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Anime Sakuga/Animation
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A subreddit dedicated to posting and discussing well animated scenes from anime.
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2023.03.17 19:56 aniMayor [WT!] Show by Rock!! — A Music Fluffet
Show by Rock!! is a... {checks notes}... cute-girls-doing-cute-things absurdist-comedy band drama isekai about saving a furry music world from evil monsters with "edgy CGI Hello Kitty sequences" and sentient eggs.
That's... a lot. So let's cut the intro and go straight to the most prominent and most important aspect of Show by Rock!!. No, not you, Shuzo, I mean...
That's great, right?! You liked the anime, you liked the music in the anime, and now you can buy the music from the anime!
But it is just the music from the anime. If, for example, you liked the music in Ya Boy Kongming! so much that you bought the tie-in album you'll get full versions of all the songs from the show, and hey you even get a bonus version of the Azalea song sung by Eiko... but that's it. Some shows you get one or two extra songs from the protagonist singeband that weren't in the show, but even that is rare. If you really liked the sound of secondary characters like Azalea or, say, the Mermaid Sisters it's not like you can get an album of their music - they aren't even the protagonist band! What kind of anime would be crazy enough to have that?
Well, Show by Rock!! is indeed crazy enough to have that.
In fact, Show by Rock!! has that many times over. Show by Rock!! doesn't have an album... it has a buffet.
Show by Rock!! has 10 featured bands spread across its four 12-episode seasons. Some of these bands might only play three or four songs in the entire show, but each one of those ten bands has at least one album's worth of songs that aren't in the anime at all - the fewest having 10 more songs, some of them having dozens of extra songs.
See, the company Sanrio one day decided to develop their own gacha-esque rhythm video game, and for whatever reason they didn't want to re-use their existing characters like Hello Kitty for it. So they casually invented dozens of new musician characters, put them into over twenty made-up bands (only ten of which are featured in the anime), and wrote and recorded hundreds of brand new songs for their new franchise. The Show by Rock!! anime is the tie-in TV show for this rhythm game, giving it some story, worldbuilding, and, most importantly, more exposure to its music.
The sheer size of this franchise's music catalogue is one of Show By Rock!!'s greatest strengths, and the anime is not afraid to put it on full display. This is not an anime that has the same two or three insert songs being used over and over again in each episode - almost every episode includes a new insert song, with a total of over 50 different insert songs across the four seasons.
Each of the ten increasingly-difficult-to-pronounce bands has their own flavour of J-Pop:
Personally, I dig the shamisen-infused enka band Tsurezure Naru Ayatsuri Mugenan. Do they only get 3 actual performances in the show? Yup! Did I find thirteen other songs from them afterwards which I enjoyed? I sure did!
That's the biggest selling point of Show by Rock!!. It exposes you to dozens of songs by ten different bands with the promise that if you find something you like there is more to find, a promise not many music anime can make. And then when you do find a band you like, having a bit of moe backstory about the band makes listening to their songs more fun!
Shy, awkward, Japanese high-schooler Cyan Hijirikawa has been trying and failing to work up the nerve to ask to join her school's music club for months when she gets suddenly isekai'd to a music-addicted world where everyone just so happens to be an animal-human hybrid (unless they're an alien... or a robot... or an egg...). After saving a charming foxboy idol with a talking guitar, Cyan - now turned into a literal scaredy-cat - ends up joining a struggling young band where she makes new friends and has musical experiences that will help shy Cyan overcome her anxieties, learn what it means to be a true friend, and become a better musician, too. Along the way they'll meet, compete with, and learn from a bunch of other quirky bands... and also fight music-themed evil monsters to stop an evil record agency CEO from taking over the planet.
That's the story for the first season, anyway. The second season has such a fantastic cold open I'm not even going to talk about it, I don't want to spoil it. The third season switches to a new main protagonist band - Mashumairesh!! - and drops the isekai and monsters for a more straightforward cute-animal-girls/boys-doing-cute-things focus. Then season four caps off Mashumairesh!!'s story while bringing everyone together for a final victory lap.
Don't let the isekai or monster-fighting aspects fool you into thinking this is a serious show with a tight, continuous storyline. Those aspects do add some over-arching storyline to each season and some drama to a few performances, but it's mostly just at the start and end. By and large, you could almost call this show episodic, and most episodes are focused firmly on either comedy hijinks or band-related moe drama or both.
On the band drama side of things, Show by Rock!! is mostly playing things pretty safe, treading the usual such plots: rivalries, jealousy, band members keeping secrets from each other, getting depressed after a big loss, disputes of artistic direction, the pressure of writing a new song, etc.
The show's comedy, on the other hand, is a mad, mad ride, utterly lacking in restraint. Of course there's nothing that ruins a joke better than a review trying to explain why it's funny, so I won't try to exhaustively detail how the humour works, but in general it's the sort of humour that puts its characters into simple-but-silly situations, and then rather than just move onto the next joke it will dwell on the situation in humourous ways and escalate the situation even more... and more... and more again, into absurd levels of silliness, while making jokes out of both the scenario itself and the characters' reactions.
When the dysfunctional boys need to get a part-time job the show doesn't just go for situational comedy about them being bad at working in, say, a convenience store. Instead, it plays off their idiot tough guy personas to have them look for a cool job, which ends up getting them duped into a cartoonish underground mining job with pickaxes and minecarts, which of course turns into a silly macho competition, and then of course that somehow becomes a minecart chase through an active volcano (and there's still two escalations of the joke past that, but I won't spoil them).
It's the kind of comedy where the creators thought "Oh hey, if everybody is going to be an animal-person, how about we make a phoenix-boy who is perpetually sick?" and sure, that's funny enough, but then they thought "how can we take that even further?" and made him a high school delinquent phoenix-boy who gets his own little almost-a-transformation-sequence of taking his pills and drinking his health shake before he gets into a fight.
Or when the girls get put on trial for domestic terrorism with a cranky judge and their lawyer seems incompetent, of course that situation is already funny as-is, and of course they'll have the lawyer do the Ace Attorney thing, but then they'll also make a joke out of Ruhuyu interrupting the proceedings because she was just so eager to try out the Ace Attorney reference herself, and then the whole scene will divert to a montage of each girl imagining what their 40 years in a progressively more ridiculous jail setting will be like, and then when the lawyer solves the case the courtroom will turn into a dance hall because of course this lawyer guy is in his own secret band and he celebrates winning a case with his own insert song.
In short, lots of silly characters in lots of silly situations leading to lots of silly character animation.
If this sounds like it's a very "campy" show - yes! It is unrelentingly campy! Everything is an opportunity for a silly joke and every conflict can be solved through the power of music (or else the power of mint-devil laser beams). Ultimately, that's what makes the show more charming than it first appears, and makes up for how the actual story and band drama is pretty thin.
All the cute character designs certainly help, too.
You might even find that all the silly comedy hijinks have lowered your guard, and some of the tropey band drama or unexpected bits of wholesomeness actually end up having a stronger emotional impact on you than they have any right to.
So yes, this series has some full-CGI sequences. They're used when the characters fight the evil monsters, are sometimes used during the music performances, and also for the season 1 and season 2 EDs.
Episode 1 has both a CGI musical performance and a long monster sequence, so it gives the impression that this is going to happen in every episode, but that's not actually the case - there's only a handful of monsters in the whole series and there are just as many musical performances that never go into "CGI mode". Even the performances that do go into "CGI mode" usually only do it for part of the performance, or intercut the CGI sequence with 2D animation, as well.
So why does the show even do this, then? I don't really know, but it sure feels like it might have been some sort of franchise obligation the show had forced upon it. The CGI character models are noticeably more chibi, making them look both closer to how the characters appeared in the rhythm game and to Sanrio's other brands.
For what it's worth, the CGI quality itself is pretty good, and in the first two seasons has an interesting moving-playdoh sort of aesthetic to it (in the latter seasons they swap to a more cell-shaded look). They do take full advantage of it in some scenes to, for example, zoom in on characters actually drum to the beat or finger specific strings along with the song. But the show has plenty of good 2D performance animation, too... and the CGI models have no mouths so they can't show much emotion or look like they're singing... while some of the 2D performances have incredible singing animation, so...
...yeah, I can't justify this. It's an annoying distraction at best and at worst will completely turn off some viewers. All I can say is there really isn't as much of it as the show's first impression implies.
Unfortunately, the Japanese voice actors are mostly professional musicians, while most of the English voice actors are... not. And this is a show where there's a dozen singing characters in the first season alone.
Furthermore, even with the English actors who can sing well, there's still an obvious difference in the quality of the recording - the dub still sounds like it was recorded part-by-part in an ADR booth, not a full-fledged music studio.
I respect the ambition, but the best viewing experience is definitely the Japanese audio.
Typically this is the part of the [WT!] where I'd try to make one last pitch or do a "why you should watch it" section, but I don't think Show by Rock!! really needs such a thing - it's not that complicated of a show. Either you find the idea of a musical buffet and cute animal girl musicians interesting, or you don't. Fluff 'nuff said.
Also, there's a curling episode.
submitted by aniMayor to anime [link] [comments]
That's... a lot. So let's cut the intro and go straight to the most prominent and most important aspect of Show by Rock!!. No, not you, Shuzo, I mean...
The Music
In today's modern anime industry where seemingly every anime is part of a medix-mix project and producers will chase every possible merchandizing opportunity they can think of, it's no surprise that most "music anime" have a tie-in album or two you can buy after you watch the show.That's great, right?! You liked the anime, you liked the music in the anime, and now you can buy the music from the anime!
But it is just the music from the anime. If, for example, you liked the music in Ya Boy Kongming! so much that you bought the tie-in album you'll get full versions of all the songs from the show, and hey you even get a bonus version of the Azalea song sung by Eiko... but that's it. Some shows you get one or two extra songs from the protagonist singeband that weren't in the show, but even that is rare. If you really liked the sound of secondary characters like Azalea or, say, the Mermaid Sisters it's not like you can get an album of their music - they aren't even the protagonist band! What kind of anime would be crazy enough to have that?
Well, Show by Rock!! is indeed crazy enough to have that.
In fact, Show by Rock!! has that many times over. Show by Rock!! doesn't have an album... it has a buffet.
Show by Rock!! has 10 featured bands spread across its four 12-episode seasons. Some of these bands might only play three or four songs in the entire show, but each one of those ten bands has at least one album's worth of songs that aren't in the anime at all - the fewest having 10 more songs, some of them having dozens of extra songs.
See, the company Sanrio one day decided to develop their own gacha-esque rhythm video game, and for whatever reason they didn't want to re-use their existing characters like Hello Kitty for it. So they casually invented dozens of new musician characters, put them into over twenty made-up bands (only ten of which are featured in the anime), and wrote and recorded hundreds of brand new songs for their new franchise. The Show by Rock!! anime is the tie-in TV show for this rhythm game, giving it some story, worldbuilding, and, most importantly, more exposure to its music.
The sheer size of this franchise's music catalogue is one of Show By Rock!!'s greatest strengths, and the anime is not afraid to put it on full display. This is not an anime that has the same two or three insert songs being used over and over again in each episode - almost every episode includes a new insert song, with a total of over 50 different insert songs across the four seasons.
Each of the ten increasingly-difficult-to-pronounce bands has their own flavour of J-Pop:
- Plasmagica mixes your the vocals of an energetic anime girls' band with heavy drums and rock'n'roll guitar.
- SHINGANCRIMSONZ is an over-the-top chūnibyō-bishōnen kei band.
- Dokonjofinger is more metal-styled.
- Criticrista is your classic super-cutesy band of anime middle-schoolers.
- REIJINGSIGNAL's leans into electronica and house music styles.
Personally, I dig the shamisen-infused enka band Tsurezure Naru Ayatsuri Mugenan. Do they only get 3 actual performances in the show? Yup! Did I find thirteen other songs from them afterwards which I enjoyed? I sure did!
That's the biggest selling point of Show by Rock!!. It exposes you to dozens of songs by ten different bands with the promise that if you find something you like there is more to find, a promise not many music anime can make. And then when you do find a band you like, having a bit of moe backstory about the band makes listening to their songs more fun!
But There is Also a Story, Right?
There is!Shy, awkward, Japanese high-schooler Cyan Hijirikawa has been trying and failing to work up the nerve to ask to join her school's music club for months when she gets suddenly isekai'd to a music-addicted world where everyone just so happens to be an animal-human hybrid (unless they're an alien... or a robot... or an egg...). After saving a charming foxboy idol with a talking guitar, Cyan - now turned into a literal scaredy-cat - ends up joining a struggling young band where she makes new friends and has musical experiences that will help shy Cyan overcome her anxieties, learn what it means to be a true friend, and become a better musician, too. Along the way they'll meet, compete with, and learn from a bunch of other quirky bands... and also fight music-themed evil monsters to stop an evil record agency CEO from taking over the planet.
That's the story for the first season, anyway. The second season has such a fantastic cold open I'm not even going to talk about it, I don't want to spoil it. The third season switches to a new main protagonist band - Mashumairesh!! - and drops the isekai and monsters for a more straightforward cute-animal-girls/boys-doing-cute-things focus. Then season four caps off Mashumairesh!!'s story while bringing everyone together for a final victory lap.
Don't let the isekai or monster-fighting aspects fool you into thinking this is a serious show with a tight, continuous storyline. Those aspects do add some over-arching storyline to each season and some drama to a few performances, but it's mostly just at the start and end. By and large, you could almost call this show episodic, and most episodes are focused firmly on either comedy hijinks or band-related moe drama or both.
On the band drama side of things, Show by Rock!! is mostly playing things pretty safe, treading the usual such plots: rivalries, jealousy, band members keeping secrets from each other, getting depressed after a big loss, disputes of artistic direction, the pressure of writing a new song, etc.
