Spike Lives! (Anime talk)

[Reply #640 on:]

If I had to describe Yu Yu Hakusho I'd say that it's utterly typical for a long-running shonen fighting series.  Whether that's a positive or a negative description depends entirely on how you feel about long-running shonen fighting shows.

Fun trivia fact: the man who wrote and drew the Yu Yu Hakusho manga is married to the woman who wrote and drew Sailor Moon.  He also wrote and drew Hunter X Hunter.

perhaps she was was expecting a particular age range for someone who’d wear an anime shirt

My niece discovered Naruto after asking her grandfather what anime the characters on a shirt that he was wearing were from.

[Reply #641 on:]

In other news, Restaurant to Another World is apparently getting a second season.

Thanks for the info. It'll be interesting to see if they continue with the same formula or start doing some deeper character development. That would change the mood of the show, but I feel that they couldn't take the original format too much further without becoming repetitive or getting really obscure. I could be wrong though.

[Reply #642 on:]

What do you guys know about the anime Yu Yu Hakusho?

Earlier today I had a pleasant encounter with a cashier. She recognized the fairly subtle Cowboy Bebop shirt and mask I was wearing, and kept looking from my ID to my t-shirt and back...perhaps she was was expecting a particular age range for someone who’d wear an anime shirt, which was at odds with the age of 134 listed on the ID...





Anyway, there was no one behind me and she started chatting about Bebop and anime and I explained that I was a newbie but Bebop caught my eye on Adult Swim or wherever, and that it drew me in and I binged the series and I was idly wondering what anime to explore next. She mentioned that she'd been watching Hakusho and asked whether I'd seen it, and when I replied in the negative she sorta smiled with her eyes and said that I should check it out.

*  edit  *

Just watched the first ep of Yu Yu Hakusho...with English subtitles, of course   I'd read a one-sentence synopsis of the show while looking for episodes so I knew the basic concept, but nothing beyond that. The end of Ep1 was touching. I think I'll watch a couple more.

It's cool that you like Bebop.  It has a melancholy tone, middle age and floating, feeling alone and grasping for something to hold onto.

[Reply #643 on:]

The overall tone and characters and their interactions are wonderful. But the soundtrack raises it all up to an epic level.

[Reply #644 on:]

It is a genre unto itself, after all.

[Reply #645 on:]

I've been watching To Love-Ru.  It's great stuff.  It's like Urusei Yatsura if it was made by the creator of Black Cat.

Although if you're allergic to fanservice you should stay far away from this one.

[Reply #646 on:]

I've just watched 3 minutes of gambling girl.

[Reply #647 on:]

Is that one a Netflix exclusive?  If so, that's three more minutes of it than I'll likely ever watch.

[Reply #648 on:]

I have no idea, but I watched another part of an episode of Devilman Crybaby.  In 2 years, I'll know what it was about.

[Reply #649 on:]

Be sure to come back and tell us about it when you do.

[Reply #650 on:]

Oof.  I can't imagine watching Banner of the Stars without first having seen Crest of the Stars to introduce you to the two leads.

I can't imagine watching the Star Wars films that way either, but then, I saw the second and third ones in the theater when they first came out, and I had already seen the first one before that, so it was never a possibility for me.

Just to offer conclusion after finishing the series:

Despite my screw up Crest was actually a bit interesting.. specially the whole War starting thing and how the 2 main characters get to meet and became friends..

Banner 1 as said i did enjoyed a lot specially the parts of space combat as its portrayed much more complex and seriously than other "dedicated" works.... also enjoyed the fact that the main chars crew a small destroyer rather than the typical invincible battleship

Banner 2 however.. was quite dissapointing.. sorry but in the end its just a history on a prission planet and largelly irrelevant and at times confusing..only Spoor parts were some interesting and many Abh characters like the 2 brothers were downright annoying..

Banner 3 improves a lot .. since we got continuation of what went on on Jinto homeworld and the consecuences.. but still not to the level of the first 2 works.. and of course it commits the far too common sin of countless manga-light novel adaptation: Left unfinished


Couple series after this i watched all 13 eps of "Starship Operators"

It was enjoyable.. and i actually really liked the main character, she seemed very relatable.. tought i have trouble excusing her from the "Marysue" trope at times since she esentially never is wrong or screws up and some times seem to magically guess a solution to a seemingly imposible situation.. even so somehow i really liked her character.. tought the others arround her seemed better fleshed out as some of them are not cut for the job but they have to go on with it..

