General Anime Thread
- Thread starter Hisako
- Start date
Shademp
420
Puella Magi Madoka Magica
Wonderfully dark "magical girl" anime that doesn't hold back with its heavy emotions and themes. If Sailor Moon had a "darkest timeline", Madoka Magica would be it.
The other half of the joy are the beautiful backgrounds and the Monty Python-esque animations for witches and magical realms. So much creativity and pure LSD-feed.
Wonderfully dark "magical girl" anime that doesn't hold back with its heavy emotions and themes. If Sailor Moon had a "darkest timeline", Madoka Magica would be it.
The other half of the joy are the beautiful backgrounds and the Monty Python-esque animations for witches and magical realms. So much creativity and pure LSD-feed.
solo player sab
normie trash
- AKA
- Sab
Anyone else following Boku No Hero ‘cause the latest episodes got me SOOOOOO HYPED RIGHT NOW!!!!!
solo player sab
normie trash
- AKA
- Sab
Ah, more of a binge watcher, Shad? 
Yes, they wasted NO time getting to the action and excitement this season. I’m thrilled because while season 1 and 2 were great, I haven’t yet been THIS engaged in this anime! Even more so than Shokugeki no Soma right now...but don’t even GET me started on that new season right now... 
Yes, they wasted NO time getting to the action and excitement this season. I’m thrilled because while season 1 and 2 were great, I haven’t yet been THIS engaged in this anime! Even more so than Shokugeki no Soma right now...but don’t even GET me started on that new season right now... 
Rydeen
In-KWEH-dible
That one definitely impressed me for such a short anime. I dug the entropy thing.
Speaking of time-loops, I'm obsessed with Steins:Gate 0 right now. I started watching the anime when it started airing last month. but couldn't take the waits anymore so I got into watching VN gameplay. About 20 hours in lol, half way there.
solo player sab
normie trash
- AKA
- Sab
Finished A Place Further Than The Universe the other day and absolutely loved it.
It's a quick, 13-episode feel-good, coming of age story featuring "cute girls doing cool things." Visually stunning, in my opinion, with great pacing and lovely characterizations. Granted, this series wasn't MINDBLOWING, but with epics like Boku no Hero and Shokugeki no Soma overwhelming my watchlist, this slower-paced, easy-going drama was a nice palette cleanser. I like how Kotaku described it: "A wholesome look at female friendship."
Also, I made the mistake of watching the last two episodes on a plane. Found myself bawling my eyes out in between two strangers
It's a quick, 13-episode feel-good, coming of age story featuring "cute girls doing cool things." Visually stunning, in my opinion, with great pacing and lovely characterizations. Granted, this series wasn't MINDBLOWING, but with epics like Boku no Hero and Shokugeki no Soma overwhelming my watchlist, this slower-paced, easy-going drama was a nice palette cleanser. I like how Kotaku described it: "A wholesome look at female friendship."
Also, I made the mistake of watching the last two episodes on a plane. Found myself bawling my eyes out in between two strangers
Alex Strife
Ex-SOLDIER
I can never not love
the whole episode 9 ending. From Kimari's "what do I do?" when the four of them are standing at the verge of literally setting foot in Antartica to Shirase's whole reaction. It hits home when you're trying to achieve something utterly difficult and people often discourage you! 
solo player sab
normie trash
- AKA
- Sab
Omg,
YES. I love that Shirase's reaction was almost an unexpected twist - "IN YOUR FACE!" My heart swelled, no joke!
I thought that most, if not all, of the episodes hit close to home in some way. I LOVED the themes of friendship throughout the series...but what really broke me was episode 12 when Shirase found her mom's laptop and saw all her emails coming through. That feeling of reality dawning...and how she broke down crying, and her three best friends were sitting by the door, crying with her. Omg, I wasn't ready.
I thought that most, if not all, of the episodes hit close to home in some way. I LOVED the themes of friendship throughout the series...but what really broke me was episode 12 when Shirase found her mom's laptop and saw all her emails coming through. That feeling of reality dawning...and how she broke down crying, and her three best friends were sitting by the door, crying with her. Omg, I wasn't ready.
T@ctic
Pro Adventurer
- AKA
- Orah, Iju
rewatched the japanese noblesse OVA. i so want a confirmed season. so badly ;_;
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=XbGxG3LzA5E&feature=youtu.be
especially with people getting bored of anime (thus meaning manga) nowadays, webtoon adaptations could save the industry.
i wonder why webtoon deleted the OVA from their channel tho...
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=XbGxG3LzA5E&feature=youtu.be
especially with people getting bored of anime (thus meaning manga) nowadays, webtoon adaptations could save the industry.
i wonder why webtoon deleted the OVA from their channel tho...
SeaDragon
Pro Adventurer
- AKA
- Sjödraken
Shademp
420
Little Witch Academia
When the Little Witch Academia OVA came out in 2013, I was absolutely entranced and watched it dozens upon dozens of times. Everything about how the feature was composed made you bathe in a sense of innocent wonder. It was as though somebody had taken my crushed expectations for what the Harry Potter* setting was supposed to be, actually made them a reality and packaged it in gorgeous anime form. *Note: My feelings for the Harry Potter series ranges from "meh" to "dislike".
The sequel, Little Witch Academia: The Enchanted Parade, was watchable but made the main character far too unlikeable even though she learns her lesson at the end. Most of what I remember is how annoyed I was at Akko, so it was clearly a forgettable experience. The disappointment made me not in a hurry to watch the TV series when it came out but now I have at last watched both seasons on Netflix.
The TV show definitely gets far closer to replicating the magic from the original OVA. The writing stumbles awkwardly quite a few times, both in its worldbuilding and in the dialogue. I also think the show could have afforded to go more in-depth about this world's history and structure.
