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Myth's Anime Thread

teacup

Auror
I also can't watch Elfen Lied for the same reason.

I actually didn't find this sad at all. I saw all the times it was supposed to be sad, but it just seemed like the anime was trying too hard to be all depressive and sad. It didn't do it for me at all.

I thought the concept of Elfen Lied was quite good, but unfortunately I didn't think they went anywhere with it. I found it very disappointing.

Sorry to bash some shows so much, but on that note, what did everyone think of Sword Art Online? I loved the concept (though not too original I thought it was handled well) and it was very fun to watch. What I didn't like was the lack of plot other than a forced love story and simply completing the game. I can't comment on the fairy part, because it just bored me so much I couldn't watch it.

I wish this anime had been done differently, because I really loved the idea of people settling down in the game, opening up shops and having families and stuff.
 

Mythopoet

Auror
Yeah, I agree that Evangelion was depressing. And the ending was just... inexcusable. Then I watched the movie and wished I had been content with the series ending, however stupid it was. The movie was just... creepy and insane. The series had some merit and I thought it excelled most at relating the day to day of how a society that isn't really technologically advanced enough can come back from disaster and fight off an overpowered alien threat through sheer force of will and ingenuity. I liked the episode where Misato is struggling to get enough power together to fuel the Evas and fight the incoming Angel. With power lines running all over Tokyo-3 they make it by the skin of their teeth. I liked that. It was real and human. And while I wanted there to be more, I wanted all the cryptic allusions to mean something. In the end nothing meant anything. So yeah, depressing as hell. I don't recommend it to anyone even though it's somehow one of the seminal anime.

I watched the first episode of Elfen Lied and while it didn't really bother me, I didn't find it compelling in any sense either. I got the feeling the whole opening sequence was meant to shock people into being interested, but it didn't work on me. *shrug*

As for Sword Art Online! I enthused about that upthread. Currently it's in the top ten anime for my husband and I. We absolutely loved everything about it. I thought the characterization was brilliant. It clearly took the forefront over plot, but I didn't mind that. I didn't think the love story was forced at all. I thought it was very natural and Kirito and Asuna are my favorite anime couple now (edging out Keichi and Belldandy for the top spot). And I loved the nuances of the villain of the first arc. He was a very interesting character in his own right. I could understand why he did what he did even though I don't approve of his actions. Overall, a great anime.
 

Rinzei

Troubadour
I think I made it to episode 3 of Elfen Lied - the cliffhanger-was-it-rape really turned me off... Sorry, but noooo.

Another massive fan of Sword Art Online. I had mixed feelings about season 2, the Alfheim arc. I liked the story and the new setting. But that villain...god, he gave me the heebie-jeebies. He was so messed up. It really took things in a dark direction, which I'm generally not a fan of. But the rest of the series overshadowed that for me.
 

Mythopoet

Auror
I've started an in depth review of Gurren Lagann on my blog if anyone is interested. It'll probably be a few posts long.

Great Anime or Greatest Anime? | Falling Toward Mythopoesis

In the meantime, we finished watching Is This a Zombie of the Dead? (The second season of Is This a Zombie? Yeah, anime often have weird titles.) I loved this series. So many laugh out loud moments. And it has a really fantastic English dub. I'll probably do a review of the series on my blog after I'm finished with the Gurren Lagann because it's inspired some interesting thoughts about how Japanese harem shows correspond to Western love triangles.

Right now we're working on finished Code Geass and have also started Log Horizon and Chobits. Because we can't watch one series at a time any more than I can read one book at a time.
 

teacup

Auror
Anybody seen Wolf's Rain or Monster here? I've not seen them yet, but they're on my list to watch. What did people think of these?

All I know is that I've been told by 1 person that Monster is "like Death Note but way better" and that I've seen clips of Wolf's Rain to a song, and it looked pretty cool. Yeah, all I know is that it looked cool and I like wolves, lol. So thoughts on these?
 
Wolf's Rain is odd. I made the mistake of trying to figure out if those characters are wolves with human illusions over them or wolves that turn into humans when they want, or when it changes its mind about that. It's more post-apocalypse than lupine, but it has its moments.

But Monster is one of the smarter crime stories I've ever seen. It's not supernatural at all, apart from how one or two killers are impossibly clever or charismatic, so its main similarity to Death Note is that it takes its time exploring different pieces of its puzzle. Sometimes it'll be a thrill ride, often it'll take a whole episode to explore one character, that you might not see too much of again. Its pace isn't for everyone, but the only real thing I'd say against it is that the ending isn't as powerful as the rest.

