As someone that burns out easily on comedy shows, even those I like, this was just a pleasure throughout. It never felt repetitive as the cast was large and varied enough to support different forms of humor. Direction was great too in that it was constantly visually interesting in-between the humor. Great stuff.
Thanks for bullying me into watching this, Mature.
You hit the nail on the head when you point out that Soremachi is never repetitive, as that is one of its biggest advantages compared to most comedy. I know you don't read manga much, but if you ever get a hankering, the manga continues after what was adapted, and it's just as good.
This is good. Like really, really good. I can't say I was expecting it, as I've only heard praise about the show, but it absolutely manages to live up to the expectations. It follows a weekly story format with a rather unique way. And the story setting is a uni. I'm really impressed with how captivating every story is so far and all of them are about the same thing, but they present it in very different ways. Humor is on the point always too. I really want how the main plot will conclude, as every character is really sketchy at the role they have in the story. And the show's artstyle is great, I was afraid this would be a turn off but I love it. The show certainly gives a Monogatari vibe, but there aren't any Shaft cliches in this as far as I can tell. I'm not sure if the reason is the quick pace, the art style or the fact that Ozu reminds me Ougi.
The OP is awesome too. The song is from the same guys that made Erased's OP song, which I really like.
As someone that burns out easily on comedy shows, even those I like, this was just a pleasure throughout. It never felt repetitive as the cast was large and varied enough to support different forms of humor. Direction was great too in that it was constantly visually interesting in-between the humor. Great stuff.
Thanks for bullying me into watching this, Mature.
I was a bit worried whether the show would keep it's quality in the second season but man, it's been great so far.
It's very rare for me to watch 25 eps of one show in ten days in recent times, but here I am.
The thriller aspect is in identifying a clue that points towards who the suspect is(in his present time). How he catches him using that clue rests on his "revival" ability, at least I'm assuming it will happen again, it wouldn't be much of a thriller if it weren't for that.
Drama and human connection did happen in episodes 2-4. I could really connect with Satoru throughout those episodes and it did have some intense moments, well executed.
I do agree with you on how information was presented though, it all feels a tad convoluted. They tried to pull off a Hyouka-style 'crime recreation animation' in one scene this episode but it had little significance.
Just tying clues to a conclusion feels like a straight (and poorly managed) mystery to me. I can't really think of any scenes in the last few episodes that have some kind of gripping intensity, or that really emphasize the danger presented by the antagonist.
I don't really think it's okay for drama and human connection to leave a story. I don't really understand a connection or relation to Satoru to begin with though, and his personality has a tendency to feel as empty as the fronts put on by the Super Sentai heroes he's drawn against. I find Erased to be a mess thematically. Drowning out a train of though about child abuse with lousy stuff about corruption in the government and misplaced guilt is a snoozefest, particularly when Erased doesn't have any strong or distinct thoughts about the latter.
Amazing. Akashi is the best. And hey, the show isn't as fast as people made it out to be. I can follow the subs, nothing like trying to read the walls of text in Monogatari.
So, Crimson Moon decided to, wait for it, actually move the plot forward. Seimei finally returns, and basically suffers throughout the entire episode. At one point asking her grandfather to kill her so she won't lose control of her powers and kill them all.
And it's just....ugh.
It's not good writing when people are constantly mentioning how Seimei has great power, but she loses all the fights she's in. Or she runs away from them.
In fact, outside of the first episode, I don't think she's defeated a single horror.
So been thinking about Erased and what I find so lacking and ultimately I think it's trying to be too many things and ultimately failing at everything. I'm starting to suspect that part of this is due to the increased pacing in the anime which seems to be just truncating everything.
It flat out fails as a mystery. Who is there to suspect at this point? We know the murderer is a male so Kayo's mother is left out. There isn't an actual list of people that Satoru is investigating. Not to mention the show pretty much gives away the answer just due to the lack of an expanded ensemble. So why is the show even bothering to hide the identity of the killer at this point?
