#i watched all the animated content first before i even touched the manga/novels and that worked well for me

[hella1975]

ok you’ve convinced me to watch bsd so where can I watch it? and do I need to read the comics? if so, in what order and where can I read them?

EEK OMG YAY! okay so one thing about me im a little student girlie #ihaventboughtmilkinaweek so i will always consume media the free way lmao. the site i read the bsd manga on is 'bsdmanga.com' which seems very legit but does also do pop ups a lot for me so just make sure you've got an adblock going. if you want to properly buy them though ive seen bsd being sold in almost every waterstones! as for the anime, the sub and dub were both free on crunchyroll AND funimation back when i first started watching it, but not anymore bc everything is awful. the main less-legit site i use for anime is 'animesuge' and that has it there :)

[cjrae]

Series: Reaction to a Reaction. Episode 22 "Blue Roses"

@i-guess-im-into-this-now you're in the endgame now! Also, now I want umeshu. I might have to pick some up.

1.) "There is so much more to Maomao. So much more for her to do and achieve, so much more she can give, so much more for her to feel. She can achieve goals that she doesn't even let herself acknowledge she has. She can find the deep joy that comes with being known and loved. She can do better than contentment, she can have deep fulfillment. But getting there isn't going to be easy. She's going to need to be challenged to grow and become stronger. She's never going to get that in the Jade Pavilion."

I love how you've come around from the Jade Pavilion being a good place for Maomao to heal to the realization that while it IS that, it's also stifling. Gyokuyou has a certain level of contentment. Maomao has the potential to find joy - but that can't be done in a cage of any kind.

Hongniang is a great parallel here. She's very competent at what she does, she's devoted to her lady, but she also craves marriage and children and, as Maomao observes, may never actually obtain those things because she's just as trapped as Gyokuyou.

2.) "Is this dude going to be Jinshi's father-in-law someday? Can you even imagine putting up with this family dynamic for the rest of your life?"

One problem at a time! First he has to keep Lakan from destroying his reputation. A detail that was elaborated on in the manga is that Lakan is the one who spread the rumors that Jinshi had bought out a courtesan from the Verdigris House, so for awhile there everyone was bugging Jinshi to get an idea of who he chose to be his mistress.

3.) "Jinshi is exhausted and a little snappish when Maomao makes a joke about the person who requested blue roses being on drugs."

This is one of the few scenes that I was really disappointed with the anime's handling. This ought to be our first opium reference. I'll pop the light novel's handling here.

"'Was opium ever widely used here?'

'It would be the end of the damn country if the likes of opium got around!'

Consort Gyokuyou and Hongniang looked at Jinshi, wide-eyed at the sudden change of tone. Gaoshun furrowed his brow and coughed politely. The anger lingered on Jinshi's face for another beat, but the next second the celestial smile had returned. Maomao looked at him almost pleadingly. She just didn't deal well with that smile. Gyokuyou was watching them with considerable amusement, though Maomao herself wasn't amused in the least."

My interpretation of this scene in the light novel is that Jinshi is exhausted enough that he's responding to the suggestion of widespread opium use as a prince rather than as a eunuch.

4.) "Maomao deduces that Lakan must have put Jinshi up to this. She doesn't like to see Jinshi suffer like this, and she hates that Lakan has the power to manipulate people she cares about."

Something that I touched on in my pinky finger analysis is that Maomao's reaction to Lakan has always been to hide from him. She hides at Verdigris House, she hides in Jinshi's home, she avoids the military grounds whenever possible. The first time she becomes willing to face him is when Jinshi's health and reputation are on the line - and doesn't that just say a lot about Maomao's character development over the season?

5.) "Jinshi is aware that he has made himself the center of attention and that he can't read some of the people's reactions is worrisome to him. He speaks about "Jinshi" in the third person. Talking about the persona of Jinshi rather than as himself. It makes me wonder what his real name is."

Next season. :D

We've seen Jinshi talk about himself in the third person before quite a bit - back in episode 2 when he offhandedly comments that "we all use whatever we're given," about his presence in the harem being a test of loyalty, all the way through that moonlight conversation with Gaoshun when he tells the audience about the mask he's constructed for reasons that have not yet been shared with the audience.

6.) "Jinshi: I just hope you aren't apologizing after everything I put you though.

True. Appropriate. Go on.

Jinshi: Nevermind. You did well.

Well, it was almost an apology anyway. And some praise. Do more of that. She worked her ass off to accomplish this and sacrificed a lot of her well being to pull it off. She deserves a lot more than a "you did well." Medicinal ingredients are always appreciated."

One, yes. Medicinal ingredients will always be one of the best ways to show Maomao appreciation! Two, I actually think this is a great callback to episode 2, when he was trying to "seduce" her as a precautionary measure. Look at the difference between these two scenes - the first time, he's sparkling and brushing her hair away from her face, with a statement that sounds like praise but is actually full of expectation and warning. "I'm positive you'll serve Concubine Gyokuyou well."

Here, he's subdued and genuinely appreciative. There's no charm to be seen, but he smiles at her - and for the first time, it's his real smile. No sparkles, no seduction, just an acknowledgment of what she pulled off for him and the fact that he appreciates it. "You did well."

7.) "Jinshi notices Maomao's nails and finds it surprising that she would paint them. Which it kind of is. She paints freckles on her face to make herself less appealing, but paints her nails to make them prettier? Does this have to do with her crooked finger?"

One, yes. She's deliberately drawing attention to it. Two, not sure how far you were into the plum wine (yum), but there was the line "If I'd had some balsam and woodsorrel, I could have made them look prettier," before we cut to a shot of the two plants. If you remember, the small, yellow flower was the very first shot of the season. Also, the next episode is titled Balsam and Woodsorrel.

8.) "Thank god this show isn't told from Lakan's perspective, because holy hell, his fucked up view of people as Go pieces is really unnerving."

It certainly explains why and how he's reached his current rank (which, if you paid attention during the banquet scene, you'll notice that he's actually seated very close to the Emperor. This tells you that Lakan's not just a military strategist and the head of a house, but he's WAY up on the chain of command - the higher your rank, the closer you get to sit to the head honcho. This is a powerful, dangerous man).

9.) "Gaoshun and Jinshi are there as well, but they too are game pieces to be manipulated. Maomao alone has a face amongst the crowd. The only one that he sees as a person. Maybe the only one that he can't or won't manipulate in the never-ending game he plays."

Beautiful. I couldn't have put that better.

Next time, backstory!

The Apothecary Diaries

S1E22 First Watch

Here's where I watch The Apothecary Diaries for the first time and give my thoughts, analysis, predictions, and occasionally I stumble into a joke.

To start at the beginning:

Episode 1

My character/location cheat sheet:

Hongniang - head LIW at Jade Pavilion

Xiaolan - Maomao's servant girl friend

Master Shishou - Lady Loulan's father

Yinghua - one of Lady Gyokuyou's ladies in waiting

Lady Gyokuyou is preggo and everyone in the Jade Pavilion is pretty charmed by that, especially Hongniang who is dreaming of having her own baby. I thought this lady had a little something something going with Gaoshun, but that was almost certainly not true (her loss, Gaoshun is a total catch). But now I wonder, is this chick maybe not into Gaoshun, but Gaoshun's son? Does she like erratic meatheads like Basan?

Whomever Hongniang has her eye on, Maomao doesn't think it's going to happen.

Maomao: Even if someone did propose, I doubt she would be allowed to leave. That's the cost of being too good at one's job.

Maomao may want to think about that statement in regards to herself.

Maomao: The days here are fulfilling, and they truly do seem to fly by. In comparison, the two months spent at Master Jinshi's office felt like forever.

This place is easy and peaceful, she calls it fulfilling. Maomao is surrounded by support and able to use her talents to help others in a way that is meaningful to her. If the story ended here, Maomao would be content to live out the rest of her days just like this. She may never heal here but this place is safe from a lot of her triggers, so she could just focus on what she likes about being here, which is using her medical knowledge and tasting for poison. The people here accept her just the way she is and would never push her to do more that she does now. She would be content with that.

But.

There is so much more to Maomao. So much more for her to do and achieve, so much more she can give, so much more for her to feel. She can achieve goals that she doesn't even let herself acknowledge she has. She can find the deep joy that comes with being known and loved. She can do better than contentment, she can have deep fulfillment. But getting there isn't going to be easy. She's going to need to be challenged to grow and become stronger. She's never going to get that in the Jade Pavilion.

But challenge is something she got at Jinshi's residence. She claimed that the time she was there felt like forever. Because it wasn't easy. Suiren was hard on her, and Jinshi is always challenging Maomao to rise to her abilities. It's a strain, but Maomao always stretches herself to meet the challenge. She always comes through.

She probably also found her time there difficult because she was so frequently confronted with emotions that she would rather not face. But those emotions aren't going anywhere. She can suppress them and avoid them as long as she wants, but they will always be waiting to surface. She will have to face those emotions and process them to heal.

One of the problems at Jinshi's residence is that Maomao doesn't have the love and support that she receives at the Jade Pavilion or Verdigris House. If she could somehow combine the best of both; have the growth and challenge that she gets from Jinshi, with the love and support she gets from her lady friends, and a chance to utilize her skills, she would probably be best equipped to thrive.

Lakan is back to harass Jinshi. Maybe trying to figure out a way to get Maomao out of the Rear Palace. He asks Jinshi to produce blue roses.

Lakan: Are you up to the task? A man with your kind of power, nothing's beyond the realm of possibility.

Do this or I'll expose your identity.

Jinshi: I understand.

Alright, asshole. I get it.

Lakan: My goodness. It's hard to contain my excitement.

I can't wait to watch you fail!

He once again leaves behind the beverage he brought. Jinshi crumbles in frustration the moment Lakan leaves. Is this dude going to be Jinshi's father-in-law someday? Can you even imagine putting up with this family dynamic for the rest of your life?

Gaoshun asks around and finds out that the task is impossible. No one knows anything about blue roses, and roses aren't even in season. There is no way to pull this off in the one short month before the garden party.

Luckily for Jinshi, he knows someone that routinely pulls off the impossible.

Jinshi shows up to ask Maomao for help. He looks rather pathetic, with circles under his eyes, his slumped posture, and defeated attitude. Jinshi is exhausted and a little snappish when Maomao makes a joke about the person who requested blue roses being on drugs. He's at his wits end here and Maomao is his last hope. If she tells him it's impossible then this really is over and Lakan has won. It's a telling break from control for Jinshi. Gaoshun calls him back to himself.

Maomao deduces that Lakan must have put Jinshi up to this. She doesn't like to see Jinshi suffer like this, and she hates that Lakan has the power to manipulate people she cares about. She promises to do her best.

Maomao decides to use the sauna that was built for Lady Lihua as a hothouse to force the roses to bloom early. In exchange, she gifts Lady Lihua a manual from the brothel. Another parallel between the two similar but different gardens is in the way women from both try to get creative to please their husband/client.

Jinshi is distressed that Maomao keeps pushing herself and making her leg wound reopen. A constant reminder of how she got the injury, and the way she neglects herself. He recruits Xiaolan to assist Maomao in her task. Still, even with Xiaolan to assist, Maomao won't let herself rest. She gives up sleep and other self-care to attend to this task fully. Maomao's self neglect can't be totally negated, but Gaoshun does bring food, so at least she's eating.

Lady Lihua's ladies keep spying on Maomao. They are terrified of her and won't approach, but they are undeniably interested in watching her try to pull off this nigh impossible task. Maomao brings a trend from the Pleasure District into the Rear Palace to distract the ladies. Soon she's got everyone painting their nails.

We learn that Lady Gyokuyou won't attend the garden party, as she's trying to hide her pregnancy. And who can blame her. Wasn't she the target of assassination attempts last time she was pregnant?

The ladies of the Jade Pavilion, aren't happy that Maomao exhausts herself every time she works in the Crystal Pavilion. Also, Maomao's leg is not healing. But she keeps on pushing through to finish her task. Once she finally has a bud grow, she allows herself to relax.

She still looks like hell on the day of the garden party. Jinshi is pretty shocked to see her in such poor health. But she has given everything she has to do this task for him. And to give a big middle finger to Lakan.

Does Jinshi question whether it was worth it to sacrifice Maomao's well being to grow these roses?

Concubine Loulan is the star of today's party. She's the daughter of Master Shishou who is an important figure from the elder generation, as he is favored by the emperor's mother. Because of this, the emperor has always had to navigate a difficult political situation when interacting with Concubine Loulan. The emperor is put on the spot by Master Shishou, but is conveniently saved by Jinshi's arrival with the blue and other colored roses.

Jinshi is aware that he has made himself the center of attention and that he can't read some of the people's reactions is worrisome to him. He speaks about "Jinshi" in the third person. Talking about the persona of Jinshi rather than as himself. It makes me wonder what his real name is.

Lakan is also a problem that bothers Jinshi. We see Lakan wipe his dirty hands on the hat of another official, which is both odd and deeply dickish.

Lakan: What an annoying display.

Lakan is not happy that Jinshi somehow pulled this off. No doubt he has another dozen plans lined up to erode Jinshi's mental health.

Maomao is sleeping peacefully on Lady Yinghua's lap. When she wakes, Lady Yinghua begs her not to return to the Crystal Pavilion, before joyfully peacing out to give Maomao a moment alone with Jinshi when he arrives. She knows what's up with these two.

Jinshi: I just hope you aren't apologizing after everything I put you though.

True. Appropriate. Go on.

Jinshi: Nevermind. You did well.

Well, it was almost an apology anyway. And some praise. Do more of that. She worked her ass off to accomplish this and sacrificed a lot of her well being to pull it off. She deserves a lot more than a "you did well." Medicinal ingredients are always appreciated.

Maomao reveals her secret of coloring the roses. She thought it would be prudent to reveal the trick to the emperor ahead of time, which he found delightful. I question the wisdom of making herself stand out too much to the emperor, but what do I know.

It's implied that the blue roses in the palace were something that Lakan used to waste his time with. Maybe this will come back up and be important later, but for now, who gives a shit.

I'm sure there is a deeper symbolic or story based meaning behind the blue roses that I probably should have picked up on or cared about, but I'm going to be honest with you all, as of my writing of this blog, I'm pretty deep into a botte of plum wine, and my critical thinking is crashing hard, so you'll just have to tell me what I missed. 💋

Jinshi notices Maomao's nails and finds it surprising that she would paint them. Which it kind of is. She paints freckles on her face to make herself less appealing, but paints her nails to make them prettier? Does this have to do with her crooked finger?

Okay, so Maomao DID get something out of this. Some "item" in a box that she requested.

Lakan: How vexing. I didn't anticipate my provocation to fail.

I don't know what he's talking about. The only person I saw him provoke was Jinshi, who managed to do what he asked. Unless, the person he was trying to provoke is Maomao? Mess with Jinshi to provoke Maomao maybe? But she is planning something for Lakan, so he will see soon enough.

Thank god this show isn't told from Lakan's perspective, because holy hell, his fucked up view of people as Go pieces is really unnerving.

Apparently the manicures that all the ladies are wearing are a trigger for Lakan. They remind him of the woman he used to play Go with. And Maomao arrives, with precisely the same manicure color that Lakan remembers from his flashback. Gaoshun and Jinshi are there as well, but they too are game pieces to be manipulated. Maomao alone has a face amongst the crowd. The only one that he sees as a person. Maybe the only one that he can't or won't manipulate in the never-ending game he plays.

