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REVIEW: School Days Sub.DVD


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Takkun4343



Joined: 19 Jul 2007
Posts: 1493
Location: Englewood, Ohio
PostPosted: Mon Jul 14, 2014 4:48 am Reply with quote
Quote:
Ultimately that leads to a finale which is as utterly unforgettable as it is justly infamous.


That's... kinda contradictory.[/quote]
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GWOtaku



Joined: 19 Jul 2003
Posts: 678
PostPosted: Mon Jul 14, 2014 6:09 am Reply with quote
Classic projection. This was a cash in on a profitable visual novel that happened to go for shock value in a successful play for attention. That this set out to somehow send a message to its fanbase or criticize itself is remarkably optimistic. It's nice decent people can get "don't be like this guy" out of the show, but frankly this crowd hardly needed this for that did it?

I also reject comments here about how the female characters are in any way "real". When your leads are victims and / or tools to demonstrate what an incredible ass the MC is, nope, they are not complicated or well-realized characters.
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OH&S



Joined: 15 Jul 2013
Posts: 306
Location: Sydney, Australia
PostPosted: Mon Jul 14, 2014 6:32 am Reply with quote
jr0904 wrote:

No kidding. especially considering he beat in that ranking nina who is considered the most disliked men hating lesbian in any series. though i was surprised that koroko shirai wasnt on that list cause she is just as disliked than nina.


I'm not sure that its Shirai Kuroko that they hate. Rather its the anime's adaptation of her character that's horrendous by portraying her like that. In the original, she was much more likable and made up for her annoyances by being a good and badass character as well as being absent from the main plot. But I digress.

But yeah, I remember watching this series a while back. What a shocking ending. Everything probably would have been fine if he had stayed with the first girl, but we wouldn't have a memorable anime otherwise.
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Blood-
Bargain Hunter



Joined: 07 Mar 2009
Posts: 23667
PostPosted: Mon Jul 14, 2014 7:02 am Reply with quote
Ah yes, School Days - one of the most appropriate "Good Endings" of all time.

Takkun4343 wrote:
Quote:
Ultimately that leads to a finale which is as utterly unforgettable as it is justly infamous.


That's... kinda contradictory.


How does being "utterly unforgettable" contradict being "justly famous"?
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Animegomaniac



Joined: 16 Feb 2012
Posts: 4070
PostPosted: Mon Jul 14, 2014 8:12 am Reply with quote
"Both famous ... and infamous..."

Infamous does not mean "not famous", it means "known for being detestable" or some such. So it's not a contradiction.

On the other hand, it's not justly infamous; The show focused on moving towards one ending out of many so there's nothing "justly" about it. It is justly manipulative for people who don't like harem shows to point out what's wrong with them {three girls do not a harem make nor locked doors a paradise... I may have misquoted that one}.

I'd say more but I never seen the show based on the girl game with good and bad endings that focused on the most infamously bad one. The first time I played through Kanon, Yuichi didn't end up with any of them and they all ended up dead except for Nayuki.

I have no idea why Kyoto Animation didn't do that ending...
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meiam



Joined: 23 Jun 2013
Posts: 3442
PostPosted: Mon Jul 14, 2014 8:36 am Reply with quote
jr0904 wrote:
though the curious thing is that does the ero game and novel have the same ending? considering that shuffle's ero game and novel had a different ending than the TV anime as well as Fate Stay Night & Sister Princess (which have proven that some ero games and novels can make decent non ero TV series without over the top fanservice) , it might be possible in this series as well.


If I remember well, the game had a bunch of different bad ending with one of them very similar.

The suicide ending was particularly brutal, check it out on youtube if anyone is interested. The wall of text after the ending were also pretty hilarious.
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誤称



Joined: 12 Mar 2012
Posts: 549
PostPosted: Mon Jul 14, 2014 8:44 am Reply with quote
OH&S wrote:
jr0904 wrote:

No kidding. especially considering he beat in that ranking nina who is considered the most disliked men hating lesbian in any series. though i was surprised that koroko shirai wasnt on that list cause she is just as disliked than nina.


I'm not sure that its Shirai Kuroko that they hate. Rather its the anime's adaptation of her character that's horrendous by portraying her like that. In the original, she was much more likable and made up for her annoyances by being a good and badass character as well as being absent from the main plot. But I digress.

But yeah, I remember watching this series a while back. What a shocking ending. Everything probably would have been fine if he had stayed with the first girl, but we wouldn't have a memorable anime otherwise.


Kuroko is badass in the animation. Where does this hate for her supposedly come from?
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dudebro



Joined: 14 Jul 2014
Posts: 42
PostPosted: Mon Jul 14, 2014 10:19 am Reply with quote
meiam wrote:
I really liked school day, it was like Madoka before it's time (yes I'm aware that deconstruction existed before Madoka, but it's the best example). We really need more anime like SD that look at typical anime situation and cast them in a different light, especially all the different power fantasy.

Madoka affirms the premise of the genre, rather than reject it. Hope wins over despair, and magical girls are magical girls after all. That's completely different from what School Days does.

There's nothing clever, and likely nothing insightful, about taking a ridiculous premise like magical girls or a harem and making it "real." A harem suddenly goes wrong when you replace the characters with psychopaths? You don't say.

Quote:
Now it does have it's problem, as much as it brought some realism into the harem genre, it also had it's own ridiculous situation,spoiler[ like the girls that just ask Motoko to have a foursome or something like that]. Rolling Eyes

It's a mistake to think that something must be "realistic" because it's dark and violent. Reality tends to be banal, so relationship drama doesn't tend to involve rape, double homicide, decapitation and mutilation. White Album 2 is a much more accurate representation of reality.

