Monogatari Season 2: Novel Perspectives
Two new guests CanonRap and Numbers and space come on to talk about Nisio’s writings and Shaft’s images.
In this special podcast, I bring on two guests to discuss the currently airing second season of the Monogatari series, particularly on Shaft’s handling of the adaptation of Nisio’s books, which we’ve all read. Joining me are Numbers and space a writer at Anime Audiolog and CanonRap, a long time translator who puts some of his light novel and manga translations onto his blog Quality Mistranslations. From the Monogatari series, CanonRap has translated Nekomonogatari White “Tsubasa Tiger” in full (mirrored on Baka-Tsuki) as well as excerpts from Nekomonogatari Black and from Kabukimonogatari. We do avoid spoilers for the sake of the vast majority of fans who are just following the anime, though we aren’t above teasing a bit. Thanks as always to Jrow for his fine production work on this podcast.
Guests:
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:05:00 — 47.7MB)
Music
We open with the first ending theme to this series, supercell‘s Kimi no Shiranai Monogatari (The Story You Don’t Know) and close with the latest ending theme, Snowdrop sung by Haruna Luna and Kawano Marina.
Novel illustrator VOFAN‘s beautiful first ending animation to Bakemonogatari.
About lvlln
A math/science geek and a self-dubbed cynical optimist. I don't care if it's deep, if it can make me feel something or laugh, it's fine in my book. @lvlln
POWUH: and LOLi Defender with 10997 comments
I’m obviously biased, but the Shinobu centered shows, Mayoi Jiangshi and Shinobu Time, are my favorite arcs, so far.
I’ve only really read Kizu in it’s fullest, bits and pieces of Neko White, and up to what is available for Mayoi Jiangshi. That gives me a very limited base to make an reasonable opinion, so I’ll just go with gut feeling.
It seems they take the dialogue that further’s plot at the expense of furthing character moments. Being a “talker” the character’s have to carry the show. But that is just me.
All of the OP and ED have been awesome. Some I like more than others, but I wouldn’t pitch any of them out. If I have to pick a favorite, it would have to be Marshmallow Justice…I’ve been a ska fan since Wave Two.
And it’s always cool to hear them done as orchestral OST/BGM pieces.
POWUH: 700-799 and Parkouring Fanboy with 776 comments
I don’t think I’ve seen anyone pick Marshmallow Justice as the favorite. That’s one I liked a lot for the ska feel in the TV version, but I was disappointed by the full version bringing in a guitar solo, when a horn solo (I don’t recognize the specific instrument – saxophone? Trombone? Trumpet?) would have been much better.
POWUH: and LOLi Defender with 10997 comments
Post Third Wave Ska has a tendency to go along with whatever it is fuzzing with, given that MJ is a straight up rocker, with little if any punk or skiffle influence, I thought the guitar solo felt appropriate. But….I did also feel the coulda had more trombone there. Missed opportunity.
POWUH: Meta Team and Spammy Tamer with 7115 comments
I disliked so much of Karen Bee that I completely forgot about that song. Listening to it, I think guitar solo works better than any horn solo would, mainly because horn sections work better as a section.
I couldn’t tell you anything about the progression of ska, but I do like some Reel Big Fish, with a little Mighty Mighty Bosstones at times.
Anything with a horn section is fun to listen to.
POWUH: and LOLi Defender with 10997 comments
MMB represents the best of the mainstream success that Marshmallow Justice riffs very heavily off of.
But these guys are my current favorite. Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra.
POWUH: iLurker with 5 comments
Amazing guys! Please, do it again! Truly, I laughed hard sometimes… A nice done podcast. A very nice done, btw.
POWUH: iLurker with 4 comments
Thanks for having me. I hope they’ll animate season 3 so we can do this again.
POWUH: 700-799 and Parkouring Fanboy with 776 comments
Thank you so much for coming on! It was a fun conversation, and with both Hanamonogatari & Kizumonogatari still to be released, we should have plenty of chances for a follow-up.
