.Hack//SIGN: The Origins of Isekai (ANIME ABANDON)

[@yserareborn]

“This shindig looks like the bomb diggity” is one of the greatest ad libbed lines in anime history.

[@LupineShadowOmega]

Crispin Freeman knew what he was doing...some men just want to watch the world burn.

[@fslayer1290]

Ah, Crispin Freeman. That man could read a cookbook and I would listen intently, as long as he read as Alucard from Hellsing. 😄

[@theheartsstory]

I say this in real life without context and it feels good every time.

[@BlackOps05]

The face Kite makes after he says that is also comedy gold.

[@Xbuster6]

It aged well with me. I love saying it.

[@wakamoon1910]

I think you missed its point by going in with the idea that it started the isekai idea and focusing on tsukasa. the anime is really a lot more about how different kinds of people play this online game for various reasons back during the era of how the games were just envisioned as. some just for fun, some as a means of escape, some to just be in, some to pretend to be something else, etc. tsukasa might be considered the protagonist but the anime as a whole shows the shades of the other characters too, from how they interact with tsukasa and with each other. for examples(though I might be mistaken with some traits for another character, since its been so long since I watched it), subaru plays in order to feel like she can still walk. mimiru played just cause her friends did. bear wanted to be in with the young generation and look after kids. the assassin player I believe was just some kid who liked to mess with people. each one has their own masks and play style reflected on their characters. the anime shows the duality of how people act versus how they actually are in real life.

[@herbertortiz9159]

Very well said!

[@valysheev]

And then sora becomes haseo crazy

[@christianmaestas4435]

This is perfect. So much of the world is the question Mimiru keeps asking: “how do you play the world?” I think that’s why the game is called “The World”. It’s meant to be a stand in for life itself. That’s why the real life segments are black and white.

[@ampeater777]

It wasn't even the beginning of isekai. Aura battler dunbine came out in 1983. The main character gets zooped into a fantasy world in like the first ten minutes and stays a recurring plot point for the entire series

[@deriongraves746]

@@ampeater777 There are quite a number of older isekai. My first exposure was "Fushigi Yugi" (1992). And if we're talking about the first sub genre of isekai, the "trapped in a game" genre, then it's predated by "Super Mario Bros.: The Great Mission to Rescue Princess Peach!" (1986). I find this review hypercritical and lacking curiosity.

[@Aeonbarr]

Ok so spider riders WASNT a weird fever dream I had back in the day?

[@evecampbell3069]

I kinda liked Spider Riders.

[@Kurosakio]

It certainly was someone's fever dream, we were just all exposed to it.

[@thenewpeterv]

I mean, it probably was that as well.

[@CD-Gaming]

I don't know how to feel about how it seemed to pass ne by...

[@NEETKitten]

@Juni Post Excuse you? It is at LEAST as good as 4Kids Pretty Cure! So... better, but not by a huge margin.

[@DolusVulpes]

The programmer's motives still make more sense than the creator of SAO.

[@remixchild]

The only problem is that it took forever to move the story along

[@remixchild]

@@DolusVulpes and the anime suffered for that

[@DolusVulpes]

@@remixchild which anime, .Hack or SAO? Because my bet is both.

[@kasaibouF29]

@@remixchild .Hack is still better written than SAO

[@lordblazer]

@@DolusVulpes yea but the games were games, so there's a lot more interactivity going on whereas the anime series draggggggeeed on for no reason.. there wre conversations in the series where they weren't even talking about anything and that ish was jus tboring they were just LARPing hardcore in game.

[@ricardogarcia7886]

I still have fond memories of this show. The thing is, it was a strange mix of escapism and psychological drama. Maybe the reason I kept waiting for the next episode is that it kept hinting over and over that there was much more going on behind the scenes, wondering about the protagonists' real life and issues. It felt a lot like the ordinary life of shut-in gamers who preferred to stay more in the game than in real life. And that was part of its charm... my life kinda sucked back then, and felt too much identified with it. Maybe it's time this show gets a proper reboot, with a better writer. The show, with its premise and characters had just too much potential that was never exploited.

[@kaydwessie296]

Exactly this. The show came out when my sister and I were getting into MMOs, and when my life was 100% escapism. Also the whole "The male character was secretly being played by a female" made me contemplate a lot of shit about gender and sexuality way before that became as common lol. (Yeah uh, that started the whole "K Discovers She's Pansexual" thing)

[@KOTYAR1]

I learned English watching it

[@auralunaprettycure]

Same character designer as Neon Genesis Evangelion and it had one of anime's best composers, Yuki Kajiura. She composed for most of .Hack actually. And her ost for .Sign is one of the most beautiful I'd ever heard so, yeah there are definitely good elements to this show

[@rjbourgeois5490]

Even the story itself had amazing potential. What fell flat was the interactions between characters and The World. You could tell the ending was rushed through which was a major disappointment. Still loved the anime though and is one of my top ten favorites of all time.

[@veronicaflores6474]

It's almost 2022 and Yuki Kajiura's score for this series still hits me like a truck.

[@Adornbeautify]

OPEN YOUR HEART!!

[@Theevil6ify]

All I remember from this show is seeing it on toonami 2-3 times, and the character named Lady Subaru. And I only remember her cuz I was a dumb little kid and thought "Wow, they named a car after her!"

[@danielramsey6141]

Subaru does have probably the most interesting story going on about herself. Since she is the leader of the Silver Knights and originally made that group because she and her friends wanted to maintain a fun and engaging atmosphere that was for every player.

[@KhayJayArt]

Lol

[@bryanm9403]

Later she would be isekaied, & genderbent into ReZero. Where the name Subaru, shall live forever.

[@BanksySCII]

@@bryanm9403 you obviously didn't watch saint seiya omega. Or that Subaru literally means stars of pleaedies

[@maadtee6281]

Lol subaru must be he great grandson

[@samuraijaco1]

I don’t know who Josh is, but he needs to watch himself.

[@JVLM07]

That's what I'm doing now since I got called out.

[@alexr6008]

No you.

[@TerLoki]

Hey now, my name may not be Josh but I have done NOTHING to warrant being called out in this manner! Edit: Especially that second time! O_O Not touching that or anything related to it with a ten foot pole!

