(CR) Fortune Arterial

[thundrakkon]

Originally Posted by larethian

FAIL!

Just a question to those who have NOT played the VN, after watching this, how keen does this make you in wanting to try playing the VN?

Well, after watching this series, not really interested at all. Overall, the series was kind of boring, and the ending did not explain much. It felt like there is a story and plot out there somewhere, but they decided to do slice of life everyday. However, the slice of life did not feel cozy or heartwarming, and the humor was limited.

I don't have time to play much video games anymore, so this would definitely not be something I would want to spend time on.

[Jerseykid]

I would also like to state for the record that if you're going to have vampires in your anime you need to have way more cool vampire stuff going on.

[Skyfall]

Having slept on it i can't say it made me appreciate the ending more, so here is the comparison between the anime's and VN's ending.

Spoiler for game mussings, difference between how anime and game ended:

I guess i should start with explaining the format of the story, so people don't get confused - the original VN has a total of six routes, one per heroine, and a final one that gets unlocked after going through all of the five "normal" routes. Each of the routes has only one ending (There is no "good" or "bad" variation of it, like other titles sometimes employ, the ending is set in stone instead) - by "Erika's ending" we mean the one reached after completing her path. The "True End", as we label it, is the ending for the 6th path, the one which gets unlocked after the previous 5 are completed. It is an Erika's ending as well from the romance standpoint, but the distinction should be made clear - by "Erika's ending" we mean the ending to her route specifically, and by "True End" we mean the ending to the sixth and final route.

Despite having the same pairing, Erika's route and True route don't have much in common though, in terms of plot and focus.

Erika's route, as the name suggests, is largely focused on Erika herself, her relationship with Kouhei and the bloodlust issues. Much like the anime, the actual reasons behind Kouhei's blood being special, and the deeper truth behind the vampires, never gets touched here.

In the True route however, while Erika and Kouhei remain as the trigger for all the events, the main focus is the Vampire Side as a whole, rather than just Erika and her immediate relationship with Kouhei. It is here that many of the illusions get shattered, several truths come to light, the past and present of the vampires and their existence get explored, and Kouhei's "mystery" gets answered.


What the anime did, was basically combine the premise of both of these routes, but didn't bring either to conclusion. Most of those who had played the game likely expected the "True End" - indeed, that is where the answers lie, and the anime presented several events that serve as prelude for the True route specifically - Kiriha's search for her master during night while giving birth to the vampire rumors; restoration of Haruna's memory - these are the trigger events for the True route in the VN, and never happen otherwise.

Regardless of the ending taken, the inclusion of both is a good choice in a unified presentation - they are good for giving a form of closure (Haruna) and exposure (Kiriha), that would be otherwise absent in face of lack of their specific routes. The fact they included Erika's events from both Her route and True route is no surprise either - she is the main heroine after all, and the content doesn't conflict.

Approximately two episodes ago though, it should have become apparent to the game players that they are not going for the True End - setup and several key events were missing, and there was no real way they could have crammed all that in 2 episodes. So Erika's Ending was the apparent alternative - a surprising choice, given they would not be answering many of the core questions, but i was fine with it - personally i always slightly preferred Erika's ending to the True ending, due to the emotional implications of it. (That, and there was a certain thing in Erika's ending i could easily see related to the "Red Promise" part of the anime's title).

Indeed, the anime more or less followed the development of Erika's Ending up until Kouhei's confrontation with Kaya ... and then went nowhere. I don't think the anime conveyed well the intensity of Kaya's character (never mind her motivations and her not inconsiderable concern for her children, twisted as it is), and that of her objective - to make Erika take a servant. She didn't try to strangle Kouhei, nor make threats about killing him - she went ahead and did it! Well, not kill him, but it wasn't far - which was the whole point.

There was no time for mushy conversations nor corny convictions - as Kouhei was lying there in a pool of his own blood, Erika had two immediate options - either turn him in to a servant right now (as the vampiric durability would allow him to survive the wound) or watch him bleed to death within minutes. Obviously not much of a choice, as the second is a complete non-option as far as Erika is concerned. She saved Kouhei's life at the cost of his humanity, making him her servant in the process. A sneaky, unfair and despicable move by Kaya by all means, but can't deny it was effective.

