Hazama K's nonsensical journal

Anime Odd Thoughts Lot (first two weeks of April, Apr/15/07, yay for new series)

2007-04-15T18:26:00.000-04:00

ぼくらの第01話「ゲーム」 Bokurano 01 "Game"

Eerie is the word to describe feeling I get from watching Bokurano(ぼくらの[Ours]), a new anime series from anime studio Gonzo. Bokurano is adapted from a manga of the same name, currently being serialized in monthly magazine "IKKI" (japanese). The few years-old IKKI is a relatively new magazine compare to the other manga anthologies like Shounen Sunday (publish every Wednesday, lol, from the same publisher 小学館 [Shougakukan]), first published way back in the 50s (if I recall correctly). I'm pretty sure this is the first time I hear the name of the monthly magazine. However, many of you must have at least heard of the mangaka Kitou Mohiro (鬼頭莫宏), probably from another one of his works Shadow Star - Narutaru (なるたる I used to call it a X-rated Pokemon... for graphic violence).

Don't get me wrong though, I love the new show, so much that I start digging into the first volume of the manga series. Six volume is available, I try hard to restrain from spoiling myself so I stopped at the end of volume one. But seriously, the intro (opening - アンインストール by the talented 石川智晶[Ishikawa Chiaki] of see-saw fame, she did the ending song too) sequence have already given away a whole lot already. The imagery (and the title of the song, which I shall reveal later in the post) hinted heavily the story is going to be somewhat tragic.I was especially captured by the sequence I dubbed "running tears". It's always cinematic to put something like that in film, but I doubt anyone could do it well in a live-action film since the tears will be hard to see unless you digitally enhance it. Before I wander further away from the main topic, I'll explain the eerie atmosphere I sense from watching the first episode. In most of the mecha anime series (and non-mecha) I've seen, BGM (background music) or the theme songs play a major role in it. A great example is the theme in the anime series Evagelion ("Angel Attack" in particular), it made a really deep impression on me from the very first episode. However in Bokurano, the battle theme created a different feeling that I can't describe, the theme is very subtle, compile with mostly concisions. I could barely notice it and at times mistook it for the mechanical noise from the giant machines battling. Expecting a epic theme perform by an orchestra has became a habit from watching all the good old mecha anime like Mazinger and GettaRobo (now I have to get those out of my head...). Let see if they will use different themes as our heroines and heroes take the lead in each battle.

Now that I get that out of the way, let's talk a little bit about the plot itself. I'll keep this as short as possible since I'm afraid I might give away too much without knowing. Similar to most mecha anime of the golden era, Bokurano is a story about a group of your average (emo) teenagers saving the world piloting a powerful mega-sized "robot". 15 youngsters were brought together by a exchange program in a summer camp near the shore. After an activity at the beach, curiosity took them to a nearby cave and they meet a man named Kokoperi(ココペリ) inside. Thus, the "game" begins...

the manga:

It's hard to talk about another one after Bokurano, as a side note, I was surprise that I only took three screen shot from it. It's an indication of how involve I was watching the series. So anticipate (a lot) more Bokurano talk from me in the coming weeks.

Part of my huge screen-cap gallery as I purge them:

I demand more time to sample the entire list of the new series! Let me know if I'm missing something... (btw some pics is on my other computer, so some series are missing up there)

Anime Odd Thoughts Lot (Week of Mar/25/07, )

2007-03-25T15:47:00.001-04:00

Not a very present week for us... feel a little better yesterday, thanks to the decent weather and a great futbol game (+anime). I'm glad that the lady knights got into the elite eight too.

REIDEEN 第04話「影との戦い」 REIDEEN 04 [The battle with shadow]

I really enjoy this new series. In this episode, we finally got to see some reminiscent super-mecha action that fits a remake of a 70's mecha anime (to me, that's not much diffience between a breast-o fire attack and a shot from the mega bazooka launcher). The mecha choreography might be weak compare to the newer anime, but it's obvious that the show's focus was not on the mecha (see the OP). I was a bit surprised that the show wasn't well received by the viewers, at least on some forums....

This series remind me the new wave of comedy shows without the audience reaction track (for example, "The Office" and "My name is Earl" which weren't recorded in front of live audience like most "traditional" american comedy shows). Why? Humors in a show don't need to be point out by a "laugh track". As for the anime show, you don't need to see chibi-lize characters with the comedic deliverance. I love how they use Sakita... I meant Maedasaki Tarou(前田崎太郎) as a relieve character in the show.

月面兎兵器ミーナ第11話「最終アナウンス」 Getsumen Toheiki mi-na 11 [The final announce(ment)]

Don't you think the ending is a bit rushed?? It could certainly use a couple more episode to introduce to us the rest of the mi-nas, don't you think? (葉月ミーナ(haduki? mi-na)と白鳥ミーナ(shirodori? mi-na)from らぶ天(rabuten)... please?)

Shiwasu mi-na(師走ミーナ) must be the weakest mi-na in the universe... unless her (fleet of) battle ship is her weapon... still Ootsuki and Tsukishiro took care of it with ease.

We finally get to see Ootsuki's juujitsu sequence!!! too bad there was no narration for it... either way I think you'll appreciate it, right?

I almost forgot to mention Sasakura Ryuu (and CV: Mizushima Takahiro) actually made a cameo in the last episode (why not this one too?), I wonder if anyone caught that...

コードギアス反逆のルルーシュ第22話「血染めのユフィ」Code Geass 22 (bloodstained Yufi)

The title of the episode said it all... I never saw this coming tho, I was expecting something else.

ロケットガール第05話「イグニッション -ignition-」 Rocket Girls 05 (ignition)

Heading to space already! They must have some superior diapers at SSA to go with the skin-tight spacesuit. It would be nice for them to develop a bra for Yukari to make her feel more comfortable under that spacesuit...

