How do you use your ratings?

[VivisQueen]

I suppose this is a discussion of ratings in general, but I am mainly interested in how people view/use their ratings. For example, in my opinion a 10 is basically a rating that exists only hypothetically. Because, no matter how awesome, no matter how flawless it may seem, there are elements that will be outdone simply because of limitations of that era e.g. animation, or nitpicky issues that I might have missed. I am willing to use 10 ratings for the individual aspects like Story and Characters and Sound, but probably never will for Animation or Overall. According to my internal scale (which I also have written down so I can refer back to something more concrete) these are my ratings:

5 - bad/watchable only with brain switched off

6 - mediocre

6.5 - passable/mildly entertaining

7 - good/does most important things right

7.5 - very good

8 - highly recommended

8.5 - actually ingenius, only nitpicky issues keeping it from flawless

9 - excellent/flawless from where I'm standing

I'm wondering if these match what you intuitively feel when you see ratings.

[Hollowichigo00]

well its out of 4 cause you cant have something in the middle, its either good or bad

1-must have, buy now
2-download but dont spend your money unless you really like it
3-only watch if you are forced to
4-even if you get it as a gift, burn it and piss on the ashes

[VivisQueen]

Originally Posted by Hollowichigo00

1-must have, buy now
2-download but dont spend your money unless you really like it
3-only watch if you are forced to
4-even if you get it as a gift, burn it and piss on the ashes

Please refer to ratings used on AP. Site reviews and reviews posted in this forum are out of 10. Ratings applied in your anime list are 5-star ratings; I'll accept references to the second if you use those more than the 10-point ratings, but not ratings used by other sites or anything.

[Hollowichigo00]

oh....my bad, thought you meant stuff we use outside the site =P sorry

[Sheex]

Basically, anything I rate 7.5 or above is a good, enjoyable watch. Anything between 6.0-7.5 is variable, but generally alright. I usually recommend series 6.0 or above and spell out why it got such a low rating in my review. Once something slips below a 6.0 on my rating system, though, it starts to have problems.

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< 5 : Don't watch this at all.

5.0: Barely passable but probably not worth it.

5.5: Crap.

6.0: Mediocre.

6.5: Average.

7.0: Slightly above average.

7.5: Good.

8.0: Outstanding.

8.5: Excellent.

9.0: Superb.

9 < : None so far, probably never will be.

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For individual scores, I have a rough rating scale I use for each, though I currently don't use it as rigidly as I have in the past. Basically a 6.5-6.7 average of these scores is a "run of the mill" series for me, but I no longer rate by average and instead tweak the numbers based on my level of enjoyment.

[VivisQueen]

that's the other thing, I find a bit odd. The use of decimal points beyond the usual .5. Doesn't it get a bit meaningless? Like your Futakoi Alternative might as well be an 8 rather than a 7.9. I don't see the difference, and decimals are usually a result of LOTS of averaged votes, not the seemingly arbitrary choice of a single person. Beyond .5 I'm usually highly dubious of the use of decimals.

[Sheex]

I like using the decimals to show a strong leaning in a given direction. Futakoi Alternative doesn't quite fit my standards for an 8.0 series, but it's damn close, and that's the point I wanted to make with the 7.9 rating. It's a matter of personal preference, I guess, but when I'm hung up between two ratings I generally throw in the decimal to show my leaning.

[Deus ex Digital Boy]

I think the lack of using a 10 is stupid. A hypothetical rating shouldn't exist, because then what's the purpose of the 9? You're basically daying 9 is 10. no point.

As for me, I write me reviews based on what I see, and I write my rating based on what I feel. If I see a show with poor pacing but great characters, I'll tell you exactly how poor the pacing was and how good the characters are, and my rating will reflect how much I enjoyed it as a whole.

for me, it's like...

5 = Bad, only for a very select audience and only when thye are bored.

6 = average, nothing that outright makes it unwatchable, but nothing to grab your interest.

7 = Pretty good. There were things that kept i interesting, though it wasn't perfect. Some will really love it.

8 = Awesome. The only flaws were ones inherint in the plot or style, but the series is structurally sound.

9 = Amazing. This show pushed all the right buttons and deserves to be watched by everyone. Any complaints are nitpicking.

10 = Perfect. Reserved solely for my alltime favorite show, or something that giving less than a perfect score would be undoable.

I also use decimals a lot, because I think there's an exact lace for each show to fall in. For instance, I think that ef is the most perfect show ever, so I give it a 10. However, Gurren-Lagann and Eureka Seven are also deserving of a perfect score, but neither is as good as ef, so they would get a 9.8 or 9.9, depending on how much I consider them to be below ef.

[Sheex]

Originally Posted by Deus ex Digital Boy

I think the lack of using a 10 is stupid. A hypothetical rating shouldn't exist, because then what's the purpose of the 9? You're basically daying 9 is 10. no point.

I completely disagree, as the scoring of a review isn't solely on the reviewer's personal enjoyment. It's possible to find flaws with any series, even those which are rated highly. For example, the Crest of the Stars series is my personal favorite anime since I relate to its storytelling a lot as an author. However, it is by no means perfect. For example:

There are minor lapses in the story as well as some slightly uneven portions in its execution, which bring down the story score. In addition, it has an abnormally large cast of characters each with different honorifics, but often jumbles and abbreviates the honorifcs depending on who is speaking to them. This creates some character confusion and takes points off the side character scoring. The animation, even for its time, was dated, and that hurt as well.

When scoring reviews it should be based off a hypothetical anime quantified by absolute perfection, as this allows a reviewer to objectively score numerous series by the same standards. Anime is no different than writing in the sense that there is no such thing as perfection. Good writers continually attempt to improve their skills by aiming for hypothetical perfection, but given that writing is inherently imperfect, this is obviously not possible. A writer who says he cannot improve is ignorant; likewise, to claim an anime, which is an iteration of a written work, to be perfect would be judging it from a misguided premise.

[Deus ex Digital Boy]

I don't think it justifies the existence of the 10 score though. It's just like an amp that goes up to 11, when it could just go to 10 and be louder. If there will never be perfection, then the existence of a perfect score is meaningless. If the 9 is judged as the highest possible score, it might as well be a ten. I believe the ratings should be treated as a symbol more than as an absolute ranking.