Can we please stop adapting side stories? They have all the subtlety of a sledgehammer.
I know we haven't gotten to the "real" story yet, but from how the anime has been presenting itself so far, I don't think
SAO deserves all the attention that it's been getting. I'll reserve judgement on the series as a whole until I see the actual plot, but so far I don't understand the reasoning behind adapting these stories first. If the episodic treatment was supposed to get me invested in the world and the characters, it's not working.
Admittedly, the way it started off was decent; Asuna finally returns, and we get some much-needed character interaction between her and Kirito. I was under the impression that she's supposed to be one of the main characters, so why has she shown up for only two episodes out of five? Anyway, the nap scene was pretty cute for people like me who love pairing fodder, and their initial investigation into a player murder was interesting as well. I'm glad that wasn't dropped after last week's episode. However, those were the only aspects of this episode that I liked, since the execution (pun unintentional) actively got in the way of what would've otherwise been an okay episode.
First, the fanservice is getting a little awkward with lingering butt shots of the female characters. I'm not going to get on a pedestal and say that there shouldn't be any fanservice at all, but it felt really out of place this week. It's like someone said, "Hey, I know that this is a really serious scene, but it would be much better if we added an ass shot." At least the tentacle monsters last week had context.
They also really hammed up the expressions of death-of-the-week character Yoruko, to the point where I thought she had to be the murderer. Why else would they put so much emphasis on random split-second cuts to her wide-eyed expressions? In the end I suppose it doesn't matter since she gets assassinated, but her final freak out complete with dramatic music was more funny than anything else.
Next week may be better, but if the next arc is yet another side story, I may just drop out until I hear the LN fans say that the real story is starting. There are aspects of this show that I do enjoy, but the missteps are starting to drown them out. To whoever's bright idea it was to put these stories first... They're more alienating than engaging. If you happen to be involved with another adaptation in the future and think about doing this again...don't.
Images from Crunchyroll.com.
My thoughts exactly. Those ass shots were awful. There may be a time for fanservice, but there's definitely a time NOT for fanservice and those two times were definitely it.
ReplyDeleteThe only thing I think of when I see ass shots of tight fitting pants is how uncomfortable they must be to wear.
ReplyDelete