Board 8 > Anime & Manga Discussion Topic 297: A Dream of Spring

(+) Yeah! (+)

First episode of Unnamed Memory completed, it seems like it'll be pretty good! I didn't like the prince's whiny friend who contributed absolutely nothing aside from begging to turn around, but I have to assume he'll be getting less screentime from here on out. Both the prince and the witch were great, and I'm excited to see more of them together. This is the show I was most excited for going into the season, and it hasn't disappointed me so far.

MartinFF7 posted...

And also don't watch the "next episode" previews at the episode's end, not worth it ever and REALLY not worth it in a few situations. Some episodes don't have ending song so gotta be more prompt in the episode skip, lol.

Thanks for the tips, I'll try not to get spoiled! It looks like the episode thumbnails on Hidive are all the same picture of the two leads now, so at least I won't need to worry about that.

Only one day left to announce a simulcast for Mysterious Disappearances...

IIRC, I think this series may have been announced at a Crunchyroll event of some kind last year??

Mind you, the question mark block has been removed from the announcements page. So I'm pretty sure it doesn't matter either way....

This was a disappointing season for simulcasts. No one got Rinkai, Mysterious Disappearances, or Girls Band Cry. Tonbo went to Amazon apparently. Yozakura and Fable are stuck in Disney's close-captioned hell. That's six shows I wanted to watch! I hope future seasons aren't this bad.

Loser Ranger is also in closed caption hell. It's a bad time, don't know what could have happened here to make this all happen at the same time.

Tonbo being the first simulcast Amazon has grabbed in who knows how long...I'm sure has something to do with it being an NFT promotion, lol.

Oh hey, what a coincidence since I was just talking about her.

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/a/a2e6d389.jpg

What an absolutely stacked performance history.

Anyone who voices a BanG Dream character is okay by me, and she's great as Misaki

Oh hey, I somehow missed that Waifu season 4 came out (though not officially over here yet).

There goes a whole day for me at some point soon!

I wish we could see the timeline where anyone else was even attempting to to make actual, action oriented series in Flash like this. Instead, we get literal baby cartoons and mostly shitty adult animated series on Netflix or Fox.

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/2/202da939.jpg
https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/9/959ac4da.jpg

That said, I don't know if this is still technically Flash, since I thought they shut that down? Or was that just for use on the web?

Wait, by Waifu do you mean Wakfu? Are they still making Wakfu? The french anime?

Oh lol I did not notice that typo in the initial post, whoops!

Yes, Wakfu season 4 has finished airing and from what I understand it's the last season. I am not looking super hard into it for fear of spoilers, though.

Already there are characters from the Dofus movie shown here too, so I am extremely excited for that integration.

Villainess Level 99: I May Be the Hidden Boss but I'm Not the Demon Lord was a ton of fun! Seems like this'll come out as the #1 villainess show of the season for me. Yumiella is an amazing protagonist, with constantly hilarious narration. She's ridiculously OP, but it feels like that's the point of the show - it's mostly used for humorous outcomes, and it's not like the show aims for tension most of the time anyway. The rest of the cast isn't amazing, but Eleanora is a lot of fun, and Patrick makes for a solid love interest. Consistently funny to the end, and feels like it tells a full story. Somehow, it only adapts one novel (of four so far, I think?), and doesn't feel slow paced at all. Only weakness is the really bad CG that shows up in some action.

Also watched The Weakest Tamer Began a Journey to Pick Up Trash, another female protagonist isekai. There's some good things here, but I don't think the show is very good at all. The animation is awesome, especially the character animation. There's a three minute sequence at the end of the last episode that feels like pure art. It's nice to have a "weakest" show where the MC is actually weak and not OP, too. The protagonist, Ivy, is a solid character, though she's not particularly great like Yumiella. It has a solid fantasy setting, some decent comedy, and can be pretty chill. That's as far as it goes, though. None of the other characters here are interesting at all. This feels like it's written for children, where everyone is either ridiculously evil or a saint. It feels incredibly slow paced, having way too much time devoted to giving scenes time to breathe. Sora's not a particularly cute slime like Sui from Campfire Cooking. It all comes together for an extremely okay experience. It's a shame animation this good is wasted on a show this mid.

Winter Rankingz:

1. Frieren
2. Dangers in My Heart S2
3. A Sign of Affection
4. Gushing Over Magical Girls
5. Brave Bang Bravern!
6. 'Tis Time for Torture, Princess
7. Villainess Level 99
8. Mr. Villain's Day Off
9. Apothecary Diaries
10. 7th Time Loop
11. The Wrong Way to Use Healing Magic
12. The Weakest Tamer Began a Journey to Pick Up Trash
13. The Foolish Angel Dances with the Devil
14. Pon no Michi

MacArrowny posted...

