Anime/Manga - Discuss Japanese cartoons and comics here; NO CULTURE WAR DOOMPOSTING!

[LinkinParkxNaruto[AMV]]

You just gotta admire shoestring budget animes, not only animation is ridiculously difficult but when you barely have the resources to put something together it takes a passionate and dedicated team to sit down and see it through, case in point the 97 Berserk adaption is mostly just stills slowly panned and conversations in 3 frames but you can feel the love, they could not show a lot but whatever was on screen they made sure to look as good as possible. Shame it's the only adaptation though, i wonder what wonderful animation we could get with the wonders of modern technology.

The 97 Berserk anime was also helped with a fantastic sountrack. The music and atmosphere made up for the lack of frames. Not the only adaptation though, the golden age arc has 3 movies by Madhouse which are pretty good and the 2016 anime which is fully cg and might possibly be the worst looking anime ever made so that one is better to skip.
Lots of newer shows have great animation and production value, theres still a lot of good sakuga but i still liked the old anime aesthetically, i like the boldness and contrast of the character designs. I think theres also the low fi effect, same thing that happened with nes and snes game sprites, they used to look a lot smother on low res blurry crts and the color paletes were more washed out but the same thing in full hd doesn't translate as well and looks kind of uncanny and weird.

Ugh, nothing kills my nostalgia quicker than a Modern Talking song.

i could take it or leave it but is a catchy tune

and as time goes on the skills for traditional animation will be lost entirely. that's actually why the simpsons went digital, the schools weren't producing new animators with the necessary skills for that anymore.

That would be impossible as it would mean animation as a whole dying as the principles and technique are mostly the same despite the medium, even 3d movies start as 2d animation but things like digital coloring, post production on after fx and cgi included does affect the overall feel of the final product but as far as the actual animation goes , how things move, theres still a lot of really good quality. In early 00s still was a bit akward when technology wasn't as intuitive and pcs were not as good they did cut a lot of corners in design and lines became thicker with less weight variation, they used more tweens , characters became less expressive and stuff like that, i think they figure the digital drawing part a lot better although cgi still looks wonky most of the times. ut even well animated recent shows draw me less than that specific era of anime, just a personal style preference

In the case of the simpsons i believe is animated in South Korea, lots of anime is outsourced there too as well as ton of other western shows, they have plenty of talent in that area. The studio probably figure out it was easier and cheaper to streamline the animation process and make more like hannah barbera style, better for production lines in the long run and reduces possible inconvenients at the expense of spontaneity . The first couple seasons of the simpsons are a blast though, lots of really funny smears and weird still frames, apparently they suffered a lot with communication across continents and thats why its such a mess with saturated colors and inconsistencies.
Btw, if you google you can find the King of the hill "bible", the manual they use to tell south koreans what they can and can`t do and is soul crushingly autistic lol. Mike Judge basically told them it can't possibly look like a cartoon ever.

GT was the most strikingly-different Dragon Ball had ever looked at the time until digital animation kicked in, and that's why Super looks as modern as it does. There's still a bit of a '90s appearance to it, but it's been overtaken by the look of the 2010s that if it wasn't for the iconic character designs, you might not've been able to realize you're watching a Dragon Ball production at first.

GT is not the most beloved saga but production wise it was awesome, i really loved the designs and how dynamic the animation felt in that show. I will also love all those grungy movies from that time, even the same ones that used to scare the crap out of me as a kid.

Back then even shoujo looked bold and dynamic, but now even shonen styles look like k-on, all rounded and cutesy, just trends of the times i guess but at least we will always have Escaflowne *sips monster* .

 

[The Bovinian Derivative]

2016 anime which is fully cg and might possibly be the worst looking anime ever made so that one is better to skip.

