Forum - View topicBuried Treasure - Shingu
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here-and-faraway
 Posts: 1528 Location: Sunny California |
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What a pleasant surprise to see this as a Buried Treasure. I got Shingu on a whim a few years ago. It REALLY is different from anything I've seen before and while I can't say it's my favorite show ever, it really does linger in my mind as a pleasant memory.
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toonmainet
Posts: 4 |
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I really liked this show. It has become one of the shows that reminds me of summer, mostly because I watch it when it was summer.
I do have to say that it is easy to find if anyone has comcast digital cable with it mostly being on their VOD almost every spring. That I also how I watched the show and then end up buying it. |
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CCSYueh
 Posts: 2707 Location: San Diego, CA |
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This is one of my lesser purchases. A local anime shop was clearing out rental copies so I got the whole set for $20 & I'm not really sure it was worth that. It's not my style & I have pretty broad tastes. I enjoyed Kurogane Communications more. I found a couple of the twists convenient in this one.
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Zalis116
Moderator
 Posts: 6867 Location: Kazune City |
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According to Shawne Kleckner of Rightstuf, this is the "Best Show Ever," or at least that's what he wrote on the artbox that I picked up in the AnimeIowa '06 Charity Auction. True to the Dark Lord's devious designs, I picked up the remaining four single DVDs, and they sat on my shelf for about a year and a half before the impulse to watch them struck me. While I can't agree with "Best Show Ever," I don't regret the purchases. According to the booklets, the show is supposed to be 2070s technology with a 1970s nostalgic feeling. It succeeds at that, though I don't directly know what the USA was like in the 1970s, let alone Japan. But as the article says, Shingu certainly is different from every other Teens&Robots series out there, thanks to its positive attitude and languid pacing. But I can certainly see how people would find it boring...the first time I saw the slow, string-filled OP, I thought, "Wait a minute, shouldn't this be the closing song? They're going to mix it up and do a fast-paced rockin' closer, right? Wrong, the ED truly is elevator music in every sense of the word, and thanks to the only flaw in Rightstuf's DVD production, it's not skippable! (Fast-forwardable, yes, but it can't be skipped. This may have been fixed in the thinpack.) And I must admit, the character designs were part of what kept me from watching Shingu for so long after having the DVDs. But they're not a problem after a few episodes, and I really liked seeing traditional cel animation for one last hurrah in a 2001 anime. It definitely added to the nostalgic "warmth" of the series. I'm not surprised to hear that it didn't do well in Japan. Heck, it didn't even get fansubbed past the first episode. I guess it was a time when everything else was moving into digital animation and CG mecha in shows like Vandread. But overall, I'd say Shingu is worth buying if you don't mind slow-paced anime, especially at the ridiculous prices it's selling for today. $33 for the thinpack and $40 for the discs+artbox+shirt bundle on rightstuf.com. Heck of a lot less than what I paid for it, and I didn't get the shirt 
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Fronzel
Posts: 1906 |
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I'm getting kind of sick of anime with a "gentle, nostaligic" feel. Sometimes it's all they ever seem to make. Plus, I think I burnt out on kid-pilot vs. monster series.
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BladeDragoonZETA
 Posts: 586 |
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honestly as I read this Fafner came to mind
but this sounds interesting... |
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penguintruth
 Posts: 8461 Location: Penguinopolis |
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Shingu is a somewhat overlooked and underrated program. I saw most of it, dubbed, on Comcast On Demand's Anime Selects, and enjoyed it. The only thing that bothered me is that it was entirely too laid back and lacking tension. Otherwise, a decent program I wish more people would look into.
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handsomeyakuza
 Posts: 9 Location: Eagan, MN |
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I couldn't only get through the first disc...It seems to have potential, but I had FAFNER flashbacks, but I said the same thing about "Evagelion" in 96'...A new 2004 penny is "Buried Treasure" these days...Wow!!! We're in for some stormy seas...:O(
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Big Hed
 Posts: 1607 Location: Melbourne, Australia |
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So, it's NGE (or maybe RahXephon would be a better comparison) spliced with School Rumble. Sounds cool, and certainly a tempting purchase if the collected singles are as cheap as has been stated not to mention the thinpack. I haven't seen Fafner, personally, so I can't make comparisons there; however, I might pick that up, -- and I sooner rather than later I imagine, since there's no telling with these Geneon DVDs when they'll be gone from the internet for good.
