COME PROUD PUDDINGS, NOW IS THE MOMENT YOU'VE BEEN WAITING FOR!
So. I'm hooked on a new show! This isn't too surprising I guess; I've ALREADY done fanart for it after just 8 episodes. I was hooked on Avatar but I didn't do fanart for that until the second season was almost over. Even TTGL took about 11 episodes to get a fanart out of me.
I'm pretty sure this series is going to become my new Avatar, actually. The target audience is about the same age, although it's French so they can get away with a little more I think. Horribly stereotyped comments go here, but considering what American TV considers appropriate for children viewers, I don't think this is far from the truth. The animation quality is also very high, fluid and vibrant, the characters are all likable and visually well-designed, the writing is great, and I'm left with a big grin on my face as I watch each episode. Much like Avatar, these first episodes are largely one-shot stories, but characters that I had considered one-episode throw-aways are already starting to reappear, and a larger plot has been hinted at, which I think could easily last two or three seasons.
So now I'm left with only one option. I need to let you know why you, yes, YOU, should be watching Wakfu.
Reason #1: Yugo
Yugo is the main character of our story. As a baby, Yugo was dropped off by a dragon who was quick to disappear. (This isn't a spoiler as it happens within the first half of the first episode.) Yugo and his tiny bird companion who was found with him were raised by a good man, who was a baker and mayor of his town, and taught Yugo to cook a damn fine dinner. The real story begins when, at age 10, Yugo accidentally discovers that he has a built in portal gun in his hands. Cake ensues? No, seriously. With a wave of his hands, Yugo can create a portal from here to there, and send anything from cooking utensils to himself and other people through these magical portals. This power is unheard of, and its awakening signifies that it's now time for Yugo to find his true parents.
Reason #2: Tristepin/Sadlygrove
Tristepin is the only character to have a name change from French to English. His original name, Tristepin, translates to Sad Pine, therefore Sadlygrove was chosen to keep some of the pun. Tristepin is a lovable idiot. Somewhat weak-willed, a failure with the ladies (though he never gives up), hot-headed and quick to fight but honourable and insistent upon a duel face-to-face instead of sneaking around, he is a young knight who has a lot to learn. He was chosen to be a guardian of a sentient weapon, Rubilax, who is not happy to be wielded by such a buffoon, and would prefer to be the one doing the wielding. Tristepin must keep a strong will to prevent his sword from taking control of his mind. Yeah, we'll see how well that goes. Still, he's not entirely useless in a fight, and won't abandon his principles.
Reason #3: Evangelyne
Eveangelyne is a Cra--each character, save Yugo, is from a different class in the game the show is based on. As a Cra, she is an incredibly skilled archer, and unlike Tristepin, would prefer to do her battling from a distance, not giving the enemy opportunity for victory. She is also often analytical, calm during a crisis, and acts as the voice of reason in the group; from a young age she's had to be the responsible one, as she's the guardian of the princess Amalia, who is, how should I say, impulsive--but we'll get to that. Tristepin is initially shown to have quite a crush on her, but being constantly turned down seems to have caused his enthusiasm to wane. Still, their personality conflicts aren't going to lessen any time soon. Also, I love this expression. and, freckles! X3
Reason #4: Amalia
Amalia is a princess, but dislikes the responsibility that comes with such a lifestyle. She wishes her relationship with Evangelyne would be closer to friendship instead of the formal guardian and princess position. At the same time, she has been a bit spoiled, and the comforts of life as a princess are hard to give up. Sometimes she has to realize she can't always have her cake and eat it too. As a Sadida (game class again), she has plant-based powers and functions more as a support unit in battle, though there are also some good offensive moves in her arsenal. She is a positive, upbeat person, and although sometimes her words are a little rude, she means well. She and Evangelyne join Yugo on his quest "because it is noble," but really she just wanted an excuse to not go back home right away, where she'd have to be a princess again.
Reason #5: Ruel Stroud
Ruel is an old, penny-pinching, cowardly treasure hunter/bounty hunter/anything that will make him some cash. He will often collect bets from spectators whenever Yugo is in a fight with someone or something else. Though he claims to be poor and tries to get free meals off of everybody, he in fact has more cash than even princess Amalia. Even for a good cause, he hates to give away something for nothing. Surely he has some redeeming qualities... somewhere... a little? Well, maybe traveling with Yugo will learn him some generosity. ... Maybe.
