General anime discussion thread

Dawnstorm said:

You made it through the Bread of Happiness? Oh dear. I've only seen the first episode, but...

Click to expand...

The second half is slightly better than the first--more action, less bakery-harem--but it was something of a slog to get there, yes.

If the game is as you describe, I can't help but think that Escha and Logy is a rather odd choice for Gust's first anime adaptation. I mean, not that all their games are about saving the world or anything, but this seems more than usually low-stakes.

Dawnstorm said:

If you like Chaika, you might also like Scrapped Princess (if you haven't seen it already). They seem pretty similar. (Don't watch them parallel, though.)

Click to expand...

I bought Scrapped Princess when it first came out in English, and last re-watched it a couple of years ago. I agree that there are some similarities in the setup. We'll see where it goes from here.

Dawnstorm said:

(Escha and Logy again)
As for fansubbers: doki? As far as I can tell you have no choice... (I watched the raw first since the sub was too slow to come out, and I was curious.)

Click to expand...

I have yet to encounter the Doki sub, at least not directly--the only files I've found were marked as KiteSeekers and Underwater.

Alexys said:

If the game is as you describe, I can't help but think that Escha and Logy is a rather odd choice for Gust's first anime adaptation. I mean, not that all their games are about saving the world or anything, but this seems more than usually low-stakes.

Click to expand...

The Atelier series games on the PS3 were all pretty low-stakes. Of all the PS3 Atelier games, this one has probably the most story (only Totori comes close, but the story there is even more intimate and personal than this one).

I suspect that they're making an anime of this has to do with two factors:

- Tecmo Koei has taken over from NIS as distributor. Their first game (Ayesha) wasn't as well received as the others. They're trying to make it their own (Tecmo Koei is on the production committee, unsurprisingly).

- They've announced the third game in the dusk-series roughly around the time they announced the anime.

Basically, I think we're getting an anime for this one (and not for others), because Tecmo Koei has funds that NIS didn't have. (There may be stuff going on behind the scenes that we don't know; maybe some of the Gokumi staff and other involved people know each other?)

It's a good choice, actually. From the PS3 Atelier games, only Totori has a more coherent story. Most of the other games have a framwork-concept you operate in, with some loose story threads in there.

I have yet to encounter the Doki sub, at least not directly--the only files I've found were marked as KiteSeekers and Underwater.

Click to expand...

I must admit I didn't search very hard. Since I always stream the stuff, I usually just take the first one that's available, and most of the time I don't even pay attention to who did the subs.

Dawnstorm said:

- They've announced the third game in the dusk-series roughly around the time they announced the anime.

Click to expand...

I'd bet that's the big one.

Dawnstorm said:

I must admit I didn't search very hard. Since I always stream the stuff, I usually just take the first one that's available, and most of the time I don't even pay attention to who did the subs.

Click to expand...

I'm usually looking for the smallest file I can find that comes out within a reasonable interval (shared connection with not-so-great monthly bandwidth limit), so I end up with a lot of stuff from re-encoders, especially (alas) HorribleSubs.

I don't have cable anymore, but god bless Toonami!

Ping-Pong . . . I dunno. I think it's shaping up to be a good show of its type, but the artwork did bother me, and I actively disliked most of the characters. I'll probably drop it, but with some regret.

Alexys said:

Ping-Pong . . . I dunno. I think it's shaping up to be a good show of its type, but the artwork did bother me, and I actively disliked most of the characters. I'll probably drop it, but with some regret.

Click to expand...

I find the characters interesting. One thing about this show: I really like the scene composition (close ups, cuts, etc.) but I hate the art. The two aspects have never yet diverged this much for me, and I'm not that good at telling what I like about visuals normally. But here? Art - ugh! Scene composition, animation - yay!

Oh and great sound direction, too, though that stood out more in the first episode.

I think a large part of the problem is that I hate the particular variety of cocky asshole that Peko is. Smile and the Chinese player--not necessarily people I'd want to hang out with, but at least I can understand where they're coming from. Peko I wanted to punch out. Dropped in favour of Ryuugajou Nanana no Maizoukin, which also got some unexpectedly good reviews.

The first episode of Nanana was pretty good. It's got an interesting set up.

I'm making my boyfriend and best friend watch Madoka Magica. Teehee.

