Forum - View topicREVIEW: sole penetra le illusioni ~ Day Break Illusion 1 - 6 Streaming
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fireaxe
 Posts: 503 Location: Trois-Rivieres, Canada |
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ChibiKangaroo
 Posts: 2941 |
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I still don't understand how people keep saying DBI is "predictable." If by predictable, you mean it is a magical girl show, well yes it is a magical girl show and does utilize some of the tropes of the genre (otherwise it wouldn't be a magical girl show, it would be something else.) In that same vein, Madoka was predictable, and every single show in the genre is predictable.
However, aside from the genre identification, I have seen very little in the show that was "predictable." Akari slaughtering her own cousin right off the bat was not predictable. Then, the whole thing where her cousin is erased from memory, that was not predictable. The fact that these magical girls have to actually kill the people who are victimized by the bad guys rather than save them/turn them back to normal, that is not predictable. The fact that Akari's special ability doesn't help the girls save anyone, but only allows them self reflection, that is not predictable. In any other show, the main girl's special power would save the day (including Madoka). The first of the main characters spoiler[to die (and the suddenness of it)] was not predictable at all. There has been so little about this show that has been predictable. Each episode, the show seems to try and hit us with some new twist or keep us off balance. I think people are just saying it is predictable because that is the current buzzword and, aside from saying that it is "trying too hard to be dark," that is the other way to compare it unfavorably to Madoka. |
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zensunni
 Posts: 1294 |
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What I mean by predictable is that you know within the first few minutes of each episode how the episode will end. I will grant it a few good twists here and there. The first episode wasn't particularly predictable, because we hadn't been introduced to the world yet and Akari's ability to hear the voices was a nice touch. What made Madoka so special, other than the surreal art of the witch battles and the music and... well a lot of things, but anyway... The thing that struck me about it was its ability to blindside me. spoiler[Episode 3 was a total shock. Homura's wish and true magical power was a good twist. The origin of witches was well done and not particularly easy to see coming. Kyubey was an amazing character. etc...] There were several episodes that were completely a surprise. DBI doesn't try to do that. They go for the lingering sense of foreboding that was prevalent in Madoka, but achieve it via telegraphed moves that build the dread as the story progresses. You see it coming, you feel it coming, you practically smell it coming, yet it still hits you in the gut when it happens. In that sense, it is very well done, but it is still predictable. |
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ChibiKangaroo
Posts: 2941 |
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I don't think you know within the first few minutes how episodes of DBI will end. Did you know how the most recent episode was going to end within the first few minutes? If so, you must be a psychic, because I don't think anyone seriously predicted that spoiler[Ginka was going to die.] Did you know within the first few minutes of episode one that Akari was going to kill her cousin and erase her from memory? I seriously doubt that, again unless you are psychic. Did you know that the house where her tarot card reading friends lived would burn to the ground? Come on... Did you know within the first couple minutes of episode 2 that Akari would realize that she was forced to kill all the innocent people who turned into Daemonia (again, a concept which is contrary to virtually all magical girl shows which have come before this one. even Madoka averted this at the end), and would have a tearful ending scene where she is crying and apologizing to her aunt for killing the only daughter that the aunt will now never know she had? There is no way you predicted that. These are just 3 episodes out of the 8 that have aired. Each episode has introduced something new, for example, Akari being imprisoned by her magical girl mentors until she agrees to resume killing. There is no way you would predict something like that in a magical girl show. VERY LITTLE of this show has been predictable, other than the fact that it follows some semblance of a magical girl plot (i.e. each episode some innocent person gets possessed and must be fought, and the magical girl outfits/powers and mascot animals). However, despite the fact that I did enjoy Madoka greatly, I could say several aspects of that show were very predictable. The most prominent was Madoka's "big wish." Totally predictable. Reset the universe to save all magical girls from their cruel fate. It's the same type of universe reset that happens at the end of most magical girl shows. Sayaka's fate was totally predictable, and was in fact telegraphed early on by Kyoko. (Even though it made no sense) The entire character of Kyoko was extremely predictable. She was the most basic stereotype of an angsty, punk kid character (with fang-tooth and everything) who was only acting out because of her disillusionment and personal suffering/guilt. There was very little depth to her at all. Yes, the main two unpredictable parts of Madoka were Kyubey and Homura, and they were very well executed, which is why that show is still better than DBI. However, Madoka didn't have a higher quantity of unpredictable concepts than DBI does. It just had two characters who were so superior that they overcame the other flaws in the show and made it great. |
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kotomikun
Posts: 1205 |
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Story-wise, the main thing DBI (is that what we're calling it now?) lacks compared to Madoka is a consistent, tightly-written story based on a classic epic. This means that, yes, DBI is less predictable--but not in a good way. It's more unfocused, less confident in guiding its plot. JesuOtaku's review of Madoka had a good take on why predictability isn't necessarily bad (skip to about 14:00).
Everything in Madoka was predictable--literally. It was theoretically possible to predict things, because everything was tied together so well; but you couldn't predict exactly how everything would play out or what would follow each major event, which kept it interesting. I saw the "shocking twist" in episode 3 coming, but I couldn't have foreseen the gruesome way it happened, or the complicated aftermath. DBI's writing isn't terrible or anything, but it appears to have a standard TV-show structure of an episodic monster-of-the-week plot with an ongoing background storyline that will become relevant in the last few episodes; this, combined with the obvious similarities to a certain other dark magical girl show, makes it feel formulaic and stereotypical. This is probably what people really mean when they say it's "predictable." Personally, I think it's been decently interesting and emotional, even if it fails to imitate the part of Madoka that made it great. |
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ChibiKangaroo
Posts: 2941 |
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I hadn't seen her review of Madoka before. It's a pretty well put together review. However, I think it is questionable as to whether or not Madoka is a true tragedy under her own definition, mainly due to the ending. Madoka was a tragedy for most of the story, but at the end I feel like the tragedy was largely averted. (For one example, she stated that tragedy ends with the heroes being/feeling powerless. However, at the end of Madoka, she attains ultimate power and essentially has the ability to alter the entire universe, and she does so in the exact way that we in the audience would like if we wanted a positive outcome.)
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Fencedude5609
 Posts: 5088 |
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The fetish for "unpredictability" is really killing commentary on almost everything, but its especially bad with anime commentary.
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