Forum - View topicEP. REVIEW: Welcome to the Ballroom
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gumbaloom
Posts: 265 |
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Agreed it's the focus on the Shounen cliche's and melodrama and lack of focus on the thing that it's supposed to be which is a sports anime.
Yawara / Prince of Tennis this is not...... |
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Treecko Tempo
Posts: 155 |
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Z-Raid
 Posts: 132 |
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It took 11 episodes, but finally there was a dance sequence that was actually exciting to watch. The general flaws are still present, but hopefully the anime will stick to this track of actually showing the dancing rather than just a bunch of still images and commentary from bystanders. And I know it most likely won't happen, but it'd be nice if they fixed the music to actually match the dancing. It's unintentionally hilarious to see people clapping to the beat of the dance music when all we hear is generic uplifting anime bgm.
I'm finding it annoying that everyone is giving all the credit to Fujita for Mako winning the ballroom queen award, especially given the fact that Fujita is a newbie to dancing while Mako is an experienced dance veteran. He most certainly was a part of the equation since he is Mako's dance partner but Mako is still a great dancer by her own merits. This wasn't brought up in the anime, but something in the manga confuses me. In the manga, spoiler[one of the judges say Shizuku is a wonderful dancer but she overwhelmed her leader at times. But isn't that what Mako does to Tatara with the whole flower and the frame thing??? The judges even said they were paying so much attention to Mako that they forgot to even look at Tatara while they were dancing. They both seem like the same thing to me.] It's probably an irrelevant detail, but to me it still comes off as confusing. Overall, this episode was a real step up compared to the previous ones imo. I was actually entertained rather than bored and I'm looking forward to my favorite character of the series appearing in the next arc. |
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Chrysostomus
Posts: 335 |
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THAT ONE MOMENT where Gaju and MC-kun become rough and sketchy and you think the anime is finally gonna deliver on that glorious dancing sakuga you've been waiting months for buuuuuuuuuuut nope. It doesn't happen. In fact the dance ends three seconds after that.
This show just never fails at disappointing, doesn't it? |
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AmpedForAnime
Posts: 38 |
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Can't tell you how hype I am for the next episode. Been waiting for her.
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someidiot
Posts: 9 |
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I think the difference is that Tatara was willingly giving Mako the limelight. On the other hand spoiler[ Gaju was fishing for attention, and Shizuku wasn't helping. So Shizuku and Gaju were spoiling each other's dance. Two captain's on the same ship, a clash of egos.] I believe this is also why Tatara was commended for Mako's performance, because he set the stage in a suitable manner for Mako to outshine Shizuku. This is only speculation however. |
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Z-Raid
Posts: 132 |
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Yeah, that makes sense. I don't know anything about dancesports but logically it makes sense that cooperation between the dancers is key to the sport. With how one-sided the leader/partner relationship is presented in the series I kinda forgot about that lol |
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CrowLia
 Posts: 5505 Location: Mexico |
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As I watched the episode, I definitely noticed that it had the most amount and perhaps the best animated dance sequences in the entire show, which made me wonder why none of them was making any impact, and here I realized why a simple misguided production decision has doomed the whole show: The music just doesn't work. So even when we're seeing nice steps and moves (and we don't even get to see that many of them, again the audience pans overwhelm the scarce dance scenes) they don't make a lot of sense because they don't match the music or the mood at all. They seriously shot themselves in the foot when they chose not to trust their audience, so even the few memorable moments of the show end up being unimpressive to say the least.
I'm also endlessly bothered by how Mako wasn't even allowed to have a full minute of glory because when she and Tatara are arguing over who was to be credited for her award, we cut away to Sengoku -the person of "authority" in the scene- who gives all the credit to Tatara. I guess it was too much to hope for this show to actually let a woman be praised for her skills, the only way she can shine is if the guy enables her to.  The fact that Gaju doesn't even apologize to her before they re-instate their partnership was just the cherry on top to kill what little goodwill I had built for the episode.
