Missing the "bandwagon"

[Parker]

Has anybody here ever missed getting into a recent series (either on TV or through fansubs), and much later after hearing all the buzz about the series in the past, finally gave in to purchasing it?

I myself have missed being in the "what's popular now" bandwagon many times when it comes anime, and I always end up watching a really good series until after it gets licensed. For instance there had been many opportunities in the past for me to download stuff like Air TV and Kanon while they were still out for download, but for some reason it took me months before I actually considered actually them (laziness was indeed one factor).

The same goes for This Ugly yet Beatiful World and Azumanga Daioh, where it took me at least two years before remembering the buzz on these two series and purchasing them in their thinpak form.

[something]

This generally only happens to me with slightly longer series I avoid the first time around, like Full Metal Alchemist, Gundam SEED or Eureka 7. Ditto on series that get prelicensed, such as Shakugan no Shana. Generally if I miss out on the initial run, I just wait for a cheap set if they get licensed. Spending extra for singles is mostly reserved for the stuff I've already seen.

[loplop]

Tsukihime was like that for me. Once I did, I was rather glad I finally bought it . . . .

[Draneor]

I actually didn't watch Galaxy Angel until I saw the first episode of Galaxy Angel Rune at Otakon. At that point, I discovered that I would probably like the original. Before then, I had heard of the show, but as I did not know what it was about, I was not interested. I still have yet to watch a Gundam or a Macross. Nor have I watched Cowboy Bebop, Hellsing, and a host of other shows popular in the greater international fandom. Mainly because I don't think I would like them.

It's also not uncommon for me to delay watching a series I know I will love beyond when it originally airs or when I own it to a future date. A good example is how I treated Kanon (KyoAni). I had previously seen the original and loved it, so I knew I would love KyoAni's remake. Thus, I pre-ordered every R2 volume as soon as Amazon.jp listed them. Given I preferred to cry through the show all at once, I delayed watching any of it until I found the proper reagents--either taiyaki or snow bunnies. My quest to find local taiyaki took a bit longer than expected, but I knew I could find fresh taiyaki at Sakura Matsuri. Thus, I had 6/8 of the R2 volumes by the time I watched it, with hot taiyaki in hand. As expected, it stole the number one slot from Air in my personal ranking.

Actually, I do this with almost every show. I tend to like to savor certain pleasures in heavy doses, depending on my mood. Some weeks or months, I may not get in the mood for any kind of anime pleasure.

So yeah. I miss the bandwagon on just about everything.

[Dicrel Seijin]

My tastes skew to the odd, so often times it takes a while to find something that clicks (not necessarily the popular shows--so yes in that respect, I miss the bandwagon a lot).

When my tastes coincide with the mainstream, I do pause. My one overriding question is, "How much of a backlog do I have?" If it exceeds my tolerance (and I cannot justify adding to the backlog), I let the bandwagon pass on by.

[joelgundam01]

Darn it! I keep on missing that band wagon.

The first three that come into my mind are Last Exile, Gankutsuou and The Twelve Kingdoms.

[Suwako Moriya]

With so many shows to choose from, limited time, and limited funds. It's only natural to miss several bandwagons and heck in some cases purposely avoid them.

Super Gals is an example of a series I was late in terms of starting. I tried out it long after the second season had been released and the drama was over with. And that was partly to blind buy for a change of pace.

Sometimes it's less a case of missing the bandwagon and more a case of falling behind it. As there are times I fall behind on series and end up having to catch up if/when I get the motivation and time to.

[Ty]

Of course. It's impossible to watch everything in a current season. We have to pick what we think will be our favorites. Sometimes a show I passed on will be put in front of me and I'll end up liking and buying it years after it was "hot" or whatever. Granted, it happens less and less now since I tend to know what I do and do no want to watch, but occasionally stuff that's outside of my general interests will be really good and I'll stumble upon it way after it aired.

[The Great Bear]

Since I don't download fansubs, I miss it all the time. So, I guess I'm always playing catch up, but then I have the benefit later of knowing the opinions of people around here whose tastes I respect, which helps me avoid shows I'd probably dislike.

