(CR) Yuri!!! on Ice

[LKK]

Something I noticed watching the OP midweek & confirmed with episode 2. Yuuri's skates' blades are silver color. Viktor's blades are gold. Yuri's are black.

Of course, silver is the usual color for the blades. It's been a while since I've followed the competitive skating scene. But I vaguely remember that there was a skater whose blades were gold. But I don't think I've ever seen black blades before. Are they a thing in real life now? I kinda like that there's a way to know who's skating which the camera is focused solely on the boots.

Spoiler for 2nd episode's OP:

Oh! the OP visual for episode 2 changed! They added a line art rink background to Yuuri and Yuri's second pairs skate. My guess is that they're going to fill in the OP little by little.

More about episode 2 after I've watching the ep a few more times.

[Yamada II]

Episode 2

Damn those gay moments might scare me away. I'll try to survive though but it'll be tough if Victor is going to get too close to either of the Yuris every time he's with them.

News about Victor coaching the Japanese Yuri spreads far and wide and the Russian Yuri is pissed because he was supposed to be Victor's disciple. Lol when he takes those pictures but then tries to control himself and not post them on social media because his coach will find out. But he succumbs and ends up posting the tiger shirt on the net lol.

And Victor gives the two Yuris the choice between two tunes to skate to. And he gives them the opposite tunes the chose because doing something out of character is what will surprise people. If you do the expected then where's the fun in that? Both Yuris are determined to have Victor all for themselves... that probably sounded wrong... But whatever. Overall a nice episode (save for those tones which might make me run away). But the question is, when will the Japanese Yuri get his new hairdo? He should really start looking like a bishounen instead of the loser he looks like now.

[MCAL]

"I'm sorry I couldn't do what you asked of me this time."
"Don't say that when you've never done what I asked of you in the first place!"

That was a great moment.

[Dop]

Marvelllous, and I'm really loving the more comic aspects largely because I wasn't expecting such comedy in this show.

[LKK]

Originally Posted by Yamada II

But the question is, when will the Japanese Yuri get his new hairdo? He should really start looking like a bishounen instead of the loser he looks like now.

He has to win his new coach first. So maybe episode 4 or 5??

[leongsh]

They went with the fun route - with comedy on the surface but with a seriousness underneath. While Viktor seems flippant, that's just a facade. He shows that he is really interested in knowing Yuuri to be his coach. His demeanor when appraising Yuuri skating away his anxieties alone in the skating rink lifts the facade he has on most of the time. From what I see in this episode, he may have felt hemmed in by his fame and in Russia. Taking a season off and doing this seems like wanting a break to try something different. Coaching Yuuri at Hasetsu is something novel for him and also keeps him in touch with ice skating.

I feel that I have to say something about the triplets. They will grow up to be mean and effective entrepreneurs.

The stylistic choice in the OP now makes sense. Wondering why they had the skating routine repeat when first watched it in the 1st episode. With each episode, they will probably fill in more scenery in the second half of the OP. With the first half being the training, and the second half showing them performing for an audience.

[Gan_HOPE326]

Originally Posted by leongsh

The stylistic choice in the OP now makes sense. Wondering why they had the skating routine repeat when first watched it in the 1st episode. With each episode, they will probably fill in more scenery in the second half of the OP. With the first half being the training, and the second half showing them performing for an audience.

Sometimes they do that simply because they don't have the animation ready yet by the time the first episode rolls out. Though of course it could be on purpose.

[Triple_R]

The Yuri-yaoi love triangle! ...How ironic.

Episode 2 was excellent. Watching the two Yuris compete over Viktor was great. The personality contrast between the two Yuris is very sharp and amusing.

The emotional side of this show is very solid. And in Episode 2, the comedy is also very good. The Russian Yuri adds a lot there... as does his new Yurio nickname.

Yuri on Ice is off to a very strong start.

[zztop]

Japanese Yuri's hometown of Hasetsu is fictional, but it's based on the real-life town of Karatsu in Kyushu.
http://acepalindrome.tumblr.com/post...n-ice-location

Karatsu Castle used to be an actual castle, but was demolished in the Meiji era. The current one was rebuilt in the 1960s as a tourist attraction.

The dog-shaped tissue box is likely a reference to ice skater Yuzuru Hanyu's own Winnie the Pooh tissue box.
https://31.media.tumblr.com/63739b3f...gfgho2_500.png

[SleepingTerror]

I love this so far. Everyone is great. I usually manage to pick a favorite character within the first episodes but I don't know who it will be this time.

