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Jan 4, 2018
Re-Kan! summed up is a high school slice-of-life with light comedic and emotional elements, following a girl who can see ghosts. It was average budget-tier in all aspects, but it impressed me with subtle technical production creativity, which gave it a polish that increased the enjoyment factor. The harsh reality is that this anime is basic by today's standard. It doesn't try too hard to entertain, but instead is seemingly used to progress the staff's art experience.
It's set in a late 90s Japanese town. The main character is a girl with traditional Japanese traits who had no mother to raise her, able to see
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ghosts due to a family ability passed down to her. She seemingly had a sheltered princess childhood and had been raised to be compassionate. This leads her to meet and connect with a seemingly endless number of other characters, as she takes to helping ghosts out of kindness during her high school years.
Characters can all have their personalities described with one word, matched with a stereotypical physical appearance, such as cranky old man or yankee girl. Living characters with foreign physical traits, and ghosts from all sorts of time periods and backgrounds seem to take interest in and befriend the girl. The show seemingly runs with this fact, even making running jokes about it. Plain ghosts are shown as just hands or floating blobs.
The visuals and audio seem to be budget oriented, but there seems to be technical creativity to make it work out well. The backgrounds/settings seem to be CG that's given a fair amount of additional touch-up to make it fit fairly consistently. I took notice of how characters and CG objects in the settings were masked and layered, giving a sense of depth (e.g. scene with aho-senpai doing his dance in the back, while girls sat on or at their desks in the foreground). The animations have a subtle slap-stick feel, and are colored with exaggerated highlights. Even on a gloomy day, the characters shine brightly, and shadows, such as on their necks, are still well defined. There's no faceless living characters--the entire class and incoming new class have unique physical appearances. There's even a scene where the entire class is shown turning to face the main character.
The audio reminds me of video game quality (e.g. RPG, such as Trails in the Sky), and find that it factored in strongly to evoke strong emotion. Sounds echo in the bathroom and utility poles woosh by in high speed pans, with a little ambiance here and there.
As far as enjoyment, I have to say that there needs to be a term that describes "sakuga" moments that involve audio and cinematic cuts instead of action choreography. This show had a few of these that stunned me. This, in turn, made me more alert, looking out for further technical production expertise, making me turn a more critical eye towards the basic parts of the show. I saw no weakness, only well executed polish on what seemingly is an average show.
My experience wasn't all good. I went from being somewhat bored after about 5 episodes, taking a break before finishing ep6, and then marathoning the rest. I had a number of tear jerk moments towards the end, and admit that I was charmed by the main character by the end, enough to share some feelings.
All in all, it's a show I don't regret finishing, but will be reluctant to recommend to others. Props to the production team for making this at least a little enjoyable. Seems like it could've been done a lot better, with a stronger comedic element, but I'll take the few eps of emotional motherly relationship stuff.
Reviewer’s Rating: 6
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Dec 19, 2017
The visuals were a turn off from the start. Without reading other reviews, and being curious about the works of Madhouse, I wouldn't have looked beyond that. I'm glad I did, since I got a fancy tour with warm welcomes, visiting 13 distinct locales, with strong culture defined by economics, administration, history, and social conditions.
I will admit that I highly value shows with such rich settings, that go so far that investigate the reasons why the settings ended up the way they are, and this 12 episode series did that to 13 different locales, and still brewed up an intriguing story to bind it together.
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Bravo. Perfect 10 rating from me.
The visual quality went from questionable to fine. I saw Gonzo credited. Did these guys do the in-between animation? Not sure if it was my PC, but the frame rate seemed pretty bad at the beginning. I was suspecting that Madhouse purposely made it to pretty low standards, in consideration to budget allocated for staff or whatever. Whatever, it just proved that I can enjoy a show without pleasing eye-candy, not noticing it past the 2nd ep, though I did almost judge it by its cover...
Subjectively, I'd rate this a 9 based on the impression it gave me subconsciously (enjoyment factor), which coincidentally caters to my likes, such as having witty bad-asses and camaraderie between misfits. Objectively, I had to factor in the poor visuals and fairly flat drama (better audio would've helped). Its story and its appeal to my personal tastes definitely carried this. I question the morality of acts such as smoking, getting drunk, gossiping, pigging out on food, gambling, politics, traveling, celebratory gatherings, etc. but I find that they're just liberties that people take part in, in such a free world.
Overall, I'd only recommend this to a small minority of people who share such taste. I highly doubt it'd suit the tastes of typical mainstream anime fans. In fact, I think it's only animated since it's more cost effective than making it into a live drama. I wouldn't be surprised if it does turn into one.
