(L) Venus Versus Virus

[Guido]

I do also perceive some yuri subtleties in the tempo of the opening song and particularly the brief shots of Lucia and Sumire paired together, but seriously I think it's out of the question that the storyline will include blatant yuri themes given that the plot is immersed around the two main casts' issues revolving around the supernatural within themselves and the world.

The opening, however, felt to me generic as those OP theme from the 90's anime decade.

The ending song, on the other hand, is performed by Yousei Teitoku. The name rings, anyone?

Noble Roar and Valkyrja are a couple of songs performed by this talented singer.
I should have had known away. The ending theme possess the ethereal, surreal goth tempo which is characteristic of Yousei Teitoku.

I do also have to list another detail about Sumire's eyes.

Once she goes wild mode the pupils on her eyes turned into a cross shape which matches the same form of eyes to the Viruses.

Let me illustrate my point:


(Left pic) Sumire gone into wild mode. (Right pic) The Virus that possessed the client's shadow. Notice the cross-shaped pupils on the eyes of both.

[mintyfresh]

Originally Posted by Guido

I do also perceive some yuri subtleties in the tempo of the opening song and particularly the brief shots of Lucia and Sumire paired together, but seriously I think it's out of the question that the storyline will include blatant yuri themes given that the plot is immersed around the two main casts' issues revolving around the supernatural within themselves and the world.

You really think so? I dunnooo..


And yes, I've also been a big fan of Yousei Teikoku ever since they did the OP theme from MagiPoka. I didn't like Noble Roar quite as much as their other stuff, but Valkyrja is definitely one of my faves.

I'm also liking this new song the more I hear it (especially the first part). It kind of reminds me of their older stuff in thst it's not as overly powerful and heavy as Valkyrja or say, Stigma (not to mention the fact that it seems to lack a chorus singing in the background ).

[darkchibi07]

Originally Posted by mintyfresh

You really think so? I dunnooo..

I bet the last episode will be about

Spoiler for totally random speculation:

Luchia fighting against the berserk state of Sumire just like how the first episode showed. Then with the power of yuri, Luchia decides to kiss her on the lips, and Sumire came to her senses!

It sort of worked with Re: Cutie Honey!

[Deathkillz]

Originally Posted by Guido

I do also have to list another detail about Sumire's eyes.

Once she goes wild mode the pupils on her eyes turned into a cross shape which matches the same form of eyes to the Viruses.

Let me illustrate my point:


(Left pic) Sumire gone into wild mode. (Right pic) The Virus that possessed the client's shadow. Notice the cross-shaped pupils on the eyes of both.

and just to mention again just in case some of you guys missed it the first time round...the first at the start of ep 1 shows sumire's eyes to be normal so one thing is that she isnt under the influence of the drug ~

Originally Posted by darkchibi07

I bet the last episode will be about

Spoiler for totally random speculation:

Luchia fighting against the berserk state of Sumire just like how the first episode showed. Then with the power of yuri, Luchia decides to kiss her on the lips, and Sumire came to her senses!

It sort of worked with Re: Cutie Honey!

lol...and by that time round some of us would be bashing our heads on a table screaming WTF!?

[Kaioshin Sama]

Originally Posted by darkchibi07

I bet the last episode will be about

Spoiler for totally random speculation:

Luchia fighting against the berserk state of Sumire just like how the first episode showed. Then with the power of yuri, Luchia decides to kiss her on the lips, and Sumire came to her senses!

It sort of worked with Re: Cutie Honey!

Oh give it a rest already, you're starting to sound like Glenn Quagmire and all I can do now is picture your head bobbing back and forth going "Awwwwwwright".

Well I'm glad to find out that the Yuri attributions of the series are in the same vein as Lelouch and Suzaku being a couple because they happen too appear in the same promotional art sometimes. You know because there totally not just main characters and have to be gay for each other like Amuro and Char clearly were. I never saw any Yuri subtexts in the pictures because A) I usually don't look for things that aren't really there, and B) I don't overly generalize all pictures of people of the same sexes as being coupling pictures, so I assumed everybody was a bit a giddy over Kyoshiro To Towa Sora and just looking to hard. Though I swear everything is happening at the same time this season, you've got your girlish moe series with a slice of action in January, Mecha in February, Movies and OVA's in March and and then it all kind of runs together into a Girlish/Mecha/Action in April with the series from earlier in the year continuing and new series combining all those elements. Slow start this year, but it's going to take of in a few weeks I hope.

[Guppy]

Originally Posted by Kaioshin_Sama

Well I'm glad to find out that the Yuri attributions of the series are in the same vein as Lelouch and Suzaku being a couple because they happen too appear in the same promotional art sometimes. You know because there totally not just main characters and have to be gay for each other like Amuro and Char clearly were. I never saw any Yuri subtexts in the pictures because A) I usually don't look for things that aren't really there, and B) I don't overly generalize all pictures of people of the same sexes as being coupling pictures, so I assumed everybody was a bit a giddy over Kyoshiro To Towa Sora and just looking to hard.

Not quite, if you've read the manga...

