Panty &amp; Stocking and how it may shape the future of anime

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Aug 2008

This is an anime which deliberately chose the style of American cartoons. This is an anime that took the magical girl transformation sequence's perverse tendencies to their logical extreme, bare now of all excuse: it becomes a pole dance. This is the anime which spends an episode in a Saving Private Ryan parody with sperm.

This is the anime that spent an episode in a superflat animation style with a totally different character, just to show us the multi-faceted effects such characters have on a realistic world. It also provides a method to observe pop-culture for cartoon characters, as seen through the protagonist's daughter's reaction, and most importantly, through the contrast, shows the contrast between the over-the-top rock star world of Panty and Stocking, and how it makes them out of touch jerks (even if they did show some humanity by giving him the autograph, they're still so utterly self-absorbed they retain their own separate animation style!)

This is the show that spent an episode in a single long shot of the characters doing nothing but chitchat, from an angle slightly reminiscent of Ozu's signature style. (Ozu being one of the greatest filmmakers of all time, and whose works many would consider utterly boring, due to their style and pacing and realistic subject matter.) This is an anime that did a full music video in one episode, and a well-made one to boot.

This is the show which made nose-picking somehow more sexually explicit than sex itself, and most importantly, all throughout utterly demolished the sexualization of anime by stripping it of all pretense and just running with it to its farthest extreme as if to, by example, show how vapid and empty such matters have become, and secondarily to reach a point where there is literally no farther point to go. In the later episodes, Panty and Stocking couldn't even top itself in the sexualization department, because it had quite literally, I believe, gone as far as you can outside of out and out pornography. When the hero uses her underwear as a weapon, you've reached a limit.

Time and again the crass consumerism of this culture, what with its sexualized supplementary knickknacks and blatant pandering, is torn apart. Idol culture is obliquely criticized in the episode the heroes become movie stars. People pay millions of yen for their underwear, little girls scream the most intense American cusswords because they are the heroes' catchphrases, and all throughout the rest of the world treats them the way otaku treat idolized anime characters. And they react by taking advantage of it when they can. I've seen, in real life, all those wall scrolls and body pillows and all those types of merchendise. They have a very obvious purpose:
selling through sex. And Panty and Stocking shows that exchange throughout, without any excuses. It's shallow in real life, and they reveal that shallowness for what it is.

Furthermore, the protagonists are the utter death of moe-style females, being outrageously forward and self-driven to an extent few women in anime are. Look at Panty, especially in the final episode: Not to spoil the plot, but she finally embraces the fact that she is a "bitch", and takes with it all that means. She is one who will take what she wants, and won't let others pull her down with what they want for her. This realization is the key to her power, and Panty is as far from a moe female as you can get. She's actually a rather feminist hero, especially if you forgive her outrageously over-the-top sexual promiscuity as the exaggeration the story makes it. She's does not care what you think of her, she'll not be held down by anything, not even Heaven.

Keep this in mind: In real life, a woman who gains a lot of power, a woman who is willful and driven, is oftentimes called a bitch, because of that. I've seen it in my everyday life, I've seen it at the jobs I've had, and I've definitely seen it in politics. Many people called Hillary Clinton that. Not to say that Panty is somehow equivalent of someone like Clinton, but she's embracing something most anime females don't, and which many people do not: being a self-empowered woman.

I could probably continue unpacking this show for another hour or so, and make twice as long a thing on it, but I think I've made my point. This show is smarter than it seems, because it's demolishing every nasty fiction in the relationship between anime and its fans.

It's a pity it stops there. Even though there's a hint in the last episode, the next step is still needed: The creation of something which takes what's left and makes it something new. Something that actually takes the show's progressive message (i.e., this stuff is crass. Female characters aren't to be idolized in this overly sexual way, not viewed as fantasies, not pandered as "aww, how cute", but respected in the same way you can respect a male character's drive and humanity) to heart.

TL;DR. Let's see female characters treated not as sex symbols, not as objects of lust, but instead as people, the equal of male characters. That is the message of the show, shown through taking the sex symbolism to its greatest possible extreme, and showing it to be utterly empty.

