Anime Thread of Doom

[SlyReaper]

Mirai Nikki: Holy crap, Yuno is one scary lass.

Spoiler:

"Good thing Yuki's mother was so nice... I didn't need to use my tools"

[Gelsamel]

I liked the first episode of Mirai Nikki and then I dropped it on the 2nd episode. I will maybe watch more of it later when the season is over but maybe not.

[mystic_aura]

Finally finished watching No.6! There were things I felt weren't wrapped up satisfyingly, but all-in-all it was a fun watch.

Spoiler:

I really didn't understand why Nezumi had to leave. There didn't seem any purpose as to why they should go separate ways. Unless I missed something. Also, the dog-loaner. I probably shouldn't get started on her and the baby =/.

This symphony off its soundtrack is beautiful <3

[KnightExemplar]

Just watched some 6 episodes of Carnival Phantasm. (Type-Moon's 10th anniversary work. Crossover Comedy between Fate / Stay, Tsukihime, and Melty Blood)

If you haven't seen it, its pretty funny. The AAA joke is apparently filled with Japanese puns and the like, so I didn't find the translations funny. (But its supposed to be funny... you just can't translate it right )

Anyway, if you haven't seen the opening yet... its a great show.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wE61HncnXJM

Can't... stop... watching the intro...

Spoiler:

Cardboard Assassin is hilarious. He's stuck at the temple, so everyone just carries around a cardbord cutout of him. Even in the intro, if you look closely, Assassin is a cardboard cutout

EDIT: Here's a little taste of the intro.

[tastelikecoke]

Watching Fate/Zero. the first episode is amazing, and amazing.

I've been trying to read the light novel concurrently with the anime, but I get screwed by the translation differences :<.

[Jorpho]

Just watched some 6 episodes of Carnival Phantasm. (Type-Moon's 10th anniversary work. Crossover Comedy between Fate / Stay, Tsukihime, and Melty Blood)

Does that not mean the show will be difficult to keep track of if you are not familiar with those three series?

[Box Boy]

If you've seen/played at least one of the three franchises it's pretty funny.
If you've not, then it's a confusing mess full of injokes and references and characters you won't get.

[Gelsamel]

Watching Fate/Zero. the first episode is amazing, and amazing.

I've been trying to read the light novel concurrently with the anime, but I get screwed by the translation differences :<.

Might depend on whose subs you're using. Try Commie or UTW.

[KnightExemplar]

Just watched some 6 episodes of Carnival Phantasm. (Type-Moon's 10th anniversary work. Crossover Comedy between Fate / Stay, Tsukihime, and Melty Blood)

Does that not mean the show will be difficult to keep track of if you are not familiar with those three series?

Yeah, unfortunately. Its a very niche series. Several of their segments make cross-references between similar characters across the series. I mean, the first episode is basically 100% Fate/Stay jokes, the 2nd episode is 100% Melty Blood / Fighting Game references. But starting with the 3rd episode or so, the jokes are about the similarities between characters. IE: Shiki (Tsukihime male lead) and Emiya (Fate/Stay male lead) have a conversation together about how difficult it is to keep up with all of the girls in their lives. (And about how their respective official pairings can absolutely murder them if they fuck up).

I'd say its a must-watch if you are familiar with at least two of them. (I am familiar with all three, but I never played Melty Blood. I just recognize the Melty Blood characters). If you're familiar with only one of them... it will be iffy. But I think you can still enjoy it.

If you haven't seen any of the three... then the jokes won't make any sense what so ever. Its assumed that you already understand the relationships between all of the characters.

[SciJo]

Calling it right now, Kill Me Baby will be the best show of the winter season.

[tastelikecoke]

Watching Fate/Zero. the first episode is amazing, and amazing.

I've been trying to read the light novel concurrently with the anime, but I get screwed by the translation differences :<.

Might depend on whose subs you're using. Try Commie or UTW.

It's UTW. It's just minor differences, actually, like command spell/command seal or magecraft/wizardry. Either way there's a lot more background in the light novel

Just finished 5cm per second. Rather than say amazing, I'd say Wow that's Cloud Porn.

[Gelsamel]

I wasn't much of a fan of 5cm per second. It didn't work very well I thought.

Anyway 'wizardry'? Your LN says that? Who translated your LN it should be magecraft. Or wait, does UTW say wizardry? I didn't notice that...

