Kuttsukiboshi

[Tatiana Razajev]

Having watched the episode in full, I think the major problem isn't what some seem to see as trolling and other seems to see as way of providing a dramatic cliff hanger. No the real problem is the year long gap.

Having to wait a year to see the end results gives time for anger to grow and caring to shrink. That and if they go the band end route, it will make the "wait" even worse and feel pointless.

Also, they have just one episode to take of everything that was set up by the first part. So they have to use their time well. I wonder if a shorter gap between episodes and few more would have made a difference.

[Simon]

Originally Posted by Nina.Wolken

Could you name any booth/stand were the staff wasn't?

True, no gripes there. In fact given how hot, tired and squashed everybody was, I'm impressed by how good-natured people were at Comiket. Cram 100K+ NZers together under those conditions and you'd soon be calling in the riot squad

But certainly, the fact that they had so few customers, I didn't have to wait ti have my copy, certainly gave them some time to tread with special care any potential buyer.

Yep, that was my experience too - I got there about 10:45 on the Friday (not too bad seeing I didn't arrive at Big Sight until after 7:30), and was surprised that I could pretty much walk straight up to the counter. Staff at the larger booths were certainly very efficient and helpful, but the woman I dealt with at Primastea seemed genuinely happy when I asked for one of everything Kuttsukiboshi-related (and I admit it, I was absolutely charmed by her cute smile). Which leads to...

Originally Posted by Kaoru Chujo

At Comiket, where they sold the OVA, [Isshiki Miku] was there as the main salesgirl. ...

Aaaarghh! That's her, I'd swear it! And all that time I had no idea who I was talking to... *looks for wall to bash head against*

There is another good review with some pics of the interesting packaging and extras that came with the DVD. By the way, at Y1500, the DVD is extremely inexpensive, by Japanese standards. Although I think the leaflet of drawings that came with it at Comiket was special for that event.

There was also a poster of the DVD cover art. Only the DVD and OST seem to be available through normal retail channels, so I think you're right about everything else being Comiket-only (although if they ended with unsold stock it might show up again at C79). And Y1500 for a 20-minute OVA really is a good deal, when you consider that's what Media Factory were charging for the Ikkitōsen XX promo DVD at C77.

Spoiler for episode 1 discussion:

Originally Posted by Nina.Wolken

Fanboys? Well they had all the reasons to expect a romantic-yuri OVA since that's how the piece has been advertise. I won't call them "Fanboys", but in this case yuri fan, who from time to time should have the right to enjoy a fluffy/sexy yuri episode without cheap drama to ruin everything.

Don't get me wrong, as someone who practically worships at the feet of Konno Oyuki my heart also sank when Kōta made his appearance. But as much as we might want nice fluffy yuri, the show is under no obligation to serve it up to us (art does not apologise, etc). I just think that before crying "troll" we need to stop and think about our own unrealistic expectations - putting aside the squicky incest aspect, isn't it slightly odd that one character turning out to be bisexual should provoke more comment than the other having telekinesis?

As for those who bought the dvd, it was pure deception : if I want to buy something sweet, get mislead by the advdertising and finally discover at home that my cake is actually very bitter, shouldn't have the right to complain and point out at the dishonest advertising and be angry at the company behind all that? I think I should.

I understand where you're coming from, but just to play devil's advocate, exactly where did they promise a nice simple happy ending? Sure the advertising gave no hint of what was to come, but at the same time it never said "what you see is all you get".

This is why I'm keeping an open mind about whether Kōta represents "cheap drama" or something less insulting to the audience. It's not like the show has turned into a bukkake-fest or anything - until ep2 settles things, we're still left with a story centred around Aaya and Kīko's relationship, with no real clue as to what's going on between Aaya and Kōta and at least the suggestion that Aaya has deep enough feelings for Kīko to change her plans for the future. IMO it's still too early to write the show off, despite all the danger signs. Which isn't to say that a year from now I won't be raging as much as anyone...

