There were a lot of good things here, and a lot of things I personally didn't like at all.
Sometimes being a girl who likes anime is tough, because there's so much that we really want to like and sometimes can't. Being a girl doesn't mean I can't like a
show full of fanservice, that's true, and I've stated before that fanservice isn't something I dislike if done right, for whatever sex. Personally I'm unaffected by fanservice in the way it's supposed to work; I'm an asexual, I feel no excitement at seeing sensuality at work on boys or on girls, but I appreciate what it does and why. It'd be stupid to say that humans are all asexual because they're not, even if I am, and I don't think sexuality is a bad thing at all. But there are times that as a feminist, I do feel a little awkward when I see a
really blatant bit of fanservice, though note that this isn't
always the case. I do think it works in plenty of shows, like
Hataraku Maou-sama!, for instance, or
Free! in another (though that's a can of worms I could talk about for hours and won't), but in the case of
Kill la Kill, I don't think it does.
See, I very much want to like this series, it's a
quirky, old school thing with plenty of great animation, style, and even good humor. Yet despite that, I have this odd feeling that I can't decide whether I like it or not. I'm reminded heavily of
FLCL, a series I always tried to like but couldn't, and which every guy I've ever known who has seen it raves about. Now I don't think that fanservice is where the line is drawn, but there's something about the manic energy of these shows that feels odd to me as a female viewer. It's like I'm watching something that wasn't quite meant for me, especially when it comes to the latter series; oh I understood the symbolism and the quirkiness and message just fine, but somehow, it made me feel like an outsider looking in, rather than something I was supposed to identify with. Interestingly enough, that's the exact opposite feeling that I hear from male viewers of the series. Perhaps it's just me, and that's very likely, but
FLCL just didn't work for me, and I'm afraid
Kill la Kill might be a similar story.
Fanservice is an issue, yes; Matoi Ryuuko (
Koshimizu Ami) is a very good female character driven by revenge and badassery, but her magical suit is just a little too much to take without feeling insulted as a female. It's something about the way her appearance is commented on, about how her sexiness is distracting and how her face looks flushed and ashamed while she wears it, about how there's something of a
rape reference in the way the suit forces itself on her and she later comments on "not having decided to wear it"; it feels gross to me, it's not very flattering, but it's part of a bigger problem. Again, I feel like I'm not really part of the audience who's supposed to be watching this; I feel left out even though the protagonist is female, and I'm not really sure what to make of such an odd feeling. It's hardly something I could explain, and it's not like I think the anime is purposefully sexist or anything over the top like that; it just doesn't work for me, and it doesn't have to. It's a very good show, and I know that, but everyone gets to choose what they watch and why. I'll definitely still be watching (though not blogging), because there was still plenty for me to enjoy from
the premise and animation, but we'll see if this odd feeling persists further in or not.
I can tell you as a guy watching this I felt the same way. Gurren laggan is one of my favorite series and I want to like this series to, but the type of fan service they are doing in this really bothered me, especially with how the suit I'm assuming she will always fight in looks.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad to hear I'm not the only one feeling that way then. Somehow it just feels... off, to say the least. If it weren't for that, I think this would have been a lot more enjoyable, though even then the manic energy isn't quite right for me (though I can objectively see where that's being done well).
DeleteI agree that the fan service was forced and in a way it did interrupt the flow.
Deleteyet it had funny moments (upside-down girl), about the so called "rape reference scene" don't see the problem. I mean, you watched and loved Valvraped (sorry Valvrave) and it was the same as there S:
anyway, I really like the heroine female, I had this feeling that she's an optimal one - a bit badass but good, know when to charge in or withdraw, has good influence about the flow.
besides there's plenty to enjoy from this great first episode. there is feeling of something very different from what we see in most anime today.
and I believe the "odd feeling" will pass on when you'll see more of it.
Correction, I really like Valvrave the show in general, I hated the rape scene. Hated it. It's a problem there too, but the style of Valvrave trainwreck works for me somewhat better than the style of KLK. Rape scenes are never pleasant for me, but even without the rape reference here, I'd still not feel comfortable watching the episode. I don't think the odd feeling will pass, and that's okay.