It's a shame animation this good is wasted on a show this mid.

This was my biggest takeaway from Weakest Tamer too, other than my annoyance at the chime isekai personality. Villainess 99 really could've used those production values!

7 directors for the first episode of the new Mappa baseball show.

This studio.....

Annnnnd that's a rap for Mamayuyu. Bleeeeeh.

This is actually the first time I've experienced a manga getting cancelled that I was actively following week to week.

Can't say the writing wasn't on the wall, though. Start was incredible but it didn't know where it was going. Still, I feel like it could have gotten out of it's rut.

Watched the first episode of Oblivion Battery, a baseball anime about a superstar catcher who gets amnesia. When I read the premise for this, it sounded like a hardcore sports anime similar to Blue Lock or something. It turns out that it isn't like that at all. What it actually is, at least so far, is a terrible comedy. The amnesia guy has seemingly reverted to the mindset of a three-year old and spouts nothing but the most juvenile jokes. I lost count of how many jokes he made about nipples and none of them were funny. His friend, a superstar pitcher, also has the personality of a piece of cardboard. For good measure, they also threw in a boring normal guy. This is our main cast and I don't like any of them. I really hope amnesia dude becomes less insufferable as this goes on, and maybe they'll introduce a few characters to add some actual spice to this cast. I went into this thinking it couldn't be worse than Cinderella Nine, but so far it's way, way worse.

Anyway, here's my season ranking so far. Gods' Games We Play fell really hard after episode 2, Train to the End of the World had an amazing episode 2 and rose a bit, and Unnamed Memory debuts pretty high! For as much as I dislike the bottom four, this is still shaping up to be a decent season.

Spring 2024 Ranking so far
-Laid-Back Camp S3
-A Condition Called Love
-Jellyfish Can't Swim in the Night
-Unnamed Memory
-Train to the End of the World
-Tonari no Yokai-san
-As a Reincarnated Aristocrat, I'll Use My Appraisal Skill to Rise in the World
-Astro Note
-A Salad Bowl of Eccentrics
-Studio Apartment, Good Lighting, Angel Included
-Oblivion Battery
-Gods' Games We Play
-Highspeed Etoile
-Grandma and Grandpa Turn Young Again

They sure try to make a lot of sports anime, but if you can't cause a nationwide resurgence of real world school club applications, you're never gonna beat Haikyuu.

One of these days I gotta actually sit down and watch this show.

https://twitter.com/gabeatethesoap/status/1777140164411679016?t=yDS4KFHTpnRaSUoXd8xIdA&s=19

I'm gonna be honest, it takes a fair bit for me to actively disregard and not even consider a sports series that hits my radar. Which is why I watched ep 1 of Highspeed Etoile (But won't be watching ep 2)

Robazoid posted...

What it actually is, at least so far, is a terrible comedy. The amnesia guy has seemingly reverted to the mindset of a three-year old and spouts nothing but the most juvenile jokes. I lost count of how many jokes he made about nipples and none of them were funny. His friend, a superstar pitcher, also has the personality of a piece of cardboard.

This, however, is enough. Thanks for sparing me this shit Roba.

UshiromiyaEva posted...

Start was incredible but it didn't know where it was going.

I feel like it's crazy that his mom wasn't used past like chapter 3

pjbasis posted...

I feel like it's crazy that his mom wasn't used past like chapter 3

Literally in the title of the series. Fuckin' wild.

It's his first series though. He'll improve.

Oh, Crunchy did upload Mysterious Disappearances!

They just never announced they actually had it.....

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/2/244385c2.jpg

We are so back.

Yep. The gang is back, and I bet it will be better than the Megumin spinoff was.

First episode was already much better than anything in the Megumin spinoff. Megumin is my fav but the Seinfeld Squad has to be together.

It's extremely rare that even a comedy anime I like can make me verbally laugh even once an episode, and I did so multiple times during this.

You can tell it's a different studio, but not because the physical comedy is any better or worse, it's just a bit different.

Reg posted...

I'm gonna be honest, it takes a fair bit for me to actively disregard and not even consider a sports series that hits my radar. Which is why I watched ep 1 of Highspeed Etoile (But won't be watching ep 2)

This, however, is enough. Thanks for sparing me this shit Roba.

Well, I don't know if you should take my word for it! The reason I mentioned Cinderella Nine was that it's the only other baseball anime I've seen. I also have to imagine Oblivion Battery will get less stupid as it goes on. This is just the guy at peak annoying so they can (hopefully) tone it down as he gets his groove back.

I'll stick with the show regardless, though, so you can check back at the end of the season to see if it improved.