Yeah I know, i just joked about it because it's better to forget. I knew 2016 by reputation, a few clips, and CLANG before I sat down and watch it, but I was not prepared. I don't think that thing can be put into words, every time I thought I got into the zone with it something so incomprehensible happened that I just sat there in astonishment. Even if you get used to CLANG or the insane shading the story is literally all over the place, and not only that they learned absolutely nothing they did everything the same way in 2017.

Didn't know that Madhouse made the movies though, props to them.

 

[LinkinParkxNaruto[AMV]]

Yeah I know, i just joked about it because it's better to forget. I knew 2016 by reputation, a few clips, and CLANG before I sat down and watch it, but I was not prepared. I don't think that thing can be put into words, every time I thought I got into the zone with it something so incomprehensible happened that I just sat there in astonishment. Even if you get used to CLANG or the insane shading the story is literally all over the place, and not only that they learned absolutely nothing they did everything the same way in 2017.

Didn't know that Madhouse made the movies though, props to them.

i didn't even bother past the first episode. Specially when the source material is such a well illustrated manga. Is a total disservice.
I can't even blame the cgi because the 3d in the movie looked ok, it wasn't this atrocious. My guess is the production probably was a dumpster fire that they just wanted to get away from.

 

[Kari Kamiya]

Madhouse did not animate the movies, that's Studio 4°C. They're known for being a being avant-garde/unconventional when it comes to animation, or at least in terms of the stylistic choices they go with.

 

[The Bovinian Derivative]

My guess is the production probably was a dumpster fire that they just wanted to get away from.

It was. The short of it is that they got an animation director who used to work on a school comedy anime (which is okay, but someone with that kind of experience would not be my first choice) and he wanted a blend of 2d and 3d with some fancy lighting effects, but their computers were too shit to handle it and as the deadline was closing in they scaled everything down to the bottom of the barrel to get it out in time.

 

[Megaroad 2012]

Berserk's first season was tolerable, story kept me engaged and the soundtrack was killer. Frankly found it less offensive than the shit job David Production did at times with JoJo part 4 airing at the same time. When they did draw it, holy shit. Griffith's resurrection at the end gave me goosebumps.

Second season was a mess from bizarre editing and even worse animation.

 

[LinkinParkxNaruto[AMV]]

Madhouse did not animate the movies, that's Studio 4°C. They're known for being a being avant-garde/unconventional when it comes to animation, or at least in terms of the stylistic choices they go with.

Sorry, my bad, my memory failed there.

I wished they kept making movies for it, a movie ever 2-3 years adapting a whole saga would have been preferable to a half assed longer series but is probably too expensive to have a studio like that on the payroll so long.

It was. The short of it is that they got an animation director who used to work on a school comedy anime (which is okay, but someone with that kind of experience would not be my first choice) and he wanted a blend of 2d and 3d with some fancy lighting effects, but their computers were too shit to handle it and as the deadline was closing in they scaled everything down to the bottom of the barrel to get it out in time.

That must sucks for him, he stained his reputation with a project he should not have been tasked with in the first place. Thats also really bad oversight by whoever was on top, fucks up like that are hardly ever just one persons fault.

 

[Jonah Hill poster]

Ai Yori Aoshi reminds me of Love Hina.
I remember watching it in the beginning a couple of months ago, but I never finished it for some reason. Oh well, it’s a great starter for anyone on here interested in harem style comedy.

 

[Jewelsmakerguy]

Sorry, my bad, my memory failed there.

I wished they kept making movies for it, a movie ever 2-3 years adapting a whole saga would have been preferable to a half assed longer series but is probably too expensive to have a studio like that on the payroll so long.


That must sucks for him, he stained his reputation with a project he should not have been tasked with in the first place. Thats also really bad oversight by whoever was on top, fucks up like that are hardly ever just one persons fault.

I should note that his followup show, Cop Craft, looked no better than Berserk. Hell, I'd argue it was worse in some areas.

 

[SteelPlatedHeart]

View attachment 1484977

Ai Yori Aoshi reminds me of Love Hina.
I remember watching it in the beginning a couple of months ago, but I never finished it for some reason. Oh well, it’s a great starter for anyone on here interested in harem style comedy.

