After watching the first episode of Mokke a few weeks ago, I wrote, “The first episode didn’t necessarily grab me as much as I would’ve liked, but I think the show has a lot of potential.” Yet, despite my optimism, I proceeded to put the show out of sight and out of mind, almost to the point of forgetting about it entirely. This past weekend, however, I sat down and watched a few more episodes and discovered that my initial impression of the show was pretty much on the mark. In fact, I’d even go so far as to now label it one of my favorite shows of the season. I’m glad I gave it a fair chance.
When it comes to evaluating anime series, I’ve occasionally been accused of being a bit of a pollyanna in my assessment. I suppose it’s true, to a point; I consider myself an optimist and I have this annoying habit of being flexible and open-minded when presented with problems or new situations. It’s something I inherited from my father, I guess. He’s much the same way.
It’s also why I’m such a horrible anime reviewer. It’s not that I don’t view anime with a critical eye - otherwise, I’d be drowning in dreck - but, if the good in an anime series vastly outweighs the bad, I’m likely to describe it in glowing terms, ignoring even those flaws which clearly deserve mention. When your audience consists of a bunch of cynical anime fans, however, what do you do? Do you take the high road and stick to your guns? Or do you play to their desires and start dishing out the snark, poking at a show’s every imperfection, no matter how insignificant it may be? For me, it’s neither. I just said, “screw it,” and stopped writing reviews.
But impressions are another matter entirely. The nice thing about impressions is that they’re quite often snapshots of a moment in time. If I write, “I’m really enjoying Suki Suki Neko Rangers at the moment,” and leave it at that, I’m not committing to any particular opinion of the show as a whole. If the show goes down the drain five episodes later when its revealed that Neko Ranger Blue is, in fact, a descendant of God sent to rescue the Earth from an invasion of robotic Neko Ranger embryos from the past (boy, do I hate it when that happens), it doesn’t change the fact that I enjoyed Suki Suki Neko Rangers at some point in time. And, when it comes time to judge the show in its entirety, the fact that it went in a direction I didn’t care for doesn’t mean the time I spent watching it up to that point was all for naught. Bait and switch is such a common feature of anime storytelling that I’ve grown accustomed to taking things one episode at a time. There’s less disappointment that way.
With the start of every new anime season, however, first impressions abound. From the minute the first new show premieres in Japan, the race is on to see who can weigh in the fastest. There’s definitely some value in these first impressions; with something like fifty new shows premiering each season, how does an anime fan determine what to watch? Spend a half hour on each and every one? Of course not. We rely an awful lot on the impressions of others when building our watchlists for the season. Unfortunately, however, those impressions aren’t always very trustworthy.
Compare and contrast the following statements…
1. “The first episode of Suki Suki Neko Rangers was far from perfect, but I like the characters and the premise. The animation was actually pretty good for this sort of show. I don’t know how it’ll turn out, but I’ll give it a chance for the time being. This is kind of a weak season so far, so I’ll take what I can get.”
2. “Why was this show even made in the first place? The animation is nowhere near the quality of the Sad Kittens in Rain remake from last year. I know they’re different studios, but it doesn’t matter. Suki Suki Neko Rangers? More like Sucky Sucky Neko Rangers, amirite? Still, I might as well watch it… it’s better that all this other crap. Worst anime season ever.”
Now, if you were thinking of watching Suki Suki Neko Rangers and went looking for impressions of the first episode, which of the above would you find more valuable? Assuming you’re not this guy, most likely the first statement. However, spend enough time reading anime blogs or hanging out on anime discussion forums, and you’re likely to see a lot of the second statement.
Everyone’s different, of course, but I know I find such premature proclamations of value (or lack thereof) to be useless. Terribly misleading, too. Far too many times, I’ve seen a show turn itself around following a lackluster start. And too many times I’ve seen a show blow a spectacular start in only a few episodes time. This is typical for most forms of serial entertainment, I suppose, but it seems especially common in anime. The smaller the sample, the harder it is to make sense of the big picture.
