A Cautious Bit of Luck
Jan. 11th, 2018 09:08 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
krpalmerConsistent proof might not be needed that "you can't please everyone," but announcements of anime series being licensed for one form of release or another on this side of the Pacific can seem to fall into that unfortunate category, even if it depends both on the company making the announcement and who's reacting. I shouldn't pretend to be above this, but I do have to admit I can shrug off the indignation some show at announcements from Netflix, which sticks to a "make it available in large blocks" schedule at odds with the "as soon as possible after it airs in Japan" strategy shaped years ago by "fansubbers" and given above-ground force by other streaming services. I've been watching anime for long enough that I can think back to days when my interest was piqued by comments overheard from the better-connected; I can also admit that the building excitement of generally positive week-by-week reactions seems much outweighed by souring moods.
When I heard Netflix had licensed Violet Evergarden, a series that had attracted attention just by being made by Kyoto Animation, I managed another shrug. I'd waited to watch Little Witch Academia, and supposed I'd enjoyed watching it "by myself." Then, just a few days ago, rumours started flying that some countries outside the United States would be shown the series one episode a week, and my own country seemed included. I told myself things might not pan out, and kept thinking that right up to seeing news it had happened just like the rumours had it. It just amount to a bit of long-delayed compensation for the years-past indignation I saw some stirring up over Canadian content rules keeping out the American cable channels that showed dubbed anime and certain other issues; it might only be the second wrong (whether in itself or in the risk of coming across as "gloating") that doesn't make a right.
Anyway, I did tell myself that helping to add to the "week-by-week" viewing numbers might do something towards Netflix extending this model to larger countries, and for all that it meant not getting around to Space Battleship Yamato 2199 as soon in the week as I'd been managing last year I connected my iPod touch and budget Chromecast to Netflix instead of Crunchyroll and started the first episode of Violet Evergarden. I'd managed to miss out on the previews beyond an impression the series was supposed to be more serious than the Kyoto Animation shows that first come to my mind, and perhaps even set somewhere beyond Japan. After first impressions of the exceptional attractiveness of the animation, I started getting a definite "just post-World War One if safely elsewhere" vibe; the sudden revelation of the episode (for me, anyway) might have made that resemblance that much stronger by having me think of Fullmetal Alchemist. I do want to be cautious about what the reactions of others might be to a "post-action series," especially with the passing of time and the reactions of others to recent Kyoto Animation series that haven't hewed close to possibilities of formula, but at least the opportunity being available (if for others who might really want it as much as for myself) is something.
When I heard Netflix had licensed Violet Evergarden, a series that had attracted attention just by being made by Kyoto Animation, I managed another shrug. I'd waited to watch Little Witch Academia, and supposed I'd enjoyed watching it "by myself." Then, just a few days ago, rumours started flying that some countries outside the United States would be shown the series one episode a week, and my own country seemed included. I told myself things might not pan out, and kept thinking that right up to seeing news it had happened just like the rumours had it. It just amount to a bit of long-delayed compensation for the years-past indignation I saw some stirring up over Canadian content rules keeping out the American cable channels that showed dubbed anime and certain other issues; it might only be the second wrong (whether in itself or in the risk of coming across as "gloating") that doesn't make a right.
Anyway, I did tell myself that helping to add to the "week-by-week" viewing numbers might do something towards Netflix extending this model to larger countries, and for all that it meant not getting around to Space Battleship Yamato 2199 as soon in the week as I'd been managing last year I connected my iPod touch and budget Chromecast to Netflix instead of Crunchyroll and started the first episode of Violet Evergarden. I'd managed to miss out on the previews beyond an impression the series was supposed to be more serious than the Kyoto Animation shows that first come to my mind, and perhaps even set somewhere beyond Japan. After first impressions of the exceptional attractiveness of the animation, I started getting a definite "just post-World War One if safely elsewhere" vibe; the sudden revelation of the episode (for me, anyway) might have made that resemblance that much stronger by having me think of Fullmetal Alchemist. I do want to be cautious about what the reactions of others might be to a "post-action series," especially with the passing of time and the reactions of others to recent Kyoto Animation series that haven't hewed close to possibilities of formula, but at least the opportunity being available (if for others who might really want it as much as for myself) is something.