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Why does it matter if an episode is a filler or not?

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Sep 16, 2021 2:03 PM
#1
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All these almost 10 years of watching anime this is one thing that has bothered me. Why are people always so annoyed when an episode or even a full arc is a filler?

Starting of course from the necessity of fillers, they are used usually on long running series when they start to catch up on the original source and obviously it would take a long time to wait for the original material to update (a manga chapters usually comes once a month, anime airs weekly) so choices are 1) break from airing 2) recaps 3) fillers. Out of those choices I'll choose fillers.

Then the other thing, if the fact that something was a filler wasn't said anywhere and you hadn't read the original source, would you even recognize it was a filler? Sure sometimes there are fillers that are very different from the original style but very often the fillers can be just as entertaining as any other episodes.

So basically I'm mostly wondering about people who rate stuff low just because they have a lot of fillers, or ask which episodes are plot relevant to just watch those.

So what do you guys think?
Sep 16, 2021 2:08 PM
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People have consistency and canon issues with filler, which i understand their point of view, but i still think it's unreasonable to down-rate a show because of the existence of filler, or ignore the fillers existence outright.

Personally, out of your choices, i would always pick a break from airing.


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Sep 16, 2021 2:12 PM
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Filler just means anime-original content. It's usually a pretty good thing, and something that I always look forward to when I watch an anime after reading the source material. The only reason people talk about them so much in shounen anime is that anime-original content in those shows tend to be really, really bad and ruin the pacing of the story. Still, even in Naruto some of the best fights were from filler episodes, even though the quality was overall worse.
Sep 16, 2021 2:14 PM
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"Then the other thing, if the fact that something was a filler wasn't said anywhere and you hadn't read the original source, would you even recognize it was a filler?"

OP have seen the quality of the latest Detective Conan fillers...I bet she can tell the difference.
Sep 16, 2021 2:21 PM
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alshu said:
"Then the other thing, if the fact that something was a filler wasn't said anywhere and you hadn't read the original source, would you even recognize it was a filler?"

OP have seen the quality of the latest Detective Conan fillers...I bet she can tell the difference.


Straight to digging what I've seen lol. Okay, they fall to the category of fillers are not always good, but there are a lot of anime original DC episodes that have been so good that they have been later added to the manga. Like the whole character of Takagi. But Yeah, some DC fillers lately have been a bit lame with the cases being really easy and straightforward and it is really weird seeing Conan struggling with such easy cases.

Put my point still is valid
Sep 16, 2021 2:21 PM
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Karinara said:
Then the other thing, if the fact that something was a filler wasn't said anywhere and you hadn't read the original source, would you even recognize it was a filler?

Yes, I did notice the quality drop of the fillers of Hunter x Hunter (1999) and Eyeshield 21, for example. Some fillers are good but they'll always be in the minority.
Sep 16, 2021 2:23 PM
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Apart from some rare exceptions like Urusei Yatsura, the quality difference is quite obvious even when one is not familiar with the source material.
I dropped a few series before I discovered online filler lists and all of them were on filler episodes so that proves, for me at least that the aversion towards fillers is justified in most cases.
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Sep 16, 2021 2:28 PM
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I am fine with filler episodes if they are good or even if they are not good a few here and there are ok. However, too much filler for me takes away from the experience. I know fillers are needed when the anime gets too close to the manga, and often times I enjoy them. But was like 90 episodes of Naruto filler really needed especially that huge chunk near the end of the series? For a 220 episode series it just seems like a lot. Maybe if it was spaced out more it would have been better?

I honestly really want to know lol...could they have just stopped airing Naruto and waited for Shippuden to come out or was there reasons that could not happen so they just decided to stick a bunch of filler episodes in instead ? I know some other series have more fillers but I think it was easier to watch them since it wasn't like a string of 80 episodes in a row. Naruto fillers just hit different.