Spoiler for manga:

Nothing really serious has happened in the manga either, but there's a good deal more subtext - Lucia is rather, ah, touchy when she first meets Sumire properly, and the latter responds in classic manga blush-dokidoki style. And after Sumire moves in with Lucia at Venus Vanguard, everyone who finds out about it promptly makes assumptions. Nene's brother is devastated, Nene nonplussed, while Sumire's parents are enthusiastic - slightly too enthusiastic, much to Sumire's embarrassment.

Of course, Sumire's also been taking an interest in a certain boy for most of volumes 2 and 3... although it's fairly clear he's hiding something and they'll probably wind up facing off at some point.

One other thing I've noticed from the manga - Sumire can power up without having the cross-pupils. They only seem to appear when she loses control and really goes into "Berserker" mode.

I'm a bit disappointed visually, to be honest. There's nothing really wrong I can see with the anime's artwork, but somehow it seems to look very bland next to the manga. Perhaps it's the loss of detail in the clothes - the cover page of each manga chapter is practically a fashion design sketchbook...

[froinlaven]

Wow, this anime seems like it's just so derivative of other anime. Like even their school uniforms look like the ones from Kashimashi, and then there's the whole Bleach/D.Gray-man thing. Still, if there's yuri, I'll be a watchin'!

Full impressions here.

[Guppy]

Originally Posted by froinlaven

Like even their school uniforms look like the ones from Kashimashi, and then there's the whole Bleach/D.Gray-man thing.

Maybe, but having read both mangas I'm a lot more impressed with the variety and detail of Atsushi Suzumi's clothing designs in VVV than Yukimaru Katsura's in Kashimashi.

And as for originality of plot... well, I tend to agree with Shinji103 when he posted in the Soukou no Strain thread that it's quite hard nowadays to find a plot idea that nobody's ever touched before, considering how many manga and anime series have been produced over the past decades. What I think matters more is how well an idea is executed... and so far, the VVV manga has done enough to hold my interest.

[Sonhex]

Well I hope certain people don't get too preoccupied with VVV's apparent lack of originality. The Soukou no Strain thread felt like it was hi-jacked by the naysayers at times. Anyway for the record I think VVV's influences go back much further than Bleach/D.Gray-man to other shounen shows and perhaps Chrno Crusade (Sumire as Chrno) and even Noir (duelling leads).

I'm wondering if this will be a 'virus of week' type of show for while until the plot kicks in?

EDIT: I've been wracking my anime brains trying to think who Sumire's beserker smile reminds me of. I think it's Wrath from FMA.

[gnuffiehot]

Originally Posted by darkchibi07

I bet the last episode will be about

Spoiler for totally random speculation:

Luchia fighting against the berserk state of Sumire just like how the first episode showed. Then with the power of yuri, Luchia decides to kiss her on the lips, and Sumire came to her senses!

It sort of worked with Re: Cutie Honey!

Haha! I think you're so 100% right on that one.

I've seen episode one, and I must say that I quite liked it. You definately have an advantage when you've seen the manga up to now though, because episode 1 didn't really throw with (sometimes needed) information.

At the end, I noticed one part where the animation kind of failed in my opinion. The OP and ED though, wow. I keep listening to them over and over and over again.

I liked where episode 1 went, and I'm hoping the series will remain to be good. Especially since this season kind of sucks a LOT imho.

[darkchibi07]

Oooo! Me likes episode 1. This series has potential of which I hope it last 24/26 episodes! Of course since only 3 volumes are out, that may not be the case.

[Kaioshin Sama]

I haven't seen any but I like the fact that it has an opening that I can stand, with a good beat and fun lyrics. Plus it just has the most badass song name ever in Bravin Bad Brew. Keep the good songs coming this year and lets get rid of the generic J-Pop openings that have been strangling the industry the past couple years. Man I feel like I might as well be watching Yu Yu Hakusho with an opening like that, and that is a good thing. Perfect way to set mood before a show begins. The ending also has a good sombre feeling to it even though I honestly hate the singer as I'm listening to it as she sounds far to whiny (Not to mention she sounds far of and mumbly). Not surprising as I pretty much seem to like whatever everybody else hates and can barely tolerate what everyone else adores. Why do people like singers these days that honestly cannot sing and whine instead. I mean the emo/goth movement aside its just a horrendously piercing voice on this Yousei Teitoku and I winced severely times during the song before it settled down again into the sombre tone again.

Are people AFRAID of loud and fast power ballad's, rock and metal music that requires finesse in both singing and instrument playing these days or what. Come on guys learn to rock out once in a while and stop listening to this slow faux emotional studio produced stuff for a bit. Can't understand people at all these days.

To conclude great opening song and ending song (instrumental-wise) but horrible singer on the ending song.

[mintyfresh]

Originally Posted by darkchibi07

Oooo! Me likes episode 1. This series has potential of which I hope it last 24/26 episodes! Of course since only 3 volumes are out, that may not be the case.

The anime is so far going in a generally different direction from the manga.

[Sheba]

Originally Posted by mintyfresh

The anime is so far going in a generally different direction from the manga.

