Both Funimation and Crunchyroll apps on the Roku stink.
Crunchyroll often loses my login information among other things. I hope they upgrade everything.
The Crunchyroll app does a fun thing for me on Roku where the cursor only updates every second click when navigating the menus.
Haha, yeah, I’ve seen that.
My favorite thing about the Funimation app was that they did, and still do, have multiple placeholder shows in their live catalog:
https://www.funimation.com/shows/zzz-test-demo/
That’s some high-quality Q&A going on, right there
I hyped Ranking of Kings before, and now i have to say it isn’t maintaining that initial quality. The second part of the show (episode 12 onward, more or less) is being less interesting than the first part.
In one hand, the characters are already established and even went through their own twist about them, so there isn’t a lot to surprise the audience with them in the second part. Making a second plot twist with them would be silly, making their allegiance feel fickle like the winds, so I understand the author chooses to not use that card, but it goes to show how the series was always very dependent of these plot twists with the secondary characters.
Not only that, but I feel they have very little agency. Like Kage, which seems his only reason to live, breathe and think is to serve the main character. Some characters orbit too much Bojji, existing only to praise the main character, or help him or whatever.
Speaking of Bojji, his powerup is badass at first, but ultimately it makes him less interesting.
Finally, the redemption arc of the villain is so obvious, man. And one more thing: no one is able to die in this series. Even when their chest is dramatically stabbed from part to part, that’s nothing, it seems. The series hasn’t been able to kill any named character, despite all the violence.
And god, does people cry on this series. I think someone cries dramatically in at least the last six episodes. And in most episodes, in fact.
At least there’s a Crunchyroll app. Check out smart tvs, yo.
Tried out a couple of Netflix original anime, and sadly neither did anything for me. Super Crooks is about random people getting superpowers and turning to crime, which could be an interesting premise, but I didn’t much like the art style and through three episodes the characters were thin and there was barely any story to speak of. Record of Ragnarok has a bunch of gods from various mythologies pitted against humans throughout history in a series of duels to decide the fate of mankind. Again, could be a fine premise, if they did some stuff with characterization and lead-up to the actual fighting…but they did no such thing. There’s a bit of telling the legends of the combatants, which is cool, but the one fight I watched was pretty dumb and I saw nothing that led me to believe it would get any better.
FWIW, Super Crooks is an anime production (BONES), but it’s an adaptation of a Mark Millar comic series.
I do think it picks up, as the first few episodes are original for the anime before getting to the heist featured in the comics, but it’s not a transformative shift if you bounced off the first three.
I had the same impression of Super Crooks. Just was not into it at all.
Judging from news headlines Attack on Tital Final Season once again punted. I love it! Calling it “the final season” and essentially making it 3 seasons. Brilliant!
I finished rewatching re:Zero season 1 and am in the middle of Season 2 now. What a great show this is. Man. Yes, he’s in a fantasy world, but this is a fantasy world like no other. I just love the way the story oscillates back and forth between comforting emotional tones to true horror. It can shift on a dime when it wants to. I can’t say enough good things about it.
Crunchyroll sent me a notification to get read for Season 2 of Shield Hero by re-watching Season 1.
That’s actually a good idea, I think, since I can hardly remember Season 1 now. It’s been a while! I do have a post upthread saying I stopped watching at Episode 21 since it felt like a natural stopping point. So I guess I have to finish Season 1 too. And since Season 2’s dub probably won’t release for a while, maybe this time I should watch Season 1 in Japanese.
I didn’t realize it was so huge for the industry.
While obviously not in the same stratosphere, because nothing is, Attack On Titan is in some ways the Eva of this generation, in terms of the breakout popularity, and also some of the kind of “actually its really deep” kind of discussion. Also, the Titans are basically mechas.
Zylon
5943
I quit Attack on Titan after the first season. It was monotonously nihilistic, none of the characters were likable, and I couldn’t take any more screaming. I guess the masses just really like huge naked dudes running around eating people.
That’s certainly not the take I get from it; the show is bleak as hell, but nihilistic implies a lack of value for life. Quite to the contrary, they’re going through the horror of feeling like they’re all doomed. The characters are people under extraordinary stress and are certainly not paragons of virtue. I don’t think we’re supposed to like them as much as understand them, however, including the protagonist being twisted and somewhat broken by the events in his life. The show is a reflection on how different people react to these horrors and how those in power can inflict them upon us to varying extents for the sake of ambition, their own sense of righteousness, and at times a cruelty born from their own upbringing and life experiences. It’s a complex and seriously messed up fictional world, taking some of the worst parts of our own and turning them up to 11 through metaphor and allegory.
I’ll say I’ve often wondered why the hell people like watching horror films so much, but I think I almost kind of get it after watching Attack On Titan. I’m still not a fan of horror, and I likewise don’t expect everyone to be a fan of this show, but there seems to be an underlying theme which connects them. So no, it’s not an audience liking huge naked dudes running around eating people just as much as it’s not an audience liking watching people get stabbed or shot or whatever. People like seeing an examination of the human condition in circumstances they’ve never been to reflect upon themselves from the safe comfort of a living room couch or a movie theater seat.
I love Marvel movies, and Captain America’s lifting of Mjolnir ranks as one of the most triumphant scenes I’ve watched. Why is that? It’s not the lifting of a hammer; I can do that anytime. Nor is it somehow believing I’m as pure or worthy as the character; I’m most definitely not. Instead, it’s a notion that greatness can be earned instead of just birthed, and that one would use the power to protect and lift those around them. Instead, It’s something I aspire to and the film celebrates that drive to be better, worthy. Going through that shared experience with others is a bond, and perhaps most notable was even with the hammer, Captain America was unable to win without all his friends. So we all aspire.
My point is the enjoyment of a film or show doesn’t have to be a literal appreciation for the celluloid, but instead what it means to us, what it portrays. I apologize for rambling at length, but I recognized a bit of my former self in your statement when I used to cast aspersions on horror fans for their strange proclivities and hoped I could bring a bit of what I learned to you and anyone else who may be interested.
I initially stopped after the first season of Attack on Titan, but when I heard about the final season back in like 2020, I binged the show and was very surprised at how it really goes places.
Just wanted to say that I love your take on that scene.
Thanks - much appreciated!
I really enjoyed the first episode of SPY x FAMILY. A spy needs to be a family man for his latest assignment, so he adopts a little girl. Pretty adorable.
Since it only has one episode, that’s enough for now! Time to put it on hold until the whole first season is up in an English dub. The anime is set in a kind of fake Germany, with German looking people, so it’s a little weird to have Japanese voices coming out of them. Need to wait for the German dub to be truly authentic! :-P
geewhiz
5949
Spy Family is a great manga! I enjoyed the anime and I think they captured the manga.
