What does Sup Forums think of Haibame Renmei? I just finished it and thought is was absolutley amazing

What does Sup Forums think of Haibame Renmei? I just finished it and thought is was absolutley amazing.

I did have a few questions I had floating around in my head though.

1. Are the dreams the haibane had in their cocoons indicative of the way that person died? It seemed somewhat implied. Reki getting hit by a train and Rakka falling.

2. Why does this show seem so overlooked? I've seen it mentioned here somewhat uncommonly. It's just surprising considering it's ABe and all his other stuff seems to get quite a bit of attention. Niea_7 and Haibane seem to be the only things of his that I don't hear about that often and Haibane was much better than Niea_7 imo.

3. What are walls supposed to be exactly?

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>1.
It's been a while, but yes, that's how I recall it. And the two characters in question having committed sudoku, which is a sin.
>Why does this show seem so overlooked?
Probably because it's more niche and also from the early era of digital, so poor quality animation and no good transfer available. The show will never get a good BD release, which is what commonly breaths life into less-popular shows (e.g. even Eva, with its popularity, had newfags watching it for the first time with the BD release).
>What are walls supposed to be exactly?
I don't know if there's an official answer, like with many of such elements. It's open to interpretation. I saw them at face-level as an indication of some kind of purgatory, but then later on you get a view inside and it becomes more vague.

This is my all time favorite anime ever.

>Why does this show seem so overlooked? I've seen it mentioned here somewhat uncommonly.

It was released almost 16 years ago. So, maybe that's why. I recall getting this when it first came out in the states. I got very very ill for several months, and for some reason, I found this show very comforting. I watched it about 1000 times. I wore out the third DVD in the set. Had to buy a new box set for it.

It was a really comfy show, my only problem with it was the quality of the animation which was bellow average, and the backgrounds could have been a lot better too.

We're talking about anime from 1999-2001. This was pretty standard for the time. Animation quality jumped leaps and bounds since those days.

Would be nice to see a reboot of this series, reanimated today using the best of today's techniques and artists. But, maybe then it may lose it's magic and mystery?

It's a legitimate great show, endearing tone/mood piece that organically projects themes such as self-awareness and self-acceptance onto the viewer without relying on plot to do so and without being unnecessarily complicated on a surface level.
Subpar visuals, amazing OST, the characters aren't the best ever written but they have their compelling sensibilities that make them feel human, its reliance on woven into the narrative literary devices makes for a very poetic experience and it's surprisingly layered once you figure the show out, it's in the small touches it does things well.
My only grips with it would be the rather ham-handed moral values it tries to push and the slow, albeit comfy, start. Other than that I enjoyed it very much.

>My only grips with it would be the rather ham-handed moral values it tries to push

I can't recall the show pushing anything like that. What do you mean.

>reanimated today using the best of today's techniques and artists
Yeah, about that. If flash spew like Crybaby gets praised, or shows with copypasted CG, then you know the bar is so low that it's actually digressed from the days of cel animation. And I'm sure it's cheaper now than ever to do the same amount of animation, yet nonetheless you have very low effort and outsourced animation being made.

>Animation quality jumped leaps and bounds since those days.

I know I'm in the minority here but I avidly feel like the show looked great. The backgrounds have held up pretty well. Character animation wasn't great though. That being said I've always kind of like early cel animation. I still feel like Crest/Banner of the Stars and Aria look great for the most part.

I watched it over a couple days during a sort of depressive episode years ago. It did something to me and I'm still not sure what or if it was good or bad. It became one of my all time favorites though. I think I'll always remember the bit with Rakka and the raven skeleton.

>Crest/Banner of the Stars and Aria look great for the most part.
I really like the warm feeling of animation from that era, yeah.

I put it on the same level as Mushishi and Kino's Journey . They are all relaxing and calming shows for the most part, but they also have some dark sides/themes at times.

I can get the comparison but I've never been a huge fan of Mushishi. On one hand the self-contained stories are compelling enough, but on the other hand the characters are so fucking bland those same stories end up not mattering. I get the whole "coexistence" thing going on, and refusing to dig deeper psychologically might work on a large scale, but the type of stories Mushishi sets itself to tell needed at the very least recognizable characters. And it makes the viewing experience pretty stale after a while.
So I don't know, maybe I'm wrong on that one but it feels like a pretty big missed opportunity.

Well, it does. It pushes equilibrium in humanistic theory, reliance on acceptance and empathy with the person suffering and Zen-Buddhist concepts and beliefs such as universal/unconditional compassion, coexistence and karma (the whole gimmick behind the characters' true names).
"Ham-handed" might have been a bit too strong of a term, but it does push them a bit forcefully.

I think you might just be too cynical about author intent

Maybe I am, it's not like I have major issues with authors pushing that kind of thing anyway, as idealistic as it might be.

They characters look like what they are, everyday villagers, makes sense to me. Ginko and his store buddy and the ink girl are all fine.

Yeah, but that's only three characters. Again, I know those are supposed to be farmers and villagers, and I'm certainly not asking for ultra deep characters with layers upons layers to analyze, it's just that I would've liked to see small touches that make them feel different with different personalities that affect the stories told. Removing the passivity would've clashed with the "acceptance" the anime advocates on multiple levels but it would've spiced things up a bit. Zoku Shou is darker with characters that tend to border on the immoral, it doesn't resolve the problem I've been having with the anime, but it makes the viewing experience a bit less stale.

Why should it be considered "pushing"? You act as if it is propaganda and not just an artist making a story about something he believes in.

It's pretty good.
1. no
2. It's old.
3. Literally just a wall w/ the next afterlife beyond it.

It'd be hotter if she didn't show, or only gave a short glimpse or peek

She's not very good at being sexy. She mainly just smites things.

