#English monogatari fans are just like that

[nadekofannumber1]

If they adapt nadeko pool via the vignettes there’s nothing stopping them from adapting mayoi welcome in the viginettes of shinobumonogatari

This is the funniest option from a story access and translation perspective mind you I’m not against it lol

[ranchstoryblog]

Ranch Story Community Q&A Volume 3: Igusa Matsuyama Returns!

Igusa Matsuyama, the legendary artist behind the Story of Seasons series since the original 1996 game has once again agreed to a Q&A featuring questions from fans from around the world! A big thank you to all the members of the community who helped make this possible.

Some aspects of the text have been altered to match localization people are familiar with. (Japanese names to English names, for example: Bokujou Monogatari (牧場物語) was formerly localized as Harvest Moon and is now localized as Story of Seasons, etc). Images were not part of the original text and have been added as a visual aid. Though we translated as many questions as we could, we did not include questions involving personal information or regarding unannounced releases. Please understand.

If you would like to read our original correspondence (in Japanese), that will be provided in a separate post.

Additional cosplay photo provided by Foxface from our community Discord.

Translations: @artycharmy (correspondence, outline) Editing and Clean-up: Jerome, @artycharmy, and @regularcelery

——— Anonymous asks: What is the relationship between Jamie and the Harvest Goddess?

Igusa Matsuyama: Jamie was treated as a fairy or spirit. I'm sorry, but I'm not sure if there's any points that link them and the Goddess.

Editor's note: the term Matsuyama uses is "妖精."

Tomato asks: I would like to ask about what their inspiration was for the outfits designs in the original release of harvest moon another wonderful life. Since I got reminded of the girl clothing brand Mezzo Piano when looking at the I love Kuma/I love bears outfit.

Igusa Matsuyama: I remember the only thing I thought of was using Spring-like colours! (All designs were made with seasonal colours In mind) When I knew that Daachan, who was planned to be used in a lot of events, wouldn't actually play a big role in the game, I put him on the T-Shirt so he could at least get some attention as a mascot-like existence.

Pansy asks: If you were able to create your own game for the Story of Seasons franchise, with no rules or limitations whatsoever, what do you think it might look like?

Igusa Mastuyama: Since I love dogs, I'd like to try making a Story of Seasons that's set in a world just full of dogs. Though that dream of mine probably won't come true.

Anonymous asks: The look of Story of Seasons has changed a lot over the years! What would you say is more challenging to create - simple designs, where you have to work with very little space, or complicated designs, where you have to consider many little details?

Igusa Matsuyama: A long time ago there were a lot of things you weren't able to replicate in video games. There were constraints for things like the number of colours and patterns for hair styles and clothes. It was difficult to work around those constraints, but at the same time a lot of fun. Nowadays, it's the complete opposite. Now we can design anything with hardly any constraints. And unlike a long time ago, now I'm asked to make more complicated designs, like patterns and decorations. However, if it's a big request, sometimes I run into quite a lot of trouble when designing. They each have had their own difficulties.

Anonymous asks: Hello, Matsuyama! Thank you for bringing the worlds of Bokujou Monogatari to life for many years. Your art has had a huge influence on me!

One of my favorite candidates is “Rock” from “A Wonderful Life.” I’d love to know any particular influences for his character design from 21 years ago, and his new design for the remake.

Igusa Matsuyama: I was told that he was a young, wannabe playboy, so I somehow ended up with that sort of design. For the remake, I made his clothes a little looser without changing his design, so he'd look even more playful. I, too, wanted to avoid changing him as much as I could as there are other people among the staff that also like the original for his “Rockness”. So, he got that makeover after everybody shared and checked their opinions with each other.

Jerome asks: On page 130 of the "Special Comic" manga there's artwork of Super Famicom characters that have never been printed anywhere else. Do you or Marvelous still have these? It would be great to see them in more detail in the future some time.

Igusa Matsuyama: They're all characters that appeared in the SNES version of "Harvest Moon." Nina's parents, Ellen's mother, Ann's father, Maria's parents (The mayor couple). I'm sorry. My SNES illustrations have gone missing...

Raven Bloom, Ryan, and Moth ask: How did you feel when your designs for the men in A Wonderful Life were repurposed to be bachelors? What do you think of the changes made to the bachelors in the remake of A Wonderful Life? I miss the “Bruce Campbell” look Matthew used to have.

Igusa Matsuyama: Matthew (マシュー) is Masshu (マッシュ) in the Japanese A Wonderful Life (Editors note: Charmy made a careless mistake when translating the questions, sorry Matsuyama san 🫣) When I first heard this name, the first thing that came to mind was Evil Dead's protagonist, Ash. You're right. I designed him after Bruce Campbell. I still love Bruce Campbell today. When Wonderful Life was under production, I had heard they weren't going to make a girl version, so I designed him not as a love interest, but as a quirky character. Knowing that he'd appear in the remake as a marriage candidate, I redesigned him as a character that would be liked by many. I hope you can enjoy the game for its nostalgia, as well as for being a shiny, brand new release.

Salmon Axe and Anonymous ask: I personally adore Doraemon x SOS game. Are you interested in working directly with or collaborating with other franchises in the future? And is there a series outside Story of Seasons you would like to work with now as a guest artist? (Could it be Pokemon?)

Igusa Matsuyama: I've loved Doraemon manga since I was a kid! Working as a guest artist? Hmm, I'm happier being the main illustrator, so nothing in particular comes to mind. I enjoy a lot of games in my free time, such as Fallout, Far Cry and Border Lands.

Anonymous asks: Even though we never see his face, was there ever a concept of how Woofio would look without his costume?

Igusa Matsuyama: I designed Woofio as the being that is Woofio, so there's no design of him without his costume.

Idris asks: Your style has upgraded a lot over the time to match the trends. Do you think you will ever go for an old school look (early HM) for a SoS game again? What do you think is the secret to your art’s charm?

Igusa Matsuyama: What I'm particular about when designing for Story of Seasons is making characters with head/body proportions and an atmosphere that go well with that release. First, I listen to the client's request then think of a design according to that. These days, game visuals have gotten fancier and fancier, so there's not many opportunities for characters with short proportions to make an appearance. To me, what's important when designing is "playfulness." More so than "pretty" or "cool" and such, I get attached to the character, have fun making the character. I find joy in character creation itself.

MacGyver asks: Yasuhiro Wada has shared some interesting stories about how chaotic the original game's development was. Is there anything interesting you remember from around that time? 

Igusa Matsuyama: Now it's a memory I can look back on and laugh about, but I'm not sure how much I can talk about it so please forgive me. If Wada hadn't been there back then, then "Harvest Moon" wouldn't have become a thing.

