/lit/ - Literature

>>20988194
Stay in your containment board

>>20988194
Technically they are books and some are decent, but on the whole I find them abhorrent. Half of them never end too. The prose is incredibly primitive until the author/editor replaced 5 words in a page with random, obscure synonyms.

Anime has a dopamine fix. Manga is great for a visual story of an obscure genre as many people can draw but not many can make it a film. LNs are anime scripts that don't even have the appeal of manga (4 mid illustrations in the entire thing)

I did like I'm in Love with the Villainess. The ones I've read I got through in 100pages/hour as I speedread. But with so much good stuff out there, I can't justify spending 3h+ on a 1/15 volume of a g/a/rbage story - I want my pictures to go along with that.

>>20988194
>LNs
Only Nisio is worth bothering with, but I do have a soft spot for Zeroth Maria. Naturally, they must be read in japanese, otherwise they're insufferable.

>>20988194
I haven't come across a single LN that wasn't hamfisted and awkwardly translated.

Does this count as light novel? It's like 500 pages long, a fairly thick hardcover book. The writing/translation was actually decent. Didn't read like an LN, just a normal fantasy type work in translation.

>>20988194
sex with this

>>20988387
sex with this

>>20988194
You first nerd

>>20988194
>So, what does /lit/ think of light novels?
They okay for what they are.

>>20988194
They are ok until someone says they are better and have more dept than stuff like Dostoevsky

>>20988590
But that's true.

>>20988194
99.999999% of LN’s are equivalent or worse than young adult fiction. Monogatari is the only non-terrible one I’ve ever come across. Many decent anime adapted from LN’s are often significantly better than their underwhelming LN source (e.g. Konosuba).

Tl;dr they are just bad novels for small children without the appeal of having as many pretty pictures as mango or flashing lights and sounds of an Anna May.

>>20988194
I actually think they're good in the sense that they're often a gateway into reading more. Japan's youth still have high rates of reading compared to the rest of the western world, and I think a lot of that can be attributed to LNs.
It also helps they primarily target a male demographic and give what a teenage boy wants in escapism: power, cute girls, all that kind of wish fulfillment. As opposed to the west where YA is about a black tranny and xer asexual chinese best friend overthrowing racism.

>>20988652
Dost is better than "okay".
And no, it isn't true that they're even okay

>>20988194
>So, what does /lit/ think of light novels?
They're easy to read and fun. Some of my favorite animes/mangas were LN adaptations.

>Would you consider them "real books"
Yes.

>Discuss.
Like >>20988678 said, it's a good gateway into reading more, especially for the average anon (compared to reading western bestsellers YA). In spite of that, even if you're not into anime you could still find some light novels enjoyable to read, as the majority of retarded weeb tropes translate poorly into the printed word. I may be wrong about that though because I only stick to certain genres.
Not all of them are good, but the same could be said for regular novels.
I also agree with >>20988590 but will add that "more depth" =/= "better", because /lit/ tends to equate the two (often purposely, due to elitism).
This >>20988333 is considerably true, but seeing how most of the books are easy to read, a botched translation isn't a problem. You can fill in the holes yourself.

>>20988678
Yeah unlike here in the west, japan actually tries to make books for young men. A lot of the popular light novels would never get published in the west. There are too many women in the publishing industry

>>20988879
Anon, do you know who also say this kind of stuff? Black and poc Americans that cry for representation. If some of them would tell you this:
>Yeah unlike here in the west, japan actually tries to make books for blacks and poc. A lot of the popular light novels would never get published in the west. There are too many white people in the publishing industry
What would you say to them?
Try to answer without sounding hypocrite please

>>20988902
The publishing industry is overhelming female centric and men are already writing the books but just aren't published because women think the books are aweful. Just look at royalroad or amazon. On amazon there are a lot of books that outsell traditional published book. There are tons of people reading shitty translated japanese novels. The demand is there.

If you think black people read at the same rate at white people, then the failure of the publishing industry to attract them, should obviously lead to them getting fired and replaced. But black men aren't writing those books in great numbers like others. Look at rr or amazon self publishing. There is no big numbers of black authors not getting published. Almost all asian or white

>>20988462
Sex with animals!?

