Spoilers Shenmue The Animation: Episode 1 - Thunderclap - Thread
- Thread starter the_phoenix_mirror
- Start date
- Joined
- Jun 17, 2019
It was so good. I loved it. Can't wait for more!
Some other thoughts/observations:
The "speak to Tom about the black car" beat is done well enough, and I like that the "find an expert in Chinese" beat appears to have placed Liu Gong Hui in Ajiichi's to drop his info about the Chinese cartel in Yokosuka, with Tao duo Ji in the background cooking away.
Bit of a shame they couldn't shoehorn in a line or two about the three blades from Tao for flavour, but not hugely essential.
I suppose a minor nitpick (though doesn't bother me) is that in these early moments Ryo isn't really actively investigating, although it does set him up to be doing just that in episode 2.
Also they nailed the core essence of Tom: someone who just really REALLY loves seeing people enjoy his Hot Dogs!
The "speak to Tom about the black car" beat is done well enough, and I like that the "find an expert in Chinese" beat appears to have placed Liu Gong Hui in Ajiichi's to drop his info about the Chinese cartel in Yokosuka, with Tao duo Ji in the background cooking away.
Bit of a shame they couldn't shoehorn in a line or two about the three blades from Tao for flavour, but not hugely essential.
I suppose a minor nitpick (though doesn't bother me) is that in these early moments Ryo isn't really actively investigating, although it does set him up to be doing just that in episode 2.
Also they nailed the core essence of Tom: someone who just really REALLY loves seeing people enjoy his Hot Dogs!
- Joined
- Jun 17, 2019
Watched both the Japanese and English versions now and think the Japanese language is my preference, but both are really good honestly.
- Joined
- Jun 17, 2019
I'm not sure if it's been mentioned in this thread but it's available on the Adult Swim website. I used a US VPN and streamed it just fine for free.
It showed up as blocked in the UK and even some US locations I tried to use (maybe they detected the use of VPN?), found a US location that worked though and streamed it without issues.
Watch Shenmue on Adult Swim
1986, Yokosuka. Ryo Hazuki has trained to master the Hazuki Style Jujitsu under his strict father in the Hazuki Dojo from his childhood. However, one day a mysterious man named Lan Di murders his father and takes the “mirror” his father was protecting. Ryo is determined to find the truth behind...
www.adultswim.com
Watch Shenmue on Adult Swim
1986, Yokosuka. Ryo Hazuki has trained to master the Hazuki Style Jujitsu under his strict father in the Hazuki Dojo from his childhood. However, one day a mysterious man named Lan Di murders his father and takes the “mirror” his father was protecting. Ryo is determined to find the truth behind...
www.adultswim.com
It showed up as blocked in the UK and even some US locations I tried to use (maybe they detected the use of VPN?), found a US location that worked though and streamed it without issues.
- Joined
- Aug 21, 2018
Really enjoyed that, and I honestly think it can stand on its own merit without the viewer needing to be a fan of the games. I understand some concerns for the pacing, but I don't think anything came across as too jarring. This was the first episode so needs to act as a hook to get people interested and I think it works well in that regard. Looking forward to the second episode.
bcdcdude
Dude with tweed :)
- Joined
- Aug 20, 2018
- Location
- United Kingdom
- Favourite title
- Shenmue
- Currently playing
- The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel
- PSN
- bcdcdude
- Steam
- bcdcdude
Actually one other thing I really liked was this:
It gave me Fist of the North Star vibes!!
It gave me Fist of the North Star vibes!!
- Joined
- Feb 3, 2019
- Location
- Sydney Australia
- Favourite title
- Shenmue II
- Currently playing
- Tekken 7 (always Tekken 7)
- PSN
- danmann861
- Steam
- danielmann861
The comparison video I made is up on Twitter (since I can't put it on YT due to copyright.)
Or if you don't want to be on Twitter and just want the video...here's the link to it on my Google Drive
It mostly lined up well in premiere. A couple of sequences are out of order and had to be rearranged but it mostly lines up...there were a few cuts I had to make...and I had to speed up and slow down two sequences in particular to get it to sync up. But like I said before, I'm surprised how many shots are echoed in the anime that are lifted directly from the game. Also, the soundtrack for that scene grew on me. The violins are kind of neat. I still prefer the games opening scene soundtrack but I am looking forward to getting a full release of the anime soundtrack.
Last edited:
Honestly it reminded me a little bit of the Virtua Fighter anime, also from the same studio as Shenmue.
bcdcdude
Dude with tweed :)
- Joined
- Aug 20, 2018
- Location
- United Kingdom
- Favourite title
- Shenmue
- Currently playing
- The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel
- PSN
- bcdcdude
- Steam
- bcdcdude
Ah of course...I should've known as I watched the bloody thing last year
Actually - Virtua Fighter was brilliant too, so people should watch it as well. I've only seen the English dub, but I really enjoyed it's 90's ness!
