Anime and Manga - I won’t allow your bones to stay on this planet. I will banish your evil soul.

[PK htiw klaw eriF]

Uncle From Another World 4: Uncle DIO gets drunk and goes flying.

[Sarex]

New chapter of Berserk. Such a big nothing burger...well not nothing, but a disappointing chapter either way.

[InsaneCommander]

On 8/10/2022 at 11:22 PM, uuuhhii said:

how does that ridiculously boring light novel get 4 season of adaptation

A matter of taste. I see lots of people adoring it in the comment sections of Crunchyroll and Youtube. They also say the story is rushed in the Anime. That might help if the novels are boring.

[uuuhhii]

3 hours ago, InsaneCommander said:

A matter of taste. I see lots of people adoring it in the comment sections of Crunchyroll and Youtube. They also say the story is rushed in the Anime. That might help if the novels are boring.

even mass produced garbage light novel and manga adaptation still have to heavily edit most web novel source

but most are still not really readable after editor are done

it really is a sector given up by the slowly sinking light novel industry

most reader couldn't avoid noticing how lazy and awful certain repeating problem are

like the currency called gold but have the value of actual yen in many novel

[Amentep]

old thread:

 

[Bartimaeus]

 Yawara! This show is so silly...and also very obvious with where it's going at times, it almost hurts - almost.

The issue is, even though it is what it is, I'm still enjoying it. So far, the show maintains a driving storyline and consistent characters while not quite going too far into absurdity, and...well, I guess that's enough to keep my interest so far. Actually, even with its few fundamental design issues, I'm rather starting to enjoy it.

Spoiler

Between Yawara's friends all trying to persuade her to give up on Judo (because she's a girl and it's O.K. to be weak and cry!), her mom then suddenly arriving onto the scene and reassuring her that it's actually good for a girl to be strong and pretty...and needing to beat the crap out of a stalker that just won't leave her alone, Yawara finds an unlikely source of joy in judo: training the weak and technically deficient boys at her local judo club and allowing them to feel a little proud of themselves and the work they've put in to get better. Coaching them is the first time she's been happy with judo in the entire show so far, and it's a nice change of pace from her overbearing grandfather constantly pushing her to practice.

Right, now for SpyxFamily...episodes 3 through 5. Three and four more or less kept walking the same line as the previous two - a lot of absurdity, but most of it serves a purpose and keeps the story moving along without trampling on the characters or plot, so it's enjoyable and fine.

Spoiler

The thrust of it is that the family is tasked with trying their best to interview for and get Anya into a highly exclusive private school in order for Father to complete his mission; failure to get her in means failure of his mission, which means their little family no longer has purpose in existing. A compelling reason for all of them to earnestly want to succeed, particularly Anya who has the most to lose (i.e. her "parents" and home) if she is not able to do everything exactly right. Even with the ridiculous "ELEGANTO!!!" admissions guy being a complete meme the entire time, these episodes do work.

Episode 5, on the other hand, was a classic "the characters are puppets to the premise" kind of episode, where you have a wacky premise that takes center stage over everything else and the characters no longer behave in line with their established core characteristics for completely arbitrary reasons (i.e. to make the premise play out how the writers want it to...no matter what it takes to get there). It must be said that this style of episode in shows is almost always complete anathema to my brain, even for a show as silly as this one...actually, with the relatively short run-time that this show has along with it being pretty tightly scripted up until now, it feels very inappropriate indeed.

Spoiler

Father's contact/agent guy sets it all into motion by suddenly barging into their home and upsetting the established order of things by suggesting that the family take a vacation: Mother becomes a two-bit drunk without any purpose for the entire episode, Anya is suddenly selfish and emotionally manipulative, and Father inexplicably goes along with all of the insanity instead of making the obvious decision that he should've at the beginning of the episode, which was throwing his contact/agent guy out the front door the moment he overstepped his boundaries (while also risking the entire mission!) by walking in to the show. There were a few nice moments, but it wasn't enough to stop that terrible brain itch in knowing that nobody was acting quite how I feel they should.

The good news is that I think the show promises to treat this episode as if it never happened (because it's obviously filler) while getting back on track for episode 6, and that should prove to be more enjoyable. Anya, so far, continues to be the core of the show that makes it work, .

