Romance Viewpoints…a Walk Down a Different Path or Two

[Beocat]

So, I imagine some of you are reeling from that poll…if you even managed to finish it.  I picked a hard topic to cover this time for sure.  Okay, I couldn’t resist but that will be my only pun. 

 

A romance is different to every person.  Some people have stricter definitions as to what constitutes a romance while others have a fairly loose identity to follow.  In my own opinion, harems have substantially muddied the water while other special romance circumstances (incest for instance) definitely pose some interesting moral conundrums.  That isn’t to say that other circumstances haven’t posed serious moral conundrums in the past.  I, for one, am old enough to remember when sex in anime (especially if out of wedlock) was considered controversial.  Let’s not get started on how long same-sex relationships took to become less of an issue across the board as well.

 

So, what does your concept of a romance encompass?  Do you have certain things that might make an anime not a romance?  How do harems fit in for you?  What do you think of incest relationships and what level or degree of incest are you able to tolerate (e.g. cousins but not siblings? Yearning but not intimate?)? 

 

I think that incest is definitely more common in the world of hentai, but that being said, harems have a strong tendency to dabble with incest as well.  With harems being inserted into more genres across the board, this is an issue that cannot be ignored. Anyone have any thoughts or opinions on that matter?

 

Please by all means, don't be shy in posting!  This will probably be my last poll for quite a while but I think that it raises an interesting topic for debate.  I can't wait to hear all of your thoughts on this (it is really much broader than I usually aim for)!

[XII360]

8 hours ago, Beocat said:

So, I imagine some of you are reeling from that poll…if you even managed to finish it.  I picked a hard topic to cover this time for sure.  Okay, I couldn’t resist but that will be my only pun. 

1.) So, what does your concept of a romance encompass? 

2.) Do you have certain things that might make an anime not a romance? 

3.) How do harems fit in for you? 

4.) What do you think of incest relationships and what level or degree of incest are you able to tolerate (e.g. cousins but not siblings? Yearning but not intimate?)? 

I think that incest is definitely more common in the world of hentai, but that being said, harems have a strong tendency to dabble with incest as well.  With harems being inserted into more genres across the board, this is an issue that cannot be ignored. Anyone have any thoughts or opinions on that matter?

ive seen some bad puns, but that was really bad >.>, but yea gonna answer them as i edited them in order

1.) aslong as there's true love, and the mere fact no one is cheating (even though harem is kind of cheating?), romance is a kind where both character(s) love each other and would most likely do anything for his/her partner 

2.) NTR/mindbreaking's, aslong as i see that tag, i have the instant feeling i wont enjoy it, the mere idea of mind breaking/ntr'ing (tho' this is somewhat strict on manga's i read, you dont see it much on anime)

3.) at first, it was eh-ish, but after playing some sim-related game's, i could relate to main character a bit, mainly the fact that picking one best girl is almost impossible, so the solution is picking them all, i sure wont like it if i see them crying (though, as i said, in a way, if we look at it in reality-ish, its kinda like <MC/hero> is cheating on his girlfriend(s), due to having multiple girls ?)

4.) ill say it now, dont kill me or burn me in a stake or flame me for what im about to say guys <.>

in my own opinion, incest is wincest (its fine), of course real life incest might be a problem, but were talking about in anime, and in anime, the idea of incest is just fine for me, (ore no imouto for example wasn't bad for me, and it was 100% incest)

i guess that's that, ill be taking my leaf then

...im sorry

[brycec]

I think I enjoy romance that are not the main plot more.

I do not really have too much experience with the romance genre, but one that I did try, which was Love & Lies, ended up feeling too much like a “been there done that” kind of thing and gives the impression that every relationship was the same.

Each relationship is different, in terms of how people grow closer and how it begins (only real common trait is that each couple spends a lot of time together), and romance as a side plot works well in illustrating that, as opposed to it being the main focus.

[awesomedude20]

Romance is probably my favourite genre, and it has been for like 5 years now, so I have a solid grasp on it as a whole at this point.