The writers definitely deserve props for learning their lesson from The Enchanted Parade OVA, as this time around the main character's flaws are well balanced with her strengths. You may shake your head at Akko's actions plenty enough times but you are always given enough reason to still understand and sympathize with her.
A defining aspect of this show for me was how the second season was LEAGUES better than the first. The characters are allowed to grow and change in season two and the overarching plot at last takes forefront and plays out at a good pace. The season one episodes felt largely like "adventure of the week" stories, with mostly subtle character changes and very little explanation as to what the overarching plot is all about. Season two is a great reward after the frustrations of season one.
The last few episodes made me cry because I was so invested in the drama. The awkward aspects of the worldbuilding and turn of events arrived aplenty in the finale but you are likely to forgive this because of the ultimate reward: Getting to see great, tear-jerking character growth.
I highly recommend the first OVA and the two seasons of the show. The OVA is pure magic and the show is deeply endearing despite where it stumbles.
You can skip "The Enchanted Parade" unless you want to see a poorer writing example for the main character.
Hopefully one day I'll take the time to play the game "Little Witch Academia: Chamber of Time" which is available on PS4 and PC.
When the Little Witch Academia OVA came out in 2013, I was absolutely entranced and watched it dozens upon dozens of times. Everything about how the feature was composed made you bathe in a sense of innocent wonder. It was as though somebody had taken my crushed expectations for what the Harry Potter* setting was supposed to be, actually made them a reality and packaged it in gorgeous anime form. *Note: My feelings for the Harry Potter series ranges from "meh" to "dislike".
The sequel, Little Witch Academia: The Enchanted Parade, was watchable but made the main character far too unlikeable even though she learns her lesson at the end. Most of what I remember is how annoyed I was at Akko, so it was clearly a forgettable experience. The disappointment made me not in a hurry to watch the TV series when it came out but now I have at last watched both seasons on Netflix.
The TV show definitely gets far closer to replicating the magic from the original OVA. The writing stumbles awkwardly quite a few times, both in its worldbuilding and in the dialogue. I also think the show could have afforded to go more in-depth about this world's history and structure.
The writers definitely deserve props for learning their lesson from The Enchanted Parade OVA, as this time around the main character's flaws are well balanced with her strengths. You may shake your head at Akko's actions plenty enough times but you are always given enough reason to still understand and sympathize with her.
A defining aspect of this show for me was how the second season was LEAGUES better than the first. The characters are allowed to grow and change in season two and the overarching plot at last takes forefront and plays out at a good pace. The season one episodes felt largely like "adventure of the week" stories, with mostly subtle character changes and very little explanation as to what the overarching plot is all about. Season two is a great reward after the frustrations of season one.
The last few episodes made me cry because I was so invested in the drama. The awkward aspects of the worldbuilding and turn of events arrived aplenty in the finale but you are likely to forgive this because of the ultimate reward: Getting to see great, tear-jerking character growth.
I highly recommend the first OVA and the two seasons of the show. The OVA is pure magic and the show is deeply endearing despite where it stumbles.
You can skip "The Enchanted Parade" unless you want to see a poorer writing example for the main character.
Hopefully one day I'll take the time to play the game "Little Witch Academia: Chamber of Time" which is available on PS4 and PC.
solo player sab
normie trash
- AKA
- Sab
Just finished ReLife (13 episodes) and ReLife OVA (4 episodes)
and
I
WISH IT NEVER ENDED!!!!
Think of a RomCom high school version of Erased/Boku dake ga Inai Machi (LOL ok sorta not really). The story centers around Kaizaki who is a 27 year old NEET given a second chance at living his 3rd year of high school. He is chosen as a subject to participate in the ReLife experiment which gives him the appearance of a high schooler and promises a free ride for a year and potential employment at the end of it. The objective of the study is for him to reevaluate his life as he navigates his 3rd year and reflects on how he impacts/is impacted by the people around him.
To be honest, I was really nervous this was going to turn out to be one of those pervy, grown-man-preying-on-high-school-girls scenarios, but I was pleasantly surprised. Amidst the comedic interactions and animations, the anime touched upon some very mature themes such as
the intricacies of friendship, and the loneliness/numbness of adulthood that I feel were handled very gracefully, tactfully, and appropriately.
The main character is extremely likable and best of all, flawed. His back story is revealed little by little through the series and you come to learn that there is much, much, much more to him and his story than a deadbeat NEET.
The supporting characters are JUST as lovable (I can go on forever).
Considering the limited knowledge I have of work culture and expectations in Japan, I'd imagine that this series would resonate deeply with young men and women who don't feel like they ended up where they expected to be professionally.
The series ends at 13 episodes but, naturally, leaves you wanting a little more. I was told that the manga artist was unsure of whether there would be a second season, so he left it fairly open ended. However, after awhile an OVA of 4 episodes was released which serves as a continuation that "wraps up" the main storyline. I enjoyed the OVA as well -- it was a little more fan service-y, to be completely honest, but since I had already fallen in love with the original series I found it to be
.
and
I
WISH IT NEVER ENDED!!!!
Think of a RomCom high school version of Erased/Boku dake ga Inai Machi (LOL ok sorta not really). The story centers around Kaizaki who is a 27 year old NEET given a second chance at living his 3rd year of high school. He is chosen as a subject to participate in the ReLife experiment which gives him the appearance of a high schooler and promises a free ride for a year and potential employment at the end of it. The objective of the study is for him to reevaluate his life as he navigates his 3rd year and reflects on how he impacts/is impacted by the people around him.
To be honest, I was really nervous this was going to turn out to be one of those pervy, grown-man-preying-on-high-school-girls scenarios, but I was pleasantly surprised. Amidst the comedic interactions and animations, the anime touched upon some very mature themes such as
bullying, suicide, PTSD (sort of),
The main character is extremely likable and best of all, flawed. His back story is revealed little by little through the series and you come to learn that there is much, much, much more to him and his story than a deadbeat NEET.
