Category Archives: Franchises

February 24, 2017

Kemono Friends: Friendship Is Lost Technology

By omo

A is for Apple is a common refrain for children educational multimedia programs. I’ve seen it (or something close to it) in books, on TV, on a DVD, in a video game, in a board game, in all kinds of toys, and obviously on the internet. Learning and trying to understand the basics of our world is what little kids do. If learning is lifelong, we all do it when we were little at any rate.

Kemono Friends sort of reverse engineers the experience for us. We learn how cable carts work. We know how a cafe works. Or what a bus does. Or how to cook, in general. The mysteries of life are about the questions we don’t realize we could ask, and not just the questions we have no answers to. All Bag-chan wanted to know is who she is. This is the existential question, of all existential questions. Arguably it’s the only question that truly matters.

In its ruthless-but-with-baby-gloves inquiry, Kemono Friends reveals obvious answers to obvious questions: Yes, it is as we think, Bag-chan. But in the process it only answers every other question we dare to dream to ask. And since this is a Japanese cartoon, Kemono Friends is set in a post-apocalyptic world, unlike another show I’m trying to infer to with this blog topic. Because it’s anime, we are concerned about trauma, not just happiness. The ending sequence of post-bubble, abandoned amusement parks does more talking than the rest of the show. It isn’t just about furries or they are girls. It’s about the overall messaging.

Which is to say, when you’re like this guy, it’s like trying to create an anti-abuse subsystem for Twitter, but all you get to use is a TI-84. There’s some novelty and amusement from seeing people trying to figure out what’s Kemono Friends about–not so much to do what I try to do, but to merely put it in one of their mental bins. I think that’s kind of why humanity is in decline, I guess. But I think, much like Bag-chan, this journey is only fun if you come unencumbered. The messaging may be meme-tinted, but people stay in Japari Park because there’s something worthwhile behind it all.

Well, maybe not that worthwhile. Pretty okay for an anime though.

 

Leave a comment | posted in Kemono Friends

February 22, 2017

Too Bad the Idol Diet Hasn’t Made a Diet Joke Yet

By omo

It’s actually fair to say Idol Jihen, or Idol Incidents, is similar to an Aikatsu arc. The story are as similar to children’s cartoon (or my stereotypical understanding of such) as late night anime gets. It is just a framework or vehicle to put some database, database, in your anime.

But I think it’s better to look at Idol Jihen as a headtrick. The fact that idols are your congressional representatives, and sometimes they solve problems using idol powers, are the trick. The teach is how to be active politically, and what it means.

If your President was an idol, would you support him or her? Would his or her political opponents be old and fat men and women dealing shadily in the night inside expensive eateries? More importantly what otaku character traits will your President have? Is he or she a Honkers or Kasumi? Or an Amami Haruka? Or Shimada Mayu? This is what most of us care about, but this is also the part that’s not really important in the larger scheme of things. I think I speak for all the lolicons in the world that the weaponized feelings of children is a great plot device that we can use more of, at least in moderation. It makes for a great distraction, to not let yourself engage the material critically.

[This is similar but different than Akibastrip anime, which is using social involvement and caricature of Akiba’s socio-economic problems to identify, well, stuff to market? I think? I’m most likely wrong but can someone explain to me how Akiba’s Trip isn’t just a giant Earphones plug (along with all their guest musicians/seiyuu), sponsored by Maidreaming?]

Idol Jihen, for example, doesn’t solve episode 6’s ghostly problems with magic of Aomori Ringo Powers (they are delicious) but flat out is making a stance on dreams of space (a very otaku-friendly position) being chipped and kicked to the curb by more pedestrian monetary concerns. It would be pretty true to life to say that people in national lawmaking bodies bicker about how to spend pork, that is a summary of episode 6 in half a sentence. In that way, Idol Jihen is extremely convincing because the narrative is akin to low-effort propaganda. Just talk to people who care about NASA and NASA’s budget over the past 50 years and this is basically their position in a nutshell, but the way that narrative came about in Idol Jihen is rather, what’s the word, romantic yet pragmatic?

