Fall 2014 Preview: Part 2, The Hype Train is a Lie

This post was written by Dark_Sage. He is Dark_Sage.

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I’m still not seeing why everyone’s so goddamn excited for this season.

~Table of Contents~

Excellent

Good-ish

Mehdiocre

Shit

Summary Slide

 

 

 

Excellent (9-10/10)

Amagi Brilliant Park

Amagi Brilliant Park
Brilliant hype.

Animation Production: KyoAni (They do KyoAni shows.)

Manga: N/A

Even though KyoAni is KyoAni, they’re also KyoAni. I have full misplaced faith in them, as should you.

 

 

 

Good-ish (7-8/10)

Madan no Ou to Vanadis (Lord Marksman and Vanadis)

Madan
Spoilers: The red-haired girl in the front is actually a guy.

Animation Production: Satelight (Muv Luv, M3, Log Horizon)

Manga: http://bato.to/read/_/134154/madan-no-ou-to-vanadis_ch1_by_bento-scans

Yes, I know the anime is out, but I’m not gonna watch it till after I post this preview for y’all. I’m a principled man, after all.

Just kidding, the first episode was pretty sweet.
Just kidding, the first episode was pretty sweet.

I was a bit worried this would be a bad adaptation, but after watching the first episode, I’m looking forward to seeing them finish off the series in just one cour.

See, instead of going with the one chapter = one episode formula that a lot of shows default to, someone at Satelight actually read the source manga and realized the slow burning nature of it really would not adapt well to the TV screen.

For those of you wondering what exactly that means, they ran through five chapters in the first episode.

Actually, there was. People would sleep through the show otherwise.
Guess you didn’t read the manga, girl-chan. People would sleep through the show with a 1:1 adaptation.

I’m pretty interested in seeing where they take this. Maybe it’ll live up to the manga’s original concept of a Medaka Box-style female lead kicking ass through some medieval fantasy-esque battlefields as her emotionless male sidekick picks up a harem of superpowered battle maidens.

I mean, it most likely won’t, but a guy can hope.

 

 

Ookami Shoujo to Kuro Ouji (Wolf Girl & Black Prince)

Ookami Shoujo to Kuro Ouji

Animation Production: TYO Animations (Tamayura, Uta Koi, Ginga e Kickoff)

Manga: http://bato.to/read/_/49023/ookami-shoujo-to-kuro-ouji_v1_ch1_by_keijo-shoujo-scans/3

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nXlrO0VaO0w

Erika Shinohara doesn’t have a boyfriend, but in order to fit in with her bitchy friends, she takes a picture of some random douche in a mall and tells them he’s her boyfriend. But then ~plot twist~ it turns out he’s actually a schoolmate of hers!

To avoid embarrassing herself in front of her friends, Erika asks the guy to pretend to be her boyfriend. He agrees, but only so long as Erika becomes his cumslut. She takes him up on his offer, which sets the events of this whacky romcom into motion~

Now that you’ve read the plot description you know exactly how it’s gonna play out. Mark the show as complete on MAL, give it an 8/10, and move on.

 

 

Donten ni Warau (Laughing Under the Clouds)

Donten ni Warau

Animation Production: Dogakobo (Love Lab, High School of the Dead, GJ Bu)

Manga: http://bato.to/read/_/9226/donten-ni-warau_v1_ch1_by_easy-going-scans/4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7bW5JmUW3Lc

After three volumes of the manga, I still don’t know where Donten ni Warau is going.

The plot seems to revolve around three brothers who ferry prisoners to a giant island prison… but then there are dragons and ninjas and magical serial killers… all set in Meiji-era Japan.

And did I mention the brothers are all fujoshibait?
And did I mention the brothers are all fujoshibait?

Even though Donten confuses the heck out of me, I can’t say I dislike it. There’s surely a method to the madness, and part of the fun is finding out what exactly that is.

 

 

 

Mehdiocre/Okay (5-6/10)

Trinity Seven

TrinSev

Animation Production: Seven Arcs Pictures (Mushibugyo, Dog Days”)

Manga: http://bato.to/read/_/4472/trinity-seven_v1_ch1_by_village-idiot/2

So Unique

Oh what, you’ve already watched this show? Maybe try something new instead of this shit then.

