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Summer 2011 Anime Thread of Idols, Penguins, and IKUHARA'S RETURN.
- Thread starter Lafiel
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A Black Falcon
Member
Bakatest 2 Ep. 2 - That's better, this was better than the first episode. First, MC guy and the other guy almost die because they were beaten badly for trying to hit on other girls while at the beach (with the girls from the cast). Then, they go to the festival, with the girls dressed in yukatas. The girls force all four guys to participate in the "Miss Yukata" contest, as more payback for what the two of them did.
Much of the episode was amusing, but the contest scene itself was pretty good stuff... as you'd expect, the three guys (only three get on the stage before things go south and it gets stopped) do very well, completely fool everyone in the audience, and are really popular with the guys watching. Heh.
Decent episode, you know what to expect from this show and that's what you get here. I do remember liking the first season more than I have this one so far, but at least maybe it's improving.
Ep. 3 - In the first half of this episode, Hideyoshi and his sister switch places, so that he can pretend to be her for a singing event
After that, much of the episode continues along those lines -- his sister keeps getting mad at how he acts while pretending to be her. It's kind of stupid, both in some of the things he says and in her reactions, but I guess it's kind of amusing anyway. I have to admit, even if she is probably over-reacting, Hideyoshi gave her some good reason to, with some of the things he said...
In the second part, we finally get the first thing this season that actually mentions summon beasts. Um, took long enough... that's something that was missing from this season, the summons. It's not the focus of the scene though, they're still underused. However, given how the last OVA was entirely centered around a summon contest, and it was the stupidest, worst episode of the entire franchise so far, perhaps I shouldn't complain too much... but in the first season there were some amusing summon episodes, so eh, it is a little odd. Anyway, this scene is a flashback for some reason, set a year ago. I'm not sure why it's set then and not in the present. Here Akihisa meets the little girl... I thought he first met her in S1? This is different though. Eh, whatever. Akihisa does some sketchy things, like frequently, except this time he doesn't entirely get away with it...
Overall, the first half of the episode was entertaining, but the second half wasn't as great. I think ep. 2 is the overall best one so far.
ep. 4 - The first words of the episode are, (Himeji to Akihisa) - "Will you wear a girl's uniform if I win?" ... Yes, this show knows its audience. The four male characters are playing a card game. It's kind of odd for this show, but amusing enough. Things get more interesting once Himeji comes in, though once again she's not exactly being so smart... she's the smartest in the school, really? You couldn't figure out what those were, really? She's scary when
And then Shouko shows up, and then we get to the first line of the episode. Himeji's much more perceptive and demanding like this than she is normally, I didn't know that's what happened when you get like that... :lol The guys don't win a single point. They're so good at this game... .
The second part finally is the first real summon-beasts segment, where the chibi little summons come out and get to do stuff.
Anyway, they have to test a new summon-beasts test.
The summons say the things the people don't want to admit, which causes some hilarity.
It's a pretty entertaining scene, one of the better ones this season so far. Good stuff. Oh, and the scene after the credits is pretty funny too.
So yeah, this is a good episode, probably the best of the first four this season. One final thought -- between the first skit and the second, Himeji would be so much more interesting a character if she were a bit less cute-reserved... she's better than usual in this episode.
Much of the episode was amusing, but the contest scene itself was pretty good stuff... as you'd expect, the three guys (only three get on the stage before things go south and it gets stopped) do very well, completely fool everyone in the audience, and are really popular with the guys watching. Heh.
Decent episode, you know what to expect from this show and that's what you get here. I do remember liking the first season more than I have this one so far, but at least maybe it's improving.
Ep. 3 - In the first half of this episode, Hideyoshi and his sister switch places, so that he can pretend to be her for a singing event
(because she's the great student, etc, but actually can't sing, but doesn't want anyone to know... and Hideyoshi of course isn't a good student, but can sing, so she thinks of the obvious fact that they look the same...). I figured it out when Akihisa said that Hideyoshi was acting not feminine enough... lol.
Saying that "she" likes girls and younger boys, and implying that she doesn't wear underwear sometimes? Ah... for the latter it's a misunderstanding, but for the former it was Hideyoshi somehow not realizing that she doesn't say out loud her tastes in fiction (ie, she reads BL stuff, etc, I believe.). Um, yeah.
