What Are You Watching?

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

Yeah, there's a reason that AnJ is listed under "tragedy," among the other genres that it covers (which is basically sports and martial arts/battle shounen). I can't wait for you to finish the series. It's impossible for me to tal about what I'm most interested in talking about this series until you finish it. All I will say is that the ending is downright iconic, and you'll understand exactly what I mean when you see it for yourself. Few manga and anime have managed to end on such a hi note, in terms of pure quality, for me, but this is one of those few.

[gunswordfist]

While eating Keylime Pie I watched episode 56 of Hunter X Hunter 1999...Uvo Vs. Kurapika. I loved the music during the fight and the animation was smooth. The end of the fight was one of the most intense moments I've ever seen in an animated series. That really stuck with me. Dark themes like revenge and killing someone for the first time where well explored here.

[gunswordfist]

Finished episode 57 of Hunter X Hunter 1999! It's a slower episode (Zepile's first episode) but I still found it to be interested. I remembering liking the 2011 version better due to how Zepile outsmarted the guy that tried to trick Gon and Killua.

[Inkwolf]

Re-watching Steins: Gate.  Just as awesome as the first time!

[Lord Dalek]

Yesterday I finished marathoning the parts of Blue Exorcist I had not watched. I hated myself afterwords.

Today I am marathoning Tiger & Bunny. The experience has been far more positive.

[LumRanmaYasha]

I think Tiger and Bunny is awesome, pure fun myself. It's kind of like an american superhero show in many respects, and while it's not a particularly substantial story there's a lot of good in it and the characters are all likable and have multiple chances to shine. The only downside to the show is all the loose ends left at the end of  it. Hopefully the third movie onwards starts to address those.

Anyways, I watched two more episodes of Joe 2 two days ago, so I only have ten episodes left, now. I like the idea of this Harimao arc, which I feel is Yoko trying to get Joe to rekindle the raw passion he had for boxing in his earlier matches, and return to being the wild brawler he used to be. It is, in some ways, not necessarily needed but it's a good concept for a kind of breather arc before the big finish, and with ten episodes left, I don't think it'll drag for me. Really, now that I'm so close to being done I just want to marathon to the end, but I don't have the kind of time to watch ten episodes in one sitting. Still, I might be able finish the show before next monday, at the earliest.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

I don't dislike the Harimao arc. I simpy just feel that it's the weakest part of the show compared to how great all of the other arcs are. As for the ending, I would at least recommend watching the final 3 to 4 episodes in one sitting. Hell, whether you have the time or not, I dare you to try and stop yourself from finishing all of those episodes in one sitting. I know, because I did try, and I flat-out couldn't do it. I had important shit to do, myself, but at that moment I just couldn't bring myself to care until I had finished that entire final battle between Joe and Mendoza.

[gunswordfist]

Oh man, another good episode (58). It was a powerful moment when Kurapika finally came back after killing Uvo. that music got to me. Silva and Zeno have been hired by the mafia and Kurapika has been asked to join them. I wonder if he actually told his boss that he killed Uvo. Apparently Gon telling Killua on the airship that he tracked Hisoka in Hunter's Exam was filler because both Killua and Leorio were surprised by the news. That explains the strange line from Killua when he asked Gon what kind of magic did he use. It was interesting watching Gon and Killua track down Nobunaga (I think I'm starting to look him more in this version) and whatshername? Machi? IDK. I loved how Chrollo didn't tell them that he sent Phinks and whatshername to help track whoever was after them. Phinks having Killua's leg skin swiped off in this version was more gruesome. God do I love the music that was played on that part. And now on to the part where they are taken hostage by the Phantom Troupe.

[gunswordfist]

Episode 59. Emotions ran high among a few of the characters. I like how Killua assessed the situation when the Phantom Troupe questioned them. Nobunaga displayed how much heart he has. Definitely my 2nd favorite HXH character. They showed Killua's intense fear for the first time, iirc. That makes me wonder why he decided to keep on going after two people he clearly was weaker than. Also, Phinks and Feitan's hair color is different in 1999.

Random stuff: This episode reminded me about how Gon is becoming more like Uvo in 2011 (I'm still on episode 113/4 so no spoiler answers to this post, please). I thought I might have thought this when Gon screamed at that owl Chimera Ant but maybe I've been thinking about this all the way back when Nobunaga compared the two.

I like little moments in the show you have to pay attention to like when Gon and Killua lied to Wing about how long the doctor said Gon had to recover from his match against the spinning top guy (3 instead of 6) so he'd have plenty of time to recover but not be out too long so he wouldn't miss his fight deadline and be thrown out of Heaven's Arena. Or when Leorio said that he only took a short walk but in all actuality, he looked all over Yorknew for Kurapika.

