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Spring Anime 2016 |OT| Get a Season So Complicated

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Ascheroth

Member
Going back on topic is Kagewani worth a watch? I enjoy horror if it's something I should mention.

all right cool. I guess I have a season to catch up on.From what I recall hearing they were short episodes so it shouldn't be long to catch up.

Yes, Kagewani is very good. Like Hellwarden said, the atmosphere and creature design is excellent.
Episodes are 8 minutes each, so it should take about 2 hours to watch the entire first season.
 

Mailbox

Member
Ace Attorney Episode 1

That was BAD. Like, everything was off.
Pacing was off, animation was weird, tone was all wrong, character art was very below average, and the overlay stuff didn't feel endearing... It felt cheap and lazy.

This felt pure and simply like a call for nostalgia rather than an adaptation of a good game.

I really like the Ace Attorney games, but this is not good. The anime adaptation should not have less impact and worse animation than the game.

OP was bad in terms of visuals, don't hate the song, don't love it either.
ED is straight up bad.

The only think I thought was good was the custom english subs. That was a nice touch and I hope they continue to do those!

A1 should NOT have done this adaptation. Bones should have (I liked the anime cut-scenes that Bones has done for the games.)


On a side note, I found this fun tid-bit on capcom-unity blog from the director of dual destinies back in 2013:
It was a pleasure to be the Anime Director on the dev team side as we worked with the famous animation studio BONES, which produced such great shows as “Eureka Seven: AO”.

Shit made me laugh.
 

Line_HTX

Member
Question about Kabaneri. Do I have to watch this with Amazon Prime?

Yes, Kagewani is very good. Like Hellwarden said, the atmosphere and creature design is excellent.
Episodes are 8 minutes each, so it should take about 2 hours to watch the entire first season.

Oh, awesome. I can catch up on this too.
 
It's by the same guy I think, but I prefer Kagewani a whole lot over Yami Shibai.

It should be noted that the director of Kagewani was only involved in the first season of Yami Shibai; he had no involvement in the second or third seasons.

Question about Kabaneri. Do I have to watch this with Amazon Prime?

Amazon has the exclusive rights, yes.

Is this RE:0096 just a recut version of the Gundam Unicorn OVAs?

It is.
 

Ascheroth

Member
Another - 04-05

This is actually pretty good. Nice mix of creepyness and comedy.
If Mayoiga is going to follow this formula, I'll have to reevaluate my opinion.
Anyway, that's enough for tonight. Probably going to finish it tomorrow.
 

ibyea

Banned
Lost Village: 1
Wow, everyone is just a bundle of joy in this show, aren't they? I'm in, I'm gonna enjoy my first crazy Okada show.

Ace Attorney: 1
I didn't think something this incredibly bland could come out of Ace Attorney. Disappointed. Also man is the opening credit incredibly bad.
 

ibyea

Banned
I hope this Village show grants us with some more lovely pie gifs. (Apologies for the quality on the second one).

XbjhKqp.gif

giphy.gif


Not a pie gif, but can't forget about this classic either.
suayh5eu3ckd32eohdutbm3xtfbavyam_hq.jpg

Wow, what anime are these gifs from? XD
 
Rakugo END

Final episode is mostly set up for the next season. It is a bit jarring going from the end of Kiku's story to the middle of Yotaro's. I have to imagine there is some meaningful character development we missed between Yotaro's introduction in the first episode to his promotion in the last.

The series as a whole has been amazing. Every character is flawed, even despicable, yet loveable in their own way. I can't help but empathize with each character. (Even Miyokichi) I can't wait for the next season.
 
Bakuon OVA

Raimu-senpai best bike who saves the day. It appears she doesn't speak and never takes off the helm. At first I questioned mr old ass butler's involvement, but Ishizuka voicing a long with some sick stunts made him more than validated!
Had some fun moments and as far as I can tell it seems pretty knowledgeable about the subject. Looking forward to the show!

 
World Trigger 73 END

Great anime from Toei, they adapted it at a pretty nice pace of usually 2 to 3 chps per episode, had many funny faces adapted to the screen nicely (Daisuke Ashihara :3 face is the best), and the music was actually memorable. I liked it for the action scenes using the various weapon classes well with many key moments of the manga looking pretty dazzling on screen especially later in the invasion arc and even some moments in the anime original invader from another world arc and in the adapted Rank Wars (last major fight and before it).

