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[PshycoNinja]

I broadly understand your point, but I fundamentally disagree with it for a number of reasons.

First and foremost, there's practical considerations to take into account. I physically cannot 'test' every piece of art in existence to see whether it's worth investing my time/money in. No-one can. So, we turn to critics (in all forms) to steer us towards the best content.

Also, the procedure of 'testing' a show in such manner has it's flaws. Plenty of shows go awful half way through despite a really strong start. Other works may appear weak in the beginning but grow stronger later (even though this is much more unusual). Between those two extremes you have 'slow burns' which reveal their quality slowly over time and so cannot be judged in such a short amount of time.

Beyond that, deciding what to watch based on PV's and summaries will only take you so far. Most PR material is designed to make a work look good and is therefore often deeply deceptive. Moreover, if you decided to watch something based on whether it looks good from the marketing you're going to end up missing a ton of great content that has poor/unappealing marketing.

In addition to that, deciding what to watch based off of your own preconceived notions of what will interest you is extremely limiting. You're unlikely to run into challenging or different works that force you to consider your own tastes. Without encountering such challenge you're unlikely to grow as a consumer of media.

On top of all that you have to add in all the anime which have ever been made over the last few decades. How are you supposed to know which of those works are worth checking? What about great works that no-one in the current scene talks about, you'll probably be missing out on those because they aren't part of popular discourse.

Finally, the you seem to misunderstand the purpose of reading criticism. It's not to affirm your own tastes. It exists to break down and understand the art we consume. Great critics will enrich your understand of a movie, or a book, or an anime. They'll place it within the context of the history of the medium. They'll pull open and explore it's thematic and social implications. They'll breakdown how a masterful director manages to invoke emotion within the audience, or force an audience to consider an idea that they hadn't engaged in before.

I don't feel like the art of criticism, diminished as it may be by internet populism, needs much defence.

I completely see your point and wish I could really break it down how my process works. But since I work at an attention-demanding job I will need to be brief.

While I do in fact do what I said it doesn't limit me. That is why I come here. To see what other works I can try and challenge what I like. This doesn't diminish what I think the import of a review. They are fine. I just don't find them to be what I need or demand. I would rather get word of mouth here and from there expand upon stuff. This is how I stumbled upon Haibane Renmei and other unique shows.

So personally, I don't feel a buffer in between discovering a show and reading a review to determine if I should watch something is needed. Reviews, more often than not, are read and watched after the show is discovered and someone needs more information before watching it. I typically skip that step because I have found that discovering new stuff for myself is much more fun than having someone tell me it's okay. Because sometimes something that you will like isn't something that the particular reviewer you usually agree with will like.

I am not implying that means reviewers aren't needed. Some people do need that. I am not one of them.

Edit: Sorry. Doing this from my phone. I would love to expand upon this more when I can at home.

Understanding that the world is filled with other individuals who possess experience and insight that you do not is an important developmental phase. One day you will look back at things you previously found enjoyment in and question the merit the old you had ever attached to the work. The path of ignoring and avoiding clashing opinions and alternative perspectives holds its small-mindedness close to bigotry and anti-intellectualism, all while easily adopting the role of victim.

something something anime. my arms hurt. art is nice. be open minded. i haven't been following this conversation and i have never watched anything related to key. i'm going to go shitpost in other places.

That's why I come here. For appropriate discussion of the medium. Not to be belittled for what I like.

 

[ThatChairMan]

Kanon: End
So it makes a littel more sense now, I skipped an episode because of the way ep. 23 was titled, don't call the second to last episode the "Finale" It's totay garbage. the episode was cute, but you can tell they strugled to fit it all into the 24 mins alloted and skipped many visual moments that could have really driven home the point. I guess, I'll go back to watching Kill la Kill and start watching Honey and Clover on Hulu. This could be fun.

Is Honey and Clover a good love story or is it more slice of life/drama? I think I need another Cross Ange to watch right now.....

I'd say H&C is more on the drama side, but the romance is pivotal to a lot of each character's growth and developments.

 

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Reading positive criticism of something I didn't like can be a rewarding experience. Sometimes it can illuminate a new view on it which I hadn't considered. Even if it doesn't change my mind, it can still be an instructive experience, and can help me to identify certain things that work, and better appreciate the craftsmanship in something. Similarly, negative reviews of something I enjoy can be a good learning experience. They can help me notice flaws I missed, or just help me to identify why I liked it in spite of its flaws. Quality criticism is something which can have just as much merit as the best works in the field it is critiquing.