Toyberb and Anonymous ask: There’s a lot of different cow designs now, which is your favorite to draw?

Igusa Matsuyama: I've loved drawing animals since I was a kid, so I love all of the cows. Although the easiest one to draw is the cow with the big nose.

Anonymous asks: Were there any games where you made designs for protagonists of genders that did not end up available to play as? (Like a girl protagonist for Save the Homeland/Hero of Leaf Valley or a nonbinary protagonist for any game before A Wonderful Life)

Igusa Matsuyama: There's so many designs that got scrapped, but as far as I recall, there's not really many where that character's setting itself was scrapped. (Excluding Thumbelina, mentioned below)

Koharu asks: Were there ever any character designs made for other older SNES characters like Ellen for 64? Some magazines had Marie with blue hair, like the SNES character, so it made me wonder if she (SNES Maria) was meant to also be there at some point.

Igusa Matsuyama: I'm not in the position to make settings or scenarios where characters from other games appear, so I can't say, but I like the idea of older characters making an appearance!

Amina/k0iisu asks: Hello! I really love Hiro’s design specifically. Could you tell me a few facts about him/his design that might not be well known information? Thank you so much! I love your art :D

Igusa Matsuyama: Thank you very much! Hiro is a future doctor, so I tried to make them look as much like a doctor as I could. Also, to make him look friendlier, I designed him as your average everyday boy you'd see in the neighbourhood. He doesn't have a flashy face or hairstyle, but he's one of my favourite designs, too. I wrote this in the guidebook too, but what I like about him is the Asian flair I added to his clothes and the spot of colour around his feet.

Bunbun asks: I'm excited for the Nendoroid that was announced of Claire! I hope there will be ones of HM64 designs too. Since you have a lot of figures on your blog, how does it feel to be able to add one of your own characters to your collection? Are there any of your other characters you hope will get figures of?

Igusa Matsuyama: A nendoroid of Claire! I'm looking forward to it too, but when is it going to be released? If it's possible, I'd like one of Woofio.

Editor's note: Preorders are open for Nendoroid Claire now!

Chickee asks: A purple-haired princess character was rumored to have existed in Harvest Moon 64, but she didn't make it to the published game. Did you create a design for this character?

Igusa Matsuyama: That's probably Princess Thumbelina. Wasn't she Incredibly small? What I designed didn't end up being used. Speaking of HM64 characters, I pushed for them to include a pet turtle, but in the end it only appeared as an ornament. For A Wonderful Life, I asked for a turtle to be included again and designed a tortoise with a scarf, but it didn't make it as a pet and appeared only as a wild turtle that walks around the pond. I'm waiting for the day they finally include a pet turtle in the game.

emery flower147 asks: omg  I saw the pics where the AWL girls are in a team and Muffy has a shotgun and stuff? Do you think any other characters would work in a cool team like that?

Igusa Matsuyama: For the Friends of Mineral Town guide book, I had the five girls, Popuri, Marie, Ran, Elly and Karen work hard as Harvest Sprites. Also, for the guide books, I drew Pete (The old male protagonist), Sarah (The GB version female protagonist), and Claire doing whatever I wanted them to. I don't know if you can call it cool or not, but it was fun being in charge of that.

Ixur asks: A lot of the PoOT character designs for the regular villagers seem more popular than the marriage candidates in my region. Is that something that's been noticed by you/Marvelous in Japan? Lars, Clemens, Beth, and Misaki for example.

Igusa Matsuyama: Marvelous doesn't really talk about that sort of thing so I'm not sure if they're aware of it or not. I don't do social media so I'm also not sure which characters are popular. I'm happy as long as the characters are liked. The design on Lars’s shirt is modeled after my beloved dog, so I’d be especially happy if you like his shirt too.

Anonymous asks: What do you think about people cosplaying your designs?

Igusa Matsuyama: It makes me very happy! I'm no good at sewing, so I really admire people who can make their own clothes. It's an honour having the designs I made be made into real clothes, and I think it's great to have fun acting out the characters.

Afro Fae asks: When creating designs for characters, how do you settle on a specific color palette? Do you take color meanings into account with a character's personality or do you go purely off of feeling?

Igusa Matsuyama: I keep in mind the overall colours the client asked for while designing. Sometimes I propose a new colour when I think there's one that fits better. I'm also careful when choosing colours and everyone's traits to make sure it's easy to tell which character is which when seen from a distance. However, in the cases of families and such, I do the opposite and give them all a common colour to give them a sense of kinship.

———

From all of us at Ranch Story, we'd like to thank Matsuyama from the bottom of our hearts for answering our questions again! Whether a fan has only just discovered the series or has grown up alongside it, so many people have loved these characters and worlds that Igusa Matsuyama brings to life, so it feels truly special to be able to have this opportunity. We'll end this article with Matsuyama's own words, as well as a parting gift.

Igusa Matsuyama: I'm so glad I could answer your questions again. I'm the one that should be saying thank you. It means the world to me knowing that everyone enjoys my illustrations! I added an illustration as thanks. I'll keep up the hard work!

[cnovelartreblogs]

So, I was unfamiliar with Monogatari Novels until I reblogged that last post and shared in a Discord server with friends that I'd heard this news and was excited.

I am. far less excited now. They are dicey at best, awful at worst, and I'm definitely going to be watching their releases with a great deal of skepticism.

I don't have time to do as thorough a blog post about this as it really deserves, but I did want to gather in one place the receipts that were shared with me, so that if others didn't know, they could learn more about the company we're dealing with and make their own decisions about whether to buy from them or not.

First: I noticed myself, and thought it was odd, that a place that primarily publishes Chinese fiction would use the name Monogatari, which is a Japanese word. Further, tho I hadn't noticed, it's actually worse: they use a rising sun as their icon, which is. uh. A choice. A pretty fucked up choice, given the history between Japan and China. When this was pointed out to them, they said repeatedly they just didn't know/didn't realize, which is a fucking weird thing for a company that things they have the expertise to translate these books to say about the history of the country they're translating books from. Like. It makes me think they don't actually know jackshit.

They also have a bad record regarding who they're picking as translators and their understanding of copyright law. (I recommend you use the links, the tweets often have more info in the replies)

(one of those mistranslated lines is so basic that even I, with my less than 2.5 yrs of studying, could have translated correctly.)

Basically: they are sus af. They've also apparently said on their Spanish-language twitter that they've been lying on their English-language one to appease US fans.

I was really excited a couple hours ago. Now, I'm EXTREMELY wary.

Just...be on the look-out, y'all.

