Shin Sekai Yori (From the New World) Discussion Thread
 

新世界より

An anime adaption from the highly-acclaimed novel by Yusuke Kishi about five children from Japan far in the future who see that this world is dying a slow death.

Airs Tuesday, October 2

Animation Studio: A-1 Pictures

ANN Entry
Official Website
Crunchyroll

In the future Japan has become a fractured country, and small towns now exist. The rulers of this world have the cursed power of Telekinesis. When an incident occurs, 5 children come to realize the world is not as it seems, and learn the bloody history behind this world. These 5 children unite and help the world as it falls into a downward spiral of chaos.

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Episode 1
 

These character designs look familiar. I have some vague ideas of where I might have seen them, but I can't remember the titles of the shows I'm thinking of. -_-;

Um, well, pretty damn good first episode. Not much more to say than that at the moment.

Annoyingly, I thought I was spoiled on something that happened in this episode but it looks like its something from a later episode. Though there are things tipping me off about it anyway. Still, very irritating.

Re: Episode 1
 

Hmm... this is an unusual, but so far interesting.
Saki awakens into adulthood and is transferred to a new school where she meets up with her friends.
Seems like all of the kids are telekinetic.
Saki was the only one who actually questioned what happened to the other kids.
Reiko wasn't doing well at all. At this rate ...
Saki wasn't taking her friends' horror stories for granted though.
It's probably 'cause she was close to one herself.
The adults are hiding some ugly truth...
Looks like it's the survival of the fittest only.

Re: Episode 1
 

Well that was certainly interesting.

Been spoiled on some stuff, but whatever.

Also ;_;, Reiko.

Re: Episode 1
 

-Is this an Akira prequel? Does paranoia nurture him? What is going on! And why is it so loud?
-This show started a thousand years too la-- err early.
-Um maybe the subs are wrong. This sure looks like a thousand years earlier.
-Narrative structure is breaking down. Can I have some chronology please?
-Cantus? Can't us? Cat bus?
-That camera pan between two kids did not make any damn sense.
-Giant insects. Pouch cows... wait pouches like kangaroos or as drawn by Rob Liefeld?
-So this is like The Villiage only with psychics.
-Damn kids these days and their psychic painting! Why back in my day we used real paint and it took days of hard work and years of practice! Rassa-frassum.
-Poor little clumsy adorable Reiko. Hang in there Reiko.
-Now I want a giant kitten.
-Reiko. :cry:
-Ending song why are you trying to give me a headache?

What did I just watch? Visually it felt like a sequel/prequel/time-loop of Noein. But the story was... there was no story. Some girl. Psychic powers. School. The only character I was starting to feel attached to is killed off screen. Or turned into a giant psychic cat. None of the adults displayed any telekinetic abilities. So are the adults raising these psychic mutant children as weapons? I guess Saki's parents seemed worried about losing their child, after losing unnumbered previous children. But that could just be fear of being punished for having faulty mutants.

Losing cute little Reiko is a bad foot to start on. When the other foot is this confused muddled future past lying conspiracy world of telekinetic murder children.

Re: Episode 1
 

Ah! That's it! That's the title of one of the shows I was thinking of. The character designs (at least for the main girl) seem really familiar but I can't quite place them. I thought Noein might have been one, but I couldn't remember the actual title.

Re: Episode 1
 

Well I'm two for two for surprises this season. That was not nearly as good as I was hoping for. It's obviously very much setup, so I'll hold out some hope that there will be satisfying payoff. The way the tension builds throughout it is a pretty good indicator that's the effect they're banking on. The setting looks potentially pretty fascinating, but I'm not sure if what we're going to be exploring will be the most interesting method they could use to display it. Also, Googling it, I found some... surprisingly explicit pictures of the source material, and not in the way I was expecting. Hmm... not sure where this show will go.

Re: Episode 1
 

A whole lot of setup. Decently intriguing, though also unnerving.

I figured Reiko would either be the first to snap and attempt harm on the others, or the first to be offed in some way. Looks like my latter prediction was correct.

No idea how much I actually like it, but it will get a provisionary second episode.

Re: Episode 1
 

Lots of setting up in this episode, about priests, blessings, spirits, and other Shinto stuff. This show certainly uses a style of animation that fits the mood for the show perfectly, and seeing all these characters struggling the way they are is just something to behold. And then the show ends with Reiko disappearing for being psychologically incompetent. It's mostly centered around Saki, but there is enough of the other main characters as well. Let's see what the next episode brings.

Re: Episode 1
 

This was the first new show that I sampled, and it looks pretty interesting. Beyond having seen the title mentioned here and there, I went into it completely blind, with no idea of who produced or voiced it, or what it was about. As others here have said: poor Reiko. ;_;