Edited August 15, 2022 by Bartimaeus

[PK htiw klaw eriF]

2 hours ago, Bartimaeus said:

Even with the ridiculous "ELEGANTO!!!" admissions guy being a complete meme the entire time, these episodes do work.

Are you implying that ELEGANCE is a meme? Decidedly un-elegant.

Spoiler

 

[InsaneCommander]

Overlord 4.7

 

Ainz visits the frost dragons and the quagoa. Despite making a mistake, Aura and Shalltear think he is a genius supreme being.

Spoiler

Aura found out that the Death Knights were killed by falling from a bridge. But even with Ainz stating that he made a mistake about that, they still thought he was a genius.  Also, he accidentally implied to Demiurge that he plans and is aware of what will happen for the next 10.000 years. And the guy totally believes that.

“I am known to be a merciful king.” - Ainz after tens of thousands of quagoa were massacred.

That was a waste of 50.000 soldiers, not to mention the complete disregard for their lives. It would be more efficient to show his power and conquer them. Unless he lets rumors of what happened spread and then, eventually, his reputation will have entire armies surrounding immediately.

 

On 8/15/2022 at 12:28 PM, KP From Another World said:

Are you implying that ELEGANCE is a meme? Decidedly un-elegant.

[PK htiw klaw eriF]

36 minutes ago, InsaneCommander said:

 

That's me when I see some sweets.

[uuuhhii]

just remember a crazy anime start as kickass turn into two different type of tokusastu than fighting alien end with fighting stalker

couldn't remember the name

would be wise to not watch it again

[Bartimaeus]

On 8/18/2022 at 5:30 AM, uuuhhii said:

just remember a crazy anime start as kickass turn into two different type of tokusastu than fighting alien end with fighting stalker

couldn't remember the name

would be wise to not watch it again

I don't know if anyone/everyone else feels the same, but I have to tell you...I get that you're doing an over-stylized Gromnir-like writing thing (...right?), but it's so strong and the context for what you're trying to say is usually so limited that I often really have trouble precisely interpreting you beyond "thing bad/good".

Now that I've finally gotten that off of my chest after a couple years of being mildly confused by your posts...another episode of SpyxFamily! It's time to go to school.

My only regret is that Anya doesn't spend any time mean-mugging, which should be an obligatory skill of any little girl. She could learn a thing or two from the best. But much better episode than the last, though - possibly the best one so far.

Edited August 20, 2022 by Bartimaeus

[uuuhhii]

40 minutes ago, Bartimaeus said:

I don't know if anyone/everyone else feels the same, but I have to tell you...I get that you're doing an over-stylized Gromnir-like writing thing (...right?), but it's so strong and the context for what you're trying to say is usually so limited that I often really have trouble precisely interpreting you beyond "thing bad/good".

Now that I've finally gotten that off of my chest after a couple years of being mildly confused by your posts...another episode of SpyxFamily! It's time to go to school.

My only regret is that Anya doesn't spend any time mean-mugging, which should be an obligatory skill of any little girl. She could learn a thing or two from the best. But much better episode than the last, though - possibly the best one so far.

never good at express anything

didn't try to be confusing

[Amentep]

Watched the first three episodes of the original 67 Speed Racer. I just barely remember the show, so it's been fascinating to see what memories it tickles

Very limited animation - almost Hanna-Barbera level, but I can sew why it struck a chords with the viewers.

[Bartimaeus]

8 hours ago, Amentep said:

Watched the first three episodes of the original 67 Speed Racer. I just barely remember the show, so it's been fascinating to see what memories it tickles

Very limited animation - almost Hanna-Barbera level, but I can sew why it struck a chords with the viewers.

First three episodes? How could you resist watching the second half of Challenge of the Masked Racer? You watching the blurays? Hope so, it's critically necessary for my favorite part of the show: spotting all the poorly drawn and/or silly faces Trixie makes, .

Spoiler

What's wrong with your face?!

Edited August 22, 2022 by Bartimaeus

[Amentep]

Yeah, its the blu-ray.  I've been watching weekly since I watched the US Cobra pilot, but haven't had much posting time.  Next week I'll watch the last of the intro to the Masked Racer / Racer X.

