New and current FS anime Topic

[Tobal]

Is the saint seiya movie up on BT new or old?, as i really enjoyed watching the hades chatpers of saint seiya and im hoping for moreof the same producation values.

[Tobal]

Hmmm, not sure what to make of the new gundam series 'destiny', it didn't extactly enthrall me as it didn't set about introducing the new characters yet, but its only one episode in and we already have more gundams on show than the whole of the alive and dead cast of the Seed, but strangely lack the coolness off 1st gen of Seed(so far), plus that opening scene...... good god that was quite brutal to set the scene for the 'main' character(if he is the main, lol theres so many freaking characters to follow now) and the whole (it hardly a spoiler as it inthe intro) flying body part gundam for the main guy just seemed....hmmm just to stupid and over done compared to the coolness of Strike multi themed eqiupment, but his double bladed polearm him was nice.

also the animation wasn't up the sratch, from what i remember of the 1st series, which was quite disappointing. Well im sure it get going soon, and i really do hope it turns out to be as good as Seed.

[Wild_Cat]

Indeed, that felt kinda strange. Now, SD is my very first Gundam series, but it was my understanding that Gundam belonged to the "Real" genre (from what I'm told, Gundam actually *invented* Real), which is confirmed by most of what happens in the episode. However, the multi-part mecha trick just screams Super. Worse, it screams Sentai (I must admit I was concerned about that for a moment, thinking something in the lines of "if there is a separate pilot for each part of the Mobile Suit, I'm hitting Command-Q right now").
And while the creators of the Gundam universe managed to rationalize the use of Super-style weapons such as swords (something to do with the mechas' power sources emitting particles that renders radars inoperative, thus forcing engagements to take place at LoS ranges), I highly doubt they'll find a plausible way to explain us how *that* makes sense. Because it's so impractical it's a joke.
It's a shame, really, because the rest of the episode was actually pleasant to watch. We'll see what happens next...
Oh, and the animation director has obviously been watching Equilibrium .


Naruto 104 was... Average. New OP (better than "Fighting Dreamers" but still nowhere close to "Haruka Kanata"), ED (which I actually quite like, despite the completely psychedelic visuals), and action that's nothing to write home about. Now, how Naruto, the same guy who was kicking Kabuto's ass a few episodes ago (and already has a couple of other Jounin-level kills in his record), could regress so much as to get whacked that easily by one man remains a mystery to me (ditto for the rest of the te-- correction, ditto for Sasuke), but anyway. At least that filler arc is not as uninteresting as the previous one...


In other news, I just watched the first episode of Gankutsuou. Here are my thoughts so far: in a nutshell, it's freaking brilliant.

The design is most unusual, the animation seems unorthodox and the lighting is downright eerie. The result is, aesthetically speaking, breathtaking, albeit hard to describe. You'll have to see it for yourself, but know that it's a beauty.

Sound-wise, I'll leave the judging of the seiyuus' performance to others and concentrate on the music. The opening theme is good, however it's nothing compared to the excellent ending theme.
The in-series soundtrack is perfectly appropriate, and here my terrible lack of culture should become apparent in that I *did* recognize the opera being sung at one point, but not in the way I should have. See, for some reason, when the lady on the stage began to sing, my adrenaline levels started running high, as if I was subconsciously expecting a combat. With techno music overlaid to the opera as the singer's vocal performance starts to span over a dozen octaves. Then, realizing that, I hung my head in shame.

Anyway, that's definitely a series worth following. Let's hope it will not fall victim to the "first episode syndrome" like too many recent series (worst offender: Samurai Champloo).

[Wild_Cat]

Yo, guys, is everyone dead but me?

Anyways, I just watched the first episode of Tactics. It's below average. Dull and unimaginative, with generic (albeit not unpleasing) chara design, sub-par animation (which, given that it's an episode 1, leaves me to imagine where it will drop as the series goes on), music that ranges from average to borderline ridiculous (badly played overdrive guitar to mark the good guys' triumphant entry got out of style somewhere in the '80s) and a plot that -- although I can't really judge from only one episode -- seems to follow a "villain of the day" format.

En bref: you can watch, but only if you've got some time remaining after the quality anime mentioned in the above posts. It's doesn't reach pain-inducing levels of badness like, say, Elfen Lied (which not only did steal 26 minutes of my life, but also managed to make them feel like 2 hours), but it's really nothing to write home about. If you want spirits, watch Bleach instead.

(and IMO, the AnY guys should focus on completing their ongoing projects -- the quite good Kenran Butoh Sai and Kurau Phantom Memory, both of which they're getting late on -- before undertaking new ones such as this)

[newmiyamoto]

sorry man, work all day yesterday... quick comment as i'm off to work in a min. i'm glad they've kept tactics budget as the start is very humdrum and most of the bits that will need attn are later on.

naruto - OP : meh... not as good as fighting dreamers only better than viva rock. ED : wierd, catchy not the worst ed but nowhere near the best (bring back ryuusei).

