#Kyousogiga (TV)

[haveyouseenthisseries-poll]

Original title: 京騒戯画.

[recentanimenews]

ESSAY: In the Middle of the Pandemic, I Watched Anime With Friends

For the past few months I’d been talking to friends at work about starting an anime club. Now that we were heading into 2020, I decided that it was long past time to make those dreams a reality. I reached out to some interested peers, and made a date to meet up and watch. I puzzled over my DVD collection. Perhaps we could watch a great movie, like In This Corner of the World? The first episode of a TV series, like Mushishi or Haibane Renmei? Or I could throw them into the deep end with the first episode of Penguindrum? I eagerly awaited the experience of watching anime together with friends. Then the pandemic hit.

  In the following weeks, despite difficulties of scheduling and communication, my friends and I managed to keep our anime club alive. All this despite watching remotely, coordinating through Google Hangouts while finding workarounds for faulty internet connections and temperamental audio. With 12 episodes of Mob Psycho 100 down, we’re looking toward the future. But this experience, fun as it was, has me thinking about how I watch anime today. When did I forget how fun it was to watch anime in a group?

    The way I’ve watched anime has changed over the years. In middle school, I caught episodes on TV channels like Aniplex and Toonami. In high school, I navigated carefully between episodes of Naruto divided into thirds on YouTube, their opening and ending animations excised. Now it’s easy: go to a video service like Crunchyroll or Funimation, click on an episode, and (if you pay a small fee each month) watch without ads. No more having to spend money on DVDs or videotapes or having to miss out because the show wasn't available in your region.

  For me watching anime has become a ritual, a solitary pursuit. Park in front of the computer. Find the most recent episode of a new series. Endure 24 minutes in silence. Post a hot take on Twitter, maybe a screenshot or two, repeat. It’s not the way most people watch television. There are plenty of folks out there who’d rather cook or exercise while half-paying attention to something like The Floor is Lava, which is absolutely valid. But I’d reckon there are now thousands of folks out there hooked on their niche entertainment, watching episodes of a series only they know about on a format that caters exclusively to them.

    Watching Mob Psycho 100 with friends reminded me of a few things. The first is that group watching is a great way to see old favorites through new eyes. I’d already seen and loved the first season, returning to scenes on occasion as the mood struck me. Very little in the show now comes as a surprise. But being able to see and listen to my friends react to it, even remotely, reminded me of what it was like to see it for the first time. In the first episode, when a character whose chin looks exactly like a butt walks past, a friend of mine yelled “this show rules!” In the fifth episode, when Mob weakly punches an incensed Teruki, another friend told me that despite the good amount of anime he’d seen, he’d never seen a punch like that. A punch that spoke of weakness instead of strength.

  Group watching is also a great opportunity to remind yourself of the sheer amount of craft that goes into a series. The frequent use of paint by glass animation, a difficult and time-consuming technique that is used for key scenes. Great moments of character animation. Funny music cues. Being reminded that what makes Mob Psycho great isn’t the fights (though they are very good) but instead the attention paid to Mob’s growth and how he interacts with the rest of the cast. Mob Psycho 100 is not a particularly complex series, and there are no mysteries to tease out in the same way as, say, rewatching Evangelion can be surprising. But I came out of this watch-through with an even stronger appreciation for it than I had before, while acknowledging some weaknesses I’d missed the first time.

    Years ago, I used to watch anime with friends more frequently. A blogging friend and I marathoned through Honey and Clover in college, another series that stands out to me as being heavily informed by the life experiences you bring to it. Before that, we had the honor of rewatching Penguindrum with friends, including one of the original writers on the Altair and Vega blog back in the day, which obsessively broke down episodes of the series each week it aired. Penguindrum has far more moving parts than Mob Psycho 100, and rewatching it involved talking through what bits we’d missed the first time, what bits had aged well — and, of course, where the series dropped the ball completely. But getting through to the end reaffirmed to me what Penguindrum had always meant. Years later, I consider myself extraordinarily lucky to have had that experience.

  In this Age of COVID, many of my friends are scared and alone. It’d be easy, if you have the luxury, to hole up in a corner with your favorite series and take comfort on your own. There are times when this is needed. But if you’re able, I’d recommend doing what I did and watch some anime with friends. You can use an app like Netflix Party, or you can do it like we did, the old-fashioned way, synching up your Crunchyroll players and hitting the Play button at the same time. In the process, maybe you’ll find a new favorite, or discover something new about a show you loved. Maybe you’ll learn something new about your friends.

