Comments on: The Random Ga-Rei Zero Episode 4 rant – I am getting turned off by the shounen-ness

By: character interaction, mojo, anticipation, human relationships, admirers | ASIA COSPLAY

Fri, 28 Nov 2008 02:13:14 +0000

[...] was surprised that a few disliked ep 4. GR~Z has had a great run so far and ep 4 is not different. It grows the plot [...]

By: Excalibaa1!

Excalibaa1! — Fri, 14 Nov 2008 03:21:39 +0000

So I guess youre not gonna blog ga rei anymore eh? such a pity, its just starting to get good to, oh well guess I gotta go find another blog now. . .

By: 4 week into Fall Anime - Final 4 picks at Hontou ni Taihen desu

4 week into Fall Anime - Final 4 picks at Hontou ni Taihen desu — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 17:51:32 +0000

[...] was surprised that a few disliked ep 4. GR~Z has had a great run so far and ep 4 is not different. It grows the plot [...]

By: Stripey

Stripey — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 14:10:58 +0000

I thought ep 4 was great in developing the characters/plot. First we see that Kagura is really easing into school life and opening up because of her relationship with Yomi. Next, we see how Yomi is the central figure in their exorcism missions (this would surely be important to the future dynamics as Kagura gains prominence and when Yomi betrays.) We also see that Kagura is \ ready skillwise for these missions but mentally lacking in dealing with the true horrors of the job. We also see that Yomi’s razor-sharp intuition, Kagura’s tough upbringing, further skinship btw Kagura/Yomi and the maker behind the weapons which I’m sure are all plot elements seeded to bear fruit further down the tale.

By: Orpheus

Orpheus — Sat, 01 Nov 2008 06:22:00 +0000

Hrm I just watched the episode today and I have mixed feelings about it. I didn’t really hate this episode, or feel tremendously let down by it, but I was kind of confused by the different vibes I was getting, especially from that naked foreigner Michael who spoke in very bad Japanese (or just with a strong accent). I don’t really mind the fact that nothing crucial really happens in the action portion of the episode, since I’m a big fan of the slice of life genre – in fact I kinda wish they’d given us more details on Kagura’s school life and her domestic relationships with Yomi rather than jumping to spirit purging and whatnot, and I did like the play between Kagura and Yomi even though it was nothing new. But I could have done without Michael, the tentacle scene, and Kagura’s dad beating her hands with his scabbard after randomly showing up to save the day.

Well we did learn a bit more about the fiancee and the details of his relationship to Yomi. He may later play a more important role i.e. why the heck doesn’t he show up when Yomi kills his pet mouse and then attacks Kagura. But I think that’s about the only bit of plot I got out of this episode ::shrug::

By: The Sojourner

The Sojourner — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 23:30:19 +0000

[ID Sojourner]

Simple Impz. They were naked. Hence, the episode was excellent.

By: Ominae

Ominae — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 22:40:18 +0000

LOL! Using the steam for censorship. That was damn funny! Not to mention the weird anti-demon weapons.

Wonder what happens when you have an anti-demon computer, automobile and motorcycle weapons? XP

By: Hikari

Hikari — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 17:30:08 +0000

Really Impz, I don’t think I can fully describe how much I agree with you. I felt like crying after this episode because I thought the story had so much potential to it and it was… ruined. Just ruined. I’m sticking to it because I’m still hopeful but I really don’t expect the awesomeness from the first few episodes to return.

By: Vin-nii

Vin-nii — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 11:22:16 +0000

well, I personally thought that a serious adaption of ga-rei was a bad approach to such a comedical manga. The anti-demon iron (Yomi’s weapon) bit this episode didn’t leave as much of an impact as the manga counter-part

By: Impz

Impz — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 05:03:01 +0000

@Vin-nii: Ya, I don’t mind a genre change but I don’t like how it is changed into the stereotypical pitfalls of a shounen show. It annoys me badly and the bad attempts at blatant fanservice is an immediate turn off for me.

For episode 2, that “fanservice” was somewhat in a tasteful manner so I do not mind that at all. However, you are right to say that it is still fanservice, just subtle.

