Discussion topic for Episode 4 of Charlotte, which premiered on July 25, 2015. All references to outside works and to future episodes must be tagged with a [spoiler] tag.
This topic also hosted Charlotte Anime Bookclub discussion, and was referenced in our Episode 4 Podcast.
I liked this episode more than 3 but it kind of felt like filler to me. Stuff did happen but nothing all that important. Maybe Iâm just tired of baseball. I guess it did answer my question about Yuuâs powerâs cool-down time as he clearly used it on the same person in quick succession. I still like Misa way more than Yusa (although want to see Misaâs reaction to the wet guy whose name escapes me).
Also why was the How-Low-Hello song used as the ED again? Itâs now been used more than the actual ED (although it is only episode 4).
Pretty middling episode. Nothing of value really to say. Played it through straight. We got our baseball, and we got some more foreshadowing for later on. I dunno. Iâd want to say more about Charlotte, but⌠Thereâs been very little to really say atm?
I thought this episode was pretty good. A big step up from episode 3. A baseball game with superpowered players was just as entertaining as Iâd have guessed. Plus, it was great to see Yusa/Misaâs interactions with the group. It had a âfillerâ feel to it, but I actually donât mind filler if its still fun to watch. The bit at the end where Yu questions himself was a bit out of place though, didnât really get expanded on at all.
Also, the lethal pizza sauce strikes again. Might be on a scarier level than Akikoâs jam.
As just about everyone has already stated, there really wasnât much of much value to mention in this ep. However, I will say this: in the ep 2 discussion, I stated that I was beginning to get concerned about the pacing, and this ep made me even more concerned than I already was. Weâll see if things pick back up next week.
Yeah, that just kinda happened. My god those magical spells. I really wish weâd have seen where they introduced the whole concept of superpowers to Yusa.
This baseball game needed more muscle revolutions! Nice faceplant by Joujirou though, and Naoâs reactions to his fanboying over Yusarin were pretty great^^
ok, letâs get over that episode, since people who obviously seem to care as much about it as I care about Angel Beats. The first part of the episode was about introducing Yusa, since she wasnt really introduced in the last episode, since that one was more about Misa. It was as expected cuteness overloaded and fun to see how all the classmates react. Those last two episode felt way more like a natural Key common route anime part than the 2nd one.
I dont know what you all expect, this all is simple beginning stuff every Key anime and VN has. Like what the hell did you expect? Did you expect for shit to straight go down to hell from the beginning, because thatâs not what Key is about. Key is about funny and sad things and they always show off with the funny things first, since then the switch to sad hits one even more. And since this was written by Maeda, we all knew, that baseball would be in this sooner or later. I seriously question, if you all complaining about this being an useless episode, then you should pls never touch any Key works any more. I may sound harsh now, but this is how it always is with Key and now you are suddenly complaining about it?
I could write more here, but this is seriously why I mostly avaid theses topics after my first post in them. See you in the thread for next weeks episode.
An enjoyable episode. I think, as @EndOfRefrain said, it fulfilled its purposed really well. The âcommon routeâ correspondent in the anime serves to introduce the characters and build the viewersâ attachment.
Itâs working really well on me. Iâm growing fond of their interactions, and of the characters themselves. Itâs simple, but thatâs what itâs meant to be. If we didnât grow attached to those characters, the drama wouldnât hit us later. I like all the main characters so far. They work really well together.
And that âteasingâ Yuu x Nao scene in the end⌠I wonder if the âexperimentâ was to see how it felt to hug Yuu⌠Lol.
Is it? Like the baseball in Little Busters and Clannad had much more powerful shizz going on. Not to mention the weaknesses we feel about this episode now can change in the context of a series. Itâs less about wanting the show to go down to hell or whatever, and more to do with this episode⌠Not really doing anything? This can change later on, but right now we had Yusa being one of the blandest characters you can possibly have, alongside a âfunâ baseball session with no real consequences or thematic relevance with what weâve had thus far.
Hahahaa! People complain about everything. That isnât a bad thing. People have been, and will continue, to complain about Key forever. Thatâs okay. Thereâs nothing bad with people being critical of a thing. You donât need to protect the work. This isnât protecting your viewpoint, this is attacking everyone with a differing one for no real reason?
First of all, you canât say this, because you havenât even watched the whole show to see the possible consequences of it. Second, these episodes arenât useless. I see a lot of people complaining about âMonster of the Weekâ format and how it brings nothing to the show. But it does. You see, for example, that Yuu was asking himself why was he happy they won the game. The characters are becoming closer as they work together. Just try to enjoy the characters and their interactions. This is what the first episodes are meant for.
