2009-01-14, 02:22 | Link #241 |
Yuuki Aoi
Join Date: Jul 2004
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Interesting post from Sorrow-K. I'm not totally sold yet, either, but the way we keep learning more about (and being surprised by) the characters is at least a good sign. The number of good posts here (and blog posts) makes me think the show may actually have something. Time will tell.
I enjoyed another blog post about the book of Browning: what is its role? We see it carrying romance in all directions -- Misaki to Touya, Rina to Touya. I'm not against Touya, yet. If he slips away from Yuuki, it's partly because he imagines her already slipping away from him. For various reasons, my sympathies lie with Yuuki, and I am so afraid of how it will all come as a shock to her. She sees only her budding career -- the thing she has longed for -- and seems unaware of how it affects the relationship she also seems to depend on. She doesn't realize her life is slipping away from Touya's, since it is otherwise so full and complicated. To her, grabbing a few minutes to phone him is a big deal. To him, it seems like nothing much. If Rina really is going to make a move on the guy -- and I'm not convinced that's true, yet -- she is beyond the pale, for me. Completely unacceptable behavior, since she doesn't really know the guy and moving on him would be more about harming Yuuki and/or declaring her own superiority than being so attracted to a guy. She may well be just contacting him to tell him to be good to Yuuki, however. We shall see. I feel a bit of madness in Haruka, who may be my own favorite character so far. She wants to preserve the pleasant osananajimi life, but below the surface, she wants much more, and is willing to overstep the bounds -- such as sitting there on his step for so long.
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Last edited by Kaoru Chujo; 2009-01-14 at 03:13. |
2009-01-14, 04:05 | Link #243 | ||
Snape: "I hate Potter!"
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Australia
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When I watched the first ep initially I found the written monologues an intriguing way to reflect what Touya was thinking. Upon watching the second ep though, I feel it's a bit over used. Thoughts written out like that is an interesting technique but it does not replace the true artistic genius of putting subtle character development, such as in their actions or facial expressions without having to spell it out directly in strange short soliloquy, with which the show right now is attempting to do. This relates to Sorrow-K's comment about the show focusing on subtle details believing that's what makes a good show and in some respects I agree that subtlety of character development does make a good show. The problem with this is that they try to put in the subtle character developments yet fear that we may be too stupid to notice them, hence the insertion of the almost schizophrenic internal written monologues to point out to the audience that this scene has some "subtle" development placed in. The problem with this is that should a "subtle" detail require pointing out then the director or writer has failed already. An example would be when Touya calls Misaki, when I first saw that scene it had me curious as to why he's doing such a thing, so I watched attentively to see if there are any subtle hints as to why. After watching the scene once, I failed to see why he would call her considering practically no lead up to that scenerio. Only after watching the scene a second time did I notice the white barely legible writing around Touya's head telling us that he's doing it for his friend. The problem with this is that subtlety that doesn't connect, fails and a written monologue isn't a solve all method to tie up loose ends or to explain actions which by watching normally are unexplainable. Quote:
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2009-01-14, 04:23 | Link #244 | |||
Banned
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: Hamburg
Age: 54
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I don't like that. I prefer to watch the story unfold and draw my own conclusions. I want to be able to make up my own mind if I like/dislike what the characters are doing. I.e. I do NOT want to be spoonfed "you're supposed to care here". Which in my opinion is one of the selling points for _me_ to watch it. Other people might prefer the other approach. Overbearing music? Sorry, I disagree. And there undoubtedly _is_ alot of detail implied in the way the material is presented. At least when I realize just on the third proofing watch of episode 1 that the early frantic phone call of Touya, _this_ was probably when he was getting fired, and that this is what triggered his subsequent self-doubts about his worthiness for Yuki, then this is a fairly unusual approach nowadays. These details have become very rare in anime. Is that what you mean by "smoke and mirrors"? Quote:
So far, WA is calmly telling a story. I have some ideas where the story will probably be going, but so far I'm more curious how things develop, not to discern any "meaning". And my reward for watching the show is entertainment, and a slightly nostalgic reminiscence of things I did and did not do in my youth, and which I now see mirrored in the various characters. Quote:
Let's agree to disagree on the "an anime should have a meaning" part. It's WAY too early to judge that, the story has barely started, and I disagree with the notion to begin with. The meaning for me to watch anime is entertainment. And I am entertained, because I do connect with them and am curious what is going to happen. If you're lukewarm towards them and not emotionally attached, I can see how the enjoyment might be significantly lower. |
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2009-01-14, 04:41 | Link #245 |
Chicken or Beef?