So the next time Kouhei regained consciousness, he was no longer human. Erika was obviously less than happy, but that was the situation they had to work with. Actually, up to this point Erika never had drank Kouhei's blood, and sometime after his transformation is the first time she did so. Though she demanded a promise from him before doing so - should she ever, for whatever reason, issue an order to him, she wants Kouhei to leave her immediately afterwards - abandon her and never appear before her again, as that would be when she would have lost the right to have him by her side. This is what i expected to fit the "Red Promise" part of the title, and thought it would fit nicely. Since this never took place, though, i wonder whether anything in the anime relates to it at all

The story eventually ends with Kouhei and Erika leaving the academy - it won't be easy, and they will have other issues besides their everlasting youth to deal with (like Kouhei's "shutdown periods" that Kiriha experiences), but they have an eternity to make it work.

So ... yeah. This is Erika's Ending, and one which the anime appeared to be going for up to a halfway point in the last episode, so i believe my disappointment is understandable

It is no less of a shame they cut out their romance - originally Kouhei and Erika were in a relationship long before the closing events took place (which also likely contributed to Kaya's realization Erika would definitely take action should Kouhei get mortally wounded), and it is kinda frustrating that was removed as well. Can't even really call the anime "romance", because there was none. Aside from all the missed quirks and fluff (like Kouhei's room eventually containing so much Erika's stuff their tea party companions were wondering if they shouldn't relocate ), they also missed the opportunity to give several hints/implications regarding to the bloodlust, as Erika's condition actually improved after she started going out with Kouhei.

Overall they made Erika more 'secretive' regarding her bloodlust, and Kouhei more oblivious to it (for example the pool scene - originally she doesn't hide the fact, and reassures Kouhei it isn't that bad this time - even though Kouhei offers to let her "have a bite") ... i honestly didn't like the recurring theme in the anime with Erika having constant fits because of it, but blowing it off as nothing, and Kouhei appearing ignorant of what should be the obvious cause. I certainly didn't feel the bond and trust between these two, with Erika never talking about her issue, and Kouhei seemingly in blind denial with his "Vice President (how about you actually start calling her by her name !?) doesn't need that!" ...well, yeah, sorry, but she does, and you were originally supposed to realize it long ago

So ...yeah. "Play the game for a satisfying conclusion" is all i can say, and if that's what the anime was trying to convey, one might argue they succeeded.

Originally Posted by Jerseykid

I would also like to state for the record that if you're going to have vampires in your anime you need to have way more cool vampire stuff going on.

Not necessarily - a vampire show doesn't need to be the next Hellsing (which isn't a vampire show ... it's a demon show ) with insane badassery dripping from every corner, or even Vampire Knight with constant tension and angst in the air. While vampires are indeed typically used for "cool action stuff", that doesn't have to be the only way how to do a story about vampires - one about vampires trying to live their lives as 'humanly' as possible within their limitations is a quite viable scenario. Of course, how good the anime was at conveying that (and they did cut out all the "cool vampire stuff" by not animating the True End) is up in the air, however.

[Fnights]

Originally Posted by Skyfall

So ...yeah. "Play the game for a satisfying conclusion" is all i can say, and if that's what the anime was trying to convey, one might argue they succeeded.

Thanks for the more summary. I've difficult play the game for language issues but the manga is translated (at least 3 volumes over 5), so what's you opinion of the manga? It follow better the novel compared to the anime? Worth?

[Wrath88]

I really should play the game... have it as part of my backlog. Guess this series goes under 'play for full enjoyment' like 11eyes did. Geez, that one was even more fail than this one...

[Haak]

Originally Posted by larethian

FAIL!

Just a question to those who have NOT played the VN, after watching this, how keen does this make you in wanting to try playing the VN?

I've only recently gotten into VN but I'm not interested in playing this at all, despite many protesting at how much better it is...

[haiz123321]

Originally Posted by larethian

FAIL!

Just a question to those who have NOT played the VN, after watching this, how keen does this make you in wanting to try playing the VN?

I've been intrested in the VN ever since I first saw the OP, which was about a year or a few months before the airing date. After watching the anime, I still intend to give this a go, though I'll have to polish up my japanese before that.
It's just my personal opinion but I think that you shouldn't let how the anime turned out affect your views on the VN itself as the VN usually has more content and well, I don't think that it's news to us that anime adaptations of VN and manga usually turn out pretty bad.

Originally Posted by Wrath88

I really should play the game... have it as part of my backlog. Guess this series goes under 'play for full enjoyment' like 11eyes did. Geez, that one was even more fail than this one...

Going off topic but were you referring to the 11eyes anime or novel? The former did suck but the latter was awesome.

My thoughts:
I was rather disappointed at the ending cause I waited for the anime to finish airing before watching it as I didn't like to wait for the episodes. The fact that they ended with the typical "more than friends but less than lovers" ending was largely disappointing. However, the drama in the last 2 episodes were pretty good, though still lacking. You'd think that the anime producers would learn by now that a romance anime without a kiss scene is a huge failure. Even without the said scene, at least show some kind of scene which strongly hints the main character and a heroine as a couple.