Anime Odd Thoughts Lot (Week of Mar/11/07, bring on spring break!)

2007-03-11T15:52:00.000-04:00

There are quite a few series that has made their debut in February and March. Let's look at some of them in this week's OTL: (Warning: The following OTL contains lame content and engrish intended for mature audiences. Viewers discretion is advised.)

獣装機攻ダンクーガノヴァ Dancouga Nova (premiered Feb/15) and

REIDEEN(premiered Mar/3)

I put these two together for obvious reason. They are both remake of popular^{(citation needed)} mecha anime from decades ago. You know exactly what to expect from these type of shows: (spoiler warning!)
protagonist(s) meet robot(s), big bad monstor threatens humanity, robot saves the world...

If I recall correctly, REIDEEN is one of those macho good-vs-evil, monstor-of-the-week type of mecha anime from the good old 70's. The new show bear the same name, but I consider it more of a franchise reboot than a remake. Everything has changed in both new series. The characters, plot(Dancouga might be a sequel tho), characters and mecha designs are all new. In fact, the new REIDEEN share a little if at all design clues of the oh-so-colorful singing REIDEEN in that 70's show(no pun intended).

Now Dancouga Nova is a bit of a disapointment for me. I didn't hold high hope for it anyway. The original Dancouga is one of my favorite mecha anime along with the Gundam trilogy, Godmars and Macross in the 80's. I would consider the original to be in the "more realistic" type anime which has spawned after the success of Gundam and Macross. While the robot-action was the focus of the show, that's great character development as the young protagonists get involved in a militant organization. The new show somehow lost the realistic touch and I would consider it as random fan-service madness as seen in the likes of Gravion (you should be glad if you have no idea what Gravion is)

MOONLIGHT MILE ムーンライトマイル 1stシーズン -Lift off- (premiered Mar/3)

This is one ambitious project for Studio HIBARI (スタジオ雲雀). They must have some deep pocket sponsors backing them up for this series. This must have been the first time I see producers put the "1st season"(1stシーズン) moniker within the title before the series even begin. I'm a big sci-fi anime fan, therefore despite some downfall in the very first episode, I'll stick with it as I have read a couple chapters of the manga and find this series intriguing (plot-wise).

The first episode started very slow, and there are sexually explicit scenes that are totally unnecessary. It wouldn't make any impact if they cut those out in my opinion. Also I would like to see changes in the anime adaptation for the major mistakes/misconception of physics in space(gravity in orbits... etc) seen in the manga.

ロケットガール Rocket Girls (premiered Feb/21)

My favorite of all the new 2007 anime so far. The right balance of storytelling, humor, fan-service and visuals. The voice actors did a superb job too (but I wouldn't be a good critic on that, since I could actually tolerate cartoon-network-grade dubs). I would probably put up the opening song "Rise" one of these days. Some fansubbers should pick this one up soon, at least I hope.

This is running long already, I'll talk about new OVA like Genshiken 2, Ichigo Mashimaro 1 and Mai-Zhime Zwei 2 some other time then... Oh, I wish I could do the OTL on Code Geass and Getsumen Toheiki too...

Anime Odd Thoughts Lot (week of Mar/04/07, new banner, same lame content)

2007-03-11T15:48:00.000-04:00

This is a bit late because I spend the time making the new banner on YGTB2 Sunday... the reference?
obvious: House (american TV drama) - cane twirling dude
not-so-obvious: Yakitate-Japan (anime/manga) - Brad Kidd(?)'s thumb up
no one on this planet would get: Black Jack (anime/manga) - The name kuroo and Brad's costume

too lazy to type this week, so I'll give you this week's list and rank them by personal preference:

#1: コードギアス反逆のルルーシュ第19話「神の島」 Code Geass 19

I'm not a big fan of Gundam Seed, but I do remember the island episode. GS fans will definitely send out more hate mail to Sunrise after seeing this one, lol. What a fan-service-filled episode!

May be Oranji-kun has become an alter user? Shell buuuuuulleeeettt-o!!!!!

#2: 月面兎兵器ミーナ第08話「不機嫌なナコル」 Getsumen Tohenki Mi-na 8

My "guilty pleasure", an action/fan-service comedy. This episode pretty much disproof my Kanchi-theory completely... but then there's no logic in comedy/parody series like this?!

#3: がくえんゆーとぴあまなびストレート！第08話「たたかえ聖桜生徒会！」 Manabi Straight-o 8

I think this series deserves it own post (I've been working on one). It's not a "must see" series but certainly refreshing for a school life series that take place in the near future.

#4: のだめカンタービレ第08話「Lesson 8」 Nodame Cantabile 8

You just can't get rid of franz...lol

#5: 武装錬金第22話「決断を要す」 Busourenkin 22

This episode is more story telling than action, at least "Buster Baron" make an appearance.

The rest of the...
Saint October セイントオクトーバー第09話「ロリ潜入！その時、TVに映った超大物が！」
Just tune in to see how this show is going. Now I know why it got quite some negative reviews from bloggers everywhere.

NARUTO -ナルト- 疾風伝第4話（224）「砂の人柱力」

I'm officially dropping this series, now that the Kakashi fight has ended. I have already dug into my friend's manga up to volume 33.

幕末機関説いろはにほへと第21話「海峡渡る」
<forgot to take screencap>
Yawn... no picture for a good reason... look on the bright side... only a couple more episodes to go

more on 秒速5センチメートル

2007-02-28T00:22:00.000-05:00

The theme song of 5cm/s(秒速5センチメートル byousoku 5 senchimetoru) by Yamasaki Masayoshi-san. If a picture worth a thousand words, then this video will be enough to sway you to waste 30 minutes watching the sneak preview (hopefully fan-subbed by now?)!

