Cornbread78
Member
Hopefully, everyone posts up their final thoughts today and tomorrow. I'll finish the series tomorrow morning.
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GAF "Let's Watch Anime" OT: Now Watching: Humanity Has Declined (8/4-8/18)
- Thread starter Cornbread78
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dodosaurus
Member
that was a really sweet ending, i liked the tone of the episode allot and it got me some maria-sama ga miteru vibes from it. especially with the whole roses thing and the tea parties. i liked how they turned out to be weirdos and that Y liked yaoi her whole life.
my final thoughts on the show
i went into this show because i liked the idea of watching a show and writhing down my thoughts on it and discussing it with others. if i watched it by myself i probably would have dropped it after the first few episodes because it was hit or miss with more misses than hits. but i kept watching i realized that dropping this show would have been a shame because the misses decreased and the hits kept getting better and better. i really liked the secondary characters and their quirks. i also liked watashi her reactions and inner monologues. the two episodes per story arcs where at a nice pace most of the time although some could have used the time better to develop the story and characters better. i the show has grown on me and i already recommended it to some friends.
manga arc > tea party > time loop > space probes > god > stranded island > factory
my final thoughts on the show
i went into this show because i liked the idea of watching a show and writhing down my thoughts on it and discussing it with others. if i watched it by myself i probably would have dropped it after the first few episodes because it was hit or miss with more misses than hits. but i kept watching i realized that dropping this show would have been a shame because the misses decreased and the hits kept getting better and better. i really liked the secondary characters and their quirks. i also liked watashi her reactions and inner monologues. the two episodes per story arcs where at a nice pace most of the time although some could have used the time better to develop the story and characters better. i the show has grown on me and i already recommended it to some friends.
manga arc > tea party > time loop > space probes > god > stranded island > factory
What you ranked the factory last? I would have ranked it up there with manga.
dodosaurus
Member
i didn't like it as much at the time but it had some memorable moments like the bread suicide and the chicken CEO.but the other arcs most of the time had the humor and some nice moments mixed together, like the ending with the space probes and the assistant finally having some fun as the MC and baking but then finding at least a bit of his own personality at the end in the time loop one. looking back to it it was a good arc but i personally didn't enjoy it as much as the others. but maybe i should re watch it and see if i like it more this time around.
ShinRPGamer
Member
Humanity has Declined 10
Not every day when you can say you've been both a god and a queen to a race of miniature Fairies. It feels pretty similar to episode 9 but it was still a fun watch. Helps that I got more Watashi/Fairy interactions.
Not every day when you can say you've been both a god and a queen to a race of miniature Fairies. It feels pretty similar to episode 9 but it was still a fun watch. Helps that I got more Watashi/Fairy interactions.
KenjiGlove
Banned
Humanity has Declined END
I liked these last two episodes, more Y is always great.
As for ranking I'd say
1) Manga
2) Factory
3) Tea party
4) God/Island
5) Time loop
6) Space probes
Anyhow, to wrap this up I'd like to bring up some discussion points, I feel like this show has a bunch of unique things to it that both have their pros and cons.
1) What did you think about the fact that the episodes aren't in the "proper" order? did it add anything or was there not really a reason for it? In short: If you were to recommend this to someone, in which order should he/she watch the series?
Personally I feel like the show peaks really fast, first four episodes are the best so I'd definitely watch one of those arcs later on to make the show more consistent.
2) What do you think of the "post-appocalyptic" setting that we have, did you feel like it needed to be explored more or is the way it's handled right now fine?
I liked these last two episodes, more Y is always great.
As for ranking I'd say
1) Manga
2) Factory
3) Tea party
4) God/Island
5) Time loop
6) Space probes
Anyhow, to wrap this up I'd like to bring up some discussion points, I feel like this show has a bunch of unique things to it that both have their pros and cons.
1) What did you think about the fact that the episodes aren't in the "proper" order? did it add anything or was there not really a reason for it? In short: If you were to recommend this to someone, in which order should he/she watch the series?
Personally I feel like the show peaks really fast, first four episodes are the best so I'd definitely watch one of those arcs later on to make the show more consistent.
2) What do you think of the "post-appocalyptic" setting that we have, did you feel like it needed to be explored more or is the way it's handled right now fine?