We actually did get pretty close to the manga which I was surprised for as they could have easily done their own things instead of ending the episode a bit early ( I think we got within four or five chapters of current chapter even).

Hopefully the end of episode tease for a continuation someday becomes real, I need more.
 

ibyea

Banned
Rakugo: 13
Oh man, cliffhanger! Thank the lord there is going to be a next season. This was truly a brilliant show and I am glad they are continuing it.

Favorite moment of the episode:
That part where he is talking to that Sukeroku hallucination, showing all the regrets.
 

Clov

Member
Looks like it and they planning to look at future Noitamina stuff (programming block that Kabaneri is on).

Yep; it seems like they may have streaming rights to any future titles. I read something about them getting streaming rights for Dr. Slump too, which makes me wonder if they're trying to build a big catalog of anime for their service.

Edit: Yep, it's there, but not available to watch yet.
 

Just T

Member
Asterisk: 13

Wasted no time getting back to the tournament, took me a couple of minutes separating some details that happened in Rakudai and not this but got it together. The action was pretty decent. Also that character at the end, Flora, voice is too annoying, don't know what role she bout to play but it needs to be brief.
 

Quasar

Member
Endride 1 - reminded me of Arata Kangatari. But thats because I rarely watch this kind of show. INteresting all the magic weapons aside from Shuns are pole-arms. Not the worst mobile game anime I've seen.
 
Not even the original character designers bothered.

Im glad they look much better in the anime, I dont know what the character designer was thinking with those images.

Though I would change his outfit, I dont understand the short pants and the socks above his ankles, why not go sockless at that point, or just wear shorts to go to the knees.
 

JulianImp

Member
Sölf;199957414 said:
Well, I know the death scenes are completely over the top. Aside from that, has it any other redeeming qualities? xD

I really liked the strange style the show had during the first few episodes. It blurred the line between reality and fantasy in a way that reminded me of David Lynch's style, since the MC was seeing Mei but it was like she did not actually exist, and there was also the thing about him visiting a creepy doll museum and stumbling upon Mei there, all while the receptionist says the exact same lines both times he goes there.

...Then the show reveals what was actually going on with Mei and people start to die Final Destination-style because fuck it, who needs psychological horror when you can just create overly convoluted and grisly death sequences for the lulz.

Finally, the show reveals that
what was killing people was some yearly curse that only affected a particular class, reviving a dead person and assigning him/her to the class while rewriting the whole town's memories to accomodate him/her, and then the curse began trying to kill people from that class or related to it (ie: relatives) at fucking random until it got the right one, or the rest of the class managed to find out who the dead person was and killed him/her again, in which case it stopped until next year. Oh, and Mei had the ability to spot dead people sealed behind her off-color eye all along but never bothered using it until the finale because reasons.
 

Lexxism

Member
Cross Game END

What a fantastic ending. Kou finally reached Koushien and found a girl that will replace his dead girlfriend. I'm quite happy that I picked up this especially since I'm having doubts if this show will turn out good or not. Thankfully it did and enjoyed the show. Too bad I was hoping that there will be an epilogue on how he did in Koushien and after that...

What a month! I did a hell of a baseball anime marathon. From Ace of Diamond to Big Windup! to Cross Game. It was definitely worth it. And perfect time for MLB season tomorrow. 😁
 
World Trigger is ending too?

It seems like all the long running show are going on hiatus or ending.

Durarara, Fairy Tail, Gintama, World Trigger, Ace of Diamonds. Probably some others I'm forgetting.

Next thing you'll tell me Naruto is finally ending, and Pierrot will have to find something else to milk to death.
 
World Trigger is ending too?

It seems like all the long running show are going on hiatus or ending.

Durarara, Fairy Tail, Gintama, World Trigger, Ace of Diamonds. Probably some others I'm forgetting.

Next thing you'll tell me Naruto is finally ending, and Pierrot will have to find something else to milk to death.

PHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
 

Jarmel

Banned
JoJo P4-1

I'm sort of mixed on this but also intrigued. That's mainly because Josuke is the first flat out crazy JoJo protagonist. Unlike his predecessors such as Jotaro, he's actually legit crazy. Dimb pointed out how the violence felt wanton but I think that was supposed to be the point. It highlights how Josuke is not only unstable but due to the nature of his Stand, he doesn't give a fuck about collateral damage. He's an absolute wildcard which made it kinda funny about Jotaro saying he would be a reliable ally. It should definitely make things unpredictable if Josuke switches between coward/psycho mode.