In the second part, we finally get the first thing this season that actually mentions summon beasts. Um, took long enough... that's something that was missing from this season, the summons. It's not the focus of the scene though, they're still underused. However, given how the last OVA was entirely centered around a summon contest, and it was the stupidest, worst episode of the entire franchise so far, perhaps I shouldn't complain too much... but in the first season there were some amusing summon episodes, so eh, it is a little odd. Anyway, this scene is a flashback for some reason, set a year ago. I'm not sure why it's set then and not in the present. Here Akihisa meets the little girl... I thought he first met her in S1? This is different though. Eh, whatever. Akihisa does some sketchy things, like frequently, except this time he doesn't entirely get away with it...
Overall, the first half of the episode was entertaining, but the second half wasn't as great. I think ep. 2 is the overall best one so far.
ep. 4 - The first words of the episode are, (Himeji to Akihisa) - "Will you wear a girl's uniform if I win?" ... Yes, this show knows its audience. The four male characters are playing a card game. It's kind of odd for this show, but amusing enough. Things get more interesting once Himeji comes in, though once again she's not exactly being so smart... she's the smartest in the school, really? You couldn't figure out what those were, really? She's scary when
drunk like this... or whatever those drink-shaped chocolates had in them, but I assume that's it.
.
Run! Flee in terror, for the girls are chasing you with skirts for you to wear!
The second part finally is the first real summon-beasts segment, where the chibi little summons come out and get to do stuff.
Also, um, Himeji is in class A now or something? Huh? I don't remember that happening. Or did I misunderstand what they said?
The summons can talk now! They have high-pitched, chipmunks-esque voices. Appropriate for their size I guess.
Tsundere girl's admits to Akihisa that she actually likes him (or tries to, that is), Pervert's says clearly that yes he wants to see up green haired girl's skirt and starts praising womens' clothing (she doesn't mind), Akihisa and Yuuji's interest in girls other than the ones who like them is once again revealed, that Yuuji actually likes Shouko inside comes out, and more. Himeji and tsundere girl's main goal though is to figure out who Akihisa likes more. Not an easy task, with someone MC dumb... they don't quite succeed.
So yeah, this is a good episode, probably the best of the first four this season. One final thought -- between the first skit and the second, Himeji would be so much more interesting a character if she were a bit less cute-reserved... she's better than usual in this episode.
So basically, you hate the fact the girls are always in skirts but if they are in skirts it'd be sexist not to show their panties?A Black Falcon said:
True, Nichijou's a little less structured I just mean the style of comedy not the narrative flow or lack there of. That said, Looney Tunes is not the greatest animated series ever.A Black Falcon said:
You're crazy, you're moving the bar, no-one's said Mayo Chiki is a fantastic show, the best I ever said was that I thought it was "good" which basically means I enjoy watching it but that means just that not that I think it's great, should be studied in animation or film class or should be on some top 10 list of must see shows.A Black Falcon said:
Unknown Soldier
Banned
The Official NeoGAF Idoru Team Roster
Last updated: 8/6/11
Episodes aired: 5
For optimal enjoyment while reading this post, listen to this:
The world is all one!! (From THE IDOLM@STER 2, also ED1)
Alternate audio track for SRS IDOLS PILOTING MECHAS AND OTHER SRS BSNS:
Zankokuyo Kibou to Nare (OP2 - Idolmaster XENOGLOSSIA)
Team Idoru:
Everyone in Animu-GAF who matters
Team Rocket:
Defuser
icarus-daedalus
faridmon
DrForester
Current Faction Standings:
Team Moe Moe Iron Chef (Haruka):
Unknown Soldier
Team Fake Blonde Harlot Total (Miki):
Lafiel
hellsing321
Vox-Pop
KamenSenshi
kiunchbb
tiff
Team Forehead-chan's Ghost
Izayoi
jman2050
duckroll
Kandrick
InfiniteNine
Regulus Tera
Team Bishiest Bishounen (Makoto):
Aigis
Pachael
Branduil
Halcyon
Neo C.