Whatever Maomao has planned for Lakan will have to wait for the next episode, because that's how this one ends!

If you want to read these from the beginning:

Episode 1

Next episode:

Coming Soon!

[khunsimp]

Hi....Can I ask (if you don't mind), what are your top 10 favorite anime (until now)? And why do you like them? Sorry if you've already answered this question before....Thank you.....

Normally, I don't keep a permanent favorite because I watch a lot of animes since i was a child. And,when I start to like one a lot, it becomes "my favorite" in the moment. But there are certain animes that, while not necessarily the best, I was obsessed for a long time. it depends a lot on the moment I started watching it, how my mind was at the time and such. I'll name a few of these, but they're not necessarily favorites, and they're not in order. They're some that I've been obsessed with for so long that I'd look at and think about their content all the time, and until I found a new anime that made me feel like that, everything else seemed dull. (Also, I forgot a lot of animes names and all. i watched literally so much animes that i tend to forget( especially if this have just one season, since normally i watch in a day, watched, i mean, now i dont have the time;-;), and remember just when someone say its name/ show a picture of it lmao).

(Also, i will not say animes that are too new(like vanitas no carte) or ones that the adaptation wasnt good/ inferior in some way for me, but i was obsessed with the manga/manhwa, like tokyo ghoul, tower of god, promised the neverland, yuukoku no moriarty and such).

-----

Naruto( one of my firsts animes, not the best, but will always have "that spot" in my heart);

Code Geass( i watched 2 times in a roll, the plot is just so good and well written. Its keep the quality until the very end. Its well rounded for real);

Mo dao zu shi(Its actually a donghua, but still... i am until now obsessed with it, tand its novel and drama. Wei wuxian is maybe one of my favorites protagonists of all time in all kind of media). I will even do 3 tattoos with 3 quotes from it and one quote that remember them;

D gray man( i watched just because I was bored, i wasnt expecting to find, maybe, the best shounen story. Its so good. Everything is on point. D gray man hallow/ kanda and alma arc will always be something that aches my soul). Soon, my tattoo of it will be done too, ( the 14th song);

Hunter x Hunter ( one of my firsts too, like naruto, will always have a spot in my soul);

Hotarubi no mori-e ( its a anime film. Its just... i have read and watched a lot of things way more sentimental and sad , but, for some reason, this really touched me. I am someone who pretty much almost never cry( already 2 years without cry), dont matter how broken i am. But, for real, I cried and felt a pain inside me with this story. I really cant explain why. And I will never know why was that story. Tattoo for that too, i hope ;-;);

Magi ( I love it. Still sad that dont have a season 3. I read all the manga already. Its gold! The best arc is just in the manga, and its something almost level chimera ants from hunter x hunter in psychological display. Is very good);

Kamisama hajimemashita ( That anime... I never laugh so fucking much with something. Its made me laugh, made me have good feelings. This is something that I will never forget);

Assassination Classroom( Ahhh, i remember that i had a lot of fun watching it);

Noragami ( still expecting season 3, like the clown I am).

Ahhh... already 10? I could keep going forever, lmaooo, I am really bad with this kind of thing.

Let me add at least more 2 ok?

Akatsuki no yona ( amazing!!!! Soo won, yona, jae ha, everyone... Its gold! How dare them not give more seasons to it? );

Your lie in april( amazing, will destroy your soul, but i recommend ).

(Ok, i will stop here, or i will add more. Like no.6,umibe no etranger, violet evergarden, Akagami no Shirayukihime, kyoukai no kanata, bunny girl senpai... ok, i stop, i stop! 🤣)

(Also, sorry. I am normally very rational with everything in my life, except the media I like. I didnt give proper and rational remarks about why I like them because they just... catch me without me knowing why). I would be lying if i say that I like something just because the plot is amazing, for example, because even when i find some with better plot in the same time, i will still prefer the one that catch me).

[gracielitamargarita]

Thoughts on Kyoru in Fruits Basket: The Final as a manga reader

(and bad metaphors about lava cake)

So with next week's impending shit storm of a Furuba episode next week, I've been doing some reflecting on our favorite Mutual Pining Idiots, Kyoru--and thinking about how the anime adaptation's choices in rearranging or removing content has impacted things, specifically with Se3E6.

And just to preface, I think the anime adaptation has been terrific overall. I also think loving something and critiquing something aren't mutually exclusive either. The goal of what I'm about to write is not to incite negativity, just to get some feelings out about my favorite pairing from my favorite manga series and provoke some deeper thought, I guess.

ALSO, I hope you don't mind metaphors--specifically ones about chocolate-raspberry lava cake, because that's what I've decided works best for explaining Kyoru. So FASTEN THOSE SEATBELTS PEOPLE 

MANGA SPOILERS regarding previously omitted content as well as VAGUE ANIME SPOILERS that can be implied/inferred from the ending of Se3E7 under the cut.

I think one of the (many) reasons I find Kyoru to be such a satisfying ship is because of the slow-burn element. Come season 2 through the beach arc, their chemistry is palpable, natural, and growing stronger and stronger with each episode. When Kyo finally admits to himself that he's in love with Tohru in Se2E9, it feels like we've been rewarded with a chocolate lava cake topped with raspberry sauce--it's delicious, complex, and full of gooey and satisfying substance.

Now like many, I'm a sucker for the pining idiot trope--let alone the MUTUAL pining idiot trope--and we do get to see this through the end of season 2 as Tohru's feelings for Kyo become more apparent to everyone BUT her. It's like we're LOOKING at the chocolate-raspberry lava cake, so close that we can ALMOST touch it, but we as viewers aren't allowed to cut into it yet--which makes every little encounter between the two of them all the more exciting, because we wonder what's finally going to allow us to ravish this goddamn lava cake (sorry).

Which is why I realized I'm actually struggling more than I initially thought in the final season. As it's been widely speculated, discussed, and now officially confirmed, we're getting 13 episodes this season. And while like most everyone else, I'd be thrilled with two cours, I don't know the ins and outs of anime production, AND, while I'm bummed, I've accepted that it is what it is--and that it isn't the reason I'm writing this post.

Of course not every panel or fleeting moment can be adapted from the manga to the anime. There were small little cuts here and there over the course of the first two seasons, but nothing in my opinion that's really SO substantial that it drained the lava cake of its filling--maybe some of that raspberry topping, but generally, the good stuff is all there. (Though I do love this moment below from chapter 82, which was skipped over in Se2E19)

The final season has been different, though. As we know in the manga, the inner turmoil for Kyo--and Tohru to an extent--really starts escalating immediately after Cinderella-ish with Kyoko's backstory and Kyo's nightmare from chapters 90-93. I also understand that Cinderella-ish was Se2E23, and with only 2 episodes left in the season, it made sense from a directorial standpoint to end with the Kureno/Akito reveal versus Kyoko's backstory and Kyo realizing he needs to know his place.

But without this context, it leaves moments like the flower scene from Se3E2 less impactful--like a lava cake made by someone who skimped on the filling. To an anime-only (and even as a manga reader), it's likely still a satisfying moment to watch: we know that Tohru clearly has a lot of inner turmoil following her conversation with Kureno. Kyo's turmoil following his nightmare, however--and overall, the sentiment of him thinking he needs to stay away from Tohru, yet still finding himself drawn to her above all odds--is deeply diminished.

Which leads me to the main reason (finally, sorry) that I wrote this post--Se3E6, or the episode when Tohru finally admits to herself AND to Rin that Kyo has taken the place of her mother as the most precious person to her. 

In the manga, Se3E6 is made up of chapters 107, 108, 109, AND 114, spanning the end of volume 18 through the beginning of volume 20 of the TokyoPop mangas. Volume 19 in particular is one of my all time favorite mangas in the entire series for one clear reason: just as we've seen Kyo get to do in season 2, we finally get to see Tohru slowly own her feelings for Kyo, and MY GOD, is cutting into that lava cake and enjoying that delicious filling satisfying AF. The Mutual Pining Idiots are in full swing here, both dealing with inner turmoil but also being unable to stay away from one another either. In addition, they're dealing with normal teenage awkwardness too, which feels like a bonus topping (would nuts go well, do we think? LOL) to the Kyoru lava cake.

But between the producers adapting Momiji's arc prior to episode 6 AND the producers ending episode 6 with a 2-minute horror movie essentially--AND, lest we forget, none of the Kyoko backstory at this point--we lost essentially all of that satisfying filling. 

And again, I understand, only 13 episodes and the producers are trying to make shit work and I do see why they made some of these changes in the overall big picture of things, but I wish it weren't at the expense of Tohru's character development and also for Kyoru, which had been so thoughtfully and delightfully well-developed in the first two seasons.

My biggest issue BY FAR with episode 6 is Tohru's confession to Rin happening before the sheets scene. The producers combined 109 and 114 for the second half of episode 6. In the manga, Tohru is able to openly admit that Kyo is the most important person to her BECAUSE of how he accepts her after she "opens the lid" to reveal the ugly feelings she's been harboring for years about her father. And in the manga, since we have the context of Kyoko's backstory and can see how she nearly committed suicide and left Tohru alone for days, it is gut-wrenching to finally hear Tohru confront and express her trauma in her own words. 

The sheets scene is arguably my favorite scene in the entire series. The anime portrayed it beautifully. Jerry and Laura ripped my heart out with their performances. It was a deeply moving scene (even with all of the changes) and the romance and pining was there--but, I hate to admit it, the feeling of cutting into that delicious lava cake to reveal that even more satisfying filling was not.

And now, come the end of Se3E7, we're approaching the climax of the series that we've been salivating for for so long now, the result of all of this inner turmoil and secrets and deep, deep longing for one another--and it almost feels now like the cake was baked too quickly, in addition to being drained of much of its filling. 

I was debating waiting to write this until next week after we see how Se3E8 goes, but my thoughts have been swirling about and this clown couldn’t help herself. I'd like to end this post on a hopeful and more forward-thinking note, though, if you've made it this far into my novel LOL.

There is definitely the potential to add a little more about Kyoko's backstory in next week's episode. I also expect that we'll hear more of Tohru's inner narrative and thoughts, which I’m really looking forward to. As several others have speculated as well, I predict that we'll be getting chapters 119-122 next week. Despite it being 4 chapters, everything should happen in sequence (versus with episode 6) and there's a lot of action, so I do feel like it won't feel rushed or disjointed. And while I could see them possibly ending with 121, 122 would be my preferred ending for many reasons (manga readers know where I'm going with this ;P) and I honestly see it fitting best there.

And regardless of what happens, I'm looking forward to eating whatever variety of lava cake is served to us next week.

And at the end of the day, we'll always have the manga, which will probably always be my favorite lava cake of all.

(and now I'm hungry for an actual lava cake)

[oldtypenewtype]

7 years ago I had this article professionally translated. 1986 is considered to be one of if not THE defining years of the medium. In this article Newtype intervies 21 anime industry leaders to discuss what’s wrong with the industry, ways it can be fixed or just their gripes with with it all. A true snapshot of some of our anime heroes while they were younger.

*reposting article altogether in one post.*

アニメの予言者21人

21 Prophets of Anime アニメ大予言'86 Grand prophecy of Anime ‘86 今、アニメ界に求められているのは、こんな企画だ！私はこんな企画を出す！1986年のアニメ界をリードする21人が業界の問題点と自らの解決策を語る。これを読めばアニメの未来が見える。 This is the project needed by Anime world now! I propose this project! 21 leading personnel in Anime world in 1986 talk about problems in the industry and their solutions. You can see the future of Anime by reading this.

Page 46 & 47

(Article Title)

1985 was a flat year in the animation world.  Let’s ask the hit makers who hit the home runs on how to put an end to this situation.

HAYAO MIYAZAKI (writer and director of “Laputa: Castle in the Sky”)

(Blurb)

What are the animated works that the young ones, the ten year olds to fifteen year olds want to watch? Doors will surely open if you keep them in mind.

It’s unthinkable that new hope can come out of TV when one episode from a TV series needs 3500 cells to be drawn. On the other hand, in movie theaters as well, there are no films that will mobilize moviegoers other than anime fans. I think that filmmakers have forgotten the basics of selling movies.  Collaboration films intended for overseas markets are all the rage,  and even though I want the fans who are in Japan to see these films, they can’t and all I’m left with is frustration.  Only deterioration can come out of this situation.  Actually, there isn’t even one anime today that is aimed at older kids in elementary school to kids in middle-school - the very kids who should be watching anime.  (The anime available now) is aimed at younger kids at elementary school and then jumps straight into anime for college kid anime maniacs. It’s a tough time for fifteen year olds who are put aside by society.  Twelve year olds to fifteen year olds are the kids who need the most comfort and yet the situation now is that they get their comfort from handheld video games.  Those who produce animation are losing sight of their targeted audience.  The remaining anime fans are making anime that they want to watch, and this is a symptom (of the present situation) that is beyond redemption. This is why video animation is still backward in terms of its production, and only its format is new.

If one has an earnest approach, children will definitely react.  This is a real example - in a run-down middle school, in his morning greeting, a new principal said, “I don’t determine a person’s value by his or her grades or appearance”.  Miraculously, all misbehavior was gone from that day’s afternoon onwards.  What children want has always had just one theme - an adventure that saves the mind and heart.

(Caption for illustration at the top of the page)

The hero “Pazu” and heroine “Sheeta” from “Laputa: Castle in the Sky”.  Mr. Miyasaki comments that “For a young lad, living at all times in itself is an adventure.  The reason why Japanese adventure novels are boring is that the hero (in these novels) makes a living out of going on an adventure.”

SUGII GISABURO (executive director of “Touch”)

(Blurb)

What people want nowadays can’t be found in data.  What is the secret of the hits “Night on the Galactic Railroad” and “Touch”?

Honestly speaking, if anything, I genuinely make animation to match my desires, not thinking that today’s animation is trending towards this way, or future animation should be this way.  In other words, I think a great deal about my daily life, figuring out what is lacking and coming up with desires felt by everyone else.  I just happen to be a person who creates, so I vent out those accumulated desires and discontent and let them combust in my work.  

My works are quite heavy in terms of cycle and tempo, whether it be “Night on the Galactic Railroad” or “Touch”.  I sometimes think if this kind of heaviness is ok or not.  But that is because I have a desire for this heaviness, and also because I have this easy pleasure within me.  Instead of work that is borne out of being hung up just on data, I think work that is borne out of my inner natural desires is more acceptable to people.  In the meantime, “Touch” will be shown as an hour and a half movie in the spring so please look forward it.

ISAO TAKAHATA (producer of “Laputa”)

(Blurb)

Movies that make the mind and body come alive are what’s important.  As for me, I am trying my hand at my first live action film.  I am shooting a documentary.

I think nowadays, the thing that a lot of people working in anime has forgotten is the excitement they felt watching adventure movies when they were kids, the kind of excitement that even your body moved spontaneously.  In that sense, I think that works such as Hayao Miyazaki’s films should be brought out to the rest of the world and after (producing his) “Nausicaa”, I am still producing.  When kids’ minds are liberated, there’s no reason to think that they won’t spontaneously move.  In this day and age dominated by computer games, a lot of kids’ play involve just using the brain and nerves so I’d like them to experience things that energizes the blood and makes the body dance. The difficulty is, I think it’s a difficult time now to have a situation in place wherein you let them experience adventure.  If you can’t make people believe in the world portrayed onscreen, you can’t pull viewers into the adventure onscreen.

