I decided it was about time to check out Angel Beats (have ignored a bunch of shows just so I can pick them up near the end). Damn I like it. I'm a sweet tooth, and some parts are pretty damned sweet.
So, uh, House of Five Leaves is kind of completely amazing. The animation style, the music, the historical accuracy . . .
Can anyone recommend similar shows?
The problem with House of Five Leaves is that it is such a singular work, which makes a request like yours very difficult to fill. Right now, I can't think of any really historically accurate samurai stories in anime. However, Japanese live action and manga do a much better job in this category. I would recommend Lone Wolf and Cub by Kazuo Koike and Goseki Kojima for samurai manga. In live action, the works of Akira Kurosawa are an excellent choice.
However, if you mean that you like the art style, then I highly recommend other works by Natsume Ono. As of yet, the only other animation that has been made of her work is Ristorante Paradiso, which significantly cleans up her art style (see below). Her manga titles like the aforementioned Ristorante Paradiso and not simple are excellent and are released by Viz.
Ah Dragonball Z. So damn bad, but it's what got me into anime. It's like getting jumped into a gang. Except getting jumped only takes about an hour, and nobody screams before they hit you.
I just finished Toaru (or is it To Aru? I have no idea.) Majutsu no Index, which somehow managed to hold on to a bare minimum of my attention until the end. About halfway through Railgun now, and I'm liking it a bit more, despite the fact that they managed to put in more creepy fanservice of underage girls than Index had. That shit just isn't as awesome as it was when I was 16...
Every thing I've seen is with space. And applause to you. I jumped ship on that show when amnesia became a plot element, and apparently it gets ridiculous on the exposition level, is that true?
I never noticed it getting overly exposition-heavy, but I'm used to ignoring that kind of stuff because most shows telegraph their big reveals. The first season is basically split into about three or four discreet story arcs that have very little to do with each other, apart from using the same characters. They're each not too bad in and of themselves, but the show as a whole is pretty forgettable, and they never really take any of the interesting stuff and run with it. And the amnesia stuff wasn't too bad, since they didn't really use it as a cheap plot device or deus ex machina, but it's just another potentially interesting plot point that ends up going nowhere.
Railgun is, as far as I've watched, a bit better. The story seems to hang together better, possibly because they didn't have to stitch together a half dozen separate stories into one narrative. The borderline-pedophile moe shit seems to decline as the show goes on, but it might shoot right back up once it's past the dramatic moment I'm at right now.
The borderline-pedophile moe shit seems to decline as the show goes on, but it might shoot right back up once it's past the dramatic moment I'm at right now.
You'll just have to live through the few times the room mate with the annoying voice goes sex-crazed on Railgun. Oh yeah, I totally forgot the main characters' names and handled it smoothly.
What an unsatisfying ending. I accepted the show's slow pace because I was under the impression it would go somewhere - it did not. Practically nothing happened. Incredibly anticlimactic, and so much wasn't resolved, particularly concerning Masa's problems. Not to mention that the supporting characters felt useless at the end, and Otake (the ex-prostitute) didn't even get a backstory episode like the others. Bleh. Does anyone know if the story in the manga continues past where the anime ended? I'm wondering how different the manga is and if it has the same faults.
Also: super shounen-ai vibes, osnap. I got them from the first episode too, but convinced myself it was just my fujoshi imagination. Nope! Too bad that didn't go anywhere, either.
I'm copy/pasting my thoughts on the anime Working!!, as how I thought of the show as a whole.
"For the series...I'd give it a 6 out of 10. It's a very split type of anime in terms of pros and cons. Some of the characters are lovable and understandably quirky, while others are just downright annoying and far-too-flawed. The comedy is fresh and it does lots of different things compared to a normal anime, but it's humor is very repetitive. I feel like you that in order to truly like this series, you'd have to like the character of Inami and have a good suspension of disbelief. So much of this anime is focused on Inami's character. You definitely have to walk into this knowing it's more of a romantic comedy than a workplace comedy.
I feel like the show really shines with the characters. I'm split between who I like and dislike, but the ones I like, I REALLY like: Takanashi, Poplar, Souma, Yamada and Takanashi's Family. Especially with Takanashi, he to be one of my favorite male leads in a comedy anime I've seen. He's got his own quirks, but he's just so earnest and grounded. I really have to applaud how he was handled during the whole series.
