Any anime fans?

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Not liking those things would certainly reduce your choices significantly. For my part, those alone don't suffice to get me interested in a show. I couldn't get into Strike Witches or Sacred Blacksmith because I didn't find the characters compelling.

Fixes... or makes worse?

I'm tempted to skip her scenes because they've turned from being mostly crying to mostly yelling at everyone, but I may miss important plot points.

She has a lot of significance to the plot, you just have to pay attention.

There is a 46 minute GJ Club special, which is great. And yes the best character shows up.

http://www.anime44.com/category/berserk ahh a nice classic!

So, they're making a live-action movie of Recently, My Sister is Unusual. Interesting choice. Trailer NSFW, but in an intriguing twist, subtitled in English:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a0ok_g65cQk[/youtube]

Wow. I guess the above post answers my earlier question...

Each to their own...

Moving swiftly on...

Seirei no Moribito continues to be a stirring watch. A friend got me to watch episode 3 in English and it was a rather pleasant surprise to hear Mona Marshall and Cindy Robinson, I've liked those two for a long time. Production I.G. really pushed the boat out working on a tv budget so kudos to them - it's like watching an animated version of those Chinese epics that were popular a few years ago, or a historical Edo drama.

Rowdy Sumo Wrestler Matsutaro was definetly worth sticking with in my opinion since he finally got his comeuppance for behaving badly without consequence in the first three episodes. Definetely very old-school since it takes a while for the plot to get going but I suppose nostalgia from watching ancient-by-today's-standards-anime Chibi Maruko-chan , Lupin III and Baka no Papa when I was in Yokohama is playing a hand.

I'm slightly annoyed at Sentai Filmworks for splitting From the New World in half since it's a very short series at any rate, but I suppose when a certain midwinter event takes places can be considered a break-point since there's a time skip just afterwards. Still good oh.

I actually wrote a reply to your previous question already, directly below it. Now I feel like that was a waste of my electrons.

TL;DR version: sorry, overlooked your reply. Slightly frustrated at feeling left out but it can't be helped so don't worry about it. Live and let live.


Please forgive my overlooking your post; I thought it was aimed at someone else on an unrelated matter as you do tend to chime in a lot (not a criticism, just an observation) and I didn't see any direct reference to me in there, like a quote or something.

Regardless, I guess frustration got the better of me so I do very much apologise for my outburst. I guess feel frustrated because I can't chime in with (paraphrasing here) "that was cute" or "so-and-so fufilled my moe quota" or what have you on stuff like that Acchi Kochi and things like that. Don't get me wrong, I'm not condemning anyone's tastes here. Nor am I trying to impose some silly "you must like what I like" regimens; that'd be absolutely ridiculous.

I have honestly tried to see the charm in the likes of Non Non Byori, Sakura Trick, Yuri-Yuri, Manga-ka and Assistant... But I just personally don't enjoy watching things like that where nothing interesting happens (that appeals to me personally; I just don't understand the appeal of little girls/naked women - not said as a criticism, more like total confusion - especially with out-of-place fanservice scenes ala Sankarea or Elfen Leid).

Again, not saying anyone's wrong to like that sort of material or that nobody should watch or talk about it ever. We're all entitled to our tastes, right? So I guess what I'm trying to say, (without writing an essay about it), is could we have a slightly broader perspective on anime? It's actually thanks to some people on here I tried out and broadened my horizons anime-wise - I'm very grateful for the suggestions of Black Rock Shooter, Kokoro Connect, Hataraki Man and the like last year. And I would honestly like to learn more and hear about what people think, not for my own sake, but just generally speaking. What do you like? What do you dislike? What makes a series so good to watch? And so on. Not asking for essays, but merely something we can all learn from and reap something positive from.

However, it feels like there's a very strong bias at the moment towards that cutesy moe stuff (Love Live! Soul Eater NOT) or straight up otaku-stroking (No Game, No Life) Or if not that, the typical material that the US had first in the late 90s/early 00s and such material left a very big impression on people at a young age (Cowboy Bebop, Trigun, Magic Knights Rayearth) so they've grown up with it, or at least got wind of because 'that's normal' or whatever. So for those of us who didn't grow up with that stuff, or think so similarily inclined are totally left out.

As we all know, it's difficult enough out there in the neurotypical world to fit in - so I guess I was just scared of being an iconoclast even here because I seem to be all by myself in my anime tastes. I can't speak for other people so forgive me if it sounds like I'm going on about what I want. Anime is a really diverse medium after all; it just needs talking about, that's all.

