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[rakuya-nikki]

Re:Zero - Entry #11

I've spent the past several days fervently rewatching Re:Zero, and not only did I learn a lot of new words and get great studying from it, but I was able to remember just how much I love this show.

I'm usually not good with gore. Well, "usually" as in I'm still not good with gore. There's a particular scene in the show involving some... bunnies, that I had to skip because I can not handle that shit lmfao. But I feel like this show has just enough of that kind of stuff to where I can deal with it. I definitely don't wish I was Subaru, though, that's for sure.

This show's themes of self-worth, loneliness, never giving up, finding out how to better oneself, and so many other things, are really interesting, especially when compared to other Isekai. The idea of "dying and starting at a checkpoint" is already a brilliant concept to base a realistic, dark fantasy story off of, but it's really executed so well in this show.

I never really thought about it before, but this pseudo-time travel mechanic really is like Majora's Mask. And just like that game, this show manages to use that to create amazing characters, motivations, reactions and emotions. People will do things slightly different for various reasons per each "round", and it really makes them feel complex and human, even if a... lot of characters are... very extra lol.

In terms of my favorite characters, obviously Subaru has a big leg up given how he's the main focus for so much character development. And he really does feel like his own character. Like, he's not someone you, the viewer, want to insert themselves into. Hell, like I said before, I'm really glad I'm not him. This is a story, one of someone who constantly compares himself to and relies on others, who utterly lacks self-worth or love, who believes he has to bear the burden of pain and suffering in place of everyone else.

When I first watched the show, I was younger, more depressed, had much less self-worth instilled in me, and those themes were really impactful at that time. Of course, I was also bittered by them a bit, in the sense that I didn't have a Rem to tell me they loved me, or an Echidna to be a source of comfort (albeit not good comfort). I didn't have an Emilia to fall in love with or anything. But I also didn't have a horde of bunnies eating me alive so that's fair. Anyways, yeah, even if I didn't have the cast of beautiful women (and, more importantly, Otto) to help reassure my self-worth and show me the love that I wanted, I still took heart in the idea of loving yourself.

The show loses some impact upon second viewing, but it also helps me really appreciate the pacing and ordering of events. When you first watch it, things can feel kind of hopeless, scattered, chaotic, painful. Which, I reckon, is part of the point, and it's impressive the show can make you feel those things. But watching it while knowing everything that happens really helps me notice how intentional certain details or events are, and how everything connects and affects Subaru and the others. It's a really solid show.

I'm so excited for Season 3 to happen, though I dunno when that'll be. Much like Mushoku Tensei, I may have to add this to my list of "things to read eventually". Though apparently the Light Novel is not progressing very quickly. Oh well, it's an option.

The show is full of so much emotion. In its facial expressions, in its incredible voice acting, and in its events. The scene at the very end of Season 1's final episode is perhaps one of the best bombshells to end a season ever. Like, you did all of that work, half a season's worth of scheming and fighting, to finally overcome it, and at the very end, you find out that just one of the things you were trying to protect is... gone. Especially the way the show starts out Season 2, with the despair, the willingness for Subaru to end his own life to try it over again, only to realize his checkpoint has been updated to after it's happened, so he can't possibly save her.

It's such a powerful way to take what looked like an overall victory, and bring back some reality to the situation. It's grim. It's really impactful. The show's full of those moments, where you can feel Subaru's anger, anguish, relief, pain. And, like I said before, the emotions on display through the facial expressions and voice acting is unbelievable. I don't think I've ever seen a show depict such emotions as well.

Very impressive show, I'm so glad to be able to experience it once again. And not only that, but get some great studying out of it too. The show's language is a lot more complicated than I was expecting, but because of it, I've made over 100 flash cards and got so much practice. I was even able to point out some certain words that, I can tell, this author likes to use more than other people. At least, I think so. It's cool to be able to notice those types of things.

My favorite characters are either Echidna, Emilia, Subaru, or Beatrice. Though I love Otto too. When I first watched Season 1, when I was younger, Rem became my comfort character (I refuse to use the word "waifu"), but I've since forgotten who that character is. Unfortunate.

[rakuya-nikki]

Bokie's - Entry #10

Went to a local diner with the family for lunch earlier today. A place called "Bokie's". It's very unique from everything else around town, and honestly manages to stand out even from places I've seen in other towns and cities.

It prides itself in its 50s/60s design, both in appearance and in menu, for the most part. And that menu is delicious, full of so many great options. Sure, it's not that different from what you'd normally see, but it does still have unique things to choose from.

