Well, Muv-Luv is actually a trilogy. The first game has two of these titles Muv-Luv Extra and Muv-Luv Unlimited. Extra which is your typical high school slice of life only way, way over the top is the one that gets all the hate. Unlimited is when things get a bit more down to earth and serious, as the protagonist finds himself in at world suffering an alien invasion and he gets to pilot mechs and shit like that.
http://vndb.org/v93 (ignore the risque' mecha suits there actually is a decent reason for their appearance...other than fan service I mean)
Muv-Luv Alternative is the one that gets near universal praise and, from what I've read of it the last few days, it's well founded. It's just an incredibly well put together story so far, though I haven't gotten all that far into it it has already started to effectively tie in the first two titles into it's story.
Well, I'd still recommend Fate/stay the most (one of the best cast of characters I've seen in pretty much anything). If you Emiya Shirou kind of reminds me of Ikari Shinji from NGE, only way more proactive and he takes his traumatic past in a different direction, both of them are severely under-appreciated imo, though.
And, Muv-Luv based on reputation alone (nearly every one whose read Alternative has given it a 10 and it's currently at the top of VNDB ratings board). Extra was nothing amazing, but hopefully the rest of it makes up for that.
I agree. But, at the same time, I generally prefer female characters. But, really, I don't care much either way as long as the characters and/or story is good. Also, from what I hear, Visual Novels are better off in Japan. I don't know how they sell, but the fact is there are a lot of VN to anime adaptations out there now a days.
They are other good examples of using the medium as a way of telling their story. In fact, I DON'T see how these two could work as anime at all.
Well, given the nature of eroge and how the media started and all that, nearly every VN is going to have the MC interacting with a bunch of girls. But, there are plenty of great works out there that still tell a well done story.
Yeah, the order is Fate, Unlimited Blade Works, and finally Heaven's Feel. I guess you could say they are parallel universes, but at the same time each route builds off of the things you learned from the other. It's hard to explain without you seeing it yourself, but it works really well. It's a style that uses the visual novel medium to it's advantage.
Muv-Luv actually does have parallel universes. In fact, that's a large theme of the story. It starts out as a school life romantic comedy called "Extra", but after you complete the two main heroines, Sumika and Meiya, routes you unlock the "Unlimited" part which is practically a different story. It's a military story, that's about all I can say. And, from what I hear, Alternative is a very serious story.
I meant the Fate/stay night Visual Novel. I do NOT recommend the anime as it is most definitely not a good indicator of the quality of the visual novel. Just know that Fate/stay night is long and that Shirou's full character isn't explored from the get go, he gets more interesting each route.
There are only three routes in it, but they are unique after the third day or so. And, by unique I mean the events of each route are pretty much completely different. The first route, Fate, is generally considered the weakest of the three. It's a necessity though as it's purpose is to lay down the rules of Holy Grail War and establish the characters. That said, I actually really liked the route myself. The other two, Unlimited Blade Works and Heaven's Feel are phenomenal though.
The Muv-Luv anime is an adaptation of a spin-off of the franchise with different characters and in a different location of the world. That's about all I know, though as I'm just getting into the Muv-Luv universe.
Anyway, the visual novel is pretty good so far. Just an FYI, but the first half of it is actually a regular school life romantic comedy parody. The Mecha and all that don't come in until you unlock the "Unlimited" scenario.
One of the bad ends in the original version of School Days was initiated by Sekai, though. But, the circumstances leading to it are understandable to say the least.
You should try out Fate/stay night one of these days. It's phenomenal and is responsible for two of my favorites on my list: Emiya Shirou and Tohsaka Rin. Not only the characters are generally memorable, but it's pretty excellent at world building and has an interesting take on the concept of a "hero". I really recommend it. It's up there with stuff like Evangelion and LoGH as some of my favorite works from Japan.
I'm reading Muv-Luv right now, which is a series I've heard a lot of good things about. Can't really comment much as I'm just a few hours in.
I agree that Sekai is somewhat likable, and I feel as though Kotonoha could be an interesting character if she was explored a little better. I think her initial fear of close contact should have been explained a lot better as well and how it transitions from that to her being all over Makoto is awkwardly handled. I'm generally happier with Makoto and Sekai's portrayal though, yet I find Kotonoha to be more entertaining despite my complaints. Crazy chicks are kind of fun to watch, I guess.
I've played my fair share of eroge, so to me the h-scenes in School Days are kind of fast. I agree that the animation isn't great or anything and is really static, but it's pretty innovative, or at least was when it first came out, so I can let it slide.
Maybe it's because I guide his actions, but I don't see Makoto to be as bad as I constantly hear. At least on the routes I've seen he seems like a decent, yet naive guy who sometimes lets hormones get a hold of him. Of the two main heroines, I prefer Sekai but neither of them are really anything to write home about. But, just so you know, I haven't played any of the bad endings yet so I haven't really seen everything the title has to offer (I used a machine translator for the last few chapters of every route, because it was only translated up to that point).
