All righty, let's give this a go...
Jan. 7th, 2008 08:53 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
candylandOver the break I spent some time acquiring some new series. These were ones that I'd seen in various places or heard about or had recommended to me by different people. ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
bishonen_girl might recall me actually texting myself titles while we were looking at the DVDs at Best Buy. I rarely buy without doing some research first, unless I have it on good authority that I'll like it.
Granted, "good authority" isn't always right *glares at The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya* I might need to give that one another try, but the first go-around...not impressed.
But anyway, yesterday I sat down to watch Le Portrait de Petit Cossette. It's a three-episode OVA series, based on a two-volume manga by Asuka Katsura. It took me about two hours to watch the whole thing, from start to finish.
...have you ever watched a series where you're still sort of scratching your head an hour later? That's what this did to me. I haven't felt like that about an anime since the first time I watched Beautiful Dreamer back in high school. And I had to sit there and really think--did I like this anime?
Basic Idea
Eiri is an art student. He finds a glass chalice and a portrait of a pretty blonde girl. Soon he starts having visions of the girl--Cossette. Hence, the title. Yes, I am Captain Obvious in disguise. Anyway, turns out she was killed by the guy who painted her portrait--and for the record, that's not a spoiler. You find that out REALLY quickly. So Eiri falls head over heels for her and wants to help her.
The Things I Liked
- The visuals. You hear people say something was a "feast for the eyes"? This WAS. It was beautiful to look at. The animation was clean and well-drawn. The cinematography was innovative, and they did a lot of amazing things with the camera pans, the way things were drawn, the coloring...all of it. I'm well aware that pretty packaging does not a good show make, but let it be known that the packaging was VERY pretty.
- The story. The little summary I gave up there isn't much, but I thought the story was fairly fresh. The story of a boy chasing a ghost-girl isn't exactly new, but this...it's different. I can't say too much without going ZOMG SPOILERS, but it's not a run-of-the-mill romance story. If anything, some parts of it are downright horrifying.
- The music. I CANNOT SAY ENOUGH ABOUT THE MUSIC. Most of you who frequent this LJ know that I am a big music nerd--I teach it for a living. I'm the one who walks out of movies and comments on the background music. I'm the one who actually stated that after seeing the second Pirates of the Caribbean fic, I liked the score from the first one better. And as I watched this, I actually was skipping back to re-listen to parts of the score. It was beautiful. So haunting...it'll stay with you for a long time.
The Things I Didn't Like So Much
- There was a small cast of secondary characters. A couple of them showed real potential, and seemed like they could be very interesting...but there was no time to develop them. I know that a three-episode format isn't much time for such things, but I really wanted to see more from the psychic and the next door neighbor/potential love interest.
- A couple of parts were REALLY gory. Like...blood sprays a la Kill Bill. Quentin Tarantino, eat your heart out.
- The way they told the story...this is really the big thing that had me debating about whether or not I liked it. And that's mostly because I can't decide if I thought the story-telling was effective or not. It bounces around a lot, and some things aren't explained fully, leaving room for speculation. This is effective...and also frustrating.
The Things I'm Still Going WTF Over
- Oh, pretty much THE WHOLE DAMN THING. Especially the ending. I was going along, fine and dandy, I was more or less following it, and then all of a sudden I felt blindsided. And I sat there and wondered exactly what just happened. It was a decent ending. But...still sort of on the weird side of Sears.
I don't know if any of you have seen or read this series. I would recommend it, even if only for the visuals and the soundtrack. The story is interesting and original, and the execution is very interesting. It's different from a lot of anime that I've seen.
The reason I waited a full day to write this review was to scratch my head and ponder and let it sink in, and because it has genuinely taken me this long to figure out what I thought of the series. And ultimately...I think I liked it.
I also think it warrants a re-watch, just to see if it makes more sense the second time around (again, I refer you to Beautiful Dreamer, which I have watched dozens of times, and yet I still manage to find something new almost every time I watch it). I'm also thinking I might pick up the manga for this one and give it a look--I understand that it's fairly different from the anime, and no place seems to have it scanlated, but I think I can spare the fifteen bucks for the two volumes ^_~
As always, this is my opinion, and I invite anyone and everyone to disagree with me if you've seen/read it and feel differently. I enjoy such discussions. And feel free to check out the series and decide for yourself ^_~
...and like the whore that I am, I have about half a dozen ficlet ideas bouncing around in my head for it XD
bishonen_girl might recall me actually texting myself titles while we were looking at the DVDs at Best Buy. I rarely buy without doing some research first, unless I have it on good authority that I'll like it.Granted, "good authority" isn't always right *glares at The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya* I might need to give that one another try, but the first go-around...not impressed.
