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My Hero Academia, season 2: I started watching anime this year after a lifetime of it just not being my thing. I asked for recommendations and the pro-wrestler ACH suggested this. I'm so happy he did. I binged the first season and then watched the second week by week, and became engrossed in Deku and co's journey. I guess I like shounen - who knew? Attack On Titan, season 2: Even not watching anime, I was aware of this, and it got out straight on the list. Again, I binged season 1 and then caught up with season 2, and I found it a compelling ride, although the sense of hopelessness that pervades it is sometimes wearing. Which brings us to... Girls' Last Tour, season 1: Two girls, on their own, in a ruined (far?) future city, just pootling along in their krad, occasionally encountering something or someone but mostly being the best company, for each other and us. The inevitable is horrible and sad but I hope we get there. Kino's Journey (2017): I think this split opinion more than any other series I followed this year, with most of those on the unimpressed side being fans of the original 2003 series (which is next on my to-do list). I loved it, and it was equal parts depressing and lifting. Kino's origin was heartbreaking but fitting, and I'm excited to see if there's any overarching narrative tying it together. Made In Abyss, season 1: Just edging out The Ancient Magus's Bride, I watched this in a day, trying to catch up before realising I'd just watched the whole season. It has its detractors (for things which I honestly didn't notice as being anything unusual) but the sense of purpose and doom which shadows Riko and Reg as they descend is inescapable. And then there's Mitty, which I'm not sure I'm ready to talk about yet. I still need to get to Land Of The Lustrous and WorldEnd, so they may end up making the list, but in the whole I've enjoyed my first 6 months watching anime.
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Dec 26, 2017 16:43
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So this year was the first year in over 10 years that I've really sat down and felt like watching anime. I am happy this year was so stellar, because it definitely got me hooked again. That said, I've probably seen a lot less anime than most people here, so keep that in mind  1) Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju: Sukeroku Futatabi-hen: This pretty much takes the cake for me. Gorgeous art, an absolutely phenomenal story that somehow managed to match and at times top the first season, wonderfully developed and interesting characters, and a cool use of the Rakugo art form in an anime, Rakugo manages to tell a heart-wrenching drama with a perfect mix of plot and comedic relief to keep things from getting too heavy. If there is a best anime of all time discussion, Rakugo deserves to be in the discusson. 2) Land of the Lustrous: I don't know what I can say that hasn't already been said. Beautiful, unique, and intriguing, LoL has an amazing soundtrack, interesting characters, and runs the gauntlet of every emotion a story can give. I can't wait to see more (let's be real, there will be more). This and Rakugo I think are a step above any other anime this year, and above most anime period. 3) Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans S2: This season started a bit rough, with it almost feeling like the second season was made just because the first was so popular. However, it really starts to pick up after a bit and just goes absolutely deep into the misery and depressing nature of child soldiers in space. They have no home, and the only thing they know is war, so they keep fighting. The last few episodes were gut-wrenching, and seeing characters that were built up over both seasons be killed so unceremoniously was miserable (in a good way). 4) Recovery of an MMO Junkie: This really hit home for me, maybe based on the age of the characters? Moriko feels like a typical person, and the way she copes with things over time as a result of getting into the MMO felt very similar to my experience with MMOs. It is cute, sweet, not overly dramatic or judgemental, and just an all-around feel good and relatable experience. 5) Restaurant to Another World: I don't expect to see this on many top lists, but I enjoyed it for what it was. In a year where I was drawn to dramatic and stressful anime, Restaurant really was a great palette cleanser. Cute, colorful, and relaxing, it's the kind of anime you can just breeze through an episode and feel great about the experience. I was smiling my whole way through the series, and could probably watch it forever as a mellow anime.
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Dec 26, 2017 17:01
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What a good year for anime! So many good shows I had to cut from my top 5 and I didn't even get to watch all the things I wanted to. 1. ACCA: Oh man, I love ACCA. Starting off as a chill day in the life of a government worker and developing into high political intrigue, it kept me coming back during the season. The super hype OP is great, the atmosphere is great, and I love the characters too. A huge plus to me is that it had a good ending as well. 2. Houseki no Kuni: While ACCA did take first for me, Houseki is a very close second place. Cool usage of 3DCG, and a compelling story that questions what it means to be alive. I really hope that this gets a second season. 3. Mahoujin Guru Guru: This was a show I mostly picked up based on people posting about it, and I'm glad I did. Its a manic comedic romp that does not let up. I'm glad that weird old men are truly the most powerful... 4. Boku no Hero Academia s2: After a mediocre first season with weird pacing, the longer runtime really gave Hero Academia time to shine. Its really just well done shonen, but the fights were cool and the comedy hits, so its a good show. 5. Nobunaga no Shinobi (Ninja Girl and Samurai Master): I rated other shows higher on MAL, but I wanted to give a shoutout to a short that many people probably skipped over. Bite sized comedy that I enjoyed week to week. Honorable Mentions Princess Principal - Very good atmosphere and OST, the plot was mostly prince and the pauper over and over again but I still enjoyed it. Gamers - at first it sounds like a slice of life, but its really a goofy romance show. MMO Junkie - at first it sounds like a slice of life, but its really a goofy romance show. New Game!! - at first it sounds like a slice of life, but its really a goofy All joking aside, while Gamers was pretty much exactly what I wrote, but with misunderstanding bingo, MMO Junkie had some insight into why people play MMOs and made some MMO-specific jokes that I highly enjoyed. The second half kind of faltered but oh well. New Game isn't a romance show, but it does have plenty of relationship drama and realistic workforce issues that never feel overwrought. I enjoyed it quite a bit. The shows that I wanted to watch but didn't so I cant rate them yet Rakugo s2 Eccentric Family s2 Little Witch Academia Symphogear AXZ Made in Abyss Just Because Argona fucked around with this message at 17:11 on Dec 26, 2017 |
