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Kaoru Chujo · 2006-03-08, 16:48

I appreciate reading these negative opinions, even though they baffle me and make me wonder about my taste (and others'). I watched the show again and still think it's very good. Of course, put that in the context of my feeling that Fate/Stay Night is rather boring (up to episode 4). For me, the human emotions there have so far been meaningless, whereas the emotions here touched my heart. This seemed to me like a wise, simple, subtle show. This episode was a classic tragedy, where you know what's going to happen and that only deepens the pain and pleasure.

But since it surprises me that someone who likes Zettai Shounen doesn't like this, I will try to keep alert. In any case, it's good to have some negative reviews to scare off people who wouldn't like the genre. Anyone who is tempted to delete it during the OP is watching the wrong show, lol.

One person said nothing happens here. What about growing love and moments of joy, tempered by conflicted emotions, and followed by fear, longing, pain, regret and death? These things were sketched quickly, but effectively, for me.

Simon · 2006-03-09, 01:03

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kaoru Chujo

One person said nothing happens here. What about growing love and moments of joy, tempered by conflicted emotions, and followed by fear, longing, pain, regret and death? These things were sketched quickly, but effectively, for me.

I'm reminded of the joke about the guy who turns up late to a football match: "Hey buddy, what's the score?" "Still nil-all." "Great, I haven't missed anything then."

Clearly this isn't an anime for everyone, but personally I found it a real treat and I'm definitely going to keep watching it. I like how it managed to be sentimental without becoming cloying (a fine line), although admittedly

Spoiler:

I think the idea of Death taking an emotional interest in her "clients" has a lot of narrative potential - OK, they could ruin it horribly, especially trying to weave six one-off stories together, but done right this series has the makings of being an understated little gem.

I don't quite know what detractors were expecting of something billed as "the sad and gentle story of a white shinigami girl" (an Excel Saga clone maybe?), but if you liked Haibane Renmei or Someday's Dreamers then I'd say give this series a try. And if you hated them, then heed the criticisms posted here.

***Pellissier*** · 2006-03-09, 05:46

I haven't read the whole thread though I can believe if the anime got some negative feedbacks. It's sad, terribly sad. One of those anime to watch just if in a good mood. If you're depressed for yourself in the first place, this will depress you more. Talking for personal experiences..

Well, anyway, since I'm in a good mood in this period i fairly enjoyed the show, which met my expections pretty much. I expected the theme of death and a sense of bittersweetness. Themes that I found well done and realized.
Momo is a wonderful character, not randomly I've dedicated her an avatar and a sign. The pace is slow, deep is the character portrait. I feel a similarity to Miyazaki/Studio Ghibli's works' standards.

Though, I don't like the formula for the show. By the Ending Theme, I can tell pretty surely they will be 6 standalone stories. Like it was already said, a sort of "Jigoku Shoujo", but backwards. I'm not much for this kind of formula, I sympathized with the two main characters (and with Blue, too) quite a lot and it's sad to think that likely no more traces of them will be found.

Not comparable to Hantsuki, which was a continuos story. There's a big common background theme, though: death, reality and that sense of sadness (or bittersweet, there's seem to be a search for something giving the force to pursuit the way of interior serenity, even beyond the death)

Nice work for character design and animations, good performance of the VAs (Momo being first). I also particularly like the Opening Theme, as well as some bg musics.

If I had to rate for episode 1 solely, I'd go with an 8.

MarcusG · 2006-03-09, 08:53

I wonder if the ost is out yet? I just need to get the theme song. I also agree with post above, this story isnt for people who are already depressed. Unfortunately, I looked at this episode a different way and thought it was funny. How is a shinigami going to tell you that she gives death and blame the boy for leaving his friend? ( I know it doesnt sound logical) Anyway it was a decent episode.

Can you guys imagine if a Momo blames you for your mother's death? Better yet, Momo working in the ghetto?

bayoab · 2006-03-09, 12:27

Quote:

Originally Posted by Simon

I don't quite know what detractors were expecting of something billed as "the sad and gentle story of a white shinigami girl" (an Excel Saga clone maybe?), but if you liked Haibane Renmei or Someday's Dreamers then I'd say give this series a try. And if you hated them, then heed the criticisms posted here.

