Changes made to Review for The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya Complete Series 2 Deluxe Box Set [4 Discs]

Revision 1

Created on Sunday, 3rd July 2011, 15:18
Change Submitted by Jitendar Canth

List of Changes:

    • Change #1 - ightest. <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000143099"][imgmc=0000232928.jpg][/url] <newline>You can bet
    • Change #2 - ker. <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000143100"][imgmc=0000232929.jpg][/url] <newline>If you[apost]r
    • Change #3 - iew… <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000143102"][imgmc=0000232931.jpg][/url] <newline>One of t
    • Change #4 - wn club. <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000143103"][imgmc=0000232932.jpg][/url] <newline>Suddenly
    • Change #5 - uzumiya. <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000143104"][imgmc=0000232933.jpg][/url] <newline>The fourteen
    • Change #6 - iya. <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000143106"][imgmc=0000232935.jpg][/url] <newline>02. Endl
    • Change #7 - uhi… <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000143105"][imgmc=0000232934.jpg][/url] <newline>05. Endl
    • Change #8 - out! <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000143108"][imgmc=0000232937.jpg][/url] <newline>10. The
    • Change #9 - estival. <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000143110"][imgmc=0000232939.jpg][/url] <newline>The Sigh of
    • Change #10 - control? <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000143111"][imgmc=0000232940.jpg][/url] <newline>[heading]Pic
    • Change #11 - t least. <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000143112"][imgmc=0000232941.jpg][/url] <newline>[heading]Sou
    • Change #12 - own… <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000143113"][imgmc=0000232942.jpg][/url] <newline>Still, l
    • Change #13 - season. <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000143115"][imgmc=0000232944.jpg][/url] <newline>There is
    • Change #14 - [/page1] <newline>[page2]
    • Change #15 - ][page2] <newline> <newline> <newline>[heading]Ext
    • Change #16 - Youtube. <newline> <newline>Rega
    • Change #17 - minutes. <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000143116"][imgmc=0000232945.jpg][/url] <newline>Disc 2 has m
    • Change #18 - minutes. <newline> <newline>The
    • Change #19 - D discs. <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000143132"][imgmc=0000232961.jpg][/url] <newline>[heading] Th
    • Change #20 - uya-san. <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000143129"][imgmc=0000232958.jpg][/url] <newline>The Mela
    • Change #21 - o 6. <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000143137"][imgmc=0000232966.jpg][/url] <newline>Nyoron!
    • Change #22 - Nyoron! <newline> <newline>[Iurl="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000143135"][imgmc=0000232964.jpg][/url] <newline>[i]The Disc[/I
    • Change #23 - e Disc[/Ii] <newline> <newline>1.8
    • Change #24 - ck. <newline> <newline>[Ii]The Ext
    • Change #25 - Extras[/Ii] <newline> <newline>You
    • Change #26 - oo). <newline> <newline>[I]In Summary[/I] <newline> <newline>I don[apost]t get Nyoron! Churuya-san. Some people think it[apost]s amazing, but it[apost]s a taste I haven[apost]t been able to acquire, unlike smoked cheese that is. I like me a bit of Applewood smoked cheddar, just the right side of delectable, with that little smoky tang to it that goes fine with crackers, or makes a cheese salad sandwich that bit special. But the whole Nyoron thing… I don[apost]t get. I find it obvious and unfunny. <newline> <newline>Haruhi-chan on the other hand I find hilarious. I[apost]d looked forward to each new instalment when it aired originally, and every joke I found to be a zinger. Rewatching the episodes now, my opinion hasn[apost]t changed, and I was laughing uproariously throughout. It takes the characters and enhances their absurdity, which makes Yuki the star of the show, now into erotic videogames instead of reading, and taking mini-Asakura home in a bag and adopting her as a pet. Thankfully Haruhi-chan outnumbers Nyoron by around 5 to 1 in terms of run time, making this a plentiful disc of joy for me, and in some endless eight ways it is indeed better than Season 2 of Haruhi Suzumiya. <newline> <newline>[/page2] <newline>[page3] <newline> <newline>[heading]Conclusion[/heading] <newline>Endless Eight! It[apost]s either the biggest troll in anime history, or it[apost]s a work of pure genius. I can[apost]t make up my mind which one; although I suspect it may be both. But given that it takes up eight