    As for me, once I round up my coworkers again, I’m set on introducing them to Kyousogiga. A series I never fully appreciated the first time, but want to give a second chance, with friends. Join me, will you?

  What are your experiences watching anime with friends? Were you around for the era before streaming? Never heard of Kyousogiga? Let us know in the comments, and go watch Kyousogiga right now!

      Adam W is a Features Writer at Crunchyroll. When not corralling people into an online chat box to watch anime, he sporadically contributes with a different loose coalition of friends on a blog called Isn't it Electrifying? You can follow him on Twitter at: @wendeego

Do you love writing? Do you love anime? If you have an idea for a features story, pitch it to Crunchyroll Features!

By: news+feed@crunchyroll.com

[furymint]

⭐️ getting to know you meme

i was tagged by @the-rosehouse! thank you!!

Relationship status: im married to the over-analysis of fictional characters im SORRY ALYX

Favorite Color: red! burgundy! but i also like pink and brown.

Lipstick or Chapstick: all makeup is e v i l for me but i also dont like chapstick anyhow

Last Song I Listened to: the tavern songs from da:i!

Last Movie I Watched: uuhh bright star i think! i liked it // edit: jil is right we went to see murder on the orient express + loving vincent (during which i only cried twice)

Top 3 TV Shows: kyousogiga, pandora hearts, fma:b

Top 3 Characters: aerith gainsborough, ike (fe), noel kriess

Top 3 Bands/Artist: kaijiura yuki, florence + the machine, douglas dare

Books I’m Currently Reading: im like...... halfway through Brideshead: Revisted and I love it but the amount of summary kills my soul. I forgot I was reading This Side of Paradise and I think I’m gonna drop it. I also forgot abt Love and the Soul Hunters, Great Expectations, and David Copperfield but i rly love them!

iiii dont know who hasn’t done this yet so consider yourself tagged!

[geekybiologist]

bluepuddingcat replied to your post “Hmm, 5, 6, and 23 for the ask meme?”

Oh, I was thinking of getting into Kyousogiga this summer! but I think I started on the wrong episode or something, and it just didn't stick to me. (This was also the year I watched a 26-episode series three times - not counting the times I rewatched individual scenes or episodes - and read a lot of manga for a period, so I guess I was also distracted?)

hmm it’s definitely not for everyone, since it can be pretty confusing (it took me a while to have all the characters and their relations mapped out) and it certainly doesn’t help that trying to get into the series is equally difficult, because there are so many different parts. I started with the ONA (which I think is what you watched as well?), which in the long run helped me have some sort of idea of everyone and everything when I continued with the TV-anime, but requires you to be familiar with the series already for you to be able to fully follow and appreciate it. For me the style and feeling was enough to draw me in. 

Sometimes you need to be in the right mood for something. I have a smallish list of series I’m confident I’ll enjoy, but I end up getting distracted by other things and put of watching them (for years at best). 

[oocentral]

Kyousou Giga (TV) | Worth Watching? *Question mark*

Kyousou Giga (TV) | Worth Watching? #Anime

One peaceful night, Koto (female protagonist) accidentally crashes down into the “mirror capital” named Kyoto while chasing a magical black rabbit. In this weird city that models itself after the old medieval Kyoto, Koto discovers her three long-lost siblings that have been trapped in the city for a long time, waiting for their parents to come back. Follow Koto as she tries to mend broken family…

[killfynmorph]

i just watched kyousogiga, i loved inari's design even though the character is pretty bad itself (lol). The animation overall is pretty good. I liked the anime.

http://puu.sh/6Gxks.jpg

[piesonscreations]

Kyousogiga

At first, i had a hard time getting into this show, not because i didn´t like it, but because i was puzzled about most of what was going on, but after some episodes, it really grew on me, and what at first was something i considered average at best turned into one of the greatest anime of this season, and something really memorable.

One of my favourite aspects of this show was how the story evolved, as while there where a bunch of things that i still dont quite understand about the show, the important things got explained, and to go from that feeling of confusion, to really getting the plot, is what i think makes Kyousogiga really interesting. Also, the fact that this show manages to do something like this, in what bassically is a family reunion, is outstanding.