[@Shogotetsu]

yeah i was gana say were really shitting on Josh here lol

[@DuragonLeMente]

watch myself? I just shit myself!! Q~Q

[@HackerWarrior84]

I demand that the line, "This shindig looks like the bomb diggity," be dubbed into EVERY Crispin Freeman role.

[@Xbuster6]

Dinadan - History and Myth nerd lolz

[@Mysticist]

I can totally hear Touga saying that tbh...

[@ABalloonInNeed]

Kray Foresight:

[@NEETKitten]

That seems like it'd be a good Togusa line.

[@michaelg486]

The OST alone makes this one of the greatest shows in anime history

[@Jsimms1324]

And it was wasted on this script 😢

[@ZeroFighter]

Every time I talk about .hack//SIGN with someone, they always sound disappointed that there was so much talking, and so little action. They often ask me if I even remember it with how much I enjoyed it; they ask me if I remember how much it was just people talking. Of course I do. That was what I liked about it. Yes, they talked a lot, but was what they DIDN'T say that painted the world more clearly for me. Between all of those conversations, they implied so much more. Sometimes, there would be silent glimpses into the real world, either through what was going on in that moment, or as a flashback. Some conversations talked about what the characters were doing outside of the game, and how that was effecting what was going on inside of it, or they'd talk about how Tsukasa hasn't logged out for several days, and it's starting to cause suspicions among administrators. Then, there was the issue of trying to figure out who Tsukasa was in real life, and if that real human being needed help, and figuring out WHY they played the game so much rather than get out and enjoy life. In the end, there were multiple stories; abuse, loss, disability, fear, loneliness... I loved it, even though the real video games held no interest for me.

[@ZeroFighter]

@jvalex18 K, but... I didn't like Ghost in the Shell.

[@NEETKitten]

.Hack as a series didn't get good until the Roots/G.U. era. Sorry to say, but your nostalgia skewed things a bit here. The concept of Sign was good, and that's it.

[@ZeroFighter]

@@NEETKitten Is it really nostalgia when I was never a .hack fan though? I enjoyed it a lot when SIGN was on TV, and I also enjoyed Legend of the Twilight Bracelet when it was on TV. I never touched the games, and I have no interest in ever playing them, so at the time, I only judged the anime as an anime. A friend of mine played the games, but the way they were described made them sound unappealing to me, so I never played them myself. So, if I was never really a fan of the series, is it still nostalgia skewing thing, especially since I re-watched the shows multiple times over the years on re-runs, and through online streaming, and my most recent re-watching of SIGN was 2017?

[@NEETKitten]

@@ZeroFighter In that case, you're simply reading too far into the concepts of the show without properly looking at how those concepts were conveyed. Which was, spoiler alert, very sloppily. Add in its over-reliance on the games to *properly* understand anything that's happening, and you've got a recipe for a horrible anime. I won't say that you have bad taste, because that's subjective and rude. However, you seem to value ideas over execution, in which case... I dunno. It's late, I'm tired, and I don't want to continue this conversation until I get some sleep. In the meantime, go watch Monster. It's a good show with a good story.

[@ZeroFighter]

@@NEETKitten Here's another possibility; it was the turn of the millennium, no one knew what the budding technology of the period was going to allow and evolve into, everyone was trying experimental stuff, and your idea of what makes a good story is subject to personal tastes. I liked the quiet moments. I liked the implied side stories of what was going on outside the game world. I liked seeing how the players showed through the game characters, and how they worked together and against each other to figure out the mystery of Tsukasa. I like that, so even if it wasn't executed the best way, the story was still good, and I was there for the story, not for flashy effects, actiony battles, or whatever else you might think make for a good show. I wanted a story, and I got a story. It's not nostalgia for a franchise I know little about, it was me, in that moment, enjoying the episodes as they aired on TV, and then enjoying rewatching them later with knowledge I gained over time to fill in the blanks. Maybe try NOT being so judgemental before you speak up in the future.

[@dragon1130]

Somewhere, right now, there is a guy named Josh freaking the f*ck out right now.

[@JVLM07]

Yes I was freaking out. Now I must finish watching this video.

[@slate0]

I do have a friend named Josh does that count

[@notsid3]

yes I did

[@Carryout_Donkey693]

Me!! But i don't have Facebook.

[@thepaintedginger]

Yes, yes I did

[@MuertaNox]

98% sure that our trapped character is suffering from clinical depression.

[@Rozesama]

yes this looks 100% like major depression but the rest of the series has to have something to balance it out or better writing

[@sciverzero8197]

there's a certain irony... or perhaps just an unfortunate coincidence, in the fact that sage seems deadset on pointing out how all of the characters and plot points make for a terrible story here... and... he's not wrong... but if you look at it from a human perspective... all the people deadset on solving a mystery that may not even exist, player communities springing up to self-govern the game, teenagers swinging wildly from hating each other to being obsessed with each other to being friends with each other... characters having no real energy in their interactions, preferring to just sit or stand in place while they discuss the seemingly obviously non-existent mystery item, and the fact that there actually is a mystery to solve, even though its nothing like what anyone expects... Even the fact that 20million is a considerable number of players for the show's canon... All of this mirrors how games, teenagers, the internet, internet mysteries in general, happened at the time of the setting of the show, and at the time the show was made. Have a look at the community that sprang up around solving the galaxy brain mysteries of ICO and Shadow of the Colossus... mysteries which it was... actually kind of factually proven didn't go anywhere, and were just leftover assets that weren't used in the final games. Mysteries that fed well into confirmation bias... communities that latched onto and talked for literal years and formed whole hacking subcommunities to try and break into the game's code to solve them....Some people believing it to be some kind of grand metaphor, some believing it to be a treatise on human nature or some kind of political statement buried in layers and layers of symbolism, some believing it to be part of the game's internal narrative instead... and some... not really caring what the answer is, but just wanting to see the mystery put to rest. .hack//SIGN is not a great anime... but it is a surprisingly accurate look at a specific subset of people. And also, at the time, because I was one of those people, though of the more cynical nature believing the mystery is fake and the type to simply try to weed out any evidence that is refutable... but still wanting there to be a mystery, even if I tried to squash it... I was one of these people, and this show was, to me, excellent. I realize its flaws now, but I simply wish to provide a context. To mention that in spite of how stilted and backward and poorly written as it may seem, this to me, was my life. Because life can often by stilted and meaningless and seemingly self contradictory, especially when you're a teenager, only just recently having learned to think, but still having too many hormones to actually practice that skill... something that won't even really go away until you're nearly middle aged really... I remember spending hours not-playing MMOs with my friends... whom I only knew in those MMOs. Only occasionally standing up from my favorite vista to actually play the game properly. I won't say the series is particularly great... but it was unique in what it tried to do. It was trying, and not necessarily succeeding, but trying, to be an ARG. Moreover, it was trying to be an ARG about people in an ARG, about people in a videogame. Perhaps a bad idea... but I'm glad it exists. It's still my favorite part of the franchise that spawned up around it.

