3D Animation taking over 2D Animation?!

Basically today I thought I would touch on the topic of 3D animation, since it feels as if the number of anime using 3D animation is increasing over the past few seasons.

I don't know when 3D animation was first used, but I think what had spread the influence of using 3D animation is basically the american culture, vocaloid and budget restraint.

So before I move onto talking about the reasons, I picked up a few anime which as inputted 3D animation.

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Well as we all know the anime Digimon as our childhood anime, they had already started using 3D animation for the digimons when they evolve into the higher stages. But they didn't really do much with it other then for that few seconds. So I won't go into details.

So the first is Baby Steps which was aired in 2014. Baby steps is a spurts anime which touches on tennis. Even though 3D animation is more useful when they are trying to show more precise and smooth motion, in this anime, the 3D models were used as bystanders, and not for the movements of the characters.

and I don't know why, but it really annoys me when their having a match and I see these 3D models standing there, and it really distracts me a lot while trying to watch the match. It was probably done to save time in having the draw in all the by standers in every frame they animate. I appreciate the effort in actually making people stand there, but I would rather it not be there.

In Prince of Tennis (aired in 2001 to 2005), also a tennis anime, most of the time they didn't actually have any by stander in the frame itself, or just have shadows of people, but when you are actually watching the match itself, you wouldn't even notice. So I actually thought that it was better this way.

 

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Next would be music anime, and especially anime with piano scenes. Piano scenes are really important to show the fingering on each key to actually bring out that liveliness of that scene. And in animation that would be killing yourself by drawing each any every frame for each finger movement (or even half a finger movement), so it's obviously a lot smoother and faster to use 3D animation where you can actually use motion sensors.

I think it's already well known, but Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso does this for their piano scenes. It was actually mentioned a few times among the voice actors themselves during events and talks that they actually used an actual pianist and recorded it down with motion sensors to get the fingering right, and as a result, you get a very smooth piano scene.

And it's very obvious that these scenes are using 3D animation. I don't know if it's because of the style they actually use to paint on the hands, but it's very obvious, compared to Nodame Cantabile. In Nodame cantabile, even though they also did use 3D animation for the piano scenes, it's not as obvious, and it's hard to tell that it's actually 3D.

 

It's probably confirmed that any anime on classical music, using piano - they would probably use the motion sensors for the scenes.

It was said to be almost impossible to animate violin scenes because of the fact the compared to the piano, violin is an instrument which moves along with the player.However, for Shigatsu's violin scenes, it was done using 2D animation style. But 3D models were used as reference for drawing in the 2D frames. And on top of that, they actually filmed a violinist playing from different angles to use as reference for the drawings too.

And you end up with a ton of frames for just 5 seconds. But I'm sure all of those who had watched Shigatsu was pretty pleased with the animation. Just by the amount of hard work they had to put into a single scene it would really put off the animators, and we should all be grateful for all their hard work, because we ended up with such a beautiful scene and animation.

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Next up is sports anime. I think I've only seen one sports anime using 3D for their animation, but it's only a little - like a 5 seconds thing? And that anime is Yowamushi Pedal.

Basically they only use 3D animation for scenes where the camera pans out and it shows their back.

I'm actually not too sure as to why they would only do that for the few second scenes, but I'm thinking it's because of the fact that when you pan out the camera and it shows so many people riding on their bicycle, it's actually really hard to coordinate the timing for the movements of the head, arms and legs (and not to mention - hair). On top of that, since it actually shows many difference character, who are riding with different movements, it's actually hard to get the timing correct.

But of course, for sports anime whose movements of the limbs are crucial, 3D animation makes it a lot smoother. This applies to action anime too. As most of you know that during these few seasons, many of the animation uses 3D during their action scenes or well, specific scenes which require a lot of movement (this includes anime like Divine Gate and Phantasy Star Online). Which brings me to my next point - selective 3D animation.

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Selective 3D animation seems to be the trend in anime these 2 seasons. Since they still want to preserve that traditional 2D animation, yet still want the quality of fast paced movements to be there. A number of animes can be listed off the bat, but I'd be focusing on Rokka no Yuusha.

In Rokka no Yuusha, the monsters (which are also known as 'kyo' or 'fiends') are 3D animated, while the rest of the anime is 2D animated.

Well I didn't care too much about this, because the monsters didn't really play a huge role in the anime, and don't have a lot of screen time. But it really bothered me when there was more character-monster interaction. And the contrast between the 2 when put side by side, was just unsightly.

