Attack on Titan (aka Shingeki no Kyojin in romaji) has proven to be one of the rare shows that sparks the attention from people who don't regulary watch seasonal anime. I mean, just look at the numbers on trakt alone: Two of the other more popular shows that started at the same time, Maou-sama and Gargantia don't even come close (less than a 100 watchers on the last episode). But not only that - even in the anime community itself it gained immense popularity and currently is still in the Top 10 on Myanimelist (kind of the western Facebook of anime). What is to take away from this is certainly that it seems to make for a good entry-level show but it's not one without flaws and I can't frankly understand why it gets that much praise (oh hello SAO!).
I first came into contact with it's manga because it ranked extremly high on Mangaupdates with some of the genre tags I browse. After reading the first 15 or so chapters I deceided to put it on hold. It didn't impress me and the art was everything but pretty (given that it was the authors first series and he didn't draw much before this). So when the show came around I saw potential for improvement given that the art could only get better plus action never suffers from being animated. This also means I had certain expectations and some of the early tension had been lost on me due to knowing some twists.
Now the story itself has plenty of shortcomings but is still entertaining. It starts out like your grimdark show about the struggle of mankind (in this case versus the titans) but it falls into the usual shonen trappings further down the road. I also find most of it's characters kind of stagnant in terms of developments and it's everything but subtle. The source material is still being published and is probably not even at the midpoint of which thr first season maybe adapted half of. This also means there isn't an ending yet. There is plenty of padding going around in the show and they added some filler to end it before the start of a new arc. I don't think the filler was all that bad but the padding put it's toll on it. Some episodes are extremly tedious to the point that nothing at all happened.
One the shows biggest problem for me comes in terms of animation quality. There are good looking scenes and the 3D rendered high-speed slides through the city on their 3DMG always looked great... it's just that it was inconsistent to the max. Quite early you begin to notice copy pasta and the worst possible use of stillframes with narration or dialogue over it. This is done a lot in the industry and it isn't necessarily a bad thing but the way they do it in this is so in your face and frequent you just can't help it. There was some talk about them lacking animators and that they were apparently looking for more but that couldn't have been the only issue. Around the episodes that relied on it the most a new OP hit the show with plenty of quality animation so yeah... The level of detail also decreased towards the end whenever it wasn't a closeup or something in the focus.
I guess this sounds really negative but I still gave the show a 7... it is just frustrating to see this hyped to the heavens when it really is far from perfect. If you're looking for an action show, sure - give it a go. It's just nothing great. I'm sure there will be more coming down the road (there have been spin-off stories already) and I cannot wait to see the train-wreck the live action movie planned for 2014 will be.
R.I.P. Moe titan.
One of the best documentaries I've ever seen. A good doc should be detailed and engaging, but it should also tell a story. This does that effortlessly and there wasn't one moment across the 6 hours of it where I wasn't mesmerised.
I can't say I was even particularly interested in the behind-the-scenes world of the Disney theme parks, but this revealed things I had never even considered. The people ("imagineers") involved in making these things are so creative and talented, and the level of detail and craftsmanship they put into their work is incredible.
The last time I went to a Disney park was in 1997 on a family trip to Florida. We did Disney World, Epcot and MGM Studios. I also went to Disneyland Paris (then called Euro Disney) at some point in the early/mid '90s. They were all fantastic experiences, but I was really curious to see how the parks must have been updated in the time since then. They are all constantly changing and it's quite amazing to see how the creators keep them relevant.
I liked that this wasn't shy about exploring the things that didn't work and the mistakes made along the way. It was great to see them realise that they needed to understand and respect other cultures before they could slap an American theme park in different country.
So little of this review has to do with the actual show, it just hits home in too real a way.
The true brilliance of this show is the fluidity and awareness. Most of what Adam seems to speak to aren't even really secrets or ruinous of any half-decently informed person, but he speaks to the people who are on both sides of the equation. I'm Adam, but rarely manage to entertain or endear myself to people. I don't have the calculated and rehearsed TV show, but the instinct to tear down all of the dumb distractions and terrible justifications for behavior and beliefs is at my core. Doing it in service to make things better even more so.
