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EP. REVIEW: Sakura Quest


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Stark700



Joined: 30 Jan 2012
Posts: 11762
Location: Earth
PostPosted: Thu Apr 20, 2017 11:02 am Reply with quote
Pretty underrated show this season for sure. I really like some of the main characters from the main cast and hope to get to know more. It also retains the art style of the other PA works shows from what I remember.

Recently, the show got announced for 25 episodes so I'm sure there's plenty of time to develop the story too.
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robertbaldie



Joined: 17 Mar 2014
Posts: 154
PostPosted: Thu Apr 20, 2017 11:18 am Reply with quote
Really loving the show's understated comedy elements. Guaranteed a laugh out loud moment every episode.
Mr. Sandal's appearances are just magic, too!
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maximilianjenus



Joined: 29 Apr 2013
Posts: 2858
PostPosted: Thu Apr 20, 2017 11:36 am Reply with quote
no feeling this show that much, it does not matter how excellent the execution is if the characters are bad and the base plot is bad :/
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meiam



Joined: 23 Jun 2013
Posts: 3442
PostPosted: Thu Apr 20, 2017 11:38 am Reply with quote
I'm enjoying the show, but the setting doesn't really appeal to me. Show like that usually end with the whole "Our town is amazing, special and worth saving" when, as someone who lived in a few small towns, there all interchangeable and saving them just means throwing good moneys to buy the resident votes (cause older rural voter are reliable voter and electoral maps usually makes rural votes worth more than city vote).

The whole idea of drumming up tourism by giving small town large budget to experiment sounds good on paper, but there prohibitively expensive and don't do much, and the show demonstrate that since the tourism agency somehow employ 6+ peoples for a town of what seems like at most 10 000 habitants!

Plus we're not getting into japan collapsing population, right now the most important topic when it comes to small towns isn't how to drum up tourism, but rather how to shut them down in a controlled manners.
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yuna49



Joined: 27 Aug 2008
Posts: 3804
PostPosted: Thu Apr 20, 2017 11:50 am Reply with quote
I've enjoyed this show so far, but I do wish Yoshino didn't look so much like Miyamori Aoi from SHIROBAKO with different color hair. I'd like to see some real noses on PAW's characters as well.
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kinghumanity



Joined: 03 Nov 2014
Posts: 365
PostPosted: Thu Apr 20, 2017 12:42 pm Reply with quote
I really like shows like these that can discuss a societal topic that often aren't talked about enough. People are leaving small towns all over the world, not just in Japan. The elders left behind in small towns might not even care enough about revitalizing their towns in a new economy that needs them less. Agriculture needs less people than ever before, and not every small town or village can be a tourist hot spot.
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HeeroTX



Joined: 15 Jul 2002
Posts: 2046
Location: Austin, TX
PostPosted: Thu Apr 20, 2017 1:14 pm Reply with quote
meiam wrote:
I'm enjoying the show, but the setting doesn't really appeal to me. Show like that usually end with the whole "Our town is amazing, special and worth saving" when, as someone who lived in a few small towns, there all interchangeable and saving them just means throwing good moneys to buy the resident votes (cause older rural voter are reliable voter and electoral maps usually makes rural votes worth more than city vote).
[...]right now the most important topic when it comes to small towns isn't how to drum up tourism, but rather how to shut them down in a controlled manners.

I love this show PRECISELY because it has an undercurrent that is entirely anti-thetical to the view you just noted. I love that the main character keeps proclaiming her desire to live in Tokyo but has absolutely ZERO explanation for why it's "better" (aside from "it has everything"). While it's possible that it will end as you say, judging from the beginning, that's not what they are saying now. I like that Yoshino chafes at being called "normal", that's the problem with too many people, they think THEY are extraordinary when in-fact they are not, and that's OK.

For now, I choose to believe that it's not a coincidence that Yoshino's fondest memory is the day she was fawned all over and treated as the most important person in the world, and that is immediately contrasted with continuous rejection and even an interview question that is basically "what if you're NOT a VIP?" Young people leave small towns for the "glitz" of the big city, which has the net result of making their statements that "there's nothing for me here" become a self fulfilling prophecy. 200 years ago New York was a "small town" and LA didn't exist. 100 years ago many major cities were just getting started.

Many of the complaints young people have now are almost entirely bereft of merit in the information age. As high speed internet becomes more available, you can do information technology jobs anywhere (like our "country blogger"). I don't think tourism is a panacea, or even a good plan to help small towns. Really, the small towns should "help themselves", which is why I really look forward to what Shiori does and is able to convey throughout this series. IDEALLY, I would like to see the show end with Yoshino helping convince the young people to STAY in Manoyama, rather than some Quixotic quest to get outsiders to just bring them money via tourism.

