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ArisKatsaris comments on May 2014 Media Thread - Less Wrong Discussion
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Television and Movies Thread
I just finished Shin Sekai Yori (aka From the New World), a serious science fiction anime series of 25 episodes (link is to a free stream). You could almost think of it as a (more) rationalist Warhammer 40,000, except that the atmosphere and aesthetic is a lot less heavy metal and more similar to, say, Speaker for the Dead. It's a little over-reliant on choppy flashbacks but generally well executed with likable characters and very strong world-building.
Person of Interest is a pretty good show. It starts as an above-average procedural about an AI that predicts premeditated murders and the people (both civilians and police officers) who try to stop them. Seasons two and three move away from the procedural aspect and start to deal more with conspiracies that try to control super-intelligent AIs, and how the AIs begin influencing and controlling humans to achieve their programmed objectives. Very good acting and a great visual aesthetic.
I actually stopped watching half way through season one because they were completely ignoring the themes they could play with about balance of power, privacy, etc. If they've actually started to realize that potential, I'll have to pick it back up.
Anime:
Rewatched Ga-Rei Zero with friends and it holds up; be careful to avoid episode 1 spoilers. Fun supernatural fantasy/horror action, with character relationships that develop and make sense so that one is drawn into caring about them.
Knights of Sidonia is only four episodes in (so may yet turn bad) but it's the most interesting sci-fi I've seen since Shin Sekai Yori; spaceships that feel realistic, and hints of the social/political consequences of life on a generation ship. Animation is CG with these over-smooth faces which may be a deal-breaker for some; together with the used future aesthetic the early parts reminded me a lot of early Ergo Proxy.
I watched Shiki recently. I have no idea what I was doing to miss it back when it was airing in 2010, but I'm glad I eventually got to it. The quality of writing is unusually good for an anime, and I think it touches on a bunch of lw-relevant themes which is why I'm mentioning it here. I would hate to spoil anything for anyone so I won't go into any details, but I definitely recommend a watch.
Some things you might be glad to be forewarned of before starting: a common complaint appears to be that this show has a slow start, so being aware of this might help. I would say that this is probably not a show you can make accurate judgements about based on only having seen a few early episodes. Also, the character design is a bit wacky. I like it and it helps to distinguish each individual in what is a large cast of characters, but regardless some may find it offputting. Finally, there are 2 bonus episodes (the 'specials') that originally came with the BD/DVD releases that you wouldn't want to miss if you really liked the show proper.
p.s. I watched the coalgirls release (Japanese audio, 1080p). It was acceptable, if a bit bloated in terms of filesize.
It's worth mentioning that this show is quite violent. In particular there's the brutal onscreen killing of a tied-up woman by a mostly-sympathetic male character, which some people I know took issue with.
(I enjoyed the show and would also recommend it but figure this aspect is worth mentioning)
Animation:
I anti-recommend this. I loved the TV series, and think Rebellion ruined its perfect ending and makes me think less of the series as a whole. I am trying to forget its existence.
Agreed. It's hardly a "must-watch" for fans of the oiriginal. It's a "stay the hell away if you thought the original themes and character arcs were meaningful and well crafted".
Because it's what I call a Cannibalising Sequel: instead of easily flowing from, and enhancing the old story and making it better (think Godfather 2, or The Empire Strikes Back), in order to prop itself up a Cannibalising Sequel ruins the old story retroactively, taking away the importance of things that used to be meaningful (think Starcraft: Brood War, or Alien 3). Important sacrifices, past decisions which were supposed to have lasting repercussions, character arcs, lessons learned, and the prices paid for them... so much of that goes out the window in Rebellion.
It's also poorly paced as a movie and sloppily told as a story. The original Madoka had more of interest to offer in its first 2 minutes than this thing has in its first 20. I'm not exaggerating.
I am ambivilent towards this. It had some clever bits, and I think I understand what Urobuchi was trying to do with the ending, but the overall execution did not live up to the standards of the orignial series.
I also enjoyed this. I thought the fake ending would have been more emotionally satisfying, but the real ending was more interesting and opens up more possibilities for the setting.
I've been enjoying "Suits." The characters are competent and ruthless. No idea how accurate it is for US law.
edit Its Slytherin competence porn
Any law show is pretty much completely inaccurate. An accurate law show would be 90% about filling out paperwork.
Very little is on scree but there are frequent references to all night paperwork sessions
Long time no see LW. Glad to see this is still going.
Anyway, after finding the first half of the premier season mediocre and giving up on it, I recently tried to get back into Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and am happy to say that the second half was some of the best television I've seen since, well, Joss Whedon's last television show.
I just wattched Tim's Vermeer. It was very good, fun Documentary.
I've been enjoying Un-Go. It's a detective drama with political plots in a near-future Japan after an unspecified war. Also, the protagonist has a shapeshifting magical girl sidekick whom everyone else seems to just take in stride without further comment.