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[Midonin]

And Yet the Town Moves
Hotori Market

It's very rare for me to leave an anime unfinished. Years ago, I stopped halfway with this one, not by choice, but because of the issues subs can have. So Sentai Filmworks picked it up, and I return to it, after a quick refresher course, to complete it. I've always been a fan of Shaft's works, and SoreMachi is no exception.

It feels like Tamako Market. Of course, Tamako didn't exist when it was being aired, and Shaft had been wanting to do it for some time. The main three "maids" appeared in Pani Poni Dash (another series I need to see) long before it was announced Shaft would be animating it, so I'm sure this is a pet project for someone. I could make superficial comparisons to Tamako. How romance is a subplot with a lot of narrative push, but hardly the central one. The narrator that waxes philosophic and the snarky animal, not the same thing in this case. The quirky cast of townspeople. But all of these only go surface deep.

One element of the series that stands out is all the wordplay puns. The kind of series Shaft loves and translators hate. And many of them are visual too, such as the 大人気ない sign gag or the entire exchange with the cat in the alley. Sentai Filmworks opted to go for the TL note route, which I'm not entirely pleased with, but the show had a fine sense of comedic timing that even that didn't bother me too much.

I've always loved a bit of supernatural in my mundane (and in reverse, a bit of mundane in my supernatural.), something Japan exceeds at. The thing with the aliens, never explained. The ghost old man who's

Spoiler

Uki's deceased husband

and loves to make bad jokes simply is (but he's also some wonderful foreshadowing.) It's clear that, like they did with Kaizou, Shaft could pick and choose chapters published at different times to mix and match. Not necessarily in order, but the results speak for themselves. Each episode has a clear theme, making them all the stronger.

Hotori's exactly the kind of character I like. Dumb, but her train of thought makes sense. And her fascination with mystery novels adds a nice intellectual wrinkle to the character. Her one attempt at actually writing one, with the animation shift, reveals she may have a way to go. Her relationship with Futaba is probably my favorite one, though she has some great moments with Toshiko, too. And Haribara's character design must be mentioned. So exaggerated, but nobody comments on it. It's just how she is, and she's their friend through and through. Is the character design a sign of the show being "truly original"? I'm not sure what that means. But it gives the show some flavor.

So many good moments sprinkled throughout. The dynamic table tennis match, the concert (violin and accordion, novel choice of instruments). Things like Hotori's night journey with Takeru provide a nice mix of comedy and poignancy that all feels expertly put together. Shaft does have a knack of going for quirky material that best suits their animation.

The final episode, especially, has many things I want to talk about.

Spoiler

At first it was full of a lot of gags - the bit about Hotori meeting Anubis and being told to go to the "Japanese afterlife" was brilliant, but that montage. Hits you right in the heart, it does. This is that poignancy I was talking about. The show pulled out all the raw emotion it could for that scene, and even if it was only a "what-if", the way it did a 180 on a scene that had a lame gag a moment before really got to me. That it took place in an afterlife that was a boring bureaucracy only served to hammer it in further. Something about life going on after death, and so death goes on like life, but the people in it are important. It's a simple message, but it's all in the execution.

It's hardly the first series I've seen that's used the

Spoiler

falling into a coma

plot for its finale (Softenni comes to mind, and also says a lot about my taste), but the way it was pulled off here was effective.

The Broadway-style opening theme, though a cover, was wonderfully animated. Compared to the color palette of the rest of the show, mostly natural tones, this was a treat for the eyes every time. And the ending, I love how it makes use of an in-show band and is also filled with nearly untranslatable Japanese wordplay. Plus, having the song be about the song itself is wonderful.

Final Thoughts: Is it better than Tamako Market? I'm not really trying to say. Ishiguro and Yoshida had different goals, even if they share a common setting. Tamako's about an outsider's view. SoreMachi takes us there from the inside. The episodes are a bit of a grab bag in terms of direction, being fairly grounded one week and outlandish and wacky the next, but the setting and characters are constant, and the little callbacks that keep building up really benefit the narrative. Some of Shaft's finest work, cinematography-wise, though credit must be given to Ishiguro too, since they love his work.