I think that was one of the first manga I ever read from start to finish. I remember the last volume was plastic sealed and you could only buy it if you were over 18 because there was a full and completely sex scene between the main guy and girl.

 

[Vapewizard]

Fugou keiji is back now too from the corona hiatus. Episode 3 was entertaining and I will definitely keep watching, though I can't help but wonder whether the sudden plot transition was intentional or if they skipped an episode. Episode 2 ended with the MCs going to hong kong, from what I remember, but episode 3 started with them being back already and Haru meeting Daisuke's grandma. Feels like we missed an entire episode's worth of content.

 

[LinkinParkxNaruto[AMV]]

I should note that his followup show, Cop Craft, looked no better than Berserk. Hell, I'd argue it was worse in some areas.

I looked it up and honestly don't see how, looks fine and characters seem mostly animated in 2d even with the hit or miss cgi added in. Relative to Bersek 2016 is a big step up

 

[Jewelsmakerguy]

I looked it up and honestly don't see how, looks fine and characters seem mostly animated in 2d even with the hit or miss cgi added in. Relative to Bersek 2016 is a big step up

Issue is that it's an action show, and half the time, the show relises on still frames to show that action. And half the time I can't tell if it's supposed to be a derectorial decision, or if it's just them running out of time or money.

 

[wtfNeedSignUp]

Issue is that it's an action show, and half the time, the show relises on still frames to show that action. And half the time I can't tell if it's supposed to be a derectorial decision, or if it's just them running out of time or money.

I absolutely loved the setting and characters in Cop Craft but lord the action scenes were mostly bad, wonder if they fixed it in the BD.

 

[Jewelsmakerguy]

I absolutely loved the setting and characters in Cop Craft but lord the action scenes were mostly bad, wonder if they fixed it in the BD.

Yeah, when I meant that it looked bad, i meant it visually. And the BD only makes marginal improvements at best.

 

[CivilianOfTheFandomWars]

I found this one really interesting manga called 1 X 1/2, a yuri manga that is a completely different take on the genre.

If I had to describe it in a word or two, I'd call it 'Lynchian'. It's almost a horror like Happy Sugar Life, but about a daughter with an Oedipus Complex. But, here's the thing, the story knows that that is fucking weird. The daughter is a legitimately off kid, the mother doesn't know what to do, and the people around them are constantly wondering what the hell is going on. Things happen, things get revealed, and shit gets really fucking strange.
As for how it's written, take a normal yuri story and look at it sideways. Typical lines and tropes and plot beats, but portrayed as something wrong, not something cute. The art is pretty basic, but I find it pleasant to look at. Kind of like a 90's slice of life TV anime, if that means anything.
It's odd, it's intriguing, it makes you wonder what the hell you would do if your child turns out to be an insane person, and I'd honestly recommend reading it if you want a different type of story that is a unique take on the yuri genre, or even just a weird 'horror' manga.

 

[LinkinParkxNaruto[AMV]]

Issue is that it's an action show, and half the time, the show relises on still frames to show that action. And half the time I can't tell if it's supposed to be a derectorial decision, or if it's just them running out of time or money.

It could have been bad directing or they could have just been too cheap to pay up for the sakuga parts that needed more animation. I would have to check out a full episode to see how bad it is, but just in general seems fine. The Range Murata art for the original series is pretty sweet btw.

 

[Moguro Fukuzou]

Since current season looks a little anemic I'm going to take this chance to recommend a couple of personal favorites from the 10s that I feel have been slept on. Going to divide them up under spoilers so they don't end up a massive scroll.

