Time-Wasting Thread 3.0 (SFW - No Explicit/Grimdark)

I have very mixed feelings about Shakugan no Shana season 3. On the one hand, there is practically no filler in the season. It is mostly just characters talking about strategies and fight scenes. On the other hand, I feel that is to the series’ detriment.
 
What made seasons 1 and 2 so good was its ability to alternate between character development and action scenes. When a fight scene wasn’t happening, the show was busy fleshing out the characters. With season 3, however, you don’t get that much.
 
Another thing that I feel seasons 1 and 2 of Shakugan no Shana did better than season 3 is that when a big, dramatic fight scene took place, they gave the audience a chance to breathe after it was over. That doesn’t happen in season 3. It’s like one long endless fight scene. There are a couple episodes that focus on something other than the fighting, like when Shana goes to New York, but episodes like that are few and far between.
 
I’m not trying to diminish the action in season 3. It’s pretty great. But it felt like they sacrificed character development for fight scenes. The only major development that happens is the relationship between Margery Daw and Satō, but even then I feel like they didn’t focus on it enough.
 
I know the biggest criticism people have with season 3 is that there’s no build up to the main character switching to the dark side. But at least that happened at the very beginning and can be excused with the passage of time. My biggest criticism is there’s not enough character progression. Instead of having 85% of season 3 be a fight showcase, they could’ve focused on the main character’s journey to becoming evil. Maybe they build up to it and he becomes evil by episode 12 or something like that. Then, you can do nothing but fighting.
 
Season 3 of Shakugan no Shana is in my opinion not as bad as people say it is. But it’s still in my opinion a missed opportunity. It really could’ve been better if there was more breather episodes that focused on what the characters were thinking. But instead, season 3 sacrifices character advancement for action scenes.

@Searly Sear  

 
Is that fried pork rind down there?

@ЅℰℒᎯℙℋℐℰℒ  
Chicharrón. Yes, it’s best paired with the meal.

I once had a dream…
 
watching TV on my couch…
 
an unknown Wrestlemania venue…
 
…with these legends.
 

@Searly Sear
 
bruh you hurtin me

Usman vs. Masvidal looks like a good alternative to the Khabib vs. Ferguson on this cursed year.

 
Is this the IRL equivalent of a Mimic?

So, last week, I finally finished Shakugan no Shana. I have now finished the three famous Rie Kugimiya tsundere animes.
 
For those who don’t know, the three famous Rie Kugimiya tsundere animes refers to three animes that involve a tsundere voiced by Rie Kugimiya. The three animes are Shakugan no Shana, Toradora, and Familiar of Zero.
 
In my opinion, Toradora hands down is the best of the three. I think the themes and the story arcs that happen in the show is all-around great stuff. This is because Yuyuko Takemiya is a really talented writer and does a tremendous job fleshing out a universe and making it feel three dimensional.
 
If I had to pick between Shakugan no Shana and Familiar of Zero, I think Familiar of Zero is the better series. While Louise in Familiar of Zero is extremely violent even by tsundere standards, at least she becomes less violent as the show progresses. With Shana from Shakugan no Shana, she has less character progression than both Taiga and Louise. That’s part of the reason why I don’t think Shakugan no Shana is as good as Familiar of Zero or Toradora, as I feel the progression randomly just kinda stops.
 
I should mention that I love season 1 of Shakugan no Shana. I also really liked season 2 of the show as well. Not as much as season 1, but the show still managed to continue developing the characters. But when season 3 happens, it’s like the character progression stops. Had season 3 of Shakugan no Shana been as good as season 1, I probably would have felt it was better than Familiar of Zero.
 
Another reason I think Familiar of Zero is better than Shakugan no Shana is the relationship development between the MC and the tsundere. I think Shana is a better character overall than Louise. I like Louise, but the anime adaptation went way overboard with the violence. I know it’s meant for comedy, but there’s a way to be violent without coming across as sadistic. That being said, I think the relationship development between Saito and Louise is better than Shana and Yuji. By season 4, Saito and Louise become boyfriend and girlfriend. And it feels like it’s been built up pretty well. On top of that, by the time season 4 happens, Louise becomes a nicer person and less violent, which is why I don’t hate her as much. But with Shana and Yuji, it’s like they don’t get out of first gear. Shana becomes nicer to Yuji, but that happens midway through season 1. And after that happens, it’s like their relationship doesn’t progress. Hell, they don’t even become boyfriend and girlfriend until the series finale. And by then, Yuji had turned evil.
 
I feel like Toradora is the perfect amalgamation of both Familiar of Zero and Shakugan no Shana. The tsundere is violent, but not too violent. The tsundere and MC hook up, and while it happens near the end, it doesn’t feel too little too late. Plus, it was built up in a way where it made sense why it would take so long for both of them to fall in love. As a complete, total package, Toradora is by far the best Rie Kugimiya tsundere anime
 
That being said, I think Rie Kugimiya gives her best performance as Louise.
 