[tastelikecoke]

I wasn't much of a fan of 5cm per second. It didn't work very well I thought.

Anyway 'wizardry'? Your LN says that? Who translated your LN it should be magecraft. Or wait, does UTW say wizardry? I didn't notice that...

Magecraft is definitely more right, so It's UTW's subs at fault. As for 5 cm per second, I think the atmosphere is enjoyable.

[Gelsamel]

I wasn't much of a fan of 5cm per second. It didn't work very well I thought.

Anyway 'wizardry'? Your LN says that? Who translated your LN it should be magecraft. Or wait, does UTW say wizardry? I didn't notice that...

Magecraft is definitely more right, so It's UTW's subs at fault. As for 5 cm per second, I think the atmosphere is enjoyable.

Huh. I've been using commie but last few episodes I've been trying out UTW and they look alright. I don't remember commie using wizardy but maybe they did?

I believe Wizard might be a 'rank' or title of mage, but I'm almost certain none of that has been mentioned in Fate/Zero so far so I don't know why they would even use Wizard let along Wizardry.


In other news: Lancer is hot and awesome and cool.

[Arisu]

I was just looking trough the Anime winter 2011/12 chart and seeing there, to my delight, Zero no Tsukaima (familiar of Zero) season 4. Finally.

Couldn't help but notice, though, that Louise (Zero no Tsukaima) looks an awful lot like Index (Toaru majutsu no Index).

[tastelikecoke]

Maybe it was a coincidence or natural of Zero no Tsukaima, But that was definitely obviously what Index is wearing.

Ooh that reminds me, should I continue Zero no Tsukaima again? Starting Season 3 I mean.

[SlyReaper]

Also: a sequel to Bakemonogatari? Sweet.

[Arisu]

Ooh that reminds me, should I continue Zero no Tsukaima again? Starting Season 3 I mean.

I didn't care too much for season 3 personally, though it has been a while since I watched it so I might not remember it correctly.

From what I remember they kind of went overboard with the fanservice for me by adding a new character: Tiffany, a clumsy, big-breasted elf (you should know where this is going), and focussing way too much on her. Siesta also got more "attention" as she started expressing her desires more aggressively (or did she start doing that in season 2 already? sorry, can't remember it clearly) with the usual results.

I had hoped it would become a Negima-esque show, starting out fanservice-heavy but gearing towards action later on, like they did in Zero no Tsukaima season 2.
They went the other way.

That being said, I still liked it, just not as much as season 2 (also, once again, my memory is vague, so don't take my word for it).

[Box Boy]

Zero no Tsukaima is a genuinely terribad show IMHO, and this is from someone who kinda likes the Light Novels (and Sekirei, for cruds sake!).
The animation is kinda poor, the characters get turned into caricatures of their LN selves, there's no memorable music and it's plot is really....oddly paced, like it speeds up the events of the LN for one arc and then really slows them down for the other to cram in fanservice. The LN isn't exactly brilliant, either, but at least Louise is likeable as a person in it.

All of it's many forms, however, have got for me the distinct overall feeling that it's got...something there. A sort of potential in the premise and world that it's creator just either doesn't have the skill to pull off or the inclination to use, and as it goes on it gets more and more buried beneath the fanservice and Moe-slice-of-life-ness (neither of which are bad in moderation). I don't know, the LN's gotten more serious and managed to keep my attention as a result, and I stopped reading the manga half way through, but unless the anime goes past where the LN is translated to I don't think I'll be watching the fourth season.

[Arisu]

I agree completely.

I do, however, think that the ending of the second season was done pretty well.

Spoiler:

When Saito attacks the army of seven thousand alone to give Zero time to prepare her spell, and dies in the process. I thought it was a good way to end the series, it felt very finished at that point. I would not have minded it if the last five minutes had been a memorial to Saito rather than Tiffany's introduction. I'd rather have had that than season 3.

Everybody has some guilty pleasures.

[Gelsamel]

Also: a sequel to Bakemonogatari? Sweet.

Yeah I can't wait. They're also going to do the prequel later (ie. that stuff you see in the first minute and a half of ep 1 of Bakemonogatari).

Nisemonogatari PV: http://youtu.be/Eu203n756MA
Kisemonogatari PV: http://youtu.be/gAnyT2G0-og

I'm also looking forward to BRS and Kill Me Baby, Berzerk and .hack//. 'Another' looks like it might be interesting. I probably won't check out much more than those.

