Anime/Manga Journal

[Mickeymac92]

I am watching the Layzners. I have more hate than love for it so far.

Why?

[Aeolus]

Random suggestion of the day: Brassreiter

Do not listen to this man. He means to con you into watching a bad anime.

I am watching the Layzners. I have more hate than love for it so far.

Why?

One could say its because it is Lamyzer than other anime.

[Hathen]

I am watching the Layzners. I have more hate than love for it so far.

Why?

There's a lot of things I like about the show so far but I find a lot of them to be double-edged swords. The impression I get is that what he was going for is a feeling of hopelessness- every time it seems like something good will happen, it just reinforces the feeling that all the survivors are alone. I like the idea, I just never get that actual feeling watching the show, so I instead end up with a show that moves very slowly plot-wise because they're all just running around the same planet for 10+ episodes. Hilarious 80s hair doesn't help.

It leads to a lot of very effective individual scenes I can think of, but overall I don't get that feeling that the writer wanted me to feel.

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The part where the base get nuked, the part where they find all the people who tried crowding into the shelter, etc. (I guess their spacesuits protect from radiation of a place that got nuked about 5 minutes ago) All really great individual scenes, it just takes way too much time getting from point A to point B.

Also like Eiji as a pacifist hero in that even after he kills someone (incuding Gail), he angsts about it some but he doesn't act like a big baby about it.

Also Anna narrating every single episode gets incredibly grating. Most of what she narrates is usually plainly obvious or could've just been conveyed through the characters.

[Mickeymac92]

I guess I don't mind shows being slow, because I did not feel that the pace was that bad when I watched it. I wasn't exactly a patient Teenager when I saw it, either...

And I don't know, I felt like the I got the feeling the show was going for quite well. Granted, I haven't seen an episode in quite some time, but I still remember the feelings of hopelessness. I believe I got up to 11 or 12. I don't want to spoil anything, in case you're not there yet, but there's one fight that I especially liked around then that I felt really nailed that feeling.

I dunno what else to say. I've been feeling like our tastes in mecha have been lining up over the past few years. I can't really say "give it more time", since at this point, you've watched more than I have, I think.

[Hathen]

Well, my problem is more with the handling than the plot itself as you probably guessed, so the problem isn't that the plot itself is slow-paced, but that it's handled in a way that's boring (One of my favorite anime is actually .Hack//SIGN so you can probably figure how much I care about pacing, heh). I never got past that whole feeling that I'm watching a show, I rarely felt any fear myself outside of a few select scenes that I pointed out. I can think of a few things that could've made it more effective (Like, say, not showing any Grados at all, and have Eiji wear an opaque mask for a good length of the show, possibly don't show him in person at all, have him communicate to the civilians through code or something).

And yeah, I'm definitely past where you watched. I went and watched a bunch of episodes at once and I'm up to 28 now. I feel the show gets a lot better towards the end of the first season and I really, really like what they're doing with the second season so far.

[natros]

Wrapped up Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood over the weekend. I can now safely say it is miles above the original anime. The wife and I enjoyed it very much.
First off, the ending is SO much better. I HATE the original anime's ending. Brotherhood wraps things up rather nicely.

As I've said before, the pacing with Brotherhood feels a bit rushed and unstable in some parts, but I'm sure that's the anime crew fitting in all they could from the manga (which I have never seen/read, honestly). The goofy slapstick stuff tones down a bit near the end of the series, which was nice. I know I've kinda complained about the amount of slapstick before (and there is a lot), but looking back, it was at least never used at an inappropriate time.

Not much more I can say that I didn't say before. Don't want to say too much, as I don't want to spoil anything for people who haven't seen it yet.
I do like some story elements from the original anime, and it is definitely worth watching, but Brotherhood is a big step up, IMO.

[Dincrest]

I'm saving up for the Battle Angel Alita: Last Order omnibus collections, so I'll be rereading the original Battle Angel Alita manga series.  It's easily my favorite manga, so it should be great to read it all again. 