The show's comedy, on the other hand, is a mad, mad ride, utterly lacking in restraint. Of course there's nothing that ruins a joke better than a review trying to explain why it's funny, so I won't try to exhaustively detail how the humour works, but in general it's the sort of humour that puts its characters into simple-but-silly situations, and then rather than just move onto the next joke it will dwell on the situation in humourous ways and escalate the situation even more... and more... and more again, into absurd levels of silliness, while making jokes out of both the scenario itself and the characters' reactions.
When the dysfunctional boys need to get a part-time job the show doesn't just go for situational comedy about them being bad at working in, say, a convenience store. Instead, it plays off their idiot tough guy personas to have them look for a cool job, which ends up getting them duped into a cartoonish underground mining job with pickaxes and minecarts, which of course turns into a silly macho competition, and then of course that somehow becomes a minecart chase through an active volcano (and there's still two escalations of the joke past that, but I won't spoil them).
It's the kind of comedy where the creators thought "Oh hey, if everybody is going to be an animal-person, how about we make a phoenix-boy who is perpetually sick?" and sure, that's funny enough, but then they thought "how can we take that even further?" and made him a high school delinquent phoenix-boy who gets his own little almost-a-transformation-sequence of taking his pills and drinking his health shake before he gets into a fight.
Or when the girls get put on trial for domestic terrorism with a cranky judge and their lawyer seems incompetent, of course that situation is already funny as-is, and of course they'll have the lawyer do the Ace Attorney thing, but then they'll also make a joke out of Ruhuyu interrupting the proceedings because she was just so eager to try out the Ace Attorney reference herself, and then the whole scene will divert to a montage of each girl imagining what their 40 years in a progressively more ridiculous jail setting will be like, and then when the lawyer solves the case the courtroom will turn into a dance hall because of course this lawyer guy is in his own secret band and he celebrates winning a case with his own insert song.
In short, lots of silly characters in lots of silly situations leading to lots of silly character animation.
If this sounds like it's a very "campy" show - yes! It is unrelentingly campy! Everything is an opportunity for a silly joke and every conflict can be solved through the power of music (or else the power of mint-devil laser beams). Ultimately, that's what makes the show more charming than it first appears, and makes up for how the actual story and band drama is pretty thin.
All the cute character designs certainly help, too.
You might even find that all the silly comedy hijinks have lowered your guard, and some of the tropey band drama or unexpected bits of wholesomeness actually end up having a stronger emotional impact on you than they have any right to.
What's This About Edgy CGI Hello Kitty Sequences?
Okay, I guess I can't avoid this topic any longer.So yes, this series has some full-CGI sequences. They're used when the characters fight the evil monsters, are sometimes used during the music performances, and also for the season 1 and season 2 EDs.
Episode 1 has both a CGI musical performance and a long monster sequence, so it gives the impression that this is going to happen in every episode, but that's not actually the case - there's only a handful of monsters in the whole series and there are just as many musical performances that never go into "CGI mode". Even the performances that do go into "CGI mode" usually only do it for part of the performance, or intercut the CGI sequence with 2D animation, as well.
So why does the show even do this, then? I don't really know, but it sure feels like it might have been some sort of franchise obligation the show had forced upon it. The CGI character models are noticeably more chibi, making them look both closer to how the characters appeared in the rhythm game and to Sanrio's other brands.
For what it's worth, the CGI quality itself is pretty good, and in the first two seasons has an interesting moving-playdoh sort of aesthetic to it (in the latter seasons they swap to a more cell-shaded look). They do take full advantage of it in some scenes to, for example, zoom in on characters actually drum to the beat or finger specific strings along with the song. But the show has plenty of good 2D performance animation, too... and the CGI models have no mouths so they can't show much emotion or look like they're singing... while some of the 2D performances have incredible singing animation, so...
...yeah, I can't justify this. It's an annoying distraction at best and at worst will completely turn off some viewers. All I can say is there really isn't as much of it as the show's first impression implies.
Sub vs Dub?
I respect the heck out of what the English Dub for this show tried to do - they actually redubbed almost every song in the show (except for the fourth season... possibly due to the Funimation-Crunchyroll merger?). A very, very brave undertaking.Unfortunately, the Japanese voice actors are mostly professional musicians, while most of the English voice actors are... not. And this is a show where there's a dozen singing characters in the first season alone.
Furthermore, even with the English actors who can sing well, there's still an obvious difference in the quality of the recording - the dub still sounds like it was recorded part-by-part in an ADR booth, not a full-fledged music studio.
I respect the ambition, but the best viewing experience is definitely the Japanese audio.
Is There Yuri?
Nope. No coffee, either.In Conclusion Anything Else?
Typically this is the part of the [WT!] where I'd try to make one last pitch or do a "why you should watch it" section, but I don't think Show by Rock!! really needs such a thing - it's not that complicated of a show. Either you find the idea of a musical buffet and cute animal girl musicians interesting, or you don't. Also, there's a curling episode.
2023.03.11 23:23 LokoLoa Anyone else wish they kept "The Reason We are Here"?
For people who only watched the anime, the song "The Star Knows" is actually a rearrangement of a song from the stage play that I mentioned in the title of this thread. While The Star Knows is an epic piece of music, the original featured the entire cast spilling out their feelings, since the anime is seasonal, there is alot of crunch and whole storylines needed to be axed (Claudine didn't even get her own episode :(), literally the people working on it said it was a miracle the anime was even finished at all, here is a great site if you want to learn more about that: https://blog.sakugabooru.com/2018/07/16/revue-starlight-production-notes-1/
But the song "The Reason We are Here" would had been such a powerful song to play on the second episode, it even foreshadows certain things... what do yall think? Was it a good idea to reuse the song as a Junna/Karen only song? Personally, I think it would had been epic in the middle of their fight, the song kept cutting back and forth between the characters when their lines came up. Sadly it was such a big missed opportunity :( This song is probably on my top 3 Stage Play only song atm.
submitted by LokoLoa to RevueStarlight [link] [comments]
But the song "The Reason We are Here" would had been such a powerful song to play on the second episode, it even foreshadows certain things... what do yall think? Was it a good idea to reuse the song as a Junna/Karen only song? Personally, I think it would had been epic in the middle of their fight, the song kept cutting back and forth between the characters when their lines came up. Sadly it was such a big missed opportunity :( This song is probably on my top 3 Stage Play only song atm.
2023.03.03 03:29 Mazen141 Why "Attack on Titan the Final Arc Part 1" isn't the "Final" Season
Making yet another post to clarify the confusion behind the airing of this cursed franchise.
Tomorrow, the first half of the Final Arc (Commonly called Part 3 or Conclusion arc) will be airing and it's going to cover half of the remaining chapters in the manga, sometime later this year a second part will release covering the rest of it
You see, when the season was first announced, the manga was still ongoing and only at its 118th chapter. The manga would end two years later, on April 9, 2021, with its 139th chapter, which was released a little over a week after the ending of the first "Final Season", that season adapted till chapter 116
Almost a year later, "Attack on Titan the Final Season Part 2" began airing on January 10th, 2022. It consisted of 12 episodes and ended on April 4th. Once again, it did not adapt the entire manga but stopped at chapter 130, leaving nine chapters to be adapted in a newly announced third part.
Skipping ahead to 2023, it was announced that part 3 would actually be two split parts with the first airing on the 3rd of March and the other part airing sometime later this year, these two parts will finally adapt the ending of the story.
Isayama already has a history of underestimating how long he will need to end the manga, couple that with the fact that in 2018, it was announced that the manga would be entering its final arc. and it's easy to see why they probably didn't expect the manga to continue until the end of Q1 2021.
The decision to call it the "Final Season" instead of something like "Season 4" was probably for marketing. They likely judged that calling it the final season would generate more attention and capitalize on the hype behind the manga's ending, compared to just calling it "Season 4" or something along those lines.
Final Season Part 2 was no exception, and it was clear that by the end the production was on its last legs, the final episode was even still being storyboarded in February and the credits were a mess, as typical of Attack on Titan. As such, doing the final chapters, which contain some of the hardest content in the entire manga to adapt, in the same production cycle as S4P2 would've been nearly impossible.
Even the Final Arc, which is adapting a smaller amount of content with an arguably better schedule than some of the previous seasons, still requires over 500 staff members to work on it, the scale of the final chapters is just very large even by the standards of the manga up to this point.
Why did they not delay the first part and have them air together? Well, It's anyone's guess. It could be because of prior arrangements with NHK, or maybe they just have some events planned for the 10th anniversary and wanted to have anime content air prior to it. they might've thought that a longer gap could lead to a loss in interest, afterall, they could still be traumatized from the drop in popularity that happened in the gap between S1 and S2.
We also know that SiM, the same band that made the "Rumbling" will be performing the theme song for the first half, titled "UNDER THE TREE", the song has already been leaked online and you can probably find it with a simple google search.
Moreover, according to leakers, there won't be an opening but there will be an ending with visuals that will be mainly handled by the series director Yuichiro Hayashi, similar to how he handled the 2nd Kakegurui ED on his own, take this all with a grain of salt of course.
I was originally going to go more into some of the stuff we learned from the 100Cam documentary but I think it's probably better to wait till the whole thing is translated, besides, the episode airs in less than 24 hours of making this post anyway.
Thanks for reading the post, hopefully I won't need to make another one like it lol
submitted by Mazen141 to anime [link] [comments]
Tomorrow, the first half of the Final Arc (Commonly called Part 3 or Conclusion arc) will be airing and it's going to cover half of the remaining chapters in the manga, sometime later this year a second part will release covering the rest of it
Hasn't the Final Season been going on for a while now?In June of 2019, "Attack on Titan the Final Season" was announced, originally slated to air in the fall of 2020. However, it did not begin airing until December 7th, it consisted of 16 episodes and ended on March 29th, 2021. Although it was titled the "Final Season", it did not intend to cover the manga's ending.
You see, when the season was first announced, the manga was still ongoing and only at its 118th chapter. The manga would end two years later, on April 9, 2021, with its 139th chapter, which was released a little over a week after the ending of the first "Final Season", that season adapted till chapter 116
Almost a year later, "Attack on Titan the Final Season Part 2" began airing on January 10th, 2022. It consisted of 12 episodes and ended on April 4th. Once again, it did not adapt the entire manga but stopped at chapter 130, leaving nine chapters to be adapted in a newly announced third part.
Skipping ahead to 2023, it was announced that part 3 would actually be two split parts with the first airing on the 3rd of March and the other part airing sometime later this year, these two parts will finally adapt the ending of the story.
What's up with the "Final Season" Naming?We don't really have an official reason behind this naming mess, but there are a lot of theories trying to explain it. One of the popular ones is that the producers weren't anticipating the manga to go on for so long and for it to become so difficult to adapt near the end.
Isayama already has a history of underestimating how long he will need to end the manga, couple that with the fact that in 2018, it was announced that the manga would be entering its final arc. and it's easy to see why they probably didn't expect the manga to continue until the end of Q1 2021.
The decision to call it the "Final Season" instead of something like "Season 4" was probably for marketing. They likely judged that calling it the final season would generate more attention and capitalize on the hype behind the manga's ending, compared to just calling it "Season 4" or something along those lines.
Couldn't they have just extended part 2 and adapt till the end?It's not so simple, Attack on titan is an infamously hard project even by industry standards, from the very first season, it has always been a production hell behind the scenes. whether from S1 which had missing textures and needed over 2000 blu-ray corrections, to the messy credits of S2 to the conditions at WIT studio being called a battlefield to a MAPPA staff collecting energy drinks stickers and so on and so forth.
Final Season Part 2 was no exception, and it was clear that by the end the production was on its last legs, the final episode was even still being storyboarded in February and the credits were a mess, as typical of Attack on Titan. As such, doing the final chapters, which contain some of the hardest content in the entire manga to adapt, in the same production cycle as S4P2 would've been nearly impossible.
Even the Final Arc, which is adapting a smaller amount of content with an arguably better schedule than some of the previous seasons, still requires over 500 staff members to work on it, the scale of the final chapters is just very large even by the standards of the manga up to this point.
Why split part three into two halves instead of airing it as one?This ties back to the previous point, originally they aimed to have the final season part 3 air in its entirety on March 3rd, but due to the scale of the work being larger than expected, they had to split it into two parts, with the first airing on March 3rd.
Why did they not delay the first part and have them air together? Well, It's anyone's guess. It could be because of prior arrangements with NHK, or maybe they just have some events planned for the 10th anniversary and wanted to have anime content air prior to it. they might've thought that a longer gap could lead to a loss in interest, afterall, they could still be traumatized from the drop in popularity that happened in the gap between S1 and S2.
When should we expect the second half of the final arc?We don't have a release date besides that it will be released this year. I personally doubt that the gap between it and the first half would be long, we already know that originally they wanted it to also air on March 4th. In a recently released documentary on NHK about the behind-the-scenes of the production of the Final Arc we saw that they were working on content that would be in the second half as early as last September so I think the second half must be pretty late into production
What do we know about the first half of the final arc?We know that it will be exactly 62 mins long. According to some leakers, it seems like it might be split into three episodes with normal lengths for streaming services.
We also know that SiM, the same band that made the "Rumbling" will be performing the theme song for the first half, titled "UNDER THE TREE", the song has already been leaked online and you can probably find it with a simple google search.
Moreover, according to leakers, there won't be an opening but there will be an ending with visuals that will be mainly handled by the series director Yuichiro Hayashi, similar to how he handled the 2nd Kakegurui ED on his own, take this all with a grain of salt of course.
I was originally going to go more into some of the stuff we learned from the 100Cam documentary but I think it's probably better to wait till the whole thing is translated, besides, the episode airs in less than 24 hours of making this post anyway.
