The 'Length Conundrum'
Let's open this discussion with an example we're all familiar with. Imagine your professor just assigned the class a critical essay on this week's lecture topics. Like all essay assignments you've ever received in your life, this one has a page limit, let's say, 4 pages. Can't be more, can't be less. As you sit down the night before it's due to finally complete (or start) the assignment, you're likely to face one of two problems:
1. You are struggling to meet the 4 page limit that was set for you, experiencing a lack of material to complete the essay or have simply answered the prompt in a concise manner.
2. You are struggling to trim down your essay to fit into the 4 page limit, left feeling like you could not adequately prove your point within the limit or that there is just too much material to be fit within such a small space.
Neither situation feels great for you: you either feel frustrated that you just can't seem to fill up those 4 pages with meaningful content, or cheated that you didn't have enough space to present your full thoughts. The page limit itself begins to subtly dictate your essay-writing experience, rather than having your focus be nailed to the prompt and the topic (as it should). You fill the pages up with meaningless garbage to get up to those necessary 4 pages. You cut some of your earlier valid points to trim down to exactly the page requirement.
Both options end up hurting the overall quality of your essay, although at this point it's 5:34 AM and your class is at 8:00. You get a nice cat-nap, drag your caffeine-addled self to class, turn in your paper, and pray to God that the next essay goes better for you.
If your professor keeps giving you a strict length requirement, it's likely to happen the same way all over again.
Claiming that mandated length can put a damper on the creativity or quality of a work is far from a stretch. We see it all the time in television and movies, with anime in particular being one of the worst offenders. Anime runs on a relatively small core force of talent and an even smaller pool of money, and is a medium that is for better or worse rich with adaptations of varying source material. Any sort of requirement outside of (usually) adhering to the source impacts a studio's final production dramatically. Viewer expectations and network blocks don't make this any easier; an episode runs for 24 minutes and a season is 11-13 or 24-26 episodes. Many a series has been ruined by needing to extend or shorten their material to meet these norms, whether that be through cutting/alteration of important source content or the addition of filler to pad out the season.
It's exactly for these reasons that I've found short-form series to be so refreshing as of late, with Planetarian, Space Patrol Luluco, and even incredibly dumber stuff like Okusama ga Seitokaichou being notable examples. Each one of these series has their content and delivery strengthened by their shortened runtimes, so much so that I'd never recommend any of them under any circumstances had they been full-length, 24-minute, 13 episode series. Well, maybe I'd still recommend Luluco to TRIGGER-heads, but a full-length version of Okusama would absolutely be a garbage fire and Planetarian would likely be brushed off as just another hamfisted Key feel-monger.
What's important to note with our two above short-form adaptations (Luluco is the only anime-original of the three) is that each has more than enough content to justify a full-length, full-season series. Planetarian has an original kinetic visual novel, three full drama CDs, and some additional in-print prequel and sequel content. Even though there is likely more than enough content to flesh out at least an 11 episode, 24-minute each series, this ONA is just a mere 5 episodes long with a total runtime of about an hour and half. If you didn't even know about the show until now, you'd be forgiven; it flew largely under the radar (like many short-form series) and was only available on FunimationNow for legal streaming in the US. Like other Key adaptations, this one will try to pull on your heartstrings, but thankfully Maeda is nowhere in sight and there's not enough time for the plot to grind to a halt like Clannad or get absolutely insane like Charlotte.
Planetarian's greatest strong point and stand-out quality when comparing it to other Key works is its focused plot and setting, coming out of necessity with length of the work. Rather than waste your time setting up a VN 'backbone' to satisfy an otaku audience, we jump right into a hard science fiction plot in a post-apocalyptic setting with our two main characters. With a series that's so short, I really don't want to get too much into the specifics of the plot, but Planetarian is a series that really tries to explore questions about the human condition, empathy, and our relationship with technology as it becomes more and more indistinguishable from the natural.
