Welcome to another general discussion thread! Feel free to use this thread to talk about things you have watched recently, questions you have, or recommendations you want to give!
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I don’t know if it counts but I did watch all of Lord of Mysteries Season 1.
A while back I lamented on this community that I had tried and failed to get into Steins;Gate. Well, I gave it another shot and will say - it does get pretty good, eventually. Things start to feel more intriguing around episodes 8 or 9, and by episode 12/13 the tone shifts dramatically. That was the point where I started to actually feel invested.
The thing about Rintaro is that he comes off as a dick for quite a while. His positive attributes don’t really start to show until later (though maybe on a rewatch I’d be more able to see glimpses of that). I also found some of the humor, particularly concerning Daru, to be unfunny and at times off-putting. It does find it’s footing though and the build to the finale was really exciting.
Ultimately, I’m glad I came back around on this one and gave it a second shot. To quote Mayuri, do do doooo🎵.
Having wrapped that up I scrolled through my to-watch list in search of something short and sweet, and settled on Puella Magi Madoka Magica. Ah, this will surely be a delightfully positive palette cleanser! Kidding, obviously, but I had been curious about this show for a while and this felt like the right week to dive in. I’ll likely finish the series tonight or tomorrow.
Honestly, I like it a lot! Yes - it’s “the dark magical girl show”, but it doesn’t even feel as dark as I was personally bracing for. Like I would not say that it is edgy just for edginess sake. I also just really adore the creative, mixed-media approach to the presentation of the witches and their labyrinths.
Next I have queued up: Serial Experiments Lain. This one doesn’t seem to be readily available on any streaming sites but I found a copy on the Internet Archive. The quality seems kind of dodgy but otherwise it’s probably fine?
The only show I’m watching in the current season is DanDaDan, which I’ll just say is still amazing and I’m so looking forward to the next couple episodes. I hope the wait for the next season isn’t terribly long because that builds into my favorite arc of the manga.
Honestly, I like it a lot! Yes - it’s “the dark magical girl show”, but it doesn’t even feel as dark as I was personally bracing for. Like I would not say that it is edgy just for edginess sake. I also just really adore the creative, mixed-media approach to the presentation of the witches and their labyrinths.
Yeah, Madoka itself knew just exactly where to draw the line on the dark/horror aspects. There were a couple of other series that tried to piggyback on its success (Magical Girl Raising Project, I think, and at least one other) that were not so careful and ended up getting pretty gory.
Next I have queued up: Serial Experiments Lain. This one doesn’t seem to be readily available on any streaming sites but I found a copy on the Internet Archive. The quality seems kind of dodgy but otherwise it’s probably fine?
It’s possible that no one has the license for Lain right now. It’s an old series—I have it on Pioneer-branded VHS tapes (from before their anime division rebranded as Geneon), which means my copy is more than 20 years old and I’m not sure if it ever made it to DVD. I think we may actually have overrun the “near future” time period in which it’s supposed to take place.
I’m not sure if it ever made it to DVD.
It did. I have a DVD copy in a box somewhere.
and by episode 12/13 the tone shifts dramatically. That was the point where I started to actually feel invested.
I dropped it at episode 11. Looks like I gotta pick it up again - after I run out of things to watch.
Lol, you really did pick the worst point to drop it. IMO the show gets exciting at the end of episode 12.
Haha. Yeah 100%.
Binged two longer series last week.
First, I finally watched one of the series I’d been saving because I already knew it was good - Oshi no Ko. And yes, it really is as good as its reputation says. It’s an odd series though, because it’s very well done and engaging all along the way - particularly the characters - but if you pull all the way back from the details and just look at the basic premise, I don’t think it holds up all that well. It’s all just a bit too contrived. Still very good though, and really, I’d probably watch it just for Kana.
Then, looking for something completely different, I finally watched Toradora, which was… weird. It started off well enough. It moved slowly, but the characters were all interesting and I could see them growing, albeit slowly. But then starting immediately after Taiga’s fight with the President, it went badly sideways. They obviously changed it up dramatically then - it even got a new OP and ED. But more to the point, it went from slowly and steadily developing the characters to just heaving some seemingly random bit of dissociated plot in the general direction of the audience, then not even bothering to resolve anything before rushing on to the next random bit of dissociated plot. So it just became incoherent and ultimately unsatisfying - instead of a steady progression of character growth, it was just a jumble of sudden and inexplicable changes. Shame too - I was impressed up until then.
but if you pull all the way back from the details and just look at the basic premise, I don’t think it holds up all that well
I think this is symptomatic of the mangaka’s strengths and weaknesses. IMO Aka is really good at writing fun characters and putting them in interesting and funny situations. Also IMO he’s kind of bad at writing serious plot stuff. I didn’t like the plot of Oshi no Ko, but overall I enjoyed reading it anyways.