Wheeljack539
Dresden
Hato-kun
Team Cold as Ice, Psychotic as Volcano (Chihaya):
Geneijin
TenaciousNorth
kiryogi
Team Part-Time Job Cosplayer (Yayoi):
7th
Team Man-Fearing Angel-Wings Mullet (Yukiho):
A Black Falcon
Team Megane Ryuuguu Komachi (Ritsuko):
EmmanualMunoz
DiGiKerot
spindashing
Sage00
AngelSoldier
Team Twinlolis - Only On PlayStation® Portable (Mami and Ami):
Steroyd
Team Bustiest Onee-chan (Azusa):
Ryuukan
Instro
XiaNaphyrz
RurouniZel
survivor
Ezalc
Team Nankuru Naisa Datfang (Hibiki):
Nonoriri
trejo
Jintor
scy
Luminate
airmangataosenai
Team CLAMP Starin' at Tha Moon (Takane):
Cajunator
As always, the idols need YOUR support! I'm glad to see that every idol has at least one supporter, so they won't be lonely anymore! But that doesn't mean you can just sit back and do nothing! Lend us your strength, and help Team Idoru destroy the opposition in a tide of blood and vengeance! So join us and enjoy the SHOW OF THE SEASON!
Producer's Administrative Crap:
Failure to meet conditions for removal sees faridmon placed back on Team Rocket.
New images for all the idols!
A Black Falcon
Member
Gah... Unknown Soldier, are all of those images REALLY necessary every time? It makes that post take up so much space...
I mean, yes on the first point, but not the second. Maybe a case could be made for that, but it'd be a really flimsy one, that's for sure. No, I only meant that situationally, about magic skirts and the like. And I didn't mean it for blatant fanservice/pantyshots with no reason.
However, as I said, I will admit I probably am much more liable to overlook fanservice than I am actions, when it comes to looking at sexism in anime... sexist actions and character types can really, REALLY bother me, but fanservice alone, less so. Like, yeah Aika is somewhat sexist, with its "more pantyshots than anything else" concept and the skimpy costumes, but on the other hand Aika herself is really competent and strong, which counts for something for sure at least...
Hah, no, that's not what I said... :lolmAcOdIn said:
I mean, yes on the first point, but not the second. Maybe a case could be made for that, but it'd be a really flimsy one, that's for sure. No, I only meant that situationally, about magic skirts and the like. And I didn't mean it for blatant fanservice/pantyshots with no reason.
However, as I said, I will admit I probably am much more liable to overlook fanservice than I am actions, when it comes to looking at sexism in anime... sexist actions and character types can really, REALLY bother me, but fanservice alone, less so. Like, yeah Aika is somewhat sexist, with its "more pantyshots than anything else" concept and the skimpy costumes, but on the other hand Aika herself is really competent and strong, which counts for something for sure at least...
Perhaps, but as I said I"m not sure if I see as much of a connection as you do.
Well there's nothing better than it, so yes, it is.
Heh... well, as I've said before I do separate "good" from "enjoy watching", they are kind of different for me... but sure, yeah, that makes sense. Of course though, after ep. 5, I imagine you aren't thinking quite so highly of it anymore... I wonder how many more good episodes there'll be.
Unknown Soldier
Banned
A Black Falcon said:
Your complaint was heard! I have replaced all the old images with new ones!
...Don't everyone thank me at once.
MotionBlue
Member
Feel free to put me in for Chihaya. Or don't, I'm not in the cool kids club.
Madoka 09-12
Welp, that was pretty much everything I don't like about storytelling packed into a few short episodes. What an underwhelming waste of a climax. Maybe I'll write up more on it later but yeesh, that left a bad taste in my mouth.
Welp, that was pretty much everything I don't like about storytelling packed into a few short episodes. What an underwhelming waste of a climax. Maybe I'll write up more on it later but yeesh, that left a bad taste in my mouth.
It does however, put Madoka on the list of "Time Travel Ruins Almost Anything".
Unknown Soldier
Banned
kiryogi said:
Nah, I've just been very slow at updating that post, I'm sure you mentioned it ages ago.
