Monday, 30 September 2024

Europa Universalis

I have been playing Europa Universalis IV for more than month now, but so far, I have not written anything about it. I wrote about my previous games a while ago; you can check it out here.

Here are screenshots and maps from two different playthrough. One is France and another is Ottomans in Caliphate into Devlet-i-Rum. 

I played France first, I got close to WC but had to finish off few straddlers after 1821 hit. As Otto to Devlet-i-Rum I did finish on time. In both cases I used a lot of subjects and vassal feeding tactics as I always do. 

With Otto I decided to play as long as it would take to integrate them all, which was almost more than 100 years past 1821 or around 170 years in total. Eyalet mechanic makes it somewhat convenient, I had so many of them at one point. 

With France I instead feed a few rather large subjects, I was over dip cap limit nearly always. Also, I had two strong allies, Spain and Commonwealth, HRE wars made me break with Commonwealth but Spain stick around to the end. Eventually I got to form PU when their monarch died with no heirs. It was the last country I got.













Saturday, 28 September 2024

NieR:Automata Ver1.1a Review

Overall rating 6.7 out of 10 - A flawed adaptation of the original video game

I recommend watching a game walkthrough instead.

I often dislike various adaptations and alternative versions of various media. Typically, they end up dumbed down or adjusted for some agenda or moral mongering. Unfortunately, Nier Automata did suffer a similar fate. 

Compare to the original game this show adds certain new parts, removes certain others and overall overplays certain themes to the point of nausea. The game was tad more subtle and restrained. It maintained a sense of deep psychological and philosophical themes without overwhelming player or repeating itself. Perhaps a game environment allowed for a better paced and more spaced-out presentation of material. 

In contrast anime repeats certain key in director's opinion themes repeatedly. This does gets annoying every so often. Unlike the original the anime obnoxiously makes near everything about solitude, like it's a Naruto anime. 

No all is bad is this version however, every so often it manages to present certain material well. Overall and compare to other titles it's a somewhat flawed experience.

Material wise, anime adds the whole A2 backstory that was somewhat interesting to watch. 

On the other hand, it completely removes Emil, Satre, Plato, Marx, Engels the Machine Godzilla and many more secondary characters that filled the world and made it as detailed and complete as it was in the game. I do not remember if there was an Amusement park in anime or not. Sure to add it all we would have to have 3 or 4 seasons but things like that are essential for a show like that. It's the small characters that add to the whole story and make it whole.

Also, the renamed Anemone into Lily for some reason.

Overall if you do not want to watch game walkthrough for some reason you can watch this instead, it does manage to recapture some of the greatness of the original.

Tuesday, 24 September 2024

Jashin-chan Dropkick X

Overall Rating 5.0 out of 10 - Mixed Impression, some parts are good and others not so.

Somewhat OK for a filler show.


Another one of these mediocre shows that are not bad enough to just drop yet have too little going for them to watch them. Out of these Jashin-chan is better side. 

Like a typical comedy show its episodic and each episode contains a number of short sketches. Here some sketches are funny enough to make you want watch more, other make you want to drop the show instead. However, the show is diverse enough so you can keep watching in hope the next sketch will be good one.

In the middle of the show, they change the format to an ark where Jashin-chan travels Japan to escape loan sharks. This ark is best in the show overall. However, after several episodes it ends, and we are back to the old routine.

This show has a really large character cast. Most of them just fill the space, being nothing more than a simple stereotype or so. They have cameo like appearances every so often and that is all they do. For some reason Hatsune Miku also makes cameo appearances in every episode despite not even fitting the show theme.

Out of main characters Jashin-chan is likable enough and sympathetic at times. Yurine is mostly annoying, you can wish Jashin-can would kill her one day. Medusa is cutest of them all thought, almost waifu material.

Overall, it is ok if you have nothing else to watch, but there are better comedy shows out there.

Saturday, 21 September 2024

Mushishi Review

Overall Rating 6.7 out of 10 - Nice and Relaxing show with few flaws.

I recommend watching.

People generally tend to rate Mushishi very highly. Many praise it like something deep, spiritual or insightful. That is of course exaggeration. This is a very simple but mostly pleasant and relaxing show with a somewhat original idea.

The show revolves around paranormal, but loosely based on actual unicellular organisms, beings called mushi. These mushi cause variety of things and our mushi expert protagonist fixes them.