With themes so heavy, you'd think that Planetarian would feel like it's pressed for time, but it's actually the opposite. It feels like it doesn't "overstay its welcome". With a plot focused on just two characters and one core setting, anything more than what we got would feel forced or dragged-out. It's also pretty apparent that the choice to go for short-form was primarily focused on budget. David Production has never really been known for jaw-dropping visuals, but the backgrounds here are honestly stunning, accurately nailing that post-apocalyptic, sci-fi vibe, although the animation at times can be a little stiff outside of some action sequences. However, the budget definitely wasn't skimped out on for the musical score, with Orito bringing the same high-quality pieces that we've heard in shows like Clannad and Kanon (2006).
Planetarian is a perfect example of knowing when to "cut your losses" with a production and prioritize what's most important in making the work a success. By choosing to only adapt the core story of the franchise, which is plenty powerful in and of itself, it allows the work to stand alone stronger than it would if a full-blown adaptation of all material was attempted. It also has the benefit of allow the studio better use their budget on the fewer number of episodes, as well as to back out on follow up content if the project didn't do well financially. Never getting a sequel always sucks as fan, but it definitely hurts less if the first installment was more masterfully done and satisfying in its own right. Thankfully, Planetarian was fairly successful for an ONA, and has a movie set with content from one of the drama CD's sequel content scheduled to release later this year.
Okusama is a currently publishing manga with more than enough content on its own, but also has a precursor series with 8 full volumes. Far less source material has been adapted into full-blown shitty harem comedies, but alas, Okusama is just 8 minutes and 12 episodes. And it owns it. Don't get me wrong, the show is definitely low brow and filled with fanservice, but if it were extended out to a full 24 minutes, the genuinely funny situations would lose their charm and hilarity. At just 8 minutes, the show is honestly fantastically paced and each beat comes with at least hearty chuckle.
I only mention Okusama as it's a show that probably doubles in score from a 2/10 to a 4, or maybe even a 5 just by shortening it to the point where there is no room for filler or content that isn't related to situational comedy. In the grand scheme of things, Okusama probably didn't try to be this way, and is a product of the realization on the producer's part of a low budget and niche-popular piece of source material. The studio was straight up with what it had, and effectively removed its ability to "fuck it up". In terms of financials, short-form seems to have worked out, as the show somehow made enough money to even warrant a second season.
In terms of a show really showing the strengths of short-form as straight-up and simply as possible, Space Patrol Luluco wins by thousands of miles. An anime-original passion project by TRIGGER clocking in at only 7.5 minutes per episode, the show is absolutely off-the-walls insane. The pacing is frantic, constantly exciting, and throws more TRIGGER references in your face every second than you can count. The best way I can describe it is that it's Kill la Kill on crack with the 'context and story' cut down to fit the show's short form factor. TRIGGER even goes a step further to highlight the absurdity of the whole thing by claiming that every 3 episodes of Luluco (which would roughly equal a normal length episode at ~24 minutes) are considered a 'season'. It's pure fun, and I know that's not for everyone, but I honestly struggled so much to find fault with it that I couldn't consider Luluco anything less than perfect for what it was.
Had Luluco been a full-length series like Kill la Kill, I think it would have the exact same problems, as outside of the constant parodies TRIGGER does of itself with Luluco, both shows effectively try to do the same thing. They both undermine specific genre tropes in the beginning, and then go balls-to-the-wall insane, running with whatever they have until they just can't run any farther. Kill la Kill suffered when the show had to slow down to fill it's 24 episode, 24-minute-per-episode run, taking time to over-explain, provide back-story, and try to justify the crazy instead of just letting it all hang out and bring the viewers along for the ride. Luluco doesn't waste time trying to 'justify' itself, and quite frankly, it doesn't have any time to spare. Every episode is packed with content, and there isn't a single frame shown that isn't pivotal to the importance of each episode, or at least as far as you can consider anything in this kind of show 'important'. As it turns out, great ideas don't always have to take a long time to convey.
