Wakaranai

Rating:    

Break out the champagne, this is cause for celebration! For the first time since the first episode I found this episode of Railgun to be all-round satisfying and solidly entertaining. And that is high praise coming from someone critically biased by affections for the comparatively superb manga. The series has now shifted into plot gear for what looks like a continuous run on faithfully adapting the corresponding manga chapters of the Level Upper arc. As with the previous episode, the writers have held back at meddling with the content of the manga, with no major alterations to the story and very little padding of originally-written content. As the writers have shown themselves thus far to be untrustworthy at writing their own dialogue without straying off-character and grossly off-topic (eyebrows!), it’s always a good thing when the screenplay is a straight adaptation of the manga. The main reason this episode was, overall, better than the last one is largely due to the improved production values. It’s too hard to take this show seriously when it looks choppy and messy, so this episode was really benefited from an acceptable production quality standard. It helps us get pulled into the emotional story behind the Level Upper without having our suspension of disbelief assaulted by cheap visuals.

And the tone of this episode was definitely more dramatic than in previous episodes, and more sincerely so. Whereas there was a BAWWFest in regards to that minor characters eyebrows earlier, now we’re dealing with the much more subtle and affecting tale of Saten’s dour self-esteem leading her down the wrong path towards using the Level Upper. I always found Saten’s dramatic plight to be the real heart behind the Level Upper plot in the manga, and I think it really made her one of the most sympathetic and interesting characters. That’s why I’m really relieved that they seem to be keeping this stuff intact. They’ve already diminished Kuroko’s character to a yuri gag-canon, so not doing justice to Saten and her story would have been the final straw. Until now I was worried that might happen, but this episode pulled it off really well, and even improved the portrayal of her and Uihara’s vital friendship. The scenes they shared together here felt a lot more genuine than their previous interactions.

Not only was Saten’s characterization nailed, but even Misaka seemed a little more herself. It might be because of the silly tone of the filler episodes we’ve had, but Misaka has really lost a lot of her presence and gravitas lately. We’ve seen a bit too much of her being caught in shy and embarrassing situations and not enough of her being confident and kicking ass. This episode had a good mixture, showing her both in a cute light (pitching the innocent schoolgirl act to try and seduce info out of the gang), and a tough, dangerous one (subsequently demolishing said gang). I love seeing her on top of things and working competently alongside Kuroko. For the first time in the anime they felt like a good partner pairing here. The only flaw I care to pin this episode with is Kuroko’s behavior, which is still irritatingly extreme (banging her head on the ground and such) at times.

But the dialogue was good on the whole, the characters more likeable than they have been since the first episode, and the production values were much stronger than they have been. The action scenes, although brief, were well-animated, and it just looked good in general, with minimal jerkiness or cels looking off-model. Entertaining episode that was more in keeping in spirit with the manga than the anime has so far been. Now what I’m really hoping for is for this standard to both continue and improve!

✔ It’s pretty cool that we got to see Misaka use her manipulation of magnetic fields to stick to surfaces. I think it’s one of the most interesting uses of her power!

● Maybe I missed something, but I was a little confused by how Misaka and Kuroko handled their Level Upper investigation. I mean, there they had the leader of the gang who supposedly know how to obtain the level upper, defeated and at their mercy, but what did they do? They just left? Granted they probably didn’t want to get pinned with the blame for a power blackout, but I think they should have made an effort to actually get a lead, especially when Kuroko could have just teleported them all away.

✘ I take it Kuroko’s head-banging is supposed to be casually funny, but it always makes me squeamish. That looks fucking painful! No wonder she’s starting to go mad .. it’s jealous brain damage! Seriously, couldn’t she just assume the ‘orz’ position or something rather than making a spectacle of creepy self-harm?