It’s not that I’m not doing my real job as a producer.  I am now producing a live action documentary movie set in Yanagawa in Kyushu.  It is about how our Japanese ancestors developed towns which utilized waterways.  There is also a part in the movie that has graphic illustrations using anime.  It’s less than 2 hours and is slated to be shown after the summer.

MAMORU OSHII (scriptwriter and director of “Angel’s Egg”)

(Blurb)

This is a warning!! Please reduce the number of collaboration animes before Japanese animation is annihilated.

If I’m going to be severe about it, I’d say that I want all collaboration animes gone.

Those who work in big studios and places with systems in place may not feel a sense of crisis yet.  But in the case of freelance animators like us who work together and put together a workplace and disperse once our anime is done, a part of our actual work is outsourced.   Recently however, the small video studios and finishing studios that we outsource to are loaded with collaboration work.  Japanese animes can’t compete with collaboration animes in terms of profit so when that happens, we just have to rely on the goodwill of the studio bosses, or make them feel the same way we do with regards to the contents of our work, or by chance see an opening and aim for that, or appease them or plead with them.  We can’t work in just that kind of a situation.  That’s why it’s almost impossible to make highly compact and solid animes in Japan now.  Even without going that far, it’s almost impossible to make even decent animes in the country today.  In fact, anime TV series are almost all in shambles, and I can’t even be optimistic about the video quality of the anime we have now.  In this kind of situation, I can’t help but seriously think if next year, our ideas can be made into anime.

(Caption for illustration at the left side of the page)

A girl from Mamoru Oshii’s original video anime “Angel’s Egg” (drawn by Seikou Nakura).  Mr. Oshii revealed that he is having a hard time because there aren’t enough animators to make even just one anime video.

YOSHIKAZU YASUHIKO (director and screen director of “Arion”)

(Blurb)

I haven’t decided yet on what I will make after “Arion”.  I will not take part in the new Gundam series.

I am very busy now with screen work for the anime “Arion” which will be shown in theaters on March 8th.  But as far as I’m concerned, I’m conscious  of the fact that this is my anime for 1985.  Therefore, I haven’t decided yet on what my anime will be for 1986.  I feel like I want to take a break for a year.

“Arion” is quite restrained for an anime to be shown in movie theaters.  I’m happy that this movie is being touted as “the” main animation movie this spring but conversely, it’s a shame that there aren’t a lot of big anime movies for theaters.  It’s already been decided that “Arion” is going to be shown in top-class movie theaters throughout Japan.  It just shows how much anime has received recognition.  I’d like to wait for animes that will pick up on this trend.

With regards to anime TV series, I was in charge of character design for “Z Gundam” this past year but I’ve decided not to be involved at all in the sequel’s new series.  I think it’s better to relegate “Gundam” to the younger animators, starting with Hiroyuki Kitazume, who have grown so much in their craft.  Now I sincerely think, if only someone as good as Kitazume were around eight years ago to help with “Gundam”, I would’ve been saved…

(Caption for illustration at the bottom of the page)

The heroine “Lesfina” from “Arion”, which was produced, character designed and screen directed by Yoshikazu Yasuhiko.  This is the drawing touched-up by Mr. Yasuhiko.  As we have discussed in a series of character designers in last month’s issue, he breathes life into his anime characters, showing genius capabilities.

(Box at the lower left side of the page)

If there were animes like this I’d watch it!

MASAMI YUUKI (manga artist)

As a rule, the three things I’d like to see are: “something that isn’t originally from manga”; “robot animation that isn’t dark”; and “in one year, a collaborative anime by Osamu Dezaki and Akio Sugino for release in Japan”.  I can watch TV anime while casually lying around but I’d like anime that I wouldn’t be able to take my eyes off of the screen, something that is both easy to watch and amusing.  And as written in other magazines before, I’d like to see Mr. Hayao Miyazaki’s version of “Atragon”! (Translator’s note: “Undersea Warship” in Japan)

YUUKI KUDOU (actress and singer)

I’d definitely watch anime that’s fun to watch, anime that will make me happy.  At any rate, I’d like a hero on the side of justice who will beat the hell out of the bad guys and put them in a bind.

RYOKO YAMAGISHI (manga artist)

If there were an anime like Disney’s “Fantasia”, I’d watch it!

Pages 48 & 49

(Article Title)

Major producers from each of the anime/production companies talk about their hits for 1986 and foresee what their companies will be producing

KENJI YOKOYAMA (Toei Animation Co.)

(Blurb)

The new hit TV show Gegege no Kitaro from the fall of 1985 which received top ratings reflects modern times.

This is what I’ve been thinking with the third conversion of Gegege no Kitaro into animation.  One is the change in children’s thinking with regards to ghosts/monsters.  Of course “Ghostbusters” and “E.T.” have influenced this change, and now kids consider ghosts almost as pets.  So in this way I think that if you match the present mood and go in the direction of lighter anime, you’ll be able to create different things from before.  Children’s lives are too managed now, so they’d want an outlet to vent too. And in a society that has too many things and where, if you have the money, you can buy anything, things like the Toyoda Company fraud scandal and shady investment journals can also be construed as monstrosities. This anime has this overall theme: In the ideal world of Kitaro, monsters, people, animals, grass and trees should all co-exist so I thought I’d have various new approaches within the anime.

As a new endeavor, our company is going into video anime.  It’s called “Amon Saga” and we’re not just going to sell it in video format, (I’m also hoping) we can show it in any movie theater even for just one week otherwise it’ll just be too sad.   Especially with regards to original works with names that aren’t well known, I think it’s dangerous to rely on just one production studio. After “Konpora Kid” ends, beginning February, we’re planning on animating “Kinka”, a serialized manga in the weekly magazine Shonen Jump.

(Caption for illustration on the left side of the page)

A figure from the very popular “Kitaro”.  They can’t keep up with the demand for a ghost eraser that they’ve produced and now it is a hit product.  It’s also been decided that there will be new movie releases for this anime in the New Year and in the spring.

EIJI YAMAURA (Nihon Sunrise Co.)

(Blurb)

Find common ground with your viewers and defeat this lethargic mood!

Sunrise has now expanded into six studios and at any given point in time, we plan to work simultaneously on two to three anime TV series, video anime, anime for movie theaters and collaboration anime.  Overall, anime today is manga magazine-driven, so our question is how far can we go in staying on an original anime track. Robot animes have vastly decreased in number, so conversely, I think this is a chance for us to come out with epoch-making anime.  I’d like to make anime that will allow us to seriously converse with our child viewers.

TOSHIMITSU SUZUKI (Artmic Co.)

(Blurb)

Making anime that will be understood by the whole world!  The robot anime boom is shifting from transformation-type robots to robots that merge into one.

Speaking of Japanese products in the international market today, mechanical products come to mind.  This is also true in the animation world since Japanese robot animes are extremely in vogue.  Especially in the American market, they already have transformation-type robot animes, so animes that have robots that merge into one are new to them.  We’ve already exported “Beast King GoLion”, following that, (we’re going to export) “Dancouga Super Beast Machine God”.

We at Artmic plan to make animation that can be exported to foreign markets and we also are also keeping in mind to configure these anime with universal values.  The video anime “Gall Force” is the first step in that direction.

NOBUO INADA (Tokyo Movie Shinsha Co.)

(Blurb)

Our track remains the same - making collaboration animes for foreign countries but we also have new anime.

I can’t necessarily say that the present state of anime is good.  But the passion for anime during the anime boom of “Gundam” and the like was an anomaly so I feel that the state of anime now is the real one.

As you may know, not only do we make anime for Japan but we also produce anime for foreign countries.  It’s a difficult situation for us now to concentrate on anime just for Japan because of production costs.  It can be said that Japanese anime should be improved from the very basic level.

In 1986, we plan to have “Little Nemo” and in the fall, an anime for movie theater release by the duo Desaki and Sugino.  At any rate, we’re doing our best.

JUNZOU NAKAJIMA (Nihon Animation Co.)

(Blurb)

We’re aiming for improving the quality of our masterpieces and we’re also trying our hand at new anime!

As you may know, our company has mainly been making masterpiece animes for more than fifteen years but I think we’ve made a habit of making similar anime.  But we’ve been able to improve on our animes’ degree of perfection precisely because of the buildup of our experience in animation.  We’re also working hard on our technology, and on the authenticity of our masterpieces.  At any rate, we’re trying to make anime that is still interesting to watch even after five or six years have passed.  Next year, we plan on making “Pollyanna” after “A Little Princess Sara” ends, and a new SF series called “Space Sagittarius”.  We’re also going to have one TV special around May.

HIROMICHI MOGAKI (Tsuchida Production Co.)

(Blurb)

Just like what we did in “Tsubasa” and “Kimengumi”, we’re adding our original flavor to animation adapted from manga!

Even with regards to animating manga, the time when you aren’t creative when adapting something is over - just like our approach to our anime “High School! Kimen”.  In manga, the fun is enclosed in a comic cell.  Differing from that, we were able to bring out fun that moves freely (in the anime format).  (Our decision to) put two episodes in one anime has also been well-received.  We are also planning to have an anime TV series next year but all will depend on how long “Captain Tsubasa” will last.  Captain Tsubasa’s storyline is that the finals will end in March, and the European leg will begin.  This will catch up with the manga version’s storyline so I’m thinking of making a new one or taking a temporary break.

MASAYASU SAGISU (Eiken Co., Ltd.)

(Blurb)

Please watch the cooking scenes in the manga  “Oishinbo” animated in a live-action format.

The anime “Sazae-san” is going to be seventeen years old.  I think that the things that last for a long time are not manga for boys or manga for girls but manga for adults such as “Sazae-san” that has a family theme.  But there aren’t many of this kind of anime today.

There has been a lot of SF space anime but nowadays it’s quite possible for kids to go to space someday.  But the world of “Sazae-san” where the grandma, the grandpa, the old maid and the troubles they encounter while living together is farther than space in today’s world of nuclear families.  Conversely, this makes Sazae-san’s storyline fresh.

For next year’s anime, we are developing our plans to animate Mr. Shinji Wada’s manga “Pigmalio”.  We’d also like to do SF action animes, and a totally new genre -  animating Big Comic Spirit’s serialized manga “Oishinbo”.  Following a ten-year cycle, monster animes might come out next year but we’d like to try out new genres.

HIROSHI KATO (Ashi Production Co.)

We are developing original videos for the anime “Dancouga”

Our company has concentrated mainly on original anime and we are continuing with this direction in 1986 and beyond.  Even though our animes are popular, I don’t know why we are edited a lot.  Even “Dancouga” which originally had fifty-two episodes was reduced to thirty-eight and the final story was changed.  We are going to sell a one and a half hour video in March and we’d like to include the real final story in it.  Seventy percent of animators in Japan today are working on collaboration anime. The pay (for collaboration anime) is more than double, so we have to do something about it.  

TOSHIHIRO NAGAO (Kaname Production Co.)

I’d like to see different kinds of SF anime.  “Windaria (Once Upon a Time)” is the first step in that direction.

Generally speaking, I’d like to go with polar opposites - simplistic anime that has funny gags and anime that explores heavy themes.  I think our company would like to take a short break after “Windaria” ends and then we’re going to do a lighter anime.  We’ve also talked little by little about producing an anime TV series, but can we really do it with the present situation?  Companies we outsource to are doing a lot of collaboration anime and we don’t have the confidence that we will win the price war and if we dabble in (anime TV series) incorrectly, it will be a death blow.  With this situation, it seems like we will be concentrating on video anime for now.  With regards to the direction of our anime, we’d like to consider doing SF anime with our own touch and foray into different parts, for example, making modern anime like “Radio City Fantasy (Machikado no Marchen)” that merges footage and music.

(Caption for illustration on the left side)

“Mujigen Hunter Fandora”, one of the original video anime from Kaname Production Co..It is said that the second part will be released in March.

YUUJI NUNOKAWA (Studio Pierrot)

(Blurb)

“Magical Emi, the Magic Star” will end in February.  We’re working on the anime that will follow this.

Ever since our “Dallos” anime, anime in the video anime genre have increased, and it’s becoming more and more difficult to foresee what’s ahead.  But I feel our viewer base will return to children after the continuous increase in anime fans.

In our animes’ genres, it seems that we foray into unprincipled things but through trial and error, we are at that stage where we are aiming for our own style.  In 1986, we plan to stop producing transformation-style anime after “Emi” and we are now working on an anime with a witch theme, with a nod to our very first anime.  We have also decided that we will make a sequel to “Rumic World”.

(Box at the lower left side of the page)

If there were animes like this I’d watch it!

MIKI TORI (manga artist)

And yet there are only a few animes wherein you can feel each anime’s distinct character.  I understand that anime is a group effort, but like manga, the director’s tastes dominate.   If the time comes when the writer can say “that is good but this is also good”, I think that anime will become more vibrant.

AKIO YOSHIDA (manga artist)

If I’m going to watch, I might change the channel if they’d revive anime like the long adventure animes of Toei.  It would feel just like watching the movie “Mothra”.

YUKI SAITO (actress and singer)

I was in a manga research group when I was in high school so all I watched were anime from Sunrise.  I like “Gundam” and “Ideon”.  If there were anime in that vein, I think I’d be obsessed again.

Pages 50 & 51

(Title)

A Glance at the Anime World: The Hit men and their Predictions

SHOJI KAWAMORI

(Blurb)

It’s important to have interesting anime that will be universally accepted!

I haven’t really watched TV anime these past two years.  Once you get rid of a habit, it’s not good.  Once you distance yourself from anime, you won’t even be able tell which anime is good and which is bad.  It’s scary to think that I’ve been watching anime by force of habit.

I also haven’t watched that many video animes to be fussy about it but I feel that video animes have become closer in form to manga.   I can’t say though that it’s already at the serialized manga level, but it’s just a matter of time.  But if you’re going to make video anime and you don’t make it differently from TV anime, it will be a waste.  Probably change the design a bit…just like what Mr. Oshii is doing.  Once your attempts go beyond the realm of attempting things and once you’ve achieved something basic, I think we’d probably be able to see the direction of video anime for the first time.  If I were to create video anime, I’d like to make a short sixty minute one, something that is highly concentrated and can’t be fully “digested” in a TV anime format.  Sixty minutes is too short for a movie and too long for TV, and I think it is a length that is untapped and put aside.

Compared to video, TV’s strong point is that you can make serialized anime on TV.  Nicely put, TV is a medium wherein if you don’t have “ordinariness” (badly put, “mass appeal”) you won’t succeed so in this sense TV is a more demanding form of media than video.  I also don’t like the trend wherein anime that don’t appeal to the masses are turned into video anime.  I think that video anime should also have universal appeal.

For 1986, if there are proposals that come my way, I’ll do them.  I still don’t know exactly what I’m going to do.

TOMOKO KONPARU

(Blurb)

With regards to video anime, I have “The Super Girl” and I’d like to try my hand at a new kind of animal anime.

Anime is said to be on a low note right now but I think that the number of anime being produced now is just right because there was a time when the anime that was being produced went over the production capabilities of those in the anime world.  I even think that the number should be reduced by just a little bit more, but only if the quality is improved.  It seems that 30 animes will be released in 1986, but I think that in terms of quality, (those that aren’t good) will be culled.

