Well, finally got around to watching it, and I think it wasn't that bad of an ending, and my thoughts about the entire series haven't changed either...
I don't see anything wrong with the performance animation...Quite frankly, I found it odd, only because I was tainted with a precedent bias reading others' opinions throughout this thread...I really don't remember the gig animation during Haruhi being any different from this, and throughout these past 12 episodes, the ending theme was animated much in the same way, yet nobody complained about that...I guess I'm not the only one that ignores the ending theme though managing to pay attention for this particular time...
I would've preferred a longer gig, I would've preferred another song, I would've preferred more instrumental animations, but I suppose that would probably be asking too much when I enjoyed it anyway...It had a fun feeling to it, and the way the band just got together in a circle and had fun with their encore chorus was a light-hearted way to end the season in the same way a school year would end for summer before beginning anew in the fall...I actually can't wait for the second season now, if just KyoAni would take feedback ques and give us more to the second season that was given in the first...
PERSONAL REVIEW TIME
Back during Episode 4, I gave this assessment:
Quote:
Originally Posted by MidnightViper88
Well, 4 episodes in, and I'm enjoying it, but not as much as I thought it was, for one aspect...Normally, I don't do "slice of life" stuff since it's usually too boring to hold my personal interests, but I made an exception this time around because it had to do with music...And while it's a recurring theme (Though for all practical purposes not the main theme), the music aspect struggles against itself...Every now and then when it pops it's head, I can forgive any shortcomings and allow myself toa relax after forcing myself...
But that still doesn't mean my attention didn't wane at times throughout the episode... 
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Well, nothing ever really happens in the beginning of a series anyway...Shit just drags on, it picks up in the middle, and continues rolling until the end... But that's such a long way... |
By Episode 10, though, my assessment had matured and I became a bit more respective of the series and had grown to like it a lot more than I even remotely thought during the beginning...
Quote:
Originally Posted by MidnightViper88
I came in as a rock musician/bassist under the impression that this show would've been heavily influenced on music...Obviously that hasn't been the case, akin to seeing a severed Statue of Liberty head on a "Escape from New York" movie poster only to never see that particular image in the film, the show's premise showcases a musical club but doesn't run with it as hard as it could once the episodes start going...But despite the lack of music, I look at it in two ways: 1. It's only a club that only happens to operate as a band, and 2. At least music is still a recurring theme...Pathetic, but when it does turn it's attention to the music, it does try to make the best of it, and I still get a kick out of it no matter what...While I had initially thought it would be heavily influenced on music, I also did not think it would be serious business, instead suspecting it would be just good ol' fun; Kind of like Eddie Van Halen, who's a dedicated guitarist but makes no excuse not to have fun playing the guitar...
It's because of the musical theme that I've made exceptions where I normally would not have watched the show had it not been for the music in the first place, kind of like a sales pitch that gets your main focus but also draws significant attention to another related or tie-in product...Sitting through it, I don't mind most of the gags; Keyword, most, since some some fall flat, but I still get a good chuckle out of most...It's light-hearted, it's funny, it's entertaining, and every now and then, it's got music; I don't have a serious reason to stick around, but dammit do I love doing it anyway...
Preconceptions about this being a by-product of KyoAni doesn't apply to me, since the only thing I've seen that came out of their factory was TMOSH (Figure that acronym out) and that was only because I happened to come across a box set of it for cheap and wanted to finally see what the hype was nearly 2 years after the initial earthquake, and even then, "KyoAni" still didn't exist to me until I started reading about people talking about them in the K-On! episode discussion threads...
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I still stand by my words, although now in review, I might have been more inclined to say it was a rollercoaster series with it's own highs and lows with the fluctuations occurring even within the episodes itself...I came in without any real expectations, so I came out personally satisfied; Maybe it wasn't quite the Ozzfest of a series I thought it might have been, but at least it was a little Chow Wagon of sorts anyway...I definitely had more to personally enjoy here than I did with the Almighty Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya, and that says quite a bit about my opinion of K-On!, really, especially when it's seemingly contradicting everyone else's opinion...Some gags got me, other gags were lost on me, but the musical aspects always connected when it popped it's head up...The musical aspect definitely destroyed my preconceived perception about this just being another boring "slice of life" series, and while I still hold my reservations for other SOL (That...acronym doesn't really work, does it?) series, I let my bigotry go in sacrifice for something else...After all, if it weren't for the music, I wouldn't even be here in the first place; And I'm actually kind of glad I hung on...And while I may not want to admit it, even though it still wasn't a primary reason, somewhere down the totem pole, this show gave me a minor inspiration to pick up bass again...How's that for the connection between entertainment and real life?
I'll buy the box set when it comes out, definitely...And I'll stick around for season two on top of that, unfortunately by that time with expectations though...