Daily Anime Thoughts

[LordRider]

DAT:

LOGH

For all you reinhard and kircheis fans out there, I highly recommend watching Silver-White Valley, The Mutineer, and Dishonor storylines from the Gaiden prequel OVA's, having just finished the series they're by far the best part of any those episodes and have some great characterization and moments for good ol count golden child and his ginger hoe. Each like 4 episodes long, short and sweet little self contained arcs there that are main series quality.

I'm actually currently about halfway through my first viewing of LOGH (the original series, not the remake). Its pretty great, and its the longest anime series I've watched that isn't a shonen. Its the kind of sci fi anime I'd always wanted to see, but didn't know was really out there until a few months ago. It was a bit daunted to start a 110 episode series, but I've seen longer, and its nice to watch a long series at my own pace and not having to wait week to week.

DAT: Just got done watching the local showing of Akira, and I can see why it was revolutionary when it came out, and it's interesting to see the source of so many homages I've seen in other anime over the years.

But oh man was that disjointed. I haven't read the manga, but I've heard that as an adaptation the film wasn't that good, and I can believe that since when I was watching the film it really felt like I was missing 30-40% of the story.

I absolutely can't stand Akira, I watched the movie and thought it was probably the most overrated anime project I've ever seen (with the original Ghost in the Shell being a close second).

 

[Rascal]

DAT

 

[Guest]

DAT

Spoiler: rant

That is why people do not like Sonny Boy. ‘I do not get it, hence it is bad.’ Anime fans today are way too spoiled, most of the time, they get all the needed explanations spoon-fed to them, because who likes thinking these days? No one. Anime creators are too afraid to risk and leave questions that only anime watchers will be able to answer during their watch. E.g. Yoshitoshi Abe; you never get most of the answers, you are to think to get them and the series’ message.

Why risk, when you can just hide your shitty writing behind some fanservice, which is totally fine to use, but it becomes a problem when it is overused and it becomes even more of a problem when it starts lewding kids to attract more viewership. And people eat this crap. The fact that Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation is so loved just proves my point. It is just so sad. Obviously, this is not the only example. Most of the time, these degenerate pedo baits and turn your brain off completely types of series become over-hyped mainstream garbage. And the problem is, the industry tries to please ‘these fans.’ Like, yes, tastes differ and stuff, but you cannot just like that brain fart.

P.S.

It used to be a funny meme, but now you realize that it is not funny anymore. Seriously, I have been very close to the point of giving up on anime completely, but I only watch it because sometimes you stumble upon such gems like Sonny Boy.

 

[Rascal]

Spoiler: rant

That is why people do not like Sonny Boy. ‘I do not get it, hence it is bad.’ Anime fans today are way too spoiled, most of the time, they get all the needed explanations spoon-fed to them, because who likes thinking these days? No one. Anime creators are too afraid to risk and leave questions that only anime watchers will be able to answer during their watch. E.g. Yoshitoshi Abe; you never get most of the answers, you are to think to get them and the series’ message.

Why risk, when you can just hide your shitty writing behind some fanservice, which is totally fine to use, but it becomes a problem when it is overused and it becomes even more of a problem when it starts lewding kids to attract more viewership. And people eat this crap. The fact that Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation is so loved just proves my point. It is just so sad. Obviously, this is not the only example. Most of the time, these degenerate pedo baits and turn your brain off completely types of series become over-hyped mainstream garbage. And the problem is, the industry tries to please ‘these fans.’ Like, yes, tastes differ and stuff, but you cannot just like that brain fart.

P.S.

It used to be a funny meme, but now you realize that it is not funny anymore. Seriously, I have been very close to the point of giving up on anime completely, but I only watch it because sometimes you stumble upon such gems like Sonny Boy.

Quite right, although I do believe that during most seasons there are more than just one good show out, this was just one of those summer anime drought situations.

 

[Hayane]

Watching Sonny Boy ep 11 be like:

I swear to God, I am going to drink some whiskey, if it does not get a happy, or kinda a happy ending.

Ah shit it gets worse? I am still on ep8 and I had slight hopes.
RIP.

 

[BrainBlow]

Spoiler: rant

That is why people do not like Sonny Boy. ‘I do not get it, hence it is bad.’ Anime fans today are way too spoiled, most of the time, they get all the needed explanations spoon-fed to them, because who likes thinking these days? No one. Anime creators are too afraid to risk and leave questions that only anime watchers will be able to answer during their watch. E.g. Yoshitoshi Abe; you never get most of the answers, you are to think to get them and the series’ message.