I watched them all growing up and it really lessened the experience for me. Many of the filler episodes were just bad, boring or plain stupid...I didn't want to skip them because I was a masochist and afraid of missing something. Which resulted in a fine rating...not a bad one because I really did enjoy a lot of the regular arcs.
SevenSep 16, 2021 3:06 PM
Sep 16, 2021 2:28 PM
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As a fan of slice of life, I'm completely unqualified to answer this. HOWEVER, I can see where fillers can get in the way of enjoyment. Some people want a tight story. They want to see all of the parts of the story connect perfectly. But filler gets in the way of that. By its definition, filler is unnecessary to the story. Sure, filler is sometimes necessary to maintain the airing schedule, but that isn't what the viewer is concerned about.
Also, filler can be horrible. I know it's not anime, but Steven Universe had these "Steven Bombs", where they aired a bunch of episodes in a week, rather than weekly. These were events with a lot of advertising. Unfortunately, there was filler. People didn't like that because they'll wait months for the next bomb just to get a bunch of filler episodes. I haven't heard of anime that did that, but I think it's a good example. People just want to see the story move forward.
Honestly, I would rather have gaps in airing rather than filler, but it seems hard to do that without losing hype for the show.
But then again, I like Slice of Life. So, it's probably not my place to speak.
Sep 16, 2021 2:35 PM

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its the timing of the fillers thats the problem

when we are midway through a huge fight scene that is happening or about to happen and theres some filler arc, its like, are u serious?
But if they do it like one piece where they show fillers only before the beginning of a new arc that would be more enjoyable
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Sep 16, 2021 2:37 PM

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let me tell you this, would you watch 83 episodes of filler just to get to get 2 mixed canon episodes. No because that's just a waste of time



Sep 16, 2021 2:38 PM
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fluffycow17 said:
As a fan of slice of life, I'm completely unqualified to answer this. HOWEVER, I can see where fillers can get in the way of enjoyment. Some people want a tight story. They want to see all of the parts of the story connect perfectly. But filler gets in the way of that. By its definition, filler is unnecessary to the story. Sure, filler is sometimes necessary to maintain the airing schedule, but that isn't what the viewer is concerned about.
Also, filler can be horrible. I know it's not anime, but Steven Universe had these "Steven Bombs", where they aired a bunch of episodes in a week, rather than weekly. These were events with a lot of advertising. Unfortunately, there was filler. People didn't like that because they'll wait months for the next bomb just to get a bunch of filler episodes. I haven't heard of anime that did that, but I think it's a good example. People just want to see the story move forward.
Honestly, I would rather have gaps in airing rather than filler, but it seems hard to do that without losing hype for the show.
But then again, I like Slice of Life. So, it's probably not my place to speak.


Is there even a source material to Steven Universe? I'm currently rewatching it with my friend and with every episode he keeps saying something like "this is a filler" or "this is a plot relevant episode" and "we can skip these episodes they are just fillers" but basically the only difference I see between those episodes is just that "plot relevant episodes" have something that also appears later in the show
Sep 16, 2021 2:41 PM

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Personally, i don't mind if it's just the occasional filler episode, like in Hero Academia, but if we're talking full filler arcs, like in Bleach, that's when we've got a problem.

My main issue with filler arcs, even if some of them might be potentially entertaining, is that they simply do not move the story forward at all. Because of the fact that they're not canon to the source material, they are never allowed to make any permanent, meaningful changes to character progression/development, world-building, et cetera. In the end, filler arcs have no choice but to undo everything they established and return the story to its pre-filler "status quo" when it's time to continue adapting the canon material. This makes them feel completely inconsequential and, ultimately, a waste of time in the long run.

Not to mention, because of the fact that filler arcs have to basically put the whole story on hold, the anime's pacing can really suffer for it. As an example, i can assure you that even if i hadn't known that the Bount arc was non-canon filler back when i was watching Bleach, it still would have been an absolute torture to sit through, simply because it is a 50+ Ep. slog that not only halts progress, it actively regresses it by pulling a Metroid-style nerf on its MC in order to justify its own existence. Trust me, even without knowledge from filler lists/guides, i'd be willing to bet most viewers would be able to detect when an arc is filler, due to their stagnant nature alone.