Spoiler: Concrete Revolutio

[2 seasons for a total of 24 episodes]
I've heard people call this Japanese Watchmen and I'd say it does play around with some of the ideas discussed in that comic. This show was originally thrown aside by most anime fans because its hard to follow nature due to the non-linear storytelling of the first season, it went to a more standard style for the second season but by then not many had stuck around. If you can managed to get past the timeskips (here's a handy timeline guide that someone made for the first season if you get super confused) the anime is an interesting exploration of "What is justice?" as characters clash over their own concepts of justice with a splash of x-men mutant vs. non-mutant. Given that the story takes place in a fantastical version of 60s Japan, it also likes to make reference to the turmoil of the time while giving a twist to them.

The series, besides have an interesting story, hosts a good cast of characters that aren't all on the same side given their clashing views on justice, but I never found myself really hating anyone from the cast just because they were in conflict with the main character. Animation was high quality, as to expected with a Bones show, but there were plenty of sakuga shots as well. I'll also say that the music score is great for this series (ex), really stood out as unique and even if you don't end up watching the series I'd say to check out its OST at least.

Of the two seasons, I'd definitely say I liked Last Song (s2) the most as its more linear nature made it easier to follow and the season dealt a lot more with the central theme of "What is justice?" The first season kind of feels like a set up season so Last Song can immediately get into the action.

Spoiler: Kyousougiga

[1 season for a total of 10 episodes]
Pretty short series overall, but still highly entertaining if a bit weird. There's a lot of stuff going on in the series, not all of it making too much sense, but at its core the series is about an en-strangled family broken up by the disappearance of their parents that can't move forward.

It's a very colorful show and has a very satisfying ending, if you enjoyed Uchouten Kazoku (another amazing series) you'll probably end up enjoying this one too. Has some great animation, entertaining cast, and some well drawn fight scenes with probably one of my favorite openings.

Spoiler: Hakata Tonkotsu Ramens

[1 season for a total of 12 episodes]
A very fun assemble cast crime series that is really reminiscent of shows like Durarara in how each episode is structured and how the characters interact with one another. If you liked Durarara you'll probably have fun with this, never really takes itself too serious, with each episode typically ending with a baseball game. For example, in one episode they had an assassin after them trying to kill them who at the end of the episode was the pitcher for the opposing team.

Animation isn't much to write home about, but there are some nice moments when it needs them.

Spoiler: AKB0048

[2 seasons for a total of 26 episodes]
Probably one of the most unique idol anime to come out, in which idols are labeled as terrorists by most governments and are hunted down by the military. Story can get surprisingly dark at times and it really feels like the director was only told "make an anime about akb48" without anything said about what the plot should be. It's the series were this gif comes from:

CGI can look a little wonky at times when it's used on characters but you eventually get used to it, music is variations of popular akb48 music sung by the cast. Ending is a little unsatisfying because it leaves room for a third season with some dangling plot threads but it doesn't ruin the experience.

Spoiler: RobiHachi

[1 season for a total of 12 episodes]
Going to get it out of the way first, if you can't stand homo undertones then steer clear, if you don't mind them you should have a good time. It's mainly a comedy series that riffs off sci-fi tropes done by the director of Gintama and Daily life of High school Boys with the basic premise of Yang (Yellow/Pink hair voiced by Sugita) chasing after Robby (Red Hair) for a money debt and his ass. If you liked the comedy of Gintama or Daily Life you'll probably like this.
Usually I post the opening but I find the ending superior because it's Sugita singing.

There are a bunch of other series I'd recommend, but I'll save that for another time. Sorry if most of those are sci-fi shows but that's a big chunk of what I watch and find gets overlooked.

 

[Kari Kamiya]

Now the TV series of Kyousougiga is an alternate version of the ONA series that came before it, right? I've been meaning to get around to the TV series because I was legitimately surprised by the previous entries, but it just kept slipping through my fingers.

I'll also give some of the ones I liked that needs more love. At least one has had a lot of watchers going off of MAL, but I'm still gonna throw it up here because I think the criticism when it first came out was a bit too harsh.