The supporting characters are JUST as lovable (I can go on forever).
Considering the limited knowledge I have of work culture and expectations in Japan, I'd imagine that this series would resonate deeply with young men and women who don't feel like they ended up where they expected to be professionally.
The series ends at 13 episodes but, naturally, leaves you wanting a little more. I was told that the manga artist was unsure of whether there would be a second season, so he left it fairly open ended. However, after awhile an OVA of 4 episodes was released which serves as a continuation that "wraps up" the main storyline. I enjoyed the OVA as well -- it was a little more fan service-y, to be completely honest, but since I had already fallen in love with the original series I found it to be
SOOOOOO FRICKIN CUTEEEEE *GUSH*
Shademp
420
I just binged Devilman on Netflix and I am of the opposite opinion. The show felt like it was going somewhere with the first 7 episodes, but then it just decided that everything was pointless. The ending felt far too perverse.Done watching Devilman Crybaby. First some warnings, this show is not for the faint of heart! It's pretty graphic with the gore and especially when it comes to the eroticism. Definetely not family friendly
My first impression of the show as someone who never read or watch anything Devilman related prior to this:
As a whole I found the story to be Ok with some interesting ideas about hope for humanity but was quite lackluster in emotional investment department to care a lot, until the last 3 epidoes.....OOOH BOY those last 3 episodes, they were so good that made me retroactively like the previous 7 that I found okish. The finale was something unlike and made me feel and think about lots of things, definetely that will stick in my mind for a long time.
I initially rated the show and the episodes 2.5/5 but thanks to the last 3 episodes I up my rating to a solid 4/5 for both. They were that good.
The bad guys win and all of humanity is killed. The only "victory" at the end is that Satan feels alone after his victory and then God decides to scorch the Earth and have life start over from the beginning (except this time Earth now has two moons).
I feel like the story wants me to praise that it has the balls to let all the good guys get slaughtered and let Satan win. "Look at us, we're doing something different!"
You sure did and now I wish I hadn't binged this show. The only point left at the end is "Careful what you wish for, Satan, you just might get it." and that is not nearly good enough to leave me satisfied.
I feel like the story wants me to praise that it has the balls to let all the good guys get slaughtered and let Satan win. "Look at us, we're doing something different!"
You sure did and now I wish I hadn't binged this show. The only point left at the end is "Careful what you wish for, Satan, you just might get it." and that is not nearly good enough to leave me satisfied.
Do not watch this show if you want to feel good in any way.
Lulcielid
Eyes of the Lord
- AKA
- Lulcy
Done watching Megalo Box, the popular show of last season.
At its core MB is a very solid underdog story, as such follows the classic formula almost beat by beat and that would be its main thing holding it back from being an all-time great show (on top of its boxing match being quite average in their delivery of spectacle animation), still, a solid cast of characters and confident execution of familiar genre tropes make the show worth watching.
8/10
At its core MB is a very solid underdog story, as such follows the classic formula almost beat by beat and that would be its main thing holding it back from being an all-time great show (on top of its boxing match being quite average in their delivery of spectacle animation), still, a solid cast of characters and confident execution of familiar genre tropes make the show worth watching.
8/10
.
Strangelove
AI Researcher
- AKA
- hitoshura
I just binged Devilman on Netflix and I am of the opposite opinion. The show felt like it was going somewhere with the first 7 episodes, but then it just decided that everything was pointless. The ending felt far too perverse.Done watching Devilman Crybaby. First some warnings, this show is not for the faint of heart! It's pretty graphic with the gore and especially when it comes to the eroticism. Definetely not family friendly
My first impression of the show as someone who never read or watch anything Devilman related prior to this:
As a whole I found the story to be Ok with some interesting ideas about hope for humanity but was quite lackluster in emotional investment department to care a lot, until the last 3 epidoes.....OOOH BOY those last 3 episodes, they were so good that made me retroactively like the previous 7 that I found okish. The finale was something unlike and made me feel and think about lots of things, definetely that will stick in my mind for a long time.
I initially rated the show and the episodes 2.5/5 but thanks to the last 3 episodes I up my rating to a solid 4/5 for both. They were that good.
The bad guys win and all of humanity is killed. The only "victory" at the end is that Satan feels alone after his victory and then God decides to scorch the Earth and have life start over from the beginning (except this time Earth now has two moons).
I feel like the story wants me to praise that it has the balls to let all the good guys get slaughtered and let Satan win. "Look at us, we're doing something different!"
You sure did and now I wish I hadn't binged this show. The only point left at the end is "Careful what you wish for, Satan, you just might get it." and that is not nearly good enough to leave me satisfied.
Do not watch this show if you want to feel good in any way.
i don't know if it's something that when it was originally written in the 1970s iirc it was something transgressive and different, but like things like watchmen it then became hugely influential and after decades of imitators and grimdark tryhards the emotional impact of it is going to be different than when it was fresh and new.
but i have a soft spot for those dumb devil boys and have you see the live action film
never see the live action film, it is terrible
but i have a soft spot for those dumb devil boys and have you see the live action film
never see the live action film, it is terrible
i want to watch devilman lady. i read it and it was a constant whiplash between 'alrighty then' and 'aarrrghhh stop this'. but the anime was written by the guy who wrote serial experiments lain among other things and i'm interested to see what he does and if it tones down some of the grosser aspects of the comic (i have watched the first six or so episodes and the enemies' motive doesn't seem to be 'have sex with women and impregnate them' so good start so far!)
but in terms of visual quality it's not. great. i think they tried to do some different method for making it? and it didn't necessarily pay off. also i swear that in one episode i could hear the thing where they replay other actors' lines back to the voice actor before their lines. like just faintly you can hear someone speaking and did you just not soundproof stuff properly.
my hopes aren't high but as long as it is less about pervy demon beasts i will consider it a plus
Tashasaurous
Tash for Short
- AKA
- Sailor Moon, Mini Moon, Hotaru, Cardcaptor Sakura, Meilin, Xion, Kairi, Aqua, Tifa, Aerith, Yuffie, Elena, Misty, May, Dawn, Casey, Fiona, Ellie
While I'm not sure if anyone here is a Cardcaptor Sakura anime fan, given how Clear Card had ended in a cliff-hanger and a season 2 of that may happen in the near future which given the four month gap between seasons 1 and 2 of the Clow Card Arc, the airing of the new season may happen in October, I had a dream of how the full Clear Card Arc may end and while the actual ending was cut off and I dream't of the middle part, this is what I think may happen.
