I’ve been thinking… most of the criticisms for this series stem from not the fact that it’s bad, but rather because of its ambitions. If this was any regular series, I’m sure that I would have cut it a lot more slack than I’m doing now. This series may indeed not be realistic in some ways, but on the other hand I consider this to be along with Yojou-han the most innovative series of the season.
I mean, compare this to Rainbow: there, the acting is just bad, no matter in which context you put it. But because of the huge risks this series took, it’s much harder to pull this off correctly than, say, a romantic comedy. What I actually love is how Anime no Chikara has really been trying to put an international flavour to anime, and not just by focusing on one culture at a time, but blending a whole lot of them together. Most series that focus on foreign countries usually just focus on one of them at a time, but here it’s different. Sure, it may be funny to listen to the “German” that Kazura gargled up in this episode, but would the alternative (just pretending that everyone can understand Japanese) really have been better?
So you know what, screw the criticisms of this series: I like its guts. This episode was actually very good, despite not being that realistic. Kazura’s past acquaintances however were handled with a lot of subtlety: they worked on opposite sides, and yet the creators didn’t try to turn it into some cheesy drama. Instead they gave Kazura the chance to see his friends one more time, knowing that it was only a matter of time before he would get assassinated.
Also, I’m glad: the photography really remains a major theme throughout the series. It’s a chance to see the characters busy with something that isn’t life-threatening, and adds a bit of character to them, instead of being just a one-episode gimmick to never return.
The big constraint is obviously going to be time. I swear that this is looking like a 24-episoded series at this rate. It’s in any case completely different from what I expected when first starting this. To think that the creators would go for the episodic approach to flesh out the setting and characters. It’s definitely more varied, but what about the climax? Please don’t let it go down the same path as Sora no Oto.
I’m also digging the character-designs more and more. It’s definitely better than the big-eyed brightly coloured style that anime has become infamous for. Also, is it me or do the creators get better and better at their detail? Look at the corpse at the end of this episode and the way it was twitching. Very well drawn.
Rating: ** (Excellent)
Most sources I’ve checked say this is gonna be a 13 ep series but they could be wrong.
I wouldn’t call this series innovative. It’s a unique setting, sure, but just because no one’s done an anime in China pre WWII doesn’t make it innovative.
I’m not saying it’s bad, but can anyone name anything really innovative that this series has done? I don’t consider using a bunch of languages innovative, and I definitely don’t place it on the same level as Yojou-han.
Ooo…. finally an episode considered as excellent. I knew it that this is one of the series that instantly caught my eye for a reason xD
I haven’t caught up with the latest episodes yet but I like Johnson, I don’t think this could be considered in the same level as Yojou-han in terms of innovation. But I do agree that this series has guts. I love that~
Yeah, I like what the series dares to do. I just hope they don’t run out of time again and have to end the series when it is just reaching the climax…like with Sora no Woto.
I also wouldn’t place it on the same level as Yojouhan, but possibly 2nd or 3rd among all the anime this season.
It has guts and it is fun to watch. A little bit of Bond, a little bit of Indie Jones…It’s just pretty entertaining and I haven’t seen many anime have that combination.
And let’s be honest (also directed @Johnson) today it’s impossible to do something innovative without going way over board, probably even beyond the likes of Yojouhan. So it’s all about recombination. Post-modern principles prove very much true regarding that.
It’s impossible to be completely innovative since every story is derivative from something that came before it. Hence, we have a set of common tropes in every fictional story. So a story taken place in a different setting that hasn’t been done before is in my eyes a innovative decision.
@chounokoe: I think what you’re doing is redefining innovation. You say that by necessity, innovative ideas go “completely overboard”, so therefore, we’ll just call anything we think is “good” innovative. The problem with this is innovative has a pretty specific meaning, so if it doesn’t quite apply in the way you like it, just use a different word. What’s wrong with “entertaining?” Also, postmodernism has got nothing to do with this.
@MsteaK: There are other ways to be innovative. Art, music, direction, etc.
Or, rather than using “innovative,” you could use its lesser cousin, “creative.” Innovation is creativity in grand proportions.
@Johnson: No, what I meant is that most things which are labeled innovative today are not innovative but just assembling of pre-existing ideas in a way that people do not directly see relation to it’s sources.
Postmodernism has very much to do with this, as the assumption behind most postmodern works is that EVERYTHING has been done by now and that the only thing that is left to do is to reassemble things and craft them into a new combination (that parts aren’t new, but the whole may be).
Even in art, music or direction almost everything is inspired by something…now it’s about using those techniques.
There is still a HUGE difference between good and ‘innovative’.
I think that’s a really pompous presumption, that our era is unique in that we’ve run out of new artistic direction. Art has always, not just recently, built on and rehashed past works, but whoop-de-doo, someone figured that out and now things are different?
I think we’ve deviated from my original point, which is that Senkou no Night Raid should not be called innovative. Do we even disagree on that? I’d go a step further and say Senkou no Night Raid isn’t even particularly unique.
Nobody said it was different now, only that post modernistic principles apply greatly in our interpretation of what is innovative. Personally, I would say that no series this season is even near “innovative”, at the very least compared to other forms of media such as literature. Also, while in my belief this series is not innovative at all, I do applaud Anime no Chikara’s decision to put the focus on a group of adults in pre WWII China, rather than a group of teenagers in another overdone swords and sorcery world.
I do think that it’s good that this series isn’t about kids running around with swords. But why compare with the lowest common denominator?
man I really like this episode atmosphere, something about it…….
I should wait for subs for further comment about it though
@Johnson you forgetting or ignoring Youjou-han isn’t all that “innovative” at all. I should explain as why I think that, but I’m not really want to, since I kinda like Youjou-han and Yuasa
I never claimed it was “innovative,” just that it’s way better than this. I don’t really think the word “innovative” applies that well to works of art.