Thanks for reading the post, hopefully I won't need to make another one like it lol
2023.03.03 03:26 GeorgeFared testoooo
Making yet another post to clarify the confusion behind the airing of this cursed franchise.
Tomorrow, the first half of the Final Arc (Commonly called Part 3 or Conclusion arc) will be airing and it's going to cover half of the remaining chapters in the manga, sometime later this year a second part will release covering the rest of it
You see, when the season was first announced, the manga was still ongoing and only at its 118th chapter. The manga would end two years later, on April 9, 2021, with its 139th chapter, which was released a little over a week after the ending of the first "Final Season", that season adapted till chapter 116
Almost a year later, "Attack on Titan the Final Season Part 2" began airing on January 10th, 2022. It consisted of 12 episodes and ended on April 4th. Once again, it did not adapt the entire manga but stopped at chapter 130, leaving nine chapters to be adapted in a newly announced third part.
Skipping ahead to 2023, it was announced that part 3 would actually be two split parts with the first airing on the 3rd of March and the other part airing sometime later this year, these two parts will finally adapt the ending of the story.
Isayama already has a history of underestimating how long he will need to end the manga, couple that with the fact that in 2018, it was announced that the manga would be entering its final arc. and it's easy to see why they probably didn't expect the manga to continue until the end of Q1 2021.
The decision to call it the "Final Season" instead of something like "Season 4" was probably for marketing. They likely judged that calling it the final season would generate more attention and capitalize on the hype behind the manga's ending, compared to just calling it "Season 4"
Final Season Part 2 was no exception, and it was clear that by the end the production was on its last legs, the final episode was even still being storyboarded in February and the credits were a mess, as typical of Attack on Titan. As such, doing the final chapters, which contain some of the hardest content in the entire manga to adapt, in the same production cycle as S4P2 would've been nearly impossible.
Even the Final Arc, which is adapting a smaller amount of content with an arguably better schedule than some of the previous seasons, still requires over 500 staff members to work on it, the scale of the final chapters is just very large even by the standards of the manga up to this point.
Why did they not delay the first part and have them air together? Well, It's anyone's guess. It could be because of prior arrangements with NHK, or maybe they just have some events planned for the 10th anniversary and wanted to have anime content air prior to it. they might've thought that a longer gap could lead to a loss in interest, afterall, they could still be traumatized from the drop in popularity that happened in the gap between S1 and S2.
We also know that SiM, the same band that made the "Rumbling" will be performing the theme song for the first half, titled "UNDER THE TREE", the song has already been leaked online and you can probably find it with a simple google search.
Moreover, according to leakers, there won't be an opening but there will be an ending with visuals that will be mainly handled by the series director Yuichiro Hayashi, similar to how he handled the 2nd Kakegurui ED on his own, take this all with a grain of salt of course.
I was originally going to go more into some of the stuff we learned from the 100Cam documentary but I think it's probably better to wait till the whole thing is translated, besides, the episode airs in less than 24 hours of making this post anyway.
Thanks for reading the post, hopefully I won't need to make another one like it lol
submitted by GeorgeFared to u/GeorgeFared [link] [comments]
Tomorrow, the first half of the Final Arc (Commonly called Part 3 or Conclusion arc) will be airing and it's going to cover half of the remaining chapters in the manga, sometime later this year a second part will release covering the rest of it
Hasn't the Final Season been going on for a while now?In June of 2019, "Attack on Titan the Final Season" was announced, originally slated to air in the fall of 2020. However, it did not begin airing until December 7th, it consisted of 16 episodes and ended on March 29th, 2021. Although it was titled the "Final Season", it did not intend to cover the manga's ending.
You see, when the season was first announced, the manga was still ongoing and only at its 118th chapter. The manga would end two years later, on April 9, 2021, with its 139th chapter, which was released a little over a week after the ending of the first "Final Season", that season adapted till chapter 116
Almost a year later, "Attack on Titan the Final Season Part 2" began airing on January 10th, 2022. It consisted of 12 episodes and ended on April 4th. Once again, it did not adapt the entire manga but stopped at chapter 130, leaving nine chapters to be adapted in a newly announced third part.
Skipping ahead to 2023, it was announced that part 3 would actually be two split parts with the first airing on the 3rd of March and the other part airing sometime later this year, these two parts will finally adapt the ending of the story.
What's up with the "Final Season" Naming?We don't really have an official reason behind this naming mess, but there are a lot of theories trying to explain it. One of the popular ones is that the producers weren't anticipating the manga to go on for so long and for it to become so difficult to adapt near the end.
Isayama already has a history of underestimating how long he will need to end the manga, couple that with the fact that in 2018, it was announced that the manga would be entering its final arc. and it's easy to see why they probably didn't expect the manga to continue until the end of Q1 2021.
The decision to call it the "Final Season" instead of something like "Season 4" was probably for marketing. They likely judged that calling it the final season would generate more attention and capitalize on the hype behind the manga's ending, compared to just calling it "Season 4"
Couldn't they have just extended part 2 and adapt till the end?It's not so simple, Attack on titan is an infamously hard project even by industry standards, from the very first season, it has always been a production hell behind the scenes. whether from S1 which had missing textures and needed over 2000 blu-ray corrections, to the messy credits of S2 to the conditions at WIT studio being called a battlefield to a MAPPA staff collecting energy drinks stickers and so on and so forth.
Final Season Part 2 was no exception, and it was clear that by the end the production was on its last legs, the final episode was even still being storyboarded in February and the credits were a mess, as typical of Attack on Titan. As such, doing the final chapters, which contain some of the hardest content in the entire manga to adapt, in the same production cycle as S4P2 would've been nearly impossible.
Even the Final Arc, which is adapting a smaller amount of content with an arguably better schedule than some of the previous seasons, still requires over 500 staff members to work on it, the scale of the final chapters is just very large even by the standards of the manga up to this point.
Why split part three into two halves instead of airing it as one?This ties back to the previous point, originally they aimed to have the final season part 3 air in its entirety on March 3rd, but due to the scale of the work being larger than expected, they had to split it into two parts, with the first airing on March 3rd.
Why did they not delay the first part and have them air together? Well, It's anyone's guess. It could be because of prior arrangements with NHK, or maybe they just have some events planned for the 10th anniversary and wanted to have anime content air prior to it. they might've thought that a longer gap could lead to a loss in interest, afterall, they could still be traumatized from the drop in popularity that happened in the gap between S1 and S2.
When should we expect the second half of the final arc?We don't have a release date besides that it will be released this year. I personally doubt that the gap between it and the first half would be long, we already know that originally they wanted it to also air on March 4th. In a recently released documentary on NHK about the behind-the-scenes of the production of the Final Arc we saw that they were working on content that would be in the second half as early as last September so I think the second half must be pretty late into production
What do we know about the first half of the final arc?We know that it will be exactly 62 mins long. According to some leakers, it seems like it might be split into three episodes with normal lengths for streaming services.
We also know that SiM, the same band that made the "Rumbling" will be performing the theme song for the first half, titled "UNDER THE TREE", the song has already been leaked online and you can probably find it with a simple google search.
Moreover, according to leakers, there won't be an opening but there will be an ending with visuals that will be mainly handled by the series director Yuichiro Hayashi, similar to how he handled the 2nd Kakegurui ED on his own, take this all with a grain of salt of course.
I was originally going to go more into some of the stuff we learned from the 100Cam documentary but I think it's probably better to wait till the whole thing is translated, besides, the episode airs in less than 24 hours of making this post anyway.
Thanks for reading the post, hopefully I won't need to make another one like it lol
2023.03.02 06:07 Useful_Brunch Help please, what anime is this from?
About two weeks ago on Twitter (reposted from Sakugabooru?) I saw an animation of a paper white skinned man who had a colorful(?) eye open on the back of his hand. When the eye opened, he proceeded to transform into a grotesque monster with appendages (wings?) sprouting out of his back.
Can anyone help with what anime this is from or where I can find this animation again? Please note: it is not Parasyte, Bounen no Xamdou, Tokyo Ghoul or FMA.
Thank you so much, and I appreciate the help!
submitted by Useful_Brunch to AnimeSakuga [link] [comments]
Can anyone help with what anime this is from or where I can find this animation again? Please note: it is not Parasyte, Bounen no Xamdou, Tokyo Ghoul or FMA.
Thank you so much, and I appreciate the help!
2023.02.17 21:12 lilyvess [WT!] Precure - Celebrating 20 years of Magic
In 2023, the magical girl franchise Precure is celebrating its 20th anniversary. For this occasion Toei released a snazzy cool video, put some really cool advertisements on train stations, and decorated the streets Precure for an entire Exhibit. But despite the franchise airing for 20 years with over 900 episodes and 70 magical girls, there is a good chance that a lot of you are unfamiliar with it.
Or maybe you’re more familiar with the Precure franchise than you realize? Maybe you remember when My Hero Academia called it Preyure. Maybe you remember Model Warrior Lily Cure from Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei. Perhaps you know it from Non Non Biyori’s Pretty Cute, Aho Girl’s PreChure. Maybe like The Way of the Househusband’s Tatsu, it’s not you but your significant other watching Crime Catch Policure☆.
Maybe you just recognize the outfits from Weathering with You or Masamune-kun or the dance from League of Legends
Maybe you heard it in Summertime Render, the Kaguya-sama manga, or Rent-a-Girlfriend. Or maybe you saw it on freaking Iron-Chef America
This isn’t even all the references to Precure in Otaku culture. My point being that when I say Precure is iconic, I really mean it.
But it really is the combination of both parts of the genre that make the franchise. It is silly, cute, wholesome, weird, mature, and badass, all at the same time.
The most commonly recommended way to get into the franchise is to just look at the girls and pick the series with the designs you like the most. This becomes a bit more daunting every year as just being tossed an image with 70+ girls to choose from can be quite overwhelming. So here is a quick rundown of every Precure season.
2004-2008: The Age of Experimentation
Futari wa Precure - Misumi Nagisa and Yukishiro Honoka are Cure Black and Cure White in the original Precure that is a more down to earth and humble version of the magical girl genre.
Futari wa Precure MAX HEART - Misumi Nagisa and Yukishiro Honoka return again as Cure Black and Cure White in a sequel season that is largely just more of the same.
Futari wa Precure Splash Star - Hyuuga Saki and Mishou Mai are Cure Bloom and Cure Egret in what is essentially just a remake of Futari wa Precure but more polished and streamlined.
Yes Precure 5 - Yumehara Nozomi is Cure Dream who joins with her four other friends to help save a hot guy who is a prince, her teacher, a hamster, her boss, and her love interest. Great for fans of romance and shoujo series.
Yes Precure 5 GOGO - Yumehara Nozomi and all her friends return as Cure Dream and the Yes Precure 5 alongside new members like Milky Rose in an installment that trades away the romance for more wacky and weird adventures.
2009-2015: The Golden Age
Fresh Precure - Momozono Love is Cure Peach in what would become the first modern Precure series. So much of the formula and tropes that have become mainstays in the franchise even to this day get their start in this installment.
Heartcatch Precure - Hanasaki Tsubomi is Cure Blossom in the GOAT series. This more mature and action packed series would become the franchise’s most successful series ever.
Suite Precure - Hojo Hibiki and Minamino Kanade, a couple of former best friends who had a falling out, are forced to work together as Cure Melody and Cure Rhythm in this music themed adventure.
Smile Precure - Hoshizora Miyuki is Cure Happy in one of the most light hearted, funny, and weird installments in the franchise. This season was given a 4kids style dub by Netflix as the ‘Glitter Force.”
DokiDoki Precure - Aida Mana is Cure Heart, the Chad Pink who builds the largest harem of girls in the franchise in an installment that has a tighter plot and less filler than other Precure series. This season was also cursed by Netflix with a 4kids style dub as “Glitter Force DokiDoki,”
Happiness Charge Precure Aino Megumi is Cure Lovely in a series celebrating the 10th Anniversary of the franchise by bringing back the director of Heartcatch Precure, Tatsuya Nagamine, for another action packed adventure.
Go! Princess Precure - Haruno Haruka is Cure Flora in the second GOAT with some of the best character development in the franchise. Widely considered one of the best in the franchise, this series had low sales that resulted in the end of the Golden Age.
2016-Present: Modern Age
Witchy Precure - Asahina Mirai and Izayoi Riko are Cure Miracle and Cure Magical as they travel to the magic world and attend Not-Hogwarts where they learn how to become witches in a series that has some of the highest Yuri subtext levels in the franchise. In a lot of ways this series is the spiritual successor to Futari wa Precure. A look at what Futari wa Precure would have been like if it was made in the present Precure Model.
KiraKira Precure a la Mode - Usami Ichika is Cure Whip in what is Not-TokyoMewMew. It’s the other series of 5 animal themed Magical Girls that also work in a café that doubles as their secret hideout. This season is available to watch on Crunchyroll.
HUGtto Precure - Nono Hana is Cure Yell as they celebrate the franchise 15th Anniversary by bringing the highly regarded magical girl alumni director Junichi Sato (Sailor Moon, Princess Tutu, Aria, Ojamajo Doremi) for a bold and progressive installment that was anime’s 2019 AOTY.
Star Twinkle Precure - Hoshina Hikaru is Cure Star in this imaginative adventure that takes Precure to the far reaches of outer space. The light heartedness and fun of Smile Precure with the Yuri subtext of Witchy Precure.
Healin Good Precure - Hanadera Nodoka is Cure Grace in this doctor and health themed series that, ironically, came out right as Covid shut down the world. This season is available to watch on Crunchyroll.
Tropical Rouge Precure - Natsuumi Manatsu is Cure Summer, the first non-Pink lead in Precure since Cure Black in Futari wa Precure. Tropical Rouge is a very fun and zany Precure series. This season is available to watch on Crunchyroll
Delicious Smile Precure - Nagomi Yui is Cure Precious in a story with a surprising amount of mystery and plot to sink your teeth into. This season is available to watch on crunchyroll.
