I think Princess Tutu is a pretty cool show. If I remember right, it was hyped on TVT a bunch, but for me it was one of the rare shows that simultaneously lived up to hype while taking things in a different direction that I would have expected from that hype (if that makes any sense).
i watched either one or two episodes of ergo proxy and i mostly remember getting annoyed that funimation didn't get the rights to actually have paranoid android at the end
incidentally i'm watching another show that The Consensus seems to have disliked
that being Fractale
strangely i pronounce the name "frahk TAH lay", despite the name of that in-universe thing being "FRAK tul" (as in the normal pronunciation of the word "fractal")
i guess it's like how i call the show "yu REE ka Seven" despite identifying the character as "eh u REH ka"
I've been kinda annoyed at the anime fandom lately. (To whatever extent it can be called a coherent thing.)
Sure, there's the endless arguing about tastes and what was or wasn't good, the endless fawning over or decrying persistent tropes in the medium, the endless hyping of upcoming work from various studios or other creators, the endless controversy over quotes said or deeds done by various people, creators and fans alike.
But behind all of that, there's a backdrop that I don't like, and it's the "commoditization". No, I don't mean commercialization. I mean the tendency to view anime as a bunch of series, to be watched, to be compared, to be made into memes or otherwise used as social tools, with a bunch of criticisms and stereotyped tropes through which everything is seen (character B being a clone of character A; series N basically trying to crimp off series M's success, series Y being series X but better/worse/with lesbians/set in space/etc.). And all of this is couched under a heading of "anime", which just ends up being stereotyped with large-eyed girls in sailor-suit uniforms speaking gratuitous Japanese.
What happened to the sense of discovery, imagination, and immersion, from losing oneself in a fictional world -- rather than looking for the next opportunity to nitpick or make a reaction image? What happened to that curiosity, checking out a series because it looked interesting, rather than because it's a current season show and one is obligated to catch up on it, or rather than because it's one of those seminal series that everyone's expected to have seen (yet everyone recs left and right anyway), or rather than because it's on one's to-watch list? Rather than wandering through portals to hitherto unknown magical wonderlands, these days I feel like I'm checking errands off a to-do list, or pressured to put errands on said to-do list to get themselves checked off, with an unspoken social obligation to report my findings -- regardless of whether I agree or disagree with the consensus.
But...that's not fun. It's not fun at all! It's only fun if I do lose myself in each sotry and enjoy be its own special world, and grow fond of the characters and come to care about them. As opposed to looking over my metaphorical shoulder thinking about how whatever I'm watching fits into some critique or reflects on its tropes or says about my tastes, or whatever. I _don't_ want to care about that.
Even if I style myself as "that one person who doesn't keep up with the current stuff and probably hasn't see whatever you're talking about", it's still got an implicit acknowledgement of that "commoditized" perspective, of the people who keep up with multiple current series at once, of the people debating about "best girls", or of the people who can't shut up about how LotGH is the paragon of good taste series.
So each season a bunch of series are shown and people talk about which one's they're following and...y'know what, come to think of it, the people who do this really are an "anime fandom". As in, following the industry as a whole, keeping up with the news about who's who and who's doing what, and also keeping up with the Joneses in having something current that you're watching (and having something to say about it), being shamed into watching famous things that you haven't watched, and so forth. As opposed to primarily being a fan of specific shows, specific series, specific stories. Now everyone has their favorites, sure. But are you here to treasure those things that are near and dear to your heart? Or are you here just to demand and consume more?
No, I prefer to sit down with something, give it the time of day, and at the end of watching it, ask myself what it means to me. I think we're missing this slower, "sit-down" enjoyment of things. I know I definitely am. Maybe it's my fault for attempting to catalogue all the anime I've watched, or keep a list of the series I'd like to watch, or try to get more involved in the fandom (be it through web forums, local meatspace anime clubs, or conventions) in the hope of finding more stuff I'd like, and people I'd share interests with.