Why risk, when you can just hide your shitty writing behind some fanservice, which is totally fine to use, but it becomes a problem when it is overused and it becomes even more of a problem when it starts lewding kids to attract more viewership. And people eat this crap. The fact that Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation is so loved just proves my point. It is just so sad. Obviously, this is not the only example. Most of the time, these degenerate pedo baits and turn your brain off completely types of series become over-hyped mainstream garbage. And the problem is, the industry tries to please ‘these fans.’ Like, yes, tastes differ and stuff, but you cannot just like that brain fart.

P.S.

It used to be a funny meme, but now you realize that it is not funny anymore. Seriously, I have been very close to the point of giving up on anime completely, but I only watch it because sometimes you stumble upon such gems like Sonny Boy.

I've seen old anime.
Nah.
Old anime fucking loved exposition, mate. And the overly stilted kind, too. We just don't culturally remember the ones that were overly bad about it, which was a lot of them. And even then we just have selective nostalgic memories of many that still did.

These days the problem is just the seasonal grind culture that has formed in an oversaturated market. Everyone trying- and weighing in on every show, regardless of their own preferences. And then the discourse immediately moves on forever with the next season. Pride and "anime fan cred" is weighed in how many shows you watched in a season, not how much your chosen selection meant to you.

 

[g3data]

Spoiler: rant

That is why people do not like Sonny Boy. ‘I do not get it, hence it is bad.’ Anime fans today are way too spoiled, most of the time, they get all the needed explanations spoon-fed to them, because who likes thinking these days? No one. Anime creators are too afraid to risk and leave questions that only anime watchers will be able to answer during their watch. E.g. Yoshitoshi Abe; you never get most of the answers, you are to think to get them and the series’ message.

Why risk, when you can just hide your shitty writing behind some fanservice, which is totally fine to use, but it becomes a problem when it is overused and it becomes even more of a problem when it starts lewding kids to attract more viewership. And people eat this crap. The fact that Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation is so loved just proves my point. It is just so sad. Obviously, this is not the only example. Most of the time, these degenerate pedo baits and turn your brain off completely types of series become over-hyped mainstream garbage. And the problem is, the industry tries to please ‘these fans.’ Like, yes, tastes differ and stuff, but you cannot just like that brain fart.

P.S.

It used to be a funny meme, but now you realize that it is not funny anymore. Seriously, I have been very close to the point of giving up on anime completely, but I only watch it because sometimes you stumble upon such gems like Sonny Boy.

Spoiler

I'll admit that I don't "get" Sonny Boy. It just hasn't made me want to get it, and thus I stopped caring around the point where people were talking about invisible baseball playing monkeys or something. There's no particular reason why. It just doesn't jive with me. I'll still probably finish if the deluge of new shows doesn't catch my attention first.

The stricter a series sets it's rules of engagement, you'll inevitably filter out a lot of the people who just want to have fun first and foremost when they realize they have to make homework out of simply understanding what's going on. The silent majority cares more about immediate fun over trying to impress people with pretty sounding words over the internet about underrated masterpieces that they won't talk about ever gain once the next season rolls by.

 

[Rascal]

I stopped caring around the point where people were talking about invisible baseball playing monkeys or something

See I think that means something is wrong with you, that's the exact thing that would make me interested in something.

The silent majority cares more about immediate fun over trying to impress people with pretty sounding words over the internet about underrated masterpieces that they won't talk about ever gain once the next season rolls by.

You greatly underestimate my ability to never shut up about the stuff I consider masterpieces for years :D

 

[31stCrusade]

Spoiler: rant

That is why people do not like Sonny Boy. ‘I do not get it, hence it is bad.’ Anime fans today are way too spoiled, most of the time, they get all the needed explanations spoon-fed to them, because who likes thinking these days? No one. Anime creators are too afraid to risk and leave questions that only anime watchers will be able to answer during their watch. E.g. Yoshitoshi Abe; you never get most of the answers, you are to think to get them and the series’ message.

Why risk, when you can just hide your shitty writing behind some fanservice, which is totally fine to use, but it becomes a problem when it is overused and it becomes even more of a problem when it starts lewding kids to attract more viewership. And people eat this crap. The fact that Mushoku Tensei: Jobless Reincarnation is so loved just proves my point. It is just so sad. Obviously, this is not the only example. Most of the time, these degenerate pedo baits and turn your brain off completely types of series become over-hyped mainstream garbage. And the problem is, the industry tries to please ‘these fans.’ Like, yes, tastes differ and stuff, but you cannot just like that brain fart.

P.S.

It used to be a funny meme, but now you realize that it is not funny anymore. Seriously, I have been very close to the point of giving up on anime completely, but I only watch it because sometimes you stumble upon such gems like Sonny Boy.