To be clear: this doesn't mean that their subsequent publications will be a cluster. They might have learned! They might be doing better! Or, they might just have picked better, more trustworthy partners for specific projects! I don't want to say "do not support under any circumstances." But I know... I'd rather know all the above than not. And I figured other people would want to know too.

(research shared with permission from the person who shared it with me.)

[archoneddzs15]

PC Engine - Madoh Monogatari I

Title: Madoh Monogatari I / 魔導物語Ｉ 炎の卒園児

Developer: Compile / Goo! / Wizard Co. Ltd.

Publisher: NEC Avenue

Release date: 13 December 1996

Catalogue No.: NAPR-1047

Genre: Dungeon Crawler

Format: Arcade Card CD-ROM2

The Compile dungeon crawler which also launched the more successful Puyo Puyo franchise. This PC Engine Arcade Card CD version is a bit different from the Mega Drive version which had side-view battles. Instead, it plays more like the Sega Game Gear version, meaning battles are turn-based and menu-driven. Being on CD, it does come with some beautifully arranged music, and speech samples, though some of the speech samples sound tinny and harsh. This game requires the Arcade Card and was actually the last ever PC Engine Arcade Card CD-ROM2 game to be released a full year after 1995's Ginga Fukei Densetsu Sapphire. I actually wonder why the Super CD-ROM2 format was so popular. Still, as a game, it plays decently enough. The graphics and colors are pretty nice too. Just like the Mega Drive version this one also has seen an English fan translation in recent years.

[retrosofa]

I was surprised to find out someone actually translated Ai no Wakakusayama Monogatari. For those of you who don't know, it was part of an omnibus series called Anime Ai no Awa Awa Hour, which also featured Koume-chan ga Iku! and the infamous Oruchuban Ebichu. Ebichu got an English fan-translation shortly after the series was released on DVD but the other two have been neglected for over 20 years.

While all three series are geared towards adult women only Ebichu has explicit content. You won't find sex scenes or raunchy humor in Wakakusayama Monogatari or Koume-chan. But you will have scenes where the lead character talks about her period or the struggles she has with quitting smoking. Y'know, things that probably won't show up in your average kids anime.

Ai no Wakakusayama Monogatari is an okay short series but it doesn't really have a lot of character. In fact, even though episodes only run about three minutes long, they're kind of boring. I'm honestly shocked Koume-chan ga Iku! is the only one left untranslated because it has cute characters, funny gags and a lot of personality. Both series pale in comparison to Ebichu but Koume-chan does have enough merit on its own. I can't say the same for Ai no Wakakusayama Monogatari, which just feels like an afterthought.

UPDATE: It turns out someone did translate Koume-chan.

[chibivesicle]

The Ranma 1/2 remake is giving me feelings

That's right. In this era of anime remakes, Ranma 1/2 is stepping up to the plate and will be animated by Studio Mappa! I do like me some works by Mappa. I just saw the new OP for it and so much of it refers directly back to the original OP, including keeping a few key animation sequences! I dunno - I don't want to be disappointed by it but at the same time I want to watch it.

Out of all of the remakes bouncing around this one pulls at me the most. Sure, I was all on board with Sailor Moon Crystal ten years ago but Ranma 1/2 was the first manga I ever bought! The nostalgia and continued love of the series is strong within me.

It is definitely hitting different seeing that this was my first manga series ever. I put a Shampoo sticker in my Ti-34 calculator which only recently went on the fritz at the ripe old age of twenty-eight and is still in my desk at work. I have a Ranma 1/2 poster still in my old closet at my parents' house (someday I should actually, you know, grab it), I bought fan art at Anime Expo in 2022 and even this summer I got a Ranma double sided charm from a local artist at an Asian food festival who also tables at local cons/art markets. I have to admit, I got all excited for the Trigun reboot and if you've been reading along you know I was incredibly disappointed. And you also have a rough estimate of my age based on when I watched it originally as a fan sub. Yet if there is any series that can be used to date me it is Ranma 1/2 since I bought all of my manga before university. I oddly kept telling myself I'd round out the collection when I got older and had more money to complete it. I never did and it has remained a mess of the original Viz editions. Behold! The first English edition of Ranma 1/2 in the left-to-right, hand lettered, and redrawn sound effects all in English.

Volume 1 cost $16.95 when I bought it which would have worked out to a whopping $33 adjusted for inflation, with a publication date of May 1993. Purchasing those early volumes from Viz was not for the faint of heart or those with shallow pockets. This is reminding me why I never back filled volumes 5-7 within my own collection, coming in at $15.95 each. I'm pretty sure that a few of them were likely Christmas presents as well . . .

These editions are what eventually came to match the size of the Viz Signature versions like Maison Ikkoku and Gokinjo Monogatari. These are hefty books and have held up pretty well over the years.

So I now find myself in the exact same position I was in before Trigun Stampede - do I reread the manga and finish it off since I likely only read the first third of it? And then do I take the time to review the new anime from Mappa?

Unlike Trigun which required me to start from scratch having only watched the anime, I've read up to volume 12 of the original manga and filled in the gaps by watching the original anime back in 2014/2015 to around where I'd read it - I think.

One of the issues is that I have the old format for it where there are no chapter numbers like it would have run in the weekly magazine to directly compare with. Viz did a really weird format since it started out as a comic with different arcs and parts and all mine have part 1-13/14 per volume. If I'm not mistaken, there were two subsequent editions of Ranma 1/2 in English; a right-to-left reprint of the original Japanese tankobon with the sequential chapter numbers from the magazine which then was later bundled into a 2 in 1 edition also in the right-to-left format.

Going by chapter names, I'm going to check out various volumes of the 2 in 1 edition from my local library and hope they line up to cover my gaps and then continue onward from chapter 142, The Mark of the Gods.

I also read the edition which really struggled to describe okonomiyaki to a non-Japanese reader. For several years, my young mind tried to square how they were like pizza when they were made on a griddle but had lots of toppings?!?!

I still don't know why the translators chose to localize it this way. They could have simply called it a savory pancake and it would have solved a lot of reader confusion.

It wasn't until university when I was hanging out with friends that I had the chance to make real okonomiyaki (a friend's roommate was Japanese) and the first thing I blurted out was something along the lines of "Like Ukyo from Ranma!" Granted, Ukyo was one of my fav characters at the time. Anyhoo, perhaps I'll do some meta posts as I read the manga and build up to watching the new anime. I don't think I'll have it in me to compare to the original anime since I read the manga long before watching the anime here in there for about fifteen years. I'm also curious to compare the later English editions with mine to see if there are some minor differences or not. I haven't seen the solid colored books like mine since I bought them in the first place.

[gren-arlio]

Puyo Fans are in a drought. I'm here to give a bottle of water to them all. Or at least, I plan to.