"Do I like anime?" Perhaps the correct answer is probably "mu" -- as in, the question is inapplicable. More accurately, I like some anime series, but not others, and the extent to which anime can be described as a unified thing is but a convenience, for finding things with roughly similar visual (and to some extent, aural) aesthetics -- and not otherwise particularly meaningful. And like its diversity, there is a similarly diversity in its fandom, so I should have no illusion that they'll be any more -- or less -- enjoyable than any other group of fans. Instead, I should just take things one little bit at a time -- both in my work and in my leisure -- and give time to make each of my experiences special. There is no magic of meaning that can be quested for; it can only be found by accident.
TL;DR: I want to stop giving so many fucks about all things anime. I liked it better when I didn't, and just enjoyed things one by one, rather than in some structured fashion or influenced by peer pressure.
I actually noticed that myself at some point...it seems like the greater anime fandom is as obsessed with newness as tech blogs are. There's only a few anime I've really liked, and most of those are years old at this point; I'm sure I'd look like a grandpa to the hipster trendoid types at this point. :P
I s'pose it doesn't help that a lot of the trendy animes are either OVAs or one-and-done series with no additional seasons. Sure, there's stuff like Pokemon that will probably never go away, but like Sazae-san and Doraemon, it's mostly stuff for young children.
well i guess there's a few things i'm kinda addressing in that long-winded post:
* troperizing (i.e. thinking of things in tropes) * obsessed with newness / "throwaway culture" * people not taking serious stories seriously or otherwise cheapening or ruining the experience and perhaps more subtly: * thinking of it through the lens of and/or with an emphasis on social interaction
What happened to the sense of discovery, imagination, and immersion, from losing oneself in a fictional world -- rather than looking for the next opportunity to nitpick or make a reaction image? What happened to that curiosity, checking out a series because it looked interesting, rather than because it's a current season show and one is obligated to catch up on it, or rather than because it's one of those seminal series that everyone's expected to have seen (yet everyone recs left and right anyway), or rather than because it's on one's to-watch list?
Man is a most complex simple creature: see what he weaves, and how base his reasons for doing so.
apparantly theres an anime/manga thats basically about the seiga and nitendo console wars and theres an anime sonic an anime link an anime mario and anime samus its
So the ending to Death Parade was pretty enjoyable after all, one or two minor grips aside. Actually that's a pretty good summary for how I feel about the show in general.
Comments
Yeeesssss. Yeeeessssss.
cogito, ergo i turned it off
it's actually much more tolerable
still cringeworthy at points and overly obvious but maybe it'll get better
definitely not continuing, it's exactly like a walmart brand ghost in the shell
(The other Jane)
Strangely, I don't feel the same way about Code Geass. Maybe it's the character art. I dunno.
and i STILL haven't watched Symphogear G (yes i know they just announced GX)
the fate of two of those three shows that i associate with fourteenwings for no apparent reason still has yet to be decided
that being Fractale
strangely i pronounce the name "frahk TAH lay", despite the name of that in-universe thing being "FRAK tul" (as in the normal pronunciation of the word "fractal")
i guess it's like how i call the show "yu REE ka Seven" despite identifying the character as "eh u REH ka"
Sure, there's the endless arguing about tastes and what was or wasn't good, the endless fawning over or decrying persistent tropes in the medium, the endless hyping of upcoming work from various studios or other creators, the endless controversy over quotes said or deeds done by various people, creators and fans alike.
But behind all of that, there's a backdrop that I don't like, and it's the "commoditization". No, I don't mean commercialization. I mean the tendency to view anime as a bunch of series, to be watched, to be compared, to be made into memes or otherwise used as social tools, with a bunch of criticisms and stereotyped tropes through which everything is seen (character B being a clone of character A; series N basically trying to crimp off series M's success, series Y being series X but better/worse/with lesbians/set in space/etc.). And all of this is couched under a heading of "anime", which just ends up being stereotyped with large-eyed girls in sailor-suit uniforms speaking gratuitous Japanese.
