The Big O Ending Explained (and why I Love it!!!) Fixed Audio!!!
ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 15 ต.ค. 2022
- Welp, time for the first remake of the first video of the first series I'm working on. Here I will explain the oft-maligned ending of Sunrise's (Bandai Namco Filmworks)1999 piece Big O, and why its actually good! (Yes good). Now with competent editing! And of course.....
All properties shown here belong to their respective owners. "Big O" is property of Bandai Namco Filmworks (Sunrise) and was created by designer Keiichi Sato and director Kazuyoshi Katayama
And.....
Copyright Disclaimer under section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for “fair use” for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, education and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. - ภาพยนตร์และแอนิเมชัน
I wish they would have explained the glow down from Roger Smith from Big O to what he became in American Dad.
I think that is one of the most confusing parts of the Big O for me. Was Roger's new form a punishment for questioning the system too much, did his reach surpass his grasp? Or was it a voluntary trade, trading his face away for the ability to (temporarily) assume countless other faces? To this day I still wonder why the American Dad Arcs look so different and why Roger is no longer the main character. Maybe they changed studios?
When you put it all this way, The Big O is a story created by Angel where the characters have gained a degree of self-awareness (like the Bigs themselves). Nobody remembers the events 40 years prior because nothing existed before 40 years ago, that is when the story began. Maybe through a fluke of writing, she accidentally created Roger to be a character that completely changes her worldview and lets her come to terms with whatever trauma she has been through.
What an excellent summation! I wish I could have been as concise
Big O has the best art direction of any 90s anime in my opinion. I love its retro aesthetic and art style that has clear western influences that makes it look like a high quality American cartoon at times. The ending is incredibly surreal and mind trippy, but it fits the series so well.
Big O's art direction is certainly one of its stand out features and its part of why I fell in love with it. Its timeless elegance helps envelop us in a world which seems almost real. On the topic of a high quality American cartoon look, I do know that the Big O's style was partially inspired by Batman and I believe that some of episodes of Batman the Animated Series were outsourced to Sunrise so it is possible certain animators could have worked on both.
@@obscureanimememories6697 I always suspected a Batman/Big O connection. Were the Big O frames drawn on dark paper like Batman's?
I don't know for sure but considering the studio and style connections, I wouldn't be surprised.
@@obscureanimememories6697 yes The Big O was most definitely inspired by Batman!
We can safely say that anything physically drawn out will come out as a master piece to the viewers... We feel it's soul
One interpretation I have come to and that fits the narrative presented throughout the show is that the four Bigs actually worked together to build the giant dome in which the story takes place. Their goal was to recreate (or clone) their original dominus, who have died during the catastrophic war that has taken place in the recent past.
But why would the Big's do this and how? The show gives many hints that the Big's are able to act on their own, as long as they are fulfilling the will of their masters. They also need constant maintenance in order to not grow spoiled. Furthermore, it seems plausable that they need the dominus in order to justify their own existence.
Thus, the show is an interaction between some shaddy agreement between the four Big's (as well as some backstabs here and there) in order to fulfill the will of their deceased dominus. I believe the original ones were Alex, Angel, Roger and Schwartzwald.
As about their wills and fears, Alex seems to have been a narcisit and a megalomaniac, meaning he wished to have power and be above the rest (in order to boost his own self-esteem). Angel seems to have been somewhat a traitor who had trouble deciding to which side plead allegiance.
Schwartzwald was so obssessed with the idea of unveiling the truth that he would pull no punches untill discovering it (the problem here lies in the means he takes to reach it). As of Roger, he seems to have lived with a carpe diem mentality but also with a strong sense of justice. Of the four, Roger's previous personality and beliefs was the one most suited to the life inside the dome.
Talking about the tomatoes, the goal would be to replicate the original dominus (and their memories) as long as these copycats could bypass the Big's identification system (the whole "yet not guilty"). One way to achieve this would be if these clones effectively developed the same personality and sense of identity as of the original dominus (the whole episode 13 emphasizes this concept).
This identification system was show to have its flaws and it feels reasonable to me that the own Big's would have tried to explore them. Hence, once their goal failed, they simply wiped out the stage and rebuild another one. In the version of the story that we follow trough the show, only Roger and Angel manage to reach this goal, thus preventing the restart.
its especially interesting you bring up episode 13, as I remember Gordon's line "the Book is all lies" in reference to his book metropolis. I bring this up because cloning could explain how the main cast could simultaneously be 'truthful' and yet not the 'real deal'. The idea of a false truth or that everything is just one big production also feeds into this, as while the world of the production is big enough to feel real to the cast, if we zoom out enough we can see that isn't quite the case and there is some other stuff between the lines.
That would play well into the memory theme so present. In trying to get someone with memories close enough to the original dominus, the Bigs are inadvertently showing just how unimportant, unreliable and fallible memories are. If you can make someone with memories close enough to the original (or personality close enough) to fool this security system intended to keep the power of a mechanical God out of the wrong hands, why should you trust Memories with the core of you identity?
The solution to that question offered by Roger essentially being "So? Why obsess over that instead of making things better now?" neatly calls an end to the resetting situation.
The ending truly did ruin the show
A reality reset wouldn't necessarily condemn roger and friends to the same actions and paths as before. Spoiler alert: The reset could've been similar to that of Stephen King's Dark Tower series. The Gunslinger's (Roland of Gilead, on the very off chance you have no idea who or what I'm talking about) quest for the Tower was ultimately a quest to save himself. In his search for the Tower and his eventual goal of saving the last two Beams that held reality together, Roland had thrown his humanity away in pursuit of his goals, believing they were more important than his own soul. Greater good and all that. He had seen and performed many dark deeds, for example: allowing a boy who trusted him to fall to his death. Roland was forced to choose between saving the boy (Jake) or pursuing the Man in Black, who had answers essential to the Gunslinger's quest. He sacrificed the former for the latter. This and other acts along his journey had eaten away at Roland's humanity. When he finally reached the Tower, he learned that he had made this trip many times before, each journey was to regain a bit of his own humanity. Then the Tower sent him back the to very start of the series, to the moment Roland knew for certain that he would ultimately succeed in finding the Tower. Each time he was sent back, his timeline was altered. In this case, somewhere in his past he had left a sacred relic, the Horn of Arthur Eld, on a battlefield, even though it would have taken a couple seconds to pick it up. An act he always regretted. At the end of the series, when he's sent back to the beginning, he's in a timeline where he actually retrieved the Horn, and a part of himself.
This got a little more detailed and yakkity than I wanted, but maybe Angel's reset worked in a similar fashion. If she's immersed herself in her simulated reality, maybe she needs to repeatedly work through it until she's ready to cope with whatever drove her to it to begin with. Maybe, like Roland, it comes out a little better each time until she ultimately heals.