The art design was noticeably better but the animation itself was mediocre to subpar at times. There definitely needed to have been more corrections. Layouts were good though.
 

javac

Member
Hayao Miyazaki, a man renowned for his incredible sense of imagination and a man whom founded the studio that for 30 years has brought dreams to reality ends his directional career with what can only be described as his most human and grown up tale to date. A culmination of the full efforts of the magnificent Studio Ghibli results into one of the studios finest pieces, from the breath-taking art and animation to the powerful and touching soundtrack it’s a film that lingers on within the heart and will continue to only get stronger the more that we look back on it. The Wind Rises is a story about love, the love that we have for the people near and dear to us as well as the love that we conjure up for the dreams that we see at night, for the future and for the past.
One of the many hallmark of a Studio Ghibli film is the phenomenal animation and art direction and The Wind Rises may perhaps be one of the studios most refined pieces to date. Not a moment goes by in watching The Wind Rises that I don’t marvel at the sights being presented before my eyes. The recreation of 1920’s Japan is delicately executed with such scrutiny being applied to the minutest of details that you sometimes forget that it’s all hand crafted. From the way the characters move to the way the shadows dance in the dark and the headlights bounce of off the cobblestone roads you soon forget that the world in front of you is indeed animated. And yet at the same time you’re reminded that this is indeed an animated work as the canvas is distorted and manipulated in ways only an animated feature could be, and it reminds me why I come to animation in the first place. Studio Ghibli and much of Japan have never gone with the mantra that animated works are lesser to live action, that animation can’t move, delight and surprise as much as the latter and The Wind Rises is tangible proof of that notion. A world bustling with this much life could only be real, a world with this much love and attention to detail could only be achieved by somebody who believes that. The Wind Rises is a product of those feelings, a culmination of everything that Hayao Miyazaki stood for going all the way back to his very first work within this medium 50 years ago.
Not unlike a contortionist, Miyazaki displays his unbridled skills of flexibility with the pencil and paper as he uses his artistic liberties in showcasing the events of the mundane and the not so mundane. The depictions of the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923 for example are breath-taking and awe-inspiring and need to be seen. The canvas swoops across the ground as the floor breaks apart and buildings rise as if they were waves in the ocean crashing amongst each other one by one in a uniformed fashion. Every shot in this film is beautiful and each one tells a different story. Studio Ghibli is known for their uses of pillow shots and The Wind Rises is no exception. Pillow shots are a staple of Japanese cinema and its uses are seen in a lot of anime. For the unfamiliar a pillow shot is a technique in the form of cutting away from the main action and instead focusing the camera on a visual element such as an object in the distance, a landscape or even just a girl brushing her hair or folding some clothes. Something mundane that has seemingly no obvious narrative reason, but the irony of it all is the fact that it does add to the narrative. Not only does it add a sense of place but it also adds credence to the fact that these are real worlds with real people going about their daily lives. The beauty of it all in The Wind Rises is the fact that these scenes are animated by hand and so an extra dimension is added to the sensibility. These pillow shots usually inject much needed tranquil and serene moments in order to create a much more elegant method of pacing. These scenes are only often a few second long and their origins go all the way back to the films of Yasujiro Ozu. Pillow shots not only act as visual punctuation in-between scenes but are often used in order to evoke a feeling of irrelevancy that the human characters actions have on the nature that surrounds them. A train steams headfirst through a countryside and whilst the steam billows out of the chimney, nature still thrives in the distance as the mountains stand peacefully and the river flows, unfazed and oblivious to the story of the main character, Jiro.
The use of mono audio and human created sound effects goes to show the artistic liberties and lengths that Miyazaki is willing to go to in order to convey the message the he wants and although they sound odd on paper, the ideas are fully realized and work wonderfully in practice. Continuing the conversation of audio, the soundtrack is a beautiful mix of serene melodies that transport you to the countryside while the more ostentatious pieces revel in the lavishness of the very aircraft's that feature in this film and the juxtaposition between the two works well in presenting the duality of Jiro’s work life and his personal life. The soundtrack overall is a personal and powerful production that befits the characters that inhabit this film and its world. String and piano instruments dance in harmony as they come to life and add a much needed dimension to the drama. A sense of melancholy surrounds many of the themes here but not without a hint of hope, fleeting like the planes that soar through the skies, destined only to cause pain and suffering. It’s what makes the soundtrack for The Wind Rises so tragic. Perhaps not as full of gusto when compared to the many soundtracks for Miyazaki’s previous films, Joe Hisaishi nevertheless does a terrific job for Miyazaki’s last outing as sound and vision come together in harmony. The main theme Hikōki-gumo, a 40 year old song sang by Yumi Matsutoya is as haunting as it is beautiful and is a perfect fit for the film. The vocals send shivers down my spine and the melody exhibits the spirit of Jiro and Naoko succinctly. It’s a soundtrack that works as well on its own as it does with the film. Not over powering the visuals the two work together in harmony which only strengthens and complements each other.
