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**Zero** · March 22, 2003, 20:33

Read or Die.... RULZ!!!! Classic- completely bizzare, make no sense anime

Oooooh english berserk, my friend should be happy finally. But at the rate you guys publish things, I'd probably croak before I see my friend finish reading that.

When's Vol 25 coming out? I want that series to end and not end at the same time! if ya know what i mean.

I thought the lil' RPGish "upgrades" characters had in vol 24 was a bit lame. But otherwise, the lot of things were explained...

**Jaakko** · March 22, 2003, 21:14

Hey Wraith, I recently saw an Azumanga Daioh DVD collection on E-Bay with Chinese and English subtitling. Any idea if it's the real deal or just a pirate?

**Wraith** · March 22, 2003, 21:49

--"Read or Die.... RULZ!!!! Classic- completely bizzare, make no sense anime"

While I do think it's a good show, I wouldn't call it completely bizzare. It's a pretty straight forward anime adaptation of the James Bond genre.

If you think that's bizzare, you obviously haven't seen such gems as Dragon Half, FLCL, Puni Puni Poemi, or Jungle wa Itsumo Hare Nochi Guu yet.

--"But at the rate you guys publish things, I'd probably croak before I see my friend finish reading that."

Heh. You're probably right, sad to say. I'm not very familiar with Dark Horse, though. They haven't really published their release schedule yet, but considering how big name this title is maybe they'll move on it fairly quickly.

--"When's Vol 25 coming out?"

No idea. They've been released about once every eight months, so probably not for a while. I don't read nearly enough Japanese yet to be keeping up with the Japanese releases.

--" Any idea if it's the real deal or just a pirate?"

Bootleg. Almost everything on eBay with both Chinese and English subs will be (I only say almost out of caution; I can't think of a single title off-hand that would be legit with that setup). Also, Azumanga hasn't been licensed outside of Japan anywhere yet.

Edit:
Check out this site for a good bootleg FAQ:

http://www.digital.anime.org.uk/piratefaq.html

Wraith
"Bread eating race!"
-- Osaka ("Azumanga Daioh")

**DanS** · March 23, 2003, 21:43

Miyazaki's Spirited Away wins Oscar for animated feature!

**Wraith** · March 23, 2003, 21:50

Bah. You beat me to it.

Anyway, looks like the Academy went for the appearance of legitimacy after all.

Wraith
"Hurray! Hurray! Hurray, hurray, hurray!"
-- Kaorin ("Azumanga Daioh")

**SnowFire** · March 24, 2003, 03:40

Yay! Super-long post mostly for my own records. But nothing like an excuse to write down mini-reviews to be stored for future use.

Imagine my surprise at finding more anime recently than I've had access to perhaps for the past two years. This is what happens when a DirectConnect hub opens at your college and you have empty hard drive space to fill. Not that I'm a huge fan of theft, but being that I generally watched what other people bought before, there was at least more legitimacy in free watches that way. Sigh. Guess you can't stay innocent and cheap forever.

Read or Die was pretty good. I couldn't quite give it a good read at first- I couldn't tell how serious it wanted to be- but once I figured it out, each episode was better than the previous. Sure, it's a bit standard kill-most-of-the-world plot, but it involves the most cracked use of Beethoven ever, so I don't mind. My only two complaints (aside from a weaker start) were A) Considering the spaghetti technology they were using most of it, why not enhance the feel even more and set it in the 1920's or 30's? Or even earlier, to Victorian times? And B), if you're going to set it in modern times, you can have poor Drake be more effective. He's got all these guns and fun gadgets, but they never seem to work!