 

 

 

STI-tier (0-4/10)

Fate/Stay Night

Animation Production: ufotable (a Toriko special, that one Gyo OVA, and fucking Futakoi Alternative which none of you watched because you don’t hate yourselves enough)

Manga: N/A. I see the manga on my bookshelf right now, but I think we’d all be better off if we pretend it never existed.

For the life of me, I cannot understand why the Fate/ universe has such a large following. Actually, wait, I can.

Like attracts like.
Like attracts like.

Let’s be real here, guys. Fate/Stay Night is a mediocre VN series that only became popular by showing up right as anime was ravaging Japan like a rapist with a tight schedule. It has advanced neither the fandom, nor the medium.

Well, unless you consider slinging merch to be the ideal every anime should aspire to.

But even then they're just stepping in the plugsuits of giants.
But even then Fate/’s just stepping in the plugsuits of giants.

You have a stupid MC whom all the girls drippingly present themselves to because, hey, the only way Fate/Stay fans can live is vicariously. And the overarching plot can only be understood by drawing out fucking graphs and timelines till all the squiggles become unreadable.

Shit makes no sense.
Shit makes no sense.

Take into consideration how awful the original adaptation was (the Unlimited Blade Works speech was never cool, not even for chuu2s) and there’s no reason why you should be interested in this re-adaptation.

Skip this shit.
Skip this cancer.

 

“Wait, what about Fate/Zero, D_S? Rather than being a simple plot extension, this looks like a thematically natural follow-up to Zero, and you liked that, didn’t you?”

Well yes, but that’s like completely different. Because, uhh…

...

Okay, okay, I admit it. I’m really looking forward to F/SN. Just don’t let the people who skipped down to the summary slide find out. I’ve got a sagey image to maintain!

 

 

Shirobako

Shiro Bako

Animation Production: P.A. Works (Glasslip, yuck.)

Manga: N/A

By the fuckwits who brought us Glasslip, here’s an anime about making anime.

Fool me once, P.A. Works…

 

 

Gugure! Kokkuri-san

Gugure

Animation Production: TMS Entertainment (Yowamushi Pedal, Pilot’s Love Song, Kamisama Kiss)

Manga: http://kissmanga.com/Manga/Gugure-Kokkuri-san/Ch-001

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kktj7HRIQi0

I find it difficult to believe people can actually find Japanese comedy funny. If you consider yourself one of those people, I think both this show and wiper fluid will match your tastes perfectly.

 

 

Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai (A Good Librarian Like a Good Shepherd)

Lovely Librarians

Animation Production: Hoods Entertainment (Fantasista Doll, Blazblue Alter Memory, Kanojo ga Flag)

Manga: N/A

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fn1XDigMusQ

If you played a spot-the-differences game with this and every other anime ever made, you wouldn’t find any.

Come on, Japan. There’s gotta be a way to create something interesting that also sells. This barrel-scraping is getting embarrassing.

 

 

 

Summary Slide

Excellent

  • Amagi Brilliant Park

Good-ish

  • Madan no Ou to Vanadis (Lord Marksman and Vanadis)
  • Ookami Shoujo to Kuro Ouji (Wolf Girl & Black Prince)
  • Donten ni Warau (Laughing Under the Clouds)

Mehdiocre

  • Trinity Seven

Shit

  • Fate/Stay Night
  • Shirobako
  • Gugure! Kokkuri-san
  • Daitoshokan no Hitsujikai (A Good Librarian Like a Good Shepherd)

123 thoughts on “Fall 2014 Preview: Part 2, The Hype Train is a Lie”

    • Let them think that….rather that than them going and watching DEEN’s F/SN and getting mental trauma :/
      (also F/Z IS the prequel to it so they are not actually wrong)

      Reply
      • True, but a lot of the details in F/Z were aimed at setting up for not UBW, but Heaven’s Feel. For example, Sakura and Rin being sisters doesn’t even come up in the UBW (or Fate for that matter), nor does anything about Zouken or Sakura’s treatment in the Matou household. Those details exist for the sole purpose of giving more context to the events of Heaven’s Feel. They’re not even relevant to the other routes, as no mention of them is made in the other routes.

        Reply
      • “Just”. I don’t mind you saying that UBW is a continuation of F/Z, but I do mind when it’s like the only reason to pick it up.

