Anime

[FargalEX]

Finished watching Paranoia Agent, which I thought was fantastic - really creative in parts. The episode following 3 people who met up from the internet to commit suicide together was particularly ace, I felt.

Also just watched episode 13 or Gurren Lagann, which was an excellent comeback to rubbish-token-swimsuit-episode 12.

[Zappster]

I knew I'd recognised your name from somewhere outside forums Zapp! Good work on Honey and Clover which I really must aquire the second series. I liked the first one but it sort of didn't really go anywhere.

From the beginning to end, it's all pretty much exactly how it was at the start, albeit that takemoto says he loves hagu at the end.

Me being blind didn't notice that it was also by the same people as Nodame Cantabile until someone pointed out the obvious a few weeks ago.

I've always thought of it as a slice of life comedy/drama so the doesn't go anywhere thing is sort of a given to me and is one of the reasons I loved it(strange as that may be, I'm just a fan of these types of shows I guess). Tbh though, Genshiken is like that too, the same could pretty much be said of it. I love them both equally.

Season 1 related stuff below

Well Takemoto changes quite a lot which is usually more than some characters do over the course of a series. Then there's Mayama graduating and getting a job and I'm sure there's some other stuff which I'm forgetting as it has been a while since I last saw it. There was enough going on and changing to not make it seem like that to me I guess. Plus I think alot of it is to get used to the characters and stuff and make ourselves familiar with them so that when the events occur later on in the series(2nd season here) they have more of an impact. One of the reasons I loved the show was because I identified greatly with some of the feelings and some of the lines that were said. There was on particular moment in season 2 that had me almost teary eyed. Manly tears, of course

That said, stuff does actually happen in the 2nd season, if you are worried that it doesn't go anywhere then worry not. It's 12 episodes long too.

[Mr.Jeff]

I guess you're right since you've spent so much time with the series and you've seen the second season as well.

The only real reason that I say nothing's actually happened is that when you consider the personal relationships of the group on the whole, nothing's really changed bar Takemoto's confession to Hagu. Morita still likes Hagu but is doing nothing about it, Mayama is still torn over the injured woman he works with and pottery mad woman(I can't remember her name and she's not mentioned on anidb) and she in turn is still obsessed with Mayama. Of course there's been a few developments for all of them about this but it's still roughly the same as it was at the beginning.

On the other side, it's just as you say, the first series was more of an exploratory look at all the characters and what drives them presumabely to set it up for the 2nd season.

Great stuff though. Going to aquire the second season now.

[Mr.Jeff]

For anyone that enjoyed Azumanga Daioh, you may wish to consider trying Yotsubato. Imagine a Chiyo-chan-Osaka-Tomo hybrid as the main character and you'll have an idea of how bizarrely amazing this is.

[Zappster]

I guess you're right since you've spent so much time with the series and you've seen the second season as well.

The only real reason that I say nothing's actually happened is that when you consider the personal relationships of the group on the whole, nothing's really changed bar Takemoto's confession to Hagu. Morita still likes Hagu but is doing nothing about it, Mayama is still torn over the injured woman he works with and pottery mad woman(I can't remember her name and she's not mentioned on anidb) and she in turn is still obsessed with Mayama. Of course there's been a few developments for all of them about this but it's still roughly the same as it was at the beginning.

On the other side, it's just as you say, the first series was more of an exploratory look at all the characters and what drives them presumabely to set it up for the 2nd season.

Great stuff though. Going to aquire the second season now.

Ah, that's what you were getting at. Well the second season deals more with the personal relationships so there is movement there. I suppose the first season is more about their uni life and possible careers, where they are headed with them etc...

edit: and agreed on Yotsubato, great stuff.

[Preacher]

BIG heads up to Patlabor fans: play.com have a pretty sweet INGRAM 98 model in stock!

It's got loads of extras too: baton, gun, different hands and a pretty sweet degree of adjustability.

Pffft, like you fuckers care. Still, I live in hope that somebody besides me worships at the temple of Goto and should you be reading, I don't need to tell you twice.

[Gique]

BIG heads up to Patlabor fans:

the revoltech ingram is an utterly, utterly fantastic toy.. looks awesome, and is amazingly posable..

shame they don't make huge revoltechs... i'd snap one up

[DarhkFox]

Heat Guy J - any good?

flatmate bought volume one (26 eps).. think we might watch tommorrow night. Hoping its good.

[Mr.Jeff]

How topical... I watch ep. 13 of Hayate no Gotoku and...

He fails the entrance exam to the Academy, just as I have a crucial A-level exam tomorrow. This better not be a harbinger of things to come! The episode wasn't that bad in itself, but I guess I'm not in the mood for exam jokes right now ;_;.