 

[Jex]

If your argument against "taste relativism" is limited free time, the general reception suggests that Clannad is in fact a (more than) safe time investment for a ridiculous portion of anime watchers.

I didn’t specifically make an argument against taste relativism because I don’t feel like believing that there are good and bad cartons to watch is a position that needs much defence. I was specifically referring to Baalzebup’s comment.

My discussion of free time is one, of many, reasons that listening to criticism of art is helpful.

Even assuming "there are clearly good and bad works", heaps of anime watchers' view of which category Clannad belongs in differs from yours. Their view may be less educated, less critical, less sensible, less experienced, less academic, less Correct, but that should not devalue the good times people have had and will have with it.

Whether or not one, many, of every other “anime watcher” in existence expresses a view contrary to mine is largely irrelevant. Furthermore, I did not actively critique or shame other people from watching Clannad. I just said that I don’t think it’s very good. That is all.

It's important that critics voice their opinion, so that people can have a preview of whether something popular actually fits in with their preferences, but when you assertively tell a specific someone that "watching Clannad is a poor choice", your assertion becomes wrong the moment that specific someone ends up liking Clannad. These kind of assertions can be made when you know that the person's preferences (call them The Correct Preferences) match your prediction, but I don't think it's time-efficient or nice to blindly turn people away from Clannad, or anything else. Maybe you should just say you think Clannad is a bad work, explain or quote why, and let people decide what to make of it...

It’s important to consider the context of my response to Baalzebup.

Baalzebup made a comment about starting up a watch of Clannad, and asked whether AnimeGAF was happy with that choice. I registered a negative view of such a choice. Not a critique of the work, or those who view and enjoy it. I just registered an opinion. I didn’t feel the need to explain, at length, why I hold that opinion.

You make a good point about preferences and that’s one that I always take on board when recommending (or discouraging) people from watching anime. I have, and will continue, to recommend works that I don’t particularly enjoy or think are even that good if the Poster in question has expressed a preference for that kind of work. For example, I’ll happily recommend Attack on Titan to people looking for action show even if I think the show is very flawed. I wouldn’t, however, recommend a show I hate or think is truly badly made.

In this particular example, Baalzebup hadn’t expressed any preferences. If they had stated they enjoyed KEY-like works then, of course, I would have no problem with people recommending said works to them. However, given the lack of context here, I’m pretty happy to generally recommend people avoid a work that I think is bad.

Moreover, I think this holds true even if the viewer ends up enjoying their time with Clannad, or whatever other show that I actively dislike. Sure, they might enjoy their time with a hypothetical show that I think is bad but I can also believe they would have had a far better time if they actually watched something far better.

 

[javac]

Reading positive criticism of something I didn't like can be a rewarding experience. Sometimes it can illuminate a new view on it which I hadn't considered. Even if it doesn't change my mind, it can still be an instructive experience, and can help me to identify certain things that work, and better appreciate the craftsmanship in something. Similarly, negative reviews of something I enjoy can be a good learning experience. They can help me notice flaws I missed, or just help me to identify why I liked it in spite of its flaws. Quality criticism is something which can have just as much merit as the best works in the field it is critiquing.

But generally that's after the fact. I can't find a negative review enlightening unless I've seen the show as to form a grounds to be enlightened on in the first place. Seeing the general consensus after is fine, but I'm going to have to watch the show first on my own terms.

 

[/XX/]

People actually take notice of anime reviewers and bloggers in a serious light? Ha.

Taking into consideration the opinions of people you personally respect goes outside and beyond any kind of secluded idea one might have of what is considered a reviewer exclusively dedicated to a specific medium. This conversation made reference to just "anime criticism" in earlier posts, so if that encompasses the likes of Catherine Munroe (nishikataeiga.blogspot.com/p/about-me.html) and other critics from whom we can always discover what we don't always have the opportunity to do on our own, then I'll always welcome these reviewers!

As with anything, sweeping generalizations of sectored 'fandoms' painted with broad strokes don't let us see the more apparently intellectualism in-depth within, or maybe what could be considered "outlier" aspects from them that are also an intrinsic, ubiquitous part of something many only appreciate the (most vocal and patently visible) surface of.

 

[Narag]

I applaud anyone who has the strength to sit through a KEY show because I would probably explode like Corvo if I had to watch that much bullshit melodrama

LEt's have a Kanon 2002 suicide pact weekend sometime.

 

[Cornbread78]

All this review talk. I think I've mentioned it before, but to me, anime is a form of art. There is good and bad art, but ultimately, the emotional responses you get from art and your interpretation of it ar completely personal. With that being said, I will need reviews at times to see how other people reacted to it, but if it's in regards to something I already watched, I'll rarely ever change my opinion unless I completely missed something or my interpretation of events was wrong; shit, I did that today with Kanon, lol. The greatness of these boards lies in reading the diverse reactions, responses and opinions posted.

