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REVIEW: Simoun Sub.DVD 3


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Alucalb



Joined: 19 Feb 2006
Posts: 171
PostPosted: Sat May 10, 2008 12:17 am Reply with quote
Quote:
Bandai Visual's decision to release Simoun subbed-only was likely a calculated move based on an expectation of limited sales potential due to its emphasis on overtly lesbian content.


I think you mean Media Blasters. Razz
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Gewürtztraminer



Joined: 14 Nov 2007
Posts: 1028
Location: Texas - Its like whole other country.
PostPosted: Sat May 10, 2008 12:27 am Reply with quote
I really started to get into this with the 2nd and 3rd volumes, and am dying waiting for #4.

I hope that those who will not watch or buy without a dub make an exception, this is good stuff.

If it was dubbed, the result might be great, but I think they would have most likely way overplayed the yuri, and we would have been left with something that missed the point (kinda like the trailers for The Wallflower).

So far, I can not recommend more highly.
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darkchibi07



Joined: 15 Oct 2003
Posts: 5469
PostPosted: Sat May 10, 2008 5:14 am Reply with quote
Gewürtztraminer wrote:


If it was dubbed, the result might be great, but I think they would have most likely way overplayed the yuri, and we would have been left with something that missed the point (kinda like the trailers for The Wallflower).


Kind of paranoid there? But we'll never know anyways. Crying or Very sad
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Randall Miyashiro



Joined: 12 Jun 2003
Posts: 2451
Location: A block away from Golden Gate Park
PostPosted: Sat May 10, 2008 7:27 am Reply with quote
I almost didn't collect this series after being disappointed in previous Media Blaster sub only Yuri/Yaoi titles like Kasimasi and Loveless. Fortunately I decided to give this series a try since it is one of the best releases of 2007/8 especially for the price per episode count.

The third volume continues to surprise me with major events and main characters. The atmosphere and setting for Simoun is rich and unique. It's hard to believe that volume 3 goes beyond the halfway point since it feels like it is still the beginning of the series. Part of this feeling is due to the large ensemble of characters and, much like My-Hime, Legend of the Galactic Heroes, and Basilisk, I look forward to a second viewing where I will go into the series while already familiar with the characters.

Simoun deserves the almost straight A marks which is so rarely seen given by Theron. I've never seen a series use color as well as Simoun and particularly like how eye color highlights don't always match their main color.

Once again I'm a bit confused as to why the menu has a sub section for language options with nothing selectable. I think that there should be a subtitles on/off option on this page instead of a dead end with nothing to toggle. Either that or MB should drop the language options page since there is no options on it.
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skyesage



Joined: 20 Feb 2008
Posts: 97
PostPosted: Sat May 10, 2008 7:54 am Reply with quote
Ah, even more reason for me to check out a series that sounds absolutely wonderful.

I will admit that when I saw a spread for it in Newtype Japan I just dismissed it as another creepy yuri show that would (thankfully, then) never get released here.

But then it did, and men and women alike seem to love it, so I need to give it a shot...

Theron wrote:
Most series who try to juggle an operative regular cast as big as Simoun's usually falter by de-emphasizing more peripheral characters or spreading development so thin that no one has much depth, which makes the effort here all the more impressive.


I do kinda wonder what shows you are thinking of here...since most shows with big casts are big shonen affairs where you really aren't going in expecting a lot of development.

I always thought that X(TV) did a good job giving pathos and interest to a big cast of very different people.
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Jedi General



Joined: 27 Nov 2006
Posts: 2485
Location: Tucson, AZ
PostPosted: Sat May 10, 2008 10:41 am Reply with quote
Hmm, given the reviews, perhaps I should give this series another shot. I never got past the first fansubbed episode due to the fact that it bored me to death. But if it is really as good as Theron has been stating, I'll certainly have to give it another look, since I normally agree with his opinions on a series when I've actually seen the material for myself.
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darkchibi07



Joined: 15 Oct 2003
Posts: 5469
PostPosted: Sat May 10, 2008 11:22 am Reply with quote
It's definitely the series you need to watch again particularly in the right mind set. I remember when this and Strawberry Panic premiered around the same time, and I was like whoa TWO yuri series at the same time; I'm in heaven! And later I found myself watching Strawberry Panic more because I didn't get hideously overwhelmed with the worldly features in Simoun.

The character development in Simoun is really something, and I was impressed of being able to care for a lot of these girls. Of course first I needed to get most of their names straighten out. Laughing
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fuuma_monou



Joined: 26 Dec 2005
Posts: 1817
Location: Quezon City, Philippines
PostPosted: Sat May 10, 2008 8:08 pm Reply with quote
Jedi General wrote:
Hmm, given the reviews, perhaps I should give this series another shot. I never got past the first fansubbed episode due to the fact that it bored me to death.


