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Shelf Life - Dueling Djangos


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050795



Joined: 27 Mar 2009
Posts: 230
PostPosted: Mon Jan 09, 2012 6:00 pm Reply with quote
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I don't expect anime outsiders to understand, but Utena is a deal-breaker anime for me; if you don't like it, we can't be friends (although I'm willing to hear your reasoning…).


Had to laugh at this because I am kind of the same way with some shows. I can understand if people don't love the show as much as me, but I hate it when they don't give any good reasons why they don't like and just say something like, "It's stupid." Maybe the real deal breaker for me isn't so much that they don't like the shows I do, but that they won't nitpick and discuses shows on a deep level like a real otaku! I mean the only thing better then a perfect anime, is an anime with one tiny flaw that you can spend all night complaining about on the forums!
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Surrender Artist



Joined: 01 May 2011
Posts: 3264
Location: Pennsylvania, USA
PostPosted: Mon Jan 09, 2012 6:26 pm Reply with quote
I liked Revolutionary Girl Utena! Can I crash on your couch for a week?

The only fault I've found with RightStuf's Revolutionary Girl Utena sets is that the box for my copy of the first set was slightly deformed, so it doesn't stand up straight, and the second had the wrong arc titles on the packaging and DVD menus. The third set seems immaculate and the faults in the others are unimportant. I'm really pleased that they released it and thus allowed me to satisfy a curiosity that had been growing for years.


Last edited by Surrender Artist on Tue Jan 10, 2012 10:24 pm; edited 1 time in total
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Thunder-Break



Joined: 13 Oct 2010
Posts: 28
PostPosted: Mon Jan 09, 2012 6:28 pm Reply with quote
Quote:
If nothing else, it's worth sticking around for the awesome theme song alone. "No boy, no cry… We still fight, fighting in the nineties!" I usually skip the theme song after the first few episodes, but with FotNS2 I was determined to learn it for karaoke.


But... aren't the last three minutes of the song just repeating "We still living, living in the nineties/eighties! We still fight, fighting in the nineties/eighties!"? At least, that's what I've heard from a friend who tried to do the same.
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Chagen46



Joined: 27 Jun 2010
Posts: 4377
PostPosted: Mon Jan 09, 2012 6:33 pm Reply with quote
Isn't Bakuman horribly sexist?

I remember some HUGE stink being raised about supposed sexism in it on some other forum.
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Veers



Joined: 31 Oct 2008
Posts: 1197
Location: Texas
PostPosted: Mon Jan 09, 2012 6:34 pm Reply with quote
Utena is 20-something episodes of good ideas stretched way too far. I'm enjoying it but it is way, way too long and would be a lot more interesting if it trimmed like 15 episodes worth of fat off.

As it is, I am glad I'm finally getting around to one of anime's classics I hadn't seen before, because it's got plenty to like and I certainly don't feel like it was a waste of time, but I don't think I'll ever watch it again.
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SpacemanHardy



Joined: 03 Jan 2012
Posts: 2509
PostPosted: Mon Jan 09, 2012 6:46 pm Reply with quote
Unimpressive? UNIMPRESSIVE?!

The Bakuman dub is one of the best dubs released in 2011!! And EASILY one of the best by NYAV in a long time!!

Maybe Kevin T Collins sounds a BIT too old for his part, but Michael Sinterniklaas sounds perfect. Not to mention that the acting actually sounds very natural and not forced or wooden.

Lemme guess..... You're one of those people who thinks that the Durarara!! dub is nothing short of excellent and that Darrel Guilbeau sounded "perfectly fine" in his role, aren't you?

Pssshh..... Figures. Confused
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chrisb
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Joined: 07 May 2006
Posts: 614
Location: USA
PostPosted: Mon Jan 09, 2012 6:47 pm Reply with quote
I can understand your brother's opinion. Utena is a journey and requires a lot of emotional investment to get the most out of it. It also helps if you watched it as an angsty teen who could relate and learn from the characters Wink
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Monster in a box



Joined: 05 Sep 2005
Posts: 671
PostPosted: Mon Jan 09, 2012 7:01 pm Reply with quote
Veers wrote:
Utena is 20-something episodes of good ideas stretched way too far. I'm enjoying it but it is way, way too long and would be a lot more interesting if it trimmed like 15 episodes worth of fat off.


I bet you're one of those people who thought Star Driver didn't get good until the last two episodes.
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bravetailor



Joined: 30 May 2009
Posts: 817
PostPosted: Mon Jan 09, 2012 7:21 pm Reply with quote
Getting Ikuhara to open up about anything meaningful in person is harder than opening the Doors to Eternity.

Luckily, that's what the booklets are for. The extensive print interviews with Ikuhara, not to mention the rest of the creative staff, are CHOCK FULLA stuff about everything everyone ever discussed concerning the show. Gender roles, independence, patriarchal institutions...it's all discussed in great detail in these books and confirms that everything the fans have ever read into the show were discussed in great detail by the creative staff after all. Don't look at the DVD extras or audio commentaries for answers, because all Ikuhara does is troll. Laughing Read the booklets.