Just a (long) thought.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts! I see what your saying here, that a reset could indicate a series of resets with each gradually concluding better than the last. I should have clarified that when I said a reset would have condemned Roger and company I meant an exact reset, i.e everything played out again shot for shot moment for moment the exact same with everyone literally repeating the exact same actions at the exact same times with the exact same consequences. For some reason much of the dislike of the ending I have seen seems to be based on the notion that the ending is an exact reset (even though it isn't) and that everyone is stuck in an unbreakable and futile loop (even thought they break it proving they are not).
Dude, as someone who stopped reading "the gunslinger", not out of any "bad reasons".. just time limits, I really appreciate your random explanation.
@@obscureanimememories6697Yes, Gordon Rosewater hints of this, too.
I would actually argue that the show's point is that you can be given great power, but some will choose to reject it, and only use it to help others. The fact that Big Venus it white, but has the same shape and form of Big O is symbolic. Big O is the most powerful Megadeus, but also the weakest in many senses. Also the name Megadeus implies in alot of ways duality. It can be implied from latin that it means Ultimate Twin, or non literally Ultimate Duality
good vid tho! I like the cut of your jib. Less monotone tho. You need some emotion in your voice. You come off as robotic
I agree that the use of power and how one uses it is a key theme of the show, and there is a lot of duality present shown via colors and other things. I always noticed how Rosewater wears white, while Roger black, for example. This duality in turn show us the need for balance and compromise in life. I love that I got you thinking though!
@@bafaltin Thanks, all constructive criticism is appreciated as I slowly work myself into better recording and and editing techniques!
Honestly, I thought megadeus was mispronounced. That it should not be deuce, meaning two but, deus meaning god.
Megadeus. Giant or great god.
Definitely sounds like the name of a super robot type mecha.
It would also better explain why these machines, that have a consciousness of their own, would tell their chosen operators that "cast in the name of god" they are "not guilty".
I thought that Angel was Big Venus, not merely it's pilot, and that it created the world of the setting 40 years ago. Creation being a property of God.
Possibly there was even an old world that created the Megadei as weapons that they used to destroy themselves. Or were destroyed by the Megadei after being found "guilty". I would imagine that living machines would not necessarily enjoy being pitted against each other for the purposes of Man.
We do get a short scene where several Bigs are fighting in a city and not seemingly shooting at each other.
Perhaps Big Venus was the one of/the last living being left after this destruction.
@@moondog8353 hell yeah! Lol it's like the Animatrix when the machines took over and made the matrix 😂 you helped add a layer to my synopsis of this masterpiece Im def with the angel is Venus theory. Anyway thanks
I'm glad to have come across your TH-cam channel.
I was lucky enough to find The Big O being aired on Adult Swim back in 2003 when they were airing the 1st season of 13 episodes (a rerun since it had already been aired in 2001) followed by the newly released and seen-for-the-first-time 2nd season of episodes 14 - 26.
I had seen up to that point only one other anime series in my life (Battle of the Planets, the American version of Gatchaman), and I didn't know I was watching something...Big. :)
As the entire 1st and 2nd seasons were being aired, an Internet forum called Paradigm City was up and was buzzing with activity about the series, with fans like myself going on there to discuss and question and argue about each episode after it aired.
It was a great time, in retrospect.
As you can imagine, after the 26th and final episode, nobody knew what it was supposed to mean as we were all fresh off the boat and trying to figure it out.
This video told me a lot more than what was being discussed back in 2004.
Was there any other official material released by the original producers of The Big O that I may have missed and would help me to better understand the series?
I'm glad you remember the original airing back in 2003, as that was what got me into anime all those years ago! As for official material, there are numerous interviews with various production staff which will probably help you understand a lot of things from the production end, and this in turn may help you understand why series ended the way it did. For example, the series was never intended to have a true end, and this is kind of a theme of the show, and because of this, the production staff thought it would be really good to have a really out of the box ending.
I just finished the show and let myself reflect for a couple minutes before watching this, and I completely agree with you. I'm honestly surprised so many people would dislike this and misunderstand what seems to have been the intentions of the writers, I think this was a great and trippy ending to a great and trippy show
I'm glad you enjoyed the ending and will admit that I needed quite a bit of time to reflect on the ending to understand how I feel about it. The ending of the Big O will always live on in my heart!
I finished watching this series today. I love it.
Is fantastic from start to finish. Sure the first few chapters were a bit slow to my liking but the art and direction made it worth every second.
I loved the final chapter of the series by the way and I agree with your point of view.
I'm glad the art and direction captivated you long enough to explore this obscure gem! Thanks for listening to me ramble!
Thankyou for this! The ending not only felt abrupt but made little sense to me, so a solid explanation after all this time will help me enjoy this show far more again.
I'm glad you liked the video! I know the ending to the Big O has always been controversial and was something I needed to watch a few times to understand. In fact the ending is what drove me to finally make videos here.
Great explainer!! This articulates better why I love the ending and series as a whole so much. the lesson is simple yet so profound
In a lot of ways, it reminds me of End of Evangelion
Thanks! I'm glad my explanations make sense, and I too love the lesson of there really being no end, of keeping moving forward!
Ohhhh my god ive been waiting for a video about this for EVER. THANK you for making this. The plot of big O has always been a fucking enigma to me, I've tried to figure it out for so long and it has stumped me probably more than any show I've ever seen. But I have this instinct that it is brilliant and I feel like I am missing the big key for a full and well rounded appreciation for the wholeness of the show, because I don't think I received what I was supposed to for the story. I love it so much though even in my confusion. Excited to see more of your analysis about it and hope to understand more by the end.
Glad I could help! The Big O is really what inspired me to start this channel as the series itself was just so odd to me, from the onscreen resolutions to the issues with the production behind the scenes. It is a great show though, and if you're curious there is already a playlist of all my videos on it on this channel. I believe its about 15 videos and covers my thoughts on the main cast and themes of the series. It was my first retrospective series on this channel, so the production value isn't the greatest, but I'd like to think the scripts still hold up!
Amazing review!!
Thanks! I'm happy you enjoyed it and that Big O lives on!
This was one of my favorite animes I never forgot to finish. Glad to see some love for it and an explanation of what it all meant.
Thank you for enjoying my little production! I think the Big O is one of my favorites too, as I love how unique it feels compared to everything else.
Thanks for the summary! I missed this series
Your Welcome! I'm glad people still remember the Big O fondly
I just finished watching it and I enjoyed it. It was quite good. Loved the noir tone, as well as its characters. I agree about the ending feeling bittersweet, but your video does makes me think about it. Good series it was.
I'm glad you enjoyed the Big O and its unique ending!
Thank you so much for posting this. I watched it on Toonami back in the day and the ending a lot of people thought was off-putting. A-la movies and shows that end with "oh it was all just a dream" or that kind of thing. I had heard (a lot like Neon Genesis, well, and many other shows) that there was planned to be more seasons but it was canceled mid through and the writers were forced to accelerate their writing early on. Anyway the mood, music, iconography, characters, and philosophy of the show were very striking. I am going to revisit it again watching the sub this time (as a kid I didnt understand the difference). Cheers!