 

Rating:    

Well this is a new experience – a Railgun episode with plot! Finally an episode has come along and done the right thing by adapting a chapter faithfully with the right pace and very little padding of original content. Alongside episode 1 , this has been the most direct adaptation of the manga, and finally pushes the series into its first crucial step of actually introducing a plot. You could argue that the foundations for this ep were laid slowly in episodes prior, but this is really the first time we’ve had actual ongoing plot to sink our teeth into. Due to the frivolous tone of the earlier episodes I think you could watch this episode straight from the first ep and not notice any discontinuity (certainly you could skip straight to episode 5). Given the fact that stuff’s actually happening that qualifies as mildly exciting, combined with the absence of excesses of original content to bring it down, the show gets a significant upgrade on the ‘interest meter’. And I have to say that my faith in the show has been tentatively reignited - this might turn out to be an entertaining, dramatic and stimulating anime after all, and not just a template for cheap yuri gags. But despite steering the show in a better direction, the episode still fails to capture the magic of the manga, and stumbles on a number of nagging flaws, including subpar production quality and occasionally awkward dialogue.

✔ The episode’s action peak - that short but sharp moment of danger and panic as the bomb reaches an imminent explosion that threatens to kill Misaka, Uihara, and an innocent young girl, was executed perfectly (one of the few things that has been). The animation in this sequence was good and the timing was really effective, maximizing the alarm and drama of the girls desperately trying to save each other. Misaka fumbling with her railgun ammunition was a surprisingly tense moment. Good stuff!

✔ I noticed that the music wasn’t horribly bland this time around. This anime has very little original BGM compositions, and the better BGM tracks that crop up are just taken straight from the To Aru Majutsu no Index anime. I’m pretty disappointed by the fact that they are recycling Index music rather than creating their own. It doesn’t help shake the cheap feel the series exudes. Plus, an original selection of music would have helped give Railgun its own identity and style. Correct me if I’m wrong here, but there were a couple of good new pieces of music this time around, including the BGM behind the opening Judgement meeting which I really liked a lot. Musically, this has been the only decent episode thus far.

✘ The animation quality of Railgun continues to waver. The animation is only really good for a few key scenes, once or twice an episode if we’re lucky. But in general I feel the animation just isn’t acceptable. The movement of the characters is jerky and unnatural, the designs are often off-model and generally do not look nearly as attractive as they should. It’s sad that a manga with such great artistic flare isn’t given the care and attention in production that it deserves. Index was animated so much more smoothly and the art was generally a lot crisper and appealing. The visual production for the series is the major thing holding it back at this stage (now that it’s gained a plot).

✔ The writing in this episode was good overall, even in the areas where the script wasn’t lifted from the manga. I especially liked the conversation between Railgun and Saten. Those two, despite being opposites of a kind (the ace of Tokiwadai and a level 0), share common ground in the sense that they are probably the most down-to-earth characters in the series. Saten might go a little funny when she catches sight of Uihara’s skirt, but otherwise she is a relatively normal girl. Because of that, these two characters have a great chemistry (which is something I think the manga never really capitalized on). Kanae Itou, one of my favourite new seiyuus, proved her worth in this scene. I don’t know about you, but I think she really conveyed Saten’s sense of dejectedness over being useless.

✘ I couldn’t really put my finger on it but the scene where Misaka was checking out those peer-disapproved pyjamas wasn’t nearly as sweet as in the manga. It might be the mediocre production values of the series bringing down the win of scenes like this.

✔ Isn’t it funny how Touma seems a lot more awesome when you don’t see too much of him?

✘ I’m feeling less sure that Satomi Arai was well cast as Kuroko (which may just be part of my reservations about how her character is being portrayed this episode. Her voice is just too shrill sometimes..

 

Rating:    

I’m in despair! The To Aru Kagaku no Railgun anime has left me in despair! At the risk of turning into one of those wretched people who watch a series only to complain and nitpick, I should make the disclaimer that I’m still enjoying this series. At a base level this anime is still entertaining, although perhaps only if you’re a fanboy inclined towards yuri fanservice and moe. The problem is that, as someone who’s a big fan of its source, the spinoff manga of the same name, I’m stuck in an interminable rut of frustration while watching this series. I’m not usually one to complain about an adaptation being different from the original. Difference and originality is fine. My problem with the anime is that it just isn’t as good. Quite frankly, it’s giving the manga a bad name, or at the very least, other manga fans would have to agree that it doesn’t capitalise on all the potential that the manga offers. This could and should have been an excellent series. But this episode is just the latest nail in the coffin sealing Railgun’s fate as a mediocre moe/yuri series. Even if it picks itself up when it delves deeper into the story, I think we’re past the point where it can really repair its image. The art and (especially) the writing isn’t up to scratch to successfully adapt the manga. The writing is flawed in numerous ways, both in terms of the way it’s pacing the story and in the way it’s portraying the characters.

