{"id":6290,"date":"2012-07-04T13:56:55","date_gmt":"2012-07-04T20:56:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/flomu.wordpress.com\/?p=6290"},"modified":"2018-12-20T00:06:18","modified_gmt":"2018-12-20T07:06:18","slug":"your-mother-is-ashamed-of-you-for-reading-anime-blog-posts-at-work","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/flomu.net\/blog\/2012\/07\/your-mother-is-ashamed-of-you-for-reading-anime-blog-posts-at-work\/","title":{"rendered":"Sankarea: What a Shame"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"http:\/\/flomu.files.wordpress.com\/2012\/07\/hadena-sankarea-03-10bit720p72e36eea-mkv_snapshot_17-02_2012-06-24_13-28-17.jpg\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-6314\" title=\"\" src=\"http:\/\/flomu.files.wordpress.com\/2012\/07\/hadena-sankarea-03-10bit720p72e36eea-mkv_snapshot_17-02_2012-06-24_13-28-17.jpg?resize=590%2C331\" alt=\"\" width=\"590\" height=\"331\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>The phrase &#8220;hit or miss&#8221; is often used to describe shows which appeal only to a very specific group of viewers. \u00a0In Sankarea&#8217;s case, a more appropriate term would be &#8220;hit and miss,&#8221; with just barely more hits than misses.<\/p>\n<p><!--more--><a href=\"http:\/\/flomu.files.wordpress.com\/2012\/07\/hadena-sankarea-02-10bit720pfb2607ec-mkv_snapshot_10-26_2012-06-24_02-00-21.jpg\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-6310\" title=\"\" src=\"http:\/\/flomu.files.wordpress.com\/2012\/07\/hadena-sankarea-02-10bit720pfb2607ec-mkv_snapshot_10-26_2012-06-24_02-00-21.jpg?resize=590%2C331\" alt=\"\" width=\"590\" height=\"331\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>HIT:<\/strong> SHAFT-like art<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>SHAFT-like artistic flair is everywhere in Sankarea&#8230; and it shouldn&#8217;t come as a surprise, given that the <a href=\"http:\/\/myanimelist.net\/people\/16583\/Omata_Shinichi\">director<\/a> comes straight from SHAFT. \u00a0But Sankarea does better than, say, Sayonara, Zetsubou Sensei or Bakemonogatari. \u00a0It holds back the black screens, the weird camera angles, and the shadowy silhouette shots, using them as a tool, not a crutch.<\/p>\n<p>All anime should strive for the level of art and this perfect balance between art and story. \u00a0Seeing derpy QUALITY animation isn&#8217;t fun, but getting bombarded by SHAFT&#8217;s cotton puff ball witch creatures isn&#8217;t very enjoyable either.<\/p>\n<p>Plus, cool scenes make for great screenshots.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/flomu.files.wordpress.com\/2012\/07\/hadena-sankarea-03-10bit720p72e36eea-mkv_snapshot_21-58_2012-06-24_13-33-27.jpg\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-6315\" title=\"\" src=\"http:\/\/flomu.files.wordpress.com\/2012\/07\/hadena-sankarea-03-10bit720p72e36eea-mkv_snapshot_21-58_2012-06-24_13-33-27.jpg?resize=590%2C331\" alt=\"\" width=\"590\" height=\"331\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>HIT:\u00a0<\/strong>Romance with a twist, random stuff I couldn&#8217;t fit anywhere else in this post<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>This is what drew me to Sankarea in the first place. \u00a0It&#8217;s hard to produce an interesting romance without it turning into KeyAniesque melodrama, but Sankarea manages to keep it at an innocent romance level for the duration of the show.<\/p>\n<p>(I need to be careful what I say here, because the next section is a bit contradictory&#8230;)<\/p>\n<p>I really like the pacing of the relationship between Rea and Chihiro in main storyline, excluding episode 11. \u00a0They meet in episode 1, Rea dies by episode 3, and four episodes later, Chihiro gets kidnapped, leading up to episode 11 (see below for bashing of episode 11).<\/p>\n<p>Many people have said that the finale, showing Rea&#8217;s zombie side take over, is DEEN yelling &#8220;Season Two please!&#8221; \u00a0I agree. \u00a0But more importantly, the finale shows Rea and Chihiro growing closer. \u00a0Having resolved the issue with Danichirou, Chihiro and Rea have returned to the abandoned building where their forbidden love first started&#8230; and now, they are finally taking a step beyond the innocent love that the past twelve episodes have portrayed.<\/p>\n<p>Perfect place to stop the show.<\/p>\n<p>Oh, and yes, the whole zombification deal was predictable, but the execution was top-notch. \u00a0Case in point: when Rea &#8220;dies,&#8221; it all happens so fast. \u00a0Rea&#8217;s slow climb up the hill contrasts with her father&#8217;s spontaneous slap and her sudden death. \u00a0As a member of the audience, you can almost experience the pain Danichirou is going through as he sees his daughter die so quickly.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/flomu.files.wordpress.com\/2012\/07\/hadena-sankarea-07-10bit720p469b5135-mkv_snapshot_21-07_2012-07-04_11-05-21.jpg\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-6311\" title=\"\" src=\"http:\/\/flomu.files.wordpress.com\/2012\/07\/hadena-sankarea-07-10bit720p469b5135-mkv_snapshot_21-07_2012-07-04_11-05-21.jpg?resize=590%2C331\" alt=\"\" width=\"590\" height=\"331\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>MISS:<\/strong> Director goes MIA<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Somewhere along the line (episode 7), the director went back home and found another man in his bed with his wife. \u00a0This shot off a series of events which culminated in either the director running away from home or the director gaining a bipolar personality disorder. \u00a0So the wife and her lover filled in for him.<\/p>\n<p>They evidently could not resolve their differences, because episode 7 was about Wanko, episode 8 went back to the main storyline, episode 9 was about Mero, and episode 10 went back to the main story line again. \u00a0And episode 11 and 12 are a different thing altogether. \u00a0I made a graph to make clear what was going on behind the scenes.