Of course, the next season after this, Shaft would air Madoka and the world would change forever. But before that, they produced a little gem that exemplifies a lot of what I love about anime (that's not anime commenting on anime culture itself.) Worth a watch, guaranteed.

 

[Syrinx]

School Rumble 8

Harima has hit rock bottom, seeing the love that had invigorated his soul and given him a purpose sitting there eating bentos with some schmuck. Run down in a fit of depression and denial, he then gets the tar beaten out of him by some punk as he can't summon the will to fight. Tragic shit, yo. Keep on truckin', Harima. Keep that head up and keep that eye on the prize. This is but merely an obstacle. I mean come on. Her crush on that guy can't last forever, can it? And even if it does, he probably doesn't give enough of a fuck to return those feelings. Your time will come, Harima. Your time will come.

Also Hanai is a stalking shit who could really use a nice ass beating. There you go, Harima. She might like you more if you beat the crap out of the guy stalking her sister. Or better yet, her sister might start to like you, she's better anyway.

 

[AnathemicOne]

Higurashi no Naku Koro ni Kai - 10

This show is malevolent. I know shit is going hit the fan, it is inevitable. This positive buildup over multiple episodes however is strong. But I won't be fooled, I will be a pessimistic bastard and shield myself for the shitstorm that is about to come!

Spoiler

It was nice to see Keichii vs Granny with Granny in the end taking a liking to Keichii. Since the whole three family issue seems to be wrapped up the question is who the hell is that mysterious third group and what is their purpose in setting up an elaborate scheme to murder select individuals then a mass genocide of the entire village?

 

[RyougaSaotome]

That moment when you're given the assignment of reviewing the Sword Art Online BD box sets, set review to go live and then have somebody say something like this:

9 out of 10 times I don't agree with Elliot's reviews too. Didn't realize it was him till I read it. My mistake.

My soul aches. But then I realized it was a review for SAO and felt better. =)))))))

 

[Admiral Woofington]

Kyoukai No Kanata 09

Great episode. This show did a 180 in quality. I think that now my issue has shifted to

Spoiler

Akihito's friends not really caring that much about him, outside of protag. Seems like they just saw him as a youmu after all.

 

[chickdigger802]

knk 9

lame yall got me excited for nothing. this is just anime.

 

[firehawk12]

Is this anime or real life?

 

[duckroll]

knk 9

lame yall got me excited for nothing. this is just anime.

Jarmel is just easily impressed by shit.

 

[wonzo]

Jarmel is just easily impressed by shit.

THis is what happens when people namedrop something like Blood-C so easily.

 

[Jarmel]

Jarmel is just easily impressed by shit.

*Shrug* I wish that was the case. I get so much shit from my friends for being notoriously picky. Would make watching so many shows a lot easier. I was only going to be impressed if they went through with the twist as it would have justified some of the earlier issues with the show.

THis is what happens when people namedrop something like Blood-C so easily.

To be fair, I did put a qualifier on that statement.

 

[Admiral Woofington]

Considerations of me dropping KnK though, as good as this episode was, now rely on

Spoiler

Whether Akihito is truly dead next episode and not alive in some way shape or form. Vagueness and cutaway scenes usually means they're alive somehow, but basically without him I'm out. I don't care for the other characters.

 

[jbug617]

Kyoukai No Kanata 09

Great episode. This show did a 180 in quality. I think that now my issue has shifted to

Spoiler

Akihito's friends not really caring that much about him, outside of protag. Seems like they just saw him as a youmu after all.

I didn't think about it that way.

Spoiler

Please tell me he comes back for vengeance.

 

[wonzo]

To be fair, I did put a qualifier on that statement.

 

[duckroll]

*Shrug* I wish that was the case. I get so much shit from my friends for being notoriously picky. Would make watching so many shows a lot easier. I was only going to be impressed if they went through with the twist as it would have justified some of the earlier issues with the show.