POWUH: and LOLi Defender with 10997 comments
Shinobu is such a contradiction. She stands off when she wants nothing more than to jump in. 600 years of existence has taught her little to anything she finds worthwhile. We see her now as a new existence, a child starting over again, with someone new, that is far behind her, yet ahead of her. As I get older, I have a healthy respect for that, as I don’t want to get old and crusty; unless of course it’s fun being that way.
POWUH: 700-799 and Parkouring Fanboy with 776 comments
Unfortunately, us mere mortals have to deal with our bodies getting crusty as we age. If only we could revert our physical selves back to a healthier age like she can. I think some scientists (and some quacks, like Ray Kurzweil) are working on that, though.
POWUH: and LOLi Defender with 10997 comments
I don’t know if I’m want to be a keet all over again, cause that is what Kurzweil will do if we let him.
POWUH: 1000-1099 and Pirate King with 1048 comments
Best Girl: Depends on what day of the week it is, I think. Nadeko is never #1, however. I have Tsubasa as my phone lock/home screen, so that’s my answer for now. I like her character a lot as well as Yui Horie voicing her.
Favorite OP: Overall, Sugar Sweet Nightmare from Bakemono, Yui Horie again… I also really like the OP for Otorimono, both song and animation.
Favorite Story: Can I just tie Nekomono Black/White? If I really had to rank the 2, I think I’d rank White ahead of Black, though I enjoyed both.
This season, I’ve been watching the series by the arc instead of by the episode. I was recommended Bakemono after all 15 eps. had been released and marathoned them and loved that series to pieces. I felt Nisemono wasn’t so hot in spots, so I liked that this season had 4 episodes and that I can watch the arcs all-at-once.
POWUH: 700-799 and Parkouring Fanboy with 776 comments
Nice to see you choose the correct girl and arc, though I wasn’t a huge fan of Sugar Sweet Nightmare. Not a bad song, but lacked the catchiness of some of the other OPs.
POWUH: Meta Team and PreCure Mastah with 9203 comments
Great job on this it was a very enjoyable listen!
Platinum disco ftw!
POWUH: Beginner (20-35) with 20 comments
Anyone who might disagree is simply platinum mad.
POWUH: iLurker with 5 comments
Great job and commentary guys. I am acquainted with Canonrap from a forum I frequent and was surprised and yet not with his opinions on the franchise from what I know of him.
Best girl – Hanekawa, now and forever. Fell hard when I marathoned through Bake – S2 in the summer. Just really an authentic, human character. You ought to like the latest ep in Koi, lvlln.
Best song – Toss up between three: Staple Stable, Sugar Sweet Nightmare, and Marshmallow Justice. The best animated OP was Neko Black’s bar none.
And yeah lvlln, SHAFT really fubared a ton of parts of Neko White, particularly her thoughts on her parents, which really spelled out HUGE revelations and brought a new perspective to the assumptions Oshino and Araragi made in Black about the Hanekawa family. A necessity for the viewers to understand Hanekawa, so like lvlln says, if you haven’t read it, go read it, go read it nao! Though, if you knew, SHAFT did plan to package the audio of the parts of the letter they cut in episode 5 for the Vol. 2 BD.
POWUH: 700-799 and Parkouring Fanboy with 776 comments
I actually thought Shaft did a great job with the letter, keeping the bits that mattered and not letting it extend to a full episode which it easily could have, given the amount of content. But it should be nice seeing the other bits in the BD. Kinda wish anime releases did what US TV show releases would do, which is to include both the airing and the extended/re-cut versions on the disc separately. And PLENTY of room in those BDs that are holding prob <1hr of video in most releases.
POWUH: iLurker with 1 comments
[…] with Fosh to talk about the series and the Shinobu Time arc specifically. Second, we published our own podcast earlier this week in which I brought on two guests who had also read the novels for a conversation […]