The chinese translation in the video is spot-on! However some could argue that ホーム can also means a train platform.
The lyrics:

One more time, One more chance
歌手：山崎まさよし
作曲：山崎将義
作詞：山崎将義
編曲：森俊之

これ以上何を失えば心は許されるの
どれ程の痛みならばもういちど君に会える
One more time 季節ようつろわないで
One more time ふざけあった時間よ

くいちがう時はいつも僕が先に折れたね
わがままな性格がなおさら愛しくさせた
One more chance 記憶に足を取られて
One more chance 次の場所を選べない

いつでも捜しているよどっかに君の姿を
向いのホーム路地裏の窓
こんなとこにいるはずもないのに
願いがもしも叶うなら今すぐ君のもとへ
できないことはもうなにもない
すべてかけて抱きしめてみせるよ

寂しさ紛らすだけなら誰でもいいはずなのに
星が落ちそうな夜だから自分をいつわれない
One more time 季節ようつろわないで
One more time ふざけあった時間よ

いつでも捜しているよどっかに君の姿を
交差点でも夢の中でも
こんなとこにいるはずもないのに
奇跡がもしも起こるなら今すぐ君に見せたい
新しい朝これからの僕
言えなかった｢好き｣という言葉も

夏の想い出がまわる　ふいに消えた鼓動

いつでも捜しているよどっかに君の姿を
明け方の街桜木町で
こんなとこに来るはずもないのに
願いがもしも叶うなら今すぐ君のもとへ
できないことはもう何もない
すべてかけて抱きしめてみせるよ
<>いつでも捜しているよ
どっかに君の破片を
旅先の店新聞の隅
こんなとこにあるはずもないのに
奇跡がもしも起こるなら今すぐ君に見せたい
新しい朝これからの僕
言えなかった｢好き｣という言葉も

いつでも捜してしまうどっかに君の笑顔を
急行待ちの踏切あたり
こんなとこにいるはずもないのに
命が繰り返すならば何度も君のもとへ
欲しいものなどもう何もない
君のほかに大切なものなど

Don't take the romaji from the youtube page though... and the engrish translation there is just...(what do you expect a chinese to english translation for a japanese song?)

my rough translation:
願いがもしも叶うなら今すぐ君のもとへ
if my wish can be granted; I'll come for you immediately
できないことはもう何もない
There's nothing I wouldn't do
すべてかけて抱きしめてみせるよ
I'll put everything on the line to hold you tightly

Cherish the time we have together, for we might not see each other tomorrow. Otherwise you have to sing sad song like this when your love ones(and yours truly) are no more.

In other words, instead of watching stupid break dance video on youtube or playing FF XI by yourself, you could spend more time playing Halo2 or Street Fighter with me while I'm still around! Of course you can cook me food if you are not into video games, lol.

Anime Odd Thoughts Lot (Week of Feb/25/07, time for anime talk again)

2007-02-25T13:35:00.000-05:00

秒速5センチメートル 第1話桜花抄 (5 centimeter per second, or in american english: 2 inches per second)

One of the most stunning visual from any anime I've seen. It's a shame that the preview comes in a somewhat low-definition 640x360 version. This will probably be the first HD-DVD or Blu-ray disc I'll get later this year. What interesting about this somewhat ordinary love story is that it started in the early 90's (the first episode or first part, 90-94 to be precise... see below) It is a piece consist of three short stories on the long distance relationship between Takaki and Akari in different perspectives.

In the early 90's, it was an era just before the cellular phone became popular. It brought back memories of the time when I have to physically wrote letters and mail it to my friends back in my old home. Eventually it has switch to electronic mail and message, and then my busy life here make me lost contact with them for quite a long period of time. I assume that is what happen in the later episodes which I have yet to see. (In theater March 3rd in japan, the rest of the world probably won't see it until the DVD comes out)

I won't spoil it for you since I'm sure some fan-subbers are already working on this. Here's the proof that the first part of the story happened in between 90-94:

Monday, April 9,1990

Monday, April 8, 1991

Friday, March 4th, 1994

NARUTO ナルト疾風伝 Naruto Shippouden 1-3

I'm no shounen series fan, but I have known enough about Naruto to enjoy the prologue of the "new" series. That eight minutes was very exciting since we get to see "him" again... I assume they(TV Tokyo and ぴえろ) really put more production values into this to lure the old Naruto fan back. The episode looks a bit better than the "old" series (so far). However the pace is painstakingly sloooooooowww. So if you have a problem sleeping or staying asleep, tune in for the many staring contests.

コードギアス反逆のルルーシュ第18話枢木スザクに命じる Code Geass 18

Words can't descripe how much fun this series really is. I have two words and punctuation marks for you: orange-kun?! (love his evil grin in the OP)

武装錬金第21話 Busourenkin 21 Gone into flame

Now this's some fast pace shounen action here. This episode introduce another one of my favorite charaters 坂口照星大戦士長 (Sakaguchi Shousei the Great Chieftain).

獣装機攻ダンクーガノヴァ Dancouga Nova 1-2

Way too cheesy...if you know what I mean. The chance of me dropping this series is high, and it speaks volume coming from a Mecha-nuts. But then I bet no one will subtitle this for you neither.

OVA watch:

2/23: 舞-乙HiME Zwei (Mai-Otome Zwei) Vol.2
Not a single appearance of Mai or Mikoto here, I think I'll skip it...

2/25: 苺ましまろ (Ichigo Mashimaro) OVA Vol.1
Cute Loli series are a dime a dozen these days. But Ana-chan and Miyu are simply irresistable, no?

Other stuff I look forward to in February:
Master Grade Hi-v(v is the lower case Greek nu) Gundam from Bandai, so a MG Nightingale is in the works too?

That's all the time I have for this week, you'll see more in the coming week since I have cached up many post in the back log.

