Another Monday, another general discussion thread. Feel free to ask questions, talk about things you have watched, give recommendations, etc.
As always, remember to be mindful of spoilers. If you want to know more about how to handle spoilers in this community, check the guide here (also linked in the sidebar).
I have been and continue to be traveling at the moment, so my watch time has been limited, and this post will be short. I have even fallen behind on many weekly shows that I normally watch. However, to try to restore a weary brain, I tried watching Squid Girl, and I have some thoughts.
For context, I am currently reading my way through the manga, and I absolutely love this series. It is such a silly, no-stakes SOL; which I thought would be perfect after a long day of work/travel. However, I found that the anime version just wasn’t doing it for me. I much preferred just reading a couple chapters of the manga over watching it play out on screen.
I have struggled to pinpoint what about the anime I haven’t been able to connect with. Overall, it seems like a competent adaptation. The jokes are there, the voice work seems fine, the animation doesn’t really stick out as a problem either. I suspect that it is probably just the fact that I love the manga so much that the anime was never really going to live up to that with a straightforward adaptation. It would need some kind of transformative adaptation (eg Bocchi the Rock) to make it fresh.
All that said, I think this is where I landed: if you haven’t read the Squid Girl manga, then the anime is probably going to serve its job. However, if you already know/love the manga like me, then the anime isn’t really adding anything.