Dropping series; how often does that happen?

[Dr. Casey]

Originally Posted by Eisdrache

Out of 167 shows I dropped 2 (Ayakashi and Clannad AS).

wait, what

Dropping Clannad After Story was the biggest mistake of your anime life. The Ushio arc is beautiful, pick that show back up right now.

[Cosmic Eagle]

Never....time constraints may slow some series' completion down but I'll finish them in the end.

[Kyuu]

Well, here's my drop list. Discuss:

http://www.anime-planet.com/users/KyuuAL/anime/dropped



Well, for the most part, I drop a series if I find something in it that irritates me -- AND -- I can't find a reason to keep watching. Why waste my time after all?

[0utf0xZer0]

I seldom explicitly drop shows. However, often get busy partway through a season and loss my enthusiasm for certain shows, then fall behind on them. Occassionally I make an effort to complete them when I have more time, but often it simply never pick them up again. And sometimes this happens after only a couple episodes too.

To be honest, these days I'm busy enough that I only watch anime if I feel some level of enthusiasm about it, because otherwise I feel like I should be getting other stuff done. As a result:
-The vast majority of the anime I watch I watch as it airs weekly. It's easier to maintain enthusiasm in short but regular bursts and when the show is new.
-In general, I'm more enthusiastic about my favoured genres. So yes, I do watch a lot more moe anime than critically acclaimed anime.
-However, for whatever reason I'm able to get enthusiastic about watching older or critically acclaimed anime with friends. So when I watch those shows, I usually marathon them with friends.

I often wonder if similar psychology explains why certain kinds of anime are so popular.

Originally Posted by DragoZERO

Unless it's really, really bad, I won't drop it. You never know what's going to happen. Everyone who dropped because of Shu's Refusal of the Call in the beginning of Guilty Crown is losing out now since the Return has been awesome.

Define "return". The early episodes were merely weak. Episodes 16-18, on the other hand, I was alternating between wanting to know what happens next and finding the episodes a revolting ordeal to watch. I can't think of anything in recent memory that has been more excruitating to watch, probably because if it was just generically horrible I would have dropped it.

Originally Posted by Dr. Casey

Dropping Clannad After Story was the biggest mistake of your anime life. The Ushio arc is beautiful, pick that show back up right now.

I actually found the Ushio arc kind of dull. Then again, I've always found Key's stuff very hit and miss with many of the "lead girl" arcs being on the miss side. I'm a moe and melodrama fanboy but I guess my taste tends more towards stuff like EF than Clannad AS.

[Master_Yoma]

The only way I drop any anime is that if an new episodes isnt subbed after a month I watch every thing to the end no matter how painful it is to watch

[TurkeyPotPie]

I often end up dropping multi-cour shows after the first cour. A show might be entertaining enough for me to finish the cour, but when the next season rolls around I get distracted by all the shiny news shows and drift away from the shows that started the previous season. I often intend to go back and catch up on those shows, but never get around to it. For example, I've put Chihayafuru and Mirai Nikki on hiatus. I enjoyed them quite a bit, but for some reason my interest petered out once this season started. I think the same thing is happening to Fate/Zero. I enjoyed it well enough, but I am not particularly looking forward to the next cour.

I don't know how I used to watch anime in the old days with 50-100+ episodes. I haven't watched anything like that in ages.

[Archon_Wing]

Originally Posted by 0utf0xZer0

Define "return". The early episodes were merely weak. Episodes 16-18, on the other hand, I was alternating between wanting to know what happens next and finding the episodes a revolting ordeal to watch. I can't think of anything in recent memory that has been more excruitating to watch, probably because if it was just generically horrible I would have dropped it.



I actually found the Ushio arc kind of dull. Then again, I've always found Key's stuff very hit and miss with many of the "lead girl" arcs being on the miss side. I'm a moe and melodrama fanboy but I guess my taste tends more towards stuff like EF than Clannad AS.

In both examples, if one isn't able to draw a connection to the issues at hand and buy into the narrative, then it will warrant a drop just because you couldn't be bothered to continue. Guilty Crown's narrative at the halfway point was simply too broken simply because I simply didn't care what happens after and I hoped for the deaths of the protagonists because I was convinced that neither side was worth rooting for. At the same time, Clannad After Story is a very different beast from Clannad, and if you aren't able to buy Tomoya and Nagisa as a couple enough then the show does nothing since the show's transition was fairly questionable in certain places. Even the hugest of fanboys aren't going to rave about episode 2-8

Though yes I find Key to be fairly hit and miss. It's fortunate I enjoyed most of the cast of Clannad. I'd imagine some who didn't would view it the same way I did for Kanon 2006; half of that series was sort of a drag-- the show sorta starts at episode 11 and ends at episode 18 for me. :3

According to MAL: I have 143 completed and 36 dropped; that was actually a lot better than I thought though I didn't add many forgettable entries and back then I was more willing to stick with series. There's also about 31 series on hold though which is pretty much the equivalent of "I can't be fucked" so that's not good either. Also, I added like every OVA and crap to inflate the numbers, so it's probably a bit worse than 143/210....