The show is episodic so you can watch it sparingly at your own pace. I actually recommend that over binging it.

Colours are rather drab, but that is a deliberate stylistic choice to represent simplicity and rustiness of rural life. If you hate such things then best is to skip this show.

Overall, the show has a realistic Japanese vibe to it, which is its greatest strong point. If you like Japanese things, you should at least try it.

On more negative side there is occasional hippy overtones about it as well. Occasionally show tries to preach, which it not good. Reducing human activity, preserving nature and so on. Fortunately, only few episodes suffer from that.

After watching first 3 episodes a while back I gave it 6. Now, after completing the whole thing I can give it a little more 6.7. It is not groundbreaking, but it's mostly good and enjoyable. I can recommend watching.

Friday, 20 September 2024

On Versions of Code Geass - Lelouch of the Rebellion

 

I frequently complain that sequels often do not live to the level of the original and sometimes become a complete failure. Reasons for that could be change in creative team and many more.

However, there is one other malaise that affect some shows out there. Particularly my all-time favorite masterpiece Code Geass - Lelouch of the Rebellion. The name of this malaise is different parallel versions that are sometimes even called the same way, but in actuality are rather different products with different content and substance.

Original Code Geass - Lelouch of the Rebellion was a TV series. The series had two seasons, each 25 episodes long. Second season is called: Code Geass: Hangyaku no Lelouch R2. Total that is more than 1000 minutes long of content. So far so good. This is the version I have watched and gave it 10 out of 10, the only show I rated that high out of more than 300 that I watched and 50 more that I dropped.

That however is not the only version of Code Geass - Lelouch of the Rebellion out there. There are also three full length feature movies that ostensively retell the story in a different format. There are Code Geass: Hangyaku no Lelouch I - KoudouCode Geass: Hangyaku no Lelouch II - Handou and Code Geass: Hangyaku no Lelouch III - Oudou. Each are just 2 hours and 15 minutes long. Together that barely over 400 minutes long. The original content was somehow shrunk more than half. Despite that they apparently added some extra scenes here and there as I occasionally stumble upon Code Geass scenes that clearly could not be found in the original TV series.

There is a 1 hour video on YouTube that outlines all the differences between the original TV series and the trilogy movie only. He took one hour to outline it and still missed a lot of stuff that was removed. So watch the original TV series yourself.

However, the trilogy above is not the only truncated version out there. There is another even shorter version. Now just two feature movies instead of 3. One is Code Geass: Hangyaku no Lelouch Special Edition - Black Rebellion and another Code Geass: Hangyaku no Lelouch R2 Special Edition - Zero Requiem 230 or so minutes of content.

All that is without mentioning 5 movies of Akito the Exiled, Re;surrection or Rose of Reflection and many other spinoffs of Code Geass franchise. If you search MAL, it will give you dozens of different individual shows. 

In a show so full of details where small details are important to understanding the whole that is just a wasted effort at best, a crime against the original at worse. The latter is a likely case as the short version is not just short, it adds ne scenes and retconned content in certain significant ways.

Needless to say, that this should not be considered an appropriate replacement to the original series. However, people actually tried to use content of this truncated trilogy to refute my claims that were based on the original TV series. I wonder how many have seen only the truncated version and have distorted view on the whole show, by now they could be majority.

I personally did not watch either of movie version, however I did watch and rewatched the original series many times. They are great and I can recommend it. However, make sure you watch the original version and not the truncated movie one.


Other shows that suffered similar fate were Puella Magi Madoka Magica. They also retold the original 12-episode series in two feature movies. I watched the series' first, so I did not watch first two movies, but I watched the third and final one and it was horrible mess that destroyed everything I so liked in the original.

There are probably many other shows that suffered similar fate. This is truly unfortunate. Because of that always make sure that you watch the right version of the show. Without it you have chance to stumble upon producer and agenda interest cut special editions that butcher the original in horrible ways.

Thursday, 19 September 2024

With You: Mitsumeteitai Reveiw

Overall Rating 7.0 out of 10 - Nice romance show with likable female protagonist.

I recommend watching

There are few good romance shows, somehow, most of them cater to female audience and have insufferable female protagonist with over-the-top dream guy as a male one. Kaichou wa Maid-sama, Samurai Champloo and Cowboy Bebop are examples of such shows.

Luckily enough With You managed to become an exception. It has a very nice and likable nerdy girl in glasses for a protagonist. Someone a guy like me can actually like. Because of her I rated this show this high.