[dhokarena56]

How good is the Irresponsible Captain Tylor OVA?

[clockworkmonk]

So I am barely 5 minutes into the first episode of Toriko.

It is about(as far as I can tell) very manly men who are manly while catching rare and delicious, often dangerous things so they can be turned into delicious food. so far the hero has caught a crawfish-cod and a 5-tailed Eagle.

needless to say, I love it completely so far.

edit:
and now I've actually watched a few episodes and it is even better, as the last bit of the episodes is dedicated to preparing and eating the dish that was made.

[SciJo]

'Another' looks like it might be interesting.

You're just in it for the eyepatch.

Anyway, there are a few more listed in this updated chart.

What struck me was the re-run of Nichijou in a 12-episode format. Just seemed strange to me.

[Gelsamel]

You got me.

Also wtf, new SZS episode? :O

[hatten]

I wanted a funny anime so I watched FLCL, as per the recommendation of the first post. It sucks, it's just plain weird.

Spoiler:

wtf is up with growing horns due to being crashed into by a motorcycle, and then the horn is transformed into two robots ... And then grow a new horn that creates a new robot ...

though now I got tempted to watch the rest just to see wtf will happen next. Good thing it's only six episodes >_>

[Grop]

It doesn't make sense at all (and what happens next won't either), but it's awesome.

[hatten]

Just watched the third... I dunno, I guess I have to watch wtf is gonna grow out of his head next. And one can maybe hope to know why!

[SlyReaper]

It isn't the motorcycle that does it, it's the guitar.

I'm going to rewatch it now because it's awesome.

[Xeio]

Good thing it's only six episodes >_>

[hatten]

mind=blown during that climax.
I can't really decide if it's stupid or genius, I think I'll settle for both.

It doesn't make sense at all (and what happens next won't either), but it's awesome.

I actually thought the rest of the series (4-6) made more sense than the first ones, especially the first two I was just confused.

[SirBryghtside]

Just finished watching Haruhi Season 1, 3 months since starting. And... wait, what?

Spoiler:

I don't think the most surreal bit was the time switching - I actually liked that - but the part where they had an almost Lucky Star-ish episode, where half of it was Nagato reading, and the other half was Kyon getting a heater - and that was followed by some crazy girl trying to stab him to see how Haruhi would react in the next.

That was a real WTF moment. I like it, but season 2 is apparently really strange/dull with the whole Endless 8 thing. Ah well. 2 hours 40 minutes of the best trope there is can't be too bad... right?

[KnightExemplar]

Just finished watching Haruhi Season 1, 3 months since starting. And... wait, what?

Spoiler:

I don't think the most surreal bit was the time switching - I actually liked that - but the part where they had an almost Lucky Star-ish episode, where half of it was Nagato reading, and the other half was Kyon getting a heater - and that was followed by some crazy girl trying to stab him to see how Haruhi would react in the next.

That was a real WTF moment. I like it, but season 2 is apparently really strange/dull with the whole Endless 8 thing. Ah well. 2 hours 40 minutes of the best trope there is can't be too bad... right?

Spoiler:

In the trope world, its called an subverted trope. At the beginning, Kyon is saying that he really wishes that nothing bad happens today. That everything would be normal. Every other anime in existance creates something ridiculous when a character asks for "something normal". Haruhi inverts the trope by giving Kyon what he wants: a normal, mundane day.

[tastelikecoke]

Just finished watching Haruhi Season 1, 3 months since starting. And... wait, what?

Spoiler:

I don't think the most surreal bit was the time switching - I actually liked that - but the part where they had an almost Lucky Star-ish episode, where half of it was Nagato reading, and the other half was Kyon getting a heater - and that was followed by some crazy girl trying to stab him to see how Haruhi would react in the next.

That was a real WTF moment. I like it, but season 2 is apparently really strange/dull with the whole Endless 8 thing. Ah well. 2 hours 40 minutes of the best trope there is can't be too bad... right?

Spoiler:

When I watched the Endless 8, I started with Episode 2. (Not unlike starting with Episode 1, If that doesn't make sense)
I never got tired of it's repetition either. It's still watching a different episode every time, so it's totally fine if I get to see Kyon lying on the bed again. I've done more horrible repetitive stuff so I think it's my brain being a bit insane.

