(CR) Shinmai Maou no Testament

[Wandering Soul]

Guess now we now what Basara really wants no matter what he tries to say. Masked guy does seem like quite a threat and can deal some pretty good mental blows.

[RDNexus]

Can I dare to say that it seems like nobody here has already noticed who's the masked guy?
The voice easily gave him away right away... Or are you guys evading the talk because spoilers?

[DOmus]

Its so easy that nobody even say it

[Iron Maw]

It was pretty obvious even in the manga after a few panels thanks to the fact that he had the same hairstyle.

[RDNexus]

Well, I failed to notice at first in the Manga because the chapters would take ages to show up...
But in the Anime it's a sure direct hit, no need to go around in circles, next week his identify is sure to be revealed.

[Miraluka]

Obvioulsy, because Sugita!

[Enternal]

I don't know about you guys, I just enjoy it very much whenever Mio say "onii-chan~". It's just so out there and weird that it becomes funny. Maria on the other hand... she scares me haha

And who is this masked villian?!

In terms of art, I thought the art adaptation is not too bad. It might be lacking compared to another adaption like the manga but it follows the outline close enough. Plus this episode, Yuki looks pretty good.

[DOmus]

At least I feel Maria's expressions are really good based on the quality of that studio previous works
The "onii-chan" could be more sexier though, hope the bd extra scenes manage to do that

[Arya]

And for the most distracted they added a very eloquent speech from that woman

[~Yami~]

They actually make the Master-servant scene become milder than I predicted
so I think those scenes are still decent
well, but to do it until 9 times.. Mio is very tough

I don't really like Nonaka though.. that puppet behavior is not appealing for me
and there are emotional rollercoaster for Mio.. The jealousy, weak-feeling, and guilty feeling for letting Basara and Maria tirelessly protecting her.. I fear she might break down soon
That masked-guy seems strong but the annoying thing is he is irritating and manipulating

I hope Basara could recover some power soon and overcome his trauma. I think until now he didn't show his true strength due to trauma 5 years ago

Maria... best Succubus ever

[Marcus H.]

Well, I think I owe a bunch of people an apology for not trusting Production IMS. Episode 3 is enough to say that production values are way higher than that of DAL II and Twintails, which triggered by intense distrust for the studio. The story's not that bad either; in spite of the sexual scenes, both Maria and Basara shone as the "valiant knights" of Mio. Seeing them immediately pick up their new duties for the sake of Mio was really responsible of the two.

By the way, is Hasegawa-sensei somebody from the Heroes side? Her advice to Basara implies that she knows about a villain posing as Basara's friend at school, but it's hard to prove because Basara has a friend from the demon side and the heroes side.

[DOmus]

↑Asking question regarding info of characters when almost(I guess) everyone watching this come from the LN thread and know things, is kinda hard to not spoil when its such an open question, but well, not gonna say anything.

[Nvis]

Originally Posted by Marcus H.

Well, I think I owe a bunch of people an apology for not trusting Production IMS. Episode 3 is enough to say that production values are way higher than that of DAL II and Twintails, which triggered by intense distrust for the studio. The story's not that bad either; in spite of the sexual scenes, both Maria and Basara shone as the "valiant knights" of Mio. Seeing them immediately pick up their new duties for the sake of Mio was really responsible of the two.

This show has the best animation out of the 'Big 4' this season.

[Marcus H.]

I'm actually baffled. What the fuck happened to Twintails, then?

[Iron Maw]

Originally Posted by Marcus H.

By the way, is Hasegawa-sensei somebody from the Heroes side? Her advice to Basara implies that she knows about a villain posing as Basara's friend at school, but it's hard to prove because Basara has a friend from the demon side and the heroes side.

She certainly gave off the impression of someone who knows more then she let's on. Hasegawa could also be for the Divine/God clan that was mentioned back in episode 1. In fact it's weird that nobody from that side has taken any interest in situation surrounding Mio. Especially if she could become a potential threat to them.

Even in the manga they have yet to make an appearance.

[TJR]

Originally Posted by Marcus H.

Well, I think I owe a bunch of people an apology for not trusting Production IMS. Episode 3 is enough to say that production values are way higher than that of DAL II and Twintails, which triggered by intense distrust for the studio.

Productions IMS should produce good work. They were the top-ranking producers at AIC, and their industry clout gave them two years of work right off the bat. In terms of directors, the studio has strong ties to recent hit makers, including as Hiroyuki Kanbe and Hisashi Saito, so they would seem primed for success.

At the executive level, the producers have years of management experience, but their jobs also imply a directive to continually cut costs and quicken production. It's a race to the bottom, with studios often tinkering around with their processes to gain an edge over the competition (and once an effective strategy takes off at a studio, others quickly adopt the same practice).

Originally Posted by Marcus H.

I'm actually baffled. What the fuck happened to Twintails, then?

Schedule issues.......would technically be correct, but the problem seems to run a bit deeper than that. Note that the following story is part fact and part conjecture, but it does depict the end arrangement quite closely.

On Project 1, let's say that you have a team of eight veteran coordinators. Three work as central management in charge of the overall show (Persons, A, B, C), while the others handle individual episodes (D, E, F, G, H). Half the episodes are outsourced but that was a fairly typical ratio at your previous company.

You know that A, B, and C will leave after Project. That can't be helped and was planned from the start. They temporarily joined to kick the studio off (and in fact, they started their own company around the same time as you), but the real deal begins now. You've chosen to stay small and take on a lot of projects because it'll work.

For projects 2-5, you split the experienced team and make them central coordinators on the coming productions. D and E get Project 2. E also helps F on Project 3, which is a movie. G gets Project 4. Finally, D (who should be done with Project 2) and F get Project 5. H helps various productions as needed and works on premieres, which are instrumental in giving the viewer a great first impression.

As for the typical episode, you seek out fresh faces and outsource what you can't produce on time. Every few months, you run recruitment ads in search of three new assistants. Three months of training, and they're good to go because central leadership can always help in a pinch.

Then the "oh crap" moment hits. Things aren't working as anticipated, you're way behind on everything, and you need to salvage the situation. Projects 2, 3, and 5 are from your biggest client (two of the productions are based on hit properties), so you can't afford to lose their business. You choose to rally the entire studio behind Project 2 and make the best of a bad situation. Half the episodes are outsourced.

Project 4....well...you can assign two of the rookies on Project 2 and then outsource everything else last minute. You'll probably end up with only a small handful of decent episodes, but you'll live on to do better. It's now time to hire new guys for Project 5 and get them started ASAP.

[Marcus H.]

So I guess Twintails was the proverbial sacrificial goat that allowed better hands to work on Testament. Also, as a result, Twintails became the first anime that had three versions: a TV version with the full brunt of QUALITY, a NicoNico version that was fixed to look better, and the BD version that's fully polished.

Man, I hope the consistency of art on Shinmai keeps on going. I want to Hasegawa-sensei in all her glory.

[dniv]

AAAGGGGGGGH I just marathoned this and WTF is with the third episode cliffhanger lol.

This is great though. I really like this.

[Mubyoshi]

Jesus christ, Mio is just too damn sexy for her own good.

[Draco Spirit]

Maria is more awesome!

I like how she skillfully twist and perverts everything and everyone around her, its funny because most Succubus in fiction get the whole sexy thing right, but few encourage lust as well as Maria!