Anime Thread #2

[sidetrack]

Oh how great it is to see that an anime thread is still operational and this is my 600th posting .

About ~1 hr ago I finished watching all the non-filler episodes of “Wolf’s rain” including the last four-ish.It was okay ,which is something that I’m saying at knowing the risk of ppl berates for saying it “was just okay”.True,it’s the sort of intellectual anime that’s sort of getting harder to come by nowadays esp.when it’s not a slice of life a/o high schooler characters.

I skipped the filler I have a feeling I might’ve gotten a bit more if I didn’t skip the filler episodes with the Hmong tribe but the non-filler episodes work for me ‘’ .Darcia really comes off as particulary menacing and nuts at the end whereas for most of the anime he seemed sorta like Sesshomaru in terms of his attitude. Mysterious girl being like a catalyst needed for the world’s end and the part where Darcia said how humans came from wolves but couldn’t change back to their other form reminds me of Rei in Eva and how it’s turns out the “angels” in that show were alternate outcomes to human evolution.

_ Since I’m on the topic of religious symbolism I think that wolves could roughly equated to angels or humans before the fall from grace,with the wolves living among regular humans being like ppl who are more spiritually in-sync.You can only enter paradise by being a wolf (apparently);it sorta could analogously be said that you can only enter Heaven by being deeply spiritual and at sync with the clarity that’s provided to life with the divine.The Nobles attempt at making their own paradise having taken it away from from the wolves is sorta like paradise on the notions of decadence and misguided love (Darcia trying to bring back Hamona who died from the sorta ironic “Paradise sickness”).Darcia saying how paradise is not only something you gotta find but something that’s coming for you makes me think of a more optimistic twang to the popularly seen idea of the Apocalypse as grim destruction for instead something to be seen as a new hope that eventually arrive.Though Darcia trying to claim paradise for himself after and his fight with Kiba is symbolic of something along the lines of the Evil one trying to overthrow Heaven and claim it for himself but him being poisoned by Cheza is how evil can’t overcome life’s initiation and flourishing.There’s some stuff that could be expanded on which I can prob.get my fill on by looking at a specific wiki for the show.There’s more I could say on it but after some sleep.

You know something else that occured to me ?.Kiba is prob.the only anime character I could cosplay as with little problem after a full facial shave,letting my hair grow it to be like his ,blue eyes and likely need to get less blemished skin aside.As well with the right kind of clothes and a few other changes like hair style my sister could even cos- as Blue in her human form .

 

[sidetrack]

I forgot to say and I slightly missed the editing window of time

As far as more personal life I’m glad with my current program and hope that the night school class I picked for next semester needed for a prereq for a summer class to have a certificate and my acceptance to another program go well .I could talk about season 2 of “Legend of Korra” I suppose.The first half is laggy,I followed the Walker brothers on tgwtg.comreviews when the show was on-going,the Avatar Wan story was interesting but I don’t like the idea of ppl the era from before Aang should get their own series as some commenters have said -~-.Overall it was sort of lackluster and I have a hard time thinking that they’ll apparently have to fill in for another ~40 episodes via two more books b/c I think with the pacing of this season we’ve run into a problem not unlike how ~1/2 of “Digimon 02” was trying to beat Ken as the Digiemperor.

~ After LoK I don’t see much going for the franchise.They could continue and finish the cycle with an Earth and Fire bender though.I once was about to write a big spiel on my ideas for an Earthbender in a quasi 1950’s-60’s setting based on a more original environmentalism (I was thinking throwing some concepts from deep ecology more than superficial animism or “Eastern” spiritual motifs b/c that’s been done enough with this series and series 1) and a 80’s perception of the near future* a la* “Blade runner” for the fire bender who’d wrap up the avatar cycle.

Also to keep things brief I may have said this before but I’ll say it again.Much like I “semi-retired” from American comics and now stick only with Daredevil and the occasional non-“big 2” indie graphic novel,I’m intending on “semi-retiring” from anime after “GITS:2nd gig” and Trigun.GITS season 2 I’ve been meaning to get and Trigun as well b/c of the convincing of you guys and JesuOtaku on the themes of pacifism in the show.While there’ll always be good manga,to be honest I find interesting current anime for me to be slim pickings whilst I’d prob.be able to spend the rest of my life on** good** 80’s and 90’s stuff alone.As well as the loads of old anime movies and classic RPG cutscenes I could spend hours happily on .There are other concerns that I’d like to develop on and I know that anime and it’s relief always had my back .

