Blog Talkback: Toons of the 2000s: Anime We Hope Never Come to America

You know, when I'm bored sometimes I read through descriptions of recent anime shows for the lulz, and guess what gem I've discovered recently:

Papa to Kiss in the Dark

Seems like prime material for a list like this, and think of the traffic! Not only would you get the 4channers up in arms with the list, but also leagues of shota fangirls as well!
 
The last scene in the final episode features perhaps the most offensive acts of violence I've ever seen in an anime. Unlike most exploitative violent OAV-boom trash, I am unable to bring a detached sense of irony to it. It is cynical otaku marketing at the most perverted.
 
I await people telling me I'm a hater, even though I've given favorable reviews to other shows with similar content, but with higher-quality, less-exploitative execution.

Edit: It's already been down voted 12 times. Sweet :D

Edit Edit: Make that 22 times.
 
Exactly. As Roger Ebert wrote, "Content is neutral until shaped by approach and style." I'm willing to believe a good anime about a pedophile is possible - even a good anime about a third-grader trying to seduce her teacher. It's all about your attitude toward the material.
 
Looking at the list...I cant really fault it. The shows I've seen from said list were horrible. Not horrible because they're fanservice shows, just horrible. Bad plots, uninteresting characters, etc. Fanservice and quality dont have to be mutually exclusive.

As is, I didnt know Queen's Blade was licensed (That or I tried to put that thought out of my mind) so there goes my major complaint. Any chance of a 'Top 10 Bad anime that DID get licensed? :D
 
At least Kitty Media is marked as pornography.

I find all this crusade talk silly because I'm quick to attack what I see as prudishness. But this is just bad material. It's not going to appeal to anyone but 15 year old geeks who won't even get the material via legal means, yet somehow believe this sort of thing is "deep" because of its outlandish content when the context is utterly immature.

What I'm trying to say is, I like smut, but I hate bad shows.
 
Before Queen's Blade was picked up, it was on the list. That show is a new low for broadcast animation. School Days wouldn't have made if MB hadn't bought QB. Strike Witches would've been a debate as while it's just service-over-story as some of the other loli titles on the list, it feels to me atleast like it tried harder than the botched, exploitative manga adaptations that make up 3/5th of the list. We'd be better off without it, but top 5 worst of the decade? I'm skeptical.
 
Queens Blade is a Pretty BAD series. Im suprised it got picked up for a US release, given its MB that did it, but it still stinks...


I hate the fact I live in a country where SMUT Like Queens Blade will get dubbed, & Yet I still can't get a Dub of Dr.Slump or a Rerelease of Older series Like Lupin III or Sailor moon...Its just.....SAD!:(:mad:

But yea, It really never should have come to the US, also I don't think too many more ecchi anime made between 2007-now should come to the US. There nothing but genaric Jugfests, At least Older ecchi shows tried to tell a story, but these newer ones just...well they don't & if they do, they usually fail at it.:sweat:
 
I'd replace School Days with something like Queen's Blade as well. While I have no desire to buy the School Days DVDs, the ending is still unlike anything most anime fans have ever seen and while it may be a reprehensible ending, it's definitely different. It gets points for that. There are far, far, worse shows that have made it over here IMO.
 
Plus, they were notably bad, not just simply say boring as all sin (like Agatha Christie's Great Detectives Poirot and Marple, which I fell asleep only 5 minutes into,) or emptily moe (like Bincho-tan, which has adorable merchandise and nothing else of note.) No, they have a magical mix that makes them not just bland or dull, but exploitative and soulless.

In retrospect, we probably could have amped it up with maybe Petopeto-san or Moetan (though I don't think I could place either ahead of School Days honestly) and certainly with Kanokon (which would've bumped School Days off IMO,) and if it were for something more than a countdown blog, and if time had allowed for it, maybe sampling a few more series would've been smart (for example, I didn't know that Naisho no Tsubomi had an OVA, but that could be a prime candidate if it was directed poorly,) but I'm glad sensible people agree with the list.



Eh, we gotta get our top 5 wants done first, if only to alternate between the critical and uplifting.

/top 5 for a bad licensed list off the top of my head mezzo tv, daphne in the brilliant blue, pilot candidate, happy lesson and madlax.
 
I don't mind smut either. What I absolutely hate is a boring show.

Some of the shows on the list are snoozeworthy as well as smutty. But I wouldn't necessarily rate a smutty boring show worse than a "safe" boring show just for being more smutty. Both are equally bad IMO.
 
For contrast, I'll suggest something like Bakemonogatari. The fanservice is above and beyond what was necessary for a light novel adaptation; whatever was suggested in the source material, there's no need to highlight it so much in the animated adaptation. In your face, slow-mo panty shots? Check. An episode devoted mostly to a character parading around in their undergarments, dressing and undressing, drawn in loving detail? Check. Questionable areas for camera focus? Check. Main character who's constantly leering and much too interested in underdeveloped females? Check. Drawn out, close-up pans of over-exposed loli flesh? Check. (Wow, that sounds so much worse when I list everything.)

However, I never had the impression that Bakemonogatari was actually about its more skeezy qualities. The production staff, if anything, were having a little too much fun. As overworked and underpaid as they are, they'll typically get away with what they can... especially at Shaft.

The supernatural and horror-inspired plots were excellent. The dialogue was witty and clever. Indeed, there was mystery, suspense, surprise, and sufficiently brutal fighting. Constant humor, too - I was always amused. Some of the fanservice played into the comedy, and most of the rest was at least relevant to the plot in some fashion. If there's anything wrong, it's a matter of degree.

Even though the studio had its usual production problems in the form of missing scenes in the broadcast version, the completed visuals are pure eye candy. Frame after frame is styled with strong 2D design and a wonderful sense of color. They've outdone the graphic qualities present in Sayonara Zetsubou-Sensei, the two seasons of ef, or Maria+Holic, and the results are coupled with a more consistent appearance. There's far more to look at than fanservice.

Unfortunately, it's not finished, so Bakemonogatari isn't bound for any of our Top (or Bottom) 5's. The last three episodes weren't broadcast, and instead were saved for online streaming. Hopefully it doesn't turn to garbage at the end...

--Romey
 
I'd be interested to see a dub for any of these shows just to see if any company could pull it off.

Yeah, I might not have put School Days in this. It's a stinker but a surpriser if anything.
 
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