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Old 07-04-2013, 12:48 AM   #1
Doppleganger
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Swimbros, a.k.a. "Free!"

A serendipitous reunion.

A childhood promise.

A bond of friendship through hydrogen bonding.

Free! is a bit of a notorious anime, stirring passionate emotions amongst English and Japanese fans.

But I saw something beyond the Michelangelo's Davids modeling speedos and subliminal advertising for AquaFina and Brita Filters. It's difficult to describe, but I felt like the anime was calling me, and it even addressed me by name -



German subs, by the way.

Suffice to say, Free! is more than what we all think. It isn't all about girlish personalities grafted onto male anatomy. Beyond it is a struggle, the conflict of youth between an artist, a fierce competitor, their passion for water, and their ability to undress anywhere at anytime in the blink of an eye.

Haru claims to be un-interested in competition, but whenever he senses an opportunity to dive into a pool of water, he immediately reaches for his zipper. Nagisa and Makoto seem to prefer ripping off their shirts first, I need more evidence to confirm this.

Free! isn't all about guys swimming. It's about guys and girls getting wet. Except the girls stay on the sidelines, and they remain fully clothed while watching the boys. I'm sure that applies to the audience too.

The plot is thick.



You can't see it yet, but I think if you look hard enough, you could see it under all the character development.



Oh...

For some reason, I have a strange desire to take off my shirt.

Too bad the Pool's Closed.
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Old 07-04-2013, 01:10 AM   #2
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Goddammit.
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Old 07-04-2013, 01:35 AM   #3
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I watched the first episode of this as well. This is pretty much a sports shounen loaded in MANservice.

I thought the blatant MANservice was amusing. Everyone would strip the first chance they get. I even got to see a first to me fetish of speedo apron!

Outside of how amusing the MANservice was, this seems to be a pretty typical sports shounen. I don't watch sports shounen, so I won't be that bored with it...atleast I don't think I will.
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Old 07-04-2013, 02:28 AM   #4
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sigh GIRL LOOK AT DAT BODY



sigh GIRL LOOK AT DAT BODY



I WORK OUT
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Old 07-04-2013, 02:30 AM   #5
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Quote:
Originally Posted by deoxys View Post
I WORK OUT
Do you even lift?
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Old 07-04-2013, 03:47 AM   #6
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Oh wow that third gif. I never appreciated until now how sexy man-cleavage is.
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Old 07-04-2013, 03:50 AM   #7
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I watched it.

This was my liveblog reaction in a nutshell (read bottom to top):

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Old 07-04-2013, 05:41 AM   #8
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BORKED


i made this for you dopple
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Old 07-04-2013, 06:07 AM   #9
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Just watched the first episode. This show isn't quite as gay as the One Outs opening, but damn it, it's trying.
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Old 07-04-2013, 06:25 AM   #10
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I should watch this anime.
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Old 07-04-2013, 09:41 AM   #11
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Lil' Bluey

You guys.

P.S. I like how it's only guys commenting so far. XP I wasn't planning on watching this since the animation really doesn't appeal to me, but I actually saw a glowing bod review so I'm curious. WHO IS RIGHT? We shall see.
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Old 07-04-2013, 10:10 AM   #12
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You think they'll add nipples in the Blu Ray version?
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Old 07-04-2013, 10:15 AM   #13
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Just watched the first episode. This show isn't quite as gay as the One Outs opening, but damn it, it's trying.
Someone will probably really dislike me for saying this, but some shounen sports animes end up feeling gay even when they're not trying to. An example of this could be Kuroko's Basketball, which is very much a shonen sports anime, but the guys are so gorgeus and the broship and feels and-! *nosebleed* Free! kinda has the same feeling to it.

Oh yes I am watching the hell out of this show.