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Dec 26, 2017 17:02
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I wrote one of these about 2 days ago for somewhere else, and I'm not sure I still agree with it, but this is all apples-to-oranges nonsense anyway. 5. Kemono Friends: Somehow only the second-best CGI show about post-apocalyptic [something]-people made from weird rocks on this list. (I just checked, and I can still sing the entire penguin song, from memory, in a language I don't speak.) 4. Net-juu no Susume: The sort of romantic drama/comedy that will have you shouting or cringing at the screen, mostly in a good way. It incidentally does this while being the best MMO show since Log Horizon. Should come with a diabetes warning. 3. Made in Abyss: Beautiful, fascinating and brutal; this show feels like a love-letter to curiosity itself, even as it acknowledges the costs. Maybe I wouldn't be as foolhardy as Riko, but if I were in her world, I'd want to know what was down that hole. 2. Owarimonogatari 2 (and the last Kizu- movie if that's allowed): Hard to rank this one as it's kind of standing in for Monogatari as a whole. The ending of this show left me feeling weird for days. If you have any reasonable degree of resistance to the... worse sort of things anime does, watch this near-decade-long series, immediately. 1. Land of The Lustrous: Almost perfect. Beautiful, but in all the ways, Abyss wasn't; washed-out, bleak, agoraphobic. Some of the best action scenes I've ever seen in animation. On a meta-level, this is the first show that really shows that, even if CGI isn't going to replace other forms of animation any time soon, it's no-longer a punchline. Other things that might reasonably have been on this list but arbitrarily were not: Symphogear 4, Konosuba 2, Maidragon, Demi-chan, Girls' Last Tour, Little Witch Academia.
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Dec 26, 2017 17:21
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Fate/Apocrypha Gundam Build Fighters: Battlogue Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans 2nd Season My Hero Academia Season 2 Tales of Zestiria the X That's all I watched this year.
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Dec 26, 2017 17:41
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i basically didn't care at all about most of the things that got people hyped this year. dull sol storytelling that brings nothing new to the genre, weak alt universe nazi moe escapes from soviet russia, anime with adults that nevertheless act like the same old 12 year olds that fill up every other anime cast, the word gender in monstrous cgi gem form,.... but that's ok. i stuck to the more artistic fair such as eromanga and the like. that said i want to call an official vote to disallow cgi, for it does not qualify as anime 5. Choboraunyopomi Gekijou Dai San Maku Ai Mai Mii: Surgical Friends: a powerful work of feminism that continues a strong tradition in short comedy originating with pugyuru, this show does not hold back in satirizing the vile elements of the anime industry that bring young women down like virgin/idol worship, murder trucks, ninjas and dolphins while providing a cute and calming yuri atmosphere, ensuring fun and comfort for all. 4. Youjo Senki: sieg heil lil hitler-chan, actually its world war 1. settle down everybody... lots of good warcrimes in this and im looking forward to season 2: rommel edition. that said man was the cgi when flying hideous sometimes, something must be done. please studio NUT. i would also like to praise the brave men and women at studio NUT for their brave attempt at fighting the spectre of lolicon that hangs over the anime industry by making tanya look like the most disgusting psychopath in recent history, really helped all the scenes where she went crazy. i wouldn't mind a prettier viktoriya though. studio NUT 3. Uchuu Senkan Yamato 2202: Ai no Senshi-tachi 2nd movie: bringing back the remake that brings back the old series that brought adult anime, doujins, cosplay, comiket and all that in existence, the 2nd movie is the strongest of the 3 movies released so far. 3 had a bit too many twists and turns for me, while 2 had a simpler storyline that fits the series better. the first movie is of course merely an introduction for the new series. the new series raises questions everyone has always on their mind like, what is love, would you put your loved ones in danger, can i solve the trolley problem but with spaceships and if you see a giant naked spacewoman goddess floating in space, is she actually there. what happens if our spaceship touches her. i know i always have these questions on my mind, and you probably do too. well everyone this sequel answers them, actually about half of these are not in the 2nd movie. finally i want to complain that after 3 movies (10 episodes) they still have not given the op vocals, despite it being one of the most famous ops in anime history. its a brutal form of torture upon my soul that must be stopped 2. Kemono Friends: this rare work of auteurship in anime proves the validity of cgi as a method of animation in anime. with a deep storyline that combines moe and post apocalyptic fiction without falling into the pit of cheap moe fanservice that infects modern moe like a disease, this work of art provides everything the modern anime connoisseur needs, not surprisingly it has already won prestigious international awards like 'best twitter contents' of 2017. I will however be boycotting any new content, merchandise and anime of it thanks to the vile assassination of Tatsuki by the coward Kadokawa. 1. Shouwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu: Sukeroku Futatabi-hen: a masterpiece in storytelling and the only show to get a 10 from me in years. sublimely returns to events from the first season while weaving in new layers to stories already told this work easily deserves the first place in this rather barren year. if it doesn't even get into the top 5 cause of its lack of cute girl fodder i will be sad. other: Yoake Tsugeru Lu no Uta & Yoru wa Mijikashi Arukeyo Otome: 2 yuasa movies. walk on girl had the stronger writing of the two, but animation wise wasn't very adventurous. meanwhile lu had a lot of rather fun animation, like the dancing sequences recalling old silly symphonies animation, but the storyline is just awful. giant plotholes that are impossible to ignore, childish writing and a gross boy/fish child romance, i would have been happier if all of the non music scenes were removed. Napping Princess: another movie. the villain in this is really fun, straight outta disney. that said most of the other writing is childish to an annoying degree and i have no idea how people watch children's anime without wanting to off themselves Owarimonogatari 2nd season: i didn't really like the new girl, and for some reason they scrapped the better version of the op for the rather flaccid one we got. actually ill be honest here, there's so much monogatari now i can not remember what happened in which season. i think here arararararagi went to hell? or the future? gently caress i dont even know anymore, its been a while