Alexys said:

I think a large part of the problem is that I hate the particular variety of cocky asshole that Peko is. Smile and the Chinese player--not necessarily people I'd want to hang out with, but at least I can understand where they're coming from. Peko I wanted to punch out.

Click to expand...

Yep, Ping Pong isn't exactly rich in likable characters.

Dropped in favour of Ryuugajou Nanana no Maizoukin, which also got some unexpectedly good reviews.

Click to expand...

Shadow Dragon said:

The first episode of Nanana was pretty good. It's got an interesting set up.

Click to expand...

I thought Nanana was fine. Nothing speecial in either direction. I like the character designs, which is always a plus for me.

Miss Strawberrii said:

I'm making my boyfriend and best friend watch Madoka Magica. Teehee.

Click to expand...

Hope they like it. Madoka was quite the hit. It's not often that I find myself loving something this popular.

http://www.crunchyroll.com/anime-news/2014/04/24/evangelion-x-transformers-collaboration-teased

It's unlikely for anything to actually happen, but it's kinda neat for Gainax to even tease the possibility.

Miss Strawberrii said:

I'm making my boyfriend and best friend watch Madoka Magica. Teehee.

Click to expand...

Nothing makes me happier than telling someone about the show and
then gettin a text message when they reach the third episode along the lines of "WHYYYYYY?"

Shadow Dragon said:

http://www.crunchyroll.com/anime-news/2014/04/24/evangelion-x-transformers-collaboration-teased

It's unlikely for anything to actually happen, but it's kinda neat for Gainax to even tease the possibility.

Click to expand...

That'd be... Weird. I keep imagining Optimus freaking out and eating an angel

Antonin said:

That'd be... Weird. I keep imagining Optimus freaking out and eating an angel

Click to expand...

Two shows at the opposite ends of my spectrum: Eva has me completely involved, Transformers utterly indifferent.

Dawnstorm said:

Two shows at the opposite ends of my spectrum: Eva has me completely involved, Transformers utterly indifferent.

Click to expand...

Yeah, same here. Just the way they showed it is boggling my brain fitting the two franchises together. Because that's what my brain does when you show me something like that.

A friend of mine once showed me this figurine. It was this strange grotesque blob of a creature with tons of breasts and tentacles and had tiny females around it that I think it impregnated. (Like I said, really strange). I kept asking him questions like "What is this? Where did it come from? Is this from a thing?" He just shrugged and said, "Nah, it's just a figure."

Mind 'sploded.

It's not like the Hello Kitty x Eva stuff. Those were just "Oh look toys."

Miss Strawberrii said:

I'm making my boyfriend and best friend watch Madoka Magica. Teehee.

Click to expand...

Great stuff! Madoka is one of my favorites. My husband, who doesn't care much for magical girl anime, absolutely loves it and got excited when I told him there were movies and talks of another season possibly being made. Also, Yuki Kajiura composes the music, and she is hands-down my favorite ever. I can't wait to show it to my friends when I get back home just to watch their reactions.

Antonin said:

Yeah, same here. Just the way they showed it is boggling my brain fitting the two franchises together. Because that's what my brain does when you show me something like that.

Click to expand...

Heh. My first image, after my initial stupor lifted, was Misato traumatising a transformer, by driving it.

It's not like the Hello Kitty x Eva stuff. Those were just "Oh look toys."

Click to expand...

*Nods sagely*

I could see an Evangelion X Azumanga Daioh corssover, actually.

ArtisticRabbit said:

Also, Yuki Kajiura composes the music, and she is hands-down my favorite ever.

Click to expand...

And it's one of her better efforts, too. (Among my favourites along with Noir and Kara no Kyoukai.)

I actually baught a Mai HiME boxed set, because she composed the score for that.

I generally like her instrumental/choral pieces better than her pop/rock songs, but there are exceptions, such as the wonderful opening of Sora no Woto.

Her soundtrack was probably the best thing about Sword Art Online.

I've been watching Blue Exorcist; pretty good so far. I saw Attack on Titan is coming to Toonami soon, and that means that I will, therefore, just wait until it's on there before I watch it.

I finished Future Diary. It was okay. I would say most of good stuff about it was that it was different. It was really hard for me to like some characters. However, there were a few I did like, but they were outside of the two main characters. There were some I really, really didn't like. I don't know if it's really re-watchable IMO but that's just me probably.

