Why Strawberry Panic fail while Maria-sama succeed?

[Matrim]

I believe the majority of people doesn't like watching "yuri," and chose MariMite instead. Not all people are able to tolerate lesbianism, and it's a fact. MariMite has a "sisterhood" relationship, naturally more people would prefer it compared to SP!

This hardly explains the people dropping Strawberry Panic at some point, does it? It was blatantly clear that it was going to be about lesbians from the very start, so it's not as if it dawned on them suddenly that they are watching yuri so they decided to stop. In other words the people who don't like watching yuri would never have bothered to even try Strawberry Panic for more than an episode, let alone to bash it in detail. And maybe in general people don't like yuri but on these boards this doesn't seem to be the case at all, so I don't buy this excuse. The popularity of the series from your avatar (and SP itself, come to think of it or a certain couple from Mai-hiME, etc) certainly does not point to anime fans being so much against yuri as opposed to "sisterhood".

[Oppius]

The answer is easy. Strawberry Panic is a shoujo-ai anime aimed towards adult men while MariMite is aimed towards teenage girls. Because of that Strawberry Panic has fanservice which MariMite did not have. Target audiences is the key to all what happened here.

[Phantasmagoria]

Originally Posted by Matrim

This hardly explains the people dropping Strawberry Panic at some point, does it?

Obviously, because I was talking about watching it, not dropping it.

Originally Posted by Matrim

It was blatantly clear that it was going to be about lesbians from the very start, so it's not as if it dawned on them suddenly that they are watching yuri so they decided to stop.

It wasn't, since I got to realize it was going to be about lesbians on episode 2/3, not from the very start. I thought it's a replica of MariMite and sadly, no.

Originally Posted by Matrim

In other words the people who don't like watching yuri would never have bothered to even try Strawberry Panic for more than an episode, let alone to bash it in detail.

Well, I am sure there's a lot of people like me elsewhere.

Originally Posted by Matrim

And maybe in general people don't like yuri but on these boards this doesn't seem to be the case at all, so I don't buy this excuse.

What boards? And like I said before, I am sure there's a lot more people like me.

Originally Posted by Matrim

The popularity of the series from your avatar (and SP itself, come to think of it or a certain couple from Mai-hiME, etc) certainly does not point to anime fans being so much against yuri as opposed to "sisterhood".

It's just AnimeSuki. There's a lot more boards I know of that dislike yuri.

[Matrim]

Well, maybe AnimeSuki is an exception but this hardly explains why on the same AS most people prefer Marimite and yet they also like or at least don't mind yuri. That's what I was trying to say. It makes your explanation about people disliking lesbian characters and as a result dismissing Strawberry Panic as a bad series rather weak, IMO.

P.S. Of course, the assumption that most posters here prefer Marimite is rather faulty since this thread is in the Marimite board but that's the impression I have gotten.

[Phantasmagoria]

Originally Posted by Matrim

It makes your explanation about people disliking lesbian characters and as a result dismissing Strawberry Panic as a bad series rather weak, IMO.

It should work great in a Strawberry Panic dedicated forum..

Then again, I still don't understand why SP fails and maria-sama succeeds? In terms of?

[loli-shota boy]

Marimite's characters relationship is more emotional than physical. I know it's quite dissapointing for the hardcore yuri fans

But for me, I like Marimite better than SP. Besides, marimite's characters are very cute. Especially SATO SEI

GO MARIMITE!!!

[louloupies]

I reallt liked strawberry panic and thought it was way better than maria sama ga miteru and strawberry panic had more yuri in it AND maria sama ga miterus noses where really wierd come on people get it together strawberry panic is the BEST in the whole wide world!!!!!!!

[louloupies]

Originally Posted by Amex_Yohko

The answer is easy. Strawberry Panic is a shoujo-ai anime aimed towards adult men while MariMite is aimed towards teenage girls. Because of that Strawberry Panic has fanservice which MariMite did not have. Target audiences is the key to all what happened here.

Thats a lie and also very sexist i love strawberry panic and im female and im sure lots of other females like it to i LOVE hardcore yuri!!!

[sa547]

All things considered, in my book right now BOTH shows are entertaining.

Why? SP for the comedy gold, the heavy service and the cuteness, and Marimite for the drama and its multi-faceted characters... and well-proportioned body sizes.

And one of my sigs declares both shows as equal superpowers:


One more thing for louloupies: be careful with the way you say here.

[Raging Heart]

well i will say this, i can't say it, but there somethin both Strawberry Panic and Marimite are both intersting from what i see in both.

ok there is something.

both Shizuma from Strawberry Panic and Sachiko from Marimite, if put them together you find them dangerous mix mean have a hard time choose one of them.

[theorys]

Marketing has alot to do with it.

Remember these shows are made for Japanese audiences, not Western.