Dec 25, 2010 9:20 PM

Jigero

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Sep 2008

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0Megabyte said:
TL;DR. Let's see female characters treated not as sex symbols, not as objects of lust, but instead as people, the equal of male characters. That is the message of the show, shown through taking the sex symbolism to its greatest possible extreme, and showing it to be utterly empty.

Yes lets make some thing not sexualized by making it hyper sexualized. it makes perfect sense!

seriously you're delusional.

It doesn't think, it doesn't feel, it doesn't laugh or cry..... All it does from dusk till dawn is make the soldiers die.

Dec 25, 2010 9:30 PM

#10

RyanSaotome

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Apr 2010

2026

The only otaku that don't like this show are the super weird ones with shrines to their waifus. Normal otaku (well ones that have been outside at least once a week) like this show.

Dec 25, 2010 11:39 PM

#11

dahogla

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Feb 2009

0Megabyte said:

Furthermore, the protagonists are the utter death of moe-style females, being outrageously forward and self-driven to an extent few women in anime are.

*yawn*
Go watch Dirty Pair, will you?

The only thing I despise more than Gainax are it's fans. Interpreting their series like some grand epic by Goethe or Tolstoy, I don't know what's more ridiculous, Gainax' desperate attempts to mix old elements together, create something new and failing everytime because either the characters are blatantly plain and the story itself is a joke, and they have to rely on horribly brainless over-the-top-action or the fans treating their series as the second coming of Osamu Tezuka.

Dec 26, 2010 12:32 AM

#12

YurikoRaine

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Oct 2008

130

It will shape nothing. It's a stand-alone, people (will) either love or hate it and no other company will bring out something like this. Because PSG is unusual and not the typical big-eyed big-busted anime harem or whatev show, it's as Yuki would say "unique".
It has no deeper meaning IMO and just for the lulz. Anime will always stay the same.

Dec 26, 2010 3:09 AM

#13

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Nov 2010

392

diebuster2 said:
It's about time someone made a show for us westerners and Normal People.

lolwut.
how is a girl who can turn her panties into a gun made for westerners and normal people? can you please clarify that?????

Dec 26, 2010 3:13 AM

#14

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Aug 2008

Jigero said:

Yes lets make some thing not sexualized by making it hyper sexualized. it makes perfect sense!

seriously you're delusional.

I'd suggest that you look up something called satire. Look up Jonathan Swift. And no, before you misinterpret me, I'm not saying that this is something of the same caliber as A Modest Proposal. I'm just saying look up the concept.

Also, saying the intellectual equivalent of "nuh uh" doesn't make a persuasive argument. It's just asinine. At least Knife here had the integrity to point out Gainax's exploitation of the show as evidence that it is not actually making fun of that exploitation, and whether his is the correct interpretation of that evidence or not, there's something there, and something worth looking at.

In other words, if I'm so terribly wrong you use words generally used to refer to crazy people and conspiracy theorists, I'm curious to see which of the concepts I brought up are blatantly wrong.

dahogla said:

*yawn*
Go watch Dirty Pair, will you?

The only thing I despise more than Gainax are it's fans. Interpreting their series like some grand epic by Goethe or Tolstoy, I don't know what's more ridiculous, Gainax' desperate attempts to mix old elements together, create something new and failing everytime because either the characters are blatantly plain and the story itself is a joke, and they have to rely on horribly brainless over-the-top-action or the fans treating their series as the second coming of Osamu Tezuka.

Condescending much? Are you actually going to address my points, or just act like you're better with me, without backing it up?

Knives: Fair enough, that's a good point. I'd argue that the marketing department may not be run by the director or the scriptwriters, but that's more of a generalized statement, not something I have evidence to back.

Dec 26, 2010 3:40 AM

#15

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Nov 2010

392

@0Megabyte you aswell, what are you getting at? are you try to say this show is a good example or something??? because to me your saying women should act like this...? am i right???

Dec 26, 2010 4:24 AM

#16

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Aug 2008

paperbomb said:
@0Megabyte you aswell, what are you getting at? are you try to say this show is a good example or something??? because to me your saying women should act like this...? am i right???

