(L) Ichigo Mashimaro- or girls being mean?

[Shiroth]

Originally Posted by Kempis Curious

I actually disagree with that. I think it's more funny when she has behave like the adult when she and the girls are around other people. F'rinstance, at the festival and the family restaurant.

Thats just how she acts in the manga at some parts, but she's 16. ^^

[Murade]

Cuteness overload !! This anime took me by surprise, I wasn't expecting much because manga wasn't all that great. Talented voice-actors, colourful, coherent art and (most of the time) skillful directing can make a world of difference I guess.

Althought there's a lot of cute and sugary fun stuff in the series (like name implies) it still has this realistic slice-of-live feel to it. I found myself enjoying quite a bit just from the wacky but warm (and somewhat perverted at times ) relationship between Nobue and her 4 little princesses.

Originally Posted by Kempis Curious

Have y'all got to listen to the drama CDs? Even though I can understand only 15-20% of what they are saying, they are still very funny. And oh, mamma, the OST is excellent, too. I especially like the variations on the two-note "main theme". (If you get the OST, you'll know what I'm talking about.)

Aww, I need to get the OST too. OP song is just too cute with main characters singing it by themselves what's more, the arrangement (& composition) is actually quite nice overall. And I guess with the two-note theme you refer to the piece playing in the background for example in the end of ep. 6 when girls eat ice-cream on the roof? I love that thing too, expecially the acoustic guitar duet version. Yeah, only couple different chords really but it's quality over quantity/complexity for me in these things
Could you tell me the name of that particular piece (for the purest intentions) ? Thanks.

[Shiroth]

http://forums.animeondvd.com/showthr...=1#Post1292428

Ichigo Mashimaro licensed, more Nobue for me. <3

[Kamui4356]

Originally Posted by Angelsama

http://forums.animeondvd.com/showthr...=1#Post1292428

Ichigo Mashimaro licensed, more Nobue for me. <3

To be honest, even though geneon USA was listed in the credits, I didn't expect them to actually bring this series over. Given that it's about young girls being cute, I'm not sure how well it'll be recieved here.

Well, I guess this will be a good series to see if there's a significant moe market here. I'll be buying it.

[Shiroth]

I know what you mean, i can't see normal anime fans just jumping for this show, its mainly for people who've already seen it.. and know what its about.

[rooboy]

Originally Posted by Kamui4356

To be honest, even though geneon USA was listed in the credits, I didn't expect them to actually bring this series over. Given that it's about young girls being cute, I'm not sure how well it'll be recieved here.

Well, I guess this will be a good series to see if there's a significant moe market here. I'll be buying it.

I dunno about that. I've never really identified myself as liking moe, but I liked Ichigo Mashimaro. It's actually amusing in an Azumanga Daioh sort of way. It's not as funny, but it has a different dynamic to it.

[lavielove]

Originally Posted by rooboy666

I dunno about that. I've never really identified myself as liking moe, but I liked Ichigo Mashimaro. It's actually amusing in an Azumanga Daioh sort of way. It's not as funny, but it has a different dynamic to it.

Comparing Azumanga Daioh and Ichigo Mashimaro, how could you have this idea from ? Azumanga Daioh is a prodagy show and Ichigo Mashimaro is kind of slice of life anime.

I think I have to go against with Kamui4356 on the thing regarding with moe. Ichigo Mashimaro is not a typical moe show, the otakus spoiled the theme of show on the internet with those mis-leading pictures and the people got otaku ideas. When this series was started to air, the people nugging about "kawaii overload". Even I was put off by those words at first. Later I tried it and felt good about it. Ichigo Mashimaro is not as kawaii overload as *cough*air*cough.I even don't want to write in this topic about I-M, no girl was being mean in the I-M.

Since it was licenced, I do think that more about Nobue would be on the way to hit the screen as a second season [or] they just want to sell more picture books and related accessories.Hope that they don't change the theme of the anime though.

[Srin Tuar]

I watched azumanga daioh, mostly because of the mention people gave it in this thread.
I was quite dissappointed, its not nearly as interesting as ichigo mashimaro was to me.
It does have a few good moments, but I would say it compares more with school days, school rumble, pani poni, and stuff of that nature. Its jsut not the same as ichigo mashimaro at all.