The show manages to stay positive and caricatures without belittling the kind of push back commentary you get from someone who's world you're "attacking." The fact that it tries to remain sympathetic and end on high helpful notes I think speaks to a level of patience and maturity towards the subject matter.
Adam manages to take "check out these factoids!" and turn them into mini-immersive worlds and memorable scenes that can stay with you. For as straight-forward of a premise, the execution and creativity is undeniable. You want other shows to put even half the effort. Going forward, whenever someone wants to criticize my know-it-all-ism or call me negative for being well-enough read, I'll just point them to this show and practice shutting up.
I kind of wished this might be a Netflix show so it could get a wider audience, but i'll see how the season turns out. It's nothing but zany so far. Interesting style, semi-predictable plot from the second episode, and has elements of Invader Zim, Farscape, and a beautiful art style for the world building.
The Pilot is ... tedious. It's still fun, Mostly because they introduce a 'gag' moment where Gary is on the cusp of dying, and this primes you for a very different character moment in the show towards the end of the pilot, and you'll get the theme of the show from that point on, i.e.
it's a rollercoaster of drama and irritating moments. and occasionally action and fast moving scenes that remind me of Invader Zim, but also some of the action moments from Rick and Morty Season 3/4, but slightly faster-paced and more stylised. Still, it's quite good for animation to deliver on those surprises.
(When the bounty hunter turns up, the name is Avocato, not Avocado, though.)
But stick with it, the 2nd episode cuts down on the background and just jumps right into the first arc of the show, which will likely be where they pivot and explain the title in the main arc of the show, i.e. Redeeming Gary, by going on serially botched adventures, one at a time. Even if it cribs a little bit from the Marvel Guardians of the Galaxy a tad too much at times, it's more of a homage than theft at this point since Gary the main protagonist, is supposed to be bitterly unlikeable and profoundly stupid, and yet, all you can say after he's driving you insane is ... he means well.
I did like the more adult themes and blood which is unique in western animation, and the voice acting talent is superb. Some of the 3D roto work is impressive and the gags are well tuned and zany rather than telegraphed too much in advance.
Wow. GLOW is such a fantastic show with a lot of unexpected depth to it. I didn't know what to really expect (other than Alison Brie wrestling other women) after just skimming some reviews online and trying not to spoil myself, but it was very well made dealing with a myriad of different social issues and themes. I never thought that so much drama and intrigue could come out of making a female wrestling league/show.
There are definitely a decent amount of feminism and SJW vibes, which can usually turn me off to a show/movie if taken overboard. However, I thought the tone of the show struck a very nice balance to those themes with wisely timed comedic dialogue and chose not to go too overboard on stating some of the "obvious". I really liked the emphasized theme of "things don't just happen; people make choices" that is expanded upon. There are some times you can't just blame society and everyone else for everything, and at times, you have to just take some responsibility yourself.
Alison Brie did a great job as the lead in this one, and hit the humorous parts quite well. She definitely doesn't play the typical spunky girl who never gets down in order to overcome all obstacles in this one. Lots of bad shit happens to her constantly in this show (some of it self-inflicted), and she has to eventually deal with the consequences. Some are dealt with better than others. She really developed her character throughout the course of this season, but she never really crossed into that "totally likeable" realm for me.
However, this is alright because the other supporting characters in GLOW were fantastic in their roles as well. I was pleasantly surprised that the show was really able to flesh out almost every single character/female wrestler introduced and give them all some plot lines and conflict to overcome (even Sheila the wolf girl!!). My favorite girl/wrestler was probably definitely Debbie, played by Betty Gilpin. She is just badass and goes totally YOLO at times. The end of episode 1 was just pure f'n gold. I could watch that entire scene over and over again. It was so well acted out between Alison Brie and herself. I also really enjoyed Marc Maron's character, the director Sam Sylvia, who adds a ton of crass humor into all the dialogue that he's given. He could have just mailed it in as the sleazy coke'd out director, but he completely owns the role and adds so much to the show.
Anyway, I really enjoyed GLOW and I'm hoping for confirmation of a second season ASAP because the creators definitely left a few loose-ends hanging and we still have a lot more potential story to unfold. Looks like Netflix has another hit on their hands. Watch/binge it if you can at least before GoT owns all our lives starting in July.