I believe that had they made it a 24-26 episode anime instead of 12 episodes, the series would've turned out differently. With that said, the way the ended the anime had a good feel to it compared to most other anime where they rather abruptly end the series. I know what I'm saying is kind of a paradox but yeah. Hope the OVA can somehow save the series.

[Vlazz]

Something felt missing. It felt like there was a lot that wasn't explained. Kuze was basically ignored the 2nd half of the show. It's like she was slowly becoming friends then all of the development with her stopped and everyone stopped caring about her. But the biggest issue is the ending didn't really have any romantic resolution. No declaration of love, nothing. Just "everybody is friends" ending. I'm disappointed.

It sucks that the anime is just a shameless promotion for the VN instead of being a complete stand alone adaption.

edit:

@Skyfall


What the heck? Erica's route looked like a good story. I can't believe they ruined the anime.

[Kaoru Chujo]

Okay, as often happens, I have a different point of view. I enjoyed this show for what it was. An enjoyable little love story with likable characters and an interesting situation.

Sure they could have told us more: about Kuze, about Mama, etc. But I don't see any loose ends. Kuze became her servant centuries ago. As for cool vampire stuff, I thought there was plenty of that here: the heartbeats, the bloodbags, the servant concept (slightly different from a renfield), the brother and the nun. But those weren't the real focus, which was on the relationship between Erika and Kouhei.

Shiki this ain't, but I found it enjoyable. The character design I thought was particularly good. And the voices excellent, from Junichi Suwabe and Kanda Rie and OnoD to Taguchi Hiroko and Nabatame Hitomi.

[Johnny]

I don't see the love in the love story though. The way it was portrayed I would say it was more of a friendship story then anything else. Hell, he never called her anything other vice president the entire time. Only mentioning her name once when talking to Kaya...

[Cyz]

The ending is anti climactic. I was hoping for a more romance between Kohei and Erika but somehow it ended abruptly. *sigh* The relationship was getting good too with all the vampire craving/love issue stuff.

[Hooves]

Originally Posted by Cyz

The ending is anti climactic. I was hoping for a more romance between Kohei and Erika but somehow it ended abruptly. *sigh* The relationship was getting good too with all the vampire craving/love issue stuff.

I know... I was left dazzled by how unsatisfying it went with all the buildup it had wonderfully placed.. But either way, was a fun ride for this anime

[velvet nightmare]

this anime has got to be one of the biggest failures i've ever seen when it comes to telling a story.

the whole series basically sidesteps the whole point of the series/story even existing, vampires and humans. if you were looking for more of slice of life genre, then this series definitely boring and lack luster

it'd be ok if they left a cliff hanger or one of those endings where it's open and you have to think one up yourself but nope, we get this shit where it's all packaged like it's a happy end except it's not

[Hooves]

Originally Posted by velvet nightmare

this anime has got to be one of the biggest failures i've ever seen when it comes to telling a story.

the whole series basically sidesteps the whole point of the series/story even existing, vampires and humans. if you were looking for more of slice of life genre, then this series definitely boring and lack luster

it'd be ok if they left a cliff hanger or one of those endings where it's open and you have to think one up yourself but nope, we get this shit where it's all packaged like it's a happy end except it's not

velvet nightmare sure does bring what the vast majority think about the conclusion to this anime... It seemed unmoving from the first 5-6 episodes? Then when it finally started moving, it actually got a good build-up... But with an ending like this.. It left alot of people unsatisfied..

[Arya]

I'm not so surprised they failed the ending too, I mean, after episode 4 the show showed all its limits. The story was predictable, the side characters looked like were chosen randomly and put here and there along the story. And, I didn't count them, but on 12 episodes, how many school festival did they organize?
Is this a sort of reverse advertising? something like ok, this is a hint of what the game is, we left you unsatisfied, now buy it to fill your emptiness!
Anyways the only thing I'm glad of is that they didn't give kiriha screentime at all, she looked a really cool character, (I don't know if she really was) so they hadn't time to ruin her too

[DasDingus]

