I finally got around to watching the first episode of Bakemonogatari. Which some people have been translating as "Ghostory", to try to emulate the fact that the Japanese name is a portmanteau of "bakemono" (apparition, monster) and "monogatari" (story).

It's visually very complicated. The backgrounds lend a very bleak feel to it all. Which I'm sure is quite deliberate.

I've been downloading the series as it's come by, so when I finished the first episode I started the second, and found out that I'd downloaded a version subtitled in Thai. Rather a shock; at first I thought it was a joke.

So I'm downloading the right version now, and I'll watch it later. In the mean time, it's an interesting setup. The implication from the first episode is that it's going to be high on talking and low on action. Which may be OK; I'll have to see how it goes.

The visuals certainly feel like something Shinbo would do. They have that kind of complexity. On the other hand, my previous experience with that kind of thing it was mostly in service of comedy. Not this time; this series is being played straight.

It feels like it's a sequel to something. But at least based on the ANN listing for it, that's not the case. But there's a whole lot off backstory of some kind which they breezed through at the beginning of the first episode in flashback.

Oh, and they start the whole show off with a grade A top-of-the-line panty shot. It belongs to Tsubasa, the meganekko Iincho, who obviously has a crush on Koyomi, the protagonist.

It really was utterly gratuitous. There wasn't any other significant fan service in the episode, so I'm not sure just what the point was, beyond simple pandering.

Posted by: Steven Den Beste in General Anime at 06:36 PM | Comments (8) | Add Comment
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