There's been some funny faces for sure.

[Bartimaeus]

(timestamped)

The entire American Sailor Moon pilot was apparently recovered from the Library of Congress. It's...greeeat, .

Edited August 23, 2022 by Bartimaeus

[PK htiw klaw eriF]

30 minutes ago, Bartimaeus said:

(timestamped)

The entire American Sailor Moon pilot was apparently recovered from the Library of Congress. It's...greeeat, .

 

 

[InsaneCommander]

On 8/20/2022 at 12:57 PM, Bartimaeus said:

My only regret is that Anya doesn't spend any time mean-mugging, which should be an obligatory skill of any little girl. She could learn a thing or two from the best. But much better episode than the last, though - possibly the best one so far.

 

One more week without ojisan. And one more to go until the next episode. I wonder what kind of disaster he is causing on the other world right now.

 

Edited August 24, 2022 by InsaneCommander

[majestic]

On 8/23/2022 at 6:31 AM, Bartimaeus said:

The entire American Sailor Moon pilot was apparently recovered from the Library of Congress. It's...greeeat, .

 

[Bartimaeus]

54 minutes ago, majestic said:

 

The American intro song isn't quite as good as Moonlight Legend, but otherwise I thought it was more or less a faithful adaptation.

[uuuhhii]

just read another volume of sengoku by miya****a hideki

this manga is dragging on far too long and the choice of main character for a pun are feeling more and more like a detriment than strength

build up for how important a conflict with main character involve often seems forced

the story are still a blend of historical record and nobunaga no yabou nonsense

art style are amazing

battle of okitanawate might be the best use of the style of this manga

enough visual pretension and atmosphere but little dialogue and vague on historical fact

nice to see ryuzoji at least have a chance to show up

[majestic]

To post something for a change, I began watching ノワール (Nowāru, Noir).

The primary reason for doing that was to not continue Strike Witches for the time being, plus the show is old enough to look decent and it comes from Bee Train, a studio I wanted to check out for the longest time. Then I read some reviews and the all more or less agreed that the series begins too slow and is mostly notable for its character interactions, which my brain pretty much translated into an impulse to check it out.

Noir, so far, is a bit like an animated series that can most easily be described as a The Bourne Identity type of deal, a film which it preceeds. One of the main characters, Kirika, wakes up one day bereft of her memories. She finds her clothes, an ID card, a school uniform and a pocket watch playing a wistful melody when opened. The other main character is Mireille, a Paris based killer for hire, who is contacted by Kirika. Kirika offers to take her on a mysterious pilgrimage to her past.

Whether that contact happens prior to Kirika losing her memory or not isn't entirely made clear, but that's probably a plot point for later. Whatever else Kirika found, she knows that Mereille is a professional. When the two women meet, they not only find out that the melody from the pocked watch triggers repressed memories in Mireille, but also that Kirika is followed by an unknown party trying to kill her. To her surprise, she finds out that she can handily dispatch the group of killers sent after her, and is a bit dismayed at the end of the first epispode. Not that she had to kill people - just how easily she can do that, without batting an eyelash.

Intrigued, both women team up. Going by the moniker Noir, something from Kirika's broken memories, they begin taking hit jobs.

The series is, so far, a bit schizophrenic in its divided attention to both character development and action. While there's not much in terms of direct depiction of blood and gore, it is, well, pretty violent. Minor spoilers:

Spoiler

The second episode, for instance, begins with a character introduction. A man comes home from work, to his wife, a five year and a newborn, telling them that he managed to leave earlier. They talk a bit about their day outside, then the dad wants to show his older kid something, they enter the house, and a bomb goes off, killing everyone. Woof. Noir is hired to eliminate the terrorists responsible for the attack, with the bombing victim being part of an counter terrorism unit in Paris.

Episode four, on the other hand, introduces their victim by having his 15 year old daughter showing up unannounced because her father forgot her birthday. Kirika and Mireille observe them, and for the rest of the episode, Kirika wonders about having a regular school life and parents, being lost in thought most of the time. She eventually ends up finding their target, and notices the birthday present he bought for his daughter. With the way the episode went it was all set up for Kirika having second thoughts - but that's just not her. She shoots her target, then leaves the building and casually runs into his daughter, helps her pick up an orange she drops, and then just leaves.

