Forum - View topicGiving up on a series... Bored of NGE.
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unhealthyman
 Posts: 306 |
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How often do you just give up on a series? I'm slowly trudging through NGE (IT'S A CLASSIC, HONEST,) and finding it totally uninvolving with possibly the 3 least likable characters in anime. I was enjoying it up to some point, but now I am really struggling to want to watch any more.
So far, even if I haven't been overly taken with a series, I will still want to see the end, and I am now up to episode 17 of NGE so I kinda feel like I should see where it goes... If I'm not interested by episode 17, thats surely not a good sign. /sigh. (I'm sure part of the problem is I am watching Monster loads at the same time and so NGE gets pushed to the sidelines, and the longer I leave it, the less I remember or care...) |
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Steve Berry
Posts: 522 Location: San Francisco Bay Area, CA |
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I trudged through NGE myself. The show got my interesting around ep 19/20. I normally stop a show after abuout 5 eps if I'm not into it-- I don't have time for something that's going to bore me for 2 hours and _then_, maybe, get interesting. I think with NGE it was winter, and I was bored, so I just sat around and watched it anyways.
From a directorial standpoint it did a lot of interesting things, and if you're into long philosophical discussions than those last 6 eps might be good for you. I liked them. Better than the movies too, personally. Still, I'd never really recommend the show to others, as I found the first 3/4 to be repetetive and uninteresting, I never really got into the characters, and oddly, I never felt like their relationships were really explored much in an active way-- as in through action-- rather than just talking. Things just sort of seemed to be static to me. So you're not alone in not liking the show. Anyways, I know there are others who love the show, and having watched the whole thing, I can see why-- the last section _is_ interesting, and well done, but I just wished the whole show had had more of that flair. Good luck if you decide to plow on through. |
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unhealthyman
Posts: 306 |
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Yeh, I figure I'm just gonna take a break from NGE for the moment. No point forcing myself to sit down and watch it. Seeing as I've watched over half of it, I'd like to finish it some day. (For my imaginary tick list
 ) All that mopey angst just got the better of me...
Started Azumanga Daioh just now, for something a bit different. |
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undeadben
 Posts: 1212 Location: West Texas |
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I don't know, taking a break is a good idea, maybe try watching like 2 minutes a day and it won't be so bad. I went through the same thing with NGE, I kept trudging along, episode after episode, out of the sheer hope that I was going to get to that amazing moment for which all Eva fans makes this show special. I must've missed it along the way; I went through the whole thing and the movies and never found it for myself. It's an OK show for non fans, but it's more the type that you sit through when you have absolutely nothing else to watch, than something to go out of your way for.
ETA: All three of us, so far in this thread, used the word 'trudge' or 'trudging' to describe our experience watching NGE. I'm not sure if I did subconsciously because you all had, or if it is just a great way of describing the way you feel when you sit through this show and you are not a superfan of Eva. |
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OnePieceFANatic
 Posts: 104 Location: The Grand Line! |
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Yeah I gave up on this show too. Probably the only one I ever gave up on, but then again, I haven't seen too many to begin with. I didn't like the characters and the whole emo feel to it. It was completely opposite of the sort of stuff I usually go for, so I had to stop. I didn't like Serial Experiments Lain at all either, but I never gave up on that, watched it to the end. But with NGE....couldn't. Just couldn't.
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Keonyn
 Subscriber Posts: 5567 Location: Coon Rapids, MN |
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I've given up on a few, Gilgamesh for one as it just bored me and the animation was just plain bad most of the time, reminded me of ancient Scooby Doo cartoons.
Another was Burst Angel, after seeing the same basic story get recycled 3 times I simply gave up on it as I had lost interest and it wasn't going anywhere. And also there is Tenjho Tenge, the blatant fanservice and overdone fighting really didn't interest me much, add that to the fact the only decent character was the one that was getting the shaft and the two vital characters were complete morons didn't help, I'd rather watch episode after episode of nothing but Shinji from Eva than the two from this series. |
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HitokiriShadow
 Posts: 6251 |
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How far did you get in Tenjho Tenge? It gets a lot better around episode 8 or so when it goes into the backstory abou Maya, Shinn and Mutsuomi.
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Keonyn
Subscriber Posts: 5567 Location: Coon Rapids, MN |
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I saw as far as episode 8, basically the first two DVD's as my sisters fiancee has the whole series, stopped watching at that point.
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cheezisgoooood
Posts: 253 Location: Orlando, FL |
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By the time I was up to episode 8 of Tsubasa Chronicle, I was officially fed up with the way it was doing things.
I just hated the damn show it felt so cliched I had to stop before my head blew up. It was too stupid, and I'm not much of a CLAMP fan either, so I had to give up on it. Can't blame me for trying though, right? |
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selenta
Subscriber Posts: 1774 Location: Seattle, WA |
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Me? I've given up on a number of series before. This is probably due to my capricious choices of which anime to watch.
