The last thing we watched, cartoon/animu edition
- Thread starter TheMysteriousGX
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(Copied from the review I left on MyAnimeList)
The Big O starts out a stylish, oddball fusion of hardboiled detective fiction and tokusatsu style superheroics, but gradually evolves into something altogether weirder and more existential. It is partially successful in this.
First, the positives. The Big O aims to capture a very particular vibe, and succeeds. It's got interesting shot composition, a distinct visual style, and an achingly cool soundtrack of mostly jazz and funk. Most of the episodes consist of Roger looking into some case on behalf of a client, occasionally aided by an arsenal of gadgets, before a climax where he gets into the Big O and fights another giant robot in the middle of the city, and the show absolutely sells the idea that these two things belong together. The Big O itself is a fantastically designed super robot, and you get a real sense of it's weight and immensity whenever it's on screen. The Big O itself, and the rest of the setting, has a wonderful retro futurist analogue technology feel, all buttons and switches and levers. Over the course of the series the function of each control in Big O's cockpit is clearly shown, which makes it feel a lot more real than many other mecha. There's a lot of fun, sparky chemistry between the main cast of characters, particularly between Roger and the deadpan android Dorothy.
However, vibes only go so far. The stories of the standalone episodes often feel truncated to accommodate the mandatory giant robot fights, and the main plot is often not well explained, particularly the ending which may leave many viewers completely lost. There's also an excessive amount of time spent on characters having conversations which sound mysterious but tell the audience nothing, which adds to the vibes, but detracts from one's ability to understand anything that's happening, and twenty-six episodes is arguably too long for a show taking this kind of approach.
The things Big O is certainly worth a try for fans of mecha, or those who are intrigued by it's unique style, but if the first episode doesn't hook you in I personally wouldn't recommend continuing with it; everything that makes the show good is right there from the off.
6/10
The Big O starts out a stylish, oddball fusion of hardboiled detective fiction and tokusatsu style superheroics, but gradually evolves into something altogether weirder and more existential. It is partially successful in this.
First, the positives. The Big O aims to capture a very particular vibe, and succeeds. It's got interesting shot composition, a distinct visual style, and an achingly cool soundtrack of mostly jazz and funk. Most of the episodes consist of Roger looking into some case on behalf of a client, occasionally aided by an arsenal of gadgets, before a climax where he gets into the Big O and fights another giant robot in the middle of the city, and the show absolutely sells the idea that these two things belong together. The Big O itself is a fantastically designed super robot, and you get a real sense of it's weight and immensity whenever it's on screen. The Big O itself, and the rest of the setting, has a wonderful retro futurist analogue technology feel, all buttons and switches and levers. Over the course of the series the function of each control in Big O's cockpit is clearly shown, which makes it feel a lot more real than many other mecha. There's a lot of fun, sparky chemistry between the main cast of characters, particularly between Roger and the deadpan android Dorothy.
However, vibes only go so far. The stories of the standalone episodes often feel truncated to accommodate the mandatory giant robot fights, and the main plot is often not well explained, particularly the ending which may leave many viewers completely lost. There's also an excessive amount of time spent on characters having conversations which sound mysterious but tell the audience nothing, which adds to the vibes, but detracts from one's ability to understand anything that's happening, and twenty-six episodes is arguably too long for a show taking this kind of approach.
The things Big O is certainly worth a try for fans of mecha, or those who are intrigued by it's unique style, but if the first episode doesn't hook you in I personally wouldn't recommend continuing with it; everything that makes the show good is right there from the off.
6/10
While the ending is confusing, I thought it was a good show overall. Big O was supposed to get a third season explain all the crap that happened at the end of the season 2, but funding fell through. The ratings weren't high enough, and adult swim couldn't afford the budget. Still a better ending than the original Evangelion, if you ask me. I still watch the show on the occasion I regret nothing.
All of Paradigm City is a stage, and Angel is the director. It's implied that she either created the world, or heavily involved with its inception. She didn't like the way the world was going, nor her part in it, and tried to erase and restart everything. With some possible, ambiguous, implication that she has done this before and erased her own memories. For example, it was stated to Roger, "You were always the negotiator", a few episodes before the finale. Roger was somehow able to convince her, not to completely rewrite reality, and let people choose for themselves. The ending shot of Roger narrating similar to episode 1 back into his negotiator role. With Dorothy and Angel on the side street, but Angel looks to be not the elusive spy this time. Letting Roger and the other people on stage take control this time.
