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[Folly]

Archer Season 8 theorycrafting

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

At the end of Season 7, archer was face-down in a pool for some time, with a gunshot wound, presumed dead. Here are a few ideas for how he may return in Season 8.

1: Flashbacks. We have seen Archer alive in the previews, but maybe they were just flashbacks, and he is simply dead.
2: Dream Sequence. The subtitle for the new season is Archer Dreamland, so maybe the entire season is just a dream sequence.
3: Robots. Krieger made robot copies of the whole team, but the problem is Archer's robot was shown to have been killed(deactivated?) in an earlier scene. But it was also shown that Krieger had multiple robots of himself, so maybe he made multiple archerbots also? Either the Archer in the pool was another bot, or the Archer alive in the new season is a bot.
4: Cyborg. Remember that nasty fall Archer took at the start of Season 7? It's hard to believe he could have survived that and gone right back to the mission, unless he had already been given cybernetic enhancements at some earlier point, which could also have given him bullet-resistance and water-breathing. Or, if he was not a cyborg already, Krieger might pull him from the pool and turn him into one. Katya was also apparently dead and he managed to bring her back.
5: Time Travel. The previews all seem to take place in another time, so maybe Krieger builds a time machine to go back and pick up Archer before he died, then something goes wrong and the gang ends up stranded in the past.

[Neonivek]

Steven Universe has hit the brakes again.

Honestly the show is like some sort of sadistic roller coaster where you slowly inch towards a great climb, finally do down that hill and then ERRRRRRR the cart hits the breaks and goes slowly up another hill once more.

It is really tiring... Don't get me wrong filler can be great, you just need great filler... But Steven Universe's filler feels like filler.

I am dreaming of the days of Naruto with its endless chaff of filler... See what you are doing to me Steven Universe? I want Naruto Filler!

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Also I really got to catch up to Archer...

I actually like that the show caught its groove eventually... Its worst moments were REALLY bad (at least to me... maybe you liked the humiliation parade involving Syrille which only existed as a way to destroy his relationship in order to thrust Archer into the love seat... As you do)

[Edmus]

I feel like filler is most painful when you're being drip-fed episodes. It doesn't matter nearly so much when you're binging. I really prefer the releases in blocks.

Edit: That episode didn't feel like filler to me, it was pretty dang good.

[Urist McScoopbeard]

According to Genndy himself he would have much rather had a coherent story, but [adult swim] forced him to make it more episodic so episodes could be shown out of order on reruns.

Hold on, are you talking about upcoming season 5 that will be broadcasted on [adult swim], or the first four that were out of chronological order on its big brother CN?

The original--he's specifically waited so long to make season 5 so he could do something more akin to Stranger Things in terms of extreme character development.

[Oneir]

I feel like filler is most painful when you're being drip-fed episodes. It doesn't matter nearly so much when you're binging. I really prefer the releases in blocks.

Maybe, but I think the random releases of the Steven Bombs hurts more than it helps for me. Especially since that makes the leaks way more frustrating. (or, worse, the inexplicable non-leaks like this last January where Cartoon Network just tossed them out to the streaming sites for some reason.) Some of them have been great, obviously, but I don't remember how many of those had notable low-stakes episodes in the middle.

I liked Tiger Philanthropist, though! Not every episode has to feed the myth arc, it's nice to just see them explore characters and show them growing in little ways. Your average sitcom show would do something like this, but there wouldn't be the same markers of character growth.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

It sort of felt like a "creator venting" episode? There've been a few, though I'm blanking on examples, where there's this overt subtext of X issue creators have interacting with their fans. I'm not sure if it's just a general venting, or specifically venting over fans' reactions to almost the exact think Neonivek's complaining about, though, with Lars crying over it being a sudden anticlimax and stuff.

[Neonivek]

So lets go into Naruto filler and sort of locate where my feelings lie.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

My favorite piece of Naruto Filler was a miniarc involving getting a special beetle.

The minor character of Hinata (before Shippuden yes she was minor) is the prime focus. She, in the show, suffered a terrible loss after vowing to try her hardest for now on.

So the miniarc follows up on it and Hinata is changed by this Miniarc... in fact it was so successful that people didn't like the way she was used later on.

So we have an establish character, with an established goal, who is minor enough that the show will never really develop her further, so the filler does for you.

---

So lets go into the episode of Steven Universe that mirrors this filler best... Kiki's Pizza Delivery Service.

Ok a minor character, who never really interacted with our hero, has a completely made up problem, and it gets fixed... because there was never really a problem... and nothing really changed because this is just a return to normality.

---

Goodness I like Saddy but her plot refuses to progress... Lars never progresses.

And I like Ronaldo but his episodes are almost always soo terrible and kind of caustic... (Only his Rising Tides Crashing Skys was a good one)

I think the only character who actually changes in the filler is... Jamie O-o... Well ok... sort of... He is sort of in the same boat as Kiki in that he had light characterization... Had one episode that gave him an issue... and that issue was resolved and will probably define them from here on (I doubt he will have an episode where he actually learns to act)

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As for this episode... Yeah it is relatively fine. Though this episode is more of a Epilogue. It is the direct result of the previous arc.