All jokes aside, hello there. First time poster here, but I want to explain myself for that header. Currently, as a mere Puyo fan myself, we're going through a real bad drought, like we're rhinos who haven't seen rain in a decade. Besides alts from Quest, we really don't get much things nowadays when it comes to stuff, and a majority of the Madou Monogatari games are sadly not translated, besides Madou Saturn and maybe 2 other games I'm forgetting. Even the Puyo Nexus is running a little dry with that sort of stuff.

So why don't we change that?

I have a very specific game in mind: Waku Waku Puyo Puyo Dungeon. From my findings from both online and on this site, there doesn't seem to be a translation for the entire game. For small sections? Yeah, I've seen them, and I'm happy they're there, but we can do more than sections. How about...a majority of the main story?

...At least for Schezo's route.

For those unaware, the game has 3 stories, the protagonist varying, but it's the ARS Trio from COMPILE, Arle, Rulue, and Schezo.

AKA: These Guys.

And I plan to translate a good amount of Schezo's story for the time being. This is mostly for the main story, as mentioned before, and some stuff mentioned in the in-game Bulletin Board. If you wish to try to do the other two, by all means, go ahead, the more the merrier. I've done some bits already before even making this post, and some parts range from Schezo calling Rulue a bitch to him giving Serilly therapy (Trust me, it makes sense.) It's a chaotic ride and I'm all for it.

So how will I do this, you may ask.

Unfortunately, I have a severe case of I'm Broke As Hell and cannot afford a SEGA Saturn, let alone the game itself. Thankfully, I do have what other people gave back then, especially on more niche YouTube Videos, Niconico, list goes on. If someone has the game and is willing to help just a bit, please let me know! Any help would be greatly appreciated.

This is one of the videos in question. It's the opening to Schezo's story, probably the best story out of the main ARS Trio. It shows off a bit of the gameplay as well as bits of story. As of posting this, I'm only about halfway through the video itself (When you fight Skeleton-T) and trust me, doing this takes a lot of time.

I also just want to mention that Schezo swears. A lot, actually, no one is truly safe from his way of words. On one hand, if we want to stick to the kid friendly Puyo stuff we're mostly used to, I could edit them out...But on the other, he does so often that I just want to keep them to show how funny he is with this stuff.

A few more things before I conclude:

I do NOT speak fluent Japanese, at most I can do a few phrases. This is mostly being done with stuff like translators, context clues, and some help from friends.

Translating takes time. A lot of it. Please do not expect me to do full videos within a day or two. These can take as long as a few weeks, or about as short as three or so days. Also, I have school, so there's that. However, if you wish me to translate a few bits of lines to see what they mean, that's fine!

Some of the translations might not be correct, and if they don't seem correct, or flat out aren't, let me know! I won't take any offense to it and it'll help out a lot!

Credit is something that might get brought up. If someone uses this to make let's say...a English Patch, then yeah, I'd like to be noted for that. Otherwise, it's for everyone.

If you wish to do your own translation, or do another storyline, by all means, go ahead! I'd love to see what others see, and it'll make the workload a lot better for everyone.

With that, that'll be all. Thanks for reading!

[shazzeaslightnovels]

Tearmoon Teikoku Monogatari 2

Author: Nozomu Mochitsuki

Illustrator: Gilse

Label: TO Books

Release Date: 9 November 2019

My Score: 3/5

There are two plots in this volume. In the first, Mia returns to her home for the holidays and there's plenty of politics for her to engage with to try to avert her future of being executed. The most interesting part in this plot is the introduction of Dion, the man who beheaded Mia in her previous life. In the second plot, Mia returns to the academy, excited to reunite with Abel, only to find that a revolution is starting in his own country. Together with Sion, Mia goes on a journey to save Abel and prevent the revolution.

This volume felt longer than the first one and not as enjoyable. It's actually the same length but I guess I just wasn't as interested in the story here. It definitely wasn't bad and there were plenty of interesting developments, particularly towards the end, but I wasn't very engaged. I do think this mostly because I'm not a big fan of politic plots in light novels. If I'm reading something in English, I tend to like that kind of drama more but it's harder to follow in Japanese so I end up just feeling bored. I ended up just thinking this volume was fine. I'll be reading the next one but unless it builds up some intrigue for me, I probably won't continue with the series after that.

I have started watching the anime but I'm only on episode 3. I think it's really good so far. It brings out the strengths of it's source material (namely, Mia herself) and also makes some cuts to streamline things that helps the pace a lot. There's some great visual gags too. It probably won't be a favourite of the season for me but I've been enjoying it so far. Also, I love the ED. The concept of adult!Mia and child!Mia having a tea party is brilliant.

[formulaorange]

Winter 2023 - What to Watch

The new year is here and we aren't starting it off slow. There's a lot that look worth checking out so buckle up, this is a long post full of anime recommendations.

Starting with some banger sequels: Vinland Saga S2 Tokyo Revengers S2 The Misfit of Demon King Academy S2 Bofuri S2 The Vampire dies in No Time S2 Bungou Stray Dogs S4 We also have the continuations of these shows, each one, honestly worth a watch: BlueLock My Hero Academia S6 To Your Eternity S2 The Eminence in Shadow All of these are some big name series that'll definitely have their own following. Personally I'm looking forward to the contrast between the seriousness of Vinland Saga and the dumb humour in The Vampire dies in No Time. As for new series, there's definitely a few noteworthy ones:

NieR: Automata Ver 1.1a For all you gamers out there, NieR is finally getting a solid looking anime. But also for those who haven't played the game, this honestly looks like a solid sci-fi series. 100% worth checking it out. Kubo-san Won't Let me be Invisible This is a new series from Shonen Jump. (I believe there's only 3 english volumes out as of now.) It seems like a solid slice of life and there'll definitely be a decent fan following.

Campfire Cooking in Another World with My Absurd Skill This is a series I started reading a while back and it's actually so much fun, I can't believe MAPPA ended up being the ones who picked it up. I think it'll be a solid show and I'm really looking forward to watching it come to life.

Buddy Daddies This looks super fun and cute. It seems similar to Yakuza babysitter but more shonen jump-esque? Genres are comedy and organized crime. Should be a solid series regardless of if there's any similarities to spyxfamily.

Trigun Stampede While I don't know much about the trigun series, I think it's crazy that it looks like this entire show is 100% CGI. I'm interested to see how smooth it actually looks because the trailer looked damn impressive. The Ice Guy and his Cool Female Colleague I've heard about this series and it looks like such a solid adult romance (as in they're actually adults). I'm stoked to have another series like this coming up.