I'm glad I could help! There was indeed planned to be more than 26 episodes, but this was scrapped due to production issues. i hope you enjoy your re-watch of the series!
Exactly, it was sooooooo much Neo Genisis!!
I think that the conclusion seen as being about Angel Rosewater, the author/director of this world, and Roger’s negotiation with her as her artistic creation, makes a really poignant statement: he tells her to exist as a human being in the present, that while precious, memories shouldn’t be mistaken for the entirety of a person. Angel’s own art has told her that she is more than her memories and that her life has meaning, and we can surmise from what she created that she put her own trauma and experiences into The Big O (in-universe artifice). The cycle of repeat and adaptation is one of thinking about memories, and about characters, and about people not as bound by their pasts but able to grow and become. Roger - whether actor, robot, or pure fiction - was able to make the case for his own existence as larger than his memories, and Angel took it to heart. So the reset, the lack of memories: Roger just told us, that doesn’t matter as much as the future.
Beautiful! Great summary of one of the reasons I think the Big O is unique: it doesn't try to have a "concrete" ending and/or dwell on the past. While a valid criticism of the series is a lack of past/world building, I think that's at least partially intentional as one of the biggest themes of the Big O is that there is no true ending, that something always leads into something else and I think this is a very nice summation of this!
It's great to see people still make videos about the Big O! I remember watching it as a young teen in the 2000's and being blown away. It could be a bit silly but the film noir aspect was incredibly stylish.
It has taken me a long time to come to terms (heh) with the ending and understand the themes. Sadly I can't say I like the ending but appreciate how it can be interpreted here and it was an interesting watch!
I think I would have preferred a more literal or material approach rather than the simulated reality and Angel as a director. The way I would have handled is is that Paradigm City is one of the last bastions of humanity following a gigantic war of the Megadeuses. Fearing mankind would continue to destroy itself, the original Angel in control of the godlike Big Venus, reset the memories of everyone besides a few individuals, using its incredible quantum powers to shape reality. The idea was to confine and protect the biggest human remnant and make them start again in blissful ignorance of their ruined world. Vast amounts of knowledge was hidden, falsified or destroyed but the process was imperfect and too big of a task, and those with memories failed to learn the lessons of the past. Not only to bring back individuals by cloning/memory implants but to again seek the power of the Megadeuses. Eventually it would all unravel with Alex Rosewater and the Union's power plays and force Big Venus to intervene again.
Again that's just my alternative headcanon drabbles and I'm not sure how Big O itself figures into it. It certainly wouldn't be so trippy, symbolic or memorable, for better or worse. In the end they must have run short on time as I think the actual ending could have been implemented better with a couple more episodes and some tweaks.
Thanks! The ending is pretty divisive so I completely understand if its not for everyone. It would be neat if the production team had the time and resources they initially thought they would have had and done what was actually planned (though I'm not quite sure what that would be) though I'm still thankful for one of the most unique and bizarre endings in all of anime!
It’s been a hot minute since I watched and created my theory but I feel a heavy Christian influence. Heck, Roger is put on a cross at one point. I feel Angel represents God (as part of the family that created the world). She sees the hate and evil inherent in it, and chooses to eradicate it, like an Old Testament wrathful God. Roger appeals and tries to take the sins of the world and give humanity another chance. The world is reset, cleansed, and comes back softer and slightly more colorful, much as the promise rainbow after Noah’s flood.
I was wondering about this possible influence and why it may or may not be there and it is fascinating. On one hand there is very obvious religious symbolism present in the series yet on the other I felt its always kind of vague about the "definite" answer. It makes me wonder, "what was the true angle of the production team?" Did they use such symbolism as a clear reference?, because they thought it interesting?, because they thought it looked cool? I wonder about this and, as I wasn't on the production team, I guess that's all I can do, though I think that may be kind of the point. I think they would want us to come to our own conclusions and go from there and that they would be happy as long as we are thinking and exploring our thoughts.
Ngl. I found this video because I'm currently writing an essay on this series as well. Though my focus is on the metafictionality and religious undertones. Unlike other anime, these mesh so tightly and well together that it doesn't strike me as rule of cool, but rather as genius, well-crafted, and clearly intentional.
Glad to see that THE Big O is getting some well deserved love from the essay community. It's definitely an underrated gem.
Thanks, I'm also glad the Big O is still loved! I have also constructed a bit of a rambling production on, my take, of the Big O's religious themes. Idk, maybe you'll find it interesting, feel free to cite it in your creation.
th-cam.com/video/F8noiDwuR38/w-d-xo.html
Nice review, keep it up, proud of ye.
Thanks! I hope to hone my production techniques and review Obscure Anime for as long as I feasibly can!
That derpy face on Roger after Dorothy looks at the painting. . .just perfect. It's just begging to be a meme.
I Love odd randomly inconsistent animation like that!
Great video analysis
Thanks!
I literally watched this show after watching another hidden gem called Rahxephon. Both had very similar endings but also had their own charm without being ripoffs of Evangelion or each other. Many people wish they could experience watching their favorite shows for the first time again. However I find myself enjoying rewatches even more since I typically watch complex stuff. My top favorite complex shows are: “Steins;Gate”, “Baccano!”, “Gankutsuou: The Count of Monte Cristo”, “Rahxephon”, “Ergo Proxy”, and “The Big O”!😉
I'm glad you enjoyed the video! I find Big O's Ending to be the most unique part of it and I think it really is the reason the show stands out to me so much. I enjoy stuff like this where even though I know what happens, it always seems like I notice something new for the first time.
@@obscureanimememories6697 Exactly!
I loved this series the art noir style the retro futuristic technology. The people never forgot their past the author just hadn't wrote it yet. The author was writing a book,TV show or some other media but imagined themselves being in that show. The underground that induces absolute terror so the mc can use the transit system for big o is a literal plot device.
The unique look of the series is very dear to my heart! And you basically nailed the plot summary!
This show's ending plot reminded me of Xenogears, a game I had VERY thoroughly explored. The endless repeating lives of Elly and Fei, the attempts to find God and failing, the growth. The ending of Big O gave me the same kind of hope that tomorrow can bring just a little more sunshine, but even the sound of the rain can be very calming.
That sounds fascinating! I do agree that even if the growth itself isn't complete at the time of the repeat, the consistent improvement up to every repeat is still encouraging. Also even though Xenogears and Metal Gear aren't related, I cannot help but hear David Hayter going "Xeno Gear?" in the back of my mind.