I don't think a twist ever justifies something being "intentionally" bad. If it's bad, it's bad. There's no excusing it. Blood-C doesn't justify any of its more boring parts with the twists, those are still boring and a result of bad direction. What it does justify is certain really stupid character motivations, which were presented from the start in a way which is actually funny anyway. So the twist enhances what was already good, but doesn't justify anything which is bad.

In the case of KnK, most of it is bad, and nothing will ever justify that. Lazy writing always tries to pretend that a "plan" justifies a poor start, but it never does. That is why such writers are generally stuck writing YA fiction or shows on ABC.

 

[Chet Rippo]

Pew pew

 

[Dynedom]

Now, the animation in the television series really is above average but I don't think that's quite fair. The OVA's look crazy hot even when there's no action going on.

More importantly, the OVA's feature scenes with undisputed best girl:

Haha, yes! Another on #TeamJuri

 

[chickdigger802]

tokyo raven 7-8

this serious stuff is just boring... stop with the boring stuff boring anime. need less bromance more waifus

 

[Jarmel]

I don't think a twist ever justifies something being "intentionally" bad. If it's bad, it's bad. There's no excusing it. Blood-C doesn't justify any of its more boring parts with the twists, those are still boring and a result of bad direction. What it does justify is certain really stupid character motivations, which were presented from the start in a way which is actually funny anyway. So the twist enhances what was already good, but doesn't justify anything which is bad.

In the case of KnK, most of it is bad, and nothing will ever justify that. Lazy writing always tries to pretend that a "plan" justifies a poor start, but it never does. That is why such writers are generally stuck writing YA fiction or shows on ABC.

Well the thing with Blood-C though is that the twist doesn't justify the boring aspects of it. It does qualify aspects of the narrative but the producers/director could have easily made the show more exciting or interesting and still kept many of the underlying elements. Like I wouldn't say Valvrave is bad despite some intentionally bad segments. The intentions (and capabilities) of the author should be taken into account with these sorts of things as there is a meta aspect of the work playing on the expectations of the audience. It's not just strictly limited to the work itself.

KnK has a shitload of issues other than just Mirai, hence why I wouldn't ever say the show has good writing as a whole. Like the siscon stuff is still there and still somewhat obnoxious. Not to mention the Sakura stuff is still one of the most half-assed plot threads I've seen in awhile.

 

[Dresden]

Well the thing with Blood-C though is that the twist doesn't justify the boring aspects of it.

That's what he said!

 

[Jarmel]

That's what he said!

Allow me to reword that then.

I don't think a twist ever justifies something being "intentionally" bad.

I think this is in contradiction to the Blood-C stuff, as the pacing wasn't supposed to be intentionally bad. I'm agreeing with duck that the Blood C twist stuff doesn't justify the pacing issues. I am disagreeing though with the concept that just because something is intentionally bad, makes it bad by default.

 

[chickdigger802]

unbreakalbe machine doll 7-8

man im getting bored of all these cg monster shounen persona like shows this season.


when im enjoying the story of an assassin creed game more than anime this week... shit is real bad.

 

[duckroll]

I think this is in contradiction to the Blood-C stuff, as the pacing wasn't supposed to be intentionally bad. I'm agreeing with duck that the Blood C twist stuff doesn't justify the pacing issues. I am disagreeing though with the concept that just because something is intentionally bad, makes it bad by default.

It was. The director actually said it was meant to create a false sense of security and the repetition was part of the design. I'm sure that's all true, but it doesn't make it any less boring when it is boring.

This is why it is pointless to try and figure out if something is "intentionally" bad or not. Because it doesn't matter. If it feels bad, it's bad. The intent doesn't matter if it fails to engage.

 

[Jarmel]

It was. The director actually said it was meant to create a false sense of security and the repetition was part of the design. I'm sure that's all true, but it doesn't make it any less boring when it is boring.

I still think some of that was CYA. Of course I can't prove that as I wasn't in the meeting rooms though.

This is why it is pointless to try and figure out if something is "intentionally" bad or not. Because it doesn't matter. If it feels bad, it's bad. The intent doesn't matter if it fails to engage.

