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Ms. Answerman: Look at All the Pretty Bubbles




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Nagisa
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Joined: 19 Aug 2003
Posts: 6128
Location: Atlanta-ish, Jawjuh
PostPosted: Sat Jul 03, 2004 2:01 am Reply with quote
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The second OVA, called Reflection, is just a visually stunning piece of work that takes the second half of the Kenshin manga and destroys it. Your money would be better put to use as kindling for a fire than wasted on this final OVA.


This is the best thing I've read all month. It's funny, it's the truth...it's awesome. Anime smile

Excellent advice concerning Gundam, as well. Personally, I tend to lean towards SEED, but I also love several of the Universal Century timeline's offerings (0079 & Zeta being two mentioned by name in the column), as well.

One thing I'd suggest for people interested in checking out Gundam, but wary of spending money to rent or buy a 40-50 episode TV series (as most Gundam series are), would be to check out one of the relatively self-contained OVA series from the early-mid 90s: 08th MS Team, 0080: War in the Pocket, and 0083: Stardust Memory. 08th MS Team is widely considered the best of the three, and is only eleven episodes in length (well...twelve, but the last episode is insipid filler not even worth acknowledging...avoid, avoid). It's also the most recent, and features some of the best animation in the entire Gundam franchise, I'd say. 0083 is a bridge between the original series & Zeta, but you don't really have to be familiar with either series to still enjoy it. Only runs thirteen episodes long. 0080's something of a wildcard, as it actually focuses more on the unfortunate civilian aspect of the Gundam universe than the military (as most of the other series tend to do), and is a rather slow six-episode OVA. However, given the critical acclaim it tneds to receive, it's not one to count out simply because it's not as "action-packed" as the others.

Hope that helps anyone out.
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Stormkoopa



Joined: 11 May 2004
Posts: 11
PostPosted: Sat Jul 03, 2004 4:16 am Reply with quote
I definitely have to go with MS 08th team, easily my favorite in the Gundam universe.
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crion



Joined: 03 Jul 2004
Posts: 41
Location: London, UK
PostPosted: Sat Jul 03, 2004 11:16 am Reply with quote
Ok, the world of Gundam anime is a complicated matter. There are several universes with their own continuities.

The main storyline takes place in UC (Universal Century) universe. As mentioned in the column, the first show is Mobile Suit Gundam 0079, which is available in US in 2 forms, a dub only series and sub only movie trilogy (a compilation of the entire series into 3 movies). The UC timeline goes something like this:

0079 Mobile Suit Gundam (TV 1979, Movies 1981-82)
0079 Mobile Suit Gundam: 08th MS Team (OVA 1996)
0080 Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket (OVA 1989)
0083 Mobile Suit Gundam 0083: Startdust Memory (OVA 1991)
0086 Mobile Suit Zeta Gundam (TV 1985)
0088 Mobile Suit Gundam Double-Zeta (TV 1986)
0093 Chars Counterattack (Movie 1988)
0123 Mobile Suit Gundam Formula-91 (Movie 1991)
0153 Mobile Suit Victory Gundam (TV 1993)

You can watch these in pretty much any order, but I'd recommend watching 0079 in either series or movie format first. It lays a lot of groundwork for the universe.

The alternate universes are as following (and these have no connection with original series or between one another)

FC (Future Century): Mobile Fighter G-Gundam (TV 1994)
AC (After Colony): New Mobile Report Gundam Wing (TV 1995, OVA 1997)
AW (After War): New Mobile Century Gundam X (TV 1996)
CC (Correct Century): Turn A Gundam (TV 1999)
CE (Cosmic Era): Mobile Suit Gundam Seed (TV 2002)
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Anime_Freak



Joined: 07 Dec 2002
Posts: 420
Location: Oklahoma
PostPosted: Sat Jul 03, 2004 8:45 pm Reply with quote
I agree with what has been said on here about Gundam. I too, suggest starting with MSG 0079, IF you can get past the dated animation you're sure to like it. One of my online friends has a hard time getting into Lupin III because of the dated animation, but again, do NOT be turned off because the animation isn't what it is today. SIEG(I've seen this spelled SIEG and SEIG, which is the CORRECT spelling?) ZEON! Twisted Evil
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jfrog



Joined: 21 May 2004
Posts: 925
Location: Seattle
PostPosted: Sat Jul 03, 2004 9:00 pm Reply with quote
Buying a bootleg is the worst thing a person can do? I'm not for the damn things, but Jesus Christ, she made an honest mistake. How about educating people on how to spot the difference between bootlegs and legitimate used merchandise instead of saying "BUY EVERYTHING NEW!!!"
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Anime_Freak



Joined: 07 Dec 2002
Posts: 420
Location: Oklahoma
PostPosted: Sat Jul 03, 2004 9:03 pm Reply with quote
jfrog wrote:
Buying a bootleg is the worst thing a person can do? I'm not for the damn things, but Jesus Christ, she made an honest mistake. How about educating people on how to spot the difference between bootlegs and legitimate used merchandise instead of saying "BUY EVERYTHING NEW!!!"