If people like School Days, I suppose it's because of the modern trend of equating ugliness with profundity and truth. A good example of that is this post:
Chichiryuutei wrote:
Every single character was both great and horrible because they were so real so human they were all so selfish and back stab each other when it was possible.

Of course real humans are psychopaths. Don't believe Ghibli's lies.
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Key
Moderator


Joined: 03 Nov 2003
Posts: 18135
Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley)
PostPosted: Mon Jul 14, 2014 11:43 am Reply with quote
dudebro wrote:
There's nothing clever, and likely nothing insightful, about taking a ridiculous premise like magical girls or a harem and making it "real." A harem suddenly goes wrong when you replace the characters with psychopaths? You don't say.

None of the characters are portrayed as psychopaths.

Quote:
It's a mistake to think that something must be "realistic" because it's dark and violent. Reality tends to be banal, so relationship drama doesn't tend to involve spoiler[rape, double homicide, decapitation and mutilation].

Granted, although sometimes relationships do shake out that way; sadly, stories to that effect pop up in the news periodically. However, you're supporting your point by only focusing on the most extreme aspects of what happens here. What about everything else about how the characters act? Exclude the last 10 minutes of the series and I've known people who have acted like the people shown here IRL.

So no, we don't have to "equate ugliness with profundity and truth" for this to be realistic. Just the basic way the characters behave here is generally more realistic than what most harem series show.
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dudebro



Joined: 14 Jul 2014
Posts: 42
PostPosted: Mon Jul 14, 2014 12:34 pm Reply with quote
Key wrote:
None of the characters are portrayed as psychopaths.

"Psychopathy is traditionally defined as a personality disorder characterized by enduring antisocial behavior, diminished empathy and remorse, and disinhibited or bold behavior."

Quote:
So no, we don't have to "equate ugliness with profundity and truth" for this to be realistic. Just the basic way the characters behave here is generally more realistic than what most harem series show.

It's the ugliness that makes people think the show is making profound, definitive statements about reality. This is a pattern that repeats itself everywhere in the arts. For example, people talk about how Larry Clark's film Kids shows us what it's really like to be a teenager (which was also the intent behind the film). Blue is the Warmest Color is treated like the film of the century because it has gritty porn in it. And what's the most important artwork of the 20th century? Probably Duchamp's Fountain.
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Key
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Joined: 03 Nov 2003
Posts: 18135
Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley)
PostPosted: Mon Jul 14, 2014 1:06 pm Reply with quote
dudebro wrote:
"Psychopathy is traditionally defined as a personality disorder characterized by enduring antisocial behavior, diminished empathy and remorse, and disinhibited or bold behavior."

Basic selfishness does not equate to psychopathy. That's an extreme beyond what we see in this series.

Quote:
It's the ugliness that makes people think the show is making profound, definitive statements about reality.

Maybe for some, but not in my case. I also think it's easy to confuse "ugliness" with "lack of aggrandizement or idealization."
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Gatherum



Joined: 14 Feb 2012
Posts: 773
Location: Aurora CO
PostPosted: Mon Jul 14, 2014 1:42 pm Reply with quote
Have to say, this kind of gave me a new perspective on the show that hadn't occurred to me before. I'm still not sure I'd want to sit through it, but I dunno...maybe some day.
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Khooni



Joined: 27 Oct 2012
Posts: 99
PostPosted: Mon Jul 14, 2014 1:56 pm Reply with quote
we should have more anime like this one!!!
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Sylpher3



Joined: 27 Jul 2013
Posts: 85
PostPosted: Mon Jul 14, 2014 4:34 pm Reply with quote
Great review with a thorough analysis!

I’m still pondering about one thing: Did Makoto deserve his fate or not?
Initially the ending was one of the most satisfying experiences after building up an immense rage during 12 episodes, but when put in perspective, I’d have to say he didn’t deserve this. We’re not talking about a hardened criminal (none of Makoto’s morally reprehensible actions are even jail-time worthy), we’re talking about a normal boy who makes mistakes due to his indecisive, cowardly nature. Someone who doesn’t realize (or doesn’t want to realize) the consequences of his actions. A person who, like many of us, only want to enjoy pleasures and avoid burdens. If only he had more experience or a parental guide.
So I feel that Makoto’s punishment is far worse than all of his committed “crimes”.
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PipingHotTea



Joined: 30 Aug 2011
Posts: 150
PostPosted: Mon Jul 14, 2014 4:48 pm Reply with quote
Sylpher3 wrote:
Great review with a thorough analysis!

I’m still pondering about one thing: Did Makoto deserve his fate or not?
Initially the ending was one of the most satisfying experiences after building up an immense rage during 12 episodes, but when put in perspective, I’d have to say he didn’t deserve this. We’re not talking about a hardened criminal (none of Makoto’s morally reprehensible actions are even jail-time worthy), we’re talking about a normal boy who makes mistakes due to his indecisive, cowardly nature. Someone who doesn’t realize (or doesn’t want to realize) the consequences of his actions. A person who, like many of us, only want to enjoy pleasures and avoid burdens. If only he had more experience or a parental guide.
So I feel that Makoto’s punishment is far worse than all of his committed “crimes”.


It's kinda hard to say for that guy and he's the kind of character that you like to hate. One hand he didn't deserve it but in the other hand (if you count the other games, other endings, and other interpretations), he does deserve the ax. But I'm more disappointed that other characters didn't get some sort of punishment, Taisuke is one them. [/spoiler]
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