What are you Watching?

[ParaParaJMo]

Up to 56 of Prince of Tennis. They are now in the East Japan tournament. About Akutsu, he sort of did remind of me K9999/Tetsuo. It is funny that Akutsu in some weird ways feels like a tribute to Tetsuo since he likes to scream "Don't order me around" like Tetsuo did in that one thing and they both have Sasaki Nozomu as their seiyuu (though most famous as Yusuke in Yuu Yuu Hakusho). This is the moment where PoT really goes pure shounen action in the matches and it does get ridiculous

Saint Seiya Soul of Gold 2. I think this series is ok so far. I like how the opening pays tribute to the 2nd opening of the second series.

Saint Seiya Omega 49. Finally learn what the whole conspiracy is. I say for fans of Saint Seiya what they do on a foundation isn't new but should be a good gateway to no one familiar with the franchise.

[llj]

Finished the original 1973 Cutie Honey. This has got to be one of the most visually psychedelic anime TV series I've ever seen, and I've seen a fair bit of surreal anime. The final episode is incredibly surreal, they even referenced Dali in it (in fact, I'm pretty sure several episodes reference Dali). The show's soundtrack BGM is a mix of instrumental psychedelic rock, funk, soul, and peppy pop songs of its time period. The plots in Cutie Honey may be standard Sat AM stuff, but every episode truly is a unique visual and aural experience, even by today's standards. You can tell the animation staff behind Cutie Honey definitely had a vision for how the show should look and sound like.

[Char Aznable]

I just watched Gundam: The Origin and, overall, really enjoyed it. However, I was surprised, and somewhat disappointed, by the "humor" they tried to include. While there weren't tons of those moments, they really pulled me out of the film. I felt that most of the humor was forced and really had no place in the story. I guess, knowing that Origin is delving into the younger years of Char and will eventually lead into the 'One Year War', I expected a darker, more serious story through-and-through.

Also just finished up episode 15 of Fate/Stay Night. With over half the series finished, I'm definitely enjoying the show more now than I was at the beginning. Looking forward to seeing how it will all end.

[Drew_Sutton]

Was looking for something to veg out on and not think the other week, so I popped Gunbuster (Aim for the Top!) DVDs in. Also been on a cyberpunk kick lately, so I am planning on re-watching Megazone 23 Parts 1 and 2 (AKA, the good parts of Megazone 23) and picking Psycho Pass up again.

I just watched Gundam: The Origin and, overall, really enjoyed it.

I also checked out The Origin a couple of weeks ago and really enjoyed it, too. I didn't find the quick humor as jarring as others, though, I think. I really, really enjoyed it and am looking forward to the rest of the series. I have felt for the past several years that I am falling out of love with Gundam, slowly but surely over the past 10 years or so. Unicorn and The Origin, though, are helping re-kindle something of that love.

There is, of course, some fan service, but it's the kind where they try to wrap it in a "Oh, this is SATIRE! And we're commenting on male gaze BLAHBLAHBLAH" package. I hate shows like that.

Have you seen Kill La Kill yet? I got a lot of that vibe from their fanservice and I think that it is fairly well done though, I can't say I was familiar with much of satarizing otaku fanservice culture prior to KLK.

[llj]

Have you seen Kill La Kill yet? I got a lot of that vibe from their fanservice and I think that it is fairly well done though, I can't say I was familiar with much of satarizing otaku fanservice culture prior to KLK.

I think fanservice satire has been around since at least the 80s. I've seen dozens of older anime satirizing various tropes in otaku culture and anime. Otaku no Video is a prime example of this.

I have not seen Kill La Kill. It certainly looks nice from a visual standpoint but I tend to prefer to watch big hype shows after the hype has died down.

[ParaParaJMo]

Episode 17 of part 2 of Jojo Stardust Crusaders.

I love Suwabe Junichi as the younger D'Arby brother. I don't know why. I totally love him as Atobe in Prince of Tennis. And this episode makes me feel happy that Ishizuka Unshou is Grandpa Joseph. Jotaro no matter what is always too bad ass.