When it comes to the women part, this is the key quote:

0Megabyte said:
Let's see female characters treated not as sex symbols, not as objects of lust, but instead as people, the equal of male characters.

If I was going to do a second draft of that post, I'd have to do a lot of work to clarify. But hey, this is an internet forum, not a film class. Still, let me try to explain at least a little bit:

I'm definitely not saying anyone should act like Panty. However, she is a flawed, sometimes completely unlikable character. However, she has an important trait: she herself calls it being a "bitch", but it's really being the sort of woman who does what she herself desires, without being cowed by the expectations or judgments of others.

She is a strong female character. That's important, but this other part is also important: She's not a role model for anyone. She's flawed, deeply.

However, with male characters, being a strong character doesn't require being a role model. They're allowed to just be, as individuals with their quirks. Female characters have this a lot less often.

The girls from Clannad are treated as objects of affection, and though they do have their own agency, its far less important than Tomoya's interactions with them. They are primarily devices for Tomoya's advancement as a character, and even his love interest is ultimately used as a device to bring him to his lowest point, and his daughter as a way for him to understand and regain respect for his father, and more ultimately to reach an important point about himself. (Which conveniently restarts everything, quasi-Job style.)

In Haruhi, think about the title character. I've seen people compare her, if she was male, to Kamina. Even though the character would still be flawed, a male Haruhi would be considered more acceptable, because it is more acceptable for a male to be the way she is. As it is, she can be considered somewhat "uppity." I've seen many call her a bitch. Which reminds me of Panty in an interesting way.

More generally, active, willful female characters are treated more as abberations, and in a sense it becomes a device to show them as unusual. Kamina isn't unusual, he's coo. He's shown to be fine the way he is. Haruhi is strange, and her willfulness is treated less positively, precisely because she is a girl.

To sum it up (if poorly): Panty is not the normal female stereotype. She isn't "weak", she doesn't need to be saved, she isn't a mechanism for another character's emotional growth, her abrasive and in-your-face personality is not something that needs to be "fixed", she isn't window dressing. She isn't the "love interest" to be pursued by the main character. She's a flawed and often-times contemptible hero in her own right, and more female characters should be given treatment as characters in their own right, the way male characters are, and Panty is.

At least, that's what I was going for in the part you were asking. I had other points, though many of them are probably a bit weaker.

Dec 26, 2010 4:30 AM

#17

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Nov 2010

392

okay i see, damn your post are long!!! but at least its better than most people replies which are usually "WHHAATT??!! STFU NOOB!!!!!11!1!"

Dec 26, 2010 4:47 AM

#18

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Aug 2008

paperbomb said:
okay i see, damn your post are long!!! but at least its better than most people replies which are usually "WHHAATT??!! STFU NOOB!!!!!11!1!"

Yeah, sorry for the length. As it is, I can't guarantee accuracy, but I'll say what I believe, regardless of what others think of it. I hope you understand my point better, because I think it's an interesting thing to explore.

Dec 26, 2010 4:54 AM

#19

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Nov 2010

392

yeah I do... but i still don't think it can "shape the future of anime" though it may be different it isn't exactly anything totally spectacular, but thats just my opinion

Dec 26, 2010 5:26 AM

#20

pressboardshelf

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Nov 2007

I can't tell when Gainax fans are being serious or not.

Dec 26, 2010 6:33 PM

#21

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Nov 2010

Its a good and interesting series, but its not a game changer.

Dec 26, 2010 6:45 PM

#22

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Aug 2008

To be fair, I don't think it'll actually change anything either.

Dec 27, 2010 2:30 PM

#23

Psychodrake

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Jul 2009

537

You could quite easily match the controversy of P&S (The controversy being western art style, humor and characters) as a message like the OP has said. I'm not going to explain it, since I won't be able to explain it as well as 0Megabyte already has done. I personally don't see and just think it was Gainax's dip into a western style. The play on the magical girl transformation was definitely ripping on how vulgar they can be though, and usually they're children.

Anime will not change. Well, apart from that Tokyo ban on certain things in anime and manga. It won't change because of P&S, that's pretty much a given.