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Sounds about right. I need to pick up the blu ray one of these days.
With the repeated tomato imagery, my brain's plotting a Big O/Witch from Mercury mashup where Big O is the future where Quiet Zero wins out.
The Big O is a anime about mechs. Huh, not exactly what I expected from the title.
So I sat down and caught up on My Hero Academia.
Very odd experience. I'd dropped the series a year or two ago because it was kinda losing me. You know cause the series starts out with these kids going to hero academy and it starts fairly compelling, but as time goes on the school stuff gets less and less interesting. They start field training but I think they are still only second years so even as some stories progress you're asking, wondering if and when this is going any where.
That abruptly and dramatically changes around the 100th or so episode. The plot completely focuses on the Bad guys which really never had any kind of growth so it feels abrupt and they are having a war with other bad guy army like.....ok?
I would be more concerned about spoilers but I think this all happened last year. That said skip the italics if you're actually interested in giving this show a shot.
That goes on for a few episodes and escalations, but because none of this was setup so it was difficult to really get invested. As that sorta reaches its conclusion with all the bad guys joining together you find out life is much more complicated in this realm.
It turns out the idea of heroes is a state controlled solution which answered my quandary early on about why everyone doesn't just use their powers all the time and why things aren't a bit more chaotic. So theres a quite a massive group of terrorists who want everyone to use abilities as they want. Unfortunately these guys have unwittingly joined the actual evil guys thinking they would help their cause.
Anyhoo the last season is just complete chaos. A total war breaks out, tons of heroes die. Like a fucking lot. While not exceptionally bloody it definitely leaves the PG realm. Everything is bad cities destroyed.
I think part me is like FUCK YEAH, but at the same time it almost feels like the author ran out of gas and just went full end of evangelion. There was no gradual development of the main character. They just flipped a switch and now he's in endboss mode. It feels artificial. Unearned.
I can't put my finger on it, but it feels like this isn't the first time I've seen this abrupt sweeping change. Animes that are relatively mundane and then flip a switch in the last couple episodes. Even in Cowboy Bebop the majority of main plot progression happens in the last few episodes which left me kind wistful like "Like damn I would have liked to see more bounty hunter adventures."
I look forward to the final season, but I'm struggling to say the series as a whole is good because the plot is so disjointed.
Very odd experience. I'd dropped the series a year or two ago because it was kinda losing me. You know cause the series starts out with these kids going to hero academy and it starts fairly compelling, but as time goes on the school stuff gets less and less interesting. They start field training but I think they are still only second years so even as some stories progress you're asking, wondering if and when this is going any where.
That abruptly and dramatically changes around the 100th or so episode. The plot completely focuses on the Bad guys which really never had any kind of growth so it feels abrupt and they are having a war with other bad guy army like.....ok?
I would be more concerned about spoilers but I think this all happened last year. That said skip the italics if you're actually interested in giving this show a shot.
That goes on for a few episodes and escalations, but because none of this was setup so it was difficult to really get invested. As that sorta reaches its conclusion with all the bad guys joining together you find out life is much more complicated in this realm.
It turns out the idea of heroes is a state controlled solution which answered my quandary early on about why everyone doesn't just use their powers all the time and why things aren't a bit more chaotic. So theres a quite a massive group of terrorists who want everyone to use abilities as they want. Unfortunately these guys have unwittingly joined the actual evil guys thinking they would help their cause.
Anyhoo the last season is just complete chaos. A total war breaks out, tons of heroes die. Like a fucking lot. While not exceptionally bloody it definitely leaves the PG realm. Everything is bad cities destroyed.
I think part me is like FUCK YEAH, but at the same time it almost feels like the author ran out of gas and just went full end of evangelion. There was no gradual development of the main character. They just flipped a switch and now he's in endboss mode. It feels artificial. Unearned.
