just finished watching latest death parade episode. Ima need some time to digest it...
Yeah, the whole skating section was especially well done and had some good emotional tugs in it. I really wasn't expecting Ginti's bit to turn out the way it did, but we don't see exactly what choice she made, either. I'm thinking she chose Horado, and hence he sent her down, and this serves to illustrate the difference between Ginti and Decim - an arbiter
Spoiler
with human emotions
might have understand her counterargument and sent her upwards despite Horado, but Ginti doesn't have those so he just acts according to flawed arbiter logic.
BalrogLord, on 20 March 2015 - 10:18 PM, said:
Definetly the best show of the season by far!
Hmm, I'm not sure I feel the same way. At least not yet. As riveting as the show is, they haven't really gone beyond showcasing aspects of the world and pushing the one main theme yet
Spoiler
...that maybe judging a human based on pushing them towards impulsively acting poorly is both immoral and ineffective...
and while both of those are certainly interesting there isn't really that much depth to it just yet. They could easily bring together a lot of the things already in motion in the show and make it a lot more meaningful all in one more episode (and there is only one more), but they might not.
In contrast, I find that Assassination Classroom is doing a better job of executing on numerous aspects of itself consistently well. It's mainly a silly school comedy with an octopus monster teacher, so all it needed to be was funny with that premise. It is indeed doing just that - being regularly funny with its core premise - but at the same time its got the ongoing mystery of learning more about Koro Sensei and the discrimination of the students issues being continuously brought up, too. So I'd say it is doing more than Death Parade is so far, without failing its core purpose, either.
worrywort, on 14 September 2012 - 08:07 PM, said:
I kinda love it when D'rek unleashes her nerd wrath, as I knew she would here. Sorry innocent bystanders, but someone's gotta be the kindling.
Durarara!! x2 Shou this week was phenomenal as usual, too!
Now, listen closely...
If you have been watching Durarara!! x2 Shou, or if you think you ever will, then, as someone who has read the light novels, FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS PEANUT BUTTER AVOID SPOILERS LIKE THE PLAGUE FOR THE NEXT WEEK AND/OR UNTIL YOU FINISH IT.
Seriously.
I don't know if there are 1 or 2 episodes left in x2 Shou, but we are coming up on the end of LN volume 6, and you do NOT want to be exposed to any spoilers, not even any hints, whatsoever, about what is coming up!
If you are not caught up yet, I highly encourage you to get caught up this week, and set aside 30 minutes on next Saturday to watch the last(?) episode as soon as it comes out so you don't inadvertently get blobbed by your facebook or reddit feed or whatever.
Trust me, it is going to be awesome and you are going to want to be part of the moment!!!
worrywort, on 14 September 2012 - 08:07 PM, said:
I kinda love it when D'rek unleashes her nerd wrath, as I knew she would here. Sorry innocent bystanders, but someone's gotta be the kindling.
Durarara!! x2 Shou this week was phenomenal as usual, too!
Now, listen closely...
If you have been watching Durarara!! x2 Shou, or if you think you ever will, then, as someone who has read the light novels, FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS PEANUT BUTTER AVOID SPOILERS LIKE THE PLAGUE FOR THE NEXT WEEK AND/OR UNTIL YOU FINISH IT.
Seriously.
I don't know if there are 1 or 2 episodes left in x2 Shou, but we are coming up on the end of LN volume 6, and you do NOT want to be exposed to any spoilers, not even any hints, whatsoever, about what is coming up!
If you are not caught up yet, I highly encourage you to get caught up this week, and set aside 30 minutes on next Saturday to watch the last(?) episode as soon as it comes out so you don't inadvertently get blobbed by your facebook or reddit feed or whatever.
