Since I started working at the Smithsonian this semester, I haven't had much free time, but I've still been able to watch 10 episodes of a 13 episode anime, buy a ps3 and a few games for it, and get a girlfriend. As such my blogging has been nil. Now, I awake from my X amount of weeks slumber to talk about this anime.
Angel Beats! is an anime that reminds me a lot of the Robin Williams movie What Dreams May Come. It takes place in a realm made after a stereotypical anime high school, a sort of limbo for spirits of children who can't move on. It fills itself with stereotypes, unexplained halberds, and a surprisingly deep amount of character revelations.
Each person there has a regret, something they weren't able, didn't, or refused to do in life. The main character, Otonashi, awakes in this world without his memories, but next to a girl with purple hair, later introduced as Yuri or Yurippe, in a school uniform and Haruhi Suzumiya-esque headband looking down the barrel of a sniper rifle. It was at this point I realized I probably wouldn't like this anime. In fact, the only thing that kept me going through this stereotypical, unexplained, gorrammit-there's-another high school anime was the animation and the inclusion of one of my favorite devices; naming the enemy an angel. The perversion of the traditional is one of the most interesting starting points for anything in my opinion. After our amnesiac hero tells the purple haired assassin not to shoot at a cute little girl, she tells him two important things; first that she is an angel and his enemy, and second that she won't die anyway because no one dies in this world. Of course the first thing he does is test this by asking the cute girl in the sniper scope.
He wakes up later, having learned his lesson, surrounded by almost every single stereotype you could think of in a high school right down to the guy who randomly speaks english and does headspins(I'm convinced that the announcer from DDR voices this guy). Notably missing are egotistic glasses geek and frustratingly hyperactive kawaii girl. Also a halberd. Their goal in pseudo-life is to not disappear, which occurs when you go to school normally and act like a normal student. As such, elaborate pranks are planned with military-style briefings complete with beret. These are normally hidden from the nameless, faceless student body (called NPCs, literally stated as non-player characters. I lol'd) under the cover of ROCK MUSIC CONCERTS -____-. Can you get any more "please love my series!"? On the other hand, as far as japanese music goes, it ranks pretty high on my list.
Their first caper leaves you to wonder where they get the guns, ammo, and halberd that are so eagerly poured at the Angel to very little effect. The second episode tells you how and you feel dirty about it. "We have a secret underground factory where we build them." Its called Guild by the way. It is behind a very elaborate method of traps that are mostly pretty cool callbacks to previous ones like a trash compactor, but sometimes as lame as a fake puppy floating downstream. On the way to their facility, one hero after another is picked off until only Yuri and Otonashi remain. It is now that Otonashi begins his role in the series, that of the confidant. Yuri explains she died during a robbery where she was forced to watch each of her family members killed to motivate her into finding the house's valuables. Good old fashioned trauma to drive a character, make them question God, and,in this case, want to fight back against said deity. Once there, they are confronted by Angel, Yuri gets into a knife fight with her, and in an effort to kill her(until next week), they are forced to evacuate and self-destruct Guild. Although, its no big deal we'll just use the old Guild instead. Happy ending in a lame way, but at least they had to blow up the new one right?
The third episode brings home the manner of tragic lives and deaths of those in what I will call the "hero group", but a little to blandly. The vocalist and front-woman, Iwasawa, for the band that distracts the greater population "Girls Dead Monster" or "GirlDeMo" for short. Not sure why they abbreviate it like that. Anyway, she never had a chance to play music in her life, so when she alone sang a song she wrote, she found a state of bliss and went poof. Yep, being happy enough will make you disappear in this world(even after next week). The real shining point of this episode is Angel. So far she had been very quiet, but this time she says something interesting when the student body refuses her attempt to shut down the guerilla rock concert, "...as if I'm a bad guy". Not even in the same old way that all villains do, but one that implies actual, self-questioning confusion. The other question addressed is where Angel's powers come from. Enter egotistic glasses geek, who happens to be a hacker. He, Yuri, and a few others use what will be Iwasawa's last concert to infiltrate Angel's sleeping quarters and hack her computer, finding out that she seems to create her own abilities.
