Toaru Majutsu/Kagaku no Index/Railgun

[Harv0kz]

These series. Have all my money. No really.

So who else here knows about it? I've personally already finished Railgun on anime, and I'm going through Index now. Personally, I still like Railgun more, mainly because it's more paced out, and actually focuses on said main character, especially during Railgun S. Index just feels like watching some guy with a walking plot weapon and armour set, and despite his misfortune, some else comes out on top.

So what about it guys? General discussion thread I guess, and finding people to talk with.

[RarityDash]

I love these shows, especially Railgun. Index is okay, but still feels kind of typical to me. Touma isn't as bad as some anime protagonists in being a total bore, but he still isn't a character much to get excited about. Mikoto meanwhile is a breath of fresh air as a lead. You just really don't ever get a character like her as a lead protagonist in a shounen anime. Kuroko too is something special; the same character in most anime would just be a silly joke character, but Railgun fleshes her out and makes her a character you can really get behind and care about. They're both in Index, sure, but Mikoto sort of just becomes a tsundere love interest there (and one who, to me, always seemed a less than perfect fit for Touma) and Kuroko mostly is used for a gag character.

Still, both are good, but I count Railgun among my favorite anime ever. I even have this Figma figure of Mikoto on my shelf.

[Harv0kz]

Mikoto meanwhile is a breath of fresh air as a lead. You just really don't ever get a character like her as a lead protagonist in a shounen anime

This. Because IMO people are still reluctant to accept a female lead that starts out with top-tier powers. Clearly the Figma you got describes this perfectly.

I was reluctant at first to pick it up because it seemed like something I'd cycled through already. Boy, was I wrong. Although I'm only picking up Index to fill in the gaps while I try to track down the 4th and onwards volumnes of Railgun in translated print, because to be honest, what I'm seeing right now is just 10 episodes of what the show is, then it shifts to what Touma does in the Sisters arc, and then it looks like it shifts to Accelerator, which kind of robs slightly from the magical overkill that occurred, but okay, as I've said before, these are gaps that must be filled.

Perhaps one day, I will unlazy myself and actually keep studying Japanese, if anything, so I can get raw prints of the Manga and LN and read them. And actually understand the flavour text on my Weiss Schwarz deck (Although from what I understand, it's just quotes from the shows)

[RarityDash]

This. Because IMO people are still reluctant to accept a female lead that starts out with top-tier powers. Clearly the Figma you got describes this perfectly.

Yeah, at least for shounen anime. Which is a real shame if you ask me. It really makes something like Railgun or Kill la Kill or whatever else that actually does have a female lead with awesome abilities all the more special.

My figma is probably cuter than it looks in that pic though. It's a very high quality figure like any Figma, I just took that on poor quality webcam on my old laptop. The professional quality photos of the same figure probably reflect how it looks in real life better:

[Harv0kz]

Hang on, I need to throw some money away...

Speaking of which, Shounen content is Shounen content. To say that the boy/girl divide in entertainment doesn't exist anymore or is being blurred into one is a overstatement, and that's why I think things like these catch on well, but at the same time the guys who came for their action only based shows will be reluctant to watch such a show.

[RarityDash]

Heh. Yeah... That Figma was included in a limited edition version of an Index PSP game. On ebay these days she tends to go for right around $100...

And yeah, I definitely agree. As much as such divisions might at times get challenged, they are still definitely there. Almost any given big shounen anime/manga has a male lead designed to be as relateable as possible to a male audience (and for that matter, practically every shoujo anime/manga has an underwritten, relateable female lead. For audiences, especially younger demographics, it seems that what people want or at least what they typically get is something familiar and comfortable for them.

Which is a shame. Something like Railgun shouldn't be ignored by shounen fans after all. The plots are all excellent, the characters are great and also the fight sequences always top quality.

[Harv0kz]

Dang it. $100's abit too much given my latest spending spree. A well... one day.

Points to agree with. And when the division is challenged and done right, it's usually something you might have ignored for a while due to misleading, but after you watch it, you wish you'd seen it before while it was airing or while it was the current hype. So many shows... I feel like the odd guy who finally catches up to the finish line after everyone is gone. Glad I don't need to do that for this current season.

I've also heard rumours of a S3 for both Index and Railgun, but I can't remember when or where. Could be just me piecing things together and coming to a warped conclusion by accident.

[RarityDash]

Heh, well, in my case it's often actually the opposite. With anime I make a specific point to check out series I hear about that have female protagonists or seem to be doing something interesting in regards to challenging conventions. I actually end up later and more hesitant to jump on for shows that do look like they follow conventions but are actually good. Just this season, Rosewind had to tell many times to check out Gokukoku no Brynhildr before I gave in and did so, all because everything in the images, synopses and character designs I saw just looked really conventional and uninteresting to me, but it actually really was a pretty good anime.

I'd really love to see a third Railgun. S was really fun, but I'd love to see more of the characters yet still. More Index would be nice too, of course, if not quite as compelling. I'm not sure I've seen anything confirming third seasons for either though.

[Harv0kz]

Railgun S was awesome, save the filler arc after the Sisters, I felt that was a hastily stitched and lacking eight episodes where they just threw away everything from the Sisters arc in order to round off the numbers. I'd still love to see the other arcs animated, given that I can't read forwards until I grab the 4th volume on translated print for Railgun (English translations here are hard to come by. There is a three week restock period. I can't continue with things like my Sidonia no Kishi, since they lack volumes 7-9.)

But that's one way of looking at anime, going for the oddballs. I think I'm just slowly going into a "Hey, their trailer/pv/synopsis looks good. Watch it and don't drop the series until it's over." Which is pretty much the approach I took in looking for Summer's anime. Clocking in at ten, and I still have two from Spring to finish.

[RarityDash]

I didn't mind the arc at the end of S. I was kind of glad for something completely fresh after Sisters. It was a little rushed, probably, but it was enjoyable enough and the climax was satisfying.

Well, I guess that's sort of how it is for me too, it's just the less standard shows tend to appeal to me more. Looking at the summer line up there are actually 16 different anime that seem worth at least checking out though; kind of hope I end up actually following less than that. I followed eight anime for the Spring season just ending, and that was difficult enough.

[Harv0kz]

Kuroko using javelins instead of nails - This, if anything, this was worth it. And the final scene where they go to space. To be honest though, I preferred the first season over Railgun S. I don't know why, but it just sets the pace of the show, and builds up pretty well for the science half in my opinion. Plus, epic railgun clash at the end.

I have 11 shows jotted down somewhere on a txt file. I might be clearing out my Thursdays to watch shows again. I was caught up to the latest episodes at around the half-way mark for the ending current season, so it was no big deal for me, being a first year University student with all the time to burn. That might change in my second year though

Now excuse me while I go do some file organization on my hard drive partitions... I need the space for this upcoming season.

[RarityDash]

Kuroko was great with the javelins, yeah. The first season probably was a little better than S though, even if I really loved both.

And yeah, Understand that feeling. Finding the time to keep up with anime is always hard for me. I'm always behind on something trying to keep up with the latest shows.

[Harv0kz]

I've been trying to solve that by watching Anime in between times, such as during long transits, or between lectures, but it's hard to find something that can play .mkv files without freaking out, and not all shows have someone who does it in .mp4, that, and even devices with long-battery drop dead within a few episodes.