We were expecting it to actually be about a shinigami and not about a slice of life show where a shinigami magically appears in the last minute to make a moral. Look at the description of the story on the first page. It does not mention anything about nothing happening for 24 minutes. Human scramble was a bunch of one shot heartwarming shows and they were infinitely better.

I watched Haibane and Someday's and I found both infinitely more watchable than this so YMMV. This would appeal more to the Aria/Kokoro Toshokan/Piano crowd.

npal · 2006-03-09, 12:37

I certainly hope no one was expecting Bleach OVA: Shinigami No Ballad.
Plus, we already knew it would be slice of life, from what I can recall.

Someday's dreamers were nice though, too, but this series has the difficult task of being interesting with only 6 episodes which have probably no relation other than featuring Momo.

For a slice of life series, this episode was nice, in the spirit of most slice of life anime, anyway.

Kanna · 2006-03-09, 12:43

Well if you want it to be a story about a Shinigami walking around killing people it would turn out to be pretty boring.

"Hi"
"Die"
*slice*
repeat
THE END

But yes I admit the first episode wasn't what I expected it to be.

EDIT: Double-posting is stupid, so I'll just insert my thoughts of ep 2 here

Just saw episode 2, and it's gotten better. Momo's actually involved in the story now instead of being a messenger. The guy in this episode annoys me somewhat though, depressed characters just aren't fun to watch.

stevency · 2006-03-09, 17:05

Spoiler for ep2:

Scribble · 2006-03-09, 18:21

Quote:

Originally Posted by bayoab

This would appeal more to the Aria/Kokoro Toshokan/Piano crowd.

LOL, is that an insult?

EDIT:
It would be interesting if this crossed over with Hanbun. For example, one episode could take place during the time

Spoiler for "Hanbun...Sora":

and Momo could do her job. Although there's a possibility it wouldn't work because Hanbun is slightly more realistic than Shinigamino Ballad.

Simon · 2006-03-09, 18:50

Quote:

Originally Posted by MarcusG

I wonder if the ost is out yet? I just need to get the theme song.

The OP/ED single is out next week (March 15th).

Official site / CDJapan / Amazon JP

I'm not sure when the full OST will be released, but it's one I'll probably want to buy.

Sorrow-K · 2006-03-09, 21:44

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rion

Yes, you are right, just like Yokohama Kaidashi Kikô is for a certain audience (where I count myself in) and usually I'd say the audience for YKK, Shinigami no Ballad and... for example Zettai Shônen are pretty much the same: Slice of life fans who have a sense for slow paced and (in its own way) meaningful series. Unfortunately I love YKK and Zettai Shônen, while I found Shinigami no Ballad rather disappointing. Maybe I just set my expectations too high but I found myself not to be totally alone with this impression.

I'm still hoping for the next episode to be better though.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kaoru Chujo

I appreciate reading these negative opinions, even though they baffle me and make me wonder about my taste (and others'). I watched the show again and still think it's very good. Of course, put that in the context of my feeling that Fate/Stay Night is rather boring (up to episode 4). For me, the human emotions there have so far been meaningless, whereas the emotions here touched my heart. This seemed to me like a wise, simple, subtle show. This episode was a classic tragedy, where you know what's going to happen and that only deepens the pain and pleasure.

But since it surprises me that someone who likes Zettai Shounen doesn't like this, I will try to keep alert. In any case, it's good to have some negative reviews to scare off people who wouldn't like the genre. Anyone who is tempted to delete it during the OP is watching the wrong show, lol.

One person said nothing happens here. What about growing love and moments of joy, tempered by conflicted emotions, and followed by fear, longing, pain, regret and death? These things were sketched quickly, but effectively, for me.

Just to throw my $0.02 into this discussion, I don't think it has anything to do with being a fan of the slice-of-life genre (though I think it would help) because I very thoroughly enjoyed Zettai Shonen and ARIA, and I think YKK is a masterpiece. No, my problem with this is that it's just so blatantly melodramatic.

There's no impact when it's so obvious that they wanted the audience to feel sad about this dead sick girl and the boy who has to pick up the pieces afterwards... the fare was predictable, and lacked any sort of dramatic atmosphere. The result: I just couldn't see any reason to care about the characters or the story.