[SirBryghtside]

I'm halfway through the 8, and...

Spoiler:

...it's nowhere near as bad as I thought it would be. I like picking up on the little differences between each episode, and the plot is being told at a reasonable pace. The only one I thought was unnecessary was the third one, because nothing new happened. They even worked it out slower.

If anything, I'm at least glad that weird stuff is actually happening now. It was getting a little dull, how gimmicky the whole 'she controls space' thing felt when it never really did anything.

[SlyReaper]

So I just noticed there's a new Lupin special out. Those are always fun. Lupin III: Blood Seal - Eternal Mermaid.

[Bhelliom]

Did anyone else totally not hear about this until now? Yay for more Ghibli!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oZv4ZdAf ... re=related

[SlyReaper]

I'd heard they were making a movie based on The Borrowers, but I didn't know they'd actually finished it.

[charliepanayi]

I'd heard they were making a movie based on The Borrowers, but I didn't know they'd actually finished it.

It came out in the UK already in July (we even got our own dub), no idea why we got it so early in comparison to the USA. I imagine the DVD will be out here soon.

It's good anyway.

[KnightExemplar]

I know this isn't really a Visual Novel thread... but the Anime and VN communities seem somewhat linked. So I figure I'll talk about this here.

There's this VN called Aselia the Eternal that I've been working my way through. Its a H-Visual Novel which was then re-released as a non-H Visual Novel on the PS2 which was then fan-translated into English. The fan-translation of the non-H version has then become commercialized (It hasn't been ESRB rated... but I'd expect a T rating from the English Release if it were rated). Oh yeah... careful about what you Google, since it was originally an H game and all.

Despite having an extremely typical setup and very slow start... I've been drawn into the game for multiple reasons. As a VN from 2002... I'm surprised in the number of themes that have come up in this game that seem to have come up in other, more modern animes. Just from the cover, it doesn't take much to see that Aselia herself seems to have a lot of characteristics of a certain other character that has been discussed in this thread...



Lets see...
* Armored Chick -- Check
* Ahoge -- Check
* Big Sword -- Check
* "Official Pairing" for main character-- Check
* "Battle Skirt" -- Check

Anyway, enough comparisons to other stuff. The game is an alright story in its own parts, but I felt it to be extremely slow at the beginning. Still, after reading through the story, there was ultimately a purpose for everything they did. Which is a sign of a good story I guess. As the game progresses, the storyline eventually becomes quite epic. Epic enough to fit the title "Aselia the Eternal".

Gameplay wise... the closest I can describe it is "Team Fire Emblem". For most of the game, there are ~15 characters in total that you can organize into 4 squads of 3. Each squad consists of an Attacker, a Defender, and a Supporter. Bluespirits are best at attacking, Greenspirits are best at defending. However, on support... Red Spirits have offensive support (ex: Fireball), Green Spirits heal, and Blue Spirits counter-spell. And lets ignore BlackSpirits for now... they do a lot of things differently... And of course, the main character, who is of class "Etranger", pretty much is best at everything.

Like Fire Emblem, if a main character dies, then you instantly lose. If one of the minor characters die, they die permanently. Unlike Fire Emblem, you'll also have to worry about building bases. You can only train at cities where you've built a training facility. You'll heal faster in cities with Recovery Facilities. You can only gather Mana if you've built Ether Converters. Its a very simple city system, but it adds a great amount of depth to the game.

Anyway, has anyone else tried this game? I personally am more or less unspoiled. I'm on the last mission on Aselia's Route on my first playthrough. Apparently there's a lot of information in the other routes. Also, lots of spoilers in the story, so I tried to keep spoilers out of the above review.

Non-spoiler Story Highlights:
Yuuto starts off as ... well... a high school student. Most of his family has died, but he and his step-sister live together. Once you skip the typical high-school drama... eventually Yuuto and his sister are sent to a different world. The locals speak a different language. Despite not knowing the language, it is clear that his captors expect great power from Yuuto and force him to fight in a war by holding his step-sister hostage.

Yeah, for all of chapter 1, the locals don't speak Japanese. They speak a made up language just for the game. Kind of impressive IMO. By Chapter 2, they start speaking in Japanese (and the English Subtitles start making sense), but I still thought the concept was unique. Especially since most of the VN actually has voice acting.