That and, back when I was following it, I had to do some serious searching to get a copy of the last dozen eps. Sigh.
 

Mythopoet

Auror
Well, I am back, and I feel like I should have a significant amount of finished titles to add to my list in the month and a half I've been gone, but I don't. Hmmm.

We did finish Chobits and I really liked it. It took a while for me to really get into, but I thought the characterization was very good and I liked the relationships. Though the ending of the show... didn't make as much sense as I expected. From what I read on wikipedia it seems the ending of the manga made a lot more sense and for some reason they made it both more complicated and more vague in the anime. But Chi was really cute and I'm just glad she had a happy ending.

We've made some progress on Code Geass. We have to take that one super slow because my husband always needs a few days to recover after we watch and episode or two. It's just so intense. We cried after a recent tragic episode and I don't think we're quite over it yet. I expect this one will rocket into my top 10 list after we finish.

We also watched a sweet little series called "Say I Love You". Normally neither of us are fans of romantic comedy, but we find in anime we often enjoy it. I think mostly it's about the characters. We often find ourselves caught up in the characters and develop strong attachments to them. I don't know what it is, but I find the characterization in anime to be so much more nuanced than most modern western characterization. Also, the teenagers in anime are completely stupid and annoying.

We've gotten caught up in the series Magi, which I find to be wonderfully imaginative. We're about halfway through the second season of that and enjoying it thoroughly. It's just great epic fantasy with fantastic worldbuilding, based on the Arabian Night in part.

More recently, we started Blast of Tempest and are completely blown away by how awesome it is. (Also predicting a top 10 spot for this one.) It takes elements of Shakespeare's Hamlet and The Tempest and mixes them up with Japanese mage clans and huge magic trees that may or may not destroy the world. We finished the first half, had to stay up way past our bedtime because we just couldn't stop before we got through the first season finale, and just wow. Hopefully the second half will be just as amazing. highly recommend.
 

teacup

Auror
We've made some progress on Code Geass. We have to take that one super slow because my husband always needs a few days to recover after we watch and episode or two. It's just so intense. We cried after a recent tragic episode and I don't think we're quite over it yet. I expect this one will rocket into my top 10 list after we finish.

I can't remember too much from this anime, except for the ending, which I loved - and of course won't spoil. Maybe I'll rewatch it sometime.
 

Mythopoet

Auror
I can't remember too much from this anime, except for the ending, which I loved - and of course won't spoil. Maybe I'll rewatch it sometime.

I imagine it would be well worth it. On a first viewing the story is full of so many twists and turns that I never know what's going to happen next and more than once I felt like it's punched me in the gut (in a good way, if you know what I mean?) with a hugely emotional turn I didn't see coming. I imagine that a second viewing would allow you to appreciate the story in a more in depth fashion. I will probably do this at some point after we're done. My husband will probably be too much of a wreck to ever watch it again. (In a good way, if you know what I mean?)

Speaking of anime that should be rewatched, I've been thinking of rewatching Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. It was one of the earliest shows I watched and it's been so long now that it's no longer fresh in my mind. Having the watched the first series and Brotherhood back to back now I think I sometimes confuse the two. And I have a lot more experience with anime now that I think would help me to appreciate it even more.
 

teacup

Auror
I imagine it would be well worth it. On a first viewing the story is full of so many twists and turns that I never know what's going to happen next and more than once I felt like it's punched me in the gut (in a good way, if you know what I mean?) with a hugely emotional turn I didn't see coming. I imagine that a second viewing would allow you to appreciate the story in a more in depth fashion. I will probably do this at some point after we're done. My husband will probably be too much of a wreck to ever watch it again. (In a good way, if you know what I mean?)
I really do need to watch it again. I honestly don't know whether I like it or not, apart from the ending, because I don't remember it enough. I /think/ I much preferred the first half, though.




Speaking of anime that should be rewatched, I've been thinking of rewatching Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. It was one of the earliest shows I watched and it's been so long now that it's no longer fresh in my mind. Having the watched the first series and Brotherhood back to back now I think I sometimes confuse the two. And I have a lot more experience with anime now that I think would help me to appreciate it even more.

I have re-watched Brotherhood so many times, I don't even know how many anymore. 5 maybe...maybe more. But I must watch it again!
Have you seen the Brotherhood movie, Sacred Star of Milos?
 