To me, a romance is good so long as it actually gets to conclusive "level of romance"

First level would be confession. It MUST be acknowledged by both of the characters as well, if the show does a copout and has one of the characters not hear what the other said etc. Following that, there must be a response to the confession. I don't overlt care what the story decides to do after the confession and response, so long as it isn't pointless dumb people wondering what to do with their feelings until an inevitable cliffhanger. If things go well for the two though, we move onto stage 2.

Stage 2 is best stage since it isn't horribly uncommon, and is rather fulfilling in most cases. This is when the romance gets to the point of the characters forming a relationship, simple as that.

Stage 3 is much rarer, but always a treat. This is after the characters have formed a relationship and you get to see them develop together as an actual couple.

Stage 4 is the best shit but I've only seen it happen twice in anime, and four times in the manga I've read. Anime doesn't like to get to stage 4. This is when the main couple gets married.

Finally, the elusive stage 5 would be following the characters lives after marriage.

 

Overall, I have never seen a single anime to hit every stage in order, with a few weird examples tossed in. I will reiterate that a romance does not have to have a happy ending to be good, as long as the ending makes sense, and the cliffhanger , if it has one, never happens before stage 1.

I mentioned some weird examples.

Momokuri for example, goes from stage 1 to 2 in 45 seconds of the show starting, and the remainder of the show is spent on stage 3.

 

tl;dr as long as it isn't a bitch and cliffhangs before any romance happens, we gucci.

 

Ah as well, on the topic of harems. I don't hate the idea of harems, but man most od them just happen to be terrible. They constantly set up opportunities to hit stage 1, but due to the terrible, terrible characters, especially the overly bland copy/paste self insert main characters that always get used, these opportunities are shot down by any number of overused cliches and the plot progression gets dragged to a halt.

In my lifetime, I have seen one single harem anime that goes to completion, with a proper ending with the MC choosing someone, and that is Zero no Tsukaima. Every other harem has ended on a cliffhanger. I have seen ONE other one that got to stage 2, but it doesn't count since as soon as that happened, they fucked over the MCs personality by tearing open the can of harem once again and cliffhanging it with forced drama starting up again.

[the_twig]

As far as we see it, romance has a fairly solid criteria.

• At least one character must fall in love.

Note that we don't require two people to fall in love with each other, however if a one-sided crush happens and it is a sub-plot, we probably wouldn't consider it to have enough romance to deserve the tag. As an example of this, we're bringing up Scrapped Princess. Even though it does not have a romance tag, we still count it. We can't explain it entirely without spoilers, but we've written the following to minimise spoilers as much as possible, so you should be fine to read it, even if you have not seen the show. We're still putting it in a spoiler tag though.

Near the end of the series, Pamela starts to fall in love with another character that she shares a flat with. She begins working, not to earn money for herself, but to earn money so that they can live together. While this does not go unnoticed by the love interest, they do deliberately ignore it.

So why do we consider this to be enough to be a romance, when it is not a part of the main plot? Because there is literally an entire arc dedicated to it. Pamela later tries to resist the other characters, because she is in love, and doesn't want to be separated. It has a major impact in the overall plot.

Now then, given how inclusive our criteria is, we're going to have to put another criteria in place to separate good romances from bad romances.

• The romance must have some sort of conclusion.

Whether that conclusion is kiss and hold hands, go forth and get married, a rejection, a split up, or even the love simply petering out, we don't really care. They are all conclusions, and the round off the romance nicely. Two of our favourite recent romances, and probably the best romances since 2013, are Kuzu no Honkai, and Tsuki ga Kirei. Both of those did really unorthodox conclusions, but they were fantastically well done conclusions, so they just wrapped themselves up really well.

Please note that there are exceptions to that criteria. Some romances that meet it are just dull, and others that don't are really interesting or enjoyable.

Now on to the side questions.

