S
Scython
Is this watchable without knowing how to play Mahjong?
Saki
- Thread starter purplemo
- Start date
Quizap
Well-Known Member
Yea, I still have no clue on how to play and get some enjoyment out of watching it. The over dramatization of them playing gives me a kick.
therik
Member
Just caught up with the series, and I'm really into it now. I watched this just for the "cute girls play mahjongg" premise and to follow a couple of seiyuu. What I wasn't expecting was to find my ecchi fix, my silly humour fix, and a hand-clappingly addictive ED to top it all off.
In terms of all-out light-hearted fun this has the best watch I've had in a while. I'm not expecting jaw-dropping plot twists and fireworks, but I've always had a soft spot for series which don't pretend to be smarter than they are.
In terms of all-out light-hearted fun this has the best watch I've had in a while. I'm not expecting jaw-dropping plot twists and fireworks, but I've always had a soft spot for series which don't pretend to be smarter than they are.
purplemo
New Member
Nodocchi finally showed!
Caught up with this one (finally). Hopefully they can make the finals interesting like in the manga. The ending is pretty nice too (given the type of show this is), though Nodocchi's breasts are beginning to take on Eiken's wrongness. At least they aren't this bad other than in the ED.
Now onto the others.
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Of note, while I don't feel like you need to know mahjong by any stretch to understand Saki, it does help I feel. I think I've already mentioned that I hate the way the Japanese play mahjong, but it is nice to be able to tune out the VAs from time to time and just call it as I see it. They suck as announcers and can ruin it with their over the top reactions. Being able to tune it out lessens that. Also knowing the story does too. ;p
Caught up with this one (finally). Hopefully they can make the finals interesting like in the manga. The ending is pretty nice too (given the type of show this is), though Nodocchi's breasts are beginning to take on Eiken's wrongness. At least they aren't this bad other than in the ED.
Now onto the others.
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Of note, while I don't feel like you need to know mahjong by any stretch to understand Saki, it does help I feel. I think I've already mentioned that I hate the way the Japanese play mahjong, but it is nice to be able to tune out the VAs from time to time and just call it as I see it. They suck as announcers and can ruin it with their over the top reactions. Being able to tune it out lessens that. Also knowing the story does too. ;p
purplemo
New Member
I get the feeling a decent amount of Saki fans are fans for the same reason as they are fans of K-ON! Nodocchi is nowhere near on the same level as drooling fanboi wanking subject Mio, but she's got her following too. ;p
therik
Member
Eh. I'd say it barely helps. You rarely get a good look at the discard piles, you get to see the player's hand for a few seconds if at all, and I don't think I've spotted any dora indicators. It's really not easy to evaluate how good or bad any given move is. In most rounds, you don't seem to glimpse anything except the final discard or pickup.
What don't you like about it? The rules? The pace? I've never played American, Chinese or any other variety of Mahjongg so I've not much to compare it to.
Yeah, I thought that comment about "But Hanamura Nodoka sees the pure straight!!!" was a bit silly. Surely anyone could see that the pure straight was on. She was just being stupid for not playing it safe given the lead that they had at the time, and not taking the tsumo after declaring riichi, with about 4 draws left... well, that's just a wrong move no matter how you look at it.
In truth, I think playing Mahjongg has slightly lessened my enjoyment of this if anything. It makes me frustrated when you don't see enough of the board to judge moves, and the scale of their first round win is just preposterous. I'm no expert, but I'm fairly certain you'd need a gulf in luck as well as a gulf in class to pull off such a big win.
Edit:
Meh. Give me Saki or Hisa any day. Especially Saki :)
purplemo
New Member
I don't need to see the entire table when I watch Saki. I don't look for THAT much depth with a show like this. Being able to see what a hand is enough for me in this show. Being able to know what the hand is is enough to get a better grasp of what is going on.
As for the Japanese game, I had already mentioned that they bogged down the game with too much crap. Mahjong is most fun when you can get a simple mahjong table (i.e the green poker table with the slot at each side for your money), sit down four people, and just get it going. It is much more faster and enjoyable that way. For me, mahjong is like a pick-up game. The way the Japanese play mahjong and the way I play it is like the difference between playing chess with a clock in a tournament and just pulling out the set with a friend to kill some time. I'm fine with tournament play, but the Japanese game is like that every frickin' time, slow as all hell. I like my mahjong simple and fast. No need for die or sticks. Just the tiles. And I hate these new automatic tables. If a game doesn't start with everyone mixing the tiles in an enormous racket, I don't want to play.