@Myu: It is common? Bah, I hate fanservice when it’s plain blatant. This is something that is likely to be a minus point for me. It is strange that a guy actually hates fanservice, but I do. I don’t need to watch a regular show for fanservice. If I need it, I can watch porn or hentai for that, not in my typical anime series.

I seriously feel that any attempt for blatant panty shots or boob shots detract from a viewing experience.

@Omi: I am a typical shoujo viewer so I find shounen shows generally suffering from various stereotypes that turn me off. Some of these include mentally weak leads, unneeded fanservice and countless fillers to drag the action. Those are things that many shounen series tend to do, and it drags on for ages. That is why I have a very bad bias toward shounen shows at times. Nonetheless, there is still so much potential in this series that I am not willing to give it up as yet.

@Char: I don’t think I will agree with that. The first three episodes are great. The fourth, you know my opinion. I have explained my rationale for my process of thought in my entry.

@Pidgin: I do not really see it as poking fun. I find it pandering to the typical shounen fan who likes a bit of fanservice on the part of the girl. Tell me one shounen series that did not aim to show some blatant fanservice of the female lead, and I will be shocked to my knees.

Your argument about the competition between Kagura and Yomi is compelling, and I have missed that part in my analysis. I thank you for that. However, it is so short and non-existent that it can also be squeezed into a 1 minute sequence in Episode 3. That is what irks me a lot.

By: Pidgin

Pidgin — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 21:19:29 +0000

I didn’t think this episode was horrible simply because I’m not offended that the director chose to poke fun of the sexuality of Japanese people, what with the incest scene, the pursuant comment by the Gay-san about Pervert-san’s ass. I thought it was mildly amusing. I didn’t think it was pointless either because there was a good bit of character development going on, showing how Yomi begins to compete with Kagura and how Kagura begins to enjoy her normal life as well as her abnormal life. I thought it showed how Kagura integrates with her environment and all the things that she’s likely to lose in the future. True, she’s meek, but I don’t think all girls bearing weapons should be overly aggressive, because the conflict between Kagura and Yomi couldn’t be explored as much. There was also the bit about the problems Fox-san is having with his arranged marriage to Yomi.
The only parts that were stupid for me were when Kagura meets Michael and when she freezes up in front of Zombies. I don’t agree with the popular stereotype that something that appears a certain way should be treated differently than something else that’s far less human looking. Yomi is awesome.
yea thats about it.
Oh, and what’s with the plot whoring?

By: char

char — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 17:01:13 +0000

If the first ep was it’s own/ a separate series I’d watch it over the other three any day. Kagura annoys me.

By: Yukan Blog! » Blog Archive » GA-REI -zero- 04: Really Should’ve Taken The Chainsaw.

Tue, 28 Oct 2008 13:44:02 +0000

[...] Impz, I’m not so much RAGING at the differences in the show as I am confused and disappointed by [...]

By: Omisyth

Omisyth — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 13:10:38 +0000

The fanservice was out of place and pointless, and all we have to take away from this episode is that Kagura is too kind for her own good. I think the reason you’re so pissed off is because there’s such a jarring difference between the tone of this episode compared to that of the first and second; we’ve gone from dark, disturbing to light and fluffy (as shown by the more comedic parts of the episode) and it’s not really a good thing.

You kind of make it sound like Shounen = Lower Quality. It’s not so much the shounen-ness as it is the randomness of the change that’s kind of bugging me.

By: Myu

Myu — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 10:58:01 +0000

Most certainly. In no way am I trying to prove that this episode had any significant value beyond a couple a vague hints (that, yes, could have been nicely fitted into the scenes from the previous episode). What I meant was that fanservice is something that is quite common in Ga-rei and albeit time-consuming and having nothing to do with the actual plot, it is definitely going to be there.

Ga-rei -Zero- is supposed to be a prequel to the manga. Since Kagura and pantsu flashes occur almost regularly in the manga, I think it is safe to assume that there are going to be similar happenings in the anime. And while that doesn’t necessarily mean a decline in the quality of the storyline, there will be standstills.