I much, much prefer Setsuna, Hikari, and Otome though. I kind of wish the game gave them more attention. But, there is definitely some off about Kotonoha even on some of the good ends she can come off as kind of creepy.
I'd say that you could. I've heard of plenty of people who enjoyed the two series and aren't fans of baseball. Personally, I enjoyed it for the characters more than anything.
One of these days I need to re-watch E7 to see if my opinion has changed on it. It just didn't do much for me. I really liked the middle portion with the guy and his wife, though. Charles or something like that.
You really should prioritize Honey and Clover. It is amazing and down to earth with it's drama. Plus Morita is an absolutely hilarious character.
Interesting seeing School Days on your favorites. I haven't seen the anime, but I've played the games and am currently playing the updated HQ version recently released in the states. It's a pretty good ride, but I hear the anime has a bad ending. There are only I think 5 in the HQ (original had 3) and 20+ "good" ends.
As far as I know, there are no notifications on the website about comments. You can, however, set up an email notification. Best advice I can give you is to just check your profile from time to time.
Maison Ikkoku is a slow romance, but rest assured the characters do end up with someone. You'll have to see for yourself. I actually liked Touch for more than the baseball element, though I did think the series kind of dropped off in quality after the excellent first couple of seasons. Cross Game is much, much more consistent though.
Really? Because I thought Asuka's characterization was amazing in the anime. I'm definitely looking forward to this. Just got to get in the mood for NGE, as it's kind of draining if you know what I mean. Especially EoE.
What's up? I guess I'll give you a few recs since you asked. I'll just rec romance for now:
My absolute favorite romance of them all is Honey and Clover, it's about the love lives of five college students and is just all around fantastic. Really believable characters, great music, and the some of the best monologues I've heard in anime. Check it out.
Kanon is pretty good, but I didn't find it to be as great as Clannad but it's definitely worth watching. There are some very strong story arcs in the story.
Nana, which I mention in the "list" thread is fantastic but is also very melodramatic. But, I feel that Melodrama is not always a bad thing and Nana is one of the best examples. Great characterization for the two leads. It focuses a bit more on their friendship than romance, though.
A series from the 80's called Maison Ikkoku, about a wannabe college student falling in love with his Landlord is another favorite of mine. It's long, though, at 96 episodes and the romance is very slow to develop but it has great character develop along the way and culminates in one of the best endings in anime as far as I'm concerned.
Another series from the 80's, called Touch, is great as well. It's about two Brothers fighting over their childhood friend, with baseball playing a large role as one of them is a pitcher. Another good series from the same writer and much more recent is Cross Game, it has a pretty similar premise and is in some way the better of the two. It's also shorter as it has 50 episodes in comparison to Touch's 101. Both are worth watching
As for Re-Take. I actually have that on my hard drive. But, I'm waiting to re-watch the TV series + EoE first of all for maximum effect. I've skimmed over it so I know it focuses on Asuka and Shinji, my two favorite characters in the series, so I'm sure I'll love it.
Feel free to ask more questions. I'm always willing to offer help.
I'm guessing your a Gainax fan as well. Since you have NGE, TTGL, FLCL all ranked pretty high, I've watched FLCL and TtGl gave them both a 10 but I don't know if I like NGE after watching the first episode, I mean it took half a episode for the mc to get into the damn mecha xD
All Comments (12) Comments
http://vndb.org/v93 (ignore the risque' mecha suits there actually is a decent reason for their appearance...other than fan service I mean)
Muv-Luv Alternative is the one that gets near universal praise and, from what I've read of it the last few days, it's well founded. It's just an incredibly well put together story so far, though I haven't gotten all that far into it it has already started to effectively tie in the first two titles into it's story.
http://vndb.org/v92
And, Muv-Luv based on reputation alone (nearly every one whose read Alternative has given it a 10 and it's currently at the top of VNDB ratings board). Extra was nothing amazing, but hopefully the rest of it makes up for that.
I agree. But, at the same time, I generally prefer female characters. But, really, I don't care much either way as long as the characters and/or story is good. Also, from what I hear, Visual Novels are better off in Japan. I don't know how they sell, but the fact is there are a lot of VN to anime adaptations out there now a days.
Sharin no Kuni HImawari no Shoujo
http://vndb.org/v57
And
Ever17
http://vndb.org/v17
They are other good examples of using the medium as a way of telling their story. In fact, I DON'T see how these two could work as anime at all.
Well, given the nature of eroge and how the media started and all that, nearly every VN is going to have the MC interacting with a bunch of girls. But, there are plenty of great works out there that still tell a well done story.