Prince of Tennis 68. Finally finished Seigaku's match against Hyotei. As I said, I totally love Atobe for some reason. Already read far ahead into the manga because I heard the anime also changes some of the matches on who faces who, etc. This part of the anime also seems to be the breaking point where it goes full out DBZ. But I do appreciate that the series actually tries to make sense of all the ridiculous things, especially with Fuji's moves.

Saint Seiya Omega 58. Well, Haruto as a rock singer? Damn.

Code Geass Boukoku no Agito movie 3. Well, the story takes a very crazy direction that I can't because of spoilers but I think it ruins what made the first two movies good on how it didn't really need to rely on the original series to understand this movie series.

[llj]

Been researching and watching as much as I can about "monochrome" era anime.

I was born in the late 70s, so a lot of the pre-'75 anime that came over to the U.S. escaped my attention. I certainly was born too late to see any black and white anime.

Some "monochrome" anime I've watched recently:

Yusei Shonen Papi: I know from his blog that Dave Merrill in here is a big fan of this show (also known as Prince Planet outside Japan). And indeed, the episodes I've seen so far do indicate something a little more offbeat than the typical 60s anime. There's a wonderful sense of mood to the show, which is reflected most in the episodes featuring Gorem. He's a genuinely awesome villain--the stuff of kids' nightmares--and would carry over extremely well if this show were ever remade today. I think if I were around to watch this back in the day, I would have preferred this show over the '63 Astro Boy. Some U.S. company was supposed to release a DVD set of Prince Planet last year, but it seems it never materialized.

Akane-Chan: Why isn't anybody fansubbing this? Probably a prototype version of a WMT show in look and theme (although it's much more lighthearted than the heavy melodrama of your standard WMT show), this monochrome early "slice of life" shojo about a nice goody two shoes girl, a huge dog, and a perpetually runny-nosed kid seems like it should be more well known than it currently is.

1968 Cyborg 009: Not being an expert on this franchise, I can't really comment on the adaptation. I saw the 2000s TV series that Sony put out on DVD and CN a while back but that's about as far as my knowledge of Cyborg 009 goes. I know for this '68 version they changed 007 into a kid. The theory was to make him more kid friendly but I wonder if they also wanted to avoid any comparisons at all to James Bond (even though he doesn't remotely look like him in either version). All that said, this version seems to give the other cyborgs the short shrift (other than 009 of course). 007, incidentally, actually appears quite a bit (comedy relief characters are lucky in that respect) and it actually strikes me that his powers make him actually the most powerful cyborg of them all, or at least the most versatile. 009 is supposed to have super speed, but a lot of villains sure seem to be able to get away a lot while 009 is trying to chase them down. DAMMIT JUST USE YOUR SUPER SPEED JOE. Anyway, this show is okay, but seems a bit run of the mill to me at times.

Sally the Witch: I actually think the show doesn't hit its stride until after it becomes a color anime in episode 18. The show seems to really use color to its advantage, and the while the first 17 black and white episodes have a certain charm, it doesn't quite have the same punch as the color ones. It's kind of like those people who watched The Flintstones and Huckleberry Hound in black and white back before they got color TV sets, and then once they saw those shows in color, they wondered how they could ever see them in black and white ever again.

'63 Astro Boy: Giving this another watch as part of my monochrome anime kick. I watched a few episodes a couple of years back but the pacing was somewhat sloggy and I must admit that even the most tolerant of limited animation will find their tolerance stretched to its limit. I'm informed that the show does pick up in technical and writing quality after a while but those first dozen or so episodes are quite tough to get through at times.

Fujimaru of the Wind: Have only seen 2 random episodes raw, but it certainly has that ninja action coolness factor to it that I wish would catch the attention of some old-school fansubbers out there.

I've of course also seen that one episode of Hustle Punch that's practically on every major streaming site online; it's a show which seems to have gained some sort of hipster appeal in recent years for those with even a passing awareness of black and white anime. It certainly is the most professional looking black and white anime of the bunch I've seen (having Yasuji Mori and Hayao Miyazaki as part of the main staff probably helps there) but I'd need to see more of it to determine if it eventually stands out from the Hanna Barbera funny animal stuff it's channelling.

Fujimaru of the Wind, Ken the Wolf Boy and Akane-Chan really need more exposure IMO, either from bloggers or fansubbers. I actually haven't seen any of Ken the Wolf Boy, but it seems like an important show in anime history that anyone with an interest in early anime ought to know about, and I really wish I knew more about it.

