C&C - Samurai Champloo - "A Risky Racket" [6/25]

[The Landstander]

[scratch]

[Pepperidge]

In my opinion, this is the worst episode in the series. :-/

[Tash]

This episode must be bad, considering that I don't remember this one. :sad: It only looks vaugly familiar...

EDIT: Okay, now I know which one this is. Next week's is a lot better. (depending on how the jokes translate)

[jethrek]

This episode is sure boring me so far...

[livingfruitvirus]

The animation in this episode stinks. Why are they bobbing all around in some of the shots?

[jethrek]

The animation in this episode stinks. Why are they bobbing all around in some of the shots? you beat me to asking that by 5 seconds. It's like the animators didn't like it either.

[Youko Recca]

Eh, I see Artistic Anarchy as the weakest. Couldn't be anything after this week either.

[Tash]

The animation in this episode stinks. Why are they bobbing all around in some of the shots?You know how on the last day of school all of the kids start bobbing up and down, waiting for the school year to end?

Replace "kids" with "characters", and "school year" with "episode".

[livingfruitvirus]

I liked this when it was called "Waltz for Venus."

[Mugen]

I guess this is Champloo's version of Waltz for Venus.

[Youko Recca]

Wow. I never realized how much this reminded me of "Waltz for Venus". Eh, Bebop did it better.

[jethrek]

I liked this when it was called "Waltz for Venus."
ARG! I WAS ABOUT TO POST THAT!

I think lfv can read my mind. :crying:

[PearlRose86]

I liked this when it was called "Waltz for Venus."
Thank you for clearing up the nagging sense of deja vu that's been bothering me all episode long. No wonder I thought I'd seen this exact same plot somwhere else before.



-Maggie

[Jack Frenzy]

Maybe, it's the schedule change at work, but I kept expecting the pickpocket to get his head bashed in by Lil Slugger.

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Waltz for Champloo.

I thought it was an alright episode, though.

[Youko Recca]

I think lfv can read my mind. :crying:
No, it seems we ALL were thinking it. Makes me wonder if Watanabe saved up his good energy for the next episode.

[SirLemming]

Yep, I was totally gonna make the "Waltz for Venus" connection. And it's unfortunate that it has such a similar plot, because when you compare the episodes it's obvious that Bebop's is miles better.

In general, I'm starting to feel that the show probably won't be as good as I initially thought it would be... But it's still got a lot going for it, and it's still better than a lot of animes out there.

[jethrek]

No, it seems we ALL were thinking it. Makes me wonder if Watanabe saved up his good energy for the next episode. And the animators as well. ;)

[Youko Recca]

I'm no animation expert. It certainly wasn't the best showing of how fluid Champloo is, but it wasn't horrible. I'm just amazed I never made the connection to "Waltz for Venus". It seems the idea for next week's episode came in while they were working on this one and they grew impatient, so here we have Champloo's spin on Bebop's episode.

[Mugen]

I'm no animation expert. It certainly wasn't the best showing of how fluid Champloo is, but it wasn't horrible. I'm just amazed I never made the connection to "Waltz for Venus". It seems the idea for next week's episode came in while they were working on this one and they grew impatient, so here we have Champloo's spin on Bebop's episode.
What's special about next week's episode?

[Mrs._Tom_Ato]

UUUUGGGGHHHH!!!!!!

Must every good kid that gets involved in crime to support a family member in an anime get killed?!! :crying:

[Youko Recca]

What's special about next week's episode?
It's more creative than this week, I'll tell you that. Like previously said, hope it translates good.

[Tash]

It's more creative than this week, I'll tell you that. Like previously said, hope it translates good.Even though it probably won't.

Okay everyone who's already seen the show, start searching for english webpages about the guy in next week's episode. Someone has to find one to post in next week's talkback (preferablly before the episode airs) .

[Chrono1995]

The show gets much better after tonight's episode. Much, much better. AS better start with the promotions.