AnY : simply a below average outfit that is stretching their already limited resources on yet more unnecessary projects, finish Kurau!

Deathsquad : WTF? they started so well, now they've gone all AJ on us, no more sweet valerians?

Gankutusou : What did we tell you? superb, some of the dialogue may seem hollow now but it'll all make sense.

Oh, and watch Yakitate! Ja-pan, brill. that is all.

[Eight Rooks]

First episode of Bleach bored me - some nice designs and whatnot, but way too much of the stupid Shounen Jump "and now we will stop the fights for five solid minutes while we explain what's going on" crap - and at least Naruto, FMA et al kept that out of or down in their first episodes! It might go somewhere interesting, but I don't see that much to keep me watching.

Gankutsuou was quite cool. Nice aesthetic design - like a Venetian carnival on acid - and looks like it might be an interesting re-telling of the book... so this could be a Gonzo anime with a decent story for once, even if they've had to borrow someone else's plot to do it.

What else? Liked My Hime, seemed okay for a kids-with-powers thing. Some cute character designs, moderately amusing fanservice gags, makes me want to find out what the deal is.

Beck was an excellent first ep., like FLCL grounded in reality. Can't wait to see more of that one. Grenadier I couldn't get past the opening credits - no, no, no, **** off with your cannonball-sized breasts already, I didn't like that crap when I was 17 and I certainly don't like it now.

Not the best season I've seen, but some good stuff in there.

(And I like Elfen Lied, so screw you guys. )

EDIT: Oh, and the Yakitate anime just disappointed me. Dull and lifeless, not at all what I'd... built it up to be in my head, I suppose, after reading 10 volumes of the manga. <shrugs> Such is life.

[Tobal]

EEEHHhh Grenadier pretty good, any girl that can reload a 6-shooter with her boobs is well ace, worth watching a 2nd ep to see if things get better.

Any of you watched SunaBouzu yet, pretty funny madmax style world with the main guy being a midget pervert that fight's really,really dirty.

Also finished off watch Ai****eru ze Baby, not the ending i was expecting anyway, bit to lovey,dovey for my tastes but at least it opens it up for another 13ep series at least(i hope). And school rumble is ace, i need a good crazy school days anime with no Cromatie High around.


And AnY need to get back to subbing off the rest of Maria-sama spring, sod Kurau.

[Eight Rooks]

I need to add Kannazuki No Miko; just watched the first ep., and... damn. It's, like, the most blatant example of someone cramming every single gimmick they could possibly think of into one series without any thought for how they'd work, and it should be crap, but even though it's completely and utterly silly it's the biggest guilty pleasure I've had for a long, long time. Marimite crossed with Soukyuu No Fafner crossed with YamiBou crossed with... other stuff, I dunno. Shoujo-ai/implied lesbianism! Huge robots! Demons! Aliens! Love triangles! School stuff! And it's fun! (stupid, but fun! )

Please, please, please let the second episode build on this... <crosses fingers>

[Tobal]

I like the new OP for naruto, brilliant animation and decent music and prettym uch sums up every that going to happen in the current manga arc, even down the last fight. The ending, i burst out laughing when i saw naruto pastered cutout face zooming in and out, not as good Wind or VivaRock, but easily beats the last ED(the only bits liked of that, is the english at the start)

Anyway time for Samurai Champloo ep.17, and i've got Kannazuki No Miko on the download.

[Meng De]

And AnY need to get back to subbing off the rest of Maria-sama spring, sod Kurau.

Agreed!

Gankutusou : What did we tell you? superb, some of the dialogue may seem hollow now but it'll all make sense.

Yes, it's nice to feel the Gankutusou love in here Just got the second episode, so I hope it's going to carry on. My only fear is that the Count, being very cool, will become so central to the show's success. Without his continued presence, the episodes may drag a little, especially if his machinations take him too far behind the scenes.

Just watched Tactics 1, and while it was a little disappointing, I'll have to disagree with you Wild_Cat about the animation. Although Tactics really does nothing new in it's field (It's kind of reminiscent of CLAMP, a definite continuation from the style presented in Loki) The hazy visuals, and bold close up shots added a nice dreamy quality to the show, which if they had put a little more emphasis on, could have made this unique. I do however agree with it's second string nature, there are better shows out there. The show is setting it's self up to be very much in the mould of Matantei...Loki, but without the strong Norse-based plot, or the charming comedy edge. Why this [i]isn't[/b] the second season of Loki, I don't know. I'll be giving this one some more time though.

I've still also got Sunabouza to watch too, (which is Gonzo's other show). Oh and I finally finished off FMA!

Spoilers!!!

All that stuff about the link with "our" reality, and the gate seemed a little tacked on, and Envy suddenly being able to change his shape to produce weapons, or become a huge dragon was a bit weak too. Nice set up for the movie though, but I do miss Al's Armour form now! He seems too bland without it.