I made up the actual ending that makes sense, though it's not likely to happen since the Manga still isn't finished and the fifth volume only comes out in Japan a day after my birthday in September.
Edit: I have no idea why it did spoilers twice since I only wanted it to do it once and it won't let me correct it. Sorry.
At some point, the D Magician Clan begin to arrive in Tomeodo, Japan in search of Yuna D.Kaito and the Watch he'd stolen after he blocked Eriol and prevents him from ever returning to help Sakura.
Sayoran is confronted by one of the Clan Members and, knowing of Sakura's involvement, critizites him for having fallen in love and aided Sakura who, being a very inexperienced Magician, has broken the laws of magic by discovering the Clow Book without guidance and teachings of a mentor and has broken the law even further by creating her own Magical Cards.
Thus allowed someone as dangerous has Kaito to use her and Akiho, another illegal inexperienced Magican to steal Sakura's powers to use for a spell combined with the Watch and if the Sakura Cards are not restored or Sakura does not give up her powers, the world will be put into destruction and she will be punished.
Just as Sakura inadvertedly creates a 52nd Clear Card and capturing it, Yuna D.Kaito hypnotizes Akiho under his control and contronts Sakura who remembers that last time despite that Time has been re-written to save her life. Kero and Yue attempt to stop her from confronting Yuna and Akiho, but Kaito freezes them and puts them into a deep sleep with no awakening and does the same to Sakura's brother Toya and Sayoran so that no one will interfere. Sakura fails to stop Akiho who steals her Key and the Clear Cards before Kaito makes his appearence with Mono, thanking Sakura for her assistance and that now she must perish because he cannot allow her to stop him.
He reveals that, as she had foolishly believed that she didn't need to use the Sakura Cards or her original Star Key as no incidents had happened in two years, she inadvertedly erased all of the Clow
Cards to create her own as replacements, and that she had also foolishly fell in love since love is forbidden in the world of magic, thus he had no choice but to put her loved ones who had magic into deep sleep to prevent her from stopping him.
A guilt-ridden and grief-stricken Sakura weeps, especially when Kaito also tells her that all of the blame for everything that happened falls only onto her and uses Akiho to summon the dragon from Sakura's and Akiho's dreams to swallow Sakura whole before he shrinks it to the size of a tree and uses Akiho's book to absorb it and Sakura into it before removing it's magic, imprisoning her inside. Kaito then uses his magic to remove all memories of Sakura from the world to make it as though she never existed.
However, while imprisoned inside Akiho's "Alice in Clockland" Book and inside the stomach of the dragon, Sakura has another vision with Akiho who, seeing her face and gaining some control of her will, recongises her and asks what is going on, clearly unaware of Yuna's betrayal.
The regretful Sakura reveals what happened and that everything that happened was all her fault, wishing to have never discovered the Clow Book despite that she wouldn't have met or fell in love with Sayoran, but believes that it was probably best since she caused everyone she cared for and love to be put in danger and thus had allowed Yuna to find her and use Akiho to steal her powers and kill her and possibly destroy the world.
A shocked and guilt-ridden Akiho, feeling ultimately heart-broken and betrayed for being used, weeps and apologuises to Sakura for not realising this and wishes to never have moved to Japan, feeling responsible for her actions. The tears of the two then join together and breaks Kaito's hold, releasing Sakura from the dragon and the book and the spell that forced everyone to forget about her is removed.
Sakura finds herself in a castle-like room at the Temple where Akiho awakens, also free from the spell where the shocked Kaito and Mono see this. Despite Sakura having broken free, Kaito tells her that she has no power and thus he is the controller of the Clear Cards now as they obey him.
Sakura, still believing everything was her fault, pleads Kaito to stop and take her life instead and leave everyone alone, while saying that she hadn't meant to simply brush the Sakura Cards away and wants to restore them, saying that it was probably best if she never found them so that they would've been safe from her heart and her actions and no one would have gotten invovled with her crime.
Her tears and offering to sacrifice herself ultimately restores the power of her inner Star, and restores all of the Sakura Cards and her Star Wand, which also breaks the sleeping spell on Sayoran, Kero, Yue and Toya who, along with Tomoyo, rush to save Sakura.
Furious that her powers have been restored by accepting her actions, Kaito ignores Akiho's pleas to stop and fights Sakura with the Clear Cards, while Sakura fights back with the Sakura Cards in a duel of Card Magic.
Sakura attempts to stop Time with the Time Card and use the Return Card to convince her younger self to not look for the Clow Book, but Kaito uses the power of Time stop her from doing so, making her and Akiho realise that as long as he has the Watch, he is unstoppable.
Mono joins in the fight by transforming into her true form, but the timely arrival of Kero in his Cerberus form stops her and Sayoran shields Sakura, revealing that he had no choice but to use a spell to have all of the Sakura Cards to transfere into the Teddy Bears for save keeping until Sakura had figured out what happened, and apologises for not telling her.