The Anime Club was showing Neon Genesis: Evangelion recently. I skipped most of the showings having seen it already. I did however tune in for the last episodes, because they were the "director's cut" versions not released in the States for some reason. I also had never seen episodes 25 or 26 before. Most of the stuff they added was interesting, too. I don't recall Karou chatting with SEELE outright (and also explaining some stuff that makes more sense in light of end: about Angels being from Adam, humans from Lillith, etc.), and they also explain the bit about Gendo getting a piece of Adam stuck in his hand (something I was just told outright before, allegeldy being in Death & Rebirth). That said, Episodes 25 and 26 were just as pointless and irrelevant as I was warned- episode 25 in particular. We know they hate themselves, get on with it! I truly feel sorry for people watching these before End of Eva, since they had to have made absolutely no sense not knowing the plot around them or what the devil Instrumentality was. The only part I liked was the weird alternate-universe where we entered a totally different realm of anime.

Speaking of Hideki Anno-inspired shojou, the big surprise for me recently was Kare Kanno/His and Her Circumstances (this a legitimate borrow from someone who owns the series mind, or at least my roommate legitimately borrowed it). After the horrible soul-pain that was 1 and a half episodes of Brother, Dear Brother, I knew that I hated straight-shojou. The 1 bad episode of Love Hina I saw convinced me that most romantic comedies were probably too crass. And yet along comes this incredibly charming anime that manages to, at the same time, be incredibly cute & funny while still being... there's gotta be a better word... realistic. My roommate went to a high school with even more of that as an issue, but I know that I knew people who wore their own masks and were quite different in private than public. Anyway, all the characters are just fun, even when they're being evil. Definitely an Anno production though, what with the internal monologues- but Miyazawa is far more enjoyable to watch panic internally, being that she's a machine gun in speed & quality compared to Shinji's broken record. Oh well, my only worry is that stretching the series out to 26 episodes, they might be forced to manufacture antagonists in a somewhat forced way. Still, having a limit at all prevents the soap opera problem of totally random hearts and people who never learn. I've quite liked the first 11 episodes, and even if the rest of the show is less interesting, I've still been more than satisfied, considering my expectations were so low.

In a freak of fate, I managed to see, at last, the final 2 episodes of Boogiepop Phantom (actually, more legitimate CDs here). Where of course they explain everything. Kind of makes me want to go back and watch the series again, to see if I can better pick out some of the plot twists hiding in plain sight and not have the 3 month memory gap. Still, a strong ending helps redeem the show from "flawed but with good ideas" to "flawed but still pretty darn cool."

I got to see a wee bit of Wolf's Rain, fansubbed. Considering that the person introducing it said it was done from people who left Sunrise (who do some of the best anime out there), I'm totally surprised at how incredibly non-gripping it is. I feel just no particular inclination at all to find out more. The fact that only 1 of the 4 wolves is likable and the humans don't get enough screentime probably factor in. Maybe it gets better later. As a last note, I wonder if Yoko Kanno only did the opening song, or if she composed the rest of the series? If she did do the rest, it's one of her weakest scores, at least so far. Totally forgetable.