I could go on in detail about the issues in Idol Jihen, but I just want to point at one more thing: the sense of principled governance. One of the best shield behind criticism in politics like this is that you are advocating for your constituency. Sure, everybody says this, even if s/he is outright wrong and knows it. Which is why every villain in Idol Jihen breaks that trust as an elected official, and when it isn’t (such as episode 7), the point was about having internal consistency and being a person of principle. It’s a strong and clear signal. This is good, in that the stories in Idol Jihen honors the core tenant of government by principle, and the vilification is about the kind of behavior that people typically vilify in governance–cronyism, autocracy, putting the power grab before the common good.

PS. If you want to go one more meta up: Idol Jihen is as blunt as a trout, because nuance is a losing strategy in politics. If you are explaining, you’re losing.

Leave a comment | posted in Idol Jihen

February 13, 2017

SideM Anime And Million Live

By omo

TL;DR: Here I quote tablody-matome blog Yaraon for the proper verbiage: アイマスサイドMが先にアニメ化され、ツイッターのミリマスP達、精神を病み始める: When SideM anime gets announced first, Million Live Ps go into nervous breakdown.

To preface the context-heavy post, in brief, getting a proper TV anime treatment has been the dream of all fans of IM@S since forever, because the franchise today is as prominent as it is despite of the missteps the managements have committed all along the way. From the TGS incident to Xenoglossia there were a lot of bad moves–and by that I mean literally bad for their bottom line and alienating fans–that the management had to recover from to get to the point that they are today. Long-time fans of 765Pro suffer it with their staff and cast to get to this point, so the feeling we cheer for during Producer Meeting is one of mutual support and as people who have been through the ups and downs over the years.

To be clear, a lot of pre-SideM Ps are interested in SideM. They might not be into the series but they are cheering it on like what producers do. Sure, there are also plenty of people, producer or not, who find it difficult to support all branches of the IP. This sentiment is more prominent and easier to see in 2017, when massive event plans roll out along with the mobile game juggernaut Deresute. When you tax your fan base to the max, straining cracks do form. Do people remember 10 years ago, when we had maybe 2-3 IM@S events a year? In 2017 it’s like, 3 events a month.

And this isn’t something limited to Million Live Producers, who are understandably a little salty–I would know since I am one–but it’s worth writing about because there’s a thick context behind it.

  1. SideM tour was announced ahead of the live–this sounds like great fuel for “the sound girls make when they’re excited” on top of the SideM anime. But no, this gets announced 2 weeks earlier? Something or someone messed up.
  2. The grapevine on Million Live anime has been that A1 is busy with all these projects for 2016-2017, as of 2015. Why 2015? That’s when ML anime was first “teased” by the trailer similar to how CG got a trailer just months before the Dereani TV series being announced. Fast forward to 2017. The word from the same grapevine has been more or less the same, but it’s a matter of time. As a separate note, SideM may or may not carry with it the Anim@s tag in terms of the production team, but Million Live both uses Anim@s illustrators for in-game art and is basically all but confirmed to be A1 or else. (This is basically the sins of Xenoglossia being repaid.) For the record, CG is an year earlier than ML, and ML is about a year earlier than SideM.
  3. Unlike SideM, Million Live is both a reboot of 765Pro and its own thing. This is why there are songs for the 765Pro all stars in Million Live, and their characters appear in ML game (in a non-cameo basis) as well as the excellent Gessan manga (which is kind of like the bible for MiliPs in terms of those who care about story and development). Oh, the Gessan manga ended. Oops
  4. ML4th Budokan is a month too far… But in terms of timing, SideM anime details won’t emerge until 3/15, so it’s really just hitching a ride on SideM 2nd. ML4th day 3 (if they were to announce ML anime then) is 3/12. Which goes up to point #1…
  5. ML anime, basically by indirect admission, is coming soon. I have separate rumor to confirm but GamiP’s behavior at least acknowledges this, for his apology only makes sense in this way.
    • Basically, during day 2 SideM 2nd, GamiP came on stage after the anime teaser to apologize to people waiting for ML anime, that SideM anime is announced first because guys walk with longer strides or some joke. The idea is the demand is higher so it got higher priority–or because they’re locked into the Anim@s crew for ML.
  6. For who reading into sakuga tea leaves are a thing, too, understands what this means when you’re stuck waiting for that same prolific crew. A lot of us are OK with Dereani but a lot of us are also weary of that production given its issues and delays. And as you can see, delays with these things do happen. A part of us want a good work that is given the time to be produced, but we also realize we can only wait so long in this war of idols.