Soaring Sky Precure - Harewataru Sora is Cure Sky, the first Blue lead in Precure, in the current installment of the franchise set to celebrate the 20th Anniversary. Sora is a young girl from Skyland who dreams of being a hero land her in Japan where she must become a Precure to protect Princess Elle. It is only two weeks into the series and is being simulcast on Crunchyroll with new episodes airing every Saturday.
That’s why I want to stress that at the end of the day a sizable part of the audience for this series is still young children. Young children who by and large haven’t been following the franchise since 2004’s Futari wa Precure, you know, cause they weren’t born yet. Many of the kids watching Precure today haven’t seen the majority of Precure series. Toei doesn’t expect their parents to make their children go through all 900 episodes before starting SkyCure. That is not the way the staff at Toei expect this series to be consumed, so I hope you don’t feel pressured by that.
Precure has been around for 20 years and doesn’t show signs of ending any time soon. A big secret to Precure’s continued success and longevity is that the franchise understands it needs to be accessible and needs to constantly reinvent itself. Even after 20 years the franchise is still finding new ways to surprise its audience while at its core never straying from what it means to be Precure. It’s a franchise that can inspire you, make you laugh, be breathtaking, and just be adorable.
There has never been a better time to give Precure a shot than right now.
Hirogaru Sky Precure’s 3rd episode will air this Saturday. You can watch the series on Crunchyroll Crunchyroll
submitted by lilyvess to anime [link] [comments]
Or maybe you’re more familiar with the Precure franchise than you realize? Maybe you remember when My Hero Academia called it Preyure. Maybe you remember Model Warrior Lily Cure from Sayonara Zetsubou Sensei. Perhaps you know it from Non Non Biyori’s Pretty Cute, Aho Girl’s PreChure. Maybe like The Way of the Househusband’s Tatsu, it’s not you but your significant other watching Crime Catch Policure☆.
Maybe you just recognize the outfits from Weathering with You or Masamune-kun or the dance from League of Legends
Maybe you heard it in Summertime Render, the Kaguya-sama manga, or Rent-a-Girlfriend. Or maybe you saw it on freaking Iron-Chef America
This isn’t even all the references to Precure in Otaku culture. My point being that when I say Precure is iconic, I really mean it.
What is Precure
So what is Precure? Precure is a franchise of magical girl anime aimed at younger girls. It’s the series that inherited the will of Sailor Moon as the standard bearer for traditional magical girls for the past 20 years. While it is the same type of anime as Sailor Moon, there are some notable distinctions that have helped it stand apart:- Precure is an anime original and not a manga.
- Precure reboots every year. There is a hard cap of 50 episodes per season and each season has a completely unrelated cast of characters, setting, and plot. So each season has its own complete story and every year there is a new jumping on point.
- Precure has garnered a more sizable male fanbase. Yes this is an anime for young girls, it’s audience also includes a lot of older boys as well. This is thanks in large part to…
- Precure has a larger focus on physical combat. The franchise was created by Dragon Ball Z director Daisuke Nishio under the concept “Girls want to fight too.” So where Sailor Moon or Cardcaptor Sakura would use spells, Nagisa would run up to her opponents. The spirit of this has stayed true ever since.
- Precure has less focus on romance. It’s something you notice more as you watch other similar magical girl shows aimed at the same audience. Sailor Moon, Cardcaptor Sakura, and Shugo Chara, are very heavily shoujo series. There are less bishounen and a stronger focus on the girls and their relationships.
But it really is the combination of both parts of the genre that make the franchise. It is silly, cute, wholesome, weird, mature, and badass, all at the same time.
Where to Start
Now this is a bit of a tricky question. You could start with the original series Futari wa Precure and work your way up the ladder of Precure.That would be a completely valid way to get into the franchise, but it is far from the only way, and I’d even go so far as to say that it's often not even the optimal way to get into the franchise.The most commonly recommended way to get into the franchise is to just look at the girls and pick the series with the designs you like the most. This becomes a bit more daunting every year as just being tossed an image with 70+ girls to choose from can be quite overwhelming. So here is a quick rundown of every Precure season.
2004-2008: The Age of Experimentation
Futari wa Precure - Misumi Nagisa and Yukishiro Honoka are Cure Black and Cure White in the original Precure that is a more down to earth and humble version of the magical girl genre.
Futari wa Precure MAX HEART - Misumi Nagisa and Yukishiro Honoka return again as Cure Black and Cure White in a sequel season that is largely just more of the same.
Futari wa Precure Splash Star - Hyuuga Saki and Mishou Mai are Cure Bloom and Cure Egret in what is essentially just a remake of Futari wa Precure but more polished and streamlined.
Yes Precure 5 - Yumehara Nozomi is Cure Dream who joins with her four other friends to help save a hot guy who is a prince, her teacher, a hamster, her boss, and her love interest. Great for fans of romance and shoujo series.
Yes Precure 5 GOGO - Yumehara Nozomi and all her friends return as Cure Dream and the Yes Precure 5 alongside new members like Milky Rose in an installment that trades away the romance for more wacky and weird adventures.
2009-2015: The Golden Age
Fresh Precure - Momozono Love is Cure Peach in what would become the first modern Precure series. So much of the formula and tropes that have become mainstays in the franchise even to this day get their start in this installment.
Heartcatch Precure - Hanasaki Tsubomi is Cure Blossom in the GOAT series. This more mature and action packed series would become the franchise’s most successful series ever.
Suite Precure - Hojo Hibiki and Minamino Kanade, a couple of former best friends who had a falling out, are forced to work together as Cure Melody and Cure Rhythm in this music themed adventure.
Smile Precure - Hoshizora Miyuki is Cure Happy in one of the most light hearted, funny, and weird installments in the franchise. This season was given a 4kids style dub by Netflix as the ‘Glitter Force.”
DokiDoki Precure - Aida Mana is Cure Heart, the Chad Pink who builds the largest harem of girls in the franchise in an installment that has a tighter plot and less filler than other Precure series. This season was also cursed by Netflix with a 4kids style dub as “Glitter Force DokiDoki,”
Happiness Charge Precure Aino Megumi is Cure Lovely in a series celebrating the 10th Anniversary of the franchise by bringing back the director of Heartcatch Precure, Tatsuya Nagamine, for another action packed adventure.
Go! Princess Precure - Haruno Haruka is Cure Flora in the second GOAT with some of the best character development in the franchise. Widely considered one of the best in the franchise, this series had low sales that resulted in the end of the Golden Age.
2016-Present: Modern Age
Witchy Precure - Asahina Mirai and Izayoi Riko are Cure Miracle and Cure Magical as they travel to the magic world and attend Not-Hogwarts where they learn how to become witches in a series that has some of the highest Yuri subtext levels in the franchise. In a lot of ways this series is the spiritual successor to Futari wa Precure. A look at what Futari wa Precure would have been like if it was made in the present Precure Model.
KiraKira Precure a la Mode - Usami Ichika is Cure Whip in what is Not-TokyoMewMew. It’s the other series of 5 animal themed Magical Girls that also work in a café that doubles as their secret hideout. This season is available to watch on Crunchyroll.
HUGtto Precure - Nono Hana is Cure Yell as they celebrate the franchise 15th Anniversary by bringing the highly regarded magical girl alumni director Junichi Sato (Sailor Moon, Princess Tutu, Aria, Ojamajo Doremi) for a bold and progressive installment that was anime’s 2019 AOTY.
Star Twinkle Precure - Hoshina Hikaru is Cure Star in this imaginative adventure that takes Precure to the far reaches of outer space. The light heartedness and fun of Smile Precure with the Yuri subtext of Witchy Precure.
Healin Good Precure - Hanadera Nodoka is Cure Grace in this doctor and health themed series that, ironically, came out right as Covid shut down the world. This season is available to watch on Crunchyroll.
Tropical Rouge Precure - Natsuumi Manatsu is Cure Summer, the first non-Pink lead in Precure since Cure Black in Futari wa Precure. Tropical Rouge is a very fun and zany Precure series. This season is available to watch on Crunchyroll
Delicious Smile Precure - Nagomi Yui is Cure Precious in a story with a surprising amount of mystery and plot to sink your teeth into. This season is available to watch on crunchyroll.
Soaring Sky Precure - Harewataru Sora is Cure Sky, the first Blue lead in Precure, in the current installment of the franchise set to celebrate the 20th Anniversary. Sora is a young girl from Skyland who dreams of being a hero land her in Japan where she must become a Precure to protect Princess Elle. It is only two weeks into the series and is being simulcast on Crunchyroll with new episodes airing every Saturday.
We’re in the Endgame Now
On top of the around 50 episodes of Precure, Toei also produces one or two movies a year. One of these is your standard anime film adventure for that year’s season and the other is a crossover movie that brings together multiple seasons of Precure. Toei have made 15 different crossover movies, with some only involving 2-3 teams coming together, while others can involve 10 or more teams in a movie! We’re talking about over 50 magical girls in a single 60 minute movie!Conclusion
I can understand the trepidation of starting a franchise like Precure. It can be intimidating to start any franchise that is approaching 1000 episodes of anime.That’s why I want to stress that at the end of the day a sizable part of the audience for this series is still young children. Young children who by and large haven’t been following the franchise since 2004’s Futari wa Precure, you know, cause they weren’t born yet. Many of the kids watching Precure today haven’t seen the majority of Precure series. Toei doesn’t expect their parents to make their children go through all 900 episodes before starting SkyCure. That is not the way the staff at Toei expect this series to be consumed, so I hope you don’t feel pressured by that.
Precure has been around for 20 years and doesn’t show signs of ending any time soon. A big secret to Precure’s continued success and longevity is that the franchise understands it needs to be accessible and needs to constantly reinvent itself. Even after 20 years the franchise is still finding new ways to surprise its audience while at its core never straying from what it means to be Precure. It’s a franchise that can inspire you, make you laugh, be breathtaking, and just be adorable.
There has never been a better time to give Precure a shot than right now.
Hirogaru Sky Precure’s 3rd episode will air this Saturday. You can watch the series on Crunchyroll Crunchyroll
2023.02.03 20:34 canyourepeatquestion How much did WIT Studio's choice to use thick outlines for character art in their anime adaptation influence you into watching the show?
In my personal experience, what keeps me coming back to the show so many years after it originally aired is the stylistic choice to make the character outlines look like they were inked by a brush pen. I saw a lot of averse reactions to this decision; some say it made the show look like a Hanna-Barbera cartoon (so external connotation), while others would have preferred the roughness of the original drawings. But for me, it helped define the anime adaptation by distinguishing it from other shows and contributing to the high sense of polish emanating from its presentation, and it introduced me to the sakuga community much as Kazenshuu did the same for Dragon Ball fans. Of course, it's not the only component of WIT's contribution to etching SnK/AoT into the public consciousness, as Season 3 proves; there's color palette and grading, how CG is used, etc. But I could tell something was missing when watching Imai's rendition of Levi fleeing the Interior Police, an outcome of WIT probably being stretched to the limit during production of the third season and not getting compensated enough. I get that Arifumi Imai naturally does not take line variation into account when producing his cuts and WIT adds the brush pen outlines in post, but it got me thinking about how integral it was to the show's perception.
Then MAPPA took over and you know the rest.
I think it also had a wider impact on the animation industry than most people realize, as after Season 1 came out you saw a lot of studios start experimenting and investing a lot of R&D into making lineart more distinctive. The industry's vectorization process tends to destroy a lot of line variation from the original genga and SnK seemingly called attention to that fact, boldly standing out from the crowd. Sunrise used filters to make the lineart for Gundam Reconquista look more analog, Toei also used a thick outline style for Dragon Ball Super: Broly, and recently you had textured lineart in MAPPA's Chainsaw Man adaptation to emulate the coarse artwork of the original manga.
I really love brush pen art and WIT did a crazy amount of work for an anime they were merely contracted for, is all I'm saying. What do you think?
submitted by canyourepeatquestion to ShingekiNoKyojin [link] [comments]
Then MAPPA took over and you know the rest.
I think it also had a wider impact on the animation industry than most people realize, as after Season 1 came out you saw a lot of studios start experimenting and investing a lot of R&D into making lineart more distinctive. The industry's vectorization process tends to destroy a lot of line variation from the original genga and SnK seemingly called attention to that fact, boldly standing out from the crowd. Sunrise used filters to make the lineart for Gundam Reconquista look more analog, Toei also used a thick outline style for Dragon Ball Super: Broly, and recently you had textured lineart in MAPPA's Chainsaw Man adaptation to emulate the coarse artwork of the original manga.
I really love brush pen art and WIT did a crazy amount of work for an anime they were merely contracted for, is all I'm saying. What do you think?
2023.01.30 19:23 Boxius Multi-Anime - Drop (Connor Price) ["Flow" edit using Sakugabooru]
 | submitted by Boxius to amv [link] [comments] |
2023.01.24 10:57 moons_deity A scene where Ryuuko drags her Blade on floor and debris went brrrr
Hey all I wish someone with a better memory could help me out here.
I'm trying to find a cut in the show where Ryuuko drags her sword on the floor running from left side of the screen to the right, while the floor debris parting away like she's plowing the field. If anyone could remember which episode was it from, please let me know. Not to be mistaken by her running on the wall from right to left with the sword at the final episode though.
I looked through sakugabooru and still couldn't find it. The density of awesome cuts is just too much I can't pinpoint them all! To the point I'm awed by this was a TV production. Thanks !