Muv-Luv actually does have parallel universes. In fact, that's a large theme of the story. It starts out as a school life romantic comedy called "Extra", but after you complete the two main heroines, Sumika and Meiya, routes you unlock the "Unlimited" part which is practically a different story. It's a military story, that's about all I can say. And, from what I hear, Alternative is a very serious story.
There are only three routes in it, but they are unique after the third day or so. And, by unique I mean the events of each route are pretty much completely different. The first route, Fate, is generally considered the weakest of the three. It's a necessity though as it's purpose is to lay down the rules of Holy Grail War and establish the characters. That said, I actually really liked the route myself. The other two, Unlimited Blade Works and Heaven's Feel are phenomenal though.
The Muv-Luv anime is an adaptation of a spin-off of the franchise with different characters and in a different location of the world. That's about all I know, though as I'm just getting into the Muv-Luv universe.
Anyway, the visual novel is pretty good so far. Just an FYI, but the first half of it is actually a regular school life romantic comedy parody. The Mecha and all that don't come in until you unlock the "Unlimited" scenario.
One of the bad ends in the original version of School Days was initiated by Sekai, though. But, the circumstances leading to it are understandable to say the least.
http://vndb.org/v11
I'm reading Muv-Luv right now, which is a series I've heard a lot of good things about. Can't really comment much as I'm just a few hours in.
I agree that Sekai is somewhat likable, and I feel as though Kotonoha could be an interesting character if she was explored a little better. I think her initial fear of close contact should have been explained a lot better as well and how it transitions from that to her being all over Makoto is awkwardly handled. I'm generally happier with Makoto and Sekai's portrayal though, yet I find Kotonoha to be more entertaining despite my complaints. Crazy chicks are kind of fun to watch, I guess.
Maybe it's because I guide his actions, but I don't see Makoto to be as bad as I constantly hear. At least on the routes I've seen he seems like a decent, yet naive guy who sometimes lets hormones get a hold of him. Of the two main heroines, I prefer Sekai but neither of them are really anything to write home about. But, just so you know, I haven't played any of the bad endings yet so I haven't really seen everything the title has to offer (I used a machine translator for the last few chapters of every route, because it was only translated up to that point).
I much, much prefer Setsuna, Hikari, and Otome though. I kind of wish the game gave them more attention. But, there is definitely some off about Kotonoha even on some of the good ends she can come off as kind of creepy.
One of these days I need to re-watch E7 to see if my opinion has changed on it. It just didn't do much for me. I really liked the middle portion with the guy and his wife, though. Charles or something like that.
You really should prioritize Honey and Clover. It is amazing and down to earth with it's drama. Plus Morita is an absolutely hilarious character.
Interesting seeing School Days on your favorites. I haven't seen the anime, but I've played the games and am currently playing the updated HQ version recently released in the states. It's a pretty good ride, but I hear the anime has a bad ending. There are only I think 5 in the HQ (original had 3) and 20+ "good" ends.
Maison Ikkoku is a slow romance, but rest assured the characters do end up with someone. You'll have to see for yourself. I actually liked Touch for more than the baseball element, though I did think the series kind of dropped off in quality after the excellent first couple of seasons. Cross Game is much, much more consistent though.
Really? Because I thought Asuka's characterization was amazing in the anime. I'm definitely looking forward to this. Just got to get in the mood for NGE, as it's kind of draining if you know what I mean. Especially EoE.
My absolute favorite romance of them all is Honey and Clover, it's about the love lives of five college students and is just all around fantastic. Really believable characters, great music, and the some of the best monologues I've heard in anime. Check it out.
Kanon is pretty good, but I didn't find it to be as great as Clannad but it's definitely worth watching. There are some very strong story arcs in the story.
Nana, which I mention in the "list" thread is fantastic but is also very melodramatic. But, I feel that Melodrama is not always a bad thing and Nana is one of the best examples. Great characterization for the two leads. It focuses a bit more on their friendship than romance, though.
A series from the 80's called Maison Ikkoku, about a wannabe college student falling in love with his Landlord is another favorite of mine. It's long, though, at 96 episodes and the romance is very slow to develop but it has great character develop along the way and culminates in one of the best endings in anime as far as I'm concerned.
Another series from the 80's, called Touch, is great as well. It's about two Brothers fighting over their childhood friend, with baseball playing a large role as one of them is a pitcher. Another good series from the same writer and much more recent is Cross Game, it has a pretty similar premise and is in some way the better of the two. It's also shorter as it has 50 episodes in comparison to Touch's 101. Both are worth watching
As for Re-Take. I actually have that on my hard drive. But, I'm waiting to re-watch the TV series + EoE first of all for maximum effect. I've skimmed over it so I know it focuses on Asuka and Shinji, my two favorite characters in the series, so I'm sure I'll love it.
Feel free to ask more questions. I'm always willing to offer help.