This episode suffers from that same problem: simplified characters. It wasn’t as bad as previous episodes because Kuroko actually got a certain amount of dialogue where she was in a serious conversation and wasn’t losing her composure in another extreme assault on her Oneesama. Unlike previous episodes, when she actually did get that regular moment of Biri-biri fangirlism, it was actually fairly believable. I actually think that Kuroko from the manga would have chased Misaka around the room trying to expose herself like that – it’s one of the few times she hasn’t been made too extreme in the anime. Her diligence as a member of Judgement was highlighted better here than in the previous episode, where it was overshadowed by the over-the-top portrayal of her as arrogant and foolhardy. But I still don’t get the same feel for her character. Biri-biri is still a lovely character to fanboy but she is neither as cool OR as cute as she is in the manga version. She is frequently made embarrassed in this series, and has less opportunity to show off her tough and rebellious side. Even in the Index anime she was more fiery and brazen. Well, honestly, outside of my ongoing distaste for the way these characters are being written, this episode wasn’t too badly written. I especially liked the dialogue between misaka and Kuroko at the very start – it felt very natural and in-character.

But it still wasn’t as good as I hoped, being the first proper (chronological) continuation of the manga since the first episode. The first episode, naturally, dealt with chapter 1, and this episode resumed that by covering the 2nd chapter. In between we’ve had a couple of later chapters pulled forward and some padding with original content. But this wasn’t quite the 2nd chapter I remembered.. They made a few fundamental changes to it that slowed down the plot progression considerably and made things a bit lamer. The lameness comes from the context for Misaka getting pulled into Judgement work. Here it was passed off as a kind of lesson for Misaka, who was feeling aggravated by Kuroko’s ‘self-importance’ as a member of Judgement. So she impersonates a newbie and spends the day helping another Judgement officer in a sequence of mundane tasks. I don’t really believe that Misaka would bother getting herself into that situation. Others might disagree, but it felt a little odd to me. And the bomb subplot has really suffered from the way they’re trying to stretch it out. If the original content they’ve been using to fill the gaps between the manga plot moments was up to scratch I probably would be fine with this abated pace for the story. But sadly this isn’t the case and I find that Railgun is taking far too long to get into its plot (ironically I was annoyed at the Index anime for rushing through its various arcs too quickly). I’m sure Index could have pulled off the Level Upper Arc in 4 episodes, and I’m sad to say it would probably be better than this.

Relative to the rest of the series so far, this was a pretty decent episode, but it just shows that every time the writers try to tweak and adjust the manga content, things don’t turn out as well as they should. The characters are becoming irksome – Kuroko’s crush on Biri-biri is overplayed, and Misaka’s moe, dere side is being over-emphasised, undermining what I feel is the appeal of her character.

 

In some ways it’s good to be a yuri fanboy right now. Exemplified by shows like Saki, Strike Witches and Railgun it seems almost all the popular shows to have surface dover the last year are coated in a thick residue of yuri subtext. It’s hard to find a series nowadays that doesn’t deal with yuri themes or connotations in some way. With all the overtones being thrown around, combined with the increasing selection of anime that, following in the large footprints of Strawberry Panic and Kannaduki no Miko, are overtly marketed as yuri series, featuring unsubtle and unapologetic relationships between girls. It’s like the entire anime industry has suddenly come out of the closet collectively. But, as a long time yuri enthusiast, I think this has become over-saturation and over-simplification of what was once a sub-sub-genre of anime. Being a yuri fanboy used to be a frontier lifestyle. To get to that rare gem of yuri would entail much sifting, searching and usually a bit of imagination. I’m starting to crave that less obvious era once more, when yuri romance was a thing of hidden beauty, epitomised by symbolism, subtlety and romanticism rather than upfront fanboy appeal. Almost ironically, the innocence of yuri that used to make my heart waver has been stripped away as it loses its place as ‘forbidden romance’ in a modern society and an anime industry increasingly marked by fanboy fetishism rather than genuine emotionality.