Probably the reason why i didn´t really like the show at first, is because i watched episode 0, which tries to cram more than half of the show into one single episode.

Still, this anime is probably one of the best of the year, and I´d recommend it for anyone who wants to watch a great story unfold, in an interesting way.

[soramikazuki]

[worldbags]

[recentanimenews]

FEATURE: 10 Best Anime to Watch on Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine’s Day, everyone! As perhaps the most unabashedly feast-or-famine holiday around, today is a time for either treasured memories with loved ones or maybe just a whole bunch of ice cream and TV marathons. Fortunately, whether you’re celebrating the season alone or together, there’s plenty of anime out there to help you get in the spirit, with lots of them already available right now on Crunchyroll. From first crushes to destined loves and flirty traveling companions, anime runs the gamut of romance, and today I’ll be offering just a few shows that represent the mushier side of drama. In no particular order, here are some romantic highlights to bring some warm fuzzies to your day!

1) Toradora

Okay, I said “no particular order,” but in truth I meant no particular order except for Toradora. Toradora stars the diminutive Taiga and mild-mannered Ryuuji, who wind up working together after each learns the other has a crush on their best friend. The chemistry between Ryuuji, Taiga, and each of their friends is consistent and endearing, and Toradora follows these charming characters through all manner of romantic adventures. Toradora is also blessed with perhaps the best sarcastic best friend character of all time - Ami Kawashima. Combining lovable characters, thoughtful dialogue, and high drama theatrics, Toradora is the full romantic package.

2) Spice and Wolf

While Toradora may star one of anime’s best romantic ensembles, Spice and Wolf might have the medium’s all-time romantic couple. Lawrence is a merchant in a vaguely medieval world, shipping raw materials for profit all across the land. Holo is a wolf god, a spirit abandoned by her believers who now seeks a voyage home. Together, the two of them trade snipes, sell goods, and generally make the most of their time on the road. Spice and Wolf is a rambling road trip with two very likable friends, a slow romance that truly embodies the importance of the journey.

3) Kyousogiga

Of course, romantic love isn’t the only kind of love worth celebrating. Kyousogiga does indeed have some romantic love (between a magical painter and a drawing of a rabbit!), but it’s also suffused with many other kinds of love - love of family, love of home, and love of the world itself. Starring three siblings suspended in a mystical version of Kyoto, and livened by the little sister they never knew, it’s a madcap story that spins from first romance to family breakdown and a final, difficult reunion. It’s a beautiful and creative story that embodies what love is all about.

4) My Love Story!!

But getting back to the strict romances, My Love Story!! offers something too few anime get to: a couple in an actual, committed relationship. Gentle giant Takeo ends up confessing to his crush Rinko within the first few episodes, and the rest of My Love Story!! involves the two of them and their friends exploring the actual hurdles of a young relationship. Starring a great cast and dangerously suffused with cuteness, My Love Story!! is basically a warm, lovey-dovey blanket to snuggle under.

5) White Album 2

Unfortunately, sometimes love isn’t quite that easy. White Album 2 falls at the far end of romances, centered on a love triangle that puts all three of its members through the emotional ringer. White Album 2 is defined by distinctly thoughtful characterization and brutal dramatic turns, as its protagonists Haruki, Kazusa, and Setsuna all grasp at happiness on the edge of young adulthood. Don’t worry if you haven’t seen the first White Album - this story’s entirely self-contained, offering a brutal dramatic package for anyone who’s ready for it.

6) Nana

Love doesn’t really get any easier when you leave high school, though. Starring two girls who share a name you can probably guess, Nana follows punk rocker Nana Osaki and starry-eyed Nana Komatsu as they seek fame, fortune, and romance in the often confusing adult world. Nana brings a world-weary perspective to its drama, acknowledging that no romance is meant to be, and that sometimes life brings us to places we never expected to go. Nana understands that love is great, but sometimes just getting by is hard enough.

7) Actually, I Am

Those last couple picks got a little heavy, so let’s lighten things up a bit. Actually, I Am stars the loose-lipped Asahi Kuromine, who secretly has a crush on his classmate Youko Shiragami. But as it turns out, Youko has a pretty serious secret of her own - she’s actually a vampire. Having discovered her secret, Asahi swears to tell no one, and so begins a ridiculous series of frantic harem escapades. Actually, I Am distinguishes itself from most romcoms by starring a cast not defined by antagonism, but firm friendship (and also being vampires/aliens/etc). All of this show’s characters like each other - they’re just too stupid to successfully fall in love.