I'm also hoping the future episodes are better, because like I (sorta) said before, there's no reason why this can't be a good show. The premise is gold as far as potential is concerned. It just got off on the wrong foot, IMO.

suguru · 2006-03-09, 23:45

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sorrow-K

Just to throw my $0.02 into this discussion, I don't think it has anything to do with being a fan of the slice-of-life genre (though I think it would help) because I very thoroughly enjoyed Zettai Shonen and ARIA, and I think YKK is a masterpiece. No, my problem with this is that it's just so blatantly melodramatic.

There's no impact when it's so obvious that they wanted the audience to feel sad about this dead sick girl and the boy who has to pick up the pieces afterwards... the fare was predictable, and lacked any sort of dramatic atmosphere. The result: I just couldn't see any reason to care about the characters or the story.

I'm also hoping the future episodes are better, because like I (sorta) said before, there's no reason why this can't be a good show. The premise is gold as far as potential is concerned. It just got off on the wrong foot, IMO.

I'm not a big fan of melodrama (KGNE, for example, I hated) but I thought Shinibara did a decent job walking the line without getting too melodramatic. I liked the Zettai-like camera work and the animation, and while it seemed odd for Momo to get so little screentime, the story was compelling enough to keep me watching. I definitely wouldn't say episode one was better than Zettai or YKK, but it was a simple, touching story, even if it did telegraph its punches.

orion · 2006-03-09, 23:48

Wow, so much negativity for poor Momo!

Is it possible that the title is meant to be reflective and not truly tearful? The first episode just felt like low level sadness, nothing that jumps out and makes you cry.

The opening song is in itself sad. I felt some sadness for the characters, but the ending negated part of it. So, I was left with the reflection of how fragile life is but life continues and that Momo is probably a very lonely and caring shinigami.

I think that it is closer to Aria the Animation and Someday's Dreamers in that it tried to give a message, only the message isn't in an uplifting package.

Kaoru Chujo · 2006-03-10, 00:12

Well, I cared about the characters in ep2, as well. The trajectory was somewhat different, but the point was the same: live life fully until you die, as you certainly will. The power of this show is that it can make you feel that truth. The presence of Ueda Kana in a lead role was another plus for ep2.

I wasn't classing this as "slice-of-life." Beyond the great YKK and the not-so-great (IMO) ARIA, I don't know what else falls into that genre (Binchou-tan?) This has too much plot and idea for me to call it that. I can't really say what genre this is. I was just thinking that the slow rhythm and loli-looking and -sounding characters may simply make the show unbearable for some people (by which I don't mean everyone who doesn't like the show). By the way, I found Mushishi too boring to continue with after about five episodes. Enough people love it that there is clearly something about it that I just didn't get. It was most of those characters that I couldn't care about. For me, it was emotionally meaningless.

Shinibara does a good job of making me care about the characters within the few minutes it has -- much more effectively than Jigoku Shoujo or Mushishi, for me. And if you want to see real melodrama, watch anything by Steven Spielberg, whose whole modus operandi is manipulation of the audience's feelings. Episode 1 was more like tragedy, in my opinion, where the power of the piece is in knowing what will inevitably happen and watching in horror as it unfolds before your eyes. Some people's mileage obviously varies. I admit that I loved KgNE, so my tolerance for "melodrama" -- or at least dorama -- is high. Like I said, I'll try to stay alert to the problems people see, especially people with the good taste to like Zettai Shounen.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sorrow-K

Just to throw my $0.02 into this discussion, I don't think it has anything to do with being a fan of the slice-of-life genre (though I think it would help) because I very thoroughly enjoyed Zettai Shonen and ARIA, and I think YKK is a masterpiece. No, my problem with this is that it's just so blatantly melodramatic.

There's no impact when it's so obvious that they wanted the audience to feel sad about this dead sick girl and the boy who has to pick up the pieces afterwards... the fare was predictable, and lacked any sort of dramatic atmosphere. The result: I just couldn't see any reason to care about the characters or the story.

I'm also hoping the future episodes are better, because like I (sorta) said before, there's no reason why this can't be a good show. The premise is gold as far as potential is concerned. It just got off on the wrong foot, IMO.

Rion · 2006-03-10, 03:32

Okay, my tolerance for melodrama is very, very low. I just do not watch anything that cannot meet my expectations and there is enough good stuff out there. And my definition of "slice of life" is a bit wider... I'd consider Emma, The Diary of Tortov Roddle, Ichigo Mashimaro and of course Zettai Shônen "slice of life". I think nearly everyone who likes Zettai Shônen/YKK/Aria has mentioned something like "this show has a good premise, but it turned out bad".