But on the other hand, I liked the consistency of making all the monsters 3D animated. So I don't really know which is better - using 2D animation for this monster or continue with the 3D animation.

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Next is full 3D animation, and these are the how anime may look like in the future if everyone decides to using 3D animation instead of 2D. There have been a few 3D animated anime like God Eater and Ajin. But since I have yet to watch God Eater, I'll be talking about Ajin.

Well I don't really have anything against 3D animation, because I really liked movies like Final Fantasy. But for this animation, I don't think I can say it's nice. Instead of giving the anime more life, I feel like it's actually worst off compared to a normal 2D animation - it actually looks a lot flatter. I think this is mainly because of the style of colouring and highlights, it really lacks that depth which 3D needs in order for it to look nice.

Unlike the American animation, they don't actually layer on texture onto the characters and things itself, instead they just colour it normally. So it doesn't really look as glamorous. In addition, the character movements were stiff and it didn't look very natural. This is probably because they are actually using 3D models and moving them, while smooth and natural movement requires motion capture of a moving human being. But whether a not using 3D animation was for the better or worst, I wouldn't know.

But if Japanese 3D animation is going to be heading towards what we see in american movies like Good Dinosaur, I must say I'm looking forward to it, but if it's going to remain in this level, then I don't think changing it for the better. 

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As we all know, vocaloid has been a huge influence in Japan, because of Miku's popularity, and has also been gaining popularity in other foreign countries. And they have been holding vocaloid concerts, with vocaloids (mostly Miku) being displayed on a large screen and a live band.

Well this Miku hologram is made based on capturing motions made by a real dancing person and then used as 3D animation to make her look as real as possible. Even all their games have a 3D dancing miku. With this, I think that it has spread more ideas on how to use 3D animation, especially seeing how influential Miku is in Japan.

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But the biggest and most important reason is probably because of the lack of budget animation companies have.

Ever since the rise of the internet and free online videos, the animation group has been seeing a decline in sales and revenue of animation DVDs and CDs. The amplifying of the sale prices of the DVDs are actually backfiring and lesser people are buying it because it's just too expensive. Why would viewers spend a bomb on raw Blueray DVDs (they cost around 60 SGD for 2 episodes) when they can get free Subbed, high quality videos online? As such the revenues earned are dropping and the budget is decreasing.

In 2D animation, the amount of effort put into each frame is very costly, to the point where animators are not getting paid enough, as each frame has to be hand drawn over and over again just to make a few seconds of animation. So to cut down on the amount spend on animating, they use 3D animation which only needs the creation of the individual pieces, after which they can be reused as many times needed. Compared to the 2D animation which needs to get redrawn over and over again. Basically it's a lot more efficient and less costly to use 3D animation as compared to 2D animation.

As to whether 3D animation would replace 2D animation, I think it's up to the fans to decide.

Durarara!! x2 Shou Ep 4.5: Watashi no Kokoro wa Nabe Moyou

Basically this special episode was from where they left off at episode 4, whereby they decided to hold a hot pot party after Celty and Anri were trying to learn cooking.

I was actually thinking what kind of weird special episode were they going to put up, but I ended up loving this episode more than any episode in the main series.

This episode is mainly about past stories which happened between friends, and how their relationship actually came about. Though they only got to talk more about Ryuugamine, Anri and Shizuo. I was actually really interested in knowing how Dota-cchin and his gang came about, but guess they didn't have time for that.

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So for starters, obviously they have got to start with the 2 main characters - Ryuugamine and Masaomi.

Though it was said before from the beginning that they were both childhood friends before Masaomi had to moved to Ikebukuro, they didn't actually tell us how close they were before. So at last, here comes the moment of truth.

The flashback starts with Masaomi going to Ryuugamine's house at 2am (which friend goes knocking on their friend's windows at 2am?!) and well, from the first scene you can tell that Masomi's personality had not changed since then. Though his appearance was from before he dyed his hair blonde.

Young Ryuugamine was also the same as before - hating violence, and trying to stop people from doing the wrong things even though he can't fight.

Well, as expected their voice actors were different, though I did spot Terashima's voice (Togusa's voice actor) in the midst of everything.

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Secondly it was Anri and Harima Mika. Well they did mention before from the start that they both knew each other, and Anri was frantically trying to find Mika when she went missing in the first few episodes of season 1. However after all that, there was only a brief mention that they knew each other. So to what extend their relationship was, was kind of a mystery.

