Reinbach
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Patreon Pin Up 2/18/19
🕑 Added 2019-02-19 03:57:47 +0000 UTCIs Haruhi Suzumiya still a popular character? Is she one of those anime icons that endures to this day, or has her show been largely forgotten? I'd have likely still chosen to draw her this morning either way, it's just that I try to do a balance of obscure characters and mega-popular ones in these pin ups, and I honestly have no idea which category I went with today. :P
I first watched The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya back when it was new, and it confused the hell out of me. Not in the traditional sense, such as the prominent mind-bending anime of the time such as Ghost in the Shell and Serial Experiments Lain, but in the sense that the story seemed to have zero continuity from one episode to the next.
To clarify, I'm not saying the show was episodic and each episode was self-contained. I'm saying there obviously was an ongoing story meant to be followed, the episodes were simply played out of order on purpose in what, I believe, was an attempt on the part of the show's writers to prove what clueless bumbling dopes they were. And they succeeded spectacularly in their goal.
I kid. The bizarre story structure really didn't hurt the show too badly. The American DVD release even played the episodes in actual chronological order. (Which left you with this weird structure where you get this epic story climax in the middle of the series, which was then followed with like five episodes of fluff with no real conclusion.) I liked the show for what it was though. The basic premise was that Haruhi here is the living center of the universe, able to bend space, time and reality to her will. The catch was that she's somehow unaware of her god-like status and it's up to the cast of zany characters to keep her from getting bored and unwittingly rewriting the world.
I hadn't really thought about the show in ages until about this time last year, when I saw there was a movie made based on the series, called The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya, and decided to check it out.
Hooooly shit. Only in Japan. If you jump between the show and movie you'll get the most acute case of tonal whiplash in the history of fiction. While the show is pretty standard anime comedy fare, (boob-grabs, panty shots, and guys being punched for no reason all the time,) the movie is a dark and depressing thriller that revolves around subjecting the familiar cast of goofballs to psychological misery. It would be like if they made a movie based on the old sitcom, Friends, except instead of being a romantic comedy like the show, the movie was an intense crime drama where Rachel was held at knife-point in the coffee shop. Can't imagine what universe this type of jarring thematic contrast would be approved in, but this does lend credence to my theory that Japanese film directors are granted far more creative liberty than American ones are. It can be exciting in a way: if you sit down to watch a piece of Japanese animation that has a run time of longer than thirty minutes, you're officially in "anything goes" territory. I guess whether that's a pro or a con is up to you.
Whew! This was a long one even for me. As always if you have anything to add I'd love to hear it. :)
Comments
Reinbach
Cool! I'll keep an eye out for it. :)
Reinbach
For sure. To be clear, I didn't mean to say the movie was bad, exactly. It just seriously wasn't what I was expecting.
Reinbach
Hey great! It's certainly a classic in my eyes as well.
Reinbach
I should draw Lum from Urusei Yatsura sometime. I'm not familiar with the show, but she's pretty iconic.
Reinbach
I'm pretty bad about keeping up with the new stuff. I still haven't seen any of My Hero Academia, and it's supposedly the greatest muthafuckin thing ever muthafuckin made.
Reinbach
I did hear the second season was pretty bad, so I skipped it. As for the first season, I can see why the whole "chronology be damned" episode structure didn't catch on.
Reinbach
I did hear that new one was good, and correct me if I'm wrong, but Devil Man is loosely connected to Cutey Honey right? I was bummed to hear that the new Devil Man was so good but the latest Cutey Honey reboot supposedly sucks lol.
Reinbach
It does seem to be a cult classic at best if the responses around here are anything to go by.
Drace Domino
Nice one! Anime schoolgirls getting creampied is always a win in my book! (Aged appropriately of course!) Though I had a thought, if you're even looking for a BIZARRE slice of life style anime, you should check out Nichijou. It wouldn't be a lewdable one, but speaking as someone that doesn't generally like the genre Nichijou is fucking hilarious. It's the only time I've ever heard someone say "You should watch this anime, it's really funny" and it was actually the truth.
Flakcloak
I think it's like Lucky Star, Clannad, Darker Than Black, Code Geass, and that kind of anime... A "2000's weaboo starter pack". A license somewhat popular, which still sells goodies and stuff, but not very well know by the larger audience. That being said, it's still one of my favorite anime because it's weird, artistic et unique. The season 2, however... But the movie is great.
Licorice Lain
I can't believe my eyes. There are people who don't know Haruhi or are confused about her relevancy? smh This show remains one of my favorites.
ScuzzBucket
I’ve never even heard of this character, lol. Sounds pretty bizarre. When I went to Japan, it seemed like the only “relevant” anime’s were DBZ, Sailor Moon, Naruto, and One Piece. But weird movies are pretty normal. Some serious directors can get in the projects, turning comedies into much more thoughtful or serious tales- Lupin and Urusei Yatsura got that treatment.
I still haven't watched it. I'm so bad about anime.
Kyman201
There's a bit to unpack with Haruhi. See the first anime WAS broadcast with the show episodes out of order, so that the Big Climactic Moment (Haruhi and Kyon in the big Closed Space) would be the season finale when, timeline wise, it took place halfway through the season. There was also a season 2 of the anime that tanked basically everyone's interest in the series, as like 7 or 8 of the episodes took place in a Closed Time Loop that Haruhi put up. So it was like 7+ episodes that were basically identical save for little details here and there. In a row.
Michael Rider
If you’re looking for anything goes kinda show, checkout devilman crybaby
Angelo
I'd put this in the obscure category. I've never even heard of the show but maybe that's just me.
