, but they're no Production I.G, so it's back to the usual anime cut corners shtick. You can see in the "All Out Attacks" looking down right ugly at times. It's very rough looking especially when the game looms a huge shadow over it. And perhaps the biggest flaw is that trying to fit an entire 100+ hours of plot into 26 episodes will kill a lot of the pacing of the story. 

Having said all that, I have played the game (still playing it's NG+) and I love it to bits (deserved all the praise it got). And I will tell you as great as the game is, it's a bloody LOOOOONG one. So those who don't have the time to slog through a long JRPG, but still be curious on what the fuss is all about, I understand watching the anime as a shortcut, if not an incentive to play it. But I will still happily recommend P5 The Animation, despite it's flaws. Even to those who played the game. 

The biggest strength of Persona 5 is the story. And it's a doozy. Main character Ren Amamiya (yeah yeah Akira Kurusu was his manga name, but Ren's a fine name for a bog standard teen anime protagonist), is on probation for a crime he didn't commit. Being sent to a last chance school in Tokyo sends him in to more insanity by discovering an ability to traverse into another world manifested from the malevolent desires of one's heart, and then steal that heart to remove said evil from the person back in the real world. RenRen gets to assemble his own Scooby Doo ragtag team to steal the hearts of evil tormentors. And that's it. Pretty simple on a morality standpoint. Heroes yay, villains boo, though it does get to ridiculous Saturday morning levels on the villain standpoint. 

Going back on the pacing. Separating myself from the game a bit, I personally think CloverStudios did a decent job. Yeah they hacked out a large portion of the character development when Ren spends time with his confidants (some of them last as long as short bursts of scenes) and it shows a lot of the meat of his relationships are missing. But this is a note for not retelling of the game. The dungeon scenes are skimmed through right enough for the pace, and despite what I said earlier about the confidants, that's only to a selected few, while there are some episodes that dedicate the relation with a certain confidant, which is needed to give some nice needed breathing time to soak in Ren and his friends. For the most part the anime actually took it's time with telling the story right with what they have. 

Not much to be said about Shoji Meguro's music, it's the same as the game with a few new tracks. And the game's OST is pretty much my album of 2017. I particularly like the OP and ED songs particularly Infinity (ED1) and Dark Star (OP2), and Lyn comes back to sing those too. 

The series does end on a cliffhanger, and quite a shocking one at that (definitely those who don't know the story already). I won't say anything here other than it happens on one of my favorite parts of the game. 


Spoiler



The cliffhanger ending does get undermined by the upcoming OVA Persona 5 The Animation - Dark Sun being released roughly December, where it picks up directly from EP 26.



So yeah, TL/DR, I will still recommend to play the game first. But for those who don't have time, Persona 5 The Animation will do just fine.


----------



## wankerness

I don't even remember the ending of the game!! I just remembered thinking the game should have ended before it did.

Does the anime use the same goddam music EVERY SINGLE TIME that anyone fights something?


----------



## Vyn

Still crying from the final of Steins Gate 0. Jesus Christ. All aboard the feel train to oblivion.


----------



## Alberto7

Finally kept on watching Violet Evergarden after catching the first 2 episodes upon airing. On episode 7 now, and what a beautiful show it is. I hadn't watched any anime since Dragon Ball Super ended. This show's good stuff.


----------



## feilong29

Watched the dubbed My Hero Academia: Two Heroes movie and it was really good!


----------



## wat

Caught up with the Attack On Titan manga and GOTDAMN. I hope the show doesn't deviate too much from the manga for the next arc. I worry because unless I'm mistaken,


Spoiler: Spoiler



Mikasa's mark on her arm


 was skipped over in Season 1, but becomes very relevant in the next arc. 

Planning on reading all of Berserk & My Hero Academia soon. 

Enjoying Goblin Slayer so far and I may start the manga as well. I first heard about it from the social media hysteria surrounding the first episode. 

Still need to watch the Fate/Stay Night: Heaven's feel movie. I'll get to it after I finish watching the Garden of Sinners movies for like the 6th time, lol


----------



## stevewonders

One Piece. All time best of the best.


----------



## Alberto7

wat said:


> ... watching the Garden of Sinners movies for like the 6th time...



This makes me so happy to read in this forum. Those movies are friggin' art.


----------



## NotDonVito

Before I go to bed, I watch one episode of Dragon Ball, I've never watched the original much. It's a good show obviously, but it's also very comfy and nostalgic with it's 80's microphone quality and orchestral arrangements, so it makes me sleep good lol. I got the Christmas tree on as well for added effect.


----------



## KnightBrolaire

is the goblin slayer anime any good? I've been thinking about starting it up after I finish seven deadly sins.


----------



## wat

KnightBrolaire said:


> is the goblin slayer anime any good? I've been thinking about starting it up after I finish seven deadly sins.



I like it. I read that the manga is based on an actual Dungeons & Dragons campaign the writer took part in. It's very D&D-like. Also very obviously influenced by berserk.


----------



## KnightBrolaire

wat said:


> I like it. I read that the manga is based on an actual Dungeons & Dragons campaign the writer took part in. It's very D&D-like. Also very obviously influenced by berserk.


Welp I'm sold on it then. I love Berserk and DnD.


----------



## KnightBrolaire

I binged all 10 episodes of Goblin Slayer last night. That first episode was brutal and really set the tone. It's a great show if you like grimdark fantasy. I can't wait to see how the manga compares.


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

KnightBrolaire said:


> I binged all 10 episodes of Goblin Slayer last night. That first episode was brutal and really set the tone. It's a great show if you like grimdark fantasy. I can't wait to see how the manga compares.



Keep in mind it was a light novel first. If you really want to get the experience the author/creator intended, it wouldn't hurt to give that a shot. I've read all the volumes that are (officially) out in English so far, and I'm definitely looking forward to more releases. I watched the first couple episodes of the anime, and I'll probably finish the season one of these days, but the pacing / sense of flow is just... so different compared to the novels. That's by necessity, I realize, but I think I enjoyed the novels the anime is based on so far more than I enjoyed the episodes I watched.


----------



## KnightBrolaire

Grand Moff Tim said:


> Keep in mind it was a light novel first. If you really want to get the experience the author/creator intended, it wouldn't hurt to give that a shot. I've read all the volumes that are (officially) out in English so far, and I'm definitely looking forward to more releases. I watched the first couple episodes of the anime, and I'll probably finish the season one of these days, but the pacing / sense of flow is just... so different compared to the novels. That's by necessity, I realize, but I think I enjoyed the novels the anime is based on so far more than I enjoyed the episodes I watched.


I did see that it was originally a light novel and then a manga/anime. From what I've read so far it looks like both the light novel and manga offer slightly different takes on the story arcs, but it's nothing really significant. I'll probably grab the light novels after I finish off the manga.


----------



## ThtOthrPrsn

Initially the beginning of episode 1 had put me off, but I also wasn't familiar with the series. After getting through that and 1-2 episodes after, I was hooked. Went through and read everything. It's a lot more lighthearted at times than I thought it'd be. It's also nice that they keep some of the key shots and moments from the manga that were really good.


----------



## KnightBrolaire

ThtOthrPrsn said:


> Initially the beginning of episode 1 had put me off, but I also wasn't familiar with the series. After getting through that and 1-2 episodes after, I was hooked. Went through and read everything. It's a lot more lighthearted at times than I thought it'd be. It's also nice that they keep some of the key shots and moments from the manga that were really good.


I was just comparing the first couple of episodes to the first 2 volumes of the manga, they really didn't cut much from the anime (minus some of the backstory/flashback bits for the doomed adventurers from the first cave, and the rape/torture of the original party in the elfen fortress). I honestly think they should have left the elfen fortress scenes in the anime just to stay tonally consistent with the 1st episode and further emphasize how underestimating goblins is a mortal mistake in their world.


----------



## NikSampson

Had a quick look through the previous few pages and couldn't see a discussion on the new Dragon Ball Super: Broly movie... anyone else excited?

Thoughts on re-boot of an already popular character? I love the original Broly movie but think this will be a great movie with a lot more depth to Broly himself. Trying not to be overly precious about the small retcons though


----------



## MFB

I've never watched any of the Broly movies, but he's always seemes hype to a suspension of disbelief breaking level; I mean, he comes back for a movie after how long, while Goku and Vegeta can go SSGB (or in Goku's case, Ultra Instinct Mastered) - but he STILL goes toe to toe with them as the Legendary Super Saiyan? Come on man, thats just lazy writing.

I am tempted to catch it when it comes out, its just stuff like that that gets me


----------



## ThtOthrPrsn

KnightBrolaire said:


> I was just comparing the first couple of episodes to the first 2 volumes of the manga, they really didn't cut much from the anime (minus some of the backstory/flashback bits for the doomed adventurers from the first cave, and the rape/torture of the original party in the elfen fortress). I honestly think they should have left the elfen fortress scenes in the anime just to stay tonally consistent with the 1st episode and further emphasize how underestimating goblins is a mortal mistake in their world.


I agree about the fortress, but they may still figure some way to flash back to it in some way. They've already been jumping around between Brand New Day, Year One, and the main story. So there's still hope. I'm just glad that they aren't trying to make some complete departure from the literature.


----------



## NotDonVito

MFB said:


> I've never watched any of the Broly movies, but he's always seemes hype to a suspension of disbelief breaking level; I mean, he comes back for a movie after how long, while Goku and Vegeta can go SSGB (or in Goku's case, Ultra Instinct Mastered) - but he STILL goes toe to toe with them as the Legendary Super Saiyan? Come on man, thats just lazy writing.
> 
> I am tempted to catch it when it comes out, its just stuff like that that gets me


The new Broly movie is the first time he's appeared in the "canon" Dragon Ball timeline. Most of the old Dragon Ball Z movies aren't considered canon, but they've been trying to change that with the more recent films. Toriyama had some involvement with Battle of the Gods and Resurrection of F, and while those two movies were technically made non-canon when they converted them to the manga/TV series, they set up the general idea and premise for the series moving forward.

https://www.newsweek.com/dragon-ball-super-movie-2018-broly-akira-toriyama-why-1016372

They also kind of power scalled the Legendary SS form with Kale in Super, although technically not the "Legendary Super Saiyan", the form has some similarities with Broly.


----------



## CapinCripes

Recently got into universal century Gundam. Watched all of the series/OVA's chronologically up until the 08th ms team which im working on getting through now. Victory Gundam was an absolute wild ride, not really sure what to say about it besides that. Favorite is definitely Zeta and my least favorite is definitely F91, at least so far. I have reservations about MS IGLOO though as from what ive seen the animation is god awful, but we will see. Side note: definitely wish i would have gone with the compilation movies on 0079 instead of the series the first time around much better pacing.


----------



## ThtOthrPrsn

CapinCripes said:


> Recently got into universal century Gundam. Watched all of the series/OVA's chronologically up until the 08th ms team which im working on getting through now. Victory Gundam was an absolute wild ride, not really sure what to say about it besides that. Favorite is definitely Zeta and my least favorite is definitely F91, at least so far. I have reservations about MS IGLOO though as from what ive seen the animation is god awful, but we will see. Side note: definitely wish i would have gone with the compilation movies on 0079 instead of the series the first time around much better pacing.



Have you watched the Iron Blooded Orphans series at all? The animation and writing for it is phenomenal! Thunderbolt is also great, though short (like 6 episodes or so)


----------



## CapinCripes

ThtOthrPrsn said:


> Have you watched the Iron Blooded Orphans series at all? The animation and writing for it is phenomenal! Thunderbolt is also great, though short (like 6 episodes or so)


I Haven't watched very much alternate universe stuff, i was mostly focusing on universal century stuff but I will have to give it a watch.


----------



## ThtOthrPrsn

Just started Sirius the Jaeger and B the Beginning on Netflix. The fight animation for both has been exceedingly good so far!


----------



## KnightBrolaire

ThtOthrPrsn said:


> Just started Sirius the Jaeger and B the Beginning on Netflix. The fight animation for both has been exceedingly good so far!


sirius has great fight scenes but it's kind of a tedious show imo. the new baki series is also good if you want batshit insane fights


----------



## ThtOthrPrsn

KnightBrolaire said:


> sirius has great fight scenes but it's kind of a tedious show imo. the new baki series is also good if you want batshit insane fights


I'm about 4 episodes into Sirius. I'll definitely look into Baki! I'm a huge sucker for well animated fights and the hype it brings.


----------



## KnightBrolaire

ThtOthrPrsn said:


> I'm about 4 episodes into Sirius. I'll definitely look into Baki! I'm a huge sucker for well animated fights and the hype it brings.


definitely check out the original baki series too then. the fights are even crazier with optic nerve ripping (yes that happens) and other insanity


----------



## ThtOthrPrsn

KnightBrolaire said:


> definitely check out the original baki series too then. the fights are even crazier with optic nerve ripping (yes that happens) and other insanity


That may be a bit too much for my taste! I'm all for fights and a lost limb or 2, but the super visceral stuff is too intense for my taste!


----------



## mrdm53

Strandberg in Bang Dream ?? Wtf i thought they only promote ESP Guitars in Bang Dream franchise?


----------



## Kaura

There is a new band related anime? About time after the success of K-on. I gotta check this shit...


----------



## Grand Moff Tim

mrdm53 said:


> View attachment 66069
> 
> Strandberg in Bang Dream ?? Wtf i thought they only promote ESP Guitars in Bang Dream franchise?