The one other recent series I might give a go for is “Michiko to Hatchin”.One reviewer described it as remind him of an HBO series and “the city of God” (as I was thinking what with the idea of life of the marginalized in the seedy underworld of a pseudo-Brazil) which makes me still feel on the fence on watching it or just watching (or better yet reading the original novel of) “City of God”.Similarly I think “Wolf’s rain” execution,plot and pacing could’ve made it’s way as a high concept pricey HBO production ((hoping that HBO wouldn’t throw in shock value schlock though ).

 

[Kamaduck]

I forgot to say and I slightly missed the editing window of time

As far as more personal life I’m glad with my current program and hope that the night school class I picked for next semester needed for a prereq for a summer class to have a certificate and my acceptance to another program go well .I could talk about season 2 of “Legend of Korra” I suppose.The first half is laggy,I followed the Walker brothers on tgwtg.comreviews when the show was on-going,the Avatar Wan story was interesting but I don’t like the idea of ppl the era from before Aang should get their own series as some commenters have said -~-.Overall it was sort of lackluster and I have a hard time thinking that they’ll apparently have to fill in for another ~40 episodes via two more books b/c I think with the pacing of this season we’ve run into a problem not unlike how ~1/2 of “Digimon 02” was trying to beat Ken as the Digiemperor.

~ After LoK I don’t see much going for the franchise.They could continue and finish the cycle with an Earth and Fire bender though.I once was about to write a big spiel on my ideas for an Earthbender in a quasi 1950’s-60’s setting based on a more original environmentalism (I was thinking throwing some concepts from deep ecology more than superficial animism or “Eastern” spiritual motifs b/c that’s been done enough with this series and series 1) and a 80’s perception of the near future* a la* “Blade runner” for the fire bender who’d wrap up the avatar cycle.

Also to keep things brief I may have said this before but I’ll say it again.Much like I “semi-retired” from American comics and now stick only with Daredevil and the occasional non-“big 2” indie graphic novel,I’m intending on “semi-retiring” from anime after “GITS:2nd gig” and Trigun.GITS season 2 I’ve been meaning to get and Trigun as well b/c of the convincing of you guys and JesuOtaku on the themes of pacifism in the show.While there’ll always be good manga,to be honest I find interesting current anime for me to be slim pickings whilst I’d prob.be able to spend the rest of my life on** good** 80’s and 90’s stuff alone.As well as the loads of old anime movies and classic RPG cutscenes I could spend hours happily on .There are other concerns that I’d like to develop on and I know that anime and it’s relief always had my back.

The one other recent series I might give a go for is “Michiko to Hatchin”.One reviewer described it as remind him of an HBO series and “the city of God” (as I was thinking what with the idea of life of the marginalized in the seedy underworld of a pseudo-Brazil) which makes me still feel on the fence on watching it or just watching (or better yet reading the original novel of) “City of God”.Similarly I think “Wolf’s rain” execution,plot and pacing could’ve made it’s way as a high concept pricey HBO production ((hoping that HBO wouldn’t throw in shock value schlock though ).

I haven’t seen past the first season of LoK, but what I saw wasn’t as good as ATLA. Not by a longshot. They focused on the love triangle too much and never really addressed the 100% legitimate problems of the nonbenders. I don’t have a problem with romance, but when it’s completely irrelevant to the way more interesting oppression plot, I do. I guess the whole steampunk thing was cool, and there were definitely cool ideas mixed in, but the pacing was awful. The writers misprioritized, and the show suffered for it.

As far as recent western animation, you know what’s good? Green Lantern: the Animated Series. It’s not on TV anymore (because the Cartoon Network execs have no sense of taste and refuse to listen to the viewers), but you can still buy the DVD’s and watch it. It aired from 2011 to early 2013. Basically it’s really well-paced sci-fi/superhero fare, and with excellent storytelling, themes, and subtle-but-thorough character development for the genre. I probably enjoyed it more than any western show since ATLA. Too bad Cartoon Network decided to cancel it after a single 26 episode season.

