Hot Takes | Animated Observations

Welcome, weebs, to Animated Observations

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Welcome back, everyone, to Feeding the Flames. For those unfamiliar, this is my totally original series where I share some nonsense takes of mine and see how people react. If you feel strongly about any of these takes, feel free to debate them with me in the comments. Anyway, here are my garbage opinions.

Most of the Fate/ franchise is mid

Don’t get me wrong, Fate/Zero is still probably a top 10-20 anime of all time, and for what it is worth, I think the Fate/Stay Night remake still gets a bit too much hate, but almost everything which is not related to the three routes from the original visual novel is pretty meh. I get that people still like the characters and so more content is always welcome, but on a storytelling and animation basis, it does not hold a candle to what the best of the franchise has produced.

My Hero Academia is at its peak

Season two is probably when most people became interested in the anime, and for what it is worth, it is genuinely compelling. However, I would argue that the most recent season of the anime adaptation is the best the series has been thus far. Though giant battle scenes are nothing knew in action anime, they do allow for a diverse array of perspectives, and character development along with it. I probably would not have even remembered Mirko exists let alone cared about her as a character if it were not for the insane fight sequences that open up the season. Deku seems to be a weak-point for a lot of people when it comes to MHA, but the show also seems to be clearing that up a lot with this season.

Most JRPG’s are way too damn long

Don’t get me wrong, the feeling of sinking a lot of time into a series and having it pay off can certainly be its own kind of reward. However, part of me is also incredibly cynical and thinks that most of the time those series never really earn their long run. A lot of this has to do with really unrewarding side quests or open words that don’t actually have much filling them. It is one thing to have a longer story or gameplay experience that is worth sharing, it is another entirely to pad game time with useless assets and boring, unimportant characters.

Dr. Pepper

This is not at all related to anime, video games or whatever, I just want it to be known that I drink the superior soda #notsponsoredbutwouldbe.

The isekai crash is coming (at least I hope so)

The amount of dime a dozen, caught in the same generic video game fantasy world and then become the most op character in a matter of an episode or less dreck that is just commonplace among anime seasons now is frankly a bit disheartening. It is hard to imagine how many more interesting stories are getting passed up because studios, however justified the fear may be, are choosing “safer” options. Predicting trends is hard, but I do hope something changes relatively soon.

Have some hot takes of your own? Let me know down in the comments.

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As always, special thanks to Jenn for the support on Patreon.

If you can’t, or just don’t feel like it, no worries. Thank you all for reading, and goodbye, for now, friends!

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Welcome, weebs, to Animated Observations

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Well, as usual, I am behind schedule on the series I was planning on covering this month. So, in order to supplement this, it is time once again for some hot takes.

Length is Not Important in Making Good Art

I thought about this a lot after finishing Goodbye, Eri by Tatsuki Fujimoto. He completed a well-rounded story in just about 200 pages and arguably wrote not only one of the best manga of the year but potentially a contender for best manga of the decade.

If it sounds like I am calling out shounen here, well it is because I am…kind of. Obviously, this applies to all long-running series, but Shounen stories tend to disproportionately fit into the category. However, the probably here is not the length itself, but rather that the longer a series goes on, the more prone it is to losing focus of its main plot.

The most important thing when writing a story is not its length. Rather, it is making sure that each part of said story is purposeful, and engages with its other parts in a way that makes sense.

Turn-Based RPGs Aren’t Inherently Boring

As much as I consider myself a fan of more action-oriented RPGs like Final Fantasy 13 and the very small amount of the Tales series that I have been able to play, something about the turn-based style of gameplay has always held its charm for me.

While I can certainly understand why people would feel strongly about their repetitive nature, part of that come from a lot of games that either focuses heavily on grinding, have little variance in gameplay, or both. Games like 2012’s Bravely Default prove that even small variations in the traditional formula can make for engaging gameplay that requires more attention than simply mashing through menus.

Still, I am not gonna sit here and pretend like most games that stick with the turn-based formula are innovating in that way.

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The Tokyo Ghoul Anime Wasn’t That Bad

There are very few anime that I would say are wholly inferior to their source material. One of those is The Promised Neverland, which…yeah. The other, though, is Tokyo Ghoul. So much of the second season just feels scuffed as hell compared to what we got in the manga.

However, to say that its first season is on the same level feels a bit ludicrous. The adaptation of its story, even if some minor details were left out, was solid, and the animation from Studio Pierrot was above average. It was by no means perfect, but certainly not bad enough to complain endlessly about.

Hiroyuki Sawano

That is the take because my boy Sawano is on fire. On a more serious note, I do think Sawano has, at least at this point, cemented himself as one of the better music producers of anime history. It can certainly feel one-note at times, but at his best, his production is so hard-hitting that it frankly does not matter.

If I were to name some of my favorite music producers, it would likely be Sawano and Yoko Kano. I realize that these are not especially controversial picks, and this series is called Feeding the Flames, but hey, what can I say, quality is quality.

Good Anime Endings are More Memorable than Good Anime Openings

There are a lot of good anime openings, both in turns of animation but also in terms of music. However, the same cannot be said for anime endings, which often feel hand-picked to sound as boring and forgettable as possible. It does make sense, though, as first impressions are often much more important when it comes to sticking to a consistent audience. This is why, despite not thinking much about them, I could very easily name some of my favorite ending themes (more specifically, my favorite anime ending at the moment is Style Helix by Myth&Roid from Re: Zero, while my second favorite is Hibana by The Sixth Lie from Golden Kamuy).

What are some of your hot takes? Let me know down in the comments.