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Shelf Life - Bod Squad


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bravetailor



Joined: 30 May 2009
Posts: 817
PostPosted: Mon Mar 12, 2012 2:52 pm Reply with quote
I've been curious about First Squad but reviews for it have been pretty tepid. I've said that I don't mind dumb or nonsensical plots in my action movies/anime, but only if the action is frequent and totally rocks (Mission Impossible 4 is the perfect example of this formula) What scares me off is that people say there really isn't a whole lot of standout scenes in terms of action in FS.

I've also heard some complaints about the source material being Russian propaganda, but I wouldn't mind that as long as the action is good.
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configspace



Joined: 16 Aug 2008
Posts: 3717
PostPosted: Mon Mar 12, 2012 3:15 pm Reply with quote
Quote:
The English dub seems fine (I can't comment on the Russian track authoritatively). The DVD I watched was cut into a film, without the “mockumentary” segments I've seen mentioned on Wikipedia.

So they actually reedited the movie to remove this for home video?

Is there another edition, like BD, that has preferably has both the edited and original with live action segments?
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bravetailor



Joined: 30 May 2009
Posts: 817
PostPosted: Mon Mar 12, 2012 3:16 pm Reply with quote
configspace wrote:
Quote:
The English dub seems fine (I can't comment on the Russian track authoritatively). The DVD I watched was cut into a film, without the “mockumentary” segments I've seen mentioned on Wikipedia.

So they actually reedited the movie to remove this for home video?

Is there another edition, like BD, that has preferably has both the edited and original with live action segments?


Every review I've read indicated the BD has both versions.
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BrianRuh



Joined: 17 Dec 2003
Posts: 162
Location: West Lafayette, IN, USA
PostPosted: Mon Mar 12, 2012 3:17 pm Reply with quote
Quote:
...super-detailed technical scenes that had me thinking back to the 1986 movie SpaceCamp, which is to say I was disappointed.

I'm sorry, that doesn't follow. Cool
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Cecilthedarkknight_234



Joined: 02 Apr 2011
Posts: 3820
Location: Louisville, KY
PostPosted: Mon Mar 12, 2012 3:26 pm Reply with quote
Hmm nice collection Barbara i see your into older series which is fine. Hell I want half of those series but money restraints etc lol.

Moving on well I suppose I should give First Squad a go when I get a chance.
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ShinnFlowen



Joined: 07 Feb 2012
Posts: 141
PostPosted: Mon Mar 12, 2012 3:26 pm Reply with quote
It must be weird having to review a show that is targeted towards men (Rosario), but at least you gave it a fair review. After hearing you review bodacious I`m not sure how you could recommend Bodacious space pirates when the school trip between episodes 2-5 where pretty darn boring, which you stated yourself they were not great. It doesn`t make sense that she`s still working as a maid when she already decided to be a pirate and it is just silly that pirates are not taken seriously either when people get raided. I personally hate the japanese voice of the heroine as I find her voice makes her sound too clueless when she`s not being serious.

Bodacious looks as if it could have a serious premise except it never reached that point, choosing to be fun which is disappointing. Playing Mass Effect 3 is a far more fulfilling for those seeking Sci-Fi than watching Bodacious.
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Surrender Artist



Joined: 01 May 2011
Posts: 3264
Location: Pennsylvania, USA
PostPosted: Mon Mar 12, 2012 3:29 pm Reply with quote
Erin is the first person I've seen write good things about First Squad. What little I'd read before didn't rise above apathetic and I would have predicted that she'd consider it a rental shelf title. Truth be told, I keep forgetting that it exists. I might enjoy it. The story looks like it has some nicely over-the-top stuff. I'm not bubbling with enthusiasm but I could imagine myself watching it some day later on.

Yet I did get ICE very soon after Erin reviewed it, because it's flipping bonkers, and I love that.

Better animated or not Rosario + Vampire Capu2 is way the Hell out of my wheelhouse. I watched the first four episodes and although the dodgy animation didn't help it, the scenario and writing really repelled me. I want to someday find a harem series that I like, but it would have to be one Hell of a series, because the whole concept repels me pretty strongly. Instead of inserting myself into the place of the protagonist, I usually just end up finding him annoying and feel a pity tinged with irritation toward the girls piling themselves onto him. (If I were to successfully overlay myself onto the protagonist, I'd probably end up forcing myself out with a psychological crowbar and wondering if I'd hit rock bottom)

Oh no! Another Bodacious Space Pirates review! RUN!

Sorry, the series has an odd, bad habit of sowing a surprising amount of discontent. (It would almost be ironic if a Shelf Life thread avoided any baffling acrimony about the series)

(I hate to presume ignorance, but Letters of Marque and thus 'legal pirates', rather 'privateers', were a real thing, although I doubt that it worked historically as it does in the series)

I like Bodacious Space Pirates, but I've become slightly disillusioned with it in the past few episodes. I, contra Mrs. Finnegan, liked the first arc aboard the Odette II better than I have the Golden Ghost Ship story, at least thus far. I found the first one surprisingly engrossing and exciting, especially at its conclusion, despite its low-key, small-stakes nature, but have found the second, while interesting, a little muddled and I feel like the series should by now have developed slightly sharper teeth, so to speak.

