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REVIEW: Senki Zesshō Symphogear G


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DDragonking



Joined: 14 Nov 2014
Posts: 107
PostPosted: Tue Oct 13, 2015 10:50 am Reply with quote
Glad to see G's review up and definitely G was an upgrade to the first season. Maria's gungnir song though was IMO the best single in the second season besides the Maria and Tsubasa duet. Can't wait for GX's review and more of the punches and gattling guns in hopefully season 4
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Vaisaga



Joined: 07 Oct 2011
Posts: 13223
PostPosted: Tue Oct 13, 2015 10:57 am Reply with quote
I don't really agree on the storytelling or character front. The plot isn't anything too fancy but it's competent and each character has a proper arc. The side switching is directly tied into that and all that stuff made sense.

The only real hiccup was the reveal of Hibiki's traumatic past. Nothing in season 1 even hinted at such a thing so it feels like something invented just for this season. They don't really explain why she was being bullied either.

But overall G is way better than the first season (and GX) right down to the songs and transformation scenes.
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Zoneflare



Joined: 11 Mar 2015
Posts: 521
PostPosted: Tue Oct 13, 2015 11:02 am Reply with quote
Someone needs to license these three seasons and get them out on bluray
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DDragonking



Joined: 14 Nov 2014
Posts: 107
PostPosted: Tue Oct 13, 2015 11:16 am Reply with quote
Zoneflare wrote:
Someone needs to license these three seasons and get them out on bluray
. Funimation has the first season but they haven't done anything with it.
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Nyron



Joined: 16 May 2013
Posts: 161
PostPosted: Tue Oct 13, 2015 11:43 am Reply with quote
The thing is, this show is literally undubbable, unless they have everything be in English except the songs, which would be bad.

But yes G was definitely the best season. Season 1 had nice drama and some coherent character development, but honestly it did mostly weigh the show down. G played on all of the strengths of season 1 and tripled-down on them. It was intensely entertaining from start to finish, and honestly, the characterization was better too. It did good about clearly defining each character's persona, and then putting them in interesting situations.

I have no idea what this review is talking about in terms of G's art being worse. Season 1 looked absolutely terrible at a lot of points since the budget was like $5 per episode.

And then GX happened and it fell somewhere in between the quality of seasons 1 and 2. It brought back a lot of unnecessary melodrama and showed that the characters are simply not meant to be deep. No one cares about Hibiki's father problems. The overall structure of season 3 was pretty boring too and couldn't match G's rollercoaster of outlandish twists and cliffhangers.
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Vaisaga



Joined: 07 Oct 2011
Posts: 13223
PostPosted: Tue Oct 13, 2015 11:55 am Reply with quote
Another interesting aspect about G is that Maria, Shirabe, and Kirika were well aware that the other gear users are much more powerful and experienced than they are. As a result they had to come up with strategies to prevent them from fighting at full power.
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Lemonchest



Joined: 18 Mar 2015
Posts: 1771
PostPosted: Tue Oct 13, 2015 2:35 pm Reply with quote
Just finished watching the first season. It was so entertainingly bad I couldn't stop watching. Good to know I can expect more of the same when I start watching the rest of it.
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Zoneflare



Joined: 11 Mar 2015
Posts: 521
PostPosted: Tue Oct 13, 2015 2:49 pm Reply with quote
DDragonking wrote:
Zoneflare wrote:
Someone needs to license these three seasons and get them out on bluray
. Funimation has the first season but they haven't done anything with it.
they only have limited streaming rights not a regular license.
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leafy sea dragon



Joined: 27 Oct 2009
Posts: 7163
Location: Another Kingdom
PostPosted: Tue Oct 13, 2015 2:50 pm Reply with quote
Quote:
These new variables bumble through a general plot concerning a second moon-crash and the creation of some kind of arc for humanity, but basically everything comes down to slamming the Symphogear users against each other and reveling in their individual angsts. Characters leap incoherently between sides and motivations, and fights are prompted for the barest of reasons. In every traditional narrative sense, G really doubles down on the “not giving a damn” writing of the first season.


This sounds like it really wanted to be a video game, but for some reason, it was greenlit as an anime instead.
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Vaisaga



Joined: 07 Oct 2011
Posts: 13223
PostPosted: Tue Oct 13, 2015 2:56 pm Reply with quote
The series was created by a music producer and his writer friend, both known mostly for their work on video games, so yeah.
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Lemonchest



Joined: 18 Mar 2015
Posts: 1771
PostPosted: Tue Oct 13, 2015 3:55 pm Reply with quote
Vaisaga wrote:
The series was created by a music producer and his writer friend, both known mostly for their work on video games, so yeah.

That explains why I thought I was watching a videogame adaptation until I checked to see what the game was like.
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Sloppy_Jimbo



Joined: 01 Oct 2015
Posts: 98
PostPosted: Tue Oct 13, 2015 8:12 pm Reply with quote
Symphogear's style is it's substance. It's similar to Aquarion in that respect. Shut off your cortex, turn on your stem and enjoy the show. I need more Hibiki x Miku, though. Enough withspoiler[ this Lesbifriends] act already.
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DuskyPredator



Joined: 10 Mar 2009
Posts: 15427
Location: Brisbane, Australia
PostPosted: Tue Oct 13, 2015 8:18 pm Reply with quote
I would not say the story is bad, but mostly just more focused on what works.
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mewpudding101
Industry Insider


Joined: 07 Apr 2009
Posts: 2203
Location: Tokyo, Japan
PostPosted: Tue Oct 13, 2015 10:12 pm Reply with quote
It was really disappointing what happened in G. I loved the original. It had great drama, character development, and kickass women. This series totally turned Chris into a moe stereotype instead of a kickass lady, and it was seriously disappointing. They basically turned down her kickassness to sell her as a cute tsundere.

I also wanted to learn more about the other characters in the show, not MIKU. I don't care about Miku! How about the ninja manager? I WANT HIS BACKSTORY WITH TSUBASA.

Also forgetting Kaede's existence. That was disappointing to no end.
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Vaisaga



Joined: 07 Oct 2011
Posts: 13223
PostPosted: Tue Oct 13, 2015 10:49 pm Reply with quote
mewpudding101 wrote:
It was really disappointing what happened in G. I loved the original. It had great drama, character development, and kickass women. This series totally turned Chris into a moe stereotype instead of a kickass lady, and it was seriously disappointing. They basically turned down her kickassness to sell her as a cute tsundere.


Chris has always been a tsundere, though. G just allows her to show her dere side more. Her character arc is a logical follow up to her first season arc. She's been betrayed and mistreated by so many people that she has a hard time opening up and accepting a peaceful life. When she does start embracing it her past comes back to haunt her and she doesn't feel like she deserves to be happy until she makes up for it. She still kicked plenty of ass while that was going on too.

mewpudding101 wrote:
I also wanted to learn more about the other characters in the show, not MIKU. I don't care about Miku! How about the ninja manager? I WANT HIS BACKSTORY WITH TSUBASA.


But he's a man. No one cares about men in these shows.

In all seriousness, a lot of information is only revealed in the key words section of the website.

mewpudding101 wrote:
Also forgetting Kaede's existence. That was disappointing to no end.


The bulk of Tsubasa's character arc is to prevent Hibiki from turning out like Kanade so it's not like they forgot about her.
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