Review of Disgaea #3

HdE

HdE

Comic Book Guy
<img src="http://www.animeuknews.net/img/uploaded/2010-05-0611351171x.jpg">

<b>Review of Disgaea #3 by HdE</b>

This being the final volume of Disgaea, we follow Laharl, the show&rsquo;s cutesy-but-seriously-bad-tempered protagonist, as he seeks to first protect his home the Netherworld, and then dominate the realms of the humans and Celestia. In this volume, Laharl and his friends will face down a massive fleet of invading spaceships from the human realm, and the ubiquitous Prinnys will take centre stage! Laharl will continue to strive to become Overlord of the Netherworld, and in so doing will learn more about the mother he never knew. Along the way, he is further helped (and hampered) by his sidekicks and an expanded cast of larger-than-life characters as the story nears its conclusion.
&nbsp;
For a show whose visual appeal hinges so much on its character designs, you would expect Disgaea&rsquo;s cast to be full of bounce and brio - and they certainly are! We have the spunky Etna, the punkish, genuinely dislikeable Laharl,&nbsp; the insufferably sweet Flonne. Plus, how could I not mention the deliciously hammy Captain Gordon, 37th Defender Of Earth and his sidekicks, Jennifer and Thursday? The broad, sci-fi pastiche and cheesy characterisation served up by that trio is possibly the most enjoyable thing in this volume&rsquo;s opening episodes!<br>
It&rsquo;s just such a shame that I couldn&rsquo;t find anything more substantial to enjoy in this series. Everything else, from the quality of the animation - which is good by today&rsquo;s standards, but nothing special - to the bland background music, right down to the way the story unfolds. It all feels very&hellip;average.<br>
The appeal of Disgaea as a show is a really bizarre puzzle to work out. There&rsquo;s a feeling of lightness&nbsp;to it that it never really shakes off, even when plot threads are being resolved and the story is coming to a close. Maybe that&rsquo;s a good thing, because this clearly is not a series to be taken seriously - and it seems like EVERYBODY involved in putting it on your screen knows it! Yet, there&rsquo;s some heavy stuff going on in this volume - some deaths, a few revelations, not to mention the conclusion to the series. But even these feel a bit throwaway. Possibly that&rsquo;s because I didn&rsquo;t see the previous volumes, although I&rsquo;m more inclined to believe it&rsquo;s the default tone of the show. Disgaea&rsquo;s not the sort of anime to get into any of the issues it touches on in a deep, meaningful way, after all.<br>
I&rsquo;m rather confused as to who exactly this series is aimed at. At a glance, it&rsquo;s easy to tell that this isn&rsquo;t a show for the more mature anime fan. In fact, in execution, it feels a lot like a Saturday morning cartoon show. But at the same time, some of the humour and language makes it inappropriate for much younger viewers.<br>
Nevertheless, there&rsquo;s stuff here to enjoy. I&rsquo;ll admit I smirked and giggled at a few of the gags, and there&rsquo;s&nbsp;a nice line in running jokes. There&rsquo;s something irresistible about the Prinnys, for example, and Flonne&rsquo;s repressed otaku tendencies, which raised a smile on my face whenever they surfaced. There&lsquo;s just enough humour to be found in the characters to make the show tolerable at the very least.<br>
I&rsquo;ve got a lot of admiration for the guys and gals who turned in the performances for the English&nbsp;language dub, including the heavyweight talents of Barbara Goodson (Laharl) Michael McConnohie (Captain Gordon) and Jamieson Price (Seraph Lamington). These actors are always enjoyable in a dub, and they bring a set of very polished performances to the table. Worthy, award winning voice acting it&rsquo;s not, but it fits the tone of the series to a tee, providing much of the fun that&rsquo;s to be had here.<br>
So. It&rsquo;s hard to know what to say in conclusion. Disgaea has its fans, and those fans are sure to lap this volume up. After all, if you've been watching up to this point, it's probably safe to say it's your kind of show. But coming to&nbsp;it as a newcomer, and as an anime fan slightly more (ahem!) advanced in years, I couldn&rsquo;t see much to convince me that it warranted more of my attention. It&rsquo;ll satisfy its devotees, but beyond that, this feels like the conclusion of a series that was watchable and amusing without ever being exceptional in any regard.&nbsp;
&nbsp;<br>
<b>Final score: 6 out of 10</b>

