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Spring 2014 Anime |OT2| about as likely as a second season of Hyouka

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Theonik

Member
Either I did and don't recall, or no. I will lean onto no
It puts beautiful things to shame. Which is in itself beautiful.

2 Hard 2 Keep It Inside
This IS a discussion forum after all!
please don't die.

Extollere: I hope you're ready for Strike Witches if you didn't have time for it in your extended absence.
Extollere needs to watch the broom episode at the very least. I have a good feeling about it.

I cried my eyes out when I found out you deleted sexy Mio on your pixiv.
All that art gone. I quickly made a makeshift grave with prints from the copies I had on my HDD.
 

firehawk12

Subete no aware
I get it, whatever works for you. I'd still recommend very (very) quickly skimming through first set of episodes to really refresh yourself on the key stuff that's present in them.

I mean, can't really speak about fully comprehending the text because I've seen the entire show twice and I've read a fair amount of articles on the subject and I still don't feel like I have a firm grasp over the entire series It's not really reasonable to expect you, or anyone, to have that kind of understanding on your first time through the text.

I think this is one of the many reasons Utena is kind of daunting to as a serious text - it requires a fair amount of effort on the part of the viewer to really work with the show to appreciate it and it features a ton of recycled animation, recycled episode beats and it looks kind of cheap in places.
I'm not going to say it felt like Endless Eight, but I remember it being evocative of a mahou shoujo formula but without much variation in the episode structure. It's very much like how Penguindrum featured an (in my opinion anyway) ultimately pointless penguin transformation sequence for the sake of having one. The one variation from what I remember is at the end, when she fights the final member of the student council and begins to doubt herself. I'm sure there's something to be read in the repetition or the cyclical nature of time and progress, but I figure I should be doing this for "fun" at the very least and I'm trying to make it not feel like homework. lol

I think the lack of a hormonal response may be distorting your point of view. Strip everything away from Free! and ask yourself what the emphasized relationship is. It exists between the viewer and the show itself. There is no absence of sexuality that exists inside of something like Free!, it simply redirects those thoughts in a way that directly targets the viewer. The characters that build up the show almost entirely avoid the acknowledgement of these blunt sexual displays. The focus is not on "cute boys doing cute things" because the show isn't based on the behavioral patterns of its cast, instead the drive of the show is to romanticize an idealized "male body" as a direct transaction for the viewer's pleasure.

The philosophies and practices of a show like Free! differ markedly from "cute girls doing cute things" shows like say, K-On or even Yuru Yuri, where the sexual contract between the viewer and the show are unsigned. Yuru Yuri has incredibly light undertones of sexuality that exist, but it isn't a direct interaction that targets the viewer's sexual desires specifically. Instead these implications follow a line of light romance that is supposed to alter the relationships between characters within the world.

I don't really think all of these shows can be placed under the same umbrella. Does Gochuumon wa Usagi Desu ka? fill the same role as something like Free!? Of course not. I think it's potentially misguided to just mark off what appeals to fujoshi as being the same as shows that cater to men just because they can share certain pieces.
You don't see any similarities between Free and K-On and Yuru Yuri and GochuUsa and Yuyushiki and Kiniro Mosaic and even Sakura Trick? All of these shows represent pure homosocial peer groups without the transgression of the other sex. They supposed to be "exclusive looks" into worlds that the opposite sex are not able to access themselves, since by inserting themselves into a group they are necessarily disturbing the system. Let's call that Heisenberg's Moe Uncertainty Principal.

I mean, if you want to read the into light pseudo homosexuality between the various characters in the all girl shows, certainly it exists in Free as well. There's no irony between the fact that Rin and Haruka have an extremely close "rivarly" that the seme and uke fujioshi have undoubtedly entertained themselves with, but that's incumbent on you to "ruin" the mostly innocent atmosphere of the text.