Edit: So let's look only tv series... 75 completed 33 dropped 29 on hold. Ok, that's a bit more ugly-- 75/137

I will say it's much easier to follow existing series, because the discussions that arise can be funny.

[MisaoFan]

Usually, I never stopped watching a specific anime. The only anime I dropped is Sengoku Paradise : Kiwami : it have a little interest to me, but I'll give it a second thought one day.

[DragoonKain3]

I try to get at least 3 episodes of every fansubbed series (trying to find EVERY anime that has an osnanajimi couple is very hard, you know?), so you'd be crazy to think I won't drop most of them.

[HasuMasu]

I try not to, they might surprise me in the end--maybe. (BLOOD-C)
though that is to say I've dropped some before because I honestly just didn't feel like sitting through it all. (Lucky Star)
Then there are those shows which I felt obligated to sit through even if I disliked their guts. (Gundam Wing)

So yeah, I've dropped some--though I tend to avoid doing so.

[0utf0xZer0]

Originally Posted by TurkeyPotPie

I think the same thing is happening to Fate/Zero. I enjoyed it well enough, but I am not particularly looking forward to the next cour.

Hmmm... personally, I liked Fate/Zero enough that I wouldn't have minded going for a second cour immediately (just as I was pumped for Hanasaku Iroha and Steins;Gate's second halves) but in cases where I like but don't love a show I like split cour, gives me a chance to recharge my enthusiasm.

Originally Posted by Archon_Wing

In both examples, if one isn't able to draw a connection to the issues at hand and buy into the narrative, then it will warrant a drop just because you couldn't be bothered to continue. Guilty Crown's narrative at the halfway point was simply too broken simply because I simply didn't care what happens after and I hoped for the deaths of the protagonists because I was convinced that neither side was worth rooting for.

I've been enthusiastic about where Guilty Crown could have gone on several occassions - notable Ayase and the potential for a relationship between her and Shu and the events of episode 15. In both cases I thought the follow through was pretty terrible yet for some reason I can't bring myself to say enough is enough and drop the show as I would have done for a show that was merely so-so.

Originally Posted by Archon_Wing

At the same time, Clannad After Story is a very different beast from Clannad, and if you aren't able to buy Tomoya and Nagisa as a couple enough then the show does nothing since the show's transition was fairly questionable in certain places. Even the hugest of fanboys aren't going to rave about episode 2-8

Unlike some I don't hate the Tomoya/Nagisa pairing but I never felt any enthusiasm for it either. Which makes much of After Story a long hard slog. I'd be lying if I said episode 16 didn't move me but it's not nearly enough.

Originally Posted by Archon_Wing

Though yes I find Key to be fairly hit and miss. It's fortunate I enjoyed most of the cast of Clannad. I'd imagine some who didn't would view it the same way I did for Kanon 2006; half of that series was sort of a drag-- the show sorta starts at episode 11 and ends at episode 18 for me. :3

Definitely hit and miss. The flip side of Clannad AS for me is Angel Beats' final episode, which I think is terrible (tacked on attempt to milk the audience's emotions for everything they're worth anyone?) when I evaluate it objectively but which I absolutely love for sheer D'awwwwwwww value.

One thing this thread seems to be demonstrating is that for all my effort to make good logical arguments when we debate here, my decisions on what I like and whether to drop/not drop are very, very subjective and emotion driven.

[Pocari_Sweat]

Key adapted anime in general have always had subpar or piss poor endings.

Air - derp.
Kanon - forgettable.
Clannad AS - FUUUUU.
Angel Beats - *calls up the Taliban and ask them to bomb Key Visual Arts*.

Haven't played the Little Busters or Rewrite VNs, nor do I intend to, though I did play Planetarian. That was one really good VN. Short, to the point and with that "Key drama" bang towards the end but without the deus ex or overly happy shit they tend to do.