Sugar Apple Fairy Tale The animations look so good 😭I'm such a sucker for this animation style and character design. Something about it just too pretty to not check out. There's also something about it that give me Mushoku tensei vibes. Giant Beasts of Ars This actually looks super different. The concept and creatures look interesting and has an oddly medieval vibe to things. Reminds me a bit of DND. I think it'll be a neat series worth looking into if you're interested in the Kaiju fighting genre. Malevolent Spirits: Monogatari Not going to lie, this looks like a JJK spin off or some kind of smaller SJ series. I'll check it out and see if it actually has any potential, but for now it looks like the standard standout mc with a group of people he's stuck with to fight of spirits. Some additional ones that look interesting:

Revenger I originally thought this would be a write off because it's so low on the list for anticipated series and the name seemed kinda bland, but the trailer actually looks neat. It seems to be an old school action with an anti-hero in old Japan. I can't really explain it well, but definitely worth a look over. Hikari no Ou This is the artsy series for the season. It looks primarily story focused and has the standard artsy animation style (sonny boy, heike monogatari). If you're here for the story, I think this is the one to check out. In/Spectre S2 This series has a solid manga following and seems to have a really interesting concept. Worth taking a look at. Spy Classroom Tbh, I don't think i'll watch this, but it seems like something worth mentioning. Essentially assassination classroom but with spies. If you're looking for the ecchi series - check out: My Life as Inukai-san's Dog This guy's turned into a dog and is kept by the girl he likes. Just 100% ecchi, very limited plot by the looks of it.

And of course, the 3 episode isekai/fantasy section: Farming Life in Another World Not much that needs to be said, but if it can stay as a wholesome farming anime then I'll likely watch a few episodes. The Reincarnation of the Strongest Exorcist in Another World The animations look pretty solid and it seems like there might be some interesting creatures/plot points to this one. Worth a few episodes at least. Endo and Kobayashi Live! The Latest on Tsundere Villainess Lieselotte Interesting take on the current theme of entering shoujo games. Essentially these 2 friends are somehow able to talk to the mc in a love game, confusing him and pretty much acting as the angel and the devil on his shoulder. Final Notes: There's a bunch more out that that I ended up not including just for quality's sake. Save you guys the pain of all the isekais out there this season. At the end of the day, there's some really solid sequels of much loved shows and just as many decent looking new series. My guess is that if Buddy Daddies actually holds it's ground against some of the others, it'll be one of the underdogs of the season.

[nowoyas]

@pupkou I'm going to assume this is in reference to my tags on that post asking if anyone wants to hear about The Schism(TM). 👀 I'll try to keep this explanation short.

The simple cliffnotes of what you need to know: any Harvest Moon game published after 2014 is made by a different company capitalizing on the name, rather than the people who made Harvest Moon before 2014.

The long answer: Bokujou Monogatari (lit. Farm Story) is a game series that's been published by a few different publishers over the years. In like 2003 it settled into Marvelous; the few games before that didn't quite have a home, but eventually it would all be Marvelous Interactive. Back in the day, localization of games to English was less refined, but it wasn't uncommon to see localization outsourced to a different publisher than its Japanese publisher. Funnily enough, the early Harvest Moon games were localized and published in English-speaking regions by Natsume, also a Japanese company.

Early localized games were charming, but you could always expect there to be mistakes. (Most notably, Natsume once misspelled their own name during localization as Nastume.) In the Wonderful Life games, this meant two different items called the Matsutake (a type of mushroom), but mostly this meant typos. This in itself isn't that bad! The older games are super charming, and it's easy to overlook those little tetches in favor of fun gameplay.

In 2014, Marvelous, the company that Harvest Moon has settled into, decides it wants to stop outsourcing localization to another publisher. This is, first and foremost, just a correct business decision: if you have the ability to perform a task yourself and do it well, you probably shouldn't be paying someone else to do it for you and allowing them a share of the profits. They want to move forward making Bokumono (the nickname for the bokujou monogatari/harvest moon series in Japan) and localizing it using XSEED, their subsidiary.

Here's where the issue arises: since Harvest Moon has been being published technically by Natsume, Natsume owns the rights to the name Harvest Moon, NOT Marvelous, even though Marvelous has been making the actual games. This means that, barring a peaceful split where Natsume hands over the rights to the name, Marvelous can't actually publish bokumono in English under the name they've been using, and just to rub salt in the wounds and make sure Marvelous can't continue using the name, Natsume begins making farm sims and publishing them as Harvest Moon, using the Harvest Moon logo and (as I understand it) some key elements of previous Harvest Moon games, which is why in the new Story of Seasons remake "Harvest sprites" are now called "nature sprites", for example.

Natsume, however, is not experienced in making farm sims, just in translating those farm sims to English and spelling things wrong in the translation. They miss marks when making New Harvest Moon, and confuse the shit out of English-speaking fans who havent heard the news. Seven years after Marvelous decides to start publishing their games themselves and Natsume starts capitalizing on the name of games it didn't make, we get the worst farm sim ever made, HM: One World, a game I feel so strongly about that autocorrect changes it to be in all caps whenever I type it.

That's basically the rundown of it. Generally speaking, some of the New Harvest Moon games are probably good. One World is not. I will admit that I have held off on playing the others, because One World burnt me so bad and I'm afraid to install the ones I own in case they ALSO completely ignore what draws people to the genre.

[omentranslates]

But Even So -- Mizuno Atsu english lyrics fan translation

Song: Mizuno Atsu

VO: KAFU

English Translation

Oh but how I love you so

Oh how I love you so

Even though I'm not

So nice as you'd think

Oh but how I love you so

Oh how I love you so

That's the kind of story this is

I've become so afraid of losing things

That I just might spend today asleep

We'll surely meet again someday

I'm staring into that far off sky

I've finished with it by now

With remembering you

I've finished with it by now

I'd rather just forget

But even then, I do love you

Even then, I love you

Even though you aren't

Someone I can protect

But even then, I do love you

Even then, I love you

If we could be together always

I've come to hate my favorite things

I want to know what I can do that will get me validation

Back then when I'd say things like "I want to go back"

When I was holding tight to a hand I no longer can

I'm fine with things like this

If everyone is happy

Then I'm fine with things like this

I'm always alone anyways

I'm crying out

Hey, I'm crying out

Running along my brow

Those memories pool

Oh but how I love you so

Oh how I love you so

Even though I'm not

So nice as you'd think

Oh but how I love you so

Oh how I love you so

That's the kind of story this is

JP original under the cut (kanji/romaji)