Yue joins in the battle but Kaito over powers them, before beginning to absorb all of the Clear Cards and Sakura's Dream Key into the Watch, his intention to reverse Time to when he was expelled from the "D" Clan to destroy them and become the ultimate
Sorcerer of the world, with it's people under his rule and originally intended on using the Sakura Cards, but because of what Sayoran had done, he had no choice but to have Sakura create 'replacements' while using Akiho since she is much more powerful than Sakura will ever be.
Akiho, unwilling to allow Kaito to kill her friends and change history, attempts to draw the Cards and Key from Kaito who attempts to use the Watch to stop her from doing so, but Sakura, unwilling to let Akiho get hurt, uses the Hope Card as a last resort.
The Former Nothing Card gives out energy of Love and increases the strength of the hearts of Sakura, Sayoran and Akiho, allowing Sakura to knock the Watch from Kaito's hand and catches it, and allowing Akiho to steal the Dream Key and the
Clear Cards from Kaito who is now exhausted. He attempts to use his magic to kill everyone, but the sudden arrival of Eriol, his Guardians and the Magician D Clan create a barrier around him and disabling most of his magic due to over-using it.
The "D" Clan punish Kaito for his betrayal by removing all of his magical powers and send him into another dimension as punishment for his crimes, having Mono and Akiho's Book to be sealed away forever.
Eriol, having also gained a new Staff due to Clow Reed's having been severally damaged, tells Sakura the real truth behind Kaito's intentions, that Sakura inadvertedly allowed her magic to go out of control due to over-bearing excitement as she grew older and that her original Star Key acts as a barrier in her sleep to keep her powers from going out of control as long as she wears it.
The guilty Sakura, still regretful for her actions, asks if time should be reversed to prevent her from endangering everyone she cared for and loved despite knowing that she would never be with Sayoran, believing that their love is forbidden. The "D" Clan, however, with a change of heart, say that love is not forbidden in the world of magic after having sensed and seen
Sakura's will to sacrifice herself to save the world and those she loved, which restored the Sakura Cards and broke Kaito's spell. They do warn, however, that she should not use magic with proper guidance and tasks Kero and Yue to continue their task to teach her and guide her, which they promise they will and Sayoran vows to protect Sakura and train her to control her magic.
The Clan and Eriol also warn Sakura that she cannot keep both sets of Keys and Cards and has to make the ultimate choice to erase either one, even though the Dream Key and the Clear Cards will eventually lead her to die young, the same way Clow Reed had when he created the Clow Cards.
Unable to allow the Sakura Cards she'd converted to die, seeing them as her friends and loved ones, and not wishing to go down the same path as Clow Reed, Sakura hesitately chooses to erase the Dream Key and the Clear Cards. This act also strips Akiho from her magical powers and rendering her into a normal girl as she was also warned that her magical powers are too dangerous and had to choose to join the D Clan forever or become a normal human, which Akiho, not wanting to endanger Sakura or anyone else again, chose to lose her powers.
Due to Kaito's magic being taken and the Clear Cards erased, the Theme Park that was constructed over Clow Reed's house is also restored and everyone's memories of the events of "The Sealed Card" is finally restored, yet Akiho is left homeless.
With nowhere else to go and her family not wanting her, Sakura and her friends offer to have Akiho live with them. Akiho decides to live with Sakura and the D Clan, thanking Sakura for her actions, leave with a promise to Eriol that they will be careful with magic and make a fresh start of their own, while erasing the memories of Kaito from all except Akiho, Sakura, Sayoran, Kero, Tomoyo, Yue, Eriol, Ruby and Spindal.
Three months later, Akiho is adopted by the Kinomoto family and is now Sakura's and Toya's adoptive sister. The Sakura Cards and the Star Key remain alive and the same, under Kero and Sakura's watchful eye.
They both still attend Junior High School, with only them, Sayoran and Tomoyo having memories of Kaito's existance, and every second weekend during their dates, Sakura undergoes training with Sayoran to control her magic so that it won't go into haywire again, while Akiho gains her confidence in herself and continues to join Tomoyo in the Choir Club, while also having joined the Manga Club to one day become an Authoress of her own book series.
Toya still keeps secret of his sister's involvement, but gradually warms up to Sayoran, knowing that he can't keep Sakura forever, Kero returns to normal and still plays video games and Online games with Spindal.
Life has returned to normal, but Sakura vows to never dismiss the Sakura Cards or her Star Key ever again and to keep control of her inner magic from now on.
Thus allowed someone as dangerous has Kaito to use her and Akiho, another illegal inexperienced Magican to steal Sakura's powers to use for a spell combined with the Watch and if the Sakura Cards are not restored or Sakura does not give up her powers, the world will be put into destruction and she will be punished.
Just as Sakura inadvertedly creates a 52nd Clear Card and capturing it, Yuna D.Kaito hypnotizes Akiho under his control and contronts Sakura who remembers that last time despite that Time has been re-written to save her life. Kero and Yue attempt to stop her from confronting Yuna and Akiho, but Kaito freezes them and puts them into a deep sleep with no awakening and does the same to Sakura's brother Toya and Sayoran so that no one will interfere. Sakura fails to stop Akiho who steals her Key and the Clear Cards before Kaito makes his appearence with Mono, thanking Sakura for her assistance and that now she must perish because he cannot allow her to stop him.
He reveals that, as she had foolishly believed that she didn't need to use the Sakura Cards or her original Star Key as no incidents had happened in two years, she inadvertedly erased all of the Clow
Cards to create her own as replacements, and that she had also foolishly fell in love since love is forbidden in the world of magic, thus he had no choice but to put her loved ones who had magic into deep sleep to prevent her from stopping him.
A guilt-ridden and grief-stricken Sakura weeps, especially when Kaito also tells her that all of the blame for everything that happened falls only onto her and uses Akiho to summon the dragon from Sakura's and Akiho's dreams to swallow Sakura whole before he shrinks it to the size of a tree and uses Akiho's book to absorb it and Sakura into it before removing it's magic, imprisoning her inside. Kaito then uses his magic to remove all memories of Sakura from the world to make it as though she never existed.