Yes, thank you for the explanation and your love of the ending! I also really liked how in the ending you see Dorothy and Angel there, showing, to me at least, that she is accepting Angel and Roger's relationship. You get this hint with how the ending song plays after each episode there is love there. Angel is now starting to accept a better reality, even if it isn't something that she may want. She may not be Roger's source of attention that she may want, but that is okay. It is her coming to terms with reality, "WE HAVE COME TO TERMS". :)
Thanks for watching! I know the ending is divisive, but I really like the idea of Angel being sort of the focus and successfully moving on. So often it feels like we aren't the main character in our own lives when we are struggling, and Angel reasserting herself is cool.
I love this anime, a work of art. I wish for a continue story,anime or live.
While the Big O most probably concluded for the time being, it may interest you that there is a manga adaptation of it.
The show looks really unique, the characters are weird but have certain charm to them, the mechs are *chef's kiss* and the OSTs, my god, the OSTs are timeless for me.
I think the look of the Big O is one of its most stand out/excellent features and it really does set it apart from many other shows. Its unique nior styling bleeds into every visual aspect of it from the setting to the mechs to the characters to even some of the (Near Perfect) OST and just really helps the atmosphere.
I always loved big O and it’s soundtrack
Bravo 🎉
Thanks! I think the OST of the Big O is probably its most underrated aspect of it. Its fascinating how such an obscure show can have such a masterful and well put together sound track! I only wish the OST was more well known
The algorithm has brought me to discussion of one of my favorite anime
I'm happy it did, I hope you enjoy my work
Great analysis - I agree that the ending, while surely a bit rushed, was great for what it was! I'm watching this show again after 14 years since my last watch - I cannot tell you how much it felt like a completely different show to me from then! There are so many subtle hints to a lot of heavy stuff -- cold war, governing body issues, how veterans deal with the aftermath of military service... so much I didn't understand, lol. I'm also surprised that I've hardly seen the debate on how the book/movie Metropolis from 1927 was related - but when you look at the faces of the Bigs and the movie's posters, and even the character roles, it feels very much like there's a lot in Big O that draws reference. It's been wild to go through again!
Thanks for the support! I will say that the references the series makes to Metropolis are numerous and fascinating, A sort of negotiator main character destined to "negotiate", an art deco company town lorded over by business interests, a female robot serving as a "reincarnation" of a dead woman, The shots of the tower of Babel and the Paradigm offices (similar architecture), etc. Perhaps I should do a video comparing the two....
@@obscureanimememories6697It'd be very interesting to look into how they compare at least, for sure. I've been meaning to watch the Metropolis movie soon, since I know the movie in particular had a lot of aesthetics that seemed to be echoed a bit in The Big O, but from what I heard it does have some similar roles? very interested to know more about how they may line up, would love to hear your thoughts if you do look into it more!
@@HYPRLNK_BLCKD I considered it when I made the original Big O series, though I couldn't figure where to fit it in since its more of a tertiary/meta topic... always felt more of a stand alone video. However, I do like making stand alones from time to time so I'll look into it eventually. I will credit relevant comments bringing up the comparisons of the Big O and Metropolis of course.
Now that you mention it, the hinting at the final title card was there from the beginning. Namely in the OP with the lyric; "We have come to terms, Bi~g O!!!"
While the Big O isn't always super coherent, its breadcrumbs and the wonderful cast have always been enough for me. I would like to think that even if the ending wasn't entirely planned out from the start, the creative team knew from day one they wanted to go out of the box.
Who in their right mind hates Big O finale? It's one of the most SATISFYING mindscrews ever!
I really Loved it, though It is a mind screw, and I understand that that may not be what everyone is looking for. In fact, the fact that it wasn't initially what I was looking for is why I Love it so much. I feel like logically I shouldn't like it, but its just so weird and so... bold(?) I can't help but Love it!
I do, I hated it 😂. I'm here to damage control
@atomu27 Glad I'm not alone 😅 I'm sorry, I enjoyed 24 of the episodes and now I feel like I wasted time when I could've watched something else instead. 😅
Nice vid!
I always think about ending and just my mind: Roger convinced Angel not just rewrite reality, but stop the cycle of rewriting and leave the world as it is, so that people can come up with their own Memories and create them from scratch. In addition, Gordon Rosewater, in one of the episodes (the closest to the finale), gives Angel his book Metropolis - transfers the rights of administration, after which he disappears.
In doing so, Angel becomes Gordon's successor - and already having a more "cooperative" person Roger and asks to stop the cycles of rewriting the universe. In asking to live as a human, Roger speaks not only of Angel specifically - but of everyone in general. Even if people can't create their Memories again, at least they'll have a chance to try to create them. Even Roger's very "monologue" in episode 26 makes this point: there's no point in fixating on the past if it doesn't exist - there is a point in thinking about the future, because it certainly can be created
Thanks for the support, and I gotta say, I Love your interpretation of the ending, it fits both the literal and meta themes of the series and the biggest point of all "An unclear past may not justify hovering upon, but a new future is always something to look fowards too!"
so I guess Rodger having memories of being an android, yet being obviously flesh and blood by the time the series takes place can be explained by the events prior to 40 years ago all being earlier drafts of the script. Rodger really was an android in the past, but then angel rewrote him to be a human being.I think Rodger may have been through multiple rewrites like this, since he also has memories of being homeless, and being a soldier.
The theory of multiple re writes is one which I find very interesting since its a very real possibility and cannot be conclusively proven or disproven with the amount we see in the series. As a result, while the ending is 'good' since it sees everyone in a better state than when the show started, we are not sure if it is even the best or final ending.
The rewrites being the previous memory flashbacks is my headcanon. In fact I remember big venus showing up in the flashback where Roger is fighting the hydra during the apocolypse, suggesting that Angel has to intervine and reset the program whenever it gets all apocolyptic
Because of the nature of the story and plot of Big O, I've always thought that you, the viewer, was the main character.
I could see that, Roger Smith is an excellent stand in character for the viewer. He is defined by enough human traits to be relatable, and yet is virtuous and accomplished enough to be the hero of this kind of show. His characterization is an excellent balance of developed enough to feel well written and relatable enough to feel like us.
I think Big O was encoded with ideas that got lost by viewers, such as the tomatoes representing something that over time will become human, and have a will of its own to develop its own future...and that ultimately, Big Venus in short a bird or beast that gained it wings before developing into a beast, must choose to live as a human...linked to other animes I think like Hellsing, but what's also key is how the anime changes the viewer perspectives and that it ends with a scene of a black dragon...and ultimately that 'Roger is judged as not guilty...and comes out of the ground every episode...I think it's linked to other ideas outside the anime looking at the Big O that seems like a Vrilya...and maybe ideas of doing things in the spirit of the ring thing...Cast in the name of God, not guilty maybe a reference to this, along side Roger Smith being a military command for understanding an order or communication; and again Ideas of specific angels...and Roger is both a black Dragon of the deep and maybe a Vrilya/Lucifer...there is a specific message felt, in the battle with Gabriel...and finally the military police logo used in the anime, who martial the above ground areas but seem in the dark about everything...and theres a scene where Roger is on his balcony, with columns seen like Olympus...finally Angel Rosewater - that i think refers to ripples in a pond or light...in a control room, denying her existence...and everything mirrors our worlds rigid system,but being changed for the better with the Domes destruction...finally Roger carries out a successful negotiation...ending the series...
