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Jun 27, 2017
Did you ever get that feel of "this could be great if" while reading or watching something? This feel is exactly what this anime is about. A story with huge potential, but undermined. Undermined by the author's lack of proper writing skills. By conventions of a degenerated form of writing. And by a not so good adaptation.
This show can pass by as your average light novel adaptation with ease. Hella long title you won't remember no matter what. A cast of characters with names difficult to read or memorize. Male MC that shoves up people's ass his set of morals once in a while. MC's
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love interest that goes melodramatic and cry several times. Yet you can find here the tragedy of a man. A man that lost everything, and ends up in some state of suspended animation until he is awaken many years later in a "foreign" world (Captain America, huh?). The cute heroine is actually a weapon of mass destruction that can die any time for the sake of the world. High stakes for the love interests and the risk of emotional loss could make this a great love story, right?
Problem is, the show couldn't decide whenever it wanted to be a dull light novel adaptation or a good story. This leaded to a confusing presentation and lack of self-awareness. Say, they present you with a little depth of Willem's character. It is reedeming and set him as a "not your typical LN male MC at all". And, show a few seconds later one of the most cringe-inducing reactions that a plain tsundere girl can have. Breakdowns like this are destructive to suspension of disbelief.
But in the long run, the show saves itself from the mediocrity valley. Remember the love story? What blooms here is the most organic romance I have seen in anime, at least in a while. Never two people falling in love with each other felt so natural. Chtholly (I swear I didn't look up the character list) slowly evolves into a housewife in hopes to become a better person for Willem. Willem in turn tries to overcome his own fears of another loss so he can give Chtholly the love she deserves. Both of them reach the stage of mutual love step by step. It's simple, but it works.
The show goes up and down since episode one, between LN's conventions and good writing. There's a immersive post-apocalyptic setting. A well-tied set of emotional stakes, great OST and some gorgeous visuals. But there are one-sided characters, with single tropes defining them. Also a typical LN setup, and some crappy CGI.
As bad as this series might sound, it's good enough. At least, the LN medium isn't completely doomed. The guy who wrote this is talented, but needs to polish his skills and broaden his writing experience, which seems narrow yet.
"How do you fall in love at the end of the world?" - This alone would be a better name, although still long. Keep your titles short and easy to read they say. The name "SukaSuka" means nothing to me. So how I'm supposed to call for this show?
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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Jun 15, 2017
"They come without asking, and then they leave just the same. But once you meet them, even if nobody ever knows it, that encounter will change your life for the better". This quote by Natsume Takashi might be the best to describe what this show feels like. Episodic experiences between him and youkai.
As the episodes passes by, we see how Takashi grows and adapts to his condition. Except that, this growth is at a snail's pace. This arises a question. How many of these experiences are meaningful to the story and to Takashi? If that sounds like my problem with the series, I got bad
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news. I'm assured that if this was the only issue of this show, it would be among my favorites right now.
What breaks this anime's potential is the easy prediction of the plot. Usually two options can preceed or follow whatever that happens. And you can foresee the outcomes often with no effort. As you get used to the anime structure, you will notice that the plot can't go anywhere out of its zone of comfort. Why? Because the story setting doesn't let it at all. In a more realistic approach, Takashi would be either lost or dead with ease. Or, have at least another social breakdown. And, the world of youkai shows itself to be too dangerous to a powerless human. So, whenever Takashi is in danger, there are two ifs. If the action is from a helping party, someone (or his own powerful punch) pops up to save him. If the action is from an enemy, the youkai/villain either kidnapps him or give up on trying if it's a resolution point.
Takashi's positive development accounts for the most beautiful moments of the series. But this spiral of positiveness also cripples the possibilities for the story. The result is the feel that there's no actual risks or stakes since everything ends alright. Takashi must end with a positive outcome, or the whole setting would fall apart otherwise. And in the end of the day, there's nothing else for the series to do to explore new grounds. Except for having our MC to meet more youkai and get more involved with them. This is what gives volume to the series. Takashi's development is minor. You'll only notice a major difference by the third season. Which, is currently the best season of Natsume Yuujinchou.
This is a good series for a weekly, seasonal watch. The visuals are fair enough and the animation is often dull, but this don't detach anything from the anime. Soundtracks are relaxing and go on with the mood. But, expect to see them (along with the art) being the same along the seasons. There are some emotional moments that can or can not hit close to home. But, the selling point of the show that makes me recommend it to anyone is Nyanko-sensei. He is just... Hilarious. I've seen myself many times laughing at his round, fat face.
For a series claimed by many as "emotional", it's kind of a disappointment. But it's still a heart warming experience. To those needing a show to watch once in a while to relax, this is a nice pick. Too bad that for the most of it, the series almost fails to make justice to its own fame. In the end of the day, Natsume Yuujinchou isn't a dramatic tale of the sorts. It's a collection of episodic, often funny adventures of Takashi and his cat.
