It's sad, the mantra should be quality over quantity always, especially in art.
Yup, but art never exists in a vacuum. Money drives all production and decisions made about that production. It's something I've had to learn to accept because I'm right aboard the train of let the art/story be told how the creators want to tell it, not because a suit told them to make more or string it out.
this obviously isn't the only direct cause, but part of the huge uptick in streaming consumption in japan (vtuber and non) is that there is SO MUCH OF IT, filling in the gaps being left by industries that require more production and structure
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silence1186Character shields down!As a wingmanRegistered Userregular
edited April 24
Maybe if Capital and Management let workers get away with working a reasonable work/life balance, there might be more time for society to be creative.
I remember a video from a couple months back (wanna say it was a Mother's Basement video called something like "There is Too Much Anime") that claimed about half of all anime titles ever made have been created in the last decade
Which, like, given how we're having seasons now with more shows than can physically be watched without sacrificing something (sleep, sanity, etc), and how many shows in the last few years have been under-budgeted dumpster fires, I'm frankly not too surprised
It's nothing new or unsual either. Sure we could pay animators/translators/programmers/waiters/warehouse stockers/etc etc etc better than starvation wages, provide healthcare, and have a healthier work/life balance, but then the producers would have to buy a medium sized yacht instead of a deluxe. It's YOUR job as a fan to buy extra DVDs and merchandise to support the creators!
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+9
DragkoniasThat Guy Who Does StuffYou Know, There. Registered Userregular
edited April 24
I saw that and I was like how many isekais do we need?
Seriously though even though I would consider myself a pretty hardcore anime fan I actually don't watch them all the time. Mainly just when something catches my eye. Which is very much a quality over quantity deal.
That said from a business prospective this is the strongest international presence anime has had since the 90s so I could see them trying to capitialize off of that.
Finally about to start Magia Record. Despite loving the original Madoka Magica I've avoided hearing much of anything about this one and wasn't in a big hurry to watch it, but for whatever reason now feels like the time to give it a chance.
EDIT: Episode 1 Reaction
Okay, I'm more intrigued than I thought I'd be. The visuals are great, the witch and labyrinth designs are still wonderfully surreal, and dream sequence towards the end of the girls headed to the city juxtaposed with what they wished for while Kyubey monologues "I can make any miracle happen" has roped me in. I'm still doubtful they can pull of something as impactful as the original series and I'm going to constantly be wondering in the back of my head if this is all occurring post-Rebellion in Devil Homura's world, but I'm interested to see where this is going.
Finally about to start Magia Record. Despite loving the original Madoka Magica I've avoided hearing much of anything about this one and wasn't in a big hurry to watch it, but for whatever reason now feels like the time to give it a chance.
EDIT: Episode 1 Reaction
Okay, I'm more intrigued than I thought I'd be. The visuals are great, the witch and labyrinth designs are still wonderfully surreal, and dream sequence towards the end of the girls headed to the city juxtaposed with what they wished for while Kyubey monologues "I can make any miracle happen" has roped me in. I'm still doubtful they can pull of something as impactful as the original series and I'm going to constantly be wondering in the back of my head if this is all occurring post-Rebellion in Devil Homura's world, but I'm interested to see where this is going.
Do you want an answer about that question, or no? Because there is one.
Finally about to start Magia Record. Despite loving the original Madoka Magica I've avoided hearing much of anything about this one and wasn't in a big hurry to watch it, but for whatever reason now feels like the time to give it a chance.
EDIT: Episode 1 Reaction
Okay, I'm more intrigued than I thought I'd be. The visuals are great, the witch and labyrinth designs are still wonderfully surreal, and dream sequence towards the end of the girls headed to the city juxtaposed with what they wished for while Kyubey monologues "I can make any miracle happen" has roped me in. I'm still doubtful they can pull of something as impactful as the original series and I'm going to constantly be wondering in the back of my head if this is all occurring post-Rebellion in Devil Homura's world, but I'm interested to see where this is going.
Do you want an answer about that question, or no? Because there is one.
Munkus BeaverYou don't have to attend every argument you are invited to.Philosophy: Stoicism. Politics: Democratic SocialistRegistered User, ClubPAregular
Speaking of Magia Record, S2 episode 7 had some extremely nice animation efforts. And if the ending of the episode is saying what I think it is, that's really nice.