Harems are mostly a bane on the medium. Almost all of them are there just for the fanservice, barely any of them have interesting characters, and our 'good romance' criteria basically destroys the genre. We do consider harems to be romances, but they are not good romances. An exception is Ouran Highschool Host Club. That series is loads of fun, with interesting characters (including the MC!!!), good comedy, and decent progression. The fact that it is a reverse harem however makes getting people to watch it really hard.

Incest is a weird topic for us, because we're siblings of opposite gender who are incredibly close. We can definitely understand why you'd want to spend time with your sibling, but romantic feelings are just not something that really develops, simply because you're around each other so much. If it's lust based, sure, lust does weird things. Otherwise, we don't really get it. Given that though, we aren't really opposed to incest based anime. It's an interesting concept, and it can set up some interesting moral dilemmas. Unfortunately, we are yet to see one that takes it completely seriously. They have all been comedies or harems. What Beocat said about them being more common in hentai, eroge, and other sexualised material does seem to be true though. If anyone knows of an incest anime that takes itself seriously, feel free to tell us about it.

Finally, we want to bring up yuri and yaoi. We are all for these genres. They are different, and you can do some interesting stuff with them. Unfortunately, the quality bars for both yuri and yaoi are dreadfully low. The only one we've seen that was even remotely recommendable as a romance was Strawberry Panic. Simoun is also a decent sci-fi, Yuri Kuma Arashi was ok as a political/ethical/sexual/everythingelseal statement, and Yuri on Ice!!! was actually a pretty good sports anime. We wouldn't recommend any of them for the romance though.

[Beocat]

@Wedgy @brycec  Some of my favorite couples are actually from genres other than romance too.  For instance, Shiro and Akatsuki from Log Horizon is one of my favorites and a big part of it is actually their age.  They are older, have graduated from college, and have their own jobs and lives before being stuck in the game (though I can't say if that relationship will go anywhere, especially with it being harem-lite).  They are refreshingly not in high school  That was a big part of the appeal of Recovery of an MMO Junkie too.  When I was younger, I really had no interest in romance but the older I get, the more I seem to enjoy it.

16 hours ago, XII360 said:

ive seen some bad puns, but that was really bad >.>, but yea gonna answer them as i edited them in order

  Hehe, I have worse  My father was the King of Bad Jokes and the Master of Bad Puns.  It probably runs in the family.

I do agree with you that Harems are kind of borderline cheating.  I mean, if you are interested in starting a relationship but you don't have family jewels to make things exclusive or even tell someone you just aren't into them, then you are really just keeping your options open.  Not much of a commitment there.  I had to actually look up NTR (netorare).  I have to admit...that's one way to start a relationship...or break one...  From a psychological standpoint, some of those anime are almost like Stockholm Syndrome which could explain why they typically turn out the way that they do. 

 

As for the incest stance, I won't be burning you at the stake for it.  I personally couldn't stand watching anime that alluded to incest closer than at the cousin level (even if not acted upon. Surprisingly, cousin incest is legal in my state...not sure if that influenced my natural tolerance of it or not) and after a while I decided that I would just have to tolerate it to watch some anime (with much eye rolling and grimacing).  Then I stumbled across Selector WIXOSS and all that changed...  It snuck up on me and I didn't mind it in that anime.  I'm not sure I can say the same on others.  Even the Game of Thrones incest is still rather revolting to me lol... 

11 hours ago, awesomedude20 said:

Ah as well, on the topic of harems. I don't hate the idea of harems, but man most od them just happen to be terrible. They constantly set up opportunities to hit stage 1, but due to the terrible, terrible characters, especially the overly bland copy/paste self insert main characters that always get used, these opportunities are shot down by any number of overused cliches and the plot progression gets dragged to a halt.

In my lifetime, I have seen one single harem anime that goes to completion, with a proper ending with the MC choosing someone, and that is Zero no Tsukaima. Every other harem has ended on a cliffhanger. I have seen ONE other one that got to stage 2, but it doesn't count since as soon as that happened, they fucked over the MCs personality by tearing open the can of harem once again and cliffhanging it with forced drama starting up again.