Anime Odd Thoughts Lot (Feb/11/07, lazy edition)

2007-02-12T23:18:00.000-05:00

a line or two on anime episodes I watched in the past two weeks... (since I didn't do one last week)

コードギアス反逆のルルーシュ第17話 Code Geass 17 騎士

Another full episode of mecha action... hmm, I thought one way or another that Lulu knew Suzaku was Lancelot's pilot? Why didn't CC told him already? She knew, right?
btw, I think Toudou's unit looks a bit like the good old Griffin (from Patlabor)... may be it's just me

幕末機関説いろはにほへと第18話 Irohanihoheto18 宿命哀れなり

It finally happened, but I suppose everyone expected it already... No, I wasn't talking about Rook's fate... I guess Enomoto's Geass is too powerful for the poor Rook.

武装錬金第19話 Busourenkin 19 君さえ守れれば

I miss a few episode and it's already heading to Captain Bravo and Kazuki's second battle! The series is moving really fast, not to mention the many changes from the original story. At this pace, Xebec could certainly finish the series in 26 episodes. I'll tune in this week too for the Bravolous action.

のだめカンタービレ第4,5話 Nodame Cantabile 4,5

The freshness has worn off but still enjoyable. For the first time they have skipped one chapter in the manga. These two episodes are still quite faithful to the manga. The new professor Franz fall into one of the classic anime stock character type: a famous old legend who happens to be a pervert. In other words, he's the "real type" ero-sennin(エロ仙人: Kamesennin, Jiraiya...), lol.

REIDEEN ライディーン先行放送版(と原作) Reideen(remake) preview(plus the original Reideen...)

Big difference from the original... I like it so far, at least the animation looks better than the original. It is a complete makeover, even the mecha design has nothing remotely resembles the original Reideen. Of course you won't see Akira in his oh-so-colorful costume in this one. In fact, the ladies might appreciate the new hero Saiga Junki wearing nothing in the "cockpit" (no pun intended).

月面兎兵器ミーナ第4,5話 Getsumen Tohenki Mi-na 4,5

New Mi-na yay! The cherry weapon gets its own launching sequence too (in ep. 5)

Anime Odd Thoughts Lot (week of Jan/28/07, attack of the cold weather)

2007-02-12T23:16:00.000-05:00

Not much is going on in Iroha (Hijikara the ex-shinsengumi make an appearance tho) I have miss Busourenkin and Major 3rd season for two weeks now... Kinda upset that Mao's fate didn't turn out to be the way I expected in Code Geass... so I'll put the spotlight on two of my current favorites Nodame and Mina:

のだめカンタービレNodame Cantabile Lesson 3:
A truly faithful adaptation from the original manga. The tiny changes only makes the anime series more enjoyable. I have read the manga of Deathnote and now I have almost zero interest in watching the anime series or the live action movies. Since a lot of the interest generated from the sense of suspense in the plot. I'm not watching the anime series to "relive the moment" since I have no emotional attachment to Yagami or L like someone I know(you know you are!). The same can't be said for Nodame though, I can watch it again and again just to hear "Gyapo~~~~"(ぎゃぼぉぉ~, the goofy noise Nodame makes), as much as the classical music. This is a series that you will enjoy even if you have read the manga.

Here's an example of the subtle humor that the manga readers will appreciate (from ep2, changed from the original food stealing scene):

sneaky sneaky...

mission accomplished!

the original(click to enlarge), which was cut in the anime
wait, I never discuss anything on episode 3... oh well...

月面兎兵器ミーナ Getsumen Toheiki Mina ep3 やくそくの魔球
(I just don't know how to translate 魔球... think of it as magical balls, really, amazing nuts anyone? lol)
My odd thought is on the secret identity of Ootsuki Mina, a lot of fans suspect that 甲州翠怜(Koushou Suiren), the anchor of "Sports Luna", is Ootsuki Mina(大月ミーナ) because of this (drawing featured in the ending):

I think GUNZO is trying to confuse you innocent viewers. You see, on the left, Ootsuki is Tsukuda/Tsukishiro's senpai. On the right, Suiren is Tsukuda's senpai in Sports Luna!

definition of crossplay: a male dress up as a fictional female character or vice versa.
In this case, I think 羽蝉寛治(Hazemi Kanchi) might be crossplaying Ootsuki Mina, check this out

the last three are the one in question...(left to right, Ootsuki, Kanji, Suiren) just who's Ootsuki Mina? now tell me 寛治(Kanchi) doesn't look like Ootsuki more than 翠怜(Suiren)... Look at the rest of the rabbit force, their hair don't change much after they transform.

I haven't find any evidence to prove or disprove the Suiren theory or my theory so far. Come on, I want to meet other members of the rabbit force!

...

Anime Odd Thoughts Lot (extreme edition, week of jan/21/07, new series yay!)

2007-01-22T12:35:00.000-05:00

Despite someone telling me that "people don't care about what you think, they surf the web for information. forget the OTL thing", I'll keep doing this. I understand that many random visitors came here because they want info on the subject I talk about most... (and furuhausu --> full house, the american TV comedy, lol). But I started this because absolutely NO ONE ELSE (in real life) can I discuss the many obscure series I picked up. I'm sure our friendly fansubber doesn't want 1000 words comments for every single one of his posts. Taste the extreme edition, Sean! lol

This is dubbed "extreme edition" because I have dig out most the unpublished(private) OTL from last two weeks and throw them at you all at once, lol

コードギアス Code Geass 14-ギアス対ギアス (Geass vs. Geass)

I can't wait to see all pizza hut girls to wear C.C.'s costume, too bad I'm a domino's guy (my local PH doesn't deliver to my place):

That Mao guy is as annoying as I do, the annoying clapping is my trademark gesture for sarcastic applause too. Wait, I'm also obsessed with C.C. They could certainly cast me if they're doing a live action "Geass". I think I read somewhere that he's chinese as well? perfect casting.