On the plus side you won't have to deal with a squadron of ravenous monkeys trying to eat your face! Think of the benefits!

[imp]

Heh. Well I don't like to toot my own horn so I usually don't mention it, but yeah I'm involved with some subbing groups. Probably the reason why I find it so hard to keep up with the amount of shows I'm following sometimes.

I love the show (it's one of my top 10), especially with characters like Takemoto who I really identified with a lot. I loved his development as the first season in particular progressed. I don't think there's any character that I disliked or hated, much like Genshiken in that regard. I could identify with them all and the situations they were in as I was watching it at the start of my uni life. The music as well was fantastic, especially the ending songs to both seasons, my favourite being waltz and the piano version of it. I From what I'm hearing it is licensed by Viz(first season only I think and it still has to be confirmed) hopefully they do a good job of it and manage to keep the insert songs and stuff. Oh and in case you missed it you might want to get the DVD rip of ep 12 of the second season since it was redubbed by the original VA for Takemoto, who was involved in a car accident during the time the dubbing was being completed for the show so another VA took his place in ep 12 in the TV version.

Aha! I knew it! Mind if I ask what other shows you've been involved in? (Good work by the way!)

I watched the HD version of the second season and didn't notice a different VA in episode 12, am I just oblivious or was it shown later or something?

But yeah, about the actual show; I totally agree with you. I think there were elements in all the characters that were easily identifiable, although I personally identified most with Yamada Ayu. I think it's a genuinely well crafted show, very beautifully drawn and animated, great great soundtrack, and the voice acting was superb (I think Mayama's voice actor - Tomokazu Sugita, who also played Kyon in Haruhi, is fast becoming my favourite). I actually quite liked how the relationships between the characters didn't dramatically change but were very slowly and subtley altering. I get the feeling that the big changes would be cumulatively felt in the future. It lent the series a very 'realistitc' (ugh, horrible word) feel, I thought. The only thing which I found disappointing with the show in its entirety was

the way Takemoto's character was left. I know it's not necessarily forever and that he enjoys it, his job was a little disappointing to me, I wanted him to fulfil his wish that he could have enough money to tell his love to 'take some time off' if anything ever happened to her.

My favourite thing about the show was the writing though, it was just beautiful during the monologues, I think I'll always remember the line 'she smiled like a wet flower'. Very poetic. The show had me close to tears a few times as well, especially at the ending of series 2.

oof. That was long. Aaaanyway...

I noticed that JC Staff animated a series called Shakugan no Shana which interested me as the character illustrations in the original Lite Novels were done by Noizi Ito, does anyone think it's worth giving a go and which groups' subs are worth watching?

p.s. I've downloaded Higurashi, I'm scared. Will watch after I'm caught up on my weeklies... (Man, only three more Nodame shows to go now )

EDIT: Mr. Jeff, cheers for the Yotsuba & link, I have it bookmarked for when I finsh reading the Haruhi light novels.

And I'm downloading the final episode of Death Note now... 2 seeders, 1276 leechers.... oh boy!

[Ryan]

Heat Guy J - any good?

flatmate bought volume one (26 eps).. think we might watch tommorrow night. Hoping its good.

Bought it for like 7 quid from play, but not gotten around to watching it yet.

[Bibly]

On the plus side you won't have to deal with a squadron of ravenous monkeys trying to eat your face! Think of the benefits!

Yeah, I'm not sure I could've handled that, but then again Hayate is made of sterner stuff than most mortals .

[DarhkFox]

Bought it for like 7 quid from play, but not gotten around to watching it yet.

yeah thats where he got it.

[Talvalin]

Pffft, like you fuckers care. Still, I live in hope that somebody besides me worships at the temple of Goto and should you be reading, I don't need to tell you twice.

I'm a fan, but dude, I don't go as far as buying figures (yes, I'm in denial about being an anime nerd. ).

And yet it looks so good.

[Zappster]

Aha! I knew it! Mind if I ask what other shows you've been involved in? (Good work by the way!)

I watched the HD version of the second season and didn't notice a different VA in episode 12, am I just oblivious or was it shown later or something?

But yeah, about the actual show; I totally agree with you. I think there were elements in all the characters that were easily identifiable, although I personally identified most with Yamada Ayu. I think it's a genuinely well crafted show, very beautifully drawn and animated, great great soundtrack, and the voice acting was superb (I think Mayama's voice actor - Tomokazu Sugita, who also played Kyon in Haruhi, is fast becoming my favourite). I actually quite liked how the relationships between the characters didn't dramatically change but were very slowly and subtley altering. I get the feeling that the big changes would be cumulatively felt in the future. It lent the series a very 'realistitc' (ugh, horrible word) feel, I thought. The only thing which I found disappointing with the show in its entirety was

the way Takemoto's character was left. I know it's not necessarily forever and that he enjoys it, his job was a little disappointing to me, I wanted him to fulfil his wish that he could have enough money to tell his love to 'take some time off' if anything ever happened to her.

