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What are you watching right now? Why? (please read 1st post)


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Mr. Oshawott



Joined: 12 Mar 2012
Posts: 6773
PostPosted: Sat Apr 20, 2013 7:14 pm Reply with quote
I'm currently watching the series of Burn Up, with Burn Up! Warrior being finished five days earlier and Burn Up Excess being finished just yesterday. The show features Team Warrior, a special task force created to deal with crimes that are too dangerous for the average police officer to handle. The people featured there are Rio Kinezono, the officer who has a serious problem managing her impulsive spending spree, Maya Jingu, the officer who has an affection for guns and gets enjoyment out of shooting them, Lilica Evett, a computer hacker, Nanvel Candlestick, an innovator, Yuuji Naruo, the officer who seems to have a habit of...being a pervert with his camera, and Maki Kawasaki, the leader of Team Warrior. The show (and the four-part OVA) displays its lighter, comedic side right at the start, but becomes tragic near the end of it.

Last edited by Mr. Oshawott on Tue Apr 23, 2013 8:02 am; edited 1 time in total
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Chagen46



Joined: 27 Jun 2010
Posts: 4377
PostPosted: Sat Apr 20, 2013 8:59 pm Reply with quote
I just finished Little Witch Academia. Oh my god I want to make love to Trigger right now. There was so much passion, so much drive, so must technical prowess....god damn. That was awesome. Based [expletive] Trigger.
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Melanchthon



Joined: 02 Oct 2010
Posts: 550
Location: Northwest from Here
PostPosted: Sat Apr 20, 2013 9:09 pm Reply with quote
24th episode of Miracle Girls, What? Senpai has a Girlfriend?. Mikage saw her crush hanging out with some hot blond foreign chick. She trusts him, but at the same time, it's a hot blond foreign chick. How can she compete with that? Falling into a depression, she wanders the city, doing a little window shopping, listlessly playing the crane game in an arcade, and checking out a movie. And what movie does she go and see? (remember, this is the nineties)




By Darwin, look at that! It's Home Alone! I probably saw that movie a dozen times when I was a kid. That's...pretty awesome actually. Thank you anime, for continuing to be too cool.

And, in case you were wondering, no, Senpai is not having an affair with the hot blond foreigner, it was all a misunderstanding. And Miracle Girls continues to be really good. There has only been one bad episode that I've seen so far, and most episodes are pretty good. I love the character of Mikage. She has such a rotten personality, and apart from chemistry and computers, she is completely useless. Not at all the kind of shoujo heroine you'd expect, but her flaws make her seem a hell of a lot more real than her Sailor Moon contemporaries. Plus, both of the twins think the other has the worst taste in men. It's rather amusing.

Also watched the first episode of Jungle de Ikou, which was not what I was expecting. Plenty of nice fanservice, though, so that's alright. And fat kid running, which I imagine is what I look like when I exercise. Hey, at least I try. Anyway, Jungle de Ikou. It's entertaining at least, although it probably'd get you arrested in Canada.

And I've been thinking about getting into the Black Jack franchise, but I'm not sure where to start (This doesn't help). I think the 10 part OVA is the place to begin, based on date of production, but there are movies that were released in the middle of the run. Oh well, it'll work itself out. I've been watching the Lupin movies essentially at random, and that had no ill effects. Actually, can you believe that I've never seen nor read anything from Tezuka? This will be a first.
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Ggultra2764
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Joined: 21 Jan 2004
Posts: 3862
Location: New York state.
PostPosted: Sat Apr 20, 2013 10:18 pm Reply with quote
Struggling through Romeo x Juliet's 13th episode. And the struggle part is literal considering how much tolerance I've had to build up when I go through an episode or two of the series on-and-off since this is another one of Gonzo's screwups. While I have no problem with their fantasy-based approach to the storyline, the anime is way too black and white in its moral spin for my tastes with characters fulfilling specific archetypes and depicting Capulets and Montagues as "good" and "bad" families respectively. The bad part's especially notable with Lord Montague who is so irredeemably evil for the leader of his family (even treating his minions and family like crap) that I feel like wanting to bash him senseless with any blunt weapon in sight. Even if I manage to complete the episode (even with it in my physical stockpile), don't expect me to be completing the series any time soon.
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battlechili1