[Shsway]

I felt that way about Shakugan no Shana. The first three or four R1 volumes were released before I started picking it up, and I was INSTANTLY hooked. Couldn't believe that I was missing something so wondrous and sweet, with a relatively fresh approach to some old ideas.

For awhile, I had to have everything related to the series...then the fourth set of episodes pretty much "ruined" the feeling (the lead character has what is possibly the worst/most disappointing back-story ever). Anywho, I still love the show, the two leads, and the American release features what I consider THE best Ocean dub EVER, so...

Previous to this, I hopped on-board the Crest/Banner of the Stars bandwagon fairly late, after my first viewing of the show on TechTV (and just in time for the release of the first season set).

TOKYOPOP's failure to publish the Banner novels was not unexpected but it still hurts to be so close to more of the franchise, yet so far. Ditto on anything else that has been animated up to this point (I don't understand Japanese well enough yet to even dream of making sense of radio drama episodes).

[TheLaughingMan]

Well as i'm not into fansubs and R2 high-priced imports and basically never been on the Bandwagon! :sd: :(
Just look at what i'm watching and watched recently and you have a idea of how late i can be into series. Doesn't matter to me though as i still enjoy them just as much.

[Garasharp K7]

Story of my life, really. I'm late to the party with practically every show I watch. There are a couple of shows I've seen in the last few years I wish I'd seen when they were just coming out; I would've liked to join in some discussions an' that, but it's no big deal really.
Heck, I've only just started Armored Trooper Votoms. How late am I?

I am the original Betamax man. :)

[Serial Experiments Nobue]

For me, Vision of Escaflowne. It was released in 1996, and I never saw the (horribly mangled, from what I gather) version of it on US TV in 2000.

I finally bought and saw it in... 2006! So, a decade later, it was entirely new to me. And much to my delight, it also gave my interest in anime a much needed breath of life. Escaflowne reminded me of why I became an anime fan in the first place, and renewed my interest, since at the time I was going through some feelings of burnout.

So that's mine... I missed the boat by 10 years (6 if you want to be picky) on Escaflowne, but I'm glad that I discovered it when I did!

[Herron]

I'd say I do quite a lot. I don't follow fansubs or discussions on shows(don't want to spoil anything of course). So I generally keep an eye on how much buzz a is generating and rate it against my preferences.

Examples would be, Shana and Hellsing. For Shana I kept(and keep) hearing amazing things about it, seeing the characters and art work and from what I've heard it's something I'd more then likely love. But I didn't have all that when it started it release, so I passed thinking it was something different from what it was. Do plan on buying it now... when I can. Hoping a Geneon deal goes through soon.

With Hellsing, I have no interest and don't want it. It's not that I think it's a bad show or something against my preference(not the same but I bought Trinity Blood). It keeps coming up because of the fandom it has, but it holds no interest for me.

So while I'm more then likely to miss the bandwagon on stuff early, due to my lack of fansub watching or even passing on something initially out of misjudging it. I don't mind because it's all about what appeals to my interest. But it is nice to have that fan love for something shared during it's release.

[Njr Scrawl]

Most of the shows I buy! Going for sets more, its inevitable, but crazes seem to go with the latest shows on download rather than DVD releases now. I miss the old days sometimes :(

[Buster Blader 126]

Let's see....

- Cowboy Bebop (Was not into anime during the height of its popularity. FINALLY got around to finishing it when it aired on Razer in Canada. Watched the first few episodes of it subbed three years ago, but it didn't intrigue me enough to put it on high priority.)
- Trigun (Similar case as CB. I FINALLY watched it during its run on G4TechTV Canada.)
- Neon Genesis Evangelion (Ditto. Watched the first few eps subbed at one point, but it wasn't a high priority title, so it's stalled. STILL awaiting a Canadian broadcast of it.)
- Hellsing (Rinse and repeat. Finally watched it in some form, when Hellsing Ultimate came out.
- Fullmetal Alchemist (By the time I got into anime, the subs were probably already done. Watched a few episodes of it subbed, and I honestly thought that it wasn't as amazingly awesome as many others have projected it to be. It got stalled as well, and I didn't finish it until it FINALLY got a run on YTV.)