I can't speak for all male-only peer groups, but speaking from my own experience and what I've seen in IRC, in the most extreme guys will watch porn together. Just sit in awkward silence and get erections as some hardcore banging is on the computer monitor (thank god I only visited college dorms and never lived in one lol). That's a reality that the girls watching Free probably don't want to experience.

Probably the original Genshiken helped destabilize that view, but the boys of Genshiken aren't pretty boys for the girls to idealize - even if the show made up the Sasahara x Madarame ship. But even if they wanted to idealize these nerdy boys, the first few episodes talk about the fact that these guys go to Comiket to buy fapbooks and stick pages together. The girls of Nidaime do it too, of course, but the fact is that these are men with clear sexual urges and that's probably not something people want to think about. Certainly not the girls watching Free or OoFuri or Haikyuu or KuroBasket.
(Free just stands out because it's less sports bullshit and more "moeblob shit" as people here like to put it).

This is why I actually liked High School Girls, since even though it predates the contemporary four girl formula, it exists strictly to dispel notions of perfect homosocial relationships between women. The least of which is that, hey, girls have sex and think about whether or not to force their boyfriends to wear condoms. Or that they have periods and have to deal with the agony of cramps and, of course, the resultant fluids that come with visits from Aunt Flo. Seitokai Yakuindomo makes small jokes about this fact, pointing out that all girl's schools aren't havens of pure homosocial pseudo yuri paradises (much to SDBurton's chagrin) and suggests that men would probably be put off by the fact that girls are throwing tampons at each other. (This is before we get to the fact that all the girls on the show are perverts in some way, of course).

This isn't necessarily about sexual desire on the part of the audience though. Yes, there are guys who want the Keions to fuck each other. But there's someone like me who is somehow fine with being a voyeur into the lives of these five girls without a) wanting to have sex with them and b) wanting them to have sex with each other. The fact that I know what men are like in private groups makes any idealization of that relationship almost preposterous. But I can watching a show like K-On with nostalgic idealization, remembering not only an ideal high school life, but being able to experience that life through a perspective that is completely foreign to me.

I have to imagine that there are women who watch Free in the same way, where it's not about the fact that the boys strip their jerseys in front of the school, but the jokey way that Makoto has to get Haruka to get ready for school every day. It's a way for them to access the male psyche, to invade an idealized male space, and find comfort in a homosocial bubble that is literally too good to be true.

good thing p. much everything is a phallus in utena!
Babby's first psychoanalytical reading for ENG101. lol
 

Midonin

Member
Puni Puni Poemy

The Excel Saga quasi-franchise is clearly the ancestor of things like Pani Poni Dash and Nyarko, but Poemy made me realize that when Nabeshin is freed from the restraints of TV, you get something where everything is episode 26, all the time, forever. Magical girls and parodies thereof are one of the things I wish to expand my knowledge of, and this is.... certainly a unique entry in the magical girl parody/spinoff department. That it started as a show-within-a-show (I remember a preview for it in episode 24... which is easy since that was this morning.) makes it equally amusing to me. (Now turn Z-Cune Aoi into a real anime already.)

The metahumor was ridiculous, and the Sisters were equally ridiculous. I like how many of them shared VAs with the major players of Excel Saga, too. And the OP and ED were pretty catchy and also equally nonsensical. I enjoyed that. Seeing older examples of anime comedy only fuels my appreciation for it. It's not my native culture, but then, neither is British comedy, and one can just as easily develop a taste for that. Vivia international!

I need something calmer and more introspective after these past few days. And while I was going to keep up the Mituishi connection and jump into Gundam Build Fighters, I also have Supercon in two days. So infinite backlog, I stab at thee and shall watch Shinigami no Ballad next.
 

Syrinx

Member
have you figured out why Ryoga hates Ranma yet?

Well he does blame Ranma for his tiny pig curse (partly valid, since he did push him into the lake, partly not, because Ranma did show up to his challenge so it's not his fault that Ryoga has poor direction), so there's that. But now it also seems he hates him cause he's in love with Akane after she treated him so well as a piglet, so there's also that. I have a feeling you're getting at something else here though.