However, while imprisoned inside Akiho's "Alice in Clockland" Book and inside the stomach of the dragon, Sakura has another vision with Akiho who, seeing her face and gaining some control of her will, recongises her and asks what is going on, clearly unaware of Yuna's betrayal.
The regretful Sakura reveals what happened and that everything that happened was all her fault, wishing to have never discovered the Clow Book despite that she wouldn't have met or fell in love with Sayoran, but believes that it was probably best since she caused everyone she cared for and love to be put in danger and thus had allowed Yuna to find her and use Akiho to steal her powers and kill her and possibly destroy the world.
A shocked and guilt-ridden Akiho, feeling ultimately heart-broken and betrayed for being used, weeps and apologuises to Sakura for not realising this and wishes to never have moved to Japan, feeling responsible for her actions. The tears of the two then join together and breaks Kaito's hold, releasing Sakura from the dragon and the book and the spell that forced everyone to forget about her is removed.
Sakura finds herself in a castle-like room at the Temple where Akiho awakens, also free from the spell where the shocked Kaito and Mono see this. Despite Sakura having broken free, Kaito tells her that she has no power and thus he is the controller of the Clear Cards now as they obey him.
Sakura, still believing everything was her fault, pleads Kaito to stop and take her life instead and leave everyone alone, while saying that she hadn't meant to simply brush the Sakura Cards away and wants to restore them, saying that it was probably best if she never found them so that they would've been safe from her heart and her actions and no one would have gotten invovled with her crime.
Her tears and offering to sacrifice herself ultimately restores the power of her inner Star, and restores all of the Sakura Cards and her Star Wand, which also breaks the sleeping spell on Sayoran, Kero, Yue and Toya who, along with Tomoyo, rush to save Sakura.
Furious that her powers have been restored by accepting her actions, Kaito ignores Akiho's pleas to stop and fights Sakura with the Clear Cards, while Sakura fights back with the Sakura Cards in a duel of Card Magic.
Sakura attempts to stop Time with the Time Card and use the Return Card to convince her younger self to not look for the Clow Book, but Kaito uses the power of Time stop her from doing so, making her and Akiho realise that as long as he has the Watch, he is unstoppable.
Mono joins in the fight by transforming into her true form, but the timely arrival of Kero in his Cerberus form stops her and Sayoran shields Sakura, revealing that he had no choice but to use a spell to have all of the Sakura Cards to transfere into the Teddy Bears for save keeping until Sakura had figured out what happened, and apologises for not telling her.
Yue joins in the battle but Kaito over powers them, before beginning to absorb all of the Clear Cards and Sakura's Dream Key into the Watch, his intention to reverse Time to when he was expelled from the "D" Clan to destroy them and become the ultimate
Sorcerer of the world, with it's people under his rule and originally intended on using the Sakura Cards, but because of what Sayoran had done, he had no choice but to have Sakura create 'replacements' while using Akiho since she is much more powerful than Sakura will ever be.
Akiho, unwilling to allow Kaito to kill her friends and change history, attempts to draw the Cards and Key from Kaito who attempts to use the Watch to stop her from doing so, but Sakura, unwilling to let Akiho get hurt, uses the Hope Card as a last resort.
The Former Nothing Card gives out energy of Love and increases the strength of the hearts of Sakura, Sayoran and Akiho, allowing Sakura to knock the Watch from Kaito's hand and catches it, and allowing Akiho to steal the Dream Key and the
Clear Cards from Kaito who is now exhausted. He attempts to use his magic to kill everyone, but the sudden arrival of Eriol, his Guardians and the Magician D Clan create a barrier around him and disabling most of his magic due to over-using it.
The "D" Clan punish Kaito for his betrayal by removing all of his magical powers and send him into another dimension as punishment for his crimes, having Mono and Akiho's Book to be sealed away forever.
Eriol, having also gained a new Staff due to Clow Reed's having been severally damaged, tells Sakura the real truth behind Kaito's intentions, that Sakura inadvertedly allowed her magic to go out of control due to over-bearing excitement as she grew older and that her original Star Key acts as a barrier in her sleep to keep her powers from going out of control as long as she wears it.
The guilty Sakura, still regretful for her actions, asks if time should be reversed to prevent her from endangering everyone she cared for and loved despite knowing that she would never be with Sayoran, believing that their love is forbidden. The "D" Clan, however, with a change of heart, say that love is not forbidden in the world of magic after having sensed and seen
Sakura's will to sacrifice herself to save the world and those she loved, which restored the Sakura Cards and broke Kaito's spell. They do warn, however, that she should not use magic with proper guidance and tasks Kero and Yue to continue their task to teach her and guide her, which they promise they will and Sayoran vows to protect Sakura and train her to control her magic.
The Clan and Eriol also warn Sakura that she cannot keep both sets of Keys and Cards and has to make the ultimate choice to erase either one, even though the Dream Key and the Clear Cards will eventually lead her to die young, the same way Clow Reed had when he created the Clow Cards.
Unable to allow the Sakura Cards she'd converted to die, seeing them as her friends and loved ones, and not wishing to go down the same path as Clow Reed, Sakura hesitately chooses to erase the Dream Key and the Clear Cards. This act also strips Akiho from her magical powers and rendering her into a normal girl as she was also warned that her magical powers are too dangerous and had to choose to join the D Clan forever or become a normal human, which Akiho, not wanting to endanger Sakura or anyone else again, chose to lose her powers.
Due to Kaito's magic being taken and the Clear Cards erased, the Theme Park that was constructed over Clow Reed's house is also restored and everyone's memories of the events of "The Sealed Card" is finally restored, yet Akiho is left homeless.