It's what Riko Kohara, the seiyuu/guitarist from one of the bands featured on the show, has been playing these days:










She used to play Deans:


----------



## Tenaba

mrdm53 said:


> View attachment 66069
> 
> Strandberg in Bang Dream ?? Wtf i thought they only promote ESP Guitars in Bang Dream franchise?



Is the show any good? I've like Roselia, so I've been playing along to their music, but if I'm correct, they're not the main characters are they?


----------



## couverdure

Cardbird said:


> Is the show any good? I've like Roselia, so I've been playing along to their music, but if I'm correct, they're not the main characters are they?


The first season is about the formation of Poppin'Party (the main band), but YMMV on how you'll like it since the animation's rough and there are times where it can be painful to watch (i.e. Kasumi repeatedly singing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star).

The game Girls Band Party, which is a mobile rhythm game + visual novel, expands on their story as well as introducing the four other bands, including Roselia. The first season's plot was also adapted into the game as Poppin'Party's story 0, but it's not in the English version yet. It'll take hours to unlock all the available chapters due to playing a lot of songs and leveling up characters/bands being required, but I think you could find them on YouTube.

The second season takes place in a one-year timeskip after S1 and the game, and Poppin'Party are the main band again, but Rokka (the glasses girl with the Strandberg and guitarist of the yet to be revealed Raise A Suilen) is acting as an audience surrogate since she's the new girl at her school and is trying to become familiar with the bands, including Poppin'Party who she's already a fan of.

The first episode just aired days ago, and it uses 3D CGI animation instead of the 2D used in S1, which IMO looks much better since the character models look more consistent to the game's artwork.


----------



## ThtOthrPrsn

Just started Seven Deadly Sins on Netlfix and I'm really enjoying it so far! Granted, I'm only 3-4 episodes in.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

So I've just binged through all 12 episodes of High Score Girl, after seeing it praised by fighting game fans, I couldn't help myself.

The setting is in the early to mid 90s when the arcade fighting game boom exploded, which leads to it's biggest gimmick: showing actual arcade fighting games like every incarnation of Street Fighter, Mortal Kombat to 3Ds like Tekken and Virtua Fighter to every game during the era SNK were releasing stuff every 5 minutes (anyone remember Savage Reign?). Also not limited to fighting games, but the entire scope of gaming culture of the era. Square Enix certainly paid a ton for all the other Japanese publishers to participate and fill the staff roll. 

Coming from somebody raised and immersed in that era, that definitely tickled my nostalgia bone, that's usually something I try not to cloud by judgement, but the entire gimmick is shoved front and centre it's hard to ignore. And it's often made fun of too. Stuff like console wars, how many iterations of SF2 were released before SF3 was even a thing, or why the hell the SNES version of Final Fight was single player only were used as gags. There's a ton more but revealing them will ruin the fun as well as end up in spoiler territory. 

But in spite of all that, looking beyond it's main gimmick, High Score Girl is a grounded, tender heartwarming romantic comedy about young love. 

The 3 main characters have their moments of excruciating annoyance, but they felt genuinely real. Main protagonist Haruo Yaguchi is an absolute pillock. The very definition of 'otaku' in the negative connotation. But it's made all the more endearing, with how so many nerds hiding their true emotions behind their obsessions. Anyone who remembers Domon Kasshu from Mobile Fighter G Gundam, it's similar sentiment here. The other main character Akira Ono only communicates in expressions and gestures, so not a single word is uttered from her. This can be extremely frustrating when Haruo is forced to carry the dialogue for the most part (and boy does he bang on - like I'm doing now). But again, it works. The frustration that comes from watching these two carry a lot of weight when either character struggle to truly express their feelings. A typical trope in every anime ever, yes, but this really does hit home after an incredibly slow burn. There's another character Koharu Hidaka doesn't get enough screen time but also as compelling, you can really the change in dynamic when she shows up. 

The animation is more geared toward the semi chibi look, though the eyelashes did bother me a bit (namely Koharu's) but that's just a quibble. Yoko Shimomura appropriately enough, scored the anime. And based on her wealth of experience, she does a good job of simple light hearted restrained pieces. Both the OP and ED themes are great, the latter I just straight up adore. 

The 12 episode series ends in a cliffhanger, which make me really itch for the 3 OVA movies coming in a few months. But since they're OVAs, I'll have to savour this during the long wait. 

TL/DR: Come for the gaming culture references. Stay for the heartfelt story.


----------



## wat

Calling all Fate-hoes! 

Just watched episode "0" of The Case Files of Lord El-Melloi II on Crunchy roll. It's about Waver from Fate Zero!

Pretty good so far and I'm pretty pumped for this. 



Notice the shirt waiver is wearing


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Hmmm

http://www.otakuusamagazine.com/fate-studio-ufotable-suspected-tax-evasion/

Either way that sucks. 

Also now I've seen the last 3 episodes of High Score Girl while reading the Manga. There's a few things truncated (much of Makoto Ono's story, which is a shame as she's an interesting character), but the overall payoff was excellent. The 1-2-3 fighting game duel between Yaguchi and Hidaka and the build up to it, was excellent. Not only it captures how tense a fighting game tournament can be, it made me want to play Night Warriors again.  Though because the last 3 episodes didn't really feel too different, I wish they released them as a whole last year so at least if feels like a full body of work. The series does end on an open note for possible future seasons. Not sure how that's going to work with the manga finished, but I'm excited to see either way.


----------



## KnightBrolaire

watching Prison School. It's fucking hilarious but also super pervy


----------



## Alberto7

It's been a while.
Do I still watch anime? Barely. Do I still relate with the general community? Sort of. Have I become a normie? Borderline.
Do I feel like watching more anime? You bet!

A lot has happened over the last 2 years and I've really shifted my focus away from anime, guitar, and, sadly, the SSO community. But that doesn't mean I don't still enjoy all of it.

After skipping it last year due to a lack of time and motivation, I decided to go to Otakuthon this year. (Montreal anime con.) I went with a couple of friends all three days of it. Having been away for so long and diving in head-first into it was a bag of mixed feelings for me. Seeing the same thing through different eyes and all. I disliked some of it, I appreciated the rest. The anime industry moves at a frenetic pace and there's no way in hell I'm keeping up with it, so a lot of it flew right over my head. On top of that, I feel like the anime community around here has turned somewhat political, which I quite dislike. Naturally, my mind and body resisted. At times, the whole thing felt like a drag and I questioned my position being there.

With that said, now that the con is over, I'm feeling quite nostalgic, and I'm missing being part of that community. I may try to make it a bit more of a habit to delve in a little more. I have quite a backlog of anime that I should get to, (don't we all?) but I want to watch something new. I know I can trust you guys for this, so I come to you for recommendations on what I should update myself on? (And, for the love of Lord Vai, don't tell me _My Hero Academia_... I first need to forget that the fandom exists.) The only new-ish (not really) thing that I've watched recently was _Violet Evergarden_... which I haven't finished because each episode emotionally fucks me up more than the last.

Other than that, something very noteworthy that happened at the con was the Miyavi concert, which was a friggin' blast. I've been listening to the guy very sparsely over the last 11-12 years or so, and it was great to be able to finally see him live. Hell of a guitarist, hell of a performer, and a man with a musical output far more varied than most musicians I've seen. Not your typical J-Rock artist, I would say.

https://www.instagram.com/p/B1SNTFNl5HS/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> Other than that, something very noteworthy that happened at the con was the Miyavi concert, which was a friggin' blast. I've been listening to the guy very sparsely over the last 11-12 years or so, and it was great to be able to finally see him live. Hell of a guitarist, hell of a performer, and a man with a musical output far more varied than most musicians I've seen. Not your typical J-Rock artist, I would say.



You saw Miyavi live? I'm now super jealous.


----------



## Kaura

Man, I forgot about this thread. 

Haven't really watched much during the past few years. I kinda miss being in high school with way too much time on my hands. Nowadays anime just feels like a waste of time since most of it isn't actually worth watching and pretty much only serves as a way to pass time (for those who has it). 

Finally picked up the season 3 of Shingeki no Kyojin, though. This might be the most addicting season so far. So many plot twists and turns and I'm only 3 episodes in.


----------



## NotDonVito

I'm more into anime for aesthetic reasons now than actually watching it cause i do agree that it gets boring after a while. I got anime stickers on all my shit, and I've developed an interest in kigurumi recently. Not the pajamas, like the people who wear suits to make themselves look like anime characters. The problem is that 99% of these costumes are fucking creepy, but there's this one character called tsukaka uduki who has this cool robot girl suit. She's a mascot for some theater company in Japan iirc, so it's completely custom made, probably super expensive.






I would love to have something like this. I want to see a band wear robot girl suits and play like cool techno metal or something.


----------



## coffeeflush

Bungou stray dogs,
its kind of goofy but pretty good


----------



## couverdure

I'm 16 episodes deep into Kimetsu no Yaiba and it's pretty great for a Shonen Jump manga adaptation, especially with its animation done by ufotable (Fate/Zero and F/SN UBW's studio).

I also watched Weathering With You with my mom at a theater yesterday and it looked beautiful on the big screen. As expected from a Makoto Shinkai movie.



NotDonVito said:


> I'm more into anime for aesthetic reasons now than actually watching it cause i do agree that it gets boring after a while. I got anime stickers on all my shit, and I've developed an interest in kigurumi recently. Not the pajamas, like the people who wear suits to make themselves look like anime characters. The problem is that 99% of these costumes are fucking creepy, but there's this one character called tsukaka uduki who has this cool robot girl suit. She's a mascot for some theater company in Japan iirc, so it's completely custom made, probably super expensive.
> 
> I would love to have something like this. I want to see a band wear robot girl suits and play like cool techno metal or something.


I've heard that the skin-toned spandex suits worn by kigurumi costumers can get hot as hell after a while because of the super tight cloth covering all over the body skin.


----------



## Adieu

Guuuuuys

It's okay to graduate to manga and then even (gasp) seinen manga at some point you know???

Preferably before age 40!


----------



## Alberto7

Bloody_Inferno said:


> You saw Miyavi live? I'm now super jealous.



Yah man, that guy's guitar playing is friggin' tight. His live vocals can be somewhat rough sometimes, but he's so energetic and engaging that his voice cracking is more charming than anything. He just runs around like a child, rocks out like Angus Young, and poses dramatically like every other over-the-top cheesy K-Pop dancer. It's no wonder he pants while singing. 

Only thing that disappointed me is that he didn't play Selfish Love. That's the song that introduced me to him back in 2008-9 and the guitar intro is just so saucy.


----------



## KnightBrolaire

Junji Ito's Uzumaki is getting an animated adaptation on Toonami.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Was going to post in the movie thread, but suits better here...

Watched the Ni No Kuni anime. 

Having played the first game (second game still pending), so I felt obliged to see the movie. Funny how a lot of my complaints about the first game can be applied to some extent here too. Basically what I'm saying that it's fine but flawed to prevent it from being great, or by Studio Ghibli's standards, decent.

The plot and visuals are pretty much anime vanilla. Simple coherent fantasy plot: 3 friends, medieval swordplay, mini plush toy like beings, it's safe Studio Ghibli by the numbers, pretty much my complaints about the Wrath Of The White Guilt; it harks back to classic versions of the genre, but nothing new to offer. Hell, the animation reminds me of Persona 5's anime downgrade from the game. At least I don't need to complain about a sucky combat system that combines the worst aspects of other games into an overstuffed hybrid mess. 

And I suppose the simplicity and predictability I had with the game applies here, since I saw the twists and turns coming as fast as a dying man's crawl. The only thing that thew me off was right when I thought the third act was about to end, it kept going for another 20 minutes. The movie was tacking on and padding itself more as it reached the conclusion. There was at least a cute nod to Wrath Of The White Privilege at the end for the fanatics of continuity.

So in summary, with all the Studio Ghibli movies now available on Netflix, there's far better options to pick over Ni No Kuni. Still it's better than Tales Of Earthsea so there's at least that going for it.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Bloody_Inferno said:


> The series does end on an open note for possible future seasons.



Well High Score Girl Season 2 happened. And I went through the all 8 episodes in 1 sitting. 

Still great, still lots of arcade/fighting game lore, and still a heartfelt story of love. It's actually really nice to see Harou grow and mature from being a snot nosed prick to a grounded teen. Akira Ono is still tough to grasp since she's still a mute and her avatar of feelings come in the form of Zangief and a bunch of other game characters (hilariously well done). Hidaka is once again the most interesting of the three mains, as she's the most human and normal of the lot, being the most open of her feelings. Some of the support cast get overshadowed by Haruo's mum and Akira's sister Makoto, who have their own over the top anime dynamic that's a lot of fun. 

The aesthetic is still fine and well, though the pixelated look of the game characters can be distracting especially when they're up close, but I guess that's the joke. Yoko Shimomura's score is still exquisite, even parts sounding off FFXV, and it was nice of her having a spin on her own Guile's theme song too. 

The arcade and tournament scenes are as authentic and great as always (especially for fighting game fans), and it was cute seeing Justin Wong in the credits. And for the hardcore fighting game fans, they showed this:



...and it's amazing how it was used in the narrative.


----------



## MetalGravy

Been watching the latest season of My Hero Academia, and digging it. Finished off Akame no Kill before that. Planning to get back to Violet Evergarden. Got a lot of catching up to do after not watching for 3 months!


----------



## Alberto7

Back from the dead... yet again!