I don’t have any children yet but as a housewife I don’t think that anime has a bad influence on children.  Since I was little, I myself grew up watching anime.  Even now, from the standpoint of someone making anime, I don’t want to forget about the children.  But on the other hand, I also think that mothers who just park their kids in front of the TV to watch anime isn’t good either.

The anime following “Hai Step Jun” will be “Maple Town”, an animal anime but I don’t want it to be anime with just “good” characters in it.  I want to try making anime for young girls, which will be a new thing for me.

ICHIRO ITANO

(Blurb)

There must be anime that only young animators can do!

I think that mass media has a very strong influence on children.  I want people to be more conscious of that.  I feel that anime that is being made today just to make money is overly increasing - animators don’t question things, or assert themselves.  An extreme example is the Lolita complex boom of late.  If a person is being shown something like (a Lolita anime) from way back (from childhood), that person’s imagination takes precedence instead of the ability to adapt to another human being, and stress builds up as a result.  I think we should oppose this current reality, and as for myself, I plan to try different things.  I wonder what I’d be able to do before I turn thirty-five, and I also think that you can learn from failure.

MITSURU KANEKO (MK Productions)

(Blurb)

The computer is absolutely infiltrating the anime world.

It’s possible to think that in the future, the possibilities of computer graphics will first be used in the industrial fields.   For example, the depth maps of the Japan Coast Guard just have numbers on them now but if you input these numbers into a computer, you’ll be able to see valleys (under the sea) that continue for miles as video images.  And if this (technology) presses forward, for example, there is an (American) masterpiece special effects movie called “Fantastic Voyage” wherein they (physically) made the sets and then shot the film but in the future, you can make the movie set by inputting data in a computer.

Speaking of another side (of this technology), take the example of video images shown on large screens that have been demonstrated at an expo.  Just like what was shown in the expo, video images and 3D images shown on dome-like screens can only be made using a computer.

In this way, the spotlight is now aimed at anime as a means to (showcase technology).  Animation’s possibilities will also become limitless as it will need to respond to the diversification of people’s demands.

(Caption for illustration on the right side of the page)

This is Cindy, a young girl from a biker gang in the anime “Megazone 23 Part 2”.  Mr. Yasuomi Umetsu’s character design is original, as personified in this drawing.  This anime has a different kind of appeal compared to Part 1.

KEISUKE FUJIKAWA (scriptwriter of the anime “Once Upon a Time” or “Legend of Fabulous Battle Windaria”)

I researched and compared the recent trends, the trend in fans’ consciousness about anime and anime programs and from around last year, it seems like the age of wanting “salvation” has come.  I think that in so many ways, we are being stifled and we are seeking breakthroughs.  I think that how anime as a medium is going to lift this issue up is going to be important.   Even “Once Upon a Time”, which we will show in 1986, takes up issues of the present times.  I’m putting emphasis on what I will say to the youth of today through SF that has stories of people in it instead of just hardcore SF.  For this year and the next, I’d like to dig into aspects of the youth in different ways.  I’d like to make anime that makes viewers think that there is something out there that matches their present selves perfectly.

(Caption for illustration on the left side of the page)

This is Anasu, the heroine of “Windaria”.  Illustrated by Ms. Mutsumi Inomata, this character personifies the pure themes of Mr. Fujikawa’s anime.

YOSHINOBU NISHIZAKI (producer)

(Blurb)

I’d like to make a video anime that will be a preview of a movie theater anime

With regards to “Odin: Photon Sailor Starlight”, I didn’t make excuses and I haven’t commented on it but there are clear reasons why that movie ended in failure.  That anime was originally a one-hour program, twelve episode TV anime - in other words, it was an anime made to be aired for twelve hours.  I think there was a big mistake in the producers’ thinking that they could digest this into a two and a half hour movie.

I used to say that after 1955, there wouldn’t be a hit anime made for movie theaters.   The same thing is about to happen in the video anime world.  If the overproduction of low-quality anime continues, there will definitely be a backlash.  It seems that the most basic idea during planning anime has been forgotten.  And this basic idea is this: things expressed through anime must rouse people’s imaginations.

We’re planning on releasing an anime for movie theaters on July 9, 1986 based on “Desler”*.  But before that we’re planning on selling a promotion video about the movie in April.  In making this video, budgetary issues, which have always been a concern in video animes, have been set aside so I’m planning on making it in the same high-quality as the movie.  I’m also thinking of releasing a trailer of the movie at the same time.

*Translator’s note: Desler is a character in the anime “Space Battleship Yamato”.

(Box at the lower left side of the page)

If there were animes like this I’d watch them!

FUJIHIKO HOSONO (manga artist)

I like the works of Mr. Hayao Miyazaki.  I heard that he said that he wanted to make an anime about the Period of Warring States (in Japanese history) so if that anime is made, I’d definitely want to watch it.  Personally, I’d also like Mr. Miyazaki to make ninja anime.  With regards to other animators, I like Mr. Mamoru Oshii, the one who made “Beautiful Dreamer.

SHOJOTAI (a singer/actress trio)

Reiko: Among animated characters, I like Peter Rabbit.  I’d like Peter to guide me into a dreamy nature scene.

Miho: I really like Phillips. I’d like to plunge into a world adventure with a kitty cat.

Tomo: More than anything, I like Snoopy.  I’d watch any number of animes with Snoopy in it.  I’d like to watch happy animes.

[somegirlsnerdywords2]

Anime i’ve Watched

That begin with a H (Part 4)!

Yep this is how i’m going to bring over all the anime and manga i’ve watched and posted about on the old blog. It’s not so detailed but it will have to do. Anything new I watch or read from this point on will have their own posts.

Hoozuki no Reitetsu:

Genres: comedy, demons, supernatural, fantasy, seinen

Synopsis:  Hell is a bureaucracy, and business is running smoother than ever thanks to the demonic efficiency of Hoozuki, chief deputy to Lord Enma, the King of Hell. Whether offering counsel to the Momotarou of Japanese folklore or receiving diplomatic missions from the Judeo-Christian Hell, the demon who runs the show from behind the king's imposing shadow is ready to beat down any challenges coming his way into a bloody pulp. Metaphorically, of course... The poster boy for micromanagement and armed with negotiation skills worthy of Wall Street, Hoozuki no Reitetsu follows the sadistic and level-headed Hoozuki as he spends his days troubleshooting hell. With an abundance of familiar faces from popular Japanese legends and East Asian mythology working middle management positions, this referential and anachronistic dark comedy brings new meaning to the phrase "employer liability." Just how hard could it be to manage employees from hell, anyway? [Written by MAL Rewrite]

My Rating: 9/10

Finished airing in 2014 with a total of 13 episodes. 

My Thoughts: A comedy set in hell! A very, very good comedy at that! Occasionally educational and always fun. One i’d recommend for sure! 

Hoozuki no Reitetsu 2nd Season: 

Genres: comedy, demons, fantasy, seinen, supernatural

Synopsis:  Just as in this life, the afterlife needs a calm troubleshooter to deal with the bureaucratic headaches that come from keeping things in order. Enter Hozuki: a cool and collected demon who’s badly in need of a vacation.

(Source: HIDIVE)

My Rating: 10/10

Finished airing in 2017 with a total of 13 episodes. 

My Thoughts: Even better than the first! Also I have a crush on Hoozuki and want screaming goldfish plants... 

Hoozuki no Reitetsu 2nd Season: Sono ni:

Genres: comedy, demons, fantasy, seinen, supernatural

Synopsis:  The second cour of Hoozuki no Reitetsu season 2.

My Rating: 9/10

Finished airing in 2018 with a total of 13 episodes. 

My Thoughts: Still loving it. So pleased this one managed to get so many seasons! A very pleasant surprise. 

Hoshi no Koe (Voices of a Distant Star):

Genres: OVA, sci-fi, space, drama, romance, mecha

Synopsis:  Hoshi no Koe, using full 2D and 3D digital animation, is a story of a long distance love and mail messages between a boy and girl. Set in 2046 after the discovery of the ruins of an alien civilization on Mars, man has been able to make leaps in technology and is planning to send an expedition into space in the next year. Nagamine Mikako and Terao Noboru are junior high school students. However, while Noboru will be entering senior high next winter, Mikako is selected to join the space expedition. (Source: AniDB)

My Rating: 4/10

An OVA released in 2002.

My Thoughts: Interesting concept that went downhill fast. I had strong negative feelings towards much of the art/ animation and never wish to speak of it again. Overall this just did nothing for me and I suggest it to no one. 

Hotarubi no Mori e:

Genres: drama, romance, shoujo, supernatural, movie

Synopsis:  Intrigued by the tale of a mountain god, six-year-old Hotaru Takegawa loses her way in the ancient forest while visiting her uncle. Exhausted and desperate for help, Hotaru is thrilled to find a masked forest spirit named Gin. She learns the hard way that she should not touch the boy, or he would disappear. In spite of this, Gin leads Hotaru out of the forest and warns her never to return when she promises to come again with a gift. Paying no heed to his cautionary words, and despite being separated by both distance and planes of existence, Hotaru and Gin become close friends as she visits him every summer. However, their relationship and resolve are put to the test, when romantic feelings conflict with the one and only rule. Based on Yuki Midorikawa's manga of the same name, Hotarubi no Mori e is a tale of friendship and compromise of two people who should never have crossed paths, as their lives become hopelessly intertwined. [Written by MAL Rewrite]

My Rating: 9/10

A film released in 2011

My Thoughts: Just tear my heart out throw me into a deep vat of feels. Seriously though this movie was a delight.... an emotional delight but a delight all the same. Also the music was stunning! Highly suggest. 

Howl no Ugoku Shiro (Howl’s Moving Castle):

Genres: adventure, drama, fantasy, romance, movie

Synopsis:  That jumbled piece of architecture, that cacophony of hissing steam and creaking joints, with smoke billowing from it as it moves on its own... That castle is home to the magnificent wizard Howl, infamous for both his magical prowess and for being a womanizer—or so the rumor goes in Sophie Hatter's small town. Sophie, as the plain daughter of a hatmaker, does not expect much from her future and is content with working hard in the shop. However, Sophie's simple life takes a turn for the exciting when she is ensnared in a disturbing situation, and the mysterious wizard appears to rescue her. Unfortunately, this encounter, brief as it may be, spurs the vain and vengeful Witch of the Waste—in a fit of jealousy caused by a past discord with Howl—to put a curse on the maiden, turning her into an old woman. In an endeavor to return to normal, Sophie must accompany Howl and a myriad of eccentric companions—ranging from a powerful fire demon to a hopping scarecrow—in his living castle, on a dangerous adventure as a raging war tears their kingdom apart. [Written by MAL Rewrite]

My Rating: 10/10

A film released in 2004.

My Thoughts: I love this movie and I know i’m not alone! If you haven’t had a chance to view this one yet and have Canadian Netflix (or any other country that also has this title) I highly suggest you watch this film and truly enjoy the ride!

Hyouka:

Genres: mystery, school, slice of life

Synopsis:  Energy-conservative high school student Houtarou Oreki ends up with more than he bargained for when he signs up for the Classics Club at his sister's behest—especially when he realizes how deep-rooted the club's history really is. Begrudgingly, Oreki is dragged into an investigation concerning the 45-year-old mystery that surrounds the club room. Accompanied by his fellow club members, the knowledgeable Satoshi Fukube, the stern but benign Mayaka Ibara, and the ever-curious Eru Chitanda, Oreki must combat deadlines and lack of information with resourcefulness and hidden talent, in order to not only find the truth buried beneath the dust of works created years before them, but of other small side cases as well. Based on the award-winning Koten-bu light novel series, and directed by Yasuhiro Takemoto of Suzumiya Haruhi no Shoushitsu, Hyouka shows that normal life can be full of small mysteries, be it family history, a student film, or even the withered flowers that make up a ghost story. [Written by MAL Rewrite]

My Rating: 7.5/10

Finished airing in 2012 with a total of 22 episodes. 

My Thoughts: Sunning art and cute characters but ultimately not an anime that left much of an impression on me.  Not every beloved anime will be a hit with every single person, that being said I know this anime has quite a few fans and a rather high rating so it can’t be all bad, right?

[thecrazyanimegirl]

Fall Anime ‘18

We ended up watching a little less this season, we had to drop some because we just had no time, but it was a good season ^^ finally the golden kamuy second season and even space battleship tiramisu! 

Since we often have similar opinions about the anime we watch, so we will make our review this time a little bit different, we’ll just put our general opinion on it, something all three mods agree on.

{ Winter ‘17/’18 }  { Spring ‘18 } { Summer ‘18 }

Akanesasu Shoujo 

It got a little better as episodes when on and it was interesting in some ways when you power through all those cliche scenes of getting power by accepting yourself stuff.

Armor Shop For Ladies And Gentleman 

Short and funny, if you can handle the boob jokes xD It would be more entertaining if the story progressed a little bit faster rather than showing how the three coworkers live together. Also had some much too much prolonged meaningless scenes that ate away the already short duration of the 4 minute episodes.

Ass Miss Beelzebub Likes 

Hell as you’ve never seen it before, all cute and fluffy, with fallen angels and demons being normal desk workers and falling in love ^^ A really cute romance story, the characters are adorable and lovable! It was amazing if you like the genre!

Bakumatsu

Not sure why this is getting a second season, I was really tempted to drop it, it just didn’t keep me interested in the story and had too many characters that are just there and idk what they all wanted. (Only neko finished the season, the rest dropped it lol)

Bloom Into You 

A really sweet yuri anime ^^ It really focuses on their relationship, on the deepening of their feelings for each other and their problems and growth as individuals. It’s soft, easygoing and filled with happy feelings, but at the same time tackles some harder themes, like the feeling of inability too love, unrequited love, losing a loved one and learning to live without them, the different “faces” people have etc.

Dakaretai Otoko 1-i ni Odosarete Imasu

Our dream has come true! A classical BL manga turned anime with no shame with showing the juicy stuff and centered on the relationship of these two hot guys. The angst is mostly unnecessary, but we’ll take what we can get!  

Double Decker! Doug and Kirill

A detective story with a lot of action, humor and lovable characters! Yes, it’s not plot heavy and isn’t an anime that will swipe you off your feet, but it’s different, completely acceptant of diversity, has great humor and, overall, loved it! It has some charm to it that is undeniable!

Gakuen Basara 

Funny AU adaptation of the original series, Sengoku Basara. For those who are thirsty for more content and want to see their favorite characters in a new art style, this is definitely a must watch.

Goblin Slayer

Amazing! Loved loved it! Although, it has violence and rape, so it isn’t for everyone, but it has depth and it’s really interesting. The action is cool and Goblin Slayer-san is even cooler! Loved the other characters too. Totally looked forward to each episode each week, it was definite that the next episode will be great too ^^

Hey, your cat ears are showing!

A really cute shounen ai story (which I didn’t even know, so I was quite surprised when some feelings started to show up xD) about a guy who finds a stray cat who turns out to be a boy! Pure and short.

I’m glad I could keep running

A four-episode story about a guy who tries to become a voice actor. A great story, it’s well paced and worth the watch! And the actual voice actors are also popular and great too!

