#as in i randomly felt like drawing miku on a day and then the next day i found out that the yesterday was her bday

[dizzytoad]

happy new year . happy miku year . hatsune new miku . miku miku miku

[randomuserno32]

Your Name (Kimi No Na Wa) - Review

To put it bluntly I watch a fair amount of anime, and Anime Youtubers as well for that matter. Mother’s Basement, Gigguk, Digibro, Exclamation Point (who deserves more subs to be honest), you name one: I’ll probably have watched them.

Recently one of them in particular, Gigguk, posted a video speaking about his own personal favourite anime film, the latterly released film “Your Name” (or otherwise known as “Kimi No Na Wa”), which was directed by Mikoto Shinkai. Of course, upon starting up the video, I was greeted with a spoiler warning, which understandably made me click off the video and gave me the urge to watch the film for myself.

Mikoto Shinkai is a name I’m definitely familiar with in the anime and film industry, primarily after watching his 2007 film “5 Centimetres Per Second”, which became one of my personal favourite films, mainly due to its bittersweet mood and the film’s main message of the harsh reality of “not knowing what you’ve got till it’s gone”, I felt spurred on even more to check his latest piece of work out.

First off let’s talk about the fairly obvious elephant in the room, the animation. By god, this film is breathtakingly beautiful. You can tell that Shinkai has put an almost extreme amount of effort into this film as each frame is bursting with colour and detail, specifically on buildings or natural landscapes. So much so that every single one would probably be adequate on your desktop background. Plus, there’s the very impressive tracking shot that flies off from Taki’s house in Tokyo between the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, all the way out to Mitsuha’s home in Itomori. It’s a stunning shot and not only is it a complete marvel to watch, it also sells the in-movie distance between the two main characters. There’s another factor that also further improves the quality of the animation and that’s Shinkai’s usage of Licencing. Just as an example, in some of the scenes set in Tokyo during the film, a keen eye would notice that on certain buildings there are logos for such companies as Sony, Panasonic, Sharp, Toshiba, the list goes on. This is how much Shinkai pays attention to the detail and it definitely pays off, immersing the viewer further into Your Name’s world.

Secondly, the best part of any film, the story – I’ll be covering the plot and characters of the film here.

The film begins from the perspective of Mitsuha Miyamizu, a high school girl living in the fictional Japanese rural town of Itomori. It’s apparent early on that Mitsuha isn’t keen on living a quiet life in the somewhat desolate town (or out in the boonies as the dub occasionally mentions) and wishes that she could be a handsome Tokyo boy in her next life. Enter Taki Tachibana, a high school boy working a small part time job at an Italian restaurant and living in Tokyo (what are the odds!). Suddenly and randomly every few days, the two swap bodies and are able to live out the other person’s life for a day (think of it a lot like Freaky Friday just not permanently). Thus, the two unanimously decide to work together to keep each other’s lives in check and also attempting to discover why both of them keep switching places, while also improving certain aspects within their lives (Mitsuha helps Taki to strike up a relationship with Miku Okudera, one of Taki’s co-workers, while Taki helps Mitsuha to become more popular at school).

I was considering going into practically extreme detail about the actual plot of the film but I realised that it would take up a large portion of the review and would (obviously) spoil the entire film. I’ll still be briefly mentioning certain characters or events that aren’t extremely important to the plot or that I haven’t mentioned so you may have to ya know, watch the actual film or follow the links below for the entire story overview.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Your_Name#Home_media

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZHEjDq9Lh1U

One of the main grabs of the film is that it is able to draw you in and can make the viewer really care for Taki, Mitsuha and their relationship with one-another. I’ve heard criticism of Taki and Mitsuha for being too simplistic and somewhat bland, but I would say that while you can’t call them perfect characters, to say that they are bad or mediocre would be just plain lying. They’re simplistic characters - because a majority of normal human beings are like that. Most people don’t have a hidden backstory or an underlying problem in their lives and don’t need to be incredibly complex characters in order to be good characters. The side characters are pretty good too, with Tessie being hot-headed, but friendly and understanding, and Miku being easy-going, yet thoughtful and likable. The actual story itself (which as I previously mentioned I won’t be spoiling here) is a genuinely heart-warming experience and the main twist of the film will definitely catch you off guard (trust me it’s very subtle and is revealed fantastically). The love story is also built up fantastically, and as Shinkai has done with his other films, he is able to accurately understand and portray a teenage romance, making it feel fairly natural and ordinary. The story and characters are comprehensively incredible (well to me anyway).

