8:00 You missed a great opportunity to use Hanakawa's line "I don't know everything; I just know what I know."

For those who don't like reading dry text video essays are your friend. Also StoryBrain made a video about how half of all our experience of art is the context we bring to the piece, so education is quite important~

It is funny that I didn’t watch Madoka yet. I tried to watch it already one time 2 years ago but stopped it after episode 2 because the anime seemed really strange. However , one year ago I had to read Faust 1 and 2 in German class because I live in Germany and my teacher had the opinion that every student has to read Faust one time before he graduates from school (It was my final year at school. I graduated 6 months ago). I understood the story and the themes of Faust 1 quite good but I understood shit about Faust 2 (seems like stuff of University level). When I saw the scene of Madoka in your video „Prologue in Heaven“, in german: „Prolog im Himmel“, I directly got flashbacks to Faust 1 because the second chapter, after „Vorspiel auf dem Theater“, is also called like this in Faust 1. Now I really want to watch Madoka again and, although it was 2 years ago when I watched the first 2 episodes, I now vaguely understand what was happening and it somehow makes sense. 😂 Another thing, I really liked this video and your interesting usage and explanation of a priori and a posteriori, although they are terms normally used in maths in statistics and probability calculation but can also be used as philosophical terms see Kant and some old Latin philosophers whose names I can’t remember(forgot them all only 6 months after my last Latin class at school😂) who addressed it in depth too, as well as your in-depth view on anime like Pretty Cure and Madoka in context of Faust as well as in comparison to Sailor Moon and Sakura. In general, I like it when people take a philosophical view on Animation movies which are often focused only on entertaining viewers rather then letting people think about philosophical concepts. Therefore I leave a subscription to your channel and hope that you make more similar videos in the future. Also, I saw that you have a couple of videos about the Monogatari Series and luckily, Monogatari is my no.1 favorite series and I looking forward to watch them all. PS: English is not my mother language so please show mercy when you find grammar mistakes etc. 😅😄

Does a priori knowledge in the way you use it even exist? Imagine you show Madoka to a jellyfish alien that has never seen humans or anything human-made, has no concepts of fear, love or suffering. What would be the knowledge it gains from the show itself? Well, it would see a bunch of colored changing shapes, nothing more. Any meaning you get from a text (in a broad sense) is based on your outside knowledge and experience, so it seems completely arbitral to separate it into some inherent a priori meaning and some additional a posteriori meaning. From this point of view it's also obvious that the more knowledge/experience you have, the more meaning you can get from a text, so your point still stands.

@Kamimashita

5 жыл бұрын

So I do mention this in the video, my usage of a priori is pretty unorthodox and technically doesn't fit. A priori refers to things like math (1 + 1 will always = 2) and things that are logically true (All bachelors are unmarried, that's the definition of being a bachelor). I use a priori here more as a shorthand for "in the show" vs. "not in the show," and I acknowledge that it's not exactly proper use.

I really like how the point about new context being a good thing connects with what you said about links in the description at the end. It's not always about checking facts, sometimes poeple just want to see / read more about the topic. It would be nice if more people would approach listing sources like that. Thanks.

Someone send this to digibro who insists being well read or not does not affect the way you view or appreciate media

Faust wouldn't be the first reference to philosophy I jump to when watching Madoka, it would be the writings of utilitarianism. To me it seems that Gen Urobuchi finds the power of the individual incompatible with the collective world view of utilitarianism, and Madoka acts as a symbol for the potential and divinity of the single person. Madoka transcending the structure of the universe is what makes me think this, kinda like someone saying : "yes, based on our current rationale and understanding of the universe, this is the best way benefiting the most people." And then Madoka going: "nah fuck your universe, it sucks. I'm going to change it." I think the problem with being only partially well-read (which I am not accusing you of) is that there is a tendency to shoe-horn something you read into something you like. I've seen many people try to tie in philosophy or psychology into anime but sometimes I feel that the relationship isn't very strong, and that there is a better "fit" out there. The interesting thing is that if a philosophy can properly describe a part of reality or human experience, then it can usually be applied to any good work of art, regardless of what it is. For example, is Monogatari existentialist? Or Jungian? Or humanist? you could make a strong case for either

I agree and spend most of my free time on attempts to become "well read" in everything imaginable, but sometimes I do wonder if it really does increase net enjoyment. When I see someone wholeheartedly enjoying a thing I thought was derivative and dull, I have to wonder if my enjoyment of the things I do like really does measure up to the ability to enjoy more different things without having a whole library of works that "did the same thing but better" in your head.

