Toradora! Generic discussion thread

[frubam]

Originally Posted by s_b

Uwah... This isn't as bad as Kyou no Go no Ni's art style, but this is in its own way... *laugh*
*continues laughing after looking at stupid Glasses and Minori* They look worse then Ryuji and Taiga. I feel like I'd go stupid if I stare at them too long for some reason...

I much preferred the art style of the manga(never seen those of the novel). Although I don't mind Ryuji and Taiga, Kitamura is supposed to be/look kinda cool, the 'Hanai-type', like Ire said(at least, that's my impression of him in the manga), but instead he looks like a total geek .

Ah well, you'll learn to like it. You'll learn to LOVE IT!

[serenade_beta]

Originally Posted by Irenicus

Ami is win though. Now she's as pretty as she was lauded to be.

Though I somewhat worry about the similarity problem between Sumire and Ami now... The fact Sumire looks good and Ami doesn't at all in the novel made it possibly to tell them apart, but now Ami looks good... Well, guess I have to wait until her anime character design is revealed.

Originally Posted by Irenicus

Regardless of my opinions on the character designs, it's still the script that runs the show (this isn't an extreme case like Real Drive or something), so I'll try not to pre-judge it too much. Let's just hope it's not a flop like Shana II or the whole Zero no Tsukaima fiasco, or something like Special A the anime...

If we lived in an anime, you would have completely caused a flag to stand up...

Originally Posted by frubam

Ah well, you'll learn to like it. You'll learn to LOVE IT!

I hope...
I didn't like Minami-ke Okawari's art style, and I never did, even after the last episode... (-_-)

[Cat Megex]

...I like Special A the anime...(note: I also like Special A the manga, so it's not a matter of preferring one over the other)

[justsomeguy]

I'm staring at the novel illustrations. What exactly are the differences between Ami and Sumire?!

[Cat Megex]

...And Sumire is...?

[kaisama]

J.C staff and Ku..whatever Rie...*look at the charactes* I think I shouldn't put too much hope in this one. Are they scare to follow the original or what, why don't do something "new" at least once in a while?

[houkoholic]

Originally Posted by Irenicus

That looks, erm, different than I expected.

Yuuji seems more...delinquent?...than his novel counterpart and most certainly his manga counterpart (reminds me of that guy from Midori Days and that other guy from Karin). I'm not sure if this is a bad or a good thing, since the people's around him are supposed to think that he looks like a delinquent while the novel illustrations just make him look awkward, and the manga made him a cute bishie.

The delinquent look is suitable. It's kind of hard to do the sharp-eyes as described in the novel without making him look ugly (like stereotypical yakuza anime characters). Augmenting it in other ways make it work better.

Taiga...turned into a loli. Yes, yes, the concept already applied to her etcetera, etcetera -- I mean, I thought of her in the same vein as Yuuji himself in other versions, "like a pretty French doll," but now she's clearly more like an anime loli and all.

It's sad but true - don't expect too much from JC Staff art I'd say. They're not really particularly known for breath-taking art. Besides I think if they try too hard to make her all doll-like, she'll just end up like Louis.

Kitamura and Minori looks waaay too childish for my tastes. He was supposed to be the Hanai-type, not that baby-faced boy! And she, well, err...

Actually Kitamura is suppose to be sort of baby-faced. Yuuji describes his face as being kind of pretty/nicely/cleanly make, also there were scenes where people where surprised at Kitamura's muscle body build despite his looks, so he's definitely not Hanai-type's square jaws manly. Kitamura is suppose to be really approachable as well hence he is popular with girls (as friends). I think this is quite the appropriate look.

Minorin otoh I agree.

[BearShare]

I'd prefer a brunette Louise over Taiga's current character design to be honest.

[justsomeguy]

Originally Posted by Cat Megex

...And Sumire is...?

The student council president, introduced briefly in Volume 2.

[serenade_beta]

Originally Posted by houkoholic

It's sad but true - don't expect too much from JC Staff art I'd say. They're not really particularly known for breath-taking art. Besides I think if they try too hard to make her all doll-like, she'll just end up like Louis.

Actually, I feel that if there is one thing J.C. Staff can do, it is the visuals. They just seem to hate Toradora, since their other anime next season, Toaru Majutsu no Index, looks very awesome (besides Touma's face).

[Supah Em]

Originally Posted by serenade_beta

Actually, I feel that if there is one thing J.C. Staff can do, it is the visuals. They just seem to hate Toradora, since their other anime next season, Toaru Majutsu no Index, looks very awesome (besides Touma's face).

Comparing yours and frubam's avatars, i can't find any reason to disagree in terms of visuals.

And to think that Ga-Rei is the sole series that was going to be massacred. I can only hope that the script/plot will pull this one through

[Man0warr]

Ah, don't worry, the anime studio is J.C. Staff. They are famous for novel raping, with their worst victim (from my memory) being Zero no Tsukaima. I think it would be safer to not expect them to follow the novel...

Meh, It's more the directors that caused the problems. First season of ZnT was awesome for instance. And Shana hasn't been that bad besides the anime-only endings just to better tie them up into seasons, there isn't really good stopping places in the novels.

Do I think it will be as good as the novels? Of course not, but anime is a totally different media from printed word and it can't always follow the novels to a tee, because it just wouldn't work out. Much the same as books and movie adaptions in the U.S.

[musume_no_hoshi]

J.C staff seems to be hit or miss for alot of people. I just happen to like the works I seen by J.C Staff (at least I didn't hate them with all my heart). If you watch their works without the original material, they tend to be watchable or good. (I liked Kimikiss (despite I never played the game, but I never really liked harems) and Daa! Daa! Daa! anime then the original.)