The fourth episode begins before the opening credits, and those credits are used for this frustratingly hyperactive, kawaii girl's audition to replace Iwasawa as the lead singer for GirlDeMo. I like this use of things that are "Out of Character" knowledge to fulfill something "In Character" and save episode time. However, from this point, the episode becomes lackluster. The plot involves a school baseball tournament, which for no real reason, the Hero Group needs to win. When the lame reasons are explained via briefing screen and beret, the grudgingly accepted pink-haired Yui asks all sorts of questions that can be legitimate, but are more often befitting of such overused hair color. She is completely and pointedly ignored. As the episode progresses however, Yui becomes helpful and thinks of things and does things outside of her apparent concept of "pink-haired adorable girl." The episode comes crashing back to lame at the ending, where Otonashi's best friend, Hinata, is about to reach his dream and disappear, but is completely blindsided and is prevented from it by Yui. Lame way to get a good result.
The fifth is a sort of mid-point climax; the end of a chapter if you will. The plan is to get Angel to fail her tests and remove her from her position as Student Council President by creating a distraction while "Christ" swaps her answer key with one that were completely wrong. A good display of characters trying to cheat a system they have become accustomed to. Unfortunately, a new challenger emerges, but it was as if he were always there. No one is surprised to see him, his reveal is actually pretty bland. On the plus side, Yuri is shown to be more focused on her objectives than her comrades' safety; showing a lack of caring due to cheating the system. Flaws are good. For the first time, Angel is spoken to - of course by our protagonist Otonashi - and is given a name, Kanade. It brings up questions like, is she human, what happens to her now that she lost her role, and what now? None of these are really answered, but the episode does well in presenting them in a way that makes the viewer think about them and want to know, rather than just throwing the questions to the audience and hoping they stick.
Episodes six through eight pass without much of importance, though Otonashi has his first glimpse at his memories, the new villain is resolved in a decent albeit repetitive way, and we all get to laugh at Otonashi's emo hair.
Episode nine picks up where five left off in terms of quality. Angel is bedridden, Otonashi is there because he is the only one that cares, and he falls asleep. This triggers an episode-long flashback to his death days. After a train crash, Otonashi is trapped in an underground tunnel, devoid of cell phone service and takes charge of a group of survivors from the crash, tending to their wounds, keeping their morale up, and all around being a leader. It is revealed that he had a bedridden sister who was perpetually waiting on a miscellaneous organ to be donated, that he saw no reason for himself living, and that he eventually dreamed of becoming a doctor. The episode became truly great when he spends the last moments of his life making himself an organ donor, and the realization of his death by his comerades-in-tunnel as moments after he does this, the rescue team breaks through the rubble only to find him and one other man that made it out of the train dead. He is then awakened by Kanade and realizes that he is content and happy, but still in the limbo. Otonashi then hatches a plan with Kanade to have each member of the Hero Group to reach their moments of bliss, supposedly in the same way he did, though it is not explicitly stated.
The last episode I have watched left me with a strangely heavy heart. This episode is devoted to connecting with Yui and giving her nirvana. Through a series of seemingly random tasks, Yui is shown to be a girl who was paralyzed early in life by a car, only able to admire other people's talents on TV. Near the end of the episode, her last wish is shown to be marriage, which Otonashi stumbles and stammers at, but Hinata calls out that he will. His words are all in the present and future tense, and the entire conversation of, "but I'm paralyzed" "I don't care I'll tend to you" made me question whether or not the disappearance from this world will be awakening from a coma, instead of reincarnation. A potential ending that I would enjoy. One type of ending that I hate is one that puts a nail in the coffin, ends the series, and gives no room for anything to continue. This normally happens when a character is forced to sacrifice himself at the end after everyone he knew has been killed. It has a sense of futility rather than achievement. Eitehr way, the episode ends with a montage of scenes from a life that could have been/will be between Yui and Hinata. The last image is that of Yui's discarded baseball bat and helmet, and Otonashi asks Hinata "Are you OK with That?" showing a potential flaw of Otonashi's, the inability to let go of something you care about. Hinata only responds with "Of course" and says that he will stay to the end of whatever is happening. Otonashi's hesitancy to let things go is something that will resonate with anyone because the most basic thought process is that if something is good, cling to it; don't let it escape.
