Quote:
Originally Posted by relentlessflame
One thing that I've noticed about myself personally is that I do tend to get very emotionally attached to a lot of the fiction I consume (whether anime, or visual novels, or light novels, manga, etc.), so I tend to procrastinate either starting or ending the experience. Sometimes, I will watch a series faithfully about 1/2 or 2/3 or the way through, but then an increasing sense of dread causes me to put it off because I don't like endings. Or other times, I'll buy a show or game I just know I'll love, but put off even starting it because I know that it'll take a lot out of me. When I actually do get around to watching and finishing the work in question, I'm actually usually quite happy with them and wonder what I was waiting for... but there are certainly some times when, having finished the work, I do feel that same sense of emptiness -- as if having lost something dear. For me, romantic dramas are the most emotionally draining, so though I absolutely love them, I also can tend to procrastinate watching them until I'm in the right mood (and if I'm stressed, it isn't usually a good time to watch something I find emotionally intense, so I'll settle for something more light-hearted).
Anyway, all that to say that I can definitely identify with the OP, but I think having that sort of deep emotional connection to the work is a wonderful experience overall. I think a lot of it depends on your personality of course -- not everyone is wired to engage things in quite that way, or it takes an awful lot to move them on that level -- but I think it definitely makes the experience a lot more powerful and "real"... even if it does come with some challenges. Some people look to this medium to provide them with excitement or intellectual stimulation, but to me emotional connection and involvement will always be number one.
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I have the same tactic. I remember when I first watched Maison Ikkoku I knew it was going to be one of my favorites, and stopped watching about 2/3 of the way through for several months before finishing... not that it accomplished anything, I felt like it made the experience last longer at the time.
It applies to games too... I don't have much time anymore with work so I've been playing FFVI a little bit at a time for months, when I finally got to the end boss I took a break for a week before beating him.