Reason #6: Gorgeous animation
No, seriously. Much of the animation is actually done in Flash. The only other show I know of that does this is Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends, which is very different stylistically. I am constantly impressed by the quality of this show. Clearly there is some traditional animation going on here as well; they understand the principles of animation and use them. I am never left clawing at my keyboard because I wish things would just goddamn move already. ::cough90%ofallanimebeingproducedlatelycough:: From the screencaps I've been showing, there are a number of close-up shots on faces, however, there are also more than enough zoom-out shots, with a great attention to background, world-building, and enough room for some ridiculously awesome fighting scenes. episodes 3 and 6 particularly come to mind.
Have a look at some of the backgrounds:
It's true that this is not (as of yet) a deep, life-changing cartoon. There are episodes with morals and it is probably aimed at children. But it is actually good entertainment. Basically, I love it.
"But Sam," you say, saddened because this show sounds SO AWESOME, "how can I watch this? It's in French, you said so yourself!"
"Oh my doubtful little lambs," I say, but not really because that is creepier than I am comfortable with, "You can find EVERYTHING on the internets." For episodes 1 through 6 are now subtitled! With the exception of episode 5, I'm pretty happy with the subitltes; some things are changed for a better flow but the meaning stays the same. (Episode 5 is a little literal in the translation and so things are a little stilted.)
You can find these episodes~ (replace hxxp with http)
Episode 1: hxxp://www.megaupload.com/?d=5fwh4vpc
episode 2 - GOT IT hxxp://www.megaupload.com/?d=kajsexjm
Episode 3: hxxp://www.megaupload.com/?d=necmvlgd
Episode 4: hxxp://www.megaupload.com/?d=h8niv42h
Episode 5: hxxp://www.megaupload.com/?d=QAI91GYH
Episode 6: hxxp://www.megaupload.com/?d=3ov7diu9
If any of those aren't working, lemme know. Most of 'em, you can open in VLC and then you have to enable the subtitles track. If there's a separate .ass file (no, seriously, it's called that) switch it to a .srt file and it should work.
ENJOY
PLEASE
IT GETS LONELY BEING THE ONLY ONE I KNOW IN THIS FANDOM
SO LONELY
I'm pretty sure this series is going to become my new Avatar, actually. The target audience is about the same age, although it's French so they can get away with a little more I think. Horribly stereotyped comments go here, but considering what American TV considers appropriate for children viewers, I don't think this is far from the truth. The animation quality is also very high, fluid and vibrant, the characters are all likable and visually well-designed, the writing is great, and I'm left with a big grin on my face as I watch each episode. Much like Avatar, these first episodes are largely one-shot stories, but characters that I had considered one-episode throw-aways are already starting to reappear, and a larger plot has been hinted at, which I think could easily last two or three seasons.
So now I'm left with only one option. I need to let you know why you, yes, YOU, should be watching Wakfu.
Reason #1: Yugo
Yugo is the main character of our story. As a baby, Yugo was dropped off by a dragon who was quick to disappear. (This isn't a spoiler as it happens within the first half of the first episode.) Yugo and his tiny bird companion who was found with him were raised by a good man, who was a baker and mayor of his town, and taught Yugo to cook a damn fine dinner. The real story begins when, at age 10, Yugo accidentally discovers that he has a built in portal gun in his hands. Cake ensues? No, seriously. With a wave of his hands, Yugo can create a portal from here to there, and send anything from cooking utensils to himself and other people through these magical portals. This power is unheard of, and its awakening signifies that it's now time for Yugo to find his true parents.
Reason #2: Tristepin/Sadlygrove
Tristepin is the only character to have a name change from French to English. His original name, Tristepin, translates to Sad Pine, therefore Sadlygrove was chosen to keep some of the pun. Tristepin is a lovable idiot. Somewhat weak-willed, a failure with the ladies (though he never gives up), hot-headed and quick to fight but honourable and insistent upon a duel face-to-face instead of sneaking around, he is a young knight who has a lot to learn. He was chosen to be a guardian of a sentient weapon, Rubilax, who is not happy to be wielded by such a buffoon, and would prefer to be the one doing the wielding. Tristepin must keep a strong will to prevent his sword from taking control of his mind. Yeah, we'll see how well that goes. Still, he's not entirely useless in a fight, and won't abandon his principles.