- Joined
- Feb 3, 2019
- Location
- Sydney Australia
- Favourite title
- Shenmue II
- Currently playing
- Tekken 7 (always Tekken 7)
- PSN
- danmann861
- Steam
- danielmann861
That was the feeling I got most while watching this today...it felt very 90's anime...and I kind of dug it for that.
You can read my in-depth recap/review on my blog here:
shenmusings.wordpress.com
To summarise however - that was amazing! I was very surprised just how much has been changed and reshuffled in terms of the plot, but I think they are changes for the better. It felt a lot more natural and better suited for a TV show for Ryo to find out certain information just from spending time with Nozomi. As I go into a bit in the review as well, I did appreciate the breathing space given to show Ryo actually grieving, however briefly (having just lost both of my parents recently, this resonated a lot)
I look forward to seeing how the rest of Shenmue 1's story unfolds!
Shenmue The Animation Ep #1 ‘Thunderclap’ recap and review
NOTE: This is a recap/review of the Japanese audio & English subtitled version of the episode, viewed via Crunchyroll. It is currently not possible to view the English dub where I am, in the UK…
shenmusings.wordpress.com
To summarise however - that was amazing! I was very surprised just how much has been changed and reshuffled in terms of the plot, but I think they are changes for the better. It felt a lot more natural and better suited for a TV show for Ryo to find out certain information just from spending time with Nozomi. As I go into a bit in the review as well, I did appreciate the breathing space given to show Ryo actually grieving, however briefly (having just lost both of my parents recently, this resonated a lot)
I look forward to seeing how the rest of Shenmue 1's story unfolds!
I actually didn't mind this - Ryo felt a lot more human throughout while still mostly being stoic, not a bad thing
- Joined
- Jul 27, 2018
- The decision to have Ryo glo up enough to defeat Chai was terrible. I know he only exists as a mini-boss in the grand scheme of the series, but if the anime was my first experience to Shenmue, I'd immediately have no emotional investment and Chai at all. And the growth of Ryo's wiseness as a martial artist didn't feel natural in the least. They didn't necessarily have to include the Chai fight at the end of the harbour, but in episode 1? No, bad.
- Everything else was pretty solid. Nozomi's already more endearing to me than she was in the game, Tom isn't singlehandedly offending an entire nationality with his voice (but then I am watching it in Japanese), the extra scenes are welcome and the impact of every punch resonates.
- I don't foresee tons of people becoming new fans outta this. Seems very much a 'for the fans' project. But I'm not a newcomer, so I could be entirely wrong.
Oh and also:
Based.
- Everything else was pretty solid. Nozomi's already more endearing to me than she was in the game, Tom isn't singlehandedly offending an entire nationality with his voice (but then I am watching it in Japanese), the extra scenes are welcome and the impact of every punch resonates.
- I don't foresee tons of people becoming new fans outta this. Seems very much a 'for the fans' project. But I'm not a newcomer, so I could be entirely wrong.
Oh and also:
Based.
- Joined
- Jul 27, 2018
- Location
- Porto; Portugal
Hey guys! Watched today the first episode with my gf!!
Really cool to see hahaha we loved it!
So cool to see the good old shenmue characters, like fuku San, nozomi and even Tom being included here! So much nostalgia!!
I loved the way they casually intruduced the dialogues like in the ajiichi restaurant.
It's a shame we have to wait a whole week between episodes!
Wanna see them all now
(my sister used to play the first shenmue with me when we were kids, she also loved it at the time.
Just told her about the shenmue animation now, and she will probably see it as well!)
Really cool to see hahaha we loved it!
So cool to see the good old shenmue characters, like fuku San, nozomi and even Tom being included here! So much nostalgia!!
I loved the way they casually intruduced the dialogues like in the ajiichi restaurant.
It's a shame we have to wait a whole week between episodes!
Wanna see them all now
(my sister used to play the first shenmue with me when we were kids, she also loved it at the time.
Just told her about the shenmue animation now, and she will probably see it as well!)
Last edited:
- Joined
- Aug 10, 2018
Hopefully this means that this "team" will be assisting forward with the development of Shenmue IV. I think there's a good chance that it will be coming back home if it ever goes into full development.
Cebman
Walmart Footage Finder
- Joined
- Jun 6, 2019
I loved it!
Watched it subbed and feel the Japanese cast was very good.
-Choosing to start the series with the cave sequence was a good way to hook the audience into wanting to watch to see how the story will progress to this point. From a simple revenge plot to a cavern with some mystical elements.
-Ryo showing more emotion and character depth by speaking and laughing with Nozomi.
-Lan Di giving Ryo the scar rather than getting it at the tournament was a good plot choice.
-Ryo not immediately going after Lan Di for revenge.
-Fighting Chai at the end was a good action sequence to end the episode. However, I'm unsure if Ryo will fight him again and if Chai will even put up a fight.
-Forklifts in the end credits :)
-Missing a majority of Shenmue 2 major characters in the ending credits. (Xiuying especially)
-Locations are exactly how they are in the games. Fans can immediately tell where Ryo is at.