What black and white anime have you guys seen? Which ones do you like? We tend not to go *that* far back on this forum, so maybe we can spur on some discussion here to educate some of us in here who aren't old enough to remember them (like me).

[Drew_Sutton]

Have you seen Kill La Kill yet? I got a lot of that vibe from their fanservice and I think that it is fairly well done though, I can't say I was familiar with much of satarizing otaku fanservice culture prior to KLK.

I think fanservice satire has been around since at least the 80s. I've seen dozens of older anime satirizing various tropes in otaku culture and anime. Otaku no Video is a prime example of this.

I have not seen Kill La Kill. It certainly looks nice from a visual standpoint but I tend to prefer to watch big hype shows after the hype has died down.

Completely understand wanting the hype to die down a bit. Since it's already on your to-watch list, I won't push it any more than that.

It might be a ripe topic for another thread but I felt the way Otaku no Video and other, more recent works such as Genshiken and Welcome to the NHK, explored otaku culture and satirized it was much different than say something like KLK or the Monogatari series specifically call out fanservice and use it as satire. I mean, fanservice is certainly an aspect of the culture that they highlight at points; however, all of those series deal with the culture at large. While I'm not familiar with the Monogatari series, KLK has its own narrative and characterization that are outside of the auspices of otaku culture with instances of fanservice often containing a cut-away, fourth-wall-breaking that 'XYZ was done for pervy fans/merch'. Being that Trigger is a bunch of GAINAX alums, they would know.

Back to watching stuff - llj, are Akane-chan and Fujimaru of the Wind online somewhere or are they personal copies you have? Both of those sound interesting, even if they are raw.

What black and white anime have you guys seen? Which ones do you like?

I'm afraid that I am probably less enlightened about monochrome/B&W anime than you so I may not add much to the discussion. The most recent one I've seen in Sabu and Ichi's Detective [Service/Stories], a 1968 terebi-manga series. It's based on an Ishi[no]mori Shotaro work about two detectives in feudal era (Can't remember if it was Warring States or Edo Periods) Japan. Pretty episodic and easy to sit down and watch a couple of episodes at a time.

Aside from that, I've seen a few bits of Prince Planet, '63 Astro Boy and some scenes of Sally. I agree with you that based on what I've seen of Sally in color compared to monochrome, it does take the color episodes to really hit its stride.

[llj]

Akane-Chan and Fujimaru episodes I managed to watch through a local import/bootleg DVD outlet. They were Japanese audio and Chinese subtitled, which I can't read, that's why I don't go into as much detail about them. I know there is a Fujimaru episode somewhere online, but I think they are raws or low quality.

Here is some info on Akane Chan:

http://blacksun1987.blogspot.ca/2010/06 ... -chan.html

And Fujimaru:

http://blacksun1987.blogspot.ca/2010/02 ... -fuji.html

http://cartoonresearch.com/index.php/fu ... wind-1964/

[Char Aznable]

Just finished up Fate/Stay Night. While I have some mixed feelings about the show, I'm glad I finally watched it. Much like Fate/Zero there were a number of intriguing characters, like Saber, which made the series more interesting.

I also re-watched all three of the Cyber City Oedo OVAs. It still remains one of my favorite cyberpunk anime titles and it was neat listening to the commentaries for the first two OVAs (which, despite owning the series on DVD for years, never did). The commentaries by director Yoshiaki Kawajiri and Madhouse studios founder Masao Maruyama are rife with information about the anime industry circa-late '80s and it's interesting to hear their thoughts on how anime production has changed in Japan since then.

What black and white anime have you guys seen? Which ones do you like? We tend not to go *that* far back on this forum, so maybe we can spur on some discussion here to educate some of us in here who aren't old enough to remember them (like me).

Gigantor easily ranks as my favorite black and white anime. I used to get the VHS tapes back when Right Stuf was releasing them in the '90s (the era of two episodes per tape). It was great when Rhino finally re-released the series on DVD back in 2002. Gigantor had a unique cinematic-style, and the animation itself was exceptionally slick, particularly in stand-out episodes like "World in Danger". I still get a kick out of watching the series with that great '60s-era dub.