Joined: 08 Jan 2013
Posts: 16
Location: United States
PostPosted: Sun Apr 21, 2013 1:01 am Reply with quote
I'm a huge Toonami fan, and so consequently I watch a lot of its shows, so....
Bleach because it comes on and, while there's so much for me to hate about this show with all the filler, I feel the show has potential and has had some pretty cool parts here and there.
Naruto because it comes on Toonami and it is a pretty fun show that gives me feels.
Soul Eater because it comes on Toonami and for its action sequences and stylish art. Plus I like that Bones made it.
Eureka Seven because it comes on Toonami and because it seems to be very fun and I like mecha.
Tenchi Muyo GXP because it comes on Toonami and is so silly and stupid that it is entertaining.
Inuyasha because it comes on Toonami and is really fun and has old style art, which I like. I especially like the action. And the romance.
Fullmetal Alchemist because I've seen Brotherhood and I liked the older art style and I've heard that the original FMA was good too. More FMA to me is a good thing.
Revolutionary Girl Utena because it reminds me of Evangelion.

Next week I'll start watching IGPX.
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dtm42



Joined: 05 Feb 2008
Posts: 14084
Location: currently stalking my waifu
PostPosted: Sun Apr 21, 2013 1:36 am Reply with quote
Chagen46 wrote:
I just watched the first episode of High School DXD. I am watching this show in full to test the whole "ecchi shows can have good plot I swear" stuff I hear a lot and I'm a horny bastard

Anyway, I decided to analyze the first episode. Here are my results:

...

An average of 2 money shots every minute.

God [expletive] damn.


High School DxD is but one of the many shows that fans watch for the 'plot'. However, High School DxD's 'plot' is one of the best in recent memory.
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Chagen46



Joined: 27 Jun 2010
Posts: 4377
PostPosted: Sun Apr 21, 2013 11:56 am Reply with quote
dtm42 wrote:

High School DxD is but one of the many shows that fans watch for the 'plot'. However, High School DxD's 'plot' is one of the best in recent memory.


Heh...yeah. But the show is actually kind of cool, I guess.

Epsiode 2 analysis:

High School DXD fanservice 002 analyzation:

Total Episode Length: 20 minutes, 45 seconds, or 1245 seconds

Boobs: 19 shots

Ass/Crotch: 13 shots

Ratio of T/A: 1.46 boob shots for every ass/crotch shot

Total Money Shots: 32

Time to first boob shot: 8 seconds

Time to first ass/crotch shot: 1 minute 11 seconds--77 seconds

Average number of boob shots: .915 boob shots every minute--one boob shot every 65 seconds

Average number of ass/crotch shots: .626 every minute, one every 95 seconds

Total average of fanservice shots: 1.54 every minute, one every 39 seconds

Final Analysis: Compared to episode one, episode 2 has only 61% the amount of boob shots, 61% the amount of ass/crotch shots, and 70% the amount of fanservice shots in general.