Filament Buster. A combination of two random words that has been since assigned meaning. Filament Buster is the idea of thinking about something to the point where it really doesn't matter anymore; to burn out the proverbial light bulb.
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
Beck: Mongolian Chop Squad *Mild Spoilers*
*Warning: This Post Contains Spoilers*
Those of you who know me know that I am highly critical of anything that tells a story, especially various anime. As such, most anime hold little attraction for me. The simplest requirement is a standard 26 episode run because it shows planning on the part of the writer(s), but once the series is under way, I start worrying about how well the series is put together.
One of the most important things is characterization, how the characters make decisions, interpret the world, and interact with each other. Beck is a down to earth slice of life anime that follows the story of Yukio “Koyuki” Tanaka in his journey through relationships, the latter part of middle school, and to eventual rock-stardom. It doesn’t hurt that as one friend of mine put it, “it’s a high school anime without pink hair.” The other large draw for me is the fact that this anime proves that there is life outside of school; Yukio even forgoes high school and college for the sake of his band. Yukio is the only character who shows real growth throughout the series with each other character remaining fairly constant in their decisions.
The story begins with Koyuki as a stereotypical anime “hero” a boy who lacks confidence, is short, without significant or discernable talents; a blank slate that will eventually take shape. He longs for Izumi, the obligatory girl who is for some reason pretty, at the top of the class, and incredibly involved in some miscellaneous sport while still being one of the most well known and social people in school. Oh by the way they used to be best friends in diapers.
His character growth is catalyzed when Izumi remembers him and invites him out for a night with her friends. This ends at a bar hyped up as an avante garde, underground source for the goings on of the town. People go by pseudonyms, real names aren’t asked, and it is the place to be. Unless you watch past the fifth episode. Then it’s never mentioned again. However, it does serve as the introduction of Ryuusuke, who would be the lead guitarist and founder of the series’ namesake band, Beck. Currently, though, he’s involved in a band called Serial Mama with the series antagonist Eiji, another great guitarist. The next scene in the series is one of their concerts, called “lives,” where the two part ways as band mates, both declaring they would form the best band.
His younger sister, Maho, is introduced as a girl at the live that Koyuki is infatuated with, and he consequently shoves his foot down his throat on the first impression. Maho is shown to be a talented singer with many friends in the high society of pop culture, with the stereotypical shallow interests.
As the series progresses, Ryuusuke and Koyuki become better friends and Ryuusuke eventually lends Koyuki a guitar given to him by Eddie Lee, the guitarist for the most popular band in Japan and America titled The Dying Breed, commonly shortened to DyBree. Enthusiastic and reckless, he accidentally breaks the guitar by dropping it off of a bridge. He later fixes it, gets it broken again, then it’s found out that it was a replica the whole time. Deus ex machina has never been a very impressive literary device, and it’s no better here.
Ryuusuke has been hard at work and has enlisted the last parts of his band, which will be named Beck: a drummer of little consequence, Taira the bassist, and Chiba, a front man carbon copied from Rage against the Machine. Their music was good, but nothing special. Around this time Koyuki decides to pull a Shawshank Redemption reference, playing a DyBree song over the PA. He gets caught and slapped on the wrist and on his way out, is approached by a drummer of some consequence, Saku. They become fast friends and both eventually become members of Beck.
During this time, Yukio’s relationships with Maho and Izumi are resolved, forever distancing itself from the “harem” label. Izumi approaches Maho, and the two discuss their respective relationships with Koyuki, Izumi placing herself in the “older sister” role, leaving Koyuki to Maho. This actually characterizes the relationship between Koyuki and Maho; Koyuki seems to be unable to make any assertive moves, while Maho actually gets things done. One of the shortcomings of his character is his lack of ability to pursue Maho and it comes back to bite him. Midway through the series, Maho’s choice of friends resurfaces in the form of Yoshito, a soap opera star getting his 15 minutes of fame. Yoshito makes active advances and pursues her, everything that should be done, but instead of being honest and straightforward, he uses the most cut and dry, lame, and high school tricks in order to depress Koyuki.