[@vaevictus4637]

Bingo. This is a large part of what people don't understand about .hack//. If SAO's first season was a good look at what made late 2000s MMO communities interesting, .hack// is a series about the vast mystery, intrique, and interrelation of the internet, MMOs, and people in the 90s and early 2000s. I think the only equivalent experience people really have these days is in specific video game subreddits like /r/raidsecrets.

[@SerifSansSerif]

You have a point.... Much like lain has its accuracies.... But a lot of that is just a fairly good guess at how things were going to progress/magnify from already existing situations and such. I mean there was second life back then and the Sims. And the start of mmo's... So in all it's not a wildly out there prediction as it is, actually, a bit conservative. Still, you have a point.

[@Brickfrog427]

"We've reached peak Isekai saturation" THIS ISN'T EVEN IT'S FINAL FORM

[@Falcovsleon21]

Okay then what is?

[@NEETKitten]

@@Falcovsleon21 Isekai Quartet with Shield Hero DLC.

[@Falcovsleon21]

NEET Kitten Ha. Not even close.

[@TOSkwar22]

Isekai Super Sixteen 120%, which comes after four seasons of Isekai Quartet (each season being four separate Isekai being grouped together (I'm assuming, I have no idea what Isekai Quartet actually is)). It groups together all four seasons of Isekai Quartet into one scenario where ALL the characters wake up in another OTHER game world and all of them have to go through the entire standard Isekai plot but there's 16 different groups of characters going through all of it at the same time, in the same place, and constantly shouting over each other to get every plot point in before the end of the standard-length special episode.

[@b3rz3rk3r9]

@@TOSkwar22 Isekai Quartet, as much as I don't want to ruin this joke, is a high-school parody anime consisting of the casts of four isekai series as its main cast: Overlord, Tanya the Evil, Re:ZERO, and Konosuba.

[@Raktus]

I found the anime discs that came with the games, telling the story of the people in the real world instead of the the people in the game, to be far more enjoyable.

[@l.gcallahan2840]

I agree. But I think that was because they weren't done by Bee2 (correct me if I'm wrong).

[@Surithephage]

That's because they actually did things. They mirrored what was happening in the real world while you were playing the game.

[@GhostPlanetFilms]

That is Liminality, and I liked it too!

[@trapsrus5611]

They realised the first 3 games 1 after another all within the same year in 2002. I agree the action kinda sucks when compared to the newer version .hack//gu but it definitely has its qualities also. I feel like they just didnt put the proper time into the game and rushed them all at once. The storyline to it all is what's really good. All the movies/shows/games all connected which I thought was a really cool concept. I remember in the first set of games if youngo to the cathedral after certain events you could see cut scenes from the anime that also mix in with what's going on in the game. There are hidden messages in these games hidden unlockable characters that can join you in the game, hidden weapons and hidden area 2. Dont get me started on .hack//gu with its book of 1000, and all of its secrets. You can find a message on the message bord after doing certain events and you can see where bear and mimiru are talking to each other. I thought these little extra where very cool for a game of its age.

[@wannabehistorian371]

It’s kind of bad when the IRL stuff is more interesting than the game world.

[@tonygriego6382]

I miss the old KMFDM intro.

[@doodlebugfour7070]

"Hope is the best spice to bring out Despair" -Morganna Mode Gone

[@michaelbootes4822]

but maybe the meal was too spicy

[@LockCard]

Thats my favourit line.

[@chazzwozzio]

thats some Danganronpa stuff

[@XX-sp3tt]

"An ambiguous answer, with an ambiguous attitude. Hovering somewhere between yes, and, no. I detest that uncertainty makes humans so, human."

[@ssbbrandon1654]

"The Shinji Era" not a positive description, but I love that term

[@TheRezro]

It wasn't bad era as there is few good anime what try to be meaningful instead pedo, but still. Shinji is simply bad as character.

[@a.m.bosworth]

"Try to be meaningful instead of pedo" 😂😂😂 Well said.

[@maadtee6281]

@@TheRezro you are right shinji is a badass character even sakura loves him so much he rather kill him then have anyone have him

[@HeilRay]

@@TheRezro Emphasis on FEW

[@21powah]

Geez, I never thought I'd live in a world where... *anybody* references Spider Riders of all things.

[@Falcovsleon21]

Hey that show’s great for a laugh. Much like the dub for Tekkaman.

[@patrickpol6156]

I know, right?

[@nono9543]

LET'S RIDE RIDE!

[@liizzset]

Loved that theme song. The show was alright. I guess.

[@maadtee6281]

Hey compared to current isekai it is number 1 10 stars

[@LimakPan]

Am I the only one who expected SIGN to be an introspective psychological show from the synopsis alone? The protagonist has to deal with a lot and they have a very passive personality lending to them thinking the issue more than trying to deny it like a shonen stereotype. Admittedly the show is not good at what it does, but I wholly agree with their intentions.

[@gansmith]

That is one part of the problem the series has. It has the look and setting of an adventure story, but then immediately smacks you in the head hard with a character story about escapism. If one watches the series with adjusted expectations and mostly ignoring its inconsequential plot then one can find an entertaining character study anime with amazing music.

[@kaydwessie296]

I LIKED that it was a character study. All the Isekai now are boring. I don't care if this one didn't do it right, the other ones aren't even doing it.

[@kidprime6863]

@@gansmith What's the point of running around with with weapons if you're not going to use them?

[@vashcrimson4395]

all the problems i hear people have with this show sound more like personal issues. attention span problems mostly.