Basically, the Coordinator warns them very explicitly that the mental picture of their friends needs to be accurate, or they will mangle them when they're trying to save them. Immediately the characters start spouting off about how their friends are super great and admirable and wonderful and my thought was "Uh... no. That's not the FULL picture, that's like buttering them up." And sure enough, it seems from Yachiyo's flopped attempt that that's exactly what went wrong, she sketched out a two dimensional version of her friend that didn't include any of her flaws, worries, fears, etc. I think that's great. If what actually happened is that "the evil magic is too powerful, we need to FRIEND MORE", I'll be SO disappointed, but the writing has been very on point, so I don't think that's how it'll go.
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cj iwakuraThe Rhythm RegentBears The Name FreedomRegistered Userregular
During the first 1/3 of the movie they accelerated from subtext to the usual supertext to what I'd like to dub hypertext. Then there was a short break.
And then the last 1/3 murdered subtext on screen so there could be no going back, ever.
So there are other monsters now besides Witches that abduct people without harming them? Curious. The Chain Monster and its "Labyrinth" (if it can be called that) were gorgeous. Also, hey, Mami's here.
Episode 4
The Witch this time is a giant stuffed rabbit...whose head splits open to reveal photorealistic pelvic bones. Wut.
It's interesting seeing magical girls use their powers outside of fighting in this show. The original series didn't really have time for that, so it's kind of neat to see characters casually super jumping in this episode, or the one girl being able to magically disguise herself as other people in the previous episode.
The imagery of Iroha's room split in half, complete with half an apple reminds me of Rebellion's ending, with the half-hill and half moon.
Episode 5
I'm gonna need a name for this new type of enemy, but it is interesting that you can tell them apart by Witches being introduced with runes, while these creatures have no such thing. I've also noticed that both the Chain Monster and the Shrine Monster's domains have conspicuous arch-shaped bridges not unlike the one Homulily emerged from in Rebellion.
Speaking of Witches, uhhh, I wasn't expecting the main character to become one in episode 5 or for Mami to suddenly pop up and blast it. I'm also unsure if the characters know where Witches come from, and I'm especially curious now that apparently at least some Magical Girls can temporarily bond with their Witch selves or something before turning back to normal.
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Zonugal(He/Him) The Holiday ArmadilloI'm Santa's representative for all the southern states. And Mexico!Registered User, Transition Teamregular
During the first 1/3 of the movie they accelerated from subtext to the usual supertext to what I'd like to dub hypertext. Then there was a short break.
And then the last 1/3 murdered subtext on screen so there could be no going back, ever.
glad they're done with this evil Iruma thing.
I didn't like him. Like sure he was more confident, but he didn't learn it, it just happened to him by magic. And he was mean to Clara which is unacceptable.
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miscellaneousinsanitygrass grows, birds fly, sun shines,and brother, i hurt peopleRegistered Userregular
The Adolescence of Utena in a nine-part, four and a half hour video series that i think offers a very cogent, compelling breakdown of the movie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RrajGU8H4B4
Chairman Meow on
+4
J-bobJ-bob in gamesDeath MountainRegistered Userregular
During the first 1/3 of the movie they accelerated from subtext to the usual supertext to what I'd like to dub hypertext. Then there was a short break.
And then the last 1/3 murdered subtext on screen so there could be no going back, ever.
that could have been a metaphor for anything! ANYTHING!
You could write an entire goddamn queer thesis on the social dynamics being commented upon at the end of Utena Apocalypse where
Akio tells Anthy that all she and Utena have to do to live these “perfect” lives as princesses in the fantasy he maintains is just go back to the academy and become “a living corpse.”
If there’s a better metaphor for abusive family trying to stuff you back into the closet, I can’t think of one.
My burning hot plasma torch take is that Magia Record is a better story than Madoka.
The story is told better, without relying on just being as opaque as possible. The characters are more enjoyable and the reasons for their wishes and how they turn out are generally all much better.
My burning hot plasma torch take is that Magia Record is a better story than Madoka.
The story is told better, without relying on just being as opaque as possible. The characters are more enjoyable and the reasons for their wishes and how they turn out are generally all much better.
Also Mitama/The coordinator is wonderful.
I'm liking it a ton, but do have small frustrations with it. I'm hoping the short second season doesn't ruin any of the payoffs for the end of the story, I feel like it seeming abrupt at the end is a pretty foregone conclusion at this point, but maybe they'll surprise me.
glad they're done with this evil Iruma thing.
I didn't like him. Like sure he was more confident, but he didn't learn it, it just happened to him by magic. And he was mean to Clara which is unacceptable.
