(L) Denpa Onna to Seishun Otoko

[Cosmic Eagle]

This ep vaguely evokes memories of Iriya no Sora....

[Guardian Enzo]

To clarify one point - when I cite Akematsu as a good "filter" for Shinbou, I refer to the OVAs much more than the TV series. In fact, I think the various SHAFT treatments of Negima are a good illustration of the Jekyll/Hyde nature of Shinbou as I see him. The series started beautifully - amazingly stylish and distinctive and still imbued with the spirit of the manga. It drifted away in a mess on plotquakes and sight gags - though I think that was a failure of writing as much as direction. The SHAFT OVAs, by contrast, are wonderfully on-point - very loyal to the manga and alive with energy and visual snap. Negima, BTW, is a much more natural fit for Shinbou than I think people give it credit for. It's sneakily subversive and on close inspection packs a very black-comic world view.

I tend to agree that there really isn't a harem here (no matter how I wish Maekawa-sensei would make it one!) though I think you could make a case that, at the very least, Makkie feels something for Erio beyond fraternal affection even if the feeling isn't mutual. Auntie Meme is just having fun torturing him and Maekawa seems truly indifferent to him romantically, so that leave Ryuushi as the only game in town.

[Miraluka]

Originally Posted by Cosmic Eagle

This ep vaguely evokes memories of Iriya no Sora....

Is that a bad thing?

[Triple_R]

I think this anime is managing a pretty good balance between "seriousness" and "craziness".

I can understand why Guardian Enzo would like more of one (seriousness) and why Haak would like more of the other (craziness) but I'm inclined to agree with Kaoru Chujo that humour, moe, and serious business are all interlayered well here, creating a good final product where its various parts compliment each other rather than conflicting with each other.

The humor and moe (i.e craziness) keeps things very exciting and fun, but its the seriousness that makes me care about the characters. It is pretty similar to Bake, for me, in that it's just surreal enough to capture the imagination, but just serious enough that it doesn't feel like your standard issue acid trip either.

I will say that Bake was a touch more realistic and serious, but Denpa Onna is actually a bit more fun and exciting to me due to just how incredibly over-the-top the moe and style of the female cast members are.

If Denpa Onna was a food, it would be a candy apple. Deliciously crunchy and sweet at a surface level (this being your moe and humor elements) but with some actual nutritional value with the apple within (this being the sincere character drama elements).

[Kanon]

Originally Posted by Guardian Enzo

You're right in pointing out that some of this flippant tone is surely from the source material, and I can't say for sure what the proportions are. However, I would certainly take issue with the notion that SHAFT is "always faithful to the source material". To the contrary, I'd say they're always faithful to their own artistic sensibility and they make the source material bend to fit that. Sometimes the fit is more natural than at other times.

I don't think they bend the source material. They know the right amount of "Shaftiness" they can put into each show without deteriorating the original material. Compare this show to Bakemonogatari - the two are completely different beasts. The style used in Bake wouldn't fit this show, just like the style used in Denpa wouldn't fit Bake. In my opinion, they know exactly where to draw the line so that their artistic sensibilty add to the material rather than distort it.

I'd love to hear the opinion of novel readers on this adaptation. They're the only ones who can truly tell us whether Shaft is doing well right now.

[Shiroth]

Originally Posted by Kanon

I don't think they bend the source material. They know the right amount of "Shaftiness" they can put into each show without deteriorating the original material. Compare this show to Bakemonogatari - the two are completely different beasts. The style used in Bake wouldn't fit this show, just like the style used in Denpa wouldn't fit Bake. In my opinion, they know exactly where to draw the line so that their artistic sensibilty add to the material rather than distort it.

Actually, i think the artistic nature Shinbo is known for would fit Denpa quite well, it's just that he's gone for a more softer approach with this series. Basically it's pretty much the same as the SoreMachi adaptation.