        Reply
      • Ofc that stuff was just cancer…UFOTable are why Fate Zero didn’t turn out like Fate/Stay Night. They are even confident enough to already have a second season incoming april 2015.(Yes second season is already announced)

        It’ll be easier if you erase the fact that DEEN’s FSN ever existed :P

        Reply
  1. You left the “Gugure!” in the wrong bullet point.
    Should be
    – Shirobako
    – Gugure! Kokkuri-san.

    also
    i have faith in Gugure ;-;
    sure Japanese comedy is terrible, but so is my sense of humor. it’s a match made in heaven.
    (Is anticipating thoughts on Akatsuki no Yona)

    Reply
  2. “It has advanced neither the fandom, nor the medium.” – D_S

    Glad I watch anime to entertain myself and not to brag at some faggy fan convention about the deep and artsy anime I like.

    Reply
  3. Dearest D_S,
    Kaylith are claiming to have released an “accurate” translation of Danna ga Nani, with the addition of references and memes. Please watch it so that I don’t have to, and then tell me what to think.
    Namaste.

    Reply
    • It originally had memes in Japanese, so I clearly don’t see where the problem stands. Unless you are here to complain for the sake of complaining, in which case you have an alternative with HS.

      Watch it yourself. Sage doesn’t know Japanese. What is he supposed to tell you? How good he “thinks” the memes are? Or vice versa?

      Reply
      • We can run off a list of the memes used and how they are used in Japanese net culture if it makes people feel better.

        The show is full of memes in the original Japanese dialogue. Translating them literally into their Japanese-to-English meanings kills the point of the show.

        Reply
        • Dearest D_S,
          As you can see, their staff is crying incredibly hard at the idea that their funny translation might be anything but. This suggests to me that it is ungood. Please confirm/deny.

          Reply
          • Your attitude towards this is something else, man. Were you the guy from our website earlier, by any chance?

            I’m not saying that you have to think we’re right, and we’re not going to claim that we’re totally right, only that the TLs are accurate. We never said we’re funny, either. We just said that the proper usage of memes enhance the show as that’s the intended approach, even CR did this with their TL, at least partially anyways.

            You’re just being slanderous at this point.

            Reply
          • Again, what is he supposed to tell you? Learn Japanese then, and don’t complain when there’s nothing to complain about.

            @Fyurie, I don’t think the list would change anything. These guys will be the happiest only when you’ll start transcribing the Japanese dialogues. Unless they have their fixes of “Ohayou”, “Arigatou”, etc. they won’t stop complaining.

            Reply
              • When a show is loaded with Japanese meme, it is best to leave it in tact, and put in a translation note either on the video, or included in a .txt file with the subs.

                Reply
                • Oh, fuck off. You were *just* talking about immersion, and NOTHING breaks immersion more than a giant TL note explaining some meme. Most of the time you can’t even read the TL note plus the line of dialogue, so you have to pause to read the TL note. This completely breaks immersion. Even if this isn’t the case, having to read something that clearly isn’t part of the dialogue or “intended to be there”, so to speak, breaks the immersion far more than a meme in the script — especially if their is a meme in the original script.

                  And what immersion is there in not understanding a joke and then having to go read a long pdf afterwards explaining all the jokes and references? Have you watched anime from the mid 2000s where there are tons of references and absolutely nothing is translated, instead there are just TL notes for every little joke and reference and a 5 page long pdf explaining everything. It’s stupid and it’s not enjoyable to watch in any way. A really good example, I think, for a comparison: go watch gg’s Pani Poni Dash (a show with infinite amount of references and jokes only Nips would get) where none of them were translated and instead you’re forced to read a massive PDF after the episode to “get” the jokes, then go and watch kdfss’s NouCome (tons of Japanese meme,s jokes, references etc that were localised). You won’t be able to say with a straight face that gg’s Pani Poni Dash is more immersive.

                  And as far as “culture” goes, if you think Anime is a good indication of Japanese culture, you are completely deluded. Anime is a good indication of Japanese internet/otaku culture, so there is absolutely NOTHING wrong with replacing Japanese memes with Western internet culture.

                  If you want to watch your precious, intact transcribed anime, learn Japanese and fuck off.

                  Reply
                    • “You mad” is the calling card of someone who has been decimated in an argument.

                      I don’t care if you enjoy a soulless script that makes no sense to you, but don’t make up stupid excuses like “immersion” and “culture”, because that’s just objectively wrong.