 

[Haly]

something something anime. my arms hurt. art is nice. be open minded. i haven't been following this conversation and i have never watched anything related to key. i'm going to go shitpost in other places.

How's the League thread treating you these days?

 

[Cornbread78]

LEt's have a Kanon 2002 suicide pact weekend sometime.

Something close to that was actually in a 2014 anime drama, lol.

 

[Jex]

Not really. I didn't have to check a review for any of the shows I've seen, or games I've played or movies I've seen for that matter[...]

I feel like I’ve broadly covered in my earlier response to PyshycoNinja everything that I would say to you, however I will expand upon one topic which I feel has been conflated somewhat in this discussion. Namely, the difference between a consumer review and actual criticism.

The consumer review format largely exists to advise you how to spend your money. Should you buy this game, or movie, or whatever. These reviews exist, for the most part, to let you know what the critic writing the review thinks about whatever they are reviewing. Whether or not you have any interest in reviews, as a consumer of art you probably have preferences that lead you to consume certain things. There are almost certainly other people with fairly similar preferences to yours who, if you follow closely, will probably lead you something you’ll enjoy. That’s kind of how I operate, at least. I find people that I share similar tastes with and then look towards their recommendations.

Beyond that broad sphere, you have actual criticism. This doesn’t exist to give you a binary “watch or avoid” kind of analysis. There’s not much real criticism in the anime community but it certainly exists. Criticism seeks to understand how a work functions, what it says about the society that created it and what messages it imparts upon its audience. It examines themes and ideas as much as mechanical things like how well a shot is composed or a scene is edited.

The very best criticism may fundamentally change how you view or appreciate a piece of art. It will also teach you to better appreciate the art you encounter going forward. It enriches your experiences.

 

[dimb]

How's the League thread treating you these days?

I don't really like the people that post there and I don't play with anyone from GAF.

 

[iRAWRasaurus]

Personally view on reviewers? Watch whatever you like. Enjoy it. Everything has its + and -. So its nice knowing both side of things

 

[Haly]

I don't really like the people that post there and I don't play with anyone from GAF.

Daaaamn.

 

[Puruzi]

Who reads reviews for anime? I just form my opinions from watching it.

My views/opinions on anime very rarely falls in line with other people's, so reading reviews does nothing for me

 

[Crocodile]

Speaking about anime reviewers, I often like what I've heard from Nick Creamer. He writes for ANN but also has his own blog (linked) and twitter.

 

[Jex]

I completely see your point and wish I could really break it down how my process works. But since I work at an attention-demanding job I will need to be brief.

While I do in fact do what I said it doesn't limit me. That is why I come here. To see what other works I can try and challenge what I like. This doesn't diminish what I think the import of a review. They are fine. I just don't find them to be what I need or demand. I would rather get word of mouth here and from there expand upon stuff. This is how I stumbled upon Haibane Renmei and other unique shows.

So personally, I don't feel a buffer in between discovering a show and reading a review to determine if I should watch something is needed. Reviews, more often than not, are read and watched after the show is discovered and someone needs more information before watching it. I typically skip that step because I have found that discovering new stuff for myself is much more fun than having someone tell me it's okay. Because sometimes something that you will like isn't something that the particular reviewer you usually agree with will like.

I am not implying that means reviewers aren't needed. Some people do need that. I am not one of them.

I mean, I don't seek to dictate how people, including yourself, watch anime. I just wanted to elaborate upon my point.

Speaking of which, one thing that I didn't really brake down fully is the discoverability problem. Leaving aside the last few years of anime, nearly all the anime that has ever existed can only really be encountered by you (or me, or anyone) because someone out there is championing it. You can't trip over an anime to discover it unless someone has gone to the trouble of putting it out there in the sphere of public discussion.

It's conceivable that you'd never have encountered your favourite show (assume the you in this case is referring to anyone) unless someone has digged it out from the depths of the internet and worked hard at explaining why it was worth watching. For example, Princess Tutu only really got talked about after someone campaigned for it, otherwise that show would have been forgotten and unloved. For something that's more relevant to this thread, Doremi is a truly excellent title which is only slowly being discovered by anime watchers due to the tireless work of Doremi fans who have to battle against: an awful US release, un-cool art and many more preconceptions.

Who reads reviews for anime? I just form my opinions from watching it.

