×
  • remind me tomorrow
  • remind me next week
  • never remind me
Subscribe to the ANN Newsletter • Wake up every Sunday to a curated list of ANN's most interesting posts of the week. read more

Forum - View topic
REVIEW: Black Lagoon: Roberta's Blood Trail BD+DVD




Note: this is the discussion thread for this article

Anime News Network Forum Index -> Site-related -> Talkback
View previous topic :: View next topic  
Author Message
Hellwarden



Joined: 10 Aug 2013
Posts: 321
PostPosted: Sat Oct 26, 2013 12:24 pm Reply with quote
A damn good OVA. (Bought it and the original series, marathoned em, loved em.) I hope it sold well enough that we can get some more OVA's or hell, even another season.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
TarsTarkas



Joined: 20 Dec 2007
Posts: 5821
Location: Virginia, United States
PostPosted: Sat Oct 26, 2013 1:13 pm Reply with quote
It is good that Black Lagoon can still deliver. Concur about another season.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Greed1914



Joined: 28 Oct 2007
Posts: 4410
PostPosted: Sat Oct 26, 2013 2:04 pm Reply with quote
I loved this OVA, especially since it just picks up where the series left off as if there was no break in production. I certainly wouldn't mind if more were made at some point since this show always manages to entertain without feeling like it's dragging things out.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Redcrimson



Joined: 30 Mar 2013
Posts: 160
PostPosted: Sat Oct 26, 2013 7:00 pm Reply with quote
Quote:
Sometimes gets too philosophical for its own good


Eh, I have to disagree with this. Part of what makes Black Lagoon stand out from such a saturated genre as Action is its use of theme. "The world is cruel, and you either become a monster and survive, or you die with your humanity." It's not a particularly optimistic message, but that's why it's important for Black Lagoon to explore it. It's easy to paint a bleak world for characters to struggle against, but actually talking about that struggle, and what it does to the characters, that's something a lot of stories don't bother with.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Visit poster's website
nechronius



Joined: 23 Nov 2005
Posts: 275
Location: So Cal, USA
PostPosted: Sun Oct 27, 2013 2:26 am Reply with quote
I love the Black Lagoon series, but I think Roberta's arc here did the series as a whole a bit of a disservice. Not a great one, mind you, but I think it was possibly a bit too ambitious and managed to get bogged down in its own story a bit too much.

After having followed the second Roberta arc from scanlations to official manga to fansubs to official BluRay releases, I'm STILL at bit lost trying to clearly understand Rock's gamble on how things would turn out and I"m not entirely sure that even Rei Hiroe had a clear idea of how he wanted things to end up.

In the end I think Roberta's Blood Trail ended up being just a shade worse than the 24 episodes that led up to it, but not by much and it's still a worthy addition to the franchise.

As for expectations for more Black Lagoon, I'm all for more of it. But I strongly suspect that the second Roberta arc really took a lot out of the author. After finishing that arc he started working on the next one and took a 2-3 year long break in the middle of it and has just now resumed working on it at a rate of less than 20 pages every two months.

Hopefully he can regain some enthusiasm and pick up the pace. But more manga based Black Lagoon is probably years out from release even in Japan.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message My Anime My Manga
Animegomaniac



Joined: 16 Feb 2012
Posts: 4070
PostPosted: Sun Oct 27, 2013 8:49 am Reply with quote
Redcrimson wrote:
Quote:
Sometimes gets too philosophical for its own good


Eh, I have to disagree with this. Part of what makes Black Lagoon stand out from such a saturated genre as Action is its use of theme. "The world is cruel, and you either become a monster and survive, or you die with your humanity." It's not a particularly optimistic message, but that's why it's important for Black Lagoon to explore it.


{Sigh}. Seriously, did you just say "you either die a hero or live long enough to become the villain"? Or you can be Balaika/Joker and have it both ways.

Funny enough, the inversion works as well, especially in concert with Black Lagoon; "Die a villain or live long enough to become a hero."

I have Black Lagoon, am I interested in this? Mais non, mon ami. Let's see if I can frame the problem with this series in one sentence:

Quote:
taking a crass, vulgar, and bloody look at a fictional Southeast Asian city that was a veritable den of gangsters from around the world


Yeah, there's the problem. They're importing organized crime for what now? {Don't pick at the concept; Otherwise, there'd be no series}. Ok, in another way, we're introduced to a solid multiethnic power struggle already in play with no gains or losses because those in power don't want to rock the boat {Yeah, get it}?.

So what does that mean for us, the audience? Status quo is our God. Guess what can happen, go on, I dare you.

Also, what the hell's the deal with the Black Lagoon company? They're gophers working for highest dollar but all the headliners trust them? Honestly, with the Hansel and Gretel story, it shouldn't have stopped there {Dammit, don't pick, there'd be no series...}.

Roberta's Blood Trail's more of the same? 'Rah.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Meleemasta



Joined: 29 Jul 2008
Posts: 21
PostPosted: Mon Oct 28, 2013 6:54 am Reply with quote
Cool!

Man why is the review just coming out now?
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Key
Moderator


Joined: 03 Nov 2003
Posts: 18137
Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley)
PostPosted: Mon Oct 28, 2013 9:29 am Reply with quote
It's actually been in the system for several weeks, but a technical problem kept it from being available to be posted until just recently.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Visit poster's website My Anime My Manga
Meleemasta



Joined: 29 Jul 2008
Posts: 21
PostPosted: Tue Oct 29, 2013 8:49 am Reply with quote
Oh ok, because man I was wondering when this came out it felt like a while back but I thought maybe my timing was off since I watched it streaming from the Funi app.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Display posts from previous:   
Reply to topic    Anime News Network Forum Index -> Site-related -> Talkback All times are GMT - 5 Hours
Page 1 of 1

 


Powered by phpBB © 2001, 2005 phpBB Group