One of the things I Love about the Big O is that its very open to interpretation. Yes there is a plot and themes, but we can arrive to those taking different paths with different interpretations. Its a work which evokes thought and instead of telling the viewer "this means this" instead shows and says some things to the viewer and then allows them assemble the pieces themselves.
Looking forward to this. As a kid I was like wtf is going on here. Surely another season will explain it all? NOPE!🙅♂️
I too was initially confused by the Big O's conclusion, though I understand that production issues can hamstring any series and I do kinda love how the production team decided "yeah let's go out with style". I find it some kind of poetic beauty that one of the themes of the series is 'life goes on/there are no true endings" and it is seen in both the show itself and its production process.
something that i realized is big venus/the angel looks somewhat similar to big o almost like a photographic negative
I Love that little detail!
@@obscureanimememories6697 its a neat detail indeed. but why take that form it could have chosen any megadesu's look but chosen big o...i believe theres a reason for that and that reason begin is well it watched its world it saw how big o and steve rogers worked well together to protect its world and is why i believe it took that form
You're a louse, Roger Smith.
-Dorothy Wayneright. Being a Kuudere before it was cool.
I found it really interesting in how Dororthy is proven not to be robotic throughout the series, but still maintains a flat and deadpan expression throughout it. I think it really cemented her character and allowed for more subtle showings of her development.
This and GT are my most beloved anime. Fight me.
I Love the big O and have a great deal of fondness for the Dragon Ball (I assume the GT in question is Dragonball GT) so I don't think I'll have to fight!
the series is an unofficial sequel to the real world book "metropolis" (this is a very long comment so get ready lol)
no, im not talking about the 1927 silent film, or the book adaptation written by thea von harboumade of the same name (yes, her book was published before the movie came out, but it is in fact based off of the films screenplay and the film was delayed so her book was published before the film saw a theater. this is why many people assume she is the original author) im talking about the original book that preceded them and is what the silent film is based on and what i *assume* this show is a sequel to.
i actually got my hands on a copy and read it before i watched Big O when it ran on Toonami. the silent film and the book adaptation by harbou are fairly accurate to the original book, but have wildly different endings. if you want more details on the book and its story i will gladly share if you ask me, but for now ill just try and focus on its relevance with how the anime ends and what my take away was.
the main premise of the story is humans are living in a future where cities cover the entire world and these cities have many layers above and below ground with all the poor people and the critical machines and systems underground with the elites up on top. domes are mentioned to cover the skies and protect from pollution, but it wasnt important in the book. the leader of the entire world is a guy named rosewater. one day his son alex finds and falls in love with a girl from the low levels. she turns out to be more or less a figurehead of the lower classes. alex ends up siding with her and the plight of the lower classes and eventually things escalate to a full world war between alex and his father. it describes vaguely that giant war machines in the image of man rampage the cities. at one point after the woman alex fell in love with dies, his father has the scientist schwarzvald create a robot replica of her to manipulate the people but it works better then planned and she "seduces" mankind (some kind of allegory i think was intended by the author?) lots and i mean lots of crazy stuff goes down until finally the war is near its end and mankind pretty much destroyed the world. the book is written as if its a journal from the perspective of alex and it ends with a god machine having been built deep underground and somehow his father managed to make his way to it on some kinda elevator. alex is writing in his journal about riding the elevator down following his father and wondering what the climax / confrontation will be. then it just ends with a few blank pages in the book (which was kinda cool imo)
theres a LOT more that i could talk about with the book both in its story, its themes, and oddly enough the real world author and the interesting history and story around it (if your not familiar with it or its connection to the industrial revolution and the world wars its very juicy for history nerds like me lol)
anyway- my take away is the anime is a "sequel" where maybe whoever got to the god machine simply had everyone forget what happened / lose their memories. the ending we have with rosewater taking angel down in an elevator to a machine deep underground was giving her access to the god machine. from there she resets things-? (im not entirely sure myself- its an ambiguous ending)
all that being said- i do think that the writer(s) of the anime werent completely sure what they were going for and sorta mixed a few ideas together including the "its all a stage and the characters are all actors in angels play" i mean this is the same studio that did evangelion if im not mistaken (a show i despise lol) i just kinda feel like they wanted to emulate that shows ending with trying to be deep and throwing random bullshit at the wall and hope they will be applauded for it instead of being called out on it
it might seem like im bashing big o like most of the handful of us that actually watched it, but no not at all- its literally my favorite anime and show of all time. i LOVE the themes, the music, the concepts, the vibe, the scene compositions / directing of the first half is incredible- so much i am in love with- honestly i think maybe i see more in this show then what was intended to be there- it has some flaws and some seriously bad moments, but its charm and its high points more then make up for that imo (for me at least)
anyway- if you actually managed to read all this, congratulations lol- and i hope this was in some way insightful or if nothing else helps your algorithm thingy or whatever- again, if you have any questions about the book feel free to ask me and i do the best with what i remember- have a great day / night- "we have come to terms"
Very fascinating! This would set up the two to connect rather well! In regards to the artistic intent of the writers of the Big O, I will say that I feel they were simply told "make a cool show" and preceded to do so without any centralized guidance or vision. While this does explain some of the unexplained elements of the plot and a bit of a disjointed feel, I always loved the fact that the writers just decided to go for it and even though it was kinda vague and confusing at times, it just worked, at least in my eyes. I love the theme of "there is no true end" and how the Big O embodies this by just kinda resetting itself (for the better hopefully) and going about its business.
I had known of the comparisons between the Big O and Metropolis, but I was unaware of the multiple versions of the book. Who was the author of the original book? Was it Fritz Lang, the guy who worked on the movie? Thanks for this informative post!
@@obscureanimememories6697 sadly i dont remember the guys name and couldnt find it when i tried looking it up before commenting- i know it was a british farmer on the outskirts of a city (maybe london idk?)- he wrote it during the industrial revolution- i remember watching a video on about it and the history of the silent film- the guy didnt know anything about technology other then the factories in the distance he saw from his farm- while he didnt go into any details (he would write things very vague and often metaphorically) a LOT of his sci fi concepts were way ahead of its time and predicted a ton of stuff / would go on to inspire later sci fi
fritz lang would go on to make a film adaptation but the single printing of that film barely survived bombing from the germans (its a whole interesting story on its own) its a miracle we even have the version of the silent film today- when i look up the author i keep getting the woman that was tasked with writing the screenplay of the film- but she is not the original author at all and like i mentioned before the film and the book go in seperate directions with the plot- the silent film is free on youtube if im not mistaken- its... interesting lol- different then the book but youd still find a ton of big o's iconography and inspiration so give that a check out
Am I the only one who wishes Big Venus had a more unique design rather than just having the same design as Big O but with a different face?
