While this is true in all mediums I think anime faces more of an uphill battle because the range of what's considered "acceptable subject matter" for the medium is extremely limited compared to say books (obviously), or movies, or even video games. The preconceived notions of what 'anime' is are far stronger.
Well, anime is a much smaller business, so it's easier to get the perception that it's more restricted on the production side unlike other industries, but is that really the case?
I'd say the amount of people willing to "stick their heads out" like Oshii mentioned is proportionally about the same as in those industries you mentioned (and in the case of the game industry, perhaps even more so).
Well, anime is a much smaller business, so it's easier to get the perception that it's more restricted on the production side unlike other industries, but is that really the case?
I'd say the amount of people willing to "stick their heads out" like Oshii mentioned is proportionally about the same as in those industries you mentioned (and in the case of the game industry, perhaps even more so).
But anime isn't, for the most part, an industry with many opportunities for a creative to 'stick their heads out' because you need a lot of people (and therefore money) to make an anime. You can't (in most cases) have one or two people making an anime where as you can have one or two people write a book, manga, design a videogame etc.
But that's not really where the problem lies, it's more in the perception side. In nearly every country I can think of animation is something that's purely for children. Would you disagree? Moreover, in Japan, anime has slightly more versatility in that it's perceived as being something for kids or perverts! Which isn't much better.
But anime isn't, for the most part, an industry with many opportunities for a creative to 'stick their heads out' because you need a lot of people (and therefore money) to make an anime. You can't (in most cases) have one or two people making an anime where as you can have one or two people write a book, manga, design a videogame etc.
But that's not really where the problem lies, it's more in the perception side. In nearly every country I can think of animation is something that's purely for children. Would you disagree? Moreover, in Japan, anime has slightly more versatility in that it's perceived as being something for kids or perverts! Which isn't much better.
The manpower conundrum definitely is a big strike against it. There are some animators making their own small projects, but these are pretty purely just for their own enjoyment and almost never geared towards making profits (more often than not, they are just portfolio pieces). Perhaps if I were to readjust my statements to regard only studio environments it might be closer to the truth.
And yes, the western world does have a very limited idea of what animation, comics and cartoons are and can be I think. not even Ghibli can scratch that stigma off of the general public. I find it a bit sad, but I really don't know how one would go about to change this.
So, this was the first episode based on a manga story that wasn't animated by the original anime. It was actually a short 2 page chapter from right after Mutsumi's introduction in the manga. Due to how short the original chapter was, even with about 3 minutes, they actually added content to the anime version of the story. Anyway, it was surprisingly nice to get content animated for the first time, even though they added some scenes (each platoon member imagining an invasion type) just to reintroduce the characters.
Well, anime is a much smaller business, so it's easier to get the perception that it's more restricted on the production side unlike other industries, but is that really the case?
I'd say the amount of people willing to "stick their heads out" like Oshii mentioned is proportionally about the same as in those industries you mentioned (and in the case of the game industry, perhaps even more so).
In the interview, Oshii contrasts the situation in the anime industry with that of manga. I excerpted it out, but here's the relevant part.
Mamoru Oshii said:
I would guess that today it's manga that exhibit the greatest artistic freedom as a format. There are various forms and genres of manga, and no matter what kind of manga gets published, if the work is interesting, it will, without a doubt, attract an audience. Consequently, we're seeing a rapid expansion of creative choices and expression within manga. The advantage that a manga, unlike a film, can be made by an individual alone, is one of its strong points, and I am envious that a person can not only make a manga on their own, but publish it on their own, and people will buy it and read it.
The cost of entry in manga, both for producer and consumer, is so much smaller that it's easy to take risks. Anime is incredibly labor intensive, so making any given show or movie has a lot of costs, both in terms of dollars and in terms of the opportunity costs of not making something else. That makes shareholders less likely to take risks on something that doesn't fit what the hardcore fan wants (kind of like how the game industry is now). And when they do take risks, the audience isn't any more likely to risk their own time and money when the cost of entry into a given show is so high.
I never left I've just been concealing my presence.
That's sweet though, the italics even made me all tingly.
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Anyways, so I started Ranma 1/2, got pretty far actually last night since I was too lazy to make the ps4 controller reconnect(why ask me what user it is when there is only one user!?) and choose something else and it's pretty dull, hard to see how this was so popular.
Akane's just stuck in this really weird place. She's supposedly really strong and wants to inherit her family's dojo but ain't got nothing on Ranma. But, ok, that's one guy, yet every character the show's introduced she can't beat or implies she can't beat because they're not trying so what is her real role here? I don't even get how Ranma acts surprised with the things she does when he's already known Shampoo and, of course, like everyone else Shampoo can make quick work of Akane.
