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[Branduil]

The Wind Rises

As expected, the movie is quite stunning visually. There's a human warmth to the mechanical animation that really can't be reproduced in CGI. The CGI that is used(mainly for backgrounds) is used well as a supplement. It's a film that's full of all the careful attention to movement and detail that you expect from a Miyazaki film. The sound is quite weird, as you would think. It uses human voices not just for the plane engines, but for a lot of other stuff as well. I'm not sure I understand the point, or that it works all that well. The only time I liked it was during the earthquake scene. The dub was fine, especially since I didn't have to listen to Anno.

The story is exactly what you expect it to be; there aren't really any huge surprises, as far as that goes. Jiro

Spoiler

successfully builds his dream plane, obviously, and his wife tragically dies.

That Jiro's machines are going to inevitably be used for evil is a major theme of the movie, and it's mostly dealt with in the "shikata ga nai" mode of Japanese thought. This does seem like a copout, especially when Jiro is playing an active role in creating those machines, but dreamers gotta dream, I guess. You could make the same argument about Jiro's relationship with his wife, I suppose, where he doesn't truly spend as much time with her as he should. To be fair, even though Jiro is often portrayed as a really great guy(no surprise), the film doesn't exactly approve of these things. It is, as I said, viewed in a tragic "it can't be helped" manner, further supported by the repurposed "we must live" poem. That all of this can be applied to Miyazaki himself is coincidental, I'm sure. At least his sister calls him out on this!

So how is it, as a movie? Well, the story is interesting, the side characters are charming, the romance scenes are touching, and the animation is excellent. It's probably easily the best thing Miyazaki has done since Spirited Away. Is it as good as that movie? Nope. But at least he gave a crap with this one, well, other than the sound, and at least the voices were fixed in the version I saw, LOL.

Overall score,

 

[dakkumauji]

Danganronpa The Animation 13 Extended Edition

So the final episode basically got redone with extra minutes thrown in to explain stuff they didn't the first time.

It was a fun watch. It was a whole lot more enjoyable than the first time I watched it probably because I played the games a lot more recently than that time. Seeing things slightly animated was nice and the music is just as top notched.

Definitely going to get around to rewatching this one of these days.

 

[Basileus777]

People in the plural don't. DTL does. I dunno that I've seen anybody else here express enjoyment of Q-Vier.

I'm completely indifferent to that character. He wasn't any worse than most of Valvrave's cast.

Danganronpa The Animation 13 Extended Edition
Seeing things slightly animated was nice and the music is just as top notched.

Was it actually animated? My experience with the Danganronpa anime is that it was pretty much all stills and recreations of scenes from the game, but without much animation.

 

[CorvoSol]

I'm completely indifferent to that character. He wasn't any worse than most of Valvrave's cast.

My problem with him was he was the same character he was in Gundam AGE. That alone.

 

[foxuzamaki]

Samurai Flamenco Episode 1-2
Interesting concept of a show and I like where its going, im thinking lead singer is Goto's girlfriend, and Hazama going through so much trouble for so little is really endearing.

 

[cajunator]

Oh there must be someone who has destroyed numerous universes. This is anime after all.

Yes. Ifurita!

Any opinions on either Vampire Knight or Dance in the Vampire Bund?

DIVB is actually not bad. Its an interesting story.

 

[Quasar]

I'm completely indifferent to that character. He wasn't any worse than most of Valvrave's cast.

Wow. He was so bad for me that hearing his voice again in another show almost got me to drop that show.

He's pretty much my most hated anime character.

 

[CorvoSol]

Samurai Flamenco Episode 1-2
Interesting concept of a show and I like where its going, im thinking lead singer is Goto's girlfriend, and Hazama going through so much trouble for so little is really endearing.

Nearly 20 episodes later and I still think this.

Wow. He was so bad for me that hearing his voice again in another show almost got me to drop that show.

He's pretty much my most hated anime character.

I won't pretend that this wasn't part of the reason I didn't enjoy Nobunaga the Fool.