Dec 28, 2010 1:14 AM

#24

-Katsu-

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Nov 2008

Nothing will change at all, the other studios will ignore this and stll make their own thing, I mean, why should anything change anyway?

"This show is a true piece of art. An avant-garde work the likes of which haven't been seen in the industry since previous Gainax shows Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann and Neon Genesis Evangelion.
"

This statement makes me pretty mad, Panty & Stocking is nowhere near the quality of Evangelion or Gurren Lagann (Gurren Lagann didn't change the anime industry either, as it was a tribute to mecha and nothing exactly new, unlike Evangelion)
This whole show is a joke, there is not a single serious scene in this whole anime, it's just a stupid toilet humor anime with many experimental episodes which show that Gainax is still the greatest anime studio out there, but also many episodes which are simply repetitive and only people blinded by the hype can take them seriously...

And yes, this anime may be a little more feminist (which is strange, since this anime is made by one of the biggest geeks in the whole industry, seriously, check out the history of Gainax founders...), but we had many, many strong female characters in the industry and this is nothing exactly new, nothing revolutionary or anything.

-Katsu-Dec 28, 2010 1:19 AM

Dec 28, 2010 6:08 AM

#25

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Jul 2018

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Guys, Panty and Stocking isn't a series that's trying to change the world.

It like all other series are intended as entertainment. If you gain something out of them, well then there's nothing wrong with that.

Panty and Stocking was a breath of fresh air compared to all the other anime which follow the same storylines for the most part. I like it because it's so over-the-top and funny and appears to be what it would look like if the classic Cartoon Network cartoons were made for adults.

It's crude, rude, offensive, filthy, mean-spirited, and insane. And it doesn't give a shit what you think about it.

removed-userDec 28, 2010 3:54 PM

Dec 28, 2010 12:22 PM

#26

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Nov 2010

-Katsu- said:

This statement makes me pretty mad, Panty & Stocking is nowhere near the quality of Evangelion

Despite how much I enjoy Evangelion, and how unique and groundbreaking was, it's critically, critically flawed.

KillerYandere said:
Guys, Panty and Stocking isn't a series that's trying to change the world.

It like all other series are intended as entertainment. If you gain something out of them, well then there's nothing wrong with that.

Panty and Stocking was a breath of fresh air compared to all the other anime which follow the same storylines for the most part. I like it because it's so over-the-top and funny and appears to be what it would look like if the classic Cartoon Network cartoons were made for adults.

It's crude, rude, offensive, filthy, sexist, and insane. And it doesn't give a shit what you think about it.

Wait, how is it sexist?

MortrialusDec 28, 2010 12:29 PM

Dec 28, 2010 3:53 PM

#27

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Jul 2018

559028

Mortrialus said:

-Katsu- said:

This statement makes me pretty mad, Panty & Stocking is nowhere near the quality of Evangelion

Despite how much I enjoy Evangelion, and how unique and groundbreaking was, it's critically, critically flawed.

Wait, how is it sexist?

Did I say sexist, whoops my bad, I meant to say mean-spirited.

Dec 28, 2010 4:38 PM

#28

1234412314323

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Oct 2008

115

KillerYandere said:
It's crude, rude, offensive, filthy, sexist, and insane. And it doesn't give a shit what you think about it.

No shit! Panty & Stocking is an anime, not a person. Of course it can't give a shit what you think about it, just like how Mars of Destruction doesn't give a shit what you think about it.

Dec 29, 2010 5:00 AM

#29

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Nov 2010

KillerYandere said:

Mortrialus said:

-Katsu- said:

This statement makes me pretty mad, Panty & Stocking is nowhere near the quality of Evangelion

Despite how much I enjoy Evangelion, and how unique and groundbreaking was, it's critically, critically flawed.

Wait, how is it sexist?

Did I say sexist, whoops my bad, I meant to say mean-spirited.

Ah, I see.

Dec 29, 2010 5:13 AM

#30

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Knife said:

KillerYandere said:
It's crude, rude, offensive, filthy, sexist, and insane. And it doesn't give a shit what you think about it.

No shit! Panty & Stocking is an anime, not a person. Of course it can't give a shit what you think about it, just like how Mars of Destruction doesn't give a shit what you think about it.