Anyway, been watching Monster with my girlfriend recently. Damn good show. It's weird because it could have very easily been a live action show. It's a crime drama with extensive and slooow character development. Sometimes 3-4 episodes in a row will seem like unrelated fillers, but then turn out to be building up to something very important to the development of the main plot. There's lots of shitting on Nazis, but the show is unfortunately not very effective at drawing a clear line between shitting on fascism/Nazis or straight up shitting on Germany. I can see people misinterpreting the message. I turn a blind eye to that though and give it the benefit of the doubt.

Really cool show overall, but you gotta like slow-paced, cerebral crime/detective plots with no supernatural elements and pretty much non-existing comic relief.


----------



## coffeeflush

Nichijou is amazing, I am few years late to the party, but amazing show.


----------



## Alberto7

So, uh, not exactly anime, but suddenly I am pooping my pants in anticipation. I hadn't heard even a peep about this until 5 minutes ago.








https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/ne...lms-teaser-previews-kenshin-vs-enishi/.156679

Here I go read the manga again, after recently having finished the original anime for the umpteenth time.


----------



## MFB

..._Batoousai..._


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

There's something really cool about Sonny Chiba's son playing Enishi.

My feelings on Watsuki aside... I guess I'm on board with his movie.


----------



## broj15

So just finished reading Flowers Of Evil by Shuzo Oshimi and I have mixed feelings. I hesitant to say I enjoyed it, because I feel like it's not something that's meant to be enjoyed. It's fucked up and disturbing, but still relatable, though more in a figurative sense and less literal. A lot of the literary references (like the one the manga derives it's title from) seemed a bit forced and unrealistic, especially coming from the 14 year old protagonist.
I'd say it's like it tries to illicit the same emotions and touches on the same themes as Oyasumi PunPun, but the three main characters are much more depraved than any of those found in Oyasumi PunPun. It's the kind of story that leaves you feeling very empty inside and unfulfilled after reading it. The ending is about as happy as it could be all things considered, but I still wouldn't call it a happy ending. If anyone else has read it I'm interested in hearing other people's experiences & thoughts as I'm still trying to figure out exactly how it made me feel.


----------



## KnightBrolaire

Just started Food Wars and I'm loving it. It's ridiculous


----------



## MFB

On episode 20 of Cowboy Bebop, gotta say, I expected much more out of this given how much people adore it; I assume that's largely from nostalgia glasses as really nothing has happened and there's no large over arching plot that I can see. 

After this one, I'm planning on also going back to Outlaw Star as I haven't seen it since the original Toonami run, and then I'll research Trigun for the umpteenth time since that one is so god damn good.


----------



## Daemoniac

I finally, _finally _got around to watching "Ergo Proxy."

I thoroughly enjoyed it. I think the storytelling got a little confused around the halfway mark, but overall the style of it and the general atmosphere was solid as hell, and the animation was great.

Got a few other cyberpunk anime's to watch next; Appleseed Alpha, GITS Standalone Complex (_loved_ the movie, never watched the series), the three Mardock Scramble outings, and Evengelion (which, again, embarrassingly, I have never seen...).


----------



## KnightBrolaire

started watching Food Wars and I love it. It's borderline ecchi at times but the attention to detail when it comes to the food and its prep is awesome, plus it's hilarious. It legit motivates me to get in the kitchen and try some variations of what characters make.


----------



## NotDonVito

Anyone watching the Higurashi remake? I’m a big fan of the Studio DEEN one from back in the day, but I gotta say this one is very good as well. Much less confusing and with minimal filler, which is good cause I gotta wait a week for every episode and would be bummed if there were boring episodes of Keichi playing cards and shit with his friends for half the episode.


----------



## Furtive Glance

MFB said:


> On episode 20 of Cowboy Bebop, gotta say, I expected much more out of this given how much people adore it; I assume that's largely from nostalgia glasses as really nothing has happened and there's no large over arching plot that I can see.



QFT. I couldn't get into that series at all. I didn't care about pretty much any of the characters aside from Ein and maybe Jet. The lack of a plot, as you mentioned, is a huge problem as well. I just couldn't... care about the show. I was contemplating even stopping watching it after maybe episode 10.


----------



## MFB

Yeah, I considered giving up every fourth episode or so; but kept hoping that the big hook was right around the corner; then I'd look foolish for stopping "right at the good part!" and know I was never going back to it.

But alas it never came.

Rewatched Trigun recently, much better and still probably my all time favoritr anime. One season and done, and some of the reveals still hit like a ton of bricks.


----------



## Alberto7

Hello again there.

Girlfriend and I recently watched _Made in Abyss_, including the _Dawn of the Deep Soul_ movie. While I liked the show a whole lot, I felt quite disappointed by the last 4-5 episodes. I don't fully understand why the majority of people put this anime above so many others. The 4-5 different people that kept recommending it to me even told me NOT to catch ANY kind of spoilers for ANY part of the story; that I should go into it completely blind. To be honest, I wish I'd known what to expect a little bit.

What I loved:

Amazing sense of adventure and exploration.
Great art and character design.
Conceptually fresh and brilliant.
What I hated:

Gratuitous gore, suffering, crying, and yelling.
Complete change in tone and personality after ~episode 9.

Questionable potty humor and dick jokes in a cast of 12-year olds
IT DOES NOT HAVE A FRIGGIN' ENDING YET.
I'll be more descriptive of what I didn't like, simply because I have a large sense of disappointment after having finished it.

I thought the adventure and exploration aspects of the first 9 episodes are pretty unparalleled, and I just wanted to keep watching more and learning about this world. It felt like a _Zelda _x _Hunter x Hunter_ dream crossover. However, it quickly devolved into gratuitous pain, torture, and overly sexualized 12-year old humor. It frankly made me feel quite confused, as I didn't really know whether I should expect more adventures and shenanigans, or more deformed, juicy blobs of pain, suffering, and spilled guts with a side of incessant anime-screaming and crying. I liked that it kept heading into a progressively darker and more "real world" narrative, (where things go to shit because life is a bitch) but it really did feel like the show took it a bit too far in an effort to become justified fanservice. Towards the last few episodes it started to feel like an over-engineered trap to ensnare the viewer into watching what I thought was overly exaggerated themes of horror and visual gore.

Don't get me wrong, I appreciate these themes (anime like _Shigurui _and _Parasyte_ come to mind), but those anime knew what they wanted to be from the get-go. I also don't mind a change in tone, but it should at least keep a consistent personality, which _Made in Abyss_, unfortunately, did not.

Regarding the lack of a true ending to the overall story... usually the kind of glowing reviews I heard about this anime revolve around shows with fully fleshed out stories. It may have been naive of me to assume that I would be getting a complete story in just 13 episodes + a movie. (Which did little to advance the actual plot of the show.) It just frankly bothers me that I did not get anything satisfying out of the ending of the show. It was just the ending of the first season. I doubt I will want to watch anything from this series again until the story is complete. However, once it is, you can bet I will be watching.

The over-sexualized humor in a cast that is comprised of 90% 12-year olds was also kind of annoying/unsettling, though this is nothing new in anime. In fact, it's commonly accepted. However, from what I had been hearing about this show for the last 3 years (with, luckily, no spoilers), I was thinking this anime would be some sort of paradigm shift and would get rid of some of these old tropes that have made me veer away from anime as a whole. Alas, it did not.

This last point drives me into my main annoyance with this anime. It's not that I did not like it. It's more that I was expecting it to deliver SO MUCH more than it did. The entire internet, and every one of my anime-loving friends kept recommending it to me over the last 3 years as though it was the new Cowboy Bebop, and I just did NOT feel that way at all about it. It had the potential of being that for the first 6-7 episodes. It is such a beautiful, rich, and mysterious world, but it just decides "OH BUT I WANT OGRE AND SUFIERING IENASFJSA AIR3IRAFOA3A JA4ISAL3FASAF'A3 FA3S" and then it doesn't even end... not yet, anyway.

In any case, would I recommend this to someone? Heck yeah, but I'd definitely make sure to tell them what to expect.

Thanks for reading this far, if any of you do, and my apologies for this jumbled exposition of my thoughts.


----------



## Alberto7

And now we're watching Full Metal Alchemist: Brotherhood.

Now THAT is some gud shit


----------



## KnightBrolaire

Alberto7 said:


> Hello again there.
> 
> Girlfriend and I recently watched _Made in Abyss_, including the _Dawn of the Deep Soul_ movie. While I liked the show a whole lot, I felt quite disappointed by the last 4-5 episodes. I don't fully understand why the majority of people put this anime above so many others. The 4-5 different people that kept recommending it to me even told me NOT to catch ANY kind of spoilers for ANY part of the story; that I should go into it completely blind. To be honest, I wish I'd known what to expect a little bit.
> 
> What I loved:
> 
> Amazing sense of adventure and exploration.
> Great art and character design.
> Conceptually fresh and brilliant.
> What I hated:
> 
> Gratuitous gore, suffering, crying, and yelling.
> Complete change in tone and personality after ~episode 9.
> 
> Questionable potty humor and dick jokes in a cast of 12-year olds
> IT DOES NOT HAVE A FRIGGIN' ENDING YET.
> I'll be more descriptive of what I didn't like, simply because I have a large sense of disappointment after having finished it.
> 
> I thought the adventure and exploration aspects of the first 9 episodes are pretty unparalleled, and I just wanted to keep watching more and learning about this world. It felt like a _Zelda _x _Hunter x Hunter_ dream crossover. However, it quickly devolved into gratuitous pain, torture, and overly sexualized 12-year old humor. It frankly made me feel quite confused, as I didn't really know whether I should expect more adventures and shenanigans, or more deformed, juicy blobs of pain, suffering, and spilled guts with a side of incessant anime-screaming and crying. I liked that it kept heading into a progressively darker and more "real world" narrative, (where things go to shit because life is a bitch) but it really did feel like the show took it a bit too far in an effort to become justified fanservice. Towards the last few episodes it started to feel like an over-engineered trap to ensnare the viewer into watching what I thought was overly exaggerated themes of horror and visual gore.
> 
> Don't get me wrong, I appreciate these themes (anime like _Shigurui _and _Parasyte_ come to mind), but those anime knew what they wanted to be from the get-go. I also don't mind a change in tone, but it should at least keep a consistent personality, which _Made in Abyss_, unfortunately, did not.
> 
> Regarding the lack of a true ending to the overall story... usually the kind of glowing reviews I heard about this anime revolve around shows with fully fleshed out stories. It may have been naive of me to assume that I would be getting a complete story in just 13 episodes + a movie. (Which did little to advance the actual plot of the show.) It just frankly bothers me that I did not get anything satisfying out of the ending of the show. It was just the ending of the first season. I doubt I will want to watch anything from this series again until the story is complete. However, once it is, you can bet I will be watching.
> 
> The over-sexualized humor in a cast that is comprised of 90% 12-year olds was also kind of annoying/unsettling, though this is nothing new in anime. In fact, it's commonly accepted. However, from what I had been hearing about this show for the last 3 years (with, luckily, no spoilers), I was thinking this anime would be some sort of paradigm shift and would get rid of some of these old tropes that have made me veer away from anime as a whole. Alas, it did not.
> 
> This last point drives me into my main annoyance with this anime. It's not that I did not like it. It's more that I was expecting it to deliver SO MUCH more than it did. The entire internet, and every one of my anime-loving friends kept recommending it to me over the last 3 years as though it was the new Cowboy Bebop, and I just did NOT feel that way at all about it. It had the potential of being that for the first 6-7 episodes. It is such a beautiful, rich, and mysterious world, but it just decides "OH BUT I WANT OGRE AND SUFIERING IENASFJSA AIR3IRAFOA3A JA4ISAL3FASAF'A3 FA3S" and then it doesn't even end... not yet, anyway.
> 
> In any case, would I recommend this to someone? Heck yeah, but I'd definitely make sure to tell them what to expect.
> 
> Thanks for reading this far, if any of you do, and my apologies for this jumbled exposition of my thoughts.


I'll echo your complaints about Made in Abyss. My other complaint is the pacing for the first 5 episodes or so is very slow, which made it hard to get into. Well that and the strange choice to animate monsters/creatures in a completely different way (that weird low rez/fuzzy vibe).


----------



## Hoss632

In the middle of several anime's atm. Will start watching season 2 of Fire Force soon. Also a few episodes in on Shiki, That Time I was Reincarnated as Slime, Demon Slayer Kimestu, and Black Butler. Also waiting for all episodes of RWBY Volume 8 to air so I can then binge watch the entire season.


----------



## MetalGravy

I'm rewatching Gen1 Transformers (War for Cybertron is the dark, gritty reboot we didn't know we needed) for the first time in decades. It definitely shows it's age, but is still entertaining. I am also about halfway through SAO: Alicization War for Underworld. Just found Photon on Prime, so gonna hit that next.


----------



## nightflameauto

MetalGravy said:


> I'm rewatching Gen1 Transformers (War for Cybertron is the dark, gritty reboot we didn't know we needed) for the first time in decades. It definitely shows it's age, but is still entertaining. I am also about halfway through SAO: Alicization War for Underworld. Just found Photon on Prime, so gonna hit that next.


After some of the truly quality cartoons we've gotten over the years for Transformers, the War for Cybertron stuff seems so. . . meh. Horrible voice acting, long spans of nothing, rare action that has consequences, lots of sniping between characters that should be allies. It's just a weird disjointed mess to me.

I was on board Transformers in 1984 and have paid attention to most of it, so I can't say WFC is the worst. But considering Hasbro kept proclaiming this "The Definitive Transformers Cartoon of all Time" before it was released, they really didn't put their money where their mouth is.