>>20988194

They’re good in their own way. They tend to be simple and well, anime but they’re from Japan, what did you expect?

Off course you also have stuff like Youjo Senki, Kumodesu or Bookworm that’s way better than it has any right to be.

Mostly though it’s trash, but it’s the same for western literature.

>>20988956
Is the publishing industry female centric or simply the majority of the readers are women? Because for now the majority of books that were so popular online that they got published were for women (I'm talking about awful books like after and 50 shades) and I hardly believe that just because a book is for male is not getting published despite being more famous that the one I used as an example. I hardly believe that in places where so much money are involved people will not try to exploit everything just because of their morals and sexism

>>20988997
>I hardly believe that in places where so much money are involved people will not try to exploit everything just because of their morals and sexism
They don't think the things can make money. They think those books are trash. Why have traditional publishers never tried to bank in on the litrpg/cultivation trend?

>>20988194
I don't see the point of reading one. Anime/manga are better because of the visual element. Real novels are better because they are written better. LNs offer neither

So any one in these threads ever actually read an LN?
I just finished rereading Baccano Vol 1. Fun stuff. The bad thing about first volumes is they're always written as standalone because they are basically pilots that may or may not get picked up and continue. Or maybe that's a good thing. In any case they have a different tone from the read of the series.

>>20989078
Then why traditional publishers published so many books wrote by YouTubers just because they were famous and could make money out of it? Or this only happens in my country and so we really cannot talk about this since our country situation are too different?

Light novels just fucking suck to me on principle, none of the cool illustrations of manga and none of the music, sakuga and nice storyboard shots of anime. You're basically reading an anime script when the writing parts in anime are by far the weakest aspect of the medium.

>>20989112

Animes basically never finish and Mangas take forever.

The Light Novel version is usually the only one that actually ends.

>>20989112
You can say the same about novels and movies.

>>20988194
Spice and Wolfe is good because the author did his research on middle age economics.

>>20989697
That's really cool. I wish it was more expected from more authors

>>20988780
>a botched translation isn't a problem. You can fill in the holes yourself.
no, but it is very distracting, and that detracts from the reading experience. At worst, it can make it completely unbearable.

>>20988194
I liked them better circa 2010 when translators would put footnotes explaining obscure cultural references and wordplay instead of localizing it.

They can be good for what they are.

>>20989579
Another anon pointed out that half of them don't end. Its a serialized medium suffering with the same problems.

>>20989594
You misread my point. Movies do not offer what novels do. But novels do offer what LNs do and better than them

You're asking me? I consider them high literature

>>20988462
Really?

>>20988194
Prose is absolute trash. They are trash and only useful for learning to read japanesse. Read VNs instead since those have good music to go with the dogshit dialogue.

>>20988194
like reading the Japanese equivalent of Goosebumps

>>20988219
This is an anime website, pleb. Know your place.

>>20988194
we love whoro here

>>20992020
Isn't she pretty mean to Laurence?

>>20988194
There are "real books" that are worse than some of these. Literature is not just the medium, but the quality of the work. You're asking whether there are good LNs out there, and, considering the amount of LNs written, surely there must be some. Does that mean that light novels, generally, are literature? Honestly it's just semantics. I say the good ones are, the rest aren't. Don't ask me which are the good ones, I haven't read any light novel other than Overlord, but I assume there must be some

>>20991325
sex with that
NOW

>>20989718
Yeah, I really wish more authors put effort in their research.

>>20988902
It's funny, I think half the internet outrage that comes from racialized casting decisions happens because progressive ideology won out in part. The layman has now been convinced that Representation Matters. As such, it matters for them as well, and when it's taken away, rather than being an arbitrary creative choice or casting decision, it becomes an attack. I wonder if anyone would have given a shit about a black little mermaid in 1999.

>>20993149
No

>>20993990
I've had this exact thought. It really is poetic how the 'racial consciousness' progressives pushed so hard to instill in POC has caught on with EVERYONE, not just the minorities.

but back on topic, jap media is like any other kind of media, which is to say 90% shit. I'm glad I got into Bookworm, but maybe that's just low expectations speaking.

>>20988313
>the prose is incredibly primitive
>mid
Zoomers were a mistake.

