Forum - View topic

Shelf Life - The Jungle

I've never understood the appeal to One Piece personally. My friend loved the show, and made me watch a good 30 episodes or more, and I never got in to it. In fact, I found it to be a chore to sit through at times, as entire episodes were sometimes the prelude to a fight or just banter tossed between two characters until someone did their special move. It was as artificial, and unimpressive as anything I've watched. Consider how horrible the dub was supposed to be, I'm really glad I never saw that version, as the fansubs were awful enough.

And I do have all of Cowboy Bebop Remix as well as the film, second row from the bottom behind the Hinatabokko figure, underneath Paranoia Agent, next to Ai Yori Aoshi.

It's very simple to understand, driverstart - he likes the characters and/or character designs.

When you're a fan, you own merchandise. Simple as that. I paid a handsome price for a cel of Mihoshi, not only from the Tenchi Muyo OAV, but from episode 4: "Mihoshi Falls From the Land of Stars" which is her first appearance in the franchise. The cel is from the first scene where she appears in her trademark sleeveless pink blouse and tan khakis.

It's the iconic image of her character - my all-time favorite character - and I own it. That's one of the major draws of figurines, posters, busts, action figures, and cels.

Other draws include the different interpretations of characters (a Bome rendition of Belldandy, for instance, is pretty different from a Max Factory Belldandy) or non-canon renditions of characters that pose them in a fun and uncommon setting (my buddy G-man has a Rei and Asuka in military garb pair, for instance).

Sometimes, enthusiasm goes beyond watching or reading. Sometimes, it's cosplay. Sometimes, it's fanart or fanfiction. And sometimes, it's merchandise collections. Welcome to fandom.

Part of me cries every time I see what they did to "Crayon Shin-chan" (a children's show)....

....but then the other part of me starts laughing too hard. I don't think I'd buy it, but I love it every time I catch it on Adult Swim.

Voltron started airing in the late 80's at least, around the same time as G1 Transformers, right? If that were the case, Bamboo would have to be at least....
*quickly does some math in his head*
I agree with what Varmintx said.

... it seems hobbits bore me something awful.

I never said I didn't LIKE Naruto (I'm at work when it's on, so I've only seen up to episode 70some), but to own THAT MUCH Naruto (and other shows of lesser quality) when you can get Cowboy Bebop for $30 just isn't right. Hmph.

a big showdown where they spot some philosophical stuff about life and humanity,

I resent that statement about American comics being shallow...!

(To be honest, I don't understand the appeal of buying figurines or other extraneous merchandise either. I'm a fan myself, but I prefer spending my money in ways that allow me to directly exercise my fandom, instead of winding up with nothing more than a plastic object that has to be dusted every week. I have enough Lego models fillling that role as-is. :p)

Just to chime in on the One Piece discussion, what has acted as a major factor in my enjoyment of it, even from those first few episodes, was the persona of Luffy himself. Simply put, he's unlike any other fictional character I've come across, especially in the realm of shounen series. He doesn't spend all his time angsting over some perceived rivalry *cough*Naruto*cough*, he's not a mindless slave to the "imma get stronger" mentality, he's not some walking cliche of overexuberant stupidity, he's just...Luffy. He has a seemingly eternal lightheartedness and whimsy about him, even at those times when he's intensely angry and in the midst of kicking someone's ass (and he has to be one of the genuinely scariest characters I've ever come across when he's good and roused). He has an intensely pure idea of the concept of friendship that defines him to his very core; those whom he has labeled his friends literally define his entire life. In the same vein, his own definition of piracy as a lifelong adventure toward the next horizon drives him above all else. Plus...he's just freakin' funny. I'll admit that I absolutely hated the art style of the series the first time I saw it (to the point that, thankfully, I never bothered to check out the 4Kids abomination), but after I gave the first few FUNi episodes a shot, I started to look past it; at this point, I couldn't imagine the series looking any other way. I'm some 180 episodes in now, and the show as a whole is the most genuinely fun adventure I've ever come across. I'm very much looking forward to the next 180 episodes.

Luffy is, in his way, a mix of Goku, (pure), but one can't get away from Krillin, maybe because it is the same VA.

I assume you're talking subs, since Krillin's dub VA does Usopp, not Luffy. I could never watch the DBZ sub, mainly because of Goku's sub voice (just didn't sound right). And I've never bought the Dragonball DVDs, so I've only seen it on Toonami.

Mayumi Tanaka as Krillin

I collect figures although since I am a girl I don't collect the scantily clad female ones.

You are right it is completely pointless they just sit there. But I like the way they look on my shelf. It's just another way for me to show I am a fan of a series/character. I mean knickknacks are pretty pointless too but people collect those also. I guess it is the same sort of thing. Hey I buy DVDs of a series I like and most of those I've only watched once. Some people would argue that was pointless too.