It was a figure of speech dude. The people who created Mars of Destruction, I believe, haven't made another anime in quite some time. So they cared. I was talking more about the creators.

You can use adjectives to describe shows other than calling it shit. I don't call it shit because I enjoyed it. I didn't love it or feel it was a masterpiece and there were weak episodes. But I enjoyed it.

removed-userDec 29, 2010 5:25 AM

Dec 29, 2010 9:15 AM

#31

1234412314323

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Oct 2008

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KillerYandere said:
It was a figure of speech dude. The people who created Mars of Destruction, I believe, haven't made another anime in quite some time. So they cared. I was talking more about the creators.

Dec 29, 2010 11:52 AM

#32

kinoco

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Mar 2009

226

It's definitely unusual and interesting, but as far as 'shaping the future of anime'? I don't think so.

I'm also not so sure about 'strong feminism'? So Panty and Stocking are bitchy and rude, have weapons, and are able to make a bunch of guys drool all over them by flashing their butts or something? Not that I don't love them for that, but it's just fanservice, and not really any deeper than that.

As awesome as it is, I think everyone's totally overestimated this series.

kinocoDec 29, 2010 12:23 PM

Dec 29, 2010 1:23 PM

#33

BrickBreak

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Dec 2010

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banananyo said:

I'm also not so sure about 'strong feminism'? So Panty and Stocking are bitchy and rude, have weapons, and are able to make a bunch of guys drool all over them by flashing their butts or something? Not that I don't love them for that, but it's just fanservice, and not really any deeper than that.

That's the same argument some people made about Bayonetta: might be cool and powerful, but since it's hot, it's just a sexual object/fanservice.

"Tonight, I sit in the eye of the storm. As fire boils around me, I press forward, winds and lightning lashing my wings. I am no match for what I face. Yet I will not back down, and though fear may place it's stranglehold on my heart, courage will see me through. With tears in my eyes, I hit full throttle. My engines become an inferno, and my weapons light up, awaiting my command.

If I die tonight, I will do so fighting for everything I believe in."

Dec 29, 2010 7:58 PM

#34

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Nov 2010

banananyo said:
It's definitely unusual and interesting, but as far as 'shaping the future of anime'? I don't think so.

I'm also not so sure about 'strong feminism'? So Panty and Stocking are bitchy and rude, have weapons, and are able to make a bunch of guys drool all over them by flashing their butts or something? Not that I don't love them for that, but it's just fanservice, and not really any deeper than that.

As awesome as it is, I think everyone's totally overestimated this series.

Eh, if people can find some deep meaning in the last two episodes of Evangelion, which amounted to nothing more than an hour long lecture on postmodern existentialism, its fine for people to find meaning in this.

BrickBreak said:

That's the same argument some people made about Bayonetta: might be cool and powerful, but since it's hot, it's just a sexual object/fanservice.

Lolwut?

Bayonetta is a horrifying abomination. I think its the legs. Isn't it a rule of the internet that if it exists, its someone's fetish out there or something?

Dec 29, 2010 7:58 PM

#35

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Nov 2010

BrickBreak said:

That's the same argument some people made about Bayonetta: might be cool and powerful, but since it's hot, it's just a sexual object/fanservice.

Lolwut?

Bayonetta is a horrifying abomination. I think its the legs. Isn't it a rule of the internet that if it exists, its someone's fetish out there or something?

Dec 29, 2010 8:25 PM

#36

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559028

Knife said:

Well, the creators do care. An animated series is not something you just throw together and go "whatever, I don't care what anyone thinks about this". It needs to make people want to buy DVD's or merchandise of it so it can make back the money that was spent creating it.
While some believe the scenes of P&S doing a sexy transformation are there as a criticism of magical girl transformations and perverts who get off on that crap, I'm more inclined to believe they're there to sell figures of them looking like that to otakus.

Let's step back here. There have been plenty of anime over the year that were thrown together and go "whatever." Some of them are successful, some of them are not. Even animated series are. Hell, look at Flapjack and Chowder, two animated series that were pretty much thrown together. They went on for several years because they brought in ratings and they didn't improve in their run. Even some movies show that the creators just don't care and they become successful over films or series that deserved success or didn't do it.