>>20988194
Monogatari is really good shit but that's the only LN I've read

>>20993990
>because progressive ideology won out in part.
You could just say you've never read Yarvin.

>>20991951
Try rewording that in English esl.

>>20995097
Read spice and wolfe

>>20995102
I haven't it's true, want to expand on the perspective that would offer?

I haven't watched a single anime in 5 years.
Is there literally ANYTHING worthwhile that came out in that time?

I've seen more classics than you, so don't bother suggesting those.

>>20996228
no. anime died after 2010.

>>20996228
You made me realize it has already been 5 years since I watched my last anime, and it was the second season of a show from 7 years ago.
I guess I was never a true weeb, everything sounded like it was done million times before. Except maybe Kyo in Kyoto, but I was already reading manga of it.

>>20996264
Yeah the last thing I watched 5 years ago was a rewatch of an old show I love
it's quite sad how terrible anime is nowadays. I never tell people I spent like 5 years of my life watching it because they all assume I watch the faggotry that is anime nowadays

>>20988328
Zeroth Maria was the first ever light novel I tried and the last. It got praised as one of the best ones so I decided to start with it and it was just a horrible experience and put me off trying another if anyone considered that a peak of the medium. The translation could have been at fault but even some who read it translated thought of it as some masterpiece.

>>20988194
Same level as YA. Not literature, but if you enjoy reading them, go ahead.
Just don't make threads about them on /lit/.

>>20994168
I've heard that she occasionally tricks him into thinking she is going to leave him or that she is flirting with other men. That would make her a bad partner.

>>20996228
>>20996264
>>20996302
5 years ago so from 2017 onwards
Hell Girl 4th season
Made in Abyss (anime + movies, 2nd season announced for this year or next year I don’t remember)
Weathering with You
The Night is Short, Walk on Girl
Magical girls spec ops Asuka
Bunny girl sempai
Devilman Crybaby
FLCL movies
Steins;Gate 0
Vinland Saga
Evangelion 3.0+1.0

>>20995457
Sure don't start with Yarvin, read this short except by some cathedral member about him, then check out his stuff from there.
>>>/sci/14851845

>>20996767
No

>>20996810
Good list.

>>20996810
Horrible taste

>>20996810
>Made in Abyss
good
>The Night is Short, Walk on Girl
okay
>Devilman Crybaby
it's entertaining
>Vinland Saga
okay
>Bunny girl sempai
>Devilman Crybaby
>FLCL movies
>Steins;Gate 0
>Evangelion 3.0+1.0
all these are fucking trash though

>>20997031
>>20996834
Wait, why is /sci/ allowed to post pdfs?
Are we allowed to post pdfs here, but we don't because no one on this board reads? I've never seen this before

>>20996810
>>20997031
Made in Abyss is absolute trash. weightless tortureporn.
New FLCL movies were horrendously bad
Bunny girl Senpai is wannabe Monogatari but without the occasional good moments through all the pretentiousness that Monogatari does have.
Eva 3.0+1.0 I haven't seen but I can only imagine it's inferior to the TV show and EoE so I don't care whatsoever.
Devilman Crybaby is overrated, just mid-tier show.
Don't care about the other romcom garbage

Only really kino anime from your list is Night is Short, Walk on Girl
Vinland Saga is good but the manga is a 100x better

>>20997061
I forgot the exact boards, but it's not /lit/ for your very reason.
/sci/,/po/ and i think 5 others

>>20997099
oh i forgot /b/

>>20988194
The stuff from the 90s and 2000s is on the same level as western genre fiction, and there are some real gems like LOGH, NHK, Spice and Wolf, Toradora, but anything that was first published as a webnovel in the 2010s is worthless drivel without exception.

>>20997116
Oh wow dude that so true. everything from $LASTDECADE is truely not worth the paper it's printed on, now $((LASTDECADE-20)) that's the good shit.

