(L+CR) Free!

[SQA]

Haruka X Pool is the OTP. Did you see him fawning over the indoor pool membership?

[ginger02]

That brocon ship surprises me since they've interacted like twice, once through a text. I thought Japan was getting tired of those ships...tho i don't really know many off the top of my head. Her with Rin's captain is pleasing though, for a variety of reasons.

I agree that Haruka's love for water, swimming, and pools trumps everyone. All he wants is for the two of them to be together forever.

However, I do love those lovely eyes Makoto makes towards Haruka.

Originally Posted by monir

I must also observe that the lack of shipping in this thread is disconcerting. As a mod, I'm disappointed that I'm not breaking out fights and banning people in every other page.

We'll please you soon enough

[Blonto]

Originally Posted by Sackett

????

Really? Gou and Ama-sensei seem pretty feminine to me. True they aren't all "girly girl" but that's not normal... at least not in the USA. I guess Japan does have a more "cutesy" thing for the way girls are supposed to act around boys. Maybe that's what she's referring to.

Just compare them to K-On characters, Asahina, Chitanda, Tamako (etc.), who act more like pets than people.

Originally Posted by monir

I must also observe that the lack of shipping in this thread is disconcerting. As a mod, I'm disappointed that I'm not breaking out fights and banning people in every other page.

Maybe the fujoshi are considerate towards the guys watching this show?
My sister weakly ships Gou and the team captain. Anyone want to duke it out with me over that?

[Cloudedmind]

I could go for a ReiXNagisa, or a GouXNagisa, either would work for me. HarukaXWater is still the strongest pair, though HarukaXRin would work to.

I'll take Makoto for myself thank you. I joked to a friend that he'd be my perfect waifu, he pointed out that it should be husbando, but considering how much of a motherhen he is, he'd make a better wife then I would.

[cyth]

Now that I think about it, Haruka x Pool doesn't sound that far fetched, considering Pool is tsundere. I mean, it was so cold toward Haruka, so much so he caught a cold! I'm sure it'll go dere once summer starts.

[Bern-san]

Nobody ships poor Makoto...
My reaction to Rei is the same one as Gou
Another one to Haru's harem although they are hinting somethimg between him and Nagisa.
I would like to see Gou and captain of the other team in a date and Rin showing his sister complex

[ginger02]

Originally Posted by Bern-san

I would like to see Gou and captain of the other team in a date and Rin showing his sister complex

hehe I thought I was the only one who wanted to see this. Though, only because I like protective older brothers, starting from Tai in Digimon. I guess it's because my own isn't.

[LKK]

Originally Posted by cyth

Now that I think about it, Haruka x Pool doesn't sound that far fetched, considering Pool is tsundere. I mean, it was so cold toward Haruka, so much so he caught a cold! I'm sure it'll go dere once summer starts.

Oh my. Pool, the ultimate tsundere! Thank you so much for my morning laugh. I'd rep you for that if the reputation system was still around.

[blakstealth]

Originally Posted by cyth

Now that I think about it, Haruka x Pool doesn't sound that far fetched, considering Pool is tsundere. I mean, it was so cold toward Haruka, so much so he caught a cold! I'm sure it'll go dere once summer starts.

I can totally back this.

[Kanon]

Originally Posted by winhlp32

Rough summary:

1. (on the charms of the quiet Haruka) They were having trouble with how the he would move/act. Then they realized that by thinking of him as "heroine", determining his actions became a lot easier.

2. Yokotani Masahiro (series composition) thinks Gou and Ama-chan sensei weren't written to be very "girly" and are more designed to be "female characters that girls would like".

Thanks!

I don't really understand what they mean when they say thinking of Haruka as a heroine made things easier for them. He doesn't really act like a heroine... and I don't get how writing a heroine is easier than writing a hero.

I get what he's saying about Gou and Ama-chan. They're not exactly "girly" by anime standards. They act like sensible human beings rather than "anime girls", which means they don't offend anybody and can therefore be liked by female viewers (males too).

Originally Posted by cyth

Now that I think about it, Haruka x Pool doesn't sound that far fetched, considering Pool is tsundere. I mean, it was so cold toward Haruka, so much so he caught a cold! I'm sure it'll go dere once summer starts.

The problem with this pairing is that Haruka is going to get NTR'd since Pool-chan lets pretty much everybody do whatever they want inside her. What a slut!

[germanturkey]

i'd totally ship Makoto and Gou.

[Kanon]

I'm surprised so few people ship the guys together. Where are the fujoshis?

[MexicanAnime]

Originally Posted by Kanon

I'm surprised so few people ship the guys together. Where are the fujoshis?

They're off in the vast land called Tumblr. Enter at your own risk.

Anyways, the first few episodes have been amusing and Rei will probably be my favorite character if I keep laughing the way I did.

[kuromitsu]

Originally Posted by Kanon

I'm surprised so few people ship the guys together. Where are the fujoshis?