Still, in any event, I'm sorry if what I said irked some people - it wasn't a form of attack, nor was it intended to be. Just frustrated rambling.

Please do carry on.

-----

On that vein, slightly apprehensive about the dub of The Devil is a Part-Timer but I'm still getting it on DVD as it's one of the best slice-of-life supernatural comedies I've seen (nice balance between the genres, not as much out-of-place fanservice as I feared and very nice characterisation as Satan and Emilia settle into Japanese society). And I want to support the fledgling anime studio White Fox as they did spectacularily with Steins;Gate.

And bizarrely, Disney have announced all of a sudden they're dubbing Doraemon's 2005 series this summer... Source: http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/20 ... his-summer

No idea what prompted that, but oh well. Stranger things have happened.

Hey, BlankCanvas, you said you liked Black Rock Shooter, have you tried out Selector Infected WIXOSS, as far as a card battle anime goes it seems to have gone down a similar path. It is not like the usual shows about card battles, for one it does not have battles for filling time. Is actually a psychological show.
[youtube]http://youtube.com/watch?v=rzY7qyXEBSI[/youtube]
It has been having a similar effect on me really enjoying the despair, which I did with BRS. Apparently the same Script writer, although she has also been doing work on M3, and that has been having trouble with making the main characters interesting, although it is starting to improve.

i finally finished Tatami Galaxy! i really enjoyed it. Next up I will try to tackle Bokurano.


Also, BlankCanvas, I saw your first post where you were a bit frustrated the other day, and was going to reply because i have been feeling similar these days, but just never got around to it. i use tumblr more than this site but it seems like whenever i am looking for anime recommendations, my friends almost unanimously suggest the same moe/slice of life/whatever tumblr is currently collectively going nuts over and it is very annoying. i am not totally against this style, and can enjoy it in very small doses but since it is very 'in' at the moment, it makes it hard to find things i would rather be watching.

here are a few things that maybe will be interesting to you. i am not very good at describing but i'll try:

Mononoke. 12 episode anime that includes 5 different story arcs, each at 2 or 3 episodes long. the art style is incredibly detailed, colorful, and overall pretty amazing. follows the travels of the Medicine Seller as he encounters and strives to exorcise various spirits. before he can do this however, he must find out the "form", "truth" and "regret" of each spirit. in doing this, the story lines always get a lot more interesting/complex and you get to find out the motivations of the other more minor characters.

Alien Nine. first off the art style might be off-putting, i know i was really hesitant because of it, but i urge you to check this one out. it is a lot darker than the style suggests, and only 4 episodes long. the main character, yuri ootani, is chosen by her classmates to be part of the 'Alien Party', a team of 3 students who are responsible for capturing any aliens who happen to land on the school premises. all three girls are aided by 'borg', strange symbiotic lifeforms that resemble winged helmets, which they must wear daily(? i think it was). less plot-driven, and more...focused on how the girls, especially yuri, are affected by such responsibilities and of course, uh, the aliens.

alright, it is thundering outside so i'm trying to wrap this up, and also i'm running low on brain-power

higurashi no naku koro ni. art style: i'll be blunt. hideous. very moe. once again the story balances it out though. horror/time-traveling anime. 6 different arcs. personally don't care for most of the characters, but the strange violent deaths they all eventually succumb to keeps me watching. soundtrack: really adds to the atmosphere, good OP and ED. some of the violence is hard to stomach, but i wouldn't call it 'torture porn'.

nekojiru-sou 32 min OVA. directed by masaaki yuasa. surreal, almost no dialogue. follows two cats, a brother trying to find his sisters soul. very visual, some bit disturbing parts/characters. one of those "you have to see it to understand" films i suppose.

paranoia agent directed by satoshi kon. perfect soundtrack (by susumu hirasawa), different directors each episode. plot: trying to find mysterious "shounen bat" who has been attacking people around the city. gets stranger/more surreal as plot progresses. highly recommend

aku no hana personally, i do not recommend this but apparently lots of people liked it. 13 episodes. most interesting point for me was style: rotoscoping. "dark" storyline, following love-triangle between main boy character and two girl characters. one girl mysterious, loner. the other popular, kind, etc. the main character is blackmailed into entering a 'contract' with the mysterious girl, must do whatever she says otherwise she'll expose him as a pervert who stole the other girls gym clothes. the OP and ED were favorite parts for me. overall however, thought was very boring, stupid. especially the last episode.