[gunswordfist]

Just finished the 60th episode. I love how the time Chrollo spent with Neon was longer here. I was a good look into his mind (and I didn't know he was my age).

Kurapika met up with Zeno, Silva and the other assassins and Gon and Killua escaped.

[LumRanmaYasha]

What happened to Carlos was fucking heartbreaking. He's a total shell of what he used to be, no memory of who he once was, his mind reverted to that of a child and his once lively self made pitifully slow and weak. I nearly shed a tear during that "fight" he had with Joe, and that "gong, gong, gong" line at the end of episode 41.

Otherwise the show is setting up the punch-drunk syndrome as something that will come back to really hurt Joe soon enough. I feel like I can predict where that's going. Seeing Yoko's determination to meet with him and get him checked by Dr. Kinninsky, and then ultimately sending him a vital piece of information removing him from feeling guilty over Carlos' condition was just more excellent stuff that just reinforced how great a character she is. I think I'll try and finish up the show tonight if I can, since there's only 5 episodes left.

I also finished InuYasha: The Final Act dubbed, and episode 16 aside, it's damn great stuff. It makes me sad that Takahashi stalled the story so much with all those average monster of the week stuff and repetitiveness for the first half of the manga, since after the Band of 7 arc started everything started to get really good and even better towards the ending, and The Final Act covers the final 20 volumes brilliantly and at a great pace. I'd have to re-evaluate how highly this ranks among the anime I enjoy, but it's certainly higher now, at any rate, thanks to the dub, which, some flubs aside, is so much more enjoyable than how it was in the first series, which I could barely stomach most of the time what with all of Cox's obnoxious yelling (and all those "InuYasha!" "Kagome!" stuff that really grates on the nerves). Now, if only someone would make a Ranma 1/2: The Final Act, or something...

Otherwise I find myself re-watching random Ranma and Slayers episodes. I wish I didn't have such a big backlog, or else I'd rewatch those shows properly (Slayers, especially, is something I want to rewatch again since it's been years since I've seen it in full). But after I finish Joe 2, I probably will watch a comedy or slice of life, probably Princess Jellyfish and/or Welcome to the NHK since those are on Netflix (though I still want to watch Mushi-shi sometime...). And I've got Hajime no Ippo to finish, and Legend of the Galactic Heroes after that on my list, and there are other anime and live-action shows I have yet to get too....yeah, I'm not rewatching anything for years to come. 

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

Yeah, when you get down to it this series is pretty dark. That said, I think its also as uplifting of a series as it is a grim one. Its an odd combination that somehow works, and I think that a lot of that is due to Takamori's writing talent, but it vould also come down to whether you interpret what he wrote in a positive or negative light.

Im really interested to hear your thoughts on the ending, but when you write about it, make sure to put it under spoiler tags.

[LumRanmaYasha]

There's a balance between the uplifting and grim stuff, really. It works because the series is following the ups and downs of Joe's life. Even at the lows the series is more optimistic than pessimistic,  it just doesn't shy away from the harsh realities of the boxing world. It acknowledges them, but also the fact that these things happen and are a part of this career, and you have to have a strong love for the sport to accept this and push forward, and Joe's dedication to his goal is inspiring (imo) because of all the roadblocks and tragedies that he's had to overcome to do what he loves. I think there are as many heart-warming moments as there are heart-breaking, and there's always satisfaction in seeing Joe or other character succeed and be happy even though it's sad to see him or others suffer. It's a fine balance that I think is hard to pull off, but the series does it excellently.

[Dr. Ensatsu-ken]

I think it's one of those things where you can just tell that the author is writing through personal experience. Of the very little data that I've been able to find out about Asaki Takamori (and by data I mostly mean Wikipedia and other unreliable sources), it seems like his life was anything but perfect behind the scenes. But, you get the feeling that these rough aspects of his life have translated into his work, for the better.

As for being uplifiting versus being grim, though, at the end of the day the series was still unquestionably inspiring, by influencing literally hundreds of successful mangaka to even pursue that career. That alone says a lot about how important this series was to the history of both manga and anime.

[gunswordfist]

Episode 61...ah, the episode where Chrollo tells all the Spiders, except for Nobunaga, to "Wreck Havoc/Make a big show.". Besides me liking him saying "Go wild" much more than that and the superior music, I thought their attack on the mafia was much more entertaining in this version. I don't even remember Hisoka killing even one person in that part. Next up, Chrollo vs. the Zoldycks.