neia_7

apologies to EmptyBed, but i just didn’t think it was that good.  sure it was great, and as always, a cut above all other anime – yoshitoshi abe productions always are, but i think i’m too immersed in haibane renmei.  i wasn’t particularly emotional about it at all, and neia herself just doesn’t change – it reminded me of sassy girl, which after watching il mare again recently, i like even less (again, it’s still good, just not as good as il mare).
actually i didn’t like neia as much as lain, but lain really is unique.

i know Empty will probably argue that it’s a lot like lost in translation, which i really loved, but i don’t konw – there’s something about abusive people and those that just take it that is particularly annoying to me.  haibane had almost none of these vices – and i think herin lies the key to my tastes.  there wasn’t really anything wrong with neia_7 at all, probably just it’s comic angle shook me off.  i don’t really do comedy much – here and there, so i suppose neia falls into that, but comedy rarely reaches me.  lain has an abstract subtlety and haibane a simple honesty that i am very much alligned with.  neia i think reminded me of flcl – great animation, great comedy, stunning animation sequences/mattes/frames etc, but just not an overly emotional experience.

it might not help that all i’ve been doing at recently is listening to the heart of air ep from haibane renmei.

life bless you, cdjapan.

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Commentary
March 16, 2010

Let me clarify.
When I talk about My Sassy Girl, it’s the original Korean version which naturally was made long before the U.S. remake which I haven’t seen, nor will I.
And bluntly, the original My Sassy Girl is rubbish.
The theme of abusive yet allegedly comical women is most certainly a cultural thing, and it’s a sub-culture that I do not stand for. I’m also violently opposed to characters who are not punished for the stupidity of their own actions, particularly in emotionally abusive situations. I don’t care if it’s comedy, it’s absolutely disgusting.