Forum - View topicThe Stream - Clash on Titans
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nechronius
 Posts: 275 Location: So Cal, USA |
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Attack on Titan is just so full of ENERGY. It just feels all a bit much though it is popular with good reason. I think bombastic is a good word for it, like listening to Ride of the Valkyries or Dvorak's 9th, 4th movement. You can't help but be somewhat swept away by its energy.
And still no Hentai Prince and the Stony Cat? 
Actually a bit of a mixed bag lately, that show. |
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Angel M Cazares
 Posts: 5500 Location: Iscandar |
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Since I began watching sumulcasts a year ago, this season has to be the one where I have found more series that I enjoy and look forward every week. My rankings remain the same up to their first 8 episodes.
1. Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet - It hit a bit of a rough patch between episodes 5 and 6, but the series seems to have picked up the pace in the last episodes. Now I just hope Gargantia has a satisfying conclusion and crown it as my favorite show of Spring 2013. 2. Flowers of Evil - With each passing episode this series seems to become better. I was already enomored by the show, but episode 7 took it to another level. To me Flowers of Evil is already the best series of this season and the first half of 2013. 3. Oreimo 2 - I keep enjoying its humor and the interaction between its characters. My only worry is wether the series is going to have a conclusion with enough closure. 4. The Devil is a Part-Timer! - I am still liking this series, and the main characters are a blast to watch. However, the last few episodes have been kind of slow. I trust it is going to pick up the intensity very soon. 5. Attack on Titan - I appreciate that this is a show about feeling like a bad ass and you want to root for the good guys. Some of the characters are interesting too. However, at times I feel inpatient because the story/plot feels stale at times. Still, Attack on Titan is an amazing action anime. 6. OreGairu - It continues to debunk school romantic comedies, but now it is focusing more on character development, which is nice. At times this show can be tedious with all the philosophizing stuff, but it is a worthy watch. 7. HENNEKO - I realize that this series is mostly a silly, ecchi comedy with a couple of nice characters, but I am enjoying it for what it is. Hopefully it will give us a few more touchy (heartfelt) moments before it ends. |
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Vaisaga
 Posts: 13239 |
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You say that as if there was some one else there that could run the colony. |
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stardf29
Posts: 171 |
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Bamboo, I'm glad you've finally warmed up to My Teen Romantic Comedy SNAFU, and I'm surprised, albeit pleasantly so, that Yuyushiki jumped up as much as it did in your rankings, as well.
Because of that, now I find that my rankings and yours are actually fairly close, at least among shows we're both following. Sure, I'd order things differently (most notably, Gargantia would still be near the top while Flowers of Evil would be lower), but I'd pretty much say that what you consider the "good" shows, I'd consider "good", too. More notably, the shows towards the bottom of the list are also all shows I've dropped (except Photo Kano, which is the type of show I can watch even with it being as much of a mess as it is, just because at least I'm used to that kind of mess). Devil Survivor 2 and The Severing Crime Edge are more recent drops from my watching schedule, while I ended up dropping Karneval and Date a Live around their episodes 3/4, and I never got past the first episode of Majestic Prince or Arata. So this is all to say, I think this is the first time I've found my opinion and "The Stream"'s to have so little disparity. |
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dtm42
Posts: 14084 Location: currently stalking my waifu |
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Episode nine of Gargantia on the Verduous Planet completely turns things around, although the twist was obvious to those who had been paying attention. It definitely explains the origins of the war.
I do share Bamboo's concern at how Date A Live is too close to being the sort of show that it is trying to parody. But it doesn't bother me quite as much as it bothers her. |
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RestLessone
 Posts: 1426 Location: New York |
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I've been following Attack on Titan, Flowers of Evil, and Gargantia.
Generally, I agree with Bamboo on all these titles. Flowers of Evil is sometimes so slow it gets boring, but when it gets a scene right, it really does. It also looks like they are finally whittling down the cast to major characters in Attack on Titan. Fine by me; most deaths so far have been extra gore, with little emotional punch. The latest episode of Gargantia had some nice reveals, but the pacing and plotting of prior episodes have me questioning how well the series will conclude. The series is drawing to a close, and yet I don't 'feel' like I know the characters sans Ledo and Ridget. As of now, I think some episodes could have been combined and condensed, with a little more time spent on Ledo's flashback and life before Earth. I plan to check out Karneval eventually, as I liked what I read of the manga. Too bad that, from what I've heard, the pace and focus that the manga held have been skewed. The Devil is a Part-Timer looks fun enough, too.
I do have to agree here. I wasn't expecting exactly what happened, but there was some rather...strong foreshadowing. |
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Angel M Cazares
Posts: 5500 Location: Iscandar |
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I thought about episode 9 as I read Bamboo's report, but I did not want to bring it up because she only reviewed it up to episode 8. I hope episode 9 is a sign that the series will finish strong and not crap the bed. It would be a shame for such a gorgeously produced series to turn into a bust. |
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nightjuan
 Posts: 1473 |
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I'm still following Attack on Titan, Gargantia and Majestic Prince. The first two have been quite interesting lately, but I still can't really agree about the last one being ranked so low. I guess I'm satisfied on a basic level with the series being a relatively orthodox mecha show with reasonable execution and not trying to do anything extremely different. I've got other things to watch for that.