Honestly, out of the 3 options you put up, i'd be totally fine with broadcast breaks (i'm already fine with the seasonal breaks that most long adaptations are doing nowadays). Because once the whole season/series is out there, those breaks they took at the time of airing won't matter anyway; everyone can just binge the whole thing regardless... but the filler? That shit stays no matter what. It stays on the BD/DVD releases, and it stays on the streaming sites/services, like a permanent stain on a franchise's good name.
Stygian_PrisonerSep 16, 2021 3:09 PM
Sep 16, 2021 2:44 PM
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Kenzolo-folk said:
its the timing of the fillers thats the problem

when we are midway through a huge fight scene that is happening or about to happen and theres some filler arc, its like, are u serious?
But if they do it like one piece where they show fillers only before the beginning of a new arc that would be more enjoyable


Of course it is partly how the fillers are handled, it is weird if there's just about to be a big boss Battle but the next episode is about characters goofing around in their hometown or something. (or DBZ's famous crazy stretching of Battle)

But even with such bad timing there are some series that handle it well with something like "we are reaching the final goal but our ship steered to wrong direction and now there's a new problem we need to take care of first" or something like that. So middle of arc but with a natural tie to the main story

Or as mentioned, like OP fillers
Sep 16, 2021 2:45 PM

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The weirdest thing to me is when people praise something for not having fillers. Usually Huntrash x Garbage.
Sep 16, 2021 2:51 PM

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Karinara said:
fluffycow17 said:
As a fan of slice of life, I'm completely unqualified to answer this. HOWEVER, I can see where fillers can get in the way of enjoyment. Some people want a tight story. They want to see all of the parts of the story connect perfectly. But filler gets in the way of that. By its definition, filler is unnecessary to the story. Sure, filler is sometimes necessary to maintain the airing schedule, but that isn't what the viewer is concerned about.
Also, filler can be horrible. I know it's not anime, but Steven Universe had these "Steven Bombs", where they aired a bunch of episodes in a week, rather than weekly. These were events with a lot of advertising. Unfortunately, there was filler. People didn't like that because they'll wait months for the next bomb just to get a bunch of filler episodes. I haven't heard of anime that did that, but I think it's a good example. People just want to see the story move forward.
Honestly, I would rather have gaps in airing rather than filler, but it seems hard to do that without losing hype for the show.
But then again, I like Slice of Life. So, it's probably not my place to speak.


Is there even a source material to Steven Universe? I'm currently rewatching it with my friend and with every episode he keeps saying something like "this is a filler" or "this is a plot relevant episode" and "we can skip these episodes they are just fillers" but basically the only difference I see between those episodes is just that "plot relevant episodes" have something that also appears later in the show

I don't think it needs a source material in order to have filler.
My definition of a filler episode is an episode that doesn't affect the plot in any way. You could delete a filler episode, and the story would be the same. These are usually not from the source material because the source material is usually more dense and doesn't have to be released on a weekly schedule.
Sep 16, 2021 2:56 PM

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Karinara said:
Okay, they fall to the category of fillers are not always good, but there are a lot of anime original DC episodes that have been so good

True but those dropped in numbers drastically after the 500 episode mark. Of course not every filler is bad, for example most of the anime original stuff in Gintama is quite good but still in general chances are fillers would be literally that: low effort padding. The longer the series, the worst they get.

Karinara said:
Put my point still is valid

Your point is - there are good fillers, nobody objects that...but statistically the chances are getting slimmer and slimmer with the time. This is why I mentioned Detective Conan.

Hrybami said:
The weirdest thing to me is when people praise something for not having fillers. Usually Huntrash x Garbage.

You are contradicting yourself. Imagine HxH but with + another 100 filler episodes. Do you think you would like it better?
alshuSep 16, 2021 3:00 PM
Sep 16, 2021 3:50 PM

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Because, at least in my experience, fillers dip in quality.

Plus, by knowing that they are fillers I know that what I'm watching it's irrelevant to the story and it won't affect it in any way, so it breaks suspense.