But for real. The pacing is near-perfect, which is a rare feat. The fight scenes are inventive and interesting, with the Green Lantern rings being used to great effect. The animation is CGI, which actually works really well for the space battles- gives everything a sense of depth. They routinely take on some pretty heavy-duty morals for the intended age group (example: in an early episode, the main character asserts that while criminals deserve justice, which sometimes involves punishment, they never deserve torture. The heroes then proceed to free criminals from being tortured.) Two members of the main cast remain heroic anchors and mentors to the two younger members of the team. The younger members change over time, and have an actual well-written, believable romance arc. When LoK is getting beaten out by a romance arc between an alien and a sentient computer, it has failed.

So, yeah. If anybody here has an interest in well-written American superhero cartoons, check it out!

As far as anime, I’m not really sure what to watch now. I guess I’m kind of on a sci-fi kick. Is there any good science fiction that’s come out recently? Maybe I’ll just go read something.

 

[ironchapman]

Most anime will have fanservice. Most TV has fanservice. It depends on the eye of the beholder. If the beholder watches anime as an alternative to pornography, well that’s obviously bad. Unlike pornography however, most anime, has rich storylines and it is the fanservice which is an extra unnecessary element, which almost always takes up less than 1% of the total screen time, while most porn has superficial storylines and it is the fanservice which is richly developed. And let’s also face it, despite the fanservice, in most (in the vast majority of) anime, the characters do not go on to touch each other, or have sex with each other. Sex and similar, are very very rare in anime. The usual response to fanservice is usually a slap across the face and accusation of the male protagonist being a pervert. The protagonist usually does not look for the service himself, and usually he acts in a modest way. Often he’ll blush and turn away. Most anime characters behave very well. Fanservice is unavoidable, and if you’re not getting excited over it, it’s not a problem in itself.

I think if one wants to avoid fanservice there are really only 3 types of anime to watch.
One is mahou shoujo stuff, really targeted at children, with no fanservice for B type fans = so not Madoka Magica, not Nanoha, but something more akin to Creamy Mami, CCS, Precure, Emi, Sailor Moon, Hime Chan no Ribbon, etc. The latter shows are kids’ anime.

The second group is Studio Ghibli anime.

Third group: Shoujo anime. But shoujo anime sometimes has pairings which lead to sex. In His and Her Circumstances, the leads actually end up having sex at one stage. Otherwise there is no fanservice in the show, unless one considers school uniforms or above knee socks fanservice. I think the sex shown thus will be shown less erotically but there will be implied sex. But how many mainstream Hollywood films don’t show some form of sex?

Obviously people who become aroused and ? go further, when they see a panty shot should try to avoid these shows, (?close their eyes) or somehow work on this problem before they watch anime. For those who see it only as a weird obligatory Japanese quirk and maybe a reason to have the character get slapped or booted into orbit by the tsundere princess who’s just had her skirt lifted by the wind, I don’t think it’s a problem. After all if you open a fashion catalog or watch a regular sitcom you will see the same type of fanservice. A girl in a bikini = fanservice. If you’re excited by that and can’t help yourself - don’t watch fashion catalogs before getting some sort of help. And yes, it’s just a girl whose skirt has been lifted by the wind or who is in a bathing suit. Such things should not excite anybody.

I’d like to note as well that the official promotional art for some series can be much worse in the fanservice area than the actual series itself. Magazines like Nyantype and Megami are full of ecchi posters. Figures for certain series can also be fairly ecchi. On the occasions where I’ve found a series particularly “troublesome”, it usually the accompanying materials that are much worse than anything in the actual show. Some of that shows up when doing Google searches for info on the series or visiting the websites of shops that sell anime related goods like Amiami or HobbySearch.

---

On a different note, I’m behind on all of my Fall season anime. With some, it’s just an episode or two, but some of them I’m missing a lot of. I need to get back on track! It’s been a good season overall. Arpeggio of Blue Steel and Kyousougiga have been my favorites of the offerings. What’s y’all’s opinions?

 

[CesarAugustus]

The ecchi fanservice on some recent series goes beyond swimsuits and beach episodes.

Ironchapman, yes, these magazines even present ecchi illustrations for series without that kind of content.

In another topic, I began recently to watch Legend of the Galactic Heroes.

