I could really do without Keith being into his sister/cousin in Bakarina. It's particularly a shame because I actually like him in the scenes where they're focusing on the angle of him being the beleaguered younger sibling having to keep an eye on his older sister when she's being a weird idiot.
if you are going to take the plunge this is slightly outdated but a good primer
notably, kizu movies are now all released (i would watch these between bake and nise, they provide a huge amount of backstory on araragi) and kizu owarimonogatari is the latest anime adaptation
Monogatari Second Season is, in my mind, the best season, because it contains Tsubasa Tiger, Shinobu Time, and Hitagi End, which are really fucking good. Mayoi Jiangshi and Nadeko Medusa also have really good moments but lean into Monogatari's worst aspects a bit too often for me to fully praise them.
Hell, I'd argue that Tsubasa Tiger is probably the best arc in the entire show.
I'd also rate Suruga Devil/Hanamonogatari in Monogatari Second Season too, and it's absolutely incredibly and what I think is the best arc in the entire show haha (followed by Tsubasa Tiger)
the monogatari series is frustrating. When it's being serious, the anime usually knows to cut the crap and actually does a good job. But like the novels are really heavy on double entendres, it loves making things sound dirty, only to reveal that it was innocent all along. The anime usually just takes those double entendres and makes it literal, because dirty stuff helps them sell blurays. But then once the scene's over it's still like it never happened, they're just meant to be viewed as non-serious throwaway scenes.
It's frustrating because when the series actually tries it can be downright brilliant. Araragi and Senjougahara's relationship is weird but actually really healthy and loving. The show's got visual style for days. The way later seasons change narrators and how the world changes as a result is really cool. Almost all of the side characters are cool. The way the story introduces creepy-ass Oshino Ougi as an antagonist is seriously fantastic.
Yeah to me monogatari is the very definition of problematic fav because everything except the shitty stuff is just fucking top-tier masterpiece. If I could get like a director's cut that just removed the really bad shit I'd be one billion percent onto that within a heartbeat, because the rest of the show is just so close to my heart.
But I can't easily recommend it to people because of the problematic stuff, so I only do so to people I trust to not take the problematic stuff as an indication that I actually like those parts, because I sure as heck do not.
Thankfully it does get better as the series goes on, but the stuff in nisei in particular is just real problematic.
I could really do without Keith being into his sister/cousin in Bakarina. It's particularly a shame because I actually like him in the scenes where they're focusing on the angle of him being the beleaguered younger sibling having to keep an eye on his older sister when she's being a weird idiot.
Well they're nobility so being cousins isnt an issue for them in the setting. Also I think he realizes they cant be a thing he just hates Prince Alan
I have a podcast now. It's about video games and anime!Find it here.
Getting started on my Legend of the Galactic Heroes binge and they had 3 episodes in a row with an assassination plot.
That's politics...
ESPECIALLY Japanese politics
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.
hmm yeah this series is definitely aware of its subtext
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.
A lot has been made of Bakarina's inability to tell all these guys and girls are madly in love with her, but the crowning moment of her density has got to be (latest episode)
finding a bright red button in a trap infested maze and immediately going "hmm, I wonder what this does"
I mean, she assumes the world she's in runs on videogame logic because it's the world of a videogame. And she knows perfectly well that in games, you can't actually make any drastic changes to the main story, you just fiddle with the details around the edges.
She just hasn't quite figured out that what's a videogame story to her is real life to everybody else. And most likely she never will because she's Bakarina.
One of the things I like about rakugo shinju is how it handles its performing arts stuff. There's rakugo, kabuki, and geisha performances, and all three of them have these like deep wells of cultural tradition and artistic foibles. On the one hand they're fine art, and very tradition-bound art, but they're also all pop art and they all have their grimy sides, too. Like the geisha lady sings and dances and performs and is an artist at having charming conversation, but she's also definitely a prostitute... But then there's also just plain prostitutes, and her job and their job are really really not the same thing at all, either. Rakugo's very stylized and has rules and forms that must be followed, but also it has like erotic stories as part of its canon, and plenty of dirty humor. And most of their performances are happening right in the red light district - which is also tradition - so it's like this big messy mix of formal art right next to drinking and whoring.
Kana on
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.