I'm ok with filler episodes tho, it's filler arcs which bother me. Especially those which are loooong, introducing many characters which I never end up caring for.
Some short arcs are okay, like for example I'm totally ok with One Piece's fillers because they are short and pretty decent.
I remember finding the Sanbi arc from Naruto Shippuden to be ok at the start, but it was stretched for so long that it ruined it.

Out of the three options you listed, I absolutely choose break from airing. which is usually the norm these days and I'm grateful for it.

And yes, you can tell which arcs are filler just by watching them. I remember watching Naruto Shippuden with my best friend back in the day when we didn't even know MAL existed and we didn't read the manga and we realized we were starting a filler arc just by watching the first episode of it.
Sep 16, 2021 8:01 PM

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I personally don't mind fillers, as long as they are well done.

Naturo Shippuden's fillers were incredibly frustrating. Early on, their idea of filler was to pad everything out, which people really disliked. Then it was full on filler arcs, which actually weren't too bad to be begin with, but once we reached the war arc, they became unbearable. Imagine being in the middle of an arc only for it to completely stop to make way for a filler arc. It didn't help that amongst the fillers, we would also stop for flashback arcs that would drag on and on when they could have been wrapped up in 1 or 2 episodes.

Just before the war arc started, Naruto should have gone on hiatus for a year or two. The arc was over 200 episodes long. It should have been around half of that, maybe even less than half.

Hrybami said:
The weirdest thing to me is when people praise something for not having fillers.


Like Dragon Ball Kai. The point of the show was to cut DBZ and have it follow the Manga more faithfully, but in all honesty, I thought they went too far with it. They cut out a lot of the fun parts of DBZ. Everything felt like it was going way too fast.
Sep 16, 2021 9:25 PM

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For weekly watchers, I suppose it can get a little irritating.

Not to mention that it's usually common for filler to be worse than the canon material



Sep 16, 2021 9:33 PM

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Because everybody already has this perception that fillers are downgraded version of the original quality of Canon episodes.So even if a particular filler is good enough nobody will acknowledge it
Sep 16, 2021 9:35 PM

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People often don't wanna watch fillers, especially weekly watchers as @ManWild said. That said, I'm a completist and would probably never skip fillers.

Sep 16, 2021 9:47 PM

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Nirinbo said:
Karinara said:
Then the other thing, if the fact that something was a filler wasn't said anywhere and you hadn't read the original source, would you even recognize it was a filler?

Yes, I did notice the quality drop of the fillers of Hunter x Hunter (1999) and Eyeshield 21, for example. Some fillers are good but they'll always be in the minority.

To be honest bro, I didnt even notice any fillers for eyeshield. I blazed through that shit and never checked to see if anything was filler and i had a good time.

I recently started watching One piece and there were some arcs that appeared which i noticed were filler cause either a)characters werent impactful or b) there was a type of experimental art style shift.
When it comes to production committees, I dont know how they operate but usually, using Naruto as an example, fillers did have the purpose of adding distance between manga and anime but i think the committees, im assuming, desire Naruto to stay relevant back then and adding fillers also added more stories for kids at the time. Again, times have somewhat changed. I look at naruto, the 80+ block just hurts to see of that filler. It would have been nice to do that stuff earlier on and break it up. I know bleach has had fillers arcs such as bount which was not too well but I liked the zanpakuto and the evil clone arc despite them not progressing the story. I liked seeing the characters interactions and the zanpakuto gave people a chance to see what the characters entiites looked like
Im fine with seasonal breaks. Im also fine with the long running shows that decide to use filler. Its just a matter of how or what they do with the filler. It be nice to see characters do a mission or have their own little adventure now and then or do an arc with a certain focus at hand.
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Sep 16, 2021 10:11 PM
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I don't mind if it's done well - like Sailor Moon (classic). Its fillers literally carried the show.

And then there's this abomination that's Shugo Chara Party. Why have a few filler episodes when you can have a filler season? Watch this if you want to know why people dislike fillers lol.


