So, uh...BECK.

[Chrono1995]

I got this series after skimming through the manga, and I watched it in no less than 16 hours total. All I have to say about this one is how blown away I was. Every time I think I've grown out of anime I find a series like this and it completely changes my perspective. The characters, the music, and even the animation were just such a breath of fresh air. Needless to say, I've become an addict going through the manga and the soundtracks as well.

What impressed me most about the show is that it didn't really have a defining structure. There was an underlying plot, but it seems to be more about the small situations the characters get into and how it affects the overall plot. It seemed more like a Richard Linklater movie than an anime at times, with just the characters hanging out and talking about bands than there being a grand quest to a music festival. The characters are probably the most endearing ones I've encountered in a long time and coupled with the fact that this series is just so damn addicting, I think BECK has officially crashlanded into my Top 5 of all time list.

I'm definitely interested in both seeing a second series (since the manga goes on much longer than the anime), and how FUNimation treats this series. It has the potential to gain a massive audience simply because of how accessible it is (that, and the music is awesome), but I really don't know they're going to dub it. Maybe just straight through like Tokyopop did it, or change the foreigners to German or something like that. Who knows? This series needs to be seen by more than just hardcore fans, so I hope FUNi pitches it to Adult Swim.

[Carlos]

This series needs to be seen by more than just hardcore fans, so I hope FUNi pitches it to Adult Swim.

You don't think Toonami or MTV could air this?

[Chrono1995]

You don't think Toonami or MTV could air this?
There's no way Toonami could air it. Lots of f-bombs (in English!) to bleep out in addition a few other scenes that just would not fly, even with a edited down TV-PG version. MTV could conceivably air it, but then I remember what happened to Heat Guy J so forget that.

The only thing is that if it does go to Adult Swim, it won't fit in with the Saturday line-up. I'm thinking it could be shown on weekdays and really take off. The style of the series is very, very Western and the pacing is just right for college audiences.

[Space Cadet]

There's no way Toonami could air it. Lots of f-bombs (in English!) to bleep out in addition a few other scenes that just would not fly, even with a edited down TV-PG version. MTV could conceivably air it, but then I remember what happened to Heat Guy J so forget that.

The only thing is that if it does go to Adult Swim, it won't fit in with the Saturday line-up. I'm thinking it could be shown on weekdays and really take off. The style of the series is very, very Western and the pacing is just right for college audiences.

Yeah, I agree. AS should do what they did with FLCL and air it on weeknights with good promotion(I mean FLCL-type promotion) and rerun it twice and bring it back every couple of months.

[Chrono1995]

Yeah, I agree. AS should do what they did with FLCL and air it on weeknights with good promotion(I mean FLCL-type promotion) and rerun it twice and bring it back every couple of months.
It does the same potential as FLCL and Bebop to bring broads audiences across the board. It just has this "spark" that many other anime on CN now just don't have.

[Space Cadet]

It does the same potential as FLCL and Bebop to bring broads audiences across the board. It just has this "spark" that many other anime on CN now just don't have.

So, true.

I wonder how FUNimation will handle the foreigners though. They could use either German, Spanish, or French. Though they could make the foreigners Japanese.:p

[Chrono1995]

So, true.

I wonder how FUNimation will handle the foreigners though. They could use either German, Spanish, or French. Though they could make the foreigners Japanese.:p

For a show set in Japan, I don't know how well that would work. :sweat:

I do like the idea of them being German, though. Now they have to work around the English-speaking characters not understanding Kanji. I hope they merely redub the songs and not replace them.

[Andrew T. Hingson]

Content wise it could air on Toonami if they censor the f-bombs (which they will on AS anyway). And MTV is also an option but no one wants it there I imagine. Adult Swim works best in this situation I suppose. I just hope they treat it well.

[Chrono1995]

Content wise it could air on Toonami if they censor the f-bombs (which they will on AS anyway). And MTV is also an option but no one wants it there I imagine. Adult Swim works best in this situation I suppose. I just hope they treat it well.

Did you enjoy the show?

[tinlunlau]

german?
why not just make 'em french?