Reflecting on this I just felt sad, it's like the entire town is in on this conspiracy to make the daughter of a local dojo seem and feel strong which has got to be more soul crushing than just outright sucking from the start. If everyone around her didn't play along maybe she'd have trained harder and became better but now I fear that she'll end up like that one fraud who thought he could attack with his mind and challenged that fighter.
I never left I've just been concealing my presence.
That's sweet though, the italics even made me all tingly.
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Anyways, so I started Ranma 1/2, got pretty far actually last night since I was too lazy to make the ps4 controller reconnect(why ask me what user it is when there is only one user!?) and choose something else and it's pretty dull, hard to see how this was so popular.
Because anyone can log in a PS4 with a travelling log-in
Akane's just stuck in this really weird place. She's supposedly really strong and wants to inherit her family's dojo but ain't got nothing on Ranma. But, ok, that's one guy, yet every character the show's introduced she can't beat or implies she can't beat because they're not trying so what is her real role here? I don't even get how Ranma acts surprised with the things she does when he's already known Shampoo and, of course, like everyone else Shampoo can make quick work of Akane.
Akane always felt "flat" in ranma because there is little but no character devellopment for her aside from a couple of episode ( strong episodes ) but way too few.
Reflecting on this I just felt sad, it's like the entire town is in on this conspiracy to make the daughter of a local dojo seem and feel strong which has got to be more soul crushing than just outright sucking from the start. If everyone around her didn't play along maybe she'd have trained harder and became better but now I fear that she'll end up like that one fraud who thought he could attack with his mind and challenged that fighter.
In the interview, Oshii contrasts the situation in the anime industry with that of manga. I excerpted it out, but here's the relevant part.
The cost of entry in manga, both for producer and consumer, is so much smaller that it's easy to take risks. Anime is incredibly labor intensive, so making any given show or movie has a lot of costs, both in terms of dollars and in terms of the opportunity costs of not making something else. That makes shareholders less likely to take risks on something that doesn't fit what the hardcore fan wants (kind of like how the game industry is now). And when they do take risks, the audience isn't any more likely to risk their own time and money when the cost of entry into a given show is so high.
I think another parallel that can be drawn with the game industry is how the younger generation getting employed is in many cases just happy to actually be part of the ride in the first place, rather than having any higher ambitions.
I think another parallel that can be drawn with the game industry is how the younger generation getting employed is in many cases just happy to actually be part of the ride in the first place, rather than having any higher ambitions.
Games at this point just lack innovation and play it very safe for the same sort of reasons that development costs are ridiculous and failure is almost not an option.
Games at this point just lack innovation and play it very safe for the same sort of reasons that development costs are ridiculous and failure is almost not an option.
There are at least indie games and smaller scale stuff that can be done without much money or manpower. The same isn't really true for animation of any length.
There are at least indie games and smaller scale stuff that can be done without much money or manpower. The same isn't really true for animation of any length.
Wixoss is an unusual card game anime. 4 episodes in and the rules of the card game have yet to be explained. We've also seen maybe 6 or so unique cards, and only half of those have had their effects explained. I think this is because the show doesn't care about pushing product. Instead, the show cares about the lives and personal problems of the main characters.
The basic plot of the show is that the titular card game, Wixoss, is growing pretty popular with Japanese teens. Very rarely, a girl who buys a deck will find a special card called an LRIG. These rare girls are called "selectors" and are able to fight for the title of Eternal Girl, and the Eternal Girl will gain the power to make her dream a reality. However, if you lose 3 times in battle against other selectors then you lose the right to battle for your wish. The whole Eternal Girl thing, as well as some of the things going on in the background give off very Madoka-y vibes.
Happy Birthday the newly christened KirbYuuYuu, May you one day escape for your magical girl hell.
It also occurred to me that I missed out on cosmicblizzard and Mature's birthday's earlier int he month so very belated birthdays there too.
04
What a great episode. There wasn't a lot to the episode per se but it was dripping in a gloriously cloying atmosphere that matched perfectly the mushi's ability. Colour pallet as well of being muted and sickly colours also worked a treat.
Sound direction is once again particularly wonderful, especially near the final scenes where there's that oppressive "sound" as Tastu becomes more unstable.
i) it's a nice reflection of the growing instability of Tatsu and the anxiousness that Usuke feels towards his brother as he gradually becomes more like the father they feared.
ii) the hand covering the face showing the eye is a great visual representation of how the mushi's personality is coming more to the forefront.