[@rjbourgeois5490]

@@vashcrimson4395 It's.. more to do with the world building, specifically character interactions with The World. There wasn't enough development into the game itself that got you invested into the full story, as oppose to being invested into just the Characters. It's still a good anime, one of my favorites in fact, but somewhere along the way it dropped the ball on the potential it actually had. The ending itself felt rushed.

[@Ferelheart]

I believe the first legit "Iseki" anime was aura battler dunbine, way back in 1983. if this was mentioned in the video that i am in the middle of listening to, well, that's on me.

[@ligtningdog6399]

@Al X. Andra To be franks, the isekai genre is almost as old as literature itself. Stories like Alice in Wonderland and Wizard of Oz are great examples. But as far as anime/manga, it started around the 70's, usually with a fantasy character comes to the real world.

[@shouta1255]

Isekai as a concept is pretty old. When most folks talk about isekai in anime though, it's a very specific trend from the last decade or so with specific tropes related to it as well, typically

[@ToHoldNothing]

@@shouta1255 And it doesn't apply to DanMachi, as much as he used the term to apply to it, as I recall in that review

[@TheRezro]

Generally problem with Isakai isn't that it is bad, but problem is that it is so lazy trope that it was banned on several manga competitions. After all you take generic Japanese student, thrown him in world where is everything new with few Moe loli and you can pretend that you have plot, as you always find some lazy "fish out the water" scenario anyway. What obviously doesn't mean that at least some shows (usually older) did have good ideas for the plot. Hell! There is even good MMO anime (well, Chinese counterpart) like The Kings Avatar, what is really about players and pro-gaming industry, so blandness of genre itself doesn't distract from references for the fans (what in this case also are real and not "oh, no! I have hit points").

[@ToHoldNothing]

@@TheRezro It's like any genre where the variations can only go so far and it becomes much more difficult to spin it in a new way, considering the medium as we know it is still only 60~ years old, roughly. You have something like Seraph of the End which has vampires, but then adds more elements like demons and angels (I mean, it's in the title, basically), so it keeps things fresh (not sure when that's going to end, it's monthly)

[@Tsukikorao]

I find it interesting how, on one hand, I agree completely with everything you've said about SIGN. But on the other hand, I still ABSOLUTELY ADORE .hack and now I kinda wanna rewatch SIGN and play the 7 PS2 games.

[@kaydwessie296]

IKR? Despite it all, how can people hate it so much?

[@megasonichellstriker2567]

I'm happy to read this.

[@KOTYAR1]

8:15 "This is Kazunori Ito script. And the man is as eclectic as a mariachi death metal band" This is amazing, this is unbelievable.

[@geardog24]

"This shindig looks like the bomb diggity." ...bruh🤨

[@yserareborn]

Oh that line is great. Long story short the character was supposed to sound like a dork and the actor had the perfect ad libbed moment.

[@EnvyMizuhashi]

Why hello again.

[@theblocksays]

With your avatar I just picture Iggy turning his head slowly at who said that with the "menacing" character floating about him LOL!

[@HuntertheWraithDragon]

Damn that didn't age well 😅😅😅

[@doodlebugfour7070]

Ah Monster Rancher, makes me miss Ocean Group dubs despite some of their earlier works not holding up well.

[@ty_teynium]

Used to catch it on Sunday mornings around 10am on ( I think ) Abc family.

[@Bilbo490]

Used to be called FOX Family when I grew up.

[@eamonndeane587]

Personally my favourite Ocean Dub has to be the one for Oban Star Racers. Chiara Zanni and Ron Halder were SO Great in that Dub.

[@doodlebugfour7070]

Eamonn Deane Yeah that one was great. Also a fan of their dub for Project ARMS, where they managed to make a low budget and flawed adaptation of its source material worth the fun watch with all the funny Adlibs they sneak in.

[@ty_teynium]

@@Bilbo490 Yes! That was it! My bad!

[@SuiteLifeofDioBrando]

I really liked .hack/sign despite lacking the action scenes I expected for a game anime.

[@oreox1000]

Suite Life of Dio Brando I enjoyed it.

[@Jazzeki]

i remeber being both disapointed because i never got the action i wanted from the series and also kind of enjoying it and being an important part of changing my outlook on what made for an enjoyable story. i defiently don't regret watching the series but i do see where calling it not good comes from. whatever it is isn't good. doesn't mean it's bad.

[@patrickcoyle5469]

Going into this without expectations is definitely a plus - I just randomly started watching this when it first aired, and it became one of my favorite series purely as a character study. Aside from the weirdness around Tsukasa being stuck in it, the game's just there as a way to reveal the players' personalities.

[@chocodoeeyes]

I remember liking it but I was 8-9 when it aired so I didn’t understand half of what was going on lol

[@CroseBuhrn]

It's got a ton to like and think about, I feel it was just mismarketed at the Toonami crowd when it's really not an action series

[@tassadarc8069]

That KZbin content ID gag was solid gold.

[@perfectlynormaldave]

Oh my god yes please Monster rancher please yes!

[@HuntertheWraithDragon]

MONSTER RULE!!

[@stizanley3987]

When you played that sound bite from the op I got chills. It's been like a decade since i heard that. Great video

[@kaydwessie296]

Best song

[@GDark08]

Probably doesn't also help that the "actual plot" that the series is bereft of occurs in the .Hack games themselves.

[@doodlebugfour7070]

I will say that Brianne Siddall does a great job as Tsukasa. She knows how to scream in agonizing pain when those scenes happened.

[@CornishCreamtea07]

Hearing this makes me wish she had been Shinji in the new NGE dub.

[@doodlebugfour7070]

@@CornishCreamtea07 Sadly she moved on from Voice Acting, not to mention her accident a few years back. But yeah Brianne could have made a great Shinji Ikari.

[@Qwertyuiop-lg7ko]

I was sure that Magic Knight Rayearth was several years before this, and it was a clasic isekai

[@KOTYAR0]

Honestly, though, seeing Sage being fit and tough enough to freaking cosplay Bear reminded me with how much hope it filled me seeing Sage fit If Sage can optimise and healthen his body, - I can fix my body

[@mesousagaby740]

This shindig was NOT the bomb-diggety.

[@PhoenixFireZero]

That line made me feel like Satan wiped his ass with my brain.