<b>Additional screencaps</b>

<img src="http://www.animeuknews.net/img/uploaded/screens/2010-05-06shot 1.jpg">

<img src="http://www.animeuknews.net/img/uploaded/screens/2010-05-06shot 2.jpg">

<img src="http://www.animeuknews.net/img/uploaded/screens/2010-05-06shot 3.jpg">
 
*rolls shoulders and stretches hamstrings* I haven't done one of these in a long time, but it feels good to be back in the 'I presume you want my awesome feedback' seat. I have not watched this show (and presumably, neither have you!), thus I cannot confirm any facts mentioned. However, your writing entertained me, which is the most important thing! My comments are in bold within the body of your review.

HdE said:
<b>Review of Disgaea #3 by HdE</b>

This being the final volume of Disgaea, we follow Laharl, the show’s cutesy-but-seriously-bad-tempered protagonist, as he seeks to first protect his home the Netherworld, and then dominate the realms of the humans and Celestia. In this volume, Laharl and his friends will face down a massive fleet of invading spaceships from the human realm, and the ubiquitous Prinnys will take centre stage! Laharl will continue to strive to become Overlord of the Netherworld, and in so doing will learn more about the mother he never knew. Along the way, he is further helped (and hampered) by his sidekicks and an expanded cast of larger-than-life characters as the story nears its conclusion.
 
For a show whose visual appeal hinges so much on its character designs, you would expect Disgaea’s cast to be full of bounce and brio - and they certainly are! We have the spunky Etna, the punkish, genuinely dislikeable Laharl,  (and) the insufferably sweet Flonne. Plus, how could I not mention the deliciously hammy Captain Gordon, 37th Defender Of Earth and his sidekicks, Jennifer and Thursday? The broad, sci-fi pastiche and cheesy characterisation served up by that trio is possibly the most enjoyable thing in this volume’s opening episodes! <--- use full stop in stead of exclamation mark. That statement is not that unique or important that it needs an exclamation mark.<br>
It’s just such a shame that I couldn’t find anything more substantial to enjoy in this series. Everything else, from the quality of the animation - which is good by today’s standards, but nothing special - to the bland background music, right down to the way the story unfolds. <--- cut the bit between the dashes because you already say at the end of the sentence that it's all average. No need to qualify your assertion about the animation further. Also, comma in stead of full stop at the end, and then next sentence needs to be a little 'it' It all feels very…average. <--- 'very average' is not descriptive enough. For one you waste wordage with use of adverb-adjective combination when there are stronger standalone adjectives that could do the job. You could try mediocre, banal, colourless, formulaic, generic etc<br>
The appeal of Disgaea as a show is a really <--- words like really, very, basically are filler words i.e. they pad out your writing with meaningless fluff and they often reduce rather than heighten the impact of what you're saying. The sentence will work perfectly well if you just say 'as a show is a bizarre puzzle'. bizarre puzzle to work out. There’s a feeling of lightness to it that it never really <--- again, cut shakes off, <--- cut the comma even when plot threads are being resolved and the story is coming to a close. Maybe that’s a good thing, because this clearly is not a series to be taken seriously - and it seems like EVERYBODY involved in putting it on your screen knows it! Yet, there’s some heavy stuff going on in this volume - some deaths, a few revelations, not to mention the conclusion to the series. <--- qualify this last point better. Is it a tragic conclusion? An emotional conclusion? A philosophical conclusion? Why are you counting the conclusion as 'heavy stuff'? But even these feel a bit throwaway. Possibly that’s because I didn’t see the previous volumes, although I’m more inclined to believe it’s the default tone of the show. Disgaea’s not the sort of anime to get into any of the issues it touches on in a deep, meaningful way, after all.<br>

