General anime discussion

[bonaduce80]

Since the threads are a bit slow lately and we don't have one to discuss anime in general decided to create this thread.

The main reason though is having started watching an anime that started last season named Welcome to the Ballroom. I swear it is the secret son of Hajime no Ippo (and a bit of Yuri on Ice and for good measure). A lot of emotional beats, characters and progression feel heavily inspired by HnI, more so than your average sports shonen. I think it is based on a manga, but am focusing on the anime first. Up to episode 10 and feeling quite refreshing.

Are you watching anything good or have any recommendations?

[jettatore]

Now I'm watching Kekkai Sensen Beyond, second season of Kekkai Sensen. It is a good anime.

And speaking of future animes, I look forward to the anime of Devilman by Yuasa

[shenlong]

Finished watching Ghost in the Shell : Stand Along Complex : Second Gig, recently (plus the movie). It's really amazing. The entire Stand Alone Complex series might be my favourite version of the franchise, and I think I liked Second Gig better than the first season. Its only downside is that while it looks good, it's visually kinda unremarkable compared to the movies and Arise, save from a few episodes/scenes.

And right now, I'm rewatching Revolutionnary Girl Utena. It's been a few years and it was about time. It's definitely one of the most interesting shows I've seen. I'd recommend it to anyone. There's a decent probability you won't like it at least at first, but it's worth knowing it exists.

[K']

Watched Devilman Crybaby. Was surprisingly good.

[bonaduce80]

If you meant "eye opening and soul destroying", yes, I agree. A bit overdone on the sexual and brutal side of things, but makes the point across. I wonder how much of it is actually Nagai or Yuasa trying to being Nagai's sensibilities to a new modern audience. I really liked the motifs with music and sport and social media and how they gel in with the plot, not just to make the story more time relevant. Piqued my interest enough to decide watching Ping Pong soon. A grand success of Netflix to do something new and worthy for their anime catalogue. And they are bringing Baki in Japan too!

PS the OST of Crybaby is gooooood.

[K']

I didn't really feel sadness about it which would probably be my critic. The pacing was too fast for me to really care about the characters themselves. In that regard I liked Yuasa's Ping Pong way more because it was a character study. It does make you think a bit about the self-destructive behaviour of humans though, you can clearly see the neuroticism of the cold war era that inspired Go Nagai.

[bonaduce80]

I found myself surprised at how much I cared about the characters, given how short the series is and I am willing to bet Nagai didn't give them that much of a personality (he doesn't strike me as a character author, as much as I love his adapted works). If you say Ping Pong is even more detailed on that regard (and everything I've read about it points on that direction), looks like I am in for a treat.

But man, it feels like a Berserk Eclipse End of Evangelion Special. You can really see how much Devilman influenced those.

[paraparajmo]

I am now watching Space Battleship Yamato 2202. I love this franchise and it makes some appropriate changes while still being faithful to the original.