Never made it past episode 4 previously for the same reason. Also, the lack of proper apostrophes in the fansub was bugging me, given the usual fancy fonts and text effects for karaoke lyrics. I mean, if your subtitling software can do Japanese text, apostrophes shouldn't be a problem. Plain old sans serif fonts like most DVD subtitles are just fine.
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Majin Tenshi



Joined: 14 Apr 2008
Posts: 434
PostPosted: Sun May 11, 2008 4:57 pm Reply with quote
Dub or not, Simoun is 1 of those shows that you'll enjoy for the story, character's development & emotions. Perhaps i am being a bit biased here since i never watch dub, but i believe that the lack of of dub shouldn't deter an anime fan from watching & enjoying such quality show. Again this is just my opinion.
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Quark



Joined: 07 Mar 2008
Posts: 710
Location: British Columbia, Canada
PostPosted: Sun May 11, 2008 6:50 pm Reply with quote
Majin Tenshi wrote:
Dub or not, Simoun is 1 of those shows that you'll enjoy for the story, character's development & emotions. Perhaps i am being a bit biased here since i never watch dub, but i believe that the lack of of dub shouldn't deter an anime fan from watching & enjoying such quality show. Again this is just my opinion.


I totally agree, but at the same time, what if the shoe was on the other foot? I'm in the same boat as you, I usually stick to subtitles, and I really only ever listen to a dub just to compare voices. If Simoun had been released dub only, I would most likely have passed this series up, even though it's a yuri title, and I've been wanting some cute/interesting yuri anime.
I totally understand Media Blasters decision though, since yuri anime is a niche of a niche, so there's no point in spending more money for an English dub for a DVD that not a lot of people are going to buy.

All that being said, this review is giving me much hope for this series. I ordered a couple volumes during the Media Blasters sale, along with some other yuri titles, and to know that this show goes beyond the "Oh, we're adorable girls in love, yay!" and actually has an interesting story, along with the girl love, makes me very happy.
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Majin Tenshi



Joined: 14 Apr 2008
Posts: 434
PostPosted: Mon May 12, 2008 1:29 am Reply with quote
Quark wrote:
Majin Tenshi wrote:
Dub or not, Simoun is 1 of those shows that you'll enjoy for the story, character's development & emotions. Perhaps i am being a bit biased here since i never watch dub, but i believe that the lack of of dub shouldn't deter an anime fan from watching & enjoying such quality show. Again this is just my opinion.


If Simoun had been released dub only, I would most likely have passed this series up, even though it's a yuri title, and I've been wanting some cute/interesting yuri anime.

.


Comparing a dub only & a sub only release is baseless & doesn't stand under any logic. Because regardless if you watch sub or dub, we are talking about the original language for the show that was created in based on a Japanese creator, writer, director...etc. So if you exclude the original language from the release that's an EDIT/censorship to the original work PERIOD.

A simple example is, i have seen many Hollywood movies & TV shows released in Japanese R2 DVDs. While the majority of them do include a Japanese dub track in addition to the original English one (there are also English & JP subs), few only contain the ORIGINAL English audio w/JP & English sub. But i have never seen a release that exclude the English audio and leaves the JP dub neither on DVD or BD so far.

Maybe my logic won't appeal to some dub fans but i am justing stating some points not trying to say that dub or sub is better.

As for the show, those who only going to watch it for the fan service or looking for hot lesbian scenes....simply that show isn't for them.
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Big Hed



Joined: 04 May 2006
Posts: 1607
Location: Melbourne, Australia
PostPosted: Tue May 13, 2008 8:32 am Reply with quote
darkchibi07 wrote:
The character development in Simoun is really something, and I was impressed of being able to care for a lot of these girls. Of course first I needed to get most of their names straighten out. Laughing


Yeah, I'll second this. I've got most of them down now, I think.

I've been really suprised by how well Simoun has turned out. It's definitely not a title that is yuri for the sake of being yuri, and it handles characterizing all of the girls very well.

Also, I agree with what Key said about reconciling Dominura's voice with how Yukana actually sounds. The suprise was compounded for me given her similar performance as C.C. in Code Geass.
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Quark



Joined: 07 Mar 2008
Posts: 710
Location: British Columbia, Canada
PostPosted: Tue May 13, 2008 8:33 pm Reply with quote
Majin Tenshi wrote:
Quark wrote:
Majin Tenshi wrote:
Dub or not, Simoun is 1 of those shows that you'll enjoy for the story, character's development & emotions. Perhaps i am being a bit biased here since i never watch dub, but i believe that the lack of of dub shouldn't deter an anime fan from watching & enjoying such quality show. Again this is just my opinion.