You get things though like Alan Wake where what you're mocking is bad. If you're doing a parody or satire by highlighting or exaggerating the bad elements of the source, I don't think it makes your work as the parody bad on its own terms. I do agree it becomes a lot murkier though to judge the quality of the work.

 

[Articalys]

The one thing I still don't get about Blood-C is whose idea it was to use a song for the OP that goes through three different languages.

 

[duckroll]

I still think some of that was CYA. Of course I can't prove that as I wasn't in the meeting rooms though.

Why are you so resistant to the idea that you're just not as good as reading intent as you think you are? It's frustrating to see someone argue about how he thinks he knows the intent so well, and when proven otherwise he claims that the people who actually made the show must be lying.

But this plays into my entire point though. Intent is pointless when it serves the work poorly. Making something intentionally bad doesn't have any pay off. You don't have to make something bad to subvert, you can subvert by making something good and then turning it on its head with something even better.

 

[Hitokage]

The storm is more meaningful and eventful when preceded by a calm. I wouldn't complain about including calm and not giving us full storm, provided sufficient payoff.

 

[duckroll]

The storm is more meaningful and rcentful when preceded by a calm. I wouldn't complain about including calm and not giving us full storm, provided sufficient payoff.

The issue here isn't tone though, it's execution.

 

[Hitokage]

The issue here isn't tone though, it's execution.

More like tolerance.

 

[wonzo]

Teekyuu 32

worse than steroid abuse

Kuromajo 41-42

Moral of the story: spirit-world mumps are awful and always believe in the power of eye moe. No exceptions!!!

 

[ZachDeKoromaru]

So who is taking an anime break for Thanksgiving?

A what?

 

[chickdigger802]

think im gonna read log horizon ln... weird that it seems like vol 1 isn't fantranslated.... anyhow i'm prepared to be mindblown by technical stuff.

 

[duckroll]

More like tolerance.

No, I think you're being really disingenuous here. Mundane != boring. Something can be dry and repetitive but presented in a way which is engaging to those who are willing to be invested in the tone, but it has to be executed well. There is nothing well executed at all about the early school scenes in Blood-C, it was mostly lazy and generic. Mizushima's strengths are more on the action and comedy side of things, which is apparent at how well executed some of the Saya scenes are when she just stands there and does nothing. There's great comic timing in the scenes.

 

[Jarmel]

Why are you so resistant to the idea that you're just not as good as reading intent as you think you are? It's frustrating to see someone argue about how he thinks he knows the intent so well, and when proven otherwise he claims that the people who actually made the show must be lying.

But this plays into my entire point though. Intent is pointless when it serves the work poorly. Making something intentionally bad doesn't have any pay off. You don't have to make something bad to subvert, you can subvert by making something good and then turning it on its head with something even better.

Alright fine then, we'll go with the slow parts of Blood-C as being intentional. I'm skeptical of the Blood-C staff because whatever genius there supposedly was during the TV series, the movie lost all of it and took itself seriously but let's go with the TV series in isolation. Then I would say yes the twist would justify the slow parts. It might not justify the duration or how slow the pacing was in those segments but if it was intentional on the part of the author to do something and they succeeded then I think they should be given credit for it.

Yes you don't necessarily have to make something bad to subvert but you also don't have to make it good either. If the author can convey their point about the work being a parody or satire to the audience then I think that's fine.

 

[hosannainexcelsis]

I'm skeptical of the Blood-C staff because whatever genius there supposedly was during the TV series, the movie lost all of it and took itself seriously

Perhaps that's because the TV show and the movie had... different staff.

 

[Jarmel]

Perhaps that's because the TV show and the movie had... different staff.

Same writers.

 

[duckroll]

Alright fine then, we'll go with the slow parts of Blood-C as being intentional. I'm skeptical of the Blood-C staff because whatever genius there supposedly was during the TV series, the movie lost all of it and took itself seriously but let's go with the TV series in isolation.

That doesn't even make any sense since Mizushima had nothing to do with the movie at all. The movie and the TV series were made at the exact same time by different teams. So you think Mizushima is a liar because the movie he had nothing to do with was bad? Lol.

