AnimeSuki Forums

Hey, will reply to the long message, don't worry. Just wanted to say we're having some really awesome conversations at the moment and just wanted to see if you wanted to at least pop in and have a listen. Completely up to you. :3

I lean toward the cute too, by far. I quite agree that cuteness is generally charming, while an overload of sexuality is often tasteless and reeks of desperation. That being said, moe being the powerhouse that it is, huge amounts of cuteness is definitely part of an intentional, overt marketing effort as well. It's just something that appeals to us more, and I also happen to think it's a more respectable approach, since it's harder to pull off. Throwing in perverted angels, bathhouse/beach episodes and huge breasts is virtually effortless (and potentially exploitative.) Designing characters with cute personalities which resonate with the viewer is much more challenging, and therefore ultimately provide a deeper and more lingering sense of enjoyment and satisfaction.

This topic made me think about the differences that still exist between the Japanese and the American anime market. Despite moe being a (I would say "the") dominating force in current anime, and despite the popularity of slam-dunk hits such as K-On, it seems like fanservice is still infinitely more palatable as a marketing tool outside of Japan when it comes to sales than moe/cuteness is. Just considering something like Yuru Yuri (which I know both you and I agree is around K-On's level of quality and with a very similar appeal) isn't even licensed for release, while Sekirei, Rosario to Vampire, Queen's Blade, Senran Kagura (I could go on) are, and most of them are doing very well in terms of sales. It seems like breasts move units, while cuteness barley keeps its head above water, remaining much more niche. I suppose that's to be expected, but a little depressing nonetheless. It also keeps the image of anime being a sort of shameless, crazy thing alive, because that's what people who aren't "in the know" see on store shelves at Wall-Mart or wherever they stock'em these days. I don't really care what the general public thinks of my hobby on a personal level, but it is annoying when people have these shallow misconceptions about anime in general based on a few American releases. Because I care about the medium, not because I fear their judgment.

I just wrote a pretty lengthy rant, so I think I'll save you from dipping too deep into the piracy discussion just now.

I almost used this discussion as a jump-off point for a serious discussion too. I think I'm in a mood.

That's the right attitude, I think. Hard to pull off, I'm not quite at that point yet. But I'm working on it.

It's the same price-point as their Fate/Zero releases, and a mere half of their first Kara no Kyoukai release! That's the niche within the niche, aiming for a super-limited release to the people who fit both the category of super-hardcore fan and financially well off individual. Ore-Imo is frequently mispronounced, I've found. Was it the "Oray-Mow"?

That's a reassuring tale, thanks for sharing. Sound like a decent plan, I might just get on that. I appreciate the suggestions and everything, it's nice to be asked to participate, and I don't take it as pressure at all, so no worries there.

Cute and sexy in tandem is good, but yes, I lean towards the cute side for interests. Being overly cute is just charming, while the latter is just marketing by that point.

People will always pirate- EVERYONE does it. A free download of a song, downloading an image that was required to be paid, games, you name it. It depends on if you're using these acquired pieces of data with the intention of giving back to it when you can or not. However, this recent practice from companies sure does push the proverbial pirate ship along.

Some people, I swear. I heard acts of Neo-Nazism is illegal now too.

Yeah, that is so very true. I actually wanted to get a pink heart patch on my jacket or jeans or something; a "don't be afraid of pink/spread the love" campaign in disguise, if you will. I'm just starting to not bother with the negativity in society, since it radiates everywhere anyways.

Yeah, the Oreimo one was pretty damn ridiculous. Didn't have anything more than the Nise one in terms of content either, so what the hell? Also, the host of the stream kept pronouncing it really really weird, and it was getting to me.

No pressure at all. I know people always say it, but getting in and trying is the best way- carpe diem, as they say. I think we had about 2 months of my silence before I got comfortable, but it's definitely a thing. I even had nicknames since I never talked or spoke of my name. At your own comfort, my personal recommendation would be to stick around online on Skype (just to know when you're on), pop in when one of our conversations is going and just listen in if you don't feel the strength to speak. Over time of getting comfortable in the environment I found myself wanting to join in, so perhaps it'll work for you. But like I said, no pressure, do what it is that you're most comfortable with. I'm just here to offer suggestions.

I'll definitely agree with that. I love cute. We've touched on this before, but I don't necessarily have a problem with sexy and cute working in tandem. (Although naturally I have my limits, and don't want it intruding where it doesn't belong.) What I've no interest in whatosever is pure sex appeal, without the cuteness element. That just usually does nothing for me.

Even if that's not the root of the pirating problem (I don't think it is), it definitely legitimizes the pirates. It gives people a reason not to pay; and feel justified in not doing so. And in this day and age, if you give people a reason to fuck you over and not pay, they will; because they easily can.