I can't put my finger on it, but it feels like this isn't the first time I've seen this abrupt sweeping change. Animes that are relatively mundane and then flip a switch in the last couple episodes. Even in Cowboy Bebop the majority of main plot progression happens in the last few episodes which left me kind wistful like "Like damn I would have liked to see more bounty hunter adventures."
I look forward to the final season, but I'm struggling to say the series as a whole is good because the plot is so disjointed.
Absent
And twice is the only way to live.
- Jan 25, 2023
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Well you're in luck then, because they did an abridged series of their abridged series;
So Ill say this about Demon Slayer. The cuteness of the dialog keeps me in it.
Ive heard a lot of rumblings of unhappiness that this current season lacks the action and fatalism of the previous season which was all explosions, death and action. It could be argued that this last season lacks the same feeling of escalating momentum in previous seasons.
I can't disagree with that. I also miss inosukes nonsense. I do think thinking making the new main hashira alikable and dull was a bad idea. Theres no amount of tragic back story that can't make wooden character "fun" to watch.
All that said it still works for me. Its still charming. I still find the quipiness and how the characters play off one another amusing. Theres still a feeling like we are slowly but surely nearing the end of the story.
Ive heard a lot of rumblings of unhappiness that this current season lacks the action and fatalism of the previous season which was all explosions, death and action. It could be argued that this last season lacks the same feeling of escalating momentum in previous seasons.
I can't disagree with that. I also miss inosukes nonsense. I do think thinking making the new main hashira alikable and dull was a bad idea. Theres no amount of tragic back story that can't make wooden character "fun" to watch.
All that said it still works for me. Its still charming. I still find the quipiness and how the characters play off one another amusing. Theres still a feeling like we are slowly but surely nearing the end of the story.
I think the anime has been cast to perfection. Even the rando side characters feel like actual people because of the personality the voice actors bring to them.
But yes, I am on of those unhappy rumblings. Considering we had like 5 minutes of flashbacks, I don't think there was any reason at all for this finale to be almost an hour long. I spent all season waiting for some amazing re-imagining of the fight scenes like we got in the previous season, and it just wasn't there. I mean, this season is still has way, WAY better production values than 99% of anime releasing these days. But I get the feeling that they're saving their money for a movie or something.
Absent
And twice is the only way to live.
- Jan 25, 2023
- 1,594
- 1,557
- 118
- Country
- Switzerland
- Gender
- The boring one
Despite the kai abridged abridged version being way way more enjoyable, I continue to watch the dbz abridged version. It's interesting to see tfs getting better and noticeably evolving in the general direction of hellsing abridged quality. Also it's interesting to get the plot of that cultural phenomenon that I couldn't have been arsed to watch.
I'm still at the stage of getting to terms with the fact that the short dude isn't called piccolo and that the tall green one isn't call vegeta. No wonder I couldn't get any references...
I'm still at the stage of getting to terms with the fact that the short dude isn't called piccolo and that the tall green one isn't call vegeta. No wonder I couldn't get any references...
Caught up with Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercury. I think it's going to be a 24 episode show. I don't want it to be a 24 episode show. I want so much more.
It's the most frustrating 9/10 Everybody Should Watch anime I've ever seen. Like, it's clear it was supposed to be a 36/48 episode show and got massively cut down and it's still fantastic
Why would you think Big Green's name would be Vegeta?Despite the kai abridged abridged version being way way more enjoyable, I continue to watch the dbz abridged version. It's interesting to see tfs getting better and noticeably evolving in the general direction of hellsing abridged quality. Also it's interesting to get the plot of that cultural phenomenon that I couldn't have been arsed to watch.
I'm still at the stage of getting to terms with the fact that the short dude isn't called piccolo and that the tall green one isn't call vegeta. No wonder I couldn't get any references...
Absent
And twice is the only way to live.
- Jan 25, 2023
- 1,594
- 1,557
- 118
- Country
- Switzerland
- Gender
- The boring one
Okay, so Toriyama names people based on themes. Back in Dragonball, when Evil King Piccolo was a demon, he and his minions were named after instruments (Tamborine, Ukulele, Piano, etc). The saiyans are all based on vegetables (Kakarot, Vegeta, Raditz, Broly, Cabba, etc). Bulma Briefs her sister Tights, and Bulma's kids Trunks and Bra, and so on.