I read with interest tjhan’s thoughts on harem series and several closing thoughts on the fanservicey Ninomiya-kun. No matter what others may say, I firmly believe fanservice has its place in anime even though it has been abused all too often, undermining its true purpose.
It’s great to have someone looking out for you, a confidante who knows your tastes and exploits your weaknesses to ensure that he doesn’t descend the slippery path of financial ruin alone reports promptly the anime bargains, diligently scoured from even halfway around the globe. A big thank you to Zyl who brought to my attention TheRightStuf’s 12 days of Xmas promotion which saw me ordering
Eager to capitalise on the store-wide members 20% discount at Kinokuniya, I browsed through the artbook section and was instantly captivated by the vibrant artwork of Nao Goto in the form of Galaxy’s Child. Some artists are good at background art while others excel in character design but Goto sensei appears to be a maestro of both. I’d let the scans do the talking.
With the likes of DCII adding to the vitriolic arsenal of anime fundamentalists, it’s time that we harem moderates retaliate against the tyranny of bishoujo bigotry. There ARE worthy eroge conversions and series like Wind ~ A breath of heart or Green green are hardly the defining works of this genre. In a bid to induct the more open minded into the wonderful and rewarding world of eroge conversions, here’s a recommended list you can start working on.
In ascending order of love.
For a huge fan of season one, I’m not looking forward to another installation of Zero no Tsukaima. I lay the blame squarely on the sequel which not only destroyed the good in the preceding season but went on to mercilessly quell the possibility of having an decent third.
Zero no Tsukaima is mostly about Louise and Saito – their maturing relationship as they individually grow to learn their place and purpose in grand scheme of things. Everything else in the series exist to support or is layered upon this theme. From the overarching plot of Tristaini treachery to Henrietta/Siesta’s delicious incursions into Louise territory, the stories never failed to build on the leads’ characters or relational growth, well, at least for Season 1.
The coherent and sweet tale of 2 hearts drawing closer to each other through haremic tussles and adversity was usurped by excessive fanservice and an uninteresting side-plot in Season 2, sacrificing character growth and stripping the series much of its original charm. Worse, by hastily raising their relationship to marriage status at the end, we are not only cheated of steady, coherent character growth that is typically accompanied by that warm fuzzy feeling but a poorly justified yet unassailable Louise lead that would negate Henrietta/Siesta competition. A harem series without efficient competition is like a Gundam series with all the shiny mecha sans battles.
We all can guess what will happen in Season 3. They’d do a relationship-roll back like that did with Season 2, frustrating audience and overwrite Louise’s lead with fanservice. Fanservice may be good for laughs (IF well-executed) but a cheap substitute for relational growth. I found it utterly insulting that Saito’s increasing affections for Henrietta/Siesta in Season 2 was proportional to their increasing bust-size instead of their fabulous personality/character. Fanservice in lieu of character development is a cowardly cop-put, period. Sadly given the closing direction of Season 2, season 3 looks set to use the same sad tactics to maintain the harem facet of the show.
I hope I’m totally wrong. That there’d be compelling material in the novels for scenarios that would circumstantially overwrite Louise’s lead in a credible manner, allowing the other haremettes to gain footholds. That the writers would stop using whipping sessions as pseudo-sex and give us REAL character development. That the wonderful bishoujos of ZnT would not be cheapened with meaningless fanservice but lovingly crafted to exude congruent charm befitting of their irresistible personality.
It’s a long shot but I sincerely hope I’d be proven all wrong come ZnT S3.