But anyway, yesterday I sat down to watch Le Portrait de Petit Cossette. It's a three-episode OVA series, based on a two-volume manga by Asuka Katsura. It took me about two hours to watch the whole thing, from start to finish.
...have you ever watched a series where you're still sort of scratching your head an hour later? That's what this did to me. I haven't felt like that about an anime since the first time I watched Beautiful Dreamer back in high school. And I had to sit there and really think--did I like this anime?
Eiri is an art student. He finds a glass chalice and a portrait of a pretty blonde girl. Soon he starts having visions of the girl--Cossette. Hence, the title. Yes, I am Captain Obvious in disguise. Anyway, turns out she was killed by the guy who painted her portrait--and for the record, that's not a spoiler. You find that out REALLY quickly. So Eiri falls head over heels for her and wants to help her.
- The visuals. You hear people say something was a "feast for the eyes"? This WAS. It was beautiful to look at. The animation was clean and well-drawn. The cinematography was innovative, and they did a lot of amazing things with the camera pans, the way things were drawn, the coloring...all of it. I'm well aware that pretty packaging does not a good show make, but let it be known that the packaging was VERY pretty.
- The story. The little summary I gave up there isn't much, but I thought the story was fairly fresh. The story of a boy chasing a ghost-girl isn't exactly new, but this...it's different. I can't say too much without going ZOMG SPOILERS, but it's not a run-of-the-mill romance story. If anything, some parts of it are downright horrifying.
- The music. I CANNOT SAY ENOUGH ABOUT THE MUSIC. Most of you who frequent this LJ know that I am a big music nerd--I teach it for a living. I'm the one who walks out of movies and comments on the background music. I'm the one who actually stated that after seeing the second Pirates of the Caribbean fic, I liked the score from the first one better. And as I watched this, I actually was skipping back to re-listen to parts of the score. It was beautiful. So haunting...it'll stay with you for a long time.
- There was a small cast of secondary characters. A couple of them showed real potential, and seemed like they could be very interesting...but there was no time to develop them. I know that a three-episode format isn't much time for such things, but I really wanted to see more from the psychic and the next door neighbor/potential love interest.
- A couple of parts were REALLY gory. Like...blood sprays a la Kill Bill. Quentin Tarantino, eat your heart out.
- The way they told the story...this is really the big thing that had me debating about whether or not I liked it. And that's mostly because I can't decide if I thought the story-telling was effective or not. It bounces around a lot, and some things aren't explained fully, leaving room for speculation. This is effective...and also frustrating.
- Oh, pretty much THE WHOLE DAMN THING. Especially the ending. I was going along, fine and dandy, I was more or less following it, and then all of a sudden I felt blindsided. And I sat there and wondered exactly what just happened. It was a decent ending. But...still sort of on the weird side of Sears.
I don't know if any of you have seen or read this series. I would recommend it, even if only for the visuals and the soundtrack. The story is interesting and original, and the execution is very interesting. It's different from a lot of anime that I've seen.
The reason I waited a full day to write this review was to scratch my head and ponder and let it sink in, and because it has genuinely taken me this long to figure out what I thought of the series. And ultimately...I think I liked it.
I also think it warrants a re-watch, just to see if it makes more sense the second time around (again, I refer you to Beautiful Dreamer, which I have watched dozens of times, and yet I still manage to find something new almost every time I watch it). I'm also thinking I might pick up the manga for this one and give it a look--I understand that it's fairly different from the anime, and no place seems to have it scanlated, but I think I can spare the fifteen bucks for the two volumes ^_~
As always, this is my opinion, and I invite anyone and everyone to disagree with me if you've seen/read it and feel differently. I enjoy such discussions. And feel free to check out the series and decide for yourself ^_~
...and like the whore that I am, I have about half a dozen ficlet ideas bouncing around in my head for it XD
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-08 04:35 am (UTC)I explained it to my dad as Stephen King meets The Ring, only with a painting and a bunch of probably Victorian Era heirlooms as the "key" items. (And he still hasn't read it yet.)
