I just figured it comes with being older. It's more and more difficult to really provide that kind of experience. For a minute, I thought Fate/Stay Night UBW might provide some of that a couple of seasons back. That Lancer/Saber fight looked beautiful and the Rin and Shirou episodes at the beginning were the set-up of something epic. But then it just failed to deliver. They should've just remade the older FSN anime with better animation and bigger budget music, improved some of the plot points to stay consistent with the visual novel, and called it a day. Would've been the perfect Fate/Zero sequel instead of what we got. (And I know it's heresy to call it a "sequel" but whatev. That's what it was to the average anime viewer who has no other connection to that franchise.)
Aldnoah.Zero also gave me a bit of those mind-blown feels early but then proceeded to walk around the room and take all of the feels back. That was a shame too because it had nearly all the framework: awesome music, good-looking animation, decent voice talent, a space war, awesome and interesting tech, would-be star-crossed lovers, a dastardly multi-layered plot of deception, and an array of supporting characters. I have to say "nearly" though because that piece of hardy plank they called the MC was unforgivable and the show falling apart really revolves around him. Would've preferred Slaine as the MC because more of the story belonged with him and not with the other guy. Wow, I can't even remember the MC's name either. What a forgettable piece of shit.
Now onto what I'm watching...
I'm on episode 10 of Kiss Him Not Me and this show's weakness is becoming more apparent. The MC already has four guys and a chick vying for her affection, she doesn't need to add an older brother of one of those guys. I know it's not really the fault of the anime because this is a manga plot point but the show really shines when it's about the four primary suitors finding out, dealing and coming to terms with the MC's various fujoshi/fangirl quirks. Once the focus pulls away from that, it's just boring romcom slice-of-life samey-samey bullshit. I wish the MC was less oblivious and more devious, using these guys' affections for her to fulfill her own dude x dude fantasies. That would be hilarious. But instead she has to be all "por que? quien? YO?" and bat her eyelashes innocently every time these guys go out of their way for her like she has
no idea what's going on or what their motivations could be. And I'm tired of her needing to be saved all the time. It was cool and funny when her suitors jump her harassers at the school festival, especially when the MC's frustrations revealed that her suitors were actually also harassing her in a sense and they had to tone it down. But then we get photog creeper, then beach bum would-be rapists, and now skeevy nii-san. Meh. There's probably only a couple of eps left so I guess I'll stick it out.
Ep 10 of Yuri on Ice also ramped things up in a big way. I'm hoping this ends happily and the show doesn't pull the rug out from under me. I need this one to end with good feels.
I also started and "finished" Boys Over Flowers. "Finished" is in quotes because after 30-plus episodes, I just skipped to the last ep (#51, sheesh) and felt nothing of value was lost. This show is similar to Kaiji where you really have to sift through to find a negative review. There's a lot of positive buzz and loads of live-action remakes and shit. I suspect--with this being a 20 yr old anime--nostalgia's a factor. MAL reviewers gave this a bunch of 10s and this show is no 10 by a mile. It's shojo show about a poor high school girl after she confronts a clique of rich assholes known as the F4. I'm assuming F4 stands for "fuck these 4 fucking assholes."
It uses a bunch of love tropes straight outta the old Harlequin books: like the MC's being too gullible and easily forgiving people who wrong her horribly. Two women characters are presented as being kind-hearted role models but they easily hand-wave the violence of the F4 all "oh, those boys," which made me hate both of them even though it's obvious the audience is supposed to love them and think they're such cool ladies. The primary love interest is an abusive asshole who fails to experience any real contrition nor has any respect for her personal boundaries. I wanted the MC to just tell abusive asshole she can't love him because he's a violent abuser and then see that character try and change for the better, but that shit never happens. At one point, the MC's kidnapped and it turns out it's people who want revenge against abusive asshole because abusive asshole beat them up aka he
abused them. Abusive asshole is so violent, he nearly killed someone's little brother with a kick to the stomach and so that someone masterminded this revenge plot. Abusive asshole appears and lets himself get beaten up for MC's sake. Then asshole's asshole friends reveal in the hospital that (on the orders of abusive asshole) they beat up and shaved harassers in retaliation and it's played off for
laughs. Except these four twat-queefs started this shit in the first place. If they hadn't been beating people up for shits and giggles to begin with, the MC and asshole never would've been kidnapped and beaten.
Oh, oh, and earlier in the story, abusive asshole tried to use his family's money (because of course he's rich) to get MC and one of his own friends expelled. This whole plot then spiraled into some 3-on-3 basketball game shit where MC had to win to avoid expulsion. Asshole then quits mid-game and the MC's all "WOW. He quit the game and saved us from expulsion." No, he didn't save you, you stupid bitch. The entire situation was HIS DOING IN THE FIRST PLACE. Like, I don't get to poison someone, then rush him to the hospital and claim I saved him.
So annoyed, I think, because this one could've been saved. It had some potential in the set up and the characters. The first few episodes bring you into the plot but then it fails on so many fronts.
Edit - Holy shit, I wrote I fuckin' novel.