Jingai-san no Yome

Changing between creepy and cute, it’s a short anime about teenagers being married off to supernatural creatures. Since it’s only 3 minutes per ep, we finished watching it, and it had its cute and funny moments

Karakuri Circus

It’s a bit different, has a unique art style and story, but it’s really good! Kinda expected more of the circus part and less puppets haha, but nevertheless, the main characters are interesting, there are great battle scenes and the story is intriguing. It sometimes had unnecessary angsty scenes with no actual plot, but other than that, a really underrated anime this season that deserves more attention! ~

Kishuku Gakkou no Juliet

It’s a typical romeo and juliet story. Didn’t hate it, but didn’t love it either. 

Merc Storia: Mukiryoku no Shounen to Bin no Naka no Shoujo  

It’s cute and soft and the fact it has many stories makes it less boring, but it’s still a childish anime so you’ll only like it if you are a child like me (in heart).

Radiant

Yes, another overly ecstatic kid who wants to save the world and has mysterious powers, but! It kinda works with this one, it’s actually really good ^^ The characters are cute and funny, it’s easy to watch and if you’re still not on board, there is Dragunov, a really hot guy with amazing hair and cooking skills ;) 

RErideD: Derrida, who leaps through time

The first five episodes are extremely promising, but the rest is not so fulfilling. It’s interesting enough to keep watching, the whole idea is pretty good, but somehow it’s lacking in depth and explanations. Much better binge watched then watched one ep a week.

Run with the Wind

If you ever tried running in your life, you will sympathize with the characters BECAUSE. IT. IS. REALLY. HARD. This anime will warm up your heart seeing how each of the boys try to do fight for their life goals and at the same time, the running helps each of them them in a unique way.

Seishun Buta Yarou wa Bunny Girl Senpai no Yume wo Minai 

Even if the title screams ecchi, it really is not. And it’s really good! The plot is interesting, unique and compelling to watch, loved the characters and their interactions. 

Skull-face Bookseller Honda-san

Since this anime depicts how japanese bookstores work, there are quite some interesting things few would think of. It’s comedic way of showing the everyday life of a bookseller and short episodes is perfect if you are interested in knowing more about the japanese culture. 

So Many Colors in the Future What a Wonderful World

A really beautiful, magical and aesthetic anime! The animation is wonderful and the story is sweet and interesting. It’s a warm story about a girl that is unable to see color and is sent back to the past by her grandma. It’s mostly about friendship and bonds that you make with people that will never disappear. 

That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime

Didn’t really expect much from the title, it sounded like there will be a lot of clothes melting and girls screaming haha But it ended up amazing! Love the plot, the characters, the battle scenes and it’s really a sure thing that each episode is going to be great ^^ It’s easygoing yet interesting. An isekai anime done right!

Tsurune: Kazemai Koukou Kyuudoubu

Love it! The characters have really touched our hearts! It is not as good as novel, but the anime is still beautiful so we can forget that (not forgive though). The novel has a completely different feel to it. (Not saying the anime is bad, it’s actually really good and the characters and plot are still amazing, but it’s just different)

Voice of Fox

I liked the anime, but the ending didn’t really solve anything. It felt like like they were just glossing over the bad stuff with singing? It is mostly angst in the later episodes and after the so promising first couple of eps it’s kinda disappointing, but overall, it still keeps the viewer interested and has a lot of potential if they fill the plot holes.

Zombieland Saga

Miyano Mamoru having a blast being a manager for seven zombie girls who he trains to be idols. Extremely hilarious, good music and actually has some real feels! Loved it! ^^

Hero Mask

Doesn’t really fit in the season time frames, but Netflix released another anime! (and I think that it needs a bigger fandom so I’m putting it here hehe) It is a bit more slow-paced than most anime, but if you like a good crime story, you’ll probably like this ^^ Great animation, loved the fight scenes, the story is also really good and has some powerful girl characters! 

Dropped: Ms. vampire who lives in my neighborhood., Release the Spyce, Ulysses: Jeanne d'Arc to Renkin no Kishi

[hoodlessmads]

I’m Caught Up With Bloom Into You

Gosh, where do I even begin with this series?

I watched the first episode, and by the end, honestly, I thought it was going to be pretty dumb. Cute! But dumb. And I do love me some dumb cute precious romance.

But W O W that’s not what Yagakimi is. It successfully pulls of an excellent bait-and-switch on the reader/viewer not just once but twice--the first is at the end of the first episode (the part where I assumed it was going to be kind of cheesy and dumb), and the second around halfway through the anime series. The first one is basically the premise of the story, so it doesn’t really count as a bait-and-switch unless you go in blind like I did. But the second one takes all of the reader/viewer’s expectations up to that point and turns it on its head. And even beyond that scene, the entire series is chock full of moments that demolish your expectations for what direction the story is taking and who the characters are. Every single chapter I felt like I was being thrown for a loop, and learning something unexpected and new about the characters. Even up to the most recent damn chapter I feel like I have no idea what Nakatani-sensei is going to throw at us. And all of this is me making a point that this manga is DEEP.

I could talk at length about how gorgeous the anime is, how well-directed certain scenes are, how incredible the Japanese voice acting was (didn’t see the dub, but if anyone can carry Touko’s emotional range it’s the fabulous Luci Christian so I’m sure it’s decent), or how much I stan Michiru Ooshima. It was a great adaptation and I sincerely can’t wait for Season 2. But I’m not going to talk much about that. Instead I just need to talk about the story (the manga).

(spoilers up through Chapter 39)

You know what one of the many great things about Yagakimi is? In spite of the fact that it deals with same-gender relationships and queer issues, and while it does periodically address those issues, they’re actually not the primary focus of the characters or their struggles. From day one, Yuu is much less concerned about Touko being a girl than she is about her own inability to feel anything towards her (supposedly). And that’s not to say that those issues are ignored, like they are in some anime of this particular genre. The characters don’t live in a paradisiacal vacuum where being gay in Japan isn’t a problem and everyone around them is magically super accepting. Yuu’s sister is incredibly sweet and accepting (I love her), but her dad makes casual homophobic comments. Even after Touko initially confesses to Yuu, Yuu brushes it off as something she “probably doesn’t have to worry about” because they’re both girls, and it’s weird. Riko Hakazaki has to hide from her students, coworkers, and workplace, that she’s living with her girlfriend, because it could cause legitimate problems for her if they knew. During Sayaka’s first lesbian relationship, when she is still figuring herself out, her own girlfriend tells her that it’s “just a phase” and that she’s sorry that she “made her” that way. Even much later, when Yuu is conflicted about how she should confess her feelings to Touko, her sister Rei immediately assumes (understandably so) that she’s conflicted because of the whole gay thing. Rei starts worrying about how the family will react, if they will be accepting and supportive of her sister. Little does she know, being gay is the least of Yuu’s problems at that point.

But is being gay and the societal backlash that comes with it really that inconsequential to Yuu’s story? Yuu Koito struggles to develop romantic or sexual feelings for anyone. She exhibits clear signs of depression--intense apathy, emotional repression, struggles to find genuine joy in anything. A lot of people have posited even that she exhibits signs of sexual repression specifically. And this is one of the core conversations we can have about Yuu’s character. How much of her “inability to love” is because she is legitimately somewhere on the ace spectrum, perhaps demisexual (she develops feelings after getting to know someone, to put it simply)? And how much of it is her unconsciously repressing her own feelings (perhaps homosexual) for her entire life, resulting in a scenario where even she doesn’t know how to get them back? There isn’t a clear answer here. No one knows. Yuu doesn’t even know. And that’s the point!

The characters. Are so. Good. Yuu, Touko, and Sayaka are the obvious powerhouses here, all three of them multi-layered people that I can and will analyze at length. But Yagakimi doesn’t sleep on the minor characters either. Yuu and Touko don’t exist in a vacuum. From Yuu’s sister and her boyfriend to Maki, the juxtaposing aromantic and asexual friend and ally, to Yuu’s surprisingly likable best friends, to Hakozaki-sensei and her girlfriend Miyako, to even Dojima. Everyone matters. Everyone gets their own little storyline. I’m tempted to be reminded of Kimi ni Todoke and the brilliant way it handled its side characters here. Although Bloom Into You is much shorter than KnT, and therefore has a lot less time to develop those side characters and relationships, it still provides them with their own layers, their own problems, their own mini-spotlights. And it makes me care about every single one. Riko and Miyako’s cute ass and wholesome adult love story, Akari’s dumb doomed crush on basketball senpai, Koyomi’s dreams of becoming an author and her infatuation with a certain idol of hers, Maki’s experiences as a contented bystander. I adore and welcome it.

Let’s talk about Touko Nanami before this gets any longer than it needs to be. To be honest, I have a type when it comes to characters, and it’s the ones that are suicidal and hate themselves, probably because I relate to that stuff more than anything (though I also relate to Yuu’s apathetic brand of depression). This character. This character. One of the things I love most about her is how consistently the reader is lured into thinking they know her, and then consistently proven wrong. (I think we share this experience with Yuu.) It takes episodes, chapters, volumes to slowly chip away at the layers and layers of personality we’re given before we finally arrive at the truly heartbreaking core, which is a girl with a fractured identity and deep, deep self-loathing that defies all logic. And it’s because it defies all logic that it’s so scary. Because that kind of self-hatred doesn’t just go away. You can’t just fix it. It’s there to stay, and it’s not just your friendly neighborhood self-hatred--painful, but an otherwise harmless roommate. It’s actually dangerous, and it has the power to destroy Touko’s relationships with others and even destroy herself. (The scene in the anime where she stands in front of the railroad tracks and almost takes a step forward, thus nearly giving me a heart attack, comes to mind.) It defies logic, so there’s no logical way to beat it, either. And it’s not just the self-loathing that gets me and makes my heart hurt for her; it’s the loss of oneself, the lack of one’s identity as an individual. The loss of on’s own sense of self, especially at such a young and vulnerable age, is debilitating. Touko is really good at wearing that super serene smile, but when the chips are down, nothing is going to stand in the way of her and what essentially amounts to obliterating herself from existence. Not even Yuu. And then we come to her crippling fear of being loved by anyone, which is an aspect of self-hatred that probably doesn’t get enough acknowledgment. She hates herself to the point that the thought of someone loving her, which should make her happy, actually hurts. How fucked is that.

But I never gave Touko enough credit. To be honest, in chapter 34 when Yuu (finally) confesses, I was expecting her reaction to be really bad. Like, really bad. I was expecting a shitshow, a blowout of their relationship (temporarily of course). I was expecting basically what Yuu thinks that she got. And for that one page, I swear I felt my heart forcibly ripped from my chest. But then I read the next page and was surprised to see just how much she’s changed over the course of the series, how unexpectedly maturely she took the confession and examined her own feelings afterwards, how quickly (and once again, maturely) she deduced that she’d been making Yuu suffer. It makes me appreciate their relationship even more than I did before, and it makes me want to root for them. (Not that I wasn’t already.) The chapters just keep getting better and better from here on, I swear.

Sayaka deserves her own post, but the queen has her own novel series at least. Sayaka could SO EASILY have been that bitch. Nakatani could have created this rival love interest who treated Yuu like shit and was a possessive asshole and just stopped there. But instead, we got Sayaka, who ends up being one of the best and most well-developed characters. And in the many many times where I was calling Yuu and Touko “you dumb bitch,” Sayaka was there, the smartest and most honest of the three by far, which was refreshing. Her backstory is utterly heartbreaking, her love for Touko touching as hell, and her rise from the ashes, so to speak, is inspiring. Fuck that senpai. Sayaka isn’t even that mean to Yuu, on top of it all. I mean, she can be kind of snippy. And understandably so. But they actually end up surprisingly getting along? I am shook to my core. Sayaka’s growth is one of the greatest sights to behold in this series. Her friendship with Touko isn’t sidelined in favor of Touko’s relationship with Yuu--far from it. Sayaka provides her own unique support and sparks Touko’s development in a way that Yuu never could. Their friendship is crucial. By the time Sayaka FINALLY confesses, I was so god damn proud of her and her bravery, I swear I could have cried. While Yuu was busy being in practiced denial for 40 chapters, Sayaka was OUT THERE learning to be completely up front and honest with herself and others about her feelings. (Not to knock on Yuu, because she has her own arc to go through to get there.) That whole fucking scene where they’re both just sobbing about shit afterwards Got Me.

Ugh. It’s been an emotional few days. I’m really glad I decided to start watching that first episode, because this entire series has been a series of pleasant surprises. This is a good anime, ya’ll. It’s a good character study. It’s a good love story. It’s a good gay love story. It’s all of those things. You could literally talk forever about all the nuances of this story and characters and all the things that make it as good as it is. This long ass post just brushes the surface. For now, I’m anxiously (ANXIOUSLY) awaiting chapter 40. If you know, you know.

[inthe-forest-ofthe-lotus]

The night after the market...(AU)

>> More delicious AU content for HeLin and Aka ( @the-lost-shrine ).

* * * * *

A night was spent in the markets before HeLin started on his way home.

The parcel with the pigments and herbs were in one hand, while the parasol was tightly held in the other. That bamboo hat no where in sight upon his head now that he was casually walking the streets of the city. A silver hair pin, traditional in design, held the hair back from his face while allowing it to flow freely down his back.

Though the long chestnut hair had long been abandoned in favor of a soft shade of strawberry blonde. A fact that near gave his shifu and otou-san both heart failure.

One more turn of a corner and he was in front of the door to the café. A door he opened only to promptly shut it. What was with adults?! His brow ticked as he stood there in front of the entry. His fingers tightened on the parasol’s shaft as he willed away the scene and the sounds alike.

“Couldn’t you two get a room!”

Did neither of his parents know any shame?

Not that HeLin was a prude by any means. He still indulged in manga and novels; especially the yaoi ones he once would borrow from Hokusai. Ah. His Aka’s collection was small, but it had good tastes!

Now it was just a burden finding something good, but it helped. A slight balm to the ache he felt at the absence of the other he couldn’t find. Though it was always temporary and made the dreams and nightmares even more painful and real for him. He’d rather be torn into a dozen pieces by XingHua (who feverishly declared not to have that bad juju put on it) then suffer another night of them. Because at the end of them the loneliness was profound.

Walking down the street towards the Deep Mountain Shrine, HeLin stared up at the sky. The stars were almost a near perfect alignment with the elements that had been singing that day, now that he realized it. Their glow just as somber as he stepped out from the theatre from the opening night.

The seat that was never filled by his partner in the row with his fathers taunting him through the entire play. It took a good deal of strength not to falter in his performance until the very end. Dinner didn’t even happen that evening, further misaligning the proposal between the brooding priest and vibrant nagual. Instead they found themselves rushing back to Hanakaze that was in ruin.

Takane and his disciples already missing along with his Aka, and the Hanahara clan all but killed to the last drop. Not even Shiori’s corpse had been accounted for.

It was only later that he learned a great oni had descended upon the shrine with his hunting band. The might of the small force smashing through fragile barriers and destroying everything when Shiori-chan had gone back on her promises.

The onmyouji that once studied there had vanished entirely too. Probably seclusion to avoid the wrath of the Akiyama? HeLin wasn’t sure. All he knew was his Aka was taken with them; unless it had been the oni instead.

A sigh left him, and his attention dropped. Coming towards him was a man tall and slender of build that looked slightly like himself with matching twin moles under the right eye, but also like his Otou-san with his dark hair and blue eyes. Akiyama Touma was the half-brother of his true father Hua Jin, and of his adoptive father Toya Benri. Why was he coming this way? And in the garb of one seeing to a Night Hunt no less?