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Seattle
Age: 41
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Not sure what to think about this series... it felt too much like a soap opera. Very mello and life like. Could be more emotionally charged to be a bit more entertaining. I'll give another episode or 2 to see if it picks up.
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2009-01-14, 05:36 | Link #246 | |
Anime Hobbyist
Join Date: Dec 2004
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As for the whole 'this show takes itself too seriously' kind of talk, I actually sort of agree. For one, they don't even try to put in some type of cool-factor evident in ef shows or the comedy imbued with drama like in Clannad. It's just straight melodrama, this one. |
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2009-01-14, 05:38 | Link #247 | ||
Somehow I found out
Join Date: Feb 2006
Age: 40
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My problem is that these details are all plot related. When I pay attention, I want to be rewarded with an insightful exploration of the characters or an examination of a theme. What's the point of obscuring plot details, people are either going to figure it out by themselves later on when the drama comes to a head, even if they weren't paying attention, or these obscured plot details simply won't matter later on. Which would make the style of storytelling redundant. Which is why I'm kinda saying that if they want to take this "mature", "respectful" approach towards storytelling, they're better off using the "under-the-surface" layers to say something about the themes and/or the characters, rather than saying something about the plot or even the state of relationships, since it may or may not matter later on. Quote:
True Tears comes to mind, which, in my opinion, fell over because it's brand of drama hinged on the audience caring about the characters, but as they became more and more erratic towards the end of the anime, they became harder to sympathize with. I know this is a simplification, but we can almost consider a dichotomy between character development and character analysis, in which the latter is more appropriate if you've no real intention of making the character likable. But you've still got to say something of interest about them. You can't put them in a dramatic situation that only works if the audience is concerned about said character and then ask "do you care about this person?" That has to come earlier. You and me both, neither of us want to be told by an anime to pointlessly hate on a character just because they're portrayed as a caricatured jerk-ass. Good drama should be more complex than that. Let them paint a detailed portrait of this character, and let those details be interesting, and come together to form a thesis of this character, something that lets the audience understand and appreciate just what makes them tick. Knowing that Touya was fired over the phone doesn't give us an insight into what makes him tick, it just tells us that he got fired over the phone. Nixon's drunken phone call to Frost in Frost/Nixon, that's the kind of scene that gives a deep insight into a character, the thing that defines a really great piece of character analysis. I'm certainly not expecting White Album to pull something off comparable to that. But, maybe, that sort of character analysis, that attempt to understand the character at a deep level, is what's needed to make an otherwise detestable figure sympathetic. Touya is no Richard Nixon, though, and here's why they might be falling into a trap. Unlikable is one thing, you can still be interesting. Bland and unlikable, well, there's very little you can do with that. And yes, I know it's only two episodes, so pretty much all of this is speculative.
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2009-01-14, 05:41 | Link #249 |
Anime Hobbyist
Join Date: Dec 2004
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Sure, this show takes itself seriously, but at least it didn't have the pseudo-meaningful art correlations of True Tears. This one is a straight shooter. True Tears sorta tried to be something it's not by putting all these weird analogies to the artistic world in it. Granted, True Tears looked beautiful and had a pretty good atmosphere. For me, this one does too, but in a more straight soap opera sort of way.
Touya X Haruka ending! YES WE CAN! |
2009-01-14, 11:13 | Link #251 | ||
Banned
Join Date: Nov 2003
Location: Hamburg
Age: 54
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No pun intended, but you seem to consider KGNE and True Tears as failures? Like, really?? I'd say that in drama/romance anime circles, these shows are generally considered to be excellent and highly successful reference animes. And I'd fully agree with that. I feel tempted to ask: What would YOU consider to be good romance dramas? |
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2009-01-14, 13:08 | Link #254 |
Yuuki Aoi
Join Date: Jul 2004
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If this show could be as good as KGnE, or even true tears, I would be very happy. I thought the drama in KGnE was fairly natural, if intense, given the plot. Angst is good.