It is something to be expected anyway.

[DrewGSR]

The look of Ruchia during the intermission/break in that outfit was pretty hot. So far i was entertained in the first ep, of course ill watch a few more before i make a decision. But Ruchia looks bad ass though

[Dragnfly@Gamefaqs]

Just saw the first episode and yeah, my impressions are pretty much the same as most people's. Decent but not nearly worth the huge advertising it got, and reeking of generic rabble. I'll give it 7 episodes to get good but it's almost like they just went down a list of what's popular nowadays and threw them all together without much care to WHY such things are popular. "You can use all the best ingredients in a cake and the thing can still turn out unedible if you suck at baking.", I believe the saying is.

I was waiting for the sub because I was expecting to need to understand details, and I'd like to ask if anybody else who saw the GNU sub had a problem with choppy pans. Their Otoboku had no problem with this on my system, so I'm wondering if it's just me.

I'm a huge Yousei Teitoku fan but that song's not quite to my tastes. I did like the OP well enough (tho not enough to go hunt it down)

So yeah. There's my first impressions because it's just good manners to post up opinions of a show after seeing it.

[Kleo Scanti]

I liked the first episode.
As for shoujo-ai-ish shots, I may be wrong, but I think it's only a fanservice. I've read several chapters of manga, and, if I'm not mistaken, Sumire meets a guy she starts to like. I wish they changed it in anime though.

[Guido]

I watched again episode one but this time the fansub.

The Utena motifs found in the OP video are still there and very evident which is a nice touch.

There are few things that escaped me the first time I saw the episode, and likely the same happened to everyone else in the thread.

For the showdown between Lucia and Sumire in the opening prologue, Sumire at a later time during the episode gave away a hint that may point out that their fight would be inevitable.

Spoiler:

While she was guarding the client at the client's home Sumire was tormented with a gripping sense of tear and muttered that some day that body of hers will be restored into the original state.

Since the story has not advanced to the point that we saw them setting up for their fight, there can be few possibilities to work from.
This is for those who are only anime watchers, but for the manga readers who have delved further into the storyline they might have already devised their proper theories.

I cannot say for sure how much the anime is going to change the storyline and even resort to the need to fill the gaps with fillers, since I know that the manga has only serialized three volumes so far; maybe 13 episodes would suffice, who knows.

Lucia's born with a special left eye again pays comparison to D.Gray-man, since Allen was borned with a special left hand. But, fortunately for Lucia, her parents never abandoned her due to her special eye.

Another small comparison her left eye pays to Kakashi's Sharingan eye, which his is also a left eye. Since Lucia takes off the patch to use her left eye to identify viruses and doing so suffers physical strain from it, then it's obvious she keeps it cover all the time. This is because I GUESS her left eye remains active all the time, and I also GUESS she cannot shut down her eye by will.
Similar to how Kakashi keeps covered his Sharingan eye so as to keep chakra, because he's not an Uchiha and letting it uncovered will pay a toll on him as well to his body in the short run.

BTW, the woman that was spying Sumire and Lucia via the winged-eyeball bares some resemblance to Margery Doe from SnS, but that's just me.

[FlareKnight]

Finished watching the first episode and the series looks pretty interesting to start off. Hadn't really heard much about the show so didn't really know what to expect from it. I can see that there are similarities to a few shows. But if it can do all the good things from those shows I won't really mind.

While I don't understand a lot about these characters the first episode did a good job at peaking my interest. We have some interesting abilities from Lucia that we can only look forward to understanding it more. I like the Kakashi comparison since it does seem to drain her. Also it seems to bring back some painful memories and dreams, maybe because of a side-effect? Or it could just be that when she got it or when she used it once something terrible happened.

Sumire is also someone I'll enjoy learning more about. Clearly she wasn't picked for her normal personality, except as pretty handy bait. That other personality seems to be dangerous to anyone who is nearby no matter who. When this started I'd be interested in finding out sooner than later from the show. We can tell that she's had a tough time and needs some target practice .

Really while the fight was short. I hope they will have some bigger ones coming up. It was nice that they didn't have a massive advantage over the enemy other than good planning and a secret weapon. Something about the guns seems cool I suppose.

Overall I was happy with the first episode. There is a lot to try and understand and I'm sure things will clear up somewhat as time goes on. I'm not too concerned about the yuri aspect whether it goes anywhere or just ends up as a good friendship. Not a reason I sought out the show, but it could add a fun dimension to keep an eye on.

[Guppy]

Originally Posted by Kleo Scanti

I liked the first episode.
As for shoujo-ai-ish shots, I may be wrong, but I think it's only a fanservice. I've read several chapters of manga, and, if I'm not mistaken, Sumire meets a guy she starts to like. I wish they changed it in anime though.

Spoiler for ep. 1 and manga:

I don't think that looks likely - Yoshiki is in the OP, and if I'm not mistaken he's the guy she bumps into while crossing the street.

On the other hand, the manga has all but told us outright that Yoshiki is hiding something from Sumire, and he definitely isn't all he seems to be. I'd be betting that, at some point, they're going to wind up on opposite sides.