Next up, the soundtrack. This is a truly sublime soundtrack and the main songs of the film (“Dream Lantern”, “ZenZenZense”, “Sparkle”, etc) by Radwimps are stellar and match each scene perfectly both in mood and tone. Especially when you consider that the music was basically what shaped certain scenes of the film. Shinkai intentionally changed certain parts of the story / script to work around Radwimps’s music. This in turn helps to “supplement the dialogue and monologue of the characters” (to quote Shinkai himself). The music just syncs so well with the moments of the film and the soundtrack in general works wonders during the more emotional, awe-inspiring and light-hearted moments. Overall, a fantastic soundtrack.

Lastly, I’ll be going over the voice acting (subbed AND dubbed). And to be perfectly honest, both were pretty solid. While the dub’s no Cowboy Bebop (cause ya know every dub ever made has to be compared to Cowboy Bebop), Michael Sinterniklaas (Taki) and Stephanie Sheh (Mitsuha) put in a good shift with the exception of the odd occasional line coming across as slightly melodramatic, and (as much as I personally prefer dub to sub) the sub is of course as you’d typically expect pretty exceptional. Ryunosuke Kamiki (Taki) and Mone Kamishiraishi (Mitsuha) portray their characters and their emotions remarkably well. The side characters of both sub and dub are also fairly impressive and there is no specific actor / actress that could be pointed out as a weak point of the casting. The casting overall for both sub and dub was of the highest degree.

Final Word

Your Name was just…wow. This was a very surprising movie to me, as I hadn’t really set the film any kind of benchmark going into it and I haven’t really been a big fan of romance films over the course of my life. But Your Name has changed that for me. It’s heart-warming and charming, upbeat and dramatic, detailed and visually stunning…there’s just no perfect word to describe the film... asides from maybe beautiful. The characters are memorable and are portrayed fantastically, the animation and detail is immaculate, the story just clicks perfectly into place, it is a modern anime classic and is truly deserving of the records it has broken; even if Mikoto Shinkai disagrees with it. Just go see it. Trust me. You won’t regret anything.

Favourite Quote: “This feeling has possessed me when I think from that day...That day when the stars came falling. It was almost as if...as if a scene from a dream. Nothing more, nothing less...than a beautiful view.”

Story: 9/10

Characters: 9/10

Voice Acting: 8/10

Animation: 10/10

Soundtrack: 9/10

Overall: 9.5/10

Got any suggestions for what i should review next? Just send them to me via messages or via a post on the blog and ill see what i can do! Thanks for any and all support! :)

[ohnohetaliasues]

Kidnapped by Sexy Men (Ch.21)

(Kat)

I still suck at intros. 

This morning was NOT pleasant...all because of a certain Southern Korean.

Oh no.

*Flashback to this morning* You were sleeping peacefully on your bed. You were currently in a dreamless sleep, which was nice every once in a while, so you got to just plainly sleep and relax. You were so comfortable and you were lost in your sleeping so that you didn't even notice the pervert loom over you. He smirked as you turned onto your back, revealing your boobs. The ones he would squeeze.

Arm breaking time.

As your chest continued to rise and fall in peace, Yong Soo started to go in for the kill. He tried to move very slowly until he couldn't handle it anymore, his hands groped your breasts. "AH!" You jumped up at the feel of a grip on your breasts. Your eyes shot opened as you looked to seen who your pervert was. And you wouldn't surprised that it was none other than...Korea.

His arms are currently in critical condition. Send me asks to check how they’re doing. "What the hell?" You screamed as he smirked and snickered at you and your blushing face. It was no surprise that the first thing Korea would do on his day would be to grope you.

"But your bigger than Yao and Kiku, Da-Ze~!

Well, duh. I’m a girl.

Yao and Kiku are men.