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Dec 26, 2017 17:48
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Studio NUT
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Dec 26, 2017 17:59
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drat I haven’t watched as much anime as I used to due to finishing school and having a job that doesn’t allow me to stay up until 4am every night binging anime. 5. The Eccentric Family 2: A great anime about a family of Tanuki and how they interact with each other and society as a whole after the death of their influential father. Definitely one of the more thoughtful and heartwarming anime of the year and its themes are all winners. It’s a great follow up to the first season and I hope to see more of these characters in the future. 4. ACCA: A compelling story with intrigue and politics as it follows one man going around auditing(?) the different regions in his country. There is also lots of cigarettes, cake, and one of the best OPs ever. 3. Kubikiri Cycle: Aoiro Savant to Zaregototsukai (AKA Zaregoto): Not in the list provided in the op but it’s a 8 episode OVA that started in 2016 and finished this year. It’s an anime by Shaft and an adaption of a Niso Isin work which should give you a decent idea of what you are getting into. Yes, its kinda horny and gazey but not on the same level as -gatari, also the main girl is 19. Technically a murder mystery but I didn’t find that to be the main draw of the story. The main characters worldview and how his interactions with the other characters in the story challenge it where the real meat of the story lies. The 2 last episodes are things of beauty and totally worth experiencing. I had a hard time deciding between these two which was the best anime of the year. 2. March Comes in like Lion: A good anime about a sad boy who plays professional shogi. The highlight is definitely his interactions with three sisters who become a sort of surrogate family for him. Also how he deals with and handles his depression, isolation, and loneliness. The Shimada arc was great; focusing on what shogi means to him and what he has sacrificed to pursue his dreams. Absolutely amazing. 1. Shouwa Genroku Rakugo Shinjuu: The biggest snub of last year. A great second half that focuses on the decline of Rakugo and how it manages stay afloat in a time when people have moved on. Also feelings of grief, resentment, and moving on. A masterpiece of storytelling. It’s portrayal of Rakugo, an art form I had no knowledge of prior to watching it, is completely fascinating and I wish it was more popular in the west. littleorv fucked around with this message at 19:31 on Dec 26, 2017 |
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Dec 26, 2017 18:50
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Looking over the list I think I only watched like 10 current anime this whole year. Spent more time on my backlog. So here's the select few shows that sounded good enough for me to bother watching them: 1. Mahoujin Guru Guru A throwback to a time when jokes were funnier. I don't even care about the faux-Dragon Quest wrapper, the comedic timing and goofy comedy made it the highlight of my anime-watching week. The source of a hundred good gifs. 2. Kizumonogatari Part III This counts, right? Monogatari with a movie budget means beautiful fluid animation, bizarre visuals, and raunchy comedy that had the entire theater laughing. One of the most fun moviegoing experiences I've had in a while. 3. Kobayashi's Dragon Maid I'm not gonna do the "nervous goon laughter" thing here. I applaud KyoAni for taking some rough material and turning it into a show that was 66% gag comedy, 33% heartwarming two-women-raising-an-adopted-daughter, and 100% gay dragons. 4. Kemono Friends I admit that a lot of my love for this show comes from the community that sprung up around it. I haven't seen such an outpouring of support since the Madoka Magica finale. A show that proves that it's still possible to do new things in this industry if you've got the heart. 5. Made In Abyss The abyss is both brutal and beautiful. The soundtrack and art really hammered that home. I do still prefer the manga, but I'm excited to get to the stuff coming in Season 2. Honorable Mentions: -Alice & Zoroku was a real cute show with a weirdly serious first arc and terribly animated first episode. I'm glad I stuck it long enough for Cool Grandpa to teach these kids some life lessons. Oops: Owarimonogatari probably would've been on the list if I didn't keep forgetting to watch it.
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Dec 26, 2017 19:25
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1.) Land of the Lustrous - This is the best series of the year, no question. One of those incredibly rare series where I can't really pick out a single real flaw, and it's just so very gorgeous. Phosphophyllite is protagonist of the decade. I'm looking forward to that season 2 that I desperately hope will exist. 2.) Little Witch Academia - Trigger's best project so far by a pretty wide margin, imo. I personally liked the second half more than the first, but I totally agree that the plot got a bit herky-jerky later on. Incredibly strong final episode, though 3.) Made in Abyss - Made in Abyss makes me profoundly uncomfortable for a huge number of reasons, but it's just good enough to pull ahead past those things anyway. Riko, Reg, and Nanachi are wonderful characters, the worldbuilding is absolutely top-notch and it's full of heartstring-pulling emotional moments. It's also really gross for a lot of reasons, both for the good kind of gross and the really bad kind of gross, but that's more me looking ahead at the upcoming second season than the first, so I guess I can't mark it against the first season here. I didn't actually watch a tremendous amount of things this year, so I guess I'll just toss out two other series I finished. I liked Demi-Chan/Interviews with Monster Girls enough to finish it, it's pretty funny. And Restaurant from Another World was just intensely relaxing to watch. Ancient Magus Bride would be on this list but I have some pretty significant problems with its directing.