She didn't say "Buy Everything New", but yes people SHOULD be educated on those differences.
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jfrog



Joined: 21 May 2004
Posts: 925
Location: Seattle
PostPosted: Sat Jul 03, 2004 9:19 pm Reply with quote
Whenever someone buys a bootleg, anime fans rush in to lecture them on how if they can't afford new anime, they shouldn't buy any anime. And not all of us can afford to buy new anime. I don't like the "If the deal is too good to be true" thing because I've gotten some fantastic deals on legitimate merchandise. Spend some time educating people (instead of just lecturing them) if you really want to stop them from buying bootlegs.
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Rebecca



Joined: 18 Mar 2002
Posts: 57
PostPosted: Sun Jul 04, 2004 12:10 am Reply with quote
Quote:
Spend some time educating people (instead of just lecturing them) if you really want to stop them from buying bootlegs.


animenewsnetwork.com/columns/answerman.php?id=167

I've already educated people in a previous column.

I'm also not saying that they should buy everything new, I'm saying that you shouldn't be giving your money to people who are basically burning poorly translated episodes onto a DVD and slapping it into a pretty (cheap) looking DVD case. If you cannot afford anime, then you should look into other options or not buy anime at all. Anime is not a necessity in life for 99.9% of the people out there (obviously it is for people who work in the anime industry over here since anime pays the bills).

On a different topic, thanks to Crion for writing up a detailed timeline for the Gundam series and Nagisa for giving more details into which series people should check out if they're short on cash. Smile
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Double-O



Joined: 17 Dec 2003
Posts: 3
PostPosted: Sun Jul 04, 2004 3:06 am Reply with quote
Actually, if you want some really, really cheap options, you can get the VHS copies of the three Gundam movies. Yeah, they've got horrible, ear-bleeding, atrociously poorly translated dubs, but you gotta admit, those are funny to listen to sometimes. You can also find the boxed set for about 50 bucks at some places, and they're sub-only, which is good, as the translation is much better
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SubparPlasma



Joined: 07 Dec 2003
Posts: 3
Location: Beyond the bounds.....
PostPosted: Sun Jul 04, 2004 4:29 pm Reply with quote
http://www.digitaleyes.net/Details.cfm?info=PIO11770DVD

I believe $31.98 for the dvd's is a very nice deal. Very Happy
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Bruce Lee



Joined: 04 Feb 2003
Posts: 715
Location: Seattle, Washington
PostPosted: Mon Jul 05, 2004 12:51 am Reply with quote
Quote:
The second OVA, called Reflection, is just a visually stunning piece of work that takes the second half of the Kenshin manga and destroys it. Your money would be better put to use as kindling for a fire than wasted on this final OVA.

You're referring to the Kenshin OVA where spoiler[he's old, and on a journey back to Kaoru, with a lot of flashbacks, then he dies at the end sitting w/her beneath the cherry blossoms], correct? I haven't read all the manga, or seen the whole series, but I've seen the first (2?) OVAs - trust and betrayal - along with this one, and liked them all. It seemed to me like a good way to end things. But, your short review of it left me with some questions:

First you say it's "Visually Stunning" - aren't OVA's (usually) supposed to be better looking than the series?

Then you say it destroys the 2nd half of the manga - Don't hate me, but what am I missing? Does the OVA create many contradictions or story line problems? Would it be better for me to start picking up the manga than pick up where I left off in the TV series (somewhere before lord bandaid came around)?

Thanks.

**EDIT**
Oops sorry, I didn't see King Micah's answer to this in the Anime section. Still, though, would I be better to keep watching the show, or pick up the manga?
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Nagisa
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Joined: 19 Aug 2003
Posts: 6128
Location: Atlanta-ish, Jawjuh
PostPosted: Mon Jul 05, 2004 2:38 am Reply with quote
Bruce Lee wrote:
Then you say it destroys the 2nd half of the manga - Don't hate me, but what am I missing? Does the OVA create many contradictions or story line problems? Would it be better for me to start picking up the manga than pick up where I left off in the TV series (somewhere before lord bandaid came around)?


The Reflection OVA (spoiler[the one with Kenshin dying and Kaoru waiting for him to return]) pretty much butchers the final Jinchuu Arc of the manga. Strips down ten volumes' worth of material to barely a fifth of it, and then alters what they left in for the worst (also completely cuts out one of the most heart-stopping plot twists in the entire series).

It also punches holes left & right in the rest of the story, and throws in a bunch of poorly-written, unnecessary angst for no apparent reason.

The anime series is good until the end of the Kyoto Arc (the one with Shishio). I'd highly suggest picking up the manga then.

Bruce Lee wrote:
Oops sorry, I didn't see King Micah's answer to this in the Anime section. Still, though, would I be better to keep watching the show, or pick up the manga?


The anime's really good through the Kyoto Arc, but the manga is an all-around superior product by far. Many early story arcs that felt rather flat in the TV series (Raijuuta Arc, the arc with Sano's Sekihoutai buddy) were actually really interesting in the manga. And much of the early filler was cut completely, making for a much more streamlined, captivating read.
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