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It's a Sakuga [Anime] Thread
Kana
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
So not every frame of an anime is made equally. Every single unique frame has to get drawn by somebody, so due to budget and time limitations, typically there's quite a lot of sequences of people standing still and talking. It still might look pretty, but there's just not the time to animate every little twitch and gesture that you'd see if you were simply filming live action.
But then there's times when just capturing the bare essentials of movement isn't enough. This might be an exciting fight scene, a character breaking down into tears, or maybe just someone running really hard. These are sakuga moments, those scenes where the production pays a little extra to have their best people do their best work, or even have well-known freelancers come in just for that sequence. This has always been something that feels a bit unique to anime, at least as far as I know - most western animation seems to focus on maintaining a similar quality level throughout(?), and there certainly doesn't seem to be that tradition of elite freelancers coming in to do specific sequences.
So like, remember how great the Deku vs Todoroki fight was in My Hero Academia? That was by Yutaka Nakamura! He's done tons of standout bits from various series, he's p much a legend:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9WInd9Nxms
Tetsuya Nishio, a Gainax alum, he's done everything from the Great Teacher Onizuka OP, Ping Pong, The Cat Returns, FLCL...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZOlu_gupc8U
Norio Matsumoto did a ton of the standout fights from Naruto (yes, he did That One Rock Lee Fight), as well as lots of other fights.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k34Nw9QJrig
And well, obviously there's lots more examples out there, including way more non-fighting examples which I think I'm neglecting... But I wandered back across the Chika dance, so now I'm just stuck rewatching this over and over
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kK6ROjrzCZA
But then there's times when just capturing the bare essentials of movement isn't enough. This might be an exciting fight scene, a character breaking down into tears, or maybe just someone running really hard. These are sakuga moments, those scenes where the production pays a little extra to have their best people do their best work, or even have well-known freelancers come in just for that sequence. This has always been something that feels a bit unique to anime, at least as far as I know - most western animation seems to focus on maintaining a similar quality level throughout(?), and there certainly doesn't seem to be that tradition of elite freelancers coming in to do specific sequences.
So like, remember how great the Deku vs Todoroki fight was in My Hero Academia? That was by Yutaka Nakamura! He's done tons of standout bits from various series, he's p much a legend:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9WInd9NxmsTetsuya Nishio, a Gainax alum, he's done everything from the Great Teacher Onizuka OP, Ping Pong, The Cat Returns, FLCL...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZOlu_gupc8UNorio Matsumoto did a ton of the standout fights from Naruto (yes, he did That One Rock Lee Fight), as well as lots of other fights.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k34Nw9QJrigAnd well, obviously there's lots more examples out there, including way more non-fighting examples which I think I'm neglecting... But I wandered back across the Chika dance, so now I'm just stuck rewatching this over and over
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kK6ROjrzCZA A trap is for fish: when you've got the fish, you can forget the trap. A snare is for rabbits: when you've got the rabbit, you can forget the snare. Words are for meaning: when you've got the meaning, you can forget the words.
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I was really tempted to just go with JUST key animators who have done sequences in Eizoken, because unsurprisingly there's a ton of them. And then just end the OP with "and all these people are currently working on Eizoken so go watch it"
But I figured by the time I did all that legwork someone else would've just made a new op anyway, so, y'know.
As Eizoken teaches us, gotta keep your projects within reasonable mandates.
yeah some of the animation in Monogatari is just absolutely incredible, and I really love those bits.
also this AMV really showcases some of the great animation from the second season (linked because it, being monogatari, is a bit nsfw)
anyways
i just finished the first season of is it wrong to try to pick up girl in a dungeon, and boy are my arms tired. it was...fine, but i'm waiting for the twist? there's a lot of wild shit that's just kind of accepted as Fact in this world
I rather like that series but I don't recall it being anything but exactly what it says on the tin.
My only kind of annoyance is there is a really good story in that series called the Argonaut which is basically a far past version of the story that the writer did specifically for the mobile game. The Clown/Argonaut is a way better character than Bell and I actually kind of like Bell.
Ishuzoku Reviewers is doing amazingly well, yes.
but the real standout is, of course, (real SU spoiler)
Probably because it's comic timing, voice acting etc is on point. Mr raaaabiiiit!
Also, In/Specter is good, though i cant shake the feeling the main female lead would be way, way creepier behavior wise if she was a guy. The Youkai are adorable/great though, epsecially their terror of the male lead and the constant "My lady! we asked you to stay away from him!". Nice to have an actually disabled protag though it dosent seem to impede her too much in the story other than the constant hospital visits
any other anime from the past year+ i should be looking into? I hear Vinland Saga is good, though that's not easily accessible here in the land of the long white cloud. (Likewise, FMA: Bortherhood doesn't exist on crunchyroll or netflix here, which is just obnoxious)
Steam: https://steamcommunity.com/id/TheZombiePenguin
Stream: https://www.twitch.tv/thezombiepenguin/
Switch: 0293 6817 9891
I'm mostly enjoying Somali because it feels like fantasy anime felt when I was a kid, and doesn't feel like an isekai or an RPG clone
Unfortunately someone at the publisher screwed up when uploading them and the very bottom and top of the pages aren't included, which can sometimes cut off some text. I'm on the fourth volume and it still has this issue (also, weirdly volume 3 had the pages in left-to-right order instead of right-to-left), so I decided to try and contact the publisher to fix it. Books can be patched in this day and age, right?