[Chrono1995]

german?
why not just make 'em french?

Why French? Typically it's the Germans who make the rawk, while the French bring the Techno. And with a show all about the rawk, typically it'll make more sense to have German the language if anything else.

OR...and this might sound kooky, make the foreigners British. Why not? Since an underlying theme of the show is about Japanese kids worshipping American rock music, why not switch it over since Americans typically worship British rock (Beatles, Zeppelin, Who, Kinks, etc., all of whom are mentioned in BECK)? Actually, I like that idea. It'll really get interesting when it comes to the hip-hop aspect of the show and Chiba's character, what with him being an MC and all.

I watched the show for a second time this past week, and it's still just as good. Everybody here should check it out.

[Karl Olson]

I watched the show for a second time this past week, and it's still just as good. Everybody here should check it out.

Already have, and you should buy the manga. It's great. Besides, v.4 comes with a music download for Beck (as in scientologist rapper guy Beck.)

Seriously though, it's an anime that's truely near and dear to my heart. It really appeals to my roots as a musician (considering I used to be the kid with the guitar practicing until all hours until I discovered a little device called a sequencer and started pouring my energy into that,) and it does an excellent job of capturing the indie music scene not only in Japan but in the states too. I've been to the Croc in Seattle, and Beck captured it perfectly.

I'm not sure whether it'd work on TV, or rather whether it'd be an easy sell to TV, but I think it's in that Bebop/FLCL mode of almost having more appeal to an American audience than a Japanese audience in a weird way. I mean, it's so influenced by Western culture that I really think it could get a foot hold her because of that. I think particularly in areas with very active local music scenes - Seattle, Austin, NYC, LA and such - it could really grab the interest of the average person.

Meanwhile, it'll be amazingly interesting to see how Funi pulls the dub on this. If they make it work, they'll have proven beyond a doubt that they are the best in the industry period because I don't think anything could be harder than dubbing Beck.

[Fresh V]

Indeed, BECK's an awesome series. After seeing Sketch's "BECK is awesome!" thread, I got curious and checked it out. And it's now one of the best anime I've ever seen. So good, it even inspired me to start playing guitar. I've been playing for about a year now. I can't wait to see how FUNi handles this series. I love all the songs, but there's just so much damn Engrish in them, it gets annoying sometimes. So I'm looking forward to FUNi's dubbed songs, and how they'll handle the foreigners. It'll be very interesting. I'm so excited, I have FUNi's BECK Splash page as my wallpaper.:D

I also have Volume 1 of the manga. It's very good, but I prefer the anime, since I can actually here them playing music in it, and, IMO, the character designs for the anime are MUCH better. Sorry, but the characters look kinda ugly in the manga. But one complaint I have with the anime is that Madhouse took away most of the humor. There is still some humor, but not nearly as much as the manga. The anime's more serious.

[Andrew T. Hingson]

Did you enjoy the show?

I loved that show and I proceeded to show it to as many people as I could and they loved it to.

[Chrono1995]

I also have Volume 1 of the manga. It's very good, but I prefer the anime, since I can actually here them playing music in it, and, IMO, the character designs for the anime are MUCH better. Sorry, but the characters look kinda ugly in the manga. But one complaint I have with the anime is that Madhouse took away most of the humor. There is still some humor, but not nearly as much as the manga. The anime's more serious.

Yeah, I scooped up the manga as well, and I like it just as much, if not more, than the anime. It adds a few little details, and is funnier (mostly because of Saitou) than the anime. However, I still think, as far as the first half of the manga goes, that the anime is better by comparison. Part of it has to do with the fact that it has music to go along with it, and the second part is that it does a few little extra tweaks to the characters that I think changed the story for the better.

An example:

When Koyuki goes up onto the third stage at Greater Sound alone to perform The Beatles' "I've Got a Feeling", in the manga he's extremely nervous and the audience isn't digging it until Saku comes in on the drums. In the anime, he's fully confident in his ability by that point, and completely captures the audience's attention which makes the impact of Saku coming on the drums all the better.