Trust me, it is going to be awesome and you are going to want to be part of the moment!!!
hmmm, im really looking forward to it. And no im not a LN reader. Speaking of reading, look at what came in the mail after being ordered 3 months ago http://www.amazon.co...d/dp/1611720133
Very good book which some good research. My only disappointment with the book as that a hundred pages in, there does not seem to be any major change in the writing despite the 2nd edition being written 10 years later. The overwhelming majority of anime referenced date to the 90s early 2000s. So many of the series referenced like ranma 1/2 and maison ikkoku im unfamiliar with. Aside from that im quite satisfied with it, here i'll give yall a quote *heads upstairs*
on the topic of cliches vs convention
Quote
"Art does not exist in a vacuum; its time and place determine the aesthetics the work can get away with,.And for art to be considered acceptable by its audience (and this is true whether talking high or pop art), it has to be recognizable as art. How? By embodying the rule pertaining to that work in that time and place.
Let's not kid ourselves is defined by its rules. Only in recent decades, with the likes of seemingly random artist like Jackson Pollock, has art without rules even been a concept, much less a possibility. Pop culture, to be popular, avoids the avant garde, which by definition sets out the break the rules, to lead rather than follows, and to upset the bourgeoisie at every turn,. Changes in culture are usually incremental rather than wholesale; rules are amended rather than abandoned.
We tend to forget this, since history changes our perspective. Beethoven was an innovator, writing romantic music while the classical school was still in vogue. However, he developed romanticism by modifying classicism, not by throwing it out altogether., Only a few avant-gardist have gone for the sweeping change, and their name seldom remembered. Few remember Harry Partch, the composer who decided that well tempered scale of the Western musical tradition was no longer interesting- he redivided the octave and, because most musical instruments couldn't' adjust, invented his own.
...
Take one of the most popular ballads of nineteenth century america:" Home Sweet Home" in and of itself, the song is, to a modern audience, corny and saccharin and playing it while looking at a characters home could be considered trite and unimaginative. Yet that same song
GRAVES OF THE FIREFLIES SPOILER
Spoiler
, in a scratchy turn of the century gramophone recording, is played near the end of hotaru no haka (grave of the fireflies) as the camera surveys for the last time the swampy home of two dead children. The moment is definitely not a cliche, crowded as it is with so many messages to the audience, not the least of which is: they would never have been driven to this place were it not for american bombing and adult indifference.
Therefore, and lets keep the distinction clear
A convention is an acceptable device that is intrinsically part of the narrative or character design, and which , although old, cans till be used in fresh ways.
A cliche takes the place of creativity. Cliches are used by lazy and untalented artist to finish off a work, rather than finding fresh uses for the convention that informs the work at its best.
This post has been edited by BalrogLord: 24 March 2015 - 01:06 AM
Right then Otacons. Maark fancies some Evangelion in his life again. But Maark is concerned regarding internets and malwares and etceteras. So! What's a good, safe and trusted site to get some mummy-issue robot love in my life again*?
*No but seriously when that Eva goes
Spoiler
off the rails and eats the Angel...
Hoooooo boy
This post has been edited by D'rek: 27 March 2015 - 08:09 PM
Right then Otacons. Maark fancies some Evangelion in his life again. But Maark is concerned regarding internets and malwares and etceteras. So! What's a good, safe and trusted site to get some mummy-issue robot love in my life again*?
Right then Otacons. Maark fancies some Evangelion in his life again. But Maark is concerned regarding internets and malwares and etceteras. So! What's a good, safe and trusted site to get some mummy-issue robot love in my life again*?
*No but seriously when that Eva goes
Spoiler
off the rails and eats the Angel...
Hoooooo boy
Watch only the Rebuild movies. Don't bother with the show anymore. It has been superseded and bettered in every which way possible.
I survived the Permian and all I got was this t-shirt.
Right then Otacons. Maark fancies some Evangelion in his life again. But Maark is concerned regarding internets and malwares and etceteras. So! What's a good, safe and trusted site to get some mummy-issue robot love in my life again*?
Right then Otacons. Maark fancies some Evangelion in his life again. But Maark is concerned regarding internets and malwares and etceteras. So! What's a good, safe and trusted site to get some mummy-issue robot love in my life again*?