[Lard]

This is more news than a journal entry but

OMG LIVE ACTION PATLABOR

http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/interest/2013-08-03/live-action-patlabor-robotic-mecha-photos-circulate-online

[Aeolus]

This is more news than a journal entry but

OMG LIVE ACTION PATLABOR

http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/interest/2013-08-03/live-action-patlabor-robotic-mecha-photos-circulate-online

Oh hell yes!

[Jotacon]

Awesome!

[Aeolus]

Meanwhile I've started up on SAO. It's probably me being salty but why do I get the distinct impression that Asuna will be A) loosing more equips than anyone else on the show, and B) will follow Keito like a lost puppy dog no matter how much bullshit he pulls on her.

[Darilon]

I have started watching Steins Gate. Up to episode seven and confused as hell but also loving every minute of it.

Edit: got up to episode 11 and loads of things suddenly clicked together for me. They are all probably wrong though.

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Bike girl just said that Titor was her father which makes me think she may be from the future herself if Titors claims about being from the future were true. Probably a soldier as she keeps bringing that up.
It also explains why Bike girl thinks Christina is a spy for SERN. She does not work for them at the moment but rather will in the future.

The thing that "clicked" for me though and the most off the wall idea is that Okarin will travel back to when he was an elementary school kid with the new memory transfer device and give himself the fever that seemed to let him retain his memories when he is transported to a parallel universe. This could also explain why he keeps talking about the agency or organisation. He means SERN but has forgotten as he got older or only partially retained his memory.

Both ideas are probably incorrect but I love that the mystery the show creates allows you to create such predictions in the first place.

Other questions such as Christina's death in episode 1 and that satelite falling are bugging me but I am sure they will be answered later on..

[Klyde Chroma]

I've been bad... I finished up Sorcerer Hunters last week and never turned in my report!! LoL

What a freakin' great series if you dig the 90's fantasy fare. It actually has quite a few qualities I found unique. For one, its the fly-by-episode sorcerers that stole the show for me as opposed to the main cast. Some were really entertaining, while others just cool. Despite the fact that they act in "monster of the week" type fashion (never appearing again, with no development) some totally proved memorable to me. The transvestite leader of the Haz Knights and Zaha Torte' also proved characters I won't soon forget.

Without becoming spoiler-rific the final scenes featuring Zaha were really creepy to me for some reason. I feel like there was some heavy symbolism there despite how light hearted the series is by nature.

Dincrest buddy, thanks again for turning me onto this one. Highlight of my summer-anime-viewing for sure!

[Aeolus]

SAO Episode 3: Aka, how many death flags can we trip in a single episode?

Eureka Seven: So I've finished rewatching this and I've got two things to comment on. First was that SWR Z1 was right, the Spec V Nirvash is hella broken, especially for a mecha that fights with hearts and rainbows and is only around for like 10 minutes at most. And second was that I forgotten just how many incidental characters get killed off at the end.

[Dincrest]

Glad you enjoyed it, Klyde.  And lemme tell you, Mille Feuille is a totally different animal in the manga.  In the anime, he pretty much plays it straight, but in the manga,

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he has no qualms about aggressively hitting on both Carrot and Tira.  Mille is one horny sonofabitch.  Looks different in the manga too, but either way, it's scary how much he looks like a hot chick.

 And, yeah, the first half of the series does "monster of the week" but the second half gets more serious with the Zaha plotline.  The only issue I have with the anime is that it didn't develop/flesh out Marron and Gataeu as much as the manga did.  Gateau is a riot in the manga.    

And not only the antagonists, but some of the ladies Carrot hit on were more than just fanservice.  I rather liked Bomber and Lake.  Oh, and that one girl who

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was the only honest girl in a village full of liars.

Did you watch it subbed or dubbed?  I thought the dub was solid.  And the whole "bear" line is still my favorite of the dub.  

As for my journal, I recently marathon-read all 9 volumes of Battle Angel Alita.  Still my all time favorite manga.  Looking forward to starting to collect the Battle Angel Alita: Last Order omnibus collections so I can get more Battle Angel Alita.