Konosuba was Konosuba, it's already been mentioned and if you are here for Konosuba you are here for this. If you thought you were maybe falling out of love with Konosuba because of the Megumin show, this will fix you right up. This and Euphonium are probably the best shows of the season, but I typically do not like ranking sequels in lists like this.

Seiyuu Radio started a little iffy, but I was sold by the end, the girls have great chemistry. I'm told this is real deal Yuri, which is funny because I felt it was the least Yuri coded of any of the shows that showed that potential this season so far, but also that the anime probably won't get there in S1. Hopefully it does well and can keep going, then!

Mysterious Disappearances....like, OK when it wants to have some eggregious fan service like in the OP, it pulls it off and is very blatant, but it really feals like the presence of fanservice is so minimal that it doesn't really effect the show at all (and no, a character having big tits is not inherently fanservice). In fact, there were several moments where blatant fanservice seemed like it was obviously on the table and they held back! I'm pretty excited to watch this one as someone who doesn't always watch the horror mystery stuff, and I think it has a really unique look to it. That said, I know the manga has full nudity and that's all been cut, so I'm sure a certain subset of people are gonna call this trash. I'm really just here for the vibes.

The anime subreddit did another best of genre poll, this time horror. I'm only posting it because Dark Gathering got 6th and I will shill for it every chance I get.

https://www.reddit.com/r/anime/comments/1c0m36k/ranimes_favorite_horror_anime_poll_results/

Looking at this also made me realize that horror might be my favorite anime genre. Eight of those top 25 are amazing and most of the rest are ones I haven't seen so they could be amazing too! The ones from 3rd to 7th (Another, From the New World, Shiki, Dark Gathering, and Mieruko-chan) are all 9/10 or 10/10 favorites of mine.

Calling some of these horror is hardcore pushing it, but the genre is under presented enough that you gotta have some leeway.

Higurashi at #1 is...an interesting choice. I MIGHT agree? Factoring in the VN, there's no doubt to me that it's the best thing here, but it has been a long time since I've watched the original anime. If they're voting it because of the VN, that seems like cheating because by that logic Umineko should be here even though the anime is a fucking joke.

There's no doubt that the original Higurashi anime did have a unused aesthetic to it that made it more potent for the horror specifically at times, though.

I just noticed there's a Nisioisin book bundle on Humble right now

https://www.humblebundle.com/books/monogatari-returns-again-kodansha-books

It's Monogatari and a bunch of other of his stuff.

And I only just realized that I don't believe Medaka Box ever got an official English release.

The fan translation of the last long arc is pretty miserable, unfortunately. It's fine other than that though.

More first episode impressions

-Mysterious Disappearances was neat! I wasn't sure what to expect from this after reading the premise, but what it wound up being was weird in a fun and interesting way. Main girl has a relatable internal conflict with how she's growing older while her dreams remain unfulfilled. I also want to learn more about her mysterious coworker. He's clearly got a lot going on, to the point where I wonder why he's working at a random bookstore... though, my current theory is that he's there just to appreciate how hot the main girl is, and hey I can't blame him for that. I'm liking how it handled the supernatural stuff, at least so far. Not sure if the rest of the season will hold up, sometimes these weird mystery anime flare out by the end, but right now I'm excited for it.

-The Many Sides of Voice Actor Radio was pretty great too. I like the two main girls and their dynamic with each other. It's a relationship that seems difficult to get right. Both girls had to be likable in some ways to get the audience to care about them, but also unlikable in other ways so that it'd make sense for them to hate each other at first. I was kinda worried they'd screw it up, but so far I think they're doing a good job. There was a moment at the end of the first episode that really sold it for me. I guess I'll spoiler tag it if anyone cares about super early spoilers for this comedy idol show. After Yasumi tripped her to jolt her out of her nervousness, Yuhi threatened to lodge a formal complaint... and for a second Yasumi is legitimately freaked out because she isn't sure if Yuhi will really do it or not. Then it turns out Yuhi is just embarrassed and Yasumi goes right back to teasing. I really liked that hostile uncertainty they have towards each other, even as they're clearly growing slightly closer.

The other thing I want to mention about Voice Actor Radio is that I recognized who was voicing the two main girls instantly. They sound different in their day-to-day life, but when they're in actor mode, well, I've been hearing those voices for years! They also voice two characters in BanG Dream, Kokoro and Kanon. For those of you don't know BanG Dream, those two are in the same happy-lucky-smile-yay band and they're two of the sweetest, friendliest girls ever. My only worry now is that I don't know if I can suspend my disbelief to the point where I can accept that Kokoro and Kanon are enemies!