I mean, it's not Armada/Energon bad, but it's not Animated/Beast Wars good either. It just kinda exists, and I think Hasbro shouldn't have hyped it up like they did OR they should have hired a good studio to produce it. Rooster Teeth just . . . wasn't the right fit.

Anime wise, I'm about to dive on Martian Successor Nadesico again. Such a great send-up of the entire giant mech phenom. It's rare to see such self-aware humor in a show that can still play the tropes in a way that tugs at the heart strings. What a great anime.


----------



## KnightBrolaire

Thinking about starting up Kimetsu no Yaiba. I've heard good things about it. Plus it'll pair well with all the Inuyasha I've been watching lol


----------



## MetalGravy

nightflameauto said:


> After some of the truly quality cartoons we've gotten over the years for Transformers, the War for Cybertron stuff seems so. . . meh. Horrible voice acting, long spans of nothing, rare action that has consequences, lots of sniping between characters that should be allies. It's just a weird disjointed mess to me.
> 
> I was on board Transformers in 1984 and have paid attention to most of it, so I can't say WFC is the worst. But considering Hasbro kept proclaiming this "The Definitive Transformers Cartoon of all Time" before it was released, they really didn't put their money where their mouth is.
> 
> I mean, it's not Armada/Energon bad, but it's not Animated/Beast Wars good either. It just kinda exists, and I think Hasbro shouldn't have hyped it up like they did OR they should have hired a good studio to produce it. Rooster Teeth just . . . wasn't the right fit.
> 
> Anime wise, I'm about to dive on Martian Successor Nadesico again. Such a great send-up of the entire giant mech phenom. It's rare to see such self-aware humor in a show that can still play the tropes in a way that tugs at the heart strings. What a great anime.



I was in high school when BW was on and was turned off by the CG. I've heard from others that it was good, though. Maybe I'll try it after gen 1. Didn't know about Hasbro hyping up WfC, Netflix just suggested it to me. As for the sniping between characters, there was a fair amount of that in Gen 1.

I agree on Nadesico--it's always been one of my favorites. I've been meaning to re-watch it since trying the original Macross a few years back, noticing similarities between the two.


----------



## MFB

Beast Wars is rough because it's that early CG like ReBoot was, but I don't remember any of the underlying content because I was like, 8 when it was on  I do remember liking the ideas of who was what, but it was weird to watch since it was ALL 3D animation. 

I started watching Dragonball Super, skipping over the entirety of what's covered in Battle of Gods/Resurrection of F, so now having finished the Universe 6/7 Tournament I'm in the Goku Black saga; but I don't know, it's just not doing anything for me at the moment, as much as I might want it to. With Shippuden, the powers were evident that there were mismatches between people, but with DBS the fact that guys like Hit could IMMEDIATELY stand up to SS Blue as well as suddenly find a way to improve his technique to DEFEAT it? Like, that just seems like easy writing, and I can only wonder how "interesting" the Tournament of Power would really be.


----------



## Alberto7

Goku Black saga was alright, it was entertaining. Besides, that one character we all love comes back.

I LOVED the Tournament of Power. Sure, the whole power scales thing is kinda poorly written (like you say, it's not super clear who's on what power level), but some of the fights are just so.god.damn.GOOD. It's intense.

Then again, DBS is, to me, just glorified fanservice, since it picked up on what was basically half of my childhood. My opinions may be (read: are) biased. I love me some Dragon Ball.


----------



## MFB

I'll fanboy hard for the OG DB and DBZ as I saw those when I was a child, like middle-school, but unfortunately all these other ones that have come after don't seem to have the (rightful) nostalgia to them so I'm just sort of eh'd by it; I know people will argue GT is bad, but the Baby Saga was cool and unlike anything in DB, we got the Golden Ozaru out of it, and I fucking wish we saw more of Gogeta as he's the cooler fusion than Vegito. DBS is 100% glorified fanservice and everyone seems to love it so I'm safe to say I'm in the minority, and I'll probably finish it as it costs me nothing since I can crank out several episodes like nothing and still have time to read afterwards, but I just wish it reached me the same way which it never will.


----------



## nightflameauto

MetalGravy said:


> I was in high school when BW was on and was turned off by the CG. I've heard from others that it was good, though. Maybe I'll try it after gen 1. Didn't know about Hasbro hyping up WfC, Netflix just suggested it to me. As for the sniping between characters, there was a fair amount of that in Gen 1.
> 
> I agree on Nadesico--it's always been one of my favorites. I've been meaning to re-watch it since trying the original Macross a few years back, noticing similarities between the two.


Beast Wars was great outside of the early CGI animation. Some of the best story telling ever in the Transformers franchise, and some of the best stories in animation period by the time you truck into the mid to late seasons. 'Code of Hero' does something that shouldn't be possible by taking a beloved character to places that actually had me, as a late thirties dude the first time I saw it, crying over a cartoon. It's ridiculously great story telling in a plot that could have come across cheap and stupid but just played to perfection. The voice acting, the script and the way they played the scene was just beautifully orchestrated.

Nadesico does play around with the Macross themes quite liberally as it rolls along. Especially the bridge situations and character interactions. Such a great show.


----------



## MFB

Jesus Christ, the Goku Black saga is so convoluted but perfectly inline with everything DB


----------



## thebeesknees22

I finally trudged my way through Attack on Titan. 
season 1. brutally dumb..I actually took like a 2 yr break between season 1 and season 2 because I just couldn't sit through anymore.
seasons 2 to the next to last season... still dumb but I made it through...not as dumb as season 1.
last season is actually kind of more interesting. 

I still feel like the only thing that show has going for it is the over the top gore. It took way too long to get to the real core of the story.


----------



## MFB

Paused on Super before the Tournament of Power to go back to Shippuden and actually finish it. 

Tobi has such big fucking balls when he declares the start of the Fourth Great Ninja War right to the God damn kages faces. What an absolute legend. I made it to the Infinite Tsukiomi before, but never finished which I should have no trouble doing with my non-filler episode list, since that's what killer me before.


----------



## KnightBrolaire

MFB said:


> Paused on Super before the Tournament of Power to go back to Shippuden and actually finish it.
> 
> Tobi has such big fucking balls when he declares the start of the Fourth Great Ninja War right to the God damn kages faces. What an absolute legend. I made it to the Infinite Tsukiomi before, but never finished which I should have no trouble doing with my non-filler episode list, since that's what killer me before.


Yo could I get a copy of that non-filler list? I gave up on naruto like around ep 100 something ages ago due to all the meandering filler shit. I'd kind of like to see how the series wraps up


----------



## MFB

I'm using the one on here, and there's also one for the original Naruto series as well. Breaks it up between pure canon, mixed canon/filler, and pure filler episodes so it's pretty great. 

OG Naruto I think is roughly around 200 episodes, but during the later half where you got I think it does start to bog down. Shippuden is like 2.5x that in length, and legitimately 40% is filler, and after season 2 it's subs only, so that's time I don't have to waste.

https://www.animefillerlist.com/shows/naruto-shippuden


----------



## Bearitone

Can anyone reccomend anime that isn’t full of the regular corny anime tropes? (Emotional whining, over the top monologues, plots that jump all over the place)

I feel like the only anime’s I’ve genuinely liked are Cowboy Bepop (probably because it didn’t have much of the corny tropes) and One Punch Man (because it has decently good story telling and is hilarious in making fun of a lot of anime tropes)

Attack on Titan was cool too but, still kind of annoying to watch at some parts.

So yeah, I guess I’m looking for anime with a more western feel? Not sure


----------



## MFB

Bro, Trigun, for serious.

The first half is pretty light hearted, and episode 1 is a masterclass in misdirection, but then it shifts tonally and it's great. My favorite anime of all time, I recommend it like most people expect a Bebop recommendation.

One season as well, and it's a legit space western


----------



## KnightBrolaire

Bearitone said:


> Can anyone reccomend anime that isn’t full of the regular corny anime tropes? (Emotional whining, over the top monologues, plots that jump all over the place)
> 
> I feel like the only anime’s I’ve genuinely liked are Cowboy Bepop (probably because it didn’t have much of the corny tropes) and One Punch Man (because it has decently good story telling and is hilarious in making fun of a lot of anime tropes)
> 
> Attack on Titan was cool too but, still kind of annoying to watch at some parts.
> 
> So yeah, I guess I’m looking for anime with a more western feel? Not sure


Samurai Champloo. Same creator as Cowboy Bebop, plus it has one of the best soundtracks ever.
Goblin Slayer. Takes all the typical fantasy/D&D tropes and spins them on their head, as well as being absolutely brutal.
Castelvania- It's anime styled but written by westerners, so there's a distinct lack of anime tropes. Really excellent series with great writing, music, voiceovers, and metric tons of bloodshed.
Outlaw Star= Imagine if Firefly was an anime and only one season of pure awesomeness.


----------



## Alberto7

I suppose *Monster* would fall into that. I am still unsure as to why it was an anime and not a live action show. Really gritty and slow paced, but super interesting and gripping. It does have a pretty long plot with unmistakably Japanese topics.

It's been years, but I remember *Planetes* falling into that category. Hard sci-fi show about a low-Earth orbit garbage cleaning crew. Pretty cool.

I've watched my fair share of anime but it's been years since I practically stopped watching, so I've forgotten quite a bit of it, sadly.

EDIT: Oh, also you might wanna check out *Black Lagoon*. It's just fucking badass. Nuns with guns and tons of fun.


----------



## MFB

KnightBrolaire said:


> Samurai Champloo. Same creator as Cowboy Bebop, plus it has one of the best soundtracks ever.
> Goblin Slayer. Takes all the typical fantasy/D&D tropes and spins them on their head, as well as being absolutely brutal.
> Castelvania- It's anime styled but written by westerners, so there's a distinct lack of anime tropes. Really excellent series with great writing, music, voiceovers, and metric tons of bloodshed.
> Outlaw Star= Imagine if Firefly was an anime and only one season of pure awesomeness.



I rewatched the first few episodes of Outlaw Star during quarantine, and uh, it's just sort of boring as an adult. I couldn't deal with Jim and his voice, yes I know he's a kid etc, but by episode 5 I already didn't really care where it was going.

But Castlevania is great, I remember blowing through S1, and don't remember if I finished S2 (don't think I did since I cancelled my Netflix)


----------



## KnightBrolaire

MFB said:


> I rewatched the first few episodes of Outlaw Star during quarantine, and uh, it's just sort of boring as an adult. I couldn't deal with Jim and his voice, yes I know he's a kid etc, but by episode 5 I already didn't really care where it was going.
> 
> But Castlevania is great, I remember blowing through S1, and don't remember if I finished S2 (don't think I did since I cancelled my Netflix)


Did you watch the dub or sub version of Outlaw Star? The sub version is better imo. most english VOs are fucking horrendous

S2 of castlevania is even better than s1 imo. They get to flesh out a lot of the characters and do a great job of making most sympathetic and not one note


----------



## MFB

Dubbed like a pleb, didn't feel like dealing with subs at the time. Maybe I'll give it another try in the future, I legitimately hadn't seen it since it first aired on Toonami back in the early 00s (2001 sounds right, definitely no later than 2002).


----------



## thebeesknees22

MFB said:


> Bro, Trigun, for serious.
> 
> The first half is pretty light hearted, and episode 1 is a masterclass in misdirection, but then it shifts tonally and it's great. My favorite anime of all time, I recommend it like most people expect a Bebop recommendation.
> 
> One season as well, and it's a legit space western



Trigun is also one of my most favorite anime's of all time.


----------



## SamSam

Alberto7 said:


> I suppose *Monster* would fall into that. I am still unsure as to why it was an anime and not a live action show. Really gritty and slow paced, but super interesting and gripping. It does have a pretty long plot with unmistakably Japanese topics.



I haven't watched the anime, but ten years or so on and it's still without a doubt one of the best manga I have ever read. Highly recommended.


----------



## thebeesknees22

Oh Monster is great. It's super messed up lol 

I haven't read the manga, but the anime is top notch.


----------



## Jonathan20022

Bearitone said:


> Can anyone reccomend anime that isn’t full of the regular corny anime tropes? (Emotional whining, over the top monologues, plots that jump all over the place)
> 
> I feel like the only anime’s I’ve genuinely liked are Cowboy Bepop (probably because it didn’t have much of the corny tropes) and One Punch Man (because it has decently good story telling and is hilarious in making fun of a lot of anime tropes)
> 
> Attack on Titan was cool too but, still kind of annoying to watch at some parts.
> 
> So yeah, I guess I’m looking for anime with a more western feel? Not sure



Death Note is still my all time favorite, it is a drama thriller though so monologuing and plot jumps definitely do happen. But I feel as far as fantasy goes it does a good job of grounding the plot and explaining why things happen the way they do.

I HIGHLY recommend Vinland Saga, I haven't been gripped that much by a story in a long time. I ended up picking up the volumes and reading up to Volume 8. A very well written take on Viking Storytelling.

Erased is also pretty fantastic, I've rewatched it 3 times now and still really love it. Mystery Thriller with really great twists and turns.

Another anime that really gripped me recently was Haikyuu, I'm generally not a sports guy overall and most of the other sports animes tend to be extremely goofy. But I had an incredible time with Haikyuu, it wholely falls under the general Shonen box. But I feel like as far as character writing and subtle development, the author is incredibly meticulous.

And I'll second the other recommendations for Monster/Samurai Champloo/Castlevania/Monster. Fantastic series.


