Forum - View topicREVIEW: Moribito DVDs 5-6 and 7-8
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dtm42
Posts: 14084 Location: currently stalking my waifu |
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I rated Moribito as Excellent. I don't really know why I didn't make it a Masterpiece, but I think it just didn't grab me as much as some other titles. For me it just misses that little indescribable, undefinable something.
Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed it a lot. But it didn't "change my life" or make me reassess how I view Anime. It doesn't beg to be rewatched, except perhaps for the rare but stunning fight scenes. Perhaps if this had been one of the first titles I watched as a fan I would view it differently. In fact, I suspect that would be the case. But it wasn't, so I don't. In the end though, I highly recommend this title to all those who consider themselves Anime fans. Now often that phrase is insulting because it implies that anyone who doesn't like it isn't a fan of Anime. However, there do exist titles so great that everyone should give them a go. Moribito is a shining example of how great Anime can be when it isn't scraping the bottom of the barrel with those sorts of shows. If, after you've watched it, you don't like it, well then that's fine. But I suspect you will, Adult Swim ratings be damned. Last edited by dtm42 on Tue Dec 29, 2009 12:13 am; edited 1 time in total |
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penguintruth
 Posts: 8501 Location: Penguinopolis |
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I rarely agree with dtm42, but I agree that Moribito is an excellent program. It may not be a show to get super excited about, but it watches much in the way a novel reads, with emphasis on character development and immersion in its world(s).
Probably one of my favorite anime of the decade. I'll definitely be collecting it at some point. |
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bahamut623
 Posts: 1463 |
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It just finished a short while ago on Adult Swim. Excellent series. I enjoyed it from beginning to end, even the "filler" episodes. I loved how the mythology evolved. The fantasy aspect was rather subdued until the latter half of the series, but the magical aspects didn't seem out of place with the otherwise non-magical setting, much like another IG fantasy anime, Le Chevalier D'eon.
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tuxedocat
 Posts: 2183 |
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I've been collecting this series in the two volume sets. I haven't noticed that the wait has been that much longer than the volume-by-volume release, and the savings was worth it. Still paid slightly over $80 for the whole thing, but it was worth every penny.
This series ranks in my the top three for 2009 releases. A truly beautiful work of art. That being said, it doesn't surprise me that the Adult Swim ratings weren't that great. Look at the weeknight Adult Swim programming, and it is pretty obvious they aren't about art. It probably would have done better on Syfy, where there is less of a frat boy audience. |
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GeorgeC
Posts: 795 |
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For anyone interested,
Best Buy does have an exclusive artbox set for Volumes 7 and 8 of Moribito. It was $24.99 and got released last week... At least in the local stores in my area. I have not seen the two-pack for 5 and 6 in-store so those look like Internet buys to me! Too bad -- but definitely a symptom of the current market. Tons of releases have NOT been showing up in brick-and-mortar. The retailers still carrying anime are real skittish about carrying anything that isn't a proven hit or is too marginal. This situation is far worse than I can remember it being before... Well over half the Section 23/Sentai Films releases aren't being carried in-store. Internet-only at this point for a lot of us. |
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AnimeJames
 Posts: 11 |
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Slightly off topic...
Best Buy near me, practically all the anime is EXPENSIVE, I'm not buying a 12-episode series of something for just about $50 At Best Buy, Dragon Ball Seasons 1 + 2 are sold for a lil over $44 At Walmart, same exact thing, a lil over $29, ones near me...Walmart is obviously not an electronics store, but for what little select anime they have, it's $20 cheaper than Best Buy On topic, I can name another negative besides no extras...."as seen on [adult swim]" being stamped on it, none of the other anime companies do that, and who cares that it's on [as] or CN or w/e? I think it ruins it by stamping that on there, sort of annoyed me to see "as seen on Cartoon Network" printed on the individual Case Closed releases...if they must do that it should be on a sticker on the plastic wrap |
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pachy_boy
Posts: 1341 |
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I find this series so unique partly because there are no true villains at all, even though there have been enemies and clashes for a time. And it's because the rest of the series was so great that the climactic battle against the ra runga is made even more awesome. There are many other things to say, but those stand out the most; a great series through and through.
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belvadeer
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As I said, I haven't seen a show this detailed and world-immersing since Twelve Kingdoms. Then again TK was also adopted from novels, which means there's plenty of room for character development and world-building. And that's a strong part of any fantasy story. And I have to say this has been one of the most solid English dubs I've watched. Touya, while part of the main team, tends to be low-key unless the situation calls for his expertise. Does he really need to have a supreme voice for all that?