@TMTLive

5 жыл бұрын

That said, there are also things that I probably enjoyed only thanks to being "well read", particularly very specific "genre" works

Saw this on Reddit and couldn't agree more. I haven't seen Madoka Magica, but I know for a fact that I've enjoyed and connected with a lot of shows based on prior knowledge and context. When I first started watching anime, I didn't have that prior "anime culture" knowledge, but I learned from watching more shows and video essays/analyses; terms, phrases, genres, etc. Plus, in the age of binging, it's nice to be able to watch a show, decompress all the info, and then give it a second go to really let all the aspects settle in.

Good job

I'm glad r/Anime got me here, you definitely deserved the shout out.

I love videos where dudes apply philosophical context to Chinese cartoons about magical girls

Agreed. 100%. Context is so important!! I have a background in classic literature and I love when anime pays homage and takes from it. I also have watched a lot of anime so it is great to see the references and subversions of the different genres I find myself invested in. Great vid and PSA! There is so much more depth when you understand the context of a work of art.

I liked this video, but I don't think a priori/posteriori comparison helped. Most people just don't know those terms, so if anything they'll just get the wrong impression of what they mean. I think the concept is still valid, but using more clear language (for example inherent information vs contextual information) would have been a better choice. Looking forward to your next video!

but how can you not be special your backpack now reads かみさま

One big problem with that evil cat's explanation of "we have to torture you guys to save the universe" is that it really isn't that black and white. The energy created by the magical girls is equivalent to a few boxes of TnT, absolutely nothing compared to the amount of energy lost in the entropy of the universe. Entropy is inevitable, and killing little girls to delay it by milliseconds isn't a very good reason at all. I thinm it's pretty clear that he's just straight up evil, and isn't doing anything for the "better good".

Just how much proofreading goes through your episodes? Seriously, your script is so crazily inspiring and calming. Where did you learn that?

@Kamimashita

5 жыл бұрын

Thank you so much for the kind words! Each script goes through about 2- 3 iterations, but nothing crazy really changes between each one. I've just written so many similar pieces that it's basically second-nature. I do spend a lot of time researching though, and that combined with work and other obligations makes my videos take around 2 - 3 weeks to make.

Breakout that Latin, boy! Philosophers will think you're smart! Great video as always

I totally see what you mean by this video. A few years ago I watched Nobunaga: The Fool which seemed to have some very polarizing public opinions due to how ridiculous it can be. I didn't think it was amazing, but I personally enjoyed it a lot more than I should have because I was taking a humanities class at the time and we were studying how the differences and similarities in western and eastern culture and history shaped the stories and media that we see today, and I picked up on a lot of what i learned through the small details in the show such as the clothing the characters wear, the actual legends behind the character (such as Jean d'Arc, King Arthur, etc) or the moral values that each character has. Great video as usual. I think encouraging others to explore other works to form different perspectives and deeper levels of enjoyment of other works is a very valuable thing we should all do.

Nice video. A lot of the madoka portion was similar to the madoka and faust panel I went to at acen, though your reading was a little different. IIRC, they read homura as being the closest parallel to faust. Anyway, as someone in the middle of their 10th viewing of the series, and who has gotten something new out of it each time, I definitely agree that context can shed new light on good stories. Also, good on you for plugging hugtto, more people should watch it.

To an extent there are an endless amount of scopes you can use to view a work with various levels of context. Heck you gain a hugely different context when you just watch a show for the second time. I don’t think people should necessarily go out of their way to read/watch other shows ahead of watching an anime unless they also want to read/watch those things (“to get context” is a valid reason for want, just don’t make it your sole reason). It’s nice to have context, but its impossible to have all the context AND not every specific piece of context will necessarily be impactful to the individual. However, I do agree to watch/read more stuff in general; consuming media is everything. The message from this video I would rather promote is do not let your favorite animes gather dust. Rewatch them, read adaptations, watch/read stuff about them, watch older and newer stuff in the same genre, find people who also like them, talk to those people about them, ask those people for recommendations, gain more perspectives to love what you cherish. There are so many paths you can take you, pick the ones you like and walk until you’re tired of it.

WTF - I just found your channel. I've been watching all of your videos. They are fantastic. Keep up the great work man!

@Kamimashita

5 жыл бұрын

Thank you for the kind words! KZread burnout is real, but it's comments like yours that keep me going.

I concluded after so much time retroactively thinking about this show that Kyubei is not evil. True, as a human, we emotionaly tend to sympitize with the characters who has a close emotional relation with. But thinking of a character in lue of lovecraftian lore, a higher being of higher inteligence does not bind with human values. Kyubei is efficient, brutally efficient and in the end, perception of logic and values drastically changes when you put on a mindset, free from biases and emotion. As a cosmic entity it is neither evil nor good just far beyond human comprehention.