With their somewhat polar opposite characters, the interactions between the two women are pretty nice so far. Mireille is outgoing and enjoys life, even with what her job is. It is also fairly noticable in the way she walks and dresses, while Kirika just isn't. She's often wistfully gazing at nothing in particular, trying to figure out what happened to her and why. This difference between the two also lead to a bit of hilarious character-building fanservice in an episode where they rent out a house at the sea for a job. Mireille ends up wearing a red bikini while sunbathing, and Kirika sits next to her in a blue dress looking like she doesn't want to be there - but they both agree that the sea is pretty and life is good.

I tried looking for a shot of it online, but that turned out to be a bad idea. For some reason there's an awful lot of fan content about Noir out there, and nothing that's particularily great (and a whole lot that's not safe for work). Should have figured it would be like that, the two are the perfect shipping couple. Sigh. Although after watching like only a sixth of the show, who knows where their relationship is going to go yet. I don't really want to spoil myself, like I said, give me a fun mystery and I'm game.

I tried making a screenshot of the scene, but that doesn't work on the computer here for some reason (currently not at home). Ah, well, maybe that's for the better. 

Well, then, take one of the shots that are available.

First meetings and their framing. <insert rant about digital coloring here>

When in Paris...

So far, so good, I'm just hoping that the fan art doesn't mean that this will eventually do a deep dive and ends up being some creepy Yuri show. Or if it does, hopefully it'll at least be more tasteful than the fan art.  

I could do with less shooting action, but I guess you can't predate The Bourne Identity and have a storyline about two assassins without lots of gunplay.  

Edited August 26, 2022 by majestic
Meh, their -> its

[HoonDing]

I listen to Noir music now and then

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DP6up0r-MrY

also a rare show where the dub is much better

The yuri stuff is all in Madlax, the lazy copy paste of Noir.

tbh I remember all the crazy stuff Kirika pulls off (like with the credit card), I remember not a single kill of Mireille. She gets two episodes where she faces off against some "legend" and some poison chick... and still it simply fizzles out.

[Bartimaeus]

1 hour ago, majestic said:

To post something, I began watching ノワール (Nowāru, Noir).

I've seen just a minute or two of this one so far...it went into the "looks promising" bin, but I have approximately 40 shows in that bin right now. ...No, I actually went and looked, it's at 68 right now. I think I've said this before, but I'm better at identifying shows I might want to watch than I am at actually watching them...man, that's a lot.

1 hour ago, majestic said:

The primary reason for doing that was to not continue Strike Witches for the time being, plus the show is old enough to look decent and it comes from Bee Train, a studio I wanted to check out for the longest time. Then I read some reviews and the all more or less agreed that the series begins too slow and is mostly notable for their character interactions, which my brain pretty much translates into an impulse to check it out.

[the rest]

Okay, now we're talking. I guess I'll have to check it out sometime soon...er.

[InsaneCommander]

Overlord 4.8

 

They skipped two novels and mixed the name of some nations in the subtitles. If I was not aware of the skip and of the location of these novels (that will be adapted later as a movie) I would now think that the one nation that hates the Sorcerer Kingdom is now their ally. What a mess.

Phillip, the dumbest man alive, is back. He decides to rob the Sorcerer Kingdom’s food supplies that are being sent to the Holy Kingdom. That was so stupid that the floor guardians can’t believe it and assume it is actually part of some master plan by an unknown genius enemy. However, with a mere suggestion from Ainz, they change their mind and start deciding how to punish the Re-Estize Kingdom. As usual, they get carried away and want to do something exaggerated, probably involving lots of death.

Funny that the Re-Estize Kingdom was actually very friendly towards the Sorcerer Kindgom (despite losing tens of thousands of soldiers and part of its territory) and the prince had even considered submitting themselves as a vassal state just like the Empire, except that he was afraid that would cause a rebellion.

In the end, Albedo goes visit the King and he asks if his head is enough to compensate for what happened. Nice try, however there are some ladies in the room with different ideas...