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 12:03 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-08 05:17 am (UTC)that actually sounds good like that, and I know what you mean I don't just pick things up and have them... so rare if I do that, I've had mixed experiances doing that (I've picked up the same amount of "decent" games and the only book I did it with I loved but never had any luck with manga or anime, it's always crap when I just pick without looking it up)
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 12:05 am (UTC)It was good. It was also very strange ^^;;
Having had a couple of iffy experiences when I bought something on a whim, though never an outright BAD experience, I decided that it was probably a good idea to start taking notes and doing my research before I invested in a series. It's not so bad with manga, though--I can usually at least page through that before I buy :S
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-08 05:48 am (UTC)Hum, it's true that the anime could be confusing the first times you see it, but that's one one the thing I've loved, that you need to thinks by yourself to assemble the eparse piece of the complex puzzles(which is not too difficult, I know anime which are far more brainbreaking on this area)XD
Whatever, still a masterpiece, aesthetically speaking.X3
(escape in the shadow again like a shameless lurker)
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 12:10 am (UTC)From an aesthetic point of view, both visually and audibly? I agree one hundred percent--it IS a masterpiece. Marina Inoue's scream at the end? Gave me chills *wibbles*
(You can come out! It's okay! *gg*)
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 12:14 am (UTC)-Boogipop and other's ost(the drama version of Boogiepop phantom).
-Noir ost.
-Madlax ost.
-Hack sign/hack liminality and Hack roots ost(the first one is the best in my opinion)
-Mai hime ost
-Mai otome ost(this one sucks sorrowfully)
-Erementar gerard ost(same)
-Tsubasa reservoir chronichle ost(some nice songs but not her best works)
Cosette and Boogiepop was her most...experimental works, Noir is more representative of her style(which is good but a bit repetitive)
In her original album, Fiction is the best one.
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 12:24 am (UTC)And now, I've a doubt for the name of her best original album...but well...^^;
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 12:46 am (UTC)it's...
http://www.radioblogclub.fr/search.php/0/yuki_kajiura
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-08 01:12 pm (UTC)But I do agree that it isn't all as great as people keep saying, I can see why people like/love it. But of all the things I've seen, its just a little above adverage :/
That OVA, I still have to see it DX I keep telling myself to buy it...>> but I never do XD I can't really see buying US DVDs...>> too expensive for me... :X But it is on my things to watch list. (other people told me to see it too)
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-08 02:37 pm (UTC)US dvd's are so cheap compaired to everywhere else though D: I'd import a bunch it'd be cheaper AND I'd get stuff faster.
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-08 05:07 pm (UTC)I import all the time XD well now I download mostly everything, so its all good, I wanna buy a projector *3*)/// that way I can watch it on the side of the house durring the summer *O*~
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-12 07:32 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 12:07 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-09 12:50 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-12 07:58 pm (UTC)Haruhi's obsessed with finding excitement in the world and leading a unique life, though she never learns how unique she really is. Mikuru, Nagato, and Itsuki are there not for kicks, but because it's their mission to observe Haruhi and preserve the world by keeping her from boredom. And Kyon . . . he's the only ordinary guy, so he wonders why Haruhi chose him, but that answer is saved for the end.
Of course, like any series it can be taken or left. But hype aside, the reason I like it is because of the zany quirkiness, fandom humor, and hints at something deeper and more human going on beneath the surface.
(no subject)
Date: 2008-01-11 10:16 pm (UTC)Portrait of a Phantom Goth-Loli
Date: 2008-01-12 07:29 pm (UTC)Since you mentioned the manga . . . . ^^*
If you're interested, here are--ahem!--my little reviews on AoD:
Vol. 1: http://www.animeondvd.com/reviews2/manga/manga.php?manga_view=2795
Vol. 2: http://www.animeondvd.com/reviews2/manga/manga.php?manga_view=2796
You'll find out by reading them, but the endings of the manga and anime strongly diverge. After falling in love with the anime, I was kind of disappointed.