If the creators see that the series despite being half-assed was successful, they'll keep on half-assing it for as long as they can.

Right now, it's still too early to tell how successful the show is. Yet it has garnered massive attention in Japan and likewise, has an ungodly amount of fanart and so on. It might end up being a success.

Honestly, I don't give a damn what you think about the series. It's your opinion. I can see why you don't like it. It's a show that's not in good taste.

But a large amount of people like it. The PSG fans outweigh the people that hate it.

And again, about how half-assed a series can be. There are a huge number of harem fanservice anime out there that are quite shitty and quite successful and seem to never end in seasons.

Dec 29, 2010 11:47 PM

#37

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Nov 2010

KillerYandere said:

Knife said:
]Well, the creators do care. An animated series is not something you just throw together and go "whatever, I don't care what anyone thinks about this". It needs to make people want to buy DVD's or merchandise of it so it can make back the money that was spent creating it.
While some believe the scenes of P&S doing a sexy transformation are there as a criticism of magical girl transformations and perverts who get off on that crap, I'm more inclined to believe they're there to sell figures of them looking like that to otakus.

Let's step back here. There have been plenty of anime over the year that were thrown together and go "whatever." Some of them are successful, some of them are not. Even animated series are. Hell, look at Flapjack and Chowder, two animated series that were pretty much thrown together. They went on for several years because they brought in ratings and they didn't improve in their run. Even some movies show that the creators just don't care and they become successful over films or series that deserved success or didn't do it.

If the creators see that the series despite being half-assed was successful, they'll keep on half-assing it for as long as they can.

Right now, it's still too early to tell how successful the show is. Yet it has garnered massive attention in Japan and likewise, has an ungodly amount of fanart and so on. It might end up being a success.

Honestly, I don't give a damn what you think about the series. It's your opinion. I can see why you don't like it. It's a show that's not in good taste.

But a large amount of people like it. The PSG fans outweigh the people that hate it.

And again, about how half-assed a series can be. There are a huge number of harem fanservice anime out there that are quite shitty and quite successful and seem to never end in seasons.

Actually, PSG's reception in Japan has been lukewarm at best. Also My Little Sister has at least three times the amount of fan art PSG does.

MortrialusDec 30, 2010 12:21 AM

Dec 30, 2010 12:49 AM

#38

1234412314323

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KillerYandere said:
Honestly, I don't give a damn what you think about the series. It's your opinion. I can see why you don't like it. It's a show that's not in good taste.

I don't know why you assume I don't like it, I neither love it or hate it, it was okay. Also, Suehiro Maruo is one of my favorite artists, so I can definitely handle things not being in good taste, but I don't think the untasteful jokes in P&S were particularly funny.
I also don't give a damn if you like it, I just think the people who claim it's "deep" are stupid.

1234412314323Dec 30, 2010 1:13 AM

Dec 30, 2010 9:07 AM

#39

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Knife said:
Actually, PSG's reception in Japan has been lukewarm at best. Also My Little Sister has at least three times the amount of fan art PSG does.

Of course My Little Sister is probably more popular in Japan. It's moeblob anime, albeit better than most and having plot over similar moe anime like K-On. However, Panty and Stocking is aired on Cruchyroll and is available to other countries. Japan, as much as it likes to believe, isn't the center of the universe when it comes to anime popularity. Sure it's one of it's biggest businesses over there, but there are million of fans in America too for PSG. And the American fanart outweighs the Japanese fanart.

Honestly, PSG would probably be popular in the US should any company decide to dub it and market it right. Hell if Funimation used "Boobies for the Win" to make Sekirei sell out in it's first run, I don't see any problem with PSG being successful here.

Knife said:
I just think the people who claim it's "deep" are stupid.

And I don't claim it's deep either. As much as I like the series and aside from a few instances of symbolism there wasn't really anything quote-on-quote deep. I just found it a fresh breath of air after all these harem animes.

But most people think it's deep because Gainax did it. Evangelion and possibly FLCL are probably the only things the company did that were deep. Their previous anime Gurren Lagann, was not deep. It was an excuse to throw as many cliches in as possible.