 

[MatsudaBerry]

Kyousougiga is probably my favorite from this season. Also, Nagi no Asukara is probably the anime that has most surprised me this season. It gives me an Anohana kind of feeling.

P. S. I think I’m going to miss Beyond the Boundary and Outbreak Company…

 

[suko]

In another topic, I began recently to watch Legend of the Galactic Heroes.

I’d definitely watch that, too… if I had the videos!

It’s been a good season overall. Arpeggio of Blue Steel and Kyousougiga have been my favorites of the offerings. What’s y’all’s opinions?

The only one I’ve continued watching this season was Miss Monochrome, which is one of them shorts. ^.^ But I did actually really like it! Of course, I always find it interesting to see main characters that are like robots (non-emotional and/or aren’t familiar with the world), being forced to interact with other people. It had such a great end, too; I have to say that I was very pleased with it, overall. And I love that ED song, “Poker Face!”

---

Today, the new Special of SOA was released today! It was a hundred minutes long, and as expected, was mostly just a recap of the 1st season, but it was pretty nostalgic to see the characters again, and to hear that awesome OP theme music once more (which is all what pretty much made this a decently enjoyable watch for me, despite a lot of recapped scenes, and yes, fanservice, which includes groping of a certain person’s breasts. )! Most of the new stuff was at the last 20 minutes or so of the show. Not really much more I can say about this Special except that it appears that the 2nd season was supposed to have been announced at the end of the video, but it seems CR didn’t have it in their video for whatever reason. An ANN article, which includes a little 33sec announcement PV of SAO Season 2, was released on it though for anyone interested.

 

[Tenofovir]

I’d like to note as well that the official promotional art for some series can be much worse in the fanservice area than the actual series itself. Magazines like Nyantype and Megami are full of ecchi posters. Figures for certain series can also be fairly ecchi. On the occasions where I’ve found a series particularly “troublesome”, it usually the accompanying materials that are much worse than anything in the actual show. Some of that shows up when doing Google searches for info on the series or visiting the websites of shops that sell anime related goods like Amiami or HobbySearch.

---

On a different note, I’m behind on all of my Fall season anime. With some, it’s just an episode or two, but some of them I’m missing a lot of. I need to get back on track! It’s been a good season overall. Arpeggio of Blue Steel and Kyousougiga have been my favorites of the offerings. What’s y’all’s opinions?

Indeed. A good example are the “huggable pillows” with sometimes naked, provokably posed characters on them. Some are sold on Western mainstream auction sites.

On another note, there are two shows I’ve been watching lately.

I’ve finally decided to let LOG Horizon a go. This is a very watchable show and especially so because of the ninja who I am happy to say has been given special honour by being included in the outro. The outro is basically about her. The song is especially nice and I just ordered the single from CDJapan. There is no ecchi fanservice in this anime that I can recall. One guy is however obsessed with discussing pantsu and he gets beaten up for it by the ninja in question. The show tries to deal with the issue of ethics and morality but seems to fall for the same modern mistake of equating the external appearance of behaviour and cognitive processes with there actually existing these things. I speak of the “NPCs” or the “People of the Land”, who are said to be like the trapped players because they have dreams, hopes and love their families. But this just begs the question.

The other show I’ve been watching is PSYCHIC PASS. It’s produced by Production IG - same as Ghost in the Shell SAC. Funnily enough this also approaches the debate of ethics, justice and morality. The show is however extremely violent at times and I think those parts are overdone in the typical modern Japanese anime fashion, where brutality is often substitute for substance. A show has to have a large graphically depicted body count of people, including schoolgirls and women bludgeoned to death in order to tell us murder is wrong, as if we didn’t know, I guess. Several off screen scenes involving lesbian relations are also hinted at. However, it’s an intriguing show set in a dystopian future with little except for violence in several episodes. The main lead character is a cop dedicated to the point of having sacrificed his career to finding his partners’ killer, while the main antagonist really seems to have justification for what he wants to bring about but his methods are even more evil. The third lead is a young, female detective who is passionate about her work and very principled. Unlike the portrayal of female cops in Western films she does not try to outperform the males in terms of physical abilities nor is she portrayed as such. Psychic Pass has been green lit for a second season and a movie as well.