[PickHut]

Hey, guys, this episode reminded me of...... oh. Wasn't that great, really. It was pretty boring for most of the episode, Mugen's outburst at the end when he found the pickpocketer with Fuu was the highlight.

I give A Risky Racket a C+.

[Master Moron]

I liked this when it was called "Waltz for Venus."

A ha! So, that's where I've seen this story before! Through out the whole episode I was thinking to myself, this is so familiar. It's good to know that the rest of the series will be more original.

[Shnay]

I doubt Waltz for Venus was the first time this story was covered. That said, that was the first thing I thought of, too.

Samurai Champloo (judging on what I've seen so far, at least) doesn't usually have stories that are terribly original, but it usually does something unique with them, or presents them in an entertaining way. This episode did neither, and ended up being rather boring and empty. It wasn't really bad, there just wasn't anything all that good about it. Even the animation, which is usually a strong point of the show, was wonky here.

The last few episodes of SC have been kinda weak, so hopefully those who say the show starts to turn it around again are right.

[Mog]

A ha! So, that's where I've seen this story before! Through out the whole episode I was thinking to myself, this is so familiar. It's good to know that the rest of the series will be more original. Oh man. I didn't even think about that, but after being reminded I'm kind of mad how much of a rip off this episode was from "WfV". Still, it was kind of nice except for the awkward animation at points.

[li_mangaman]

UUUUGGGGHHHH!!!!!!

Must every good kid that gets involved in crime to support a family member in an anime get killed?!! :crying:
Yes.

That having been said I hope everyone has done their recycling this week.

Does anyone know why the hell I had to watch Waltz for Venus's crap deteriorate?

Most annoying thing ever shown on [adult swim].

[i miss katy]

This is the problem with watching the second run. I think I'm all the cool crap because I noticed this was "Waltz For Venus - Except less interesting! And without earning its payoff!" and by the time I come here my thunder has been stolen like a packet of opium from Joe Montegna - wait I mean some yakuza guy.

[Delthayre]

I'm glad to see that I'm not the only person whose mind leapt to "Waltz for Venus" while watching this.

Of course, I liked "Waltz for Venus" a lot. I'd dare to say that it was one of my favorite episodes. The finale with Spike walking through the bazaar while grey ash falls like snow and Stella by Moor plays all ways chokes me up just a bit.

I must sadly say that this episode ultimately became a chore for me. Neither this, nor "Waltz for Venus" were particularly original stories, but that's fine by me. Cowboy Bebop was, to fittingly borrow a from jazz lore, sketches on standards. Samurai Champloo tried that again, but it's less like Dizz and Bird working magic over some old standard than it's like Kenny G. sucking the life out of it. I realized by the end that I hadn't really wanted to watch it and I think that unless Samurai Champloo comes up with something that forces me to watch it, rather than vice versa, I'll probably give it up again the way I'd meant to before "Hellhounds for Hire part II" convinced me to give it another chance. A chance it quickly squandered on a dull yarn about a homosexual Dutchman and this.

** out of *****

[jethrek]

I'm glad to see that I'm not the only person whose mind leapt to "Waltz for Venus" while watching this.

Of course, I liked "Waltz for Venus" a lot. I'd dare to say that it was one of my favorite episodes. The finale with Spike walking through the bazaar while grey ash falls like snow and Stella by Moor plays all ways chokes me up just a bit.

I must sadly say that this episode ultimately became a chore for me. Neither this, nor "Waltz for Venus" were particularly original stories, but that's fine by me. Cowboy Bebop was, to fittingly borrow a from jazz lore, sketches on standards. Samurai Champloo tried that again, but it's less like Dizz and Bird working magic over some old standard than it's like Kenny G. sucking the life out of it. I realized by the end that I hadn't really wanted to watch it and I think that unless Samurai Champloo comes up with something that forces me to watch it, rather than vice versa, I'll probably give it up again the way I'd meant to before "Hellhounds for Hire part II" convinced me to give it another chance. A chance it quickly squandered on a dull yarn about a homosexual Dutchman and this.