The organisation of the above paragraph seems awkward. You need to rejiggle the sentences so that you read less like you're jumping from one thought to the next. I'd rewrite to something like:

The appeal of Disgaea is a bizarre puzzle to work out. There’s a feeling of lightness to it that it never shakes off despite attempts at heavier material, so that it cannot be taken seriously. There are deaths, for instance, some well-crafted twists and revelations, and a conclusion that's more philosophical/tragic/emotional than expected. But even these feel a bit throwaway.

Now, I will point out here that, if you haven't watched previous volumes of an ongoing series, you probably aren't qualified to discuss it in a useful way for readers. I've heard of people reviewing initial volumes, which is good if you want to give an impression of how a show starts, but to review an ending meaningfully requires knowledge of the previous episodes. While your review is well-written, your disclaimer also tells me it's entirely redundant.

I’m rather confused as to who exactly this series is aimed at. At a glance, it’s easy to tell that this isn’t a show for the more mature anime fan. In fact, in execution, it feels a lot like a Saturday morning cartoon show. But at the same time, some of the humour and language makes it inappropriate for much younger viewers.<br>
Nevertheless, there’s stuff here to enjoy. I’ll admit I smirked and giggled at a few of the gags, and there’s a nice <--- nice, along with good, okay, and fine, is one of the blandest words in the English language. Presumably, due to overuse to the point of uselessness. I'd recommend changing for stronger adjectives like hilarious, amusing, charming etc. line in running jokes. There’s something irresistible<--- irresistible? How? And what are the Prinnys? Always assume your readers don't know the show. about the Prinnys, for example, and Flonne’s repressed otaku tendencies, which raised a smile on my face whenever they surfaced. There‘s just enough humour to be found in the characters to make the show tolerable at the very least.<br>
I’ve got a lot of admiration for the guys and gals who turned in the performances for the English language <--- cut 'language' dub, including the heavyweight talents of Barbara Goodson (Laharl) Michael McConnohie (Captain Gordon) and Jamieson Price (Seraph Lamington). These actors are always enjoyable in a dub, and they bring a set of very <--- cut very polished performances to the table. Worthy, award winning voice acting it’s not, but it fits the tone of the series to a tee, providing much of the fun that’s to be had here. <--- cut 'that's to be had here'. It's superfluous since we know you're only talking about the fun that is in the show.<br>
So. It’s hard to know what to say in conclusion. <--- cut this sentence. If you didn't know what to say, you wouldn't be writing a review. It's especially contradictory when you launch into a fairly decent paragraph of what you think of the show overall. Disgaea has its fans, and those fans are sure to lap this volume up. <--- reduce wordage by rewriting to 'Disgaea has its fans, who will lap this volume up. After all, if you've been watching up to this point, it's probably safe to say it's your kind of show. But coming to it as a newcomer, and as an anime fan slightly more (ahem!) advanced in years, I couldn’t see much to convince me that it warranted more of my attention. It’ll satisfy its devotees, but beyond that, this feels like the conclusion of a series that was watchable and amusing without ever being exceptional in any regard. 
 <br>
<b>Final score: 6 out of 10</b>
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To be fair, at least it wasn't me, someone who is an avid fan of Disgaea who would have done a combined Yatzee, Spoony, Linkara, AGVN Super Xross Nail Bat review, who reviewed it.

Also, this series more than likely cost us an adaptation of Disgaea 2 and 3 in animated form, I'll let that sink in.

For an outsider looking in this isn't a bad review.
 
ConanThe3rd said:
To be fair, at least it wasn't me, someone who is an avid fan of Disgaea who would have done a combined Yatzee, Spoony, Linkara, AGVN Super Xross Nail Bat review, who reviewed it.

Also, this series more than likely cost us an adaptation of Disgaea 2 and 3 in animated form, I'll let that sink in.