I got the fish sandwich. It was incredibly simple, just a fried haddock with lettuce and tomato, and it came with tartar sauce on the side. But it was delicious. Like, super good. The fish was somehow extremely juicy, and it actually tasted like fish. Despite its simplistic nature, it might have been a top 5 fish sandwich. Though, I hardly have the experience or memory to make that claim mean anything lol. The coleslaw that came with it was kinda... meh. Really bland, which is unfortunate, but I couldn't complain too much.

One of their specials today was "fried green beans", and it came with a teriyaki mayo sauce. Considering this restaurant is smart enough to make you order sandwiches separate from the sides, rather than forcing you to take a side of fries even if you wanted something else with it, I knew that having these instead of fries would be awesome. It sounded great, even if their fries here are super good.

And yeah, they were great. Perhaps the sauce did a lot of heavy lifting, but the beans themselves were really tasty, and a great change of pace from the norm. Almost a shame that it was a special.

My parents both loved their own meals, each claiming that it was one of the best they've had of their respective sandwiches. High praise.

The diner also specializes in desserts. Usually ice creams and smoothies, of which they have a lot of variety. And as much as I do want some of them, the thing that stood out to me the most was their "Old Fashioned Specialty Sodas". Basically, floats. The Marilyn Monroe in particular sounds great. I didn't end up getting one today, since by the time I was done with lunch, I felt full enough. Some day I'll have to drive over just for the soda, or something.

I like it, and it was fun. I usually never go there because they're usually packed with cars, and I hate trying to find a place to park in that sorta environment. If there even is a space. But today we went at around 1pm, and while it had plenty of people there, there was also plenty of open space, so maybe I'll think about that in the future.

[rakuya-nikki]

Mushoku Tensei - Entry #9

I just spent the past few days rewatching Season 1 of Mushoku Tensei, and then watching the first episode of Season 2, which had only released yesterday.

Man, what a show.

Man.

It's... such a difficult show to talk about. It's one of the few series I genuinely can't bring myself to give anything lower than a 10/10 for, and yet, it's also a series I feel like I can't — or, rather, shouldn't recommend to anyone else.

It's a hard watch, sometimes. Some scenes can be genuinely difficult to sit through, and in this most recent watch through, I genuinely had to look away in embarrassment at times. I feel like anyone not used to "anime bullshit" would write this show off as something truly terrible. Pedophilic fantasy fulfillment, even. And I couldn't say they're wrong to think that.

Yet... the show is seriously so much more. If you're able to just ignore the weird jokes it sometimes makes (of which, is more scarce than you might be led on to think), you can see so much. Gorgeous art and animation. Immaculate world building. Incredible pacing. Actual growth.

Growth, that's the thing. We don't cut to Rudeus being 16 and being OP and surrounded in his own harem. He starts from infancy, and while there are plenty of time skips, they're never big enough to leave huge gaps. You always know what he's doing, how he's using his time to live and grow and experience. It really makes it all feel so personal, so immersive. The idea that his "superpower" in this world is having high cognitive function at infancy, which allowed him to take advantage of the time to learn things no other child could, just feels so natural, and so well used here.

And it's also through that that we get the sense that this story isn't taking the "past life NEET" idea lightly. They're not trying to let the NEETS watching/reading live out their fantasies, per se. It's an actual plot device, something that has given Rudeus trauma, and affects him.

It's why I give patience to his perversion. Even if anime things are anime things, I've heard a lot by now that this is something he'll learn to grow through and make up for. "We're in it for the long haul," or so I hear a lot. And, even if small and gradual, I see that in the first season. His tiny bits of growth. The ways he was traumatized, the way the effects of that trauma changed him, the way his shut-in lifestyle, and really that lifestyle in general, can warp someone's perception of the world.

Everything the show does makes it feel so real, and so natural. That's why it's immersive, being one of the most immersive shows I've ever seen. The world building, like I mentioned earlier, goes so far. So many things are just... in the background. Not pointed out or given anything more than a few seconds of screen time. Things that, in the original light novel, may have more purpose, but generally just serve as to make the world feel more rich. The languages, too, as far as I've heard, are actually, like... real languages. Not real as in they're from real life, but real as in they have, like... structure? Consistency?

And the characters are just so... amazing. I love everyone so much. They feel so human, so unique. Eris, Roxy, Ruijerd, just so many characters that are depicted so well. Eris is the standout, so far. The growth she goes through in the show is incredible, and she's such a fun, enjoyable, interesting character. It also makes me really feel the heartbreak when she separates from Rudeus at the end of Season 1. Like, I genuinely feel heartbroken when the Dead End squad splits up.