Episode 12
Holy shit, I thought Curly was just a bit crazy, not completely batshit insane. And the whole thing with the tea party club was pretty fucked up. But overall it was a sweet ending to the series. We get to see more of Y and her friendship with Watashi, which was pretty great and genuine. The stuff with the robot was pretty sad. Overall, it was a pretty good series, even if it got a bit weak in the middle. My arc ranking would be
1) Manga
2) Tea party
3) Factory
4)Island
5) God
6) Time Loop
7) Space probes
Holy shit, I thought Curly was just a bit crazy, not completely batshit insane. And the whole thing with the tea party club was pretty fucked up. But overall it was a sweet ending to the series. We get to see more of Y and her friendship with Watashi, which was pretty great and genuine. The stuff with the robot was pretty sad. Overall, it was a pretty good series, even if it got a bit weak in the middle. My arc ranking would be
1) Manga
2) Tea party
3) Factory
4)Island
5) God
6) Time Loop
7) Space probes
ShinRPGamer
Member
Humanity has Declined 11
So considering this takes place at the very beginning chronologically, we're not going to get an answer to the talking hair at the beginning of the series then unless you read the LN? How disappointing...
I liked the episode in spite of that however. Interesting seeing Watashi and Y meet each other at school and how Watashi was like in her younger years.
So considering this takes place at the very beginning chronologically, we're not going to get an answer to the talking hair at the beginning of the series then unless you read the LN? How disappointing...
I liked the episode in spite of that however. Interesting seeing Watashi and Y meet each other at school and how Watashi was like in her younger years.
ShinRPGamer
Member
Humanity has Declined 12
Well that was an eventful last episode. Between Y and Watashi's growing friendship, the tea party and it's members and the stuff with the robot, we got a pretty sweet ending to a well done, underrated show.
Humanity has Declined starts off great with the first 4 episodes, drops off with episodes 5-8 then picks up again for the final four episodes My opinion of the arcs from best to worst would be:
Manga
Factory
Tea party
Island/ God
Time Loop
Space probes
Well that was an eventful last episode. Between Y and Watashi's growing friendship, the tea party and it's members and the stuff with the robot, we got a pretty sweet ending to a well done, underrated show.
Humanity has Declined starts off great with the first 4 episodes, drops off with episodes 5-8 then picks up again for the final four episodes My opinion of the arcs from best to worst would be:
Manga
Factory
Tea party
Island/ God
Time Loop
Space probes
Humanity Has Declined - Ep 11
For every other episode I was able to cut it down to just an image or two, despite lots of very quotable and interesting things happening, but I just couldn't do it here. A large part of that is due to the direction on this arc and it helps to have images for reference.
Here we learn about Watashi's early life and see a very different side of her. In many ways her ability to roll with pretty much anything, no matter how strange or dangerous is one of her defining characteristics, but she wasn't always that way. Instead she would retreat into herself to keep herself from being harmed or betrayed. Its obvious from the outset that she's terribly lonely, despite how she acts, when she befriends a robot who is incapable of understanding or returning her feelings. Similarly she's quick to become friends with the fairy, as she believes they share the common trait of being lonely. She seemed a bit surprised to see the fairy hadn't really considered it until she brought it up.
It was very hard watching Watashi be bullied. It was hard watching her distance herself from others, despite her loneliness, out of fear of being hurt more. The direction and scene composition did a spectacular job of reinforcing these themes. When Curly visits her in her room, Watashi spends most of the long dialogue scene with her face hidden. Throughout there are cuts to the moth with neither of the characters visible. It gives Watashi's dialogue a very cold and detached feeling as she tries to push Curly away.
Then there's the scene where she's running through the halls and everything seems to warp around her. Together with the changes in perspective if makes the scene feel claustrophobic and gives the sense she's running with no idea of where she's running to, that she is literally trying to run from herself.
The final note that I'll leave for this episode is I noticed a lot of foreshadowing for the next episode. Y taking books from the library, the notice about stealing books popping up, Witch touching Watashi's hair when she joins the Wild Rose Society...
Humanity Has Declined - Ep 12
Similar themes as seen in Episode 11 persist here. The hallway in the blocked off part of the building is very alien. The school is pretty standard wood architecture, but behind the paneling there's this weird metal paneling with LEDS. As Watashi and Y move through the hallway it reminded me of space with its endless blackness lit by occasional stars.