Since you all have shit taste here are some REAL anime recommendations;

>Neon Genesis Evangelion + End of Evangelion
>Mushishi
>Legend of the Galactic Heroes
>Ghost in the Shell
>Ghost in the Shell: Standalone Complex s1 + s2
>Monster (2004) - one of the best thrillers in all of media
>Only Yesterday
>The Tale of Princess Kaguya
>All other Ghibli films
>Nana
>The Tatami Galaxy
>Ping Pong the Animation
>Perfect Blue
>Millenium Actress
>Gunbuster
>Gundam (many installments of the series but also a lot of trash in the gundam universe)
>Haibane Renmei
>Patlabor I and II
>Miss Hokusai
>Night is Short, Walk on Girl
>Serial Experiments Lain
>Spice & Wolf
>5cm per second
If you're a real nigga who doesn't mean super old stuff also watch
>Ashita no Joe
>Rose of Versailles

If you're a shounenshitter I guess Yu Yu Hakusho and Hunter x Hunter are the best although personally I believe Naruto and Bleach to be quite fun as well. Get a lot of hate for no reason when all of anime is trash.

>>20997151
>shounenshitter i guess Yu Yu Hakusho
>image is from Yu Yu Hakusho

>>20997158
I never said I disliked shounenshit. I like the big 3 as well as Hxh and YYH.
I've read most of them instead of watching them though

>>20997169
the Monster manga is better, I couldn't even make it through the anime after reading it.

>>20997172
Could be true, I must admit I've only seen the anime. Eitherway it's a masterpiece

>>20997177
The anime's pacing was truly garbage.

>>20997183
Nah it was just slow, not garbage. Anime fans just have no patience or attention span

>>20997188
It literally goes 10x faster than the manga you stupid nigger. 10 chapters in the first few scence.

>>20997189
Don't care faggot, faster =/= better by default

>>20997193
>can't read
No wonder you like anime, get the fuck of /lit/ before I crack open your skull, Darkie.

>>20997195
I've read more classic novels than you, incel freak

>>20997158
Image is Emperor Ganishka’s from Berserk demon form with a Gigachad’s head edited in.
But that’s guy is a clown byways. The other anon asked for anime that came out in the last 5 years

>>20988194
Season 3 never ever

>>20989579
>Animes basically never finish
Most anime is a 2-season spin off of a popular enough manga. They aren't planned to span the entire manga's story unless they are lucky and it's popular enough.

>>20996810
>ever recommending someone Evangelion 2011+1

>>20997233
What’s wrong with it?

I forgot to mention Netflix put out a Blame! movie in 2017

>>20996860
Why do you say "No"? Im pretty sure she did it in the anime as well. Flirting with one of Laurences friends.

>>20988194
What are "light novels"?

>>20997906
And Dorohedoro, Chainsaw Man and Nagatoro anime

>>20997922
>Chainsaw Man
I tried reading it as a teenager and couldn't get through the first book.
The MC is a cringey, whiny little brat, who constantly goes on about how dark and le sad he is; using this to justify being a vile subhuman.
It feels a bit like what a socially isolated 13 year old boy thinks is a cool character with a dark past.
It's essentially generic YA fantasy with guyliner and fake .

What makes something a light novel, as opposed to a novel?
Is it word count?
Just having manga style illustrations?

>>20997971
The same thing that makes a YA novel a YA novel. It is written specifically for a certain audience in mind.

>>20997944
I think you are confusing it with something else. It's capeshit

>>20998064
It’s the same shit.

>>20988194
They are real books as much as capeshit are real movies. It's a very broad category but overall they're bad.

Some genuinely good LNs I enjoy (ie. good prose and/or solid themes and/or engaging characters):
>Zaregoto
>Monogatari Series
>Perfect Blue
>Re:Zero

For the Japanese equivalent of western YA blockbusters but with improved prose and themes, Eighty-Six.

>>20988387
The anime for that was mediocre as hell but Nagatsuki is one of the better novelists in the genre, will pick this up.

>>20997909
Novels.

>>20999346
Oh.

I love LNs, my favorites are:
>Youjo Senki
>The Girl Who Ate a Death God
>Vampire Hunter D
>Slayers
>Full Metal Panic
>Kaze no Stigma

>>20996328
I'll be honest, it's not really well-written (no LN can claim that). It's entertainment, but only if you read it in japanese. The sentences sound so weird and stilted in english. LN translations are awful, so imo you shouldn't ever bother with reading LNs if you don't know jap, it's simply not worth it.

>>20999375
Good list.

I really enjoy the dialogue in the monogatari series. No idea how it reads in english, though.