I have a feeling Zero No Tsukaima's animation team would be working on this ^_^'' At least the animation would be fairy decent.

I read the first chapter of the manga, but I'm currently expecting a 'romantic' comedy with a pair of bickering couple. All I'm hoping, is less (or even better no) fanservice then ZnT. I haven't seen much of the original material, I always find reading the original after the anime usually gives me a longer time of enjoyment (at least I would not complain how bad the adaption is). If the animators doesn't totally screw it up (my defination of screwed up...is...well at least I find ZnT 3 enjoyable) I should like it. XD

[Irenicus]

Originally Posted by houkoholic

The delinquent look is suitable. It's kind of hard to do the sharp-eyes as described in the novel without making him look ugly (like stereotypical yakuza anime characters). Augmenting it in other ways make it work better.

Well, to be fair, I really liked him in the manga despite his looks being not quite what was described in the novel. Moreover, strangely enough me and that delinquent "Midori Days Guy (what's his name again?)" and/or "Karin dude" design never get along. They always seem like misunderstood "delinquent" nice people (fine enough, that's their characteristic, and so is Takasu's) but they're neither captivating as bishies for fangurls to gasm over or the man's man-type to score points with us male watchers.

The novel illustrations for Toradora! just suck overall though, no offense to the illustrator of course. Style is a subjective thing.

All in all, I'd say that my personal opinion is unfavorable but everyone else should think differently, unless they have my baggage. Plus, it's probably rather hard to figure out an appropriate solution to create a proper pair of evil eyes and animate them properly. J.C. Staff is competent -- but I don't get that sense of imaginative genius that would be required to solve complex animation-characterization problems elegantly. And to scratch out the whole issue and just make him a cute guy like I want is out of the question. The anime is made for everyone and not for me after all, and it's supposed to at least partially stand alone.

It's sad but true - don't expect too much from JC Staff art I'd say. They're not really particularly known for breath-taking art. Besides I think if they try too hard to make her all doll-like, she'll just end up like Louis.

Like someone said above, I wouldn't mind her keeping the Louise look really. That's who she is in the other versions.

Plus, a pretty French doll > loli. I'd rather not feel pedophilic cheering for the main pair really.

somebody's going to neg rep me for that.

Actually Kitamura is suppose to be sort of baby-faced. Yuuji describes his face as being kind of pretty/nicely/cleanly make, also there were scenes where people where surprised at Kitamura's muscle body build despite his looks, so he's definitely not Hanai-type's square jaws manly. Kitamura is suppose to be really approachable as well hence he is popular with girls (as friends). I think this is quite the appropriate look.

Interesting; I didn't know that.

I always got the impression that he was like a mini-Hanai, but I wasn't exactly close-reading the novel (it's a school romance fluff, hey!) so you're probably correct.

Edit: Oh my, haha. Somebody actually neg-repped me for that comment^, about, erm, 15 days late. For some reason that's kinda funny.

[houkoholic]

Originally Posted by Irenicus

Well, to be fair, I really liked him in the manga despite his looks being not quite what was described in the novel. Moreover, strangely enough me and that delinquent "Midori Days Guy (what's his name again?)" and/or "Karin dude" design never get along. They always seem like misunderstood "delinquent" nice people (fine enough, that's their characteristic, and so is Takasu's) but they're neither captivating as bishies for fangurls to gasm over or the man's man-type to score points with us male watchers.

In truth though Yuuji is a derivative of the "misunderstood delinquent" archtype, except they just totally remove the "violent" bit unlike the other characters, and not the "gentleman burried deep underneath" type. I always thought the novel illustration was awkward in the sense that it doesn't fit how people precieve him in the story - he's simply not scary looking and looked just awkward, which makes all the jokes about people being scared of him not really working. If they can probably protary that in the anime, then I'm all for the design.

Also Yuuji just can't be a bish - afterall Ami did call him out on his looks in the beginning. I guess he's really just your typical beast-type character in a "Beauty and the Beast" type of story.

Plus, it's probably rather hard to figure out an appropriate solution to create a proper pair of evil eyes and animate them properly. J.C. Staff is competent -- but I don't get that sense of imaginative genius that would be required to solve complex animation-characterization problems elegantly.

Thanks, you've basically said what I wanted to say about JC Staff when I say they aren't exactly known for breath-taking art. Sure they are competent, but only in the sense that they "get the stuff done", and I think that's why people in general are worried about the adaptation when it was announced that they were doing it.

Like someone said above, I wouldn't mind her keeping the Louise look really. That's who she is in the other versions.

I'd prefer otherwise, since I think they're quite different characters, and I'm betting that the people at JC Staff, while wanting to make enough parallels for the right marketing hooks (hiring Kugimiya et all), stil wants to keep them separate in the end. Visually making them different is the first step.

[Man0warr]

I read the first chapter of the manga, but I'm currently expecting a 'romantic' comedy with a pair of bickering couple. All I'm hoping, is less (or even better no) fanservice then ZnT.

There's a little bit of fanservice I guess, hard to tell from the novels. Mainly from Ryuji's drunken mom and Taiga in a nightgown.

[Miki7]

I didn't a bit of the manga it seems cute...but I think that when you see the anime on your pc or television is different, there are the sounds of the movementes, the soundtrack, the colours and that gives more life to the anime

[HayashiTakara]

When's the date for the airing of the first episode?

[serenade_beta]

Originally Posted by HayashiTakara

When's the date for the airing of the first episode?

...Unknown at moment

[Cat Megex]

Originally Posted by serenade_beta

...Unknown at moment

Some time in October, at least.

Also, I have to agree with a previous poster: Manga Kitamura looks a whole lot like Hanai Haruki. XD