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Well, I got a heck of a lot of enjoyment out of this even rewatching it, with the dub this time. Happy to see some praise for Tipton as she was definitely my favorite out of the English cast. Really hoping the second series will get a US Blu-ray release, as there's a lot of great material for Rika there.

I AM THE VAST UNIVERSE wrote:

Echo_City wrote:

I agree with the bulk of the review, though I'd put the sub below the dub as Tipton hit Rika out of the park while (continuing the baseball metaphor) her Japanese counterpart hit, at best, a double.

I thought that the actors were passable, though not great (still at a loss as to whether Jerry was supposed to sound so apathetic), with the exception of Kristi Kang. Her botched performance as the loli "supergenius" nun has shown that Hilary Haag and Monica Rial have job security; Kristi Kang as the loli was a failure truly worthy of the adjective "epic".

I did expect better from veteran director Zach Bolton, the man who gave us Darker than Black. I guess that even the best of directors can't create masterpieces with a largely B-list cast.

There is something that doesn't make sense in the review, however:

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Haganai is everything that a school comedy series should be ... if one were trying to show how not to produce a school comedy. The idea of outcasts and misfits joining a "friendship club" could have been a forum on how school social structures are unfair, or a drama about overcoming personal struggles, or even an comedy about strong personalities clashing—but Haganai either misses these points, or handles them poorly.

Haganai is justified in missing 2 of those points as then the show wouldn't have been a comedy (an idea rammed home when you specifically state that Point 3 is comedic, which implies heavily that the first 2 points aren't), which you acknowledge that Haganai is. The third point, about the clash of personalities, I would contend did happen. I wouldn't say that the clashes were particularly funny, mind, but they were there and they might as well have been what Haganai was about.

I laughed a bit but this one isn't going into the Pantheon of Anime Comedies.

Zach Bolton is my least favorite ADR director currently working at Funimation. I've yet to be impressed with his work. The dubs for A Certain Scientific Railgun, Eureka Seven AO, A Certain Magical Index & Future Diary have all been borderline average at best. I find that his dubs simply lack passion and the required love that other ADR Directors like Mike Mcfarland & Tyler Walker put into their work. The Haganai dub is quite mundane as well. I really hope Funimation doesn't pick Zach Bolton as the ADR Director for the Psycho Pass dub.

Another reason that Funimation should release the dubbed eps of Psycho Pass that they debuted @ AX (I'll never understand their policy of building hype for a show long before it can be bought/preordered).

Given that I didn't think that the shows you listed were all that great I can understand if Bolton didn't love them. I'll agree that if a director doesn't have a passion for the show then he should pass it off to someone who does (or who can fake it) because otherwise the dub will suffer. Stephen Foster once said that he passed off direction of shows that he thought were mundane, something that he seems unable to do nowadays and dubs suffer for it. Speaking of Foster, I'm surprised to see someone on ANN praise McFarland as I've seen the internet spew vitriol about him second only to Foster; I think of him as Funimation's Foster.

For recurring directors I think that I'd have to put Clinkenbeard (which surprises me), McDonald & Chris Bevins as their "best" as of late. I like Bolton & McFarland enough but I think they're second tier guys in comparison lol. Except for Baccano I don't believe that I've seen anything directed by Tyler Walker.

As for Haganai, I'll hold out hope that y'all are right and that the second season is the laugh riot that the first wasn't. However, I'm not sure that I can make that hope "tangible", that is, I'm not sure that I can actually buy this one. Funimation could make my decision a little easier by sending the cast out on the con circuit (I know Saxton is making the rounds but others, like Tipton & Jewel, would help). I enjoyed the show, but did I enjoy it to the "tune" of 40-some-odd dollars, especially when that same amount could go toward buying DxD, which I enjoyed more?

RyanSaotome wrote:

Also lol at grading a harem comedy low for not having a thought provoking and epic story. Never change, ANN.

agreed. this is one of those shows that can't be objectively assessed unless your a fan of the genre....and then i guess it wouldn't be exactly objective..maybe...idk...anyway i enjoyed it...haven't got round to season 2 yet...

Echo_City wrote:

Another reason that Funimation should release the dubbed eps of Psycho Pass that they debuted @ AX (I'll never understand their policy of building hype for a show long before it can be bought/preordered).