Then the second aspect it fails at is being a thriller. There's no real sense Satoru is in danger and the Revival aspect undercuts events that happen around him, especially in the future, as it's just going to get overwritten anyway. If there was some sort of limitation on the Revival, I might be more accepting of it. Instead it's like watching someone play a VN and seeing them waste hours on the Dead End which might be fine if the material in the Dead End was well written or gripping in some fashion. The lack of perspective from other sides hurts the show as the tone comes off more as laidback rather than anything resembling tension. There's also flat out poorly written characters like the manager, who is extraneous to begin with.
Having someone competent on the police force and possibly seeing their perspective, would have made the show vastly more entertaining for example. Seeing the killer's perspective could have had a similar effect. However as it stands I'm watching a bunch of bumbling idiots trip over themselves with infinite lives in the counter.
Erased - 6 or I've finally watch this week's episode and I can finally start posting again!
Good episode but I think it shows the biggest weakness the present has compared to the past and that's there is limited characters Satoru has access to. I definitely prefer the past because he has his classmate, Yukio, the teacher and his mum but in the present he's only interacting with Airi. At least
we're finally heading back to the past so next week's episode should be great.
I kind of wonder how Monster's reception would have been on GAF if it was airing now
Good choice. Great core characters and relationship with some fantastic character design and soundtrack. Sadly, the writing does takes a dip every now and then :/
Hm well I'm enjoying it two episodes in, might take it nice and slowly like I am with Shirokuma Cafe (Started that in February last year and only upto episode 20) Doesn't seem like a series I need to keep fresh in my mind of the events that transpired a few episodes back.
Assassination Classroom - Ep 4,5
I think the show starts growing on me, might as well keep watching.
The op however didn't, it's one of the few op I skip.
This was probably one of the quickest power up beating I've seen, and it was quite gruesome.
From being well matched, to completely destroy with headbutting, stomping, sling throwing and thunderpunching the shit out of your opponent.
When the soundtrack kicked in you knew shit was going down!
So been thinking about Erased and what I find so lacking and ultimately I think it's trying to be too many things and ultimately failing at everything. I'm starting to suspect that part of this is due to the increased pacing in the anime which seems to be just truncating everything.
It flat out fails as a mystery. Who is there to suspect at this point? We know the murderer is a male so Kayo's mother is left out. There isn't an actual list of people that Satoru is investigating. Not to mention the show pretty much gives away the answer just due to the lack of an expanded ensemble. So why is the show even bothering to hide the identity of the killer at this point?
Then the second aspect it fails at is being a thriller. There's no real sense Satoru is in danger and the Revival aspect undercuts events that happen around him, especially in the future, as it's just going to get overwritten anyway. If there was some sort of limitation on the Revival, I might be more accepting of it. Instead it's like watching someone play a VN and seeing them waste hours on the Dead End which might be fine if the material in the Dead End was well written or gripping in some fashion. The lack of perspective from other sides hurts the show as the tone comes off more as laidback rather than anything resembling tension. There's also flat out poorly written characters like the manager, who is extraneous to begin with.
Having someone competent on the police force and possibly seeing their perspective, would have made the show vastly more entertaining for example. Seeing the killer's perspective could have had a similar effect. However as it stands I'm watching a bunch of bumbling idiots trip over themselves with infinite lives in the counter.
What you complain about wouldn't really be solved by giving the anime more episodes. Really, the whole problem is that the series could be really interesting if it focused more on character development - expand more on Satoru's relationship with Kayo and his other childhood friends, delve more into the themes of what you don't appreciate growing up that time helps you appreciate - those sorts of things that were touched on in the 1988 segments were quite lovely. Only go back to the present of 2006 when you can do some meaningful character work with people who are present in both times. "Revival" should have only been used once, instead of relied upon multiple times. But instead the series wants to be this third-rate "exciting" thriller, and so the effort put into aspects of it ultimately seems like a waste. As you mention, the mystery is pretty simple and not worth emphasizing to the exclusion of all else, let alone having some silly The Fugitive rip-off.
At this rate, it looks like Erased will be Taku Kishimoto's first big dud, which is unfortunate. Hopefully Joker Game will be better.