I know that I've really only talked about all the benefits of a short-form style show here, but unfortunately I've really never seen anything *yet* that truly benefited from having an extended runtime. In anime, we typically only get poor examples of what long length provides, such as the mass of long running shounen series that are rich with pure filler. However, there are definitely series that have standardized, but longer runtimes that nail it perfectly, losing no quality by running to the expected time limit. Any series that is typically regarded as "great" or a "classic" usually fits this criteria; something like Steins;Gate or Cowboy Bebop would be good examples. If you know of a series that really shined because it had the freedom to run as long as it wanted, please let me know on Twitter (@Beanwolf).
If I were to recommend anything I've talked about today for you to check out, it would definitely be Planetarian. Overall, it will only take about an hour and a half of your time, and it definitely deserves more of a following than it got here in the US due to bad licensing (i.e. not Crunchyroll). Okusama is actually bad, and I can't seriously recommend it to anyone outside of some raunchy comedy, and if you haven't already seen Luluco, you probably know that it isn't something for you. Or you just hate fun and don't have a soul. One of the two.
1. You are struggling to meet the 4 page limit that was set for you, experiencing a lack of material to complete the essay or have simply answered the prompt in a concise manner.
2. You are struggling to trim down your essay to fit into the 4 page limit, left feeling like you could not adequately prove your point within the limit or that there is just too much material to be fit within such a small space.
Neither situation feels great for you: you either feel frustrated that you just can't seem to fill up those 4 pages with meaningful content, or cheated that you didn't have enough space to present your full thoughts. The page limit itself begins to subtly dictate your essay-writing experience, rather than having your focus be nailed to the prompt and the topic (as it should). You fill the pages up with meaningless garbage to get up to those necessary 4 pages. You cut some of your earlier valid points to trim down to exactly the page requirement.
Both options end up hurting the overall quality of your essay, although at this point it's 5:34 AM and your class is at 8:00. You get a nice cat-nap, drag your caffeine-addled self to class, turn in your paper, and pray to God that the next essay goes better for you.
If your professor keeps giving you a strict length requirement, it's likely to happen the same way all over again.
 |
| "What the FUCK do essays have to do with my Chinese cartoons?" |
Claiming that mandated length can put a damper on the creativity or quality of a work is far from a stretch. We see it all the time in television and movies, with anime in particular being one of the worst offenders. Anime runs on a relatively small core force of talent and an even smaller pool of money, and is a medium that is for better or worse rich with adaptations of varying source material. Any sort of requirement outside of (usually) adhering to the source impacts a studio's final production dramatically. Viewer expectations and network blocks don't make this any easier; an episode runs for 24 minutes and a season is 11-13 or 24-26 episodes. Many a series has been ruined by needing to extend or shorten their material to meet these norms, whether that be through cutting/alteration of important source content or the addition of filler to pad out the season.
It's exactly for these reasons that I've found short-form series to be so refreshing as of late, with Planetarian, Space Patrol Luluco, and even incredibly dumber stuff like Okusama ga Seitokaichou being notable examples. Each one of these series has their content and delivery strengthened by their shortened runtimes, so much so that I'd never recommend any of them under any circumstances had they been full-length, 24-minute, 13 episode series. Well, maybe I'd still recommend Luluco to TRIGGER-heads, but a full-length version of Okusama would absolutely be a garbage fire and Planetarian would likely be brushed off as just another hamfisted Key feel-monger.
 |
| Do Waifus Dream of Electric Sheep? |
Planetarian's greatest strong point and stand-out quality when comparing it to other Key works is its focused plot and setting, coming out of necessity with length of the work. Rather than waste your time setting up a VN 'backbone' to satisfy an otaku audience, we jump right into a hard science fiction plot in a post-apocalyptic setting with our two main characters. With a series that's so short, I really don't want to get too much into the specifics of the plot, but Planetarian is a series that really tries to explore questions about the human condition, empathy, and our relationship with technology as it becomes more and more indistinguishable from the natural.