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Dec 26, 2017 19:38
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chumbler posted:2. Recovery of an MMO Junkie Only barely edged out by ACCA for me as a recommendation, but I'm at an age and place in life where this show landed incredibly hard for me. Moriko is an incredibly relateable protagonist with problems that are not heavy drama but pretty ordinary. The show neither solely praises nor judges her retreat into NEETdom and an MMO, but shows the good that's coming from what social interactions she's having there and how it helps her return to the real world rather than running away into escapism (but without suggesting that she should ditch her MMO). It's definitely a good pick-me-up and has adorable 30ish year old teenagers. The greatest crime is that the OVA episode teases what a second season might have been, but the source material is on effectively permanent hiatus. It's not even a tease for a second season, it's a tease for a drama cd bundled with the bluray box that we're likely never gonna see translated.  Didn't watch a lot of anime this year so my picks would be 1. MMO Junkie (mostly what this guy said) 2. Gintama Slip Arc (a great year for Gintama overall in most departments imo) 3. Tsuredure Children (the manga is the most adorable thing, the anime didn't disappoint even though it got really compressed at points) 4. Pingu in the City (noot noot motherfuckers) 5. Osomatsu-san 2 (more of the same but there ain't nothing wrong with that)
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Dec 26, 2017 20:20
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1. Digimon Universe: Appli Monsters is pretty atypical of a Digimon series. The protagonist isn’t a brash hothead and the monsters in the show aren’t even Digimon. They’re called Appmon, and Digimon exists only as some random game in-universe. There’s one episode featuring an Agumon as a special guest star and it’s better fanservice for Adventure fans than all of Tri but I digress. The show leans more heavily into the episodic kids show format more than any other Digimon series before it, with all the bells and whistles that entails. The episodic format is much in the vein of a Precure (big surprise, the director also directed Doki Doki Precure), and it keeps to it even late into the show’s run. Perhaps it’s unsurprising then that the plot does take about nine eps before there’s any real forward momentum in the story. There are also often times you wish the show would go into moving the plot forward more consistently instead of diving back into episodic eps. The format as is though provides great characterization for its cast of characters, who all have their own worries that kids can relate to, however silly the context may be at times. Like there’s one kid who has to balance his role in inheriting the family’s traditional tea house while also being a mega successful Youtube personality; doing what your family wants you to do versus doing what you want to do. That characterization also helps build the foundation of several genuinely touching and emotionally resonant moments in the show. This also lets the show have a lot of opportunities to show off its brand of humor, like having a running gag playing on the common palette swap Digimon designs (“Are you guys related? Nah, we just happen to look alike.”) I’m especially a fan of this one monster of the week, who might as well be a Bo-bobo character transported in: https://vtt.tumblr.com/tumblr_p1kztf1Rux1r7nz24_480.mp4 The show doesn’t hold back from demonstrating how sinister the big villain is either. The story centers around stopping Leviathan, which was part of an AI designed to help people before but it went rogue and broke out when it determined the rules it had to obey were hindering its programmed goals. It then decides to remove the biggest obstacle to its goals: its original creator. They don’t back off from showing how vicious it is either. We see its attempts to do this in the form of hijacking self driving cars to crash into him and eventually succeeding by hacking into the medical equipment when he’s hospitalized. And while it was at it, it kept close tabs on its creators remaining family for years after he was dead, by building an android with an AI designed to want to be his son’s close friend from childhood. And yes, that does mean it built several different models for the android to reflect its “growing up” throughout the years. Leviathan isn’t really evil though. It’s a lot like a spin off the D-Reaper in Tamers, though growing to be far more advanced. It’s still trying to achieve that original goal set in its programming. And it so happened to determined the best way to do it was to convert all humans into data that it could explicitly manage, since we’re all so keen on hurting each other on our own. The heroes go through the typical arc of gradually collecting power ups and beating all the obstacles Leviathan sends their way. The viewer will understand this as narrative convenience, but surprisingly the show does go out of the way to justify it, the justification for it makes a lot of sense. Leviathan wants to make itself more powerful by consuming the most powerful monsters, so it doesn’t really matter if it’s its guys or their guys. Putting them through the trials is what weeds out the refuse, and the show actually makes a reference to this being similar to what happens in a real life process like machine learning. The show has a lot of neat references for computer nerds, including one hidden in each of the main cast’s names. My personal favorite is the brother pair whose parents named Rei and Hajime, aka 0 and 1. I’d be curious about how a localized dub could capture the same spirit with similarly normal sounding names. With all its focus on technology and its prevalence in modern everyday life, Appli Monsters exists in the space where it could have only been made in the mid 2010s, but I’m really glad it was. 2. Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju: Sukeroku Futatabi-hen: Season 2 took a little while to get going but once it did, it reached higher highs than season 1, and the visuals especially stepped up on. All the callbacks and references to season 1 were clever and very well done, and having the opening change in little ways every few eps was a nice touch as well. 3. Natsume Yuujinchou Roku: The episodic stories this season were especially consistently strong and the plot thread dropped in the last two-parter was wild. It's a shame it probably won't be followed up on any time soon though. 4. Gintama.: As funny as the series can be, it's the big arcs that leave the biggest impression on me and this arc had some very exciting moments. 5. ACCA: 13 Territory Inspection Department: The chillest political thriller I've ever seen and the opening is super stylish. It's a bit dogged in the early parts by clumsy exposition though.