Psycho Pass being listed as a dub was a mistake, I believe. We'd have some sort of cast list and preview on youtube by now, plus its way too soon for a dub anyway.

Ouch, harsh review.

I rather enjoy Haganai (in fact, I just got the release in the mail!), but it's definitely a flawed show, I'll happily concede that. I think the worst aspect of the show is that some of the supporting characters are really uninteresting (Yukimura), and even annoying (Maria). I realize it's a comedy, and certain characters are there more to fulfill a purpose than to be fully fleshed out people, but Maria's antics in particular really rubbed me the wrong way. It's not a deal-breaker by any means, though.

I love the chemistry between the main trio though, and I have a soft-spot for Hanazawa Kana's Kobato. Despite not having breathtaking animation, I do think that the visuals deserve praise for the incredible character designs. They are so good looking.

I'd recommend anyone who's open to a harem-esque comedy with a few twists thrown in to check it out. It's nice to look at, often pretty funny, and improves substantially in the development department in its second season.

When the original streams were coming out, I went into this show expecting crap, but came out fairy amused, at least enough to watch the second season....and that second season SHINES (at least in the context of the show, and if only for Rika). I hope Funimation's planning on releasing the second season, cause I'll pick that one right up.

Dub wise, the worst offender was Kodaka and Maria was a close second. I HATED Maria's voice in the original Japanese, but it grew on me after a time to be able to tolerate it. The dub had me missing the Japanese. Jerry Jewell had Kodaka be way too deadpan and not intimidating enough in the areas he needed to be in. Ain't nobody gonna be scared of that voice...

Also, while I know that Rika speaks in third person, but it sounds just awful in English. I really wish they didn't bother keeping that quirk of hers. Other than that, Rika's VA was spot on! Her, Yozora, Sena and Yukimura makes the majority and the reason I could stand to keep watching it dubbed. (And that's saying something cause I enjoy dubs and have been enjoying them since the dark ages of the 90s...)

giseki wrote:

RyanSaotome wrote:

Also lol at grading a harem comedy low for not having a thought provoking and epic story. Never change, ANN.

agreed. this is one of those shows that can't be objectively assessed unless your a fan of the genre....and then i guess it wouldn't be exactly objective..maybe...idk...anyway i enjoyed it...haven't got round to season 2 yet...

You shouldn't have to be ravenous about a genre to say you can truly appreciate the show. It should just be good, regardless of what it is.

EnigmaticSky wrote:

giseki wrote:

RyanSaotome wrote:

Also lol at grading a harem comedy low for not having a thought provoking and epic story. Never change, ANN.

agreed. this is one of those shows that can't be objectively assessed unless your a fan of the genre....and then i guess it wouldn't be exactly objective..maybe...idk...anyway i enjoyed it...haven't got round to season 2 yet...

You shouldn't have to be ravenous about a genre to say you can truly appreciate the show. It should just be good, regardless of what it is.

I don't care very much for Harem shows in general, but I kinda thought the grading was a bit harsh myself. Maybe at least a solid C or something at least? I think it had more redeeming moments (mostly for the comedy) than the other fanservice-heavy shows out there. The dub, while pretty bad, isn't as horrific as it could be, which should at least get it a C-, imho.

"No real overarching storyline, no real storylines within the episodes"

Sorry, but this is a major detracting factor? What's next? Criticizing a horror show for not being comedic enough? Seriously, it's not always about having a good storyline, nor is it necessary to have one to be fun or entertaining. I honestly wonder where this misconception arises from. Is this something that people are socially conditioned to accept? Jaded elitism? Who knows.

Personally, I watch Haganai just to relax and for what it is, it does a phenomenal job. Will admit that there are anime of this type that does a better job, but I feel it's no where as bad as it's made out to be.

I mean, it's fine for a reviewer to have their own opinion and all, but man is that hitting below the belt. Anime is a very flexible medium that can convey a myriad of stories and genres. That being the case, perhaps we should adjust our judging criteria and standards accordingly as well.

The anime was pretty hilarious at many points and the animation wasn't bad. I tried to rewatch Angel Beats and the animation in that was pretty cheap. Haganai did just fine.

I don't think the story was meant to actually be anything besides a comedy. It definitely wasn't mean to be a social commentary on school life or how to make friends. The show makes itself pretty obvious as a harem fanservice comedy and it did a good job of being just that. And certainly one of the better ones of this genre.