Same writers.

But what do the writers have to do with direction of scenes?

Yes you don't necessarily have to make something bad to subvert but you also don't have to make it good either. If the author can convey their point about the work being a parody or satire to the audience then I think that's fine.

This is utter nonsense. What are you even saying here? Are you saying that making something bad works as good parody or satire? Since when? Good parody and satire is funny and engaging on its own. If it's bad, it's just bad. Excusing something bad as parody or satire doesn't work.

 

[Jarmel]

That doesn't even make any sense since Mizushima had nothing to do with the movie at all. The movie and the TV series were made at the exact same time by different teams. So you think Mizushima is a liar because the movie he had nothing to do with was bad? Lol.

But what do the writers have to do with direction of scenes?

The writers would know what the tone of the work is. So they created a parody of something then the sequel to that exact same work is the bad straight version of that material? Even if the direction was different, the writers would have had a clear vision of what the work was.

This is utter nonsense. What are you even saying here? Are you saying that making something bad works as good parody or satire? Since when? Good parody and satire is funny and engaging on its own. If it's bad, it's just bad. Excusing something bad as parody or satire doesn't work.

I disagree. I would say yes you can make something bad and it can work as good parody or satire. Exaggeration of bad elements that while viewed on their own as being bad but in context with the rest of the work is something I think is great if done correctly. The writing of Alan Wake's books in the videogame are bad but they're supposed to be bad as a way of poking fun at Stephen King.

 

[Joe Molotov]

I watched Wolf Children with my parents tonight. I think my dad made it all the way through (although he kept his own council on whether he enjoyed it or not) but my mom fell asleep. Oh well, you can't please everyone.

 

[Articalys]

Hmm, looks like some manga series called Bokura wa Minna Kawaisou had an anime greenlit. I'm not familiar with it, and the only summary I can find is as follows:

Usa, a high-school student aspiring to begin a bachelor lifestyle, moves into a new apartment only to discover that he not only shares a room with a perverted roommate that has an obsession for underaged girls, but also that another girl, Ritsu, a love-at-first-sight, is living in the same building as well!

Will have to do a bit more research.

edit: oh, it's from the same mangaka as Love Lab.

edit2: additional summary via ANN:

The "adolescent comedy with 3/10ths love and 7/10ths humor" revolves around Usa, a boy who is now living alone thanks to his parents' work transfer. However, his new Kawai-Sō apartment complex is filled with only odd perverts. And yet, Ritsu, a sempai he adores, also happens to live there.

 

[hosannainexcelsis]

The writers would know what the tone of the work is. So they created a parody of something then the sequel to that exact same work is the bad straight version of that material? Even if the direction was different, the writers would have had a clear vision of what the work was.

Tone in a film or TV show is often created more by the direction than the writing. (Not to mention the influence that a director can have on the actual writing.)

I disagree. I would say yes you can make something bad and it can work as good parody or satire. Exaggeration of bad elements that while viewed on their own as being bad but in context with the rest of the work is something I think is great if done correctly. The writing of Alan Wake's books in the videogame are bad but they're supposed to be bad as a way of poking fun at Stephen King.

But Alan Wake's writing isn't funny or anything; it's just bad. Being "parody" doesn't make it good.

 

[TastyOreoFriend]

Unbreakable Machine Doll 1-3; Dropped

I just can't take whoever is doing the voice of the Yaya doll. She's trying WAYYYYYY to hard to sound cute-shits so sweet it pretty much tastes like diabetes at this point. The whole premise of everything going with loli robot puppets (automatons whatever) just isn't doing it for me. I don't think I saw one endearing character in the bunch I could continue to tolerate for 8-9 more episodes.

 

[duckroll]

The writers would know what the tone of the work is. So they created a parody of something then the sequel to that exact same work is the bad straight version of that material? Even if the direction was different, the writers would have had a clear vision of what the work was.