Kikuhiko has found his style of Rakugo. Man these last few episodes have been excellent. I do sense like there will be some drama because of the girl though.
All the best characters in ERASED are in the past. In the present, we have a shadowy businessman who is shadowy, a journalist who changes his mind at the drop of a hat, and a pizza hut manager.
Airi is okay, but she's connected to her father's ridiculous story.
Wow is this anime ever good. It hits everything right. Personally I've never watched much sports anime and never thought a show about boxing could be so good. The animation is a bit dated since it aired back in 2000 but the art style is great and still holds up today. The characters are where this show really shines, every new person is unique and interesting. The fights are very intense and it keeps you on the edge not knowing what could happen. So far I'm at 45 and I'm looking forward to watching the rest including the other seasons. I highly recommend it if you don't mind older animation.
Kikuhiko has found his style of Rakugo. Man these last few episodes have been excellent. I do sense like there will be some drama because of the girl though.
I've said this elsewhere, but I'm afraid that this show might be heading down the same path as Michael Bay's Pearl Harbor, as far as it pertains to romantic themes.
I think i could give the tsundere stuff a pass if it wasn't for the fact that she is literally abusing an animal with sharp scissors constantly. Not to mention constantly tying him up and literally smacking him.
Well, that was some damn good closure to thus ride. I love the "against all odds" mentality of those final episodes. Not only from William and Emma, but also from Mr. Jounes as well. That epilogue scene
when he tells Mr.Campbell off was great. He finally stands up for William and sees it his way, beautiful.
The historical foreshadowing of that moment was really good too. And that ending; my goodness it was beautiful writing. It ended completely different from the way I was expecting.
The sad undertones of the series had me fooled, I had no idea they would end up together, I thought it was inevitable they wouldn't be able to solve the social issues and make it work, but William manned up and eased Emma's concerns in regards to that as well as the fear of William wavering in his feelings for her.
I got a hand it to yeah, John Blade, at times it is kinda slow paced, but it's definitely a worthwhile experience in the end.
Anyway, with that being said, why is Hakim still there, lol. He was a great best bro..
Sorry for not seeing this but glad you like the show. If you have the chance, try to read the manga or the creator other work which is all in the manga. She have a keen eye and I do like her work. If you read manga, go look into Otoyomegatari as this is her current work under Manga which is interesting to read if you have the chance.
I think i could give the tsundere stuff a pass if it wasn't for the fact that she is literally abusing an animal with sharp scissors constantly. Not to mention constantly tying him up and literally smacking him.
All the best characters in ERASED are in the past. In the present, we have a shadowy businessman who is shadowy, a journalist who changes his mind at the drop of a hat, and a pizza hut manager.
Airi is okay, but she's connected to her father's ridiculous story.
What you complain about wouldn't really be solved by giving the anime more episodes. Really, the whole problem is that the series could be really interesting if it focused more on character development - expand more on Satoru's relationship with Kayo and his other childhood friends, delve more into the themes of what you don't appreciate growing up that time helps you appreciate - those sorts of things that were touched on in the 1988 segments were quite lovely. Only go back to the present of 2006 when you can do some meaningful character work with people who are present in both times. "Revival" should have only been used once, instead of relied upon multiple times. But instead the series wants to be this third-rate "exciting" thriller, and so the effort put into aspects of it ultimately seems like a waste. As you mention, the mystery is pretty simple and not worth emphasizing to the exclusion of all else, let alone having some silly The Fugitive rip-off.
At this rate, it looks like Erased will be Taku Kishimoto's first big dud, which is unfortunate. Hopefully Joker Game will be better.
The reason I think more episodes might have helped is that I'm assuming there are more details in the manga that could flesh things out and have them make sense. Yes it's a rather big assumption on my part but the show's writing feels so undercooked at times that I have to wonder whether the pacing is to blame in that they need to wrap the story up and can't be bogged down in details.
Also more time spent in the past could have expanded the ensemble cast and actually have time to set up more suspects. Seeing Billy Bob the Janitor lurking around could make things less obvious while also tying into Satoru investigating everybody.