If Simoun had been released dub only, I would most likely have passed this series up, even though it's a yuri title, and I've been wanting some cute/interesting yuri anime.

.


Comparing a dub only & a sub only release is baseless & doesn't stand under any logic. Because regardless if you watch sub or dub, we are talking about the original language for the show that was created in based on a Japanese creator, writer, director...etc. So if you exclude the original language from the release that's an EDIT/censorship to the original work PERIOD.

A simple example is, i have seen many Hollywood movies & TV shows released in Japanese R2 DVDs. While the majority of them do include a Japanese dub track in addition to the original English one (there are also English & JP subs), few only contain the ORIGINAL English audio w/JP & English sub. But i have never seen a release that exclude the English audio and leaves the JP dub neither on DVD or BD so far.

Maybe my logic won't appeal to some dub fans but i am justing stating some points not trying to say that dub or sub is better.

As for the show, those who only going to watch it for the fan service or looking for hot lesbian scenes....simply that show isn't for them.


Woah nelly, calm down there, guy. You're getting really uppity over one small statement that I made.
My comparison is not baseless, or illogical. There are releases of foreign movies and shows that are subtitled only, just as there are some that are dub only. It is possible to make a dub that sticks VERY closely to the original. Simply removing the original language does not necessarily make it an edit, or a censored version. This applies to anime, and live action, no matter what country of origin.
I have seen anime, and live-action movies from countries other than Japan that are available dub only. An anime example would be Crayon Shin-chan, which I was going to buy, until I realized it was released dub only. I passed on it, based on my preference for subtitles.
The point I was trying to make was, that just because you only watch subs, doesn't mean that is going to be every anime fans preference. I've heard lots of peoples reasons for not watching shows subtitled, and while I think they're goofy, I understand. If they prefer to watch their anime in English, and only in English, then it makes sense that they will pass up a show on that basis.
And since you totally seemed to skim over what I stated in my last post hence your statement of "Dub fans don't understand my mighty logic!" I watch my anime subtitled only!

P.S. Just because I like cute anime girls doesn't mean I can't appreciate a good story. Hell, most of my favourite anime has little to no fan service. Just because my opinion is (slightly) different than yours doesn't make me a drooling idiot who only cares about the hot boobs.
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Key
Moderator


Joined: 03 Nov 2003
Posts: 18188
Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley)
PostPosted: Tue May 13, 2008 10:23 pm Reply with quote
Majin Tenshi wrote:
Comparing a dub only & a sub only release is baseless & doesn't stand under any logic. Because regardless if you watch sub or dub, we are talking about the original language for the show that was created in based on a Japanese creator, writer, director...etc. So if you exclude the original language from the release that's an EDIT/censorship to the original work PERIOD.

. . .

Maybe my logic won't appeal to some dub fans but i am justing stating some points not trying to say that dub or sub is better.


Actually, with the comment I put in bold above, you are almost exactly saying that you think dubs are vastly inferior. If you want to not like dubs, that's fine, but don't think those of us who do appreciate them are going to let you get away with disparaging them and then claiming that you're not.
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Majin Tenshi



Joined: 14 Apr 2008
Posts: 434
PostPosted: Wed May 14, 2008 9:22 pm Reply with quote
Key wrote:
Majin Tenshi wrote:
Comparing a dub only & a sub only release is baseless & doesn't stand under any logic. Because regardless if you watch sub or dub, we are talking about the original language for the show that was created in based on a Japanese creator, writer, director...etc. So if you exclude the original language from the release that's an EDIT/censorship to the original work PERIOD.

. . .

Maybe my logic won't appeal to some dub fans but i am justing stating some points not trying to say that dub or sub is better.


Actually, with the comment I put in bold above, you are almost exactly saying that you think dubs are vastly inferior. If you want to not like dubs, that's fine, but don't think those of us who do appreciate them are going to let you get away with disparaging them and then claiming that you're not.



I don't watch dub but i didn't imply anything else & i don't care what you think i said or if you're going to let me get away with it or not. I also have friends who prefer dub but they don't get sensitive to such statement (which i don't intend any offense by it). If you don't like my opinion or it hurts your feeling then get over it.....it's the internet and i have no control on how people should think or act. And neither do you !

Bottom line is: i meant no offense weather you believe it or not. If my statement makes you feel inferior then there is nothing i can do about it.


Last edited by Majin Tenshi on Wed May 14, 2008 10:34 pm; edited 3 times in total
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