The Wind Rises is Miyazaki at his best and as the film switches from beautiful and lush vistas to epic and populated urban environments the sense of fidelity never falters. There’s something to be said about how refreshing the characters of The Wind Rises are in both the way they look and the way that they act. They not only feel real but interact with one another naturally. Unlike many of Studio Ghibli’s more whimsical tales this one primarily takes place in mundane environments such as offices and at desks. Perhaps this is a direct parallel to Miyazaki himself, after all of the wonderful works that he and his studio conjured up are too created in such places, in front of desks. From Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind and My Neighbor Totoro to Princess Mononoke and Spirited Away these wonderful and magical films are brought to life on a piece of paper on a plain, wooden, unassuming desk. Many have remarked on the fact that The Wind Rises is a reflective piece for Miyazaki himself, one which parallels his own life and his strive for the things that he loves at the detriment of his own family and the lack of time that it affords him, and I believe that. Miyazaki has commented on the inception of this film and why it came to be and I don’t believe for a second that such a powerful tale being his last feature film is just a coincidence. Miyazaki’s career culminated to this very moment.
It’s no secret that Miyazaki is fascinated by flight and aeronautics. The Studio itself is named after a small plane itself after all, the Caproni Ca.309 Ghibli. From Nausicaa to Kiki flight has remained a key element to his films however what separates The Wind Rises and those is the fact that while the former are fantastical, the latter isn’t and so giving the same sense of wonderment to a plane that was used in the War can be seen as odd and a romanticisation of a very dark and tumultuous time in not just Japans history but the worlds history. There’s a lot of controversy with this film in regards to its representation of the war, or lack thereof and although I can see where these frustrations come from I also believe that there’s more to the surface than meets the eye. The Wind Rises is in fact the opposite of a romanticisation and intends to relay the message of dreams and realities conflicting. Jiro dreams of beautiful planes but those same dreams are realized at the detriments of many others and himself. How far is one willing to go in order to realize their dreams and what are we willing to sacrifice in order to see them come to fruition? It’s a more complex film than many would want to admit. Above everything else The Wind Rises is a personal story, one that never went out to pursue the answers to the questions of Japan’s involvement in the war, and nor it should.
When you look at the films Miyazaki has directed over the years you soon realize that even his most fantastical works are at their very core centered on very personal and human subjects. Spirited Away for example is a tale of moving to a new home and not only the anxieties that one would feel but it’s also a film about growing up and taking on responsibilities and it’s this core theme that finds itself enveloped by the visage of magic and wonder. My Neighbor Totoro too at its core is a tale of two sisters dealing with their sick and bedridden mother. Kiki’s Delivery Service, a film about moving to a new town and being faced with a different culture and the difficulties of making friends and accepting oneself. It’s with this in mind that you start to understand how Miyazaki’s mind ticks but most importantly you discover that at the foundations of these huge and grandiose films lay a simple and relatable story which makes The Wind Rises stick out even more among its contemporaries. That’s not to say that we the audience cannot relate to the message here but rather that it seems to be a retrospective for Miyazaki himself.
It’s incredibly easy to regurgitate a historical fact which is what I find a lot of reviews for The Wind Rises doing. It’s easy for one to flex their proverbial thinking caps in order to make themselves feel smarter but doing so is searching for answers to questions that were never asked in the first place. Miyazaki’s pacifism and disdain regarding Japan’s role in the Second World War is self-evident and as clear as the sky itself. The setting of The Wind Rises is irrelevant to the actual purpose of the story itself which is universal. Even though the film chronicles a man whom designs aeroplanes the film itself ultimately isn’t about this at all but is instead used as a proxy to tell a story about the act of creating art and the life that it denies you. The Wind Rises in the end is about the cost of art. The aeronautics and aeroplanes that populate The Wind Rises are allegorical of animation which is why the choice to have Hideaki Anno, famed Director of Neon Genesis Evangelion voice Jiro has more depth, meaning and thought behind it than people assume and why it’s such a perfect fit.