The maid café never bothered me, perhaps because I have neither a fetish for maid costumes (I don't even get how they're supposed to be sexy) nor much experience with things that play to it. The suspicious spacesuits in episode three, however, did elicit a little sigh of exasperation from me. Thankfully the spacesuits haven't been seen since and the maid café hasn't been played for creeps.

I never thought about the contrast between the qualities of life of historical pirates compared to Marika's, but as I think of it, in a way it foreshadows the pirates being entertainers rather than criminals. It might also tie into the bureaucracy surrounding Letters of Marque if we interpret the letters as a means for the incumbent pirates to impose a barrier to entry and guard themselves against competition that might lower their income. (Bodacious Space Rent-Seekers?)

Erin Finnegan wrote:
I'm not even sure why she needs to graduate at that point, but OK, sure, maybe a high school diploma is important to her mom.


My guess is that her desire to be a pirate and to graduate is borne out of the desire to make herself into a tall mountain to stand beside her mother, or something like that, that Emi attributed to Marika in her conversation with Chiaki. So maybe it's not important to her mother, but important because of her mother.


Last edited by Surrender Artist on Mon Mar 12, 2012 9:04 pm; edited 2 times in total
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Stark700



Joined: 30 Jan 2012
Posts: 11762
Location: Earth
PostPosted: Mon Mar 12, 2012 3:49 pm Reply with quote
I'll probably give First Squad - The Moment of Truth a try in the future as it looks kinda interesting.

Nice collection though, love the FMA merchandise, Tiger & Bunny figures, and Hot Gimmick manga.
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walw6pK4Alo



Joined: 12 Mar 2008
Posts: 9322
PostPosted: Mon Mar 12, 2012 3:49 pm Reply with quote
I'm afraid with Pirates losing steam now, it will be all but just forgotten come the Spring Tide. Shana III and Last Exile Fam got pushed aside when Winter came as far as I've seen the discussion numbers go. On the contrary, Rinne no Lagrange has been picking up steam, especially in the last episode. I know it'll lead to a cliffhanger for the first season that will be resolved come Summer, but it'll leave us with more to chew on than Pirates in the end.
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the Rancorous



Joined: 08 Feb 2006
Posts: 2248
Location: Hunting the Dragon in Gransys
PostPosted: Mon Mar 12, 2012 4:38 pm Reply with quote
Quote:
That said, Capu2 is much, much better than Rosario season one.

Wow. This is the first, and only time I've seen anyone claim this. Personally, I found season 2 to be unwatchable. It made no sense and was completely unfunny. Kokoa was annoying and so was Ryubi ("Many, many", ugh!) and the episode with the parents... Mad I dropped it after the episode that was just a bunch of unfunny shorts. But, this is coming from someone who hates FMP: Fummofu, so, yeah... Razz
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LaFreccia



Joined: 12 Apr 2006
Posts: 324
PostPosted: Mon Mar 12, 2012 4:47 pm Reply with quote
Bodacious Space Pirates: I rather liked the first arc, and I am still enjoying the series. I think this is the most careful writing I have ever seen in an anime. Technological issues are presented methodically, in anticipation of their use in the plot. spoiler[(In the first arc this happens with both the hacking and the solar sails).] I also really like the way the author is trying to use the legacy of piracy. Pirates have a clumsy stereotype (rum, eyepatches, parrots, and"yaarh"), but the author rejects those to emphasize other aspects of the legacy (the letters of Remarque, and especially the stories of life at sea). Also spoiler[by episode 10 it seems pretty clear that the pirate shows were a bit of a red herring. Those were very easy jobs that pirates could do, so the Bentenmaru was doing them while Marika was in training. Clearly there are much more serious jobs that are also available, but jumping into those with a Captain-in-training would be too dangerous -- not to mention Marika still has school in the morning.]
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invalidname
Contributor



Joined: 11 Aug 2004
Posts: 2442
Location: Grand Rapids, MI
PostPosted: Mon Mar 12, 2012 4:47 pm Reply with quote
Quote:
Nothing grosses me out more than low budget, off-model boobs

It never occurred to me that there would be model sheets for boobs.
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jenthehen



Joined: 23 Dec 2008
Posts: 835
Location: Cincinnati, Ohio
PostPosted: Mon Mar 12, 2012 4:49 pm Reply with quote
Oh wow ... I actually thought Funimation did a wonderful job with dubbing the songs in capu2!
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DmonHiro





PostPosted: Mon Mar 12, 2012 4:58 pm Reply with quote
Rosario Capu2 is a wonder.
Season 1 sucked SO MUCH, because they were kind of following the manga, but screwing it up so badly that it was a pain to watch. The pacing was dreadful, the characterization all wrong, etc.

Season 2, on the other hand, said FU to the manga story and just went nuts. As a result, it's actually decent. To me, it was decent because it stopped insulting the manga, and just went crazy with it's own ideas. Were they stupid? Sure, but I was no longer being pissed off by them butchering the manga story. They weren't following it anyway, so why not enjoy the ride?
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Shenl742



Joined: 11 Feb 2010
Posts: 1524
PostPosted: Mon Mar 12, 2012 5:51 pm Reply with quote
invalidname wrote:
Quote:
Nothing grosses me out more than low budget, off-model boobs

It never occurred to me that there would be model sheets for boobs.


Apparently Justin was given one among the promo materials for one of the site's Spotlight guides...

yeah...didn't get put to use...
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