Noticed we're having a lot of new people in our weeaboo thread.



Welcome mailtime, ArtisticRabbit, and Miss Strawberrii

Dawnstorm said:

*Nods sagely*

I could see an Evangelion X Azumanga Daioh corssover, actually.

Click to expand...

I'd pay for that.

A Nichijou X Evangelion would be far more fitting though.

So I'm watching this mildly entertaining romcom, Bokura ga Minna Kawaisou. The only thing that stands out is the visuals, which are nice, but I'm not too fond of the colour filter. Still, that's actually a point in favour of the show. Other than that? Characters: decent, but nothing to write home about. Plot: seen before, often. Funny? Ocassionally, maybe.

And then this show pulls episode 4. It's not a great episode by any means, but... the episode takes the tired old cliché of "bookworm is really lonely inside, and our hero has to help her open up," and turns it into an extremely competent portrayal about how extroverts misunderstand introverts. How did this happen? It's not that good a show. Or is it? Is it?

...

Could it just be one of those cases of even a stopped clock being right twice a day?

Alexys said:

Could it just be one of those cases of even a stopped clock being right twice a day?

Click to expand...

Maybe, in a sense. The development is consistent with the characterisation so far, though. I'm pretty sure they know what they're doing; it just doesn't work for me most of the time. It's good, though, to get your introverted tendencies recognised once in a while.

I'm going to have to drop some of the anime I follow. I was simply trying to follow too many (11, though there's at least two more I want to check out), while also trying to keep up with lps and other stuff. At the moment, I've been following:

Black Bullet
Brynhildr in the Darkness (Gokukoku no Brynhildr)
Captain Earth
Chaika - the coffin princess (Hitsugi no Chaika)
The Comic Artist and his Assistant (Mangaka-san to Assistant-san)
Is the Order a Rabbit?
Irregular at Magic High School (Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei)
The Kawai Complex Guide to Manors and Hostel Behavoir (Bokura ga Minna Kawaisou)
Mekakucity ActorsNanana's Buried Treasure (Nanana no Maizoukin)
No Game No Life.

And I'm going to try to catch up on Akuma no Riddle and M3 Sono Kuroki Hagane.

So, I've already dropped The Comic Artist and his Assistant. The first couple episodes weren't bad, and I don't mind mindless sex humor from time to time, but it just seems like the type of show that's gonna get less and less funny every episode.

Another show to drop, sadly, is Irregular at Magic High. The anime doesn't do anything particularly wrong, but Tatsuya just isn't as good as the ones from the other action/drama series I'm following (Black Bullet and Chaika). I kinda like the whole the calm, smart main characters, but three episodes in, and he seems fairly directionless. The other characters and the setting are driving the story and he just happens to be there at the time. It kinda reminds me of my feelings of Kyoukai no Kanata. Great animation, an interesting setting, but lackluster characters. The only ones I do sorta like are Erika and Mari Watanabe.

If I end up liking Akuma no Riddle and M3 enough to follow them, I think I'll drop another, so I'm not practically watching a whole season's worth of anime every week. Probably Nanana. It's not bad (I'd say it's above average as a whole) but it's just low in terms of how much I like it compared to the others.

Husbu and I are catching up on Infinite Stratos 2. Generic harem isn't really my thing, but the characters are cute and the protagonist, while still clueless, is likable so we enjoy it.

Honestly, I'm just kinda biding my time until the new Sailor Moon comes out.

ArtisticRabbit said:

Great stuff! Madoka is one of my favorites. My husband, who doesn't care much for magical girl anime, absolutely loves it and got excited when I told him there were movies and talks of another season possibly being made. Also, Yuki Kajiura composes the music, and she is hands-down my favorite ever. I can't wait to show it to my friends when I get back home just to watch their reactions.

Click to expand...

WHOA. WAT.

OMG.

They both enjoyed the anime by the way!

Miss Strawberrii said:

WHOA. WAT.

OMG.

They both enjoyed the anime by the way!

Click to expand...

Awesome!

Yeah, I guess there have been talks of a second season for a while now, and even more now because I guess the latest movie was an original story (haven't watched it yet), but everything is still rumors and speculation so we'll see.