Anime Questions, Recommendations, and Discussion Thread
It's time for a new general discussion thread! Hot takes, recommendations, questions, cautionary tales, all of it is welcome here.
As always, remember to be mindful of spoilers. If you want to know more about how to handle spoilers in this community, check the guide here (also linked in the sidebar).
I'm so close to finishing Angel Beats. I find it more comedic than dramatic but I actually teared up from one of the scenes in episode __*. Only two episodes left and I'm not sure how it's going to end. I have some free time between my classes tomorrow so maybe I'll watch the last two episodes in the library or something.
I find it more comedic than dramatic but I actually teared up from one of the scenes
That's how these type of shows get you - by starting off light-hearted while getting you emotionally invested in the characters, then throwing the gut punch.
It gets kinda formulaic, but I would still tear up each time.
I am trying my best to catch up on a bunch of shows I fell behind on, so here is where I stand currently:
NHK ni youkoso kinda hit hard the days after I finished it. I listened to the 2nd ending on repeat lol. In order to combat the big sad, I started watching ARIA. I have seen two episodes and it is very promising. Aria-sachou is so cute...
So Season 2 of Oregairu wasn't quite the slog I was afraid it was going to be, though not because the characters really improved at all. They were still pretty much all assholes of one sort or another - it's just that the other characters didn't get as much screen time, thanks to the VERY welcome addition of Isshiki to the cast. Just having to sit through less of Haruno would've been enough all by itself to greatly improve the season overall, but as a bonus, Isshiki actually turned out to be a great character (easily my favorite in the entire series), and a perfect foil/accomplice for Hachiman.
Then I went on to Season 3, which was... okay. It was initially difficult, in part because it was like Hachiman and Yukino and Yui cranked their already frustrating inability to communicate up to 11, but mostly because it put a lot of emphasis on Yukino and Haruno's mother, who's one of the most foul, loathsome, manipulative bitches it's ever been my displeasure to encounter in any medium, and just seeing her on-screen ruined things for me. But once it got that c*** out of the way and Hachiman and Yukino finally started to open up, it was (finally) pleasant. Oddly enough though, the ending sort of suffered IMO by coming together too quickly and easily, particularly after all the time spent tediously building up to it. It was okay all in all, but mostly I was glad it was over.
I wanted an antidote after that, so I deliberately looked for something roughly similar but far more pleasant, and ended up finally watching Zero no Tsukaima, which has been on my TBW pretty much as long as I've known Louise existed, which is pretty much ever since I first went online. I expected it to be amusing and enjoyable, but it surprised me by actually being sort of awesome in addition to that. I really enjoyed it, and even more than I'd hoped I would.
Then I bounced around a bit and finally, for I don't know what reason, ended up with Queen's Blade, which is one of the most thoroughly bizarre and ridiculous things I've seen. It manages to combine cringily brazen fanservice, battle royale, complex political intrigue, genuinely interesting characters, tragedy and gag humor into... something. It's so exaggerated that it almost seems like it was meant to be a satire, but it stops just short of actually being one. It is definitely... something though.
And as far as current series go, Guild Receptionist is moving a bit too slowly lately, Zenshu is still flailing a bit, but I'm hoping it's going to do that MAPPA thing where they somehow manage to tie everything together in the end anyway, and I'm still really enjoying Honey Lemon Soda, trite and tropish though it may be.
Isshiki actually turned out to be a great character (easily my favorite in the entire series)
Yeah, she's also my favorite. She's really cute lol
(I can't find the ping pong gif)
I always thought Oregairu had a misleading title because much of the comedy ended in Season 1 and Season 2+3 felt quite serious for the most part.
The thing, to me, that's best about Isshiki is that she is, for Hachiman, a perfect combination of playful and serious. By one measure, she's always completely honest with Hachiman, but her honesty is buried under a layer of playful banter and teasing, which actually makes it easier for Hachiman to deal with.
She's much like Komachi in that respect, and it's not a coincidence that Isshiki's and Komachi's eventual meeting is epic - they instantly recognize each other as kindred spirits.
Agreed on Guild Receptionist. I am still an episode behind, but (trying to stay vague for spoilers) that fight against the pair that were one was really underwhelming. I am just not sure how much this story can sustain itself when it isn't being carried by Alina. That fight focused much more on Jade and Lululee and it just...wasn't as interesting.
I assume that what we're seeing lately is literal filler. They have a background plot going with this mysterious villain who's spreading rumors of secret quests and apparently trying to get people to confront dark gods, and my guess is that they already have the culmination of all of that planned out, and ended up with two or three episodes they had to fill with something first.
The latest episode does have a bit of character growth, at least as measured on a relative scale (with someone as tsundere as Alina, a little goes a long way). But it's still mostly biding time.
I completed Erased last week.
It reminds me of Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai. Also, Kenya is basically a mini Aqua.
More thoughts:
I enjoyed it a lot so it gets a 10 / 10 from me.
I completed Erased last week.
I had to dredge around for a while before I realized which series this was (I have it filed in my brain under the more-wordy original title, "Boku dake ga Inai Machi"), and yeah, it's pretty well-done for what it is. In retrospect, I kind of wonder if Tokyo Revengers doesn't have a bit of this series in its DNA.
Weekly ranking roundup:
Credit to /u/Abysswatcherbel for making the chart for reddit karma and /u/Nooble5 for the Anime Trending chart.
Amagami Sister shot up the AC chart this week while there isn't a ton of movement on the reddit chart. I am happy to see Orb still making gains, now up to fourth in the reddit chart. I have kind of held off continuing the show and am going to wait for it to finish before just bingeing the whole thing. I am really looking forward to it. The first 8 episodes I watched were really, really good.
I watched 'erased' a long time ago (in this galaxy), but I don't remember specifics. All I remember is how it made me feel and how beautiful it was. 10/10 from me, too.