In my opinion, Nozomi has set a standard for an anime release. Heck, not just anime--Criterion could probably take a few notes here as well. One of the biggest problems with anime is that when a show is labelled a "classic", these companies never do much to show us WHY it's important. The Utena release shows us WHY this show is important and why it should at the very least be respected on some level.
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supercreep



Joined: 11 Dec 2011
Posts: 526
PostPosted: Mon Jan 09, 2012 7:29 pm Reply with quote
Veers wrote:
Utena is 20-something episodes of good ideas stretched way too far. I'm enjoying it but it is way, way too long and would be a lot more interesting if it trimmed like 15 episodes worth of fat off.

As it is, I am glad I'm finally getting around to one of anime's classics I hadn't seen before, because it's got plenty to like and I certainly don't feel like it was a waste of time, but I don't think I'll ever watch it again.


I've basically avoided that by treating each box as an entirely different season. I watch one, a few different shows in-between, then the next one. It works wonders that way.
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Crisha
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Joined: 21 Apr 2010
Posts: 4290
PostPosted: Mon Jan 09, 2012 7:30 pm Reply with quote
So, I just finished Utena yesterday for my first time, and my final verdict? I LOVE IT!

I'm so glad I bought Nozomi's releases for the series (I pre-ordered each of them to get the ring). Not only are they gorgeous (and one of my favorite releases sitting on my shelf), but the series is definitely in my top faves.

Sadly, my viewing of the final two episodes were slightly ruined - the first half of each episode had issues with the disc where the audio kept pausing and cutting out every other second. Sad I'm going to ask for a replacement disc from RS, and then re-watch those two episodes.

I have yet to see the movie, but I want to watch it soon.
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supercreep



Joined: 11 Dec 2011
Posts: 526
PostPosted: Mon Jan 09, 2012 7:32 pm Reply with quote
Quote:
One of the biggest problems with anime is that when a show is labelled a "classic", these companies never do much to show us WHY it's important.


That really bugs me sometimes, especially the "anime legends" line or whatever it's called that Bandai puts out. Some of the WORST packaging.
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pachy_boy



Joined: 09 Mar 2006
Posts: 1323
PostPosted: Mon Jan 09, 2012 7:35 pm Reply with quote
Quote:
I'm more than a little surprised that the movie is included in this box set rather than sold as a separated release. I'd like the Utena-curious to have the cheaper option of checking out the movie before shelling out $50 for a box set.


To be honest, I think it's best to watch the TV series before the movie, and not just because the TV series came first. Both versions have different levels of strange surrealism, whereas the TV series is like gently wading into the waters while the movie is like a hard shove into the deep end. If anything, the TV series actually prepares new fans for the movie. Also, for anyone who thinks the TV series's ending is too bittersweet for their tastes, the movie's ending is more like a therapeautic catharsis as a counterweight, not to mention we get to see Utena and Anthy's relationship as it wasn't (at least not on the surface) in the TV series!

Also, for anyone who felt the TV series dub was intolerable--which I wouldn't disagree with--I assure you the movie's dub is a vast improvement. It had to do with a handful of factors, such as there being a different ADR director, Ikuhara-san supervising the dubbing of some key scenes, and all the weaker voices are either absent or only have a small number of lines. It's still a listenable dub that's aged well enough, so don't be afraid to give it a try if you're inclined. And despite the TV dub's notoriety, I'm glad Nozomi still included all the dub actor interviews from the Central Park Media set, since they all take place in the gorgeous locales of Central Park (it's worth watching the interviews for that alone) and the dub actress for Wakaba sings a rather nice tribute song for her character.
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Juno016



Joined: 09 Jan 2012
Posts: 2377
PostPosted: Mon Jan 09, 2012 7:50 pm Reply with quote
Chagen46 wrote:
Isn't Bakuman horribly sexist?

I remember some HUGE stink being raised about supposed sexism in it on some other forum.


I dunno about any big controversies, but it's understandable that people would think so. Without going very deep into each character, we've got:

--Main character #1 (male): Protagonist who thinks critically about his life and works for his dreams.
--Main character #1's girlfriend (female): Side-character who does her best on her own, but is still the "ideal" female supporter for her boyfriend.
--Main character #2 (male): Protagonist who is really smart and works for his dreams.
--Main character #2's girlfriend (female): Side-character who is/can be extremely pushy and annoying, but is completely supportive of her boyfriend's dreams. Though she sometimes comes off as a character whose only purpose is to cause drama...
--Every married female adult in the series: Dedicated completely to husband or household.

They remind me of the whole Light <--> Misa relationship from Death Note, which flashes the "girl exists for the sake of guy" lightbulb in our heads. It sounds extremely sexist, but the other side of the issue is that it's "normal" for most of Japanese society to be like this, even now, when the foundations of the social rules are being challenged by new generations. Considering this series (as well as Death Note) is a little more realistic (excluding occasional character expressions and habits), I find their gender roles to make sense. I mean, if none of the characters are willing to challenge their gender roles (they are actually taking advantage of them, if you ask me), then let them be.

[Oh, hey. I made it into the article! Wasn't expecting that~ =D]
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Veers



Joined: 31 Oct 2008
Posts: 1197
Location: Texas
PostPosted: Mon Jan 09, 2012 7:54 pm Reply with quote
Monster in a box wrote:
Veers wrote:
Utena is 20-something episodes of good ideas stretched way too far. I'm enjoying it but it is way, way too long and would be a lot more interesting if it trimmed like 15 episodes worth of fat off.


I bet you're one of those people who thought Star Driver didn't get good until the last two episodes.
I'm one of those people who didn't bother to watch Star Driver at all.
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