It turns out all the girls in the Wild Rose Society are goddamn crazy. Something's very wrong when Watashi and Y are normal by comparison (and perhaps telling that they were both invited into this strange circle). The most shocking of course was Curly. There was obviously something off about her, but this is just... something else. The frequent closeups of the doll, Curly's licking, and the low angle shots all did their part in painting a picture of a very deranged individual. Watashi's reaction was perfectly understandable here. Its amazing that she and Y were able to pretend nothing happened and appear to naturally drift away from the Wild Rose Society so as not to arouse suspicion or incur their wrath.
We learned that Watashi and Y's friendship is strange, one in which Watashi really holds all the power. Under normal circumstances I'm not sure I'd consider it a friendship at all, but under the circumstances they really needed each other. It's strange to think that Y's desire for a friend (that she showed through bullying) wind up pushing Watashi so far in the other direction, to the point that she was afraid of making friends at all. It took these extraordinary circumstances of everyone else being batshit insane for them both to admit that they wanted to be friends.
Towards the end there's a fantastic scene in which we have Watashi running down the hall, in a reversal of the scene from last episode. Whereas the previous one gave the impression of being lost, this one supported the theme of revelation and rediscovery.
So all in all there's a reason why this is one of my favorites. There are some portions where I'd consider it to be uneven, but reading everyone's impressions I feel like each arc has its fan. It's a shame we probably won't see any more animated. I feel like there were some things that were hinted at that weren't really touched upon (the principal in 11 seemed to have history with Grandpa for example).
For every other episode I was able to cut it down to just an image or two, despite lots of very quotable and interesting things happening, but I just couldn't do it here. A large part of that is due to the direction on this arc and it helps to have images for reference.
Here we learn about Watashi's early life and see a very different side of her. In many ways her ability to roll with pretty much anything, no matter how strange or dangerous is one of her defining characteristics, but she wasn't always that way. Instead she would retreat into herself to keep herself from being harmed or betrayed. Its obvious from the outset that she's terribly lonely, despite how she acts, when she befriends a robot who is incapable of understanding or returning her feelings. Similarly she's quick to become friends with the fairy, as she believes they share the common trait of being lonely. She seemed a bit surprised to see the fairy hadn't really considered it until she brought it up.
It was very hard watching Watashi be bullied. It was hard watching her distance herself from others, despite her loneliness, out of fear of being hurt more. The direction and scene composition did a spectacular job of reinforcing these themes. When Curly visits her in her room, Watashi spends most of the long dialogue scene with her face hidden. Throughout there are cuts to the moth with neither of the characters visible. It gives Watashi's dialogue a very cold and detached feeling as she tries to push Curly away.
Then there's the scene where she's running through the halls and everything seems to warp around her. Together with the changes in perspective if makes the scene feel claustrophobic and gives the sense she's running with no idea of where she's running to, that she is literally trying to run from herself.
The final note that I'll leave for this episode is I noticed a lot of foreshadowing for the next episode. Y taking books from the library, the notice about stealing books popping up, Witch touching Watashi's hair when she joins the Wild Rose Society...
Humanity Has Declined - Ep 12
Similar themes as seen in Episode 11 persist here. The hallway in the blocked off part of the building is very alien. The school is pretty standard wood architecture, but behind the paneling there's this weird metal paneling with LEDS. As Watashi and Y move through the hallway it reminded me of space with its endless blackness lit by occasional stars.
It turns out all the girls in the Wild Rose Society are goddamn crazy. Something's very wrong when Watashi and Y are normal by comparison (and perhaps telling that they were both invited into this strange circle). The most shocking of course was Curly. There was obviously something off about her, but this is just... something else. The frequent closeups of the doll, Curly's licking, and the low angle shots all did their part in painting a picture of a very deranged individual. Watashi's reaction was perfectly understandable here. Its amazing that she and Y were able to pretend nothing happened and appear to naturally drift away from the Wild Rose Society so as not to arouse suspicion or incur their wrath.
We learned that Watashi and Y's friendship is strange, one in which Watashi really holds all the power. Under normal circumstances I'm not sure I'd consider it a friendship at all, but under the circumstances they really needed each other. It's strange to think that Y's desire for a friend (that she showed through bullying) wind up pushing Watashi so far in the other direction, to the point that she was afraid of making friends at all. It took these extraordinary circumstances of everyone else being batshit insane for them both to admit that they wanted to be friends.
Towards the end there's a fantastic scene in which we have Watashi running down the hall, in a reversal of the scene from last episode. Whereas the previous one gave the impression of being lost, this one supported the theme of revelation and rediscovery.