Reason #3: Evangelyne
Eveangelyne is a Cra--each character, save Yugo, is from a different class in the game the show is based on. As a Cra, she is an incredibly skilled archer, and unlike Tristepin, would prefer to do her battling from a distance, not giving the enemy opportunity for victory. She is also often analytical, calm during a crisis, and acts as the voice of reason in the group; from a young age she's had to be the responsible one, as she's the guardian of the princess Amalia, who is, how should I say, impulsive--but we'll get to that. Tristepin is initially shown to have quite a crush on her, but being constantly turned down seems to have caused his enthusiasm to wane. Still, their personality conflicts aren't going to lessen any time soon. Also, I love this expression. and, freckles! X3
Reason #4: Amalia
Amalia is a princess, but dislikes the responsibility that comes with such a lifestyle. She wishes her relationship with Evangelyne would be closer to friendship instead of the formal guardian and princess position. At the same time, she has been a bit spoiled, and the comforts of life as a princess are hard to give up. Sometimes she has to realize she can't always have her cake and eat it too. As a Sadida (game class again), she has plant-based powers and functions more as a support unit in battle, though there are also some good offensive moves in her arsenal. She is a positive, upbeat person, and although sometimes her words are a little rude, she means well. She and Evangelyne join Yugo on his quest "because it is noble," but really she just wanted an excuse to not go back home right away, where she'd have to be a princess again.
Reason #5: Ruel Stroud
Ruel is an old, penny-pinching, cowardly treasure hunter/bounty hunter/anything that will make him some cash. He will often collect bets from spectators whenever Yugo is in a fight with someone or something else. Though he claims to be poor and tries to get free meals off of everybody, he in fact has more cash than even princess Amalia. Even for a good cause, he hates to give away something for nothing. Surely he has some redeeming qualities... somewhere... a little? Well, maybe traveling with Yugo will learn him some generosity. ... Maybe.
Reason #6: Gorgeous animation
No, seriously. Much of the animation is actually done in Flash. The only other show I know of that does this is Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends, which is very different stylistically. I am constantly impressed by the quality of this show. Clearly there is some traditional animation going on here as well; they understand the principles of animation and use them. I am never left clawing at my keyboard because I wish things would just goddamn move already. ::cough90%ofallanimebeingproducedlatelycough:: From the screencaps I've been showing, there are a number of close-up shots on faces, however, there are also more than enough zoom-out shots, with a great attention to background, world-building, and enough room for some ridiculously awesome fighting scenes. episodes 3 and 6 particularly come to mind.
Have a look at some of the backgrounds:
It's true that this is not (as of yet) a deep, life-changing cartoon. There are episodes with morals and it is probably aimed at children. But it is actually good entertainment. Basically, I love it.
"But Sam," you say, saddened because this show sounds SO AWESOME, "how can I watch this? It's in French, you said so yourself!"
"Oh my doubtful little lambs," I say, but not really because that is creepier than I am comfortable with, "You can find EVERYTHING on the internets." For episodes 1 through 6 are now subtitled! With the exception of episode 5, I'm pretty happy with the subitltes; some things are changed for a better flow but the meaning stays the same. (Episode 5 is a little literal in the translation and so things are a little stilted.)
You can find these episodes~ (replace hxxp with http)
Episode 1: hxxp://www.megaupload.com/?d=5fwh4vpc
episode 2 - GOT IT hxxp://www.megaupload.com/?d=kajsexjm
Episode 3: hxxp://www.megaupload.com/?d=necmvlgd
Episode 4: hxxp://www.megaupload.com/?d=h8niv42h
Episode 5: hxxp://www.megaupload.com/?d=QAI91GYH
Episode 6: hxxp://www.megaupload.com/?d=3ov7diu9
If any of those aren't working, lemme know. Most of 'em, you can open in VLC and then you have to enable the subtitles track. If there's a separate .ass file (no, seriously, it's called that) switch it to a .srt file and it should work.
ENJOY
PLEASE
IT GETS LONELY BEING THE ONLY ONE I KNOW IN THIS FANDOM
SO LONELY