The history was good but sorry it was very little developed or explained that it becames quite foggy and times and the final arc is downright confusing and dissapointing..even when it is the finale.. no continuations or cliffhangers.. At least its a round history ..not just the typical half made anime adaptation intented just to get people into buying the manga/novel if they want to continue the history..

[Reply #651 on:]

Despite my screw up Crest was actually a bit interesting.. specially the whole War starting thing and how the 2 main characters get to meet and became friends..

Yeah, I think that it goes a long way toward explaining why those two are so close.  They've been through a lot together.

Banner 1 as said i did enjoyed a lot specially the parts of space combat as its portrayed much more complex and seriously than other "dedicated" works.... also enjoyed the fact that the main chars crew a small destroyer rather than the typical invincible battleship

I also like the fact that their ship's crew consists of just Jinto, Lafiel, and (if I recall correctly) three other characters.  I had a hard time keeping track of the large supporting cast in Crest of the Stars.



I went to see the Demon Slayer movie over the weekend.  I don't know if I'd recommend it to anyone who hasn't seen the TV series.  I mean, you probably don't have to have seen every episode, but it would probably help to have at least seen enough to know who the main characters are.

If you have seen the TV series, then you need to go watch this movie right now, or at least as soon as possible.  Seriously, go see it.  It's really good.

[Reply #652 on:]

A second season of Made in Abyss has been confirmed for next year, so now I have to decide at some point if I'm going to tackle the movie. Based on comments I've seen, it might be best to drop the franchise without going any further. The first season was already getting close to my tolerance limit for some things, and the movie apparently goes beyond what came before, which makes me wonder how far they will push the boundaries in the next season.

[Reply #653 on:]

If the second season requires a subscription to Amazon Prime or HIDIVE I probably won't be seeing that one either.

It's fine; it's not like I need to watch every show that Miyu Tomita is in.

I spent a large part of Mother's Day watching all of Erased.  It's the best time travel anime I've seen since Steins;Gate.  I highly recommend it.

On a side note, being a manga artist seems like it would be an easy job for an anime protagonist.  Just draw your life, and it should get published.  It'll probably even be popular enough to get an anime adaptation.

[Reply #654 on:]

Well, I watched Dawn of the Deep Soul. It wasn't as graphic as I feared it might be. It was as disturbing as I thought it would be. That was pretty much guaranteed, given who the antagonist was based on. Personally I preferred the series, and if they are going to keep ramping things up I probably won't watch any further. It's clear the author has a fetish for bodily functions, and while the anime is reportedly dialled back heavily from the manga it is starting to get intrusive. Many consider MiA to be a masterpiece, and many more feel it would have been a masterpiece if handled slightly differently. I'm leaning towards the latter.

[Reply #655 on:]

Despite my screw up Crest was actually a bit interesting.. specially the whole War starting thing and how the 2 main characters get to meet and became friends..

Yeah, I think that it goes a long way toward explaining why those two are so close.  They've been through a lot together.

Banner 1 as said i did enjoyed a lot specially the parts of space combat as its portrayed much more complex and seriously than other "dedicated" works.... also enjoyed the fact that the main chars crew a small destroyer rather than the typical invincible battleship

I also like the fact that their ship's crew consists of just Jinto, Lafiel, and (if I recall correctly) three other characters.  I had a hard time keeping track of the large supporting cast in Crest of the Stars.



I went to see the Demon Slayer movie over the weekend.  I don't know if I'd recommend it to anyone who hasn't seen the TV series.  I mean, you probably don't have to have seen every episode, but it would probably help to have at least seen enough to know who the main characters are.

If you have seen the TV series, then you need to go watch this movie right now, or at least as soon as possible.  Seriously, go see it.  It's really good.

There's a movie now?  I like the artstyle, blending of lines in varying degrees of thickness, like waves of calligraphy. The colors are deep and vibrant, part watercolor, some permanent marker.

[Reply #656 on:]

The show is visually amazing, and so is the movie.  The movie does use more CGI than the show, but still combined with the more traditional animation.  It's still playing in the local theaters around here.  If you get a chance to see it you should definitely go.

Well, I watched Dawn of the Deep Soul. It wasn't as graphic as I feared it might be. It was as disturbing as I thought it would be. That was pretty much guaranteed, given who the antagonist was based on. Personally I preferred the series, and if they are going to keep ramping things up I probably won't watch any further. It's clear the author has a fetish for bodily functions, and while the anime is reportedly dialled back heavily from the manga it is starting to get intrusive. Many consider MiA to be a masterpiece, and many more feel it would have been a masterpiece if handled slightly differently. I'm leaning towards the latter.

I still haven't seen it, so I can only guess at what the issues might be.  No, don't tell me; I'm probably happier not knowing.