Where I feel like the show fails, is how seriously it takes it self. There are times when it's really comedic what with how everyone acts towards one another, but other times it's really a stretch with what to believe and how some of the quirks take control of the show. This episode is a perfect example with Inami's Androphobia. She's really serious about wanting to fix it and she clearly hates how it controls her life, but yet it's never handled or addressed in the human, natural way to fix it. There are so many jokes about Takanashi getting killed and how the physical violence is handled, it's hard for me to understand how comedic the violence is supposed to be.
If there was a second season, I'd consider watching it. But this is definitely a show that needs progression. I feel like too much of humor is the same with the later episodes. It needs more jokes on life, mixing up words, and situations than the character gags."
I'm really surprised how this show got so popular...
Wait, you are surprised how this show got so Poplar?
Ok, enough with the bad jokes. I have to admit, I'm kind of a sucker for these kinds of shows: The Azumanga Daioh style character comedies. It's just something lighthearted to watch in between and is fun for it. As such I also kinda became attached to this series, but on a 10 scale rating (which I'm not really a big fan of giving out numbers), it wouldn't climb higher than a 7 (though these kinds of shows would rarely climb higher anyhow). There are some very interesting and funny characters, Inami being the obvious novelty factor here. The punch gags actually stayed fresh throughout the series IMHO. It was a running gag but they had some change-up with it, like the scene where Satou explains to Souma how he manages not to get punched, or the visual conveyed force of impact on Takanashi at one point late in the series. At the very least they shied away from the very common gag tropes of the twinkle in the sky punch or the punch sending a character bouncing all over the place.
The series just became popular because it was actually really funny, and perhaps it just struck a nerve of the time. I am actually kinda surprised with myself how I like that series. I am usually very much turned off by gender confusion/crossdressing comedy. However, the crossdressing character actually not wanting to do it, and being embarrassed about it, helped. They also managed to bring in Yamada at the right time. It was just getting a bit stale and they introduced a new, hilarious character that mixed up some character dynamics. I wonder if Maya would have had the same effect if the series had kept on going, but I guess they ended it at the right time. It might have been better to leave her out though. This way it leaves kind of a bad aftertaste of Last Episode, New Character syndrome.
Anyhow, I liked it and it got big props from me for a Ska opening song.
Yeah, I'm not gonna deny the OP was awesome. But, I am a bit annoyed with how people are reacting to it, like it's the best show this season. I think the humor is very hit and miss. But the stuff that hits, hits hard. And you can also give great credit to a show that doesn't have fanservice. (They went to an Onsen, and didn't even go inside it. XD) A lot of it comes down to expectations, like how much romance played a part in the show/character motivation or how Inami was more of the female lead than Poplar.
I want more shows like dragon half, anybody got a recommendation?
I have not seen Dragon Half, but I am under the impression that it is fairly frantic and fast-paced. If that it indeed the case, then I would recommend any anime directed by a guy named Shinichi Watanabe. He directed Excel Saga and Puni Puni Poemi, these are pretty cool things. You should like them.
Theres a HOTD anime? Please tell me they've at least halved the size of the breasts in that show. Those things in motion would be a force to be reckoned with.
Boobs seem to be reduced to safer levels but the mix of zombies and fanservice is definitely weirder in motion.
Comments
Can anyone recommend similar shows?
However, if you mean that you like the art style, then I highly recommend other works by Natsume Ono. As of yet, the only other animation that has been made of her work is Ristorante Paradiso, which significantly cleans up her art style (see below). Her manga titles like the aforementioned Ristorante Paradiso and not simple are excellent and are released by Viz.
The original manga:
I just finished Toaru (or is it To Aru? I have no idea.) Majutsu no Index, which somehow managed to hold on to a bare minimum of my attention until the end. About halfway through Railgun now, and I'm liking it a bit more, despite the fact that they managed to put in more creepy fanservice of underage girls than Index had. That shit just isn't as awesome as it was when I was 16...
