- Joined
- Nov 23, 2019
Unsure if this has already been covered but obviously there are going to be differences between the anime and the games and even in the first episode there are already some big ones! Here's what I noticed:
1. Ryo's character: first of all, the anime takes place shortly before the events of the game so we get to see what Ryo was like before his father died. He's a great fighter (duh), he's popular with a big social circle, and he's super disciplined. Even after his father's murder, his judgement is less clouded by revenge: he makes time for Nozomi and even laughs! Overall he's characterized as way less of a "blank slate" and much more of a "normal guy" while still feeling absolutely true to the character. Love it.
2. Lan Di gave Ryo his cheek scar. I get why they did this, they establish that Ryo is king shit for his age to the point where he's never been hit and the first thing Lan Di does is make him bleed in a place that everyone will be able to see. It's likely that Ryo's scar was just a visual flourish and not meant to be anything important so I don't think it'll affect the story or anything. I actually like this change as well.
3. Lan Di knows about both mirrors! We'll see how this plays out in future episodes but if Lan Di knows about both mirrors and suspects that both are in Japan it'll be very interesting to see why he leaves with only one. This isn't really a change, more just establishing what was always a possibility but because they are now cutting to different perspectives, I really hope they address why Lan Di would leave with only one mirror.
4. Ryo beats Chai in the dojo. I get why they wanted to end episode 1 with a bang and the ending to Shenmue 1 isn't even going to be the ending to this season so Chai isn't necessarily the "big bad" he was in the first game but it will make his next appearances a little anti climactic. I'm not a huge fan of this change but we'll see what they plan for the ending to S1.
What's the vibe? Do you guys like the changes?
1. Ryo's character: first of all, the anime takes place shortly before the events of the game so we get to see what Ryo was like before his father died. He's a great fighter (duh), he's popular with a big social circle, and he's super disciplined. Even after his father's murder, his judgement is less clouded by revenge: he makes time for Nozomi and even laughs! Overall he's characterized as way less of a "blank slate" and much more of a "normal guy" while still feeling absolutely true to the character. Love it.
2. Lan Di gave Ryo his cheek scar. I get why they did this, they establish that Ryo is king shit for his age to the point where he's never been hit and the first thing Lan Di does is make him bleed in a place that everyone will be able to see. It's likely that Ryo's scar was just a visual flourish and not meant to be anything important so I don't think it'll affect the story or anything. I actually like this change as well.
3. Lan Di knows about both mirrors! We'll see how this plays out in future episodes but if Lan Di knows about both mirrors and suspects that both are in Japan it'll be very interesting to see why he leaves with only one. This isn't really a change, more just establishing what was always a possibility but because they are now cutting to different perspectives, I really hope they address why Lan Di would leave with only one mirror.
4. Ryo beats Chai in the dojo. I get why they wanted to end episode 1 with a bang and the ending to Shenmue 1 isn't even going to be the ending to this season so Chai isn't necessarily the "big bad" he was in the first game but it will make his next appearances a little anti climactic. I'm not a huge fan of this change but we'll see what they plan for the ending to S1.
What's the vibe? Do you guys like the changes?