“Nephew.” The man beamed – smile benevolent as always. “It is most auspicious I meet you on my stroll. Would you care to join me? The mountain spirits spoke of a great resentful energy tonight, and I wish to see the aftermath.”

All his troubled thoughts left his mind at that one word – “Aftermath?”

“Hai. Something calamitous appeared in the mountains, I am heading there now.”

Without hesitation that parasol was turned. The form reshaped to that of the bamboo hat and its veil. Once upon his head it was allowed to drop back down to conceal his presence, and he followed in step with his uncle.

“So, what is it that has you walking this late at night anyways, Lin-chan?”

HeLin winced at the nickname but said nothing more than, “Otou-san and Tou-chan really have no mind for what one shouldn’t do on the café counter.”

“Ah.”

And it was left at that.

 -

One distance shortening array, and they were at the mountain that his uncle had insisted the spirits told him about. His hand resting on the grip of the blade at his hip while HeLin trailed behind him some ten paces and to his left. Not a weapon on the boy, hence the concealment item.

XingHua’s form had long since been changed, after all, to better fit its wielder.

“Here we are.” Touma declared as they broke through underbrush. The sight that immediately welcomed them was horrendous and prompted both cultivator and exorcist to cover their mouths. “Kami spare their souls. This is most gruesome. Can you recognize any of them with a glance? Because I certainly cannot.”

HeLin just stood there staring. His fingers lingered over his lips and he felt that vague itch, but it was even fainter than the markets. For a moment his heart pattered and pittered to hard against his ribs. A frantic look to the red thread made to find it still in good health.

“Nephew?”

“Ah…i-iie.”

“They’re beyond ruined, and the resentful energy is so high I can barely figure out who they were in life.” Touma sounded impressed.

Who wouldn’t be by such a horrid sight? It was like seeing the aftermath of a train wreck and not being able to tear your eyes away, but this one resonated down into the soul. The energy was far too high and HeLin was certain just a spark would set off the liveliness of a thousand corpses beneath their very feet. That thought alone made the young cultivator’s soul quake in fear.

The hairpin was pulled out from his hair then. It was spun around his fingers before the transformative array was released to change its form from pin to zither. The seven string guqin resting across his lap as he fell into a cross legged position with it. The veil still over his features as fingers touched the strings. It was instinct by now. What was left had to be communicated to and restrained. The grounds purified before even corpses destroyed this far become vengeful ghosts walking this wood.

A deep breath drawn in as he played the chords. Touma standing not far off as he watched the area around them prepared to interfere if anything happened. The sacred blade thrumming with energy at his hip wanting to be drawn.

Each note permeated the air with a wish to understand. Words without syllables that played at a soft tempo that beseeched the souls to listen and the land to speak. HeLin had to strive to reach an accord with them first and foremost. To see what had happened here, especially knowing somehow his Aka had been here or involved.

Though what came back was a barrage of images. His mind flooded with the terror and shapeless horror that had tore these men down. The name that was said most ominously making his heart clench. He recognized this one. HeLin swallowed down a breath. That was why Hokusai’s presence was here. These were men of Takane’s and from the way it looked they were attacked by some vengeful spir—

No. A demonic cultivator?

The thought corrected itself, even if the image and thoughts were chaotic, they cleared that up. HeLin swallowed again wishing he had brought a tonic to clear his mind enough for playing this particular arrangement. Once he played through understanding, the melody changed to one seeking to purify and purge away the resentful energy. These bodies twitching as he forced the action upon them. Even dead and near useless in the state they had been tortured to, they tried to animate to attack the cultivator who sought to cast their souls off from the mortal plane.

“Play, Lin-chan, I’ll protect you.” Touma reassured.

HeLin nodded and continued.

One of the bodies jerked upwards from the ground. Their bones in a horrible way, but invisible strings seem to puppeteer it straight at him. The beautiful sword glare of Touma’s katana slicing into two parts right from the sheath. Blackened blood whipped clean of its silver edge to be sheathed and wait for the next corpse that would lunge.

And thus, HeLin’s second night after the market was spent playing until his fingers were numb, and the spirits were cast away so they wouldn’t taint the mountain or the village nearby. Still without any clue telling him where his Aka had gone.

[paildramonnn]

Good luck on your writing endeavors! New year, new content! Here's an idea I'll offer: Ken and Daisuke are voice actors for a cheesy kids anime. Bonus points if Daisuke loves the script and Ken is just desperate for money.

This is the kind of prompt I really love.  Snowglobe AUs are my absolute favorite.  Thank you so much for submitting!  I hope you like it!

The Taller Chronicles racked up three full volumes before it got green-lit for eight episodes by one of the smaller production companies – streaming only.  Children’s anime wasn’t what it used to be, according to the director.  All gimmick and no quality.  But they got a contract with one of the better animation studios, hired a good art director, and left enough aside to pay their actors more than a pittance, which was a nice step up from the usual.

Daisuke auditioned for the role of the hero: Ueda, the plucky and determined eleven-year-old who makes friends every adventure and, at the end of the run, manages to save the day.

Daisuke got the role of the villain: Kuroyashi, the loudmouth who loses his temper every time Ueda foils his plans.

In the lead up to recording, Daisuke read all the manga, talked at some length with the producer and director, and even managed a meeting with the series author, who wasn’t as insightful as Daisuke had hoped.  The enthusiasm was appreciated, all the same.  By the time the show actually airs, Daisuke’s committed to the character one hundred percent.

(It goes like this: Daisuke is on the phone while in line at the grocery store.  It’s a faux pas but Daisuke’s never been all that good with being polite, and it’s his mother, who will blow him up if he doesn’t answer, so whatever.  There is a young-ish couple ahead of him in line, a kid of about six attached with determination to his mother’s hand, but craning around to stare at Daisuke in what can only be suspicion.  Daisuke can’t hear the kid, but he clearly sees him mouth Ueda’s catch phrase while giving him the stink eye – “tsuite masu” – and that’s it.  Daisuke is so proud to be Kuroyashi he might actually be glowing.)

It still stung a little that he didn’t land the Ueda role.  For one, the merch is better on the hero side.  But what really irritates him is how good Ueda’s actor is.  If it had been bad casting, that would be one thing.  Daisuke could at least be smug about it.  But no.  Ichijouji is great.  He’s got this soft, almost sweet voice that you don’t hear the steel in until the stakes are high and some other character is in trouble, and then Ueda might as well be a mountain.  It’s the sort of depth he guesses the casting director didn’t hear in him.

Worse than that, though, is that Ichijouji seems to be a genuinely nice person.  In print interviews, the author is always delighted to point out how good humored Ichijouji is, how polite, how effacing and well spoken.  And in digital format, podcast or video, Ichijouji does actually appear to be all of those things, so he probably isn’t just bribing anyone to give him good face.

Daisuke couldn’t say for certain what kind of person Ichijouji is.  They’ve only met a few times.  The studio they record in is big but they only get one booth at a time, which means that Ichijouji is usually done by the time they bring Daisuke in.  They’ve overlapped once or twice, passing each other in the hall and exchanging polite but impartial greetings.  Hardly the sort of thing that you can hinge an opinion on.  But now that they’re nearing the end of the first season run, it’s time to campaign for a second one, and that means press.  Which means, in turn, plenty of opportunity for the two of them to get to know each other better.

Their first interview together is via conference call, because Ichijouji is already working on another project and is booked solid for another four days.  They squeeze the call in after he finishes up for the day, sounding a little rough through Daisuke’s less than studio quality headphones, but just as polite and eloquent as promised.

Ichijouji praises the hard work that everyone has put in on the show.  Ichijouji praises the series creator, who continues to produce wonderful stories for them.  Ichijouji talks about what a pleasure it is to work on a show that has such an enthusiastic audience.  Ichijouji shares an anecdote about the children in his building finding out who he is.  Ichijouji has perfect hanging all over him, and if Daisuke has to listen to the interviewer giggle flirtatiously one more time, he’s going to interrupt, he really is.

“Were you a fan of the manga before you auditioned?  What made you want to be Ueda?” the man asks, and for the first time since this thing started, Ichijouji surprises Daisuke.

“Oh,” he says, smile still audible in his voice but sheer wattage lowered.  “When my agent told me about the series, I did buy the first volume.  I liked it a great deal.  But, actually, I really wanted to play Kuroyashi.”

Daisuke and the interviewer lap over each other in disbelief:  “What?”

“I think Kuroyashi is really wonderful.  He’s very passionate about everything he does, and I admire that a great deal, even though he doesn’t necessarily want the right things.  I was upset when I didn’t get the part, actually, but Motomiya does such an amazing job with him.  I couldn’t do what he does.”

Daisuke sits forward in his chair so fast he actually manages to bump into his mic.  He bumbles an apology over whatever inane question was going to follow that, and then just keeps going.

“I didn’t know that!  I read for Ueda,” he says, too late to attempt cool detachment but realizing it too late.  “I’ve always played the hero before, you know?  When they told me they wanted me to be the villain, I was pretty mad.  I thought, no one wants to be the bad guy.”

Ichijouji’s laugh is quiet and sweet, just like his character’s, and Daisuke has to bite down on his tongue, hard, to keep in the sudden desire to swear.

A week later, Ichijouji is free and so they meet for another interview in person.  The cafe is European style, not quite busy in the late morning, so it’s easy to spot Ichijouji sitting at a table by himself, cup of coffee already in hand.  Daisuke ignores him for the moment in lieu of caffeine.  His definition of “morning” tends to start a lot later than most people’s.

Ichijouji waves at him, smiling soft and friendly.  “How are you today, Motomiya?”

Daisuke could handle some rivalry before coffee kicks in, but this open pleasantness drags at him.  He collapses into the chair next to Ichijouji, letting himself slump miserably for a few long seconds before rousing, and only that when Ichijouji gives that soft laugh of his again.

“This is my first interview with Animage,” Ichijouji says, confessing or just trying to make Daisuke feel better.

He’s not sure what he’s supposed to do with that information, but staring uselessly probably isn’t it, so he clears his throat and opens his mouth, trusting it to do the work for him.  It usually does.

“I did one a few years ago, for this fighting thing I worked on.  They did a spread on all the actors for the hero group, you know?  Just little snippets, really.  It was all done over email.  It wasn’t a big deal.  I mean, it wasn’t like this.”

Ichijouji wraps his hands around his mug and nods.  “Hino,” he says, and Daisuke is so distracted thinking long, pale, slender that the word bounces around between his ears for a bit before his brain actually catches it.

“You, uh.”  He makes startled eye contact and then looks away in a hurry, failing hard at being casual.  He forces a laugh.  “You watched that?”

It wasn’t very good, is the thing.  Pretty rote, as far as fighting stories goes.  It got twelve episodes and then no renewal, due to disinterest by all parties, mostly notably the publisher, who had forced a sudden finale out of the mangaka and moved on to another mediocre title.  The fanbase that was still around had left in bitterness and that was it for Hino and the other heroes.

Daisuke dares another look at Ichijouji, watches him go a little tense, a little pink.  The earth shifts.

“I’ve seen all your work,” Ichijouji says, definitely a confession this time.

Daisuke pictures his CV, all typed out in acting credits.  It’s not that deep, mostly side characters, a few episodes here and there on various longer series, just two leads, and now a single villain role.  It would take some serious trawling to find all of it.  Even Daisuke hasn’t seen all of it.

Daisuke pictures Ken’s filmography: leads in smaller projects, independent studios and short films, two RPGs, a visual novel, and even a couple live action items, from back when he was a teenager.  He actually had to email the distributor of the NVL, to get ahold of a copy.

“Yeah,” Daisuke finally says.  He doesn’t realize he’s still staring until Ichijouji looks up, until he feels the spark of eye contact again.  He smiles.  “Yeah, I’ve.  Yours too.  I mean, to be honest, I had the RPGs before I knew you were in them.”

He has a figure of Ichijouji’s character, too, but he’ll go to his grave with the secret.

Ichijouji goes pinker but holds his gaze, and Daisuke can’t help but lean toward him.

“In the new chapter,” Daisuke says, “when Ueda and Kuroyashi find each other in the haunted house, they can feel their hearts beating together.”

Ichijouji presses his fingertips against the front of his sweater, so gently the fabric barely shifts under the touch, and Daisuke swears he can feel it under his ribs.

[otakuupgrade-blog]

Sword Art Online, a masterpiece in more than 3 genres

Are you a fan of almost every anime genre? Or are you a picky otaku who spends all day reading anime recommendations and end up watching nothing by the end of the day? (<This one is me.) Whichever you are, Sword Art Online (SAO, in short) is a must-watch anime series that adapts the hugely popular light novel series written by Reki Kawahara.

Why should you watch it? Now, it's time to explain why I stated SAO is "a masterpiece in more than 3 genres". The anime series SAO not only covers major genres such as action, adventure, fantasy and romance but it also includes a wee bit of sub genres like drama, sci-fi, and game. By watching it, you'll get to see more than just exciting fight actions, such as heart-melting (yes, certainly more than "heart-warming") romantic scenes and tear-dropping tragic events. The wide range of genres it covers isn't all that is exceptionally attractive about this anime; the engaging plot line, the striking turns of events, the blood-boiling, touching OSTs that appear perfectly-timed, and the stunning character and scenery artworks all have the power to make you cry your hearts out.

Enough with my personal thoughts and praises. Let's dive into the discussion of this masterpiece right now! I can bet that more than 6 out of 10 otakus out there have watched SAO by the time I'm writing this; the others are newbie otakus who watch only what's currently airing on TV or those who don't like Action-adventure and fantasy at all.

Information and Statistics:

Sword Art Online anime adaptation was premiered in summer 2012. It currently stands as No.3 in Popularity on MyAnimeList, and has more than one million otakus in its fandom. There are 25 episodes in Sword Art Online and 24 in Sword Art Online 2. The light-novel series has 20 addictive volumes, and I suggest you read all of them, either before or after watching the anime series. The manga series have 10 adaptations of the light novel series, all of which are written by Reki Kawahara and illustrated by different artists.

Synopsis:

The compelling introduction of Sword Art Online, as I cite from light novel series volume 1, is as follows:

“ A huge castle made of stone and steel floating in an endless sky. 

That was all this world was. It took a vagarious group of craftsmen one month to survey the place; the diameter of the base floor was about 10 kilometers — large enough to fit the entirety of Setagaya-ku within. Above, there were 100 floors stacking straight upwards; its sheer size was unbelievable. It was impossible to even guess how much data it consisted of.Inside, there were a couple of large cities along with countless small scale towns and villages, forests and plains, and even lakes. Only one stairway linked each floor to another, and the stairways existed in dungeons where large numbers of monsters roamed; so discovering and getting through was no easy matter. However, once someone made a breakthrough and arrived at a city of the upper floor, the «Teleport Gates» there and of every cities in the lower floors would be connected making it possible for anyone to move freely through these levels.With these conditions, the huge castle had been steadily conquered for two years. 

The current front line is the 74th floor.The name of the castle was «Aincrad», a world of battles with swords that continued floating and had engulfed approximately six thousand people. Otherwise known as...«Sword Art Online».”