It works. The romance between Maho and Yoshito, while never definitively stated or proved, is a constant cloud looming over Koyuki’s head. Maho also confuses Koyuki to no end, seemingly uninterested in Yoshito beyond a platonic friendship, going so far as to share a bed with Koyuki, kiss him on a few occasions, and repeatedly calling him cool (definitive proof of interest in anime. Cool apparently holds far more meaning in Japan). In fact, this drives Koyuki to first almost giving up, but eventually makes an assertive decision and confidently drags Maho into the woods for a romantic moment. Unfortunately, the series doesn’t give any definitive resolution on their relationship, but I guess that is to show how young they are and that their decisions may not last. Either way, I like closer out of endings.
Speaking of a lack of closure, the plot behind Ryuusuke is unnecessarily convoluted and remains in many ways unresolved. Simply put, Ryuusuke steals a famous, bullet-ridden guitar named “Lucille” and a stitched together dog that the band later takes its name from, “Beck.” The story behind Lucille is resolved, but Beck seems only secondary and the reason why he was taken from Ryuusuke as well is never explained. Another half-baked, animal-based plotline is that of Paige, a bird who will only sing along with great music. I don’t understand the reason behind why this bird is significant, but it must be a generic bit of anime symbolism.
All in all, Beck is an anime centering on one character, the decisions he makes, and his relationships with the members of his band and various love interests. Koyuki’s decisions make sense, he is a character that is easy to empathize with, and the story isn’t a generic one. This anime ranks well in my books.
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Glee
This is one of latest TV crazes. Its premise is that of an over-exaggerated, caste-ruled high school and the trials and tribulations of that school's glee club that seemingly everyone but about 5 students and 2 teachers want to eliminate. This was my impression after a pair of episodes. At the end of the season, it so far strikes me very much like a much much more shallow and gimmicky Code Geas; halfway through, characters started making "impulsive" (see: doesn't make sense) decisions, mostly against their established character. All in all, the series main failing point was in how contrived it was.
Now I understand the need for the underdog story in a drama. It just isn't fun rooting for the favorite in fantasy life, but there needs some realism. Now, my experience with high school was about the extent of the textbook method of dealing wasp, "don't mess with me and I won't mess with you." However, I don't think that there is quite the extent of the drama played up in most imaginable high schools, from people, scratch that the whole school, actively seeking out a select select few misfits is beyond me. The only time in the show that it is even referenced that there are other misfits is the Lady Gaga episode.
All of these characters are based on played out stereotypes, every single one. It is insanely frustrating until they start coming up against stereotypical problems and trials. Some of them give the textbook responses, some refuse to respond, and some actually grow in what appears to be realism and you forget just for that second that they are just characters.
Originally, the only two characters I found to be consistently enjoyable to watch were the two main males Will and Finn. Due to the ebb and flow of characterization over the course of the season, this has expanded to at some point every character with a name. This is an important distinction to make as the male Asian was referred to once, as "other Asian."
Top of the list: Will Shuester: personable, charismatic, enthusiastic. Great combination in a character. He is dedicated to his wife above all else, and willing to do whatever it takes to make his current glee club great. The fatal flaw in his character is his devotion to his wife who must have forsaken her brains for something along the way. He does, ironically, show the best aptitude for learning and as such makes decisions that normally make sense. He is wrathful almost exclusively towards Sue Sylvester, who endlessly antagonizes him.
Finn: simple, straightforward, down to earth. The only pubescent character in the show with legitimate problems. His girlfriend is a bitchy tease, his co-star is an honest albeit conceited nobody. Does he dump his girlfriend for the new girl or does he stay the course until he has a real reason? Does he forsake football, a concrete backing with people who were friends, or dive into singing, a once forsaken passion? Real conflict. His character is one that most people can relate to although he does plateau towards the middle and end of the season.
Rachel Barry: honest, conceited, nobody. She is the most outspoken and, therefore, the most picked on. She portrays herself as the dramatic and tragic heroine and this is one of the most common points of her ridicule. Her character doesn't change much over the first season, but becomes more subdued and tolerable.