It's hard. I wanna gush about this show to all my friends, but... I really don't think my friends should ever come anywhere near this show. It still has yet to reach a point in the anime where Rudeus really starts to concretely redeem his horniness, and frankly by the time that does happen, his pedophilic actions will have already happened and been depicted in the show. For a lot of people, not only is that unforgivable in nature, but it's not something they'd want to see at all. And I understand that, 100%. If anything, I worry that I'm weird for being able to still love the show.

But I do. I really do love this show, so, so much. It's one of few shows that I've rewatched more than twice now. Something about everything just draws me in like nothing else. It really is the godfather of the Isekai genre. Granted, Isekai is a bit of a guilty pleasure anyways, but this one actually has structure, it has meaning, and it has beauty. There's a world in this story. A world where things happen. Where people change and grow. Where people die. Where people separate.

I'm not sure what it says about me that I'm able to ignore the weird shit and still love it, but that's just how it is. I really just can not wait to see more episodes, now. Every week is going to be filled with anticipation, waiting for the new one to drop.

I gush about One Piece and other things all the time, so I guess keeping this passion bundled up couldn't hurt.

[rakuya-nikki]

A Walk to the Park - Entry #8

I've been telling myself to go for a walk around town for so long now. After my workout today, I finally had the energy and motivation to force myself to do that. It was a little over an hour of walking, over 3 miles! I was shocked to learn how many calories that meant I burnt. Almost 500, if that one calculator is anything to go off of.

Even if I don't go for big walks like that every day, which I probably won't, I really should do some form of workout almost every day. I used to, but fell off the grind at some point. Maybe it was around this time last year? I don't remember why, maybe complacency, maybe thinking that I could just focus on resistance training and dieting. Which isn't wrong, really, but clearly I like to eat things, and I like food, so I don't think I'll ever be able to have a diet that's good enough to solo carry a weight loss routine. I don't wanna give up food and good eatin', so I'm gonna need to keep working out. Not to mention, working out is just... good. For a lot of reasons.

Some of the sights were nice. Any body of water is enough to refresh my spirit, and the weather was warm but not too warm. It was all very nice.

For my way to the park, I took the usual path I do when I drive there. I probably won't do that again, because on foot, you really start to realize how white trash that street is. Some folks were sitting outside their house, and their dog was ferocious, howling and snapping in my direction. The leash only barely kept it away from me. My mind could only imagine what would happen if, somehow, it managed to get loose. Fucking trash. I get that everyone's got their circumstances, but it bugs me to no end when people just let their animals act like that.

Anyways, that was why I took a roundabout way back home — to try and find a new route whenever I wanted to go to the park. I've got a good idea of that now. It adds more miles to the overall journey, but I guess that's the point of it, in the end.

I hope I can maintain a sense of motivation. I've been finding myself really tired these past few months. Physically and mentally. I'm trying to find a way to beat it out. Maybe it's less that the fatigue is making me stop my routine, and rather, me stopping my routines is what caused the fatigue? I'm not sure, though.

For the time being, any days where I feel like I don't have the energy for walking or anything, I could at the very least do some stretches at home. Maybe run on the elliptical for around 20 minutes, like I used to do.

It's hard to think about right now. I have a bad habit of projecting my current energy levels into my mental planning. Right now, I'm tired, so when I think of going for walks or having a routine or any of that, I'm projecting that tired feeling onto those plans, and it gives me some anxiety. Like, "I'm too tired to do that stuff right now", even though these are plans, not things for "right now". Perhaps the mere act of planning things, and trying to... steel my will, is what's making me feel even more tired? I'm not sure. Guess we'll just see what happens!

It was a fun walk regardless :)

[rakuya-nikki]

Oshi no Ko - Entry #7

Just caught up to Oshi no Ko.

Man

First of all, it feels almost unfair to compare it to other shows when its first episode was basically a movie. No, not "basically", it was like an hour and 20 minutes long, so that is a movie LOL

God and it was so gripping too, it had so much development and motion, so many twists that I genuinely didn't expect coming, and it made me feel truly involved in the plot of the world. It's almost unfair to the rest of the show, given how after the movie prologue, it essentially turns into a slice of life, romance typed thing. Perhaps not as typical as your usual shows of those genres, but it's definitely similar to it.