EDIT: I found it! Turns out it's not debris but smokes. Episode 11 at timestamp 3:03 where she lands on Nonon's ship from above. The poses while she lands were awesome too!
submitted by moons_deity to KillLaKill [link] [comments]
I'm trying to find a cut in the show where Ryuuko drags her sword on the floor running from left side of the screen to the right, while the floor debris parting away like she's plowing the field. If anyone could remember which episode was it from, please let me know. Not to be mistaken by her running on the wall from right to left with the sword at the final episode though.
I looked through sakugabooru and still couldn't find it. The density of awesome cuts is just too much I can't pinpoint them all! To the point I'm awed by this was a TV production. Thanks !
EDIT: I found it! Turns out it's not debris but smokes. Episode 11 at timestamp 3:03 where she lands on Nonon's ship from above. The poses while she lands were awesome too!
2023.01.16 23:09 ABuzzedWhaler Alternatives to sakugabooru for mob psycho 100 sakuga?
Hey all. Since mob psycho 100 got DMCA'd off of sakugabooru, is there anywhere else where I can find sakuga clips from it with artist attributions? Even something like a twitter account would be good enough for me.
Thanks in advance everyone
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Thanks in advance everyone
2023.01.16 22:53 dinbin Is sakugabooru down for anyone else?
Title
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2023.01.15 16:35 Idz4gqbi Bocchi the Rock Character Appreciation & Analysis Vol. IV: Yamada Ryo
 | submitted by Idz4gqbi to anime [link] [comments] Thank you for your continued support IntroductionThis is the fourth volume of my character appreciation and analysis series for Bocchi the Rock, covering Yamada Ryo, Ryo-Bocchi dynamic and Nijika-Ryo dynamic.Previous Volumes Volume I: Kessoku band as a collective, Gotou Hitori (Bocchi), Gotou Futari, Hiroi Kikuri Volume II Part 1: Ijichi Nijika Volume II Part 2: Nijika-Bocchi dynamic, Ijichi Seika Volume III: Kita Ikuyo, Kita-Bocchi dynamic, Nijika-Kita dynamic Out of length, image count and thematic considerations, Hiroi Kikuri's analysis has been added to volume I instead of volume IV as previously planned. Nijika-Ryo dynamic is also a section absent in my initial plan for this volume. I would be most grateful if returning readers revisit volume I for the all-new Kikuri section after reading volume IV. Yamada RyoWeird and proud of itBringing Balance with Deliberate Humour “She doesn’t show much emotion on her face, but she’s a fairly mischievous character, so for those scenes, I gave instructions to the animators not to ruin her image. I decided to have Ryo change expressions while staying in character by adjusting the way in which parts like the details around her eyes are drawn.”-Keroria, Bocchi the Rock character designer Comedy is an integral ingredient of Bocchi the Rock, yet from the perspective of the characters most of them were not trying to be deliberately funny.
As Bocchi, Nijika and Kita’s comedic moments are generally unintentional on their part and often involve some form of loss in composure, the visual aspect is heavily emphasised to deform the characters. Some examples Meanwhile Ryo is very much still in control for most of her comedic moments, she is just deliberately showing off her mischievous side. So although Ryo can deform like the other three, her visual changes are comparatively subdued. Likewise, Ryo never truly raises her voice. Her voice is far from emotionless, but her range is deliberately limited compared to the other three. As a whole, Bocchi, Nijika and Kita’s comedic moments tend to be incredibly chaotic and busy. Although I unfailingly adore their dramatic intonations and insane visual changes, some others might find them tiring and distracting after sustained exposure. Ryo, with her calculated and measured humour, brings some semblance of balance to the comedy in Bocchi the Rock. Ego Much of a person’s ego can be discerned from the jokes they tell; Ryo is not just confident, she is rather egoistic. Even if Ryo’s self-worth may not be as inflated as her jokes might suggest, at the very least, she certainly needs a bit of a thick skin to crack them. When Nijika was comforting trash can Bocchi right before their first performance in episode 1: Nijika: “It’s not like I’m very good either.”In episode 2’s band meeting:
Ryo: “As I am the quintessential musician, you only need to mimic my expression.”
Mischief “Wait, I wanna watch a bit longer.”-Yamada Ryo to Ijichi Nijika as they watched Gotou Hitori pace outside the STARRY’s entrance in episode 2 Mischief Ryo is one mischievous girl; sometimes she ropes her friends into elaborate pranks like the cross-dressing moment in episode 5, other times she derives her fun at the expense of her friends. For more examples:
Ryo's shitpost It is one thing to skip a band meeting because you want some alone time and are uninterested in the agenda of designing a band shirt, it is another to make a prank video to troll the people who do care about the agenda. Ryo should consider herself blessed she has Kita who liked that video; though I have to begrudgingly admit Ryo showed genuine shitposting talent there. However, despite Ryo’s apparent (over-)confidence, just like the other Kessoku girls she is not unflappable. When Ryo Shows Weakness “And if we bomb, there’s four of us. We can split the shame four ways.”-Yamada Ryo to her band mates in episode 10 If she is desperate enough, Ryo is not too proud to beg. When Ryo's cool mask cracks Despite taking pride in her weirdness, Ryo is not above feeling forced to smile for camera like the average person or getting unsettled by public displays of affection in episode 9. Ryo was visibly anxious and discouraged before their performance in episode 8, and likewise she would not make the quoted joke if the fear of failure was not in the back of her mind. Left: Ryo having Bocchi-style depression Right: Ryo caught off guard Ryo was caught off guard too when Bocchi reminded her she had yet to pay back her previous debt in episode 9, she really is that bad with money. Personally, Ryo is at her cutest in these moments…I hope to see her have a full-on Bocchi-style freak-out one day, that would be incredibly fun! Ahem…I guess Ryo and I are more alike than I care to admit. Appeal of the Idiosyncrasies Nijika: “Ryo’s just not the expressive type. Feel free to call her weird! She likes it!”-Gotou Hitori's first meeting with Yamada Ryo in episode 1 Although I am not always amused by Ryo’s shenanigans, I never find her annoying as a character. One reason is because Ryo is not overbearing with her egoism or mischief; those moments neither come out unprompted nor do they overstay their welcome. Another reason is because just like Bocchi, Ryo’s idiosyncrasies often reflect us to varying degrees:
Lastly, the most important reason is that Ryo has her own respectable moments to avoid becoming a one-dimensional joke character, even if her nonsense tends to overshadow her positive traits. Ryo the Visionary Ryo's old band Ryo is the closest one to a ‘music purist’ in the band: she studied her music history, listens to all kinds of labels, and knows her seniors in the field like Kikuri. Ryo was annoyed in the episode 12 shopping scene when none of her band mates were appreciating the instruments; Kita and Nijika were distracted by picks that could be turned into earrings, and Bocchi was spasming at the door like a lunatic. Nijika has a dream with her band, but she lacks a concrete vision of exactly what her band should look like or do. On the other hand, Ryo has a very clear musical vision of her own; she left her previous band because she felt her vision was not respected. Ryo's enthusiasm for music is obvious The other three Kessoku girls lack clear musical visions of their own, so Ryo’s vision becomes the band’s vision. Ryo may be an airhead on other matters, but she is incredibly thoughtful on music. All quotes are from episode 4: “Their lyrics were awkward, but I liked how honest they were.”-Ryo on her old band before they split “Bringing a wide-variety of individuals together into one sound…That’s the colour that Kessoku Band will have.”-Ryo’s vision for Kessoku “Abandoning your uniqueness is equivalent to dying. So don’t write generic lyrics based on other concerns.”-Ryo’s creative advice to Bocchi “It certainly is a downer. But it’s very Bocchi. It might not connect with too many people, but those it does, it will hit deeply.”-Ryo’s view on the worth of Bocchi’s lyrics. Ryo the Reliable “I already know our setlist. I’ve been thinking it over since the culture festival came up. We’ll put a Bocchi guitar solo in the second one. To make sure you (Bocchi) shine. It’s your and Ikuyo’s cultural festival, remember?”-Yamada Ryo to her bandmates in episode 10 Ryo planning for Bocchi and Kita In line with her visionary outlook, Ryo is extremely observant and proactive when it concerns bettering the musical aspect of her band, a stark contrast to her general aversion (or at least indifference) towards non-musical activities of the band.
So when Ryo gets to be a valuable and reliable member in Kessoku, she is having her moment of character development. Ryo never showed a grand ambition like Nijika or an appreciable personal growth like Bocchi and Kita, but she is not static. In her quieter way, Ryo is growing from her Kessoku journey just like the other three. Ryo and BocchiSimilarities despite Differences‘Although both are loners, Bocchi and Ryo are completely different types of people’ is a point explicitly highlighted in the story. In terms of self-confidence, the two may as well be on opposite ends of the spectrum. However, solitude cares not for your reason; those finding themselves in solitude invariably have common grounds. The similarities between Bocchi and Ryo are subtler and arguably more interesting than their obvious differences.
Loners’ Chemistry Ryo is not as close to Bocchi as Nijika and Kita have been and Ryo does not understand Bocchi as well as those two, yet somehow Ryo seems to have a knack at complementing Bocchi’s quirks in a way those two positive outgoing types cannot. Ryo could already do this in her first meeting with Bocchi in episode 1 back when the two barely knew each other:
Ryo's greatest joke Ryo’s Favourite “I don’t get why she’s so isolated at school. She’s so fun.”-Yamada Ryo in episode 9 Ryo remarked Bocchi is a funny and interesting person on multiple occasions. Ryo clearly appreciates Bocchi’s presence, though she shows her appreciation by having fun at Bocchi’s expense and making Bocchi her personal wallet. However, when Bocchi needs help or deserves support on band affairs, Ryo would be serious and sincere in supporting Bocchi. Even in episode 1, Ryo gave Bocchi one proper encouragement amidst her other jokes: “It’s okay. If they boo you, I’ll give them a bonk with my bass.”It is worth noting so far Bocchi is the only one who Ryo revealed her musical vision to; Ryo’s mouth may be lose with irreverent jokes, but she is tight-lipped on her serious feelings. By comparison, although Ryo acknowledged Kita’s efforts in episode 8 and started using Kita’s given name affectionately, Ryo never seems to having as much fun with Kita in comparison to Bocchi. Kita even expressed jealousy at Ryo and Bocchi suddenly growing close at the end of episode 4. When Ryo needs money, she comes to Bocchi and not Kita, even though Kita likely would not object to becoming Ryo’s sugar mommy at all. Anatomy of a Consultation The restaurant scene in episode 4 is the perfect snapshot of the Bocchi-Ryo dynamic. It began a long silence. The silence was companionable for Ryo, though having plate of curry to enjoy which Bocchi would pay for helped too. For Bocchi, the silence was another moment where imaginary communication disaster played out in her mind. The waiting game continued. Ryo finished the meal; she was still and waiting. Bocchi began fiddling with whatever she could get her hands on to avoid facing Ryo. The waiting game Bocchi finally mustered the courage to turn and face Ryo. Ryo’s countenance was calm, but Bocchi’s eyes looked like she was in a life-or-death situation. No words came out. Windows to the soul The talk began. Ryo, who knew why Bocchi was there all along, finally broke the silence. Ryo cut straight to the point giving Bocchi the advice Bocchi was looking for, and even opened up on her past experience with another band because it would illustrate her point. The talk concludes. With their talk ending, just as Bocchi began to think Ryo was a considerate senior, Ryo hit Bocchi with the news that Bocchi would be paying for the curry. Authentic Interaction Aside from masterfully contrasting the two characters’ behaviour under an identical circumstance and succinctly showcasing the two sides of Ryo to Bocchi, this scene is also masterful for capturing the authentic feel of two loners’ interaction. The preceding silence and inaction is not uncommon as both think whether and how they should open a conversation while waiting for the other party to bear the burden of starting. When one of them finally talks, pleasantries and banal chatter are skipped. The sort disinclined towards interaction values efficiency and quality over quantity in their interactions. Nijika and RyoNijika: \"Because I love the way you play!\"Bridge “And Nijika is my only friend, so…”-Yamada Ryo to Gotou Hitori in episode 1 Within the context of the anime, the bulk of Nijika-Ryo interaction consists of their comedic back and forth with Ryo playing the ‘funny man’ and Nijika playing the ‘straight man’. Occasionally though, their roles would reverse: Ryo: “So, what will you do, Nijika?”-In episode 2 when the girls were discussing song-writing What else can be gathered from their dynamic within the context of the anime? In episode 2 when Nijika held the first band meeting, she admitted she was not sure what to talk about since at that time she barely knew Bocchi. Bocchi, being an anxious wreck, would never start a conversation herself. Surprisingly, it was Ryo who brought along a ‘conversation dice’ to break the ice, establishing a bridge for herself and Nijika to connect to Bocchi. Perhaps the dice was an idea from Ryo’s past experience with another band, where she would also have to get to know strangers. Ryo is also a bridge for Nijika to get closer to Nijika’s band dream, apart from being a capable bassist herself Ryo also served as Kita’s initial Kessoku motivation. Likewise, when Ryo bitterly split from her old band, Nijika became Ryo’s bridge to an interesting band that aligns with Ryo’s creative vision. Even if Ryo somehow formed a band with Bocchi and Kita without Nijika’s involvement, this trio would go nowhere without Nijika’s leadership. The friendship between Nijika and Ryo is one where they lead each other to destinations they would not be able to reach on their own, akin to a bridge. With that being said, Ryo refused to be Nijika’s bridge to shirasu-don…unforgivable. Sparring Partner Bocchi: “Having our instruments might make us look cooler.”-Conversation on band photo in episode 4 While Kita either missed or ignored Nijika’s call for shirasu-don in episode 9’s Enoshima trip, Ryo flat-out rebuffed Nijika. In the quoted conversation above, after Nijika tested Ryo’s insincere “that’s cute” compliment by asking for an instrument swap, Ryo promptly hit back with a disparaging “that’s lame”. Cute or lame? Nijika and Ryo’s brief argument about band MC in episode 11 started with Ryo dissing on all band MCs, which was indirectly a diss on Nijika since Nijika was in charge of the band MC for their school performance. “Band MCing is never funny. Fans just laugh along to humour them. Once we get popular, even your lousiest MCing will pick up the biggest laughs. Don’t worry.”-Yamada Ryo and Ijichi Nijika respectively in episode 11 Looks like a diss to me, Nijika. From these examples, Ryo saves her most biting remarks for Nijika alone. Ryo does not talk like this to Kita or Bocchi, in fact Ryo rarely initiates any direct interaction with Kita and largely treats Bocchi as a funny curiosity. Imagine if Ryo speaks with such bite to Bocchi or Kita:
“But senpai can jerk me around any time she wants!”-Kita Ikuyo in episode 4 Regardless of the outcome, it probably would not be particularly entertaining or stimulating for Ryo. Whether Nijika likes it or not, she is Ryo’s choice as verbal sparring partner. So what does this say about Ryo and her relationship with Nijika?