But works are not made by one person. When you have two projects which are clearly meant to tap into different staff, it goes without saying that you want to have something different depending on what those staff bring into the project. Mizushima's vision of the material is that it would work better as a black comedy. I don't think it's a parody at all, it's just dark humor. Shiotani's vision was something more generic and more serious, and the end result showed that the material was not that well suited for that approach.

Just look at the other works of both directors, and I think we have a really clear picture of where the "vision" for both the TV series and the movie are from. Mizushima's body of work is fairly consistent, with most of it being comedy or heavily flavored with comedy elements. Shiotani has directed less, but all his works are pretty serious and have that same heavily filtered urban night time visual tone.

The writers didn't create all that, the directors did. I'm fairly sure if we remove all direction and visual flavor from Blood-C and just read the scripts, the TV series and the movie will seem fairly similar - cardboard characters, long winded exposition dialogue, some twists, action scenes here and there, tormented Saya.

 

[Jarmel]

Tone in a film or TV show is often created more by the direction than the writing. (Not to mention the influence that a director can have on the actual writing.)

Yes the directors can have an influence on the writing but the writers themselves would be aware of it. It's not like this stuff is done in a vacuum. The writers were writing lines pointing out how stupid some of the earlier stuff was, like the costumes for example.

But Alan Wake's writing isn't funny or anything; it's just bad. Being "parody" doesn't make it good.

It wasn't supposed to be funny in of itself. The running joke in the videogame is that Wake is an awful writer and thus so is King, which is a very common talking point in real life.

 

[Hitokage]

No, I think you're being really disingenuous here. Mundane != boring. Something can be dry and repetitive but presented in a way which is engaging to those who are willing to be invested in the tone, but it has to be executed well. There is nothing well executed at all about the early school scenes in Blood-C, it was mostly lazy and generic. Mizushima's strengths are more on the action and comedy side of things, which is apparent at how well executed some of the Saya scenes are when she just stands there and does nothing. There's great comic timing in the scenes.

I really don't agree with you, and doing so doesn't mean I'm disingenuous. Granted, I would agree that there is nothing particularly good about the early scenes, but they were woven with enough foreshadowing that they still got the job done. Could they have been trimmed by an episode or two? Sure, but now we're just quibbling when you're branding the lot of it as all bad.

I guess this also applies for Madoka eps 1-3. The turn in both shows didn't come to me as much of a shock, because they both did due diligence and I was able to pick up on it.

 

[duckroll]

I really don't agree with you, and doing so doesn't mean I'm disingenuous. Granted, I would agree that there is nothing particularly good about the early scenes, but they were woven with enough foreshadowing that they still got the job done. Could they have been trimmed by an episode or two? Sure, but now we're just quibbling when you're branding the lot of it as all bad.

I guess this also applies for Madoka eps 1-3. The turn in both shows didn't come to me as much of a shock.

You don't agree with me but you just said that you don't think there's anything particularly good about those scenes, thus you agree with me? What is this trickery! Disagreeing isn't disingenuous, reshaping my point into something it isn't is. You just did it again by claiming that I'm saying the lot of it is all bad. Stop putting words in my mouth.

If you followed the discussion, it started when we were talking about how a twist in KnK doesn't justify a show poorly executing on ideas such that it is actually bad and annoying to watch. KnK is the extreme here, where it is basically garbage, and I'm saying that we shouldn't give it extra credit for having a "twist" because it doesn't make the poor content better, even if they try to "explain" it away. In the case of Blood-C, the boring parts of it are bad. Bad being they were not done well, and could have been done better. The boring parts of Blood-C do not make up the entire show or even entire episodes, but those specific aspects are not excused because of the twist. The twist simply elevates the parts which were already good into something more.

 

[Hitokage]

You don't agree with me but you just said that you don't think there's anything particularly good about those scenes, thus you agree with me? What is this trickery! Disagreeing isn't disingenuous, reshaping my point into something it isn't is. You just did it again by claiming that I'm saying the lot of it is all bad. Stop putting words in my mouth.