 

[Admiral Woofington]

Samurai Flamenco Episode 1-2
Interesting concept of a show and I like where its going, im thinking lead singer is Goto's girlfriend, and Hazama going through so much trouble for so little is really endearing.

Please continue to post impressions. I never tire of listening to people joining in the Flamenco Brotherhood. There's a certain episode we all love to hear about. You'll know which episode it is when you watch it.

Nearly 20 episodes later and I still think this..

Spoiler

there's been no evidence though. If I had seen her respond to a text once maybe. I don't think Goto is in an online/text relationship

 

[Crocodile]

Samurai Flamenco Episode 1-2
Interesting concept of a show and I like where its going, im thinking lead singer is Goto's girlfriend, and Hazama going through so much trouble for so little is really endearing.

Turn away now while you still have a chance!

 

[Kite]

My anime club just showed the latest Space Dandy episode in their random slot and wtf.. so this is what being on acid feels like. It was the plant planet episode, did this show improve and actually become good? I remember watching the first 3ish episodes and not being impressed at all though the ramen episode was kinda neat.

edit: Samurai Flamenco watcher here, I rage quit after a certain episode thinking it had jumped the shark. Then jumped back on when it unjumped and got back on track. What a weird fucking anime, I'm not sure what to think about it.

 

[jbug617]

Mikakunin De Shinkoukei 9

This show keeps on delivering. Mashiro and Benio drama is always great to see. Also like that Hakuya is playing a bigger part to the show compared to the beginning.

 

[CorvoSol]

Spoiler

there's been no evidence though. If I had seen her respond to a text once maybe. I don't think Goto is in an online/text relationship

Spoiler

I mean I think Goto is fucking Mari regardless of his cellphone.

 

[KirbYuuYuu]

The best way to think about Samurai Flamenco is that it is one hell of a ride.

 

[Crocodile]

My anime club just showed the latest Space Dandy episode in their random slot and wtf.. so this is what being on acid feels like. It was the plant planet episode, did this show improve and actually become good? I remember watching the first 3ish episodes and not being impressed at all though the ramen episode was kinda neat.

edit: Samurai Flamenco watcher here, I rage quit after a certain episode thinking it had jumped the shark. Then jumped back on when it unjumped and got back on track. What a weird fucking anime, I'm not sure what to think about it.

Dandy was always good but episodes 1 & 3 are probably amongst the weakest ones so far. Episodes 4 & 7 I think are the highlights but all episodes past 3 have something good-great to offer.

Also I dunno what you're talking about regarding Flamenco. At no point does it jump back over the shark in the opposite direction and back "onto the track". If anything it jumps more, bigger sharks.

 

[Admiral Woofington]

Spoiler

I mean I think Goto is fucking Mari regardless of his cellphone.

Spoiler

Ooooooooooooh. Well that I have really not much argument for besides him not seeming like the cheating type. And he let the girlfriend know via the phone and she trusted him. He even said "she knows I'd never cheat on her".

Also I dunno what you're talking about regarding Flamenco. At no point does it jump back over the shark in the opposite direction and back "onto the track". If anything it jumps more, bigger sharks.

Somebody's not a believer of the church of Mister Justice or the cult of

Spoiler

Alien Flamenco

 

[Link Man]

Shiki 10

Well, huh. This show is much more interesting when it follows the vampires rather than the humans.

 

[CorvoSol]

Spoiler

Ooooooooooooh. Well that I have really not much argument for besides him not seeming like the cheating type. And he let the girlfriend know via the phone and she trusted him. He even said "she knows I'd never cheat on her".

And you believed him?

 

[sonicmj1]

My anime club just showed the latest Space Dandy episode in their random slot and wtf.. so this is what being on acid feels like. It was the plant planet episode, did this show improve and actually become good? I remember watching the first 3ish episodes and not being impressed at all though the ramen episode was kinda neat.

Episodes 1 and 3 are my two least favorite episodes so far. Episodes 7 and 9 are my two favorites so far.

