Comments on: It would appear that I’m still tsundere for Lucky Star

By: Kairu Ishimaru

Kairu Ishimaru — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 08:52:52 +0000

Ironically Lucky Channel is funnier in live-action

Seconded.

By: Martin

Martin — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 15:30:16 +0000

@Kabitzin: sounds like there was a lot in the MMORPG segment that went completely over my head then - I felt a bit confused by it TBH. Lucky Channel is much better in live-action though; like you I didn’t find many of them funny in the series.

By: Kabitzin

Kabitzin — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 20:00:23 +0000

Haha, actually the MMORPG section was pretty awesome, with noobyass Tsukasa sucking so bad even though she is a mage, and Konata mentioning they didn't want Tsukasa as a healer. Also, having one in your static party going off and leveling up a ton on her own is familiar for any who have played and leveled up with friends. I have to admit I was surprised at how good Lucky Channel was in live action. I hated the Lucky Channel in about 95% of the episodes, but I enjoyed this one. Kabitzins last blog post..Nunnally Knows Where You Keep Pr0n

By: Martin

Martin — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 18:59:03 +0000

@Washi: I do believe LS (and KyoAni in general) are indeed very tuned into what the fans will appreciate but what I didn’t really make clear is that I think that this gives them confidence to do things a bit differently to, say, their Key adaptations. The humour and storytelling approach in LS is very unusual, which runs the risk of falling flat and not selling. The great thing is, it doesn’t fall flat at all, but my respect comes from the creative team having the bottle to do it in the first place. I can see what you’re getting at though, so thanks for your kind words!

By: washi

washi — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 09:03:30 +0000

>>Maybe I’m wrong and LS is doing this too, but I don’t think it worries itself about that as much as similar series - that is, I honestly believe it is less fan-aware, which I respect it for.

Conversely, it could be so fan-aware that it’s able to cunningly market itself to the otaku fanbase without appearing desperate to do so. I think this is probably the case, looking at Kyoto Animation’s record. They’re hardly a Production I.G or Studio 4C; they only spend money animating something if they know it’s going to sell to the otaku crowd, the only thing that seperates their shows from most generic tripe is that they actually follow up with the requisite effort to get it right.

I was surprised at how long it took for subs to appear for this, so I’m glad I watched it RAW (although I missed most of the RPG segment). I actually preferred the OVA to the TV series because the TV series tended to pad itself out a lot kore with the odd highlight. But, because this is an OVA they can avoid this and include only scenes that work and are funny.

Good post.

By: Martin

Martin — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 20:32:33 +0000

@Hanners: I really, really, enjoy Spaced but like you I’m resigned to the fact that it’s over. It did leave opportunity for Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz though…

I didn’t realise that Tsukasa was randomly eating in the middle of the fight - odds on I’ll laugh myself silly the next time I watch it now. Hidamari Sketch has a certain laid-back charm to it and what’s more, it looks like the subs for x365 have resumed. Excellent! As much as I like LS though, I can wait for the R2 DVDs.

@Jayme: I’d pretty much forgotten why I made such a fuss over this show, but 35 minutes later it all came flooding back. The ‘been there, done that’ aspect is a big draw though - it helps the slice-of-life side of things immeasurably.

Lucky Channel never grabbed me as much as it ought to have done, but seeing the guy in live action with that outrageous suit and tie was absolute win. ^_^

By: Jayme

Jayme — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 17:48:57 +0000

I lost respect for Lucky Star since the end of the series, and forgot what it was about it that made me laugh and love it. I suppose that just reinforces your idea of Lucky Star being throw-a-way entertainment, but I’m happy I chose to look at it again.

I’m not a gamer, however, my friends play WoW, and I’ve forayed into it before so I really found the MMO part hilarious. I think I got most of the jokes, or the spoken ones, at least. It’s definately reliant on the “been there, done that” aspect.

Oh, and lastly, I concur with Lucky Channel being funnier RL. I was never an avid lover of it, and never found the RL Endings that funny, either but this one was awesome.

By: Hanners

Hanners — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 20:35:20 +0000

I like that comparison between Lucky Star and Spaced - I’d never really made that connection in those terms, but I think you’re absolutely right (even though you’ve now left me pining for a never-gonna-happen series 3 of the latter). I love a good pop culture reference (and often baffle people I know with obscure cross-references to TV shows and the like in an attempt to pass them off as jokes - I’ve also picked up a nasty habit of shouting out “Zetsubou shita!” myself when things go wrong), and that probably goes a long way towards explaining why I love Lucky Star so much (and will be religiously picking up the R1 DVDs), although I think its observational comedy is probably equally (if not more) important to its unique brand and style.

Personally, I loved the MMORPG element of the OVA despite not being into that genre of gaming myself - Tsukasa’s inability to do basic things in the game was really funny, and the moment where she accidentally chose to start eating food in the middle of an intense battle was priceless and probably got the biggest laugh of the OVA out of me.

Although I’m now torn between Lucky Star and Hidamari Sketch as my preferred contemporary slice-of-life show these days, I won’t hear a bad thing said against the former.. I still think it’s a work of genius for its time.

Hannerss last blog post..Hidamari Sketch x365 - Episode 10