Nijika’s angel image may come from her tenderness for Bocchi, but Nijika is also an angel for not just putting up with Ryo’s idiosyncrasies but becoming genuinely close friends with such a quirky character. In the end, even if Ryo can grate on Nijika’s nerves at times, Nijika still has a soft spot for Ryo. Nijika ended up feeding the starving Ryo anyway “You’re kind, Nijika. I love you.”-Yamada Ryo and Ijichi Nijika respectively in episode 10 AfterwordsI thought I would keep volume IV short and sweet, then it grew to the point where I have to move Kikuri’s section to volume I (a not-so-subtle reminder to revisit volume I for new Kikuri content).I have to be mindful of projecting in analysing Ryo because our temperaments are quite similar. Sometimes Ryo makes me pause to think: “is this how I look to my friends?” However, I doubt the two of us have good compatibility. We are simply into different things and different jokes; our paths would never intersect without a Nijika-esque figure to connect us. Likewise, Bocchi is too weird for me to approach in real-life, Nijika is unlikely be interested in me because I have zero worth as a band member (I no longer remember how to read musical notes), and Kita drains me. When I look at it this way, none of the Kessoku girls are people I would grow close to if I exist in their world. However, as an audience watching their story animated, the Kessoku girls are incredibly colourful and charming. Bocchi the Rock has enraptured me in a way no other anime could for years; Nijika has enamoured me in a way no other character could for years. This entire analysis series is the consequence of my Bocchi the Rock brain rot. Volume I turned out to be the shortest even with Kikuri’s section added to it, but I am content because I feel I got to the essence of Bocchi’s charm efficiently. Volume II remains my pride and joy, I might call it my ‘magnum opus’ if I have Ryo’s ego. I like to think it resonates with my brethren. Volume III and IV are challenging but fulfilling to finish all the same. The reception to my Bocchi the Rock Character Appreciation & Analysis series has far exceeded my meagre expectations. Many of you raised interesting points of your own which helped to enrich the discourse around the characters, my own understanding of them, and even the contents of my analysis. As I took my time on volume IV I was even nominated for anime awards and an anxious reader DM’d me to ask whether I am really going to write volume IV. Your enthusiasm gave me the drive to not just finish this longform character study exceeding 10,000 words combined, but to refine the study to my utmost ability. For humouring me until the very end as I asked for in the beginning of volume I, you have my deepest gratitude. My device literally died on me just when I was about to post volume IV THE ENDFurther ReadingBOCCHI THE ROCK! MAIN STAFF INTERVIEWS – SERIES DIRECTOR KEIICHIRO SAITO, CHARACTER DESIGNER KERORIRA, ANIMATION PRODUCER SHOUTA UMEHARA |
2023.01.06 08:16 Haydfloof This kid wants me to post Bulbasaur vs Meganium, Charizard vs Articuno & Latios vs Pikachu onto Sakugabooru.com, on a alphabet lore post
 | submitted by Haydfloof to youngpeoplereddit [link] [comments] |
2023.01.04 14:15 Logical_Ad_6628 Western adult animation can be so good when it escapes the shadow of family guy.
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2023.01.03 22:36 Puddo [WT!] Spring - Fall 2022 Short Films
Intro
Back in 2020 I started watching more short films and I quickly fell in love with the format and the wide variety of projects. Sadly however the shorter stuff isn’t talked about a lot and partly because of that can they be very easy to miss. Eventually I thought about creating a post myself every 3 months or so and share some of the short films, music videos or even animated commercials that got released in that time span. Well that obviously didn't really work this year so now it's 3 seasons in 1.I always try to add a link to an official source so you can watch every short (besides He's Playing Our Song) on this list by simply clicking their name
For short films with dialogue I in general only add films with English subtitles so if you don't see them try turning on CC.
Short films
A Proof for TwoThis Loundraw x Flat Studio x Z-Kai collaboration is very similar to Z-Kai x Makoto Shinkai’s Cross Road. A gorgeous well directed video. A short video that feels like a condensed movie about a boy and girl with a special connection. A video that will leave people wanting more. A video that will make people ask “where is this from?”. A video that will make us give the disappointing answer of “an ad for an education company “
Delivery Kitten Unyan
What do you get when you take a young kitten from a small island who’s easily distracted and send him to the big city where they try their first delivery job? Cute shit. Ow and this short film.
Flow
This short film by Hideki Inaba has no grand story or anything. It’s all about the visual experience with abstract shapes slowly morphing into various creatures. But who even needs a story when with Inaba’s signature intricate animation with lots of moving parts you get a beautiful hypnotizing relaxing short?
Modern Love Tokyo - He's Playing Our Song
Modern Love Tokyo is an anthology series about well modern love in Tokyo. It’s actually a live action series with the exception of this episode. It’s a 30 minute long episode that follows a young woman being reminded of her awkward teenage love and some mistakes after hearing a certain song. It’s a simple story but also a cute one. It also has as a huge bonus that it’s directed by Naoko Yamada and if you ever watched one of her works like K-on, A Silent Voice, Liz and Blue Bird and Heike Monogatari you know you’re in for some great looking moments.
Pokémon: Hisuian Snow
Okay this isn’t really a short film since it’s 3 episodes. But together it’s still less than 30 minutes and it’s one of my favourite things of 2022 so I’m still going to mention it. In general there have been some amazing Pokémon shorts the past few years with for example Twilight Wings and the Pokétoon series with highlights as Help! I’ve Turned into a Gengar, Blossom’s Dream and The Slugma-Powered Home. Hisuian Snow is certainly a continuation of that trend for me.
With Pokémon being treated as mysterious dangerous creatures, its very gentle pace for such a short series, old Japan setting and its focus on nature it has a pretty different vibe from the usual Pokémon series. So even if you aren’t a big Pokémon fan I think you can get something out of it. The visuals from Wit Studio also help with that. Especially the snowy scenery is stunning.
Tama Art University Student Films 2022 - Playlist
Student films can be some of the most intruging little pieces of animation out there so every year I'm looking forward to the new batch of Tamabi student films. I already shared two of them in my Winter post with the tender Lovesome and Things I Seek. Together with Lovesome is Diving the big stand out for me. I can only describe this film as an imaginative vibrant visual spectacle. It's Junjian Lin's first year work and the level of polish/quality of the animation and artwork is already very impressive. I'm at least certainly looking forward to their graduate work. A close third would be The streetlight and the cat for me. In my previous post I shared Elimi, a surprisingly touching stop motion film about a human and an utility pole, so why not get emotional this time because a young cat and a streetlight in this absolutely adorable student film.
There are of course however many more films this year. Like masui that feels very much inspired by the works of Satoshi Kon and especially his short Ohayo, but hey that's a good place to take inspiration from. Or Yomoyama short stories that's a collection of short lovely surreal sketches. Or Magic cupid Wink・Non that’s basically a 12 minute long retro magical girl episode. Sadly no English subs but I do consider it to be an impressive achievement for a student film so I want to mention it anyway.
Music Videos
22/7 - Kumorizora no Mukou wa HareteiruA MV that’s basically a montage of the film club from a slice of life show animated by Cloverworks. Lots of cute funny quirkiness, lots of little details and pretty art and hell let’s even throw in a little twist because there wasn’t enough going on yet. It’s really one of those MVs where I kept finding new things to enjoy on rewatches.
Ado x One Piece Film Red
The Uta songs from One Piece Red are performed by Ado and these songs (well besides Ado’s rendition of Bink’s Sake) all got an animated music video (so 7 in total). In general I would say that these aren't bad but they're also certainly not the most visually interesting ones of the year for me at least.
However there is one that really stands out and that is the music video for Where the Wind Blows. It's actually one of my favourite pieces of animation of the year. It’s directed by Megumi Ishitani, who’s one of the most exciting names working at Toei, and this MV is another piece that makes me excited about what she’ll do in the future. As for why I love this MV I like to link MyrnaMountWeazel Short and Sweet Sundays about this piece where they go into detail.
Ado – Rebellion
More Ado but this time no One Piece. You can find some amazing animated scenes in anime but at the same time anime is also infamous for its use of limited animation. However I also think it unfairly gets a bad name at times. For some it’s a deal breaker but the creative use of the animation it does have is for me a big factor in whether an anime looks appealing overall. Limited animation can be very pleasing to watch and this MV about an inner struggle is an example of that for me. It does have some very well animated moments that do pop out but in a lot shots there actually isn't that much moving and it uses a lot of still frames. However with the colour use, framing, various imagery etc. all coming together you still get one of the most visually pleasing MVs of the year in my eyes.
Back to You
A MV made through the Animator Dormitory project. It’s another music video that actually doesn’t have that much animation, however its aesthetic is immaculate.
Daoko - Onomatopoeia Rap
Keiichi Arawi is probably mostly known as the creator of Nichijou. However besides making comedy manga he has also made some pretty amazing little pieces of animation himself the past 2 years. These shorts have the same style as his manga and that cute but also surreal funny vibe. The thing that really makes Onomatopoeia Rap pop though is how well the animation/imagery matches the lyrics. In this case the lyrics are mostly onomatopoeia and the imagery thus corresponds with that specific noise creating a fast paced and very satisfying experience. As a bonus you might get a funny exercise that helps you learn Japanese onomatopoeia out of it as well.
DIALOGUE+ - Issen Mankai Hug Nanda
A music video that could've been the opening for a neat school live comedy. I would watch it at least.
Dreams Come True - Spirilla
I’ll be honest I kinda hate stories that are all ‘technology/social media bad’. But hey it’s still popular so I’m willing to accept that’s just a me thing. Besides, Spirilla at least presents it with some neat visuals so I think others will like it quite a bit more than me so I want to mention it anyway.
Eve - Fight Song, White Snow, Mob
You aren't going to find a collection of high quality music videos like those on Eve’s Youtube channel in a lot of other places. Yet with all the stunning MVs you can find there I think Mob is probably one of the most polished ones. Which isn’t very surprising if you look at the staff behind it: animated by Studio Khara and directed by Hibiki Yoshizaki. The latter is probably mostly known for MeMeMe and just like that video is Mob full with social criticism. This time about being forced into a little box because of societal expectations.
However I love Eve’s MVs so much exactly because they’re a place where indie animators can go wild. Like the Mariyasu and Eve combination has always been great and gave us some amazing MVs with How To Eat Life and Shinkai. Fight Song, that’s a sequel to How To Eat Life, continues that trend. Also for the CSM fans, yeah it’s the song used for ED 12 and yes there are easter eggs.
If we're just talking about aesthetic though then White Snow, that follows the trusted story of white meets black, wins from them both for me. The designs of this culture are especially stunning and very detailed for such a short video and it immediately makes me want to see more of this setting.
Floating Girl
Besides limited animation there is another type of animation that sometimes gets a bad rep. And I also want to take a moment to praise CGI animation. We’ve all seen bad CGI but one thing it does is making it easier to create dynamic scenes. For example scenes where we follow the character moving through their world at high speeds in a one-take-esque scene thanks to things like rotating camera angles and cgi backgrounds. That’s also the strength of Floating Girl. With help of dynamic ‘camera’ work and some other techniques it’s a music video that’s full with seamless transitions. All these moving angles create this sense of weightlessness, which is very fitting for a music video where floating in space is a central part, and makes this one of the most impressive shorts of the year for me.
Gen Hoshino – I Wanna Be Your Ghost
This MV directed by Yuki Igarashi follows a boy meeting a ghost and him growing up. Overall it's certainly not the most animated MV out there but that’s not a big problem. That’s because the highlight of this MV are the adorable dance sequences with I-Can’t-Believe-It’s-Not-Nobita and his obake friends. With a lovely choreography, great dancing animation and a catchy chorus is this colourful MV bound to put you in a good mood.
HI-Drivers Theme Song
Some people really love fast cars but it has never been an interest of mine. On top I'm also not really into idol stuff. Yet this MV that combines cars and lots of guys with an idolish vibe is good fun. With great character animation, character designs, "camera" work and transitions is it a stunning fast paced stylish MV.
Housou Marine – I’m Your Treasure Box
NSFW.
It’s because it actually has some neat sequences here and there. I swear.
KAF × Hakushi Hasegawa - Tsubomi ni Kaminari
A strange unusual music video for a strange unusual song. And I mean that in a positive way. Both become more mesmerizing everytime I watch this MV.
Meychan - Ima ni Mitero yo!
A MV directed by Asuka Dokai who has become a name to watch for me the past 2 years. The Brave New World MV from 2021 was still a bit rough here and there animation wise but there they already showed that they’ve a great understanding of colour use and know how to create a pretty frame. Then I mentioned Shiori in my Winter post for a reason since it’s just solid visuals all around. And now this revenge tale MV that's full with incredible frames (that are my current desktop backgrounds).