                  • >Oh, fuck off. You were *just* talking about immersion, and NOTHING breaks immersion more than a giant TL note explaining some meme.
                    That’s your opinion, not a fact. For me learning something new about anime/otaku culture doesn’t break the immersion, doubting the authenticity of the translation because the editor decided to have a little fun does.

                    >Most of the time you can’t even read the TL note plus the line of dialogue, so you have to pause to read the TL note.
                    You clearly had some traumatic experiences with TL notes, just remember those can be used for trolling just as much as memes in the subs can, a good TL can be read without pausing.

                    >And what immersion is there in not understanding a joke and then having to go read a long pdf afterwards explaining all the jokes and references? Have you watched anime from the mid 2000s where there are tons of references and absolutely nothing is translated, instead there are just TL notes for every little joke and reference and a 5 page long pdf explaining everything. It’s stupid and it’s not enjoyable to watch in any way.
                    Yep you’re talking about TL being used to troll or American Studios not giving two shits and releasing terrible scripts.

                    > A really good example, I think, for a comparison: go watch gg’s Pani Poni Dash (a show with infinite amount of references and jokes only Nips would get) where none of them were translated and instead you’re forced to read a massive PDF after the episode to “get” the jokes, then go and watch kdfss’s NouCome (tons of Japanese meme,s jokes, references etc that were localised). You won’t be able to say with a straight face that gg’s Pani Poni Dash is more immersive.
                    gg was trolling you, you fucking retard. That’s what gg does/did. kdfss’s Nourin in comparison to gg’s PPD is better of course the same way Saddam Hussein was a great guy when compared to Stalin or Hitler. Please let me know in your reply how unfair my comparison is. :P

                    >And as far as “culture” goes, if you think Anime is a good indication of Japanese culture, you are completely deluded. Anime is a good indication of Japanese internet/otaku culture, so there is absolutely NOTHING wrong with replacing Japanese memes with Western internet culture.
                    Pretty sure most of us couldn’t give two shits about actual Japanese culture, when you say culture on a site about anime you’re talking about anime culture. I might be wrong here but I believe that most people that watch anime, especially a show like this, do want to know at least a little bit about anime culture.

                    Before you even say anything, no I don’t think there is anything wrong with using memes the way Kaylith did, but I just think it’s equally retarded to bash TL notes saying they’re a better option.

                    Reply
                    • Not that guy, but [gg] was not trolling. That was the first show they ever subbed and the “trolling” came from them subbing a show that was being subbed by another group, which was something very taboo back then. It was the exact same thing with the other group that was subbing the show. They had even more TL notes, quite frankly, even using a TL note for things like “Chibiki” rather than just translating it to midget like [gg] did. That’s how things worked back then. TL notes were used for everything and anything.

                      That’s not to say infrequent TL notes aren’t okay; they are. But if there is a show which would require a TL note every 30 seconds, like Pani Poni Dash, translating it would generally be a better option.

                    • You spend hours a day watching japanese cartoons and criticizing how they are subbed.

                      Trust me, we are all weeaboos.

                  • It’s a bit unfair to compare the subbing of a 2005 show to a more recent one (I mean, there’s 8 years difference). Subbing has changed a lot in that time and there is a tendency to localise more nowadays, whereas the infancy stage of digital subbing was more about keeping true to the Japanese. Compare all the groups of that period to each other – afk was roundly lambasted for localising a phrase to “every Tom, Dick and Harry” whereas no one would bat an eyelid if that showed up in a sub today.

                    Also, I can confirm that PPD was pre-trolling gg (I was in that group not long after, idling mostly). I think /a/ hadn’t warped koda’s mind yet when they started it ;)

                    Reply
                    • And let’s not forget, subbing those chalkboard scenes with 2005 tech would have been much uglier and more time-consuming than nowadays. A .pdf file to accompany the eps wasn’t a bad idea in those circumstances.

                    • I think you misread my post. I used PPD as an example of a show with tons of references, memes, an jokes that only Japanese people would get. The reason I used it as an example is because it was during an era where nothing was localized and if a translation didn’t make sense, then the group would just slap a TL note on it. That was in response to Kristen saying they should rather use TL notes for Danna ga Nani wo Itteiru ka Wakaranai Ken. I wanted her to actually see what it was like watching a show with a TL note every couple of seconds.

                    • So yes, PPD referenced a lot of other shows. How do you localise them? Or do you just ignore them? I mean, I’m not entirely sure what the issue is as the notes weren’t even in the episode but supplementary material.

