2006-05-05, 10:10 | Link #41 | |
Yuuki Aoi
Join Date: Jul 2004
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I'd rather use the term "popular" than "fad," which implies that there is something unjustified about it. Particularly in the case of SHnY, I want to quote Vexx (for truth, as he says):
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As for why it is so popular, I think the animation is key: fans of all genres can appreciate animation. That makes the potential fan-pool very large. I see names posting in the SHnY threads that I've never seen before, probably because we like different genres. I'll repeat that this is the best animation I personally have ever seen in a TV anime. The ending dance is like a focus for admiration of the animation. The combination of comedy and (extreme) moe is a winner in itself. The comedy is excruciatingly funny. My reference-points for this kind of subtle absurdity are Monty Python, Hitchhiker's Guide, Absolutely Fabulous, Garry Shandling, and Ichigo Mashimaro. I also find something very humane there, even behind the molestation and dry comments. I think this is a show that could wind up being used in psychology classes or pastors' sermons, if they ever found out about it. For me, the strength of the show is somewhere beneath the surface, percolating in the hearts of characters that somehow seem like real people. And the moe overkill of Mikuru makes a lot possible among otaku and half-otaku. That's possibly the main reason they started with the video. I don't see a lot of women among the fans, although I may just not be aware of posters' genders. Haruhi herself is a bewitching character, combining moe, power and a quality that isn't really tsundere, but a combination of tsuntsun and ubercute blindness. It's always so thrilling to see your boss as a bit ignorant. Finally, there is the fact that you are not handed everything on a platter, but have to think a bit to really know what's going on. That could turn people right off it it were very hard to do, but this is just hard enough to be intriguing. I've mentioned Marshall McLuhan before, and his theory about "cool" media that force people to fill in gaps. This makes the experience a participatory one, even before we start posting our heads off on AS. And the self-referentiality in this show is the same quality that makes all great TV great: the interplay between the Haruhi world and the ordinary world that is narrated by Kyon. Finally, I just think this show is so smart. Every little detail -- visual, comic, plot -- has intelligence behind it and is related somehow to the whole. As for Higurashi, that is a very nice show, with an elegant look and some interesting animation, as well as a strong plot. But it is all at a much lower level than SHnY, in my opinion. The effects are mainly from the horror plot development, which is not so special, for me, as the rich stew of plot, humor and ontological confusion that is SHnY. It makes its effects on the surface, with events, whereas the strongest effects of SHnY are in the hearts of the characters, and occur beneath the surface. At least that's how I see it. But I am not a good potential fan of Higurashi, since I don't much like horror, and take no pleasure at all in seeing... Spoiler for Higurashi 4:
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2006-05-05, 10:26 | Link #42 | |
King of Braves
Fansubber
Join Date: Dec 2003
Location: Toronto, ON
Age: 45
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2006-05-05, 10:51 | Link #43 | |
Logician and Romantic
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: Within my mind
Age: 43
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The above forum should clue you in on what it's all about. And as a teaser, there are some pics from that forum: Spoiler:
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2006-05-05, 17:27 | Link #44 |
[megaplay] *sparkles*
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: Milpitas, CA, USA
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Hmm, fads, huh? I'd say that those A.S.S. sigs were pretty popular for a while, as well as those "What Naruto Would Never Say" sigs. You know, the one with Hinata. I can't seem to locate those pics, though... Also, the Kazoo Club fad was pretty big for a while.
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2006-05-05, 18:40 | Link #46 | |||
Umeboshi!
Join Date: Dec 2005
Location: Tejas
Age: 48
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I want to start by saying that I love Haruhi, it is easily the best show this season. And there's nothing to say about it's animation. Unless it takes a nosedive later on, it is easily the best animated TV show I've seen. Even throwaway episodes (like the baseball one) are animated at a very high level and with a great attention to detail.
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The little bits of information that are dribbled out will make the fanbase even more rabid over it. You can see this effect over and over again in entertainment. Boba Fett has one of the largest followings of any Star Wars character, despite the fact we learn virtually nothing about him in the movies. The Matrix movie (and Star Wars, to a lesser extent) was exceptionally popular because very little was explained in any depth and a lot was left to the viewer's imagination; however, once the second and third started to explain more, fans started complaining in droves. The first Wheel of Time novels were much more popular because everything wasn't explained until later, there are hints at a much larger framework but no concrete knowledge. Your imagination fills in the gaps very effectively. Which illustrates the problem with this trick (and why Haruhi is all the more impressive if it manages to be this good for the full episode count), if you explain too much, you start to turn off some of the fans unless your explanation is so perfect that they're all forced to accept it. I would expect that when Haruhi's done, we'll probably be left with a lot more questions than answers. And lots of little bits of evidence that could mean one thing or the other, and we'll debate what they actually mean for quite a while after the series is over. Which is why it's so great (besides the animation). Quote:
I would actually not expect you to be the audience for the show (the fact that you even tried it somewhat shocks and impresses me). However, I have to take at least a little offense to one thing. Spoiler for Higurashi 4:
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2006-05-05, 19:20 | Link #47 | |
[megaplay] *sparkles*
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: Milpitas, CA, USA
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2006-05-10, 00:39 | Link #52 | |
Weapon of Mass Discussion
Fansubber
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: New York, USA
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2006-05-10, 01:03 | Link #53 | |
Aria Company
Join Date: Nov 2003
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2006-05-10, 14:06 | Link #55 |
Expressionless
Join Date: Feb 2004
Location: Walking on the path known as life
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Hmm maybe i really didn't mean "fad" per se, but a joke that may spread.
Edit: To the dick who gave me negative rep for this post. It's my f*cking topic. And this isn't something that I was "hoping" would become a fad. Next time try reading a bit better you tool. Last edited by Calca; 2006-05-10 at 21:10. |
2006-05-12, 13:17 | Link #59 | ||
Senior Member
Join Date: Nov 2003
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And the asuki fads are usually related to some popular show each season: Naruto, Bleach, Air, Haruhi... Also people using colored text in the middle of posts seems to be catching on.... |
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2006-05-12, 14:30 | Link #60 | |
Lord Chairman God King
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