Oh, I love Mushishi. It is the atmosphere, the captivating world of the mushi, how mankind tries to deal with Mushi, not so much the characters themselves that is so interesting to me.

Edit: By the way, Momo is lovely, as well as Daniel *_* They saved the first episode.

DaFool · 2006-03-10, 06:20

It's nice to see slice-of-life lovers arguing with each other regarding this show. Let me join in, first I state my position:

1.) Haibane Renmei.... it is untouchable. NOTHING comes close. It is symbolic, it is philosophical, it is emotional, mental, spiritual...basically, it hits all the points.

.....

.....

2.) Mushishi... because it is a mental / spiritual show. Not really emotional, so it cannot be uplifting per se, but it best describes 'mental sadness' (if there is such a term)
3.) Emma... the sheer attention to detail, the sound design, the realism, the society descriptions, shows the creators really did research their subject well. The atmosphere of this show is wonderfully textured and pleasant.
4.) YKK... because it is relaxing and uplifting.
5.) ARIA... because it is relaxing and uplifting, less philosophical than YKK, but the cute factor really plays in.
6.) Zettai Shonen... it is symbolic, kinda hits all points like Haibane, but less impactful since I couldn't figure out what exactly where its strength was--mental, emotional, or spiritual. Maybe philosophical. Still, it was good.
7.) Someday's Dreamers.-- I could have cared less about its deeper meanings (I doubt it really has that much), it just has a really cute girl who goes on about her life becoming a mage.
8) Binchou-tan--- same as above, the cuteness just conquers all the other slice-of-life aspects.

..............

and waaaaaay below

..............

I mean, really incomparably below...

.............
100,000.) Kokoro Toshokan. It was boring. And not cute. And Not Cute = Boring.

So where does this show fit for me? Somewhere around 9.) So far it has a little cute factor. However it did not hit mentally, spiritually, philosophically---it was pretty basic. And the emotions it wanted to convey didn't pull off. If the purposes of the characters are strong enough I start to care for them, even if they are butt-ugly (such as in the case of the wonderfully masculine show that is Mushishi

In that case, its not the characters themselves, but the ideas they represent.

If the characters happen to be cute (such as in Shinigami no Ballad's case), by golly just leave them be and don't put them on a rollercoaster. So far I am begging for the premise to pull off later. I am pretty tolerant because I've watched Jigoku Shoujo up to ep 19 (except ep 13 since it hasn't been subbed yet) and even if I hit 2 eps which are redeemable so far I am still following that stupid series.

lavielove · 2006-03-10, 09:07

Quote:

Originally Posted by EmptySoul

Geez... so judgemental. This show is probably only good for a certain audience. It's not a bad show per say... Just not some people's cup of tea. i'm sure a lot of us who knew nothing about the show and saw pictures alone thought it'd be some little girl shinigami going on a rampage killing people or monsters or something. Personally... I think its nice to see an anime like this. It's a slow calm pace, and it has that sense of sadness to it. Which I tend to really like in animes. So all I can really say is... that its not for everyone but that really doesnt mean that it's bad. I'm sure lots of you liked it, probably more than the amount of people who didn't.

Agree that,the day before yesterday I showed Momo to my friend . He got attracted by the name first,coz the name is Momo Shinigami. But later I found out that the only part he enjoyed is the last scene of the anime when Momo tried to chop the cat. In my opinion ,Momo is suitable more for the audience who want to watch drama anime with zero fan-service.I do enjoy these kind of show because if the anime has no fan service, the creators always try to put more effort on the anime rather than revolve around the fan-service scenes.

EmptySoul · 2006-03-10, 09:50

Yeah you're probably right. Not every show is for everyone, and I guess the mass majority of anime fans have to either have fan service or some sort of killing that involves a bloody death or something to be satisfied with a show... But that's life. Not everyone can like everything, so its good to see opinions of people who say they dont like it too. Still I havn't ever seen a thread with this many negative posts about a show before at animesuki. Usually people who dont like it just dont post on that show and move on... But yeah, as we all know, not everyone can like everything. ^_^

Rion · 2006-03-10, 10:04

Oh right, I have totally forgotten Haibane Renmei O.o Shame on me...