With themes so heavy, you'd think that Planetarian would feel like it's pressed for time, but it's actually the opposite. It feels like it doesn't "overstay its welcome". With a plot focused on just two characters and one core setting, anything more than what we got would feel forced or dragged-out. It's also pretty apparent that the choice to go for short-form was primarily focused on budget. David Production has never really been known for jaw-dropping visuals, but the backgrounds here are honestly stunning, accurately nailing that post-apocalyptic, sci-fi vibe, although the animation at times can be a little stiff outside of some action sequences. However, the budget definitely wasn't skimped out on for the musical score, with Orito bringing the same high-quality pieces that we've heard in shows like Clannad and Kanon (2006).
Planetarian is a perfect example of knowing when to "cut your losses" with a production and prioritize what's most important in making the work a success. By choosing to only adapt the core story of the franchise, which is plenty powerful in and of itself, it allows the work to stand alone stronger than it would if a full-blown adaptation of all material was attempted. It also has the benefit of allow the studio better use their budget on the fewer number of episodes, as well as to back out on follow up content if the project didn't do well financially. Never getting a sequel always sucks as fan, but it definitely hurts less if the first installment was more masterfully done and satisfying in its own right. Thankfully, Planetarian was fairly successful for an ONA, and has a movie set with content from one of the drama CD's sequel content scheduled to release later this year.
 |
| And you thought no one would have a positive opinion about this dumpster fire? |
I only mention Okusama as it's a show that probably doubles in score from a 2/10 to a 4, or maybe even a 5 just by shortening it to the point where there is no room for filler or content that isn't related to situational comedy. In the grand scheme of things, Okusama probably didn't try to be this way, and is a product of the realization on the producer's part of a low budget and niche-popular piece of source material. The studio was straight up with what it had, and effectively removed its ability to "fuck it up". In terms of financials, short-form seems to have worked out, as the show somehow made enough money to even warrant a second season.
 |
| JUSTICE |
Had Luluco been a full-length series like Kill la Kill, I think it would have the exact same problems, as outside of the constant parodies TRIGGER does of itself with Luluco, both shows effectively try to do the same thing. They both undermine specific genre tropes in the beginning, and then go balls-to-the-wall insane, running with whatever they have until they just can't run any farther. Kill la Kill suffered when the show had to slow down to fill it's 24 episode, 24-minute-per-episode run, taking time to over-explain, provide back-story, and try to justify the crazy instead of just letting it all hang out and bring the viewers along for the ride. Luluco doesn't waste time trying to 'justify' itself, and quite frankly, it doesn't have any time to spare. Every episode is packed with content, and there isn't a single frame shown that isn't pivotal to the importance of each episode, or at least as far as you can consider anything in this kind of show 'important'. As it turns out, great ideas don't always have to take a long time to convey.
------------------------------
I know that I've really only talked about all the benefits of a short-form style show here, but unfortunately I've really never seen anything *yet* that truly benefited from having an extended runtime. In anime, we typically only get poor examples of what long length provides, such as the mass of long running shounen series that are rich with pure filler. However, there are definitely series that have standardized, but longer runtimes that nail it perfectly, losing no quality by running to the expected time limit. Any series that is typically regarded as "great" or a "classic" usually fits this criteria; something like Steins;Gate or Cowboy Bebop would be good examples. If you know of a series that really shined because it had the freedom to run as long as it wanted, please let me know on Twitter (@Beanwolf).
If I were to recommend anything I've talked about today for you to check out, it would definitely be Planetarian. Overall, it will only take about an hour and a half of your time, and it definitely deserves more of a following than it got here in the US due to bad licensing (i.e. not Crunchyroll). Okusama is actually bad, and I can't seriously recommend it to anyone outside of some raunchy comedy, and if you haven't already seen Luluco, you probably know that it isn't something for you. Or you just hate fun and don't have a soul. One of the two.