Shirobako - END
Usually I don't write long posts for anything not called Avatar The Last Airbender, but I guess I'll make an exception for Shirobako.
Came away pleasantly surprised from Shirobako. I'm not huge on the MOE art style overall, which was a bit of a turn off at first, but it grew on me.
-I really liked the use of the teddy bear and the female pirate girl as a way to explain animation concepts, and Miyamori's inner thoughts, rather than just rely on internal monologging. This is one of several cases where Shirobako goes for a more inspired route that while might not have been necessary, added a lot to the overall production.
-Continuing from that point, the fact that Miyamori (And that female office manager with one eye covered by hair) are such horrible drivers was incredibly funny. Theres absolutely no reason for it, but it adds personality to the show. A similar thing can be said for the scene where the director finally confronts the author, in what was the closest this show got to a shonen action sequence. They could have gone for a very grounded-in-reality scene, but instead made it silly. In doing so, they made it memorable.
-The cast of characters was - overall - fantastic. So many colourful individuals that gave the show personality. Mowhak guy (Tauro, I think his name was) was a good time throughout, and the director stole pretty much every scene he was in. I liked how even side characters were developed, like Goth girl (Who had a great backstory, and far more personality than I gave her credit for at first). The editor in the second season was a great "Love to hate" kind of character. And the blond production assistant was fun to watch too. Oh and old animator guy!
-The subject matter for the show (Making anime) was far more entertaining than I thought it would be. It was really cool seeing all the different parts of production. My favourite bits were when they showed incomplete scenes as a work in progress.
-Good animation all around, and character designs too.
There were some things I didn't like.
-Miyamori was a good lead, but her lack of backbone even late in the series got annoying. Seeing her get nervous over even simple things started to grate, and the fact that she didn't tell off that asshole glasses guy (Who I will get to momentarily) was a missed opportunity. Great ending speech though.
-Asshole glasses guy. Fuck this guy. I understand what they wanted to do here (Show someone who was disillusioned by the whole anime making process) but I did not enjoy watching this character at all. He was all around unpleasant, and not in a "Love to hate" kind of way. One of the best scenes in the show is when that one animator told this fucker off. He does improve by the end, but is still a big dick. Wish he had gotten fired or did a personality 180 - sort of felt like this lacked resolution.
-The animator girl who for some reason can't speak. This was stupid. I don't know what they were thinking with this character. She was horrible, not at all fun to watch.
-The discussion on 3D was good, but I felt like it sort of lacked resolution and was never really brought up again. I am a bit biased here though as I don't particularly like CG in anime, and the show was really pushing for a "Well its the future so accept in" message. Felt like they missed some opportunities here. Like, ok its the future but is that a GOOD thing?
-The discussion on "Why do I make anime?" again felt a little half baked. There was a lot of "Well... I don't know, just cause." which I have to call bullshit on. If you're gonna bring that up as a topic, you need to do something with it. The subject was seemingly dropped for most of the second your only to show itself at the end.
-I missed the baker guy in the second cour
At least he had cameos. Funny that he got skinny - a nice little detail.
-Blond production assistant's dad being sick felt irrelevant. Nothing really happens with it - she leaves for a few episodes and comes back. Sort of seemed like a plot point that went no where.
-Finally, the two shows they make are (A) a magical girls anime with a horrible art style and (B) an anime with cute, horribly designed girls flying CG airplanes. Neither appeals to me, and unfortunately that takes away from the show. Its hard for me to get attached to the struggles they were facing when I didn't really care about the product overall. One moment in particular stands out: when the director was mulling over the ending for the first show, only to come up with the most batshit stupid ending I've ever heard, somehow involving idol singing and horses. It's like... ok I want to connect with these characters trying to come up with a good ending for their show, but then they come up with this stupid ending that just devalues the whole struggle. I imagine someone who likes magical girls idol anime might feel differently about this.
So in all, I'm really happy I watched the show. It was a pleasant surprise and I feel like I have a better appreciation for the animation process now. Its not perfect, but it was a very enjoyable ride.
tl;dr Awesome show, great concept for a show, awesome characters (Except for 2), a few things I didn't like/ a few things felt a bit half baked, more plz.