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/flomu.files.wordpress.com\/2012\/07\/deenjustsucks.png\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-6313\" title=\"\" src=\"http:\/\/flomu.files.wordpress.com\/2012\/07\/deenjustsucks.png?resize=500%2C700\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"700\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>OVA bonus: Wife&#8217;s lover and director run away together, and wife and cabaret club girl drink until the wee hours in the morning. \u00a0Staff still on mustard strike.<\/p>\n<p>But in all honesty, the director really screwed up halfway through. \u00a0One side story isn&#8217;t bad, but string together Mero, Wanko, and Rea&#8217;s parents, along with some plot holes about Chihiro and Mero&#8217;s zombie mother, and you end up with something rotting so fast, even hydrangea leaves can&#8217;t help.<\/p>\n<p>And speaking of which&#8230;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/flomu.files.wordpress.com\/2012\/07\/hadena-sankarea-11-720p64b39f4f-mkv_snapshot_10-34_2012-06-26_00-18-03.jpg\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" title=\"\" src=\"http:\/\/flomu.files.wordpress.com\/2012\/07\/hadena-sankarea-11-720p64b39f4f-mkv_snapshot_10-34_2012-06-26_00-18-03.jpg?resize=590%2C331\" alt=\"\" width=\"590\" height=\"331\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>MISS:<\/strong> Episode 11<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>I had to include this specific episode under a separate category because it is such an outlier.<\/p>\n<p>If this one episode had been modified, the entire show would have been a decent watch. \u00a0Mero and Wanko&#8217;s episodes weren&#8217;t\u00a0<em>bad<\/em>, just a bit out of place. \u00a0And shoving in that episode about Rea&#8217;s past does show some rushing on the part of the Director, but it would have been passable.<\/p>\n<p>But this episode&#8230; this damn episode&#8230; it ruins anything and everything Sankarea stood for. \u00a0Just look at that bunny girl shot above. \u00a0Why would you\u00a0<strong>ever<\/strong> even\u00a0<strong>think<\/strong> of putting that godawful scene into such a great show?<\/p>\n<p>The eleventh episode took the whole father-daughter conflict and threw it into the trash. \u00a0It&#8217;s nice to have something new and refreshing, but watching Chihiro make an ass of himself was not refreshing &#8211; it was annoying. \u00a0And to top it off, we have some maids forcefully inserting fanservice into the show at a very inappropriate point. \u00a0While Chihiro is trying to take a morally correct stand, you see Rea in the background dressed in a bunny suit. \u00a0How is this in any way acceptable?<\/p>\n<p>Take a lesson from Shigofumi. \u00a0Now that was a show that had a supernatural father-daughter conflict and pulled it off. \u00a0Take out the mindless fanservice shots. \u00a0Make Chihiro and Danichirou&#8217;s confrontation more serious (optional). \u00a0Don&#8217;t be in such a hurry to wrap up the conflict.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/flomu.files.wordpress.com\/2012\/07\/hadena-sankarea-12-end-10bit720pa2344d66-mkv_snapshot_22-16_2012-07-02_21-01-15.jpg\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-6318\" title=\"\" src=\"http:\/\/flomu.files.wordpress.com\/2012\/07\/hadena-sankarea-12-end-10bit720pa2344d66-mkv_snapshot_22-16_2012-07-02_21-01-15.jpg?resize=590%2C331\" alt=\"\" width=\"590\" height=\"331\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>The key word most people are using to describe Sankarea is &#8220;potential.&#8221; \u00a0It had a hell of a lot of potential, with a likable cast, an extraordinary art style, great music, and a perfect premise. \u00a0And then DEEN shot itself in the head, throwing all that away for some cheap fanservice shots and a terribly misguided set of episodes.<\/p>\n<p>It&#8217;s a damn shame to see a great show like this degenerate. \u00a0I know that no matter how much I loved episodes 1-10 and 12, I won&#8217;t be able to recommend Sankarea to anybody because on the whole, it&#8217;s nothing special. \u00a0And that just breaks my heart.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The phrase &#8220;hit or miss&#8221; is often used to describe shows which appeal only to a very specific group of viewers. \u00a0In Sankarea&#8217;s case, a more appropriate term would be &#8220;hit and miss,&#8221; with just barely more hits than misses.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[25],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6290","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p2zM4X-1Ds","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/flomu.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6290","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/flomu.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/flomu.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/flomu.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/flomu.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6290"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/flomu.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6290\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7816,"href":"http:\/\/flomu.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6290\/revisions\/7816"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/flomu.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6290"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/flomu.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6290"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/flomu.net\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6290"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}