                      I haven’t misread anything. I just think it was a bad example.

                      And what do you do if there’s no equivalent English ‘meme’? I mean, with the languages being fundamentally different, Japanese meme culture is bound to have a completely different set of memes to English. How do you resolve that?

                    • >as the notes weren’t even in the episode but supplementary material.
                      They were in the show, though, and then they were expanded upon even further in the pdf.

                      Any good translator can localize anything. That’s why I gave the example of Lyger’s Norin. You probably didn’t watch it, but he found a way to localize all the Japanese references, all the memes, and all the jokes.

                  • All of the reputable companies that publish manga in languages other than Japanese tend to have a long, long list of translation notes at the end of their volumes. They sometimes translate the jokes/situations the best they can, and if you get the jokes or situations, then there is no explanation needed, if you don’t get them, you can either google it or just see the notes at the end of it.
                    What it is not reputable, is to slap a digested and regurgitated translation to the dialogue, or even worst, add a translation note directly on the scene.

                    Reply
                    • That’s a “no true Scotsman” argument. You control the definition of “reputable” in this context, so you simply have to say that everyone who translates the way you like is reputable and everyone who doesn’t is not.

                      I could just as easily say that “reputable translators” are the ones whose translations make sense to the target audience without them having to read pages of TL notes in the back.

                    • They just bow to the pressure of their readers.

                      They’ve stopped trying to translate.

                      Rather than bringing up manga we should be talking about novel translations, because really, who cares about manga.

                      Last I checked, Haruki Murakami novels didn’t come with translation notes.

                    • Typically people who read translated novels are not interested in the culture – more the plot of the novel. Though I have read a Japanese novel called “The Woman in the Dunes” that did come with a few cultural notes in the back.

                      Those who read manga or watch anime typically are interested in Japan and their culture. That’s why manga companies tend to put in translation notes – you sell to your buyers as a company.
                      That’s why crunchyroll tends to include honorifics in their subs, even though most fansub groups are starting to shy away from it. They are selling to their buyers.

                    • Novels are a tad different though, fnord. You have a lot more space as a translator to unpick a cultural reference and describe it. I read the translated version of The Gourmet Club book of short stories by Tanizaki Jun’ichiro and what struck me (other than having extensive notes in the back of the book focussing on the culture) is that a term coming up in the text could be explained *in the text*. So for instance, a specific type of house which would take one word in the Japanese, took a sentence or an aside in the English to explain how it differed from, say, a house made of brick.

                      The reason TL notes exist is because you can’t really do that in a visual medium due to time constraints. While I’m loth to use them personally, sometimes there are situations where you can’t localise. I usually find it happens with wordplay and visual elements of that wordplay on screen – they suck! – but also specific cultural meanings.

                      It’s like SparkNotes for Shakespeare. At the time of writing, the audience would know “biting your thumb” at someone is like flipping the bird, but a modern audience needs an extra leg up to get what the hell they’re on about XD

                    • Well actually, Kristen, I remember a few years back that CR said they were phasing out honorifics. I’m guessing the backlash was so intense that they quickly gave up on the idea!

                    • Scholarly works or commented editions of classical novels can naturally profit from translation notes, but Arthur Waley’s translation of the Genji Monogatari should be evidence that even this is not strictly the case. Still, if you’re writing for an academic audience, then it is probably preferable to include translation notes so that your academic debate doesn’t get bogged down by misunderstandings.

                      However –
                      This is anime. It’s not the Genji Monogatari. The whole idea that people watch anime because they’re interested in Japanese culture and language is fundamentally laughable. Arguing in favor of translation notes so that watchers understand the deep and mystifying aspects of Japan is bizarre on so many levels it never ceases to baffle me how anybody could find this position defensible. If they were truly interested in Japan, they would select a medium that more accurately represents what Japan is like. Perhaps they’d take up language classes and live there for a month or two. But they don’t, because they don’t truly care, and nor should I about them.

                      Companies are different. They want to sell a product, so they have to go along with whatever illogical notions have possessed their customers.

                    • fnord, why does manga include translation notes? If their customers were not interested in Japanese culture, then there would be no reason to do so. And that page is money, so it’s not something they would just do for no reason.