So, when I wrote, “the show has a lot of potential,” in sharing my initial impression of Mokke, I was essentially saying, “I want to see the big picture.” And I think this insistence on focusing on the big picture has helped me maintain my interest in anime after all these years. I find I don’t have to deal with disappointment as often as I think I would had I focused too much on the little nits and flaws that plague even the best of shows. And I’ve stumbled upon a lot of pleasant surprises along the way.
To be honest, I can’t even remember the last time I finished watching a show, only to think, “Gee, that was a colossal waste of time.” Even if I’m wearing rose-colored glasses, I seem to be having lots of fun all the same.
And I’m OK with that.
LOL dreck! I didn’t think anyone else still knew the meaning of that word XD
There was a crazy physics teacher in my high school (he slept in his classroom, lol) who hated Star Trek and called it “Star Dreck.”
http://img463.imageshack.us/my.php?image=1162149334233rj3.jpg
I couldn’t resist.
if the good in an anime series vastly outweighs the bad, I’m likely to describe it in glowing terms, ignoring even those flaws which clearly deserve mention
I’m in agreement here. I was starting to think I needed to be less open, and more critical and impatient, but it’s not in me. One thing I keep as an important factor when “rating” a series is where it fits in comparison to the other series I’ve completed (relative position). I find it is much simpler than just kicking out some 5.76/10 number.
^^
Perhaps I should work more Yiddish into my posts in the future.
I take this post as an opportunity to say how much I hate when someone says that a show sucks based on the first or second episode.
I don’t think you’re alone in feeling that way, Nemo_N, but I wish more people would come out and say exactly what you said every so often.
And, Ryan, I was actually a little uneasy about that particular sentence… I don’t want people to get the idea that I give everything I watch a free pass. It’s just that I don’t spend a lot of time focusing on the negative elements of a series unless I have a damn good reason to do so. I’ve torn into stuff on occasion.
Stop sharing my brain. o_o
But seriously, I do the same things when watching anime, and friends picking up on that call me an apologist, a pollyanna, and so on. They’ve also been on a quest to find me a show that I’d utterly dispise, but it hasn’t happened yet, and it probably won’t. :P
Nemo_N: Totally agree with you here. I can see how people who can only watch a few things can place so much important on those very first impressions, but it isn’t necessarily something that I can agree with. :3
I am incredibly thankful for people like yourself, Mr. Lawson, who make criticism of media not an emotionally draining chore. The spread of vitriol in all criticism, from fields like cinema to music to now anime has really become a major annoyance for me. I have pretty much stopped reading comment threads on any websites (except for ones like Hop Step Jump, where I’m reasonably certain the commenters won’t be jackasses) due to the large numbers of people who rip into whatever is being discussed, usually without any sort of analysis at all, and then the ensuing wave of equally underthought counter-responses. I honestly don’t get very offended- I’m assured enough of my opinion in most cases to not be swayed by the shouting of random angry people on the internet. Mainly, it’s just an annoyance, and more than that, it’s boring. The novelty of rage-filled, mean-spirited ranting has evaporated for me. I’m eagerly awaiting a return to the analysis of a work’s good points (if it has any) as opposed to excitingly exposing its faults.
When a schlameil (see, I can do it, too!) anime reviewer dumps on a series, using lots of vitriol and hate, it tends to drive me TO the series. If he/she hated it THAT much, there must be something good going for it.
Except for 009-1. That one? Oy. (see?)
I read as many opinions as I can find during the first impressions of the new season phase. But if the plot itself still doesn’t interest me, I don’t care how many people rave about it…I still won’t watch it.
I also dislike it when people say a series sucks based on the first or second episode. Third, fourth, or fifth, I can see - it’s like watching one rented DVD. And as for me personally, I can’t justify watching half a season (~13 eps). If it hasn’t caught my attention for ANY reason after 5 episodes, I really can’t tell myself to hold out longer.
I tend to do the same, to the point of fanboying for some series (read: anything KeyAni). Sometimes though, I focus on just the good points or just the bad points, which I really need to fix.