.hack//sign have not finished it myself, but really enjoy it so far. 26 episodes. very fitting soundtrack. follows the loner tsukasa as he wanders The World, a fantasy MMORPG, unable to log out and thus considered highly suspicious/a hacker who is constantly being tracked by in-game admins(?would be the right word?). less action, more focused on character relationships, fleshing people out, the difference in peoples personalities online and off. the concept of escapism is vital to the plot. slow-paced. beautiful art.

hope that helps a little, i'm sure you've probably heard or watched at least some of these. am looking for darker or at least more surreal animes myself lately. sorry not greatest descriptions and sorry for being a bit long!

edit:(sorry, just thought of something to add.) on the other hand, i like my fair share of 'bad' anime, so i don't want anyone to think i am attacking their taste in anime either...liking stuff like lucky star or whatever (i can't think of good examples...) doesn't make you stupid or anything. sometimes i really enjoy 'low-brow' stuff or stuff that isn't considered good by some people. personally i really really enjoy soukyuu no fafner which if you've ever seen it, you'll know is...not the greatest. suffers from 'everybody-has-the-same-face' syndrome, stereotypical characters, copies a lot from EVA and other popular mecha shows. but dammit if i don't love that show. your tastes are just that, tastes. it just seems lately that there is an overwhelming amount of moe anime that are very interchangeable/not very memorable.

Last edited by unit_00 on 09 May 2014, 4:35 pm, edited 1 time in total.

I can relate somewhat, BlankCanvas, I have only liked a handful of Hollywood comedies in the past decade. Most of it doesn't appeal to me at all, and I can't participate in conversations about it, and I miss some related jokes.

Regarding anime, I like a range of stuff, but I've had so much stress lately that I just want to escape to a nice place. Slice of life anime provides an amusing school life to contrast my intense school life -- 19 hours this past semester -- and the professors have posted 5 grades out of 6 classes, each one an A. It's cool if you want to call me an escapist. Each to his or her own taste, indeed.

I like Ga-Rei Zero because you get a gory yuri story with magical technology.

I loved it and I am just wondering who your favorite character is?

Looking at your avatar, yeah I am pretty sure you liked "her" too?

First of all, I’d like to thank everyone who took the time to read my post and furthermore, understand my meaning behind it. I was actually quite scared it’d turn into a typical anime-fan-forum furore where differences of opinion are apparently enough to go to war over, metaphorically speaking). So I’m really grateful for everyone’s tolerance and understanding. Diplomacy rules.

Moving along... I’ll annoyingly have to address everyone in seperate posts, so please bear with me. Not spamming for post counts!

@Endsleigh : I’m being very cautious with WIXOSS. Warning bells went off in my mind as:

a) it’s a merchandise-driven project; I wasn’t sure if I was quite ready to sit through another Cardfight! Vanguard (in which a coherent plot and decent characterisation is sacrificed to advertise the wares - which of course, is the point of the whole thing; I guess I’m just embittered after having to grow out of Pokemon the anime fast after the disastrous Best Wishes saga experiment -- which led to Shogakukan forcing a massive staff overhaul in O.L.M. with Pokemon XY the anime)

b) it bizarrely got Funimation’s interest straight away despite the fact the WIXOSS franchise is barely fledgling in Japan (got launched as a card game practically over Easter time). Something tells me Warner Japan and Tomy pushed this hard to try and bolster foreign interest but it couldn’t get domestic television airing rights in the US for one reason or another...

c) it’s being helmed by J.C. Staff who, whilst aren’t as bad as Satelight (that MMO anime I dropped but can't remember the name of) or modern-day TMS (Vanguard), aren’t exactly known for great animation or storyelling in their non-ecchi projects (A Certain Railgun S springs to mind).

All that said, as you very well pointed out, Mari Okada is WIXOSS’s series writer, and as you said, she was behind Black Rock Shooter and coincidentally, Hanasaku Iroha, which I really liked (uncharacteristic for me, I know).

So thanks for the heads up . Due to Okada alone, I’m going to wait and see how WIXOSS plays out in its entirely. Though different to the series prior, I liked her hand in Darker Than Black: Children of the Gemini. So who knows what will happen? Maybe WIXOSS will turn out to be the spiritual successor to Black Rock Shooter -- misleading art-style and set up but a very deep story under the surface...?