Sana Natori – Mondainai Tripper
Wataru Uekusa’s Himitsu Spark and Fake!Fake! were some of the MVs that got me interested in checking out more animated music videos in general. So his aesthetic will always have a special place in my heart. Frantic, colourful and strangely cute. On top it’s not just simple chaos, it’s well timed chaos. He always finds ways for the animation to interact with the music. A good fit for a hyperactive song as Mondai Nightripper.
Sexy Zone – The Finest
Nostalook doing what they do best. Creating nostalgic looking animation. This time a MV that could’ve been an opening for an 80s romance anime (if you squeeze your eyes and pretend it’s cel animation)
Takagi Fumiyo - The Forest Dances
A MV about Ōmagatoki, the time around dusk when yokai come out to dance, with Tasoyamaro’s retro inspired (you’ll especially find influences from Kenzō Masaoka, the man who played a huge role in Japanese animation history with introducing cell animation and using sound recordings) artstyle with muted colours and often a sprinkle of creepiness. She aims to captivate the audience not by telling a story, but by movement and by synchronizing this movement with the music. Which is a good fit for a concept like this and especially with the longer one-take style shots she certainly captivated me.
If you want to know more about Tasoyamaro and her works then check out her NHK Anime Super Nova episode
Tani Yuuki - Okaeri
I’ve shared a lot of music videos with these posts but I can’t recall sharing many (if any) stop motion MVs. Well Okaeri is made by Tomoyasu Murata who specializes in stop motion animation. His works often touch on life and death and this MV is not an exception. Now I wish I could tell you more about his works at this point and share some of my favourites but his oeuvre is something I haven’t really dived into yet. However his works are pretty beloved and won various awards so if you’re into stop motion or these themes I would of course recommend to look into his works yourself.
Tsukuyomi - Sing The Moon
There is apparently a whole story behind this MV that can give a lot more context but I haven’t read it. Still 2 girls and life that has its own plans is enough to have an emotional MV that doesn't need lot of context. Though a big part of that is G子 who after this MV and also their previous Tsukuyomi MV is quickly becoming a name I get very excited about. The MVs can still be a bit rough around the edges (though that's also part of their charm), but they know how to create a solid frame, let the visuals talk for themselves and combine the visuals with the music to create a proper climax that packs a punch.
Tooboe - Shinzou
Story about some love drama and cheating? Eh, have seen enough of that on the numbers site for a lifetime. Mixing it with zombies? Hmm not my favourite genre but that’s more unusual. Ow mixing first person point of view live action footage with 2d characters? Now you’re speaking my language.
Van De Shop – If I Could Be a Comedic Hero
As someone who watches quite a few animated music videos I’ve really appreciated Chainsaw Man approach to EDs. Especially nice to see some of my favourite indie animators suddenly show up. Like Coalowl with ED 4.
If I Could Be a Comedic Hero is another MV with their signature designs/aesthetic but this time no focus on dancing characters like in most of their MVs. Well it’s no Coalowl MV without dancing at all but it’s only a small bit here. Nonetheless a cute MV as always.
Previous entries
Finally: I mostly make these post to share some often overlooked works so if I didn’t mention one that you really enjoyed but sure to mention it! Especially now since it's multiple seasons and I probably missed a bunch myself (or forgot them since it's a long post)Thank you for reading
2023.01.03 07:19 Confident_Climate_11 Sakugabooru Animation Awards 2022
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2023.01.01 22:21 FierceAlchemist Sakugabooru Animation Awards 2022
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2023.01.01 21:11 Orodalf Sakugabooru Animation Awards 2022
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2022.12.31 23:08 FierceAlchemist Best Sakuga of 2022
I like to borrow Sakuga Blog's award categories for looking back at the best animation of the year. These awards are specifically for animation consistency, distinctive sakuga, and overall production value. Post your own list in the comments below!
Best Episode
Princess Connect! Re: Dive S2 #4 – I knew this episode from the beginning of the year would be hard to beat and wrote about it at the time. Director and storyboarder Takahito Sakazume blew the doors off all expectations He's done a ton of directing on the many Fate/Grand Order CMs and directed Ep. 20 of Fate/Apocrypha, but this was his proper breakout episode. With a stacked list of animators and distinctive energetic cuts from the first minute to the last what’s not to love!
Honorable Mentions - One Piece #1015, Chainsaw Man #8, Summer Time Rendering #15, Ranking of Kings #21
Best Opening
Ranking of Kings OP 2 - Shingo Yamashita had already proven himself as an OP director long ago but I consider this OP to be his magnum opus so far. It has everything; a catchy song, great animation/compositing, thoughtful storyboarding, and tons of narrative weight. Even the 10 seconds I initially didn’t like starting at 1:05 makes total sense by the end of the show. A well-deserved win.
Honorable Mention - Attack on Titan Final Season OP 2
Best Ending
Kaguya-sama S3 ED 2 – Had to give this award to the amazing solo effort by Vercreek who did all the key animation as well as the storyboarding and direction. The new more detailed character designs are a lot of fun. Kaguya never fails to deliver on its specialty EDs and I’m looking forward to more.
Honorable Mentions - Chainsaw Man #5 ED and Komi Can’t Communicate ED 2
Best Animation Designs
Akebi’s Sailor Uniform – Megumi Kouno is one of my favorite animators so I was immediately excited to see that she would be the main character designer for a full anime for the first time ever. And she didn’t disappoint. She strikes a perfect balance between round flexibility and extreme detail in the designs building off Hiro’s impressive manga art. It was an intimidating test I’m sure but she passed with flying colors and the characters stay on model the vast majority of the show.
Honorable Mention - Cyberpunk Edgerunners
Best Aesthetic (Overall Art Direction, Compositing, etc.)
Cyberpunk Edgerunners – Director Hiroyuki Imaishi and Art Director Masanobu Nomura really brought the world of Night City to life in Edgerunners. Full of vibrant neon colors and harsh shadows, the compositing and background teams did some fantastic work that has gotten attention even outside the anime community.
Honorable Mentions – Ranking of Kings and Akebi’s Sailor Uniform
Best Work
Chainsaw Man – In terms of detailed quality animation from beginning to end it’s hard to beat Chainsaw Man. Ryu Nakayama and his team pulled off something incredible this year with the consistency and realism they were able to pull off. Not to mention all the young talent that got to shine and the unique creators that were gathered to make each original ED. This year was stacked with quality anime and Chainsaw Man lived up to the sakuga hype.
Honorable Mentions - Ranking of Kings, Mob Psycho 100 III, Bubble
Best Creator Discovery (Creator you discovered because of their 2022 work)
Keisuke Okura Okura had a really impressive breakout this year between being one of the main action animators for Spy x Family and contributing some of the best cuts in Bubble. He has a great eye for weight but also isn’t afraid to exaggerate poses and action. Excited to see what Okura does in 2023.
Honorable Mentions - Shuhei Fuchimoto and Chihching Lai
Best Animator of 2022 (Who was most prolific this yeadid the best work)
Norimitsu Suzuki & Kerorira – Suzuki has been putting out tons of quality work this year, especially on My Hero Academia. It’s always a treat to get more of his dense fluid animation. As for Kerorira his mountain of work on Bocchi the Rock speaks for itself. Between countless corrections as Chief Animation Director and doing significant key animation work in almost every episode it’s fair to say Kerorira’s been prolific this year. His passion for the manga and great work ethic is one of the key factors to the anime’s consistent quality.
Honorable Mentions - Hironori Tanaka and Vincent Chansard
submitted by FierceAlchemist to anime [link] [comments]
Best Episode
Princess Connect! Re: Dive S2 #4 – I knew this episode from the beginning of the year would be hard to beat and wrote about it at the time. Director and storyboarder Takahito Sakazume blew the doors off all expectations He's done a ton of directing on the many Fate/Grand Order CMs and directed Ep. 20 of Fate/Apocrypha, but this was his proper breakout episode. With a stacked list of animators and distinctive energetic cuts from the first minute to the last what’s not to love!
Honorable Mentions - One Piece #1015, Chainsaw Man #8, Summer Time Rendering #15, Ranking of Kings #21
Best Opening
Ranking of Kings OP 2 - Shingo Yamashita had already proven himself as an OP director long ago but I consider this OP to be his magnum opus so far. It has everything; a catchy song, great animation/compositing, thoughtful storyboarding, and tons of narrative weight. Even the 10 seconds I initially didn’t like starting at 1:05 makes total sense by the end of the show. A well-deserved win.
Honorable Mention - Attack on Titan Final Season OP 2
Best Ending
Kaguya-sama S3 ED 2 – Had to give this award to the amazing solo effort by Vercreek who did all the key animation as well as the storyboarding and direction. The new more detailed character designs are a lot of fun. Kaguya never fails to deliver on its specialty EDs and I’m looking forward to more.
Honorable Mentions - Chainsaw Man #5 ED and Komi Can’t Communicate ED 2
Best Animation Designs
Akebi’s Sailor Uniform – Megumi Kouno is one of my favorite animators so I was immediately excited to see that she would be the main character designer for a full anime for the first time ever. And she didn’t disappoint. She strikes a perfect balance between round flexibility and extreme detail in the designs building off Hiro’s impressive manga art. It was an intimidating test I’m sure but she passed with flying colors and the characters stay on model the vast majority of the show.
Honorable Mention - Cyberpunk Edgerunners
Best Aesthetic (Overall Art Direction, Compositing, etc.)
Cyberpunk Edgerunners – Director Hiroyuki Imaishi and Art Director Masanobu Nomura really brought the world of Night City to life in Edgerunners. Full of vibrant neon colors and harsh shadows, the compositing and background teams did some fantastic work that has gotten attention even outside the anime community.
Honorable Mentions – Ranking of Kings and Akebi’s Sailor Uniform
Best Work
Chainsaw Man – In terms of detailed quality animation from beginning to end it’s hard to beat Chainsaw Man. Ryu Nakayama and his team pulled off something incredible this year with the consistency and realism they were able to pull off. Not to mention all the young talent that got to shine and the unique creators that were gathered to make each original ED. This year was stacked with quality anime and Chainsaw Man lived up to the sakuga hype.
Honorable Mentions - Ranking of Kings, Mob Psycho 100 III, Bubble
Best Creator Discovery (Creator you discovered because of their 2022 work)
Keisuke Okura Okura had a really impressive breakout this year between being one of the main action animators for Spy x Family and contributing some of the best cuts in Bubble. He has a great eye for weight but also isn’t afraid to exaggerate poses and action. Excited to see what Okura does in 2023.
Honorable Mentions - Shuhei Fuchimoto and Chihching Lai
Best Animator of 2022 (Who was most prolific this yeadid the best work)
Norimitsu Suzuki & Kerorira – Suzuki has been putting out tons of quality work this year, especially on My Hero Academia. It’s always a treat to get more of his dense fluid animation. As for Kerorira his mountain of work on Bocchi the Rock speaks for itself. Between countless corrections as Chief Animation Director and doing significant key animation work in almost every episode it’s fair to say Kerorira’s been prolific this year. His passion for the manga and great work ethic is one of the key factors to the anime’s consistent quality.
Honorable Mentions - Hironori Tanaka and Vincent Chansard
2022.12.29 22:02 MapFalcon Who are on your 'Mt. Rushmore' of active key animators?
As the title says - who are you favorite four key animators who are currently producing work? I know only four is a bit reductive, but could be a fun exercise in introducing artists to others on this subreddit. Really more about your favorite and not 'the best.' For me?
Yutaka Nakamura https://www.sakugabooru.com/post?tags=order%3Ascore+yutaka_nakamura
Yuki Hayashi https://www.sakugabooru.com/post?tags=order%3Ascore+yuki_hayashi
Weilin Zhang https://www.sakugabooru.com/post?tags=order%3Ascore+weilin_zhang
Takeshi Morita https://www.sakugabooru.com/post?tags=order%3Ascore+takeshi_morita
submitted by MapFalcon to AnimeSakuga [link] [comments]
Yutaka Nakamura https://www.sakugabooru.com/post?tags=order%3Ascore+yutaka_nakamura
Yuki Hayashi https://www.sakugabooru.com/post?tags=order%3Ascore+yuki_hayashi
Weilin Zhang https://www.sakugabooru.com/post?tags=order%3Ascore+weilin_zhang
Takeshi Morita https://www.sakugabooru.com/post?tags=order%3Ascore+takeshi_morita
2022.12.26 23:44 Popogeejo Bocchi the Rock! Complete Production Notes And Final Impressions
Sakugabooru have done a write up on the end of Bocchi it's it's really good. Worth a read for any fan who wants to know about the Behind the Scenes of this series. They also have another article linked within about the first half.
submitted by Popogeejo to BocchiTheRock [link] [comments]
2022.12.21 06:39 Puddo Shorts 2022 Draft
Intro
Back in 2020 I started watching more short films and I quickly fell in love with the format and the wide variety of projects. Sadly however the shorter stuff isn’t talked about a lot and partly because of that can they be very easy to miss. Eventually I thought about creating a post myself every 3 months or so and share some of the short films, music videos or even animated commercials that got released in that time span. Well that obviously didn't really work this year so now it's 3 seasons in 1.I always try to add a link to an official source so you can watch every short (besides He's Playing Our Song) on this list by simply clicking their name
For short films with dialogue I in general only add films with English subtitles so if you don't see them try turning on CC.
Short films
A Proof for TwoThis Loundraw x Flat Studio x Z-Kai collaboration is very similar to Z-Kai x Makoto Shinkai’s Cross Roads. A gorgeous well directed video. A short video that feels like a condensed movie about a boy and girl with a special connection. A video that will leave people wanting more. A video that will make people ask “where is this from?”. A video that will make us give the disappointing answer of “an ad for an education company “
Delivery Kitten Unyan
What do you get when you take a young kitten from a small island who’s easily distracted and send him to the big city where they try their first delivery job? Cute shit. Ow and this short film.