Dedication Through Light
Member
Nonoriri said:
I didnt know there were other Tamers fans, that was the best one, Takato-mon.
Code Geass: Lelouch the Rebellion - 13
Aaaawww poor Shirley.
And rememer folks, he's doing it all for his sister.
Code Geass: Lelouch the Rebellion - 14
What the fuck is this shit!? Some crazy shitty drama after zero development happened between Shirley and Lelouch in episodes 1 - 12 and then this shit happens the episode after something happened between them.
Don't get me started on Mao, I have no idea what the fuck I'm supposed to make of him.
Aaaawww poor Shirley.
And rememer folks, he's doing it all for his sister.
Code Geass: Lelouch the Rebellion - 14
What the fuck is this shit!? Some crazy shitty drama after zero development happened between Shirley and Lelouch in episodes 1 - 12 and then this shit happens the episode after something happened between them.
Don't get me started on Mao, I have no idea what the fuck I'm supposed to make of him.
Infinite Justice
Member
Regulus Tera said:
Same. That shit was rancid and out of the 3 I will give Tamers the slight edge over S2 and S1.
Tamers - i liked the whole "real world" theme and that girl was royally fucked up.
S2 - Davis/Daisuke and Ken were great and the shit Davis/Daisuke pulled for the ending was ridiculous lol.
S1 - Liked the villians more in this one.
Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion - 16
Okay.... so Mao gets a shit load of bullets loaded into him, and the next episode he's a spring chicken, and the only explanation they have is "Wow this medical facility is THAT AWESOME"... oh come on!
Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion - 17
Aaaawww poor Lelouch just when he thought he found a knight for his sister.
Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion - 18
Oh wow shit just got real.... or so I 'm supposed to think, the actions of Suzaku perplex me, his main goal is to change Britannia from the inside, yet he's merely following orders while getting stepped and changing fuck all, he's got some stupid retarded hero soldier complex which is just plain annoying.
Okay.... so Mao gets a shit load of bullets loaded into him, and the next episode he's a spring chicken, and the only explanation they have is "Wow this medical facility is THAT AWESOME"... oh come on!
Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion - 17
Aaaawww poor Lelouch just when he thought he found a knight for his sister.
Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion - 18
Oh wow shit just got real.... or so I 'm supposed to think, the actions of Suzaku perplex me, his main goal is to change Britannia from the inside, yet he's merely following orders while getting stepped and changing fuck all, he's got some stupid retarded hero soldier complex which is just plain annoying.
Infinite Justice
Member
Steroyd said:Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion - 16
Okay.... so Mao gets a shit load of bullets loaded into him, and the next episode he's a spring chicken, and the only explanation they have is "Wow this medical facility is THAT AWESOME"... oh come on!
Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion - 17
Aaaawww poor Lelouch just when he thought he found a knight for his sister.
Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion - 18
Oh wow shit just got real.... or so I 'm supposed to think, the actions of Suzaku perplex me, his main goal is to change Britannia from the inside, yet he's merely following orders while getting stepped and changing fuck all, he's got some stupid retarded hero soldier complex which is just plain annoying.
The "Hatred for Suzaku" army has grown by 1.
EXCELLENT!!!!!!
Hellsing321
Member
Suzaku is the fucking worst. And in a show full of unlikeable characters that says something.Infinite Justice said:
Regulus Tera
Romanes Eunt Domus
The Irresponsible Captain Tylor 07:
k-kakoii...
Maybe this doofus actually knows what he's doing.
The Irresponsible Captain Tylor 08:
This doofus is the biggest troll of all time. Not only he figured out that the femme fatale was out to get him, now he has fawning all over his dick.
What a true bro.
k-kakoii...
Maybe this doofus actually knows what he's doing.
The Irresponsible Captain Tylor 08:
This doofus is the biggest troll of all time. Not only he figured out that the femme fatale was out to get him, now he has fawning all over his dick.
What a true bro.
Infinite Justice
Member
Hellsing321 said:
Indeed.
Didn't think such a feat was possible.
ROBOKITTYZILLA
Member
iDOLM@STER 5
Almost definitely team Takane now. Need to see more of Miki to be sure...
Almost definitely team Takane now. Need to see more of Miki to be sure...