Most people want to BELIEVE they're a whale, this show looks to be telling you that it's better to be a fish (of whatever size) in a small pond than to be a minnow in the ocean.
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joeydoa



Joined: 30 Dec 2014
Posts: 121
PostPosted: Thu Apr 20, 2017 2:08 pm Reply with quote
Good review. Nice to see ANN getting reviewers who don't trash every show they review.
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kinghumanity



Joined: 03 Nov 2014
Posts: 365
PostPosted: Thu Apr 20, 2017 3:37 pm Reply with quote
HeeroTX wrote:
meiam wrote:
I'm enjoying the show, but the setting doesn't really appeal to me. Show like that usually end with the whole "Our town is amazing, special and worth saving" when, as someone who lived in a few small towns, there all interchangeable and saving them just means throwing good moneys to buy the resident votes (cause older rural voter are reliable voter and electoral maps usually makes rural votes worth more than city vote).
[...]right now the most important topic when it comes to small towns isn't how to drum up tourism, but rather how to shut them down in a controlled manners.

I love this show PRECISELY because it has an undercurrent that is entirely anti-thetical to the view you just noted. I love that the main character keeps proclaiming her desire to live in Tokyo but has absolutely ZERO explanation for why it's "better" (aside from "it has everything"). While it's possible that it will end as you say, judging from the beginning, that's not what they are saying now. I like that Yoshino chafes at being called "normal", that's the problem with too many people, they think THEY are extraordinary when in-fact they are not, and that's OK.

For now, I choose to believe that it's not a coincidence that Yoshino's fondest memory is the day she was fawned all over and treated as the most important person in the world, and that is immediately contrasted with continuous rejection and even an interview question that is basically "what if you're NOT a VIP?" Young people leave small towns for the "glitz" of the big city, which has the net result of making their statements that "there's nothing for me here" become a self fulfilling prophecy. 200 years ago New York was a "small town" and LA didn't exist. 100 years ago many major cities were just getting started.

Many of the complaints young people have now are almost entirely bereft of merit in the information age. As high speed internet becomes more available, you can do information technology jobs anywhere (like our "country blogger"). I don't think tourism is a panacea, or even a good plan to help small towns. Really, the small towns should "help themselves", which is why I really look forward to what Shiori does and is able to convey throughout this series. IDEALLY, I would like to see the show end with Yoshino helping convince the young people to STAY in Manoyama, rather than some Quixotic quest to get outsiders to just bring them money via tourism.

Most people want to BELIEVE they're a whale, this show looks to be telling you that it's better to be a fish (of whatever size) in a small pond than to be a minnow in the ocean.


You can't figure out why young people want to move to big cities?

Because the new economy is almost entirely urbanized. People have been moving to cities for work since the 1700s, and that isn't going to reverse anytime soon. High end professional jobs are specialized, and it makes zero sense for them to be located in rural areas. Off the top of your head, how many specialized professions that require at least a 4 year degree should be located in rural towns?

And no, most of these jobs cannot be done remotely. Face to face communication is still required.
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Alan45
Village Elder



Joined: 25 Aug 2010
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Location: Virginia
PostPosted: Thu Apr 20, 2017 4:06 pm Reply with quote
kinghumanity wrote:
Quote:
And no, most of these jobs cannot be done remotely. Face to face communication is still required.


Then how do you explain ANN? The owner is Canadian (though I don't know where he lives) The editorial offices are in LA, I think the servers are in Texas and the staff is all over the US (and some in Japan). The requirement for a lot of jobs of face to face communication is largely prejudice of older management.

The concentration of people in an Urban environment in the 1700 was largely the result of the need of a large workforce for manufacturing jobs. With the limited transportation of that time people needed to be in walking distance to their employment. The suburbs are the result of later improvements in transportation which allowed people to live and work further apart.

With the onset of the information economy, It is slowly becoming possible for a lot of workers to live anywhere there is decent internet connections. In many cases the limits are of perception by management not physical.

Unfortunately the information economy will not completely stop the flight of younger workers to urban areas. It is more the lack of entertainment in small communities that they miss, not the jobs. Basically they want trendy bars.
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HeeroTX



Joined: 15 Jul 2002
Posts: 2046
Location: Austin, TX
PostPosted: Thu Apr 20, 2017 4:26 pm Reply with quote
Alan45 wrote:
Unfortunately the information economy will not completely stop the flight of younger workers to urban areas. It is more the lack of entertainment in small communities that they miss, not the jobs. Basically they want trendy bars.

This is exactly correct. The large issue for YOUNGER people is entertainment, NOT employment. Many young people leave/dislike small towns because they're "boring". I live/work in a good size city and many young people here either telecommute or think they SHOULD be able to do so. The big roadblock being middle management justifying their role with "face time". I know managers/executives that work across offices spanning the country, to say nothing of the massive amounts of outsourcing sending jobs entirely overseas.

