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REVIEW: Beyond the Boundary Episodes 1-6 Streaming


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ZodiacBeast



Joined: 26 Jan 2010
Posts: 142
PostPosted: Thu Nov 21, 2013 1:37 am Reply with quote
kevinx59 wrote:
hmm. interesting review. I too am rather shocked at the hate on this show. Suffice it to say, I am really enjoying this series. Maybe because it reminds me of two of my favorite series: Ga Rei Zero and K-On!. The action, demon fighting and minori chihara op of Ga Rei with the blobby moe character designs like K-On.(to a certain extent the fantasy scenes of Chuunibyou as well)

Interestingly, it seems for a while most of the shows I have been enjoying all get C grades on ANN. If the trend continues, that means so will Unbreakable Machine Doll, Tokyo Ravens, Arpeggio of Blue Steel, Aquarion Evol, Girl Und Panzer, and Pokemon the Origin if/when they are reviewed/released. I hope I'm wrong(in a good way) but I'm pretty sure at least 3 of this will get that grade. Oh well.


Has ANN ever reviewed a show out of season? Well, I guess since GuP is coming out over here soon they might do it. I hope it gets a good score since I enjoyed it quite a bit. I can see it getting a B, either - or +.

Otherwise, I think that only the first three shows stand any chance of being reviewed.
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Merida



Joined: 21 Feb 2012
Posts: 1945
PostPosted: Thu Nov 21, 2013 2:04 am Reply with quote
After being pretty annoyed by the overwhelming "moe-ness" of Mirai's character in the first couple of episodes, i've started to enjoy this show quite a bit. Not being a particular fan (or hater) of KyoAni, i didn't have many expactations for this, other than wanting to be entertained and seeing pretty animation and i got both.

I agree with the review that there isn't that much chemistry between Mirai and Akihito, but well, they aren't the only characters in this show...also, if you want it to be darker,, judging from the preview, next ep. should deliver.
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kevinx59



Joined: 27 Jan 2012
Posts: 959
Location: In sunny California
PostPosted: Thu Nov 21, 2013 2:05 am Reply with quote
ZodiacBeast wrote:
Well, I guess since GuP is coming out over here soon they might do it. I hope it gets a good score since I enjoyed it quite a bit. I can see it getting a B, either - or +.

Otherwise, I think that only the first three shows stand any chance of being reviewed.

Aquarion Evol is also getting released here on the same day as GuP, so that's why I included it. I too hope it gets a good score. Pokemon Origin I think is going to be streamed on the Pokemon website, so I'm not sure if ANN will be covering it.
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FenixFiesta



Joined: 22 Apr 2013
Posts: 2581
PostPosted: Thu Nov 21, 2013 2:59 am Reply with quote
This cycle of release has a practical flood of Urban Fantasy themed series, we have KnK for starters, Strike the Blood, Tokyo Ravens, and Yozakura Quartet just to name a few.

Without even requiring to go into an extensive history of anime releases, KnK in comparison isn't exactly an exceptional work when it comes to its territory, but certainly it isn't a BAD piece of work either.

I can understand if someone trying to watch over just this batch of anime releases could be burned out on the urban fantasy styling alone and could throw on KnK and in the back of there head give an automatic "I'll pass on this one" if they aren't of a particular viewer personality that can chew through every minor variant and ask for more.
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Half Life





PostPosted: Thu Nov 21, 2013 5:34 am Reply with quote
I really like this show (in the top 3 of the season for me) -- if this deserves a C, then the majority of stuff deserves D and F's. Obviously the grading curve (for anime in general) was not taken into account here...

However I tend to find Carl's reviews are rather grumpy in general, and definitely biased in very specific ways... if you agree with his tastes/rules it is all good, but if not then his reviews are almost useless.

I had no expectations, so that probably helped my enjoyment. But I cannot agree more with the people who are shocked about the amount of bile directed at this show. The vast majority of shows in any given season are far below this in all ways -- but you don't see this much vocal criticism of most of them. Just this season, you could easily pick a dozen other shows to pick apart that deserve it much more, and these go virtually ignored.