でもね愛してるよ ねえ愛してるよ 僕はそんな 優しくないけど

Demo ne aishiteru yo Nee aishiteru yo Boku wa sonna Yasashikunai kedo

でもね愛してるよ ねえ愛してるよ

Demo ne aishiteru yo Nee aishiteru yo

そんな物語

Sonna monogatari

失うことが怖くなった だから今日は眠ろうか いつかきっとまた会えるさ 遠くの空を見ている

Ushinau koto ga kowaku natta Dakara kyou wa nemurou ka Itsuka kitto mata aeru sa Tooku no sora wo miteiru

もうやめた 君を思い出すのを もうやめた いっそ忘れたいな

Mou yameta Kimi wo omoidasu no wa Mou yameta Isso wasuretai na

でもね大好きだよ ねえ大好きだよ 僕は君を 守れないけど

Demo ne daisuki da yo Nee daisuki da yo Boku wa kimi wo Mamorenai kedo

でもね大好きだよ ねえ大好きだよ

Demo ne daisuki da yo Nee daisuki da yo

ずっと一緒なら

Zutto issho nara

好きな事が嫌いになった 何をすれば褒められるの あの頃にさ、もどりたいとか 失った手を握ってた

Suki na koto ga kirai ni natta Nani wo sureba homerareru no Ano koro ni sa, modoritai to ka Ushinatta te wo nigitteta

これ��良いよ みんな幸せなら これで良いよ 僕はいつも独りさ

Kore de ii yo Minna shiawase nara Kore de ii yo Boku wa itsumo hitori sa

泣いてるの ねえ泣いてるの ひたい伝う 思い出たち

Naiteru no Nee naiteru no Hitai tsutau Omoidetachi

泣いてるの ねえ泣いてるの 僕は

Naiteru no Nee naiteru no Boku wa

でもね愛してるよ ねえ愛してるよ 僕はそんな 優しくないけど

Demo ne aishiteru yo Nee aishiteru yo Boku wa sonna Yasashikunai kedo

でもね愛してるよ ねえ愛してるよ

Demo ne aishiteru yo Nee aishiteru yo

そんな物語

Sonna monogatari

[nadekofannumber1]

Which voice actor do you think puts on the best performance in Monogatari?

Well as a nadeko fan I am biased, so I think I love kanahana’s portrayal the most. But personally I think that one of the best performances is from Marina Inoue bc I just love how she does sodachi. It has a good intensity to it after all. If we went with something like range it would definitely be Maaya Sakamoto because of the obvious (shinobu forms). And I’d say a side favorite voice is probably Kaori Mizuhashi because the intonations and cadence comes through very well to an English speaker so that if one were to imitate a voice it would most easily be ougi’s mostly because of how distinct the cadence and speech patterns are.

[mephistopheler]

✵ SALUTATIONS MY HUMBLE AUDIENCES~!

Welcome to a place where my quite peculiar interests goes into ♪

Now, now... 'Tis the time for me to introduce mineself...♪

My name is Val!!! (short for Valerian) Also known as Kolya, Petruk or Wahyu on other platforms :D

{My pronouns are He/Him, I'm a guy and a minor fyi ☆}

My literally WHOLE typology incase someone's curious :>

ENTP 3w2 sx/so 379 Chaotic Neutral Sang-Chol

✵ ALRIIIIGHT~ LET'S GET TO MY INTERESTS, SHALL WE?

➸ My Interests!

• Anything of Jester, Clown, Circus, or Magician aesthetics I absolutely DEVOUR those!

• Shakespeare (Especially R&J, Macbeth, Tempest, Hamlet MND and Twelfth Night)

• Other Theatrical Plays/Musicals/Operas

• Historical fictions

• Classic Literature

• By liking classic literature, I am destined to be interested anything that involves Bungou such as; Bungou Stray Dogs, Bungou to alchemist, even obscure ones like Bungou Series, Tsuki Ni Hoerane, Circus at the very end, Ravuhebun, etc.

• I play rhythm games like Enstars (EN+JP), Bandori (EN), D4DJ (EN), and Deresute! So if you wanted to befriend me there, just message me~ (I am HEAVILY interested in Enstars)

• Speaking of RHYTHM games I love classical music!!! (Mind you i'm also in the Classicomp fandom) Other favorite genre of mine such as Jazz, Electro swing, etc. can be found on my quite full of tomfoolery Spotify account!

• By liking Classical music and it's composers while showing interest in Japanese media, of course I'd love CLASSICALOID!!!

• PUYO PUYO!!!! Ms. Accord my beloved btw ♡ (Val trying not to fall in love with mysterious ourple characters challenge impossible)

• Ofcourse i'd enjoy Madou Monogatari too

And I like, really really hate Satan guys I swear 😁 He's being denial again fellas

• REVERSE 1999!!! As a biased Shakespeare fan I love my Daughter Charlie, The Fool, and Nick Bottom ♡♡♡ (I play on Global server!)

• 31 Minutos yes! The dreadfully humorous and peculiar puppet show!

• JJBA it's literally my childhood show besides My Little Pony (don't ask why)

• Hetalia because I love history and this is actually one of my comfort media...

• The Bibl—*GUILLOTINE DROPS*

• AND MANY MORE WHICH YOU'LL COLLECT LATER LIKE POKEMON!!! (Because all he does here is indulging himself on his own interests)

✵ OBLIGATORY BYF & DNI SECTION. ONE MUST READ BEFORE PASSING.

➸ BYF

• I have BPD and AUDHD! I'm pretty much a calm person, so thou shalt not be afraid. im very sane I swear guys I swe

Except I'll be like, SUPER annoying about my interests—or in general. !! I try my best to understand social cues, so it's best to make me aware if I ever did something impolite or uncomfortable to you outside of my awareness !!

• I'm INDONESIAN 🇮🇩 So my English may not be the best, because it is not a main language of mine! (And I sometimes ramble in Indonesians here whoops)

• Yes I do type/talk peculiarly. Get used to my theatrical antics! 🙄 (May this perhaps be what everyone called... A typing quirk?)

• I am a multishipper!!! I also don't concern oneself with any ships that are not to my likings.

• My blogs are most likely to be jokes/satirical! Better to take things lightly~

• YOU MUST BE IMMUNE TO MY CRINGENESS!

• I am completely sane and aware of my actions.

➸ DNI

• Post or actively talked about ED & SH

thou shalt refrain from calling me a weakling!!! Those topics are a triggering one for a fool like I am!

• LGBT+phobes, BE FEARFUL AS I TRANSCEND THE GENDERS!!!

• Ableists, of course! I mean... Which ableist could even keep up with someone as AMAZING as me?

• Racists

• Zoophiles

• Pedophiles/MAPs

I am not a centuries old ancient being, sadly. Please be mindful!

• Neo N*zis

• Matcha haters 😡/j

Other than that, I think you're good to go~

✵ Applause, everyone! The comedy is over! My greatest gratitude goes to all of you who decided to come by and be intrigued by my show~!

