Forum - View topicBest First Episode Tournament: Nominations
|
Goto page Previous Next |
| Author | Message | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
Tris8
 Posts: 2114 Location: Where the rain is. |
|
|||
|
NOMINATION:
Fullmetal Alchemist: “To Challenge the Sun” Type of Series: Dark fantasy/adventure Synopsis: A boy is covered in blood, missing a leg, while his younger brother has completely disappeared with only his clothes remaining. Alchemy gone terribly wrong. And in front of him, the monster they brought to life.... Years later Ed Elric and his younger brother Al visit a desert town where a priest by the name of Father Cornello is famous for performing miracles. They quickly discover his fraudulent nature despite the insistence otherwise of a local, Rose, who is hoping Father Cornello can bring her boyfriend back to life. But Cornello's black nature becomes increasingly obvious as Rose watches him sick a chimera on the Elric brothers. It is then that the Elric's punishment is revealed from when they tried to bring a human back to life. What Makes It Great: This has a great balance of comedy and seriousness, coupled with foreshadowing of events to come. The mystery of who the seductive woman in black is and who her partner only known as "Gluttony" is, and what relation they have with Father Cornello makes you want to watch more. The biggest mystery of course is the cliffhanger at the end. Who did the Elrics try to bring back to life? And how is Al still alive without a body? Image: FMA pic Link: First ep VOTING FOR: Bleach Elfen Lied Haibane Renmei Ouran High School Host Club Noein: To Your Other Self Bakemonogatari (I'm not a big fan of this show but I have to admit the first episode doesn't just grab your attention, it puts it in a headlock and doesn't let go) Slayers NGE Serial Experiments Lain Princess Tutu Natsume's Book of Friends Cowboy Bebop Fruits Basket Excel Saga (I wish I could give this one 3 votes) Gah, this list is much longer than I thought it would be. So many good first eps. |
||||
|
||||
|
Errinundra
Moderator
 Posts: 6532 Location: Melbourne, Oz |
|
|||
|
This ought to provide a bit of contrast to my previous nomination.
Nominating: Claymore: "Great Sword" Type of Series: supernatural, fantasy Synopsis: In the "Claymore" world humans are the natural prey of shape shifting demons known as Yoma who take particular delight in gorging on the viscera of their still living victims. Young Raki witnessed just such an attack on his parents and when his town enlists a "Claymore" - a half-human half-yoma female warrior named Clare - to hunt down the perpetrator, he forms an unusual bond with her. What Makes It Great: Although we get some glimpses of her in the prologue, Clare makes one of anime's most memorable character entrances ever as she walks into Raki's town. Everyone comes out to see the "silver-eyed witch", in equal parts aghast and grateful. All wilt before her baleful gaze. Clare then proceeds to walk the entire length of the town, stopping only to discuss terms with the appalled Mayor, and, as she does so, the terrified townsfolk - Raki excepted - scurry home and fasten their window shutters. By the time she reaches the other end of town there isn't a soul to be seen. In a short, economical sequence we get a measure of understanding of this tripartite world - human, claymore, and yoma; the characters of Clare and Raki are established; the beginnings of their relationship outlined; and, as a bonus, there are two separate fights between Clare and yoma that are a foretaste of the intense and violent battles awaiting us. Image: Clare makes her grand entrance Link: not available in Australia; anywhere else? Voting for: Serial Experiments Lain Princess Tutu Angel Beats! |
||||
|
||||
marie-antoinette
 Posts: 4136 Location: Ottawa, Canada |
|
|||
|
Nominating
Trigun, "The $$60 Billion Man" Type of Series: Action, sci-fi/western, comedy (at least in the first half) Synopsis: Meryl and Milly work for an insurance company and have been assigned the task of covering the case of Vash the Stampede, a wanted outlaw who is reportedly responsible for massive amounts of property damage as well as a murder. When they finally track him down they discover not one person who is alleged to be Vash but three: an extremely large gang leader, a bounty hunter, and an idiot who just couldn't be Vash (spoilers: he is). After being captured by the gang, the girls are helped by the real Vash to escape the two pretenders, though the unfortunate city suffers in the aftermath (though without any casualties). What Makes It Great: There is many reasons that Trigun has been a "gateway drug" into anime for many people and many of these can be found right in the beginning. The first half of Trigun is all about the comedy and the viewer is thrown right into it in the first episode, as Vash pretty much consistently plays the role of the clown and is very convincing. The first episode offers more than just jokes though as it does give glimpses into this world with two suns and where almost everyone is packing. There are many little moments sprinkled in there, such as when the cliff collapses in the end but no one in the town is killed, a miracle that will turn out to be quite common with Vash. These moments bring a bit more to the episode which was already entertaining as heck and start the series off with its feet running and the audience having a great time. Image: http://i41.tinypic.com/35at3dk.jpg Note: I've seen the episode several times but I may have forgotten something in the summary and Wikipedia didn't have one for me to steal this time 
I will also vote for Fullmetal Alchemist. |
||||
|
||||
Generic #757858
 Posts: 1354 |
|
|||
|
Voting For:
Noein: To Your Other Self: “Blue Snow” Fooly Cooly, "Fooly Cooly" Serial Experiments Lain, "Weird" Princess Tutu: "The Duck and The Prince" Cowboy Bebop: "Asteroid Blues" Excel Saga ""The Koshi Rikdo Assassination Plot"" Some good suggestions here, Noein and Excel Saga in particular had really awesome first episodes. I won't vote against it, but I wasn't really feeling the first episode of NGE. It was the second episode that really got me interested in the series. Some more suggestions for nominations (I might do some of these myself): Baccano! GitS: Stand Alone Complex 2ng Gig Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann Giant Robo Moribito Shin Mazinger Z-hen Le Chevalier d'Eon Eden of the East Sengoku Basara |
||||
|
||||
|
marie-antoinette
Posts: 4136 Location: Ottawa, Canada |
|
|||
|
Eden of the East is one I'd like to see but it's been long enough since I saw the series that I'm not sure if I could do it justice for a nomination.
