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NieR:Automata Ver 1.1a (TV).




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Tony K.
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 03, 2023 11:06 pm Reply with quote


NieR:Automata Ver 1.1a (TV)

Source: Game (developed by Platinum Games, published by Square Enix)

Demographic: Shounen

Animation Studio: A-1 Pictures

Genres: action, fantasy, science fiction

Themes: aliens, androids, future, post-apocalyptic, rebellion

Plot Summary: In the distant future, 5012. The sudden aerial invasion of Earth by Aliens and their creations Machine Lifeforms led mankind to the brink of extinction. The surviving number of humans took refuge on the moon to organize a counterattack using android soldiers to recapture Earth.

However, the war reaches a stalemate as the Machine Lifeforms continue to multiply infinitely. In turn, humanity deploys a new unit of android soldiers as an ultimate weapon: YoRHa. Newly dispatched to Earth 2B joins 9S, the analyst currently stationed there, where amid their mission, they encounter a myriad of mysterious phenomena.

Air Date & Platform:
January 7, 2023 (Saturday)
Available on: Crunchyroll

Episode Count / Runtime: Pending


Last edited by Tony K. on Wed Apr 05, 2023 12:50 pm; edited 3 times in total
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ACxS



Joined: 03 Aug 2019
Posts: 880
PostPosted: Sun Jan 08, 2023 5:15 am Reply with quote
1:

I am going into this show with zero knowledge of the original game. But at least the story is pretty simple. Distant future. Mankind under threat by an alien force known as "machine lifeforms". Mankind fights back with androids (how are androids different from machine lifeforms, aka not-androids? Beats me). The top-of-the-line androids at mankind's disposal? YoRHa.

So yes, a very Terminator-like dystopian future of man using machines versus machines but not-exactly-machines. As someone who doesn't know anything about the game, I'm just taking this show at face value only. Nice production values overall, as expected from A-1 Pictures. Some parts of the BGM reminded me of GITS (especially the movie) in a strange way. Story... eh, I don't know. Nothing much for me to work on from episode 1.

Usually I'm wary about anime adaptations of games because they tend to suck. Hence, I'm not expecting much from this show. Probably fans of the game will be excited about this, but not as much for me. I'm just casually watching it.
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Blood-
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PostPosted: Sun Jan 08, 2023 7:38 pm Reply with quote
We don't get a ton of SF titles, so I'm inclined to be generous with this one. Seems like your standard "android becoming more human" thing.
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DuskyPredator



Joined: 10 Mar 2009
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PostPosted: Mon Jan 09, 2023 5:12 am Reply with quote
I have played a bit of the game, pretty much up to a camp area after the tutorial level (which was this episode), and I kind of half remember videos I watched of the game (something I watched/listened to while I did something else. And one thing I was familiar with was the game's multiple endings, which were mentioned in the after credits, although my familiarity was that it took playing the through multiple playthroughs which is something that cannot be done in an anime.

My otherwise familiarity with the game is both of major thirsting, that cosplays are especially popular, and I would say that it looks like making it all look very pretty. But my also limited knowledge, is that design choices like the human like androids wearing blindfolds, probably means that they are being lied whose side they are on. Something like a non-subtle implication that they are being made to willingly blind themselves.
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Tony K.
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PostPosted: Tue Jan 10, 2023 1:02 pm Reply with quote
Only played a very small chunk of the game, but I know Platinum is pretty famous for their other action titles like the Bayonetta franchise, Metal Gear Rising, and Astral Chain, all of which I've played a decent amount and really enjoyed.

I'm expecting lots of flashy, stylized action and art in this adaptation. So any semblance of story or sci-fi subtext is just a bonus, for me.
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ACxS



Joined: 03 Aug 2019
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PostPosted: Sun Jan 22, 2023 4:25 am Reply with quote
2–3:

Well, that escalated quickly.

So the machine lifeforms are gaining learning ability that is somewhat slowly making themselves more... human. Which I guess makes them less "machine" (as how the show is not-subtly trying to tell you). Pertaining to my previous post, it raises the question on what the difference is between an android and a machine lifeform, and apparently, it's the presence/absence of a "soul".

Now, what is a "soul"? I'm not sure if this show is going to elaborate this age-old philosophical question. But from the way this story is going, it's taking the "sense of self" route. YoRHa are androids and they know it, but even so, they behave just like humans but without free will. So why is the Council of Humanity seemed spooked by what is happening with the machine lifeforms?

I suspect it's because they are slowly gaining a soul, and from that, free will (perhaps the "logic virus" isn't what we thought it was). What if the YoRHa gets "infected" and gain their own free will? The Council of Humanity clearly doesn't want that to happen.
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residentgrigo



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PostPosted: Sat Mar 04, 2023 6:15 pm Reply with quote
Ep 6 was a summary of the stage play YoRHa from 2014. The official prequel to Nier 2 from 2017. The 2020 ongoing manga YoRHa – Pearl Harbor Descent Record – A NieR:Automata Story currently adapts the version seen here as there are multiple Yorha scripts. One of the Yorha plays is all male btw. A shame that 2 eps couldn´t have been used for this and I never noticed that 2B and A2 have the same face in the game. thanks anime? That explains 9S´ later behavior even more...

Anemone survived in the game universe and not the sex slave android Lily (a commentary on comfort women). The manga can now be seen as an official prequel to the anime as the continuity lines up, minus scenery changes. The game explains A2´s backstory only in unlockable novels, I think weapon stories, and it´s not really possible to connect it to any existing version of Yorha unlike with the anime.

Anyway, RIP budget. Missing in action after ep 3. Ep 2 is also based on existing material, a DLC and side stories + a set-up for Yorha. Last week´s use of Emil is the only legitimate original idea by the anime and there is a good chance we will see full scenes from Nier 1 with how the anime is going about. Maybe even the ending to Drakengard? Now that one would make for a killer 1 cour anime.
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Blood-
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PostPosted: Sat Mar 04, 2023 6:32 pm Reply with quote
I am not familiar with the source material but I find the episodes consistently engaging. Didn't pick up on the fact that Lily was a former sex slave android. In fact, up until now, I have assumed the Resistance were human. Perhaps we we shown otherwise earlier and I just missed it. In any case, very happy the show has resumed after a bit of a delay. Hopefully they can stay on track until the end, now.
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ACxS



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PostPosted: Sun Mar 05, 2023 4:32 am Reply with quote
6:

Just to echo what Blood- says, I am also quite surprised by how good the episodes have been. Not incredible, but more engaging than I thought, especially when it's an anime adaptation of a game (it's no secret that every other game-anime adaptation is a bomb). If the show wants to focus about the trauma on the battlefield and what it is like to be human from an android's POV, then it's doing a pretty good job.

And I get it if the anime isn't as "good" as the original game. Something like that is bound to happen; just look at the book-movie adaptation realm. But if the anime has been able to hold up on its own, then it's a show well-done.
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