For an outsider looking in this isn't a bad review.
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There is no way I could be that kind about this. It would be similar to revewing the aleged adaptaion of Tsukihime (there is no Tsukihime anime) or the Star Wars Christmas special.
 
I'm gonna step right in here and address a few things, folks.

First up - I didn't post this review thread. I only wrote the thing. I assume our esteemed editors are the ones who post the threads. Figured that was worth mentioning.

Now that's cleared up, I'll take VivisQueen's post:

Thanks for your insights, VivisQueen. There's a mountain of stuff you said there that I take issue with, but that's not to say it isn't useful.

I'm very grateful to AUKN for giving me the opportunity to write reviews. Anime is an art form I'm in love with, so I take the privilege I've been given very seriously.

However, I'm not here to write dynamic, spit-polished, hyperbole-laced reviews. You can read those in tabloids and magazines, and I've never found them useful in the least.

I'd rather concentrate on making my reviews informative and entertaining. You say my writing entertained you, so I take that as mission accomplished! I'm glad you enjoyed it. :D

I do waffle. I use more words than I need to in order to get my points across. But that's because I'm striving to keep the tone of my reviews conversational. That's not something I intend to change anytime soon, unless my editor tells me to.

You'll never EVER find me writing a review that resorts to coming up with an inventive put-down of a movie or series to get my point across that I didn't like it. I also won't declare that a movie was a 'frenetic, fast paced, white-knuckle adrenaline rush' when it's about as entertaining as any other similar flick. I don't want to big anything up that doesn't deserve it. That stuff is what put a stop to me reading movie reviews in the tabloids ages ago. My intention is to stay well clear of that territory and concentrate on keeping my reviews as honest as possible. I haven't used terms liek the ones you've suggested because, personally, I felt they'd be innacurate to how I felt about the material I reviewed.

Hopefully, when you read my reviews, you'll be getting as honest an expression of my thoughts as I can possibly manage.

You mention use of terms like 'nice, okay, fine' - rightly citing that these are bland terms. But I'm going to throw something at you here - I use those terms because I felt Disgaea was a bland show. The notion that they shouldn't ever be used to describe something has always seemed like a bit of a pop-culture sound bite to me. I think they have their place.

One last point - you mention that not having seen the previous two volumes of Disgaea disqualifies me from reviewing this? I strongly disagree with that. I've made it clear in my review that I'm new to the show, and I tried to allow as much room as possible for the fact that some folks out there will get more out of it than I did. It was a tricky review. More than that, it was a tricky first review. I was trying to be as magnanimous as possible here.

Not to come off as entirely dismissive of the points you've made in your post, just making my position clear. I don't detect any malice in your post at all, but it's a LOT to come back to after a first attempt.
 
And now I'll address posts form Conan and Reaper G1:

Conan - thanks for the vote of confidence!

What I'd say to both yourself and Reaper G1 is this: If you have additional observations or contrary opinions to the ones in my review - go post 'em! One of the things I love about this site is the way the reviews section encourages people to speak up if they have something to say about the subject material. You can even vote to change the score I gave this in my review.

A review is just an expression of one person's individual opinion. You'll NEVER find me claiming that because I loved / hated a particular show, then so must everybody else. If you or anybody else disagrees with what I had to say in my piece, by all means make your opinion known in the reviews section. It's what it's there for, and I'll be completely cool with that. :)


Reaper G1: Star Wars Holiday Special? OUCH, man! They're not gonna make me review that, are they???

Your post is as good a foil for me as any for me to explain my final score.

Disgaea got a 6 from me, but it was very nearly a 5. In the end, I went with a higher score simply because the show felt like it was just above average quality. It didn't enthrall me, but I can envisage that some folks would get a lot more out of it than I personally would. For good or ill, I hedged my bets. I've certainly seen worse shows.

Rest assured, if ANYBODY sends me a DVD of Odin to review, that'll get a one-out-of ten, I swear it! I'm inclined to be charitable, but not stoopid! :wink:

Thanks for your comments, guys - it all helps.
 