Yet, even when it starts devolving into that sort of stuff, it destroys the competition compared to the others given how much effort they put into the themes and topics of the world. Those being "show business". Acting, idols, YouTubers, the shady shit behind the scenes of it all, the difficulties that these human beings face trying to do these jobs, the emotional struggles, the moral quandary of faking your emotions.

As someone in the YouTube industry right now, some of the ideas really hit a note with me. Even if I'm not particularly "big", I'm definitely in a position where I can see just how human my fellow YouTube creators are, and thus, I can also see just how inhumane some people can be on the internet towards these people.

I'm not gonna lie, the little arc with Akane becoming public enemy #1 in the forums and comment sections of the show really, really struck a chord with me. Like... my god, the utter, visceral rage I felt seeing those comments. It really did not feel like made up, exaggerated shit. That really is how people can act online.

I've hated people for a lot of reasons in my life, but it's that ability to stick to such unnecessarily vitriolic comments, despite knowing less than nothing about any of the important details. The only thing stopping me from viewing the people who make those types of comments as subhuman (other than the fear of becoming just like those people), is knowing that I've made those types of comments before too. Hell, sometimes I can even get wrapped up in drama and make snap judgements about things I don't know much about.

It's in that sense that what I hate is just the culture of it all. I really, truly, despite show business. I loathe how people treat these actors and content creators as people they can just say anything about, whose worth only goes as far as their productivity in views/high ratings. The show doesn't put too much focus on hating this side of the culture, it mostly mentions it with an "it can't be helped" sort of mentality. Though reading between the lines, you can definitely tell they're condemning that nature. Looking down on it. Because that's what it's worth, being looked down at. It makes me look back on my past self, who would leave hurtful comments in YouTube videos, or judge creators harshly for no apparent reason, and it makes me think of that past self as just despicable.

Anyways, the show proved to be great for studying too. The language was very complex, and it featured a lot of modern-day lingo that I can definitely make use of, especially as someone who normally specializes in media/marketing anyways. Knowing vocabulary for it is nice.

Not to mention, even if a big emotional point was me feeling disgusted at the anonymous hate wagons, the show also does an amazing job at showcasing the... beauty of show business, as an art form. If anything, that's the main focus of which it criticizes the "business" aspect of it all. How it takes away the soul of the process, and how the characters strive to shine despite the darkness in the industry.

Really, that's just it. The strength to shine, give hope, and have fun, despite everything holding you back and wishing for you to fail, is a strength that really resonated with me. Ruby didn't get too much time in the spotlight yet, but she's a great character in this regard.

I admit, it gave me newfound courage and motivation for my YouTube career. If anything, it made me wish I had more personal friends in the field to be able to talk with, and have fun with. I do have a lot of YouTube friends online, of course, but the setting takes place in the city. A city where these people can easily meet in person and do their things. Man... wouldn't that be so fun?

I'm torn, really. On the one hand, I truly despise the industry. I hate how it strips the humanity away from these people, and how fans can grow such toxic, insane mindsets that, in my eyes, tarnishes their own sense of humanity. Viewing people and lives as a form of "business" has always put a metaphorical black hole in my stomach. It's why I stopped following the money-hungry, business drive, "stock market" typed mentality shit. Viewing life as a commodity, to me, ends up ironically stripping it of any value.

Yet... there's something I truly resonate with the strength of will that comes from being able to destroy the norms of the industry and just have fun doing what you want, or putting a lot of heart into things as an art form.

Perhaps my biggest takeaway is to be 100% concrete in my views of not being a bitch about content creators. Someone uploads something I think is cringe? Who gives a shit, go work out or something instead, fatass. Someone gets involved in some big drama? Either leave it to the police or ignore it altogether, this isn't high school anymore. Someone makes a point I heavily disagree with in a video? Okay? Who cares?

It's one thing to criticize a product, but criticizing a person under the guise that they're a content creator or whatever inherently implies that they're being treated like a product, and I can't stand for that. Life really isn't that serious. It's more important to have fun with things, and if something isn't your vibe, then unless that person is doing something truly morally apprehensible (which does happen, of course), then just let things happen.

I feel like that idea wasn't even that much of a focus of the show, but it's still the major thing I took away from it. Famous actor, famous YouTuber, famous composer, they're just dudes. Sure, they're worth looking up to. Sure, you can get happy if you meet them. But they're not gods. A "fall from grace" should never be possible, for they never had grace in the first place. They've always been one of us. No, even more, because despite being one of us, they still put in so much time and effort to make us smile or laugh or cry or what have you, and I think taking away the humanity of such efforts is just a shame.