Let's hear it for Familiar of Zero!  =D  Yes!  Another fan!  I also loved how it ended.  Did not love the harem...especially the maid (whose personality changed drastically from season one...even the princess =/ Those two became carbon copies of one another.  What a waste.) but the fact that he actually marries her (for the second time I believe... it's been a while and I was under some extreme stress the month I binge-watched it so my memory is a bit bad) made up for it.  I really do believe that it is the only one with a conclusive ending.  Some reverse harems have conclusive endings too but they never seem to make it that far in the anime.  It was just so refreshing to see  Not to mention he deserved literally every lashing she gave him.  Maximum approval here!  Hehe.

 

I think Kanon didn't do a bad job though it certainly wasn't a good job either for a harem.  He did have a complete romance with one girl (which I thought was a cheap cop out move on the writers) and did kind of choose another one (the one I was rooting for but you just don't see where it goes far down the road).  So...half-way complete?  As a tragic harem, I felt it did fairly well.  I am a personal fan of tragedies.  When I get into a sad mood, a tragic story is all I need to set my soul into a gentle glide of sorrow.  That definitely helps to bump it up on the list for me.

 

By the way, I love your Levels/Stages of Romance too.  Stage One....the typical cliché is the train/subway rolling past drowning out the confession that took episodes to build!  Ultimately frustrating to me.  But then, I like to forward with people and I prefer that they be forward with me.  You know, if they didn't hear you the first time, repeat yourself until they do.  Ah, but romances are filled with frustrating scenes like this meant to extend out the time to a change in the relationship.  Stage 3 and 4 are awesome when you actually get to see it happen.  I too wish there were more Stage 5's. 

 

@the_twig  That is interesting...only one must fall in love...  Definitely not a traditional view.  I can see how it would be more difficult to craft a meaningful story that way.  It makes me think of Eponine from Les Miserables.  Another tragic story....  ~sighs~  And I completely agree with you that harems are a bane on Romances.  I cannot tell you how I came to loathe the harem members in Familiar of Zero.  How I started out with respect for most of them...and ended with such disgust....  There are other harems that have frustrated me terribly, but that one took the cake (and yet the ending was quite satisfying, likely because the harem I loathed and detested was nullified at that time).  On the incest part....I can see how it could be a weird subject for the two of you (with a joint account....no offense but on Facebook that usually means you cheated on your spouse in the past.  This is the first circumstance I've seen a joint account where it was not a husband and wife.  Just a bit different, but unusual circumstances too.).  A friend of mine believes that Freezing (Vibration? The second season) took a serious take on incest.  I didn't make it past the 2nd episode of the first season so I can't personally attest to that myself.  She also watches some of the Yuri and Yaoi anime too....her thoughts are that too many of them devolve rather quickly into lust to be any good. 

[the_twig]

6 hours ago, Beocat said:

Then I stumbled across Selector WIXOSS and all that changed...  It snuck up on me and I didn't mind it in that anime.  I'm not sure I can say the same on others. 

Yes, Selector WIXOSS was good. It was very much a side story, and they didn’t explore the motives behind it much, but the incest was done fairly well. Sadly Lostorage was a complete mess.

6 hours ago, Beocat said:

Let's hear it for Familiar of Zero!  =D  Yes!  Another fan!  I also loved how it ended.  Did not love the harem...especially the maid (whose personality changed drastically from season one...even the princess =/ Those two became carbon copies of one another.  What a waste.) but the fact that he actually marries her (for the second time I believe... it's been a while and I was under some extreme stress the month I binge-watched it so my memory is a bit bad) made up for it.  I really do believe that it is the only one with a conclusive ending.  Some reverse harems have conclusive endings too but they never seem to make it that far in the anime.  It was just so refreshing to see  Not to mention he deserved literally every lashing she gave him.  Maximum approval here!  Hehe.

