Forum - View topicEP. REVIEW: Megalobox
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animemaster1
How'd I get here?
 Posts: 106 Location: Beverly Hills |
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Seriously, this show feels just like a classic early 2000s series that just happened to pass me by somehow. So far, so good. Keep it up.
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Gina Szanboti
Posts: 11588 |
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It's been awhile since I've been this excited by an anime series right from the opening shots. I guess I didn't notice the dip in quality since I was too busy drinking in every gorgeous frame.
 From the music to the world-building by show-don't-tell to the characters and animation, to Hosoya killing it as Joe, I love it all. I already have the blazing OP theme. They're also really good at ending episodes to keep you hungry without being insanely frustrating. The only thing I'd change so far is Megalonia, which sounds like a small Mediterranean country. Were they afraid to call it Megalomania? Then I'd probably call it Megalomax.
Man, that dude was totally ripping those kids off, though I guess I don't know the street value of Red Candy, so maybe not as bad as it seems (aside from giving kids drugs, that is). Was crushing the apple because he was thinking about Yuri or was it a muscle spasm? I was thinking it might be the latter since they had a shot of his hand kinda twitching, so maybe the gear (or brain damage) is affecting him? "Dios aprieta pero no ahoga." God squeezes but doesn't strangle. I don't know about that - Megalobox leaves me pretty breathless. 
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meiam
Posts: 3450 |
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3rd episode was a massive step down for me, worse was the kids. I'm guessing there some sort of call back from the original series, but in a 12 episodes show we really don't have time for those annoying side character. I though they'd be there to justify Joe getting his new gear, but nope the show make sure that wasn't happening either. So overall I'm left with the feeling that episode 3 was more of a filler than anything else, how much cooler would it have been to start really hyping up the first real adversary, like by watching him do match or something like that? Could have also lead to some neat world building, by taking the time to show Joe going from the junk town to the middle of the real town where the match would be held, changing scenery could have told the story.
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Sahmbahdeh
Posts: 713 |
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This may be the best show of the season. Unlike MHA, which is my other main contender for best of the season, every episode has surprised me with its quality, whereas MHA is good, but at this point, predictably so, and therefore less immediately impactful.
Also, I have no idea what anyone'e talking about with episode 3 being a step-down in terms of quality. The amount of character animation liberally sprinkled throughout arguably exceeded either preceding episode, and the direction is on-point as usual, especially during the climactic scene where he fought the boxer. In addition, while I was initially disappointed by the introduction of the kids, thinking we didn't have time for that or that it would be dead weight, it turns out that's exactly what the show needed. It added the last ingredient I think this show really needed, which I didn't get from the previous episodes: genuine heart and warmth. You can only go so far on hype and style alone; in order to have staying power a story needs emotional impact. On a related note, I think this episode went a long way towards humanizing JD's character, for those exact reasons. |
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Merida
 Posts: 1946 |
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I love everything about this show, except for the boxing (and the fact that the only female character isn't exactly portrayed in a very positive light, but that might still change...)...boxing is probably my least favourite sport, personally i wouldn't even call people happily punching each others faces "sport", but well...so i'm already dreading the day the show goes into tournament mode because i'm not sure i'll be able to keep watching. So i'm hoping there will still be enough non-boxing action and character development to keep me entertained...
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DangerMouse
Posts: 3994 |
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Yeah, great show so far. |
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Chrysostomus
Posts: 335 |
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Fantastic anime, so many things to talk about and laud it for, but there's one little detail that's driving me crazy...
What the fug is that harness around Joe's ass/crotch supposed to be? Some kind of outer jockstrap? It feels a little... strange seeing such a homoerotic design element in a show like this. |
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GoldCrusader
Posts: 1023 |
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Yea I just caught up and I gotta say, while I think the atmosphere and the style is really cool, the action is very underwhelming so far and really missing on impact. Mainly when I come from another show like MHA. Joe in episode 4 also had a really weird block out that I thought felt very out of place. I didn't think the whole fear thing worked at all.
Either way I think the show needs some kind of moment to drive the momentum cause it's really fading right now for me. Joe's motivation aren't really great for long term storytelling. Btw Nanbu and Sachio are what makes the show. |
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meiam
Posts: 3450 |
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Personally I'm not that big of a fan of the gimmick within the gimmick of having Joe fight gearless. I never though the gear where necessary for the action since they changed nothing to do actual fight, but now it seems like there even more pointless. At the same time it's like watching a sport car show where the main character lose against the champion early on and then decide that he'll compete in the other race using a pedal bicycle instead... He's already the underdog, I don't need him to be the under underdog, at this point it just make a mockery of the sport.