My views/opinions on anime very rarely falls in line with other people's, so reading reviews does nothing for me

But Doremi is really a case in point! That's almost a textbook example of a series slowly being recognised and discussed built upon the back of truly excellent word of mouth and it's taken years and years for people to even realise it exists, let alone that it needs to be watched.

 

[MetroidPrimeRib]

LEt's have a Kanon 2002 suicide pact weekend sometime.

I was promised Geass watch

------------------------------

About testing the waters on anime, that shit is really unreliable so it's good to read others opinions. I bet a lot of people would've dropped Yuri Kuma Arashi or Space Dandy early without reading some posts in here.

 

[PshycoNinja]

I was promised Geass watch

I am working on it. :,(

 

[Crocodile]

Yeah Doremi seems like exactly the type of show that would be ignored by most anime fans (looks like a kids show) and most non-anime fans (looks too moe ego must be pedo bait).

*says the man who has never seen and has no real interest in seeing Doremi*

Shows like Ping Pong , Space Battleship Yamato, From the New World, etc are also good recent shows that would likely have been overlooking without other championing them.

 

[phoenix296]

Kino's Journey 02

Another great episode. On her journey to another country, Kino encounters a group of travelers stranded in a blizzard. Making the decision to help them through the storm, Kino hunts for wild hare for nourishment. Hermes becomes philosophical as Kino prepares the meal, asking Kino if the life of a hare is a worthy sacrifice for saving the stranded. It is a bit hamfisted in its presentation with Kino praying over the hare's corpse but the message is conveyed clearly.

This episode has some fantastic direction. It has been previously established that Kino only stays in one place for a three day period and the hares lined up on the tree help represent the time she has spent with the stranded. The foreshadowing was also well done when Hermes asked "What is it you sell? Food?" and the stranded's reply "Err, something like that". The confrontation sequence has the sun beaming down on the snow creating an extremely harsh contrast of light. It can be somewhat blinding but I think that is the intended effect as it represents the shift within the stranded.

What affected me the most was how the stranded talked emphatically of their home town festivals and culture. It's clear they were speaking the truth as he stumbled on his words when asked about the nature of his cargo. The stark contrast of such a happy homely life they live with

Spoiler

their job of human trafficking and the resulting cannibalism

leaves me speechless.

 

[Puruzi]

But Doremi is really a case in point! That's almost a textbook example of a series slowly being recognised and discussed built upon the back of truly excellent word of mouth and it's taken years and years for people to even realise it exists, let alone that it needs to be watched.

I never really saw any positive word of mouth. Not denying that there was, just never saw it. Saw how it looked, fell in love with the artstyle, saw a What I watched/expected/got image on /a/ and decided I wanted to watch it. Helped that strangedopamine made that guide too

 

[phoenix296]

It's conceivable that you'd never have encountered your favourite show (assume the you in this case is referring to anyone) unless someone has digged it out from the depths of the internet and worked hard at explaining why it was worth watching. For example, Princess Tutu only really got talked about after someone campaigned for it, otherwise that show would have been forgotten and unloved. For something that's more relevant to this thread, Doremi is a truly excellent title which is only slowly being discovered by anime watchers due to the tireless work of Doremi fans who have to battle against: an awful US release, un-cool art and many more preconceptions.

Friendly reminder for everyone to watch Ronja the Robber's Daughter!

 

[javac]

I feel like I’ve broadly covered in my earlier response to PyshycoNinja everything that I would say to you, however I will expand upon one topic which I feel has been conflated somewhat in this discussion. Namely, the difference between a consumer review and actual criticism.

The consumer review format largely exists to advise you how to spend your money. Should you buy this game, or movie, or whatever. These reviews exist, for the most part, to let you know what the critic writing the review thinks about whatever they are reviewing. Whether or not you have any interest in reviews, as a consumer of art you probably have preferences that lead you to consume certain things. There are almost certainly other people with fairly similar preferences to yours who, if you follow closely, will probably lead you something you’ll enjoy. That’s kind of how I operate, at least. I find people that I share similar tastes with and then look towards their recommendations.

Beyond that broad sphere, you have actual criticism. This doesn’t exist to give you a binary “watch or avoid” kind of analysis. There’s not much real criticism in the anime community but it certainly exists. Criticism seeks to understand how a work functions, what it says about the society that created it and what messages it imparts upon its audience. It examines themes and ideas as much as mechanical things like how well a shot is composed or a scene is edited.

The very best criticism may fundamentally change how you view or appreciate a piece of art. It will also teach you to better appreciate the art you encounter going forward. It enriches your experiences.