I finally got two of my friends to watch the first Gundam 0079 compilation movie and they called me right afterwards to pester me with questions and tell me how cool the Guncannon is and I very much appreciate it
Although they seem to lack the proper respect for Char Aznable, the man whose destiny it is to save the Earth sphere
I get wanting a shorter name to call the show but the chosen nickname doesn’t seem to come from anywhere so I don’t get it.
Took me a while to figure out what show people were even talking about.
The protagonist is a total idiot and her name is Catarina. So Baka + Catarina = Bakarina.
The other Japanese abbreviation seems to be Hamefura from the full title Otome Gēmu no Hametsu Furagu Shika Nai Akuyaku Reijō ni Tensei Shiteshimatta, which is a little more esoteric probs to the non-japanese speaking audience.
DHS on
"Grip 'em up, grip 'em, grip 'em good, said the Gryphon... to the pig."
I Favor the Villainess has apparently been licensed for an anime. It was a webnovel and has kind of a similar vibe to Bakarina, but not harem, it's yuri, and its queerness is much more at the forefront. Also it was written by a queer trans lady, iirc.
The main thing that stands out with "I favor" though is
the protagonist was older when she got isekai'd, and she was a closeted lesbian who'd never been in a relationship, endured some pretty bad homophobic bullying in high school, had friends who committed suicide, and like is very aware of the difference between anime's sorta acceptance/fetishization of homosexuality versus real Japan's lack of acceptance. Even the game she's isekai'd into - which was her favorite game - is not written for her, the romances are strictly heterosexual. The writers even thoughtlessly throw in some homophobia into their world just to make things seem more fleshed out and exciting.
Like where Catarina's clueless barely-subtext pansexuality is cheerful and accepting, I Favor actually has a much sadder subtext running through it. Early on she really plays up that whole predatory-but-harmless gay comic relief thing, think of like whatsherface from Railgun. And when she's finally called out on it her internal narration is basically how she knows it's shitty and harmful but wtf else is she supposed to do, the only way she can really deal with stuff is by making fun of herself.
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.
I get wanting a shorter name to call the show but the chosen nickname doesn’t seem to come from anywhere so I don’t get it.
Took me a while to figure out what show people were even talking about.
The protagonist is a total idiot and her name is Catarina. So Baka + Catarina = Bakarina.
The other Japanese abbreviation seems to be Hamefura from the full title Otome Gēmu no Hametsu Furagu Shika Nai Akuyaku Reijō ni Tensei Shiteshimatta, which is a little more esoteric probs to the non-japanese speaking audience.
The other abbreviation here in the West was "Death Flag Otome", IIRC, which incidentally lines up well with the Japanese abbreviation. Usually Japanese light novel abbreviations would be the first two words but, well, "Otoge" for "Otome Game" is way too broad.
"Bakarina" also lines up with other otome game isekais that are referred to be their protagonists, e.g. Kenkyo, Kenjitsu o Motto ni Ikite Orimasu being "Reika-sama".
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MaddocI'm Bobbin Threadbare, are you my mother?Registered Userregular
The isekai boom was worth it for the otome isekai subgenre
I haven't understood any of these monogatari charts btw
If you wanted a watch order for Monogatari. The below is the most straightforward and easy to read watch order. I'd recommend watching Kizumonogatari second instead of going with the alternate placement.
Usopp is unintentionally dumb but just for gags. Brook is intentionally dumb for gags. Zoro is very dumb. Luffy is somehow even dumber. Nami and Robin aren't dumb. Franky and Chopper are both pretty dumb despite both ostensibly being very knowledgeable. Yes I omitted Sanji. yes it was purpose.
Jinbei isn't dumb and he's learning the hard way just how dumb luffy is
That's my favorite part of people teaming up with the Straw Hats, when they realize there is no dissuading them from their dumb antics.
Along with the moment where that same person gets swept up in their dumb antics.
Enlong on
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Munkus BeaverYou don't have to attend every argument you are invited to.Philosophy: Stoicism. Politics: Democratic SocialistRegistered User, ClubPAregular
Usopp is unintentionally dumb but just for gags. Brook is intentionally dumb for gags. Zoro is very dumb. Luffy is somehow even dumber. Nami and Robin aren't dumb. Franky and Chopper are both pretty dumb despite both ostensibly being very knowledgeable. Yes I omitted Sanji. yes it was purpose.
