Infinite Stratos 2 - TV Anime Sequel Announced (News & Speculation, No Spoilers)

[MeisterBabylon]

Screwing over the competent half isn't excusable, either.

[StratoSpear]

Now now, let's not break out the AA guns again shall we?

[NoemiChan]

...At least they don't bad mouth my Houki...

[Fireminer]

Nope, I don't think the "competent" part reached half! 75% percent try to rewrite with OC or other means but failed. Some great writers, but they only write one-shot. (Not to mention some people who only talk.)
Now remember it, how much has IS failed you guys?

[relentlessflame]

In the end, I think it's okay to be disappointed and to criticize the story, but at some point you just have to understand what it is and what it's trying to be and decide if you can accept it or not. Judging it by "what it could have been" isn't ultimately going to get you anywhere over the long term, and will only cause more and more disappointment to fester.

[Kha]

Originally Posted by Fireminer

Nope, I don't think the "competent" part reached half! 75% percent try to rewrite with OC or other means but failed. Some great writers, but they only write one-shot. (Not to mention some people who only talk.)
Now remember it, how much has IS failed you guys?

No offense to you, mate. But IS has pretty much failed me. That is the draw of writing for AU timelines in Infinite Stratos. The main timeline has failed and therefore you are free to explore differences. That's why you see so many AU fics in IS FF.net, authors exploring the setting in their own way. They might still fail and fall into the same traps. But no matter what they do, they'll never get published instead of Izumi's version, and their damage will always be contained.

Izumi on the other hand, shapes the world every one else writes in. That's a remarkable responsibility and I feel that he has let his story down by being so terrible.

Of course, most writers are terrible. That's just the rule of averages. But I've discovered that most fanfics will be terrible because their writers are terrible. That is why they produce fanfics for free rather than actual pieces of published work.

If you are good at something, never do it for free. So therefore, most fics will be terrible, I wish it wasn't, but I can see why. And that's why I think hoping for a fanfic capable of challenging the source material is foolhardy.

The author however published IS, got it animated, and is now getting more novels published on top of a 2nd season of anime on the way. I guess he's a sure bet now that he's proven that he can rake in the money. Ah, cowardly businesses.

Never the less, I believe there's some element of jealously involved in the hatred for Izumi. Like, "if he's writing a terrible fanfic, how come he got published and I didn't?" Might be the case.

[Fireminer]

Well, at least something in common between Code Geass and Infinite Stratos - a masterpiece and a otaku-service!

[Kha]

Originally Posted by Fireminer

Well, at least something in common between Code Geass and Infinite Stratos - a masterpiece and a otaku-service!

You say it as though its a good thing.

(But Geass Crown is even worse...)

[relentlessflame]

Originally Posted by Kha

The author however published IS, got it animated, and is now getting more novels published on top of a 2nd season of anime on the way. I guess he's a sure bet now that he's proven that he can rake in the money. Ah, cowardly businesses.

Never the less, I believe there's some element of jealously involved in the hatred for Izumi. Like, "if he's writing a terrible fanfic, how come he got published and I didn't?" Might be the case.

It's also worth considering that not everyone has the same criteria for enjoyability. If he's "raking in the money", it suggests that his story is enjoyable to a lot of fans. I don't see how that makes the businesses that publish said works "cowardly". There could be an element of jealousy, but it also seems to me that there's an element of arrogance in calling the work "terrible" just because it wasn't developed in the way you wanted it to be. Then again, I've heard it said that all creators are inherently arrogant, because they believe they have something worth saying. So I guess if it motivates fanfiction writers to think they can do better, they might as well try. But, in the end, it's probably also important to seriously study what it is that makes the work enjoyable to others as it is, and without such a heavy dose of cynicism and disgust. Otherwise, you may write a work to satisfy yourself, but it stands little chance of satisfying others except those who feel exactly the same way you do (which, despite the apparent consensus about the writing being "terrible" isn't actually as obvious as it seems). People also often downplay certain tropes as if they're easy and obvious, but don't really have a solid enough understanding of them or the appeal of them to actually be able to pull it off even if they think they're fixing the rest of the "flaws".

[Fireminer]

Well, the only thing that I am sure that IS has no philosophy and artistic value. It won't last with time!

[Kha]

Originally Posted by relentlessflame

It's also worth considering that not everyone has the same criteria for enjoyability. If he's "raking in the money", it suggests that his story is enjoyable to a lot of fans. I don't see how that makes the businesses that publish said works "cowardly". There could be an element of jealousy, but it also seems to me that there's an element of arrogance in calling the work "terrible" just because it wasn't developed in the way you wanted it to be. Then again, I've heard it said that all creators are inherently arrogant, because they believe they have something worth saying. So I guess if it motivates fanfiction writers to think they can do better, they might as well try. But, in the end, it's probably also important to seriously study what it is that makes the work enjoyable to others as it is, and without such a heavy dose of cynicism and disgust. Otherwise, you may write a work to satisfy yourself, but it stands little chance of satisfying others except those who feel exactly the same way you do (which, despite the apparent consensus about the writing being "terrible" isn't actually as obvious as it seems). People also often downplay certain tropes as if they're easy and obvious, but don't really have a solid enough understanding of them or the appeal of them to actually be able to pull it off even if they think they're fixing the rest of the "flaws".

Its a mystery that always intrigued me. Who were buying up the IS stuff? I recall this pic from 2chan showing the popularity of the series as the series progressed, and the only high point was when Charlotte appeared, and the way her arc was handled.