[Guardian Enzo]

Originally Posted by Shiroth

Actually, i think the artistic nature Shinbo is known for would fit Denpa quite well, it's just that he's gone for a more softer approach with this series. Basically it's pretty much the same as the SoreMachi adaptation.

I wonder if it would be fair to say that Bake is a good litmus test for how you feel about Shinbou generally. It certainly seems to come up in every post.

Thing is, I like this show a lot - in fact I find it much more agreeable than Bake. It seems to me that Shinbou, however, is using a much different approach here than SoreMachi. In terms of character and general emotional tone I thought he played it much straighter there than here. What he did do with that one was indulge in some visual trickery - maybe more so even than with Denpa Onna - but not so much wrapping all the relationships in a gauze of cuteness and absurdity. With this show I actually think he's been pretty straight visually - I haven't become exhausted with all the characteristic quick-cuts and discordant shots (though there have been a few). But I don't think he's been as willing as with NnA or SoreMachi to let the character relationships evolve naturally.

I should add, for fairness sake, that I've read the SoreMachi manga but have no familiarity with the source material here. And one of the things that I liked about the adaptation of SoreMachi is that it was extremely faithful in my view. It's a true slice-of-life, unconcerned with structure or dramatic convention. It's a series of short and generally hilarious chapters that don't especially need to be read in order - each stands more or less independently once you know the premise and characters. Ishiguro's writing (and Shinbo's direction) really give the sense that things are happening in real-time - you just happened to look in and see what was happening at any given moment. Thus, the decision by SHAFT to adapt the chapters literally as mini-episodes (as Mitsudomoe and Shinryaku Ika Musume did) was crucial to it being a good adaptation. I also love the fact that they chose some of the funniest chapters to adapt, despite the fact that they weren't "necessary" to any larger plot.

[frubam]

I like Ryuushi, but man, Maekawa is FAR more enjoyable to watch than Ryuushi or Erio. There's always something about those girls whose intentions and focus are generally undefined. I think I would have preferred Maeniwa to be a couple than what they're presenting with Ryuuniwa.

I was actually hoping that, based on the beginning, it would be a completely Maekawa-focused episode. Maekawa's observations and analysis of what's going on around her just seems less straightforward, and...I don't know, I just like it darnit!

And I guess that old guy is Erio's father. Not much of any reason to introduce such a character other than that reason.

[DragoZERO]

Good episode. The towel scene was a crime though. I don't care if it was described like that in the novel - it should not have been like that. Travesty!

Other than that, excellent episode. I really love the adolescent points at the end.

Originally Posted by Itlandm

Theory of the end: The time has come for CATTLE MUTILATION!

Also: There is no harem. The only girl who takes a romantic interest in Makoto is Ryuuko-san. Maekawa-san does not even remember his name. Erio enjoys his company but in a family way. Meme is his aunt, no matter how much she teases him. So we have a harem of one pure-pure girl.

I think it still counts as a harem since he is surrounded by girls that like him to some degree.

[Malkuth]

For me last episode worked like this:

1. cute stuff happening for 20 minutes
2. Finally! Meme appears...
3. ... and the episode ends
4. I rage

Don't get me wrong, it's still fan to watch teenagers saying/doing nonsense, but Meme is the most interesting and sexy 40 year old mom ever animated.

[Pellissier]

The scene when they kept passing tea to each other was amazingly similar to a scene played in Kanon 2006 episode 11 (the only difference was that they had obento instead of tea). Coincidence or reference?

I made gifs for comparison:

Tea Scene in Denpa Onna episode 7 (GIF - 2 Mb, click to play)

Obento Scene in Kanon (2006) episode 11 (GIF - 1,2 Mb, click to play)

[Reckoner]

It's funny because while I myself haven't necessarily gotten the impression, I've heard from more than a few that this anime seems like shinbo's approach to a KEY-like story.

[Dawnstorm]

@ crazy vs. serious: I never felt an opposition, really, with this show. There's some sort of similarity with Arakawa, where Nino claims to be a Venusian. But with Arakawa, the "craziness" only meshed up with the personal problems in scenes that seemed to be desinged for it. For me, Arakawa fell apart because of that - it ended up with jokes that got old - the first season was okay, the second... well, I finished it.