Newer series that I've missed the bandwagon on due to time constraints and genre preferences are:

- Code Geass
- Gurren Lagann

I plan on watching Code Geass soon though, in time for Season 2. So hopefully I'll arrive fashionably late for that. XD

[Shsway]

For me, Vision of Escaflowne. It was released in 1996, and I never saw the (horribly mangled, from what I gather) version of it on US TV in 2000.

I finally bought and saw it in... 2006! So, a decade later, it was entirely new to me.

Oh man! I saw the series myself, for the first time, when Bandai released that complete Anime Legends set. Totally kidnapped my brain that week, and it actually made wish that I'd tried a bit harder to acquire the original LE vol. 1 with box, especially for that little Escaflowne figure that it came with...

Well, there's always the deluxe, full-color monstrosity, if I ever feel my need for it grow to nearly ridiculous heights. :P

[Lego]

For me the big ones were FMA and GTO. I tend to follow shows as they air if I like them, so it doesn't happen much but a lot of times I'll get into a series when everyone else has passed it up.

[curr]

I don't do fansubs myself either. So I competly miss the bandwagon on alot of shows..

I was so looking forward to seeing Gureen-Lagann too :(

[Lego]

I don't do fansubs myself either. So I competly miss the bandwagon on alot of shows..

I was so looking forward to seeing Gureen-Lagann too :(


Anymore I don't really even need fansubs, I just check 2chan, the odd blog or two, and can get the jist of things by looking at the raw. Then I just wait to see if the series I just spend six months on will ever be brought over.

[Serial Experiments Nobue]

For me, Vision of Escaflowne. It was released in 1996, and I never saw the (horribly mangled, from what I gather) version of it on US TV in 2000.

I finally bought and saw it in... 2006! So, a decade later, it was entirely new to me.

Oh man! I saw the series myself, for the first time, when Bandai released that complete Anime Legends set.

Exactly how I finally added it to my collection. Still one of the best purchases I've ever made. :neko:

Incidentally, the next series to have 'The Escaflowne Effect' on me was Stellvia, which I didn't see until the end of 2006. So at least I only missed that one by 3 years. ;)

[jecca-neko]

I don't watch much fansubs, and when I do it tends to be older things or things that have no chance in hell of getting licensed, so I do usually miss the "bandwagon" too. An exception to that was Lucky Star, but that's an extreme rarity.

I really don't care if I miss the bandwagon. As long as I enjoy the show it doesn't really matter. The only thing that annoys me about missing the bandwagon is when the people who were on the bandwagon spoil things for you.

[Redcoffin]

Everybody misses the bandwagon--meaning the frenzy of watching and blogging and discussion usually triggered by a few prominent early adopters (I would say about 10 people on our GA board, for example). My two cents: don't even worry about that and watch only what matters to you. There is so much around that a person can waste a lot of their life watching huge amounts of stuff they won't even remember a week later.

[Mr. Nail Bat]

The same goes for This Ugly yet Beatiful World


There was buzz for This Ugly Yet Beautiful World?

[The Great Bear]

The same goes for This Ugly yet Beatiful World
There was buzz for This Ugly Yet Beautiful World?

I'm wondering about that as well. I thought it was a swarm of butterflies, not a swarm of bees.

[Ty]

The same goes for This Ugly yet Beatiful World


There was buzz for This Ugly Yet Beautiful World?
In the beginning before everybody realized it was such a disappointment. I certainly don't get many chances to say this, but Mahoromatic kicks Konomini's ass in the plot and chracter development department.

Yet, in the end we watch it for the same reason everybody else did: Hikari and Akari are cute.

[Draneor]

Yet, in the end we watch it for the same reason everybody else did: Hikari and Akari are cute.

Especially wearing nothing but thin, white sheets. Kawasumi Ayako and Shimizu Ai also helped. I found the endings of both shows disappointing (but it is Gainax).