But the BD sales blew several other series out of the water!

I wonder if anyone's written an opinion piece or gone to Japan to work out the phenomenon of IS' unexplained popularity. It would be really interesting to see who were buying up the BDs, what were their traits, preferences, etc. It would have been a great way to base speculatation as to where is the industry headed next.

[Fireminer]

Well, chick with armed-to-teeth armor - who could resist that?

[Chaos2Frozen]

...Is this really such a big deal? Maybe 2 years ago sure but since then we had tons of other series that sold just as much or even more than IS and these series are pretty variable in genre as well.

People seem to think that IS would bring forth some dark age of Anime where the top selling series are all mindless fanservice series, but after two years already can you honestly say there has been any significant shift in focus that have been brought forth thanks to IS?

For pete sake it was just one freak accident, no need to prepare for war over it.

[Fireminer]

Well, IS is the epitome of broken dreams, after all!

[Kha]

Originally Posted by Chaos2Frozen

...Is this really such a big deal? Maybe 2 years ago sure but since then we had tons of other series that sold just as much or even more than IS and these series are pretty variable in genre as well.

People seem to think that IS would bring forth some dark age of Anime where the top selling series are all mindless fanservice series, but after two years already can you honestly say there has been any significant shift in focus that have been brought forth thanks to IS?

For pete sake it was just one freak accident, no need to prepare for war over it.

For that I'd say, thanks to Gen, that never came to pass. What with the opening sucker punch of Madoka, followed by the epic Fate/Zero finally hitting the screens. He metaphorically threw the dark side down the reactor shaft. XD

But you'd never know if the 2nd season of Infinite Stratos is about to open a can of Sith relics and unleash a Force Horror upon the Anime Galaxy.

[Chaos2Frozen]

Even without Gen nothing would have changed.

You make it sound like there wasn't an abundance of fanservice Animes trying to make it big before IS came along.

Likewise, just because Madoka and Fate/Zero were big doesn't mean that there's suddenly a decrease in fanservice Animes.

[Fireminer]

But do you think too much Fanservice is usually decrease the quality? Just look at the original To Love Ru and Darkness!

[relentlessflame]

Originally Posted by Kha

Its a mystery that always intrigued me. Who were buying up the IS stuff? I recall this pic from 2chan showing the popularity of the series as the series progressed, and the only high point was when Charlotte appeared, and the way her arc was handled.

But the BD sales blew several other series out of the water!

I wonder if anyone's written an opinion piece or gone to Japan to work out the phenomenon of IS' unexplained popularity. It would be really interesting to see who were buying up the BDs, what were their traits, preferences, etc. It would have been a great way to base speculatation as to where is the industry headed next.

I can at least tell you why I bought the BDs myself, and it's because the series is a lot of light-hearted fun. It has good production values, an interesting world setting, attractive characters, and a way of bringing everything together that plays to its strengths. I didn't necessarily come in with any expectations or preconceptions, and came away feeling well-rewarded for my time.

I'm not sure how much value this series' success has in predicting the future, though. Other shows have had similar elements, but just haven't brought it together in quite the same way and haven't been as successful. So despite the insinuations, I think it isn't all some dry formula of "insert ingredients and just add water". I think it's the combination of everything (plus timing) that made it work.

Originally Posted by Fireminer

But do you think too much Fanservice is usually decrease the quality? Just look at the original To Love Ru and Darkness!

To Love-Ru Darkness is the most successful incarnation of the franchise both in manga and anime form arguably because the quality of the fanservice (and the situations that facilitate it) has gone up. A key part of the manga/anime's appeal is in seeing just how far the author/artist are able to go and still keep it technically an "all-ages" manga, and I've often heard people criticize the aspects of the first anime that tried to go for a more sci-fi-esque or story-focused approach (since it tended to be silly anyway and "trying too hard").

But again, you have to know what audience you're trying to reach and figure out what they're looking for -- and then execute it well. And I suppose that perhaps the authors elected to reach out to an audience that didn't share your views about what they find entertaining.

(Incidentally, I also bought To Love-Ru Darkness on BD... but there are heck of a lot of other shows with otherwise-similar themes and elements that just don't interest me because to me they're not as fun and not as well-made. So I don't think my own tastes are a "formula" either, even if there are certain types of shows that have higher chances to get my attention than others.)

[Haiprbim]

Originally Posted by demino_hellsin

Ichika is a loser

Originally Posted by relentlessflame

Ichika is the way he is because he has to be that way

Originally Posted by MeisterBabylon

No, he does not need to be that way

I had to come into this discussion, excuse me.

First off, we all agree that Ichika is a non-realizing "idiot".
Now, I've seen a lot of anime series, and I can safely say that all that had Comedy and Harem at the same time as a genre, included a more or less idiotic male protagonist.
If you have an example proving otherwise, do share. But remember, only if the genres are both Harem and Comedy. That's just the way the production system works.

Originally Posted by Chaos2Frozen

Likewise, just because Madoka and Fate/Zero were big doesn't mean that there's suddenly a decrease in fanservice Animes.

It's Anime, not Animes.

[Fireminer]

@rentlessflame: Well, that is your opinion! But with To Love-Ru (I read Manga), at least I could have a good laugh.
But now, remember it, Romance is less and less important with Shonen Authors nowday. Not really a bad thing, but I just want too see something that could touch to the fan's core.
(That is why I never choose Charlotte as the main girl! We need something more than an Angel! Or a lewd maid in Vol.8!)