To call this show "mediocre" is to show great ignorance (or willful negligence) to the truly mediocre majority of anime being pumped out each week. In all phases the show is at the very least "better than average"... to say less is to allow your personal tastes to color your perception of reality.
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darkchibi07



Joined: 15 Oct 2003
Posts: 5459
PostPosted: Thu Nov 21, 2013 8:00 am Reply with quote
dtm42 wrote:


However, I am shocked at how much people dislike this series. Although it wasn't a top series it is also nowhere near the worst show this season, or any other season for that matter. Yet you don't even see this much vitriol for even the worst otaku shows. It's bizarre. If you're a Kyoto Animation fan and are disappointed with the studio's execution then know that this isn't the first time they made something boring or otaku-orientated. Free! and Chuu2 wallowed in pandering cliches (although both had better execution than KnK) and the aforementioned Tamako Market lacked any good execution and had no memorable characters apart from that annoying bird. And if you're not a diehard fan of Kyoto Animation then why get so upset about this one show when there are plenty of titles far worse than it?


I think it's more disbelief that the main KyoAni staff of Kyoukai no Kanata managed to stumble on a genre that could been used to showcase that they too can pull off doing an urban fantasy action title. This is specially true considering that very first PV used to promote the light night held a lot of expectations for a lot of peeps. It's one of those moments you just sigh and hope they try again on a new title with hopefully a better director and screenwriter (or the same ones in hope that they learned from their mistakes).
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dtm42



Joined: 05 Feb 2008
Posts: 14084
Location: currently stalking my waifu
PostPosted: Thu Nov 21, 2013 8:18 am Reply with quote
^
I don't like to watch trailers because they often don't give a sense of how good the show/movie will be and what it will be about. Like this (fan-made) one for Shining.
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vashfanatic



Joined: 16 Jun 2005
Posts: 3489
Location: Back stateside
PostPosted: Thu Nov 21, 2013 9:16 am Reply with quote
Half Life wrote:
I really like this show (in the top 3 of the season for me) -- if this deserves a C, then the majority of stuff deserves D and F's. Obviously the grading curve (for anime in general) was not taken into account here...

If it weren't for the weird grade inflation we've experienced in our schools in America, people would realize that "C" literally means "average." You can pass a class on a C, you just don't get honor roll.

And yeah, by Sturgeon's Law, the majority of things aren't going to be A (excellent) or B (good). They're going to be average or worse.

And I'm also sick of this "you have to judge anime more lightly!" attitude, especially from so-called fans. If you're a fan of something, why would you advocate that it should be held to a lower standard?
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ZodiacBeast



Joined: 26 Jan 2010
Posts: 142
PostPosted: Thu Nov 21, 2013 9:31 am Reply with quote
vashfanatic wrote:
And I'm also sick of this "you have to judge anime more lightly!" attitude, especially from so-called fans. If you're a fan of something, why would you advocate that it should be held to a lower standard?


I understand that people don't like to hear criticism directed towards things that they like, but they have to realize that accepting a low quality of work leads to creators putting less effort into their work and lowering the standard even further. I would want to hear as much feedback on my product as possible, positive or not - people grow and learn from experience.

Just as I was for Coppelion, I am greatly disappointed to hear the response to KnK is mostly negative. I was hoping that this would be one of the standout shows this season. For various reasons I haven't had a chance to watch much anime this season but I will eventually sit down and plow through KnK. Too bad I probably won't enjoy it.
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bhl88



Joined: 02 Oct 2011
Posts: 255
PostPosted: Thu Nov 21, 2013 10:55 am Reply with quote
Half Life wrote:
I really like this show (in the top 3 of the season for me) -- if this deserves a C, then the majority of stuff deserves D and F's. Obviously the grading curve (for anime in general) was not taken into account here...

However I tend to find Carl's reviews are rather grumpy in general, and definitely biased in very specific ways... if you agree with his tastes/rules it is all good, but if not then his reviews are almost useless.


He did grade Nanoha C+ after all (to mean B-.....). But to this show, the grade is as fine as is.
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Leebo



Joined: 14 Nov 2005
Posts: 660
Location: Somerville, MA
PostPosted: Thu Nov 21, 2013 11:43 am Reply with quote
vashfanatic wrote:
If it weren't for the weird grade inflation we've experienced in our schools in America, people would realize that "C" literally means "average." You can pass a class on a C, you just don't get honor roll.


Yeah, for a lot of people "C" on a school assignment or test means "holy crap, get your act together, this is unacceptable", even if that's not what it means from the standpoint of how it will impact your advancement through school.
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Key
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Joined: 03 Nov 2003
Posts: 18138
Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley)
PostPosted: Thu Nov 21, 2013 12:02 pm Reply with quote
ZodiacBeast wrote:
Has ANN ever reviewed a show out of season? Well, I guess since GuP is coming out over here soon they might do it. I hope it gets a good score since I enjoyed it quite a bit. I can see it getting a B, either - or +.