At times, I get this tendency to throw shows out just after the first or second episode, because if there’s anything I learned from writing a radio play, you have to seize the audience’s interest in the first crucial moments of the show.
Mai Otome
BTW, if you can get far enough in a series that is on a serious downturn, there is a sick pleasure in finishing the series and then ripping it in a post. I like to bitch about series and feel I have the authoritative high ground, because like in Star Wars, no one can even touch you if you have the high ground.
/me rubs chin.
Hmm… regret? Only one series comes to mind if I were to talk about having regrets watching its entirety. To keep the vemon in this post to a minimum, I will not name that series.
Normally, if my interest in a series nosedives for whatever reason, I end up dropping it (even if I am only 4-5 episodes from the finish line). I don’t see the point in extending my torture any further.
People may heap praise upon praise upon it, but if I am not clicking with it, well… it’s my entertainment welfare, not theirs.
To be fair though, if I drop a series, I will cease ALL further criticism on it and simply state, “No comment” when asked about it. I also usually do not announce publically on what series I have dropped.
Cheers.
I don’t “drop” shows as much as I just lose interest in them over time. If I’m watching several shows simultaneously, it’s easy to fall behind on something if it doesn’t hold my interest. Eventually, I just stop watching. It’s a gradual process.
And I do occasionally make the decision not to watch certain shows after only one or two episodes. It’s a, “this show isn’t for me,” or “this isn’t what I expected,” sort of thing, however. And I usually won’t say much more than that. And, of course, if I start hearing good things later on, I might pick the show up again. That happens often enough.
Anyway, I guess my point is, I don’t say, “I’m going to give this show X number of episodes.” It’s more like, “I’m going to watch this show until I don’t feel like watching it any longer.” I may reach that point after one episode or I may reach it after nine episodes. The less episodes it takes, however, the less likely I am to make a big deal out of it. You don’t pick a winner every time.
Mm, Jeff I think that you and I have a lot in common in this respect. After all, I’m always positive about shows even when they aren’t great (for instance, I’m a pretty big Shana fan even though it has flaws) and I try to review things ep by ep (people called me fickle when I kept changing my mind about Doujin Work XD)
However I, too, have been burying some shows this season. Some of them I dwindled away simply because 20 is a lot of shows to be watching in one season. Now mind you, there were some (STL and that one fantasy one with dual-stories) that I dropped because they were terrible IMO, but I didn’t really have a problem with Myself ; Yourself or Gundam 00 before dropping them (mind you, I would have dropped Gundam anyway XD) And even after dropping those, I’ve been neglecting others just because they were less interesting in the first ep. As a matter of fact, Mokke is the biggest example of this, though another is Rental Magika. In any event, you’ve inspired me to go back and give those shows another chance.
I can agree with quite a bit of all of this. In fact, the “second guy” who is full of cynicism is largely why I have become so far removed from the anime fan community as a whole. I’m just tired of hearing all negative all the time.
I also relate very closely with the whole “drop vs. losing interest.” I’ll give any show a chance if I think it’s something that looks like I will enjoy or if I think the feedback is enough to at least have me check it out, but I’m not signing up for a certain amount of episodes. I’m signing up for whatever keeps my attention. I’ve had shows I honestly enjoy be cut short because I just can’t find the attention to keep watching. I only watched 9 episodes of Last Exile, and even though I really enjoyed it…I just couldn’t get excited about watching more. But for some reason, Da Capo always keeps my attention, no matter how weak it gets. I quit watching better shows than I finish, but if I’m not excited to watch the next episode, there’s really no point in forcing it.
And I’ll rip very few shows a new one, unless it completely rubbed me the wrong way. Strawberry Panic rubbed me the wrong way in ways I’ve never thought possible, but I’m easy to please, so associating strong negative feelings to any anime is not only a rarity, but takes something special. I’ll simply count my losses and dismiss a bad anime when I see one (like say Green Green), but there’s no point in being overly negative about every bad anime you see.
