Greywings Anime

My theory: this episode is going to repeat until the actual day it ends in the novels, which would be August 31. See, the second season wasn’t meant for Summer, but actually Autumn. If KyoAni pulls that off, they will have secured a revered place amongst the troll legends.

I will say I can see what they’re doing with the gradual realization of what Kyon has to do. I just don’t think it should be taking 5+ episodes to get there. Not really worth breaking canon for.

Muuuuch better Studio DEEN. Whatever you changed since episode I-I, please continue doing it for the remainder of the season. Things were a lot more subtle this episode, and actually somewhat mysterious. The montage at the end of the first day was very well executed, I thought. And Maria’s reading of the letter was rather spine-chilling. It felt a lot more like playing through the game the first time.

The voices are still a bit jarring at times, and the music could probably be timed a little better to build up the suspense. But those are rather minor complaints, and the key is it does appear to be getting better. Kinda wish they expanded a bit more on Jessica’s relationship with her parents, as it took a little away from the last scene in the episode.

As for the mystery, I wonder just how intentional the anime is being with a few of the details (e.g., the wax on the letter, and the tool shed being made out of bricks). Most of it is probably meaningless, but it is keeping me on my toes, which is a good thing.

Today was the second week of my Japanese night-classes at the local community college. The pace is excruciatingly slow, but I guess it’s better than nothing. Unfortunately, work has kicked it up a notch, so I have very little free time to study on my own. Still want to clear JLPT 3 this year, but I’ll need to find a way to get some real study time into my schedule.

Making my way through Little Busters EX and Tomoyo After with AGTH, Atlas and Wakan. Again, only thing missing is a good solid block of time to devote to it.

New GET: storia, Super Scription of Data, Manazashi, and Suzumiya Haruhi no Gensou, Clannad Vol. 3 (for the box), Clannad After Story Vol. 2 (for Misae).

Watching raw: Clannad After Story 25: Another World Kyou, Umineko no Naku Koro Ni, Suzumiya Haruhi (repetition helps).

I was worried that life after K-ON! was going to be rough, but I’m coping a lot better than I expected.

It’s finally arrived, the first episode of the anime version of our beloved sound novel, When They Cry 3. As someone who experienced Higurashi mostly through the anime (with some TIPS and translated chapters here and there), I was anxious to see how my perspective may have changed now that I have actually played the games released so far before the anime aired. Turns out I had a lot to say about one episode, so let’s just use lists.

What irked me:

1. The OP/ED: Now this is odd considering they kept the same singer from the game for the OP. However, i felt that the song itself didn’t have the same punch like the one in the game did. It simply reminded you that it was a different song than the novel’s. At least Higurashi’s OPs had a bit more impact in them. The ED was visually nice, especially that neverneding chessboard, but the song itself was a big ‘meh’ and will hopefully be replaced by a second one soon. Again, a softer gentler ED like the ones from Higurashi would go well here.

2. The voices: None of them matched the ones in my head as I played the game. I expected a little bit of that, but the voices in the anime were just way too off. In particular Eva, who I imagined would have a much more shrill voice, and instead comes off sounding exactly like Takano Miyo. I could hear Hocchan give her best at doing Maria, but it still sounded a bit off. Overall, the adults sounded a bit too much like they were simply reading the script instead of being in character. I feel that instead of going simply off of star power and industry experience, DEEN could’ve chosen some lesser known actors who fit the role better. It was well-intentioned I’m sure, but it’s really just not working for me.

3. The character designs: I couldn’t recognize some of the characters. Rosa looks like a brunette version of Rika (huh, never realized how similar their names were…), while Shannon and Kannon looked like they got pulled straight off the set of Children of the Corn. DEEN should’ve hired the guys behind the UMGs.

4. The unoriginality: While I supremely appreciate how closely the anime is sticking to the canon, it does come off as more of a Cliff’s Notes version. The directing feels very conservative and samey, and didn’t really offer anything that couldn’t already be found in the game. On a side note, I found it a bit amusing that they just gave up narrating the character intros about halfway through, and not sure why they went with a camera shutter sound.

Again, the above are my complaints after playing through the English tranlsation of the game. Maybe everything matches appropriately with the original Japanese version, though I highly doubt it.

What I liked:

1. The pace: Yes, it felt a bit rushed at times, but DEEN was pretty good about selecting which narrative parts to leave out. And they successfully captured that moment in the garden when you realize that the story all of a sudden took a darker, more serious tone (accompanied by a storm).

2. The BGM: They used songs from the game. And in most of the right places. Even some of the sound effects were kept. Definitely a plus there.

Looking forward to how the rest of the series will play out, and what Studio DEEN manages to pack into the season. I’m doubtful I will get any revolutionary insight about the mystery from the anime, but you never know. At the least, it’s a good way to review my notes and see what the director felt was important.

I truly regret not ever having a summer remotely as eventful as Kyon’s. What I would give to have a summer vacation filled with festivals, beach trips, bowling and fireworks. Sadly, that time will be filled with work and cramming for exams. Oh well, at least I can live vicariously through the lives of 2D characters.

Omo’s post on K-ON pretty much hit all the same points I thought of after seeing the polarization of K-ON’s audience over the past few episodes (although it probably started since Episode 1). I think being the latest KyoAni show proper after Clannad, with rumors of Haruhi 2nd season going around definitely created a lot of hype around K-ON before it aired. There were a lot of expectations (unfair or otherwise) placed on the show based on the previous blockbusters of Haruhi, Lucky Star, etc. And, given just how big the K-ON tag was on AnimeNano since pretty much the minute after the first ep ended, it was easily one of the most watched series of the season. And with that level of noise, the signal is bound to go down.

