Forum - View topicEP. REVIEW: March comes in like a lion
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dm
 Subscriber Posts: 1359 |
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I've been lukewarm about this series. Kiriyama is too bleak and Nikaidou and the sisters too goofy. That said, I disagree a bit with Nick and think episode four went a long way to getting the goofy balance right --- I'm surprised to see Nikaidou turning into a genuinely likable character, and Akari is gaining depth. Hinata is a middle-schooler viewed through adult eyes: bittersweet and a bit nostalgic --- Akari's talk about echoing their mother's words in her own making-a-bento-frenzy is that part of the episode summed up in a single speech.
It probably helps that I've been a Chika Umino fan since Honey and Clover, so Nick's perceived weakness of the character designs turn into strengths for me. Nick's criticisms are valid, but that stuff just doesn't bother me that much. |
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DuskyPredator
 Posts: 15462 Location: Brisbane, Australia |
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It was even more obvious in this episode, that he is actually pretty unfamiliar with fast food and decides against the convenience or other elements, clearly out of his health situation. The eldest sister thinks that he is simply dieting out of some plan to slim down, but there is more to it that makes initial reactions to him a little mean and unfound. |
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CrowLia
 Posts: 5504 Location: Mexico |
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I've been uncertain about this show, but this episode really makes me want to drop it. We're four episodes in and I still have no idea of where it's going. I find the shogi element to be the most interesting, whilst the three sisters bore me to tears. And while we get some glimpses here and there of Rei's traumatic issues, we don't really see any follow up for that. A vague reference to parricide here, another vague reference to rape there, but I don't see any semblance of a whole picture being drawn. Harunobu is so far the only actually developped and interesting character, the rest are mostly boring and Rei I just don't understand
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Merida
 Posts: 1945 |
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Without wanting to spoil anything, let's just say this is a very slow-paced series, if that or the "goofy humour" (i also disagree that ep.4 solely consisted of goofy jokes, though) bothers you, you're gonna have a hard time enjoying this show.
We will find out more about Rei (and other characters) eventually. There's also going to be a lot more shougi, though if you're expecting sports anime style matches with nail-biting tension that last for several episodes, you'll probably be disappointed... |
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dark_bozu
 Posts: 208 |
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Wow, SHAFT surely take its time to adapt this show - they put 1st volume into 5 episodes. Too bad that this is the weakest volume in manga. To all of those who want to drop it -- wait for next episode. It would wrap the flashback about Kiriyama and his family. And from 2nd volume the story would improve greatly.
But I'm a bit concerned about the amount of volumes that would be adapted into anime. I realy hope that they would cover Soujirou story. |
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chaccide
Posts: 295 |
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Oh Nick I have to disagree with you on this one. The section with Hina was perfect. So many girls have been there including me and I've never seen an anime capture it so well. The part about Rei was good but it was the least of it, and it sure wasn't about gags. Maybe you have to have been a teenage girl badly crushing on someone to get it, but it was the perfect slice of life. The show doesn't have to be about alienation and depression to nail the emotions of a situation.
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gabuhaha
 Posts: 136 |
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I pretty much spent all of episode 4 thinking that this would be much better in manga format. It just doesn't seem to me like they are adapting it well which is frustrating because I can see good elements there.
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Seishin Jinrou
 Posts: 29 |
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This was a weak episode, though it also had some good Rei moments. Having read the first volumes of the manga a few years ago, I have been surprised at how much humor there is and how Hina and the girls are featured in every single episode. From what I remember, they should start to appear less often, and there should definitely be episodes without slapstick as well. I hope both of those happen!
I've been looking for a blog that breaks down all the manga vs. anime differences, but haven't found any. After a stoppage of several years, all 12 volumes have now been scanlated, so maybe I'll get back to reading it. I absolutely love this manga, but don't feel the anime has quite captured it yet. |
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dark_bozu
Posts: 208 |
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Welp, the adaptation is quite accurate, so there's no significant differences. Like I wrote before -- they covered 1st volume in 5 episodes.
5th episode would be pretty dark.