Flow
This short film by Hideki Inaba has no grand story or anything. It’s all about the visual experience with abstract shapes slowly morphing into various creatures. But who even needs a story when with Inaba’s signature intricate animation with lots of moving parts you get a beautiful hypnotizing relaxing short?
Modern Love Tokyo - He's Playing Our Song
Modern Love Tokyo is an anthology series about well modern love in Tokyo. It’s actually a live action series with the exception of this episode. It’s a 30 minute long episode that follows a young woman being reminded of her awkward teenage love and some mistakes after hearing a certain song. It’s a simple story but also a cute one. It also has as a huge bonus that it’s directed by Naoko Yamada and if you ever watched one of her works like K-on, A Silent Voice, Liz and Blue Bird and Heike Monogatari you know you’re in for some great looking moments.
Pokémon: Hisuian Snow
Okay this isn’t really a short film since it’s 3 episodes. But together it’s still less than 30 minutes and it’s one of my favourite things of 2022 so I’m still going to mention it. In general there have been some amazing Pokémon shorts the past few years with for example Twilight Wings and the Pokétoon series with highlights as Help! I’ve Turned into a Gengar, Blossom’s Dream and The Slugma-Powered Home. Hisuian Snow is certainly a continuation of that trend for me.
With Pokémon being treated as mysterious dangerous creatures, its very gentle pace for such a short series, old Japan setting and its focus on nature it has a pretty different vibe from the usual Pokémon series. So even if you aren’t a big Pokémon fan I think you can get something out of it. The visuals from Wit Studio also help with that. Especially the snowy scenery is stunning.
Tama Art University Student Films 2022 - Playlist
Student films can be some of the most intruging little pieces of animation out there so every year I'm looking forward to the new batch of Tamabi student films. I already shared two of them in my Winter post with the tender Lovesome and Things I Seek. Together with Lovesome is Diving the big stand out for me. I can only describe this film as an imaginative vibrant visual spectacle. It's Junjian Lin's first year work and the level of polish/quality of the animation and artwork is already very impressive. I'm at least certainly looking forward to their graduate work. A close third would be The streetlight and the cat for me. In my previous post I shared Elimi, a surprisingly touching stop motion film about a human and an utility pole, so why not get emotional this time because a young cat and a streetlight in this absolutely adorable student film.
There are of course however many more films this year. Like masui that feels very much inspired by the works of Satoshi Kon and especially his short Ohayo, but hey that's a good place to take inspiration from. Or Yomoyama short stories that's a collection of short lovely surreal sketches. Or Magic cupid Wink・Non that’s basically a 12 minute long retro magical girl episode. Sadly no English subs but I do consider it to be an impressive achievement for a student film so I want to mention it anyway.
Music Videos
22/7 - Kumorizora no Mukou wa HareteiruA MV that’s basically a montage of the film club from a slice of life show animated by Cloverworks. Lots of cute funny quirkiness, lots of little details and pretty art and hell let’s even throw in a little twist because there wasn’t enough going on yet. It’s really one of those MVs where I kept finding new things to enjoy on rewatches.
Ado x One Piece Film Red
The Uta songs from One Piece Red are performed by Ado and these songs (well besides Ado’s rendition of Bink’s Sake) all got an animated music video (so 7 in total). In general I would say that these aren't bad but they're also certainly not the most visually interesting ones of the year for me at least.
However there is one that really stands out and that is the music video for Where the Wind Blows. It's actually one of my favourite pieces of animation of the year. It’s directed by Megumi Ishitani, who’s one of the most exciting names working at Toei, and this MV is another piece that makes me excited about what she’ll do in the future. As for why I love this MV I like to link MyrnaMountWeazel Short and Sweet Sundays about this piece where they go into detail.
Ado – Rebellion
More Ado but this time no One Piece. You can find some amazing animated scenes in anime but at the same time anime is also infamous for its use of limited animation. However I also think it unfairly gets a bad name at times. For some it’s a deal breaker but the creative use of the animation it does have is for me a big factor in whether an anime looks appealing overall. Limited animation can be very pleasing to watch and this MV about an inner struggle is an example of that for me. It does have some very well animated moments that do pop out but in a lot shots there actually isn't that much moving and it uses a lot of still frames. However with the colour use, framing, various imagery etc. all coming together you still get one of the most visually pleasing MVs of the year in my eyes.
Back to You
A MV made through the Animator Dormitory project. It’s another music video that actually doesn’t have that much animation, however its aesthetic is immaculate.
Daoko - Onomatopoeia Rap
Keiichi Arawi is probably mostly known as the creator of Nichijou. However besides making comedy manga he has also made some pretty amazing little pieces of animation himself the past 2 years. These shorts have the same style as his manga and that cute but also surreal funny vibe. The thing that really makes Onomatopoeia Rap pop though is how well the animation/imagery matches the lyrics. In this case the lyrics are mostly onomatopoeia and the imagery thus corresponds with that specific noise creating a fast paced and very satisfying experience. As a bonus you might get a funny exercise that helps you learn Japanese onomatopoeia out of it as well.
DIALOGUE+ - Issen Mankai Hug Nanda
A music video that could've been the opening for a neat school live comedy. I would watch it at least.
Dreams Come True - Spirilla
I’ll be honest I kinda hate stories that are all ‘technology/social media bad’. But hey it’s still popular so I’m willing to accept that’s just a me thing. Besides, Spirilla at least presents it with some neat visuals so I think others will like it quite a bit more than me so I want to mention it anyway.
Eve - Fight Song, White Snow, Mob
You aren't going to find a collection of high quality music videos like those on Eve’s Youtube channel in a lot of other places. Yet with all the stunning MVs you can find there I think Mob is probably one of the most polished ones. Which isn’t very surprising if you look at the staff behind it: animated by Studio Khara and directed by Hibiki Yoshizaki. The latter is probably mostly known for MeMeMe and just like that video is Mob full with social criticism. This time about being forced into a little box because of societal expectations.
However I love Eve’s MVs so much exactly because they’re a place where indie animators can go wild. Like the Mariyasu and Eve combination has always been great and gave us some amazing MVs with How To Eat Life and Promise. Fight Song, that’s a sequel to How To Eat Life, continues that trend. Also for the CSM fans, yeah it’s the song used for ED 12 and yes there are easter eggs.
If we're just talking about aesthetic though then White Snow, that follows the trusted story of white meets black, wins from them both for me. The designs of this culture are especially stunning and very detailed for such a short video and it immediately makes me want to see more of this setting.
Floating Girl
Besides limited animation there is another type of animation that sometimes gets a bad rep. And I also want to take a moment to praise CGI animation. We’ve all seen bad CGI but one thing it does is making it easier to create dynamic scenes. For example scenes where we follow the character moving through their world at high speeds in a one-take-esque scene thanks to things like rotating camera angles and cgi backgrounds. That’s also the strength of Floating Girl. With help of dynamic ‘camera’ work and some other techniques it’s a music video that’s full with seamless transitions. All these moving angles create this sense of weightlessness, which is very fitting for a music video where floating in space is a central part, and makes this one of the most impressive shorts of the year for me.
Gen Hoshino – I Wanna Be Your Ghost
This MV directed by Yuki Igarashi follows a boy meeting a ghost and him growing up. Overall it's certainly not the most animated MV out there but that’s not a big problem. That’s because the highlight of this MV are the adorable dance sequences with I-Can’t-Believe-It’s-Not-Nobita and his obake friends. With a lovely choreography, great dancing animation and a catchy chorus is this colourful MV bound to put you in a good mood.
HI-Drivers Theme Song
Some people really love fast cars but it has never been an interest of mine. On top I'm also not really into idol stuff. Yet this MV that combines cars and lots of guys with an idolish vibe is good fun. With great character animation, character designs, "camera" work and transitions is it a stunning fast paced stylish MV.
Housou Marine – I’m Your Treasure Box
NSFW.
It’s because it actually has some neat sequences here and there. I swear.
KAF × Hakushi Hasegawa - Tsubomi ni Kaminari
A strange unusual music video for a strange unusual song. And I mean that in a positive way. Both become more mesmerizing everytime I watch this MV.
Meychan - Ima ni Mitero yo!
A MV directed by Asuka Dokai who has become a name to watch for me the past 2 years. The Brave New World MV from 2021 was still a bit rough here and there animation wise but there they already showed that they’ve a great understanding of colour use and know how to create a pretty frame. Then I mentioned Shiori in my Winter post for a reason since it’s just solid visuals all around. And now this revenge tale MV that's full with incredible frames (that are my current desktop backgrounds).
Sana Natori – Mondainai Tripper
Wataru Uekusa’s Himitsu Spark and Fake!Fake! were some of the MVs that got me interested in checking out more animated music videos in general. So his aesthetic will always have a special place in my heart. Frantic, colourful and strangely cute. On top it’s not just simple chaos, it’s well timed chaos. He always finds ways for the animation to interact with the music. A good fit for a hyperactive song as Mondai Nightripper.
Sexy Zone – The Finest
Nostalook doing what they do best. Creating nostalgic looking animation. This time a MV that could’ve been an opening for an 80s romance anime (if you squeeze your eyes and pretend it’s cel animation)
Takagi Fumiyo - The Forest Dances
A MV about Ōmagatoki, the time around dusk when yokai come out to dance, with Tasoyamaro’s retro inspired (you’ll especially find influences from Kenzō Masaoka, the man who played a huge role in Japanese animation history with introducing cell animation and using sound recordings) artstyle with muted colours and often a sprinkle of creepiness. She aims to captivate the audience not by telling a story, but by movement and by synchronizing this movement with the music. Which is a good fit for a concept like this and especially with the longer one-take style shots she certainly captivated me.
If you want to know more about Tasoyamaro and her works then check out her NHK Anime Super Nova episode
Tani Yuuki - Okaeri
I’ve shared a lot of music videos with these posts but I can’t recall sharing many (if any) stop motion MVs. Well Okaeri is made by Tomoyasu Murata who specializes in stop motion animation. His works often touch on life and death and this MV is not an exception. Now I wish I could tell you more about his works at this point and share some of my favourites but his oeuvre is something I haven’t really dived into yet. However his works are pretty beloved and won various awards so if you’re into stop motion or these themes I would of course recommend to look into his works yourself.
Tsukuyomi - Sing The Moon
There is apparently a whole story behind this MV that can give a lot more context but I haven’t read it. Still 2 girls and life that has its own plans is enough to have an emotional MV that doesn't need lot of context. Though a big part of that is G子 who after this MV and also their previous Tsukuyomi MV is quickly becoming a name I get very excited about. The MVs can still be a bit rough around the edges (though that's also part of their charm), but they know how to create a solid frame, let the visuals talk for themselves and combine the visuals with the music to create a proper climax that packs a punch.
Tooboe - Shinzou
Story about some love drama and cheating? Eh, have seen enough of that on the numbers site for a lifetime. Mixing it with zombies? Hmm not my favourite genre but that’s more unusual. Ow mixing first person point of view live action footage with 2d characters? Now you’re speaking my language.
Van De Shop – If I Could Be a Comedic Hero
As someone who watches quite a few animated music videos I’ve really appreciated Chainsaw Man approach to EDs. Especially nice to see some of my favourite indie animators suddenly show up. Like Coalowl with ED 4.
If I Could Be a Comedic Hero is another MV with their signature designs/aesthetic but this time no focus on dancing characters like in most of their MVs. Well it’s no Coalowl MV without dancing at all but it’s only a small bit here. Nonetheless a cute MV as always.
Previous entries
Finally: I mostly make these post to share some often overlooked works so if I didn’t mention one that you really enjoyed but sure to mention it! Especially now since it's multiple seasons and I probably missed a bunch myselfThank you for reading
From small beginnings to feature-length film
Makoto Shinkai
Before his first feature length movie Shinkai had already made multiple short films and even now later on in his career he’s still making short animation. Though nowadays it's mostly commercials. However, while Cross Roads for example might be a commercial for a cram school, it nonetheless feels like a (condensed) Shinkai movie. It has the classic Shinkai aesthetic and 2 characters from different places whose roads are bound to cross one day. It kinda did become a longer movie because Shinkai has said that it was one of the starting points for Your Name.The most notable shorts of his early career are probably Voices of a Distant Star and She and Her Cat. Personally I really like his Someone's Gaze. It has a story that will be very relatable for a lot of people. It is about a girl who has moved out and is trying to make it on her own and the distance that can create between parents and children but also that certain bonds are nonetheless eternal.
Yasuhiro Yoshiura
Hiroyasu Ishida
A playground for experimentation
Osamu Tezuka
Another name that probably doesn't need an introduction. Who here hasn't heard of Astro Boy? Besides making a lot of manga, Tezuka was also really interested in experimental animation and he made multiple short films throughout his career.These shorts can be very different from each other. My personal favorite Broken Down Film for example looks like an old school black and white American cartoon and is a fun creative parody of an old grainy Western that breaks the 4th wall a lot. While something like Muramasa feels very Japanese (story wise, visually and with its music) and is a dark story about a man finding a cursed Muramasa sword. Then this short film uses very minimal animation but you also have Jumping that has some incredible animation. Jumping has a very simple story and follows a character jumping to higher and higher heights but what makes this short film so unique is that it shows the first person perspective of the jumping character. On top the whole thing also looks like 1 continuous shot. A lot of Tezuka's short films also feature some kind of social criticism or an anti-war message. For example at the start you might think that Mermaid is a straightforward romance film but then it suddenly turns into something else and becomes a disturbing tale about a very controlled society where free thinking isn't allowed. (please note that while you can find Youtube links of this shorts on the official Osamu Tezuka website they're only 3 minutes long and thus usually aren't the entire short film)