----------



## NotDonVito

Alberto7 said:


> EDIT: Oh, also you might wanna check out *Black Lagoon*. It's just fucking badass. Nuns with guns and tons of fun.


Don't watch Black Lagoon, it will only leave you in tears when you wake up every morning and come to the realization that Revy isn't real and isn't your gf.


----------



## Alberto7

I think I arrived at this video as a tangential search for something that Strandberg posted in their Instagram:



Don't know what it is from, not if it's any good, but the clip is dope, and the guitar playing is great!


----------



## KnightBrolaire

Finished up Kimetsu No Yaiba. Pretty great first season imo, if a bit slow in spots. They did a great job of making the villains somewhat empathetic/tragic, and there's a ton of humor to balance out the dark brutal aspects too. The interplay between Tanjiro, Zenitsu and Inosuke is usually hilarious. It gets quite gory at times too. The Taisho time period is underutilized though.


----------



## MFB

MFB said:


> Paused on Super before the Tournament of Power to go back to Shippuden and actually finish it.
> 
> Tobi has such big fucking balls when he declares the start of the Fourth Great Ninja War right to the God damn kages faces. What an absolute legend. I made it to the Infinite Tsukiomi before, but never finished which I should have no trouble doing with my non-filler episode list, since that's what killer me before.



Fucking hell Shippuden feels like it goes on forever, for every 15 mins of fighting there's 45 minutes of Talk no Jutsu. This war should've been over hours ago! (which is made especially hilarious because as someone online pointed out, the 4th Shinobi War doesn't even need to happen).

I'm about to enter into the last 50-60 episodes, but I hope there's more fighting here than there has been these past 50 episodes.

After that I think I'll finally watch all of Futurama, as I've seen the first few seasons more times than I should have, but I don't know where it goes or how it officially "ended" with all the movies, cancellations, etc..


----------



## MFB

"Finished" Shippuden, the Madara arc gets real full of itself, and the Talk/Friendship no Jutsu wore out pretty quickly. Previously I had only seen up to him stealing Obito's body back for himself after Obito became the Ten Tails jinchuriki; so everything with him fighting Might Guy (the absolute beast of the Leaf), Naruto/Sasuke meeting Hagoromo, the Kaguya fight, etc was all new to me. 

I used quotes earlier because I watched the strictly canon episodes up to 477, and then it seems 478/479 aren't considered canon even though it's when they undo the Infinite Tsukiomi and _save the world_. 480 is a filler episode of Hinata/Naruto history, so I watched that and skipped right to episode 500 which is the day of their wedding. I'm I'mll not sure why the hell the ending jumps in time, it honestly should have ended at the Naruto/Sasuke rematch, they heal up, and then the post war burials, etc. Everything from episode 481 to 500 are just pre-Boruto, that probably could've just been a filler movie instead.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

For the Macross fans, this is huge news:

Macross Sequels and Films To Be Released Worldwide by Big West and Harmony Gold | Den of Geek

After Macross Plus, the series has been practically held hostage by Harmony Gold for over 20 bloody years. It's about time. 

Now time for the Macross series release a good follow up since Delta sucked.


----------



## Miek

I'll be happy to grab an official copy of DYRL for sure.


----------



## Kaura

Rewatched and marathoned through the first 3 seasons of Attack on Titan to watch the first half of the 4th season since it's finally out and man, what an emotional rollercoaster. It's been so long since I've watched anime that I didn't even remember how hard that post-anime depression hits you.


----------



## soliloquy

anyone watching Invincible? Not exactly anime or manga, but it is animated


i wasn't expecting much from it, up until half way through the first episode. Really brings on the gore. Kind of similar to Amazon's The Boy's series, just animated. 
just finished it yesterday (season one) at least.


----------



## Kaura

Damn, for some reason I thought the first part of the AoT last season had 13 episodes instead of 16. Watched the last 3 episodes today and it ended up on even a bigger cliffhanger. 

Also started watching Steins;Gate 0. Seems promising. Probably not as good as the first season but it still has pretty good rating.


----------



## diagrammatiks

my YouTube keeps recommending snippets of weird simp weebo anime. so that's what I'm doing this week.

darling in the franxx is hilarious.


----------



## works0fheart

Apparently Kentaro Miura (Berserk) died on the 6th. His death was announced today. Idk about the rest of you, but I've loved Berserk for years. This hit me like a truck full of bricks.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Yeah Miura's passing really hurts. Berserk was his magnum opus that influenced so many from different mediums, and it's sad he was taken early.


----------



## KnightBrolaire

works0fheart said:


> Apparently Kentaro Miura (Berserk) died on the 6th. His death was announced today. Idk about the rest of you, but I've loved Berserk for years. This hit me like a truck full of bricks.


Berserk was and is one of my favorite mangas/ grimdark fantasy series of all time . I adore Miura's artwork/writing and it hit me pretty hard that he's gone. He had such a distinct style and I loved how he mixed bits of medieval history into the series.


----------



## CovertSovietBear

soliloquy said:


> anyone watching Invincible? Not exactly anime or manga, but it is animated
> 
> 
> i wasn't expecting much from it, up until half way through the first episode. Really brings on the gore. Kind of similar to Amazon's The Boy's series, just animated.
> just finished it yesterday (season one) at least.




I am planning on watching it this Friday. My other friend watches a lot of anime outside of shonen (that's all I watch anyways, DBZ/S, Gundam, JJK, YYH, etc.) and recommended it. If he likes it that's a good contender. I need to know what the meme is about !


----------



## CovertSovietBear

Recently read through Young Jijii's Dragon Ball fanfics. Really good stuff:

https://www.kanzenshuu.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=40618

The link above is a DBZ/DBS crossup, but his other work, Dragon Ball AF is a complete set of 17 total chapters I think. I haven't been able to find CH15 in english though (or Japanese) as I guess they must've been sued from what I've read.


----------



## CovertSovietBear




----------



## sakeido

I finally watched Attack on Titan

I tried back when it was new and absolutely hated it. I still think season 1, especially the first half, isn't good... aside from the best moments of the first episode, which are pretty epic. After that it doesn't get all that good until the Female Titan stuff in the last few episodes, which still suffer from a glacial pace. But damn. This is quite a good show. It's no FMA:B but it's as close as any anime has come.


----------



## Dan_Vacant

I've been watching Godzilla Singukar Point. It's okay so far. Lots of fake science, but you kinda need that to have Godzilla.


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

Saw Gundam Hathaway. I'm actually surprised this movie was even made considering how long the original novel has been out. But I'm glad it did since it focuses on one of the more annoying characters of Char's Counterattack and develops him into someone much more interesting. Twelve years after everyone gets killed in Char's Counterattack (not a spoiler since it's Tomino we're dealing with) the Earth Federation have formed the Man Hunters to forcefully deport the underprivileged civilians to space. And in response, a terrorist group called Mafty is formed to enact revenge. It's a whole heap of moral grey issues (since it's Tomino we're dealing with) and the movie does it well. Surprisingly not much in the action scenes dept, but well worth a slow burn, and the mecha designs are top notch. This is a first of trilogy in true Gundam movie tradition and looking forward to how it all turns out.


----------



## CovertSovietBear

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Saw Gundam Hathaway. I'm actually surprised this movie was even made considering how long the original novel has been out. But I'm glad it did since it focuses on one of the more annoying characters of Char's Counterattack and develops him into someone much more interesting. Twelve years after everyone gets killed in Char's Counterattack (not a spoiler since it's Tomino we're dealing with) the Earth Federation have formed the Man Hunters to forcefully deport the underprivileged civilians to space. And in response, a terrorist group called Mafty is formed to enact revenge. It's a whole heap of moral grey issues (since it's Tomino we're dealing with) and the movie does it well. Surprisingly not much in the action scenes dept, but well worth a slow burn, and the mecha designs are top notch. This is a first of trilogy in true Gundam movie tradition and looking forward to how it all turns out.



Had to google this but sounds interesting. Recently watched Iron Blooded Orphans and part of Unicorn. Wasn't aware of any movie releases, I'll have to watch this one.


----------



## KnightBrolaire

Watching. Hajimate no Gal and it's probably the funniest ecchi I've seen since Prison School. I was cackling at so many parts.


----------



## Ralyks

Watched the Danganronpa anime in 2 - 3 sittings. Now I'm watching someone do a playthrough of Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair before I move to the Danganronpa 3 anime.


----------



## Spaced Out Ace

Any suggestions for a n00b? I recently started watching The Seven Deadly Sins, Bleach, and Cowboy Bebop, and am enjoying it thus far. I am staunchly a dub fan. I don't enjoy trying to read the screen and pay attention to the action on screen at the same time (some of them, like one of the Gundam films I tried to watch, had some subs flash on screen for far too short a period to even read). I find it a bit overwhelming to try and do both.

I could go into more detail about why I prefer dubs (tl;dr: Italian films are dubbed, and I don't know the original language anyways, so it doesn't matter the inflections on certain words, etc), but I'll keep it at that.

Anyways, what are some things to check out? Currently have Starz, Netflix, Tubi, Amazon Prime, and Hulu, which seem to be the only ones which might have anime.


----------



## MFB

On the more pleb side, but if you haven't watched any anime at all, then you'll probably enjoy them: Avatar The Last Airbender is always solid, and the original Naruto is good too. Both can be a bit childish, but, the characters ARE children so naturally it makes sense. 

I don't know if they finished the dub of Naruto Shippuden but the strictly canon episodes of that are also a solid watch especially if you watch the original. It's great to see the characters growth after the time skip and come into their own we the next generation.

Also, Trigun. A million times over, Trigun is my #1 anime until I die.


----------



## thebeesknees22

Dude! Trigun is my favorite!


----------



## MFB

Hell yeah!

The first episode alone is a masterclass in writing, and it's still a treat to go back and rewatch even after all this time. Then as the show goes on, you get the breadcrumbs of the history, and then around ep. 13/14 it shifts gears and goes to a whole different level.

Hell man, I can't hear the opening to Sound Life and not think of Rem and the crew, and get a little sad. It was the first time I became aware of my own life philosophy as a utilitarian, and it came from a fucking ANIME. 

I used to set up the VCR every night in my Freshman year of high school just to tape it when adult swim premiered it. Shit was much easier back then.


----------



## Spaced Out Ace

Is Akira (1988) any good?


----------



## thebeesknees22

MFB said:


> Hell yeah!
> 
> The first episode alone is a masterclass in writing, and it's still a treat to go back and rewatch even after all this time. Then as the show goes on, you get the breadcrumbs of the history, and then around ep. 13/14 it shifts gears and goes to a whole different level.
> 
> Hell man, I can't hear the opening to Sound Life and not think of Rem and the crew, and get a little sad. It was the first time I became aware of my own life philosophy as a utilitarian, and it came from a fucking ANIME.
> 
> I used to set up the VCR every night in my Freshman year of high school just to tape it when adult swim premiered it. Shit was much easier back then.




lol yep, I did the same to record it every night haha


----------



## Spaced Out Ace

Well, I am starting Trigun on Hulu. I'm a fan from the intro alone.


----------



## MFB

The best and worst part of Trigun is that it's one and done. That one season is a perfect anime, to me, so for that I'm grateful. But more would have been nice too, but it would have to be entirely new material as the show covers the manga from what I've read; and therein lies the risk of taking away from S1.


----------



## KnightBrolaire

Spaced Out Ace said:


> Is Akira (1988) any good?


yes. It's a classic anime.


----------



## Ralyks

Spaced Out Ace said:


> Is Akira (1988) any good?



Absolutely classic of the genre


----------



## mbardu

Wait this is the Anime thread, and not a single soul has mentioned that the Evangelion rebuilds have been available on Amazon Prime for a while now?!?


----------



## CovertSovietBear

mbardu said:


> Wait this is the Anime thread, and not a single soul has mentioned that the Evangelion rebuilds have been available on Amazon Prime for a while now?!?


I've been putting them off, been a couple weeks since I watched End of Evangelion - pretty f'n good


----------



## MFB

I might try out Demon Slayer on Netflix, animation style seems decent enough, I just hope it's not incredibly generic or gets into the shonen power creep. It's got decent enough star rating on a couple sites, so I figured the ol' 3 episodes and decide should suffice.


----------



## Spaced Out Ace

MFB said:


> I might try out Demon Slayer on Netflix, animation style seems decent enough, I just hope it's not incredibly generic or gets into the shonen power creep. It's got decent enough star rating on a couple sites, so I figured the ol' 3 episodes and decide should suffice.


Lemme know if it is worth checking out.


----------



## CovertSovietBear

MFB said:


> I might try out Demon Slayer on Netflix, animation style seems decent enough, I just hope it's not incredibly generic or gets into the shonen power creep. It's got decent enough star rating on a couple sites, so I figured the ol' 3 episodes and decide should suffice.


Someone suggested Naruto and rather than decide after 3 episodes they told me: "it starts to pickup after episode 300 or so" 
Demon Slayer tracks are good just haven't watched the actual show.


----------



## Spaced Out Ace

CovertSovietBear said:


> Someone suggested Naruto and rather than decide after 3 episodes they told me: "it starts to pickup after episode 300 or so"
> Demon Slayer tracks are good just haven't watched the actual show.


There are 720 fucking episodes between Naruto and Naruto Shippuden? Good lord!


----------



## Spaced Out Ace

Watching Hellsing, and it is the end credits. I'm like, "Wait... I know that voice!" Turns out, it is Mr. Big.