Saiyuki - I read the manga and loved it, so when I went to watch the show and heard the worst voice acting I've EVER heard, some of the worst animation, and repeating of the same dialogue 3 times in a row, I was like "wth is this!?" Tsubasa Chronicles - too spacy for me, I'm not sure what it really was that bothered me so much with this show, I watched like 12 episodes before I stopped though Coyote Ragtime Show - too hoaky Air Gear - also too hoaky, plus EXTREMELY formulaic NGE though... this was a "trudge" through type of anime to me. I watched the whole thing, but looking back on it, I don't think it was worth the time. I gave it a 6/10, but it seems much more like the show is a wanna be philosopher than actually being insightful. It poses many many "deep" questions, but actually doesn't answer many, if any, of them. I've gotten a lot more "deep thoughts" on humanity from lots of other shows than I ever did from NGE. I too hated all the characters, so no, it's not just you; NGE is, in my opinion, one of the most overrated anime. |
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unhealthyman
Posts: 306 |
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One thing I really hate is when an anime is being deep just for the sake of it. I think that is one of the reasons that I found Ghost in the Shell: Innocence to be a bit lacking (the other reason being that I was drunk and with a lot of other drunk people when I watched it.) My friend really rates it, but pages of pseudo philosophical ramble just lost me to be honest. (I'm a philosophy undergraduate as well, so maybe I should have liked it more... I dunno, I just don't like have 'deep and meaningfull' rammed down my throat.) I find it difficult to give up on a series that has so much critical acclaim - whether it's deserved or not. Part of me is certainly also trying to be able to say 'Yeh, I've watched it,' no matter how shallow that attitude is. |
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Webki
 Posts: 299 Location: Albany, NY |
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Personally, I absolutely loved NGE. I thought the characters were all superbly done; perhaps I would go as far to say the "deepest" characters out of any anime I've watched so far (Twelve Kingdoms excluded. You can't beat the character development in that phenomenal series). At the end you realize that you pretty much just watched a Freudian analysis of Shinji, Asuka, and Rei.
However, Ghost in the Shell : SAC was a "trudge" for me. When I had just two episodes left I couldn't bring myself to finish them before I went on vacation for a week. When I came back I finished them, but overall I didn't see what was so spectacular. I really kind of wanted the Laughing Man to do more... but he never really did. Also, the first ten or so episodes of Gundam Seed Destiny just took me so long to finish. I loved the first series, but the opening of Destiny just... well, it just sucked. However, around episode 15 or so, I really got into it and flew through the rest of the series. So overall I liked it, but I don't think I'd be able to rewatch the beginning for a few years. |
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Tetsujin
Posts: 216 |
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I managed to see NGE two times, and that was when Adult Swim initially aired it-- the episode premiere along with the encore airing. If there was something I missed on episode premiere night, I usually got it on encore airing night. Many things about NGE still escaped me, but not enough to make me want to give up on it.
Given the point in life at which I discovered NGE, my favorite character is Misato Katsuragi-- I couldn't see myself interested in young teenagers when I could relate better to Misato. Yes, fanservice influenced me, but it got me hooked long enough to see how her character goes through a wide-ranging personal experience. The voice actress for Misato would note in previews for the next episode that there would be fanservice, and NGE became notorious for this as a result. What surprised me, though, was that when the advanced warnings for fanservice ended there was just as much as before. Also, it was after Episode 16 when each episode of NGE had at least one WTF??? Moment-- scenes which came from out of nowhere and I had no clue would be presented were shown. Speaking for myself, after three of these moments I began to wonder when such a moment would take place in the next episode. Some people would discourage this, but if anyone is enduring the long hard slog that is watching NGE, then I suggest visiting a site such as Wikipedia and read whatever it has on this series. If anything, it will provide things to anticipate while watching later episodes. Even if what happens is known, seeing events unfold can be just as helpful (if not enjoyable). NGE has the deep tone it has because it is the product of someone trying to answer personal questions. I don't think NGE is deep in order to give answers but rather to be a vehicle for engaging in the process of self-discovery. If NGE seems philosophical, it is from the perspective of a student rather than from the perspective of an instructor. The student seeks answers to questions, and not all questions get answered (and more questions arise). NGE may be "deep" or "philosophical," but it isn't The Republic by Plator or even A Book of Five Rings by Musashi. After Episode 16, key revelations about the three teenagers are made. These revelations may or may not qualify as WTF??? Moments, but at least they provide a payoff for having endured NGE up to that point. Other key revelations are made, but most people expect those involving the three teenagers to be made. Even if NGE seemed like such a bore after Episode 26, the final quarter of the series answers many questions raised during the first three quarters of NGE. I thought the last quarter of the series tried to tie up loose ends. Not everyone who watches NGE becomes a fan of this series; I'm just trying to help find ways of making the viewing experience more tolerable. |
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selenta
Subscriber Posts: 1774 Location: Seattle, WA |
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I disagree with this. I don't think NGE is deep, what it is imo, is an attempt to appear deep by asking difficult questions. The problem is that ANYONE can figure out difficult questions, questions that might reveal some sort of insight if answered could be asked by any person on this planet. Asking a question anyone could come up with themselves isn't "deep" if you ask me (especially looking at how MANY of these "deep" questions there are in the series and the eclectic manner in which they are presented), it's the answers to these questions and paradoxes that draw upon the experience of the characters and how they probably relate to the viewers that has the potential to be "deep". Shows like Monster, Lain, or even Twelve Kingdoms can be considered "deep" as they pose very difficult questions or psychological dilemmas and then pick them apart to determine a resolution. Then again, perhaps in some people's minds those myriad questions were answered sufficiently (not mine, that's for sure); and if someone thinks they were resolved up to their standards, then I guess we simply have much different standards, so I have no problem with them calling it "deep". Just remember, telling people what they already know, or asking them questions they could or probably have had themselves isn't "insightful", it's annoying. |
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cheezisgoooood
Posts: 253 Location: Orlando, FL |
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One thing that I think everybody seems to get wrong about NGE is that it's not philosophical, it's psychological. The whole point of the anime, and the whole set-up it has, seems to me like it's trying to make you think about YOURSELF. It's thought-provoking but in a personal way. No other anime has really managed to do it as well as Eva in my opinion. The fact conversations like this still go on is an example of how much impact NGE has had on anime, and how many different perceptions can be taken from it. In my opinion, for a show to have THAT MUCH impact, it had to have done something right. That's just my two cents. |
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