Back to Oshi no Ko, it definitely feels like it's going down "harem" route, which is... ehhhhhh. To be honest, there are a few elements of the show that I can see a lot of people being put off of. I'm a bit numb to those types of things (which might not be a good thing), and frankly romance has always been a guilty pleasure of mine, but I'm definitely not gonna be recommending this show to everyone like I do for other things like One Piece or Haikyuu.

Speaking of which, there's been a lot of shows that I've wanted to continue consuming after catching up to the anime, but so far I've only done that with the One Piece manga. Haikyuu has gotten close to making me want to, but I guess the kinetic flow of the animation with the volleyball games made me think I'd rather keep waiting for the anime than read the manga.

Oshi no Ko is getting... pretty close to making me wanna keep up. A season 2 was announced already, but there's no telling when that's gonna release. I wanna start reading, so maybe I'll do that. As much as the animation was absolutely gorgeous, I also think I could get by with just reading the manga and not lose too much, so it could work out. We'll see how I feel...

This is the part where I'm in emotional turmoil. Where I don't want to move on from a certain piece of fiction, yet know that I should probably starting moving on soon lol... Man, this never gets easy.

Maybe I will read the manga, if it's easy to access.

Anyways, favorite character is either Kana or Ruby, though I think Aqua is a solid main role too. In terms of... that kind of favorite, Mem definitely checks off all the boxes.

Though... to be honest, another element that this show makes me really think about is idol culture (though perhaps calling that "another element" is off, given how intrinsically connected it is to the things I ranted about before). That and "waifu" culture, though perhaps the fictional nature of "waifu" cultures puts it in a less serious league when compared to people treating real women in that sort of way.

I've always been hesitant of it. Not from a purist stance, I absolutely have a lot of fictional characters that I get those types of feelings for. But... for real people? Isn't that just... weird? Parasocial relationships are a topic that's... still a bit beyond me, but just the culture around obsessing over these people, judging them as if they're flavors, where you pick your favorite, and move on if it spoils or you find something better. It goes back to how it makes everything lose its humanity. Yet... the idea of it being a source of comfort and inspiration for these people, and that the actresses are a strong source of light, makes me look up to them all the same. It makes me understand why some people look up to and love idols, to an extent.

It's complicated, huh...

Anyways, love the show. It left several impressions onto me, which is always the mark of some great media. Good time to be alive.

[rakuya-nikki]

Miside - Entry #6

Just finished watching Manly play through this demo. This channel is basically my only source of new and unique horror/indie games, I've got loads of titles under my belt now thanks to him. To the point where I'm extremely overwhelmed on what I wanna talk about, even in my most recent watches.

I chose to bring this one up, one, because I'm bored, but two, because it showed a lot of promise. The game looks really good. I rarely see 3D anime models look stylish and clean like they do in this game. It's not perfect, of course, but given the concept around the game, that almost even adds to the charm of it.

It's very clear almost immediately that a lot of love is being put into this, so I look forward to hopefully seeing more about it when the full version is ready. I don't think it's VR, or at least, not VR exclusive, which I like, too. It nails the aesthetic either way.

In terms of scares, there wasn't too much of that kinda stuff in this demo, though the one section that was scary was definitely effective at that. Given how bad I am with horror, me being freaked out while watching gameplay doesn't really mean much, but I can at least tell when something is both scary and stylish/impressive. If the rest of the scares end up having equal impact, then that'll be awesome.

Unfortunately, you can tell pretty easily that the person translating this wasn't native to the English language. Or, if they were, then... I dunno what they were doing LOL. More likely, for this type of thing, it was a Japanese indie developer getting other Japanese folk to translate it. Nowadays, whenever I see this happen, I feel like I'm almost frothing at the mouth wanting to be the one to fix up the dialogue and properly localize things, but... alas, I should probably wait until I have more experience before I try to dig my claws into that sorta work.

So, yeah! This is one of many indie horror projects to add under my belt! Another demo, too, so I'll try to remember the name and keep tabs on it when I can!

[rakuya-nikki]

Some New Things - Entry #5

The new Tim Horton's nearby finally opened! It's been in construction for, like, half a year now. They're still doing work on the road outside of it, but it's basically done now, which is pretty cool.

It's a joint building called "Parkway Express", with Tim Hortons on the left side, and a deli/gas station kinda place called "Not Just Sandwiches" on the right. We have... more than enough coffee/donut/deli/gas station places around here so it's hard to be too excited, but it's at least... "new", I guess.