Again Zero was good. It had a proper conclusion, and it was fairly enjoyable. Although yeah, maid/princess were kind of crappy. The blue haired kudere was alright though. If it was just a love triangle with her, the MC, and Louise, then that would have been great. It even had someone fall in love with someone other than the MC. Shame that the author literally had to die to finish his books.

6 hours ago, Beocat said:

A friend of mine believes that Freezing (Vibration? The second season) took a serious take on incest.  I didn't make it past the 2nd episode of the first season so I can't personally attest to that myself.

We tried that one years ago, and didn’t get very far. It seemed to be very ecchi, and at the time we were trying not to watch much ecchi stuff. It may be worth a retry.

6 hours ago, Beocat said:

She also watches some of the Yuri and Yaoi anime too....her thoughts are that too many of them devolve rather quickly into lust to be any good. 

Yes, that is entirely the problem. They aren’t there for a good romantic story, they’re there because you can have twice as much fanservice. That’s true in almost all mediums actually, and we hate it. We have been slowly working our way through the yuri genre, and the only one we still have any hope for is Maria-sama. Kuzu no Honkai also had a bit of yuri, which was almost entirely lust, however that show was entirely about lust, so it’s sort of forgiven. If someone asked us for a yuri romance though, we still wouldn’t give it to them, despite how much we love it.

Edited June 28, 2018 by the_twig

[Beocat]

@the_twig  Yes, I have actually not gotten around to the Lostorage series as of yet but I'll try to keep my expectations at a minimum.  It's better to think it was better than it could have been than worse than it should have been lol...    Thanks for the heads up on that one  About Freezing, yes the ecchi was entirely my reason for quitting that anime too.  I remember actually watching this on hulu with my best friend (she does not remember this lol).  I had hoped the ecchi would be less by episode two but it wasn't so I wanted to drop it and she wanted to continue it....she actually ended up buying it later and watching the entire series.  She has a much higher ecchi/fanservice tolerance than I do (which does not match her own standards that she describes for anime but eh...).  She has since told me plenty about the series in an attempt to get me to watch it again...if I ever do, it will have to be one episode a week or so unless the ecchi shrinks back.  As far as serious takes are concerned...  the incest is not a love story.  You should private message me if you want to know more. 

[Oakmi]

On 6/26/2018 at 9:27 PM, Beocat said:

So, what does your concept of a romance encompass?  Do you have certain things that might make an anime not a romance?  How do harems fit in for you?  What do you think of incest relationships and what level or degree of incest are you able to tolerate (e.g. cousins but not siblings? Yearning but not intimate?)? 

So let me start with these. Firstly I feel that a good romance is a story that is told in a way that the romance comes naturally, and not necessarily between the two leads. It's nice once in awhile to find that the romantic interest is not the setup. As far as incest goes, ahem...someone bring me my pulpit will you please. 

Incest is not normal, and I wondered for the longest time why it seemingly is portrayed in Anime more frequently than in the past. I'm not too sure if its a culture thing or what but it's something that should seriously be addressed. And for the people that don't believe that "Keeping it in the Family" harms anyone, well ladies and gentlemen, I have met some people who are products of incest and none of them have ever said "Damn am I glad they kept all those crappy genes around for family keepsakes." Just saying...and this was the one topic I did my thesis on in school. So I can say that I'm in the group of people who say "Incest bad...you no do!" 

Wholeheartedly I will drop a title with incest themes (Unless portrayed in a way that is part of the story and taken seriously and not just there for the perversion aspect) like a bad habit. I mean I will kick that sucker to the curb faster than a sack full of yesterday's garbage. 

With that being said, can anyone tell me what the definition of relative humidity is? 

Anyone? 

It's the sweat that drips off your forehead onto your sister's thighs. 

Did you laugh? Good if you did, meh if you didn't. Can't make everything funny. 

Anyway to address the harem, the harem can have its place, but it needs to find that place and not overshadow everything like a giant umbrella. And PLEASE JAPAN let's not make harem romance a trend that will be beat to death like horse tillin' the fields. 