Back on topic, lately I've been dropping more than half the series I try. I do have this "2-3 episode" rule though for ongoing shows that I start, though if it doesn't grab me by the 3rd episode, I usually drop it(or it's on indefinite hold with a very low chance that I'll come back. Anything that I consider 6/10 or below (My MAL mean for completed series is at 6.1 atm), usually get's put into the drop pile. Don't have time nor have the patience to tolerate bad anime these days, unless if it's so bad its good.

[fanty]

My MAL says that I've dropped 192 series, and completed 216, so yeah... I drop stuff almost half the time. There's not enough time in your life to waste it on watching crap.

[Haak]

The second option is closest to what I feel but it's a little more complicated than that since I have continued watching shows that are really really bad.

Personally I think there are two requirements for me to stop watching a series:
1) It has to be painful for me to watch
2) I have to lose interest in it.

One might think 1) would automatically lead to 2) but that has never really been the case for me...

[EDIT]

There is also the factor of ongoing series: It's easier to continue with a show when you only have to watch one episode every week.

[Larthak]

Damn, you guys drop stuff left and right.

I only ever dropped Today in Class 5-2 myself. Well, most stuff doesn't even get a chance of being dropped. Better to see less than be constantly disappointed. At least that's how I prefer it.

[ttdestroy]

I really try to see series through and I usually succeed, but I've dropped at least 2 every season since 2008.

Kill me baby is the winner(loser?) this season. However my biggest regrets are Clannad and Birdy, but I plan to get around to them some day when we get a really sucky season.

[KyriaL]

Well from personal experience, to keep dropping series ( new or otherwise ) to a minimum, I tend to read the general synopsis of the said series before making a decision to give it a go or to throw it aside. This generally helps much as at least I would have a basic idea of what type of show can i expect when i do watch the series. Knowing your preferred genre also seems to help much, therefore i personally avoid Yuri/Yaoi shows as I know I would drop them sooner or later.

On checking my stats, it seemed that I have dropped around 25% of series attempted, well that figure would probably be significantly higher if I just randomly pick series to watch without first reading about it.

[Aesthetic Shampoo]

I voted that i never drop any series, and i mean it. Everything i have started i follow through with (when it comes to anime at least), whether it be good, bad, horrible or boring. I just dislike that feeling you get when you have an unfinished anime you started at the back of your mind all day/week/life, and the few times i experienced it it was actually, believe it or not, quite annoying. Rather than dropping, i put everything on hold.

BUT, i never drop a series =/= i watch everything. I mean, i watched the last few episodes of evangelion. I watched Endless eight. Right now, i'm still following Guilty crown, the one and only anime i have ever loathed from the bottom of my soul. But some anime, i just simply find not worth starting. This may be because of bad reviews on forums (e.g the few times i went into the Phi brain thread here, people were bashing it pretty hard,so i doubt i'll watch that anytime soon, despite many inklings that it's not that bad),or past experience with source material (HSotD....hated the manga, which i found distasteful, watched a few scenes of the anime of Youtube, and do you think i regret my decision not to watch?), or simply just because a random skim of the first episode didn't seem good or a random bad mood stops me starting any.

Reading through the posts, i'm actually surprised so many people drop so many series', especially some of the dropped ones include "good" ones ( view may vary); at the very least, they were significant enough to gather some sort of positive attention to them.

[mecharobot]

As for what some people are talking about here, pre-emptive dropping, I do it all the time. Meaning that I too have come to the point in my watching where I don't need to see even one episode of an anime to determine if it is worth my time or not. It is an educated bias.

[Triple_R]

Originally Posted by 0utf0xZer0

I seldom explicitly drop shows. However, often get busy partway through a season and lose my enthusiasm for certain shows, then fall behind on them. Occasionally I make an effort to complete them when I have more time, but often I simply never pick them up again. And sometimes this happens after only a couple episodes too.

This is my experience. There's not that many anime shows that I've watched but personally disliked so much that I explicitly dropped them, making the clear decision to never watch that show again.

But there's a fair number of anime shows that I just lose interest in and effectively "stall". Some of these I eventually get back to and finish off, but not all of them.

So if we count the ones I don't get back to as "drops" (which it makes sense to do after a certain period of time has passed, I think) then it's probably most accurate to say that I "sometimes" drop shows.


Given the vast quantity of anime out there these days, I have to admit that I'm a pretty big believer in the three episode rule. As such, I'm inclined to agree with Kaioshin Sama's point of "...I feel no show worth it's salt should have to rely on matters of pure faith and should just come out swinging with a strong start and solid middle."

When I drop and/or stall shows, it's usually because they either failed to hook me in within three episodes, or they became very meandering (at least from my perspective) during the middle portions.