[Sorrow-K]

Originally Posted by lavielove

Comparing Azumanga Daioh and Ichigo Mashimaro, how could you have this idea from ? Azumanga Daioh is a prodagy show and Ichigo Mashimaro is kind of slice of life anime.

I think the comparisons are warranted. Both go for the same comedic style, and both have that deathly perfect comedic timing. I definitely prefer AzuDa though, mostly because (imo) IM died for some unknown reason in the last 4 episodes. AzuDa was consistantly funny for 26 episodes, but IM could only manage it for 8.

That said, at its best, IM was as good... if not better than AzuDa. It just didn't have the staying power AzuDa did.

[Kempis Curious]

Originally Posted by Murade

Could you tell me the name of that particular piece (for the purest intentions) ? Thanks.

The phrase "pure intentions" seems out of place in a Ichigo Mashmaro thread. But believe it or not, the first song in the OST with the two-chord theme is called "Main Theme". It's also repeated in "Tenkou Debut", "No ~nbiri na Theme", "Appuapu na Theme", and in the guitar version "Hoto Suru Theme". In yet another song, "Chichanka", the chord is reversed, going from low to high. Like AzuDai, I'm really impressed with how much effort went into the music in this anime. It's easy to listen to it over and over and over.

The Drama CDs also have some more songs which are sung by the characters. Most of them suck , but a few are very good... like a long version and a soft version of the OP. There's also a track where most of the characters, including the 5th grade male teacher and his bullied boy, sing the Giant song which Mitsuri sang in class. Some of the voice actors lose their composure and get the giggles... it's really funny. I don't think I've ever heard a Japanese VA crack up before.

-k

curious

[Kempis Curious]

Originally Posted by Sorrow-K

I think the comparisons are warranted. Both go for the same comedic style, and both have that deathly perfect comedic timing. I definitely prefer AzuDa though, mostly because (imo) IM died for some unknown reason in the last 4 episodes. AzuDa was consistantly funny for 26 episodes, but IM could only manage it for 8.

That said, at its best, IM was as good... if not better than AzuDa. It just didn't have the staying power AzuDa did.

For me it was quite the opposite, I thought episodes at the beginning were not as good as the later episodes. (Of course episode 5, where we find that Miu can be teased too much, was the best ep of the series. Poor Miu! ) I particularly liked the slow pacing of the hot summer day episode, and Miu's creativity during the festival episode.

I also prefer AzuDai because of its more dignified portrayal of girls... heck, they didn't even show panties when the girls jumped up and down in cheerleader outfits. It felt like Ichigo Mashimaro had a theme of "look at the pretty young girls, but don't touch" with all of the skin shown.

Also Azumanga Daioh had a lot more characters to fall in love with, though IM went into further depth with the Miu and Chika characters while AD only did Sakaki. Maybe if there were a second season, we would have seen some character development in Matsuri, Nobue, and/or Ana... Ahhhh, that would have been awesome.

IM did do some things better than Azudai, like the absolutely superb voice acting, and no silly dream sequences with the cat god.

[Sorrow-K]

Originally Posted by Kempis Curious

I also prefer AzuDai because of its more dignified portrayal of girls... heck, they didn't even show panties when the girls jumped up and down in cheerleader outfits. It felt like Ichigo Mashimaro had a theme of "look at the pretty young girls, but don't touch" with all of the skin shown.

There are a lot of people who are suspicious about whether IM was subtly pandering to the lolicon crowd. Personally I didn't really care if it was or not. But that's because, unlike other genre, I have a rather simple criteria for judging comedy: did it make me laugh. Everything else is secondary. And I did during IM... several times. But I laughed more frequently during AzuDa, which is the number one reason why I think AzuDa is a better comedy.

Originally Posted by Kempis Curious

Also Azumanga Daioh had a lot more characters to fall in love with, though IM went into further depth with the Miu and Chika characters while AD only did Sakaki. Maybe if there were a second season, we would have seen some character development in Matsuri, Nobue, and/or Ana... Ahhhh, that would have been awesome.

My other big problem with IM... only Miu and Nobue were ever really consistantly funny. I really didn't laugh at either Ana or Matsuri very often.

Originally Posted by Kempis Curious

IM did do some things better than Azudai, like the absolutely superb voice acting, and no silly dream sequences with the cat god.