BTW HAPPY NEW YEAR TO YOU AND EVERYONE ELSE

 

[Tenofovir]

The ecchi fanservice on some recent series goes beyond swimsuits and beach episodes.

Indeed, every season there are always several shows which try to push the envelope in that department. I think fan service makes up the bulk of these shows. There is very little strory except something contrived in such a way as to have as much of that as possible.

 

[Tenofovir]

On a related note, Catholic writer John C Wright, puts a wonderful Studio Ghibli (and often other anime) related truth in words:

Nausicaa from Miyazaki’s VALLEY OF THE WIND is a perfectly strong character who is brave, active, the center of the plot, the main driver of the plot, nobody’s fool, considerably higher in stature than a mere prize or reward for the hero to win. She is my exemplar of a strong female character who is not a artificially masculine. She is a princess, and she issues commands and is obeyed in a perfectly queenly fashion, she owns a rocket powered jet glider called a cloud climber or a maeve (depending on your translation) and she fires rocket-powered bullets, and is active, intelligent, athletic, and so on. But this is not the true genius of the character. The genius of the character is shown in a short scene in the beginning where when her finger is bitten by a tiny wild animal no bigger than a kitten. Instead of reacting with fear or annoyance, Nausicaa radiates a serenity that calms the creature, who, in remorse, begins to lick the finger where it just drew blood with its little pink tongue. This compassion and spiritual kinship with all living things, including the titanic and insect-poisonous monsters of the all-destroying Toxic Jungle, is a spiritual strength in her that grows and grows in power as the story rolls toward what seems a tragic climax. In the final scene, it is not weapons, not even an ultimate weapon of destruction, that saves the day and changes the destiny of empires and kingdoms, but her self-sacrificing compassion on what to us at first would seem a hideous larva. But only at first. By the story’s end, we see through her eyes.

I myself have never heard Nausicaa being accused of being a weak character, but please note that the very thing which makes Buffy the Vampire Slayer allegedly a strong character, her physical strength and snarky attitude, are precisely the strength and the attitude missing from Nausicaa.

 

[CesarAugustus]

…

On another note, there are two shows I’ve been watching lately.

I’ve finally decided to let LOG Horizon a go. This is a very watchable show and especially so because of the ninja who I am happy to say has been given special honour by being included in the outro. The outro is basically about her. The song is especially nice and I just ordered the single from CDJapan. There is no ecchi fanservice in this anime that I can recall. One guy is however obsessed with discussing pantsu and he gets beaten up for it by the ninja in question. The show tries to deal with the issue of ethics and morality but seems to fall for the same modern mistake of equating the external appearance of behaviour and cognitive processes with there actually existing these things. I speak of the “NPCs” or the “People of the Land”, who are said to be like the trapped players because they have dreams, hopes and love their families. But this just begs the question.

…

BTW HAPPY NEW YEAR TO YOU AND EVERYONE ELSE

I began Log Horizon some weeks ago. You have finished it?

Happy new Year to everyone!

God Bless you!

 

[Tenofovir]

I began Log Horizon some weeks ago. You have finished it?

Happy new Year to everyone!

God Bless you!

Log Horizon is not finished yet. How does that old anecdote go … “DOS Ain’t Done til Lotus Won’t Run?”

I’m on episode 12 of Log Horizon.

God Bless.

 

[Kamaduck]

And now I’m finally watching Attack on Titan- several seasons late, as per usual. It’s so violent. I like it more than I should.

As far as Nausicaa goes, I’ve heard her criticized for being overly idealized and hard to relate to, especially compared to San from Princess Mononoke. I like both characters for different reasons. Nausicaa is more heroic, and is definitely more feminine, but has few noticeable flaws to humanize her. On the other hand, San is interesting and flawed, but is not the hero of the story, or even of the animals (Ashitaka pretty much does the heroics in that movie). They each bring different things to the table.

Princess Mononoke is a better movie, though, because the man vs. nature plot is more nuanced instead of humans just wrecking everything.

 

[Tenofovir]

Princess Mononoke is a better movie, though, because the man vs. nature plot is more nuanced instead of humans just wrecking everything.

Well humans do wreck everything. We are fallen so it follows.