Quote:

Originally Posted by EmptySoul

Still I havn't ever seen a thread with this many negative posts about a show before at animesuki. Usually people who dont like it just dont post on that show and move on...

Apparently you still didn't understand this phenomen... ^^;;; The people posting here are, well, like DaFool said, "slice-of-life lovers", not people who only watch fanservice stuff. They would stay away from this thread anyways. I think the majority of people does not watch Mushishi, but the few people who enjoy series like Mushishi do, and since Mushishi met their expectations, they also write positive stuff about it.
Now we're at Shinigami no Ballad: "slice-of-life lovers" are the right audience for this series, it just happens that lots of them don't like it and feel disappointed. Because, in my opinion, at least the first episode was pretty bad. Tadaa.

And believe me, if the second episode turns out bad as well, I, for instance, would not bother posting in this thread anymore.

EmptySoul · 2006-03-10, 10:56

Yeah fair enough. I never really thought of it that way. I guess to some it could be pretty predictable and cliche. I guess I'm really too used to the mushishi thread. I still have pretty high hopes for this show though. Episode 2 was better than episode one in my opinion. But it's hard to say with this type of show. Because it can be a tad predictable with this type of show. Not slice of life in general but a tragedy, one-shot anime with a Shinigami. Hopefully it improves more and more or maybe the one-shot stories will appeal to different people much as with Mushishi. Its still to early to say really, but yeah, I'd say if someone wouldnt like episode 2 either then it'd probably be a good point to give it up. It seems this show has somewhat of a predictable pattern, I'm not sure why but I still manage to really really like it. ^_^;

2006-03-08, 16:48	Link #101
Kaoru Chujo Yuuki Aoi Join Date: Jul 2004	I appreciate reading these negative opinions, even though they baffle me and make me wonder about my taste (and others'). I watched the show again and still think it's very good. Of course, put that in the context of my feeling that Fate/Stay Night is rather boring (up to episode 4). For me, the human emotions there have so far been meaningless, whereas the emotions here touched my heart. This seemed to me like a wise, simple, subtle show. This episode was a classic tragedy, where you know what's going to happen and that only deepens the pain and pleasure. But since it surprises me that someone who likes Zettai Shounen doesn't like this, I will try to keep alert. In any case, it's good to have some negative reviews to scare off people who wouldn't like the genre. Anyone who is tempted to delete it during the OP is watching the wrong show, lol. One person said nothing happens here. What about growing love and moments of joy, tempered by conflicted emotions, and followed by fear, longing, pain, regret and death? These things were sketched quickly, but effectively, for me. __________________ YUUKI Aoi 悠木碧. b92.03.27 (age 29). 2008 Kurenai (Murasaki). 2009 Yumeiro Pâtissière (Ichigo), Kiruminzuu (Riko), Yutori-chan (Yutori-chan). 2010 Vampire Bund (Mina Tepeş), Shiki (Sunako), Samurai Girls (Juubee), Pokémon: Black and White (Iris). 2011 Madoka Magica (Madoka), Gosick (Victorique), A-Channel (Tooru). 2012 Symphogear (Hibiki). 2014 Pilot's Love Song (Claire/Nina), Nanatsu no Taizai (Diane). 2015 Owari no Seraph (Krul Tepes), Rokka no Yuusha (Fremy). 2016 Boku no Hero Academia (Tsuyu, Froppy). 2017 Kino no Tabi (Kino). 2021 Kumo desu ga (watashi), Kaizoku Oujo (Karin), Heike Monogatari (Biwa), etc., etc. Total of 513 roles in anime and games.