Suffice it to say, I missed the last four episodes of Moribito since being stuck here in South Korea (can I go home now?) and their Cartoon Network has no Adult Swim sadly. Guess I'll have to get the DVDs or something. Edit: Removed the Peter Doyle bit from my post. Sheesh, naming schemes made that much of an impression lulz Last edited by belvadeer on Tue Dec 29, 2009 9:31 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Iori Arai
Posts: 3 |
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The "no extras" minus strikes me as a bit odd, as the last volume does contain two extras, a press conference and a panel discussion, and the director and original creator have interesting things to say about the series, at least to my mind.
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LKK
 Posts: 426 Location: Virginia, USA |
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I don't know what complaints you're talking about, but it's obvious from your statements that you've mixed Touya and Tanda somewhere along the line. Tanda is the name of the herbalist / doctor. Touya is the name of the of the teenage boy who helps Balsa, the boy with the buck teeth. Complaints about Touya's voice acting, I can understand as I felt he didn't fit the overall tone of the series. He was the only weak spot in an otherwise excellent dub, in my opinion. Complaints about Tanda's voice acting, I wouldn't agree with because he sounded very appropriate to me. Edit: After reading the review, I see that it's the reviewer who has mixed Tanda and Touya and not necessarily you. The reviewer said that Peter Doyle voiced the boy Touya. However, according to the encyclopedia Peter Doyle voiced the herbalist Tanda. Yuri Lowenthal voiced Touya. I'm not certain which voice actor the reviewer truly meant to criticize. Regardless, I stand by my opinion that Tanda was well-voiced and Touya was not so well-voiced. |
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Key
Moderator
 Posts: 18457 Location: Indianapolis, IN (formerly Mimiho Valley) |
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Oops! I was referring to the character Tanda, although I suppose legitimate complaint might also be made about Touya, too. Honestly, Peter Doyle hardly ever impresses me because he has the same cadence and delivery style in every role I've heard him in. That may be why he gets few major roles. He sounds an awful lot like Jim Taggert, who does Rakashun in Twelve Kingdoms, too, so much so that I thought it was the same VA. (If that's just an alias, though, then I can find no indication of it.) |
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PlatinumHawke
Posts: 204 |
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Yea, it's really odd that Mediablasters put Moribito out on 8 DVDs, especially when they themselves have been cutting back on disc counts. Something to do with the fact they rescued the license from Genenon?
As good as the series is, Moribito isn't the kind of show to go flying off the shelves -- despite being more accessable than most stuff being produced nowadays. I know it, and quite a few other series, got buried under the collective landslide that was Lucky Star/Gurren Lagann back in '07. One of the things I really enjoyed about Moribito -- something that I find a lot of other series fail miserably at -- is that there's a definite rise and fall in tension over the course of the series, but never once did things get too fast or fall flat on it's face. I'd say Moribito was one of the better paced series that I've watched. Production IG deserves the praise it gets for creating one of the more mature works of the year. A lesser director would have tried putting more of an emphasis on the action, but that's not the case here. I can't think of many series where two sides meeting simply to talk and things wind up just as gripping as when the blades start clashing. Plus, by having fewer big action scenes the ones that you do get are of jaw-dropping quality. You can really see all the love that got poured into this series. |
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MaxSouth
Posts: 1364 |
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some of plot twists in the series are really lame... for example, nearer to the end they ruined conceptual logic of the series with stupid, poorly thought-out reminisces of main heroine, among few things where the story failures.
so, unfortunately, it is only possible to rate the series as "very good"... even though it is better than it, but still worse than "excellent"... that is how big the disappointment that scenarists deliver in the show affects the rating... |
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Monster in a box
Posts: 671 |
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It was ok. Nothing really happened in it, and the plot wasn't interesting. I don't understand the praises it gets at all. The part where spoiler[Touya burns the house down] is cool.
[EDIT: Added appropriate spoiler tags. - Key] |
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Beatdigga
 Posts: 4607 Location: New York |
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Few shows trigger the berserk button on me faster than Moribito. The show itself is bad enough, but every aspect of it's airing borders on headbanging. Remember, this is the show that was doing so horribly, Kim Manning flew to Japan to ensure the rest of the show could play on Adult Swim, rather than just burying the stupid thing.
I don't think I would hate this show as much as if it didn't symbolize the death of Adult Swim Action. |
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