It gradually becomes larger and closer to the screen while Tastu's face remains hidden behind it while also becoming blurred and indistinct on details. Meanwhile the hand itself is highly detailed it's creases, the dirt and mostly importantly the eye stigma.
This is coupled beforehand with the prophetic line "It's not like I've changed is it?"
Wixoss is an unusual card game anime. 4 episodes in and the rules of the card game have yet to be explained. We've also seen maybe 6 or so unique cards, and only half of those have had their effects explained. I think this is because the show doesn't care about pushing product. Instead, the show cares about the lives and personal problems of the main characters.
The basic plot of the show is that the titular card game, Wixoss, is growing pretty popular with Japanese teens. Very rarely, a girl who buys a deck will find a special card called an LRIG. These rare girls are called "selectors" and are able to fight for the title of Eternal Girl, and the Eternal Girl will gain the power to make her dream a reality. However, if you lose 3 times in battle against other selectors then you lose the right to battle for your wish. The whole Eternal Girl thing, as well as some of the things going on in the background give off very Madoka-y vibes.
This was....an okay start. I mean, unlike Aquarion EVOL with its batshit insane antics from the get-go, this show takes a more calm and straightforward approach. But one bad thing I have to say about this is that it's production values are very low.
The premise isn't...so bad for a Super Robot show though. So every once in a while four potential pilots are randomly selected to pilot a robot to stop wars by helping out the losing side. Not bad, but you think the characters could freak out a little more after getting abducted and transported to an island and being asked to pilot a robot. Instead they're kind of chill with the whole thing. The only one who's unnerved is the blue cop lady.
This show is going all-out with the layers upon layers of misunderstandings. Though I've come far enough with this show to find it all more amusing than anything.
The above picture is how I felt throughout the show. I just really like the series. I do still like the first part of Banner overall though. I suppose it also gets a bit of help in that Banner II is a little bit shorter at ten episodes instead of thirteen.
After the first episode it looks like
we don't see Lafiel's brother again.
Although I have heard he does show up again later in the novels. I found out, maybe again, that Sobaash is actually a guy. I couldn't remember if I had heard that before and just forgot or what,haha. Anyway, I like the character either way.
While the story about the prison planet was interesting in its issues and developments I was still hoping that the story would focus on other things that the past two parts had. Thankfully it does, in that there are still some remnants of the United Humankind that turn up, leading to a bit of a space battle that lasts an episode or a little more. This allows for more screen time for Spoor!
Technically a shot from Crest but it's more Spoor!
Although the battle
doesn't exactly go her way this time and it shows she's not invincible.
I could tell what she was thinking and figured her second in command would have gotten better at that as well. I guess he just doesn't understand women,haha. Her little time delay tactic with the enemy commander was amusing.
I think the only minor problem I have and maybe should have jotted down was the dialogue with the prisoners sounded off at times. It was more that the wording in the conversation just didn't sound natural or a little weird. The prisoners also really didn't think their plans through very well it seems based on what happens. Also, general shots of female prisoners are fine but when dealing more one one one, such as the female leader or the other girl later, they are shown to be pretty fan service-like in their outfits. It's not a new thing.
When it comes back to the beginning point it turns out you can get this jist of what they're saying at times but then some of the dialogue is more specific that you wouldn't know until then what they are saying. The last line was indeed "Baka" though,haha.
I might be missing something to say but can't think of anything right at the moment and I've already started into Banner III.
I keep this picture for special occasions. Like people dissing Makoto.
Also Crest III is pretty short and cut down so you should be able to just get it out of the way.
Eh I find it frustrating as someone who likes to know the rules of a card game, but the show really doesn't seem to give a fuck about the game so I wouldn't call the lack of exposition about the rules a problem. It focuses more on the plot and the main character's lives. They could have replaced the card game with magical beings and made the characters standard magical girls but they chose to wrap it up in a card game.
Although I have heard he does show up again later in the novels. I found out, maybe again, that Sobaash is actually a guy. I couldn't remember if I had heard that before and just forgot or what,haha. Anyway, I like the character either way.
While the story about the prison planet was interesting in its issues and developments I was still hoping that the story would focus on other things that the past two parts had. Thankfully it does, in that there are still some remnants of the United Humankind that turn up, leading to a bit of a space battle that lasts an episode or a little more. This allows for more screen time for Spoor!
I might be missing something to say but can't think of anything right at the moment and I've already started into Banner III.
He does show up again in the book set just after Banner 3. It's unfortunate because he's nowhere near as interesting. Although that may be an unfair representation in the series. He certainly gets into an .... interesting situation in the book at least.