 He said as he sat down at the foot of his bed. This is then when you noticed how..attractive and hot Korea was. His hair was literally shining and it gracefully moved across his soft skin when he moved his head. He was wearing a plain black button-up shirt with a matching dark gray hoodie. And to top all of THAT off, he wore dark blue male skinny jeans and black HIGH-TOP SHOES! Since when did Korea get stylish? Oh he just did this for you today...if only he wasn't to shy to tell you this.

Korean fashion is amazing, may I just say. I love Korean fashion.

"Why are you so red for, (Kat(?" Korea asked as he tilted his head in slight confusion. Oh Mein Gott...did he look so hot/cute like that. You couldn't help it...you fainted. ... When you woke up, you were dressed and in the living room. This really bothered you since no one was in there with you so you got up and said,"WHO THE HELL DRESSED ME?"

As soon as you were done shouting this, Liechtenstein came in with a smile on her face. "After you fainted Korea got scared so he came to me. I dressed you and did your hair after I made sure that Korea understood that you weren't dead." Your mouth made the shape of an "O" at this explanation.

Thank you, Liechtenstein. At least Korea didn’t dress me. If he was the one who dressed me, his arms would be broken and dislocated. 

"Where's Korea?" You asked as you thought of how worried he must've been. As if right on cue, Korea came bursting through the kitchen door and into the living room. "I GO TO GET SOME WATER FOR A SECOND AND YOU WAKE UP ON ME!" He yelled as he sat down on the couch next to you. He grunted as the room became silent. "I'll leave you two alone now. See you later, (Kat)."

My name is still not Jessica.

It’s Kat.

It’s spelled K-A-T

 Liechtenstein said as she ran up the the stairs and rushed up to the second floor. You watched her until she was out of sight. You smiled, what a nice girl...you just hoped she didn't get in the way of you an Switzerland.

But I don’t want Switzerland.

I want Canada.

"So are you ready for to-" Korea started but was cut off...by one of the best things of your life. Wow, could your life get any better than this? "I'M FINALLY HERE!" Hong Kong yelled as he barged through the front door. He huffed as he put his bags down and collapsed on the recliner. He then opened his eyes to see you and Korea sitting together.

Hey Hong.

How are you today?

Can I be your Tumblr friend?

"Did I just walk in on something important?" He asked as he sat up in the chair and raised his bushy eyebrows. "How adorable." You thought as you took a picture in your mind of his appearance. If only you had a real camera. it was too bad that your phone was in your room in the nightstand. This was a perfect Kodak moment.

???????????

WHAT DOES THAT EVEN MEAN?

"No you didn't, Li Xiao...you just interrupted the starting of my day with (Kat)." Korea said in a sarcastic tone. It was adorable to hear him talk like this, it sent butterflies to your stomach. Hong Kong laughed, like a shota. 

How does someone laugh like a shota?

He then spoke to the two of you in his English/Japanese dialect.

Do you mean Chinese? Because Hong Kong is not a part of Japan.

 "I don't even know why all of you guys are trying, she's gonna end up with me obviously." He said as he crossed his arms behind his back. His tone was pretty serious yet determined at the same time and it spun your fangirl wheel.

No. I’m ending up with Canada.

"And you're the last one to come? What took you too long? Drawing explicit pictures of (Kat), Da-Ze?"

Not again. 

Korea said in a serious tone this time. He was starting to get scary now with this specific tone. "I bet I have more explicit pictures than you and Japan!" 

Hong Kong said as he took his bags, and stomped up to the second floor. He even walked up with a little sashay in his hips that made you squeal on the inside. Korea made sure that Hong Kong was fully up the stairs before he turned back to you. "So (Kat) I thought that we cou-" Korea stopped mid-sentence due to his surprise at the look of you. You were obviously not in a normal mood...you were at...FANGIRL LEVEL 8! Your cheeks were red, your palms were sweating, blood was coming out of your nose, and you were speaking gibberish. Hong Kong's statements...were just too much for you to handle. To much to not go fangirl level 8 over.

Wha...?

"Are you alright, Da-Ze?" Korea asked as he randomly pulled out a tissue for you. Only to have your nose bleed even more. Oh Mein Gott...Korea was acting sweet...how tsundere!

That isn’t a Tsundere thing to do.