You are not the only one! Big Venus' design is one of the few visual things I didn't really care for in the Big O. I remember the first time I saw Big Venus, I thought it was a sort of literal or metaphysical reflection of Big O and was a tad confused for that reason. It would have been cool if Big Venus looked more unique, but the series was running out of everything by this point, so I can overlook some recycled design elements.
I remember watching the anime at the young age, I thought it was another seem alike batman show~
The show was actually influenced by Batman and Roger Smith's character is partially inspired by that of Bruce Wayne.
I honestly used to hate this show when I was young because it was so hard for me to follow, but I'm glad I went back and rewatched it. Similar to my experience with Cowboy Bebop (Yes, I hated Cowboy Bebop too until I rewatched it... young me had some pretty shit tastes.) Thanks for the video!
I'm glad you enjoyed the video! And no worries, we all grow wiser with time.
I think there is another layer to the show, and that is a psychology one. It's asking "can you really be you if you don't remember all of what you have done?"
I think that's an important part of the show as well, all the characters discuss trying to recover memories. Why so much discussion and fear about memories if it didn't matter to them?
That is a fascinating question! And one which we see the main cast grapple with throughout the Big O. Like the answers the series gives about other questions, it seems to me that the Big O seems to give a sort of spectrum of answers as opposed to a single uniform one. We can see this with how the cast grapples with the past. While some of the cast obsess over the memories themselves (like Angel) some obsess over what they could mean (like Rosewater) and some try to ignore and/or work past this gap ( like Roger and Dan). The show seems to say that how much one's memories shape oneself varies based on the individuals' views and experiences. Some characters argue that, objectively, the memories themselves don't really matter, and that the past should be left in the past while others obsess over the past because it somehow got them to the present. The show seems to say the answer is somewhere in the middle of these two arguments and both are true to an extent, though the exact extent depends on the individual. Its the fact that the memories are a sort of "missing part" and an uncertainty that is the important part, as it allows the missing memories to serve as a reflection of how different characters react to the universal idea and fear of uncertainty. This is why some characters can proclaim that the memories are 'useless' and still be bothered by lacking them whether or not the memories themselves are 'objectively' important.
i don't hate the ending. in fact i love it. keep in mind this was made in the late 90s - early 00s, when the "everything is a dream/simulation/coma/hallucination" trope is not overdone yet
what i hate is how some things left unexplained. what is the significance of roger and gordon? why are they special? what about the picture of gordon and roger shaking hands? what was their negotiation? why does angel, the god of this simulation, lose awareness of it, and instead gordon was in control? what is the city where roger is a bum? is that real life? why could roger go there? what about the revelation that everyone is just a mass produced robot, or at least that's the case with the informant, and roger himself?
i get it that the theme is that roger has come to terms of not knowing the past and living for the future. but guess what, we the audience, have not. there should be a way to tell us everything without letting roger know. or is everything actually explained and i'm just too smooth brained to understand?
There's no issue on your end, as it is true that not everything is thoroughly explained and a lot is left to audience interpretation/ vague implications. I think this is partially intentional (as the creative process here was never one which lurked on building a past) and partly unintentional (as the final season had to be shortened by 6 episodes due to budget issues). I think the team knew they had very limited resources available and as a result decided to go out in style, resulting in a lot of lingering questions about almost everything and a very memorable ending.
Can you please explain more about schwartzvald?
Im curious how much he actually found out and knew. Did he discover the truth of this “tv show” underground or out in the desert?
Also, whats the explanation behind archaetype in the model city underground? And why does roger have such panic attacks when he goes under ground?
To me the series seems to take two different story paths, one where everything is real and that paradigm city is one giant real truman show type set. At some point everything in the real world is destroyed, leaving nothing but a functioning forgotten tv set.
They even set it up with the robots destroying everything, and alex rosewater seemingly cloning people to become his characters on his tv show. The lights falling out of the sky, “big o! Showtime!” Etc etc
….and then at some point in season 2 its like the creators decided to switch story ideas and switch to a virtual reality, everything is fake and in angels head kinda thing.
Do we think that maybe they felt the original idea of some kinda truman show type thing was just to boring or cliche?
I guess to me it kinda cheapens so much of the mystique and mystery to find out that nothing was real. The mystery of the sunken cities, the secrets of the desert and what lies among them, the hidden secrets of the under ground, the mystery of what happened 40 years ago, where megadeuces came from, what did schwartzvald discover….all of thise questions added so much to the series, just for all of them to end up meaningless because none of it was real.
I get that letting go of the mystery of the past was one of the main points, and making everything not real certainly makes a person not care about the past…but i feel like for the characters and the viewer, making the past wholly fake kinda forces them to move on from the past.
Instead of keeping the past real and them choosing to let it go even though they dont have to, and it still being out there.
Yes, of Course! Now I will answer everything here, but I will also attach the link for the Schwartzwald video as it will go over his character as a whole. th-cam.com/video/OrmlLsTW1D4/w-d-xo.html
It seems to me that Schwartzwald found out the nature of the world only after his death. He knows something is up from the beginning, but his eyes aren’t truly opened until he, as a spirit, accompanies Big Duo as it ascends into the giant stage lights above. This lets him finally see Paradigm city as the giant set it really is and Big Duo doing this seems to be some sort of reward to Schwartzwald for his search for truth and commitment to trying, even if in a misguided way, to help the people.
As for the weird stuff underground, the model serves as an early hint to Paradigm city being a stage and Roger seems to have panic attacks underground because that is a realm of the past. Since Roger’s identity is very rooted in the present, he fears the past as it could destabilize his own view of himself.
Yes, you are correct about the two plots present in the show, one being the plot of Roger Smith saving paradigm from Alex Rosewater, which will refer too as the “Production Script Plot” and the other being Roger Smith saving Paradigm by convincing the creators of their worth, the “Behind the Scenes Plot”. The “Production script Plot” is what makes up the bulk of the series, and while arguably ,ultimately kinda pointless from some points of view, allows the creator, Angel to reflect on herself enough, via her art, to accept both herself and her creative abilities/creation, which is the climax of the “Behind the Scenes Plot”. Rosewater’s destruction of the city and then Angel’s direct destructive acts (as Big Venus) show a creator trying to destroy their works because they have given up for some sort of reason. She does find herself though and ultimately strives to, instead of destroy her completion completely, remake it into a different draft or adaptation of it if you will, hence the reset at the end.