Space Dandy delivers such different things from episode to episode that it's hard to say whether it has "become good" or not, but I think it has improved. The show's overall average quality is around where the second episode is.

 

[CorvoSol]

Woof if your girlfriend suddenly told you on the phone "BTW SUPER HOT CELEB STAYING IN MY CLOSET NOW CUZ AIN'T GOT NO PLACE ELSE TO GO DONT WORRY BB I WONT CHEAT ON YOU."

Would you believe her, too?

Are you interested in being in a relationship with me? Because I know a couple people I'd like to fuck behind your back for the sake of taking advantage of your trust.

 

[madp]

Any opinions on either Vampire Knight or Dance in the Vampire Bund?

Former is bishounen reverse harem, latter is :cnet. You can do way better if you're looking for vampire anime.

 

[Branduil]

Okay so with that out of the way, time for my crackpot The Wind Rises theory that will explain The True Story™.

Jiro is a guy who lives in his own head, and indulges in escapist fantasy. We see this from the beginning with his dream about flying and meeting Caproni. He's also a guy who hates injustice, but often feels powerless to do anything about it, and so he internalizes those feelings as well. While traveling to Tokyo on a train, he has a cute encounter with a girl.

Spoiler

Suddenly, a massive earthquake rocks Tokyo. The girl is killed during the train crash.

Jiro suffers a psychotic break from this and escapes into his own dreams,

Spoiler

imagining the girl living, and himself as a hero who helps her and her family.

Years pass and Jiro is still an introverted loner designing planes for the government. Stress over the inevitable evil uses of his planes and the failure of one of his tests causes him to take a vacation. At his resort he sees a cute girl painting and later

Spoiler

finds out she is sick with tuberculosis.

He remembers the girl from the train and imagines in his fantasy that this is

Spoiler

the same girl from all those years ago, that she actually lived, and now he can fall in love with her.

Motivated by this new dream, Jiro works harder than ever on his planes, coming up with ingenious, never-been-done-before designs. Despite this, his sister is still worried about him and confronts him on

Spoiler

his delusions, but he just imagines it as concern for his (fake)wife.

With his dream plane completed, Jiro finally realizes he can live and

Spoiler

"kills off" his delusion.

His sister visits his home and when she finds the empty room with the letters "she" wrote, she realizes the depth of his

Spoiler

madness, but she's stopped from confronting him by Kurokawa's wife, who points out the content of the letters mean Jiro has ended his dream.

And then, the final proof:

Spoiler

Naoko appears in Jiro's final dream; you know, the repeated ones he also has with the fake Caproni. Her disappearance signifies both that she was never real, and that Jiro is finally able to let her go.

Further evidence: Wind is a major theme of the movie, especially the wind rising.

Spoiler

Naoko is a symbol of wind in the movie, and as is pointed out "no one has seen the wind." Naoko is the invisible(because she's not real) wind

that supports Jiro's dream.

TL;DR

Spoiler

Naoko is an imaginary waifu Jiro's mind created to help him deal with his issues

and teach him to live.

 

[KirbYuuYuu]

Woof if your girlfriend suddenly told you on the phone "BTW SUPER HOT CELEB STAYING IN MY CLOSET NOW CUZ AIN'T GOT NO PLACE ELSE TO GO DONT WORRY BB I WONT CHEAT ON YOU."

Would you believe her, too?

Are you interested in being in a relationship with me? Because I know a couple people I'd like to fuck behind your back for the sake of taking advantage of your trust.

This thread is going places that I never expected

 

[foxuzamaki]

Samurai Flamenco Episode 3
That ended surprisingly nicely, I was just waiting for the camera crew to suddely shine a light on the 2 while they were on the stage at any moment, but his identity is still safe for now.
I am just wondering how can anything really "jump the shark" out of this show so far, guess it will make it that much more interesting when I get to it.

 

[Gazoinks]

Spoiler

Ooooooooooooh. Well that I have really not much argument for besides him not seeming like the cheating type. And he let the girlfriend know via the phone and she trusted him. He even said "she knows I'd never cheat on her".