For myself, the show started very much engrossed in its 4-koma roots. And to use Omo’s terms, it had the Girls, and the High School club, but I felt it was lacking a bit in the Music. After 12 episodes, I no longer feel that way, as KyoAni has beautifully captured the saccharine love-pop of an all-girl high-school band. I’ve been listening to EP 12’s insert Fude Pen, Buro Pen nonstop for the past 72 hours. Similar thing happened with God Knows. KyoAni sure knows how to do music animu, and give it some dimension along the way.

The thing is, what KyoAni does best is give each show it’s own identity, it’s own style. The animation techniques might be the same, but their purpose is to bring out the heart and soul of the source material in the best light (both figuratively and literally) possible.. And they are religiously devoted to the subtle. Even the obviously fanservice stuff, e.g. Ui’s undying worship of her older sister, is often a mask for the deeper heartwarming message. And it also makes for a pretty hilarious scene of mistaken identity. And look at the (translated) lyrics of Fude Pen, Buro Pen: instead of using the traditional ball point pen, Mio wants to use the calligraphy pen because this time she’s serious. KyoAni does not mess around, it knows what it’s doing and doesn’t just fall back on the “old ways” just because it worked before. Those who complained about how K-ON isn’t like show X, Y, or Z, missed out on the fact that that was probably the intent.

So much for that new year’s resolution. Maybe that legend of how a trip to Japan makes one start to lose interest in anime is somewhat true. Except I’m pretty sure I’ve been watching more anime since my trip, I just haven’t had much push to blog about it. So let’s take a conservative “no guarantees” approach and try to make up for lost time.

Some of the highlights in otakudom in the past two weeks for me:

- Umineko Episode 4: Epic is very appropriate here. Will need to go back through my notes to see if I can sort out the truth from all the red (and blue) herrings.

- Toradora: It was Mimi’s post that got me to sit down and give the show a second try, and I am so glad I did. I finally understand all the HatchiKuro comparisons, and makes sense as it’s from JC Staff. The ending was satisfying, if a bit rushed. Yet another light novel I need to find a way to read (didn’t appear to be licensed last I checked).

- K-ON: KyoAni knows how to get me to spend money. Here’s hoping for more volumes of the manga and a sequel.

Still have Higashi no Eden and Hatsukoi Limited to get through. Haven’t even looked at what’s coming for the Summer season. But I should have a bit more time now to watch anime and blog (not necessarily in that order), so I should finally be able to get this blog off the ground soon, and start getting some actual readers, as opposed to the imaginary ones I’m writing to (I love you guys!)…

Super late, but here are some pics from Anime Boston. Most of the summary from the actual event can be found at CPM. Had a blast hanging out with like minded friends as we stalked admired Kajiura-san and Kalafina.

[View with PicLens]

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or Re: K-On! Sucks (rant rant rant). Mimi’s post was both somewhat surprising and expected. Moe-blob shows typically embellish and exaggerate the cuteness of the characters, and for the most part, it works. On male viewers, at least. Shows like Hidamari Sketch, Manabi Straight and Lucky Star have huge loyal fanbases of guys who are taken in at the clumsy, embarrased, overly-innocent, even otaku-esque behavior of the leading women. However, it’s not a huge shock that those very same traits that us moe-loving guys find incredibly irresistable would be major points of contention for the female crowd.

It’s probably like how guys can’t understand the fascination with all the girly bishounen emo guys that the girls drool over. And how would you feel if a show contained four or more of those types of characters and zero female characters? Probably the same.

Aside from the gender debate, K-ON! has many merits. First, it’s not plot-driven (which Mimi considers as a flaw). There is no inter-dimensional epic battle between the Fender and Gibson races. There is no love-hexagon between second cousins and their class presidents. Basically, it’s different and unique than what’s been airing every season the past decade (although I whole-heartedly concede that this argument is somewhat moot with the emergence of moe-seinen as sub-genre that’s been present pretty regularly the past few years). Second, Mio, ’nuff said. Third, the comedy is very first-rate and executed with superb timing. I still chuckle at the thought of Yui’s “saa…” and the harmonica bit.

I do admit there are flaws with the show. For example, take the picture above. Almost 90% of the picture is moe. The remaining 10% is of a guitar sitting in the corner, still inside the case. My only greivance with the show is the lack of music. The BGM feels very generic at times. I’m not expecting Beck’s musical numbers (and would prefer not seeing anything like it), but the music has been a bit too “light” so far. Hopefully that will change as the season progresses. And the somewhat stereotypical character roles does get a little old at times, but the seiyuus do a pretty decent job of keeping the characters fresh.

Lastly, as I commented, it’s KyoAni show, so the polarization isn’t so much of a surprise. The gender difference is, however (with admittance of a fairly non-existant female pool). In any case, all this SERIOUS business boils down to is people will love the show or hate the show, and usually for the same reason.

P.S. One other thing that K-ON! is doing pretty well is getting me to pick up the guitar again. And I’m looking to purchase my own Gibson Les Paul Standard, Heritage Cherry-Burst (although I think in the manga, it’s a Honey-Burst). I swear, Gibson is gonna show up in one of those sponsor eye-catches, and sales of the Standard are gonna go through the roof.