The Tatami Galaxy Simulwatch thread

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unpronounceable
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The Tatami Galaxy Simulwatch thread

Postby unpronounceable » 21 May 2016, 17:08

Image

The Tatami Galaxy is an anime about a university freshman who falls into a time loop, trying to have a university life he can look back on with nostalgia. He never seems to find what he's looking for because the girl of his dreams is indifferent to him, and his best friend seems more like a demon.

Originally aired in 2010, this is a fantastic work of media. All of the characters are interesting, and how you see them develop is brilliant. Many people may draw a comparison to Groundhog Day based on the premise, but this takes the time loop concept in a very different direction.

The animation is fantastic, and its unconventional aesthetic greatly enhances the story telling. You can watch an episode twice in a row and still miss a ton of visual storytelling.

This thread is a chance to watch it together, and talk about it as though it were currently airing. If you like a good character drama, and especially if you dislike typical anime, I urge you to take part.


We will be watching three episodes a week, one each Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 2000h Eastern, so as to not coincide with the LRR streams. You can watch episodes ahead of time, but don't talk about them until after they air. You can watch this on Funimation with a free account, or on Hulu. If you are outside of Canada and the US, you may have to go elsewhere to watch this.

Episode 1 - Monday, May 30
Episode 2 - Wednesday, June 1
Episode 3 - Friday, June 3
Episode 4 - Monday, June 6
Episode 5 - Wednesday, June 8
Episode 6 - Friday, June 10
Episode 7 - Monday, June 13
Episode 8 - Wednesday, June 15
Episode 9 - Friday, June 17
Episode 10 - Monday, June 20
Episode 11 - Wednesday, June 22

If you have any questions about how this will work, please ask. Otherwise, I hope you'll join me!
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MetricFurlong
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Re: The Tatami Galaxy Simulwatch thread

Postby MetricFurlong » 22 May 2016, 12:00

unpronounceable wrote:If you are outside of Canada and the US, you may have to go elsewhere to watch this.

In other words, for those of us in the PAL regions...


For anyone who can see it though, it's definitely worth a look. It's something of a stand-out both of terms of being different (surrealistic comedy-dramas aren't that common a sight to begin with) and in general quality. It's smart, stylish, highly polished and pretty funny to boot.

I probably won't be watching along, as I last watched it a couple of months ago, but I'll probably hang around in the thread anyway.
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Re: The Tatami Galaxy Simulwatch thread

Postby Robo4900 » 22 May 2016, 15:59

I'll probably join in, if I can find a way to watch it.
Do Funimation block proxies?


... That is a lot better than it has any right to be.
"If we hit that bullseye, the rest of the dominoes should fall like a house of cards. Checkmate."
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Re: The Tatami Galaxy Simulwatch thread

Postby abyssalCompiler » 22 May 2016, 18:15

Ooh, this looks interesting. I might join in.
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Re: The Tatami Galaxy Simulwatch thread

Postby unpronounceable » 22 May 2016, 18:38

Robo4900 wrote:I'll probably join in, if I can find a way to watch it.
Do Funimation block proxies?

Not that I'm aware of, but I haven't needed to try it myself.
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Re: The Tatami Galaxy Simulwatch thread

Postby MetricFurlong » 23 May 2016, 02:41

Robo4900 wrote:I'll probably join in, if I can find a way to watch it.
Do Funimation block proxies?

I believe their main site does (it was certainly doing so in 2015). If it's also up on their youtube channel you may be able to get around it that way, though.

... That is a lot better than it has any right to be.

Yes. Yes it is.
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Re: The Tatami Galaxy Simulwatch thread

Postby Robo4900 » 23 May 2016, 08:25

It doesn't seem to let me watch it on their YT channel using any of my proxies(US, Germany, Romania, and Hong Kong), and besides, only the first two episodes seem to be on their channel anyway.
"If we hit that bullseye, the rest of the dominoes should fall like a house of cards. Checkmate."
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Re: The Tatami Galaxy Simulwatch thread

Postby CamelKnackRambleHort » 23 May 2016, 09:17

Sounds like fun, I'll see if I can keep up. Shouldn't be too hard, maybe I can get my wife to join in too.
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Re: The Tatami Galaxy Simulwatch thread

Postby unpronounceable » 30 May 2016, 13:36

Just a reminder that the first episode airs in about 2.5 hours. I'm really excited for it!
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Re: The Tatami Galaxy Simulwatch thread

Postby abyssalCompiler » 30 May 2016, 16:37

I really like the art style and the character design for this in terms of the fact that all of the characters look unique. Also, I like the usage of color in terms of the fact that it looks colorful, yet the colors are limited, if that makes any sense. The plot so far looks interesting. Looking forward to watching more of it.
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Re: The Tatami Galaxy Simulwatch thread

Postby unpronounceable » 30 May 2016, 16:47

As I watch each episode, I'm going to post a stream of consciousness, and then a more thoughtful/reflective post later.

Here is my mind barf for Episode 1, which I will add gifs/webms for as I make them. Links to screenshots/gifs to keep the surprise for some of them.

Oh wow, I forgot how fast the MC talks

This guy slurps a ton

How the hell are you supposed to remember that name? Also, a god?

You're even stupider than I thought

Take a breather for the opening.

Such drama over choosing a club.

Making friends is hard when you aren't sociable.

http://i.imgur.com/sVpP8f5.jpg

First contact as well as worst contact

"hates vegetables"

aho

Akashi, drinking

Ozu is a dick

Watashi is a dick

I can't tell if that fortune teller is better or worse than the old gypsy woman that can do that hair curse.

Yeah. How dare you feed Ozu fungi. Fungi is gross.