episodes of this fourteen-episode run, more than half the series, then it will most likely be that Endless Eight will determine your decision to purchase. For the uninformed, it[apost]s Haruhi[apost]s version of Groundhog Day, in which the same two weeks of summer vacation keep on repeating. Now I like Groundhog Day, it[apost]s a neat little film with an appealing story. The problem is that watching it once, feels like watching it five times. There[apost]s a reason why it is one of the least watched DVDs that I own. With Endless Eight, you get eight repetitions of an episode, eight summer holidays where the same things happen, with the exception of the first and the final loop. For me certainly, there is an issue with just how re-watchable this series of Haruhi Suzumiya is. This was the second time I had seen this series, following the initial Youtube streams broadcast by Kadokawa, and I already had a sinking feeling at the prospect. <newline> <newline>That said, it must be emphasised that this isn[apost]t a cheap option on the part of the creators, this isn[apost]t just running the same footage over again, and there is no hint of anyone cutting any corners. Each episode of Endless Eight is animated anew. Each episode gets a different music score, the cast come in to record the lines again, in both the English and the Japanese versions, the sound effects are different, the characters are drawn with different costumes, the direction of each episode is different, the emotional tone is different, and there are minor differences in script, little hints and red herrings in each episode. One iteration may be ominous and doom laden, another jolly and energetic, another laid back. One episode has a cloud motif running through it, another has a bright over exposed look to it, and another keeps the characters in background and so on. The commitment to delivering the highest quality in animation, writing and imagination cannot be faulted. What can be faulted is the decision to make Endless Eight, originally a 30-page short story, in the first place. <newline> <newline>Time loop tales, of which there are more than you would expect, have to have either a dramatic purpose, or some significant character growth. Endless Eight has neither. Enjoying two weeks of summer vacationing, only to have to repeat the experience again, none the wiser except for a few twinges of déjà vu, isn[apost]t the universe threatening peril that needs a dramatic solution. In fact, the whole purpose of the story is to figure a way to get out of the loop. When we do find out just what it takes to escape the relentless wheel of time… well lets just say that it would be better not to have any breakable objects at hand, or anything that could damage your TV if thrown at it. The other possibility is if the main character experiences growth through the loops. That only happens if someone remembers what happens across the loops. In Groundhog Day it was the purpose of the film to take a cynical, world-weary weatherman, and find his inner humanity, his joy in living, and in the process fall in love. In Endless Eight, there is a character that remembers the loops, and there is some character growth as well. But it[apost]s understated, almost implied, and if you are expecting a world shattering revelation, the sort of self realisation that will alter how you see that character, and how that character impacts on what happens after Endless Eight, you[apost]ll be disappointed. <newline> <newline>I find Endless Eight to be a trivial, forgettable, and not all that entertaining a story, but one that is given the ultimate in terms of production values and effort from the creators. It[apost]s enjoyable and infuriating at the same time. <newline> <newline>Season 2 of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya isn[apost]t all Endless Eight however, although it can feel that way. There is more to it than that. Bamboo Leaf Rhapsody, the episode that kicks off the season is my favourite episode of this run, on a par with anything that came in the first season. It[apost]s a great way of reintroducing the characters, and with a very entertaining story too. The downside, if you can call it that, is that originally it set the expectation that the rest of the series would be as good as well. To hit a high point with the first episode and then suffer the downhill slide of Endless Eight actually made the disappointment worse. <newline> <newline>It[apost]s after the cataclysm of Endless Eight that the series picks itself up and dusts itself down, giving us The Sigh of Haruhi Suzumiya. The problem is that not only does it have to find that brilliance that typifies this franchise