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ReaKon
Joined: 30 Dec 2010
Posts: 127
Location: UK
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Posted: Tue Aug 30, 2011 1:28 am
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If Tenjo Tenge is much the same as the first book (and it seems to be) then I will still enjoy it. I have it waiting on my shelf to read and I am surprised I have left it this long.
Shame about the art of Bloody Monday, I was looking forward to this series (only from the description on Kodansha's website though). I will still be giving the first volume a go in November when the UK finally get it but I won't be expecting too much from it.
I was hoping to get a Cage of Eden review along with Bloody Monday. Maybe next week?
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dormcat
Encyclopedia Editor
Joined: 08 Dec 2003
Posts: 9902
Location: New Taipei City, Taiwan, ROC
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Posted: Tue Aug 30, 2011 3:37 am
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Quote: | World War II-era bombers dropping dead bodies everywhere |
Those are earlier models of B-52 (with taller vertical stabilizer). You don't see World War II-era bombers (such as Arado Ar 234) equipped with swept wing and eight jet engines.
Quote: | I'm willing to bet that many of you have never heard of Octave, let alone read it. |
You've lost the bet. Do I get a cookie?
Last edited by dormcat on Tue Aug 30, 2011 4:02 am; edited 1 time in total
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Sewingrose
Joined: 11 Jan 2011
Posts: 579
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Posted: Tue Aug 30, 2011 4:00 am
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I gave Bloody Monday a look back a while ago and was under-whelmed substantially. It wants very desperately to be Death Note with hacking, but the first glimpses of a plot felt stilled and hurtled past my willing suspension of disbelief line right quick. The characters had no real personality and don't for a second feel genuinely intelligent, which in a series based around mind games is downright anathema. The entire draw is to see clever people try to outwit clever people. When even the "clever" part seems completely artificial, you have a problem.
And then there's the hacking. As someone who is only somewhat knowledgeable about computers, (though does use Ubuntu) I'm pretty sure it can succinctly be summed up as: AARRAARGGHHH... GRAH?? RRGGHHH! Grah. Grr.
Really not feeling it for this series when it falls flat on its face when it comes to what are its main two draws: Mind Games and Hacking. Also the non-stop sexualization of the female villain did not exactly endear itself to me nor make me terribly want to cut it any slack.
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vashfanatic
Joined: 16 Jun 2005
Posts: 3495
Location: Back stateside
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Posted: Tue Aug 30, 2011 6:28 am
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I would've really recommended Octave as well... at first. Eventually, though, the plot started to be driven by Characters Acting Like Idiots, with all the conflict resulting from their ensuing idiocy. As a result, the ending, which was them finally TALKING about their problems was...ugh. I dunno, by the end I just didn't like the characters.
Still, this kind of series, which deals with lesbian relationships outside the all-girls school setting, something yuri continues to desperately need more of, and even though it eventually disappointed me, it was in no ways bad. Besides, as in all thing, your mileage may vary.
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CareyGrant
Joined: 18 Nov 2009
Posts: 453
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Posted: Tue Aug 30, 2011 12:56 pm
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I dislike anime and manga all the time, but rarely do I ever hate it. Tenjo Tenge, how I hate thee.
You'd think it has all the right elements for success. Super, ultra hot girls wearing skimpy and highly impractical clothing? Check and Double Check (hell, I'll admit to watching & reading entire series just on this fact alone). Lots of Action and Fights? Check (not great, but OK). But then we come across our "turd in the punch bowl," Soichiro Nagi, and we're heading on the off ramp to Hatesville, population Tenjo Tenge.
I think about the time you start rooting for the villains to kill off the lead character, that should be a pretty big clue...
If there were an award for the douch-e-ist shonen-type character, our joke of an adolescent male power fantasy would take the cake. And the fact that someone from the Tenjo Tenge universe just hasn't put a bullet in his head already is beyond me. Moments after I met his charming douchey self, I'd have gladly volunteered for the job.
And as Carlos pointed out so well, the series main love triangle between the sisters, among many other story and plot elements, are down right flimsier than a wet tissue, and just as stimulating. Indeed, the whole series is unconvincing and flat, suffering from delusions of adequacy.
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dormcat
Encyclopedia Editor
Joined: 08 Dec 2003
Posts: 9902
Location: New Taipei City, Taiwan, ROC
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Posted: Tue Aug 30, 2011 1:04 pm
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CareyGrant wrote: | I dislike anime and manga all the time |
Then what's the point of visiting and posting here? Enlighten me, please.
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CareyGrant
Joined: 18 Nov 2009
Posts: 453
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Posted: Tue Aug 30, 2011 1:21 pm
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dormcat wrote: |
CareyGrant wrote: | I dislike anime and manga all the time |
Then what's the point of visiting and posting here? Enlighten me, please. |
I think you misunderstood my original post.