Because of that it was very sad that she did not end up with male protagonist in the end. 

In addition to her this show also has a relatively interesting plot about spirits that break couples apart because their own love was torn apart.

Overall, however it is a nice show. It has some flaws with overly pushy supporting cast but not enough to ruin the enjoyment. I recommend watching.

Saturday, 14 September 2024

Likable Characters vs Interesting Plot

 

There are probably many articles that elaborate on what makes Anime different from Western cartoons or western media in general. I can give you one simple answer. Anime is mostly character driven and Western medial is mostly plot driven. Sure, there are some exceptions here and there, but this rule holds for vast majority of shows.

Anime

First anime, anime works by creating likable enough characters. Creators probably spent a lot of time thinking what king of character they want to date and then create such character. From there on plot often serves only as means to at best develop and at worst just showcase this character at infinite.

Various merchandise, figurines, body pillows and such are popular precisely because characters are. Body pillow is the best example, people would not buy it if they would not want to literally drag them into their beds and fuck them. You can never imagine someone like that in the west and not because its different culture or West is more prude but rather because Western characters are not likable. No one would want to fuck Spiderman or Joker.


Because of that slice of life genres work in anime. Nothing really happens for 12 whole episodes, but people like it, nonetheless. They like it because they want to see more of these likable characters on screen. Not just slice of life shows are like that, even isekai and other genres are carried by characters with no real intrigue behind anything that happens.

In plot however lies anime's weakness. Since characters carry the show, the plot often rudimental to nonexistent. After all, if people buy it for characters alone, then why get out of your way and invent a complex plot with intrigue. 

However, replace likable Asian characters with something plainer, more basic or just unlikable and no one would want to watch it. Without moe anime dies.


Western Media

Now western media works exactly the opposite way. Characters are basic stock figures that are needed to carry the plot. That is especially true for protagonists. Batman or Superman is nothing more than flawless always do good stalwart heroes. They only exist to beat up villains. 

Sometimes you get an interesting villain but more often than not they are just so-called cartoon villains who just want to conquer or destroy the world. There are some partial exceptions like Spiderman for example, but they are few in between.

Neither hero, nor villain is interesting in their own way. However, a conflict between hero and villain is what drives interest.


What drives western shows is plot. Characters are there just to showcase the elaborate plot, conceived by the author. There is intrigue, in detective mysteries it's about who is culprit, in hero movie it's about how hero will prevent the villain's plan from succeeding. The premise keeps people interested, not the characters.

Often the more impossible the task seems, the more public would be interested. For example, how could Frodo infiltrate the hostile enemy country and make it unnoticed to the middle of it to destroy the ring. The country full of enemy soldiers, that guard everything and constantly on a lookout for intruders. To top it up there is also a huge tower with an eye that can see very far and constantly searches for the Ring Frodo carries.

People would not watch a slice of life about Frodo and Gandalf. Characters of Lord of the Rings are not likable enough for that. People watch it for the intrigue of the Frodo's quest to destroy the ring, by sneaking into Mordor and making it to its center unnoticed by the enemy.

A proper western show it full of intrigue. That is what drives it forward. 

A less skilled authors prop up lackluster intrigue with a lot of action and kaleidoscopic change to keep people guessing what is next.

Nonetheless without curious enough plot a western show die. No one watches something that is fully predictable.


Fusion

Success of anime brought about mutual interest in shows from the other culture. That interest led towards not just towards borrowing ideas, but also towards hiring foreign talent to work on western shows. Financial crisis only further exacerbated this by driving more companies towards cutting costs by outsourcing work to Asia.

That however led mostly to disappointment for fans.

One can only get a good show only if they combine the strongest sides of both of these approaches. That is if you combine good Asian characters with good western plot. 

If you do it the other way around by combining bland western characters with bland Asian plot, you will instead get a failure and plenty of angry fans.

The good examples are few, original Code Geass, Lelouch of the Rebellion, Nier Automata, original Naruto. All these shows produced plenty of awestruck fans, who haven't seen anything as good ever before. 

The failures are much more numerous. modern WoW where likely Asian writers struggle to continue a story with western characters they do not understand. Many more shows here and there. If I watched more modern (2010s) media I would have been able to tell more, but I do not.


Hopefully we will be able to get out of austerity failures and create shows that combine the best of both worlds.