Novice Anime Discussion Part I (1 Viewer)

[Zen Butler]

. By the way, what kind of supplements does the DVD have?

Basically chapters and a grip of trailers. Do not fret Christopher, I never base my decision on one episode. I will finish it, then give you my review as promised. As far as parallels to Blade Runner, I don't quite see it yet, except for the cyberpunk overtones. Although Blade Runner's source material is hardly cyberpunk but one of the foundations there of.

My hype right now is ABe. Haibane Renmei is beautiful work. Would love to see ABe's Ronishki (sp?) issue.

 

[Zen Butler]

One other note:

Do you anime fans every get heated about how much you're expected to spend on dvd's? I think you guys are getting the shaft considering how much you spend, compared to what you receive.
Along with fans of foreign film (like myself), I think our/your pockets are taken advantage of. [/end observation]

 

[ChristopherDAC]

Very true, very true. And people wonder why I buy used LaserDiscs for $5 or $10... of course, I often don't get so many episodes to the disc, so I guess in the long run it evens out. The high price does force me to make sure I want to watch something over and over again before I commit to buying, though; then again some people just buy whatever comes down the pike and go broke .
Here is Greenwood wasn't licensed recently -- it's been out on one of the CPM labels, Media Blasters I guess, for the better part of a decade. I found it interesting, but never came across the LDs at a price I was willing to pay [for the level of interest it excited]. Probably the biggest problem is its status as a few animated chapters from a long-running manga; it does not stand alone too well.

 

[Alanna]

Um hi. I've never posted here. In fact, I never noticed this before. What's the difference between this and the other anime thread? I don't get it.

Anyway... err um.... I think Armitage III is just fine for the beginner anime fan. It was one of the first anime programs I got into (thanx Sci-Fi) and my mother (who had never seen any anime other than Unico) also loved it. I think the Armitage III: Polymatrix movie has a better ending and is more action oriented. The OVA gets more into the political side of things. The movie is just really cut up from the OVA but who cares? The two fit together well.

 

[ChristopherDAC]

Tony: it's fine by me if you want to trim the list to 5 in each category, but if so may I suggest disentangling the categories? What I mean is, instead of having one "comedy" category, &c., and a "movie" category, have:
COMEDY [OVA]
COMEDY [MOVIE]
COMEDY [TV]

and so on.

...referring, of course, to their original Japanese release, not to the fact that U.S. providers will edit a series to a movie, or strip an OVA over a couple of weeks of television...

I do find that the dub for Armitage loses some of the emotional content, although it is fairly well done. And that ridiculous dialogue polish! "Shitload of cowboys out the ass..."

 

[Rob Lutter]

Of course there are only like 5 good OVA comedies if you think about it...
Ranma 1/2 OVA
Fushigi Yuugi Oni OVA
Tenchi Muyo! OVA
El Hazard OVA
Otaku no Video OVA

 

[Tony-B]

ChristopherDAC, I like the idea you have, but that would mean like 15 titles per genre (when you include movies, series, and ova) which will make the list even bigger and harder to work with!

 

[Alanna]

Tony: All I have to say is if you cut Fruits Basket, someone is gonna get it! heh. That and Chobits too!

 

[ChristopherDAC]

I think, with a superior organisational schema, a larger list would actually be easier to manage --but your point granted, you could still do, say 3 TV/ 2 OVA/ 2 movies, which makes only 7; part of the reason each listing is a clogged as it is, is just the entanglement of various items in my opinion. Personally I prefer the shorter OVA series, but TV is what is available in quantity now, so one might do well to weight it more heavily.

 

[Tony-B]

All I have to say is if you cut Fruits Basket, someone is gonna get it! heh. That and Chobits too!

That's my problem with cutting stuff. People let their personal biases get them all worked up...

Christopher, good idea, but I don't know what I'll do yet. I need to think about it.

 

[Alanna]

Yeah but I think anyone that's seen Fruits Basket would agree. Is there anyone that watched the whole thing that didn't just absolutely LOVE it? Probably not

 

[Zen Butler]

+Cry baby ahead+


I just finished Haibane Renmei. I must say I have not been moved by any piece of film like this in a long while. What a beautiful piece of work. This one required a few hankies.