//////////
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zawa113



Joined: 19 Jan 2008
Posts: 7357
PostPosted: Mon Apr 22, 2013 9:08 pm Reply with quote
Ages ago, I saw the first half of Tower of Druaga (aka the Aegis or Uruk). It was a fun fantasy series that was troperiffic at times and enjoyed the hell out of it.
So I've finally seen the second half. Anyone have some crutches I can borrow? A rather large ball was dropped on my foot, it's pretty messed up. Seriously, Cerebus Syndrime does not work for every series that tries it. More often than not, I see it work though, like Reboot, Wakfu, or Fruits Basket. But they usually tend to have hints of turning Cerebus Syndrome (might not be apparent on a first viewing) or they've established the characters so well during the comedy arc that you want to see them through the drama arcs. Oh and they usually have better stories that don't completely phone it in at a whim. And they at least try to mix up some tropes instead of clearly labeling characters with heal face revolving door syndrome.
After the simple fun of the first half, and some of the fun at the start of this arc (one character from the first half spoiler[opened a ski resort and buttered up investors by promising to call them a "hero who defeated Druaga", changing the number on the billboard 1984 style], that was pretty damn funny actually), it just got really really boring despite fight scenes happening all the damn time. It could be that there didn't feel like there was any weight to the fight scenes, they were all pretty one sided and predictable in the end. Seeing how the heroes got curb stomped in the first episode of the first half, it always felt like they had to make effort to win their battles during the first half, often having to get people outside their party to help like they were trying to take down a huge WoW boss. Here, they spoiler[have to re-battle and defeat the first half big bad (actually the mid-boss) again, which is claimed to be weaker], but it just ends up coming off as killing a red shirt. It just ended up leaving a bad taste in my mouth that never really left during the rest of the season, making all the fight scenes pretty boring to me. Even though the first half ended on the world's most obnoxiously obvious cliffhanger, this is somehow the half that pissed me off.
So I'm stuck recommending the first half for being fun to watch and not the second half, despite it completing the story.
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Errinundra
Moderator


Joined: 14 Jun 2008
Posts: 6516
Location: Melbourne, Oz
PostPosted: Thu Apr 25, 2013 7:15 am Reply with quote
Mardock Scramble - The Second Combustion (director's cut)

Reason for watching: Because I enjoyed Mardock Scramble - The First Compression, although I did temper my enthusiasm after reading Tim Henderson's review. Madman released it on 17 April so, ever the completionist, I pre-ordered my copy.

Synopsis: Unsurprisingly, the cliffhanger ending of the first instalment in the trilogy is speedily and neatly resolved when Dr Easter, appearing in a giant floating egg, saves Rune Balot and Oeufcoque from the rampaging Boiled Dimsdale. Easter deposits them in Paradise, where it seems any deus ex machina intervention is possible. The key is to discover the whereabouts of the recorded memories of Boiled's employer, Shell Septinos. Not only are Shell's erased memories the crucial evidence needed by mouse detective Oeufcoque Panteano and his offsider Dr Easter for his conviction in the murder of several young women and the attempted murder of Rune Balot, since rebuilt as a cyborg with impressive cybernetic powers, but they are apparently the key to defeating the evil October Corporation. The hunt for evidence leads the three to a casino where Rune has a memorable encounter with the croupier Bell Wing.

***

The first instalment of Mardock Scramble was characterised by its split personality structure where the ideas laden first ¾ is undermined by the violence of the last ¼. The second instalment compounds this problem by making both the philosophising and the action sillier and also by significantly reducing their impact. Still, despite the premises, the plot holes and the deus ex machina, the film series continues to do several things right.

First of all it has two entertaining characters in Oeufcoque the mouse and Dr Easter. I spoke at length about Oeufcoque in my commentary on the first film and won't add much here. It is entertainingly ironic that the most capable, most reassuring character is something as frail as a mouse. On several occasions he is placed in the frame in a way - such as on the floor between a slightly ajar door and the door jam - that highlights his fragility. Yet, he is running the case against Shell and the October Corporation and is key to Rune rebuilding her life. Both the Japanese voice actor, Norito Yashima, and his American counterpart, Andy McAvin, give convincing performances of the kindly but indomitable mouse.


The father figure putting the child to bed.

Similarly, Hiroki Touchi and David Matranga both shine as Dr Easter. Thanks to his unkempt appearance and his shady technological activities, he has an air of seediness about him. This creates a edginess in his relationship with Rune that I actually found more entertaining than the more straightforward interactions between Oeufcoque and Rune. Easter's knack for self-deprecation and his apparent sincerity enable him to fit in well as the professional partner to such an outlandish character as a bipedal, talking, shape-changing mouse.

The film is always good to look at, especially now that the outrageously gross Bander Snatch Company characters have been despatched (although one of them makes a cameo appearance). That's not to say that it doesn't have the obligatory dismemberment or two. This time around the violence, though less frequent, seems more random in that it isn't tied to Rune's character development the way it is in Compression. This instalment also has a penchant for visual anomalies such as sharks swimming in air or a disembodied talking head who declares that his current physical state to be "most amenable".