My point lay in the comparison between dislike and hate. Do you ever notice how often people, kids and teens especially, say they "hate" things? I mean, truly hate things, when in reality they mean something more akin to dislike. For example, someone might say "I hate brocoli." Do they honestly have such strong ill-feelings for the vegetable or is it hyperbole?
There is a great deal of anime & manga I love, even adore to bits, just as there is anime & manga that I dislike. Lastly, there is anime & manga I hate. It's a spectrum, a number line of intensities from love to hate with an indifferent zero in the middle.
As for why I posted here, I was sharing my personal opinions about a series after reading Carlos's column. Am I not supposed to do that?
And for the record, I love brocoli.
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dormcat
Encyclopedia Editor
Joined: 08 Dec 2003
Posts: 9902
Location: New Taipei City, Taiwan, ROC
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Posted: Tue Aug 30, 2011 1:40 pm
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CareyGrant wrote: | My point lay in the comparison between dislike and hate. |
Ah, I see, point taken. As for Tenjo Tenge, I don't regard it highly, but I do think there are much worse manga out there.
CareyGrant wrote: | As for why I posted here, I was sharing my personal opinions about a series after reading Carlos's column. Am I not supposed to do that? |
Because I misunderstood you as disliking anime and manga in general.
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CareyGrant
Joined: 18 Nov 2009
Posts: 453
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Posted: Tue Aug 30, 2011 2:42 pm
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dormcat wrote: |
CareyGrant wrote: | My point lay in the comparison between dislike and hate. |
Ah, I see, point taken. As for Tenjo Tenge, I don't regard it highly, but I do think there are much worse manga out there.
CareyGrant wrote: | As for why I posted here, I was sharing my personal opinions about a series after reading Carlos's column. Am I not supposed to do that? |
Because I misunderstood you as disliking anime and manga in general. |
Oh no. I'm pretty "Brokeback" for anime and manga. No worries.
And as a fan of josei and yuri, I'm positively fascinated by Octave, and a tad miffed I've not heard of this gem before in my travels. It's goin' on my list.
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DTJB
Joined: 20 Jan 2010
Posts: 671
Location: Dubuque, IA
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Posted: Tue Aug 30, 2011 4:02 pm
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Hmm, josei yuri manga eh? Going to check this out.
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Unholy_Nny
Joined: 22 Jun 2005
Posts: 622
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Posted: Tue Aug 30, 2011 5:23 pm
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I *just* started to read Tenjo Tenge on Saturday, picked up vol. 1 and 2. It's... I dunno. It's really trashy and objectively not very good, but I'm hooked.
EDIT: I think Carlo should've pointed out that the quality of the release is pretty excellent. It manages to cram two volumes into one book without feeling weirdly huge, plus it's loaded with colored pages. Not to mention totally uncensored. (All selling points for people who've already read scans and/or CMX's release)
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One-Eye
Joined: 08 Mar 2011
Posts: 2267
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Posted: Tue Aug 30, 2011 7:18 pm
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I had read some of Octave a long while back and thought it had potential. As others pointed out it was nice to see some yuri not in an all girls school. My only gripe at the time was that Yukino's insecurities sometimes seemed a bit too much imho. Still it is a series that I would like to go back to someday and finish.
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darkchibi07
Joined: 15 Oct 2003
Posts: 5513
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Posted: Tue Aug 30, 2011 8:49 pm
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DTJB wrote: | Hmm, josei yuri manga eh? Going to check this out. |
Though the kicker is that Octave was serialized in Kodansha's Afternoon magazine (yes the same one that serialized fan-favorite ones like Ah! My Goddess, Mushishi, Genshiken) which was aimed for the seinen market. I have to give them props for publishing that along with that shoujo yuri title that was serialized on freakin' Nakayoshi.
Someone should ask Kodansha USA to bring those in!
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CareyGrant
Joined: 18 Nov 2009
Posts: 453
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Posted: Tue Aug 30, 2011 11:20 pm
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Unholy_Nny wrote: | I *just* started to read Tenjo Tenge on Saturday, picked up vol. 1 and 2. It's... I dunno. It's really trashy and objectively not very good, but I'm hooked. |
Yeah, trashy. Oh!great has considerable talent for drawin' eye candy, I'll grant you that. If only it were a yuri harem...
Unholy_Nny wrote: | EDIT: ...plus it's loaded with colored pages. Not to mention totally uncensored. |
But what's the point? If uncensored naughty goodness is your goal, or the main selling feature, why not just go straight for hentai or doujinshi?
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N.R.
Joined: 22 Oct 2010
Posts: 232
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Posted: Wed Aug 31, 2011 2:08 am
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Wow, this column had one bad manga after the other. only one of the manga volumes reviewed here even reach a B!
I wonder if the Bakuman anime will ever be licensed. Personally I think it's so much better than the manga (reading a manga about 2 guys making a manga is quite dull).
OCTAVE sounds interesting. I'll be checking it out soon.
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