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Gina Szanboti
Posts: 11588 |
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I agree wholeheartedly with the review. And yes, it may not be necessary for the viewer to make him the under underdog, but it is necessary for the plot, since he doesn't have time to make a name for himself.
If I have any complaints about this, it's that the Megalobox system seems out of whack for this Megalonia competition. It doesn't seem to be a straight-up ranking or bracket elimination, but rather who you can get to fight you. That cuts out most of the fighters above 100 ranking almost right off the bat. It's hard to understand why any higher ranked fighter would ever box a lower ranked one, especially if they seem to be a threat, because you could eliminate them from Megalonia by simply not fighting them. Apparently fame is a big motivator, since if they fight a guy that's got buzz and they're sure they can win (because he's gearless), they'll do it for the name recognition (even if they win, I don't see how it helps their ranking). I don't know much about boxing, and it seems like the rl sport kind of is normally set up like this (i.e., you only get to fight people willing to waste their time on you), but it seems like a pretty stupid way to get the best boxers for this super competition. At some point Joe is going to have to gear up though, and I'm wondering how that will happen - where will he get the gear, how the fans will react to it, etc. If he goes against Yuri gearless, as much as I'm loving all this, that would be hard to swallow. |
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Merida
Posts: 1946 |
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Agreed. This is not shounen fantasy, so i'm expecting a higher level of realism than "he gets by on raw talent and willpower". I am still not a big fan of boxing and probably never will be, but man, do i love that soundtrack! The music has become my favourite thing about the show now. |
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DJShay13
Posts: 9 |
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The action is extremely well done and perfectly paced with the non action story lines. I haven't been this excited about a new anime in a long time. The old school animation, the characters and their progression, the music, there is a lot to love here. 
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Beatdigga
 Posts: 4597 Location: New York |
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Except MHA is awful (I’ve spent a few threads lambasting its pitiful storytelling) and this feels way more...mature. Not in the blood and boobs way, but in the storytelling of a guy who’s putting himself on the line as part that one shot. Yeah, in boxing, a lot of people fight bums to pad their records. People take fights against opponents they might lose to badly, for that one in a million chance they’ll make a huge impact, like Issac Dogbloe over the weekend on ESPN. Joe’s whole scheme is risk on top of risk on top of risk playing to the system, and the fact that he just might pull it off is what makes it so compelling. |
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GoldCrusader
Posts: 1023 |
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Now chill, no need to get all insulting lol. I was talking about the fights, not comparing them on their story anyway. I just think that except maybe the first episode, the fights have been really underwhelming. The sense of tension is just not there, it's lacking in excitement. Not enough impact beyond like 1 hit or 2. They failed at making me fear for Joe fighting gearless. Something that MHA has been the best at delivering this season are fights, imo. That's where my comparison came from. The excitement for this show as been falling since it's first episode, so I'm probably far from being the only one thinking that. Still enjoying the show regardless though btw. |
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hattori300
Posts: 52 |
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Im gonna get crucified for saying this, but....am I the only one who thinks Joe is kinda of a wet blanket of a character?
Dont get me wrong, I absolutely love the way episode 1 establishes the character and why he wants to win the tournament. Great use of the visual medium to shows who Joe is and what he is about. But ever since that episode, I awlays get the impression that Joe just doesnt care. He just comes across as a deadbeat hobo who thinks he is hot shit but isnt even willing to put in the effort to be the best. The show seems to be way more interested in the coach's struggle and the kid's goal than our main character. If it werent for the supporting characters, Joe would be in the corner of an alleyway beaten to death. I can already see the defense argument: Joe is meant to be this way, thats the character. Yeah, I can get behind that, but my point is that the show is clearly not interested in that narrative. The show is not shy in telling us that Joe really wants to win the tournament, but my main issue is that it hasn't showed us that lately. Episode 4 was just incredibly cliche and corny in the way it brought Joe back from the dead. The whole fight it just seemed like he wasnt putting his heart into it, and it took one snot nosed kid saying some really cheesy lines to get him to suddently realize he knows how to boxe and start dancing around the adversary. The result of all that was that the "Gearless Joe" persona wasnt sold to me at all. I really like this show, but I do hope they actually inject some personality int Joe besides "uncaring cool sloppy dude" and give me some reason to care for him, cause he obviously doesnt care enough about this tournament in my eyes. |
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