My favourite thing about the show was the writing though, it was just beautiful during the monologues, I think I'll always remember the line 'she smiled like a wet flower'. Very poetic. The show had me close to tears a few times as well, especially at the ending of series 2.

Agreed with pretty much most of that.

On to the spoiler bit:

I dunno, I guess I wasn't disappointed. To me it was a fitting way for him to progress. He realized that Hagu didn't love him in quite the same way as he did her and that she had Shuu (or Morita) who were able to to make that same sacrifice for her(allowing her to take time off). I liked him most as a character so I wanted the best possible outcome, I mean I'd have loved to have seen him get together with Hagu. However, when it was apparent that it wouldn't happen I hoped he would be able to move on without dwelling on things too much and follow his own path, which is pretty much what I got and what I think Hagu wanted for him.

The idea I have in my head is that he'd move away to work with those restoration guys again and maybe while he's there meet someone who does love him, like perhaps one of the workers' sisters or something. Love blossoms from there and he finally meets someone who is able to return those feelings. I don't think he'll ever forget Hagu and the stuff he learnt during his time. Heck, maybe they meet each other down the line and do fall in love. My fanobyishness is starting to creep in now so I'll stop for the time being.

As for some other shows I've been involved in: Eureka 7, Fate/Stay Night, Inukami, Overdrive, Ouran Host Club, Kissdum and Kekkaishi are some recent examples.

[Djx]

Heat Guy J - any good?

flatmate bought volume one (26 eps).. think we might watch tommorrow night. Hoping its good.

It's ace. Really, really recommended.

The dub is of a high quality and the show is a lot of fun. Make sure you catch the all of the Next episode previews after the credits for some great lines, especially from J.

[imp]

As for some other shows I've been involved in: Eureka 7, Fate/Stay Night, Inukami, Overdrive, Ouran Host Club, Kissdum and Kekkaishi are some recent examples.

Ahh, out of those I've only seen Ouran, and I watched the Lunar subs.

Watched the last episode of Death Note -

kinda disappointed with the ending in comparison compared to the manga - I preferred it when Light went to his death utterly humiliated. Still, I wonder if they'll animate a special episode detailing the final chapter(s?) in which Mogi gives his conspiracy theory. I quite like the theory. I also quite like this alternate ending: http://img204.imageshack.us/img204/1122/dncandidia5.gif

[Mr.Jeff]

I noticed that JC Staff animated a series called Shakugan no Shana which interested me as the character illustrations in the original Lite Novels were done by Noizi Ito, does anyone think it's worth giving a go and which groups' subs are worth watching?

p.s. I've downloaded Higurashi, I'm scared. Will watch after I'm caught up on my weeklies... (Man, only three more Nodame shows to go now )

EDIT: Mr. Jeff, cheers for the Yotsuba & link, I have it bookmarked for when I finsh reading the Haruhi light novels.

Shakugan no Shana starts off well with a rather interesting plotline but it dips a touch when it goes into a few of the more usual teenager based scenarios but overall it's a fairly decent show. I thoroughly enjoyed it anyway and am eagerly awaiting the 2nd series in the autumn. If you do decide to aqquire it, look out for the 2 specials that were released, Shakugan no Shanatan, since they offer a genius parody of the series. It also features the voice of Nagi from Hayate as the female lead in an entirely similar style character.

Good luck with Higurashi and it is saddening that Nodame's nearly over.

And yay for someone else reading the haruhi novels! Everyone else I know makes some stupid excuse of "not liking to read stuff on screen" when they spend hours online reading forums anyway. Dying for volume 9 to be properly finished since it has a real kicker of a storyline.

[Ryan]

Ahh, out of those I've only seen Ouran, and I watched the Lunar subs.

Watched the last episode of Death Note -

kinda disappointed with the ending in comparison compared to the manga - I preferred it when Light went to his death utterly humiliated. Still, I wonder if they'll animate a special episode detailing the final chapter(s?) in which Mogi gives his conspiracy theory. I quite like the theory. I also quite like this alternate ending: http://img204.imageshack.us/img204/1122/dncandidia5.gif

So what did they do in the anime? Did they cover all of the manga? I liked the manga until they had the new L, it was basically a repeat of the first arc once they did that. The ending was good though, Light got what he deserved....

[Hackign]

Pft I'm an avid Light supporter. Death to all criminals!

[imp]

So what did they do in the anime? Did they cover all of the manga? I liked the manga until they had the new L, it was basically a repeat of the first arc once they did that. The ending was good though, Light got what he deserved....