....You know an OP is classy when it played in the episode and you didn't even realize it was happening.

https://twitter.com/anime_eupho/status/1778362894209761438?t=7tKlsnz_DMrxnkpNHaiOEA&s=19

Salad Bowl really making me want to go watched the Devil is a Partner Timer S2 and 3 for some reason.

But I have heard nothing but bad things. I don't want to damage my memories...

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/b/bbf1588f.jpg

I refuse to believe this is true.

They then follow up to say she's 34 (fuckin' anime sometimes lol), but they specifically say "That's true, BUT..."

https://gamefaqs.gamespot.com/a/forum/a/ac5a9fe6.jpg

OK maybe this is a good show.

I ain't never seen more pre-release hate for a manga than the Tokyo Revengers guy's new series.

That said, that final arc of TR was reaaaaaly fucking bad. Like, I'd rank it lower than Usagi Drop's for completely ruining a series' good will.....he's got a lot to prove.

The second episode of A Condition Called Love really solidified it as my favorite of the season (not counting sequels, Yuru Camp S3 is too good). It's, like, 80% a super cute romance and 20% a super creepy romance. Those two distinct parts are meshing surprisingly well and I am here for it. My reaction at several points was essentialy "Aww, how sweet... wait, what the fuck". It's great! Plus it's doing what I've always wanted romance stories to do. It's actually examining what it means to be in a relationship with someone. I know it's still early, but this is shaping up to be one of my favorite anime romances ever.

UshiromiyaEva posted...

That said, that final arc of TR was reaaaaally fucking bad. Like, I'd rank it lower than Usagi Drop's for completely ruining a series' good will.....he's got a lot to prove.

Is this a western thing or a Japan thing? Because if it's a western thing, it doesn't matter because we never cared about TR to begin with. His market is like 95% Japan.

KamikazePotato posted...

Is this a western thing or a Japan thing? Because if it's a western thing, it doesn't matter because we never cared about TR to begin with. His market is like 95% Japan.

You sure about that? I feel like it's pretty popular with women, even in the west. The anime and manga are both really high on MAL's popularity charts, especially the latter.

I only found out about TR in the first place because of how popular it was!

And I really, really liked the series, too.

Unfortunately I started reading literally, like, 2 chapters into it's fall into complete garbage. It's not like there was even a reason to do it, the series HAD AN ENDING. When I saw there was 1 or 2 chapters left, I thought it was for an epilogue. And then it just shits the bed with an entirely pointless, garbage tier last arc, and completely obliterated what could have been an extremely easy to recommend manga.

That, combined with the anime being a color the manga pages zero effort adaptation, has definitely caused it's popularity to wane, but it was preeeeeetty big for a time there.

Tokyo Revengers was big. The reception itself was always a little shaky at least by the time the manga ended.

UshiromiyaEva posted...

Unfortunately I started reading literally, like, 2 chapters into it's fall into complete garbage. It's not like there was even a reason to do it, the series HAD AN ENDING. When I saw there was 1 or 2 chapters left, I thought it was for an epilogue. And then it just shits the bed with an entirely pointless, garbage tier last arc, and completely obliterated what could have been an extremely easy to recommend manga.

I read it after it finished. I liked and disliked the series at various points, but that last arc was really good. I was enjoying it, and thinking it was great, and feeling confused that it had like 80 chapters left. I read the first chapter or two of the actual last arc and just... stopped. It wasn't a conscious decision or anything, I simply never had the desire to read more.

You made the correct decision.

And it's, like, immediate to. The fact that the last arc even starts happening period is an enormous red flag, but it's also apparent right out of the gate that "oh no he fucked it all up".

It. Had. An. Ending! There was NO REASON to continue! Like, was this a Dragonball situation where he was forced to keep going by editorial?? Didn't work out this time!

The one good thing is that it's still possible to recommend the series, and you can literally just tell someone that there's a chapter they need to stop reading at.

they did it a 3rd season

https://youtu.be/gWRan7tBT3s?si=Keh3VLd9wmTXFZvp

An impressive fake!

We could never be so lucky for them to skip the entire next arc, though.

Well that doesn't make me excited.

Especially after I enjoyed Shibuya less that most people seemed to.

I've seen fans say they love the next arc

I dropped JJK twice during Culling, but to be fair it's stuff they will probably play a lot better in anime form when everyone has a voice actor and is in color, and it's easier to keep track of 500 throwaway characters.

yeah next arc has been hyped

and THEN it's all downhill

KommunistKoala posted...

yeah next arc has been hyped

and THEN it's all downhill

Oh I mean yeah

Honestly the stuff between now and the next major arc is so short it's hard to count.

Technically speaking the next arc (I think it's next?) is the best thing in all of JJK, but that's gonna be like 2 or 3 episodes tops. I was hoping it would be a movie, but I doubt it.