I’ll take rose-colored glasses if it won’t harm me physically to watch an anime everyone says nothing but bad about.
I agree with Kabitzin about the vicious pleasure you get in following a trainwreck to its inevitable conclusion before pissing on its corpse. There is something truly amazing in doing so.
Mixed metaphors aside I think we tend to be hypocrites sometimes; I still read blogs where the author bashes a majority of the new anime available, going on a whining trip about the good old days and how they “don’t make them like they use to” before fanboying/fangirling about utter tripe.
If you discount the truly boring/terrible/mediocre series there’s something to be said about apologetics in anime, like TheBigN said. Is it me, or do a lot of bloggers like to stay at the surface, bashing what appears to be all there is before moving on to their next target? Then again, that’s what previews do. Dismissing something outright before it’s even started, though… meh.
I think I’m most critical of series that I like. Series I don’t like, I don’t bother with — neither criticism nor commentary.
YHK: come to my Fred’s forum and we’ll have some funnnnn. Just point your browser to forums.megatokyo.com/index.php?showforum=5 …kek.
Coincidentally I’ve been thinking about this the past few days, mainly in the context of Kamichu (it didn’t help that I mislocated volume 3 and was looking for it…and still is looking for it). That’s one show where it really can use all the overhype and positive spin it can get. Sure, a honest and fair look will probably sink that bandwagon but it’s the kind of show that everyone should give it a try.
In other words: it’s better to just stay honest and say what you feel. Which is very different than say what you think makes you look cool (or what you would like to read). Actually this is the entire reason why Momotato should come back to blogging anime. I know of no anime blogger better than him at doing this.
omo: “That’s one show where it really can use all the overhype and positive spin it can get.”
Heheheheheh…
Jeff: “It’s more like, “I’m going to watch this show until I don’t feel like watching it any longer.””
When it gets to that point, I tend to call that “placing it on permanent backlog”, since I feel there’s always a possibility at some later time that I could go back to it based on what others say, or how I feel, or something like that. Interests can change.
Ah, but you see, there is no problem with totally dropping a show on the first episode. Because then you allow it to accumulate so if you ever watch it, it’s a marathon and we all know marathons add 123% greater satisfaction.
Anime doesn’t run away.
It is also true that with the greater number of shows these days, openings tend to be more action-packed or spectacular, rather than quiet affairs like Sketch Book.
That’s a good point about misleading first episodes, tj han. Studios have always thrown a lot of time and budget at first episodes in order to catch viewers’ attention, only to cut back a few episodes later. Sometimes, the quality of the show changes drastically by even the second episode. I actually think there’s been more of this as of late, too… more and more, I’m waiting for the other shoe to drop.
But that’s all the more reason not to pass judgment on a show prematurely, I suppose.
And, yeah, some shows are better suited to marathons. I dropped Nanoha StrikerS after a few episodes, even despite the fact I’m big fan of the franchise. Then, I realized that I had essentially marathoned the first two seasons (I was a little late jumping on the Nanoha bandwagon), and decided I might enjoy StrikerS more if I watched it in the same manner. So, even though I skipped on the show while it was airing, I still intend to give it another try at some point in the future.
I’m currently watching StrikerS in chunks, and I’m finding that I’m enjoying it more than the first two seasons (which I also watched in the same way). Based on reading the thread at MTF where people dropped it after watching it weekly waiting for the episode, I think I might have unconsciously made a good decision when I randomly placed it on the backlog. Especially now that the entire series is subbed. :P
I’m glad I’m not the only one who still sees Mokke as being worth watching. It’s just…therapeutic I guess. With all the over-the-top comedy, angsty sci-fi and shameless fan-service it’s a sweet and undemanding change of pace.
Rose-tinted glasses are good in the big scheme of things. Since anime is supposed to be entertaining, isn’t it more worthwhile to try to see good in a show than do the opposite? If I didn’t take the stance I do, I’d end up embittered, miserable and having nothing to watch!