On that note and concerning Valvrave, which I am also watching and enjoying right now...yes, it's a very ridiculous show, but I do feel it's worth commenting about a few things here.
While that's arguably true, it reminds me of a certain tertiary character death from Gargantia too, where a person that the audience didn't have any particular reason to care about also suddenly died. In both cases, it's more about how that affects the characters and their situation, one way or another, rather than making the audience feel emotional over someone they didn't have enough time to connect with. One character did in fact scream in rage and another one cried, though understandably so, but the protagonist actually didn't do either of those things and instead started to become a little more serious, to the point of finally making a rather important decision in episode 8.
Is that really the larger issue? I'd question that's where the show is interested in going though, after recent events, not to mention the fact it's been just about a few weeks or so of in-universe time. The entire "high school nation in space" has no long-term sustainability, at least in its current form, but I feel other developments will easily override such concerns. The protagonist and his would-be rival are finally allies, which is what I think will drive the course of the story from now on, at least towards the conclusion of this first season. The previous days of careless living seem to be at an end and whatever happens on the other side of the plot will become increasingly more important. I'll agree that the overall pacing could be better though, but I don't really mind having, say, another couple of episodes to complete the "team" of five robot pilots as long as I'm still entertained and the story does move in the direction I've just described.
Of course, and so would I...except for the fact that exactly none of the constant space raids have been waved away by song and dance yet. 
The only time where any problems or conflicts were "resolved" in that particular manner was episode 5, to be accurate, but that method was only effective in that situation. Considering the events of episodes 7 and 8, I don't think we'll see much or any singing and dancing in the near-future. Which is good, since that was barely alright as a silly one-off distraction but even a show this ridiculous needs other elements to stay entertaining. Whether or not it'll succeed at that remains to be seen. Last edited by nightjuan on Mon Jun 03, 2013 11:35 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Redcrimson
 Posts: 160 |
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Gargantia definitely stumbles around the half-way point, but considering the latest episode, I think it's more than redeemed itself. It still has some really impressive cinematography and dialogue.
Flowers of Evil may be one of the most uncomfortable things I've ever sat through, and I mean that in the best way possible. Attack on Titan is a lot of fun to watch, but the novelty is starting to wear off. And unfortunately, it's other merits aren't really blowing me away. The animation is laughably inconsistent and the supporting cast is far too large. The reveal in the latest apisode makes me very worried about the direction the show is going to take. Muromi-san is definitely the surprise of the season. I watched episode one because hey, it's only 12 minutes long, what's the harm? Not only was I pleasantly surprised, but it managed to stay consistently funny. Still no Railgun S? I guess you'd have to have seen the first season, which this one is a massive improvement on. |
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CrowLia
 Posts: 5528 Location: Mexico |
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Wait, does that mean Bamboo doesn't like Macross? 
Will reply properly later. |
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Fencedude5609
 Posts: 5088 |
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I don't know how you can write several paragraphs on Yuyushiki and not mention any of the barely-coded lesbian undertones.
In fact it pretty much has become explicit with Kei, Chiho and Yui. |
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Chagen46
 Posts: 4377 |
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Because not everyone cares about it as much as you do, and doing that tends to look really creepy.
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CrowLia
Posts: 5528 Location: Mexico |
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IMHO the guy who has no qualms about his love for shotacon and otokonoko has no right to call anyone creepy. Just like I wouldn't call you creepy, knowing that I'm a girl that fantasizes with high school boys in speedos
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Keichitsu0305
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And...Now the derailing begins!! Hooray!
Honestly, my gripe with Gargantia is that all of the characters feel quite bland. The whalesquid/Hideauze subplot is the most interesting part of the show and, prior to esp. 9, I was hoping their origins would involve the complexity of taking science too far, trespassing taboos associated with human customs & religion, etc. but, no character feels interesting or have any depth. Amy is the sweet big sis, Bellows is smart, practical yet bubbly, Ridget is strict but falters with her feelings, Ledo is a solider who doesn't know how to live without killing others, etc. Hopefully, after ep. 9, the series can wrap up neatly. I'm also getting tired of the recaps in Chihayafuru 2; some of the flashbacks were to what happened only a few episodes ago. The stalling makes me wonder if there's a season 3 or a film adaption in the works. Devil is a Part-Timer is, IMO, the best comedy of the season. Almost every episode had me laughing and I genuinely care for all of the characters. Dropped RDG and picked up SNAFU. |
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Cecilthedarkknight_234
 Posts: 3820 Location: Louisville, KY |
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Just as i though most if not all the new spring IP's are sh**. This leads them to not being worth my time so no point in trying any of them out. Thank for the article bamboo-dong, I'll just stick with my two squeal series for spring 2013.
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