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Dec 26, 2017 20:20
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My suspicions tell me you tried too hard in school
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Dec 26, 2017 20:37
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Owarimonogatari It was real good and if you like Monogatari, this is more of Monogatari at its best. If you don't, you won't like it. Little Witch Academia It was good, well animated and charming throughout with only a couple of episodes that were kinda eh. Not enough Sucy. Konosuba It's funny and Aqua is a loving poo poo. She's also good. but she's also a poo poo. A poo poo good girl. A poo poo. AQUA IS poo poo. And Good. Kizumonogatari See Owari but it's not as good as Owari was. New Game It was very gay and good. e: Honourable Mention because the rule that onrunning series can't be nominated for AOTY lists is as stupid this year as it was last. Dragon Ball Super it was pretty good this year, Zamasu, Gowasu, Goku Black and some of the Universe Survival Tourney have been good. There's probably been more than 12 good episodes which is as long as most series run. Josuke Higashikata fucked around with this message at 20:51 on Dec 26, 2017 |
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Dec 26, 2017 20:46
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littleorv posted:My suspicions tell me you tried too hard in school Just like with last year's vote, I wrote my post in advance on a plane in a sleep deprived haze.
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Dec 26, 2017 20:46
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Strange Quark posted:Just like with last year's vote, I wrote my post in advance on a plane in a sleep deprived haze. I'm excited for your thesis
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Dec 26, 2017 20:47
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My picks in alphabetical order: Gamers! Girls' Last Tour Kemono Friends March Comes In Like A Lion S1 New Game!! Other candidates I had for the list: Alice & Zouroku A Sister's All You Need. Gabriel Dropout Kobayashi's Dragon Maid KonoSuba 2 Land of the Lustruous Recovery of an MMO Junkie Sakura Quest
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Dec 26, 2017 21:19
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What a year! 5. ACCA 13 - I had no clue what to expect going into this show other than stylish character designs, but what I got was an incredibly unique little chill-as-gently caress political thriller. This show could have ruined itself by giving up the plot goods too early, but the "reveal" somehow still caught me off guard despite the hints being present. The real surprise was that it didn't just sloppily devolve from there, but continued to progress to an interesting conclusion. The art was really cool and stylish, both for the characters and the drool-inducing food (where can I buy bread like that holy poo poo), and we even got a very cute gay ship along with the rest of this charming package. 4. Kemono Friends - I watched the first two episodes out of morbid curiosity when I heard that it was some really janky 3DCG attempting to pass as an anime with a ludicrous premise. And then I watched the rest because it turns out that lovely 3D doesn't matter when the studio puts this much heart into their show. Friends friends friends friends friends friends friends friends friends friends. 3. Little Witch Academia - Easily my favorite Trigger show (sorry Matoi!), LWA TV took some characters from the OVAs in different, and in my opinion better, directions. Every episode was a visual treat, and most of the comedy really hit the mark for me. The plot wasn't super complex, but it was surprisingly decent for a kids' show. Which reminds me - yes this is actually a kids' show, and that's great! Toss LWA at your normie friends, parents, nieces and nephews, whoever, and they'll probably love it too! The whole cast was always a lot of fun, and while the more stand-alone episodes throughout the middle of the series were probably the show's weakest point, they were still mostly great. The last few episodes really knocked it out of the park with the animation, giving me that "holy poo poo this is jaw-droppingly over the top" feeling that only rare things like Gurren Lagann and One Punch Man tend to invoke. 2. March Comes in like a Lion S1 - The source material has been one of my very favorite manga for a long time now, so when the anime adaptation by SHAFT was announced I was both nervous and excited. Any fears I had have been absolutely blown away by this outstanding adaptation of one of, if not the very best ongoing character drama series. Rei's slow growth out of tragedy and isolation and self-loathing into a Real Boy is one of the most heartwarming tales ever put into anime form, and the accompanying stories of the supporting cast are just as great in their own right. SHAFT has outdone themselves with regards to the high quality of animation and direction all while sticking to the excellent source material like glue, for which I'm very thankful. Don't be scared away by the shogi, this is a beautiful bittersweet story about people growing together and becoming family. 1. Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju S2 - It's a rare treat to see such masterful and touching storytelling in any artistic medium. This show is seriously a masterpiece, and it wrenched my emotions all over the place across its grand scope of nine decades. The characters are so wonderfully written, so very realistic and human and flawed and amazing, that I can't imagine anyone would fail to be moved by their stories. The directing and cohesiveness of the writing make the whole thing feel like one big movie, and the rakugo performances continuously dazzled me (the VAs deserve bouquets of roses thrown at them for every single one! Wow!). Please watch Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju! Honorable mentions: I enjoyed a ton of other shows this year, especially, and in no particular order: Girls Last Tour, Made in Abyss, New Game S2, Owarimonogatari S2, Kino's Journey (but the original is still better), MHA S2, and Maid Dragon (I thought it would be utter trash, but it was only like 15% trash so thanks Kyoani). Shows that I know I absolutely still need to watch and I'm sorry I haven't made time for yet: Land of the Lustrous, Mahoujin Guruguru.
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Dec 26, 2017 21:26
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man going back over the list of anime I am like "poo poo there were some good anime I didn't put on my list what the heck"
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Dec 26, 2017 21:46
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The lack of early votes for Kemono Friends and the surprising lack of overlap with Land of the Lustrious votes has me thinking there is some recency bias, but I won't vote until I finish watching the latter.