He said on his twitter account that the ending (incest) wasn't his idea and that it was forced on him. Not that he really seemed to care much from the tone of his twit.

Ouch. Reading that almost makes me take back everything I've written above - I'd assumed this story was basically one guy's vision (hence the HnK parallel), but if he's really given up control of such a significant plot element then it doesn't bode well

Oh well, roll on Summer 2011 eh?

Originally Posted by Tatiana Razajev

the real problem is the year long gap.

Agreed. This is pure speculation, but maybe it's driven by the Comiket schedule - with only four months until C79, perhaps they just felt they couldn't make the deadline. Desperately trying to look on the bright side, a year is hopefully long enough to do a good job on the technical aspects regardless of how the story turns out.

[Kanon]

Originally Posted by Kaoru Chujo

One Japanese blogger said that when he got Isshiki-san to sign his copy, he told her that he was asked by a friend to get one, but when he heard so many positive reviews, he bought one for himself, and she seemed particularly happy and very cute. Here's her signature:

-snip-

There is another good review with some pics of the interesting packaging and extras that came with the DVD. By the way, at Y1500, the DVD is extremely inexpensive, by Japanese standards. Although I think the leaflet of drawings that came with it at Comiket was special for that event.

Oh, so then Kuttsukiboshi was well received over there? I was wondering how the Japanese reacted to it. I'm sure a fair amound of them raged like us though
I was also a little surprised the DVD was so cheap. It's probably because so few people worked on it. & yes, Isshiki-san sure is cute.

Originally Posted by Seiryuu

I wonder...

Spoiler:

if we should throw those three letters (NTR) around so freely. Yes, this is NTR. However, that doesn't mean this is a bad story. It's a matter of how things go FROM HERE. Generally, if something says NTR, I'll wait until the entire story's out, and if people are screaming after seeing the end, I won't watch, but if some people liked the end, I'll watch. Especially with something like this, where we don't really know much about the context. We know that Aya slept with her brother. We don't know WHY she slept with him, or whether this was a recurring thing.
Aya had already said that until Ki-chan came into the picture she had intended to move to Austria with her brother, since he's her only family. Even if she has a lover, saying goodbye to the only person who's been there until then would be hard, and confusing. If she'd already had a sexual relationship with him in the past, or even if she'd spent enough time with repressed romantic feelings/infatuation toward him, that would just add to it. It's not uncommon for people to want to do something special or make some great memory with a loved one when that person's about to leave, though making a special last memory generally doesn't involve sex, especially with siblings. It would be sort of interesting to see an NTR where the reason the "cheater" slept with someone else was as some sort of odd way to say goodbye.

BTW, of course they're both naked. They'd basically spent the entire day doing naughty stuff with each other, and it wouldn't be as fun for either if only one was skinny-dipping while they made out.

I agree. We don't know anything about Aya's relationship with her brother, I have a feeling it started way before she started going out with Kiiko, if that's the case it wouldn't exactly count as NTR. This twist is still a kick in the nuts no matter how I look at it though, as they advertised this OVA as yuri (two girls' risky summer vacation, was it?). However, I can't tell if I like or hate this series until I see what happens next.

I'm actually dying to see the next episode. It seems to me that anything could happen, from a nice conclusion to a nice boat end (I could imagine Kiiko ripping heads off with her powers ).

[MisaoFan]

During the ending scene when Aya kisses incestuously his brother, Kiiko decides to escape and going to betray her.

[MrTerrorist]

Okay, i finally watch this.

Spoiler for Reception:

One of my biggest fears about the spoilers was one of the girls was a trap. But thank goodness it wasn't! It was just some incest between the blondie and her brother. Great surprise there. I know and hopeful there will be a Yuri End to all of this.

Animation is kinda bland and the Ecchiness.....

Here's hoping for ep 2.