@Kamimashita

5 жыл бұрын

I think while Kyubey itself has no concept of good or evil, its actions still end up leaning towards morally wrong. Now, I know this assumes that there is such a thing *as* morally right or wrong, but once again part of the show's message is that Kyubey is wrong to create suffering in order to try to prevent what is basically a natural disaster-it's not worth it. I think when we're thinking of good vs. bad, or whether something is evil or not, it isn't helpful to step away emotionally. But rather, that emotion should be one component of how we approach the subject. And I don't think many people would consider Kyubey's actions humane.

Oh man... loved the video. I have to read Faust now. I think many animes take inspiration in classical literature (some less blatantly than Gankutsuō. Haven't seen that one, though). But what I really liked about your video is that you said something that's really important to know when discussing anime or any other media or piece of art. It's important to understand why everyone always has a different opinion, and why we should always respect it, and never expect it to be the same as ours. We all have different context. We all see media through the lens of our own experiences and our own knowledge of things. It makes for a unique view of media for every person. And that's precisely what can make discussions so interesting, so enriching. That's precisely why this channel has viewers in the first place, and why we look for video essays about the media we enjoy. We look for those things because they enrich our own perception of media.Yes, we should read and watch the classicals... but most of us wouldn't if it wasn't for (healthy) discussion. Great video, again. Keep up man, Loving this channel :) On another note, this comment was very influenced by an article of my favorite anime blogger. It's a great essay about how we see anime and media through our own personal context. It's great :) wrongeverytime.com/2015/04/13/no-politics-media-and-identity/

Never underestimate what people will do for small things. I watched all of Kaiji for what is going to be about 25ish seconds inside a video. I went and watched all Kakegurui/No game No Life/Medaka Box.

Thank you, youtube, for not having this show up before my eyes. Really good job! Pretty nice to have some of this put in more concrete terms, even if the thoughs have existed in my head for a while. Also, i can't make out what the words you say at ~@8:52 are.

@Kamimashita

5 жыл бұрын

I provide subtitles that I time myself for all my videos! That particular section is a reference to a prior video I've done. "While I saw a landmark African text in Little Witch Academia, Caffeinated Telescope's interpretation of Akko representing a young creator is just as valid, if not more in line with Yoshinari's intent."

Man i can agree with you more in every point or thought in this video, and that come from a guy that is watching anime since 1998 and watched more then 1200+ series, thai is why i simply love to watch your videos

@Innosos

5 жыл бұрын

1200+ series? I call bullshit. 146.1 hours for one series on average disregarding sleeping, working or eating - yeah right.

@faithful_tako

5 жыл бұрын

@@Innosos myanimelist.net/profile/lumiersan 20 years is a loot of time, in the second half of the first 10 years I was watching like one 24-26 ep season a day

@faithful_tako

5 жыл бұрын

@@Innosos and btw 20 years = 7305 days = 10 519 200 minutes 10 519 200 : 14 215 = 740,007 740 : 60 = 12,3334 hours for one episode

@Innosos

5 жыл бұрын

You can write into your profile whatever you want. What in the hell are you calculating here? Where does 14215 come from? Your sum of works you consumed? If thats the case I get 14271 from your list assuming it to be correct. What's 12.3334 hours for an episode mean? You meant to say 12.3334 hours between a work played on average? Is that ',' a decimal or a 1000 separator? Just making sure cause screw non internationalized conventions. Especially you US. 20 * 365.25 * 24 = 175,320 hours such that 175,320 hours / 1200 series ~ 146.1 hours / series It's possible to watch that much in that time - but come on. You'd have to be ...very commited... to do so. If that's the case I feel very sorry for your sense of normality. ;) Edit: Nvm 14215; but if we also consider the movies spcls and stuff your list contains this number shrinks even more...

I find it funny how some people still can mistake dislike button with like button but well I can't blame them though, after all like and dislike button are next to each others and quite similar. Anyway thank you for this video, you just give me some reason to add more mahou shoujo genre in my finished list.

This is why I gave Darling a 1/10; I've already watched Eva, Gurren, and like everything else unlike the majority whom this is their first or second mecha besides Aldanoah. Jokes! I love your content in yourbringing new perspectives to elevate my understanding of works. Always a joy when you appear in my feed.

