and by episode 12/13 the tone shifts dramatically. That was the point where I started to actually feel invested.
I dropped it at episode 11. Looks like I’m picking it up again - after I run out of things to watch.
Comment on Anime Questions, Recommendations, and Discussion Thread [2025, Week 37]
catalyst@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
A while back I lamented on this community that I had tried and failed to get into Steins;Gate. Well, I gave it another shot and will say - it does get pretty good, eventually. Things start to feel more intriguing around episodes 8 or 9, and by episode 12/13 the tone shifts dramatically. That was the point where I started to actually feel invested.
The thing about Rintaro is that he comes off as a dick for quite a while. His positive attributes don’t really start to show until later (though maybe on a rewatch I’d be more able to see glimpses of that). I also found some of the humor, particularly concerning Daru, to be unfunny and at times off-putting. It does find it’s footing though and the build to the finale was really exciting.
Ultimately, I’m glad I came back around on this one and gave it a second shot. To quote Mayuri, do do doooo🎵.
Having wrapped that up I scrolled through my to-watch list in search of something short and sweet, and settled on Puella Magi Madoka Magica. Ah, this will surely be a delightfully positive palette cleanser! Kidding, obviously, but I had been curious about this show for a while and this felt like the right week to dive in. I’ll likely finish the series tonight or tomorrow.
Honestly, I like it a lot! Yes - it’s “the dark magical girl show”, but it doesn’t even feel as dark as I was personally bracing for. Like I would not say that it is edgy just for edginess sake. I also just really adore the creative, mixed-media approach to the presentation of the witches and their labyrinths.
Next I have queued up: Serial Experiments Lain. This one doesn’t seem to be readily available on any streaming sites but I found a copy on the Internet Archive. The quality seems kind of dodgy but otherwise it’s probably fine?
The only show I’m watching in the current season is DanDaDan, which I’ll just say is still amazing and I’m so looking forward to the next couple episodes. I hope the wait for the next season isn’t terribly long because that builds into my favorite arc of the manga.
Endmaker@ani.social 3 weeks ago
Unboxious@ani.social 3 weeks ago
Lol, you really did pick the worst point to drop it. IMO the show gets exciting at the end of episode 12.
catalyst@lemmy.world 3 weeks ago
Haha. Yeah 100%.
ReluctantZen@feddit.nl 2 weeks ago
Things start to feel more intriguing around episodes 8 or 9, and by episode 12/13 the tone shifts dramatically.
Yeah, it’s a real slowburn, so I understand why you gave up on it the 1st time.
Yes - it’s “the dark magical girl show”, but it doesn’t even feel as dark as I was personally bracing for.
I think there are two reasons for that:
- You went into it knowing it was going to be dark. At the time, no one knew until the famous Mamiko scene. Everyone thought it was going to be a standard magical girl anime. It was a proper twist.
- Edgy/dark magical girl shows have kinda become normal and yeah, have really pushed the edge further. Madoka popularized dark magical girl shows.
nyan@lemmy.cafe 3 weeks ago
Yeah, Madoka itself knew just exactly where to draw the line on the dark/horror aspects. There were a couple of other series that tried to piggyback on its success (Magical Girl Raising Project, I think, and at least one other) that were not so careful and ended up getting pretty gory.
It’s possible that no one has the license for Lain right now. It’s an old series—I have it on Pioneer-branded VHS tapes (from before their anime division rebranded as Geneon), which means my copy is more than 20 years old and I’m not sure if it ever made it to DVD. I think we may actually have overrun the “near future” time period in which it’s supposed to take place.
e0qdk@reddthat.com 3 weeks ago
It did. I have a DVD copy in a box somewhere.