1 Well, she's clearly lying about not having any panties.

1 And to much the same conclusion as I did as well, way back when. (Mind you, my write-up: http://greyduck.net/anime/?p=8 is rather sparse.)

2

Is it just me, or should anime really be taking more advantage of higher-definition CGI technology?  Since seeing Matriculation off the Animatrix DVD, I'm almost spoiled for anything else.  Even higher quality stuff like Princess Mononekee is hard for me to really enjoy. Or am I just outing myself as an impure heretical technophile?

 

3 Most anime wouldn't benefit from higher resolution. Work like Miyazaki's is unusually good.

4 Greyduck - yeah, I remember that review.  Linked to it here.

5 LOL @ the post title.

Any discussion of computer technology in anime production brings to mind two films, Jin-Roh and Appleseed. The former was created by Mamoru Oshii and Production I.G as a swan song of sorts for cel animation using virtually none of the digital technology which was gaining popularity in 1998. The latter is Japan's first fully computer-animated theatrical feature, released in 2004. Despite representing two technological extremes, both films look very good, and that's about all they have going for them IMHO.

The lesson to be learned is that while HD and CG technology have a lot to offer, they don't make or break a production. Hell, sloppy or poorly integrated CG has tarnished plenty of otherwise solid anime series (I'm looking at you, GONZO).

6

Dave, more and more shows (all, nowadays?) are animated completely on computers.  Azumanga Daioh was the first series that I knew of that was animated entirely on computer, though I'm sure there were others (many others) before it... and I only discovered that when I was given some dougas* from the show for Xmas.

But that's not what you're talking about; you're wondering why all anime series don't look like Ghost In The Shell 2: Innocence.  My guess?  Cost and time limitations, and broadcast limitations.

Besides, would a show like, oh, Karin or Hidamari Sketch really be improved by being CGI'd to the teeth?  Or, god help us, Dokuro-Chan?  Do you REALLY want to watch Dokuro-Chan in HD?

7

Yeah, I came to anime pretty recently, and I'm spoiled by modern CGI capabilities to boot (lack of fine detail makes Dave's brain unhappy; I can feel my visual cortex shrinking!) so I don't have the perspective on such things that the old hands do; the answer to my question seems to be that in a lot of cases it's just not that relevant to what the creators are trying to achieve. 

Fortunately for my prejudices, good CGI does seem to be getting cheaper and more accessible, even if good writing is still hard to find.

Thanks, I'll have to pick up GITS2.

8

It's not just 3D rendering that's computerized now. In the bad old days, initial animation was done with pencils on paper, and then someone would trace the images on clear plastic (known as "cels" from "celluloid", though they no longer use that particular plastic), which would then be painted. When time came to commit to film, the various cels would be placed on top of one another on a light table and a movie camera would be clicked for one-five frames.

Now what happens is that the initial animation is done with a graphics editor using a graphics tablet, and the "ink and paint" are all done inside the computer, too. The resulting graphics images get composited together digitally, and in many cases they never go to film at all. Instead, the composited animation is directly converted to MPEG2. If film is needed, it's created using a laser film-printer.

The modern result isn't necessarily better, but it can be, and it's a damned sight cheaper and faster than the old approach, once you've paid off all the capital cost for all the computer equipment.

A lot of the old tweening and cel work in anime used to be subcontracted to companies in South Korea. The raw pencil diagrams had to be shipped to SK by air freight, and the finished cels were returned the same way. Nowadays they do it all via VPN's over the Internet.

9

Steven, that's what I was referring to, indeed.  I just now realized that I never finished my comment above.

There was supposed to be a definition of what a douga is, but I never bothered to do it.  A douga is a drawing done on a sheet of paper (similar to drafter's vellum, but not as transparent) that's used as the reference for the animator for a scene.  I'm sure that before computer use became common, it was used for the basis of the appropriate cel, but now it's the first frame of the computer-generated animation instead.

I think.  It's still pretty cool to say "hey, there's the final version of that framed sketch I've got on my wall!"

1 Well now I'm curious to see what the guts inside look like. It screams "manga" right there on the back, but is it the anime adapted to a manga, or the translation of the original novels being printed under TokyoPop's manga label?

2

Is that supposed to be Admiral Spoor? And they're using her for cheese-cake? They do realize, don't they that Grand Duchess Spoor is the most powerful noble in the empire who isn't an Abriel?