This really doesn’t have anything to do with “fujoshit” or anything like that (and those who think this way probably should be kindly educated). It’s just that Milim@s Producers have been waiting for a while now, and in some ways, the future of our original ladies depend on it too, because surely they will also appear in the anime…

I guess the key thing is that Million Live anime is a big deal, although it’s just Milim@s Producers who are too psychologically invested, I guess. And until we know what SideM anime is actually going to be detail-wise, it’s not something we should assume in the pessimistic direction.

1 comment | posted in Idolmaster, Modern Visual Culture

February 13, 2017

Winter 2017 Anime

By omo

So instead of going about things normally, I have been watching Legends of Galactic Heroes on a binge. That said this is sort of a weak-ass style of binge where I am only 40 episodes in after starting 3 weeks ago. With that said, LOGH episode 40 is a good place to take a breather. Just to say the obvious: This show is great and I’m glad I am doing it. In years past I’ve casually tried to start, and last Cyber Monday I picked up the translated novels on Kindle so I started reading the first book–only to stop because it feels kind of lame. Kind of like how Guin Saga initially felt. But there’s this epic anime I could watch instead, hmm.

Interspersed between all this are my usual eventing and at least one work-related trip, disrupting my usual viewing schedule. Such is life.

Kemono Friends – This is setting my meme world on fire. It’s a bit like MLP set in Humanity Has Declined. Or rather, the last humanity inside a dead mobile game? It’s tanoshi and sugoi and all that, and this friend who likes to blog recommend approaching this janky anime on its face. It’s nothing really special, until you unwrap this layered zoo to get the meta. It’s actually not a bad show, but it’s definitely not meant for everyone. The amazing thing about Kemono Friends is that I don’t think there is anything to “get.” If you just think about it, there’s enough content and bread crumbs to get you going.

Gabriel Dropout – I sort of enjoyed this show, but it’s not as funny as the play time warrants. And I don’t even mean this kind of sand-counting sense of humor. I enjoy the jokes but they are too little for too high of an investment. I’ll probably trudge on.

Chaos;Child – This is kind of why I trudge on Gabdro because the alternatives is to watch more dreary things like this. That said I’m a few eps behind so I’ll try to catch up, because I like the concept. I think this is the kind of stuff these semicolon IPs do best, except somehow only Steins;Gate had a decent anime…? O;9 was such a wasted opportunity…

Yojo Senki – This is hilarious, but also kind of dreary. I think the main weakness is the occasional focus on some existential BS, and not a little girl doing ruthless war stuff. [His Yang comparison I find a bit in poor taste, in fact.] Thankfully the balance of it leans heavily on the latter so it’s good so far. As far as these kind of fantasies go this is very satisfying. It would be even better if it wasn’t Y.Aoi behind the helm though.

Demi-chan – I don’t really know where this show is going so I’m along for the ride. It has harem aspects but also plainly focused on these half-human, daily life issues, and I think it does an admirable job on that. The characters come together in a way that isn’t terribly annoying and I really enjoy the cast, so it’s on the short list.

LWA TV – LOL licensing. Why Netflix…

Minamikamakura – The setting really wins here but I’m a little slow on this. Maybe I’ll catch up. The first couple episodes reminded me some stories I heard when Lawson took some anibloggers there to find obscure temples, up and down the mountains…

Kuzu – Is it me or this show is a lot of boring? I guess naughty sex is all there is for it? I’m curious so I might stick with a few more.

BanG Dream – It’s basically Love Live but better. Forget Aqours. So far I like it except that Arisa character is like a less charming Nico and as the characters say sometimes, Kasumi can be really annoying. I guess she’s just a Friend who likes weird guitars. I actually enjoy it except for literally Arisa, and the need to get myself to ignore the Hard Push. If gorioshi had a name, it’d be called BanG Dream, in that this is the least natural and most artificial story of a band coming together since forever. And it airs in the same season as Fuuka. That said I think there isn’t enough to make a call on this show yet, outside of the production issues.