----------



## KnightBrolaire

MFB said:


> I might try out Demon Slayer on Netflix, animation style seems decent enough, I just hope it's not incredibly generic or gets into the shonen power creep. It's got decent enough star rating on a couple sites, so I figured the ol' 3 episodes and decide should suffice.


Demon Slayer is awesome. It's in a really interesting time period (early 1900s) and the fight scenes are sick. They actually do a good job of making you empathize with the demons, as all of them have tragic backstories. They're not completely irredeemable like the villains in say, Berserk.


----------



## MFB

CovertSovietBear said:


> Someone suggested Naruto and rather than decide after 3 episodes they told me: "it starts to pickup after episode 300 or so"
> Demon Slayer tracks are good just haven't watched the actual show.



Naruto unfortunately got hit with a bunch of filler episodes, I'd have to go back and check but it may have been running in syndication with the publishing of the manga which sounds crazy.



Spaced Out Ace said:


> There are 720 fucking episodes between Naruto and Naruto Shippuden? Good lord!



Shippuden itself I believe its 700ish, since I did a canon only run which was roughly 320 episodes out of that. It's like a 60/40 split in favor of filler sadly, but the stuff that IS canon - is awesome. If you were to watch it with the original Naruto, all episodes you'd probably be at around 1K, but again, a canon only watch of each series? You're talking probably half that.

But I don't know if all of Shippuden got dubbed, Hulu only had episodes 1-81 dubbed, and then it went to subbed and even then I think I had to finish on Crunchyroll to save ad time; that shit adds UP.


----------



## Spaced Out Ace

MFB said:


> Shippuden itself I believe its 700ish, since I did a canon only run which was roughly 320 episodes out of that. It's like a 60/40 split in favor of filler sadly, but the stuff that IS canon - is awesome. If you were to watch it with the original Naruto, all episodes you'd probably be at around 1K, but again, a canon only watch of each series? You're talking probably half that.
> 
> But I don't know if all of Shippuden got dubbed, Hulu only had episodes 1-81 dubbed, and then it went to subbed and even then I think I had to finish on Crunchyroll to save ad time; that shit adds UP.


Shippuden is 500 or so if memory serves from looking at Wikipedia; I think Naruto was around 200+.

I watch Hulu enough that it was worth getting the ad free tier. I've thought about subbing to Crunchyroll or Funimation, but I don't know if I will or not. I'm pretty much dub only, and thanks to sub nazis*, lots of anime doesn't seem to get dubbed. At least, a lot of anime doesn't seem to have the dubs available on Hulu and elsewhere. If you wanna read subs, awesome, but I think the freedom should be there to pick whether you want to read or just have it dubbed. I'm an Italian horror movie fan, so I don't care about "oh no, dubbing is like, very horrible and stuffs!"

*Trust me, these subs or die people are pretty much going to die on that hill; I'd know, as I've dealt with them in the horror community, and I'm sure the anime weebs are even more stuck on that than horror fans.


----------



## MFB

Nah, I'm no sub hardo by any means, I did it purely because I wanted to see if through to the end and that was the only way. If a dub is available, I make my peace with it and take it for what it is.

I looked up the numbers, I had the right numbers at times just jumbled them all together  720 is the total count for both, with as you said, Shippuden being 500 and then 220 being the original Naruto; so not 700 for the sequel alone. That does make me feel a little bit better about how much I actually watched, because it was an obscene amount. By the end they were all blurring together.


----------



## KnightBrolaire

Spaced Out Ace said:


> Shippuden is 500 or so if memory serves from looking at Wikipedia; I think Naruto was around 200+.
> 
> I watch Hulu enough that it was worth getting the ad free tier. I've thought about subbing to Crunchyroll or Funimation, but I don't know if I will or not. I'm pretty much dub only, and thanks to sub nazis*, lots of anime doesn't seem to get dubbed. At least, a lot of anime doesn't seem to have the dubs available on Hulu and elsewhere. If you wanna read subs, awesome, but I think the freedom should be there to pick whether you want to read or just have it dubbed. I'm an Italian horror movie fan, so I don't care about "oh no, dubbing is like, very horrible and stuffs!"
> 
> *Trust me, these subs or die people are pretty much going to die on that hill; I'd know, as I've dealt with them in the horror community, and I'm sure the anime weebs are even more stuck on that than horror fans.


The problem I've had with dubs for ages in anime, is that they vary A LOOOOT in quality.
Subs with native VO tends to yield a far more consistent experience ime.
Naruto is a prime example. The english vo work is mediocre at best, while the japanese one just works better.
Although I will say some shit like Prison School or La Blue Girl is actually funnier in its english dub. Some dubs like Princess Mononoke and Howl's Moving Castle are quite good. 



On another note, Witcher Nightmare of the Wolf was really cool. The same studio that does the Castlevania stuff for Netflix was behind the animation, so it's quite good. The VO work is high quality, and the action scenes are super slick. I loved how they actually had the witchers making use of potions and poison/oils for their weapons like in the books/games.


----------



## Spaced Out Ace

KnightBrolaire said:


> The problem I've had with dubs for ages in anime, is that they vary A LOOOOT in quality.
> Subs with native VO tends to yield a far more consistent experience ime.
> Naruto is a prime example. The english vo work is mediocre at best, while the japanese one just works better.
> Although I will say some shit like Prison School or La Blue Girl is actually funnier in its english dub. Some dubs like Princess Mononoke and Howl's Moving Castle are quite good.
> 
> 
> 
> On another note, Witcher Nightmare of the Wolf was really cool. The same studio that does the Castlevania stuff for Netflix was behind the animation, so it's quite good. The VO work is high quality, and the action scenes are super slick. I loved how they actually had the witchers making use of potions and poison/oils for their weapons like in the books/games.


I went to go watch Dragon Ball the other day, and was surprised there wasn’t a dubbed version. I’d think if any franchise in anime could get a good dub, it’d be Dragon Ball. Maybe Hulu just doesn’t have it or something.


----------



## KnightBrolaire

Spaced Out Ace said:


> I went to go watch Dragon Ball the other day, and was surprised there wasn’t a dubbed version. I’d think if any franchise in anime could get a good dub, it’d be Dragon Ball. Maybe Hulu just doesn’t have it or something.


Dragonball's dub is pretty eh imo. check crunchyroll


----------



## Spaced Out Ace

KnightBrolaire said:


> Dragonball's dub is pretty eh imo. check crunchyroll


People think Crunchyroll and Funimation are going to merge or become the same thing.

Hemanlaugh.gif

Side note, I know, but still.


----------



## Jonathan20022

Spaced Out Ace said:


> People think Crunchyroll and Funimation are going to merge or become the same thing.
> 
> Hemanlaugh.gif
> 
> Side note, I know, but still.



They've long confirmed Sony acquiring Crunchyroll, and just recently confirmed a single subscription experience, whatever that means, but it is absolutely combining.

They just announced the dub for one of my favorite series, Vinland Saga. And it's honestly fine from the clips I've seen alone, but it's just another example of underwhelming emotional impact from lackluster delivery.

Thors' VA is extremely fitting though I will say.


----------



## Spaced Out Ace

Jonathan20022 said:


> They've long confirmed Sony acquiring Crunchyroll, and just recently confirmed a single subscription experience, whatever that means, but it is absolutely combining.
> 
> They just announced the dub for one of my favorite series, Vinland Saga. And it's honestly fine from the clips I've seen alone, but it's just another example of underwhelming emotional impact from lackluster delivery.
> 
> Thors' VA is extremely fitting though I will say.



That is absolutely dumb and you'd lose money as an investor. I'd keep them separate with two different libraries. I can only see that working if you get less and/or have to spend around the same amount as you would subbing to both services.

(I am talking from the owner's side of this, by the way.)


----------



## nightflameauto

Started the Supernatural anime last night. It's interesting how they start off with an episode that literally took an episode of the original live action show and gave other aspects of the story, or turned some things a bit here or there, yet stayed pretty true to the source. Not loving Dean's voice actor at the moment. He's alright, but doesn't quite have the delivery down.

The guy who gave Baby her design needs shot in the hand so he can't draw anymore. So much not fitting. The Scoobynatural episode did a hundred times better at that aspect. The anime has Baby all squished looking, and the lines don't flow at ALL like a 67 Chevy. Way too squared off.

That said, the plot was great, the acting was mostly up to snuff, and the animation aspect worked really well. That first kill had a really great impact with not actually showing the killing but focusing on the blood splatter background. Great use of color and moody lighting to set the tone. Can't wait to watch another episode or two.


----------



## MFB

Watched two episodes of Demon Slayer last night, it's just sort of OK. It's doing the one thing I'm not crazy in anime recently which is trying to blend 2D with 3D, and its always obvious when they use the two together. The voice acting is also just sort of OK, but I'm certainly not in the mood to read any subtitles, so I'll give it another couple episodes and make my decision.


----------



## nightflameauto

Watched a few more Supernatural anime episodes. Some are like summarized versions of the live action episodes, while some take concepts from the live action show from several episodes and sort of plop them together. Like there was one we watched where a 67 black impala was haunted and hunting the residents of a town. Turns out the guy driving the car originally was falsely accused of murder and ran off the road by the cops and killed. And of course the boys are picked up for it when they come into town since they drive a black 67 impala.

I will say the lines on Baby are getting better. Somebody must have not done a very good job in the first couple episodes.

It's a fun watch. I'd think even if you didn't know the live action show it'd still be enjoyable. Though the live action is, of course, a much larger scale that goes a lot further. The difference between twenty two twenty two minute episodes and 300+ forty two minute episodes.


----------



## CovertSovietBear

MFB said:


> trying to blend 2D with 3D, and its always obvious when they use the two together


Is that where they have a 3D generated background over 2D animation? Jujutsu Kaisen does it well (to a degree)


----------



## MFB

Typically it's the character model is 3D since it's dynamic and moving, and then they'll just do a static background or something minor moving as part of it that they can animate quickly. Same as when the new Berserk tried (and failed horribly) to do it.


----------



## Spaced Out Ace

Random, but can I just say that Netflix Geeked is an awful account? If your sole purpose is to push shit while antagonizing fans, *perhaps *you aren't involved for the best of reasons. 

Anyways, back to your regularly scheduled anime.


----------



## Spaced Out Ace

On a more on-topic note, I just would like to say that MFB's suggestion to check out Trigun was great. Awesome show, cool cast, great story. The West could learn a thing or two from it, though I'm sure they'd learn all of the wrong things.


----------



## Ralyks

Started the Daganronpa 3 anime. It was really hilarious for a bit and I kept saying "This is going to get really dark really suddenly, isn't it." And sure enough. The 3 anime is in two arcs, and so far the first Arc is helping me understand 2 much more.


----------



## MFB

Got to episode 6 in Demon Slayer, it seems to actually be in gear now so that's good. I'm still not over joyed about a teenage protagonist, but it's par for the course with most anime so I've accepted it. I might have an idea where they're going and some of the beats it'll hit, but it could very well be a red herring and the writers will say 'you don't think us that basic do you??"


----------



## Spaced Out Ace

MFB said:


> Got to episode 6 in Demon Slayer, it seems to actually be in gear now so that's good. I'm still not over joyed about a teenage protagonist, but it's par for the course with most anime so I've accepted it. I might have an idea where they're going and some of the beats it'll hit, but it could very well be a red herring and the writers will say 'you don't think us that basic do you??"


It's always great when they set you up for the obvious, only to swerve you, so long as it is done well.


----------



## MFB

I'm going to episode ...16 or so now of Demon Slayer, and I got misdirected by a reveal in one of the episodes. They introduce an inner circle of demons, and I thought he'd be hunting then down trying to get info from each to get to the head but uh, apparently not?  I have no preference either way it just seemed like a weird concept to introduce and then I've now watched 4 episodes since and they've only introduced one of twelve characters that are members of that circle. 

Maybe they don't blow their load in season one and it pans out more in season 2? If there is one? It's been good aside from that slight confusion, I'm curious where it's actually going to end for season 1.


----------



## KnightBrolaire

MFB said:


> I'm going to episode ...16 or so now of Demon Slayer, and I got misdirected by a reveal in one of the episodes. They introduce an inner circle of demons, and I thought he'd be hunting then down trying to get info from each to get to the head but uh, apparently not?  I have no preference either way it just seemed like a weird concept to introduce and then I've now watched 4 episodes since and they've only introduced one of twelve characters that are members of that circle.
> 
> Maybe they don't blow their load in season one and it pans out more in season 2? If there is one? It's been good aside from that slight confusion, I'm curious where it's actually going to end for season 1.


he starts hunting the inner circle later in the series, with most of them saved for s2


----------



## MFB

Gotcha, figured as much if I'm 2/3 of the way through the season and they've only introduced one of them. I'll keep an eye out for season 2, I assume it'll be dropping soon since I think S1 was 2019?


----------



## KnightBrolaire

MFB said:


> Gotcha, figured as much if I'm 2/3 of the way through the season and they've only introduced one of them. I'll keep an eye out for season 2, I assume it'll be dropping soon since I think S1 was 2019?


hopefully s2 will be sometime this year. Check out the mugen train film before it drops though, as it's a segue from s1 to s2


----------



## Spaced Out Ace

MFB said:


> I'm going to episode ...16 or so now of Demon Slayer, and I got misdirected by a reveal in one of the episodes. They introduce an inner circle of demons, and I thought he'd be hunting then down trying to get info from each to get to the head but uh, apparently not?  I have no preference either way it just seemed like a weird concept to introduce and then I've now watched 4 episodes since and they've only introduced one of twelve characters that are members of that circle.
> 
> Maybe they don't blow their load in season one and it pans out more in season 2? If there is one? It's been good aside from that slight confusion, I'm curious where it's actually going to end for season 1.