[CrazyCanuck]

Has anybody here ever missed getting into a recent series (either on TV or through fansubs), and much later after hearing all the buzz about the series in the past, finally gave in to purchasing it?

This is actually the problem I as I see it. I'm not going off on a 'fansubs are bad' rant, just that I'm not sure there still is a 'bandwagon' to miss unless you watch fansubs. The whole 'bandwagon' phenomena is centered around the hardcore fans. We may not be the largest portion of the retail pie anymore, but we still are the source of most of the 'buzz' around a title.

Let's be honest, when was the last time a title really got a lot of buzz started during its non-Japanese TV or video release? When was the last time that, as a group, we were anxiously awaiting the next DVD (or VHS) or TV airing to find out what happens next? I barely remember one. Those that follow fansubs still get that feeling. I still get that feeling (since I rarely watch fansubs) but only if I actively avoid spoilers. As a collective, I'm not sure when I remember that last being the case for anime fans.

Fansubs don't dictate the commercial success of a title, but these days they do dictate the critical success among the small but very vocal minority of hardcore fans who start the buzz and generate the 'bandwagon'. Even those of us who don't watch them are affected. Someone brought up This Ugly Yet Beautiful World. and the response was that there was buzz "in the beginning before everybody realized it was such a disappointment". Before the DVDs were even solicited I knew this show was a 'failure'. (I bought it anyway.)

In years gone by I 'missed the bandwagon'. I was late to Trigun, Cowboy Bebop, Escaflowne, Tenchi (it did have a bandwagon at one point) and the like because they were the in thing when I got seriously into anime. After that was a brief period where there were new bandwagons to get on or miss. I remember Hellsing when it came out. The end sucked, but I didn't know that until the DVD came out. I honestly can't think of anything more recent where the 'buzz' didn't start (or die) well before it's R1 release began.

So have I missed the bandwagon? Sure. Without watching fansubs it's pretty much impossible not to. As for when I "finally gave in to purchasing it", that still mostly occurs as a pre-order. I bought Haruhi. I bought the LE versions. I did so totally sight unseen. I still missed the bandwagon because the bandwagon had come (and almost gone) before I even heard of the series. I did buy it based on the existence of a bandwagon though.

I miss the old bandwagons. I miss not having to actively try to avoid spoilers. I miss not knowing if a series was 'any good' long before I had a chance to watch it. I miss the anticipation. I miss the good old days. I feel old.

[Shsway]

I was late to Trigun, Cowboy Bebop, Escaflowne, Tenchi (it did have a bandwagon at one point)...

It still has a very dedicated following, I feel. You have no idea how chuffed I was to read the comments made in the recent review thread for the third Tenchi OVA series. That sort of thing just doesn't happen much anymore, beyond the "Hot girl Z is hot!" or "Wait until episode 305" stuff. Plus, these were comments made on a collected set, and long after the initial R1 "buzz" about a new Tenchi series about to drop.

Admittedly, I can remember that the discussion about the original volume 1 release was fairly long. And I know that the new show ultimately sucked big time, when compared to any part of the franchise before it (well, I haven't seen GXP yet). :P

I miss the old bandwagons. I miss not having to actively try to avoid spoilers. I miss not knowing if a series was 'any good' long before I had a chance to watch it. I miss the anticipation.

But you don't really need a bandwagon to do all that stuff. Some fans talk about constantly "working" at staying relevant with the hobby, but in the end, it's all about finding what entertains you personally. Not feeling like you're obligated to watch/discuss/buy anything you feel even remotely lukewarm about. It is sad - sometimes annoying - that fansub discussions overwhelm everything else here in GA, but it's not unexpected, and it doesn't mean that you can't post your own topic of interest. Or find other folks to get into silly debates with, about the less "in" stuff. :P

[Kinomoto_Shinji]

This has been happening to me a lot. Like last year at my universities local "free con"...I knew every character that was on the poster except for the center character...Haruhi. @_@ I don't have time like I used to, so I may only get into a few series a year now. And since my time is valuable, I tend to wait for a series to finish before I get into it (minus anything Shounen Jump and some other series).