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Sep 16, 2021 10:33 PM
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Because fillers most of the times don't change anything about the anime plot, so in order to save time, whenever I realize that the episode is a filler I usually skip it.



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Sep 16, 2021 10:41 PM

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Though I tend to watch shows that are more straight-to-the-point, there's a point where the word "filler" becomes arbitrary and loses meaning since I've seen many people use it as a substitute for describing a series of episodes that they don't like, as opposed to it's "true" meaning as a series of episodes where no major story beats happen.

But again, I've never watched an anime where the episode count hits three digits, so maybe I'm somewhat out of the loop.

Jun 10, 2023 1:54 AM

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Since I started watching a lot of anime in the last year, I've definitely been baffled by how dismissive people are of what they deem "filler". Filler by definition doesn't even have to be "content made up while they wait for the source material to progress". Sometimes, filler is IN the source material. In the sense that there's an episode here and there where nothing important happens. But isn't that a good thing most of the time? A show that just rushes you through the plot constantly would definitely feel a bit overwhelming to me. A "filler" episode where nothing dangerous or serious happens can be a nice change of pace, and also offer character development in a casual setting. Monster (2004) is pretty completely adapted from the comic, but there are still a few episodes where no plot progression happens, and the events of it are never mentioned in the show again. And I don't see anyone saying that those episodes are filler. Probably because they were actual comic chapters.

I suppose for comics, given their tight nature, it would be annoying if there were many chapters where nothing happens. But not all media is the same. TV shows definitely are improved with some breathing room to me. Contrary, movies are usually made worse with "breathing room", if there's like a whole 20 minute of nothing important happening. Media differs so vastly based on format.

Some also think filler means non-canon but that's a whoooole other can of worms that I'm not gonna open up. I will just say that it's a stupid view to have. Imagine skipping Simpsons Treehouse of Horror episodes because they are non-canon filler. LOL.
SandypersonJun 10, 2023 1:58 AM
Jun 10, 2023 1:57 AM

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It doesn't. Completely agree with the bumper.
Jun 10, 2023 2:01 AM

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Usually I don't care if the episode is entertaining.
Jun 10, 2023 2:12 AM
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Overall it doesn't and I think anime nowadays would be better with 3-4 filler episodes that shows the characters interacting with another in daily scenes.
It becomes a problem, if there are 30 filler episodes out of 50 in total or so.
Jun 10, 2023 2:19 AM

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Felori said:
Overall it doesn't and I think anime nowadays would be better with 3-4 filler episodes that shows the characters interacting with another in daily scenes.


This. I just feel like getting to see the characters in a casual setting of their daily lives before, or in-between a massive adventure, can really help to flesh them out and make them more engaging and dynamic. They can't be on journey-mode 24/7. It feels like so many weebs just have no patience and freak out if there's not an epic twist or a big battle every 5 minutes.
Jun 10, 2023 2:20 AM

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It matters because a filler when strictly defined is non-canon by definition, and when more loosely defined is something that doesn't contribute anything to the plot or characterization that expands upon the work. A filler is always detrimental and strays from the work. In reality, fillers are usually written by someone besides the original author, even when the author is consulted or gives permission, so there's a distinct break between the characters and the style of the original work and the filler. You might imagine that theoretically that's not necessarily true, but it is for all intents and purposes since the TV producer does not have the same skill or experiences as the original author.

Fillers are created for economic purposes. If the producers really wanted to write some alternative reality to an anime, then they are free to release it as fanfic without affecting the schedule. The reality is that "content made up while they wait for the source material to progress"  or "content made up to pad the length of a work to increase profits" is always the case.
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Jun 10, 2023 2:31 AM

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Sandyperson said:
Felori said:
Overall it doesn't and I think anime nowadays would be better with 3-4 filler episodes that shows the characters interacting with another in daily scenes.