I'm pretty much like the majority of people who would have looked into this series, fans of the games, so in that respect, it would be safe to say i would perhaps come across as biased. I'm not saying it was the absolutely awful, but i think it could have used a bit of work. It catches a bit of the actual storyline, but too much of it feels a bit too far off what the story is/was. Perhaps that might be why i'd only rate it 4/10, but there we go.

Just wondering, but was this your first look into the disgaea-verse? If so, i'd like to see how you'd view the games in comparison, coming off of the anime first.
 
Arbalest said:
Just wondering, but was this your first look into the disgaea-verse? If so, i'd like to see how you'd view the games in comparison, coming off of the anime first.
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It was indeed.

Thing is, I'm not a huge gamer these days. I'd sooner view the anime on its own terms, and report on it as such.
 
Hi HdE,

I'm glad you detected no malice in my post since none was intended. I assumed you were a regular reviewer for the site who had posted here for feedback. If all reviews automatically get an equivalent thread even without your knowledge, then I stand corrected on my assumption.

Congratulations, by the way, on your first review. My own was crap and I've struggled to revise it three times in four years. Yours at least avoids reading like you're trying too hard. Now, just to address a couple of your remarks:

"However, I'm not here to write dynamic, spit-polished, hyperbole-laced reviews... I'd rather concentrate on making my reviews informative and entertaining."

1) Hyperbole-laced reviews are usually neither dynamic nor polished.

2) Dynamic, polished reviews are PRECISELY what you should be aiming for because that is what makes a review entertaining and readable. An informative review could just as well be a dull essay, but it's the dynamism, personality, and wit that makes readers give a damn about the content.

3) The master of (Hollywood) reviews is Roger Ebert. Anyone who wants to be a reviewer of film/TV should be aware of his work. He does have some anime reviews: http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/

Here is an outstanding reviewer with an elevated style I recently discovered who is currently doing features of Studio Ghibli movies. His reviews of Grave of the Fireflies and Pom Poko are to die for: http://antagonie.blogspot.com/

Here are well-informed, super-dynamic, hilarious reviews by Mike Toole (the king of anime reviewing, probably) and others: http://www.animejump.com/index.php?modu ... &func=main

Note how ALL of them can be funny, intelligent, dynamic, and informative all at once. It's not just content, it's how you present it.

Finally, in regards to your point about 'nice, fine, etc' being used because the show is bland - there is a distinct difference between a show being bland and its corresponding review being bland. A review of a banal and generic show can still be interesting to read (mainly because the reviewer will illustrate with anecdotes and refreshing terminology just how bland the show is - refer to Roger Ebert's Sex and the City 2 review). Generally, if a reviewer writes 'this is fine', it says little about the show and much about the scope of their vocabulary. Then again, if this is your first review, my critique is probably an act of overkill. I guess all you need to know is that I thought your review was entertaining and I'm looking forward to reading more.
 
I'm just gonna make one point here and leave it hanging out there:

Definition and meaning of the word 'nice'. Go research it. It's surprising!

Possibly you miss my point, VivisQueen: I'm not looking to write reviews that aren't anything less than fun to read, obviously. However, I AM looking to write reviews that are useful.

I won't write slick, dynamic reviews - not to the extent that you might see in the press, at any rate. I don't want to. That's because it would be running contrary to what I'm aiming to do, which is to give folks as honest and comprehensive an idea of whether they'll enjoy the material up for review or not.

I'll be attempting to write the kinds of reviews that I personally would like to see elsewhere. I mention that I'm not interested in lacing my articles with hyperbole, and that's because I find that tiresome and wearing in tabloid TV and movie reviews. Time will tell if folks can get on with that or not.


Where you fastidiously point out apparent gaffes in my writing, I see character. There's room for improvement, to be sure. There always is. But becoming a notable film / TV critic isn't my career plan. Not by a long stretch. I applied for this post because, like I said before, I love the medium, and I want to do my part to inform people about it.