Right, I guess there is some distinction to be made. In any case, even with criticism, I've never taken a liking to it when it comes to something I want to consume. I guess an example would be Macross, a show I fucking adore with all of my heart and soul. I remember reading something from yourself funnily enough where you stated (sorry if I'm twisting your words!) that you felt that the show is very uneven and that it has many downtime and weak moments where its age shows and how the art and the age of it in particular would put many people off. You weren’t too fond of it.

Having said that, I never felt that myself when watching Macross, and that's the crux of it really. For me, I've never adhered to other peoples values. To me, Macross looks amazing art wise, and the story had me hooked from the start to end. The reason is, and as you can tell I'm bad with words so forgive me, I take everything for what it is. There’s no filter, just me and the show. You can pull the show apart and talk about how 'the villains were weak' or whatever, but in the end I still loved the show. I can acknowledge the fact, but by tweaking and changing that element of the show, it becomes something else. Macross is Macross in light of that, faults and all that. You talk about how:

Plenty of shows go awful half way through despite a really strong start. Other works may appear weak in the beginning but grow stronger later (even though this is much more unusual). Between those two extremes you have 'slow burns' which reveal their quality slowly over time and so cannot be judged in such a short amount of time.

But I can’t for the life of me recall a show where I've felt a dip in quality or a moment where a show has lost my interest, because although subcutaneously I may be aware of a dip or lull, be it story or script or budget (ahem Evangelion) I take in the whole package for what it is and eke out every bit of enjoyment I can. I've never read something after the fact that has made me change my mind. I still think Gunbuster is the GOAT and believe that Gurren Lagann is a bag of poop, and no amount of dissection and post-mortems will ever change that stance for me, because it’s sentimental. I've NEVER read a review that's changed my stance on ANYTHING, because for me my verdict is law. When I wrote about how the bubble economy might have had an effect on how the two Patlabor films differed tonally, that I found interesting, but I didn’t expect it to become the basis for a eureka moment where a person who hated Patlabor 2 turned around to like it. Understand it a bit more? Sure. Appreciate it a bit more? Sure. But no matter how much people talk about how hooky the story is for Macross, how ‘sitcom’ the love story is, I'll still love it unconditionally. I like what I like and don't like what I don't like and I feel that others feelings on the matter have no bearing on me and my enjoyment. X person hated Patlabor? Sucks to be that person I guess.

 

[strangedopamine]

Yeah Doremi seems like exactly the type of show that would be ignored by most anime fans (looks like a kids show) and most non-anime fans (looks too moe ego must be pedo bait).

*says the man who has never seen and has no real interest in seeing Doremi*

Shows like Ping Pong , Space Battleship Yamato, From the New World, etc are also good recent shows that would likely have been overlooking without other championing them.

Found that one out in the rate your avatar thread. Oh well, you'd be missing out if you thought that way.

I never really saw any positive word of mouth. Not denying that there was, just never saw it. Saw how it looked, fell in love with the artstyle, saw a What I watched/expected/got image on /a/ and decided I wanted to watch it. Helped that strangedopamine made that guide too

It was because of word of mouth in this very community that I watched Doremi in the first place. That viewing guide is really just a hand me down from the advice I recieved when I first watched it!

 

[CheapJuice]

Maria†Holic - 03 & 04

I really appreciate creative and clever inputs in shows to keep it vibrant and not feel so monotone. For example the scene between Kanako and Nanami;

Stained glass art often seen in churches (this taking place in a "religiously girls only school") and changing background depending on the current sentence

There are plenty of other things, Kanako's nosebleed gradually transforming into rose petals, pattern on clothes "etched in the background", character stills, second fast shots, use of strong colors etc.

Was there ever any doubt of her greatness?

All these little things makes the watching experience much more enjoyable and engaging.

 

[Jex]

Just to finish out my side of this discussion, the last point I want to bring to the table is a work which you enjoyed but only experienced because you were forced to watch (or chose to watch against your judgement) because the reviews were great/someone who's tastes you aligned with recommend it.

Any time that you end up truly enjoying, or even loving, something that you ignored or actively disliked like the look of is further evidence as to the utility of reviews. I can think of plenty of titles off the top of my head that I would never have checked out, or continued to watch despite starting slow, that I nevertheless truly love. I would have missed out on those experiences without people telling me how good they were.

I never really saw any positive word of mouth. Not denying that there was, just never saw it. Saw how it looked, fell in love with the artstyle, saw a What I watched/expected/got image on /a/ and decided I wanted to watch it. Helped that strangedopamine made that guide too

Sure, I'm not saying you only watched the show because you read a review. But I am saying that there would never been any art for you to see, or any threads on /a/ for you to read, or any mention of the show altogether without constant critical pressure from fans.