The reviewer might have jumped into this show after watching Flowers of Evil and was browbeaten back to the reality that some anime are just plain foolish fun.

Jesus! If Hagani can't get anything higher than a C- than you might as well not bother reviewing harems and having your ungodly bias blow through. I think there are better harems, but Hagani strikes me as one of the more accessible ones, especially with the art alone.

I'm sorry its not a show with a bunch of 12 year old lesbians fawning over each other with some generic sci fi crap thrown in, quality work of that nature merits nothing less than an A+.

in episode 11, the cast of the Oriemo Anime is seen from behind in a flashback sequence , and very obvious it was them, with a camera guy pointing at them in this scene.. an anime within an anime.. lol

it gets more interesting in the 2nd season.. funi only just finished season 1's dub

GolfDude wrote:

in episode 11, the cast of the Oriemo Anime is seen from behind in a flashback sequence , and very obvious it was them, with a camera guy pointing at them in this scene.. an anime within an anime.. lol

Truly a momentus event. Something that has never before happened in the history of anime. Thank you for pointing it out

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it gets more interesting in the 2nd season.. funi only just finished season 1's dub

For values of "just" that include "had enough time to author it to DVD, replicate it and get it shipped out." So yes, "just"

EnigmaticSky wrote:

giseki wrote:

RyanSaotome wrote:

Also lol at grading a harem comedy low for not having a thought provoking and epic story. Never change, ANN.

agreed. this is one of those shows that can't be objectively assessed unless your a fan of the genre....and then i guess it wouldn't be exactly objective..maybe...idk...anyway i enjoyed it...haven't got round to season 2 yet...

You shouldn't have to be ravenous about a genre to say you can truly appreciate the show. It should just be good, regardless of what it is.

well...you have a point but...imagine a genre piece...for instance a horror/slasher tv series....would you prefer to read a review by someone who knows and appreciates the genre...or someone who hates said genre .....I think you'll agree that the former would be of more worth than the latter...unless you the reader also hates horror/slasher...anyway you get my point...i think...

...oh and being a fan is not the same as being ravenous...being a fan...these days...does not a fanatic make...

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If this is what it's like to make friends, maybe it's better to be a loner.

...and it ends on a second season spoiler; I know it's unintentional but a lot of the petty character complaints are pretty funny after watching the second season. But that's not the subject of the review so I'll just focus on the first season which I like, both subbed and dubbed.

Ultimately{starting at the end}, I don't understand this review; It notes the show's qualities but then complains about not having those qualities, about randomly following cliché events not being the best way to socialize {ironically missing that it's the point of the show right from the formation of a school club for making friends but since there is no point...}, about their lives not having a storyline {Personally, I blame Azumanga Daioh over K-On but that's just me}.

Quote:

These characters could be struggling for social acceptance in different ways, but instead of exploring that drama, the storyline jams them into stock situations (after school, the beach, the pool) and spits out predictable results.

Stock situations that Sena picks out of her girl games/eroges most likely written by 20-30 year old men so, yeah. Yozora, the group's president, is happier being alone {except ...} and her actions are trying to, maybe, drive the rest of them away?

Can't be it, that would be a plot...

Quote:

Instead, Kodaka and the cast simply fool around in various situations, making dumb jokes but not achieving much of anything.

Yes, question mark? It's practice so they'll know what to do when they get real friends, it's the point of the rest of them for being in the club?

{Note Irony. Is there any way to turn this into flashing neon?}

Maybe I'm the one who doesn't get it because I'm taking this review's ignorance too seriously. Besides, by this point, it's got to be intentional. Please be intentional.

I can understand if complaints were along the lines of "the comedy's unfunny" {cringe comedy, like it or bash it in the head until it stops moving, I mean lump it} or "the characters are unlikable" {see premise} but "it doesn't take the drama of the situation serious enough"?

No, it won't? No, it doesn't have to? No, why would it want to?

Just "no" will suffice, I think.

Quote:

poorly developed supporting characters

Yes, their personalities and desires are so 2-D you will believe they can't make any friends. Or do you really want to go into details on why these people don't have any depth?

Of course, when part of "character development" includes changing out of protective clothing without actually explaining, in detail, that it is a kind of social armor would go right over this guy's head.

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