So where does Sasameki Koto fit into all of this? Well, interestingly, I don’t think it fits at all. Despite being a series that essentially opens with the line “Why can’t girls love each other?”, it’s certainly no Strawberry Panic. It’s in no way trying to hide the fact that it’s a yuri series, but at the same time it’s not making a blatant fanboy appeal; the girls aren’t all super-cute moe fantasies and it’s not caught up in some implausible alternate universe without men (ala Strawberry Panic). And there is no fanservice to be found. I can’t say it feels like a realistic portrayal of lesbianism (and frankly, who wants that?), but it is grounded in reality and hence manages to evoke emotion. Episode 1 misleadingly got the show off to a shaky start in terms of characterisation, but since then the characters have become relatively believable and easy to sympathise with.

This is most true of the main character, the ordinary-looking and slightly masculine Sumika, whose yuri crush on her cute best friend and flagrantly lesbian, Kazama, is crushingly nonreciprocal. The dynamic between these two is the core of the show, and the fact that it is so unusual and fraught with angst gives the show a strong emotional pull over more straight-forward yuri of this type, like Aoi Hana. Sumika’s trouble stems from the fact that her love interest happens to be infatuated with cute and pretty girls, a catergory from which she is explicitly excluded. So despite Sumika being in a good position to confess in terms of the fact that Kazama is interested in girls, she is doomed to the role of jealous and frustrated onlooker as Kazama chases beautiful girls. The secrecy of her crush doesn’t derive angst from the morality or strangeness of her attraction but rather from her fear of being rejected. In that sense you could almost say that its strengths are its romantic storytelling ability, regardless of the yuri aspect. Take out the yuri twist and you’d probably still have a gripping story.

In being an atypical yuri series and not following the usual path of the S-class relationship, and not really chasing a theme uniquely found in the yuri genre, it doesn’t really feel like a yuri series, despite the fact that it clearly deals with girl-girl relationships. I have to say, I prefer yuri series that derive angst or excitement from the “forbidden love” aspect. Being set in a co-ed school rather than the standard all-girl’s-school setting does mean that occasionally allow the show to give the sense that the yuri predispositions isn’t entirely normal, but there’s certainly no antagonism. The only truly straight girl with any kind of role is completely unperturbed by Kazama’s interest, which is nice and all, but I guess I just don’t swallow the lack of prejudice found at this school. This series would have you believe Japanese high schools are havens of political correctness and acceptance while series like Shigofumi portray them as rampant with bullying. But this lack of true believability is forgivable because it isn’t what the show is really about, I just think it’s easy to get fired up and root for a pairing when they face external adversity.

In this case the struggle that defines this relationship is very much internal. Which, as I said before, is quite affecting as a romance story, but feels like it could have been to applied to any couple. While I consistently sympathise for Sumika, the main problem with the series is that it’s set up such that you can’t help but hate the object of her desires, Kazama. Kazama’s obsession with good-looking girls just feels unforgivably shallow coming from the perspective of the audience who knows how hurtful it is to the more sincerely in love, Sumika. The more I feel sorry for Sumika, the more I become frustrated with Kazama, which makes the show fun to watch but which doesn’t really make for a great pairing. I certainly don’t care for Kazama/Sumika, I just want to see Sumika happy. I think this is a flaw in the show, because I’m sure they could have made Kazama more likeable while still playing the obliviously dismissive card. Maybe that would have had the spark to set alight my yuri fanboy side.

As it is though, this is a strangely compelling tale of love, even if it skims over its girl-love angle a little too cleanly and simplistically. If you’re looking for a romance with a dash of angst and a bit of an unusual twist (yuri AND crossdressing), then this could well be worth watching. I’m enjoying the series in that respect, but wanted to try and articulate where it belongs in the exponentially growing mosaic of yuri anime. As yuri creeps into more and more anime, it becomes more important for its fanboys to remember where it came from and what its appeal really is.