Railgun is, as far as I've watched, a bit better. The story seems to hang together better, possibly because they didn't have to stitch together a half dozen separate stories into one narrative. The borderline-pedophile moe shit seems to decline as the show goes on, but it might shoot right back up once it's past the dramatic moment I'm at right now.
Also, there's a second TAM season announced.
What an unsatisfying ending. I accepted the show's slow pace because I was under the impression it would go somewhere - it did not. Practically nothing happened. Incredibly anticlimactic, and so much wasn't resolved, particularly concerning Masa's problems. Not to mention that the supporting characters felt useless at the end, and Otake (the ex-prostitute) didn't even get a backstory episode like the others. Bleh. Does anyone know if the story in the manga continues past where the anime ended? I'm wondering how different the manga is and if it has the same faults.
Also: super shounen-ai vibes, osnap. I got them from the first episode too, but convinced myself it was just my fujoshi imagination. Nope! Too bad that didn't go anywhere, either.
Edit: Maybe I'll just go watch the Avatar series.
"For the series...I'd give it a 6 out of 10. It's a very split type of anime in terms of pros and cons. Some of the characters are lovable and understandably quirky, while others are just downright annoying and far-too-flawed. The comedy is fresh and it does lots of different things compared to a normal anime, but it's humor is very repetitive. I feel like you that in order to truly like this series, you'd have to like the character of Inami and have a good suspension of disbelief. So much of this anime is focused on Inami's character. You definitely have to walk into this knowing it's more of a romantic comedy than a workplace comedy.
I feel like the show really shines with the characters. I'm split between who I like and dislike, but the ones I like, I REALLY like: Takanashi, Poplar, Souma, Yamada and Takanashi's Family. Especially with Takanashi, he to be one of my favorite male leads in a comedy anime I've seen. He's got his own quirks, but he's just so earnest and grounded. I really have to applaud how he was handled during the whole series.
Where I feel like the show fails, is how seriously it takes it self. There are times when it's really comedic what with how everyone acts towards one another, but other times it's really a stretch with what to believe and how some of the quirks take control of the show. This episode is a perfect example with Inami's Androphobia. She's really serious about wanting to fix it and she clearly hates how it controls her life, but yet it's never handled or addressed in the human, natural way to fix it. There are so many jokes about Takanashi getting killed and how the physical violence is handled, it's hard for me to understand how comedic the violence is supposed to be.
If there was a second season, I'd consider watching it. But this is definitely a show that needs progression. I feel like too much of humor is the same with the later episodes. It needs more jokes on life, mixing up words, and situations than the character gags."
I'm really surprised how this show got so popular...
Ok, enough with the bad jokes. I have to admit, I'm kind of a sucker for these kinds of shows: The Azumanga Daioh style character comedies. It's just something lighthearted to watch in between and is fun for it. As such I also kinda became attached to this series, but on a 10 scale rating (which I'm not really a big fan of giving out numbers), it wouldn't climb higher than a 7 (though these kinds of shows would rarely climb higher anyhow). There are some very interesting and funny characters, Inami being the obvious novelty factor here. The punch gags actually stayed fresh throughout the series IMHO. It was a running gag but they had some change-up with it, like the scene where Satou explains to Souma how he manages not to get punched, or the visual conveyed force of impact on Takanashi at one point late in the series. At the very least they shied away from the very common gag tropes of the twinkle in the sky punch or the punch sending a character bouncing all over the place.
The series just became popular because it was actually really funny, and perhaps it just struck a nerve of the time. I am actually kinda surprised with myself how I like that series. I am usually very much turned off by gender confusion/crossdressing comedy. However, the crossdressing character actually not wanting to do it, and being embarrassed about it, helped. They also managed to bring in Yamada at the right time. It was just getting a bit stale and they introduced a new, hilarious character that mixed up some character dynamics. I wonder if Maya would have had the same effect if the series had kept on going, but I guess they ended it at the right time. It might have been better to leave her out though. This way it leaves kind of a bad aftertaste of Last Episode, New Character syndrome.
Anyhow, I liked it and it got big props from me for a Ska opening song.
Boobs seem to be reduced to safer levels but the mix of zombies and fanservice is definitely weirder in motion.
They're packing the cliches in there pretty tight.
I have seen the future of fanservice.. and it is giggling butts, everywhere.