And lastly, there's what's probably occupied most of my viewing time recently, .hack//SIGN. I downloaded the first episode off of DirectConnect on a total lark; I wasn't interested in it, being that from what I heard about sequelitis, it was probably one of those over-long series that stretches on far too much. Imagine my surprise when the first episode just ridiculously rules, setting the stage incredibly well while bringing up all sorts of interesting dilemmas and mysteries. Not to mention that aside from the terrible opening theme, the music was excellent, and there was lots of it. I hurridely downloaded the rest.
And yet... yet... argh! This is a series with a lot of potential, but unfortunately my initial fears may have been correct. This series advances the plot slooooow. And I mean slow. Now this isn't always a bad thing. For instance, the first 11 or so episodes of Witch Hunter Robin advance the main plot slowly... but there's a subplot every episode that occupies most of your- and the character's- attention. There's hints of a greater plot, but you have to look for it yourself, and it gradually takes more and more precedence until it explodes onto the stage later. To a lesser extent, you could say the same about Evangelion- early episodes have subplots involving Angel attacks, or school, or whatever, and the truth about SEELE and the whole operation doesn't come until later, but it's hinted at early.
That's now how it works in .hack. Almost all of these episodes are focused on "the plot," it's just that they don't get very far. Of the episodes I've seen (up to 20), precisely one has had to do with a fun unconnected subplot to help build characters and set the world (episode 7). The amount of plot advancement in episodes 2-14 (the functional first season, since 14 ends with a cliffhanger) could have been done in 3 episodes by other shows. Considering how much some shows rush, 2 episodes if you were in a hurry.
There's also a bizzare hesitance to use antagonists. There are at least two mysterious entities at work, but they're much more behind-the-scenes types. Tsukasa, the main character, has lots of excuses generated by the 1st episode to throw stuff at him. But it's like the creator liked his characters too much, and didn't want them to suffer, and keeps on shielding them from possible enemies. Not going to go into detail so as not to spoil things, but you get the picture. I'll also say that I'm a bit worried by 2 somewhat recent plot twists, both of which ended up being "nice" when they could have been "mean" (or "realistic," as much as that makes sense).
Another odd thing is that aside from the 9 major characters, virtually nobody else has speaking parts. Sure, there's the very, very occasional other traveler they talk to, but for an MMORPG, they sure seem to manage to ignore other random people pretty well (exception: episode 7, again). This hinders the appreciation of the world a bit- I never got to know the people in the marketplace of Asturia that well, or Allen's crew on the Crusade, or the other Dragonslayers, but they talked and affirmed their existence in Escaflowne. It's like some secret coterie are the only people who care about the mystery of Tsukasa in .hack.
Anyway, this is weird. Due to its lack of subplots that are enjoyable in and of themselves regardless of how dissapointing the end might be (Escaflowne is great despite a weak ending, and WHR will still be great even if its ending turns out as dissapointing as claimed), .hack has a lot riding on how they resolve the main plot, which I still don't know what they'll do with. It still has sharp animation, great music, and mostly likable characters (okay, one character sets a new definition for "marshmallow," but perhaps she'll improve). It just better do something interesting to close things up on this chapter.

**Wraith** · March 24, 2003, 08:50

--"Read or Die was pretty good."

Yomiko's super power has got to be the most unique I've ever seen. Fun show.

--"The Anime Club was showing Neon Genesis: Evangelion recently."

As I understand it, the Director's Cut versions of the last four or so episodes would have required a seperate license for some reason, so ADV didn't pull it off. Gainax has a history of being pretty tight on licensing terms, and Evangelion takes it to an extreme, even for them.

Episode 25 and 26 are not irrelevant, however. They just highlight the real nature of the show, which is admittedly a bit of a shock to all the people who thought they were watching a mecha anime ^_^

--"the big surprise for me recently was Kare Kanno"

First, I'm going to mention that the upcoming Voice of a Distant Star will include a short by the same director that's a parody of this. She and Her Cat (Kanojo to Kanojo no Neko).

Secondly, it does start of very good. I'll recommend that you should take a look at the manga, which covers more story than the series does.
The show does run into problems later on, however. Production of the anime caught up with the manga storylines, and they kind of go off on their own. They don't do it nearly as well as the manga does, so don't expect the quality to stay high all the way through. They also end the anime right in the middle of a story arc, so don't expect a resolution.

If you liked Kare Kano, you might also want to check out Fruits Basket.

--"In a freak of fate, I managed to see, at last, the final 2 episodes of Boogiepop Phantom"

This one is definitely worth another watch.

--"I got to see a wee bit of Wolf's Rain, fansubbed."

Like a lot of shows these days, it's got high production values, but the rest of it isn't that stellar. What I've seen of it seems solid enough, but nothing amazing.

There actually aren't a lot of series currently running in Japan that I'm following. A couple OVAs (Hunter X Hunter - Greed Island; Jungle wa Itsumo, Hare Nochi Guu Deluxe; Yokohama Kaidashi Kikou), a long running TV show that will never get licensed (Hikaru no Go), and I'm kind of keeping an eye on Mahou Tsukai ni Taisetsu na Koto.
There are some series coming out this year I'm looking forward to, like the ROD TV series, but this looks like a fairly slow year.

--"And lastly, there's what's probably occupied most of my viewing time recently, .hack//SIGN."