*No but seriously when that Eva goes
Spoiler
off the rails and eats the Angel...
Hoooooo boy
Watch only the Rebuild movies. Don't bother with the show anymore. It has been superseded and bettered in every which way possible.
Now, I would consider this, but the show was actually one of the things that turned me on to anime in the first place (although I have very much fallen off of it, beyond certain fighting games that no other sod in the UK seems to know), I'll likely watch Rebuild at some stage, but my craving now is for the original series.
Interests:Malazan Book of the Fallen series.
Computer Game Design.
Programming.
Posted 28 March 2015 - 08:22 AM
Maark, on 28 March 2015 - 06:34 AM, said:
D, on 27 March 2015 - 09:05 PM, said:
Maark, on 27 March 2015 - 08:04 PM, said:
Right then Otacons. Maark fancies some Evangelion in his life again. But Maark is concerned regarding internets and malwares and etceteras. So! What's a good, safe and trusted site to get some mummy-issue robot love in my life again*?
Right then Otacons. Maark fancies some Evangelion in his life again. But Maark is concerned regarding internets and malwares and etceteras. So! What's a good, safe and trusted site to get some mummy-issue robot love in my life again*?
*No but seriously when that Eva goes
Spoiler
off the rails and eats the Angel...
Hoooooo boy
Watch only the Rebuild movies. Don't bother with the show anymore. It has been superseded and bettered in every which way possible.
Now, I would consider this, but the show was actually one of the things that turned me on to anime in the first place (although I have very much fallen off of it, beyond certain fighting games that no other sod in the UK seems to know), I'll likely watch Rebuild at some stage, but my craving now is for the original series.
No, seriously, listen to 'phib on this.
I can only phrase it like so: Neon Genesis Evangelion was, as for many people, one of the first anime I watched (relatively speaking). That being said; there are scenes in the Rebuild movies which are so perfectly better than in the series that they have now completely, utterly, and permanently replaced their series-based counterparts. As in, I once spent twenty minutes trying to show a friend a scene from Eva because it was super awesome, only to realize that said scene never happened in the series and was actually new to the movies.
I'm quite serious that Rebuild is SO GOOD that I almost cannot remember the series, even though the last time I watched it was like two years ago. When I think "Evangelion", I think Rebuild. It's that good. The entire Ramiel sequence is movie-only in my head.
By all means, indulge the nostalgia craving, though. But then do yourself a favour, and go watch the movies. Not only do they scratch the Eva itch, they scratch it BETTER than the original.
***
Shinrei said:
<Vote Silencer> For not garnering any heat or any love for that matter. And I'm being serious here, it's like a mental block that is there, and you just keep forgetting it.
Interests:Malazan Book of the Fallen series.
Computer Game Design.
Programming.
Posted 28 March 2015 - 08:30 AM
On a more general note (and to remind everyone that I do still exist in the anime thread, outside of myth and legend >.>) I am waaaaaaaay behind on my current shows because holy shit, work. (You too can experience 6am finishes! Yay!)
I've watched two episodes of Assassination Classroom, and am loving it. I need to catch up on that ASAP.
Even my Durarara!! obsession has not been enough to keep me up to date. As soon as I get a chance I'm binging on the remaining episodes, though. I need more Izaya awesomeness in my life. *sigh*
Fortunately I think that is about the extent of shows I was into this season. I had a few more pegged as possibles, and there are a couple I do want to give a chance to, but with the way my work/life "balance" is right now, it's not happening. Which sucks, because it's not like I was short of shows I wanted to try and get through already, lol.
Anyway, "woe is me", "Durarara!! is god", etc, etc. Hopefully I'll get through some episodes this weekend so I can actually post something a bit more substantial. >.>
***
Shinrei said:
<Vote Silencer> For not garnering any heat or any love for that matter. And I'm being serious here, it's like a mental block that is there, and you just keep forgetting it.