I'm drawing a line under this conversation now, folks. It's been interesting to see the reactions here, but there's no need to dwell on them now.

I learn by doing. I need to crack on with more reviews. I'm hoping I'll get a chance to plug some gaps in the reviews database over the next few weeks, if the Powers That Be will let me. We'll see how things go from there.
 
VivisQueen said:
3) The master of (Hollywood) reviews is Roger Ebert. Anyone who wants to be a reviewer of film/TV should be aware of his work. He does have some anime reviews: http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/
Click to expand...

Roger Ebert while is great review for Movie/TV, his opinions are not always that well thought out. While you should have your own opinion and not be criticised for having that said opinion. It's not right dismiss other entertainment form like he has done with Video Games by declaring: "Video games can never be art"

http://blogs.suntimes.com/ebert/2010/04 ... e_art.html

All reviewers should aim for their own writing style which they feel comfortable with instead of feeling obliged to copying others writer so in turn add more variety to each reviewer style.
 
There's a difference between Ebert's blog and his reviews. He's a legend though and I, for the most part, agree with his film opinions. I wouldn't call him the be all and end all of the film verse but the best thing about his reviews, are probably their size. Trade-size. None of this "I have the internet at my hand and am going to write forever and ever because I can" ********. Erm. Yeah. His reviews don't force an opinion either, which is the best thing a review can do, I guess.
 
On Roger Ebert:

Jayme said:
His reviews don't force an opinion either, which is the best thing a review can do, I guess.
Click to expand...

Co-signed, as the cool kids say.

Ebert's is a name that gets quoted to me a fair bit in discussion of movies, critics and movie reviews. I'm not actually a big reader or follower of critics' columns or blog spots, but I've been linked to his stuff a few times.

I like the guy's attitude. He doesn't slate movies that are easy targets, judges them on their own terms and seems to get the fact that different folks will get different things from different flicks. Movies are still fun to him.

He also doesn't strike me as a pompous ass. That's endearing to me, because if I respect the guy, I'm able to accept whatever he says in his reviews a lot easier.
 
HdE said:
He also doesn't strike me as a pompous ass. That's endearing to me, because if I respect the guy, I'm able to accept whatever he says in his reviews a lot easier.
Click to expand...

Well it seems a bit pompous to suggest that no game can ever be considered art. With so many thousand of title to choose from and the countless thousands of ones to come in future it seems a naive and pompous attitude to have.
 
This thread still alive? Wow!

I can forgive the 'games as art' comment. I mean, I'm guessing Ebert isn't a big gamer. :wink:

I wouldn't call it a pompous remark as such. Ill-informed, possibly, which goes hand in hand with your comment about it being naive.

See how dangerous it is to make generalisations, kids? 8)
 
HdE said:
This thread still alive? Wow!

I can forgive the 'games as art' comment. I mean, I'm guessing Ebert isn't a big gamer. :wink:

I wouldn't call it a pompous remark as such. Ill-informed, possibly, which goes hand in hand with your comment about it being naive.

See how dangerous it is to make generalisations, kids? 8)
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Sadly it goes beyond just being naive as he actual try 2 of the more arty games out there: Braid & Flower and demised them completely. Maybe if he tried a few more his opinion would change but I doubt it.

I would probably consider games to be more more of arty experience than film ever will be. As games can give the person experience it a much bigger reaction than you ever get with films as you can see this with gamer rage. :lol:
 
Ah, now I wasn't aware of that.

It's still the sort of remark I can put down to somebody 'just not doing games' - the same as some people 'just don't do anime' or whatever.

I mean, personally, I disagree with the idea that a computer game can't be considered a work of art. To say that, somebody would have to be pretty ignorant of the IMMENSE amount of work and design that goes into those things. Having known somebody who worked in the games industry, I can appreciate that a lot of creativity is involved, on several different levels.

But then, at the end of the day, you wouldn't look for guidance on what games are hot right now from someone who obviously isn't big on the whole gaming thing, would you?
 
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