Honestly, it’s a toss up. Rie Kugimiya’s performances as Taiga, Shana, and Louise are all tremendous. But I think her performance as Louise is outstanding. With Shana, she had moments where she got to showcase the range in her voice, but I felt they were few and far between. With Taiga, she definitely got to express the range in her voice. In fact, I would probably rank her performance in episode 19 as top tier. But I think overall Rie Kugimiya showcases the vast variety in her voice talents most prominently in Familiar of Zero.
 
The way she’s able to go from angry to vulnerable is just really impressive. It reminds me of Aoi Koga’s performance of Kaguya from Kaguya-sama with the way she is able to juggle so many different personalities. I still think Taiga is a better character than Louise. I think she’s written very realistically and the most three dimensionally. But the way Rie Kugimiya voices Louise is permanently etched into my brain. I cannot hear the name Saito without hearing the way Rie Kugimiya says it as Louise.
 
Overall, I really enjoy all three series. While I think Toradora is the greatest anime of all time and is better than both Familiar of Zero and Shakugan no Shana, each series is filled with memorable characters, great animation, and some good storylines. They also have their own unique thing going for them. Toradora is a realistic slice of life with a high school setting, Familiar of Zero is a fantasy with elements of ecchi thrown in there, and Shakugan no Shana is an action anime that also has slice of life elements thrown in there.

One night I had the most ridiculous dream I’ve ever had: the Nesquik’s rabbit, Quicky was the name, that got eaten by a giant shark… MADE OF COOKIES. Aside the fact that I couldn’t care less about that character and this is enough to understand that dream had no sense with me… I don’t recall seeing any advertisement of Nesquik in recent times on television. There is a reason of why I dreamt of such a thing: have you ever been at a party with your sit being right in front of a big stereo? Right. Immagine a whole night having high volume music right in front of you. All that loud music messed up my brain, and that’s why I had that dream. To say, after I woke up and fell asleep again I had another even more nonsensical dream, but I only one way to describe that one: have you ever seen that crazy Ed Edd n Eddy episode in which the Eds want to make some discoveries but ends up in some sort of distorted reality that then turned out to be fruit of their imagination? Right. That’s the only way I could describe that dream. Strong music in my hearts is really not that healthy…

@Background Pony #A8AB
 
Who is your dealer and do they make international shipping?

Pulling weeds is hard, yo

@Myoozik  
This heat is nuts. My ac is struggling to keep up, and it’s not flooded or anything

@Ninji  
Open your goddamn windows.

@Scrabbleman  
Lmao, of coarse, why didn’t I think of that a thousand times in my 27 years here? It goes from 75 to 85. Outside actually becomes dangerous here.
 
I don’t think you lived anywhere like here.

Lemmi break this down  
>92-95 outside  
>75 inside because the AC can’t reach 72
 
One open window would bring it to 85 inside and throw all the AC money in the trash.
 
The government has air conditioning programs, and it’s illegal for renters to leave someone with a broken AC. The government does this because opening windows doesn’t work like in some happy ass European country.
 
So miss me with that dumb shit.
 
Edit: Badheart you’re in Texas, you tell em. Where are my Malaysian heatstroke recipients around here?

As long as my lungs don’t fail me, i’ll attempt to be as active here as I was months ago.
 
I can’t tell yet if i’m beating the corona or not.

It seems that Patreon is prepping itself for a Tumblr-style purge. They’re terminating accounts for posting content that violates their terms- that seems pretty standard, but apparently people can be terminated for breaking their rules without actually posting content that breaks their rules directly on the Patreon website. It seems that Patreon‘s moderators are trawling through websites like Pixiv, Furaffinity, and Twitter for anything that would break their rules if it were posted on their own website, and terminating creators on that basis.  
That has to be some sort of violation. it reminds me of some controversy a few years ago where schools were loaning out laptops to students, and then secretly watching them through the WebCams, and punishing them for things that happened off of school grounds.

@Ninji
 
It’s not always hot, but it tends to rain over here in Malaysia every afternoon.

@HorsesandMuchMOAR  
Our hottest days are broken up by cooling storms.
 
It’s been storming heavy lately. Right about the time I’d start attributing the heat as dangerous.
 
I love the storms.

@Silent_Witness  
Though we can’t be sure since it’s just rumors.

This 6’9 330 pound Tulsa riot cop can probably kick Brock Lesnar’s ass for sure 1 on 1.
 

@Searly Sear  
Is that the Doom Slayer?

@Silent_Witness  
I liked that when it was the FBI watching me through my VideoCam.

One of the things I like about the anime Uzaki-chan is that it has a college setting and not the traditional high school setting.