Cheers! 

(Pulpit returned) Slightly used...

"Whew...thought that sucker was really going to get after it. I mean crap on a cracker, he actually asked for a pulpit. You hear that...what a douche...wait, this thing still on? Shite!"

 

 

[Beocat]

1 hour ago, Oakmi said:

As far as incest goes, ahem...someone bring me my pulpit will you please. 

~backs up the pickup truck and lowers the tailgate~  Will this do? 

1 hour ago, Oakmi said:

Incest is not normal, and I wondered for the longest time why it seemingly is portrayed in Anime more frequently than in the past. I'm not too sure if its a culture thing or what but it's something that should seriously be addressed. And for the people that don't believe that "Keeping it in the Family" harms anyone, well ladies and gentlemen, I have met some people who are products of incest and none of them have ever said "Damn am I glad they kept all those crappy genes around for family keepsakes." Just saying...and this was the one topic I did my thesis on in school. So I can say that I'm in the group of people who say "Incest bad...you no do!" 

Wholeheartedly I will drop a title with incest themes (Unless portrayed in a way that is part of the story and taken seriously and not just there for the perversion aspect) like a bad habit. I mean I will kick that sucker to the curb faster than a sack full of yesterday's garbage. 

I definitely agree that this is a topic that needs to be addressed (preferably sooner than later) by the industry.  The problem with any kind of artistic medium that involves story-telling is that if you spread a concept widely enough, and often enough, it becomes culturally acceptable with time (and this isn't always a good thing for the people in the culture).  I do believe that the widespread portrayal of incest (even in what might be an innocent way) may ultimately cause some questionable family relations some day in Japan, but that is yet to be seen.  You know, I had initially planned on starting up a genomics company (before I went and did something else) so I know all about what you are talking about with the genetic issues that incest creates.  It is an awful thing to burden a child with those problems from the day they were born (not all are unlucky, but it only takes one!).  I will say though that although I generally don't like them, I have stumbled across the one where I actually rooted for the siblings to develop the relationship.  I guess you should never say never lol...It was very well crafted I will admit.

 

And I want you to know that relative humidity joke...took me about 10 seconds for the light bulb to go off but then I was bowled over laughing!  That was a good one!  And I think the harem trend has already been beat to death and then some.  It is everywhere! 

Edited June 29, 2018 by Beocat

[drill]

Romance is completely fine with me as long as that is not the only thing going on in the story.  Basically anything but Romance + SoL I will probably find enjoyable (kinda why I like the first season of Clannad over the second).  As for harems, they are usually just annoying to watch in general.  Just having one increases the chances of blander characters, cringeworthy cookie cuttered events, and the MC not picking the character you want them to, or just not picking one at all.  Not to say all harems are bad, just seems to be a running trend is all.  Lastly, blood related incest in anime will probably turn me off to the point where I actively choose not to watch such shows.  The Irregular at Magic High School is probably the closest I'll go in that regard where the romance isn't really taken anywhere in that relationship.

[AkiAtashi]

I love romances but it really depends on the plot. I don't want the heroines to be spineless and just keep running away every time the guy shows up ^^. Of course, side stories are also a must. Next, harems are really cringe-worthy to watching. I'm fine with Highschool of the Dead because it brings an awesome vibe. Nisekoi is a cute romance but too much harem. Well, I watch incest but not all that time. But the genre of mixing those three together?! I think it also depends on the plot~

[Oakmi]

On 6/29/2018 at 11:27 AM, Beocat said:

The problem with any kind of artistic medium that involves story-telling is that if you spread a concept widely enough, and often enough, it becomes culturally acceptable with time (and this isn't always a good thing for the people in the culture).  I do believe that the widespread portrayal of incest (even in what might be an innocent way) may ultimately cause some questionable family relations some day in Japan, but that is yet to be seen.