How the hell do you end up going out with your dental hygenist?...oh

It's the red black thread of fate!

http://i.imgur.com/iti466Y.jpg

Laser eyes

http://i.imgur.com/vbIE4r7.jpg

Watashi, how long until you realize you have a crush on Akashi?

https://i.imgur.com/fpvQBtN.gifv

Watashi, you admitted eating the castella alone was the most pathetic thing. Is this an admission of how you see yourself?

"I am not fond of moths" -- Understatement of the episode

http://i.imgur.com/LW4WNf7.gifv

What the hell is Ozu up to?

Why is there a boom in the mob?

Damn, I love the ending.
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Re: The Tatami Galaxy Simulwatch thread

Postby unpronounceable » 31 May 2016, 15:31

Right from the start, this show wastes no time in establishing how different it is from other anime. It uses colour to fantastic effect. I love how they use the environment to set the scene. When Watashi is describing his escapades, the characters and backgrounds are very stylized, and lack detail, but when we're in the present moment with him, you can actually see the area around him.

Consider the scenes right after the fireworks at the river as an example of this. This isn't something I noticed the first couple times I watched this. You could easily watch an episode twice in a row and still miss out on a ton.

Story wise, there are already things I've picked up on that foreshadow future character developments. It's crazy the amount of detail in this show.
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Re: The Tatami Galaxy Simulwatch thread

Postby unpronounceable » 01 Jun 2016, 16:33

Movies don't seem any better than tennis.
Definitely much worse

First contact also worst contact

I kinda want to watch those movies

There's the black thread of fate again. It's really effective it seems.

Some of those boobs look like desserts. Probably intentional with all the drool in the next scene.

Revenge can't end well, especially if he has that loyal a following.

Oh hey, it's that fortune teller. I wonder if she'll up her price every episode.

WOW, that is a wall.



I think for most of the episode, I was busy thinking of things that tie in later, and I hope I remember them when they become relevant. It's been a long time since I first watched the show, so there were a lot of things I forgot or can, only now, appreciate, knowing the full story.

This is where you can see one part of the story that I really like. For a time loop story, it doesn't result in Watashi learning everything that happens like in Groundhog Day. He doesn't consciously remember the previous loops at all, but he does learn lessons from them. On a basic level, he chooses a different club. Consider, though that he has a flashback to the fortune teller in this episode, while he didn't in the first. It's a really interesting way to develop Watashi's character, and I haven't seen it anywhere else.
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Re: The Tatami Galaxy Simulwatch thread

Postby MetricFurlong » 01 Jun 2016, 21:19

abyssalCompiler wrote:I really like the art style and the character design for this in terms of the fact that all of the characters look unique. Also, I like the usage of color in terms of the fact that it looks colorful, yet the colors are limited, if that makes any sense. The plot so far looks interesting. Looking forward to watching more of it.

Yeah, it's use of colour is an interesting example in how to achieve more with less, as it were. There are some more clear illustrations of this (and also using differences in design and art-style) as the series progresses.


unpronounceable wrote:This is where you can see one part of the story that I really like. For a time loop story, it doesn't result in Watashi learning everything that happens like in Groundhog Day.

Note the time covered in question is vastly longer than the one in Groundhog Day, plus we've only seen the nameless protagonist* of Tatami Galaxy go through it once so far, which would make memorising things a bit tricky.
There's a couple of points on this too, but I'm going to leave those for now until they show-up in the series, for the sake of those who haven't seen it yet :wink:




*for anyone unaware, 'Watashi' is a Japan first person singular pronoun**, so unpronounceable is essentially referring to the protagonist as 'I/Me'. Whatever the protagonist's actual name is never comes up in the series, iirc.

**The Japanese language has a fair few different first person singular pronouns. Also a fair amount of different second person singular pronouns.
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Re: The Tatami Galaxy Simulwatch thread

Postby unpronounceable » 04 Jun 2016, 16:39

Damn that's a dedicated lift team. How'd they manage to get their hands on hydrolics?

Ozu just keeps looking worse and worse. First contact, also worst contact

What a dick, stealing Watashi's food like that.

I don't think you're doing much work there on the whaling ship.

Manami's a cute name for a bike.

http://i.imgur.com/KWH4Luy.gifv

That's not a very nice thing to say to your partner of two years, Watashi.

Oh hey, it's the fortune teller. Watashi is as easily pleased as before.

It's the Birdman team we've hears about!

Yes, Watashi. Just give the white Mochiguman to Akashi.

Now he's friends with Jougasaki? Oh, how things change. But you shouldn't be training, you idiot.

Ozu, you asshole. Don't steal the pride of the Birdman team.

There's the black thread of fate again.

And the training was pointless from the onset. Talk about adding insult to injury.
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Re: The Tatami Galaxy Simulwatch thread

Postby unpronounceable » 07 Jun 2016, 14:27

Episode 4
If that's what I think it is, it can't be good.

I don't think abandoning your classes is a good idea, Watashi. It hasn't done you any good thus far at least.

That was a magical expanding boob

gif 5:46

I guess library fees are the university equivalent of tax evasion

Is the scrubbing brush that magical that it can appear in the sky and float above your head?

Well, you did shoot fireworks at them, just not this loop

This fortune teller is the best. Same advice, but charging more each time.

gif 11:02

Circle is the right face button

Oh hey, it's Neko Ramen

That is a lot of proxies

gif 14:40

Wait, Ozu made the movie on Jougasaki in this loop?

All that buildup. The weight of the past participants of the Masochistic Proxy-Proxy War on both their backs. Five years or more of rivalry, just for rock paper scissors?!

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