IMHO, this is plot's problem -- there's too many introduction in the beginning and story aren't solid. But fortunately this is would change. |
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Blood-
 Bargain Hunter Posts: 23769 |
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I really enjoyed episode 4 but I'm going to stop reading Nick's grating reviews of this show. As I feared, he really only cares about the darkness and bleakness. I can imagine him fidgeting impatiently during the sunnier moments, knee bouncing up and down impatiently as he fervently prays the depression stuff will come back. Too bad. I wish this show had gotten a reviewer who was open to its sensibilities as opposed to one that is interested only in one of its flavours.
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kinghumanity
Posts: 365 |
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I wouldn't call it grating, but it does seem like Nick's idea of a good anime is when every single character is a combination of miserable, edgy, depressed, emotionally stunted. |
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meiam
Posts: 3442 |
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Well his parents (and I think his little sister) died when he was a little kid, that's pretty much his trauma right there, he didn't get super along with his adopted family either but yeah, dead parent will screw up kid. But really, if you think that not enough is happening (which is 100% a valid criticism) well you really should drop it. Unless they do so massive cutting, which there are no sign that they will do if anything it seems like there actually taking there time adapting it, then things will start moving at glacial pace and we could easily go trough 3-4 episode in a row where absolutely nothing really progress. By far the manga biggest weak point is pacing and pointless detour, I was hoping the adaptation was going to fix that, but nope. |
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Blood-
Bargain Hunter Posts: 23769 |
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Absolutely. But setting aside Nick's personal tastes, there was just some really weird stuff in his latest review. For example, he categorized the humour as "base." Base means contempible, tawdry, ignoble, cheap, etc. It's the kind of description you'd expect to see used for fart jokes and the like. I suspect that Nick doesn't quite know what the word means, but it's hard to tell since he never bothered to explain what about the humour he found "base." He did say he found some of the comedic scenes "abrasive and overlong" which is fine. It's not an opinion I agree with, but it is an opinion I can understand somebody having (especially somebody like Nick who wants to wallow in all the nifty ways Shaft will visually represent Rei's depression and misery). However, something being abrasive and overlong does not correspond with the description of "base." But the truly weird part of the review is when he pontificated about how certain techniques that work well in manga form don't translate into anime form. To wit:
Say what? Is he really arguing that, in anime, you can't represent one character having inner thoughts about what another character is saying or doing? Having things like text that tells us the others are mad because Akari isn't paying attention to them is a technique. Now techniques can be used ineffectively, inappropriately, fall flat, etc. but to actually say that a technique in general doesn't "work" in animation is truly bizarre. To me this isn't just bad reviewing, it's editorial oversight. These are the sort of things a good editor would ask Nick to justify before publishing a review. |
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JacobC
ANN Contributor
 Posts: 3728 Location: SoCal |
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Nah. An editor's job is not to tell a reviewer how to phrase themselves or express their opinion. Me and Zac's job is to check for grammar problems, factual errors, and the very rare occasional example of inflammatory or unacceptable phrasing/use of language/that kinda thing. Nothing Nick wrote was factually incorrect or otherwise problematic, even if you disagree with it or don't like his word choices. Every editorial department is different of course, but if you start getting into asking a reviewer to "justify" their opinion to you, you're basically stepping into questionable territory where you're pressuring a writer to phrase things as you would have phrased them, which is unnecessary, dilutes individual voices, and would make for a potentially hostile working relationship. tl;dr, nope, Zac and I would not interfere with a reviewer's writing or opinion to such an extent, that's not our job. |
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Blood-
Bargain Hunter Posts: 23769 |
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Then you don't understand what the job of an editor is. If a reviewer uses a word to describe an element of a show but doesn't explain why the word was used, that's a problem. If Nick had said the episode was scary and didn't bother to justify what about it was scary, that would be a problem. I pointed this out not because I disagree with an opinion of his - I am genuinely confused over where the opinion is coming from. It's a problem when a reader is lead to suspect that a reviewer doesn't understand what a particular word means.
And writing a sentence like "Me and Zac's job is to check for grammar problems..." is hilarious. |
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