This. I just feel like getting to see the characters in a casual setting of their daily lives before, or in-between a massive adventure, can really help to flesh them out and make them more engaging and dynamic. They can't be on journey-mode 24/7. It feels like so many weebs just have no patience and freak out if there's not an epic twist or a big battle every 5 minutes.
If the authentic characters are taking a break in canon and it's something that contributes to characterization, then it isn't a filler, and no one uses the word "filler" to describe this. If the characters are doing something that completely breaks from the pace of the work, that doesn't contribute to plot or characterization (i.e. it's "out of character"), that contradicts the plot or characterization from earlier episodes and the characters forget all about it ever happening thereafter, then these are traits of a potential filler. Note that these issues actually prevent the characters from being fleshed out. They're not integrated into the overall narrative, and making a character do something they otherwise wouldn't do is actually very distracting.

Sandyperson said:
Monster (2004) is pretty completely adapted from the comic, but there are still a few episodes where no plot progression happens, and the events of it are never mentioned in the show again. And I don't see anyone saying that those episodes are filler. Probably because they were actual comic chapters.
Exactly. No one says they're fillers because they're not. They were actual comic chapters written by the original author "in character". Although, Monster has serious pacing issue but that's another story.
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Jun 10, 2023 2:38 AM

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Filler doesn't mean non-canon. It means to fill up an empty space that needs, well, filling. The events of "fillers" can still be canon events that indeed really occurred within the media they are presented in (and most of the time, did). This definition of filler (and the canonicity of adaptation VS source debate as a whole) is some real annoying weeb-exclusive junk. I NEVER encountered it until I started watching anime and sought out communities. What's the argument for TV shows that are original? AKA has no source material? What's canon and not? It's never one person writing, it's an entire team. What if old writers quit and new ones gradually get hired to the point where none of the original remain? Is the theorerical series completely non-canon (or "filler" as you call it) from that point on? Are the new events and scenes that happen in The Last of Us (2023 TV series) not really canon, even to the series itself, because they didn't happen in the game? Are the original scenes in the Harry Potter movies that weren't in the book non-canon, again, even within the films themselves, because they weren't in the book? You see how ridiculous it sounds now?

I've definitely seen people call laid-back nothing-happens-episodes "filler" before regardless of their origin, so people do say it.
SandypersonJun 10, 2023 3:39 AM
Jun 10, 2023 4:33 AM
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Sandyperson said:
Felori said:
Overall it doesn't and I think anime nowadays would be better with 3-4 filler episodes that shows the characters interacting with another in daily scenes.


This. I just feel like getting to see the characters in a casual setting of their daily lives before, or in-between a massive adventure, can really help to flesh them out and make them more engaging and dynamic. They can't be on journey-mode 24/7. It feels like so many weebs just have no patience and freak out if there's not an epic twist or a big battle every 5 minutes.

Yes, I mean there are scenes like that, but I want to have more scenes like that in some anime (especially wanted in AOT and some others), because I love some characters and there dynamics. Not even all the time for development, just because it has self-serving value. And I mean in the series, not as ovas.
Just not the ridiculous amount of fillers that older anime had.
Jun 10, 2023 4:43 AM

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Fillers are part of the anime story. So they are still relevant; doesn't matter if the manga is or isn't in the equation. Anime and manga are two different medias.

Jun 10, 2023 5:01 AM

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Nirinbo said:
Karinara said:
Then the other thing, if the fact that something was a filler wasn't said anywhere and you hadn't read the original source, would you even recognize it was a filler?

Yes, I did notice the quality drop of the fillers of Hunter x Hunter (1999) and Eyeshield 21, for example. Some fillers are good but they'll always be in the minority.

Two years later, I'm adding Kodomo no Omocha to my list of anime spotted by my filler detector. When the writing suddenly gets worse, when you see a rehash of themes and concepts already seen before, that's when you check the filler list and realize you've been watching some crappy anime original storyline. Damn, I hate the pre-2010 anime business model.
Jun 10, 2023 12:38 PM

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Seven said:
I am fine with filler episodes if they are good or even  if they are not good a few here and there are ok. However, too much filler for me takes away from the experience. I know fillers are needed when the anime gets too close to the manga,  and often times I enjoy them. But was like 90 episodes of Naruto filler really needed especially that huge chunk near the end of the series? For a 220 episode series it just seems like a lot. Maybe if it was spaced out more it would have been better?