As for all of the odd production setup i.e “its showtime” or the world as a stage, the Big O is kind of a commentary on the production process as a whole. One of the central points of the show is that life goes on/there are no true ends as something usually leads into something else. The Big O’s production is in fact a kind of commentary on that. When the first season was made, the production staff, to my knowledge, didn’t really have a master plan. They just kind of made everything up as they went along and kind of disliked the idea of a grand plot. Then the series ran out of money and was shelved for several years. However, as life goes on, so too did reruns of the series which eventually garnered enough support to produce the second season. While the plot was more prominent in this second season, partially to garner views, the production staff again kept in a lot of the commentary about the production process in there. We see this especially not only in the ending of the second season, but also its first episode, which in a meta sort of way establishes that the Big O itself (the show) was kinda a flop in Japan.
I don’t think they abandoned the concept of a Truman show type anime with the end of season One, rather I think that they hadn’t quite planned everything out in the beginning and thus left “breadcrumbs” they could later repurpose to support some sort of meta reveal (In this case Angel’s role as the director).
As for the meaninglessness of the mysteries cheapening the series, I have to say that I can definitely see that. That’s your opinion, and it certainly is a valid one. I will say making the past and world “fake” is probably the most aggressive way they could have said “We gotta move on from the past”. Again we have to go back to production issues here, as the second season’s budget was only enough for 13 of 26 planned episodes, so they kinda ad to pull something out and decided to take the least conventional path possible.
Again though I think this meta commentary present is why I like the Big O so much. I mean if we take the character of Angel in the last episode and replace her with a character named “PRODUCTION STAFF OF THE BIG O”. The meta ending makes a lot more sense, at least to me. As we see a character wh simply wanted to make a cool thing to the best of their abilities, and tried really hard, and yet, at least in their eyes, came up short. They did not wallowing despair though as they still had fun and loved their creation even if it wasn’t the most popular, or clear cut. Its kinda an odd testament to the amount of heart in the series, and that one of the reasons why I think I love it.
Sorry if I got a little rambling there, I hope I answered everything!
I wanna take acid and rewatch this anime so bad
It certainly is a great watch!
Most of the theories I have seen explained it as Angel kept resetting the world because its natural conclusion meant that Roger had to die.
I see. If that were the case, why did she love him? As a divine being that could do anything and love anyone - why him? 🤔
Fascinating! I had never heard that one before. I understand that the opaque nature of the ending is frustrating to some, though I Love how much room it leaves for interpretation.
More than I can take in . But at least I got a perspective on the whole thing.
I'm glad I could help in any way
thank you for this video, I just got done watching this show and it absolutely confused me so much. im…very mixed on the ending, the show started strong and I loved how season 1 establishes the setting perfectly and made me actually want to know more about the setting, season 2 came in and it was still good all the way up to the reveal.
the whole “the world is a stage/simulation” really killed the immersion for me, and it felt a bit too meta for my tastes, it’s sad because the show was strong all the way up until the end. that reveal just, ruined things for me in a sense. it’s a trope that I think is very overused and it felt just a tiny bit of a cop out to me, since everything mysterious about the city just boils down to “it’s all fake, not real”.
i do appreciate the video so much for, helping explain things! im not a huge fan of endings like it but it’s still a very good show throughout, especially season 1. season 2 was more of a mixed bag and I kinda wished they stayed with the self contained stories but, I can appreciate what they tried to do.
Thanks for watching! Its not a hot take to say the ending to the Big O is a bit... divisive and if its not your cup of tea I understand. It is quite jarring to learn that most everything was a simulation the whole time and it does kind of undue a lot of the mystery. I think I do agree that the show's stand alone episodes are often stronger though I do also like the plot. Again though, its understandable the ending invokes differing emotions, though I really do like the behind scenes gall to just go "yep that's how it ends". Its just so... bold to me.
yeah I agree! its not a bad show by any means; I just am not a fan of the kinda meta ending it was trying to go for. I can definitely see it was bold for what it did and honestly I’m glad I did watch it. Despite my issues it’s still something I’d definitely watch again in the future with an open mind now that I’ve actually seen it and on a first viewing things didn’t fully click with me.
Do you think Dorothy's What If Scenario can come true, that she can love Roger, in that new iteration of their world?
Its entirely possible! Since the new timeline is one created by an Angel in a much better state of mind, her creation could very well take on a brighter tone that may see some relationships form.
I'm sure there are different ways of interpreting the ending. I like to look at it through more of a computer engineering scope, specifically programming paradigms. Programming paradigms are different ways or styles in which a given program or programming language can be organized. Each paradigm consists of certain structures, features, and opinions about how common programming problems should be tackled.
That being said, I like to think that the bigs are at odds with each other in determining who has the better solution to fix paradigm city to come to terms. They struggle with each other to the point where a solution is just not going to happen. So reality gets restarted with a slightly different programmed paradigm. Put simply, their world got an update.
That's a fascinating take. I like the idea that as emotional and passionate as the ending is, there is also a rational basis and that both emotional and rational should be acknowledged.
If only we had gotten more Schwarzwald. Rosewater is kind of interesting too because of how pathetic he becomes, but we all know who the better villain is.
It would have been very interesting if Shwartzwald appeared more, as his being as a very very very misguided man and his weird morality makes him a more complex and interesting villain. Also hope you enjoyed the video I made solely on Shwartzwald!
th-cam.com/video/OrmlLsTW1D4/w-d-xo.html
@@obscureanimememories6697 Already in my plan to watch playlist. I'll get to it
@@henri3170 Thanks!
In this video, when do you explain the ending?
3:36 - 4:15
My problem with the ending is that it had another story arc that was never concluded, that being the one with robots destroying everything. So the ending felt lazy, like they wrote themselves into a corner and went.. well screw it.. it was all a dream. OoOoooo
I will admit its not for everyone. If I remember correctly, the ending took the path it did because the writers kinda wanted to get weird and while I find that interesting I understand some may not.
The entire "robots destroyed the world" plot was a red herring from the beginning. It was never meant to be concluded. You may call that bad writing if you want, but its certainly not lazy writing.
@@retrograde98xp It was all a dream is pretty lazy. Robots, alies would have at least been something different.
@@emm6101 it would've been less work to just say the world was destroyed by robots. The concept of the entire world being fiction is a lot more complex than "robots blew up the world".
You're confusing bad writing with laziness.
@@retrograde98xp Saying it was all a dream is both lazy and bad writing. It is essentially saying you trapped yourself and take the easy way out.
Big O notation is a mathematical tool to solve problems by repeating the problem but changing one variable at a time until it’s solved…. I’m sure it has nothing to do with the show.
I never knew that, but it does fit very well with the series!
So to make peace with the journey and acceptance to the end, hopefully a good end, I don’t know anime is so weird
This anime is really weird! I think that's why its kinda divisive, but also why it fascinates me. While the Big O's message is simply making peace with the past and moving on, its delivery is so weird I can't help but love it!
When i was watching this show, i did not cared about big robots fighting, i was captivated by the plot.