They spent 24 episodes talking about the Seven Deadly Sins and you only meat I think 5 of them in season one of the namesake show. "Nice first season! ...wait, where are the other sins?"


----------



## MFB

Finished S1 of Demon Slayer



Spoiler



So, two of the original twelve Kizuki were defeated - one by Tanjiro/Nezuko outside Ms. Tamayo's house (the six armed chick) and then the other in the woods by Tomioka, and then at the end the Demon Leader straight up kills five more of them saying they don't serve a purpose as they rotate so often. So it seems like for season two, they'll see some of the Kizuki more often and not be defeated so easily if it's down to the top five remaining members.

I did like at the end we see more of the Hashira and the Demon Corps members, Insect Hashira might be my favorite at the moment. The Wind Hashira is a little too much for my taste, and the whole Nezuko trial was obviously rigged as they were provoking her to begin with on top of just presenting her with blood. If they leaned into that I would've ended it right there. I'm hoping that Zenitsu's personalities start to merge a bit more, and they tone down his fear/anxieties over being a slayer; but that said I do like the idea of a slayer who has to sort of flip that switch to do what he does. It's like it's against everything he stands for and therefore can't do it "himself" so someone else has to take over as him.

Thankfully, I was also wrong about what I thought was going to be the direction they went. In the beginning, they don't show The Demon Corps Master's face, nor do they show the Demon Leader's (Muzan) so I was like "Oh, these are obviously going to be the same guy and they're kept at arms length so they never catch on and he keeps power by not letting any one demon get too powerful or he kills them." But nope, they're straight up different people.

I'll get around to Mugen Train when I hear S2 will actually be dropping, but for now it's on to something else.


----------



## Spaced Out Ace

Where is Demon Slayer?


----------



## KnightBrolaire

Spaced Out Ace said:


> Where is Demon Slayer?


hulu, netflix and crunchyroll iirc


----------



## MFB

Spaced Out Ace said:


> Where is Demon Slayer?



Not so fast mister, no Demon Slayer for you until you finish all that Trigun


----------



## Spaced Out Ace

MFB said:


> Not so fast mister, no Demon Slayer for you until you finish all that Trigun


I was adding it to the list. My girlfriend and I are finishing up Cowboy Beepbop (because apparently people on the YouTubes can't pronounce Bebop) and Trigun. I think I am on or around episode 16-17.


----------



## MFB

I tried watching Gundam Unicorn and it just wasn't doing anything for me after finishing DS, so like the pleb that I am, I'm rewatching Sword Art Online


----------



## Spaced Out Ace

I finished Trigun, though I need to go back a few episodes, as I feel I missed a couple things.

There was a couple things I disliked, but not enough to affect my enjoyment or view of the anime. Overall, 9.5/10. I docked it slightly because someone died, and I like the character.


----------



## CovertSovietBear

MFB said:


> I tried watching Gundam Unicorn and it just wasn't doing anything for me after finishing DS, so like the pleb that I am, I'm rewatching Sword Art Online


I skipped through Unicorn and watched all the fighting scenes, which made me go back and start watching G Gundam again ha


----------



## MFB

CovertSovietBear said:


> I skipped through Unicorn and watched all the fighting scenes, which made me go back and start watching G Gundam again ha



Shit man, I WISH we got more series like G Gundam; it was so unlike the rest of the series which is bogged down in space politics, whereas G Gundam is just like "Here, big dumb robots fighting each other every episode, AND THEY'RE THEMED. ENJOY!"



Spaced Out Ace said:


> I finished Trigun, though I need to go back a few episodes, as I feel I missed a couple things.
> 
> There was a couple things I disliked, but not enough to affect my enjoyment or view of the anime. Overall, 9.5/10. I docked it slightly because someone died, and I like the character.



I don't recall but I can't remember if he dies in the manga, but yeah, I'm a big fan of NDW but I accept his death in the story; I love the god damn Peacekeeper so much, "it's so heavy because it's so full of mercy" (read as: pistols)


----------



## Bloody_Inferno

MFB said:


> Shit man, I WISH we got more series like G Gundam; it was so unlike the rest of the series which is bogged down in space politics, whereas G Gundam is just like "Here, big dumb robots fighting each other every episode, AND THEY'RE THEMED. ENJOY!"



Gundam has always been about space politics as much as giant mecha. Been so from the very beginning. Even Fighter G, which the entire premise is completely politically driven. Countries just sort their political and social status and dominance like Street Fighter.


----------



## CovertSovietBear

MFB said:


> Shit man, I WISH we got more series like G Gundam; it was so unlike the rest of the series which is bogged down in space politics, whereas G Gundam is just like "Here, big dumb robots fighting each other every episode, AND THEY'RE THEMED.





Bloody_Inferno said:


> Gundam has always been about space politics as much as giant mecha. Been so from the very beginning. Even Fighter G, which the entire premise is completely politically driven. Countries just sort their political and social status and dominance like Street Fighter.


Loved G Gundam, super hype. Iron Blooded Orphans was the most recent one I enjoyed, a lot better than the one where they loaded up into a videogame, albeit the fighting sequences were also good in that one.


----------



## Spaced Out Ace

MFB said:


> I don't recall but I can't remember if he dies in the manga, but yeah, I'm a big fan of NDW but I accept his death in the story; I love the god damn Peacekeeper so much, "it's so heavy because it's so full of mercy" (read as: pistols)


Millie is voiced by the same woman who does that Judy babe in Cowboy Bebop.


----------



## KnightBrolaire

rewatching Parasyte again. The body horror and transformation sequences are so goddamn good.


----------



## Andromalia

Heike Monogatari: watch it.
It's a historical anime based on another time period than the sengoku jidai. :halleluja:
It happens at the time of the retired emperors, you might have some trouble with all the name dropping (there's a lot) since most people are unfamiliar with that time period but the show is reaaaaaally good. (There's no combat, it's a drama, don't expect a shonen in the 1200s.)

Heike monogatari is a japanese litterature classic on the level of the Song of Roland in terms of historical importance and widespread recognition. Every japanese know about it, hence why very little background and explanations are provided. You're supposed to know X is the emperor, Y the retired emperor and so on.


----------



## Empryrean

Just recently finished up Vivy. I am really glad I checked it out, would absolutely recommend it to anyone who liked Nier Automata


----------



## MFB

I decided to give Kill La Kill a shot as I needed something light this weekend, not bad but it's a little out there; I'm sure 99%, if not 100% of it is intentional jabs at the tropes but it's at a point where I'm thinking they've done it enough, so just stop using it or commit to having it in there as non-satire.


----------



## jahosy

Part of the reason why I love AoT, is their amazing soundtrack. 

Can't wait for the final season to conclude, plus a movie length finale.


----------



## jahosy

And the new OP for AOT SE4 Part.2


----------



## Thesius

Found out we are finally getting the next season of Overlord soon. That's hype af. Golden Kamuy as well


----------



## KnightBrolaire

Rewatching Abenobashi


----------



## Kaura

Just finished the latest Attack on Titan season. Holy shit what an emotional rollercoaster.


----------



## works0fheart

I know a few people will be happy about this. I know I am.

Berserk to resume publication with Kentaro Miura's personal art team and lifelong best friend, Kouji Mori (Holyland) at the reins.


----------



## M3CHK1LLA

here i am, years later, hoping for funimation/crunchy roll to finish the last 2 seasons of initial d...


----------



## narad




----------



## Empryrean

I finally watched Full metal alchemist brotherhood. I think it was ok, I would have liked it more if I watched it before the likes of One Punch Man and Jujutsu Kaisen ¯\_(ツ)_/¯


----------



## Alberto7

Empryrean said:


> I finally watched Full metal alchemist brotherhood. I think it was ok, I would have liked it more if I watched it before the likes of One Punch Man and Jujutsu Kaisen ¯\_(ツ)_/¯


Haven't watched Jujutsu Kaisen, but FMA:B is waaaaaay different from One Punch Man. I wouldn't have thought of comparing those two.
I really, really enjoyed FMA:B. I think it was the last proper anime I watched (or was it Monster...? I can't remember) a couple of years ago. I could find little flaw in it, so I see why people like it so much. But it just didn't wow me like a few others have. Maybe I'm just old and bitter now.

I peaked at Fate and never got over it. 
I'm re-playing the visual novel with my girlfriend at the moment. It was initiative, too.
I'm surprised she's had the patience to read through it. Still on the Saber route.
Poor thing, she doesn't even know what's coming. (Though she did watch Fate/Zero, Carnival Phantasm, and Unlimited Blade Works... several times each.  But not Heaven's Feel.  Saving best for last.)


----------



## Empryrean

Alberto7 said:


> Haven't watched Jujutsu Kaisen, but FMA:B is waaaaaay different from One Punch Man. I wouldn't have thought of comparing those two.


I wasn't directly comparing them as they're both very different types of anime but one thing that struck me as standout was how blatant the characterization is in FMA. I may be biased as I was always told how great it was so perhaps my expectations ruined it for me but there felt like too many times where a character does something or says something to specifically show the me who they are. Earliest offender is Hughes who relentlessly tells the audience how much he loves his family to the point that it's a gag-- but they could have shown us how much he loves his family without making it him so corny. It's like the author was telling me I need to know he has something to lose and I should be super duper sad when/if he loses them. It's not necessarily bad to be direct with your exposition but it definitely makes the emotional pull of the cast pretty weak. 


Alberto7 said:


> I peaked at Fate and never got over it.
> I'm re-playing the visual novel with my girlfriend at the moment. It was initiative, too.
> I'm surprised she's had the patience to read through it. Still on the Saber route.
> Poor thing, she doesn't even know what's coming. (Though she did watch Fate/Zero, Carnival Phantasm, and Unlimited Blade Works... several times each.  But not Heaven's Feel.  Saving best for last.)


Oh boy, I haven't touched fate since watching Fate Zero.. there's so much I'm afraid to try


----------



## Empryrean

Btw I need to recommend everyone go watch Odd Taxi _right now_


----------



## Alberto7

Empryrean said:


> I wasn't directly comparing them as they're both very different types of anime but one thing that struck me as standout was how blatant the characterization is in FMA. I may be biased as I was always told how great it was so perhaps my expectations ruined it for me but there felt like too many times where a character does something or says something to specifically show the me who they are. Earliest offender is Hughes who relentlessly tells the audience how much he loves his family to the point that it's a gag-- but they could have shown us how much he loves his family without making it him so corny. It's like the author was telling me I need to know he has something to lose and I should be super duper sad when/if he loses them. It's not necessarily bad to be direct with your exposition but it definitely makes the emotional pull of the cast pretty weak.
> 
> Oh boy, I haven't touched fate since watching Fate Zero.. there's so much I'm afraid to try


Interesting take. That's not something I really thought of as I was watching it, but I see what you mean. I really just thought of Hughes as being plain comedic relief and a heavily used plot device later on in the series.

Which reminds me, watch Monster if you haven't. Shit's 10/10.

As for Fate... yeah, I stopped recommending it to people a while back, because now it just reflects badly on me.  At this point everyone just sees it as another soul-sucking gacha game with way too much content, not knowing that the original material is fantastic, if STILL too dense. They really watered down the Nasuverse with the Fate/GO mobile game and all the spinoffs that came after its success, to the point that it's all just a big meme now.


----------



## CapinCripes

I'm in the throes of another eva kick. Probably after that another uc Gundam kick. I go through a cycle it feels like I try one of two new anime and by the time I'm through with that it becomes "I haven't watched eva in a while" or "screw it I'm gonna watch stardust memory aka top Gundam again"


----------



## Alberto7

I'm under that same cycle. Dunno what it is, but I have a few anime that I just get an itch to rewatch every few years. Evangelion is one of them.

Which reminds me, need to go finish the Eva 3.0+1.0 movie. Watched the first half hour or so. What a trip


----------



## CapinCripes

I'm meh on the rebuilds. I liked eva more for the psychological commentary which isn't as prevalent in the rebuilds


----------



## Alberto7

CapinCripes said:


> I'm meh on the rebuilds. I liked eva more for the psychological commentary which isn't as prevalent in the rebuilds


It's as if the same show was produced by someone else. It's a lot more proper sci-fi and a lot less psychological trauma that happens to have giant robots. I guess that was the less depressed version of Hideaki Anno doing the directing.

I just like them because they look so damn good, and because the story is a lot easier to follow... during the first 2 movies at least. Shinji's still a bitch though,  but mostly in movies 3 and 4.

However, the original will always have a special place in my heart. The End of Evangelion is still one of my favorite anime movies.


----------



## MFB

Watched all 12 episodes of Dragon Pilot this week, it was OK, but the real standout of the show is the end credits for sure


----------



## MFB

So it looks like there's a Trigun ...something coming, _Trigun Stampede. _Everything I've seen says it's a new story in the Trigun world, but the trailer seems to be exactly like how the anime was just in a new art style. Not sure if this will be like Devilman: Crybaby where it exists along side the original anime/OVAs (which is what I last heard) but it just seems sort of ...unnecessary?

I'm not against it, just if that is what the final product is going to be, I'd ask why they're spending all that money on something that already exists in a slightly different medium?