But now it's unfolded that Mika actually saved Anri from a bunch of bullies, and their relationship grew from there when they started hanging out together.

Though expected, both their personality didn't change since then. Anri was still that shy girl who doesn't talk much, and Mika is still a happy go lucky and high tension girl.

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Thirdly is our long waited Shizuo and Tom's story. There was an episode in season 1 (ep 12 I think) which was about Shizuo and his life story - mostly about how he came to be so strong, and how his fight with Izaya started. In that episode, there was a little missing piece which was skipped; which was when did he actually met Tom-san.

It was mentioned before that Tom-san was his senpai, so when he invited Shizuo to go work for him, he just accepted it. But as to how he came about to know Tom-san was a mystery itself. Because it was honestly a hard think imagining Shizuo knowing a senpai from school that easy, especially because I doubt he is in any clubs.

While telling us the story about Shizuo and Tom-san, they actually also told us about how Shizuo's blonde hair came about (I honestly just took it as he just decided to dye it one day, and left it at there). Apparently it was Tom's idea that Shizuo dyed his hair so that people would avoid him. Though when Tom first suggested this, Shizuo was against it saying "I shouldn't dye the hair which my parents gave me." (Awww, Shizu is such a cutie pie).

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Well, so ending the story about Shizuo and Tom-san they were just about to get into knowing more about Dota-cchin and his gang, but...

Well Yumasaki decided to use his awesome Otaku-ness to do a flashback, well while we can never be sure how true his story his (minus the random butler setting), Karisawa decided to turn it into a fujoushi material. And, well, somehow it ended up with random anime cross references - (from the left) Mahouka Koukou no Rettousei, To Aru Kagaku no Railgun, To Aru Majutsu no Index, Ryo-Kyu-Bu! And then it all ended with Dota-cchin being angry.

I'm guessing they are having Index and Misaki grab onto Dota-cchin was because he did mention before that even though he doesn't really like anime-related stuff, he really likes the light novel for To Aru Majutsu no Index. So we have Index grabbing onto his left arm, and sine To Aru Kagaku no Railgun is kind of like a side story (more like an alternative setting) for Index, we have Misaki grabbing onto Dota-cchin's right arm.

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When Shinra heard them talk about random childhood memories, he decided that he wanted to share with them more about him and Celty, but then it was cut short because Celty said she couldn't really remember, though she was just lying because it was too embarrassing.

Being desperate Shinra wanted to call Izaya up to reinforce his memories, but was stopped by Dota-cchin because Shizuo was there.

If only Izaya was there then we could have another Izaya - Shizuo moment again, though Shinra's apartment would be... gone, for good.

Well, I'm really hoping that there would be more episodes like this, especially when they decide to talk more about the main few cast. Somehow it makes me feel nostalgic too.

Sakurako-san no Ashimoto ni wa Shitai ga Umatteiru

Image from: http://myanimelist.net/anime/30187/Sakurako-san_no_Ashimoto_ni_wa_Shitai_ga_Umatteiru

Name: Sakurako-san no Ashimoto ni wa Shitai ga Umatteiru 櫻子さんの足下には死体が埋まっている Beautiful Bones -Sakurako's Investigation-

Status: Completed
Episode: 12
Release Date (for eng subs): Every Friday

Summary:

Shoutarou Tatewaki, a high schooler living in Asahikawa City, Hokkaido, meets Sakurako Kujou, a bone-loving ojou-san who has an ability to analyze specimen. Because of meeting her, he has to accompany her to various cases.

Summary Source: MAL News

Summary from: http://myanimelist.net/anime/30187/Sakurako-san_no_Ashimoto_ni_wa_Shitai_ga_Umatteiru

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Personal Ratings: 3.1 / 5

Idea: 3.5 / 5
I liked how they played with the title of the anime. There is a famous saying in Japan that “underneath the sakura tree, lay dead bodies” (smth like that), and naming the show in relation to that famous saying just perks the interest of viewers.

I didn’t expect this anime to be the typical kind of mystery shows. I really thought that it would be an out of the box new type of anime. So I was pretty disappointed when I first watched this. But that being said, I actually enjoyed all the mysteries, and after watching this, I suddenly had this urge to keep dig out all my mystery anime and re watch them. So I do think that it is a very good mystery show. On top of that, I did think that the way certain mysteries are made was different from the norm - it doesn’t always involve people dying (like detective conan).