In Denpa Onna, though, the craziness and the seriousness are two sides of the same coin, whether it's background radiation or an explosion. I feel, there's always some sort of connection in the background; it just feels coherent. Take the last episode: there's an image chain to follow:

Coke bottles outside the store -- bottle rocket over the buildings -- manager drinking coke bottles - hose spewing water, fountain like -- man making rockets from bottles -- out-of-control hose making a puddle -- ... -- rockets lined up on the beach (along with empty slots) -- sea washing up a sea shell...

Then, there are the conversations around these images: reaching spacke, risk vs. profit...

[If you become more abstract, you can add layers of meaning: rocket fuel = hot --> tea = hot liquid --> bath = hot liquid; etc.]

I'm just watching the show, really. I don't need to think too deeply about this, but - nevertheless - the governing metaphors create a sense of unity, a web of meaning that - sort of - stays with me. So, in the end, the sea washes up a sea shell, but everyone focusses on the rockets - reaching space.

"You don't have to understand the language of flowers to admire them." -- Heh, talk about a meta-description of the show. That's exactly how I'm seeing it. So I can take the craziness, and the seriousness, without much caring which is which, and it often occurs in the same scenes, anyway.

For me, this show is a sleeper. I'm enjoing it more and more as it goes on.

[risingstar3110]

Originally Posted by Itlandm

Theory of the end: The time has come for CATTLE MUTILATION!

Also: There is no harem. The only girl who takes a romantic interest in Makoto is Ryuuko-san. Maekawa-san does not even remember his name. Erio enjoys his company but in a family way. Meme is his aunt, no matter how much she teases him. So we have a harem of one pure-pure girl.

Can i ship on Maekawa x Erio then?

Denpa pairing


PS: the show is real close to slice-of-life at the moment...

[mols]

Originally Posted by tsunade666

Maekawa-san is indeed fine with Touwa though for Ryuushi..... she has her own problems without Mako-kun included on it. She is one of those who would avoid Erio as much as they can. But like what she said in the end. She might avoid Erio but she will side with Niwa-kun such sweet girl

Love her ribbon

I am also wondering about this. What happened when she was at school?
My main problem is why he does not ask what happened back then. He is living together with Erio and all that, but still he should try to know what happen so he can be able to truly side with her! if he has no idea what happened and in what circumstances then he is in a disadvantage in any possible future conflict!

[Ravenblitz]

[shishio]

Originally Posted by mols

I am also wondering about this. What happened when she was at school?
My main problem is why he does not ask what happened back then. He is living together with Erio and all that, but still he should try to know what happen so he can be able to truly side with her! if he has no idea what happened and in what circumstances then he is in a disadvantage in any possible future conflict!

I guess he is trying to be understanding. It is not easy to ask someone of their trauma. At least i know i can't simply do it without slowly encouraging that person to open up by themselves

[Guardian Enzo]

Originally Posted by Pellissier

The scene when they kept passing tea to each other was amazingly similar to a scene played in Kanon 2006 episode 11 (the only difference was that they had obento instead of tea). Coincidence or reference?

I made gifs for comparison:

Tea Scene in Denpa Onna episode 7 (GIF - 2 Mb, click to play)

Obento Scene in Kanon (2006) episode 11 (GIF - 1,2 Mb, click to play)

That's interesting. I wonder if that scene was intended as a homage, because it seemed a bit puzzling to me at the time (and not especially funny).

[Cosmic Eagle]

Originally Posted by Wilfriback

Is that a bad thing?

Hell no....it's a very good thing.

[Lord of Fire]

Originally Posted by Guardian Enzo

That's interesting. I wonder if that scene was intended as a homage, because it seemed a bit puzzling to me at the time (and not especially funny).

Given SHAFT's habit of referencing other shows in their anime, I'm pretty sure it is.