Jinbei isn't dumb and he's learning the hard way just how dumb luffy is
That's my favorite part of people teaming up with the Straw Hats, when they realize there is no dissuading them from their dumb antics.
Along with the moment where that same person gets swept up in their dumb antics.
Law is without a doubt my favorite character in the manga.
Humor can be dissected as a frog can, but dies in the process.
I haven't understood any of these monogatari charts btw
Think of it like Haruhi. You can watch it in the order it aired, the order it occurs chronologically, or, ideally, not at all.
(Haruhi excepted from the last.)
The only thing I really feel like asking about the -monogatari series is if the rest of them have a pun name as masterful as "bakemonogatari".
"Nisemonogatari" is the only other one off the top of my head. Although Bakemonogatari gets bonus points for being able to be translated as "Ghostory" or "Monstory"
Usopp is unintentionally dumb but just for gags. Brook is intentionally dumb for gags. Zoro is very dumb. Luffy is somehow even dumber. Nami and Robin aren't dumb. Franky and Chopper are both pretty dumb despite both ostensibly being very knowledgeable. Yes I omitted Sanji. yes it was purpose.
Jinbei isn't dumb and he's learning the hard way just how dumb luffy is
That's my favorite part of people teaming up with the Straw Hats, when they realize there is no dissuading them from their dumb antics.
Along with the moment where that same person gets swept up in their dumb antics.
Law is without a doubt my favorite character in the manga.
That reminds me, around that time instead of isekai, the fad seemed to be along the lines of "Sci Fi where the main guy is extremely talented but hides it behind a laid-back or downright moronic facade, and when they get serious is when shit is really going down."
Spike from Cowboy Bebop
Vash from Trigun
Gene Starwind from Outlaw Star
Captain Tylor from Irresponsible Captain Tylor
Tylor's probably king of the "pretending to be the idiot" trope, because I don't think the show ever even confirmed if he really was faking it to cover his talent, or if he was just an extremely lucky idiot. I think it was at least heavily implied to be the former though.
Usopp is unintentionally dumb but just for gags. Brook is intentionally dumb for gags. Zoro is very dumb. Luffy is somehow even dumber. Nami and Robin aren't dumb. Franky and Chopper are both pretty dumb despite both ostensibly being very knowledgeable. Yes I omitted Sanji. yes it was purpose.
Jinbei isn't dumb and he's learning the hard way just how dumb luffy is
That's my favorite part of people teaming up with the Straw Hats, when they realize there is no dissuading them from their dumb antics.
Along with the moment where that same person gets swept up in their dumb antics.
Law is without a doubt my favorite character in the manga.
Law is dumb but very deeply in denial.
Mm, Law is smart but not as smart as he thinks he is. In any other manga he'd be bucking for main protag, with how clever he can use Room. Unfortunately for him, this isn't a manga for being clever. This is a manga where you just make a bigger fist if your current one isn't big enough
Usopp is unintentionally dumb but just for gags. Brook is intentionally dumb for gags. Zoro is very dumb. Luffy is somehow even dumber. Nami and Robin aren't dumb. Franky and Chopper are both pretty dumb despite both ostensibly being very knowledgeable. Yes I omitted Sanji. yes it was purpose.
Jinbei isn't dumb and he's learning the hard way just how dumb luffy is
That's my favorite part of people teaming up with the Straw Hats, when they realize there is no dissuading them from their dumb antics.
Along with the moment where that same person gets swept up in their dumb antics.
Law is without a doubt my favorite character in the manga.
Law is dumb but very deeply in denial.
law is very clever, he's just too clever and underestimates how dumb most characters in one piece are
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But, folks, can we talk about how the entire game seems to have changed in episode 16.
I'd also rate Suruga Devil/Hanamonogatari in Monogatari Second Season too, and it's absolutely incredibly and what I think is the best arc in the entire show haha (followed by Tsubasa Tiger)
Yeah to me monogatari is the very definition of problematic fav because everything except the shitty stuff is just fucking top-tier masterpiece. If I could get like a director's cut that just removed the really bad shit I'd be one billion percent onto that within a heartbeat, because the rest of the show is just so close to my heart.
But I can't easily recommend it to people because of the problematic stuff, so I only do so to people I trust to not take the problematic stuff as an indication that I actually like those parts, because I sure as heck do not.