With nowhere else to go and her family not wanting her, Sakura and her friends offer to have Akiho live with them. Akiho decides to live with Sakura and the D Clan, thanking Sakura for her actions, leave with a promise to Eriol that they will be careful with magic and make a fresh start of their own, while erasing the memories of Kaito from all except Akiho, Sakura, Sayoran, Kero, Tomoyo, Yue, Eriol, Ruby and Spindal.
Three months later, Akiho is adopted by the Kinomoto family and is now Sakura's and Toya's adoptive sister. The Sakura Cards and the Star Key remain alive and the same, under Kero and Sakura's watchful eye.
They both still attend Junior High School, with only them, Sayoran and Tomoyo having memories of Kaito's existance, and every second weekend during their dates, Sakura undergoes training with Sayoran to control her magic so that it won't go into haywire again, while Akiho gains her confidence in herself and continues to join Tomoyo in the Choir Club, while also having joined the Manga Club to one day become an Authoress of her own book series.
Toya still keeps secret of his sister's involvement, but gradually warms up to Sayoran, knowing that he can't keep Sakura forever, Kero returns to normal and still plays video games and Online games with Spindal.
Life has returned to normal, but Sakura vows to never dismiss the Sakura Cards or her Star Key ever again and to keep control of her inner magic from now on.
I made up the actual ending that makes sense, though it's not likely to happen since the Manga still isn't finished and the fifth volume only comes out in Japan a day after my birthday in September.
Edit: I have no idea why it did spoilers twice since I only wanted it to do it once and it won't let me correct it. Sorry.
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X-SOLDIER
Harbinger O Great Justice
- AKA
- X
The Amazing World of Gumball still manages fantastic homages. Link to a comment with some more great moments: https://io9.gizmodo.com/1827683695
X
Lulcielid
Eyes of the Lord
- AKA
- Lulcy
Hisako
消えないひさ&#
- AKA
- Satsu, BRIAN BLESSED, MIGHTY AND WISE Junpei Iori: Ace Detective, Maccaffrickstonson von Lichtenstafford Frabenschnaben, Polite Krogan, Robert Baratheon
So anyone who was around on the Discord for a while a day or two ago saw me going on a nostalgia rampage, and part of that was me finding out that Full Metal Panic! had gotten a new season for the first time in thirteen years.
To be honest, I tend to drop in and out of anime, compared to other people who follow it season by season. Even as an adolescent with free time on my hands I never followed the genre religiously. I had watched some classics that caught on in the west, to be sure - the Ghost in the Shells, the Akiras, Triguns and Cowboy Bebops, but truth be told at the time I started watching Full Metal Panic! the last anime thing I had seen was Dragonball Z.
Full Metal Panic! was my first introduction to high school comedy hijinks. At this point there should have been plenty of other shows to choose from this time period that would have presented with the same archetypes and story material, but I really wasn't incredibly interested in those types of elements or archetypes in anime at the time. Full Metal Panic! changed that.
What's interesting about Full Metal Panic! to me is that out of all the anime that I've grown to love it's not a series that's particularly innovative or unique. Its core premise isn't anything amazingly fresh. Its protagonists are pretty tropey and its lead female is as cookie-cutter tsundere as it gets. Even the source light novels aren't anything to really place on a pedestal, although its popularity was probably what lead to being adapted in the first place. But for as little as it does to innovate or offer something new, there's something appealing about a show that doggedly sticks to its formulae and dedicates itself to simply executing it as best as possible.
So it is that the first thing that I like so much about Full Metal Panic! Invisible Victory is that it develops its plot in a familiar, but logical manner. The story and characters ask questions that have either shadowed the series in the past or are now coming to fruition, now being drawn to their logical conclusions. When suspicious events - hijackings and disappearances - have befallen the high school in the previous 9 months and the same people disappear and show up, of course the smarter students are going to start putting one and one together. The main characters keep up the façade, but as the big bads start closing in on them they come to terms with the fact that the life they had before is simply not possible anymore. As Sosuke continues transitioning from a child-assassin/socially inept mercenary to a bodyguard with feelings, of course he's going to have to reconcile his morals with the body count he's racked up in the past. The villain egging on the supernatural genius girl by playing to her subconscious discomfort being surrounded by nothing but dumb motherfuckers in high school is delightfully sly.
The pacing is brisk - almost overly so, although as an adaptation of 3 volumes of light novels there's elements that will inevitably be only touched upon briefly and things are bound to be lost in translation. It comes at the expense of some of the new characters not really getting a whole lot of air time to really shine and make a huge impact. A stand-in female lead in the middle arc comes and goes almost disappointingly, though on the flip side it gives Minori Chihara the opportunity to belt out one of my favorite insert songs I've heard in a while:
The actual plot twists and turns dramatically but not over-unexpectedly, but it's less about where it goes and more about how well it presents while doing so. And thankfully the presentation is really nice! The general consensus about the series has been that while Gonzo was the studio to kick the adaptations out of the gates, KyoAni holds the lion's share of the quality. Xebec taking over the reins was met with some uncertainty with a shaky track record, but on multiple facets, this is a season whose creators pulled out the proper stops to give the fans what they wanted after 13 years. An almost 100% returning voice cast (English dub included). Gundam and Kamen Rider veteran composer Toshihiko Sahashi returns with a huge chunk of the same leitmotifs from the previous arcs. Invisible Victory is a looker, especially in earlier episodes, with non-static camera motion even during quiet non-action scenes that tells fans that Xebec wants to show how far we've come with television anime, away from still frames with moving mouths leaning on voice actors to carry the weight of the performance.