What happened to the sense of discovery, imagination, and immersion, from losing oneself in a fictional world -- rather than looking for the next opportunity to nitpick or make a reaction image? What happened to that curiosity, checking out a series because it looked interesting, rather than because it's a current season show and one is obligated to catch up on it, or rather than because it's one of those seminal series that everyone's expected to have seen (yet everyone recs left and right anyway), or rather than because it's on one's to-watch list? Rather than wandering through portals to hitherto unknown magical wonderlands, these days I feel like I'm checking errands off a to-do list, or pressured to put errands on said to-do list to get themselves checked off, with an unspoken social obligation to report my findings -- regardless of whether I agree or disagree with the consensus.
But...that's not fun. It's not fun at all! It's only fun if I do lose myself in each sotry and enjoy be its own special world, and grow fond of the characters and come to care about them. As opposed to looking over my metaphorical shoulder thinking about how whatever I'm watching fits into some critique or reflects on its tropes or says about my tastes, or whatever. I _don't_ want to care about that.
Even if I style myself as "that one person who doesn't keep up with the current stuff and probably hasn't see whatever you're talking about", it's still got an implicit acknowledgement of that "commoditized" perspective, of the people who keep up with multiple current series at once, of the people debating about "best girls", or of the people who can't shut up about how LotGH is the paragon of good taste series.
So each season a bunch of series are shown and people talk about which one's they're following and...y'know what, come to think of it, the people who do this really are an "anime fandom". As in, following the industry as a whole, keeping up with the news about who's who and who's doing what, and also keeping up with the Joneses in having something current that you're watching (and having something to say about it), being shamed into watching famous things that you haven't watched, and so forth. As opposed to primarily being a fan of specific shows, specific series, specific stories. Now everyone has their favorites, sure. But are you here to treasure those things that are near and dear to your heart? Or are you here just to demand and consume more?
No, I prefer to sit down with something, give it the time of day, and at the end of watching it, ask myself what it means to me. I think we're missing this slower, "sit-down" enjoyment of things. I know I definitely am. Maybe it's my fault for attempting to catalogue all the anime I've watched, or keep a list of the series I'd like to watch, or try to get more involved in the fandom (be it through web forums, local meatspace anime clubs, or conventions) in the hope of finding more stuff I'd like, and people I'd share interests with.
"Do I like anime?" Perhaps the correct answer is probably "mu" -- as in, the question is inapplicable. More accurately, I like some anime series, but not others, and the extent to which anime can be described as a unified thing is but a convenience, for finding things with roughly similar visual (and to some extent, aural) aesthetics -- and not otherwise particularly meaningful. And like its diversity, there is a similarly diversity in its fandom, so I should have no illusion that they'll be any more -- or less -- enjoyable than any other group of fans. Instead, I should just take things one little bit at a time -- both in my work and in my leisure -- and give time to make each of my experiences special. There is no magic of meaning that can be quested for; it can only be found by accident.
TL;DR: I want to stop giving so many fucks about all things anime. I liked it better when I didn't, and just enjoyed things one by one, rather than in some structured fashion or influenced by peer pressure.
* troperizing (i.e. thinking of things in tropes)
* obsessed with newness / "throwaway culture"
* people not taking serious stories seriously or otherwise cheapening or ruining the experience
and perhaps more subtly:
* thinking of it through the lens of and/or with an emphasis on social interaction
i know that's vague as fuck but idk how else to phrase it really
though now that I think about it I have started watching shows as they come out for the first time
I'm watching JJBA, Maria The Virgin Witch and of course lesbears
and i did watch KLK while it was coming out, but in retrospect the show didnt do a whole lot for me
though i did enjoy it so im not complaining
Either that, or my enjoyment of narratives was primarily a social experience, and thus I should stop pretending that I can use it as such.