anime

[syntheticgerbil]

...but you're an artist, right? That might make more sense.

That's a lot to do with it. I'm especially fascinated with the storyboard and pencil test books because they've been pretty helpful learning good process, especially at a time when I had a job where I had to churn out a bunch of storyboards for months. The language barrier never really matters in animated production books and I mostly just flip through them getting super jealous.

 

I don't tend to have a lot of manga though because a few of the artists I'm interested in generally don't tend to get translations of their stuff, and I usually scourge around to see if there's fan translations that someone scanned. For a guy who has had a major comics career outside of Akira, very little of Otomo's work seems to be in English.

 

You sure like a lot more stuff than me though, so that kind of helps my expenditures. 50 different animes on a wish list would floor me. Jin-Roh looks gorgeous though, I should check that out. Maybe it will come back in print. I think the only English releases I'm awaiting that I've heard announced are two by Sayo Yamamoto, which are Machiko to Hatchin and The Woman Called Fujiko Mine. I saw her talk at a convention last year and I was fascinated by her style. It might mean Funimation is doing an online only release though which I'm dodging for a disc release. :/

[Gormongous]

I mostly just flip through the books super jealous.

 

I got some pencil boards with the Haibane Renmei box set that were beautiful enough to frame, but mostly I'm better off seeing the art in action. Are there any anime/manga artists or designers you're a fan of, separate from your appreciation of their shows?

[syntheticgerbil]

Nah I don't usually know of specific animators outside of the directors of the shows or certain episodes, since there's not enough information I can get and I don't tend to stumble upon portfolio sites of Japanese artists or animators.

[Twig]

I'm confused because I started watching Spice and Wolf out of sheer boredom and am liking it.

 

It co-stars a wolf-girl.

 

I just ugh what happened. Someone told me it's sorta like Mushishi sorta and I gave in and well here I am sorta agreeing. Geez.

[Roderick]

Spice and Wolf is pretty interesting, if only for the fact that it's a fantasy story about bartering. You don't see that a whole lot.

[Twig]

Yeah! I was so put off by the WOLF GIRL factor that I completely ignored it for the longest time. So far she's not even that annoying. Although a little too "ignorant girl" tropey. Regardless, enjoying it. Huh.

[Gormongous]

Same here. When I finally did watch it, I found it all fascinating, but both seasons really are at their best when there's a minimum of "romancing the pagan wolf goddess" going on. My favorite is the arc on commodity speculation but the arc on currency devaluation is good too also oh god who am I?

 

Synth, I missed your comment on Mitchiko to Hatchin the first time around. It looks like it's going to get a physical release (possibly to test the waters for the inevitable FUNimation Cowboy Bebop license), so I'll be really curious to hear someone else's reactions to it, because it's a downright gorgeous anime with a plot always about to come apart. I think I let it sit for an entire week before I settled on the verdict I would use for my list of anime watched. Still, it's miles better than the only other "gang war in Rio" anime I've seen, Gungrave. Man, that show does not hold up even a little bit (and this is coming from the biggest Trigun apologist ever).

[Codicier]

That's a lot to do with it. I'm especially fascinated with the storyboard and pencil test books because they've been pretty helpful learning good process, especially at a time when I had a job where I had to churn out a bunch of storyboards for months. The language barrier never really matters in animated production books and I mostly just flip through them getting super jealous.

 

I don't tend to have a lot of manga though because a few of the artists I'm interested in generally don't tend to get translations of their stuff, and I usually scourge around to see if there's fan translations that someone scanned. For a guy who has had a major comics career outside of Akira, very little of Otomo's work seems to be in English.

 

You sure like a lot more stuff than me though, so that kind of helps my expenditures. 50 different animes on a wish list would floor me. Jin-Roh looks gorgeous though, I should check that out. Maybe it will come back in print. I think the only English releases I'm awaiting that I've heard announced are two by Sayo Yamamoto, which are Machiko to Hatchin and The Woman Called Fujiko Mine. I saw her talk at a convention last year and I was fascinated by her style. It might only mean Funimation is doing an only release though which I'm dodging for a disc release. :/

 

I had no idea that Michiko and Fujiko had the same director, but now you mention it I realise its pretty much been staring me in the face! and apparently she worked on Samurai Champloo as well which makes alot of sense.

[Gormongous]

The new season of A Certain Scientific Railgun starts today! Don't judge me.

[melmer]

3.33 you can not redo trailer

http://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=638201706205576&id=227373117341173&refsrc=http%3A%2F%2Ft.co%2FtRz4HBa5tW&_rdr

[tegan]

I am pleased by the amount of Asuka and Kaworu present in that trailer.

 

 

(they're my favourites)

[Gormongous]

Vagina eyes and blood crosses... Yeah, this is Evangelion.