Just a warning her for massive Puella Magi Madoka Magica ending spoilers for people who don't want to read them.Jintor said:
My issue with the ending has more to do with scope than anything. I think the first seven or eight episodes are pretty simple in terms of what is trying to be accomplished. There's some middle school girls, they make these dark pacts with creeper cat, and they find out being a magical girl is pretty much throwing away any means of normalcy.
Then shit kind of spirals out of control as the series tries to climax. In an effort to escalate things we find out that one of the characters can control time. Suddenly a great deal of coherency with the plot is lost. Could I still easily follow what was going on? Sure, but the tightly wound narrative began to bloat and stumble around trying to explain every little thing across multiple time threads. It is the definition of cumbersome, and it feels like a cop out. It is one of the many "look, we found a solution to everything" pieces in this puzzle.
So after a slow and steady pace dark magical girl show about emotions, character interactions, and mystery I suddenly found myself thrown into episodes about some kind of galactic empire energy retrieval squad, the passage of time, people turning into ethereal beings, altering the fundamental rules of the universe, and some kind of space faring ball of sadness. It tries to do too much, and ultimately accomplishes little. Even the recently established time traveling bologna does its job to undo anything that previously happened and might have had some kind of impact.
This is always the inherent issue with time travel. Many things become meaningless, many things that shouldn't have gone wrong with the knowledge and power of time travel still funnily enough do, and plot holes tend to just crop up everywhere. There are instances of its working when it serves as a fundamental piece of the plot's structure. Something like The Girl Who Leapt Through Time works for me because it is designed around a set of time travel rules. With Madoka, the ending felt like a number of absurd plot devices were called upon to reach a very specific ending. The thing is though, Madoka could have ended the exact same way without all the time traveling and without all the space shit.
What irks me more is that it is a largely happy ending to an otherwise somber series. Tonally, the series seems to lose its way once the "grand narrative" stuff begins. I don't mind things working out, but the lengths the story goes to in order to overcome the hopelessness established earlier in the series is absurd. The series makes a big point about how light and dark have to balance each other out, and when Madoka creates essentially erases all this badness in the world the series holds it up as if to say, "But look, you still can't escape this fate," before deciding, "Haha, just kidding, she's a god or something now she can do whatever the heck she wants, even though her wish was only about witches and had nothing to do with this. Everything pretty much turned out alright."
Then shit kind of spirals out of control as the series tries to climax. In an effort to escalate things we find out that one of the characters can control time. Suddenly a great deal of coherency with the plot is lost. Could I still easily follow what was going on? Sure, but the tightly wound narrative began to bloat and stumble around trying to explain every little thing across multiple time threads. It is the definition of cumbersome, and it feels like a cop out. It is one of the many "look, we found a solution to everything" pieces in this puzzle.
So after a slow and steady pace dark magical girl show about emotions, character interactions, and mystery I suddenly found myself thrown into episodes about some kind of galactic empire energy retrieval squad, the passage of time, people turning into ethereal beings, altering the fundamental rules of the universe, and some kind of space faring ball of sadness. It tries to do too much, and ultimately accomplishes little. Even the recently established time traveling bologna does its job to undo anything that previously happened and might have had some kind of impact.
This is always the inherent issue with time travel. Many things become meaningless, many things that shouldn't have gone wrong with the knowledge and power of time travel still funnily enough do, and plot holes tend to just crop up everywhere. There are instances of its working when it serves as a fundamental piece of the plot's structure. Something like The Girl Who Leapt Through Time works for me because it is designed around a set of time travel rules. With Madoka, the ending felt like a number of absurd plot devices were called upon to reach a very specific ending. The thing is though, Madoka could have ended the exact same way without all the time traveling and without all the space shit.
What irks me more is that it is a largely happy ending to an otherwise somber series. Tonally, the series seems to lose its way once the "grand narrative" stuff begins. I don't mind things working out, but the lengths the story goes to in order to overcome the hopelessness established earlier in the series is absurd. The series makes a big point about how light and dark have to balance each other out, and when Madoka creates essentially erases all this badness in the world the series holds it up as if to say, "But look, you still can't escape this fate," before deciding, "Haha, just kidding, she's a god or something now she can do whatever the heck she wants, even though her wish was only about witches and had nothing to do with this. Everything pretty much turned out alright."