That is an excellent remark as, while I do love the robot fights, the soul of the Big O really is in its themes, characters, ascetics, and plot, and I'm happy to explore those, and I'm happy people enjoy my explorations of them too!
They need to make a season where they end the cycle and survive the cataclysm. I don't know what would happen. Maybe characters could be redone. Like Norman is something other than a butler, but still on team Roger.
It is a bit unfortunate that production (budget) issues saw the Big O have to rush to its conclusion.
I appreciate you taking the time to try & break Big O's ending, down.
To be honest I don't like it when my Mecha wants to get overly complicated of philosophical,
especially when it gets very abstract... (Darling in FranXX pulls this BS on me)
Like in that old movie, with Bruce willis where it turns out the boy was a ghost the entire time.. *sighs*
Your comment at 08:00 about the character growth etc... that's what hits hardest with me, & the primary reason I'd be upset.
Years later we'll probably find out the Director was on drugs, didn't know what the f**k he was doing, & that's why we
got the ending we did, lol.
I admire you trying to find a "silver lining" in it all.
Thank you for taking the time to express your point of view and listen to mine. Taste is subjective, so its perfectly fine if you don't particularly care for the ending. I'm pretty sure the intent in production was to make it pretty.... different so I understand why it isn't everyone's favorite
They were going to make a season 3, but it got scrapped. I wonder what it would’ve been about.
I'm very curious too. Its obvious that the ending was a little rushed, so I wonder if they would have fleshed that out more or used the additional episode to go in a completely different direction.
@@obscureanimememories6697 Maybe the ending of season 2 was why they scrapped season 3. Without the mystery, the world becomes less eerie. They always emphasized that part of the show a lot. But since it’s a simulation and they know now. It kinda removes that essence. Your just left with cool big robot fights and weird memories.
I think what happened is the production staff realized that too and just thought to let everything be. They also probably saw that funds were running out fast and this forced their hand to commit. I know that the second season was originally supposed to be 26 episodes and that got cut down to 13, so I imagine everyone kind of just agreed to have fun with things and see what happened. And I'm very glad they did, while it is true that production issues haunted the entirety of the Big O, the weird decisions made because of them help make the series so unique.
I thought it was a tv show whose characters were based off of real people's personalitys and it was facing cancelation Angel was the producer Alex company owner and Roger the go between the negotiations to stop cancelation.
I have heard this theory before and Angel is definitely the director and Roger definitely the Negotiator, though I think the company owner would be Gordon?
This is sounding like others' defense of the Evangelion ending, which I also hated. I like both shows, at least until the ending.
In this case, it is the realization that nothing is real and everything that happened was part of some creative holodeck exercise. The only interesting aspect left is the characters' emerging self-awareness, but that could be chalked up to A.I. doing things it was predestined to do without strict limitations.
Still, your interpretation of what happened seems very plausible, and I may even give back some points I took off the writers for doing what they did here
Thanks for Watching! Art is subjective, and while I Love the Big O's ending, I understand why many may not. It is rather weird and kind of sudden. It is rather... unique, and I thank you for listening to my take on it!
I heard a dog in the background
Perhaps
This is the only episode I ever missed. It took me 5 years to track down, and it was rather "meh", to me
While I liked the ending of the Big O, I will say that that is a very subjective claim and I do understand people's distaste for it. We all have our own tastes and I thank you for watching!
There is nothing wrong with the ending, is just different than in other series.
I think that's a great point! Part of why I love the Big O is it's unique ending, but even if it was more conventional I would still love it. The show would be amazing regardless of how it ends.
so is there a real world Roger and a simulated Roger?
The show doesn't explicitly state, so it is definitely up to interpretation, though I always thought that Roger is a character in Angel's production, so from the strictest sense no. I always thought that the Roger we see with her in the production room is either a sort of mental image of hers (i.e not actually there) or one of the actors in her production.
@@obscureanimememories6697 an actor playing the role of “Roger,” or an actor that looks exactly like Roger but isn’t actually him and is playing a different character?
@@CYeoung I would think more along the lines of an actor playing the role of Roger.
@@obscureanimememories6697 so nothing in the show actually happened it was all basically just a software simulation. Also i always wondered what happened to the Butler, didn’t seen him in the last episode right
Yeah something along those lines. The world of Paradigm City is just Angels project and it seems she just got really invested in it. As for Norman, well I assume he stayed behind in the mansion to help clean up and generally get a hold of the situation. @@CYeoung
Very good attempt...
I was very interested in this series and enjoyed... Artist Style characters Giant robots fighting each other... And the mystery of the plot was Intriguing...
But it suffered from anime Drought... after the 13th episode You could tell the writers starting coming up with random things... Just to get more views Based on its strengths Which I've mentioned earlier.... And when it came to the final episodes they dropped the ball unfortunately like all anime.... Very like luster very lazy... An unfulfilling to Shame cause this series had a potential...
Your review of the of the ending explained made no sense just like the ending...
I will admit the Big O isn't everyone's favorite, but thanks for watching.
hello i believe the ending to be shitty
Hi! That's perfectly fine! Taste is subjective and I think the creative team here was trying to both do something very weird and work with fewer production resources than initially imagined. As such they concluded the series in a very unique and admittedly divisive way. I loved it, but if you don't that's cool too!
So a actor had to convince the director to stop changing the script lol explains that episode when he was a homeless guy yelling at angel
Basically yeah! I love a homeless Roger yelling at the director because it kinda mirrors the producers 'yelling' at sunrise to not cancel the show.
@@obscureanimememories6697 Ya I’m just still mind blown about this series after all these years
It’s SHOW TIME
Big O!
I'm in the minority. Didn't care for the ending. Still don't understand, and I fear its too meta for my simple comprehension. Would have preferred a more straightforward explanation as to the memory loss and the mysteries of the series. Would have like to have Roger and Dorothy explain their feelings at the end.
There's nothing wrong with that opinion as everyone is entitled to their own take. I understand the rushed pace of the ending kind of limits the closure it can generate and closure is usually considered a good thing.
Overly convoluted i didnt like the series
The Big O is definitely opaque at times, so I understand the criticism. Thanks for giving the series a chance though!
I love this anime but strongly dislike the ending. It was pure lazy writing. It was an insult to the viewers.
While I love the ending, I understand its far from conventional and the writers themselves did say that they disliked the idea of a 'normal' ending and instead decided to go all out once it was clear production was wrapping up soon and the metaphorical ship (the budget) was sinking. While I am appreciative of how weird it got, I understand that not all may feel that way.
Nah you're wrong this ending was stupid. Ruined the entire show.
It is a very divisive ending and I can understand how one can reach that conclusion. It is rather vague and does disregard a lot of the world building which can be considered flaws. Thanks for watching though!
Dude, it was a terrible ending.
Its certainly controversial, and I completely understand if you don't like it. It is a bit out of nowhere and does kind of feel like the creative team went "that's it, we're doing this". Thanks for watching though!