I honestly really want to know lol...could they have just stopped airing Naruto and waited for Shippuden to come out or was there reasons that could not  happen so they just decided to stick a bunch of filler episodes in instead ? I know some other series have more fillers but I think it was easier to watch them since it wasn't like a string of 80 episodes in a row. Naruto fillers just hit different.

I watched them all growing up and it really lessened the experience for me. Many of the filler episodes were just bad, boring or plain stupid...I didn't want to skip them because I was a masochist and afraid of missing something. Which resulted in a fine rating...not a bad one because I really did enjoy a lot of the regular arcs.
Pretty much the same here as I'm generally a completionist when it come to anime, even to this day.
Jun 10, 2023 12:52 PM

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KitsuFrost said:
Fillers are part of the anime story. So they are still relevant; doesn't matter if the manga is or isn't in the equation. Anime and manga are two different medias.

Are they? If they later go back to the manga, that doesn't have the filler events, it's like they never happened.
Jun 10, 2023 1:37 PM
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JaniSIr said:
KitsuFrost said:
Fillers are part of the anime story. So they are still relevant; doesn't matter if the manga is or isn't in the equation. Anime and manga are two different medias.

Are they? If they later go back to the manga, that doesn't have the filler events, it's like they never happened.
Like, who gives a fuck?

Authors themselves retcon their own stuff all the time.

One must be a total loser such as those people from William Shatner's Get A Life special (or whatever that was) to care about crap like consistency, and canon - especially if we are talking about series that was around for decades.
Jun 10, 2023 3:19 PM

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Elitist-chan said:
JaniSIr said:

Are they? If they later go back to the manga, that doesn't have the filler events, it's like they never happened.
Like, who gives a fuck?

Authors themselves retcon their own stuff all the time.

One must be a total loser such as those people from William Shatner's Get A Life special (or whatever that was) to care about crap like consistency, and canon - especially if we are talking about series that was around for decades.

Yea, that's usually labeled as "shit writing" too.
Jun 10, 2023 4:20 PM

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Well Following Naruto for close to 10 years and be rewarded with Robot Naruto is not really to my liking.

I dont have a problem when it's good fillers, like the two tailed beast in Naruto
Or the new captain arc in Bleach, the last fight with Ichigo vs the new captain is really awesome.

But lets go with Naruto as a example most fillers in this serie is absolute garbage, it's a joke.
It's on a level of so bad that if i worked in studio perriot i would have been ashamed to let my friends see what i have done.
Especielly when it comes to garbage like Robot Naruto or when  Naruto takes care of some ritch kid throwing money every where.

Fillers can be good but most aren't especielly in the shows i have watched and i have completed a lot so far.
And in my experience 90% of fillers is garbage and i would never watch a show like Detcive conan where you have more eps as fillers then Naruto has eps.

Jun 10, 2023 5:06 PM

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I mostly experienced fillers in Naruto and there they were really bad.

Many were poorly ham-fisted into the main story and written by people who had poor understanding of Naruto universe and how shit works there.

Late Shippuden fillers somewhat improved on fitting the narrative and stopped looking like a sour thumb. However damage was still done.



I heard Bleach has good fillers but I did not watch them myself to make proper judgement.
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Jun 10, 2023 8:56 PM

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Yumerei said:
I don't mind if it's done well - like Sailor Moon (classic). Its fillers literally carried the show.

If you like the original Sailor Moon anime, you'll LOVE PGSM (Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon)! It's a live action adaptation that's a tokusatsu-style drama from 2003.


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Jun 11, 2023 11:46 AM

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I think that filler can be good if it's interesting or it's somehow connected to the plot (like if plot elements are discussed but not shown), but filler is bad if it's uninteresting or doesn't have anything to do with the plot. 

For a non-anime example, I babysit twice a week and the kid I babysit and I have seen every episode of Elena of Avalor twice. It's pretty jarring when you go from an episode that at the very least is related to the plot to an episode that has absolutely nothing to do with the plot.
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