Visually, Mardock Scramble continues to be dominated by Rune Balot who, again, spends much of the film naked. Not that I'm complaining, mind you - she is gorgeous. Her role as eye candy is so central to the story that I'm torn between criticising the franchise for its sexism or praising it for its critique of the male gaze. There are aspects of her that, upon consideration, seem off-kilter. For starters, I can't say for sure what her eye colour is - grey, pale green, brown, violet or blue. Like another Aniplex production - Fate / Zero - scenes are often dominated by a single colour. Is it the effect of the colour palette? Or is it a deliberate device? Similarly, her facial features (and her hair) can be strikingly different from one sequence to another. I believe this to be deliberate. I am reminded of the Luis Buñuel film, That Obscure Object of Desire where the female lead is played by two actresses who interchange the role, creating an unnerving effect that underscores the male lead's inability to have the woman conform to his desires. Given that the first film ultimately undermines its earlier feminist notions and that this film draws no conclusions on the matter I'm not sure if Mardock Scramble will eventually make any coherent point about women and men. Perhaps the franchise is simply making an observation about the relationship without making any overt political point.


If nothing else the film is worth watching for Rune Balot. Are those earrings a nod to Kite?

If Rune's appearance and the franchise's sexual politics are hard to nail down, then they reflect a film that doesn't quite succeed at anything it does and that doesn't have a coherent narrative pushing it along. It's the individual elements that give it the appeal it has rather than the overall package. And there is one element that manages, for a brief time, to lift Second Combustion above mediocrity, and that is the encounter between Rune and croupier Bell Wing. It's not as if it is loaded with electricity, although it is fraught, but, rather a moment where two unlikely characters - one a fifteen year old sexual abuse victim, the other a middle-aged widow - see in the other a mirror of themselves. What they see they find thrilling. The younger woman can sense the power of the older woman and, therefore, the power she herself might wield. The older woman can sense the potential of the younger woman that she once had but never realised thanks to misfortune. It's a moment of pure understanding in an otherwise messy narrative. That the older woman loses everything in the encounter brings her satisfaction, not regret. She rejoices in the success of her protege.


Rune and Bell Wing: soul mates separated by age.

And, please forgive the sacrilege, but Hilary Haag gives a more convincing performance as Rune Balot than the venerable and much loved Megumi Hayashibara, which makes the English dub my preferred choice.

I've concentrated mostly on what Mardock Scramble: The Second Compression does passably well. In the first movie of the trilogy the startling ideas tended to obscure its shortcomings. It took a ridiculous ending to draw attention to its silliness. In this the second movie the final segment again draws attention to the flaws in the overall concept, but instead, by being so much better than what preceded it. Despite the problems it is still an entertaining watch.

Rating: The low end of good.


Last edited by Errinundra on Wed Nov 08, 2017 11:58 pm; edited 1 time in total
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Mr. Oshawott



Joined: 12 Mar 2012
Posts: 6773
PostPosted: Fri Apr 26, 2013 7:33 pm Reply with quote
Just finished watching Burn-Up Scramble not too long ago. It features most of the same police officers from the preceding series of Burn Up, Burn Up! Warrior and Burn Up Excess; however, their appearances and natures have changed quite a bit, with Rio Kinezono being the exception in that she didn't change that much. Rio is still being tight on cash, Maya Jingu is calmer but still has her love for serious firearm usage, and Lilica Evett is now a [hapless] police officer who possesses psychic abilities...
Nonetheless, I had fun watching Burn-Up Scramble. It was just as comedic and action-packed as Warrior and Excess.