Well, people are against everything these days. Some guy even told me to take down my Swastika banner this week! Can you believe it?

That's good. I'm trying to think more like that myself. Since I mentioned Shakespeare in my last post, I'll bring out this old nugget of wisdom. "To thine own self be true." Right? Society is so restrictive, the older you get, the more you find out how much you really have to conform just to function as a member of it in most job situations. So I'm increasingly realizing how important it is to break out of the mold and don't be afraid to be yourself on your own time. Wear that hat, and display it proudly.

I read up a little bit about the Aniplex stream and found this: Nise being a little cheaper than Bake for the MSRP is a good start. I really do want to own that one as well, both for the sake of completion and because I genuinely did love the show. It's just a hard show to bring up without qualifying it with a "but I don't like it because of the incest episode, I swear!" That Ore-Imo pricing is insaaaaaane though. Over 300 dollars? Give me a break. The DVDs are like 50 bucks. Blurays are nice and all, but that's an increase of about 600% in pricing. Ri-ridculous.

That sounds like a good time. I have a feeling it'd be nice too. Just gotta get over that initial feeling of trepidation.... and/or find a time when I'm home alone.

I'll take moe over fanservice as a whole anyday. In varied amounts this changes, but I prefer the "cute" over the "sexy".

Yeah, the gaming industry is not pleased. This is exactly why pirating occurs; hell, now they're going to be promoting it directly.

I suppose. Someone told me once that meth was bad for you though; think the poor guy got burned at the stake for his blasphemy.

I'm actually in the process of nabbing about 10 pins to stick on my new hat- to hell with what society will think. New packages are awesome, but only if you don't miss the postman. I happened to catch that trailer on YouTube by coincidence, and it was a bad coincidence. The Aniplex live was really one associate showing off trailers and new products. He was laid back and fit the good side of the fandom in my eyes, so the stream was fun to sit through. Just thought I'd mention the Nise release since you were talking about that Bake incident a bit back.

It's great fun. Anime's a topic, but joking around and discussing realistic topics is really cool too. My bud and I are three hours apart and usually talk into the very late hours of the night/morning. I don't think syncing would be too difficult if you just popped in whenever, since I rarely sleep anyways. Perhaps pop in once while we're chatting and see how you feel about it, then slink off if you're uncomfortable or anything. I have a feeling it'd be nice though.

Their productions are usually cute and gorgeous-looking enough to not need to rely on any sort of overt sexuality for sales. Which is nice.

Oh right. There's that aspect to it as well, the used games thing. God forbid someone buy something used; that's just way too out there! Borrowing, renting and buying used has always been an integral part of gaming. Most people just can't afford to buy every game they want to try new.

Those things are alright.... You know, if you've already paid for the month's meth supply.

It's just such an inviting picture. I'm waiting with baited breath to see if the rest of the package, which includes that keychain, arrives today. I never really watch English trailers (or all that many Japanese trailers, to be honest), but I went and looked at this one after you mentioned it. Yeah, pretty stupid. Then again, Strike Witches ain't exactly Shakespeare, so it's hard for me to be upset with them for making a dumb trailer. Funimation is the expert at licensing any and everything which contains copious amounts of fanservice. Onto the next item, I didn't know Aniplex had a live stream, and I'm not sure if it's news or not either. Bakemonogatari already has a blu-ray boxset release. I own it, so I'm pretty sure about that one. Is it a cheaper release? Ah, the one I have is a limited edition, so perhaps a regular edition? Regardless, Nise getting a release is pretty nice! As much as I like Nise though, I'm not sure it's quite at the level where I want to shell out 200 dollars for it like I did with Bake... what with the toothbrush and pervading sense of overindulgent lechery that brought it down a notch.

Cool, cool. That does sound like a lot of fun, and the laid-back, welcoming attitude is a huge plus. I'll definitely let you know when I feel comfortable with it. Moving out would be a huge help in that, but I'll have to get lucky to pull that off as quick as I'd like. Percentage-wise, Oslo is actually the fastest growing city in Europe, and also one of the most expensive in the world. You can probably imagine what those two factors do for the housing market... the rents are absolutely ridiculous. Good luck ever syncing up with me though, what are we, like 9 hours apart?

Yeah, that's the kind I can stomach the best. Not too much, just what they need.

They don't even try and hide it anymore. Far Cry 3 coined the term "ULC" (Unlockable Content) and it's pretty much a thing that they'll try and kill off the used game market.

Living's a good thing to spend towards. Yes. I like the sound of food and shelter.

I saw the keychain you were talking about shortly after, great stuff. Strike Witches also has a horrendously misleading English trailer- my god, it's terrible. I personally cannot have an opinion on it, since I haven't seen it. Oh, and I don't know if this is a thing or not, but I just finished watching an Aniplex live stream, and Bake and Nise were announced for getting Blu-Ray box sets. Dunno if it's news or not.