I'm also considering Usagi Drop and Deadman Wonderland as well (the latter being a great example of a show with a strong opening episode that ended up falling apart a bit by the end of its run). |
||||
|
||||
P€|\||§_|\/|ast@
 Posts: 3498 Location: IN your nightmares |
|
|||
But if you are nominating the first episode of Brotherhood, I would like to reneg my vote. I thought the first episode in the original series was much better. Can you please clarify? Also I'd like to vote Against: Higurashi: there were just too many open ends in the first episode it requires viewing the other episodes to really even know what the series is about and who the characters are, it's just too devoid of interesting aspects that stand on their own to really gain interest in the series in the first place. Last edited by P€|\||§_|\/|ast@ on Fri Mar 02, 2012 1:24 am; edited 1 time in total |
||||
|
||||
|
Key
Moderator
 Posts: 18212 Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley) |
|
|||
Can't agree on Baccano! because that first episode was just a set-up. I will do Moribito and Le Chevalier by tomorrow evening, though; both were on my short list to do, but I've been trying to cram in a couple of end-of-the-month reviews the last couple of days and so just haven't had time to get to them. Excel Saga was another one that I always intended to do, so I'll happily vote for it. Just haven't gotten around to going through this thread thoroughly, so I'll try to get a list of nominees put up later today or tomorrow morning, as well as a couple more nominations. |
||||
|
||||
|
Tris8
Posts: 2114 Location: Where the rain is. |
|
|||
I'm with you tho, the series is good and I'm a fan but all that aside, the first ep is really good. The way it explains alchemy as a science and not just gimmicky magic as many series use it to be, and reinforcing this by listing elements that compose the human body is great. It really sets the tone for the rest of the series and jumps right into the action and intrigue. |
||||
|
||||
Ggultra2764
 Subscriber Posts: 3889 Location: New York state. |
|
|||
|
Nominating:
Koi Kaze, "First Flower" Type of Series: Romantic drama Synopsis: Koshiro Saeki is a 27-year old marriage consultant down on his luck with love as his lover of 2 years dumped him because she found him to be too cold. While moping over his crisis on a train, he comes across a high school girl crying with a button in her hand. When the girl drops her wallet while getting off the train, Koshiro gets off to bring it back to her and she smiles upon observing the sight of cherry blossoms in the air. Later on, Koshiro is given tickets to an amusement park from one of his clients and encounters the same girl outside his company. Koshiro takes the girl with him to the amusement park and the two develop an attraction to one another while on a ferris wheel as both find themselves to be having their woes with love. When the two are about to leave the amusement park, Koshiro is shocked to discover that the schoolgirl is actually Nanoka Kohinata, his younger sister he had not seen in 15 years because of being separated from their parents' divorce. What Makes It Great: The episode is effectively used to allow the viewer to become familiar with the internal problems that Koshiro faces with understanding what it is like to love someone. He finds that connection with Nanoka where the viewer also comes to learn of her own problems facing love and we see that Koshiro has developed a connection to her through the vulnerable moment he has with Nanoka while on the ferris wheel. However, the ending to the episode throws out the shocking twist that both are actually siblings to leave the viewer wondering how Koshiro will cope with this shocking news when he finally found someone he could potentially love. While having its light-hearted moments with Koshiro's sickness from many of the amusement park rides he went on, the episode shows off the subdued and dramatic tone that will be mostly prominent with Koi Kaze throughout the rest of its run. Image: Koi Kaze pic Video Girl Ai, "A Soothing Girl" Type of Series: Sci-fi, romantic comedy/ drama Synopsis: Yota Moteuchi’s love life sucks. He is called “Dateless” by his classmates for not having a girlfriend. His love interest Moemi Hayakawa has feelings for his best friend Takashi Niimai, despite the guy having no interest in her knowing of Yota’s feelings, as Yota tries pushing along a relationship between Moemi and Takashi. Depressed over his unrequited love, Yota comes across a video store which mysteriously appears in front of him on his way home. Looking through the store, he comes across a video tape of one of many video girls, girls that appear out of the client’s television screen and created with the purpose of comforting any client facing unrequited love. He rents a video girl named Ai Amano for the next month. Unfortunately, Yota’s broken VCR causes Ai to become “broken” as she appears in front of him. Besides having a reduced bust size, the video girl does not behave as she was made to be and she behaves much like a normal girl would. Despite these defects, Ai promises to help Yota earn the affections of Moemi. What Makes It Great: The opening episode of Video Girl Ai effectively mixes around comedy and drama in its focus on exploring both Yota's issues of unrequited love and the effects that his defective VCR has on Ai's personality. Ai creates much of the comedic relief in this episode as she comes to learn of the altercations to her character, comically causing harm to Yota and teasing him over the naivete of his character by making use of her beauty and charm to torment the young man. The episode also features flashbacks at points to introduce the viewer to Yota's complicated romance situation with Moemi and how he came across Ai's video tape. This and the conclusion to the episode where Ai comforts Yota still being distraught over his romance situation show off the serious moments to the series within the episode. Image: Video Girl Ai pic Supporting: Bakemonogatari Fullmetal Alchemist Excel Saga |