Now, don't leave me hangin' guys. Anything else, that's serious along these lines? More suggestions please.



BTW, when can I post in that other thread?

 

[ChristopherDAC]

You know, I don't think there's a definite rule; I'm sure that this thread has been used mostly for discussion of what the beginner should watch, while the other contains a good deal of general discussion. If it were up to me I would say: when you have watched, and formed definite opinions concerning, at least 10 complete anime [TV series, OVA series, oneshot OVAs, movie series, or oneshot movies]. Actually, I would say when you have bought at least 10 complete anime -- except we have poor Tony to consider and there are also several people around here who just buy anything without forming an opinion about it first. This is not an option for me, of course, since I have to scrounge for my fix :b . For reference, I have 20 complete anime [more or less] and 9 incomplete, of which at least 1 I do not desire to complete, my "definite opinion" being that I want only that volume of that particular series.

 

[DaveGTP]

Zen -

If you liked Haibane and Lain so much, I am going to suggest along the slow-paced, character driven shows.

I would highly suggest Kino's Journey - it's very philosophical, sometimes surprising, and has slower pacing like Haibane and Lain. They are on disc 2 (or maybe 3) right now.

Stacey and I both have been enjoying Kino's Journey a LOT. And Stacey's favorite animes are from ABE.

 

[Zen Butler]

Dave, I saw a preview to this and had it on a maybe. Looks as if this one would be a good blind buy.

Come on you crafty veterans, give me a few more.

Rob?
Tony?

Next purchases:

Kino's Journey
Neia_7

 

[Rob Lutter]

Do you want a show other than ABe-related? Tell me a genre and I'll give you a rec

 

[ChristopherDAC]

I don't know about Niea_7; I've watched the first two discs, and I found it kind of annoying. It may be that there is a story there developing towards resolution, but it's slow, and the show itself [of course, I was compelled to listen to the dub, so this may not be wholly fair] is grating and just about sets my teeth on edge. This is one which I would watch all at one go, not because I can't wait to see what comes next, but because I just want it to be over already. Sed, de gustibus non disputandum est.

 

[Zen Butler]

Do you want a show other than ABe-related? Tell me a genre and I'll give you a rec

Rob, I'm well aware now of all the ABe related work. I do though like the more serious drama. Spiritual or mythical overtones are cool.

I noticed in the "recommendations" thread there wasn't a Drama or serious category.

 

[Rob Lutter]

Well, if you want a serious story about love with a pinch of comedy thrown in... check out Kare Kano.

My favorite drama/action/character-driven show has to be...... X: TV, which comes from the omnipresent mangaka, CLAMP. I think a few other people around here can back me up, it's one HELL of a series! Don't bother with the movie though, I picked it up for $5 and I doubt I'd ever watch it again.

Another great space opera is The Crest of the Stars/The Banner of the Stars/The Banner of the Stars II series. Great mix of drama, characterization, and a little bit of comedy in a space setting. Tony really likes Crest, but I like Banner a little more myself Crest is available in the brick for a pretty low price and the other 2 series are both 3-disc individual releases.

If you're looking for a great "girl gets sucked into a mythical world" story... check out The Vision of Escaflowne and Fushigi Yuugi. Both are great drama series and mangage to sneak some action and comedy in there too. (Escaflowne even has some mech action if you're into that )

And I can't stress enough... Mobile Suit Gundam. Check out the movie boxset... because the individuals only feature the REALLY REALLY bad english dub. Gotta love the Char!

 

[DaveGTP]

I'd run a few more recommendations by you, Zen, but my favorite movie ever is Fellowship of the Ring I saw one of your posts in the movies that offend you thread mention LOTR, so I can tell there is some difference of opinion.


I will comment on Rob's suggestions though:

Escaflowne is a well balanced fantasy show (the robots are really more magical fighting machines) that spends some time visiting the idea of destiny and foretelling the future. I really thought the movie was "EHhh", though, so if you are going to try it, stick to the series.

Crest/Banner of the Stars is a favorite of quite a few of us around here. It has slow pacing and a character driven story - it's not really about stuff blowing up like you would expect of a scifi anime show. It's really more of a space opera show.