ショートDEアニメ魂 Short de anime tamashi ep03

The style in neko-ramen has change completely from ep01. Now I wish I could get ep02, can someone please put that up? The 3D features in this one is a heart warming story of a boy's confession of love (silent, but with BGM, SFX)

月面兎兵器ミーナ Getsumento Heiki Mina 01,02

I didn't check if any fansub group has pick this one up. This is one anime that RandomRay君 didn't mention. I must say I'm a sucker for this type of "mecha-girl" stuff. Moreover, I like 佃美奈(Tsukuda Mina) and the Sports Luna crew. I'm offically a 電車男(denshaotoko) now!

ウィンターガーデン Winter Garden first half, second half

The first half was brilliant until the last minutes of the episode. I'm almost convinced that Takorou is a cheating boyfriend until the little conversation right before the ending song starts. I'm no cheating husband/boyfriend but I would like to see one in anime (Harem anime doesn't count). I guess I'm just a cynical jerk. Hey, most of our real life stories don't have happy endings.

And then the second episode... out of nowhere I heard the name Dijiko... what? roll that back... okay that's Dijiko all right, and then of course finally someone called Puchiko by name too. I thought it was an original anime... Clearly anyone could see "Di Ji Character" and "Pu Chi Character" in the first half's credit. I usually pay no attention to these details (VA, director, etc.). It all make sense to me now... so I'm the only one who didn't know that the series was based on DiGi Chara... Again they have to make it a happy ending while I was expecting a sad one...

のだめカンタービレ Nodame Canta...blah lesson2

Another nicely done episode from J.C. Staff, I'll definitely dig up some dirt on the cast and staff and post it later. To appreciate it greatness, I actually went to my friends' place and sit through the final episode of the drama (I thought my standard was low). The drama did a great job to translate some of the animated violence and facial expression (below), but it just doesn't seem natural to me. Plus the Cello/Bass turning thing in the concert is gay beyond words. I would probably walk away in the middle of the show if I wasn't gagged and chained to the chair.

幕末機関説いろはにほへと Irohanihoheto 第15話「秘刀共鳴す」(Secret sword resonates)

I seems that Akizuki has finally show more emotion in this episode under a new scriptwriter (吉田伸さん). This "honeymoon" episode introduces three intriguing characters, the three sisters that appears to have connections to Shouten-sama and Akizuki. The next episode will have yet another new scriptwriter... I expect a very slow episode next week.

メジャー MAJOR 3rd season ep1,2

He can pitch like a tsunami! (Real tsunami warning within the Saturday evening show, ep 2)

With a whopping 61 original manga volumes in circulation, I'm not surprise that "Major" got its 3rd season in 3 years with this much materials on hand. Each episode in the Major series usually covers a lot of ground. The only exceptions are the major matches in the series. Since Gorou still doesn't belong to a team currently, I guess the pace will not slowdown until he get his team. Like other sports anime, our main protagonist beat stronger enemy that's coming his way time after time in miraculous fashion. This time I'll have to see what Gorou can pull off in a former all-girl school that doesn't even has a baseball team. By the way, is this the only sports anime currently on air?

Did I talk about new series "saint october" and "les mis"? I forgot about "Busourenkin" and "Kekkaishi" too! maybe next time... this is too much... and trust me, Peter君, I can expand thoughts for each series to a full length academic thesis, lol.

Anime OTL (cross post)

2006-12-30T15:03:00.001-05:00

ANIME Odd Thoughts Lot(week of Dec/30/06-bowl games yay, Rutgers yay)

Many series are on vacation, or so I heard. With the day off on Tuesday, I finally have time to do some catch up on anime series that I'm behind. Disclaimer: this animeOTL will be spoiler filled, since many series are coming to an end. I just can't make it spoiler free in this one, but then the chances are you are not watching these series or have already finished it yourself. Also I didn't have time to watch an episode twice this week, so if I get the plots mixed up, feel free to correct me.

働きマンHatarakiman 10,11(end)

Like all other episodes in the series, you get a lot to digest for each one. Rather it's the insight of the life in a publisher, the relationship between Matsukata and her colleagues, or Matsukata's love life; I never finish a episode feeling unsatisfied. Most episode are standalone too, that's why I don't have to scramble to catch it everyweek.

Am I glad that I'm watching the two episodes together, the cliffhanger in 10 can certainly make me go nuts for a good week. The two episodes covers the same timeline with different focus, the first one on Kazi while the last episode put the spotlight on our heroine Matsukata.

*MAJOR spoilers*

I'll just discuss the two episodes as a whole, these two covered the Mogi-sensei incident, Matsukata's flooded apartment, and the end of her relationship with Yamashiro Shinji. With that much happening, another episode in Shinji's prospective will be interesting too, I certainly want to explore his thought leading to the breakup.

We see the difference in character between the two editors in the set of the episodes. Kazi is the more experienced female editor in the publisher, she never let the pressure gets to her. Unlike Yumi, she doesn't need to rely on her charm at all to get the work done. Her good looks just happened to make her life easier at the publisher. She's keen to observes others feeling too, perhaps she is the only one to realize Matsukata's breakup. She also handle Yumi's confrontation well.

Would you choose your career over your relationship? I would choose my family every time, but apparently Matsukata is the type to put her career in front of everything. If I recall correctly, she even spend time on work immediately after the split. This demonstrate her dedication to her career. It might be for the better, once they reach certain achievement, I can see them rekindle their relationship. I can write a paper on this, but I'll just leave it like this... onto the next series:

N.H.K.にようこそ
NHK ni youkoso 22-24(end)

The series really picks up in the last few episodes, feels like it has changed gears and suddenly turn on the nitrous boost for full acceleration. We finally got to hear Misaki's story. The author did an excellent job to throw me off. I never thought the ending will be "action packed". I'll check out the novel when I've time. I'll not spoil your fun here.