And for the lack of enjoyment with knowledge, I think you just need to take Saki for what it is. I think I came in with the attitude a basketball player would take to a Harlem Globetrotters game (or a dunk contest). It's not supposed to be realistic. It's supposed to be the sensational stuff that doesn't happen in a real game. That doesn't mean I can't enjoy it. I just need to realize that this doesn't happen in reality. It also helps that I've read the manga and know what I was getting into well before the anime came out.
As for the Japanese game, I had already mentioned that they bogged down the game with too much crap. Mahjong is most fun when you can get a simple mahjong table (i.e the green poker table with the slot at each side for your money), sit down four people, and just get it going. It is much more faster and enjoyable that way. For me, mahjong is like a pick-up game. The way the Japanese play mahjong and the way I play it is like the difference between playing chess with a clock in a tournament and just pulling out the set with a friend to kill some time. I'm fine with tournament play, but the Japanese game is like that every frickin' time, slow as all hell. I like my mahjong simple and fast. No need for die or sticks. Just the tiles. And I hate these new automatic tables. If a game doesn't start with everyone mixing the tiles in an enormous racket, I don't want to play.
And for the lack of enjoyment with knowledge, I think you just need to take Saki for what it is. I think I came in with the attitude a basketball player would take to a Harlem Globetrotters game (or a dunk contest). It's not supposed to be realistic. It's supposed to be the sensational stuff that doesn't happen in a real game. That doesn't mean I can't enjoy it. I just need to realize that this doesn't happen in reality. It also helps that I've read the manga and know what I was getting into well before the anime came out.
therik
Member
Fair points. I guess it's just because I'm still at the stage where I'm developing and learning strategies that I want to know exactly why every move was played, how big a risk was taken, etc. Like you said though, that's not really Saki's thing. Maybe I should re-watch Akagi if I want them to spend half an episode dissecting each move.
Ah well, episode 8 is out now. Best get stuck in.
Edit: Fuck yeah! The old ED is back again! I was worried it was gone for good after they switched it up for ep 7.
Ah well, episode 8 is out now. Best get stuck in.
Edit: Fuck yeah! The old ED is back again! I was worried it was gone for good after they switched it up for ep 7.
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purplemo
New Member
Starting out with the Japanese mahjong might be easier given that everyone who plays it plays it at a snail's pace so it is much easier to think things through and make your moves. And it isn't quite as death's bed slow as, say, shougi. With four players you usually won't have half-hour periods of people staring off into space like a 1-on-1.
To be honest, while the Japanese threw in a lot of crap to make the game less fun, it really doesn't slow the game down that much. But for some reason everyone I've played with who plays that game plays it unbearably slow. Maybe it's because so few of them ever bet on the games (unlike Cantonese which I've never played without gambling). Gambling adds a variable that I feel makes the game much more fluid as there's much more at stake, forcing you to act and react instead of sit on your hands doing nothing for minutes on end. Plus for some reason they never seem to want to talk during the game whenever I play Japanese style. It makes for a boring game when taken so seriously when the game is already slower. Bantering with friends in the middle of a game is a must when you're playing a game. Plus it takes out one form of psychological play to not be able to talk.
Maybe that has somewhat to do with those I play with. But those I play Japanese mahjong with aren't the killjoys they are in mahjong as in other games, so I don't think it's just the players.
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And honestly I liked the ep 7 ED more than the regular one. The art not so much.
To be honest, while the Japanese threw in a lot of crap to make the game less fun, it really doesn't slow the game down that much. But for some reason everyone I've played with who plays that game plays it unbearably slow. Maybe it's because so few of them ever bet on the games (unlike Cantonese which I've never played without gambling). Gambling adds a variable that I feel makes the game much more fluid as there's much more at stake, forcing you to act and react instead of sit on your hands doing nothing for minutes on end. Plus for some reason they never seem to want to talk during the game whenever I play Japanese style. It makes for a boring game when taken so seriously when the game is already slower. Bantering with friends in the middle of a game is a must when you're playing a game. Plus it takes out one form of psychological play to not be able to talk.
