Question:
Why is it so rare that main characters in anime actually have parents? Or if they do have parents, they’re away on an extended trip, or just never show up in-show. Given how unlikely it is any teenager would be left to their own devices in real life, it seems weird that this comes up so often in anime.
More rambling about the year in review, this time covering our favorites from the Summer and Fall seasons, including Monogatari, Uchouten Kazoku, Kyousogiga, and whatever everybody else cared about. Also Kill la Kill, Gatchaman, White Album 2, Samurai Flamenco, etc.
Once again, you can find a list of all our many participants and a timestamp breakdown over at Deadlight’s blog.
On another podcast! This time we’re discussing the year in review, including bits on basically any show that managed to sneak onto anyone’s top 10 list. Meaning everything from my actual list gets rambled about, along with Crime Edge, Hataraku Maou-sama, and almost everything else I watched. This first video covers up through the Spring season!
You can see more info/show timestamps over at Deadlight’s blog.
And so 2013 comes to an end. This has been a big year for me in blogging, what with it being my first year in blogging, and so a lot of these shows hold a possibly unreasonable place in my heart. Nah, I don’t think that’s actually true. I think we’ve just had a great year, and that blogging really has done what I always wanted it to – force me to apply a more critical eye to my media, which, contrary to popular belief, has actually made me appreciate my favorites even more.
And there sure were plenty of favorites! As I said, this has been an excellent year in anime, with tons of genres, styles, and themes represented by stylish, confident productions. If this is your first time checking the blog, let me introduce myself by saying I’m a horribly biased shithead who wouldn’t know a good action show or comedy if it comically murdered me. I like people, and I like ideas, and my list reflects that (if you’re looking for Attack on Titan or Maou-sama, you can find my reviews of those here and here). I like to think I’m pretty good at telling good writing or direction from bad, but everyone has different things that appeal to them, and so you can consider the numbering here a mushy compromise between favorite and best, though the list overall encompasses both. I’m not gonna give you synopses here – if you’re interested, each title links to that show’s description, but that’s not what you’re not paying me for. These comments will cover why I loved these shows. I was aiming for a top ten, but when compiling the list, the shows that immediately bubbled to mind ended up numbering twelve, and instead of arbitrarily cutting two off I’ve decided to honor them all. Also, I’m only counting shows that ended in 2013 here, so no Kill la Kill or other half-finished two-parters. So here it is: my top twelve anime series of 2013!
What can I even say about this week? Everything got ridiculous. Everything got climactic. Everything got cathartic. I’ve dropped everything I was iffy on, and all the shows I’ve enjoyed are pulling off thrilling finales. Let’s get slobbery.
Back on the airwaves, this time discussing the third Madoka film with IvIin, Kelloggs, and Aeroblip. Even if you haven’t seen the film, the first section of this podcast is spoiler-free, so you can get a glimpse of our overall impressions regardless. If you have seen it, this podcast is pretty damn thorough as far as our thoughts on narrative, themes, and production are concerned, and I think each of us brings a pretty distinct perspective to the table. Get on over there and give it a listen!
Management: Just a mini-question today, since I found myself searching the archives for this and realized I’d never posted it in the first place. Organization!
Question:
Are shows starring adults meaningfully different from those starring teenagers? Are shows set in college meaningfully different from those set in middle or high school? I ask because I see this distinction made all the time, but generally it doesn’t seem meaningfully different outside of a setting/character-appearance sense.
Management: Spoilers ahead for Madoka, Gargantia, Psycho-Pass, and Fate/Zero.
It’s not a complicated question. You hold the gun, target in the sights, finger on the trigger. An innocent, no question. But the stakes could not be more clear: one or one hundred. Either you kill this one person, ending their life and putting their blood on your hands, or you do nothing, and one hundred die through your inaction. Is it morally permissible to fire? Is it morally permissible not to? You could ask them first, I suppose – are they willing to die for the sake of one hundred strangers? That would certainly be noble of them, and possibly clear your conscious. But what if they say no? What if the stakes are one thousand strangers? One hundred thousand? One hundred billion?
Wow! This season looks awful!
…yep, that’s pretty much all there is to it. Perhaps it’s because I’ve been spoiled the last few seasons, or maybe Winter seasons just really are always that bad, but dear lord this season looks weak. Let’s run down the bright spots!
Question:
How do you feel about labeling/defining yourself as a dedicated “fan” of a show or creator? How about the preaching of shows, or the nature of hype/anti-hype?
