Isekai "Quartet" #2: Overlord (The Anime One)
Confession time, weebotaks!
Over the past ten years, I have been a consensual victim of what is now being termed "games as a service." In the past, when I have felt bored, empty, disappointed, or any trigger emotion that I can find unjustifiable cause to justify acting upon, I have gone searching for games based on IPs that I enjoy, and given over to my obsessive-compulsive, completionist tendencies, to the tune of tens of thousands of dollars of sunk costs per game. Whether it be now-defunct browser games or thriving mobile RPGs, they would become more "important" to me than my family, my home, my friends, my education, or my growth and independence as an adult. I have been asked many times for a "good enough reason" why I, as a math enthusiast of a previously sound financially conservative nature who is aspiring to be an accountant, essentially gambled away my future and the security of my household for the sake of having data that does nothing to justify its cost. I have given reasons, just for the sake of answering "Why?"--a question that, no matter your demographic or the context of it, inevitably comes down to two answers: either the reasons are too numerous and singularly unsatisfactory for the inquisitor to lead to anything but a frustrating, circular line of questioning, or sometimes, people just do things. For example, say, a scientist's child asks them why the sky is blue. That's just how the ozone layer filters sunlight. This then turns into a free education on the formation of the ozone molecule, chemical light refraction, the composition of the sun, astrophysics, and things of bigger and bigger scale until our hypothetical scientist starts repeating, "I don't know," which turns into the child asking, "but why don't you know?" This may then lead to an inquest dialogue on neuroscience, psychology, philosophy, evolution, the differing views that exist on the validity of creationism, and finally, the reason why kids love Apple Jacks even though it doesn't taste like apples: "I don't know; they just do."
So, to summarize, the "why" question is a frustrating rabbit hole full of circular logic, frustration, pain, and ill will that satisfies no one. Games as a service is a cancerous business model that uses FOMO baiting tactics to prey on addictive personalities with no tangible, meaningful benefits to the users of said "service." And most importantly, I am a horrible, gullible person living in a self-imposed Purgatory state at the detriment of my personal relationships and foreseeable financial future. I am sorry for so frivolously jeopardizing the lives of those I love and destroying the trust they once held in me, for the sake of something so meaningless. They deserve better, and I am in the process of fighting my way back to a place, mentally, emotionally, and financially, where I can give them that. I realize that I don't always discuss my amends process with them, or express remorse or explain my motivations to their satisfaction, but that does not change the fact that I am remorseful and working to improve myself. As someone who has repeatedly suffered the negative effects of his own obsessive thoughts and actions, I believe that to dwell on things done which cannot be undone would not benefit my ability to function on a daily basis, and so I cope by acknowledging my wrongdoing and leaving it at whatever door I need to walk through, my residence included.
With that said, I finally arrive at the threshold of AniMonday with another apology. I'm sorry, but I saw no better time to confess my current situation, nor any better way to introduce the topic of today's Isekai "Quartet" entry. I usually begin these posts with something more lighthearted and energetic. If you have any thoughts on the above or today's series, remember to click those social media buttons and express yourselves in the comments below. As always, a SPOILER Warning! is in effect if you decide not to watch Overlord before reading what comes next. You can catch all three seasons dubbed on Funimation for a modest subscription fee. Now, here's the jump....
Stay tuned, as next week, I continue my coverage of the Isekai "Quartet" anime collection with a look at some of its (subjectively) lesser quality series. Also, I plan to review the other Overlord for Just the Ticket later this week, and provide more Loki coverage. If you haven't yet, hit those social media buttons and leave your opinions down below.
As always, here's the list of links if you want to check out what these services have to offer:
* Tower Of God, God Of High School, and Noblesse
Out.
Comments
Post a Comment