The Wind Rises is a beautiful and tragic film and the fact that this is Miyazaki’s last film only goes to strengthen its emotional impact and importance. Not only is it Miyazaki’s most important film, it’s perhaps also one of the most important films to come out of animation, period. Although Miyazaki traditionally directs films suitable for a younger audience, The Wind Rises was developed with the notion that giving children something that is incomprehensible now, something that they’ll soon understand later in life is important. The Wind Rises chooses not to win over its audience with historical facts and accuracy, the plane that features in the film doesn’t even resemble the real Mitsubishi A6M Zero with Miyazaki himself stating that he doesn’t care to pander to aeroplane fanatics and historians. It’s ironic that a film that strives to discuss the virtues of art existing on behalf of its own merits was instead put under microscope in order to find political meaning.
The wind rises, we must try to live.
10/10
 
Cross Game END

What a fantastic ending. Kou finally reached Koushien and found a girl that will replace his dead girlfriend. I'm quite happy that I picked up this especially since I'm having doubts if this show will turn out good or not. Thankfully it did and enjoyed the show. Too bad I was hoping that there will be an epilogue on how he did in Koushien and after that...

What a month! I did a hell of a baseball anime marathon. From Ace of Diamond to Big Windup! to Cross Game. It was definitely worth it. And perfect time for MLB season tomorrow. 😁

Yeah, Mitsuru Adachi likes to end his baseball mangas when the team reach Koushien.
If you still want more baseball anime to watch, Touch is really nice.
 
JoJo P4-1

The art design was noticeably better but the animation itself was mediocre to subpar at times. There definitely needed to have been more corrections. Layouts were good though.

I would disagree here. There weren't really sakuga moments, but the character art was quite attractive thanks to Nishii's excellent designs. It's a bit painful to go back to season 1 or Stardust Crusaders and see how comparatively ugly they are.
 

Jarmel

Banned
I would disagree here. There weren't really sakuga moments, but the character art was quite attractive thanks to Nishii's excellent designs. It's a bit painful to go back to season 1 or Stardust Crusaders and see how comparatively ugly they are.

I'm not talking about the character designs themselves, which I like a lot, but there were a ton of off-model shots and some of the shots were noticeably static.
 

Jarmel

Banned
I forgot to mention that the sound direction for the first episode of JoJo seemed sharper than usual. More variety in sounds used and thought it was more effective than the norm.

Except for maybe some crowd shots I didn't notice any poor off-model art.

I'm currently traveling so I can't exactly check but I thought some shots around the time of the Jotaro/Josuke showdown looked off.
 
Hakaba Kitaro 10

Junichi Sato's direction style is quite dissimilar to this show's normal style, so this episode didn't feature as much of the sharp, angular editing and cutting of most of the other episodes. But in its own way it was very intriguing, especially in how it showed the gradual encroachment of fantasy upon reality as manga author Shigeru Mizuki's house and neighborhood is imposed upon by a horde of youkai. Starting out with fairly drab, gray urban environments and then making the colors increasingly more fantastical and sparkling as the reign of youkai grew more intense was a neat touch. I really liked the moment of the Brigadoon reversal, where Kitaro and the other youkai fade into white silhouettes and their speech becomes written instead of oral, to signify their disappearance from the land.


Due to the meta-nature of this episode I'm assuming it's at least partially anime-original instead of a direct adaptation of the manga, which makes it a great accomplishment on the part of the anime staff.
 

Cornbread78

Member
Asterix S2 ep.1
Damn, right back at it immediately. Great teamwork between the two of them to get the victory. I was actually surprised this one was all business from start to finish and no head patting, lol.
 
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