Mythopoet

Auror
We finished watching Blast of Tempest. It was truly excellent. The story was a modern day fantasy, one could call it urban fantasy since it mostly takes place in and around the cities of Japan, with a really neat premise. The premise is this: the Kusaribe clan is a family of mages who serve and worship what is called the Tree of Genesis. Making offerings of modern technology to the Tree grants them magical power within certain limitations. Part of their role as servants of the Tree of Genesis is to ensure that the Tree of Exodus, Genesis's rival and opposite, never revives. Long ago there was a great battle between Genesis and Exodus wherein Genesis barely managed to defeat Exodus but was damaged and has been hibernating ever since. The Kusaribe have always believed that the Tree of Genesis is on the side of humanity, protecting it from Exodus, which will destroy everything. However, in recent times most of the clan, lead by a mage named Samon, have come to believe that this is false, that it is the Tree of Genesis that will destroy all of civilization and that Exodus is the only weapon against it. Thus they wish to revive the tree of Exodus before it is too late. The only person in the clan standing against them is the princess of the clan, the mage of Genesis who is more powerful than all of them. Thus Samon concocts a plan to get rid of the princess so they can complete the process of awakening the Tree of Exodus. The Kusaribe cannot kill with their own hands, or they will lose their power from the Tree. So she is put in a barrel and left on a deserted island surrounded by a magical barrier to die.

However, as interesting a fantasy as this makes, it's all almost just a backdrop. For the princess Hakaze manages to find a way to contact the outside world after all, a message in a bottle that through magic allows her to communicate in real time with the one who accidentally picks it up. This is Mahiro Fuwa a Japanese teen who has recently been devastated by the senseless murder of his younger sister. He makes a deal with Hakaze that he will help her save the world if she will help him find his sister's killer through her magic and exact vengeance. Mahiro is joined by his long time friend Yoshino, who unbeknownst to him was dating his sister and is also suffering from her death. Aika Fuwa, Mahiro's sister and Yoshino's love, haunts the characters and has a surprising influence on the whole story.

If it sounds like the story fumbles the interesting battle between magical trees in favor of teen angst, it couldn't be farther from the truth. Mahiro and Yoshino are surprisingly complex and compelling characters. And Aika's fascination with the Shakespeare's plays Hamlet and the Tempest generate the thematic threads that run through the entire story, weaving everything together seamlessly. Some parallels are easy to spot. Hakaze is a mage exiled on an island like Prospero in The Tempest. Mahiro is consumed by a desire for vengeance that threatens to be his undoing, like Hamlet. Both plays were takes of revenge, but one ends tragically and one ends happily. The story asks, which way will this end?

My one complaint about the show was that the reality behind the Trees, their power and their purpose, is never fully explained. But at the same time, I accept that this isn't really what the story is about. It's really about Hakaze and Mahiro and Yoshino and Aika. It's a surprisingly effective mix of intense character drama and epic fantasy conflict. It blew me away. (Pun totally intended.)
 

Mythopoet

Auror
Well, recently I've finally finished season 4 of Fairy Tail so I could move on to season 5 currently being simulcast on Crunchyroll. Fairy Tail is one of my favorites. Great stories, great fantasy setting, great characters, great music, great everything. I love it. So excited for this season.

I also finished Magi: The Kingdom of Magic. I am amazed by this anime. The more I watch the more I love it. The setting inspired by the Arabian Nights is gorgeous and vast and so imaginative. The fantasy aspects melded with the real world inspirations are really fascinating. There are a ton of really interesting characters and plenty of eye candy as well. I think I'm developing an anime crush on Ren Kouen. ;)
 

Mythopoet

Auror
Finished 3 great anime recently.

Occult Academy, a short and sweet 13 episode urban fantasy series. The best part of this show, in my opinion, was the main female character. She was awesome.

Gosick an alternate history re-imagining of European history leading up to World War II featuring Victorique, a mysterious school girl with almost supernatural abilities of deduction (she's a bit of a Sherlock Holmes type) who solves mysteries with Kujo, a young man who is an exchange student from Japan to her home country, the made-up nation of of Saubure. Though it quickly becomes clear that Victorique is unwillingly tied to some deep rooted intrigue going on in Saubure that threatens to change the whole outcome of the coming storm that is World War II. Victorique and Kujo develop a very close relationship that I found really beautiful. I think they're my second favorite anime couple now, right under Kirito and Asuna from Sword Art Online. The animation and design of this one is really outstanding as well.

