The Anime Thread

[Monoriu]

Nisekoi, Season 2. Nisekoi means fake love.  The story is about a teenage girl and boy who are heirs of their respective organised crime groups.  In order to stop a gang war, their parents arranged them to pretend to be lovers.  This is complicated by the appearance of other cute females, most of them have a crush on the male protagonist.  Or standard romantic comedy and anime harem.

But a good one at that.  Season two has abandoned any pretense of having a main plot.  It increasingly turns into a situation comedy with many one or half episode short stories, and relies on guest stars and new characters to sustain the show.  The season two finale doesn't feel like a finale at all.  There is no climax whatsoever, just another day that consists of harem antics.  Yet, despite all the above, I found the show enjoyable.  It makes me laugh, it makes me care about the characters, it makes me want to continue watching.  The antics become increasingly bizarre.  One episode consists of an alternative dimension where the girls become magical girls and do magical girl things.  Crazy?  Yes.  Brainless?  Probably.  Did I have a good time watching it?  Hell yes.  Not all shows need to be serious and philosophical.  Sometimes a good laugh is all I need. 

[viper37]

OMG.  The Chinese state-owned Central TV did a documentary about the Japanese armed forces, and there is a clear image showing a...Gundam!!!!111

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=onur9czCDNA

(fast forward to 0:55)

Are they trying to say that the PLA is no match for the Japanese armed forces, and this is why?  Do they know something we don't?

"This video has been removed by the user. "
They know something you don't.  Some secrets need to be preserved.

[Monoriu]

OMG.  The Chinese state-owned Central TV did a documentary about the Japanese armed forces, and there is a clear image showing a...Gundam!!!!111

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=onur9czCDNA

(fast forward to 0:55)

Are they trying to say that the PLA is no match for the Japanese armed forces, and this is why?  Do they know something we don't?

"This video has been removed by the user. "
They know something you don't.  Some secrets need to be preserved.

Try this -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJX81B0iUE4

[Duque de Bragança]

OMG.  The Chinese state-owned Central TV did a documentary about the Japanese armed forces, and there is a clear image showing a...Gundam!!!!111

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=onur9czCDNA

(fast forward to 0:55)

Are they trying to say that the PLA is no match for the Japanese armed forces, and this is why?  Do they know something we don't?

"This video has been removed by the user. "
They know something you don't.  Some secrets need to be preserved.

Try this -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJX81B0iUE4

LULZ at 0'06"

[Monoriu]

This isn't the first time something like this happened.  They once gave a detailed talk about the latest Chinese-made fighter, and showed a sketch of the plane in the background.  People very soon found that the sketch is that of an old Gundam plane (that forms part of the original Gundam). 

[Duque de Bragança]

I actually remembered an incident with Top Gun footage recycled to showcase Chinese aviation. A bit different, though.

[Syt]

Thanks for the recommendations. I've watched a number of those, but there's some stuff I'll check out.

[Josquius]

In Japan, Naruto is considered a distant no. 2 to One Piece, but for some reason it seems to be more popular in the west.  Having watched both, I agree that One Piece is better.  Naruto is filler hell; One Piece is snail pace.  One Piece has a much bigger world and an enormous cast compared to Naruto's already big cast.  Naruto is more battle-focused; One Piece also has great battles but does better in adventure, plot-twists and comedy.  Naruto seems to be one huge story; the One Piece crew goes from island to island with more distinct arcs and greater variety in settings.  Naruto's writer doesn't seem capable of creating strong females.  The production values are obviously better in One Piece. 

Western anime fans (not the casuals who may catch something on cartoon network) tend to have seen both the show and read the manga. I think the style of art in One Piece truns a lot of people off.

Perhaps.
It is certainly what made me never consider it.

But yeah, I was quite shocked when I got to japan to see how freakishly mega popular one piece was. Before hand it was something I was just vaguely aware of.

[Savonarola]

Sword Art Online

In the near future, there's a full immersion MMORPG with a virtual reality helmet.  On the day of release players log on, only to discover that they can't log out.  Then they are informed if they die in game they die in real life as well.  Our (sometimes) angsty protagonist goes lone wolf and tries to beat the game on his own.  Then he meets up with a feisty girl.  Eventually romance blossoms and they both lighten up.

The fighting is well done and the story manages to avoid the dumbest clichés of this sort of story.  There are no profound truths in the MMORPG, nor do the people come together in a gooey Woodstock kind of way.  Once we're back in the real world we learn our (sometimes) angsty protagonist does have a younger cousin (whom he had once thought was his sister) who is in love with him.  That disturbing anime cliché just couldn't be avoided.

[Monoriu]

Sword Art Online

In the near future, there's a full immersion MMORPG with a virtual reality helmet.  On the day of release players log on, only to discover that they can't log out.  Then they are informed if they die in game they die in real life as well.  Our (sometimes) angsty protagonist goes lone wolf and tries to beat the game on his own.  Then he meets up with a feisty girl.  Eventually romance blossoms and they both lighten up.

The fighting is well done and the story manages to avoid the dumbest clichés of this sort of story.  There are no profound truths in the MMORPG, nor do the people come together in a gooey Woodstock kind of way.  Once we're back in the real world we learn our (sometimes) angsty protagonist does have a younger cousin (whom he had once thought was his sister) who is in love with him.  That disturbing anime cliché just couldn't be avoided.

I agree that the Alfheim arc is indeed a low point in the series.  Have you watched season 2?  I think the Gun Gale Online arc is much better than Alfheim and is worth watching. 

[Savonarola]

I agree that the Alfheim arc is indeed a low point in the series.  Have you watched season 2?  I think the Gun Gale Online arc is much better than Alfheim and is worth watching.

No, I've only seen the first season.  I'll check out the second season if it's ever streaming on Netflix.

[Josquius]

I just found out that the guy who made this Madoka magi thing mono is so fond of so created the rather interesting visual novel (game is too strong a word) saya no uta. Might be worth giving Madoka a few more episodes to impress if lovecraftian horror is in the offering.

[jimmy olsen]

I just found out that the guy who made this Madoka magi thing mono is so fond of so created the rather interesting visual novel (game is too strong a word) saya no uta. Might be worth giving Madoka a few more episodes to impress if lovecraftian horror is in the offering.

IIRC first two episodes seem like generic cookie cutter cuteness, but it's just lulling you into a false sense of security before dropping a megaton of eldritch horror on you.

[Lettow77]

Non Non Biyori

Non Non Biyori is a do-nothing anime about life in the rural countryside. Because the population is nothing but elderly, the schools have been consolidated into one school with five students.

"Slice of life" anime are frequently attacked for how little happens in any given episode. Non Non Biyori offers the promise of still less happening.

A show like this depends on its characters, interaction and ambience- and it's all quite good.

A new season has just begun as of this week.

[Monoriu]

Non Non Biyori is on my to-do list.  I hope it is as good as K-on.