Rating:    

I probably shouldn’t have watched this episode right after the recent Darker than Black episode; the season’s biggest success pitted against it’s most disappointing - I just hope my judgement hasn’t been clouded. It’s worth noting that although I say this is the most disappointing show of the season doesn’t mean I think it’s the worst - it definitely isn’t. it’s just that, once again I finished this episode with that sad feeling that the truly excellent seinen manga has not nearly been done justice by this anime adaptation. I’m not about to jump ship though. By not being nearly as shit as last episode this episode has pulled me back from the doomsaying stage. Rather than being a disposable waste of time about a story-of-the-week, the episode traded story instead for some appreciable character development and some fleshing out of strange and interesting the Misaka/Touma relationship. Maybe one day an episode of Railgun will be able to deliver story AND character development.

So, although not much happened again, what did happen was at least entertaining enough to be called worthwhile. For Misaka fans it was good seeing her in full-throttle Biri-biri mode. If you look at her character from two perspectives you could say her Railgun side is her cool, composed and sassy, and her Biri-biri side is her tsundere mode. Her crush on Touma brings out her fragile emotions, causing her to flicker between a dangerous bully and a stuttering, blushing young maiden. Her dialogue with Touma is always lots of fun, and accounted for all of the best moments of the episode. I admit I really cracked up during the flashback to their first meeting, when Touma showed up to save her from the forceful advances of a gang of delinquents, only to have his plan of pretending to be her boyfriend thwarted. That and his subsequent humiliation of Misaka by calling her childish is classic Touma/Biri-biri material. Their later moonlit duel was well-animated and featured some interesting tactical use of Biri-biri’s abilities. One consistent plus for Railgun is that, when it does have an action scene, there is little risk of it being choked by a spiel of invasive exposition.

On the other hand, these highlights are kind of worrisome because those scenes are essentially lifted from the manga intact. The original content of the series remains comparatively mediocre. I’m already wishing this had been a 12 episode series - the less stuff these writers have to slip in the better. The introduction of Academy City researcher, Harumi, was taken from the manga and altered a bit to fit it into this episode. Harumi’s character is suitably mysterious and quirky, but this seemed like a really odd way to introduce her - just an arbitrary coincidence. In the manga, they met her while investigating a Judgement matter relevant to the Level Upper case .. not just because she was wondering around trying to find a car park. It seems that’s consistent with the more comical tone of the anime over the manga :\

And while I’m on a downhill rant, I have to bring up the portrayal of Kuroko’s character again. For all the cute, moe fun we got with Biri-biri this episode, Kuroko’s was pushed further done the route of a shallow gag-character. Her extreme reactions to Saten’s urban legend murmurs were just .. inexplicable. Believe me when I say that Kuroko from the manga would never have reacted like that. She may have strong perversions when it comes to Misaka, but she also has a sharp wit that would lend her the ability to delineate fact from fiction. And I don’t think Misaka would ever have had to tie up the manga Kuroko (maybe coming close to though XD).

This was an enjoyable episode because there was a hefty amount of Misaka goodness to be had, and because the interactions between her and Touma are great fun. There were a few brief smatterings of fanservice as well.

● Harumi’s public stripping was not quite as good because Kuroko wasn’t there to react by lecturing her on being more lady-like XD. That was definitely a lot more fun in the manga. But if she managed to get an urban legend started about her, maybe we’ll get more regular Harumi strippings?

● Her taste in drinks is truly terrible. But I bet that was a drink Yue would love!

♡ Wasn’t that a fantastic episode for Misaka fanboys? We haven’t had a hit of cute Biri-biri in anime form for far too long! She’s just so moe when she blushes and gets flustered! I especially loved when harumi was trying to call her a tsundere this episode. Come on, Biri-biri, admitting you’ve got a problem is the first step!

 

Everybody loves fanart .. when it’s good. Fortunately, for anime fans there are hordes of Japanese fans out there with the talented and dedication to bring us some great art of our favourite characters, pairings and persuasions. The relatively new online service Pixiv has been a really great resource for artists to share their creations and for fans to enjoy them, but not all western fans have the patience to navigate the Japanese and create an account there or the time to sift through it. With these posts I’ll attempt to post my picks for all the anime/manga I’m interested in weekly. Hopefully someone might find this useful or enjoyable!