Bleh. Extremely disappointed in the ending. I started watching this show more as an after thought mostly due to the character designs and because I enjoy VN adaptations in general so I didn't have particularly high expectations coming into this, particularly compared to the shows I was really interested in (TWGOK, YnS and Oreimo). The first few episodes were basically what I expected. I really liked Kiriha but the show was painfully generic. Then around episode 8 when the main story felt like it actually got going I became really interested. At that point FA became the show I was looking forward to most each week and I was ready to label it my surprise of the season. This feeling persisted through the build up to this final episode but then we got this... I hesitate to call it an ending because it clearly wasn't. If there's one thing I despise it's crappy non-endings where everything is supposed to be wrapped up but there are far to many loose ends. I was expecting a meaningful ending and instead we got this where nothing has changed yet everybody's happy for some reason. As the OP played for the last time and the credits rolled I was left wondering "Is that it?" I thought that when they caught the parachute together they'd at least throw me a bone and have Kouhei and Erika kiss but no such luck there either. Instead we're left with this bland, chaste relationship where for some reason he's still calling her Vice-President. I still liked the show.. I guess? But it was awfully bland and generic.

Originally Posted by larethian

FAIL!

Just a question to those who have NOT played the VN, after watching this, how keen does this make you in wanting to try playing the VN?

I am actually quite interested in playing the VN now because I really like the characters and their design which are among the few things that translate directly from the VN to the anime. If we can keep those but improve the storytelling and romance I feel like it would be something extremely enjoyable. So I will wait patiently for an english translation and then maybe I can actually enjoy what Fortune Arterial has to offer.

[Shadow5YA]

Spoiler for ep 12:

Eh... the finale left much to be desired. Erika left the school and returned home to avoid Kouhei, of course, and Kouhei went to get her back. That's... pretty much everything important that happened. When Kaya confronted Kouhei on what he was going to do about Erika's bloodthirst, he never really gave a direct answer.

Basically, Kouhei takes Erika back, saying that she's suffering either way, so she might as well be at school. He says he'll let her suck his blood, but he's still not sure whether he'll become a servant or not. Their "red promise" was to have more fun together in the future.

Their relationship did not develop any further than it already has, and Erika's vampirism issue doesn't have a clear conclusion either.

[cyberdemon]

Originally Posted by Shadow5YA

Spoiler for ep 12:

Eh... the finale left much to be desired. Erika left the school and returned home to avoid Kouhei, of course, and Kouhei went to get her back. That's... pretty much everything important that happened. When Kaya confronted Kouhei on what he was going to do about Erika's bloodthirst, he never really gave a direct answer.

Basically, Kouhei takes Erika back, saying that she's suffering either way, so she might as well be at school. He says he'll let her suck his blood, but he's still not sure whether he'll become a servant or not. Their "red promise" was to have more fun together in the future.

Their relationship did not develop any further than it already has, and Erika's vampirism issue doesn't have a clear conclusion either.

perhaps they will do a season 2

[relentlessflame]

Originally Posted by Kaoru Chujo

Okay, as often happens, I have a different point of view. I enjoyed this show for what it was. An enjoyable little love story with likable characters and an interesting situation.

Sure they could have told us more: about Kuze, about Mama, etc. But I don't see any loose ends. Kuze became her servant centuries ago. As for cool vampire stuff, I thought there was plenty of that here: the heartbeats, the bloodbags, the servant concept (slightly different from a renfield), the brother and the nun. But those weren't the real focus, which was on the relationship between Erika and Kouhei.

I guess my main disappointment is that this is almost certainly the end of the line as far as the anime goes (OAD episode notwithstanding), and there is so much more to be told. Yet, because of the way it was told, I'm not really sure where they can go from here if they're using the game as a model. If they were to announce that a second season is starting in April or some such and that this is a split-cour show, the ending would make a whole lot more sense (it would be similar to D.C. II and D.C. II S.S., which this writer was also involved in adapting). But without that, it even doesn't have as much to offer as a "love story" as it could/should because neither of them have even realized/accepted that they're more than just close friends. The ending just didn't really have any form of "pay-off" to offer over the long term; it resolved most of the major plot threads (Kouhei's migratory bird analogy, Erika's blood lust and need to take a servant, the roles of the major players in this story, etc.) but it's basically still a "To Be Continued" with no indication the continuation will ever come (except, of course, in the game).

(Now I find myself wondering if it actually is possible that they might have done this expressly to allow for a second season, but I'm not honestly sure how they could make that work. But it would explain why we have a quasi-non-end; a second season would sort of be the equivalent to the second playthrough to get the true ending, though they'd have to create a few new events to prevent repetition. Trying to kind of fit both endings into a single linear timeline???)

Edit: I just merged the two above posted into this thread from the Game thread (since they're talking about only the anime) and I guess I'm not the only one who thought this.

[Shinji103]

Well with any luck, the OVA/OAD will add some better closure to this. Indeed quite disappointing, especially after the awesome conclusion of the game.