I did warn people about this one. It's got an interesting concept and high production values, but having seen the series what it mostly turns out to be is a long commercial for the games.
The main plot is only partially resolved in the series itself. To find out the rest of the story you have to play the games and watch the other series.

Wraith
"If you're talking about forgetfulness, I won't lose to you."
-- Osaka ("Azumanga Daioh")

**SnowFire** · March 24, 2003, 17:15

Episode 25 and 26 are not irrelevant, however. They just highlight the real nature of the show, which is admittedly a bit of a shock to all the people who thought they were watching a mecha anime ^_^

If you still thought you were watching a mecha anime during any of the second season, you had best be under 15 years old. I liked the plot of Evangelion and the whole internal debates, but I liked them to be in balance with the plot. Eps 25 & 26 are all the internal debates from End without the actual plot explaining what the heck they're talking about. And even knowing the plot, it's not like they complain about anything new. We had already gotten to know most of their psychoses by this time... oh well.

The show does run into problems later on, however.

Afraid of that, but whatever. As said before, the first part's enjoyable, and if the rest is skippable, it'll be skipped.

but having seen the series what it mostly turns out to be is a long commercial for the games.

Now this I'll disagree with. Perhaps an incentive to play the games with regards to continuing the plot, but they haven't sold the game itself much at all. By which I mean, for an MMORPG, there's an amazing lack of fighting. Not that that's the only thing that sells a game, of course, but I can't begin to tell you much about how "The World" works in terms of mechanics or organizations or anything. To be honest, I'd be up for more of a commericial, if it made me feel like I knew "The World" better.

**DeathByTheSword** · March 24, 2003, 17:16

what kassi didnt even responded on this one? shame on you!

**Wraith** · March 25, 2003, 08:42

With the Oscar win, there's a rumor that Spirited Away will see another, widespread this time, theatrical release. Nothing but rumors yet, but it wouldn't surprise me. Disney just got a bunch of free advertising for it, after all.

--"Eps 25 & 26 are all the internal debates from End"

There have been so many rumors around these two episodes that it's hard to tell what really happened at Gainax. The main story seems to be that they ran into major budget problems and had to go with these instead of their original intentions, which was basically EoE. Not sure how much credit to give that one, though.

--"Perhaps an incentive to play the games"

Exactly. But you'll get more of an idea what I mean after you finish the series.

--"what kassi didnt even responded on this one?"

Drag 'em on in if you have to

But, more seriously, it is kind of pointless for me to keep running these threads if I'm making half the posts in them. Maybe I should either spread them out more or just plain stop.

Wraith
"How did you end up making a 2000 horse-power cyborg out of an accident victim?"
"My hand slipped."
-- ("Prefectural Earth Defense Force")

**Paul Hanson** · March 25, 2003, 08:48

Thanks to my nice new broadband connection, it's finally become reasonable for me to download entire episodes of stuff off Kazaa, so I've started by getting as much of Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex. Only seen the first 4 eps so far, but it's looking pretty good so far.

I also managed to win a copy of End of Eva on DVD, but since I haven't seen the series (I've seen the odd episode, but that's it) it made practically no sense to me whatsoever.

**Kassiopeia** · March 25, 2003, 10:13

I haven't posted much in these threads, since these mostly cover new stuff that has been released in the US. I'm soon leaving the phase where I catch up with all the 'classics' like Cowboy Bebop and Escaflowne. That, and I have a tendency to drop into "Evangelion ramble" mode. ^^;;

Also the fact that I haven't got any anime DVD's or even tapes yet makes me feel like an 'inferior' otaku, then again, I am not eighteen yet so I can't get a credit card, I don't have a DVD player, and anime in Finland is horribly expensive. But still... I'm embarrassed for not having anything legal.

Originally posted by Wraith
There have been so many rumors around these two episodes that it's hard to tell what really happened at Gainax. The main story seems to be that they ran into major budget problems and had to go with these instead of their original intentions, which was basically EoE. Not sure how much credit to give that one, though.