I surely shall (and in likelihood would have anyway) based on this.
Whilst I'm here, any recommendations for some nicely dark ones to watch? The last one I really followed was Cowboy Bebop to be honest... When I say I fell off of watching stuff, I really fell off.
Interests:Malazan Book of the Fallen series.
Computer Game Design.
Programming.
Posted 28 March 2015 - 09:52 AM
Depends what sort of 'dark' you want. Bah, I'll just update my "general suggestions but separated by 'darkness' list".
Mind-screw/ultra-violent/psychological 'dark':
Bokurano (a, uhm...darker version of Eva? XD)
School Days (Slice-of-life [henceforth to be known as "slife" because of a typo I just made] with a twist)
Mirai Nikki (deathmatch scenario with vague supernatural elements and every character is insane)
Monster (very slow paced, detective-type story but fairly dark - older series)
Black Rock Shooter (concept was a Vocaloid song...result was a fairly psychological series that is both "dark" and fairly innocuous on the surface)
Puella Magi Madoka Magica (deconstruction of the "magical girl" shows - get through episode 3 before making any judgments...)
Elfen Lied (similar to Madoka, in some ways, but more in-your-face about it)
Moral ambiguity/serious-ish plots/'realistic' "dark":
Darker than BLACK (way less "dark" than the above shows - but then, Cowbow Bepop is not "dark" to me, either)
Death Note (I'ma assume you've heard of this one...)
Ergo Proxy (another older/'classic' show that you might have already heard of - Ghost in the Shell-ish but darker)
Fate/Zero (if you missed the fangasms going on previously, this (not Fate/Stay Night or Fate/Unlimited Blade Works, though) is one of the best anime in the past decade, bar none)
Shin Sekai Yori (futurepeople live in a weird society and have psychic powers...but all is not as it seems. For me, and a lot of others except maybe D'rek, this was awesome - also imo one of the better shows in the past decade)
Kara no Kyoukai (series of movies - precursor to the Tsukihime series and the wider Nasuverse as a whole (which Fate/ is part of), bit mind-screw, fairly complex, gritty, etc)
Bakemonogatari/Nisemonogatari/Monogatari S2 (VERY quirky style by Studio SHAFT, who are awesome, but if you're not paying attention this series will read like a total jumble of random words - not helped by the constant Japanese wordplay which is indulged in to a ludicrous extent and made more difficult to follow by the constant jumping about of the shots - one of my personal favourite series, but not for everyone, or even most people, do not enter if you are not prepared to PAY ATTENTION and still be rather confused)
Noein (TV Tropes laconically describes this as "Quantum Physics: The Anime", though it obviously doesn't portray it with scientific accuracy; based on the idea that only that which is Observed is fixed, basically. Good show, but not 'great')
Phantom: Requiem for the Phantom (awesome show, very "realistic" beyond one or two liberties, about a guy who gets turned into an assassin for a rapidly expanding mafia-esque organisation. Best of the shows by Bee Train with fairly similar premises but much less budget/experience - Noir, Madlax, El Cazador de la Brujah [in order of seriousness/quality, roughly])
Psycho-Pass (another psychological, near-future, thriller - but a great example and one of the better shows of the past decade)
Serial Experiments Lain (uhm...*plot summary here*. Don't really know how else to put it, but it's another oldy, and the plot summary would spoil it, so...philosophical exploration of the Internet as a concept?)
Not 'dark' in any respect but still good shows:
Full Metal Panic (comedy, but excellent comedy)
Fullmetal Alchemist - Brotherhood (more manga-true version of the Fullmetal Alchemist anime, excellent story, bit long but worth it)
Code: Geass (another classic, see D'rek's post on the other page for it's recco, which I totally echo)
Steins;Gate/Robotics;Notes
Sword Art Online (mostly the second season, but seeing as you kind of have to watch the first...)