[Tobal]

errr....Kannazuki No Miko, it has to be the fastest paced anime show featuring sailormoon lesbians and giant robots with tenticals ever,

so fast that a photo album can be made from single day together featuring stuff that never happened, so fast that even the school kid somehow on his 1st time piloting a robot knows all the special attacks names calls and moves like a pro....., so fast that he didn't notice his sweetheart right next to him getting giggy with another girl, and so fast the main villian that episode got pwned straight away and unless is 'team rocket' style every week baddy she seemed to well developed('well for this show) be killed off..... it almost a joke...

.... and somehow I like it

[Eight Rooks]

And the second episode just gets even bloody weirder. Yay! Yay! Yay! I love this show; it's played more with a straight face than you would ever believe possible and yet it's just ridiculous the way they cram all this stuff in. Seems maybe every episode will have The Lesbian Bit, The Shoujo-Ai Bit, The Robot Fight, The Handing Down The Knowledge Bit, The Section Where The Demons Show Up Bit... pure gold. Add a Kotoko opening & closing song and I'm in heaven. It's the anime equivalent of a giant tub of the most sickening luxury icecream ever - crammed full of tacky brainrot, but such, such, such fun. And not in a "so bad it's good" way, either - I like the art style, I like the music and I like the voices, so I'm giving this a thumbs up, not pointing at it and laughing. I am praying they keep this standard up.

[Wild_Cat]

The ACh&A-H version Gundam Seed Episode 2 just reminded me of why I usually wait for releases by "real" fansub groups.
There's not a lot of complicated dialogue (half of it is "this guy!" or "Shinn!"), but they still managed to do a horrible job of translating it. It almost reads like Babelfish. In their rush to be the first to release it, they apparently didn't even stop to consider the fact that the ship's name "Mineruba" sounding suspiciously like a Japanese rendition of "Minerva" might be an indication that the ship's name actually *is* Minerva.

In any case, I got ahold of the A-K/AonE release as soon as I got home this afternoon, in order to be able to actually understand what was going on. My impressions are still mixed. The multi-part Power Rangers-style mecha (now complete with bolt-on upgrades!) still makes no sense to me. However, I have to admit that the fights have some great dynamics. Good enough for me to keep watching, but obviously not as good as Macross Plus (or Zero).

Now, can someone give me the lowdown on Gundam Seed, and on the characters that are back in Destiny? I just want the Reader's Digest version, just so I don't get completely lost in the plot twists that already seem to be happening.

[dave heats]

Yeah I deliberately waited for a semi decent sub to be released, and having watched ep2 this morning have truly fallen in love with gundam seed all over again.

Tbh I'm not sure if you'll really need to know what characters were in GS1. If you want a plot write up check out a fan site or something, or even better buy the dvd's. Its truly awesome.

Due to the fact Ive had a day off of Uni today, Ive been watching a shedload of anime and dusting off a few more volumes of manga. Ive all but decided what series I'll be following this season.

Started by watching gundam seed destiny, which as I said, I fecking loved. The new bolt on element of the gundam made me weep with joy when I first saw it, and its delightfully confusing so far. The animation did seem quite poor in places, except during the fight scenes. More dual sword wielding mech action? Yes please.

Watched bleach, and love it just as much as the manga. Its a brilliantly stylish series and I personally quite liked the soundtrack. Pales in comparison to becks "i was made to hit in America" etc, but i didnt find it as bad as most sources seem to suggest. I love the shonen anime, and I will be following bleach avidly over the coming months. I can tell its going to be one of my favs after just 2 eps.

Grenadier was quite enjoyable, and I will probably follow it mainly due to how much it reminds me of trigun. "I dont want to fight, but sometimes theres no other way" etc etc etc. Similarly fantastic gun-play, if only Vash had a rack like that. Enjoyable to watch, but wont be top of my download list.

School rumble just gets better and better IMO. Watched ep2 today, and loved it nearly as much as the first ep. I cant wait to see what crazy **** they'll be pulling out in the coming eps. I especially like the end theme and animations, "its all about timing!". So true >_<

My joint favourite series alongside gd-destiny is beck. I ****ing love the manga, the music is phenomenal, animation dark and gritty, dialogue is top drawer and it reminds me of my beloved FLCL constantly. This is my personal recomendation to anyone looking to start watching a new series, or someone who is just plain bored. If only to listen to the ENGRISH.

I could live with just beck this season, but the fact I've got all the forementioned series, naruto, gunbuster and viewtiful joe to watch means I'm in anime heaven.

[Wild_Cat]

Tbh I'm not sure if you'll really need to know what characters were in GS1. If you want a plot write up check out a fan site or something, or even better buy the dvd's. Its truly awesome.

I might just do that, yeah. How many DVDs are there, and how much do they cost?

(I'm talking about official DVDs here, not HK bootlegs -- I'll never, ever pay for pirated anime)