[Reply #657 on:]

I'm watching the unabridged version of FLCL with the baby, that's neon genesis evangalion.  It's me and baby's first time, I'm watching the baby.

[Reply #658 on:]

The show is visually amazing, and so is the movie.  The movie does use more CGI than the show, but still combined with the more traditional animation.  It's still playing in the local theaters around here.  If you get a chance to see it you should definitely go.

Well, I watched Dawn of the Deep Soul. It wasn't as graphic as I feared it might be. It was as disturbing as I thought it would be. That was pretty much guaranteed, given who the antagonist was based on. Personally I preferred the series, and if they are going to keep ramping things up I probably won't watch any further. It's clear the author has a fetish for bodily functions, and while the anime is reportedly dialled back heavily from the manga it is starting to get intrusive. Many consider MiA to be a masterpiece, and many more feel it would have been a masterpiece if handled slightly differently. I'm leaning towards the latter.

I still haven't seen it, so I can only guess at what the issues might be.  No, don't tell me; I'm probably happier not knowing.

Where do you live?  If I walk there, will you go with me, so we can watch it together?

[Reply #659 on:]

I live in Pennsylvania, which is probably too far for you to walk, but sure, if you walk here I'll go see it with you.  I wouldn't mind watching it again

[Reply #660 on:]

It seems Third Aerial Girls Squad is just an OVA for Shirobako, and not a full series, which is a pity. Some elements are similar to Girly Air Force, but the pilots are natural humans rather than Anima. Naturally, the MC is the Japanese pilot - "Ice Doll" - but my favourite character / plane combo is the squadron leader in the Saab Viggen.

[Reply #661 on:]

I don't know if you like older planes as much as jets, but if you like WWII fighters you might enjoy The Magnificent KOTOBUKI.  Yes, it's an all CGI show, which is not a plus in my opinion, but the dogfights are cool enough to make up for that.

[Reply #662 on:]

It seems Third Aerial Girls Squad is just an OVA for Shirobako, and not a full series, which is a pity. Some elements are similar to Girly Air Force, but the pilots are natural humans rather than Anima. Naturally, the MC is the Japanese pilot - "Ice Doll" - but my favourite character / plane combo is the squadron leader in the Saab Viggen.

what is wrong with japan making now tons of animes featuring young girls in schoolgirl attires driving war machines.. if not being the damn things themselves?

I had the unfortune of seeing "girly airforce" and despite it trying to be a sci-fi.. no.. it still fails.. miserably..

now ..this?

[Reply #663 on:]

Shirobako actually predates GAF, and is about adults working at an anime studio. TAGS is one of their projects, so it is a fictional anime within an anime. To be fair, the Israeli pilot does wear an olive drab flight suit, and the Swedish pilot wears a jumpsuit of sorts, though admittedly it is a wardrobe failure waiting to happen. I suspect that this may have been an inspiration for GAF - there are some similarities - but that is just speculation.

I admit there are a lot of issues with GAF, but I think it was deeper than it seemed (although if I'm right, they overdid it and made the meaning so obscure it was difficult to spot). But I could just be imagining something that isn't there.

As for the shows where the characters take the place of the ship/plane: they don't really work for me either.

[Reply #664 on:]

what is wrong with japan making now tons of animes featuring young girls in schoolgirl attires driving war machines..

I would think that it should be obvious why combining the obvious appeal of schoolgirls with the obvious appeal of war machines would be obviously appealing.

if not being the damn things themselves?

Now I'm afraid you've lost me...

...is what I would have said before I watched KanColle.

It's called moe anthropomorphism.  It seems that nowadays the Japanese can turn anything into a cute girl: warships, airplanes, game consoles, blood cells, you name it.  I do still think it's kinda strange, but I can't really say that I don't get it, not after watching some of these shows.

[Reply #665 on:]

Personally, most of my favourite characters in these shows are the ones that are either about to graduate, or have already done so. Unfortunately most 18+ characters seem to get written out or relegated to supporting or minor roles. At least Symphogear kept Maria, but some fans seemed to consider her over the hill at 21. I would have preferred them to keep [redacted], but the plot required them to traumatise [redacted], so she had to go. The S.O.N.G. uniform does work well on Maria though.

[Reply #666 on:]

Oh?  So were you watching Girls und Panzer for Miho's mom and older sister, or was your favorite character that teacher who only appeared in one episode?