If Oshi no Ko S3 stops where I think it would stop, I’d watch no further than that point. Mengo’s art carried this series. Aka could never end it strongly.
That tracks.
As I hinted at, I was especially impressed by Kana. She’s become a terrific character, and obviously because the mangaka has lavished attention on her.and has really satisfyingly mapped out her personality - the combination of strengths and weaknesses and fears and hopes that make her the person she is. Ditto Akane - she hasn’t gotten quite the attention, so not quite the development, but is still very pleasantly well-developed. And Miyako has been a pleasant surprise - she almost seemed like a throwaway character at first, but instead she stuck around and has really blossomed. And so on - even characters like Melt and Frill get satisfying development.
And meanwhile, the whole murder mystery plot, harrowing though it seems it should be, keeps fading into the background, and only moving in fits and starts.
I definitely enjoyed it, and the quality is undeniable, but it just has an odd imbalance to it.
Have you watched or read Kaguya-sama: Love is War? It’s from the same mangaka so the same caveats apply, except that because there’s less of the serious stuff and more of the really good character stuff and silly stuff his strong points can shine more and his weaknesses are emphasized less. Overall I liked it even more than Oshi no Ko.
Huh.
No - actually I’ve avoided it. I read the first few chapters when they were released and thought they were meh, and then when people started to rave about it, it triggered my contrariness, and I wrote it off as likely overhyped mediocrity - pabulum for the masses.
I might have to tamp down my reflexive disdain for it snd check it out…
I’d recommend it. If you read the first handful of chapters and think that you’ve got a general idea of what the series has to offer, I assure you that’s just the setup for an amazingly fun story. The anime adaptation is also pretty great.
Just finished watching Princess Jellyfish last week. It was super fun; I’ll definitely have to give the manga a look since it’s clear from the episode count and volume count that the anime doesn’t cover anywhere near the full contents of the manga. I love the way Mayaya moves/is!
I completed Bakemonogatari last week.
I found it way too similar to Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai (or perhaps the other way round since the Monogatari series got published first).
The themes are similar: supernatural phenomenons, suspense and coming-of-age. But what made the similarities stood out are the characters and their story arcs.
mild spoiler for Bakemonogatari and Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai
The protagonists of both series are seemingly normal dudes who are in fact carrying hidden burdens. They both saved girls afflicted with supernatural effects and ended up going out with each other thereafter, early in the series. Both main girls are strong with a cold, logical exterior but are also very loving towards the protagonists in their own ways.
After handling the first incident, the troubles continue. More girls (for whatever reason, it’s always girls) continue to be affected and the MCs play the role of the knight in shining armour coming to their rescue.
In either case, at least one of these girls is a junior of the protagonist. At least one girl cannot be seen by anyone but the protagonist. At least one of these girls would fall in love with the MC after the MC is already in a relationship, causing a supernatural phenomenon.
Given how similar they have been, I won’t be surprised if there’s an arc involving Araragi Koyomi’s family. In fact, the potential trouble has been alluded to when Araragi was being avoidant of his family on Mother’s day.
My favourite arc is Mayoi Snail.
Bakemonogatari spoiler
There have been plenty of clues that something is up - such that one can make a fair guess at what’s going on - but the twist still felt so well-executed regardless.
Overall I rate Bakemonogatari one point lower than Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai - 8 / 10 - because this protagonist exudes too much loser aura.
This may be because of selective memory but it feels like male protagonists of older anime series tend to be on the denser, weaker side of things. I prefer the current era of protagonists who have more self-confidence.
I watched Bakemonogatari first (well, the entire Monogatari Series) then Bunny Girl Senpai. I was surprised by the similarities. I prefer Bakemonogatari just because it’s more enjoyable to watch thanks to the unique animation style.
Go watch the rest of it :D The rest of the series doesn’t follow the same formula or structure as Bakemonogatari
This may be because of selective memory but it feels like male protagonists of older anime series tend to be on the denser, weaker side of things. I prefer the current era of protagonists who have more self-confidence.
The original Evangelion TV series started a fashion for wimpy loser male MCs. I’m also glad that it seems to have at least somewhat run its course.