Totally agree, the more the concept is mainstreamed the more normalized it becomes until its abnormal not to have sexual relations with your family. However, the question that's raised there as well is this, will it? I think we have an innate distaste built in genetically to us as a survival instinct. Anyway, this who topic made me curious just about that or how much has incest become normal in Japan and I'm finding some interesting things. Scary, but interesting. 

Now back to your normally scheduled thread...

PS: Glad you liked the joke. It's one of the more decently distasteful I have within my repertoire. 

[Beocat]

On ‎6‎/‎30‎/‎2018 at 11:50 PM, drill said:

Romance is completely fine with me as long as that is not the only thing going on in the story.  Basically anything but Romance + SoL I will probably find enjoyable (kinda why I like the first season of Clannad over the second).  As for harems, they are usually just annoying to watch in general.  Just having one increases the chances of blander characters, cringeworthy cookie cuttered events, and the MC not picking the character you want them to, or just not picking one at all.  Not to say all harems are bad, just seems to be a running trend is all.  Lastly, blood related incest in anime will probably turn me off to the point where I actively choose not to watch such shows.  The Irregular at Magic High School is probably the closest I'll go in that regard where the romance isn't really taken anywhere in that relationship.

A side-story fan, then?  Hmm...I used to be that way too but my tastes just keep evolving over time.  I'm even starting to get slightly interested in sports-related anime (though I have no real life interest in sports.  Very odd.).  As for cringeworthy cookie cutter events, I can definitely name a few (wind blows the skirt up as the MC takes an innocent picture ending in a slap, MC and HC run into one another and land in a compromising position ending in a slap, MC walks in on HC in the nude ending in a slap...) as they are the reason I still know how to roll my eyes.  I'm surprised you were able to watch the Irregulars.  That one was a huge turn off for me (probably because it was thrust into my face almost immediately on the first episode).  I've come to believe that most MC's have sisters so that they can be a harem member eventually.   

On ‎7‎/‎1‎/‎2018 at 8:47 AM, AkiAtashi said:

I love romances but it really depends on the plot. I don't want the heroines to be spineless and just keep running away every time the guy shows up ^^. Of course, side stories are also a must. Next, harems are really cringe-worthy to watching. I'm fine with Highschool of the Dead because it brings an awesome vibe. Nisekoi is a cute romance but too much harem. Well, I watch incest but not all that time. But the genre of mixing those three together?! I think it also depends on the plot~

You know, it's interesting that you mentioned Spineless heroines.  Sometimes that really is the case and I think it gets used as a means of extending the romantic tension (albeit, there are better ways of doing it).  Have you ever seen Okami-san and her Seven Companions?  The spineless one is actually the guy...and he's not really spineless, just has pretty severe anxiety.  That was a very unique anime and I felt the romance could have been amazing if they had continued it.  Yet another anime that will probably never get another season...  >_> 

8 hours ago, Oakmi said:

Totally agree, the more the concept is mainstreamed the more normalized it becomes until its abnormal not to have sexual relations with your family. However, the question that's raised there as well is this, will it? I think we have an innate distaste built in genetically to us as a survival instinct. Anyway, this who topic made me curious just about that or how much has incest become normal in Japan and I'm finding some interesting things. Scary, but interesting. 

Now back to your normally scheduled thread...

PS: Glad you liked the joke. It's one of the more decently distasteful I have within my repertoire. 

Well, studies have shown that we innately find beauty in people who are more genetically different than we are (likely because the increased variability in genes increases the robust nature of your immune system and from a survival standpoint that is important) and less beauty in those genetically similar.  That being said, with all these fathers raping their daughters in America that happens (truly sad cases.  Working in a pediatric clinic, you see the actual effects of sexual abuse on these children.  Horrific. I believe it is more widespread than reported.) I really question if people actually have an innate distaste for it or if it is more a convenience thing.  I am interested in what interesting things you found in your digging on Japan.  Care to share?  You can private message me if you think it is too hard core for the forum.