My guess is that
much like our fellow GAF friend, his name is Ryouga Saotome
.
 
Inari Konkon OVA
Fairly fun episode. Kon was sort of cute in his human form. Uka is always a nice sight. Interesting episode when the solution wasn't really the transformation, but letting them settle
 

cajunator

Banned
Firehawk that post is too long to quote on mobile but I agree with your post about what those shows are about except I like to pair drum n bass because well, theyre adorable together!
 

jgminto

Member
Rin is so good.
tumblr_n83diwiAPG1ro8jcyo1_500.gif

image.gif
 

firehawk12

Subete no aware
Firehawk that post is too long to quote on mobile but I agree with your post about what those shows are about except I like to pair drum n bass because well, theyre adorable together!
Oh sure, they can be paired up in "close friendships" and that's part of the ideal. They're still heterosexual, but they also have no outside interests, so it's a safe homosocial expression of heterosexuality.

Free has "pairings" in the same way, after all. lol
 
I know it's futile to ask about comics in anime forum, but any of you animebros here read Fables from Vertigo? I once again am reminded that I am not limited to reading manga and I'm rereading/catching up with the series. A love affair.
 
Space Dandy - 9

This is such a bizarre episode, and in a lot of ways, it was exactly what I wanted. For a series about a group of bumbling hunters traveling to various alien planets, it's rarely looked or felt as aggressively alien as this episode. Eun Young Choi's creative freedom was clearly apparent here to the point where it became an assault on the senses very quickly. For example, the weird, plant-like alien setting and character designs were imaginative and super colorful, but as the episode progressed it was increasingly difficult to discern who or what I was actually looking at. The visuals and jarring cuts to other weird looking locations in turn made the story difficult to follow. Yet, I still really enjoyed the episode because it took full advantage of what this silly sci-fi show is capable of and made it its own, much like the zombie episode did before it.
 

firehawk12

Subete no aware
I know it's futile to ask about comics in anime forum, but any of you animebros here read Fables from Vertigo? I once again am reminded that I am not limited to reading manga and I'm rereading/catching up with the series. A love affair.
I own like 10-15 volumes of it. I only read the first one. lol
Of course, the two fairy tale TV shows on now have kind of killed any interest I have in picking up the series again.
 

Quasar

Member
I know it's futile to ask about comics in anime forum, but any of you animebros here read Fables from Vertigo? I once again am reminded that I am not limited to reading manga and I'm rereading/catching up with the series. A love affair.

Whilst I've been on a break from US Comics, I have read lots of Fables. Love the series. Game is good too, if you like that sort of thing.
 

Shard

XBLAnnoyance
The inflows and outflows of life, that being said, no idea who this Extollere is offhand personally, other then the obvious, so the impact is muted.
 
I own like 10-15 volumes of it. I only read the first one. lol
Of course, the two fairy tale TV shows on now have kind of killed any interest I have in picking up the series again.

B-but unlike those shows this is actually good!

If you haven't, play the Wolf Among Us by Telltale. It's not too terribly far off of how the comic is. And I don't mean that sexy Bigby dancing to an invisible pole gif.
 
I know it's futile to ask about comics in anime forum, but any of you animebros here read Fables from Vertigo? I once again am reminded that I am not limited to reading manga and I'm rereading/catching up with the series. A love affair.

Not exactly a reader, but I am aware of some of the later stuff that happens between Bigby and Snow.
 

Jintor

Member
I'm not so shut your trap. I'm so behind on American comics. Locke and Key, Hellblazer, Swamp Thing, Fables, even more trashy fun stuff like Empowered... ugh
 

Jintor

Member
I've got two collections here, but I haven't started the Dark Ages arc.