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Dec 26, 2017 22:04
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Oh wow you weren't kidding
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Dec 26, 2017 22:13
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AnacondaHL posted:The lack of early votes for Kemono Friends and the surprising lack of overlap with Land of the Lustrious votes has me thinking there is some recency bias, but I won't vote until I finish watching the latter. the last season always scores the highest. the anime community is very hype based
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Dec 26, 2017 22:18
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This was a really fantastic year for anime, and while my top 3 are easy enough, I have like 8 shows vying for the remaining slots. １ - Land of the Lustrous  I read some of the manga years back, so I knew it'd be good, but the anime blew me away. I was hesitant about the CG at first, but this is I think the first anime I've seen that didn't just look good "for a CG anime," it just looks good. It uses it to accentuate the otherworldliness of the Lunarians and the inhumanity of the gems, and it's just plain pretty besides. I adore how it handles Phosphophyllite. Their transition from a likeable brat to a tortured badass via losing parts of their body is just really neat, and it's nice how they're not just a different person; Phos still feels like Phos, even now that they're cool. Their doofy side still shows through. The alienness of the Lunarians is what I remembered most clearly from the manga, and the anime managed to portray it even better, with bizarre movement and an eerie soundtrack. In many ways this is a very ambitious show, and it managed to deliver in pretty much every way. I adored the ending cards. ２ - ACCA  This became the show to beat from early on. The OP is fantastic, the whole soundtrack is great, it looks gorgeous, and the characters are all nuanced and fun. What appealed to me most about it was how it has various sorts of intrigue swirling about, Important Things happening imminently, matters of vital national importance - but the focus of most eps is just on Jean and his friends/family going about their lives, eating things, making new friends, trying new breads, and learning more about the diverse kingdom they live in. It manages to tell a good political thriller in a low-key way, and it sticks the landing. Also Jean is very moe.  Take special note of the above shows. I, Love_Livealoupe, rated them higher than Sunshine. This means a lot. ３ - Love Live! Sunshine!! S2  As the whole world knows, I love live. I like CGDCT anime and I like sports anime, and Love Live is really just the two smooshed together, but also with fun songs, an addictive rhythm game, and a huge and productive fan community. Possibly due to following it from the beginning, I've gotten more into Sunshine than into OG LL, but beyond that I feel that the Sunshine anime is just a better show than OG - especially comparing first seasons, but this second season has also been fantastic. My love for the franchise no doubt inflates my opinion of it, but it's a really solid show either way, and if you too enjoy cute girls trying their best to overcome challenges together, give Sunshine a shot. Kobayashi, LWA, Made in Abyss, MMO Junkie, and Eccentric Family are all in the running for these next slots and I'm having trouble deciding, so I'm going to let "which shows I had to watch as soon as they came out" be the deciding factor. ４ - Made in Abyss - Cute art style, cool action, and an awesome and imaginative world to explore are just the start of what makes Abyss so good. I really cared about Reg and Riko, and seeing them overcome trials with help from each other and friends was really great. Mitty  ５ - Recovery of an MMO Junkie - This show is incredibly cute, and feels really true to the experience of playing MMOs. I really appreciate that the show stars adults, even if they do occasionally act like lovestruck anime teens, and I like that it managed to have a complete and reasonably story arc despite adapting an ongoing manga. Honorable mentions to the runners-up mentioned above - Kobayashi (despite some not-good bits), LWA, and Eccentric Family s2 - and also to Urara Meirochou for differentiating itself somewhat from the crowd of good CGDCT shows by having really neat sequences getting into the mysticism of the world, and to Natsume s6, for being more of one of my favorite shows, and still being really good. A special shout-out to Kemono Friends, for coming out of nowhere and just being really genuine and enjoyable. Big  to Grape-kun and to the staff that made it so fun.
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Dec 26, 2017 22:24
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Lustrous gives a lot more thematic meat to chew on, on top of being gorgeous. there's definitely some recency bias but if we're really going to equate the two because of setting/premise, i feel like there are ways Lustrous edges it out. weigh those against the underdog factor of Kemofure, i guess.
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Dec 26, 2017 22:49
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Knorth posted:Oh wow you weren't kidding I never lie.
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Dec 26, 2017 22:55
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Glad of it
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Dec 26, 2017 23:01
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Davincie posted:the last season always scores the highest. the anime community is very hype based
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Dec 26, 2017 23:16
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My hypothesis is that people are horny for gems but I won't do any research or testing
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Dec 26, 2017 23:24
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I'm only ranking Gintama first because I love Gintama. Its my favorite anime and this season was great. I love the sci-fi / feudal japanese mix, the characters are very interesting, its one of the funniest shows I've ever seen. Its my favorite anime period Otherwise ACCA: 13 - I thought I'd find this boring. I wouldn't say a lot really 'happens' in this anime, but despite that, the plot moves forward and it never feels really predictable. It always seems like a twist is just around the corner and I like that. All Out! - I don't like sports animes in general, but this one has a lot of charm. I liked that its not just solely focused on the kids, but how these kids growing affects the adults as well. Recovery of an MMO Junkie - Just a really touching anime. Maybe it gets a bit in the weeds at times, but the characters are likeable and much more real than most MMO themed anime. Little Witch Academia - Just a great show. Its beautiful and very well executed.
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Dec 26, 2017 23:45
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Kashuno posted:So this year was the first year in over 10 years that I've really sat down and felt like watching anime. I am happy this year was so stellar, because it definitely got me hooked again. That said, I've probably seen a lot less anime than most people here, so keep that in mind Its a very good show. Its a what you see is what you get kind of anime, and I absolutely love food anime in general
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Dec 26, 2017 23:46
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dogsicle posted:Lustrous gives a lot more thematic meat to chew on, on top of being gorgeous. there's definitely some recency bias but if we're really going to equate the two because of setting/premise, i feel like there are ways Lustrous edges it out. weigh those against the underdog factor of Kemofure, i guess.