幕末機関説いろはにほへと
Irohanihoheto 13 覇者の首入魂(I'll copy RandomRay's translation of the title later, lol) I called it "world war zero"

Plot thickens... is an understatement!

Best Iroha so far, looks like all the studios pull out the big guns for the end of 2006. Worth the build up from the previous few underwhelming(read: boring) episodes. This episode introduce some new characters too, the english "chess pieces". Hopefully we won't have to see much of those "phantom soldiers"(幻影兵士) anymore.

Lesson learned: Don't run behind a open-wheeled vehicle, or suffer the consequences. You might get a cracked windshield, but our friend Kanna-kun...

コードギアス反逆のルルーシュ Code Geass 10,11 (again?)

See last week's OTL... the series is on vacation this week, I have to watch it again to get my mecha fix. Also I have an excuse to watch it again since I finally got the hi-definition(800x560 as well as 1024x708) versions of the episodes. I'll post some nice screen-cap for you later.

Minor spoilers on this one... since I like to discuss mecha more than the plot:

-Cornelia's KMF (Knight Mare Frame, think Mobilu suits) could have been more powerful, she's an ace pilot in my opintion, Why aren't her piloting the best KMF like Lancelot?

-"4 Divine Swords" team (四聖剣) form the "Japan Liberation Front"(日本解放戦線? JLF hereafter) remind me of the Black tri-stars(黒い三連星, they have a english wiki entry!!!) from Gundam (0079). Collective power can certainly overcome the difference in their machine's potency (I always say it's the driver, not the car. But of course 10 Kia's couldn't beat a Ferrari). Now lancelot vs the 4 Samurai Burai (無頼, name of JLF's KMF unit) will be fun to watch.

-KMF Lancelot is not going to get mass produce anytime soon, thanks to C.C. and Lulu's(Lelouch) "mishaps"

-Does the KMF Guren hard/expensive to mass produce? imagine if they can mp it, then the JLF would take over Britannia like Zeon take over the colonies.

-Lulu 's unit makes him more vulerable, by putting a "bullseye" on the forehead (but then the target system might have lock-on to his unit anyway since he has to taunt Cornelia) Can someone smart be a bad KMF pilot? Look, escaping through open space is the worst idea so far (worse than the time he hand his own behind over to Cornelia).

-I will definitely get a fatal nose bleed if C.C. ask me to "say my name"...

-What's that "capsule" for? are they gonna turn orange-kun into a "geass"? Is that the poison gas? C.C. clones?

I'll edit this post later if I have time, at least put some pictures in it...

Code Geass before Pizza Hut

2006-11-21T09:58:00.000-05:00

I find these in my backlog. Interesting to see that our friends at Sunrise are all food lovers. This are some screen caps I got from the first 2-3 episode before they became a whore for Pizza Hut...

Crosspost (on anime music)

2006-11-21T09:51:00.000-05:00

One aspect I like about anime is that 99% of all anime have its opening and ending sequences. It's hard enough for me to resist the temptation of mecha anime (giant robots ftw!). It might be even harder to resist anime with a well directed opening and ending. Anime is not all about visual! The sound effects, seiyuu(voice actors) and music play a huge role in it also. Music makes a good series better and lame ones somewhat bearable.

A good example this fall season is "bartender". I keep telling mself to drop it, but the ending pull me back everytime. The quality is going down consistently since episode 1, but everytime the ending song starts, I'll get excited for the next episode: There is the recipe of the cocktail featured in that episode, live action of a real bartender mixing that drink and other stunning visual surrounding a bar. I think there is a shot of the artist duo in the ending sequence too. The director mix those up like a good bartender!

You have to listen to the song (/w lyrics below). The ending song is 始まりのヒト (Hajimari no hito, literally means the first person) by Natural High. I'm a sucker for this kind of slow, mellow melody, not to mention that the lyrics is well written too. The single drops December 6! (comes with the uplifting opening "bartender", great value!)

I'm too lazy to verify with other sources (like I could find one, who else watches this), but the whole idea is about your first love/friend. So forgive my rough translation below, I'll confirm the lyrics once the single's out:

song: 始まりのヒ (Hajimari no hito)
artist: ナチュラルハイ (Natural High)
music/lyrics: 大嶽香子 (Ootake Kaoruko)

れぇ忘れないよあなたのこと hey, I couldn't forget about you
他の人を好きになった今でもまだ you have probably loved someone else; even today
後ろめたく思い出してる I still have a guilty feeling about the past
ただ幼すぎて繫いだって we were very young then, holding hands
汗ばんでも離せなかったね sweating, but never let go

卒業アルバム最後のぺージに in the last page of the yearbook
小さく遺したメッセージ三十年後も there is still that little message, even after 30 years,
彼よりあなたをこの胸は覚えてるから I still could remember you in my heart

Halo 3 spoilers

2006-11-16T23:21:00.000-05:00

It's good to have a subscription, even better for me since it was free. Being a subscriber, you get the issue about two weeks before everyone else too! I just got the December issue of EGM last week, it has some goodies on the upcoming Halo 3 on this issue...

I point out the spartan laser because I mention it in my earlier post on YGTB2...

Sunrise X Clamp

2006-10-29T12:24:00.000-05:00

I was about to give up on new mecha shows, with the recent disappointment like 銀色のオリンシス and news about Genrei... Then out of nowhere, it comes "Code Geass". Thanks to the extra hour, I finally took time to watch what seems to be just another mecha anime. I'm in for a big surprise! Finally, a anime that show you why mecha is still my favortie genre. Code Geass actually has an involving plot and more fantastic battle scene. Yup, no stupid minute-long speechs before actual fighting begin, or one single super robot destroy an entire fleet of enemies in 2 seconds with its mega-hyper-planetary-destruction-cannon (I do enjoy some breast-o fire type super-robo action occassionally). I couldn't help but finish all 4 episodes before I could go to bed. There is so much going for the show that no doubt I'll crown it as my favorite anime of 2006, even though I've only finished the first four episodes. I'm not going to spoil it for you folks, so wait for the subbers to pick this up.