Reviewer’s Rating: 7
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Dec 19, 2017
This anime is not bad at all. In fact, despite rating it average, I can't say that it's waste of time. I actually looked forward to watching more, after each ep. It's very eccentric, in a surprisingly good way.
On the downside, the the story's extremely simple and non-original, with 1 dimensional characters. On the bright side, they ran with those facts for wacky laughs, which boosted the enjoyment factor.
I particularly liked the little details in the art, such the use of pop-up bubbles to show detail and also the use of it to show a highly animated talking head of Ao. I also loved the
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work they did with the audio, with liberal use of simple yet catchy BGM on most scenes, with the one hide-and-seek scene really impressing me with what Baselard did.
Elaborating on the story and characters, they threw in all sorts of wacky ass-pulls, flashbacks, conflict drop-ins, and random skits. I suppose when the story is completely lacking, these can't cheapen it any more, but actually do the opposite, adding depth to the story. The characters went from truly 1 dimensional, wanting battle and having 1 particular strength, but eventually showed a few new sides to them, though simple, still added to enjoyment factor. It made each episode relatively fresh and unique. It was like a sandbox environment with imagination added.
I went in with no expectations, braved watching past the first 2 episodes, and got hooked. I began wondering why, then started analyzing the direction, cinematic effects, audio, details in the art, how well the CG blended in, etc. I sensed talented producers having fun with the project, having a bit more creative freedom. It's a promo for a toy I'd likely won't buy, with a young girl-friendly perspective to it, where they play house. It's not all about competition and be-the-best, like other stories around plastic models, but they do make it seem exciting to have rare things and make it seem okay to get really nerdy about it.
Overall, I'm a bit embarrassed to have found this enjoyable. I wouldn't recommend it, but I don't regret deciding to watch/experience it. Kind of like a guilty pleasure--don't need a story or characters to enjoy something (ex. porno or AMV), but having such does make it more "wholesome". These guys were certainly successful, expanding my world to now know about these plastic models, how they're made, and how some imagine playing with them. Perhaps someone might try to develop such technology, like they did from other pop culture (ex. hoverboard, star wars vehicles, jetpack, etc.).
Reviewer’s Rating: 5
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Dec 17, 2017
This show is so cringe-worthy. I feel I should spoil it to save people the trouble from watching it.
Jaded soccer "genius" spots a momma's boy and apparently decides to pass the time by introducing him to soccer, cause apparently there's merit in bringing a "good guy" into soccer/football (genius is a closet momma's boy). Nevermind the fact physical sports are where alpha personalities and big egos clash to enforce superior social standing above others through displays of athleticism...
So basically this sheltered momma's boy is not only a complete beginner, but also is a complete idiot. His stupidity doesn't tell him that he has no business
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being in the sport; the opposite happens, he determines it to be his calling. He does show that he has tenacity, probably the only redeeming trait that allows others to tolerate him. Seeing this soccer newbie enjoy the smallest things somehow reignites the passion in the no-longer-jaded soccer "genius", and the school soccer team goes on to become a force to be reckoned with.
Rather than being bullied by the alpha guys, he's bullied by a single girl, and everyone treats it as normal. The girl even gets involved by becoming a manager.
The show *forces* this boy into being given air time whenever possible, and prepare to cringe from watching how people react to him. Apparently, his simple-mindedness resonates with muscle-heads, and they sort of create a weird kind of rivalry that accelerates the progress of the momma's boy, evolving him into a freak that poses some sort of unconventional threat.
I don't like the cringe feeling, but I'm not disgusted for some reason, and end up continuing to watch. I know I can drop a high school romance the moment a cringe-worthy awkward moment pops up, but I can't figure out WTF is up with this show that got me to continue. Well, on the plus side, this anime helps set the lowest standard in anime that I could actually complete watching.
Reviewer’s Rating: 2
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Dec 17, 2017
This show illustrates the value of knowing clearly what path you want to take, persistence in pursuing that path, and seizing opportunity as it presents itself. Also touches on how others can be flexible, find ways to utilize such passionate spirit, and how those with "talent" can be inspired by those that show results through hard work.
The show, overall, was average at best. No part of the production quality really stood out. The main reason I rate it below average is because it was fairly emotionless, with tragic and suspenseful moments not registering. I tend to like military oriented shows for the mixture of various
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backgrounds/cultures, and the eventual camaraderie, but this had none of those qualities other than one event involving members from a neighboring base. I can only call it cute, but it if you want cute girls + military, I'd recommend Girls und Panzer.
Suggestions to producers:
Story - kind of cheap to use intermission screens full of text to create story background, but I'll take it. The story needed a lot more individual purpose behind it. Attack on Titan did this and its story is at least 2x better. Needs some depth, regarding how people with different personal interests manage to unite under a cause.