1. Yes
2. It's not really overlooked, it's pretty well respected it's just that it's an old show and it's meant to be a very personal and relatively quiet experience so the people who enjoyed it aren't the most talkative about it by nature.
3. There's the obvious existential implications represented by the wall, but I've always interpreted them psychologically since it is what's highlighted by the narrative. They pretty much act as a psychological barrier that force the characters to find an equilibrium between what they are (Ego), what their dreams represent (Destrudo, for the mains) as well as the weird and intangible rules that constitute Glie (Super-Ego). It also acts as symbolism for the viewers to project themselves onto that has both an abstract and figurative role to play.

Haibane Renmei means so much to me that I have a personal policy to never discuss it on Sup Forums. sorry bye

It seems likely that all the haibane killed themselves and the cocoon-dream is indicative of how they went about doing that, e.g. Reki jumped in front of a train and Rakka jumped off a bridge or some such.

The setting is inspired by The Town in the End of the World parts Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World by Murakami. In the book the Walls of the town were representative of the edge of the Narrator's mind, which he is trapped inside of. It's less clear that the Walls represent in Renmei, perhaps just the edge of purgatory, preventing the haibane from reaching the true afterlife beyond.

>Would be nice to see a reboot of this series, reanimated today using the best of today's techniques and artists.
Wouldn't work, as clumsy and rough around the edges the anime is at times, I've associated that to the overall experience. It'd lose its charm, 100% sure of it.

>It was released almost 16 years ago
I am so fucking old

I tried rewatching that show 1 week ago to see if I still liked it. I started sobbing uncontrollably at the well scene and then remembered why it's always sticked with me.

>What does Sup Forums think of Haibame Renmei?
Receives almost no criticism except the daft Sora no Woto meme which doesn't count. It's highly regarded. For an anime that's almost old enough to post here, it actually gets quite a lot of attention!

>Are the dreams the haibane had in their cocoons indicative of the way that person died?
Most would make a lot of sense that way (Rakka, Reki, Nemu, Kana etc). It's definitely an encouraged interpretation.

>What are walls supposed to be exactly?
Hell if I know. Was the spirit Rakka encountered inside them (part of) Kuu's spirit? Or the walls echoing her thoughts, like the Commnicator suggested? Or something else entirely? Guess we'll never know.

Sora no Woto is Haibane Renmei done right.

Goddamn you.

I haven't been able to bring myself to rewatch it for fear of it not having the same effect as the first time.

Any hard life lesson is like that if you really sit down and think about it. My aunt was like that, constantly talking about finding meaning, karma and zen buuddist stuff, when she had terminal cancer. To some of my retard family members they though she was really bringing down the mood whenever they were with her, reminds me of you, she was fucking dying so let her do whatever the fuck she wants and maybe listen to her last words.

Reasonably priced artbooks of that show are a bitch to find.

If it can reassure you, I enjoyed it much more on my rewatch. Especially the first part which I found to be really slow the first time I watched it, because you notice all the foreshadowing and little details you couldn't really spot without knowing where the show is supposed to be headed.
I'm not questioning the morals' worth or anything, it's very wise if anything. I'm just talking about how they were implemented within the narrative.

It's fantastic. It's in my top thirty shows. It has one of the best OSTs in anime and Rakka is one of my favorite anime protagonists.

I have a question regarding the last episode, is it considered melodrama or not? Because there is a definite theatrical and exaggerated feel to it but the emotions are extremely palpable, which means it doesn't fall into unintentional comedy or anything (something melodrama has a tendency to fall under).

youtube.com/watch?v=76Wnh_k0Dk8

The music in Haibane Renmei was basically perfect.

Despera soon!

my 2nd favorite OST of all time good stuff

first?

.hack//Sign

It's too hard for me to understand.
I believe this is all about Japanese religion but the MC committed suicide is a bad thing?

>Japanese religion
>Haibane Renmei

Is this bait ??

I'm not super familiar with shinto or buddhism but I don't think remnei has a lot of influence from either. The visuals are all extremely western

The visuals, yes. The core, no.

What sort of eastern religious philosophy is present in the show's themes?

Universal/unconditional compassion, coexistence, karma.
It also advocates equilibrium (of the human psyche) and acceptance on multiple levels.
All that is very much Zen-Buddhist.

STOP MAKING THREADS YOU IDIOTS

Why not?

I think the character design and general concept art for Remnei is my favourite for any anime

What purpose did the halo serve again? It's made of material found inside the walls, right?

Melodrama? Not even close. Shows become melodramatic when they're overly dramatic. Haibane Renmei has enough weight behind every scene to justify everyone's actions throughout the show.

I know it's autistic and nobody cares but of the 400+ shows I've seen on my, Haibane is only one of three that I actually gave a 10. Haibane feels like a show that I could recommend to anyone who has half a brain. It just does everything so well.

I recommended it to my older brother (who doesn't watch anime at all) who, at the time, lost two friends to suicide and he felt like it was one of the most impactful things he'd ever watched in his 37 years of living.

I'm jealous of all of you who say that it made you emotional and had a big impact on you. I really feel like something with this subject matter should but I didn't really feel anything. Don't get me wrong it was really good and I'd like to watch it again in the future.
Maybe I wasn't in the right frame of mind when watching it.

Because everything should in moderation. Otherwise it becomes shitposting central. And the show is too good to be tarnished like that.

I wish people would learn that there's a difference between good melodrama and bad melodrama.

Good melodrama always feels justified and is only comedic if you take it out of context. The scene with Reki in her room in the final episode is 100% melodrama, but it's good melodrama.

Wasn't this never confirmed to be the afterlife and it's really just a whole lot of metaphor and speculation?