-Hoping for more scenes from other character's perspectives to expand the lore. (Shenhua scene in Guilin, Lan Di speaking in the car, ect.)
-The story pace may seem very rushed for those who have played the games, but it is a necessity to cover 2 games in 13 episodes.
Watched it subbed and feel the Japanese cast was very good.
-Choosing to start the series with the cave sequence was a good way to hook the audience into wanting to watch to see how the story will progress to this point. From a simple revenge plot to a cavern with some mystical elements.
-Ryo showing more emotion and character depth by speaking and laughing with Nozomi.
-Lan Di giving Ryo the scar rather than getting it at the tournament was a good plot choice.
-Ryo not immediately going after Lan Di for revenge.
-Fighting Chai at the end was a good action sequence to end the episode. However, I'm unsure if Ryo will fight him again and if Chai will even put up a fight.
-Forklifts in the end credits :)
-Missing a majority of Shenmue 2 major characters in the ending credits. (Xiuying especially)
-Locations are exactly how they are in the games. Fans can immediately tell where Ryo is at.
-Hoping for more scenes from other character's perspectives to expand the lore. (Shenhua scene in Guilin, Lan Di speaking in the car, ect.)
-The story pace may seem very rushed for those who have played the games, but it is a necessity to cover 2 games in 13 episodes.
- Joined
- Jul 27, 2018
Tried to stay up last night to watch it, but decided at 2am that it would just kill my whole Sunday if I did .
Woke up this morning and watched it straight away and I'm blown away honestly. It's just that good!
There are so many little details that just had me grinning from ear to ear and you can tell that they just get Shenmue. They've put so much care into every scene, and have not only done the game justice, but have given the fans some awesome little nods, and full blown story chucks that didn't make the final game. Finally seeing the Karate Tournament after hearing about it in that interview so many years ago is just perfect! I really hope they do the same with the boat chapter!
Things that stood out to me:-
Could go on for hours really, but I'm just so happy about it and think they did a fantastic job so far.
As mentioned in the past, I feel like the anime writing team could really help Yu flesh out the story for Shenmue IV/V and really deliver on what the fans want as a completion of the story. I'm so interested to see what else they change, and what they flesh out.
If they manage to do 13 episodes similar to the quality of this first one, then fuck me are we in for a treat lol. Going to be so awesome having something to look forward to every Sunday for the near future!
Can't wait to watch the live reactions later on the Dojo Stream too!
Also, get the guy who made this "next episode" screen, work on the UI for future Shenmue games lol. Looks awesome!
.Woke up this morning and watched it straight away and I'm blown away honestly. It's just that good!
There are so many little details that just had me grinning from ear to ear and you can tell that they just get Shenmue. They've put so much care into every scene, and have not only done the game justice, but have given the fans some awesome little nods, and full blown story chucks that didn't make the final game. Finally seeing the Karate Tournament after hearing about it in that interview so many years ago is just perfect! I really hope they do the same with the boat chapter!
Things that stood out to me:-
- I like that they introduced Shenhua in Bailu via a quick jump there and back. Very different to how we felt playing the games (who the fuck is that on the front of the box, at the start of the game & on the chocolate bars lol). Super interested to see how often they do this, and what they will show of Shenhua's life before we meet her in the games. Maybe we will see some more of Yuan? That would be awesome, and it would also flesh out his character for us while playing Shenmue 3.
- The music in the scene with Lan Di killing Iwao, although wasn't very Shenmue, was fucking awesome and ominous. The increase of tempo as the fight goes on is something that you don't hear very often so really added to the tension of the situation.
- Super interesting to see that they left out the mention of Meng Cun. I wonder if the anime team & Yu have a revised story of some kind, and have decide to omit going there?
- I think I actually prefer Nozomi from the anime (although she is much more forward). Love the fact that Ryo has his green bag, and that he beats up Akio and Tetsuya without taking it off
- At so many points in the anime, I noticed myself looking at the backgrounds while thinking that I know what's down that road, around the corner etc. They've done a fantastic job with the locations, and I'd love to just be able to walk around in the anime lol.
- So cool to see that they actually got the police involved, and that there is a quick jump cut to house phone in homage to the achievement in the remasters.
- Felt literal nerd chills during the fight with Chai. Those emotional internal struggles about overcoming the odds always get me in games, so no surprise it got me here
- The
Could go on for hours really, but I'm just so happy about it and think they did a fantastic job so far.
As mentioned in the past, I feel like the anime writing team could really help Yu flesh out the story for Shenmue IV/V and really deliver on what the fans want as a completion of the story. I'm so interested to see what else they change, and what they flesh out.
If they manage to do 13 episodes similar to the quality of this first one, then fuck me are we in for a treat lol. Going to be so awesome having something to look forward to every Sunday for the near future!
Can't wait to watch the live reactions later on the Dojo Stream too!
Also, get the guy who made this "next episode" screen, work on the UI for future Shenmue games lol. Looks awesome!