My 2 biggest complaints about Banner 2 would be: i) I didn't really like the main plot point of the prison planet. It's necessary since it's representative of what happens every single time the Abh end up liberating a planet but I found it rather dull in comparison to the war scenes from the first two series.
ii) For whatever reason I took the opening scene of the first episode way too literally. I've since re-watched it and I don't understand how I came to this conclusion but
the scene where Lafiel rushes to a seriously ill Jinto I somehow concluded that this was a death scene which would be from the end of the show!
I got so incensed by this I was angry all the way to the end where I was proved wrong.
I quite like Banner 3 although some of the details are a bit unclear and rushed due to it being an OVA. I recommend looking for the director's cut version though! It only adds some minimally extra scenes but it all helps!
Eh I find it frustrating as someone who likes to know the rules of a card game, but the show really doesn't seem to give a fuck about the game so I wouldn't call the lack of exposition about the rules a problem. It focuses more on the plot and the main character's lives. They could have replaced the card game with magical beings and made the characters standard magical girls but they chose to wrap it up in a card game.
Hmm, well then it is a very different marketing tactic compared to Cardfight Vanguard where almost every episode feels like a 24 minute commercial.
I would've thought that if you were using anime to advertise a card game surely you'd be explaining the rules of the game in the first episode so you don't confuse the audience. Although in Wixoss' case I guess the card game takes a back seat to all the other stuff.
As for CardFight!! Vanguard well I'll be keeping that in mind when I eventually watch it.
I would've thought that if you were using anime to advertise a card game surely you'd be explaining the rules of the game in the first episode so you don't confuse the audience. Although in Wixoss' case I guess the card game takes a back seat to all the other stuff.
As for CardFight!! Vanguard well I'll be keeping that in mind when I eventually watch it.
You know, this Greed Island Arc isn't really that superb after the YorkShin Arc but I really have to compliment Madhouse on the overall production values of this series. I've literally seen dozens of episodes in a row where the production doesn't falter. There are episodes that look worse than others but the average level of the production is much higher than any other long-running shounen (or normal) series that I've seen. There's been no :wonzo faces or Toei level stuff. At all. Every fight is actually animated, regardless of it's plot importance. Moreover, the important stuff looks really great. hat's about the highest praise I can give out to a work of this sort that's attempting to go for an 'accurate' adaptation rather than doing something different with the material. The direction isn't particularly exciting, but it is sufficient.
Still, this arc just isn't that interesting featuring lots of training and boring villains. It could certainly do with being compressed substantially. I understand they didn't want to burn through the material, but still.
A showcase for HanaKana doing what she does best. If there are any Kosaki fans, this episode was her and nobody else except for her mom. Some nice, heartwarming moments, but I'd personally rather see more of Marika. Also, the endcard with the Zvezda cosplay was pretty sweet.
You know, this Greed Island Arc isn't really that superb after the YorkShin Arc but I really have to compliment Madhouse on the overall production values of this series. I've literally seen dozens of episodes in a row where the production doesn't falter. There are episodes that look worse than others but the average level of the production is much higher than any other long-running shounen (or normal) series that I've seen. There's been no :wonzo faces or Toei level stuff. At all. Every fight is actually animated, regardless of it's plot importance. Moreover, the important stuff looks really great. hat's about the highest praise I can give out to a work of this sort that's attempting to go for an 'accurate' adaptation rather than doing something different with the material. The direction isn't particularly exciting, but it is sufficient.
Still, this arc just isn't that interesting featuring lots of training and boring villains. It could certainly do with being compressed substantially. I understand they didn't want to burn through the material, but still.
Wait until you get to the chimera ants arc, the pacing may have some problems but holy shit is the pay off so worth it and animation is so good especially for battles. I have to say this arc is better than previous arcs including YorkShin because at some parts in the arc it just made me sad.
DAIMIDALER: PRINCE VS. PENGUIN EMPIRE: Episode 4 Challenge From Six
Seemed a bit more toned down and mellow then the other episodes. Hopefully it doesnt mean its lost its spark or else it may be the next show to be dropped.
Happy Birthday the newly christened KirbYuuYuu, May you one day escape for your magical girl hell.
It also occurred to me that I missed out on cosmicblizzard and Mature's birthday's earlier int he month so very belated birthdays there too.
Almost every show tries for a more heartfelt episode at one point or another. And I have problem with Daimidaler attempting it. "Falling in love with the enemy" is a time-honored plotline in the mecha (and many other) genres, so it fits in here well enough, just with the usual ridiculousness that Midaler usually has. The guy was as horny and front-tail obsessed as the other penguins, just cloaked in the veil of humanity. It's almost sweet. Almost.