The character designs don't bother me from what I've seen in this article and the encyclopedia entry, save whoever is featured in the foreground of the latter source's image to the right of Hajime (I assume this is Futaba?) with that massive...mullet. What is unfortunate though is that this series had to be truncated quite severely, which leaves me slightly apprehensive about purchasing it. The music is a shame as well. In retrospect, I realize that I read some of Theron's review for DVD 1 a while back, and I find the contrast funny between how he and Justin describe the worldview. While I'd normally agree with Theron, I think Justin is right in the case of Shingu, and so I look forward to that aspect of the series if I buy it. As for traditional cel animation holding some intangible sense of 'warmth' over new digital techniques: let's just say I find that to be about as true as the same argument concerning vinyl records versus CDs, and I'd prefer a CD anyday  However, that's just my opinion, and I certainly don't take issue with the old methods, so it's all good.
Conclusion: I think I'll buy Shingu during my next shopping spree. Not only does it sound solid, but I'll then be able to say I watched two consecutive Buried Treasure titles  . Also, I think I'll enjoy trying to pick out the subtle dialect that you spoke of, Justin, even though I have absolutely no ability to speak or comprehend Japanese.
Last edited by Big Hed on Thu May 15, 2008 3:51 am; edited 1 time in total |
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Jacut
Posts: 140 Location: Paris, France |
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As zallis said before, it was created some years (2 or 3 don't remember) before Stellvia, but it definitely looks Stellvia-ish, despite the lack of grand drama and overly complex character relationships.
Still Shingu is a great anime, very different from other sci-fi productions, very down-to-earth, the only problem being the rushed ending as the article says. But I may not be very objective as I just love Tatsuo Sato's series (Nadesico, Shingu, Stellvia, Shigofumi...) |
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Randall Miyashiro
 Posts: 2451 Location: A block away from Golden Gate Park |
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What is the story about the title of the series? The series seems to be called by it's Gakkou Senki Muryou name during the OP credits. Was it referred to Shingu in Japan, or was this a change in it's US release?
I like the series pacing (much like last columns Patlabor TV) since I hate shows that feel that they need to pack a fight in every episode. I enjoyed Stellvia (I love the alternate ED for different moods) more than Shingu which also seem to have a nice balance of comedy, drama and action. Shows like this seem rare since many anime series have a "seen one episode seem them all" repetitive feel to them. |
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Toomuchanimetoolittletime
Posts: 6 |
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Hello, all. I have not only watched this series, but have done so 3 times so far since I first picked it up while it was being issued by Rightstuf. After a lot of alien invasion shows that run around, frantic and hurried in both plot and execution, this is a welcome, paced exposition of a more mature, thoughtful look at what a first contact could be like. Yes, the music is slow, and somewhat elevator like, but this is also helps keep the show's pace at it's slower cadence. Being somewhat older than most anime fans that I have come into contact with, these observations may also be specific to me. (I bought and still rock to Bubblegum Crisis, which I picked up in VHS clamshells in the early 90's. Yes, I have been around for a while.) Bottom line, I have enjoyed it whenever I have needed a break from all of the new titles that I am currently viewing. Sort of revisiting a familiar place that one has pleasant associations with. It will probably be a while until I view it again (I just watched it again 2 months ago), but I will watch it again at some point. That is what I do with my favorites.
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The Human Spider
Posts: 334 |
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SHINGU is one of my favorites. I thought its laid-back pace and good-natured feel were extremely unique compared to the angst and dystopia of most modern sci-fi. I didn't know the director did STELLVIA too which I also thought was very unique in that it's pretty much the only truly utopian modern sci-fi show that I can think of. Is it really all that similar to FAFNER? I never checked it out because I hated the GUNDAM SEED style character designs(but I actually loved the quirky simplicity of the SHINGU designs.) The show did have an outstanding cast of characters--my favorite was Nayuta--I love those so-serious-they're-actuall-really-funny type characters.
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Togashi_D
 Posts: 15 |
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Actually that is Shun Morihata (Futaba is not in the picture). That is a picture of the 'chosen ones' and they are in the student council.
I wouldn't wait if I were you. The original disks + box + t-shirt is available for $39.99 (which is only $7.00 more than the thinpak at $32.99) and as of now there are only 32 left. Shingu Bundle (w/box, shirt). I got mine a week ago and so far I'm up to episode 13 and enjoying every minute of it. 
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Teriyaki Terrier
 Posts: 5689 |
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At least those who ARE fans of this series may enjoy the series on dvd. Truth be told, I am not really interested in this series.
Great review though Justin. |
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