8) Katanagatari

I’m stretching a little to include this one among a bunch of romances, but Katanagatari is centered on such an endearing core relationship that I couldn’t leave it out. Katanagatari is a story about the strategist Togame and martial artist Shichika, who journey together across Japan to collect twelve mythic swords. The show is beautiful, has an excellent musical score, and is full of thoughtful conversations on legacy, identity, and much else besides, but the building relationship between Togame and Shichika reflects the true wonder of love - how finding someone important to you can help you discover yourself, and grow in directions you’d never expected. Kataganatari is many things, but it is definitely a standout romance.

9) Kids on the Slope

There’s just something about music and romance, I guess. Kids on the Slope begins in the summer of 1966, and focuses on two jazz-loving teenagers: Kaoru and Sentaro. Combining a coming-of-age story, terrific musical performances, and plenty of romantic drama, Kids on the Slope offers a beautiful and life-affirming reflection on the power of music to uplift us and bring us together. It’s an excellent character story and fascinating period piece.

Incidentally, if you’d like even more shows that scratch that music/romance itch, I’d check out the career-spanning Nodame Cantabile and the beautiful Your Lie in April.

10) From Me to You

Let’s end on something nice and peaceful. From Me to You stars the shy Sawako and energetic Shota, and offers a slow and satisfying journey into a very gentle romance. Giving us a close look at all of Sawako’s insecure thoughts, From Me to You exemplifies a well-worn approach to shoujo romance. Bolstered by its strong secondary cast and full of endearing moments, From Me to You is fine comfort food to anyone searching for an easy-going love story.

And that’s it from me! I’ve covered a pretty wide stretch of shows here, but there’s always more romance to dig into, and even more shows that hide stellar romances in larger stories. Just from skimming through Crunchyroll’s own genre entries, I can already see half a dozen more I’d be happy to recommend. Either way, I hope you find something to enjoy, and please treat yourself and those you love this Valentine’s Day!

-----

Nick Creamer has been writing about cartoons for too many years now, and is always ready to cry about Madoka. You can find more of his work at his blog Wrong Every Time, or follow him on Twitter.

By: news+feed@crunchyroll.com

[geekybiologist]

Hmm, 5, 6, and 23 for the ask meme?

5. TV show of the year?

For me it’s honestly Eromanga Sensei and if you followed me back when it aired you can probably tell why. I can’t remember if I’ve ever enjoyed following a series as much as I did when I followed Eromanga Sensei’s anime adaptation. It’s not the best series out there, I understand why some don’t like it and wouldn’t necessarily recommend it, but it was fun and it’s was really well made and I enjoyed seeing all the characters and events from the novels being brought to life. There was something that was nice and familiar with it, it made me laugh, it made me cry and it made me feel. 

6. Episode of tv or webisode that defined the year for you?

Defined the year…? Ah it’s not something that aired this year, but something I watched this year! The first episode of Kyousogiga. I love that series dearly. They deal with a lot of issues that are important to me, and that I can relate to easily (family being the central theme). The first episode is probably the best first episode of anything I’ve ever seen, it introduces the series so well, plays with your emotions, creates a lot of questions and leaves you begging for more getting stuck on rewatching it again and again because it’s honestly that good and nothing will ever top it. I’ve seen it more times than there are episodes total for the series. The animation and art is exactly how I like it, the world is interesting and fun, the characters are cool, the music is amazing, the story is heartfelt and it’s set in Kyoto (well almost), which is all it takes to steal my heart. In conclusion, not only is it really good, it was also the right thing for me to watch at a certain time, when I was feeling maybe a bit lonely and sad. It helped me see what I value and how there’s value in me too. Especially for this year, it’s a reminder of who I am and what I’ve done/experienced and what’s important for me. 

23. If you could send a message to yourself back on the first day of the year, what would it be?

Easy: Get to work on your uni stuff for Finland as soon as you’re done with your uni stuff in Japan!

[squiggleblog]

The first episode of Kyousogiga TV perfectly explained everything that had happened in all the OVAs and was amazing and I'm just so happy right now. The past stuff with Myoue and Koto is such a brilliant story I loved it ever since the last of the 5 short OVAs

[krystalyos]

finally kyosougiga anime

[worldbags]