[Reply #667 on:]

In GuP most of the team captains are third years - Darjeeling and Mika included - and in das Finale they are about to graduate. Maho has already left for university at that point. In der Film we meet some members of a university team, and apart from child prodigy Alice, the only one to appear in das Finale (so far) is Azumi (in a minor role): I'm hoping Rumi will show up again at some point, but she probably won't. Anyway, you know the real stars of the show are the tanks (sorry Rumi, but the Pershing is boring: it's just so generic).

[Reply #668 on:]

I haven't seen der Film or das Finale.  I've only seen the television series, and in that the main characters were mostly in their firstsecond year of high school.

I'm pretty sure it's the combination of both the girls and the tanks that made the show popular.  If all you want is tanks, you could just watch Dominion Tank Police (which I mostly watched for the cat girls).

Edit: I forgot that Miho was a transfer student.

[Reply #669 on:]

I watched the start of Dominion Tank Police but dropped it. The impression I got (possibly unfairly) was "Just let me shoot the b*****ds", and no historical context. I won't have as much free time going forward, so I'll probably drop anime: too many connotations anyway. I'll keep an eye on a couple of reaction channels to see if they pick up a show I've watched, but one has now finished MiA and hasn't flagged any others. The other has indicated that they intend to finish the remaining Symphogear seasons, so it might be interesting to hear their take on some of the scenes. I will probably watch more of GuP when it becomes available, especially as I now know something more about das Finale 3. Other than that, I now need something else to obsess over.

[Reply #670 on:]

I watched the start of Dominion Tank Police but dropped it. The impression I got (possibly unfairly) was "Just let me shoot the b*****ds", and no historical context.

It's a sci-fi show where the police use tanks in an urban environment.  There is no historical context.

I was trying to think of another anime that featured tanks.  It wasn't actually a very good example, but I couldn't think of a better one.  (Dominion probably isn't Masamune Shirow's best work, but it's still my favorite.)

Other than that, I now need something else to obsess over.

There's always VTubers, I suppose.

[Reply #671 on:]

Fruits Basket

After finding herself temporarily homeless, ordinary high school girl Tohru Honda is taken in by the Soma family.  She soon discovers the Soma family's secret: certain members of the family are under a curse that causes them to transform into the animals of the Chinese Zodiac whenever they are hugged by someone of the opposite sex.  Hilarity ensues.  Then, drama ensues, lots and lots of drama.

I watched the 2001 version of the Fruits Basket anime years ago.  I enjoyed it, but it left the story unfinished.  (It was made before the manga was completed.)  This new version covers the same material as the 2001 anime in its first season, and then adds two more seasons to complete the story.  It ends pretty much the way that I expected that it would, but with some unexpected twists and turns along the way before it gets there.

Recommended for fans of supernatural romances, romantic dramas, and those placemats they have at Chinese restaurants with the Zodiac animals on them.

[Reply #672 on:]

So that's what Fruits Basket is about.

[Reply #673 on:]

Finished the other day Outlaw Star.. i enjoyed it some.. tought dont as much as other series..

best:
-Love the setting, it has certainly that FireFly/StarWars vibe of characters going their lives and way among a galaxy where other stuff is going on that doesnt have to necesarily directly affect the main history
-Spaceships! space stations
-Liked how they handled other "aliens" as other people and not the necesarily hostile / uncomprensible beings
-History from start to end.. tought the end is a bit open ended..it had enought closure that its a complete product where they might or not follow on in the future.. and thats nice.. glad to for once not have the classic anime adaptation of a manga that only adapts half or so of the manga volumes and it expects you to go and buy the mangas (wich usually are hard to get and not even translated at all)
-Liked that a main recurrent plot is the fact that the characters "inherited" a spaceship and they simply cant barelly afford to just maintain and operate her.. just flying arround costs a LOT of money wich forces them to take jobs beyond what they done before just to make barelly even..

neutral:
-I would like to have more context in the setting.. liked the "Banner of the stars" syle intros where in each episode they would first do a quick tell explaining more stuff of the universe setting pertinent to that episode .. but overall the whole thing is a bit confusing.. specially since it seems to reduce it to 3 "sides" . the space forces.. the pirates and the outlaws.. where the space forces is aparently not one single entity..but refers to the "law forces" including all different goverments and local planet forces.. wich makes i a bit confusing

Not liked much:
-Magic? guns that fire spells? enchanments? black magic? sorry i know this is fantasy.. but i dont like/care for those much..it nearly seemed like an anime version of an RPG ..or the other way arround..
-I hate the whole grappler combat thing.. sorry .. spaceships and then made up some excuse and have the ships have arms and wrestle? nope
-The series mcguffin was quite confusing and weird.. it works i guess.. but confusing (might be me being dimwit too)

[Reply #674 on:]

Finished the other day Outlaw Star.. i enjoyed it some.. tought dont as much as other series..

best:
-Love the setting, it has certainly that FireFly/StarWars vibe of characters going their lives and way among a galaxy where other stuff is going on that doesnt have to necesarily directly affect the main history

Of course, this was years before Firefly, so it's really the other way around.