Spoiler

I am pretty sure Goto's girlfriend is a figment of his imagination. Or Masayoshi in a wig.

IN MARGINALLY LESS SILLY NEWS

Gintama 65

I am glad they took this joke as far as they did

Man, this episode was wacky. The animation also felt a lot more exaggerated and lively than usual. Kondo might be my favorite character outside of the core cast, I hope he gets an arc at some point.

And yes, this is less silly than Samurai Flamenco.

This thread is going places that I never expected

Anime brings people together

 

[cajunator]

Former is bishounen reverse harem, latter is :cnet. You can do way better if you're looking for vampire anime.

They could watch Tsukuyomi Moonphase instead.

 

[Admiral Woofington]

And you believed him?

Woof if your girlfriend suddenly told you on the phone "BTW SUPER HOT CELEB STAYING IN MY CLOSET NOW CUZ AIN'T GOT NO PLACE ELSE TO GO DONT WORRY BB I WONT CHEAT ON YOU."

Would you believe her, too?

Are you interested in being in a relationship with me? Because I know a couple people I'd like to fuck behind your back for the sake of taking advantage of your trust.

lol. Either ways I guess this depends on your interpretation of relationships and trust. I'm on the other side. Basically I'm Princess Tutu bro, you're the crow princess.

Spoiler

I am pretty sure Goto's girlfriend is a figment of his imagination. Or Masayoshi in a wig.

Maybe. But even then

Spoiler

everybody else thinks she exists. I have no evidence to suggest he fucked her, we'll find out by the end

I want to start a betting pool. Losing party has to watch any show winner suggests.

 

[foxuzamaki]

Former is bishounen reverse harem, latter is :cnet. You can do way better if you're looking for vampire anime.

lol I read the dance of the vampire bund like a year ago out of pure curiosity, the original draw was probably the loli but the main climaxes is when she goes into her true form which is a grown ass literally naked 100% of the time woman. It's kinda funny.

 

[Link Man]

They could watch Tsukuyomi Moonphase instead.

Oh you.

 

[Vincent Alexander]

Edited

 

[Jintor]

Corvo's magical girl form would be the Crow Princess, wouldn't it

 

[madp]

They could watch Tsukuyomi Moonphase instead.

Dracula: Sovereign of the Damned should be at the top of any vampire fan's "to watch" list.

Corvo's magical girl form would be the Crow Princess, wouldn't it

He's already a minor character in Sailor Moon. Rei has two pet ravens named Deimos and Phobos.

 

[KirbYuuYuu]

Spoiler

I am pretty sure Goto's girlfriend is a figment of his imagination. Or Masayoshi in a wig.

IN MARGINALLY LESS SILLY NEWS

Gintama 65


Man, this episode was wacky. The animation also felt a lot more exaggerated and lively than usual. Kondo might be my favorite character outside of the core cast, I hope he gets an arc at some point.

And yes, this is less silly than Samurai Flamenco.

I would say soon for Kondo. He'll appear in an upcoming arc in the 70s, and there will be another arc as well.

 

[foxuzamaki]

Should I also point that I feel samurai flamenco also has some subtle yaoiness to it between hazama and goto?

 

[PshycoNinja]

There aren't many things that can't get me to truly detest a character because the medium wants you to so it can evoke an emotion from people. (In a good way. You aren't supposed to like people like this)

This dude is one of those characters. Up there with Master Xehanort from KH.

 

[Basileus777]

Former is bishounen reverse harem, latter is :cnet. You can do way better if you're looking for vampire anime.

Are there really many worthwhile vampire anime?

 

[Link Man]

Are there really many worthwhile vampire anime?

Monogatari series.

 

[Admiral Woofington]

Should I also point that I feel samurai flamenco also has some subtle yaoiness to it between hazama and goto?

It's almost as big as the sexual tension in Sherlock.

 

[madp]

Are there really many worthwhile vampire anime?