[@HuntertheWraithDragon]

@@PhoenixFireZero 🤣🤣🤣

[@AstraFulminous]

As for Aura the idea is that her mind is being created from the experiences of the people in the game. however by selecting someone who has nothing but negative experiences and making them the main template that Aura would use to develop herself Morganna was effectively damaging Aura in the womb, which not only stall Aura's Birth but possible corrupt her code in a way that would prevent her from taking Morganna's Place. At least that's ome of the easier ways I can explain it.

[@AmariieMaerthos]

One of my favorite bits of .Hack//SIGN is when BT explains why she chose that as her character name.

[@ShadowWolfRising]

What's hilarious is Sora, the Trash Goblin, is Haseo in G.U. AKA the Protagonist.

[@BanksySCII]

I mean I guess it's hilarious if you just now figured it out. Literally like half the main characters in g.u are from the first 4 games, elk , Wiseman, etc

[@anggakarapreviandana2877]

The Trash Goblin who got his memory erased by Skeith.

[@crowenocturnal6560]

I’m sorry what?

[@ShadowWolfRising]

@@crowenocturnal6560 Sora, that asshole who killed B.T. earlier in the show. That's Haseo.

[@crowenocturnal6560]

@@ShadowWolfRising yeah I just did a complete deep dive into dot hack again I never knew that in all my time playing dot hack and watching the show that they were the same person that fucking crazy; dot hack is seriously so underrated now a days it’s unfortunate the story is split up so much with the games. I hope we can get a Remake or a Anime of the original series

[@geoleo965]

And let's not forget its spectacular soundtrack! Gotta love that final scene of the last episode, as the pinnacle of the series to wrap everything up... Just before trollishly being literally *frozen & denied to us* by the same franchise, while basically telling us: *_"You want happy ending? You buy games!"_*

[@Gundamortal]

Title: .Hack//SIGN: The Origins of Isekai Escaflowne: am i a joke to you

[@ampeater777]

Escaflowne: I'm actually the origin of isekai Aura battler dunbine: am I a joke to you?

[@Gundamortal]

@@ampeater777 😲 I didn't know that was an isekai 🧐

[@ampeater777]

@@Gundamortal yeah the main character gets zooped into a high fantasy medieval world with insectoid giant robots. Isekai is a recurring plot point through the entire series. It was also created by Yoshiyuki Tomino

[@Borvoc]

2:14 I like how the very first clip you show after mentioning Ghost in the Shell is a clip of Helba, who is voiced by the same voice actress who voiced Motoko Kusanagi in Innocence and the Stand Alone Complex anime.

[@Alargator]

I haven't watched any of your stuff in... a decade, it seems like. Someone linked this video a while ago and I jumped to watch it since I was a fan of .hack//SIGN back in the day, and still love the music and the artwork of the different zones and environments in The World. I gotta say, I'm not disappointed!

[@Sewblon]

15:00 What you showed us wasn't whining. You showed the character being completely content with his situation, which is kind of the opposite.

[@PsychoGamer2100]

When I first saw SAO my first thought was "did this anime really just copy the HACK series and hope no one called them out on it?"

[@remixchild]

Copying this… …… NAH!! NOT EVEN CLOSE!!!

[@Nekotamer]

I agree, the music is the best part of this series.

[@rook1196]

It always felt like an old school RPG where the music brought out the emotion. still one of the greatest anime soundtracks.

[@RothurThePaladin]

I always wanted to rewrite this series because he helped keep me in anime at the time and I thought it deserved better. Good review.

[@kaydwessie296]

This needs doing. If you ever seriously did it, hit us up. My sister watched it like 80 times and can probably draw stuff for it lol.

[@Magitek1112]

..does Garzey's Wing (and by extension, Dunbine) count as isekai?

[@danielramsey6141]

Yes, so does Stuff like Warriors of Virtue, Neverending Story, Alice in Wonderland, Wizard of Oz, and Masters of the Universe (the movie).

[@michealcummings9469]

@@danielramsey6141 To me that El Hazard is the origin of Isekai and better than some of the trash that is on right now

[@Dark_Tale_2077]

If the Chronicles of Narnia count, why not?

[@JustSumGuy01]

Everything is an isekai if you look hard enough

[@TommyDeonauthsArchives]

I actually loved the theme music to this .hack//Sign. I even danced to it at one point when YTV aired it late night Friday. Good times.

[@TheKnizzine]

Fun fact twinblade troll that hangs out with BT is 9 years old and grows up to be the main character of GU

[@analogbrayn]

Wait, seriously?? Sora's player is Haseo?

[@AstralPhnx]

@@analogbrayn APPARENTLY

[@goldentiramisu7935]

@@analogbrayn exactly explains why skeith screamed "i've found you" at haseo and how white haseo on later half of volume 3 behave a lot like sora. sorry not sorry for necro

[@BlackHeart1216]

I absolutely love pretty much all things .hack//, i recognize the flaws but i still love them and go back and play them every now and then.

[@thesacredlobo]

Yeah, the problems with the original four games are hard to ignore. Though, I suppose they only become more pronounced when your trying to do a Let's Play for them.

[@AstralPhnx]

@@thesacredlobo That original trilogy really do make it obvious that they're early PS2 games with THAT JANK

[@Thehotdogman]

Appreciate the monster rancher call out. I loved that show and for the longest time I didn't even know there was a third season. When I found it I was super stoked.

[@RabblesTheBinx]

I'm glad he mentioned it, I'm annoyed that he didn't mention other influential isekai anime from before .hack and acted like Monster Rancher was the only one, especially since he's reviewed _several_ isekai anime that predate both.

[@arcanearts9656]

But do buy the soundtrack-It's amazing and a critical reason Yuki Kaijura became the Anime Music Goddess she is today.

[@kashandi2]

Difficult to do but I agree. At worst the show is a platform for amazing music. I was sad that I couldn't find a copy in Tokyo and had to pay inflated rate on Amazon for it.

[@yserareborn]

Well, AnnXSubaru was one of the first lesbian relationships that I’ve been exposed to... which did help me in discovering myself. So I can’t hate this show.

[@analogbrayn]

I agree, that was one of my favorite things about the ending. The fact that when Subaru discovered Tsukasa was actually a girl, she didn't care. She loved Tsukasa, and that was all that mattered. It made me smile, and I can't ever say that this show is bad.