Yeah, I always thought the story never reclaimed the heights of the first arc. I mean, after Light goes good the quality dips, the time skip just seemed to cement the progress of decline, I just couldn't care about L's successors.

But yeah, I'm with you, I though the ending was good in that Light got exactly what was coming to him and was really humiliated - basically the anime still sets things up in the same way, but Light doesn't go nearly as crazy as the end in the manga and he manages to escape the warehouse only to die in another warehouse on a set of stairs, rather than on the floor in a pool of his own blood. I guess it's supposed to be a basic symbol for Light falling short of his celestial aspirations. Ryuk doesn't tell him he's going to kill him either, Ryuk has a brief monologue and kills him from afar. The only other changes are minimal - Mikami commits suicide then and there at the scene, before Light dies (he doesn't vocalise his enstrangement and disappoinment though. I think I prefer the Anime version where we see his death). Misa is shown standing, melancholy and loli-goth'd up on the edge of a tall building during the credits - implying the suicide that's explicitly stated in the manga. The only bit that I'd like to have seen animated was the Matsuda conspiracy which was left out. Here's hoping for an extra episode with maybe some authorised original material to shed light on the whole shebang.

[FargalEX]

Just watched Tokyo Godfathers - utter class!

[Retroid]

Deathnote could have finished better.

I would have preferred it if Light won but I expected him to die. Would have made the ending so much better if there was a hint that someone out there was going to carry on the Kira legacy. Plus the way Light got caught wasn't that great really.

[Mr.Jeff]

Concerning the Death Note end:

I see why the had to end it that way but it seemed such a limp way of catching out Light. I mean, all the way at the start he was this guy that could plan through all eventualities yet the idea that perhaps they might have switched the notebook entirely didn't sem to cross his mind. Not to mention that he snaps and goes "It's my victory Near!" before he actually knows the git is about to die.

That said, I thought it as rather well animated and his va especially did well into turning into an insane madman.

[Ryan]

Exactly this. The latter part of the series might as well have been a different anime entirely for the gulf between the intelligence of the writing. Very disappointing.

Yeah.

I'd have liked something along the lines of

Light winning, but then realizing the only evil left is himself so he write his own name in there

or

Light winning, but at a cost so high it destroys him, but doesn't kill him. Like he gets left in a mental home or something. So he ends up pathetic, not dead.

.

[imp]

Exactly this. The latter part of the series might as well have been a different anime entirely for the gulf between the intelligence of the writing. Very disappointing.

Although I think similarly, the anime did cover the latter third of the story very very quickly, so the detail in a lot of the Near/Mello back and forth psychology with Light was lost. For a lot of it, it seemed that Near was just pulling assumptions out of thin air, only for them to be correct, especially apparent with the

notebook double bluff.

. I think what it really comes down to is the author's idea that L never managed to surpass Kira and it would be insulting that either of them manage to outwit Light on their own. The reason Light got caught was because of

Mikami being a poor choice of successor - he had repeatedly shown he would act himself, even if unordered. Authorial intent is a risky business to be second guessing, but I think that perhaps the author thought it would be insulting to the fans to have Light himself slip up - as so far, despite a couple of shaky moments, he has perfectly played his dual role. And the overarching theme of the whole story, Kira vs L, was still preserved, but fought out through the second generation. L had made better contingency plans with Near and Mello than Light did with Mikami.

Still, my favourite, which I'll explain now that a few people have watched it, is idiot Matsuda's conspiracy; Near had the real notebook and burned it and the other book the moment Light died. (Light dies in everybody's presence in the manga). Matsuda proposes that since Near never allowed any time to look in the notebook, he may have used it a certain extent to create proof - by controlling Mikami and making sure he outed Light as Kira... seems out of character, but I like the idea...

[Blobcat]

Just watched Tokyo Godfathers - utter class!

Great film isn't it? Nearly borght it second hand yesterday, wish I had.

After I've finished Ghost Stories and eventually GTO I plan to watch Ouran.

[Bibly]

Great film isn't it? Nearly borght it second hand yesterday, wish I had.

After I've finished Ghost Stories and eventually GTO I plan to watch Ouran.

Good taste right there, GTO and Ouran ftw.

[imp]

Good taste right there, GTO and Ouran ftw.

Totally. But, I, after reading your post, have decided to watch Fumoffu. Just because. And I have forgotten why Sousuke is protecting Chidori. Ah well.

oh wait, didn't she have some funny weapons memory thingy?

whatever, I'm only in it for the laughs.

[Mr.Jeff]

You know Bibly's going to explode when he reads that and he'll end up giving the full life history of the pair of them including dates of birth and chidori's 3 measurements.