true tears did fail to reach the highest level it could have, but was still one of the best (i.e., both well made and enjoyable to me) animes of 2008. I liked all the characters, but then again I do prefer characters to have flaws, lol. I did not like School Days, and I think the staff team for it is fairly incompetent (they also made Akane-iro ni Somaru Saka), but the fact that the one trope they came up with is so persistent in our minds means the show did have something special. It's really not clear to me at all where WA is going. In any case, all the characters are fairly interesting and all have aspects that set them apart from their cliche versions: Touya seems both insecure and forward. Yuki seems unaware that she is drifting away from her bf. Rina seems both kind and potentially cruel. Touya and Yuki both seem fairly outlandish to me, almost as weird as Haruka. In both cases, I think it has to do with how the seiyuus are playing them. I'll accept the written internal comments. They're fairly effective for me, usually showing an ironic counterpoint to what is being said ("urusai"), or else something that can't be said out loud ("that's Yuki's place"). There might be other techniques, but this one works. I thought Rina's long internal monologue about the taxi, etc., was at least as artificial, but that was effective, too. Does anyone have a suggestion why they did that bit where the guy wiped his hand over his lip (while speaking with Haruka in the park) and his voice was altered by it. Was it just for that little uneasiness it caused in me? Was it a symbol of some difficulty communicating? One reason that Yayoi (Yuki's manager) is so striking a character is that her seiyuu is Paku Romi. And I've got to say that I'm enjoying Mizuki Nana's seiyuu work in ep2 more than I have before. Maybe it's because the character has more adult force than those I've heard her do recently (Kotoko in Itazura, the Fairy Doctor in Hakushaku to Yousei).
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Last edited by Kaoru Chujo; 2009-01-14 at 14:25. |
2009-01-14, 14:26 | Link #255 | ||
LOL'ing at t3h old bags
Join Date: Oct 2008
Age: 35
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The inner thoughts were from Akira? I thought those random letters that pop once in a while were only from Touya but it can also apply to other characters' thoughts? I learned something new. |
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2009-01-14, 15:04 | Link #256 | |
そのおっぱいで13才
Join Date: Dec 2006
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Come to think of it, anime Makoto's attitude doesn't really count as "indecisiveness", does it...
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2009-01-14, 19:32 | Link #259 | ||
Somehow I found out
Join Date: Feb 2006
Age: 40
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I'm glad you asked about what I consider to be good romance drama, because it's one of my favourite genres in anime. Maison Ikkoku is a classic, and Honey and Clover is a modern day classic, and I'd even go so far to suggest that the sequel is a masterpiece (that's not a word I throw around lightly). Bokura ga Ita is excellent, high on angst, but, more importantly, also high on character development and character analysis. Kanon 2006 is great, a tad mild, but an extremely well made anime and thoroughly endearing. Air is also excellent, but there's a bit of a Seinfeld factor, so I'm not sure I'd have the same reaction if I watched it today (so many anime have "taken" from Air that I'd probably be a little more sensitive to its flaws than when I first watched it). Kare Kano is also excellent, probably the best romance series of the 90s. Fruits Basket... not really romance, but in that similar vein, and another anime I consider excellent. 5cm/s: an extremely well made and highly thought provoking movie. Koi Kaze... not quite a masterpiece, but very, very close; controversial, emotional and thought-provoking. ef - a tale of memories was also highly emotional, but gave us reasons to like the characters and then made an attempt to understand them, and was also highly ambitious in its presentation and the way it allowed its themes to propel the story. Victorian Romance Emma was beautifully made, well grounded, and had deep and likable characters and was so absorbed in but respectful of its setting. These are just a handful of romance drama anime that I consider "great". Others that I consider to be good, but not quite as good as these include Clannad, Kimikiss, Asatte no Houkou, Paradise Kiss, ef - a tale of melodies and The Place Promised in Our Early Days, among others. The problem with the likes of True Tears and KGNE is that they come off as too heavy handed. I guess one could make the argument, what makes this any different from Bokura ga Ita or ef - a tale of memories, and I'd say it's characters. For whatever reason, the characters in these anime reached me, but the characters in True Tears and KGNE failed to (spectacularly so in the latter case). And I really think, in both places, part of the problem was misplaced emphasis, which is why it felt like drama for the sake of it, rather than drama because it actually means something. That's why I kinda think that KGNE and, also, Myself; Yourself are the anime equivalent of soap operas. Quote:
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2009-01-14, 21:01 | Link #260 |
Senior Member
Join Date: Nov 2007
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Finally got around to watching the first episode of this show. Having watched it, there are really only 2 characters that interest me. Yuuki and Haruka. The guys both seem... like people I wouldn't care for.
Honestly though, I don't think I'll watch this one any further. It just didn't grab me, and make me want to watch further. I'll wait til its subbed and released, then see what everyone says about it. If it gets great reviews, maybe I'll give it another shot. |
Tags |
drama, eroge, romance, seinen |
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