Unfortunately, I couldn't find an English website for them. So I decided to try and contact Amazon instead. Their chat support person pawned me off onto a phone support person.
And let me tell you, having to constantly repeat the words "Fire-Hot Aunt" to some hard-of-hearing old lady on the phone is one of the nine circles of hell.
This scene in The Owl House really impressed me with the sudden jump in quality.
Dunno what all you've watched but:
Kaguya love is war
Promised Neverland
My roommate is a cat
Endro
Morose Mononokean
-
Fruits Basket
Senko-san
Carole and Tuesday
Hitoribocchi
Sarazanmai
-
Dr. Stone
How heavy are your dumbbells
Machikado mazoku/demon girl next door
-
Cautious Hero
Beastars (a bit darker tho)
Iruma-kun
High score girl
African Salaryman
Ascendance of a bookworm
A lot of other good/great things last year but I feel like these are ones that are generally fluffy enough that anyone could like them.
Other good stuff like quints or we never learn is there, too, but not everyone is into that kind of romance stuff.
If I was going to give a 100% just me recommendation that isn't on that list: symphogear. The final season aired (XV) but like, watch all of it. Symphogear, G, GX, AXZ, XV. The first couple episodes start off so-so and then it just becomes amazing. As long as you aren't hyper concerned about being a Very Serious Person.
Crunchyroll manga has a similar problem. All of their pages are "off" by one, so all of their two-page spreads are broken up over two pages. It's pretty appalling QC, and I'm sure they've received complaints that just fall on deaf ears.
Spoilered because it is a little large.
I love Symphogear as well. Good times. It has a fantastic soundtrack which comes up on my playlist very regularly.
AniList
Still no cancellation news on anything. Personal thoughts on things:
KnY - still need to make the anime->manga jump here
MHA is kicking off the new arc with a bang, and it's been great, but at this point it's just feeling like waiting for the other shoe to drop. Also, it occurred to me recently, while watching the last season - it's been long enough. Find a way to get Lemillion his powers back, damnit.
Promised Neverland has been....honestly not great.
Jujutsu Kaisen is a decent standard fighting series, but I keep feeling like it's missing "linking" pages. Every time I read this, I feel like I'm missing things.
Mashle needs a better hook, and soon. The joke was funny at first, but it's wearing thin fast.
Chainsaw-man continues to be a train wreck I can't look away from. Also, the latest volume cover is YET ANOTHER naked woman, so I'm half wondering if this is just building a fanbase then will move to a different magazine.
Act-Age is great, but this arc has felt too long. I hope they don't take as long with the second play.
Guardian of the Witch has actually gotten off to a very solid start for my tastes: established characters, set stakes, set out on an arc with a determined end-point that is reasonable but not immediately reachable. It feels very "Soul Eater" in a less drastic "Attack on Titan" world? Also, according to the maps it takes place in the UK :v
We Never Learn seems to be hurtling towards its end. I'm satisfied with where things are going, but the REAL entertainment comes from reading the comments. MAN some people are pissed.
Mission: Yozakura Family is FINALLY making the needed pivot to having a more long-form story, perhaps, but I'm thinking it might be happening a smidge too late to save the series. If he could just get over everyone being obsessed with the sister, this could be a real good series.
Yuuna is also beelining for an ending - guessing this is the final volume?
Zipman has descended into self-parody in record time and seems to be trying to shove an entire series' worth of arcs into the two volumes it's probably going to get. It's not good.
One Piece is One Piece, I've come around on Oden, and him dying in boiling oil is a hilarious pun.
Should I actually watch Symphogear? Someone pitch me on it because I've heard middlin rumblings from a lot of places about its quality.
FFXIV: Tchel Fay
Nintendo ID: Tortalius
Steam: Tortalius
Stream: twitch.tv/tortalius
Don't expect high art but it is genuinely a fun watch. Plus again. Fantastic soundtrack.
AniList
Excuse you good sir, cutting an entire mountain range in half, length wise, is high art and should be respected.
Also a lot of places seem intent on not actually having fun and have a fearful need for everything to have some deep inner meaning. I reject that and say sometimes you just need to watch someone fly with the power of punching really hard. Most times, really.
Should probably mention those 2 things happen in the same over the top opening montage.
Dumb fun is completely ok. Dumb dumb, not usually ok.
I guess I'll give it a shot.
FFXIV: Tchel Fay
Nintendo ID: Tortalius
Steam: Tortalius
Stream: twitch.tv/tortalius
It's harder to explain the ninja kites, so I went with what was already brought up.
also good
s2 is not great
hestia is still bestia and bell is still my precious idiot boy