Forum - View topicEP. REVIEW: Heroic Legend of Arslan
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AnimeAddict2014
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the elephants
they are not like the elephants in LOTR: returns of the king right? if yes.. it's big trouble. 
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dizzon
 Posts: 338 |
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His leadership strategy hasn't changed because at this point in the TV series he doesn't really have one. He's still confused and plays to emotion. On the other hand his ability to discern between friend and foe has increased thanks to Narsus, but that is still only validated by the group. |
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ZiharkXVI
Posts: 348 |
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I have not seen the ovas, so I cannot make a good comparison. Only thing I will say is that what we see in this series would be a bit of a problem in an ova with only 6 episodes. Granted, in that show he'd probably have to be a bit different because time needs to move faster. Although I do think Arslan will end up being a more effective leader, I don't necessarily see his personality changing. If the Arslan of the ovas is different in that respect, I kind of feel like we're dealing with two different characters. Two different interpretations.
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dizzon
Posts: 338 |
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Very true. And I don't mean to keep harping on the OVA's but regardless of time frame to tell the story it is very evident to anyone who has watched both that this interpretation of Arslan thus far is different.
Now, that is not to say I'm not enjoying this version, I look forward to it every week as it has its own charms that the OVA didn't have. I'm only replying to the question of character development of Arslan himself. There's only so many episodes left and this version of Arslan really hasn't changed much. There are some key character interactions coming up shortly that will really show what this adaptation is trying to convey with him. |
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Maidenoftheredhand
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I am enjoying Arslan except for one aspect...Alfreed. She just seems to be in the wrong anime.
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Hellwarden
Posts: 321 |
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You know, if you stop and think about it, Arslan and his gang are basically just a mob of roaming killers at this point.
The people they're killing have done nothing to them. The "evil" brother we're supposed to hate because he's less good looking I guess, has done nothing to them. |
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chex mix
 Posts: 415 |
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Except, you know, kill thousands of people because sibling rivalry, kill/imprison family members of several of the party, drive them from their homes, put a bounty on their heads, and try to ninja kill Arslan personally. Pretty sure he was with the gang who killed Alfreed's rival gang in that turf war as well, although I don't care about her personal problems so I don't remember. But, you know, other than that, he's chill. I'm sure in another life, they could totally have been homies. The only people Arslan guys have killed have been actively trying to murder them at the time. For a show about war and politics, that's really, really hands clean of them. |
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Hellwarden
Posts: 321 |
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I'm not talking about Silvermask, and his rabble. I'm talking about the recent conflict between the two brothers, and why they Arslan and the gang decided to put their lot with one of them. (I'm forgetting his name.) Other than the fact that the other brother seems a bit less jovial, we as the audience are given no reason, and neither is Arslan, why we should want this other character to rule his country over his brother. The "good" brother, who is only good because he's on Arslan side, claims he is more suited to rule, but it never shows us that. Two recent reasonable commanders stuck in the middle of this stupid sibling rivalry seemed torn between the two rulers, and rather than try to really bring them over with words really, the gang just cut them down after they were manipulated by the other side. Our heroes everybody! I guess we're just supposed to assume those guys totally deserved that. Arslan and his gang never help anyone. We're supposed to root for these characters because.....why? Because they're the leads? Arslan has so far shown no real leadership of his own, but the show likes to tell us he has, and how he's changing. (Often in scenes that are barely animated. Show has loads of QUALITY in that regard.) That's terrible awful writing people. |
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justsomeaccount
 Posts: 471 |
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As far as I know the anime already passed a way long ago to the manga, the manga is still in what would be the equivalent to episode 11 or so. And from what I've heard there's some different developments (for example, spoiler[the religious fanatics, instead of being expelled from their kingdom, they practically sabotage it]). So I think we should consider both different entities. I don't know which one is following or not the light novel though, or how much they're following it.
I'm going to defend a little to the production team regarding to the animation quality and battles. At first I was as critical as everyone, but after seeing all these battles of hundreds of thousands of soldiers, and this one which paid off much better than other ones (there were some tension and peaks during it), my question to the producers is: How were they expecting to animate this series? The director must be crazy right now because this is reaaally reaaaaally hard to animate, because every single shot not only must convey the feeling it wants to (with a lot of tracking shots and other complex cinematic tricks used to easily visualize a battle of so many people), but also... that, there' so many people in each shot. It's distracting to see them as CG and being the exact look and movements... but honestly, after all the shots they have, and they still don't use any repeated footage and they're still different battles, for a TV budget it's still amazing they've managed to animate like this so many battles (and more that will possibly come), because a show like this would probably need twice its budget and time to look good. It's too ambitious (animating-related) for its sake and I'm shocked after all this it hasn't completely broken yet technically speaking. Nothing to add about the story and writing stuff though. That's what is making the show boring now, it's just stuck, same with the characters who feel like stereotypes of themselves and this feels like a filler adventure. |
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AnimeAddict2014
Posts: 925 |
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interesting how they can hear each other wile km away from each other (the two princes)
i remember Dynasty Warriors 5 had something similar to but they used arrows.. not spears though another good episode Arlan senki is one of the reasons to look forward to every sunday. 
