Apr
15
Disagreeing with reviews
April 15, 2007 |
I haven’t done an NHRV related article for a while, so I figured now was the time.
I think we have a great staff with mature opinions and appreciable anime knowledge, but, as is the case with any review database stitched together by multiple people, there are going to be disagreements. I’m the strange one in the group in that, whenever a review is posted where I don’t agree with the contention, I don’t bother expressing my own opinion in a second review of the same title. I just don’t see the point for various reasons. But, needless to say there are a number of reviews in our database that I don’t agree with. That’s just the nature of things… people aren’t always going to see eye-to-eye on every occasion, even though I do find most of my colleagues to be generally reliable. But, here’s a few of those reviews that I don’t agree with and a few words on where our opinions split.
Ouran High School Host Club - DarkKanti
The split in opinions here isn’t too great, but I’d have given this series a (slightly) higher rating. It’s not often that a comedy series is able to remain consistently funny for 26 episodes, but Ouran managed to achieve this, which is a highly commendable feat. Most of the points he made, though, I agree with: some of the character development was surprisingly good, but the fact that they were able to handle most but not all of the characters well was frustrating, as was the lack of a resolution at the end. I think we both agreed in the end that the plot wasn’t great, but the comedy was, but I think we had different ideas on which components this show should have placed its emphasis on: I was happy with it being mostly comedy for its entire run since it was executed so well, but DK seemed to want it to spend more time developing a proper story with a real conclusion. In the end, though, we both did like it… I guess I just liked it more.
Neon Genesis Evangelion: End of Evangelion - Shadowmage
Here’s a movie that everyone has an opinion on. My problem with this movie was that it was pretentious and too confusing-for-the-sake-of-it. It was undoubtedly a hell of a ride, but the storytelling wasn’t great as it went down some bizarre paths and didn’t exactly do a sound job of explaining itself. The result is that it’s meaning is still being debated (though not as hotly as a few years ago) almost ten years after it was made. Almost everybody has a different interpretation of events, including one prominent theory that it all meant nothing. And, truthfully, this one seems the most sound to me. I’m not going to argue that EoE is a visual experience unlike any other in anime, but as a story, it falls short, IMO.
Air - royal crown
Which ironically leads me to Air. Isn’t it funny how one anime with unconventional story-telling draws one reaction from me, while another draws a completely different reaction? But, unlike royal crown, I thought Air utilized its bizarre chronology and alternative point-of-views for the same events to great effect, as it really allowed for some great character and plot development. Although, I do agree that the show desperately needed more episodes, since it was always slightly more rushed than it should have been. Aside: I edited royal crown’s review and chose two of the three screenshots. Try to guess which ones. How about that, two different characters wearing very similar hats, and I (unconsciously) chose those particular scenes for screenshots… It is a really cool hat, though.
Outlaw Star - DarkKanti
I’m not sure what DK was thinking here. Outlaw Star, Fantastic? Hardly, IMO. Sure, it’s a fun series, but not really anything outstanding or memorable. All of the characters are ’90s archetypes and most of them get very little character development. The series drowns is filler right up until the final few eps and when the plot finally does progress, it never becomes anything special. Is it an entertaining series? Yes. Does it deserve the same rating as Monster, Gankutsuou and Mushishi? I don’t think so.
Full Metal Panic!(1,2) - DarkKanti, Kuma
FMP! falls into the same category as Outlaw Star, it’s a fun series, but it doesn’t deserve such high ratings. Personally, I think Gonzo’s handling of the FMP! franchise is shamed in comparison with Kyoto Animation’s handling of its sequel, Full Metal Panic! The Second Raid. TSR developed its characters properly by putting them through some grueling trials, had some truly intense examples of drama and had a more gripping atmosphere. FMP! was lackluster in comparison: some nice action and an interesting plot, but nothing as profound as its sequel. I wouldn’t rate it significantly lower than my colleagues, but I would rate it lower nonetheless.
I’d give credit for the OP image, but I don’t know who made it.
Comments
7 Comments so far
Sorry, I just had to disagree on eva part and start my long rant again x_x. O yea, and I agree with you on FMP!, that show was mediocre.