Since it was mentioned, Cardcaptor Sakura is the perfect example of a classic magical girl show that still holds up, despite being considered an "old" anime at this point. The series takes all of the magical girl tropes and stereotypes from the 70s-80s mahou shoujo titles and updates them to the 20th century; they were all coming of age stories, the magic in the young girls being an allegory of them entering adolescence and maturing, and once mastered, it made them ready for adulthood. All with the added flavour of a familiar, quirky abilities, a friendly squad, a rival who may or may not fall in love with the main girl, and a distant mentor. Despite its flaws here and there, it is really a show everyone must watch at least once to appreciate the magical girl genre.

you make the same exact point Thomas Foster makes in his book "How to Read Literature Like a Professor" (great read btw i recommend). no story is wholly original. every story draws influence from an older work or from human history. in fact, Foster argues that there is only one story, period: the collection of every work, every action made by humanity.

Finally someone agreeing with me about Princess Tutu being darker than PMMM.... people tend to laugh at me when I bring that up.

I think the way easier example than Madoka and Faust is the other Shaft show the Monogatari series. I no other show the difference between knowing what comes and watching blind for the first time reveals that much different material. To be honest the difference in Monogatari is quite insane between blind first viewing and going in with background knowledge. So much symbolism is lost without the knowledge that it nealry makes it a completely different (not worse) show.

@Kamimashita

5 жыл бұрын

Too bad I already made a video about that!

I really love bringing up the directing choices as an indicator of mature themes. My friends convinced me to watch Madoka and told me to do so until episode 3. I did watched episode 1 and could already pick up on it, they were surprised. I was no expert on filmmaking or art and animation but i have a strong confident link with that little intuitive voice in my head. You normally don't pick up on the little things filmmakers do but your brain does, and it interprets them in the form of emotions. However, i do blame the whole three episode rule assigned to Madoka on the way the creators tried to market the show. Btw, do u recommend the filler for Cardcaptor sakura? Cause i'm considering just skipping them, but the whole show seems to just be pleasant enough? if that makes sense.

I must watch this anime. Looks fun.

Dude, I could not agree with you more on this particular topic. It's truly amazing what things you can appreciate from even the worst of anime if you've read/watched/experienced something that allows you to see something about it in a particular light. I remember an interaction with a follower on one of my social media accounts who made a rather passive aggressive comment concerning what I consider to be my top 20 anime of all time when those Anime Bingo sheets were trendy a few months back. I just had to laugh at what he said because while I understand how some people feel towards some shows (even if they are generally praised), I had to remind myself that he obviously didn't experience said shows the way that I did most likely due to the reasons you spoke about in this video. Though, just out of curiosity, do you think that music (even if it's completely unrelated to the anime you happen to be watching) can also help you appreciate a show (or at least aspects of it) in a new light? I personally would say yes but I'd be interested to know what you think since you're into psychology.

@Kamimashita

5 жыл бұрын

Of course! I talk about Princess Tutu in the video, there's a piece that plays from time to time during Rue's moments called "The Swan" by composer Saint-Saens. Already there's that kind of imagery associated with that, grace, beauty, mistaken identity (ugly duckling), etc. And the entirety of the soundtrack is just all classical pieces, really great to listen to. I talk briefly about the psychological effects of music in my iyashikei video, and it helps set the tone quite a bit in shows like Aria, Girls' Last Tour, even Houseki.

@AnimetalViking

5 жыл бұрын

I see. Interesting. Well, I don't know if you'll find this interesting, but, normally when I listen to music (mostly metal but I do fancy a few other genres as well) I tend to associate certain bands and their sounds with certain tones, atmospheres, and imagery from some of my favourite shows or even when I am watching something for the first time. For example, after listening to the band Septicflesh, I am not only reminded of the many fantasy, occult, and Lovecraftian horror aspects of their lyrics, but, their sound matches perfectly with Berserk and now whenever I read the manga or watch the anime, their music comes to mind aside from Susumu Hirasawa's amazing musical contribution to the show. This is mainly due to their heavy and sinister sound which is, with the addition of the Prague Philharmonic Orchestra, only made more epic and just sends vibes of not only Guts' struggle against something that is bigger than him, but, H. P. Lovecraft's themes of man's existence being nothing in the grand scheme of the cosmos. This is all based purely on my own personal experience of course, but, it's something that tends to hit me every single time. Maybe it's just because my love for good music needs great accompanying visual with an immersive story? I don't know, but, even though Septicflesh aren't even associated with anime in any way, that is just what tends to happen after I listen to their music now.

we still say à priori and à posteriori in french, please don't assimilate us with Latin we're not that old T-T Great video by the way

@goldeer7129

3 жыл бұрын

Ahaha c'est ce que je me suis dis aussi^^

Kamimashita, have you checked out anything from the general Tokusatsu genre? Madoka appears to get its fair share of comparisons/contrasts to Kamen Rider Gaim (done by Urobuchi frame-for-frame post-Madoka) and Kamen Rider Ryuki (pre-Madoka, with some notable reflections).