Imminent moving (and lack of income and shelf space) has put a crimp on my plans. Need a netflix of digital graphic novels/comics. Comixology any good? I should ask ComicsGAF
 

Superflat

Member
The fact that I know what men are like in private groups makes any idealization of that relationship almost preposterous. But I can watching a show like K-On with nostalgic idealization, remembering not only an ideal high school life, but being able to experience that life through a perspective that is completely foreign to me.

I have to imagine that there are women who watch Free in the same way, where it's not about the fact that the boys strip their jerseys in front of the school, but the jokey way that Makoto has to get Haruka to get ready for school every day. It's a way for them to access the male psyche, to invade an idealized male space, and find comfort in a homosocial bubble that is literally too good to be true.

Free was kinda fascinating to me because of precisely that; it made the pieces that make up shows like this even more apparent to me, and was a clear example of how one's orientation makes for a uniquely different experience. KAKKOII BOYS DOING KAKKOII THINGS. I really liked Free, but my sister is way more into the character dynamics than I was, and I have to imagine that it's the same way for her when I enjoy shows like K-ON or Girls und Panzer.
 

Quasar

Member
I've got two collections here, but I haven't started the Dark Ages arc.

Imminent moving (and lack of income and shelf space) has put a crimp on my plans. Need a netflix of digital graphic novels/comics. Comixology any good? I should ask ComicsGAF

Comixology is pretty much the industries one digital provider. Everyone has centred around Comixology. Though some, like image, sell their comics also by themselves in DRM free formats.

Its more or less the iTunes of Comics. There are no subscription options in the vein of Netflix or Crunchyroll. Aside from the Marvel thing which is a pretty random assortment of things, and not complete runs from what I understand.

Comixology is nice, just that publishers charge the same for digital as they do print (at least for new releases). I mostly just grab stuff from sales. Of course part of that is that I took a break from comics and started watching anime/reading manga. Thought it would last 6 months...I'm now approaching two years.
 

firehawk12

Subete no aware
B-but unlike those shows this is actually good!

If you haven't, play the Wolf Among Us by Telltale. It's not too terribly far off of how the comic is. And I don't mean that sexy Bigby dancing to an invisible pole gif.
I've been weary of Telltale games... I do own it, but haven't touched it.

I've got two collections here, but I haven't started the Dark Ages arc.

Imminent moving (and lack of income and shelf space) has put a crimp on my plans. Need a netflix of digital graphic novels/comics. Comixology any good? I should ask ComicsGAF
Before I would have said they were like Jmanga and could disappear at any time. But now that Amazon owns them, I guess that's not a problem any more.
 

Jintor

Member
I'd rather a month-to-month sub for unlimited comics than a 'buy and own' model, even with sales. But who knows, maybe the sales are decent. Been meaning to get into Spider-Man as well at some point.

It's really just a filtering house to note down stuff I'd really like to actually buy some day
 

Quasar

Member
I'd rather a month-to-month sub for unlimited comics than a 'buy and own' model, even with sales. But who knows, maybe the sales are decent. Been meaning to get into Spider-Man as well at some point.

Sales mostly centre around selected trades for sub $10 prices. or 99 cent issues.
 

firehawk12

Subete no aware
Free was kinda fascinating to me because of precisely that; it made the pieces that make up shows like this even more apparent to me, and was a clear example of how one's orientation makes for a uniquely different experience. KAKKOII BOYS DOING KAKKOII THINGS. I really liked Free, but my sister is way more into the character dynamics than I was, and I have to imagine that it's the same way for her when I enjoy shows like K-ON or Girls und Panzer.
Yeah, I think there's probably a reason why women would react ambivalently, if not negatively, toward shows like K-On and it is probably because it's idealized to the point where they find it difficult to identify with the portrayal.

I mean, with K-On of course you have a show that is written and directed by women, so it's not to say that it's a completely false representation of what it's like for a group of girls to hang out and have tea together, but it's probably super heightened in some way.