The story takes place in the near future (around 2022) when Virtual Reality gameplay technologies advance to the level where all your sensations can be transferred into a virtual world so that you can get exceedingly realistic experience while playing. All you need to do is just lie down on bed, put on a device around your head, and control your virtual avatar in a virtual world with nothing but your thoughts. One day, a very popular VR game got released and the protagonist Kirito, along with 10,000 other thrilled players, logged into the beautiful virtual world Aincrad. Unfortunately, the players soon find themselves unable to log out of the game. To make matters worse, the game developer declared that players will be trapped inside Aincrad until they finish all 100 levels of the game, and that they would die in real life if they were killed inside the game.

Here's a trailer to get you pumped up.

[SPOILER ALERT] If you're like me, you're probably wondering if the story has a happy ending. The answer is YES. The story contains both fun and tragic twists and turns that'll make you cry out loud. But, I guarantee you'll be left feeling awesome in the end so just sit back and enjoy the series.​

And, friends, this is how a masterpiece story is crafted. I hope you'll enjoy the thrill and drama of Sword Art Online anime series as you progress through the plot together with the protagonists that'll remain in your heart perhaps forever. It's best to watch alone so you can enjoy the most epic scenes to the fullest, turn the volume up to max when the soundtrack kicks in, and cry out loud without any restraint. I also highly recommend you to marathon the series if you have enough time.

The Psychology of Sword Art Online

Considering thoroughly, Sword Art Online is more than just love and war. It serves as an ominous implication of the future of VR technology that'll potentially trap humans inside virtual worlds. What's more, SAO elegantly portrays the power of true love that helps us overcome even the biggest obstacles. In addition, it teaches us a moral, which can be described in Albert Einstein's quotes as follows:

Not satisfied?

Yes, I understand it isn't easy to be content with just 49 episodes of anime, 20 light-novel series, and 10 manga adaptations. Here's "Sword Art Online, The Movie- Ordinal Scale", the first SAO movie that was released in about 1,000 theatres worldwide on February 18, 2017. The story has a meaningful, heart-warming plot and an interesting AR fantasy. The theme song of the movie is "Catch The Moment", a new song by LiSA.

This is it for now, otakus. Peace out! See you in my next post! I'll be back soon enough... unless I cry a river and drown after re-watching SAO and re-reading the whole light-novel series. T.T

Please visit my website at  www.imxprs.com/free/hiroyuki/otaku-upgrade to discover even more awesome anime series and lovely anime characters.

[smokeybrandreviews]

Go Woke Go Broke

I am a fan of great stories. I adore brilliant, unique, art. I adore when both are integral to a creation be it film, comic, book, short story, light novel, fan fiction; Whatever. I find the ability to build worlds in almost any capacity, incredible. I’m also an older Millennial; Part of the tweener, X/Y, Oregon Trail generation. Born in the 80s, raised in the 90s, and came of age in the early 00s.We played until the street lights caught us, my first game system was an NES, and all my Saturday morning cartoons were sans Disney, toy commercials. I got an honorable mention once at a science fair and my parents were unimpressed so Participation Trophies were a joke to me and i learned how to deal with bullies by dealing with bullies. I had to worry about gangs shooting up my school, not that lone, weird kid in a trench coat. I’m all about representation but i understand that if you want people to look like you on film, you’d better find a way to make that film in white ass Hollywood. Basically, i have sense whereas most Millennials born after 89, do not. I need to make that distinction because we are about to get into some sh*t.

The merit and value of representation or visibility in mainstream media is dependent on the quality of said portrayal in the cultural zeitgeist. I’m a giant black dude who lives in America so representation for me basically begins and ends with a thug persona. As a black person in general, watching actors who look like me get passed over in roles that are uplifting and enriching to the culture like Hurricane or Ali for very specific, very demeaning, very marginalization, stereotypes, is disgusting. Black people, however excellent they are, never win for anything other than the magical Negro, uplifting slave, or non-threatening service person. Hidden Figures is an amazing tale of the trio of black women who saved NASA during the height of the space race. It was nominated for three Oscars and won none. Mahershala Ali did win an Oscar for best supporting actor portraying Juan, a drug dealer. Another movie he was in won several Oscars as well, Green Book. Ali plays Dr. Don Shirley characterized by the magical negro trope. I can go on and on. Denzel Washington got his second Oscar for Training day playing a corrupt ass cop when he turned in a much better, far more emotional performance, in Hurricane the year before. His first? Glory, where he played a former slave. A few years later? Snubbed for Philadelphia. Washington played, deftly i might add, a lawyer named Joe Milller who had to reconcile his own prejudices bout what it meant to have AIDS. Dude wasn’t even nominated. Tom Hanks won, though. See that pattern?

I don’t like Steven Universe. I don’t think it’s a very good show but because it has a massive fanbase among the LBGTQ community, it’s bullet proof from criticism. Nah, i’m about to go in. I adore Rebecca Sugar and i commend her creativity. My favorite episodes of Adventure Time are often attribute to her in some way, wither s0rt direction story boarding, or song writing. Marceline wouldn’t be Marcy with Sugar and i’ll always love her for that. That said, Steven Universe is melodramatic trash that uses pandering as a crutch. I don’t have a problem with the gays or whatever getting their visibility, but there are ways to do it without coming across as plagiarized drivel. Euphoria immediately comes to mind. Universe wears it’s anime inspirations on it’s sleeve. Sugar is a massive fan of Sailor Moon and you see, just, SO much of that in this show. Entire scenes and plot points are directly lifted from Usagi’s epic adventure but, because of the nostalgia goggles, cats are blinded to the straight-up theft. I’m not. That lack of originality is hindrance to the message. I mean, not really, i guess, because people love this show but it’s hard for me to acknowledge anything genuine about it because i know it is all a fraud. Hell, Land of the Lustrous, a manga by the name of Hoseki no Kuni, bares more than a striking similarity to Universe and came out a full year before Steven first bared his belly gem! Guess what Lustrous is? A manga! Guess who loves anime and manga? Sugar! Guess who has built a career on Sailor Moon images and Fan art? Sugar! Hell, Lustrous does a better job of LBGTQ representation by accident. Seriously, check that sh*t out. It’s an excellent narrative that doesn’t pander to the SJW crowd. It just tells it’s story about gem girls and space monsters. Sh*t is dope.

Where i feel the most sting, however, is in the US comic industry. All of this PC wokeness is in direct contrast to creative storytelling, for the most part. Marvel is hilariously guilty of this sh*t. I was on board when they decided to turn carol Danvers into Captain Marvel, effectively retiring her leotard costume and pretending kike it never happened. Fine. I liked that design but i get how impractical is was. The homage to Mar-Vell in her current duds is cool, too. I was one of the few that waited before running to judgment as Bendis race-bent Spider-Man into Miles Morales and then gender bent Iron Man into Riri Williams. Riri is a sh*t character in her own right but the outrage was more about her gender and race which made the criticism seem neckbeard nerd rage. Even then, i stuck around. Hell, when that Mockingbird run dropped and was literally a feminist manifesto, i let it ride because it was cleverly written and, foe the most part, i am kind of a feminist. More Equalist but there are feminist undertones in there. More recently, however, we got this New Warriors book and this is where i have to draw the line. Snowflake and Safe pace? Token non-binary hero? Marvel used to be at the forefront of this sh*t. They had gay superheroes in the 70s. They got married in the 80s. They addressed AIDS in the 90s and muslim bigotry in the 00s. Marvel was always crazy social conscious. That was one of their story telling staples and they delivered those messages with a light but firm touch.

F*ck, dude, the X-Men are an allegory for black people and the Civil Rights movement! Magneto and Professor X are literally caricatures of Malcom X and Dr. King.  mainstream comic, broaching the subject of discrimination, camouflaged in the vibrant arto f superhuman clashes, sold to white kids across America, during the f*cking 60s? Are you serious? That sh*t changes minds. That sh*t starts a conversation. That sh*t is status quo changing! Snowflake and Safespace? F*cking really? This is your social discourse now? Disrespectful parody of a marginalizing slur and already absurd concept derived by weenies? This isn’t even satire, it’s outright disrespect. I think safespaces are detrimental to proper, healthy, discourse or that the notion of those who stand up to offense are snowflakes who “need to get a sense of humor”, but for real? The fact that cats just tacked on the one is non-binary just outright exposes the true intent. This sh*t is pandering, straight up. It’s non representation It’s not progress. It’s disrespectful Woke point grabbing. It’s superficial lip-service being played to those that feel like their label isn’t getting enough media scrutiny. I think all of these new genders or whatever are stupid but i’m an old person. Some kid might identify with being non-binary or whatever and THIS sh8t is what they have to look forward to seeing. You can’t be serious.

Now, the whole reason i’m writing this, the entire reason i was even thing king about this subject, is because of Late Night with Lily Singh. Singh is a comedy Youtuber who has crossed over into the mainstream. I, personally, don’t find her funny, but i understand how important her success is in the world. Singh is, if you haven’t deduced by her name, a Desi woman. She’s a Canadian of Punjabi descent and she’s making moves. Ma is one of the most popular channels on the platform and, indeed, i first came across her through another cat i follow. Even though i personally do not enjoy her content, the breadth of what she has accomplished does not elude me. Singh is a powerhouse and should be recognized as such. However, her actual, on-air, late night talk show is f*cking dog sh*t. Singh is not geared for that. Like, at all. Her jokes are bad, her monologues are delivered with a clumsy anxiousness that belies the energetic skit-maker from her Youtube channel, and she is the worst interviewer on television! Her guests are often visibly bewildered. Watching James Corden interview someone is off-putting, dude does his best impression of graham Norton, but Seeing Singh just assault her guests with mediocrity is textbook cringe. Why the f*ck was she put into this very public position, thrown to the wolves, doomed to fail?

Her show is bad, man, but when you say so, the PC Police come out to beat your sh*t in. Singh is Indian, female, and bisexually; The three biggest spaces on the Marginalized bingo board. Being brown, or queer, or prone to vaginas gets you them woke points whenever you create anything but to have all three at once? Boy, you bulletproof! Saying anything remotely resembling criticism gets you cancelled on the grounds of sexism, homophobia or just plain classic racism, all the while, her show i literal sh*t! Singh, herself, is often racist and sexist throughout her “comedy” skits! I’m not one to subscribe to white people being discriminated against. A a black dude with a firm grasp of history, i personally believe white people should just take it when a minority goes after them because they never have a problem taking from everyone else. Goose/gander, you know what i’m saying? That said, there’s an art, a nuance, to that racial observation. Singh does not deliver her content with that deft touch. She’s built a career on malicious caricatures of the whites and the penises, which would be fine if there was a message in her satire, but there’s not. It’s base and uninspired.

You can build a career on that type of content. Dave Chappelle’s entire career is that type of content and he’s one of the greatest comedians to ever comedy. The difference between his material and Singh’s is that Chappelle says something. Chappelle hits you in the gut and forces you to look within. His sh*t is actually profound. Lily Singh is not. She’s skews closer to that trainwreck, Nicole Arbour, than she does Eddie Murphy. She’s more Amy Schumer than Wanda Sykes and that sh*t is on full display with her terrible, terrible, talk show. I read somewhere that it might be getting cancelled soon and my first thought was, “It’s not cancelled now?” If i am aware that Singh’s content is pedestrian, surely the studio knew it was. I mean, the ratings of her show are abysmal. She even found her way into a race controversy as a female, lesbian, Desi on TV! Then it dawned on me; This wasn’t true representation This was NBC casing Woke points. They never believed in this show, rather, wanted to use Singh as a sounding board. She’s a trophy for a network trying to court that meek, 90s baby, everyone-is-special, “Muh anxiety”, crowd. It didn’t work and Singh’s show is getting shelved, as it should, but it’s f*cked up that this is what representation at the corporate level looks like. This sh*t is tokenism, plain and simple

Representation is great. I want all of us to be seen. People around the world judge our various cultures based on what our entertainment contributes to the cultural zeitgeist of the world. Mot blacks aren’t gang-bangers, rappers, or dug dealers. Most Muslims aren’t terrorists. hell, most Muslims aren’t even of middle eastern descent! Islam is the largest religion in the world. You’re more likely to meat an south Asian with a Koran than an Iranian with a suicide belt. Gays aren’t going to turn you, Women don’t have vagina dentata, and the handicapped are more resilient than you think. Don’t pander. Don’t token. This game of playing for Woke points in the media and arts needs to stop. All of this faux outrage by mostly rich, white, people on behalf of the people their privilege marginalizes, needs to stop. Patting yourself on the back because you’re book has a Sudanese, paraplegic, lesbian, lead is not being progressive, it’s masturbatory at best. Approach your project with a sense of levity, common sense, and, more than anything, respect. Is what you deem “representation” a good look for whatever class you’re trying to champion? Or is it just a means to stroke your ego and push your politics? Are you Brad Pitt or are you Kathleen Kennedy? Is what you want to show us going to do more bad than good?

At the end of the day, create what you ant to create, just be conscious of how you create. Evaluate your message. Make sure it’ something that needs to be said. Something that, when said, can’t be ignored. Make the message profound and the representation enriching. Make that sh*t count because doing so in an effort to appear the Wokest, just trivializes everything you are attempting to do.

[smokeybrand]

Go Woke Go Broke

I am a fan of great stories. I adore brilliant, unique, art. I adore when both are integral to a creation be it film, comic, book, short story, light novel, fan fiction; Whatever. I find the ability to build worlds in almost any capacity, incredible. I’m also an older Millennial; Part of the tweener, X/Y, Oregon Trail generation. Born in the 80s, raised in the 90s, and came of age in the early 00s.We played until the street lights caught us, my first game system was an NES, and all my Saturday morning cartoons were sans Disney, toy commercials. I got an honorable mention once at a science fair and my parents were unimpressed so Participation Trophies were a joke to me and i learned how to deal with bullies by dealing with bullies. I had to worry about gangs shooting up my school, not that lone, weird kid in a trench coat. I’m all about representation but i understand that if you want people to look like you on film, you’d better find a way to make that film in white ass Hollywood. Basically, i have sense whereas most Millennials born after 89, do not. I need to make that distinction because we are about to get into some sh*t.

The merit and value of representation or visibility in mainstream media is dependent on the quality of said portrayal in the cultural zeitgeist. I’m a giant black dude who lives in America so representation for me basically begins and ends with a thug persona. As a black person in general, watching actors who look like me get passed over in roles that are uplifting and enriching to the culture like Hurricane or Ali for very specific, very demeaning, very marginalization, stereotypes, is disgusting. Black people, however excellent they are, never win for anything other than the magical Negro, uplifting slave, or non-threatening service person. Hidden Figures is an amazing tale of the trio of black women who saved NASA during the height of the space race. It was nominated for three Oscars and won none. Mahershala Ali did win an Oscar for best supporting actor portraying Juan, a drug dealer. Another movie he was in won several Oscars as well, Green Book. Ali plays Dr. Don Shirley characterized by the magical negro trope. I can go on and on. Denzel Washington got his second Oscar for Training day playing a corrupt ass cop when he turned in a much better, far more emotional performance, in Hurricane the year before. His first? Glory, where he played a former slave. A few years later? Snubbed for Philadelphia. Washington played, deftly i might add, a lawyer named Joe Milller who had to reconcile his own prejudices bout what it meant to have AIDS. Dude wasn’t even nominated. Tom Hanks won, though. See that pattern?