 

I'm so damn excited for the fansubs to start land next week. Even "Illustrious" Mari Makinami can't change that.

[tegan]

what mari is the best

 

The most frequent criticism I've ever heard of Evangelion is from people who think Shinji is a coward for not wanting to pilot Eva. I feel like Mari is a response to that, because she perfectly illustrates that anyone who actively wants to pilot Eva would have to be absolutely psychotic.

[Twig]

I despise Evangelion, and it has nothing to do Shinji being a coward and everything to do with him, plus every other character, being annoyingggggg.

[Gormongous]

what mari is the best

 

The most frequent criticism I've ever heard of Evangelion is from people who think Shinji is a coward for not wanting to pilot Eva. I feel like Mari is a response to that, because she perfectly illustrates that anyone who actively wants to pilot Eva would have to be absolutely psychotic.

 

Yeah, but Asuka always illustrated that for me better. I don't need yandere, I have tsundere.

 

My main issue with Mari is that she feels like a fan-fiction character. It doesn't quite feel like she has a place in the pride/fear/duty triangle of Asuka/Shinji/Rei, so I resent her in most of her scenes. But I don't want to! I love me some meganekko and hope that the new movie gives her something to do.

 

 

Actually, I did hate Shinji for his cowardice and impotence when I was sixteen, but what changed my mind most was simply growing up. Sometime in my early twenties, responsibility stopped being an opportunity to succeed and started being a burden. Suddenly, Shinji's preference for doing nothing rather than failing made a lot more sense, as did Asuka's self-hatred and Rei's surrender. These characters are mental illness made flesh, after all. It just took me five or six years to appreciate that.

[Roderick]

I am extremely upset that I understood 100% of the above post.

[tegan]

Mari does seem like a fanfiction self-insert, and that's specifically why I like her. She's like Wesley Crusher if he were created as a joke. Asuka's too full of self-loathing to really drive the "fuck you, fanbase" message home.

 

Speaking of Evangelion, I think Madoka may have actually beaten it to a hilarious merchandising tie-in.

 

 

 

hee hee, pink taco

[syntheticgerbil]

Are those blue and purple Doritos?

[Gormongous]

I am extremely upset that I understood 100% of the above post.

 

One of us! One of us!

 

Are those blue and purple Doritos?

 

They look like they're just colored corn taco shells. I think it's bad brand synergy. It would not be difficult to color-coordinate the entire taco and its contents with Kyubey or the series' school uniform, then they'd be cooking with gas!

[Tanukitsune]

Either I didn't watch or mentally blocked some of Evangelion... I'm pretty sure I watched what was supposed to be the ending, but I recently found out fans hated it so they made what the fans "wanted", Shinji masturbating on a comatose Rei... what?!? I'm kinda scared of watching Evangelion now.

 

Either way, has anybody watched Little Witch Academy? It's from the same studio as Panty & Stocking and Gurren Lagaan and it's on their official YouTube channel with subtitles!

[Roderick]

You must see End of Evangelion, the film they made afterwards. The series makes little sense otherwise, though the movie is bananas.

[Tanukitsune]

I think I did see that one is it the one where 

everything is like a fever dream, there is a lot of talking and in the end every applauds for Shinji saying he did it?

 

I have very vague memories, I watched this on VHS, that's how long ago it was. :|

[Gormongous]

Either way, has anybody watched Little Witch Academy? It's from the same studio as Panty & Stocking and Gurren Lagaan and it's on their official YouTube channel with subtitles!

 

And Evangelion! Although there was a huge exodus of creative talent immediately following Gurren Lagann, so it's popular on the internet to talk about Gainax before and after as different companies. Myself, I liked Medaka Box well enough, so maybe that's just typical "change is bad" pessimism.

 

 

EDIT: Yeah Tanu, that's the TV ending. As the conclusion of a character study, I kinda like it a bit more than End of Evangelion, but you can't beat the pure mindfuck spectacle of the latter. Trust me, you'd remember it (see above, re: vagina eyes).

[tegan]

What makes Shinji masturbating over comatose Asuka actually kind of genius is that it's the logical endgame of him kissing her in her sleep in the series.

[Gormongous]

What made it for me was my friend leaning over to me and saying, "Oh man, I got too excited and spilled the frosting for my toaster strudel!" But yeah, issues of consent pervade Shinji's relationships with women, probably because he is in part a critique of passive but voyeuristic otaku. The many ways that Shinji's impotence is experienced as power have their own gross fascination.

 

Tegan (or anyone else), have you ever read the Re-Take doujin? I was told that it's what Evangelion's ending should have been, but I found it kinda whatever, though I haven't had anyone to bounce those feelings off of.