2006-03-09, 05:46	Link #103
*Pellissier* ♪~ Daydreaming ~♪ Graphic Designer Administrator Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Italy	I haven't read the whole thread though I can believe if the anime got some negative feedbacks. It's sad, terribly sad. One of those anime to watch just if in a good mood. If you're depressed for yourself in the first place, this will depress you more. Talking for personal experiences.. Well, anyway, since I'm in a good mood in this period i fairly enjoyed the show, which met my expections pretty much. I expected the theme of death and a sense of bittersweetness. Themes that I found well done and realized. Momo is a wonderful character, not randomly I've dedicated her an avatar and a sign. The pace is slow, deep is the character portrait. I feel a similarity to Miyazaki/Studio Ghibli's works' standards. Though, I don't like the formula for the show. By the Ending Theme, I can tell pretty surely they will be 6 standalone stories. Like it was already said, a sort of "Jigoku Shoujo", but backwards. I'm not much for this kind of formula, I sympathized with the two main characters (and with Blue, too) quite a lot and it's sad to think that likely no more traces of them will be found. Not comparable to Hantsuki, which was a continuos story. There's a big common background theme, though: death, reality and that sense of sadness (or bittersweet, there's seem to be a search for something giving the force to pursuit the way of interior serenity, even beyond the death) Nice work for character design and animations, good performance of the VAs (Momo being first). I also particularly like the Opening Theme, as well as some bg musics. If I had to rate for episode 1 solely, I'd go with an 8. __________________

2006-03-09, 12:37	Link #106
npal I desire Tomorrow! Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: As far away from reality as possible Age: 41	I certainly hope no one was expecting Bleach OVA: Shinigami No Ballad. Plus, we already knew it would be slice of life, from what I can recall. Someday's dreamers were nice though, too, but this series has the difficult task of being interesting with only 6 episodes which have probably no relation other than featuring Momo. For a slice of life series, this episode was nice, in the spirit of most slice of life anime, anyway. __________________ Last edited by npal; 2006-03-09 at 12:41. Reason: error correcting

2006-03-09, 12:43	Link #107
Kanna The Triad Fansubber Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: In front of my MHD player	Well if you want it to be a story about a Shinigami walking around killing people it would turn out to be pretty boring. "Hi" "Die" slice repeat THE END But yes I admit the first episode wasn't what I expected it to be. EDIT: Double-posting is stupid, so I'll just insert my thoughts of ep 2 here Just saw episode 2, and it's gotten better. Momo's actually involved in the story now instead of being a messenger. The guy in this episode annoys me somewhat though, depressed characters just aren't fun to watch. Last edited by Kanna; 2006-03-09 at 16:53.

2006-03-09, 17:05	Link #108
stevency To kill or be killed?! Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: City of nightmare	Spoiler for ep2: One night when Mitsuki floating in the pool, Momo appears to him and tell him "u'll die soon", and promptly disappers when the girl Fujishima came to feed fish. Momo comes and tell Mitsuki to try his best. Turns out that Mitsuki's had and experience when his elder sister Subaru dies from sickness. Shortly, Fujishima confess with Mitsuki but he turned her down saying "he'll die soon". Fujishima was heart broken and escaped. Then Momo appears and give him some good scolding action. Mitsuki's sister was a good swimmer, always telling Mitsuki that mankind was a fish deep inside, that's why human like swimming. When Mitsuki once again sneak into the school pool, he was drowned but saved by Fujishima, who hates to swim for some reason. Then he finally confess with her. Somehow he explained his afraid of seeing his sister death. And the new found couple walked together in the street of night. The next day, Fujishima came out with sukumizugi, and a scar was at her chest.....

2006-03-09, 08:53	Link #104
MarcusG Remember Law of Ueki Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Georgia, USA	I wonder if the ost is out yet? I just need to get the theme song. I also agree with post above, this story isnt for people who are already depressed. Unfortunately, I looked at this episode a different way and thought it was funny. How is a shinigami going to tell you that she gives death and blame the boy for leaving his friend? ( I know it doesnt sound logical) Anyway it was a decent episode. Can you guys imagine if a Momo blames you for your mother's death? Better yet, Momo working in the ghetto?

2006-03-09, 23:48	Link #113
orion Waiting for more taiyuki! Join Date: Jan 2004	Wow, so much negativity for poor Momo! Is it possible that the title is meant to be reflective and not truly tearful? The first episode just felt like low level sadness, nothing that jumps out and makes you cry. The opening song is in itself sad. I felt some sadness for the characters, but the ending negated part of it. So, I was left with the reflection of how fragile life is but life continues and that Momo is probably a very lonely and caring shinigami. I think that it is closer to Aria the Animation and Someday's Dreamers in that it tried to give a message, only the message isn't in an uplifting package. __________________

2006-03-10, 03:32	Link #115
Rion Ramune~ Join Date: Mar 2004	Okay, my tolerance for melodrama is very, very low. I just do not watch anything that cannot meet my expectations and there is enough good stuff out there. And my definition of "slice of life" is a bit wider... I'd consider Emma, The Diary of Tortov Roddle, Ichigo Mashimaro and of course Zettai Shônen "slice of life". I think nearly everyone who likes Zettai Shônen/YKK/Aria has mentioned something like "this show has a good premise, but it turned out bad". Oh, I love Mushishi. It is the atmosphere, the captivating world of the mushi, how mankind tries to deal with Mushi, not so much the characters themselves that is so interesting to me. Edit: By the way, Momo is lovely, as well as Daniel _ They saved the first episode.

