Kill la Kill 1
Late to the party I guess, but this episode was Sushio as fuck. Just look at this:
It's delicious.
It was easy to tell from the PV, but they're going for something that blends old-school anime aesthetics with Imaishi's particular brand of manic, all within the framework of a straight parody to battle shounen of old, which we already knew from the concept being inspired by such a manga.
You get references to his favourites like Gamba no Bouken or Ashita no Joe, Dezaki postcards, hand-crafted backgrounds and lighting, all meshing together with Kanada-inspired movement turned up to eleven, as usual for this director. The amount of backgrounds moving when they threw people around and stuff was pretty pumping, the bland OST not so much.
I'm criminally underwatched when it comes to all the stuff the show draws from, so it's not hooking me in as much as it could. I think DiGiKeRoT said your reaction will depend a bit on what you bring with you, and it seems a sensible claim. Gurren Lagann was pretty much like this too, but it seems to be at the foreground of the aesthetics in Kill la Kill's, carrying over to the story seamlessly.
re: FLCL comparisons. I don't see it, and those comments misled me into looking for something more nuanced, with better music, a sense of flow and tightness. In other words, something better
re: storyline. I'm not worried; Nakashima writes plays, he has structure and dramatic beats down as evidenced by Gurren Lagann; and I didn't think the episode was too fast either. It's trying to grab you with its large-scale presentation and the showiness of the animation, all while roughly establishing a set of characters and dynamics very strongly and overtly, just like TTGL (it has the same FIGHT ZA POWAH thematic as well). You're supposed to be placed somewhere, with some characters, and be blown away by sheer spectacle. It works for me, partly because the animation was so good, partly because the directing is competent and lets it breathe.
