The fall looks exciting! But I’m probably getting ahead of myself.

I wouldn’t flame as such, but sometimes I do feel that the main reason I read that blog quite curiously matches some of the included descriptions of how a “trainwreck” is supposed to attract and keep viewers. I’m not so much opposed to your particular use of the quote -this is your blog isn’t it?- but to what that site evokes per se.

I’m not really intending to paint Code Geass as a relatively “plausible” show overall, like I would, say, defend Planetes or even Infinite Ryvius if pressured, to reference other works by the same director…but I do think it’s not an utter and complete mess with no non-ironic or “WEE” enjoyment, where nothing makes sense at all.

Yes, it’s a messy show if compared to something that’s as well structured as Baccano! is, to name something entirely different, but not all of its elements, or plot twists even, are equally so.

Some of them truly are laughable, like the whole million Zeroes thing if taken at face value or what have you, but others, like Jeremiah’s return, aren’t really on the same scale, and can be more or less explained just by looking at the show itself.

I might change my mind if the show eventually goes nowhere or just comes up with a finale that can’t possibly make a lick of sense, but so far I think it has a least some coherence amid all the seeming mindlessness…admittedly, less so in R2 than during the first season, at least right now, but I think it does have more coherence than other stuff out there.

I’ll admit that the show has tons of pandering, a double-edged sword to be sure, and that its fundamental attraction is being fun, period. I’d be a hypocrite if I pretended it didn’t, because sometimes that happens to overlap with my interests too.

While I do come off as rather touchy, I’m not exactly clamoring for something like “everyone should watch Code Geass (uncritically) and say it’s the greatest show ever”, no. I also perceive that kind of thing as a bandwagon and I’m not exactly pleased with it. But at the same time, I wanted to present a dissenting opinion.

On Geass… Flame other people all you want (in this case it’s someone not here to defend himself but I’d wager is popular enough to not have to worry about it…), I just thought the quote was apropos. I suppose I deserve the pain a bunch of people have been giving me, since I guess I used kinda negative language, but let’s get something straight: I love Geass. That’s why it’s in this post. On the other hand, just because I love it doesn’t mean I’ll defend its plausibility. My spellcheck wouldn’t even let me put it in the same sentence as the word plausible. Back on the first hand, I don’t need plausibility to enjoy an anime, at least not one like Geass.

I’m fine with any given crazy plot twist, Gundam upgrade, uncalled-for fanservice shot, or Pizza Hut product placement, but add it all up and you get something far beyond anything else out there. OGT’s been on me about this too, but he was right to invoke Spinal Tap — “this one goes up to 11.” They’re catering to fans in a way that’s gone beyond pandering and become an art, they’re making it up as they go, and that’s the fun. If Taniguchi and co. paint themselves into a corner, it’s as fun to see what they’ll do to get out as it is to see how Lulu escapes his fate this week.

As for the accusation of bandwagoning… I’ll shrug that off. I enjoy reading blogs and hearing people’s opinions, but I have too few spare half-hours to spend them watching anime I don’t like (especially when there are so many right now that I do). Besides, there are enough people running to the defense of Geass that I wouldn’t worry about the size of the supposed badwagon.

Daughter of 20 Faces is something I’m going to start rather soon, but Kamen No Maid Guy…is something I’ve entirely avoided, for good or bad.

And since I’m feeling a bit masochistic…this may be taken as a (very mild) flame, but sometimes I think Derailed by Darry is more of a “trainwreck” than Code Geass…the ironies of life, I guess. Don’t intend to actually rant, so I’ll leave it there.

Other than that…the only thing in the Geass list that affected my suspension of disbelief was the million Zeroes, but even that I can handle by assuming hyperbole. The others were either no surprise at all (there isn’t a single scene in the series that suggests Orange would have died, not even way back in the early first season) or were just there from the beginning, effectively being the same thing.

That said, I’d wait until the show actually ends before jumping on the “oh god this is a trainwreck” bandwagon.

But enough talk…have at me (if you so choose)!

@Os I have never seen a Geass episode where I thought “wow that’s really filler,” even the ones that people accuse of it. Even if an episode of Geass doesn’t really move the plot along, they almost always manage to be entertaing. When I think of filler, I think of Shakugan No Shana and the 3 to 4-week slogs you sometimes have to trod through to get to the fun.

I haven’t seen 20 faces, but if it tied Maid Guy, it must be worth a look.

Strangely, I’m with you on the ska thing, excepting some 1960s/early 70s Jamaican stuff, aka the real thing. But something about that opening just charmed me.

I’m not sure whether I think anime composers can push the medium, I certainly don’t think they do most of the time, but we can hope.