The talented ladies at "Clamp" helped make the original character designs for the series. Is it another attempt from Sunrise to draw more female audience? I don't really care... But I'm surprise that Sunrise can crank out all these anime yet still maintain good quality for each one. I'll find time to get screencaps later. Don't miss this series!!!

new opening, same lameness

2006-10-23T21:47:00.000-04:00

I still watch this show for no apparent reason, here's some random screen-caps of the new opening: ("You-You-You" by POLYSICS)

I like the last opening a lot better than this one, but who won't skip the opening these days??

booze talk

2006-10-21T14:16:00.000-04:00

Wow, didn't make an update for 3 days. I guess getting a life is a bad idea. Well, on to "Bartender":

It seems mangaka(s) (漫画家, comics artist) in japan can make any occupation look glamorous. That meaning you won't see flashing drunk girls in this series. Well, any show that talks about booze should be a winner. "Bartender" is no exception, I really like its unique style. I'm too lazy to type, so I'll let the screen-cap do the talking then:

Look like the series is gonna be those guest-per-episode type, which should make this series short and sweet. I love both the opening and ending song by "Natural Hi", especially the opening, which is a duet.

The guests(?) of Eden hall(the bar in the story)

More on Sumomo...

2006-10-18T21:28:00.000-04:00

I just can't help it~ and trust me, I probably have enough materials on "Sumomo" for two more weeks, but I promise I'll talk about something else...

The new shows supports "Hi-vision", Japanese equivalent of HD, completed with the wide-screen support. I never realized it(I'm used to it I guess), since most of the anime these days are shown in HD and wide-screen. You can cramp a lot more visual in a wide-screen settings as you can see in the comparisons.

People rant about differences between anime and manga, but I think it's apples and oranges. In anime, with all the talented seiyuu(voice actors), the animated colour pictures, and the additional scenes just make it more entertaining. Therefore, I'm definitely a bigger fan for anime. Btw, did anyone notice that Kano Yui-san (鹿野優以), Seiyuu for the female lead Momoko is relatively unknown to us? I think she did a very good job here. Takahashi Hiroki(高橋広樹) aka Harima Kenji and Harano Aya(平野綾) aka Suzumiya Haruhi are in the cast too!

ちょっ(Cho~)! what a classic scene~~

Sumomo mo Momo mo

2006-10-17T22:27:00.000-04:00

Momoko: Su~mo~mo~mo~~mo~mo~mo~♪

I just love humor, and "Sumomomomomomo" provide plenty of it. Is this one another story about a dysfunctional young engaged couple? Yah, but the twist here is that they are both heirs of their respective family of fighters; in this series, the girl, Momoko, is a great fighter where the boy, Koushi, is a wimp who would like to become a prosecutor.

While there are some hilarious fighting scene in the anime, the super cute and deformed Momoko just steals the show! It makes watching the parts without the presence of Momoko become almost unbearable...

what a riot!

random Audi talk

2006-10-16T21:40:00.000-04:00

Recently my friend send me the link for the "new" Audi R8 and here(actually announced back in 2005~). The specs is pretty impressive, 420bhp, dry weight 1560kg(~3200lbs) is quite respectable on paper. But if I could afford a R8, I would probably go for a F430 instead. Since I was kinda let down by Audi for giving the roadcar only 420bhp. Comparing the roadcar to it's Le Mans Prototype sibling(Once 600+bhp, weighting about 2100lbs), the road going R8 seems like just an super pricey version of a RS4 without a trunk.

And don't get me started on the stupid new SUV...

Your own cosplay cafe

2006-10-14T03:00:00.000-04:00

Most of us otakus knows the existance of these cosplay/maid cafes(コスプレ/メイド喫茶) that populated tokyo's Akibahara area. I myself is very interested in ~~visiting~~ starting one. You see, otakus visiting the cafe don't mind paying a lot for the "service", therefore I assume one could make a decent profit even if you have to pay your "maids" a whole lot of $. But that's beside the point! If I'm the boss of a cosplay cafe, I'll have the chance to ~~look~~ work with girls in costume all day! plus I got to choose which costume, muhahahaha. Now who want to write a business proposal with me so I can get a loan??

Cafe Mai:lish

Mari-tan supports our troop

2006-10-13T19:16:00.000-04:00

You see "support our troops" magnets everywhere in the states, but our dear allies in Japan is getting these too. Personally. I don't think buying and displaying these would support our troops in anyway but who cares. Kudos for the person who comes up with the idea though, I bet they must have made millions for it. (you can get one features Mari-tan for 1500yen, like 12~13bucks? from hobby-japan shop)

Who is Mari-tan? She is a sergeant(yet another gunsou軍曹) in the USMC, well, fictional of course. A character from the Manga "Magical Marine Pixel Mari-tan"(魔法の海兵隊員ぴくせる☆まりたん) which serializes in Arms Magazine(this month's featuring Innocent Venus!).

I can't get the this image out of my mind...
I think she's cosplaying Sana

A tribute to the best looking Gundam fan

2006-10-12T11:50:00.000-04:00

Gackt does a Gundam impression

Most viewers (including the subber, I guess?) must have a wtf moment here. Only hardcore Gundam fans would remember that scene. I think it was when Amuro(see my avatar, the protagonist) was being disciplined by Captain Noa(I don't remember why) and he was escorted to the penitentiary by Kai(Guncannon's pilot), right there Amuro did the impression when Kai-san locked him up. Why reenact that ambiguous scene is just beyord me~ but it shows that Gackt-san is in fact a hardcore Gundam fan.