Though I may be in a minority when I say that I'm not a big fan of 100 abs on all the guys. Do real swimmers have such well-developed abs? And a wasp waist?
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Old 07-04-2013, 10:45 AM   #14
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No, I thought right away that they looked too muscular to be swimmers. Even at the Olympic level, the swimmers have some beef on them, but are mostly lean. Super low body fat isn't always a good thing in athletics; too little, and you'll be weaker. I was in swimming myself as a teen, and in our crappy small town club, we were all just skinny. When we went to swim meets to compete against rival swim clubs from bigger cities, they'd be beefier than us, because they had more expensive programs and were actually made to work out by their coaches.
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Old 07-04-2013, 10:57 AM   #15
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Maybe I can't complain when I've opted for English thread names like "Space Brothers", "Bunny Drop", or "Meina's Owl" before, but ... you couldn't have just named the thread "Free!"? ^^; Or at least "Free! a.k.a. Swimbros"? A small grievance from a man who won't likely be watching any time soon.

I'll laugh if this ends up becoming UPN's next great uniting anime the way that Sword Art Online was last year. I'm crossing my fingers that that honor'll go to Rozen Maiden 2013. And I wouldn't be surprised if it were Dangan Ronpa. But man will I laugh if it ends up being Free!
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Old 07-04-2013, 05:05 PM   #16
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Well that was gay, like really really gay. And it was all the better for it. Goddamn I need to watch more anime that is aimed at women.
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Old 07-05-2013, 01:27 AM   #17
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We've all been joking about this show since post 1, but allow me to be serious for a moment. I probably won't watch this the whole way through. I haven't seen a Kyoani series since The Melancholy season 2, and this show makes me think I didn't miss much. The comedy is weak, and the sports drama looks to be weak (Hikaru no Go this ain't). It's just a big vehicle for gratuitous ab shots and yaoi pandering. Prove me wrong episode 2, prove me wrong.

I will make a prediction right now, concerning THE MYSTERY of why Haruka only swims freestyle. Freestyle is technically an event where you can swim however the hell you want to, but we figured out a long time ago that the fastest way to swim is the front crawl, so competitive swimmers always use it in that event. Because of this, the average person thinks front crawl = freestyle, but, you can actually swim in a different way if you really want to. Haruka probably has a SPECIAL SWIMMING STYLE that he can only use in freestyle. After all, what's a sports anime without special moves? (DEMPSEY ROLL!)

So this anime won't be ALL homo eroticism. Haruka will also use his special technique to dominate Rin's ass and finish him with a devastating blow!
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Old 07-05-2013, 08:11 AM   #18
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So I watched the first episode.

It was pretty ridiculously clichéd.

But it was entertaining.

I already ship Makoto and Haruka, though it looks like they're going to push Haru/Rin
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Old 07-05-2013, 09:15 AM   #19
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I exercised for seven hours yesterday, and inspired by this show, I took off my shirt toward the end of it. I was expecting strange looks, but didn't get any thankfully. I guess running around with 60 year old guys who are equally shirtless makes me look good through comparison.
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Old 07-05-2013, 09:20 AM   #20
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Old guys LOVE being naked in the locker room. I swear to god, if you strike up a conversation with one, he'll be like, "Hold on one second" *takes off pants and underwear* "Okay, now what were you saying sonny?"
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Old 07-05-2013, 10:54 PM   #21
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So this anime won't be ALL homo eroticism. Haruka will also use his special technique to dominate Rin's ass and finish him with a devastating blow!
Wheeeeeeeeeeeeee.

and yeah. DEMPSEy ROll
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Old 07-06-2013, 05:14 PM   #22
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BORKED

there's a metaphor in there somewhere im pretty sure
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Old 07-06-2013, 06:39 PM   #23
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Everyone wants Rin.

He is easily the least-likable so far.

As always.
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Old 07-07-2013, 07:43 PM   #24
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These guys sure are experts at taking off their clothes! I should be taking notes or something.

Also I like your choice of words in saying Haruka dominating Rin's ass would be an example of what comes after all the homo eroticism.
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Old 07-10-2013, 05:43 PM   #25
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In all seriousness, the second episode was surprisingly pretty good. This isn't at all your typical sports anime. Had a few pretty funny moments, too. I GUESS I'll pick it up... *groan*.
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