Hellsing Ultimate, Vampire Princess (or was it Kyuuketsuhime?) Miyu, Blood-C, and Shiki are, to my knowledge, varying degrees of enjoyable.

madp personal note: I still like the actual Hellsing TV series, even if no one else does.

 

[Basileus777]

Monogatari series.

I'm not sure I'd call that a vampire anime. Actual vampire stuff doesn't happen very often.

Hellsing Ultimate, Vampire Princess (or was it Kyuuketsuhime?) Miyu, Blood-C, and Shiki are, to my knowledge, varying degrees of enjoyable.

madp personal note: I still like the actual Hellsing TV series, even if no one else does.

Miyu is worth watching? Maybe I should add that to the backlog.

 

[PshycoNinja]

Are there really many worthwhile vampire anime?

Rosario + Vampire?

 

[KirbYuuYuu]

Rosario + Vampire?

He said worthwhile

 

[foxuzamaki]

It's almost as big as the sexual tension in Sherlock.

Knew it.

 

[cajunator]

Oh you.

What? I was serious.

Rosario + Vampire?

Mizore <3

 

[CorvoSol]

This thread is going places that I never expected

Wanna cheat on Woof with me? He totally bought that whole "I wouldn't cheat on you!" thing. Just, take a number, okay. I have to first have sex with my actually real girlfriend who is definitely not just a cellphone.

lol. Either ways I guess this depends on your interpretation of relationships and trust. I'm on the other side. Basically I'm Princess Tutu bro, you're the crow princess.



Maybe. But even then

Spoiler

everybody else thinks she exists. I have no evidence to suggest he fucked her, we'll find out by the end

I want to start a betting pool. Losing party has to watch any show winner suggests.

I will take the avatar bet that we never see Goto's girlfriend.

Corvo's magical girl form would be the Crow Princess, wouldn't it

I can't see myself spinning so I don't know if I'd ever be a magical girl.

 

[Gazoinks]

I can't see myself spinning so I don't know if I'd ever be a magical girl.

You watched Utena, you know there are many ways of transforming into a magical girl! Do you live near a really long staircase?

 

[Admiral Woofington]

I just realized that as a fan of Valkyrian Chronicles I have never seen the anime. I hear complaints about it compared to the game, which is to be expected, but I'm curious since it's decently high ranked in MAL.

Also I watched way too many shows today.

Library War: Series Thoughts

I don't have much to say. Probably cause I've done too many reviews for me today. But I really enjoyed it. The Fahrenheit 451 inspiration is made really obvious in an episode and I cracked a smile over it. The characters weren't particularly outstanding but they acted as mediums for the situation at hand, and seeing them evolve bit by bit was entertaining.

The series leads were great. The Lovely Complex comparisson wasn't too far off lol. The romance was very... mature? Yeah let's go with that. It wasn't sappy high school blushing (well a bit at first), and the evolution of it was done well. Up next I have the film, will probably watch it tomorrow.

 

[KirbYuuYuu]

Wanna cheat on Woof with me? He totally bought that whole "I wouldn't cheat on you!" thing. Just, take a number, okay. I have to first have sex with my actually real girlfriend who is definitely not just a cellphone.

 

[zeroshiki]

Okay so with that out of the way, time for my crackpot The Wind Rises theory that will explain The True Story™.

:lol I think I'll go with this interpretation next time someone asks me.

Can't say I agree with you on the sound since its not really something you notice unless you go in looking for it. Miyazaki was trying to go for a classic feel and I don't think it added or detracted to the movie in any meaningful way.

As for the story proper, I don't think its the "shikata ga nai" mindset that is the problem (although this is a common Japanese theme). In fact, they go out of their way to show that the world is NOT "shikata ga nai" and you can do stuff if you set your mind to it (Jiro becoming an engineer and building the best fighter plane ever etc). Its the other thing, the crazed devotion to work and perfection that is expected of the Japanese that is the main theme that permeates the movie that everyone takes as face value and chokes up foreigners/non-crazy people. Its not something you can't help since its something they actively go towards.

 

[Branduil]

I just can't help chain-smoking 50 cigarettes a day.