 

[NaDannMaGoGo]

Speaking about anime reviewers, I often like what I've heard from Nick Creamer. He writes for ANN but also has his own blog (linked) and twitter.

Yeh he's got some good stuff.

Coincidentally, I've found out about this guy when, after finishing Clannad, I posted a thread on /r/anime of my impressions which weren't particularly stellar. Despite being relatively polite about it, a thread that voices some actual criticism gets voted down, but I got a few good replies. One was from Bobduh (his nickname) and he linked his thoughts on the show, which partially mirrored mine but were more eloquently put. (That's the link I also linked a couple posts before).

The guy has written a bunch of interesting articles that really offered me a different perspective at times. Like this Evangelion Rebuild piece.

Though I do not like everything he write and feel like he focuses too much on concept/themes and too little on their actual execution. Also I hate the formatting on ANN so I don't read anything on there. His criticism on SAO has also lessened severely after joining ANN... probably to appease the userbase.

 

[Puruzi]

Just to finish out my side of this discussion, the last point I want to bring to the table is a work which you enjoyed but only experienced because you were forced to watch (or chose to watch against your judgement) because the reviews were great/someone who's tastes you aligned with recommend it.

Any time that you end up truly enjoying, or even loving, something that you ignored or actively disliked like the look of is further evidence as to the utility of reviews. I can think of plenty of titles off the top of my head that I would never have checked out, or continued to watch despite starting slow, that I nevertheless truly love. I would have missed out on those experiences without people telling me how good they were.

Sure, I'm not saying you only watched the show because you read a review. But I am saying that there would never been any art for you to see, or any threads on /a/ for you to read, or any mention of the show altogether without constant critical pressure from fans.

Ah alright, yeah you're right.

 

[KirbYuuYuu]

Found that one out in the rate your avatar thread. Oh well, you'd be missing out if you thought that way.

I found out when I suggested it to someone.

 

[javac]

I mean that's boiling it now to its basics. Yes I watched Patlabor only because a group of people watch it prior to me and propped it up, but that's always going to be the case. We will always consume these shows/films second hand, unless you're the director of the show yourself. But that's different to a review which breaks down WHY you should or shouldn't watch it. Giant Robo is highly regarded by many, so it gets more exposure and by proxy somebody licenses it, releases it and I wind up fining it and watching. Without those people championing it, would I have found it? Maybe, maybe not. But the reason as to WHY I watched it was not decided by others, I didn't know of the nature of the soundtrack, or the plot or story or art. I saw, I thought it looked cool from the pics and OP and went in head first blindly and watched it and loved it so much I imported the Blu-ray

No doubt many people will be exposed to shows like FMA:B due to it being Number 1 on MAL, but why its there and discovering first hand why it's so highly regarded is what I find interesting. For what it's worth, I haven't seen FMA:B.

 

[phoenix296]

Found that one out in the rate your avatar thread. Oh well, you'd be missing out if you thought that way.

I found out when I suggested it to someone.

Well reading this has colored it in a not so flattering light for me...

Reminder to everyone that when 4Kids licensed Doremi, 4Kids CEO Al Khan referred to the girls in the show as being sexy.

 

[KirbYuuYuu]

I never really saw any positive word of mouth. Not denying that there was, just never saw it. Saw how it looked, fell in love with the artstyle, saw a What I watched/expected/got image on /a/ and decided I wanted to watch it. Helped that strangedopamine made that guide too

there weren't enough new people to push it. Plus most of the people who watched Doremi are primarily on twitter, such as myself

Well reading this has colored it in a not so flattering light for me...

4 kids really did ruin everything

 

[Puruzi]

Well reading this has colored it in a not so flattering light for me...

How does that make the show look worse? It just makes that dude look like a real sick nutjob

 

[UltraGunner]

I applaud anyone who has the strength to sit through a KEY show because I would probably explode like Corvo if I had to watch that much bullshit melodrama

I once sat through Kanon for god knows why. My experience with Telenovelas didn't prepare me for the melodramaticness of it all.

 

[phoenix296]

How does that make the show look worse? It just makes that dude look like a real sick nutjob

Fans of the work speak for the work itself. Or so they say. I'll be honest I've seen nothing of Doremi outside of a poster on MAL and avatars of the characters.

 

[cajunator]

More than Clannad? Blasphemy!!

well, there is Full Moon O Sagashite. Have you watched that?
Ask Arcadius what he thought about it.