Originally Posted by Yamada II

But the question is, when will the Japanese Yuri get his new hairdo? He should really start looking like a bishounen instead of the loser he looks like now.

Hey some of us like wimpy. It's cute
Like this guy~

Images

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[Veritas]

Originally Posted by karice67

Well...it actually happened with a Japanese skater last year...first GPF at the age of 24, but in 6th place with a score about 100 pts behind the winner... That said...

Oh yeah, I knew about that, but I still get the impression that Yuri is the only thing happening in Japanese skating on the show. So he would have had to be doing well on that scene at least and Daisuke M wasn't. But I'm waiting for the anime to clear that up and will probably be disappointed.

Originally Posted by R.LocK

So, apparently, Yuri Plisetsky is based off Yulia Lipnitskaya.

I'm so done. I'll see myself out.

Hehe, with a dose of a few others. But does this mean he's going to have growth spurt trouble? The puberty monster is harsh on skaters.

Ep2

- I really admire the attention to detail that went into this series. Russian Yuri skates on MK Phantom blades, while Japanese Yuri and Viktor don't.

- The subtitles said "routines" instead of "programs" which always makes skating fans cranky.

- I love that Viktor told them they were both mediocre. There's so much overscoring and underscoring based on politics and reputation going on that it seems sometimes that the skating comes second.

- There's more anime drama in this show than there is skating drama.

[BPD Renegade]

I was apprehensive going into this episode since I heard there would be copious amounts of fanservice, but I really enjoyed it. The brief recap aside, the comedy worked well for me, and I like how the show is bringing the sensuality of figure skating to the forefront with the pitting of agape and eros against each other, in an obvious way in the form of the competition, but also subtly, in the form of its characters and the contrasts in their portrayal. So far, all three of our leads have had bathing scenes, and each of these scenes are handled differently, according to what they're meant to symbolize. In these three, we have a man who has seemingly conquered it all, is unafraid of how he is seen, and now seeks something more, a child who has yet to understand the world at large, and a young man trying to find himself.

In Victor we have sensuality, heightened by the lingering attention to his body as he bathes and as he greets Yuuri. In this episode, we see that this sensuality isn't restricted to how we, the audience, see him, but is a characteristic of Victor himself, as seen in the intimacy of the scene where he bids farewell to his coach (though the aftermath of that was a good chuckle) and with Yuuri when he desires to "get to know him" better by invading his personal space. Victor is meant to represent the the sensuality of figure skating and the confidence in this sensuality that athletes have.

In Yuri, we have the impulsiveness of youth. He has a desire to leap forwards and higher without restraint and believes he can take on the world without fail, a characteristic of youth. This is symbolized in how he jumps straight into the bath tub. Unlike with Victor, there aren't any lingering frames or sexual subtext. It's quick, platonic, and enables us to see him for the child he is.

Yuuri is the more difficult character to pin down. His bathing scene is the epitome of innocence. We see only a portion of his head, deformed, and it expresses nothing but bliss in enjoying a comfort of home. There aren't any particular attempts to sexualize him. Right now, he's still trying to come into his own. There's a constant ebb and flow in his confidence. In one moment, he's in a wandering frame of mind, unsure of what direction he's going to take. Other times, he displays flashes of confidence, like when he smirks at Yuri and thinks that he's being underestimated. At first, I found this a bit strange, but in retrospect, the subtle nature of the fluctuations in his self-esteem is so incredibly realistic, and I'm happy with how he's being portrayed.

There are so many ways this series can fail, but it also has a chance to go where anime seldom dares to delve. It will be interesting to see what avenue this story will take.

Originally Posted by LKK

[SPOILER="2nd episode's OP"]Oh! the OP visual for episode 2 changed! They added a line art rink background to Yuuri and Yuri's second pairs skate. My guess is that they're going to fill in the OP little by little.[/SPOILER

There are also paint sploshes coming from their hands and movements, as if the skaters are painting with their bodies, and the second half when they perform in public is them showcasing the product of their work. It's as if they're saying, "This is our art." At first I was slightly disappointed that the second half was a repetition of the first, but under this context, I like what they're doing.

There's so much to think about each episode, even in the OP and ED. I feel like this is a series where I'll need to re-watch the episodes to get its full value.

[Dop]

Originally Posted by BPD Renegade

There's so much to think about each episode, even in the OP and ED. I feel like this is a series where I'll need to re-watch the episodes to get its full value.

Yes. I watched the first episode several times over the week and will be doing the same for the second. That's not something I do often.