Don't fret about it, I understand. You should have seen me when I joined in on my first actual Skype call. I was quiet and was basically an observer. Then as you said, you get over it and realize that people just like to chat; the world's not as scary. I've got a friend on this forum that I call almost every day and chat with; we even sync times and watch series together here and there. He's always saying that we need another person in on the chat for opinions and just for more enjoyment. Whenever you feel comfortable with it, you'd be welcome to join in; I guarantee it's always great fun. Thin walls is something I deal with as well; I think my roommate's just being considerate.

It was KyoAni-style fanservice. Classy fanservice, but fanservice nonetheless. Not that I'm really complaining, we could all do with a little more class in our life.

They're certainly more blatant and bold with their nickel and diming. I'm sure it's not all that different from how businesses maximized profits in the past; just a new avenue of exploitation which is so obvious that it's hard to not be appalled by it.

Yeah, there's a lot of stuff your money would be better spent on these days. With all these orders I've been making the last year, I've grown to associate those brown cardboard boxes with pure joy. Those bland, boring little things. It's quite something.

Glad you like it! I absolutely fell in love with that picture myself; it was pretty much the perfect picture I could have gotten out of the series. That or a nice picture of Kuroneko looking scornfully towards the horizon. I liked the picture so much in fact that I also ordered a keychain with the same picture, which'll hopefully arrive sometime soon as well! I can see how Strike Witches would be very awkward. It's a guilty pleasure; super-guilty. I never would have put up anything more risque myself either; even this is pushing it for me. Not like any of my friends will really know what Strike Witches is anyway (as far as I know, anyway), but there's always that Google-fu, and while I've no problem admitting I (at least partially) enjoyed the show, it's not the kind of stuff I'd like people to think is my bread and butter, if you know what I mean.

Oh right, Skype. I'd forgotten all about that, I should get back on that. I have a (presumably crappy) cheap mic lying around here. A proper anime chat sounds great! However, there are a few hurdles I'll have to overcome to get to that point. A shameful admission here, but I'm actually living back home again currently. I'm in a transition period (a euphemism for being unemployed if there ever was one), but I'm actively taking a course, trying to get a new full-time job and hopefully move back out into a place of my own. Currently, I'm wall to wall with one of my sisters, and speaking English to myself in my room would probably embarrass me. I know that's a little silly. Talking to a native English speaker in itself is a little daunting too, but I think that'll be fun once I get past the initial shyness. Don't take this convoluted explanation as a roundabout way of saying "no"; it's just me being (more than) a little embarrassed about my current life situation. Once I've moved out, I'll be able to chat for sure, and maybe before that too, if I'm "feeling brave tonight." It's genuinely something I'd really like to do, make no mistake about it. I had a friend over a few nights ago and the topic shifted to anime (which it very rarely does), and I noticed I just couldn't shut up about it, so I guess I got a lot of that stuff pent up.

It was more of a beach episode anyways, since the mystery was kinda cheap. :3

Yeah, buy the disk and pay extra for what's locked on it. Great practices nowadays. This is the nice thing about a gaming PC; you can afford to sidestep such travesties and go for the downloads.

Realized we were losing an additional $40 a month on something we never used, so we asked to have it cut immediately. Like you said, why bother? Packages in the mail are great! It's awesome to see your name on it and just kinda anticipate what will be in it.

Holy hot damn, I want that OreImo wallscroll. I had a Strike Witches poster from a NewType magazine once; knew nothing about the series and it was kinda awkward to put up with my friends coming around all of the time, so I just left it. I might have to look into wallscrolls yet again.

P.S. I don't even remember if I asked, but do you have the means to have a proper Skype chat? Y'know, mic, cam, either/or, that kinda thing. Proper anime Skype chats are pretty much the best thing ever.

Good point, good point...

Ah, alright, I guess I missed that. And by that I of course mean that I intentionally saved it, knowing I'd have a post-ending Hyouka craving!

Gotta love that. Paying for what you already own. Having to maintain constant internet access to play the single player aspect of a game you bought with hard-earned cash. All that jazz. Gee, I'm sort of glad I don't buy many games these days.

I'm exactly the same, I used to like watching television, but now it's like poison to me. Who needs it anyway, like you say, we're making great accomplishments here in our little fandom! Speaking of fandom, I got a package in the mail yesterday that really cheered me up. Which I really needed. I just got a huge unexpected bill which is a complete pain, and I think it was a completely unfair charge as well, so that was bothering me a lot. But, good package!

I've taken the plunge. There's no turning back now. Full disclosure, Strike Witches isn't actually one of my favorite shows or anything, but I thought it was a very cute picture, and one of the nicest wall scrolls available from rightstuf. (They ship incredibly quickly internationally by the way, really pleasant surprise.)