Okay, fine. I'll be watching Clannad some time in the near future as well. Happy now, AnimeGAF?



It's almost as if the definition of 'good' was somehow malleable and, the spaghetti monster forbid, subjective. Like, I could, maybe, like something that someone else doesn't. Terrible idea, I know.

Yes watch Clannad. Its worth it.

Maria†Holic - 01 & 02

Oh my. This is yuritastic, step aside Eruna. Kanako's inner thoughts is fun to witness, and the style is a treat.
May the nonbelievers be struck down by the pureness. Amen.

Definitely one of the lilliest of anime lillies.

Man, this thread has been absolutely swamped with Key stuff for the last couple of weeks. It's not like the current season is so bad that people need to resort to that.

Thats mean you know.

No, I definitely agree with you there. I actually hate when the subjectivity argument is taken to ridiculous lenghts just to argue for the sake arguing.

It's more about the fact that quite a few posters with aligning tastes have been banging on the Clannad drum hard enough that I deem it warrants checking out, and going by what I've seen of your comments, you are a good bit pickier on what you consider to be good.

Eh, I don't know. Maybe I was just venting. I'm having a stupidly frustrating moment at work atm. Sorry if that came out like an attack, but your comment does have a whiff of that very criticism of taste. I doubt anyone could argue that there is anything *really* wrong in thinking that Clannad is a good anime, whatever his/her opinion on the series would be.

Its not a terrible show. There are questionable writing choices and frustration but I think, like AnoHana, it was written with enough genuine heart to overcome those deficiencies.
Clannad is definitely VN level smaltz but it is effective at pulling heartstrings and really thats all you want from a drama.

That tore me up so much.... So much... Oh god, thinking about it is... unbelievable.

Fushigiboshi no☆ Futagohime (Twin Princesses of the Mysterious Star)

I can’t believe it’s over now. My first Magical Girl show and I seriously think it’s the best there is already. Princess Fine and Princess Rein are incredible girls with hearts that know no bounds, big and beautiful, full of compassion, love, kindness, caring and sincerity.

51 Episodes passed by so quickly; I really need to watch the sequel, I’m so happy a sequel even exists. The story is great, it starts off very slow, but it picks up and then keeps on rolling. Solving issues with the Prominence or sometimes even without, never gets old. I love the transformation scenes and I love the Prominence power, fantastic stuff.

I love Princess Fine and Rein’s dancing they do, it’s so adorable. The seiyu are amazing too, listening to the two of them speaking at the same time, it’s like a harmony; a beautiful duet. The Princesses are all really amazing, even

Spoiler

Altezza

gets better as time goes on.

Spoiler

Pearl-Chan and the Sea Kingdom

was such a huge surprise, it’s one of my favorite kingdoms for sure. Sophie, Mirlo, Lione,

Spoiler

Pearl

, The Seed Princesses, they’re all truly amazing, I feel so motivated by how they can act with one another, so kind and helpful, really envious type of friendship.

As great as the story was though, I still can’t believe the Kings and Queens of the Kingdoms would believe

Spoiler

Bright-sama

over their own daughters. It made me so upset to watch so many people get manipulated in such a fiendish way. It works out in the end, but if they thought for themselves for one second, it wouldn’t have gone the way it did.

The Opening and Ending of the show (Both ED's), are seriously awesome. So upbeat and catchy, especially the second ending, I love listening to them and just kind of dancing to the tunes, really great stuff.

The art is great, it's very happy and bright, just like a Magical Girl anime should be, loved to watch it, loved to listen to it!! =)

Episode 51 though, I can’t believe they tried to pull what they did, caused me to shed tears because I couldn’t see Princess Rein or Princess Fine lose Poomo, he was so brave for what he did and thank goodness the last

Spoiler

Grace Stone

appeared, such a happy cute show does not need that type of sadness at all!

I love Fushigiboshi no Futagohime, it's a fantastic Magical Girl anime with the cutest girls ever. Their dancing, their voices, their personalities, the way they handle situations, it's all so well done!

Princess Lione is one of the cutest things ever, particularly when she panics. I wish I could webm that part.

 

[Jex]

Yeh he's got some good stuff.

Coincidentally, I've found out about this guy when, after finishing Clannad, I posted a thread on /r/anime of my impressions which weren't particularly stellar. Despite being relatively polite about it, a thread that voices some actual criticism gets voted down, but I got a few good replies. One was from Bobduh (his nickname) and he linked his thoughts on the show, which partially mirrored mine but were more eloquently put. (That's the link I also linked a couple posts before).