Tim Horton's is fine, I just don't go to those types of places very often, and from what I saw of their menu, it seemed very... lacking? The only non-beverage, non-dessert thing they had was either some basic deli sandwiches (which is redundant when you're literally right next to a whole deli), or some quiche bites. And they were out of the latter. I've been to Tim Hortons a few times in other areas, and they always had a lot more options of, like, breakfast sandwiches and that sort of thing, which is the only form of "breakfast" I'm interested in. But maybe it's just because they only recently opened, or maybe I need to go earlier in the day, or something. Overall, not a place I was ever gonna frequent very much, but it's neat.

This is what I ended up getting. Three (now two) donut holes — or "Timbits" as they're called for some reason — flavored "sour cream and blueberry" or something like that. The blueberry part was what caught my eye the most, so that was an easy win. Tasted amazing.

And from the deli place, I got half a sub. Wheat bread, with chipotle mayo, turkey, swiss cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion. Simple, and it tasted real good. It didn't blow my mind or anything, but it was still a good eat.

Oh, and on the plate with the sub is some of my homemade mac salad that I whipped up yesterday for Independence Day! Here's a picture of that:

It's got a lot going on in it. The noodles are a "Protein+" type, which is considerably higher in protein than normal noodles, and thus lower in basic carbs. Can't even tell it apart from the normal stuff, so that was a no-brainer for me. Tons of veggies in there, like red pepper, celery, shallots, green onion, peas, diced gherkin pickles, and just a few capers.

The sauce was a combination of mayo (some low fat, some normal), dijon mustard, worcester sauce, some of the brine from the gherkin pickles, some lemon juice, a little bit of honey, and olive oil. Plus some bottled aioli I had since I didn't wanna dice any garlic. And just your usual seasonings like salt, pepper, garlic powder. Sometime I'll try just doing homemade mayo, but I didn't feel like that that much for it, and it still tasted great.

I also resolved myself to start really working toward getting a nice little "bartender" setup going on at my house to make homemade cocktails and other such drinks, so I went out to buy a few things I'd need for that. I didn't get everything, so I'll probably make a new entry once some of the other utensils/cups I need come in. Fun stuff all around!

[rakuya-nikki]

Blue Lock - Entry #4

Just finished catching up to the "Blue Lock" anime.

It's a sports anime that puts more focus on the "independence" and "egoist" ideals compared to your usual shounen "friendship is power" themes. They even directly mention how Japan's collectivist philosophies are what hinder them in some sports where independent strength is vital.

These are interesting ideals, and honestly I really respect them. As someone who's struggling with confidence himself, seeing people so unabashedly embrace their ego is something I can take heart in.

The characters themselves are fairly good. A lot of duds, and some of the characters who get a "backstory" remain extremely surface level. But there's certainly characters I really like, such as Bachira, or Nagi, or even Isagi himself. I've always felt that characters were a major driving force for any show, so having several that I really like is great.

Overall, the narrative is very fast-paced. At least, when I compare it to something like Haikyuu, which, let's be real, of course I'm gonna do. The rate of growth for any of the characters, and especially for Isagi, feels almost breakneck. It makes for consistent pacing, but it also means I feel like I'm not watching a soccer anime, but rather, an ideals anime.

Ideals are cool, sure, but it's a shame because of how much relative emphasis Haikyuu put on the process of the sport itself. I dunno how the manga goes, but for the anime, I'd say like 80% of the shots during a match are either close-ups of people's faces (usually with crazy, whacky eyes and effects), or are extremely simple movements. Any camera angles that show the whole stage use extremely limited movement with very noticeable CGI. Basically, we're rarely ever seeing actions, but rather, seeing images and having people narrate to you what's happening.

I recognize that happens a good amount in Haikyuu too, but the difference is that show gives time to the matches and the overall process to let you really digest in everything. It feels much more tangible. In Blue Lock, a single match usually takes place in one or two episodes, and the character or characters experience major growth in those few episodes. So that, paired with the lack of animation presence for the sport's motions, is why I feel this is less a "soccer show" and more an "ideals show", like I said before.

Like, there's a lot of speeches and narration in this show. As someone who's using it to study Japanese, that's actually a good thing in a sense, but it certainly puts less interest on the sport itself.

For some people, that focus on the ideals of "ego", and it just being a sports anime in general, will be enough to get them hooked. I mean, hell, I binged the whole show in a few days for that reason. But I can't see this having even a fraction of the impact that Haikyuu had on me.