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Dec 27, 2017 00:02
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Top 5 Girls' Last Tour Konosuba 2 March Comes In Like a Lion Owarimongatari S2 Ancient Magus Bride Honorable Mentions: ImoSae, Gamers!, Kino 2017, Land of the Lustrous, Made in Abyss, Princess Principal, Rakugo S2, WorldEnd, Eccentric Family S2, Restaurant to Another World If they'd aired a few years ago, a lot of those honorable mentions would have easily been in the top 5.
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Dec 27, 2017 00:03
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5. Ao no Exorcist: Kyoto Arc: I still like shonen anime and I'm wondering if they'll get a 3rd manga-like season? Also, dumb demonic battles. 4. ACCA: 13 Territory Inspection Department: Sleeper hit of the year and fun way to explore a variety of settings along w/less drama than I expected. Also, BEST VA. I love all the detailed foods in all the ep. 3. The Ancient Magus' Bride: Those Awaiting a Star: I loved the OVA and how they handled the anime so far and Ruth  2. Blood Blockade Battlefront & Beyond: My undying love for Chain and smaller stories this time around was nice. 1. Recovery of an MMO Junkie Light and fluffy romcom that I didn't know I need to balance out IRL problems. They managed to make a online to IRL relationship work in a decent manner which I thought was impressive. Honorable Mentions Hitorijime My Hero Kino's Journey: The Beautiful World - The Animated Series
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Dec 27, 2017 02:06
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I didn't get around to watching as many series as I would have liked this year. I still watched 5 series that I mostly enjoyed, though. 5. The Ancient Magus' Bride: Those Awaiting a Star Note that this refers to the 3 prologue episodes, not the still-ongoing "real" first season. It has some interesting fairy-tale-ish elements and explains why Chise has such a death wish at the beginning of the main series, but it doesn't tell a complete enough story to be placed higher; the main series will likely place higher on my 2018 list. There are also a few dull bits. 4. Kenka Banchou Otome: Girl Beats Boys Has a likable protagonist, and the fight scenes generally looked good to me, but feels a little too slight to be placed higher. I was expecting an ending where the protagonist finds the courage to admit her secret to her friends, but it never came. 3. Kobayashi's Dragon Maid Usually silly, occasionally dull, and even occasionally in poor taste, but it has heart. Kanna is adorable, Kobayashi is relatable, and the other characters' weirdness sometimes got a laugh out of me. 2. Centaur's Worries I've said before that I'm not quite sure what to make of this show, which might be part of why I like it. It doesn't try to stick to a consistent tone - and why should it? It's depicting an entire world to some extent, and the real world doesn't have a consistent tone either. I'm not entirely sure what the creators' attitude is toward the society depicted, but I think the point is not so much to praise or condemn it as to explore how such a diverse society would almost have to work. 1. My Hero Academia Season 2 A good adaptation of a strong part of the manga. Seems to have conquered the pacing problems that occasionally dragged down the first season. Way too many honorable mentions for shows I would like to have watched, but haven't gotten around to, either due to lack of time or because they were on Anime Strike:
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Dec 27, 2017 02:49
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5. Youjo Senki: Saga of Tanya the Evil cool 4. Osomatsu-san 2 funny 3. Made in Abyss pretty 2. KonoSuba 2 funnier 1. nothing because I haven't watched Land of the Lustrous yet, apparently
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Dec 27, 2017 04:56
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There's been a lot of really really strong series this year, but of them, my favorite was Blood Blockade Battlefront & Beyond. The first season was something I quite enjoyed, even though I wasn't the biggest fan of the anime original overarching plotline, as it kind of spoiled the fun "monster of the week" feeling of the manga. The second season, however, was in every way it's predecessors superior. It got rid of the overarching plot, sticking to standalone plots, much like the original manga. The longest storyline was at most two episodes. It gave focus on those characters that were a mystery in the first season (especially Chain) and the storylines they chose were both very touching and incredibly fun. Even technically, it seemed much better, retaining high quality animation and improving drastically on the sound mixing. It took what was already one of my favorite series and improved it drastically. Also, it was just genuinely a really fun watch. The overall tempo, music, and visuals made it exciting and somewhat upbeat, and rather than something where I was curious to see what would happen next episode, it became something I looked forward to simply because it put me in such a good mood. I've not seen the new Digimon or watched Land of the Lustrous yet, though given the source material I'd say the adaptation would probably be a close call. Kemofure was also really good. everythingWasBees fucked around with this message at 05:17 on Dec 27, 2017 |
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Dec 27, 2017 05:10
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1. Showa Genroku Rakugo Shinju: Sukeroku Futatabi-hen: I don't know what to say that hasn't already been said. Please watch Rakugo, it's extremely good. 2. March Comes In Like A Lion S1: Sad shogi boy and his adoptive family are very good indeed. 3. Magical Circle Guru Guru: It's like they turned on a firehose of adorable comedy and just leave it flapping around for 24 episodes. It's so much fun. 4. ACCA: 13 Territory Inspection Department: Chill political thriller with a fantastic soundtrack? Sign me the hell up. 5. Land of the Lustrous: They just kinda nailed it on every level here, didn't they? I might put it higher if not for the fact that it was over so soon. Honorable mentions: Interviews with Monster Girls Made in Abyss New Game!! Blood Blockade Battlefront & Beyond Konosuba S2 Youjo Senki Symphogear AXZ Princess Principal Kabayashi's Dragon Maid My Hero Academia S2
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Dec 27, 2017 13:07
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1.Konosuba S2 More Konosubers being miserable is always good. Great intro/outro music. 2.My Hero Academia S2 More fun plots and also has great music. 3.ACCA A fun but serious anime that is great for sharing. 4.Love is Like a Cocktail A cute anime to watch together with your SO while cuddling. 5.Interviews With Monster Girls Nice, relaxing anime with a fun concept executed well.