Last night we finished watching Attack on Titan. This is, of course, the anime that everyone's been talking about and given all the hype I went into it with a healthy degree of skepticism. I ended up being totally swept away in the fervor. I love the worldbuilding of this show, the conflict of a humanity trapped within a fortress/cage of its own device now once again in a fight for its survival when the walls begins to fail. The Titans are a fascinating and frightening enemy and the mystery of what exactly they are and what is going on with these new aberrant Titans is going to drive me positively crazy until more of the show is made (or I gave and start buying the manga). There's a lot of violence and blood and death in this show. It isn't afraid to kill off people and characters when it makes sense and adds to the suspense of the story. (You can't have a Titan attack on a city without a high mortality rate. Otherwise the Titans wouldn't seem very dangerous.) None of the deaths seem arbitrary. I've been pleasantly surprised as well by the brilliant characterization. The kids who undergo unspeakable trauma and dedicate themselves to the fight against the Titans, each for different reasons. The trainee who seemed like he was set up to be the main character's rival and archjerk opposite but who ends up selflessly overcoming his fear, even while his body trembles with terror, and signing up to give his life in the fight against the Titans. The veterans of the Survey Corp (the only people actively fighting the Titans) who tirelessly work to uncover the mysteries of the world and delivery humanity from the threat of the Titans once and for all. Everything about this show is awesome. I want more of it right now so badly.
 

Rinzei

Troubadour
Yes, Attack on Titan is one of those that is hyped - and it turns out, for good reason. :) Very much looking forward to more. I'd say that it'd be odd if it didn't have another season because of it's popularity, but I've heard that it's not as popular in Japan as it is outside of it. So, it's anyone's guess. We can only hope.

In other news, has anyone else seen that Hulu will have uncut subbed episodes of Sailor Moon? They're remastered, uncut and uncensored - which means there's not an official release of Sailor Stars outside of Japan. I've not seen yet if it works for those outside the US - I hope so. They also have a deal with Viz for the new remake coming out this summer.

Lastly, I've gone back to roots and started watching Rurouni Kenshin, dubbed. The voices do sound silly sometimes, but it's nostalgic. Only about 10+ episodes in so far - there's 90 or so in total!
 

Mythopoet

Auror
My understanding is that Attack on Titan has been a success everywhere. We caved and bought some of the manga volumes that follow the events in the anime and it looks like there simply isn't enough manga out right now to base a second season on. I'm happy for them to wait until more story is published.

I've watched several Rurouni Kenshin and I can't decide if I like it or not. The voice acting is pretty bad in English, but it doesn't bother me much. But thus far, it just hasn't been very interesting.

I finished watching The Pilot's Love Song the other day as well. I've seen it reviewed badly some places, but I thought it was very good and that the reviewer's complaints were stupid.
 
Rurouni Kenshin is odd. Even for anime it can't make its mind if it's full drama or not; if that's what you want, the second season is a lot more centered than the first or third, and the movies can be downright grim.
 

Jabrosky

Banned
I haven't seen that much anime, but I'm sorry to say that the small sample I've viewed didn't endear me to the genre. Probably the only anime I've come close to enjoying was Princess Mononoke, and it still left me with a weird aftertaste. Surreality seems to be a common theme to the anime genre from what I've seen.

Another one I remember was Afro Samurai, which advertised that its leading voice actor was none other than Samuel L. Jackson. Unfortunately most of his dialogue came not from the title character but his obnoxiously stereotypical sidekick. Rarely have I seen such a blatant waste of talent in any kind of animation!
 

Rinzei

Troubadour
I haven't seen that much anime, but I'm sorry to say that the small sample I've viewed didn't endear me to the genre. Probably the only anime I've come close to enjoying was Princess Mononoke, and it still left me with a weird aftertaste. Surreality seems to be a common theme to the anime genre from what I've seen.

I had a co-worker that didn't like anime much. When a friend tried to introduce him to it, they started with Neon Genesis Evangelion. *cringe* Not the best way to start someone out, and a quick way to turn them off.
 

Mythopoet

Auror
Anime is certainly an acquired taste for anyone from the West. I was highly skeptical when my husband introduced me to it. But I got hooked on Inuyasha because of the excellent characters and fantasy aspects. (As far as Japanese vs. Western fantasy goes, Inuyasha is different without being really weird.)

Even when I enjoyed Inuyasha I was very skeptical for a long time about other anime. But we just kept finding good series after good series. And we also got into Miyazaki's films. Princess Mononoke is one of my favorites. I've had far more success over the last several years finding fantastic storytelling in anime than I have in fantasy books published in the last couple of decades.
 
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