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DRosencraft
Posts: 665 |
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I'm not saying it's always the case, but more often than not characters like Arslan are not well liked by the anime viewing public.Face it, if you'e one of those who like who Arslan is as an MC, you're just going to have to deal with the fact that there are going to be a lot vocal detractors.
"Nice" leads rarely get high marks, regardless of the story. In general the viewing public seems to think being nice, regardless of other qualities or development, is unbelievable if that isn't counteracted by something like a propensity to get violently drunk, or secretly be a sadist, or be super over powered and violent. I hate to bring it up, but it's like Game of Thrones, where people tend to gravitate to stories where the characters who can be considered good and decent get killed off in the worst ways, and the ones who survive are the cruel, ruthless, violent sorts. As for Alfreed, I assumed she was added for comic relief. I thought her back and forward with the one kid was all it was, possibly as an outsider who doesn't know Arslan but becomes endeared with him as a future king (not in the romantic sense). I don't know if that was the intent, and that's something that everyone reacts to differently (the comedy bit), but I don't know right now if there was any other point. |
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dizzon
Posts: 338 |
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You can be believably kind and compassionate while at the same time confident and commanding... Something that is greatly lacking in this version thus far.
... As for Alfreed... spoiler[ There is a hint of a genuine purpose for her that is never realized in the OVA. I'm holding out hope that it's realized in this series.] Hoping, but not expecting. |
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Chrysostomus
Posts: 335 |
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Second of all, I don't think you've been paying much attention. Gadevi is a dickhead and treats his subordinates like crap, even when THEY LITERALLY SAVE HIS LIFE. He will make a terrible ruler and the people will hate him. Also how he blatantly lied to his father about the state of affairs. In comparison, Rajendra actually cares about the lives of his soldiers like when he decided to retreat his men when they were getting curbstomped by the elephants. They're both kinda crappy, (though on this show everyone is in comparison to our boy king) but Rajendra is clearly the better pick. |
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BockLefty
Posts: 24 |
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I kind of think the review of the episode misses a bit of the point. Yes a lot of stuff is similar, but Arslan is far from perfect. He's demonstrated his faults, as when he tried to free the slaves and they turned on him. He is naive and takes massive risks. He HAS to have a good heart and inspire people. He is supposed to be the one we look forward to seeing become king. He is clearly still learning, but the reason he is gaining followers is precisely because of who he is: the one with the most potential to rule. I also am enjoying the story because it is doing what a good classic story does: continually create hurdles for the journey. We know Arslan's ultimate goal, where he is going, and what he has to do to achieve his goal. The two previous episodes have a very clear reason for happening: Arslan is helping because he himself needs the alliance between the two nations in order to gain Pars back. And I like that. I like that his journey is fraught with hurdles. It is not only helping to train him to be king, but it is making the journey interesting. Arslan is the kind of series that relies on classic storytelling and it does an excellent job of following the formula. I am perfectly happy with a formula when the material is quality, and Arslan is high quality.
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Hellwarden
Posts: 321 |
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That was only in the most recent episode though. I made that comment before it came out. And in a way, my point stills stands. Arslan is never given a reason to trust Rajendra at all, especially after he leads his men into constant losses, all the while displaying virtually no redeeming qualities, only looking slightly less shit in comparison, in recent episodes. Rajendra only ran when his life was in danger. Rajendra seemed honestly, character wise, no different than the other commanders Arslan's forces killed. Arslan is, by all accounts, putting an idiot on the throne, because he needs allies? Which is fine, but the story doesn't feel like it's fitted together at all. How is adding Rajendra to his army going to actually help him retake his home? Is it just gonna bolster his army? What opportunities is it going to open up? Arlan's army has already beaten armies that outnumber it with tactics. None of these things are addressed, and it makes the story feel congealed together, rather than thought out. i don't want vague talks, and worst of all, gargled nonsense about Arslan's character. I want actual answers! |
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