Last edited by Mr. Oshawott on Fri Apr 26, 2013 8:57 pm; edited 2 times in total
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Ambimunch



Joined: 30 Aug 2012
Posts: 2012
PostPosted: Fri Apr 26, 2013 8:25 pm Reply with quote
In anticipation for the arrival of my BD of evangelion 3.33, I re-watched the first two films of the rebuilt series. After seeing the 3 movies, I can't help but praise how Anno is re-imagining the story completely while still retaining the essential themes, relations and personalities of NGE. Even after watching the movies, there is still much to be answered (and perhaps it never will be to let the viewer interpret what they witnessed). I love linking similarities between each new film that comes out and the original anime---yes, they are completely different, but somehow it feels like the same story and events unfold. Thats perhaps the most fun part, just going back and identifying how the same idea or scene was presented in a totally contrasting way, yet ultimately delivering the same message
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ailblentyn



Joined: 28 Mar 2009
Posts: 1688
Location: body in Ohio, heart in Sydney
PostPosted: Sun Apr 28, 2013 12:19 am Reply with quote
I finished watching Macross.

A great show indeed. The story and the ideas are things I'll be thinking about for a long time. And at its best the artwork was simultaneously dated yet gorgeous. So many bold ideas and wonderful little touches — I love the way the Supervision Army, crucial actors who spark off the entire story, never actually show up.

Next up is watching all the way through Master Keaton and Index/Railgun concurrently. Just because that's the way the Spirit moves me. And watching through Nana with my cool wife.
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zawa113



Joined: 19 Jan 2008
Posts: 7357
PostPosted: Sun Apr 28, 2013 5:14 am Reply with quote
Watched Strange Dawn because who doesn't love Junichi Sato? For some reason, Urban Vision only ever released half the anime (on both DVD and VHS), but I'm probably not going to hunt them out. I think it started off strong, but then it kinda started to go in circles, plot wise. Evident by the fact that character themselves travelled.... well in a circle. I'm still not sure why the returned to the village after I'm not sure why they left it (keep in mind, the two girls don't find out spoiler[they were summoned by magic] until after they've already left), and that was my main problem. In no way though was it the chibi other world characters with the feet fetishes (seriously, you might as well have flashed someone if you take off your shoes). It took me a while to get used to their outfits, but they had normal voices, not overly cute ones, so it was easier for me to take them seriously in the end. I also don't think I got what exactly the two normal girls from (presumably) our world did to actually help the main conflict resolve. It was obvious to themselves they had no real super powers except being a lot bigger than everyone else, and to the main chibi cast, but not the rest of the world. Of course, I would think the chibi swords would be like toothpicks to them, but they usually let themselves be captured at sword point anyway (without even threatening a friendly chibi, which I would understand). Still, the fact that they still didn't seem to do much to solve the conflict it was always claimed they came here to solve did rather make the ending disappointing to me. I still liked the first half of the series though, I just get the feeling it was meant to be a lot longer and they told them to wrap it up. Which is a shame because while I normally want series to be shorter, this one could have used more time to flesh out its story. It spent most of its time fleshing out its characters, but I now see that works a lot better if they can flesh out enough of the story as well. I'd probably still recommend it to Junichi Sato fans who haven't seen it yet though. Oh and don't think it's quite kid appropriate, when everyone views seeing feet as a sexy body part, a scene in which one character tries to force the shoes off another definitely comes across as an attempted rape scene.
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Mr. Oshawott



Joined: 12 Mar 2012
Posts: 6773
PostPosted: Fri May 03, 2013 8:43 am Reply with quote
Just got through watching 009-1. The star of this small show is Mylene Hoffman, a secret agent who also happens to be a cyborg. In an alternate era in which the Earth has been split into the Eastern and Western Blocks, a cold war has been occurring for decades while both sides attempt to maintain their facade of peace. As Mylene goes deeper into her spying career, she learns how emotionally draining constantly being surrounded by warfare can be.
As seemingly tragic as 009-1 is with most of its episodes, I had fun watching it, particularly on the last episode. I enjoyed the parts that featured those action scenes spoiler[in which Mylene demonstrated her close-combating skills against the ne'er-do-wells.]
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dtm42



Joined: 05 Feb 2008
Posts: 14084
Location: currently stalking my waifu
PostPosted: Fri May 03, 2013 9:01 am Reply with quote
^
Oh, that was the show in which the fastest bullets and rifle rounds travelled slower than the speed of sound, wasn't it? Rather a strange Anime, if I do say so myself.
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