If you followed the discussion, it started when we were talking about how a twist in KnK doesn't justify a show poorly executing on ideas such that it is actually bad and annoying to watch. KnK is the extreme here, where it is basically garbage, and I'm saying that we shouldn't give it extra credit for having a "twist" because it doesn't make the poor content better, even if they try to "explain" it away. In the case of Blood-C, the boring parts of it are bad. Bad being they were not done well, and could have been done better. The boring parts of Blood-C do not make up the entire show or even entire episodes, but those specific aspects are not excused because of the twist. The twist simply elevates the parts which were already good into something more.

When I said "not particularly good" I wasn't describing a dichotomy as you seem to. There is a space between good and bad, and while early Blood-C wanders in the middle, it didn't go into "bad". You make references to boring scenes which were "bad", but given that I don't believe that there were enough to make note of, I have to disagree with your position.

I do agree that simply enduring a show until it becomes good doesn't entirely excuse it making you endure in the first place, but when a story builds to a point it's easier to forgive provided that such buildup was necessary.

 

[Basileus777]

You are going to make me watch KNK again aren't you? Damn you people.

 

[hosannainexcelsis]

Aim for the Ace 10

There's so much wrong in this picture. The fake music, with its nonsensical measures and key signatures, is one thing, but they couldn't even bother writing two staves so it could look kind of like real piano music? And just think about where her head would have to be to give that reflection. She'd have to have her shoulders stooped so low her chin would be practically scraping the keys. That would be excessively uncomfortable, not to mention there'd be no point in having the music there since she couldn't even see it with it being above her eye level. I'm disappointed in you, Dezaki!

 

[Jarmel]

But works are not made by one person. When you have two projects which are clearly meant to tap into different staff, it goes without saying that you want to have something different depending on what those staff bring into the project. Mizushima's vision of the material is that it would work better as a black comedy. I don't think it's a parody at all, it's just dark humor. Shiotani's vision was something more generic and more serious, and the end result showed that the material was not that well suited for that approach.

Just look at the other works of both directors, and I think we have a really clear picture of where the "vision" for both the TV series and the movie are from. Mizushima's body of work is fairly consistent, with most of it being comedy or heavily flavored with comedy elements. Shiotani has directed less, but all his works are pretty serious and have that same heavily filtered urban night time visual tone.

The writers didn't create all that, the directors did. I'm fairly sure if we remove all direction and visual flavor from Blood-C and just read the scripts, the TV series and the movie will seem fairly similar - cardboard characters, long winded exposition dialogue, some twists, action scenes here and there, tormented Saya.

I really would need to look at the original scripts for both. If the scripts are the same for both then that means the writers and Mizushima(or possibly Shiotani depending on the scripts) weren't exactly seeing eye to eye. What I mean by that is that Mizushima thought he was doing a comedy while the writers were playing the stuff straight from the get go.

I fully agree that these works aren't done by one party however there should have been some communication on the part of the writers to Shiotani that the movie is a followup to essentially a comedy if that was the intention from the beginning.

You are going to make me watch KNK again aren't you? Damn you people.

Don't.

 

[duckroll]

When I said "not particularly good" I wasn't describing a dichotomy as you seem to. There is a space between good and bad, and while early Blood-C wanders in the middle, it didn't go into "bad". You make references to boring scenes which were "bad", but given that I don't believe that there were enough to make note of, I have to disagree with your position.

I'm not sure what -you- are even arguing about anymore. This isn't about dichotomy or anything like that. My point was simple - that if something is considered bad, a twist does not make it better. If you don't feel that a scene is bad, then there is nothing to argue because it does not contradict that point. You said that "The storm is more meaningful and eventful when preceded by a calm. I wouldn't complain about including calm and not giving us full storm, provided sufficient payoff." to which I replied "It's not about tone, it's about execution." And you reply with "Or tolerance."

Do you not see how that is disingenuous? No one is arguing against tone shift, or a mundane setting leading into something more later. I was making a point about how a twist cannot justify something which the audience already considers poorly made. You then insinuated that because I used Blood-C as an example, I was claiming that it should "full storm" instead, which was not the case at all. Since you agree that the earlier parts could have been handled better, it seems you do agree with my general point. So I don't know what else there is to even talk about here.