Chain Chronicles – The characters were a little familiar but that’s where the show ends, considering my history with the game. The story is familiar, however, so I had fun following it along. I’m not invested in the characters so I think it’ll get dropped (currently at 5).

Rakugo S2 – Same o’ but more seiyuu rakugo is good?

ACCA – It’s like LOGH but without the charm, which is probably not a normal comparison but at this writing, attention span burnt on ACCA probably fills the same need as a couple episodes of LOGH. It’s curious enough to keep following.

Konosuba 2 – Still good.

Hand Shakers – I would watch it if I had more time, but not so much lately. After 3 episodes at least the girls are cute? After K I don’t know why people complain about Go Hands, other than some of the business practices. Yeah it’s a bit of eye torture, but so was K.

Maid Dragon – I like this enough for the animation, but the story doesn’t require the deft hand of comedy to play on beat every time, which is a bonus in this case because I’m not sure if humor is one of Maid Dragon’s strengths. A hint of plain nerd works like a dash of vanilla essence in a simple custard and it makes everything come together.

School Girl Strikers – It’s alright. Not sure if I’ll watch beyond 3.

Seiren – It’s not as much a brain-press as PhotoKano but it’s not that good. The gamer girl so far is at least beyond garden variety attractive and so far Seiren has done a good job with the side characters. I’m not sure I can stay with it without at least a back-of-the-knee moment. The deer mating is cute but not enough… (BTW Shikaco is in this anime as bus-ko which is, what, this joke almost tells itself.)

Idol Incident – Partly what inspired me to watch LOGH, gonna be honest. It’s not terrible but unless you’re into that political narrative it’s not particularly fun, since that’s where the jokes are. I might keep going but it needs to have some good jabs! Too soft so far.

Akiba’s Trip – It’s technically partly what inspired me to watch LOGH too, because it’s not that different than Idol Incident. The collabs and cameos are great in the show though. Is it any good? Saa…

Tekketsu – Ooops she did it again! Joke aside I really enjoyed the catch-up from last season, and kind of am glad, in retrospect, that I did it now and not at the end of the second season, for spoiler dodging reasons. It definitely is the “least” Gundam of recent memory, just something about it is different, and it’s hard to put a finger on it.

Fuuka – As a stereotypical example of a fan of Seo’s works, I can only deeply apologize that it exists, and it’s going to egg on some cool seiyuu collabs (as it has already done so). The main story is just a side dish. FWIW I stopped following his crap after I”s so Fuuka is mostly new (but yet so familiar) to me.

I tried Masamune-kun, and it was OK but I’m not in a mood for something this substantial. The two Granblue Fantasy episodes were spot on, except one might wonder if the right characters are going to appear. One Room was LOL.

A fairly fun season of shows that I look forward to every week, I’d say. Kemono Friends, Yojo Senki, ACCA, BanG Dream and Demi-chan probably are the ones I mind the most.

2 comments | posted in BanG Dream, Chain Chronicles, Ginga Eiyuu Densetsu, Gundam, Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon, Modern Visual Culture, Seiren, Showa Genroku Rakugo

February 7, 2017

Why Seiren?

By omo

I read this and I’m like, is there some global conspiracy to remove Photokano from this discussion? Why are there pent-up expectation for Seiren to be the next Amagami when during pre-prod it looked like a limp resurrection of the concept that was put into the grave by Photokano? Is Photokano anime the Tsukihime of anime?

Anyways, as someone who’s actually watched Photokano to its (rewarding?) end (little sister episode yeah?) I can’t imagine Seiren, from the big picture point of view, to be an improvement. People who expected Amagami should just go watch more Amagami. Or better yet, play the games. I don’t think Kimikiss or Amagami anime can be topped at this point, there’s just too much rose-colored crap clogging people’s thinking at this point.

Leave a comment | posted in Photo Kano, Seiren