[Moroboshi-kun]

Originally Posted by BPD Renegade

Victor is meant to represent the the sensuality of figure skating...

WTF?

Victor is your basic overbearing seme. Japanese Yuri is your basic reluctant and shy uke. Russian Yuri is your basic reluctant and aggressive uke.

All extremely standard stuff in any yaoi-anime.

[kuromitsu]

Originally Posted by Moroboshi-kun

Russian Yuri is your basic reluctant and aggressive uke.

Depends, he could also be your basic domineering, tsundere younger seme, especially with Yuuri but with naughty uke Viktor, too (the latter setup would probably make him a hetare seme as well, given his likely lack of experience).

Ahem...

Anyway, I'm still not quite feeling this show. It's just... yes, the skating is nice, yes, it's all quite pleasant, yes, I appreciate the fanservice, but on the whole it doesn't click with me at all, including stuff that normally I'd eat up with a spoon. Which is unfortunate because what it does well it does well, but the parts that don't click with me just drag everything down.

I think in the end it's the tone? Maybe? I continue to not appreciate the loud slapstick humor at all - not because I hate that kind of comedy (a lot of my favorite anime comedies fall into that category) but because for me it just doesn't work here. It's simply not funny. And it jolts me out of my immersion and distracts me enough to think about stuff I know I shouldn't think too deeply about (seriously, where to start with all the implausible or downright weird plot elements). And as for the fanservice I'm finding myself feeling the same way I did with Free! - yes, in theory I support it and appreciate this audience being pandered to, and guys who can't handle it can finally experience what it's like to watch an otherwise potentially interesting show while being bombarded with moemoekyun and T&A and panty shots and fanservicey hot-two-girl-action and whatnot. But on a personal level, I prefer things being more subtle (or at least more funny), so it kind of leaves me cold. Then again, if I was 15-16 I'd probably appreciate it a lot more so maybe I'm just too old and jaded to be in the target demographics, heh.

Still, it's not bad or anything, so I'm watching and hoping that eventually it will either come together or I'll just get used to the show being what it is.

I'm also unreasonably bothered by Viktor's nose. Why is it always red? Is he sipping vodka when nobody's looking? (That would explain some things about him...)

[Triple_R]

Originally Posted by kuromitsu

And it jolts me out of my immersion and distracts me enough to think about stuff I know I shouldn't think too deeply about (seriously, where to start with all the implausible or downright weird plot elements).

This can be a major hurdle to overcome, yes. And I think the comedy and over-the-top elements are there to give the entire show a magical larger-than-life feeling so the less believable plot points seem consistent with everything else.

The major issue is how an overweight Yuri was able to effectively copy an excellent Viktor performance, to the point that a video of it went viral and attracted the actual Viktor. If you really think about it a lot, it raises some difficult questions.

But sometimes shows need slightly ridiculous setups in order to get things going in a good and interesting direction, which is partly why I have an "one free ass-pull per show" personal rule. Nothing in Episode 2 struck me as particularly strange.

[LKK]

Originally Posted by kuromitsu

I'm also unreasonably bothered by Viktor's nose. Why is it always red? Is he sipping vodka when nobody's looking? (That would explain some things about him...)

Yuri's nose is also red like Viktor's. My guess is that their noses are red as a visual shorthand stereotype to indicate their Russian nationality. I'm sure Viktor loves a good stiff drink now and then though.

[monir]

Sold! Love that ending song.

[mweloo]

Originally Posted by Triple_R

This can be a major hurdle to overcome, yes. And I think the comedy and over-the-top elements are there to give the entire show a magical larger-than-life feeling so the less believable plot points seem consistent with everything else.

The major issue is how an overweight Yuri was able to effectively copy an excellent Viktor performance, to the point that a video of it went viral and attracted the actual Viktor. If you really think about it a lot, it raises some difficult questions.

But sometimes shows need slightly ridiculous setups in order to get things going in a good and interesting direction, which is partly why I have an "one free ass-pull per show" personal rule. Nothing in Episode 2 struck me as particularly strange.

I think a Russian teenager sneaking out of the country on his own would be pretty implausible, for starters.

I have fewer issues with with the humour than I do with the blatant fan service. It kind of destroys the mixture of mixture of dignity and earnestness that's present in the show when it's at its best.

[monir]

Watched episode 2. Thank you, Manju! I thought this season was lost.

Question: You are a healthy heterosexual male who is also an aspiring figure skater. You're having a down time and then comes along a coach who can get you to the next height. His condition is he wants you to satisfy him.



Would you?