The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya
Missed a few off here because I doubt they'll appeal, but that's a good starting point? XD
***
Shinrei said:
<Vote Silencer> For not garnering any heat or any love for that matter. And I'm being serious here, it's like a mental block that is there, and you just keep forgetting it.
Even my Durarara!! obsession has not been enough to keep me up to date. As soon as I get a chance I'm binging on the remaining episodes, though. I need more Izaya awesomeness in my life. *sigh*
Not to dampen your enthusiasm, but this cour they're doing volumes 4, 5 and 6, which are the volumes with the 2nd, 3rd and 4th least amounts of Izaya...
But you should still get caught up! And like I said, avoid any chance of spoilers like the plague now that today's episode has aired!
Maark, on 28 March 2015 - 11:12 AM, said:
I'm aware of Death Note, as I sit here munching an apple. Cheers for the heads up - I'll have a looksie once I'm done with NGE/RB.
Based on what you've said you liked so far and about falling off, Maark, I think Fate/Zero, Death Note or Code Geass (because not as dark but still somewhat morality-twisting, and has some robots like EVA) would be among your best bets.
Be sure to let us know if/how you're enjoying anything you choose to watch! Good or bad, it can help us make even better suggestions in the future!
worrywort, on 14 September 2012 - 08:07 PM, said:
I kinda love it when D'rek unleashes her nerd wrath, as I knew she would here. Sorry innocent bystanders, but someone's gotta be the kindling.
Death Parade (finale) - Really good, really touching, as Death Parade has been all season of course! Still, this was definitely a season finale that left me wanting a lot more, partially in a good way and partially in a not-good way:
Spoiler
I think the Chiyuki-Decim aspect was handled perfectly and wrapped up very appropriately. Decim has a full-on emotional revelation, gets so close to being human that it hurts, and starts trying to judge things emotionally, with empathy, instead of callously like before.
Plus that smile! Though holy crap that doll-Chiyuki is creepy-looking!
But, the overarcing Nona and world-building threads feel like they really didn't get wrapped up or even fully explained at all. No follow-up on who/what Oculus is, why God is gone, what really happens to souls in the void, or what Nona is really trying to achieve. Lots of things are left up in the air, and Nona's overall closing attitude is just "some stuff is in motion, I guess we'll see what happens"... I guess if they make a season 2 it could work out but this season on its own merits didn't really pull that aspect of the show off.
Granted, there is only so much time in 12 episodes. But as an example, what they could have done is have Chiyuki and Decim part three quarters/halfway through the episode, and have Decim overtly explain to Chiyuki before she goes (and maybe Nona there too) that he is not only going to try and judge people with empathy and kindness, but try and make all the arbiters do it, try and overhaul the whole system. Then the elevator closes, and we montage through Chiyuki's reborn life to death very quickly. New-Chiyuki then steps out of the elevator, like in all the other episodes, turns the corner and... Quindecim is partly the same, partly completely different. The whole place looks brighter, happier, and the arbiter welcomes her much more warmly. Cue the way-too-happy OP/ED song, which now makes perfect sense that it is so upbeat and happy. End.
Not that that is the only option, but it's an example of how the Decim-with-emotions plot could have meant something a lot more and the show not ended with just a "well, we'll see".
On the other hand, I'm sure some people like the unknown aspect of "will judging people emphatically really work?"
In any case, I'd call it a very good show on an episode-to-episode basis and well worth watching for that alone, even if only some of the season-long plot aspects were fully fruitful.
Log Horizon S2 (finale) - A really great episode, Log Horizon at its finest I'd say. Lots of good callbacks to earlier bits and really pushing the big cast aspect which is one of the parts where Log Horizon really shines. I was surprised how well they wrapped some dangling threads that I thought they would have just forgotten about for now.
The season really came together in these last 5 or so episodes, but the overly obtuse and in-some-cases-very-boring start and middle of the season means I still don't think it was a very good season overall. Averages out to being... well, average.