Seriously... Did you read ALL THAT?

Anyways, May the fate let us to reunite sometime ☆

(By that I mean, I NEED MOOTS)

[traitimdoithay]

earlier today i suddenly thought about kamaitachi no yoru and now i’m wishing there was a fan translation of the original snes game... i know there’s a remake that has (as far as i’m aware) a good english translation but it ends up being kind of generic in terms of presentation because it just uses your run-of-the-mill sprites while the original was unique in that all the characters just appeared as silhouettes. i wonder if it’s possible to somehow port the english translation of the remake to the snes. is that even possible? if ihatovo monogatari (snes adventure game) can get a fan translation then it’s definitely possible for kamaitachi no yoru, though it would take a long time because there’s like... 40 different endings for the game LMFAO. but i hope it can happen

[onetoothpig]

please rant about Madou Monogatari: Big Kindergarten Kids

No problem!

Madou Monogatari: Hanamaru Daiyouchi Enji (or Madou Monogatari: Big Kindergarten Kids as the fan translation calls it) is an RPG in Compile's Madou Monogatari series released on the Super Famicom (Japanese SNES). This game came out when Madou's spinoff series, Puyo Puyo (you might have heard of it) had reached popularity in Japan, so it was actually advertised as a "Puyo Puyo RPG".

The main story is quite simple. A kindergarten-aged Arle Nadja has to find one of several Exam Certificates scattered around the world to be able to take her final exam. One morning a stork brings down a letter for her, but neither Arle nor her mother can read it. Arle takes the letter to her grandmother, who tells arle that the letter is a legend that tells of eight Secret Stones. Whoever gets all of them can have a wish granted if they bring it to the lake on top of Sage's Mountain, so Arle naturally goes on an epic quest to collect 'em all.

Gameplay-wise, it might be your standard RPG fare, but all most games in the Madou Monogatari series are missing something that's standard for other RPGs: there aren't any numbers. The only value that still retains a numerical value is the amount of money you have on hand; everything else (e.g., your health, your magic, opponent's health, and even the level your character is currently at) is represented by text. Arle will say stuff like, "I'm supercharged! This is perfect!" "Gee, my body feels... heavy..." "Oww! It hurts real bad!" "I'm gonna get knocked out..." to indicate her health. Likewise, she says things to indicate the health of the enemy she's fighting and her magic. It's actually a really cool little system, and works great for people who haven't played an RPG before. Ironically, it can actually be harder to get used to if you've played quite a few traditional RPGs, but once you get the hang of it, it's easy as Puyo Pie.

Big Kindergarten Kids strays a bit from other games in the series. While most Madou games are first-person, this game features a top-down viewpoint found in many SNES/Super Famicom RPGs. Also, running away from battles never fails, whereas it had a chance of failing in other titles, which means if you're particularly low on health, you can nip out of a fight if you're not in the mood to deal with crazy. Another neat thing is since you're in a top-down RPG now, you won't have to deal with annoying menus to use special items. Just use the L and R shoulder buttons to switch between the items, and use the Y button to use it. Awesome!

This game features a lot of the cast of the Puyo games you've come to know and love (although Schezo seems to be completely absent from the title, which sucks). Quite a few characters you might've met before in Puyo Puyo 2 in particular make appearances here.

All in all, while it does contain some cryptic and confusing parts to it, Madou Monogatari: Big Kindergarten Kids is an amusing and very enjoyable game, and I very much do recommend playing it, especially if you're new to the RPG genre - it's the perfect entry-level RPG. There's even a fan translation so you can play it in English, plus one for Portugese that is still kinda buggy. Definitely one of my favorite SNES/Super Famicom games, and believe me, I have quite a few!

[hotwaterandmilk]

I’m going to preface this by saying I’m not a vocal Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Pitch fan, but I did read/watch the original series and you’d have to be living under a rock to miss the let’s say mixed reception the aqua sequel has been receiving from English-speaking fans (though I’d call its Japanese fan reception muted at best too, tbh).

Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Pitch aqua

Hanamori Pink, the illustrator behind the original manga series began aqua in the September 2021 issue of Nakayoshi magazine. aqua is being written and illustrated by Hanamori without the input of original co-creator Yokote Michiko this time around.

aqua, a sequel to the original, tells the story of Nanami Rukia, daughter of Lucia and Kaito from the first series. Raised without knowledge of her mermaid ancestry, Rukia learns about her parents’ legacy upon turning 17. She must now deal with a betrothal, danger in the seven seas, and her unexpected mermaid abilities all at once.

There are a lot of issues people cite with the content in the first two chapters of aqua (which is all that have been released to this point, September 7th 2021). Common ones I’ve noticed include: Lucia & Kaito look like teenagers, Rukia and Lucia look identical in mermaid form, Hanamori’s anatomy is all over the shop,  Kurosuna Ryuusei (Rukia’s love interest) is mean and kind of a dick, it makes no sense that the characters from the original series would keep all the mermaid stuff secret, arranged marriage haha wtf, etc. etc.

Most of these are fairly subjective and not what I want to focus on here (though imho the art and story here are not great). It is the change in maturity level that is seen in aqua vs. the original Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Pitch manga that first graced the pages of Nakayoshi magazine way back in 2002.

What do I mean by change in maturity level? Well, you certainly didn’t see panels like this in the original MMPPP manga:

(Kurosuna  “a fish is fine too” Ryuusei  + mermaid Rukia from the second chapter - scan thanks to @hikayagami).

And frankly, if you haven’t looked at Nakayoshi magazine for 20 years I can appreciate why you’d be shocked at not just this, but Kurosuna’s fairly nasty behaviour over both chapters (treating human Rukia coldly because he’s only horny for the mermaid that saved him). However, this is only really surprising if you take aqua on its own, without the context of the changes seen in Nakayoshi since its readership peaked in 1993.

"But Nakayoshi is for girls aged 8-14! It isn’t like this!” Yeah... see Nakayoshi really is like this, nowadays. Forget the powerhouse magazine that ruled the shoujo landscape in the 90s and early 00s, Nakayoshi has been steadily losing readers for quite sometime -- we’re talking a circulation rate below 60,000 (when modern Ciao magazine is hitting over half a million -- see all mag data here). 

Without the power of strong media mix tie-ins, Nakayoshi has seen a change in the type of stories it serialises. What do I mean? Well, let’s compare what was running in Nakayoshi September 2002 vs. Nakayoshi September 2021 (when the MMPPP and MMPPPA manga began serialisation).