"I-I-I'm f-f-fine. J-just...f-fangirling." You stuttered as you "Fusososososo"-ed yourself in your mind to calm yourself down. And it was working too. Thank god that Spain was funny. You didn't know what you might've done...glomped Korea or run upstairs and glomp Hong Kong. 

More like punch him.

You were just glad that you could calm yourself before you COULD do any of this. Korea then smiled as he removed the tissue and tossed it to the small garbage can in the corner of the room. "So what were you saying, Yong Soo?" You asked Korea. You instantly covered your mouth. Why did you just call him by his name? You only said real names when the moment was right or when it was a serious, romantic, mad, or sad time. Right now wasn't a perfect timing. You felt just normal now. "W-well, I thought that maybe you could h-help me with making a new song for m-my vocaloid, SeeU? I've heard f-from Japan that you l-liked vocaloids, e-especially SeeU." he slightly stuttered. You took a deep breath in then out so your wouldn't start to fangirl out again.

Actually, I do like Vocaloids.

I carry a Hatsune Miku charm on my computer bag. 

"Of course." You said normally. You did love vocaloids. They were really cool; programs that you could make sing any song or make them sing a song that you made! You always wanted one but, it was either vocaloids or Hetalia cosplay, and naturally Hetalia won. "Awesome! Come on let's go to my room!" He yelled with excitement as he grabbed your hand and dragged you upstairs. ... South Korea's room. FILLED with anime, Kpop, and drawings. His weren't as detailed as Japan's but, the most appropriate ones were on the wall. The most inappropriate were in his locked drawer. You were already used to pictures being drawn of you because of Japan but, Japan's was mostly tentacle and Korea's was mostly...boobs and romantic. 

I will never get used to that.

He didn't really draw anything of you and him but, when he did it was something cute like the two of you holding hands, kissing, blushing, or just hanging out or going on dates. It brought a smile to your face. He was pretty good at drawing and he used it for something good and not as explicit.

"You like them?" Korea asked as he brought out his laptop and turned it on. He placed it on his desk as it started to boot up. "Yeah, it's unique." You said as you smiled at him. Korea looked at you for a second before he turned his head back to the laptop. You could've SWORN that you seen HIM BLUSH. "I w-wrote a song for the one with the pink, purple, and red sunset. The one where we're holding hands and looking at the sunset together. It's in Korean b-but Japan told me that you could speak almost all of everyone's languages."

I CAN DO WHAT NOW?! 

He said as he pulled out a microphone and plugged it in. He opened up SeeU's program and turned to you. "All you have to do is sing along to the lyrics right here. There is no tune yet so you can make one up. I'll make the music for it." he said as he handed you a sheet with Korean kanji and romaji on it. "I didn't know which one you could read so I did both." He added as you took the paper. "I could read both. And I taught myself tons of Asian syllables."

I’m actually good with Japanese syllables. 

And as for Korean, I can count to almost 100, and I understand commands for TaeKwonDo, but nothing else.

 You said as you walked over next to Korea. He pulled up a recording program that would take you words and have SeeU sing it. Korea counted to three before he turned on the recording, you then started to sing. (I'll put the English lyrics but, it is sung in Korean. I made this song.) "Butterflies fly up around us as we watch the sun go down. Our hands intertwine like the vines on the strong trees. This hold we have on each other represents our love." You finished singing the first verse with ease. You decided to wait a few seconds before going on to the second, which was longer. *time skip* "Great! I can finish it by tonight, Da-Ze! I'll send it to your YouTube when I'm done." Korea said as he saved your singing file onto SeeU's application. You smiled as you started to get up. That was fun, unpervy, romantic, cute and now you could go to sleep. You were tired after singing so much.

It was fine, I guess, but I don’t speak fluent Japanese or Korean.

"Goodnight, Korea." You said as you started to leave. "Wait. let me walk you to your room. I'm not the only pervert here." You squealed on the inside at this. Korea just admitted of his pervetedness!

... "Goodnight, Jessica." Korea said as you opened you door right as soon as it was almost closed you could make out one, loud, sentence. "I love you, (Kat)."

I’d love you more if you didn’t grope me.

Cuz geez.

As you got ready for bed for that night, you thought,"Three have confessed now."

And I still want to kill myself.

~Kat