[@AstralPhnx]

Hell yes lets go lesbians

[@DatBoiOrly]

Whyyy do you make me remember!!! As my search for how isekai became over saturated I started with this since it's one of the first ones this video brings back my repressed memories...

[@supsup335]

Has One of THE best Intro Songs EVER though!!!! (yes, I've watched the video, but truth bears repeaing). Actually, the ost overall is pretty good. Also, for some reason, 5 years ago when i discovered anime, i watched it like 10 times on youtube. The dub. Those were the good old days.Also, i kinda like Wild Arms. And Metabots. For whatever reason.

[@Rozesama]

Metabots was the shit

[@gamesmaster0459]

I use to love the dot hack series honestly. Yes it centered more around conversations and relationships more than action but I considered that part of it's charm. Largely it was about getting Tsukasa to realize that despite its hardships that life was still worth living.All the others had various problems going on in their real lives that you slowly piece together and some learn how to resolve. No chance of you doing one on dot hack roots is there Bennett?

[@LockCard]

Ya, that is the reason I liked it The dialog and VA was just on point, It a slow burn drama/soap opera. But good. XD

[@HedgieDaUmbrehog]

Not gonna lie. The mangas of .hack I find FAR superior to the anime. And the games they crossover into to this day? Amazing. The anime may be a fail as we see it today, but all it left and made? Worth it

[@kimarous]

It really says something about a series when the most I remember about it is a character going by username "BT" going on a long-winded tangent about how much she hates lettuce, thus her name (BLT minus L), and then other characters going on another discussion about this same "reveal."

[@ToHoldNothing]

Then there's A-20, who shows up in the damn game, unlike most the SIGN characters

[@kaydwessie296]

I only remember this bc there's a DJ called BT who I also listen to, and that reminds me of her lmao

[@ImmaLittlePip]

I just started rewatchin all the .hack series What timing

[@Thalanox]

You're everywhere...

[@Rayuzx]

Man, I was just on stuff about the series today. Are you reading my mind? Also, to be fair with Asura's Wrath, the game was supposed to lead into a full blown sequel, but it underperformed, so CC2 was just given the budget to make the DLC end the story instead.

[@DelRio1991]

I was really confused by that "if you know, you know" line. What did he mean by that? what was it supposed to be a sequel to?

[@sumguy0110]

@@DelRio1991 Asura's Wrath was a game that came out last console generation. The true ending of the game was a cliffhanger, and you had to buy a dlc ending to see it resolved. Shame too, since the dlc ending was actually good, but, you know, it was dlc

[@seb24789]

The game basically stopped 20 minutes before the final boss and asked for more money.

[@davidsymonds7090]

"What makes An special?" An/Tsukasa is an introvert who doesn't want to leave, doesn't want to engage, doesn't want to 'wake up'. By linking her and Aura, Morganna ensured that the 'conditions' for Aura's awakening wouldn't be met. This wouldn't have worked so well with any of the other characters, except possibly B.T. Which is why - as stated early in the video - this is Tsukasa's arc. Honestly it reminds me a lot of coming out a depressive episode. The whole thing is basically about running away from your problems - which every character is doing in some way. Tsukasa fleeing his life (her life?), Subaru fleeing her disablility, Bear fleeing his regrets, etc. Yep, the anime is deeply flawed, but sometimes this video gets a bit carried away.

[@julvatn]

I loves //sign, still rewatch it every few years

[@BioGoji-zm5ph]

This anime still has one of THE BEST openings ever made. Period.

[@oreox1000]

It would be nice to get a remastered version of those games. 🤔 Just saying.

[@gansmith]

It would be ok, but it will need to cut a HUGE portion of the grind in order to be playable. We got 4 games from a plot that it was meant for 1 due to the endless grind.

[@EclipsisTenebris]

I would settle for a collection, honestly.

[@Ojunix]

If they did something like they did with .Hack//GU Last Recode & give a Cheat Mode option where you can play all the way through with best stats & gear & all the enemies being pretty easy so you can just enjoy the story I think be the best bet.

[@thesacredlobo]

​@@gansmith - I agree. The sheer amount of busy work in the games was originally meant to help keep people's interest between waiting for releases. Which means any sort of remaster would need to trim down the useless fat in order to streamline the story. Though, I'm not particularly interested in a remastering of the games at the moment. After all, I still have a working PS2 and copies of all seven PS2 games.

[@JustSumGuy01]

The sorta did it for GU and it's very playable

[@thefanwithoutaface8105]

5:11 oh man I loved that show as a kid, still holds up decently today surprisingly.

[@gansmith]

I don't blame Bennet for not liking the series. It's one HELL of an acquired taste. .Hack//Sign was more a show about themes of escapism than an actual adventure. No denying that its very slow for its own good, but I still stand that its use of themes of anti-social behavior and escapism are top notch. It can still be a fun watch, but ironically, not suited for fans of modern isekai AT ALL. I think .Hack//Sign can now be looked as the flawed prototype of what Log Horizon eventually managed to become as the current cornerstone of quality slow-paced isekai.

[@morganmcinroy4211]

I agree. He has points about the animation being cheap and the writing being slow as hell, but I love the themes and the story. I love it but other people I've shown it to hate it. Super acquired taste.

[@FrostyShock349]

@@morganmcinroy4211 I love it because of it's slow as hell, I have these depressive spells that fell like time is at a stand still for me, .hack//sign just fills your time and quiet moments

[@Lightspeeds]

That's what I really want from Capcom in the future: a remastered port of Asura's Wrath.

[@natebush8217]

Bahahahaha! You had me busting my gut with the "Clerks Korean Animation" reference. XD

[@svartfrasr9755]

To be honest, I didn't really think about the pacing of the anime when I watched it back in the day. I was young and I guess I just found myself way too sucked into the mystery of what was going on with Tsukasa. I remember a lot of Runescape being played to this show. xD

[@kaydwessie296]

Same, but Maplestory!

[@5Geass]

3 years late with this reply but I remember being in elementary school when .hack//sign was airing. I'd stay up until 11 waiting excitedly for it to start. It was the only anime I was willing to stay up 'so late' for. Tsukasa was and still is definitely a favorite character to this day. I never got bored watching it, if I remember correctly, because I was sympathizing with Tsukasa and Subaru so much. Hearing about each character and learning a bit of their backstories kept me interested.