So all in all there's a reason why this is one of my favorites. There are some portions where I'd consider it to be uneven, but reading everyone's impressions I feel like each arc has its fan. It's a shame we probably won't see any more animated. I feel like there were some things that were hinted at that weren't really touched upon (the principal in 11 seemed to have history with Grandpa for example).
- I'd recommend someone watch it in the original order. I don't think watching them in a different order would be terribly detrimental, but I think it's fine as is. Plus I'd rather have a strong opening set to hook people rather than even it out. I do feel like the last arc has to go last, even though it's chronologically first. It's just too different in terms of tone and is somewhat at odds with the rest of it so I feel like it has to be last.
- I don't think the cause of the apocalypse is important. I'd like more details about the current setting, but in a show don't tell sort of way. Basically I'd just like more of this series and I feel like in the course of Watashi's adventures we'd naturally see different places and learn how people are currently making do.
dodosaurus
Member
1 i already have recommended it to somebody but i didn't recomend a watch order. i dont think swapping episodes would hurt the show but when recomending it i just said some arcs where hit and other misses. if i would watch it again i would just watch it in the original order or just one arc that i want to see again.
2 at first i liked some details in the background like all the guns on the reck and all the bulletholes at her grandfathers' house but that was most of it. later on it where just watashi saying that humanity is declining in different ways. in the end they didn't do much with it, but it did help because if the setting changed the show would probably be less collourfull. because i like that even the ruins have brightness and lots of collour. even fantasy anime use a lot of darker collours
Darkness and Light. That's how I would define this last episode. There's a large contrast between the darkness and insanity of the Tea Party members and the warmth that is displayed between Y and Watashi and eventually the upbeat conclusion.
Episode 12 goes to some very disturbing places and is a little bit hard to watch during some scenes but if there's any kind of message here it is that even insane people need love and can be "improved" through human warmth and attention.
Overall this is an excellent end to a very smart and very unique series. I give it and the show two big thumbs up.
So what are we watching next??
Episode 12 goes to some very disturbing places and is a little bit hard to watch during some scenes but if there's any kind of message here it is that even insane people need love and can be "improved" through human warmth and attention.
Overall this is an excellent end to a very smart and very unique series. I give it and the show two big thumbs up.
So what are we watching next??
Werewolf Jones
Gold Member
So what's the next show after this so I may participate?
OP said he'd update this thread today with a link to the new thread.
Cornbread78
Member
Yup, It shold start tonight at 12:00am PST
Eccentric family
I'm trying to get the thread done, but it's been CRAZY at work today, lol.
Cornbread78
Member
Finish up ep 12 today guys!!!
Starts tonight at 12am PST:
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?p=175725882#post175725882
Starts tonight at 12am PST:
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?p=175725882#post175725882
Gentleman Jack
Member
Ok I'm a bit LTTP to do this episodically, I ended up marathoning everything because the premise of the thread and the visual appeal of the show I'd never heard of caught my attention. A few observations:
I feel a strong pessimistic melancholy that underpins the setting and it has me on my guard at all times. The world is not going to be okay; the humans have accepted the twilight of their existence and the fairies, a substitute species is destined to repeat all of humanities mistakes, except faster. Everything the fairies do is an allegory for mankind's fallibility. Thankfully the show seldom goes anywhere excessively dark (except in the final eps, yeesh) but I can't get over how sad the ending credits make me feel. The symbolism of Watashi lying down in a bed of flowers in the end isn't exactly subtle.
Still a lovely show, and I'm grateful this thread brought my attention to it.
I feel a strong pessimistic melancholy that underpins the setting and it has me on my guard at all times. The world is not going to be okay; the humans have accepted the twilight of their existence and the fairies, a substitute species is destined to repeat all of humanities mistakes, except faster. Everything the fairies do is an allegory for mankind's fallibility. Thankfully the show seldom goes anywhere excessively dark (except in the final eps, yeesh) but I can't get over how sad the ending credits make me feel. The symbolism of Watashi lying down in a bed of flowers in the end isn't exactly subtle.
Still a lovely show, and I'm grateful this thread brought my attention to it.
Cornbread78
Member
Alright, newest "Let's Watch" is up... Sunday Without God
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?p=177045083#post177045083
PLEASE join us...!
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?p=177045083#post177045083
PLEASE join us...!
Sheriff_Battlesnake
Banned
Oo, subbed! Thanks guys.
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