If there's one problem (that hopefully will be addressed some in the physical media re-releases), is that like many shows this quality doesn't hold up over time. In some aspects the budget is clearly straining at the seams, and though I have the benefit of only having discovered the season long after it finished airing, the fact that they had to broadcast two summary intermission episodes at the time is an indicator that they had some pretty significant production problems. Some 3D CGI scenes are especially rough, in particular a car chase in Episode 2. Full Metal Panic! has always had 3D animation for mechanical designs, and the hybrid method of painting over animated sequences holds up very nicely in many shots, but there's a large number of sequences that lack detail and polish which don't hold up and it's a marked blemish that they can hopefully resolve with a refreshed budget and production schedule for a follow-up season.
But all this aside, tl;dr Full Metal Panic! Invisible Victory is a show made for fans of Full Metal Panic!. It doesn't fill newcomers in and I'm pretty sure begins chronologically right after the previous adaptation, The Second Raid. I can't necessarily recommend it for people unfamiliar with the series because a fair amount of its payoff comes from having absorbed the previous 3 shows. That said, I think they are shows all highly worth watching, great examples of how using stereotypes or well-trodden stories can still be entertaining if executed well. And for Invisible Victory specifically, in many ways it's anime unashamedly transplanted from the early 2000s with a 2018 coat of paint, something I'm glad this year is delivering in spades.
To be honest, I tend to drop in and out of anime, compared to other people who follow it season by season. Even as an adolescent with free time on my hands I never followed the genre religiously. I had watched some classics that caught on in the west, to be sure - the Ghost in the Shells, the Akiras, Triguns and Cowboy Bebops, but truth be told at the time I started watching Full Metal Panic! the last anime thing I had seen was Dragonball Z.
Full Metal Panic! was my first introduction to high school comedy hijinks. At this point there should have been plenty of other shows to choose from this time period that would have presented with the same archetypes and story material, but I really wasn't incredibly interested in those types of elements or archetypes in anime at the time. Full Metal Panic! changed that.
What's interesting about Full Metal Panic! to me is that out of all the anime that I've grown to love it's not a series that's particularly innovative or unique. Its core premise isn't anything amazingly fresh. Its protagonists are pretty tropey and its lead female is as cookie-cutter tsundere as it gets. Even the source light novels aren't anything to really place on a pedestal, although its popularity was probably what lead to being adapted in the first place. But for as little as it does to innovate or offer something new, there's something appealing about a show that doggedly sticks to its formulae and dedicates itself to simply executing it as best as possible.
So it is that the first thing that I like so much about Full Metal Panic! Invisible Victory is that it develops its plot in a familiar, but logical manner. The story and characters ask questions that have either shadowed the series in the past or are now coming to fruition, now being drawn to their logical conclusions. When suspicious events - hijackings and disappearances - have befallen the high school in the previous 9 months and the same people disappear and show up, of course the smarter students are going to start putting one and one together. The main characters keep up the façade, but as the big bads start closing in on them they come to terms with the fact that the life they had before is simply not possible anymore. As Sosuke continues transitioning from a child-assassin/socially inept mercenary to a bodyguard with feelings, of course he's going to have to reconcile his morals with the body count he's racked up in the past. The villain egging on the supernatural genius girl by playing to her subconscious discomfort being surrounded by nothing but dumb motherfuckers in high school is delightfully sly.
The pacing is brisk - almost overly so, although as an adaptation of 3 volumes of light novels there's elements that will inevitably be only touched upon briefly and things are bound to be lost in translation. It comes at the expense of some of the new characters not really getting a whole lot of air time to really shine and make a huge impact. A stand-in female lead in the middle arc comes and goes almost disappointingly, though on the flip side it gives Minori Chihara the opportunity to belt out one of my favorite insert songs I've heard in a while:
The actual plot twists and turns dramatically but not over-unexpectedly, but it's less about where it goes and more about how well it presents while doing so. And thankfully the presentation is really nice! The general consensus about the series has been that while Gonzo was the studio to kick the adaptations out of the gates, KyoAni holds the lion's share of the quality. Xebec taking over the reins was met with some uncertainty with a shaky track record, but on multiple facets, this is a season whose creators pulled out the proper stops to give the fans what they wanted after 13 years. An almost 100% returning voice cast (English dub included). Gundam and Kamen Rider veteran composer Toshihiko Sahashi returns with a huge chunk of the same leitmotifs from the previous arcs. Invisible Victory is a looker, especially in earlier episodes, with non-static camera motion even during quiet non-action scenes that tells fans that Xebec wants to show how far we've come with television anime, away from still frames with moving mouths leaning on voice actors to carry the weight of the performance.
If there's one problem (that hopefully will be addressed some in the physical media re-releases), is that like many shows this quality doesn't hold up over time. In some aspects the budget is clearly straining at the seams, and though I have the benefit of only having discovered the season long after it finished airing, the fact that they had to broadcast two summary intermission episodes at the time is an indicator that they had some pretty significant production problems. Some 3D CGI scenes are especially rough, in particular a car chase in Episode 2. Full Metal Panic! has always had 3D animation for mechanical designs, and the hybrid method of painting over animated sequences holds up very nicely in many shots, but there's a large number of sequences that lack detail and polish which don't hold up and it's a marked blemish that they can hopefully resolve with a refreshed budget and production schedule for a follow-up season.
But all this aside, tl;dr Full Metal Panic! Invisible Victory is a show made for fans of Full Metal Panic!. It doesn't fill newcomers in and I'm pretty sure begins chronologically right after the previous adaptation, The Second Raid. I can't necessarily recommend it for people unfamiliar with the series because a fair amount of its payoff comes from having absorbed the previous 3 shows. That said, I think they are shows all highly worth watching, great examples of how using stereotypes or well-trodden stories can still be entertaining if executed well. And for Invisible Victory specifically, in many ways it's anime unashamedly transplanted from the early 2000s with a 2018 coat of paint, something I'm glad this year is delivering in spades.
11 Nostalgic Remastered Musical Leitmotifs out of a possible 8 "But It Was Actually Me All Along!"s.