Nakayoshi September 2002

Daa! Daa! Daa! - Kawamura Mika (media mix)

Sister Witch (Love Witch) - Takeuchi Naoko

Juunikyuu de Tsukamaete - Andou Natsumi

Tokyo Mew Mew - Ikumi Mia and Yoshida Reiko (media mix)

Yobarete Tobidete! Akubi-chan - Kamikita Futago (media mix)

Urukyuu - Akimoto Nami

Kekkon Shiyou yo - Mizukami Wataru

Musume. Monogatari - Kanzaki Yutaka and Tanaka Rika (media mix)

Hoppe Ni Chuuboo! - Natsukawa Rika

etc.

Nakayoshi September 2021

Cardcaptor Sakura Clear Card Hen - CLAMP (media mix)

Tokyo Mew Mew Olé - Seizuki Madoka (media mix-ish)

Shinkon Dakedo Kataomoi - Yukimori Sakura

Chihiro-kun wa, Atashi Holic - Itou Sato

Unrivaled NAOMI Tenkaichi - Kamikita Futago, Mizuno Tama, Osaka Mari

Vampire Dormitory - Tooyama Ema

Chou ka Han ka: Gokudou-sama Afurete Afurete Nakasetai - Toriumi Pedoro

Kamitsukanaide, Kiss Shite yo. - Natsuzono Gouka

Ouji ga Watashi wo Akiramenai! - Asada Nikki

etc.

I tried to pick the top-listed series or those with colour pages for the above. While this comparison is in no way definitive, generally speaking we have more content with overt romantic pursuit as a primary focus now + said romance is racier than what was seen in the magazine 21 years ago. 

Today when you open Nakayoshi kabedon is on the menu from the start, and you can anticipate lots of holding down/pinning, blushing, biting, licking, and aggressive romantic/sexual pursuit that can the blur lines of consent between series leads. Yeah you still have gag works like Wankorobee but it is the exception rather than the rule these days.

To be clear, current Nakayoshi titles do not cross over into explicit territory. However, they do contrast considerably with what was on offer 20-30 years ago. While you’d see kissing in titles like Sailor Moon (which included moments of Usagi and Mamoru in bed), these moments were presented as romantic but not definitively sexual in nature.

(This is one of the closer moments from the Sailor Moon manga, seen in the Dream arc)

You can compare this with current Nakayoshi titles, that opt for a stronger sexual undercurrent that frequently starts in the first chapter rather than building across an entire series.

(Here are the leads getting physically close in the first chapter of Chou ka Han ka: Gokudou-sama Afurete Afurete Nakasetai)

(Some first chapter licking from Vampire Dormitory. Yummo.)

(Things wouldn’t be the same without some biting. Watashi ni xx Shinasai 19 -- admittedly this series has ended, but it is a previous series by the author of Vampire Dormitory so... yeah)

In Context, aqua Makes Sense (Kinda)

So Nakayoshi’s readership has been plummeting over the years and the overall trajectory of the manga it publishes now aims for a more overtly sexual angle. There’s some debate about whether the readership started to drop and so Nakayoshi went a bit “lude” to try and drum up more attention, or whether the change in content led to the readership drop. My interpretation (and I am not an expert) is that it’s a bit of both; Nakayoshi’s media mix works stopped competing with Ciao’s (and to a lesser extent, Ribon’s), their furoku stopped being nearly as interesting, and their stories changed.

aqua, while it seems a world away from the original Mermaid Melody Pichi Pichi Pitch, is not worlds away from other Nakayoshi titles of the 2020s. The editorial direction of Nakayoshi doesn’t seem to be changing its trajectory and when titles like Watashi ni xx Shinasai win Kodansha Manga Awards in the children’s category (years ago, but still) you can see why they aren’t exactly rushing to change where their magazine is at -- for better or worse (I would argue the latter). When new media mixes are attempted or magical girl titles that aren’t Precure are created, without the edgier content they tend to finish quickly and not develop much online support, ultimately fading away (Brat Hunt Chu and Majo Kaitou LIPS).

And that’s where we are now, with a Nakayoshi magazine that for years has offered plot points like arranged marriages (aqua), relationships based on power imbalances (Sheikh-sama to Harem de.), and relationships born of blackmail (Watashi ni xx Shinasai). Relationships like these have existed in some form in a lot of older manga as well, but when you add in the increased emphasis on sexual imagery and dialogue in a magazine ultimately aimed at a young readership, it really does make you wonder what happened to the “good old days” like you’re a boomer or something. 

(Argh and I haven’t even touched on any broader social commentary or trends at play here!!)

Conclusion

MMPPP aqua, two chapters in, when viewed in comparison with the original MMPPP series lacks emphasis on magical girl elements, friendship, and frankly anything other than a sexually charged romantic relationship between the two leads. A sequel in terms of chronology, it has yet to find any true connection to the spirit of the original work (though that could change).

When you look at MMPPP aqua among its fellow modern Nakayoshi works, you can see how it slots into the magazine’s landscape and how keeps with current editorial trends within the publication.

MMPPP and TMM are both doing well for Nakayoshi in terms of nostalgic merchandise tie-ins (along with even older series like Kaitou Saint Tail) but I do feel there is a missed opportunity to create a stronger title here with aqua.

Perhaps I (personally) find it so disappointing because I’m wrapped up in Tomita Sukehiro’s Wedding Apple, a visual web novel and spiritual successor to Ciao’s 90s media-mix series, Wedding Peach. Rather than trying to slot into where the old series fitted in, Wedding Apple went for a cutting edge web service that allowed for greater exploration of series themes, improving on frequently cited issues in Wedding Peach like the emphasis on heterosexuality, marriage being the ultimate goal for girls, age restrictions for magical abilities, etc. Does it hit the mark every single time? No, it doesn’t. However, I appreciate the fact that it tries and that it exists to convey a story, rather than simply to cash in.

Compare this to MMPPP aqua, which has yet to find a purpose outside of the nostalgia gravy train. I could be wrong here, in the next few chapters aqua could find its feet and portray a strong Rukia taking charge and making new friends like her mother once did. The art could look better than whatever-the-hell you call how it currently looks (peak sameface?).

In the pages of 2020s Nakayoshi though, a title that does this is rare and with a media-mix legacy propelling it forward, MMPPP aqua may well remain a soulless fin-sucking extravaganza that uses the original series’ mythology as nothing more than window-dressing for a generic, sketchily composed, and kinda ick relationship between two leads with all the romantic chemistry of house bricks.

Meanwhile Nakayoshi itself remains aimless, adrift, and unsure of what it represents anymore from an editorial standpoint as its numbers continue to dwindle.

It’s a bit of a bleak picture though I do have my fingers crossed for aqua to improve. Please improve, aqua. ;o;