                    • I’m not really talking about “deep and mystifying aspects of Japan” though, as there are fundamental differences in everyday culture between Japan and English, especially when it comes to allusions that just don’t exist outside of that culture but are sometimes implicit to understanding a certain bit of dialogue.

                      Don’t get me wrong: I’m all for localising too, and I’ve always done so, usually more than my contemporaries – but I don’t automatically reject the idea of TL notes when sometimes localisation just doesn’t quite cover it. They should be used sparingly, yes, and I’ve resorted (for most series) to putting TL notes on the group’s website rather than the episode itself, but that’s personal preference and I can understand the decision behind putting the notes on the episode itself so that it’s always there, even when the group who subbed it is dead and buried.

                    • The translation notes that the readers demand teach them nothing about Japan or its language. They will never learn anything substantial through their presence. All it does is reinforce their delusion of being culturally open and broad-minded.

                      Their readers want to learn random tidbits of useless knowledge and pass it off as being descriptive of Japan to themselves and others, and manga publishers will be only too happy to include all that useless nonsense if it means their products will be bought with fiat currency.

                      How many people have learned Japanese through reading translated manga? Zero.

                    • >All it does is reinforce their delusion of being culturally open and broad-minded.

                      You’re just being annoying at this point.

                    • Yes, but how many know about youkai and other cultural tidbits exclusive to Japan purely from watching anime/reading manga? I think TL notes have played a part in that, certainly. I read a manga (though it was more a collection) by Shigeru Mizuki and I frequently found myself referring to the notes at the back to find out why a character did what they did when faced with a specific youkai. These things weren’t explained in the text because a base understanding is assumed by its Japanese readers – whereas English readers are unlikely to have encountered it before, leaving them puzzled.

                      I agree that anyone using translated materials to learn Japanese needs their head examining, but saying that the cultural aspect is irrelevant in translation (which seems to be your line of reasoning) seems to gloss over some of the more complex issues with translating from one language to another.

                      Though, readers/viewers can demand what they like. That shouldn’t make a blind bit of difference to production, especially when it comes to fansubs :D

                    • Cultural issues are very important when something is being translated, but people are lying to themselves when they say they need TL notes to learn about Japan. TL notes can only ever teach you disjointed and jumbled nuggets of knowledge. Nobody is ever going to understand a country like that.

                    • That’s the thing. People want to know those tidbits of knowledge, especially if it will help their understanding of the series.

                      Like, did you know that in New Jersey there is a dish called Taylor Ham? It is made of a sort of ground pork, and is heavily salted. Typically, New Jersians will cut 3 cuts along the edge in order to prevent the middle from puffing up while cooking. Commonly it is served with cheese and an egg on a hamburger bun.

                      If that showed up in an anime, you might be confused on what Taylor Ham is. A translation note would explain it to you, and you’d have a little tidbit of knowledge, and it would allow you to understand it every time it comes up in that anime, or any other anime you watch.
                      If you translate it as “Hamburger”, you never learn that tidbit of knowledge about New Jersey culture, and if it ever came up again, you’d be lost. (Not to mention, as a New Jersian myself, calling Taylor Ham a Hamburger is a heresy. :o)

                      I don’t think anybody is saying you can learn everything about Japan or learn their language just from reading manga. But little pieces of knowledge can make the show feel more authentic and give you a better appreciation of Japan and its culture.

                    • I don’t think anyone with any sense is going to suggest that you can learn the entirety of Japanese culture through TL notes. But in the past, TL notes (or notes from the translator as I’ve been editing) have helped me to understand and research further into particular nuggets of cultural knowledge that have then helped me to understand other shows that have used the same cultural knowledge.

                      I’m not sure who here suggested they needed to TL notes to learn about the entirety of Japanese culture (maybe I missed that comment as I was skimming?), but my point was that it’s a little shortsighted to automatically dismiss TL notes when they can actually be very useful in certain (rare) circumstances.

                      If there are equivalents that you can localise to without losing too much meaning from the Japanese to the English (by that I mean, meaning that won’t affect your understanding of the dialogue/show), that should always be the priority. However, as I’m sure you know yourself, things aren’t always that easy.