Sue Sylvester: cheerleading coach, bullying, illogical: This is the most masculine, self-centered, and desperate to be devious character I have ever seen. Her goal is to destroy the glee club because it messes with the high school's caste system and "steals" money from her club. Yes this teacher has become invested in the politics of minors. Shown similar to a drill sergeant, her methods are about as crafty as a brick. At one point during some argument Will asks her to "Hold on one moment". Her immediate response is "I will not be discriminated against because of my gender!" However, she is shown to have a great deal more depth and on occasions makes morally sound decisions.
Quinn Fabray: head cheerleader, tease, shallow: Quinn is one of my favorite characters to watch develop. In the beginning of the series she is a complete stereotype, and honestly remains that way until late in the season, when given a catalyst. She becomes one of the more dynamic characters in the show.
Glee is a show that is simple, shallow, but entertaining if only for the well-choreographed musical renditions (In the first two episodes see: Gold Digger, Don't Stop Believing) The characters show some development over the first season, many sub plots were revealed, and there weren't loose ends left hanging. If you aren't looking for Oscar-winning or writing, you should enjoy Glee.
Now I understand the need for the underdog story in a drama. It just isn't fun rooting for the favorite in fantasy life, but there needs some realism. Now, my experience with high school was about the extent of the textbook method of dealing wasp, "don't mess with me and I won't mess with you." However, I don't think that there is quite the extent of the drama played up in most imaginable high schools, from people, scratch that the whole school, actively seeking out a select select few misfits is beyond me. The only time in the show that it is even referenced that there are other misfits is the Lady Gaga episode.
All of these characters are based on played out stereotypes, every single one. It is insanely frustrating until they start coming up against stereotypical problems and trials. Some of them give the textbook responses, some refuse to respond, and some actually grow in what appears to be realism and you forget just for that second that they are just characters.
Originally, the only two characters I found to be consistently enjoyable to watch were the two main males Will and Finn. Due to the ebb and flow of characterization over the course of the season, this has expanded to at some point every character with a name. This is an important distinction to make as the male Asian was referred to once, as "other Asian."
Top of the list: Will Shuester: personable, charismatic, enthusiastic. Great combination in a character. He is dedicated to his wife above all else, and willing to do whatever it takes to make his current glee club great. The fatal flaw in his character is his devotion to his wife who must have forsaken her brains for something along the way. He does, ironically, show the best aptitude for learning and as such makes decisions that normally make sense. He is wrathful almost exclusively towards Sue Sylvester, who endlessly antagonizes him.
Finn: simple, straightforward, down to earth. The only pubescent character in the show with legitimate problems. His girlfriend is a bitchy tease, his co-star is an honest albeit conceited nobody. Does he dump his girlfriend for the new girl or does he stay the course until he has a real reason? Does he forsake football, a concrete backing with people who were friends, or dive into singing, a once forsaken passion? Real conflict. His character is one that most people can relate to although he does plateau towards the middle and end of the season.
Rachel Barry: honest, conceited, nobody. She is the most outspoken and, therefore, the most picked on. She portrays herself as the dramatic and tragic heroine and this is one of the most common points of her ridicule. Her character doesn't change much over the first season, but becomes more subdued and tolerable.
Sue Sylvester: cheerleading coach, bullying, illogical: This is the most masculine, self-centered, and desperate to be devious character I have ever seen. Her goal is to destroy the glee club because it messes with the high school's caste system and "steals" money from her club. Yes this teacher has become invested in the politics of minors. Shown similar to a drill sergeant, her methods are about as crafty as a brick. At one point during some argument Will asks her to "Hold on one moment". Her immediate response is "I will not be discriminated against because of my gender!" However, she is shown to have a great deal more depth and on occasions makes morally sound decisions.
Quinn Fabray: head cheerleader, tease, shallow: Quinn is one of my favorite characters to watch develop. In the beginning of the series she is a complete stereotype, and honestly remains that way until late in the season, when given a catalyst. She becomes one of the more dynamic characters in the show.
Glee is a show that is simple, shallow, but entertaining if only for the well-choreographed musical renditions (In the first two episodes see: Gold Digger, Don't Stop Believing) The characters show some development over the first season, many sub plots were revealed, and there weren't loose ends left hanging. If you aren't looking for Oscar-winning or writing, you should enjoy Glee.
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