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March comes in like a lion (TV).


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Blood-
Bargain Hunter



Joined: 07 Mar 2009
Posts: 23669
PostPosted: Tue Nov 08, 2016 10:28 am Reply with quote
It's funny that you mention that Yttrbio because I was pondering that question and for me, at least, the delaying of the context actually ended up making it a more powerful experience for me. If all the cards had been laid on the table right away, it would have been almost too much. Plus, I wouldn't have spent as much time with the character, so while conceptually I'd be able to sympathize with his plight, I'm not sure it would have had the same impact. Having to wait five episodes to get the full picture just made the wallop that much stronger, imo.
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Stark700



Joined: 30 Jan 2012
Posts: 11762
Location: Earth
PostPosted: Sat Nov 19, 2016 12:46 pm Reply with quote
Episode 7:

Pretty good narrative as expected. The way that Rei expresses his own thoughts is still reflected with his feelings. Yuuske introduced himself to Rei as well and I find their chemistry to be oddly amusing.

The comedy remains fun in the show especially the inner dialogues from the cats, Hina faces, etc. I think the way Hina and others tries to learn about Shogi is quite amusing.
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Stark700



Joined: 30 Jan 2012
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Location: Earth
PostPosted: Sat Dec 03, 2016 5:00 pm Reply with quote
Episode 8:

Nikaidou can be such a good role model of the kids, the way he teaches about shogi is just popcorn entertaining and fun. That song they inserted in this episode was also quite catchy and creative in terms of the details.

Momo and Hina definitely had a lot of fun and I'm sure Nikaidou didn't forget it either.

Looks like Kyouko is back in Rei's life...which brings quite a shift in mood with the episode. Pacing feels good so far indeed and I'll be expecting more drama especially with a character like Kyouko and her personality.
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Blood-
Bargain Hunter



Joined: 07 Mar 2009
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PostPosted: Sat Dec 03, 2016 8:22 pm Reply with quote
Kyouko is pretty ... terrifying. No wonder Rei tried to escape. Looks like he didn't move far enough, though.
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DuskyPredator



Joined: 10 Mar 2009
Posts: 15434
Location: Brisbane, Australia
PostPosted: Sat Dec 03, 2016 8:34 pm Reply with quote
I don't like to use that sort of language, and also like to think the best of others, but Kyouko is a straight up bitch. She was not checking up on him because of maybe feeling guilty for how she acted or being worried for him, she was there to make him feel small, punish him, and make sure he is suffering. Well people can be complex and perhaps she thought that she partially came to help him, but jealousy of "a nice place" and perhaps fighting back her own guilt made her act out in trying to make him feel guilty. It is like the worst kind of family member who gets off on pretty much mentally abusing them.

I noticed quite a but of SHAFT style used with her too.
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Stark700



Joined: 30 Jan 2012
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PostPosted: Sat Dec 24, 2016 9:50 pm Reply with quote
Episode 11:

Ah, about the time of New Years.

How I just love the narrative of this show combined with the narrative in this show. The way the girls worry about Rei's well-being feels silly but is also genuine concern as they care about him like family. Momo is also so damn cute every time she appears in this show! Need more!
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Blood-
Bargain Hunter



Joined: 07 Mar 2009
Posts: 23669
PostPosted: Tue Dec 27, 2016 4:33 pm Reply with quote
Next time I get sick I want Akari to take care of me. Cute episode. It was great to see more of Akari's aunt. "You gave birth to a demon!" Ha ha ha! Really love this show. It deals was some really heavy issues but it still manages to have lots of warmth.
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Stark700



Joined: 30 Jan 2012
Posts: 11762
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PostPosted: Sat Jan 28, 2017 1:20 pm Reply with quote
Episode 15:

Still been following this show! Gotou is really quite a guy in this series, probably one of the most complex character in the story. I find his rivalry match against Shimada to be intriguing. There's also more focus on Kyoko this time around.

I actually find it interesting that they go into depths with exploring her character considering what she has yet always wants more. The Shaft animation style kicking in this episode lol
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DuskyPredator



Joined: 10 Mar 2009
Posts: 15434
Location: Brisbane, Australia
PostPosted: Sun Jan 29, 2017 6:30 am Reply with quote
Indeed Kyoko kind of grew into an interesting character beyond the horrible way she treated Rei.

I actually might take some time to explain my thoughts on the series as a whole, how my opinion has changed from earlier on. Early on I said that I did not like it because I felt that it was being a bit too like A Lie in April, a show I did not like, from reasons like a dislike of the heroine being borderline abusive and the show feeling a bit too into its tragedy. March though, I don't feel like it has trivialised our main characters trauma and worries, and the vast majority of his life supports have felt like actual supports. We have stayed a lot in the driver seat of our protagonist, and all of his worries feel earned, but also that he can grow and find things to enjoy, even if part of it being that he thinks the warmth he gets from the sisters is fleeting. The sisters are great, and when Rei is being embraced by them when he is around them, it feels passed onto the audience, they are not there to make him keep doing his shogi career or try and smack him out of trauma like they think they know best.