What I'll end up taking away from this show is to be more confident in my ego, y'know being allowed to be selfish sometimes. I think it's an important quality that people can often overlook due to being afraid of "being that guy" or whatever. I certainly know it's a major problem for me, so trying to be more wary of that is a good thing, I think.

But given the lack of true depth the show really portrays, in many facets, it means that message doesn't resonate with me as well as a similar ideal could have in a show that gripped me more. It was a nice watch though. It was kinda... no, very edgy and over-the-top at some points, but overall it was the "delightful" kind, I think. If there's a new season, I'd watch it, but I'm not incentivized to read the manga.

I think I mined a little over 50 sentence cards watching it, so that already makes it a worthwhile experience, and I get to add Bachira to my list of "characters that I'd want as my friend", so that's always fun.

Mostly, though, it just makes me wanna watch Haikyuu again. Which... I might do soon, honestly LOL

[rakuya-nikki]

Buster's - Entry #3

Went to a place called "Buster's" for lunch with the family. Perhaps not the best choice for someone who needs to return to a diet routine soon, but it was fun

The drink was called "Electric Avenue", containing Coconut Rum, Blue Curacao, Pineapple Juice, and Lemon-Lime Soda. I was expecting more of a carbonated texture from the "soda" part, but otherwise it was really good. Extreme "summer" flavor. And the color, my god, the color is so perfect for a drink! It was nice :)

For appetizers, we shared an order of Fried Pickle Slices and Seasoned Fries. The seasoning we chose was a Rosemary Parmesan flavor, which was amazing. Honestly everything there was great, but the fries stole the show for me personally. The sauce with the pickles were good for everything, too. If all fries had those seasonings on it, then that would be cool.

For the main meal, I got an order of "Zigs". That's what they called their tenders. I mean, they're just chicken tenders, but there is something unique about them. They're really good. I got them with a sweet habanero sauce which was tasty. Very solid meal.

And, yeah, for some god foresaken reason I thought it bright to get those wings with an order of Fried Cheese Curds. They're very good, mind you, but my god that was a lapse of judgement if I've seen one. Though, in my excuse, we ordered before the apps came out, so I just didn't realize those would be so filling. Though, I should have.

Needless to say, I have a lot of leftovers to deal with. I might tackle them tomorrow and eat very, VERY light tonight. Might even have a good workout later tonight just to make up for it all lol...

[rakuya-nikki]

One Piece - Entry #2

It would've felt weird for some of my first post to be some random thing, so I wanted to start off by highlighting my latest life-changing piece of media: One Piece

A few years ago, I was hitting the workout routine really hard. Pedaling on the stationary bike for 40+ minutes almost every single day. In order to do that, you either need the patience of a god, or more likely, something to entertain yourself with. I've been working out for several years now, so I was already in the habit of watching some kind of YouTube video or show while pedaling to make the time less dreadful.

I had just finished going through Gintama, a great show that I really loved, and realized that I needed a show that would last a good while. A really good while, preferably. And what show is more notorious about its length (for better or for worse) than One Piece?

I was already intrigued by its basic idea, but otherwise I didn't have any expectations other than two things:

It was long, meaning I could rely on it being workout entertainment for a very long time!

People really loved it. Like, so much.

So, I got into it, and, it didn't take long for me to really like it. Just watching it in its original 4:6 quality gave me a rush of nostalgia for a time I didn't partake of much as a kid. Even to this day, the older seasons of One Piece give me intense nostalgia, too.

But man, the show wasn't huge on battle scenes or anything bombastic, but it was still interesting enough to make me want to keep watching, and thus, keep working out. Already, a big winner, and even in the first couple hundred episodes, I could tell I loved the show. Already, it had been doing everything I wanted a show to do, and even a bit more!

There was a period a few months later, around the Thriller Bark arc, where my motivation waned. I stopped caring too much about the show, because honestly, that arc felt more like meandering than the other ones, and its aesthetic (Halloween-typed spooks) was never something I loved. Not to mention I was just low in energy in general. I don't think it was quite this intense, but there definitely were a few points where I just did not want to get back into the groove of watching it.

But something spurred me to continue watching, and continue exercising. So I did, and it was the best decision I had ever made.

The Summit War arc that soon followed was intense, and honestly, it got me so vehemently invested that I... stopped using the show as workout fodder. Instead, I just... started watching it outside of my exercises. Something I pleaded to myself not to do, because the whole point was to maintain something to keep myself working out. But by that point, I couldn't just not watch anymore. I couldn't go at the pace of two episodes a day. I needed to consume it.

