Fandomly pondering
New fandom love is a weird thing. When some friends mentioned Prince of Tennis to me, I usually said 'Okay, pretty boys are good, but 178 eps of pretty boys playing tennis? Sounds boring'.
And then, a bit more than a month ago, I was ill and not in a reading mood (a rare thing) and I started looking for an anime to watch (since I finished all Bleach I had to that moment). I tried Naruto first, actually, and decided that it seems amusing but maybe another time. And then four eps of Prince of Tennis, and I was hooked.
I am still hooked. I feel like writing - and I do not always feel like this, even with the stuff I like. And it's really 178 eps (and some OVAs) of boys playing tennis. Why on earth do I like this so much?
Perhaps it's related to this thing I have with books, where I am unable to read fantasy and history when I'm tired, and reach for present time and predictable plot of mysteries. In a way PoT is also predictable - they are going to play, and the protagonist will probably shine, and the main team will pass to the next stage (though not always predictable - a number of matches surprised me).
But also, I think, it puts me in a good mood. The characters are mostly good - even those I disliked at first - and even those that aren't that good, are understandable. And they are all united by the common goal of playing tennis and comparable in that, and very different in ways they go about that.
So: the right dose of predictability AND unpredictability, the excitement of sports competitions (and I do tend to get excited by such things if I pay enough attention), light mood, nice characters, comedic bits that do not irritate me (a difficult job!)... That's a bad explanation, as bad as the fact that I tend to delve deeply into fandoms with large and complicated cast of characters. Because there must be dozens of anime that fit those descriptions but I am still watching Prince of Tennis, not them.
Also, Tezuka is love. ;-)
And then, a bit more than a month ago, I was ill and not in a reading mood (a rare thing) and I started looking for an anime to watch (since I finished all Bleach I had to that moment). I tried Naruto first, actually, and decided that it seems amusing but maybe another time. And then four eps of Prince of Tennis, and I was hooked.
I am still hooked. I feel like writing - and I do not always feel like this, even with the stuff I like. And it's really 178 eps (and some OVAs) of boys playing tennis. Why on earth do I like this so much?
Perhaps it's related to this thing I have with books, where I am unable to read fantasy and history when I'm tired, and reach for present time and predictable plot of mysteries. In a way PoT is also predictable - they are going to play, and the protagonist will probably shine, and the main team will pass to the next stage (though not always predictable - a number of matches surprised me).
But also, I think, it puts me in a good mood. The characters are mostly good - even those I disliked at first - and even those that aren't that good, are understandable. And they are all united by the common goal of playing tennis and comparable in that, and very different in ways they go about that.
So: the right dose of predictability AND unpredictability, the excitement of sports competitions (and I do tend to get excited by such things if I pay enough attention), light mood, nice characters, comedic bits that do not irritate me (a difficult job!)... That's a bad explanation, as bad as the fact that I tend to delve deeply into fandoms with large and complicated cast of characters. Because there must be dozens of anime that fit those descriptions but I am still watching Prince of Tennis, not them.
Also, Tezuka is love. ;-)