[@Robersora]

The thing I love most about .hack//SIGN is something I haven't seen in anime for a long time: amazing sound design. All the noises coalesce in a mood that just comforts me. Might be nostalgia speaking, but the thicc atmosphere is just premium.

[@RIlianP]

My first isekai was the El Hazard series, I wish the sage to cover them some at some time.

[@JLeeVek]

I missed El Hazard but the first Isekai I recall was Escaflowne. It was so hard to find anime (or as we called it JapAnimation) back in the before time.

[@wdcain1]

I still own the DVDs for the first two series (never saw the third). I remember being lucky finding them at a cheap price since the first series was one of those rare series where the DVDs cost like $50 apiece.

[@Nanook128]

"Watch only for it's historical significance" And its amazing sound track.

[@connormcintosh4828]

Miss Kajiura knocked it out of the park

[@danielramsey6141]

For people that are interested in knowing more about the Mix Media History of .Hack// series that gives much more detail and insight into it's Esoteric nature. Look up Deshinta of Shinta Reviews who has been Waist deep in this series and has SO MUCH insight into this.

[@ToHoldNothing]

As someone who admittedly only has watched lets plays of Quadrilogy and GU, as well as watched Liminality, SIGN and Roots, the whole series is a mishmash that requires you to really constantly re-engage with everything to have an understanding of the chronology, the lore and general importance of anything, most of it connecting to a damn epic poem, iirc.

[@EnvyMizuhashi]

"If ya get it, ya get it." Indeed, I do. But what happened then was less CC2 and more Crapcom.

[@graceangel20]

I love this anime! I haven't watched it for a while, but I've always loved the .hack//series in general! sign, roots, the games, luminality and all the graphic novels are all connected in a single timeline. Also, there's a plot twist about Tsukasa towards the end. My favs were Mimiru and Bear.

[@kidprime6863]

Don't forget Legend of Twilight

[@jsae4331]

Holy shit I thought I was imagining it but you edit these videos to be in time with ads so dialogue isn’t cut. That’s downright impressive

[@tenkiforecast]

I remember .Hack//SIGN airing on Toonami. I tried watching it. I was just...trying to figure out what the heck was going on and I was bored out of my mind. I bailed after two episodes. Escaflowne was the first Isekai I watched, and I enjoyed the heck out of it...until the end when you can tell the staff was really rushed to finish the series.

[@Kenshiro3rd]

tenki forecast lol no it wasn't. It's a sendoff to Aura Battler Dunbine, the first true/proper Isekai anime.

[@austinblack7991]

My library had the first volume of this on dvd and I saw it and I watched the rest of the series

[@joseurbina3835]

TheAnimeSnob: .Hack/SIGN is the perfect Anime. BennettTheSage: I’m about to *END* this man’s whole entire Career.

[@Falcovsleon21]

Glad to see someone other than me knows that idiot is blinded by his own nostalgia.

[@joseurbina3835]

Falcovsleon21 Worst, Him being a *”Snob”* is what makes him so blind that it makes him a complete asshole, he may not be a bad person (Although he just loves to miss with Chibi time to time but IDGAF about it), but he’s a *”Piece of Shit”* of an anime reviewer.

[@かじをとれ]

@@joseurbina3835 Snob was supposed to cover retro stuff(like this channel). But nahhh, let mess with the anime community. I admit, there some video where he make some great point.

[@TakaCode]

Never trust anime elitists/hipsters

[@IamTealeaf]

@@TakaCode bennet is an elitist lol

[@Sentay0]

.hack//sign's style, that early 2000's Playstation 2 aesthetic , is soooooooooo good. I just wish that the actual game was just as good

[@thesacredlobo]

Thankfully they did address some of the issues found in the original four games when they made three tie in games for .hack//GU.

[@werst9]

I came here just to hear him talk about the music

[@megadeathx]

Absolutely beautiful music.

[@ConvincingPeople]

If the music rings a bell and you're not sure why, the composer here is Yuki Kajiura, who later soundtracked Madoka Magica. (Which Sage should talk about at some point, but I digress.)

[@ShadowWolfRising]

"This Shindig is the bomb-diggity." Is that real? If that's real..............HOW!?

[@LupineShadowOmega]

@BurnMaster Three6Delta my assumption is that Crispin Freeman is a heartless monster and we should all love him for it...

[@kaydwessie296]

The early 2000s were a lawless wasteland. Go look up any of your fav celebrities during then. They all had frosted tipped hair that didn't suit them.

[@HuntertheWraithDragon]

@@kaydwessie296 I'm dead bruh 🤣🤣🤣

[@aidanklobuchar1798]

You know, with that beautiful Yuki Kajura soundtrack and the super listless voice acting, this seems like the PERFECT piece of background media to fall asleep to.

[@hunnykun101]

I did enjoy .Hack//SIGN when it out during my highshcool days, I think I like how the characters did talk like normal people despite that yes it is a game they should be doing something, but yea beside some moments its blah. And I love the music, how mystic and haunting tones. Honestly I rather watch SIGN again then Sword Art Online.

[@Vacxy]

I think the show slows down in the scenes that happen in the virtual world to represent that despair that Tsukasa has to go through, who is stuck in it all the time. And I think I remember that the Crimson Knight, their reason was a little stronger: the knights defeated by the Guardian remained in a coma, and the knights were "HOLY MOLY, our friends are suddenly in Comma after met Tsukasa, we need to investigate! ! " But I agree the series was stretched too much, easily this could have been done in 15 chapters.

[@number0017]

I thought the first isekai game was Tron (1982) lol.

[@LordSathar]

Ultima has it beat by a year.

[@GachakoiThomas]

@@LordSathar I think he means isekai(in the modern trend), not MMO game. Ultima is pretty great, love the story about the game creator's character being assassinated with a fireball scroll.

[@SinaelDOverom]

​@@GachakoiThomas Isekai as in "MC gets thrown into another world against their will (often by dying in their world)" trope existed for a LONG while. It gained popularity in pulp fantasy in the 80's, which you'd often find in paperback novels with covers that avoid copyright from TSR by mere miracle. TRON and Ultima's plot isnt even original - they were just following the contemporary fantasy trends. In fact it PEAKED in literature near the end of the 90's, before Light Novels (and then manga/anime) picked it up and ran with it. Even if you count anime only, then there are quite a few Isekai examples before Hack - like El-Hazard, Fushigi Yuugi and Escaflowne (Inu-Yasha doesent count since MC gains ability to return and go back and forth rather quickly, so she's often not really locked into the world).