-Spaceships! space stations
-Liked how they handled other "aliens" as other people and not the necesarily hostile / uncomprensible beings
-History from start to end.. tought the end is a bit open ended..it had enought closure that its a complete product where they might or not follow on in the future.. and thats nice.. glad to for once not have the classic anime adaptation of a manga that only adapts half or so of the manga volumes and it expects you to go and buy the mangas (wich usually are hard to get and not even translated at all)

I love the ending.  The story is finished, but the characters go on to have other adventures.  I wish that more anime (and fiction in general) would use this sort of ending.

-Liked that a main recurrent plot is the fact that the characters "inherited" a spaceship and they simply cant barelly afford to just maintain and operate her.. just flying arround costs a LOT of money wich forces them to take jobs beyond what they done before just to make barelly even..

neutral:
-I would like to have more context in the setting.. liked the "Banner of the stars" syle intros where in each episode they would first do a quick tell explaining more stuff of the universe setting pertinent to that episode .. but overall the whole thing is a bit confusing.. specially since it seems to reduce it to 3 "sides" . the space forces.. the pirates and the outlaws.. where the space forces is aparently not one single entity..but refers to the "law forces" including all different goverments and local planet forces.. wich makes i a bit confusing

The pirates aren't a single entity either.  The ones we see in the show are, but two other groups were mentioned, if I recall correctly.  There are probably others.  Outlaws aren't an entity at all, it's just a term used to refer to everyone else who isn't affiliated with either the legitimate authorities or the pirates.

Not liked much:
-Magic? guns that fire spells? enchanments? black magic? sorry i know this is fantasy.. but i dont like/care for those much..it nearly seemed like an anime version of an RPG ..or the other way arround..

The existence of magic makes it seem like an RPG to you?    Okay...

-I hate the whole grappler combat thing.. sorry .. spaceships and then made up some excuse and have the ships have arms and wrestle? nope

Spaceships using grappler arms in combat is easily the least plausible thing in this show, including the Munchausen Drive, Tao magic, Caster shells, and the Galactic Leyline.  It still gets a pass due to the rule of cool.  I mean, I'm not sure why big stompy humanoid robots would be advantageous or even practical to use in warfare, but I don't plan to stop watching mecha anime anytime soon either.

-The series mcguffin was quite confusing and weird.. it works i guess.. but confusing (might be me being dimwit too)

What was confusing about it specifically?  I could try to explain it, but I'm not sure if I should without working spoiler tags.

[Reply #675 on:]

The existence of magic makes it seem like an RPG to you?    Okay...

What was confusing about it specifically?  I could try to explain it, but I'm not sure if I should without working spoiler tags.

Not the existance of Tao magic per see... but the existance of guns that fire magic from numbered shells you have to get/buy each with specific powers atributes and the use of magic to cast aditional combat items like shields and so... it wasnt just magic.. but people using magic by "collectable" items with even numbers on them depending on tyoe and class..

As for the leyline.. i only got that there was some plane in the galaxy where there was inmense power there ...once there the place is just like all the knowledge in one vault or something like that?

[Reply #676 on:]

Yes.  The Leyline was created by some ancient, advanced race of alien precursors as a repository of their knowledge and power.  They left it behind for the younger races that came after them.  The younger races can access the knowledge and power contained within the Leyline, but only if they can prove themselves worthy by being able to find it and pass the tests to unlock it.

It's similar to the monolith from 2001: A Space Odyssey.  This sort of thing is not an uncommon idea in certain kinds of science fiction.

[Reply #677 on:]

I finally got around to watching your name.

It's every bit as good as everyone said it was.

[Reply #678 on:]

I've been watching the second season of Restaurant to Another World, and the animation is a step up on the original. As I hoped, they are mixing in some development for existing characters alongside introducing new ones, and I think it's just enough to stop the show feeling repetitive.

[Reply #679 on:]

I never did get around to watching the first season, so I'm afraid you'll have to watch it without me.

I still haven't finished watching a few of the shows that I started watching from the last couple of seasons.  I've really fallen behind in my anime viewing lately.

I did manage to finish the first season of Let's Make a Mug Too before the new season started, so I've been enjoying watching that, along with the accompanying live-action segments where the voice cast visits various locations in Tajimi, including places that appear in the anime.