Maybe that has somewhat to do with those I play with. But those I play Japanese mahjong with aren't the killjoys they are in mahjong as in other games, so I don't think it's just the players.
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And honestly I liked the ep 7 ED more than the regular one. The art not so much.
therik
Member
Episode 9
Probably not spoiler content at all, but it's better to be safe than sorry, I guess.
Probably not spoiler content at all, but it's better to be safe than sorry, I guess.
w00t, new episode! A pretty good one too, I have to say. It's gotten a lot better now that the opponents are pretty much superpowered as well, and that one-eyed girl rocks something hardcore. Gentle as a lamb and sharp as a knife - great combination.
I think that the three characters + 1 generic balance is working out pretty well, although it would be nice if the generic school had at least one badass player, maybe to get them back into the game during the 3rd or 4th round.
Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm off to listen to the ED. On repeat. For an hour or two.
I think that the three characters + 1 generic balance is working out pretty well, although it would be nice if the generic school had at least one badass player, maybe to get them back into the game during the 3rd or 4th round.
Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm off to listen to the ED. On repeat. For an hour or two.
therik
Member
I was wrong. You're right. Since getting hold of the ED single, and listening to the other ED a few times, I concede that it's a better tune. And I love that it came back for episode 10. Man, I'm pretty fickle.
Anyway. Loved this episode again. Koromo, particularly her chibi form, is heart-meltingly adorable. Sure, she's probably going to end up being vicious on the Mahjong table, but I think that's largely part of the charm.
Like Fireaxe said, it's not quite as funny as it was in the first handful of episodes, but I'm really getting into the simple drama of it. A lot of the characters just seem to work, even though there's not enough time to establish detailed personalities for all of them. The backstories, quirks and hax-powers that everyone brings to the table just make it all the more amusing.
I'd still like to see a little more of the Mahjong, but this is still definitely the best show of the season (at least from the nine that I'm watching). Looking forward to the next episode. Already =/.
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Szwagier
Member
I'm guessing once Saki starts her match it will be at least 2 episodes :P
And damn... Give me back my ending song x[ This was one of the very few shows that had so amusing ending song that I was never closing the player after watching the new episode ::<
And perhaps yeah, it's not as funny as before, but shoujo-ai fanservice is still as amusing as ever :]
Quizap
Well-Known Member
I've been curious about how long this was going to be, especially since "IF" it was a 13 episode series, they'd be leaving a TON out since it took them 10 episodes just to get to the 3rd player in the finals, in the PRELIMS.
That would leave nationals out, among other things. Hell, I've been curious about Saki's sister for ages now, I'd love to have a background story on her!
Anyways, looked it up on anidb and here's what it says:
http://anidb.net/perl-bin/animedb.pl?show=anime&aid=6246
All I can say from that is:
Banzai! Banzai! Banzai! Banzai
That would leave nationals out, among other things. Hell, I've been curious about Saki's sister for ages now, I'd love to have a background story on her!
Anyways, looked it up on anidb and here's what it says:
http://anidb.net/perl-bin/animedb.pl?show=anime&aid=6246
All I can say from that is:
Banzai! Banzai! Banzai! Banzai
therik
Member
So, you think it'll be longer than 13 episodes? I guess, yeah, if it was only 13 anidb would know by now, right? Cause I've been stalling on getting a Saki sig made up because I understood that it was going to finish in a few weeks.
God, I do hope this goes on for 26 or more. That'd be truly splendid.
God, I do hope this goes on for 26 or more. That'd be truly splendid.
Fireaxe
Member
Well, MyAnimeList.net marked the shows as a 25 episodes long series. I have no idea where they got that information, but I guess it would make sense. Episode 10 was slightly better than the previous 2 or 3, the hints of yuri couldn't possibly be any cuter, though I still think this show lacks a little something that Bamboo Blade had in terms of moe/tournament shows. Anyway, they need to get out of this tournament asap because I'm really, REALLY getting tired of it...
Szwagier
Member
If you look at the preview at the end of the episodePoor NodokaI wonder how things will turn out with her ripped Penguin and I wonder how she'll react when she sees that Koromo(?) had it and is crying over it being ripped.
You will see that, she will sew it