Most jobs that "require" a presence (service jobs) arguably COULD be done anywhere and in some cases will have more need in rural areas where younger people flee. Various other modern jobs don't require that you occupy the same space and even communication is much easier with cell phones and video chats. Heck, one of my co-workers works across town most of the week and regularly video-conferences in for meetings. And I know various people who make multi-hour (car or plane) commutes for times when "in person" contact is considered "necessary".

EDIT: Just off the top of my head, I know for fact that all of the following professions are done "remotely" in many cases: Software development, Graphical design, Voice work (altho GETTING work takes networking, granted)

The only things that really REQUIRE presence are service jobs and physical labor intensive fabrication/building. Even "sales" doesn't really require your actual presence. The only reason people argue for urban settings for most business purposes is it is EASIER to reach a larger customer pool, but unless your product is perishable (food) that is becoming less relevant in the Amazon age.
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AholePony



Joined: 04 Jun 2015
Posts: 330
Location: Arizona
PostPosted: Thu Apr 20, 2017 6:02 pm Reply with quote
joeydoa wrote:
Good review. Nice to see ANN getting reviewers who don't trash every show they review.



Hah I'll second this sentiment, especially for SoL, CGDCT™ or other iyashikei series like this one. They always seem to get crapped on by ANN reviewers rather than them just admiting that they don't "get" the genre.

As to the review, I agree, if you enjoy this kind of character humor this show has been on-point with the delivery. I particularly liked the joke when they were arguing about describing their cute-but-not-that-cute queen on the webpage.
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Megiddo



Joined: 24 Aug 2005
Posts: 8360
Location: IL
PostPosted: Thu Apr 20, 2017 6:19 pm Reply with quote
ANN can dig iyashikei if it's not about high school. If it's about girls who go to school, well, just look at the preview guide for Hinako Note, Laughing
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meiam



Joined: 23 Jun 2013
Posts: 3442
PostPosted: Thu Apr 20, 2017 6:28 pm Reply with quote
Small town will never really make a comeback though, there just too disadvantaged economically. Building things in urban center makes far more sense since they'll reach more people, this in turn means that there's just far more service (and jobs) in urban center, this also means that there are more other human around (i.e. people friends) and so on, so you get huge network effect.

Add to that governmental service (i.e. school, healthcare and such), which again just makes far more sense to be build in urban center and allow people that live in city to make better choice (if you live in rural area you don't have a choice of school for your kids but in city you have plenty of choices) and that building stuff is essentially cheaper in a city (if you build one kilometer of new road in a city it'll reach thousands of peoples, in a rural area the same kilometer will reach maybe ten peoples). And it's overwhelmingly clear why government should concentrate on urban area and slowly pull out from rural area.

So even if jobs can be done remotely (with a potential loss of efficiency) how many people actually want to live in rural area and is it worth subsidizing tall the small local villages?

To bring it back to tourism (one of the very few area where small town have an advantages, you just can't have a big forest/mountain in the middle of the city), this is

Now tourism does have it's places, but in a slightly different way than the show portray for now. The government shouldn't pull out of all small town, it instead should select a few one which have high advantages compare to most of them (in this cases this means either there close to large resource or have tourist magnet spot, either historical or natural) and keep those alive. Sadly for the town portrayed in the show, it apparently has neither.
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HeeroTX



Joined: 15 Jul 2002
Posts: 2046
Location: Austin, TX
PostPosted: Thu Apr 20, 2017 7:06 pm Reply with quote
meiam wrote:
that building stuff is essentially cheaper in a city (if you build one kilometer of new road in a city it'll reach thousands of peoples, in a rural area the same kilometer will reach maybe ten peoples).

BUILDING is NEVER cheaper in an urban area simply because the land itself commands a higher premium because people have more thoughts of uses for it. Arguing that a road is more "cost effective" because more people will use it is more a matter of spreading the cost over the people. (ie. a million dollar road used by 100k people is more "cost-effective" than a $100,000 road used by 100 people, since the cost factor is only 10x higher while be spread over 1000x more people)

But all of that strikes me as a disingenuous argument with respect to a nation like Japan. Consider, Japan has over 3x the population of the state of California within less total area. They also have significant public transportation infrastructure already in place. If you have "emergency" facilities (hospitals) within valid range, everything else is a "reasonable" bus or train ride away. The convenience you get of actually living IN Tokyo is being able to WALK to all forms of food, entertainment and services, but outside of a VERY narrow band of years (lets say 16-22, which is probably generous for most people) how important is that on a "day-to-day" basis rather than 1 - 2 times a month? And if you're only talking once or twice a month, what's the killer with taking a 1-2 hour train ride and making a "day trip" of it? In most major cities you'll kill at least an hour dealing with traffic for most things. Is being in "walking distance" to entertainment and food options really worth significantly higher cost of living.

Plus, for good AND ill (its another reason people leave small towns) in smaller towns, you are actually part of the community, vs in big cities you get lost in the throng. Its one of the major societal problems being exacerbated by the urban consolidation IMO.
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