End of evangelion presented beautiful and stunning images to tell a gripping story of a teenager, who is struggling to find out what is right for both him and the people in a world full of isolation and sorrow. Although the high abstract level does leave different impressions on viewers, which inevitably leads to different interpretations but there is nothing wrong with that. Meanings behind Shakespeare’s plays or dante’s poems are still being read differently after all. So is it ‘pretentious and too confusing-for-the-sake-of-it’, just because some of the viewers didn’t take much from it? I mean, I understand that viewers have the right to say that the symbolic images didn’t connect with them very well. But I think completely dismissing their effects over other viewers and the meanings they derived from that as prententious is going a bit far. And in my opinion, Le portrait de petite cossette was as confusing as end of eva with equally abstract images that serves to tell a story symbolically, so I’m also wondering how you’d rate those two visually stunning works so differently.
Gaguri took everything I wanted to say about End of Evangelion. I watched EoE last night and I made a point to listen to what each character says. I was suprised by how much of the overall plot is spelled out for the viewers.
I agree with your comments about Outlaw Star.
Well, since I haven’t seen FMP: TSR, I can’t really talk about how KyoAni did a better job with it. I saw FMP a long time ago, so it’s possible that I’d rate it differently now, but I don’t think the “7″ is totally undeserved. I originally gave it an “8″ (a very low
, but back when we were still AMG, when we did massive revisions to all our reviews, I changed it to a “7″. To me, an “8″ is one or two little to medium-sized problems away from being a classic. FMP has one big problem: the chaotic beginning.
I think the thing with Outlaw Star is that it got a lot of people into anime, including many from our site IIRC. For all its flaws, Outlaw Star oozes with style and cool, making it a bit more than the sum of its parts. It’s one of those titles that can be hard for some to objectively review (kind of like Eva), myself included. For that reason, I’ll probably never review either title. If I had to, I’d probably give Outlaw Star a “7″, and EoE an “8″.
“And in my opinion, Le portrait de petite cossette was as confusing as end of eva with equally abstract images that serves to tell a story symbolically, so I’m also wondering how you’d rate those two visually stunning works so differently.” - gaguri
Maybe “pretentious” was a bit harsh on EoE, but it has been a while since I saw it, and I do remember not being terribly impressed with its story. So, in my eyes, EoE failed to connect me with its characters and plot. In my eyes, it fell short of its intentions, and those are the reasons why I think it did fall short overall. Obviously it is a contentious movie and everyone has a different opinion of it, but I really think it didn’t use its eccentricity well, as far as telling the story was concerned. Petite Cossette, on the other hand, did. It was bizarre, but rip away all its erratic visual effects, etc, and you’re still left with a clearly told supernatural romance/revenge story. IMO, the main difference between EoE and Petite Cossette is that EoE’s bizarreness hindered its story-telling, while Petite Cossette’s enhanced it.
“Well, since I haven’t seen FMP: TSR, I can’t really talk about how KyoAni did a better job with it.” - Kuma
If you liked the first FMP!, you really need to see it. It’s outstanding.
I liked the last 2 episodes of Evangelion. I thought that the ending in EoE wasn’t necessary personally. Then again, I’m the black sheep on that one; go figure.
Also, I was wondering why you wanted to change my screens so badly >_> BTW SK, have you seen the Air movie? While I thought it made leaps and bounds in improvement, I can definitely see where it wouldn’t follow through for some, and I’m interested in your opinion on the movie.
As for the rest, well, I haven’t seen them xD I’ve been busy preparing for the ACTs coming up and the recent model UN conference. But I will put FMP on my to-watch list, if not solely because everyone but me has seen it.
I’ve seen the movie, but I liked the series better. I guess the problem I had with the movie was that it wasn’t loyal to the series (which is apparently more loyal to the game), but in hindsight that’s a bit harsh, since it’s impossible for a two hour movie to be loyal to a 12 ep TV series. Maybe I should watch it again someday, with a different mindset.
haha…sorry to make you emphasise on ‘in my eyes’. I have no problem with you thinking it failing as a story, just that you first sounded like putting other people’s interpretations as pretentious since you saw it to be ‘confusing-for-the-sake-of-it’.