again, it also has to wash out the sour taste of the preceding eight episodes. It doesn[apost]t quite manage it. The Adventures of Mikuru Asahina kicked off the first season, an out of the blue, home movie featuring the characters of the series, a total non-sequitor when taken by itself, but one whose secrets, and meaning were slowly revealed as the series progressed. It turns out that it[apost]s a movie that Haruhi and the SOS Brigade made for the school[apost]s cultural festival, the festival that took place close to the end of the series in Live Alive. It[apost]s the odd occurrences in the movie that point to the strange things that happen around Haruhi, and those events are explained as the series progresses. The Sigh of Haruhi Suzumiya, all five episodes of it, is the story of the making of that film. It[apost]s how, following the school sports day, Haruhi decides to make a movie for the forthcoming Cultural Festival, naturally ropes the rest of the Brigade in, and it reveals the mayhem that ensues, as well as answering a few of the puzzles remaining about the film (i.e., talking calico cat). <newline> <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000143130"][imgmc=0000232959.jpg][/url] <newline>[i]In Summary[/i] <newline> <newline>I don[apost]t get Nyoron! Churuya-san. Some people think it[apost]s amazing, but it[apost]s a taste I haven[apost]t been able to acquire, unlike smoked cheese that is. I like me a bit of Applewood smoked cheddar, just the right side of delectable, with that little smoky tang to it that goes fine with crackers, or makes a cheese salad sandwich that bit special. But the whole Nyoron thing… I don[apost]t get. I find it obvious and unfunny. <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000143134"][imgmc=0000232963.jpg][/url] <newline>Haruhi-chan on the other hand I find hilarious. I[apost]d looked forward to each new instalment when it aired originally, and every joke I found to be a zinger. Rewatching the episodes now, my opinion hasn[apost]t changed, and I was laughing uproariously throughout. It takes the characters and enhances their absurdity, which makes Yuki the star of the show, now into erotic videogames instead of reading, and taking mini-Asakura home in a bag and adopting her as a pet. Thankfully Haruhi-chan outnumbers Nyoron by around 5 to 1 in terms of run time, making this a plentiful disc of joy for me, and in some endless eight ways it is indeed better than Season 2 of Haruhi Suzumiya. <newline> <newline>[/page2][page3] <newline> <newline> <newline>[heading]Conclusion[/heading] <newline>Endless Eight! It[apost]s either the biggest troll in anime history, or it[apost]s a work of pure genius. I can[apost]t make up my mind which one; although I suspect it may be both. But given that it takes up eight episodes of this fourteen-episode run, more than half the series, then it will most likely be that Endless Eight will determine your decision to purchase. For the uninformed, it[apost]s Haruhi[apost]s version of Groundhog Day, in which the same two weeks of summer vacation keep on repeating. Now I like Groundhog Day, it[apost]s a neat little film with an appealing story. The problem is that watching it once, feels like watching it five times. There[apost]s a reason why it is one of the least watched DVDs that I own. With Endless Eight, you get eight repetitions of an episode, eight summer holidays where the same things happen, with the exception of the first and the final loop. For me certainly, there is an issue with just how re-watchable this series of Haruhi Suzumiya is. This was the second time I had seen this series, following the initial Youtube streams broadcast by Kadokawa, and I already had a sinking feeling at the prospect. <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000143118"][imgmc=0000232947.jpg][/url] <newline>That said, it must be emphasised that this isn[apost]t a cheap option on the part of the creators, this isn[apost]t just running the same footage over again, and there is no hint of anyone cutting any corners. Each episode of Endless Eight is animated anew. Each episode gets a different music score, the cast come in to record the lines again, in both the English and the Japanese versions, the sound effects are different, the characters are drawn with different costumes, the direction of each episode is different, the emotional tone is different, and there are minor differences in script, little hints and red herrings in each episode. One iteration may be ominous and doom laden, another jolly and energetic, another laid back. One episode has a cloud motif running through it, another has a bright over exposed look to it, and