Is Panty and Stocking deep. No. But underneath all the adult humor and potty humor is a story and several episodes foreshadow events once you watch it a second time or think back on it. Well as much foreshadowing as you can get from a series like this anyway. Lightweight plot and all.

Jan 5, 2011 6:59 PM

#40

Sabinlerose

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Sep 2009

1570

One thing I hope it changes is animation styles.
Fuck seeing the same style and the same faces all over again. Usually in Harem type animes.

It just ends up feeling like I'm reading Love Hina....again. And I would rather just read Love Hina. Again.

At the very least, I imagine Panty and Stocking was cheaper to produce. Which means more quality for the buck. I'm totally pulling that out of my ass though no real basis other then a hunch.

Jan 6, 2011 9:21 PM

#41

TitanXL

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Jul 2010

150

Sabinlerose said:
One thing I hope it changes is animation styles.
Fuck seeing the same style and the same faces all over again. Usually in Harem type animes.

Good lord, no. Japan's the last country that actually draws shows with appealing art, since America just uses Adobe Flash or Flash-looking garbage (which is what Panty and Stocking was parodying in the first place - American animation's flaws)

P&S worked as a one-note gag of bashing American animation. Let's leave it at that. And I laugh at people thinking this will, or should, shape anime.

Jan 7, 2011 1:00 AM

#42

Sabinlerose

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Sep 2009

1570

TitanXL said:

Sabinlerose said:
One thing I hope it changes is animation styles.
Fuck seeing the same style and the same faces all over again. Usually in Harem type animes.

Oh my god.
I can't stop laughing.

You don't know a thing about animation do you?

Jan 8, 2011 6:15 AM

#43

Psychodrake

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Jul 2009

537

Sabinlerose said:
One thing I hope it changes is animation styles.
Fuck seeing the same style and the same faces all over again. Usually in Harem type animes.

It just ends up feeling like I'm reading Love Hina....again. And I would rather just read Love Hina. Again.

At the very least, I imagine Panty and Stocking was cheaper to produce. Which means more quality for the buck. I'm totally pulling that out of my ass though no real basis other then a hunch.

I agree somewhat. I wish anime would return to the 90's style sort of like Gundam Unicorn is. It looks amazing with all of the new tech, far better than what I'd call the current flavor (K-On! type). This is obviously my personal view but I'm just tired of the cute.

It's rarely anything but cute girls at the moment. Berserk is my only saving grace from all the cute.

Feb 13, 2011 3:20 AM

#44

Itena

Offline

Aug 2007

154

I don't know whether it's going to change the japanese animation industry, but damn did this series do something amazing.

I feel like both the people calling it shit and the people calling it a masterpiece have very valid points.

Here's my take:

1. Experimenting with new styles and referencing american animation = AWESOME
2. The blatant crudeness of it all = the "shitty" part.
3. The animation, art and music = FRICK THIS IS AWESOME AWESOME AWESOME

Number 3's my favourite. I'm an animation student myself, and watching P&S was like "Here's an example of what will happen if you completely and perfectly follow EVERYTHING you learned and are learning in every class you have." It feels like something I should study and reference later on.

Man, I've said this before, but this show follows art theory like a bible!

Feb 19, 2011 3:25 AM

#45

-Katsu-

Offline

Nov 2008

KillerYandere said:

Knife said:
Actually, PSG's reception in Japan has been lukewarm at best. Also My Little Sister has at least three times the amount of fan art PSG does.

Everything you said is bullshit, Japan doesn't give a shit about western fans in the slightest bit and if you believe otherwise you are delusional. I don't think anyone over there would make an anime for filthy gaijins here, and I really hope they don't. Western fanart about anime outweights japense ones? Don't make me laugh.

And people stop complaining about 'the cute' stuff, that's just how Japan is, this decade we had many non-"cutesy" shows, the 90's on the other hand had also many "cute" shows, it's just that most people don't care about them because they aren't popular. It's okay to like shows you like and don't like the shows which aren't appealing to you, but do some more research, please.

Feb 22, 2011 4:29 AM

#46