The big downside for this show now, is that the main plot is far from resolved and they've put in a bunch of foreshadowing towards what could happen in season 3... but apparently they've more or less caught up with the books now, so it's going to be years of waiting before season 3 of the anime is ever actually made.
Seriously, this was just about a perfect adaptation of the LNs, even more so than the first season. Brain's Base did a great job of sticking to the LNs but also modifying, cutting and even adding parts where it made sense to do so, and using a scene structure, music, etc that made it work really well as an anime.
After the second-last episode, knowing how much crazy stuff was left in LN volume 6, I was slightly worried they wouldn't be able to fit it all into the finale but they did! And it was so good!
Rolling Girls (finale) - Some of the weaknesses of this show really showing here in the last episode: a couple scenes in the first half that I think were almost certainly not properly finished because they had to meet their deadline, and some of the bad setup/writing coming through - they don't really establish what or why eye-patch woman is trying to do, and I'll bet I'm not the only one who is confused about the Takumi / Takumi-za differences.
The second half of the finale was significantly better. Things were tidied up well, lots of good emotional beats and the various flashbacks and flashforwards were great.
In retrospect over the season, the somewhat scattered plot/writing was definitely a downside, but the show was definitely impressive with its beautiful watercolours backgrounds and bright effects*, well-animated battles and great soundtrack. Definitely shows that the new studio Wit can be a great contender beyond just Attack on Titan, and hopefully they'll continue to improve and try creative new ideas. Best of all, it's great just to see another anime that younger girls could enjoy other than romances and sailor moon clones - Rolling Girls really nicely fills the niche of being half shounen, half slice of life and not really needing to be a girls' show, it just happens to be predominantly girl characters rather boys without making a point of it plotwise.
*frequently darkened for the TV release (probably due to the pokemon epilepsy incident), should be even better on the DVD release
---
Assassination Classroom epi 11 (not a finale, the show is going for 2 cours) - Wow, this was an explosive episode. It's really nice to see them introducing some beyond-the-classroom elements that will presumably come back later in the season near the end. I'm hoping for a great big multi-episode finale of all the kids doing one great big assassination attempt using Nagasi's weaknesses, and at the same time things like Itano, the school director, Professor Bitch and who knows what else coming back in a big convergence of things.
As a side note, I really like how the writers/animators have integrated Ritsu into the class as just another student. She really doesn't stand out like you'd think she would, but at the same time she is there if you look for her and has some bits here and there. I sure as heck can't keep track of all the students, but the creators are really doing an excellent job of keeping track of all their characteristics and giving them all some bits of dialogue and screen-time. They probably could have just had a generic background class that hardly ever talks and focused solely on the main 6 or so students, like most shows, but to do this instead is really showing the quality of the creators.
worrywort, on 14 September 2012 - 08:07 PM, said:
I kinda love it when D'rek unleashes her nerd wrath, as I knew she would here. Sorry innocent bystanders, but someone's gotta be the kindling.
Death Parade! The feelz have gotten to me. I still haven't watched past episode 11 but I'm in a melancholy "don't want to do anything" mood after watching the whole season during 10 days.
I'm sad.
Anyone here watched "Gantz" ? A friend recommended it to me but I dunno about watching it based on the reviews.
This post has been edited by EmperorMagus: 29 March 2015 - 06:40 AM
Wellllllllllllllllp looks like my PC can't stream for shit... Hmm.
<div><br></div><div>Edit: Firefox and Real appear to be my friends and I have for the moment won their trust. Let's see how well it's worked...</div>
Dude the formatting is like torture to my OCD. I see it and I am smashing my head against the wall.
Unfortunately the board seems to go batshit crazy any time I try to edit stuff. So if I edit that, it'll make it worse.
Nine episodes into Eva now, Feels like I've forgotten a lot, but then it HAS been 13-14 years since I saw it (fuck does THAT make me feel old). A lot darker now that I have a better comprehension of what's going on.
Help
BalrogLord, on 20 March 2015 - 10:18 PM, said:
)