Execution:

Development: 3.5 / 5

I liked how this plot takes the development step by step with each mystery, and how it all end up as one huge case by itself.

Though, I did felt that the mysteries are not completed. Even though they may solve the main problem in the murder, some other point in the shows are not completely answered.

In episode 2, the room of the murdered mother, was found to be filthy and filled with garbage bin. Until the end, they didn’t explained why it was this messy and dirty. Also, they later they said that those were not garbage, but things like unopened canned food which expired. Why would the mother keep something like that?

While it maybe true that the whole motive and purpose of this show is purely just to solve murders based on the bone structures of a human being, I feel that there should be a reason as to why certain things happened, and even if it may not be connected to Sakurako’s deduction process, they should tell us the completed story (maybe they can do that after the ending song).

Emotions: 2.5 / 5

Although the mystery side of the anime was really well done, and very in depth, I felt they were missing on the emotional side of the story. The foundation of the character development wasn’t really there, though I liked how they didn’t throw away characters. The more psychology aspect of the anime wasn’t really there.

During the episodes about the family curse, the grandma’s painting and grandma’s death, and also the last episode about the parting between the two. I didn’t really feel that emotional attachment to any of the character, and felt that they could amplify the intensity of certain scenes. But so far, I really liked how they are going with the story about the serial killer. I feel that I can expect a lot more in the future (if they have a 2nd season - no, wait, - they MUST have a 2nd season).

Planning: 3 / 5
I think that this story was pretty well planned; having all the small cases link to one huge case, and that gradual increase in the involvement of each case held the whole anime together.

Main Character Development: 3 / 5

The only evident character development here is Sakurako-san herself. Though I did feel that there were some inconsistencies with certain traits of her, I can definitely see the character development.

As for Shoutarou, he feels like a character created just for Sakurako to mourn about her little brother. Although at first I really felt that there could be a great development for his character, In the end there wasn’t much development in his character.

Side Character Development: 3.5 / 5

Like some anime out there, this anime picks certain side characters and actually continue to develop them after their cases are solved, and they all play a part in developing the main characters.

I actually liked how they used the characters to link the stories together. It makes the whole movement of the story really smooth, while guiding our train of thoughts together with the storyline.

Seiyuu: 3 / 4
I don't think I was particularly surprised by the cast at all, but I really liked Shizuka's voice (voice actor of Sakurako) here. I think she fits Sakurako down to the bone. It was perfect - her personality, behavior and aura, all nailed. Though sometimes I feel that she was way too consistent with her voice - like there was nothing special about it. But I still really enjoyed listening to her voice.

Enoki on the other hand is a pretty newbie seiyuu (Shoutarou's voice actor). I didn't think he stood out or anything but I guess pretty fitting for Shoutarou. Though I feel that he lacks that natural feel to the character.

As for the side character, some of them I've already about guess which voice actors would act them before they open their mouths, and some of them are really veteran.


OST: 0/1

The OST used here, was pretty nice. They had their trademark music going on when Sakurako does her deductions, like what most mystery shows would have. Even though the music itself is really beautiful, I still feel the lack of emotional attachments in the music themselves.

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Art Ratings: 3.5

In terms of animation, I liked it. almost all the scenes were perfectly animated, and the art was beautiful. But not in an outstanding level. In the end there wasn’t really any special colour or trait which they used in their animation to elevate their story line. It was just simply a very nice art and smooth animation.

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Similar Animes:

Psycho Pass

In a way I do feel that this story resembles Psycho Pass a lot; in terms of the setting and the genre they picked. Both have a fair share of mystery and psychology. The only huge difference is that Psycho Pass is an action and political-based anime, while Sakurako is set in a slice of life style of anime.

Gosick

They both don't follow the typical mystery style of anime where by the main character is a detective him/herself. However, their setting and story style are both very different. While Gosick is set in a foreign country in a different era, Sakurako-san is set in the modern world.

Kamisama no Memochou

Both similar in the sense that both of them have similar types of cases where it isn't necessary that a person is dead before the case is being investigated. Their settings are the same, but in different age - Sakurako-san dosen't involve high school life. Sakurako-san has a better mystery story line because of the evidence and knowledge background, while Kamisama no Memochou is more on situation-based facts and is more similar to Hyouka.

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Recommended for:

Gender: Male & Female

Age: 13 and above

My Ratings: PG-13