Plus I've been trying to avoid subtitles, so I try to stick to simpler shows, so anything thats too deep I avoid (except movies, but a good anime movie doesn't come along that often).

[Suwako Moriya]

Some fans talk about constantly "working" at staying relevant with the hobby, but in the end, it's all about finding what entertains you personally.

Trying to watch anime based on where the bandwagon travels is a waste of time anyway. Far better to just take a personal walk instead. If I'm early fine, if I'm late fine, if I never show up then there are obvious reasons why.

[Parker]

Some fans talk about constantly "working" at staying relevant with the hobby, but in the end, it's all about finding what entertains you personally.

Trying to watch anime based on where the bandwagon travels is a waste of time anyway. Far better to just take a personal walk instead. If I'm early fine, if I'm late fine, if I never show up then there are obvious reasons why.
Very true indeed. Perhaps the "life of the party" is a being in the bandwagon and constantly catching up on what series is new or hot, but it does take a lot commitment and energy to do so. I'd rather take a personal walk myself, but I can still imagine the excitement that goes on with being in sync with what everyone else is watching.

Lord knows how many discussions I've missed that had everybody in the dark about what's to come in the next new episode of a series, and everybody cooking up crazy speculations as if they were going to watch some kind of anime Survivor episode.

Thought a part of me still wonders how many fans out there feel they have to Keep up With the Joneses when it comes to how much they actually watch.

[Mateo_home]

I've missed the bandwagon plenty of times. Gankutsuou, Haibane Renmei, Cardcaptor Sakura. Just to name a few. Yeah, I will admit, when I see fans watching and discussing the latest anime I'm holding interest in, I just want to feel that experience. To be honest, when it comes to ***subs, I usually just watch the first few episodes this way when (or if) it's brought over for DVD release, it feels like there will be new content for me to watch.

But for those who avoid fansubs but want to feel as if they want to know about the latest hardcore anime trend, there's always the manga if that has been licensed. Hayate the Combat Butler would be a great recent example of this. While not 100% accurate, it can give you an idea of what the anime will be like. But then again, I'm sure manga fans have beaten that one with scanlations. :P

[Mr. Nail Bat]

The same goes for This Ugly yet Beatiful World


There was buzz for This Ugly Yet Beautiful World?
In the beginning before everybody realized it was such a disappointment. I certainly don't get many chances to say this, but Mahoromatic kicks Konomini's ass in the plot and chracter development department.

Yet, in the end we watch it for the same reason everybody else did: Hikari and Akari are cute.

That's what Megami is for.

[GundamWingMan]

I've never been all that big a fan of mecha anime, I just didn't see the appeal of giant robots, still don't to this day, so I originally failed to see what all the hubbub was about Neon Genesis Evangelion and why fans raved about the show like it was the greatest thing since sliced bread, or rather, the panty shot.

So, out of simple curiosity, I gave the show a try a couple of years ago, just to find out what all the shouting was about. Admittedly, I found NGE to have been highly intriguing, fascinating even and it kept me engrossed, at least until the last couple of episodes when it seemed (to me anyway) to have gone off the rails and the ending left me confused and a bit disatisfied.

My opinion on mecha anime hasn't changed. I still won't rush out and buy it, but I found NGE entertaining.

[Serial Experiments Nobue]

I found NGE to have been highly intriguing, fascinating even and it kept me engrossed, at least until the last couple of episodes when it seemed (to me anyway) to have gone off the rails and the ending left me confused and a bit disatisfied.

My opinion on mecha anime hasn't changed. I still won't rush out and buy it, but I found NGE entertaining.

You and about half (or more) of the rest of Evangelion fandom as far as the conclusion goes. ;) I liked the ending, myself.

A minor(?) thing that I might point out about Evangelion is that it isn't really mecha at all. It uses the outward perception of appearing as mecha to draw you in, but then you find out what's really going on and see that giant robots have absolutely nothing to do with it. ;) But that's one of those discussions that may go on forever, and is best suited for its own thread. :D

[Ty]

That's what Megami is for.

I know. :) There is something about the character designs Gainax uses though.... they look as nice animated (even cheaply) as they do in illustration form.