For some reason Nausicaa was banned in the Eastern Bloc. It’s funny because films like Star Wars were not banned and were shown in cinemas. Maybe because the Soviets and their allies treated nature (and man) with disdain. Pollution was terrible and environment was being destroyed, never mind that man himself was also in prison, like in Nausica.

I can’t say which film is better. In PM there is an element of redemption I guess not just shown through the warrior herself, but through side characters - the ex-prostitutes who leave that behind them and start a new society.

 

[Kamaduck]

Well humans do wreck everything. We are fallen so it follows.

For some reason Nausicaa was banned in the Eastern Bloc. It’s funny because films like Star Wars were not banned and were shown in cinemas. Maybe because the Soviets and their allies treated nature (and man) with disdain. Pollution was terrible and environment was being destroyed, never mind that man himself was also in prison, like in Nausica.

I can’t say which film is better. In PM there is an element of redemption I guess not just shown through the warrior herself, but through side characters - the ex-prostitutes who leave that behind them and start a new society.

There are definitely times when people have wrecked the environment without a second thought, so Nausicaa makes sense. But PM is more powerful, because it shows people who don’t have as much choice in wrecking nature. They need it, they’re trying to live respectable lives, so it’s a lot harder to tell the people of Iron town, “sorry, you can’t chop down this forest for a mine. The animals need it.” That’s why San and Ashitaka can’t simply be together, why they can only visit each other. Humans and nature just have a really hard time getting along, and there’s no way to easily fix that. The conflict is more complex, IIRC, and I think that’s the main reason I prefer Princess Mononoke. They’re both excellent movies, though.

 

[Tenofovir]

There are definitely times when people have wrecked the environment without a second thought, so Nausicaa makes sense. But PM is more powerful, because it shows people who don’t have as much choice in wrecking nature. They need it, they’re trying to live respectable lives, so it’s a lot harder to tell the people of Iron town, “sorry, you can’t chop down this forest for a mine. The animals need it.” That’s why San and Ashitaka can’t simply be together, why they can only visit each other. Humans and nature just have a really hard time getting along, and there’s no way to easily fix that. The conflict is more complex, IIRC, and I think that’s the main reason I prefer Princess Mononoke. They’re both excellent movies, though.

I don’t think Nausicaa’s message is pure nature vs man. It also shows man’s destructive nature as man fights against man. After all, in it we see mankind in the past have developed these giant weapons of mass destruction which now a warring faction is trying to resurrect.

Wright’s scene is also beautiful because it’s very Christian. Little Nausicaa saves a baby Ohm from death and years later the creature remembers her. It suggests that we can turn people around with kindness and we can repair broken bonds by showing love, e.g. by not hitting the little yellow creature which bit her - sort of turn the other cheek.

 

[Kamaduck]

I don’t think Nausicaa’s message is pure nature vs man. It’s shows man’s destructive nature as man fights against man. After all in it we see mankind in the past have developed these giant weapons of mass destruction which now a warring faction is trying to resurrect.

That’s true, neither one is pure man vs. nature. There are good and evil humans in Nausicaa. And then the bad guys summon that weird giant human that melts all over everything. >.>

I think I liked the ambiguity about what happens at the end of PM. Ashitaka managed to save the forest spirit, San, and himself, but there was still a lot of work that he needed to do to help the animals and the people of Iron Town. Nausicaa was more straight-up happy ending, and while there’s nothing wrong with that, I’ve always kind of liked bittersweet endings.

 

[CesarAugustus]

Log Horizon is not finished yet. How does that old anecdote go … “DOS Ain’t Done til Lotus Won’t Run?”

I’m on episode 12 of Log Horizon.

God Bless.

Ah, I thought the final episode was aleready aired, since most of the autumm season anime shows are finished.

 

[Tenofovir]

Ah, I thought the final episode was aleready aired, since most of the autumm season anime shows are finished.

It’s 25 episode long, so it will span two seasons, as did SAO (Sword Arto Oline). *yes I said Arto

 

[CesarAugustus]

It’s 25 episode long, so it will span two seasons, as did SAO (Sword Arto Oline). *yes I said Arto

Speaking of SAO, did you saw Galillei Donna? (same character designer)

I think it was a good show, but the final episodes where rushed. It could have benefited with being a two cour show.

But I disliked how they dressed the little sister (Hocchibi) in the opening and some scenes. Maybe they were pandering to the loli fans.