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Gina Szanboti
Posts: 11354 |
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What bothered me most in this episode was that in a sport that seems like it's built on etiquette and elegance from the ground up, Gaju's behavior on the floor and off just spits all over that, again with no repercussions at all. He's like the John McEnroe of ballroom dance, but he gets away with it.
And as if it's not bad enough that the music doesn't match the dance, they actually brought attention to it this time with the clapping bit! Anyone who had somehow never noticed before, certainly couldn't avoid it this episode. |
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Gina Szanboti
Posts: 11354 |
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Episode 12 was a definite step up on a number of fronts. Some actual dancing! Some character interactions that didn't feel completely forced. Proper music! All very nice.
However. Again we get the off-floor behavior that ought to have some repercussions but doesn't. And it seems like all the women in this series besides Mako are icy bitches, who still somehow have little autonomy. Shizuku did act more like a human being this time, but the dissonance with how she's been portrayed up til now made her seem like a different character entirely (though if this turns out to be a permanent transformation it's for the better). She didn't even look the same. Gaju's being toned down a little is also good, but the biggest problem remains that for me there are still no characters in this that I really, truly like and am rooting for. At best, I'm mildly interested in their stories to keep watching until they crash and burn. |
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AksaraKishou
Posts: 1410 Location: End of the World |
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I think the off-floor thing is only between pairs, not partners. But I'm not sure, obviously. That said, this is a SHOUNEN, don't take this kind of comedy, because that's what it was, so seriously. Also, I wouldn't say that they're icy bitches when they all have soft sides, which you almost always see outside of the dancing floor. It just so happens that we keep seeing them there. |
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Gina Szanboti
Posts: 11354 |
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I don't know what you mean by that. What's the difference, and how does it affect the propriety of slapping someone in the face on the sidelines where spectators can see it?
I don't know what this means either. The only soft sides we've seen was Shizuku this episode, which I mentioned as being a sudden aberration from what's gone before, and Sengoku's partner calling Tatara like a puppy. The new girl's been a bitch from the get-go, and doesn't seem particularly warm in the previews or ED either. Their demeanor on the dance floor is irrelevant, as that's performance, not personality. |
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AksaraKishou
Posts: 1410 Location: End of the World |
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If that was the only thing she had going for her, we wouldn't like her as much as we do. The tendencies will go away...sorta. 
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DuskyPredator
 Posts: 15462 Location: Brisbane, Australia |
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Is it too early to say that the new female characters are much stronger characters, and could turn everything around? As long as Chinatsu stops being pretty horrible to Tatara. That she seemed to think in her own time and make a decision that he wanted to go back with Tatara was not too bad, it was her being mean before that. Hongou on the other hand is pretty much all great, especially as a balance to Sengoku.
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yuna49
 Posts: 3804 |
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What a welcome change of tone from the first half! Tatara suddenly realized he had no idea about the partnership involved in ballroom dancing. Pretty likely they'll score in a novice event and get to take part in the Grand Prix. I wonder how Chinatsu will react to Tatara's facial expressions while in competition. She's already tired of his goofy faces in just a few hours together!
I have rather a different take on Chizuru than Dusky. I find her stereotypical hitting of Sengoku tiresome at this point. It detracts from her character for no good reason except to make a stupid and unfunny joke. Without that, she's pretty likable. I was surprised that Tatara had never practiced being the partner before. It seems like bad coaching on Sengoku's part. Wouldn't it make sense for both partners to have experienced the other's role at some point in their early training just to understand the dynamics? Maybe some of our friends here with dance experience might chime in. Mako looked stunning in the preview. It sounds like she's in charge of the Gaju/Mako pair now. Good for her, and probably good for Gaju, too. By the way, Mako has never appeared as an "icy bitch" to me. Weak and uncertain, yes, but that looks to be changing as well. I'm guessing there's some incident in Chinatsu's past that caused her reactions at the beginning of the episode, particularly her fears about whether Tatara was hitting on her. I don't think it's something like losing in a competition when young either. Maybe she ran out of competent male partners and quit in disgust. Or maybe she had one or more unfortunate encounters with men who wanted more from her than just a dance partner or student. |
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