Tokiko Dokidoki!

2006-10-10T16:12:00.000-04:00

One word summarizes Busourenki(武装錬金): Tokiko(斗貴子)! She is definitely the main draw for the show, baby. A petite yet violent tomboy-type gal kicking ass in a sailor dress, can you resist it? The protagonist Kazuki certainly can't! A lot of people should notice the seiyuu for little sis Mahiro is the now famous Hirano Aya(平野綾) aka Suzimiya Haruhi.

Busourenkin uses many same terms from Full Metal Alchemist, like Homunculi(ホムンクルス); You also get to hear the term alchemy/power of alchemy(錬金術のちから) in the first episode like every other second. Yes, This series is yet another shounen series from Weekly Shounen Jump(週刊少年ジャンプ). I however haven't read the manga for this one.

Kazuki has obtained the soul edge!

new super weapon X new heroine X giant robo?

2006-10-09T17:55:00.000-04:00

One week anniversary! yeah~~ ♪ Man, I swear to update this blog more often, and I definitely need a new banner for the blog... oh, well, on to today's topic:

yup, finally watched Project Blue 04, the self proclaimed "super special-effect-sci-fi-adventure story"(超特撮科学冒険物語-see ep01) that take place in the year 2000(LOL). What a fun series this is! I love every aspects from the chara to macha design, animation, music, plot... The ONLY missing piece of course would be a gaint robo "breast fire"ing the enemy's UFO!!!

Look at the retro design for the mechanics. You shall find no fancy beam saber or laser gun here, but they DO have the good old "ray gun" type and "thunder" attack! Go pick up this series, anime lovers and fan-subbers! More people should be granted access to Project Blue, Earth SOS!

Lotta: please watch Project Blue~~

Lazy Friday

2006-10-06T18:39:00.000-04:00

No time to watch any anime today. My compliments to other bloggers that could spend time to watch and blog all the new shows for the fall season. I must find some time to watch ProjectBlue 04 tomorrow, one of my favorite shows on the air at the moment. And here, this is how to use your note:

Jump for DeathNote and D.Gray-man

2006-10-05T12:25:00.000-04:00

No introduction needed for these series, right? Both are(were) serialized in Shounen Jump(週刊少年ジャンプ) and are quite popular. I myself is a big fan of Death Note and have read the first part of the whole series. You know you gotta see it since Takeshi Obata-sensei(小畑健せんせい) did the drawing for the series. I have to say the animation was very well done. The only complaint would be the split screen in various occasions. They're needless and annoying (e.g. different POV of the same subject); but by all means catch the show! Especially if you haven't read the manga.

D.Gray-man is you typical shounen adventure series. Generally, I'm not into these shounen series (Naruto, One Piece, etc). I'll just stick with this one until I got tried of seeing Linali(リナリー) in action then. Hmm, pigtailed loli doing flip kicks in short skirt~~♪♪

Fall Season has begun

2006-10-04T21:12:00.000-04:00

Let's talk anime again. I have yet to watch other premieres this week, but i have already catch a couple of episodes of "Black Blood Brothers". Yup, another vampire anime, this one is adapted from a light novel. Big deal, it really didn't make an impression. I'll probably drop this series as soon as I get my hands on hot new series like DEATH NOTE or D.Gray-man.

I have to point out that Jiro(ジロー) from BBB looks a lot like Van(ヴァン) from "Gun X Sword"; another obscure anime which I actually finished watching. If only all anime have transformable robots in it...

The NEW Speed

2006-10-03T20:32:00.000-04:00

I check out some new car models today since I've been thinking about trading the old civic in. I was looking into a mid-size sedan since this one will be driven by my family members more than I do. Therefore I have no choice but to find something "practical" unlike the little funwagon that I drive.

Now, i'm seriously looking into getting a hybrid car for their great fuel mileage. The top hybrid on my list? The Honda Insight of course. I couldn't believe my eyes when I first saw the gas mileage on the little sticker: 60/66! SIXTY damn mpg in the city, now that's impressive. I've got to test-drive that sucker! It has got to be the lightest mass-produced comsumer car available for under 2000lbs, that's right 1881lbs /w A/C!!! Only if I could find one in the dealer for me to test drive. Is there a type-R version of this in Japan???

Finally, the highlight of today's blog... the 2007 Mazdaspeed3! I used to drive the first ever Mazdaspeed tuned car in North America, the Mazdaspeed Protege. What a fun little car that is. It's amazing what a simple suspension upgrade (performance shocks and coils, front and rear sway bars) can make a difference for the cornering, the turbo charged engine just makes it that much more enjoyable. And did I mention the sound system and the looks? From my experience with the old MSP (MazdaSpeedProtege), I expect nothing less from the new MS3. I got a lot of test-driving to do... and gotta teach my family how to drive a stick...

"The Guardian" = "Rescue Wings" ?

2006-10-02T20:05:00.000-04:00

It's about time for me to start a blog. hopefully I can keep this up.

Watch any movie lately? Looks like Ashton Kutcher's "The Guardian" is doing well in the box office. Am I the only one making the connection between this movie and the manga turn TV anime "よみがえる空 Rescue wings" (Aired early this year). I have yet to see the movie, but they seems like different versions of the same story: a new recruit in a search and rescue squad.

In the Anime, "That Others May Live" was shown at the end of the opening. A while ago, I swear I saw in the TV commercials the motto "so others may live" for the movie "The Guardian". It was cut from the more recent ones. I guess they didn't want to give the book "So others may live" free advertisement? Or maybe showing the motto is too corny? Apparently the book was published this year also. I wonder if the writer/author/mangaka influenced each other. We might never find out since the general public only care about the actors or director.