[darkchibi07]

Originally Posted by Kanon

Oh, so then Kuttsukiboshi was well received over there? I was wondering how the Japanese reacted to it. I'm sure a fair amound of them raged like us though
I was also a little surprised the DVD was so cheap. It's probably because so few people worked on it. & yes, Isshiki-san sure is cute.

I'm curious how DVD sales of it went. I'm rather iffy on the story so far, but I don't want the worse case scenario of the second episode being cancelled due to lack of sales.

[technomo12]

DAMN

really jsut plain DAMN..........................

ok i need to cool off now god that got me in heat all of a sudden ahhaha

[Bonta Kun]

AH HAHAHAHAHAHA I loved that, if one wants to put it down as trolling then sure why not, it was great trolling!

I'm one that goes with the flow best he can and follow the flow i did twith this, was quite the surpise but I found it more amusing than "WTF IS THIS S***?!"

looking forward to the next ep!

[Seiryuu]

Originally Posted by Tatiana Razajev

Having watched the episode in full, I think the major problem isn't what some seem to see as trolling and other seems to see as way of providing a dramatic cliff hanger. No the real problem is the year long gap.

Having to wait a year to see the end results gives time for anger to grow and caring to shrink. That and if they go the band end route, it will make the "wait" even worse and feel pointless.

Also, they have just one episode to take of everything that was set up by the first part. So they have to use their time well. I wonder if a shorter gap between episodes and few more would have made a difference.

I'd have to agree. However, I think we should at least be glad that the plan IS to continue it and clear things. Some few shows and manga produce stuff that falls into or near the term "netorare" and then continue, but usually the story closes with the person standing in the rain depressed. What would really be bad is if they took that one year gap and imposed it on the plot too, opening the second ep with "one year later..."

BTW, I kind of suspect that a lot of the NTR out there is intended as a sort of troll. It gets a big reaction, with a few psychos who really like it, a moderate number of people who don't care, and many who feel inspired to rage and scream. It definitely gets controversial easily, draws attention, and in some cases will keep viewers coming back. With a cliffhanger like this, it can be hard to not want to see the continuation.

[Kaoru Chujo]

The auteur of this anime, Ishikawa Naoya, has a good blog, with illustrations and photos of some of the stages in the work. He also has an official site. Check out the links at the top of that page. There are illustrations, etc., and even downloadable video files of his previous works (second link from left).

The amount of work he had to put in to do the whole anime by himself is pretty staggering. He talks in the blog about the hard work of scanning the drawings, and then spending two weeks at a tablet adding the colors to everything.

During that period, he says that he couldn't have done it without the help of his (imaginary) "anime spirit" Caramel. In the drawing below, you can see that Caramel looks exactly the same as the Caramel who is a "sweets spirit" in the (highly enjoyable) anime Yumeiro Patissiere. I don't know if this means he was involved in that show, but I can find no record of that. In the drawing, she is saying "Ganbaru desuu" ("working haard") and he is sighing.



The seiyuu recording took place on June 23. He talks about the finished product -- the master from which the DVDs would be made -- being delivered to him on June 28, on a hard drive.

At Natsucomi, the three people in the booth were the seiyuu, the animator himself, and the head of Primastea, the company that published the anime.

As for the amazing troll/cliffhanger, I have come down enough to just look forward to whatever they do with it. I still don't like introducing something so suddenly and without preparation -- unless we think that Kiiko realizing that the brother is her long-time favorite musician constitutes preparation. That in itself is interesting, anyway.

[Thoguht]

Originally Posted by Nina.Wolken

He said on his twitter account that the ending (incest) wasn't his idea and that it was forced on him.

When I first saw it, I assumed it was there for some as yet undisclosed reason that would eventually make sense in terms of the story progression. But if it's just an arbitrary thing forced upon him then I don't know what to make of it.