Reviewer’s Rating: 5
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May 13, 2017
The fall of Gintama, by a fan of the series.
Back in winter 2016, Gintama° was pulling out the two greatest arcs of the series. And, one of the best action-drama sequences ever seen in the shounen genre. The amateur studio BN Pictures was in a pinch with the production. Yet Sorachi's writing was shining at its brightest, pushing the series to a whole new level. After the end of the Farewell Shinsengumi arc, Sorachi had two options. He could keep pushing higher, to scale up the series' finale with the power of the previous arcs. Or he could go through the lazy writing route. Sad
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thing he did choose the latter.
It is important to note that this is the same old Gintama, at least on a surface level. The comedy, now less frequent, is still on point. The basic plotline of the "story arcs" still the same. Lack of comedy might turn off some fans, but it's not a problem at all. What was not done right then? Why one of my favorite titles felt so mediocre in this particular season?
Emotional stakes. Not the lack of them, but the distance of them from the plot stakes. Picture this: A beloved one of yours turns into a evil monster. He wants to end his own misery but he can't do it himself. Then he realises the only way he could do this is to destroy planet earth. And the way he finds to achieve his goal is to provoke a universal-scale war. Now you see yourself going to a foreign planet far from home to... Do you see the problem here? We are going too many places and too far away only to get to a single point: The clash between Gintoki and Utsuro. All these light-years made plot and emotional stakes too apart from each other. Now the story is involving a lot of people, parties, places and actions. And all these have little to nothing to do with the emotional conflict. Tying emotional and plot stakes together is no easy task. Creating big ass events to see the action roll and nothing else sounds far easier, right?
Besides, the visuals looks the same from the last cour of Gintama°. Nothing impressive, as expected from a low-budget production. One of the most disappointing aspects though, is the lack of new OSTs. Sure, they added some new sound, but they for the most reused tracks from previous seasons. Almost every major arc from the 2015 season had their own OSTs, so what happened?
Most fans of the series will still love to their hearts this season. Shounen genre addicts can still find a good deal of enjoyment here. But, if you are one of the few people that loved Gintama for the writing gems it pulled out (aside the comedy), for poetic arcs like Mitsuba or Red Spider, for heartbreaking drama from Shogun Assassination and Farewell Shinsengumi arcs... Better stop. The next arc, Silver Soul, is by far only a bigger fest of the same meals compared to Rakuyo arc. Stop here, and save yourself from watching the fall of Gintama.
Reviewer’s Rating: 4
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Apr 23, 2017
Self-awareness might be the best friend of otherwise average to bad shows. The most recent example of how this works well might be Boku no Hero Academia. It doesn't promise you anything it can't deliver. And you get exactly what you were looking for, nothing more, nothing less. Sounds like a fair deal, right? With that in mind, Dragon Maid tries to do the same - this time among the vast ocean of slice of life mediocrities.
Many comment on the cute girls, casual humor, light fanservice and KyoAni's visuals. But what this show actually revolves around is often missed. Kobayashi is an office lady who
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used to live alone until Tohru and Kanna formed a family-like setup in her life. And that's it. How much becoming responsible for a family can change an adult? What Kobayashi's experience answers to us is that it won't change people at all. Sure, we do learn new things from raising a child, we do need to concede and make some sacrifices. That's why Kobayashi is the same person from episode one to the last. She's always the same laid-back, hard-working gal who loves a happy hour once in a while, with those dead-fish eyes to die for. And that's good enough.
Unfortunately, the other aspects of this show are almost negligible. Side characters have any but surface-level purposes such as comic relief or fanservice. Also the setting doesn't make any difference. We could not have any dragons and it woudn't touch the purpose of the story. Having only Kanna, Kobayashi and Tohru introduced would not change the theme of the anime. What is redeeming though, is the self-awareness of this show. Whenever it takes a turn on fanservice, comedy or a heart warming moment, Dragon Maid knows what it is doing. And will be honest about it whenever possible. The best example of this is might be the "beach episode". It sure has a dose of fanservice, but soon we get to know a little more about Kobayashi and Tohru. The result is a heartening experience, instead of what a plain showcase of the girls' bodies would provide.
This is far from being a sign of recovery by KyoAni, but it's already a step ahead. As expected from them, audiovisuals are of top-tier quality. Distinctive character designs, fluid animation, gorgeous backgrounds. All in a tradicional cartoonish style, uncommon to see in anime nowadays. OST might sound repetitive many times, but this doesn't bother at all. Also unskippable opening/ending songs make it up for the experience. Voice acting is on point too, with a special spotlight on Kanna and Kobayashi's voices - They stand out above the rest in their characterizations.
Sometimes making it simple is the best. Sometimes we need a more human, light hearted story to sit and relax after a long day. It's time for the industry to try to be more honest, sensitive, and human on anime. Let's hope that KyoAni gets the message. Let's make this the starting point. And one more word: Kobayashi is the best girl.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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