----------



## thebeesknees22

MFB said:


> So it looks like there's a Trigun ...something coming, _Trigun Stampede. _Everything I've seen says it's a new story in the Trigun world, but the trailer seems to be exactly like how the anime was just in a new art style. Not sure if this will be like Devilman: Crybaby where it exists along side the original anime/OVAs (which is what I last heard) but it just seems sort of ...unnecessary?
> 
> I'm not against it, just if that is what the final product is going to be, I'd ask why they're spending all that money on something that already exists in a slightly different medium?


Just watched the trailer

mmm ...The original trigun is one of my favorites of all time. 

Kinda not digging the new style.


----------



## MFB

thebeesknees22 said:


> Just watched the trailer
> 
> mmm ...The original trigun is one of my favorites of all time.
> 
> Kinda not digging the new style.



Same here. I've unabashedly said for years that without question, Trigun is hands down my favorite anime of all time, even over long standing series such as DBZ/Naruto/etc... because it's the only one that's resonated at an ideological level AND the action/writing around it worked. I miss the old school anime look, everything now is very clean, and the integration of 3D models into 2D anime always looks awful to me - and my degree is in 3D, so it's not like I say it as some uninformed pleb. 

Maybe being entirely 3D it'll work for it as a whole, but time will tell


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## Mathemagician

I can’t remember if I posted it but I finished one punch hombre, and started Jojo’s bizarre adventure. Holy god is this amazing.


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## syzygy

Don't know if anyone's read Chainsaw Man but chapter 1 of part 2 (chapter 98) just came out and I am so stoked. It's been a long wait.


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## Empryrean

slowly checking off my list of anime I should have seen by now. 
I watched all of NGE's anime and am starting the rebuild movies later.
I have to say it's refreshing to see something thats a bit older and touted to be so great actually live up to the hype. the last few episodes were a clusterfuck but the overall tone shift in the middle felt okay with shinji as the throughline for most pitiable sadboy. can't wait to tackle the rebuild movies


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## KnightBrolaire

I'm cruising through Heavy Metal Bastard. It's pervy, immature and tons of fun, especially how all the spells are band names like dio, yngwie, rainbow, voivod, impelliteri, megadeth, etc


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## Alberto7

KnightBrolaire said:


> I'm cruising through Heavy Metal Bastard. It's pervy, immature and tons of fun, especially how all the spells are band names like dio, yngwie, rainbow, voivod, impelliteri, megadeth, etc


Well this is one I'd never heard of. Sounds fun  might add it to my list of anime to EVENTUALLY watch. Like, before I die. Hopefully.


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## KnightBrolaire

Alberto7 said:


> Well this is one I'd never heard of. Sounds fun  might add it to my list of anime to EVENTUALLY watch. Like, before I die. Hopefully.


it's a ton of fun, and it's on netflix.


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## Bloody_Inferno

Alberto7 said:


> Well this is one I'd never heard of. Sounds fun  might add it to my list of anime to EVENTUALLY watch. Like, before I die. Hopefully.


To be honest, considering the manga and the OVA has been around forever, I'm surprised it took this long for a TV series, let alone reviving the property. 

I haven't seen it myself (will eventually) but if it's like the original, it'll be loads of fun.


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## Spaced Out Ace

KnightBrolaire said:


> it's a ton of fun, and it's on netflix.


Sub or dub?


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## KnightBrolaire

Spaced Out Ace said:


> Sub or dub?


It probably has both, but I never watch dubs


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## works0fheart

Just got caught up on One Punch Man finally (the manga). It's been building to a pretty big fight for a while and it finally reached it. If you're familiar with the series then it's about as over-the-top as you'd expect but I absolutely loved it. The art is probably the best in the business right now.

Also trying to give Demon Slayer a chance again. My wife and I really enjoyed the show when we first started it a few years ago but we both felt that it got derailed to the point that it was ruined by the blonde haired kid with the orange outfit and the Pig-headed guy. They're so relentlessly annoying that whatever redeeming parts of it were hard to even appreciate when they came in.


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## MFB

works0fheart said:


> Just got caught up on One Punch Man finally (the manga). It's been building to a pretty big fight for a while and it finally reached it. If you're familiar with the series then it's about as over-the-top as you'd expect but I absolutely loved it. The art is probably the best in the business right now.
> 
> Also trying to give Demon Slayer a chance again. My wife and I really enjoyed the show when we first started it a few years ago but we both felt that it got derailed to the point that it was ruined by the blonde haired kid with the orange outfit and the Pig-headed guy. They're so relentlessly annoying that whatever redeeming parts of it were hard to even appreciate when they came in.



I like Zenitsu (the blonde) and he starts out annoying but I feel like he does get better; I hope they land somewhere in the middle with him where he's able to just flip the switch of his Hashira mode, as it is an interesting dynamic for a character. Not crazy about the boar head though, Inosuke I think is his name?


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## HarveyForte

I just finished Odd Taxi and it was too good. I was surprised how much I enjoyed the dub.


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## narad

HarveyForte said:


> I just finished Odd Taxi and it was too good. I was surprised how much I enjoyed the dub.



Did you listen to the dub on Netflix? If so, I'm annoyed since there's no dub options in Japan.


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## HarveyForte

narad said:


> Did you listen to the dub on Netflix? If so, I'm annoyed since there's no dub options in Japan.


I used Crunchyroll for the English dub. I actually loved all the voice acting besides one of the brothers.


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## Spaced Out Ace

My girlfriend and I are likely going to start Hellsing and the sequel (I forget the name) for spooky season.


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## KnightBrolaire

Started up the Cyberpunk anime and it's pretty slick. Very gory, tons of sex/nudity, and nails the overall vibe of the game while telling a separate story in the universe.


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## Spaced Out Ace

KnightBrolaire said:


> Started up the Cyberpunk anime and it's pretty slick. Very gory, tons of sex/nudity, and nails the overall vibe of the game while telling a separate story in the universe.


There's an anime?


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## MFB

Spaced Out Ace said:


> There's an anime?



I'm seeing it on Netflix as of this week so it must be brand new


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## KnightBrolaire

Spaced Out Ace said:


> There's an anime?


yup. on netflix.


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## KnightBrolaire

rewatching Prison School. still hilarious


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## zodiactone

The last anime show I watched was Vampire Hunter D, my daughter is super into Attack on Titan right now


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## narad

Finally began watching the Evangelion rebuild because I didn't want to get part-way in and wait for years (which turned out to be like 10+ years, so right on). Rather than describe specifics in spoiler tags, let me just say, WTF is this nonsense? And that's coming from the original series as a reference point.


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## Alberto7

narad said:


> Finally began watching the Evangelion rebuild because I didn't want to get part-way in and wait for years (which turned out to be like 10+ years, so right on). Rather than describe specifics in spoiler tags, let me just say, WTF is this nonsense? And that's coming from the original series as a reference point.


I was one of those suckers that waited 10+ years. As a consequence, it has been SO hard to get the motivation to watch it all again because... well, I already forgot what happened, and it's so much time to spend absorbing something that is SO dense. Well, it may or be not be dense. It may be complete nonsense. Part of the process with Evangelion is figuring out what is nonsense and what is of substance.

Anyway, I got to like 1 hour into the last movie. I liked it, but what the FUCK indeed. That was like a year ago. I need to sit down and rewatch the whole thing now cause I already forgot.


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## Ralyks

So my son has gotten into all of the Studio Ghibli movies that are in HBO Max. His favorite is Spirited Away, and he also likes Kikis Delivery Service, Porco Rosso, and Howls Moving Castle. He then said he likes anime, and he likes cars, so in trying Initial D with him.

Myself, currently watching Persona 5 The Animation. While playing Persona 5 Royal. I like this game too much.


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## narad

Alberto7 said:


> I was one of those suckers that waited 10+ years. As a consequence, it has been SO hard to get the motivation to watch it all again because... well, I already forgot what happened, and it's so much time to spend absorbing something that is SO dense. Well, it may or be not be dense. It may be complete nonsense. Part of the process with Evangelion is figuring out what is nonsense and what is of substance.
> 
> Anyway, I got to like 1 hour into the last movie. I liked it, but what the FUCK indeed. That was like a year ago. I need to sit down and rewatch the whole thing now cause I already forgot.



Ha, I gave up at exactly the same time. I'm going to wrap it up sometime this weekend just to be done with it, but the first 2 movies sort of plodded along in a mostly authentic way, the third was some crazy action and I was not a fan, but seemed sort of normal. The 4th is just absurd.

One thing that's a bit sad about living in Japan as there's just this vibe that everything peaked in the 80s, and now everything's in decline. It definitely fits my view of anime... in the 80s I think it was peak creativity / proper art. Now it's just drivel, full of overused tropes. The fourth movie is definitely a lot like that.


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## Bloody_Inferno

narad said:


> One thing that's a bit sad about living in Japan as there's just this vibe that everything peaked in the 80s, and now everything's in decline.


It's almost as if they were in response to the country's economic history.


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## narad

Bloody_Inferno said:


> It's almost as if they were in response to the country's economic history.



I don't think it's so directly tied to economics as it is with ...importance, for lack of a better word.


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## Bloody_Inferno

narad said:


> I don't think it's so directly tied to economics as it is with ...importance, for lack of a better word.


Possibly. But it's an interesting observation since it does parallel (almost to a tee) with their bubble era that led to their lost decade recession period. I was going to say something about this regarding the Squenix discussion on the games/remake thread since that also affected them in the 90s.


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## narad

Bloody_Inferno said:


> Possibly. But it's an interesting observation since it does parallel (almost to a tee) with their bubble era that led to their lost decade recession period. I was going to say something about this regarding the Squenix discussion on the games/remake thread since that also affected them in the 90s.



Looks like there's a whole thread for it now lol


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## MFB

Decided to go back and finishing Dragonball Super through the Tournament of Power arc, it's fun to watch but god damn do I wish they'd invest the same time to the animation in this as we got at the end of DBZ; shit's fucking sad to watch some of the static shots when someone isn't moving in the background but they also look like shit.

Might pick up a tablet so I can catch up on the manga, since I don't think the anime will ever pick back up at this point and it's pretty far behind between Moro/Granolah/Heeters/etc


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## DestroyMankind

Just started rewatching Dragon Ball Z. It's been probably 8 years since I've watched it. I need to check out Dragon Ball Super someday.


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## MFB

Finished DBS at the end of last week, maybe Friday or first thing Saturday, not sure anymore; it wasn't a BAD watch, but some of the continuity of it makes things really tough to believe some times. Like, the entire Tournament of Power is 48 minutes, and it spans like, 50 episodes, so in reality one episode would be about 1 minute of in-tournament time - but there's full conversations happening at the same time that take much longer to say; not to mention the sheer volume of fighting that's happening, but it is all at lightspeed so I guess that sort of balances itself out? 

Goku is constantly fighting yet in that entire time barely runs out of energy, or if he does, he somehow recharges back to full strength/whatever the fight required for him to stay in it just long enough. I mean, the man pulls out Autonomous Ultra Instinct three times in roughly five episodes before it's moved on to Mastered for the final few episodes, which puts a massive amount of strain on his body and he just keeps coming back. 

Don't get me wrong, it's like watching a Rocky movie when you see him fight, but it gets taken to the nth degree in all the wrong ways when the writer's dont have to put themselves in these spots.


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## MFB

Started watching the OG _Dragonball_ from the beginning, feels weird going back 40 years to 1988 and seeing where it all began; definitely shows it's age, and I've heard up thru the Red Ribbon Army can be a bit of a slog but I'd like to see it through; maybe then I'll rewatch DBZ for 'the feels' as that's one of the prime animes of my childhood.


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## works0fheart

Ralyks said:


> So my son has gotten into all of the Studio Ghibli movies that are in HBO Max. His favorite is Spirited Away, and he also likes Kikis Delivery Service, Porco Rosso, and Howls Moving Castle. He then said he likes anime, and he likes cars, so in trying Initial D with him.
> 
> Myself, currently watching Persona 5 The Animation. While playing Persona 5 Royal. I like this game too much.



I went through Initial D for the first time a year or two ago and I absolutely loved it. People like to meme on it and whatnot because some of the animation early on is a little rough, but the show actually did have some really wholesome moments and good life lessons instead of just boiling down "haha car go fast".

The soundtrack as well is ironically super fitting for it too in a weird, 90's sort of way. The race against the rival AE86 with Make Up Your Mind playing is probably my favorite memory of the show actually.



MFB said:


> Started watching the OG _Dragonball_ from the beginning, feels weird going back 40 years to 1988 and seeing where it all began; definitely shows it's age, and I've heard up thru the Red Ribbon Army can be a bit of a slog but I'd like to see it through; maybe then I'll rewatch DBZ for 'the feels' as that's one of the prime animes of my childhood.



Even when I was younger I couldn't bring myself to get through this show having watched DBZ first. It just felt more like an adventure story than anything else I think whereas DBZ is textbook power fantasy. I really liked DBZ when I was younger but I think it's better left in my memory for me. Super is too ridiculous for me to take serious. The power scaling is hysterical to me at this point and it feels like any substance that was left by the end of DBZ is completely gone in DBS.

@narad I'm saddened to hear that you don't seem to like living in Japan too much it sounds like? I absolutely loved it out there when I was there from 2019 to 2020, but I also didn't live in Tokyo, though I did frequent it a lot. The food there was amazing and there was always plenty for me to do just by stumbling upon places. I will say I did prefer Yokohama to Tokyo though if I had to live there. I got to travel most of the island and Kyoto and Nara were 2 of my favorite places I've ever been. I'm comparing all of this to the states though, where every major city has become a cesspool though.


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