Space Dandy S2 Episode 13

This final episode sure was a visual feast. Not much in way of thoughtful composition but this was a fast paced and action-centric episode, appropriately much of the focus was on delivering superb animation and exciting sequences. There was plenty of dynamic camera work, mostly composed of follow/tracking shots. The most impressive parts were the almost unnoticeable cuts that made the some of the action scenes looked seamless.

Look at all those perspective changes! There’s cut at the 15 sec. mark, where the camera position switches from side to front view. The switch in view didn’t really interrupt the flow of the action. The reason for this is the contours and color palette in the frames prior and after the cut were fairly similar.

The flash from the explosion at the 2 sec. mark is used to hide the cut. At the 8 sec. mark, extreme close ups are used to hide another cut.

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Nice use of progressing closer shots to build drama/tension. First a wide shot, mid-shot, close up and finally an extreme close up. In between them are eyeline matches between Dandy and the monitor, where he reaches out to what matters the most. The last shot of the monitor uses Dandy’s eyelids for a frame within a frame shot. This adds extra emphasis to Dandy’s primary motive for fighting. All these dramatic build up for the sake of that booty, topped off with a comical zoom.

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This shot is the only part of the finale that I didn’t like. The tower and its vanishing point are way too off center, which leaves all that empty space in left side and middle of the shot. It’s an unbalanced framing where the empty space comes off as the focus.