We definitely need a report on these when you've read them, but I'm expecting a complete trainwreck. That neotenized art style approaches the sacrilegious.

3 It screams "manga" right there on the back, but is it the anime adapted to a manga, or the translation of the original novels being printed under TokyoPop's manga label?

It's a manga, Will.  I have it right here.  It's full of pictures. ;)

4

Does the art on the inside match the cover art?

I'm wondering if the cover art was redesigned and produced "domestically" to appeal to some preconceived notion of the target audience.

5

They do realize, don't they that Grand Duchess Spoor is the most powerful noble in the empire who isn't an Abriel?

...who's also ssssssssmokin'!

6 The art inside is similar to the cover, though Lafiel isn't as kawaii as on the cover of Banner. 

You have to understand that I haven't watched the anime.  Only Crest has been released in Australia, and I don't have it.  (I think it was out of stock when I did my big order in November, when it would only have cost $20.)

So... do I watch the anime first, which might take a while (possibly forever if I wait for the rest of it to be released here) or do I go ahead with the manga?

7 I'd read the novels, if they're available in Australia.

8 Why not grab the torrents now then buy them when they're available?  If that's not an option, go with what you've got -- no sense in letting them just sit there ^_^

9

I could've gotten you Banner easily but I had no idea. Oh well.

Greetings from the land of hideously expensive inet kiosks

-- P

10 It's cool.  I had no idea that I was going to want to watch Banner all of a sudden either. :)

11

Well, I've been wrong (frequently) before. I'll be wrong again.

Being one of the few cases where the anime pre-dates the manga, I know my preference is usually to see the earliest material possible. Now I'm curious if the manga is a straight adaptation of the anime, or makes any attempt to include some of the material cut from the novels to create the anime. Until you see the anime, you won't be able to tell us *hint* ;)

12 The most obvious thing to look for is Sobaash's sex. In the original books, Sobaash was a man. In the anime Sobaash is a woman. (Sobaash is the executive officer under Lafiel in Basroil.)

13 Apparently, TOKYOPOP released the same manga design in both the U.S. and Australia, as the copy of Crest of the Stars that I have has the exact same cover. 

The story in the manga pretty much follows the anime, from what I can remember. 

As for the art-style, I have a feeling that Steven would not want to see Banner of the Stars III, the 2-episode OVA that features even more rounder characters than ever before.  And a disappointing story and very little advancement between Jinto and Lafiel to boot (though it deals with a very important part of Jinto's life, though).

Well, I guess the artstyle is to be expected.  You can see the evolution of the character-design style as you go through Crest of the Stars -> Banner of the Stars -> Banner of the Stars II.

At least I have the novels to look forward to.

14 Apparently, TOKYOPOP released the same manga design in both the U.S. and Australia, as the copy of Crest of the Stars that I have has the exact same cover.

That would be because it's the exact same edition.

We have a very good anime publisher in Australia, Madman Entertainment, but I don't think any manga is published here at all.  We import everything. :(

15

The difference in style is quote jarring if you jump straight from Crest to Banner 3. I think part of the reason Lafiel is drawn with such a unique style early on is to enhance the "alien" aspect. She's very gaunt, and between the paleness of her skin and the shape of her head, they give her head an almost Grey-like look. The more they flesh her out (both figuratively and literally (not much has been said about how and when the Abh experience puberty)), the less foreign they make her features.

That doesn't excuse the treatment the Abh have been given on these manga covers.

16

I don't think any changes in art style can be rationalized as being the result of physical maturation. Sobaash in the anime is older than Samson -- she's probably about 50. Like all Abh she doesn't show any sign of aging, and like all Abh women she's gorgeous. But she sure isn't round and cuddly.

I know about the story in Banner III. As mentioned, it's important mainly in terms of a major continuity change, but it doesn't really seem like it's a story I'd be very interested in watching. Probably the coolest thing in it would be seeing Atosuryua's new squadron training. Watching Jinto start crying doesn't sound like a good time.

17

I won't disagree that the characters as shown in the manga are a bastardized version of what appears in the anime. I'm sure they didn't want to spend the time or money to have the manga artists study the anime in detail and duplicate the style.