2006-03-10, 06:20	Link #116
DaFool Resident devil Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Philippines	It's nice to see slice-of-life lovers arguing with each other regarding this show. Let me join in, first I state my position: 1.) Haibane Renmei.... it is untouchable. NOTHING comes close. It is symbolic, it is philosophical, it is emotional, mental, spiritual...basically, it hits all the points. ..... ..... 2.) Mushishi... because it is a mental / spiritual show. Not really emotional, so it cannot be uplifting per se, but it best describes 'mental sadness' (if there is such a term) 3.) Emma... the sheer attention to detail, the sound design, the realism, the society descriptions, shows the creators really did research their subject well. The atmosphere of this show is wonderfully textured and pleasant. 4.) YKK... because it is relaxing and uplifting. 5.) ARIA... because it is relaxing and uplifting, less philosophical than YKK, but the cute factor really plays in. 6.) Zettai Shonen... it is symbolic, kinda hits all points like Haibane, but less impactful since I couldn't figure out what exactly where its strength was--mental, emotional, or spiritual. Maybe philosophical. Still, it was good. 7.) Someday's Dreamers.-- I could have cared less about its deeper meanings (I doubt it really has that much), it just has a really cute girl who goes on about her life becoming a mage. 8) Binchou-tan--- same as above, the cuteness just conquers all the other slice-of-life aspects. .............. and waaaaaay below .............. I mean, really incomparably below... ............. 100,000.) Kokoro Toshokan. It was boring. And not cute. And Not Cute = Boring. So where does this show fit for me? Somewhere around 9.) So far it has a little cute factor. However it did not hit mentally, spiritually, philosophically---it was pretty basic. And the emotions it wanted to convey didn't pull off. If the purposes of the characters are strong enough I start to care for them, even if they are butt-ugly (such as in the case of the wonderfully masculine show that is Mushishi In that case, its not the characters themselves, but the ideas they represent. If the characters happen to be cute (such as in Shinigami no Ballad's case), by golly just leave them be and don't put them on a rollercoaster. So far I am begging for the premise to pull off later. I am pretty tolerant because I've watched Jigoku Shoujo up to ep 19 (except ep 13 since it hasn't been subbed yet) and even if I hit 2 eps which are redeemable so far I am still following that stupid series. Last edited by DaFool; 2006-03-10 at 06:46.

2006-03-10, 09:50	Link #118
EmptySoul C1Anime Join Date: Jan 2004 Age: 38	Yeah you're probably right. Not every show is for everyone, and I guess the mass majority of anime fans have to either have fan service or some sort of killing that involves a bloody death or something to be satisfied with a show... But that's life. Not everyone can like everything, so its good to see opinions of people who say they dont like it too. Still I havn't ever seen a thread with this many negative posts about a show before at animesuki. Usually people who dont like it just dont post on that show and move on... But yeah, as we all know, not everyone can like everything. ^_^

2006-03-10, 10:56	Link #120
EmptySoul C1Anime Join Date: Jan 2004 Age: 38	Yeah fair enough. I never really thought of it that way. I guess to some it could be pretty predictable and cliche. I guess I'm really too used to the mushishi thread. I still have pretty high hopes for this show though. Episode 2 was better than episode one in my opinion. But it's hard to say with this type of show. Because it can be a tad predictable with this type of show. Not slice of life in general but a tragedy, one-shot anime with a Shinigami. Hopefully it improves more and more or maybe the one-shot stories will appeal to different people much as with Mushishi. Its still to early to say really, but yeah, I'd say if someone wouldnt like episode 2 either then it'd probably be a good point to give it up. It seems this show has somewhat of a predictable pattern, I'm not sure why but I still manage to really really like it. ^_^;