                    • I think I didn’t make myself clear here Xhytar, add translation notes is not what makes them reputable, they happen to be reputable and they usually add them, (Is so much easier to make that clear in Spanish, i’m sorry i’m not good with English).
                      The thing is, you can add it if you like, but at the end, not a translation note directly above or even worst, a poorly done localization (so to make it understandable).
                      Most of the times, a translation can’t localize effectively the most complicated concepts of a culture. In the case of a hard copy of a manga, the publishers ads some translation notes for your convenience at the end of a volume or whatever the media, nothing more, and assumes you have at least some basic knowledge about the situation in question when translating.
                      And yes, i prefer reading manga to watching anime, they don’t do good adaptations, or interesting stuff (not ecchi/school life) anymore.

          • I like how you seem to think D_S will be able to decipher the Japanese memes. You should probably be consulting kokujin-kun instead. Just a thought.

            Reply
  4. To be honest, after watching Kaylith’s Danna ga Nani, I don’t really understand the hate. Maybe I just don’t know a lick of Japanese or their jokes, but the humour wasn’t “le epic memes” the slightest. In fact, it was pretty unobtrusive.

    That said, I’d still like to know what the original jokes were, but they didn’t put anything of the sort in the post.

    Reply
    • If it’s something people would like, we can list the original Japanese memes in the release posts, I guess. I wouldn’t mind it if it helps people understand why it’s the way it is in English.

      Reply
    • I also checked it out and since the show is just a short I’ll probably stick with their release, with that said, I think Kaylith shot themselves in the foot by making such a big deal out of it, I bet the people complaining are just crying “Commie!” without even watching it and just based themselves on what their post said.

      Reply
      • I really have to agree with this. They should’ve said nothing, because the very moment you mention “memes” no matter how rational and logical you are about it, people will automatically assume trollsubs / Commie memes-where-they’re-not-supposed-to-be type of thing.

        Really, most of the memes in the script were hardly noticeable anway. In fact, is “Mashiro-tan is my waifu!” even a meme? I know most people on /a/ — including myself — are serious about their waifus, and it’s pretty clear to most people that watch anime that a lot of otaku have waifus.

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        • Perhaps so. I do feel that I probably wouldn’t have won either way though, to be honest.

          People will look for issues everywhere, unfortunately, and it’s a shame because this is probably the one time that it’s the right course of action.

          People using memes and other net humor ironically is what has caused this ridiculously dumb mindset, and it’s a shame.

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        • I did mean to edit this in before the time run out, but:

          I’m under the impression that if we hadn’t have put that disclaimer, the complaints we would have received would have shot up as soon as an episode with an obvious meme reference would have come along.

          I’d rather get this mess out of the way now than deal with it mid-season because people don’t understand the show.

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  5. >Commie memes-where-they’re-not-supposed-to-be type
    I watch almost every single show commie subs and I can’t find a single fucking example of this.

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    • Even if they haven’t used them in their recent releases you should know what that expression refers to, Commie, be it true or not, is pretty much the first group that comes to mind when people talk of memes in the subs, when I say “crying “Commie!”” I didn’t mean Commie did that but people associate Commie with memes and jokesubs so they’ll use “Commie” to refer to those things.
      And honestly my problem with Commie isn’t even the “memes”, I enjoy a joke every once in a while, its just that they localize too much and are way too liberal sometimes (which is usually what people talk about when they say memes) and laughing at something in the subs every once in a while usually isn’t worth that, this last part is completely unrelated to the discuss though.

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    • KnK was pretty meh honestly, I won’t blame Ufotable though, they did a decent job, the whole problem was really the story itself, that said maybe it could have been handled differently.

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  6. I think it is great that you have an opinion and that you are willing to share it; however, you seem to have forgotten that a review should come after the series has ended. Your post seems to have as its goal discouraging as many people as possible from watching these shows and they forming an opinion for themselves. Also, from my own experience, you should give a show 4-5 episodes before you call it shit. A great example would be Mahou Shoujo Madoka Magica, I watched the first episode and thought it was shit. It was only after the season was over that my son encouraged me to sit through at least five before making up my mind. I could not believe the enormity of my error in judgement. Since that time, I have tried to have an open mind for the vast majority of shows, and I have learned to relax and just enjoy anime for its entertainment value. Having, at one time, studied to become a Professor of Philosophy, I tended to take everything way too seriously. I was too analytical, critical, and cynical to enjoy life to the fullest. Anime can be many things to many people, but first and foremost, it should be entertaining and hopefully educational. My advice to you is not to take life so seriously, more that try not to dissuade others from enjoying life either. That’s just my opinion, take it or leave it.

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