BLASPHEMY! Chiyo-chichi is possibly the greatest invention in an anime comedy ever . Except maybe Onsakumaru. Coincidentally both voiced by the same seiyuu.

[rooboy]

I would like to clarify that I'm not trying to say that Azumanga was less funny than Ichigo Mashimaro, I think it was funnier. That being said, there are a lot of funny moments in IM, which was my entire point. Yeah, there's moe, but it can be an enjoyable, funny show even without that.
It is the kind of show my wife and kid (neither of whom likes much anime) would enjoy. While it does have kind of a subtle lolicon influence, it is in no way overt or disturbing unless you're looking for it.

[monir]

Comparing Azu with IM can't be a fair one for at least two reason I can tink of at the moment. Azu had a lot of characters to explore on than IM, and hence, a lot more subject of exploration. IM's characters are all in all, five. Even the main theme (exploration of innocence, and that, innocence is fleeting) for IM doesn't get obvious until much much later for a show that is only 12 episodes long.

I enjoyed both (Azu/IM) and was sad when the inevitable ending drew near. And Nobue ne-chan is hot.

[Ilpalazzo-sama]

Hmm. IM is a good series, but if I have to compare with Azumanga, the later one wins instantly. Still, this was an enjoyable series.

[larcencielle]

Well I personally prefer IM over Azumanga b/c Azumanga IMO, had a lot of more "childish" humour.
For example, there's that girl (forgot the name ) in Azumanga, who is really active in the class and excels in sports, and personally none of the her actions or dialogues made me laugh at all. I thought they were very immature and childish and tries too hard to make the viewer laugh
On the other hand, there is IM with lots of implied humours. For example, the wild girl (forgot her name too ) is occasionally shown lying on the floor, face down, and with a slipper mark or shoes mark on the back of her head. From the slipper or shoes mark, we can see that some1 hit her b/c of her "wrong" actions and she's now lying down on the floor. This implication requires two or more thinking process, and IMO a lot more mature than Azumanga which is just a brainless march of comedy.
I'm not tryin to flame this subject or anything but I like mature comedies and IM (although the characters are childs and NOT lolis) appeals more to me than Azumanga. Besides there are superb voice actors in IM ^^

[Pellissier]

Finished yesterday and... uhm... I gave this show a 9.0/10 on the judgement scale.
I personally didn't find all those resemblances with Azumanga Daioh (which, with the same judgement scale, scored 9,5/10 from me by the way), yes now that they have been mentioned maybe there are some of them. By myself I didn't spot them. But overall, I really liked this series.

And now let's go briefly explain where IM lost those few points along the road:

Animation and Sound got a full 10. Arts were colorful and brilliant while voice acting absolutely flawless.

Story got a 9 for some excessie slowliness in the pace (still I'm a fan of slice of life show, but sometimes - rarely - the pace got too slow), especially in the second half.

Character: got an 8 because we didn't get to know the same about all the characters. We have had Miu constantly at the centre of the spotlights. And Chika fairly and funnily opposing to her, with conviction. My complaints goes for Ana and Matsuri, since we didn't get to know them enough. Except that Ana is proud and clumsy ; and Matsuri weak and naive. That's all. They sort of stand with their cuteness, they're plenty likeable of course. But I would have like a stronger influence on the show.
Nobue is a good completion for them , a little bit repetitive, but the show definitely gets strong benefits from her presence.

Value: I give 8. -1 for shortness (good series shouldn't last 12 episodes. There was room for more). And -1 for not having developed the high potential at its full glory (even though they got close to it).

Enjoyment: 9 . Some excessive slowliness deterred me from giving 10. Especially, that I can recall, the air conditionner episode, there's an half episode in which they're closed in that room, no music, total silence. Lol, I was falling asleep there, almost But everything else was fine.

I wish I find such high valuable series more often

[raphaël]

Originally Posted by Pellissier

Enjoyment: 9 . Some excessive slowliness deterred me from giving 10. Especially, that I can recall, the air conditionner episode, there's an half episode in which they're closed in that room, no music, total silence. Lol, I was falling asleep there, almost But everything else was fine.