I'm trying to remember the details of how Lafiel described the Abh aging process. Didn't she say they mature to something resembling a human in their late 20's to early 30's, then freeze? From that point they live a large number of years basically unchanged until they start sleeping longer and longer each night until one day they don't wake up. I'll have to go back and see if I can find that scene.

18 Aww crud... two "untils" in one sentence... My freshman English teacher would flay me alive...

19 I liked that cute Lafiel. Sorry, Steven.

BTW, The manga has a glaring error right at the first page. The computer in the anime says "the ship has been destroyed", and in the manga it says "the enemy ship has been destroyed" (which makes no sense in terms of the simulation).

1 ...and the butler did it.

2 I figured that was probably the case. (ahem)

1 Ikki Tousen DD... heh.

2

I'll be SO all over this show when it comes out.  Ikkitousen has become my REAL guilty pleasure, so more of it has to be a good thing.

Why are you looking at me like that?

3 Like what? :p

Have you had a look at the manga?  It tells the story much better than the anime did. 

It has a plot and everything. ;)

4 How about Ikkitousen-daioh?

5 Good grief.

6 That might be the greatest thing I've ever seen.

7 I have tons of weird Azu crossovers (including the one linked above).

Also, after someone in Steven's halo was talking about Lain's pajamas, I understood the picture of Chiyo in Chiyo-chichi pajamas better.

1 If it's any consolation, I half-watched a good portion of Full Moon wo Sagashite  in fansub over my sister's shoulder, and it made my head hurt too.

It left me with an impression that it was a good show, a few songs that are still stuck in my head, and the addition of the phrase "and then I'll unleash a horde of cyber-ninja upon Tokyo" to my vocabulary.  (The last being part of my reaction to what I recall as being increasingly disproportionate plots on the part of the rival girl to destroy Full Moon's career.)

Oh, and it left me with a burning desire to write a fanfic entitled "Sailor Moon wo Sagashite", but that's another story...

1 Maybe it's just me, but your recent comments section on the main page looks - enciphered. Or gibberish. Looks fine from this comment thought.

2 I just zapped about 40 garbage comments.  The pages get cached, and the cache can take a few minutes to clear.  (It automatically detects new comments and purges the cached page, but can't detect that spam has been removed.)

1 I put it on the list because of all the people who said that it's "like ZnT". That said, I know that they are more different than DBZ and Naruto. Still, this is the true story.

2 Hah.  I got the reverse of that.

There are some similarities, but SnS has a stronger plot and more fully realised characters.  And is rather darker - without being a gorefest like Elfen Lied appears to be.

3

Well, since I don't do fansubs, it means I'm going to be stuck waiting for months before the series ends.

The second DVD is out now, but I'm going to wait until the third DVD appears in late January and order them both.

4 I think that's a good plan.  Certainly it would be a painful show to watch at one episode per week.

5

It would deeply suck to watch SnS at an episode a week.  My wife and I watched the entire thing in two days -- and the only reason we didn't watch it all in one go was because it was midnight when we hit episode 10 and we had to be responsible adults and get some sleep.

I watched Elfen Leid a couple years ago in a single sitting  (http://fuzzygeek.com/index.cfm?AID=1739).  I really hesitate to recommend it to anyone; I think it's something people have to decide to watch for themselves.

6

Also, if you haven't seen the Shakugan no Shanatan (where they parody various scenes with Shana or Hecate in chibi form), I can put them somewhere for you.

They're rather amusing.

7 Heh.  Yes, I've seen Shanatan. :)

8

I'll recommend Elfen Lied with the caveat that it IS messy, there ARE some fairly graphic scenes, but if you like horror, you'll like this.

I don't like horror... but I did like EL.  It's just that good.

9 I don't generally like horror, but I liked 3x3 Eyes a lot, so I might give Elfen Lied a try.

10

I don't know if I'd consider EL "horror" per se.  Some pretty horrific things do happen, but the intent is not to frighten, nor to show gore for gore's sake (e.g. slasher flicks) -- but to make a point about a character, or the story.

There's context for pretty much everything that happens, which makes for a good internally consistent story.  The downside is that some of the stuff that happens is pretty ... horrific.  :)

11

Also btw -- back to Shana.  Have you seen the Special -- "Love and Outdoor Hot Spring Tutorial!" ?

I have a raw cap of it, but unsubtitled, but (oddly) haven't seen a subbed version.