The guy has written a bunch of interesting articles that really offered me a different perspective at times. Like this Evangelion Rebuild piece.

Though I do not like everything he write and feel like he focuses too much on concept/themes and too little on their actual execution. Also I hate the formatting on ANN so I don't read anything on there. His criticism on SAO has also lessened severely after joining ANN... probably to appease the userbase.

That's certainly a very interesting defence of Rebuild of Evangelion and specifically of 3.33. I must say, he makes a fairly compelling argument which I will have to consider if I ever re-watch that film again. It would certainly alter my view of the film, if I believed it.

However, as you hinted, such an interpretation of Rebuild of Evangelion 3.33 is charitable in the extreme because it glosses over the fact that it's a terribly constructed movie. Say what you will about the theme or message (and one could certainly argue that Anno has basically already made all of these points with Evangelion/End of Evangelion before), none of that really matters when you're putting out such a shoddy movie. This wasn't true of the Evangelion TV Series or End of Evangelion which were extremely well directed and put together (budget problems aside). The End of Evangelion may be weird and experimental but it's a beautiful piece of film making. I can't say that for anything in Rebuild.

 

[Puruzi]

Fans of the work speak for the work itself. Or so they say. I'll be honest I've seen nothing of Doremi outside of a poster on MAL and avatars of the characters.

I guess that's true sometimes, but if you saw that poster and avatars then you would know that it isn't sexy in any way no?

 

[Quasar]

People who like Keyshit have bad taste

Now where I did I misplace the everything you like is shit gif.

 

[KharmaPolice]

Though I do not like everything he write and feel like he focuses too much on concept/themes and too little on their actual execution. Also I hate the formatting on ANN so I don't read anything on there. His criticism on SAO has also lessened severely after joining ANN... probably to appease the userbase.

His SAO episode reviews really soured my opinion of him. While his ANN reviews were often very mild and generous, he would simultaneously tear the show apart on his blog and twitter.
That's why I pretty much ignore his ANN stuff and only read his blog.

It's also true that he mainly focuses on themes and writing, but that's just his style. If you want a dissection of the directing and animation you'll just have to look elsewhere.

 

[Arcadius]

well, there is Full Moon O Sagashite. Have you watched that?
Ask Arcadius what he thought about it.

Princess Lione is one of the cutest things ever, particularly when she panics. I wish I could webm that part.

Princess Lione is super cute, same with Pearl-chan, and Sophie and Mirlo...I really like them all!

Full Moon o Sagashite is amazing.. super amazing.. watch it!

 

[Quasar]

Well, I mean, you kind of have to if you ever want to know what anime to watch. How else are you supposed to find out that information?

Well...for me MAL worked quite well. Not that I agreed with scores but it gave me a subset of anime to sample and help me discover my general taste when it comes to anime. It was then supplemented with Animegaf voting results.

In terms of reviews helping me finding stuff to watch I find them most useful in discovering older gems that slip through the cracks.

 

[KirbYuuYuu]

Princess Lione is super cute, same with Pearl-chan, and Sophie and Mirlo...I really like them all!

Full Moon o Sagashite is amazing.. super amazing.. watch it!

Oh I recall you. Hmm.

Anyway, I think I might start making more time for anime for a bit and see where the Twin Princesses shows goes to reinstate Magical Hell Fever in me

 

[Sonicbug]

This just in (?), Right Stuf updated it's Jojo's listing for an English Dub.

 

[Clov]

For those of you who were upset about the lack of dub for Jojo's season 1, a RightStuf representative on Fandom Post has confirmed that Warner will be creating a dub for it. Makes it more strange that it lacks a BD.

Edit: Beaten by a minute!

 

[Arcadius]

Oh I recall you. Hmm.

Anyway, I think I might start making more time for anime for a bit and see where the Twin Princesses shows goes to reinstate Magical Hell Fever in me

You recall me?! From where?

 

[MetroidPrimeRib]

This just in (?), Right Stuf updated it's Jojo's listing for an English Dub.

For those of you who were upset about the lack of dub for Jojo's season 1, a RightStuf representative on Fandom Post has confirmed that Warner will be creating a dub for it. Makes it more strange that it lacks a BD.

Edit: Beaten by a minute!

Interest rising

 

[TUSR]

speaking of anime reviews

my favourite part about MAL is when people give series reviews part way through them


also, you lose your "privilege" to write reviews if you call patema inverted shit with a predictable twist and a 1 dimensional villain.

 

[yurisses]

my favourite part about MAL is when people give series reviews part way through them

This has a use, for airing series. Forums and blogs are better-suited to the format than MAL's review system, though.