||||
|
||||
Dorcas_Aurelia
 Posts: 5344 Location: Philly |
|
|||
I'd back you on that one. Voting for: Bleach Hayate the Combat Butler Angel Beats Fullmetal Alchemist Claymore Voting Against: The Tower of Druaga - The Aegis of Uruk - I'm torn on this one, as the episode itself was great fun, but it wasn't really indicative of the series. Whereas MoHS had Kyon's snide commentary throughout and imitations of amateur filmmaker errors to let us know that what we were seeing wasn't actually the story that we'd be getting, Druaga abruptly reveals that the first episode was all just a dream (and had an alternate first episode that showed what actually happened), and while the comedy is not infrequent, the tone doesn't come close to matching the constant parody that the introductory episode displayed. |
||||
|
||||
HaruhiToy
 Posts: 4118 |
|
|||
|
Why do I get the feeling that many of the votes should be considered as "votes for my favorite anime" rather than "votes for best first episode?"
Can't prove it -- just sayin'. |
||||
|
||||
|
marie-antoinette
Posts: 4136 Location: Ottawa, Canada |
|
|||
I thought the whole point of it just being the first episode was that it didn't necessarily have to be indicative of the series? Hence why a good starter for a bad series deserves to be here while a bad starter for a good series does not. |
||||
|
||||
|
dtm42
Posts: 14084 Location: currently stalking my waifu |
|
|||
This is correct. It's not rocket science you guys. The actual quality of the overall series has absolutely nothing to do with whether the first episode is good or not. |
||||
|
||||
Spastic Minnow
 Bargain HunterExempt from Grammar Rules  Posts: 4613 Location: Gainesville, FL |
|
|||
|
I may have poisoned the water on that one, as I argued a few times for an episode's representation of the series to be a criteria. The idea was over-ruled.
But you know, I'm voting against it too. I've seen the first episode of The Tower of Druaga, it was the only episode I watched, and as I recall the problem wasn't merely that the episode misrepresented the rest of the show (after all, I didn't watch it) but that it was obvious that it was doing so. Personally, that turned me off. I'm somewhat predisposed against traditional sword and sorcery shows anyway and for a bit I thought it showing me that it WAS something different, but no, it was an intentional ploy and I realized that it was just going to be your normal example of the genre. So, it had the opposite effect of a good first episode- the obvious subterfuge repelled me from the show rather than enticing me to watch ore.
Can't say the same of you huh? After all, they're voting for something. But I'll state the obvious- the favorite shows are the easiest to vote for... as they've been seen and one can remember or not they had good first episodes. Others rely on enthusiastic support, and probably at least a peek- for instance, I plan to give Futakoi Alternative a chance (only just realized the obvious black market source). I don't think popularity is everything though- Cowboy Bebop has only garnered one vote since it's nomination, and the backlash against Madoka Magica proves something too. And I may personally give Deadman Wonderland a thought if it's nominated- despite the fact that I ended up very very much disliking the show. |
||||
|
||||
Saffire
 Posts: 1256 Location: Iowa, USA |
|
|||
|
Vote For:
Mawaru Penguindrum - I fell in love with this show at first sight. The sheer absurdity of what's happening grabs on and doesn't let go. Bleach - First episode is fantastic, too bad its downhill from there. Haibane Renmei - Could get in on sheer artistry alone, but manages great depth as well. Ouran Host Club - Another love at first sight show. Snappy dialogue and the hilarious way her secret is revealed makes for a great time. FLCL - Raw insanity at its finest. Full Metal Alchemist - I randomly watched the first episode and was immediately snared. Great setup and characterization. Vote Against: Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya - I hated this episode. I really needed the context of the later episodes to understand what the episode was supposed to accomplish. Without it, it was just a stupid film. I ended up being fine with Haruhi overall, but I almost didn't watch past this episode. When They Cry - I didn't think the first episode was that interesting. Actually it takes quite a while to really hit a stride. Last edited by Saffire on Fri Mar 02, 2012 8:34 am; edited 1 time in total |
||||
|
||||
 |
All times are GMT - 5 Hours |
|
|
|
Powered by phpBB © 2001, 2005 phpBB Group