My picks are:

Spoiler: Tamayura

It's a slice-of-life iyashikei anime about a girl who moves to a quiet town in Hiroshima where her deceased father, a famous photographer, was raised in and decides to follow in his footsteps, using his old camera to take photographs of things she finds interesting. The title comes from a photographic phenomenon (in-series, not sure if this is actually believed IRL) where fluffy light appears in the background where there is true happiness, and her father won an award for such a picture and is her biggest inspiration. It's a quiet, sweet series that just got overlooked for some odd reason, which is strange because it's directed by ARIA's director. The four movies that follow the first OVA and the two TV series get a bit more serious with each installment, but there's always a ray of optimism in them.

Spoiler: Tonkatsu DJ Agetarou

A boy whose father owns a tonkatsu shop and expects him to inherit it no exceptions dreams of becoming a DJ when he entered a club and was blown away by the power of the host, Big Master Fly (I think he's based off an actual DJ), and is set on a path of finding his own voice as a disc jockey. The art-style turned off a lot of people, and I only watched it because it's a TV short, but it was an experience.

Spoiler: World Fool News

Another short that fell by the wayside, it's about a really late-night TV network that looks at oddities from around the globe run by extremely eccentric people (the agent is a literal baby) nobody else wanted to work with but they had been insistent on having their own reporting block. Strange happenings ensue at the station and this poor aspiring newbie reporter has to learn to play off of them on the fly.

Maybe the only reason this caught my eye was because I was about to finish up college and there was a time prior where for one of my classes, we did a mock TV/infomercial program segment that was rather reminiscent of what the show ended up doing, so it amused me. It's on Crunchyroll, but it's been sadly overlooked.

Spoiler: Yurumates

18-year-old Yurume Aida is a ronin who moves into Maison du Wish in the hopes of studying hard enough to get into Tokyo University. Her flatmates, also ronin, are such big procrastinators who sit around doing whatever they feel like but are such chill, weird people that she finds herself enjoying their company and becomes just like them. Probably nothing special tbh, but the characters rub off on you, and since it's adapted from a four-panel comic, gags are prevalent.

Kumi Tanaka (pigtail girl) is played by the late Miyu Matsuki and helps to steal the show.

Spoiler: Gonna Be the Twin-Tail!!

I don't get why people hate this, I found it to be the funniest show of the season. I binged seven episodes and was having a blast, it got me out of whatever funk I was in when I first started it. Think people were just hung up over Cross Ange or whatever that they didn't think much about it. But it's a magical girl/super sentai parody in which the main guy, Soji Mitsuka, has a fetish for twin-tail hair that it becomes his dream come true when he gets to defend the world from monsters who're trying to take the power of the twin-tail for themselves. The catch is, though, he transforms into a girl, Tail Red, in order to fight them off, and has to join a secret alien organization to become Earth's defender. And the leader wants to get in his/her pants because of her gender-bender fetish.

The show is totally self-aware of what it is, and yet a lot of watchers didn't realize this for some strange reason. Legit is baffling there weren't watchers looking to have a good time.

 

[Moguro Fukuzou]

Now the TV series of Kyousougiga is an alternate version of the ONA series that came before it, right? I've been meaning to get around to the TV series because I was legitimately surprised by the previous entries, but it just kept slipping through my fingers.

I'm not sure myself as I watched the ONA a while ago.

I remember trying to watch Twin Tails while it was airing but dear God, the QUALITY of the broadcast version was too much. I dropped it to wait for the BD where they'd fix it but never got around to watching it through since I forgot about it.

Had a similar problem when watching the new Dororo when it hit the second cour and immediately had a massive quality drop, couldn't even get through episode 15 because of how bad it was. Guy who directed that episode (and only that episode) is also apparently notorious for Gurren Lagann episode 4. I got to the part where Hyakki was lagging up the hill in Flash and just closed mpv. Think if I try rewatching to actually finish the series I'm just skipping 15, don't care if I miss plot.