In this respect, Strawberry Panic was made by a company that catered to a smaller yuri/otaku audience - I know the second season originally aired late night.


Maria-Ga Miteru aired in the morning in Japan and was viewed more for housewife crowd. It was a true 'drama' and catered not really to otaku but more towards the average female. That is how it was marketed. So it has a longer run simply because of the fact it is originally created to cater to a larger audience.

Does that make it better? That's up to the viewer.

I personally prefer Strawberry Panic because of the more strict yuri feel (no guys in Strawberry Panic) and the stunning artwork of SP.

But I like Maria-Sama as well, and have no problem with liking both.

[Molenir]

Since someone else commented in this thread recently, I'll go ahead and add my own opinion.

I'm one of the "fanboys" mentioned by others. I don't mind Yuri, in fact, done right I quite enjoy it. This said, like others, I enjoyed Marimite much more then SP. Strawberry Panic had a lot of things going for it, the music was much more dynamic and upbeat for example. However the Marimite world was a bit more realistic, with there actually being guys in it. Also the characters, I never really liked the older girl in SP, and some of the side characters, and their relationships I found boring as well. Some of the plot likewise seemed to have been completely made up as they went along. Like the partner for the Etoile. Doing it this way, made for some gaping plot holes that were hard to overlook.

Contrast this with Marimite which doesn't have the blatant Yuri fanservice, or the good music, but has a stronger plot, more realistic setting, and very interesting characters. In addition, the story has a certain appealing innocence about it. In my mind, its not hard to understand why its the more successful franchise.

[darkchibi07]

So why can't the Japanese create a yuri anime series that combines the character dynamics of Marimite and the strict yuri elements of Strawberry Panic? It seems that they tend to be one step short of what could have been a memorable, definitive yuri series you can suggest to other anime fans interested in yuri.

[theorys]

Originally Posted by darkchibi07

So why can't the Japanese create a yuri anime series that combines the character dynamics of Marimite and the strict yuri elements of Strawberry Panic? It seems that they tend to be one step short of what could have been a memorable, definitive yuri series you can suggest to other anime fans interested in yuri.

I'd like to introduce to you Kashimashi: Girl Meets Girl.

It's made of pure yuri win.

There are shows out there that are so unheard of that even Japanese otaku look at and are like "...what's this?"

[tensashinigami]

Originally Posted by theorys

I'd like to introduce to you Kashimashi: Girl Meets Girl.

It's made of pure yuri win.

There are shows out there that are so unheard of that even Japanese otaku look at and are like "...what's this?"

Spoiler for whoever haven't seen it:

Yeah, but at first the main character is boy who accidentally gets transform into a girl; so, I wouldn't call it, yuri. More like, hardcore genderbending...

[Molenir]

More like, nonsensical genderbending. I would have enjoyed the show, but it was just too easy for the guy to turn into a girl. He was just too accepting. If there had been even a little struggle to maintain his identity, to overcome the conflict. Gender is such an integral part of who we all are, that by not showing any kind of struggle, they basically gutted the story. I found that without that key element of the plot, I just couldn't enjoy the story, which otherwise would have been quite fun.

So speaking for myself, pass on Kashimashi.

[Maceart]

Simple. Strawberry Panic didn't have one guy in it. Marimite had the fabulous Kashiwagi and Yumi's brother Yuki. Marimite also had much more down to earch characters.

I enjoyed SPanic enough to sub it, but looking back at it, it was still mindless yuri fluff.

[Shiroth]

Originally Posted by tensashinigami

Spoiler for whoever haven't seen it:

Yeah, but at first the main character is boy who accidentally gets transform into a girl; so, I wouldn't call it, yuri. More like, hardcore genderbending...

I'd still class it as yuri though.

The Kashimashi manga seems to do what i wanted to see. The anime was just good eye candy.

[darkchibi07]

Originally Posted by theorys

I'd like to introduce to you Kashimashi: Girl Meets Girl.

It's made of pure yuri win.

There are shows out there that are so unheard of that even Japanese otaku look at and are like "...what's this?"

I'm thinking more of the ones that doesn't use cheap genderbending or crossdressing gimmicks. Hell, if Girl Friends gets animated, then that yuri series will have the potential of totally revolutionizing the definition of yuri for the Japanese otaku; I'm rather peeved they're still into this "romantic two girl friendship" phase that makes it yuri.

[Shiroth]

Originally Posted by darkchibi07

I'm thinking more of the ones that doesn't use cheap genderbending or crossdressing gimmicks. Hell, if Girl Friends gets animated, then that yuri series will have the potential of totally revolutionizing the definition of yuri for the Japanese otaku; I'm rather peeved they're still into this "romantic two girl friendship" phase that makes it yuri.

An anime adaptation of Girl Friends could be what the fanbase needs (and i know for certain that i'd love to see it), though that's an adaptation i'd rather see once the manga has finished, and they have the complete story to work with.