Thankfully it does get better as the series goes on, but the stuff in nisei in particular is just real problematic.
Well they're nobility so being cousins isnt an issue for them in the setting. Also I think he realizes they cant be a thing he just hates Prince Alan
ESPECIALLY Japanese politics
I mean, she assumes the world she's in runs on videogame logic because it's the world of a videogame. And she knows perfectly well that in games, you can't actually make any drastic changes to the main story, you just fiddle with the details around the edges.
She just hasn't quite figured out that what's a videogame story to her is real life to everybody else. And most likely she never will because she's Bakarina.
I get wanting a shorter name to call the show but the chosen nickname doesn’t seem to come from anywhere so I don’t get it.
Took me a while to figure out what show people were even talking about.
My Let's Play Channel: https://youtube.com/channel/UC2go70QLfwGq-hW4nvUqmog
oh you've gotten to those jerks?
first time logh-ers don't click
It's just "Baka" (fool, idiot) + "Catarina" (the main character)
The protagonist is a total idiot and her name is Catarina. So Baka + Catarina = Bakarina.
Still as relevant as it ever was.
Although they seem to lack the proper respect for Char Aznable, the man whose destiny it is to save the Earth sphere
your friends have exquisite taste
also i just finished the companion podcast episode for the end of gunbuster and i'm crying all over again
The other Japanese abbreviation seems to be Hamefura from the full title Otome Gēmu no Hametsu Furagu Shika Nai Akuyaku Reijō ni Tensei Shiteshimatta, which is a little more esoteric probs to the non-japanese speaking audience.
I Favor the Villainess has apparently been licensed for an anime. It was a webnovel and has kind of a similar vibe to Bakarina, but not harem, it's yuri, and its queerness is much more at the forefront. Also it was written by a queer trans lady, iirc.
The main thing that stands out with "I favor" though is
Like where Catarina's clueless barely-subtext pansexuality is cheerful and accepting, I Favor actually has a much sadder subtext running through it. Early on she really plays up that whole predatory-but-harmless gay comic relief thing, think of like whatsherface from Railgun. And when she's finally called out on it her internal narration is basically how she knows it's shitty and harmful but wtf else is she supposed to do, the only way she can really deal with stuff is by making fun of herself.
The other abbreviation here in the West was "Death Flag Otome", IIRC, which incidentally lines up well with the Japanese abbreviation. Usually Japanese light novel abbreviations would be the first two words but, well, "Otoge" for "Otome Game" is way too broad.
"Bakarina" also lines up with other otome game isekais that are referred to be their protagonists, e.g. Kenkyo, Kenjitsu o Motto ni Ikite Orimasu being "Reika-sama".
If you wanted a watch order for Monogatari. The below is the most straightforward and easy to read watch order. I'd recommend watching Kizumonogatari second instead of going with the alternate placement.
AniList
That's my favorite part of people teaming up with the Straw Hats, when they realize there is no dissuading them from their dumb antics.
Along with the moment where that same person gets swept up in their dumb antics.
Law is without a doubt my favorite character in the manga.
Think of it like Haruhi. You can watch it in the order it aired, the order it occurs chronologically, or, ideally, not at all.
(Haruhi excepted from the last.)
"Nisemonogatari" is the only other one off the top of my head. Although Bakemonogatari gets bonus points for being able to be translated as "Ghostory" or "Monstory"
Rock Band DLC | GW:OttW - arrcd | WLD - Thortar
no wait that's just food wars
laugh at my pun, I know like five words of Japanese
it's fineeeee
big fucking spoilers oh my god don't click
Law is dumb but very deeply in denial.
Spike from Cowboy Bebop
Vash from Trigun
Gene Starwind from Outlaw Star
Captain Tylor from Irresponsible Captain Tylor
Tylor's probably king of the "pretending to be the idiot" trope, because I don't think the show ever even confirmed if he really was faking it to cover his talent, or if he was just an extremely lucky idiot. I think it was at least heavily implied to be the former though.
Also: long coats.
Mm, Law is smart but not as smart as he thinks he is. In any other manga he'd be bucking for main protag, with how clever he can use Room. Unfortunately for him, this isn't a manga for being clever. This is a manga where you just make a bigger fist if your current one isn't big enough
My favorite classic these days is Gunbuster:
law is very clever, he's just too clever and underestimates how dumb most characters in one piece are