The show has kind of gone from pretty low on my list of shows to watch, to actually on the higher end. The later trends of giving focus to other characters is also intriguing.
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DuskyPredator



Joined: 10 Mar 2009
Posts: 15434
Location: Brisbane, Australia
PostPosted: Sun Feb 12, 2017 12:23 am Reply with quote
Episode 17

That moment that Kyouko realises that she looks like a witch (a bad guy) to the little girl for how she was acting towards Rei, and her reflecting on it. That she is so kind of broken, and thinks if she was a witch then she wouldn't have these problems. I think this goes through all the ways that "bad guys" don't see themselves as the scary thing that others see, that they all might look tough and undeniable to others, it can be a different thing on the inside. The same I think could be said of the champion, how Rei built him up and thinks of him as big presence, and shocked that he did not realise the guy was standing next to him without realising, I think that it would not be surprising if he has similar depression as Rei. And it kind of works that Nikaido is actually the more mature one than Rei because he gets himself to be more positive.
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DuskyPredator



Joined: 10 Mar 2009
Posts: 15434
Location: Brisbane, Australia
PostPosted: Sun Mar 19, 2017 4:31 am Reply with quote
Episode 22 (finale)

A little sad that it had to end on a kind of unfulfilling note, that the journey really did not feel over, but still at the end I have to let a tear or two out, which I can only say is good. I think what it was that I personally could really sympathise with Rei on something like the whole no one sitting next to me thing. The being alone, and even the fear unsuccessful attempts that would make it worse. I don't in general consider myself as suffering from depression camp, although at the same time I can't say that I don't have my moments, and some of Rei's experiences is are a really good representation of that feeling. Although noted I have not had the tragedy that Rei has.

I am so happy I kept up with this series. There was not a whole lot for me to discus, and it was kind of controversial to myself at the beginning. But it morphed from something I wanted to just get through, to something I really looked forward to. Well at the beginning my favourite bits were the cats, it was a kind of sense of humour I found cute even if slightly intrusive, but it grew into a real appreciating for characters like the Kawamoto, and then really getting into the into the mind of depression, like the everyone can be sad thing. That got a little lower towards the end, but I also really appreciate the journey Rei was going on the second half of the season, that there was a way he could work through it. It is not a finished journey, and that really makes me want to continue it.

I will land on a rating of Very good (8/10), it was really insightful and am really happy that I watched it. I feel like I have so much been in Rei's head, that it makes me kind of feel like his comrade. Shaft were kind of beautiful here, they added their flare, and I think did a great deal with tone, And looking back I have to mention music. Bump of Chicken was initially something I was feeling disappointed in, because they were something I became a fan of from Blood Blockade Battlefront and now was doing OP and ED of a show I was not liking. But I still love their work and thought that they were perfect for this anime, it was like there is this emotion stretching itself out, and is a perfect fit, their music matches.

I just the animated music video you can find on their YouTube channel from back in 2014 of the OP (there is something interesting about this), I will try and describe the feeling. It is like a soft rumble of isolation, so soft that you could mistake it for not being there, that is the emotions hidden under that isolation. This is Rei who seems separate from everyone, yet maybe also does not care about it, like he does not need anyone else. But as it goes on his emotions burst out, yes he is fragile and is afraid of being hurt, but he is under there and he is not at all something cold. The video is largely over the scene where Rei has gone after Hinata, I think the one where she suddenly breaks down in tears, revealing through all the other things she has been trying to force herself to be happy, but she is also so sad, they both are. And it is through something like that they that they are kind of reaching out to each other and helping them, it was one of the most beautiful parts of the show as a foundation.
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Stark700



Joined: 30 Jan 2012
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PostPosted: Sun Mar 19, 2017 7:36 am Reply with quote
This got another season today btw.

Very satisfied with the show overall. It was a very faithful adaptation from start to finish and I have high expectations for this show when it returns later this year (Fall 2017). The storytelling and psychology was just brilliant.

Rating this as Excellent.
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Blood-
Bargain Hunter



Joined: 07 Mar 2009
Posts: 23669
PostPosted: Sun Mar 19, 2017 10:58 am Reply with quote
I rated this show as excellent. Admittedly, in my own personal rating system, it got a bit of a boost simply for attempting to grapple with real issues instead of being yet another show about schoolkids fighting aliens/monsters/etc but it is also a reflection of the show's execution. There were those who didn't like the type of humour, especially juxtaposed with the show's serious side, but I thought all that stuff was handled extremely well. The show had a lot of interesting characters. Like The Great Passage, which was about a guy editing a dictionary, I marvel that a show about shogi could be made to be so compelling. I'm delighted we'll be getting another season in the fall. I'm not sure if it is known yet, but I hope it will be a 2-cours, as well.
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Beltane70



Joined: 07 May 2007
Posts: 3868
PostPosted: Sun Mar 19, 2017 3:35 pm Reply with quote
Judging by the amount of source material, 2-cours is extremely likely!
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DuskyPredator



Joined: 10 Mar 2009
Posts: 15434
Location: Brisbane, Australia
PostPosted: Sun Oct 22, 2017 4:44 am Reply with quote
Season 2, Episode 2 (Episode 24)

Missed posting for the first episode, but it seems to be setting a good tone for Rei to get through his depression. This season also seems to being more artsy I think, in a way that is distinctively SHAFT, and does not seem as intrusive as I thought it could.

The second episode seems to have done something interesting and showed that Gotou might be more complicated than he thought, not just the villain we expected. Maybe feel some respect and feel sorry for him.

Also funny with Rei getting into a fights of sorts with Nikaido and both called rowdy.
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