DrForester
Kills Photobucket
Unknown Soldier said:
As head of Team Rocket, I declare that all people in animu-gaf not on the rest of the list are honorary Team Rocket Members!
Crash Station
Member
Dantalian no Shoka 4
Oh cool, they actually did do the Lentz story. This is what attracted me to the series in the first place. Was a bit gorier in the manga, but it still got the point across; crazy fans should never see a favorite work as their own. What's the point if things turn out how you expect or want?
Oh cool, they actually did do the Lentz story. This is what attracted me to the series in the first place. Was a bit gorier in the manga, but it still got the point across; crazy fans should never see a favorite work as their own. What's the point if things turn out how you expect or want?
KuwabaraTheMan
Banned
Mawaru Penguindrum 5:
Good stuff. The flashbacks worked well within the scope of the episode, and quite a lot of progression took place in terms of the characters learning new information or the viewers getting more insight into their purpose, and I really enjoyed the scene with Ringo's father.
The lack of any fabulous musical numbers docks some points off, though.
Good stuff. The flashbacks worked well within the scope of the episode, and quite a lot of progression took place in terms of the characters learning new information or the viewers getting more insight into their purpose, and I really enjoyed the scene with Ringo's father.
The lack of any fabulous musical numbers docks some points off, though.
RurouniZel
Asks questions so Ezalc doesn't have to
Usagi Drop 5: Wow, Rin's mom's a completely irresponsible bitch. Rin is her child and she's running away from her. Fuck her.
Both the bitch mother and Daikichi's mother agree Rin should assume his name, now that he's her guardian, but I was actually surprised when Rin flat out refused. I really felt bad for Daikichi, especially when I saw him shed that tear. He's trying so hard for her, but Rin apparently doesn't want him to be her father. I feel for the man.
Tylor is the most awesome dude in anime history. In my opinion, anyway.
Both the bitch mother and Daikichi's mother agree Rin should assume his name, now that he's her guardian, but I was actually surprised when Rin flat out refused. I really felt bad for Daikichi, especially when I saw him shed that tear.
He's trying so hard for her, but Rin apparently doesn't want him to be her father. I feel for the man.Regulus Tera said:
Tylor is the most awesome dude in anime history. In my opinion, anyway.
It didn'tDance In My Blood said:
look like an happy ending at all to me. With her wish she only vanquished the 'side effect' of magical girls turning into witches. After her wish, they die without transforming. That's what happens in the end to what-s-her-name and to the time-travel girl.
Also, the time-travel plot wasn't so bad. From the start what we were seeing was the last time loop. Just in one(?) episode they showed what happened the times before, and how the time travel wasn't resetting anything but having an effect.
Also, the time-travel plot wasn't so bad. From the start what we were seeing was the last time loop. Just in one(?) episode they showed what happened the times before, and how the time travel wasn't resetting anything but having an effect.
Jex
Member
Not to go into too much depth but, as with many things in that show, most of that stuff was hinted at long before it actually happened.Dance In My Blood said:
Furthermore, I beg to differ with your claim that coherency is lost within the main plot, there weren't even 'multiple threads'. There may be other problems (and there certainly are) but that whole aspect is wrapped up very neatly. It really doesn't cause any problems and there are very few loose strings afterwards.
Why did I read this big black wall of nothing.
Dance In My Blood said:
In the first time line, Madoka just about beat the Warpulagis night, before turning into a witch herself... or was it that she got anhialated, can't remember. Anyway the point is that with every subsequent time jump, was centered around Madoka so her wish potential stacked with each time jump, to enable the ending we got.
It was more of a bittersweet self sacrificing ending, can't really call it largely happy, the only difference is that instead of relying on the witches to draw power and it being an inevitability that they themselves turn into the things they fought hard against, they just disappear because madoka has become a law in how things work in the universe.
Plus you seem to be overlooking at how when Madoka erased the witches a new threat emerged regardless.
Plus you seem to be overlooking at how when Madoka erased the witches a new threat emerged regardless.
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