He wasnt mean to anyone though? That was the point. He was just Iruma that was more confident and had goals( which was helping his friends ) Irumas arc is finding a balance between the two extremes of these personalities
Chairman Meow on
I have a podcast now. It's about video games and anime!Find it here.
glad they're done with this evil Iruma thing.
I didn't like him. Like sure he was more confident, but he didn't learn it, it just happened to him by magic. And he was mean to Clara which is unacceptable.
He wasnt mean to anyone though? That was the point. He was just Iruma that was more confident and had goals( which was helping his friends ) Irumas arc is finding a balance between the two extremes of these personalities
First scene in the old classroom her says he's cold and super rudely makes her sit in his lap and she's clearly not happy about being treated that way. Even if she were it's skeevy in general.
I feel like I get really into anime for about 12-18 months at a time, and then my derived positive brain juices start diminishing after a while, short of rare gems like OddTaxi, so I end up going into a 3-9 month "detox" cycle. This has happened a bunch of times over my anime-watching tenure of the last ~17 years, fairly consistently
and I feel like this season being as weak as it's been is doing a lot to tell me that, yeah, it's time to detox from anime after I finish a few of my current watchlist in a couple weeks
I might try and catch up on a few things on my MAL "On Hold" list but then I also have so many other forms of media I've been neglecting lately, like Western animation or live-action TV
Posts
Yup, but art never exists in a vacuum. Money drives all production and decisions made about that production. It's something I've had to learn to accept because I'm right aboard the train of let the art/story be told how the creators want to tell it, not because a suit told them to make more or string it out.
Which, like, given how we're having seasons now with more shows than can physically be watched without sacrificing something (sleep, sanity, etc), and how many shows in the last few years have been under-budgeted dumpster fires, I'm frankly not too surprised
Seriously though even though I would consider myself a pretty hardcore anime fan I actually don't watch them all the time. Mainly just when something catches my eye. Which is very much a quality over quantity deal.
That said from a business prospective this is the strongest international presence anime has had since the 90s so I could see them trying to capitialize off of that.
EDIT: Episode 1 Reaction
Do you want an answer about that question, or no? Because there is one.
I can wait! I'm already on episode three.
Revolutionary girl utena
Writers, subtext, cowards, etc.
And then the last 1/3 murdered subtext on screen so there could be no going back, ever.
Episode 3
Episode 4
It's interesting seeing magical girls use their powers outside of fighting in this show. The original series didn't really have time for that, so it's kind of neat to see characters casually super jumping in this episode, or the one girl being able to magically disguise herself as other people in the previous episode.
The imagery of Iroha's room split in half, complete with half an apple reminds me of Rebellion's ending, with the half-hill and half moon.
Episode 5
Speaking of Witches, uhhh, I wasn't expecting the main character to become one in episode 5 or for Mami to suddenly pop up and blast it. I'm also unsure if the characters know where Witches come from, and I'm especially curious now that apparently at least some Magical Girls can temporarily bond with their Witch selves or something before turning back to normal.
I didn't like him. Like sure he was more confident, but he didn't learn it, it just happened to him by magic. And he was mean to Clara which is unacceptable.
The Adolescence of Utena in a nine-part, four and a half hour video series that i think offers a very cogent, compelling breakdown of the movie:
Revolutionary Girl Utena?
It's really fucking good.
(Just a long long time)
tatoe futari hanarebanare ni natte mo
(Let go of me)
Take my revolution!
that could have been a metaphor for anything! ANYTHING!
If there’s a better metaphor for abusive family trying to stuff you back into the closet, I can’t think of one.
The story is told better, without relying on just being as opaque as possible. The characters are more enjoyable and the reasons for their wishes and how they turn out are generally all much better.
Also Mitama/The coordinator is wonderful.
I'm liking it a ton, but do have small frustrations with it. I'm hoping the short second season doesn't ruin any of the payoffs for the end of the story, I feel like it seeming abrupt at the end is a pretty foregone conclusion at this point, but maybe they'll surprise me.
He wasnt mean to anyone though? That was the point. He was just Iruma that was more confident and had goals( which was helping his friends ) Irumas arc is finding a balance between the two extremes of these personalities
and I feel like this season being as weak as it's been is doing a lot to tell me that, yeah, it's time to detox from anime after I finish a few of my current watchlist in a couple weeks
I might try and catch up on a few things on my MAL "On Hold" list but then I also have so many other forms of media I've been neglecting lately, like Western animation or live-action TV