![[Hadena]_C3_ -_ 03_[1280x720_H264_AAC][D658576B].mkv_snapshot_02.21_[2011.10.16_16.29.01]](http://lh3.ggpht.com/-RXEQXHQHsJA/TpuGt4LUL3I/AAAAAAAAWBk/A5s4a0zcbU4/s1600-h/%25255BHadena%25255D_C3_%252520-_%25252003_%25255B1280x720_H264_AAC%25255D%25255BD658576B%25255D.mkv_snapshot_02.21_%25255B2011.10.16_16.29.01%25255D%25255B2%25255D.jpg "[Hadena]_C3_ -_ 03_[1280x720_H264_AAC][D658576B].mkv_snapshot_02.21_[2011.10.16_16.29.01]") |
![[Hadena]_C3_ -_ 03_[1280x720_H264_AAC][D658576B].mkv_snapshot_03.51_[2011.10.16_16.30.31]](http://lh6.ggpht.com/-5ebW0T7bXRs/TpuGvRGBZUI/AAAAAAAAWB0/KNGqvk0P-TM/s1600-h/%25255BHadena%25255D_C3_%252520-_%25252003_%25255B1280x720_H264_AAC%25255D%25255BD658576B%25255D.mkv_snapshot_03.51_%25255B2011.10.16_16.30.31%25255D%25255B2%25255D.jpg "[Hadena]_C3_ -_ 03_[1280x720_H264_AAC][D658576B].mkv_snapshot_03.51_[2011.10.16_16.30.31]") |
![[Hadena]_C3_ -_ 03_[1280x720_H264_AAC][D658576B].mkv_snapshot_09.19_[2011.10.16_16.37.01]](http://lh4.ggpht.com/-AcMDJ1PDBt8/TpuGwtYy0oI/AAAAAAAAWCE/vDrN0spIKHQ/s1600-h/%25255BHadena%25255D_C3_%252520-_%25252003_%25255B1280x720_H264_AAC%25255D%25255BD658576B%25255D.mkv_snapshot_09.19_%25255B2011.10.16_16.37.01%25255D%25255B2%25255D.jpg "[Hadena]_C3_ -_ 03_[1280x720_H264_AAC][D658576B].mkv_snapshot_09.19_[2011.10.16_16.37.01]") |
C3 continues to be one of the best looking series of the fall season. Underneath that layer, it hasn’t really resonated with me just yet.
There was certainly plenty to like in this week’s episode. This is still one of the best looking series of the season, crisply and beautifully animated with Shin’s usual flair. The battle between Fear and Barowei was especially well-done. This was the best scene of the episode, and not just visually – setting up Fear as an object of both sympathy and terror. It was pretty graphic and gory, but I expected that given the series’ reputation. After having her arm taken off at the shoulder by Fear’s guillotine, Barowei was rescued by her “auxiliary” from the Knights of Gathering, who treats her with cursed bandages over her protests.
It’s not as if I dislike any of the characters or this scenario, but there’s something in the total package that just isn’t working for me so far. If I could put a finger on it, it’s a kind of stiffness – a lack of flow to the episodes that leaves the impression of a bunch of scenes strung together without truly being connected. In other words, the total is less than the sum of the parts – at least for me – and that makes it curiously the opposite of Mashiroiro Symphony, a seemingly trivial presentation that makes more of an impact that the components say it should. Things just feel very familiar here, and I can’t get inside any of the characters. They’re performing the motions quite admirably, but I’m not getting the motivation behind them.
Three eps is normally my trial run for a series I’m genuinely interested in blogging, but I want to give this one a little more time to capture me. There’s some talent involved, and some genuinely interesting things happening on screen – it’s just not coming together.
![[Hadena]_C3_ -_ 03_[1280x720_H264_AAC][D658576B].mkv_snapshot_14.13_[2011.10.16_16.41.56]](http://lh3.ggpht.com/-EwLCN9lLgfQ/TpuGx_LMLZI/AAAAAAAAWCU/YhS5CZNnHfs/s1600-h/%25255BHadena%25255D_C3_%252520-_%25252003_%25255B1280x720_H264_AAC%25255D%25255BD658576B%25255D.mkv_snapshot_14.13_%25255B2011.10.16_16.41.56%25255D%25255B2%25255D.jpg "[Hadena]_C3_ -_ 03_[1280x720_H264_AAC][D658576B].mkv_snapshot_14.13_[2011.10.16_16.41.56]") |
![[Hadena]_C3_ -_ 03_[1280x720_H264_AAC][D658576B].mkv_snapshot_18.34_[2011.10.16_16.46.16]](http://lh6.ggpht.com/-Yu80y8kwmqE/TpuGywDbnLI/AAAAAAAAWCk/C-3u6kF9z4Q/s1600-h/%25255BHadena%25255D_C3_%252520-_%25252003_%25255B1280x720_H264_AAC%25255D%25255BD658576B%25255D.mkv_snapshot_18.34_%25255B2011.10.16_16.46.16%25255D%25255B2%25255D.jpg "[Hadena]_C3_ -_ 03_[1280x720_H264_AAC][D658576B].mkv_snapshot_18.34_[2011.10.16_16.46.16]") |
![[Hadena]_C3_ -_ 03_[1280x720_H264_AAC][D658576B].mkv_snapshot_22.46_[2011.10.16_16.50.28]](http://lh4.ggpht.com/-Rp5mRby3at0/TpuG0cXfgUI/AAAAAAAAWC0/XYLKiBQ1FPU/s1600-h/%25255BHadena%25255D_C3_%252520-_%25252003_%25255B1280x720_H264_AAC%25255D%25255BD658576B%25255D.mkv_snapshot_22.46_%25255B2011.10.16_16.50.28%25255D%25255B2%25255D.jpg "[Hadena]_C3_ -_ 03_[1280x720_H264_AAC][D658576B].mkv_snapshot_22.46_[2011.10.16_16.50.28]") |
deafvader
October 17, 2011 at 3:40 amHopefully you would continue this. Or maybe just blog once a couple of episodes when you feel like it.
P.S. Fear has really thick and long hair. It covers all her important parts, lol.
Ulisses
October 19, 2011 at 1:01 amSuperb art direction and competent music composition. In those aspects, it is no exaggeration to say that C³ is a work of art.
However, there is fundamental flaw in the writing. A great flaw that prevents this show from being one of the great animes this season.
The problem is that the story is told from an emotional perspective. Emotions are selfish, ephemeral and often contradic each other. This episode makes much more sense once it is intepreted in such perspective. Each sequence, from the content itself to the transition between them, is very temperamental.
The focus of the storytelling is not to tell us a story, but to get those feelings off the authors chest. The author was not writing C³ for the audience. He wrote for himself, and expected us to like it.
As a result, whether or not the viewer sympathizes with it is very situational. For me, the characters seem very gimmicky and the changes of mood feel very forced.
In my opinion, writing should be rational and aim for our feelings. A recent example of this would be Chihayafuru, because the narrative is exposed in such a way that makes you feel the way the author wanted us to feel.