another keeps the characters in background and so on. The commitment to delivering the highest quality in animation, writing and imagination cannot be faulted. What can be faulted is the decision to make Endless Eight, originally a 30-page short story, in the first place. <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000143119"][imgmc=0000232948.jpg][/url] <newline>Time loop tales, of which there are more than you would expect, have to have either a dramatic purpose, or some significant character growth. Endless Eight has neither. Enjoying two weeks of summer vacationing, only to have to repeat the experience again, none the wiser except for a few twinges of déjà vu, isn[apost]t the universe threatening peril that needs a dramatic solution. In fact, the whole purpose of the story is to figure a way to get out of the loop. When we do find out just what it takes to escape the relentless wheel of time… well lets just say that it would be better not to have any breakable objects at hand, or anything that could damage your TV if thrown at it. The other possibility is if the main character experiences growth through the loops. That only happens if someone remembers what happens across the loops. In Groundhog Day it was the purpose of the film to take a cynical, world-weary weatherman, and find his inner humanity, his joy in living, and in the process fall in love. In Endless Eight, there is a character that remembers the loops, and there is some character growth as well. But it[apost]s understated, almost implied, and if you are expecting a world shattering revelation, the sort of self realisation that will alter how you see that character, and how that character impacts on what happens after Endless Eight, you[apost]ll be disappointed. <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000143121"][imgmc=0000232950.jpg][/url] <newline>I find Endless Eight to be a trivial, forgettable, and not all that entertaining a story, but one that is given the ultimate in terms of production values and effort from the creators. It[apost]s enjoyable and infuriating at the same time. <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000143122"][imgmc=0000232951.jpg][/url] <newline>Season 2 of The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya isn[apost]t all Endless Eight however, although it can feel that way. There is more to it than that. Bamboo Leaf Rhapsody, the episode that kicks off the season is my favourite episode of this run, on a par with anything that came in the first season. It[apost]s a great way of reintroducing the characters, and with a very entertaining story too. The downside, if you can call it that, is that originally it set the expectation that the rest of the series would be as good as well. To hit a high point with the first episode and then suffer the downhill slide of Endless Eight actually made the disappointment worse. <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000143124"][imgmc=0000232953.jpg][/url] <newline>It[apost]s after the cataclysm of Endless Eight that the series picks itself up and dusts itself down, giving us The Sigh of Haruhi Suzumiya. The problem is that not only does it have to find that brilliance that typifies this franchise again, it also has to wash out the sour taste of the preceding eight episodes. It doesn[apost]t quite manage it. The Adventures of Mikuru Asahina kicked off the first season, an out of the blue, home movie featuring the characters of the series, a total non-sequitor when taken by itself, but one whose secrets, and meaning were slowly revealed as the series progressed. It turns out that it[apost]s a movie that Haruhi and the SOS Brigade made for the school[apost]s cultural festival, the festival that took place close to the end of the series in Live Alive. It[apost]s the odd occurrences in the movie that point to the strange things that happen around Haruhi, and those events are explained as the series progresses. The Sigh of Haruhi Suzumiya, all five episodes of it, is the story of the making of that film. It[apost]s how, following the school sports day, Haruhi decides to make a movie for the forthcoming Cultural Festival, naturally ropes the rest of the Brigade in, and it reveals the mayhem that ensues, as well as answering a few of the puzzles remaining about the film (i.e., talking calico cat). <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000143125"][imgmc=0000232954.jpg][/url] <newline>Ma
    • Change #27 - n 1. <newline> <newline>[url="http://www.myreviewer.com/default.asp?a=0000143123"][imgmc=0000232952.jpg][/url] <newline>If Haruh

Initial Version

Created on Sunday, 3rd July 2011, 15:03
First Submitted by Jitendar Canth