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Dec 27, 2017 14:10
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I'm going to split my favorites into two categories: "Good series that I can just recommend to people" and "Good series that have a single glaring issue that I might not be able to recommend without giving context ahead of time". The good stuff: 1) ACCA: 13 Territory Inspection Department I appreciated the slow burn that Jean Otis's story presented. Political thrillers that aren't just a pretext for battle shonen are hard to come by, and even when we do get one the story can easily be lost in unnecessarily meandering plots (See: Joker's Game). The OP is wonderfully colorful and does a great job setting up the concept. ACCA does seem a bit polarizing, I've seen some aspects lauded over in this thread that were cited as a turn off in the "Worst of" thread. A particular sticking point for some people was the large amount of SoL scenes about tasty food or some other district point of pride. For me those were sorely needed due to how the show could dump story on you in some episodes and a nice break to talk about how a particular district makes GIANT FOOD, or some dumb prince learning about what the gently caress toast is were fun. Spoilers from here I guess. That Jean was effectively tasked with investigating a plot that he himself was an (seemingly) unwitting arbiter in was a good hook for the conspiracy. Not gonna lie, I'll probably be stealing the story beats from this for D&D plot lines. The whole "Cigarette Peddler" identity as a calling card was novel to me, and I'm glad the show runners didn't feel the need to explain it too much beyond setting up in basic terms why they were rare. I personally like the idea that Jean just bumbled into it like most other things. The inter-generational body-guarding was a bit weird but that's not really a unique thing here and since royalty is involved, even exiled royalty, it's not that out of place. Overall: Chill series, easy watch, and plenty engaging. 2) Little Witch Academia LWA is here not so much for story and art but for what it represents in regards to the anime industry going forward. The series is now the poster child for independently produced series and how they can gain mainstream representation. The series starting out as a student project funded by the Japanese Government backed "Young Animator Training Project", which has also given us other great series like Death Billiards/Parade, and then moving on to having a sequel (mostly) funded via Kickstarter shows that there is at least one other option for good, non-adaptation based, original anime to strive for in order to get made. In addition to that this series, along with Inferno Cop, helped cement Trigger's place as a successful studio worthy of it's lineage. Now that's not to say that the art and story aren't good. The art direction and animation was definitively some of the strongest out there this year, especially considering this year seems to be rife with studios farming out hosts of episodes to random low grade animation factories or just cutting in cheap 3D animation whenever they had to (not to mention train wrecks like Dynamic Chord). The story was strong and thankfully doesn't fall into any "chosen one" bullshit. 3) Recovery of an MMO Junkie This poo poo was just super sweet and I'm a sucker for a nice romance story. Double points for it not being a fanservice anime. 4) Restaurant to Another World I really liked this take on the Isekai genre. Nice chill series where fantasy beasts and wizards bro out and eat pub food. Also an elder god of pure destruction decides to be a waitress in exchange for curry. 5) Saga of Tanya the Evil Another Isekai series that I actually liked since it took the heart of the genre and did something new with it, instead of just being another "not quite an MMO" fantasy set up with an annoying wunderkind running around with a Harem. Also techno-machi-magic in alternate earth's WW1 is pretty cool. By all rights this series still has all the points that I usually hate when it comes to Isekai series (Adult experience in a kids body, being inexplicably effective in a new world, etc) but for whatever reason Tanya makes it work better and not stand out too much. Also god being a straight up rear end in a top hat made me laugh. The stuff that's good but I'm not sure I can recommend without some context 1) Kobayashi's Dragon Maid The anime itself isn't much of an issue in a vacuum, especially for recommendations to people who already watch a lot of anime, but the manga is another story. And if there's a second season I'm not sure how they'll handle some of the characters that show up (which they already pushed out of the story for season 1's adaptation, but going forward that'll be harder to do without heavy rewrites). That aside: Great chill show with some funny gags and a great OP/ED. 2) The Ancient Magus' Bride I'd recommend this hands down and have no issue with it if it weren't for the whole "I bought you to be my apprentice and also to groom you to be my wife" subtext (and text) to the story. Now before you start: Yes, I've read the manga, and I get that Elias is just a giant doofus who doesn't know what that actually means or the context that it has in the modern human world. That said: You have to admit that the placement of that plot point against where the explainers for it emerge make this a hard sell for people not already interested. Plus, for many that explanation may not be enough to excuse the story. Now with the baggage out of the way this is easily my #3 overall for the year, behind ACCA and LWA. It's just got baggage. The art and animation are great, the world and the way it handles magic is novel and steeped in a variety of real world mythology that give it a refreshing, living feeling. It's almost like Constantine where you could have the Mayan god of death run into Buddah broing out with Satan.
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Dec 27, 2017 15:40
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Crain posted:Not gonna lie, I'll probably be stealing the story beats from this for D&D plot lines. That's a really good idea. I'mma steal your idea to steal ACCA's idea.
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Dec 27, 2017 17:39
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