Ser Rodrigo Belmonte II Posted January 18 Share Posted January 18 (edited) Tried watching Blue Eyed Samurai, moment i saw a petite girl beating up much bigger men’s asses up without taking a scratch in the first episode, switched it off immediately and went back to Food Wars for some good anime bliss. Edited January 18 by Ser Rodrigo Belmonte II Calibandar and JGP 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sifth Posted January 18 Share Posted January 18 Saw the first two episodes of Pluto today. Very good series. Reminds me a little of Psycho Pass. Calibandar and Ran 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rippounet Posted January 19 Share Posted January 19 (edited) Watched the first season of Heavenly delusion. Not by accident, this was supposed to be one of the best animes of 2023, and a friend of mine had recommended it. Weird-ass shit. Two parallel stories, one of strange kids in a closed scientific environment often called the "inside" (oddly reminiscent of The promised neverland), and one of two other kids/teenagers in a post-apocalyptic world (the outside). And of course, you have man-eating monsters outside. Not sure why I watched the whole thing. Guess the episodes alternate between beautiful, entertaining, and intriguing, in such a way that you want to keep watching. Of course, the viewer has to find the link(s) between the inside and the outside, and there are a few narrative tricks to confuse. It's one of those shows that, imho, ends up being nice to watch, and yet hard to commit to. I liked the episodes, and there are a number of great moments, with a great main female character - not sure if it's the chara-design or the voice acting that made her so cool. Yet, at the end of the season, I found the story and tropes to be rather classic, and although the specific blend of elements works, the show still failed to hook me for either the manga or season 2. I guess two elements stood out. One is the fact that the tone is the show is constantly in doubt ; at times it's beautiful and sweet and moving, and at others it's fucking dark and heartbreaking. I tend to like this kind of destabilising stuff, but I didn't find it too successful here, because I found the alternance lacked coherence and credibility ; to me the point seemed to me to surprise and shock the viewer rather than build the plot or world. The other fact is the play around gender, which is extra developed, even for an anime. Said simply, it's a plot point, but again, the real point seems to be to surprise the viewer, rather than to build something - it ends up being a kind of mystery. And while there are a number of mysteries in the show, the main plot seems oddly transparent. One can't help but wonder wether the post-apocalyptic setting is credible - it's not too clear how money, crops, or fuel "work" in this world - again there seems to be some lack of coherency. However, I guess the reason I won't be in for season 2 is: Spoiler ... the rape. I mean, I like being surprised and shocked by shows, but this felt almost gratuitous. For the entire season, the show builds up this great heroin, and her sweet relationship with Maru. Only to have her be raped in a horrifying fashion (for two full days) in the penultimate episode. I mean, yeah, ok. Sexual violence isn't surprising in a post-apocalyptic world, but I'm not sure this was well-established enough for it to be more than shock value. By that I mean that the main characters aren't very suspicious of others, and Kiruko doesn't seem to attract adults, despite the fact that she's a well-developed teenager... Also, I feel that Totori's (hotel girl) approach to sex is deliberately misleading, again to create shock value with the darker sexual aspect at the end... To me, this ended up overshadowing the plot. Though on that front, it feels to me that the story ends up being relatively conventional. Once you get that the "inside" events are anterior and Tokio is Maru's mother, all's left to wonder is where exactly the weird-ass powers come from: was it aliens after all, or demons? So I'd say that while the aesthetics of the show are great, broadly speaking, the plot hasn't hooked me. I'll be starting Made in abyss now, I've heard good things about it. Edited January 19 by Rippounet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baxus Posted January 20 Share Posted January 20 As I said in "watched, watching" thread, I'm currently watching Vinland Saga season 2 and enjoying it quite a bit. If anyone missed it, I'd highly recommend it. Ran, Prince of the North and The Grey Wolf Strikes Back 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rippounet Posted January 22 Share Posted January 22 Finished season 1 of Made in abyss, and holly cow, this is good. I'll see how this develops, but at this point it has the very emotional coherence that I though Heavenly delusion was missing. This time, the alternance of sweet and moving moments and dark and heartbreaking ones pushes the plot forward and provides some nice kicks in the gut. I can't help but think of Alain Damasio's famed The WindWalkers, in which the central quest of the world/heroes can be seen as a metaphor for both life and fiction/art. It's not an easy feat to achieve in a work of fiction, so I'll see if the anime delivers (the potential is crazy), but so far its aesthetics and poetry are good enough that it's a beautiful watch regardless of further development. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sifth Posted January 22 Share Posted January 22 Finished Pluto yesterday. Man that series kept me on my toes, like GoT’s. Ran 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baxus Posted January 22 Share Posted January 22 Finished Vinland Saga season 2, and was relieved it ties up most loose ends while giving enough info on where the story can go from there. Any recommendations on what to watch next? Ran and The Grey Wolf Strikes Back 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Grey Wolf Strikes Back Posted January 23 Share Posted January 23 17 hours ago, baxus said: Finished Vinland Saga season 2, and was relieved it ties up most loose ends while giving enough info on where the story can go from there. Any recommendations on what to watch next? What have you seen and what do you like in general when it comes to anime? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ran Posted January 23 Share Posted January 23 20 hours ago, baxus said: Finished Vinland Saga season 2, and was relieved it ties up most loose ends while giving enough info on where the story can go from there. Any recommendations on what to watch next? I haven't watched it yet, but a lot of people who liked Vinland Saga said Attack on Titan had some shared qualities. This may be based more on just the first, more action-heavy season, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baxus Posted January 23 Share Posted January 23 5 hours ago, The Grey Wolf Strikes Back said: What have you seen and what do you like in general when it comes to anime? Apart from Vinland Saga, recently I liked Demon Slayer and Record of Ragnarok and didn't like Baki. I guess I prefer more medieval setting with at least some supernatural elements. So sword and/or sorcery stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calibandar Posted January 23 Share Posted January 23 (edited) On 1/18/2024 at 2:59 AM, Ser Rodrigo Belmonte II said: Tried watching Blue Eyed Samurai, moment i saw a petite girl beating up much bigger men’s asses up without taking a scratch in the first episode, switched it off immediately and went back to Food Wars for some good anime bliss. Same here. There is other anime out there that are much better than this show and its predictable hype. Edited January 23 by Calibandar JGP and Ser Rodrigo Belmonte II 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Grey Wolf Strikes Back Posted January 24 Share Posted January 24 (edited) 17 hours ago, baxus said: Apart from Vinland Saga, recently I liked Demon Slayer and Record of Ragnarok and didn't like Baki. I guess I prefer more medieval setting with at least some supernatural elements. So sword and/or sorcery stuff. Hmm...I don't know too many anime like that but I'll try to list some I think you would like. Fate/Zero Attack on Titan Goblin Slayer Golden Kamuy Samurai Champloo Afro Samurai Full Metal Alchemist: Brotherhood The Heroic Legend of Arslan (Don't think it ever got renewed for a second season) Drifters (Don't think it ever got renewed for a second season) Tower of God Katanagatari Re: Zero Gurren Lagann Berserk Devilman Crybaby Edited January 24 by The Grey Wolf Strikes Back baxus 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gigei Posted January 24 Share Posted January 24 Been watching Solo Leveling anime. I've read the webtoon. It's okay, but not as good as I remember. Villainess Level 99 (Akuyaku Reijou Level 99) is also good so far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heartofice Posted January 24 Share Posted January 24 On 1/23/2024 at 1:16 PM, Calibandar said: Same here. There is other anime out there that are much better than this show and its predictable hype. Blue Eyed Samurai isn't really Anime other than being an animation set in Japan. It is inherently a western production and is very western in terms of it's story telling. Personally that is a big reason why it resonated far more for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ran Posted January 24 Share Posted January 24 (edited) People who watch anime complaining about a cartoon where a woman beats up guys is just bizarre. You guys watch waaaaaay sillier stuff if you've ever watched something in the shonen genre, but if that's the hill you want to die on... don't think Blue Eye Samurai is suffering the loss. Edited January 24 by Ran Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rippounet Posted January 24 Share Posted January 24 Badass women beating up dudes is such a common trope in manga/anime in which there's fighting that it's probably the counter-examples that stand out... Ran and Prince of the North 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ser Rodrigo Belmonte II Posted January 25 Share Posted January 25 Yeah that’s exactly why I turned it off, cause I’m fed up of seeing that trope, especially when it’s not done particularly well. I mean kill la kill had the same thing but atleast that show is fun ? This one had tonal dissonance where it’s trying to be gritty,bleak and realistic and then plays up that trope along with the frustrating issue of no one recognising she’s a woman when it’s obvious. It works in sillier anime for me. 14 hours ago, Rippounet said: Badass women beating up dudes is such a common trope in manga/anime in which there's fighting that it's probably the counter-examples that stand out... Calibandar 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
baxus Posted January 25 Share Posted January 25 Would it be significantly more realistic if a male character did everything female character did in Blue Eye Samurai? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heartofice Posted January 25 Share Posted January 25 3 hours ago, Ser Rodrigo Belmonte II said: Yeah that’s exactly why I turned it off, cause I’m fed up of seeing that trope, especially when it’s not done particularly well. I don't like that trope either, but Blue Eyed Samurai might be one of the best examples of it working very well. I found it all very believable and didn't bat an eyelid once. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ser Rodrigo Belmonte II Posted January 25 Share Posted January 25 1 hour ago, baxus said: Would it be significantly more realistic if a male character did everything female character did in Blue Eye Samurai? If the male character had the right physical characteristics to go along with it , probably. As I said, other anime have also done the badass female like Kill la Kill but it works much better there because of the tone of the show. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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