I get where you're coming from. I too wish anime had less fan service. It doesn't add much value. But at the same time I don't think the majority of anime should be trying to communicate some deep message that the viewer needs to carefully decipher. Most of the time I just want a fun comedy, a flashy action show, or a show with a suspenseful story. Anime should be entertaining first and foremost. Whether it's communicating an important point is secondary. If it also does that, that's great, but not essential. Plus a lot of the time when anime tries to be all deep, it just comes off as incredibly pretentious. They just dress up common sense points that everyone already knows in flowery language. I love anime but I definitely can't say I've learned a whole lot of useful life wisdom from it.

 

[Rascal]

Anime should be entertaining first and foremost. Whether it's communicating an important point is secondary.

It should actually be the opposite, it should be trying to communicate a point or explore a certain theme first, and then make that entertaining. That makes it art. Anime that don't do that are just diversions at best.

 

[Akishima]

Quite right, although I do believe that during most seasons there are more than just one good show out, this was just one of those summer anime drought situations.

It's always interesting to see the wildly different opinions about every season. Personally, it's one of the best summer seasons I've ever had- and yes, I AM watching Sonny Boy, partially out of stubbornness, since I don't think I'm enjoying it as much as some other people seem to be. I'm also watching a bunch of shows that I get the feeling people think are trash, and am probably enjoying them more. It's entertainment after all- I like it when shows are thought-provoking, and honestly prefer that, but first and foremost, I need to be able to enjoy them. If a show is too preachy or arthouse, I am very likely to find it a slog, no matter how much I intellectually appreciate what it's trying to do.

I agree with @31stCrusade that anime doesn't really handle philosophical stuff all that well- it tends to be hamfisted, pretentious, overly simplistic or all three. As I've gotten older, I think I've relaxed more and don't feel the need to have everything I watch be somehow "useful." I understand more every year why iyashikei anime and slice-of-life are so popular with Japanese salarymen- when you come home after a long day at work, you want to turn your brain off and just watch something that makes you happy. And that's just fine. Anime can do both things, and that's great, but there's nothing wrong with mindless entertainment either.

 

[Rascal]

It's always interesting to see the wildly different opinions about every season. Personally, it's one of the best summer seasons I've ever had- and yes, I AM watching Sonny Boy, partially out of stubbornness, since I don't think I'm enjoying it as much as some other people seem to be. I'm also watching a bunch of shows that I get the feeling people think are trash, and am probably enjoying them more. It's entertainment after all- I like it when shows are thought-provoking, and honestly prefer that, but first and foremost, I need to be able to enjoy them. If a show is too preachy or arthouse, I am very likely to find it a slog, no matter how much I intellectually appreciate what it's trying to do.

I agree with @31stCrusade that anime doesn't really handle philosophical stuff all that well- it tends to be hamfisted, pretentious, overly simplistic or all three. As I've gotten older, I think I've relaxed more and don't feel the need to have everything I watch be somehow "useful." I understand more every year why iyashikei anime and slice-of-life are so popular with Japanese salarymen- when you come home after a long day at work, you want to turn your brain off and just watch something that makes you happy. And that's just fine. Anime can do both things, and that's great, but there's nothing wrong with mindless entertainment either.

See I used to be in the same mindset as you guys, thinking more thematic stuff was just shallow because I preferred good animation above all else but I came to realize overtime, that anime that are "entertaining" and nothing else, incubate an insufferable side of the anime community. When a popular show is undercut with a fanbase infected with "hype culture", the anime starts revealing itself to be so much more vapid and shallow than I ever would have thought because how people react to it doesn't match the actual substance of it. The only way an Anime actually has value is if it has emotional, intellectual, or cultural significance. Same with anything, really, films, books, tv, ect. If it doesn't have those things, then no amount of "entertaining" content matters in the least.

 

[g3data]

It should actually be the opposite, it should be trying to communicate a point or explore a certain theme first, and then make that entertaining. That makes it art. Anime that don't do that are just diversions at best.

I don't really see the point. If a story doesn't grab you with something that's interesting on surface level, than you won't want to bother digging any deeper than that. That's why a series like Evangelion could get away with starting a series with cool giant robot vs kaiju battles and then end on 2 whole episodes of the main characters being interrogated in the center of a room about their psychological hang-ups and dissecting their unhealthy copes. You have to make sure you're audience isn't bored before you challenge them, otherwise no one will care.