[drill]

On 7/2/2018 at 1:03 PM, Beocat said:

A side-story fan, then?  Hmm...I used to be that way too but my tastes just keep evolving over time.  I'm even starting to get slightly interested in sports-related anime (though I have no real life interest in sports.  Very odd.).  As for cringeworthy cookie cutter events, I can definitely name a few (wind blows the skirt up as the MC takes an innocent picture ending in a slap, MC and HC run into one another and land in a compromising position ending in a slap, MC walks in on HC in the nude ending in a slap...) as they are the reason I still know how to roll my eyes.  I'm surprised you were able to watch the Irregulars.  That one was a huge turn off for me (probably because it was thrust into my face almost immediately on the first episode).  I've come to believe that most MC's have sisters so that they can be a harem member eventually.   

Yeah, I used to like just normal romances a bit more, but its just not something I enjoy as much nowadays.  Don't know how you do it with the sports anime though.  I've tried several, but none of them really seem to stick with me at all.  I think if I were to enjoy one it'd have to be a comedy first before it was a sports anime.  With the Irregular anime that makes it easier to watch for me is that you have to realize that Tatsuya really doesn't have any feelings for anything, so the only way he can remotely express happiness is through his relationship with his sister.  Fortunately Tatsuya doesn't really have a harem since they do pair pretty much everyone off, and while Miyuki will probably never find anyone later on (although, would be huge character development if she did), it also does not appear that her relationship with Tatsuya will really progress any further than it already is (as it didn't for the entire season).

[Oakmi]

On 7/2/2018 at 12:03 PM, Beocat said:

Well, studies have shown that we innately find beauty in people who are more genetically different than we are (likely because the increased variability in genes increases the robust nature of your immune system and from a survival standpoint that is important) and less beauty in those genetically similar.  That being said, with all these fathers raping their daughters in America that happens (truly sad cases.  Working in a pediatric clinic, you see the actual effects of sexual abuse on these children.  Horrific. I believe it is more widespread than reported.) I really question if people actually have an innate distaste for it or if it is more a convenience thing.  I am interested in what interesting things you found in your digging on Japan.  Care to share?  You can private message me if you think it is too hard core for the forum.

Answer me this: 

I can make you feel warm, I can lend you comfort, I can be your best friend; Yet in the end it is I that will betray you the most. If you know the answer then PM me and we'll talk more since I don't want to down the vibe you got going here. XD 

 

[Beocat]

On ‎7‎/‎4‎/‎2018 at 11:01 PM, drill said:

Yeah, I used to like just normal romances a bit more, but its just not something I enjoy as much nowadays.  Don't know how you do it with the sports anime though.  I've tried several, but none of them really seem to stick with me at all.  I think if I were to enjoy one it'd have to be a comedy first before it was a sports anime.  With the Irregular anime that makes it easier to watch for me is that you have to realize that Tatsuya really doesn't have any feelings for anything, so the only way he can remotely express happiness is through his relationship with his sister.  Fortunately Tatsuya doesn't really have a harem since they do pair pretty much everyone off, and while Miyuki will probably never find anyone later on (although, would be huge character development if she did), it also does not appear that her relationship with Tatsuya will really progress any further than it already is (as it didn't for the entire season).

Try Yuri!!! On Ice yet?  That's the one I'm going to try out (then thinking about seeing what this Prince of Tennis thing is all about that people go on and on over...) as I am actually a huge fan of gymnastics and ice skating competitions (most any sober person can run in a straight line.  It takes actual skill to throw yourself up in the air and twist, turn, and capitulate and then land while making it look graceful and effortless.  Grace that I lack...clumsy me...  ~sighs~).  I haven't started watching it yet so no spoilers folks.    I've already heard some things about it but I'm just hoping the ice skating is good.  Hmmm...I might try to rewatch Irregulars someday (but can't promise I'l get any further, even knowing that). 

@Oakmi message sent  

[Oakmi]

18 hours ago, Beocat said:

message sent