I don't regret it, really. Sure, my workout pace is still kinda bad compared to before, but I feel like that's due to other outside factors. In the end, 500+ episodes deep into the show, I realized that this was something that was going to change me.

I don't really know exactly when it happened, but at some point, the show started to overtake me. Even more so than any other form of media had. Not to the point where I made it my whole personality, or obsessed over it. I've never really been one for obsession, there's too many things in life that I like. But, man, this got pretty close. And at the very least, at some point...

The show became a new king of media for me.

In the past, the only forms of media that had a stranglehold onto my psyche were things like Zelda, or... Well, it's hard to think of an example that fits alongside the Zelda series. And yet, here One Piece was, rivaling it!

It's hard for me to put into words what it was about it that gripped me as much as it did. Luffy, one of my favorite characters in fiction now, was a perfect vessel to explore what it was that I felt in my core, that was missing. Pure sunshine, a sense of adventure and unwavering will. Extreme loyalty to himself and his ideals. A good heart but not a platitudinous one. And just the sense of comradery that I love in any fiction, a kind that makes me want to be a part of that group.

Perhaps, if it were just one thing that gripped me, then it wouldn't have gripped me much at all. Maybe that's the point, the grab bag of so many things that resonate with me. The extremely in-depth world building, the great character writing, the overall narrative, the fun and diverse power system, the themes of anti-government and freedom, the memorable and fun art style.

I don't know how I'll feel about One Piece in the future. How it'll develop, how it'll end, how my thoughts will evolve. But I can say, without a doubt, that it has left a mark on me. To the point where, some of the ideals I may write about in this journal system will be inspired from the show, in one way or another.

I want to journal because I want to explore and experience the world, and I want to be able to remember those experiences. A motivation I've always had to some extent, but that One Piece truly fleshed out and revived. I'm still in the process of healing my hesitation and anxiety, the chains holding me back from doing whatever I want whenever I want. And as much as I try, I always end up feeling fatigued, my body unable to keep up to my ideals.

But hopefully these journals can at least help me remember the things that I do experience. And, as unforgettable as One Piece is for me, I figure there's no better way to start than going over my little experience with it.

[rakuya-nikki]

A New Routine - Entry #1

I don't expect anyone to really see these, and that's not the purpose of doing this anyways. I just want a place to be able to jot down my thoughts or share my experiences, as a way to remember them all. Keeping it all locked in my head does nothing but guarantee they'll be forgotten eventually, after all

If anyone is actually reading along somehow, I hope you can find joy in whatever it is that this ends up turning into. As I imagine it right now, this'll be a mix of my ideas, my photos of certain foods/drinks I've tried, my progress on whatever thing it is I'm working on, or me sharing a certain piece of media I consumed and how I felt about it.

Honestly, it's in that sense that I feel overwhelmed right now. There's so many things I have that I'd like to talk about, but if I tried to cover all of my bases, this would quickly stop being a "journal" and just be a mess. Not to mention that would take so much time that it would essentially become a job in and of itself LOL I've honestly been struggling with the feeling of "being overwhelmed" quite a few times, and I think what I need to do in those cases is just take a moment to breathe, and just let things happen. So, in that spirit, this first journal is just going to be this — me going over my thoughts that led to me starting this up in the first place. I've been wanting to do something like this for a while now. A handful of months ago, I even started an actual, physical journal system to get some really heavy thoughts jotted down. It's like a form of venting, and I think it helped me get through those times well enough, but it's been over a month since I last touched that. To be honest, even though doing it by hand makes the process more intimate, it also makes it a pain in the ass to write more than a handful of paragraphs. I don't think I want this page to get as deep and serious as those journals were, but if it does at some points, so be it. Mostly, I just think it would be nice for me to get into the habit of taking the time to write down and save my thoughts on things. That way, sometime in the far future, I'll be able to look back to this and remember all of what I've been through, and all of the things I've thought, felt, and learned.

Not to mention, the current dilemma surrounding Twitter made this decision a lot easier to make. I've been meaning to move away from that site for a long time now, and I think this place will be better for me. Even if I don't hear good things about it. Though, I guess that's true no matter where you go. At the very least, I can write more than 240 characters per post on somewhere like here.

Plus, I'm going into this without a care in the world about viewership or likes or popularity or anything like that. I think I've had my full of that type of thing. So maybe this'll be a relaxing counterpart. Worst case scenario, I just don't use this site to browse other media, and it stays exclusively a place for me to blog.

I've still got things to figure out, but I'll just keep things one step at a time.