DeleteI agree that it was too odd to keep things regularly like nothing happened after that bizrre rape scene, yet I don't think we can really call it rape scene ( a reference yes), unlike valvrave which was a bit more..dirty.
ReplyDeletejust for the record - I am not in favor for any of those scenes, and I understand the feeling of gross you had, as mentioned above - fanserivce this episode was forced and mostly didn't merge in well.
clearly it's ok to have odd feeling about the series.
yet I think it is still very unique, it like TTGL but it's not. it has TTGL spirit but it's still keep KLK niche.
Yeah, I wouldn't call this a rape scene, it was a reference. Mhm, I agree, I've heard some interesting theories though, that maybe as she keeps fighting and gains the red threads, her suit will grow? But for now at least it feels off. We'll see what happens.
DeleteI think the fan-service suit is a step too far. Considering the type of show this is, you could just about get away with fan-servicing the ditzy girl, but not the main heroine. Serious misstep if you ask me.
ReplyDeleteI didnt enjoy FLCL and i am not really enjoying this either. The manic energy just puts me off, i like it when things flow in a logical way ,without all this craziness surrounding every scene, its like it is trying too hard.
ReplyDeleteSexuality is very engrained in the japanese pysch, if you can't handle the cultural quirks of another race, why are you consuming their cultural works?
ReplyDeleteVete a la fregada, hijo de la gran puta.
DeleteMaybe because I LIKE anime, maybe because I LOVE anime, maybe because I spend most of my productive week blogging about anime since I care about it? There is a difference between sexuality and objectification, and I'm allowed to dislike an element of a show if I want to, thank you very much. Also, as a multicultural woman, I have had to live my life with three different cultural perspectives, so don't give me that bullshit; you don't have to endorse everything about another culture to love a cultural product. News flash, people are allowed to watch things and have opinions and this is a personal blog.
I don't mean to be rude, but seriously? You don't have to attack people for disliking something you presumably like. All the other readers were courteous about their ideas, whether they agreed or not; I'm just here to give a personal opinion of something I passionately care about. Anime is ridiculously important to me, and changed my world perspective as a young suicidal. I am allowed to love it, and just as allowed to criticize certain things about it as I'm allowed to criticize American society. Which, by the way, is just as sexualized if not worse, and frequently objectifies people to a harmful extent. Again, there is a DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SEXUALITY, which is a natural and normal human experience, AND OBJECTIFICATION, which is a social construct that demeans people.
Clearly you don't read my blog, because I've written extensively on fanservicey shows that were perfectly acceptable and tasteful. Hataraku Maou-sama, for example, had great fanservice.
Good day.
Kairi, I really like your "I love anime" answer, but what does "Vete a la fregada, hijo de la gran puta." mean? The only thing I recognize is puta :) hehe.
DeleteKlK's extreme art direction is very polarizing. Have you continued watching? If not, I would like to say, while there's still fan service, it changes direction a little in how it is applied. Art direction is outrageous to the point where you cannot or should not take it seriously, including fan service, but our main character loses the feeling of shame and comes to terms with how the uniform looks. Also, I haven't seen any rape references since that first episode.
Ah, no worries, it's just rude/colloquial Spanish for something like "go to hell". @_@ I almost never curse in Spanish unless I get angry enough, sorry about all of that. >.<
DeleteI did watch a couple more episodes, but I can't say I've really liked it much myself. I don't think it's bad at what it does, but for me it's a bit much. I like manic energy, but not the way it's been applied here, though that's okay. It's a matter of taste. I'm glad the people who like it are enjoying it though. ^-^
Ahaha I figured as much from the context and use of puta.
DeletePity KlK isn't to your taste. The past couple episodes (5 and 6) have a shift in direction, but it is still manic energy in general. Guardian Enzo and Draggle did some nice summaries, but Enzo's statement about episode 5 was most telling: "This episode was so much better than the first four that it's hard to believe it's a part of the same series"
I hope you give the last two episodes a chance, but regardless I am happy to see you enjoy and blog anime.
I rarely get that upset but sometimes I get set off. >.<
DeleteI may try them, but it depends. I know my capper watches it and we have extremely similar tastes, but he hasn't said much good of it even lately so I'm not sure. But we shall see, perhaps if I have more time and it continues being different.