I didn't really like it but that is mostly because of the overall mood... But that is the point, you aren't meant to like this episode.

It is meant to feel sort of phoned in, like the passion isn't there anymore. To sort of reflect what it was to the characters involved.

Which when combined with the previous filler kind of... continues that trend (it really is a decent episode on its own...)

THEN AGAIN!!! Full Disclosure is the direct parallel to this episode... But it was good.

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Ultimately my issue isn't that the show has Filler or even a lot of filler. (Mind you Naruto had WAAAAY too much...)

It is that it is filler designed to be filler. They aren't trying to cram value in the filler, it is just a tasting tray of ideas.

[WillowLuman]

Just finished binge of Star Vs The Forces of Evil. Does Ludo remind anyone else of Garlic Jr.?

I need to catch up on Steven Universe, hope to do so later today.

AFAIK, Archer season 8 is going to be a coma dream?

[Neonivek]

Don't bother catching up to Steven Universe yet... We are in another slump where they dropped ALL the tension.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Which is honestly the WORST FREEKEN trait of Steven Universe is the dissonance between the plot and everything else.

So just wait until we get another bomb that will continue the plot. according to what I see, we might get one in April.

Honestly the plot based episodes might as well take place in another universe. As once they are away from the plot it is like nothing happened.

Which I know the only reason they did that is because the "Gem Homeworld is coming" was such a long and torturous arc itself and they didn't want to keep the show dark. Yet come on!

---

I guess it is to say... Man Steven Universe... >_< why you piss me off so much? I actually like you but I seem to go onto rants...

Maybe it is because frankly... You are a bad anime in structure. Small bits of plot in a sea of forgettable filler completely disconnected from one another... and yet... You weren't always this way (It started after Jailbreak)

---

Actually yeah... I think I'd say the show went downhill after Jailbreak.

It had more great episodes but the average quality went down.

Note: I put things in spoilers because man... Steven Universe rubs me the wrong way. I feel like I could complain for hours and I like the show.

I need to be thankful this wasn't Adventure Time.... THAT show self-destructed. Steven Universe is still good, it just has pacing issues, filler issues, and its plot dissonance is too great for a show with strong continuity... Basically it is a Bad anime.

[Folly]

I've always taken SU as a slice-of-life show, whose purpose is not to excite us with action or intrigue us with unexpected developments, but rather to portray the normalcy of boring everyday life, except with a unique setting and occasional points of interest along the way. Life has exciting things happen on occasion, but it's not realistic to expect them all the time.

[WillowLuman]

I don't mind SU non-plot episodes as long as they're not Ronaldo episodes.

[Neonivek]

I don't mind SU non-plot episodes as long as they're not Ronaldo episodes.

Or Lars episodes... Which I guess I would be fine with but DANG IT SADDY! Dump his butt!

[Neonivek]

On a side note I kind of wonder what Stephonnie represents as far as a relationship is concerned

Because Steven and Connie are in a relationship clearly. Yet their combined form eventually eats at them and lacks the emotional solidarity of their separate forms.

Assuming it IS symbolic... Could it be a relationship that they went into fully absorbed into one another but in doing so they lost what made their relationship so special, or their individuality?

I dunno >_<

[Urist McScoopbeard]

I've always taken SU as a slice-of-life show, whose purpose is... to portray the normalcy of boring everyday life...

This is why I don't like SU. I'm not really sure why people want to see that kind of thing.

[Neonivek]

I've always taken SU as a slice-of-life show, whose purpose is... to portray the normalcy of boring everyday life...

This is why I don't like SU. I'm not really sure why people want to see that kind of thing.

Ehh it sounds like the definition of a flat out bad Slice of Life show.

While the point of a Slice of Life show varies... Its main purpose is to be grounded and more true to life as opposed to a more dramatic stance.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

A person in real life might see something horrible, or might have an epiphany... but generally speaking they do not change by their experiences... at least not all at once. Grand events do not happen one after the other.

The problem is that BAD slice of lifes use this as an excuse to not try... Or to be horribly under dramatic with overly sugar trite speeches.

Slice of Life... is an excuse. Which is the problem. When it should be a vehicle.

Someone shouldn't go "This is actually good because it is slice of life" handwavium... They should be going "You see, they are using slice of life to make it good".

---

Make no mistake... I don't generally like Slice of Life, though there have been amazing standouts (Just watch the prequel to "The Cat Returns")... I don't particularly like the genre.

But I understand its appeal and its strengths and make absolutely no excuses for it.

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Anyhow Steven Universe isn't Slice of Life anyhow. The show doesn't really focus on the mundane lazy boring things either... It dips into Melodrama constantly.

It is best thought that the Beach City is "The reason". Beach City is the life Steven wants to protect. Mind you this is becoming less and less true as the show goes on and it feels more and more like the show is actually two completely separate shows.

[Putnam]

I've always taken SU as a slice-of-life show, whose purpose is... to portray the normalcy of boring everyday life...

This is why I don't like SU. I'm not really sure why people want to see that kind of thing.

i find it completely fair that you don't like slice of life, but i can't imagine how you can seriously say "i don't see why people would like it".