But they pulled it off excellently, in my opinion. I've read another version that says that episode 25 was meant to be more like the episode 25 in the TV series, and episode 26 was supposed to be more like EoE. But I'm not taking anything as a fact unless it comes from GAiNAX (which is very, very unlikely) or, better yet, Anno himself (and the chances of that happening are astronomical). I do hope they'll keep this to themselves and not explain Evangelion; the Red Cross Book already was a bit too comprehensive, IMHO.

Personally I liked the last two episodes, on my first viewing I watched them, and didn't see EoE until after my third viewing. Of course, I had not expectations in the sense that it was the first anime I ever saw, and I had been told by the friend who made me watch it (my thanks to him) that the end would be very surreal. Also, I tend to like endings where things aren't explained to their fullest; I enjoy pondering what the hell happens during the last two episodes.

Originally posted by Paul Hanson
I also managed to win a copy of End of Eva on DVD, but since I haven't seen the series (I've seen the odd episode, but that's it) it made practically no sense to me whatsoever.

I always get violent

when someone says they have watched the eps out of numerical order, or they've watched oly EoE. That is exactly the way to ruin Evangelion! I already got a reputation as a raving lunatic after what I did when an acquintance told me he had watched eps 1, 2, and then 25 and 26 right away. That is just wrong.

**Wraith** · March 25, 2003, 21:26

--"so I've started by getting as much of Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex."

It's not bad. Solid cyberpunkish sci-fi. I'm still not sure where they're going with the story, although they finally revelead some info about the Laughing Man. We'll see how it goes.

--"I haven't posted much in these threads, since these mostly cover new stuff"

Well, feel free to talk about anything. I'm just focusing on the new stuff since I'm kind of the Otaku Vanguard of the forum ^_^
I wouldn't mind seeing discussion on the older stuff (including the ones that actually are old), but I'm not too likely to be starting it myself.

--"anime in Finland is horribly expensive."

Holds pretty true everywhere. Check out Japanese prices some time. (I should know, I've started collecting R2 DVDs...)

--"Personally I liked the last two episodes, "

I do too, but I can understand how the sudden change of gears would throw people off.

--"That is exactly the way to ruin Evangelion!"

Or most anime, really. Although I'm noticing that the comedic ones tend to be getting more and more episodic lately.

You know, surely someone else around here has seen at least a little Haibane Renmei by now...

Uh-oh... just had a horrible thought. I should see if the mods would be willing to change my title to Otaking...

Wraith
"You're not supposed to attack when I'm in the middle of striking a pose!"
-- Pretty Sammi ("Magical Project S")

**SnowFire** · March 25, 2003, 22:07

But, more seriously, it is kind of pointless for me to keep running these threads if I'm making half the posts in them. Maybe I should either spread them out more or just plain stop.

Spread them out more, maybe, but sometimes somebody new drops in, and there's generally some interesting comments. The other place I post on has an Anime forum instead of an occasional thread, and I never post there because they're all idiots. Well, 98%. I enjoy having one thread every two months or so where people can actually reason out opinions well...

You know, surely someone else around here has seen at least a little Haibane Renmei by now...

Well, that'll perhaps be something I talk about next Anime Apolyton, being that I found the first 9 or so episodes off of DirectConnect. I held off watching because I wanted to ideally get the whole series first before starting in, to prevent gap problems I've had lately. Plus I was in the middle of .hack, which I expect I'll finish up soon.

Also, I tend to like endings where things aren't explained to their fullest; I enjoy pondering what the hell happens during the last two episodes.

Heh, I agree that confusing but fair endings are fun. But that's what I'd say about EoE: I was still thinking "Huh?!?" after watching it all. It was only after thinking about it more and talking with friends that we managed to puzzle some sense out of it, and then it became pretty neat.

If you managed to get that out of Eps 25&26, more power to you, but they don't really give you any tools to work with to understand why Instrumentality has come about. You just jump right on in. Again, having seen EoE first, I knew, but I think I would have hated it even more if I hadn't seen EoE.

I don't have a DVD player

Just get a CD/DVD drive next time you upgrade/buy a new computer. I'm surprised they aren't standard.

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