 

[Gens]

I'm squarely in the middle with my opinion, I think mindless entertainment is great and surreal arthouse thinky pieces is also good and has it's place as well. It depends on my particular mood honestly in what I want to watch and keeping an open mind about everything. There's nothing wrong with either.

As long as you don't belittle someone directly just because they may enjoy that high art stuff as hipsters or whatever and vice versa if they like popular mainstream shows as lower class plebs, we're all peachy. This is just a simple matter of I respect you, and you respect me.

 

[Rascal]

I don't really see the point. If a story doesn't grab you with something that's interesting on surface level, than you won't want to bother digging any deeper than that. That's why a series like Evangelion could get away with starting a series with cool giant robot vs kaiju battles and then end on 2 whole episodes of the main characters being interrogated in the center of a room about their psychological hang-ups and dissecting their unhealthy copes. You have to make sure you're audience isn't bored before you challenge them, otherwise no one will care.

Well the idea is you have to present your ideas in an entertaining way. But if you don't have those good ideas and substance in the first place the presentation just doesn't matter. You can have it the other way around though. If something isn't necessarily entertaining but still has something to say, then it still has value even if it doesn't have popularity. Like say Texhnolyze for example. Boring as shit, yes, but it has something to say. And I respect that way more than something with tons of flash but absolutely nothing going on under the hood like jujutsu kaisen.

It doesn't matter if "people" care, it matters if the people you're intending to get the message to care. That's what art is to me, something that may speak to certain people, but isn't intended for everyone. Even if it's just one other person. Even if it's just the creator himself who understands it.

 

[Akishima]

See I used to be in the same mindset as you guys, thinking more thematic stuff was just shallow because I preferred good animation above all else but I came to realize overtime, that anime that are "entertaining" and nothing else, incubate an insufferable side of the anime community. When a popular show is undercut with a fanbase infected with "hype culture", the anime starts revealing itself to be so much more vapid and shallow than I ever would have thought because how people react to it doesn't match the actual substance of it. The only way an Anime actually has value is if it has emotional, intellectual, or cultural significance. Same with anything, really, films, books, tv, ect. If it doesn't have those things, then no amount of "entertaining" content matters in the least.

But I think that even the most time-waster popcorn anime has emotional value if you enjoyed it. For example, I'm watching an unprecedented number of isekai anime this season after disparaging them for the past few years. And I'm enjoying them. Don't get me wrong, I definitely have opinions on anime- I dislike most action shonen, slice-of-life, cute-girls-doing-cute-things and comedy anime, but that's personal preference- we all like different things and that's what makes people interesting.

And I really don't care about toxic or stupid anime fans- you're going to find that in every fandom. Dumb people can watch smart shows and smart people can watch dumb shows. That doesn't change the inherent value of either the person or the show. I watch what I like- I posted to a blank wall for years on social media because my friends either didn't watch anime or didn't talk about it, and while I enjoy being able to talk anime with other fans on A-P, I honestly don't give a shit about "fandom" in general. I honestly don't understand why people give fandom so much power- I understand that yes, we do influence trends and all that, but if you don't like something, just ignore it.

I love being able to express love for something, and I enjoy seeing other people do that too. If I don't happen to like that thing, I just stay away from it, or maybe engage in friendly debate about why I don't like that thing. At the end of the day, I don't really feel like it matters all that much. We all have our things that get us through life and make it bearable. I mean, I adore Mushishi and think it's one of the best anime ever made, but I know people who thought it was a snooze fest. I think One Piece is incredibly cartoonish and ugly, but I understand that tons of people (you included) love it for many reasons- does our taste in shows make either one of us inherently better or more intellectual? I think not.

@Gens said it so much better and a lot more succinctly.

Well the idea is you have to present your ideas in an entertaining way. But if you don't have those good ideas and substance in the first place the presentation just doesn't matter. You can have it the other way around though. If something isn't necessarily entertaining but still has something to say, then it still has value even if it doesn't have popularity. Like say Texhnolyze for example. Boring as shit, yes, but it has something to say. And I respect that way more than something with tons of flash but absolutely nothing going on under the hood like jujutsu kaisen.

It doesn't matter if "people" care, it matters if the people you're intending to get the message to care. That's what art is to me, something that may speak to certain people, but isn't intended for everyone. Even if it's just one other person. Even if it's just the creator himself who understands it.

That's great in theory, but if a lot of people don't watch something, it's hard to convince studios to make it- and, why couldn't they make a show like Texhnolyze that was more interesting too? I'd love to see more thought-provoking anime out there, but, there's no way it's gonna get made when there's a lot of tits and ass that sells. Thank the gods we have passion projects and directors and studios who are willing to occasionally risk their livelihoods to do something different, because as we all know, the anime business model is broken, and doesn't seem like it's gonna be fixed anytime soon.