Err, the overwhelming majority of the reviews on this site are "out of season" by the standard that you are using.

kevinx59 wrote:
Interestingly, it seems for a while most of the shows I have been enjoying all get C grades on ANN. If the trend continues, that means so will Unbreakable Machine Doll, Tokyo Ravens, Arpeggio of Blue Steel, Aquarion Evol, Girl Und Panzer, and Pokemon the Origin if/when they are reviewed/released. I hope I'm wrong(in a good way) but I'm pretty sure at least 3 of this will get that grade. Oh well.

Girls und Panzer is already on order. You can expect a Blu-Ray review from me probably the second week of December.

Pokemon the Origin won't get done, almost guaranteed.

We'll see about Aquarion EVOL. If Funi sends out a screener then someone will do it eventually. Otherwise probably not.

I have been debating on doing Arpeggio of Blue Steel, but at this point I'll probably wait until the send of the season if I go ahead and do it. (Still not sure how I feel about that one.)

To my knowledge none of the reviewers are following Unbreakable Machine Doll. That means it's not too likely to get done at this point.

Carlo was planning to write up the first half of Tokyo Ravens, so you should see that one eventually.

And dtm42: Gods, that was a twisted alternate trailer. That's even worse false advertising than the PMMM trailers, and that's saying something.
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vashfanatic



Joined: 16 Jun 2005
Posts: 3489
Location: Back stateside
PostPosted: Thu Nov 21, 2013 12:35 pm Reply with quote
Leebo wrote:
Yeah, for a lot of people "C" on a school assignment or test means "holy crap, get your act together, this is unacceptable", even if that's not what it means from the standpoint of how it will impact your advancement through school.

And getting a C does mean you might be close to failing if you're not careful. Which is maybe why I prefer star or number ratings to letters, but if they did that, they'd probably have people asking "out of how many?" in every single comments thread, so...

Also, whether you're a fan of a the genre or type of show can play a huge impact in whether you like a show regardless of quality. Sure, maybe it's only average, but if it's the best of the kind of story you like this season, then yes, it may be in your personal top three or whatever.

(Should also add that I am still catching up on all the shows I missed while living abroad, so I'm not watching anything from the current season to make a judgment about this particular series or its relative worth)
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Gatherum



Joined: 14 Feb 2012
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Location: Aurora CO
PostPosted: Thu Nov 21, 2013 5:49 pm Reply with quote
I am enjoying the series, and though I don't consider it to be the breakout title of the decade or anything, I don't see many glaring problems with it.

Mirai and Akihito are fine as characters. The former does not come across to me as someone who is failing to properly act the part of the troubled youth with the dark and tragic past, nor does she seem like she's trying too hard to mask it. She is nervous, insecure, and has a subdued trigger finger. As cute as she is by virtue of her character design and moe tendencies, I always was perceptive of the fact that there was something not quite right about her, or her experiences. Akihito gets points for having a handle from the beginning on what all of this youmu business is about, rather than becoming another clueless male lead who is thrust haplessly into this whole new world by chance and is subsequently fawned over by the female cast. For his part, he does well to express, but not to be ruled by, his glasses fetish, and works well as a guiding influence for Mirai in the interest of making sure she isn't alone and prone to killing herself.

If the series has a problem, it's in the world building. I still can't figure out whether or not the Spirit World Warriors, their society, and the hunting of youmu are supposed to be common knowledge, or secret from the world at large. Additionally, while plenty of discussion has occurred about Mirai's cursed bloodline and Aki's status as a half-breed and the resulting alienation, we really haven't come across anybody who serves as the vehicle for that hatred. There were some who were sceptical of Mirai at first, but I certainly wouldn't call it any kind of demonisation of some sort. Perhaps that is to occur at some later point?

In any case, flawed series, but certainly not a bad watch. I join a few others here in not understanding why it is being decried as mediocre.
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njprogfan
Collector Extraordinaire



Joined: 08 Feb 2007
Posts: 1155
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PostPosted: Thu Nov 21, 2013 6:40 pm Reply with quote
[quote="Key"]
ZodiacBeast wrote:
To my knowledge none of the reviewers are following Unbreakable Machine Doll. That means it's not too likely to get done at this point.


Too bad. For all that's been said and being said about BtB, UMD suffers from quite a few of the same problems, (pacing, overbaked humor, holding back info, cliches...) but at least it has characters that have better chemistry and characters I really care about. It's also way more entertaining. Honestly, if you ask me what happened in any given episode of BtB, I'd have a hard time remembering anything other then that fart? youmi. So yeah, average seems like a fair assessment.
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