I don’t like Steven Universe. I don’t think it’s a very good show but because it has a massive fanbase among the LBGTQ community, it’s bullet proof from criticism. Nah, i’m about to go in. I adore Rebecca Sugar and i commend her creativity. My favorite episodes of Adventure Time are often attribute to her in some way, wither s0rt direction story boarding, or song writing. Marceline wouldn’t be Marcy with Sugar and i’ll always love her for that. That said, Steven Universe is melodramatic trash that uses pandering as a crutch. I don’t have a problem with the gays or whatever getting their visibility, but there are ways to do it without coming across as plagiarized drivel. Euphoria immediately comes to mind. Universe wears it’s anime inspirations on it’s sleeve. Sugar is a massive fan of Sailor Moon and you see, just, SO much of that in this show. Entire scenes and plot points are directly lifted from Usagi’s epic adventure but, because of the nostalgia goggles, cats are blinded to the straight-up theft. I’m not. That lack of originality is hindrance to the message. I mean, not really, i guess, because people love this show but it’s hard for me to acknowledge anything genuine about it because i know it is all a fraud. Hell, Land of the Lustrous, a manga by the name of Hoseki no Kuni, bares more than a striking similarity to Universe and came out a full year before Steven first bared his belly gem! Guess what Lustrous is? A manga! Guess who loves anime and manga? Sugar! Guess who has built a career on Sailor Moon images and Fan art? Sugar! Hell, Lustrous does a better job of LBGTQ representation by accident. Seriously, check that sh*t out. It’s an excellent narrative that doesn’t pander to the SJW crowd. It just tells it’s story about gem girls and space monsters. Sh*t is dope.

Where i feel the most sting, however, is in the US comic industry. All of this PC wokeness is in direct contrast to creative storytelling, for the most part. Marvel is hilariously guilty of this sh*t. I was on board when they decided to turn carol Danvers into Captain Marvel, effectively retiring her leotard costume and pretending kike it never happened. Fine. I liked that design but i get how impractical is was. The homage to Mar-Vell in her current duds is cool, too. I was one of the few that waited before running to judgment as Bendis race-bent Spider-Man into Miles Morales and then gender bent Iron Man into Riri Williams. Riri is a sh*t character in her own right but the outrage was more about her gender and race which made the criticism seem neckbeard nerd rage. Even then, i stuck around. Hell, when that Mockingbird run dropped and was literally a feminist manifesto, i let it ride because it was cleverly written and, foe the most part, i am kind of a feminist. More Equalist but there are feminist undertones in there. More recently, however, we got this New Warriors book and this is where i have to draw the line. Snowflake and Safe pace? Token non-binary hero? Marvel used to be at the forefront of this sh*t. They had gay superheroes in the 70s. They got married in the 80s. They addressed AIDS in the 90s and muslim bigotry in the 00s. Marvel was always crazy social conscious. That was one of their story telling staples and they delivered those messages with a light but firm touch.

F*ck, dude, the X-Men are an allegory for black people and the Civil Rights movement! Magneto and Professor X are literally caricatures of Malcom X and Dr. King.  mainstream comic, broaching the subject of discrimination, camouflaged in the vibrant arto f superhuman clashes, sold to white kids across America, during the f*cking 60s? Are you serious? That sh*t changes minds. That sh*t starts a conversation. That sh*t is status quo changing! Snowflake and Safespace? F*cking really? This is your social discourse now? Disrespectful parody of a marginalizing slur and already absurd concept derived by weenies? This isn’t even satire, it’s outright disrespect. I think safespaces are detrimental to proper, healthy, discourse or that the notion of those who stand up to offense are snowflakes who “need to get a sense of humor”, but for real? The fact that cats just tacked on the one is non-binary just outright exposes the true intent. This sh*t is pandering, straight up. It’s non representation It’s not progress. It’s disrespectful Woke point grabbing. It’s superficial lip-service being played to those that feel like their label isn’t getting enough media scrutiny. I think all of these new genders or whatever are stupid but i’m an old person. Some kid might identify with being non-binary or whatever and THIS sh8t is what they have to look forward to seeing. You can’t be serious.

Now, the whole reason i’m writing this, the entire reason i was even thing king about this subject, is because of Late Night with Lily Singh. Singh is a comedy Youtuber who has crossed over into the mainstream. I, personally, don’t find her funny, but i understand how important her success is in the world. Singh is, if you haven’t deduced by her name, a Desi woman. She’s a Canadian of Punjabi descent and she’s making moves. Ma is one of the most popular channels on the platform and, indeed, i first came across her through another cat i follow. Even though i personally do not enjoy her content, the breadth of what she has accomplished does not elude me. Singh is a powerhouse and should be recognized as such. However, her actual, on-air, late night talk show is f*cking dog sh*t. Singh is not geared for that. Like, at all. Her jokes are bad, her monologues are delivered with a clumsy anxiousness that belies the energetic skit-maker from her Youtube channel, and she is the worst interviewer on television! Her guests are often visibly bewildered. Watching James Corden interview someone is off-putting, dude does his best impression of graham Norton, but Seeing Singh just assault her guests with mediocrity is textbook cringe. Why the f*ck was she put into this very public position, thrown to the wolves, doomed to fail?

Her show is bad, man, but when you say so, the PC Police come out to beat your sh*t in. Singh is Indian, female, and bisexually; The three biggest spaces on the Marginalized bingo board. Being brown, or queer, or prone to vaginas gets you them woke points whenever you create anything but to have all three at once? Boy, you bulletproof! Saying anything remotely resembling criticism gets you cancelled on the grounds of sexism, homophobia or just plain classic racism, all the while, her show i literal sh*t! Singh, herself, is often racist and sexist throughout her “comedy” skits! I’m not one to subscribe to white people being discriminated against. A a black dude with a firm grasp of history, i personally believe white people should just take it when a minority goes after them because they never have a problem taking from everyone else. Goose/gander, you know what i’m saying? That said, there’s an art, a nuance, to that racial observation. Singh does not deliver her content with that deft touch. She’s built a career on malicious caricatures of the whites and the penises, which would be fine if there was a message in her satire, but there’s not. It’s base and uninspired.

You can build a career on that type of content. Dave Chappelle’s entire career is that type of content and he’s one of the greatest comedians to ever comedy. The difference between his material and Singh’s is that Chappelle says something. Chappelle hits you in the gut and forces you to look within. His sh*t is actually profound. Lily Singh is not. She’s skews closer to that trainwreck, Nicole Arbour, than she does Eddie Murphy. She’s more Amy Schumer than Wanda Sykes and that sh*t is on full display with her terrible, terrible, talk show. I read somewhere that it might be getting cancelled soon and my first thought was, “It’s not cancelled now?” If i am aware that Singh’s content is pedestrian, surely the studio knew it was. I mean, the ratings of her show are abysmal. She even found her way into a race controversy as a female, lesbian, Desi on TV! Then it dawned on me; This wasn’t true representation This was NBC casing Woke points. They never believed in this show, rather, wanted to use Singh as a sounding board. She’s a trophy for a network trying to court that meek, 90s baby, everyone-is-special, “Muh anxiety”, crowd. It didn’t work and Singh’s show is getting shelved, as it should, but it’s f*cked up that this is what representation at the corporate level looks like. This sh*t is tokenism, plain and simple

Representation is great. I want all of us to be seen. People around the world judge our various cultures based on what our entertainment contributes to the cultural zeitgeist of the world. Mot blacks aren’t gang-bangers, rappers, or dug dealers. Most Muslims aren’t terrorists. hell, most Muslims aren’t even of middle eastern descent! Islam is the largest religion in the world. You’re more likely to meat an south Asian with a Koran than an Iranian with a suicide belt. Gays aren’t going to turn you, Women don’t have vagina dentata, and the handicapped are more resilient than you think. Don’t pander. Don’t token. This game of playing for Woke points in the media and arts needs to stop. All of this faux outrage by mostly rich, white, people on behalf of the people their privilege marginalizes, needs to stop. Patting yourself on the back because you’re book has a Sudanese, paraplegic, lesbian, lead is not being progressive, it’s masturbatory at best. Approach your project with a sense of levity, common sense, and, more than anything, respect. Is what you deem “representation” a good look for whatever class you’re trying to champion? Or is it just a means to stroke your ego and push your politics? Are you Brad Pitt or are you Kathleen Kennedy? Is what you want to show us going to do more bad than good?

At the end of the day, create what you ant to create, just be conscious of how you create. Evaluate your message. Make sure it’ something that needs to be said. Something that, when said, can’t be ignored. Make the message profound and the representation enriching. Make that sh*t count because doing so in an effort to appear the Wokest, just trivializes everything you are attempting to do.

[my-darling-sunflower]

this is all so crazy.. the fear is there, the acceptance is there, the restlessness is there. i cant figure out what to feel or how to cope, i guess the “mom” energy is more prevalent right now. i dont exactly care about this whole situation for me and my situation but i worry about my family, my friends, my sisters. it makes you realize just how fragile and short life can be. i feel like i’m torn, i cant tell if ive accepted my death after so many years of being on the edge or if ive just lost my sense of self completely. ive gotten back into manga, anime, games, art. all things i distanced myself from for a while to try and figure out who i was. i tried being girly and dresses and feminine, i tried long hair, short hair, i tried overly sexual and complete monogamy, indie, country, folk, soul, all over. i still dont know where i fall. i just want to know who i am. i have no idea where i sit, its hard finding my identity. especially after my whole life has been determined by other people, be it parents, spouses, or even my mental health distorting who i was. i have things i love, but i always question it. do i love it or have i just spent years being told i love it? or, even worse, do i dislike it deep down but have spent so long trying to justify it because i wanted to try something out and had to fight tooth and nail to express myself in any way. i loved purple as a kid, my mother llikes purple, and all my sisters do too, but because my family takes no time to get to know me they think i only like black. my aunt gets bags, mugs, cups, blankets the whole nine with my sisters and moms names on them every year. ive been excluded from this for years because they refuse to believe i like anything but black. its a horrible feeling. theyve never wanted to see me. my home. my life. they dont care. no one wants to know me and im still struggling to figure out who i am but that doesnt excuse the lack of effort from those around me. but i also feel like i am not entitled to their love or care. they complain that i dont make the effort to check on them, or go visit, but on the flip side, my grandparents on my moms side have my number, they have never called me to checkup on me, to see if im even alive. why is it on me to make that effort? they can watch my sisters anytime my mom asks, they practically raise my cousin, and my other cousin lived with them almost her whole life. i dont understand how they can do all that for them but i have never once received a “hey how are you doing? we miss you” idk. i just need a space to vent and thats what this is right? a space for me to express the feelings i cant tell anyone else because theyre too far up their own ass to even begin to understand anyone elses problems. anyway. i did a crazy work out today, actually pretty proud of myself. my roommate watched me for the first time and was amazed at what i could do even tho i work out every day and i was happy that i could out last him even tho he likes to think hes stronger than me i have much stronger endurance. i havent been sleeping. i can count the good nights of sleep on one hand with fingers to spare. its been tough. lots of intrusive thoughts, lots of fear and anxiety. i really want help. i want to stop feeling like this i want to feel peace and calm for once in my life and that feels like it may never even happen. i have thoughts of the guy i always post about. he was here yesterday, the more he comes over the more i see just how human he is, its reassuring because even though i am flawed and i have my issues he still texts me and comes over and he always asks me if im doing okay before we do anything and after he asks me if im okay and if im good, no man in my life has ever cared enough and thats how i now hes a good person but it breaks my heart because he is good man who i cant have. hes not mine and i know he never will be but im thankful for him. i think about all the little things that make me smile. i was once having the biggest panic attack and he came over, held me, and distracted me from the world, that isnt his place im not his responsibility and i feel weird saying this but i am sad that his ex wife left him when their child was born, and i dont know the circumstances of their life back then but damn he would be an amazing father. he is safe. i cant have it, and i tear up thinking about it. i want that, i want a man i trust wholeheartedly. he makes me feel attractive, sexier than ive ever been. beyond that i literally cant help but smile around him, i feel aware of everything around him, his smell is intoxicating, truly the first man ive ever looked at and i cant find a single flaw, i would listen to him talk forever, sitting on my counter in a lace top and panties talking to him leaned against the wall and hes casually eyeing me, makes a comment about how i must be easy to shop for. thinking back i crave his eyes on me. he likes the things i hate, ive found acceptance in a way i have never known. my insecurities, my physical flaws, my ugly faces, ugly sounds, they become my strongest assets because he likes them, i can wrap him around my finger and the man who never looses his cool is melting under me. but on the same note he can ruin me, he makes me feel content like ive never known, i crave the touch, the passion, the last look he takes before walking out my back door, the hop skip and a jump i do through my kitchen after locking the door. he leaves me laughing every time, god i could talk about him forever. i fucking hate it, i hate that i cant have it. i cant have a man like that. fine. i tap out, ive ranted a whole novel and i know itll just devolve into sad thoughts and trauma that should be unpacked with a therapist, not written on a platform for me to look back on and regret. maybe one day i can write about my progress, how im getting better, how sex is a healthy thing, how im in a stable relationship that will last the rest of my life, how i can trust, how i can look at a strong man and not cry at the thought of not having a father figure in my life. maybe one day...

[fic-dreamin]

Wait whattt Had no idea this was even made. I guess this is based off of the spinoff L movie that has to do with a viruse outbreak on a plane and terroist. I was sold on just the fact they had another novel the first one they made was amazing and im sure this one will be just as well. Simple you like death note you like L hurry up and put this in your cart. Go to Amazon

) It's extremely twisted with an amazing plot, & characters A must read, especially if you've already watched the anime. (Like most.) It's extremely twisted with an amazing plot, & characters. There's much left out that's important to the plot & development that was not in the anime. I definitely highly recommend this series. Go to Amazon

Excellent!!! Where the actual product is concerned, it is just very finely made. The cover images are beautiful as well as the panel art and the image on the inside depicting L and Kira. Across the top of the pages, there's a countdown of how many days L has left to live. My friends find it morbid, but it really is just an excellent touch. There is a ribbon-bookmark too, something I always find useful. Most incredible/geeky part? It's written by "M". Mello. Just like how the Los Angeles BB Murder Cases was narrated by him. Just YES. Go to Amazon

Kira, the Third Quick note, if you haven't read the previous five volumes then don't read this review, as it will spoil those volumes for you. However, if you have, then this is an entirely spoiler free review for you and by all means, read on... Go to Amazon

Love this anime Absolutely love this anime. The story is great but the artwork is absolutely awesome. If you have not read this you need to. Go to Amazon

Well Impressed Delivered 5 days before it's earliest due date, is in japanese as stated, and in great (but not perfect) quality, which is expected at least from me. Well worth it Go to Amazon

All around good time The book is a great read, it lagged a few times but that's only because I tend to space out when reading villain scenes because they're mostly gloating or something meaningless, but in this book it only happened because it got too descriptive, do you know what I mean? So that and only that is the reason for it not being 5 stars. As for the sexuality it's simply flirting, not sexual content for what it is- for anyone curious about what their kids are up to with all these crazy books you don't understand. Go to Amazon

Love it, but have to be very careful since ... Love it, but have to be very careful since the front and back cover seem to have some velvety texture; I wonder if it was painted on because it start chipping in a few small places but not noticeable enough to make a big deal about it. Go to Amazon

Death Note is great. Get to reading. Five Stars SO PRETTY Four Stars Five Stars Five Stars Five Stars Five Stars Yes! Amazing read especially if it's your first manga series!