Art - not going to suggest the liberal use of sakuga, but there were many times I wanted to *see* things in more detail, like just how close are the enemy shots are getting to witches closing distance on the target, or their perspective of aiming and firing at moving targets, or even how they reload. Show what makes the Brave Witches the only hope for humanity vs this threat. Other than from the results they produced, I really didn't get to see how characters were badass.
Sound - don't treat this as such a low priority, if you want drama, suspense, emotion, etc. to actually come across. I just watched Macross Delta and its sound carried it, while a show like Cross Game can evoke tearjerking moments with a simple soundtrack. Don't need to spend Yuki Kajiura or Hiroyuki Sawano money...
Character - you don't have to make them look like they're wearing totally different uniforms to give them individual style. In fact, giving them all something different devalued their individuality to simply showing their origin. Good to show the difference in culture when they were playing on a sled, but that scene seemed like a waste of airtime. How'd that girl forget a traumatic place she visited? Didn't get to learn much about the high ranked/veteran members, other than one having an old injury and another liking "grape juice"...
Enjoyability - this is subjective and personal, but I am apologetically interested in certain values in all shows I watch, primarily valuing lessons on life. The message I got from this show was quite cheesy. I like watching acts of bonding and comedy, but apart from scarf girl becoming less tsun towards genki girl, nothing of the sort really happened. I wasn't too eager to watch more, driven by more of an urge to finish the series than an urge to know what happens next.
Overall - this show was carried by the setting, story and the art design. Everything else seemed to be a compromise.
Reviewer’s Rating: 3
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Dec 15, 2017
Started off pretty slow and had a lot of fictional ass-pull to get the story kick started. Towards the end, it actually became more historical (Sengoku era), enough to actually get me to try to verify some of it.
I expecting to learn something about Nobunaga and shinobi. Instead, I found a show that followed a ridiculously OP "ninja" who tried to be cute. I decided to watch the 2nd season hoping they'd show the invasion of the Iga territory...
Regarding the story, art, sound, character, enjoyment, etc. I may have confused Nobunaga for being a ventriloquist. It was refreshing to see anyone who wasn't a samurai,
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but none really had any human-like depth to them. I've seen scripted NPCs more lively and animated. Don't think there was any real sound besides the voice acting and the OP. I think I most enjoyed seeing the overpowered ninja actually take some damage.
Overall, I'd say don't bother. You can get your does of cuteness watching something else, and can learn more about Sengoku era in the dozens of other stuff produced.
Reviewer’s Rating: 2
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Dec 13, 2017
The plot essentially illustrates a few things:
- corporations are "evil", notably with how they lack compassion for humanity, seemingly wanting robots/computers for workers
- military rewards merit, but has a lot of political bureaucracy in the higher ranks, in which they simply use you and toss you in a similar "evil" way as corporations
- evil can easily recognize other evil, possibly breeding a darker evil
- how an "evil" corporate mindset deals with various situations, including dealing with religion/superstitions, teamwork, human resources (team building), life goals (retirement vs honor vs love and happiness)
- evil is tolerated, even desired, if it shows strong promise of fulfilling personal goals
Story:
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gained depth and history by loosely connecting the show to familiar time periods. Avoided lame ass-pulling and flashbacks to justify actions. Didn't break the rules of its world over and over.
Characters: letting personalities clash with very different personalities, which produce interesting unique reactions is a basic requirement. This one took different philosophical lifestyle mindsets and made them clash in life or death situations, sometimes showing that the victor is the one with the right attitude, as opposed to the one with the most capability/power.
Sound: the voice acting, especially Tanya's, is quite expressive and fit the characters and situations adequately. The music modestly enhanced the impact of the show's drama and suspense factor. Typical cheesy unrealistic studio sound effects.
OP/ED search terms: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=Sensen+no+Realism
- Sensen no Realism
- JINGO JUNGLE
- Frozen Rain
- Los! Los! Los!
Art: well blended/coordinated, with cinematic effects liberally applied. Characters were able to deliver messages through body language, facial expressions, allowing dialogue to be kept fairly flavorful. No declaring emotions and no calling your moves here. From having a beat-up disheveled look to show distress level, to detailing a character to show how arrogant and pompous a person is before they even speak, the artwork spoke its thousand words. Frequent scene change, perspective changing, and panning kept things active looking. No real lazy rush jobs noticed.
Overall enjoyment: I gained some wisdom watching this show. I enthusiastically recommended it to a lot of friends. Too bad they didn't react as positively as I did; perhaps I overhyped or spoiled it. They instead told me to watch shows that were to be enjoyed with your brain turned off, or shows that encouraged escaping from reality, rather than learning more about its harshness...
Reviewer’s Rating: 8
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