 

[g3data]

Well the idea is you have to present your ideas in an entertaining way. But if you don't have those good ideas and substance in the first place the presentation just doesn't matter. You can have it the other way around though. If something isn't necessarily entertaining but still has something to say, then it still has value even if it doesn't have popularity. Like say Texhnolyze for example. Boring as shit, yes, but it has something to say. And I respect that way more than something with tons of flash but absolutely nothing going on under the hood like jujutsu kaisen.

It doesn't matter if "people" care, it matters if the people you're intending to get the message to care. That's what art is to me, something that may speak to certain people, but isn't intended for everyone. Even if it's just one other person. Even if it's just the creator himself who understands it.

I'll be honest, I was mainly arguing from a marketing perspective on how to broaden the appeal of your art without necessarily compromising on the values you wish for it to hold. I too have plenty of respect for storytellers who try to do whatever they want and don't care whether you're able to keep up (Texhnolyze is one of my favorite anime, so thanks for the example). But such writers had best be prepared to live with the starving artist grindset (though any one who wants to become apart of the anime industry should).

 

[Rascal]

I think One Piece is incredibly cartoonish and ugly, but I understand that tons of people (you included) love it for many reasons- does our taste in shows make either one of us inherently better or more intellectual? I think not.

Well as someone who is very knowledgeable about intellectualism and shiet, not liking one piece doesn't win you any points on the intellectual scale but I think I shall forgive you since we both like Durarara!!

Thank the gods we have passion projects and directors and studios who are willing to occasionally risk their livelihoods to do something different, because as we all know, the anime business model is broken, and doesn't seem like it's gonna be fixed anytime soon.

But see being able to risk it all to do something different IS intrinsically what gives these things value to begin with, making something that's meant to appeal to the mainstream just doesn't have that, and you can always tell when those kinds of projects are made because they just have no soul. Or what soul they do have is smothered by everything they put in to make it more appealing.

But such writers had best be prepared to live with the starving artist grindset (though any one who wants to become apart of the anime industry should).

Yeah I understand that marketability is a big part of it all and it's interesting, but it doesn't factor into passion, and often times, in fact more often than not, marketability can compromise the integrity of a genuinely good story and characters. Like, Demon Slayer (jesus christ, not to rant about this again, but it fits the conversation) is I think a great premise, setting, and story. If it had fitting tone, writing, ect it could have really been special... but instead they watered down the characters from what they should have been (nezuko who could have been a tragic figure with a complex psychology is instead a silent moeblob, tanjiro who could have been a protective yet flawed guardian with a lot of trauma and conflicting views from the rest of the world who has to fight overwhelming odds, now the very definition of a mary sue who even demons fall to their knees and cry for how pure and holy he is), added in countless immature jokes to appeal to kids, characters that scream all the time, battles that rely on gimmicks that aren't very good, the list goes on. All of those things were completely unecessary to making Demon Slayer a good story, they were only there to make a wider audience watch it. It could have been so much better if they just cut the bullshit and relied on the strength of the story and setting. It could have been... well, what Dororo 2019 was. An anime that ACTUALLY relies on the inherent intrigue in its dark premise, archaic setting, and nuanced conflicts of an individual's fight that clashes with the will of the "greater good".

And thank you for using the word grindset. I hope for that word to be added to the oxford dictionary by 2023.

 

[Gens]

That's great in theory, but if a lot of people don't watch something, it's hard to convince studios to make it- and, why couldn't they make a show like Texhnolyze that was more interesting too? I'd love to see more thought-provoking anime out there, but, there's no way it's gonna get made when there's a lot of tits and ass that sells. Thank the gods we have passion projects and directors and studios who are willing to occasionally risk their livelihoods to do something different, because as we all know, the anime business model is broken, and doesn't seem like it's gonna be fixed anytime soon.

I think work from hardcore auteurs are pretty interesting to think about, because they're really not making it for anyone but themselves, their purpose isn't always necessarily to entertain an audience. People can think that's pretentious as fuck and that's fair, but it feels like such an intimate experience to me. When you're watching something from them you distinctly know already they made it by how recognizable their style is. Like I watch any Satoshi Kon work, and I will instantly know it is him. That's something I can appreciate where it feels like I'm deeply really looking through a mirror into what kind of person they are when their personality is so overwhelmingly imbued in a piece of work.

 

[Rascal]

DAT

My two favorite anime vibing next to each other on the top anime list like

Yeah I guess you could say I'm a 50's kinda guy

Spoiler

Obviously it's BTS and MHA