(Well, beyond that fact that Mugi is super rich and basically lets them do anything they want!)

Comixology is pretty much the industries one digital provider. Everyone has centred around Comixology. Though some, like image, sell their comics also by themselves in DRM free formats.

Its more or less the iTunes of Comics. There are no subscription options in the vein of Netflix or Crunchyroll. Aside from the Marvel thing which is a pretty random assortment of things, and not complete runs from what I understand.
I think it's weird that you're buying access to comics that you can never own, unlike with iTunes that at least allows you to get drm free music files.

I guess their movie files are still DRMed to hell though.
 

Jintor

Member
Hmmm... sub $10 isn't too bad, but I'd still not really be able to use it to 'preview' physical purchases like I'm envisioning. Oh well, the netflix model probably can't work for everything, especially comics with its far smaller audience.
 
I'd rather a month-to-month sub for unlimited comics than a 'buy and own' model, even with sales. But who knows, maybe the sales are decent. Been meaning to get into Spider-Man as well at some point.

If they went with a subscription model, customers would be getting away with murder on the pricing front. I generally spend $20-$30 on comics per week. Given current market prices per issue, I don't think anyone would pass up a subscription service like crunchyroll were it offered for comics.
 

Jintor

Member
Well yes, but as a consumer, getting away with pricing murder would be in my best interest

I'm not pretending to be some unbiased party here! I'm saying this would be great for me
 

firehawk12

Subete no aware
I never thought that given its more or less the whole industries digital option. I did kind of wonder whether DC or Marvel would just buy them though.
Well, Jmanga was really the only legal place to buy "new" digital manga for a while and was a collaboration between a dozen publishers and that went bust. Of course, it lead to the birth of Crunchyroll's manga thing, so maybe that's for the best?

I'd rather a month-to-month sub for unlimited comics than a 'buy and own' model, even with sales. But who knows, maybe the sales are decent. Been meaning to get into Spider-Man as well at some point.

It's really just a filtering house to note down stuff I'd really like to actually buy some day
Marvel has or used to have a service like that for their own properties via their website.

Ah, it's still there:
http://marvel.com/comics/unlimited
 

cajunator

Banned
I still haven't watched Bebop. Is it any good?

Its pretty decent. Very rewatchable. It can be watched in almost any order.

The inflows and outflows of life, that being said, no idea who this Extollere is offhand personally, other then the obvious, so the impact is muted.

he draws erotic art but is phenominally talented. He can draw really cute stuff too. Dude is talented on a level that Ill never reach.
 

Quasar

Member
I think it's weird that you're buying access to comics that you can never own, unlike with iTunes that at least allows you to get drm free music files.

I guess their movie files are still DRMed to hell though.

Well that's true with a lot of media now. As for Comixology, I think I can access to my comics when I'm disconnected from the internet, so technically if they go bust I'll still have access to all my comics. At least on tablets, not on PC as they are just web pages.
 
Escha & Logy 10-12 + Final Thoughts

Never played any of the games in this series, and I know the anime focused a lot on the character-related aspects (that's a good thing! Play to the strengths of the medium), but I enjoyed it. It reminded me a lot of Blessing of the Campanella, with all the homunculi and the general friendly feeling of the magical world. One based more on commerce and exploration than questing, with very few actual villains. A more peaceful sort of magic. Still in a pre-industrial fantasy world, but it's got a warmth and heart that provides a nice alternative to a bunch of other things. I feel it plays to my interests a little more than Chaika did, and reminded me that Shining Hearts existed. I should probably check that one out sometime too, for a similar feeling of warm and fuzzy fantasy. Wilbell was one of my favorite of the cast, though Linca would be a close second.

And with that, my spring season comes to a close just in time for Glasslip and the TBS shows tomorrow.
It's interesting to see positive impressions of this when the actual game has the weakest set of characters and least compelling writing I've seen in an Atelier game. Maybe the anime does it better?
 
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