"Few"? Maybe here, but AS is still mainly populated by males. The female contingent is at pixiv, Tumblr (overlaps with pixiv via stolen fanart), Twitter, and a lot of other places.

Also re: that scanned scrap from that interview - WOW, if I was a writer for a highly publicized anime I wouldn't go on and on like this about how incompetent I am...

[LKK]

Originally Posted by Kanon

The problem with this pairing is that Haruka is going to get NTR'd since Pool-chan lets pretty much everybody do whatever they want inside her. What a slut!

There's no problem. Haru said he's an advocate of free love, so he's okay with Pool sharing herself with others.

[ultimatemegax]

Originally Posted by kuromitsu

Also re: that scanned scrap from that interview - WOW, if I was a writer for a highly publicized anime I wouldn't go on and on like this about how incompetent I am...

It's not uncommonly phrased in interviews. The second Chuunibyou booklet has its series composer, Junki Hanada, comment that everything except the chuunibyou images was difficult to write. Saying that composing an original series is hard isn't unexpected to hear.

[Lota]

I have to say I rather liked the episode. Dat jump... Free really is like a breath of fresh air. It's fun, not too serious, the fanservice is also, erm, appreciated on my part. Something to look forward to every week.

Originally Posted by Bern-san

Nobody ships poor Makoto...

I do! I do! Makoto and Gou... I have no idea why, but I don't want either of them with anyone else. Though it'll be tough for poor Gou to watch Makoto making goo-goo eyes at Haru all the time

[kuromitsu]

Originally Posted by ultimatemegax

It's not uncommonly phrased in interviews. The second Chuunibyou booklet has its series composer, Junki Hanada, comment that everything except the chuunibyou images was difficult to write. Saying that composing an original series is hard isn't unexpected to hear.

It's not that. First he implies he had trouble writing the main character because he's... a guy? o__o) OK... Then he says that at first he wrote lots of lines for the female characters. I mean... do you realize what kind of anime you're supposed to be writing and who the main characters are? And then he says Ama-chan-sensei is not "feminine"... yes, I understand what he means but come on, just because a female character is not being a hot male fantasy all the time she's not "feminine" or what? o__o) Bad choice of words there...

[MeggieMay]

Originally Posted by Bern-san

Nobody ships poor Makoto...

Originally Posted by Lota

I do! I do! Makoto and Gou... I have no idea why, but I don't want either of them with anyone else. Though it'll be tough for poor Gou to watch Makoto making goo-goo eyes at Haru all the time

I'll second Makoto and Gou for a pairing! I also think the Captian of the other school team isn't out of the running for Gou, which is setting up a non Yaoi love triangle which could get interesting if this show gets a second season. Because I think this is only a 12 episode series and I'm not sure there's time to really go into relationships that much with it being that length. As for why I feel this might work, it's because Makato is the person who first notices Gou in Episode 1 (IIRC she noticed all three of them first but I don't have time to re-watch the episode at the moment so I hope I'm right). It's not much of a reason but it just stood out to me, for what it's worth . Another triangle is Haru/Rin/Pool-chan which has to be one of more amusing situations to think about I've seen in a anime

[Triple_R]

Originally Posted by Kanon

Thanks!

I don't really understand what they mean when they say thinking of Haruka as a heroine made things easier for them. He doesn't really act like a heroine... and I don't get how writing a heroine is easier than writing a hero.

Your typical male lead in an anime show has romantic interest (in a specific girl, or girls in general) as a core motivation. Lots of well-worn tropes arise from that, meaning that a lot of scenes practically write themselves.

So for writers used to this sort of male character, one like Haruka (a major male character in a show aimed at fujoshis) can be a challenge. Because the guy has no obvious interest in romance, so a lot of the "easy outs" aren't there. So what do you look to in order to shape the character's characterization? What characters can you use as references for him?

Well, girls in all-girl shows often have driving motivations that have nothing to do with romance. Consider the girls of Love Live!, or Girls und Panzer, or many a magical girls show. They tend to have passionate goals that they work towards in a certain fashion. I see a little bit of that in Haruka, and his passion for swimming.

I get what he's saying about Gou and Ama-chan. They're not exactly "girly" by anime standards. They act like sensible human beings rather than "anime girls", which means they don't offend anybody and can therefore be liked by female viewers (males too).

Ama-chan strikes me as pretty feminine. She's no less feminine than any of the adult female characters in Majestic Prince, imo.

Gou isn't particularly feminine, but nor does she make me think tomboy. She's more feminine than a lot of anime female characters, imo.

The thing with both characters is that, yes, they're wrote to be sensible human beings. But sensible human beings can come in a wide range from very feminine to very masculine. There's nothing particularly feminine about, say, a KugRie Tsundere exploding on someone. It's just silly. Thankfully, these female characters aren't like that.