Artist: もどるの

Cute little Kuroko/Misaka yuri pic ♡

Continue reading Fanart Digest #3

Rating:    

I was pleasantly surprised to find myself enjoying this first episode of Shin Koihime Musou. I was surprised for a couple of reasons. Mainly because my expectations were abysmally low to begin with. I never read too far into it, but the comments and reviews I’d come across for the Koihime Musou franchise painted a pretty damning picture of a super-generic fanservice series with no purpose beyond trying to sell its array of cute female characters. The other reason is that this is the xth extension of a franchise I’ve had zero pre-exposure too. Fortunately, the episode required no prior knowledge to enjoy (one of the major benefit to being largely plotless I guess), and although it pretty much falls in line with the prior description, it was surprisingly entertaining. It didn’t give of that vapid and lifeless vibe that a truly generic series will emit.

The episode basically revolves around the tough but sincere girl, Bachou’s yuri crush on the wild & stalwart loli, Chouhi, and her inability to call her by her nickname “Rin-Rin” as a sign of affection and closeness. A few misunderstandings later and the problem turns into an argument between them. The premise behind this episode is pretty thin, but when it’s played out by such a charming and moe group of girls, it never really felt tedious.

The show’s major asset is indeed the fact that it’s (disturbingly huge) cast of girls are genuinely cute, and it is helped immeasurably by the fact that, contrary to my original suspicions, it does not rely solely on ecchi gags and service to keep its audience’s attention. Indeed, this episode had almost no service whatsoever. Instead it kept my attention by making its characters cute and likeable, and giving them an hint of sincerity that extends slightly beyond their cliché personality-type. Another great pull was the yuri factor (which happens to be the reason I picked up this series). The yuri subplot this episode was really sweet and believable. I’m not sure how far it will develop, but if it keeps up like this, then this is definitely a show for yuri fans to check out! Otherwise this show will go down will with seasoned fans of the moe genre, and not so well with people who like a little more substance and depth. Unlike Negima, which brands itself with a similar kind of appeal, this has no plot to speak of.

♡ The yuri is really sweet! Who would have thought that one of the more enjoyable yuri pairings of late would come from a show like this. Given that Koihime Musou is trying to appeal with sexy and moe girls and therefore an almost all-female line-up of characters, I suppose it was inevitable. Despite this being such an average series, the romantic feelings behind this yuri subplot felt surprisingly sincere, quite unlike series such as Saki. I quickly found myself caught up in Bachou’s character and her unrequited love. I’m really rooting for her now! (Even though I know nothing will ever come of it - Rin Rin is too oblivious for this to go anywhere in 12 episodes). Her frequent embarrassment at intimate moments with Rin-Rin are really fun to watch. Bachou is moee~!

♡ The absolute cutest scene came from Bachou’s practise with a drawing of her crush. Her stuttering and flustered inability to call her or even her effigy by the nickname Rin-Rin just melted my heart! Bachou’s seiyuu, Maki Kobayashi did a great job with this. And her slightly masculine voice for the character is also kind of refreshing.

✘ The series brands itself as a fantasy-action-moe-fanservice series, but be warned, the only real appeal can be found in the moe-fanservice side of these tags. Unlike Negima, the fantasy and action elements aren’t quite up to scratch. It’s clear there’s no budget or motivation to produce a decent battle scene here, so the premise of the girls as warriors is just a backdrop for their moe antics.

● Is this an eating animu? I think a majority of the episode was devoted to the characters eating and talking over dinner. I’m beginning to think that’s all these girls do!

● Koihime Musou has a fuckload of characters. ‘Lots’ or ‘many’ simply aren’t up to the task of describing the sheer number of lovely girls crammed into this franchise. Scanning through all the girls shown in the OP it seems there are some amazingly cute characters in there. They can’t possibly all be visited or re-visited in 12 episodes but I really want to meet more of them! Especially the three catgirls, they’re cute AND fappable. Certainly some of the most fetching catgirl designs I’ve seen.