Well, i loved that episode. I think IM is one of the first anime ever to have brought the art of showing boredom and the "nothinghappensstuff" while being funny to such a upper level. Just like that wonderful movie, "the taste of tea". Actually i liked everything about it, and i'm not ashamed of it, except that i still can't keep off thinking it's unconsciously ( or completely consciously) quite pervert to dress little girls as nurses or cats or santa claus. Indeed it's "cute". But pervert.
Anyway, so, it's cute, and i'm not a pervert. So i don't care. I love Miu and Nobue (who is described as a 20 year-old student in the official site, by the way. ) characters and voices. Technically, the series is perfect, imho. So i rank it very high amongst my favorites. That's all i had to say. The rest was very well explained by everyone here. So just watch it if you haven't already, you won't be disappointed.

[xxanimefan4_ever]

Originally Posted by larcencielle

Well I personally prefer IM over Azumanga b/c Azumanga IMO, had a lot of more "childish" humour.
For example, there's that girl (forgot the name ) in Azumanga, who is really active in the class and excels in sports, and personally none of the her actions or dialogues made me laugh at all. I thought they were very immature and childish and tries too hard to make the viewer laugh
On the other hand, there is IM with lots of implied humours. For example, the wild girl (forgot her name too ) is occasionally shown lying on the floor, face down, and with a slipper mark or shoes mark on the back of her head. From the slipper or shoes mark, we can see that some1 hit her b/c of her "wrong" actions and she's now lying down on the floor. This implication requires two or more thinking process, and IMO a lot more mature than Azumanga which is just a brainless march of comedy.
I'm not tryin to flame this subject or anything but I like mature comedies and IM (although the characters are childs and NOT lolis) appeals more to me than Azumanga. Besides there are superb voice actors in IM ^^

Yeah I definitely agree with that, I couldn't finish azumanga daioh it was a drag and the almost all the jokes just weren't that funny to me for that reason the only exception is probably the perverted teacher. I can't compare ichigo mashimaro to azumanga just because I couldn't even watch/finish azumanga.

[Vexx]

Originally Posted by larcencielle

Well I personally prefer IM over Azumanga b/c Azumanga IMO, had a lot of more "childish" humour.
For example, there's that girl (forgot the name ) in Azumanga, who is really active in the class and excels in sports, and personally none of the her actions or dialogues made me laugh at all. I thought they were very immature and childish and tries too hard to make the viewer laugh
On the other hand, there is IM with lots of implied humours. For example, the wild girl (forgot her name too ) is occasionally shown lying on the floor, face down, and with a slipper mark or shoes mark on the back of her head. From the slipper or shoes mark, we can see that some1 hit her b/c of her "wrong" actions and she's now lying down on the floor. This implication requires two or more thinking process, and IMO a lot more mature than Azumanga which is just a brainless march of comedy.
I'm not tryin to flame this subject or anything but I like mature comedies and IM (although the characters are childs and NOT lolis) appeals more to me than Azumanga. Besides there are superb voice actors in IM ^^

There are superb VAs in both shows. Asakawa Yuu can do more with a grunt than some million dollar actors can muster in live-action.
I'm not really clear on which girl "was really active in class and excels in sports" - I suppose you're thinking of the hyperactive one who sucked at sports. True, some of her antics were lame but pretty true to life (annoying) and if you watched carefully you'd see that basically she was going to grow up to be *just like* Ms. Yukari (their often annoying English teacher). The other two girls who excelled at sports were Sakaki (running) and Kusaga (swimming). One of the nicest qualities of AzuDa is that it treated the characters like real people - none were really stereotypical, only superficially so (e.g. Sakaki, who was "cool" but had a sweet spot for kitties and stuffed animals or Osaka the slow spacey girl who belied the Osakan stereotype). The source material (4 panel comics) sort of forced the anime into a sequence of set pieces but that simply reminded me of the old Peanuts or Calvin&Hobbes formats. A lot of Osaka's material and frequent background comedy activity also required implicit understanding so I have to call the label "brainless march of comedy" a bit much. A more accurate barb would be to call AzuDa "nostalgic" as it brings forth "memories of things that may have never been".

IM and AzuDa are both good examples of slightly different forms of "sliceoflife" comedy. I don't see any particular need to step on one to compliment the other. I enjoyed both.

What I'd like to know is if anyone has found a pre-order source for IM or at least a specific release date. I had thought it was June but I'm not finding any vendors offering it for pre-order yet.