[@ivorymantis1026]

"Shinji Era" Excellent. The best insult is calling someone's favorite character a "Shinji."

[@hyphont]

Best part of .hack has always been its soundtrack. I still listen to it to this day.

[@yamikazenokiba5377]

Monster Ranger! Nice! Being from Europe this Series was one of my mystery ones. I remember little snippets of the show and an opening song but the title was lost in the depth of my childhood until I found it by accident again in my later teen years when I was going through MyAnimeLists; Anime by release date. So I have a vivid confusion connected to it^^ I did like it though! I mean, it had a blue horned battle wolf named Tiger! Who needs more XDD

[@minxcey]

This has so much navil gazing

[@kaydwessie296]

Oh man someone's finally gonna talk about my childhood without just one throwaway line that hates it. Time to feel pain.

[@seanoraw7192]

I either laughed too much or not enough at the KZbin ContentID SWAT team. 10:18

[@KingSalaman]

I recently discovered your channel, ive seen older content of yours and this is the first video ive seen thats recent. Such a difference bro! Great job

[@UltimateCarl]

This makes me feel validated. I remember even at the time thinking SIGN was about as interesting as drying paint and was just a gigantic ball of wasted potential, but it seems like all of my similarly-aged friends and other people I talk to that remember the show always do so rather fondly, though they can't ever seem to tell me anything they actually *liked* about it. I never played the games, but from what I can tell things actually *happen* in those so they're probably pretty good!

[@kaydwessie296]

I can tell you what I liked about it. It came out when I was just getting into MMOs, and it made me think I could someday have really cool internet friends.

[@megadeathx]

@@kaydwessie296 I made me think I could have friends. Oh how the internet is nothing like what we thought it would be.

[@Morgil27]

I remember watching this on Toonami back in high school and friggin loved it. I never watched any of the other .hack shows or played any of the games, but I loved this show. Its soundtrack was actually one of the first albums I downloaded off of the early version of the internet back then.

[@aliciac4772]

This was honestly one of the worst reviews I've seen. Many (if not nearly all) of the negative points that you made were either incorrect with regards to the actual plot or very shortsighted. Tsukasa's character was a perfect target for Morganna to choose as Aura's key. Tsukasa hated the real world, due to the abuse and loneliness she constantly lived through. We see this in the various real world flashbacks (which you were incorrect that she didn't remember...) Likewise she didn't open up to anyone because of it, she didn't want to be hurt again by others. The song "the world" literally sings why Tsukasa is the way that they are, which usually plays in key moments revolving Tsukasa. "Well what about all the other players who fit the bill as Tsukasa" Your argument about it devaluing Tsukasa's character is very weak. Yes it could have been any other player that was in the same mindset as Tsukasa. For all we know Morganna may have targeted those players too. But it was Tsukasa that it ended up happening to. It doesn't devalue her character at all just because it happened to her. As for what Morganna's goal was, she didn't want her purpose to come to a conclusion with Aura eventually being born/awoken. She was a sentient AI. It's why she purposely tricked Tsukasa and tied them to Aura. By having Tsukasa be swallowed in their negative emotions Aura would be corrupted, never awakening and Morganna would continue on. "Hope is the best spice to bring out despair" is her key quote indicating her intentions for Tsukasa. Regarding why would people care to try and help Tsukasa when they're playing a video game... Why does anyone try to help another? It's one of the key points of this story. What are the connections that bring individuals together, especially in a virtual setting through a video game of all things? Because you brought up Mimiru in your review, let's discuss her reasoning. She didn't want to just end the connection she had to Tsukasa. There's quite literally an episode and a half (that you just so happen to ignore and skip over) that goes over her reason why. She knew Tsukasa was someone that needed help and wanted to support them. She cares about them. As for the monsters/danger the other characters that help Tsukasa face... We literally see a character get data drained by the Guardian and we are told that they ended up going unconscious in the real world. Tsukasa quite literally ended up in a coma (and was in danger of dying because of her real life circumstances) in the real world from what Morganna did to them. And while the story is unfolding they all have no true idea how to awaken in the real world. They could all end up in a coma as well, or possibly even worse for all they know. Which leads to your point that they killed an "unkillable" monster. Yes they were able to defeat the Guardian commanded by Morganna but you also fail to note that they are just player characters within the game (though you seemed to love bringing it up when it fit your argument). They have set limitations within the game like HP, SP and items. Eventually they can run out (besides Tsukasa and Helba most likely) of resources and at that point what will they do? Just hope it hits 0s on them while they whack at it with their weapons enough times to kill it? When Morganna has the ability to keep summoning more monsters such as Skeith? Lastly, at no point is this show telling you it's based on action. Yes there are "some" action scenes where we see fighting but this is a psychological show. It's focus is on the characters from the get go, with the action playing part to fill the "online MMORPG" concept at the points it needs to convey that it is a video game (and even drive home the point that something is very wrong if Tsukasa is telling the truth that they feel pain when attacked.) You're complaining there are weapons in the show when they don't do anything (cause they're not there for fighting) and would likely complain if there weren't because "why wouldn't there be weapons for characters to use in a video game" if it tried to blatantly tell you it wasn't about action by not including them. There are many other flaws in your review but those are the most annoying and incorrect ones to be blunt. The one credit I'll agree with is it ended more poorly. Yes it did tie into the original first four games (infection, Mutation, Outbreak and Quarantine - IMOQ for short) but even I remember being very confused as a kid watching it on Toonami thinking it just looped back to the beginning. It wasn't until the OVA Unison came that clearly wrapped it up that they did defeat Morganna and saved "the world." But I'd give some leeway with how it tied into another media platform and continuing story.

[@LockCard]

There was en error in the ending of your review, the cameos characters where in the novel AI Buster, that takes place before .hack//sign

[@johnoneil9188]

I actually really enjoyed playing Asura´s Wrath. Sure, it is by no means a perfect game but it still does some awesome stuff and is a good pick if you just want over the top anime fights.

[@Greil9]

I think Sage was referring to the fact that the game sold the games ending as DLC.

[@SnowFiresinger]

Thank you for not disappointing, sage. Great review, man.