@Kamimashita

5 жыл бұрын

I know of them, but haven't checked anything out just yet. I'll be sure to move it up to the shortlist, thanks!

Everything is.

Kara no Kyoukai ost?

Trolley problem rant: Not acting when you could have doesn't make it an accident. You are just as responseble for pulling the lever as when choosing not to. Good example I always found was WWII. The people of Germany where just as responsable as Hitler for letting it happen, just as all the world leaders are for putting Germany in a situation where it could happen. All where to blame cause they all could have done something whether they choose to or not.

I hate Madoka, fight me!

@ononono7016

5 жыл бұрын

It was obviously going to be "serious"

@anutheamaranth7433

3 жыл бұрын

Why?

Context is Queen 😍😍😍💦💦

Madoka suck tho. Ok real talk, I never understood why people compare Madoka to Faust, as someone who has read it in German and having had it as the topic of my final exam in school. Beyond superficial features and references, I could barely make out any connections. They are fundamentally different works both theme and structure wise and I don't think you can compare Madoka to Faust at all. Faust was a greedy asshole who knowingly made a pact with the devil for his own gains at the very beginning and the whole story is about him dealing with his dissatisfaction with himself and the people he damaged as a result of his actions he took to satisfy his desires, whereas Madoka is hesitant and does not make a pact until the very end of the show, which at the same time is its conclusion and her motivation for doing so is figuring out whether her decision is right or not, not her dissatisfaction. I also don't think Madoka does a particularly good job at its moral conflicts, because the problem presented in the premise is literally unsolvable until she deus ex machina wishes it away at the end, making it far from a tragic work since the tragedy is averted.

@Kamimashita

5 жыл бұрын

You might want to take a look at some of the articles I've linked in the description. Many of the interpretations don't equate Madoka with Faust, and in fact some don't consider one single character to be representative of him, but rather almost everyone. You say Faust is about "dealing with his dissatisfaction with himself and people he damaged as a result of his actions he took to satisfy his desires." Well, what do you think of the selfish wishes of Sayaka, Kyouko, and one could even argue Madoka? She "deus ex machinas" the "problem" in the end, except her wish doesn't actually do anything, hence it is futile. Kyubey still exists, a facsimile of magical girls still exists, and Homura is still miserable. But hey, the fact that we're even having this conversation is a blessing, don't you think?!

@levobertus

5 жыл бұрын

Kamimashita it really is. I kinda disagree with the ending, in my interpretation it was just a "solve everything" wish and I thought the point of it was to end the magical girls cycle. I also don't think Homura was particularly miserable by the end, until they made the atrocious Rebellion movie anyway. It seemed to me as if she still longed after Madoka, but was still happy her struggle ended for good. Bittersweet if anything, but not miserable. About Faust, I think the biggest difference between him and every character in Madoka was that almost every character's moral struggle was basically their own desires vs the right thing to do, or the right thing to do vs the necessary thing to do, whereas Faust did not have that struggle. It was all about his own desires. He knew he was not doing the right thing and just accepted the damage he dealt. The closest comparison to that would be Kyoko, as she did not care about the right thing until the conclusion of her arc, but even then, I think the ways her arc played out was so vastly different from Faust's that I'd be careful to compare the two. The difference is that Kyoko's wish was concluded before the show even started, and by the time she gets her arc, it was about her doing the necessary evil until she decided otherwise and sacrifice herself to do the right thing, which Faust never does, he actually leaves Gretchen to be executed by the end even though he could have saved her. Anyway, I agree that the conversation is good and I agree that more perspective is always a good thing, which is the point of your video anyway. Regardless of whether Madoka's characters are actually resembling Faust, I think it's interesting to try to compare the two and point out similarities and differences.

@ConvincingPeople

5 жыл бұрын

Kamimashita I have always been of the mind that Homura was the most direct Faust analogue in Madoka Magica, given her backstory and the nature of her goal and how its repercussions radiate further and further outward as the time loops compound upon one another. To whit, the point where she is forced to kill Madoka at the end of episode 10 eerily mirrors the dungeon scene at the end of Part One of Faust, while her final meeting with Madoka, in addition to referencing Sailor Moon, feels like a beat-for-beat retelling of Faust's redemption at the end of Part Two, complete with divine intervention. And of course the parallels don't end there, what with both works being essentially critiques of moral tragedy, but I don't think I'm the first person to make this point, nor the best messenger.