** out of *****
Probably wait for next week. After all, it's probably just one bad apple.

[SirLemming]

Well, even if "Waltz For Venus" had a story that was done before, the problem with "A Risky Racket" is that the execution of the story is so similar. I mean, stories get borrowed all the time, think of Shakespeare. But it played out almost exactly the same way. Mr. Gets-Involved-In-Crime-To-Get-Medicine-For-A-Relative runs into one of the main characters, the character find out about the sick relative, the character assists the guy and he seems to be getting away, the guy gets killed by the crime guys, the character goes to the sick relative and dodges the issue for a while but then the relative says "He isn't coming back, is he?", the relative says he probably deserved what he got, the character assures her that he was a good person... It was almost exactly the same, except a lot less moving.

[geeko_teh_third]

Well, even if "Waltz For Venus" had a story that was done before, the problem with "A Risky Racket" is that the execution of the story is so similar. I mean, stories get borrowed all the time, think of Shakespeare. But it played out almost exactly the same way. Mr. Gets-Involved-In-Crime-To-Get-Medicine-For-A-Relative runs into one of the main characters, the character find out about the sick relative, the character assists the guy and he seems to be getting away, the guy gets killed by the crime guys, the character goes to the sick relative and dodges the issue for a while but then the relative says "He isn't coming back, is he?", the relative says he probably deserved what he got, the character assures her that he was a good person... It was almost exactly the same, except a lot less moving.spike gave a reassuring(sp?) line to that guy's sister at the end of WFV, Fuu started to but then quit.

[Master Moron]

Well, even if "Waltz For Venus" had a story that was done before, the problem with "A Risky Racket" is that the execution of the story is so similar. I mean, stories get borrowed all the time, think of Shakespeare. But it played out almost exactly the same way. Mr. Gets-Involved-In-Crime-To-Get-Medicine-For-A-Relative runs into one of the main characters, the character find out about the sick relative, the character assists the guy and he seems to be getting away, the guy gets killed by the crime guys, the character goes to the sick relative and dodges the issue for a while but then the relative says "He isn't coming back, is he?", the relative says he probably deserved what he got, the character assures her that he was a good person... It was almost exactly the same, except a lot less moving.

Wasn't the chick in Bebop blind? This woman had some other type of illness. Oh, and didn't the guy in Bebop try to imitate Spike's fighting style? We got none of that here.

Anyway, the animation in this episode didn't really bother me. I kind of liked the way the characters seemed kind of jumpy, I mean it seemed more realistic to me. I mean, it sometimes annoys me in animation when characters are talking and not moving at all. I mean, in real life it's near impossible to be that still. In real life people are jumpy.

[SirLemming]

Wasn't the chick in Bebop blind? This woman had some other type of illness. Oh, and didn't the guy in Bebop try to imitate Spike's fighting style? We got none of that here. So? Two small details. Obviously it wasn't exactly the same, but it was too similar. And just not particularly great in its own right.

[Anime Guy]

I'm surprised Duke hasn't mentioned that Johnny Yong Bosch was in this episode.

[The Collector]

Two things to say about this episode: dull, and excessive facial movements. That part where Fuu was talking to the mother looked hideous with all the bouncing around, it was harder to watch than the rest of the episode, and that's saying a lot. I hope this is as bad as it gets. Also, I think I'll make a bold prediction for next week's episode, I'm betting Fuu gets captured. I mean, it's got to happen sooner or later, right?:shrug:

[Youko Recca]

Count how many times Faye got captured and that's around Fuu's limit.

[The Collector]

I don't recall Faye getting captured five times in the first seven shows she was in. I guess if that's the only thing Fuu's good for then sobeit, but it seems ridiculous to make a character just so she can be kidnapped every episode.

[Youko Recca]

Guess we can be lucky that's not the case.