And third, this âcommonâ arc can have a major role later. If you read LB!, you probably had no idea the common route was a âbig missionâ and even the mini-games were something much much more than they seemed to be. The same can happen to Charlotte
My issue is Maeda said this wouldnât be like a visual novel. Aside from Naoâs backstory being so early itâs pretty much been a visual novel type story. Also I think all of Keyâs stuff aside from Angel Beats and Charlotte are listed under Slice-of-life. The baseball half felt really SoL which fits in other Key stuff but here I didnât like.
Did anyone really call the whole episode useless though? Most the complaints I see are more vague about what theyâre calling useless. Maybe they did mean the whole episode but my post meant specifically the baseball part. Giving character to Yusa is fine and needed, the baseball felt it was there because Jun Maeda canât write a story without baseball.
Even though no oneâs mentioned it the complaining might also come from the âpower user of the weekâ formula theyâre using, which I think I said I liked in episode 2 or 3 but now itâs feeling a little tiring for me. If âit has a slow first halfâ means we have to deal with a new power user that, aside from Yusa, is unlikely to ever show up again, every episode for the first half (not counting 1) than I am a little worried. There could be some super twist but unless it works in why we had to see a different character each week it probably wonât be worth it.
Yes. Yes I can. Because right now there hasnât been that. I even made it perfectly clear that I was talking about right now. This is how watching a show weekly works. Thoughts can, and will change. Criticising this criticism because it may not be the case later is literally the worst. Youâre denying peopleâs thoughts and feelings now simply because they might change later; peopleâs thoughts and feelings in the future do not deny how they feel now.
I also feel that youâre⌠Understating what monster of the week formats can do. Repetition is a powerful thing. By repeating catch phrases, various visual elements, transformation sequences etc. you can bring about powerful statements later by subverting them. Again, Charlotte can do that. But right now it hasnât, and what it has done isnât being appreciated in the same way youâre appreciating it. That is fine.
This is an anime, not a visual novel. Common arcs can be considered one of the biggest weaknesses of the visual novel genre: they should not be used simply because theyâre used alot, which can certainly feel like the case.
Little Busters had a constant universal theme of adolescence. This was omnipresent. Charlotte has a weaker kind of one currently? Like you can certainly talk about itâs representation of adolescence, but it ainât as powerful and overt as it was in LB. (Also I feel itâs doing something different than just adolescence so thereâs that too.)
âPeople arenât allowed to complain about things like I complain about things.â
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People feel like itâs weak at face value, man. Chill. Thatâs the whole point of critical viewing, to form opinions that vary as we go. People are critical because they actually care here, not just slamming for the sake of it. Itâs a process. Youâre being a bit silly with the comparisons and all too, but if you want to go there- There are good and bad ways to present SoL. Key is a bit hit or miss at times, so saying âWhat did you expectâ is as equally silly as you expecting people to not be critical.
Like talking about baseball for example: I personally didnât feel all that much attachment to this scene here as I felt in something like Little Busters!. I donât think I need to go into detail⌠I appreciate and critique Charlotte entirely on its own, as anyone should- But yeah all the âWhatâs wrong with you peopleâ stuff is pretty asinine.
I said it felt like it. I didnât dig it that much, just like I didnât dig the last episode at all- But even in that episode I pulled things after some viewings. I hold my thoughts for things. My first impression of this episode was I gained nothing of value when weâre talking about a very tight timeframe to produce a lot of value. I think being troubled is acceptable and itâs absurd to claim that ah youâre all shit fans. People who love something are typically the most critical about them, after all.
Furthermore not diggin it here is not equal to it not having any value. Thereâs enjoyment- and appreciating and not liking. Personally I more or less enjoyed the episode, it didnât feel poorly paced, however thinking critically as I do Iâm pondering all the significance and itâs overall value. Iâm allowed to do that.
No, Iâm not. I agree with what you said. Itâs just that Iâve seen a lot of people complaining about it.
We donât even know Charlotteâs main theme for sure yet. All that we have is speculation. This is something we will just know in the end, probably. I also think itâs not adolescence.
Common routes have their purpose. If there was no common route, you wouldnât grow attached to the characters. If they were used just because it is used a lot, why would it be used a lot in the first place?
So, Iâll leave it at that. I just hope it turns out like I thought it would. But if it doesnât, I will still be satisfied. It is enjoyable for me, it makes me like the characters, it works on their friendship. It still has a purpose.