TL;DR: he watches yuri for the plot

[wingman32x]

Watched episode 1, and it was okay, I guess. The twist at the end was a bombshell, but I don't really feel anything right now. I guess I would be more pissed/shocked if they developed the relationship of the two girls better. I know they had a limited time to do it, but still. Overall it was a decent episode. I wonder how they're going to follow it up.

[Simon]

Still nothing on the official site about Part 2 - has anyone checked out the C80 catalog yet?

Maybe fan reaction and the chilly legal climate mean we'll never find out what happened...

[Kanon]

I had totally forgotten about it. Kind of wish it had remained that way

Now that I think about it, I haven't witness such masterful trolling since then.

[EroKing]

Wow, it's been over 11 months since the 1st episode aired? I'm pretty sure they won't cancel it just like that. Hope the 2nd episode comes out soon.

[Forsaken_Infinity]

Originally Posted by Kanon

I had totally forgotten about it. Kind of wish it had remained that way

Now that I think about it, I haven't witness such masterful trolling since then.

Err... As much as I would like to agree... Level E and Nichijou don't let me do so. ;\

And I am completely okay with just the first episode as a standalone (because imho, that was in of itself a complete work and a very well done one except for the obviously low budget animation) but a second one would be very nice as well.

[Kismet-chan]

Because this thread got bumped, I actually bothered to watch it. I hate the way it was drawn. Looks like something someone on DeviantArt slapped together. However, I liked the story and voice acting. It was cute.

Now, I wouldn't call the ending "trolling" as many others have. That's just ignorant. It's a story, and stories have twists. The girl was having an incestuous affair with her brother... So? That's a plot twist, not a troll. Trolling would be the appropriate term to use if it turned out that one of the girls was actually a guy, or if there wasn't an ounce of yuri present despite what was in the trailer. Don't just toss around the word "trolling" EVERY time something happens that YOU don't like/isn't what you expect. The terms "plot twist" and "trolling" aren't synonymous.

Gosh, you people...

[Forsaken_Infinity]

Gosh you. It was NTR from the pov of the protag, which is considered a troll by many. People are free to take it as they may. To each his own. You may not find it a troll (and I am with you on this one) but you shouldn't look down on people for as trivial a reason. I thought it was super obvious that incest was involved when the brother was introduced though. Apparently not :\ Perhaps it was the influence of all the incest related material I was foraging around that time ._.

Oh and it was a doujin production by a single animator, so the art is actually well done.

[Kanon]

Originally Posted by Kismet-chan

Because this thread got bumped, I actually bothered to watch it. I hate the way it was drawn. Looks like something someone on DeviantArt slapped together. However, I liked the story and voice acting. It was cute.

Now, I wouldn't call the ending "trolling" as many others have. That's just ignorant. It's a story, and stories have twists. The girl was having an incestuous affair with her brother... So? That's a plot twist, not a troll. Trolling would be the appropriate term to use if it turned out that one of the girls was actually a guy, or if there wasn't an ounce of yuri present despite what was in the trailer. Don't just toss around the word "trolling" EVERY time something happens that YOU don't like/isn't what you expect. The terms "plot twist" and "trolling" aren't synonymous.

Gosh, you people...

As much as I too dislike the way the word "troll" is being throw around at every opportunity nowadays, I do believe this is an accurate them to describe that twist. It was advertised as no more than a deliciously steamy yuri OVA, and as someone who very much looking forward to it, I felt trolled by what I got, in particular because it started out so well and this uncalled for twist came out of freaking nowhere. Why can't we have nice things? ;_;

[Simon]

Originally Posted by Kanon

I had totally forgotten about it. Kind of wish it had remained that way

What has been seen cannot be unseen

To be honest I'm in two minds myself. Having bought the first DVD at C78 the thought of it being left incomplete grieves my inner magpie. On the other hand, reading back through this thread I see I defended the first episode by saying "it might not suck when we see the rest!" Perhaps it's better not to find out...